miami marathon training

well, we started a new blog to track performance on marathon training...what i didn't tell anyone is that i am not actually going to do the full marathon! i'm focusing on really preparing for the half, which i will register for shortly. i am going to try to do 5 half marathons in 5 months as follows:

1. october 4th - marine corps half marathon, jacksonville, fl
2. november 27th (thanksgiving day) - outback distance half marathon, jacksonville, fl
3. december 21st - jacksonville bank half marathon, jacksonville, fl
4. january 25th - ing miami half marathon, miami, fl
5. february 15th - breast cancer half marathon, jacksonville, fl

who knows if i can actually do it, but i'm sure gonna try!

2008 river run

we did it!!! without formally training, or logging any long runs, i proved i could just go out and have fun, and finish with a smile. i can't wait for next year!!

week 3 river run training

ok, so i missed week 1 and 2, but who's counting?? the results of week 3 training are here...and they are ok. luckily living in the city forces me to walk everywhere, so i can cheat and consider that part of my training. my weekly goal is to do more strength training and actually stick to the plan next week. keep in mind, the left side is planned activity and the right side is actual activity. i still have a long way to go to run 9 miles! the good news is that i will be hosting the afterparty again this year, and its lookin' like its going to be a great time!

new year, more posting!

ok ok i know i have been slacking on the posts...so here you go...


another year, another crazy ferg family idea - would you expect anything less? so the story goes that papa ferg bought one of those fancy body fat calculating scales, and decides that we are all going to participate in a little ferg family fun competition (because we looooove competition!) the competition is "who can reduce their body fat the most in 3 months"?? and what are we calling it? why, the biggest loser of course!

so we all read the directions, program the mechanism for each of us, and do the uber-embarrassing weigh-in (did i mention it was the day after cookie-scarfing christmas??) as papa diligently documents all of our measurements, we start plotting strategies for success. mom is just going to wish away the extra fat, lisa is going to run until she can't run any farther, i quickly put together a 10-step weight training and protein-diet plan, and what does dad do...well he gets the stomach flu for 6 days of course! dang! he always has the best ideas.

fast-forward to my first day back in australia...i've got my workout plan clearly laid out, which of course coincides with training for the river run...and i'm immediately bummed to discover i've missed the first 2 days of training thanks to an incredibly irritating loss of a day resulting from crossing the international date line. ahh, well that just means two workouts in one day - that will increase my chances of winning anyway.

hop on the treadmill, i know i only need to run 2 miles today (simple!) at a speed of 6.0mph. turn on the mill, crank it up to 6.0...and...i'm still walking...i'm not even walking fast...what the heck??? a couple of seconds pass by and it hits me...

the treadmill is programmed in kilometres.

i now have no idea how fast to run, or how far i've really gone. while running i make a feeble attempt at mental math (5k is about 3.1 miles....i need to run 2 miles...that should be about...)

i am unhappy to report that i now know what it feels like to run for 30 minutes with a migraine. the worst part - it hasn't been 3 months yet, but i'm definitely the biggest loser.

2007 totals

CYCLING
556.48 miles

RUNNING
228.80 miles

These numbers are a little low because i did fall off the recording wagon after september...my new years resolution is to do a better job of recording my progress for 2008!!

training on the trail

i was pretty bummed that i had to miss a good ride on saturday so that i could teach class, but it was all worth it since a bunch of friends came to class and then we had a great day on the trail on sunday. we ran into amy on the trail, and made a new friend along the way! denise came with me, and completed the whole trail! its so much fun to have so many people enjoying this sport! the trail was nice and shady, and i kept my speed down so i could chat with friends. overall it was a really great way to spend a sunday morning, especially since i had to rush home to catch a plane to jersey. such is life! can't wait for the dollar ride next weekend! how am i ever going to ride 52 miles in one morning??

time = 2:21:09

distance = 31.15

avg speed = 13.24 mph

trek bicycles mandarin

so bob roll was supposed to show up for a ride with the jax community, but of course he bailed at the last minute. everyone was upset, but i was cool because i really just came to ride! today was nice, after yesterdays tough workout we took it easy and rode at a nice, easy pace. no elevated heart rate, but plenty of time in the saddle. we rode through neighborhoods in mandarin, which was great because it was really flat and shady! definitely the best scenario for a recovery ride. i rode with john and karen again, and met up with denise - who turns out to know a ton of my friends already, and is a member of the hammerhead triathlon club...so of course i need to join now! we all gabbed away for the whole ride, just enjoying the nice day (it was only 88 today) and the easy pace. this week i'll be working on getting my strength up to par, and scheduling my next massage.

time = 1:48:34

distance = 26.12 miles

avg speed = 14.44 mph

sponsor = http://abcbike.com