Week #7 || Half-Marathon Training

[seventhe]

Week #7 of Sev's Half-Marathon Training Plan:

	Tempo Run / Intervals	Long Run	Easy Recovery Run	total	target
Week #1	3.07 mi	5.4 mi	3.2 mi	11.67 mi	11 mi
Week #2	3.5 mi	4.85 mi	3.64 mi	12 mi	12 mi
Week #3	4 mi	6.6 mi	3.3 mi	13.9 mi	13.3 mi
Week #4	3.87 mi	7.5 mi	3.3 mi	14.67 mi	14.6 mi
Week #5	4.2 mi	8.9 mi	3.4 mi	16.5 mi	16 mi
Week #6	4.5 mi				REST
Week #7	5.5 mi	6 mi	4.8 mi	16.3 mi	16 mi

As you'll see, I took Week #6 as a well-needed rest week. There was some cross-training in there, yoga, weights, etc, but the only mileage worth recording was the tempo run. I really needed this break!

For Week #7, I split the mileage into three medium-long runs - instead of one long and two shorter - because I was coming off of a rest week and wanted to ease back in to my weekly mileage. I did the first two as combination tempo runs / easy runs.

• 5.5 miles , averaging a 9:35 pace, slow-med-fast-med-slow x 1mi each on the run.


• 4.8 miles, averaging a 9:30 pace: 5min easy / 15 min fast / 5 min easy / 15 min fast / 5 min easy.


• 6 miles - my Garmin hasn't uploaded this run yet, but I did 6 miles outside in the freezing cold yesterday. Yes, I don't even know what I was thinking, it was so cold. It really wasn't bad going 3mi out, but running the 3mi back I was directly into the wind and already sweaty and hollllllllllly shit did I take a long boiling hot shower after that. I am going to estimate I ran 10:30 miles on average - some were definitely closer to 10:00, but I jacked my ankle on mile 4 and definitely tried to rein it in after that.

Also, I really just want to throw this out there for general discussion:

When I was at the gym doing run #1 here, a guy came up on the treadmill next to me and tried to talk to me. He wasn't necessarily setting off any creepershark alarms, but at the same time, I was running and busy and while I responded to his first few questions I made a point to be politely dismissive. He asked my name, what I did for a living, made some pointed comments about a book he was writing (which I didn't ask about), asked if I liked "making friends" at the gym.

Eventually I told him that I was training and asthmatic, and that if I attempted to talk while I ran I would have an asthma attack, and that I would not carry on a conversation with him. I distinctly did not apologize for this: this is my run and I am not sorry that I can't chat with you while I do it. But I was as polite as an asthmatic can be while plugging away a 10:00 mile.

So he left me alone during my run - only asking occasionally how I was doing and how my breathing was.

At some point he struck up a conversation with another older man in the gym. At first I suspected this was a ploy to make me think he wasn't hitting on me, see, he talks to this other guy too, but from what I overheard of their conversation it sounded like my "new friend" was the author of a self-help book and a motivational speaker, because it sounded like he was trying to sell the other gentleman something. He eventually ended up getting this other man's first name and phone number (!!!) because he said he had something that could help the other man get motivated. So my guess now is that this person was being friendly at me in the attempt to make connections, networking, or a sale.

Finally he got off the treadmill and I finished my 5 miles. But at the end, when I was walking for my cooldown, he came back up to me and asked, "have you made your mind up about making friends at the gym yet?"

I said, politely, "I am sorry, but I don't give out my personal information. I am not comfortable with that."

"Oh, no, I meant I would give you mine," he said. "But I can see that you don't want to make friends, and I guess I understand." And he walked away.

My question is this, seriously: Why do I have to be the bad guy? A stranger came up to me out of nowhere and tried to interrupt my run, and *I* am the bad person for not wanting to talk to him, let alone 'be his friend'? The rest of the gym was looking at me like WTF and all I could think of was, I fucking hate how "social" is the default in this society. Those of us who aren't social, who hate casual social interactions like this, who just want to do their run in solitude and then go the fuck home... Why am I the rude one here?

Asaskdja;lksjdklasjdkfffffffffffffffffff.

Next week's goals:

• 18 miles


• 10 mile long run


• ~3 mile tempo, ~5 mile easy/recovery

Comments

[crankyoldman]

I personally don't think you should be the one to apologize and that guy was being passive aggressive and annoying.

I don't like to be bothered by strangers either, there's a good way to be friendly, as in, a hi, opening a door for someone, and that's it. Beyond that is just invasive.

[seventhe]

Yup, this. I thought he was being just as rude. :/

[crankyoldman]

Also relevant to well, awesome:

Since younger Laguna is in Dissidia, does that mean we can ship older Laguna/younger Laguna? And if so why are they not making out right now?

[seventhe]

OH MY GOD

THIS CAN HAPPEN ANY TIME

[lassarina]

He was being rude and setting you up to have to be the asshole so other people would be sympathetic and pay more attention to his spiel, since you were the Rude Bitch. I hate people like that. What a douchecanoe.

[novel_machinist]

don'tcha know, women are not human. You are obligated to do whatever a man wants you to. Or you're confused and bitchy! :/

Fuck. That.


How I feel about that dude

[zen_monk]

You weren't the rude one, he is. He is the one who tries to impose himself onto you and persists in doing so even though you politely made all the social signals of wishing to have time to yourself. He is also then made egotistical for putting it all on you and even bothered to make other people aware of it, so he pretty much made a hissy fit around you.

I would say shrug, give a blatant WTF look to everyone that also says "my privacy was infringed!!! Save me from stalkers!", so they all know that you were the recipient of unwanted attention.

I'm sure many people can sympathize with that, because everyone had at some point or another been the victim of such imposition. >:l

[wallwalker]

Yeah, he was being the passive-aggressive rude guy. Also, the man was obviously selling something and trying to guilt you into listening to his sales pitch, by any means necessary. He was probably hoping that you would think, Hey, I don't want to be unfriendly in front of the whole gym! and then ask him to come back and tell you about whatever it was he wanted to sell. I doubt he gave a damn beyond that.

[deadshrimpblues.livejournal.com]

I really hate it when people try to be gym buddies. I don't mean just smiling at another regular you see all the time or commenting on how fucking cold the pool is or even asking how that sixty-year old lady got such incredible abs, I mean trying to hold a conversation when I am in the middle of a set. I am not there to make friends; I am there to get my workout done and go home. I hate to be rude, but it's a pet peeve of mine and it never fails to irritate.

[first-seventhe.livejournal.com]

No, it really bothers me too: I do NOT want to talk, I'm there to work out. I don't mind saying hi or commenting on a set or something, but the "default to long conversation" thing just bothers me. And I don't see why it's rude. Personally, *I* would think it rude to just go up to someone who was very obviously busy doing something else and start to talk their ear off, but what do I know.

[ifotismeni]

oh man, that is so bizarre to me, but then again i am a new englander living in massachusetts. people DO NOT do stuff like that up here and he would be a massive creep for even starting a conversation in a gym. seriously i have never heard of someone doing that x__x IMO he was weird.

[first-seventhe.livejournal.com]

I am so jealous XD I've gotten a lot of the friendly types, or even the ones who come up and try to adjust your equipment because you're obviously doing it wrong (!!!!!!!!!! seriously, maybe I'm doing it this way because I'm dealing with a weak shoulder, please don't change my settings because I could injure myself) - maybe it's the "friendly midwest" thing but ughhhhhhhhhh.

[darcenciel.livejournal.com]

Yeah, agree with Maria, that is just really creepy. Like, con-stalker creepy.

[darcenciel.livejournal.com]

lolz. I get people trying to talk to me on the train and the gym all the time. I actually give them the evil eye and stare them down until they get uncomfortable and leave. I suppose if that guy had come up to me, I would have told him I don't like making friends.

[katmillia.livejournal.com]

Ugh, okay, wtf. That's just rude. I don't talk to people at the gym. And this guy sounds like a douchenozzle.

[salarta.livejournal.com]

"He asked my name, what I did for a living, made some pointed comments about a book he was writing (which I didn't ask about), asked if I liked "making friends" at the gym."

HI SEV MY NAME IS CREEPY STALKER MAN MAY I TAKE YOUR BLOOD PRESSURE WHILE YOU RUN? I WANT TO FANTASIZE ABOUT YOUR SEXY BLOOD PRESSURE TONIGHT.

"My question is this, seriously: Why do I have to be the bad guy?"

The answer is easy: you aren't. A reasonable, understanding individual that actually cares about other people would have taken the hint and backed off. From everything you said, he was working for his own gain, and he was miffed that your resistance shows there are limits to his attempts at charm used to meet his self-serving goals.

You're not the bad guy. He was.

[salarta.livejournal.com]

Oh, and addendum: if he ACTUALLY cared one bit about you personally, he absolutely would not have pulled some passive-aggressive bullshit about how "oh wah I guess you don't like to make friends." He would have politely asked you why you didn't want to socialize while running.

[jennyclarinet.livejournal.com]

I don't mind meeting people at the gym (especially other women), but that guy was just being inapropriate. I've been approached by guys in that way before (never at the gym, thank God), and they clearly have no ability to read other people.

I did my first 10 mile run today! It was...not that fun. Can't wait to be outside. The sunshine is deceiving, but I know I'll be miserable if I try to run out in the cold.

My brother emailed me today that he would like to join us for the race. I was sad to have to tell him that it's full.

[first-seventhe.livejournal.com]

It would have been one thing if he were beeing a creepy creeper - I don't have any problem telling people to lay off. But he just seemed, like, overly (rudely) talkative or something. ughhhhhh

10 miles is awesome! I'll be doing that either Friday or Sunday, depending on lab. And the weather...

[sissyhiyah.livejournal.com]

What a jerk. Is trying to guilt people into buying your products how self-help normally works? Should have told him that you were very interested in making new friends at the gym, but not with douche-waffles.