How They Train!

Angela Wable - July/August 2012

Age

  • 38

How many years have you been running?

  • I did not compete in high school cross country or track and have been running since 2009. It all started with a question from my daughter, Autumn, of what I wanted for Mother’s Day in 2009. I told her I wanted her to run the Mother’s day race with me and finish in less than 30 minutes. I accomplished both of those! The true fun started in 2011, when I started training consistently so my daughter wouldn’t completely leave me in the dust. 

Lifetime personal records

  • 5K -21:14, Palace Saloon
    4M- 30:09, Potluck
    8K- 36:09, Doggie Dash
    10K- 44:55, Springtime
    12K- 53:39:97, Flash
    15K- 1:09:24, Most fun! Gate River Run
    30K- 2:28:39, Bradley’s, I felt awesome!
    Half-Marathon- 1:37:08, St. Augustine–at the turn around you got to see the sun rise above the water, it was a sight to see!
    Marathon- 3:45:45, Tallahassee

    Sad to say, I had to look all these up because I don’t remember them!

Consider your training over the past 6 months to one year.  How many miles a week do you typically run when not injured and consistently running?

  •  I am currently running about 25-35 miles a week.

What does your typical week of running look like?

  • Monday:   5-6 miles    
  • Tuesday:  7 miles
  • Wednesday:   5 miles and/or  hot yoga (Journeys)
  • Thursday:   7 miles and/or stretch class
  • Friday:   Rest
  • Saturday: Race or long run (8-10 miles)
  • Sunday:  8-10 miles or easy 4-5 miles

What are your training goals?

  •  Right now I’m trying to adapt to the heat, while trying to increase my mileage. I want to finish another marathon and not feel like I’m going to die (cough, cough Tallahassee Marathon 2012). In an effort to be injury free, I have just started biking with ‘big girl pedals’ aka clip-ins (thanks Brooke Bailey!). I’ve also started swim lessons; hopefully I can make my debut as a tri-athlete.    

Do you take recovery or down time?

  • I take recovery time not down time, slower/easier runs. I listen to my body more when it needs rest.

Do you peak for certain races?

  • I taper for some races.

How much sleep do you usually get at night?

  •   Never enough! Roughly six to seven hours. However, I enjoy my weekend cat naps.

What time of day do you normally run?

  • Weekdays I run roughly 1 P.M. and weekends in the morning.

What injuries have hampered your training over the past year? 

  • Yes, reoccurring bronchitis and MRSA (staph infection), along with nerve damage in my right foot from over-training.

Do you take any dietary or medical supplements?

  • Does that include whole wheat blueberry waffles with peanut butter and honey? With butter chip pickles on the side?  If not, then only a multi-vitamin and calcium chewable.

What type of running shoes do you prefer?

  • I’m a Saucony girl.

Do you race in a different type of running shoe?

  •  No, I just rotate between my four pairs of shoes.

Do you use weight training?

  • I do some free weights. I do about three times a week to strengthen my upper body.

Do you stretch? 

  •  Yes, after each run.

What are your favorite running routes?

  • I enjoy running on Monday nights with the Trailblazers on the Cadillac trails. I like the Cadillac because of all the trails, even though I’m a native it was neat to see all the different trails. I like the Greenway at the Thorton entrance. A couple weeks ago, I was running down the hill at the Miccosukee Greenway, while the sun was coming up and I saw a hot air balloon rising above the trees! I was thinking how awesome is this and how lucky to be injury free to see this.

What running resources do you like that would benefit someone else?

  •    I read Runner’s World and go on Active.com.

If you have been running for many years, how has your training changed over the years

  • Since I haven’t been running for that long, I learned a few important lessons during the Tallahassee Marathon 2012–accept what race day gives you, whether it be weather or health. I don’t want to just survive another race, but actually enjoy it.  I started training in the middle of the day to get used to the conditions.

    I started running with Chuck and Janna’s group on Thursdays. It included interval training on Tuesday.  I didn’t plan on running the Boston mini until Chuck asked. He swayed me and look where I ended up. There are days you don’t feel like running, but when you show up to run with the group you forget that feeling and just have fun.
    For the Boston mini I earned my cow pin! But most importantly, I have gained a lot of friends along the way to enjoy my journey with.

What advice do you have for beginning or experienced runners to help them with their training?

  • Listen to your body! Do not be stubborn; it has a voice whether you think so or not. Be disciplined and I can’t stress enough to just have fun with it. Just a side note, if you happen to have children, two or four legged–please make sure you feed them during your crazy training schedules. If you don’t, they have a tendency to feel unloved.