Running With Pepper

Nice easy run to start working back into the higher levels. Temps were in the high 30's/sunny at the start and progressed into the high 40's/sunny at the end of the run. Started out at a fast pace of about 6:30/mile, ended up slowing down as the run progressed in the middle, then speeding up at the last few miles. This was probably because Arlington County decided to turn off the water at the fountains, without consulting with me, so I didn't have water until the last 1.5 miles. Ended up finishing the run in 1:23.57, which is a decent start.

It is a really warm day in the high 60's and sunny so I decided to go for a run, although I told myself that I wouldn't actually do one today. I got new shoes yesterday, Brooks Infiniti's, so they needed to get broken in. My right foot arch began to hurt towards the end of the run so I will monitor that, although it's probably my new shoes. 3 miles in 24:48 after running 1.5 miles in 12:48 with Pepper. Figured out that he still doesn't like running near sewer drains as he promptly plops his butt down and completely stops running. Oh well, the dog is a big babie. Nice easy run overall.

(Brooks Infiniti 4.5)

Ran 1 mile before pulling up lame on my right calf muscle. Stretched it out, and ultimately put 3 miles on the bike before it was too sore. Decided to call it quits so I didn't hurt it any more than I already did. We shall see how it works in the next few days....to be continued. 

(Brooks Infinitis 5.5)

Did a nice 5 miles in 40:28. Run was actually really easy and the weather was nice and in the high 40s. Afterwards, took a nice 1.5 mile cooldown walk with Pepper in about 27 minutes. Overall, the calf felt much better after a nice day off and the shoes are breaking in nicely.

(Brooks Infiniti 12.0)

Only did 4 miles in 34:26 today as my calves are killing me from doing a new calf workout at the gym on sunday. I walked gingerly around the office all day looking like an old man. Took Pepper for a nice 1.5 mile walk afterwards to help stretch the calves out. I'm really tired so far this week although I'm not too sure why. Alas, this must be an easy week so I can bump it up to 30 miles next week. 

(Brooks Infiniti 17.5)

Felt like I was running quite a bit faster than usual today, and it turns out that I was. Finished a really hilly 5 mile course in 39:49 and then took Pepper for a 1.5 mile walk. Agression from dealing with a stupid idiot at work fueled my speed, which felt really good. Pepper was quite the crazy boy tonight, barking at other dogs, although he's still scared of sewer drains.

(Brooks Infiniti's 23 miles)

Took the day off and went out to Great Falls National Park with Pepper. It is beautiful outside (60-65/partly cloudy) and we did some serious hiking. First 3.5 miles was in really difficult and rocky terrain while the last 3.5 miles was along the Potomac River. I wish I could take off every Friday and spend it with the dog.

Took Pepper for a 3 mile run and finished in 26:26. Nice cool day for a short run this morning to try and tire him out before he goes to his refresher doggie obedience training. I felt good running, but as tomorrow is the long run, I didn't want to push it. Pepper is actually building up on the mileage really well now and I hope to take him up to 4 miles soon with an ultimate goal of about 10 miles. Off to do family stuff and look at camping gear.

I got some of the best sleep I've had in a long time last night and only planned on running 11 miles today, but as I noticed the nice cool, yet breezy weather, I decided to push it and see where I really am in my running. Since I'm running in the Potomac River Half-Marathon on May 3rd, I wanted to see where I stood at that distance since I haven't run it in a while. Running on the wonderful W&OD Trail, all pavement, I set out from Fall Church and headed west. There is a pretty long hill at mile 2-2.5, which wasn't all that bad and at the top, I adjusted the tightness of my shoe laces as my feet were going numb.

In the first 2-3 miles, I had a really hard time regulating my breathing as I didn't have a great song in my head. Oddly enough, I settled on a portion of the 1812 orchestra (all in my head) and really felt good.

 At the half-way point, I felt a little sluggish, took a energy gel, then got right back into it. Once I downed some water at mile 9 I was off to the races and felt great. As I closed out the run, I was still feeling great and powered through to the end.

I ended up finishing the 13.1 in 1:41.05 which brought me under 8 minute miles! Running 8 minute miles was my goal for this run, so I feel really good about my overall running. I now may have to revise my goals, as it looks like running a sub-4 MCM in October is very much in reach. Nothing like overconfidence, but I feel really good about where I'm at right now. Now, off to the gym for a post-run workout. I do have a little blister on my left foot near my big toe, but I attribute that to getting back into the longer distances and my relatively new shoes.

(Brooks Infiniti 39.1 Miles)

Good to finally get back out for a run. Rough week at work as we have another proposal due and I am the capture manager. Temp in the 50s, really windy with gusts up to 50 mph. Started out fine for the first two miles, cruised in the middle two miles, then the last two was slow going as it was all into the strond headwind. Gusts were so strong that they actually took my breath away a few times. Ended up doing 6 miles in 51:35. Took Pepper out for a 1 mile stroll after the run. He is now holding down the La-Z-Boy and watching lost. Gonna try and get out of work a little early tomorrow so I can do a little longer run. 

(Brooks Infiniti 46.1 miles)

I decided since I've worked extra hours this week, I deserved to take some time during such a nice day and go for a run. Because I live and work in such a beautiful area, right across the Potomac from downtown DC, I decided to run to the Capitol and back. The first leg was all down hill for a mile through Rosslyn, past the Marine Corps Iwo Jima Memorial (oooh raah). After that, I paralleled Arlington Cemetary for about .5 miles, then took a left over the Potomac river. Once in DC, I ran past the Lincoln Memorial, down the mall past the WWII Memorial, the Washington Monument, and down to the Capitol building. Needless to say, because it was such a nice day, there were about a million tourists out today, but I didn't mind. Being able to do this if I want is one reason why I actually enjoy living here sometimes. The way back had a nice cool breeze all the way back to the office and I finished the 10 miles in a cool 1 hour, 16 minutes and 13 seconds. Not too bad, but I really wasn't pushing it since I had just run last night, and I just wanted to enjoy the sights. Well...back to work I go. For some reason, everyone who has seen me since I've been back is just amazed that I can run that far....little do they know that it's just the tip of the iceberg!

(Brooks Infiniti 56.1 miles)

Decided to give it a go after taking 10 days off to ease the pain in my shin. Quite warm tonight...low 70s and sunny. My shin felt good through the entire run and the walk with Pepper afterward. Finished 5 miles in 41:20. Nice and easy to get back to work. Felt a little sluggish, but overall, it is nice to get back out on the street.

(Brooks Infiniti 61.1)

Decided to test the shin after a nice workout at the gym. Took off on the treadmill and ended up running 2 miles in 16 minutes. I probably could have gone further, but wanted to take it easy on the first time back in a week. I ended up doing another 15 minutes on the bike to just keep the cardio going. Overall, my legs felt pretty darn good afterward, although I still somewhat skeptical due to my shins past.

(Brooks Infinits 63.1 miles)

Because the legs felt good today, I felt that I could take it up another notch. Ran 4 miles over up and down terrain in 31:20 and felt really good running. My calves are a little tight afterward, but that can be attributed to my taking it easy over the past few weeks. Overall, a good run to get back into the swing of things. Let's just hope that I feel this good tomorrow.

(Brooks Infinitis 67.1)

Continuing the ongoing ramp up to decent runnining distances. Felt as though I could do 5 miles tonight without worrying about the shin. Overall, my legs were really tired because I did deadlifts at the gym yesterday. Pace was really slow, but I just wanted to get out and run for over 40 minutes. Ended up doing 5 miles in 44:02. Slow...yes, but not all that bad. On another note, I'm back up to 275lbs on the deadlift...not bad, but certainly not what I used to do.

(Brooks Infinitis 72.1)

Ran with Emily and Pepper for 1 mile and ended up finishing it in 13:10. After that, they decided to take a walk and I ran for 4.5 miles and finished in 34:55. Still coming back from the shin problem, but it feels good so far in the ramp-up process.

(Brooks Infinitis 77.6 miles)

Ran with Emily again and we ran and walked for 1.75 miles together in 20:03. She has work to do, but it's going to get better. Once we finished our run, I ended up running another 3.25 miles in 25:14. For some reason, it feels like I can't get my breathing right. My theory is that the pollen in the air = worse allergies for Aaron. As per the norm, I'll get over it.

(Brooks Infinitis 82.6)

Took a nice 5.5 mile hike over rough terrain along the Potomac with Pepper in about 2 hours. Didn't want to keep going up to 10 miles as he was really panting and I didn't want him to overheat. Temps were in the high 70s and quite humid. Overall, great day to spend with the boy.

Decided to run 4 miles on the treadmill after working out at the gym. Finished in 38:17, which sounds really bad but wasn't all that bad. Oh well...continue to march.

(Brooks Infinitis 86.6)

Finally got out for a run....and it's freakin Thursday! Decided to continue to take it easy and did a 4 mile run in 31:00. Picked it up in the middle of the run for 6 minutes and it was didn't feel bad at all. Felt pretty good, although it's really hot (80 degrees) and humid. Oh well, everything seems better and I should have no problem running the Potomac River Half Marathon on May 4th.

(Brooks Infinitis 90.6 miles)

Ran 4 miles today, although this entry is quite late. Finished in 32:07...just off the 8 minute pace I wanted. Just wanted to make sure I didn't have any injuries heading into the 1/2 Marathon on Saturday.

(Brooks Infinitis 94.6 miles)

Ok, so here is all how it worked out. I got up quite early (4:45 am) so I could make sure I had enough time to have a cup of coffee, eat, and relax before heading out the door at 6:am. Of course, Pepper was not too happy that I left without taking him out, but oh well....he has apparently gotten over it. Now, onto the race...

The Potomac River run is a relatively small race (less than 1000 people) that starts in Belle Haven Park just south of Alexandria, Virginia and it follows the Mount Vernon trail heading out to George Washington's home....I assume that anyone can guess what it's called. Although I didn't do any prior visual recon on the course, I did do some reading up on it and it's involves some rolling hills, plus a few larger ones. Here is the link in case anyone is interested. http://www.pvtc.org/marathon Anyway, because I didn't sleep well last night, I was already at a disadvantage heading into this thing. Also, I haven't run as much as I should have lately (right shin splint) and felt that I may have been a tad-bit unprepared for this one. Either way, I did learn a few things along the way.

1. They really needed more port-oh-johns there as they only had 2 for all those people!

2. The schwag wasn't good at all...got a shirt, but that's about it. For 80 bucks, I kind of expected more.

Anway, here we go.

The temp was about 62 degrees at game time, but the real killer was the humidity. It was about 75% humidity for the race, which didn't help the fun. Started off the race right at 7pm and tried to let the main pack get going before me. That was my first mistake because of the narrowness of the trail overall and the fact that on large portions of the trail, it's bordered by river-created swamp land. I hadn't had much of a chance to warm up prior to the race, so the beginning was my warm up. Because of the crowds, I finished the first mile in 9:15...not exactly what I wanted, but due to crowds, not all that bad.

Heading into mile 2, I continued to build the momentum and move through the crowds and eventually passed the marker at about 18:00...improving, but not there yet. I felt good as I continued to run and got into a really good rythm as syncronized my breathing with the Marine Corps Cadence that I was singing in my head.

As I continued to head out to the turnaround point, my pace continued to let me gain ground on the time I lost while in the main pack, and that's also when it started to thin out. While this happened, I also lost track of my times as I was keeping them on my watch, so all I can give is my half-way split later on.

Right around 3, the course started into the rolling hills I mentioned before. The consisted of gentle ups and downs, with a few steeper ones thrown in for good measure. At one point, because of construction on the path, the course veered onto some woodchips, which were not conducive to running on at all. After the chips, we headed directly up a steeper hill and then moved down into steeper hill, then back up another steeper one. Eventually after getting through the smaller hills, it flattened out, then descended back along the river banks. That lasted for what I estimate to be about 1 mile, then we moved back up a long gentle grade that lasted until the turnaround point. I hit the turnaround at about 51:15...give or take a little bit, and headed back the other way.

As I continued and headed past mile 7, I started to feel the fact that I didn't train all that hard for this race. My legs started to burn a little, and I started to lose energy, especially when I hit the hills again. Also, this is when I started to feel the temp go up, as well as the nasty DC humidity kick in. At the aid stations, about ever 1-1.5 miles, I consistently got gatorade and water. The hills weren't all that bad, but when I hit the woodchips, I had to walk for about 30 seconds while we ascended the hill they were on. I figured that it was only 30 seconds, and running on them would probably done more harm than good.

Coming out of the hills, I felt good as the electrolytes in gatorade began to kick in. Heading into about 4 miles left, I continued to stay in a nice rhythm and found some other runners I used as pace setters. This unfortunately, is where the stomach/intestinal issues came into play. As I continued the run, I repeatedly began to feel a sharp pain in my left side, right where my intestines are. I would relieve that pain, as most of it was gas, but it would continually persist until the end of the run. At the time, I didn't know what the culprit was, but now, I do. It was unfortunately the italian dinner I had at a new restaurant last night (not going there again). Now, I can typically take plenty of pain, but this really threw me through a loop as I was running. I just feel bad for the unfortunates behind me. I continued to run, and crossed the finish line in 1:48:30 (unofficial time). I'll update this entry when I actually receive the official time.

Overall, I didn't feel as bad as I predicted I would after the run. The real killer was the humidity, as well as the intestinal issues I had towards the end of the run. I feel like I did a pretty good job, considering the circumstances, and have identified some good and bad things to take away from this. First, more sleep is needed on the night before the run, although I was primarily not because I wasn't trying to sleep. I just couldn't sleep when I tried to. Second, no more eating at Anthony's! Even with the limited training I did for this race, I still feel like I ran pretty well overall. That's a good sign as I'm going to get into training for a fall marathon quite soon. It looks like my sub-4 hour marathon is well within reach, and loftier goals may be in order. Now, if I can just get this intestinal thing work out, I may actually have a good rest of the day.

(Brooks Infinitis 107.7 miles)

Got up early due to the time change and decided to run around the neighborhood. Out in Riverside, CA, I'm not all that familiar with the area, but am all too well familiar with the terrain/climate. Missed it in fact...quite a bit.  Ran about 4 miles for 30:28 including a reall big/long hill. The hill may move it to 3.5, but good nonetheless. Man I miss the west coast!

(Brooks Infinitis 112.7 miles) 

Just starting back up in my training for the Fall Marathon. Ran an easy 2.5 miles on the track in 18:09. Felt pretty good, but I'm not used to the humidity like I was last year. I should be good in about a week.

(Brooks Infinitis 115.2 miles)

Still ramping up to up to 25+ miles a week. Felt really good tonight and decided to give it a go for 4 miles. Nice easy run in the neighborhood across the street. Finished the run in 30:18. Let's hope I feel as good as I do today in the future runs.

(Brooks Infinitis 119.2 miles)

Decided to run my 5 mile circle route in the neighborhood across route 7. Wanted to run rather slowly, yet couldn't keep the speed down because I felt so good. Tried to get my breathing regulated for the entire run and was somewhat successful. After the long and really steep 1/4 mile hill, my breathing felt much better. I'm going to try something new tomorrow and get up at 4:45 to go for a morning run rather than worry about running at night. Hopefully that works better than I think it will. Finished this run in 40:42.

(Brooks Infinitis 124.2 miles)

Ok, so tonights run wasn't all that bad, but it could have been worse. It all starts last night when Pepper decided to start barking at something outside at 2am. Needless to say, I wasn't at all amused as I would have liked to sleep a little more than what I got at that point. Of course it was the first night where I was trying to go to sleep earlier so that I could begin to get on a morning running schedule. Because it's the summer time, I also have the option to work 9 days and record my 80 hours every two weeks vs. my normal 10 day and 80 hours. This means that if I do this right, and go in early, I get every other Friday off so I can go to the beach, go hiking with Pepper out at Great Falls National Park, etc. Well....it hasn't worked all that well so far. I have no idea what he was barking at, although he only barked a few times, but he then kept whining, looking out the window while banging the blinds all over the place. Not all that loud normally, but when you've been rudely woken up, it's quite loud. All in all, I didn't sleep all that good last night, as my sleep recording indicates. I was tired at work today, actually had to get some tea in the afternoon as I needed the caffiene, and I think I almost fell asleep at my desk while I was reviewing some documents. Ouch...not good...especially when you're working on a huge proposal for the government. I didn't manage to run this morning so I had to run tonight. Although I was tired tonight, I did get in my 5 miles in 39:43. I ran the same route as last night, but did it backwards (going down the huge hill) from Monday night.

I'm slowly trying to build back to a minimum of 25-30 miles a week before I start back in my longer weekend runs. I really feel like I need to get back to that really soon as I believe that work is going to be really crazy starting in July. Oh well, at least I got my run in and I'm moving forward with my training. Maybe I'll start running at lunchtime if I can't get my morning/evening runs in. We have a shower at the gym in my office, so that's mighty convenient. Here's to hoping that Pepper lets me sleep well tonight... :)  

(Brooks Infinitis 129.2 miles)

So I didn't plan on running this night, but I did plan on doing some walking with Pepper to stretch the legs out. This is where it gets a little odd. We had these terrible thunderstorms in the are with a few tornados touching down. Although I didn't see a tornado, I did see the aftermath in some of the areas near my home. Now I take public transportation to and from work (Washington DC Metro System) and it is usually pretty reliable. Well, as I was heading home at 4pm yesterday I learned that because of the storms, the Metro stopped at a station before the one I usually get off at. I then learned that all the roads heading west in Falls Church were packed/not moving! Well, I got off at the East Falls Church Station (couldn't go any further because of lack of power) and decided to walk home, which was about 4.5 miles. Now, I didn't have my sneakers and made the walk wearing my business dress shoes I wore to work for the day. I also had my backpack containing about 20-25 pounds of work stuff. Upon completion of my walk, my legs were killing me, my feet were beginning to have blisters, and I was completely and utterly miserable. My pain did not end there as I didn't have power at my place and Pepper needed to get out because he was cooped up all day.

Lesson learned: Running shoes are great because they really take care of your feet and lower body. Cushioning goes really far when it comes to running shoes. Walking such a long distance in my running shoes would have been fine, but in dress shoes, it was painful on my lower body. I am more sore today from my walk then I would be from running 10 miles. I will now carry my running gear to work in the event that I have to run/walk home because of our wonderful public transportation system.

I'm going to go for a run at the office today and possible run into the district from my office by the Courthouse metro.

Took some time out of my busy work day and went for a nice run in the heat and humidity. Once I do this several times, I know that I'll become more acclimated to the weather again, but it just takes some time. Started from the office, ran down to Rosslyn and across the Key Bridge and ran out on the C&O Canal trail for a bit. Turned around and then ran back to the office so I could subsequently sit in a meeting for four hours (ugh!). Overall, it was a good run where I felt pretty good, yet the heat/humidity really sapped my strength when I got to the hill heading from Rosslyn to Courthouse. I may continue to run this route as it has some really nice features (hills, flats). I may run with the boss today, so it should be a good day. 5 miles in 41:08.

(Brooks Infinitis 134.2 miles)

Due to the opressive heat and humidity, I decided to run on the treadmill after working out at the gym. I HATE running on treadmills, but didn't want to run in the nasty heat. Ran 6.5 miles in 60:01. Felt good and I imagine that I could have run further/faster if I was actually outside. Good start to the week where I will hopefully have Friday off. Hmmmm...maybe I'll head out to hike Old Rag on Friday or Saturday.

(Brooks Infinitis 140.7 miles)

Ran in the morning to try and stay away from the opressive heat and humidity we're expecting today. It was still hot and humid, but much more manageable than 100 degrees + 100% humidity. I don't know if I just don't like running at 4:35 in the morning, or if I just don't like the humidity like it is right now. Either way, I didn't feel all that good during the run and just couldn't get comfortable. Ended up finishing 4 miles in 32:51. Depending on the weather situation, I may do another 4-5 tonight to round out an otherwise dull day. Looking forward to taking friday off from work if they will let me... :)

(Brooks Infinitis 144.7 miles)

Ran with the boss today right before lunch and it was HOT outside. Temp was right around 95 and the heat index raised it to 105. It was extremely humid and I look forward to the humidity going away later tonight. Ran 5 miles in 41:38 and felt pretty good because I slept like the dead last night. Maybe it was because I was so exhausted when I went to bed at 10pm. Either way, I'm happy that I finished as I'm meeting one of my buddies from Grad school (In town for a conference) after work to hang out. I would say, poor Pepper but he's hanging out at daycare today (http://www.dogdaycare.com/tysonscorner/webcams.php). He's the sleek black and tan doggie with the tail to curls in a C.  Well...back to reality and the joys of work here in steamy Virginia.

(Brooks Infinitis 149.7 miles)

Ran before lunch while I was at work today. The heat is still there, as it was about 83 degrees, but the humidity is all but gone. It's so much easier to run when you're not running in soup. Ran 5 miles on a pretty hilly course (Custis Trail), taking the first half to warm up. During the second half, I was moving pretty well and finished in 38:11. I felt really good and could have gone further but don't want to push is as I continue my mileage building. Still planning on heading out to Old Rag on Saturday and maybe Robertson Mountain afterward (Thanks Lucia!). It looks like it's going to be a solo hike as I can't seem to find anyone to go, and Pepper isn't allowed out ther according to the hiking book I have. Doggie Discrimination! Well...back to work...

(Brooks Infinitis 154.7 miles)

Decided to run from work down to the C&O Canal trail again. Ran from the office to mile marker three meeting up with Lucia (yes, you do have a better marathon PR than I do) at the Key Bridge in Georgetown and then returned to the office. Weather was in the mid-upper 80s but humidity wasn't a factor like it was earlier in the week. Overall, both the run and the company were great! It's nice to finally meet another blogger in person for a run. I finished approximately 6.5 miles in 54:35. Good day for a run.

(Brooks Infinitis 161.2 miles)

No running today as it was hiking day! Got up early and made it out to Old Rag in the Shenandoah Valley around 7:15. Hiked .8 miles up to the ridge trail start point and headed out from there. Took the ridge trail, which I realized was pretty intense up to the summit, climbing up the bolders, crevices, etc. to finally get there. Made it up the 3.5 mile trek in about 2 hours. Spent about 45min - 1 hour at the top just enjoying nature. It was something I really just needed to do with everything that's going on with me at this point. Quite calming and it soothed my soul. Set out contining on the trail down the mountain and made it back in approximately 1.5 more hours. During the trek back, I was startled by some noise in the woods, looked over, and there was a black bear that was probably 400-500 lbs. I was quite startled and moved a little quicked along the trail to distance myself from the bear. After I reached the trailhead, I continued back down the access road to the overflow parking lot and noticed several people standing around looking at one side of the woods. Wow....about 15 feet away from me was another black bear..a little smaller. I watched it from a safer distance and then we saw 2 little bear cubs following her through the woods. They actually moved out of the woods, crossed the road (I got a great picture), and headed out in another direction. It was my first encounter with a black bear in the wild, and after I figured out that they weren't going to hurt me, it was pretty cool.

Basically, the entire day was great as I finished my hike well before noon. I'm already sore from climbing, jumping, pulling myself all over the place, so that's good. It was probably a great mix-up workout from the regular running and going to the gym. Now...the next hike I'm planning is out in the Shenandoah and it's called the Bluff Trail/AT Loop. I'll check the schedule, but I'd like to do it sooner than later. Well...I'm sore and Pepper needs another walk. He missed me today but would have gone crazy if he saw the bear.

Down in Virginia Beach giving a training course for a few days and wanted to go for a quick run to maintain some sembelance of fitness. Of course, there is a wildfire in the Old Dismal Swamp to the west that has blanketed the VB area with nasty smoke making the air completely unhealthy. Just being outside in it for 5 minutes during lunch today really bothered my allergies, so I decided to get a quick treadmill run in at the hotel (Oh...the Westin in VB is totally pimped out!). Ran a total of 3.3 miles in 31 minutes. For the third mile, I rant it at a 6:35 pace just to see if I could do it. I had no problem keeping it up and could have ran faster and longer if I wanted to. Lesson learned is that if I do a 5k in the future, I really do have the afterburners to kick it up a notch for a better placing. Time to go get some dinner.

(Brooks Infinitis 164.5 miles)

Ran on the WOD trail from the bridge over Route 7 out west. It has been beautiful all day long, in the mid-70s but at run time, it was in the low 70s, thunderstorming...got cooler as the run progressed.....all that equals perfect running weather. At the beginning, right hip felt rather tight, but I figured the first mile would help work that out.

Mile 1 - 8:30 - warmup

Mile 2 - 16:30 - continued warmup picked up speed (8 min/mil) (long hill up)

Mile 3 - 22:00 - Picked it up to a nice fast run (5:30 min/mile) (downhill & felt great)

Mile 4 -  30:30 - (7:30 min/mile)

Mile 5 - 37:30 (7 min/mile)

Mile 6 - 44:20 (6:50 min/mile) 

Mile 6.2 - 44:52

I decided that I need to pick up my speed work and find what I used to have. Back in the day, when I was in the Marine Corps, I consistently ran 3 miles in 17:00 minutes and my PR for 3 miles was 15:30. The speed is in my body, and I need to harness it and get my butt in gear. That said, all the longer runs and recovery strolls are good also. Although it is a long way off, I think that I can actually get my fall Marathon down to 3:30 or lower. It looks like I have a new goal for the Marine Corps Marathon. If I can drop 5 more pounds and get down to 165, I'll be golden and should be able to fly. I feel great and am going to run at work tomorrow.

(Brooks Infinitis 170.7 miles)

Ran at work and decided to take it easy on the run. My right leg is aching a little near the hip area and my shin/ankle area is a little odd feeling. I'm going to chalk all that up to the fact that I did the faster paces last night in my tempo runs. Today, it was 5 miles in 38:16 up and down the rolling hills of the Custis Trail. No running tonight, yet Pepper may get a few nice walks to help stretch out the legs. Woof!

(Brooks Infinitis 175.7 miles)

Oh what a beautiful day. Temp was in the mid-high 70s and humidity was pretty much non-existent. My legs feel a lot better after the nice 8 hours of sleep I got last night, but they are still a little screwy. Ran down to Georgtown on the Custis Trail and met up with Lucia (Argentine Rocket) and we ran out to the boathouse, got a quick sip, and headed back to the office, parting ways with Lucia at the Key Bridge. The run back up the Custis Trail was a little difficult, but I continued to take it slow until I got back to the office. Finished off the run in 1:12:00. Overall, it was a great recovery run and I would much rather run with someone else than run solo (Thanks Lucia!). Off tomorrow and long run on Sunday.....probably 12 miles at a nice plodding pace.

(Brooks Infinitis 182.7 miles) 

Ran from my house to the WOD trail and went towards Arlington. Pace during the entire run was good. Finished 10 miles in 1:20:00. Nice 8 minute mile pace for the entire run. The best part was coming back when  nice thunderstorm rolled through the area and I was cooled by a wonderful rain. I'm always a little nervous running under the high tension power lines on the trail during a storm, but oh well. The rain felt great. In the first couple of miles, I felt that my right ankle was a little wierd...not sure what it was. I had tendinitis last year in that ankle, so I want to make sure I'm not heading down that painful road again. Well...off to bed so I can wake up for work in the morning. Running continues to be my ultimate stress reliever.

(Brooks Infinitis 192.2 miles)

Went to the gym at night instead of running to get back into the strength training. Did about 20 minutes of some intense core work of which I really needed to do since I haven't done it in a while. Also did some great arm workouts and hope to get to the gym at least 2 more times this week. I needed to rest the legs after Sunday and my right leg is still feeling a little squirrely at times. I'll just keep stretching it and hope for the best. Went for a nice 2 mile walk with Pepper when I got home...he liked it because we found TWO tennis balls. Yes...it's a big deal for him. :)

Ran from the office, down through Rosslyn and past Arlington Cemetary onto the DC Mall. Ran all the way past all the monuments, grabbing some water along the way at the various fountains, and continued up past the Capitol and down Pennsylvania Avenue. Ended up finishing up at Eastern Market where I promptly bought a gatorade, stretched, hopped the metro, and went back to work. I probably could have run back to the office, but I just didn't feel like it nor did I want to really push it today. It was getting a little warm and the water past the Mall is pretty much non-existent (unless I jump in the Potomac!). Finished my run at 6.3 miles in 49:13. Not too bad for a Tuesday afternoon when I really should be at work. Here's to looking forward to having Friday off and spending the day with Pepper!

(Brooks Infinitis 198.5 miles)

No running today as I can't bring myself to do it for several reasons. I did manage to make it to the gym for a nice core workout, chest and shoulders. It made me feel a little better but didn't fix everything. My right leg is still feeling the lingering effects of something odd, maybe my ITB Band is acting up again. As I'm posting this on Thursday morning, it feels better but still a little odd.

Took another day off with my IT Band issues. Decided to get some more core work and other strength training done at the gym. Overall, worked for about 35-40 minutes on the core and also did some other strength exercises. Took Pepper to the East Falls Dog Park and he had a blast as usual. It's nice to see him tired for once.

Went hiking on the White Oak Canyon/Cedar Run in the Shenandoah with several folks, including fellow blogger Lucia. Overall, it was great to get out with nature again and as per the norm, I decided to take the road less traveled and left the trail to climb up the river with another guy, Patrick. The trail was quite steep, so you can only imagine the fun we had climbing up river on all the bolders and up the various waterfalls. Overall, the trip was great as we also got to hit some natural water slides along the Cedar Run portion of the hike. To be honest, I probably could have hiked another 5+ miles after I was done, but it was nice to head home to Pepper at the end of the day. A happily wagging tail can certainly warm the heart and soothe the soul.

Last day of not running to help east the IT Band strain. Went to the gym for more core training and also worked the back. Did core for about 35 minutes and then did my Push-up/Pull-up pyramids. If you ever want to get up to 20+ pull-ups, this is the routine for you! Once again took Pepper to the EFC dog park where he obviously had fun with his continually new-found friends. Went home, had a salad, cooked corn on the cob and steak on the grill. What a great end to a pretty darn good 3-day weekend.

Took time in the afternoon at work and decided to give it a go and run my 5 mile out and back course with all the hills. I wanted to push it a little for this run so I could test the limitations of my IT Band in my right leg. I've been stretching it various ways, and it felt good for all but the last mile of the run. Finished the run in 37:00. It was a nice pace where I felt really good with my breathing but the IT really kicked my butt in the end. I suppose I'll have to look up more stretching techniques for that darn thing.

(Brooks Infinitis 203.5 miles)

Ran with the boss at lunch and hit the same 5 mile course filled with gentle hills along the Custis Trail. The boss ran 4 miles and I ran the total 5 in 41 minutes but I actually caught up to him with about a mile to go. First 2 miles were at a slow plodding pace of about 10min/mile and when the boss turned around I busted it up to about a 6:30 pace for 9 or so minutes (I didn't have a piece of chocolate cake in my gut like I did yesterday!), slowed down for about 3 minutes, then hit back at about a 7:00 pace until I caught up with the boss. The final .6 miles or so were at about the 10 minute/mile pace. Overall, this run was a good test as to how my ITB would handle some tougher pace running. After my run was done, I used my newfound stretching techniques to work on my ITB. It was really throbbing, but after I stretched it and did some strengthening exercises, it felt much better. I now plan to do those exercises at least 2 times a day to get ahead of this. Decent run and it seems like my fitness is improving and I'm able to hold the faster pace longer.

(Brooks Infinitis 208.5 miles)

Well...I was going to run some intervals on the track at the high school across the street from my house tonight but they are apparently renovating the football field and other facilities there. I decided to do a nice warm-up by running two miles in 14 minutes then got down to the business of running up stairs. I ended up tackling 1,000 stairs in 19 minutes, then headed out for a nice 1.5ish mile cooldown run. Although I didn't get to run my intervals tonight, the stairs were great and my pulse was really ratched up a notch. Overall, I finished my running in 43:28 for about 5ish miles. On the ITB note, the new stretching/strengthening I'm doing is really helping and it's starting to feel better after only 2 days. I'm probably overly optimistic, but I think I may have this totally fixed in about 1 week. I did however notice that when I was wandering around my complex tonight, it started to hurt again. The only reason I can think of that it was hurting was because I was wearing my old/beat-up flip-flops. When I took Pepper for a walk tonight, I wore running shoes and it was totally fine. I believe that I may have found the root of my evil pain. :) 

Went for a run down to the C&O Canal Trail and met up with fellow blogger Lucia for a nice run down to the boathouse and back. The weather today was really hot (91 degrees), so we took it nice and easy and had a great pace throughout the entire run. The pace was just right, especially with the hot weather. Overall, it was a great run (especially since I left work to do it). The total run distance/time for me was 7 miles in 59:21. Till next time bloggers...have a Happy 4th of July and please remember why we celebrate this holiday. We are all privileged to live in this great nation. It's not all about fireworks...yet they are nice too! :)

(Brooks Infinitis 215.5 miles)

Ok, so I really need to figure out how to get past these right leg problems. I have absolutely no problems with my left leg, but my right one continues to have small nagging injuries. I felt that my IT band was doing much better until Sunday when I helped my brother move all sorts of boxes/furniture/etc. into storage. As the day progressed, I sometimes had a hard time getting up and down the stairs. I don't know if it was my IT completely as my leg was really weak on the front where it meets the hip. Who know....so I took more time off to let it all heal. I decided to run today to test my legs, and keep some sembelance of fitness. I ran 5 miles in 38:10, which tells me that my fitness didn't leave me. My right hip on the front was pretty tight at the beginning of the run, but it seemed to work its way loose as the run progressed. Overall, I'm just completely annoyed that I continue to have these leg problems with only one leg. I've now started some leg strengthening exercises at the gym to try and mitigate these problems. On another note....I'm blogging from my brand new computer and it's sweet, although I'm annoyed that a job interview I had scheduled for today was postponed until sometime next week. After running tonight, and eating dinner, I went to the gym for an intenst 1.5 hours where I pretty much destroyed my entire body. The worst part of it was when I hit the abs after the end of my intense workout. Wow....I'm tired and should sleep well tonight. Ugh....at least I have running!

(Brooks Infinitis 220.5 miles)

Ran from the house out to the W&OD trail, down and back for a mile and back to the house. The run totaled 5.2 miles total in 41:57. I'm still having minor leg problems but my IT Band and hip seem to be doing much better. I did have a few issues with my right knee where I seemed to lose power below my knee. I'll continue to monitor/strengthen with my exercises in the gym, as well as stretch to mitigate any future problems. Other than that, I'm now going to completely ignore any further pain I have and start running my butt off again. I'm really looking forward to heading out to Denver for work at the end of the month to test running in altitude.

On another note, I had my interview for a job out in Denver and it went really well. Hopefully I'll hear something in the next month to see if I get the job. It's a great opportunity for the future, so I'm hoping for the best. It would be nice to get out of the heat/humidity of the DC area for some high-altitude running.

(Brooks Infinitis 225.7 miles)

Ran from the office down to Glebe road around the metro station, down to Wilson Boulevard and back up to the office. Total run was 4.3 miles in 32 minutes. Temperature was 91 degrees at 32% humidity....yes, a hot scorching day in my book. No water during the run, but overall not all that bad unless I was stopped by traffic. Afterwards, I did 20 minutes of core workout and some nice stretching so I'm not all that sore tomorrow. My knee issue seems to have gone away but my hip is a little odd when I stop running. I'll just monitor, keep stretching and quit complaining. Well...back to work I go.

(Brooks Infinitis 230 miles)

Hiked 5 miles in Great Falls with my old college roomate from Penn State. It was a scorcher (95+) and humidity was really high as well. Overall, not too strenuous and a nice hike out in the woods. Saw several white tailed deer that were literally not less than 25 feet from us and they just didn't care. Nice hike to end the week on an even nicer day off.

Ran in the afternoon at work and hit up the Custis Trail. It was hot (93+) and the humidity was downright nasty. Overall, finished 5.5 miles in 42:06 so it was a nice run. Stopped at the Ballston Mall about midway through the run to sneak some water from the Panera Bread....it was absolutely frigid...just the way I needed it. Felt good during the run and am glad that this should be the last day of nasty heat. Hit the gym up after work and then took Pepper on a nice brisk 1.5 mile walk to end the night. This was followed by 2 cookies that he wanted me to share with him, but they had cholocate. Alas...no cookies for Pep.

(Brooks Infinitis 235.5 miles)

Ran on the treadmill at the gym for 3.25 miles in 34 minutes at a 3% grade. I probably should have run outside, but I just didn't feel like it. Also did my chest/shoulders workout, although it was less than spirited today. Afterwards, took Pepper on a nice trot for 1.75 miles to give me a nice 5 for the day. It's still warm out, so we took it really easy because I didn't want to overheat the pup. Time for a cookie...or two! :)

(Brooks Infinitis 240 miles)

Ran from work to the East Falls Churh Metro after work today carrying a 15-20 pound backpack with work materials, clothes, etc. Total run after work in the 88 degree heat was for 5 miles in 40 minutes. I had to continually stop for water because the backpack was really weighing me down and I couldn't breath out of my back. It made it feel much warmer than it probably was. Now I know why I stopped running with my camelback.

Tonight, took Pepper for a nice 3 mile trot around the neighborhood across route 7. We did plenty of stopping for sniffs....more than I can probably count, but the boy is snoozing in the lay-z-boy so I did my job. My legs were pretty tired from yesterdays strengthening exercises at the gym, but I feel pretty good that I got in 8 miles today. My right leg seem to be doing much better since I started isolation workouts at the gym. That's all for now...off to Annapolis tomorrow for some doggie beach fun and a housewarming party at my bosses house. Doggies are invited too! :) Still no word on Denver but I'm forever optimistic.

(Brooks Infinitis 248 miles)

Out in Denver for work and now it's time for some pleasure while visiting a good friend from the corps. Earlier in the week was crazy with 12-15 hour days of work, so I was completely and utterly exhausted when I got back to the hotel. No chance to run, but today is my first day of my visit and I took my friend Dan's dog Cooper for a nice 4.5 mile run. Finished in 40 minutes with a multitude of sniffs, pee breaks, etc. Cooper is a great running companion and he makes me miss Pepper even more now. I could definitely feel the altitude, although it wasn't as bad as I thought. Well...this afternoon should either include a hike, rock climbing, or a mountain bike ride.

(Brooks Infinitis 252.5 miles)

Back in the DC area after a some great time in Colorado for work and time with friends. I've decided that I'm going to move there sooner rather than later...yes...I absolutely loved it there and can totally see myself living there. Took Pepper for a run tonight after dinner and we ran 2 miles in 16:30. Dropped the pup off at the house, got a couple swigs of water, then took off on another 4 miles and finished that in 29:36. Yes, I was hauling my rear and went up the huge hill at the last mile. Legs felt great after a long weekend of climbing, running, hiking and biking in the mountains. After the run, I took Pep on another 1.5 miles worth of cool-down for a total of 7.5 for the evening. My legs really feel great after tonight and my running was completely effortless. Lets hope they stay that way. Still no word on the job, but I'm still optimistic that I'll get it and be able to move out there. I should have Friday off this week, although that may change per the norm. The plan is to run a nice 15 miler on Sunday...yeah..back to the running grind since the marathon is in 3 months.

(Brooks Infinitis 260 miles)

Ran to the doctors office after lunch for a total of 3 miles in 21:43. Nice and easy...I plan to run tonight with the Pup and see where he wants to take me. I hope to get at least 2-2.5 miles out of him tonight and then do another 4-5 for myself. It's a nice day out with some thunderstorms in the area.....temps are cooling and I'm looking forward to the weekend. I have tomorrow off so it'll be really nice.

(Brooks Infinitis 263 miles)

Ran 12.5 miles on the W&OD and Four Mile Run Trails from late morning until early afternoon. Once again, gastrointestinal issue forced me to cut my run short. Based on my conversation with my brother Dale (fellow blogger) last night, I think I'm somewhat lactose intolerant and that is my issue. My Lucky Charms and skim milk from earlier in the morning may have negatively affected my overall running. Time to move to Soy. Overall, I finished this run in 1 hour 36 minutes and 28 seconds. Afterwards, I walked/slowly jogged another 2 miles back to my car on the trail, for a total of 14.5 for the day. Not bad considering my inconsistent training as of late. Let's just see how I feel tomorrow when I do a nice recovery run.

(Brooks Infinitis 277.5 miles)

Ran an easy 2.5 miles with Pepper after dinner tonight for a total of 21 minutes. Afterward, went to the gym to do some shoulders and more leg maintenance. Since I started my direct strengthening program with certain leg muscles, I haven't had any problems (knock on wood). Got home from the gym, took the pup out for another mile for a total of 3.5 for the day. I wanted to keep it easy as I put more than the usual amount on my legs yesterday. Still no word on Colorado....dang it takes the government a long time to say you have a job.

(Brooks Infinitis 281 miles)

Nice 5 mile jog while in the middle of the day to take a brake from crazy work. Weather is fantastic as it's cool (80) and humidity is minimal at best. Finished the run in 37:25 and I didn't feel like I was moving all that fast. My theory is that I'm probably faster than I think I am because I'm always running in the heat and humidity. When it's time for game-day (marathon), I should easily come in under my 3:45 goal...barring any craziness. I'll take a trip to the gym tonight to round out a nice week of exercising/running and overall decent health, regardless of the chocolate chip cookies I have on the counter at home.

(Brooks Infinitis 286 miles)

It's SUNDAY....long run day. Ran from the house down to the W&OD trail until I picked up the Custis Trial at mile marker four. From there, took the Custis for all its four miles until I got into Rosslyn where I picked up the Potomac River trail. Follow that trail for about one mile until I got to the Roosevelt bridge to head into downtown DC. Ran next to all the monuments along the mall on the way up to the Capitol building. Up the capitol hill, yes..there really is a hill there, and headed down to Eastern Market. Total run was 15 miles in 1:57:48. Nice pace where I only started to tire at about mile 14. After the run, I met fellow blogger Lucia, who is well on the road to recovery and look great from all her cross training, and we wandered the market, tasting the free fruits and veggies and eating crepes. All the food was outstanding and I'm now annoyed with myself for not getting veggies down there. The plan is to put some good mileage on the legs early in the week since I'm visiting my best friend in NY and his family during the latter portion of the week as well as the weekend. As of now, I'm shooting for 30+ miles for the week. As I write this, I have a fantastic doggies snoozing next to me...life is good. Have a great week bloggers!

(Brooks Infinitis 301 miles)

Ran today after lunch along the Custis Trail in the DC heat that has unfortunately returned. Temperature was about 86 degrees and humidity was somewhat back in the air. My legs were really sluggish after Sunday's long run and strengthening exercises I did at the gym last night. Nonetheless, it was good to get out and at least stretch them out. I ended up doing 6 miles in 49:50. Afterwards, I realized that I may be coming down with a cold of sorts, or my allergies may be really putting me through the ringer. I feel really run-down, sluggish, and I just want to pull a George Kastanza and take a nap under my desk. Oh well...another meeting tomorrow to prep for...time to get back to work.

(Brooks Infinitis 307 miles)

Doggie has been sick and so have I. I've had a sinus infection which has really screwed me up over the past week and it's limited my running. Took Pepper out for a nice 2.5 and took it nice and easy with plenty of walking included.

Ran on the Custis Trail for a nice Tempo run after lunch for 5 miles...up and down the rolling hills. Finished the run in 36:22 and my pulse was consistently around 140-150 during the whole run. My sinus infection is doing better since I'm in day 3 of my antibiotics but the drainage is still there and it's screwing up my breathing. I aim to improve on this as the weeks get closer to the marathon, which is only 2 months away! :)

(Brooks Infinitis 312 miles)

Did another 3.5 with Pepper tonight with the usual run/walk pace he likes. The weather here is beautiful, other than the rain we've had all day. Temps have been in the low 70's and taking Pepper out is great. Also hit the gym again tonight and did some hard work on my legs to keep strengthening them in other ways. Hit up the shoulders and then the abs at the end of the gym to round out the day. Sinuses are doing much better and I think I'll take a nice run tomorrow during work.

Hiking during the day with Pepper out at Catoctin Mountain Park (http://www.nps.gov/cato/)in Thurmont, MD. Not too many people on the trails, which was very nice, although we did find a few. Hiked out to several vistas, overlooking several valley's on different sides of the mountain, all of which were very nice. As we were hiking out we passed a group of people who asked me about the availability of water on the mountain. Of course, they had dogs and didn't have any water with them, so I gave some of mine to their dogs (Not to the people!). For the record, Corgies should probably not be hiking on a mountain, especially when their irresponsible owners don't have any water on an 85 degree day. Needless to say, Pepper and I had a fantastic time and he was thoroughly exhausted when we got back to the car. The hike was for 6 miles and then later in the day, we went for a nice 2.5 mile trot. Nice and easy 8.5 miles for the entire day.

Ran after work around Pimmit Hills across the road and did the 5 miles loop. Finished the loop in 38:44. It took a while to get going tonight and my right foot hurt near the back left side of the ball of my foot. Odd, it's been a little like that lately but I haven't been all that worried about it. After I warm up, it typically goes away. Afterwards, I gathered Pepper up and we did a nice and easy 2 miles for a cooldown for a total of 7 miles for the day. He's really getting good with running with me which bodes well for us in the future, especially since it should get cooler sooner. Looking forward to a really short week as this is my last "friday off" from a summer 9/80 program. Oh well, it's been nice while it lasted but I also have plenty of vacation saved for future use. Thinking about hiking this Sunday, somewhere in Shenandoah, but I'm unsure if I want to put the miles on my car. Oh well...a decision will come soon enough. At least I have Penn State football on Saturday. Let's go State! 1-0 and onward to a National Championship!

(Brooks Infinitis 319 miles)

Took a nice trip out to Shenandoah National Park and hiked Little Devil Stairs with fellow blogger Lucia and my pup, Pepper. It was a beautiful day outside and the hike was fantastic. The first 1.8 miles were quite strenuous and steep, included an incident/run-in with some overly aggressive bees, but we all survived. By the time the day was over, Pepper was/had pooped, Lucia was stung twice by bees, and I was happy to just be out there. Great hike, company, and overall day out in the woods. Thanks for driving Lucia! Pepper enjoyed meeting you and contrary to my predictions, got enough sleep in the car ride back. He was crazy for the rest of the day and wouldn't let me relax at all.

Ran after work on my 5 mile loop in 36:47...felt ok during the run but couldn't get my breathing regulated. It was pretty humid and I believe that it contributed to my breathing issues. Hit the long steep hill towards the end of the run and trucked all the way to the top then took a slow job at the top to catch my breath. Stepped up the run and finished the last mile at a nice gallop. Afterward, I took Pepper for a 1.5 mile trot/stroll to round out the evening. Plan is to try and run every day this week at or after work for at least 5 miles to have a fun-filled week of running.

(Brooks Infinitis 325.5 miles)

Took time during work to run from my office, down to Georgetown and out to Fletchers Boathouse. The weather was fantastic as it was a steady downpour from when I crossed the key bridge the first time until I came back to it. Although humid, it kept me cool during the entire run and I was able to get a great pace in. The last 1.3 miles of the run was a gradual run uphill on the Custis Trail from to my office at Courthouse. Right as I was starting to tire from the hill, I hit the top and ran to my office. Finished the 8 mile course in 61 minutes flat for a nice pace below 8 minute miles. I also entered my time into several race predictors and everything seems to point towards me running right over a 3:30 at the MCM next month. I think with a litte dedication and hard work over the next 47 days, I can get my time below my goal of 3:30. Time to get back to work.

(Brooks Infinitis 333.5 miles)

Ok, working from home today and that gives me the liberty to take time during the day to run. No excuses, so I decided to hit the W&OD trail for some speed.

1 mile	7:08	Warmup Felt pretty good
.5 miles	4:00	Slowed down to catch breath
.5 miles	2:44	First speed...hurt at .4
.75 miles	4.52	Caught my breath back
.5 miles	2:50	Second speed...hurt again, .4
.75 miles	5:00	Caught my breath back
.5 miles	4:00	Cooldown
.5 miles	3:45	Cooldown
.5 miles	3:50	Cooldown
.5 miles	3:28	Cooldown
Total: 6 miles	Total Time: 40:57	Felt beaten down after, but good overall

Total mileage was decent and I really only pushed it really hard on two .5 mile sets. My cooldown mileage at the end of the running felt good and I was able to move pretty quickly. Overall, I feel that I needed to start doing some type of speedwork to increase my overall speed. Running at a 7:30-7:45 pace feels really good at this point, but I know I can do better in the future. Good hard running today...hitting the gym tonight to round out the day.

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Went to the gym tonight and did back and bi's. I'm a little dismayed with the fact that my Pull-ups are down to only 20 from about 24 a month ago. It may be the fact that I had a good hard run earlier, but it's still bothers me. I will be sore tomorrow since I took last week off from the gym. Afterwards, came home to Pepper and we took a nice 2 mile walk/trot around the neighborhood. Besides wanting to eat a Pug, he's just a pleasure to wander with. Oh, it's also great when he's sitting on the couch next to me and being a good boy. I wonder if I need to get new shoes anytime soon...hmmmm...more money to spend.

(Brooks Infinitis 341.5 miles)

For some reason, I couldn't sleep last night and got 4 to 4.5 hours of sleep. I left work early today, came home to the pup, and promptly took a nice 2 hour nap on the couch. I feel MUCH better now. Went to the gym tonight to do chest and tris and also did 31 minutes on the eliptical machine. Total mileage was 3.35 miles. It actaully felt good since my legs are quite sore right now from running and the gym strengthening exercises I'm doing. For those of you in the DC area....it is muggy out, isn't it? Oh well, have a great weekend and let's go Penn State football. Moving to 3-0 with a pounding of the Orange.

5 miles after work with Pepper. He's such a good runner and a joy to have around. Somehow lost my digital watch so I'm going to have to look for it. I don't know what time I finished in, but that is ok...no worries.

Took time from work and ran out out and back on the Custis Trail out to the end at the intersection with the W&OD Trail. Total run distance was 8 miles and I once again have no idea where my watch is so I don't have a time. Based on when I got back to the gym to take a shower, it was right around 60 minutes + or - a few. Run felt good once I warmed up and I'll head over to the gym tonight. 39 days to the MCM. giddyup!

(Brooks Infinitis 349.5 miles)

Ran 3 miles after work with Pepper. Took it easy as he had a little cut on his paw so I didn't want to run him too hard.

(Brooks Infinitis 352.5 miles)

Up in Pennsylvania for a family wedding and got to run with my brother/fellow blogger (Dale). Ran around the old neighborhood for 6.67 miles and finished in 51:22. (all this is according to his blog as he as the fancy GPS). Good run then some partying at night with the family. Weather was 48 degrees when we started.....fantastic! Finally, cool weather where I don't die from the heat while running.

(Brooks Infinitis 359.89 miles)

Out with Pepper after work for a nice 3 miles. His paw is much better but I didn't want to push him in the heat. It looks like it should cool down in the latter portions of the week, so maybe we can do 5 together. Hit the gym after the run and did pyramid pull-ups (50) and pushups until I almost died. Also hit the abs quite hard and did a few more chest exercises. Overall, exhausted from being back at work and working out so hard.

(Brooks Infinitis 370.37 miles)

Got lots of sleep last night and hit the streets after lunch at work. Ran a nice 1.5 mile warmup to the track at Washington & Lee High School in 11:21. I then ran 100 meter sprints w/ 100 meters jog in between for 1.5 miles in 9:39. Finally, did a nice 3 mile cooldown run in 23:05 back to the office. Total mileage: 6 miles in 44:05. Good running today but I need to get some new shoes. My calves have hurt each time out at about mile 5 and today was no difference. Well...more money spent. At least it's for a good cause.

(Brooks Infinitis 376.37 miles)

Out with Pepper for 3 miles after work. At dinner then headed over to the gym for 1.25 hours biceps and triceps. Needless to say....I can barely lift my arms but they feel pretty good overall. Got new shoes today....I'm back to Asics....yeah, no more Brooks Infiinitis. The Asics are the first kind I ever bought and they somehow have pressure on all the right spots of my feet. I will be treating myself to a nice 8-10 mile run tomorrow to start breaking them in.

On another completely unrelated point, I had another job interview for a position with the Denver Public Schools as their Emergency Response and Crisis Management Coordinator today. It seemed to go well, and if I don't get the FEMA job, I'll probably take this one. Next step, if I make it, is an in-person interview out in Denver, which would happen in the next two weeks. I'm trying my darndest to get out to Colorado, especially in time for ski season, so lets hope for the best. Also....I would love to run it altitude again, oh, and bike, ski, hike, camp...I think you get it. 

6.04 miles on the treadmill in 55 minutes after dinner. I HATE running on the treadmill but didn't feel like running in the rain tonight. This was my first run in my new shoes and they feel good. Oddly enough, my legs don't hurt like they did with my old shoes. Go figure. No wanderings for Pepper and I since he doesn't really like the rain. First day of work in my alternate/soon to be permanent office in McLean....odd, very odd. Commute was nice (8 minutes instead of 35-45).

(Asics Kayano 14 - 6.04 miles)

6 Miles with pepper in the rain after work at night. Stuck to the sidewalks since he's afraid of storm drains. Uber-busy week at work with end of the week slowly approaching.

(Asics Kayano 14 - 12.04 miles)

5 miles with pepper after work. Still busy...tired but no workie on Friday or this weekend like the last. Sweet!

(Brooks Infinitis - 381.37 miles)

Day off today to re-coup time lost last weekend and this week. Went out to the C&O Canal Trail at Great Falls and ran west. Plan was to get water along the way at the various water stations I saw on the website, but none were up and running. Needless to say, I got out 6 miles and realized that I really needed water. Unfortunately, at the same time, I noticed a nice hot spot on my left big toe. Not good...not good at all. At least the weather was nice. Stumbled my way back to the starting point and finished my 12 miles in about 1:35. Plan was to go 23 miles today, but with the massive blister I have on my toe and my lack of water, I was completely and utterly de-motivated. Picked up some anti-friction stuff at the running store on the way home. My guess is that I'll try it again on Sunday and shoot for 24 miles on routes I know. Dang...why did I try to be adventurous? Oh well, at least I got 12 miles in and felt really good while doing it. Blogging has been difficult at best this week due to work craziness. The cool thing was that I got to work at the White House and met some pretty high powered folks there. Unfortunately, the President decided against joining our work because he was dealing with the current financial crisis. Oh well...maybe next time? Still no word on Colorado. I'm now looking for a new job down in this area as I'm getting disgusted with the one I have. I do want to do the same type of work, but maybe with a non-profit. Oddly enough, they pay well in my line of work. Marathon in 23 days...should be fun. For some reason, I always seem to ramp it up at the last minute! :) Can you say, procrastinator?

(Asics Kayano 14 - 24.04 miles)

Out and about with Pepper for 2 miles than myself for another 3. Forgot to wear the watch but didn't really care. Felt good during the run and the blisters still a little sore. Wore my old shoes so I didn't kill myself too much.

(Brooks Infinitis 386.37 miles)

Easing back into my new shoes with Pepper at my side. Ran 4 miles with him around the neighborhood across the street in 35 minutes. Took plenty of pauses so Pepper could mark everything as his terrority. Felt good in the new shoes and the blisters are pretty much healed. Going to ramp up more tomorrow.

(Asics Kayano 14 - 28.04 miles)

Four miles with Pepper after I got home from the gym. Man, that doggie sure thinks everything belongs to him! Did shoulders and legs at the gym. Legs are now tired and should be sore tomorrow. My new commute is fantastic....7 minutes to work today; I even get to sleep in until 6am now.

(Brooks Infinitis 390.37 miles)

Had planned to do 22 miles today but only got to 9.5. Yeah...it's like that. I've developed some type of nasty head cold that means that I can only breath through my mouth, which has ultimately given me a sore throat and some serious drainage. Add that to the fact that once again I got some serious blisters at about mile 8 (even using bodyglide), something I never had a problem with in the past with other shoes, and I couldn't finish my run. Talk about frustrated.  I now have BIG blisters on both my feet. My plan is to still run the marathon in 2 weeks but it'll probably tougher than I wanted. I'm going to take these shoes back to the store and exchange them for some good old Brooks Infinitis since I know they are great shoes and my feet like them. The good news is that my legs aren't even sore today and I could have continue my run if I could have breathed and didn't have my blisters. Ugh.....

(Asics Kayano 14 - 37.04 miles)

Easy 3 miles with Pepper to try and tire him out before the Phillies game. It worked for once. He came in, finished his dinner, then went directly to bed (sprawled across the pillows). Went to the doctors today and found out what I figured in the first place, I have ANOTHER sinus infection. I somehow think that the first one never really went away since it was only a few weeks ago. Got some meds and some new stuff to help heal the sinuses and am totally wiped out because of them. Finally, took my Asic Kayano 14's back to the store and exchanged them for some Broooks Infinitis, which I should receive in the mail in a few days. I never should have strayed from the Brooks. I've got 1 1/2 weeks to break in the shoes before the marathon. Oh, and I'm heading up to beautiful State College, PA for the PSU/Michigan football game this weekend. I love the drive up there during this time of year because the foliage is absolutely gorgeous. Let's go Lions!

Finally got my new shoes in the mail, just in time for the Marathon on Sunday. Plan is to put about 20 miles on them from running and then another few from walking. Out on a nice 4 mile run where for the first 3 miles I pushed it to 7 minute miles and then backed off to an 8 minute on mile 4. Total runtime was 29 minutes. Afterwards, took Pepper for a nice 1.5 miles of walking/trotting which was interrupted by multiple pee breaks and one longer break where he did other business. New shoes felt fantastic, just as I expected. I should have never moved away from Brooks. Legs were killing me today since I helped a friend sod at 3500 sq foot yard on Friday. Wow....talk about some muscles you don't use all that much.

(Brooks Infinitis - 5.5 miles) 

Ran 5 miles tonight around the neighborhood across the street. Total run time was 40:16 for an average of 8:03 miles. Exactly the pace I wanted to run. Weather is beautiful as it was in the upper 40s for once. I absolutely love the fall weather out here since it's much cooler and humidity is pretty much non-existent. One more run this week which will probably be a short one, probably on Friday, then I'm taking off Saturday. Carb load begins tomorrow for the ract on Sunday...mmmmmm....pasta. :-) Legs are still a little sore from the mad sodding incident. I figure they will be fine by Friday and completely good by Sunday morning...I hope.

Shout out to my buddy Lucia...glad to see you're ok and beginning the healing process. Looking good! I'll drop you a line to see if you want to meet up in your hood on Friday.

 Rest of the night will be spent watching my beloved Philadelphia Phillies beat the Rays in World Series Game 1. Go Phils!!!!!!!

(Brooks Infinitis - 10.5 miles)

Here's what everbody was waiting for....I know it. To start, I've learned some valuable lessons from this race and I'll share them with everyone.

1. If you are going to run a marathon, make sure you actually run more than 15 miles prior to the race.

2. Don't start out too fast thinking that you'll be able to carry the pace throughout the race.

3. I'm able to finish a race, with minimal training, and meet my goals. That said, maybe I need to consistently train and actually run something like a 3 hours next time.

4. Injinji socks are AWESOME. I had blister problems on all my long runs prior to the marathon, lubed my feet up with some glide, put the Injinji socks on, and my feel only have one small blister. El Perfecto.

5. Do not, I repeat NOT help someone sod a 3500 sq ft yard one week prior to a marathon.

Total run time was 3:40:59.

I was able to mosey my way to the front 10th of the people in the start, so I didn't have to navigate through too many people like I did last year. First mile I clocked in at 8:15 mile and I continued on. From there, I began to loosen up and felt great, which is probably why I blazed a trail. Up and down the hills of Georgetown, no problems there, and then down to Hains Point. At the halfway mark, my time was just over 1:38 and I felt really good. I figured that if I stayed with the 3:20 pacer/group, I would be fine. Well....not so fast my friend. At mile 16, I began to hit some bumps in my personal running road. I thought it was lack of fuel, so I continued to eat goo's and drink water/sports drink at the stations. Right after mile 18, my day was made when my brother, Greg (non-runner unless he has to) hollared my name he was holding my neice, the Maeve. I ran back to them, where he said I was going to wrong way, then popped a quick kiss on the little tyke. Seeing them really energized me and I probably continued to run for another mile before I really broke down. From there on out, I would run, at a really slow pace for a while, then walk for a minute or two. I did this until the end of the Marathon. The worst part about the whole race was just after mile 24 when both my quads seized up, I mean, totally seized up. I walked for about three minutes then until they were loose again, stretching and massaging them as I went, and finally got going again. This was probably a combination of me not running far enough prior to the race and the mad sodding event. Oh well, from there, I hit the home stretch, at a very slow pace and felt total relief that the end was in sight. It was my assumption that I would have to go a little further than I did, based on last years course, but we made an immediate left and headed up the final .2 mile hill to the Iwo Jima Memorial.

Overall, I really did learn some valuable lessons during this race. The one salient point that bothered me at the end of the race was the fact that I wasn't meeting anyone there. Last year, I did, but this year, things are different....it's a long story. I'm happy with my performance to some extent, given the fact that my "really tough" goal was to run a 3:30 but my realistic goal was to run a 3:45. Well, I beat my realistic goal but have a long way to go. Training....it does the body good. I feel good about myself, now my legs....they are a different story. If anyone wants to run a fantastic race, with great fan support, I highly suggest heading towards DC and hitting the MCM up. My sense of pride as U.S. Marine in finishing our marathon is nothing but amazing...although I'm no longer in my beloved corps, I will always love everything about it and I honestly feel re-connected to more than many of my brethren ever will.

Semper Fi - Aaron

(Brooks Infinitis - 36.7 miles)

Four miles after work in the neighborhood across the street. It was my first run since the marathon and my legs finally felt good enough to run again. At the beginning of the run, back right hip/hammy area felt tight then loosened up. Breathing was a bit erratic and I had a hard time getting in a groove. Everything felt like a bit of a struggle, but it was ok. About 2 miles into the run, my left calf started to tense up and my right hip/hammy area started to tense up again. Oh well...ran through it and both calves were sore by the end of the run. Finished in 29:58 and took Pepper for a nice 1.5 mile walk afterward. Good run, hope for better feeling next time. Remember...tomorrow is pretty darn important for our country. Get out and vote!

(Brooks Infinitis 41.7miles)

Ok, so it's been a while since I ran; to be exact, it's been two whole weeks. Enough playing around and being lazy. Weather out here in the DC area is starting to turn cold and we're actaully expecting snow showers tonight. Temps were probably in the mid-upper 30s so I actually had to wear some cold-weather clothes. Wow...I seem to remember it hitting 70is over the weekend! Went for a nice 4 miles run w/out the pooch and finished in 31:12. To be honest, I didn't feel like I loosened up until about mile 3.5 but I didn't want to go further since I hadn't run in a while. Afterwards, took Pepper for a nice 1.5 mile cooldown walk. It was nice...very nice. Oh...interviewed for a new job today, primarily to work in downtown DC and McLean, VA. Good job, pay, people, but ultimately not where I want to live. Oh...Pepper is nuts tonight, simply nuts. One more thing......they are discontinuing my shoes...uh...what do I do now????

(Brooks Infinitis 45.7 miles)

Wow, it's been quite a while since I ran. Felt good to run tonight and I ran 5 miles in 40:28 in the neighborhood across the street. Afterwards, took Pepper, the birthday boy, out for a nice brisk 1.5 mile walk. Also hit the gym up at lunch today and did shoulders and legs. I'd imagine that they will be pretty darn sore tomorrow. Nothing like coming back for a nice run after you've dropped off the map for a while. Don't worry fellow bloggers, it won't happen again. On another note, I accepted a new job with a consulting firm, Booz Allen Hamilton, and will probably start after the first of the new year. I have three more weeks at my current job then I have the rest of the year off. Looks like I'm stuck in the DC area for a wee bit longer. Oh, and I'm moving into a house with some friends in two weeks. Wow....talk about change. Happy running bloggers!

(Brooks Infinitis 50.7 miles)

Four miles after work around the Pimmit Hills neighborhood. Legs and body overall are pretty darn sore from my re-entry into the gym scene. If you're interested, the lights at the corner of Leonard and Griffith, Falls Church VA, 22043 are very Griswaldish. Nice, very nice. I look forward to the day when I have a house where I can lavishly decorate my house in distasteful ways. :-) Finished the four miles in 32:04, just the nice 8 minute pace I wanted. Also hit the gym at lunch again for chest, tris, and abs. Dang, I can't lift nearly as much as I used to. Nothing like a challenge to make me feel better. After the run tonight, took Pepper out for a nice 2 mile+ walk around the neighborhood. Man, my boy was happy to be out in the cold tonight. Temps during the run were in the upper 30s. Life is good....A Christmas Story is on TNT.

(Brooks Infinitis 54.7 miles)

Nothing today....relaxation and recovery from the gym and running. Oh, plus a sprinkle of Thai food.

No running again. Went to the gym at lunch and did squats, calf raises, shoulder presses, front/side shoulder raises, and leg extensions. Legs are starting to feel better from the initial "welcome back" workout I had earlier in the week. Looking forward to happy hour tonight.....good times.

Time for a nice holiday run. Met up with fellow bloggers Lucia (Argentine Rocket) and Ben (Dutch) plus a few others for the Jingle all the way 10k in sunny Washington, DC. Our team, Santa's Little Jinglers truly lived up to our name as we jingled through the WHOLE race and long afterward too! Overall, the team placed 11th out of 49 teams, which ain't too shabby if you ask me.

As we started the race, I was going to take it easy but Lucia scolded me and said...."You need to run fast to get our team's time down!!!" Well, I can't say no to that since I like to win so off I went bobbing and weaving through the crowd. First two miles felt great as my legs finally started to warm up (I wore shorts in 30 degree weather). Yes....the shorts were probably a bad idea and went everything I usually wear when running in the cold. Stupidity...check; hard-headedness...check; macho...check; cold Aaron...check. As I got out around Haines Point and got to the half way mark, I noticed that I was right at about a 21 minute 5k, which was right where I wanted to be. My ultimate goal for the race was 42 for the 6 miles plus a little more for the last .2. Turnaround point had me cruising and thinking that I would reach my goal. Around mile 5, I began to feel some tightness in my right hip flexor. The pain continued through the rest of the race. At mile 6, I decided to sprint the last .2 of the race and crossed the finish line in 42:36. Definitely a PR since I've never run a 10k before. Once again, not to shabby for not really training. I suppose that if I trained properly, I could probably beat just about anyone. Too much other stuff going on at this point for that. 

After the race, I went to Lucia's house for an after party and had some TASTY food and warming drinks. If you don't know, Lucia makes some freaking awesome icecream. Great times with great people. Check out Lucia's blog for some fancy pictures.

What an eventful weekend....I moved in with some friends, am finishing up my job this week and looking forward to just under 3 weeks off before I start my new job, and am dealing with a pup with SEVERE moving anxiety. I've read that it sometimes takes a dog up to 2-3 weeks before they are fully acclimated to their new living conditions. With Pepper, since he was jettisoned from family to family before coming to me, I'm gearing up for an even longer ride. He just needs to know that he's loved and he'll be fine. Oh...plenty of treats and exercise too.

Well, happy holidays folks. Till next time....over and out.

(Brooks Infinitis 60.9 miles)