Recovering from CECS

First report...  I took a bit of time off, almost a year.  I switched jobs in November 2007 and it threw my life into a tailspin.  It was a promotion, but I lost the ability to train during the workday.  I gained about 20 pounds and was stress out.  I tried to train, but couldn't stay consistent.  In addition, I kept getting little nagging injuries, mostly calf muscle problems.

I'll step back a few more years to give the full saga.  I joined the Army in 1996 when I was really gaining steam with my running.  Unfortunately, I lost fitness in the Army.  I exited the service in 2001 and tried a few fruitless comebacks. 

I just switched back to my old job with a raise, and I'm much happier.  I have time to train again.  Now it's almost 2009 and I want to take one last crack at getting "fast" by my definition of the word.  So, I'm going to try to be smart about it.  I'm trying to coming back slowly, eat well, get enough rest and not overtrain.

2 miles, 15:56, 7:54/mile, 152BPM.  It didn't feel very good.  186.8lbs, 19% BF

2 miles, 15:56, 7:54/mile, 152BPM

2 miles, 15:32, 7:38/mile, 152BPM

2.04 miles, 16:34, 8:08/mi, 133BPM

2.04mi, 16:03, 7:52/mi, 139BPM

3.14mi, 24:20, 7:45/mi, 151BPM

4.03mi, 31:50, 7:54, 150BPM

2.04mi, 15:45, 7:43/mi, 137BPM

4.02mi, 32:20, 8:02/mi, 145BPM

4.04mi, 32:51, 8:08/mi, 144BPM

4.02mi, 32:32, 8:05/mi, 142BPM

4.04, 33:02, 8:10/mi, 140BPM

4.03mi, 33:42, 8:21/mi, 136BPM

4.03mi, 31:58, 7:55/mi, 141BPM

4.03mi, 32:23, 8:01/mi, 137BPM

2.03 mi, 15:02, 7:25/mi, 152BPM 

4.02mi, 31:48, 7:54/mi, 141BPM

4.04mi, 30:33, 7:33/mi, BPM146

4.04mi, 31:20, 7:44/mi, 140BPM

4.00mi, 36:34, 9:09/mi, 131BPM

4.04mi, 30:19, 7:30/mi

2.04mi, 15:27, 7:33/mi, 134BPM

6.04mi, 51:21, 8:30/mi, 144BPM

3.04mi, 22:09, 7:18/mi, 143BPM

4.02mi, 31:25, 7:48/mi, 141BPM

4.0mi, 33:37, 8:24/mi, 136BPM

4.06mi, 31:53, 7:51/mi, 140BPM

4.09, 31:35, 7:43/mi, 142BPM

6.12mi, 51:16, 8:23/mi, 139BPM

4.04mi, 29:14, 7:13/mi, 149BPM

4.03mi, 31:48, 7:53/mi, 139BPM

4 miles indoors, 31:08, 7:47/mi, 140BPM

4 miles indoors, 30:20, 7:35/mi, 144BPM

4.05mi, 30:16, 7:28/mi, 144BPM

4.02mi, 32:43, 8:08/mi, 130BPM

4 miles indoors, 30:34, 7:36/mi, 135BPM

I did 3 x 800 for kicks.  I know I don't have the fitness for a true speed workout, but I need to break up the monotony.  3:15, 3:11, 3:08 with 1/4 mile jogs in between.

4 miles in Miami.  31:05, 146BPM, My Garmin had a tough time finding satellites amongst the skyscrapers.  I'm in Miami for a few days for a conference.  I missed the previous few days because of a National Guard exercise. 

Still in Maimi.  No Garmin.  I'll call it 3.5 miles. 27:13, 142BPM

Still in Miami.  I gave up on the Garmin.  Just went for a run, no watch.  Probably around 35 minutes.

My brother-in-law took me deep sea fishing today.  Left at dawn and got back late.  Plus, I had too many beers :)  No running, but tested my sea legs.  I turned green a couple times.

Travel day.  Back to Vermont.  I'm pretty worn out from the trip.  One more day off.

River Cove Road.  4 miles, 32:12, 8:01/mile, 145BPM

4 miles indoors at St. Mike's.  31:38, 8:00/mi, 147BPM

River Cove Road, 4 miles, 31:21, 7:47/mi, 145BPM

River Cove Road, 4 mi, 31:45, 7:56/mi, 143BPM

My buddy talked me into doing this race.  I'm way out of shape, so I knew it was going to hurt a bit.  The race was short, even though I took a wrong turn that added about 0.1mi to my run, the Garmin tallied 2.95 miles.  I had to burst my friend's bubble, he thought he ran a 16:37 5k, but he only ran about 2.85 miles.  Bummer.  Nothing else to report other than my splits: 6:19, 6:43, 6:24 (.95mi).  Total time 19:25 for 2.95mi.

Middle Road.  6.2 miles.  50:31, 8:08/mi, 145BPM

River Cove Rd.  4 miles, 32:13, 7:58/mi, 141BPM

Indoors at St. Mike's. 4 miles, 30:39, 7:40/mi, 139BPM

Indoors at St. Mike's, 29:44, 7:26/mi, 141BPM

Middle Road, 7.49 miles, 1:00:45, 8:08/mi, 143BPM.  My first 1HR+ run in a long time.

River Cove Road, 4.15 miles, 33:22, 8:02/mi, 139BPM

Indoors at St. Mike's, 4.5 miles, 35:39, 7:55/mi, 136BPM.  My right calf started to tighten up, so I cut the run short.  The indoor track is just a mezzanine above the basketball courts in the main gym.  It's concrete with no rubberized surface.  It's not much better than running on a sidewalk.  I need to closely monitor my calves and knees while I train indoors.

Indoors at St. Mike's, 4 miles, 30:59, 7:45/mi, 135BPM

This is a fun little event.  It draws around 500 participants, which is a bunch for this area.  My results were very similar to my other 5k a couple weeks ago.  The temp was in the high 30's and it was windy.  Splits:  5:50, 6:39, 7:06, :27 last .07mi.  The first half of the course is steady downhill.  At 1.5mi, you head off-road into the woods and the course gets a little tricky.  I'm satisfied with my effort, but can't wait until I'm fit again.  I'm spent aerobically within the first mile and have to hang on for dear life.  It's not a very fun way to compete.

Went to Anne's parent's house for Thanksgiving in Rutland.  We spent the night and I went running in unfamiliar territory in the morning.  I really like the Garmin on days like this.  7.2 miles, 57:52, 8:02/mi, 143BPM

Middle Road, 6.51 miles, 52:45, 8:08/mi, 140BPM

Colchester Pond Loop, 6.32 mi, 49:38, 7:51/mi, 143BPM

Middle Road, 4.62 miles, 36:47, 7:58/mi, 140BPM

River Cove Road, 4.84 miles, 7:56/mi, 138BPM

River Cove Road, 4.91 miles, 38:23, 7:49/mi, 137BPM

River Cove Road, 4.1 miles, 29:40, 7:13/mi, 144BPM.  I did a little "mini tempo" in the middle for kicks, 7:04, 6:58.

River Cove Road, 6.01 miles, 50:08, 8:20/mi, 136BPM

River Cove Road, 4.11 miles, 29:49, 7:15/mi, 144BPM.  I was pressed for time, so I ran a littel quicker today.  I guess running 8:00/mi pace would have only added 2 minutes to my day.  I probably should've backed off....

Too busy at the VTANG drill weekend to get a run in.  Bummer.

Inddors at St. Mike's, 4 miles.  no watch.

Indoors at St. Mike's.  4 x 800 w/ 400 rest, 3:00, 2:56, 2:56, 2:56 

Indoors at St. Mike's.  4 miles, no watch

Does shoveling for 2 hours count as running?

Indoors at St. Mike's.  4 miles, no watch

Indoors at St. Mike's.  10 miles.....80 laps.....  Tough to keep my sanity.  My trick is to wear my Ipod and only look at my watch at the beginning of a song.  I don't count each lap.  I'm averaging around 8:00/miles, so I know I need to hit the lap counter when I get close to 8:00.  I'd run on this little 1/8 mile indoor track before I 'd consider treadmill running.  I've done my share of TM training and can't stand it. 1:14:57, 7:30/mile, 142BPM.

Indoors at St. Mike's.  6 miles, 45:21, 7:35/mile, 141BPM

Outdoors, around 25-30 degrees.  River Cove Rd. loop. 5.21 miles easy, 41:56, 8:02/mile, 140BPM.

5 Miles easy indoors.  38:37, 7:44/mile, 138BPM

St. Mike's indoor track.  5 miles easy. 38:22, 7:40/mile, 138BPM

My first entry.  Winter is beginning to take hold in Vermont, so I plan on doing much of my running indoors.  I grew up in Arizona and I still have a tough time running outside if it's below freezing.  I plan on building my base mileage through the winter so I can introduce some quality work in the spring.

Easy 6 miler at the St. Mike's College indoor trakck.  It's about 10 degrees and breezy outside.  The roads are still a little dicey from the storm a couple days ago.  47:05, 7:51/mile, 134BPM.

179.0lbs, 18%BF

Another 8 inches of snow last night.  Spent the morning shoveling snow with Anne.  Decided to brave the roads and run outside.  It's about 10 degrees.  I ran slowly due to poor traction and because I didn't want to sweat too much.  51:55, 8:18/mi, 135BPM

Snowed in.  It was 5 degrees and snowing this morning.  It hasn't let up at all.  St Mike's gym is closed this weekend for winter break.  It'll be tough for me to keep training until school is back in session on Jan 5.  I'll just have to brave the outdoors.

12 miles indoors at St. Mike's.  1:30:34. 7:32/mi. No HRM.  It was frigid and windy outside today.  After tomorrow, St. Mike's gym is closed until Monday, Jan 5.  I'll have to be brave and run outside, or use the treadmills on the air base.

8 miles indoors at St. Mike's.  1:01:38. 7:42/mi. 134BPM.

The weather was absolutely nasty today.  Very windy and rain/sleet.  The indoor track was closed so I had no choice but to use the treadmill at the base gym.  I can't explain why I dislike running on the treadmill so much.  I just don't care for it.  I managed to put in 4 miles before I gave up on it.  The good news is that there are very few times when I do not have access to an indoor running track.  The weather looks pretty good next week so I'll be able to train outside comfortably.

Anne and I spent Christmas Eve and with all of her brothers and sisters at Anne's sister's big farm house down the road in Ferrisburg.  We stayed up late, drank wine and visited.  The next morning I got up early and ran 8 easy miles before we opened gifts.  It was very quiet and peaceful.  I only saw 1 or 2 cars.  1:01:00, 7:38/mi, 143BPM.

Middle Road. 6.26 miles, 7:47/mi, 141BPM. 15 degrees and no wind.  I tried out some Christmas gifts, running mittens and new running pants.  I am very happy.  My hands stayed toasty warm.  

Middle Road loop.  It was about 40 degrees this morning.  I started out easy but I noticed a guy about 1 minute ahead of me a mile into the run.  I chased him down over the next 2 miles and we chatted for a bit.  He figured I wanted to run faster since I had closed on him so quickly.  I didn't realize we had sped up until we hit a headwind while heading up a steep hill.  So... it turned into a tempo run for me.  He was in much better shape, so I just tried to hang on.  Splits for the tempo miles: 7:13, 7:13, 7:21, 7:53 (huge hill), 7:00.  162 BPM during the tempo and I hit 170 BPM on the hill.  Overall time: 50:09 over 6.77 miles.

U-G-L-Y. 11 miles, 1:36:44, 8:47/mi, 151BPM.

Holy cow!  It’s December 28 in Vermont and the temp is 50 degrees!  The bad news is the wind is blowing in excess of 25mph.  Not a fun running day.  I’m still a little tired from yesterday and the gradual boost of mileage.  I pretty much suffered through it without any enjoyment.  In fact, I can’t remember a more difficult run in a long time. 

It reminded me of a passage from Frank Shorter’s book.  I met him in 1995 at a local race in Tucson.  I had a young friend with me (who did not know who Shorter was), and I introduced him to Frank.  I remember saying something like, “Hey Tom, this is Frank Shorter.  He is the Gold Medalist of the 1972 Olympic Marathon.”  Frank looked at me and said with a little attitude, “By the way, I did win the Silver in 1976 too.”  I felt about 6 inches tall, but still had the gumption to ask him to sign my early edition copy of Once a Runner.  We talked for a few minutes about training.  I was trying to mimic his methods at the time.  13 sessions a week, around 100 to 120 miles.  He took the time to talk with me and sign the book.  I still treasure the book and take it out during tough spells.

Frank’s book, “Olympic Gold, A Runner’s Life and Times,” is underrated.  He was one tough dude who would get out the door to run no matter what the conditions were.  So, here is the snippet:

In February 1975, three months before Pre’s death, we were skiing together in Taos, NM.  We were also running, and the harsh winter weather made for rather rough going.  I recall one day in particular when we were out for a 10-mile run in the mountain trails where the altitude reached 10,000 feet.  There was a blizzard raging, and the snow was blowing so hard across our faces we could barely see.  Being familiar with such conditions, they came as less of a shock to me than to Steve, who lived in western Oregon away from the mountains.  He was jabbering away, complaining.  Steve was a great complainer, which masked his courage and belied his success as a runner.  He’d even complain about a nice sunny day.  It was part of his routine.

In the middle of that workout, at the height of his objection, I turned to Pre and said, “You know, nobody in the world is training harder than we are right now.”  Pre put his head down and didn’t say a word for the rest of the workout.

Thinking about guys like Pre and Shorter gets me though tough days like today.  Maybe I’ll get back to my PR’s of 10 years ago.  Getting out the door on days like today is a big part.

River Cove Road.  5.21 miles.  7:49/mi. 141BPM.  Winds calmed down.  Temp was around 35 degrees.  It'll be below zero in a couple days, so I better enjoy the warm days while I can.

River Cover Road Loop.  5.22 miles. 40:34. 7:45/mi. 137BPM.  Chilly and windy.  My right lower calf has been sore for the past few days.  I'll try to take it easy for the rest of the week so I do not aggravate it.

New Year's Eve.  It's back to normal in Vermont.  5 degrees, -10 wind chill.  I'm getting better at dressing appropriately for the cold weather.  Thank goodness I finally got some wind briefs!

Middle Road.  very windy.  6.25 miles. 8:03/mi. 136BPM