A clydesdale no more!

Had real difficulty walking last night so a run was definitely out of the question.  My knee feels a little better this morning but still hurts too bad to run.  I really have no idea what happened.  Other than the one day last week when I ran a double, I feel I have been very conservative since the marathon.  It feels like an inflamed tendon so I am not overly concerned about it.  I should be back at it tomorrow.

I'm going to give the knee one more day to rest.  I feel like I could run on it but giving it a little extra rest is probably the smart thing to do.

Decided to test the knee.  Considered turning around after 1/4 mile but the discomfort wasn't increasing so I kept going.  It still hurts but I can manage the discomfort.  The true test is the rest of today and tomorrow morning.  If the pain does not increase then I will start running again and deal with the pain.

Knee felt weak but didn't hurt.  Definitely a step in the right direction.  It didn't feel normal but it is something I can run on.  I only missed 4 days of running but felt woefully out of shape.  So strange. 

Trying to salvage the week with a nice long run.  Headed to the LPT where I saw Kathie.  Actually, I was in a daze and would have missed her had she not said anything.  Glad to see her getting some good mileage in.  The miles on the LPT went well.  Kept the pace around 7:30-7:45.  Got off the LPT at Glover and headed to Main Street.  This is where the run got ugly.  My ankles were really bothering me and I was unable to get a decent push off.  Pace drifted above 8:00/mile for a few miles.  Stopped at Smoot park for a drink of water and a GU and that seemed to jump start my body.  Felt a lot better so I picked up the pace.  Ran the last mile in 7:13 just for fun.  It was a little more difficult than it should have been.  Wore a singlet so that I could do something about my farmer tan.  It rubbed my arms raw.  Very, very sore. 

My girls want to start running to build their fitness for soccer so we went out for a couple of miles.  I'm going to try to get them out on the days they don't have practice. 

AM - 6 miles

I could really feel my weight this morning.  Felt like it took a lot more work to get my body to move.  Not very fluid at all.  Hoping for a few miles this afternoon. 

AM - 7 miles

Five erratically paced miles while the girls were at soccer.  Headed west from their practice field to Farmington Bay.  First mile was 7:30 then the next couple were considerably slower.  Ran the last mile in 7:20.  Not sure what the run accomplished other than some bonus miles.  My thinking is that these extra little runs will help bring the weight down.  Gracie wanted to go for a run after dinner so we went for an easy 2 miler.  Pace was around 10:00/mile so the effort was relatively low.  More miles for the day than I planned.  Hope I feel alright in the morning.

I can feel some pulling in my knee so I am taking today off.  I don't wan't a repeat of last week.  It appears that I am not cut out for the two a days.  My intent was to keep the body going throughout the day.  Maybe I need to be lighter before I increase the number of runs per day.  The only issue is how do I get lighter without increasing the runs?

Ran 2 miles with Gracie in the evening.  Super easy pace but my legs felt like trash.

Really not feeling it right now.  My legs are not moving the way they should be.  Feel like I may need new shoes but there are not that many miles on them.  Will probably get another couple of miles tonight with Gracie. 

Two easy miles after work with Emma and Gracie.  Fun to get out with them and see how much they are enjoying it.

Quite a bit colder than I thought it would be.  Had to go back in the house to get a long sleeve shirt.  Should have grabbed some gloves, too.  Still having a hard time with my form.  Just don't feel fluid. My feet were a little too slappy.  Kept the pace around 7:30-7:40 which felt really good despite the poor form.

Started with 12 miles on the LPT.  Had very little energy.  It took all that I had to get out the door.  First couple of miles were 8:15 then transistioned into 7:45's for the rest of the run.  Legs didn't feel like they were working hard and my breathing wasn't labored but it felt like a lot of work.  I'm so tired of feeling this way. 

After the run, I took my girls to the Davis Dash 5k.  They have been excited about doing this race.  They did really well.  They didn't walk a single time during the run which is a first for both of them.  Gracie held a little lead on Emma most of the run.  The course was a bit long.  They hit 5k in 31:52 and 32:00.  They were shooting for 32:00 so they were happy to meet their goal.  Emma could have finished a lot sooner but she needs to figure out how to push herself harder. 

Just another run.  Ankles/achilles still bothering me a bit. 

Just a few miles to shake out the legs before tomorrow's half.  Kept the pace relatively easy.  I pushed the pace for a mile to make sure the legs could move at a decent pace.  I used a crossfit group that was out running as a target.  I wanted to pass them before they got to their turnaround point.  Still not feeling at the top of my game.  In fact, I cannot remember feeling this out of shape in a very long time.  It is not just while I am running.  I feel slothful and just blah througout the day.  Tomorrow will be a good barometer of where I really am.

The intent of this race was to be a gauge of my fitness.  If I couldn't come in under 1:30 I was going to have to do a serious assessment of what I am doing.  I can't believe that I have gotten to the point where breaking 1:30 is a stretch goal.  Really didn't give the race too much thought until 10 last night when I got home from my girl's soccer game.  Rummaged through my drawers to find something to wear.  I usually give considerable thought to my race attire.  After a restless night of sleeping due to a bird trapped in my chimney, I got up and headed to the Ogden.  Temps in the valley were perfect but it was freezing at the starting line.  Ideal for a race.  At the starting line I began to relace my shoe and suddenly heard the countdown for the start.  Wasn't expecting it so soon. 

Mile	Split	Note
1	6:52	Started out fast (6:10) but overall split was slow because of the hill during the second half of the mile.
2	6:48	Settled into a comfortable pace.
3	6:49	Locked in.  Holding it here so I don't blow up.
4	6:50
5	6:30	Really steep section right after the dam.  Got passed by a few people but I am opting to maintain a consistent effort.
6	6:50	Feeling a little light headed.  Took a GU at 5.5.
7	6:47
8	6:46	GU kicked in and my head is a little more clear.
9	6:40	A little steeper section at the bottom of the canyon.  Effort has not changed.
10	6:36	Calculate that 7 minute miles will give me sub 1:30.  Don't give in yet.
11	6:42
12	6:49
13	6:41	A couple of runners that I have followed for several miles start to come back to me.  As I am on the long boring stretch to the finish line I see another heavier runner.  I decide that I cannot be beat by him.  Push the pace a little and move by him.
13.1	1:30	My Garmin measured 0.25 so the pace is a little quicker.  Felt really good.

Satisfied with the results but would not consider it a complete success.  I was able to maintain a very consistent effort throughout the race and am happy with running a smart race.  I chose a time that was very realistic.  It's unfortunate that it is 5 minutes slower than I would like but considering that I was expecting a colossal failure today, I can live with it.  I am a little disappointed that I did not push harder.  I never pushed beyond comfortably hard.  I believe I did this because I was afraid of another terrible race.  Also, not doing any speedwork in a long time has made me forget what my true limits feel like.  Ended up placing 3rd in my age group which was a bit of a surprise. 

Finally got new shoes and they weren't the miracle cure I was hoping for.  My ankles are super sore.  It was great being out this morning but the run was difficult.  I don't have much post race soreness other than the ankles. 

Almost skipped the run completely.  Forced myself out for a few easy miles.  Felt better than yesterday so I am glad I got the run in.  Training for Huntsville starts on Monday and I am wondering if I should use a different training plan since it didn't work out very well last time.  I roughly follow something between Pfitz's 55 and 70 mpw 18 week plans.  They are more focused on mileage with only one high intensity run per week.  I wonder if I should back off the mileage and have a couple of faster runs.  Who knows?  Maybe the last training cycle was just a building block for a good fall marathon.

One of my less enjoyable runs.  Body just didn't feel right.  Didn't feel like I had a lot of strength in my legs.  A mile into the run I started having a pain that started in my achilles and moved up to my knee.  Stopped for a minute and considered heading back home but assumed it would work itself out if I kept going.  Felt better after a few minutes. 

Met Kam for a run on the BST.  Good climb during the first mile to get to the trail.  Pace was comfortable while we were on the trail.  My effort during the climbs was a little high but they were relatively short so I was able to keep up with Kam.  Got off the trail and dropped into Farmington.  Felt really good until we got to Main street and Icould start to feel my glucose levels getting low.  Typical symptoms: tingly fingers, foggy head.  Felt like we picked the pace up but it was probably the same effort as the trail.  We were just able to move faster on the road.  Last mile was a little tougher for me and I know I was holding Kam back.  We both ran watchless which made the run so much more enjoyable.  It was nice to be running for running's sake and not worried about pace or distance.  I realized that the best part of a good hard run like that is how good that first moment that you sit down feels.  Somewhat of a euphoric feeling when you are so physically spent and feel good about what you had just done.

Ran the Woods Cross Memorial Day 5k with Gracie.  She ran extremely well.  Held a steady pace the entire time and pushed very hard at the end (6:30/mile pace for the last 0.2 miles).  She finished 29:45 which was over a 2 minute improvement from 2 weeks ago. 

Feeling a lot better than I did last week.  Ankles are still sore but they are getting better. 

Absolutely perfect morning for a run.  Temps were perfect and the smell was my favorite.  I have no idea what it was but I love it when it smells like that.  Ran from home to the Bountiful temple then back home.  It was a good hilly run.  Decent effort going up but was a little lazy coming back down.  My ankles were too sore to push the pace coming down.  There were a lot of runners out this morning.  I assume they are all cramming for Ragnar.