A clydesdale no more!

Terrible day at the gym.  Had zero energy and had a really hard time getting through the workout.  Ran 2.5 miles after the workout.

Still struggling with my energy levels.  Was feeling pretty out of it last night and considered cancelling the run this morning but needed a test run to make sure that I can pace 1:40 at Nebo this weekend.  Warned Tara that we may be in for a very slow run.  First mile was a little slow but then we fell into our standard progression routine.  Averaged 7:57 on the way out and 7:24 on the way back with the last mile in 7:11.  I felt a lot better than expected.  It was the only time that I have felt like I have had much energy in the last week.  Makes me think that this is more mental than physical.

I've been bad about blogging.  Pretty sure this was an easy 5.  

Pace the 1:40 group with Becky.  We may not be able to pace with eachother any more.  I tinkered with the pacebands the day before the race which I shouldn't have done.  It had me second guessing everything the entire run.  We were getting a 10 second cushion every mile which I wasn't comfortable with.  Becky made a pit stop at mile 7 and I took this opportunity to help at the unmanned aid station and give back the cushion we had built.  She caught back up and when we hit the 8 mile marker and she realized what I had done a little argument ensued.  I like to cut it too close and it makes her nervous.  In hindsight, the bigger cushion would have been nice once the course flattened out but I like to cut it close.  We ended up finishing right on time and had one guy with us the entire time that was very happy.  

A short run at Firehouse.

Met Tara at the LPT.  We ran in between major rain storms.  It started coming down a little on our way back but nothing too severe.  I had no pep in my legs at all.  Started out slow and it felt like it was too much work.  splits going out were: 8:20, 7:52, 7:49 and 7:33 (according to my watch which is usually more generous than Tara's).  Our plan was to run low 7's on the way back but I knew there was no way I was up to the challenge.  Splits on the way back were 7:08, 7:16, 7:26 and 7:02.  Looking at the data after the run I thought my heart rate would be out of control but it was close to what it always is.  I think I was just being a baby today.

An easy five.

Skipped the gym and went for an easy run instead.  Thinking about bagging the gym altogether and just focus on running again.  Not seeing the results from the gym that I wanted.  I know it is my fault because of my sugar addiction but I would still expect to see a little muscle tone.

I originally signed up for the full marathon hoping that it would kick start my desire to run again.  After the first couple weeks of training, I let life get in the way and adequate training just didn't happen.  This has happened too many times to me over the last few years.  Switched to the half but knew that I still wasn't in very good shape to turn in the performance that I expect.  Worked the expo the day before the race so my pre-race nutrition probably wasn't the best.  I'll try to think of a few more excuses before the end of the report.

On the morning of the race we got to the bus pickup at a decent time (5:20) but had to wait for over an hour for the first round of buses to come back back down the canyon to get us.  Because of the bus issues, the race started 25 minutes late.  Not a big deal for me since I was waiting down the canyon where it was warmer.  We only had to be in the freezing cold for 15 minutes.  I printed off a 1:25 paceband knowing it was a bit aggressive but I wanted to beat my AF half time (1:26:4x).  First mile was 10 seconds slower than projected pace.  Was hoping it was just because I had to get into a flow but the next few miles were also 10 seconds over projected pace.  Was content with maintaining that effort and coming in at 1:27.  The steep sections of the canyon were too steep. I couldn't get into a good rhythm and found myself falling behind the other runners.  As we made our way out of the canyon and the course flattened out (with a slight incline to start) I began moving past a lot of people.  Desparately needed an energy gel at the halfway point but they only had water and Gatorade at the aid stations (I inadvetently left mine in my drop bag).  Never did push myself as hard as I could but felt like I still put in a really good effort.  Finished in 1:27:20.  Kind of disappointing because the course is so aided but it is a true indication of where I am running wise.  Hoping that I can somehow find the desire to run again, drop 15 pounds and be able to put in a decent performance.  

Standard LPT run with Tara (7:53 on the way out, 7:20 on the way back).  I was still a little sore from the race and she was tired from trying to be the fastest person on every Strava segment in Bountiful.

Stayed up late working last night so I was exhausted this morning.  Forced myself out the door for an easy paced run.  

Ate too much yesterday and felt bloated and fat today.  Easy miles to the golf course and back.  

Ran one of my old standard loops.  One of the loops that I ran regularly when I regularly ran.  Trying to find a way to get back in the habit and thought going back to what I used to do would be a good start.  First 7 miles felt good but really struggled during the last 3.  Was still able to keep the pace under 8:00/mile which was the goal for the day.

Wanted to do something a little different today so I drove to the BST trailhead in NSL and headed towards the towers.  I wore a headlamp because it was so dark but I still had trouble with the footing.  The trail was wet from the rain yesterday so getting good traction was difficult.  Once I got to the towers I kept heading up.  There were a few forks in the trail that ended up causing me a lot of issues on the way back.  I missed the first turn and realized that I was heading in the wrong direction after 1/2 mile of super steep downhill.  Tried to figure out a way to cut across the gully but there was no way so I had to climb back up.  Thought I was on the right track again but looked over and realized the towers I was supposed to be going towards were on the other side of another gully.  Once again, I trudged up another very steep hill.  Eventually found my way back to the car after being out for much longer than I anticipated.  My pace was embarassingly slow but that's not what this run was about.  I learned that I am definitely not a trail runner.  Not sure if that is a skill that you can develop or if I should just be content being a roadie.  

LPT with Tara.  A little bit slower today but it felt good.  

Just an easy run around the block.

Cold and rainy morning.  Layton is a mostly flat course and running 1:45 means 8:00/mile which makes pacing very easy.  Just had to hit 8:00 every mile and calculating elapsed time was easy.  Really no need for the paceband.  Race started and I immediately locked in 8:00/mile pace.  First few miles were on the causeway and the bugs were horrible.  Everybody around me started hacking because of all of the bugs they were swallowing.  Had 3 or 4 people with me from the beginning and most of them hung on for the entire run.  I was able to hit 8:00 plus or minus a couple of seconds every mile.  Unfortunately, I made a huge mistake in my calculation.  They had mile markers for the marathon which included the 0.9 marker for the half.  My watch was showing a full mile at each marker.  Stupidly, this registered in my mind as the course being short by my watch instead of 0.1 long.  Realized this the last couple of miles but was unable to make up the entire deficit.  Ended up coming in 15 seconds late.  Stupid mistake but still a decent run.

Intended to go 8 today but my left hamstring is very sore so I cut the run short.  I started to run yesterday but only got 0.1 before turning back home because it was bothering me so much.  Picked up the pace for the last 2 miles finishing with a 7:10 and 6:54.