A clydesdale no more!

Heard the rain coming down hard so I threw on a couple of extra layers and headed out.  I feared it was going to be very cold.  It was warmer than expected so I over heated a little.  The last 3 miles were especially rainy and cold so the extra layers didn't go to waste.  Really struggled during the run.  It ended up being painfully slow.  Happy to get the miles in despite not feeling at the top of my game.

It's getting colder and colder each day.  I actually dressed perfectly this morning.  Felt a little chilly as I started but quickly warmed up and felt perfect for the rest of the run.  Pace felt good and effort was solid.  Of course, I always feel that way when I run without my watch because I don't have the feedback telling me how slow I am going.

I had just enough time to get in 8 miles but it was going to be close.  I had to choose a route that had no traffic lights because I was cutting it so close.  Ran from home to the new movie theater and back.  Nice and flat which was good since I wasn't feeling particularly great this morning.  Feet were slappy and form felt clunky.  Temperature was a little warmer.  Great way to start the day.

Awesome run with Kam and Tara.  Drove to the LPT and ran 4 miles before they got there.  Met up with them and headed out on the LPT.  First half of the run was a little harder than I would have liked (probably due to the headwind).  Felt a lot better on the way back.  Had a lot of fun today.  Long runs seem to go by a lot quicker when you are running with company.

Ended up a little short on mileage this week.  Close but not quite where I wanted to be.

Took advantage of feeling good this morning and ran up to Bountiful Blvd and back.  Kept a good solid effort going up.  I did get lazy a couple of times but snapped out of it relatively quickly.  Focused on a quicker turnover on the way down.  The effort felt a lot better than it has in the past.

A little worn out as I started the run so I figured it would be a short one.  Started feeling better after 3 miles so decided to go the full 8.  Tried to keep it at a good general aerobic pace.  I tend to not run as hard as I should sometimes.

Got out the door extra early so I coud be home in time to register for the Ogden Half.  I have a feeling it will sell out very, very fast.  The run seemed to go by quickly.  It has been a while since a run hasn't seemed to drag on.  Body seemed to be moving better today although I am feeling chubbier than usual.

Miserable run.  Wasn't feeling great when I started so I thought of only doing 10 and getting in a longer run tomrrow.  Felt alright at the turnaround point so I kept going and thought 12 would be good.  Finally decided after 7.5 miles to turn and head home.  Quickly realized that running with the wind was the reason I was feeling so good.  The trip back home into the wind was tough.  I had very little to drink yesterday, didn't drink anything this morning and didn't take anything with me so I ended up a little dehydrated.  Despite all the complaining, I'm glad I got the mileage in for the day.

Unfocused.

Went out looking for my motivation and came home empty handed.

Wasn't sure if I would remember how to run.  I don't even have an explanation for what happened last week.  I wasn't sick or injured.  I just didn't want to run.  I'm trying to recommit myself to running.  I feel like I am overweight and woefully out of shape but understand that it is all relative.  There are only 3 more weeks until training for Boston starts and I do not feel like I am where I need to be.  If I can create the habit of running again I will be fine.  The morning runs are becoming a battle.  One possible option is to join the gym at work and start running on the treadmill during the day.  After 8 years of doing the exact same thing, a little shake up of the routine may be what I need.

Wow, two days in a row.  First 7 miles were a little slow but I picked it up the last mile just for fun.

It has become a tradition for the family to run the turkey trot at the South Davis Rec Center.  I wasn't sure if I would race it or run it with the kids.  A couple of days ago, Gracie told me she wanted to run on her own so I decided to race it.  With the 20 extra pounds that I am lugging around I knew it would be a little slower than what I would like but I am fine with it.  Woke up and ran an easy 3 miles to get the muscles warmed up.  It was surprisingly warm.  It was a perfect racing temperature.  After a late start (which has become the norm for races at the SDRC) we were off.  My race plan was to run the first mile in 6:00 and then the last 2 at 6:30 (worst case scenario) and come in around 19:30.  First mile was 5:55 and the next 2 came in at 6:30 as expected.  I didn't feel like I slowed as much as I did.  There is an elevation gain during the last 2 miles but not enough to cost 30 seconds per mile.  I stayed even with the runners ahead of me until the last 1/2 mile when they pulled away. 

After the race, I ran back to find the kids. First came across Emma and told her I would check on the others.  Ashton and Gracie were about 1 minute behind (he was a good big brother to stay back with his sister).  I then ran back up to Emma.  She ended up 1st in her age group and Gracie was 2nd.  Becky took 2nd in her age group (23 minutes) so we ended up winning 4 pies.

Backing off the last 2 miles actually is a good thing because I am running another 5k tomorrow morning.  It is more of a fun run where everybody dresses up in a Santa suit.  Should be interesting.

Ran this race with no expectations.  I warmed up with 2 miles and felt decent but not great.  My legs were just a little dead from yesterday's race.  Knew that I had a good chance of placing because of the low turnout.  The race was at the Valley Fair mall and was a double out and back course.  When the race started I moved to the front and held that position for the first 1/2 mile.  A guy passed me and gapped me by about 10 yards.  He maintained his lead until 1.25 miles.  He started coming back and I passed him a little before we finished the first out and back.  On the second out and back I just tried to maintain a decent pace for the rest of the run.  After the last turnaround, it took 20 seconds to get to the next runner meaning I had a 40 second lead with 3/4 mile to go.  Put it in cruise control and coasted to the finish.  I held a steady 6:25 pace for most of the race and got to the 5K mark just under 20 minutes.  The course ended up being long and I finished about 40 seconds ahead of second place.  Won a cool little Santa trophy.  Fun to win a race even if it was a very slow time. 

The miles weren't great but I consider it a victory just getting out the door this morning.  I think I can feel a cold coming on.  When I got to the top of the street (0.3 miles) it felt like I had been running for an hour already.  Very strange feeling.

Still feeling a little off.  Not quite sick but really tired and not a ton of energy.  Five miles isn't a lot but felt like I needed to get in a few miles.