A clydesdale no more!

Over slept a little so I had to cut the run short. It was a balmy 26 degrees this morning which felt a lot better than the previous 2 days. Ran at a very comfortable pace. Ended up being slightly faster than it should have been for a recovery run.

Total time = 39:00 (7:48/mile)

Felt surprisingly good today. My hands started to freeze the last few miles so I may need to start wearing 2 pair of gloves.

Total Time = 1:48:16 (7:37/mile)

No running today. I got hit with the flu last night and was too wiped out this morning. Should be back back at it tomorrow. This is my last week of "just running" before Boston training starts next week.

Still not feeling well and only got a few hours sleep last night. I had a hard time concentrating while I was working so I thought running a few miles would help clear my head. Had a pretty bad side stitch for the first 2 miles but once my diaphragm warmed up and I could breathe normally again it went away. Energy level is still low and my heart rate was a little high for the relaxed pace.

Avg HR = 148

Total Time = 49:20 (8:13/mile)

Having a really hard time getting myself to get out the door to run. Don't know if it is due to the cold temperatures, getting over the flu or just getting bored. Finally got myself out the door and decided to run at marathon pace. First mile was slow (uphill and warming up) but the other miles were at a pretty good pace. Actually felt good and ran very relaxed. I started to feel fatigued a couple of times but was able to snap out of it.

Avg HR = 160

Total Time = 56:28 (7:03/mile)

Once again, it seemed to take more work for me to get out the door than the actual run. I took my MP3 player with me hoping that it would help liven things up. To keep things interesting, I decided to run up Eagleridge Drive to Lofty Lane (600 ft elevation gain over 1.25 miles - 9% grade). Half way up the hill "Run to the Hills" came on my MP3 player which I found kind of funny. It was a good, hard workout.

Total Time = 1:18:39 (7:52/mile)

Felt very good today. It was a few degrees warmer. The cold has been a bigger factor in my lack of motivation than I thought. Pushed the pace for a couple of miles and it felt very comfortable and relaxed.

Avg HR = 157

Total Time = 53:26 (7:19/mile)

I'm embarrassed to say that I took today off. I haven't missed a Saturday run in almost 2 years. I decided that since my training schedule for Boston starts on Monday, that this will be the last chance that I have for a break.

A lot of wet, slushy snow on the road. Felt pretty good today. Taking it easy last week seemed to get me back on track. Included 10X20 second strides (supposed to be 100 meters but it is easier to go by time). Pushed the pace the last mile to get the overall average pace to 7:15. Came home and got in a good upper body workout by clearing the driveway of the heavy slushy snow.

Avg HR = 162

Total Time = 57:45 (7:13/mile)

Ran the Davis loop this morning which has a decent climb for the first 3 miles then rolling hills for the next 4, downhill the next 2 then flat to slightly up the last 2. Didn't sleep very well last night so I have been a little tired. The run felt good. I bruised the second toe on my left foot during my downhill run last week. The toenail is turning black and I hope that it falls off soon.

Avg HR = 154

Total Time = 1:24:48 (7:43/mile)

After reading about the guy who died during the Tucson Marathon (

http://www.durangoherald.com/asp-bin/article_generation.asp?article_type=news&article_p ath=/news/06/news061211_2.htm ) I have been reconsidering this whole marathon thing. This is the 6th death during a marathon in the US this year. I usually read these articles and just assume that the person didn't prepare properly, jumped into marathons too soon and had a bad heart anyway. This guy has run 30 marathons, twenty something ultra marathons and was on pace for a sub-3 through 21.5 miles. The benefits of running are indisputable but I wonder if training for and running marathons is too much of a good thing? Do I make Boston my last marathon or try for a sub-3 in the fall 2007? While I love running, I don't want to die doing what I love.

Very easy paced recovery run. Lower right leg a little tight (right medial tibia) for the first couple of miles.

Avg HR = 141

Total Time = 41:01 (8:12/mile)

Supposed to be just a general aerobic run but threw in 2 miles at tempo pace in the middle (avg 6:32). It was more work than it should have been and my heart rate got a little too high. Felt a little wiped out after the run.

Avg HR = 160

Total Time = 1:06:36 (7:24/mile)

Recovery run. Pretty windy (1 mile headwind, 1 mile tailwind, 3 miles crosswind). Body feels a little worn out. Not sure what is going on. The past few days I have been overdressed considering the warmer temperatures. I am over heating a little which may be contributing to my fatigue.

Avg HR = 153

Total Time = 39:24 (7:53/mile)

Snowing during most of the run. I felt good for the most part. Swung back by the house after 11 miles to change my shoes. I was wearing an older pair of shoes and I could feel it in my lower legs.

Avg HR = 150

Total Time = 1:54:45 (7:39/mile)

Temperature dropped again and it was very icy. The last 2 miles seemed to be the most slippery. Included 10X20 second strides. All of them felt good except the last one which was a little sloppy.

Avg HR = 156

Total Time = 59:30 (7:26/mile)

As I was getting ready for my 12 miler this morning, my wife told me she had to be to work early. Since I was short on time, I had to push the 12 miler to tomorrow and just get in as many miles this morning as I could. I tried to keep most of the run at marathon pace but with 2 miles to go I realized I could catch the 7:00 guy. Mile 4 was in 6:37 and mile 5 was 6:20. Felt really good.

Avg HR = 163

Total Time = 34:38 (6:56/mile)

My legs didn't have much energy this morning. I felt alright but I just couldn't get my legs to turnover. Don't know if it was due to the cold temps. or yesterday's work party at Rodizio. Ran the Davis loop but extended it a little to get up to 12 miles. Decent climb for 3 of the first 4 miles then rolling hills the rest of the way.

Avg HR = 150

Total Time = 1:34:30 (7:52/mile)

Felt like I was just going through the motions today. I was in auto pilot mode for the first 6 miles. Realized I was 45 seconds behind the 7:30 guy so I bumped up the pace to catch up. Caught him at mile 8 and held the pace at 7:00/mile to the end.

Avg HR = 150 (seems a little low)

Total Time = 1:06:59 (7:27/mile)

Easy recovery run. It was snowing but it was warmer so it felt good.

Avg HR = 144

Total Time = 39:06 (7:49/mile)

Snowed just enough to make everything slippery. The ground is only dusted with snow but it was very slick in some spots. Physically, I felt great during todays run but mentally I was out of it. I really did feel like being out there but was able to plod through the run. Somewhere around 12 miles, I saw a horse drawn carriage ahead of me. I sped up a little to catch up to it and it was none other than Santa riding in it. Haven't decided if I will skip Monday's run altogether or move it to tomorrow. I will see how I feel in the morning.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good run!

Avg HR = 149

Total Time = 2:10:26 (7:38/mile)

Warmed up with 2.25 easy miles. Ran 4 miles at tempo pace. The majority of the run was into the wind so I only planned on 6:40 miles. Physically I felt good but I wasn't into the run mentally. Overall it was a pretty consistent effort (6:33, 6:34, 6:34, 6:28). Finished with 2.75 miles at a very easy pace. Now that the holidays are over, I am hoping that I can get back on track mentally.

Avg HR = 155 (peaked at 181 at the end of the tempo run)

Total Time - 1:07:50 (7:32/mile)

Ran up to the Bountiful Temple and back home. Whenever I don't feel like running fast, I try to put in some hills to compensate. Not sure if this was such a good idea today. Had to stop for a minute on the way up to fight off a wave of nausea. The wind was blowing down the canyon pretty hard so it took a lot of effort to run uphill into the wind. Mile 4 took 11 minutes (I never imagined an 11 minute mile being so much work). Coming back down was better but my legs were too beat up to get in a groove on the downhill. To top everything off, it feels like the mid-soles of my shoes have lost their cushioning. Guess I'll have to stop by the running store to pick up a pair of new shoes today. This run put me over 2,500 miles for the year. I only expected to get up to 2,200 this year.

Avg HR = 156

Total Time = 1:30:56 (8:16/mile)

Easy recovery run. Legs are a little sore from the past 2 days. Heading out to go snowboarding for the first time. Hope I don't do anything stupid and cause any damage.

Avg HR = 142

Total Time = 49:35 (8:16/mile)

Felt pretty good today. I seemed to survive yesterday's snowboarding adventure without too much damage. I was a little sleepy at the start but started to feel good once I warmed up. Just slipped past the 7:30 guy at the end.

Avg HR = 152

Total Time = 1:14:57 (7:30/mile).

It's been hard getting myself out the door lately. Once I get a couple of miles in I feel alright but just getting out the door takes some work. I didn't take any water with me and I felt like I needed some around mile 11. The last 2 miles felt better and I was able to finish strong. That's the last run of the year for me.

Avg HR = 142

Total Time = 1:57:30 (7:50/mile)