Bret

AM - 5 miles with Finn on a very cold morning for April.  

AM - 6 easy miles with Finn before work.  

PM - lunchtime run.  Too cold this morning and I did not feel like dealing with it, but by lunchtime it was 30 degrees warmer and sunny.  Beautiful running weather. 

AM - 3.25 very easy miles this morning in Charlotte ahead of a client meeting.  Racing this weekend.

AM - 3 miles easy with Finn in the rain.  Heading the Charleston for the weekend. 

Cooper River Bridge Run - 10k Race - Charleston, SC .  This is the second year I have done this event.  Last year I had planned a weekend with my wife and do the race, but she could not make it at the last minute, and I just drove over the day before and drove back right afterwards - had a decent race but not stellar.  This was a re-do - in which she got to make the trip this time, and I got to have really good effort and result.  Very pleased with this race today.

For those unfamiliar with this event, it is a large 10k with an estimated 35,000 runners this year. It is a point to point race over an iconic bridge.  The bridge is about 2.5 miles long and has a decent climb of maybe just less than a mile.  

My recent heart procedure (arterial stent) in December has me feeling very good aerobically, but I really have had limited training until the last 2 weeks with doctor's restrictions of running no more than 3 miles per day for the first 30 days and then no more than 5 miles per day until mid to late March.  My training has been mostly tempo or faster efforts on the roads.  My longest long run was last weekend at 10 miles.  

I went out somewhat conservatively wanting to not blow-up on the ascent up the bridge in the first part of the race and miles 1-3 were good at 6:38, 6:52, 6:52 for a 5k split of right at 21 mins or so.  But I felt fantastic as I crested the middle of the bridge and maybe let some irrational exuberence allow me to crank the backside of the bridge a little too quickly at 6:08.  We leveled off on mile 5 into town at 6:29 pace and that would have been a great place to finish for me because I was running on fumes for the last mile at 6:49.  Managed to pip someone at the finish at 6:19 pace for the last 2 tenths of a mile.  

My wife was at the finish and caught a good video of me on her phone as I ran by (maybe I did not catch that guy at the end??)

So - I had a negative split by about 30 seconds.  I ran nearly 2.5 mins faster this year than last year (perhaps it helps to have full blood supply to one's heart being unblocked) and I finished in the top 300 of the event. 

All in all, while I would have liked a better 6th mile and maybe liked to have been closer to going sub 40 minutes - I was really just so pumped on the top of that bridge, feeling so solid and so much depth to my fitness that I had not felt in quite some time, that I would have to say this was really a good day.

AM - 3 mile shakeout around historic Charleston before breakfast and heading home. 

AM - 5 easy to moderately paced miles with Finn this morning before work.  Much warmer and more humid today.  Probably 30 degrees warmer this morning than last week at this time.  

AM - 6 miles in the neighborhood with Finn and with Dan for part of the way.  So much warmer and humid today with a dew point of 63 and temp at 68.  But it was a nice run, and good to catch up with Dan as he was on Spring Break with his kids last week.  I head to LA for business midday today.  

AM - 7 miles in LA - just out and back toward Hollywood from downtown - did not feel particularly well this morning - kinda forced this one a bit.  Very windy and the road had lots of ups and downs.  

AM - 4 miles with Dan and Finn early before work.  Tired from the travel to LA yesterday and did not get home until midnight.  

AM - 7 miles with Finn and Dann early this morning.  

AM - about 8 miles in NYC - Central Park.  Surprised my wife for her birthday and took her to the city to see To Kill a Mockingbird with Jeff Daniels as Atticus Finch.  Powerful play - excellent acting.  Great experience.  

AM - NYC run along the Hudson River Greenway from midtown to the Battery and back up Broadway.  The watch kept stopping randomly and twice it decided that I was doing yoga - Apple Watch .... so 11 miles is an estimate.  

AM - just under 6 miles with Finn and Dan in the neighborhood.  Cold and windy...in the low 40's.  

PM - 3 miles on the treadmill at lunch time easy.   Felt really light and easy.  

AM - 5 miles with Finn and Dan - faster this morning, but HR was lower and seems to be trending that way even at rest - 48 bpm overnight for the last 5 days or so.  Finally researched and located a solution for the Apple Watch randomly stopping during runs...there is a lock feature (swipe right) that I was not previously aware of that can be engaged to prevent clothing, moisture, or other unintentional contact with the watch-face from switching off the chronograph.   Brilliant. 

PM - 3.5 miles easy at lunchtime - absolutely perfect weather day.  Great to get outside in the sunshine.  

AM - 5 miles with Finn and Dan - slightly slower.  My legs are a bit worn-out from the doubles on Monday and Tuesday and the 11 mile "long" run on Sunday.   Although I have time on my schedule for a second run today, I will rest instead.  

AM - a little over 3.5 miles this morning with Finn.  I had gotten up early to run with Dan but he bailed in favor of more sleep, so I went back to bed for another 45 mins but felt like the dog needed to have some exercise - so had to run shorter with limited time.

PM - 6 miles on the treadmill at lunchtime. 

PM - pretty strong storms through the night and early morning complete with tornado warning sirens kept me from running until late in the day - 7.25 miles with Finn through the neighborhood.

AM - 6 quicker miles with Dan and his coworker friend Greg (and his dog Bodie) on the dirt roads of Brittle and Summit - cold and rainy and consequently muddy.  I was tempted to run longer but I have added more than 10% volume this week over my average mileage for the last month already - and I was late anyway.  Good running week for adding miles.  

PM - 11 miles on a really very nice day.   I was planning to do a longer run at a slower pace - but ended up getting into a groove and went with it - for more of a tempo effort. I think both Finn and I were a little dehydrated with all the sunshine and dry air - so I am probably going to feel the effects of the run.  Really enjoyed it though.  

PM - 4 miles at lunchtime on the treadmill.  Got up early to run, but had not slept well, and my legs were fatigued from yesterday's workout.  Very easy active recovery run midday after getting another hour of sleep this morning. 

AM - 6 miles with Dan and Finn before work.  Feeling a little more rested.

PM - lunchtime just under 4.5 miles on a really nice day - got a dose Vitamin D.  Spring is my favorite season.  

AM - a little over 5 miles with Dan and Finn before work this morning.  

AM - 5.25 miles with Finn and Dan this morning before work.  

PM - lunchtime treadmill workout - 5 x 800 with an equal time rest ~3 mins - after a warm up and cool down.  3:00, 2:56, 2:52, 2:50, 2:48.  Felt very much within myself.  Could be the treadmill is not calibrated well - but I kept my HR just below threshold and something interesting of note - when I slowed for the jogs and then for the cool down, my HR went down very quickly as one would expect.  That was not always the case for me over the last few years, the HR would go down but would remain higher than expected when I was doing threshold or VO2 max workouts.  In short, things seem to be functioning well now.  

PM - 6 easy miles on the treadmill. 

AM -  I woke early  -  could not fall back to sleep, and Finn could tell that I was not sleeping - So instead of sleeping-in as planned - we went out for a run just before sunrise. Cool morning. Beautiful running weather. Ended up going 10 miles very easy.

PM - 14.25 miles on the Forsyth Trail - longish run with a faster finish for the last 3 miles.  

AM - about 4.25 miles with Dan and Finn this morning before work.  A bit sore and a little tired - took it easy for the first mile and a half.  No time for a lunch run today - may be best for a little less volume.  Weight is way down - mileage is up for the last couple of weeks - need to increase my intake.  

PM - 8 miles on the treadmill at lunchtime.