Cool Runnings!

PM - 6 miles, all outside.  It was a bit muggy, but not too bad.  First I ran 4 miles in my Tangents - started off easy, first mile in 8:00, then I sped up without realizing it, but it felt really good to my legs.  No soreness at all in the calf.  Next 3 miles were approx. 7:05, 7:00, 7:05.  A tad slower than my actual anticipated marathon pace, but close enough that I will call them that.  Felt very good.  Last night, I had Lybi work on my piriformis and gluteus medius, and it appears to have made a huge difference.  I realized that my hips were extremely tight, and that may have been causing me to overcompensate in my calves.  More work tonight while I read her scriptures.  I feel like I get the better end of this deal - all I have to do is read scriptures to her, with comments from both of us interposed, and I get scraped or massaged or both!  So back to this evening - I came home, got some water, had to run a pair of glasses over to one of Lybi's piano students who had accidentally left them at out house, then when I got back, I put on a pair of wal-mart brand aquasocks I had gotten for the ridiculous amount of $1.00.  This was to allow me the benefits of barefoot running with a bit of cushioning and protection from gravel and such on the roads.  They worked wonderfully!  I am going to go back tomorrow and pick up a few more pairs so that when these run out I can continue to use them.  I like the idea of being able to strengthen my feet and lower legs while not actually injuring my delicate feet from the various detritus one finds on the road and sidewalk.  Felt good, I could definitely feel some muscles working harder than normal, which I consider to be good.  Two miles on the aquasocks, average pace of 8:00/mile, felt very easy.

AM - 3.5 easy miles, untimed.  1.5 miles by myself, then another 2 miles with Sparky.  The weather was nice - in the 70's.  Legs felt good, although a little bit stiff when I first started out.

PM - 3.5 miles on the treadmill, first 1/2 mile at 8:30 pace to warm up, then the rest at 8:00 pace.  Felt good.  Have a bit of a tickle in the back of my throat I hope goes away by tomorrow - maybe allergies?  I heard them say on the radio today that ragweed pollen is very high here right now.  Legs feel good.  After the run, did some core exercises.  I want to get into the habit of doing this, because I am positive it will help with my running.  My foot muscles (adductors and pronator muscles) are a bit sore today from my aquasock running last night.  That was to be expected.  I believe it will also help me in my running.

AM - Slept in after being sick yesterday with a sore throat.

PM - 3.5 miles (so far) on the treadmill.  Throat feels better, and I had a frustrating experience that I really needed to run off, so I hopped on the treadmill.  After a quick 1/4 mile warmup, I upped the pace to 7:30/mile.  At the 1 mile mark, I bumped up the pace to MP (6:53/mile), felt good to get my legs moving good.  At the 3 mile mark, bumped the speed up to 6:40 pace, held that for 1/2 mile, then it was time to let Sam get on the treadmill.  Planning on doing some more easy miles later (have work to do first)

PM - 2 easy miles with Sparky, untimed.  Felt good.  Then another 4 miles by myself, total time 29:19, average pace of 7:20/mile.  First two miles at 7:30 pace, but it felt pretty easy.  Last two miles at MP.  The third mile still didn't feel very hard, was right at 7:05 or so, second mile felt a bit harder, but not real hard, right about the same time.  We don't have the cradle for our Garmin right now, so I am just guessing on the mile splits.  Legs feel good.  Long run tomorrow.  It is supposed to be nice and cool as well . . . Wahoo!

AM - 12 miles outside.  The weather was beautiful - in the 60's when I started and the sun was just barely starting to come up.  Ran 6 miles, then came home and got Sparky, ran 3 miles with him untimed, then dropped him off and did another 3 miles, with the last mile being at MP or possibly 1/2 MP (not too sure).  Total time for the 9 miles that were timed was 1:08:13, average pace of 7:35/mile (including that last mile which was somewhere under 7:00 pace).  Legs felt good, although I was pretty tired after my run.  Hoping to get in an 18-miler next Saturday to get me more prepared for SGM.  Starting to really look forward to it!