I only run on days that end in a "y."

At the Mary Hardin Baylor sports lab finishing up the study.  I walked in and saw the treadmill's back end up on jacks.  The decline was 12% with the goal to induce as much muscle damage as possible in the least amount of time.  So instead of running 20 miles flat they jack up the back of the treadmill and have the runner go 45 minutes. 

I ran 5.5 in 45 minutes @ 12% decline.  I had my blood drawn 4 times, too.  Oh well, I have to keep life interesting. :-)

I will go back out a lunchtime to get some more miles in.

Warm and humid during lunchtime - 5.5 around the soft trail near the office.  8:06 overall pace.  Fortunately, the clouds were out.

Warm and humid this morning.  My plan was to drive to downtown and run Town Lake trail and then jump into Barton Springs to cool off.  I woke up early enough but messed around enough that by the time I got in the car it was really too late.  I hemmed and hawed and actually drove down the block but looked at my watch again and decided I really did not have enough time to drive downtown and get in the mileage I wanted.  So I drove back home and ran from there.  

My legs were sore from yesterday's downhill treadmill session but all in all not too bad.  I ran the first mile slow and then picked it up trying to stay in the 7:50's with the intention of running the last 2 miles fast.  It was a good run but tiring, especially in the heat.  Next week is a recovery week - I can't wait.  My body is telling me it needs some downtime to repair itself.

First mile 9:14, then 8:09, 7:51, 7:48, 7:51, 7:57, 7:43, 7:45, 7:38, 7:37, 7:00, 6:43.

Warm and sunny but the dry wind from the north made it a pleasant run in the end.  I managed to run about half the run on soft surfaces.  Overall pace 8:20.  

I am sure all the Texans will be talking about the wonderful cool weather this morning.  It was high 50's to start.  I drove downtown and parked at Barton Springs pool.  I ran 3 miles very easy - 9 minute overall pace - to the Austin High Track and met up with the group.  Today was 1000m repeats with 200m active recovery in between.  My legs were still a bit sore from Monday and my left calf particularly.  However, after the slow warm up miles it was fine.

I ran 6 x 1000m.  The small group I run with only did 4 so I ran the last 2 alone.  After the 1000 repeats I ran 5 x 200m strides with 100m slower pace in between.  I have never run 1000's this fast before.  I looked at what I had run them in March and they were in the 3:42 range.  Today the group pushed it even more.  I felt fine - I wasn't breathing that hard.  Another runner that has also been pushing himself and who has been running with us was right behind me during these repeats and was huffing and puffing like crazy.  My only thought was that he needs to run more mileage and get that aerobic base up there a bit more.  Anyway, here are my splits:

1000m in 3:42 (5:57 pace)

1000m in 3:34 (5:44 pace)

1000m in 3:33 (5:42 pace)

1000m in 3:30 (5:37 pace)

1000m in 3:32 (5:41 pace)

1000m in 3:33 (5:42 pace)

5 x 200m strides

Ran 2 miles back to the car @ 7:40's pace.

Moderate to hard effort on indoor cycle for 60 minutes.  Session was packed with fun - hills, hill sprints, flat sprints, more hills.  Great way to further tax the aerobic system without the pounding.  Putting down 4 miles for the effort.

Beautiful day - 80's with nice breeze.  No Garmin but I know the thr route.   7 recovery miles.  I ran about 4 miles on grass or soft surfaces.

New research shows the value of protein in aiding recovery and performance.  I always have a homemade protein/carb elexir after a run.  It seems to help me recovery quicker.

Dear Dr. Mirkin:  What should long distance runners and
bicycle racers eat to help them recover faster?

         During their recovery periods, they should eat huge
amounts of foods loaded with protein and carbohydrates. Since
the 1930s, athletes have known that they can recover faster
from hard workouts by eating extra carbohydrates: fruits,
vegetables, and whole grain bakery products and pastas. The
carbohydrates refill their muscles with glycogen (stored
sugar).  Sugar requires less oxygen to fuel muscles during
exercise than fat or protein. Anything that reduces oxygen
requirements during exercise allows the athlete to move
faster and stronger, and have greater endurance.
         Recent research from the University of Birmingham in
the UK shows that athletes can recover even faster if they
also take in extra protein (Medicine & Science in Sports &
Exercise, April 2011).  This is the first study to show that
several days of high-protein feeding hastens recovery during
several days of high-intensity training.   It doesn't make
any difference if they get their extra protein from dairy
products, meat, fish, chicken, beans, seeds or nuts.  The
study showed that trained male cyclists could ride
significantly faster time trials on their very intense days
when they were given a diet with extra protein. The high-
protein diet contained 3 g protein/kg/day) and the normal
diet contained 1.5 g protein/kg/day.
         All athletic training is done by stressing and
recovering.  The athlete takes one or more intense workouts,
and then when he feels very sore, cuts back on the intensity
of his workouts for a while. Anything that will help him
recover faster will allow him to take his next series of
intense workouts sooner and he will become stronger, faster,
and have greater endurance.  Previous research has shown that
taking extra protein soon after finishing an intense workout
can hasten recovery (Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 2004;287
(4):E712-20).  This is explained by the fact that a high
carbohydrate load immediately after finishing the intense
workout causes the pancreas to release large amounts of
insulin which drive the extra protein (amino acids) into
muscle cells so they heal faster (J Nutr. 2000;130(10):2508-13).

Warm - 73 - 75 degrees and humid - nice cloud cover though.  Started at Barton Springs and ran an easy 1.5 and met up with the group.  4 of us got behind the lead group and kept up with them as much as possible.  Miles 2-12 were hills and hills and hills.  This was a very tough course and with the weather and the hills a tough run.  Add to that the accumulation of miles over the past 3 weeks and my legs were really, really tired by mile 13 and I started to fade a bit.  I just ran 16 as an easy cool down mile.  

Paces: 8:59, 8:35, 8:00, 7:32, 7:19, 7:09, 7:09, 7:13, 7:09, 7:06, 6:57, 6:49, 7:11, 7:23, 7:35, 8:25. 

 Jumped in the springs afterwards - a cool 68 degrees.  It felt great.