Run Derneld, Run!

Probably a 7:30-ish pace over and around the Rexburg hill. GPS spoofed on mile 2. Would've been my best time on that route.

Over the Rexburg hill, around, and back again.

Typical Rexburg hill route

Standard Rexburg hill, w/ 20 minute tempo run.

Rest

15 miles at moderate pace. Hope this is the new norm.

3x6min threshold pace w/ 1min rests. 33minutes-ish total.

Easy on Rexburg Hill

Rexburg hill. 2x4 minute I pace w/ 2 minute easy. 35 minutes total.

13 miles at M-pace. Felt a little twinge at mile 10, but it all worked out. Cool down at the end.

Easy mileage, strolling through Rexburg

Easy pace on Rexurg hill

Rexburg hill easy pace

3x7min T-pace w/ 1 min rests

Easy with strides

15 miles at planned marathon pace w/ 1 mile cool down

Rexburg hill at easy pace. Really focused on form and breathing, and felt really good!

Rexburg hill easy miles.

Went to the BYU-I outdoor track. I need a good taste of very flat running before the Everglades next week.

Felt really good doing 2x10 min at T pace w/ 2 min rests + 1x5 min at T pace. Wish I had time for more because I felt really good. Average 7:05 during threshold pace.

Rexburg hill at easy pace. Focusing on good form and breathing.

90 minutes at M-pace on the Ricks University track. 2 miles warm up and 2 miles cool down (distance from my home to the track).

4.3 flat flat miles on back roads in Rexburg. The sun comes down before I get home from work. I'm glad my smart phone has a flashlight.

On the BYU-I track: 3x1 mile T pace w/ 0.2 mile rests.

Ran at work during lunch time...anticipating bad weather this evening at home. Very easy, just staying loose for this Saturday.

This is my first race report, Wahoo! This is one of the races put on by the company Vacation Races. Earlier this year, I ran their Grand Teton Half Marathon, which was a beautiful race but had some peculiar inconveniences, mainly being that they give you a silly rubber pouch to carry through the race instead of having cups at their aid stations (probably because they don't get many volunteers), and for both races the finish line has been accessible only to spectators who are willing to take one of the company's shuttle busses. Anyways, to the race: Pre-race nutrition was a challenge, as it is with all vacations where we have to spend days before with family. Friday morning my sweet grandmother had to make I'd breakfast, and needless to say, it was not ideal. Most of Friday was spent flying from Salt Lake City to Ft Lauderdale. I brought bagels with me and niche on the flights'complimentary pretzels. I had some quinoa and veggies for dinner. The morning of the race I had done delicious homemade white bread and a honey stinger waffle. The race took 30 minutes longer to start than expected. After the runners had lined up at the start line, a long paved trail in the park with swamp on both sides, the race staff had to bring a school bus down the path to deliver the volunteers to their posts. Imagine 1,000+ runners stretching themselves thin between a sidewalk and alligator-habitated wetlands. Then we had to wait for medics that are required for the race to start. The course is completely flat. My mom's garmin said there was a 7 foot elevation gain. An online source said 10. We didn't notice any. It is also nearly a long straight lap. 6.5 miles down, 6.5 miles back along a different path. I went out fast for me, a 7:05 pace. I stuck with a friendly guy from South Carolina who seemed to be comfortable at the pace, and that helped me. At the turn around point, I realized why I had felt so nice:a 10ish mph tailwind became a headwind. Soon I met another friendly local from Miami and we decided to take turns heading the wind. I think this helped both of us do better than we would've. I finished with a chip time of 1:36:28, 13th overall and 1st in the 25-29 division (there was a no double-dipping rule). My first age group medal, mostly because this was a remarkably uncompetitive pool of runners, considering the popularity of other vacation races and the fact that there were 1000-ish runners.

Easy miles in Coconut Grove, Fl. Just enjoying the vacation.

Easy miles on the bridge to Key Biscayne w/ small "meh" workout:

4 x 5 minutes at T-pace w/ 1 minute rests. Only held a 7:30ish pace during those segments. In hindsight I probably should've just called it an easy day and not pushed my already uncomfortable muscles.

Very relaxed running on the marina. Just enjoying the vacation. 8:59 pace.

Amazing path down through Key Biscayne. I planned to go all the way to the end of the key to see a lighthouse that supposedly is there, but the park (Bill Baggs State Park) was closed. I started speeding up as I got closer to the end. My HR was about 170 at the last half mile, with a 7:45ish pace. Overall pace 8:51. The best part about this run was that I was able to start at my front door. Really loved the place we stayed at this vacation in Coconut Grove.

Easy miles to Wal-mart. Planned the run so I could go grocery shopping immediately after with Cheyenne and Ellie.

Happy December! Got sick over the weekend, and finally got the courage to try my feet again this evening. I had only a short amount of time, and I commuted to use the BYU-I indoor track. That school has got to learn what a track is. The outdoor one is a perfectly normal and good track, but no credit to them because it was built in the Ricks years!

BYU-Idaho's indoor track again. Maybe I will like using it early on Saturday morning when the students are all asleep.

Some weekend miles at a modest pace. Trying not to mess up my recovery from whatever bug I had this week.

3 x 1 mile at threshold pace with 1-minute rests. Felt meh.

BYU-I indoor track. Really wishing right now that I had more time on weekdays.

BYU-I indoor track. 4x4minutes at interval pace with 3 minute rests. Felt decent.

BYU-I indoor track. Easy pace.

BYU-I indoor track. Just sat on cruise control.

5 miles easy + 1 mile T + 1 mile easy + 4.5 miles M + 1 mile E + 1 mile T + 3 miles M + easy cool down. BYU-I indoor track. These amounts are rough approximations, because according to the sign, one mile is approximately 5.5 laps on the track... Plenty sore after this one. Time for a restful weekend :)

BYU-I indoor track. Very easy miles (still sore from Saturday's miles). Conditions outside almost seem safe enough for me to man up and run outside.

BYU-I indoor track. Did a few good strides. Other than that, easy miles. Still a little sore.

BYU-I inddoor track. Another easy day, still felt like I shouldn't try anything faster today. I think I'll be ready for a quality run tomorrow.

BYU-I indoor track. 3x6 minutes at LT w/ 1 minute rests.

BYU-I indoor track. Very easy miles. Very relaxing!

AM: it was -14 degrees this morning and the indoor track was closed, so 12 miles on the treadmill. 9 miles at my goal marathon pace for April, and 1 mile at threshold pace. Tuned the paces a little bit faster than typical because it was the treadmill.

PM: 5.5 easy miles to relax and finish up the week.

4.5 miles on the treadmill. I was forced to use the treadmill on Saturday when the indoor track was closed. I had been avoiding it because the apartment complex hadn't been maintaining them very well. Turns out they've been fixed and run quite nicely!

Treadmill

Treadmill. The guy next to me set his treadmill to its fastest speed (12 mph) and tried to leave it running and jump on and off for 20 second sprints. Not sure that is safe :/

Got into Beaverton, OR yesterday for Christmas with the in-laws. Had some fun miles on big rolling hills here. Looking forward to the Ugly Sweater 5k tomorrow!

This is a very informal race. It is hosted by the Road Runners store in Tualatin, OR and follows some sidewalks, and community paths on bridges and that squishy black material that looks like asphalt. Went in strong, wanting to see how fast I could really do a 5k. I lost motivation when first place appeared unattainable very early on (I was in second) and then again when the halfway turnaround showed up way too soon (meaning the race distance was very off). I ended in third when a quick guy loaded me near the end. I probably could've gone a little faster and I definitely could've held the pace I had for a real 5k. I'm glad I got to participate in something while on vacation, and that I could do it with my brother-in-law!

Exploring the hilly suburbs of Beaverton, OR. A little too much ice on some steep slopes this morning, but I made it to the end unscathed! Also got a little lost, which is fun when you're running without a time limit.

More exploring in the hills of Beaverton. Found the hill of all hills (that I've seen on neighborhood streets) in Sexton. Just having fun on this in-law Christmas vacation :)

Today's exploring went into rural roads. I got truly lost today and the roads were all monster hills. Definitely a good place to train hills, but not to explore when you don't have a phone! I finally found a road I recognized and went until I got to Safeway. I went to the customer service desk, but they wouldn't let me use the phone for long-distance calls (ironic because my wife was less than 3 miles away). I did an easy jog back home, an hour later then planned. My wife figured I had gotten lost and didn't seem to be worried at all.

One last warm run. Almost 1500 ft elevation gain!

Back to Rexburg, and the treadmill. I will definitely miss Portland's winter running weather.

13.2 miles on the treadmill. Did 3x3miles at marathon pace with 1 mile easy rests.

Finished off the year right, with a great week balanced between vacation and training. The best part is that I feel great. This is the most mileage I've ever logged in a week. The last time I ran over 60 miles was two weeks before the Huntsville Marathon (2015). I spent a long time after that unable to return to my pre-Huntsville running performance. I finally feel like I'm getting back to where I left off and with a better understanding of some training principles, I am not worried about having another 18 months of sluggishness. I'm excited for a great new year of running!