Cursed Realm of the Faceless Ghost

15 minutes on the rollers before I couldn't take it and went to bed.

I went out for what now passes as a long road run. It felt good, but it also felt a little strange to be running for more than an hour. It's been a while. 

Today was another one of those days, and I wasn't able to get out for my run until about midnight. I needed to mail a letter, so I ran a short loop past the American Fork post office. Multitasking!

Two miles on the treadmill in 15 minutes, followed by 15 minutes on the stair stepper. Good enough.

Thirty minutes on the treadmill: seven minutes at 9:00, three minutes at 6:00, and so forth. I ordered a pair of Minimus Roads over the weekend, and they showed up today. It's too early to have a strong opinion, but after one run I'm impressed.

Check it out--I'm running Jun's half marathon on Saturday, which means I'll be over 25 miles for the week, even if I don't run tomorrow. Oh yeah, that's big time.

Speaking of the half marathon--why am I even running? Let's just say that it's going to be ugly for me. But I could use some "long," steady runs, so it will be good for me.

As for today's run, four easy miles on the treadmill in 31:15. 

I went out for a short afternoon run with the jog stroller. I don't like pushing the stroller, but I do like running with Elliott, so it all works out.

Oddly enough, I think this was my longest run since Quest for Kings, another one of Jun's creations. And it puts my total mileage for the week at 28, which I think is my highest mileage since the week of Quest for Kings. Do you know what I used to call 28-mile weeks? Recovery.

Anyway, yesterday Jun warned me that things could be sloppy today, and since yesterday was such a beautiful day and I never check weather reports, I had no idea what he was talking about. But when I woke up to drizzle and gloom this morning, not to mention snow on the mountains, I say what he meant and I almost decided to stay home.

Although I did decide to go, we got out the door a little late (funny how often that happens with a baby) and I had to skip breakfast. So at 9:30ish I found myself lining up for a 13-mile trail run having had nothing in the past 10 hours but a small glass of Dr. Pepper 10 and half a fun-size packet of Skittles. Smart.

Even smarter, when I left the house I didn't think to grab any water or gels. Fortunately, Jun had a spare handheld that he lent to me. Even more fortunately, there was a Hammer Gel in that handheld that I ate halfway through the race. (Don't worry, Jun--I'm good for it.) 

In an email yeterday Jun had mentioned that if the weather was bad enough we could all run the 10K option instead, so when the race actually started I dawdled long enough to ask him if anyone was going to run the half. I was hoping he would say no, because I didn't feel like running that far, but he didn't, so I felt obligated to go the whole distance.

I quickly caught up with and ran through most of the pack before settling into a lead group of two with Dragon Vulture. Once I realized it was him, I knew I wasn't going to win, because he actually trains. I like to call that cheating.

Anyway, we ran together and chatted for a few miles until somewhere near Corner Canyon, when I stopped to tie my shoes and lost contact with him. But I found him a couple of miles later, after he had apparently taken a wrong turn, and we ran up Canyon Hollow together.

There, like everywhere in Corner Canyon, the trails were a muddy, gooey mess, but even so we managed a respectable pace to the top. I had no desire to push things on the slippery, sloppy descent, however, and that's where DV lost me for good.

I kept expecting to blow up on the return trip, but instead I experienced more of  a slow fade. The climbs weren't feeling good to me, but I was able to run them all, so I just kept plugging along. Before I knew it (and after only one wrong turn) I was at the finish, and Catherine and Elliott were there waiting with hot chocolate and donuts. How cool is that?

Anyway, we headed over to Jun's house for the post-race barbecue, and that was it. Not a bad way to spend a Saturday.

 Oh yeah--I mentioned a while back that my 101s had blown out in the forefoot right before Speedgoat. Just before the race today I noticed that they had blown out in the heels, too, reducing them to nothing more than a pair of makeshift sandals (like the Tarahumara wear!), even though they only had 240 miles on them. They held up for the race, and when I got home they went straight to the trash. I liked running in them, but overall they turned out to be some pretty crappy shoes. Strange, because my 100s lasted over 500 miles and didn't die until I "accidentally" destroyed them with a mini-hacksaw.

Imagine you plan a 30 minute run at the gym, but realize that you won't be able to get ice cream afterward if you run longer than 25 minutes. If you have your priorities straight, do you choose the ice cream or the run?

So, 25 minutes on the treadmill tonight. After a one-mile warmup, I tried a new workout where I ran one minute at 9.5 mph, 30 seconds at 7 mph, one minute at 9.6 mph, and so forth up through 10.5 mph. It was getting tough by the end, so I guess it was a good workout.

By the way, I got back to the car after my run and realized I had forgotten my wallet. So, less running and no ice cream for Eric. Freaking lame. 

That's right, one mile.

I had a valid excuse for not getting out until really late. But once I had a chance, it was dark and cold, and I had little motivation, so I started replacing my valid excuses with invalid ones. Eventually I got myself out the door, but it was more symbolic than anything. Some days are like that.  

I was back at the gym tonight. My plan was to run for 30 minutes at a super mellow 9:00, with every fifth minute at 5:15. But for some weird reason my left shin hurt a lot. It feels like I must have torqued my leg somehow, but I can't think of when or how. Maybe I tripped over something at night and don't remember.

Anyway, after 15 minutes my leg hurt enough that I decided it was best to back off, so I headed over to the stair machine to finish my workout. 

I finally hit a blank. I could have run, but I was too tired to even convince myself to go out for a symbolic mile. I guess it happens. But for me, it happens very rarely, so I'm not pleased.

The advantage of doing nothing yesterday is that I got more sleep and felt better today. Even so, it was another busy day (and I should be honest and point out that poor time management contributes to some of my problems), and I didn't get a chance to exercise until late. By then, the gym was closed and it was snowing outside, so there was no way I was going to run. Instead, I set up the rollers and rode my bike for thirty minutes in the basement while watching That 70s Show. 

I guess I could have run longer or farther, but it doesn't really make sense given my mileage at this point. I think my best bet is to keep my runs short and consistent throughout the week, with appropriate "long" runs for my mileage on the weekend. If nothing else, this should help me retain some fitness. If I'm lucky, the reduced mileage will help prepare my knee for more running when I have the time again.

Anyway, 10 minutes on the treadmill. I ran three 10-minute blocks at 6:30. but the rest was nice and mellow. On my way to the gym I stopped at Williams-Sonoma to use a gift card we had to buy a little food processor so we can make food for Elliott. After my run there was a guy getting out of the car next to mine. When he saw me he said he assumed I would be a chick because of the bag in the car. I wonder if he was disappointed. 

As I think I mentioned over the weekend, my new emphasis is on consistency and quality, since quantity isn't the priority I'd like it to be anymore. With that in mind, I headed over to the gym for a short treadmill run. Basically, I cruised at a super-easy 9:00 pace, with every fifth minute at 5:30. After five sets I cooled down and called it a night.

Four miles on the treadmill in 30 minutes. The first 10 and the last 5 were at about 8:30, while the middle 15 were at 6:30-6:45. Big Bang Theory was on one of the TVs, but I couldn't figure out which channel it was on and watch it on the little TV at my treadmill. Too bad.

We're running a 5K tomorrow, so I took it easy with a quick run on the short loop. I still haven't decided if I'm going to push Elliott in the stroller tomorrow and help her score a 5K, or if I'm going to put in an honest effort and use that as a benchmark going forward. Check back later to find out, I guess.

That time could have been much better. But I suppose it could also have been much worse, so I'm not going to complain. 

Catherine and I entered this race because her mom and her brother were both planning on running. Otherwise, we probably wouldn't have chose to drive to Bountiful for a 9:00 AM 5K, especially when we could have run a race much closer to home.

The race got off to a rocky start: first, the organizers made us sit and wait 15 minutes past the start time because some runners were still registering; second, the start was an absolute madhouse, and I eventually had to start throwing elbows. But we managed to make it out onto the road in one piece.

The course was a pretty basic rectangle: I gradual descent from south to north, followed by a relatively sharp decline from west to east, followed by a long, gradual climb from north to south, and finishing with a descent from east to west. 

I think I was in trouble from the start. On the first stretch I felt like I was going super slow and working way too hard for it. I felt better when I realized I was running at about 5:30, but that didn't help me feel any better about how hard I felt like I was working.

Anyway, my run was a perfect example of how not to race a 5K; splits were approximately 5:40, 6:00, and 6:20. At least I faded consistently :)

Despite my lackluster performance, it was a good race. Catherine and I found out exactly where our fitness is, we spent time with family, and I somehow won my age group (and with it, a pumpkin pie). 

Catherine and I went to run with RAD, Smooth, Steam8, Allie, and a whole bunch of other FRBers on the Jordan River Parkway this morning (sorry about all the names I forgot). It was fun to get out and meet our fellow bloggers, and the run was great, too. I think most of the crew ran 11 miles, but Catherine and I turned around after three for a six-mile round trip. It was a good way to start the morning, and it got even better when we stopped for donuts on the way home.

I got out for a longish road run this morning. I was forced off my planned route by a cyclocross race in Art Dye Park, which shortened my overall run by a little less than a mile. That's probably a good thing, as I wasn't feeling to hot from the start.

Anyway, it's been a pretty good week. Besides today's run, I had a couple of decent speed or tempo sessions and a race, too. I think my new plan to finish the school year focusing on quality over quantity (25-30 mile weeks) should help me maintain more fitness than what I've been doing for most of the semester. 

On Sunday evening I could feel a sore throat coming on, and it arrived with a vengeance on Monday morning. The result was that I ate and drank almost nothing all day (even less because I had to fast all afternoon for an evening medical exam). By the time I had time to run, I felt so tired, sick, and generally crappy that I decided to skip the run altogether yesterday and eat Cold Stone instead.

Tonight I was feeling better, although far from 100 percent, so I headed to the gym for an easy treadmill run. Thirty minutes at 9:00. Almost no stress on the legs or lungs, but my nose and head were not happy. Still, I feel better having gone out. And I think I've gotten through the worst, so it should be better every day from here on out.

I'm feeling better than yesterday, but still stuffy and sneezy and such, so I took it easy again and did the exact same run as yesterday.