Of Mice and Marathons

Lunch: 30' on TrainerRoad (Taku). HR 120.

Got up early (during the 5:00 hour) to feed the boys. Did some work and puttered around until 8:00 or so when the monitor sounded. 

I was going to jog, but realized I probably would need tights and I know they won't fit. And it is damp and cold, though not terribly so. Still, not leaving the house and getting some exercise while rewatching some Breaking Bad sounded much better.

Ordered a bench and a set of adjustable dumbells. Spent too much money, but we aren't planning to go into gyms for some time. Megan is on sabatical in the fall and I believe I am scheduled to teach online fall 2021 even though things should roughly be back to normal by then. We will have saved a good deal on daycare the first year or so. We might eventually do one way a week just to be able to get things done and so that the boys have interactions other than us, the cats, the birds on the feeder, and the exceedingly fat squirrels we have in Michigan.

PM: 45' on TrainerRoad (Carter). HR 129.

I've been rewatching Breaking Bad. Working on my trainer setup a little bit.

Day off. 

Figured going 6 or 7 days after being inactive was plenty.

PM: 75' on TrainerRoad (Collins 1-). HR 122.

PM: 60' on TrainerRoad (Beech). HR 124.

HR 10 beats lower than this workout last week. Day 11 without drinking. Not sure how long that has been. 10 years? 15? 10 years anyway I would say. Feel quite good. 

Lunch: 60' on TrainerRoad (Lazy Mountain). HR 112.

First day of the semester technically, but I had everything up for the week and just monitored email. 

Getting up early, not drinking, and drinking lots of green tea is really making it hard to get through much more than 30-40' without having to pee. 

Our treadmill shipped a few days ago. Hoping there is enough overhead room in the basement. It can go in the laundry room if necessary. Trying to figure out if we can get a contractor to reroute the load of a few joists and create a boxed area for an overhead spot.

Off.

Lunch: 60' on TrainerRoad (Pettit). HR 123.

Night: 30' on TrainerRoad (Taku). HR 115.

I think this was the night I installed the pullup bar in the basement. It's been a while. Very humbling!

PM: 30ish on TrainerRoad. 

App or trainer issues. Got frustrated as I build my days so that I have a certain window for exercise. Sweaty and cold out, so I didn't feel like running after and in place of.

Lunch: 80' on TrainerRoad (Dodge -1). HR 131.

Designed my own workout. Nothing fancy. Basically a minutes style workout I would do on the treadmill, but with power instead of speed.

PM: 60' on TrainerRoad (Beech +1). HR 139.

PM: 30' run (13:02). HR 135.

Night: 30' on TrainerRoad (Taku). HR 116.

The boys turned three months today.

PM: 7 miles, averaged 11:39. HR 137.

I was planning to ride my fat bike on the dirt roads, but rain was supposed to come through and the roads were a bit muddy from some reports. 

I haven't done much running lately (1-2 short 30-40' jogs) but my riding hours have increased a good bit over the last few weeks. I've mostly been on my fat bike exploring some new roads where we live (I decided, somewhat recklessly, to buy a fat bike with some money dad had given me and some extra generous birthday money he gave me). It's an amazing machine and I did some snow trail riding this winter and have been mostly on that, exploring dirt roads and trails. I have done one ride on my gravel bike outside (it's been on the trainer since October I think). I did a fair amount of riding since January. The basement setup has been pretty solid and I worked my way through several seasons of American Horror Story. 

The boys turn 6 months old tomorrow. They are amazing. Challenging at times but very sweet and really developing their personalities and individual identitites. 

My mom and sister are coming at the end of the week. My dad fell a few days ago and broke his hip. He had surgery and they needed to replace his hip replacement but they didn't for some reason. Megan's parents are also struggling with their health. I am not sure about how many classes I will have in the fall, so things have been a little tough lately, but I feel very fortunate for what I have and that the boys are healthy and that I am blessed to able to spend time with them. 

Probably going to sneak in some more running/jogging this week as it looks like a good deal of rain and I have a lot of work to do (riding generally requires more time). I'm starting to get a really good sense of the area through my feet and my wheels.

School will be out in about 2 weeks, which will be nice but also nerve wracking. I'm trying to gigify myself, even signing up to be an Instacart shopper. Had to swallow a huge chunk of pride on that one, but it was easy to get hired and I know grocery stores very well. I am currently applying to a select few other jobs to keep my options open. 

That more or less covers my blog hiatus . . . 

Day off.

Can't remember what came up but I didn't get anything in.

PM: 39.3-mile ride. HR 158.

Just under 3 hours on the fatbike. I went east of Rochester Road for the first time since last summer. This location is so ideal for riding.

The boys turned 6 months today.

Night: 19.1-mile ride. 141.

Had a doctor appointment for me and got a text that my gravel bike was ready to pick up. It took me until 9:30 until I got out. It was around 40 or cooler and dark, but I had a good ride despite my radar battery going dead. Luckily my front light is bright even to anger cars. The gravel roads were fun, spooky, and peaceful. Not exactly safe, but lots of people I ride with ride in the dark.

AM: 3.6 miles, averaged 12:22. HR 150.

On the treadmill. About 4 miles on the treadmill versus the above mileage on Zwift with a footpod. It was in the mid-30s, so I figured my fair weather butt could afford to just run on the treadmill. Not training so I might as well cherry pick my weather conditions. 

I've been running in my Vibrams on the treadmill as I don't like too much shoe on the treadmill. Wanted to get out again, but it didn't happen. Not ideal riding weather, but we were gifted some decent early spring weather the other week and it's only April.

Mom, Katie, and Delia are driving from Maine and should be here later tomorrow evening.

PM: 21.4-mile ride. HR 153.

One segment attempt. Took second overall. It's a slight bit of tarmac and mostly gravel with one S-turn. Ended up with 6 minutes @ 268 watts and a averaged HR of 187. I gave up a few times and think I let up pedal pressure so I left some watts and seconds out there. I was still a bit off of first, but it was a fun attempt.

PM: 31.1-mile ride. HR 155. Avg. 177W

Checked out some new roads west of us. Good stuff.

Mom, Katie, and Delia arrived today.

PM: 12.6-mile ride. HR 123. Avg. 118W.

Just did a short recovery ride.

PM: 32' of walking/meandering showing my relatives the subdivision area.

Off.

Off. 

I put my bike on the trainer, but didn't get around to riding. We got a slight bit of snow. Gross. I took three naps, two of which were with Sawyer in my arms trying to get him to settled down.

PM: 70' on the trainer. HR 153. Avg 177W.

Decided to put the bike on the trainer for a few days even with the impending (final) first night of Thursday Night Dirt for the season. Didn't get my planned time as Megan had a meeting and I got a late start.

AM: 90' on the trainer. HR 137. Avg 152W.

Pretty good saddle sores kicking up. Need to take a few days off and jog I think as one of them is getting a little iffy. 

PM: 6 miles, averaged 9:03. HR 161.

Keep it steady to up tempo after the first mile. This run ended up leaving me sore for about 5 days or so. Oof.

PM: 1:36 on the fat bike. HR 148. 

Lake Orion HS and Bald Mountain South.

PM2: 4 miles w/ family, averaged 10:07. HR 149.

Did a 200m stride with the stroller around 5:15 pace.

PM: 1:24 on the gravel bike. 164W. HR 140.

Attacked a segement that I attempted to take down on my fat bike last week. Took 8th overall then and today got the KOM. 392 watts for 2'.

PM: 2:23 on the gravel bike. 194W. HR 162.

Pretty high effort the whole time.

Off.

I was going to run, but I was extremely tired. Took about three naps I think.

Lunch: 3.2 miles, averaged 12:34. HR 132.

Trying to get back to daily running and resume lower HR training. I was going to do 3 days of running with a midweek workout but I think I need more of a base, especially with 10-14 hours a week of cycling.

Landed a freelance editing job today so I don't feel like such a deadbeat. Thursday Night Dirt tonight (I have been out the last three weeks or so).

PM: Thursday Night Dirt - 3:25 w/ beer stop. 156W. HR 153.

Warmish, but probably seasonable. Decided on B group and even that was too much by the end. My HR was very high even riding over, so I knew it wouldn't be a good day for fast riding. Rode home in the dark. My headlight gave out about 2 miles from home, but I was able to use my iPhone to get me the rest of the way. 

Pretty disappointed overall with my bike fitness, so I might switch back to 3 days of riding but an overall time of 9+ hours and just do short, low HR doubles for running. I keep flinging crap against the wall hoping something will stick.

Lunch: 2.8 miles, averaged 12:37. HR 131.

The cottonwoods are blooming. I hate cottonwoods.

PM: 4 miles w/ family, averaged 10:58. HR 144.

Off.

Travel to Toledo. The boys did great.

Off. Lots of visiting.

Return travel home.

PM: 1.7 miles on the treadmill, averaged 12:49. HR 129.

All I could do before the treadmill motor cut out. Very frustrated.

PM: 2:15 of gravel riding. 145W. HR 146. 

One short segment attack. I got it. Got hit by some thundershowers in every direction it seemed.

Lunch: 2.3 miles, averaged 13:48. HR 128.

Treadmill cut out.

PM/Evening: Thursday Night Dirt. 3:20 gravel. 177W. HR 161.

Still getting my butt kicked.

PM: 2.7 miles on the treadmill, averaged 13:44. HR 124.

Had the treadmill serviced and it didn't fix the issue.

PM: 4.2 miles on the treadmill, averaged 14:06. HR 134.

Tested the treadmill and it was fine through the hour. No idea.

PM: 5 miles on the treadmill, averaged 14:08. HR 132.

Treadmill fine through 70'

AM: 3.3-mile walk with some jogging. HR 104.

Couldn't keep my HR down, so I just walked.

PM: 3.3 miles treadmill, averaged 13:38. HR 131.

Treadmill fine through 45'

Lunch: 3.1 miles treadmill, averaged 13:30. HR 129.

Treadmill cut out at 42'. I called NordicTrack. Had I known I was going to have this much trouble (two service calls already). I wouldn't have given them my money. I worry that they won't be able to fix the issue and I have zero recourse as a consumer. It's too bad becase the setup is working for my patient approach to returning to more running. It works just fine for Megan, but she's almost 100 lbs lighter than me currently.

Lunch: 3.5 miles, averaged 12:44. HR 133.

Did some hip and glute stuff while watching Euro Cup while the boys hung out in the Johnny Jump Ups.

PM: 4.5 miles w/ Megan and the boys, averaged 10:36. HR 150.

Got a front tire flat on the stroller. Doh! It rolled just fine and I barely noticed.

AM: 4.1 miles, averaged 12:16. HR 132.

Beautiful and comfortable morning to run. A little forward progress. Ride tonight. Trying to decide if I will cut out and go on my own north for a longer ride and skip the second part of the ride and the socializing and beer stop. Need to get in some longer endurance rides and since I am gone for a few hours anyway on Thursday, these might be the days to do it.

PM: 5 hours (76.7 miles). 161W. HR 157.

Partial Thursday Night Dirt and then solo. Some of the people were not listening to cars being called out and putting themselves and people in danger (mostly other clubs from what I could see). After the groups slit I was still getting killed in B group (I was pushing 165-175 BPM) and into the 180s on the climbs and didn't feel like working that hard. To put it in perspective that's probably all-out 90-120' effort for me. That along with other people not waiting for regroups had me ticked off, so I just skipped the rest of the ride and headed north and back toward home by myself for almost 3.5 hours.

I'm glad I stopped in Dryden for a Snickers, Mt. Dew, and two Gatorades. I really needed gels but didn't have any and wasn't planning on being that long. Longest ride in about a year.

AM/Lunch: 3 miles (40'), averaged 13:18. HR 124.

Legs felt fine after last night's ride. Went back to bed for 2.5 hours after getting up with the boys. Should have gone to bed sooner. Pace is slowly dropping and cardiac drift is less noticable. 

PM: 2.6 miles (33'), averaged 12:50. HR 123.

Treadmill shut off.

Off.

Lunch: 4.5 miles, averaged 13:40. HR 133.

Wanted to get in about 4 hours of riding but the roads were a mess (at least I thought they would be). It was quite humid and the bugs on Greenshield were awful and the road was mucky from the grading and spraying a few days ago. Had to walk a little to keep HR down. Once I could no longer keep it under 139, I walked about a mile home.

PM: weights.

AM: 2.5 miles on the treadmill (31'), averaged 12:31. HR 128.

Treadmill shut off. Hoping the service place calls soon before I set it on fire. Did some drills, which I haven't done in years. Well, other than the basic three I used to do for hill blast last year. The boys were in their Johnny Jump Ups, so I encouraged them every few minutes.

PM: 4.1 miles (50'), averaged 12:16. HR 133.

Ran on the track to contol the effort. The track is down the road of our subdivision and through a short field to the middle school (which will be the boys' middle school). 

Happy Anniversary to Megan, who somehow after 7 years still puts up with me!

PM: 75'. 6.1 miles, averaged 12:19. HR ~134

Cool, windy, and some light rain. HRM was acting up a bit.

AM: 5 miles (60'), averaged 12:05. HR 134.

PM: 2.8 miles on the treadmill (36'), averaged 12:34. HR 128.

Treadmill shut off and I haven't heard back from the service place. No call back does not seem promising.

PM: 2:35 ride (38.6 miles). 165W. HR 158.

Did some hill repeats on Dequindre hill.

PM: 90' on the trainer (Andrews). 177W. HR 152.

Put my bike on the trainer. It's been crazy rainy and not sure how the roads are. It will probably stay on there for a few weeks as I just renewed my Trainer Road subscription. 

PM: 90' on the trainer (Antelope). 181W. HR 156.

5 x 10' @ 225-238W or 89-94% of last tested FTP. Sweat a ton.

PM: 60' on the trainer (Lazy Mountain). 112W. HR 125.

AM: 3 miles treadmill (35'), averaged 11:35. HR 129.

Figured out that NordicTrack sent me a replacement motor, but had no other notification other than a random email and tracking number. My guess is that the issue has been pretty pervasive.

PM: 60' on the trainer (Petit). 163W. HR 138.

AM: 3.6 miles in ~40'. 

MAF Test 1

1-mile WU outside very easy, then attempted a 3-mile MAF test on the treadmill, but it shut off around 28 minutes. Stayed right at the target of 139/140 BPM and adjusted accordingly as per protocol. 

Zwift: 10:49 (139BPM), 11:05 (140BPM), 11:19 (140 BPM)

Manual Splits: 10:26 (137), 10:45 (140), 7:10 elapsed time (140)

Last split would have been slower for full mile. It was way too hot and humid for current fitness and target HR to run outside.

11:02 pace on the Zwift w/ footpod. 10:46 average on the treadmill w/ manual watch splits. I managed to have two HRMs and then the treadmill apparently picks up my WHOOP strap

PM: 75' on the trainer (Cumberland -3). 175W. HR 146.

Watched the Tour de France while the boys jumped for a while.

PM: 1:45 on the trainer (Gibraltar -3). 178W. HR 151.

Decided on a slightly longer trainer ride. Much after 90' is tough to focus on when riding inside. Got through two episodes of American Horror Story Season 8 and an episode of Family Guy because I couldn't find any soccer and the Tour was over for the day.

Some light hip stuff and bunch of pullups while Megan lifted and the boys bounced.

AM: 60'. 4.9 miles, averaged 12:15. HR 134.

My grandmother passed away just before 11. She was 97, healthy, and at home, so it's not a tragedy. Just a little sad and will miss her. I wish she would have been able to see the boys. We are about three weeks too late as we are going to Maine at the end of July.

PM: 42'. 4 miles, averaged 10:26. HR 150.

W/ Megan and the boys. Very comfortable weather. 

AM: 60'. 5.2 miles, averaged 11:30. HR 133.

Very comfortable conditions for lowish heart rate training. Megan is off to Toledo to tend to her parents. The boys and I are spending some time together, though they have been sleeping a bit as they have entered a rough pattern at night and will not stay down. And the difficulty with twins is that they wake each other up.

Will try to get something in last with the boys.

PM: 60' on the trainer (Homers Nose). 161W. HR 134.

The boys were pretty tired, but did okay. Charlie started to squawk the last 10' or so but he needed a diaper change. Sawyer was falling alseep in the Johnny Jump Up and I had to keep telling him to wake up so that he would sleep after dinner. Poor kid definitely has my genes and can just fall alseep whereever.

AM/Lunch: 2:42 fat bike (38.6 miles). HR 143.

Kept the gravel bike on the trainer and did a Polly Ann roll out and back. Good ride. Saw a family of swans. They were very close and very scary. Give me a park full of Canadian geese with babies over one pair of swans with babies any day. Beautiful creatures though.

PM: 32' w/ Megan and the boys, averaged 10:32. HR 149. + 2-mile walk/jog, averaged 13:30. HR 137.

Took Megan and the boys on some of the dirt roads and went to Independance Oaks Park. I have been there on my fat bike, but I haven't run there yet and they hadn't been. Good time, though the humidity came back in. Most of the walk/jog was actually jogging.

PM: 80' fat bike ride @ Bald Mountain South. HR 160.

No one was there so I tried to hit some of the segments hard and work on building some confidence on descents and corners. Still a lot of braking, but I did okay. A little bit of mud in places, but the wide tires really don't hurt the trails unless they are a slop fest. 

Happy 4th of July!

PM: 75' on the trainer (Collins -1). 156W. HR 140.

First weigh in under 200 lbs. Never though I would be this heavy. Even before I started running I don't think I was ever much over 185-190. 

Was going to get a run in, but didn't. Pretty toasty out. Treadmill repair in about a week. I am hoping the new motor will fix the issue so I can closely monitor my effort.

Picked up a dehumidifer for the basement yesterday. It is sometimes around 70-80%. I tried to get the drain hose to work but broke something, so it is either emptying buckets out the window or a garden hose in the floor drain (though I am not really sure what the drain is for for 100% sure).

Lunch: 40' treadmill (3.1 miles), averaged 12:38. HR 134.

Was able to squeeze out 40' from the treadmill before it stopped. HR a bit elevated.

PM: 60' on the trainer (Petit) 159W. HR 138.

Shorter ride than planned. Strange muscle soreness today. All over my legs and it feels weirdly close to the surface.

Day off.

Lots of muscle soreness of unknown origin, which yesterday interfered with my running gait so I didn't do anything.

AM: 2.9 miles treadmill (35'), averaged 11:47.

PM: 90' on the trainer (Tomyhoi). 153W. HR 130.

Took my rear wheel of my fat bike to KLM to see why it wasn't holding air. Seems like the bead was seated, so maybe it has a small puncture. I could have given it the soap test, but I really don't have time.

It thunderstormed off and on today, including when I was going to venture outside for a run. What a terrible summer for weather this year. Everything is very green at least.

Off.

Megan was checking on her parents, so I was with the boys all day. I didn't feel like exercising later. I ended up washing my bike.

PM: 2:45 (47.4 miles) on the gravel bike. 217W. HR 172.

Was pretty anxious so I was hot out of the gate and ended up doing a time trial to test power and HR. I used the turn-by-turn directions function, which on my new headunit displays only the most useless of stats. It actually worked out well as I didn't get my power or HR until after, though I had a pretty good guess as to what they were. Normalized power was 229, so with constant pedal pressure that's what I would have been at. Not bad for several intersections and two short stops for fixing my seat and a bit of heavier traffic.

Lunch: 60'. 5.1 miles, averaged 11:39. HR 137.

Raining again. Of course. Light enough to be quite comfortable though.

PM: 45' treadmill (3.6 miles), averaged 12:37. HR 130.

Wore my Vibrams and the treadmill seemed fine. I would rather not have to run in those every time though. Service is supposed to happen Wednesday.

PM: 90' on the trainer (Townsend -1). 154W. HR 135.

Off. Unmotivated and anxious.

Off.

More of the same. New motor in the treadmill and some rewiring of the speed control.

PM: 45' treamill (3.5 miles), averaged 12:50. HR 134.

Calibration was off because the guy messed with the belt. The issue is still not fixed. It was better and I was able to run longer, but I am not impressed. Sent my anxiety through the roof yesterday and it was just a brutal day mentally. 

PM: 60' on the trainer (Pioneer -3). 172W. HR 149.

Anxious. Saddle position still wrong and caused me some issues.

PM: 4.3-mile walk w/ Megan and the boys. HR 92.

The boys are in a sleep regression, and it's very challenging. Mentally a mess right now and no idea where it came from. I'm not ready to deal with this.

Terrible week of training. First race is in September and if I can get some longer rides in I will skip it. Just need something to look forward to. The days are all the same and we are just in the house (which we love) all the time.

Off.

I think this was the day we took the boys to the subdivision park. They went on the swings, played in the grass, and for a short time the sand.

A non-running, non-cycling ailment has me taking a few days off. Still extremely anxious.

Off.

PM: 2 hours fat bike on trails (25.7 miles). HR 161.

Felt better today. I think in addition to normal, everyday anxiety I was very dehydrated and that can really make symptoms worse. Had a decent time on the bike, but washed out on a corner and went into a small, but unyielding tree. My forearm took the brunt of it, which probably save my collarbone. Right should was very tight and I raised it up thinking I dislocated it. It kind of lightly ground/popped and felt better and I was able to continue riding for 90'. These trails are not at all technical. Just too much pressure in my tires and I tried to turn at the last minute. I had told Megan I was "just" going to Orion Oaks, so that I didn't crash two days before we take the boys on a road trip to Maine. I felt bad as she doesn't need anything else to worry about.

Next day: arm pretty sore but with full range of movement. I don't know how guys in their 50 and 60s do this crap. That hurt and it wasn't even that bad.

Off.

Pretty sore from the crash.

Off.

First day of travel to Maine. The boys did quite well. Stayed overnight in New York. The weather was good and we were able to let them out to play on a sheet in the grass.

Off.

Got to my parents' around 9 I think.

Off. 

Dad has deteriorated more than I thought. I was hoping to get some short runs in, but my mom is not able to handle the boys as well now that they are bigger and she is taking care of my dad. My niece Delia stays quite a bit and is a huge help. 

Off.

My grandmother's celebration of life. Probably the last time I will be in the house at 10 Maple Street. Got to see my mother's side of the family and they got to meet the boys.

Off.

I don't remember what we did this day.

Off.

I think this was the day we went to the botanical gardens in Boothbay with my brother and sister-in-law and the boys. Borrowed a stroller and thought they would sleep. They didn't. 

Started to feel pretty anxious these last few days. Tired of it.

Off.

I think this was the day we did lobster. Ready to go home.

Off.

Travel back home. We made it to about Syracuse NY. 

Off.

Travel home to Michigan. Long day. Completely exhausted physcially and mentally. The boys did quite well. 

Off.

Brutal day of anxiety. Just wanted to lie in bed, but I can't do that. We ended up going to a small going away party for one of Megan's colleagues. 

It's been very difficult to get the boys down to bed, though today and the next day they didn't get up until 6 or later and went back to bed until 10, which was helpful. They are still extremely overtired from traveling.

AM/Lunch: 1+ hour (13.75 miles) on the fatbike. HR 152.

Went to Orion Oaks for a light ride. A lady was walking with a parrot on her shoulder. Very tired. Just want to lie in bed for a few hours.

PM: 4-mile walk w/ Megan and the boys. HR 92. Didn't feel like running.

AM: 3 miles, averaged 8:44. HR 173.

First run in a while. I think I will give up on low heart rate training until I can build some base fitness. Just going to do 3 miles a day at a moderate to steady effort for the next two weeks and then bump it up to 4 miles a day and keep building. 1 hour rides in the afternoon and longer rides on the weekends, progressively building up. Training approach revision #345u5yeirh. 

Felt a lot better today mental health wise. 

Still not sure about the two gravel races I signed up for this fall. I have 5 weeks to the first one and maybe 8 weeks to the second. I want to race, but I am so out of shape I don't feel like it is worth it. Definitely planning to still race Ice Man on the fatbike.

PM: 45' on the trainer (Carter). 170W. HR 165.

Elevated HR, but I expected that.

PM: 1+ hour (18.8 miles) of mostly gravel on fatbike. HR 172.

Pretty steady pedal pressure and a high effort, but it was fun. 15.5 MPH average, which is pretty fast relatively speaking for a fatbike on dirt. Need to take my gravel bike off the trainer. Thought I might be able to do some indoor rides, but the weather is way too nice and no rain in sight. Missed my run this morning. I was decently sore in the hamstrings and quads, but that happens a lot when I don't run for 2 weeks or so.

The boys slept until 10:00AM after getting up at 6 for their first bottle. They were impossible to get down though. We have to put them in their chairs that recline to get them to settle down before putting them in their cribs. Not ideal, but it's difficult to get dinner done and help Megan comfort them. Not sure what this new pattern is, but they go back to bed until at least 9 or so. Just off from travel?

Charlie is pushing himself up on objects and pushing into a standing position and Sawyer has started trying to talk. He has been doing this rolling throat thing for a couple weeks now (it is a cross between a Wookie and a Spanish rolled 'R'). He is repeating "Daddy" and "Dada" though he doesn't understand that it means me. Megan says it is possible that he could start talking any day now, but it is always hard to tell. Pretty crazy for 9.5 months. People always say "it goes quickly," but, man, things are rolling. I'm not sure if they will ever crawl, but their protocrawls (scooting, army crawl) is pretty efficient.

Probably haven't blogged enough about the kids and will regret that. Of course, I wasn't doing any blogging for a while. Nice to look back at stuff though, like the time in 2016 I just looked at when I did 16 x 400 in 78 seconds, which is not mindblowing but was very fast for me and something I'll never touch. Scot Faubs did 40 x 400 in 72-69 today, a workout I beleive is actually from once a runner, but Rob, Jeff, or Jon can probably confirm. Sadly I still haven't read it.

AM: 3 miles, averaged 9:09. HR 172.

Warm and high effort, but it felt good. Legs have some soreness but nothing painful. Fully expected.

PM: 85' of gravel on fatbike (20 miles). HR 166.

Roads were oddly different than yesterday even though I did 95% of the same route. Pine Knob was graded even though it was in great shape yesterday. Mildly chunky. Warmer today. Warmer weather coming. It's been oddly averaged to below average this summer.

Boys slept late again, but were tired early and a bit fussy during the day when they are normally very easy going. Earlier bedtime tonight. I need to transfer Sawyer from his chair to his crib. 

PM: 1+ hour (13.2 miles) of gravel + single track at LO High. HR 166.

Got to the loop correct even though part of the more difficult section felt like it was in reverse. I unclipped a few times and had to walk on some of the short steep hills because I didn't anticipate them. Maybe because I have only correctly done the loop twice.

I was pretty sketchy handling. I think I developed a new fear of trees. The problem is you tend to overcorrect and go right toward them. 

It's been a rough summer. Not the summer we were hoping for. Megan's mom's health is declining and her dad has slowed down a lot. Trying to get her mom moved out of rehab and into assisted living, but it is one thing after another and it has been incredibly difficult for both of us. My dad is also deteriorating. Trying to keep my head up but life feels impossible right now.

I quit my editing job a few days ago after I realized the pay was ridiculous. I had a few people tell me it was "insulting and not worth my time." Still down a class at Oakland, but I might still get one. Signed up for DoorDash, and I am trying to swallow my pride and try that. InstaCart is way too stressfull and time consuming.

Oakland is trying to cut benefits for finacial reasons. Hopefully the union blocks it. They are still excellent, but their tution program for the boys would go from 10% to 50% that we would have to pay. The medical coverage would also get more expensive. It seems like lately it is just one thing after another.

Lunch: 3 miles on the treadmill, averaged 8:21. HR 169.

Treadmill started to shut off as I was cooling down. Blah. Need to put in a call to NordicTrack, but at this point I think it's just a lemon. Works fine for Megan. Guess I need to just loose about 40 lbs and maybe I can use it for more than 30-40'.

PM: 4.1 miles treadmill, averaged 8:39.

Not sure of HR as it didn't seem to transfer from Zwift. Treadmill shut off but seems better at 2% incline. Tired of it. Extremely anxious.

Off.

Didn't feel like doing anything, but did some light weights in the basement with the boys.

Off. 

[Insert blog inappropriate language]. Over-the-top anxiety. Things look pretty dire for next winter and I think new dean is pretty hostile toward special lecturers, so I am not sure how much longer I will have a sustainable job. I am already down a class this fall and I think it is looking much worse in the winter. I am finding it incredibly hard to get out of bed even when I know I have children to take care of. Some people are already jumping ship, and Oakland is loosing excellent, award-winning teachers because it doesn't undertstand that people are happy to work hard and teach well at the university level for a bit over $40,000 per year. Yay capitalism!

Off.

Not sure what this day was. Tired. Got back on some temporary medication, which likley won't solve my underlying issues but I've been very unwell.

Off.

One year in the new house.

AM: 4 miles treadmill, averaged 10:36. HR 156.

This was the day I actually moved up the incline and it seem to help, but did not fix the issue. 

We did a short neighborhood walk with the boys and met some folks. Apparently there are some small trails in the woods beyond the subdivision that belong to the neighborhood. Something to check out. 

PM: just under 2 hours of gravel (25 miles). 141W. HR 151.

First ride on my gravel bike in forever. Not sure why I had it on the trainer as I didn't do too many rides, but it seemed like the rain was never going to end.

PM2: 4 miles w/ Megan and the boys. HR 164. 

Did one stroller stride of 20" @ 5:11 pace. 

PM: 1+ hour of gravel. 153W. HR 154.

Grumpy, but feeling a bit better with getting back into some exercise. Still having a rough time.

PM2: 4 miles w/ Megan and the boys, averaged 10:11. HR 163.

One stroller stride of 31" @ 5:20 pace. Good run.

AM: 3.3 miles, averaged 9:06. HR 163.

Day 2 of intermittent fasting. Not sure if it will work and it's not for the long term, but I need to cut weight. I generally go pretty close to 16 hours anyway. Got a little hot under the collar and mile 2 was too fast for current fitness.

Started doing a little course prep. Hard to find motivation when I am down a class and don't get paid until the end of September.

PM: 4 miles treadmill, averaged 9:50. HR 161.

Took a nap and couldn't get up and didn't feel like doing anything else. Megan and I were going to take the boys out, but it looked like rain. I was going to warm up for weights, but the treadmill seemed to function just fine at 2-2.5%, so I let the boys bounce for a while and then did some hip work. 

Got an email that I have my fourth class, so I skate by for another semester. We would be fine, but it just stresses me out. This should give me some breathing room to find something. I have applied to high schools in the past, but I don't think they will hire me without a teaching certification, which I would be more than happy to work toward. 

PM: 4 miles w/ Megan and the boys, averaged 10:40. HR 158.

Humid.

PM: 4.5 miles on the treadmill, averaged 9:07. HR 158.

Up and down throughout the day. Not bad, just a lot to do and can't seem to get organized. Took the boys down to play and ended up doing a mini workout, which I will bold here in the hopes that it catches on to something bigger. I'm just not a perpetual basebuilder. I like workouts. They don't have to be intense or long, just a little something. Treadmill seemed fine at 2%. The issue is clearly not related to heat buildup because I've tried something like this before and shut it down in 18 minutes.

3 miles of alternating quarters 8.0 MPH/6.0 MPH 

1 mile wu @ 6.0 MPH and a half mile cd @ 5.5 MPH

8.0 MPH felt comfortably hard. Half miles would have been a bit tough. I'll extend it out to 4 miles next week to test fitness and the treadmill.

AM: 2.1 miles on the treadmill, averaged 11:52. HR 139.

PM: 4 miles w/ Megan and boys, averaged 12:17. HR 149.

Decently hot and muggy. Not terrible, but we have had such a mild summer we just aren't used to a slight increase in warmer weather. I tried to keep it slow. I showed Megan it was possible to jog as slow as she walked. 

Off.

Can't remember my excuse. Put a few days in a row together, which was good.

Off.

Drove to Toledo. Megan had a baby shower and I stayed at her parents' with the boys. Her parents have moved out, so it was all very weird. We stayed the night. The boys weren't going to sleep in their Pack-n-Plays, so they slept in their car seats. You can only do so much some times. They slept until 9:45 after eating at their normal time, so that was awesome. We went to see her parents as her mom hasn't met the boys yet.

Off.

Struggling.

Off.

Same.

Off.

Managed to install a baby gate as Charlie is climbing the first three steps to the first landing.

PM: 4.1 miles on the treamill, averaged 9:45. HR 167.

Struggled mentally today, but mostly just ping ponging of feeling decent, then awful, then whatever. Attended a zoom meeting for the union at Oakland. Things are getting interesting. Lots of proposed cuts that will directly affect me, Megan, and the boys. Winter semester looks bleak. Needless to say I'm struggling bad. It was great to see so many empathetic, community oriented people though. There's good people and good work being done.

Went to be early last night and that didn't seem to help much as I was up every hour from 3-6:30 or so when the boys got up.

Managed to get something in. Started a longer workout from the previous week but it was clear my body wasn't having it, so I settled on shorter intervals at a faster pace.

8 x .10 miles on/off @ 9.0 MPH/5.0 MPH 

Quite dehydrated going into it, but I needed to burn some anxiety. HR peaked in the low 190s. Ran in a new pair of very flashy Nike Zoom Streak LT 4s. Even being overweight I like a lighter shoe on the treadmill. They felt awesome.

AM: 4.1 miles, averaged 9:54. HR 160.

Woking on syllabus stuff and course website stuff. Usually this is the easy part, but I am already stressed out. Need to be able to run more but I am not sure I am going to get it. Most of the last mile was a progression because Sawyer slept for about 30' and Megan had already been watching them for a bit. 

PM: 

Off. 

We went to a friend's wife's 50th. It was nice to see some of the guys.

Rough day mentally again. Very intense and rapid mood shifts. 

Off.

Don't recall.

Off.

An extremely tough day mentally. Would loved to have just stayed in bed with my eyes closed and napped with the cats.

PM: 3.3-mile walk w/ Megan and the boys.

Feeling a bit better. Talked pretty much non-stop.

PM: 4 miles w/ Megan and boys, averaged 10:58. HR 163.

Okay day. Manageable and functional. The Oakland bargaining crap is killing me. Knew I needed to run and we had a decent one. I guessed my HR to the exact beat.

AM: 4 miles, averaged 10:37. HR 158.

Decent run on a newer loop. Trying to explore other options for runs to get motivated. Did much better mentally the last two days and was able to get some semester work done, but it is likely that we will start striking tomorrow (they don't call it that but that is what it is). 

Cooler and comfortable air was nice. We really only had about 12-14 days of hot and muggy weather. Still, I am out of shape and it makes it much easier to not die out there. 

PM: 4 miles w/ Megan and the boys, averaged 10:45. HR 154.

Had a sort of encounter with a car going to fast around one of the corners where the trail crosses a road. I do not run with the boys unless Megan is with me. It wasn't that close, but the car took us by surprise and we stop and check in both directions several times and take no chances. Someone stopped for us at the Joslyn crossing and a number of cars were backed up (they are not obligated to stop). Got ready to go and a car coming the other way flew by not stopping. They got some sharp words from me, and I thanked the other people for stopping. I didn't want to yell and I sometimes lose it over the most minor perceived wrongdoings and I apologized to Megan, but she said I wasn't wrong. A wife and two babies in a stroller and people don't even touch the brakes. Trying to figure out how to contact the town to make the crossings safer.

Still waiting to hear about the job action. My courses aren't fully ready anyway, but technically start tomorrow (fully online and asynchronous).

Off.

We took the boys to Oakland to join in the strike. These were some wild days. Mentally very challenging but also important.

Off.

We took the boys to Oakland again to join the picketing. Negotiations were reached either late this day or the next. Extremely stressful, but thankful for those who spent exhausting hours negotiating on our behalf with an admistration that basically has gone insane and used unethical means to beat people into submitting. 

Off.

We went to Toledo to move a bunch of stuff out of Megan's parents' house. Try moving a bunch of stuff with two 11-month olds with no childcare while being worried about the future of your job and institution. Megan and I unloaded and I returned the van to Home Depot.

PM: 3.3-mile walk w/ Megan and the boys.

I opened up a few of my online courses. They were purposefully hidden as an FU to the administration, which no doubt made things stressful for students. It was not easy for us.

PM: 3.4-mile walk w/ Megan and the boys.

We took them to the subdivision park on the swings for a bit. A nice perk for paying $850 a year to live in our own house.

Off.

Worked on getting classes rolling. Don't recall much else.

PM: 4 miles w/ Megan and boys, averaged 10:43. HR 156.

Worked on opening up my other classes. I was late, but wasn't sure what to do because I didn't know how long negotiations would go on.

AM: 4.2 miles, averaged 10:05. HR 156.

We tried to begin our schedule to accomodate rest, work, time with the boys, etc. I need to run in the mornings to set the tone for the rest of the day.

AM: 6.7 miles, averaged 8:56. HR 172.

Ran down Joslyn and the effort got high because I was on the side of the road and wanted to get back to the trail.

PM: 4 miles w/ Megan and the boys, averaged 10:22. HR 158.

Highest mileage day since I don't know when. Dead tired but a good day. 

AM: 4.1 miles, averaged 9:38. HR 156.

We had our friends and their daughter (15 months) over for a bit in the afternoon. Felt a lot less lonely and isolated. 

Probably going to drop out of riding Iceman and probably give up racing altogether for a while. It's been since November 2019 anyway. I haven't ridden in about a month. Just don't feel right taking too much time. 

PM: 2 miles on the treadmill. HR 150.

We were suppose to visit Megan's parents' in their living facility, but said they weren't feeling well, which I suspect was not the case and just didn't want to do what we had planned to get them out of their room. Boy howdy, we've had it coming from all angles this summer. Luckily we have my mom, sister, and niece coming in about a month for 5 days. We are going to need a nanny before that or I'm going to lose my mind. We are thinking one day a week, but that won't be enough especially at the end of the semester. We don't want them in daycare for health reasons. I'm already as exhausted at the start of the semester as I am at the end of a very tiring one. 

Want to plod, but the treadmill was starting to skip. Exactly what I do not need, so I ran faster and it seemed better. Need to call Nordictrack but I am not sure I can be kind or what they can really do at this point. 

Progressed to a decent pace to get the HR up and did my hip routine and pullups. Wanted to do more, but I was boiling hot about the treadmill. Went and layed down for a few minutes to close my eyes.

The boys have been sleeping very well at night and going down when we put them down. Or they play and settle themselves. They have been pretty fussy the last few days during the day. I think they get frustrated with their limitations and also wear themselves out through all the standing and crawling. 

The predictive fill-in feature on the blog to fill in miles is really pissing me off.

There. That covers most of it.

PM: 30' on the trainer (Taku -1). 130W. HR 115.

Intended to run, but Megan had a medical call to make and it was a very stressful day, but the boys were solid and turned 11 months today. Put my gravel bike on the trainer so I have another option. It rained hard today. 

Called Nordictrack and they are sending a different part. They thought it might have been something in the way I assembled it I think. I wish I could have had their assembly service, but they cancelled because of COVID.

AM: 6.4 miles in 65' on the treadmill. HR 145.

Took the motor cover off to film the speed control indicator light. Of course, I did everything that I think usually causes the issue (run flat, heavier shoes, jog slow, speed up, abruptly slow down) and it didn't do anything, which was actually kind of nice as I got in more than I thought I would. Jogged easy 5.5-6.0MPH for 35' and then increased .3 every three minutes until the last minute and went 9-10 MPH before going back to jogging for 5'. No idea what causes the issue. 

Got up with the boys this morning and did some work and Megan and I rotated about every 3 hours to switch work/watch with an hour at lunch time to both feed the boys. Works out quite well. 

PM: 45' on the trainer (Totten Key). 135W. HR 128.

AM/Lunch: 7.1 miles, averaged 8:28. HR 169. 

One mile honest easy, then steady to uptempo through 5 before slowing it down. About 8:00 flat for 4 miles, but my averaged HR was 173. My legs wanted to move but my aerobic system is saying "no thanks!."

PM: 4 miles w/ Megan and boys, averaged 10:53. HR 144.

Weirdly cool and humid today. My shirt was soaked on both runs but it never felt bad. I purposefully slowed Megan down as I wasn't planning on running our usual pace. It mostly worked.

Good day with the boys. Our friend is going to take them for 2-3 hours on Friday, which I feel odd about but they are right down the road and she has a little one that the boys can socialize with.

Going to try to get a fatbike ride in this weekend. Need to transfer my entry for Iceman and keep it and start riding. Just not sure what that time will bring, but I can always drop if life necessitates it. Just tired of not looking forward to events like this.

AM/Lunch: 75' on the trainer (Whorl -1). 140W. HR ~128. 

HRM dropped out a few times. Started watching Hemlock Grove the other day. Sexy, weird, and scary, which is pretty much in my zone.

Megan and I listened to the updates via Zoom on the ongoing bargaining. It's clear the university doesn't care about special lecturers. No idea what the winter will bring with enrollments. I'd like this to be a bit more long term. 

PM: 4 miles w/ Megan and boys, averaged 10:07. HR 148.

AM: 60' on the trainer (Petit). 160W. HR 136. 

A little more output than the last few sessions. HR looked good. Right glute was getting tight, but it does that at higher efforts on the trainer. You can't cheat on a trainer in erg mode. You put the power down or you don't (more or less).

PM: 4 miles w/ Megan, averaged 10:25. HR 142.

Just us. We dropped the boys off for 2 hours with our colleague who has a 15-month old. It was weird, but good for the kids to socialize. I thought it was going to feel like a long time. We got home did some minor work and went out for a run and then it was basically time to go get them. The boys didn't even care we were gone. Still too young I think. That's the first time we have been in the house without them since they were born.

AM: 4.2 miles, averaged 10:21. HR 142.

Did 3 x ~1' pickups. Will likely do some old-school fartlek workouts midweek starting this next week. Should keep things interesting and get some faster running without dying and then maybe ease my easy runs back down. Today was nice a comfy.

PM: 2:15 (31.3) of gravel on the fat bike. 153.

Absolutely beautiful fall day. Still nice and warm, but just lovely.

AM: 9 miles, averaged 9:38. HR 147.

Was going to do an out and back but decided to make a loop and it ended up being longer than planned, but I felt great and it worked out well. Some rolling hills. Nothing major, but more elevation than my typical out and backs on the trail. My longest run since we moved. I would have to look back to see when I ran over 7 or so miles. 

Took it very slow to start and organically sped up toward the end, running a 7:37 at mile 8 with only minimal pressure applied. A week ago that would have been painful. 

AM: 3.8 miles on the treadmill. HR 139.

Motor shut off. Emailed NordicTrack back and told them I was done replacing parts and that they need to have someone disassemble and reassemble the machine to look for any issues or send me a new machine, which they need to assemble and disassemble the old one. I'm done with this crap. Not sure if I will run late or jump on the trainer. Either way, I am going to need more than ~40' of exercise.

PM: 60' on the trainer (Beech -1). 149W. HR 

NordicTrack has decided they are just going to keep replacing parts. I wouldn't recommend anyone reading this purchase any of their crap. Absolutely ridiculous that as consumers we have almost 0 recourse for this crap.

AM/Lunch: 75' on the trainer (Collins -1). 156W. HR 132.

Got an update on my dad from my mom. She thinks he has early onset dementia, which I have suspected for a little while now and was pretty confident of when I saw him this summer. I'm now absolutely terrified at 36. Both his parents had it, but my mom's parents lived until 93 and 97 and just sort of decided to go quietly.

Lots of rain coming the next few days. Will likely be inside. Hoping the treadmill will let me get at least a little something in.

PM: 30' on the trainer (West Vidette -2). 142W. HR 118. + 20' on the treadmill. HR 165.

15' progressive theshold + 5' jog. Started around 6MPH for just a bit then quickly bumped the pace up. A little over 2 miles in 15 minutes and then a very slow jog. I've never run faster off the bike though this was all very short. I've ridden for hours before and jogged 4 miles. Thought this would be a decent combo for the timeslot I gave myself.

AM: 60' on the trainer ((Beech -1). 149W. HR 123.

Lots of rain, cold, and wind. 

PM: 4.8 miles on the treadmill, averaged ~9:30. HR 147.

Treadmill fine through 45'. My new theory is bluetooth signals interfering with either the Android tablet on the treadmill display or something in the machien electronics or both. Not sure if it is a sound theory, but according to Polar the machines can affect HR monitors, so it's possible that it could go the other way. Maybe? I do know that the other day when I was filming I didn't have my footpod connected to the iPad or my HRM connected to the iPad (but I did have it connected to the treadmill) and it was fine. Need further testing. Felt a few slight hesitations but I think the belt could be tighter. Might try to see how long I can go this weekend when I have a bit more time to devote to one run. Not complaining. 90'-120' a day between two sessions is keeping me focused, healthy, and happy.

AM: 60' on the trainer (Pettit). 159W. HR 130. 

Spent a bit of the morning working and monitoring a few house things to figure out some issues and learn about some of the systems. The wind blew a shutter off, so I looked at the attachment clips to understand how the work and checked both the gutter and flashing while I was up there to see where the leak in the garage was coming from. Went into the attic last night and found it and it lines up with the flashing, so I think a little roofing tar will do it. Need to call about a window issue, which I am not even tempted to try to deal with myself.

PM: 4.4 miles on the treadmill in ~44'. HR 137.

Treadmill shut off. Got an email that they would try to assign a technician, but couldn't promise it. For a product that is still under warranty? If I could get it out the window I would set it on fire live on YouTube.

Figured out that the piece of angle iron that works like a nailing fin is what is causing the leaking in the window. Just need to be caulked between the metal and the brick (and I think we now know the source of the discolored water. Rust). Looked more closely at the shutter and that seems an easy fix other than me being afraid of heights. I'm not sure Megan wants me doing either job as I get frustrated easily and it is probably easier to pay someone, but both jobs are within my capabilities. 

Welcome to Jason's Complaint and Home Improvement Blog.

AM: 60' on the trainer (Bald Knob). 169W. HR 138. 

The sun finally came out and the rain stopped. For now. Rain again tonight into tomorrow. Looks like Sunday for an outdoor ride.

Two physical therapists have told my mom that dad has early onset dementia, which I have suspected for a good bit now and my mother brought up the other day. Waiting for a final evaluation. I imagine he won't be at home for too long. The good news is that he isn't too mobile and really can't wander off too far and hasn't driven for a few years. 2021 has been a rough year. I don't want to have another year like this.

PM: 3 miles w/ Megan and the boys, averaged 10:24. HR 141.

PM: 120' on the trainer (Daniel). 172W. HR 139.

Garbage disposal motor went. It's been a pain in the neck for home stuff. Small stuff, just annoying. I was going to jump on the trainer this morning and run in the afternoon, but I needed to go back to bed. Rained all morning. Hoping for things to dry out tomorrow so I can get in some light trail riding. Good overall time this week. Just under 11 hours total with one more day to go.

PM: 3+ hours (42.3 miles) of gravel on fatbike. HR 150.

Even the trails at Orion Oaks were sloppy in places so I headed out on the dirt roads. Rough in places, but decent overall. 

Just under 14 hours of total training time for the week. 

Put the new motor in the garbage disposal with only minimal swearing. Happy to save a few bucks there.

AM: 60' on the trainer (Lazy Mountain). 124W. HR 114.

Felt pretty good. Legs were sore and achy after riding yesterday, but they settled out. Nive stretch of weather this week. We will get out with the boys this afternoon. Might be mostly running for a few days as I have a saddle sore creeping in in the usual spot. 

PM: 4 miles w/ Megan and boys, averaged 10:20. HR 137.

AM: 60' on the trainer (Bald Knob -1). 147W. HR 122.

Wore my WHOOP for the first time since our trip to Maine. Not sure it is worth the monthly fee but I am going to give it another try and maybe actually listen to it this time. RHR was 42, which is good. That's about right when I am in shape (I'm not in shape), but I wonder how much it varies once it gets fairly low (in the past I have clocked some upper 30s). For instance, I doubt it would ever get back into the 50s on a regular basis, unlike HR during an activity, which varies greatly based on fitness.

Barry Roubaix is this weekend. A little sad to miss it given how many team members are going to be there and it sounds like it is going to be in phenomenal shape. 

Nice stretch of fall weather this week. Out with Megan and the boys later.

PM: 4 miles w/ Megan and the boys, averaged 10:09. HR 136.

AM/Lunch: 7.5 miles, averaged 9:55. HR 147.

Beautiful fall day. Cool, but very comfortable. Sunny and warming up. Did a progressive pickup mile at mile 6 in 7:35. Started too slow as the last .4 was around 6:40, maybe faster. Ran the Polly Ann and then the dirt roads with a nice subdivision sprinkled in. A good route that goes by the high school. I imagine by the time the boys are ready for high school they will have another one as the town has only one high school and 2300 students.

PM: 4 miles w/ Megan and the boys, averaged 10:24. HR 139.

AM: 80' on the fatbike, mix of trails and dirt roads. HR 151.

Tire pressure a bit too low. Bottom out the rear rim a few times on some of the micro drops at Bald Mountain. Wiped out on a muddy corner as I was going too fast and still don't really know how to corner. Did one hot lap and got a PR for the segement (not that I have completed it that many times). 

PM: 4 miles w/ Megan and the boy, averaged 10:22. HR 139.

Megan wanted to do somethign different than running on the trail, which I have been trying to get her to do. This was the safest route I could do and it worked well.

AM: 9.5 miles, averaged 9:55. HR 143.

Good run. Should have rounded to 10, but I had to cut through the middle school and the back field because Megan had a meeting and I didn't want to worry her. Working on a decent loop. Getting the rhythm. Ran on some of the trails at Orion Oaks for just a piece. Makes for a mutisurface run. Longest one since moving, longest one since I don't know when.

PM: 4.1 miles w/ Megan, averaged 9:56. HR 141.

Dropped the boys off to play with a friend for just about 2 hours. I got the lawn mowed and this run in with Megan and that was pretty much it, but it is good for the boys and their friend.

AM/Lunch: 120' on the fatbike (28 miles). HR 138.

Out on the Polly Ann, dirt roads, and then a short push coming back through Bald Mountain South. Enjoyable ride. Excellent fall weather.

Took the boys to Canterbury Village for some outdoor fall stuff (petting zoo, hay bale climby thing, etc. We had a donut and a slushy cider (very tasty). Megan's Uncle Chaz came by and dropped off a bunch of goodies. Way too many sweets, but oh well. 

Saddle sore went nuts, so it is a few days of running I think. Lot of rain tomorrow, so I am not looking forward to that. Could probbaly use a day off but I don't want to.

PM: Off.

AM/Lunch: 12 miles, averaged 10:06. HR 144.

Longest run since moving and since I don't know when. Just went very easy and relaxed and ran by effort. Some Polly Ann Trail and some pathways and some trails at Orion Oaks. Felt really good. All the riding and running combos are helping with my endurance for sure. 

The team did really well at Barry Roubaix yesterday and we were 2 seconds away from winning the team competition. 

13.5 hours of total training time this week.

AM: 6.3 miles, averaged 11:29. HR 125.

Did what I could to keep HR under 130. It was pretty good guessing. 

PM: 4 miles on the treadmill (45'). HR 128

AM: 7 miles, averaged 10:01. HR 140.

Looks like a possible reroute for the head of the Polly Ann. Crossing a bit farther north and not at the base of the blind hill would be nice.

HOA meeting this afternoon/evening. Ever so delighted. 

PM: 60' on the trainer (Bald Knob -1). 147W. HR 119.

Didn't feel like a short run outside and didn't feel like running on the treadmill. Did feel like riding on the trainer and watching TV. Felt fine during the ride, but saddle sore got pretty angry after. Looks like lots of running for the rest of the week. I was hoping to get some long outdoor rides while my mother is here this weekend, but I might just have to do some longer runs.

The HOA meeting was pretty uneventful.

AM: 7.1 miles, averaged 9:09. HR 151.

Light Fartlek: 3 x 3'/2', 2 x 2'/2'

Just a little bit faster for something different. Trail was greasy so the 2' weren't much faster than the 3'. 7' for the first 3', then 6:30-6:20 for the last two 3'

Megan is in Toledo doing power of attorney stuff. Mom, Katie, and Delia are coming tomorrow for a few days.

PM: Off.

AM: 7 miles, averaged 9:22. HR 149.

Felt good, not quite recovery but not too hard. Mostly roads, so perhaps good winter route planning. Mom, Katie, and Delia are on their way. Off this afternoon. Longer run tomorrow or on the weekend. Hoping the saddle sore is healed enough for a longer ride on Monday before they head out.

PM: Off.

AM/Lunch: 7.7 miles, averaged 9:26. HR 150.

Did some strides. Extremely humid, but not hot. Would have preferred a light rain to cool off.

PM: Off.

I was going to jump on the trainer, but that would flare up the saddle sore. Swelling is down, but the raised area is still there. It rained a good portion of the afternoon. Tired of rain. Got a good nap in as I was up way too late talking to my mom and Megan.

PM: 3+ hours (45.5 miles) on the fat bike. HR 142.

Dirt roads and one harder effort through Bald Mountain South. The roads were washed out on the shoulders in places and it was a bit muddy. Bald Mountain has some water several inches deep. My bike got blasted. We saw the sun today, which was welcomed.

AM/Lunch: 105' on the trainer (Antelope +4). 183W. HR 144.

PM: 4 miles w/ Megan and the boys, averaged 10:40. HR 139.

Took Mom, Katie, and Delia to the airport. It was a good visit. I think the boys are worn out.

AM/Lunch: 75' on the trainer (Collins). 172W. HR 130.

The boys' first birthday is tomorrow. 

PM: 4 miles w/ Megan and the boys, averaged 10:08. HR 135.

AM/Lunch: 75' on the trainer (Ainsle +4). 174W. HR 136.

Did my first session over FTP in some time. 4' intervals with equal recovery. Not difficult. Just some to bring some tension to the legs. 

The boys' first birthday. They woke up early (4:00ish) for bottles and then went back to bed until a bit after 8. 

PM: 4 miles w/ Megan and the boys, averaged 10:16. HR 137.

We had a good day with the boys. We did presents and a cupcake (again). 

AM: 4.2 miles, averaged 10:31. HR 138.

PM: 60' on the trainer (Lazy Mountain). 110W. HR 111.

Dialed the percentage back a little to keep the HR lower. Probably should have put it down to 70-75% to keep the HR closer to 100 or under. Felt a little sluggish and legs were clunky. Probably just tired and need a day off. It's been a while. 

The boys were in their jump-ups while Megan ran. I think they are out of practice or bored with them. They are pretty close to the weight limit anyway, but, man, earlier this summer and spring they went nuts. Assembled a few more toys from their birthday. Megan got some great stuff. Caulked part of the roof flashing that has a small leak. We will see if that takes care of it. 

AM: 90' on the trainer (Townsend -1). 154W. HR 133.

Felt a little clunky and sluggish still. 

PM: Off.

We were supposed to go see Megan's parents to celebrate the boys' birthday but they called off, unsurprisingly. The boys were going to go over to a friend's but she had been around her friend who teaches at Oakland who tested positive for COVID even after being vaccinated and masking (she teaches in-person). I imagine the cases of breakthrough cases causing breakthrough cases is pretty low but there was no reason to chance it.

PM: 4 miles w/ Megan and the boys, averaged 10:34. HR 138.

Legs weren't working the last mile or so even at a very easy pace. Good day with the boys. I didn't do any work, which will make Sunday challenging. 

PM: 2:20 (31.8 miles) on the fat bike. HR 150.

Mixture of trails and dirt roads mostly. Lot of people out just congregating in middle of the pathways. Weather quite fallish but nice.

AM: Off.

The boys really went back to sleep after their morning bottle and I didn't feel like getting up.

PM: 4 miles w/ Megan and boys, averaged 10:00. HR 140.

AM/Lunch: 7.5 miles, averaged 8:40. HR 159.

Decided to do a mini workout. Was thinking 4-5 miles moderate to uptempo but got a bit too fast and I have zero stamina at this point, so I just did 2 miles (7:37, 7:15), 1 mile easy, 1 mile harder (6:52). That's my first sub-7 mile in quite some time. Likely need to do aerobic workouts with the HRM on as I have no sense of pacing or effort currently.

PM: 4.2 miles, averaged 11:50. HR 132.

Solo PM miles. Megan's back was bothering her and she wouldn'y have wanted to run that slow.

AM/Lunch: 60' on the trainer (Lazy Mountain). 124W. HR 116.

PM: 3 miles w/ Megan and the boys, averaged 10:50. HR 130.

AM: 90' on the trainer (Andrews). 177W. HR 144.

PM: 2 hours (27.2 miles) on the fat bike. HR 156.

Did a few laps a Orion Oaks before doing some of the dirt roads. One hot lap after a warmup. Muddy in a few spots and I had to slow to a crawl to not blast a pedestrian with mud.

PM: 2:20 (32.4 miles) on the fat bike. HR 140.

Cold and dark, but the leaves were nice. Rode through horse country in Oxford and Metamora. 

PM: 90' on the trainer (Antelope +3). 196W. HR 148.

AM: Off.

Tired. Went back to bad after Megan got up but didn't fall into a deep sleep. Raining outside and I need to get some work done.

PM: 60' on the trainer (Lazy Mountain). 124W. HR 117.

PM: 90' on the trainer (Brasstown -1). 150W. HR 126.

AM: Off.

Waited for the plumber and got some work done.

PM: 75' on the trainer (Tweed +4). 176W. HR 147.

Messed around with the saddle position. Going to finally break down and get it fitted. It's too hard expending energy when you aren't fully comfortable.

I suppose I should do some running this week, but 10 days out from Ice Man, so it's bikes. Toying with an ultra next spring, but I am sure I will give up on it or get sick like the last two times. Tired of not racing though. I don't even care about the actual racing. I just need something to look forward to.

The boys have really been going after each other. Playing of course, but a decent amount of biting and near biting. Charlie put a good bruise on Sawyer's hand, which I can only assume is payback for always taking toys away from him.

AM: 3 miles, averaged 10:28.  HR 136.

Short on time. Busy day. 

PM: 4 miles w/ Megan and the boys, averaged 10:44. HR 138. 

AM: 90' on the trainer (Fletcher). 167W. HR 138.

Rainy and dreary, so on to the trainer. Not sure if I will get a short session this afternoon while the boys are over to their friend's or not. 8 days to race day. Excited and irritable. Kind of feels like the week leading into a marathon.

Still shopping around for a 50k. Just hard to commit to anything.

PM: