Of Mice and Marathons

South side loop - 14 miles, averaged 8:07.

Warmish with medium humidity. Not terrible but it's not my favorite. Trying to acclimate.

I may not be the fastest guy on the blog, in fact I doubt I am in the top 100. But I am guessing I am in the top 10 for falls. Notched another one on the crete today and barely got a scratch. This is the second fall in 8 days and at least the 3rd fall of 2014. I can think of 8 or 10 falls in the last ~3.5 years. Average that over ~8000 miles and you don't have a good track record.

#lafayettesidewalksaintpretty

A very special Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers all the blog and wives and mothers of those on the blog. Hardest reponsibility in the world.

Vinton Woods - 9 miles, no watch. Did a few strides.

Added up all my shoe mileage to get an accurate count of my lifetime miles: 8336. ~2.5 years on the blog accounts for 7000+.

AM: Jefferson High School (reverse + extended) - 9 miles, no watch

Might do something wild and crazy to mix things up and do a short run in the afternoon with strides + blasts. But maybe not. Don't want to get too carried away by deviating from my same three loops.

PM: North side - 4 miles, averaged 8:06. Did a few strides. Followed it up with 6 hill blasts, which I quite like. I also have a parallel hill that gives me the option to up the efforts to a .25+ mile (some day).

AM: Purdue Track Workout

Meet up with Brandon and some gents for a workout. I knew I was going to be the fat kid who gets picked last to play kickball so I was feeling a bit nervous but the guys were nice (they were running 5:05, 5:20, 5:30, and 5:40. I was going to try to see where I landed). We ended up going out own paces (obviously).

Workout was supposed to be 4 x 1 mile @ CV w/ 90 seconds rest, then 4 x 400 @ 5k goal pace. We started together and worked into our own paces. I thought I could stay just behind Brandon, which I did for the first one, but the rust has set it too deeply. I got booted off after my 3rd repeat because they were setting up for the meet this weekend. Fair enough. I was dead. Waited as the other guys finished and we ran to the indoor track for some 400s. Those were okay. I rarely run that fast for anything more than 200m. Need to work on leg speed and running fast. I've gotten way too comfortable running 5:50-6:15 (even though it isn't precisely "easy" for me).

1600s: 5:49, 5:57, 6:02

79, 76, 75, 77

Glad the first workout is over. Estimated my mileage because I had my Timex and we did some running hither and thither. Brandon looked good, running the last of 5 repeats at 5:17 pace.

I don't like when workouts are fewer than 10 miles total, so it is out in the afternoon to shake out the legs.

PM: North side - 4.5 miles, averaged 8:10

Jefferson High School (reverse direction) - 9 miles, no watch

Mid-40s. My kind of running weather (the other option is 70-80 with ~25% humidity but that doesn't happen)

Jefferson High School + 9th Street + randomness and old familiars - 9 miles, averaged 7:49

Ran with Julian, Brandon, and Matt at a reasonable, adult hour of 7:00. Nice to be back before I am usually getting out of bed. Cold and rainy. Enjoyed myself though. Might get out for a shorty this afternoon to warm up for some strides + blasts. Might not. Mileage is getting close to 80, which is my happy place but I don't want to push my luck. Tough when the weather is cool and you are feeling decent.

PM: No run. I did spend some productive time working out a knot in my right hamstring with some serious torque from The Stick. I expected it to snap (the device not my hamstring). Going to the cold and wet Big Ten track meet 10k. Rumor on the FB street is that top dude in Big Ten needs a qualifier and Purdue dude is going to go with him. Folks were like "the 10k isn't exciting." Well, neither is a 100m sprint (though it's very impressive). I watch marathons on TV. Watching young gets running ~4:45 pace on a the same track I was loafing on the other day is very exciting for me.

Hemmm....somehow there is a link for The Stick that deadends and that I didn't link in the above.

North side - 8 miles, unfiltered beer pace (8:16). Did some strides and five hill blasts (weak)

Walked 3 miles in the cold rain last night to watch the Big Ten 10k. Got there for the men's bell lap. Apparently they started at 9 not 9:30. I did get to see the women's and a freshman from Michigan absolutely dominanted. 32:47? I think. She strung it out from the first lap, lapped the field going into the last 1600 meters and looked strong the whole way. She finished looking fresher than I sometimes do after an 8-mile AT tempo.

So far knocking down my drinking days from 7 to 2 has done NOTHING for my scale weight, but the Dodge Fat Test (simple pinch of the skin below the navel) tells me I have lost quite a few fat percentage points. My new theory is that my overindulgence in peanut butter has been fueling a fat demon that lives inside my hamstring and calls out split times and that is where the weight is being stored.