Philippians 4:13

6 easy early miles with Moxie...slow and uncomfortable the whole time due to need for a pit stop from mile 1 on.  Got home as fast as I could muster this morning.  (TSD5)

7.25 miles at lunch in 47:20.  1 mile w/u with Pat, then 5 mile MP tempo, 1.25 cooldown.  I hit the 6 mile mark in 38:55, so avg. for the 5 miles of 6:15ish pace.  Ran in cloudy humid conditions, but cool with a light rain on and off...a good run!  (Tangent 1)

Out early this morning.  Tired and sore at the start but started to feel better about halfway in when I ran into Curt.  Ran a few miles with him before dropping off Moxie and finishing up another mile solo for a slow and easy 7 mile run in 57:30. 

Probably no run at lunch due to work conflicts but I may try for a run later today after work.

5k after work in 20:10 along Sunnyside in 85 degrees.  Nothing special, just a short run before a dinner appointment.  Got some whistles from a car full of women...makes up for the car that yelled at me on Saturday.

I slept horribly last night, my traps are sore and locked up.  Got up early to meet a friend at the corner for a run...no show.  So I ran home and got Moxie for an additional slow easy 6 miles. 7 miles total in 57:28. (TSD5)

4 miles in a slow 26:10 at lunch in 80 degrees and full sunshine so I heated up faster today.  Not pleased with the time on this short run, but I just didn't have the next gear today.  (Tangent 1)

No early morning run today so I could sleep in and just find my morning mojo again...nice to get an extra hour of sleep.  Will go longer at lunch today and try to get a quick run around the greenbelt when the kids are at Taekwando tonight.

10 miles at lunch in 1:06:08 for a 6:36 average pace.  1 mile easy, then 6 miles at MP, followed by 3 slightly slower miles including the last one at 7:00 pace.  It was warm, muggy and sunny out during the run which probably accounted for the slow down at the end (plus lack of fuel this morning due to work meetings).  I ran with my new Garmin Forerunner 210 today, I really like this new GPS unit...smaller and simple! (Mirage)

No evening run as it was windy, rainy and lightning all over the place. Made my first order or Saucony gear today and got some PowerBar gear in the mail...my running apparel just got a big boost today.

Out the door at 4:30am with Moxie for 4 miles before I had to drop her off because I was literally pulling her along...I don't need the extra resistance at this hour.  This did not help my already poor mood.  Back out for 4.65 miles more with some faster miles to catch and drop some rude, unfriendly runners that I passed going the other way...some kind of morning motivation, stuck up runners at 5am.  Total time of 1:06:04, best early morning run in quite some time, who knew that running in a bad mood would improve my performance.  (TSD5)

6.5 miles in 46:14 (7:09 avg.) around the greenbelt on a fantastic day for a run.  I had to stop twice for pitstops and my right ankle was a bit sore.  Overall an ok run, first mile 7:30, then the rest spot on at 7:00 pace.  (Mirage)

19.1 miles this morning in 2:17.  Started at the cemetery with Curt and we ran up and back down the Sunnyside hill.  6 miles up in 52 minutes, back down in about 34 minutes.  The Curt had to head home and I wanted a few more miles before connecting back up with Kami (who was biking the hills so I ran down on Sunnyside.  Hooked up with Nate R. for a few miles, then saw Lynette as she was heading home after running with the rest of the group.  I finished off the remainder of the run solo. 

Afterwards, the family headed to the pool for a morning of fun in the sun and water!

8 miles in 56 minutes on a beautiful morning through SRL with Moxie.  Saw Alana and Shannon and chatted them for a short time during the run.  My back if really locked up today, hope it clears up soon. 

I slept in today as I am staying home for my son's 12th birthday.  Started my run around 7:30am and ran the first 5 miles with Moxie at sub-7 pace.  Dropped her off and finished off my run solo through SRL.  Had to make a pitstop and by the end was running out of fuel (4 PowerBar Energy Blasts and 2 cups of coffee) but ended up with a good run and all my miles were between 6:56-6:34.  Total of 12.2 miles in 1:23:20 for a 6:50 average...nice easy run on a great morning.

6 miles slow with Moxie at 4:30am...very tired after yesterday's activities.  The ball of my right foot started to hurt again before work and my back was really sore from the start...time to get the massage scheduled for tomorrow.  (TSD5)

We had a great bithday party for our son (theme: Greek Gods) with all his friends.   But unfortunately, we wer up late with a downer issue...out 18 year old cat is dying and we had to have the kids say goodbye.  Luckily she did not pass on my son's birthday but we will have to deal with it today.  My wife and I have had her since right after we got married, she will be missed.

6 miles at lunch on a warm day at a 7:15 pace.  Legs as heavy as my heart for this run.

I saw one of the stupidest people I have ever seen on my way to work.  A woman was riding a bike on a cracked and bumpy sidewalk with no helmet...talking on a cell phone...steering with one hand...with a baby in a front loader baby carrier on her chest!   Why are people like this allowed to pro-create?

Out the door at 4am this morning for my run as I had leave for work before 6am today.  Met Curt at the corner and ran about 5 miles with him through SRL.  Good to have the company this early!  Finished off 6 miles in 45 minutes, my faster morning run in quite some time.  Off to a long day at work today.  (TSD5)

4 miles at lunch in 28 minutes on a hot day.  (Mirage)

Had a massage last night to work out the issues in my back, it seemed to help but I still have a bit of soreness this morning...just too early and old!   6 easy miles with Moxie, then at home about 25 minutes of stretching (which I don't do enough of) which really helped with my stiffness.  (TSD5)

8.15 miles in 55:45 at lunch today.  I ran the first mile easy with Dan (7:47) then picked it up for the rest around 6:30-6:45 range.  Overall felt good, a little tired still.  Stopped and chatted with Gary for few minutes.  Warmish and windy day but a good day to be outside rather than in my cold, dark office.  (Mirage)

Slept in and went out around 5:30am with Moxie.  I started slow then ran into Rob and ran 2 miles with him, then I saw Andrea and ran and easy mile with her.  Got back home at 7 miles, dropped off Moxie, then went back out through SRL for another 6.65 miles.  On the way back home I saw McKay and chatted for a bit.  Overall 13.65 miles in an easy 1:45:13.  My back is feeling a lot better and it felt nice to run without the tightness and run easy for fun on a cool morning (I had to put on gloves and my sleeves for the second part of the run!).

Slept in up at camp today.  We are camping at McCoy Creek on the back side of Palisade's reservoir with some friends.  It felt great to sleep in, have coffee overlooking the water and have a big breakfast with my family and friends. 

When the other adults went to town, I did a run up McCoy Creek Road and back for 7 miles at around a 7:15 pace.   I had to run through a hack of dragonflies during part of the run...they were everywhere and hard to dodge! 

Afterwards, had a beer then we all went to the bridge and jumped in the water several times to cool off.  We saw several golden and bald eagles over the weekend, very cool! 

Ah, camping in a beautiful setting with family and friends...nothing better!

No run today as we were breaking camp today.  I didn't sleep very well last night and decided to sleep in again and just enjoy nature and the company at camp.  Broke down camp and left for home around 12:30, got home at 3:15 after stopping for ice cream on the way.  The rest of the day was spent cleaing up (ourselves, the camper, clothes, the dog, etc.), eating and just getting back into the home groove...can I go back to camp instead?

Thought about going out for a run in the late afternoon heat, but decided to spend time with the family watching a movie in the cool basement...a better choice!

Slept in and went out a little later and ran 11 miles in 1:21 through SRL to Broadway and back down Sunnyside for a bit.  Ran easy and felt really good at a 7:20ish pace after a fun but long weekend camping.  (Launch)

5 miles at lunch in 36:25 on a cool, cloudy and windy day.  Slow and easy as my hips were a bit tight for this run.  Really slow going out (about 8 minute for the first 1.5 miles) then I picked it up a bit for the way back.  (Tangent 1)

4 miles at an easy pace VERY early this morning before heading to the airport for a quick business trip...that is too early to be outside running instead of in a deep REM sleep!  (TSD5)

Hoping for another run once I get to my destination and before dinner with co-workers. 

Arrived at our destination and after getting off the plane didn't feel quite right, but figured it was due to being a bit hungry.  Once we got to the hotel, I immediately went out for a run before meeting with the guys for beers and dinner...but something was way off.  I managed to run 6 miles from the hotel to the community center track and back in 45 minutes in hot and humid weather.  The whole time I felt like I was going to get sick.   After getting back, took a shower and went down to the bar...I was sweating but chilled and felt lightheaded and dizzy and had horrible body aches.  Went back to my room and tried to just sleep off what ever I had gotten to me...the worst night of sleep ever!!!  

No run due to feeling horrible, lack of sleep, meetings and traveling home.  Hope this goes away!

I slept in to catch up on my sleep today and will try to get out at lunch.  Feeling better, but still not 100%.  Felt very clammy and quesy on the flights yesterday again.

7 miles in just over 50 minutes at lunch on nice day.  I felt good at the beginning but about 3 miles in I started to feel pretty puny and by the end it was all I could do to keep running.   Definitely not over whatever this bug is that I have. (Tangent 1)

3 miles after work with Moxie in my Vibram's in 24 minutes.  Slow and easy since my stomach is still jacked up, but with the family still out playing at the water park, I figured what the heck.  (Vibram)

No run today as I stayed home to get over this bug that I picked up.  Slept a lot and just rested and by the evening was feeling much better.  An involuntary low mileage week may do my body good.

15 miles in 1:49:07 (7:17 avg) this morning.  Started with Moxie (8 miles), Deborah and McKay.  Dropped off Moxie then went back out for 7 more and a faster pace. Ran into Alana, Shannon and Marlin.  Last 4 miles were all between 6:30-6:50 pace.  My glutes and hips started to ache a bit at the end but I think that is from the body aches earlier in the week.

1 mile with my son in 8:45...great job Justin!

8.1 miles in 58:30 (7:14 avg) on a warm morning for a run.  Cloudy with lots of thunder and 65 degrees and some swirling winds...but it felt good.  I ran in my new Saucony AMPro compression socks and really liked them!  

7 miles on a very nice morning with Moxie and Curt in approximately 53 minutes.  We were running nice and easy through SRL having a great conversation when we ran into Marlin about 3 miles in.  Ran about 2 miles with Marlin, then he split off as we headed home.  A nice friendly run.  Ran in the AMPro compression socks again, I really do like them!  (TSD5)

I am treating the marathon this weekend as a training run, so I won't really taper this week but may cut back a bit on Thurs/Fri.

Speedwork on a hot day at lunch.  5x0.5M intervals with 0.25M recovery after a 1.5 mile warmup.  Interval paces:  5:35, 5:40, 5:45, 5:50, 5:47.  First 3 were good to ok, last 2 the heat was catching up to me.  Overall not too bad (not too good either) considering the 7 miles this morning as well.  A total of 7 miles in 48:20. (Tangent 1)

6 easy miles early with Moxie.  Just gettin' it done.

No lunch run due to work conflicts.

7 miles early in 53:45 through SRL.  Started really slow then picked it up to about 7 minute pace for the last 4 miles.  I started off really tired but felt better by mile 2.  

6 easy miles early with Curt in 47:20 on a beautiful morning for a run.  Last real run before the marathon, feeling good right now.  It was a nice easy run with great conversation, thanks for the company Curt!

Left for camping tonight, pulled into camp at 9:15 and found out that the campsite I thought we had was in fact taken.  Camp host was great and had us pull up to the group site for the night.

Moved to a real campsite for the weekend early, then spent the day with the kids at camp.  We did a 3 mile hike up the grade and a 4 mile bike ride up the grade (which we will run down and through the campground, right past our camptrailer!) which I will count as 2 easy miles (4 miles of running for Moxie!).

Drove to Ashton to get my race kit and ice cream, then back to camp to play in the river.  A nice camp dinner then to bed early as I had to get up at 3:45 for the race.

Got up at 3:45 and was at the Ashton school by 4:15 for breakfast (mostly coffee!).  Talked with some runners from Missoula and a guy from Boston, great people.  Waiting for the bus to leave, I jump back out to use the facilities and on the way back ran into Chuck Engle (the marathon junkie) who was racing today, here was the race for first place!  Sat next to Chuck on the bus ride (behind Dane who slipped on the bus while I was inside...awkward).  

I wore my Saucony AMPro compression socks for this race and loved them!  They helped a lot with how my legs felt, especially near the end in the heat to stave of any form of cramps!

After getting to the start, Chuck indicated that he was shooting for sub-2:40 and the course record.  I, on the other hand, was running this as a training run and somewhere in the mid 2:40's.  So, I had a decision to make early on, race with Chuck or stick with my training plan for St. George.   Did a 1 mile warmup with Chuck. 

We took off and before the first mile, it was Chuck and I out front and alone.  About mile 4, Chuck indicated he wanted to run faster...decision time.  I let him go and was running comfortably in the 6:15 range and just watched him take off.  This was a bit of a struggle but I knew that running with him and the recovery was not worth the possible win here at the expense of a chance at sub-2:30 at St. George.  This was my first mental challenge here and was the reason that my dark spot emerged so early in the race. 

Next, around mile 5-6 mile I started to have the "what the !#%$ thoughts (why so early for my dark spot?) and my hips and feet started hurting, I also dropped my gel and stopped to pick it up and saw third place about 1 minute back.  I was starting to think about dropping at the half or just running to my camper.  This lasted through mile 8 (and a quick pee stop!) and finally to mile 9.5 where we came off the forest service road and onto the pavement.  This seemed to refresh me and the darkness faded.  Hit the half at 1:22 (nice and easy) and was told I was about 3 minutes behind...Chuck was rolling!  I felt good from 12-16 running between 5:32 and 6:06) then into the campground to see my family cheering for me.  This was when I realized I really had to make a choice...pit stop or fight off the discomfort.  So, I stopped in the toilet in the campground and lost about 1 minute.  Now the hill was looming.

Ran the hill easy and well and topped it feeling mostly good.  I actually felt better here than at mile 8!  Next 3 miles were actually good miles on the rollers, but it was really hot!  I was thankful for the aid stations and kids with hoses dousing you as you ran by...thanks kids.  The last 3 miles were just junk miles, slowing to about a 6:45 on the hot, flat finish.  I knew that 2:45 was gone and 2:48 was pretty easy, so I just cruised home.  I ended up taking 4 PowerBar Gels during the race, 2 I brought and 2 I got from the aid stations (had to stop to pick them off the table, oh well!).

Chuck ended up at 2:39:30, 8 seconds faster that the old course record.  Chatted with him a bit afterwards and saw the next few marathoners finish (Dane was 6th about 3:15 range).  Stuck around for about an hour chatting with runners, the RD and getting my first place master's award.  Feeling a bit conflicted about my race today if I should have pushed harder to stick with Chuck.  Now (Sunday) I feel great with no pain, while Chuck was indicating he was toast after his run.  I feel I could have run with him but wasn't in my head to do that and I knew I was training for this race.  Overall, I feel really good about my decision and know that I actually ran faster than last year with the stops I had to take this year.   Plus, "I knew I had to race the formidable Rob Murphy next weekend at the Pocatello Half Marathon." (Is this better, Rob?).  I feel good about my 25th marathon!

Spent the rest of the day with the family, soaking in the river, having a few beers, visiting Mesa Falls, getting ice cream, and just relaxing at the last camptrip of the summer in beautiful weather!

Splits;  6:12, 6:11, 6:07, 6:17,6:20 (dropped gel), 6:19, 6:42 (pee stop), 6:15, 6:17, 6:20 (transition to pavement...thankfully!), 6:03, 6:16, 5:48, 5:32, 6:06, 6:06, 7:12 (pit stop!), 6:46, 7:28 (major part of the hill), 6:59, 6:08, 6:24, 6:24, 6:44 (hot!), 6:47 (hotter!), 6:38 (just finish!), 2:18 (0.36 miles).

Last morning at camp, a good end to the summer break for the kids.  Got up early feeling good and made breakfast then broke camp for home.  Took the day off and just recovered and unpacked and got the camper put away.  What a great weekend!

6 miles at 4:30am in 47:45.  Started very slow then picked it up, especially for the last 1.5 miles when we chased a bicyclist for most of that time...probably running in the low 6:00 range and felt really good!  (Mirage)

6.2 miles on a warm and breezy day at lunch in 45:40 (7:22 avg).  Ran about half of the run with Dan, started off slow then picked it to 7:25 pace, then I ran the rest at a 7:00 pace.  I felt really good, a bit stiff at the start but fine by the end.  (Tangent 1)

4:30am, 6 miles with Moxie and Curt in 46:50.  A little stiffer this morning but felt good running easy with Curt and getting ready for Poky this weekend.  (TSD5)

Lots of friends running the Poky races (both full and half).  To name a few off the top of my head:  Curt, Lynette, McKay, Rob, Pat, Kory, Gray, Nate, Gary, Ron, Alan, Bill, Marlin, Richard, Neil, Court...wow!

4 miles at lunch in 28:04 on a hot sunny day...felt nice and easy.  (Tangent 1)

1 mile in 8:42 with my son after work.  Starting a weekly running program with him (instead of soccer this fall).  (Vibram)

6.5 miles with Gray and Nate through SRL in 46:30.  Great running with these guys, we haven't hooked up much this summer.  Good luck guys at the Poky full!  (TSD5)

No lunch run today due to work and appointments.  Will run again after work with my son.

3.5 miles at around 8pm.  1 mile with my family, 2.5 miles solo for a total of about 29 minutes.  (Vibram)