The Next Step

Well I didn't get any runs in the last two days that I was on the trip with my church. I thought it would be a long shot. I did however spend two days in a water pack with around 100 teenagers so that should be good for some kind of workout. Climbed a lot of stairs, played some basketball in the water and tried indoor surfing. The indoor surfing left me a little sore. It was a good time and I didn't miss the running but I did miss my normal amount of sleep!

Today was a great day (55 and sunny). It has been awhile since I have been outside and today was one of those awesome days of running. I felt good and I felt the touch of spring that makes you feel alive again. It was great just being out in God's creation running effortless with a warm breze in my hair. It is days like these that I am glad I am a runner. Just clearly the mind and enjoying being in shape to be able to do things like this. Hopefully I can keep the good feeling going and get the mileage back up. Feb was a down month and I have a very busy March so we will see what happens. Reguardless, I am going to try to enjoy it.

63:58

Another great day (55 but very windy) to run outside. Legs felt a little tired and sluggish but otherwise I felt good. It is definitely nice to be out in shorts again without gloves, hat and a jacket. I did 8 x 100m strides at the end just to shake out the legs and get some turnover. We have a storm moving in tonight so we will see what if I can get out in the morning.

63:34

More snow and ice so back on the treadmill. I have felt a little under the weather the last couple of days so took off yesterday and only went 5 miles today. Hope to be back on schedule tomorrow. Felt good during the run just a little drained.

40:28

I have been sick the last few days and just couldn't get the energy to run. We are also are on vacation so kind of planning on taking it easy the next few days. We are in St. Kitts and it is beautiful. It is around 80 today with strong winds and some humidity. Also, it is very hilly which I am not use to. So with the warm weather and hills the 5 miles turned into a pretty good workout.

40:37

Still on vacation and today I decided to go exploring a little. There is a pretty long steep hill next to our hotel that takes you out to a undeveloped part of the Island. I ran up the hill and was really feeling it but once I got to the top the views were unbelieveable. I had to stop and take it all in for a few minutes. I went down the other side and into a valley where I saw some some monkeys along the side of the road. There were about 10 of them and they just sit there as I ran by. I wish I would have had my camera to get there pictures. I ran on up and down some more large hills and just enjoyed the views. It was a good hill workout for me.

42:05

I didn't really run today but I went on a 3 hour hike in the mountains on the Island. The way I felt when I got back I felt like it ought to at least be good for a 6 mile run.

Just did another easy run on the Island. I could really get used to this but have to leave tomorrow. It will be back to the cold. I have enjoyed the vacation but my running has really suffered. I am really going to have to get with it when I get back. I feel like I am loosing the good base I built over the last few months.

40:25

Back home and it was raining today so I just stayed on the treadmill. This is the first 8 miler I have done in awhile. I felt good the whole way and plan on getting back to where I was before being sick and then being on vacation. I am really off of my plan right now and time will tell how much this has set me back.

63:47

I had a lot going on with the family today but I was able to squeeze in a 5 miler. It was pretty nice out (40 with some wind) and I felt good the whole way. I am hoping that this week I will be able to get back on my plan without too much of a problem.

38:43

It has been awhile since I ran some faster paced workouts so today I wanted to do some tempo miles. It was not the best day for tempo running (40 but very windy). I don't like running on days where it is this windy. It is hard for me to judge effort and pace but wanted to stick with the plan. Since I have done any tempo in awhile and because of the wind I decided to do only 3 miles of tempo. So ran 4 miles easy then did the 3 tempo miles as detailed below:

1st - 6:43

2nd - 6:44

3rd - 6:38

I was satisfied with the run. I thought the pace was good without too much effort and I didn't know how the drop off in mileage recently would effect me. I am looking for to some nicer weather (hopefully).

60:10

I am taking some advice from Jeff as I ramp my mileage back up. I thought of doing 8 miles today but my main goal this week is to get a full week in this week then back to normal mileage next week. This was a good idea as I felt a few aches and pains from the last few days so I don't want to over do it. Looking back at my log I realized that I went about 4 weeks with pretty inconsistent training. My mileage went from a normal in the mid 50's to more like mid 30's and there were several times where I missed a couple of days in a row. I hope that this week and next week will get me back on track. Today I took it real easy after yesterday's tempo and then plan on a longer run tomorrow. I will this long/short pattern this week and then plan on normal mileage next week.

40:27

Pouring rain out this morning so I hit the treadmill. I felt much better today than I did yesterday and it was just a good easy run. I really wanted to get outside today but did really want to slosh around in the rain. This week is going good so far as I get back to the normal schedule. Hopefully, everything will stay on track. On a side note it is a exciting time as the NCAA Basketball tourney starts. Make sure you get your picks in.

64:32

It was a pretty nice day out around 40 but pretty windy. I did the cut back today and only did 5 miles so I wanted to mix it up a little so I ran 3 miles of it at a faster pace. It was probably a little faster than marathon pace but slower than tempo pace. I felt really good the whole way and didn't feel like I was pushing at all. I hope the weather holds out this weekend I really need to get a long run in.

One problem I have had is lack of racing this spring. I haven't run a race since early Nov. It seems like every weekend I have a conflict with potential races. I was thinking that since I won't be able to do much racing this spring what about doing either a 3 mile or 6 miles time trial on the track (only for sure distance I know of). Any thoughts out there???

36:17

Nice day today around 50 but very windy. Just ran an easy 6 miles. I had a pretty busy day so didn't have the time to go longer plus I want to get in a long run tomorrow. This week has went pretty good. I was concerned with having about 4 straight down weeks that if I pushed the mileage back higher that I might not feel as good. Actually I have felt real good. Just hope it continues.

46:59

Well I struck out on my long run for the weekend. Saturday was crazy busy with family activities and Sunday being Easter was pretty packed as well. At least I got in the 8 miler today. I have really been struggling to get in a long run this spring. I don't think this is good for the half-marathon in May. I am going to try to work in a long run during the week this week to see if that will work any better. Felt good today no issues.

64:22

Pretty nice day out this morning (36, light wind). It is still below normal for this time of year. Hopefully, Spring will come soon. Today's run went well. I felt good and was glad to get 2 8 milers back to back. I have to go out of town early in the morning so not sure how much I will be able to get in tomorrow. With travel I just have to take what the schedule will allow and not get to worried about it. I just need to make sure that I get in a long run this week and right now I am targeting that for Thurs.

62:22

Trying to catch up on the blogging after a lot of travel. 

Was in Portsmouth, NH and ran on the treadmill.  I did a 2 mile warmup then did 4 miles at tempo pace.  Here is the breakdown:

6:58, 6:50, 6:45, 6:43

Felt good the whole way.  It was pretty hot in the fitness room so I was feeling that toward the last part of the run.

52:06

Still in Portsmouth, NH.  I didn't bring any cold weather gear so back to the treadmill.  Problem was that all the treadmills were taken so I ended up doing 25 minutes on the bike waiting for the treadmill to free up.  Then I only had time to do 4 miles.

Just ran easy today.  Felt good through out.

56:48

I am in Gulf Shores, AL today.  My kids are on spring break and we are getting away for a few days.  It has been a crazy few weeks for me with business travel, vacation and family commitments.  The running has kind of taken a back burner.  I feel like I am just barely holding on to my fitness.  I am hoping that I can get back into the routine but I feel some of my spring goals slipping away.  I really need to get in a race to see where I am at and maybe I can get the consistency back.  I had a great run this morning.  It was a beautiful day and I felt good.  I have been feeling good on all of my runs lately I am mainly concerned about endurance and speed.  If I could get one solid week back I think I would feel a lot better. 

It was around 65 and very windy.

66:02

Still in Gulf Shores and boy was it a windy morning today.  Probably around 30 mph sustained.  It made for tough going into the wind but I sure got a push downwind.  I felt good today so picked up the pace for about 3 miles to around marathon pace.  It is certainly a lot more fun running in the warm weather even if I do have to put up with the wind.  These distances are just estimated while I am down here are just estimated since I have not measured them and I don't have GPS.

66:06