It's just that simple

Greenbelt - 44+

Ran at a easy to moderate pace with Mat from his house. We ran through campus and onto the greenbelt. The hamstring felt ok, but I'm still not striding normally. That's cool though. It was a nice brisk afternoon and felt good to be out.

Earlier in the day I went to the PT and got a massage, heat and some ultrasound.

Neighborhoods + canal banks - 44:01

Kind of a tough run in the wind and snow. Running straight into the wind reminded me of my days in Pocatello, where we would call the labored effort "10 yard fight" after the Nintendo football game of the same name. In that game, it took players about 30 seconds to run the length of the field and breakaway touchdowns were nearly impossible. So our running straight into the wind resembled the players moving so slowly across the screen.

Other than the wind and snow, it was a pretty basic run. I'm really hoping to increase my mileage next week now that my hamstring is coming around.

Greenbelt - 1:03

Felt really good about this run. Considering the path was snowy and slushy in most places and I haven't been able to run hard in 2 weeks, this was a strong effort. Did a 7 mile progression run in 7:27, 6:58, 6:48, 6:35, 6:13, 6:05 and 6:00. Then did 3 x 2 min pickups at about 5:40 pace during the last 2.5 miles. Hamstring felt really good (90-95%) which is encouraging.

Run to Gold's + treadmill - 49:14

Easy run to the gym, then did 5 miles on the treadmill with 4 x .25 mile pickups at marathon pace (6:25) and 4 x .25 mile pickups at LT pace (6:00). Felt pretty good tonight. Hamstrings just a little sore, but definitely manageable.

Weights and core - 15 minutes

Treadmill - 47:55

Ran at 11 p.m. I have been tearing out the kitchen floor and other such duties the past 2 days. No run yesterday. Oh well, it had to be done by a deadline.

The run was ok. I did 6 x 1 min marathon pace (6:25) pickups and 6 x 1 min LT (6:00) pickups to add some variety to the run.

Cassia Park + South - 1:04

Ran from my house to Cassia Park and measured a lap or two with the Garmin (.48m). Then ran to South and measured our jr high team's 1 mile time trial course (.95m - no wonder it was fast). The ground was partially dry, but slushy in places as well. Decent run. Will do a tempo tomorrow and a long run Saturday.

3 mile wo, 3m-2m-1m, 3 mile wd

3m: 17:44 (recovery 4:44)

2m: 11:53 (recovery 4:09)

1m: 5:56

Ran from my house down to the greenbelt and did this LT workout. Averaged 5:55 pace for the workout which I was happy with. On the warmup and warmdown I could feel my hamstring a little, but it felt ok during the workout.

A.M.- Neighborhoods + canal banks - 31:34

Woke up to a sunny, warm day. Took a very easy jog with Leo and finished a little bit on my own. Either he is out of shape or getting too old to run (or both). He was really dragging on this run.

P.M. - Greenbelt - 37:55

Another relaxed run, but a bit harder than this morning. Averaged about 7:05 pace and had an enjoyable run on a great afternoon.

Pleasant Valley Rd - 2:09

Ran from home and did an out and back run along Pleasant Valley Rd. Nice views and a couple of good hills. Out in 1:06, back in 1:03. Overall pace of 7:10/mile.

Felt as good as I could on an 18 miler. Quads got tired the last few miles, but that's to be expected. Looking for some good miles this week.

Weights & core - 20 minutes

Borah campus + track - 45:15

Just an easy run this evening to shake out the legs. First two miles extremely slow, then did 6 x 30 second pickups at approx 5k pace (5:20) at the track to loosen up during the middle of the run. The good news is that my hamstring felt fine during these. I had a PT appointment this afternoon (maybe my last one).

Neighborhoods -49:42

Procrastinated this evening and didn't get out until 8 p.m. Took a route through the neighborhoods around here and by Borah. First and last miles slow but middle ones around 6:50 pace. Quads a bit sore but felt ok other than that.

Treadmill - 54:11

Did an easy warmup, then 5 miles at MP (6:23 pace) and the last mile in 5:58. It took some concentration because it was so boring, but it wasn't too difficult of an effort. I didn't have time to run after work so I had to run after my night class at 8 pm

Greenbelt - 1:03

Ran from Golds and did an out and back to the end of Barber Park. The trail was a bit muddy in places, but as always, it's nice running on that stretch. Hard effort for a slow pace. Tired and dehydrated and my nutrition was a bit off today too. Windy but sunny.

A.M. - BK Campus + neighborhoods - 40:28

Easy 20 minutes with Leo, then a bit quicker solo after that. Cold out this morning, but got the run in at a reasonable hour (7 am) due to an inservice day at work which resulted in a later start. Felt ok, but don't really like the morning run thing.

Noon - Greenbelt - 49:04

Ran from work down to the greenbelt and did 4 x 1 mile at LT pace with 1:20 jogs between. I averaged 5:58, which wasn't great, but it was better than nothing. Windy out, but nice and sunny. Legs are feeling kind of dead today.  

A.M. - Neighborhoods in Twin Falls - 30:24

Ran at 8 a.m. from my parents' house. Took it easy because I was pretty sore this morning

P.M. - XC skiing north of Ketchum- skiied in & out to the cabin 2x, then skate skiied for about an hour. That is hard work, especially at 7000'. Great day and awesome views.

A.M. - XC skiing. Another beautiful day in the Boulder Mountains.

P.M. - Borah campus - 40:08

Ran at a steady pace and did 8 x 25 second pickups and 4 x 25 second hill repeats during the run. Felt pretty good, and the strides seemed to loosen my legs up a little.

Barber Loop +  - 2:15

Felt rough on this long run today. I was hurting from about 7 miles in, but kept it together to finish 18.5 at a 7:20/mile average. Started at the Garden St. access and went through Barber Park. On the way back, I added a few miles of easy running on the trails at Quarry View Park. A bit of mud here and there on the trail sections, but all the paved surfaces were fine throughout the run. The last couple of long runs have been hard on me.

Treadmill + run home from gym - 47:33

Fairly easy pace on the treadmill with 3 miles at a 3% incline. The run home felt great and I was happy how my legs have recovered from yesterday's long run.

No run.

Came home from work and was exhausted so I ate dinner and took a nap. Felt really poor tonight and stayed up late to pack for the trip tomorrow and get everything ready. Think I'm getting sick.

A.M. - Canal Banks - 17:46

Easy pace with Leo at 6 a.m. to get him out before we leave for S.F. Feeling horrible today

P.M. - Run from hotel in Alameda - 34:43

Easy jog with Emily. Did a few pickups on the way back. Sick all day but seem to be coming out of it.

Run from hotel in Alameda - 1:02

Out along the Oakland side of the bay on a nice path and trail. Great views of S.F. Did a 3 mile tempo on the way back and finished my last mile with an easy jog with Emily

Stevens River trail - 52:02

Did a 7 miler this morning from Megan's apartment in Mountain View. Nice trail and good scenery. Averaged 7:14/mile. Felt ok. Windy and drizzly out.

Waterfront 10m - 58:32 - 1st place

Woke up this morning to some very strong winds and rainy weather. The predictions last night were gusts up to 60 mph and 1-2" of rain. It wasn't quite that bad though. I jogged down from the hotel to the registration and contemplated running the 5k rather than the 10m because it didn't sound like fun battling the wind for 10 miles. But I figured I had nothing to lose and could at least get a good effort in, so I talked myself into the longer one. The course was very scenic; out and back from Fisherman's Wharf past At&T stadium where the Giants play. It was flat almost the whole way too. Here's the rundown:

1: 5:47 Felt very easy, in a pack of 4 runners. Glad I went out with the group even though it felt slow

2: 5:55 Settling in. Still a pack of 4 and running pretty comfortable. Winds not bad at this point.

3: 6:10 I led for a while because I felt like a leech drafting off the other guys. The wind would just stop you in your tracks in some places.

4: 6:15 Past the stadium and out onto an industrial area with a few turns. Kind of lost some intensity here because the weather was so crappy. I just decided to kind of stay in a relatively comfortable zone and try to make some moves on the way back.

5: 6:09 Some small uphill sections and the worst windy stretch. Turnaround point and I'm about 10-12 seconds behind first running with another guy.

6: 5:37 Pretty fast mile. Still in 3rd place. Rainy hard for a few minutes in here.

7: 5:39 Back past the stadium and onto the wharf again. Moved into 2nd and gaining a little on the leader.

8: 5:27 Wind at our backs and rolling pretty steady here. Closing in on the leader.

9: 5:34 Passed the leader with a little under 2 miles to go. Feeling pretty good through here. Wondering whether to keep it steady or try to make a big break. Decide to keep it steady and save some for the last mile.

10: 5:35 (58:14) Hit the headwind again on the last mile and it started to hurt a bit here, but I had enough to hold on for the win. Garmin measured the race at 10.06 and 58:32 for an average pace of 5:49. Last 5 in 27:55 on the Garmin. I probably didn't run the greatest tangents so the course was probably accurate.

Cooldown with the 2nd and 3rd place guys, who are really cool guys and both training for marathons.

Overall summary of race: A win is a win, and for the conditions, I'll take it. My training has been weak the last month or so and I really need to start cranking it up.

PM: 2+ hour hike at Muir Woods/Dipsea Trail. This was a lot of fun!

Ann Morrison Park - 54:41

I ran from South down to Mat's house and we took the greenbelt to Ann Morrison Park and ran on the grass around the perimeter of the park. I had just had my calves and achilles worked on by the PT and they felt much better as the run went on. Pretty nice afternoon outside.

Wore my new New Balance trainers. Beefy but good.

Greenbelt - 48:53

Had a presentation to some parents at work tonight, so I didn't start my run until about 7:30 p.m. Ran from South to Mat's house and we hit the greenbelt for a steady run. Legs didn't feel too bad, and even though I was tired, the run went by quick.

Weights, core and stretching: 15 minutes

Canal banks + Borah track - 46:12

Started out easy tonight, as I was feeling like crap. My achilles was sore and I was severely sleep deprived. At the track I did 10 x 100 strides and then did 4 x 25 sec hills on Aurora. Last mile easy jog with Leo. Felt much better at the end of the run than when I started.

3 Bears + Curlew Ridge + Rocky Canyon - 1:45

Great afternoon run today. Wore shorts and almost took my shirt off but decided that was a little premature. Ran from the military reserve and took a five mile route to Rocky Canyon road. I ran two more miles until the snow got deep and then returned the same way. Achilles a bit sore, but felt good other than that. Averaged about 7:30 pace, which I felt great about considering the hills and amount of singletrack.

BK Fields + neighborhoods - 28:37

Slow, short and easy run tonight. Lack of motivation and also a bad week of sleep. First 17 minutes with Leo then the rest solo. Will do some big mileage tomorrow after a good night of sleep (hopefully)

Weights, core and stretching - 15 min