Seeking a better country...

treadmill miles, 4.5 incline 5.5 mph.  It's good cardio, but slow pace.  How do you make your garmin take heart rate readings over time, but when you aren't moving?

On the treadmill.  I kept this run to 54 minutes, incline from 4.5 to 0.  Only one more episode of prison break 2 remains....

This was my first outdoor run in 9 days.  BST to Farmington Canyon, then back along Main.  Tami agreed to come pick me up at 11.  This was nice of her, because I was still 2 miles from home feeling spent.  The trail was mostly packed, which made for marginal footing.  I didn't fall, but was very limited on descents.  The first 7.5 miles were 10 minute pace.  Once back on pavement, things picked up a little.  After I got home I spent quite a while trying to figure out why I was so excited about going out on this run.  It was my first outdoor excursion to run in 9 days.  

I got home from work before it was pitch dark, and hustled out the door to run in the dwindling light.  7 miles, ave pace 7:40.  This run felt a bit hard.  It wasn't that cold, I hadn't gutbombed at Apollo Burger or La Hacienda.  While I was sitting on the curb at the taco stand, my right quad/adductors got tangled up for a minute.  That was weird.  I'm looking at plans for Boston training.  A 16 week plan starts on the 27th of this month.  One of them has the "easy" runs at 8:00 pace.  Would that feel easy?  I wouldn't have any trouble with the intervals, but the tempo runs would really take some mental toughness to accomplish.  I usually only work that hard on race days.  So I'm not sure whether to plan on training that aggressively, or back down a bit, and just go to Boston to enjoy the experience with a slim chance of requalifying.  Tentatively, I want to finish closer to 3:00 than 3:15.  That might be a tad unrealistic.  I'm developing more respect for the 3:14 BQ I did earlier in the year.

 That's a lot of musing off of one marginal 7 mile run.

BST bewteen cheese park and chase lane.  They are really tearing things up along Deuel Creek to make a retention basin.  I wonder how long it will take the canyon to recover from all the road improvements, heavy equipment, etc.  On the bright side, the homeowners downstream may avoid flood insurance when it is completed.

I felt pretty good on this run.  It wasn't fast or hard, just a get-outdoors-and-try-to-enjoy-the-remaining-light kind of run. 

This was a lovely Saturday morning jog with my sister.  Home to Pages, Legacy, Glover, 200E home.  We ended up exceeding our mileage goal since I left the gps home.  It was nice to run without technology and catch up with her.  I would love to find a running partner.

The neighbors all left by 9:30.  It was oddly warm, around 45 degrees.  I ran in shorts and long sleeves, and was too hot.  I ended up carrying my gloves.  No garmin, so I just enjoyed the movement without being to concerned about pace.  I fartleked most of the churches, and managed to stay out of the mud.  There seem to be fewer Christmas lights this year.  Maybe people are pinching pennies. 

Treadmill miles, 6.5 mph at 2%.  I walked a half mile in the middle at 10%.  Watched Star Wars episode one.  I really wanted to see the pod race.  My tv crapped out again.  I gotta replace or repair that POC.  The treadmill is so noisy, too.  Even at full volume, I can't hear much of anything. 

I was really jonesing for this run.  Glad to get it in, even though I was totally bloated from the company Christmas party.  Yummy prime rib and chicken.   Our wonderful gift for the year: a pat on the back and a dvd of work pictures.  

8 on the treadmill.

11 on the treadmill, with football.  Ah.  It was great.  103 minutes.

Treadmill. We watched the powerpuff girls.  It was awesome.  Except I felt sick from eating so much crap at Market Street Grill.  What a rip-off.  I'm glad it was a gift card.

This was a cloud run-  the low hanging fog made visibility poor.  I ran to Freedom Hills, did four laps around the loop and came back for spot on 8 miles.  The park section was marred by a stupid dog.  After languishing on the treadmill for most of my recent runs, it was good to get outside and breathe the fresh air.  I think my treadmill is not calibrated correctly.  I wore the heartrate monitor on this run to verify my suspicions.  7:39, 7:15, 7:41, 8:56 (lazy walking up the hill) 7:42, 7:29, 7:33, 7:29.  For the first couple miles, my heartrate was in the 165 +/- 5 range.  The remaining miles it settled down to 150 +/- 5.

Merry Christmas Eve!  Running today or tomorrow?

BST easy.  I wanted an easier run, so I took the truck up to the end of the pavement.  I ran to the snake sign and back.  There were quite a few horseback riders enjoying the marvelous day.  The road was in good shape with very few puddles.  It's great to breathe freely some clean air.  54 minutes to cover the miles.  

I haven't attempted a plank since the 3:03 cubicle plank.  Maybe Christmas morning I'll suggest a family plank-off. 

TM miles.  1 at 10 min pace, 2%.  1 at 8:30 pace, 1% 1 at 7:30 pace, 0 %, then back down.

7 miles, 8:06 pace, just like the plan says.  That's supposed to be an easy run.  I think it'll be a lot easier outside.  My treadmill must be out of calibration.  I'll keep doing them on pace, though.  It can only help to run faster than recommended, right?  (barring injury, of course)  Following the run we downloaded Golden Axe on the Wii, and spent the evening playing that classic game.  I thought I was done spending quarters on it, but it got 36 more last night.  We did that until the puking started.  I must have eaten something bad at home or at Apollo Burger.  Obviously, at Apollo Burger, but something even worse than usual.  The festivities ended by 12:34, but this morning I feel like a wrung out dish-rag.  Tomorrow is a 4 mile tempo run at 6:49, plus warmup and cooldown.  I hope I feel up to completing the workout.

Workout schedule called for 6 miles today with 4 miles at 6:49 pace.  I went to the LPT to enjoy the straight flatness, and the .5 mile markers.  The warmup and cooldown went just fine.  The 4 miles at 6:49 crept up to 6:55 pace, because of a bit of a walk break after the third mile.  The headwind for the second 2 miles surely didn't help, but I should have made up for it in the first two.  

After the run, I went and closed two checking accounts.  I love sticking it to the man.  It's good to have the run complete so early in the day.  Now I can look forward to an entire day of honey-do's. 

Horrible.  14 hours of core/upper body work over the last 36 hours made this a slugfest.  I was struggling mightily at 10 minute pace, stopped numerous times.  Finished 6 miles in 62 minutes.  Ugly.