The Long Run

New Year's Day run at David's house with lots of running friends.   Run felt difficult on the way out even though we were all running an easy pace.  I guess no one was in a hurry to go fast.  Stopped at the turn around spot briefly then headed back.  Run felt better on the way back.  The first half average was 9:13, the average for the total run was 8:35.

Keith, Bob, Eric, Nelson, Joe, David, Raj and myself as well as some of the beautiful Strider's women were there.

Kept it easy and simple this morning.  Just a little bit over 5 miles on the treadmill at the Y at about an 8:05 average pace.   Did the bike, and some stretching before hand and a few sets of weights after the run.  Felt much better today than yesterday.

Saw a few people I knew and said hi.  It wasn't too crowded today.  I imagine this Monday will be packed with people starting out the year right.  In some ways it's a little annoying when it is so crowded with all of those "New Year's resolution people", but some of them actually stick with it.

I know that I did, about 9 years ago!

Beautiful morning in Starkey park.  Started out at 6:00 with Keith, Raj and Tim for an easy paced 7 miles, out and back on the bike trail.  Met some more people in the parking lot for a bigger group.  David, Randy, Jorge, and Eric among others. 

Started running  with Eric for the second leg where we picked up the pace from 8:13 to 7:31 to 7:18.  At 3.5 out I had to turn back as I was on a tight time schedule this morning.   Said goodbye to Eric but kept on the pace that we had gotten into.  Last 4 miles at about a 6:52 average.  Pace felt hard at first but I got used to it and was able to keep going.

Average pace: 7:56

I didn't blog until late at night.  I had a lot more details to write, but when you don't write the down right away they kind of slip away.  After the run we went to Orlando to see my niece in an Irish dancing competition.  It was very interesting to watch and great to finally see her dance.  After the dance, my brother and family were heading back up to Rochester after a week down here so we said our goodbyes and we headed back to Tampa.  Stopped for dinner on the way home and before I knew it, it was late at night.

So, as for yesterday's run it was a good accomplishment for me since this is the first long run where I have done more than just 1 sub-7:00 minute mile at the end.  It felt hard but it didn't feel draining.  I've done this pace for up to 8 miles and I'm hoping to stretch it out to 13.1 miles in just a couple of weeks.  I'll either make it the whole way or crash before the end.  If I crash before the end then I'll know where I'm at fitness wise by hitting a limit.  If I do make it all the way I'll have a huge PR.  I'm going to concentrate on continued steady training, getting lots of sleep and being careful with my food.

The other thing about yesterday's run is that for some reason running with Eric always feels hard to me, regardless of the pace.  He is a lot faster than me but even if he is running a slower pace than he normally does it seems faster.  This might be because I'm not the one setting the pace so I don't know what to expect.  I need to get over this so I can get better at racing.  Instead of running at a pre-determined pace, just try and catch up to and maybe pace the next guy in front.

It felt good to get a run in this morning since I missed last Monday's run.  I went to the Y where it was pretty crowded although not us much as I thought it would be.  After some of the usual warm up stuff I got onto a treadmill for 3.21 miles at about a 8:19 pace, then headed outside.

I ran outside for another 5.23 miles for a 7:24 average pace.  I didn't look at the pace while I was running.  I felt a little bit fast now and then so I told myself this wasn't a race and would slow down just enough to hear more relaxed breathing.   I ended up with three miles at 7:10 or less.

I wanted to get in at least 8 today since I need to start thinking about training for Boston.  It would be nice if I could just run without a plan, but a plan is like a roadmap and it can aid you in knowing whether you are on the right route or not.  It doesn't mean that you can't take a detour here or there or stop to look at something interesting.  In the end the journey is more than just a bunch of distances and paces, but keeping track of those things can greatly help.

Met up with Dixie at the Lansbrook Y at 6:00.  Old meeting spot (7-11) is being torn down.  Due to the new meeting spot, varied our route a little bit from the usual Tuesday run but still stopped at the lake park for water.  It was foggy this morning but the temp was very nice for running.

Showed up at the Y at 5:24.  Keith, Raj, and eventually Dixie showed up.  Ran a short warm up while waiting for Dixie then set out on our run.   My smartcoach plan said to do 4 miles at 6:48.  The group usually does about a 7:00 pace so I figured that would be reasonably close enough and I could always pick up the pace for the last mile.  Instead, they wanted to do a 7:20 pace.  So, as a compromise I decided I would do the first three with them at 7:20 pace and then do 2 more on my own at the 6:48 pace.

The weather was warm (71 degrees) and humid (about 90+%).   After about a 1.5 mile warm up we started at the 7:20 pace.  With the weather, it didn't feel so easy and I was having some doubts about picking up the pace on my own after three miles.    Fortunately, the pace soon felt better and once the first 3 miles were done, it was not a problem to pick up the pace.  In fact, I felt really good at that point and found myself at a faster pace with what I thought was a 6:48 effort.  Last two miles were in 6:30 and 6:28.

Average pace: 7:40

Jogged back the rest of the way to the parking lot, stretched a little bit then went inside for a few sets of weights.

I felt really good about today's run.  It wasn't the longest or fastest tempo run that I have done, but I felt surprised by how good the last two miles felt.  I'm hoping I'll have this speedy feeling for the Clearwater half marathon in a week and a half.

Cold front back in today (ok, not that cold).  A little below 50 degrees (compared to yesterday's 71 it felt cold).  Some moderate fog.   Ran out and back course SR 54 and up Starkey Blvd.  Felt sluggish at first, better during the middle, and ok at the end.   Glad to finish and get the miles in.

Average pace: 8:09

It's good to get in runs like this, where you don't feel especially great, but you get the job done, putting some "money in the bank"

Good run this morning.  Started out kind of chilly.  I was planning on about 50 degree weather but it was actually 41, so I was slightly under dressed at first.  Met up with Keith, Dixie, Tim, and Raj at 6:00 in Starkey park.   We were all doing different distances.  Went out slow for the 7 miles on the way out.  The other guys were going out further so I turned around first.

Picked up the pace for the return trip.  Wanted between 7:00 and 7:09 but pace kept on creeping up so I went with it.  Averaged 6:55 for the second half.  Felt really good about this because this was more like a tempo run pace but it was at the second half of a long run.  Didn't feel as hard as a tempo.

Had to hurry up to get ready to go to Disney for my wife's marathon the next day.

 SPECTATOR REPORT: DISNEY MARATHON

It was a lot of fun cheering for Jenny.  I dragged the kids all over the course.  They were really good too considering we had to get up at 3:45.  I had pace alerts set up on my phone for my wife, her running friend, one of my running partners who was going for a BQ as well as Jeff who was out here for the marathon and family vacation.

I saw Jenny at about 1.5 miles, missed her at mile 9, but saw her at about 12.5 miles.  I saw her finish, too and was there after she came through to the family reunion area. 

I was also able to meet Jeff and his family after he finished with an awesome 2:40 time and finishing 16th overall.  It was nice to finally meet someone from the blog (especially such a nice guy!).

Also, kudos out to Jenny's running partner Kathryn who chopped off about 19 minutes from her old PR!

One of my running partners, David, once again proved that he is "full of it" when he keeps saying that he is too "old and broken" to run like he used to, another BQ in the 50+ age group, way to go David!!!

And, one of the best surprises (I wish I had known that she was running) is one of my running insprirations, the ever so valuable "olympian-next-door", Eudair, who took 2nd in her age group, way to go!!!!

I thought Jenny held up really well and looked good at the end.  It was a little nerve wracking for me since I didn't know what was going on between mile 20 and the finish.  She slowed down a little bit over the second half but nothing too terrible and didn't have any major problems.

With all of the unknows of her first marathon, she did really well with a 4:12:08.  On the drive home the next day she even mentioned that she might be up for another marathon sometime :)

Ran 9.2 with Dixie this morning.  Weather was very nice.  Mainly took it easy with nothing much faster than 8:00.

Average pace: 8:25

Ran with Dixie this morning at the Y.  We met up at 6:00.  Much colder today than yesterday, but I was prepared for it this time unlike last Saturday.  Once warmed up, it was actually very good weather to run in - about mid 40's.   We started off together for our warm up then Dixie went ahead to run about a 7:20 pace.  I stayed slower at first and then did a couple of faster miles at 6:03 and 6:09 with a break in between.  It was sort of like repeats but more integrated into the run.  With the different paces we took turns passing each other.  Did a few more easy miles at the end for a total of 8.08 miles at 7:56 pace.

The faster miles felt good and I'm hoping they'll make the 6:50's I want to do on Sunday not seem so bad.

Went inside for cool down on the bike, some stretching and core and a few sets of weights before heading home.

Biked the boys to school so Jenny could have a little bit more time.

Pretty good run this morning.  Out and back route, SR 54 to Starkey Blvd, up and then back home the same way.  Even chillier this morning, high 30's.  Wore a sweatshirt for the first mile which really did the trick.   Felt warm, so I stashed it and continued on feeling comfortable.  Slowly picked up the pace with a faster return trip.   Fastest mile on the way back was 7:15.  Overall pace was 7:53.

I was a little bit slow in getting started this morning.  Feel like I'm fighting off a cold or something, hopefully I'll win.   Decided on an indoor/outdoor run.  It was back in the 40's today, so a lot warmer than yesterday.  Went to the Y, did a warm up on the bike.   Chatted with David for a bit and congratulated him on his BQ at Disney.   Got onto the treadmill for 3.12 mainly easy miles.   Did a few short strides to half marathon pace, which fortunately felt natural and not too hard, just faster. 

Headed outside for another 3.16 miles.  2nd mile I hit half marathon pace without looking at the Garmin or forcing it.  Backed down a bit for the third mile, for an average pace of 7:23 on the outdoor portion of this morning's run.

Felt much better at the end of the run than I felt when I first woke up.

Went to the Y with Jenny this morning.  I just wanted a short and easy run so I'm feeling ready for tomorrow's half marathon.  For Jenny, it was her first run since the Disney marathon on Sunday.  I mainly ran about an 8 minute pace with a few intervals at tomorrow's goal half marathon pace.  The faster pace felt good, like maybe something I can hold onto, although it won't be easy.

Jenny is thinking of doing the 5 mile race but has not yet decided on a pace.  It should be pretty exciting tomorrow as there will probably be a lot of people that we know there for either the 5 mile race or the half marathon.

Wow!  I was very pleased with today's race.  The weather was great and the course was beautiful and the race was very well run, and I met my goals and felt good.  I had signed up for this race about a month ago.  Jenny was going to watch the kids while I ran, but her friend and running partner Kathryn said they were coming down to watch me race - thanks Kathryn!  that was above and beyond especially since you guys were up early yesterday.   So, Jenny signed up for the 5 mile race because she has been itching to run again since Disney marathon last week.

The cold snap we had been having had eased up, so it was high 40's at the start.  Both the  half marathon and the 5 mile started at the same time - 7:05.  The course started on a very slight uphill before heading over to the base of the Clearwater Memorial casuseway bridge.  Base of the bridge on the way out is about 0.8 into the race with the 1st mile at the peak of the bridge.  I felt good starting out which doesn't always happen, so I felt like I was going to have a good shot at a PR today.  Hit the first mile in 6:53.   Downhill on the bridge felt great, made the second mile in 6:35.  Stayed in control but was a little bit afraid it would catch up to me later.

The course flattened out and I settled into the race.  Third mile was feeling a little bit hard.  One of my driving goals was to run at least 8 miles at 6:52 pace since I have down that before and then hopefully get one more mile to break that record.  In the early miles it continued to be a struggle.

At about mile 4 was the second bridge, the Clearwater Pass bridge, about the same height as the first bridge (about 75 feet) but I think this one is longer.  Held my own on the way up the bridge and then "enjoyed" the ride on the way down.  The course then looped through Sand Key park for about a mile before exiting.  Continued south until close to 8 miles before the turn around.  I was starting to feel better about making 9 miles.  It also helped that there was a man and a woman ahead of me about 150 feet who seemed to be going at the pace I wanted.

I hit the 9 mile marker still doing ok, but up ahead of me was the Clearwater Pass bridge again.  I focused on the man and woman ahead of me again and didn't lose too much time.

Back on Clearwater beach now, starting to approach the causeway, there was a curve in the path and I almost turned too far to the right into a parking lot off of the course!  (fortunately a policeman pointed me to the correct route, thanks!!).

Ok, now I was feeling it and was starting to rationalize with myself with things like "you are still on track for a great PR" and "you made 10 miles at this pace" and things like that.  A runner came up behind me and slowly passed me so I hung on behind him.   The man and woman who I had been following had now increased the gap so I was determined to hang onto the new guy.

Finally, mile 12.  But shortly after that was the base of the last bridge.  It was pay back time for that 6:35 mile at the start.  The one nice thing about bridges is that they have light posts, which I can convince myself to at least run to the next one.  Hit the top of the bridge and mile pace had slowed down to 7:23.  Fortunately it was mostly downhill now, with a short flat stretch at the end.  Going down the other side of the bridge, there is a helix shaped pedestrian walkway.  Picked speed back up on that, then shortly after that was the 13 mile marker.

At the start of the homestretch, Jenny and Kathryn were there cheering for me.  I couldn't tell if I was going to make it under 1:30 or not.   Then I saw the clock, 1:29:2x, kicked it in and finished at 1:29:37.

Jenny had also done very well with her 5 miler, 40:01, a 5 mile race PR and also a faster pace than her fastest 5K so far.  She had a dream the other night that she would get 41 minutes and I would get 1:29 something.  It's nice when dreams do come true.

Here are the splits:

1 - 6:53

2 - 6:35

3 - 6:44

4 - 6:53

5 - 6:51

6 - 6:50

7 - 6:51

8 - 6:48

9 - 6:45

10 - 6:50

11 - 7:01

12 - 7:04

13 - 6:50

       0:41 (0.12 @ 5:48)

It was a pretty tough run this morning.  Quads still sore from Sunday.  Plan was to meet Dixie at the Y at 6:00, but he was running a little bit late.  That was ok since it gave me some more time to warm up - by that I mean sit in my car with the heater on.  The thermometer said 50 degrees but the wind was whipping pretty good.

Finally got moving but at a slow pace, I think it was clost to 10:00 for the first mile.  Left quad was sore, but felt more normal after the first mile.   Stopped at the lake park just after 4 miles, felt even better after starting again.  Finished up with a couple miles in the low 8's.

Average pace: 9:00

It was good to get this over with, hopefully legs will be back tomorrow.   Windy and 33 tomorrow morning, so probably at least do first half of run on the treadmill.  (People running in the single digit temps please forgive the whining!)

One more easy run, legs feeling one notch better.  Maybe back to normal completely tomorrow.  It was cold this morning as advertised but didn't feel as bad as I thought it would.  But still, I went to the Y, did some elaborate pre run warm up before getting onto the treadmill.    Did 4.15 miles at about an 8:20 pace.  Then, I headed outside.

It was a combination of being warmed up completely and wearing just the right amount of clothes: shorts, two shirts, hat and gloves, that made 35 degrees feel pretty good (except when the wind blew).  Did another 3.92 miles at 7:58 pace.

Went home, did some more stretching and a few sets of push-ups on the "perfect push-up" (as seen on tv), which Jenny gave me for Christmas and I love very much.

Chilly run this morning.  Possibly the coldest since when I lived with my parents in Rochester, NY.  29 degrees this morning, frost on the windshield and on the ground.  But still, it actually wasn't so bad.  There was no wind and I seemed to have dressed appropriately.   Met up with Dixie at 6:00 at the Y near me.

We pretty much did the entire run at an easy pace, with an overall average of 8:38 and just a little bit of sub 8:00 at the end.

A little bit warmer outside this morning and I am getting used to the colder weather.  It was right at 32°.  But still, I decided to do part of the run inside before heading outside.   I went to the Y, warmed up on the bike, followed by stretching and core stuff.

Got onto the treadmill and did 4.15 at just under an 8:00 pace.

Then, it was time to brave the cold.  I wore shorts, hat, gloves, and two shirts.  The air was nice and crisp and the sun was starting to melt the frost.  Did 3.13 miles at 7:41 pace.

Running short on time, but headed back inside for a couple sets of leg extensions since I missed those on Wednesday.  These seem to keep me from getting knee problems which have crept up from time to time.

Met Keith and Dixie at Starkey park this morning.  They were planning on 17 and I was going to do 18 miles, so I would just tack one more mile onto the run.  It was cold again this morning, was supposed to be in the 40's but mid 30's again.  I think it is finally going to warm up tomorrow morning.

We set off at a slow pace for the first mile and then settled into an 8:30ish pace with a few miles near 8:00.  The run went by pretty quickly.  When we got to the trailhead for the Suncoast parkway, the gate was locked, so we had to crawl through it.  They had not unlocked it yet from the night before, it's usually not locked but they were having a hog hunt from 4:00 pm to 4:00 am, I guess they were starting to get out of hand.

With 4 miles left to go we decided to split up.  I put in some faster miles for the last 4.  Was going to do 7:00~7:10 pace but found myself settling into a 6:50ish pace so I held that.  Felt pretty good.  Jogged a bit after hitting the 18 mile mark then slowed down and walked a bit to cool down.

Overall pace: 8:07

Caught up with several running friends afterwards and enjoyed some coffee and snacks.

I broke my streak of not running on Mondays finally!  I went to the Y did some of my usual stretching and warm up stuff then get on the treadmill for 4.2 miles at about an 8:00 pace.   I headed outside where it was nice out but I felt cold at first from having just worked up a sweat.  Quickly warmed back up once going again.  Didn't look at pace while I ran, just ran and felt good.   Ended up running another 5.35 miles outside.  Looked at my pace afterwards.

Average pace (outside): 7:21

3 miles were just under 7:10

Finished off with a few sets of weights, then back home to finish up post run stretching and some more perfect push-ups.

Trying to get off to a great week.  New guy starting at work today to replace person that left back in July.  It will be nice to have the help here again.

Last night when I went to bed I felt tired and still felt that way when I woke up.  Nothing terrible, just felt a little bit off this morning.  So, it was a good day to be running with someone else.  I met Dixie at 6:00 near the Lansbrook Y.   We did 9 miles together running a slightly different than usual course.   The roads were pretty busy so there was a lot of on coming traffic and the headlights were getting to me a little bit.  Whenever I thought we were going faster than usual it turned out the pace was much slower.

Took a short break at 5.5 miles, then picked it up for the last 3.5.  Felt much better but still slightly off.  Dixie on the other hand was feeling good.

Average pace: 8:23

Tempo run this morning.  Joe wanted to run with me so it was definitely nice to have some company as I have been doing a lot of these by myself.  We met up at the back gate to our neighborhood and then headed onto 54 to Starkey Blvd.   Started the tempo portion once we were on Starkey.  Goal was 6 miles @ 6:55 pace.   Joe stayed with me for the first two miles and then picked up one more mile with me while I was on my way back.  Then we did our cool down back to the neighborhood.   It was slightly warmer this morning and there was a small headwind on the way back so the pace felt a little tougher than the last time I did this pace.

Splits were: 6:52, 6:56, 6:48, 6:54, 6:48, 6:47

Average pace for entire run: 7:43

I think the 4th mile felt the hardest and I briefly thought about quitting before coming to my senses.  Legs were burning a little bit on the last mile.  Definitely felt better today than yesterday.

Actually got into the pool for a bit when I got back home.  Stretched and did some core work and a couple sets of perfect push ups.

Easy run today.  Still felt a little bit low on energy, but pretty good overall.  Went to the Y and did warm up, stretching, and some core work then got onto the treadmill for 4.15 miles averaging about an 8:05 pace.

Headed outside where it was very nice.  Ran an out and back of 3 miles.  On the second mile the garmin started to freak out, it lost the pace but still kept incrementing the distance.  On the third mile it was coming back to its senses, the pace came back but for a while it was showing between a 3:50 and 4:30 pace (I was quite flattered that garmin would think that I was capable of such speeds!), eventually it completely came back to normal and by the time the run was over things were straightened out based on how long it took and the known distance.

Average pace: 7:27

Finished up with a few weights inside.

Maybe this will be the last chilly morning.   Another mid-30's morning.  I'm getting used to these in a way.  But the nice thing is absolutely no risk of overheating!  Met with Joe at Starkey park this morning.  I was a few minutes late (supposed to be there at 6:15).  We got going and it was still dark but not completely, sun came up before too long.  Started out slowly with first two miles slower than 9:00.  Gradually warmed up and picked up the pace a little here and there.  Just under 8:00 pace at the turnaround point.

This was my first 20 mile run in a while and the first long run with Joe since before Jacksonville marathon.  The miles went by pretty quickly and before we knew it there was just 4 miles left.   With 3.5 miles left we caught a glimpse of Keith and Dixie way up ahead - they had left before us and we had last seen them before the turnaround at 9.5 miles for us.   Joe said that maybe I could catch them.  So, I picked up the pace and intended to keep it between 7:10 and 7:20, but I wasn't looking at my pace but instead was looking at Dixie's orange hat.  With 1.5 miles left I finally caught up to them.  Decided to keep on the pace, finished the last 3 miles at a 6:52 average pace.

Average pace for run: 8:03

Fortunately, I did not miss the social hour, enjoyed some coffee and snacks with the other Suncoast Striders.

Arrived back home and found that my wife had valiantly guarded four pieces of French toast made with her homemade bread that the kids had not devoured.  Along with some fresh berries on the side it was an awesome breakfast!