The Long Run

5.21 mi, 46:56, 9:01 avg

Solo run from my house, out to Trinity Blvd and on the grassy shoulder until just past 2.5 miles then back home the same way.

6.69 mi, 1:02:26, 9:20 avg

Ran at Longleaf with the Striders.  Was an unseasonably warm 77 degrees at the start.  Legs feeling tired so decided on just an easy paced run.  Went out a little bit past the water stop and then turned back.  Last 1.7 miles under 9:00 pace, first 5 were over 9:00.

6.13 mi, 57:45, 9:25 avg

Easy paced run with Jamie in the neighborhood, running approximately from 6:00 until 7:00 but a few minutes late (6:04 actual start time).

8.01 mi, 1:03:26, 7:55 mi

Not feeling super motivated, my original plan was for some easy miles and a few fartleks thrown in for variety. 5:30ish start time at Long Leaf.  Warmed up for 1.75 miles, then did first pick up from start of the bridge to Alico Pass.  That section was was 0.93 miles @ 6:59 pace.  For the next section,  I figured I'd just do a mile which came in at 6:15 pace.  I finally did one more where I actually pushed it a bit and did 6:08.

Then did two more miles at about a 7:40 average.

6.12 mi, 58:00, 9:28 avg

Ran with Jamie in the neighborhood.  Tired leg feeling again today but last mile felt pretty good.  Weather was bike to nice and cool, spring was back again for one day.

11.32 mi, 1:34:17, 8:19 avg

I did not think this run would be great but I knew things could change.  First obstacle was a tree blocking the road right near the parking lot where I usually park, so had to walk around that.  I started about 7:30 because it was such a nice morning and no reason to beat the heat.  Was looking for at least 9 miles to make sure I got at least 40 miles for the week.

First mile was slow with tired heavy legs.  By the time of about the third mile was feeling better.  4-7 were all pretty good, especially once I hit the turnaround at 5.5ish miles.  Mile 8 was just under 8:00, then I did 7:29, 7:15, and last full mile at 6:42.  There was a breeze which was a head wind on the way back but it felt nice and kept me cool and I didn't mind the extra effort.

Said hi to the few remaining Striders at the shelter and had a small cup of coffee.

Going to meet with the florist today with Jessica (and her kids and her Mom).  We booked a place for our wedding and date is now set for June 25th - this year!

5.38 mi, 49:15, 9:09 avg

I ran a little bit by myself, then met Joe and Jamie at 7:15 and ran with them for about 30 minutes before I headed back home.

I had to be back in order to meet the cleaning crew.  I finally decided to call in some experts and get caught up with some deep cleaning.  I think it was well worth it, especially if I can just get back to a point where I can stay on top of it!

4.15 mi, 38:20, 9:14 avg

Easy paced shorter run this morning, just out and back to the start of Trinity Blvd via the golf course.

6.56 mi, 59:00, 9:00 avg

Out and back run from my house, past the golf course, then down Trinity Blvd for another 1.25 miles on the grassy shoulder.

Tired legs again this morning but I think running some of this on the soft surface helped.  I was also determined to not run less than 6 miles today.

Pleasant 72 degrees with a slight breeze.

11.28 mi, 1:29:41, 7:57 avg

Left my house about 6:45, ran towards SR54 and over to Longleaf area (but got there after everyone had left).  So, first 2.4 miles were at an easy pace.  I was next going to do a progression run where I'd run one mile and then try to run each mile a little bit faster.  First mile was 7:16, then started the second mile but had to stop and collect myself as it felt really hard.  I had told myself I'd keep going, no matter what.  And even though I broke that promise, got going again and pretended that short stopping didn't happen.

Finished that mile in 6:52, then did the four remaining miles in: 6:48, 6:44, 6:37, 6:15

So, it was almost as planned, thought about calling it a failure but decided to cut myself some slack and just enjoy the run, so it ended up all working out.  High 60's at the start which felt really nice!

5.58 mi, 50:16, 9:00 avg

Ran in the neighborhood with Joe and Jamie.  Legs were feeling a little bit sluggish at first, and after a short time of trying to keep up (and succeeding) my legs felt better.

8.25 mi, 1:15:10, 9:07 avg

I wanted to finish up the week with over 40 miles but wanted to keep it simple.  I ran from my house to Starkey Blvd for an out and back.  Lead legs for the first half but felt pretty good once I turned around and even picked up the last mile to 7:35 pace.

I saw Tom on his bike heading from Jenny's house toward Foxwood so he can run there.  He's been putting in more mileage.  I think he's going to be really fast this fall for next cross country season.  

AM: 4.19 mi, 37:43, 9:00 avg

Had a little bit of trouble getting moving this morning, so run was slightly abbreviated.  Just out and back a little bit past the water fountain near the golf course.

PM: 1.7, 22:00, 12:56 avg

Run/walk around the neighborhood loop with Stella.  This was the first run/walk with Stella since she had to get her stitches, it went pretty well and helped make up a little bit for the abbreviated run this morning.  Was a pretty nice evening for a run/walk with Stella.

7.54 mi, 1:03:00, 8:22 avg

Ran at Longleaf with the Striders.  I got there on time (for the morning picture).  Ran about 1 mile with David and Josh before drifting ahead.  There was no water at the water stop but it was cool enough and I had been running easy enough that it wasn't a big deal.

The run overall was really nice.  I did not really look at my pace until near the end.  I had been going a little bit faster each mile but each mile didn't feel any harder than the one before.

While it was still dark, the moon was pretty bright.

7.12 mi, 1:06:07, 9:17 avg

Ran with Joe and Jamie in the neighborhood.  Was feeling a bit sluggish again at first but just sort of followed along until my legs felt better.  Kind of warm at 75 degrees but otherwise pretty nice.

4.36 mi, 36:46, 8:26 avg

Short easy run a little bit over three miles, then did 6x25 second strides with 50 second jogs in between to remember some speed.  Legs felt pretty good.

Was a beautiful morning!

6.18 mi, 53:00, 8:34 avg

Ran about 5 miles easy, from my house, out and back to Trinity Blvd, stopped in the house, took the dogs for a quick walk then finished up with one more mile at 7:13 pace.

Today is Andy's last official day of high school, then next week off and graduation a week from Sunday.  4 years has flown by and he's grown up in so many ways as he prepares to head off to school at USF next year (fortunately for me still pretty close to home)

11.12 mi, 1:35:52, 8:37 avg

Ran from my house, leaving about 6:50 (was trying for 6:30 start).  First mile was slow.  Gradually went a little bit faster.  Dropped off my gartorade at the little church near Longleaf and ran up to Aristide neighborhood entrance.  "Official" group run was from Longleaf (due to Starkey not fully reopened yet after the fire) so there was a case of water up there.  Ran down Alico pass a little bit before turning back.  Picked up my speed some more and ran the last three miles 7:36, 7:43, 7:06. It was humid and getting warm by the end of the run (almost 80), but a little bit of breeze helped.

Happy to have finished another week over 40.  Maybe I can fit in a few more miles next week.

7.15 mi, 1:01:23, 8:35 avg

Solo run in the neighborhood, 7:30ish start in the morning and a not-too-bad 75 degrees.

Good start to the week!

8.35 mi, 1:06:22, 7:57 avg

Ran from Longleaf starting about 5:40 during the Striders run but a little bit late.

Did a progression run, starting at mile 1 at whatever felt easy, then doing each mile faster with the last mile finally at 6:24, followed by a short cool down.

The moon was just a sliver this morning, so Venus was almost as bright as the moon.

After I got home, walked Stella for a little bit and then ran her for a mile.

6.3 mi, 57:43, 9:09 avg

Ran with Joe and Jamie in the neighborhood, I actually started slightly ahead of planned start time of 7:01 leaving from my house at 6:54.  Joe and Jamie had also started a little bit early.

Was good to hear about Jamie's 50 miles Keys race which she ran with Daisy, while two of Jamie's friends drove her car as the crew.

11.8 mi, 1:33:45, 7:57 avg

Medium long run (which would end up being my longest run of the week).  Kind of a hodgepodge.  Left my house a little bit after 6:00 and stopped at the Striders ending area to say hi and get into the picture.  I carried a gatorade with me which I left at the park bench and took a "Ginsting" gel (from a box that Jenny gave to me because she didn't like them).

Was not up for tempo, so first I did one faster mile at 6:37.  Then 0.5 mile easy run, then one more mile which felt easy at first so I kept on picking it up and finished it in 5:54.  Then another easy paced section just under a mile, followed by 2 fast miles together doing 6:33 and 6:19, then ran easy until I was back at the picnic table where I left my gatorade, but it was gone (possibly picked up by Striders when they were packing up and thought it was trash).  So, I jogged across the street and used the water fountain outside the swimming pool, then headed home.

As I approached my neighborhood, picked up the pace again and kept going a little bit faster and finished the last full mile in 7:00, then had about a third of a mile to get home.

The whole run felt like an adventure!

5.54 mi, 49:12, 8:53 avg

Ran out to Duck Slough, to 54 and turned right, the down Coporate and then another side street, turned back around and took one more detour where I ran along a grassy berm that looked inviting.  Headed back home.  Today was last day of school for kids in Pasco county, thought about it while running past Trinity Elementary on the way back, one more year finished.

4.62 mi, 42:01, 9:05 avg

I did not get up in time to run the 10 miles I had hoped, had been up later than planned visiting a friends house.  Decided to do at least a few miles (had a 10:30 appointment for a cake tasting, a pleasant surprise part of wedding planning - it would be the best cake I ever tasted!).

For variety, I did a neighborhood left hand turn run where I kept turning left whenever there is a side street on my left, so running out to the gate and back, which is normally 1 mile total turned into over 4.5 miles.

3.77 mi, 53:23, 14:09 avg

Run/walk with Jessica in the neighbhorhood. It was a little bit warm and muggy out but not too bad. Started out with more walking than running but was more running than walking by the end.  Good to share some exercise time together!

Ran from my house out to Longleaf via 54.  Said hi to the Striders as they were finishing up and mentioned about my missing gatorade and I suspected it was Clarke and Cindy being conscientious about cleaning up the area and said they'd make sure it was left alone this time.

Ran up to and into Aristide neighborhood and on the way back I saw a family of turkey's out for a walk (mom/dad and three babies).  Picked it up the last few miles except for a brief stop near Longleaf to grab my gatorade for the return trip.

7.36 mi, 1:09:40, 9:28 avg

Ran with Jamie in the neighborhood, starting about 7:00am.  Legs were a little bit sore from yesterday's run but overall this was a decent run.