The Long Run

Jenny did not meet up with her running group at 6:00 this morning, the rain was really dumping down.  I left the house about 6:15 and went to the Y.  I was going to run on the treadmill either the whole time or until the rain stopped.

After some warm up, I hopped onto a treadmill for 4.27 miles at about an 8:05 pace.  I thought about pushing it here and there but my legs were a little heavy feeling from yesterday's Inflict workout.

Rain had stopped for the most part, temp was down into mid 70's now and so felt pretty good despite the just having rained humidity.  Another 4.12 miles, this time at 7:54 pace.  Legs felt pretty heavy at first but seemed to get better towards the end.

Another group run at David's house tomorrow morning and then one more Inflict workout once I get home.  Hopefully I can get a good 8 mile run in tomorrow.

Went over to meet up with the Suncoast Striders for what has become a regularly scheduled Thursday run (throughout the summer).  Rain let up for the run.  I went out with David, Nelson, Keith and Dixie onto Starkey Blvd. up to where some water was stashed at 2.75 miles.  Didn't have any takers for going farther (Dixie thought about it), so I continued on and ran to almost the end of Alico Pass and then headed back.  Picked up the pace a little bit after the stop, then a little bit more for the next 4 miles, with one of those miles at 6:55, and the others between 7:15 and 7:20.  Legs still felt a little bit heavy but much better compared to yesterday.

Went home, cooled off a little bit in the pool, and then tackled the second Inflict workout for me this week.  It was tough but I made it through ok and felt really good when it was all done.

Day off work today so I slept in until 6:45.  Looped around the neighborhood on my bike for a warm up.  Then ran a quick out and back.  I looked at my time at the turn around point and then tried to beat the time without pushing the pace hard, just a little faster.  Out was 18:55 and back was 16:51.  It was a good run, just long enough to wake me up and short enough so I won't feel worn out for tomorrow's long run.

Average pace: 8:00

I'm going to try and stick with 6 days and see how that goes.

HAPPY JULY 4th EVERYONE!

I was a little bit tired this morning, 5:05 came pretty quickly.  Jenny got home at about 2:20 from her midnight run 10K.  She did well, placing 2nd in her age group but was a little disappointed with her time, but not too bad due to the heat and how dark it was during one of the sections.  I was able to get back to sleep after talking to her for a bit about the race.  It was fun to hear about the race even though I knew that I'd have to get up soon, but I figured I could sneak in a nap later in the day.

 I went to Starkey Park this morning to meet up with the group, which I knew would be smaller than usual today because some people have gone out of town, some people raced the midnight race 10k/5k last night and others were going to run a 5K this morning, but we still had a pretty good sized group.  I got there a little bit late because I had to go back and get my Garmin which I forgot.  I thought about running with no garmin, but didn't even have a watch with me.  I showed up just before 6:00.  Keith, Jorge, Victoria, Jenny, and Laura were all set to get started.  I was almost ready but was waiting for my Garmin to get its signal.  The others had just left when one more car pulled in.   I thought it was Dixie at first as he was a definite maybe for showing up this morning.  But, instead, it was Andrea.

So, Andrea and I set out together to try and catch up to the group, which we did just past 3 miles.  It was a little bit faster than my usual starting out pace.  We all stopped briefly at the 4 mile water stop, then continued on.  Jenny and Keith turned back at 5 miles, and then Victoria and Jorge turned back at 6 miles.  Andrea was up for whatever, so she continued with me to the 7 mile point.  At the turn around we were at a 7:56 pace.  We picked it up a little bit for the return trip.  The sun was coming up at this point, temp was nearly 80 degrees with 95% humidity but at least there were some clouds, and a good portion of the trail has some shade, so it certainly wasn't the worst conditions ever.

We made it back to the parking lot and ended up with an average pace of 7:47.  Andrea said this was her longest run ever.

There were about a dozen or so of us for social hour.  Someone (probably Barb) had brought some colorful 4th of July mylar balloons.  I chugged a bunch of gatorade, had one of Victoria's home made apple oatmeal muffins and some of Jorge's authentic Columbian coffee.

I'm pretty happy with my miles for the week and the fact that I ran 6 days and do not feel beaten up at all.

It had rained a little bit last night but had stopped by the time I woke up.  I went to the Y, warmed up on the bike, did some  crunches on the ball, then did a quick one mile warm up on the treadmill (1.1 miles @ 8:50 pace).  I wanted to get outside before the sun went up too high.  Had decent cloud cover, so the warm humid air didn't feel too bad.   Ran 4.1 miles outside at 7:41 pace.

Went back inside and got back on the treadmill.  I started out easy and then decided just for the fun of it to try out a run I used to do when doing the Body for Life program, where you run intervals based on perceived level of effort (on a scale of 1-10).  After a warm up you run one minute each at 6-7-8-9, then repeat 3more times (4 times total), followed by 1 minute at "10", then a cool down.   For simplicity I equated this into miles per hour of 7,8,9,and 10 respectively, with the "10" being 11 mph.  The last time I tried this I chickened out when it came time to do the final 10 effort.  This time I made it through all 4 intervals and even did the last minute at 11 mph.  I probably won't do this run again for a while but it was good to find out that I could now do something that I wasn't able to do in the past.

  Average pace for 4.1 miles on the treadmill was: 7:19

Tomorrow will be another Inflict workout after the run

I went over to the Y this morning to run with Raj at 5:30.  He assured me that he would be there "rain or shine" this time, and he was.  Tim was also there.  Tim also brought a friend with four legs who was very eager to run.  We set out at an easy pace.  Tim's friend stopped a couple of times but was really good at catching back up.  Finally, after 3 miles, Tim's friend said that it was far enough and laid down for a bit, so they headed back to their car at an easy pace.  Raj and I continued on.  Our first few miles were kind of slow.   We got going a little bit faster, but nothing faster than 8:00.  Ended up with 8:43 average.  This was fine with me as it was the perfect opportunity to slow down.

I headed back home.  Jenny had just finished her run.  She had run around the neighborhood with the other Jenny and her friend Laura.  They went a little bit faster than she is used to but was able to hang in ok with them.  They averaged an 8:32 pace for 7 miles.

And since it is Tuesday, I did my 5th Inflict workout.  Some new exercises but similar to the other workouts.  About a half hour more of sweating and getting a good workout.

I got going a little bit later today.  I was awake at 6:10 but wasn't actually running until just before 7:00.  I thought this would not be a big problem as I thought I was getting used to the heat, but for some reason it kind of got to me today.

I ran from my house, down the old road to Trinity Blvd then in through Trinity Oaks neighborhood to the end of Wyndtree and a little bit onto a side street there to get up to 5 miles.  Just after the turnaround I was starting to feel a bit warm.  I was carrying some accelerade in my water belt and was sipping from it so that helped a lot.  With about one and a half miles left to go I stopped briefly at the water fountain on the golf course so I could splash some of the chilled water on me, that helped a ton.  Continued on home then quickly got into the pool to cool off.

It wasn't really any warmer today than it has been but there were less clouds so maybe that was it.   It was a little bit discouraging that it got to me but it was still a pretty good run overall.

Average pace: 7:53

I ran with the Striders this morning.  We met over by the Longleaf pool about 5:30ish, then started out by 5:45.   It was a smaller group than last week, but still pretty good (maybe about 10 of us).  I started out slowly then caught up to Keith, Nelson, Dixie and Keisha.  We stopped briefly at 2.8 miles for water.  Dixie and I continued on to the 4 mile point and then headed back.  We kept the pace nice and easy with the return trip just a little bit faster.

Average pace: 8:28

 Today's run felt much better for a number of reasons: it was still dark out, pace was slower, running with other people.

 Did another Inflict workout today (about 30 minutes), this is the sixth one I have done, 3 weeks of Inflict (end of one series).

Jenny was up before me to run with her friend Cherise, she was out the door before 6:00.  I slept in until 6:20, fed dog #3 who hadn't gotten up for breakfast then got myself ready to run.  I looped around the neighborhood on the bike for a warm up.  Jenny and Cherise were just finishing up their run as I was heading out.  Everything was a little wet from the light rain we had and the temp was a little cooler.  I ran a loop around the neighborhood and then a short out and back to get just over 6 miles.  Stopped for water twice but I was pretty quick about it so I didn't stop my watch.   Probably could have skipped the water but it was there and I was supposed to be taking it easy.  Felt pretty good overall on the run.

Average pace: 7:54

Lucked out this morning with some pretty nice weather.  Anything below 75 degrees this time of year is a gift, this morning it was 73.  I showed up to the gate of Starkey park at 5:45 hoping to get an early start but it was closer to 6:00 when they opened it up (official opening time is 6:30).  A bunch of us set out as a group and mostly stuck together for 5 miles.  A number of people turned around and a few kept going until 6 miles.  Keith's friend Dave was pretty easily talked into going with me until 7.5 miles out so we could run 15.

Dave and I picked up the pace steadily.  On the way back we stopped at the 4 mile stop and decided to pick up the pace a little more for the last 4 miles.  The sun was higher but the temperature was still pretty comfortable especially when in the shade.  Last 4 miles were at 7:22, 7:05, 7:05, and 6:05.  I'm a little suspicious of that last mile and think it might not have been accurate but it was probably at least 6:30 pace (but part of me wants to think I ran a 6:05 mile at the tail end of just over a 15 mile run).

Average pace: 7:51

 As usual, stuck around for a bit for social hour.  Barb brought a small cake for Keisha's birthday and Eric's (whose birthday is tomorrow).  I tried to pour a small cup of Jorge's coffee but was too late as there was literally just a few drops left.

I made my mileage goal for the week with one mile to spare.  I think I'll try to stay at this mileage for a few weeks.

10 ez

 Ok, maybe I'll add a little more than that.

I let too much time go by between running and writing, and on top of that as I was finishing up this entry I had a key combination that sent me back a previous page and lost everything I wrote.  Went to the Y this morning, 4.1 miles on the treadmill at 8:05 pace.

Headed outside.  It was raining at first so I left the ipod behind.  6.11 miles at 7:41 pace.  The rain actually felt nice and didn't last too long.  Heated up a bit by the end.

I received my Boston booklet today and saw my picture in it.  Julie and Jeff had already received theirs by Saturday and said they saw my picture.  I was expecting that I was in some group shot. It was kind of neat to see it was just me with my name and time and the page with other people around my time.

Also received (via UPS) more RAM for my home computer, figuring I might be able to postpone buying a new one a little bit longer by spending just $30.

Little bit different run this morning.  Met up with Dixie, Raj, and Tim at the 7-11 near the high school, just before 6:00.  Ran up the bike trail along East Lake to the hilly neighborhood.  It was warmer out than yesterday but was tolerable.  Ran 4 miles in the neighborhood and then headed back.  Pace was relatively easy throughout, but went a little bit faster on the downhills and held steady on the up hills.

Finished 7 miles when back at the 7-11 so Dixie could get going.  Tim, Raj, and I ran another mile to finish up with 8.  Raj asked where I came up with 8 from, told him it was my goal for today so I could make my goal for the week.  Answer was good enough for him and me.

Average pace: 8:30

After the run did new Inflict workout (about 30 minutes)

Running with Jenny tomorrow!

I ran with my wife this morning and her friend Cherise.   We did 7 miles together starting from our house and meandering through the neighborhood and past the golf course where we took advantage of the cold drinking fountains.

After doing 7 together, I continued around for a loop around our neighborhood (1.7 miles), but by that time I was close to having 9 miles so I went a little bit farther.  Picked it up a little for the last two miles but nothing too fast.

Average pace: 8:30

Thursday morning run with the Striders over at Longleaf.  Pretty nice morning, no rain, not too humid, just a little warm.  I'll take it.  Same 8ish mile route as last few weeks, up the Starkey Blvd. bike trail into Alico pass and then back.  A group of us set out together, but most turned around at 2.75 miles.  Dixie went with me to the 4 mile point.  I got him talking (which wasn't too hard to do) to make the run go by faster. 

Average pace: 8:06

Socialized for just a bit (most everyone had left already by the time I got back).

Got back home and did another Inflict workout (about 30 minutes).

Average pace: 7:47

6.6 miles

Third Friday run in a row!  I'm trying to make this a habit so that when I ramp up my miles for the week I'll be used to spreading them out over 6 days instead of 5.  This is something I have been meaning to do for a while now but often felt I needed that second day off from running.

I woke up early and had plenty of time for morning routine type stuff.  I warmed up with a bike ride around the neighborhood and it might have been my imagination but it almost felt cool outside.

I set out at an easy pace on the route that Jenny and I would have run had Jenny been running with me this morning,  Felt pretty good, kept it pretty easy for the first 2 miles than started picking up some speed.

Got back to the house after 5.5 miles.  I dropped off the small water bottle I had been carrying and then went out another 0.5 miles before turning around.  Decided to go faster for the last 0.5 miles (6:45 pace), then slowed down for a bit before walking for a cool down.

15.64 miles @ 7:41 pace, 78° , 93% humidity

Arrived at Starkey park just before 6:00.  I had no idea who I was going to run with or perhaps would just run by myself as several of the people I usually start out with were out of town today.  Jenny (not my wife), her friend Laura, and one of her friends were leaving and invited me along.  We ran out together to the 4 mile water stop averaging miles between 8:30 and 9:00.  At about 2 miles there was some heavy smoke from a recent controlled burn and we had no idea how long it would last, fortunately it cleared once we got past the high tension power lines.  The rest of the run was pretty uneventful for a while.

After a brief stop to stretch at 4 miles, I said good bye to the ladies and went out ahead and picked up the pace.  Went out just past 7.5 miles and then turned around.  The sun was just starting to rise up enough to clear the tops of the tall pine trees along the Suncoast highway, I was glad I was on my way back.

I caught back up to Jenny and company, then I saw Mike and Eric and Eric's friend Dan heading out to turn around at 6.5 miles.  So I slowed down a bit then turned around and went slow for a bit until the had turned around and made it back to me.  That's when the fun began.  Both Mike and Eric are fast, and Dan is even a bit faster than Eric.   The remaining miles were mostly between 6:50 and 7:10.  I struggled a little bit to hang on and did a pretty good job, although if it was just me I probably would have gone a little bit slower.  Sometimes a little suffering trying to keep up with faster people is a good exercise.

With the extra back and forth, I ended up with just a little more than the planned 15 miles.  Felt really good at the end.

Spent some time at social hour and met some newer members that just joined the group.  Talked to one lady who is going to run Dallas White Rock marathon this December for her first marathon, which is the one which Jenny (my wife) will run.  This newest member (I think Casey) is a very fast 10Ker (something about Olympic trials qualifier I thought I heard).

Some combination of or perhaps all of Dan, Mike, and Eric might show up at six next week for 14 miles or so.  I have a tough time starting out fast like Mike and Eric seem to do, but fortunately Dan says he likes to start out slower too for the first few miles.

 Here is a controlled burn picture just for drama:

10.6 miles - treadmill (4.2) - outside (4.2) - treadmill (2.2)

Heavy rain and thunder woke me up at 3:30 this morning, I was up for a little bit, fell back to sleep and then woke up with my alarm at 5:50 but did not feel good due in part to a less than ideal meal out.

Went to the Y, warmed up on the bike for 10 mins, a couple sets of crunches on the ball then onto the treadmill.  Various aches and pains at first which I was able to shake off by playing around with the speed and incline until I felt like I was fully warmed up and ready to go.

I went outside and it was still raining.  Thought about going back inside but thought running in the rain would be good for me.  Besides, the rain had cooled things down and it was only 73 degrees.  So I ran another 4.2 miles at 7:47 average pace.  Would have liked to have done more but felt like I was pushing my luck with the thunder that was getting too close for comfort.

So, back inside, another 2.2 miles on the treadmill.  Did some striders with marathon pace recovery between.  This made those last two go by very quickly.

Finished up with some leg extensions and lat pull downs before going home.

8 miles at 8:23 average

Ran with Raj this morning.  We met up at the Y at 5:30 this morning.  Nothing too exciting, just a good run at a reasonable pace.  Weather was very cooperative, mid 70's instead of 80 was very nice.  We did pick it up for the last 0.5 miles to stretch out the legs.

After the run I went home and did another Inflict training workout.  These things usually take about a half an hour, but this morning's seemed to drag on, taking about 45 minutes.  Several new exercises I had never done before and a few I was familiar with.  I think I'll be sore tomorrow, so I'll definitely be up for an easy run.

9.42 miles @ 8:35 pace

As good as it gets morning for this time of year.  Jenny's friend Cherise came over to run with us.  We all ran together for 6 miles before Cherise had to take off.  Jenny and I ran one more mile together.  Then I went a little bit farther (another 2.4 miles) to add in some miles.  Picked it up the last two miles which felt great.

My legs were a little bit sore from yesterday's Inflict workout but not too bad.  I was expecting much worse based on how sore Jenny's legs were from her workout.  I was glad that I opted for the home version of the workout which meant I used whatever dumb bells we had at home for weights, whereas Jenny went to the gym and did some heavier stuff.

Looks like it will most likely be treadmill for me tomorrow while traveling.

6.75 (not so easy) miles @ 8:05 pace

Woke up at 5:00.  Got ready pretty quickly and was in the hotel fitness center before 5:30.  Quick warm up of 5 minutes on the elliptical.   Got onto the treadmill.  Legs felt pretty heavy today.  I think the Inflict workout finally caught up to me.  Wanted to get at least 5.5 miles so I wouldn't have a lot to make up on Friday.  To help pass the time I periodically bumped up the speed and/or incline for 0.25 or 0.5 miles then slowed back down again.  Hoping that the slower speed would then feel easier.

The treadmills had little individual tv sets on them.  It's amazing how many infomercials are on between 5:30 and 6:30.

Made it to 6 miles, did a little more, and decided that 6.75 was good enough.  Had to get to an early meeting so there wasn't time for a lot more, anyway.

8.75 miles @ 7:48 pace, 75° , 95% humidity

I stayed in bed an extra 30 minutes this morning until 5:30, it felt like such a luxury!

Had a good warm up with a loop around the neighborhood on the bike then started out my run.  Wanted to go slower but not too slow for the first mile.  Ran the same loop I had just biked, grabbed a sip of my drink without stopping more then necessary then continued on towards Champions club for the t-route.  Stopped (for my only real stop) at the rest room and, drank some water and took my gel at about 3.3 miles.  Kept going and saw that the neighborhood at the end of the road had its gate open so I ran in there and headed back the way I came.  Another quick drink and splashing cold water on my face without stopping (felt kind of like going through an aid station at a race).   Down the road to the other end and then back towards home.

Picked up the pace a little bit each mile after the 3.3 mile stop with two miles in low 7:20's and last half mile at a six minute pace followed by a brief cool down.

15 miles @ 7:29 pace, 73°, 90% humidity

Great run this morning in Starkey park.  Showed up just before 6:00.  Met up with several other people in the parking lot and a group of us headed out.  Warmed up together then smaller groups split off.  Ran with Dan and Mike, who, just like me wanted to start out at an easy pace then move onto some faster paces.  The temperature couldn't have been any better for this time of year.  Again it was a race to get to the turn around before the sun rose too high, so that we could to the return trip with the sun at our backs.

Made it out just as the sun was getting above the trees and turned around.  Coming back into the park from the sun coast trail, I was starting to feel stronger and was able to get onto a good pace.  Had a couple miles in a row which were under 7:00 pace and a few miles which were right at 7:00.  Last mile came up pretty quickly.  Dan pulled ahead to get some practice at a faster pace to get ready for his 5k next week.  I kept Dan in sight but wasn't about to try and race him, however it did make me go faster with my final mile in 6:20.  The gap between Dan and I was pretty good so not sure what he ran and neither was he since he doesn't wear a garmin.

My garmin's distance and pace was 15.28 @ 7:21, however I think it was wrong as Mike's said 15 @ 7:29, and he has a newer fancier model!

Hung out for a bit at social hour.  Saw an armadillo stroll by.  None of the dogs felt like chasing it.  Driving home, the temperature was quickly heating up and I was glad that the run was out of the way.

Last night I was battling a minor cold, but this morning I felt a bit more back to normal.  Woke up at 6:05, went to the Y and did a warm up on the bike and some ab work before heading outside.  Decided to split up the run between inside and outside like I often do on Mondays but opted for the outside portion first before it got too warm.

Pretty good run outside of 4.4 miles at 7:55 pace average.

Back inside, got onto a treadmill for another 4.8 miles, felt good after the warm up run outside.  Did some bursts of speed on the treadmill at varying times and speeds with recoveries at about a 7:30 pace.

Cooled down a bit then did some leg extenstions and lat pull downs.  Saving the real workout for tomorrow's session of Inflict.

Nice run with Jenny this morning.  8.25 miles @ 8:39 pace ( my Garmin 201 said 8.39 @ 8:31, but is not as accurate as her 205, so I'll go with hers).  Humidity was slightly down and there was a small breeze.  We started a little bit later (6:00) which was nice.  Looped around the neighborhood, then headed out towards the golf course, back towards home and another loop around the neighborhood.  I felt like going farther, maybe doing another mile, but I had Inflict workout lined up next and am in the process of shaking the remnants of a cold, so 8.25 was plenty good for today.

Did the Inflict workout (a little over 30 minutes, not counting warm up).  This one was better than the one I did last week because it was not all legs, good mix of upper, lower, and core.

10.12 miles @ 7:52 pace

Ran by myself around the neighborhood and out by the golf course.  A little warmer out than yesterday (partially because I left a little bit later).  Started out and felt good, but then after about 1.5 miles my legs felt kind of dead.  Slowed down a bit and loosened up eventually feeling better.  No specific distance in mind except for at least 8.  When I get back near my house, kept on going on another out and back and ended up with a little over 10.  Last 1.5 miles at about a 7:10 pace so I must have finally woken up.   It was also hot and sunny at the end so I jumped into the pool for a bit and followed up with a little extra stretching.

8.78 miles @ 7:40 average.  77° , 93% humidity

Thursday morning "race to the weekend" with the Striders.  Informal get together put together by David meeting at the Longleaf pool area.  New start time is 5:30 (5:25 meet up).  Guys were vastly outnumbered this morning.  We all started out together.  It was a slightly faster starting out pace for me but not too fast.  Andrea and Casi however had a different "easy" pace and they soon put a big gap between themselves and the rest of the group.  They have no problem getting onto a faster pace right away.

David, Keisha, and I were out on the Starkey Blvd. bike path and Alex caught up to us.  We made it to the bridge, which was the turnaround point for 6 miles.  I was planning on doing 8 but decided to turn around and do my miles back in the neighborhood.  Decided to pick up the pace.  Keisha caught up with me and we ran the 2.5 miles back at a mid 7:30ish pace.  Back to my truck to grab my drink bottle.  My garmin said 6.17 miles.  As I was grabbing my bottle, Andrea and Casi were just finishing up 7 miles!

I ran out another 2.5 miles and held onto just under a 6:50 pace, then cooled down about another tenth of a mile, followed by some walking. 

Headed back home after some quick socializing, then started on my second Inflict workout for the week.   I liked this workout because it had a good mix of exercises.  My favorite one was the push-up pull-up combo which consists of 2 push-ups, 2 pull-ups, repeat 10 times.  The tendon in my right arm which has been bothering me since January is finally starting to get better as I was able to do just about every exercise (except had to go light on bicep curls).

Nice run this morning with cooperating temperatures.  I ran by myself around the neighborhood and over by the golf course.  First 3.5 miles felt relaxed and easy but faster,  until I stopped and looked at my garmin and saw that I wasn't really that fast, about 8:35, if just felt faster than that for some reason, but at least it felt easy.

Picked up the pace for the second half of the run into the 7:20's and finished the last half mile or so strong.

Average pace: 7:51

I'm not sure how I did it but I almost beat my highest mileage month, but my body feels more like I've run an average number of miles.  I think I'm starting to like the 6 days a week.