Winning Back What I Lost

Took yesterday off; right calf was incredibly sore; felt better today but its still real tight; pleasant evening w/ light wind and temp in high 70's to low 80's; started out real slow but ran the last 3 miles w/ around a 7:40 pace; 8:10 overall pace

Hiked into the Sawtooth Mountains w/ the heaviest pack I've ever had (50+ lbs conservatively); temp was in the high 80's most of the way; first 7 miles were slight uphill grade; last 5 miles were relentless w/ the last 2 straight up over the ridgeline into the bowl that held the lake; great exercise and prep for this weekend's half marathon.

Day hiked from our base camp to another lake; slight uphill over the saddle and straight down into the bowl; straight up on the way back of course; had only a daypack so not too bad.

Fished, went for a swim and rested at our basecamp; my son wasn't up to hitting any more "nearby" lakes given the workout yesterday...LOL.

Hiked back to the trailhead; temp pushing 90 degrees; descending from 8500 ft elevation to 5200 ft at the trailhead; great quad workout going downhill w/ heavy pack; I kept all of the heavy stuff (stove, cookware, tent, etc.) so my pack wasn't all that much lighter [/sigh].

Established a PR by 12 mins; splits were all within 10 secs of 8 min (8:04 avg) w/ the fastest being 7:50 (mile 1) and the slowest 8:54 (mile 10); temp in the low 70's for this early morning race; flat course along Boise River Greenbelt from Hawks Stadium to Bronco Stadium and back; did very little specific training in the 2 weeks leading up to the race unless you count backpacking w/ a heavy pack and fishing; well organized race w/ more than enough aid stations, a medal, t-shirt and a nice breakfast burrito at the end of the race; will probably do this race again next year.

T/M: 8:14 pace; ran mile 4 at 7:30 pace which is pretty close to threshhold for me; starting my serious training for marathon next month; need to improve my diet and get as lean and strong as possible

Tried a new route today; its all sidewalks for a change but google maps hasn't included the rather new overpass in its inventory (I-84 Locust Grove) so I had to do two separate maps; pulled something on the outside of my right knee around mile 6; I think its my IT band because its sore on the outside where the IT band connects to the knee; I'm icing it as I type this; I've neglected my foam roller for weeks now so this is a not so subtle reminder to get back on that program; slow easy pace around 8:30 to 9 min per

Speed work: 1600m on the local HS track at 7 min pace followed by 800m jog then 800 m at 7:50 pace followed by 800m jog; 1.8 mile warm-up before and 2.5 mile cooldown run back home; legs feel a bit sluggish still even w/ a day off yesterday; I'm still running at my normal pace if not faster but my legs feel heavy; started refueling tonight w/ peanut butter toasted muffin after the run; we'll see if that helps; need to improve my diet; the wife is buying a LOT of candy these days for the kiddies and I can't help myself

Easy long run this morning at 9:04 pace; right knee still bothersome; not to the point where I can't run but its the only thing holding me back from feeling really good; right calf has loosened up so I basically traded that for a sore knee

Easy run this evening at 8:54 overall pace; temp around 90 but there was some cloud cover so it didn't feel quite that hot; first mile was sub 8 min then I forced myself to slooooooow down; my workout plan called for a 9:21 pace for this run but I haven't quite mastered the fine art of slowing down absent an injury; knee felt much better now that I'm popping prescription anti-inflammatory meds like Brett Favre

No running today; tempo run tomorrow; weight training for an hour concentrating on core & legs w/ about 15 mins of upper body

A nice run after work on the greenbelt from Municipal Park to Barber Park and back; tempo run for 4 miles at 7:54 pace; warmup and cooldown around 9:30 pace; warm and windy w/ strong headwind on the way back; beautiful run along the river though; makes me wish I lived closer to take advantage more often; I think I'll have to do more of these after work runs as my office is a mere 2 minute drive to the nearest park w/ access to the greenbelt and/or the foothills to the north

http://www.mapmyrun.com/route/us/id/boise/559253973

Out and back easy run down Overland to Linder at 8:53 pace; visited my chiropractor, Dr. Brian Rae, again today and told him about my knee pain; after aligned my spine and hips he worked a little on my knees and I was astounded to hear my right knee pop like a cork;  no knee pain to speak of today......nice.

Started to gear up for the marathon next month w/ my longest run in quite a while; felt pretty good throughout w/ a nice and easy pace (9:22) until around mile 13 or so; that's when it really started to warm up into the mid 80's and I ran out of water

Easy run at 8:35 pace: http://www.mapmyrun.com/route/us/id/meridian/817602192  My right knee trouble is back.  I really need new shoes as my Asics have over 400 miles on them and the midsole cushioning is about shot; 

Ran to the gym and back; 3.75 miles on the stationary bike, core and leg training w/ some pullups for good measure; my right knee is still awfully cranky; It's not ultra painful yet bot its definitely holding me back in my training which I can't afford so close, 4 weeks, to my first marathon

T/M: 6 mile tempo run at 8 min pace w/ 1.0 incline; 1M warmup and 1M cool down; knee is still cranky but I've been able to work through the dull pain; its starting to worry me though; I'm icing, stretching w/ foam roller and taking anti-inflammatory meds to no avail; I'm gonna have to get new shoes even if I can't afford them right now; I really can't afford not to buy them either; very frustrating

I broke down and purchased new shoes (Saucony Triumph 5's); I love 'em; supercushioned and comfortable in the forefoot; lighter than my last pair (Asics Cumulus 10); the best part is that my knee pain was virtually nonexistent except for some residual soreness; very nice!

T/M: couldn't get a run in until after dark; got a LOT going on right now; hit the gym around 930pm and it was my easy run day; 9 min pace