Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow

Day off. Sunday Blog topic: The Salt Lake City Marathon. How long will it be with us? For those who haven't seen yet, the SLC Marathon has changed its date AGAIN, now back to April 21. This is the 2nd time they've changed their date in their short three years of existence, meaning that they flip-flop about as much as John Kerry. One would assume that this recent date change was in response to the effects of wretchedly hot weather during their event last JUNE, which was a dumb date to begin with. Almost as dumb as having a marathon in Salt Lake at the end of July (cough cough). Summer marathons in SLC are just asking for heatstroke. So what of it? Why should we care? Well, when big dog Devine moves their race, all the "Mom and Pop" races have to move to get away from it. The Ogden Marathon was originally in early May. Then the SLC Marathon was started as a late April race, and Ogden had to move to late May. Then SLC moved to June, and Ogden had to move to back to early May, Park City moved to August (a good move, IMHO), and the SLC Classic ceased to exist. Now the SLC Marathon has moved BACK to late April, and yes, rumor has it Ogden will be moving to the end of May. The Striders Series, part of the USATF Circuit, has pushed all their races back three weeks to follow suit. So lots of trickle-down effects that will surely cause many people to adjust their race calendars. But really, it just rubs me the wrong way that these established Utah races have to change their schedules at the fancy of Mr. Devine. The ironic thing is that the Ogden Marathon is a better event; it's almost to the point where it could hold its own ground. To be fair, I have not run the SLC Marathon, or any other Devine event. But I have heard nothing good about them. This I DO know: $80 for a marathon is absurd, $55 for a half marathon is even more absurd, and $30 for a 5-k is borderline insanity. The marathon course is slow, urban, and at altitude: virtually no chance for a PR, and not scenic either; the worst of all worlds. At TOU, Ogden, and especially St George, runners have a very good chance at a PR, but they are gorgeous courses too. Park City is slow, but beautiful. Even Des News (my least favorite race on the planet) is very beautiful for the first half, at least until your quads explode. In addition, I have no desire to watch a "national touring" rock band after a race, especially really bad ones. But that is what part the high entry fee is subsidizing. Makes you wonder how the SLC Marathon is staying in business when there's so many better races out there in this already-saturated market. Well...maybe they're not! AndyB. posted a very interesting KUTV article on the St. George Marathon Board. Apparently Devine was unable to pay their vendors and top runners until just recently. One or two more years like that, and they will bite the dust. This question is, will anyone be sorry to see it go? I’d like to hear people’s opinion on this race. What is bad about it? What is GOOD about it? Am I being too harsh or too ignorant? Let’s hear some opinions and experiences….

Ran from work to gym. Diverted to the paved River Trail and took a couple Golden Mile splits of 6:00, which converts to 6:36/mile pace. At the gym I did 30 minutes on the elliptical, lifted, and stretched. Ran back to my office along the TOU course, and clocked splits of 7:10 and 7:09 along the way (Mile 23 and 24). Lifting weights with the legs really slows down the pace immediately after a session.

Ran a big loop up to North Logan and back home. Easy pace.

Went to gym. 40 minutes on elliptical, lifted, and stretched.

Weighed in a 134.

Ran a modified Landfill Loop from work, extending the run out to Young Ward. I did most of the run at "brisk" pace, which is a little slower than what most people consider "marathon pace". The mile splits that I managed to take were all between 6:00-6:10. I'd like to do these brisk runs once or twice a week during the next couple months of my base-building phase. In the past I have found this kind of training to be very beneficial in building aerobic fitness.

Ran to gym and hit the paved River Trail on the way. Had Golden Mile splits each way at 5:50 (6:25/mile pace). Lifted weights at the gym. I weighed in today at 132 pounds. So that means I've finally hit my goal and returned to my college racing weight. Hurrah! I celebrated by getting my chin-up PR (14). Chin-ups are a lot easier without love handles. Celebrated more when I got home by eating an orange.

I am originally from Wisconsin, and love things like beer, bratwurst, and cheese Danishes. It had taken its toll, and I developed the dreaded "skinny-fatguy belly" after college. I was about 145 pounds last winter when I got hurt, and over 140 pounds during the Grand Slam when I got hurt. A couple winters ago I hit 155. I think I read somewhere that every running stride you take, your joints bear 3x your body weight upon impact. Running downhill, it is even more. So for me to lose 10+ pounds is really like losing 30+ pounds, as far as my knees, back, and feet are concerned. It also factors into running economy and VO2Max, which may explain why holding a 6:30/mile pace seems pretty effortless right now, whereas my easy pace the past few years was 7:00+/mile. So I think meeting this weight goal will continue to help with injuries and also performance. 90% of my meals now are vegan or vegetarian, and that has been key for shedding excess weight, plus my energy levels have never been better. The funny thing is that after a while, you really start to like rice, beans, lentils and buckwheat. There are some excellent recipes out there. I still like the occasional bratwurst though, and if I lose any more weight, I will have to start adding more sausage and battered food to my diet! I am happy where I'm at and don't need to lose a pound more.

Did a longer run in the morning with Cody and Dan. We did a big loop, going down Canyon Rd to the Canal Trail, crossing Hwy 89 (new underpass), and then hopping on the Bonneville Shoreline Trail to Green Canyon, and looping back via USU campus. It was good route, and Cody's new Toy said it was about 11 miles or so. Overall paces around 7:45/mile, slower on the steep parts, and faster on the flat parts. All in all a good run, and enabled a powerful nap later in the afternoon. 45 miles for the week. I will essentially hold this volume for a few weeks now and let my body adjust. Next week I go from 5 days to 6 days running, and 48 total running miles.