High-Octane

6 Easy miles (9:00 Pace) at the gym. Should have run outside the weather was nice.

10 miles @ 7:31 pace. No details as I am traveling.

7 Miles today. I went back and looked and found that I have never run two consecutive miles this fast before, not even in a race. Right now I don't think I could keep up this pace for another 3.1 miles so I'm not in 18K shape right now. Time to get to work!

1 Peter 5:7

Went back on my Garmin and found the Grade % on this workout is 11.5% for the 1/2 Mile.

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Finally got to run again. I've been on a business trip to Florida again and just got back.

I decided do a hill workout today and just made this on up as I went. There is a big hill 1.5 miles from my house that I never run because it is too steep and long and no fun to run! Today I decided to tackle it and see how many times I could run it. The hill beat me after 2 and I was ready to quit. It is exactly 1/2 mile long ( I need to download my run from my garmin to my computer so I can see what the actual grade is). It seems pretty steep!

The first time I ran it the pace was 7:36 up and 5:30 down. The second time I was slower going up at 7:58 but faster going down at 5:20 pace. I rested between the sets until my HR came back down to 100 bpm. On the downhill I could have run faster but I didn't want to be running out of control and hurt something.

My baby girl is graduating from college today froM TCU University. Im very proud of her!

I got to run 6 miles this morning before the graduation.

6 @ 7:10 pace.

Still in Ft Worth. Only 4 easy miles...feeling tired and sore.

Romans 8:18  For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.

 

PM: Rode my bike to feed horses and back. 21.5 miles @ Avg. 16.6 mph, HR 122.

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I just keep underacheving on my workouts. I planned to run 10 today and only ended up with 7 at the gym,  I slept in too long. But on the good side, my legs are feeling pretty good again.

Three miles were at 7:30 pace.

Jeremiah 14:22 

Are there any among the false gods of the nations that can bring rain? Or can the heavens give showers? Are you not he, O Lord our God? We set our hope on you, for you do all these things.

3/4 mile easy then 1/4 mile fast x 7.5 times.

I should have used my lap timer to do this workout so I would have the exact 1/4 times/paces but I didn't really think about it until I had run my first two. I believe I averaged well below a 6:00 pace and dipped down to near 5:00 pace on a couple of them.

I like to run fast!

Psalm 18:29 

For by you I can run against a troop, and by my God I can leap over a wall.

4 Easy miles gearing down for the Beach to Bay relay on Saturday. I'm running the last leg which is 4.89 miles. I need to decide how fast I think I can run this distance...maybe 6:40 pace? (any suggestions)

I can't believe how nice the weather was this morning. I wish I was running 20 miles instead of only 4. We won't get any more 45 degree mornings for probably 6-7 months.

“As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease.” ~Genesis 18:22 

I wasn't sure I was going to like running in a relay race at first but this turned out to be really fun!

I was invited to be on the team by a guy named Mike Vordenbaum whom I met at the High Shool Track (probably a year ago). I had given him my phone number and we loosely agreed we would get together and run sometime. He is a few years older than me but I quickly recognized him as a seasoned and knowledable runner. Out of the blue a few weeks ago Mike called me and said he was looking for somone to run with his team at the Beach to Bay Marathon Relay. After talking to him about the race I offered to run the longest and hardest leg of the relay that being the last leg. It is 4.9 miles and later in the day so the temperature us the hottest then. As it turned out the weather was really pretty nice compared to what it could have been and usually is.

Going into the race I was not really sure how I would do. I was afraid I had not really fully recovered from Boston and also I haven't done any speed work for months and months. (After I broke my colar bone and finally got back to running it was a chore just to get the miles in and I never really could get up the energy to do any speed work. Now looking back it seems odd because I really like the speed work.)

I took it pretty easy the days before the race and at racetime I felt pretty good. Mike, and his team had run this race many times so they had a complete gameplan on how to race, pass the baton, transportation, etc. Every detail was thought out. It was a little intimidating to me and I told them several times that I hoped I didn't let them down. :-) I hung out with my family near the 6th Leg Handoff up until it was time for them to drive to the finish line. We were getting updates from Mike regarding the team's progress so I knew with about 10 minutes when I would be running my leg.

When I took the baton the field was spread out pretty much. There was one young teenager who passed me in the first quarter mile of my first leg. He was running a little faster than I felt comfortable so I let him go out about 50 yards in front of me but could see that he wasn't going to continue on that pace. I started to reel him in before the 1st mile marker and passed him. I did not stop for water during the first mile but every mile after that I would walk at the water station and get a drink. I felt really good running the first mile and was very happy to see the 6:14 pop up on my Garmin. Mile 2 felt good but with the short walk I dropped to a 6:26 pace. I was hoping to stay closer to 6:15 on the third mile but I was getting pretty winded and knew it was not possible. Mile 3 came in at 6:37 and I was beginning to feel the pain. On mile 4 I started to loose my drive and started thinking things like "this is not really a competative race...I don't really have to run this hard...I'll still have a decent time if slow down a little". I ended up running a 6:44 on this mile and now looking back I'm a little disappointed I didn't give this mile a little more effort. I think I walked twice on this mile too. The last .9 mile finally started catching up with a few more runners and ended up passing 5 in this stretch of the race. They were still pretty spread out but I had a good kick and was able to reel them all in. In all I passed 8 runners and had no one pass me. 

My overall pace was 6:27:33, about 10 seconds slower than I wanted to run but still a good effort for me based on my HR. I don't think I am in 18:xx 5K condition yet but I will be working on that this summer and trying to get to that goal!

I think all of my team members were in their 50's except for one guy who was 78 years old. He ran the 5th leg and handed off the baton to me. I'm not sure what he ran but I believe his pace was in the 7's. I was very impressed with his ability at that age! Our overall time was 3:06:23 (7:07 pace) and good for 4th in our catagory (Senior Masters) and 51st overall with about 2500 teams.

I would actually go back and do this again if invited...it was fun!

I'm on the left (we're missing one team member). The 78 yr old is on the right.

Proverbs 16:31 

Gray hair is a crown of glory; it is gained in a righteous life.

1 mile easy today. Sarah (my wife) has decided to train and run a 5K. Today was the first day. Callie (my daughter) and I went out with her and helped her with form and encouragment. She will be on a walk/run program until she get up to 1 mile non-stop running, running 3-4 days a week. Today she ran about 1/2 of the mile. Great start!

I've decided it's time to do some upper body work and weights again so today I went to the gym and did 6 different upper body weight machines and ran for 3 miles in between. I am going to be sore!

10.25 miles total today. 7.5 miles keeping my HR between 140-145 BPM (70-75% Max) and then 2.5 miles fast finish. The fast miles ended up being a little below 7:00 pace.

Titus 2:7-8

Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, dignity, and sound speech that cannot be condemned, so that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us.

Aerobic base workout for 5 miles then a fast finish.

"Scientist don't entirely understand the reason why, but an efficient oxygen deliver system--aerobic base--is best developed by training within 70 to 85 percent of your maximum heart rate (MHR)." Taken from: RunFast by Hal Higdon.

I really though and was trying to run the last 2 miles @ 6:15 pace but my aerobic condition got the best of me and I had to slow down and eventaully stop before I even reach the 2 mile mark.

Proverbs 11:2 

When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with the humble is wisdom.

Kept it short in case I decide to run the Faith 5K tomorrow. Not really feeling great. Even this run was laborsome and my HR was way too high. I think my heart is just tired.

Matthew 11:29 

Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

This is not a typo.... I ran exactly what I did last year in this race!

19:42:00 ... How can that happen? 1st in my Age Group, 3rd Overall.

Going into this race I was a little skeptical what I would do. I was still feeling somewhat tired and sore from the Beach to Bay relay last week. Even so, I decided to give it a go and try and set my sights on a 19:30. I decided to go out much slower than I did last year thinking I would be able to maintain that pace longer and then have a great kick at the end.

We got to the race in plenty of time (Callie and me) and visited with a few people until I decided to warm up. I told Callie I was going to run up the first hill so I could see how steep it was. Well, I ran about .35 of a mile and then turned around. As I got within about 50 yards of the starting line I realized they were counting down to the last few seconds of the race. As I ran up to the starting line the announcer said "are you ready"? I said yes, turned around right on the starting line and took off in the race. Man...I sure could have used a couple of minutes to catch my breath! I can't believe I'm always doing something like this. :-(

As we took off there were about 8 runners at the front, six of whom were slightly ahead of me. As we went up the first hill there was one young guy who took off way ahead of the bunch. I know right then it would be impossible to catch him. All the other runners started pulling ahead but I tried to hold steady around the mid-6 pace. As we got to the 1st mile marker the bunch had spread out over about 50-75 yards. My first mile was 6:16 (HR 165), a little faster than planned but not the 5:58 I ran last year. With that time I thought I was right on pace for the 19:30 I was shooting for. Mile 2 started out good but I kinda got lost in myself and slowed a little. I saw the first guy run around the turn-around and as he came running by I yelled "I'm comming to get you!". I could see the crack a big smile as I ran by. :-) I decided before the turn to start making my move and I passed one guy right before the turn-around.
After that turn-around I had in my mind that I would really start to run hard and pick up the pace. Well, I got half of that part done, I ran hard but the pace didn't pick up. Even with the slow down I was able to catch another running before the end of the second mile. this second mile came in at 6:29 (HR 174) ....Ahhh! Slower than I ran on the 5 mile run last week. On the 3rd mile I just felt beat and just couldn't seem to pick up the pace. This mile came in at 6:29 (HR 180) just like mile 2 but with a lot more effort. I was still picking other runner off and by the end of mile 3 was about 10 yards behind the #2 guy. Even though I was beat, I thought I would able to catch this guy but I just didn't have the kick I normally have. I ended up running .28 on the last .11 mile. He ended beating me by 3 seconds...and to rub it in, he was 40 years old so he won the Master's division.

It seems I am back to square one with my conditioning compared to last year at this time as my time and HR are exactly the same. This year I WILL NOT HAVE A BIKE WRECK and be able to get down to the 18's on my 5K!

Callie won 2nd in her age group too!

4 Miles - 7:28, 7:58, 7:41, 7:08

AP = 7:34 (HR 143)