Rosswog Running Blog

Still battling a head cold of some sort; therefore, slept in today.  In order to get in some miles, went for an easy 4.1 run today.  Did 120 sit-ups and little bit of stretching before and after my run; that is, my muscles kind of feel achy from my cold. 

At a slow pace, did a 4.2-mile evening-neighborhood run.  Due to the 3-4 inches of new snow, it was a challenging and fun run (i.e., there is nothing like running through fresh powder).  Did not lift weights, but did squeeze in a 120 sit-ups with some stretching.

After three days of easy runs, I finally recovered enough from my cold to at least run at marathon pace.  On my work’s treadmill, I accomplished a 0.3-mile warm-up jog in my Nike Frees followed by a 4.9-mile run at marathon pace.  I felt it a little bit in my lungs, but otherwise a great run!

In the evening, I did an easy 1.2-mile run outside through the slush.  One of the things I love about running is the crunching sound of the snow every time you take a step during a cool and quiet winter night run.  This sweet crunching sound is comparable to the crack of the wooden bat in baseball.  However, you only get to experience this sound when you run over slightly compacted snow.  As a result, tonight’s 1.2-mile run through the splash-splash of the winter slush was more comparable to the annoying ding sound of a baseball being driven off an aluminum bat.  In short, it is much more enjoyable to run during the winter nights when it is cold and dry. 

Lastly, I got back to my workout routine by doing 300 sit-ups, a 60-second wall sit (need to do more of these), 20 (30lbs) curls, and 20 (60-50lbs) reverse curls.

Today, after a long day of work, I did all of my running on the treadmill.  While witnessing my Jazz rout the Hornets, I did 4.2 miles at marathon pace.  I followed this with a 2-mile simulated barefoot run in my Vibram Five Fingers.  Overall, the running felt great and I should be back to doing intervals by Friday.

My non-running workout consisted of 300 sit-ups, a 60-second plank on elbows and toes, 40 (30lbs) curls, and 20 (80lbs) pull-downs.

After work, I ran on the treadmill for 4.5 miles at a solid marathon pace (first four in 27:14).  When I got home, since there was a slight layer of new snow sticking to the sidewalks, I decided to go for an easy 1.8-mile run at Big Cottonwood Park.  The great thing about running in fresh snow is to study your footprints by running back over your tracks.  This informal stride examination can reveal a lot.  On this particular evaluation, the good news was that my footprints were complete; therefore, my foot strikes were not concentrated on a particular area of my soles.  However, my stride was not being maximized which was evident by the footprints being too close together and the right footprints being slanted outward (i.e., pronation).  Next time I go for a run through freshly fallen snow, I will make sure to bring a tape measure in order to calculate the true inefficiency of my stride.

Lastly,  I focused much more on my strength training today by completing 330 sit-ups, a 60-second plank on elbows and toes, a 90-second wall sit, 120 (16, 30, 40lbs) curls, and 80 (50, 60lbs) reverse curls.

Finally, I am back to doing intervals on the treadmill! After I got off work, I completed 4 miles of half-mile intervals (i.e., the slow halves at 8.5 miles per hour, while the fast halves at 10.5). In addition, I did a tenth of a mile cool down.

When I got home, I ran 1.8 miles at an easy pace around Big Cottonwood Park.  The temperatures were bitterly cold; however, after I was warmed up (i.e., after running a mile) the weather was bearable.

Also, I did a light non-running workout today consisting of 330 sit-ups, 90 (16, 30lbs) curls, and 20 (50, 60lbs) reverse curls.

Met up with Tony (a member of Team Shoulda Bought Puts who is training for the Salt Lake Marathon) and ran from Big Cottonwood Park to Sugar House Park and back.  The total distance was 11.7 miles at a respectable (considering the snowy sidewalks and Saturday afternoon traffic) 8:29 pace.  In addition, we ran 4 miles on the Salt Lake Marathon course starting from the northeast corner of Highland High School (i.e., “The-I-Am-Only-Cheating-Myself Corner”) to 2000 East and Keller Ln (mile 4.5 to 8.5 of the course).  I also did 1.4 miles at an easy pace and 330 sit-ups.