Breaking the Wall

Week starting May 04, 2014

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Location:

Orem,UT,United States

Member Since:

Jan 27, 1986

Gender:

Male

Goal Type:

Olympic Trials Qualifier

Running Accomplishments:

Best marathon: 2:23:57 (2007, St. George). Won the Top of Utah Marathon twice (2003,2004). Won the USATF LDR circuit in Utah in 2006.

Draper Days 5 K 15:37 (2004)

Did not know this until June 2012, but it turned out that I've been running with spina bifida occulta in L-4 vertebra my entire life, which explains the odd looking form, struggles with the top end speed, and the poor running economy (cannot break 16:00 in 5 K without pushing the VO2 max past 75).  

 

Short-Term Running Goals:

Qualify for the US Olympic Trials. With the standard of 2:19 on courses with the elevation drop not exceeding 450 feet this is impossible unless I find an uncanny way to compensate for the L-4 defect with my muscles. But I believe in miracles.

Long-Term Running Goals:

2:08 in the marathon. Become a world-class marathoner. This is impossible unless I find a way to fill the hole in L-4 and make it act healthy either by growing the bone or by inserting something artificial that is as good as the bone without breaking anything important around it. Science does not know how to do that yet, so it will take a miracle. But I believe in miracles.

Personal:

I was born in 1973. Grew up in Moscow, Russia. Started running in 1984 and so far have never missed more than 3 consecutive days. Joined the LDS Church in 1992, and came to Provo, Utah in 1993 to attend BYU. Served an LDS mission from 1994-96 in Salt Lake City, Utah. Got married soon after I got back. My wife Sarah and I are parents of eleven children: Benjamin, Jenny, Julia, Joseph, Jacob, William, Stephen, Matthew,  Mary,  Bella.  and Leigha. We home school our children.

I am a software engineer/computer programmer/hacker whatever you want to call it, and I am currently working for RedX. Aside from the Fast Running Blog, I have another project to create a device that is a good friend for a fast runner. I called it Fast Running Friend.

Favorite Quote:

...if we are to have faith like Enoch and Elijah we must believe what they believed, know what they knew, and live as they lived.

Elder Bruce R. McConkie

 

Favorite Blogs:

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Miles:This week: 0.00 Month: 40.31 Year: 3073.12
Saucony Type A Lifetime Miles: 640.15
Bare Feet Lifetime Miles: 450.37
Nike Double Stroller Lifetime Miles: 124.59
Brown Crocs 4 Lifetime Miles: 1334.06
Amoji 1 Lifetime Miles: 732.60
Amoji 2 Lifetime Miles: 436.69
Amoji 3 Lifetime Miles: 380.67
Lopsie Sports Sandals Lifetime Miles: 818.02
Lopsie Sports Sandals 2 Lifetime Miles: 637.27
Iprome Garden Clogs Lifetime Miles: 346.18
Beslip Garden Clogs Lifetime Miles: 488.26
Joybees 1 Lifetime Miles: 1035.60
Madctoc Clogs Lifetime Miles: 698.29
Blue Crocs Lifetime Miles: 1164.32
Kimisant Black Clogs Lifetime Miles: 720.62
Black Crocs 2023 Lifetime Miles: 1743.12
White Slip Resistant Crocs Lifetime Miles: 759.93
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
68.300.0011.751.5081.55
Green Crocs 7 Miles: 81.55
Night Sleep Time: 52.50Nap Time: 1.00Total Sleep Time: 53.50
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
0.000.000.000.000.00

Day of rest.  Fast Sunday. Talked to my mother on Skype. Went to church. Took Matthew for a walk in the afternoon.

Night Sleep Time: 6.50Nap Time: 1.00Total Sleep Time: 7.50
Add Comment
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
12.000.000.000.0012.00

Fast Running Friend Workout - 2014-05-05 07:23:54
Workout Totals
Distance Time Pace
12.000 1:32:23.20 7:41.93
Total of 12. Benjamin did 9, Jenny 2, Julia 2, Joseph and Jacob 3, William 1. Julia had some back pain from sleeping at the wrong angle. Jenny ran less to be fresh for AP Psychology which she took today. On Friday she is taking AP English Language/Composition test.
Leg 1
Distance Time Pace Comment
9 1:07:30.10. 7:30.01 With Benjamin.
Split# Distance Time Pace Comment
1 9.000 1:07:30.10 7:30.01  
Leg 2
Distance Time Pace Comment
3 24:53.10. 8:17.70 With Joseph and Jacob.
Split# Distance Time Pace Comment
1 3.000 24:53.10 8:17.70  

Green Crocs 7 Miles: 12.00
Night Sleep Time: 7.00Nap Time: 0.00Total Sleep Time: 7.00
Add Comment
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
7.500.003.501.5012.50

Total of 12.5. Did a workout with Benjamin down the Provo Canyon. FIrst 3.5 - I got 19:56, he got 19:30. Then some jogging and a fast mile. He got 4:54, I got 5:14.8. Then a cooldown. He ended up with 10.5 miles. I ran 2 more with Julia.

Last night we found out that Benjamin got a 4-year full-tuition scholarship to BYU on the condition of maitaning 3.6 GPA. He hopefully will not need 4 years given that he is currently a sophomore. This shows that a purely home-schooled 15-year-old student can go at least to BYU on a scholarship without ever obtaining a high school diploma. This is an important breakthrough - if not in policy, then at least in thinking. Many families that would otherwise be home schooling send their kids to public schools because they are afraid that colleges will discriminate against home schooled students with no credentials that can only come from some kind of an educational establishment. Our exprience shows this is not the case.

Green Crocs 7 Miles: 12.50
Night Sleep Time: 7.00Nap Time: 0.00Total Sleep Time: 7.00
Comments(3)
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
10.000.002.000.0012.00

Fast Running Friend Workout - 2014-05-07 07:30:44
Workout Totals
Distance Time Pace
12.000 1:27:47.80 7:18.98
Total of 12. Benjamin did 9, Jenny 4, Julia 3, Joseph and Jacob 3, William 1. Benjamin and I did a 2 mile tempo down the canyon in the freezing rain. Details below.
Leg 1
Distance Time Pace Comment
4.7 34:49.80. 7:24.64 Warm-up. Well, it started as a warm-up, but it became more of a cool-down as it started to rain.
Split# Distance Time Pace Comment
1 4.700 34:49.80 7:24.64  
Leg 2
Distance Time Pace Comment
2 11:00.80. 5:30.40  
Split# Distance Time Pace Comment
1 2.000 11:00.80 5:30.40 I led through most of the first mile in 5:22, then Benjamin took over. I made it another quarter mile with him, and then I began to freeze and my legs and feet started feeling numb. I slowed down to 85 and 88 over the last two quarters which gave me 5:38 for the last mile. Benjamin managed 5:18 for the last mile finishing in 10:40.
Leg 3
Distance Time Pace Comment
2.3 17:46.40. 7:43.65 Death march to the house due to being completely drenched - as they say in Russian, like a wet chicken. Once we got there I changed clothes, and warmed myself up for about 30 minutes before I could run again.
Split# Distance Time Pace Comment
1 2.300 17:46.40 7:43.65  
Leg 4
Distance Time Pace Comment
3 24:10.80. 8:03.60 With Joseph and Jacob.
Split# Distance Time Pace Comment
1 3.000 24:10.80 8:03.60  

Green Crocs 7 Miles: 12.00
Night Sleep Time: 8.00Nap Time: 0.00Total Sleep Time: 8.00
Add Comment
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
13.000.000.000.0013.00

Fast Running Friend Workout - 2014-05-08 07:43:04
Workout Totals
Distance Time Pace
13.000 1:44:21.00 8:01.62
Total of 13. Benjamin did 9, Joseph and Jacob 3, Julia 3, William 1, Jenny 4.
Leg 1
Distance Time Pace Comment
3 25:14.30. 8:24.77 With Benjamin, David, Joseph and Jacob.
Split# Distance Time Pace Comment
1 3.000 25:14.30 8:24.77  
Leg 2
Distance Time Pace Comment
6 44:57.70. 7:29.62 With Benjamin, David ran the first mile with us then turned around.
Split# Distance Time Pace Comment
1 6.000 44:57.70 7:29.62  
Leg 3
Distance Time Pace Comment
1 9:17.30. 9:17.30 With William.
Split# Distance Time Pace Comment
1 1.000 9:17.30 9:17.30  
Leg 4
Distance Time Pace Comment
3 24:51.70. 8:17.23 With Julia.
Split# Distance Time Pace Comment
1 3.000 24:51.70 8:17.23  

Green Crocs 7 Miles: 13.00
Night Sleep Time: 8.00Nap Time: 0.00Total Sleep Time: 8.00
Add Comment
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
12.000.000.000.0012.00

Fast Running Friend Workout - 2014-05-09 08:00:01
Workout Totals
Distance Time Pace
12.000 1:31:05.50 7:35.46
Jenny took the AP English test today, so that made the run a little different that normal. She ran 2 miles. I did 12. Benjamin did 9, Joseph and Jacob 2, William 1.
Leg 1
Distance Time Pace Comment
7 54:25.10. 7:46.44 With Benjamin.
Split# Distance Time Pace Comment
1 7.000 54:25.10 7:46.44  
Leg 2
Distance Time Pace Comment
1 6:48.30. 6:48.30 Alone.
Split# Distance Time Pace Comment
1 1.000 6:48.30 6:48.30  
Leg 3
Distance Time Pace Comment
4 29:52.10. 7:28.02 Pushed Matthew in the stroller.
Split# Distance Time Pace Comment
1 4.000 29:52.10 7:28.02  

Green Crocs 7 Miles: 12.00
Night Sleep Time: 8.00Nap Time: 0.00Total Sleep Time: 8.00
Add Comment
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
13.800.006.250.0020.05

Fast Running Friend Workout - 2014-05-10 08:25:08
Workout Totals
Distance Time Pace
20.050 2:25:40.20 7:15.92
Total of 20. Did a 6.25 tempo with Benjamin down the canyon starting at Vivian Park. He overcame his side ache issues and set a 10 K PR. Benjamin did 14, Jenny 4, Julia 3, Joseph and Jacob 3, William 1. Details below.
Leg 1
Distance Time Pace Comment
3.3 25:59.30. 7:52.52 Warm-up.
Split# Distance Time Pace Comment
1 3.300 25:59.30 7:52.52  
Leg 2
Distance Time Pace Comment
6.25 34:45.70. 5:33.71 Benjamin got 33:48, so around 33:36 10 K split gapping me by 57 seconds over the last 3.25 miles. I paced the first mile, then Benjamin took over. Our splits were 5:28, 5:27, 5:23 - that did me in, after than Benjamin ran 5:22,5:23,5:26. I did 5:40,5:41,5:41. This was a positive for both of us. For me I think it was the best tempo run of the year. For Benjamin this was a breakthrough in endurance - he overcame the side ache issue which started to concern me a lot - how in the world is he going to race the UVM Half if he gets a side ache as early as 3 going as slow as 5:30? He also averaged 5 seconds per mile faster than he did over the first 6 miles of Phoenix and said he felt much better. We had 394 feet of elevation drop here, 1.2% grade, but we were at 5000 feet average for the workout.
Split# Distance Time Pace Comment
1 6.250 34:45.70 5:33.71  
Leg 3
Distance Time Pace Comment
4.5 38:11.20. 8:29.16 More distance with Benjamin - back to the house.
Split# Distance Time Pace Comment
1 4.500 38:11.20 8:29.16  
Leg 4
Distance Time Pace Comment
6 46:44.00. 7:47.33 Back to the car alone with a little detour to make it 20 total.
Split# Distance Time Pace Comment
1 6.000 46:44.00 7:47.33  

Green Crocs 7 Miles: 20.05
Night Sleep Time: 8.00Nap Time: 0.00Total Sleep Time: 8.00
Add Comment
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
68.300.0011.751.5081.55
Green Crocs 7 Miles: 81.55
Night Sleep Time: 52.50Nap Time: 1.00Total Sleep Time: 53.50
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