Breaking the Wall

Week starting Oct 03, 2021

15% off for Fast Running Blog members at St. George Running Center!

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:

Click to donate

to Ukraine's Armed Forces

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

Totals

Easy Miles	Marathon Pace Miles	Threshold Miles	VO2 Max Miles	Total Distance
69.10	0.00	4.00	2.99	76.09

Amoji 1 Miles: 54.04	Saucony Type A Miles: 13.00	Bare Feet Miles: 4.25

Night Sleep Time: 0.00	Nap Time: 0.00	Total Sleep Time: 0.00

Sun, Oct 03, 2021

Easy Miles	Marathon Pace Miles	Threshold Miles	VO2 Max Miles	Total Distance
0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00

Day of rest. General Conference.

Night Sleep Time: 0.00	Nap Time: 0.00	Total Sleep Time: 0.00

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Mon, Oct 04, 2021

Easy Miles	Marathon Pace Miles	Threshold Miles	VO2 Max Miles	Total Distance
12.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	12.00

Fast Running Friend Workout - 2021-10-04 08:45:58
Workout Totals: Distance12.000Time1:34:46.90Pace7:53.91
12 total. The kids got some colds, so Joseph and William were on reduced mileage. Stephen hurt his foot by misstepping on it and could not run. Benjamin did easy 12 total in two runs.
Leg 1: Distance4.000Time31:50.30Pace7:57.57ZoneEasy Miles
With Joseph and Matthew, part with William.
Leg 2: Distance8.000Time1:02:56.60Pace7:52.07ZoneEasy Miles
With Jacob.

Amoji 1 Miles: 12.00

Night Sleep Time: 0.00	Nap Time: 0.00	Total Sleep Time: 0.00

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Tue, Oct 05, 2021

Easy Miles	Marathon Pace Miles	Threshold Miles	VO2 Max Miles	Total Distance
8.04	0.00	4.00	0.00	12.04

Fast Running Friend Workout - 2021-10-05 08:38:43
Workout Totals: Distance12.040Time1:29:52.80Pace7:27.91
12 total. Joseph, William, and Stephen were on reduced mileage. Stephen was recovering from misstepping on his foot, ran 1 mile in 10:04. William did 3, Joseph I think 4 - sore throat. Jacob and I did a 4 mile tempo run 2 up 2 down, splits 6:32, 6:41, 6:00, 5:57. Benjamin did 8+4.
Leg 1: Distance8.040Time57:58.50Pace7:12.65
With Jacob.
Split 1:Distance2.020Time16:13.20Pace8:01.78ZoneEasy Miles Cumilative:Distance2.020Time16:13.20Pace8:01.78
Split 2:Distance4.000Time25:10.20Pace6:17.55ZoneThreshold Miles Cumilative:Distance6.020Time41:23.40Pace6:52.52
Split 3:Distance2.020Time16:35.10Pace8:12.62ZoneEasy Miles Cumilative:Distance8.040Time57:58.50Pace7:12.65

Leg 2: Distance4.000Time31:54.30Pace7:58.57ZoneEasy Miles
With Joseph and Matthew, part with William.

Amoji 1 Miles: 12.04

Night Sleep Time: 0.00	Nap Time: 0.00	Total Sleep Time: 0.00

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Wed, Oct 06, 2021

Easy Miles	Marathon Pace Miles	Threshold Miles	VO2 Max Miles	Total Distance
12.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	12.00

Fast Running Friend Workout - 2021-10-06 09:06:39
Workout Totals: Distance12.000Time1:34:57.90Pace7:54.82
12 total, easy pace. Stephen was able to run 1 mile in 8:13. Joseph and William still on reduced mileage. Benjamin did easy 8+4.
Leg 1: Distance4.000Time32:11.40Pace8:02.85ZoneEasy Miles
With Joseph and Matthew, part with William.
Leg 2: Distance8.000Time1:02:46.50Pace7:50.81ZoneEasy Miles
With Jacob, part with Joseph.

Amoji 1 Miles: 12.00

Night Sleep Time: 0.00	Nap Time: 0.00	Total Sleep Time: 0.00

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Thu, Oct 07, 2021

Easy Miles	Marathon Pace Miles	Threshold Miles	VO2 Max Miles	Total Distance
10.50	0.00	0.00	1.50	12.00

Fast Running Friend Workout - 2021-10-07 08:45:50
Workout Totals: Distance12.000Time1:35:47.90Pace7:58.99
12 total. Did 3x0.5 down the canyon as Jacob did 3x1 mile with 0.25 recovery. He did better today - 5:19, 5:19, 5:15, negative splitting all of them. I did 2:42, 2:42, 2:39 with him. Joseph, William, Stephen, and Matthew ran 5 miles. The ziplock tie fix for the Amoji strap started getting loose today, so I ran the last 5 miles in my old Saucony. Benjamin did 12 at an easy pace.
Leg 1: Distance2.000Time16:14.70Pace8:07.35ZoneEasy Miles
Warm-up with Jacob.
Leg 2: Distance3.250Time23:42.30Pace7:17.63
Half of Jacob's workout.
Split 1:Distance0.500Time2:42.10Pace5:24.20ZoneVO2 Max Miles Cumilative:Distance0.500Time2:42.10Pace5:24.20
Split 2:Distance0.625Time5:41.60Pace9:06.56ZoneEasy Miles Cumilative:Distance1.125Time8:23.70Pace7:27.73
Split 3:Distance0.500Time2:42.20Pace5:24.40ZoneVO2 Max Miles Cumilative:Distance1.625Time11:05.90Pace6:49.78
Split 4:Distance0.625Time6:14.20Pace9:58.72ZoneEasy Miles Cumilative:Distance2.250Time17:20.10Pace7:42.27
Split 5:Distance0.500Time2:39.20Pace5:18.40ZoneVO2 Max Miles Cumilative:Distance2.750Time19:59.30Pace7:16.11
Split 6:Distance0.500Time3:43.00Pace7:26.00ZoneEasy Miles Cumilative:Distance3.250Time23:42.30Pace7:17.63

Leg 3: Distance1.750Time15:14.60Pace8:42.63ZoneEasy Miles
Cool-down with Jacob.
Leg 4: Distance5.000Time40:36.30Pace8:07.26ZoneEasy Miles
With Joseph, William, and Matthew.

Saucony Type A Miles: 5.00	Amoji 1 Miles: 11.00

Night Sleep Time: 0.00	Nap Time: 0.00	Total Sleep Time: 0.00

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Fri, Oct 08, 2021

Easy Miles	Marathon Pace Miles	Threshold Miles	VO2 Max Miles	Total Distance
10.56	0.00	0.00	1.49	12.05

Fast Running Friend Workout - 2021-10-08 08:57:01
Workout Totals: Distance12.052Time1:29:41.80Pace7:26.55
12 total. Took Matthew for a mile time trial attempt. 6:00 to failure, if the failure happens before 1200, then stop and try again. Keep doing until the total 6:00 pace distance is at 2 miles. On try one he made it to 800 in 2:59. Try two we stopped at 1200 in 4:31. Try three - my Amoji strap broke after 400 in about 88, so we stopped there and he was off the hook. I ran home barefoot, then add 8 more miles with Jacob wearing my old Saucony. It felt strange to run in non-foam shoes. Benjamin did his usual 12 in two sets.
Leg 1: Distance1.060Time8:40.10Pace8:10.66ZoneEasy Miles
Warm-up.
Leg 2: Distance0.498Time2:59.60Pace6:00.64ZoneVO2 Max Miles
Try one.
Leg 3: Distance0.250Time2:37.80Pace10:31.20ZoneEasy Miles
Recovery.
Leg 4: Distance0.744Time4:31.30Pace6:04.65ZoneVO2 Max Miles
Try two.
Leg 5: Distance0.250Time2:42.20Pace10:48.80ZoneEasy Miles
Recovery.
Leg 6: Distance0.250Time1:29.30Pace5:57.20ZoneVO2 Max Miles
Try three.
Leg 7: Distance1.000Time8:42.40Pace8:42.40ZoneEasy Miles
Back to the house.
Leg 8: Distance8.000Time57:59.10Pace7:14.89ZoneEasy Miles
With Jacob.

Saucony Type A Miles: 8.00	Bare Feet Miles: 1.00	Amoji 1 Miles: 3.00

Night Sleep Time: 0.00	Nap Time: 0.00	Total Sleep Time: 0.00

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Sat, Oct 09, 2021

Easy Miles	Marathon Pace Miles	Threshold Miles	VO2 Max Miles	Total Distance
16.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	16.00

Fast Running Friend Workout - 2021-10-09 08:02:32
Workout Totals: Distance16.000Time2:10:52.40Pace8:10.78
16 total. Stubbornly trying to fix the issues with the Amoji strap. Amoji foam shoe costs just a little over $20 and its sole in my estimate has the potential to last for over 3000 miles. However, it has one problem. The strap connector is weak, and has broken for me after 400 miles or so. We re-attached it with a zip tie, and it held for about 100 miles. Then the tie ripped through the foam. Joseph re-molded the broken plastic clip with the help of a heat gun and we put it back in, and that held for another 60 miles or so. I did some studying and learned that concrete cement works very well on EVA foam. But as we learned today, you have to know what you are doing. After the first attempt by Julia the strap help for only 0.75 miles. After my second attempt, it detached while I was walking around the house. Then Joseph glued it, and it held on for 3 miles (it was raining, though). So today I did 16 miles at an easy pace with a lot of it barefoot. Chad paced William to 19:16 for 3 miles. Jacob did 17:05 repeating his splits identically from the last week - 5:45, 5:40, 5:40. First two were on target, but on the last one he was supposed to accelerate, and he could not. Benjamin did a 6+ mile tempo at 5:20 pace on rolling hills in Austin.
Leg 1: Distance1.460Time12:17.60Pace8:25.21ZoneEasy Miles
Warm-up with the kids and Chad, then the strap broke, so I ran barefoot to the car.
Leg 2: Distance2.000Time15:32.40Pace7:46.20ZoneEasy Miles
Part alone, part with William while in the old Crocs while the glue was drying.
Leg 3: Distance5.000Time39:38.30Pace7:55.66ZoneEasy Miles
With Stephen and Matthew while the glue was drying from the second attempt.
Leg 4: Distance3.040Time23:09.00Pace7:36.91ZoneEasy Miles
This is how long the glued strap lasted. Longer than last time.
Leg 5: Distance2.500Time20:59.00Pace8:23.60ZoneEasy Miles
Barefoot back home. My barefoot running skills are not what they were 11 years ago.
Leg 6: Distance1.500Time14:39.50Pace9:46.33ZoneEasy Miles
With Mary in old Crocs.
Leg 7: Distance0.500Time4:36.60Pace9:13.20ZoneEasy Miles
With Bella in old Crocs.

Bare Feet Miles: 3.25	Amoji 1 Miles: 4.00

Night Sleep Time: 0.00	Nap Time: 0.00	Total Sleep Time: 0.00

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Totals

Easy Miles	Marathon Pace Miles	Threshold Miles	VO2 Max Miles	Total Distance
69.10	0.00	4.00	2.99	76.09

Amoji 1 Miles: 54.04	Saucony Type A Miles: 13.00	Bare Feet Miles: 4.25

Night Sleep Time: 0.00	Nap Time: 0.00	Total Sleep Time: 0.00

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