| 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
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 66.25 | 4.00 | 2.50 | 0.00 | 72.75 |
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| Airwalk Clogs Miles: 52.75 | Saucony Type A Miles: 10.00 |
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| Night Sleep Time: 47.50 | Nap Time: 1.00 | Total Sleep Time: 48.50 | |
| | 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. Went to church. |
| Night Sleep Time: 9.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 9.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 12.50 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 12.50 |
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A.M. Ran with Jeff at Grandview. We started out very slow, and at one point were more than 4 minutes behind the 3 minute per lap guy (7:40 pace). The reason, I believe was that we were too busy discussing my dream. I dreamt that I knew how to fly and remembered I had that skill around mile 21 in a marathon. I reviewed the list of USATF rules and recalled nothing that said you could not fly. When running at race pace you spend about two thirds of the time in the air anyway. They cannot possibly restrict the amount of air time. So I figured it was legal as long as I was not using an implement, mechanism or device to propel myself. I happened to have picked a bad spot to take off as the course went through a forest. Just as I finally managed to get above the trees I woke up and realized that I did not know how to fly. Nevertheless this provided a great subject for the morning run discussion.
Then Jeff went home (he runs to Grandview and back, while I drive to avoid having to run on pavement), and I decided to get that silly 3:00 per lap guy. So gradually picked up to about 6:30 pace and beat him by over a minute with 1:16:43 for the whole run. It was not easy, though. I felt like I was seriously out of shape. Not surprising given the lack of normal training recently. Also, the perception might have been exaggerated since I was on grass and wearing too much clothes for the weather. P.M. 2 with Benjamin and Jenny in 17:18. 0.5 with Joseph in 4:16. He closed with a 1:58 quarter. Julia ran 1.5 with Sarah.
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| Airwalk Clogs Miles: 12.50 |
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| Night Sleep Time: 7.50 | Nap Time: 1.00 | Total Sleep Time: 8.50 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 11.25 | 1.50 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 12.75 |
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A.M. Ran with Jeff at Grandview. Got serious and wore an HRM to see how I am doing on cardio. It was too cold for it to work - took me a while to work up enough sweat to receive correct data. At 7:40 pace HR was around 125-127 - normal for the grass. At 7:00 it was around 145, a little high. At 6:10 pace it was 157, not terrible. But I could get it up any higher and the culprit seemed to be the foot. It did not hurt terribly but at faster speeds I could tell I did not want to quite hammer it. Which is perhaps is a good thing. So my conclusion was that I did not get too bad out of shape cardiovascularly at least. Total time for 10 miles was 1:14:42. P.M. 2 with Benjamin and Jenny. Benjamin took off at the end and finished in 16:58. I stayed with Jenny - our time was 17:13. 0.5 with Joseph in 4:51. 0.25 with Jacob in 2:52.Now our family has only one person that cannot run a quarter in under 3:00 - William.
Julia ran 1.5 with Sarah.
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| Airwalk Clogs Miles: 12.75 |
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| Night Sleep Time: 8.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 8.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 12.75 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 12.75 |
| A.M. Ran with Jeff at Grandview. 10 in 1:17:57. P.M. 2.25 with Benjamin and Jenny from Computune. Benjamin took off with 0.3 left, ran a quarter in 1:29 and finished with 17:39. I stayed with Jenny and we finished in 18:23. It was quite a sight to see Benjamin leave us in the dust while we were going 8:00, which is not slow at all for a little kid. Later 0.5 with Joseph and Julia in 4:26. Julia then ran another mile with Sarah on a bike.
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| Airwalk Clogs Miles: 12.75 |
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| Night Sleep Time: 7.50 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 7.50 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 12.25 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 12.25 |
| A.M. Ran with Jeff at Grandview. 10 in 1:16:43. P.M. 2.25 with Benjamin, Jenny, and Julia to Computune in 19:07. Julia's record for the run. Took a spill on the the way, got a few scrapes. I have a peculiarity in the form, not necessarily a bad thing. I do not get off the ground very high, and I also bring the foot forward really fast to have enough time to pull it back before landing. All of this business happens maybe an inch off the ground if that. So if there is a bump only an inch high, you can guess what happens. The knee hurt from the fall, but I was able to keep running. In fact, it made me stop noticing the foot.
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| Airwalk Clogs Miles: 12.25 |
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| Night Sleep Time: 0.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 0.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 10.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 10.00 |
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A.M. Ran with Jeff at Grandview. 10 in 1:17:33. The knee still hurt from the fall, but it was runnable.
P.M. The children ran their usual distances with Sarah on a bike.
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| Night Sleep Time: 7.50 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 7.50 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 7.50 | 2.50 | 2.50 | 0.00 | 12.50 |
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A.M. Did a 5 mile tempo on the Fast Running Blog 5 miler course to access the damage from the lack of training and the foot-caused biomechanical problems. Set a modest goal of breaking 30:00, but still was not quite sure if it was going to happen. Wore an HRM to get a better picture of the problems. Jeff and I warmed up 2 miles with Benjamin in 15:41, then ran another 1.37 to the start of the tempo. Noticed that HR was 125-127 at 7:30 pace - 5 beats too high. The tempo went like this (quarter splits, off memory, my own not the watch's): 86 - 89 - 86 - 86 (5:48) - 85 - 87 - 87 - 87 (5:48, 11:36) - 86 - 89 (14:31 at the turnaround) - 84 - 82 (5:41, 17:17) - 88 - 89 - 83 - 83 (5:43, 23:00) - 87 - 85 - 84 - 80 (5:36, 28:36.0). 5:43.1 average, negative split by half - 14:31 - 14:05. HR was 159 - 160 at 5:48 pace, again about 5 beats too high. I was not lucid enough to check it during pickups to 5:30, but I would guess 166-167, again 5 beats too high for the pace. Those were not intentional. Jeff was having trouble with his sense of pace due to the lack of anything fast in the last 3 weeks, and also due to the fact that the pace was dog slow for him. Nevertheless I was able to check the max HR after the fact and it was 173 probably reached in the last quarter. Not surprising. I nearly threw up when I finished from the effort in the last 200, which was done in 38 Jeff kicked in the last 100 on top of the already fast (for me) pace and managed to gap me by 4 seconds. Afterwards we cooled down to make the total 10. Jeff then ran 2 more miles. The foot did OK. I felt it, but it was at about the start of St. George level at the start of the tempo, which was OK but not that great, but what was encouraging is that when I was done it was not any worse! Overall I was pleased with the results. I finished in the top range of my optimistic exceptations, and was able to do it with a negative split in a fartlek-style run with the pace varying from 5:56 to 5:28 excluding the last quarter. Some cardio power was lost during the layoff. Although most people would not call a training period of 8 weeks that involved 2 marathons quite exactly a layoff. What this tells me is that daily mileage is more important for aerobic power than a long run, even if that long run is long and hard. I did my long runs (TOU and St. George) , both done at almost race pace with at least 2:35 on my feet but my daily mileage was lacking. Thus some aerobic power was lost. P.M. 2 with Jenny in 18:31. Julia ran the first 1.5 with us in 13:53. 0.5 with Joseph in 4:53.
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| Saucony Type A Miles: 10.00 | Airwalk Clogs Miles: 2.50 |
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| Night Sleep Time: 8.00 | Nap Time: 0.00 | Total Sleep Time: 8.00 |
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| | Easy Miles | Marathon Pace Miles | Threshold Miles | VO2 Max Miles | Total Distance | | 66.25 | 4.00 | 2.50 | 0.00 | 72.75 |
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| Airwalk Clogs Miles: 52.75 | Saucony Type A Miles: 10.00 |
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| Night Sleep Time: 47.50 | Nap Time: 1.00 | Total Sleep Time: 48.50 | |
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