Sean's Running Blog

10 miler this morning through marymoor park and along the Sammamish River Trail. The first 1/2 mile was sunny and warm. The next nine were in a pouring down rain squall but still warm. Last half mile was warm and sunny. We must be getting close to spring.

Evening run was at home. Avoided the rain.

Well...today was humbling. I worked out at the Dempsey Indoor with three of the four fastest guys in the state today: Uli Steidl, John Timeus and Mike Sayenko. Man they are fast.

The workout we did was particularly challenging: 2000m w/3:00 rest, 1600m w/3:00 rest, 1200m w/2:00 rest, 800m w/2:00 rest. Their goal was to run each set starting at 70 second laps dropping one second per 400m with each cutdown in distance. So 70s for the 2000m, 69s for the 1600m and so on. In other words...fast.

I knew going in that I would need to add a couple of second to that which is what I did. I did the 2000m in 5:58 (4:48 pace); the 1600m in 4:43 (4:44 pace); the 1200m in 3:33 (4:45 pace) and the 800 in 2:20 (4:41 pace).

I was wasted at the end. Hopefully not too wasted to recover in time for my 5,000m race at the same location on Saturday. I am admittedly doubtful that breaking 15:00 is doable but we shall see.

12 slower than normal miles this morning in cool but dry weather. First mile was in 8:15 or so and I didn't get below seven until the final 6 miles. My glute is showing signs of flaring up to I'm taking an extra long time to warm up especially when running early in the morning. Going to see the PT today. My left quad is also tender and I'm not sure why.

Woke up to snow this morning so waited until lunch to run. Nice easy run along Lake Sammamish. A cool 40 degrees but the rain had stopped. Saw the PT last night as I feel like I'm on the brink of another glute injury like this time last year. Someday I will learn that hitting 100 miles is bad news for me. This week was going to be a shorter week anyway because of my 5,000m run at the UW on Saturday but I will probably stay in the mid-80s for the rest of the season. The fewer10-15 miles will allow me more time to do the stretching and strength work I need to do to stay free of injury. 100+ mile weeks mean nothing if you get injured doing it.

Just a few miles this afternoon in prep for my 5000m race tomorrow at the UW. Gorgeous weather today. I went to the Redmond HS track to try out my spikes as I'm contemplating whether or not to use them or my racing flats. The first couple of laps they felt weird but I got used to them. I will probably go with them as I will need every bit of help I can get.

I was pretty nervous going into today and not exactly confident of meeting my goal of sub-15 minute 5000m.

The UW hosted a "Last Chance" meet to help mostly local collegiates qualify for next weeks indoor NCAA championships.

The Dempsey Indoor is a wonderful facility. 307 meters of fast track and temperate climate. I decided to go with the spikes and I am glad I did.

Warmed up for a couple miles outside with some other guys from the race. It's great to see people you know but don't get a chance to train with much. There were about 15 or so in the race. They stacked us two deep in a waterfall start. The start was 88 meters from the finish line so once we got to the finish line it was 16 laps from there. 1/4 mile splits were given but I had already committed to tracking my own splits after each lap (307 meters). I wanted to be right around 54 seconds per lap which would be 14:45.

Here are my split times:

53.91
55.2
54.13
54.7
55.78
54.03
54
55.03
55.77
54.6
55.53
54.85
55
54.77
2:02.0

I missed the last two so the 2:02 was for the final 702 meters which was 4:39 pace.

So I was very pleased with my consistency. I didn't get caught up in anyone else's race but my own. The lead pack went out fast from the get go which was fine with me. I wasn't there for place, I was there for time. Fortunately, there was a pack of 4-5 of us that hung together for most of the race. I wanted to make a move with about 6 laps to go but waited until four laps to go. This turned out to be a mistake of sorts and I had quite a bit left in the tank at the end. Experience is huge in these races and I don't have any. It's only my second race at this distance and first ever on a track of any sort. 15:35 was my PR on the road so I can be nothing but excited about how things went today.

That said, there is always something to learn. I feel like I could have pretty easily shaved another second per lap off of my time. I never at any point went anaerobic in the race which was also a mistake. On the final lap I really didn't have anyone pushing me from behind or pulling me from ahead so I was all alone which makes it hard to really put in a good kick at the end.

The indoor season is now over but I hope to do more of it next year. I really think I have a decent shot at 14:30. I'm pretty excited for the 10,000m I will run next month in Bellingham with another good pack of guys to run with. Hoping to break 31:00 there.  

11 easy miles this morning. Pretty cold here. Heading to SoCal for an overnight business trip after my Tuesday workout tomorrow.

I was going to do my workout here in Snoqualmie prior to departing for my business trip to LA but the weather was so cold here I took an earlier flight so I could enjoy the warmth of SoCal. With the help of Google Maps, I was able to quickly find a high school track within a half mile of my hotel in Santa Monica. School was still in session so i had an abnormally long 7-mile warmup before I was able to get on the track. The workout was 3M@5:03-5:05 followed my a one-minute rest then one mile at 4:56. I was 1/2 mile from the beach so the onshore winds were definitely noticeable but I was able to hit each of the three miles at 5:02 despite fairly breezy conditions. The 65 degree temps really felt nice as we've spent the last few days in an icebox in Seattle. Finshed up with a nice cooldown along the beach.

13 wonderful miles in SoCal this morning in Santa Monica. I opted for the quiet city streets rather than than the boardwalk. It's hilarious to see other runners bundles up on hats and coats and complaining about how cold 50 degrees is.

Only time for 11.5 miles after dropping my daughter off at school this morning. I'm hosting a 5k fun run in Snoqualmie on Saturday so my time is all tied up in that right now. Beautiful morning albeit quite cold.

Back in Seattle and it's warmed up a bit. I moved my workout from Saturday to today to ensure I got a solid workout in prior to the race I am organizing tomorrow. The workout was a bit of a different one than I am used to. My coach had me put in 9 miles of easy running (6:40-6:45 pace) before jumping into a 2x2M workout. The prescribed time was 10:15 for each with a 1/2 mile float in between. It was pretty breezy and warm ahead of an unfortunately cold and rainy weather system coming tomorrow. But I'm certianly used to a little wind. The first rep was in 10:13 and the second was in 10:12. Didn't have to strain too much and finished the workout without feeling wiped out.

An exhausting 12 miles today. I got exactly 75 minutes of sleep overnight. Today I hosted the 1st annual St. Patty's Day Run in Snoqualmie and so I was up very late and up very early this morning preparing for that. Not sure exactly how I managed even 12 miles, especially in the cold, driving rain.

11 miles along the shore of Lake Sammmamish. It poured for the last two miles. Temp dropped five degrees during the run. Can't wait for Spring.

Had to return all of the barricades and cones early this morning before work which meant an early 4:45 start to a 9.25 mile run. It was raining for the first half and then the snow just dumped. I haven't seen flakes this big in a long time. When I got back I was very cold and soggy. When I got back outside after getting ready. the roads were coated with snow so at least I beat out the traction problems. Did I mention I am ready for Spring?

Another 11 miles this afternoon along Lake Sammamish. Quite a different gig from this morning. 50 degrees and some sunshine poking through the clouds. Not ready to delcare it Spring yet.

Well today was a comedy of errors. I went to Redmond HS to do my track workout out and as I was getting dressed realized I forgot my racing flats which I always run my speed workouts in.

To make matters worse, I forgot socks as well. I have never run without socks. i know many do, but not me. I thought about waiting until I got home to run but the rain and wind were on their way so i wanted to get it done. As I laced up my shoes (without socks) I noticed a pair of my son's socks under my seat.

I tried them on and they were just big enough to creep over my heel. Not great but better than nothing.

The workout was short but tough, especially since my efforts to avoid the wind did not work out so well.

2x1.5M@7:20 (4:52 pace)with a 3 minute rest in between.

First one came in at 5:22. Not bad all things considered but I was pretty spent. the wind was coming down the straightaway rather than the turn whic I hate. Oh well. 3 minutes of jogging later, I was back for the second and final repeat. First 800 I was 5 seconds slow. Ugh. But I hung in there and finished in 7:27 which means I held on to the correct pace for the final four laps. Small victories.

Lovely run along Lake Sammamish. Spent a lot of time this week on gravel which has been good. Got a massage tonight which really helped. It's something I will be doing weekly now.

Out and back along Lake Sammamish. Went out on the gravel then back along East Lake Sammamish Pkwy. I think I was moving faster than traffic.

A beautiful day in the Northwest. We've earned it. Sunny skies and about 50 degrees.

Workout today was a "cutdown." I forgot how hard cutdowns can be.

It was a 9-mile cutdown in a 6:2:1 format. 6 miles @ 5:30; 2 miles @ 5:15 and the final mile in 5:06. I used my 10k and 5k courses to do them on rather than use the track. 36 laps would have been pretty boring.

First 6 came in at 5:29, 5:20, 5:26, 5:28, 5:26, 5:25. So fairly steady considering I was on the roads and not the track.

Next two were in 5:17 and 5:11. Last one was in 5:08. Pretty happy with the workout although cutdowns are always harder than they appear on paper.

Finshed up with a 13+ mile "cooldown" mapping out a 1/2 marathon course for a run I will put on next April.

Short run this morning after dropping my daughter off at school. Headed to SF tomorrow for the rest of the week. looking forward to some nicer weather.

Arrived in beautiful sunny SF this morning and ran from the hotel to Embarcadero down to the GG bridge. Since i didn't have access to a track, i did a fartlek workout. 5:30 hard followed by 3:00 light; repeated 4x.

According to my watch, the two "outs" into the wind toward GG bridge I covered 1.1 and 1.09 miles. The "backs" away from GG covered 1.13 and 1.1. That tranlates into 5:01, 4:52, 5:04 and 5:01 paces. I was hoping for sub 5s but oh well. The beautiful weather made up for it.

12 glorious miles along the embarcadero from my hotel to the GG Bridge. I think I am going to stay here until it stops raining in Seattle....

Another gorgeous run along the embarcadero. Went all the way to the GG Bridge. Just perfect weather here. 50 degree and sunny ay 7am.

Today was easily one of my top 3 runs of all time. I ran from my hotel across the Golden Gate Bridge and back. Just over 16 miles. The view from the bridge as the sun was rising was unbelievable. At the apex, you are almost a football field above the ocean and you can see for miles in all directions. On the way back, I stopped about halfway acros and just enjoyed the ocean breeze looking out over one of the most beautiful skylines around.

Back to the rain this evening.

A yucky rainy and cold morning in Snoqualmie. Fortunately the wind was calm or it would have made a yucky day into an unbearable one.

The workout was a marathon focused one: Run 12 easy miles (6:45s or so) and then jump right into a 3x2M interval workout with a 1/2 mile float in between each. Target time for the 2-mile segments was 10:20.

I didn't feel all that great during the 12 miles. Several days enjoying the food of San Francisco left me feeling pretty heavy and bloated. Plus I was soaking wet and pretty cold.

The first two mile segment came in at 10:13 as did the second. Everything felt pretty comfortable. The final repeat was in 10:06. I decided to run that one a bit harder just because. A really solid workout heading into my rest day tomorrow.

Still feeling very heavy and bloated. 14 miles along Lake Samammish. A few light rain drops but no complaints here.

I was planning on my mid-week speed workout to be on Wednesday, but with the weather forecast for Wednesday being what it is, I thought I better sneak it in today. I managed to beat the nasty weather by about 30 minutes. Calm winds, cloudy skies and relatively mild at 52. Degrees. 30 minutes after my workout, it was 34 degrees and snowing at my house. I'm so done, but at least I managed to get my workout in prior to that mess.

The workout was 8x1000m. These are always tough. The target was to alternate between 3:03s and 3:06s with 90 seconds rest. My times wound up being:

3:04; 3:02; 3:04; 3:02; 3:02; 3:03; 3:04; 3:02. The 7th one was the hardest as the lactic acid built up and the fact that I hadn’t had anything to eat since breakfast was catching up to me.