Sean's Running Blog

Thick overcast but perfect temperature. Ran along the Sammamish River trail.

If there was ever such a thing as a perfect day for an easy 13 mile run, it would be today. 75 degrees, light breeze, a few clouds floatings by. Days like this are what make the winters here bearable. Ran along the Sammamish River trail. Such a beautiful run. Getting the itch to run a Fall marathon but trying to find one that doesn't totally thrash me for cross country. Looking forward to the SJJ Half Marathon on Labor Day.

A relatively "easy" pre-race workout. 4M@5:15 pace. The workout should have been a lot easier than it was. Hit the times but felt like I had run 12M at that pace not 4. Weird how some workouts just don't go as hoped. Felt even worse during the cooldown. 7:00 pace felt hard.

I did it in the evening after having eating a wonderfully tasty but bloating Qdoba burrito with my wife for lunch. Hopefully things will go better on Monday.

A beautiful 12 miles along the Sammamish River Trail.

Easy 7 with my sister and Mark Howard essentially running the RR Days 10k route. My sister split off at 4 to run longer. It was painful to only run 7 on a Saturday but with the half marathon on Monday, it made sense.

Well, I woke up this morning to the expected rain and wind that had been forecasted. Woodinville, site of the race, is about a 30-minute drive and away from the foothills so I was hoping for better weather down there. Ummm...not so much. Pretty much rained the entire race. Not hard, but constant and enough to get pretty soaked from head to toe. The nice thing was that the temperture was perfect. 56-58 degrees and not a ray of sun in sight. The past few times I've run this race, it's been quite warm and muggy so the cooler temps were welcome even if it meant rain.

I despise this course but it's the PNTF Half Marathon championships so there is this kind of obligatory expectation that you run it. Plus, sadly, it's one of the few half marathons for the rest of the year so if you miss it, you're out of luck finding a competitive half until Spring. The course is fine until you hit Mile 6. After a big S-turn with one of those turns being a severe hairpin turn, you hit a monster hill that is probably only .1 mile in length but very steep. For those keep score, that's why my Mile 7 -- and everybody's -- is so slow. But I'm fine with a few hills here and there. Not everything, especially around here, can be flat, but miles 9 and 10 are ridiculous because you essentially wind through the UW Bothell campus four times with several very sharp turns. It's just silly. I figure this course surrenders 20 seconds or so just on completely ridiculous turns. We're talking the equivalent of five or six "turnarounds" where you basically have to come to a stop and start again, especially on wet roads like we had today. OK..I'm done whining about the course. I think.

Mile 1 is a gentle uphill, but uphill nevertheless. I would complain about that but I said I was done complaining. The worst part is that they still haven't figured out how to make the Mile 1 marker accurate. Seriously. How hard is it. Get on your freaking bike, use the Jones counter you used to certify the course and get it right. I was supposedly 5:00 at Mile 1. No way.

Mile 2 is basically flat and Mile 3 is a net downhill as you head into some park in Woodinville. The course itself is beautiful. However, they do this dumb half marathon walk thing that starts an hour ahead of the real race and by Miles 4 and 5, the faster runners start catching the walkers which makes for a lot of congestion on what is a fairly narrow bike path through the park. BTW...that was a complaint about race management not the course. :-)

Felt pretty good through Mile 5. I was still in 6th place and the lead pack had finally made it clear that I wasn't going to catch them as they were now out of sight. A teammate of mine, Brett Winegar, was the only person behind me who was close and he was about 75-100 meters back.

(As a sidenote, at CC Nationals in Spokane last December, I passed Brett about halfway through. He looked absolutely awful. Then with about 1/2 mile to go, he passed me as if he were Usain Bolt and he wound up beating me. Be assured that I had this replaying in my mind throughout today's race.)

At Mile 6 we enter the campus rat maze where I enocuntered hairpin turn #1. (Not complaining, just stating facts.) I am very familiar with the killer hill ahead and just like I do with the Veyo hill at SGM, I planned to take it slower up that hill on purpose. My theory is that on hills like this you can't win a race, but you sure can lose it. So Mile 7 was slow but within the range I expected.

After a mile or so jaunt through historic Woodinville (or whatever town it is) we were back at my favorite campus for some more a"maze"ing running experiences. A few hairpin turns later we were at Mile 9. I say we because by now Brett had caught me. I have a rule that once I pass someone, they never pass me back. So my rule had, at least for now, been broken.

Overall I was feeling fine but mentally, I wasn't really there. I was playing through my head the various scenarios of how the final 4 miles might play out. Josh Ricardi, another teammate, was 1/4 back but not closing. Brett and I were exchanging the lead back and forth. I didn't feel like I had a lot of fight in me at this point so while I wasn't going to give up on maintaining 6th place, i don't know that I had what it took to fend off a strong finish by Brett.

At the 11 Mile mark, we were both communicated our desire to break 70 minutes. So we bore down and really focused on nailing the two miles.

This ended up being the part of the race I was most proud of. The money only ran five deep and I was going to finish either 6th or 7th. So beat Brett or lose to Brett, I was out of the money. So a good part of me was just focused on running hard enough to break 70 minutes. It wasn't until Mile 12 where I got some fight back in me.

After an OK 5:18/5:19 set of miles, I really picked it up with 1.1 to go. As we hit the 13M marker, I felt really strong and threw everything I had at holding off Brett which I did finishing in 6th in a respectable time of 69:33, a course PR by 1:11 for me.

Running, or at least racing, is so mental. The mind is very capable of making the difference between a good race and a poor one. Obviously, the fitness has to be there, but there are a lot fo people with superior fitness who get edged out by people slightly less fit, but more mentally tough.

I'm still amazed at how good races can come of mediocre workouts. My final workout on Thursday of last week (4 miles @ 5:15 on perfectly flat pavement) was more tiring than my race today.

Below are the splits. The campus miles are Miles 7-10.

Mile 1	5:00
Mile 2	5:17
Mile 3	5:14
Mile 4	5:13
Mile 5	5:18
Mile 6	5:24
Mile 7	5:37
Mile 8	5:18
Mile 9	5:25
Mile 10	5:24
Mile 11	5:18
Mile 12	5:19
Mile 13	5:12
Mile .1	0:30
Finish	1:09:33

After a very frustrating two days of not being able to run, I was finally able to get out this morning with some level of comfort and run an easy 9 miles. Tuesday morning I felt like I had just run the SGM. Calves were tight and the quads were on fire. Yesterday felt better but I still couldn't even do a light jog. Never had this happen before after just a half marathon. Kind of weird. But I'm back on my feet and should be able to rattle off another 25-30 miles this week to somewhat salvage the week mileage wise.

A wonderful but dark run this morning. First dark run in quite some time. Planning on a double today. Another 8 or so this afternoon.

10 more miles through Marymoor and the Sammamish River trail. 92 degrees. Glad it was an easy run and not a race. Won't complain though. Having a day this nice and warm mid September isn't exactly normal.

A gorgeous morning. The Indian Summer continues. Nice easy 17 miles with some Hudson Hills thrown in at the end. 10x10 second steep hills. Every step was on my toes. I'll probably feel that in the morning.

Another nice morning. It's a good thing Sunday was a day off because my calves were sorer than i though they would be after just those 10-10sec. hill bursts on Saturday. But that was nothing compared to how they felt after my workout today. I had a flight to NYC later in the day and wasn't going to arrive until 9pm so I knew I needed to get my early week workout in today rather than try for it in NYC.

10M tempo run. First 8 miles at 5:30 and then 2 more at 5:15-18. Each of the first eight miles was between 5:23 and 5:25 except two which were at 5:29-5:30. So I was fast on most of those which didn't help me any when it came time for the 2 5:15-18s. Mile 9 was a slow 5:22 and the final mile was in 5:18. My calves were burning every bit as much after today's workout as they were after last monday's half marathon.

After a cooldown and some stretching, I went home to pack for NYC. Unfortunately I didn't get upgraded to first class so i was stuck in coach in a seat that didn't recline. I drank lots of water and tried to get up and walk around several times. I felt OK but upon landing was really tight. Hope it doesn't jeopardize my planned double for tomorrow in Central Park.  

A.M.

A beautiful if not muggy morning here in NYC. My favorite part about coming to NYC is running in Central Park, especially in the morning when it's completely closed to vehicle traffic. I did the big loop and then the short loop before heading back to the hotel. It's always a bit eerie to run by the boathouse. It's been almost two years since Ryan Shay finished his running career there.

I was pleasantly surprised to feel great this morning. I got a good night's sleep and the three hour time change seemed to have no effect nor did yesterday's challenging workout.

P.M.

A muggy afternoon run but certainly bearable. Central Park was packed as usual which was all the more reason to again do the full 6+ mile loop since few venture out that far. As I passed the finish line for the Olympic Trials, so many great memories flooded back as they always do. Before exiting the park to head back to my hotel, I passed the "400 to go" mark and it sent chills down my spine. I'll never forget that day. It's impossible for me to run through the Park without completely focusing on that great day.

Back home in lovely Seattle. Stomach is still giving me fits. In fact the only time it doesn't bother me is when i'm running. So i skipped dinner and headed out for a run ending at my daughters soccer game. Ran 10x1/10 mile strides in the middle. I need to do more of that.

Got into my workout late this afternoon because of meetings. Was supposed to be a 8M tempo in the 5:2:1 format but three miles in my stomach issues resurfaced. I think I am going to get checked tomorrow. My stomach has been bothering me all week and it finally manifested itself during a run. Must have some kind of bug.

Well I tried to redo the workout today that I was supposed to get done yesterday. But managed to do only 6 of the 8 miles. Was supposed to hit 5M @ 5:28s then 2 @ 5:20 and then a final mile at 5:12. The first five were all in 5:22-5:27 and the final one was in 5:18. That was all the body had to offer today. I felt so good in NYC that I think I underestimated the effect of 13 hours of plane travel in 48 hours. Plus my stomach issues didn't help but they seem to slowly be getting better.  

My wife and I were in Seattle for an early appointment this morning so I decided to do my long run at Green Lake. It was raining most of the run which was nice from the standpoint that Green Lake was less of a mob scene than normal.

About five laps around Green Lake plus a set of 10x10sec hill bursts. The regular miles werew in the 6:20-6:30 range which felt perfect. This was the best I have felt running in a long time. I felt like I could have gone another 19.

Pretty good week overall. First time above 90 miles in many, many weeks.

A.M.

A chilly but gorgeous Monday morning in the NW. Ran 10+ miles with 10 strides thrown in for good measue. I've been reading Brad Hudson's book and I'm going to start supplementing my easy runs with strides and hill bursts 2-3 times per week. I'm also going to start doubling 2-3 times per week. I've noticed that if I do a couple of 10-mile runs in a day that I actually feel better and it may be a way to sneak in some extra miles.

P.M.

Another good 10 miles this afternoon under sunny skies and warm temps. There is that bite in the air though as things cool off in the evening. Dark, rainy days are not far off...but great weather expected all week which I plan to take full advantage of. Shooting to do my workout tomorrow.

A very hot day today. 91 degrees and winds of 20-35mph by the time I got to my workout today. Workout was 20min tempo run at 5:16 pace. Covered 3.81 miles in that time which translates to 5:14s. So I hit it but it took ever last bit of effort. Then I jogged for two miles and then did 6x150m strides in 24-25 seconds. By the time I was done I looked like a salt shaker despite drinking 36 ounces of water from start to finish. The cool down was in the shade of Mill Pond road. It felt very good.

84 degrees and clear blue skies this afternoon with a light breeze to make for perfect easy run weather along the Sammamish River Trail. Ran from work through Marymoor Park almost to Redhook Brewery before turning around. Everything felt really good. Avg pace was 6:45.

10 chilly but beautiful miles on Snoqualmie Ridge. 10 more this evening.

Our early Fall weather has been unusually nice which has me wondering if we're going to have a nasty winter to make up for it. Found this graphic on AccuWeather. I'm hoping it's right.:

Weird morning. Sunny and gorgeous on the Ridge but 600 feet lower in the Valley, dense fog and 48 degrees. When i got to the track at MSHS, I couldn't see the other end through the fog. Spooky but kind of cool. After a 3-mile warmup, I jumped into the workout of 8x1000m in 3:03-3:05. As usual, went out way too fast on the first one hitting it in 3:00. Next three were all in 3:03. Final three were in 3:05. I skipped the last one as a precaution. From about the third rep on, I had a pretty tender ache just above the back of my knee making it hard to extend a full stride with my left leg. I definitely felt my body having to work harder to compensate. Easy 22 miles tomorrow and then off on Sunday. Hopefully by monday the pain is gone.

23 miles through Snoqualmie and beyond. Had to start pretty early...in the dark in fact. It was pretty cold. Forst time I've worn gloves and a hat and long sleeve shirt since last winter. Forst time I've been over 100 miles for quite some time. Not sure how smart that was.

My calf is really bugging me this afternoon. Hopefully the day off will help.

10 chilly miles this morning after dropping off the kids at school. Very tight and sore after the high mileage week. May try for a double tonight.

Wow...what a difference 24 hours makes. Not only did I not get to double yesterday, but after putting ice on my calf last night, everything went downhill from there. I woke up in the middle of the night in writhing pain in my left calf. After a couple of hours of not being to sleep I was able to find some oxycodone. It killed most of the pain and at least made things bearable although I was never able to get back to sleep. I've just never had pain like this. Not only could I not put any pressure on the leg, but it hurt simply lying down. I managed to get into the PT this afternoon and got checked out.

We ruled out a stress fracture but the PT didn't even have to touch my calf to see the big knot in it. It was so sensitive to the touch that she wasn't able to work it over as much as she would have liked but it was a start.

In hindsight, I deserve what I got. 100+ mile weeks are simply not a smart thing for me. I've talked about it over and over. Every time I approach 100 miles my body starts to break down. The difference this time is I felt good during virtually all of the mileage. The consequences didn't come until two days later though. So I'm recommitting to myself once again to never ever try for 100 miles again no matter how good I might feel in the beginning or middle of the week. It's not wise, and frankly, not necessary. I need to be happy with mid 80s mileage any extra energy on getting higher quality workouts. It is those that will help me most in my marathon racing. All I did by running 103 miles last week was get hurt, seriously jeopardize my November marathon plans and make it so my mileage this week will be almost zero. Not smart.

It wasn't just the mileage thought. It was how I got there. I jumped from 60s, to low 80s to 103 miles. Somehow I didn't feel like the 10% rule applied to me. And I still believe 10% is probably too conservative for someone who has been building up a pretty good base for a few years now. But jumping 25% week to week while doing to hard workouts in a week is insane.

The third factor was likely my shoes. I fell in love with the Brooks Launch and ran way too much in them. They are a straight up neutral shoe. I have a mild to moderate pronation. If I were a mid mileage guy, I may have been OK. But where the injury is and the movements that make it hurt are an indication of a collapsing arch caused in part by an unsupportive shoe. So I am putting aside the Launch, at least as a primary shoe. Too bad....I love that shoe more than any other.

So I will have to jump back to the Infinity or the Ravenna which is a new mild/moderate suport shoe that they have come out with that is also pretty light. Ugh...why do I do these things.

Can't run. Can barely walk and that's with a big limp