Buttsweat Towel© season has begun

71F, 89%.  7:25 AP.  Ended up with 1 @ MP plus a faster half-mile or so on the way back.  Sticky out there.  Had a family of gnats glued to my torso when I was done - this is the official signal that summer has begun.

AM:  73F, 85%.  6 @ 8:34 AP.

PM:  4 on the TM, with 6 x 1-min strides @ 5k.

5k pace workout tomorrow.  DP will be right around 70, but I'm going to give all these workouts a shot outside first, at least once, before making the call to move them to the TM.  I'm pretty intent on staying away from "workout fails" this summer so if I think I'll do better indoors, as much as I hate it, I'm going to suck it up and hit the gym.

AM:  75F, 82%.  8.5 miles total.  Today was a workout day, 6 x 800, 400m recoveries.  On my warmup, which is just through nice, normal suburban neighborhoods, a lady slows down in her car next to me and yells, "Wooooo, shirtless!!"  Then as she was driving off, a large dragonfly whacked me in the face.  I'm still trying to process what this all means.

On to the workout...  I wanted to hit goal 5k pace, which was 2:52.  I averaged 2:53.3.  Pretty close, considering the dew point was about 69 (1 degree shy of The Death Zone) it was actually a really good workout.  Splits were 2:54.7, 53.3, 54.4, 54.5, 53.5, 49.2.

The collection of gnats on my stomach was 20% larger than yesterday's.

PM:  4.5 on the TM.  Same routine: 2 miles slow, then start playing with the buttons.  Today it was a couple quarter miles @ MP, then 4 x 45 sec @ 1-mile GP.

AM:  73F, 86%.  6 @ 8:44 AP.  Cranky, bitter legs.

PM: 4 on the TM.  Cranky, bitter legs.

75F, 83%.  7:15 AP.  8-mile aerobic tempo today.  I did this same route @ 6:30/mile 3 weeks ago (when it was 57 degrees) so I thought 6:50 would be reasonable today, but I was going to be happy to keep the splits under 7:00.  So, 5 mile warmup, then 8 @ 6:49 AP (6:56, 6:44, 6:48, 6:52, 6:46, 6:55, 6:49, 6:44).

It was definitely easier to run 6:30 in cool conditions than it was to run 6:50 today.  But I'm going to keep this one outside rather than move it to the TM; I don't have a marathon for 6 months so no need to lock in a certain pace, just looking for a good, hard aerobic effort.  This is the kind of run that should make me tougher in summer races as well.  Glad to be done with it though; I can be happy right now because now is the longest possible time before I have to do it again.

AM:  74F, 86%.  6 @ 8:30 AP.

PM:  4+ on the treadmill, about a mile worth of hills in 35-45 second increments.  All at 4%, started at 10mph, worked up to 12mph.

5 @ 8:00 AP, then headed to the SARR monthly fun run (free!) with the kids.  For the hundred yard dash, they grouped them by age and my oldest won her heat.  So what if there were only 2 kids in it...(and the other kid was wearing jeans)....  Then I paced her in the half mile race, probably went too slow for her but she ran it all in 5:09.  

Now we're headed to Abilene to visit some old military friends.  Might get in a run Sunday morning around my old stomping grounds...

66F, 88%, rain.  7:45 AP.  I wanted to run my old dirt roads since we were back in Abilene, but they would've been muddy today so I stayed close to the hotel (lightning nearby as well).  Legs were pretty flat until about 5 miles into the run.  I'm finishing off my highest mileage week in over a year though.

Track meet tomorrow night.  Kind of a weird dilemma though - I need a nice long warmup (today helped prove that) but the heat index is going to be in the upper 90s and I don't know how much sense it makes to run around for 30+ minutes out there, jacking up my core temp.  Maybe a couple segments of warmup, broken up by sitting in the car, blasting the a/c?  I'll have to think about that one...

AM:  76F, 85%.  6 @ 8:00 AP.  Couple of ~30 sec strides @ goal mile pace.

PM:  we had a line of thunderstorms come through at lunch and somehow that cancelled the 6pm meet.  At 6pm there was severe sunshine.  The school was worried about the infield being too sloppy.  When the guy in charge told me that, I jokingly said "ah, who cares about the field events!"  He was kinda old and I don't know if he knew I was kidding, so it was awkward for a few seconds.  Anyway, I was ready to run and so warmed up a mile then did a 400 at my planned race pace (77s).  It actually felt pretty bad.  Then a couple 200s that felt hard.  Meh, maybe the cancellation was a good idea after all.  Try again next week...

AM:  68F, 87%.  7 mi total.  I woke up and saw the arctic-like conditions, and got excited.  Not one to look a gifthorse in the mouth (and still rested from the cancelled track meet), I moved tomorrow's 3k workout to today.  Correct move.  I went back to the last time I did this workout and figured I should improve since the conditions were about the same.  Warmup felt great, which is unusual.  The first rep (usually the slowest) was already under my average for last time, and it felt like a joke, which is crazy.  5 x 800 @ 3k, 2 min rest.

I averaged 2:42.7.  Splits were 2:46.6, 2:43.9, 2:43.5, 2:43.0, 2:36.6.

After the second one, I was pretty sure I'd PR the workout (old avg PR was 2:46).  The next number on my mind was my actual McMillan 3k pace -- 2:43.  I knew I had to really go on the last rep to get it, but I managed a fast one which was enough to bring the average down.

Very encouraging.  I suspected my fitness level was good, but it's always so hard to tell in the summer months, since you can't push as hard.  Fortunately we had this random icy-cold morning.  This will help motivate me -- the work I'm doing is indeed helping, even if I don't hit these paces again for awhile.

PM:  4 on the TM.  Ate a huge lunch, so I was happy just doing 4 x 1/4 mile on/off (9.5/7.0) to lock in some muscle memory for Thursday's HMP workout.

I looked up the nutritional info for my Carl's Jr lunch: 2230 calories, including 121g of fat.  The fat is especially cool - equivalent to over a quarter pound of pure lard.  Yeah, Americaaaa!

AM:  67F, 82%.  6 @ 8:46 AP.  Another great morning to run.  Legs were kind of dead, but I thought about trying to pack in another workout.  Would've been a bad idea.

PM:  4 on the TM, same routine as yesterday.

AM:  77F, 85%.  11 @ 7:32 AP.  Today was LT day.  I'd planned 4-5 miles continuous at a reduced pace due to the heat/humidity, but could still only manage a 5k in 20:04.  A 20-min tempo is ok, I guess, though it's hard to get too excited about a 5k that's slower than HM pace.  So, I'll give myself a half-Workout Fail.  This was workout #10 of my 5k block of training and the other 9 were successful, so I've still got a good percentage rolling.  Anyway, this confirms what I said 3 weeks ago about the LT workout being the first to move to the TM.  So let it be written.

PM:  TM run (4.5 mi).  I was irritated about my morning run, had my best flats in the bag, and caffeine coursing through my veins...deadly combo - so the normal stride routine was out.  After a 2-mile w/u, I did 1 mile @ 10mph, .5 @ 7.5, .5 @ 11.0, .25 @ 7.5, .25 @ 12.0.  Not a real workout but I feel better now.

AM:  66F, 93%.  Whaa?  If I'd known it was going to be cold, I would've saved my tempo for today.  Weatherman Fail.  6 miles, recovery pace (forgot to look).

PM:  4 on the TM, with my hill sprint routine.  5% this time.  I think outside I'd probably run faster and shorter hill sprints but this probably works just fine.

74F, 90%.  7:29 AP.  Ran right through some race they were having on the Leon Creek trail today.  Not sure what it was, but it must have involved several out and backs.  Seemed like most participants were walking.  Very few returned my cheery "good morning" greetings, so I started ignoring them all.

Got enough miles for the week that I'll probably take tomorrow off - legs have been feeling old and creaky the last 2-3 days.  Then hopefully the 1600 on Monday evening.

AM:  76F, 83%.  6 @ 8:04 AP.  Did a couple 30-sec strides @ mile pace without looking at my watch and they were around 5:15.  Did not feel as crisp as last week.

I signed up for a HM this weekend.  Kinda surprising they would even have one in south Texas at this time of year, but I need to do some racing, even if it's at a heat slog pace.

PM:  93F, "fees like" 96F, SSE 16-25 mph.  I ran the 1600m tonight.  My warmup was a little pitiful, only made it 2 miles and did 3 or 4 strides.  I did the first stride into the wind and it was depressing enough that I did the rest with the tailwind.  Then sat in my car for 10 minutes blasting the a/c in an attempt to cool down.

They called up everyone in the event.  I looked around and it was me, an old guy, and 7 or 8 kids.  Not like HS kids....like maybe 10-year-olds.  Ah, what did I sign up for?  Anyway it would definitely turn out to be a solo time trial.  My splits were 76, 81 (2:37), 83 (4:00), 78 (5:18).  True, it was hot and windy, but I left a lot of effort on the table as well.  It's hard to go into beast mode when you're feeling ridiculous as you're lapping adorable little kids.  Anyway, I don't think I'll do any more of these meets.  I just kinda felt stupid out there.  The price was right though - $1.50!

AM:  77F, 80%.  8 @ 7:53 AP.  Standard slog - felt cruddy for 7.5 miles and ok for 0.5.  Mostly thought about my history of racing little kids like this time when I crushed the little girl, and of course the sprint to the finish against the 15-year-old.  Dang kids.

PM:  4 on the TM, including 4 x 0.25 mi on/off (10.0/7.0) to prime the pump for a 10k workout tomorrow.  I'll give it a whirl on the track, and probably set the bar pretty low for myself.  That way it's easier to succeed, see?

77F, 85%.  Workout Fail.  I was going to do a 2 mi + 4 x 1 @ 10k at the track, and even added the 20 sec/mile Death Zone premium (DP was 72), but could only make it through the first 6 laps before I fell off pace.  This downward spiral sure escalated quickly!  9 good workouts in a row, only to be followed by 2 Workout Fails and a Race Fail in the past week.  I guess I've been going at it pretty hard for almost 6 weeks now.  I'll take it super easy the next couple days to try and reset.  Then "race" a half on Saturday - it'll be too hot to RACE so I'll "race."  Goal will be marathon PR divided by 2.

77F, 81%.  No watch, but probably not a world record.  Legs feel like they might be trying to come back to me.  Should be good after tomorrow, then I'll be ready for Saturday's slogathon race.

75F, 84%.  7:24 AP.  Tested out a few paces for tomorrow's race.  Even at 80 degrees, I think 6:50 is reasonable for a HM.  Guess we'll see.  Several gnats in the eyeball this morning.  Now one eye is red and puffy, and I have an early meeting/presentation to run.  Perfect.

80F, 82%.  Hwell, I severely underestimated how slow I'd go in the heat.  They started the race at 8am, which meant a 9:30 finish and the heat index in the mid-80s.  My first 4 miles were sub-7 and that was it.  Last couple were in the 7:30-7:40 range.  I think I'm ready for summer to be over now.  Hopefully I got some benefit from the torture (other than my sweet pilsner glass for AG award).  Danielle and the kids came out and I think the kids had fun though.  They had lots of questions about why I didn't have a shirt on.

I'll see how next week goes...might start using the TM a lot more for workouts.  Just don't want a repeat of last summer and I can feel the heat-induced apathy trying to sneak in already.  

AM:  76F, 86%.  6 @ 8:33 AP.  Starting to see the same people on my recovery route every morning. There's Happy UTSA Couple on bikes, Girl That Looks at Me With Contempt For No Reason, The Lorax on a Bike (he always waves), and Unhappy Asian Guy Walking (my goal is to get him to acknowledge my presence one day).

PM:  4 on the TM, with 7 x 45s on / 75s off.  On's @ 5k pace.  Felt good to get the legs cranking past slog pace.

AM:  77F, 82%.  8 @ 7:47 AP.  Felt less sloggy today.

PM:  Copied yesterday's TM run, with the 5k strides, but added a quarter mile @ 1-mile GP, plus a short cooldown.

Track workout tomorrow.  #imsureitsgoingtogojustgreat

AM:  77F, 85%.  8 mi. total.  Today was the next step in my 5k series of workouts after the last 6 x 800 session.  Today it was 5 x 1000, 400m active recovery.  Target was 3:45, which is more like 10k pace, but 5k effort in The Death Zone.  I averaged 3:44.4.  Reps were 3:41, 3:46, 3:46, 3:47, 3:42.

I felt completely done after the 3rd rep, like I would normally feel after the last rep in a hard set.  So I walked the first 100m of the recovery lap before the 4th and 5th reps, and was able to barely hang in there.  At least I finished what I set out to do (for once), even if I took some extra recovery/cheating.  Small victory today.  After I got back in the car, a nice cooling rain began to fall - cruel tease from the running gods.

PM:  4 on the TM with some more aggressive strides than usual.

AM:  70F, 97%.  5 @ 8:44 AP.  Throttled the legs pretty good yesterday.

PM:  4 slow TM miles, nothing fancy today.

AM:  74F, 89%.  7.5 mi total.  I'd originally penciled in a 13 w/8 tempo for today, but Saturday's slogathon pretty much covered that.   So I opted for a much shorter workout; one that Bam suggested awhile back to spur on some improvements: 8 x 200m @ 800m pace, 90 sec off.  A 1-mile workout instead of 8 miles...much better.  

Anyway, I targeted 35s and averaged 33.0 (32.5, 35.1, 33.4, 33.7, 33.5, 33.1, 33.2, 29.4).  Obviously sprinted the last one; felt good though.  Basically a session of hard 30-second strides; not really a workout, but not something I ever really do a lot either, so I think it'll be helpful.

PM:  5.5 on the TM.  Feeling a little caffeinated and frisky for my TM run - 2 w/u, 1 mi @ 9.7, .25 mi easy, then 2 miles in ~12:00 (combination of increasing speeds).

77F, 85%.  7:35 AP.  A good 90 minutes of poor man's altitude training.  Good week too, close to 70 miles.  So far I've been keeping my summer promise to myself - to keep the average week above 60.  The 2 toughest months are coming up but I think I'm more motivated this summer.

AM:  77F, 83%.  6 @ 8:05 AP, included some pickups.  My weight vs mileage chart is looking better lately.  My goal is to keep miles per week above the red dotted line and avg weight below the blue dotted line.

It was tough to see the relationship since I stopped running for a couple weeks in March, and ran Boston in April which kinda botched the trendlines.  So below is a simple linear regression - you can better see the inverse relationship between mileage and weight:

 PM:  4 on the TM with 3k-paced strides.