Buttsweat Towel© season has begun

47F, S 16 mph.  8:36 AP.

37F, NNE 12 mph.  7:36 AP.  Really feeling good lately.  This was one of those runs that I just didn't want to end but I have a job.  Which I need to go to for money.

46F.  I waited until it stopped raining, then went for a short run.  Then it rained on me anyway.  8:05 AP.  20-miler w/ 11 @ MP tomorrow...

36F, N 10 mph, wet.  Long MP run #2 of 3 today.  First 9 easy, last 11 at GMP.

First 9 -- AP 7:40 -- 8:01, 7:41, 7:38, 7:40, 7:43, 7:42, 7:31, 7:38, 7:32

Last 11 -- AP 6:45 -- 6:50, 6:48, 6:52, 6:45, 6:44, 6:50, 6:49, 6:47, 6:39, 6:44, 6:26

Overall for 20 miles -- AP 7:10

Good confidence-building run.  I like to run the MP portion faster than my actual goal pace, which is only 7:03, in the hopes that 7:03 will feel like a walk in the park on the big day.  Actually, it probably ended up being closer to an 11-mile time trial than an MP run.  I picked up the pace for the last mile to see if I still had some gas in the tank.  I definitely did have some energy to spare, but not a ton.

Still, looking at the total time of 2:23 for 20, it's nice to know I could've just done a recovery jog for another 10K and still PR'd the marathon today.  Seems like the endurance is just about there...

25F, N 18 mph, w/c 12F.  A little too cold for this Texas boy.  Danielle got me some pants at Walmart to run in, but it was still a little painful on my face going into the wind.  I think I set a PR for longest shoe-tying session.  Normally my shoes never come untied since I double-knot them, but of course, today they did.  I fumbled around for quite a while since it was dark and I lacked dexterity in my frozen hands.  At least the roads were dry - we had an inch or two of snow on Monday morning but it didn't stick to the roads.  7:48 AP.

20F.  Thankfully, not much wind though - it actually felt warmer than yesterday.  Gutted my way through 15 miles @ 7:46 AP.  Felt pretty worn-out afterward, that hard 20 on Sunday is definitely still in my legs.  Still plan on taking it easy the next couple days, then possibly a 5K on Saturday; I need to get going on that sub-19 goal.

TM

I've been in Dallas the last couple days for job interviews, minimal running.  AM 4 on the TM, and 4 PM miles with some strides when I got home.  At least the legs are nice and rested now -- 5K tomorrow!

33F.  Success on my sub-19 goal.  I measured it at 3.08 miles and it was not on their certified course, so maybe add 10 seconds to the time, but definitely a big PR and a legit sub-19.  None of the faster folks showed up, so I ran by myself, although it was a 2-lap course so I did some people-dodging on lap 2.  Splits:

6:05, 5:59, 6:00, 25 sec for .08 (5:25 pace for the stub).

Overall Garmin had it at exactly 6:00 AP, which equates to an 18:39 5K time.  Definitely feeling good about my chances for 3:05 now.

40F, SSE 10 mph, light rain for a few miles.  Pretty enjoyable run when it wasn't raining - one of those where I would've liked to just keep running.  But I need to keep the mileage somewhat in check to avoid breaking down too much in this last month before the race.  7:35 AP.

8:48/mile

50F, SSE 17 mph.  7:49/mile.  Busy week, had to get this one in at 4am...

65F, SSE 15 mph.  Wanted 13 miles but I turned around early.  The 5 hours of sleep I got the night before last was ok, but the 3 hours last night was apparently not quite enough.  It was like painful slow motion out there.  Work is kicking my butt right now with late hours.  I also have to fly out to Houston early tomorrow for another job interview, so will probably do what I should've done today and just skip the run.  Hope to catch up with everyone's blogs this weekend...

8:12 AP.

34F.  7:35 AP.  Good moderate-effort run to get back in the swing of things.  I never feel awesome after a day off, but this was ok, all things considered.  Starting to catch back up on sleep a little, after 7 solid hours last night.

37F, 8:24 pace.

Since I made it through the week with no workouts, I think I will hammer the last 5 or 6 miles on my 16-miler tomorrow.

50F, overcast.  Pretty good run today.  Did the first 10 easy, followed by 6 fast, but I didn't have a specific pace in mind - it ended up being a nice progressive tempo.  Probably a perfect marathon workout.

10 ez - 7:40 AP

6 fast - 6:28 AP  (6:38, 6:33, 6:32, 6:23, 6:21, 6:18).

AP for 16 miles - 7:13

Probably could've gotten a nice 10K PR today if there was a race.  It was surprising how good it felt in the 6:30s, really encouraging.  So, of course, I picked it up for the last 3 until it hurt a little more.  Didn't take much extra speed to get that special threshold-y feeling.

Gonna do some higher mileage this next week, all easy, with my last long MP run on Christmas.  This cycle has had a definite lack of workouts, maybe 1/week at best, but by making sure I'm fresh for them, they have all been pretty good.  Seems to be working so far.

56F, raining.  8:31/mile

37F, W 21-28 mph, w/c 26F.  Cold front arriving...weird direction for the wind though - it's usually only from the west briefly if it is switching from south to north, but it's a steady west wind today.

8:09/mile for the run, my legs are still tired from Sunday so I wasn't quite into my preferred GA pace range, but I needed the rest so I let the legs pick the pace.

36F, SSW 10 mph.  7:43 AP.  I herded a cow today who had gotten out.  She was on the dirt road and kept running away from me as I approached.  After about a half mile, she went down a driveway and hopped over a section of barbed wire fence that was sagging down a little.  Seeing a cow jump a fence was a first for me.  There was a bunch of similar-looking cows in that field, so I think I unwittingly but effectively herded her back into the right place.  Learned 2 things:

1. Cows can run a sub-4 800m.

2. Cows can hurdle

50F, 8:27 pace, now in Longview for a few days.

46F.  7:50 pace with some good hills in Longview.  Actually felt a little beat up afterward despite the easy-ish pace.

40F.  recovery pace w/ strides

39F, overcast.  Perfect morning for a runner.

Merry Christmas all.  This was my big Christmas run, the most grueling of the cycle.  8 easy, followed by 14 at GMP.

First 8 @ 7:37 AP.

Last 14 @ 6:53 AP.  Splts were pretty even - 6:54, 6:57, 6:56, 6:46, 6:51, 6:55, 6:56, 6:53, 6:54, 6:53, 6:53, 6:52, 6:52, 6:46.

22 miles total @ 7:09 AP.

Interestingly, this was the first run of this cycle where the limiting factor was my legs, not my lungs.  Even through the last mile it felt aerobically (pretty) comfortable, but I just couldn't seem to propel myself any faster when I tried in the last mile.  This run marks the end of a 74-mile week which is a lot for me, so I am hoping it is tired legs, and that with a good pre-race taper, the dead-leg thing will not be a factor.  I mean, I need to do an extra 12 miles at race pace on top of the 14 I did today!  Still very happy with the run, and even happier that it's done.  I do feel like I'm in shape for 3:05 but with very little room to spare.  Jan 15 should be an interesting day...

32F.  8:08/mile.  My legs were a lot more responsive than they have been 2 days after my last two long MP runs.  Definite improvement in recovery, felt pretty good today but kept it in the 8's to play it safe and make sure I'm soaking up the benefits of Sunday's run.

44F, SSW 16-24 mph.  7:39 AP.

This week I'm just shaving off a mile or two from a few runs, but should still be in the 60s for the week.  Next week the taper will become more significant, with about a 50-mile week.  Then, obviously taking it really easy for the last week.

34F.  8:31 AP.  Very creaky and hobbly the first couple miles.  Need taper

43F.  7:23 AP.  Intended to do an 11-mile progression run today but it ended up being just 10 plus a cooldown mile.

8:09, 7:56, 7:44, 7:34, 7:23, 7:13, 7:02, 6:53, 6:43, 6:39, 7:53.

I probably should have been able to keep it up and finish in the 6:20s, but it was a definite "off day."  I was already breathing too hard at mile 3...mile 10 ended with a steep 30-40 ft hill and I knew I was done after that.  MP felt like 10k pace, just a yuck-day.  I am hoping the 22-miler is just still in my legs, although you'd think 5 days is enough to recover.  Oh well, taper is coming up soon.  I do have 1 more workout next week; maybe it won't be quite as confidence-shattering.

72F, SW 15 mph.  Ah I remember when 72 felt cool, now it feels like a sauna.  8:32/mile recovery in the early afternoon.