Fly me to the moon...

This was my first day back at running after a quick trip to Moscow, ID to check out the U. of Idaho campus.  I drove up (a long 11 hour drive) on Wednesday, visited the campus and physics department on Thursday, and drove back on Friday.  I didn't get any running in during that time.  I ran this morning with Sasha, Jeff and Mary Ann.  The legs felt a little sore immediately after the run, but they feel fine now.  Total time for 8 was 64:15 (8:02/mile).

I ran with the usual group plus Ben Crozier.  It was an interesting workout.  Jeff slept in so we headed in the opposite direction as usual and met him along the trail.  Then we turned around and Sasha and Ben started doing 400s.  We headed out along the trail, turned around a little after Geneva road, and headed back to the magic mark.  Jeff and Sasha then started their speedwork.  I ran out another 2 miles with Mary Ann and then turned around.  Total time was 1:23:30 (8:21/mile) for 10 miles.  I wasn't planning on going 10 today, but the legs felt fine.

It was a typical morning run.  I debated on whether to do 8 or 10, but decided on 10.  The legs were a little sore afterwards.  I think it is from the increased mileage as well as the lack of sufficient sleep.  Total time for 10.1 was 1:21:24 (8:03/mile).

I overslept this morning and ended up doing the entire run alone.  It was raining as well, and for an instant, I was tempted to take the day off.  I headed out about an hour after the usual time and met Sasha, Jeff and Mary Ann going the other direction around the 2 mile mark.  The legs were a little sore particularly the quads again and my right knee.  I was thinking of doing Mary Ann's race this Saturday, but I may just take it easy.  I'll see how it feels tomorrow.  Total time was 61:19 (7:40/mile).

I decided to give the legs a little break today and only went 6. I ran with the usual group. Total time was 47:45 (7:57/mile).

I woke up a little later today and headed out for a run by myself.  I ran out to the 3 mile mark on the trail and turned around.  I headed back to the start of Mary Ann's race.  I decided not to run since my legs were a little sore from the miles this week.  I had a week with 8 and another with around 17 before this week, so I figured a hard race wouldn't be a good idea.  I paced Joseph Pachev in the 200m and then helped time the mile.  The first 5K guy was coming in as I was leaving.  I headed back home for a total of 6.4 for the day.

It was a nice sunny morning run with Sasha, Jeff and Mary Ann.  Mary Ann was telling us about an idea she has for testing how different shoes with varying weight affect a person in a run.  It turns out that it will be a very difficult experiment to do with many factors coming into play.  I don't think the data would be good enough or believable enough to quantify the results.  Perhaps the best you could do is conclude that heavier shoes slow you down more than lighter shoes.  Sasha was having a VPB day during this discussion.  Total time for 8 was 63:36 (7:57/mile).

We had some different people on the run today. Mary Ann brought her friend Cindy and she did 2 with us before turning around. We kept going and caught up to a girl named Kristy. We all turned around at 4 miles since Jeff was only running 8 today to taper for the Salt Lake City Marathon this weekend. Kristy turned around when we turned off the trail. We finished the 8, and then Sasha, Mary Ann and I did another 2 miles. It was pretty warm this morning, but it was sprinkling a little bit. The legs are still a little sore. Total time was 1:24:17 (8:26/mile) for 10.

We had another good group this morning with the usuals plus Matt and Cindy.  Ben was also supposed to be there, but he got pulled over on the way to Sasha's.  We found out later that his car was impounded.  We all started out together in the rain.  Cindy turned around at 2, and we all turned around at 3.  Jeff continued his taper by only doing 6.  Sasha, Mary Ann and I did another 2.  Total time for 8 was (8:07/mile).  The legs are still a bit sore.

Eight miles with the usual group. It was interesting with the big snowstorm we had. There were branches all over the trail and even a large one that was about half the tree. We went out 2 and turned around since Jeff was only doing 4. Then Sasha, Mary Ann and I went out for 4 more. Total time was 69:41 (8:42/mile). There was some lively discussion during the run.

It was just Sasha and I this morning.  Mary Ann was running later, and Jeff was only going 2 and planned to run alone.  We talked about muscle fatigue and running form.  We both notice sore quads before anything else, and it is due mainly to our running form.  World class runners know how to use their hamstrings, glutes and calves better and more efficiently.  This allows them to run faster and longer with less muscle fatigue.  I noticed in college that when I started running longer distances my stride changed.  I had a lower leg lift and didn't use my hamstrings, glutes and calves as much except in short distances.  Perhaps it was a subconscious change in order to protect myself from injury.  As a test during the run, I tried to use my other leg muscles by using a higher leg lift for about 200m.  Within 100m, my hamstrings were feeling fatigued.  Granted it was at the end of 8 miles, but it was interesting.  It was a good discussion.  Total time for 8 was 65:19 (8:10/mile).

My training partners were doing the SLC marathon or 1/2 marathon this morning so I slept in and ran later.  I decided to do a little bit of speedwork.  I started with 2 miles warm-up and then did a mile in 5:50.  Then the plan was to pick up the pace and hit the next half mile at 5:30 pace.  I came in with a time of 2:46 (5:32/mile) so it was pretty close.  I finished the rest of the 8 miles at a fairly easy pace and finished with a total time of 56:31 (7:04/mile).  I felt good during the first mile, but the 5:30 pace was a little tougher.  I think I probably could have gone a little further (1-2 miles) at that pace, but it wasn't easy.  The legs felt fine.

I decided to try the Asics again today.  The legs and feet felt fine so that is a good sign.  It was the return of Ted this morning.  We started out with Ted, Sasha, and Mary Ann.  Mary Ann stopped to stretch her hamstring about 0.75 into it.  We continued on to the 3 mile mark and stopped.  Mary Ann caught us and kept going.  We turned around and finished 6 with Ted.  Sasha and I then went out for 2 more.  Total time for 8 was 59:08 (7:23/mile).  We ran a bit faster today because Ted's knee feels better if he goes faster than 8 minute miles.  It was a pretty good run.

Started out with Sasha, Jeff, and Ted.  After a little more than a mile, Sasha took off for some speedwork.  Jeff, Ted and I ran to the three mile mark and turned around.  We kept expecting Sasha to catch up, but he never did until we finished the 6 miles.  We finished in 43:22 (7:13/mile).  My knee hurt about halfway through, but it stopped after a little while.  I then headed out with Sasha for some more.  We did 3.25 more for a total of 9.25 in 69:30 (7:30/mile).

I ran 6 miles with Sasha, Jeff, and Ted.  Then Sasha and I paced Ben for a 2x1 mile with 800m rest in between.  He wanted to go 7:10 pace.  The first mile was 6:50 something and the second mile was 6:30 something.  It felt pretty relaxed even after 6 miles at about 7:30 pace, so that is a good sign.  Total time for 9 was 69:11 (7:41/mile).

For the second day in a row, I slept through my alarm.  Yesterday I woke up just in time to get dressed and run out the door.  Today, it was past 7 already.  I ran later in the heat.  I did 8 along the trail in 58:55 (7:22/mile).  It felt really good and smooth today.

Yesterday felt great, but today I was tired and a bit dehydrated.  The legs felt dead.  I did 6 with Jeff, Sasha, and Ted.  We have been going faster this week for Ted's knee, and it has felt okay except for today.  Ted and Jeff also have a habit of speeding up when we turn off the trail with about 1/2 mile to go.  I kept up, but my legs didn't like it.  We finished in 43:37 (7:16/mile).  I then ran another 3 miles with Sasha.  We ended up with a time of 66:14 (7:22/mile).

I started out with Sasha, Ted, Jeff, and James, Ted's son. After 2 miles Sasha took off for a tempo of sorts. We continued on to 3 miles where everyone else turned around. I continued on. I wanted to get a long run in. I was originally thinking about 10.1 and then thought it would be good to add a couple of miles on at the end. On the way back I decided to just do a full 13.1 miles. To my knowledge, I've never run that far consecutively. I might have done it in college because we did longer days on Saturday at the Indiana Dunes state park on Lake Michigan, but I never timed it or noted how far it was. I finished with a time of 1:37:26 (7:26/mile) with the last mile in 6:30. I wanted to see how I felt going a little faster after 12.1 miles. It felt good. My legs felt tired at 7:30 pace, but they actually felt better at 6:30. Maybe I was using some different muscles to go faster and they weren't as tired. As I write this now in the afternoon, my legs feel pretty good. There is some residual soreness, but nothing big. That's progress!