My Running Log

Ran down to 1000 East 7300 South, then over on Creek road to Highland. Then up to 9400 S and home. Started out feeling OK but I felt super great at the end. It was nice to take it a little easy today. My average pace was relatively slow - 8:10.

Wanted to get myself used to the cadence and feel of running at 7:00 pace, so I did a treadmill run. The cardio part of it was fine, so I continued it for longer than originally planned. Turned out to be 13.1 miles in 1:32:20. That included an 8:30 first and last mile. It's part of my "sharpening" strategy.

8 miles on treadmill. 58:30. Felt pretty good. Decided to go longer than originally planned and not run on Friday.

No run today. Resting up. I am one of those who believes 5 days per week is often plenty. Especially the day before a 20 miler.

My super kind wife and daughter took me up to Solitude in Big Cottonwood Canyon and dropped me off. Actually, it was just past Solitude at the Guardsman Pass turnoff. It was 8500 ft elevation. And I followed Dustin's advice to run downhill.

The first five miles were at about 7:30-7:50 pace as I was getting warmed and before I went to the bathroom. After that, I blew through some quick miles around 7:00 pace or faster (the best was 6:33). It felt really, really good to do that. The rest of the way down the canyon, I was around 7:00 pace as well as for 2-3 miles in town. Most of this was downhill. Then I ran through Fort Union and up 1000 East and those miles were 8:30-8:50 pace. I was pretty tired by the end but not extremely sore. We'll see how it is tomorrow. Average pace was 7:25. It was great to get in a quicker long run, even if it was mostly downhill. It gave me more confidence in my goal pace for St. George.

This week was supposed to be a recovery week. And it was other than two hard workouts. But somehow I still got my mile up to 60 again. That's the fourth time. So I'm elated about that. One more hard week and then the taper begins. 

My legs were sooooooooooooooo sore on Sunday and today. That 4000 ft descent on Saturday's run hammered me. So it's a good thing I did that to prepare for the marathon. 

I went out (for the first time) and ran with the SLC Track Club. They were doing 12x400m at East High. The first couple were 91, 87. Then we gradually got faster. The fastest two were 77 and 79. Even though my legs were sore, they felt good. I'm getting some of my speed back, even though my times didn't show it. This was a nice group of people, but I doubt I'll be able to run with them much due to scheduling.

8 miles total. 

Somehow I pulled myself out of bed at 5:15 am and went running. Did 8.5 miles on the treadmill in 68 minutes. I am still quite sore but getting better. Hopefully tomorrow it will be close to normal. Might try to do a run tonight.

These long runs have been helping my weight. I was 166.4 today. So I have officially lost 20 lbs since the beginning of the year. I love being lighter and trimmer. 

Ran after school today in the afternoon heat. Reminded me of x-country season workouts back in the day. Was feeling good from the beginning, so did a fast warmup mile in 7:30. Had a bit of a tail wind to counteract some of the uphill for the next few miles. Went through the first five miles averaging 7 minute pace. Then was going into the head wind and slightly uphill. I started to falter but was able to recover a bit and push through at 7:30 pace for the next 3 miles. I was happy with that. I had to push through some discomfort. Average pace for the 8 miles was 7:10. Finished with 3/4 mile at 9:00 pace for cooldown.

Legs were still a bit sore/tired from Saturday's slalom.

Hoping to do a few more tempo miles this week. 

Ran 6.75 miles on treadmill. Threw in 2 tempo miles at 6:40-7:00. Felt hard. Ran fewer miles today, as I have all week. Plan to catch up on Friday and Saturday.

Ran on the treadmill. 2 miles warmup in 16 minutes. Then random hill workout at level 7 for 7.7 miles and 57 minutes. Then a short cooldown. That was probably the hardest hill workout I've done this year slightly, just because the level was a 7. But it didn't feel quite as hard as previous workouts. So that's a good thing. Oh, the pace on the hills was 7:30.

My wife drove me up the canyon again. I didn't see any other runners this time. I started at a campground about 10 miles up the canyon, ran 1 mile up a trail, ran back down, and then 16 miles home. Elevation start was 7450 ft. So I only dropped 3000 ft this time. I ran a relaxed pace all the way down. It felt comfortable. Through the first 9 miles (including the first uphill mile), my average pace was 8:00. Once I got out of the canyon, I threw in three tempo miles (it was still downhill) at 6:45, 6:40, and 6:50. Those were a little hard but not too bad. The rest of the way (mostly a slight uphill) I ran about 8:00 pace average, so better than last week.

Average pace for the entire run was 7:47. I was tired at the end but not wasted.

The first few days of this week I was just trying to recover from last Saturday's run and ran shorter mileage. I ran further than normal on Friday and then a good run today, putting me at 60 miles again. Now it's time to taper. Next week will be 45-50 miles. We'll see how that goes. 

Went down to 700 East and then tried the Dimple Dell trail for the first time. It was an adventure. I ran up to about 2300 East and found a couple wood chipped trails. And then ran over to 9400 South and home. It was fun to just run and not worry too much about time. I felt really good. Average pace was 8:35.

Treadmill run.

Ran two miles warmup in about 16 minutes. Then did a progressively faster tempo run. First two miles were at 7:00. Then a mile in about 6:40. Then one in about 6:30. Then one in about 6:15. Last one in 6:00. Then a cooldown for one mile.

The 6:00 mile felt easier than it has before. But I still tensed up at the end. Not sure why. I think it's a mental thing. No matter how far or hard I go, I see to tense up at the end. My brain must think it's supposed to do that. 

5 mile run on treadmill. Felt good so pushed the pace on some of the miles. Total time was 35 minutes.

Did my weekly hill workout on the treadmill. First two miles of warmup (no hills) at 7:50 pace average. Then did the random hill workout for 5 miles at level 5. The pace was 7:00 per mile. And then a cooldown in 8:00 pace for a mile. I feel really good about this run. To be able to hold that pace on hills is encouraging. And it didn't strain me incredibly bad either. So I'm thinking my fitness is shaping up well lately.

Now if I could just run 200m sprints as fast as the red rooster, I'd really be in business. 

I found a new 3-mile training route that goes south of my home and loops through a neighborhood. So that was my run today. It was very relaxed and pleasant. Average pace: 8:08. I can't believe how much I sweat in 24 minutes of running.

Hopefully an easy day will help my right achilles and leg muscles recover. They've been sore the past couple of days.

Ran the Hidden Valley Rd, Wasatch, 9400 S loop. 14 miles. Felt really good at the beginning. Wasn't wanting to push it, but ran respectable pace (7:37) for the first five miles. Mile six was still under 8:00 pace. Mile seven is the huge hill. Last time I ran this in 10:00 or 11:00. This time it was 8:53. So big improvement. I imagined running up the hill at mile 7 in St. George. Hopefully that hill is not as hard as this one was.

The rest of the way I was able to run a strong, steady pace. Fastest mile was 7:03 going down a hill. So not that fast. But it was good. Overall pace for the run was 7:41. Total time was 1:48. Last time I ran it was in 1:58. So I'm improving on myself, which is great.

It felt like I had a slight head wind no matter which way I turned. Now sure how that works. But it kept me cool.

48 miles for the week. Exactly as planned. Next week will be about 36. I'm excited for the marathon in two weeks.

Congrats to those who ran TOU!! 

I ran the hilly loop on Carnation Dr, 10600 S, 1300 E. I was trying to keep my miles evenly paced. I was hoping for 7:30 pace average, but it was a windy day, so I wasn't sure. On the 4th and 5th miles, it was uphill and windy, but I ran the fastest miles somehow. Average pace was 7:21. Feels great.

Tempo run on the treadmill. First mile at 8:00 pace. Second mile at 7:00 pace. Miles 3-5 at 6:30 pace. Mile 5-5.5 at 6:15 pace. Mile 5.5-6 at 6:00 pace. Cooldown mile at 8:00 pace.

Wasn't necessarily easy to keep these paces, but I wasn't breathing super hard. This was a good wokout to maintain sharpness but not strain myself too intensely. 

Today was my lowest weight of the year by a small margin. 

I ran 3 miles around my neighborhood. Picked up the pace at times since I was practicing to drink water while running. It didn't work too well, so I'm going to have to come up with a strategy.

Did the normal treadmill hill workout. 2 miles warmup. 4 miles at 7 minute pace on level 6 hills. Then 1 mile cooldown. The hills weren't too bad. I felt a little sluggish. Not sure if it's due to my allergies or feeling under the weather.

By the way, I have felt a little muscle soreness this week. It's strange because my mileage has been relatively low. Maybe it's part of the taper experience? 

Easy 3 miler down to 9800 S. I love these short runs during the fall, during the day. The middle two miles were a little fast. Average pace overall was 7:33.

10 miles on the treadmill. It got dark before I could get out for a run, and it makes me nervous lately to run outside in the dark.

3 miles averaging 8:00 pace. 3 miles averaging 7:30 pace. 2 miles averaging 7:00 pace. 1 mile at 6:30 pace. Cooldown mile at 8:00 pace.

Felt great the whole time. Felt like I could have run harder and faster but held back. The 6:30 mile did feel somewhat challenging though.

36 miles for the week. Just what I had planned. It feels good to be able to taper after having trained more before. Now I have to figure out what to run next week. 

Planned to do a 6 mile run. But it was a beautiful morning, and I felt good, so I ran 7.5. Went down on the trail by the TRAX to 10600 South.

Average pace was 7:35/mile. 

5 miles on the treadmill in 40 minutes. Starting feeling a little under the weather tonight. I hope it's the same as last week and goes away with some rest. The race is coming soon.

I woke up feeling blah (but not sick, I think), so I decided today would be a super easy day. I feel like running super easy three days before a marathon will not hurt or help you much either way. So I ran an 8:00 mile and that was it. It was a nice cool evening. I hope it's nice like that on saturday morning.We'll see.

I also ran from the bus to the library and then back to the bus, but I won't log that mileage (very short anyway).

Sounds like lots of people are heading to St. George on Thursday. Good luck to everyone.

I'll post my pre-thoughts on the race tomorrow.