My Running Log

I'm changing my 5-day running schedule to Mo-Tu-We-Fr-Sa, so I ran today to start off the year on that schedule. But I just ran my one mile loop because I ran yesterday and wanted to take it easy.

This morning I drove out to Antelope Island to do a training run for the Buffalo Run (buffalorun.org). There were about 10 runners, and I met some new people, which was great. We ran a loop on the hilly portion of the course. Some of it was on packed snow, and some of it was on fresh snow about 6-8 inches deep. That made it challenging, but I felt great on it. It was about 7.8 miles but harder than most of my miles.

Antelope Island is beautiful, and the course looks excellent for a trail race. It's hilly but not mountainous. So I'm now almost sure I'll do that race in March.

I might do some more miles tonight, not sure. But if not, I'll just say it has been a solid week of running, and I'm ready for a fun year of running. 

Ran 10 miles on the treadmill. The first mile and last mile were at 8 minute pace. The in between miles were at or below 7:00 pace. 69 minutes for the entire run. No incline, but the goal on these is fast turnover.

I didn't feel too good, possible due to the snow run on Saturday (sore hamstrings) or fasting on Sunday, but at least the week got off to a good start. 

5 miles easy in 37:21. Needed a recovery run.

Ran on the Bonneville-Shoreline trail up by the Huntsman. Ran out to the part where the trail forks. Snow was packed, so a little hard to get traction but very runnable. Enjoyed being above the smog ceiling. 9:16 average pace.

One hour of running on the treadmill. It's amazing how rejuvenating it can feel to do those paces that are more relaxed. Also, I think it's going to work really well to run on Fridays instead of Thursdays.

It was really smoggy today, so I ran inside. I decided to run a relaxed pace rather than push it a lot. That was a good idea. I felt like I could have kept going longer, without too much discomfort. So the long runs are starting to get easier. It makes sense that on the long run the emphasis is to get miles not necessarily to run fast. But at the same time, you don't want to go into jogging mode.

We had more people than treadmills, so for part of the time I had to use the elliptical and stationary bike. But I still feel like it was equivalent to running, based on time.

Our baby boy is due in a week, so it will be fun to see how that goes.

A couple other notable runners, Logan Fielding and Meb Keflezhighi are also expecting babies soon. So maybe that means I'll run as fast as them.

50 miles exactly for the week. That's great.

And to top it all off, I got mentioned on Burt's blog today! He said he wants to be like me, but I really want to be like him, somehow finding a way to run even when he has so many other responsibilities.

Did my Monday tempo workout (on the treadmill). 1 mile warmup, 0.5 miles at 8.6, then ran 7.7 tempo miles, then 0.8 mile cooldown. I decided to run for an hour and then do the cooldown. In that hour, I ran 9.22 miles. The full workout was in 66:16. I'm happy with it.

No baby yet. 

5 miles easy on the treadmill. 37:30. 1% incline for much of it.

No baby yet. 

Did the hill repeat workout (not random hills) on the treadmill, 7:00 pace. Started out at Level 9 for the first 3.5 miles. Then was struggling and bumped it down to Level 3 and finished strong. My legs were fairly sore. But it was a good strong run for me. 8 miles total in 57 minutes.

We thought the baby was going to come last night, but he must be too comfortable in there to face the cold world. Or maybe he knows about the smog.

10 miles in 75 minutes on the treadmill. Felt good.

 I've plateaued on weight loss.

We went and visited my parents in Utah County. On the way back we saw how bad the smog is (really bad), so I wasn't going to run in it. Instead I did my longest treadmill run ever. I set it to do some random hills (average 1% incline, Level 2 for most of it) to provide a little variety.

My wife and daughter came by to say hello, and my girl got really excited and wanted to run. So my wife put her on the other treadmill at 1 mph, and it was too easy. She want to run "fast" like me. It was really cute. I held her and ran at 4 mph for 0.2 miles, which was a good workout.

In the end, it was 22 miles on the treadmill in about 2:45. I bet there aren't too many bloggers who've done that before! :)

Average was 7:30 pace.

This week was good. Reached 55 miles. It's been good because I'm increasing my miles slowly but still getting good recovery.

No baby yet. Due date is tomorrow. 

Our little baby boy came this morning!!

I ran a mile around the hospital complex (in dress shoes) to celebrate (and keep my streak alive).

More details to come. 

Ran about a mile over to Murray Park and a little loop around. The baby is doing great.

Got 10 miles in on the treadmill after bringing the baby home and getting settled. 7:30 pace.

By the way, Baby Joshua was 8 lbs 2 oz. He looks like a runner. :) We couldn't feel more blessed that he is healthy and doing well. My wife is also doing great.

10 miles on the treadmill. It was a fartlek, alternating betwen 9.0 mph and 9.4 mph in 1/2 mile stretches. Threw in a few at 9.6 mph and some longer stretches at 9.0 mph because I was having GI issues and was feeling tired.

It was a very hard workout and not as fast as last week, but it will do.

I'm getting antsy to race. 

I was very close to running outside today, but went for the comfort of the treadmill instead. It started snowing at the end of my run, so I guess it wasn't a horrible decision. I ran 8 miles in 60:30. Started out slow because I wasn't feeling great, and then it got better.

It's been good to get three solid runs the last three days after three easy days. 

2 miles warmup on the elliptical, watching BYU win their 20th game of the season.

Then did a solid 1 hour hill workout on the treadmill. Ran it at 7:00 pace. Level 7. Random hills. It was challenging but doable. Going to Level 8 or 9 seems to be a big jump for me, but Level 7 is doable.

This week turned out to be not too bad as far as running goes (great otherwise). 42 miles and some solid workouts. I'm really liking what I've been doing with alternating hard runs with easy runs. I usually feel fresh and ready to go for the harder workouts.

Dustin asked what my next race was. So I looked around and found a 5K (Hale Freezes Over) down in Orem next Saturday, which I'm going to run. If it's not any more competitive than last year, I should have a shot at placing well. But I bet the competition will be stronger this year. 

10 miles on the treadmill at about 7:25 pace average. Feeling a little under the weather. This seems to happen about once a month lately. Thankfully it usually doesn't get any worse. 

6 treadmill miles in 43:30. Felt super good, despite still having a bit of a head cold.

Excited for 5K on Saturday. Signed up today. It's the Hale Freezes Over 5K in Orem, UT. Awesome freebies and great prizes. 

Enjoying being a father again, too. 

4 miles on elliptical (treadmill was being used) and 6 miles on treadmill (7:25 pace). Legs felt heavy tonight.

I decided to do the 10K on Saturday instead of the 5K. 

4 miles in about 30:15 on the treadmill. Race tomorrow. Excited. My goal is to run under 40 minutes. I will give it my best. I think if I do that, I will place in the top 3.

This morning I drove down to Orem, UT for a 10K that was put on by the Hale Center Theater. My wife and I really love going to shows there, and I found out they were giving season tickets to the top three finishers in each race. Plus it had been 2 months since I did a race and wanted to do one.

I saw that last year's winning time was 41 minutes, so I thought I might have a shot of placing in the top three. Here's how the race went. A few guys started out pretty fast, but I didn't want to go quite that fast. Then it thinned out quickly. I was in 4th place for the first two miles and averaging about 6:15 pace on this flat-downhill portion. Then a guy passed me, so I was in 5th place. But I felt good and wanted to just run relaxed and not get carried away. I was still in 5th place around the 3 mile mark when the lead runner turned around and started running towards us, even though he was supposed to go right. I figured he was a bandit, so that put me in 4th place. During the next mile I passed two guys, which put me in 2nd, and I could see the leader. I felt bad for him because he kept having to ask which direction to go, so eventually I made a push to run alongside him. For miles 5-6 the three of us battled back and forth. Then with 1/2 mile to go, I threw in a surge. With about 1/4 mile to go, I started to die and thought I would lose. But then I got a final bit of energy to push me through in 1st. Then I saw the earlier leader who I thought was a bandit. He said he went a different route that was the same distance and that he hoped nobody noticed. His time was really good, so I figured I really was 2nd place. When they gave the awards, they announced me as the winner, so I guess that other guy was disqualified.

So basically, I wasn't the fastest runner but I got first place. To be honest, I didn't care about winning and don't consider this a true win (because I wasn't the fastest), but I was very excited about the prizes. Season tickets to the Hale Center Theater and a Family Pass to Thanksgiving Point!! I was so pleased because these gifts I could share with my wife and kids as a small token of appreciation for how much they support my running. And on our tight budget, we wouldn't have been able to do these things otherwise.

I met a really nice guy named Ben who was doing his first road race. He got excited about doing more, which is cool. 

Congrats to the other runners! I hope I didn't cut anyone off or doing anything I wasn't supposed to. But if I did, I didn't mean to. 

Anyway, this race was really well run, and I would highly recommend it. Sean Murphy did a great job organizing it. 

Surprisingly, I didn't run on the treadmill today. It was sunny (but chilly), so I ran my 10 mile loop up to Le Cailles. The trail part was muddy and snowy but not too bad. Average pace was 7:45/mile.

5 treadmill miles in 37:30. Feeling a little pain in left knee. Not sure if it's from the repetition of the treadmill or because I ran outside a couple times after running so much on the treadmill. We'll see how it goes.

Ran tempo run on the treadmill. Hit the 5 mile mark in 32:49 and finished the full 6 (including cooldown) in 39:34. It was better than I expected.

My knee isn't hurting, but it feels weird. Maybe there's some inflammation in it. So that's why I didn't run as far today as planned. 

Moved this entry to Friday.

I ran farther today than I've ever run in a single day: 30 miles.

A few months ago I had this grand idea that it would be fun to run in a 50 mile race. So I signed up for the Buffalo Run, which is on March 27 (in 7 weeks). In preparation for it, I decided that today I would try 30 miles. It was a rude awakening!

I ran south on 1300 East and hopped on the bike path in Draper. Turns out it's a really great path that takes you all the way to Point of the Mountain. From there I took the frontage road to Cabelas in Lehi. I couldn't believe I could get that far in 15 miles. Anyway, I took a bathroom break and refilled my water.

For the first half, I felt good, my stride was relaxed, and I was averaging 7:45/mile. I felt like the pace was sustainable for another 15 miles. At about mile 22 on the way back, it started to get uncomfortable, and it got much worse after that. The last 7-8 miles were painful. I kept thinking, "what was I thinking to believe that I could run 20 miles more than this?!" I have gained a new respect for ultramarathon distances.

In the end, I'm glad I did it. But hopefully my body will be able to handle it better. During the second half, I averaged 8:45/mile, so I slowed down a lot. Those paces don't include about 10 stops for traffic lights or for short, planned walking breaks.

Anyway, 56 miles for the week, which is my highest this year. Aiming for 60 next week.

7 miles on the treadmill in 51:15. Started out conservative but then felt great, so I ran farther than planned. Ran about 4 of the miles at 7:00 pace. Not too much soreness after long run on Saturday.

8 miles on treadmill in 54:10. Pretty solid tempo effort.

Hill workout on the treadmill. 1 mile warmup. 8.6 miles at 7 minute pace. First half was at Level 8. I couldn't hold it after that, so I moved it down to Level 1 and barely was able to hold that. But fortunately kept it at 7 minute pace. Finished with short cooldown.

This workout was a bear. It really hammered me. But hopefully it will help with speed endurance. 

Ran up to Dimple Dell and 1300 East. Ran on the wood chip trail up about 2.5 miles and came back. I have been missing out! What a great trail! Who says you have to live in Portland or Boulder to run on great trials?

I pushed the pace a bit because I was feeling good. 7:32 average / mile.

I need to keep running on trails in preparation for my trail race in six weeks. 

Was planning to do a long run, but it didn't pan out. Family commitments took a higher priority. So I ran hard in the time I had. 6 miles in 40:30. Hit 5 mile mark at 33:45. On treadmill.

Only 41 miles for the week. Not as high as planned. But every workout was a quality workout. I will see if I can up the miles next week. 

Ran from our house in Sandy, UT to my wife's parents' house in Lehi, UT. 17.4 miles. I really pushed the pace (about 7:00 per mile) the first 9-10 miles and then struggled a bit over the point of the mountain. Beautiful day for running even though it was a bit cold. 7:26/mile average.

5 miles on treadmill in 39:30. Muscle soreness in various places.

Not feeling great today. Muscle soreness and general fatigue. Only ran a mile.

Treadmill. 10 miles. 70 minutes. Felt good after 3 easy/rest days.

Tomorrow is another big long run. 

I'm trying to get ready for my upcoming 50 miler, so I ran 30 miles for the second time in three weeks. Once again, it was very hard. I ran 2 miles with my daughter in the stroller around our neighborhood. Then did 13 miles around Dimple Dell on the wood chip trails while listening to BYU thump Wyoming in b-ball. It was snowing lightly. Then it was getting dark, so the last 15 miles were on the treadmill. The last 8-10 miles were painful in my legs. My IT bands and quads were just hurting real badly. But I'm glad I finished the run.

63-64 miles for the week. My best for the year by far. So that's good. But I am not sure if I'm running enough miles to prepare for a solid race. But this is taking more than enough time out of my schedule, so it will have to do.

10 miles on the treadmill in 71:30. Started out slow because I was tight and not feeling energetic. But it got better.

I might try 6x10 miles this week. We'll see. 

While visiting in-laws in Lehi, ran out on the roads. It was out in the country. Kind of nice, other than almost stepping on three different roadkill skunks. My pace was surprisingly good: 6:46/mile. Enjoyed the beautiful night.

Mile wamup at 8:00 pace. 7 miles at Level 7 on treadmill at 7:00 pace. Mile cooldown at 8:00 pace. These workouts are really beneficial, I think.

I tried to make a new loop today, and it was OK, but I need to improve it a little. I went down to 7300 South 1000 East, then over on Creek Road to Highland Dr. Then up to 9000 South and then looped down to 8600 South 1300 East. Then up to 9400 South and home. It turned out to be 9.4 miles at 7:13 pace.

The weather looked nice, but it was pretty chilly with the wind and lack of sun. But still nice to be outside with no sweats. 

15.7 miles on the treadmill in 1:55. Had some GI trouble and lack of energy. Not sure if it was something I ate or what.

50 miles for the week. I feel good about it. Next week I'll try to bump the miles back up. Four weeks until the Buffalo Run. 

Did my Monday treadmill tempo workout. It was my best yet since I've been doing treadmill workouts. As always, my times probably aren't equivalent to running on the road, but compared to myself it was an improvement to be happy about.

9.51 miles in 1 hour. 0.5 mile cooldown.

My neighbor started chatting with me for about 10 minutes toward the end, so that increased the difficulty. :) 

5.5 miles in 41:00. Felt really good once I got going. It's fun to see how a run that used to be really difficult now is enjoyable.

Ran a little loop around my neighborhood just so I could say I ran. It got too late after visiting family to find out where my bro is going on his mission: Ukraine!

Did my weekly hill workout on the treadmill. 7:00 pace. 10 miles total running, 8.6 of it as hills. I was able to run the first 3.5 miles at Level 7, but then I was dead and moved it down to Level 1. My legs felt heavy today. The treadmill also gave me a harder than normal random hill workout. Well, 27 miles so far this week. Hopefully I can still get it up to 60. We'll see.

I was getting ready to go running this afternoon, and my little girl overheard it. She insisted on going with me. So we went out, and I was thinking it would be a two mile run. We got out a mile, and I asked "more running?" She immediately said, "yah," so we kept going. When we were 3 miles away from home, she said, "Home. Mommy." So we turned around. After about a quarter mile she wanted to get out and play in a puddle, so I let her. And she wanted to play in the snow, so I let her. Then she didn't want to get back in, so I had to bribe her with candy. Then she was happy the rest of the way because I let her hold a snowball, which of course she decided to munch on. It was 6 miles of running at 8:31 pace.

Went out to Antelope Island for a training run with some people who are doing the race. I started out feeling pretty good but then totally tanked the last 6 miles. I averaged 9:30 miles for the 19 miles. I just wasn't feeling strong at all and wanted to walk a few times. 

I'm really glad to have run out there because now I have a more realistic expectation on what kind of pace I can run on that surface. I was thinking I could do a little faster today than I did. So that's good information to have. The island is absolutely gorgeous, and the weather was beautiful this morning.

52 miles for the week. Not as many as I planned, but oh well. Other things to do. 

I ran up to the Dimple Dell wood-chip trail and did a loop. I was in a great rhythm. My body carried me along, even up the hills, without my having to force it. I feel like a whole different person than I did on Saturday. The weather was beautiful, too, a nice bonus. 11.1 miles at 7:36 average.

1 mile easy

8 miles in 57:43 on the treadmill. Felt a little sluggish, but it was good to run in the morning.

8 miles in an hour on the treadmill. Can't seem to figure out what to run a couple days before a 5K. I'm doing the Rex Lee Run at BYU on Saturday.

Ran 5.9 miles in 46 minutes on the treadmill while watching an unfortunate basketball game on TV. Legs not feeling well. Sore shin, tired.

This was my first 5K in a long time. I think the last one was the Rex Lee Run about 5 years ago. I wasn't feeling great this morning, but the race went fairly well. The first mile was in 6:13, the second mile about 5:55 (downhill), and the third mile about 6:30. Overall pace was 6:10. I finished a little faster. It was hard to get myself in a good rhythm during the race. When someone would pass me, I could follow their rhythm for awhile, but I couldn't keep it. I think I need to do more speedwork.

Easy treadmill run. 6 miles in 47 minutes.

1 mile easy

I did a hill workout on the treadmill. 5 miles on Level 8 at 7:00 pace. I felt really strong tonight. It must be the rest I've been getting the past few days. I haven't been tapering on purpose for my big race next week. I've just been busy. But I think the lower mileage is helping me get fresh for the race.

6.5 miles in 45:22 on the treadmill. 

Boring, I know.

Late night run on (where else?) the treadmill. 5.25 miles in 34 minutes. Ran the first 5 miles in 31:51.

Only 25 miles this week. I was busy and not super motivated. But fortunately, it's sort of a taper week, so it's all good.

One week till my race.

I ran around a little vacant lot next to our development a few times. It has a bunch of trees and some little trails. It was nice to be in the cool air and to be on trails. It was also nice to just run for 30 minutes.

1 mile loop. I've been doing this a lot on Tuesday because they get really busy. But at least I got myself out the door. That's a victory in itself for me.

Nice run on the treadmill. 6.2 miles in 45:03. Felt really good and had a hard time holding myself back. Let's hope that energy can be used in my race on Saturday.

2 miles locally. Went on the little trail in the empty lot.

Tomorrow I'm running the Buffalo Run 50 miler on Antelope Island. This is my first ultramarathon. So hopefully this won't be my last blog post.

My goal is to run really relaxed for the first 19 hilly miles to get a feel for the race. The next 22.5 miles are pretty flat, so I'll see if I can pick up the pace at all there. And then I'll just try to run the last 8.5 miles without dying. My dad and my mother-in-law are both worried I'm going to die. Seriously. So I'll try to prove them wrong. But if not, I can't think of a more enjoyable way to kick the bucket. 

I posted my race report on my other blog: http://run.hammerpig.com/survived-buffalo-run-50-miler.html

One mile easy running. Plus I ran for a few seconds to catch the train. Surprised I could do that.

Easy mile

Another easy mile.

Hill workout on the treadmill. (Not random) hills at 7:00 pace. Level 7. I felt pretty good. Maybe I should go out and run another 50 miler tomorrow. Not.

Ran 4.5 mile tempo run on the treadmill in 31 minutes. It feels great to run for that short of a time. I think I'm going to do some interval workout each week for awhile and see if I can get faster.

4.5 miles on the treadmill in 30:44. Is winter ever going to leave?

I'm calling this an "easy hill" workout. 5 miles on the treadmill in 35:30. Level 2 hills.

I ran my first real speed workout in probably six months. That's sad that it's been so long.  But I've been a wimp and run mostly indoors, and you can't really get a speed workout on the treadmill, though you can get good tempo workouts.

Anyway, it was a really enjoyable workout. I charted out a loop around my neighborhood where I don't have to worry about traffic, and it's exactly a 1/2 mile. It has a fairly decent uphill and downhill to it, but it's not grueling.

My times were 3:10, 3:00, 3:00, 2:54. I was really pleased to get below 3:00. Can't wait till I run on the track and see how my speed has improved and can keep improving. 

elliptical, level 12, 7:30 pace

Only a mile. Ran out of time today. 

Mini tempo workout on treadmill. Fast part was 6:30 average.

1 mile, half asleep. Schoolwork was more important today.

One mile. Made it count.

I thought today was my day to finally complete the hill workout on the treadmill that I have been trying to do for about 6 months. It's 7 minutes pace, random hills, at Level 9 for 4.5 miles. I made it to 3.5 miles but then had to take a 2.5 minute break. Then I ran another 0.5 mile on Level 9 and bumped it down to Level 1 for the last 0.5 mile. I plan to keep doing this workout each week and get stronger on the hills.

I ran 6 miles tonight on the treadmill in 41:44. At first I didn't feel great and wanted to jog, but then I got into it and used it as a means to get rid of tons of frustration from my schoolwork.

Ran on treadmill today. First 5 miles were in 31:52. Then ran a cooldown 0.5 mile. Total run about 36:00. I feel good about it. Congrats to all those who ran Boston!

1 easy

Treadmill hill (not random) workout. 1 mile warmup. 5 miles hills at 7:00 pace, level 9. Stopped at 4.1 miles to rest, then decreased the incline for the rest. But I was still happy with it. These workouts really get my heart rate up. I need to run a few more miles each week.

Easy mile

I think this was a tempo workout of some sort. 6.5 miles total on the treadmill in about 45 minutes.

Easy mile just to do something.

Nice little tempo run starting after midnight. First six miles in 38:56. Total run about 41:00.

Hill workout on the treadmill. Level 5 random hills at 7:00 pace. Increased the level toward the end because I was feeling good. Nice to get a good run in two days in a row.

Ran along the trail behind my development with my daughter in the stroller. It was tough to push her up the hill, so it was a good workout even though it was short.

This was combination of tempo run and hill run. The pace was 6:30 approximately, and I put it at random hills, level 4. Good little workout.

Tempo run. 6.25 miles in 39:42. Went through 5 miles at 31:53 and 10K at 39:22. Treadmill.

Ran a mile. Didn't feel very well. Been working too much.

1 mile warmup. 5 miles of random hills (treadmill) at 7:00 pace, Level 7. It's amazing how much easier it is to run Level 7 than 9.

Got my first official journal article submitted today. It probably won't get accepted the first time around, but it's an important first step to getting it published.

I'm signed up for a little 5K in Lehi, UT on Saturday. 

1 mile easy. Nice night.

This morning I ran the Renaissance Academy Race for Literacy 5K in Lehi, UT. It was a nice morning for a race, and the course was pretty flat. I wasn't sure how the competition would be, so I figured I'd play it by ear. I noticed Allie (from the blog) at the start, so I figured she'd be someone good to run with since she is a marathon winner. Sure enough, we ran together through the first 2+ miles (after passing some elementary kids who sprinted out at the front). Another guy ran with us till the 2-mile mark but then had to stop for some refreshment at the aid station. I felt pretty comfortable in the first two miles, but I wasn't sure if Allie was just toying with me, so I started pushing the pace at 2 miles to see what would happen. I guess Allie's marathon last week was still in her legs, because she let me win.

I got a gift certificate for a pair of Pearl Izumi shoes. Perfect because I have been wanting to get some racing shoes.

This week I didn't reach 20 miles, so maybe I'll throw in some more miles tonight if I'm feeling ambitious. 

Tempo workout on the treadmill. For some reason the treadmill wouldn't go past 9.7 mph. Kinda strange. Anyway, went through 6 miles in 38:53 and 6.25 in 41:44. Sad to see the Jazz lose, especially to that team from Southern California that shall remain nameless.

4.1 miles in 30 minutes on the treadmill. Much of it was on the hill workout, level 4.

Another one of my hill/tempo runs on the treadmill. After a warmup mile, I ran 4.5 miles at 6:30 pace with random hills at Level 2. It got my heart rate up but not high enough that I stopped. Then did a short cooldown.

I posted some thoughts on Why Do I Run? on my other blog. I'd be interested to know what you all think.

Another tempo run. 5 miles in 32:40 on the treadmill. I feel like my form is getting better when I'm running tempos, which is important for doing better in races.

I did my hill workout on the treadmill. 1 mile warmup. 4.1 miles at Level 9 random hills, 7:00 pace. Couldn't push through to 4.5 miles, which was my goal. So I slowed down and reduced the hills. But it was still a good workout.

I made it to 27 miles for the week. That's quite a bit more than I've been getting. It was nice to run a few more miles, and most were at high intensity. I have to say I've enjoyed running fewer miles lately. But eventually I'll up the mileage. Just probably won't be till I graduate.

Congrats to those who raced today! 

Ran through Ladera Ranch for 6 miles, then a short cooldown. Pushed the pace and got my average pace down to 6:48. I was hoping to go faster, but that's OK. It was sort of a mix between a tempo and a hill workout.

I enjoyed the sights, sounds, and smells of nature. 

One mile in 8:10. Exhausted after a fun day at SeaWorld.

I started out on a great trail here in Ladera Ranch. Nicely groomed and great views. About 1.5 miles into it, I came across a large rattlesnake right in the middle of the trail that I almost stepped on. It scared the heebeegeebees out of me, and as soon as I saw it I turned around and ran as fast as I could the other way. It shook its rattle at me. Then I went to the comfort of the roads and actually had a nice workout with some hill repeats. 6.4 miles. Average pace was 7:07. 

1 mile late at night

I had a great workout today. It was my last while in California, so I wanted to get in a speed workout. The local school is about 3/4 mile around, so I ran on the roads around it and did 1/4 mile repeats. This is the first time in like a year that I've done these. Not sure why it's been so long, but I want to do them again soon. Anyway, I did 1/4 rest intervals, which were in about 2:00 each, so not bad. Here are my splits:

81.1

76.7

81.8

73.3

83.7

80.2

69.8

79.9

There's not really any flat roads around here, so some sections were up or downhill a bit. But I was really happy to get below 70 on one, even though it was slightly downhill and at low elevation. I had worried that I was no longer capable of running that fast. Now I need to get to where it feels more natural to run fast.

This week I ran just over 20 miles. Three solid workouts and that's about it. 

0.5 mile warmup, then tempo for 5.75 miles, then 0.25 cooldown. First 10K was in 38:58. Total was 41:06. I felt really good. About mile 4, I experienced a second wind and was running smooth and comfortable, even though I was running 6:00 pace (on the treadmill). Either the treadmill needs to be calibrated or I'm getting faster. Not sure which.

5.5 miles on the treadmill. Level 4 hills. 39:16. Felt great. It was a medium effort.

Even though I started around 10:45 pm, I decided to run outside. It was a great night for a run. I went east of my home up through the neighborhoods. I pushed the pace, but the result wasn't as fast as it felt. Oh well. 6:59 pace average.

Weekly hill workout on the treadmill. Level 9, 7:00 pace for the first 3.25 miles. Next 1.75 miles at Level 1, 7:00 pace. Still couldn't make it through the whole workout on Level 9. I will get it eventually.

Did 8 x 1/4 mile again. Some of them on the bike path by TRAX in Sandy and some of them on the Jordan High track. My speed was not there at all today. The fastest was in 76. The slowest was in 94. But most were between 80 and 86. I'm glad I did it, but I think doing five hard workouts this week caught up with me. Or else my Pegasus shoes are just slower.

But it's been a good week. I think this harder intensity mileage will pay off when I do the 10K on July 4. And I got up to 30 miles for the week for the first time since March, so that is good.

6.5 miles total. 0.5 mile warmup. Then continued and completed the first 10K in 38:33. The first five miles were in 31:17. And the total was 41:33. I think those are all personal bests in tempo runs on the treadmill. I just need to get to where I run those times outside and with hills. But at least I feel like I'm improving a little.

The night got busy, and I felt like a break, so I just my little mile loop.

I did hill repeats, sort of. To the west of my home, there is a loop that is about 1.25 miles around (I think), so I went around it a few times, alternating 3:00 hard with 1:00 easy. I did 8 of those. Some of the repeats were uphill, some were downhill, some were mixed. The average on the repeats was about 6:20-6:30 pace. The overall average was 7:30 pace.

It was a good workout, and I'm glad I got outside to do it. But I just can't seem to break through lately to where I want to be. I feel like I've hit a wall. But hopefully this speedwork will help as I continue doing it. I think I also have to break through mentally, and the speedwork should help with that, too. 

Treadmill workout. Hills (not random), level 4, averaged about 6:40 pace, 6 miles total with 0.25 mile cooldown. Felt really good.

Didn't have much time to run, so I ran hard (outside).

Mile 1 = 6:42

Mile 2 = 6:29

Mile 3 = 6:20

0.25 mile cooldown

Got 23 miles for the week, mostly high intensity. 

Same workout as last Monday (treadmill), but I guess I upped the speed more quickly this time. short warmup, then upped the pace slightly each minute until I was running 6:00 pace. Ran 10K in 38:27 (a treadmill PR). Then finished with a short cooldown. This time felt quite a bit harder than last week. Might be due to slight weight gain or might be due to just daily variation. I'm feeling like I can break 40:00 in the July 4 race this year (last year's time was 43:54).

5.75 miles on the treadmill in 39:45. It was pretty enjoyable. Level 2 hills. I'm going to see if I can hit 30 miles for the week. As much as I'm enjoying the faster, shorter workouts, part of me longs for the grueling marathon training sometimes.

5.3 easy miles around the surrounding neighborhoods. I felt super slow and was slower than I have been running lately. 7:59 pace. I realized that it's pretty safe to run at 11:30 pm because few cars are out.

1 mile warmup in 7:30. Random hill (level 9) workout at 7:00 pace for 4.75 miles. 0.25 mile cooldown.

I wasn't feeling too great, but the workout went better than I expected. I was able to hang on for 3.73 miles and then had to lower the incline to finish. I think the time is coming soon that I will be able to finish this workout.

I hope all the UV racers do well. This race seems to be really big and has some good matchups this year. 

We are staying at a hotel, and I ran late at night on their treadmills. On the first one, I apparently was too heavy or too fast for it, because it died and wouldn't start up again. Oh well. It was just a mile.

6 treadmill miles here at the hotel in Denver. I alternated between pushing the pace and resting at a slower pace. I finally was able to run on a treadmill that goes up to 12 mph (5 min/mile), so I did that for 1/4 mile. That was tough, but I'm glad to say I did that. It felt about as difficult as 6 min/mile was when I started back into running. But also, I think the slightly higher elevation slowed me down a bit. Total 6 miles in 41 minutes.

1 mile on hotel treadmill. Super tired.

1 mile after getting home late from trip. No more traveling for a long time now.

I DID IT!! After about 6 months of trying to complete this hill workout on the treadmill, I finally did it. Almost every week, I've been working on this but have had to stop to rest during it. I ran a mile warmup. Then did 4.5 miles on Level 9 random hills at 7:00 pace. Then ran 0.5 mile cooldown. I don't know what made the difference this time. It could be a lot of things, but I'd like to think I'm getting faster and stronger.

Ran 6 miles on the treadmill. I started out easy, but felt pretty good, so I decided to challenge myself and pushed a medium-hard effort. I ended up completing it in 39:51. That's about 6:40 pace, I guess.

I hadn't realized that Wasatch Back was today. I hope all the runners do well. Someday I hope to run in it. Maybe when i'm a billionaire since it's so expensive. 

Tonight I was really lucky to meet a bunch of bloggers from this site. Kelli and her husband Scott threw a little party for Burt, who is in town for the Wasatch Back. It was fun to meet people, including the infamous Burt. Great guy. Thanks to Kelli and Scott for setting up the party and providing some great food.

Late tonight I did my run. It was just hard to get it in early. I ran two loops around the Quarry Bend area, which is about 2.5 miles each, for a total of 5 miles. I threw in four surges. Two of them were 0.23 miles and averaged about 5:45 pace with a slightly downhill grade. The other two were 0.80 miles and had a lot of downhill, and I averaged 5:42 and 5:22 pace on those. Even though it was downhill, it was nice to get the legs churning. They felt great. Average pace was 7:07. I think I'm ready to start doing some races.

I ran 25 miles this week, not as many as I hoped, but not too bad considering I only ran a mile each on Tuesday and Wednesday. As usual lately, most of my miles were at medium-hard intensity. 

6.95 miles up on the Bonneville Shoreline Trail by the Huntsman. Couldn't be a more perfect day for a run. I loved it. I pushed the pace and averaged 8:07/mile.

I'm feeling good about my running lately. I feel like I'm starting to get past a plateau. 

Hybrid tempo/hill workout on the treadmill. Level 3 hills. 6.05 miles in about 40 minutes. So average was about 6:40. It was pretty hard. The worst part was that I was forced to watch reruns of NFL playoff games instead of World Cup soccer. Oh well.

I have to figure out when/if to taper for my 10K race in two weeks. Any ideas? 

Also, I posted a new entry on my other blog about how to breathe while running. 

50 minutes on the treadmill while watching World Cup. Go USA!!

Treadmill hill workout. Random hills, level 7, 7:00 pace. I took it easier than normal today on the hill workout because I wasn't feeling great. But it was still a solid workout. Got the heart rate up pretty high.

Had a family reunion today. I should have snuck away to run a few miles during it but didn't. So I ran late at night and only had time for 2.5 miles. But I did throw in two downhill surges at 5:36 and 5:20 pace. The surges were a total of about 1 mile. Not too bad considering my legs felt like lead when I first started running.

I thought I would get 30 miles for sure this week but only made it to 28.5. But I'm happy with that. 

Not feeling great tonight, so I just ran 2.5 miles around Quarry Bend. I actually feel a lot better now...

I threw in two surges around 5:45-5:50 pace (slightly downhill). It's nice I've been able to get under 6:00 pace consistently lately. 

Nice run in the night air. 6.95 miles. Two short surges at the end that felt very good and were fast for me.

Ran 6.95 miles on the treadmill. Hills, Level 6, 7:00 pace. Was hard but not too hard. Hard to believe it's July. Getting excited for upcoming races.

6.1 miles in 46:12 on the treadmill while watching Brasil lose (unfortunately) to Netherlands in soccer.

This run was nice and easy. I enjoyed it. 

6 easy miles while watching the Pre classic on TV. Threw in some strides, was about 45 minutes.