Every Run is a Great Run!

Nice early morning run in light snow. Temps not bad, no wind, didn't step in any major puddles, all in all a nice run to start the week. Went about 2.5 solo and the rest with the lovely, charming Kimberly. Legs feeling really good today, best they've felt I think since before Painters. No hamstring tendon-butt-itis issues so maybe Brent's ball exercises I've been doing are starting to kick in. Hoping this is a sign of good things to come.

Noon run on that lush, tropical, Hawaii-like road known as Kuhni Road. Temps pretty mild, the sun was trying desperately to break through the clouds but was unsuccessful. Had to go solo since Paul ran this morning and Nate and Will were being treadmill wimps.

Ave pace: 8:30

Today I have to also sing the praises of my high school alma mater Manti High School boys basketball team, who played the underdog role and was successful in defeating Parowan for the state 2A championship. Go TEMPLARS! 

FINALLY got a slight inkling of beatiful spring days to come as the sun worked it's magic and managed to stay out of the clouds for the duration of the run. It was great that Kim was able to join me for warmup/cooldown miles and be there to support me while I did some tempo miles. At last I can say I FINALLY had a half decent tempo run after weeks of lousy ones. I was hoping this would be the case after I was feeling yesterday like my legs were back after a couple weeks of being a bit dead. Wanted 6 miles in the 1/2 marathon pace which I decided would be anything in the 6:15-6:40 range. Ended up at 38:38 for the 6 miles, ave pace 6:26.

Splits were 6:35, 6:25, 6:18, 6:25, 6:27, 6:24.

Afterward did some stretches and circuit/weights workout.

Oh yeah...also wanted to mention so I don't forget....Since today was tempo run day and I've had various upset stomach and nausea troubles in the past, I tried eating things for breakfast more typical of pre-race routine (i.e. bananas, bread/jam, yogurt, etc). I usually eat alot of whole grain, fibery stuff like oatmeal, bran, shredded wheat, etc which is all well and good but doesn't seem to sit too well for the hard workouts.

AM: Nice easy recovery run in the early morning hours with Kim-barley. 4.5 miles. At first the wind looked like it would going to cause grief but it ended up cowering in fear before us and was a non-issue.

Noon: Went 6 miles with Paul and Nate out toward EagleView but decided to go straight toward 7 peaks instead of up the nasty hill. Beautiful day and great to have some company. Luckily for me after the hard tempo yesterday we kept the pace nice and easy around 8:20 ave I think. Actually I'm surprised how well the legs are feeling today despite running hard yesterday. Night and day compared to the last couple of weeks. I think the warmer temps help a lot.

AM: Got in 5 miles with Kim. Thanks Kim for dragging me out this morning, when the alarm went off I was more than ready to go right back to bed. Actually ended up being a nice run. Temps not too cold and no wind. Kind of turned into a bit of a progression run for Kim as we sped up most every mile finishing the last mile somewhere approaching Kim's 5K pace at 8:44.  There was a bit of a stop in the middle for reasons I won't go into. I'll let Kim comment further on her blog if she feels so inclined. I'll just say we were thankful for churches that are open at 6:15am!

Noon: Went with Will and Russ on the Lakeview route. Russ turned around at 2.5 miles but Will and I went the 6 mile route. Another absolutely beautiful pre-spring sunny day. Ave pace: 8:20.

Early morning solo meditative/reflective run. Just me and the crescent moon and stars. Two warmup miles, 8 miles in the marathon pace range (6:40-7:00, ave 6:50), then 2 cooldown miles.

Today I pay tribute to one of my all-time heroes and role models, my father Glen Lee. After a gradual decline in health the last few years, and after 15 often lonely years since my Mother passed away while they were serving a mission in England, my Dad passed away peacefully yesterday morning, apparently while saying his morning prayers. He would have turned 80 in a couple of months. This was not so unexpected considering his declining health, especially over the last year. Of course we will miss him but he is certainly now in a place that is far happier for him as he is reunited with the love of his life. My Dad was a simple man who loved people and in turn was loved by everyone in the small town of Ephraim and surrounding communities. For years he owned and operated "Lee's Variety Store", a small five-and-dime store of the type that don't exist anymore in the Walmart era. He was "Mr. Lee - the Candy Man" and he brightened the day of thousands of children who came in to the store for years after school to check out the selection of penny candy. Not only did he provide great service, but was often known to also surprise his customers with one of his signature goofy songs, such as "Old Man River" or "Clementine", but typically with the words changed around to include the name of the possibly bewildered customer who was lucky enough to get treated with the serenade to go along with the candy. We'll miss my Dad but hopefully beyond that we'll try to model our life after his and leave a legacy of joy and love to all those we meet!

Kim and I changed our plans of running the Provo river trail this morning and instead slept in then ran all around Spanish Fork and went on some routes I haven't run for a long time behind the Krishna Temple and over toward Leland and the new ball parks. Also with the funeral next Saturday we won't be running the 5K race we had planned, so that was one more reason for running close to home instead of going into Provo to check out the 5K course.

Legs feeling pretty good after a pretty aggressive training week for both Kim and me. I tried out some new shoes today, Asic DSTrainer2s. They feel pretty good, light but not like a racing flat. I think they would be great for a marathon. Next week I'll be doing a reduced mileage week. I've started doing this every 4-5 weeks and my legs seem to really appreciate it. Also with all the funeral arrangement and estate issues we'll be dealing with next week it will be good to have this week be an off week for running.