Turn your rut into a groove.

am--7.5 A good chunk of the way up Suicidal Tendencies and back w/ the PV kids. It was a beautiful morning that ended w/ doughnuts and chocolate milk for my birthday. What a thoughtful group of awesome kids. RHR--52. 

pm--4.5 Some miles w/ 10 minutes on the erg and some kettle bell deadlifts.

am--4 Lutheran sign/Weights/Neighborhood. Cold but good morning. I only did bench, runners, and curls during weights, hoping that rowing most nights will strengthen my legs in a fashion similar to deadlifts/squats while engaging the core muscles that will keep my SI in place. RHR--50. 

pm--7.25 Pace and Form work. 3x 1 min. at tempo pace (7:00), 3x 1 min. at threshold pace (6:40), 2x (5x 30 sec. at CV (6:20)), 3x 1 min. at threshold, and 3x 1 min. at tempo. This work isn't hard but is tiring. We'll see how it works the system. We had a nice warm and a short cool. I'll have to remember that. 

pm--5.75 Telegraph out-and-back. Good run w/ some great singing. It was good to get an easy day. I feel sufficiently beat down. Erged 1k after. RHR--51. 

am--4 Lutheran sign/light weights/Harts+. Same thing as Tuesday--Bench and runners. The drizzle this morning was more welcoming than I would've imagined. Perhaps, I was more focused on loosening up the right heel. It took a few minutes this morning. RHR--50.

pm--7.25 Tempo in the rain. The pace was 7:20 down to 7:00 for 25 minutes. We had a great group. I've said this a few times since the new year, some girls are really stepping up. Good hard fun this afternoon. 

am--7 Canyons Kidney Loop w/ return via Tuweap. Lovely drizzly morning. I probably overdressed, but, oh well. All told, I finished in just under an hour (55 minutes). RHR--53. 

am--6.75 Cemetery Loop w/ out the Lava Ridge detour. We decided not to fight the weather up North, so I was home this morning. I set out through Santa Clara for a run around 8:00 am. Once I got up the cemetery hill--that was a bear, climbing into a cold headwind--the pace naturally picked up. I finished w/ a nice negative split. Erged 2k after. I felt spent in a good way after the work this morning. RHR--53. 

Finished my 7th and 8th books of the year--Shakespeare's King Lear and Chop Wood Carry Water by Joshua Medcalf. Lear is my favorite Shakspearean tragedy. Full of flattery, power, money, and suffering, it acts as a nice guide to navigating life. I love that the villains have some of the truest lines in some of the vilest times. A favorite line comes from Lear's madness: 

Gloucester: The trick of that voice I do well remember. Is 't not the King? 

Lear: Ay, every inch a king. When I do stare, see how the subject quakes. 

One lesson from the book is that we learn many of the greatest lessons when we're down and out, and we're down and out because of our pride. 

The other book is a fictitious analogy of a young man, who aspires to be a samurai archer, and the relationship w/ his sensei. It's a simple read and a great book on the power of process. This book clarified and confirmed many of the powerful concepts I've learned the last few years.