Day |
Round Up |
Miles |
| Week 12
8/15-8/21 |
Good week with a hard 3 day stretch with 2 trips out to Lapham. Happy with how things went this week, got in a lot of good work on the hills and some solid distance runs. Would have liked to have had a bit more in my legs at the end of the week but I can't complain too much. Finished the summer off well, think I've got a great base going and am looking forward to getting into the season and running fast again. August Miles : 304 |
102 |
| Saturday: |
Standard 16-miler. Set out with every intention of hitting 18M today, but it was clear after a few miles that the legs were dead and I couldn't get it moving. Hit the first 8M in 52:24 and decided the smart thing to do was to cut it short since I had been trying to get the legs turning over for awhile but they weren't coming to me. Not incredibly sore today, just no energy or power in the legs. Made the turn and just kept the effort the same as I was heading for home. Had to pick it up a bit over the last 3M to average 6:30s. Wasn't one of those days when I get home and lay down exhausted, but I just had nothing over the whole run today. Guess the past couple days are finally catching up to me, just need to get some more carbs in me and should probably sleep a bit more. Only about 6 hours last night, sub-par. |
16 |
| Friday: |
Lake Drive to Doctors Park. Waited until almost 5:30PM to start this one, wound up watching the Olympics all morning and then didn't want to take a chance and miss the 10k. Set out at 6:30 pace, I was just floating through the first half of this run, legs moving effortlessly and hit the turn at 45:30 without straining. On the way back I made a conscious effort to pick the pace up a bit, so the next 2M I was struggling to find a rhythm. Got locked in eventually, hit the final 3M in 18:30 and turned the back half in 43:45, right on 6:15 pace. Feeling really good today, surprised that I didn't feel the effects of the past 3 days and was able to put up a solid run. Put in 8 hours last night with the HR at 38BPM, I think my body is begging for some anaerobic work. I've just been gobbling up the miles for the past 5 weeks and everything's feeling good. |
14 |
| Thursday: |
Lapham with End. Headed back out for more hills to cap off an intense 3 days. Felt pretty good on the first loop, we were running fast but not hammering, came through in 44:45 a solid time. We started out slow and built into it but didn't go crazy. I was a bit stronger than End up the hills this time, but I think he held onto the polka dot jersey for the summer. Heading into Tower Hill I had gapped him a bit, but I found out later that was because he had just felt a twinge in his Achilles. Finished under control and then stopped to let him stretch out his Achilles, but he wasn't able to get it loosened up and didn't come with me on the second loop. I was about 30 seconds ahead of the previous loop's pace at the top of Gutbuster, but the pace slackened until The Wall and I gave back 20 of those seconds. Managed to find some speed after Asthma Hill and was climbing pretty well, finished at 43:58. Another good Lapham Peak session, I think the legs are there but it may take a week or two of workouts back at MIT for me to trust them completely. I'll find out about my fitness soon enough. |
14 |
| Wednesday: |
Standard 16M course. Took off with End around noon, which led to a slightly hotter than normal day. Temps were up in the 80s, which makes it one of the hottest days I've run this summer. Hopefully that won't be a problem back at MIT. We were hitting a good pace early on, 6:30s from the gun. About 2-3M in I could feel the effects of yesterday at Lapham, nothing was sore but my legs were just tired. Still felt like there was some residual lactic acid. The wind picked up as we went south on Santa Monica so there was a little greater effort, but we were still clipping along and hit the halfway mark in 51:51. I could feel fatigue starting to build though, especially after fighting the wind. About 10M in my legs were swimming in lactic acid and End decided to pick up the pace a bit. All the way back to Klode was a struggle, I'd find a rhythm for a little while but then lose it and then have to work to catch up to End and then find a rhythm, etc. We were still moving well and I thought we'd be hitting 51:00 or so for the back half. Over the last 3M End got pretty frustrated by the length of the run and wanted it to be over, so the pace slowly sped up and we turned the last mile in 6:10 (3:05/3:05) and had run the last 8M in 50:20 (6:18 pace.) I think I was getting a bit dehydrated over the last few miles, guess I didn't drink enough water yesterday, and I was covered in salt by the end of the run. Today was a good effort and a solid mileage day, happy with how things went. |
16 |
| Tuesday: |
Lapham Peak with End. Headed out to Lapham a bit after 8AM this morning, only slept about 6 hours last night and wasn't feeling all that great. Nick said he was hurting too so we took the first lap easy, hitting just 47:00, but that was largely because of me lagging behing and End not running away. Got into a better rhythm on the second lap, legs loosened up a bit and I was feeling better in general. I didn't want to hammer though, because End and I have a pretty intense couple of days lined up, so about 2M into it I told Nick I was just going to cruise through the middle of the run and pick it up when I got to The Wall, so he pulled ahead of me. Looked like he was feeling really good, I couldn't make up any ground on him over the final 3M, he had at least :30 on me at the top of Asthma Hill and finished about a minute ahead of me in 43:15. I was satisfied with averaging 6:20s and hitting 44:20, especially given my condition on the first loop. |
14 |
| Monday PM: |
Orchards. Waited until 3PM or so to take off, driving home in just a little bit. Felt pretty good, running relaxed and easy. Wound up at the Heritage Lake place and they've got a gravel path around a man-made pond so I did a lap there before heading back home. Typical 4M run. |
4 |
| Monday AM: |
Out and back down Hwy E. Got up at 7AM for this one, feeling pretty good out there but on these early morning ones I'm always feeling good but running slower than I think. Managed about 6:30s on the way out then stopped to stretch a bit at the turn around. Saw two hawks fighting before heading home a bit faster, averaging about 6:20s. Good enough run, it's nice to get most of the miles out of the way early. |
10 |
| Sunday: |
Out and back down Hwy E. Feeling a little bit better than yesterday, legs were moving easier but I wasn't going that much faster. About 6:40s on the way out and 6:30s on the way home. Things seem to be coming together though, I'm going up and down the hills a lot easier and I was able to move pretty well over the final 2M or so. Didn't catch any splits, but made an effort to pick up the pace over the last 2M and the legs responded pretty well. Shooting for another week in the triple digits. |
14 |
Day |
Round Up |
Miles |
| Week 11
8/8-8/14 |
A week of solid mileage is in the books, the first one in triple digits for the summer. Things went pretty well this week, didn't hammer that many runs but all of them were very solid. Now that I'm not working I think I'm able to train a little bit better. The 18M with End on Tuesday was amazingly successful and the time up in Door County helped boost the week's total and let me rest up. I'm looking forward to getting back to MIT and being able to run fast again. August Miles : 202 |
103 |
| Saturday: |
Out and back down E. Think the mileage started to get to me today, legs were pretty tired. Started thinking "Just 14M and you're at 103 for the week" and from there it was just a matter of covering ground, not trying to run very fast. Running 6:45-6:50 pace, crept up towards 7:00 a few times. Don't know why I was so tired, slept the typical amount and was feeling good at the start, but I guess you can't be on every day of the week. |
14 |
| Friday PM: |
Out and back down E. Same old story. Played 9 holes of golf and rested most of the afternoon, taking a brief nap. Didn't feel that good when I headed out at 5:30, but the weather was nice so I figured it couldn't be too bad. Legs were feeling good, but the pace slowed over the course of the run. At the turn my stomach was hurting a bit but I figured it would be ok, besides I didn't feel like heading off into the woods so it would have to be ok. Just running slow on the way home, didn't feel like pushing the pace and the legs weren't turning over by themselves so I just let the pace lag. Stomach got pretty bad over the final mile but no real problems surfaced. Good day of distance, even if the pace wasn't devastating. |
12 |
| Friday AM: |
Orchards. Another morning on the soft surfaces, legs and foot feeling good. Moving pretty smoothly but didn't really push at all this morning. Slept another 9+ hours last night, I think all this rest is starting to pay off. I like the way things are going this week. |
4 |
| Thursday PM: |
Out and back down Hwy E. Took a nap in the middle of the day and felt pretty good on the run this afternoon. Headed out at 6:30s or so and proceeded to squeeze the pace down over the course of the run. Felt good and the legs got turning over pretty well on the way back. The hills were definitely an afterthought today, even the ones which are normally noticeable slipped past without an effort. Feel like I'm rounding into pretty decent shape and should post a decent total for this week's mileage. |
10 |
| Thursday AM: |
Orchards. Got out the door before 9AM and, as usual, hit the orchards for some soft surfaces for the morning miles. Felt pretty good, not lighting anything up but wasn't trying to. Just getting the miles in and doing some thinking. Rained overnight so my shoes got pretty well soaked from the long grass I was running through. No real pains from the foot though, which is a good thing. Slept a long time last night, 9+ hours I think. Good things. |
5 |
| Wednesday: |
Out and back down E. Drove up to Door County in the morning, wound up eating lunch a bit late so I didn't start until 4PM. Only 60 degrees, if that, today but warm when the sun was out. Felt good for the first half, hit 44:50 for the first half. Turned around and the sun went behind the clouds and got a bit colder. The wind started blowing pretty hard and things got a bit tougher on the way home. Still was clipping off 6:30s though, hit 45:50 on the way back. Hills weren't too bad, they're all pretty gradual. Slept 6-7 hours last night with the HR at 40BPM, took about an hour nap once I got up to to Door County too, legs not too wasted after yesterday's long run. |
14 |
| Tuesday: |
Standard 16 plus 2M add-on South on Lake. Headed out about 5PM with End and Kathryn riding alongside us. Set a decent pace at the start, both End and I wanted to keep today reasonable and we actually managed that. Shocking. Started a shade under 6:30s and worked that down. I'd guess we were at 6:00 for the last few miles before turning around, hit 8M in 49:30, just under 6:15s. On the way back everything was even-paced and smooth sailing. Stopped at Klode for End to take a pit stop, I was feeling fine today, strange for a weekday. Anyways, we just kept right on hauling and hit 48:00 for the way back. We then added on 2M around 5:50 pace. Feeling great today, we were clipping off 6:00s but I wasn't straining at all, the legs really came to me today, got into a groove and that was that. Had a great first day without work, lots of lying around and the like. Heading up to Door County tomorrow, so no updates until Monday. |
18 |
| Monday: |
Bender-12. Slept through the alarm this morning so I wasn't able to do the 4/10 split like I wanted and the legs were too tired to go a full 14M, so I'll just have to cope with a 2M loss today. Finished the last day of work and came home but waited until nearly 7PM to take off. Legs weren't feeling that great, the run didn't really come that easily today even though I was keeping it cool to prepare for tomorrow. Stopped in Kletzsch out of necessity and then shuffled the rest of the way home in a shade under 7:00 pace. Trying to keep it easy but this was just embarassing/pathetic. Hopefully tomorrow will make up for it. |
12 |
| Sunday: |
Lake Drive to Doctors Park out and back. Waited until almost 5PM to get today's run in, don't know how the whole day slipped away. Felt pretty good from the start, the right foot was hurting again, it's on the top over by the 4th or 5th metatarsal, but it loosened up by 10 minutes in and I didn't feel it again. From there everything went pretty well. Hitting about 6:20s on the way out, turned around at 44:30, hitting about 6:10s on the way home, ran it in 43:00 with the last 1.5M or so a bit quicker than the rest. One of the best runs of the summer I think, able to keep a good tempo the whole way and push slightly on the back half without chasing End and I didn't need a single pitstop, which is always a plus. I was amazed at how quickly the first hour passed, it honestly felt like 20 minutes. Of course, once I noticed that the next 10 minutes crawled by but I soon got back in a groove and the final bit of the run coasted past. Got the week off to a good start, shooting for triple digits this week. Thought it might be a good time to document my aches and pains: right foot, right Achilles, right knee, right hammy, right groin (sore and chafed,) left groin (sore and chafed,) left hammy and left knee. Thankfully they don't all hurt at the same time, but throughout the course of today they've all hurt/felt weak. Needless to say, I'm starting the I-squared regimen and hopefully will keep them all under control until I'm back at MIT and the healing goodness of the cold-whirlpool. |
14 |
Day |
Round Up |
Miles |
| Week 10
8/1-8/7 |
Another week of good mileage, but not quite as fast or hard as I would have liked. Monday's 17M was great though, got the week off to a good start with that fast distance run. From there though everything was just mediocre, nothing fast, just trying to get through each day. Work is coming to an end though, so I should be able to rest up a bit more. Summer's winding down now, heading back to school in just 2 weeks. August Miles : 99 |
99 |
| Saturday: |
Lapham, double Black Loops. End's up in Northern Wisconsin and Khatch refused my invitation, so I was all alone today. Slept almost 9 hours last night, HR at 41BPM so I was hoping to feel good out there, but my legs were sore from the start. My right foot was hurting a bit, afraid that it might be the f-word, but it loosened up eventually, so I'm pretty sure it's just a tendon or something. On Monday my plantar was pretty tight on my right foot but I just pushed through it, maybe that threw something else out of whack. I'll just ice it and take Ibuprofen for a couple days, it should work out okay. Ran the first loop in 46:50, the second in 45:15. Not really able to hammer except over the final 2-3M, and even that wasn't much under 6:15s I don't think. Not able to climb quite as well today, I guess they can't all be good days though. Felt good at the end of the run though, hopefully I'll be able to hit a solid run tomorrow. Driving back home along the Lakefront there was a fighter jet flying around as part of the Air and Water show, just glad Nolan wasn't driving or there would have been a huge accident. |
14 |
| Friday: |
Out and back along the Parkway. Felt pretty good from the gun today, waited until almost 7PM to get going, but the legs felt fresh and they were turning over pretty easily. Didn't want to push too hard because I want a good run tomorrow at Lapham, but I locked right into 6:30s and held it there. Stopped in Kletzsch on the way back for a pit stop, I think I'm being a bit more liberal with pit stops than normal, the bathroom's there and I want to avoid any problems, so even if there's just a hint of trouble, I'll stop. Rest of the run was fine, kept it relaxed and easy, hope I feel this good tomorrow. |
14 |
| Thursday PM: |
Out and back South along Lake Drive. Went about 8PM after dinner, felt alright but wasn't running fast, that's for sure. Just getting the miles in tonight, seems like I've been doing that a bit too often this summer. |
5 |
| Thursday AM: |
Art Museum then North along Lake. Got up early this morning to get the miles in before work, legs didn't really get into a groove at all. Hitting 6:40s pretty much the whole way, didn't feel all that tired I just wasn't able to push it all this morning. Got in some solid miles though, slept 6.5 hours last night. Hopefull this is all going to pay off and I'll start feeling better in the next few days, or at least able to run fast. |
11 |
| Wednesday PM: |
Bender backwards. Not feeling all that great, still a bit tired from Monday, apparently. Took a lot of effort to keep the pace at 6:30 a mile, realized today was going to be my best chance before Saturday to get in a solid run, so I tried to keep the pace quick. Never really got into a groove, felt kinda clunky most of the run. |
10 |
| Wednesday AM: |
South along Lake Drive. Almost got 8 hours last night, HR was 40BPM. Typical morning, once more. Legs got moving pretty well, really humid out and I was sweating from the gun. |
4 |
| Tuesday PM: |
Art Museum and back along the bike path. Kathryn rode along with me today, but I was running about 7:00s at the start and worked down to only about 6:40, maybe 6:30. Very relaxed, didn't push a single step today. Legs still messed up from yesterday's exertion, need to get to bed early tonight, hopefully I'll start feeling better tomorrow. Thunder and lighting starting up over the last 2M, but the storm didn't get too bad until I was already home, thankfully. |
10 |
| Tuesday AM: |
Out and back down Lake. HR was up to 42BPM last night, the run wasn't that amazing, like most all of the morning runs have been this summer. Got up, got out the door and came home. Slept about 7 hours, would be nice to bump that up to 8 though. |
4 |
| Monday: |
Same as last week, standard 16M route plus an extra mile. Met up with Nick "Chataway" End a little after 6PM today and we headed out for another 17M. He claimed to be feeling bad and not wanting to run fast, but that doesn't really mean anything. Slept 7 hours last night, HR was 39BPM. We were holding 6:30s to Klode where I took a precautionary pitstop before getting into the meat of the run. Climbing up that hill I got annoyed with Nick and started running one step ahead of him for a change, and that resulted in us escalating the pace until I eventually backed off. But we were locked into a quick pace from then on, hit 8M in 49:15 after 19:30 for the first 3M. On the way back things just stayed quick, we were moving well but I decided that another stop at Klode was in order. I knew we were moving fast so I avoided looking at the watch. We met up with Maduza at Klode which resulted in an even faster 3M back to Capitol, I only checked the split on the 16th mile which was 5:35. Alec was only going 10M so he was a lot fresher and the couple surges that Nick and I threw in weren't going to be enough to break him, so the pace kept picking up and the three of us would yo-yo around until he finally turned off. We hit 46:10 for the back 8M (approx. 5:46 pace) before Nick and I slowed it down for the last mile, dead-on 6:00 pace. Really good run, not all that wiped out at the end, but I couldn't push the pace over the last 1.5M. Don't know if it was physical or mental, but I didn't feel like getting into a pissing match over the last 2M of a 17M run. All in all a very good run. |
17 |
| Sunday: |
Almost the same route as yesterday, but I stuck on Harris instead of turning onto Old County W. Things went pretty well, despite having 20 flies chasing me for the first 20 minutes or so, that was annoying. Wanted to just take things easy today and let my body rest a bit, which I was able to do. Was holding 6:30-6:45s give or take, but when I got back to Birch, 2.5M from Kathryn's place, my stomach was acting up just a bit and I relaxed over the last 2M or so, slowing to about 6:50s and just coasting in. A bit hotter today with more direct sun, but nothing unbearable. Shooting for another week in the 98-103M range, should be able to pull that off. |
10 |
Day |
Round Up |
Miles |
| Week 09
7/25-7/31 |
Pretty decent week, got in some solid mileage but Monday's run left my legs a bit more tired than I had hoped. Got through the rest of the week okay, but didn't have many more solid runs after Monday's. Getting up for AM runs seems to be getting more difficult, which isn't supposed to be happening, but they're making the volume a bit easier on the legs, so I'll deal. Done with July, going to be back for practice in just a few short weeks. July Miles : 417 |
99 |
| Saturday: |
Birch Lake Road to Mud Lake Road to Harris Lake Road to Old County W, out and back. Ran from Kathryn's place up to County W were I saw a gravel road and jumped on that, but it ended pretty quickly and I was back on asphalt. Still, it was pretty nice running, saw fewer than 10 cars during the course of the whole run. Started out about 6:30s and dropped that down to closer to 6:00s on the way back. Ran 44:00 out and 42:00 back. |
14 |
| Friday: |
Art Museum with an inner loop. Got up at 5:30AM for this one, legs and body not quite awake for most of it. I could tell at the start that it was going to be slow so I just took my time and hoped it would be another easy day. Didn't strain at all, just hoping to get the miles in the legs and get it done with. This town is pretty desolate before 6AM, but it was a bit more awake when I got home at 7. Running 6:40-7:00 the whole time. HR was 40BPM last night, but I only slept about 5.5 hours, much too little. |
10 |
| Thursday: |
Out and back down the Parkway to Good Hope. Feeling decent today but not running very fast. Didn't have all that much motivation I guess, just wanted to run to be done and kept wishing it was Friday. In any event I was running 6:40-45s the whole way, didn't push a single step. Not much more to say, still scared of finding a bobcat in Kletzsch though. It was a good day to run, but I was thinking too much about the time. Got home and put some brats on the grill, finished cooking just in time to watch Kerry take the stage. HR was 37BPM last night, but I didn't feel like I slept that well. Kept waking up and was dead tired most of the day. Hopefully I'll feel better tomorrow. |
14 |
| Wednesday PM: |
Bender-12 backwards with End. Legs feeling a bit better than yesterday, we were clipping off 6:30s from the start, don't think we got going much faster, may have even backed off a bit towards the end. Took a quick pit stop in Kletzsch before heading up the hill. Climbed pretty well, only good thing about today. Thankfully, no bobcats today. Things smoothed out through Lincoln, we started talking about the glory days at SHS. We headed back through Estabrook, the asphalt path is torn up and just gravel right now, but then we got back to End's house and I hit Struggle Cat mode for the final mile or so thanks to the stomach. Another good rest day, hopefully. |
12 |
| Wednesday AM: |
South along Lake Drive. Dragged myself out of bed after 6.5 hours of sleep or so, HR was 38BPM. Typical, once the legs loosened up the miles kind of slipped away. Got back and stretched out before heading to work. |
4 |
| Tuesday PM: |
Bender. Originally was planning on 12 today, but my legs were so darn tired that I decided to flip-flop days and run 10M today, 12M tomorrow. It was basically just my quads which were giving me problems, pretty fatigued today. Glad I cut it short, was running 6:45-7:00 for the first 7M, then dropped it down to 6:40s for the final three after a pit stop in Klode. Don't know why my legs started feeling better over the last 3M, but I was speeding up without working any harder. Did a couple short strides hoping to blow out the pipes, hopefully today was enough of a recovery and I'll be back in the swing of things tomorrow. |
10 |
| Tuesday AM: |
South down Lake Drive. Standard AM run, difficult to get out of bed, legs loosened up after 5:00, never got going very fast. Felt better than I had expected to after yesterday, slept about 7 hours but forgot to strap on the HR monitor last night. |
4 |
| Monday: |
Standard 16M, adding on South down Lake Drive. End drove over so we started on equal footing today, but he tried to jump out to a quick pace. I tried to keep it under control for awhile and forced the pace to stay around 6:30s to Klode where we both took a quick pit stop. Then things started speeding up as we headed into Fox Point. We hit the turn around at 50:00 so we must have dropped to right around 6:00s, and that didn't change on the way back, despite End's insistence that he was going to bonk. As we got near Lake I made the foolish mistake of trying to run next to him, instead of allowing him the step or two he insists on, and we slowly sped up, until he said words I thought he'd never bring himself to say, "Do you mind if we slow down a bit?" Whether or not we actually changed pace is debatable, but I stopped trying to run next to him for awhile. Took another pit stop at Klode and then agreed it would be 17M today. Just kept clipping off 6:00s, but for the 16th mile, where somebody tried to come back on us after we passed him so we dropped a solid 5:45. Ran 47:50 for the back half and wasn't even feeling that bad. Took the final mile easy, actually got him to run shoulder to shoulder for the last 800m or so. Wasn't too devastated by the end of the run, but we had strung together somewhere between 9 and 13M of 6:00s. |
17 |
| Sunday: |
Lake Drive to Doctor's Park and back. Really solid day, just clipping of 6:30s from the gun. Was afraid to push it early because I was unsure how my legs would feel after yesterday and I only slept about 6.5 hours last night. But I got into a groove and everything was clicking so I just left it at 6:30 and let the miles slip away. Turned around at 45:40 and came back a little faster in 45:20. Very happy with how the run went today, stayed relaxed the whole way, probably could have brought the pace down at the end but was content to take today a bit easier. Weather was gorgeous, in the 70s and sunny with a little breeze. Good start to the week, I'm shooting for something 95-100M this week. |
14 |
Day |
Round Up |
Miles |
| Week 08
7/18-7/24 |
Very happy with this week, the volume was right where I wanted it to be. Didn't have that many spectacular runs though, everything was very consistent and I liked how things went. Monday's run was another solid distance run, not moving as fast over the back half as I had planned, but running 6:15s and feeling like I'm jogging is encouraging. Doubled up a couple times, moreso to avoid having to run an hour and a half after work every day. Saturday's run was just fast and hard, felt a flash of emotion when I decided to run down Nick that I normally only get during races. Fitness seems to be progressing, legs are feeling stronger, if not necessarily faster. And the HR has been low this entire week, so I must be doing something right. July Miles : 318 |
98 |
| Saturday: |
Lapham with End, once again. Able to stay a bit more patient on the first loop this time, I came through in 44:50 with Nick about :20 ahead of me. We really weren't running that much slower than last week at the start, so I consciously backed off over the last 20 minutes or so. Nick then told me he was just going to run the same pace on the next loop, so of course we was a step behind as I started to pick it up. He led all the way up Gut Buster, but I took over a little ways after and held the lead for the next few miles, but he kept closing the gap and staying right with me. I was running the hills a little bit better than him, but he was really throwing himself at them and I wasn't opening up that much on him. Once again I tried to open a gap up Asthma Hill, but I couldn't get my legs going on the top and then I got a stich in my side, so he caught up once again. I beat him most of the way up Tower Hill, but he came over the top just a bit ahead and then opened a gap at the bottom of the Big Slide and I was struggling up Two Tier. At the top though I decided that I was going to catch him, and then just started booking. It felt like he was trying to hang on a for a bit, but over the final 300m or so I pulled away but was dead at the end, felt like I had just run a race, pretty much. Wound up running 42:00 with End just a bit behind. Not too happy that I couldn't turn it on after Asthma Hill and that I struggled so much from 12-13.5M, but it was a very solid time and looks like things are going well. Slept a solid 8 hours last night, HR averaged out to 38BPM. |
14 |
| Friday PM: |
Bender Loop. Got started about 8:30PM, ate dinner about 7PM and let it settle a bit. Was feeling good but turns out I wasn't running all that fast. Legs felt fresh and everything was relaxed, thought I was clipping off 6:20-6:30 but the watch doesn't lie and it was pretty much 6:40s all the way. Could have attempted to put the hammer down but End and I are ending out to Lapham tomorrow so I decided to keep it under control. Sometimes it's nice to just go out and put some miles in easy in the dark. Slept 6-7 hours last night with the HR at 37BPM. |
10 |
| Friday AM: |
South along Lake Drive. Woke up at 6:30 thinking I'd get to work a bit early, but decided that half an hour of sleep was better, so I got up around 7AM. Legs came to me pretty quickly, don't think I was running that fast though, but the legs were feeling good. Turnover was quick and easy this morning, glad that it's Friday. |
4 |
| Thursday: |
Out and back down the Parkway with End. Opted for one long run today to save myself the pain of getting up to run in the morning. Felt pretty good today, when I picked him up End suggested that I was perhaps running faster than I thought I was. Hard to get an accurate reading of the pace, didn't have any way to catch splits again. But I was feeling good and just let the legs move quickly but easily. End stayed with me, I thought about picking it up on the way home but he said he didn't feel like it so we kept it cool. Ran 46:30 on the way out and 44:30 on the way home, but I'm thinking that the run might have been a little long. Pumped myself full of Pepto-Bismol after lunch, it must have helped because all I had to do today was stop to lose some water weight 11M in. Glad I found a solution, thought I was going to have to start mainlining the pink stuff, all this EPO man, messes with your system. Very solid run today, really only worked the hill in Kletzsch, everything else was relaxed and just clipping off miles. Caught a glimpse of an animal in Kletzsch which End swears was a bobcat, I'm not so sure it wasn't just a regular house cat, need to look into the issue, since I don't know anything about bobcats. |
14 |
| Wednesday PM: |
Art Museum, back along the bike path, Kathryn rode her bike alongside today. Felt decent today but was taking it easy and not pushing at all. Had the watch along but that was more of a formality, didn't catch a single split, really have no clue how fast I was going. It was comfortable though, possibly a little slow. Wasn't thinking about pace though, today was more of a recovery effort. Think that I'm going to shoot for a solid 98M week. |
10 |
| Wednesday AM: |
South along Lake Drive, as usual. Awake at 7AM again, slightly more difficult to rouse myself though. Felt good again, but realize that I was running slow. No watch though, just getting miles in, I'd guess 6:45s though. Got about 7 hours again, HR was down at 38BPM overnight. |
4 |
| Tuesday PM: |
Bender backwards with End. Nick was going 16M, so he ran 7.5 before and met up with me for this last 8.5M. Took a little bit to get in a groove but we started clipping off 6:20s fairly consistently and fairly easily. Nothing really exciting happening today, felt like I could have moved, started to try but legs weren't feeling that good and it's been a tough couple days so I let End dictate the pace over the back half of the run. Held the pace through about 9+, but wound up shuffling home the last mile or so, thanks to my stomach. 64 minutes total though, good day of rest. |
10 |
| Tuesday AM: |
South along Lake Drive. Saw Mr. J as I was heading through Lake Park, stopped to say a quick hello. A little easier to get out of bed, just a little. Slept about 7 hours again, HR was 40BPM. Running slow but legs still felt good, fresh despite the past few days. |
4 |
| Monday: |
Standard 16-miler. Got started right about 6PM but had to stop and stretch out a bit because my right knee was giving me problems from the gun. It never really felt better, but it got loosened up and wasn't such a big deal. Stopped at Klode, naturally, and again at the Fox Point pool, which is right at the turnaround and apparently has free admission, so that came in handy. Spent a couple minutes looking around some school for a bathroom but couldn't find it. Was hitting 6:20 from the start and wanted to hold that through 4M then slowly wind it down to 6:00 at the turn, but that didn't really happen because my knee and stomach were distracting me. Made the turn in 50:30, approx., and felt a lot better on the way back home. Never really cut loose, although my legs were feeling really good. Hit Klode in almost 30:00 on the way back, then ran 12:10 for 2M and 5:55 for the final mile and wound up at 49:00 for the back half. Was a bit upset that I wasn't running faster, but I realized that I was running 6:15s roughly for the back half of a 16-miler and it felt like I was jogging around. HR was 37BPM last night, got about 7 hours again. Happy with how things are progressing. |
16 |
| Sunday: |
Kathryn rode with me out to the Town Club then I added on to make it a solid 78 minutes today. Took Bradley up to Lake then down to Doctors Park where I ran a lap around the perimeter. Wasn't much to do there though, so I headed back to Santa Monica and headed down the road there a bit. Felt pretty good today, legs were tired and wasn't runing as fast as I felt I was, at least initially. Headed out at 6:30s, felt like I dropped the pace a bit trying to catch up to Kathryn, but probably held 6:20-6:30s the majority of the way. Glad I kept it to just 12M today, could have pushed it up to 14M but the legs were starting to fall apart around 11M, yesterday probably took a bit more out of me than I initially thought. Got in the pool at Town Club for a bit and cooled off before biking the 6M back home. Real good day today. |
12 |
Day |
Round Up |
Miles |
| Week 07
7/11-7/17 |
Good week, posted a really solid number, 94M for the week. Happy with how things went, had a good Monday and Tuesday and then relaxed until that beast of a run on Saturday. That really took it out of my legs, wasn't pushing all that much but my legs were just wasted by the end. Would have liked for that FSQ on Thursday to have been a little quicker, but that'll come with time. Still just loading the miles onto the legs, hitting the runs hard when I'm feeling it and letting the legs recover when they're tired. Got 5 more weeks for summer training. July Miles : 220 |
94 |
| Saturday: |
Lapham Peak with End. Ran double Black Loops, quite the trying run today. We both had planned on running the first lap easy and then seeing how we felt, but despite End's vow to run a couple steps behind me, he was out front almost the whole time. We came down from the Wall at 23+ minutes and I knew it was going to be a fast one so I tried to keep it relaxed, but still wound up running 43:45 with End about 0:40 ahead. He then declared that he wasn't going to go with me if I pushed, but he took off again, all day though I was able to close on him going uphill, but he was opening his stride up more going downhill. He opened up a bigger gap on the second loop, but I was saving up for a drive from Asthma Hill to home, about the last 5k. We were hitting the same times as on the first lap, at 23+ after the wall and 25:40ish at Homestead Parking Lot. I closed up some ground on End climbing up Asthma Hill and then got a step ahead along the stretch up top, but he's a tough kid and wasn't about to get dropped. Pulled away again up Tower Hill, but I was crawling at the top and he caught up going down the Big Slide, couldn't get my legs under me quite enough when we got down on the Green Loop and he stuck right on me. Beat him up Two Tier though, then we hit the meadow at the same time and slowly increased pace, I don't think either of us was too interested in sprinting away though, finished up in 42:48, which means we ran the last 5k or so about a minute faster the second time around. Averaged about 6:15s the first loop and 6:07s the second. Quads were dead, screaming during just about every climb, and the calves were just killing me the whole time. |
14 |
| Friday PM: |
Art Museum backwards. Had hoped to hook up with End today, but he was already out running when I called after work. Just relaxing for the majority of the run 6:30-6:45 for almost the whole way, pretty distracted and not really thinking about the run at all. When I got to Bradford I started to pick it up slightly, still concerned about turning the legs over a little to get them fresh for tomorrow. Climbed the hill up to Lake Drive pretty well, then clipped off about 3:05 for the half mile before settling in for the final few minutes home. Decent run, more about getting the miles in than hammering at all, but got moving at the end and hopefull I'll be feeling good tomorrow. |
8 |
| Friday AM: |
South along Lake Drive, out and back again. Once again it took a lot of effort to get out of bed this morning, but once I was on the road my legs came back to me a little bit. Just trying to make these miles a bit easier by getting some distance out of the way in the morning. |
4 |
| Thursday PM: |
Regular Bender. Ran over to Kathryn's house to watch some of the Shorewood Criterium, but I can't follow bike racing without a TV announcer, apparently. Started the run for real at 7PM or so, feeling pretty tired today. Hit the first couple miles at 6:45 then stopped at Klode quickly before knocking the pace down to 6:44s, by my rough estimate. Kept wanting to stretch the legs out a bit but the body wasn't responding. Planning on a big day at Lapham on Saturday, didn't want to coast all the way through on crappy legs so I stopped at SHS for a quick lap around the track. Appeared to have gotten out in 28-high but then faded a bit over the final hundred to run just a 59 for my second FSQ of the summer to break in the new kicks. Still, I felt good enough through 250m to know that things are progressing pretty well. Always feels good to finish a run at sub-4:00 pace, right Khatch? |
10 |
| Thursday AM: |
South on Lake Drive, out and back. Took a mighty effort to drag myself out of bed at 7AM this morning, couldn't come up with a good excuse and I wasn't ready to another 14 miler tonight. Once I got out there it was alright, which is normally the case. Still, the quads were insanely tired when I got back, was able to watch about 10 minutes of Tour coverage while stretching before I had to get moving again. This would be an awesome time to not have to work, Tour de France all morning, run the afternoon then Oly Trials coverage at night. Instead, I've got 8 hours in a cubicle every day. |
4 |
| Wednesday: |
Out and back down the Parkway with End. Same route as last week, not nearly as fast though. We were both pretty beat up from the past couple days so we did our best to keep it easy, but naturally End was willing to work a little harder on his easy day than I was, so he wound up a couple steps ahead most of the way. Not too sure about the pace of this run, it was averaged to slower than 6:30s and the two halves were fairly evenly split, but I felt like we got rolling a bit faster on the way back, guess I slowed down more over the last couple miles than I thought. Anyways, it was a good recovery day and I'm just happy to get the miles in. HR wound up about 42BPM last night. |
14 |
| Tuesday: |
Bender-12 backwards. End was going 16M, so he ran over to my house, then we headed out together and he added on afterwards. Very hot day, a lot hotter than normal, probably 80+ with the sun at the time we got started, hosed down at the start but that dried up pretty quick. Got into it from the start, hit 6:15s for the first 3M. Headed into Kletzsch feeling a bit tired but managed to open up a gap on End up and down the hill, but then we both hit up the bathroom and that equalized everything. Took the lead as we headed down the Parkway and the pace started to drop slightly. End evened up as we hit Lincoln but I could feel him starting to work a bit. Had to hit the Port-A-John at Port Road, just as a precaution, and End was happy to have a break and stretch out. The 6M from Klode had taken just 37 minutes, and I was feeling pretty good still. We started rolling again pretty quickly, but when we got to Marlboro I picked it up a bit more, End asked if I was going to keep it there and then let me go. Struggled a bit up Capital and End caught up at the stoplight at Shorewood and Oakland. Opened it up a bit from there though and got home in just 73:00, 10-15 seconds ahead of End. Pretty good day today, felt fresh and able to get a little payback for End beating me like a drum most of the summer. Probably keep the next couple days easy and avoid getting into a big hole, hoping for a big weekend and solid end to the week. Slept about 7 hours last night, wound up staying up watching all the trials. Glanced at the HR monitor when I woke up, surprised to find it reading 38BPM, averaged out to 39BPM for the entire night. |
12 |
| Monday: |
Standard out and back 16-miler down Lake. Headed out about 6PM and met End around Kensington. I had hit about 3:20 for the first half but we dropped it down to 6:20-6:30 pace pretty quickly. Stayed locked in there as we headed north. Weather had been pretty warm but it was starting to cool off by the time we got started, the humidity was still there though. End was only going 10M today, so he turned around 32 minutes in and I was on my own. I was thinking I'd have to re-route through Doctor's Park to use a bathroom, but noticed a house by Bradley was getting remodeled and there was a Port-A-John outside so I just hit that up. Felt a lot better as I was on my way to Santa Monica where I just cruised it easy to Longacre where I made the turn at 51:56. Plan was to run relaxed the first half and then get going on the way back, depending on the legs. Wound up feeling pretty good when I turned around, kept it relaxed and decided not to hammer until I got back to Bradley, which was 39:00 on the way out. Got back to Lake Drive in under 11 minutes and then started picking it up slowly. Was hoping the legs would kind of come to me as I started upping the pace, but they weren't, so I just started forcing the pace down faster and faster. This was one of those days when things aren't quite easy, so I just kept telling myself that these are the days you start to improve. When your legs aren't coming to you but you hammer down anyway, the more you do it the more it becomes second nature and your first impulse when things are getting tough. So I was clipping off 6:10-6:15s for most of the second half, hit Klode at 30:15 and clipped off the next 2M in 12:19. Then I started grooving the last mile, staying relaxed and not forcing it but definitely running a bit faster than my legs would have found naturally. Wound up hitting 5:45 over the final mile and still feeling pretty good. Wound up running 49:15 for the back half, really happy with how the run ended up. Didn't overextend bu got in a very solid run, especially over the final few miles. |
16 |
| Sunday: |
Random roads around Dayton, OH. Nolan called me up yesterday and we figured out a way to get together for a run today. Had planned on splitting the day up to accomodate the drive, but one longer run worked out a lot better. We headed out a bit before 10:30 and it was already broiling. Not used to running in the heat, it was about 90 degrees the whole time, took it out of me more than I hoped it would. Straightforward out and back, turned around 40 minutes in. Good to have somebody to run with instead of just wandering around in a place I don't know. Holding a steady pace, not going crazy by any stretch, but the last 10-20 minutes were pretty tough. Got caught up with Nolan, he's been putting the miles in and seems to be in damn good shape. Had to spend 6+ hours on the road coming back to Milwaukee afterwards, but the legs were feeling good. Got in some good work with The Stick and the IT Band seems to have loosened up a bit, feeling a lot better. Shooting for a solid week of 90+ with some faster runs this week, if possible. |
12 |
Day |
Round Up |
Miles |
| Week 06
7/04-7/10 |
Happy with the way this week went. First full week in July, time to start getting in some good runs, increasing the quality and running faster. Monday's 16 miler was pretty surprising, honestly, I wasn't expecting it to go quite so well, and definitely wasn't expecting to recover so quickly. Rest of the week was pretty standard, getting in good mileage on singles still, Saturday was a good down day, letting the body recouperate, which was definitely needed. Things are progressing well, looking for another big week next week. July Miles : 126 |
88 |
| Saturday: |
Ault Park. We drove over to Ault Park in Cincinnati around 1PM, I started the run about 2. Found some really nice trails in a section of the woods there, got to run on some gravel and some dirt trails. Really pleased with finding the trails, got out of the sun and on soft surfaces the whole time. Kept the pace very relaxed, had to climb a couple hills that stung the legs a bit, but mainly just coasting through the trails. At 20 minutes in I found myself 50 feet from a deer before he took off and at40 minutes in I wound up running through about 400m of plants that stung my quads for 5-10 minutes. Nothing very exciting happened, put in a solid 66-67 minutes and then some barefoot strides in the park. |
10 |
| Friday PM: |
Out and back south through Lake Park. Got off work at noon today for the trip down to Cincy, threw in an extra couple miles before we hit the road though. Didn't take a watch so I have no idea about pace/time, but I was running very relaxed, probably not that fast though, I'd guess 6:40s again. This weekend is supposed to be an easy one though, so the pace doesn't bother me at all. Looking forward to taking it easy for a few days, legs, body and mind are getting a bit tired. And the IT band is still a little fired up. |
4 |
| Friday AM: |
Art Museum. Out the door at 5:30AM today, legs not quite awake. Was feeling really fluid the first few miles but only hitting 6:40s approx. Too early and not enough sleep, I guess. Didn't really speed up at all during the run, kept it 6:30-7:00 the whole way, nice and relaxed. Pretty much just trying to get the miles in. Legs didn't feel as bad as I thought they would though. Wrapped it up a little before 6:30, meaning I had run 20M in the past 24 hours. |
8 |
| Thursday: |
Bender-12 backwards. Rushed for time as I waited until 6:20 to take off tonight. Started out hitting 6:10s but then calmed down after 3M in 18:25 as my stomach and right knee started giving me problems. Haven't had enough time to take care of the IT band recently, got a long drive tomorrow though, should have time to get in some good action with The Stick. After going up and down the hill in Kletzsch I used the bathroom there and took a few minutes to stretch out the right leg. From there I was feeling alright, kept grooving 6:20s. Wound up with a time of 75:00, last 9M in 56:30. |
12 |
| Wednesday: |
Out and back down the Parkway with End. Took off about 5:45 this afternoon, swung by End's place and we started clipping off a decent place. He claimed to be sore from his 15M yesterday and didn't want to run fast. We were hitting 6:30s easy on the way out, picked it up a little up and down the hill in Kletzsch. He was going shorter so he waited up for me as I continued on down the Parkway, hitting Good Hope in 45:30. Heading back we picked it up a bit and then I told him that I was going to stop at a Port-A-John in Lincoln and then drop the hammer a little. We were hitting right about 6:00s from Bender back to Silver Spring, he opened up a small gap when my stomach started hurting, but I decided to take it to him and the pace started dropping as I kept surging to get ahead. That only lasted about half a mile, then we hit the Port-A-John and he decided to head home alone to keep the pace easy. I wrapped things up with 3-4M at 6:00 feeling pretty good the whole way. The stretch up Capitol was pretty tough, but when I turned down Beverly everything was gravy and the legs came back to me. Wound up running 42:10 on the way home, got in a pretty good high mileage day, exactly what I was looking for. |
14 |
| Tuesday: |
Bender, added on down to Kenwood. Went with End today, he's back in town. He said he wanted to keep it moderate and I was feeling pretty good, so we got moving a little before I decided to back it off down to 6:15-6:20s. He slowed down almost as much as we were heading along the Parkway. Legs started getting sore though, must be left over from yesterday, and my stomach started to get upset. Took a pitstop at the 7-11 but that didn't accomplish much. Was running about 6:30s along Lake, he took off as we got close to Capitol, I stopped at my house for another quick trip to the john before finishing up. Felt decent today, a good recovery day I hope. Slept 7 hours last night, HR was a surprising 39BPM average. Hope to get in a good 14 miler tomorrow. |
12 |
| Monday: |
Standard 16M route. Lake Drive to Churchhill, wound my way to Santa Monica then ran south to Longacre, turned around and came back. Really feeling great today, it was such a sweet run. Sat around most of the day working on an extension to FireFox that's going to revolutionize how I surf the web and listened to the Crew beat the Cubs, then took off about 4PM. From the gun I was clipping off 6:20s, ran the 3M from Capitol to Klode in 19:00. Feeling great and staying relaxed as I headed into Fox Point, I knew it was going to be longer today than I've run in awhile and didn't want to get in too deep early. Hit the turn in 50:20, which I originally thought was dead-on 6:20 pace, but it's actually :20 below, so averaged about 6:17s on the front half. Stopped a minute to stretch and adjust my laces so they'd stop clinking on the key tied to my shoe, then headed off back home. Stayed relaxed the rest of the way, didn't push the pace at all, just let the miles slip away almost. By the time I got back to Klode it was 30:00, and I then clipped off 6:00, 6:00 and 5:50 along Lake and finished off the second half of the run in 48:45, averaging about 6:06 per. Finished up with a few strides in the street before stretching. Slept 9+ hours last night and the HR was 40BPM, so I was expecting a good run today, but I couldn't be happier with the way this run went. I was feeling easy and relaxed the whole way, the legs didn't start to get tired until 15M in and then I just focused on keeping my form relaxed and the pace just kept flowing. Finished up and felt like I'd just jogged around the block, this one felt like it took very little out of me. |
16 |
| Sunday: |
Art Museum back along the bike path. Took that all the way to the end, then ran up Glendale to Lake. Kathryn rode with me for part of the run today, so that was enjoyable. Feeling pretty good out there, not too sore from yesterday. Clipping off 6:30s for the majority of the run I'd imagine. It was pretty humid, and even though it drizzled a bit at the start I got pretty hot and wound up sweating my ass off. Didn't know any mile markers so I didn't catch any splits, just running by feel instead. The last couple miles, especially up Glendale, I was starting to feel it, this has got to be helping out my legs. Shooting for 85-90M for this week, but I'm going out of town this weekend so we'll see what happens. |
12 |
Day |
Round Up |
Miles |
| Week 05
6/27-7/03 |
Not such a great week, all told. Wound up feeling really run down most of the week and End was just killing me. Thankfully I was smart enough not to freak out, just kept plugging away and my legs started to pick up by the end of the week. Put a good ending on the week with Saturday's run, but I was in a lot of pain on most of the runs this week. Don't know why but my quads did not have a good week. Got the miles in I'm sure this week was just a small bump in the road. July Miles : 38 |
84 |
| Saturday: |
Lake Drive to Doctor's Park. Very solid run today, started out at 6:20-6:30 and dropped the pace to 6:00-6:15 over the last 7-8M, just letting the legs flow and everything felt very good today. Slept 8 hours last night, the HR averaged out to 39BPM over 6 of those hours, so I was hoping to feel good out there today. Originally planned on a Bender-12 with a little extra but remembered once I had started that Glendale Days is this weekend and that Kletzsch Park would be overrun with people, so I just headed straight north. Once I climbed the hill into Fox Point I was moving pretty well, and then I spotted a woman about 400m ahead so I set about chasing her down and that got me locked into a pretty good pace because she was moving pretty well. Got to Churchhill, where I turn on the 16-miler, but decided to keep going north. The sidewalk ended pretty soon though, so I turned down the road to Doctor's Park, and once I got there it was 44:00 so I headed back. Kept it locked in all the way home, only real problem was the bug that went, I think, up my nose and then down my throat. That stings a little bit. Could feel the legs getting more tired as I hit Klode, that was 11M in and about all that my legs are accustomed to right now. But I managed to hit the next 2M in 12:20 and drop 6:00 over the last mile, so I think my body handled the mileage increase pretty well. Started sprinkling a bit over the last few miles but didn't start raining for real until I had made it home. Good run today. |
14 |
| Friday: |
Art Museum with an add-on North along Lake Drive. Up at 5:50 and out the door at 6AM. Feeling pretty loose from the start, only running 6:40s but not really dragging this time. Decided I'd take another shot at the crazy-ass bird, but it was attacking somebody else as I ran past. Legs were pretty tired though, so I was just trying to stay relaxed and not get freaked out. By the time I hit Lake Park I needed to find a bathroom, so I hopped into a Port-A-John before the final 4M. Dropped it down to 6:20s over the final few miles and nailed the last in 6:05. Feeling great by the end of the run though, guess it took awhile for the legs to wake up. |
12 |
| Thursday: |
Bender-12. Headed out the door about 6PM thinking I'd aim for 14M, but quickly changed my mind because of my legs and it was getting late in the day. Feeling better than I have of late, but doubt that I was running much faster. Hit 3M in 19 minutes and then messed up the watch so I don't have a final time. Just getting the miles in, definitely not pushing anything today. Something's gotta change though and I gotta start feeling like rolling eventually. Felt good up the hill in Kletzsch and things kind of started to smooth out from there. Had some heartburn and was belching pretty well, but it didn't interfere with the run too much. From Klode I knocked out 6:40 and 6:45 really feeling tired but then started chasing someone down over the last mile and dropped in a 6:10. Felt good to finally roll out a good mile and get the legs loose. Not completely back I'm sure but there's light at the end of the tunnel now. Beautiful day to be out running, low 60s with the sun setting and a slight breeze. |
12 |
| Wednesday PM: |
Out and back south into Lake Park. Legs are still feeling crappy, even on this short run. My quads just ached, especially while I was walking up my driveway afterwards. Can't figure it out, but it'll have to end sometime. Just going to have to keep at it until running's a little easier. June Miles : 310 |
4 |
| Wednesday AM: |
Art Museum. Out of bed at 6:20, out the door by 6:30. Hoping that I'd feel better at the start of the day, didn't happen though. Felt comfortable at the start and though I was running well, but I saw that I turned a 3:20 half mile and things went downhill from there. About 25 minutes in my legs were dead, especially my quads. Don't know what it is, because I haven't changed anything, but I was dragging out there. Down by the lagoon a guy warned me about the "attacking birds" and I thought he was joking, looking around I saw one or two but I envisioned a flock attacking this guy. Sure enough though, 400m later I glance down at the ground and see the shadow of a bird flying right behind me. The bird then screams and I feel him hit the back of my head. I duck and cuss and speed up and he doesn't bother me anymore. Can't imagine what was wrong, maybe he's got a nest or something. Anyways, pretty tired and slow this morning, averaged about 6:45s. |
8 |
| Tuesday: |
Bender then south to Kenwood and back. Went most of the way with End before he dropped me over the last few miles. Plan was to go 14M by going further south into Lake Park, but 12M was all I could handle today. Not feeling as bad as yesterday, wasn't lumbering around at all, but still not feeling smooth and easy. Guess my body's just a bit tired and it'll take a few days to recover. End was pretty cool and hung back with me, by the time we got to Bender it was clear he was feeling it and I wasn't, he said he'd wait til Lake before taking off. I loosened up a bit and we got moving, ran 2M from Klode to 4676 in 12:00, but Nick had already opened up a big gap. I then dropped to 6:15 for the 10th mile and 6:30s for the final two. Stomach started to get a bit restless over the final 2M, which sucked also. Surprised I was running so fast though, felt like I was going 6:45s and really working. Think I'm maybe a bit dehydrated, salt stains on my shorts and face after the run. Just going to pound the water and get some solid rest and I'm sure I'll swing out of this. Really would have liked to get rolling with End today, but there'll be other chances. |
12 |
| Monday: |
Out and back down the Parkway with End. I stopped at the top of the sledding hill, he added on a bit more. Thought maybe I'd get rolling today, but after about thirty seconds I knew that wasn't going to happen. Felt like an old man out there for a little while. Eventually loosened up and didn't feel like I was plodding along, but I was definitely just clipping off 7:00s today. I think it was a little slower than End wanted to go, but he was cool and stuck with me. Yesterday I was running slow but it felt good, today my legs were just tired. Can't explain it, nothing's different, guess it's just one of those things. End's just back from Chile so we were talking the whole time and the time passed pretty quick, 42:00 out 41:00 back. Don't know what it was today, just getting the miles in. |
12 |
| Sunday: |
Bender. Spent most of the morning sleeping and the early afternoon running erands and setting up our new Digital Video Recorder, so I didn't get out the door until 5:30 or so. Decided it would be smart to go easy, and short, and give my body a bit of a break. I was really feeling beat up after yesterdays run, and my calves were really sore when I was stretching them today, so I think I made a good choice. Legs were feeling pretty good actually, but it was so comfortable to just be cruising 6:30s I didn't try to push it. It was cool and overcast, I had a feeling it was going to rain before I was done. Sprinkled a bit through Lincoln and started raining, but not hard, when I got to Klode. Really good run, one of those days where you're just out there enjoying running and not worrying about too much stuff. Clipped off 6:30, 6:38, 6:25 from Klode back to Capitol, supporting my feeling that I was running steady 6:30s. I was really ready to roll on the last mile, but I forced myself to keep it cool. Don't really know how to describe it, it was like when you've got a rubber band stretched out or a spring coiled up, my legs just wanted to go. Going to be able to start letting myself go soon, but today was expressly a recovery day. I'll just have to deal with being a bit behind on the mileage, but I was planning a 14 miler this week anyways, so it'll be okay. |
10 |
Day |
Round Up |
Miles |
| Week 04
6/20-6/26 |
Pretty happy with how this week turned out. Got in some good distance, a lot of solid 12-milers at a decent clip. Not blazing any and not running myself into the ground, but I was spent by the end of the week. Still, I'm getting 6-8 hours a night and eating well, so I'm not worried. The groin aches from time to time but I don't think it's going to be anything disastrous. I'm happy with how things went this week and how the summer is progressing in general. June Miles : 264 |
79 |
| Saturday: |
Lapham Peak, Black then Blue. I was beat today, just dog-assed tired. Finished the Black Loop in 45:15, a pretty decent time, and ran the Blue Loop in 40, so I averaged about 6:30s over the run. Stopped about 25 minutes in to tighten up my shoes, my feet were sliding around on the downhill. Didn't help out that much, I think it was just the new socks. Finished off the Black Loop feeling tired but still good, knew I just had to keep going if I was going to get through. The final couple miles were pretty rough on me, especially Tower Hill, stopped just before the top for a second or two. Once I was done climbing I was alright, legs were tired but they weren't about to give out, suppose I could have kept going had I needed to. |
13 |
| Friday: |
Bender-12 backwards. Almost cut today back to 10M since I didn't get started until almost 8PM. I was feeling so good that I decided to stick it out and go the whole 12 though. Was dropping 6:15s at the start, got down to low 6:00s, but the stomach kicked in a bit today. A lot like Wednesday, I stopped at Klode just 3M in and again in Lincoln about 8M in. Still, I ran 75 minutes total, so about 6:15s. Feeling good, legs were strong today. They were getting sore/tired but I was locked in and didn't have to try to keep myself moving at all, they just carried me through. Really good run, glad the weekend is here. |
12 |
| Thursday: |
Bender. Decided to go shorter and faster today, was hitting about 6:00 the whole way. Tired a bit about 35 minutes in but recovered after a quick pit stop at Klode. Hit the last 3M in 5:58, 5:59, 5:54. Last one would have been a little faster had I not gotten cut off by some guy in a BMW. Didn't start until 7PM again, need to get out of that habit. I'm sure part of the reason that my stomach feels so bad is that I haven't eaten since noon and I'm just hungry. Anyways, good fast run today but not taxing at all. It's pretty comfortable to just start hitting 6flat and then let it ride. In a good mood. |
10 |
| Wednesday: |
Bender-12 backwards. Feeling okay at the start, clipped off the first 3M at approx. 6:20 each, but it was not a good day for my stomach. Used the facilities at Klode and a Port-A-John in Lincoln Park about 30 minutes later. Didn't really slow me down though, still averaged right at 6:20s, just under 57 for the last 9M. Felt pretty good up the hill, but couldn't get into a rhythm because of the upset stomach. Think it's time to grab a bottle of Kaopectate. Otherwise I'm in pretty good shape, legs were a bit tired but they loosened up about 30 minutes in and I'm getting excited and ready to roll. My right knee was clicking or snapping a bit at the start (I checked my shoe but no tack was to be found,) but that loosened up and was feeling fine 3M in. My left groin is still a bit sore, especially when I start running fast. Still a bit rushed for time and neglecting the stretching a bit, hopefully this weekend I'll get some time to loosen everything up and use The Stick a bit. |
12 |
| Tuesday: |
Bender. My stomach was a lot more upset than usual after work so I waited until nearly 7PM hoping it would calm down. Legs were feeling pretty good today, clipping off a solid pace all the way to the 7-11 where I took a pit stop. Hit 18:20 over the last 3M, with the final one in 5:57. Not forcing anything today, just let my body run a bit faster than normal. Might come up a bit short of 80M this week, depending upon whether I head out to Lapham on Saturday or not. |
10 |
| Monday: |
Art Museum and back to Capitol along the bike path. Kathryn rode her bike alongside me, which made things a lot easier. Had somebody to talk to and pace me. Wasn't running all that fast today though, clipping along at an even pace, I'd guess 6:15-6:30, without having taken any mile splits. Wound up cutting it short, had planned on going all the way to Lake Bluff but my stomach was starting to get upset so I played it safe. It had rained most of the day, so it was cool and the air was wet, awesome weather for running. Seem to be handling running and work a little better this week. |
10 |
| Sunday: |
Lapham Peak with Khatch. Went pretty early in the morning, left my house a bit before 8AM, started the run about 8:45. Feeling really good today, pace was moderate, kept it under control a bit for Khatch, it was a step up in distance and terrain for him, he was hurting a bit at the end. I was climbing really well today, I like the way things are looking. Ran about 44:30 for the Black loop, then ran a Blue but cut off Two Tier, probably a bit long though. Khatch's watch said 11.9M but it also said the Black was 6.5M, so I don't know how much I trust it. Anyways, since End is in South America right now it was good to have someone to drive out there and run with. Thinking that I'm going to shoot for about 80M this week, hopefully be able to add some faster runs and get more accustomed to having to work and run. |
12 |
Day |
Round Up |
Miles |
| Week 03
6/13-6/19 |
An interesting week, not quite what I wanted though. It'll take some adjustment to figure out a good schedule for running and working, but I don't think it'll be a big deal. Wound up not running as hard or as fast this week as I wanted to, ran the last couple miles fast on Tuesday, otherwise nothing until Saturday. Was kind of beat up and run down most of this week, I think being relaxed on Saturday really helped, I was able to find a groove and just let it roll most of the way. Felt like I could have tacked on another 5-10M at the end of that run. Maybe things aren't as bad after all. June Miles : 185 |
75 |
| Saturday: |
Art Museum backwards, with two Inner Loops. Ran down Lafayette and up St. Mary's on the way out, up St. Mary's and down Lafayette on the way back. Feeling really good today, best run I've had in a while. Running low 6s the whole way and feeling comfortable too. Felt great climbing the couple hills, even grinding it out up Lincoln Memorial. Felt like my legs were preventing my ego from hurting my body over the last mile or so, I wanted to drop the hammer but my legs were just locked in at 6:00 pace. No real reason to haul today, would have just messed me up like the last time. Nice weather, cool in the shade but warm in the sun. It felt good to be able to relax most of today instead of being rushed to run at the end of the day. Thought this route was going to be 12M, but the inner loops were more like a mile and a half per, hit 68 minutes total. |
11 |
| Friday PM: |
Out and back into Lake Park. Got back from work and headed out for a quick couple miles before going to watch the Brewers game. Weather was pretty good for running, cool and spitting rain, but my body just wasn't into it. Had to get in the miles though, running about 6:15s most of the way. Glad it's Friday and that I'm done working for a few days. It'll be nice to get to relax and sleep and have more time to run and stretch this weekend. |
4 |
| Friday AM: |
Art Museum. Got up about 6:15 and headed out the door to get the miles in before work today. Felt decently smooth for the first 20-25 minutes, not fast but still smooth. Right about the time I got up to Prospect things started falling out of place. My left quad was sore down by my knee, and then the groin started getting sore too. The rest of the way home something was off, I just couldn't find a good stride. Need to loosen up some more, it would appear. Running 6:30-6:45s this morning, not really what I wanted but that's what my legs and body dictated. |
8 |
| Thursday: |
Bender-12 backwards. Headed out thinking about trying an FSQ today. Was hitting 6:30s from the start and that's where it stayed. Nothing very fast today, legs and body just wiped out. Slept 7+ with the HR back down at 40BPM, so that's encouraging. It'll probably just take a week or two to get adjusted to working 40 hours a week and running as well. Felt decently strong up the hill, didn't push it at all but I'm not struggling to climb anymore. Stomach wasn't feeling all that hot today either, wound up stopping at a Port-A-John where they're ripping up the intersection of Hampton and Port Washington, that helped out a little bit. Wasn't in any kind of shape to stop and run a fast 400m though. This week seems to be just about getting mileage in and letting the legs get readjusted. |
12 |
| Wednesday: |
Art Museum with an Inner Loop Lafayette to St. Mary's. Headed out a little after 6PM, guess I ate too much too soon to running again because I had a pretty upset stomach over the last 30 minutes of the run. Held it pretty consistent at 6:30-6:40 the whole way, just a real average run for me today. Think I need to start eating a bit at 3 or 4PM instead of waiting until I get home. Anyways, nothing really memorable about today's run, going to have to hit a couple longer runs in the coming days though. My groin on my left side was a bit sore, loosened up eventually but I'll have to pay attention to that and stretch it well over the next few days. HR was 48BPM last night, got 8 hours. Looks like I'm not quite in shape yet, yesterday was a good run but it not all that hard. It would appear that Khatch is suffering from a hangnail or something of the sort. |
10 |
| Tuesday: |
Bender-12. Got home around 5:30 got out the door close to 6:30. Headed out at a pretty easy pace, plan was to keep it relaxed until I got back to Bender after the hill in Kletzsch and then pick it up over the last 4M or so. Felt pretty relaxed down the Parkway, not working too hard just letting the legs dictate the pace. Felt great going up the hill both times, maybe Lapham kicked in a little earlier than normal. Unfortunately, when I got back to Bender my stomach was hurting, guess I ate too much when I got home from work. Struggled up to the 7-11, but was able to pick it up after that quick pit stop. Started clicking off the miles when I hit Klode. 6:02, 6:08, 5:25 (2:48/2:37). Pretty sure that was my first sub-6 mile of the summer. Was locked into a solid pace and moving well along Lake, but over the last 1000m kicked it up another notch. Felt really good for about 600m of that, moving fast without straining. Didn't hit a wall but wasn't flowing so well over the last 200m, got some more work to do before I can declare myself in shape. Got 7+ hours last night, HR was averaged 40BPM. |
12 |
| Monday: |
Art Museum. First day of work, up at 6:30, out of bed at 7AM. Long day, I've got my own cubicle and I spent the morning there reading some boring manuals. Got home a little before 6PM, out the door a little after 7. Just tired and a little frustrated so I kept the run short. Found myself pushing a little too much so I backed off before I got to the Museum. Got back and stretched out quickly before a shower. Just a long day and I ran a little shorter because I was tired. Been sleeping about 6 hours a night for a few too many nights. |
8 |
| Sunday: |
Lapham. Decided about 1AM that I wanted to run there in the morning, so I had to go alone. Felt pretty good, some of the hills gave me problems others just kind of slipped by without me noticing. Still not in very great shape but I think I'm ahead of where I was last year, and I wasn't trying to hammer today, just using the terrain to get a harder run in. After the Black Loop I added on a Green and thought I had hit 10M, but checked the map and was only at 9, so I had to add on for a few extra minutes. Finished with a long buildup into a stride and tried to maintain speed for as long as possible. Ran the Black Loop in 46:35 which means I was holding 6:30-6:40 which is pretty decent. Ran the 2M Green Loop in 12:30. Nice weather, sunny and not too hot. Plan for the week is to increase to 75-80M and try to add a few harder runs. |
10 |
Day |
Round Up |
Miles |
| Week 02
6/06-6/12 |
A solid week of base. Managed to keep everything under control this week, didn't hammer once even though I was itching to run fast near the end of the week. It's a long summer and I wanted to get the volume up and not dig myself into a hole right from the start. Nothing really stands out about this week, got in a couple of 12 milers but didn't do anything impressive. June Miles : 110 |
70 |
| Saturday: |
Art Museum with an inside loop. Started out and wanted to explore the Nature Preserve, hoping to find some good trails there. Unfortunately there weren't any good enough to run on, so I had to head right back up the hill as soon as I got to the bottom. Kept things under control after that, climbing back up took a bit out of me. Cut up LaFayette and back to St. Mary's to add on some distance before heading over to the Art Museum. Ran 6:20-6:30 the whole way, kept it real comfortable and relaxed. |
10 |
| Friday: |
Bender-12 backwards. Feeling alright from the start but kept it easy the whole way. Headed out at 6:30s a mile and held it there the whole way. Felt a little better climbing the hill in Kletzsch this time, starting to round into shape. Weather was absolutely gorgeous today, ran about 3:30 in the afternoon and it was in the mid-50s and misting. Stayed cool and comfortable the whole time. I would love to have that kind of weather all year round. Decided against the FSQ, wanted to keep things easy this week and my legs were pretty worn down coming home along the parkway. The new laptop showed up today, going to take some time to get it configured correctly, but it's insanely light. |
12 |
| Thursday: |
Art Museum. Feeling pretty good at the start, got a bit carried away and was moving pretty quick. Calmed down about 15 minutes in, good thing too because 25 minutes in or so the legs got a bit more tired. Last thing I want to do this week is hit a wall. Still, legs recovered a bit was moving at a solid pace, held 6:10-6:20 the whole way, I'd guess. Hardly any residual effects from the long run yesterday, which is encouraging. So far my body has accepted the 10M a day average pretty well. It was much cooler, about 50 degrees and had been raining all day. Wasn't looking forward to going out but by 10 minutes I had adjusted to the colder weather and enjoyed the rest of the run. Completely forgot I had been thinking about an FSQ, maybe I'll toss one in near the end of my 12 miler tomorrow. |
8 |
| Wednesday: |
Bender plus 2M in Kletzsch. Wound up sitting around most of the day, didn't get out the door until almost 5:30. Feeling pretty good but made an effort to keep it comfortable, wanted my first "long" run of the season to go well and not leave me in a hole for the rest of the week. Felt okay climbing the hill in Kletzsch but definitely have a lot of strength left to gain. Wound up picking it up slightly coming home along the Lake, but forcibly kept it from getting out of hand. Split the last mile in 6:15, pretty sure I was averaging about 6:30s most of the way. Really itching to hammer one, maybe an FSQ tomorrow will take care of that. Manpower called back today, hopefully I'll be starting work soon. |
12 |
| Tuesday: |
Bender. Went about 11:30 today, without realizing that temps were in the 90s. Got to Silver Spring in 31 minutes and took a break in the shade to stretch and cool off. Trudged on up to Klode where I got some water in me and on me before finishing up along the lake. Was hitting 6:40-7:00 pace the whole way, I let the heat get to me a bit too much. Wasn't all that confident in my legs, not accustomed to running in this kind of heat. I'm just glad End wasn't with me, I can see the scene as we would approach Silver Spring. "Hey, lets start to hammer until we get near heat exhaustion, and then push on through to heat stroke. It'll make us stronger." "No Nick, it'll make us incredibly stupid. Besides, I think I feel cardiac arrest coming on." I was encouraged by the thought that at least I'd have been able to keep up with Fivos today, but after checking his log it looks like that wasn't true. |
10 |
| Monday: |
Along the Lakefront up and down the bluff to Lafayette then took the bike path back to Capitol, ran 400m on the track to check pace and went home from there. Went with Nick "I like to run my easy days hard" End. We took Licoln Memorial then went up Snake Hill, down the path to Bradford then up St. Mary's then down the stairs at Back Bay Park then up LaFayette before I gave up on End's plan to run a bunch of hills. He told me he wanted to run easy and do a bunch of hills, and lived up to the running hills part of that. Heading back along the bike path was nice, I got in almost 20 minutes on grass/gravel, I should really run the bike path more often. I think he was a bit annoyed that I bailed on the hills as he started running a few steps ahead, which eventually increased to 20m before he waited up for me. He was complaining that we were going so slow he "couldn't feel [his] legs." I jumped off the path onto Wilson and then hit the track at SHS running about the same pace and logged a quarter in 1:34 (6:16 pace.) That may have been a bit faster than we had been running, but we weren't slower than 6:30-6:40. Guess his easy/recovery pace is a bit faster than that. Still, I got done what I wanted to do today, legs were still feeling good at the end so I'm happy. Just trying to get to 70M this week without working too hard on any given day. Then my legs should be ready. |
8 |
| Sunday: |
Out and back along the Parkway with End. Wanted to go 8M, he was going 7M so I decided to make it 10M since my legs weren't feeling too bad. Same deal running with him, I stayed a meter or two behind him most of the way, thought it was pretty funny when he "hit the wall" during his easy day. Don't really know our pace, don't really care either though. I was running a good pace for my legs, not pushing at all, trying to take it easy. Wound up running for 67 minutes, split it pretty much even, 33:34 out, 33:30 back. Should probably add a few more fruits and vegetables to the diet. Plan is to hit 70M this week, probably going to keep it easy the whole week, it's still so early that I just want to get in a solid week of 6:00-6:40s depending on my legs and build from there. |
10 |
Day |
Round Up |
Miles |
| Week 01
5/30-6/05 |
Good to be back training, doing my best to get back in shape. End was really whipping my ass on a few of those runs, if he wasn't trying to stay relaxed he could have really embarassed me. Running 10M on the first day might not have been the best idea but I recovered from that through some shorter distance runs. Wound up running pretty well on another 10-miler on Saturday but would have liked to feel a little better. Planning on hitting 70M next week, would like to be above 80M a week by the end of June. June Miles : 40 |
50 |
| Saturday: |
Bender. Feeling pretty good today, went about 3:30 this afternoon after sitting around all day. Moving pretty well from the start, got into a groove and just let it flow. About 7M in I started to feel pretty tired, and it felt like I was slowing down but I ran the last mile in 6:10 so maybe I was mistaken. Didn't check my splits very often, trying to just let myself run what I felt like. Glad the trip to Lapham didn't materialize, don't think I was quite ready for that. Got back by 4:30 to watch the Belmont Stakes but found out I'd have to wait until 5:38 for the start. Ordered a new computer today, a laptop from Dell that weighs about 3 lbs. Should be pretty sweet. |
10 |
| Friday: |
Art Museum. Went about 5PM today, weather was the same as the past few days. Warm and comfortable with a breeze off the lake keeping things under control. Started out sub 6:20 and kept it 6:00-6:15 the whole way. Had to remind myself not to hammer, my legs still aren't completely under me so I would have just been digging myself into a hole. Still, I put the pace right on the edge. Wasn't pushing myself to keep going but wasn't jogging through the miles either. The legs should be ready to start building soon. HR was 44BPM for 8.5 hours last night. Still no job. |
8 |
| Thursday: |
Silver Spring backwards. Started out at 6:15-6:20 pace and held that the whole way. Again, just letting my legs dictate the pace, going at a comfortable pace. Went at 3PM, the day felt a lot like yesterday, really sunny but only about 60 degrees with a cool breeze too. Legs are starting to feel a lot fresher, finally getting all the rust off. Need to start doing situps regularly and keep on stretching. Stopped at the SHS track, about 6M into the run, ran an FSQ in 59.3 seconds. Didn't get out all that fast, 15+ seconds I think. Hit halfway in 29 or so and tied up a bit down the homestretch. Not used to going all out over 400m, probably had a 58 in me. Glad the track was deserted and End wasn't there, running 59 is fairly embarassing. Legs weren't holding me back at all, finally getting back in shape. It's probably a good time to start wearing the HR monitor to bed. Got back home and Maltas' away message said "running." |
7 |
| Wednesday: |
St. Mary's to Kensington to Cramer with End, then back home. Had to cobble together a run since End wanted 8 and I wanted 7, we got it worked out though. Wound up running about 6:15s on average, clipping off a bunch of 6:10s near the end. Legs were feeling much better today, even tacked on two strides at the end of the run. Went about 6PM, it was warm in the sun but a breeze off the lake kept it pretty cool. It feels like my legs are starting to become accustomed to this stuff again, not quite ready to hammer out 5:30s like Khatch has been doing, but it's early June, no reason to rush. I'm just trying to get my legs back under me and then start logging miles, I'll worry about hammering when it's time to worry about hammering. Considering an FSQ tomorrow. |
7 |
| Tuesday: |
Art Museum. Went at about 5PM with End. Beautiful weather for running, the sun was out but it was still cool, maybe 60 degrees. I was feeling good at the start, but my whole body was aching all day today from yesterday's run. By the time we passed St. Mary's on the way back I was starting to feel like crap. Had to stop at the Lake Park warming house for a quick pit stop before finishing up. Ran 6:30-6:40 for the whole way, trying to stay relaxed and get the legs broken in. The goal for this week, I've decided, is to get the legs ready for 70M next week. Had an interview with Manpower today, my chances of getting an internship there look pretty good. |
8 |
| Monday: |
Bender. Ran with End today, decided to just jump in with both feet. Was going back and forth about 7M or 10M but he's been running since Thursday so we went 10 but kept it under control. Was feeling good for the first 10 minutes or so, running easy and I knew it was time to get started training again. I've been getting too fat and it's time to get back in shape. Felt good through the first 7M, quads were getting tired but everything else was in good shape. We turned onto Lake Drive and things started getting tough. Legs got a little more tired, not too bad though. My heart started to hurt, like it was covered with lard or something. I didn't realize I would be in this bad of shape after just 8 days of not running. We finished up with about a 6:30 mile, ran the 10+M loop in 67, so it wasn't bad, just a lot more effort than it should have been. It wasn't like my legs were falling off, my body just couldn't run faster. It's a much different feeling than hitting the wall when you're in shape. Hopefully the rest of this week won't be too tough. Planning on hitting an FSQ sometime this week, get a gauge of my speed. May Miles : 179 |
10 |
| Sunday: |
Thought about starting today, but there were thunderstorms when I woke up and then I started doing stuff and didn't get around to getting out the door. Tomorrow will be the day. |
0 |