Freethinker ~ Freerunner

I ran an easy 8 today, but I was not going for mileage.  I set out just to enjoy the day and run for an hour or more at a comfortable pace.  I ended up being gone an hour and 16 minutes.  The temperature was 33 degrees, but the sun was shining and the wind was breezy.  There is still snow all over the ground but not so much on the roads or the trails.  I had about a quarter mile of snow to run on, but other than that it was clear.  

My right knee felt great the whole time.  I was a little worried about it because it bothered my somewhat this morning just lying in bed reading my Marathon training book by Gordon Bloch, which I highly recommend as a great resource for anyone training for a marathon.  It covers everything from training schedules and nutrition to how to prepare psychologically for the big race. 

Today is the official start to my Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon training.  The race is sixteen weeks out from this past Sunday.  Today's run was scheduled to be a 6 mile easy run at a 9:07 pace.  Since I finished my six miles in 51:13, which is an average pace of 8:34, I think I over shot this one a little.  I need to learn how to hold back a little bit more in my training.  That is one of the things I have learned from the Marathon book I have been reading.  

The temperature during my run was a frigid 22 degrees and the trail I ran today still have some pretty dangerous icy spots.  Some of the trail was covered in deep frozen snow.  I had to make my way carefully through these areas that I could see other runners had already helped to pave the way. 

 My right knee felt fine all the way through, but my right ankle was a little sore after about 2 and half miles.  I think it had to do with the rough and uneven terrain of the packed icy snowy areas.  Overall I'm feeling really good.  I'm looking forward to next week when there may be a break in the below freezing temps.  

I was supposed to run 5 miles today including 3 at a tempo pace of 7:37, with one warm up and one cool down mile on top of that. 

I got outside and ran my warm up mile and figured out that with 20 mile per hour winds on top of 14 degrees is just not for me.   I somehow ran my warm up mile in under my 7:37 tempo pace by the time I got back to my house.  My face was a little to red to go on. 

Looks like I'm going to have to lay low until Sunday when we go above 30 degrees again.

I'll just substitute tonight with a supplemental weights workout. 

I had a great run today in a nice 32 degree, blue sky environment.  I felt really good throughout.  My goal pace was set at 9:07 with a distance of 9 miles.  

That was slightly interrupted by a fellow cyclist whom I crossed paths with during my final two miles.  I was slightly startled when I came upon him because he was walking his bike and clutching his left arm.  He spoke something to me as I passed so naturally I stopped and removed my headphones.  He told me that he thought he had broken his arm and wanted me to help him get back to his car.  I asked him where his car was located, to which he responded that it was at the trail head.  I asked if that was the parking lot at 101st street and he said that it was.  I asked him if he could make it that far and he asked me how far that was.  I told him it was over a mile from where we were.  At about this point I realized that even if I could get him to his car, or run the 15 or so minutes back to my house and come back with my car to pick him up that he was in no condition to drive.  So I decided to call an ambulance.  I walked him about 400 feet up a hill to the nearest main street off the trail and we waited another 5 or 10 minutes for the ambulance.  When it arrived I waited about another 5 or 10 minutes for the medics to load the cyclist at which point I asked them if they could transport his bike to wherever it was they were taking him. Luckily a fire truck had also been dispatched so they did offer to take the bike after the realized that I was not a friend, but only a passerby.  

This will go down as one of my more eventful runs for sure.  I'm glad for the cyclists sake that I always run with my cell phone.

I was only supposed to run 6 miles at a 9:07 pace today as part of my training.  I ended up tacking on an extra 2 miles and by the time I got home I had run an 8:36 pace.  The temperature was 38 degrees starting out and 33 at the end.  The sun had just set as I finished.  I checked my pulse somewhere at the start of mile 7 and it was about 160.  I felt pretty good today but it is becoming increasingly obvious that these New Balance 1225's have just about seen their last training run.  I'm looking forward to speed training on Thursday.  

I did a little speed training tonight at the local high school track.  My schedule had me down for 5 miles broken down into the following:

1 warm up mile, 2 x 1600 in 7:12 w/ 800 m jogs; 1 cool down mile.

I completed the first 1600 meters in 7:22, and the second 1600 meters in 7:28.  

I did not feel like I over exerted myself in the least.  I should have run a little faster to finish in under the goal time.  Part of the problem was getting used to my awesome new watch that calculates up to 12 splits and monitors my hear rate in both beats per minute and percentage of aerobic range.  

I should be feeling really good for my 14 mile long run Sunday. 

Nice and easy long run planned for today.  Training schedule planned 12 miles at a 9:07 pace.  I ran the first mile nice and easy and the last half mile nice and easy, although I did not record the splits.  That is something I need to start doing, including the splits for all my miles.  I have my new watch that records up to 12 splits, I just forget to us it until I'm half way through. 

Today I was scheduled to run 5 miles at an easy 9:07 pace.  I finished in 0:51:24 at an average pace of 8:34.  

Splits:  (1 mile) 8:01, (1 mile) 8:51, (1.2 miles) 9:01, (1 mile) 7:57, (1 mile) 8:34, (1.2 miles) 8:59.

I had some problems with my neighborhood course that I didn't realize until today.  I thought I had my mile markers down, but when I got back home and recorded my splits something did not look right.  I drove the course after I showered and realized what I thought was mile 2 was actually about 1.1 miles total distance, and my mile 3 is actually about 1.2 miles total.  I have adjusted my mile markers to fix the problem and should be able to record more accurate splits on my next training run.  

Other notes:  The temperature was a very nice, unusually warm 61 degrees.  I think my body has become accustomed to running in sub 30 degree weather because I began sweating profusely after only one mile.  I finished my run drenched as if it were 80 plus degrees.  I really see now how the body adjusts gradually to the changing seasonal weather patterns.  

Today I ran a tempo run.  My schedule called for 5 miles total, including 3 at a 7:12 pace, with 1 warm up and 1 cool down mile.  I recorded my actual splits below. 

I ended up running a little faster than my goal pace on miles 1 and 3.  My legs and joints felt really good tonight, but my stomach was cramping really bad.  I felt my self have to slow down somewhere on my second tempo mile.  Had I not cramped I would have run all three miles in well under goal pace.     

Splits:  8:33, 6:55, 7:22, 6:50, 8:22

I ran 14 miles today.  My schedule called for a 9:07 per mile pace.  I ended up finishing in something closer to 9 minute miles.  Left lower inner leg felt slightly tender on the run, and the bottom of my left foot felt tender was well.  Right knee felt mostly fine. 

My endurance seems to be coming along, although when I got home gobbled up a cheese steak, peppers and onions, french fries, a whole avocado, two hard boiled eggs, two slices of cheese, some crackers, and a large bagel toasted with cream cheese and jam.  It was delicious. 

Splits:  9:11, 9:03, 9:25, 9:26,  8:49, 9:21, 9:31, 9:29, 8:49, 9:00. 

Now I realize why I should have paid more money for a better watch.  My heart rate monitor has been acting up, and I can only record 10 splits.  

I ran an easy 6 today at a 8:16 pace.  My stomach was cramping for about 5 of the 6 miles.  I think my digestive system is a little off because Alisha and I have been eating a lot of meals out this past week or two.  We found out only about three weeks ago that she is pregnant, and as a result she has not felt up to cooking much lately.  I guess I'm going to need to learn to make a few meals if I'm going to sustain our healthy diet.  

My legs felt mostly good, although my left foot was feeling a little sore near the heal area.  I'm trying to concentrate more on landing on the balls of my feet rather than the heels.

Splits:  8:48, 7:44, 8:16, 8:17, 8:32, 8:07

We have had a harsh winter, weather wise.  A huge ice storm moved in this afternoon.  The temperature has been hovering around 32 degrees, with 15 to 20 mph winds.  So today I broke down and joined a health club.  I figured I could utilize the indoor training facility on the cold, nasty days of the winter.  I can also take advantage of the great elliptical trainers, and AMT machines for my cross training as part of my marathon program.  I really haven't had any good cross training activities since I began marathon training, so this will be good.  I'll be able to really kick my training in to high gear and accomplish my goal of 26.2 miles in April.  

I ran 7 miles on the treadmill tonight while watching the news.  It is so different from road running, that I felt really strange, like I didn't belong.  After about 2 miles though, I started to become more comfortable.  It has been so long since I used a treadmill.

I enjoyed being able to take so much control over my pace, but it takes a little something away from the running experience.  Running treadmill is like taking away all the unknowns.  There are no rolling hills that come up to hit you and push you to your limits. 

My goal tonight was to run 7 miles at a 9:07 pace.  I ran 7 in an 8:54 pace.  

Splits:

9:50, 9:06, 8:25, 8:49, 8:46, 8:51, 8:33

I was scheduled to run 7 miles at a 9:07 pace.  I ran the treadmill because the roads are still covered with ice and snow and the hi today only made it to 25 degrees. 

I averaged an 8:44 pace.  I can't wait to get back out on the trail, but I know this small break from it has probably been good for my knees and shins.  

I will probably get back outside this week, and begin using the health club for my cross training on Mondays, Wednesdays, or Fridays. 

Splits:

10:00, 8:13, 8:36, 8:36, 8:35, 8:35, 8:35

Today the schedule called for 4 miles at an 8:58 pace.  

I ended up running them in a 7:42 pace.  I've been having the hardest time holding back, even though I know I'm supposed to.  I read in Gordon Bloch's book, "How to Train for and Run Your Best Marathon" that you must always feel like you are holding something back during your training.  Once you have built up that solid base of training you will be able to fully unleash all your energy on race day.  I must make myself do that. 

I'm going to make it my goal for the next few weeks to remember to pace my self according to my training goals.  

Splits:  7:28, 8:02, 7:30, 7:54

The temperature was 39 tonight and the weather conditions were wet.  It was misting heavily and foggy.  Part of my neighborhood course is through a grassy area.   That area must have been soaked good today because several times my feet got pretty wet and soggy.  My run was at night though, so I could not really see a thing as to the ground conditions.

My schedule called for 6 miles, 1 warm up, 1 cool down, and 4 at a 7:33 pace. 

Splits: 8:21, 7:24, 7:30, 6:58, 6:57, 8:06

I ran 16 miles today.  My goal pace was 8:56, and I averaged 8:53.  The temperature was 37 degrees with very little wind, so conditions were pretty nice. 

I am little nervous about the Post Oak Lodge run coming up.  I only had to run off road for about half a mile today at about mile 13, and my legs felt like gummy worms on that part of my run.  The Post Oak run is all off road and it is 15 miles.  I think I am a prepared as I can be though, because my training course is quite hilly.  I don't know anything about the Post Oak difficulty as far as the terrain is concerned, but I think I can't be any hillier than my training course.  Its just that it's all off road.    

I ran 2 miles on the treadmill today at 8:56 pace.  I also worked out upper body and legs.  

Tonight I went to the high school track to do some speed work.  I was supposed to run 7 miles including: 1 warm up, 3x1600 meter runs at 7:04 pace with 800 meter jogs in between, followed by one cool down mile.  I thought that I kept an accurate count of all those warm up, cool down, and in between jogs laps, which should have totaled 7 miles when it was all said and done, but my GPS registered 7.75 when I thought I still had one more lap to go.  I'm not sure how that happened.  

I feel really accomplished tonight because I ran the three miles faster than my goal pace of 7:04.   

Splits:  7:03, 7:03, 6:59. 

I ran 18 miles today in 32 degree temperature with 18 mph winds.  I was running into the wind for the first 9 miles, and running with the wind at my back more or less for the last 9. 

First 9 took 1h 21m 20s.  Last 9 took 1h 21m 12s.  

My legs feel very fatigued, but no more than at the end of my 16 mile run 1 week ago.  I am beginning to see first hand the result of building up high mileage gradually. 

Schedule was to run an easy 3 mile run today at an 8:56 pace. 

Splits:  8:07, 8:18, 8:31

I ran 6 miles tonight.  The mid forties temperature tonight was nice.  It is a lot warmer than the low thirties I have experienced for the last several weeks.  

I ran 1 warm up mile, followed by 4 fast miles, then a cool down mile.  

Splits: 8:50, 6:56, 7:08, 6:50, 6:46, 8:02.

Long run today.  It rained on me a little and I had to run through water that was about 3 inches deep 4 miles in, so my feet were soaked for the majority of the run.  I did not care for the affect of the extra weight that wet shoes and socks cause.  It felt really hard to finish today.  20 miles is the furthest I have ever run.  Add the extra weight of the wet feet and the hilly route that I took, and I found my self having to repeatedly speaking out loud "I'm going to finish," on those last 3 miles.

I finished in 3h 3m 14s at a 9:09 mile pace.  I think I would have easily run faster than my 8:56 goal pace had I not had soaking wet feet for 80% of the run.  

Ran 8 miles today at average pace of 7m 42s per mile.  The muscles around my ankles were pretty sore from my 20 mile run two days ago.  I did some strength training last night of my calves and thighs that I'm sure contributed some to the soreness felt today as well.  I can't remember having run with ankles this sore ever before though.  I probably did not feel comfortable until around mile 6.  

Temperature 38, wind about 4 mph.  

Splits:  7:56, 8:30, 8:08, 8:04, 7:32, 7:31, 7:05, 6:50

I was supposed to run 7 miles tonight at an 8:56 pace, but my left ankle seems to be a little sore and slightly swollen.  I think I over worked a little on Sunday, and then really did it in on Tuesday when I ran 8 miles fast.  

I have a 25k race on sunday, so I figured I go easy tonight and rest up until the race on Sunday.  I ran 3 on the treadmill tonight at an 8:56 pace.  

This was actually a race, but unfortunately I did not finish so I won't be posting it as a race.  It was called the Post Oak Lodge Run, and it was run on the trails.  As this was the first year for this race, the courses were not as clearly marked as many of us runners thought they should have been.  This resulted in runners getting lost off the trail several times during the race.  I actually did not finish the third loop out into the trails because I came to a sign on the trail telling the 25K racers to turn around and head toward the finish.  As it turned out I was supposed to have kept going.  I would have hit that sign again one last time before turning around.  I was a little confused about this, because I already had no idea how far I had actually run since I had probably run more than 3 miles off the course on the first loop.  

 All the confusion aside, and the mishap which led to my not finishing the entire course, I did have fun on my first trail race.  It was very muddy and full of uphill jaunts.  We also had to cross several creeks getting wet sometimes.  It really challenged me as a runner. 

I'm looking forward to running it next year when I will have a better idea as to the course, and hopefully encountering a little less mud. 

Ran 7 miles Wednesday morning instead of Tuesday night, because my calves were a little sore from Sundays race.  

Brisk 24 degrees, but nice and sunny.  

Goal Pace: 8:45

Actual Pace 8:13

Splits:  8:30, 8:15, 8:15, 8:18, 8:02, 8:13, 8:07

Tempo run this morning.  Temperature 28 degrees, calm winds.

Goal: 7 miles, 5 at goal pace of 7:27, with 1 warm up and 1 cool down.

Splits: 8:44, 7:04, 7:23, 7:12, 7:03, 7:19, 8:26

16 mile run today with goal pace of 8:45 per mile.  The weather was beautiful around 60 degrees.  It was a little bit windy.  

My watch only records 10 splits so I recorded the first 10 miles, averaged the next 5 and remembered the last mile. 

Average pace: 8m 25s per mile. 

Splits:  9:21

            9:07

            8:28

            7:54

            7:52

            7:50

             8:14

             8:31

             7:55

             7:55

             Miles 11-15 averaged:  8:43

             Mile 16:  8:00

Goal pace: 8:45

Average pace: 7:43 per mile 

Splits:

8:09

7:35

7:45

7:25

track work out tonight.  

8 miles, 4x1600 meters including 800 meter jogs inbetween; 1 cool down mile

1600 meter Splits:

6:58

6:46

6:53

7:04

Goal pace for today was 8:45.

Actual average pace was 8:35 per mile.

Split time:  1:23:34.

Average pace for first 10:  8:21

Average pace for second 10:  8:49

Nice 56 degree day.  I was able to wait until later in the day to run since we just changed our clocks back an hour this past weekend for day light savings time. Woo Hoo!

Goal pace: 8:45 per mile 

Actual pace:  7:31 per mile

Splits:

8:13

7:41

7:51

7:54

7:33

7:28

7:04

6:53

7:06

Goal pace: 5 miles at 7:17, 1 warm up, 1 cool down. 1 Misc. 

Average Pace: 7:31 per mile

Splits:

8:35

7:12

7:32

6:58

7:13

7:29

7:20

7:43

Cold day.  38 degrees with wind chill of 18.  17 mph winds.  It snowed all day yesterday and all this morning.  About half my trail was just wet, but the other half was covered in snow.  Some areas were about 1 1/2 feet deep.  

I averaged 8m 34s miles.  

I'm looking forward to Tuesday when the high is 65.  Hell, I'm looking forward to no more nasty cold snowy running days this year.  I think today should be that last one. 

Goal pace today was set at 8:45 per mile. 

78 Degree day, with gusty winds up to 34 mph.  

Actual pace:  7:32 per mile. 

Splits:

7:57

7:32

7:42

7:50

7:16

7:26

8:02

6:56

7:35

 New personal best tonight.  9 miles at 7 minute pace!

I had an awesome run tonight.  I think I ate the perfect blend of calories today and, the nice weather did not hurt.  

I had cereal for breakfast.  For lunch I had a trukey and lettuce wrap, peanut butter and jelly sandwich, string cheese, and granola fruit bar.  I had some trail mix as an afternoon snack.  I drank about 8 ounces of Gatorade before I left on my run at about 6:45.  It was about 56 degrees with winds at 7 mph from the north east.

My training schedule only called for an 8:45 pace.  I was feeling really good tonight, and I looking to increase my training pace so I can get my time closer to 7:13 pace required for Boston. 

Actual pace: 7:00 per mile. 

Splits:

7:31

7:08

7:07

6:58

6:45

6:59

6:55

6:45

6:55

57 degrees today and partly cloudy.  Winds in the 15 to 20 mph range.  

Goal pace 8:45

Average Pace:  7:51

Splits:

7:49

8:10

8:05

8:06

7:49

7:55

7:51

7:13

7:31

79 Degrees and windy as usual this time of year.  

Goal pace 8:38 per mile.  

Actual pace:  7:36 per mile

Splits:

7:24

7:27

7:34

7:52

7:28

7:40

7:53

7:26

7:44

Nice windy typical spring evening in the mid-west.  Temps at 75 degrees with wind gusting up to 34 miles per hour.   

Tempo run tonight with goal of 7 miles with 3 at 7:11 pace.  I ended up running 5 at a fast pace using the first mile to warm up and the last mile to cool down. 

Average pace:  7:23 per mile

Splits:

7:55

6:49

7:07

7:17

6:47

7:28

8:21

I missed my goal distance of 20 miles today.  I ended up giving in at 18.59 miles.  I think it has to do with a couple of factors.  First I did not get enough sleep last night.  Second it is almost 80 degrees today and sunny, and extremely windy.  I've been running in the wind, but the temps have not been above 55 on any of my 20 mile run thus far this season.  I seemed to have a more difficult time staying hydrated, which I know is related to the heat.

My average pace was 9:12 per mile.  

Goal Pace: 8:34 per mile

Average pace: 7:26 per mile

Splits:

7:14

7:28

6:57

7:46

7:07

7:25

7:49

7:04

8:11

Virtually no winds this morning.  Very nice for a change. 

Speed training today.  I was supposed to run 4 miles at 6:46.  

Average pace: 7:20 per mile. 

Splits

8:07

6:50

7:51

6:56

7:18

6:58

8:11

6:32

Goal pace: 8:34 per mile.

Average: 8:24 per mile 

70 degrees with light breeze and sunny.  

The Oklahoma City Marathon is now only two weeks away.  I think I need to start running earlier in the day because I think the heat is affecting my times.

I really have begun tapering this week.  I was only scheduled to run 5 miles, but that felt so unbelievably short that I tacked on another mile. 

Goal pace: 8:34 per mile.

Average pace:  7:47

Splits:

7:30

7:44

7:59

7:59

7:35

7:58

I was scheduled to run 5 miles today with 3 at a 7:11 pace.  

I made it to 3 and a half miles and I was feeling great.  I was running a solid 6:50 pace, when suddenly and from out of nowhere my left food came crashing down on a rock.  It was dark by this point.  When I left my house the sun had just set, but by time I reached the street with the rock I was pretty dark.   I was running my normal neighborhood course that I have run hundreds of times even at night.    

I limped home unable to complete the 5 miles.  I was unable to walk the rest of the night and my ankle became quite swollen.  I hope it only stretched the ligaments a little bit. 

I have 9 days until the Oklahoma City marathon (my first marathon). 

After getting over the psychological blow, I am now focusing on healing.  At best I realize that I will probably have to miss the final 4 or 5 scheduled training runs.  At worst I won't be able to run in the marathon.  I hope I am healed up enough by the time race day comes. 

I've been running for 9 years and never been injured.  To sprain my ankle 9 days before my first marathon has been devastating. 

I'm trying to stay positive and utilize the R.I.C.E. technique to heal up as quickly as possible.  

I ran tonight for the first time since spraining my left ankle a week ago Thursday.  I utilized an ankle support and overall felt pretty good.  I'm hopeful that come Sunday morning I will be able to go the distance in the Oklahoma City Marathon.  

I have missed out on about 19 training miles due to my injury.  The only good news is that these were the miles that began the tapering part of the training so I really did not miss out on any serious conditioning. 

I have used the last week to rest and heal.  The R.I.C.E. (Rest, Ice, Compress, Elevate)  treatment has worked wonders.  I could not even walk the night of the injury, and my ankle was swollen up like a balloon for about 3 days.  It was hard for me just walk around or put any weight on my left foot, much less even think about running.  In addition to RICE, I've been taking Ibuprofrin for the pain and inflammation.  Interestingly, I was given a homeopathic remedy by one of my customers called Anica Montana.  It is a rare European plant that is used for bruising and swelling of muscles.  The kind I have is a diluted tablet form that you dissolve underneath your tongue.  The person who gave it to me overheard me telling another customer, who happens to be a veteran runner, about my sprain.  She told me that it will help me heal faster.  I'm not sure how I feel about homeopathic remedies, but I've been taking it instead of the ibuprofrin for the last two days.   

I think I'm going to be alright for the race.  I'll be reporting on how it went for me here after I get back to town.  If by chance anyone from the blog is running the Marathon this Sunday in Oklahoma City, I wish you good luck. 

If anyone is interested in meeting up at the race on Sunday, I'm staying at the host hotel which is the Sheraton.  Look for me on FaceBook to communicate.   

The Oklahoma City Memorial marathon is a really fun race.  I went ahead and switched from the full to the half at the packet pickup because I just wasn't sure how my ankle was going to feel after several miles of pounding.  

In the end, I probably could have stuck with the full.  I ended up beating my previous half marathon time by 30 seconds!  I'm feeling pretty stoked about that.  

Next up I have the Full Moon 5k in a couple of weeks.  I'll take a short break, perhaps 2 weeks, and depending on how my ankle is feeling I'll start ratcheting up the mileage so I can get ready for the Route 66 Marathon in November.  That will be my next opportunity to hit my first 26.2. 

I probably won't be doing any more night runs, as the darkness is what prohibited me from  seeing the rock I sprained my ankle on 9 days ago. 

As for the race conditions today, the weather was excellent.  I awoke at 4:00 am and started hydrating.  The temperature was about 50 degrees.  There was a slight head wind walking from the hotel to the start line that caught everyone's attention as we passed between downtown buildings.  I don't really remember the wind being too much of a factor on the course itself. 

I'll be back next year to run the full.  I missed out on running past lake Hefner, which was a highlight that I was looking forward to. 

Tonight I ran my first run post half marathon, post Mexico vacation / recuperation vacation.  

My left ankle is not 100% yet from the sprain that occurred 9 days prior to the race in Oklahoma City.  That is to say, I feel it a little bit when I wake up and am lying in bed.  I don't really feel anything walking or running, but I don't have all of my side to side movement back and it looks very slightly swollen at times.  I say very slightly with emphasis added.  

I am looking forward racing this Saturday in the Full Moon 5k. 

Tonight's times:

Average pace: 7:33 per mile

Splits:

7:55

7:19

7:28

This was only the second time I had run since the half marathon in Oklahoma City two weeks ago and taking some time off to heal my ankle sprain.  

I ran 3 miles two nights ago just see where I was at.  

This race is a local favorite among 5K's.  There were thousands of people there and the race directors put on a big party in Veterans Park complete with a DJ before the race and a band after.  I think about a third of the people there pretty much just run for the unlimited free beer available after the race.  

Division Place: 24/135 

Sex Place:  153/967

I'm now looking forward to the Kidney Classic 5K in about 4 weeks.  My goal is to try to run a sub 20.

Muggy.  Sweaty.

Time:  22:14

Average Pace: 7:24 per mile. 

Splits:

7:34

7:09

7:32

Today I went running for the first time in about three weeks.  I'm still trying to heal my left ankle sprain.  I hardy feel it at all running, it is only when sitting in certain positions and trying to pivot in one direction that I can still feel the injury.  I'm going to buy some kinesio tape today and begin running with the tape as support.  I just can't afford to take any more time off from running because marathon training begins in a few weeks.  

I should add that when I left the house today the temperature was 75.  By the time I finished it was 80.  If not for the gentle breeze I would have melted.  I'm still not quite conditioned for this heat, I think because of having basically taken the past month off while the average temperature began warming.  

This morning I ran with kenesio tape on my ankle for the first time.  I think I prefer it to the ankle brace.   It is less intrusive underneath my foot and probably provide more support to the right areas.  

Time: 23:42

Average Pace: 7:54

Splits:

8:09

7:37

7:56

Hot!  85 degrees.  Still sweating as I type trying not to sweat all over my keyboard.  I ran without the aid of Kinesio tape today because of the short distance.  Will make sure to wear this week. 

Pace:  7:39

Splits:

7:42

7:27

7:50

Hot! Hot! Hot!  I left the house at 6:20 PM and hit my neighborhood route.  The temperature was 92 degrees with a heat index of 100.  I ran six miles.  It is evident from my splits how hot it was.  The back 3 miles were about 45 seconds slower on average.  

Distance: 6 miles

Time: 50m 35s

Average pace: 8:25

Splits:

7:51

7:44

8:26

8:41

8:29

9:23

I felt strong tonight even though I started out with temps at 82, but that is somewhat mild for an Oklahoma June evening.  I hereby vow to become an early morning runner from this moment on as much as possible.  I'm just not going to be able to afford running anything over 6 miles in 90 plus temps.  So now I've said it, I'm committing to morning runs throughout the warm months.  Beginning with tomorrow morning for my 5 mile run.  I'm waking up at 7:00 and getting it done first thing.  

Distance: 4 miles

Time: 32:16

Average Pace: 7:49

Splits:

7:54

7:30

7:56

7:56

I planned on running 5 miles this morning, but I found myself still a little fatigued from last nights 4 miler.  I probably should have given myself a 24 hour recovery period, but I needed to get up early to get on track with my morning schedule.  The temperature was near 80 when I started, which is not much lower than it was last night at 8 PM.  

Time: 24:11

Average Pace: 8:03

Splits:

8:07

7:46

8:18

I got up at 6:00 this morning thinking that I was up early enough to dodge the heat.  I was only 1 mile in to a nine miler when I noticed beads of sweat dripping down my forehead.  I was fortunate enough to encounter some cloudy skies somewhere around mile 6, but that only lasted for about 1 mile at best.  I guess I'll have to get up before the sun rises, since it was already 76 when I left the house at 6:30.  

Time:  1:25:37

Average pace: 9:30

Time: 49:54

Average Pace: 8:19

Splits:

8:04

8:00

8:28

8:32

8:08

8:32

time: 33:45

pace: 8:26

Splits:

8:35

8:19

8:22

8:29

I wasn't sure if I was going to make my 5 miles tonight.  After putting in a 10 hour day at work, I changed clothes and headed straight to meet my wife and in-laws for dinner.  And since I usually find it easier to run before eating dinner, it looked like I might have to miss another night this week.

After we got home from dinner I logged on to the Fast Running Blog to quickly see who else was logging runs tonight to give my self a little motivation.  It is amazing how just reading about other runners experiences can help to fuel my desire to run. 

At around 10:00 PM after I had decided my food must have settled, I began stretching and stepped outsided.  As I type this, it is now 11:15 and the current temperature is 83.  It must have been about 85 when I left the house at 10.  But I can vouch that 85 feels a whole lot better without the sun beating down on you. 

My healing sprained ankle felt really good the whole time, and by really good I mean I did not feel a thing. 

Time: 0:51:45

Pace: 8:37

Splits:

8:32

8:10

8:37

8:51

8:35

8:50

Woke up at 5:45 and started hydrating.  I put a heating pad on my left ankle because it has been a little stiff in the mornings since the sprain in April.  It worked really well as far as I can tell.  I did not feel a thing during the entire run.  This as opposed to last Sunday's run that left me feeling a little stiff for the first two miles.  

This was an awesome morning to run as far as the weather goes.  It was 73 degrees when I left the house and it is now 82.  The slight breeze felt really nice.  I tried taking cool pictures of myself on the trail to show the countryside like one of my favorite ultra runners Catra Corbett is so fond of doing, but I could not seem to get the right angle while holding my iPhone.  I was also sweating all over my phone and having a hard time hitting the button on the screen to snap the photo.  I'm going to have to work on that, or I'm going to have to acquire a running partner to stand back and take the picture for me... LOL.

I'm just having fun for the next five weeks until marathon training begins again.  Not that I won't be having fun during marathon training, but right now I'm not as concerned with exact distance and pace.  I think I'll buy myself one of those spiffy Garmin watches for the summer season's marathon training this year.

I ended up finishing the 10 miles in 1:37:03.  I ran a pretty challenging hilly trail near my neighborhood.  Average pace was 9:42.  

I almost didn't go running tonight.  Alisha and I finished off a 9 hour work day, came home and didn't feel like cooking.  We stepped out to grab some food at a local taco establishment.  I love the food, but it's not the best running fuel especially right before a run.  I waited about two hours before running.  It was 10:30 when I left the house.  

I ran 5 miles at a pretty brisk 8:00 minute pace.  The temperature was 87 with a heat index of 93.  We here in the mid-west are currently under an excessive heat warning.  It is a strange feeling to be running that late at night and feel like it is about 2:00 PM on a hot sweltering summer day.  And since the humidity can be quite high in Oklahoma, I'm usually dripping with sweat sometime around my second mile. 

Total time: 0:40:12

Average mile: 8:02

Splits:

8:29

7:58

7:57

8:07

7:39

The temperature was a really nice 73 this morning just before sun up.  

Time: 0:55:50

mile pace: 7:58

Splits:

8:09

7:31

7:51

8:02

7:58

8:25

7:54

Easy four miler this morning.  My left foot / ankle has been feeling really good as of this week, but my left inner lower leg is feeling a little sore.  I've been icing it after runs this week.  I may need to decrease my mileage, as I fear it could be the start of a stress fracture in a worst case scenario.  Hopefully it is nothing.  

Time: 0:31:22

Average mile pace: 7:50

I got out of bed about an hour after in intended to this morning and almost missed the window of opportunity for the mild temperature for the day.  I left the house at 6:50 and it was already 82 degrees.  I ran 10 miles at an easy 9 minute pace.  Whatever was bothering my left foot between my big toe and the next one seems to be gone.  I had felt like I was developing a blister under the skin, so I took Friday and Saturday to rest.  

I'm now looking forward to a busy day.  I need to cut my yard before volunteers for the Nathan Dahm campaign arrive at 2:00 so we can canvass my precinct for the upcoming primary on July 27th.  Nathan is running for U.S. Congress District 1 in Oklahoma.  I am really excited about his campaign because he is a true conservative.  He has taken a strong stance against the billion dollar bailouts and wasteful abuses of tax payer money.  He is pro second amendment.   He will never vote for any tax increases, and in fact will work to repeal the 16th amendment (a.k.a. the income tax).  These are just a few of the reasons I'm supporting Nathan, but for his full platform see his Oath to Oklahoma at his website.    

Really nice morning in the mid seventies with a cool cloud cover.  

Average pace: 7:54

Splits:

8:00

8:17

810

7:26

7:41

7:50

Time: 0:46:55

Average Pace: 7:49

Splits:

8:06

7:37

7:57

8:01

7:29

7:46

time: 0:55:48

average pace: 7:58

splits:

8:08

7:39

8:00

8:00

7:44

8:18

7:59

Today I ran my annual fourth of July run.  This makes 3 consecutive years in a row I have run the morning of Independence Day.  My running journey began on a fourth of July weekend back in 2002.  I will never forget that weekend.  That was the weekend I quit smoking and started running.  I never looked back and I have never felt better.  

So this day has a two fold special meaning for me.  This day means a lot to American's, and especially all those who fight to uphold to the principles of limited government and individual liberty everywhere it can be preserved.  The founding fathers who laid the ground work for these principles in the Constitution of the United States of America understood that eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.  Benjamin Franklin is often quoted as saying, "Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither."  I believe Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and all of the other founders would be flabbergasted if they could see what has become of those precious liberties they risked their lives, fortunes, and sacred honor to protect.  

Most of the career politicians in Washington today have absolutely no respect for the Constitution or the Bill of Rights.  They hold working Americans in virtual slavery with outrageously high income taxes.  They regulate every facet of our lives form the number of electrical outlets in our homes, to the amount of water that is permitted in our toilet bowls.  There is not one area of our lives today that is not in some way touched by the intrusive hands of the politicians and bureaucrats in our midst.

But fortunately there is hope for freedom lovers today.  Many of us still still value economic and personal liberty.  We call ourselves libertarians.  In the 18th century those who valued limited government and personal liberty were called liberals, but today the word liberal has been stolen.  Today in the 21st century the word liberal means something entirely different.  It is a word to describe those who advocate big government programs, and high taxes.  Liberals think that government made America great, whereas libertarians think that freedom is what made America great. 

So today people who uphold the values of the founders, i.e. limited government and individual liberty, call themselves libertarians.  The hope for libertarians is that there are various organizations working today to restore our lost liberties, reduce taxes, and promote the values of a self reliant free society.  The Libertarian Party is the third largest political party and only party completely dedicated to libertarian principals.  You can find out more about this organization at their website http://www.lp.org/. 

There also seems to be a strong libertarian presence growing within the Republican Party as well.  I think this movement was given a kick start in 2007 when the Republican congressman Ron Paul from Texas announced he was seeking the party's nomination for President of the United States.  Many of Ron Paul's supporters came together and formed what I believe to be one of the largest grass roots movements to elect a president in American history. 

This election year many of the so called Tea Party candidates seem to have strong libertarian leanings.  If you live in my state which happens to be Oklahoma you have two excellent Republican candidates running for office who understand the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.  Randy Brogdon for governor and Nathan Dahm for district 1.  So if you are reading this and you care about preserving the values our great nation was founded upon then I urge you to become informed, and find out more about those who represent you in Washington.  If your representatives are compromising your freedoms, then make sure to hold them to account and vote them out of office in the next election. 

On that thought I'll post my days running time.   Happy Independence Day!

Time: 1:30:28

Average Pace: 9:02 per mile

Time: 1:05:31

Average: 8:11

Splits:

8:33

7:44

8:14

8:23

7:50

8:15

8:29

8:01

I had to miss 2 runs this week for a total of 11 miles due to a sore left calf muscle.  I have been in physical therapy for the past two weeks for my mid foot sprain that occurred back in April while training for the Oklahoma City Marathon.  My ankle and foot are feeling great as I'm on my way to recovery, however my trainer had me doing calf raises that burned my muscle to point soreness.  This morning I felt fine, and I'm looking forward to running 11 miles tomorrow morning.    

Time: 0:23:54

Pace: 7:58

splits: 

8:17

7:45

7:52

I left the house at 6:40 this morning.  It was only about 72 degrees with a nice thick cloud cover.  In short, awesome running weather considering it is July in Oklahoma.  The humidity was a bit high, but I'm quite conditioned for that having lived here all my life.  I felt really good especially considering my previous week of having missed three scheduled runs due to a sore left calf from my physical therapy exercises.

Time: 1:46:06

Average Pace: 8:50

First 6 miles: Time: 0:52:04, average pace: 8:40

Back 6 miles: Time: 0:54:10, average pace 9:01

My long run course is an 'out and back' and it has a lot of challenging hills.  It is obvious from the last half of my run that they weren't as easy to take as compared to the first half.   

I'm excited after this mornings run.  The reason is this marks the beginning of my sixth week of pre-training training, and I have only managed to crawl out of bed and run on a Monday morning twice in those six weeks including this one.  For some reason Monday morning runs are hard for me.  It most certainly has to do with Monday falling the day after my long runs on Sunday, and I guess I've never quite conditioned my body to run the day after a long run.  I feel as though psychologically my mind is telling me that my body needs more time to repair and recover.  My goal this season is to overcome that mental road block, push myself to higher mileage, and thus raise my state of fitness and well being to a new level.

Time: 0:48:33

Average Pace: 8:05

Splits:

8:25

7:47

8:04

8:18

7:49

8:10

I felt really good this morning.  It was really hot out there.  I should have gotten up a little earlier, as we are under an extreme heat advisory yesterday and today.  

Time: 1:03:44

Average Pace: 7:58

Fastest Mile: 7:35

Splits:

8:14

7:38

7:51

7:43

7:35

8:10

8:30

7:59

Time: 0:39:21

Average Pace: 7:52

Splits:

8:08

7:37

7:56

7:58

7:42

Time: 0:47:54

Average Pace: 7:59

Splits:

8:01

7:46

8:08

8:07

7:47

7:41

I only ran 4 miles this morning, but I felt a little fatigued.  I also did not want to over do it since I'll be running my long run tomorrow.  

Time: 0:31:35

Average Pace: 7:53

Splits:

8:03

7:32

8:05

7:55

I left the house at 6:45 this morning.  The sun was already rising and the temperature was quickly rising with it.  Fortunately I have about 1/3 of my route shaded by trees until after about 7:20.  I felt pretty good this morning and I saw a lot of other runners out apparently feeling good too.

I'm really looking forward to getting a Garmin to track my splits.  I feel really constrained to my mapped out routes. 

Time: 1:37:25

Pace:

8:51

Splits:

First 5 miles: 47:41

Back 5 miles: 49:44

A very humid morning with a temperature starting out at 78 and a heat index of 83.  My legs still felt a little sore from yesterdays 11 mile run, but otherwise I felt pretty good.  I ordered my Garmin Forerunner 110 yesterday and I'm really excited about it.  I will finally be able to break free from my 3 mile neighborhood loop.  I've been running this same loop for 80% of my runs for the past 6 years.  It is beginning to get a little monotonous. 

Time: 0:48:13

Pace: 8:02

Splits:

8:12

7:38

8:05

8:17

7:50

8:11

I finally beat the sunrise this morning.  I left the house at 6:10, which is about 15 to 20 minutes before the sun comes up.  The two older men that I almost always see walking, and have developed somewhat what of an acquaintance relationship with, asked me my name this morning.  So I stopped and introduced myself to them.  Their names are Sal and Don.  Now when I see them I suppose I can say, "good morning Sal and Don," as opposed to just, "good morning gentlemen."  

Time: 1:30:26

Pace: 9:02

First 5: 44:18, average 8:51

Back 5: 46:08, average 9:13

My back 5 are always interrupted by two water stops.  I stop to refill the two bottles attached to my belt.  I've never timed this, but I would guess that I am stopped for a full minute at each of the two stops.  So when this is accounted for I believe that I ran the back 5 faster (at 44:08) than the front 5 (at 44:18) today. 

This morning I felt a little fatigue and had some stomach cramping early on.  This was not one of my better runs.  

Time: 0:48:49

Pace: 8:08

Splits:

8:07

7:45

8:15

8:26

8:00

8:16

Beautiful 80 degree (heat index 85) morning with a slight breeze.  I felt so much better this morning as contrasted with yesterday morning.  Running with stomach cramps is never fun.  

Time: 0:57:08

Pace: 8:09

Splits:

8:22

7:51

8:12

8:20

7:52

8:22

8:09

I ran 12 miles on the hilly Creek turnpike trail this morning.  I felt pretty fatigued running the last 3 miles, and the heat may have been getting to me a little.  I made myself an ice bath when I got home.  The last time I had to do that was over the winter when ice was not necessary to get cold water.  This morning I had a hard time getting the water cold enough even with loads of ice.   

First 6: 0:51:15,  pace: 8:32

Back 6: 0:55:00, pace 9:10

Today marks the start of my last week of pre-marathon training.  My bottom line for this week is to see how fast I can get.  I had scheduled a 9 mile run today, and I decided to throw in at least 2 miles at marathon pace.  For my goal that is 7:00 minute miles.  

Here are my times and splits:

Time: 0:53:52

Pace: 7:41

7:46

7:17

7:20

8:19

7:53

8:16

7:01

If you counted that is only 7 miles.  I was so winded by the time I ran that seven minute mile at mile 7 that I had to call it quits.  I checked my pulse and I was at 176.  I ended up jogging home, which was only about half a mile.  I was feeling pretty good after my pulse came back down and probably could have run that last two miles, but since I was so close to home decided not to over do it. 

I know I've got a lot of work ahead of me if I'm going to make my goal.  I'm planning an easy 9 mile run tomorrow, a 6 mile run Thursday including one 6:30 mile, and a fast 4 mile run Saturday at goal pace. 

Time: 0:57:08

Pace: 8:09

Splits:

8:23

7:41

8:06

8:19

7:59

8:23

Nice 12 mile run today at a real easy pace of 9:09 per mile.  I did not want to overdo it since I start official marathon training on Monday.

Time: 1:49:57

Pace: 9:09

First 6: 54:22, pace: 9:03

Second 6: 55:35, pace 9:15

I'm super excited to get my Garmin 110 on Wednesday.  Only a couple more runs using mile markers and timing my own splits with my stop watch. 

Today marks the official start to my Route 66 Marathon Training.  I ran 4x1 mile cruise intervals.  

Splits:

6:20

6:20

6:40

6:55

I ran 1.5 mile to warm up and 1.5 mile to cool down.  My recovery between each interval was about a quarter mile walk.  My goal for this training session was to run the mile repeats in 6:20, which I was able to do for the first 2.  The last two left me feeling a little fatigue.  It looks like I've got more work to do. 

Ran 4.5 miles this morning at an easy 8:00 minute pace with 4 striders at the end.  I still felt a little sore from yesterday mornings interval training.  My thighs were burning a little from those 6:19 mile repeats.  Hopefully I recover by tomorrow,  because I have a  little bit of a harder workout tomorrow morning.  Then I get to rest on Friday.  

Time: 0:35:59

Pace: 7:59

Splits:

8:15

7:47

8:01

7:57

3:59 (half mile)

I got my Garmin Forerunner 110 today!  I had to test it out tonight by going for a night run.  I ran 1.49 miles on sore legs and a full stomach.  

Data:

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/43208806

I am still a little fatigued from my Tuesday speed training.  I may have to re-evaluate this training plan, or I may just be tired.  I haven't gotten much sleep this week.  

My schedule today called for 7 miles with 2 to 3 at a 6:39 pace and the other 4 at a 7:00 pace.  I only made it 2 miles after my warm up mile, and did not even hold up the 7:00 minute pace.  I'll see how I feel after this weekends long run.

Splits:

7:57

7:15

7:42

Time:                           22:55

My schedule called for 45 to 60 minutes of easy running.  I ran an 8:16 pace for only 35 minutes and 57 seconds.  I felt really good for the first two miles, but somewhere at the start of mile 4 I could really feel my legs wearing out.  It probably didn't help that I was thinking ahead to my 10 mile run tomorrow.  I started thinking that another 15 minutes of running might just wear me out.

Time: 0:35:57

Pace: 8:16

Splits:

8:33

8:14

8:04

8:18

2:46 (.33 miles)

I over slept this morning by about an hour.  I usually leave the house at about 6:00 AM just before the sunrise.  This morning however I didn't make it out the door until about 6:50.  Having to run with the sun up from the beginning did not make it any easier running with slightly sore legs.  The result was that I ran 10 miles today at about the same pace that I ran 12 miles last week.  I'm really looking forward to relaxing the rest of the day, resting tomorrow and fully recovering so I can hit it hard again on Tuesday.  

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/43642189

Distance: 10:02 miles

Time: 1:31:11

Average Pace: 9:06

Splits: 

8:30

8:22

8:33

8:45

8:41

9:26

9:48

9:52

9:44

916

I ran 4 cruise intervals this morning.  I left the house at 5:45 before sun up.  It is so much better to get a 30 minute jump on the sun rise than to wait.  My area has a high today of 102 with a heat index of 112.  This morning it was only about 76.  I think I did much better this morning as opposed to one week ago.  Here are my splits:

6:20

6:27

6:20

6:46

My goal time was 6:19.  Not only did I get a little closer to hitting all four miles in my goal time, but I have to say that so far my legs feel much better post workout.  I was really worn out after last week, and I felt that the workout sent shock waves throughout the rest of the weeks workouts. 

In total I ended up running 6 miles.  1 warm up mile and about a half a mile to cool down.  Then I ran a little between each mile in recovery. 

I took it easy this morning.  Five miles at a an easy 8:32 pace with 100 meter strides in between each mile.  

Splits: 

9:33

8:48

8:11

8:06

8:10

2:50 (.35 mile cool down)

I'm having a little trouble keeping up with my Thursday schedule.  I felt a lot better than last week, but my legs are feeling a little too burnt out to keep up with the pace goal.  

Distance: 7:42 mi

Time: 1:01:36

Splits:

9:47

7:24

7:36

8:24

8:30

8:11

8:15

3:26 (.42 mi)

I ran nice and easy 9 minute miles this morning.  It was a good recovery run.  I think I need to spend a little more time warming up, because I noticed my muscles were pretty stiff feeling for the first two miles, and the I was able to open up and run a little faster for the last two.  I would have kept going but my schedule only called for 45 to 60 minutes today.  

I ran in a pretty heavy down poor for the first two and half miles.  It felt really nice.  It just sprinkled for the most part after that.  I also got my shoes totally soaked running through some moving water on a low spot on my trail.  All in good fun right.  

Distance: 

6:13 miles

Time: 0:57:24

Average Pace: 9:17

Splits:

9:30

9:26

9:37

9:39

9:11

9:00

I felt really good this morning.  I left at 5:50 AM about 45 minutes before sun rise, but thanks to the cloud cover in the west today the sun did not show itself until about an hour and ten minutes in to my run.  There was a nice breeze of the east today at about 15 mph that helped keep me cool on two of my last four miles.  I had a nice ten minute ice bath when I got home.  

Time: 1:42:07

Distance: 12.01 miles

Pace: 8:30 min/mile

Splits:

9:00

8:37

8:30

8:13

8:12

8:06

8:27

8:35

8:36

8:27

8:01

8:06

I left the house at about 6:00 AM.  The temperature was only 72 degrees.  Absolutely awesome conditions for this time of year.  It is certainly a nice break from the sweltering heat and high dew point factor.  

Since I was feeling strong and the conditions were nice for running, I easily maintained an 8:16 pace throughout my 10 mile run with hills.  My goal for my workout today was to run at least ten minutes semi-vigorously up hills.  My usual training route includes lots of hills, so I know I accomplished the ten minute part.  I just adjusted my workout so that I did not slow down and conserve energy while on the hills like a usually do.  

Time: 1:22:48

Distance: 10.01

Average Pace: 8:16 per mile

Splits:

8:49

8:53

8:22

8:10

8:05

8:11

8:03

8:12

8:03

7:53

I stepped outside this morning to cool breezy conditions. My weather app said it was 72, but it felt a lot cooler to me.  It would have been nice if that lasted.  I was sweating bullets by mile two.

Distance: 4:78 miles 

Time: 0:38:41

Average Pace: 8:05

Splits:

8:26

8:06

7:51

6:29 (.78 miles)

I ran pretty hard for much of my run on hills today.  

Distance:  7

Average Pace: 7:48 per mile

Time: 0:55:06

Splits:

8:50

7:25

7:27

7:22

7:22

7:27

7:35

8:55

I ran 7 miles this morning at an easy 8:21 pace on moderate hills.  

Time: 0:58:56

Distance: 7.01

Pace: 8:21

Splits:

9:11

8:28

8:23

8:11

8:28

8:06

8:03

7:51

I ran 12 miles today.  I'm feeling really good because I ran it 1 minute 23 seconds faster than my 11 mile run one week ago. 

I also met a new friend who has recently moved to Oklahoma from Texas.  He is a marathoner, triathlete, and iron man participant.  We talked as we ran along for about 2 miles together before he reached his car and dropped off.  Hopefully I will get the pleasure of training with him again sometime.  We immediately clicked on a personal level, and our pace seemed to be about the same.  

Time: 1:40:44

Distance: 12.01 miles

Pace: 8:23

Splits:

8:29

8:26

8:11

8:22

8:09

8:06

8:20

8:23

8:14

8:45

8:39

8:32

I left the house early in a nice cool 74 degree temperature with a mild breeze.  I ran under a nice full moon.  Absolutely beautiful.  I felt really good today.  Ran an easy 8:07 pace for 10 miles.  I was home almost before the sun came up.  

Pace: 8:08

Time: 1:21:27

Splits: 

8:27

8:32

8:08

8:04

7:57

8:18

8:03

8:05

8:01

7:43

I overslept this morning by about an hour and half.  I usually leave the house before 6:00, but this morning I did not leave until 7:30.  Fortunately for me a nice cool front has pushed through my area.  The temperature was 66 when I left the house.  I is only 67 now that I'm back and writing this blog entry.

Pace: 8:07

Splits:

8:19

7:54

8:01

8:07

2:19 (.27 mile cool down)

Nice and cool temperature at 56 degrees this morning.  The moon was up and almost still full.  

Time: 1:11:07

Pace: 7:49

8:32

7:23

7:28

7:37

8:16

7:56

7:50

7:56

7:50

7:56

7:20

I signed up for this race at the last minute.  I got an email on Thursday from my local running shoe store about the Alzheimer's 5K race.  This was the first year that this race has been held.  So I decided to sign up and see if I was ready to break the 20 minute mark.  Well I did not end up hitting that goal yet, but I'm quite happy that I won my age division anyway.  Not that there was major competition today, but I feel like I get the bragging rights none the less.  

I think I could have done a little better had I been a little more familiar with the course.  Near the end both I and the runner in front of me thought we were headed on a straight away to the finish.  So both of us opened up wide only to realize that we had several hundred meter loop to make before we would eventually get to the end. 

I had a lot of fun in the end spent most of my time trying to keep up with two veteran runners in their sixties.  I finished 6th overall and 1 of 8 in my age division.  I'm happy.       

I had a good run this morning with my new running buddy.  It sure makes 13 miles go by a whole lot faster with someone to talk to.  We had a good conversation about politics, our respective families, and Atlas Shrugged.  He is not just a marathon runner, but also an Iron Man participant.  I told him he is crazy, but that he might end up talking me into it someday.  I think for now I will continue to focus on the marathon.  My longer term goals at this point include trail running and ultra running.  I need a new inspirational running book to read.  I think I'll pick up Ultra Marathon Man by Dean Karnazes.  My new friend told me it is a good running book.     

Distance: 13.01

Time: 1:49:39

Splits:

8:11

8:00

8:12

8:15

8:08

8:31

8:23

8:17

8:17

8:34

9:03

8:48

8:52

I had to convert my tempo run this morning into a recovery run.  I got out of bed and realized my legs were pretty sore from the weekends activities.  I think the 5k race on Saturday followed by the 13 mile hard run with my new running partner on Sunday gave my legs a metaphorical 1-2 punch.  

Pace: 8:45

Splits:

8:56

8:39

8:33

8:29

8:39

8:32

8:45

9:01

9:24

8:59

9:27

I ran with sore legs this morning.  Fortunately my schedule only called for 4 miles.  It was a muggy 83 degrees this morning.  At about 2 miles in it started raining on me.  My last my was pretty much running through a down poor.  It felt nice and helped cool me off.  

Pace: 8:15

Splits:

8:33

8:12

8:04

8:03

2:50 (.3 miles)

Wow.  A cold front came through and changed the weather a little.  When I ran wednesday morning it was about 82 degrees.  This morning it was 52.  I had to take Thursday off because I was completely fatigued from last weeks back to back 5K and long run.  I felt strong this morning and ready to jump in to my long run tomorrow heading in to Labor day weekend.  

Time: 1:00:13

Pace: 8:10

Splits:

8:05

8:24

8:20

8:16

8:19

7:52

8:02

2:52 (.36 miles)

I am loving this cool weather.  I ran 15 miles at a 7:54 pace.  I drank 16 ounces of gatorade and 16 ounces of water.  At the half way point I ate 1 packet Gu.  

Pace: 7:54

Splits:

8:26

8:09

7:54

8:11

8:03

7:51

7:57

7:42

7:55

7:31

8:22

8:06

7:46

7:40

7:12

My legs felt absolutely trashed on this mornings run.  It must be because of my 15 mile Sunday run at 7:55 pace followed by an 8.5 mile bike ride on Monday.  I think it also has something to do with not taking an ice bath after my long run Sunday.  That is one mistake I did not make today.  

Pace: 8:25

Splits:

8:33

8:12

8:08

8:10

8:11

8:24

8:25

8:36

8:38

8:52

Nice recovery 5 mile run this morning.  The rain felt nice between miles 2 and 3.  I decided this morning that I have become a morning person.  If not for getting up early to accomplish my runs, I doubt I would have been as successful with my 5 day a week running program.  There are two reasons why I believe this to be the case.  The first is that you are more likely to get your workout done if you do it first thing as opposed to waiting until the end of the day.  You will probably find some excuse or task that you might tell yourself is more important to tend to in the evening.  You will also come home some days and just feel too tired to run and tell yourself you need the night off.  The second reason is that you feel so much better having gotten your workout out of the way after you have finished first thing in the morning.  It allows you more time throughout your day to be productive in other areas without having your workout looming over you.  

Time: 0:42:27

Splits:

9:04

8:08

8:47

8:39

8:06

Well I should have taken a rest day instead of trying to run this morning.  I was supposed to do 12 miles of speed training.  I got about half a mile in to my warm up mile and realized I was way to fatigued to run cruise intervals, so I decided just to turn my workout into a nice and easy 12 mile run.  Then I got to mile 3 and realized I better just turn around and head back because the only thing you could call what I was doing was running "junk miles."  Looking forward to resting tomorrow.  

Nice one hour run this morning at an easy 8:27 pace.  

Time: 0:59:19

Splits:

9:03

8:28

8:35

8:18

8:39

8:13

7:57

I ran 10 this morning at a nice 8:12 pace.  Somehow it felt harder than my Sunday 15 miler at an 8:00 minute pace.  I must still be recovering a little.  

Pace: 8:12

Splits: 

7:44

7:57

8:03

8:00

7:50

8:17

8:26

8:53

8:26

8:31

The muscles around my ankles, especially my right, felt a little sore this morning.  I took it easy and held back at an 8:22 pace.  

Splits: 

8:10

8:22

8:28

8:27

2:42 (.32 mi)

My son Ty was born yesterday!  He is my first and he is the most awesome baby in the world.  I love him so much.  

We went in to the hospital Wednesday night around midnight.  He was born on Thursday afternoon at 2:06 PM.  We got absolutely no sleep Wednesday night or Thursday during the day.  Thursday night I got a little lucky and he mostly slept through the night.  I went running on Friday at the trail across the street from the hospital.  I used to run there all the time years ago when we lived closer to that area of town.  I spent quite a bit of my childhood there as well since I had a pretty active mom.  It is for these reasons that running Lafortune park trail always brings back fond memories.  Now I have a new memory of running there.  I will always remember running Lafortune the day after my first was born.  I wrote in my running log that it was really hot and I was a little dehydrated, but it was an awesome run! 

Pace: 8:24

Splits:

8:01

8:31

8:00

8:15

8:20

8:57

6:59 (.79 mi)

Nice long run this morning.  

Time: 2:13:10

Pace: 8:14

Splits:

7:59

8:18

8:08

8:25

8:07

8:00

8:04

8:03

8:01

8:15

8:27

8:29

8:37

8:23

8:31

8:06

1:11 (.16 mi)

Speed training.

1 mile warm up at  7:37

2X1 mile cruise intervals

1:  6:17

2:  6:41

4X800 Speed Intervals

1:  2:59

2:  3:09

3:  3:09

4:  3:06

2X1 mile cruise intervals

1:  6:08

2:  6:17

1 mile cool down:  7:20

After my speed training yesterday I felt a little sore this morning.  I actually felt my legs when I woke up and was laying in bed trying to decide when to get up.  

Easy 5 mile run today at an easy 8:21 pace.  

Splits:

8:51

8:26

8:34

8:08

7:44

Speed training on the track.  My training schedule called for 4 sets of 6X800 repeats.  That is way too much time for me to spend on a track.  I can handle 8 or 9 miles on a track, but the monotony of all those 800 is grueling.  I only ended up completing 5 of the first set.  

I started out with 1 mile warm up followed by 3 miles at marathon pace.  I will make an attempt to make up the lost mileage tonight if I feel it to be necessary and helpful.  

Nice hour long run this morning in a comfortable 54 degree environment under the full moon.  

Pace: 7:57

Splits:

7:48

8:10

8:02

7:59

8:01

7:52

7:43

4:39 (.57 miles)

Long Run.  56 degrees.  Cloudy and just a little too windy.  Running into the north was difficult and slowed me down by about 15 seconds per mile towards the end of my run.  Overall I am pleased with my pace.  

Pace: 7:57

Time: 2:23:09

Splits:

7:52

8:08

7:46

7:54

7:42

7:38

7:49

7:51

8:22

7:49

7:58

8:19

8:05

8:02

7:51

8:01

8:15

8:06

Speed training on the track this morning.  

1.25 mile warm up:  7:07

2X1 mile repeats: 6:11, 6:18

4X800 repeats: 3:09, 3:04, 3:04, 3:05

2X1 miles repeats: 6:15, 6:25

1 mile cool down:  7:21

Easy run.  52 degrees. 

Splits:

8:15

8:00

7:39

7:35

Speed training on track.

1 mile warm up: 7:32

3 miles goal pace: 7:05, 6:59, 6:57

4X800's:  3:19, 3:15, 3:18, 3:12

3 tempo miles: 6:13, 6:40, 6:42

1 mile cool down. 

Nice easy run this morning.  My calves were still a little bit sore from Thursday mornings speed work.  I hope to recover fully before tomorrow mornings 20 mile run.  I want to see if I can keep my pace under eight minute miles.  

Splits: 

8:16

8:00

7:59

7:59

7:56

7:58

7:50

7:47

7:46

7:36

Nice long run today.  Abut 44 degrees starting out at 5:30 this morning with just a slight breeze.  My running partner said the temperature would make for a PR day.  We ran 20 miles at 7:44 pace.  We were pretty stoked when we finished.  

Splits:

7:41

7:45

7:39

7:46

7:20

7:24

7:32

7:39

7:52

7:34

7:22

7:44

7:38

7:54

7:55

7:52

7:58

8:17

8:17

7:33

43 degrees this morning felt pretty chilly.  I wore my long sleeve turtle neck for the fist time this season.  I probably would have just worn my Nathan sleeves had they been clean, especially if I was going farther.  This morning I was only going a little over 4 miles so I figured I would not get too warm in my cold weather gear. 

Splits: 

8:06

7:20

7:11

7:27

Speed training on the track today.  I did four 800's followed by 4 400's.  Short and sweet.

15 minutes warm up and about 10 minutes cool down including a few trips up and back down the bleachers. 

800's

3:09

3:03

3:01

3:05

400's

1:29

1:30

1:28

1:31

Easy one hour run this morning.  

Average pace: 8:13

Solo long run this morning because my training buddy is out of town.  I was actually glad to get an opportunity to run 20 solo because I know that it is good mental preparation for the long hard miles during the race.

The temperature could not have been more perfect at 52 degrees with calm winds.  I was not sure if I would beat last weeks long run time because not only was it a PR, but I had my partner pushing me on those crucial last 2 miles.  I ended up beating last weeks time by 1 second.  I thought that was pretty funny, and I am quite pleased since technically I can record a new PR.  

Pace: 7:44

Splits:

7:36

7:44

7:44

7:52

7:41

7:34

7:53

7:31

7:49

7:40

7:38

7:31

7:37

7:39

7:51

7:53

7:53

8:00

7:54

7:42

My right thigh muscles felt a little sore for the first 4 or 5 miles this morning, and my right ankle and lower calf was a little tingly as if the blood was not circulating properly.  Most of those issues went away by mile six.  I think my body may be still a little hung over from my 20 mile PR two days ago.  

Splits:

7:48

7:32

7:43

7:38

7:36

7:46

7:44

7:40

7:47

7:43

7:23

7:06

Easy 4 mile run with 6 strides at the end.  

Splits:

8:07

7:52

7:58

7:53

Nice and easy run this morning.  I have been feeling slightly under the weather since Monday.  I began to notice a sore throat after my 20 mile run last Sunday.  By Wednesday I had lost my voice and had a lot of chest congestion.  I only partially got my voice back on Friday.  I never ran a fever and I still made my Wednesday morning run, but my Thursday morning speed training workout did not happen.  I fell asleep on Wednesday night at about 9:30 (very early for me) and I did not get up until 8:00.  That netted me about 10 and half hours of much needed sleep.  I have not seen that much sleep in one night in years.  

I basically felt good this morning, although I still have some chest congestion and a runny nose.  I'm hopeful that since my voice seems to be back that I'm on the recovery and can make my 20 mile long run tomorrow.  

Splits:

7:51

7:48

7:40

7:57

8:00

8:08

8:05

7:49

PR run again today even if only by 12 seconds.  I am chalking this one down as a great run for me because I had a heck of a time with my allergies this week.  I lost my voice for three days and had a lot of chest congestion causing me to miss my Thursday training run.  This morning I was not feeling completely 100 percent with my stuffy nose and sore throat, but I sucked it up and pulled off a PR in spite of my condition. 

Kevin and and I had a productive discussion about the war on drugs.  I told him that I am a libertarian and that I think adults should be free to put into their bodies whatever they wish.  We also discussed the tremendous waste of government resources fighting the losing war on drugs.  He is not quite ready to argue for repeal as I have for some 10 years now. 

Splits:

7:33

7:39

7:32

7:31

7:33

7:34

7:43

7:37

7:48

7:50

7:24

7:29

7:50

7:45

7:46

8:06

7:46

8:12

8:04

7:49

I squeezed a speed run in between my son's second well doctor visit and my own doctor visit.  It turns out that my last tetanus shot did not also contain an element for pertussis.  Since my one month old son can not get his pertussis vaccination for several more months, it is recommended that the parents be up to date on their own vaccinations as not to risk passing on viral diseases such as deadly whooping cough to their children. 

I know that there is still somewhat of a controversy over vaccinating children in some circles, but there should not be.  Without going in to the whole debate here, Dr. Wakefield's original study on a vaccine-autism link, which is the catalyst for the current anti-vaccine movement, has been completely debunked, discredited, and furthermore retracted from the England Journal of medicine.  It had way to many flaws for it to be considered real science and is no longer taken as a serious study.  But because his ideas caught on in Europe and America, record numbers of parents are now declining to vaccinate their children.  And because of this trend deadly whooping cough, once thought eradicated, is now back and has killed a hand full of California children.  No one yet understands exactly what causes autism, but the fact that it occurs more frequently in boys than in girls suggests genetic factors are at play rather than external factors.     

Now I shall get back to the business of reporting on my run. After I got back home from Ty's doctor I only had about an hour and 15 minute window to get my 10 mile run in before I had to be back to shower and leave for my doctor.  This small window forced me to run a little harder and faster than I might have otherwise.  I am glad that it worked out this way because I achieved a new PR today for ten miles at 1:11:50.  

Pace: 7:11

Splits:

7:11

7:15

7:02

7:08

7:12

7:02

7:11

7:22

7:23

6:58

I should have taken it a little easier this morning since I need to be fresh for speed training tomorrow.  I just could not make myself slow down though.  Lack of sleep last night caused me to over sleep this morning by a couple of hours.  I forced myself to run fast instead of slow and easy in order to get back home in time to start my day.  As a consequence of the fast running when I should have been recovering I ended up straining my right calf muscle somehow.  It now feels a little sore.  I'm going to ice it tonight so that hopefully tomorrow morning it is well recovered for some much needed speed training as I enter the heart of monster month in my marathon training.  

Splits:

8:00

7:41

7:39

7:42

1.54 (.27 miles @ 7:12 average pace)

I spent the first hour of my workout on the track today.  I completed six 800's.  I averaged 3:15, which was a bit slower than my goal time.  My slowness can be attributed to my right calf muscle which seems to have been strained at some point this week.   

800 Splits: 

3:17

3:12

3:15

3:11

3:16

3:22

I left the track and came home to the neighborhood for my final six miles.  I ran two 3 mile repeats with the second set a little faster than the first set.  By the time I finished my left calf muscle was really feeling over strained and I iced it before I left for work.  I will be icing it and taking it really easy until Saturday morning for my next easy run.   

Splits: 

First 3 mile set:  Average 7:17

7:15

7:20

7:15

Second 3 mile set:  Average 7:01

6:49

7:04

7:11

Nice and easy 8:20 miles this morning for one hour.  My legs feel much better after this week of pretty hard running.  I though I had pulled a muscle in my left calf, but that seems to have healed up.  I'm ready for my long 22 mile run tomorrow that I'm basically going to consider my mock marathon.  

The temperature was a really warm 72 this morning.  I was looking back in my training log and I had to go back to September 23 to find a 71 degree day.  Since then it has been in the mid to low fifties during most of my runs.  

Splits:

8:13

8:17

8:20

8:13

8:42

8:20

8:26

My long run today was a true challenge of my abilities as a runner.  This was one of those days that I just did not feel 100%.  When I felt myself breathing a little harder than I thought I should have been during the first mile I knew there was a chance that I might not have the best run of my life today.  That said, generally I try to keep my thoughts as positive and optimistic as possible.  I try never to let myself think that I am going to have a bad run today.  I've learned that an ability think that you can run the distance and to actually see through to to the finish in your mind before it has actually happened is paramount to success as a distance runner.  So let me exclaim that on this run I was tapping in to those mental powers quite often.  It is on runs like this one that it is so helpful to have a long history of other long runs to call upon mentally in order to tell yourself that you can do it, you can finish this 22 mile run today.  

In the end I did make my 22 miles in an 8:07 pace, which is somewhat disappointing looking at my training log.  My last three 20 mile runs have been at a 7:44 average pace.  I thought that I would be able to hold that pace on a 22 mile run fairly easily, but other factors at play can influence expectations.  The big difference I can see when contrasting today's run with my previous three 20 mile runs is temperature.  It was a full 12 degrees warmer at 62 today as contrasted with 50 last week, 52 the week before that, and 44 the week before that.  I now believe that I run my best when the temperature is in the low 50's.  Runner's World Magazine did a study on this and found that runners achieve PR's at 52 degrees more often that at any other temperature.  When looking at my training log I can see that I set 4 PR runs during October, and the temperature was at 52 degrees or less for 3 out of the 4 PR runs.  

To end on a positive note, I am overall very satisfied with my run today.  Running 22 miles marks a milestone in my running journey.  I'm looking forward to finishing this entry, eating a nice big breakfast, and then relaxing for the rest of today.    

Nice and easy run today.  I was supposed to run 8 to 10 miles, but I since I felt really good I tacked on an extra two.  

Pace: 7:30

Splits:

7:23

7:27

7:32

7:26

7:36

7:28

7:29

7:21

7:16

8:03

7:51

7:07

I bought some new shoes last night.  I've been wearing the New Balance 1226 for years now, but ever since I upped my mileage for marathon training I have had occasional blisters on the ends of my toes.  I ended up buying the Brooks Ravenna in a half size larger than my New Balance.  The salesman also suggested insoles to correct slight imbalance issue with my left foot.  I ran in them on my short run this morning and felt pretty good.  I don't think they will be ready for me to race in the Tulsa Run on Saturday, but I'm looking forward to wearing them in the marathon.  

Splits: 

7:53

7:48

7:43

7:50

The Tulsa Run is one of my favorite races.  We had a beautiful day for this race with clear skies, winds at 10 mph, and a temperature of 51 degrees.  

Time: 1:05:12 (Last Year Time: 1:09:05)

Mile Pace: 7:00

Kilometer Pace: 4:21

Division Place: 35 of 270

Gender Place: 156 of 2190

Overall Place: 168 of 4249

I am happy to have beaten my time from last year.  I will try a little harder next year to break the 60 minute mark and win the 60/70 award.  

Splits:

 6:44

7:07

6:54

6:54

6:55

7:05

6:48

6:58

7:12

Long slow recovery run today.  My left upper most calf felt a little bit tight today.  I would even say it is more the muscle or tendon directly behind my knee than my calf.  Overall I felt pretty good.  I think I'm ready to hit a couple more nice speed runs this week and go into the tapering part of my training.  

Splits:

8:59

8:32

8:35

8:37

8:41

8:45

9:07

8:33

8:26

8:47

8:38

9:11

8:51

8:56

9:23

8:51

I ran 10 somewhat hard and fast today at a pace of 7:29 per mile.  I woke up at 6:30 and got out of bed, but decided to wait a few hours before running because my left foot seems to be injured.  I have the sore spot on the ball of my foot almost between two of my toes.  I spend a little time online reading about this type of injury and discovered it could possibly be one of two conditions.  Morton's Neuroma occurs when the nerves between the metatarsal heads get pinched.  This pinching of the nerve causes it to swell up and become inflamed.  The other possibility is called Metatarsalgia, which is basically micro trauma involving the metatarsal heads as they contact that ground.  

The remedy for metatarsalgia is to ice the affected area and to cushion with padding in your shoes if necessary.  I'll be keeping a close eye on this as I into the final few weeks of marathon training.

On a different note, today is election day all across the country.  Although I'm a pretty principled libertarian, I'm looking forward to the GOP winning big this year.  It would return us to the precious state of gridlock whereby the political powers that be do not have the votes to continue to spend this country into a giant hole in the ground.  The path we are on is just not sustainable.  A GOP victory would also signal to the current administration that its' policies are not approved of by the American people.  Just a few of my thoughts on the current state of politics in the USA. 

Splits:

7:06

7:17

7:23

7:27

7:35

7:21

7:26

7:40

7:54

7:39

1 mile warm up. 

4 miles average 6:54

2 800's at 3:06. 

It was COLD this morning.  I broke out the turtle neck and long pants cool weather running gear.  I ran a nice and easy 8:05 mile pace.  

Splits:

8:09

8:04

8:14

8:14

7:57

8:09

7:57

3:01 (.39 miles, average pace of 7:47)

I ran my last long run before the marathon this morning if you can call 14 miles a long run.  It felt like a really short romp compared to the 20 mile runs I've become accustomed to.  My metatarsalgia felt much better.  I thought that it was totally gone, but I did feel it a little bit this morning somewhere around mile 8 or 9.  

I have decided that if the temperature is in the forties and the wind is not too bad that I can wear my shorts, short sleeve tech shirt, and running sleeves and feel comfortable.  I think that my cut off point to warm weather gear is below forty degrees.  

Well I just hear the sound of my coffee pot finishing brewing, so I will now wrap up this entry and get on with my Sunday. 

Splits:

7:36

7:39

7:25

7:24

7:11

7:22

7:37

7:35

7:27

7:39

7:29

7:31

7:43

7:00

Track training.  

1 mile warm up.

4 400's @ 1:30

2 800's @ 3:09

4 400's @ 1:30

.75 mile cool down

My left metatarsals felt sore when I got out of bed, but felt fine as I got about half a mile into my warm up. 

Nice run.  

Splits:

7:43

7:11

7:12

7:10

2 miles: 7:00, 6:45

2 800's: 3:01, 3:09

2 400's: 1:30, 1:30

5 mile run at marathon pace (7:15).  I actually ran 7:13 on average this morning.  I getting a little nervous because I only have one more run, which is tomorrow, that is longer than 5 miles.  The rest of my runs this week are all short.  I'm trying to remember what my friend told me about tapering.  He said to taper in distance but not in intensity.

Splits:

7:08

7:12

7:32

7:13

7:00

Good cold 9 miler this morning at 7:12.  This is my last run of any significant distance before the marathon, which is now one week from happening.  

When I left the house this morning I decided to take a third bottle of sports drink.  I had recently bought an extra for my belt, and I wanted to test out how it feels to run with three instead of two eight ounce bottles.  I was almost back home, about one mile left to go, when I realized that one of the bottle had fallen off my belt.  How did that manage to fall of and me not realize it I thought to myself.  I was wearing my ear warmers, which tend to block not only the wind but also a little sound, so that explains it I thought.  And of-course it was the brand new bottle that fell off.  I ran my last mile and then got my bike down to back back and look for the bottle.  I found it some 2 miles from my home, and got a little cross training in at the same time.  

Splits:

7:11

7:15

7:03

7:11

7:06

7:14

7:21

7:14

7:20

I worked out on the track today.  

1 warm up mile

2 miles: 6:28, 6:31

2 800's: 3:10, 3:08

4 400's: 1:33, 1:30, 1:27, 1:25

1 mile cool down.

I've only got 5 more days until the marathon.  I definitely feeling the rejuvenating effects of the taper.  I can't wait until Sunday.

I only have two training runs left before the marathon.  Tomorrow I run four 400's at speed interval pace (1:30)  Friday I rest like usual, and then on Saturday I jog 3 miles.  

Yesterday I checked the weather report for Sunday, and I was excited to see that the morning low is 52 degrees!  If the winds stay calm, then race conditions could be perfect. 

Splits:

7:54

8:07

7:39

My last speed training session before the marathon.  

1 warm up mile

4 400's @ 1:30

Splits:

1:27

1:26

1:26

1:27

I am ready. 

Easy 3 mile jog 25 hours before go time.  I'm ready.  

Splits:

8:50

8:46

8:45

This was my first marathon.  I trained to be able to finish in something closer to 3:10, which would have qualified me for Boston.  There were two big obstacles today that got in the way of that.  It was a little bit hillier than I planned for, and there were 16 to 18 mile per hour head winds from mile 15 all the way to mile 21 that were pretty devastating to most of the runners including yours truly.  You can look at my splits and see that once I hit mile 16 each successive mile was about 14 seconds slower than the last.  By the time I rounded the corner at mile 21 and had the wind at my back I was able to improve within a range of 27 to 15 seconds per mile, but I felt totally drained.  I know that mile 21 is usually where the "wall" in the marathon comes in to play, so I think it ended up hitting me harder than had I not had to deal with the winds for the 6 miles leading up to that point. 

There was actually a third obstacle today that I have not yet mentioned, and that was the temperature.  It ended up be a little warmer than I would have liked.  All week long the forecast said we would have 52 degrees, but in reality it started out at about 64 degrees and rose to 67 by the time I finished.  I felt my self breaking a real good sweat by mile 3.  I probably used the water stops for both hydration and to cool my head from miles 15 to the finish.  

I am happy with my performance overall.  If I had it to do over again I definitely would have gone out slower in the beginning, given the situation I found my self in with wind later in the course.  Especially since the 3:30:00 pace group caught up to me somewhere at mile 21 and I was only able to hang in with them for about 1 mile.  I think had I gone out in 8:00 minute miles with them instead of 7:30's to 7:12's, I would have been able to hold the 8:00 minute pace much easier in the end.  With my finish time I average an 8:13 pace.

My running buddy who has done several marathons, warned me about the wind.  He said not try for the BQ, because I would end up going out fast and then die out in the end.  His planned pace, whether he was trying for his BQ or not was a little slower than my planned pace.  He said that if I went out too fast for the windy conditions, he would see me at mile 22.  At the 21 mile turnaround point, he saw me from the other side of the street, and yelled at me "I'm coming for you."  I thought, Oh my gosh, he predicted this would happen.  But I knew he went out a little faster than he planned for in the wind so I made it my goal to not let him catch me.  This was about the point that the 3:30:00 pace group caught up to me.  I ended up hanging in with them for about a mile and indeed I was able to "get away" from my running buddy.  He told me after we finished that when he saw me hanging with them he knew he could not catch me. 

So as I said, overall I am quite pleased with my performance given the warm, windy, hilly conditions.  I beat my buddy's PR, and I placed 12 in division and 94 overall.

Some interesting points to illustrate the difficult conditions.  The winner finished at 2:32:29.  The second place finisher came in over 21 minutes later at 2:54:07.  Within my age division (25 to 29), only 2 qualified for Boston.  Their times were 3:02:53 and 3:09:08.  Within the 30 to 34 age division, still my age division for qualifying purposes, 3 qualified at 2:32:29 (first place overall), 2:57:34 (second place overall), and 2:59:43 (5th place overall).  Of the 1,509 finishers, only 14 runners finished in under 3:10:00.     

Chip time: 3:35:05

Gun Time: 3:35:18

Overall Place: 91

DIV/PL: 12/108

Splits:

7:27

7:20

7:21

7:28

7:23

7:10

7:14

7:12

7:21

7:33

7:16

7:22

7:28

8:01

7:59

8:20

8:35

8:49

8:56

9:11

9:27

9:00

8:41

9:07

9:11

9:27

I ran 6.64 miles on the beautiful Turkey Mountain trails this morning with T.A.T.U.R.  I've definitely got to go trail running more often.  

This was my first road run since the marathon 9 days ago.  I felt really good.  I wasn't sure how far I should go at first.  When I set out I decided I would go at least ten miles.  Then I decided I would at least run down to the college and back, which is about 12 miles.  When I got back to my neighborhood I decided to go ahead and add on one more mile to make it over 13.  

Good run this morning.  Very cold at 26 degrees, but fortunately we ran east and west for the majority of the run so we avoided the north wind.  

My Garmin was dead this morning, so my data comes from my running buddy's Garmin.  

Splits: 

7:23

7:41

7:21

7:16

7:41

7:20

7:35

7:54

8:01

7:31

Good run this morning.  Very cold at 26 degrees, but I'm pretty sure I've decided that the extreme cold makes me run faster.  I have more incentive to get back home to the warmth.  I ran this run the same distance with my running buddy on Sunday.  I feel pretty good because I ran this mornings run 31 seconds faster than my Sunday run with my running buddy.  

Hard run at 4:30 in the after noon.   I would have rather gotten this run in this morning, but there was no way I was going to pull my self out of bed early after yesterday.  I did not get but 5 hours of sleep the night before and yesterday was quite a long day for me.  I got my braces on in the morning and we had our company dinner at P.F. Changs after work last night.  I'm ready to take some time off from work.  

Splits:  

7:21

7:05

7:09

6:57

6:48

7:05

Went running while on vacation on Monkey Island at Grand Lake.  It was about 20 degrees with 14 to 20 mile per hour winds.  I was seriously worried for a few mile in the middle that my cheeks might get frost bite.  I kept reaching up and touching my face with my hands to make sure that I still had feeling.  

The roads of Monkey Island are super hilly.  It was awesome.  A great workout.  

This morning was a little warmer and much less windy.  It was a much more enjoyable run.  The only part about it that was not enjoyable was that my Garmin died at exactly 10 miles.  I calculated my turn around point to put me back at my hotel at approximately 11.5 miles.  Why approximately?  Because I ran around a little bit in the opposite direction of my hotel before eventually coming back by.  Looking at the map of the run I can reasonably estimate that I ran 11.5 miles.   I learned my lesson on charging my Garmin the night before.  It turned it on to see if it needed a charge.  At first it indicated that one cell was missing, but that that cell lit up.  So I put it away thinking it was fully charged.  It was not.  This was a really fun run none the less.  The hills on monkey island are challenging to say the least.  

I had a really nice run this morning up until about mile 8.  I felt shooting pain through my right calf, but lower more towards my ankle.  I eased up a bit and the pain went away but I could definitely still feel something.  I iced it when I got back home, but shortly thereafter I had to go to work.  I will ice it again tonight before bed as it still feels slightly sore to walk around on.  I've sustained a injury or pulled muscle quite like this.  I will rest tomorrow and hopefully it will be healed so I can ride on Saturday and run on Sunday.  

I decided to rest today.  I ran 29 miles last week, with two of my three days on my family vacation out of town at Monkey Island on Grand Lake.  The hills and change of scenery were nice, but I noticed a nagging injury flair back up that I thought was mostly gone.  I think I have metatarsalgia in my left foot.  It is quite an annoying injury.  I actually don't usually ever feel it while running.  But it has a nasty habit of flaring up in the hours after a run has concluded.  I find it uncomfortable to walk, especially on hard surfaces without shoes or house shoes.   

I just spent the last hour reading through the last 2 and half months of my blog to see when I first noticed this injury.  I found that I first wrote about it on November 2nd. 

To review the injury, metatarsalgia is common in repetitive use motions such as running.  It causes pain in the ball of the foot just behind the middle toes or toes next to the big toe.  It is caused from the metatarsal heads, which are the ends of the bones that connect to the toe bones, pounding the ground repetitively.  I have discovered by researching the Mayo Clinic website that some common causes are shoes that have a narrow toe box or not enough shock absorption.  Ways to alleviate the pain and heal the injury are ice and rest.   Sometimes runners will use extra padding in their shoes or use metatarsal gel straps which pad the ball of the foot while walking.  I'm not sure the gel straps are intended to be worn while running, but I have read that putting padding in the shoes under the ball of the foot helps to alleviate the stress on the metatarsal heads while running. 

I'm not sure that I'm at the point of visiting my bone doctor quite yet.  I plan on icing and resting this week, and wearing comfortable shoes around the house.  If I still feel the effects of this injury after my usual Sunday run one week from today on December 26th, I will probably schedule an appointment to visit my doctor.  

If anyone has any personal experience with this injury I would love to know about it.  How did you beat it?  How much down time before returning to running? etc.  

Christmas morning run.  I have not run since Thursday December, 16th.  It has been a little over one week.  I had decided to rest for a little while to try to heal up some injuries. 

The good news is that I did not feel the metatarsalgia in my left foot very much at all.  We shall see if I feel it later today or tomorrow morning.  The bad news is that my right calf muscle that I strained on my last run that I thought was completely healed is apparently not.  I felt it flare up near mile two.  It felt it just slightly for the rest of the run.  Of-course I slowed it down a little as not to over work it.  Then at around mile 8 I felt a weird feeling in the back of my right knee.  Not the knee itself but the muscles back there.  I had to stop to stretch for a minute before I made it the rest of the way home.  

Now I'm ready to shower and have Christmas morning with my family.