Wow, just looked at the calendar, and realized we have only 11 more days left in 2010! Runners World realized that, and developed a nice year in review for 2010. Kara has ramped up her mileage for Boston, Haile signs with Johnnie Walker, and what the McMillan athletes are up to these days. In the next week, I will be developing my own year in review (personal and running world), my Brooks Adrenaline shoe review, and my plans for 2011.
Wednesday - 4 easy at night. Got home way too late, roads were still nasty and didn't do too much. Poor excuse, I know, but better than nothing.
Thursday - I am drawing a blank. I think I ran 4-6? I seriously don't remember.
Friday - 0! Got home at 9, late dinner, decided to save all my efforts for heavy weekend running.
Saturday - 16 at 7:38 average pace. Decent day, but the trails were a bit of a mess. Did Troy loop, went a different way because the ice that was around and ended up looking around the city of Troy. Didn't realize that I was going too fast, not the best idea especially in crappy conditions. Looped around my neighborhood, then stopped at home after 13 miles to grab some water and a quick bite to eat, and finished up afterwards. Felt great starting out, but felt like complete garbage at the end.
Sunday - 10 at 8:30 average pace. Ran with Mike (Crystal has been shelved with some nasty bug (get better soon, Crystal!)) in the early morning. Did a similar loop to the day before, had been snowing lightly in the morning, and trails were s-l-i-c-k! Shortened up the stride to combat potential slipping. Hip flexors/joints were a mess by the end of the run, really felt beat up.
On a brighter note, got my renewal from Brooks for 2011. I actually got upgraded to the P.A.C.E. Brooks team (Performance and Coaching Elite), which has some extra, nice perks so super excited and motivated to keep running hard for my sponsor for 2011! Thank you Brooks!!!!
Monday, December 20, 2010
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Kara/Massive Update
Guess who's coming back to Boston next year? Pretty awesome news :) London is beefing up their marathon as well, and a cool Runner's World chat with Mary Wittenberg.
As usual, have fallen massively behind. I last left off on the week of Dallas, so tried to piece together my workouts since then.
Wednesday (Dec 2) - 8 easy. Did with Crystal on the trail, and wasn't too bad. As usual, picked it up coming home but got through it ok. Average low 8's
Thursday (Dec 3) - Scheduled 6 with form drills, but I feel like I missed it for some reason.
Friday (Dec 4) - Scheduled off/traveled to Dallas for the White Rock Marathon weekend! Ken was running the full, Pat and Crystal the 1/2, and I was running the 5K for fun and pacing Ken the last 10K or so. Got in late, relaxed in our hotel, I had to get up early for my race.
Saturday (Dec 5) - Mayor's Race 5K - 19:02, 1st Place! Woke up early with the group, headed to Fair Park where the race was held. Nice morning, pretty warm and sunny. Warmed up 1 mile with Pat and got a quick tour of the course, which just looped all around the Park. Lined up up front, and went out with a small group. Was third after a quick first mile (5:43), and slowly worked my way up. The purpose of this race was to get in a decent workout and not overly kill myself, so just sat on the leaders for a while. Coming down early on the last mile, made a move but the leader covered it. Had made a mental note during warmup to kick when the finish line balloons were in sight (roughly 1/3 mile to go) and opened up a pretty big gap. The former leader tried to cover, but it was too late and I cruised in for the win. Did 1-2 mile cooldown with Crystal afterwards, relaxed the rest of the day around downtown Dallas which was just erfect weather - 70's. Total mileage - 5-6 miles: 5K splits were: 5:43, 6:14, 6:15. See picture above, one of the coolest pictures ever taken of me!
Sunday (Dec 6) - 7 miles on the White Rock Marathon Course. Got to play spectator for everyone, and jump in with Ken at the end. We didn't see Pat, but he was busy taking care of business and killed it on a great weather day (30-40's, sunny) and ran 1:55:32 PR!!!! Crystal also ran an amazing race (1:26:36) on tired legs for 3rd overall female - just an amazing racing year for her! She looked good when we saw her, and had some hamstring issues but battled it through. Ken, unfortunately, had some issues, but worked hard to finish a tough race. Proud that he gutted it out when he could have quit, and we had fun the last 10K just yucking it up and enjoying the scenary. Congrats to all on a great race! 34 miles for the week, not bad but certainly not good.
Monday (Dec 7) - 4 miles, 8:30ish pace. Off to Parsippany, NJ for a work conference! Made it in to the cold, dreary, east coast, and battled the evil treadmill in the hotel gym that had no air circulation.
Tuesday (Dec 8) - 8 miles, drills. Conference all day, started a treadmill run around 9 p.m. but gave up a mile into it because it was so hot. Strapped on some running clothes, got moving down the road. Was dark and a really creepy road with abandoned buildings, and was getting a bit freaked out since it looked like a setting for a Stephen King novel. Battled some stomach issues, had to stop in some weird dinner to use the bathroom and got a lot of nervous looks since I was dressed head to toe in black. Finally got out of there, almost had a panic attack with the scenary, messed up intersections, and the 55-60 mph cars whizzing by and just high tailed it back to the hotel. Hit 5:29 on that last mile, which is just ridiculous. Did drills outside, and finished my run on the treadmill with 2 at marathon pace.
Wednesday (Dec 9) - 8 miles. Refused to go outside again, suffered on the treadmill. Thank goodness there was some good college basketball on.
Thursday (Dec 10) - 0! Travel day - made it back late, decided to switch it up with my Friday day off since I wasn't working.
Friday (Dec 11) - 7 miles, drills, strides. Absolutely gorgeous day to be off. Ran on the trail to Pat's place and did 4 with him, then ran back home and did drills and strides on my neighborhood road. Nice to get that out of the way earlier in the day.
Saturday (Dec 12) - 14 miles, 7:30-7:40 pace average. Cold and rainy outside, waited till early afternoon to get out there and battled it out on our G.C. trail long loop with Crystal. Came back into the wind and rain, and was pretty miserable. At that point, we picked it up and hit 5 miles or so around marathon pace. Felt pretty good till around mile 10, when my legs were getting really tired. Slowed it down the last couple miles which helped, but my legs felt like complete garbage at the end. Kudos to Mike and the other crazies that battled it out on the St. Louis Track Club Frostbite Series. Absolutely crappy conditions (rain, wind, cold), and Mike ran a pretty solid race.
Sunday (Dec 13) - 0! The snow and 30-50 mph gusts made it almost impossible to run outside. Plus, legs were dead, exhausted from a full week of work travel and running, and my couch's gravitational pull/vortex won. 41 miles this week. Getting better, I guess.
Monday (Dec 14) - 7 miles, no idea the pace. Crappy conditions, started with my 3 mile G.C. loop but the sidewalks were covered in snow. Ended up going to the trail, which had some snow but was light. Had a Forrest Gump moment since the trees were blocking out all the wind, and was a pretty, starry night. Just a very nice, peaceful setting. Criused home, stretched out massively afterwards since my legs were sore.
Tuesday (Dec 15) - 0! Was ready to run and was on the couch texting with Crystal since she was bailing out on our tempo run. Made the mistake of laying down while I texted her, and Franklin was purring next to me all cuddly and next thing I knew it was 2 hours later! Pretty angry at myself, just poor discipline.
Wednesday (Dec 16) - 7 total, 3 tempo at 6:28, 6;19, 6:19. Crystal had mapped out a 1 mile loop in her parent's neighborhood, located conveniently about 2 miles away. Jogged up there, roads were slick and had some slight precipitation. Started the tempo into a pretty stiff wind, and half the roads were covered in slush. Was just a rough run, and my hip flexors weren't firing at all not to mention traction was a bit of an issue. Felt like I was looking 1/4 of a stride at certain points. Anyways, battled through it - highlight was passing the guy riding his bike/walking his dog 3 separate times. He did a double take each time, but he gets credit for me surging through because I was not a happy camper out there. Cooled down on the way home, roads were starting to become a mess at that point, and barely made it back before it was getting really nasty. Took a hard spill on the sidewalk later that night walking to check on my car, which means no run outside for a while.
Tonight, hope to get in the scheduled 8, probably via treadmill!
As usual, have fallen massively behind. I last left off on the week of Dallas, so tried to piece together my workouts since then.
Wednesday (Dec 2) - 8 easy. Did with Crystal on the trail, and wasn't too bad. As usual, picked it up coming home but got through it ok. Average low 8's
Thursday (Dec 3) - Scheduled 6 with form drills, but I feel like I missed it for some reason.
Friday (Dec 4) - Scheduled off/traveled to Dallas for the White Rock Marathon weekend! Ken was running the full, Pat and Crystal the 1/2, and I was running the 5K for fun and pacing Ken the last 10K or so. Got in late, relaxed in our hotel, I had to get up early for my race.
Saturday (Dec 5) - Mayor's Race 5K - 19:02, 1st Place! Woke up early with the group, headed to Fair Park where the race was held. Nice morning, pretty warm and sunny. Warmed up 1 mile with Pat and got a quick tour of the course, which just looped all around the Park. Lined up up front, and went out with a small group. Was third after a quick first mile (5:43), and slowly worked my way up. The purpose of this race was to get in a decent workout and not overly kill myself, so just sat on the leaders for a while. Coming down early on the last mile, made a move but the leader covered it. Had made a mental note during warmup to kick when the finish line balloons were in sight (roughly 1/3 mile to go) and opened up a pretty big gap. The former leader tried to cover, but it was too late and I cruised in for the win. Did 1-2 mile cooldown with Crystal afterwards, relaxed the rest of the day around downtown Dallas which was just erfect weather - 70's. Total mileage - 5-6 miles: 5K splits were: 5:43, 6:14, 6:15. See picture above, one of the coolest pictures ever taken of me!
Sunday (Dec 6) - 7 miles on the White Rock Marathon Course. Got to play spectator for everyone, and jump in with Ken at the end. We didn't see Pat, but he was busy taking care of business and killed it on a great weather day (30-40's, sunny) and ran 1:55:32 PR!!!! Crystal also ran an amazing race (1:26:36) on tired legs for 3rd overall female - just an amazing racing year for her! She looked good when we saw her, and had some hamstring issues but battled it through. Ken, unfortunately, had some issues, but worked hard to finish a tough race. Proud that he gutted it out when he could have quit, and we had fun the last 10K just yucking it up and enjoying the scenary. Congrats to all on a great race! 34 miles for the week, not bad but certainly not good.
Monday (Dec 7) - 4 miles, 8:30ish pace. Off to Parsippany, NJ for a work conference! Made it in to the cold, dreary, east coast, and battled the evil treadmill in the hotel gym that had no air circulation.
Tuesday (Dec 8) - 8 miles, drills. Conference all day, started a treadmill run around 9 p.m. but gave up a mile into it because it was so hot. Strapped on some running clothes, got moving down the road. Was dark and a really creepy road with abandoned buildings, and was getting a bit freaked out since it looked like a setting for a Stephen King novel. Battled some stomach issues, had to stop in some weird dinner to use the bathroom and got a lot of nervous looks since I was dressed head to toe in black. Finally got out of there, almost had a panic attack with the scenary, messed up intersections, and the 55-60 mph cars whizzing by and just high tailed it back to the hotel. Hit 5:29 on that last mile, which is just ridiculous. Did drills outside, and finished my run on the treadmill with 2 at marathon pace.
Wednesday (Dec 9) - 8 miles. Refused to go outside again, suffered on the treadmill. Thank goodness there was some good college basketball on.
Thursday (Dec 10) - 0! Travel day - made it back late, decided to switch it up with my Friday day off since I wasn't working.
Friday (Dec 11) - 7 miles, drills, strides. Absolutely gorgeous day to be off. Ran on the trail to Pat's place and did 4 with him, then ran back home and did drills and strides on my neighborhood road. Nice to get that out of the way earlier in the day.
Saturday (Dec 12) - 14 miles, 7:30-7:40 pace average. Cold and rainy outside, waited till early afternoon to get out there and battled it out on our G.C. trail long loop with Crystal. Came back into the wind and rain, and was pretty miserable. At that point, we picked it up and hit 5 miles or so around marathon pace. Felt pretty good till around mile 10, when my legs were getting really tired. Slowed it down the last couple miles which helped, but my legs felt like complete garbage at the end. Kudos to Mike and the other crazies that battled it out on the St. Louis Track Club Frostbite Series. Absolutely crappy conditions (rain, wind, cold), and Mike ran a pretty solid race.
Sunday (Dec 13) - 0! The snow and 30-50 mph gusts made it almost impossible to run outside. Plus, legs were dead, exhausted from a full week of work travel and running, and my couch's gravitational pull/vortex won. 41 miles this week. Getting better, I guess.
Monday (Dec 14) - 7 miles, no idea the pace. Crappy conditions, started with my 3 mile G.C. loop but the sidewalks were covered in snow. Ended up going to the trail, which had some snow but was light. Had a Forrest Gump moment since the trees were blocking out all the wind, and was a pretty, starry night. Just a very nice, peaceful setting. Criused home, stretched out massively afterwards since my legs were sore.
Tuesday (Dec 15) - 0! Was ready to run and was on the couch texting with Crystal since she was bailing out on our tempo run. Made the mistake of laying down while I texted her, and Franklin was purring next to me all cuddly and next thing I knew it was 2 hours later! Pretty angry at myself, just poor discipline.
Wednesday (Dec 16) - 7 total, 3 tempo at 6:28, 6;19, 6:19. Crystal had mapped out a 1 mile loop in her parent's neighborhood, located conveniently about 2 miles away. Jogged up there, roads were slick and had some slight precipitation. Started the tempo into a pretty stiff wind, and half the roads were covered in slush. Was just a rough run, and my hip flexors weren't firing at all not to mention traction was a bit of an issue. Felt like I was looking 1/4 of a stride at certain points. Anyways, battled through it - highlight was passing the guy riding his bike/walking his dog 3 separate times. He did a double take each time, but he gets credit for me surging through because I was not a happy camper out there. Cooled down on the way home, roads were starting to become a mess at that point, and barely made it back before it was getting really nasty. Took a hard spill on the sidewalk later that night walking to check on my car, which means no run outside for a while.
Tonight, hope to get in the scheduled 8, probably via treadmill!
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Catchup
Sorry, have fallen behind. Here is my concise running update - more to come!
Tuesday - 0! Sore, just ran out of time in the day to get in anything productive so opted for rest
Wednesday - 0! Drove home to Peoria in a niec rain storm which stretched all the way up north. By the time I was done with all my work, it was 7 and time to meet the family out for dinner. Still raining when we were done, excuses, excuses, I know, but I was just too tired at that point to try to gut it out.
Thursday - 8, drills. Happy Thanksgiving! A little chilly, but not awful. Ran 8 around my parent's neighborhood and vicinity which is by no means flat, and my calves were just screaming when I was done. Hit 7:40 pace average, which I was pleased about but probably worked a little too hard. Ran out around Weaver Ridge, which is a really nice golf course/community about 3 miles away. Measured out 40 yards afterwards, and had some perplexed looks by the neighbors as I was doing form drills. Undid virtually everything with the Thanksgiving meal performance I put on later that night, but it was truly worth it!
Friday - 5 easy, long day since I had to drive to work in STL in the morning, and was just pooped.
Saturday - 8 easy with Ken. Met out in Alton for the Alton 10 miler, where I had a few friends running (Mike and Crystal included). Did an out and back on the course, which was dead flat. Brisk, but very sunny and a slight wind (into the wind going out, with the wind going back). Hit roughly 8:20 pace, last 2 miles were at marathon pace. Forgot my inhaler, but survived. Got pretty warm going in, and both of us were just having fun out there. Watched the race, to make a long story short, AMAZING PR performances from Mike and Crystal, and both got some nice bling (Mike was Top 35 male, Crystal was 2nd overall female!). Crystal's time was most particularly disturbing for me, as our hard runs this winter are going to be excruciating since she is getting faster by the day.
Sunday - 9 with Crystal. Forgot my inhaler again, dah! Cool, but sunny so was nice to get out there. Both of us were sore and tired, and just did an out and back on the G.C. trails. Looks like they finally repaired the other side of the trail, which will open up more options later. Felt ok for the most part, nice to get that over with early on. I think 8:30-8:45 average pace? 35 miles for the week, eek!
Monday - 6 with Crystal. Did my G.C. loop at night, had been raining all day/night but wasn't bad at all. Got pretty warm in my jacket, and almost ripped it off at a few points. Felt sore starting out, but felt pretty decent towards the end. I think it was about 8:10-8:20 average pace?
Tuesday - 7 total, 3.5 up, drills and strides, 2.5 down, 1 more afterwards. Cold and windy, winter is right around the corner. Bundled up for this one, was getting cold on the track doing drills. Strides felt ok for the most part, nothing too special, but didn't push at all and felt very fluid in my running form. Pretty curious to see how things go on Saturday for my 5K in Dallas...
Tonight, planning on 8 easy. and the weather looks nice and cold tonight. Stay warm, everyone!
Tuesday - 0! Sore, just ran out of time in the day to get in anything productive so opted for rest
Wednesday - 0! Drove home to Peoria in a niec rain storm which stretched all the way up north. By the time I was done with all my work, it was 7 and time to meet the family out for dinner. Still raining when we were done, excuses, excuses, I know, but I was just too tired at that point to try to gut it out.
Thursday - 8, drills. Happy Thanksgiving! A little chilly, but not awful. Ran 8 around my parent's neighborhood and vicinity which is by no means flat, and my calves were just screaming when I was done. Hit 7:40 pace average, which I was pleased about but probably worked a little too hard. Ran out around Weaver Ridge, which is a really nice golf course/community about 3 miles away. Measured out 40 yards afterwards, and had some perplexed looks by the neighbors as I was doing form drills. Undid virtually everything with the Thanksgiving meal performance I put on later that night, but it was truly worth it!
Friday - 5 easy, long day since I had to drive to work in STL in the morning, and was just pooped.
Saturday - 8 easy with Ken. Met out in Alton for the Alton 10 miler, where I had a few friends running (Mike and Crystal included). Did an out and back on the course, which was dead flat. Brisk, but very sunny and a slight wind (into the wind going out, with the wind going back). Hit roughly 8:20 pace, last 2 miles were at marathon pace. Forgot my inhaler, but survived. Got pretty warm going in, and both of us were just having fun out there. Watched the race, to make a long story short, AMAZING PR performances from Mike and Crystal, and both got some nice bling (Mike was Top 35 male, Crystal was 2nd overall female!). Crystal's time was most particularly disturbing for me, as our hard runs this winter are going to be excruciating since she is getting faster by the day.
Sunday - 9 with Crystal. Forgot my inhaler again, dah! Cool, but sunny so was nice to get out there. Both of us were sore and tired, and just did an out and back on the G.C. trails. Looks like they finally repaired the other side of the trail, which will open up more options later. Felt ok for the most part, nice to get that over with early on. I think 8:30-8:45 average pace? 35 miles for the week, eek!
Monday - 6 with Crystal. Did my G.C. loop at night, had been raining all day/night but wasn't bad at all. Got pretty warm in my jacket, and almost ripped it off at a few points. Felt sore starting out, but felt pretty decent towards the end. I think it was about 8:10-8:20 average pace?
Tuesday - 7 total, 3.5 up, drills and strides, 2.5 down, 1 more afterwards. Cold and windy, winter is right around the corner. Bundled up for this one, was getting cold on the track doing drills. Strides felt ok for the most part, nothing too special, but didn't push at all and felt very fluid in my running form. Pretty curious to see how things go on Saturday for my 5K in Dallas...
Tonight, planning on 8 easy. and the weather looks nice and cold tonight. Stay warm, everyone!
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