Reverse Ladder

J-Mac is a great marathon runner, Centro wins the Fifth Avenue Mile, Ritz is ready for Chicago, Berlin Marathon this weekend, exercises to strengthen you, Shalane, and Matt Gabrielson retires.

Fri-Sun September 21-23 - 0!  Vegas - nuff said.  Amazing weekend, but absolutely destroyed my body.  30 miles for the week, 139 miles in September, 1289 miles in 2012.

Monday, September 24th - 8 miles.  Ran with Crystal after work at night.  Pretty dark outside, but we went out and back towards Home Depot with Crystal's headlamp.  I had been hurting really bad all day (either a cold starting or remnants of a Vegas Bachelor Party weekend), but managed to get through this ok.  8:30ish pace overall.

Tuesday, September 25th - 0!  Mother Nature is to blame.  Had all intentions of doing my track work, but the thunder, lightning, wind, and uber rain stopped that.  At 9:30 p.m., got tired of waiting and went to bed.

Wednesday September 26th - 10 miles: 4 miles a.m., 6 miles p.m.  Went over to Parkway Central's track at lunchtime - was 75, sunny, and almost 80% humidity so quite awful.  Track workout per Coach Ben was reverse ladder (1600, 1200, 800, 400) starting at 5K pace for the mile, then 2 seconds faster per lap as I moved down with 3 minutes rest in between reps.  Did a quick warm up before jumping into it.  Hit the mile fast and literally had to jog the last 200 to keep it honest.  Got halfway through the 1200 before my body started to shut down because of the effort/heat.  Had to talk myself into finishing the workout, and really worked to get it done.  Splits were good, but effort was too much (5:55, 4:22, 2:47, 1:13).  Cooldown, then back to work.  In the p.m., did a weird loop on the trails and Village Circle before heading back.  6 miles - 50 minutes exactly.  Felt pretty tired to get this all in, but had to make up for missing Tuesday.

Hoping to load up on mileage today and tomorrow before heading to Medinah tomorrow night for the Ryder Cup!

Vegas bound!

Ed Whitlock runs 1:38 half at the age of 81, NYC field bulks up, more NYC news, Ritz, more on Ritz getting ready for Chicago, Shalane running the Worlds in Bulgaria, Rock n Roll series on sale, Lance finds a half triathlon to compete in, great grocery foods for runners, David Rudisha, and the lovely Miss Kara Goucher.

Tuesday, September 17th - 8 miles (2 up, 3x1 mile, 3 down).  Best running day of the year weatherwise, and went up to the track to meet Crystal and Fenley at the SLU track.  Legs were like jello, but warmed up 2 easy before hitting the workout.  Goal was to hit 6 minute pace, with half the rep time for rest (3 minutes).  Had trouble getting locked in, but made it through the workout ok.  Fenley ran with me, and was good to work with him.  Faster pace feels so foreign, but I know it's still early in the process and need to keep this up.  On the last 2, had to work on the last lap to hit the split, but felt controlled.  Cooled down, stretched thoroughly, and called it a day.  Pleased with this workout.  Mile repeat splits were: 6:00, 6:02, 6:00.

Wednesday, September 18th - 8 miles.  Ran late after work.  Too much to do with errands, packing for Vegas, cutting hair, and run.  Eventually got out and did an improvised loop - trail towards troy for 4 miles, village circle an a mile, then 270 loop for 3 miles.  Perfect running weather again, and went by feel which ended up being a little quicker since today should have been slow recovery pace.  It got dark fast, so had a surge on the trail, then at the 270 loop where there was a mysterious car parked on the shoulder, very close to where I run.  Not worth stopping and looking, so picked it up and got the heck out of dodge.  Labored slightly the last 3 miles, but more from fatigue.  64:13 total - too fast, but felt overall ok.

Thursday, September 19th - 7 miles.  Realistically, my last good opportunity for a run.  The plan was to really hit all my runs the first half of this week, since I take off for Vegas tonight and most likely won't run much there.  So dragged Crystal out for a 5 a.m. start (yes, I dragged HER out believe it or not!), which I could tell she wasn't happy about (her texts in the white)

Well I made it on time and didn't get killed, and we ran trail loop on Home Depot.  Left hip was bothering me when I woke up, and was really hurting when we got started.  Eventually got more comfortable, and battled through some light rain and lightening before finishing out.  Contemplated the 8th mile, but had zero range of motion on my left hip and ended up going home to stretch and some uber-foam rolling.  1:00:13 total for the run.

30 miles into the week - very pleased with the last month or so of running, and whatever else I get in this weekend will be nice and easy.  Vegas-bound tonight for my buddy Goose's Bachelor Party, which should be absolutely ridiculous.  Sin City - here I come!

53 Mile Week!

STL getting some love in the running community, Max King, Meb, Mary Wittenberg on the NYC Marathon, and Lukas Verzbicas and his recovery.

Wednesday, September 12th - 6 miles (1 up, 3 x (3 x 200, 1 x 400), 2 down).  SLU track workout after work with Crystal and Tim.  First time at that venue, and it is a really nice track - sort of in the hood, but a nice view of the city.  Ran into Coach Tim at the track, and asked for a quick rust buster, to which he laid out the workout above.  Crystal had 12x400's at 78-80, so tried to coordinate my reps with her.  Ended up doing an extra set to help her out.  Felt ok - definitely some effort to maintain the splits, but my form was fine.  It was just earlier this year that we were hitting 70-71 quarters, but now struggling to hit sub 80 .  37, 44 (oops), 39, 1:17; 39, 38, 39, 1:17, 39, 38, 1:17 were the splits.

Thursday, September 13rd - 8 miles.  Ran with Crystal before work - out and back on Old Faithful.  Nice and easy, which was a welcome change for once.  Nice morning to run - my body is definitely appreciating the cooler weather.  9:03 pace average, I believe.

Friday, September 14th - 5 miles.  Ran after work - had intentions of doing tempo, but I was just too beat up and wanted to get in easier mileage.  Out and back towards Troy - actually kind of warm on the run, but made it through ok.  Splits were: 8:17, 8:19, 8:19, 8:02, something slow.

Saturday, September 15th - 13 miles.  Fast Eddie's run with the Wolfpack.  Quick 3 miler in town beforehand (just to get in extra mileage since running afterwards was not going to happen) - did 270 loop with Tim catching me for the last mile.  Drove up to Fast Eddie's in Alton with Tim and Megan, then parked and got situated before we took off.  Rest of the group was running 20-26.2 miles (yes that's crazy), and didn't want to run for that long.  Anyways, the Madison County bike trails run all the way out in that area, so ran on the roads for about a mile before finding the trail.  Pretty cool because you run on top of a levee, so nice views, not to mention the overcast and breezy conditions so just about perfect for running.  Started out the first mile or so with Megan before Tim and I broke off - got in a nice groove, and ran out before turning around at the 5 mile mark before heading back and meeting up with Megan.  Someone conveniently set up a water stand 2 miles out from Fast Eddies, so had some nice refreshments on the way back.  Rest of the group met up shortly afterwards, then we enjoyed some post run lunch and beverages!  I really liked that trail - running alongside the river, some small hills but not too difficult, and I appreciated the different scenary.  With all the miscellaneous stops and whatnot, averaged right around 9 minute pace for the run.

Sunday, September 16th - 6 miles.  After an early birthday celebration the night before, headed out for an out and back on the trail towards Home Depot.  Crystal had her long run, so tried to coordinate that we could catch a couple miles together.  Unbelievably, we met up within 5 seconds of what we had planned - Crystal is an amazing planner!!!  Anyways, felt pretty tired, but got in a groove and finished it out.  Then sat on the couch for many hours watching football!  46:10 total - splits were: 8:02, 7:44, 7:14 (oops) , 7:59, 7:51, 7:17.  53 miles this week, 109 miles in September, 1259 miles in 2012.  Very pleased this week.  First 50 mile week since marathon training last April, and I believe highest mileage week in 2012!

Monday, September 17th - 7 miles.  Big River Monday night run with Craig.  Definitely felt beat up from the last few weeks, so wanted to go slower.  Craig and I started with the intentions of running 8-8:30's, but quickly got locked in to 8's.  Very humid outside, and hints of rain but never came - got in a nice groove the last couple miles, and felt good at the end.  55:12 total.

Track work tonight, then as much mileage as I can get in the next couple days before heading out to Las Vegas!

Fall can't get here any sooner

Chicago marathon field, and Ryan Hall considering hiring a coach.

Friday, September 7th - 0!  Got home late from work, and it was literally raining cats and dogs.  It finally dissipated at 10 p.m. or so, but with a long run early morning I opted to just chill out.

Saturday, September 8th - 12 miles.  Ran with the Wolfpack on Old Faithful for the monthly East Side run.  Good turnout, and ended up running with Colby for the entire way.  Felt ok but a little run down with the recent "heavy" mileage, but we kept a good pace and good rhythm.  Definitely a lot easier to do a long run with somebody, not to mention absolutely perfect weather - sunny and in the high 50's.  1:33:47 overall (47:32/46:15)  Afterwards, converged to Global Brew for some post run beverages!

Sunday, September 9th - 5 miles.  Nice and late - procrastination sucks, but needed to get this mileage in.  Nice and slow, and looped around the neighborhood and 270 loop.  44 minutes, I believe.  40 miles this week, 56 miles in September, 1206 miles in 2012.

Monday, September 10th - 7 miles.  Big River Group run.  Thought we were going slow, but I thought wrong.  Ran with Crystal, Gabe, Matty D, and a few others on the 7 mile loop.  Legs felt like poop almost the entire way but just kept going.  Got locked in by the 3rd mile, and hung on to the end.  49:18 total - not too shabby.

Tuesday, September 11th - 8 miles + strides.  Late start after work with Crystal - ran from her house, looped around Ebbets Field, then to the track.  4x100 at mile pace, 4x40 meters at 80-90% effort.  Felt overall pretty decent, but legs are definitely a little worn out.  65:08 total.

Off to SLU track tonight for track work, then just more mileage the rest of the week.  Hanging tough!

Don't call it a comeback

Bolt, Allyson Felix, and attempt at marathon in a suit world record.

Tuesday, September 4th - 4.5 miles.  Ran with Timmy after work around Francis Park.  It was 94, sunny, and just uber humid.  This last week of nasty weather has been just God-awful!  Intentionally kept it slow, and every step was painful.  Not my idea of fun, but had scored some all inclusive Cardinals tickets for the night and needed to get a workout in so I didn't feel too bad destroying a few hot dogs and beer.  39:30 total, and it was tough the entire way.

Wednesday, September 5th - 6.5 miles.  Happy NFL Opening Day game!  Another ridiculous hot day, so ended up thinking I was going to skip this run.  Watched the game, then watch part of the U.S. Open Quarterfinals match before guilting myself to go run at 10:30 p.m.  Did a new loop around town, one without as many stop and turns, and may do this new loop from now on since it's a lot smoother than my other one.  It was nasty humid still, but no sun so wasn't too warm.  I was soaked in sweat within 10 minutes though.  Felt ok for the most part, but glad to get this in.  50 minutes or so (47:55 - 8:19, 8:26, 8:02, 7:56, 7:50, 7:19 then jogged the last 0.5 mile in).

Thursday, September 6th.  7 miles.  Got home from work, and it looked like a big storm was going through. Cool, overcast, and windy - had to take advantage of this now.  So did out and back towards Troy on the trail - went out pretty fast and slowed it down, but then decided to incorporate a couple miles of tempo in there since I have done virtually 0 speedwork this summer - not to mention, it was actually nice and cool and wanted to take advantage of the conditions.  Tempo pace didn't feel too hot, and felt my body relaxing and surging a lot so need to work on speed some more.  But overall very satisfied as 2 miles tempo felt not awful (lol) and rewarded myself with a 1 mile cooldown, then a session of P90X Ab Ripper.  42:47 for the 6 miles (7:14, 7:10, 7:45, 7:31, 6:34, 6:24).

Actually another decent week of runniing coming around.  Easy mileage tonight, group long run is on the docket for Saturday, then will attempt to get in some mileage on Sunday to hopefully hit 40+.  Feeling good!

Cheaters never win

This ebay ad for Mo Farah's ice bath water is just creepy, and the very strange story of Kip Litton.

I don't really get this story, but it's just weird.  Who does this?  Who goes through all this difficult work to fake an entire marathon career?  You can't sneak one past the running community - people will figure it out eventually.  Look at that knucklehead Paul Ryan, who claimed he ran a sub 3 hour marathon (in reality he ran a 4:01 marathon).  That claim was quickly investigated, and he published a response that it was all a misunderstanding.  Really???

I can speak from experience that we have researched for cheaters who have allegedly placed higher than they actually did - St. Pat's Race where we found out Crystal finished lower than we thought, then researched furiously looking for pictures, athlinks sights, etc. until it was determined that a 30 minute 5Ker could not possibly run a 30 minute 5 mile race, and she was consequently disqualified.  Cheaters never win!

Friday, August 31st - 3 miles.  Quick run after work - just hot and humid.  I don't remember times, but was around the 8-9 min pace.  131 miles in August, 1156 miles in 2012.

Saturday, September 1st - 6 miles in the evening.  Spent the morning sleeping in and watching football, and eventually made it out for a run.  Awfully humid, and I was sweating profusely on the run right from the start. Did a mile out on the trail, then looped around Village Circle which unfortunately had every single street light out which made that particular mile kind of creepy (and my fastest split).  49:14 total for the run.

Sunday, September 2nd - 10 miles.  Out and back towards Troy on the trails.  Didn't start this run until 2 p.m., and it was brutally hot and humid.  Started off slow, and kept up the pace until the turnaround near Drost park where I ran into my buddy Jeff.  The whole way back was brutal - the sun kept fighting its way out, and I was just suffering the entire way in.  Would have probably walked, if I wasn't under a time constraint since I had an afternoon BBQ.  8:22 pace for the run, I believe.  40 miles this week, 1166 miles in 2012.  First 40 miler in a while!

Monday, September 3rd - 5 miles.  Waited until 1 p.m. to get this run in, and once again it was just nasty humid outside.  Out and back on the trail, and it just sucked.  Legs felt like complete garbage, and I was soaked from sweat within 2 minutes of my run.  Did P90X Ab Ripper afterwards, which is 16 minutes of hell and fury.  Ouch!  40:24 total for the run.

Trying to make it through another high mileage week - going to try to sneak in some speedwork, but definitely targeting 40 miles +!