Chi this weekend!

Mosop shooting for world record this weekend in Chi, Korir wants a Chicago win, Ritz working on nutrition, Kipligat out of NYC, Ryan Hall, Mo Farah is European athlete of the year, ESPN's Body Issue (with Ryan Hall), and how long to recover after hard workouts/races.

Monday, October 3rd - 6 miles + drills. Big River Monday group run - started out 3 miles with Megan, then met up with Crystal and ran to the track for drills. Felt ok, but definitely tired. No idea on time, forgot to start my watch, but 8-9 minute pace overall.

Tuesday, October 4th - 6 miles in Forest Park. Nice evening to run - felt ok, but still tired. Obama was in town for a private fundraiser, so had to wait awhile to cross over the Highway 40 overpass between Hampton and Skinker, so that was a huge pain in the butt. Less than 2 minutes from the car = 30 minute delay. Somewhere between 54-60 minutes overall.

Wednesday, October 5th - 6 miles easy with Pat and Crystal. Pat ran most of the run with us as his tempo, and looked strong. Nice evening to run, and felt a little better but still fatigued. Total time was 50:54.

Tonight - tempo run with Crystal. Headed to Chicago tomorrow morning to watch the marathon. Temps look a little nasty (70-80's), so hoping it cools down soon and fast!

Race for Lymphoma 5K Recap

Meb and Deena win RNR San Jose, Kipligat aims at the women's marathon record, Kim Smith and her NYC Marathon tactics, bio on Bernard Lagat, Haile warns British media about too much pressure, USA 10 Mile Championship results, and a Runners World Brief Chat with Chicago Marathon director Carey Pinkowski.

Forgot this last week ; 168.5 miles for September (awful), 1557.5 miles for 2011.

Saturday, October 1st - 5 miles (1 up, RACE FOR LYMPHOMA 5K (18:52 - 4th overall, 3rd male, 1st in age group), 1 down). Woke up a little tired from going to Big River's Brooks Pure Launch party the night before, but ate a quick breakfast, picked up Pat and Crystal, and headed to STL for the 5K. Chilly in the morning, but perfect for a race. Quick warmup with Crystal and Tim, Tim and I got impromptu recruited for the Team Competition, drills and strides, then lined up. Strategy was to go out in 5:50's, then run 6's in for a good time. Course was flat with a lot of turns, and basically went around the perimeter of the St. Louis Mills Mall, which is sort of scenic but basically a mall. Went out a little fast with Crystal, but slowed down to even it out. Pack had separated to the first 2 runners (way out front), Crystal, me, then a runner who was working off me. Crystal had worked a good gap about halfway through, so it was just me and the straggler who was hanging on. This race turned tactical for me, since I wasn't going to catch Crystal, so relaxed a bit and geared up for some surges on the last mile. Threw in a couple surges to open up a bigger gap, then cruised in. Lost track of time, and kicked too late and ended up with an ok time but sub 19 nonetheless. Crystal won the women's (18:11 PR, 3rd overall), then we watched Tim finish (21:04 PR), then went to catch Megan finish (27:05 PR) and caught Pat finishing (he ran the 10K - 50:12 PR). Tim and I ended up using our times in the team competition, and won that which was pretty cool. All in all, a very fun day with a lot of success for our team!!! 5K mile splits were: 5:55, 6:10 (relaxed a little too much), 6:03.

Sunday, October 2nd - 8 miles (4 miles a.m., 4 miles p.m.). Exhausted from just a long 2 weeks, so slept in and missed Crystal for the Big River group run in St. Charles. Gorgeous afternoon, got in 4 easy in the a.m. (started late because football was about to start!), and felt like complete garbage. Out and back towards Troy, slow and poopy. Evening, got out on the same route and felt 150% better. Had some stomach issues, so pushed it slightly coming in, but felt very relaxed and smooth. Crazy how much different earlier vs. later felt. A.M. run time was 36:58, P.M. 30:18. 42 miles this week - not too bad for race week.

Lots of congratulations to go around - congrats to Ben for winning the inaugural Mo Cowbell 1/2 Marathon (1:08:42 I believe), congrats to PR's for Brian and Margaret Lyons at the Twin Cities Marathon (2:19:22 - B, 2:49:58 - M). And finally, congrats to Stephen for a 14th place finish in the USA 10 Mile Championships (48:04)! Great races for all!!!

Big Racing Weekend!

New York Marathon field starting to shape up, some good runners doing ESPN's Body Issue, Makau aims for Olympic title, Chicago Marathon's elite field, Geb wants an earlier start to the Olympic marathon, higher temps suck, Sally Kipyego, Kenyan Olympic team needs to pick 1 more male (very controversial - many deserving runners that will be left out), Geb is motivated for more, German Fernandez on the comeback circuit, and the USA 10 Mile Championships this weekend.

Wednesday, September 28 - 9 miles (1 up, 7 mile tempo (45:50), 1 down). Important run for me, as I missed last week's tempo and needed to get in a good long tempo to see where I was at. Big River Wild Wednesday workout with Crystal and Tim on Grant's Trail. Nice weather, but the air was noticeably heavy. Kind of felt like poop, but made it out there and hoped to get in 6-8 miles at 1/2 marathon pace. Quick warmup with the group, then got under way. Felt great the first couple miles and ran with Crystal, but hit a few traffic lights which disrupted my rhythm. Fell off a little bit, and made the turn around feeling ok. Hit both stop lights again, which were killer, and was working hard to hit pace coming in. Last mile, felt a little better, but had some stomach pains which sucked. Made it in, thought about killing myself for 1 more mile, but called it a day. 1 mile cooldown with Crystal and Tim, and called it a day. Tempo splits were: 6:25, 6:26, 6:32, 6:41 (eek! Turn around, lost a few seconds from being lazy), 6:38 (stoplight), 6:35, 6:27. Feel ok about this workout, but was beating myself up a little bit for falling off pace (final avg was 6:32 min/mile). Big kudos to Crystal for hitting her 10 miler right at 6:25 min/mile avg pace, and Tim for hitting his 3x2 mile at 7:45-8 min/mile average pace.

Thursday, September 29 - 5 miles (44:53). Out and back on Old Faithful on a brisk fall evening. Ran with Pat and Crystal. Legs were heavy and left knee was bothering me a little. Negative split this every mile, albeit we started with a first mile of 9:12. Went 2 out and 2 back, but looped around the neighborhood for an extra mile. Original plan was 6 total, but both of us have some collective fatigue so cut back slightly.

Friday, September 30 - 4 miles (36:28). Early morning run with Crystal. Kept it at recovery pace to have fresh legs for tomorrow's 5K. Amazing how dark it is at 6 a.m., and this morning was cold and windy. Legs felt exactly the same as yesterday, which isn't the best sign, but glad to have the run out of the way. Skipped drills to conserve some energy.

Had a dream last night that Crystal and I finished 1-2 in tomorrow's 5K (Race for Lymphoma 5K). Would be awesome if that came true. Big weekend of races with my teammates Brian and Margaret Lyons running the Twin Cities Marathon for an Olympic Trials berth. Both have been killing their workouts, and have a great chance to do so. The USA 10 Mile Championships is also this weekend - Stephen Pifer is competing, so hoping he can finish high there. Good luck to all!

More Boston Commentary

Kenya's Olympic selection issues, Patrick Makau's rise to fame, Paula having surgery, chat with Nick Symmonds, almost a world record in Berlin, Moses Tanui predicts sub 2 hour marathon sometime in the future, high school rankings in Illinois, and the Boston Marathon registration breakdown.

I was upset about the Boston Marathon breakdown, but upon further thought I am 70% ok with them taking the best of the best within each age group range. My biggest beef with this is skimming from the 3:10 qualifiers - they should be rewarded! Toughest qualifying time to hit, and you are penalizing runners who ran 3:08:47 and giving runners who ran a good 5 minutes (and a lot more) and opportunity to get in. Just makes no sense to me. I understand that the age groups are given prorated times to give themselves better chances, but 3:10 equal for a 34 year old does not equal 3:15 for a 35 year old (ok I am being a little dramatic, but trying to make a point). So they should allow all the 3:10 runners to run the most prestigious road race in the world - reward the BEST runners, not just the best of the age groups.

Monday, September 26 - 5 miles + drills. Did SIUE Mud Mountain XC course run with Stephen and Brad on pretty dead legs. Their idea of easy run is not the same as mine, and the XC course is pretty hilly so was very challenging towards the end. Ran a loop of the course, then came back in and hit a couple more miles on it. Met up with Crystal at the track for drills afterwards - legs were pretty dead. Total mileage: 5 miles or so (36:02).

Tuesday, September 27 - 6 miles. Met up with Tim impromptu in Forest Park for a run around the perimeter of the park. Tired, so wanted to keep it slow. Absolutely gorgeous night out, and lots of people out and about. Kind of sucked that it is starting to get dark by 7, but I'll take what I can. Ran for an hour or so? Afterwards, went to some dumpy bar and grill (don't remember the name) to watch baseball, and made friends with the owner who gave us free shark appetizers!

Tempo run today. Pray for mojo

Makau - New World Record!

Stud - beat arguably the greatest runner ever in his world record efforts. Here is a cool look at his efforts versus the former world record - not taking anything away from Makau, but he did slow down a bit coming in, but still a world record nonetheless. Paula finishes 3rd in her comeback race, qualifying for the Olympics. Controversy with the women's world record, and Lagat and Simpson triumph in the Fifth Avenue Mile.

Friday, September 23 - 6 miles, too fast. Needed to get in a quick run before dinner, so headed out and did my Troy out and back loop. Felt pretty good, went waaaaaaay too fast and was more of a workout then it should have been. Went to Pi for my birthday dinner, then spent a fun night downtown which ended up in a very late night at Lumiere Casino. Last 4 mile splits were: 7:07, 7:07, 6:55, 6:08 (eek!).

Saturday, September 24 - 8 miles, too fast. Crapped out on trying to get in my tempo, so settled for 8 miles. Slept most of the day away, and got out pretty late. Same loop as yesterday, with a Village Circle mile and a mile added at the end. Pretty much was rolling out there, and never slowed down. Last mile, forced myself to slow down because I was going waaaay too fast. 7 mile split was 51:09, if that gives any indication.

Sunday, September 25 - 16 miles. Forest Park run with Crystal, Mike, and Coach Tim. Started from the Visitor's Center, went about 2.5 miles out on Lindell, then jumped on and toured the Rock n Roll STL 1/2 course. Legs felt pretty crappy starting out, and didn't get much better. Started picking up pace a little bit, then rolled through most of the back portion of the course which was rolling hills. Coach Tim broke off to head back, and we finished out the course then started it back up. Ran through the hood and many "fun" hills that should make the first 5 miles of the race pretty tough. Felt like complete garbage 11 miles into the run, and questioned if I could even make it in, but pushed through and got my second wind. Great morning to get out, had Rooster for breakfast with Megan and Crystal afterwards, then football at my place for the rest of the day. Berlin Marathon viewing party was a bust, as Universal Sports showed maybe 15 minutes of coverage and it was basically showing highlights. Still, a fun day. Total mileage: 16 miles - total time out was: 2:06:57 (7:56 average pace), Crystal mapped our workout out on Garmin Connect for those who are interested in the loop.

52 miles this week - very good, despite missing a key tempo workout. But plan on making it up this week, and have a 5K race at the end of the week in STL that will be a good speed tuneup.

Happy Birthday to me!

Blazing Philly 1/2, more about Philly, Rudisha loses in the 800?!?!, more success with Rupp/Salazar team, 44:34 in the 10 miler, chat with Galen Rupp,

Marathon rankings, year by year (awesome!!!), Paula, Paula, Mo, Mo, Mo in the marathon?, Jenny, Jenny, Jenny, 5th Avenue Mile this weekend, more about the 5th, and the Berlin Marathon this weekend as well.

Friday, September 16 - 6 miles. Did Troy route and back. Tired legs, intended on being pretty slow. Looked down at my watch and realized I was hitting 7:40 pace for a while, and needed to slow it down. Coming back home, spotted a bright neon yellow jersey and noticed that I was gaining. Saw 2 bikers in annoying orange jerseys and decided I was going to catch them. Hit a sub 7 minute split, then decided to maintain going in the last mile. I ran a 6:24 last mile - failed brilliantly in my endeavors, but a great easy run/impromptu workout nonetheless. 43 something - splits were: 7:40, 7:45, 7:20, 6:52, 6:24.

Saturday, September 17 - 4 miles. Went to go watch Pat and Crystal run the Run for the Hills 5k - PR's for both and the win for Crystal - congrats!!! Went home and ran a quick 4 before heading back out to St. Louis for Schlafly's Hop in the City beer festival. Awesome times, had a few too many adult beverages.

Sunday, September 18 - 0! Rain, rain, more rain, then just crapped out. Ugh

29 miles this week, terrible

Monday, September 19 - 6 miles + drills. Big River group run with Crystal and Tim. Drills at Dubough. Felt pretty tired, but got through. Timmy kicked hard at the end, so worked a bit to finish the workout.

Tuesday, September 20 - 6 miles. Caught up with Tim after work, and headed to Forest Park and did a loop around the park for an easy 6. Gorgeous evening, was fun to see so many people out. Very easy pace, we averaged 9-10 minute/mile pace.

Wednesday, September 21 - 46:51 on the Watershed Nature Trail. Got home late, my buddy Stephen Pifer was in town and texted me to see if I wanted to run, so met up with him impromptu and got in some miles with him and his friend Brad. Have been worn down from work, and the "easy" 45 minutes at high 6/low to mid 7 minute pace seemed a little more difficult lol Fun times regardless, and good to catch up. Got in somewhere between 6-7 miles I am guessing.

Thursday, September 22 - 4 miles. Happy Birthday to me! Easy run after work. First day of fall, overcast and cool. Loved every step of it (nice and slow, no watch). Out and back towards Troy, pretty standard. Afterwards, ran down to Global Tap with Pat, Crystal, Stephen, and Megan for a couple birthday drinks. Fun times!

Have delayed and put off this 8 mile tempo run, and hoping it gets done at some point this weekend. Feeling worn down from a rough work week, and ready for a relaxing weekend!

Rupp!

Galen Rupp is a stud, Great North Run this weekend, marathon training recipes, Chi Marathon field starting to bulk up, Paula, Berlin Marathon showdown, Mr. Kara Goucher chases Olympic qualifying, Deena Kastor running this weekend, Bolt aims for a fast time to end his year, and a Runners World chat with Tyler McCandless.

Wednesday, September 14 - 0! Major I.T. Band issues plus torrential downpour all day equals much needed rest day. Could barely walk, this happens from time to time where my I.T. bands flare up so stretch, stretch, and stretch.

Thursday, September 15 - 7 miles (2 up, 3 x 1 mile, 3 x 400, 1 down). Fall is right around the corner, and loving this cool weather! Worked late, then headed to South City to do my track workout at Bishop DuBourgh High School with Timmy. Dreading this workout, but the weather was awesome and had good company. Felt ok on the first mile, blah on the second, then was hanging on for dear life on the last rep. Legs were destroyed and was chafing like no one's business, so changed the scheduled 1000's to 400's. Felt progressively better as the reps went on - last one, went out quick, then turned on the jets on the last 150 meters for a fast split. Always fun to do that. Tim ran every other quarter with me (thanks Tim!), and did the 400 meter repeats as well. Slow cooldown back to his place. Good workout, I will take it. Mile splits were: 5:52, 5:49, 5:41. 400 meter repeats were: 1:28, 1:25, 1:14.

Easy mileage the rest of this weekend. Had thought about racing, but opting for basic mileage and resting my legs for an aggressive October!