last run for november

Well tomorrow is December, my sister's birthday. This week flew by, and the month did too. It will be Christmas before I know it. Went to the mall shopping with the students today. It wasn't all fun since we were basically just trying to keep everything under control and prevent anything crazy from going down. I guess it was a good break from the routine of class.

An easy run today. I just decided to go for 40 minutes toward the end since a mileage goal wasn't really what I was going for. I've put in over 40 miles this week. That's an increase of about 6-10 miles over the highest out of previous weeks. It's not always a good idea to increase mileage quickly. It stresses the system. But I have put in easy days and plan on taking a very easy day Saturday as well as a medium distance run Sunday. Next week I'll move up to 14 miles, which by ipod calculations will about tie the longest distance I've run ever. I'm looking forward to it. 7 more weeks of base and I think my endurance will be off the charts. Runs are getting easier because my body is becoming more efficient. My strides also are improving and tonight's easy run was a 7:28 pace! Add some strength to that and I'm not sure what I'll be capable of.

I've been eating healthier. I already ate normal or small portions, but now I'm having April help buy things that are fresh or just loaded with good proteins and stuff. It is helping. i have more energy and am less hungry than I used to be. I can remember days last year when I just felt like my stomach was empty all day. (of course I did have to each LUNCH at 9:30 in the morning!) A lot of stress was built up from my job and that whole deal which probably compounded matters. Things seem to be going great. I even thought about continuing to be a TA again next year. I like the job and it's nice to be a part of team instead of having all the lessons and everything to do on your own. But that is a while away.

4(5.35)miles. 50 degrees. silver

more blisters, better running

Another good run today. Went home about 5 minutes early which wasn't necessarily a good thing since all the school traffic. Normally waiting extra allows for you to actually pull out of your parking spot instead of waiting for someone to let you in the line. At least traffic was only half bad and I was able to get back to the complex by 4:30. Now my blisters have certainly not subsided. In fact many more of various sizes on many different toes have popped up. Fortunately they haven't hurt bad enough to keep me from running at at a good pace. I'm seriously considering some kind of toe-socks or some serious bandage work for this problem. Longsleeve and shorts felt fine in the weather.

At first today the legs weren't working all that well. I seemed out of whack and out of breath. Yesterday and the day before I had a pain in my shoulder. It's the sort of like heart burn pain, but in the shoulder, kinda weird. I didn't have that today, but I did feel short of breath the first mile. I know it is from not warming up properly, but I don't have time to warm up(it's already pitch black at the end of my run), so the first mile is my warm up and things like that are to be expected. The run felt slower today, especially before I hit 4-5 miles. I kept awesome track of laps today though, so I knew for sure how far I was going. That's probably why it seemed slower.

At 9.5 I had reached 8 laps and felt fine so I ran a few extra stretches. That is the story lately. I feel absolutely zero breathing, running lately has about the equivalent out of breath feeling as a walk to the fridge. I run faster, and still hardly feel like I'm breathing hard at all. Hills have become easier too, but are still a comfortable challenge. The legs on the other hand still aren't close to feeling "fine". They are way better than normal, but feel tight more often than not. Muscles are still being formed in there, and until I get to my hill phase (mid-Jan) I'll just have to keep slowly increasing the miles. My main goal is to build an awesome base during the winter months. Sounds easy enough, but consider this: Christmas Holidays/New Years/Vacation, and I start getting nervous.

I feel like I'll be okay. I already let it happen this summer, some of which was out of my control, but I could have done more. I regret it, and I think I learned my lesson there. Okay here's tonights run. Check out the gradual increase in pace over the run tonight, as opposed to the decrease Tuesday. I even ran a little farther too.

9(10)miles. 50 degrees. silver

the norm

Not a whole lot to blog today. Had a decent day at work. It doesn't seem like it is already Wednesday. Got home at a decent time and out the door pretty fast too. My ankles haven't been hurting lately at the beginning of my runs like they were so that is nice. There was a little bit of residual tiredness in the legs today. Some of that may have been from a lot of pushing one of the students up and down the hilly sidewalks (about 200-250 lbs) which isn't exactly easy. Either way the run went pretty good. Got to race some new buddies. I gave them a nice long head start. I've been careful about these and make sure now that I am plenty warmed up, not going above 5k race pace, and basically just use it as an acceleration.

The leaves were crunchy today, which was a little different since it has been wet the last few days. It also was pretty warm and I was very comfortable in shorts and a t-shirt. Legs turned over well, but not as good as yesterday or the day before. I kept a pretty fast pace today it seemed, but I also have the weekend to recover so it shouldn't add up. At 2 miles I still hadn't slowed down naturally, so I made a conscious effort to take it easy from there.

4(5.25)miles.54 degrees. light grey

that old feeling

I am so thrilled right now. Tonight reminded me of the glory days where I could just take off and run wherever as fast as whoever without thinking twice. Yes it was an awesome run tonight. I started off by getting home after 4 and getting all my stuff together. After all that I was out the door at 4:30 and on my way to the complex. It was kind of a weird day weather wise. The sun was out and made it warm, but the breeze was cold and chilly, making it confusing. Basically I "felt" like it was warm so i went with shorts and cutoff. Being as smart as I have gotten, I also packed a t-shirt. Wise decision. As soon as I stepped out the car and saw the shadows already getting long and that cold air, I switched shirts.

The run started off good. I was trying to simulate yesterday's start because that felt so great (taking a short break just before 1 mile, then starting again) I didn't stop this time, but I definitely started off at an easy pace. The air was cold, but I felt pretty good. It is funny that I didn't work on form too much tonight, even though I'm supposed to. I always do that, run form on easy days not planned, and forget too when I write them in. I compensated by doing them after the run when I remembered :) Anyway, the legs felt good again. No pain anywhere and they were just churning out a cadence I could hardly believe. I was running tall and feeling fine. Mile 1, kept going, 2, 3, 4, 5, when am I going to get tired? Up the large incline at each mile, no tiredness still! I keep the pace going, 6, 7. At this point I start wondering when my ipod will say I've reached my goal. I look down and it is just at 8 (meaning I've ran around 7 laps or 7.7 miles. I figure I'll do one more lap. Up the giant incline again, STILL not breathing or feeling like I'm working hard.

About the only thing I felt was at mile 7 or so my right leg started to ache a little bit. My arms were also cold, but I felt fine. As I made it around lap 8, I still wasn't breathing hard and my legs had plenty left. I could have ran at least another 4 miles, and who knows maybe more after that. It was just one of those feelings of superior energy. I also had a pacer, a younger guy who ran around 6 miles. I gained on him each lap around, and that helped me keep stride, but it still felt like a low effort run. Its funny thinking about the course. I'd say it has a good 200-250 feet of elevation over the whole course. That adds up over 8 laps (1600-2000) which is quite a bit for a normal run.

The blisters on the messed up toe are now bigger, and now I have another one under the first one....yeah. It hasn't bothered me though, I don't mind it anymore. It's kind of like an friend that has annoying habits, they grow on you. (no pun intended)

I still can't believe how great that run felt. I hope for a lot more of those. My compliments to Galloway.

9(9.8)miles. 52-45 degrees. silver

Squishy

Today started off lazily and pretty much the whole day was spent trying to get back into the mix of things. Everything just seemed to go by so slowly. The dragged on and on. Things happened, but time seemed to be going at half-pace. Finally the day wound down. Sun starting to break through the dark clouds. Hope for a nice run was showing it's face. I got home and took my time about things, while other forces of nature were working unbeknownst to me. As I stepped out the door it was cloudy. I had on less gear this time going with a longsleeve and no undershirt. By half a mile I was sweating and realized it may actually be 55 degrees (didn't feel like it with the rain today). I also had forgot to use the restroom when I got home and that compounded matters. I headed back to the house and made it at .8 miles.

After changing my shirt and getting ready, which was only a matter of a few minutes I was out the door. As I walked onto the porch a strange tingling sensation ran across my shoulders and cheeks. A soft mist of rain was falling. I figured if it stayed this way that I'd be fine. Sure enough I'm back on the road again. I'm feeling great. The legs haven't turned over like this in who knows how long. I think to myself that the run yesterday must be paying off. I keep going along effortlessly, but keeping in mind this is a rest day. At 2 miles sprinkles are getting a little more prevalent. I'm already moist, so I figure a little more ain't gonna make a difference. Mile 3 the clouds got bigger, darkness loomed, and I am there smack in the middle of Mordor running into a headwind that is spewing tiny pellets of rain at me. I truck right into it. I fear nothing. My worthy ipod doesn't make a sound and holds on for the ride into the abyss. I am getting blasted in the face by rain and my shoes are splashing water everywhere. I think about the front porch for a split second, but then I wipe my eyes and just like a soldier trained to ignore pain, put my chest out and run tall like nothing in the world could stop me.

And then, in the blink of an eye, the rain lets up, the winds die down, and light begins to return. I'm almost home, but only at 4 miles. I continue, I haven't come this far just to give up now. Just an out and back left now. The rain doesn't really come back again (at least not like the shadow of death stretch) but it isn't completely stopped either.Still feeling great and I start to feel a great sense of accomplishment. I can only remember a few times in my life that I've run in the rain. I'm even prouder that this one happened to be on an easy day. In your face laziness!

do you see what I see?

no, not the cat hairs.

I thought a lot while I was running about what people were thinking. Is that guy in the rain? What kind of person? He is going to get struck by lighting! Who knows, all I know is it was a lot of fun and felt great.

4(5.05)miles. 55 degrees off and on rain. light grey

Fakeout

I got up early for a Sunday. I went to sleep at a normal time, so I figured 7-8, but it was closer to 9 when I finally rolled out. It was okay though because I still had plenty of time to get ready. I am starting to think about planning for the race. That means going through all the motions I would normally go through on race day. Not only will that help prepare me mentally, but physically my body will be used to the routine by the time the race is here. I'm working into it slowly though.

So I got up later than I wanted, no breakfast today. I had to get out pretty quickly as the weather channel and weather people said 9-11 no rain. I figured two hours would be plenty of time for my planned long run as well as a little cool down. It was in the lower 40's this morning. I wore my normal gear (shorts, longsleeve with undershirt, headband) which felt quite comfortable, but ditched gloves. I also opted for a single of pair of socks. I got some better ones with more cushion and better fabric. I had tried doubling it, but my feet felt cramped and I didn't want to develop further blisters from having my shoes too tight. Grabbed a banana, waterbottle, and out the door.

It was cloudy today, but not very windy. I started the run slowly feeling my way as I went. No pains were noticeable enough to mention. I counted laps today. I normally loose track, but I stayed on task and made sure. That is quite hard to do over many miles on a course that repeats itself at 1.1 miles. There were plenty of people to pass. They all seemed to hear what the weather said too. The miles went by quick enough. I just tried to be relaxed and that helped. I've done a better job of going slower lately. At 3 miles my headband was sweaty, so I took it off and held it, switching hands every so often. Round and round, and round and round, still more laps to go. Counting and trying to run "smoothly". The winds starting to pick up at 8, so I put my headband back on. It felt a lot colder for some reason. Finally lap 11 came around. A final lap would put me well over 12 miles (11.11, plus a few hundred meters to the start) So I decided to go around it again.

The major difference in today's run was the incline. Normally because I am running faster that thing slows me way down. Today I kept the same pace on the hills as regular, but my legs felt fine running up them. There is usual a gradual tiredness that builds from running up that thing so many times, but it was a non-factor today. So I finished the run at a nice n' easy pace. The only major thing was my bandaid came off my toe around 7 miles, and for the next 1-1.5 that blister wasn't feeling good at all. Also at the end of my run my knees were a tiny bit achy. But really what else can you expect from running 12 miles? I ate my banana and drank my water and walked a good 1.5-2 miles cooldown. I had to stop by the car to get my gloves. I think a cold-wind was sweeping through and my hands felt like they were freezing off. It could have just been from starting walk, but it just felt colder. Oh yeah, the weather guys were off, it hasn't rained and it's almost 3 in the afternoon. Silly meteorologists. It does look like rain, I'll give them that much.

Right on track. I am doing some math on differences between my training last year and this year. I will try and include that somewhere when I work it out.

12(13.5)miles. 42 degrees. silver

relaxed run

Man those two days off felt like 2 years. I was so happy to be out today after the recovery time. I started off skeptical and kept waiting for the pain to arrive, but nothing in the ankles AT ALL. That is great. The legs were still a little tight from not running, and from the quad workout last night. The only real thing I noticed during the run was the blister that formed by my messed up toenail. It really isn't as messed up as it used to be. The crater that is now in the front used to be in the back, with no toenail at all except a little sliver. Over the past months it has pushed itself forward and the pic shows that it is nearly grown out to the "edge" where it is supposed to be. Maybe a few more months and that thing will look normal again.

The run went by without any problems. Even the blister only hurt every so often, I can deal with that. I also had another blister on one of my left toes, but it healed up pretty good already. I kept a steady pace and tried to bounce along. I have a long run tomorrow. It is going to be tricky because now the weatherguys are saying it will rain all day (yesterday they said lower chance). But I also watched another channel that said no rain till later. It looks like the best shot is a morning run around 9 a.m. The chances of rain seem to be lowest then, so I should be able to get a good hour and a half in before the chances increase. I kind of have to get it in because Monday looks like rain. As usual, we will see.

An odd thing I noticed today was there was absolutely no wind. Normally it is whipping around. Even on the HH there was none. It was like running through a space station. Everything was completely still and quiet. I could hear cars way off in the distance. There also was a blue tint to the sky and made everything seem dull. Combine all those things together and by that aspect it was an eerie run.

Read up on a pretty awesome blog. He is a runner named Duncan. I would also dare to say he is a writer as well. He did a 100 mile race over a matter of days in India. His writing is just as awesome as his running. You should check it out if you have a few hours to spare. I tried reading it again and it was "locked" or something. You may have to click on >Pandeyland Diaries to read them all.

4(5.1)miles relaxed. 47 degrees. silver

Itching

It has been a few days and I am itching for a run. Thanksgiving came and went, as did black Friday. It's sad how fast days off fly by. I stretched last night and my right ankle still felt a little tender when I tried a calf-stretch and the area by the arch of my foot has off and on pain. I think everything else is pretty much taking care of itself though, knees have felt great. Saturday I am planning on going for a slow jog in the afternoon. If the ankle(s) are the least bit achy I will take it off. If they show no signs of needing more recovery, which I am betting on and hoping for, then I'll try a short easy run. No worries though, I was reading my running bible and found a nice little blurb about different recoveries- "if soreness in the feet persist for a week take 2-3 days rest. "

Not much else to mention. Rain doesn't seem to be getting here till late Sunday so a long run may still be possible.
Thursday- abs, stretching
Friday- quads, tris

100

I have reached a good point in bloggership, 100 posts. Yes my friends I have finally stayed consistent and actually kept a good amount of information on the internet for a decent amount of time. Today was another easy run. The blisters are still hanging out. Double-socked it again, and kept the pace minimal, which helped a great deal.

Another dog incident today. I think it may have been a stray, but it nearly got hit by a car that was passing me. I'm kind of glad that happened or I probably wouldn't have seen it. When I saw it I stopped running and walked. He came up to me kind of cautious, but I put my hand out because he seemed friendly enough. After I patted him on the head he walked on and starting sniffing stuff. I walked about 20 yards before I started running again. I worked in a few accelerations which only brought me up to my regular pace, but they were fine. Breathing wise I started off shaky as well as the ankle tenderness, but after running up the HH everything started flowing. This is the third day in a row in the neighborhood and man it's getting boring. Other than the dogs and the leaves falling there isn't much that I haven't seen. I could see the storm brewing behind the mountains. It was pretty cool to see the dark blue behind all the red and orange trees covering the mountains.

Right at the end of my run it started to sprinkle. I am glad I got a few miles in today. I am planning on taking three days off, four seemed too much. With tomorrow being thanksgiving and friday being 4 a.m. shopping I'm sure not running those days will be easy enough. It all looks good except for sunday. A high (80%) chance of rain that day and I am supposed to have my long run. I really want to get that in. If the blisters are good and ankles not sore Saturday then I will move it up a day, but if not I guess I'll have to just see what happens.

Well I wanted to do something special so I'm adding some pics of me running the race from October. Not exactly phenomenal, but better than nothing. Enjoy and Happy Thanksgiving.

4(5)miles. 4pm 70 degrees slight wind. silver

Easy 4

I read an interesting thing yesterday on Mike's blog. It was from the mystery coach and it was about pacing based on Lydiard's running techniques. It seems there is a pretty simple way to judge whether or not you have run too fast. If you feel like you could run the same run again, you've done an easy run at about 25% effort. If you feel like you could run it again tommorow, then you've done a medium/half effort. And if you feel like you could use an easy day then repeat the run, then you've run about 75% effort. "Never take away from tomorrows workout" was the key quote.

I felt today like I could run the same run again right after. It is a good feeling and Galloway speaks of this feeling quite often in his book. The blisters didn't act up today. I double-socked it and that seemed to help a great deal. I may have to start doing that more often. I always double-socked during basketball, but there is a lot of shifting that goes on that doesn't really happen when running. It's mostly the bottom of the toes where they are gripping the shoe for traction, or between the toes where they have been smooshed together long enough to rub a blister. I have the former and slightly some of the latter :)

Easy run was the key today. I wrote in zero's for this week. I want to take at least 2 days off, but if I can do an easy run, an ACTUAL easy run like today, then I think I may get just a few miles in if it isn't raining. Sorry for the run-on sentence. In the meantime I can be doing strength and toning. I am considering buying a treadmill. Aprils work has gotten real busy lately, and her co-worker is pregnant and out a lot now (only 1 month in too) So I got sent a job today. Pretty cool to be working from home!

alright folks. I would go on and on, but the hunger bug is biting and I need to get these sweaty shoes off.
4(4.5)miles easy. 5pm 65 degrees. silver

Blistered Again

It seems my toes are having a revolution. My left middle toe now has a ginormous blister on it, engulfing much of the inside and front of toe. The blisters hurt today during the run. I had planned a shorter week this week, but now realize it may be shorter than I thought. It is supposed to rain and it will be Thanksgiving, so that is at least a few days off. Blisters are a pain the butt though. They take forever to heal and hurt enough to hinder running longer distances. The plan for now is to take it easy in hopes that by Sunday everything will be good to go. I don't want to miss a long run.

Other than the blisters I also am dealing with pain around the heels. At first I thought it was the achilles, which is bad. But after prodding around the area last night during stretching I found a soft spot. It appears to be a bruise just above the heel and below the inside of the ankle bone. Rest. I cannot get enough of it at this point. I know I need it, but at the same time I always try to justify an easy run. Then once I do, the easy run turns into a medium run, and the purpose has been defeated. I need to be more diligent when it comes to these things.

4(4.5)miles. 5:30pm 60 degrees. silver

The Joy's of Running

Before the run

After the run

Gritty Details...I traced the contour to show you just how jacked up this toenail is. If you look hard enough you can even see the 2 new blisters that formed (sorry about the quality i know you wanted HD.) Awesome!


unedited pic

yeserday's results and a long run

My time yesterday ended up being
......6th in 20-29 age group.....56th overall........20:47.7......6:42/mile

I am very happy with that. The winner ran a 15:28. I still have a lot of work to do, but considering I am still in the bottom of my pyramid, I have a lot of miles to put in before I start getting crazy and going for time.

I debated with myself on whether or not to do a long run today. In some parts of Galloway's book it says not to do a race the same weekend as your long run. In other parts it shows 5k races the same weekend as the long run, but never more than a 5k. I would love to alternate the race with it, but sometimes you have to work with what you've got. Normally I would put in 12, but had decided last week to cut it to 8 because of the race. Still I was hesitant, but it was a beautiful day out and much warmer than it has been.

This morning the hamstrings were tight. They seemed to continue tightening until a rather familiar feeling came around. Soreness. It has been a while since my legs have been sore. The late may 10k I did last year blew up my calves, and earlier in september when I started to run again the legs were somewhat sore the first few days. But this was a definite hint that the hams were at their peak and running should be light today. So I started off with a slow 8 mile goal.

Lap after lap around the complex, the miles kept building. The ankle is still little tender. I was thinking during the run that a few days off would be the best for it - and my hams. I keep going. Each time I make it around to the incline I have to work the tight muscles again, and I slow down each time. My breathing was good, not great, but good. I made it around to 7 miles. I still felt like I had more air in me, so went another lap around. It felt good to keep going, I'm glad I did. Today I also worked on form. I know the long run isn't the time for that, but I figured it couldn't hurt. That made the run feel better too.

So I finished it up and my toe is sore. The toenail that still hasn't healed from way back before the summer is back growing funny again. It is bruised under the toenail reddish purple, and there are small blisters around it. Luckily this didn't bother me today, and I can't tell it's there when walking.

My hams are still tight now, but it is a good feeling. I didn't go too fast, but kept my conditioning up, so that was the main thing. Later this week it is supposed to rain. If it does I'll have a few days off. If it doesn't I'll put in easy days. Right now I'm hoping it does, then I can have some good rest for these muscles and my ankle.

8(9.5) miles. 64 degrees. silver

Pretty Cool

I just found a story about a high school cross country runner that is pretty amazing. Check it out

article

Turkey Trot

30 degrees to start the day. Waking up wasn't a problem. I actually got to sleep in a few minutes compared to normal. I already had most everything laid out. Everything went as planned. I forgot about keys though. To lock my car I'd need to carry them with me. That wasn't a problem though because my shorts had a key pocket built in. I borrowed April's iskin. I was debating whether or not to take it, but I'm glad I did. We got there and the parking lot was totally full. That slightly irritated me, but walmart was actually closer so we found a spot where someone had just pulled out. I changed into my running gear and started jogging. April went to walmart to use the bathroom. The start line was a short walk from where we parked, awesome.

It was cold out, and actually felt warmer as I got out in it and took a few jogs around the parking lot. I was feeling great. After a short prayer and the national anthem it was time to start the race. It was kind of like a "set, go" kind of start where they just sort of throw it on you real quick. I was toward the front, but behind plenty of people. That was fine. I know how these races start, everyone just takes off and the weak get burned off in a mile. So off we go. I'm turning over pretty fast and by 200 meters it sinks in that this isn't the pace I'm used to. But I press on. Should I stride out or quicken my feet? Still wasn't sure about the ankle. No problems so far, but should I push it?

I didn't. I stayed behind people and let them fall behind. I only ran on my own until I found a new person. I worked my way up, but could see quite a few people still ahead. Mile 1 - jibberish:45. That's either 5:45 or 6:45. I asked the guy next to me, he said some jibberish too since he was too tired to talk. I took off anyway and increased the pace slightly, testing the ankle out. I see a few new people and keep churning out the pace, still within my level.

At 2 miles I hear a clear 13:30. Dang, I'm 30 seconds behind. So I push it, but not too much faster. We go around the bend and I can see the finish line way in the distance. A guy is running with me and we're doing fine, I go ahead of him. A short time later he passes me. I stay on him. A half a mile or less now and the Finish Banner is growing. I pick it up. Everyone around me is too. 3 miles, pick it up a little more. Remember the ankle, hold back a little. Look at the clock, finished. I walk for a few seconds, then jog. I'm feeling fine. I could run another one if I had too.

20:45 or so finish. Didn't reach my goal but the best thing of all was my ankle held up with no pain. That is so much better than reaching a time goal. I forgot to click my ipod when I finished, but as you can tell, it's pretty obvious where the finish line was. Also, check out the consistency (each mile was faster than the previous)


3 miles. 32 degrees. grey

Strategy, Goals, Prediction

I just realized I didn't post anything about tomorrow's race. It's really an entirely separate issue in itself. I have been training consistently exactly one month before the 17th, tomorrow. So after a month it will be interesting to see what happens. I'm worried about pacing, clothing, whether I will try hard or not, if my ankle will hurt, if I'll even finish? Frankly I have no idea what I should do. It is really too early in training to be worried about a race I guess. Still, my competitive side takes no breaks. I want to go as good as I can, but in order to do that I have to be smart.

My real goal is the Marathon. The Turkey Trot is just a step on the way to the peak. Just one step. Right now I'm thinking of going out conservatively and trying to stick with a few of the guys in the front. If I can hang on until 2 miles I will be fine. I have always had a "kick". Really to me that is just an ability to ignore the excruciating pain that comes from burning muscles, lack of breath, and your own brain telling you "did you seriously think I'd let you get away with this?". Yes I have that ability. But I haven't been able to utilize it for a while.

Time prediction. Well I want a 6:25 first mile. Easy enough - It's roughly what my first mile of the 10k the past summer was. Second mile I want to hang on to that and lower it slightly 6:20-6:15. Last mile should be at or around 6. That would put me well under 20 minutes. Who knows what I'll be thinking though. I'll just be searching for air and try to keep my legs moving most likely. It's kind of a kick not to know. If my ankles does act up, I'm taking it easy. I won't be "racing" anyone if it does and that probably means a crappy time. I think I'm prepared to do that now. I really want to keep running and an injury now would be about the worst thing for my motivation.

well I think that is a pretty good rundown. Oh I almost forgot the really important stuff. Running clothes, bib, sleep, light breakfast, and Getting There On Time!

...and hydrating!

Pug Alert!

I can't believe it's already Friday. This week seems to have flown by. I guess it's because next week is thanksgiving, and a half week at school. Today was an easy run. I didn't want to go to fast. I also had to go pick up our packets for the race tomorrow so I needed to get out as soon as I got home. I managed to get everything together and get out the door. I stayed what I thought was rather slow. The ipod sensor didn't seem to think so though. I think it may have been rattling around in my shoe because I was running like 6:35 pace and I wasn't even trying. I swear I was going slow, so who knows what's going on with that. I guess I'll find out at the race.

So things were going normal, I had just hit mile 2 and was running around the neighborhood as usual. I always hear dogs barking, but rarely see any outside that aren't on chains or being walked. So I was running into a cul de sac and at the end I see two dogs sitting in the lawn. They didn't bark or anything. As I rounded the end I run back past them and see out of the corner of my eye two moving objects coming at me. I was like, are you serious. It was two fat pugs with short little stubby legs. They took off after me. I ran through the options in my head. Basketball instincts kicked in and split second decisions were being made. I could run faster and just outrun the ugly-faced pooches, I could slow down and see if they left, or I could stop completely. Haha! I chose #1. Yeah, I've never seen tiny little dog legs move so fast in my life. It looked like the cartoons where the road runners legs are just one complete circle. Only this time there were four circles. It looked like dogs on wheels, I kid you not.

I realized quickly option #1 was a bad idea. The fatties caught up with me (I didn't go full speed). I almost tripped over one because he ran up on my leg and I jumped over him. I was kind of scared he might bite me too. Not that he could have done a lot of damage, but who wants to be bit by a dog? Not me. I realized I'd have to stop so I stood there and pointed my finger and yelled "get out of here you crazy dogs!". They got scared and turned back when they realized I meant business. So that was an exciting adrenaline rush speedburst that was completely unnecessary. The thing that sucked the most was my ankle was flared up again today and the incident certainly didn't help matters. The pain is right around the bottom of the achilles. It stayed the whole run, but again it was a nagging pain that only hurt after every push off.

I ended the run earlier than I wanted to. I figured I wasted enough energy in that 10 seconds of dogchase than I would on a normal easy run.

3 (3.75) miles. 49 degrees chased by dogs. light grey

let it snow

As you may have guessed from the title, it snowed a little today. Not a big snow, but a few flurries. Either way it's a drastic change from yesterday's 50 degrees. I'll admit I was a little skeptical as I headed out the door wearing the same gear as yesterday morning- Shorts, turtleneck, gloves, and headband. At first it was chilly, but after a mile up the double-H, I saw a friend. My little buddy was out playing with his friends and saw me. He started to run with me. After a few yards I said I'll Race you to the end of this road. He said okay and him and his buddies tried to stay with me. I gave them a few yards and then accelerated to about 85-90 percent top speed. The other boy was like Whoa he's fast. They said Can we start over. I just yelled back, Tommorow!

While that was fun, it wasn't the best idea. I accelerated fine, but just kind of took off. My ankle now is throbbing, but not necessarily hurting. Toward the end of the run my ankle felt better. It is just a nagging pain around the bottom of the ankle. I'll keep stretching it the next couple days. I just hope it doesn't nag me during the race. I'd really like to open up Saturday and see if I'm capable of my old speed again.

It was nice running in the cold. I felt like a real runner and after the little race I felt great. It was good to have something like that during my daily get it done run. The workouts tuesday night seem to have paid off. I think next time I'll work even more reps in because I haven't been sore at all. I also have remembered to stretch a lot more than I have been. April went running last night in the dark. She said she ran the whole time. Way to go! I think she ran her fastest so far. I am proud of her, but wish we could run together. Now that the stupid daylight savings time kicked in she barely gets a mile in before it's pitch black. What is the point of saving daylight if the sun sets at 4pm? I don't know either. I'd rather it be dark at work in the morning, than when I got home at night.

4(5.0) miles. 37 degrees with flurries. light grey

Split Runs

An abrupt beeping sound this morning wasn't the most motivating experience one can have just after awaking from a deep sleep. My eyes wanted to stay shut and I fought with myself on whether or not to wake. I don't need to run, it's probably raining. I could take a day off. I'm too tired tired to run this early. After struggling for 5 minutes I decided I was already awake and there was no use sleeping another 30 minutes.

Step 2. I felt groggy and tried to get all my gear together. I luckily had laid it all out last night and that wasn't too hard. Unfortunately I overcompensated for the 42 degrees the weatherman predicted last night. I had a turtleneck, gloves, shorts, and undershirt and my headband. If it had been an easy run that would have been fine. But for some odd reason waking up revived some old habit deep within to get up and go.

First mile was pretty fast. Again my ankles were saying ouch, but as usual that went away by a half mile. I trucked up the double-H huge hill and managed around a 7:30 first mile. Pretty fast considering how large that hill is and the fact I had not a care in the world how fast I was going. Second mile was faster. Parents were taking their kids to the bus stop and I was carefully running around and past them. Last mile I was breathing fairly hard, but my legs were cooperating and I could feel I had a lot left. I held it back a notch but kept the pace I had found. I checked the time. If I run the last mile fast I can get back just before my alarm clock would normally go off (after the snooze). So I kept the pace and got a feel for how the race might be Saturday. I ended well, but was very sweaty from the extra clothes, headband, and the pace I kept. It was a nice run. It felt good to go faster after about a month of slow running.

So I get home from work. Read "scattered t-storms" and was out the door again :)

This time I got a two miler in and figured I'd try the faster pace, but again stepped in down a notch. Ankles hurt at start, but I was back into a rhythm in no time. Finished those 2 and then decided to jog an extra mile. The "jog" turned out to be a test pace run averaging around 6:45. So all in all today was a great day with some nice "speedwork". I don't think I'll be doing this anymore though. The real reason I was going fast was due to the time in the morning, but later I had no reason other than to test pace. I can see how the longer and slower runs are helping me build up. If I stay on track I'll be fine come the end of March.

6:30am 3 miles. 48 degrees and wet. light grey
4:30pm 2 and 1.2 miles. 56 degrees and warm. light grey

DNR- Rain

It rained this morning, stopped for a while, then started up right before school let out. I checked out the gym, but the basketball teams were having a preseason game or something. So I just worked out at home tonight. No running, just squats and other things. It actually was a nice change and felt good to work specific muscles rather than getting the miles in.

Not much else to write today. It is supposed to rain again all afternoon with heavy thunderstorms. Tomorrow morning I will try to get a run in. It is supposed to rain up till 5am, then let off for a few hours. Whenever I get up I will check outside and get a short run in if it has. I hope it does because I hate getting up earlier than I have to.

Rainy. quad, calf, and ab workouts.

Hey Coach

Well everyone you are now reading a track coaches blog. Yes I got the head coach position at my high school. I am excited and nervous about it already. I wasn't real sure from the interview, but I got the vibe that they liked me. It appears that despite my youthful persona people are willing to take a chance on my coaching skills. I have always loved coaching though. Ever since taking elementary students at basketball camp and going undefeated I have loved coaching. (The head coach even broke up the team because "nobody goes undefeated at camp".) You were wrong sir.

So that is awesome. I am looking forward to it, but it will be a lot of work. I'll have to sacrifice a lot of time, but in the end I think it will help me understand myself just as good as the kids I will work with. The other head coach is also a cross-country expert so to speak. She ran in college and coaches the cross country team as well. It will be great to work alongside her. In the past the track team has won many state championships, I hope to continue that winning tradition.

So how was the run today? Easy. It was a rest day from yesterday. I wanted to stop early, but kept pushing through. Even at a slow pace my legs get tired. It may be due to not being as efficient, but I attribute it to the lack of exercise I've gotten in the past 8 years. I was thinking about this yesterday during my long run. Even while I was doing caricatures in St. Louis I was running. Not a lot like now, but everyday I would try and go for a few miles around the neighborhood. In Columbus at college I went a few times, but dogs and other things were just too undpredictable in the city. That's when I realized that I am a runner. I just forgot it for a while.

So how do I rebuild the strength my legs have had. Well that will come later in my training after my base phase. But for now I am adding calf raises and wall sits to my tri/chest/abs weekly reps. I will do them after my harder runs on tuesday's and thursdays. The reason I chose those days is because I have rest days afterwards and that will give the muscle cells time to rebuild. In addition to that I need protein meals. I should have those meals specifically after tuesday and thursday workouts. That will give the cells the nourishment they need to rebuild stronger.

Tommorow it is supposed to rain. If it is before I leave school, I may have to find a way into the gym for a shorter Tuesday run. I wanted 7 miles at average pace, but I doubt that will be much fun in a gym. I just have to remember to pack my gear. I guess I'll take care of that when I'm done here.

A final thought today. I was trying to figure out a pace for the saturday run. It seems like 6:30 is the time to go for. I think I can hold it. I don't have a watch, but I need one to keep track of splits. This is a good reason to get it. I definitely want to run under 20. That is a good enough goal for now. I just haven't done enough training yet to really push farther when I'm breathing hard. We'll see what happens I guess.

oh yeah! coach wireman
4(5.1) miles. 60 degrees but felt colder. silver

extra mile

Today started off as a relaxed day. I had a bowl of cereal for breakfast (raisin bran is the only thing i eat anymore) and then just kind of did stuff around the house. We fixed Mercedes paw. She was declawed last week and started bleeding so we made her a kitty-cast. She was flinging her arm all yesterday as well as trying her best to gnaw it off. We took it off today and it looked better so we let her be freed.

Vegetable soup and bread slices for lunch. I almost forgot about lunch because I was reading some blogs and shredding old papers. The computer room is starting to look organized, but not as good as the closet yet. After lunch I took a nap on the couch. I wasn't really tired, but I think I just didn't want to organize anything. Got up and it was already close to 3. Gathered up the gear and headed to the complex. It was cooler than I thought it would be today. I decided to go with shorts and a tank, but i brought a tshirt just in case.

The run started off as usual with aching in my heels. After 2 miles it went away as usual too. Today I tried to relax. I just thought of stuff while I ran and didn't focus on anything in particular. I see people walking. Couples, kids, people walking their dogs. A few times I had to dart this way or that to get around them, but for the most part I just sort of slide by. The pavement isn't all that wide, but it is if people don't walk right down the center (which for some insane reason a number of people do)

The word today is "aching". This is the feeling I get in my legs. It isn't a pain or a real hurt, just a general aching of the bones or muscles or something inside there. Toward the end of the run I noticed it was the joints at my hips. I'm pretty sure it will go away as my body readjusts itself to the miles I'm putting in. As long as I don't overdo anything.

I forgot to check my mile schedule and wasn't sure if it was 10 or 11. I decided for 12.5 (ipod) just to be safe. I kept track of my miles today as I ran by my "start line". I ran 9 laps and still had more time left so i just kept going. As I ran i counted what the miles would be 1.1 at 9 laps would be 9.9 plus the run to start off would be 10. I felt great at that point other than my legs. I wasn't breathing hard at all and felt like I had a lot of energy left. One more lap and I finished strong as usual. I ran a little past the start just to end the run at 12.5. So my ipod might not be as far off as I thought. Oh well I like running over. It feels like a safety net for mileage.

It got a lot colder as I ran. My cutoff wasn't doing much for the arms. I also didn't stop for a drink. I didn't really need to. After the run I had my water and tshirt, so it was an immediate cooldown. I like finishing strong and then just walking and feeling like I could do it all again.

11 (12.5) miles. 56-50 degrees. silver

why are you walking?

Not much going on today. Took a nap till this afternoon then went for a 2 mile walk later. April went for her run but had bad stomach pain so she stopped early. She felt better afterwards though. I'm not real sure what happened. She said she didn't go to fast. I told her it was fine and that sometimes my stomach didn't feel good during a run either.

Cleaning house today. I've already got stuff out of the attic and installed a towel hook for the bathroom door. Still working on getting things order.

Turkey Trot is Saturday. I can't believe it's almost here. There is a chance of rain a few times this week, so I'll be looking out for that. I hope Saturday is beautiful. The temperature has come close to 60 this week, but next week it is supposed to be in the 65's. That will be nice, but it also will be cloudy. I hate when it is overcast. It just makes everything seem like it is going slower and I really have to work hard to motivate myself.

Oh, a funny thing happened. While I am on my runs I see lots of kids. One in particular is a little boy. He is really sweet and always says Hi and wants to see my ipod. I say a few words as I pass by. When I saw him today he said "Why are you walkin?", I told him "I've got the day off!" He just smiled. I thought it was a good question too.

2 mile walk.

finally friday

The end of the week. It was quite a treat today at school. The student I was working with just happened to have a siezure, and this just happened to be the first one of any of our students this year. Lucky me. It was not a fun experience. At one point he was entirely blue and had been seizuring for a minute and a half. I thought he was going to die at one point. Luckily Kim was right there and helped me get him on his side and away from the cement wall and desks. He came out of it after what seemed like an eternity and then slept for a few minutes. Working with these students has it's challenges, but at the end of day I know I'm in the right place. It's crazy how life seems to work itself out.

So tonights run was an easy 4 miles around the cookie-cutter houses here. My right leg is acting up and I'm not sure If I'm favoring it or what, but there is some slight pain in there. I tried to Not focus on correcting it, but it was difficult. I kept a steady pace the entire time and the run felt pretty good. At the end a woman's voice told me I had run my fastest mile, but I'm pretty sure that voice was insane. I checked the stats and I was running my normal 7:40 pace the whole time. Perhaps my ipod is on drugs. At this point it is possible. I went to check my run last night and the thing was off, and wouldn't come back on. After a few choice words and raising my voice at an inanimate object I searched online and found how to reset it. It worked and all was right again.

The weather is warming up. Today I ran in shorts and a t-shirt. It cooled down a little when toward the end of the run though. I think it was mostly due to the wind, which was coming from the south. This weekend and the start of next week look beautiful. It is supposed to be 70 on Monday.

Tomorrow is a day off. I'm looking forward to it for once. I can feel my legs asking for a break, and so it shall be. I still plan on walking though. In Galloways book he says an easy day doesn't necessarily mean no running, it means running at an easy pace. That is up for interpretation, and judging from the pains in my legs recently, it means a zero stress day. No chance of overdoing it that way. I'm trying to play it safe for now. Look at it this way; A runner who can't run is far worse than a runner who is slow.

4 (5.08) miles. warmer 55 degrees. silver

steady

I never found out about the coaching position. It was just one of those days- if you will. Things were crazy and busy and well actually that's halfway normal in our class. I did manage to get out of the school traffic rather quickly. I'd say at least 12 minutes for a half-mile stretch. Yeah, I could have ran close to 2 miles by that time.

But at least I got out to the course fairly early. Today it was kind of cold, but it is gradually getting warmer with a high of about 55. So the wind has died down, and the cold factor isn't what it was earlier in the week. Shorts, longsleeve, and and undershirt were perfect today. I was sweating and warm even though lots of people I passed were wearing full winter gear. Of course the runners were dressed similar to me. There are a few guys who I see rarely. One is older looking maybe 40's and skinny. But the guy is dead fast- at least for the two miles I saw him run by today he gained on me. There is also a girl and I think her boyfriend. They seem to be around or above my fitness level as far as pace goes. It takes a while for me to close on the girl, and the guy hasn't been caught yet.

I started off as usual with slight nagging along the bottom outside of my right foot/ankle area. Then as the run progressed that faded away and I hit my stride. I felt really good today so I pushed the pace slightly. Not enough to really breathe hard, but enough to feel like I was working it. The whole run was that way. I worked in some accelerations and that helped a great deal. It really gave me that kind of boost I needed to keep a nice stride going. I tried counting my laps, but of course got sidetracked. It was either 6 or 7 for sure. So add .1 for each mile and either way I was at or above 7.

The legs still feel like they are taking a beating though. I have noticed around my knee and a little of the quad seem to "feel" like they are wearing. I have 2 days off so I didn't mind pushing it a little more than usual. The whole thing is not too push too much at first. I'm really trying to hold back whenever possible and that is difficult for me since I'm pyschologically ready to run till my legs burn off. Anywho it was a good run, felt good up the hills and actually struggled on the downhills since I was going a little faster than usual.

7(8.75) miles. 50-47 degrees. silver

nice n easy

Today was a shorter run, a day to take it easy. And in that I was a success. I stayed well below a fast pace and put in my 4 miles. I made a little spreadsheet last night and used the tracking from my first run. I sorta forgot that I didn't really check it after I calibrated, so I need to check it again. It was at .38 at .25 mile, so I used those at first. Then I remembered that was before, so I deducted it down to .32 since that sounded about right. Here are some of the stats I came up with from that estimation.

actual miles ipod miles
1 1.26
4 5.04
8 10.08
12 15.12
22 27.22

As you can clearly see, the farther the larger the discrepancy becomes. At 4 an extra mile is needed, but at 22 five extra are needed. That is a big difference if you were just using the ipod as a guide for the distance. Leaving you 4 (actual) miles behind your goal. I will be using my formula until more tests can be made.

Today was an okay day at work. Kinda not liking the schedule, but I'll deal with it and move on to more important things. It is still cold out, but felt warmer than yesterday mostly due to less wind. My runs have started off lately with slight pain in my right ankle. It feels more like a pulling than pain. Once it gets warmed up around 1.5-2 miles it's good to go, so nothing to worry about. Ran around the neighborhood tonight. Seems to be easy to do long runs at the complex, and my shorter ones here. I like rotating the scenery each day. It makes it more interesting. Finished on a good note with powerful strides the last mile. Not anything too fast, just enough to make up for the puppy that ran right between my legs and I half tripped over. I had to stop so the little guy wouldn't chase me, while a little kid grabbed him.

4 (5) miles. Chilly, but bearable 48 degrees. silver

Lil' Cold

No the topic today isn't a new rapper. It's getting cold outside. Tonight a low of 28 degrees is expected. I hope my car starts in the morning. Good news. I have an interview for the track coaching position at my school! I am excited and nervous. I haven't coached before, but I know that I would be great at it. It's just something I've always wanted to do since high school.

Today was an inservice at work. It was mostly just us getting the schedule down. I'm all about schedules, but at some point you have to just say "look, let me know what needs to be done and let me handle it" I hate having perfect little chunks of time to fit this or that in. What if something changes? then the schedule goes to crap. Let everyone know what needs to be done, then let them figure out how to do it. Why should I work with the same student everday when I could easily switch with someone else's student? It is just boring to do the exact same thing all the time.

Sorry about the rant there, back to business.Tonights run started off at 48 degrees and worked it's way down to 45. That combined with the wind made it one of the coldest runs so far. I put in 6 miles. I'm actually not sure about the ipod anymore. I still have to do some more tests at the track. I have been adjusting my runs I think I'm going to start listing both what I think it is and the ipod time for now on. It was a solid run. Averaging 8 min or less miles and really felt quite good. My legs felt a little tight, but I'm not sure if that was from the cold, tired muscles, or my ipod banging against my right leg while I ran.

The same guy that I chased the other night was out again. He's definitely got his pace down. I again just kept seeing him get farther and farther each time around the track. I contained myself tonight and didn't try to catch him. I did, however, power up the hills instead of taking them easy. I think that alone will make some good progress. It's kind of like a mini-hill workout and should get my quads into shape nicely while not burning them out.
Tomorrow looks like 4 miles and Thursday I'll try to get in 8. The sun was set by the end of my run today, and that's with getting to the track just after school. I'll have to book it if I want to get in 8 miles before it gets really dark on thursday.

6 miles (7.65) 45 degrees and cold. silver

LOL

I'm sorry but when I saw this I had to laugh. I really couldn't help it. Scroll down to the last finisher, read the name, and I challenge you not to laugh.

http://ky.milesplit.us/meets/29910/results/58994

and another http://www.ktvb.com/sharedcontent/breakingnews/slideshow/102006_kgwdeerrunner/1.html

Okay enough playtime, gotta rest.

feeling better

Yesterday's long run really put a pounding on my legs. They were shot. I wanted to write about it yesterday but I was barely able to even get down what I did. So today I wanted a shorter and easier run to compensate and give my muscles and bones a good rest. Today there was an ever so slight soreness in the legs, which just screams take it easy. And that is what I did. A rather long 4 miles taking my sweet old time. Around 2 or 3 I reached a groove where I felt like I was floating, but it unfortunately didn't last more than a half mile or so. I hope I can get that back.

Today was a nice day at work. One of the students has been gone and that makes it easier than normal. Still I worked with one girl for over an hour straight and was pretty overwhelmed by that. It wasn't hard, but it's really tedious stuff like asking the same question 50 times....or more. But really it was a great day and tomorrow is an inservice day. Mike said it might rain, but I haven't seen anything on the weather channel. ....... ha, well i just got back from dinner and it is raining right now. But the forecast for tommorow is clear. I guess i just looked passed today.

Ne way I think I'll put in about 7 for tommorow. I had scheduled 8, but since the runs have been hard on my legs I'm cutting a few miles off my longer daily runs for the next two weeks. The long runs will stay the same though. I read up a little in Galloway's book and found a few things I have changed recently I should have already been doing. (like alternating long runs and schedule planning) That thing is like my running bible. I'd like to get some more books in the future. That would be a nice christmas gift. While we were out April got me a headband so I can run in the winter time. It's pretty nice. They had some "elite" running socks, much like the ones I posted a long time ago, but they were quarter length and I don't like that. Hopefully I'll be able to find some more because they are really nice and I only have the one pair.

am Hb @ 60
4 miles. 58 degrees a little windy. silver

Long Run

Well I'm going to make this short because I am dead tired. The run today was pretty excruciating. Mostly just stomach cramps which caused some major discomfort on the hills.Two reasons for that. 1. I started off way too fast and paid for it. There was another runner who I thought I could catch, but he was just too fast for me. I got close, but he flew up the hills and I felt like I was crawling. I like that I'm getting hills in, but even as low as 2 miles my legs were already tired. I slowed down a lot after that and regrouped. Reason 2. I chose a terrible lunch that wasn't good or filling. Even with that I ended the run on a good note. By ipod standards it was 10.25 miles, but I believe that is only 9.

I am so tired. The timechange worked opposite of what I thought it would and so now it's darker even earlier than before. That just seems silly to me. I stayed up last night watching the olympic trials and shouldn't have. I thought the NYC marathon would be on this morning, but they didn't have the coverage until 3. I went out for my run after I watched it.

got to get to sleep early tonight. I can't stop yawning.
9 miles. Cool and clear 60 degrees. silver

NYC Marathon

Well I am half watching saturday night live and surfing the interweb at the same time. I was reading a few articles and came across my nemesis Ryan Hall. haha, right. Seriously though I have read about this guy since I ran track in high school. He was going for like a sub 4 minute mile then. Now he is a half-marathon record holder and today qualified for the olympics in the marathon with a time of 2:09 on a tough course breaking the record for an american olympic trial!!. Yeah he's that good.

I found this article that goes into detail about it and thought I'd share. Tommorow is the NYC marathon and I want to watch it on tv. So time for some sleep.

http://www.iaaf.org/OLY08/news/Kind=2/newsId=42251.html

Consistency

While I run I always think of things. It's funny that not much thought goes into the run while I'm actually running. I just sort of look at things and think about what I want to do. Today I was thinking about this past summer and how I didn't run. I am not mad about it, but I can't imagine how much farther I would be with my running. I updated my training log yesterday and I guess I was mulling over it while running today. If I can stay consistent by the time the next half comes around I should be able to cut 10 minutes off my time. Considering last years lack of good base or any speed training at all I am desperately looking forward to it. I'm really only worried about rain getting me off course. If it does I'm pretty much stuck since there isn't even a treadmill I can use anymore. I will have to really work hard on those days to do enough to suffice for missing a longer run.

My base seems like it is coming along fine. I'm afraid I increase the speed my legs won't be able to handle it and I'll end up taking unwanted and unnecessary rest days. Yesterday was a 3 miler that should have happened. At the same time my legs needed rest and yesterday provided that. Today's run was very smooth. I had my lighter shoes on and I could really tell a difference. It is just easier to get the feet of the ground.

Since yesterday fell through I penciled in 4 for today. Well as usual 4 was too little, so I ran some extra to make up for not only yesterday and then a little more for the sensors innacuracy. The path there is supposed to be 1.1 miles, but I think it's more like 1.25. There's really no way to be sure but it would make the laps easier to count. Like for instance today I did 4 laps. If they are 1.25 then it would be an even 5 mile run.

Blisters and knee pain have not been a factor. I am so happy about that. I was reading through my old posts and i had a blister every other day it seemed. I know it is due to taking it easier on my runs, as well as having got my shoes pretty worn. I have noticed a lack of supplementary exercise though. I had a place for tri's/abs/chest in my calendar and have seen little effort in those areas. I think I'm going to have to make it a point to do those things in addition to my run.

The clocks turn back tonight. Yay another hour I'll be able to run at night, it's about time. Tommorow is my long run of .....drum roll....6 miles! I set up the schedule to alternate a "short" long run every other week. Galloway suggest this and I think alternating a long mile week with a short one makes perfect sense. But I'm realizing now that I may have to increase my long runs sooner than I thought due to my conditioning level being surprisingly high. I did make up the schedule in a way that would make it non-stressful, but with the way I've been running I may have made it a little too easy. So I'll ponder that in the coming week and adjust next sundays from 8 to 9 or 10 if it seems like I'm ready for it.

5 miles. sunset 60 degrees with a little wind. grey shoes

day off

I took a nap when I got home afterschool. I was just worn out. It was probably due to not getting to sleep on time yesterday. April and I went out to eat and had pizza. I'm not sure what I'll run tommorow, but whatever it is I'll take it easier than yesterday's run. Sunday is my long run so I want pretty fresh legs. Todays day off will help.

last minute

Today was much better than yesterday. I can't believe it's already Thursday. This week has flown by. Work was good, but a few odd things happened. One girl fell down backwards and hit her head, and another just had a bad and was crying. It was sad because she is probably the happiest person I've ever seen. She always has a smile.

I got home and forgot April had a meeting. She is trying to get a booth for a wedding convention. She makes invitations and two of the people that run the convention met with her about it. So I got out later than usual. It was 6:20 or so by the time I got to the complex. There was a pretty strong wind from the north, and it was colder than usual as well. I worked up a sweat under my longsleeve shirt and that made it feel even colder. The wind made one stretch pretty tough since it was on an incline, but the rest of the run was easy. It was almost sunset when I started and I noticed brown and pale green leaves scattered across the pavement as I made my way up the largest incline. A soccer game was going on at one of the fields, and by mile 3 it was over and the clouds were getting bluer. By mile 5 it was pitch dark and I could see the stars and silhouettes of trees behind the main building.

I still haven't had any trouble with breathing. It's literally no recovery time at the end of my runs, even with going faster the last mile. Unfortunately I can't say the same about the legs. They are tight and I could feel the muscles working pretty hard. I think I can credit that to not stretching like I should be each night. It just seems like after the run times flies and I'm barely able to get to sleep by 11. So that should help. Also I have two easy days coming up of 3 miles that should give my muscles some needed rest.

I also compensated for the ipod by running and extra half mile. I will still consider it only 6, but I decided that my runs for November will compensate by running extra each time.

6 miles. Sunset, windy 56 degrees. silver