The big one was finally here. The 20 mile long run that I had been worried about for a while. With some of my workouts not feeling so good lately this workout concerned me. If I couldn't hack the longest of the long runs it didn't bode well for the marathon in my mind. I'm dealing with some doubts obviously.
The long run I wanted to do would have taken me through some familiar long run territory around my town with similar terrain to the flying pig course. Unfortunately due to scheduling it just wasn't meant to happen. I had to do the long run on a park running path; a 1.25 mile path. That means lots of laps, and monotony right? Well, as it turns out it turned out to be a blessing in disguise. The short laps allowed me to bring a water bottle with me and just leave it along the path instead of carrying water or dropping water off along the route before the run.
The long run route included a lead in path of 1 1/16 mile followed by 15 laps of 1.25 miles followed by a run out the same lead in path of about .6 miles for a total 20.5 miles that took 2 hours 44 minutes for an 8 min/mile pace.
Avg HR: 148
Peak HR: 174
Min HR: 79
Total Cal:2409
I didn't set out to run at any particular pace. I just ran at a pace that felt comfortable, and it did feel comfortable. I felt like I could have easily finished the last 6 miles or so of the marathon at that pace, which is a very encouraging sign. At that pace my heart rate hovered in the mid 140's until I got to around mile 15. From that point my heart rate started to do a steady creep upwards, but nothing out of control. I finished around the mid 160's which is typical for a race pace.
The path itself is flat to rolling hills. There are no major climbs, but it is a consistent group of small rolling hills. It was perfect for a long run of this type. The weather was cool in the high 40's and overcast.
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
4/08/2007 Short Recovery Run + 2 VAPs
I'm playing some catch up here with the last week's worth of entries. I'll probably keep them short and to the point. On the other hand I do have the advantage of hindsight to work with here. Coming off the heels of a very successful half marathon today I can see the advantage of doing this workout where I could not before.
I have consistently run my races in a haphazzard manor up until this point. I would come out fast and hard pushing it the entire way. In the end I would struggle to finish strong. Even if I had a good time it would frequently leave me feeling defeated or frustrated. Today I had my eureka moment. Today I turned it around finally. I forced myself to come out slow and throughout the race I would surge forward a bit for 400 meters or so testing how my legs felt and then back off. Those short surges left me with lots of gas at the end of the race to put in the best kick I've had ever. I'll talk more about that later, but the point is I think part of this turn around was due to this type of workout.
It was a typical short recovery run of 3.3 miles on Filager and Meghan's Run. The difference is that it included two 4 minute, 1/2 mile vap's. From easy pace I would pick it up to a pace that was just above my comfort zone for the 4 minutes and then back it down. Excellent workout.
I have consistently run my races in a haphazzard manor up until this point. I would come out fast and hard pushing it the entire way. In the end I would struggle to finish strong. Even if I had a good time it would frequently leave me feeling defeated or frustrated. Today I had my eureka moment. Today I turned it around finally. I forced myself to come out slow and throughout the race I would surge forward a bit for 400 meters or so testing how my legs felt and then back off. Those short surges left me with lots of gas at the end of the race to put in the best kick I've had ever. I'll talk more about that later, but the point is I think part of this turn around was due to this type of workout.
It was a typical short recovery run of 3.3 miles on Filager and Meghan's Run. The difference is that it included two 4 minute, 1/2 mile vap's. From easy pace I would pick it up to a pace that was just above my comfort zone for the 4 minutes and then back it down. Excellent workout.
Friday, April 06, 2007
4/06/2007 Y800 to the Power of 8
Early morning on the treadmill to get in my Yasso workout. I did 8 Yasso 800's at a 3:30 pace with 1/4 mile jogs in between. I wanted to do the full 3:30 but time was short so I went with the quarters. I felt really good during this workout which was a nice sign as the marathon is getting close. Only one month until the big day!
4/05/2007 Strength & Short Recovery Run
Strength Training
5 minute Dynamic Warm-Up:
(All done Across Basketball Court and back)
This was a very quick 2 mile short recovery run on the tread mill in 16:30. Nothing very exciting here. move along
5 minute Dynamic Warm-Up:
(All done Across Basketball Court and back)
- Lunge Twists
- Side Lunges
- Walking Knee Grabs
- Toe Touches
- Butt Kicks
- Medicine Ball Toe Touches - 8 lb ball 2 sets x 15
- Medicine Ball Twists - 8 lb ball 2 sets x 15
- Supermans - 2 sets x 15
- Walking Lunges - Width of Court with 15 lbs
- Ball Leg Curls - 2 sets x 15
- Dumbbell Step-Ups - 15 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Seated Chest Press 45 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Seated Row 45 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Lat Pull Downs 35 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Dumbbell Bicep Curls (seated) - 15 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Bench Dips - 2 x 15
- 4 way Shoulder - 4 lbs 1 x 20
- Fly
- Front Shoulder Raise
- Lat. Shoulder Raise
- External Rotation
This was a very quick 2 mile short recovery run on the tread mill in 16:30. Nothing very exciting here. move along
Wednesday, April 04, 2007
Past, Present and Future Duathlon Preparation Part 1
As I'm quickly approaching the beginning of duathlon season I've been thinking about a new training program to transition out of marathon training and into duathlon training and racing. I'd like to build on my current running fitness, and experience from last year to have a great year of racing this year. As I was floundering a bit to get a hold on what I would like to do for a new plan I got a message from a friend on SparkPeople. She is considering her first duathlon, and wanting some advice on her first race. This works out great for me. I think it would be helpful for me to take a look back, review what I did last year and decide what the next stage is going to be. So, thank you Barb for helping me move to the next stage and I hope this will be helpful for you.
Now, that is out of the way let's get down to business. Barb, I think you have some very reasonable goals for your first race, and I think you will surprise yourself and exceed those goals. You definitely have a good fitness base from all the cycling, so working in some running shouldn't be a big problem as long as you don't have any problems that might cause you pain from running.
This is the "program" (I use the term program very loosely here) that I used last year adjusted by what I've learned over the course of the year. It worked very well for my first year of racing even though I wasn't always able to stick to my workouts like I would have preferred. It sounds like you have a good handle on how much running you want to do by what you wrote to me, so I'll just give you the focus of the runs. You'll find you improve a lot faster with some well defined focus for each run. Time is always an issue, so the key is to stay flexible, and if you can pull off some "two a days" like you mentioned in your message to me it will be helpful.
Keep up with the cycling and add 3 to 4 runs per week if you can fit them in.
The 1st run is a tempo run to get you used to running the speeds you want to achieve. If you want to alternate walk and run that is great. It sounds like you are already close to running the whole thing which is good. My suggestion would be to run 1K then walk approx. 400m and run another 1K until you reach your distance goal of 5K or longer. Phase out the walks a little at a time each week.
The 2nd run is intervals to increase your speed. For a 5k distance 400 meter intervals will work well. Start with 4x 400 meter intervals with an equal time of a walk or slow jog in between. So, if you run a 2 minute 400, slow down for 2 minutes breaks. Add 1 additional each week up to the week before your race.
The 3rd run is brick day. You said you've been doing a few bricks already, so keep it up. It doesn't have to be a long run after the ride. It's just to get your legs used to that feeling of getting off the bike and going straight to a run. I approached these days with a race distance bike ride followed by a 2 mile run straight off the bike. This is important to get used to, because if you don't you'll get a nasty surprise on race day in the form of leg cramps.
The 4th run is long run. If you can only fit in three runs alternate this with your tempo run. Run 8K to 10K at a slow pace. Keep your pace 1 to 2 minutes slower per kilometer than your race pace. You should be able to carry on a conversation during these runs as a point of reference. The long run will help build endurance.
Hopefully this will give you a good starting point on which to build a plan leading up to your race. To address your question: "How much harder is it to do 2 5km runs with the bike in between?" I'm not sure how to answer this question. Thinking back to the very first duathlon that I did I would say that it was very hard, but I think I wasn't very well prepared. I doubt that I did any brick workouts before hand. The hardest part is the first kilometer of the second run. After a hard effort on the run and bike your legs will probably be very stiff. If you're feeling stiff off the bike walk it out and work into the run slowly.
Like I said before, I hope this is helpful Barb. Now that you've got me thinking about this I'll also take a look at transitions and fueling/nutrition before and during races. Transitioning back and forth between the bike and run can be a tricky business when the bikes are packed in close together and you're dealing with people coming in and out of the transition area. Nutrition is also key for many reasons, including warding off those pesky cramps.
Now, that is out of the way let's get down to business. Barb, I think you have some very reasonable goals for your first race, and I think you will surprise yourself and exceed those goals. You definitely have a good fitness base from all the cycling, so working in some running shouldn't be a big problem as long as you don't have any problems that might cause you pain from running.
This is the "program" (I use the term program very loosely here) that I used last year adjusted by what I've learned over the course of the year. It worked very well for my first year of racing even though I wasn't always able to stick to my workouts like I would have preferred. It sounds like you have a good handle on how much running you want to do by what you wrote to me, so I'll just give you the focus of the runs. You'll find you improve a lot faster with some well defined focus for each run. Time is always an issue, so the key is to stay flexible, and if you can pull off some "two a days" like you mentioned in your message to me it will be helpful.
Keep up with the cycling and add 3 to 4 runs per week if you can fit them in.
The 1st run is a tempo run to get you used to running the speeds you want to achieve. If you want to alternate walk and run that is great. It sounds like you are already close to running the whole thing which is good. My suggestion would be to run 1K then walk approx. 400m and run another 1K until you reach your distance goal of 5K or longer. Phase out the walks a little at a time each week.
The 2nd run is intervals to increase your speed. For a 5k distance 400 meter intervals will work well. Start with 4x 400 meter intervals with an equal time of a walk or slow jog in between. So, if you run a 2 minute 400, slow down for 2 minutes breaks. Add 1 additional each week up to the week before your race.
The 3rd run is brick day. You said you've been doing a few bricks already, so keep it up. It doesn't have to be a long run after the ride. It's just to get your legs used to that feeling of getting off the bike and going straight to a run. I approached these days with a race distance bike ride followed by a 2 mile run straight off the bike. This is important to get used to, because if you don't you'll get a nasty surprise on race day in the form of leg cramps.
The 4th run is long run. If you can only fit in three runs alternate this with your tempo run. Run 8K to 10K at a slow pace. Keep your pace 1 to 2 minutes slower per kilometer than your race pace. You should be able to carry on a conversation during these runs as a point of reference. The long run will help build endurance.
Hopefully this will give you a good starting point on which to build a plan leading up to your race. To address your question: "How much harder is it to do 2 5km runs with the bike in between?" I'm not sure how to answer this question. Thinking back to the very first duathlon that I did I would say that it was very hard, but I think I wasn't very well prepared. I doubt that I did any brick workouts before hand. The hardest part is the first kilometer of the second run. After a hard effort on the run and bike your legs will probably be very stiff. If you're feeling stiff off the bike walk it out and work into the run slowly.
Like I said before, I hope this is helpful Barb. Now that you've got me thinking about this I'll also take a look at transitions and fueling/nutrition before and during races. Transitioning back and forth between the bike and run can be a tricky business when the bikes are packed in close together and you're dealing with people coming in and out of the transition area. Nutrition is also key for many reasons, including warding off those pesky cramps.
Tuesday, April 03, 2007
4/03/2007 Cycling
This is my 1st attempt at speed work for '07. I don't have a training plan in place at the moment, so this was sort of a spur of the moment speed workout. I'm on the hunt now for a training plan that will get me ready for my first duathlon in May. I figure I can start more bike work now and ramp it up during the taper period of my marathon training. That way I can transition after the marathon into a regular duathlon training schedule.
For this ride I did 3 pick ups for 1 mile each trying to maintain a pace of over 20 mph. This was not necessarily the best way to approach this workout but I managed to do okay considering I was pedaling into a headwind at some points. For this type of training I'm thinking it's time to upgrade to the double wireless with cadence. Honestly, how have I gone this long without a cadence monitor?
Dist: 20.6 miles
Time: 1:17.57
Avg: 15.8 mph
Max: 34.7 mph
For this ride I did 3 pick ups for 1 mile each trying to maintain a pace of over 20 mph. This was not necessarily the best way to approach this workout but I managed to do okay considering I was pedaling into a headwind at some points. For this type of training I'm thinking it's time to upgrade to the double wireless with cadence. Honestly, how have I gone this long without a cadence monitor?
Dist: 20.6 miles
Time: 1:17.57
Avg: 15.8 mph
Max: 34.7 mph
Monday, April 02, 2007
4/02/2007 Goal Pace Run & Positive Thoughts
I wasn't feeling as good today on the road as I have in previous goal pace run sessions. I never felt like I could hold the pace I wanted all that well. It was a constant struggle throughout the run, and I'm experiencing some lower back pain. All in all it kind of sucked out there today. I finished the 10 miles in 1:23.31 for an 8:21 pace. This is by far the slowest goal pace run I've done all spring, and it is a little discouraging. I talked a little bit about feeling some burn out yesterday and it persists. I'm wondering if the mounting aches and pains in my back and knees might be contributing to this feeling. It might be time to get back to the chiropractor for some visits before race day.
I've been giving some thought to the mental aspects of racing and running lately. Especially since I've been experiencing a bit of burn out. I want to find ways to push back these negative thoughts that creep in during runs that aren't necessarily going as planned. It was good luck that on Simply Stu he interviewed Dr. Stephen Walker about just that subject. It is definitely worth a listen. The first thing I'm going to do to start getting the positive mojo flowing again is to focus on some positives. So, at the end of each workout entry I will post something positive from the workout. Even if I have to pull something small and mundane I will find something positive to write about.
I learned some good mental tricks to improve my racing by listening to Simply Stu. Stay in the moment during runs. The mind will try to wander and pull my attention away from the task at hand, but stay focused. One trick is to use a tactile method. Wear a rubber band on my wrist during the race. Whenever negative thoughts creep in or the mind loses focuses give the rubber band a snap as a way to take a moment to get refocused.
I've been giving some thought to the mental aspects of racing and running lately. Especially since I've been experiencing a bit of burn out. I want to find ways to push back these negative thoughts that creep in during runs that aren't necessarily going as planned. It was good luck that on Simply Stu he interviewed Dr. Stephen Walker about just that subject. It is definitely worth a listen. The first thing I'm going to do to start getting the positive mojo flowing again is to focus on some positives. So, at the end of each workout entry I will post something positive from the workout. Even if I have to pull something small and mundane I will find something positive to write about.
+++Something Positive+++
I learned some good mental tricks to improve my racing by listening to Simply Stu. Stay in the moment during runs. The mind will try to wander and pull my attention away from the task at hand, but stay focused. One trick is to use a tactile method. Wear a rubber band on my wrist during the race. Whenever negative thoughts creep in or the mind loses focuses give the rubber band a snap as a way to take a moment to get refocused.
Sunday, April 01, 2007
4/01/2007 Short Recovery Run
Everything got bumped back a day on the training schedule this week after Saturday. Due to a change in work schedule and family coming into town there was just no way I was going to get out to run. It's not a big deal. I'm feeling a bit of marathon training burnout right now, so a movement in the schedule is actually a bit of a welcome relief from following the schedule so rigidly like I have been up to this point. I have a little over a month left, and can't quite get psyched up about the race just yet, but I'm ready to see the end of the run training and get on with the rest of the year. I think I'm more excited about the Tri for Joe following the Flying Pig. It's just the burn out talking. I'll start to get psyched again once I move in to Taper Period.
I did get in my short recovery run on Sunday that should have been the Saturday run. I went out on my lunch break and ran around Clifton which is always a welcome change of scenery. During the 4.25 mile 35:30/ 8:21 pace run I felt pretty stiff which is not unusual after sitting at my desk for 4 hours. It was also very warm, about 75 F, which I'm still getting used to after spending the last 3 months running in much colder temps.
The good thing is after returning to the office post-run I feel great, and am ready to crush the rest of the day.
I did get in my short recovery run on Sunday that should have been the Saturday run. I went out on my lunch break and ran around Clifton which is always a welcome change of scenery. During the 4.25 mile 35:30/ 8:21 pace run I felt pretty stiff which is not unusual after sitting at my desk for 4 hours. It was also very warm, about 75 F, which I'm still getting used to after spending the last 3 months running in much colder temps.
The good thing is after returning to the office post-run I feel great, and am ready to crush the rest of the day.
Friday, March 30, 2007
3/30/2007 Strength & MRR
Strength Training
It was another speed workout day. Up at 5 am and in the gym by 5:30. You gotta love the smell of sweat, and the feeling of burning muscles to put yourself through this. The best part was walking out of the gym at shortly after 7 am feeling fresh and awake to see the rising sun of a nice warm day. That alone makes it totally worth it.
5 minute Dynamic Warm-Up:
(All done Across Basketball Court and back)
I'm a day behind on my scheduled runs, so I really wanted to get caught up this morning, and I knew full well I wasn't going to have time after work. I decided to hit the hamster wheel after my workout since it was still dark outside, and I had a very limited amount of time to get my run done. I don't know if this can even be considered a medium recovery, but it will have to due. I ran 3 miles at a little under a 9 minute pace for a total of 26:40. I would have like to run longer, but work and family take precedence most days. I'll take what I can get.
It was another speed workout day. Up at 5 am and in the gym by 5:30. You gotta love the smell of sweat, and the feeling of burning muscles to put yourself through this. The best part was walking out of the gym at shortly after 7 am feeling fresh and awake to see the rising sun of a nice warm day. That alone makes it totally worth it.
5 minute Dynamic Warm-Up:
(All done Across Basketball Court and back)
- Lunge Twists
- Side Lunges
- Walking Knee Grabs
- Toe Touches
- Butt Kicks
- Medicine Ball Toe Touches - 8 lb ball 2 sets x 15
- Medicine Ball Twists - 8 lb ball 2 sets x 15
- Supermans - 2 sets x 15
- Walking Lunges - Width of Court with 15 lbs
- Ball Leg Curls - 2 sets x 15
- Dumbbell Step-Ups - 15 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Seated Chest Press 45 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Seated Row 45 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Lat Pull Downs 35 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Dumbbell Bicep Curls (seated) - 15 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Bench Dips - 2 x 15
- 4 way Shoulder - 4 lbs 1 x 20
- Fly
- Front Shoulder Raise
- Lat. Shoulder Raise
- External Rotation
I'm a day behind on my scheduled runs, so I really wanted to get caught up this morning, and I knew full well I wasn't going to have time after work. I decided to hit the hamster wheel after my workout since it was still dark outside, and I had a very limited amount of time to get my run done. I don't know if this can even be considered a medium recovery, but it will have to due. I ran 3 miles at a little under a 9 minute pace for a total of 26:40. I would have like to run longer, but work and family take precedence most days. I'll take what I can get.
Thursday, March 29, 2007
3/29/2007 Yasso 800's & Cycling
Yasso 800's
It was another fun day of intervals. This one was kind of fun since some of the pressure has been taken off of me with the decision to just do the best I can and to hell with trying to kill myself for a Boston qualifying time. I don't think I'll be going to Boston next year anyway. Although that is not a bad idea and worth looking into doing. Once again I used the 3:30 time that I had set early on in my interval training to run the sets on the road rather than heading to the track or the gym. The 7 800 intervals of 3:30 with 3:30 jogs in between were done up and down Filager Rd. outside the house. The varying terrain and small hills provided a nice change from running in circles around the track or pounding it out on the treadmill. The entire workout ran about 5.75 miles with the 1/2 mile warm up and 1/4 mile jogs in between sets.
Cycling
It was such a beautiful day I couldn't pass up a chance to get out on my bike. I don't know if I have anything of particular interest to report on this ride. It was a perfect 66 degrees and sunny out. I did hit some headwinds on some of the flat sections of my route, which was not fun, but maybe a good little reminder that I need to get out and do some training to prepare for such things. As a reminder to myself I should definitely get my bike in for a tune up sooner rather than later. The longer I wait, the longer it will take to get it back.
Dist: 24 miles
Time: 1:28.11
Avg: 16.3 mph
Max: 38 mph
It was another fun day of intervals. This one was kind of fun since some of the pressure has been taken off of me with the decision to just do the best I can and to hell with trying to kill myself for a Boston qualifying time. I don't think I'll be going to Boston next year anyway. Although that is not a bad idea and worth looking into doing. Once again I used the 3:30 time that I had set early on in my interval training to run the sets on the road rather than heading to the track or the gym. The 7 800 intervals of 3:30 with 3:30 jogs in between were done up and down Filager Rd. outside the house. The varying terrain and small hills provided a nice change from running in circles around the track or pounding it out on the treadmill. The entire workout ran about 5.75 miles with the 1/2 mile warm up and 1/4 mile jogs in between sets.
Cycling
It was such a beautiful day I couldn't pass up a chance to get out on my bike. I don't know if I have anything of particular interest to report on this ride. It was a perfect 66 degrees and sunny out. I did hit some headwinds on some of the flat sections of my route, which was not fun, but maybe a good little reminder that I need to get out and do some training to prepare for such things. As a reminder to myself I should definitely get my bike in for a tune up sooner rather than later. The longer I wait, the longer it will take to get it back.
Dist: 24 miles
Time: 1:28.11
Avg: 16.3 mph
Max: 38 mph
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
3/27/2007 Strength & SRR
Strength Training
Two days post race, and I'm back in the gym. I must admit I wasn't so psyched to get back at it. As usual I did feel better as the workout progressed and I warmed up.
5 minute Dynamic Warm-Up:
(All done Across Basketball Court and back)
It was a nice day out on Tuesday, so I after finishing up my strength training I headed outside to do my recovery run. Right outside the gym the roads have sidewalks which is really nice. I headed out for a 3 mile run that took about 27 minutes. It took about 2 miles before the run even became comfortable. I guess that is why they call it a recovery run.
Two days post race, and I'm back in the gym. I must admit I wasn't so psyched to get back at it. As usual I did feel better as the workout progressed and I warmed up.
5 minute Dynamic Warm-Up:
(All done Across Basketball Court and back)
- Lunge Twists
- Side Lunges
- Walking Knee Grabs
- Toe Touches
- Butt Kicks
- Medicine Ball Toe Touches - 8 lb ball 2 sets x 15
- Medicine Ball Twists - 8 lb ball 2 sets x 15
- Supermans - 2 sets x 15
- Walking Lunges - Width of Court with 15 lbs
- Ball Leg Curls - 2 sets x 15
- Dumbbell Step-Ups - 15 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Seated Chest Press 45 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Seated Row 45 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Lat Pull Downs 35 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Dumbbell Bicep Curls (seated) - 15 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Bench Dips - 2 x 15
- 4 way Shoulder - 4 lbs 1 x 20
- Fly
- Front Shoulder Raise
- Lat. Shoulder Raise
- External Rotation
It was a nice day out on Tuesday, so I after finishing up my strength training I headed outside to do my recovery run. Right outside the gym the roads have sidewalks which is really nice. I headed out for a 3 mile run that took about 27 minutes. It took about 2 miles before the run even became comfortable. I guess that is why they call it a recovery run.
Monday, March 26, 2007
3/25/2007 Heart Mini-Marathon: 18 The Hard Way
I thought it was going to be great that one of my longest runs would fall on the same day as the Heart Mini-Marathon. I was thinking that I'd run 9 miles before the race, and then the 9.3 mile race. I reconsidered, thinking that I the first nine would wear me out enough that I wouldn't run the race at my best. So I decided to split it up, and run 6 before, take a little rest, and then the 9.3 mile race, and finish up with a slow 3 after the race. I don't think that I regret stuffing in another 9 miles around my race, but it was not an easy day of running, as a matter of fact it was probably the hardest day of running I've had ever.
The first 6 miles was really fun. I got out on the 5k course, which was a part of the longer 15K course. It's pretty rare that I'm able to get out to a race early enough to get out on a course when it is empty. It was nice to jog through the first part of the course, stopping every now and then to take a photo. I did the first 3 miles on a mostly empty course and a few other runners warming up. I got back to the start a few minutes before the 5K race began, so I did the 2nd 3 miles near the back of the 5K pack. It was a big boost to go along with the flow of the other runners. It's been a while since I've been in a race, so my legs forgot what it felt like to be swept along with all the other runners.
I got back to the start area in plenty of time to relax get refueled and ready for my race. I was very excited to get to the race. That might explain my rookie mistake at the beginning of the race. I had no reason to believe that I could keep a sub-7 minute pace up for. 9.3 miles, especially after running 6 miles. Despite what I should have known when that gun went off and I got up to the starting line among the sea of other runners I practically broke into a sprint. The first mile was a very quick 6:47, the second mile was a little slower. The following miles fluctuated up and down, but on an ever slowing pace. By the time I finished the mile 6 Torrence Pkwy. hill, a 1/4 mile in which I had been dreading all morning, I was feeling the miles building in my knees and hips. It was like a pressure building that was making it ever harder to keep running let alone keep up a pace. By mile 8 and the final climb of the race I was picking out points along the race route just to keep going.
The good news is that I did manage to finish the race, and meet my goal of getting of running a 7:30 pace. The bad news is that 7:30 pace started with a 6:48 pace and deteriorated to a close to 8 minute pace. That will not due for the marathon. If I do not reign myself in at the beginning of the marathon I will be not be able to finish. Hopefully this will be the lesson that I need to get my marathon strategy together. It's time to set aside pie in the sky dreams of running for a Boston qualifying time on my first marathon. I could try for that, but that would most likely lead to a lot of pain and a very long day.
With this in mind I've decided to set a goal of running an 8 minute pace for the marathon. It will be well under the 4 hour marathon time that I've been thinking about, and a pace that I feel very comfortable holding. Let us hope that it is a lesson learned.
I can't be to hard on myself. I did manage to lower my time from last year by nearly 8 minutes. That is a huge accomplishment in a year's time. I finished 33rd in my division of 201 and 259 out of 3049 overall. That is not a bad day's work.3/24/2007 Cycling
The day before Heart Mini Marathon I really couldn't bring myself to sit on my butt all day and do nothing, but I didn't want to do any running or hard cycling. So, I geared up and went for a nice easy spin downtown to get my haircut, and then an easy ride out Rt. 222.
It was just to nice of a day out not to do something. I cruised 14.84 miles at a very slow pace.
It was just to nice of a day out not to do something. I cruised 14.84 miles at a very slow pace.
Friday, March 23, 2007
3/22/2007 Yasso 800's
This is the run that almost didn't happen, but turned out to be the most fun I've had running since marathon training began. After an extra long day at work sitting in front of the computer I really didn't feel like going to the gym to do my run on the hamster wheel. Actually I was dreading that, so I decided to skip the hamster wheel and head to downtown Batavia. Batavia is the typical small town, which means it is plenty safe and deserted to run the streets at night.
I used the 3:30 times that I was running during previous Yasso sessions as a guideline. Instead of using the 800 distance I ran the 3:30 time with the 3:30 jogs in between runs. I mapped out the route I used using routeslip afterwards and found that I had about a mile loop, so I figured I was getting in at least 800's on the runs.
I did 6 800 repeats with 6 jogs that I figure were 1/4 mile long for a total of 4.5 miles in 42 minutes.
I used the 3:30 times that I was running during previous Yasso sessions as a guideline. Instead of using the 800 distance I ran the 3:30 time with the 3:30 jogs in between runs. I mapped out the route I used using routeslip afterwards and found that I had about a mile loop, so I figured I was getting in at least 800's on the runs.
I did 6 800 repeats with 6 jogs that I figure were 1/4 mile long for a total of 4.5 miles in 42 minutes.
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
3/21/2007 Strength Training
Strength Training
Today was a speed strength training day. I had exactly 45 minutes to get through the work out before getting ready to go to work. I made a deal with myself that I would do as much as I could in the time, and if I didn't get done I'd be alright with that. I made it with like 30 seconds to spare. I guess this proves Josh right. Despite what I thought this workout can be done in less than an hour. I just have to do it very quickly.
5 minute Dynamic Warm-Up:
(All done Across Basketball Court and back)
Today was a speed strength training day. I had exactly 45 minutes to get through the work out before getting ready to go to work. I made a deal with myself that I would do as much as I could in the time, and if I didn't get done I'd be alright with that. I made it with like 30 seconds to spare. I guess this proves Josh right. Despite what I thought this workout can be done in less than an hour. I just have to do it very quickly.
5 minute Dynamic Warm-Up:
(All done Across Basketball Court and back)
- Lunge Twists
- Side Lunges
- Walking Knee Grabs
- Toe Touches
- Butt Kicks
- Medicine Ball Toe Touches - 8 lb ball 2 sets x 15
- Medicine Ball Twists - 8 lb ball 2 sets x 15
- Supermans - 2 sets x 15
- Walking Lunges - Width of Court with 15 lbs
- Ball Leg Curls - 2 sets x 15
- Dumbbell Step-Ups - 15 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Seated Chest Press 45 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Seated Row 45 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Lat Pull Downs 35 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Dumbbell Bicep Curls (seated) - 15 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Bench Dips - 2 x 15
- 4 way Shoulder - 4 lbs 1 x 20
- Fly
- Front Shoulder Raise
- Lat. Shoulder Raise
- External Rotation
Monday, March 19, 2007
3/18/2007 Long Run
It's pretty rare that I'm out for a night time run, but when I am able to get out at night I always enjoy it. For my Sunday long run I ran into a situation where I didn't have time in the morning because of work, and didn't really want to put it off until Monday. So, after work I suited up and hit the roads out the door of the workplace. I've talked about running around work before and have enjoyed it every time. This time was no exception.
I hit the roads at dusk and ran for 1:17:49 into the night. The 9.75 mile run took me all over Clifton through the gaslight district. What I didn't count on was just how little light those gas lamps emit. I had to stop a few times to look at my route sheet to be sure I was going the right direction. It slowed me down a little bit to an 8 min/mile pace. That's probably a good thing considering I should have been running slower on a long run, but I didn't want to be out running all night.
I hit the roads at dusk and ran for 1:17:49 into the night. The 9.75 mile run took me all over Clifton through the gaslight district. What I didn't count on was just how little light those gas lamps emit. I had to stop a few times to look at my route sheet to be sure I was going the right direction. It slowed me down a little bit to an 8 min/mile pace. That's probably a good thing considering I should have been running slower on a long run, but I didn't want to be out running all night.
Saturday, March 17, 2007
3/16 - 3/17/2007 10.6 GPR & Short Recovery Run
3/16/2007 Goal Pace Run
It's kind of funny that I'd have the best run of the week, maybe in the last month, the day after I had a real crap run. The schedule called for a 9 mile goal pace run. It was a run that I was really not looking forward to doing. Part of the reason was that I was either going to run it on the hamster wheel in the gym, which I dread anymore, or hit the path at Lunken. I liked the path at Lunken when I first started running it, but the long stretches of flat really wear on me. It will be good to use occasionally over the spring and summer to prepare for the flat courses that I run on the duathlons, but right now I need something with a little more variation in terrain.
I found what I was looking for in a little trip to the Running Spot. Have I said lately how great that place is? They have training groups for the Flying Pig going right now, so they have a variety of running routes that leave from the store available. I grabbed the 10.6 mile routeslip and headed out the door. It was so great to get out on a new route, and the best part about it is that it is part of the Flying Pig Marathon course.
Like I said at the beginning of this rambling post. It was the best run I've had in a while. I maintained an pace of about 7:38 mile, which is excellent considering it was pretty cold, and my legs were definitely at less than 100% with some soreness and stiffness from the previous workouts. I also didn't account for the stops I had to make to cross streets and check for traffic, so had I been able to keep up a consistent run it was probably even better. The course was also quite hilly which was great to get some hill work in on the actual race course. The entire run took 1 hour 21 minutes for the 10.6 miles.
3/17/2007 Short Recovery Run
Today was the epitome of short recovery runs. I had to be at work at 7 am, so I hit the treadmill for a very slow and stiff 2.5 miles that took 25 minutes. I don't think I was awake enough until the last 1/2 mile to really feel any pain so that was good.
It's kind of funny that I'd have the best run of the week, maybe in the last month, the day after I had a real crap run. The schedule called for a 9 mile goal pace run. It was a run that I was really not looking forward to doing. Part of the reason was that I was either going to run it on the hamster wheel in the gym, which I dread anymore, or hit the path at Lunken. I liked the path at Lunken when I first started running it, but the long stretches of flat really wear on me. It will be good to use occasionally over the spring and summer to prepare for the flat courses that I run on the duathlons, but right now I need something with a little more variation in terrain.
I found what I was looking for in a little trip to the Running Spot. Have I said lately how great that place is? They have training groups for the Flying Pig going right now, so they have a variety of running routes that leave from the store available. I grabbed the 10.6 mile routeslip and headed out the door. It was so great to get out on a new route, and the best part about it is that it is part of the Flying Pig Marathon course.
Like I said at the beginning of this rambling post. It was the best run I've had in a while. I maintained an pace of about 7:38 mile, which is excellent considering it was pretty cold, and my legs were definitely at less than 100% with some soreness and stiffness from the previous workouts. I also didn't account for the stops I had to make to cross streets and check for traffic, so had I been able to keep up a consistent run it was probably even better. The course was also quite hilly which was great to get some hill work in on the actual race course. The entire run took 1 hour 21 minutes for the 10.6 miles.
3/17/2007 Short Recovery Run
Today was the epitome of short recovery runs. I had to be at work at 7 am, so I hit the treadmill for a very slow and stiff 2.5 miles that took 25 minutes. I don't think I was awake enough until the last 1/2 mile to really feel any pain so that was good.
Friday, March 16, 2007
3/15/2007 Medium Recovery Run
For the first time during my training for the Flying Pig I really started to question my motivation during my run. There were a number of different reasons that I was feeling unmotivated and just wanting to scrap the run and go home. The first was the crappy weather: it was cold, windy, cloudy and spitting rain occasionally. I am tired and sore: the accumulating miles are starting to take a toll on my legs, hips and feet. I've got a wart on the bottom of my foot that has been there for a while, and the pounding of all the running is making it hurt. I don't know whether to do something about it now or wait until after the race. Finally I had a notion that scared me a little bit. What if I don't feel like running anymore after this race. I have a lot planned this year, and it feels awfully early to be thinking about burn out.
These thoughts and feeling persisted throughout the run nagging at the back of my mind. I held in there though and finished the run. I guess this is the hard part. This is the part of training that will probably make me or break me. I know if I stick with it I will be better prepared to race later, and hopefully these feelings will pass. With a little over a month and a half until the race there is no way I'm letting up now.
The 45 minute medium recovery run was 5.5 miles at a 8:10 pace.
These thoughts and feeling persisted throughout the run nagging at the back of my mind. I held in there though and finished the run. I guess this is the hard part. This is the part of training that will probably make me or break me. I know if I stick with it I will be better prepared to race later, and hopefully these feelings will pass. With a little over a month and a half until the race there is no way I'm letting up now.
The 45 minute medium recovery run was 5.5 miles at a 8:10 pace.
Thursday, March 15, 2007
3/14/2007 Strength & Yasso 800's
Strength Training
I'm starting to get into the groove of the new workout. Doing things like alternating between the medicine ball toe touches and the medicine ball twists instead of resting and doing 2 consecutive sets of each will help bring down the time I spend in the gym.
5 minute Dynamic Warm-Up:
(All done Across Basketball Court and back)
I hit the local high school track for some more speed training. I wasn't getting quite up to the speeds that I was last week, but I just wasn't into it all that much today. I still got in all 5 800's at a decent pace. If I continue to do these on the track I might have to think about switching directions on the track half way through the workout. I could definitely feel strain starting to build up on my left side as I was running around the track. My left hip and knee felt tighter than my right side.
.5 mile warm-up & stretch
1. 800 - 3:21
jog - 3:17
2. 800 - 3:27
jog - 3:26
3. 800 - 3:30
jog - 3:17
4. 800 - 3:30
jog - 3:10
5. 800 - 3:39
.25 mile cool down
Total mileage: 4 .25 miles
I'm starting to get into the groove of the new workout. Doing things like alternating between the medicine ball toe touches and the medicine ball twists instead of resting and doing 2 consecutive sets of each will help bring down the time I spend in the gym.
5 minute Dynamic Warm-Up:
(All done Across Basketball Court and back)
- Lunge Twists
- Side Lunges
- Walking Knee Grabs
- Toe Touches
- Butt Kicks
- Medicine Ball Toe Touches - 8 lb ball 2 sets x 15
- Medicine Ball Twists - 8 lb ball 2 sets x 15
- Supermans - 2 sets x 15
- Walking Lunges - Width of Court with 15 lbs
- Ball Leg Curls - 2 sets x 15
- Dumbbell Step-Ups - 15 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Seated Chest Press 45 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Seated Row 45 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Lat Pull Downs 35 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Dumbbell Bicep Curls (seated) - 15 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Bench Dips - 2 x 15
- 4 way Shoulder - 4 lbs 1 x 20
- Fly
- Front Shoulder Raise
- Lat. Shoulder Raise
- External Rotation
I hit the local high school track for some more speed training. I wasn't getting quite up to the speeds that I was last week, but I just wasn't into it all that much today. I still got in all 5 800's at a decent pace. If I continue to do these on the track I might have to think about switching directions on the track half way through the workout. I could definitely feel strain starting to build up on my left side as I was running around the track. My left hip and knee felt tighter than my right side.
.5 mile warm-up & stretch
1. 800 - 3:21
jog - 3:17
2. 800 - 3:27
jog - 3:26
3. 800 - 3:30
jog - 3:17
4. 800 - 3:30
jog - 3:10
5. 800 - 3:39
.25 mile cool down
Total mileage: 4 .25 miles
3/13/2007 Cycling + SRR = Brick
Tuesday was the first day on the bike in a long time that didn't result in frozen face or frozen toes, or some other combination of frozen body parts by the end of the ride. It was an incredibly unseasonably warm 70+ degrees F outside. What a brilliant day for a ride!
It was a good day to settle a dispute in my mind. When I set about planning my 16 mile run last weekend I managed to underestimate my mileage by almost 2 miles. Instead of running 16 miles I ended up running 17.75 miles. It's not that big of a deal, and was an excellent, if hard, lesson in running longer distances. I learned that I need some sort of food or gel before and during a run that long or I will bonk in a big way. The dispute was whether I really missed the boat when I planned the run or if routeslip was is just off. To settle it once and for all I rode the same route that I ran to check the distance. I'm reasonably confident that it will give me the correct mileage.
Dist: 18.72 miles
Avg: 15.8 mph
Max: 38.2 mph
Time: 1:11.03
It wasn't really 18.72 miles. That was my total ride. The confirmed distance for Sunday's run is 17.75 miles give or take a tenth of a mile. It sets to rest my anal retentive mind.
After my riding was done, I finished up with a 23 minute, 2.8 mile SRR on Filager and back Meghan's Run. I am bound and determined to get brick sessions in as I can before duathlon season starts this year. I'm shooting for 0 leg cramps during the races this year. I don't think it was a matter of diet that was causing them last year as much as it was poor training. We shall see.
Speaking of training I need to set up some sort of training regiment for my cycling. It's not going to be enough for me to get out and just ride a bunch of miles this year. I want to increase my speed. To do this I'm going to need a plan. I've though about setting up something similar to what I do for running. During any given week I'll get out 3 times. Once for a long ride, once for an interval session, and one other time for a brick day. It sounds like a plan, but I'm going to do some research first to get some ideas.
It was a good day to settle a dispute in my mind. When I set about planning my 16 mile run last weekend I managed to underestimate my mileage by almost 2 miles. Instead of running 16 miles I ended up running 17.75 miles. It's not that big of a deal, and was an excellent, if hard, lesson in running longer distances. I learned that I need some sort of food or gel before and during a run that long or I will bonk in a big way. The dispute was whether I really missed the boat when I planned the run or if routeslip was is just off. To settle it once and for all I rode the same route that I ran to check the distance. I'm reasonably confident that it will give me the correct mileage.
Dist: 18.72 miles
Avg: 15.8 mph
Max: 38.2 mph
Time: 1:11.03
It wasn't really 18.72 miles. That was my total ride. The confirmed distance for Sunday's run is 17.75 miles give or take a tenth of a mile. It sets to rest my anal retentive mind.
After my riding was done, I finished up with a 23 minute, 2.8 mile SRR on Filager and back Meghan's Run. I am bound and determined to get brick sessions in as I can before duathlon season starts this year. I'm shooting for 0 leg cramps during the races this year. I don't think it was a matter of diet that was causing them last year as much as it was poor training. We shall see.
Speaking of training I need to set up some sort of training regiment for my cycling. It's not going to be enough for me to get out and just ride a bunch of miles this year. I want to increase my speed. To do this I'm going to need a plan. I've though about setting up something similar to what I do for running. During any given week I'll get out 3 times. Once for a long ride, once for an interval session, and one other time for a brick day. It sounds like a plan, but I'm going to do some research first to get some ideas.
Monday, March 12, 2007
3/11/2007 Long Run
I found out on this run that I am completely inept at planning and routing using a map. Well, that may be overstating it a little bit, but somehow while I was planning my 16 mile run I ended up with a route that was 17.75 miles long. There is nothing like making yourself do a little extra work. I also learned that I need to start working on taking in some nourishment on these long runs. You'd think I'd know that having spent so much time on the bike, but lessons come hard sometimes. This lesson hit me at about the 12 mile mark as I realized I was running out of gas and I was still at least 4 miles out on the course. It made for a very long, stiff and tiring 5.75 miles. It all came to a head when I realized I was finishing up with the .5 mile 132 hill climb. This was the first time in a long time that I've had to stop and walk up the hill. I still managed to finish up the last mile at a jog after getting to the top of the hill. The dumb about the whole bonking out on Sunday is that I just bought a bunch of Gu while I was out getting my new running shoes the day before. Maybe next weekend I will play it a little smarter and start working on fueling the body while I run.
This was the maiden voyage of the aforementioned new running shoes. I liked the Asics Gel Cumulus model so much that I used all last year that I got the same pair for the '07 season. New shoes are so much fun. I felt so confident in them that I popped them on and did a 159 min long run. (17.75m / 8:57 pace). An 8:57 pace even with a stop to work out my stiff and cramping legs at mile 14 and walking part of the hill at mile 16? Not a bad day.
This was the maiden voyage of the aforementioned new running shoes. I liked the Asics Gel Cumulus model so much that I used all last year that I got the same pair for the '07 season. New shoes are so much fun. I felt so confident in them that I popped them on and did a 159 min long run. (17.75m / 8:57 pace). An 8:57 pace even with a stop to work out my stiff and cramping legs at mile 14 and walking part of the hill at mile 16? Not a bad day.
Thursday, March 08, 2007
3/08/2007 Strength & Yasso 800s
A.M. Strength Training
The new strength training routine is great. While the old plan served its purpose at the time the new plan covers a much wider range of muscle groups. Just the change has been a nice push. I haven't felt the kind of muscle soreness that I'm feeling now in a long time.
5 minute Dynamic Warm-Up:
(All done Across Basketball Court and back)
Here is the premise of the Yasso 800 as described on the Flying Pig Marathon website training page.
Yasso 800s (Y800). This is a workout developed by a Runner's World employee, Bart Yasso. It accurately allows you to predict the time that you are capable of running a marathon. If you want to run a 3:30 marathon, train to run a session of 800s in 3:30 each. Between the 800s, jog for the same number of minutes it took you to run your repeats. This method holds for all speeds whether you are 2:30 or a 5:30 marathoner. The 800 paces that you are able to complete is a good predictor of your marathon time. 2 minute 30 second 800s equal a 2:30 marathon; 5:30 800s equal 5 hours and 30 minutes for the marathon.
This is my first day of speed training, and I really like this new way of doing the intervals. It's a little more time based than the way I was doing intervals before. In previous interval sessions I'd do a 400 and rest for the equal distance creating a very long jog time. The Yasso 800 equals the times out which will keep the workouts shorter and more intense. I kept track of each 800, so I have an idea of how long I run these for in case I need to do these on the road instead of the cushy 400 meter track.
.5 mile warm-up & stretch
1. 800 - 2:54
jog - 3:01
2. 800 - 3:17
jog - 3:23
3. 800 - 3:19
jog - 3:20
4. 800 - 3:19
.25 mile cool down
Total mileage: 3.5 miles
The new strength training routine is great. While the old plan served its purpose at the time the new plan covers a much wider range of muscle groups. Just the change has been a nice push. I haven't felt the kind of muscle soreness that I'm feeling now in a long time.
5 minute Dynamic Warm-Up:
(All done Across Basketball Court and back)
- Lunge Twists
- Side Lunges
- Walking Knee Grabs
- Toe Touches
- Butt Kicks
- Medicine Ball Toe Touches - 8 lb ball 2 sets x 15
- Medicine Ball Twists - 8 lb ball 2 sets x 15
- Supermans - 2 sets x 15
- Walking Lunges - Width of Court with 15 lbs
- Ball Leg Curls - 2 sets x 15
- Dumbbell Step-Ups - 15 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Seated Chest Press 45 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Seated Row 45 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Lat Pull Downs 35 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Dumbbell Bicep Curls (seated) - 15 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Bench Dips - 2 x 15
- 4 way Shoulder - 4 lbs 1 x 20
- Fly
- Front Shoulder Raise
- Lat. Shoulder Raise
- External Rotation
Here is the premise of the Yasso 800 as described on the Flying Pig Marathon website training page.
Yasso 800s (Y800). This is a workout developed by a Runner's World employee, Bart Yasso. It accurately allows you to predict the time that you are capable of running a marathon. If you want to run a 3:30 marathon, train to run a session of 800s in 3:30 each. Between the 800s, jog for the same number of minutes it took you to run your repeats. This method holds for all speeds whether you are 2:30 or a 5:30 marathoner. The 800 paces that you are able to complete is a good predictor of your marathon time. 2 minute 30 second 800s equal a 2:30 marathon; 5:30 800s equal 5 hours and 30 minutes for the marathon.
This is my first day of speed training, and I really like this new way of doing the intervals. It's a little more time based than the way I was doing intervals before. In previous interval sessions I'd do a 400 and rest for the equal distance creating a very long jog time. The Yasso 800 equals the times out which will keep the workouts shorter and more intense. I kept track of each 800, so I have an idea of how long I run these for in case I need to do these on the road instead of the cushy 400 meter track.
.5 mile warm-up & stretch
1. 800 - 2:54
jog - 3:01
2. 800 - 3:17
jog - 3:23
3. 800 - 3:19
jog - 3:20
4. 800 - 3:19
.25 mile cool down
Total mileage: 3.5 miles
Monday, March 05, 2007
3/05 - 3/06/2007 Long Run, Strength & Short Recovery Run
3/05 Long Run
After a 2 day rest due in part to work, and in part just to being tired I was back on the road today for the week's long run . It was a relatively nice day out with temperature above freezing and the sun was shining. I took full advantage of the nice morning and got back to my first long run route. It felt good to get on to familiar roads and do a relatively slow run after last week's tough back to back runs. The 9.7 mile run took 1 hour 25 minutes at 8:45 pace.
3/06 Strength Training & Short Recovery Run
The new strength training routine is great. While the old plan served its purpose at the time the new plan covers a much wider range of muscle groups. Just the change has been a nice push. I haven't felt the kind of muscle soreness that I'm feeling now in a long time.
5 minute Dynamic Warm-Up:
(All done Across Basketball Court and back)
After a 2 day rest due in part to work, and in part just to being tired I was back on the road today for the week's long run . It was a relatively nice day out with temperature above freezing and the sun was shining. I took full advantage of the nice morning and got back to my first long run route. It felt good to get on to familiar roads and do a relatively slow run after last week's tough back to back runs. The 9.7 mile run took 1 hour 25 minutes at 8:45 pace.
3/06 Strength Training & Short Recovery Run
The new strength training routine is great. While the old plan served its purpose at the time the new plan covers a much wider range of muscle groups. Just the change has been a nice push. I haven't felt the kind of muscle soreness that I'm feeling now in a long time.
5 minute Dynamic Warm-Up:
(All done Across Basketball Court and back)
- Lunge Twists
- Side Lunges
- Walking Knee Grabs
- Toe Touches
- Butt Kicks
- Medicine Ball Toe Touches - 8 lb ball 2 sets x 15
- Medicine Ball Twists - 8 lb ball 2 sets x 15
- Supermans - 2 sets x 15
- Walking Lunges - Width of Court with 15 lbs
- Ball Leg Curls - 2 sets x 15
- Dumbbell Step-Ups - 15 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Seated Chest Press 45 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Seated Row 45 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Lat Pull Downs 35 lbs 2 sets x 12
- Dumbbell Bicep Curls (seated) - 15 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Bench Dips - 2 x 15
- 4 way Shoulder - 4 lbs 1 x 20
- Fly
- Front Shoulder Raise
- Lat. Shoulder Raise
- External Rotation
Friday, March 02, 2007
3/02/2007 Medium Recovery Run
This run is brought to you by Body Glide, because without it I would be hobbling around like a baby with diaper rash. After yesterday's run in the rain I was feeling so stiff, sore and chafed in all those places that get chafed when clothes get wet. It was no fun getting up this morning, but I know the pain and tiredness is only temporary. I will look back on the early mornings, the runs in the rain, snow and cold and be grateful after a well run marathon. At least that is what I'm hoping anyway.
I hit the gym this morning to run the hamster wheel, since it was very early, still dark, and I was on a very tight schedule. Getting out of bed was brutal as my legs just didn't want to respond to my requests to stand up. Once I got to the gym I did some stretching which helped a bit, but my legs were still reluctant as I began my warm up jog. Everything was in slow motion, and the legs were begging me to stop, but I pushed on. I wish I could say it got better, but it never really did. I loosened up a bit as I was running, but I never felt good, and more than anything just wanted to stop.
I managed a 4.5 mile run in about 45 minutes including the warm up and cool down portions of the run. I maintained a pace between 8 minute and 8:34.
I hit the gym this morning to run the hamster wheel, since it was very early, still dark, and I was on a very tight schedule. Getting out of bed was brutal as my legs just didn't want to respond to my requests to stand up. Once I got to the gym I did some stretching which helped a bit, but my legs were still reluctant as I began my warm up jog. Everything was in slow motion, and the legs were begging me to stop, but I pushed on. I wish I could say it got better, but it never really did. I loosened up a bit as I was running, but I never felt good, and more than anything just wanted to stop.
I managed a 4.5 mile run in about 45 minutes including the warm up and cool down portions of the run. I maintained a pace between 8 minute and 8:34.
3/01/2007 Goal Pace Run
I had two choices for running my 8 mile goal pace run. I could go to the nice dry, warm gym and run on the treadmill, or go to Lunken and run in the pouring rain. Hmmmm...let's see driving rain or treadmill. Which will it be? Okay, so it was 52 degrees and raining. I guess I should have mentioned that. There was no doubt that I was going outside short of a snow storm. I dressed pretty light in shorts, an underarmor shirt and short sleeve shirt over top. I've learned from previous outings in the rain that layering up does no good. You just get soaked and then end up dragging 15 lbs. of soaked clothes chafing you all the way. More on chafing later.
The Lunken Loop is a nice flat 5 miles with one short hill. It's a perfect change after a day of hills and weight lifting. My legs were already feeling so sore all day, and I was seriously wondering if I would be able to hold my goal pace over the 8 miles. I just kept in mind that this is part of my training, and this is probably what it will feel like over the last part of the marathon as my legs and hips stiffen up from the pounding miles. The good news is that despite the stiffness and the pouring rain the run went very well, and I managed to exceed my 7:30 goal pace that I was aiming for. I did a mile by mile breakdown:
mile 1: 7:21
mile 2: 7:26
mile 3: 7:16
mile 4: 7:02
mile 5: 7:05
mile 6: 7:25
mile 7: 7:21
mile 8: 7:12
The Lunken Loop is a nice flat 5 miles with one short hill. It's a perfect change after a day of hills and weight lifting. My legs were already feeling so sore all day, and I was seriously wondering if I would be able to hold my goal pace over the 8 miles. I just kept in mind that this is part of my training, and this is probably what it will feel like over the last part of the marathon as my legs and hips stiffen up from the pounding miles. The good news is that despite the stiffness and the pouring rain the run went very well, and I managed to exceed my 7:30 goal pace that I was aiming for. I did a mile by mile breakdown:
mile 1: 7:21
mile 2: 7:26
mile 3: 7:16
mile 4: 7:02
mile 5: 7:05
mile 6: 7:25
mile 7: 7:21
mile 8: 7:12
Thursday, March 01, 2007
2/27- 2/28/2007 Dog Jog, Hills & New Strength Plan
2/27/2007 Short Recovery Run Dog Jog
Gracie, my occasional running partner, went out with my on my short recovery run. We did the typical loop down our road and through Meghan's Run. It's kind of nice having her with me on these short, and usually mundane runs, because she forces me to be more aware of my surroundings as I have to be even more alert for the occasional bit of traffic. She is also hyper aware of anything that moves, like a squirrel or other rodent that she would love to chase down.
We did the 3.3 mile route in about 32 minutes with several stops to sniff this or that and the occasional potty break...for her not me.
2/28/2007 Medium Recovery Run & Strength Training
Today was all about maximizing the minimum amount of time to get the maximum amount of workout. It all sounds like corporate double talk when I put it that way. I was synergizing, and relaying my core beliefs...and uuggh. Anyway I had to squeeze in a medium recovery run with 6 hill repeats before I met with a trainer to start my new strength training plan. So here is how it went down.
It all worked out pretty well since I decided to do my run near the gym. The gym sits on the side of a hill, so I knew I should be able to find a suitable incline to do my hill repeats on. As it turned out I found a nice .45 mile long hill that ranges between 3 and 7% or somewhere near that range. It was part of a nice little 2 mile loop. So I ran around the first part of the loop to the bottom of the hill. I did the 6 repeats, and then finished up the loop back to the gym. The 6.5 miles that include the 6 hill repeats took about 56 minutes.
After finishing up the run I went straight into the gym and met my trainer to go through my new strength training plan. I was pretty psyched to see what he had worked up for me. As a fellow runner I was pretty confident that he would put together a nice group of workouts that would target just what I need. Here is the new workout:
5 minute Dynamic Warm-Up:
(All done Across Basketball Court and back)
Gracie, my occasional running partner, went out with my on my short recovery run. We did the typical loop down our road and through Meghan's Run. It's kind of nice having her with me on these short, and usually mundane runs, because she forces me to be more aware of my surroundings as I have to be even more alert for the occasional bit of traffic. She is also hyper aware of anything that moves, like a squirrel or other rodent that she would love to chase down.
We did the 3.3 mile route in about 32 minutes with several stops to sniff this or that and the occasional potty break...for her not me.
2/28/2007 Medium Recovery Run & Strength Training
Today was all about maximizing the minimum amount of time to get the maximum amount of workout. It all sounds like corporate double talk when I put it that way. I was synergizing, and relaying my core beliefs...and uuggh. Anyway I had to squeeze in a medium recovery run with 6 hill repeats before I met with a trainer to start my new strength training plan. So here is how it went down.
It all worked out pretty well since I decided to do my run near the gym. The gym sits on the side of a hill, so I knew I should be able to find a suitable incline to do my hill repeats on. As it turned out I found a nice .45 mile long hill that ranges between 3 and 7% or somewhere near that range. It was part of a nice little 2 mile loop. So I ran around the first part of the loop to the bottom of the hill. I did the 6 repeats, and then finished up the loop back to the gym. The 6.5 miles that include the 6 hill repeats took about 56 minutes.
After finishing up the run I went straight into the gym and met my trainer to go through my new strength training plan. I was pretty psyched to see what he had worked up for me. As a fellow runner I was pretty confident that he would put together a nice group of workouts that would target just what I need. Here is the new workout:
5 minute Dynamic Warm-Up:
(All done Across Basketball Court and back)
- Lunge Twists
- Side Lunges
- Walking Knee Grabs
- Toe Touches
- Butt Kicks
- Medicine Ball Toe Touches - 8 lb ball 2 sets x 15
- Medicine Ball Twists - 8 lb ball 2 sets x 15
- Supermans - 2 sets x 15
- Walking Lunges - Width of Court with 15 lbs
- Ball Leg Curls - 2 sets x 15
- Dumbbell Step-Ups - 15 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Seated Chest Press 45 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Seated Row 45 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Hammer Strength Lat Pull Downs 35 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Dumbbell Bicep Curls (seated) - 15 lbs 2 sets x 15
- Bench Dips - 2 x 15
- 4 way Shoulder - 4 lbs 1 x 20
- Fly
- Front Shoulder Raise
- Lat. Shoulder Raise
- External Rotation
Monday, February 26, 2007
2/26/2007 Strength Training
Thanks to some crappy weather, and a busy couple of weeks I still haven't met with my trainer to set up a new strength training regiment, but hopefully Wednesday will be the day. For now though I really wanted to get in and workout the tightness and soreness after yesterday's long run. It was a good call.
Elliptical = 15 minutes on Fat Burning
JC Bands Lunges with rows, Grey Bands - 15 each side.
Wall sit:
2 sets bicep curls 20 lbs. = 75 seconds each (about 15 reps)
2 sets shoulder press 20 lbs. = 75 seconds each (about 15 reps)
Walking lunges = width of court/back doing lat raises with 15lb. wts.
Hip adductor = 2 sets/12 reps 105 lbs.
Hip abductor = 2 sets/12 reps 105 lbs.
Clamshell Crunches with 10 lb. ball = 2x25
Plank = 60 seconds
Plank with knee dips = 10 each side
Elliptical = 15 minutes on Fat Burning
JC Bands Lunges with rows, Grey Bands - 15 each side.
Wall sit:
2 sets bicep curls 20 lbs. = 75 seconds each (about 15 reps)
2 sets shoulder press 20 lbs. = 75 seconds each (about 15 reps)
Walking lunges = width of court/back doing lat raises with 15lb. wts.
Hip adductor = 2 sets/12 reps 105 lbs.
Hip abductor = 2 sets/12 reps 105 lbs.
Clamshell Crunches with 10 lb. ball = 2x25
Plank = 60 seconds
Plank with knee dips = 10 each side
2/24 - 2/25/2007 SRR & Long Run
2/24 Short Recovery Run
It was nothing short of a spectacularly awesome run today. Actually, it wasn't anything special. How many times can you really talk about a short recovery run? I caught another break in the weather and got out on my lunch break to do a nice run in the neighborhoods surrounding the hospital. It's very nice to be able to run on the pavement of the roads and sidewalks instead of ice and snow. Although I guess running on ice and snow would be good training for the trail runs I'd like to do this year. Still I'll take dry ground and less risk of twisting my ankle any day.
It was another 3.5 miles in 32:16. Pace was 9 something or something like that.
2/25 Long Run - The Perils of being Unprepared
I got out to do my long run on Sunday, and realized I had not planned out the 14 miles that I was supposed to run. oops. I decided to do a route that I frequently use for my short rides. It would give me a nice change of scenery as well as the distance I needed, or so I thought. Apparently I miscalculated my run and forgot to do the Meghan's Run loop that would have completed the 14 miles. Instead I ended up running 12.25 miles. I'm kind of pissed at myself for doing it. I've done this route dozens of times, but unfortunately my brain is kind like a strainer with important information dripping out while useless facts stick up there forever.
Despite my silly mistake on the run it was still a great run. It was one of those weird days where it is at its warmest in the morning. So when I got out on the road it was close to 50 degrees F and clear. From there the day sort of slid downhill as the clouds rolled in, but during my run it was awesome. I did the 12.25 miles in 1:47 at a pretty steady easy pace. I picked up the pace in the last few miles to see how it would feel. It wasn't too bad. I got a little stiff in my left hip and my right knee ached a bit, but that's not unusual. Good run.
It was nothing short of a spectacularly awesome run today. Actually, it wasn't anything special. How many times can you really talk about a short recovery run? I caught another break in the weather and got out on my lunch break to do a nice run in the neighborhoods surrounding the hospital. It's very nice to be able to run on the pavement of the roads and sidewalks instead of ice and snow. Although I guess running on ice and snow would be good training for the trail runs I'd like to do this year. Still I'll take dry ground and less risk of twisting my ankle any day.
It was another 3.5 miles in 32:16. Pace was 9 something or something like that.
2/25 Long Run - The Perils of being Unprepared
I got out to do my long run on Sunday, and realized I had not planned out the 14 miles that I was supposed to run. oops. I decided to do a route that I frequently use for my short rides. It would give me a nice change of scenery as well as the distance I needed, or so I thought. Apparently I miscalculated my run and forgot to do the Meghan's Run loop that would have completed the 14 miles. Instead I ended up running 12.25 miles. I'm kind of pissed at myself for doing it. I've done this route dozens of times, but unfortunately my brain is kind like a strainer with important information dripping out while useless facts stick up there forever.
Despite my silly mistake on the run it was still a great run. It was one of those weird days where it is at its warmest in the morning. So when I got out on the road it was close to 50 degrees F and clear. From there the day sort of slid downhill as the clouds rolled in, but during my run it was awesome. I did the 12.25 miles in 1:47 at a pretty steady easy pace. I picked up the pace in the last few miles to see how it would feel. It wasn't too bad. I got a little stiff in my left hip and my right knee ached a bit, but that's not unusual. Good run.
Thursday, February 22, 2007
Signs of Spring and An Overbooked Race Schedule
As I walked out the door this morning I was greeted by a wonderful sight that I haven't seen at 6:30 am in a long time: the sun. That makes me really excited for a couple of reasons. First of all it is a sure sign that spring is near. Earlier sunrises also means I get to resume my early morning runs outside, and even better is that I'll get to start commuting on my bike again.
I am planning on starting as soon as I can. I don't need it to be warm, well maybe warm enough that it isn't snowing. What I really need is daylight, because I really respect those crazy enough to get out and commute regardless of the weather, but I am just not one of those people. Besides the roads and the drivers in this area are barely safe enough in daylight. I would truly be putting myself at risk by trying to commute in the dark on some of these roads. So here's to daylight!
Right now I'm facing some decisions that need to be made. There are too many races and too little time. I already know my "A" races for the year are going to be the races in the Wheelie Fun Series. That is not going to be a problem. Where I start to have some questions is in my secondary races. To my delight a trail running series has been added on this year. I've had a lot of fun doing the East Fork Backpack Trail Run the last couple of years. The idea of there being a "season" of trail running is so cool. Now I have to make a decision about what I'm going to do about Father's Day. I've got a Father's Day 5K that I like to do already. Do I want to ditch that race for the trail run? I think I might. There are lots of 5K races throughout the year. The idea of doing the Trail Series in its first year is more appealing....we'll see. The other possible problem I'm running into is the half marathon I have planned on April 14th as a warm up race for the Flying Pig Marathon. The first trail run falls on the 15th. Am I crazy enough to run a half marathon, and then turn and run the trail run the next day? probably. I'm sick like that.
I am planning on starting as soon as I can. I don't need it to be warm, well maybe warm enough that it isn't snowing. What I really need is daylight, because I really respect those crazy enough to get out and commute regardless of the weather, but I am just not one of those people. Besides the roads and the drivers in this area are barely safe enough in daylight. I would truly be putting myself at risk by trying to commute in the dark on some of these roads. So here's to daylight!
Right now I'm facing some decisions that need to be made. There are too many races and too little time. I already know my "A" races for the year are going to be the races in the Wheelie Fun Series. That is not going to be a problem. Where I start to have some questions is in my secondary races. To my delight a trail running series has been added on this year. I've had a lot of fun doing the East Fork Backpack Trail Run the last couple of years. The idea of there being a "season" of trail running is so cool. Now I have to make a decision about what I'm going to do about Father's Day. I've got a Father's Day 5K that I like to do already. Do I want to ditch that race for the trail run? I think I might. There are lots of 5K races throughout the year. The idea of doing the Trail Series in its first year is more appealing....we'll see. The other possible problem I'm running into is the half marathon I have planned on April 14th as a warm up race for the Flying Pig Marathon. The first trail run falls on the 15th. Am I crazy enough to run a half marathon, and then turn and run the trail run the next day? probably. I'm sick like that.
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
2/21/2007 Medium Recovery Run
So let's try to look at the bright side. What are good reasons to hit the hamster wheel at the gym rather than running on the roads? It was a hills day, so I was able to run exactly .25 mile hills at exactly a 6% grade at exactly the pace I wanted to run. I would have had to get out on the road at 6:30 this morning while it was dark and cold. I wasn't going to get hit by a car on the hamster wheel. There's no ice on the hamster wheel to fall and bust my ass on, or worse.
If I'm going to do any running on the hamster wheel I think I'd prefer to do hill repeats or speed work. At least there is something to break up the monotony of going nowhere fast. I started with a 1 mile warm up and then jumped into the 6 1/4 mile hill repeats with 1/4 mile flats in between. I maintained about an 8:34 pace throughout the hill repeats. Following that I finished off with a quick mile at an 8 minute pace and a 1/4 mile cool down for a total of 5 1/4 miles run that took 48 minutes.
If I'm going to do any running on the hamster wheel I think I'd prefer to do hill repeats or speed work. At least there is something to break up the monotony of going nowhere fast. I started with a 1 mile warm up and then jumped into the 6 1/4 mile hill repeats with 1/4 mile flats in between. I maintained about an 8:34 pace throughout the hill repeats. Following that I finished off with a quick mile at an 8 minute pace and a 1/4 mile cool down for a total of 5 1/4 miles run that took 48 minutes.
2/20/2007 Short Recovery Run & Cycling
Is it still considered a brick training session if you do the running first and the cycling second? I've never really considered it, and I'm not really sure. Anyone else no the answer to this question? It was such a nice day with the temperature actually reaching a scorching 44 degrees F! I really wanted to just spend some time outside and do a little running and a little cycling. Logistically it just worked better to do the run first. By doing the run first I was able to take my occasional bitch of a running partner, Gracie and I mean my dog, with me so she could burn off some energy she has been holding in over these weeks of crappy weather. I think if she saw me take off on my bike leaving her in the house first thing in the morning she would have probably had an aneurysm.
Dog Jog
We headed out for a leisurely 3.5 mile run/walk. I alternated between running a 1/2 mile and walking 1/4 mile. That gave her plenty of time to sniff around do her business in between runs. The run took about 38 minutes.
Cycling
I was in no particular hurry when I hit the bike, but then again I didn't have time to lolligag all day either. I did a fairly easy 14 mile loop that was mostly flat with the exception of one steep hill. The loop took about an hour, and I averaged around 14 mph for the ride. It was just awesome to feel the sun on my face and a wind that didn't make my cheeks hurt because of the cold.
Dog Jog
We headed out for a leisurely 3.5 mile run/walk. I alternated between running a 1/2 mile and walking 1/4 mile. That gave her plenty of time to sniff around do her business in between runs. The run took about 38 minutes.
Cycling
I was in no particular hurry when I hit the bike, but then again I didn't have time to lolligag all day either. I did a fairly easy 14 mile loop that was mostly flat with the exception of one steep hill. The loop took about an hour, and I averaged around 14 mph for the ride. It was just awesome to feel the sun on my face and a wind that didn't make my cheeks hurt because of the cold.
Monday, February 19, 2007
2/19/2007 A Long Run in Two Parts
The plan was to knock out a long run in the morning prior to work. I jetted out to the gym at what seemed an early enough time to get in the scheduled 10 mile run. Unfortunately by the time I got to the gym I was awake enough to realize that I had drastically underestimated the amount of time I would need to get to the gym, do the run, get showered and on to work. This was a problem. I started to think of ways to justify a shorter run. Well how much of a difference does 2 miles make? I'm not really feeling a 100% recovered yet, so maybe it's better that I go a little shorter today. Can I really justify being late to work because I needed to finish my long run? On and on I justified to myself as I ran the 8 miles in 1:08 at the mechanically set 8:34 pace.
All the justifications were negated as later in the day an opportunity presented itself to finish my run. The second half of the run came in the afternoon during a lunch break. The temperature had creeped up to the low 30's, which is practically tropical compared to the temperatures that we've been experiencing the last couple weeks. I cranked out an easy 3.5 miles in 30 min at a surprising and unplanned 8:34 pace. No kidding. I used the same course that I used on Saturday only there was a little less snow on the sidewalks which was nice.
All the justifications were negated as later in the day an opportunity presented itself to finish my run. The second half of the run came in the afternoon during a lunch break. The temperature had creeped up to the low 30's, which is practically tropical compared to the temperatures that we've been experiencing the last couple weeks. I cranked out an easy 3.5 miles in 30 min at a surprising and unplanned 8:34 pace. No kidding. I used the same course that I used on Saturday only there was a little less snow on the sidewalks which was nice.
Saturday, February 17, 2007
2/17/2007 Short Recovery Run
I eased back into a short recovery run on Saturday with a little reservation. After several days of a fairly nasty virus that wiped me out I still wondered if I should be out running on the road. A relapse would be a bad situation. I took it easy and ran a familiar route during lunch time. Everything went smoothly, and I felt pretty good throughout the run. It was definitely encouraging. The 32:08 run was 3.5 miles at a 9:10 pace.
Thursday, February 15, 2007
2/14/2007 Medium Recovery Run with a side of Hills
It was more like a main course of hills with a side of freezing cold. Apparently my Valentine's gift to myself was a painfully cold run up and down a hill where I had to jump off the road into ankle deep snow frequently due to passing vehicles. It was not so much fun at all, but it will pay off later right? It will won't it?
I ran the same 4.25 mile route that I ran on Sunday, except instead of going on home once I got to the top of 132 hill I turned around and ran back down. I then ran the .5 mile back up and repeated this, so I ended up with 4 hill repeats. The hardest one was the second ascent. The entire way up I just kept repeating to myself, only two more times. The third and fourth seemed a little easier, maybe because I knew I was that much closer to being done. I also was thinking more about the fact that my cheeks were freezing and painful on those last two, so the leg pain was pushed aside. The entire run was 7.25 miles in 1:10.35 / 9:44 pace including the hill repeats.
I'm pushing back my goal pace run to Friday due to a scheduling conflict. I'll still be doing the core class and spinning on Thursday evening.
I ran the same 4.25 mile route that I ran on Sunday, except instead of going on home once I got to the top of 132 hill I turned around and ran back down. I then ran the .5 mile back up and repeated this, so I ended up with 4 hill repeats. The hardest one was the second ascent. The entire way up I just kept repeating to myself, only two more times. The third and fourth seemed a little easier, maybe because I knew I was that much closer to being done. I also was thinking more about the fact that my cheeks were freezing and painful on those last two, so the leg pain was pushed aside. The entire run was 7.25 miles in 1:10.35 / 9:44 pace including the hill repeats.
I'm pushing back my goal pace run to Friday due to a scheduling conflict. I'll still be doing the core class and spinning on Thursday evening.
2/13/2007 Short Recovery Run in the South Garage
It snowed, with some freezing rain, which turned into normal rain, which reverted back to freezing rain. It was bad enough that most businesses were shutting down including my gym. You'd think that would be enough for me to say; "hey today is a good day for an extra rest day." But I have a confession to make: "My name is Adam and I'm a running addict."
Instead of skipping a day of running I decided to take my lunch break and run in the garage. I ran up and down the ramps for 25 minutes. I have no real way of knowing how far I went as I was running up and down the ramps and crossing over the flat sections to avoid cars entering and exiting the garage. I'd say I did at least 2.5 miles as the incline isn't terribly steep and I kept at and easy but steady pace.
As I was running I began to wonder how smart this tactic really was for my health. I'm running in an enclosed space. Well there are openings along all the sides, but more enclosed than running open road. So, I'm running in this enclosed space with a bunch of cars that have recently left or recently entered the garage to park. Carbon monoxide anyone? At what point do the health risks outweigh the health benefits of running?
Instead of skipping a day of running I decided to take my lunch break and run in the garage. I ran up and down the ramps for 25 minutes. I have no real way of knowing how far I went as I was running up and down the ramps and crossing over the flat sections to avoid cars entering and exiting the garage. I'd say I did at least 2.5 miles as the incline isn't terribly steep and I kept at and easy but steady pace.
As I was running I began to wonder how smart this tactic really was for my health. I'm running in an enclosed space. Well there are openings along all the sides, but more enclosed than running open road. So, I'm running in this enclosed space with a bunch of cars that have recently left or recently entered the garage to park. Carbon monoxide anyone? At what point do the health risks outweigh the health benefits of running?
Monday, February 12, 2007
2/12/2006 Strength Training
This will probably be the last time I do this particular workout since I'm meeting with a trainer on Wednesday for a long overdue update of my strength training regiment. Who knows, maybe I'll revisit this workout from time to time to mix things up. It definitely has served me well over the last year.
Elliptical = 15 minutes on Fat Burning
JC Bands Lunges with rows, Grey Bands - 15 each side.
Wall sit:
2 sets bicep curls 20 lbs. = 75 seconds each (about 15 reps)
2 sets shoulder press 20 lbs. = 75 seconds each (about 15 reps)
Walking lunges = width of court/back doing lat raises with 15lb. wts.
Hip adductor = 2 sets/12 reps 105 lbs.
Hip abductor = 2 sets/12 reps 105 lbs.
Clamshell Crunches with 10 lb. ball = 2x25
Elliptical = 15 minutes on Fat Burning
JC Bands Lunges with rows, Grey Bands - 15 each side.
Wall sit:
2 sets bicep curls 20 lbs. = 75 seconds each (about 15 reps)
2 sets shoulder press 20 lbs. = 75 seconds each (about 15 reps)
Walking lunges = width of court/back doing lat raises with 15lb. wts.
Hip adductor = 2 sets/12 reps 105 lbs.
Hip abductor = 2 sets/12 reps 105 lbs.
Clamshell Crunches with 10 lb. ball = 2x25
2/11/2007 Abbreviated Long Run & Labor of Love
I'm such a freak that I feel like I need to justify cutting my long run day short....for a race! I'm so anal retentive when it comes to trying to stick to my training schedule. It definitely has its advantages at times to be like this, but then again I can cause myself stress for no reason. So before I get into the race I did get out and do some running at home before the race. I was really hoping to get in all 12 miles on the schedule, just broken up into segments. It didn't quite work out that way, but it's all good for a couple of reasons.
Here is my justification just for my own piece of mind. Saturday after I got off work, and after I'd done my short recovery run I talked about in the previous post, we went sledding. I didn't really tell my family what I'm about to write when we were out sledding, but I'm sure my wife wouldn't be surprised. I turned it into a training exercise. I would sled down with my daughter, or alone, and then run back up the hill. If I wasn't running I'd throw my daughter over my shoulder and quickly walk up the hill. Sometimes I'd walk down the hill just so I could help my daughter up the hill and get in another "set". I'm not sure how many times I did it over the 90 or so minutes we were out there (I'm not quite that bad) but I'm sure I did the steep incline over a dozen times. Woo Hoo! Nice hill workout.
Sunday morning I woke up wondering how I'd feel after my hill "sets". I was expecting back pain, hamstring pain, and/or stiff calves. I felt surprisingly good, and after a nice leisurely hour or so to wake up I was out on the road for a 35 min warm up run. I managed to get in 4.25 miles at a 8:14 pace before getting a call from a buddy of mine that competed in the 2 mile Labor of Love race. A banana and an orange later and I was out the door again on my way to NKU campus.
Shortly before race time it was still cold at 20 F with thankfully very little wind. The campus sits on an exposed hill which gets pounded by cold hard winds during the winters. I spent several frigid cursing those winds going from class to class while doing my undergraduate work. We did a 2 mile warm-up run on the course. This was my third time running this race but Rick's first. It's a course that has virtually no flat space with the exception of a couple hundred yards at the the mile turn around point. It's an out and back course that starts on a downhill. This, of course, means it finishes on an uphill. It's not a steep incline, but the race is so short and fast that the last incline seems to grow as your making that last push to the finish line.
My PR for the course was 13:55 set last year. All I wanted to do was beat that time. I told Rick that I was going to shoot for a 7 minute first mile one and then open it up after that. That plan lasted all of about 0 seconds into the race. As soon as the starter went off I let it rip down the first hill and never slowed down. If this would've been a longer race I would have been doomed by the end, but knowing this was only 2 miles I felt confident that I could keep up a quick pace. The multiple warm ups really paid off in more ways than I had expected. I felt loose and my muscles were warm. The best part was that the usual burning of the chest when I exert myself in the cold weather was minimal. The multiple warm ups had me well acclimatized to the cold air.
With everything seeming in my favor I blew through the first mile with a split of 5:47. Wow, I'm tempted to put that in my PR list as my fastest mile within a race. That was the "easy" part as it started down hill with a couple of minor inclines and went around the flat turn around. How would I hold out for the second mile with a couple of small inclines and the final push up to the finish. It wasn't an easy mile, but it wasn't even close to the hardest mile I've ever done. Chalk that up to making hills a regular part of my training regiment. They maybe good for training but hills still suck! The second mile split was a 6:21. I am thrilled with my 12:08 time / 6:04 pace for the race! It was impressive 1:48 improvement on my previous PR.
This race is a perfect beginning to the season. Next up is the Mercy Heart Mini-Marathon. Before that race I might find a 5K to run. I've been itching to break 20 minutes on my 5K time, and after this outing I think I might be there.
Here is my justification just for my own piece of mind. Saturday after I got off work, and after I'd done my short recovery run I talked about in the previous post, we went sledding. I didn't really tell my family what I'm about to write when we were out sledding, but I'm sure my wife wouldn't be surprised. I turned it into a training exercise. I would sled down with my daughter, or alone, and then run back up the hill. If I wasn't running I'd throw my daughter over my shoulder and quickly walk up the hill. Sometimes I'd walk down the hill just so I could help my daughter up the hill and get in another "set". I'm not sure how many times I did it over the 90 or so minutes we were out there (I'm not quite that bad) but I'm sure I did the steep incline over a dozen times. Woo Hoo! Nice hill workout.
Sunday morning I woke up wondering how I'd feel after my hill "sets". I was expecting back pain, hamstring pain, and/or stiff calves. I felt surprisingly good, and after a nice leisurely hour or so to wake up I was out on the road for a 35 min warm up run. I managed to get in 4.25 miles at a 8:14 pace before getting a call from a buddy of mine that competed in the 2 mile Labor of Love race. A banana and an orange later and I was out the door again on my way to NKU campus.
Shortly before race time it was still cold at 20 F with thankfully very little wind. The campus sits on an exposed hill which gets pounded by cold hard winds during the winters. I spent several frigid cursing those winds going from class to class while doing my undergraduate work. We did a 2 mile warm-up run on the course. This was my third time running this race but Rick's first. It's a course that has virtually no flat space with the exception of a couple hundred yards at the the mile turn around point. It's an out and back course that starts on a downhill. This, of course, means it finishes on an uphill. It's not a steep incline, but the race is so short and fast that the last incline seems to grow as your making that last push to the finish line.
My PR for the course was 13:55 set last year. All I wanted to do was beat that time. I told Rick that I was going to shoot for a 7 minute first mile one and then open it up after that. That plan lasted all of about 0 seconds into the race. As soon as the starter went off I let it rip down the first hill and never slowed down. If this would've been a longer race I would have been doomed by the end, but knowing this was only 2 miles I felt confident that I could keep up a quick pace. The multiple warm ups really paid off in more ways than I had expected. I felt loose and my muscles were warm. The best part was that the usual burning of the chest when I exert myself in the cold weather was minimal. The multiple warm ups had me well acclimatized to the cold air.
With everything seeming in my favor I blew through the first mile with a split of 5:47. Wow, I'm tempted to put that in my PR list as my fastest mile within a race. That was the "easy" part as it started down hill with a couple of minor inclines and went around the flat turn around. How would I hold out for the second mile with a couple of small inclines and the final push up to the finish. It wasn't an easy mile, but it wasn't even close to the hardest mile I've ever done. Chalk that up to making hills a regular part of my training regiment. They maybe good for training but hills still suck! The second mile split was a 6:21. I am thrilled with my 12:08 time / 6:04 pace for the race! It was impressive 1:48 improvement on my previous PR.
This race is a perfect beginning to the season. Next up is the Mercy Heart Mini-Marathon. Before that race I might find a 5K to run. I've been itching to break 20 minutes on my 5K time, and after this outing I think I might be there.
Saturday, February 10, 2007
2/10/2007 Short Recovery Run
After two days off I went out for a short run today to loosen up and get ready for the race tomorrow. I decided to do a lunchtime run at work to save some time, and also it's been a lot of fun running downtown. I layered up a bit as it is still frigid here at about 15 F on Saturday morning around 11 am, but on the bright side it was sunny.
I kept the 2.6 miles at a nice leisurely pace mostly trying not to sweat too much, so when I changed back into my street clothes I wouldn't have that nice grungy sweaty feeling. The 2.6 miles took 22:51 for a 8:50 pace.
I kept the 2.6 miles at a nice leisurely pace mostly trying not to sweat too much, so when I changed back into my street clothes I wouldn't have that nice grungy sweaty feeling. The 2.6 miles took 22:51 for a 8:50 pace.
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
2/07/2007 Medium Recovery Run in the snow! & new blog stuff
It has been an exhausting couple of days. Yesterday started with a call from work at 7 am after a couple of people called in sick forcing me to go in early. I wasn't due in until 3:30 pm. It got worse as we got socked with a huge snowstorm in the middle of the afternoon causing the city of Cincinnati to decide to leave work early creating huge traffic jams which caused our second shift employees to be late. The day ended with me crashing out at midnight in an empty room...still at work. The roads were atrocious, and I had to be back at work first thing in the morning. So, I could either take a couple of hours to get home, take a nap, and spend over an hour getting back, or suck it up and camp out at work.
It was uncomfortable, and I got little sleep, but on the bright side I had some running clothes still with me from the previous day! So, at 5 am I groggily put on my shorts and t-shirt that I wore to the gym the previous day. I then put on the hoody sweat-shirt and nylon warm-up pants to keep warm in the frigid dark morning and took off. Ridiculous work hours weren't going to keep me down!
It was such a cool run. I had the streets of Clifton and Gaslight District all to myself in the early morning pre-dawn dark. There were plenty of street lamps to light my way as I had to be careful as I was running mostly on the hard packed snow of the sidewalks. I ran from the hospital across Clifton and through the Gaslight District to Mt. Storm Park. Running through Gaslight District by all the nice houses under only the light of the gas lamps lighting the way is just so amazing. In the dark with the snow completely covering the road and on the lights of the gas lamps it's easy to imagine what the neighborhood would've been like a hundred years ago.
I wasn't completely alone out on the roads on my way back. I saw a few people out cleaning off their cars to leave for work, and one other runner crazy enough to brave the dark, cold, snowy and icy sidewalks. I traded a simple "good morning" with her and moved on. I can't speak for her, but if I were to meet her I'd have instant respect for the fellow crazy runner.
The schedule called for 4 hill repeats. I didn't do any hill repeats, but Clifton is all hills. I am fairly certain that I got in a sufficient amount of hill work. Add to the hills the snow that was slippery at some points and deep at others I feel really good about the amount of work I put in. 1:04 MRR (6.5m / 9:50 pace)
I've been playing with a couple of new gadgets and buttons for the blog. On the top I put a link to my Mercy Heart Mini-Marathon fund raising page. I don't really expect to attract a lot of attention or donations with it, but I am proud to support the American Heart Association. The link is just my way of showing it.
The countdown gadget might have to come down or be replaced. It's a shame, because I think it looks super-cool, but it's wrong. It should say 2 months, 26 days... I'll play around with it to see if I can get it right. Gadgets are fun!
It was uncomfortable, and I got little sleep, but on the bright side I had some running clothes still with me from the previous day! So, at 5 am I groggily put on my shorts and t-shirt that I wore to the gym the previous day. I then put on the hoody sweat-shirt and nylon warm-up pants to keep warm in the frigid dark morning and took off. Ridiculous work hours weren't going to keep me down!
It was such a cool run. I had the streets of Clifton and Gaslight District all to myself in the early morning pre-dawn dark. There were plenty of street lamps to light my way as I had to be careful as I was running mostly on the hard packed snow of the sidewalks. I ran from the hospital across Clifton and through the Gaslight District to Mt. Storm Park. Running through Gaslight District by all the nice houses under only the light of the gas lamps lighting the way is just so amazing. In the dark with the snow completely covering the road and on the lights of the gas lamps it's easy to imagine what the neighborhood would've been like a hundred years ago.
I wasn't completely alone out on the roads on my way back. I saw a few people out cleaning off their cars to leave for work, and one other runner crazy enough to brave the dark, cold, snowy and icy sidewalks. I traded a simple "good morning" with her and moved on. I can't speak for her, but if I were to meet her I'd have instant respect for the fellow crazy runner.
The schedule called for 4 hill repeats. I didn't do any hill repeats, but Clifton is all hills. I am fairly certain that I got in a sufficient amount of hill work. Add to the hills the snow that was slippery at some points and deep at others I feel really good about the amount of work I put in. 1:04 MRR (6.5m / 9:50 pace)
I've been playing with a couple of new gadgets and buttons for the blog. On the top I put a link to my Mercy Heart Mini-Marathon fund raising page. I don't really expect to attract a lot of attention or donations with it, but I am proud to support the American Heart Association. The link is just my way of showing it.
The countdown gadget might have to come down or be replaced. It's a shame, because I think it looks super-cool, but it's wrong. It should say 2 months, 26 days... I'll play around with it to see if I can get it right. Gadgets are fun!
Tuesday, February 06, 2007
2/6/2007 Short Recovery Run
Yesterday I decided to take a rest day instead of doing some strength training. I'm making sure to listen to my body, and my body said rest. Actually, I'm going to just do my running this week. I've scheduled an appointment with a trainer on Thursday to workout out a new strength training regiment. The timing seems right for a little break from the hardcore training that I feel like I've been doing. I'm a month in to my marathon training, and it's less than a week until my first race on Sunday. It' s a perfect time to gear back just a notch and rock that first race. That could be the perfect bit of motivation to carry me through the next stage of training.
I had a very easy run today on the hamster wheel at the gym. I started out with a 1/2 mile warm up and then 3 miles starting at a 10 min pace and going up to a 9:30 pace. I followed that up with a 1/2 mile cool down The whol run was 38:43 (4m /9:40 pace).
I had a very easy run today on the hamster wheel at the gym. I started out with a 1/2 mile warm up and then 3 miles starting at a 10 min pace and going up to a 9:30 pace. I followed that up with a 1/2 mile cool down The whol run was 38:43 (4m /9:40 pace).
Sunday, February 04, 2007
2/04/2007 Long Run & 30 Seconds of Blog Fame
It was frackin' freezing outside this morning. I mean that in every sense of the word. The thermometer outside the house said 10 F at 8:30 am, but I know on the windier parts of my run it was below zero. My face was just hurting on those windy stretch. I was going to put this run off until tomorrow after yesterday's spill off the bike and the resulting achiness. When I woke up this morning I felt good though with no more than the normal amount of soreness in my lower back and I had full range of movement. Between that and the sight of the actual sun coming up over the horizon there was no way I was missing this run. Any sunny day during an Ohio winter is a good day regardless of temperature.
I did a variation on the usual long run route that I've used since December, so there was not much to report there. As I was running and listening to Phedippidations, which has become my standard to kick off Sunday long runs, my mind was wandering from one subject to the next. Steve was talking about the impact of steroids and other performance enhancing drugs on sports and the human body, and I my mind wandered from the topic at hand to thinking about whether there are any amateur age group athletes taking performance enhancers, to what if I took performance enhancers? Wouldn't that freak my friends out?, to I should write the show and let him know how much I appreciate it, for giving me a laugh, some things to think about, and some much needed inspiration, especially on days like these when I wonder why the hell I'm out on the road instead of back in the nice warm comfortable bed. On and on my mind goes flipping from one subject to the next when I'm snapped back into the moment by these words: "This week's Phedippidations blog of the week is titled abiker..." What? oh crap someone else is using my blog's name..."It's hosted by Adam Iker from..." Hey wait? What? That's me!
I was caught by total surprise by this, and it brought a big smile to my face. I didn't feel much cold for the rest of the run...well until I got out of the valley that Batavia sits in and back on the highland roads where the winds never ceases. No amount of appreciation for blog recognition was going to keep me from feeling that kind of cold. Anyway, I have no idea how he chooses the blog of the week, but if I was recommended by someone out there in blogland I appreciate it very much. It really made my day.
Here are the stats for my run:
Avg HR: 153
Peak HR: 173
Min HR: 109
Total Cal: 1454
Rcl 1: 1:00.00
Rcl 2: 32.54 (I had a reason for splitting at one hour, but I just don't remember what it is right now. Maybe it will come back to me.)
Total: 1:32.54 (8:27 pace)
The pace was a little quicker than I would have liked. I am making an effort to keep my long runs at a slower pace, but like I said at the beginning, it was so cold! On those windy flats I really pushed the pace up a little to get out of the face burning coldness as soon as possible.
P.S. I am now one week away from my first race of 2007, and my first race since Thanksgiving Day! I'm very excited about the race, and in preparation for the season I posted all my pr's over on the side bar. I want to see how many of those I can update with a 2007 date.
I did a variation on the usual long run route that I've used since December, so there was not much to report there. As I was running and listening to Phedippidations, which has become my standard to kick off Sunday long runs, my mind was wandering from one subject to the next. Steve was talking about the impact of steroids and other performance enhancing drugs on sports and the human body, and I my mind wandered from the topic at hand to thinking about whether there are any amateur age group athletes taking performance enhancers, to what if I took performance enhancers? Wouldn't that freak my friends out?, to I should write the show and let him know how much I appreciate it, for giving me a laugh, some things to think about, and some much needed inspiration, especially on days like these when I wonder why the hell I'm out on the road instead of back in the nice warm comfortable bed. On and on my mind goes flipping from one subject to the next when I'm snapped back into the moment by these words: "This week's Phedippidations blog of the week is titled abiker..." What? oh crap someone else is using my blog's name..."It's hosted by Adam Iker from..." Hey wait? What? That's me!
I was caught by total surprise by this, and it brought a big smile to my face. I didn't feel much cold for the rest of the run...well until I got out of the valley that Batavia sits in and back on the highland roads where the winds never ceases. No amount of appreciation for blog recognition was going to keep me from feeling that kind of cold. Anyway, I have no idea how he chooses the blog of the week, but if I was recommended by someone out there in blogland I appreciate it very much. It really made my day.
Here are the stats for my run:
Avg HR: 153
Peak HR: 173
Min HR: 109
Total Cal: 1454
Rcl 1: 1:00.00
Rcl 2: 32.54 (I had a reason for splitting at one hour, but I just don't remember what it is right now. Maybe it will come back to me.)
Total: 1:32.54 (8:27 pace)
The pace was a little quicker than I would have liked. I am making an effort to keep my long runs at a slower pace, but like I said at the beginning, it was so cold! On those windy flats I really pushed the pace up a little to get out of the face burning coldness as soon as possible.
P.S. I am now one week away from my first race of 2007, and my first race since Thanksgiving Day! I'm very excited about the race, and in preparation for the season I posted all my pr's over on the side bar. I want to see how many of those I can update with a 2007 date.
Saturday, February 03, 2007
2/03/2007 Brickin' - Cycling & Short Recovery Run
Cycling - or How to end your training with one stupid decision!
It was extremely freezing (that's freezing only to the extreme for the kids) at 10 F this morning when I headed out on my bike. With the windchill it was probably more like 1. It was layering time as I put on a layer of skiing tights under my cycling tights, two pairs of socks, a tight wicking shirt covered by a zip up up pullover covered by a wind breaker. I had a pair of thin cotton gloves under my lobster claw riding gloves for my hands. The head was covered by a balaclava type of head covering probably made for skiing that I got from my in-laws. I was a bit skeptical about using it at first because I wasn't sure that it would fit under my helmet, but it has turned out to be one of the best pieces of winter riding equipment second only to the lobster gloves.
I took it pretty easy on the ride, as I just wanted to get some mileage in with no real emphasis on speed. Toward the end of the ride I was cruising through a neighboring subdivision and edging toward the 20 mile mark. I thought that would be a nice round number on which to end the ride, but I'm probably going to be about a mile short if I continued on my current route. I needed to find a side road here in the subdivision so I wouldn't have to go down the hill near our house and backup just to get in the last mile. Okay, maybe an extra hill would be good for me, but on a day when the temp is hovering just above single digits and my toes and face are approaching numb going down hill seemed even less appealing than coming back up the hill.
As I was dreading a windy downhill I came upon a road that looked about a 1/2 mile long which would be perfect. Maybe the frost had seeped into my brain, or maybe the cold air wasn't supplying enough oxygen to my brain, but even though the distance was perfect it was snow covered. It was not only snow covered, but probably ice covered underneath. Instead of avoiding the snow and ice covered road at all costs one side of my brain said "this looks fun" while the other side of my brain was having visions of broken limbs and a broken bike. The "this looks fun" side won out as I plowed on to the snowy road on my road bike. I made it all the way down and 3/4 of the way back. It was on that last 1/4 that I hit a patch of exposed ice and my bike suddenly became a two wheeled bobsled. My brain immediately cleared, and I realized just how dumb this was. It was too late though as my bike ditched one way as I jumped the opposite direction out of my clipless pedals.
Thankfully I came out of the incident mostly unscathed, and my bike was fine. I was mostly unscathed, but I did strain my back a little bit on the left side. Fortunately it was nothing that some couch time with some ice and heat with a dose of ibuprofen couldn't take care of, but this is a lesson for me. One of my worst fears when it comes to all the work I'm putting in for the marathon is that I'll get 2 months or 3 months in and get injured making all the work for nothing.
Dist: 20.11 miles
Time: 1:25.12
Avg: 14.1 mph
Max: 31.1 mph
Short Recovery Run
At the beginning of the run my feet were freezing. It was as if someone had secretly replaced my actual feet with wooden blocks. It was kind of hard to get my shoes on my feet as my feet were numb, and the thick socks didn't help so much. For the first 1/2 mile my feet felt like two wood blocks tied to my ankles. After that they warmed up and loosened up, and they got on back to feeling like feet again. It was a solid 3.3 miles that took 30:25 for a 9:13 pace.
It was extremely freezing (that's freezing only to the extreme for the kids) at 10 F this morning when I headed out on my bike. With the windchill it was probably more like 1. It was layering time as I put on a layer of skiing tights under my cycling tights, two pairs of socks, a tight wicking shirt covered by a zip up up pullover covered by a wind breaker. I had a pair of thin cotton gloves under my lobster claw riding gloves for my hands. The head was covered by a balaclava type of head covering probably made for skiing that I got from my in-laws. I was a bit skeptical about using it at first because I wasn't sure that it would fit under my helmet, but it has turned out to be one of the best pieces of winter riding equipment second only to the lobster gloves.
I took it pretty easy on the ride, as I just wanted to get some mileage in with no real emphasis on speed. Toward the end of the ride I was cruising through a neighboring subdivision and edging toward the 20 mile mark. I thought that would be a nice round number on which to end the ride, but I'm probably going to be about a mile short if I continued on my current route. I needed to find a side road here in the subdivision so I wouldn't have to go down the hill near our house and backup just to get in the last mile. Okay, maybe an extra hill would be good for me, but on a day when the temp is hovering just above single digits and my toes and face are approaching numb going down hill seemed even less appealing than coming back up the hill.
As I was dreading a windy downhill I came upon a road that looked about a 1/2 mile long which would be perfect. Maybe the frost had seeped into my brain, or maybe the cold air wasn't supplying enough oxygen to my brain, but even though the distance was perfect it was snow covered. It was not only snow covered, but probably ice covered underneath. Instead of avoiding the snow and ice covered road at all costs one side of my brain said "this looks fun" while the other side of my brain was having visions of broken limbs and a broken bike. The "this looks fun" side won out as I plowed on to the snowy road on my road bike. I made it all the way down and 3/4 of the way back. It was on that last 1/4 that I hit a patch of exposed ice and my bike suddenly became a two wheeled bobsled. My brain immediately cleared, and I realized just how dumb this was. It was too late though as my bike ditched one way as I jumped the opposite direction out of my clipless pedals.
Thankfully I came out of the incident mostly unscathed, and my bike was fine. I was mostly unscathed, but I did strain my back a little bit on the left side. Fortunately it was nothing that some couch time with some ice and heat with a dose of ibuprofen couldn't take care of, but this is a lesson for me. One of my worst fears when it comes to all the work I'm putting in for the marathon is that I'll get 2 months or 3 months in and get injured making all the work for nothing.
Dist: 20.11 miles
Time: 1:25.12
Avg: 14.1 mph
Max: 31.1 mph
Short Recovery Run
At the beginning of the run my feet were freezing. It was as if someone had secretly replaced my actual feet with wooden blocks. It was kind of hard to get my shoes on my feet as my feet were numb, and the thick socks didn't help so much. For the first 1/2 mile my feet felt like two wood blocks tied to my ankles. After that they warmed up and loosened up, and they got on back to feeling like feet again. It was a solid 3.3 miles that took 30:25 for a 9:13 pace.
Thursday, February 01, 2007
2/01/2007 Goal Pace Run, Core & Spinning
Goal Pace Run - 6 A.M.
It's just another early morning treadmill run. The schedule called for a 6 mile today at my goal pace. So after a .5 mile warm up I set myself at a 7:13 pace and let it roll for the next 5 miles. I was very curious on what my heart rate would do over the course of the 6 miles, so I hit the lap button at every mile mark. It's a nice steady climb from mile to mile. I never felt like I was pushing too hard during the run. I was definitely pushing, but felt within my range for the run. I felt so good in fact that at mile 5 I kicked it up to about a 6:45 pace and crushed that last mile. It felt really, really good. The hamster wheel can be so boring that any change in pace is welcome. After blowing threw the 6 miles I had a nice easy walking .5 mile cool down.
Avg HR: 158
Peak HR: 176
Min HR: 103
Total Cal: 764
Mile 1: 7:14 Avg HR: 150
Mile 2: 7:11 Avg HR: 156
Mile 3: 7:09 Avg HR: 159
Mile 4: 7:11 Avg HR: 161
Mile 5: 7:11 Avg HR: 164
Mile 6: 6:45 Avg HR: 170
I'm trying not to over analyze every little workout, but at this point holding a 7:15 pace for 3+ hours seems highly unlikely. Does that mean I'm giving up on my goal of a 3:15 marathon? Not really, but it might mean working out a good strategy to achieve it. It's not realistic to think that I can go out there and run full speed for that amount of time. I need to work on starting at a slower pace and working up. I want to be strong at the end.
Core Training - 6 P.M.
Core training feels so good some days after a long day of desk jockeying and driving. After a good 8 or 9 ours behind the computer I feel...compacted. So to get those back muscles, core muscles, arm muscles and everything else engaged and stretched out is a godsend. Don't get me wrong it still hurts like a mother, but in a good way.
Spinning - 6:30 P.M.
I'm not sure what this class would be labeled: endurance, intervals? It was a lot of fun, so certainly it couldn't be endurance right? During the 60 minute session we went around the class and each person that wanted to "took the lead" in the pace line for a minute, and then later in the class it dropped to 45 seconds and 30 seconds. Instead of being in my own head the entire time I was more aware of the people around me that I was riding with much like you would be riding in a group or paceline on the road. It made the time move along a little more quickly and gave a little extra incentive to work harder. It was much needed since this was my third and final workout of the day. At the 30 minute mark I was feeling pretty wasted, and decided to lighten up on the resistance a bit. During the last 15 minutes I got a nice recovery kick though and was right back into it as we pulled the paceline to the finish.
I think this would be more of an interval class.
It's just another early morning treadmill run. The schedule called for a 6 mile today at my goal pace. So after a .5 mile warm up I set myself at a 7:13 pace and let it roll for the next 5 miles. I was very curious on what my heart rate would do over the course of the 6 miles, so I hit the lap button at every mile mark. It's a nice steady climb from mile to mile. I never felt like I was pushing too hard during the run. I was definitely pushing, but felt within my range for the run. I felt so good in fact that at mile 5 I kicked it up to about a 6:45 pace and crushed that last mile. It felt really, really good. The hamster wheel can be so boring that any change in pace is welcome. After blowing threw the 6 miles I had a nice easy walking .5 mile cool down.
Avg HR: 158
Peak HR: 176
Min HR: 103
Total Cal: 764
Mile 1: 7:14 Avg HR: 150
Mile 2: 7:11 Avg HR: 156
Mile 3: 7:09 Avg HR: 159
Mile 4: 7:11 Avg HR: 161
Mile 5: 7:11 Avg HR: 164
Mile 6: 6:45 Avg HR: 170
I'm trying not to over analyze every little workout, but at this point holding a 7:15 pace for 3+ hours seems highly unlikely. Does that mean I'm giving up on my goal of a 3:15 marathon? Not really, but it might mean working out a good strategy to achieve it. It's not realistic to think that I can go out there and run full speed for that amount of time. I need to work on starting at a slower pace and working up. I want to be strong at the end.
Core Training - 6 P.M.
Core training feels so good some days after a long day of desk jockeying and driving. After a good 8 or 9 ours behind the computer I feel...compacted. So to get those back muscles, core muscles, arm muscles and everything else engaged and stretched out is a godsend. Don't get me wrong it still hurts like a mother, but in a good way.
Spinning - 6:30 P.M.
I'm not sure what this class would be labeled: endurance, intervals? It was a lot of fun, so certainly it couldn't be endurance right? During the 60 minute session we went around the class and each person that wanted to "took the lead" in the pace line for a minute, and then later in the class it dropped to 45 seconds and 30 seconds. Instead of being in my own head the entire time I was more aware of the people around me that I was riding with much like you would be riding in a group or paceline on the road. It made the time move along a little more quickly and gave a little extra incentive to work harder. It was much needed since this was my third and final workout of the day. At the 30 minute mark I was feeling pretty wasted, and decided to lighten up on the resistance a bit. During the last 15 minutes I got a nice recovery kick though and was right back into it as we pulled the paceline to the finish.
I think this would be more of an interval class.
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
1/31/2007 Medium Recovery Run & Endurance Spinning
Medium Recovery Run
I decided to do my medium recovery run on the hamster wheel today. Mostly it was because I wanted to catch a spinning class after the run thereby fulfilling my brick training day, and partly because I was being a sissy and didn't want to run or ride in the cold. It's all good. In the interest of time I did the run first. It took about 42 minutes to do the 5 miles. I planted myself at an 8 minute pace and threw in 3 hill climbs with a 7% grade. I maintained the 8 minute/mile pace for the 1/4 mile hills.
I was using my heart rate monitor, but it was doing some funky things. One minute it would be reading what seemed like a normal heart rate for my exertion. It would suddenly drop out to below 100 or jump to over 200. Needless to say, the heart rate info was useless.
Endurance Spinning
I finished up my run just in time to cruise on down to a spinning class. It was kind of a boring endurance class with stretches of 8 to 10 minutes of varying levels of tension. As boring as these endurance sessions can be I try to stay focused and visualizing the road and the race courses of the duathlons. If I can stay focused and visualize the courses I think it will give me an advantage when I actually get out there. That is what the cycling portion of the triathlon/duathlon race is endurance. I'm not going to win a race in this section. I'm not doing any sprints to the finish, but if I can get through it with a descent time and plenty of gas left in my legs for the run. Well, that would just be fantastic. It was 60 minutes of endurance spinning.
I decided to do my medium recovery run on the hamster wheel today. Mostly it was because I wanted to catch a spinning class after the run thereby fulfilling my brick training day, and partly because I was being a sissy and didn't want to run or ride in the cold. It's all good. In the interest of time I did the run first. It took about 42 minutes to do the 5 miles. I planted myself at an 8 minute pace and threw in 3 hill climbs with a 7% grade. I maintained the 8 minute/mile pace for the 1/4 mile hills.
I was using my heart rate monitor, but it was doing some funky things. One minute it would be reading what seemed like a normal heart rate for my exertion. It would suddenly drop out to below 100 or jump to over 200. Needless to say, the heart rate info was useless.
Endurance Spinning
I finished up my run just in time to cruise on down to a spinning class. It was kind of a boring endurance class with stretches of 8 to 10 minutes of varying levels of tension. As boring as these endurance sessions can be I try to stay focused and visualizing the road and the race courses of the duathlons. If I can stay focused and visualize the courses I think it will give me an advantage when I actually get out there. That is what the cycling portion of the triathlon/duathlon race is endurance. I'm not going to win a race in this section. I'm not doing any sprints to the finish, but if I can get through it with a descent time and plenty of gas left in my legs for the run. Well, that would just be fantastic. It was 60 minutes of endurance spinning.
1/30/2007 Short Recovery Run
It was just cooooold today, but that wasn't going to keep me from getting out to do my short recovery run. After I dropped my little girl off at school I zipped over to Central Park to use the walking/jogging path. I only passed one other person foolish enough to be out on such a frigid day. The temperature said 20 degrees, but it felt like it was in the low teens with the wind whipping across the park. I kept the pace slow and did the 3.5 mile loop in 30 minutes.
I had a dream last night that I ran the Flying Pig in 3 hours and 39 minutes. I can only remember being at the end of the race and looking at my watch as my friend Chad ran up to me to ask how I did. I was extremely excited with the finish. Is this a glimpse into the future? I guess time will tell.
I had a dream last night that I ran the Flying Pig in 3 hours and 39 minutes. I can only remember being at the end of the race and looking at my watch as my friend Chad ran up to me to ask how I did. I was extremely excited with the finish. Is this a glimpse into the future? I guess time will tell.
Monday, January 29, 2007
1/29/2007 Strength Training
There is nothing particularly interesting to report here. After my long run yesterday it felt good to do some strength to warm up and stretch out tight muscles. I really felt very good though and didn't notice any pain or soreness until I started to stretch and work.
Elliptical = 15 minutes on Fat Burning
JC Bands Lunges with rows, Grey Bands - 15 each side.
Wall sit:
2 sets bicep curls 20 lbs. = 75 seconds each (about 15 reps)
2 sets shoulder press 20 lbs. = 75 seconds each (about 15 reps)
Walking lunges = width of court/back doing lat raises with 15lb. wts.
Hip adductor = 2 sets/12 reps 105 lbs.
Hip abductor = 2 sets/12 reps 105 lbs.
Clamshell Crunches with 10 lb. ball = 2x25
Elliptical = 15 minutes on Fat Burning
JC Bands Lunges with rows, Grey Bands - 15 each side.
Wall sit:
2 sets bicep curls 20 lbs. = 75 seconds each (about 15 reps)
2 sets shoulder press 20 lbs. = 75 seconds each (about 15 reps)
Walking lunges = width of court/back doing lat raises with 15lb. wts.
Hip adductor = 2 sets/12 reps 105 lbs.
Hip abductor = 2 sets/12 reps 105 lbs.
Clamshell Crunches with 10 lb. ball = 2x25
1/28/2007 Long Run
30 degrees doesn't sound so bad especially considering the conditions that mountain climbers regularly endure in the book I'm reading No Shortcuts to the Top by Ed Viesturs. Reading about temperatures and conditions that will cause you frostbite on exposed skin within minutes really puts things in perspective. How could I not go out on my long run just because of a little cold and snow. Some extra layers and Phedippidations on the iPod to keep my mind off the cold, and I was good to go.
The only thing I didn't think about was visibility. If I decide to do some snow running again I'll have to be prepared with some sort of glasses to keep the snow out of my eyes. It was more of an annoyance than anything, but it could've been more than annoyance if I didn't see some ice and busted my ass.
Distance: 11 miles
Avg. HR: 144
Max HR: 170
Total Time: 1:37.05
Pace: 8:49 min/mile
The pace was a little faster than I had intended, but I felt very comfortable the whole time. I tried to keep my heart rate down, but I was in a heightened state with the snow, and the fear of slipping. I still felt relatively relaxed and good with the pace.
The only thing I didn't think about was visibility. If I decide to do some snow running again I'll have to be prepared with some sort of glasses to keep the snow out of my eyes. It was more of an annoyance than anything, but it could've been more than annoyance if I didn't see some ice and busted my ass.
Distance: 11 miles
Avg. HR: 144
Max HR: 170
Total Time: 1:37.05
Pace: 8:49 min/mile
The pace was a little faster than I had intended, but I felt very comfortable the whole time. I tried to keep my heart rate down, but I was in a heightened state with the snow, and the fear of slipping. I still felt relatively relaxed and good with the pace.
Sunday, January 28, 2007
1/27/2007 Brick
Now that we are in the midst of a true winter season the days that it reaches above freezing are fewer, and those above freezing that coincide with my days off are rare. When I saw the thermometer say 40 degrees F there was very little that was going to keep me from getting out for a ride and a run. Unlike last year where I barely did any brick training at all I'm trying to start my brick training early and doing it regularly until the season starts. I want to get my body acclimated to that feeling of jumping off the bike and starting the run. I think that might have been part of my cramping problem last year.
Even though I was doing double duty I still wanted to keep the intensity pretty low. I didn't push it to hard on the bike, and with my computer not working I only had feeling to guide me. I kept a fairly brisk cadence and the tension low. The only time I really broke a sweat was going up the hill on Benton Rd. I still maintained a high cadence up the hill and geared down.
Since it was only scheduled as a short recovery run day I kept the run relatively brief and easy. I jogged at a very slow pace to start out until the legs loosened up and then stretched it out a bit, but still kept it slow.
1:08.34 Bike 17 mile
1:40 transition
23:00 Run 2.5 mile
Even though I was doing double duty I still wanted to keep the intensity pretty low. I didn't push it to hard on the bike, and with my computer not working I only had feeling to guide me. I kept a fairly brisk cadence and the tension low. The only time I really broke a sweat was going up the hill on Benton Rd. I still maintained a high cadence up the hill and geared down.
Since it was only scheduled as a short recovery run day I kept the run relatively brief and easy. I jogged at a very slow pace to start out until the legs loosened up and then stretched it out a bit, but still kept it slow.
1:08.34 Bike 17 mile
1:40 transition
23:00 Run 2.5 mile
Friday, January 26, 2007
1/25/2007 Strength, Core & Spinning
Strength
Elliptical = 8 minutes on Fat Burning
JC Bands Lunges with rows, Grey Bands - 15 each side.
Wall sit:
2 sets bicep curls 20 lbs. = 75 seconds each
2 sets shoulder press 20 lbs. = 75 seconds each
Walking lunges = width of court/back doing lat raises with 15lb. wts.
Hip adductor = 2 sets/12 reps 105 lbs.
Hip abductor = 2 sets/12 reps 105 lbs.
Core Class
We did something a little different during the 30 minute core class today. Using a 10 lb. dumb bell we did some side bends, pulled across the chest, and what sparkpeople calls a banana. After ditching the weight we did some work with a medicine ball and a bosu. It felt particularly good after a tough and stressful day at work.
Interval Spinning
It was my favorite class Interval Spinning today. The class was broken down into fairly large intervals. We did a couple of 5 minute intervals with moderate resistance. I tried to maintain a heart rate in the mid 150's. We went on to do a 10 minute standing at a higher heart rate. After a recovery we did another 10 minute interval set. It was 2 minutes sub-threshold, 3 minutes standing high heart rate and then repeat bringing the heart rate down to sub-threshold, and then standing for 3 minutes picking the heart rate back up. We finished out with a recovery. I must have missed something because it was a packed 70 minute workout.
Elliptical = 8 minutes on Fat Burning
JC Bands Lunges with rows, Grey Bands - 15 each side.
Wall sit:
2 sets bicep curls 20 lbs. = 75 seconds each
2 sets shoulder press 20 lbs. = 75 seconds each
Walking lunges = width of court/back doing lat raises with 15lb. wts.
Hip adductor = 2 sets/12 reps 105 lbs.
Hip abductor = 2 sets/12 reps 105 lbs.
Core Class
We did something a little different during the 30 minute core class today. Using a 10 lb. dumb bell we did some side bends, pulled across the chest, and what sparkpeople calls a banana. After ditching the weight we did some work with a medicine ball and a bosu. It felt particularly good after a tough and stressful day at work.
Interval Spinning
It was my favorite class Interval Spinning today. The class was broken down into fairly large intervals. We did a couple of 5 minute intervals with moderate resistance. I tried to maintain a heart rate in the mid 150's. We went on to do a 10 minute standing at a higher heart rate. After a recovery we did another 10 minute interval set. It was 2 minutes sub-threshold, 3 minutes standing high heart rate and then repeat bringing the heart rate down to sub-threshold, and then standing for 3 minutes picking the heart rate back up. We finished out with a recovery. I must have missed something because it was a packed 70 minute workout.
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
1/24/2007 Medium Recovery Run with Hills!
I had a few choices for getting in my run today. I could: A. get up at 5 am after getting to bed 4 hours prior at 1 am because I worked late. By doing that I could run outside in the dark. B. eat lunch early and squeeze in my run in to my 45 minute lunch. It would be a little shorter run, but I wouldn't have to get up as early or miss spending time with my family in the evening. C. run after work and not get home until close to 8 pm.
I may be crazy, but I'm not so crazy that I'm going to give up all my sleep and family time for some running. B was the only sane choice, and it turned out to be a really good choice. In addition to saving on some sleep time and undo stress on my marriage (She's already extremely understanding and supportive of my activities, why push it?) I got a chance to rediscover some great running around my work in a neighborhood I used to live. It's a great little urban neighborhood with lots of hills for these runs that require hills.
It was a shorter run than the schedule called for, so I had to make it count. I set a pace that felt like a good medium pace and just tried to keep it over the course of the run which covered 3 good size hills to climb and many smaller climbs and descents. It was a great run and energy boost in the middle of the day. It is something I will definitely be taking advantage of in the future.
It was a 4 mile route that took 32 minutes with an 8 minute pace.
I may be crazy, but I'm not so crazy that I'm going to give up all my sleep and family time for some running. B was the only sane choice, and it turned out to be a really good choice. In addition to saving on some sleep time and undo stress on my marriage (She's already extremely understanding and supportive of my activities, why push it?) I got a chance to rediscover some great running around my work in a neighborhood I used to live. It's a great little urban neighborhood with lots of hills for these runs that require hills.
It was a shorter run than the schedule called for, so I had to make it count. I set a pace that felt like a good medium pace and just tried to keep it over the course of the run which covered 3 good size hills to climb and many smaller climbs and descents. It was a great run and energy boost in the middle of the day. It is something I will definitely be taking advantage of in the future.
It was a 4 mile route that took 32 minutes with an 8 minute pace.
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