Week in Review

Time: 216:39
Distance: 32.17

This week was pretty much a bust. I continued to train smart and allow the body to get it's proper rest in order to heal. I even put down the beer bottle for the majority of the week as I don't think mixing ibuprofen and alcohol is particularly good for the liver. Also, I don't drink when I'm in a grumpy mood and not running puts me in a sour state. Hopefully this achilles nonsense doesn't last too much longer. The marathon is approaching quickly.

Eccentric Calf Loads

Time: 47:32
Distance: 7.05 miles
Pace: 6:44
Map

I went out to McAlpine with Meagan for the Sunday long run from Old Bell. I was going to run based on feel at an easy pace. I've read a few articles touting the benefits of eccentric calf raises/loads which are the downward or lowering motion of a calf raise. The idea is that the exercise helps to stretch and strengthen the tendon. I've done these in the past and have started doing them again after runs.

Today, I changed things up a bit by stopping near the 2 mile mark to do a set of 20 eccentric calf loads. The achilles was tightening up a bit and after the exercises it felt much better for the next 3 miles. I stopped again at 5 miles and repeated my routine. Once I was back at Old Bell after a total of 7 miles I did the calf loads again.

I made sure to stretch and massage my leg before throwing on a big bag of ice.

Focused on Healing

Time: 35:39
Distance: 5.28 miles
Pace: 6:44
Map

I put in a few miles on the achilles. Enough to get some blood flow to the area, but not enough to really do damage. It felt okay, not great.

Easy Miles

Time: 28:00
Distance: 4.08 miles
Pace: 6:51
Map

I drove down to the start of the creek bike path so I would have to run up or down any hills. I'm trying to do everything right for this achilles business. I have my shoe stuff with heel lifts and orthotics which is always fun for the feet. If it takes stress off my achilles, then I'm willing to try it.

Day Off for Healing

Time: none
Distance: none

I decided to take the day off.

Another Tester Run

Time: 52:52
Distance: 7.18 miles
Pace: 7:21
Map

Meagan and I ran from the Queens campus this morning because after the run we got in the pool. I was pretty hesitant on the run this morning because the achilles never improved as the miles added up. The pain never got worse, but rather stayed the same. Running uphill definitely increases the discomfort as pushing off isn't fun.

I was sure to stretch well after loosening things up in the pool.

Testing the Leg

Time: 56:36
Distance: 8.58 miles
Pace: 6:35
Map

I tested the achilles out this morning on a medium loop around Freedom Park. It felt okay but not great. Since I'm writing this a couple of weeks later, I can see that this run was a bit ambitious. I remember feeling slight discomfort in the calf/achilles that never really improved or worsened during the run.

Day Off for Recovery

Time: none
Distance: none

I went to the pool this morning and spent about 25 minutes aqua jogging. It sucked and brought back memories of the workouts Berg used to give at Brown University. I hated the pool and was often relegated to the wet training ground during my first couple of years in college.

I haven't had a day off in many weeks (Jan. 5th) and feel like today was a good one to take off. It was pouring rain this morning and I didn't feel bad when I didn't lace up the boots. Instead I came home and took a long nap. My body is telling me to sleep more and allow for things to recover.

I've been contrast bathing the achilles, icing and massaging all day. It's feeling pretty good right now. I'll run tomorrow and hopefully won't have to alter too much for the rest of the week.

Week in Review

Time: 668:34
Distance: 96.34 miles

I had a nice effort on Wednesday afternoon, but didn't quite get the amount of volume I was hoping for. I chatted with Jeff after the workout and told him why I cut it short at 11 miles. Despite not getting in the full workout, I gained confidence from it. I know that at the National Marathon I'll be capable of running up front near the leaders. If the pace drops to 5:15s at mile 18 I'm not going to back down or be afraid to continue pushing. I also know that if the pace is hovering around 5:22, I will be able to shake things up with a sub-5:15 mile or two. The body is responding well to the aerobic efforts.

Later in the week the amount of miles and lack of sleep caught up with me. My achilles started whispering that I better start paying better attention to all the minor details off the roads. I've incorporated very little stretching, icing or drills into my routine. I ended the week by listening to my body and not doing anything beyond what I thought it was capable of handling. Hard to do, but smart decision.

Shout out to Paul Mainwaring who took home the Cupid's Cup 5k crown on Saturday with a time of 15:58 and Caitlin Chrisman for winning the Winter Flight 8k. Also, congrats to Jay Holder who finished 3rd in the men's race up in Salisbury.

Big Day of Being Smart

Time: 93:08
Distance: 14.10 miles

W/u: 30:02 for 4.03 miles
W/o: 6 mile tempo at 5:15 to 5:25
C/d: 30:25 for 4.07 miles

Today was going to be a monster day in terms of fitness gains and evaluation. However, I played it smart and called the second effort off. The morning session was going to involve a 6 mile tempo run while the afternoon session was going to be an 8k race. The dual session workout in the same day is something that famed Italian marathon coach Renato Canova recommends and it was been adopted by others like Brad Hudson. The idea is to tire the legs out in the morning session and deplete some of the energy stores and then come back with a tough workout in the afternoon to really test the athlete both mentally and physically. I ran a workout like this in my lead up to the Austin Marathon last year, but never got to see the benefits because I got hurt with an achilles injury. See any similarities?

I started the first session from the house and warmed up to my 1.8 mile loop near the Dowd YMCA. The goal was to run marathon pace for 6 miles feeling relaxed as possible. As I walked down the stairs this morning the achilles felt fine, but the quads weren't happy. I had a general fatigue that was going to make today's efforts difficult.

The workout began and I tried to fall into a rhythm. My legs didn't want to get rolling and the splits showed it.

Splits:
5:26, 5:26, 5:29, 5:27, 5:26, 5:24 for 32:41 total and 6.0 miles.

I thought that after the first mile I would start seeing some sub-5:20s. Didn't happen. I struggled to keep the splits under 5:30. Perhaps knowing that I had an even harder workout in the afternoon kept me from really attacking during the session. I think the miles over the last couple of months are finally catching up with me. I only have 4 weeks until the marathon so I realize that a hefty taper is on the horizon.

My achilles didn't hold me back at all. I really only felt it on the 2 minute walk I took immediately following the tempo. It tightened up just a little before the cool down, but was fine during the jog home.

Once I got home I was sure to take an epsom salt bath, partly for the achilles, but mainly for the quads. I needed something to get rid of the general soreness before the Winter Flight 8k. I stretched, took some ibuprofen and massaged my legs. As I left the house I was a little hesitant to go through with the race in Salisbury. I tested the achilles with a little jog in the Dowd YMCA parking lot with Caitlin, Jay and Meagan present. I finished and knew I could run the race, but didn't know what would happen in the following days.

It was a tough decision to make, but I called off the race simply knowing that there was the potential of not running for a week. I could have run hard, improved the fitness, won some money, but not be able train for a few days. Or, I could step back, rest, be smart and start anew next week.

Jordan of yesteryear would have raced and faced the consequences, but today I tried to be intelligent. Why is it that the smart decision is sometimes the hardest one to make? I called Jeff soon after to explain why I elected not to race and he said that it was the right move. Not that he would have reprimanded me for choosing not to run, but the best coaches know when to pull their athletes back.

Umstead State Park

Time: 90:37
Distance: 12.31 miles
Pace: 7:20
Map

Last night Mike and I hung out on Duke's campus with some B-school kids. We ended up having a great time and I think Fuqua's status might have inched up a few points in Mike's book. Perhaps I will have a place to crash next fall when I travel to the Raleigh/Durham area.

We attended an auction that was raising money for the Special Olympics. First item on the ballot were tickets to an after party with the Black Eyed Peas. The winning bidder paid $800 for a limo ride, back stage passes with the dean and his wife and some other perks. Other items on the night included a signed Coach K basketball that went for $400, Kiawah resort rooms and a week in the British Virgin Islands. I was a little surprised to see grad students toss around $1500 bids for such items, but I guess that's how they roll at Fuqua. One guy that could afford to bid on such items and didn't was Pat Garrity who played 10 seasons in the NBA. That dude was huge.

We hit a restaurant and a few bars before calling it a night. In the morning Mike realized that he couldn't find his i.d. I remember him showing the bouncer at 12:30 the night before, but apparently it never made it back into his pocket. Somehow DeCoste managed to get his ass on the 7:20 flight back to Boston. And you wonder how KSM can get jihadists on flights.

After dropping Mike at the airport I headed to the Reedy Creek entrance at Umstead State Park. I had time to get in some extra zzz before the 8 am start of the run. I was meeting Joe Lust and Kevin Taylor for some miles through the park. Joe is the guy who I ran with one time a few months ago and Kevin is a former athlete of Steve Spence's at Shippenburg State.

I felt decent on the run, not great though. A couple of times we ran across Jim Micheels, owner of Raleigh Running Outfitters, putting in work. My achilles held up, but I could tell that the lack of sleep the last two night was catching up with me. The worst part of the body were my quads. I think the hills from Buehler's trail really thrashed them. It will be important for me to get some proper rest this weekend.

Al Buehler Cross Country Trail

Time: 60:03
Distance: 8.83 miles
Pace: 6:48
Map

I had a great morning of productivity lounging in the Duke Washington Inn drinking coffee, chatting on the phone, writing orders and emailing accounts. I took a quick break and headed off to grab some food and more free Internet. Dunkin' Donuts provided the food, drink and wifi. They say "America runs on Dunkin'" and in my case it might be true. I finished up some final projects and then set off in search of a good running spot.

When I was a sophomore at Brown the track team came down to the Duke/UNC area over spring break. Most of our workouts were on the Duke track and our runs were around campus and on the Al Buehler trail. I remember exactly where it was, but had forgotten how long or how hilly the path is. I started the run very relaxed making sure to monitor the lower leg. Everything felt fine and as the body warmed up the pace dropped. There is a nasty hill on the far side of the path that I felt great running up, but coming down really slammed the quads. I will definitely return to this training location in future trips.

DeCoste in Durham

Time: 32:16
Distance: 4.16 miles
Pace: 7:45
Map

I got little sleep last night as DeCoste had to be in front of the Fuqua building by 8:45 am and I had to be on a call at 9:00 am. We hit the roads for a short jog before heading to Duke's campus. It wasn't the best training site as we were fighting for room on the road with commuters. We managed to fit in a little over 30 minutes and found just over 4 miles. My achilles felt fine this morning during the run.

Another Medium Loop

Time: 59:45
Distance: 8.55 miles
Pace: 6:59
Map

I hit the roads this evening again for some more miles. They were nice and easy to allow the body to recover. After thinking about it for awhile I think this might have been the first run where I felt the slightest niggle in my achilles. I remember it getting dark and running up one of the hills on the Booty Loop and thinking that my left achilles feels a little off. Not a hurting pain, but slightly off.

Tonight I packed up my stuff and drove to Durham in order to pick up my former teammate Mike DeCoste who's interviewing at Fuqua School of Business. It will be a long drive and late night, but great to catch up with "Coste." Hopefully we'll get to chat about some boring stories of glory days.

Recovery Miles with Meagan

Time: 61:55
Distance: 8.52 miles
Pace: 7:15
Map

This was one of those runs that could be as slow as the legs request. Meagan and I headed out for some morning miles through Freedom Park. The body doesn't feel too banged up from yesterday's abbreviated tempo run. I might have a case of DOMS where the muscle fatigue hits a day or too later.

How to Ruin a Tempo Run

Time: 98:58
Distance: 16.13 miles

W/u: 18:24 for 2.41 miles
W/o: 15 mile tempo run at MP or faster
C/d: 21:27 for 2.72 miles

You read that right. A 15 mile tempo run was supposed to take place out at McAlpine this afternoon. I spent the morning working at home before dipping out to get in this major workout. I had high hopes of nailing the pace and effort, but at the same time didn't want to put too much stock in one effort. I felt fine on the warm up from Old Bell. After leaving a water bottle filled with Gatorade Endurance at the mile mark, I turned and headed back to the parking lot. I slipped into a pair of racing flats and tried to picture the workout in my mind.

I estimated that I would be out for about 80-82 minutes if all went according to plan. The trail wasn't in great shape and I figured it would be running a little slow due to the recent rains. If I hit 5:30s early on then I just had to keep the focus on and not get too discouraged over slow splits.

Here's how you ruin a tempo run...

Splits:
5:11.0, 5:11.9, 5:25.4, 5:23.8, 5:17.5, 5:14.0, 5:23.6, 5:26.0, 5:28.0, 5:28.7, 5:37.7 for 59:07 and 11 miles.

Yea, that was a little aggressive at the start. During mile 1, I looked down and saw that I was running 5:08 pace. It felt relaxed and I had a slight wind at my back, but that's way too fast for the surface and duration of this workout. I relaxed a bit and hit the mile in 5:11. I grabbed the water bottled that I stashed and continued on my way to the start of the Footlocker Course. It felt liked I had backed off and I wasn't too worried about the pace for this mile because I was carry about 20 oz. of Gatorade. I told myself that a 5:25 split would be perfect. It was good to see that I dropped another 5:11, but I knew I might have just ruined the workout.

The route took me out to the greenway across the bridge near the half mile mark on the Footlocker Course. The pace slowed as there is a slight incline. A crosswind also helped slow the pace, but I was still feeling relatively strong. I turned at 4 miles and headed back to the start of the Footlocker Course dropping two sub-5:20 miles. Again, it was good to see a 5:14 split, but I knew it was still early to be running that fast.

I planned to run 3 laps of the Footlocker Course to get in the final 9 miles. Mentally this was going to be the easiest part of the workout because I am most familiar with the miles. In hindsight I think I made a miscalculation as physically these were probably the toughest miles. I ran mile 8 in 5:26 which included the hill. The wheels started falling off during mile 9 where I dropped a 5:28. The back woods section was muddy and as I was tiring making the terrain less efficient started the downward spiral. I ran another 5:28 on the section with the wind at my back (first mile of the course) and then I was tapped as I went up over the hill (5:38).

The hamstrings were finished and the early pace caught up to me. I wasn't going to be able to get things back on track in the last 4 miles and, frankly, I didn't want to see 5:40s. I stopped at 11 miles and took my workout of 1 hour of hard running. Obviously, it's never fun to stop a workout short, but sometimes you have to realize when the last 25 minutes of a workout are going to do more harm than good.

Zap Fitness

Time: 34:54
Distance: ~4 miles

On my drive out to Greenville this morning I fired up TweetDeck and noticed a tweet from the Zap Fitness page. I learned that the team was going to be in Greenville for the next month. I quickly shot a text to my buddy Dave Nightingale and confirmed that the team was in fact staying near Furman University. It was great that we were able to meet up later in the day for a run on Furman's campus.

I met some other guys on the team including Ryan Warrenburg, Frank Tinney, Dave Jankowski, Nate Peck and Nick Polk. They were living the life of a distance runner this afternoon. Lounging around the apartment watching tv, messing around on the Internet and napping. We had some good laughs and shared recent stories. The big news for them was that Craig Lake recently "stepped down" from Brown University.

The group that went out to run was just the two Dave's, two athletes from Furman and me. We ran on some trails, roads and campus sidewalks. Always a fun time to catch up with some very talented runners. Jankowski recently soloed 13:40 something up at the launch pad (Boston University's indoor facility which is ridiculously fast) in Boston. Good times.

Familiar Territory

Time: 37:50
Distance: 5.40 miles
Pace: 7:00
Map

Another quick loop through Freedom Park this morning before I headed off to Greenville, SC. I was feeling splendid this morning and rattled off some decent splits for a morning run. I felt much better than I did on some recent runs. I have a big workout planned for tomorrow so knowing that the body feels recovered to great.

Back at Umstead

Time: 60:08
Distance: 9.01 miles
Pace: 6:40
Map

I found some time this afternoon to slip off and go for a run at Umstead State Park. I ran here once before with a few guys I happened to run into. That day it was cold and rainy. Today it was cold and rainy. I didn't realize rain was in the forecast so I didn't bring a jacket. Luckily, I had gloves which increased my comfort level a bit. My legs felt good and I definitely needed the soft surface found in the park. The dirt path was in relatively good shape despite the recent snow and rainfall. If I lived in Raleigh/Durham, I could see myself training in Umstead daily. There would be a lot of out and back running but the rolling terrain is pretty ideal.

Wicked Early

Time: 39:00
Distance: 5.33 miles
Pace: 7:23
Map

I was out the door at 5:12 am for a short loop through Freedom Park. I am hitting the road early in order to be in Raleigh by 9:00 am. TrySports Raleigh is having a short tech session for the staff with me. The streets were dark and quiet. I was able to cross Woodlawn both times with ease. The legs don't seem to be too beat up after yesterday's long run over Charlotte's streets and sidewalks.

Week in Review

Time: 685:19
Distance: 99.38 miles

Well, I just missed out on triple digits. I should have run the full 20 miles on Sunday. No worries though. I probably didn't record some of the miles during my workout on Friday afternoon. I had a decent week of training. Work and travel this week was important. I missed a light recovery workout, but cut some quality shapes in terms of true hard sessions. Next week will be a big one in terms of mileage and intensity. On Wednesday I have a 15 mile tempo run.

Collection of Charlotte's Running Class

Time: 121:24
Distance: 18.10 miles
Pace: 6:42
Map

We had a great group this morning meet at the Dowd YMCA. I will struggle to recall everyone but off the top of my head I can name: Jay, Aaron, Paul, Alana, Mark, Mike, Ben, Megan, Dan, Caitlin, and many more. I think there were about 20 of us total. Having the group to run with was fun, but I didn't feel great. It wasn't a smart idea to eat that bowl of cereal at 10 pm with sour milk. I didn't think I was going to have a problem, but that wasn't the case. I must have had to stop at least 4 times. It sucked. I haven't had one of those types of runs in quite some time, I guess I was just due.

I will look at the positive side of the run which is the fact that in order to catch up I had to drop the pace. Several times I looked down at the Garmin and saw I was running 5:40 pace in order to regroup. The mini surges felt relaxed and in control. I was surprised to see the pace feel so comfortable. Once I made it back to the YMCA around 17.5 miles I decided to add on a little before calling it a day. There was little need to hit 20 just so that I could say I ran 20. I'll take my 18 and hopefully round out another week with triple digits.

Nearly Melted

Time: 56:21
Distance: 8.56 miles
Pace: 6:35
Map

The snow is nearly gone. It sucks what they did to all those Myrtle Beach Marathoners. I went back out for some miles and found the streets to have pretty good footing. I happened to good as well. I think after running 4:35 pace on the intervals yesterday, running mid-6:00 pace felt really easy. The body is holding up well and I had a nice relaxing recovery run that was a bit faster than usual.

Slow on Snow

Time: 44:40
Distance: 5.34 miles
Pace: 8:21
Map

The streets of Charlotte are once again covered in snow. Actually, it's not that bad. The cars, trees and grass are all covered, but the roads are relatively fine. That being said, parts of today's run were slippery. I needed a true recovery run after the shape cutting session and that's what I got this morning.

Cutting Shapes in the Snow

Time: ~64:22 (actual run time)
Distance: ~10.85 miles (actual run distance)

W/u: 23:14 for 3.11 miles
W/o: 25 x 400 in 66-69 w/ 1 min recovery
C/d: 12:10 for 1.51 miles

Let's get things rolling. I promised to update this bad boy and didn't. Usually I update starting with the oldest run first, but not tonight. I'm going to hit things from the most recent to oldest. Not sure if you will want to read all of the runs, but here it goes.

This afternoon I drove my new Jetta VW Sportwagon TDI, (yup, new owner of a family friendly vehicle, more on that yesterday which comes later) to Providence Day School. I had an important workout to complete before the snow started. Thoughts on this workout were good, but it's a long one that requires a lot of focus.

I warmed up to the Boyce parking lot bathroom of McAlpine and then returned to the high school campus. The legs were feeling good at this point which I usually don't like. I, for some reason, have good workouts when the legs feel bad on the warm up and bad workouts when they feel good. It was chilly this afternoon and I was layered in some Craft gear when I hit the track to change into some flats.

I mentally broke the workout into 5 sections of 5 reps. Basically, I told myself to run a mile and then one extra 400m interval. That was step one, now just repeat 5 times.

Splits:
72.24, (61), 69.37, (60), 67.77, (59), 67.80, (59), 68.95, (60);
68.97, (59), 68.88, (59), 68.86, (69), 67.95, (60), 68.40, (61);
68.64, (59), 67.93, (59), 68.28, (61), 68.71, (60), 67.45, (61);
68.58, (60), 68.14, (60), 68.41, (60), 67.52, (60), 67.88, (60);
68.56, (60), 67.50, (61), 69.00, (60), 66.65, (60), 65.35 for 52:58 total time and roughly 7.5 miles. Average of 68.31.

Check out those first two splits. I thought this was going to be a bad one. After all, my legs felt good on the warm up. Luckily, I was able to dial in the splits that I needed to run by the third interval. I remained smooth and relaxed throughout. In fact, I think if I had someone working out with me, I could have averaged low 67s. The pace never felt all that quick and the rest seemed like an eternity compared to the 800 workout I ran last week.

I had to think that this workout wasn't going to be all that bad. I had 30 more seconds rest, was running half the distance and only had to run 3-4 seconds faster than what I was splitting through the 400 mark. I had the confidence need to run this workout strong and am pleased with the splits.

It started snowing around interval number 12. A light flurry began and it continued to get more serious as the workout progressed. It was fun to see the snow begin to accumulate on the grass while the track remained relatively snowless. That certainly isn't the case anymore by the looks of the parking lot outside.

The Mini covered in snow next to the TDI Sportwagon. Meagan wants to call him Felix.

Morning Miles

Time: 52:16
Distance: 7.35 miles
Pace: 7:06
Map

I ran this morning mainly to boost the week's total mileage. I have a good sized workout this afternoon that I need to fit in before the coming snow storm. The pace this morning was nice and easy so that I could get some miles without really tiring the legs.

Medium Loop with Meagan

Time: 61:07
Distance: 8.55 miles
Pace: 7:08
Map

I ran this morning with Ms. Nedlo on the "medium loop" through Freedom Park. She tells a nice story about how we slept in to the magnificent hour of 7:30 am. I needed the extra rest in order to gear up for today.

I will continue showing Jay and Eric the local accounts this morning. First up is the Charlotte Running Company and then a quick fly by Run For Your Life. The day will end at TrySports when we show the FW10 Craft line. I've had a great time thus far exploring opportunities with Jay and Eric in my territory. Of course, it makes it a lot easier to present material when you have the president and general manager of Karhu and Craft along with you.

Later today I hope to purchase my first vehicle. I received word that a 2010 Jetta Sportwagon TDI manual is now on site at VW South Charlotte. I'm going to go check things out and see if we can work out a deal.

Update Coming Soon

I need to update this bad boy. Hopefully I will have some time this evening to sit down and throw down a week long catch up post. I will hint that the training is going really well. Workouts good. Long runs good. Easy days easy.

Stay tuned...

Another Dark Loop

Time: 58:51
Distance: 8.67 miles
Pace: 6:47
Map

I had a busy day of visits starting in Durham. I picked up Jay Duke at the Duke Washington Inn. Pretty sweet hotel. The afternoon ended in Carrboro where I got to see Fleet Feet Inc.'s HQ. It's right up the street from UNC Chapel Hill and around the corner from Fleet Feet Carrboro. I had the chance to catch up with Bridget Duffy too who used to compete against my high school coach's daughter back in California. Bridget's little brother, Matt, currently runs for Brown University. Ms. Duffy now works for Fleet Feet and helps oversee Saucony's business in all the locations. Such a small world of running.

I got home this evening and laced up the boots for another run around Myers Park. If I thought it was windy this morning, it was nothing in comparison to this evening's run. I didn't feel great out there which might have been due to the giant burrito that I ate at lunch. Oh well. Carrburritos hit the spot.

Windy Loop

Time: 60:23
Distance: 8.55 miles
Pace: 7:03
Map

I ran a windy loop this morning through Freedom Park. I started at 5:41 am in order to get some miles before heading off to Raleigh. I don't mind the early start time, but combine it with cold, dark and windy and you have a perfect combo of not fun.

All I Can Get

Time: 51:02
Distance: 7.38 miles
Pace: 6:55
Map

I have to be on my best behavior today as the president and general manager of Karhu and Craft are meeting with me for some account visits. First up is a stop at Omega Sports HQ in Greensboro, NC. I first met Jay Duke (president) at the Running Event in Austin when I first got hired and later at the bi-annual sales meeting. The sales meeting is also where I first met Eric who is incredibly passionate about the products he oversees.

Since I'm trying to catch up on a lot of posts, this is the good reason as to why I was so far backed up with my blog. We hit several accounts in the Raleigh/Durham and Charlotte area that involved a lot of driving and being on point. Jay has a great attitude and a saavy business intellect that is leading Karhu in the right direction. His leadership is moving the company and brands into a new level of recognition. Keep an eye out for Runner's World advertisements along with shoe reviews of the Karhu Forward Ride.

Double Doubles

Time: 58:58
Distance: 8.54 miles
Pace: 6:54
Map

I just noticed that his morning's run was 55:55 and tonight's was 58:58. What are the odds of hitting doubles on two runs in a day? The streets around the Booty Loop were quiet tonight. I had a relaxing run to put some time on the feet. Both runs today were purposely slow in order to give my legs a chance to recover. I had a huge weekend of mileage and it will be important to monitor the pounding in the next few days.

Wandering for Miles

Time: 55:55
Distance: 7.49 miles
Pace: 7:28
Map

Meagan had a meeting this morning at work so we headed out the door with a destination in mind. I ran the first 4.5 miles or so with her before heading off back through Freedom Park. I found almost an hours worth of miles and had plenty of time to load up the Mini for a quick day trip up to Fleet Feet Roanoke.

I showed the SS10 Craft triathlon gear to the owners and it was well received. I also shared with them a new product that I'm carrying called Orthaheel. It's an orthotic sandal that provides proper support to users. I have a pair, as does Meagan, and we both really like them. They are more stylish and comfortable than other orthotic sandals that I've worn in the past.

Week in Review

Time: 750:35
Distance: 109.32 miles

Things might have gotten a little out of control over the weekend. I logged over 40 miles for Saturday and Sunday. However, a good portion of those miles were really easy and run at over 7:30 pace. I recognize that I'm pushing the envelope, but I still feel like my body is holding up. I'm getting good sleep, the legs aren't sluggish and the accumulation of miles is only helping the aerobic system.

I was thrilled with the two workouts this week. The Gaudette 800s on Weds and the 10 mile tempo run on Saturday were huge confidence building sessions. I wasn't thrilled with running in the rain four times this week.

PDS Long Run

Time: 136:04
Distance: 20.16 miles
Pace: 6:44
Map

I got up and out the door early for a long run from Providence Day School. Originally, I thought it was just going to be Paul Mainwaring, Jay, Tom and me. I guess word got out and a few more joined us for the jaunt. I believe others included Aaron, Scott and Stephen Spada. It was a good crew and the pace was tame from the beginning. I was happy to have others to chat with while the miles clicked off. The only real concern on the day was miles 15, 16 and 17 where I needed to pick up the pace to MP.

Paul's loop brought us back to McAlpine around the 11 mile mark. A quick spin on the gravel allowed us to hit the PDS track at 14 miles. I rallied the legs and then ripped off a few quicker miles. I wanted to hit 5:20s as comfortably as possible.

Splits:
5:18, 5:17, 5:10 for 15:45.

My first 400 was a bit brisk with a 75, but I soon fell into a groove. The legs were tired after yesterday's effort. It took a bit of focus to maintain the pace. The 3 miles went by relatively quickly and I finished the uptempo section strong. I was a bit shocked to drop a 5:10 towards the end of a long run the day after a hard workout. Granted, I was on a track and the pace had been relaxed up to that point.

I ran an easy couple of miles to close out the run and called it a day.

10 mile Tempo Run

Time: 127:09
Distance: 19.45 miles

W/u: 31:54 for 4.18 miles
W/o: 10 mile tempo at MP or faster
C/d: 42:00 for 5.27 miles

After getting CPR certified I spent a relaxing afternoon at home trying to get fired up to run this workout. I needed to run well to know that the legs are still feeling fresh and to confirm that the training is going in the right direction. I mapped out a route near the Dowd YMCA that I would loop several times. Essentially, it was a roughly 1.80 mile loop that provided some uphills and downhills, a few turns and little traffic.

I warmed up from the house with my flats in hand. The plan was to first run to RFYL so that I could ditch the tights and change the shoes. I would then continue on to the corner of my starting point down by Latta Park. I didn't realize that the warm up was going to put me over 4 miles. Oh well, these are the mistakes that I can make with marathon training.

Splits:
5:23, 5:22, 5:19, 5:22, 5:18,
5:25, 5:12, 5:24, 5:19, 5:12 for 53:15 total.

Man that was rough, but good. I felt very much in control throughout and fell into a nice rhythm along the loop. I focused on taking advantage of the downhills, and pressing on the uphill sections without losing form or going to the well. I was pleased at how I was able to maintain a consistent effort without letting the slow miles get to me. When I had a little more downhill on the section I split 5:12, when it was more difficult the split ended up being mid-5:20s. I had a good chat about this workout with Jeff and his comments reiterated that the training is going well.

I cooled down back to RFYL and then got lost as I attempted to find a shortcut back through Freedom Park. The miles really added up quickly this afternoon, but the body is still responding well.

Getting CPR Certified

Time: 38:16
Distance: 5.30 miles
Pace: 7:12
Map

This morning I have a CPR certification training for the Let Me Run program here in Charlotte. You can read more about the program on their website, but it's more or less Girls On the Run for boys. I hope that I'm able to coach because last I heard there was a possibility that my school won't have enough participation.

I was able to fit in a few miles before heading off to the training. I was a little disappointed that I couldn't run with the Charlotte Running Club's Run for Haiti this morning. Great idea.

I have a substantial workout this afternoon that will tell me if the training is going in the right direction. It's going to be a 10 mile tempo run at MP or faster.

Lashed Cats and Mingers

Time: 64:56
Distance: 10.01 miles
Pace: 6:29
Map

This morning I got up, got dressed and went downstairs for my morning run. I took one look at the parking lot and decided "uh-uh." Those weather folks were right about today's weather. This run wasn't happening.

I went back inside and prepared for a conference call. During my procrastination I spotted that Caitlin Chrisman asked if anyone would run 6:30s with her today. I needed some motivation to actually get out of the house and venture into the cold rain. We planned to meet later in the afternoon for some wet miles through and around Freedom Park.

It was still pouring when we started running and never really let up. My shoes were well soaked at 20 minutes. The pace was honest throughout the run. They say misery loves company, and today it was true. The run ended up being so much better with someone to chat with and run alongside. Had I gone out solo, I definitely would have cut the run short.

Bachelor Weekend

Time: 59:11
Distance: 8.57 miles
Pace: 6:54
Map

I didn't get out the door for this run until a few ticks before 6:00 pm. Meagan left for a meet in NYC this weekend where she is running a 5k at the legendary Armory track. I raced there my first time as a senior in high school. It's a splendid venue that has a lot of history to it.

Since Meagan is gone until Super Bowl Sunday, I'm free to make a mess of the house. I think I'll lounge around in my sandals and bathrobe eating cereal at odd times of the day.

The run tonight was fine. It started raining about 20 minutes into the run which makes it the third run this week that I've run in the rain. I was lucky to be dressed appropriately for the weather and really didn't mind it this time. I know it's supposed to be nasty tomorrow, but we'll see if those weather folks are right.

Minor Error

Time: 55:38
Distance: ~7.5 miles

I was up early and out the door to meet some peeps at the Dowd YMCA. I was content to hang at the back of the pack this morning morning and relax. The legs don't feel too hammered after yesterday's session, but I need to take today really easy.

Somehow Mr. Garmin completely goofed and clocked the run at 15.31 miles. I think the satellite recorded something from yesterday's workout and tacked in on this run. That's an average pace of 3:38 which is well under the mile world record. I guess as Owen says, "live by the watch, die by the watch."

Gaudette 800s

Time: 71:12
Distance: 10.44 miles

W/u: 24:23 for 3.20 miles
W/o: 10 x 800 in 2:20-2:25 w/ 30 sec. rest
C/d: 18:03 for 2.24 miles

This is the real post about my workout. The other was simply to live in the moment.

I had emailed Jeff earlier in the week asking if the 30 second rest was a typo and he informed me that 30 seconds was correct. The workout itself mirrored Yasso 800s which is a good predictor workout for marathon runners. However, with Yasso 800s you get equal rest to the time you run the 800s. That certainly isn't the case with Gaudette 800s.

I warmed up from the Johnson C. Smith track and learned that there really isn't a good place to warm up from the facility. Normally, I make a few loops around the track and pass the time on the infield grass. Due to the rainfall yesterday the grass was soaked and I opted to find some miles on the road. I managed to put in over 20 minutes before getting back to the track.

Jenna Wrieden, assistant coach at Queens University, was at the track for the sprinters' workout this afternoon. I timed my workout to coincide with their presence. I find that I run better when there are other people on the track with me, even if they aren't doing the same workout. When I told Jenna about my workout was, she responded with a laugh. That's basically how I was feeling heading into it. I didn't necessarily think the splits and rest were unrealistic, but I thought it was going to be one of those efforts where you run fine for the first 4 intervals and it goes downhill from there. I figured this might be one of those workouts where you either end up lengthening the rest or running slower intervals. I approached the workout with confidence, but there are always a few doubts...

Splits:
2:22.71, (31), 2:25.47, (31), 2:25.26, (29), 2:25.06, (30), 2:25.32, (30),
2:25.55, (31), 2:25.15, (31), 2:26.70, (31), 2:25.55, (30), 2:23.53 for 28:46 total (including rest).

Very pleased with this workout. I managed to stay relaxed through half of the workout. I needed to focus on running intervals 6, 7 and 8 well and I knew I could finish the last couple strong. Thirty seconds rest is not a lot of time. On the last 4 intervals I had just enough time to slow my momentum, walk past the line, take a deep breath and get started again.

I'm not exactly sure what this workout says about my marathon potential. To be honest, running 2:22 to 2:25 isn't that hard in terms of getting the legs to turnover. I've always questioned the Yasso 800 predictor workout and find it hard to believe that it works beyond a certain time. Could Geb, Wanjiru or Hall go out and run 2:05s with 2 mins rest for 10 x 800? I'm not sure, but probably. Where does the predictor fall short? How do you get it back on track? Could Geb, Wanjiru or Hall run 10 x 800 in 2:05 w/ 30 secs rest? Who knows. Regardless, an athlete knows when he/she has run a quality workout and that is all that is necessary for boosting their confidence going into a race.

Nailed It

I gotta post a little something about my workout this afternoon before I take off to Columbia, SC for a work related event.

Workout on paper: 10 x 800 in 2:20 to 2:25 with 30 sec. rest.

Thoughts about workout: Surely the 30 sec. rest is a typo

Coach Jeff G: Confirmation that the workout is right and that I'm given only 30 sec. rest. So much for Yasso 800s. These are Gaudette 800s!

Quick Splits:
2:22.71, (31), 2:25.47, (31), 2:25.26, (29), 2:25.06, (30), 2:25.32, (30),
2:25.55, (31), 2:25.15, (31), 2:26.70, (31), 2:25.55, (30), 2:23.53

Felt Like Crap

Time: 45:19
Distance: 6.08 miles
Pace: 7:27
Map

I did not have a good run tonight despite the great company. I commented on Caitlin's FB status that the JCSU track was flooded on the top of the turn and she decided to change workout venues. A small group met at the Dowd YMCA for a light fartlek workout. I had planned to pick up the pace, but when I found out that tomorrow was supposed to be nice I got visions of running 800s. I have this big 800 meter workout that I've been looking forward to/dreading. I need to run it, but it's written with an ambitious tone. I felt sluggish and cold on tonight's run and hope tomorrow will bring a new aggression.

Rough Weather

Time: 51:18
Distance: 7.48 miles
Pace: 6:51
Map

I didn't want to run this morning, but I did. It was 35, raining and the streets were still slushy when I started. I tested out my Craft ProWarm XC socks and they kept the toes feeling nice. The took a spin through Freedom Park and finished at Avis on South. I was lucky to have the wind at my back for the second half of the run. I had originally planned to drive up to Roanoke, VA to visit an account today, but upon return from the run I spoke to the owner of the store who said that it had just started snowing there. I decided to postpone the trip until next week and will now have the opportunity to run again this evening.

Providence Day Night Workout

Time: 61:32
Distance: 9.33 miles

W/u: 8:05 for 1.08 miles
W/o: 2 miles, 1 mile jog, 3 miles
C/d: 18:26 for 2.25 miles

Tonight I met up with Paul, Billy and Michael Hefner out at the Providence Day track. Paul was warmed up and ready to start his session of 2 x 3 miles in 5:30 when I arrived. I wasn't really looking to get in a workout, but saw the opportunity to help out. After a short warm up of a mile I jumped in just as Paul was completing his first mile.

Splits:
10:56, (7:29), 16:36 for 35:01 total and 6 miles

The track, for the most part, was clear of snow and ice. A section at the top of the turn got a little interesting as the stars began to come out. I felt very relaxed and in control running with Paul this evening. It was a fun night out on the track and I was thankful to be off the roads and mostly away from slippery conditions.

Ice Rink

Time: ~40 mins
Distance: ~5 miles

Another rough run. The conditions weren't that bad, but the roads were. The icy sections made running feel like an ice rink. I nearly took a header if it weren't for my Apolo Ohno skills. Training is going to be rough for the next few days until the weather starts to cooperate again. Meagan and I skipped running out through Freedom Park and opted to take the neighborhood roads. The conditions weren't much better. My right upper thigh is rather sore after yesterday's long run.