Meagan's Ready, Achilles Acts Up

Time: 78:13
Distance: 11 miles

W/u: 23:47 for ~3 miles
W/o: 15 minutes up tempo, (3 min recovery), 6 x 3:00 (1 min.), (3:00 recovery), 20 minutes at Meagan's MP
C/d: 8:14

This morning Meagan and I drove over to the parking lot of Bull City Running Co. where the paved side American Tobacco Trail starts/ends. We had her last big pre-Houstaon Marathon workout to complete as it was 10 days out from race day. The workout involved 15 minutes of up tempo running to wake up the legs, 6 x 3 minutes hard to tire out the legs and labor the breathing and then 20 minutes of marathon paced running. Simple enough right?

Splits:
15:00 up tempo (6:35, 6:28 for the first two miles)
(3:00 rest)
4 x 3:00 (1:00 rest) *I only did four as I had to run to the Kroger bathroom and my achilles wasn't feeling great.
(11:01 combined rest as Meagan finished the last two intervals)
20:00 marathon pace 6:11, 6:11, 6:07, 1:33 for final 400m

Meagan never sounded great during the workout, but I'm unconcerned as her fitness is where it needs to be. The early miles at 6:30 pace were more labored than they should have been, but she hung tough the rest of the workout. We were coming through the 800m mark of the 3 minute intervals in about 2:50 each time. The rest was kept short on purpose so that she would feel tired at the start of the final and most important segment. It's nearly impossible to replicate the race day feel of the marathon's late miles. All one can do is learn how to run with tired legs focusing on maintaining form and pace.

My achilles was a little stiff when I woke up this morning and had this not been Meagan's final big workout, I probably would not have run as far or as hard. By the end of the run I had to cut my cool down short. The fleshy part just above the achilles is tight and bothersome. Not good, not good.

Umstead State Park

Time: 57:34
Distance: ~8 miles

This evening, after visiting Raleigh Running Outfitters, TAF Raleigh, TrySports Raleigh, Fleet Feet Raleigh, Bull City Running Co., Inside-Out Sports and Raleigh Running Outfitters in Cary, it was time to go on run number two. We weren't too far from Umstead State Park which is always a great place to run. Again it was Meagan's first time to run here and I ran with her for 3 miles on the way out. She turned and returned back to the parking lot while I continued on for another mile (30:00 on the watch).

I flipped back and upped the tempo just a touch to get back prior to 6:00 pm. There were signs posted everywhere you looked saying the gates are locked at that time. I returned with about 10 minutes to spare. I cleaned up best I could before taking off in the direction of our hotel.

My achilles was alright, but I can tell it's still a little off. The hilly terrain were probably not the best for it on today's morning and evening runs.

Duke's Al Buehler Trail

Time: 45:50
Distance: ~6 miles

Duke's campus has a gem of a hilly ~3 mile trail that loops around the Duke Washington Inn and Golf Course. It's frequented by students, local runners and out of town travelers like Meagan and me. We ran two loops around the trail this morning at a nice gentle pace. My right achilles felt perhaps felt a little strained running up the one monster hill on the backside of the loop. Meagan had only run in the Duke Forest previously so it was cool to show her this great venue.

The rest of our day was spent visiting accounts in the Raleigh and Durham areas.

Hydration Double

Time: 55:40
Distance: ~7.2 miles

After a successful day of account visits and a hydration clinic at Fleet Feet Carrboro, I got to run with the half-marathon training group. Meagan was along for the ride and joined us as well. I ran through the dark neighborhoods with several people dressed in their neon running gear. It was a lively group that had many questions for me to answer. We completed one loop and then headed out for another. Two loops is how I roll. There is a story about running two loops that is worth being told at some point. It involves Kenyans, Kansas and a 40 mile run. I don't have time to go into details now, but hopefully soon.

Miles Before Travel

Time: 41:27
Distance: ~5.3 miles

Meagan and I ran a short loop through Freedom Park this morning before hitting the road. I have a lot of account visits this week starting with Fleet Feet Winston-Salem. I'll swoop through Durham, Carrboro, Raleigh, Durham again, then Cary with my final stops coming in Greensboro. It's going to be action packed with me slanging socks, apparel, Nuun, Body Glide and sandals.

Muddy McAlpine

Time: 60:38
Distance: ~8 miles

Early in the afternoon I took a break and met up with some local runners who had MLK Jr. Day off from work. The melted snow has made a mess of the trails at McAlpine and I was none too happy. I'm not sure who said McAlpine was good to run on over the weekend, but it was a little too soft for my liking. I'm still trying to nurse the achilles back to health and while it is really really close to being 100%, I don't need to mess things up by running on a mushy surface.

Meagan, Compton, Ben and I all met up at Old Bell right on time. Somehow Paul Mainwaring and Ben Hovis didn't get the memo and went to Boyce instead. We spotted them further up the course and eventually got to run together and bicker back and forth as to who messed up. I still say they did...

Weekly Starter

Time: 40:32
Distance: ~5.3 miles

I ran with Meagan for the first time in a while. We ventured through Freedom Park on a morning loop to shake out tired legs. I'm fresh off three days of running mini-workouts and she just raced 13.1 Los Angeles.

Today was going to be a really busy day as I just started repping Body Glide in the territory. That's right, Body Glide. I'm your lube man. My territory is also being extended up into the DC/MD/DE area so this meant I had to call a bunch of new accounts to introduce myself. It helped that I was offering a special to everyone.

Week in Review

Time: 555:46
Distance: 77.35 miles

I'm happy to be back running the mileage that will actually allow me to increase my fitness. The week started off really slow with the snow in Charlotte and my travels to New Orleans. However, things picked once I returned to the Q City. I got in some good runs with Charlotte Running Club members the final few days of the week. My achilles is feeling good, but I know it won't be until another few weeks until I can really up the intensity. I will try to increase the mileage in the next couple of weeks to approach triple digits again. I'll be traveling a lot in the territory, but I hope I am motivated to run and not tired from being on the road.

It also should be mentioned that Meagan ran the 13.1 Los Angeles race this morning. She finished first overall with a time of 1:20:30. She has 14 days until making a "re-debut" at the Houston Marathon.

Long Run + Tempo with Caitlin

Time: 111:32
Distance: ~16 miles

W/u: 72:58 for ~10 miles
W/o: 3 miles tempo with Caitlin
C/d: 21:01

Caitlin and I ran for 10 miles this morning before putting some items on Rebecca Thomason's porch. She had to run 3 miles hard so it was back to the Dilworth Speed Loop. We settled into a pace that was fast, but seemed relatively relaxed. My legs were sore from the last two days of running hard. I struggled to get my legs moving at a pace even close to 6 minutes per mile.

It didn't help that I was running in a pair of Saucony Get Go's for the second or third time. Each time I run in a new brand or pair of shoes, I try to give it a fair assessment. It usually takes me 50 miles on a given pair to feel like I can accurately assess the kicks. I hope this pair breaks in a bit more and starts transitioning smoother, but right now it feels like I'm slapping the ground with each step. My footsteps aren't as smooth as they should be and make a ton of noise.

Splits:
5:49, 5:58, 5:45 for 17:33

The achilles is feeling damn good, but the same can't be said for Caitlin's IT band. She had to walk home from the Speed Loop while I ran back to the house and picked her up.

Later in the day while hanging out at Caitlin and John's, I got a serious calf massage from Garrett. If you don't know, Garrett is Caitlin's boyfriend who plays minor league baseball in the Houston Astros farm system. He's got some seriously strong hands... just don't tell Meagan.

Landsdowne Workout

Time: 89:43
Distance: ~12 miles

W/u: 16:59 for ~2.2 miles
W/o: 4 x 400m, 6 mile tempo, 4 x 400m
C/d: 13:04 for ~1.6 miles

Last night I was hanging over at John and Caitlin's pad watching Inception. I got word that John, Ben Hovis and Rocky Falcone were running a workout in Landsdowne in the morning. No knock on the workout I did with Caitlin, but I decided to step it up in terms of workout groups.

It was cold when I made it to the parking lot of Old Bell. I arrived just in time to see Ben nearly slip on some of the ice still on the roads. Everyone arrived shortly thereafter and we began our warm up to the Landsdowne neighborhood. I started really really slow, but had caught the group by the time we arrived to our loop.

Since I was just tagging along, I didn't really have any ambitions to really hammer the pace. John and Ben led the first couple 400s with me contently tucked behind. Ran were running solidly fast on Paul Mainwaring's "Figure 8 Loop."

Splits:
74.56 (59), 71.88 (60), 74.28 (59), 71.20
(4:11)
11:29 - 5:46, 5:43
11:28 - 5:42, 5:36
11:06 - 5:32, 5:34
(5:42)
75.63 (61), 74.75 (60), 71.56 (63), 74.75
59:40 total for 8+ miles

After the 4 hundos, we took a quick break and started our 6 mile tempo. John and Ben took pacing duties for the early miles. I followed closely behind not feeling entirely comfortable and a little awkward in my stride. After a couple miles I started to heat up and needed to ditch my jacket. It was tossed after completely one of our loops and I soon rolled up on John's shoulder. We ran side by side for the final two miles over rolling terrain. I never felt fantastic, but fell into a decent rhythm as we approached marathon pace. I guess that's a good sign.

The final 400s were fast but relaxed. I eased in to each one and as soon as I felt good, I took off. It brought me back to the days of Brown when I struggled to tempo with all the 5k/10k guys like Owen Washburn, Nick Neely and Chris Burke. I would get blasted on trying to maintain 5:00-5:05 pace for 4 miles. However, we often hit the track for 200s, 300s, or 400s after the tempo and that's when I got revenge. The miler instincts would kick in and I would be able to inflict a little pain to those other guys. Unfortunately for John, he got a little bit of that today.

Here's what Johnny C had to say on Facebook later in the day:

i'm going to ignore the fact that Jordan Kinley worked out yesterday with Caitlin Chrisman and is recovering from an injury and simply boast that i held my own with him in a workout this morning*

*except for the second set of 400s after the tempo. that would be when he pranced off into the sunrise and made me look like i was simply out... for a light morning jog

Caitlin's Workout

Time: 84:38
Distance: ~12 miles

W/u: 29:21 for ~4 miles
W/o: 3 x 2 miles on the Dilworth Speed Loop w/ Caitlin
C/d: 14:32 for ~1.8 miles

This afternoon I went over to Caitlin's house and we headed off in the direction of Dilworth. She had a workout to do which would give me an opportunity to see how my achilles would respond to faster running. Our warm up took us through Freedom Park and ended at Rebecca Thomason's house even though she wasn't there.

Splits:
11:36 - 5:48, 5:48
(2:58)
11:35 - 5:46, 5:49
(3:00)
11:32 - 5:50, 5:40
40:45 total and ~6.3 miles

Caitlin ran strong over the duration of the effort and seemed pretty comfortable. After the first loop and suggested that she focus on running the uphills on the second interval and shift the focus to the downhills on the third. I wanted to direct her attention to something other than the pace. If she could let her mind dial in on the course and determine if we were running up or downhill, then she hopefully would be able to break the interval up into pieces. We managed to complete the workout all with basically the same splits.

My achilles felt good and never gave me any issues. I'm pleased with the effort aerobically, but know my legs will be sore from the pounding. I'll need until Feb. 1st before I can really start doing my own workouts designed for the next big race, whatever that may be.

Read Caitlin's review of the workout here.

Running with Enthusiasm

Time: 30:27
Distance: ~4 miles

I put in a couple miles this morning prior to the conference call that I thought TGA was having this morning. I was all pumped up because I had a good day of mileage and treatment yesterday and I woke up without pain. I'm also showing GORE Running Wear to an account for the first time today.

Caitlin and I are doing a workout later this evening so I'll keep this brief.

Read This Instead

I've been slacking lately. Not just on the writing side of things. The running too.

Read this instead:

http://gear.runnersworld.com/2011/01/gps-watch-face-off.html

I'll Take a Double on Ice

Time: 77:43
Distance: 10.85 miles

Even though you're not supposed to run after getting acupuncture, I did so anyway. Sorry Dr. Greenapple for disobeying your eastern medicine techniques and "blowing my chi." I met up with Caitlin and later Aaron for some easy miles through relatively ice free roads. There were a couple sections that were dicey but everyone managed to stay bipedal. I didn't know Caitlin wanted to get 10+ until about an hour into the run so I ended with more miles than necessary.

I ran in a pair of K-Swizzy's for the first time tonight. Now that TGA doesn't have a footwear brand, we are being approached by various companies wanting to know if we're interested in working with them. Since we aren't eager to jump back in to the footwear market, though I do love me some shoes, we are able to take our time and will sign the right brand. So when a shoe maker comes calling, what do we do? Tell them to send us some kicks to test out. That's what tonight was, a test drive in the K-Swiss Blade. If I don't continue to be a slackass, I'll write a review once the shoes have 50+ miles on them.

Ice Skating

Time: 60:10
Distance: ~8.5 miles

Fortunately I was able to miss the worst of ice storm 2011 when I traveled to New Orleans, but I still got a taste of it this morning. I went out for my Medium Loop only to find the bike path of Freedom Park slippery and unsafe. I called an audible and ventured through the surrounding neighborhoods. Running through Dilworth was tolerable for the most part. I felt that the crew over at RFYL needed a visit so I ran in, gave high fives and left for home. My achilles is feeling pretty damn good and I get to see Dr. Greenapple this afternoon too.

Exploring New Orleans

Time: 60:10
Distance: ~8.5 miles

I booked my return flight to Charlotte prior to knowing the full schedule for the Fleet Feet Conference. I couldn't go wrong with opting for a late afternoon departure to the Q City. I basically had the entire morning to run and catch up on work which was huge for my focus. I hammered away on the computer all morning keeping an eye on the clock. I wanted to time it where I would have enough time to shower before leaving for the airport.

When I stepped out onto Canal St. I ran in the direction of the mighty Mississippi and soon found myself overlooking a muddy industrialized icon of the South. I had hoped there was a path or road that ran along the banks where I could run out and back. Not so much. I had to piece together a few small parks and parking lots before I got bored. The French Quarter wasn't too far away so I ran through it. It didn't provide me with that many miles either.

Somehow I ended up along Bourbon St. I saw it for the first time last night, but in the morning it's so different. The sidewalks were being sprayed down and the bar mats cleaned. The filth from the night before was washed away. The beer trucks were also present and kegs were being delivered. The preparation for the night's debauchery was arriving steadily. Last night was low key as I met up with a friend from junior high. She's lived in NOLA since 2004 and it was nice to have a local show me around. I didn't much care for Bourbon St. but see how it could be a fun time if you're into music, mechanical whales, strippers and beads.

After Bourbon St. I headed out along Magazine St. just looking for extra time. I found another 30 minutes and arrived back at my hotel with time to check out and head off.

Inefficient Run

Time: 41:23
Distance: ~5.5 miles

I got up early so that I could find my way over to the Roosevelt Hotel and meet up with all of the owners, equity operators and managers of the Fleet Feet franchise. Once we got going I ended up having a great run with the assistant manager of Fleet Feet Raleigh. She ran at High Point and then transferred to NC State where she would graduate. Jemissa and I talked training and racing mostly as we ran in the chase group. The group up front was having a half-stepping contest so we just kept them in our sights.

The run temporarily ended at Cafe du Monde where everyone was going to be served beignets. I didn't feel like I had run far enough to fully enjoy a fried dough treat at 6:40 in the morning. Jemissa and I opted to head back the hotel and get ready for the expo.

I got back to my hotel room having been gone for over 90 minutes, yet I only managed to log just over 40 minutes on the watch. It was just one of those types of runs. However, it was good to be out mingling with everyone, but my running took a hit.

Dirty South

Time: none
Distance: none

A night after having some good time at Duckworth's with Compton, Matt, Jenna, Meagan, Simmons and a special someone, I awoke still needing to pack for my trip to New Orleans. I would be attending the Fleet Feet Winter Conference on behalf of Orthaheel Sandals. I got up with plenty of time to pack, shower and navigate the morning traffic to the airport.

Wait a minute. What's that white stuff?

Wow, the weatherdudes were right, it snowed. A quick check of my flight told me that I had been rebooked for a 12:50 departure and would be flying through Detroit. Detroit! Now that's efficient.

This would give me time to run if I wanted to aggravate my achilles slipping at toe off or I could pass on exercise and take the water paired with coffee. I watched the news on the morning commute and checked Delta.com every so often.

Short story long, I made it to New Orleans after having to sprint through the Detroit airport. The flight from Charlotte left late and according to my rebooking I would only have 30 minutes in the upper Midwest if everything went perfect. I landed at like 3:17 for a 3:30 departure. Yikes!

I don't know if you've ever been to the Detroit airport but it was designed by a schmuck. He took all creativity out of building a huge megaplex and decided a single hallway would be most efficient. My arrival gate was A10 and I had to get to A49 which was, no joke, over a half mile away. I ran and ran and ran. Good thing I'm kinda fit and now healthy because I made my flight and found my seat at the very back of the plane. Last row next to the bathrooms. Coincidentally, I was in the nose bleeds back with the GM of Craft/Karhu (Meagan's boss).

Once in New Orleans I cabbed it to the hotel, set up our booth space and had a great dinner on Magazine St. with my boss. We watched the FBS National Championship Game drinking local pints and chatting with the locals. Usually I'm in a foul mood when I don't get to run, but today was busy enough to keep me focused on other things. Plus that trek through the airport would count in Billy Shue's Athleticore.com log.

Week in Review

Time: 503:59
Distance: ~67.7 miles

The first full week of training in 2011 is behind me. I just now added up the numbers and respect what I see. I spend a good amount of time rehabbing and recovering from a bit of an achilles niggle. I did everything in my power to promote healing. It included, ice, heat, rest, acupuncture, massage, stretching, Vitamin I and more. I still had one more tool to use that I'm glad it was left in the closet. Jeff G. and horse trainers know what I'm talking about.

The highlight of the week had to be the Super Distance Summit where I got to hear Renato Canova, Joe Vigil, Greg McMillan, Scott Simmons and Jay Dicharry all give great talks on specific training blocs, altitude, developing speed endurance, and more. Sunday night a group of met up at Duckworth's and we invited Simmons to attend. This allowed for a little debriefing of the conference. I had mostly good things to say but I was underwhelmed by the introduction given to Renato Canova. Basically, he was introduced as, "the great Italian coach..." This is in comparison to Jay Dicharry's introduction who got a good run down of his accolades. Not to undermine Dicharry, but he's just a bio-mechanist who wants to keep athletes out on the roads, but not make them faster. As I mentioned in an earlier post, Canova produces world beaters. Let's take a quick look at his accomplishments through the introduction I would have given.

"Obviously all of you in the room are students of the sport, but how many fans of the sport do we have here? How many coaches, especially high school coaches, take the time to glance at the more quality message board posts? Follow the professional and college racing scene? I'm sure for most, our next presenter is the least familiar to you. But, if you do read the boards, you know that he makes some of the most honest and helpful training posts that have proven results. While you're trying to get athlete's to break the 5 minute mile, he's trying to get athlete's run run a marathon at 5 minute pace. It is my hope you can find a commonality in training methods despite the disparity between his and your athletes' abilities.

Our next presenter comes all the way from Italy. He's found the time to be here before making his way to a training camp in Nairobi, Kenya. Renato Canova has produced world record holders like Stephen Cherono (now Saif Saeed Shaheen) in the 3k steeplechase. He's produced 26:30 (~4:14 per mile pace) 10k runners like Nicholas Kemboi and multiple world champions on the track and on the cross-country course. Most recently his athlete Florence Kiplagat -- coming off pregnancy -- won the world cross-country championships in 2009 and the world half marathon championships in 2010. Last year Silas Kiplagat ran the fast 1500m time in the world with a 3:29.27 (~3:45 mile pace). His athletes not only run fast, but they are prepared to run fast and with the world's best at the right time.

Canova is the author of A Scientific Approach to the Marathon. He has conducted multiple studies around the world focused on the human body's systems in their relationship to running. I could continue on, but I hope you understand that we're all in the presence of one of the best coaches on the planet. Plus he looks really cool in those glasses... Please welcome Signore Renato Canova."

Canova rocks the sweet Ray Ban shades at all times.

Maybe the all the high school coaches wouldn't have left during his second presentation if they actually knew who this guy was. I'm sure he was viewed as the snobby Italian coach with poor English who has a hard time writing on white boards. Unfortunately, I think they took the most away from Coach Arris because he's managed to create one of the best high school program, but how many of his athlete's have set world records?

Here's another good recap of the weekend from Mark Hadley.

Canova chilling at the front of the room wondering he's surrounded by a bunch of slackers.

Super Distance: Summit: Day 2

Time: 75:41
Distance: ~10 miles

Today was the second day of the Super Distance Summit and speakers included Joe Vigil, Ronato Canova, Greg McMillan, Bill Arris and a Q&A panel to kick things off that included everyone. I was impressed with Scott Simmon's ability to bring such great speakers and have a sold-out auditorium. The majority of the audience were high school coaches interested in learning something from some of the best coaches. I knew several people including Mark Hadley, Ben Hovis, John Compton, Jenna Wrieden (High Point University), Amber Moran (Team Inov8), Meagan, Leo, Jennie and several others. Everyone had a big interest in the sport and could geek out for hours talking about training, form, diet, altitude, drills, strength, etc.

For the second day in a row, Leo and I skipped out when the high school coach was giving his presentation. I'm sure I would have learned something, but it wasn't going to be from that guy. Earlier in the morning, during the panel discussion, someone asked a question about eating disorders. The audience then spent 30+ minutes listening about how to prevent anorexia and bulimia. It sucked! I was about to rip my hair out. Every time you thought the discussion was going to end, the high school coach chimed right back in with some extra tidbits he's learned over the years. I was there to hear how Vigil coached an Adam State team to multiple national championships and how Renato Canova has fostered world beaters, not an issue that is already known to distance runners. How do you handle disordered eating? It's not rocket science, get help from a councilor, doctor, psychologist. Address it with the parents and at home, find the root cause, etc. I was borderline pissed at how much time we took on such an important, but basic issue. What does Renato Canova care about anorexia when he's trying to develop athletes capable of breaking world records and winning the Boston, Chicago, London, and New York Marathons. He looked bored even though I couldn't see his eyes because he wears sunglasses. Yes, sunglasses. Inside. I was bored. I'm getting all worked up just thinking about how we wasted time talking about an amateurish problem when other questions couldn't be answered in regards to specific workouts and races.

Leo, Meagan and I ran around the Booty Loop and added on through Freedom Park. We chatted mainly about marathoning and the upcoming Houston race. Meagan is making her "re-debut" at the distance and Leo is hoping to qualify with a sub-65 minute half marathon. We talked about the discrepancy between the men's and woman's standards. We talked about raising the bar and much of what Vigil had to say about hard work. It was a good run and I'm glad I was out there with a healthy achilles tendon.

Super Distance Summit: Day 1

Time: 76:41
Distance: ~10 miles

Leo Kormanik who recently placed 10th overall at the USATF Club Cross Country Meet and I went out for a run at McAlpine during the middle of the day. He and his wife, Jennie, are in town for the Super Distance Summit hosted on Queens University of Charlotte's campus. The opening day's talk was given by former Adam's State Coach and legend in the game, Dr. Joe Vigil. He spoke on middle distance training, but more importantly stood for something bigger. He worked the crowd and told stories of his athletes' exploits. It was my first time hearing him speak and I couldn't but be fired up to go for a run.

Leo and I slipped out just before the coach of Fayetteville Manlius took the podium. I had little interest in hearing a high school coach talk about forming team unity and creating a dynasty of a program. The run out at McAlpine was Leo's first other than when he raced at club xc. We had a good chat about all things training, workouts, races, etc. We enjoyed Vigil's talk, but were really looking forward to Ronato Canova to give a chat about his methods. I'll give a bigger recap in my week in review on the entire weekend.

The achilles is feeling good. Not 100%, but damn close.

McAlpine with the Ladies

Time: 68:41
Distance: ~9.5 miles

If I were really interested in remembering where this run took place I would log onto Caitlin's Athleticore, but I'm being lazy. I have the time and know the day. I believe I ran with Meagan, Caitlin and Heidi out at McAlpine, but I'm not 100% certain. If it was this run, the trails were soft and mushy in sections. It also would have been the day that I was being really productive at Dilworth Coffee Shop. I hammered the emails and phone lines for my accounts which made me lose track of time. Eventually I met up with the ladies, but it was almost a solo effort.

???

Time: 62:38
Distance: ~8.5 miles

I totally forget where this run was done. It probably was a Medium Loop, but I'm not sure. Oh well, I have the time and can calculate the distance.

Meagan's On Point

Time: 96:31
Distance: ~12.50 miles

W/u: 20:01 for 2.25 miles
Workout: 6 x 5 mins uptempo w/ 2 mins recovery. Short rest then 20 minutes at Meagan's marathon pace
C/d: 13:02 for 1.8 miles

I took a break mid-day to head over to McAlpine to run a workout with Meagan, Caitlin and their new friend Heidi who is visiting from New York. When Meagan asked if she could jump in the workout designed by Caitlin's coach Mark Hadley, I agreed she could but with a section tagged to the end.

Splits (not completely accurate but based off Caitlin's:
1: 5 mins @ 5:40 pace
2: 5 mins @ 5:37 pace
3: 5 mins @5:40 pace
4: 5 mins @ 5:36 pace
5: 5 mins @5:34 pace
6: 5 mins @ 5:32 pace

(3:22 rest)

20 minutes at marathon pace: 6:04, 6:02, 5:54, 2:04

My hope was for Meagan to have some aggressive running during the first part of the workout that was reminiscent to one we did prior to her 10k at Stanford. Back in March, she ran 6 x mile averaging about 5:35 and two weeks later she ran 34:37. Today she ran within an arms length of those splits and added on 20 minutes with a sub-6:00 pace average. She looked strong, fast and relaxed throughout which is where she needs to be with the Houston Marathon less than a month away.

My achilles felt about 80% today. I was a little nervous to test it out by running so fast, but I could sit back and watch the three girls work their butts off and not help out. It was probably a little too much too soon, but I never felt like I was doing damage to the tendon.

A Run and Some Needles

Time: 61:47
Distance: 8.6 miles

I ran with Meagan this morning on the same loop as yesterday. Felt good, but not great. Healing is taking place each day which is all I can ask for.

This evening I had the opportunity to have Dr. Scott Greenapple of Greenapple Sports & Wellness take a look at my achilles. Everybody in Charlotte who is a runner knows Dr. G and many of the Charlotte Panthers do too. He asked me if it was the attachment or the area just above the achilles (the fleshy part) because treatment is very different. Greenapple performed a fews tests, did laser and then brought me into the eastern medicine room.

Me eagerly and patiently waiting for Dr. Greenapple to bring the healing... and needles.

I think Dr. Greenapple took joy in "threading" my achilles.

Close up shot of the achilles threading and my gross foot.

This was the first time I've ever had acupuncture and I immediately took a liking. The doc said he was using bigger needles than normal because I wasn't flinching much when he inserted them. Who's tough? This guy. What I found most interesting was that I asked Greenapple if he had hooked me up to the electrodes yet (which he hadn't) because I was already feeling some sort of sensation. It was similar to the electric response you feel in the early stages of being hooked up to a stim machine, that little tingling and vibrating. He said the Chinese call that "daichi" or "dachi" (I can't find the actual term now that I'm looking on the interwebs. My Chinese spelling isn't the greatest and all I can find is a video to a really good beatboxer named Daichi or a karate pose that is Dachi). Anyway, I had a great response to the needles being inserted and thought favorably of the treatment. My hope is that a lot of blood flowed to the achilles and sparked some an increased level of healing.

Signs of Progress

Time: 62:00
Distance: 8.6 miles

I ran this morning with Meagan on our standard loop through Freedom Park and once around the Booty Loop. I felt fairly good as the achilles continues to get better slowly each day. Later in the afternoon I got to spend some time having Ryan Danner of Carolina Performance & Wellness take a look at things. He did the Graston technique on my leg again and hooked me up to the stim machine. I'm still being careful out on the roads and make sure to properly warm things up before pounding the pavement.

Week in Review

Time: 249:23
Distance: 33.6 miles
YTD Time: 95:32
YTD Distance: 12.7 miles

I finished up a week that was aimed at improving the state of my achilles. I'm getting sick writing about the niggle, but it's been the main focus for the last two weeks now. It's definitely getting better though it's nowhere near 100%. I would like to come out with a post stating some of my yearly goals and resolutions, but all that is trumped by #1 "Get Healthy, Stay Healthy." Last year my lowest weekly mileage was 31.8 so there is only one way to go from here.

Davidson Trails

Time: 60:20
Distance: ~8.5 miles

Meagan and I hit I-77 north with a destination of the Davidson trails. We met up with Caitlin, Johnny C., Allen, Leo, Kevin, Chris, and a couple others for their long run. I was hoping to get in 60 minutes which I did feeling fairly good. My achilles is improving albeit slowly, but I know it's an injury that can last for months if proper care isn't observed. There were some good convos out there but I couldn't fully enjoy the run because (a) I couldn't run as far or as fast as I wanted and (b) I had to pay a lot of attention to the planting of my foot.

Refuse to take a Zero

Time: 35:12
Distance: ~4.2 miles

I refused to take a zero on the first day of the year. Several year's ago I didn't run on New Year's Day because I attended the Rose Bowl and I justified it as a sacrificial day of running. I gave the first day to the running gods so that I wouldn't get hurt the rest of the year and I don't think I had an injury free year.

This morning I attended the CRC Hangover Run properly hungover. I watched the prediction run with the desire of being a participant, but I didn't need the competitive juices to start flowing. Johnny Compton and Paul Mainwaring looked strong up front and others started the year off right. I provided the prizes in the form of Nuun, water bottles and Balega socks. So if you didn't attend, you missed out! I also sold a fair amount of my Craft samples, but there are still more where they came from (my storage unit. HELP ME CLEAN IT OUT!).

The run took place in the afternoon when I got out the door with Meagan. We ran into Freedom Park on an abbreviated short loop. I remember feeling decent, but not great. The achilles is holding up with signs of recovery, still being cautious though.