SEAC Workout

Time: 29:48
Distance: ~6.82 km

W/u: 12:18 for 2.22km
W/o: 400m (hard), 100 (easy), 100 (hard), 100 (easy), 100 (hard), 200 (easy), 200 (hard), drills, 100 (easy), 100 (hard), 100 (easy), 100 (hard)
C/d: 11:31 for 2.86km

And this is why I get injured. I can't say "no." This what trying to quit cigarettes must be like. I ran a workout this morning and then visited accounts for work. I purposely ended my day at the South End Athletic Company for a Karhu wear test run and Balega raffle/trivia night because they have Thursday night group runs. What I didn't realize is that it's really a workout night from the store. I could have said "no," but that's not my style. I laced up the shoes and started taking strong puffs around the track with the group.

We started with an easy jog over to a track in the South End and then began with a hard 400m. As a footwear rep, I had to show everyone what Karhu was all about. It just turns out that the store owner was an 800m/1500m runner at Boston College not too long ago. I wasn't sure how fast he'd open the workout, but it turns out he was going to rip a 57! I was back with a more relaxed 62 and then went into the strides winded and hoping to catch up. It wasn't pretty but I managed to complete everything near the front.

Next we did a bunch of drills. Not butt kicks or high knees, but the hard ones like bounding, standing long jumps, and backwards strides. It was getting ugly. Fortunately, I was warmed up and more coordinated than others to hold my own. It ended up being pretty fun and a really good workout.

Now that I know what I'm in for at a SEAC workout group, I'll come more prepared next time!

Positive Progress

Time: 46:50
Distance: 11.25km
Pace: 4:10/km
Map

I didn't get out the door until later in the afternoon for a run around the neck. I set a steady clip from the start and was feeling my lack of fitness by the 4 kilometer mark. My hamstring was feeling pretty good with just a slight hitch. It's steadily making improvements and the key will be to balance running more without hindering the healing process.

Marblehead Mash

Time: 37:37
Distance: 8.60km
Pace: 4:15/km
Map

This morning I went to see Anne Gilbride and had work done on my hamstring. It's definitely feeling a bit better just not 100 percent yet. The discomfort is shifting around a bit which I think is a good thing. Right now I feel it really high up near the insertion point. I've stayed on top of my strengthening, massaging and some stretching.

I slipped out around lunch time and got in a short run before heading to the office. The loop took me to the trail that was partially snowed over and muddy. My stride is still not normal, but it's close. Really close. I don't think my hamstring is altering anything, but I sense a little tightness just as my right leg is about to make contact with the ground. The pulling back motion activates my upper right hamstring, but it doesn't hurt when I land, toe off, do high knees or butt kicks. Just when running normal on the snap down motion.

Testing the Hammy

Time: 36:23
Distance: 8.21km
Pace: 4:26/km
Map

Today's run was crazy windy! I witnessed garbage cans being blown everywhere (for some reason Marblehead does Saturday pickup?) screen doors crashing and white caps out in the harbor. I started my run by heading over to the 1974 Argosy trailer that Karhu purchased for a launch of shoes. Keep an eye out for it at the Boston Marathon.

I then headed back around the to the trails and wound through the neighborhood looking for about 35 minutes of running. It felt good to be out and open the legs up. I tried doing some drills at the track, but the wind kept blowing me over while standing on one leg. I opted to head back to the fort and finish with some light dynamic stretching.

Day Two

Time: 23:23
Distance: 4.99km
Pace: 4:41/km
Map

I didn't I run .01 farther!? This was my second consecutive streak of running which puts me at 99,211,458 on the list of US citizens tracking their consecutive days of running. In 20 years maybe I could be in the top 100. The thing is, I don't care about the streak. I want to run fast. Running fast means pushing the envelope and experiencing high levels of discomfort. However, I often confuse pain and injury with discomfort.

Today I jogged from our offices over to a field behind a school, but soon left because it was filled with goose shit. It was everywhere! I didn't feel like driving home with shitty shoes, so I opted to run loops around the Beverly High School track. The facility just got a nice upgrade with a field turf grass infield. The track surface is firm but mostly intact. It will make a nice venue for spring/summer workouts.

My hamstring today felt a little better. It's still tight and restrictive, but I'm able to jog with less discomfort than last week. What's strange is that I can do high knees or butt kicks with absolutely no pain. But, if I extend my leg to engage my upper hamstring, I'm immediately reminded of why I can't resume training. My normal stride is a little hampered just when I'm about to plant my right leg. I'm no physio, but that's when your upper hamstring/glute is activated which I can feel.

I'll be getting ART tomorrow to further loosen up my tight leg. I'm taking this one day at a time...

Right Direction

Time: 21:21
Distance: 4.51km
Pace: 4:44/km
Map

Hey, hey, hey... I ran today. It wasn't fast or far, but it felt fantastic. (How's that for some lame alliteration)?

I laced them up this President's Day and set off for the only track in Marblehead. It didn't take long to get there but it gave me enough time to take an evaluation of how I'm feeling. I want to run more. I didn't have that awkward sensation that you get after a long layoff. I felt good aerobically (granted I was running slow) and coordinated the entire 10 minutes to the track. After some light drills to help loosen up my hamstring I shuffled home to do some more drills.

The injury is definitely improving, but not at the point where I can resume normal training. I hope to start jogging lightly this week in order to increase blood flow. I'll get ART again this week to assist in the mobility.

Night Run & Drills

Time: 40:03
Distance: 7.80k
Pace: 5:08
Map

Got out for a little run with Meagan after work. We hit the Marblehead track for some light jogging and some drills. Our efforts in adding supplemental work have gone nicely since moving to New England. It helps that we don't have many friends and just a simple tv cable package. It was cold out tonight and our breaths could be seen under the illumination of our headlamps. I got my legs to loosen up a bit before two strides on the track to call it a night.

Rockefeller State Park

Time: 78:12
Distance: 16.08k
Pace: 4:52
Map

Meagan, Madeleine and I arrived to the main entrance of Rockefeller State Park well before the sun was up. Both Meagan and I were sporting our nerdy head lamps for the first 40 minutes of the run. It is always a good run at The Rockies and this was no difference. We thankfully had Madeleine to show us the way otherwise we would have been terribly lost due to the darkness and multiple trail splittings. I have run here three times now and have little clue as to where I am in the park. At times I recognize certain bridges or turns, but for the most part I let Mad do the leading.

The park was a little in disarray due to the recent snow storm that brought down several trees and more branches. On multiple occasions we ducked under or jumped over debris across the path. When we got back to the pond near the main entrance, Mad finished up while Meagan and I ran a few extra loops. We have a busy day planned today in NYC that won't allow us to double. We even got in some drills and strides afterward in the parking lot.

The rest of the day was spent going back and forth between publisher meetings. We met with Women's Heath, Runner's World/Running Times, Endurance and Footwear News. It was good to see that many thought Karhu is going in the right direction with our advances in technology and materials.

The day ended with drinks and dinner in Midtown with Jay, Lauren, Theoden, Mike & Pam, Alejandro, Bob Heck, and Scott Helms. We then walked up to the Runner's World party where Amby Burfoot was presented an award and I got to catch up with Dave Strassburg (Strassburg Sock). Next we took a cab down to Union Square with one of the grumpiest cabbies in NYC. He thought we smelled like garlic. He didn't smell too good either. The Puma Letsrun Party was an Ivy League event and I got to visit with Employee #1 (Emory Mort), the Brojos, Zac Hine and other hasbeens of the sport.

Night Drills & Strides

Time: 39:43
Distance: 7.73k
Pace: 5:08
Map

In what is becoming our Monday night routine, Meagan and I headed over to the track to jog a few laps and then do drills. We usually dress as if it were 10 degrees colder than it is so we keep the pace really slow and we shuffle up the hill to the track. We run a few laps and then start our drills ending with some strides.

Sunday Easy Run

Time: 64:04
Distance: 13.51l
Pace: 4:45
Map

This was a nice easy run with Meagan to end the week of training. We ran along the Marblehead trail taking a longer route to the town's edge. We then ventured into Salem to continue on a bike path that was lackluster at best. The legs felt good and I was happy to run with Meagan as I am leaving later this afternoon to start a week long trip of account visits in NYC, NY, CT, RI and MA. When I get back she'll be in Dallas for a 13.1 event.

When we got back to the fort we headed up to the small grass field at Fort Sewell to do our drills.

The Next Generation

Time: 30:00

Distance: ~3 miles

My little brother who is 8 years old wanted me to take him out running. He's just started running track, but missed his first meet when the family came to Myrtle Beach. I should have held a true dual meet between me and him, but I didn't think of it at the time. When I asked how far he wanted to run he said a 5k which was fine by me. We headed out from the resort and toured the neighborhood nearby. The pace was nice and easy for me and solid for Tyler.

The biggest challenge was getting him to focus on the running part. He tried to shoot me a couple of times with a rubber band and once stopped to stare at a dead squirrel. I almost had to pry him away from the carcass as you would a leashed dog. He wanted to poke it with a stick, but I suggested that wasn't the smartest idea. As I encouraged to keep going he just kept starring saying, "oh man his tail got run over! And I can see his teeth!" One of my former teammates at Brown, Nick Neely, would definitely approve of Tyler's curiosity because he once did an art project where he took ink impressions of roadkill. There's a good blogpost out there on an incident of Nick painting a squirrel with ink in the middle of the road and some highway patrolman giving him a hard time.

We eventually got back to the resort where I tried to show Tyler some drills and did a few strides. It was fun to be out there with the little bro but I didn't tire him out enough as he wanted to hit the pool and play basketball immediately afterward.

Update: Just found Nick's post! Read it!

100 x 5k World Record Watching

Time: 27:24
Distance: ~3.8 miles

The Charlotte Running Club began the assault on the 100 x 5k World Record this morning at a littler after 6:00 am. Ben Hovis started things off with a 16:04 and his wife, Megan, followed with a 17:48. Meagan and I had been tracking the progress via The Book of Faces all morning.

We headed over to the Providence Day Track to watch and run with a group of club members around 9:00 am. The jog took us through the Landsdowne neighborhood for a couple of miles. Upon returning to the track I did some drills and a couple light strides just to get a feel for a faster pace. My adjusted predicted time is 16:15 which is probably pretty accurate, but I'm going to run hard to set a baseline for my fitness. If there weren't a world record attempt going on, I'd no excuse to run hard and would definitely just ease into my training. Whether I run 15:50 or 16:50 tomorrow, at least I'll know how to tailor the workouts in the weeks afterward.

Freedom Park Speed Development

Time: 48:54
Distance: 6.40 miles

Long W/u: 30:28 for 4.07 miles
Speed Development: Drills, 4 x 50m, 4 x 100m
C/d: 18:26 for 2.33 miles

I decided to do my speed development session in Freedom Park this evening. I had relatively fresh legs later on in the day because I didn't get out the door to run this morning. My mileage will be plenty high without an extra 5 mile run. When the temps had dropped a little, Meagan and I got out to Freedom Park and looped around to put us at the soccer fields around 4 miles.

I went through my drills and continued to notice that my right leg isn't nearly as explosive as my left. I know that I usually have a leg discrepancy where my right leg is a few centimeters short than my left. It results in stress fractures and fun stuff like that. However, I've come to decide recently that my right leg can't push off nearly as well when doing bounding exercises. I find myself struggling to get more than a couple inches off the ground when I try to launch off my right foot. The left leg doesn't show Spud Webb-esque hops, but it has potential. Maybe it's just because I'm left handed and left side dominate which leaves my right side begging for power. I would love to correct this issue over the next few months, but am unsure about how to do so. Any ideas?

Anyway, after the drills I ran 4 x 50m quick, but not as fast as last speed session. Last time I over did it at the AG track and was tight for a couple of days. The 4 x 100m were also hard, but not overzealous. I was certain to strain the muscles, but not damage them. I forgot that there was supposed to be a few more 50m bursts at the end of the workout until I saw the schedule at home. Oh well.

Speed Development Struggles

Time: ~45 mins
Distance: ~6 miles

W/u: 30:24 for 4.11 miles
Speed: Drills, 4 x 50m, 4 x 100m
C/d: 13:07 for 1.62 miles

I ran over to the AG track with Meagan for some speed development action. I brought along my Karhu Racers so that I would feel light and fast. I went through a series of drills on the grass infield. I think it was my best session to date as it was easier to pick up my feet as soon as they hit the ground. For me, my focus on doing drills is to lessen the amount of time the feet make contact with the ground. The less time on the ground, the more time moving forward. Simple right?

Next up was the 4 x 50m. I started with two from a standing starting and finished with two from a moving start. It was the same pattern with the 4 x 100m efforts. My first 10 steps are pretty ugly when I start from a standstill. Obviously, I run faster from the gliding start, but more importantly, it feels much better. I started tightening up on the final few sprints which is how I knew the fast twitch fibers were being activated.

A quick cool down back home and some stretching.

Tyler's Workout

Time: 43:17
Distance: 5.98 miles

W/u: 18:29 for 2.19 miles
W/o: 800 hot/cold, 6 x 400 w/ Tyler (90 sec), 400 hot/cold
C/d: 13:04 for 1.54 miles

Tyler is getting a little more serious about his running these days which is cool to see. He had 12 x 400m w/ 90 sec. rest as his workout for the evening. I wanted to do some drills and strides at the track to loosen up before racing tomorrow night. We jogged from my parking lot to the Myers Park HS track, but realized it's locked up tighter than Fort Knox. Why the need for barbed wire? Our next best option was the AG track because it's always open to the public.

I did my drills and a couple light strides before starting 800m where I jog the turn, sprint/stride the straights. I clocked the half mile at 2:50. Tyler was only halfway through his workout and he was starting to slow. I jumped in for the final 6 intervals.

Splits:
1:28, (90), 1:29, (90), 1:27, (89), 1:25, (90), 1:26, (90), 1:23.

Then I ran 400m hot/cold in 1:16.

It was a good night to be on the track. Despite the incredible humidity, we missed the worse of the 7 minute storm that passed through Charlotte. My legs gradually opened up during the strides and felt relatively quick doing drills.

Birthday Run

Time: 53:26
Distance: 6.71 miles

W/u: 31:06 for 4.01 miles
W/o: Drills + 3 x 100m
C/d: 22:20 for 2.70 miles

I turned the big 2-6 today. Does that mean I move up an age group in road races? Or do I have 30 years old to look forward to?

Tyler, Jenna, Meagan and I headed out from our place to the AG for our respective workouts. Meagan was doing a light workout, Tyler was running 12 x 200, I was doing drills and strides and Jenna was cheering because she tweaked her achilles.

I felt relatively fast on each 100m stride. It doesn't seem that the extra year has slowed me down yet. If Bernard Lagat can still make moves at 35, then I can still train at 26.

Night Shakeout and Strides

Time: 45:48
Distance: 6.50 miles

W/u: 24:46 for 3.40 miles
Strides: 2 laps hot/cold, drills 2 laps hot/cold
C/d: 15:07 for 2.10 miles

This evening, after taking a mini-nap, I threw on my running costume and jogged over to the AG track. I did 2 laps of jogging the turns, striding the straights before going through my drills. I did 2 more laps of alternating 100m strides before jogging home. The legs felt good to get in some turnover work about 12 hours prior to race time.

Splits of strides:
3:01, 2:54

JCSU Track Fun

Time: 23:30
Distance: 3.04 miles
Map

Tonight I went over to JCSU with some Queens runners to watch their workout. Everyone was doing 4 x mile with 4 minutes rest. Mike and Futsum were hitting 4:30-4:35, Tanya hovered around 5:05 and Meagan and Jenna were at 5:20. Meagan had a miserable workout that wasn't fun to watch and less fun to run.

Mike hammered the last half of his final mile in 2:01-2:03 which put him at 4:16-4:17. Very fast.

I ended up running two laps of jogging the turns and sprinting the straights. I also did some drills before the strides. The goal was to loosen up the legs and get ready to roll tomorrow night in Uptown.

Scoping Out the Course

Total Time: 57:26
Total Distance: 8.13 miles

Part I: 42:40 for 6.01 miles
Part II: 14:46 for 2.12 miles

This afternoon following the Let Me Run practice, I drove over to Caitlin's for a bit of running. We put in a few miles through Elizabeth with the interest of checking out the CPCC Skyline 5k course. Caitlin had printed off a small map with the directions and we followed them to the letter. I felt terrible jog/walking with the boys along the greenway and I didn't feel any better with Red. My legs are making running a struggle and there isn't much I can do about it.

We parted ways around three or four miles and I had some more time to be out there. I knew I had to do drills, but I didn't think I would be able to go through with the whole routine unless I were at a track. Thus, I jogged over to JCSU which put me just at six miles. I limped through a half-assed routine that I think will be great this spring. Jeff Gaudette is borrowing some ideas from Jay Johnson who coaches out in Boulder, CO. I wasn't proud of my effort out on the grass infield, but I at least attempted them.

I jogged back to the car and called it a day with a good amount of work put in.

Oh yea, the course this weekend could be really fast once you get through the uphill first mile. The final 1k is going to be lightening quick.

Get Down Speed

Time: ~54:28
Distance: ~8 miles

W/u: 22:46 for 3.01 miles
W/o: 4 x 150m (jog 50m, sprint 50m, float 50m); 3 x 70m at 99%; 4 x 120m at 95% (jog 280m)
C/d: 22:42 for 2.77 miles

Today was the first day of the new cycle where I got to work on my get down speed. It was rough, and I don't have much speed anymore. This will definitely be a work in progress for the next few weeks until I feel comfortable and confident really getting the legs turned over.

I did a nice slow, hilly warm up to the AG track. It was a little rainy out so I sported some "manpris" and a light jacket over to the track. I didn't bring flats because I think the Karhu Forward Rides are plenty capable of running fast. I even had a guy who was getting ready to lead a training group ask me about the shoes. He said he tried on a different pair of Karhu shoes a few weeks/months ago, but ended up going with something else. He liked what I had to say about the pair I was wearing.

The workout got started shortly after I did some easy drills. First up was 4 x 150m (I actually read the schedule wrong and was only supposed to do 3 with no rest). Instead I did 4 with a 250m recovery. I felt a bit strained as I really started pumping the arms during the middle 50m. It took me a couple to get warmed up, but then I was fine.

The middle section consisted of 3 x 70m from a standing start. What a way to make someone feel slow! The wet surface, training shoes and getting away from some speed made these feel terrible. It took me about 15m just to feel like I was running. From 20m to 50m I was pretty much at top speed and then I just held on for the last 20m. I shut things down and coasted the rest of the straightaway. I walked back to the start line.

The final portion was 4 x 120m with a 280m recovery. I actually timed this section and ran the 120m in 17 secs with a jogging start. I could tell that my hamstrings had already been challenged in those 70m sprints. This final section allowed me to stretch out the legs and find a more natural, fluid stride down the backstretch. I ran about 7:00 for the mile in lane 3.

My cool down back the house was nice and easy. I shuffled around the track a few laps while the training group began their warm up. One lady was even wearing a pair of Karhu shoes! A volleyball team was also just getting started and three dudes (one with a baby jogger) were attacking a decent workout. I didn't expect there to be that much action at the AG track on a damp evening. It was much better than being out there solo.