Where I have been

Well, my heel problem got worse. It hurt pretty bad on my Thursday run and even more on my Friday run. Then it hurt most of the day on Friday. It was obvious that it was getting worse fast. Not wanting to cause any real damage I decide to take the weekend off. Two straight days off. It was feeling much better yesterday and thought I was ready for my run this morning. Well, I hate to admit it but I talked myself out of running this morning and slept in. I must say that I felt guilty all day today. The good news will hopefully come tomorrow with a pain free run, I have my fingers crossed. I still can't believe that I took 3 straight days off. Hopefully it was just what I needed to get past this heel pain and start running well again.

Recovery

I have read a lot about how important it is to get the proper food into your system after a hard workout. However, knowing what to do and putting it into practice are two totally different things, especially when it comes to food. I have experimented with several things before and after my workouts.

For a long time I did not eat anything before a workout and it seemed to go well. As I began running further, I felt like I needed more fuel. I started eating a breakfast bar and progressed to a small bowl of cereal. Leading up to the marathon that is what I did and I started to think that it was making my stomach hurt . Since the marathon, I have stopped eating before my runs again and it is going well.

What to eat after the run has been the much more difficult thing to figure out. Since I run in the morning, I have to stretch, shower, and then get to work. This makes it difficult to get a good meal in. For awhile, I was having a bowl of cereal while I checked my e-mail at work first thing. The problem with that is that it was typically about an hour and a half after the run. I know my body needs to be replenished sooner than that. The other problem with the cereal was a lack of protein. I did not feel that my muscles were getting the protein they needed to recover.

I just started trying something new. I have done it four times now and it seems to be working well. I got some protein and am making shakes. The great thing about a shake is you can eat it anywhere. So it works perfectly in the car on the way to work. It is also easier to get a big shake down than a big meal. The problem with it is the lack of carbs and calories. So to off set that I am adding what I can...milk instead of water, a banana, and some chocolate syrup. I try to stay away from sugars like syrup, but I can’t think of another way to add a bunch of carbs and calories. If you have any suggestions, please let me know.

Today’s run was a new record for me, 8 mile repeats. Each of these was done with 1:30 recovery. At some point, I plan to start cutting back my recovery time until I get it down to 1:00. I would also like to get up to 10 to 12 repeats. I have done that workout each week for the last 3 and I only did it twice leading up to the last marathon.

Today’s Run:
8 Mile repeats with 1:30 recovery, average pace 6:31
6:35
6:33
6:25
6:29
6:30
6:31
6:34
6:31

Winning the Battle

This morning I entered into an epic battle and came out glorious. The long weekend lent itself nicely to laziness. Saturday and Sunday I slept in until around 6:20, and both days I managed to catch a short nap. Monday was my day off from running and I slept in until about 7:15. This morning, however the alarm was set for 5:30 again. After a day off, I knew it was very important to quickly get back into my routine, no room for backsliding.
I awoke on my own in what I thought was the middle of the night. A look over to the alarm clock filled me with immediate disgust as I saw it read 5:20. Immediately I began to search for excuses. Internal battles are interesting and trying to find excuses for myself is much the same except I know the full truth. There is nothing to embellish or hide. I can’t tell myself that I didn’t really sleep that well or that I don’t really want to run, I know the truth.
I decided not to get up yet, but to instead get what enjoyment I could out of the last 10 minutes of sleep or lying in bed. At 5:30, the alarm went off. I got up to turn it off and on my way kept thinking about hitting the snooze. I thought maybe I had it coming since I woke up 10 minutes too early, perhaps I deserved an extra 10 minutes of sleep. Well, that was just foolish so I turned it off.
Walking in a half daze I sat in the chair in our room, not ready to accept the fact that I was going to transition from a comfortable sleep to a hot and tiring run. I just sat there actually trying to come up with an excuse. Maybe my heel was hurting, I thought to myself. I began to press on my heel with my thumb. I am ashamed to say that I was actually hoping it would hurt some so I could write the day off as a needed recovery day. Nothing, not even a hint of pain radiated from the vigorous rubbing of my thumb. After a few minutes of sitting there, the lazy me, the me that has been feeling pretty defeated lately, hung his head in shame. The me that has ambitions and dreams beyond sleep had won and was ready to run.

Todays Run:
7 miles easy
56:00

Recap

Yesterday I ran a 1/2 marathon. Not a race, just on my own. I was happy with my time of 1:42:00. That is not my fastest, but it is only a few minutes off. My best was actually during a 14 mile run so I don't know how fast it would have been without that last .9 miles, but probably about 1:38:00. Anyway that was the best distance run I have had in a while so I was pretty happy with it.

All day yesterday the back of my right heel was bothering me but I did not think much of it since I had run 13 miles earlier in the day. This morning I set out for a really easy run and ended up with 5.5 miles. It was easy but my heel was bothering me again. It has been kind of off and on today so I have decided to take tomorrow off. I really don't want to but I also don't want to end up with some silly injury. (The back of my heel. Any ideas what it could be anyone?)

Last week I finished with 52.2 miles. I am really happy with that and was hoping to run around 55 this week. However, since I am taking tomorrow off that will make it pretty hard to accomplish. I guess we will just see. I certainly don't want to push it too hard.

Overall my spirits are still up and I am really enjoying every bit of it. After 9 straight days I need a day off. I just hope it is enough time for my heel to get back to normal so I can push it hard the rest of the week.

Early is the key

The last week and a half of training has been phenomenal. My motivation has been up, I have gotten a lot of miles in and they have been good miles. The key to this recent success has been my wake up time and refusal to use the snooze. I woke up the last 4 days at 5:30, and did the same 3 days last week. I am not going to lie, it has been really difficult. However, I did not give myself a choice. The thoughts about going back to bed entered my mind, but they were not entertained. Thoughts how nice it would be to sleep entered my head but then I would think about how disappointed I would be to cave after only a few days.
The exhaustion was tough to handle for about the first week. I think my body was just not use to getting up that early. The last two days have been much better, and I am hoping that trend will continue. I think that getting up at the same time everyday is imperative. My hope is that my body will adjust to that time and I will naturally start to feel awake that early. The other huge advantage is that my workouts are not rushed. Getting up that early gives me plenty of time to get my workout in, stretch, shower, and get to work. I did 9 easy miles the other day and had time to spare. I used to base my wake-up time on my workout. Then I would snooze and have to shorten my workout to accommodate. Well, we see where that got me last time. My biggest struggle over the last three years or so with my running has been consistency. I think I am finally on to something that is going to change all of that.

Today's Run
4 Miles Fartlek
2 x 9 sec hill spints (more on that later)
1 Mile Cooldown

Yesterday's Run
7.3 Miles Easy (oops)
7:33 Pace

Car Smacking

When I think of an endurance athlete, the word punk definitely does not come to mind. Well, I like to think of myself as an endurance athlete, but I guess I have a little inner punk as well.

At some point in my running history, I became frustrated with oblivious and/or self absorbed motorists and decided to fight back. I don't remember plotting it out, it just kind of happened. A car got close enough to me that I thought I could touch it and so I did. This evolved into what is now known by me as car smacking. I have never been the recipient of a car smacking, but I can assure you it is startling. Just imagine driving along passing a pedestrian, whom you may or may not have seen and then you hear a loud thud.

So the secret is out, if a car gets close enough to me, I let them know by applying a generous amount of force from my hand to their vehicle. At first I always assumed this just ticked people off or made them realize how close they really were. However, I had an encounter that changed my perspective.

Out for a run one morning on a curvy road in the dark, an SUV was coming towards me. It was obvious they had no idea I was there and they were headed right for me. This time instead of smacking the SUV, I jumped into the air and shoved off the side of the car to avoid getting hit. Without missing a step, I landed and kept going. When I looked over my shoulder, I noticed the SUV was stopped and a man was getting out. I was pretty frustrated and assumed he wanted to fight me or something. I looped around and headed back towards him to give him a piece of my mind. To my surprise he was terrified and asked if I was alright. I said yes and threw in a ”watch where you are going”. Somehow it had not occurred to me that I was making people may think they hit me.

So I guess that is the mean streak in me. I am not proud of it so I try to rationalize my behavior. Perhaps scaring them makes them more aware in the future and keeps them from hitting someone else. An elderly person or a child who may not be as aware of what is going on. I also think about how it is their laziness or rudeness, and my safety, I have a lot more to lose.

I have never talked to or heard about another runner who participates in this sort of practice. I can’t imagine that I am alone. If you have a similar story, please share.


Today's Run:
6 mile repeats with 1:30 recovery between each
6:39
6:36
6:30
6:23
6:23
6:11

At Last

The easy run made a return to my training this morning. The last truly easy day I had was Friday the 1st, two and a half weeks ago. That run was 7.3 miles at a 8:15 pace. Today’s run was even easier then that and longer. Perhaps the most exciting part was the pace; 7:46. I started out easy and kept it that way even though I felt like I could easily speed up. The last ½ mile was a breeze. I just could not help wonder where today was a couple of weeks ago during the marathon. I was already starting to hurt at that point in the marathon and I was running about 20 seconds a mile slower. I think it has a lot to do with the consistency I have had over the last week and a half.
It was a lot of fun to have an easy run, no pain, just a little over an hour of running enjoyment.

New Workout

Today's workout was something new for me from the Run Faster book. It was a progression run. The book uses these runs in a lot of different ways, but the premise is always the same. Start slow and build, or shift to a different speed. For instance he might have you run a long run, 14 miles easy and then 3 at marathon goal pace. Today I started with 4.5 miles at 8 min pace. I was really excited to be able to maintain that slower pace for that long and it felt really good. It was fun to just take it easy and enjoy the run for a while. Then I switched gears and ran the last 2.8 miles in 19:15 or a 6:52 pace. It is amazing how much easier it is for me to run at a pace like that if I start out slow. I think it was actually easier for me to run that last 2.8 miles then it would have been if I had just run that 2.8 miles by itself.

Anyway, I am a fan of the progression run after today. I think it allows you to get the miles in and run at a fast pace without completely draining yourself. I also think it teaches you to pick up the pace when you are fatigued. I will continue to use that workout and try some of the different ways it is suggested in the book. More attempts at consistency and variance to come.

2 a Day

Well, before dinner I could not resist going out for a hard mile. I am still chasing that infamous sub 5:00 mile. Well, tonight was not the night, but I did run my fastest mile in over 10 years so I will take it.

1 Mile 5:19

The usual

Well, just like usual I went out too fast. I looked down at my watch at 4.5 miles hoping to see 8 min pace or slower, which would have been 36:00, instead it read 34:50. So I could not help but speed up a little more. I ended up stopping at 7 miles with an average pace of 7:35. I then ran a 1.5 mile cool down. I guess since I can't seem to slow it down I just need to get into better shape so I can maintain that pace. The wind was down today but I did get to run in some poring rain, which was fun.

30 MPH

Probably my least favorite thing to run in is strong wind. I would rather run when it is -5 degrees then when it is really windy. You just can't seem to get into a rhythm when it is windy. It is like you are doing interval work the entire time. Yesterday morning I ran in wind gust up to 30 mph. It was perhaps the strongest winds I have ever run in. It was also poring down rain so that made it pretty interesting. I ran for about 4.5 miles non stop and then ran 2 minutes on and 1 minute off until my entire workout was 1 hour. I think I covered a little over 7 miles and ran about 6.25. Overall considering the conditions I was pretty happy with the workout. Today was another scheduled day off, my last day of recovery from the marathon. Tomorrow is a short long run, probably around 10 miles. Unless I am feeling really good.

5 mile repeats

Today I set out for 5 mile repeats with 1.5 minute rest. I started out with a 6:23, and then ran a 6:07. I started the third one and only made it about .25 miles then stopped. Instead of getting discouraged I just took about an 8 minute break and then ran a 6:14. Then I took a 2.5 minute rest and ran 6:11, then I took about 5 minutes and ran 5:52. So it was not exactly what I set out to run, but I also was not planning on averaging 6:10 per mile. All in all I was happy with the run.

Mile repeats is probably my favorite training day to be done with. I know it does a lot for me and I always feel a sense of accomplishment. I must say that I dread it when it is coming and don't aways enjoy it much during, but it is worth the return.


Mile Repeats
6:23
6:07
6:14
6:11
5:52