Week V

Week V
24.2 Miles

Started the week a little sore from the Tough Mudder. Ran 3 miles at Niagara Falls with my wife waterside before we left to go home. I took a look at my schedule and realized that I was going to have a 6 day stretch at work and my long run of 12 miles would have to be done at the beginning of the week just two days after the Mudder. I wasn't too pleased and Brian (my training partner) was tied up at work until the end of the week. I was able to grab Justin Q (a short distance training partner) and con him into doing 12 with me. I caught him on a good day I guess, or perhaps a bad one that needed some venting and we drove downtown to log miles.

The Polar Vortex reared it's ugly head again, except this time it wasn't so ugly. Temps dropped into the mid sixties at run time in the evening, making it ideal weather to run in. I brought this mammoth camelback that wears like a fanny pack instead of a backpack. The pack holds about 44 oz. I took a few strides with it and turned right back around and put it back in the car. The bouncing wasn't gonna work for me. I grabbed a smaller bottle and we took off. There were so many people downtown running and we even ran through a 5K in progress. Felt a little tight at mile 9 and felt pain in the joints at mile 10, but I finished strong and held a 9:42 pace. This is still slow for the pace I'll need to run sub-4 hr in the marathon, but i was ok with it nonetheless.

Took a day off and ran a slow 3 mile recovery, then a 6 miler the same day to finish the week.

I feel strong and confident going into another step-back week with 9 miles being the peak long run. I'll do most of the runs on the trails. I've found that I enjoy the trails so much more than the pavement and have added at least one trail run per week to my training. The hamstrings hurt after due to the hills, but it is so serene and beautiful. I shed the headphones and listen to the wildlife and leaves and I end my run feeling really good. I have yet to have a bad trail run. To save my tailbone from injury in falling in the trails, I bought a pair of Altra Lone Peak 1.5 on Super Clearance from Runningwarehouse.com for $63. Score. I can't begin to tell you how happy I am with my road Altra Torins, so these are likely not to disappoint.




Sing.
Migrate.

Week III

Week III.
29.5 miles logged

Legs felt weak for the shorter runs. Pace was slow. I'm used to an 8:30/mile as a comfortable place to be. Seemed to be staying around 9:00/mile for some reason. It was pretty hot and muggy out, so I'll blame that. Still feel a little bummed about my last long run and I was dreading the 11 miler scheduled for this week. It was supposed to be a step-back week, but I am going back Up North, so I'll take the opportunity to run the long miles there.

Brought 40oz of water with me, knowing there was a store about halfway if I needed to refill. I ate well the day before and filled up with carbs the morning of the long one. I caught a break with the weather. The humidity cleared out and the temperature dropped into the 60's at run time (9 am). I started running and never felt a moment of struggle the entire 11 miles. I kept a 9:30/mile pace, which is a little slower than the pace I hope to maintain for the marathon. I ran the first half with caution and stayed at about 9:50/mile or so to test my energy and legs and made up some time on the way back. I felt awesome after the run and encouraged that the run was so easy.

Ended the week at home with a recovery run with my son, which offered me the wonderful opportunity to coach his form and teach him breathing. Running with my child is a priceless time worth everything to me.

Next week is a step-down week.

Sing.
Migrate.

The Beast That Chases

I work in an environment that sees a lot of death; death everyday. Although I am sentimental, I am not particularly emotional in my nature. I joke instead. If you walk into a room where I am doing CPR, you will likely laugh at me, but feel guilty at laughing at my irreverence for this moment in this person's life that may be the second most defining moment they have experienced, right after birth. The patient may die and I will walk out of the room, wipe off the sweat, and go about the rest of my day as if someone with a soul and deep thoughts hadn't just ended his stay here in this world beneath my pumping hands. Their family will scream and fall on top of him or her and wail and need a dozen boxes of Kleenex. I am sentimental, so I am usually good with families in distressing times, but I am not particularly emotional so I won't cry with them. In fact, I will forget about them in a days time, maybe before my badge swipes into another twelve hour shift.

This doesn't mean I don't feel it. We all feel the dread of death. I lost my best friend/brother on Christmas of 2009. I have felt the thickness of grief and have been in the valley of the shadow of death. I understand the emotions that death and even the thought of death bring. But I do not express it emotionally, only sentimentally, with words written down.

The truth is that death leaves a heaviness in my guts; a heaviness that has to be lifted. So I run. My co-workers don't see me experience the weight, but they also don't understand why I will run everyday after a 12 hour work day. I run so I can smile and be free of the things that cause heaviness in the guts. When I run, sometimes I can feel it leaving. Sometimes I can feel it fighting back, trying to remain. I get angry and push harder, gasping for breath, determined to outrun the beast that chases me.

Until it's gone.



Sing.
Migrate.

Training Log 2.13-2.19

Training log from 2/13-2/19

 

2.13- Four miles around the house- pain in both knees and the right hip. Uneven surface and uncleared walks. Cold to the bones. Am I hurt or injured? Hurt.

 

2.15- Four miles. Again the pain. Starting to nag at me, forcing me to stop to stretch every 3/4 mile or so. Ran decently fast for the surface at 08:40/mile. I've sworn off Yaktrax for the season as I believe they are adding to the pain problems by forcing my feet side to side. Not sure though. Am I hurt or injured? Hurt.

 

2.16- Five miles. First half was encouraging with the knees. Hip was numb, but the knees started rattling at 2.5 and made the rest of the run pretty miserable. Still cold, negative wind chill. I should run later in the day on these cold days. Am I hurt or injured? Hurt.

 

2.17- Four miles. 3rd worst run this year. Pace was crawl, legs hurt from the first mile on. The snow has melted on the walk. These are my least favorite conditions to run in. Every step brings with it a white slurpee that kicks piles onto the other foot. Temp was lower and comfortable, but I'd take sub-zero over water-logged socks. Holding back swears every time I splash into an unseen puddle. Had to stop every half mile to stretch the knees. Took to the street for a few, but cars purposely speeding up and splashing me. Am I hurt or injured? Hurt?

 

2.19- Warmest day since Jan. 1 and I am on the treadmill. I hate the mill, but I need a flat surface. Waited for the pain at mile 1.3, but it never really came in full force. I felt it, but it wasn't stopping me. Left the gym feeling good about it. I think I'll have to keep to the mill until the pain is dulled or gone. Am I hurt or injured? Hurt.

 

Excited for the Rock CF half marathon next month. I have a lot of friends running it, so I am excited to run with familair faces. I have no aspirations of trying to run it fast, I'm going to loaf it laughing. February having 28 days is a serious detriment to my ninth straight month of running 100 miles or more. This has been the first time I doubted reaching it. 74.6 miles down with 9 days remaining. I'll hopefully get in two days off before I begin my quest to defeat March.

 

Sing.

Migrate.