Joy! More daylight means more mileage

We've gained an hour of daylight and I'm feeling the spring rejuvenation that I often feel at this point of the year. This is my favorite time of year for running. I've recovered from my Winter marathon and I'm feeling strong again. I'm going to focus on some solid short-distance running (i.e. 3 to 7 miles) as I prepare for a 10k race before our vacation. We leave for Cabo San Lucas, Mexico on May 28. Not that we've got anything else going on, besides moving all of our wordly possessions about 900 miles from our current residence in the next 4 weeks.

Fri March 31

6:48 PM - I set out just after dusk to blow off some steam and get my run on. Thanks to our buyer's building inspector, we had just learned that we needed an electrician to figure out where a reset switch was for our GFI outlet in the kitchen. Don't worry, didn't make sense to me either. The run was decent. Up to Grumman via Overbrook and back. DIST: 4.06M - TIME: 30:18 - PACE: 7:27 - NO HRM TODAY

Sat April 1

9:32 AM - Nothing special about this run. I had to get it in before I headed off to Holmdel, NJ for my niece's 2nd birthday party. It was swift and painless. Again, I breezed with the wind. I am ready to kick it into race training mode.

TIME: 29:44 - DIST: 4.00M - PACE: 7:25 - AVG HR: 164

Sun April 2

9:31 AM Eastern Daylight Time -- We lost an hour to gain daylight. I wanted to keep this one short to save up some juice for our hockey game later today. What a glorious day today is. Sunshine abound. Spring is here and I feel great. The run was spectacular. Hockey game scheduled this early eve for 5:10 PM.
TIME: 21:54 - DIST: 3.00M - PACE: 7:18 - AVG HR: 159

Twenty solid miles and two hockey games makes for a successful week. I accomplished my goal for this specific week. Hey, it was only 20, but I loved every mile. They all felt great.

RUN PLAN FOR WEEK OF APRIL 3, 2006

• Need to travel to Chicago this week for our new home purchase inspection.
• I am going to sign up for my first two races in the Chicago area as follows: Sat, May 13 - Joliet 8k -- Sat, May 27 - Western Springs 10k.
• Here's what I will try for this week: Mon: 3, Tue: 5, Wed: Rest (travel in AM), Thu: 4, Fri: 2 + strength train, Sat: 4, Sun: 6. Total: 24

Officially midwest-bound

Well, we past two major milestones over the last 2 days. We essentially sold our house and bought another in Illinois. This blog will be relocating to Plainfield, IL -- approximately 35 miles SW of Chicago. We'll be true Chicago suburbanites - DINKS (dual income-no kids) -- until next year when we can hopefully have a little nipper. Here's my run activity week-to-date:

Mon 3/27/06 - Got out for a beautiful afternoon run at 3:40 PM from the office. Had a fairly rapid pace of 7:18 per mile over the 4 miles. Great speed. Feeling good. Back in the groove.

Tue 3/28/06 - Started my run at 6:08 PM. We were in the middle of a negotiation to sell our house and I needed to blow off some steam. 5 miles - 37:07 - 7:25 pace/

Wed 3/29/06 - No running on this day. I had planned to rest for our hockey game. We lost 3-2. I played defense and had an awful game. No goals.

Thu 3/30/06 -- Today, I again did not run. I simply was unable to get in some mileage. The late hockey game plus Jen getting back from Chicago kept us up late. We stayed up until 1AM talking about what house we would buy. Then, today we had the drama of offering to buy the house and counter-offering. Not to mention calling lenders. Oh yeah, I was also at work trying to get some things done. I need to focus over the next 3 days to hit my 20-22 mileage goal.

Feeling motivated - prepping for a productive week

I am rested and ready to return to my old running self. I am caught up with work for the most part and have tackled the stress of the moving situation. No, we've not sold the house yet, but I am feeling good about it since we've got a couple of bites at the minute. Here's how I got back into the fitness groove this weekend after taking some slack time.

Saturday, 3/25/06

I made a seemlingly rare visit to the gym. Our company has a gym on the first level, and it is really nice perk. It's totally empty on Saturdays. It's not Powerhouse with endless free weights and meatheads abound by any stretch - but it has what I need.

I did 5 minutes of stretching and 10 minutes on the bike to start up. I then hopped onto the 'mill for a short tempo 2-miler. It felt good and easy. I then moved onto the weight machines for some legs, chest, arms and rounded out with some crunches.

It was a good feeling, trying to climb out of my fitness rut. I am back in business.

Sunday, 3/26/06

We had two house showings today and we're highly optimistic. After all, we dropped our price again on Friday and we're at the point where we're saying "it's gotta sell for this!". With the 2nd showing, my disappearance was to go out for a afternoon run. I had the most speed in my run in probably 6-7 weeks. I am wondering if my Polar device was not calibrated, but I crushed 4 miles in sub-29 minutes. Did the last 2 in 14 minutes.

It so inspired that I decided I am going to plan my mileage one week at a time. I have been looking for 10k to work towards, but with the move, we're not sure where we'll be. So, I am taking it ONE week at a time for now. Here is the plan for the upcoming week...

RUN PLAN FOR WEEK OF 3/27/06

Goal for the week: Target 20-22 total miles and a Wednesday hockey game

Mon: 3
Tue: 5
Wed: Rest from running - 9PM hockey game
Thu: 4
Fri: 5
Sat: Rest
Sun: 5

Ryan is not dead

I am entering the final phase of my unplanned "running hibernation" - hopefully, anyway. I took an easy 5-miler last Sunday. Other than that, I've been idle.

Truth is I am overwhelmed with life, the move, work and I needed some time off after the marathon.

I am not ashamed of my break. It is one of the joys of running for me. That I can knock out a marathon - take a break - and then get back in my routine.

Hopefully, we will sell our house soon and a big piece of the stress will be gone. I find I am spending a lot of my time either traveling to/from Chicago, catching up with work, cleaning the house (vacuum, make bed, organize desk) , looking at houses on line, talking with my wife about houses that we want to buy, talking with the realtor on how we can sell our damn house, hearing her ask what we should buy, thinking about all of the above, losing sleep over all of the above, etc.

I will bust of my hiatus soon. Spring has arrived a bit late this year. I am planning the re-emergence of my running life.

Unplanned personal hiatus

It has been a major slowdown for me in the department of running in my life during the last 2 weeks. This was not something I planned on. However, other aspects of my life have demanded attention.

The week of 3/6/06 (last week)
Last week, I ran 3 times -- all for about 5 miles apiece. I did runs on Tuesday and Wednesday. I think I became a little frustrated last week when I noticed my pace was slower than usual. I think I was still not fully recovered from the marathon. On Wed, I decided to leave my watch behind and do a 5.2 mile route from work that I have run several times before.

We went to Chicago for the weekend to househunt and I did a 5 miler on Sunday in Bolingbrook, IL.

This week
The truth is that I have not run at all since Sunday of last week. We had a 3-day meeting here in Norwalk for Category Strategy reviews. The all-day meetings basically push all the work that needs to be done to other hours and puts a strain on the free-time.

I am taking a little break from running to get my life in order. I will get out this weekend for hopefully two runs.

The fact is that the stress and pressure of trying to sell the house and keep up with work right now is taking its toll. We are trying to make this big personal move to the Chicago area and we've not had the luck we were hoping for to sell our house. Meanwhile, we've been all consumed with finding a house (which we don't want to buy until we sell).

All of the jostling with realtors (on both the buy and sell side) - and hoping, wishing, waiting, cleaning, working, etc. - has made running a lower priority since the marathon 2 1/2 weeks ago.

I am in the down end of the cycle for me in running. But I will be back shortly.

Back in the saddle and daydreaming

Sat, March 4, 2006

I was able to muster up enough determination to get out and enjoy my first run since last week’s marathon. It was a beautifully bright and clear day in Connecticut yesterday. The winds were ever-present but manageable.

I just wanted to get through 4 or 5 miles to get some exercise and build my confidence. I find the all of my early post-marathon runs require some patience and more effort than before the marathon. Just part of the recovery process, I suppose.

TIME 33:11
EST DIST 4.26
EST PACE 7:47
AVG HR 159

Sun, March 5, 2006

Today was bright and sunny as yesterday – but a tad warmer and there was not a cloud in the sky. For some strange reason, I felt compelled to go at least 7 or 8 miles today at a very easy pace.

I had been reading about how I need to focus on slower paced long runs, and I decided what better time than to start today.

I began my run at 2:37 PM. I felt really good and I jogged along at a pace that ranged anywhere from 8:20-9:00 per mile. I was comfortable and at ease.

Along the way, I felt a sense of inspiration. I had been thinking about whether or not I should go after that BQ time in Chicago later this year. I was thinking about how, while it has been a set of great personal accomplishments to complete six marathons, that I truly never tested myself.

Much of my marathon training over the past 5 years has been largely recreational and, though reasonably well-planned, haphazard at times. That’s fine when you’re only goal is to finish or achieve a PR that you know you can get with just a little more effort the next year. Well, the PR streak ended this year and it was a wake-up call.

I had a vision about making our move to Chicago and getting settled in. Then, going to Mexico for vacation in early June. I would begin a 20-week regimen on June 5th that would be the most intense and committed that I would ever undertake. I could see myself putting in most of my runs in the early mornings.

I daydreamed that, by the time September rolled around, Jennifer (my wife) might even be pregnant. Wouldn’t that be great inspiration for the race in October?

I snapped out of my daydream and kept breezing along at that varied 8:30-8:50 pace range. I ventured to some new territory in Westport where I gazed a multi-million dollar homes as I passed. Before I knew it, I had knocked out about 5 miles.

I kept rolling enjoying the afternoon. I had a close call about 45 minutes in when I stepped on a huge crack on the edge of the road that caused me to twist my ankle. Luckily, I didn’t put much weight on it in my stride and I walked it off.

After about an hour of running, I decided that it would be quite a successful day if I completed 10 miles only one week after my marathon. I don’t think I have ever run double-digit miles after only one week of any marathon I have run. This was a first.

I’ll keep thinking about that Chicago BQ plan and how amazing it would be to achieve it. I’ll keep in it mind, but it is not a commitment that I would take lightly. This is why I need more time to think about it and decide how I would even take on such a goal.

TIME 1:25:11
EST DIST 10.0
EST PACE 8:31
AVG HR 152

Reflection and a week of recovery...

First, I would like to thank Zeke, Rob and others for the words of encouragement, congratulations, advice, etc in response to my Marathon report.

I still have not run since the race on Sunday. I decided to take the week off. I may go out for a short one today just to get re-acclimated. It is cold here today, but very clear and sunny.

Recovery from last Sunday's marathon was remarkably smooth for me. Strange, considering how much I struggled the last 3 miles. After we returned from Florida on Tuesday, I played a 1.5 hour hockey game on Tuesday night in the men's league. I didn't feel sore or slow at all.

The next three days were focused on catching up with work and dealing with trying to sell our condo.

My wife and I are about to move in the couple months or so from Connecticut to the Chicago suburbs. This will be the big personal change (and a huge piece of work) that we will need to work through that I will need to balance with running.

Based on some of your comments, I will be looking into the advice on Pfitzinger training plan. I don't have the Advanced Marathoning book but I will get it. I have not seen the weekly mileage plans, but I am hearing rumblings of 55-miles per week from some of the discussion boards that I have read.

I think that I do have the potential to run a 3:10 and qualify for Boston. I really believe that. However, I am struggling with the commitment that I know it will require to achieve it.

I understand that the vast majority of us in this "run blog community" in are in the same boat: We have dayjobs, wives, kids, friends and/or other interests that compete with our passion and desire to keep running. When not training for a marathon, I have found that I am happy when I run anywhere between 18 and 30 miles per week.

During marathon training, running 35 miles/week is no problem. Above that, it starts to get hectic with balancing work and the uncertainty of the winter weather. The intermediate plan I have followed the last 4 years only takes me up to 40 per week max. To get this 3:10 will require much more than that -- AND at slower paces than I have in the past, thus adding even more time required per week to my training.

Plus, I am sensitive to warm weather. Therefore, to successfully train, it will mean many early mornings will need to be dedicated to running through the summertime in our new community.

Not worried about another marathon until later in the year. Once we get back from vacation to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico in early June, it will be 20 weeks til the Chicago Marathon in mid-October. This is likely to be my next marathon.

For now, I will get back into my 18-30 mile per week routine and run the 5M to 1/2 marathon races when I can. I am looking in to doing a half in about 4 weeks. Gotta get back out there if I am going to be ready for that...

Greater Danbury Half Marathon - Sunday, April 2
http://www.jbsports.com/race_information.htm#greatdanbury

Tampa Marathon Recap: No PR - but my #6 is in the books

This marathon started out wet, windy and uncertain. The Tampa Bay area received some intense thunderstorms at approximately 5:15 AM on race morning, for which a 6AM start was planned. Fortunately, the heavy rains diminished to a steady, light rain. Race organizers decided to delay the start 1/2 hour - which left thousands of us standing at the start for quite a while. This was going to be a wet one.

The race course was a bit uneventful as all of the planned entertainment was cancelled due to the rain. The course design was OK, I guess. It carried us down Bayshore Drive which had lovely waterfront views. However, we seemed to cover the same roads on the second half as the first. I think I ran 10 out of the last 13 miles on roads that we ran the first 13 miles.

The conditions were drab but manageable. It was totally grey and rainy for almost the entire race. My feet were soaked the whole time. I saw a fellow runner nearly twist his ankle trying to avoid one of the countless giant puddles on the narrow pathways. The only bright side was that the temps were in the 60's and the bay breeze kept us all cool. Definitely beats a heat wave and intense sun.

I ran the perfect race for me through 20 miles, but I knew I was in trouble as I headed into the high teens. I was able to hang on through 23, but that is where the legs really began to slow and burn. It is a humbling and disappointing feeling when your legs have taken you 23 miles strong and they just don't want to go anymore. It was almost comical. I felt good otherwise.

I need to figure out why I didn't hit the wall in my last two marathons. Sure, I was tired and my pace slowed, but I was able to hang on running. Was my training that much better in 2004 and 2005? Maybe.

Although it was a mind wrenching experience, I knew I would finish. I was running for myself and that is all that mattered. On this particular race day, I would take a little extra time the last few miles.

I am not going to make excuses about how I got sick and missed my last long run or how the recent blizzard hampered running opportunities. I trained about as well as I could over the past few months with everything going on in life. It will be a learning opportunity. I know that if I do another marathon, I will need to step up the training, gain some peer support (I did ALL of my training alone) and get some pre-marathon races in.

Training was the key issue, I believe. Looking back, my 18 and 20 training mile runs I did were a bit too fast. Plus, my goal is not just to finish anymore. I believe I need to kick up my peak training mileage to 24-26. All things to think when I go for it again.

All and all, I am proud to have a completed my sixth marathon. Now, I will take a little time to recover and get back into a 20 mile per week regimen. I will also be taking the next several weeks to decide if I will run in the Chicago Marathon in October.

Below is the Tampa Marathon breakdown by the mile:

MILE -- PACE - CUM TIME
1 -- 7:39 - 7:39
2 -- 7:42 - 15:21
3 -- 7:46 - 23:07
4 -- 7:43 - 30:51
5 -- 7:37 - 38:28
6 -- 7:47 - 46:15
7 -- 7:32 - 53:47
8 -- 7:52 - 1:01:39 - Even managed to work in a pee break
9 -- 7:20 - 1:08:59
10 -- 7:45 - 1:16:43
11+12 -- 15:37 - 1:32:20
13+14 -- 15:27 - 1:47:47
15 -- 7:56 - 1:55:43
16 --7:52 - 2:03:35
17 -- 7:43 - 2:11:19 - Started to feel some fatigue
18 -- 7:38 - 2:18:57
19 -- 8:16 - 2:27:13 - Seemed like a misplaced mile marker as the next split would confirm
20 -- 7:09 - 2:34:22
21 -- 7:44 - 2:42:06 - Hanging on
22 -- 8:12 - 2:50:18 - Strong head winds kicked in
23 -- 8:27 - 2:58:45 - Still on pace for a PR after 23
24 -- 9:35 - 3:08:19 - Wall - Did some walking to try and recover
25 -- 10:59 - 3:19:18 - Struggled to climb over the wall - Walked even more
26+26.2 -- 12:10 - 3:31:28 - Ran to the finish for the last half mile

Marathon Weekend is here - It's 'bout time to rock in Tampa

So, after much anticipation, marathon weekend is here.

My experience to date has been that there is always a mysterious feeling the week before the marathon ... "how I am going to do?" "am I ready?" "am I really going to make it for 26.2?" "have I trained enough?" "do I have a prayer to P.R.?"

This year is no different. I just don’t know what to expect of my body. The taper period was a bit unique because I missed the last long 18-miler; however, I did run a solid 20k last week with a strong 7-miler the day before.

This weekend, I will participate in my sixth marathon in six years. I have improved my time with each race that I have run. Here is the list of my prior marathon performances:

May 6, 2001 - Pittsburgh - 4:15:52
May 5, 2002 - Pittsburgh - 3:46:10
May 4, 2003 - Pittsburgh - 3:29:57
March 20, 2004 - Virginia Beach - 3:26:37
January 16, 2005 - Houston - 3:23:55
February 26, 2006 - Tampa - ???

For the 6AM start tomorrow, the weather conditions are expected to be wet. There is a 70% chance of rain and temp’s are expected to be in the mid 60’s.

Overall, there is always a sense of pride that I have while even attempting these races, since it does require a great deal of commitment. This year will be no different.

Regardless of my time, I know I will finish and add another race experience to the book of life. My wife will be there at the finish and I will be on the verge of collapse as we meet. I will finish and we will celebrate. On to Tampa…

Week 15 - The home stretch into Tampa

7 DAYS UNTIL THE TAMPA MARATHON...

All right, so it has been 15 weeks of ups and downs and we're now less than one week away from the big day.

Today is Sunday, February, 19 and I am resting. This week was one of recovery from my cold.

In total, I ran 32.4 miles this week - including a nice 20k race yesterday.

Monday, Feb 13

After a tough weekend of suffering from a terrible cough, cold, fever, flu combination -- and observing a blizzard hit the area, I decided to get into the gym to get back into training. I just wanted to get the heart rate up and feel like I was in some sort of shape. I took a cross-training approach on this day:

Treadmill - 2 miles
Ellipitical trainier - 10 minutes
Bike - 10 minutes
Treadmill - 1 mile
Stretch

Tue, Feb 14 - 2:48 PM

I got out of the office on Tuesday in the middle of the afternoon on to the snowy roads in Norwalk. I got a decent six-miler in. The route I usually take from work (across the Merritt down to East Rocks) entails some steeper than normal elevation, so it is not uncommon to see the HR higher on these runs. It was a decent recovery run. Best mileage I had in a whole week.

TIME: 45:38 - DIST: 6.0 - PACE: 7:35 - AVG HR: 153

Wed, Feb 15 - 7AM - Not that great of a run

I had planned to go to the High School track to do some speed work. I ran the 1/2 mile to the track only to find it still completely covered with much of the 20" of snow that fell on Sunday. I opted to continue running on County Street into the neighborhoods back there. I didn't feel that great on this run. Still reeling from my cold and I was fatigued. In the end, it was a 4-miler - a slow and shakey one at that. This run hurt my confidence. Why would I struggle on a short run like this? This made me realize I still was not over my cold and I needed to rest.

TIME: 31:08 - DIST: 4.0 - PACE: 7:47 - AVG HR: 151

Thursday, 2/16 - I rested as I was on business travel in Princeton, NJ.

Friday, 2/17 - 6:45 AM

I was determined to get in a good 7-miler to build some confidence. I accomplished this. I ran from home to Grumman up to the Half Mile road area and back. The weather was unseasonably warm - high 40's.

This was the best I had felt in well over a week. I hadn't experienced a running high in several days. Finally, I felt good. This was an excellent training run.

TIME: 53:21 - DIST: 7.05 - PACE: 7:34 - AVG HR: 155

Saturday, 2/18 - 8:30 AM - 20k RACE - BOSTON MARATHON BUILD-UP SERIES - SOUTHPORT, CT

This was my last crack to get in a decent distance before next week's big race. I wanted to exert a medium effort to leave something left. I had planned to run 7:30-7:35 pace for the 20k, which I thought would be a decent push of speed work. (MARATHON PACE TARGET: 7:38)

Southport, CT is moderately hilly. The weather was cold (25 degrees F) and slightly windy. We ran by countless $3M+ homes. I am constantly amazed by the money around here. If you know anything about CT real estate, it's that it is crazy expensive. It's fun to run with a group of racers through rural Connecticut hillsides with mansions placed everywhere. I just kept moving and enjoyed the surroundings.

I ended up running 7:24 pace -- not by design, truthfully. My Polar distance monitor was reporting distances slighly longer than the markers on the course, so it was tough to tell where I was with pace.

All and all, it was a good race for me. I felt decent at the end. It is always intimidating to run a race like that and realize that it is less than half a marathon! BUT... I will be better rested, the course in Fla. will be flat and I will be fully adrenalized. Check the results below...

TIME: 1:31:58 - DIST: 20k / 12.4M - PACE: 7:24

RESULTS: http://www.clubct.org/Results/06Results/06BB20kRes.html

Week 14 - Down, but not out

Dear Running Journal

Unfortunately, week # 14 did not go as planned. I had a successful 20-mile run last Sunday on Feb 5th, which rounded out Week #13. However, as I got into the next week, I hit a couple of obstacles.

First, I rested on Monday. Tuesday, I got out at lunchtime a completed a decent 5-miler.

Wednesday morning, I was up and at 'em to face some very cold weather - around 15 degrees (I think I expected mid-20's!). In hindsight, I underdressed for the 6-miler that I completed. At the end, I was very cold. Something didn't feel right. I was shivering.

That afternoon, it was clear that I was coming down with a serious cold. I left work early to try to get home and rest. Not sure if it was simply from underdressing, but that's my suspiscion.

For Thursday, I decided I needed to rest further. I was congested, tired and achey for the entire day. I definitely had a cold and a mild fever. My throat was killing me and I was miserable. Plus, work has been intense this week as we prepare for our annual Strategic Plan.

Friday, I worked from home most of the day. Thinking one day of rest would be enough, I decided to try to get back out on the road for at least a 5-miler in the mid-afternoon. I realized after two miles that it was too early. My breathing was awful. I kept spitting out mucus every 15 seconds. I came in after three miles.

Saturday, I still needed rest and recovey. Plus, I was scheduled for a 20k race on Sunday, on top of which I had planned to run another 5. This was going to be my last long run -- exactly two weeks before the marathon.

Well, I was still sick... AND, everyone knows what happened on the East coast on Sat night/Sun morning. We received 20" of the white stuff. The race was cancelled. I didn't leave the house for 48 hours.

SO, FOR THE WEEK... I had three measley runs totaling 14 miles and I missed a long race/run. Not how I had hoped.

Today is Monday, Feb 13th at 9:23 PM ET. I am feeling slightly better but not completely recovered. With the main roads still entrenched by snow banks -- and the subdivisions still not plowed, running outside was not an option today.

So, I headed into the gym today to try to get back on to my feet. I did a cross-training routine: 3 miles on the tread / 10 minutes on the ellipitical / 10 minutes on the bike.

I do not think I will make up the 18-miler now. I am supposed to taper now. Should I try for maybe a 12-14 miler mid week? The roads will be a mess until it warms up on Thurs-Friday. I think I will run some steady 7-8 milers and get plenty of rest. The 20k that was cancelled on Sunday is supposed to be made up this weekend. Not sure if I should do it or not.

I'm at a crossroads. It's gut check time with race 12 days from tomorrow morning.

13 weeks down - 3 to go 'til Tampa

MARATHON TRAINING LOG
Week 13 OF 16 RECAP
RUNNING FOR THE TAMPA MARATHON – 2/26/06

Entered 0n Monday, February 6, 2006

Again, I struggled to make entries all week. All of my blog readers have abandoned me as I have been deliquent and updating and commenting on others. I will try to make an effort to get back into the game this week. Here is a look back at Week 13...

Mon 1/30/06

7AM - Monday morning was a rough run. Only 3 miles – but I was sore and tired. Jen’s parents must have worn me out when they visited over the weekend. The 13 miler at 7:24 per mile on Sunday was a push.

3 miles – 23:21 – 7:46/mile – No HRM

Tue 1/31/06 - Much needed day of rest. I was scheduled to run but I needed a break. Legs needed to recover.

Wed 2/1/06 – 7:07 AM – Got back onto my feet with a good morning run.

5 miles – 37:18 – 7:27/mile – Avg HR: 158

Thu 2/2/06 – 6:36 AM – Up and at ‘em for a strong 7-miler in the morning. Nothing unusual about this run.

7 miles – 52:52 – 7:33/mile – Avg HR: 156

Fri 2/3/06 – 4:19 PM – 4-miler from work in the late afternoon sun

4 miles – 29:46 – 7:26/mile – Avg HR: 150

Sat 2/4/06 - Day of rest

Sun 2/5/06 - Super Bowl Sunday - Nothing like a 20-mile run to prep for a Super Bowl viewing

I decided to take some advice from my co-worker, Phil, on how to run this week's long mileage. Phil is in his late 40's and is a borderline elite runner. He is trying to run a 2:40 marathon at age 50 next year.

I probably have been running too fast for my long runs. Most of my training runs seem to have been around the 7:38-7:47 pace. Phil counseled me to try to run a lot slower for the first 15 miles of my 20-miler and then truly crank out my last 5 at 5k pace (or close).

I target 8:15 per mile for the first 15 miles – and then tried for 7:10 for the last 5 miles. My 5k pace is usually around 6:40, but I wasn’t able to hold that kind of pace.

It was difficult but I pulled it off. Psychologically, it was really hard for me to run the 8:15. I felt like I became tired more quickly because I was holding back. The last 5 were tough but I was able to push through at the accelerated pace.

Most notably, the average HR was way, way down to 144. This was exceptionally lower than past runs.

20 miles – 2:39:24 – 7:58/mile – Avg HR: 144

Last 5 were completed in approx 35:55 or 7:11 per mile

SUMMARY FOR WEEK: Total of 39 miles

SUPER BOWL XL – PITTSBURGH: 21 – SEATTLE: 10 -- MVP: Hines Ward

Week #12 Recap - 4 weeks 'til Tampa!

This is my first AND last post of week #12. For whatever reason, it's been a hectic week. It was a nice and much-needed mileage reduction week from the last 3. Total was 33 miles; exactly what was called for from the training plan. And I did it with reasonable ease. Heck, I had 3 days off this week, so how hard could it have been?

Monday, 1/23

I enjoyed a hard-earned rest day. After the long Sunday run, we watched the Steelers demolish the Broncos. What a game. On Monday, I felt my calves; that’s for sure. But I am feeling like I am pretty good shape at this point.

Tuesday, 1/24

2:46 PM – Norwalk, CT

TIME: 28:33 – DIST: 4.0 miles – PACE: 7:09 – AVG. HR: 163

Flew out of the office in the mid-PM. Smokin’ run at 7:09 pace – note the HR was up there to 163.

Wednesday, 1/25

12:22 PM – Norwalk, CT

Today, I was set for a tempo 9-miler. Nothing like a mid-workday 9’er to brighten up your Wednesday.

I took the path from the office up the giant hill to West Rocks along side the Merritt. This was a very good run for me. There is a quite a bit of elevation going from work towards my house and back.

Statistic of the day is that the avg. heart rate was a mere 158. This is reasonably low considering the pace and the elevation I covered.

TIME: 1:07:49 – DIST: 9.0 miles – PACE: 7:31 - AVG HR: 158


Thursday, 1/26

I enjoyed yet another wonderful day of rest. This week is calling for a mere 33 miles, according to my Runner’s World Intermediate Training Plan. This is down from the peak of 40 (of which I covered 55 last week due to an adjustment from the prior week).

Funny, I have been following this plan for my last 5 marathons. Let me tell you this – it is quite a step up in mileage to go to the Advanced. I’m going to let all you Ultra-dudes & Ultra-chicks keep running the 70-100 mile weeks. I still need to leave some time to work, have fun, drink beer and watch sports.

Noteworthy: I sent my Tampa Marathon entry today. It’s official -- the $70 is spent.

To remind myself, the target is sub 3:20 – but I may get aggressive and shoot for 3:17.

Friday, 1/27

5:52 AM CST – Bolingbrook, IL

T-minus 30 days to Tampa Marathon. I was up and at ‘em before 6 AM on this run. OK, it’s a bit easier beat 6AM for a start time when you travel from the Eastern time zone the day before.

My forthcoming, new hometown of Bolingbrook is pancake flat. I ran from the Hampton Inn down Remington Blvd to Veterans PKWY – there and back. 7.0 miles and out – and off to work.

We also had a hockey game at 10:30 PM on Friday night, which we won 9-1. Continuing to play hockey in the late stage of marathon training is a challenge.

TIME: 52:53 – DIST: 7.0 miles – PACE: 7:33 – AVG. HR: 154

Saturday, 1/28

Saturday was a rest day. The hockey game tested the legs. We showed the house once today. Jen's parents were in town. We watched Million Dollar Baby and Flightplan. Now that i am my 30's, I am at a loss with what I should be doing with myself on the weekends.

Sunday, 1/29

10:00 AM - Norwalk - Today was a short long day. It was supposed to be a race pace 13-miler.

I cranked it out as quickly as I could. My legs were a bit fatigued from the late hockey game on Friday. Plus, I just felt a little tired.

Overall, the mileage went just fine. Noticeably, the heart rate was higher as a result of the race pace.

TIME: 1:36:12 – DIST: 13.0 miles – PACE: 7:24 - AVG HR: 166

SUMMARY OF WEEK

• Mon: Rest
• Tue: 4 - tempo
• Wed: 9 - tempo
• Thu: Rest
• Fri: 7 - tempo
• Sat: Rest
• Sun: 13 - race pace

TOTAL: 33 miles

Strong comeback week #11 - 56 miles

So this week is complete - and it is exactly 5 weeks until the Tampa Marathon. Training seems to be going well, even with all of the personal distractions. Like today, I completed an (almost) 20-miler, jumped into the shower - only to hear the doorbell ringing from strangers trying to see our house that is for sale. It's been quite a busy week, but I am hanging on and staying focused.

Thu 1/19/06

I got up early to run on this day to run before work. Other than that, I don’t remember anything. I know I did it, though. That’s the beauty of the Polar watch to record the workouts.

DIST: 6.0 – TIME: 44:39 – PACE: 7:24

Fri 1/20/06 – I held out to run until 5:00 PM. I left work a little early to get this done. I flew on this run. Very rapid in very unseasonably warm conditions.DIST – 4.14 – TIME: 29:31 – PACE: 7:06

Sun, 1/22/06 - Now the big one...

Today, I set out for my longest distance run since the Houston Marathon one year ago. My plan was to complete 20 miles at a pace of about 7:45 per mile.

What a glorious day to run. Yesterday, the high reached the high 50’s. Today was much cooler, but crisp and clear. When I started my run, it was about 30 degrees with clear sky and sun.

I’ve been having a number of minor challenges with my distance/heart rate monitor as late. Either I can’t get my HRM to read my pulse, or my distance pod battery dies – or I can’t find the HRM monitor – on and on….

Anyway, today, my distance pod battery died after about 7 or 8 miles. I didn’t feel like turning back so I just trudged on. I showed that I was running faster than 7:45 per mile. So I decided that I would estimate the time that I needed to run assuming a 7:45 pace. I figured that I was running pretty consistently and it was safe to project the 7:45 – even somewhat conservative.

I calculated in my head that I needed to run for 1:52:15 to achieve 15 miles at 7:45 pace. Then I would grab a new battery for my pod for the last 5. That’s what I did. However, after reviewing my run, I recognize that it’s not a good idea to try long division while gutting out a 20-miler.

So, if I look back, my math was wrong. I was off by 4 minutes – or just about a half mile. I should have run about 1:56:15 for a 7:45 pace 15-miler. Oh well...

My final 5 miles were quite strong - about a 7:36 pace.

In summary, I estimate my total run today was approx. 19.5 miles – as opposed to my 20-miler that I had planned. No worries, however, I am pretty certain I could have been able to cover that half last mile.

EST DIST: 19.5 -- TIME: 2:30:00 – EST PACE: 7:42

The weekly summary…

Mon – 18 miles
Tue – 5.3 miles – sloppy run at lunch
Wed – 3.0 miles – horrible windy, rainy weather – treadmill at lunch
Thu – 6.0 miles in the AM
Fri – 4.2 miles – FAST at 5:00 PM
Sat – REST
Sun – 19.5 miles
TOTAL FOR THE WEEK: 56 miles

I think that this week was a PR for total mileage in a single week. Granted, I pushed last week’s long run into Monday due to weather. But nonetheless, it was a good week.

Mid-week 11 update - Winter blahs and staying focused

I am struggling to keep up the blogging and commenting this week. It has been quite a hectic timeframe, so I will continue to do the best I can.

Seasonal Affecive Disorder , that condition that many people get during the dark, cold winter months - is something I am curious about. Is it a real condition?? OK, I don't think I have it -but I must admit I feel very "blah" lately. Running is tough due to the terrible weather and the darkness. Work has been challenging - just a lot of B.S., basically. I have felt more irritable and jaded lately. Trying to break out of that rut. The good news is that we're gaining daylight every day and getting close to spring - so I am happy about that.

Also, it's been a distraction that we put our house up for sale - so that's been an interesting personal event. One offer so far - but we turned it down and are waiting on a response for a counteroffer (???).

Monday, 1/16

I was fortunate enough to have MLK day off on Monday this week.

I did make up my 18-miler that I missed on Sunday. I ran for time - as my distance pod failed due to a dead battery after only 3 miles. The weather was still quite brisk on Monday.

I am only guessing on my pace, but I think it is reasonable based on past performance to estimate 7:45 or so. The snow and ice slowed me down, no doubt.

All and all, I am quite proud for knocking this out on Monday AM.

TIME: 2:20:15 - EST DIST: 18.0 - EST PACE: 7:47

Tuesday, 1/17

I went out at lunch to run in the slushy, icy, sloppy leftovers from the weekend storm. The conditions sucked. It was reasonably warm - but a total mess. My shoes and ankles were soaked. I got in approx 5.3 miles at approx 7:40 pace.

TIME: 40:40 - EST DIST: 5.3 - EST PACE: 7:40

Wed, 1/18

The terrible weather continued. The strange thing is that the temps rocketed up to 55 degrees! Sounds good, right? Yeah, well is totally pouring rain and the winds were again 30-50 MPH. What is up w/ Mother Nature?

I stayed inside for a short treadmill workout. I did some strength training and stretching on the machines in the gym.

TIME: 22:22 - EST DIST: 3.0 - EST PACE: 7:27

FOR TOMORROW... I PLAN TO DO REPEATS ON THE TRACK - 6 MILES - YIPPEE!!

Week 10 - Cut short due to weather

ON a non-running note, my wife and I met in Pittsburgh before we moved to Connecticut, and we are rabid Steelers fans. What an amazing NFL Divisional Playoff game today. I need to pay homage to the Steelers. What a tremendous game!!

Thursday, 1/12/06 - 6:48 AM

It's now Sunday night and I don't remember much about this run on Thursday AM. Sometimes, it's like I am oblivious to my runs. I just get up and do them. This was the case on Thursday.

TIME: 44:41 - DIST: 6.0 - PACE: 7:26

Friday, 1/13/06 - 6:11 PM

I remember this run. It was dark, moist and unseasonably warm. I rocketed on this run to a 7:15 pace in the usual Norwalk neighborhoods. Great stuff. Uneventful - but quite dark on Toilsome. Note to self: Invest in reflective vest. What gives... these people live in $800 thousand homes in these neighborhoods, but the town can't afford to invest in a few street lights???


Sunday, 1/15/06 - LONG 18-MILER RUN POSTPONED DUE TO WEATHER

We woke up to brutal weather on Sunday morning. I was set on getting in my long run today, but it simply was not in the cards. It was around 17-18 degrees, but the winds were outrageously intense driving the wind chill below zero. This is not to mention the 8-10 inches of snow that had fallen on the ground ; in combination with the ice that resulted from last night's rain.

I was shut out today due to weather. When The Weather Channel tells me that it's 30-35MPH winds - with 50+MPH wind gusts in some places - it's time to adjust the schedule. The roads were a mess.

Plus, two other major factors: (1) We had an open house (for which two people came), and (2) The NFL Playoffs had the Steelers playing the Colts. I didn't leave the house.

Luckily for me, I have the day off tomorrow and plenty of time to make up the big 18-miler. So, my day is set for tomorrow.

It just was not meant to be for a long 18-miler today. I'm going to bed early and am going to make it up tomorrow. I am not going to write much more in here until I get this done.

BREAKING NEWS... we just got a CALL BACK for one of the two people that came to our open house!! They're coming back to take a second look tomororow. This may be converted to "Ryan's Chicago Burbs Run Blog" before too long. They're coming at noon - so I've got to get the mileage in before they arrive.

Summary of 1/9/06 week
Mon - 3
Tue - 7
Thu - 6 - Repeats on the track - Excellent speed workout!
Fri - 5
Sun - POSTPONED LONG RUN TO MONDAY
Total: 21 miles

Planned Mileage - 1/17/06 week - Aggressive make-up week
Mon: 18 LSD
Tue: 6 EZ
Wed: Rest
Thu: 6 REP
Fri: 4 EZ
Sat: Rest
Sun: 20

Middle of Week 10 update

It's "hump-day" and time for a quick mid-week update...

Monday, 1/9 - 3-mile EZ - 6:30 AM

After a strong 16-miler on Sunday, knocking out a quick 3 in the morning was a breeze. I sense that it may be easy to become a "distance snob" when training for marathon or longer distances. Some may say... "Three whole miles? Why bother... seems a waste to even suit up." I don't feel that way just yet. I find a 3-miler fun. Plus, it was good that I only had 3 on the schedule, since our hockey team had a late 10:00 PM game and I needed some fresh legs. We won our game 12-4 - and I managed to save enough fuel in the tank for the next day's tempo run.

TIME: 21:56 - DIST: 3.0 - PACE: 7:20

Tuesday, 1/10 - 7-mile tempo - 4PM

I'm fortunate enough to work for a large corporation with faily flexible culture. As long as I get my work done and deliver results, I don't need to be in the office all the time --- AS long as I plan my schedule carefully. I had a dental check-up at 2:45 PM, which afforded me the chance to ditch out of work early. That appt. was over by 3:30, so then I snuck home to get in my 7. The weather was moderately cool. I had a nice sunset run through Cranbury. Some good elevation up Grumman and so shooting back down on the last 3 miles made for some quick mileage.

TIME 51:04 - DIST 7.0 - PACE 7:17

Wednesday, 1/11 - A day of "rest" (and work catchup)

I could have gone today physically. I had a "3 EZ/XT" on the calendar today. However, I've been trying to get my groove at work. With today's schedule and the pouring rain, I decided to opt for some rest.

PLAN FOR THURSDAY - SPEED WORKOUT: Early run - 6:30 AM - 800m repeats - 3:20 target for each 800m - followed by a 400m lap at around 2:10 -- continue until 6 miles (24 laps) total are completed.

I've got an important 18-miler this weekend. I'm psyching myself up yet again.

A look back at week 9 - things are going well

THE ROAD TO THE TAMPA MARATHON
TRAINING WEEK #9 of 16 SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED

First off, thanks to all of you who commented on the question on how you deal wtih the treadmill vs. the tough winter conditions. Luckily, since I posted that question, we've been blessed with some very mild weather here in CT.

This has been a busy week personally. Since we arrived back from our holiday trip to Denver, we've been working non-stop to get our townhouse ready to sell. We are excited about our plans to relocate to the Chicago suburbs. The challenging part is that we decided to not use a realtor and we therefore are doing all the prep work for showings and listings.

This selling the house gig is quite draining. For example, I finished a strong and tiring 16-miler today, only to be not allowed into the house until our prospective buyers arrived and went through it. (The wife didn’t want me stinking up the place).

It will be a monumental achievement to train for this marathon, sell the house rapidly and keep up with work. So far, I seem to be able to handle it. Here's a look back at my last 3 runs.

Thu, Jan 5, 2006

The Rose Bowl National Championship kept me up rather late on Wed night, so of course I was a slug trying to get out of bed on time. No running in the morning on this day. I wasn't able to get out until 5PM. I ran from work into Silvemine, which is ill-advised after sunset. It was downright too dark and as a result too dangerous. There are few streetlights and the roads are a bit narrow. Cars are whizzing by me in the dark hogging the road. Despite the darkness, I did get it done.

TIME: 38:47 - DIST: 5.2 - PACE: 7:27

Fri, Jan 6, 2006

Despite a busy morning, I was able to break out of work and get my 5 miles in. Very similar course as yesterday in the Silvermine section, but much faster. Glad to get a little speed work in.

TIME: 36:13 - DIST: 5.0 - PACE: 7:13

Sun, Jan 8, 2006 - Start time: 10:21 AM

It was a very pretty winter day here in CT. The conditions were very favorable - about 35-40 degrees and very sunny. My goal for today was to run around 7:40-7:45 pace.

I guess I have never officially stated it, but my goal marathon pace is approx 7:30. This would get me to around 3:16-3:17 (PR is 3:23:55 - Houston 2005). I'm going to work on some speed repeats in the upcoming weeks to help get me there.

Today's run was very successful. I broke it into 3 pieces. I ran a 7.5 mile piece - and came back to GU up and rehydrate. I then ran a 4.5 mile section (which included an unexpected visit to the local McDonald's restroom) - then another quick water break. I then had only 4 miles to go, of which were my fastest 4 miles. Great stuff.

TIME: 2:02:12 - DIST: 16.0 - PACE: 7:38

MILEAGE TOTAL FOR WEEK # 9: 38 miles

LASTLY... my mileage YTD for 2006 is... 41

Here's a look at planned runs for the upcoming week...

Mon - 3 EZ miles early - Hockey game @ 10:10 PM
Tue - 7 Tempo late afternoon - after dentist's appt
Wed - 3 EZ or XT
Thu - 6 Rep
Fri - 3 EZ
Sat - REST
Sun - 18 LONG - then our open house at NOON!
TOTAL PLANNED MILEAGE: 37-40

Greater nemesis: Treadmill or Ol' Man Winter??

Tue, 1/3/06

I've been reading a number of blogs related to the trials and tribulations of braving this week's Noreaster that hit a large part of the country. This was not a landmark storm by any stretch, but it was enough to throw most of our schedules out of whack.

I had Monday off and spent most of the day preparing the house for our upcoming sale. Unfortunately, my plan to have a short 3-mile run a 4PM was dashed by the pissy, cold rain. So, I wanted to have a good run Tues AM.

Here in CT, we had slushy, wet, disgusting mess of a storm. Tuesday morning, I debated for several minutes if I should try to get out there. I said "screw it" and threw on all my clothes and hit the road. Well, approximately, 500 feet into my run, I was soaking wet to the knee and miserable. I turned around and resorted to Plan B -- go to work and make a date with the treadmill over lunch.

Let me just say that my 5 miles on the treadmill felt like 20 psychologically. My pace was slower, I fatigued more rapidly and I was checking the distance monitor more frequently than ever. It sucked. How could I run 10 miles straight on Sunday outside with a pace of 7:16 -- and then barely muscle through 5 on a treadmill at a 30 sec slower pace?

TIME: 38:45 - DIST: 5.0 M - PACE: 7:43

So, I open the question to all who read this... how bad does it have to be to force you onto the 'mill? Can you brave the 20+ MPH winds? Or even if it's not that cold, are you willing to deal with 18 inches of snow? What are your limits?

Wed, 1/4/06

After yesterday's 'mill run, I did several sets of leg presses and lifts. Well, this caught up with me, I think, because my legs were a bit slow today. That's all right, I got the 7 miles in that I wanted.

TIME: 53:15 - DIST: 7.0 - PACE: 7:36

Ringing in the new year STRONG...

WRAPPING UP WEEK 8 of 16 OF TRAINING FOR TAMPA

COUNTDOWN TO TAMPA: 56 DAYS - 8 WEEKS FROM TODAY.

Please allow me to recap a holiday running weekend of SPEED...

SUMMARY OF 3 RUNS - FRI thru SUN - 19 miles - Avg pace: 7:12
All of this weekend's runs were done in the Cranbury neighborhoods as usual.

Fri, 12/30 - 3:53 PM

I went into work for a little while and it was dead. I left early and came home to do a sixer in the late afternoon. Great pace. I wanted to make this a tempo run to make up for my struggles in Denver.

DIST: 6.0 - TIME: 42:52 - PACE: 7:08

Sat, 12/31 - 3:58 PM

We did a lot of work getting stuff into storage to prepare for our move today. However, that didn't deter me from getting into a New Year's eve trot. The snow started falling with huge flakes right as I began. I wanted to fly through this 3 miles - and I did.

DIST: 3.0 - TIME: 21:09 - PACE: 7:03

Sun, 1/1 - 11:33 AM - HAPPY NEW YEAR!

OUTSTANDING 10-MILER - For New Year's Eve, we had no plan whatsoever for anyany parties, socializing, etc. I'll stand by my firm belief that New Year's Eve is always overrated (may hav to do with a lack of a real social life, some might say).

Anyway, Jen and I ended up going out to the Outback for dinner. I am officially instituting an individual boycott at what I believe is an excessively priced restaurant chain. OK, granted, I tend to have a few beers with dinner, which typically drives my bill up, but still, $79.00 for 2 (before tip) for 2 rib dinners, a fried onion and a few drinks? Not worth it. So, what does this have to do with my run??

The point is that I had a big fat overpriced meal on Sat night ... AND a poor night's sleep. Don't know what happened, but I was up for a few hours.

NEVERTHELESS, I still was able to get out and crank out a seriously great run today. I usually break up my long runs into 5 to 7 mile increments. NOT today - I cruised through 10 miles straight with no pause at a torrid pace. I kept moving through all of the Cranbury streets ; simply choosing a path as I went along and monitoring my distance on my watch. I was flying. Check out the splits...

Mile - Pace
1 - 7:10
2 - 7:11
3 - 7:20
4 - 7:41
5 - 7:32
6 - 7:14
7 - 7:08
8 - 7:05
9 - 6:58
10 - 6:55

DIST: 10.0 - TIME: 1:12:42 - PACE: 7:16

RECAP OF WEEK 8 - Mileage target of 31 exceeded!

Mon - Skiing at A-Basin in Colorado
Tue - 5.1 miles in Littleton, CO
Wed - 8.2 miles in Littleton, CO
Thu - Rest
Fri - TEMP0 6.0 miles
Sat - TEMPO 3.0 miles
Sun - RACE PACE 10.0 miles
TOTAL: 32.3 miles

HEADING INTO MY WEEK #9... This will be my first of 4 "peak" weeks of 40+ miles per week. January is critical month and I intend to stay really focused on proper diet and sleep this month.

AND FINALLY, HERE IS MY 2006 TOTAL MILEAGE GOAL: 1,200 miles!

I have never documented my mileage for an entire year, and this blogging thing will help me do it for the 1st time.

Colorado visit: Glorious to ski, yet difficult to run

Here's a look back at the last few days spent visiting my family in Colorado for Christmas...

Mon, 12/26

I ate a ton on Christmas Day. Sometimes, I just can’t quit eating and drinking. We ate at 2:30 PM on Christmas. I shoveled it in to the point that I did not eat again until the next day. Thankfully, we had a brisk walk in the evening to help offset my feast.

On to Monday - As a nice break from running, we went skiing at Arapahoe Basin, or “A-Basin”, as it is called in the area. It was gorgeous weather and the conditions were outstanding. I love to ski. It is simply something I do not get to do enough. Downhill skiing in the Rockies is definitely a different kind of workout than banging out mileage.

What was fascinating is how a runner in my condition can be rendered breathless at 12,500 feet of mountain elevation in a matter of seconds. Seriously, we exited the chairlift on a couple of occasions and had to work up an incline to get to the run we wanted to ski, and I was completely winded after 10 seconds of work. What gives?

Tue, 12/27

For my first run in the Denver ‘burbs, I was planning to do between 5 and 6 miles to try to get adjusted to the altitude. The weather in Denver seemed perfect – better than perfect. In fact, the high hit 60 degrees and the sun was beaming. As I got going, however, I was surprised by the high winds. I ran locally around the main roads in Littleton and completed just over 5 miles.

TIME: 39:38 -- DIST: 5.13 – PACE: 7:41

Wed, 12/28

For this day, I had planned to knock out a tempo 9-miler, as my Intermediate Training Plan called for. I used mapmyrun.com to plan a circuit around the Littleton area. It really is a beautiful place to run – and to live, for that matter. Surrounded by mountains, the sun has an intensity and brightness that you cannot get on the East Coast. The town of Littleton is just developed enough to have nice, wide sidewalks – yet underdeveloped in that the congestion does not exist in the residential sections.

For the first six, I was doing quite well and had believed that I was getting into form in Denver. Then, I hit some sort of wall. I turned onto Wadsworth Ave to head back toward my sister’s, and “crash”… the wind was 20+ MPH and I was climbing uphill. I started to chug and slow. It was brutal. I was out of gas. The first six miles, I did at 7:32. I did my last two miles at 8:49 per minute, if that’s any indication of the struggle.

When I hit my sis’s subdivision again, I wasn’t even worried about completing the full 9 miles. I decided it was an off day and turned in slightly early.

Factors, reasons (or excuses, if you please) for my difficult finish on Wednesday:

(1) Elevation – Like or not, running at 5,000 feet is not the same as running at sea level if you are not used to it.
(2) Diet – I was eating like crap and drinking a lot of beer. My habits are fairly poor during holiday times. For the prior evening’s dinner. I had two chili dogs topped with onions and cheese, and washed that down with a half of bag of chocolate covered espresso beans – not to mention the 5 or 6 beers I crushed. How’s that for a champion runner supper? On Monday night, I polished off a bunch of pizza after skiing and (of course) several more beers with my bro-in-law.
(3) Fatigue – I think the skiing on Monday and run the day before took more out of me than I realized.
(4) Wind – It was gusting 20-25 MPH as I hit the major incline back. It was really ridiculous trying to battle Mother Nature.
(5) Poor sleep – Jen & I crashed in the basement on an overly firm queen.

The ending of this run sucked my confidence. I pouted privately with the usual remarks to myself… “I need to take better care of myself”.

TIME: 1:05:24 -- DIST: 8.27 – PACE: 7:54

Interesting upon reviewing my two runs was that my average heart rate for my two runs was in the range of 160-165 bpm. I am typically in the 153-155 range with prior runs in Connecticut.

In closing, I decided to rest on Thursday morning – as opposed to trying to squeeze in a run before heading to airport to return home. I needed it.

Fri, 12/30 – Six miles
Sat, 12/31 – Easy 3-miler
Sun, 1/1 – Hard10-miler – Try to push toward race pace when possible

Long 14-miler - A Rocky Mountain Christmas

RUNNING DOWN THE ROAD TO TAMPA – 2/26/06
MARATHON TRAINING – WEEK 7 OF 16

Saturday, December 24, 2005

Merry Christmas Eve!

Today was my long run day. I cranked out a total of 14 miles in my town of Norwalk, CT. I had a great night’s sleep. I was amazed when I woke up at 9:00 AM after going to bed at 11:00 PM. I needed the rest for this run.

WEATHER REPORT – UNBELIEVABLY WARM AND BEAUTIFUL! At 10:30 AM, it was about 45 deg and sunny when it kicked off my run. It was great to wear shorts again. I think it hit about 50 when I was mid-way through my run.

FIRST 7-MILES – TIME: 53:19 – PACE: 7:37

Route overview: Wolfpit - Partrick – Cranbury – Newtown – back way up to Mohawk – south on Grumman to Toilsome – Sherwood – Grumman – Newtown south to Dry Hill – Princeton – Mark – Then added on 1 mile to Murray past Overbrook – and then back home

BREAK – I needed to head into the house to re-hydrate, use the bathroom and replace the dying battery of my Polar footpod. Not sure if the new battery is all the reliable, since I noticed on the second half that the watch was having trouble maintaining the signal. As a result, my back half mileage was slightly off.

SECOND 7-MILES -- TIME: 53:39 – PACE: 7:40

Route overview: Wolfpit to Rte 1 – Dry Hill – Newtown – Grumman all the way up over the Merrit to Bayne St for .5 miles – then back down to Grumman – Toilsome – Sherwood – Overbrook – Surrey – Add on Silwen Ct – Wolfpit – Add on past the house and back in.

TOTAL: 14 miles – 1:46:58 – EST PACE: 7:39

The hillly incline up Bayne St was a killer. I deserve some credit for elevation on this run. Overall, I felt pretty good. I probably had another 2-3 miles in me at this pace. Progressing very well this year considering it’s week 7.

MILEAGE WEEK-TO-DATE: 33 – Not sure if I will run tomorrow on Christmas. May try to sneak in a short 3-miler to keep the legs warm.

EN ROUTE TO DENVER, COLORADO

Later in the day, we drove to Hartford and caught a plane to Denver. We will be spending Christmas at my sister’s.

A day of black diamond skiing is lined up for this next week’s cross-training!

That’s right, my bro-in-law and I are hit the mountain on Monday. I am psyched. I am willing to bet the serious marathoners out there will tell me I am crazy and risking injury to do some serious skiing mid-training. Sorry guys, I can’t pass this up. Wish me luck.

Merry Christmas to all!

Cranked out a 9-miler in the midst of a workday

Do you know what I realized today? My life is easy. I mean, seriously, what major problems do I have in my life? Virtually none.

It was in the midst of my 9-miler at 12:30 PM that these thoughts hit me over the head. It's not like I have not realized I am blessed before, but I think about this a lot lately.

I work for a major consumer products company -- in the adult beverages industry. Yes, that's right -we make alcoholic beverages. It's a great gig. I am doing pretty well there for my experience level. I love what I do. I work in a fun company. Somehow, I have been able to balance my running, job, interests all without any major difficulty.

Today, for instance, I left my office -- really with no announcement to anybody -- to go to down to our gym and prepare for long 9-miler over my lunch. Why not? It's marathon training, right?

The kicker is that I had a 1PM meeting. So, at around 11:25 AM, how would I drop everything, get dressed for the winter weather, run a 9-miler, catch a shower, and appear for a 1PM meeting?

I pulled it off. OK, maybe I came up slighltly short. My Polar tells me I hit 8.77 miles, but that's no big sweat.

The point is I am 30 years old, happily married, in good health, in a good career, in a good financial situation -- and overall, life could not be better.

By the way, I did my "almost" 9 miles after a late night hockey game last night. I arrived home at 12:10 AM after a 7-5 win. I even pulled off a hat trick.

I need to express the amount of hills that I ran today over lunch. It was crazy elevation here in Norwalk, CT. It was the hardest run I have done in a long while.

I did my run in just over 1:06 -- quite a rapid pace -- given the elevation challenges.

Happy Holidays!

Countdown to Tampa: 68 Days

We're approaching the new year, which is a time of change and resolution. So, I am changing things up. I changed my blog template. This is a new font (Verdana, thank you very much).

And Jen and I are planning to embark on yet another major change. We are planning to re-locate to the Chicago suburbs. It's going to be a sweet deal. I get to keep my plush job with my current company, and just move on over and work from the office there.

So I am trying to keep up with work, celebrate the holidays, keep up the running mileage and begin to sell our house. No sweat, right?

COUNTDOWN TO TAMPA MARATHON: 68 DAYS

Do you know anyone running this marathon?

As to the running, I managed to escape right in the middle of each of the last two work days. I literally drop everything I am doing, head down to our corporate gym, change into my winter gear and head out.

MON 12/19 -- Yesterday afternoon, I knocked out an easy 3 miles near the office. I learned that it's not a good idea to try to run near the Route 7 connector onramp. I also did some nice stretching.

TUE 12/20 -- Today was a good one. I am estimating my total was 7.2 miles. I ran from work through the back neighborhoods from East Rocks/Caddy area. Quite hilly but pleasant.

My friend, Steve, told me about a cool website called mapmyrun (see my links). It's great. If you want to plan your run in a new area, you can enter your start point and plan your adventure.

It also works out handy if you are running an unknown distance and your Polar distance monitor freezes up (like it did for me today).

Do you know anyone else who cross-trains for marathons with hockey games? I really am curious...

I am going to take a rest from running on Wednesday. BUT, of course, we've got a 10:30 PM hockey game. We're due for a win.

Here's the remainder of the week plan:

• Wednesday 12/21 - Rest / Late hockey game
• Thursday 12/22 - 9 miles - Tempo
• Friday 12/23 - 3 Easy - OPTIONAL - Make a judgement call - May need to rest
• Saturday 12/24 - 14 miles - Long run - Then fly to Denver
• Sunday 12/25 - Merry Christimas!

Marathon Training - Week 6 of 16 - 35 miles

RUNNING DOWN THE ROAD TO TAMPA
MARATHON TRAINING – WEEK 3 OF 16

Mon, Dec 12

3:20 PM -- Busted out of work for an easy 4-miler. I did an out-and-back to Silvermine.

DIST: 4.0 -- TIME: 29:34 -- PACE: 7:25

Tue, Dec 13

[Note: It is now Mon 12/19 and I am trying to recall this run; I just know I did it because my Polar running computer tells me I did!]

6:33 AM -- Don't remember much about this run. I know it was cold. I know I ran on my usual neighborhood roads.

TIME: 54:51
DIST: 7.0
PACE: 7:50

Thu, Dec 15

11:32 AM - I knew I had to get an 8-miler in today to keep on track this week. I had an appointment at 1PM. I was really proud of myself for this run. I busted out of work to get started around 11:30.

My game plan was to run towards home, dump off any unneeded layers, get a drink and run back to work. It worked out quite well.

It was a bit nippy and I had set a bit of a torrid pace. I ran down Main Ave to Ward St. I took Ward to Cannon to Newtown and then snuck through the back neighborhoods toward my place. I was really pushing the pace on this run. I felt like I was moving quite fast. It was a combination of the cold and the fact that I knew I had to get back to work on time.

After my shower, I had 8 minutes to eat my lunch before my guests arrived. Of course, they were early. I inhaled 1/2 my lunch and then went onto my meeting at 1PM.

EST TIME: 59:00
DIST: 8.0
PACE: 7:22

The pace on this for 8 miles seems a bit agressive, but I was running really fast. Need to continue to monitor accuracy of the Polar's distance calculator.

Sat, Dec 16

11:12 AM - Spontaneously broke out to catch a 4-miler. Out and back to toilsome via Grumman. Nothing special. Kept me on track for the week.

TIME: 29:40
DIST: 4.0
PACE: 7:25

Sun, Dec 17

10:52 AM - I broke this 12-miler into two pieces. The first was a 7-mile trek that took me up to Grumman toward my all-too-familiar training area. However, to change it up a bit, I decided to cross the Merritt and head over to Half Mile and Granite roads. I then came back to Grumman and turned onto Mohawk to complete Mohawk's peak.

The last 5-miler portion was a random route in which I just kept running around the back neighborhoods onto Newtown and Grumman until I could estimate a distance to head back home to get me to 12.

I felt pretty good for most of the run. However, I did get a bit fatigued toward the last couple of miles. I guess it's not surprising to feel tired after about 9-10 miles. However, this was my third time doing this distance in the last few weeks and I had hoped to feel stronger at this point.

TIME: 1:31:20
DIST: 12.0
PACE: 7:41 per mile

RECAP OF WEEK #6

Mon - 4

Tue - 7

Thu - 8

Sat - 4

Sun - 12

TOTAL: 35 miles -- GREAT JOB!

This was a successful week. I even went to a holiday party with Jen. I am doing all the things that I want to be able do while training. Great work/life/run balance!

Week 5 of 16 Recap - 28 miles

RUNNING DOWN THE ROAD TO TAMPA
MARATHON TRAINING – WEEK 5 OF 16

Mon, 12/5

Had an all-day meeting in Plainfield. My flight was delayed 2.5 hours making me late for my own meeting with a huge number of participants. Way to make a first impression on the President of one of our core suppliers. It was a disaster and I didn’t even have a run today.

Tue, 12/6

It was probably about 10 degrees in Burr Ridge at 5:45 AM. I bundled up for this run – to the extent that I was nearly overdressed. I felt like Randy, the kid that gets dressed by his brother, in that movie A Christmas Story.

However, I got it in. It was cold, but I was warmly dressed.

TIME: 46:53 -- EST DIST: 6.0 -- EST PACE: 7:48

Wed, 12/7

It was –10 wind chill in the Chicago suburbs and my throat was killing me. I had a terrible night’s sleep. I didn’t run. I caught the 2:53 flight back to NY.

Thu, 12/8

Had a 9+hour sleep last night. I figured it would be good enough to ease the cold and knock out 7-miles. So I did. It was almost cold as it was in Chicago this week. I nearly underdressed. I definitely had a cold, but I was fighting through it.

Jen needed to take the train to the city. So I had her drive to the E.Norwalk station. I planned to run a 4-mile distance and meet her there. Well, I took a route up Wolfpit to Murray; then curled down Sylvan North. I cut across Rt 1 and went onto

It ended up being 5 by the time I got to the train station. I drove the car home and then added on two .

TIME: 53:04 -- EST DIST: 7.0 -- EST PACE: 7:35

Fri, 12/9

It was a productive day at work. I continued to fight through the congestion, the coughing, the flem and the sneezing. I even mustered up enough for a 4-miler in the early evening before our Company party. I got the run in and prepared for the party. By the end of the night, I couldn't even speak. My voice was shot.

TIME: 31:09 -- EST DIST: 4.1 -- EST PACE: 7:30

Sat, 12/10

I took the day off today from doing anything. The plan was to rest up for the long run on Sunday and shake off the cold. It was a great day to do absolutely nothing. It felt good.

Sun, 12/11

10:30 AM - I was ready to kick off my 12-miler.

I decided to break it up into 2 sixes. I did Mohawk's peak. I'm thinking after all these runs that the Mohawk is slightly less than 6 miles. I am thinking it's around 5.9. I was overdressed for the first 6. The sun beat down and the temp pushed close to 40. I had to lose my under-tights and long-sleeve shirt when I arrived back.

For my second half, I ran thru the back neighborhood to Overbrook then onto Grumman. I took Grumman striaght up almost all the way to Cranbury Park. When the Polar told me I had hit 3, I turned around and went the same exact route back.

It was a very cool, clear day. I felt better the second six than I did the first. Mission completed.

EST TIME: 1:31:36 -- EST DIST: 12.0 -- EST PACE: 7:38

SUMMARY

I only had 4 runs this week, but it was a still a decent week. I traveled and didn't let a harsh cold get me down. There was 0 degree weather, 7" of snow, icy conditions and a holiday party.

12/12 WEEK #6 PLAN

Mon - 4. Tue - 7 AM / Hockey game at night. Wed - REST. Thu - 8-Tempo. Fri - 4EZ. Sat - REST. Sun - 12.

Week 4 of 16 - 30 miles

RUNNING THE ROAD TO TAMPA
MARATHON TRAINING - WEEK 4 OF 16

OK, I admit it. I am cheating again. I am finishing this POST on Friday 12/9. It should have been posted by last Sunday. Anyway...

Monday, 11/28

6:45 AM -- Had an interesting start to the week. We arrived back from Pittsburgh at around 8PM on Sunday night. I was disciplined to get up on time for a nice 5-miler.

Only problem was that when I went out to the garage to leave for work, my car was not there! Jen had already left for work 45 minutes earlier. I realized that it had been sitting at work since Wed when Jen picked me up. We had totally forgotten to stop and pick it up on the way home on Sun night. SO... I had no ride to work. Luckily, I had no meetings scheduled and I was able to work from home.

TIME: 37:56
DIST: 5.0
PACE: 7:35

Tuesday, 11/29

3:41 PM - Escaped from the office - Ran in Silvermine. That's all I remember.

TIME: 38:43
DIST: 5.1
PACE: 7:35

Thursday, 12/1

1:40 PM - AGAIN, Escaped from the office - Ran in Silvermine. I took a different path on this day. I ran up and around the Silvermine Tavern. That's where we had our Procurement Holiday Dinner. Nice commitment after a bit of a late dinner last night.

TIME: 46:23
DIST: 6.1
PACE: 7:35

Friday, 12/2

6:45 AM - I decided to try the "repeats" thing. I went to the Norwalk HS track. I also wanted to take the opportunity to recalibrate my watch.

I think I counted a total of 15 laps on the 400m track. It was hard to keep track as I kept trying to recalibrate the Polar. Note that the fast pace laps averaged around 1:35.

TIME: 29 - DIST: 4 miles - EST PACE: 7:15

Saturday, 12/3

I needed to get this long run in on Saturday as we had plans all day on Sunday. Surprisingly, I didn't feel that well at the beginning of this run. In fact, I had run a solid two miles to check the calibration of my watch. After I reset my watch to start up again, my next 3 miles were rough. I felt really fatigued and had to walk a bit. It was a really busy week of work and maybe yesterday's speedwork was catching up with me. I got back to the house after about 5 miles; re-hydrated and felt pretty good the rest of the way.

TIME: 1:17:13 -- DIST: 10.0 miles -- EST PACE: 7:45

Sunday, 12/4

No running today, but it is worth noting that after a trek to NYC, and doing some major beer drinking in the bars - I was still able to muster a strong 4-goal performance in our 7-1 hockey game victory. Not a bad week. Not bad at all.