VT Dad’s fight vs. inertia & flab

I’ve been silent on the running front, as the tranquility and calm of running has been replaced by stress.  On Monday, my wife rolled her car. 

Thankfully she was wearing a seat belt, and didn’t suffer any injuries.  I Monday with her, making sure that no naps exceeded two hours.  Tuesday, I finished up my tax returns.  Today, the dad taxi has been in overdrive.  My body has been resting, but my mind has been going 90 miles an hour for 3 straight days.  I hope I can get a late night run in tonight, so as to prevent my body from getting 4 rest days off in succession.  By then, I’ll be so ready for some calm.

I just completed a good week, but this coming week appears to be a doozy.  I’m slated to race a 1/2 marathon on a brutal course on Saturday as well as try and sneak in a 20 miler mid week.  In addition to training, as a natural procrastinator, I face one of my major stressors Wednesday, the deadline for taxes.

My schedule for the coming week is as follows:  Proprioceptive cue:  Butt Squeeze
Monday:  Base Run and Drills:  9 Miles at base pace, 2×20 seconds Steep Hill Climbs and One Legged Hops.
Tuesday: Long Run: 20 miles
Wednesday: Off or Recovery Run: 2-6 miles @ recovery pace
Thursday: Mixed Intervals: 1 mile warm up and cool down, Intervals with 2 minute active recovery between intervals: 3K @ Half marathon pace (16:12 goal), 2K @ 10K pace (10:14 goal), 1K @ 5K pace (4:56 goal), 800m @ 3K pace (3:48 goal)
Friday: Recovery Run: 2-6 miles @ recovery pace
Saturday: 1/2 Marathon Race
Sunday:  Off, Drive to Princeton, NJ

Today were ideal conditions for a race.  The temperature at the start of my race was 38F, 3C.  At the finish line the forecast called for 43F, 6C.  There was a breeze blowing, and for todays race we would predominately be running downwind.  I pondered what I should wear for the race and decided on shorts, long sleeve shirt, hat and gloves.  The only potential glitch I had to worry about was what to eat before and during the race.  Since it is Passover goo, and shot blocks were out, so I brought some snacks.  I don’t think they were to efficient, but I don’t think that they made a difference.  Today’s race went down the bike path from Colchester to Burlington, with a 4 mile loop in Colchester before entering the bike path, and a 1 mile loop tacked on in Burlington at the end of the bike path.  The course is flat, and coupled with having ideal conditions, I expected to set my 1/2 marathon PR.

I caught the bus from the finish line to the start.  Patti with whom I had run two long runs also was on the bus.  Her goal was to run at 8:30 pace.  I expected to run 8:39s, so we decided to run together.  I have yet to master running slow and controlled at the start of a race.  Today was no different.  We hit mile 1 at 7:40, way too fast. As we eased off, we separated.  I eased to ~8:22 pace, Patti was faster.  I held that pace past the 1/4 marathon point reaching that in 54:38.  Today was my first race ever clocking 7 miles in under an hour, as I reached 7 miles in 58:22.  Through the first mile, all felt good.  My slowest mile was only 8:33.  After running an 8:48 10th mile, my average pace was still 8:25.  I suffered during miles 11 and 12, with splits of 9:18 and 9:59 respectively.  My last mile was better, 8:59, and I finished with a PR of 1:53:25, about 8:39 pace.  The worst thing about today was that there wasn’t any food I could eat at the post race because of Passover.  I was shocked that they didn’y have any fresh fruit available.

Next week I have another 1/2 marathon.  That course is brutal, with a hill that is more like a wall at mile 6.5.  I’m going to try to run an 8:40+ first mile, reach 7 miles in ~59:00, and see if I can remain consistent during the last 6 miles.  It would be quite a feat to stay within 1 minute of today’s time next week, but if I run a smarter race I’ll have a shot.

First a sobering note, one of the men I often play basketball with, during lunchtime was taken hostage off the coast of Somalia by pirates.  His ship was taken over by pirates, and then they recaptured the ship, but he was taken hostage.  My prayers go out to him and his family.

My day had been a hectic one, and I had been unable to run during the day. In the evening, I watched UVM play BU in the Frozen Four.  The Catamounts trailed 2-0, rallied to take 3-2 and 4-3 leads, before falling 5-4 to #1 ranked BU.  After the end of the hockey game I decided to go for my run.

I’m racing a 1/2 marathon Saturday, and I wanted to get in another challenging run before then.  I didn’t want to wait until  Friday, because that would be too close to the race. So I set out for my run after the game, at 11:30 PM.  It was an amazing night for a run. 41F, 5C and calm with a gorgeous full moon overhead.  I decided that it would be safest to run loops around my neighborhood, so I planned my route on mapymyrun.com.   As my warmup mile was wrapping up I began to question the wisdom of my choice.  A “Scotty” escaped from its owner and began yipping at my heels.  This dog was the only thing to interrupt my run all night.  Not one car, or other person crossed my path during my 55 minute run.  My run felt amazing.  I was happy with my interval splits too: ~3k at 8:15 mile pace, a mile in 8:00, 1K in 4:54, and  650m in 3:00.  

I am finding that at 49 years and 286 days old that it is more an more difficult for me to run with only one day of rest after my long run, so after running for 20 miles Sunday, I rested both Monday and Tuesday.  If I wanted to run today, I had to get up at 4:00 AM, and get out the door before 4:30.  I was up for the challenge.  I was surprised that the temperature had dipped below freezing 31F, -1C, and it was snowing!  The snow was only light flurries, and there wasn’t any wind, so it was actually wonderful conditions for a run.

In the dark at 4:30 AM, it was just me and the road.  I saw less than 30 cars during the entire run.  I was able to focus on my running, concentrating on my form and cadence.   In the dark, I wasn’t aware of my splits. I just knew that I had started off fast. I felt good in the middle section, but as the run wore on my mind began to wander, I began to lose my focus.  I tried to regain my concentration.  I began to work towards the goal of beating my time from last week.  I wanted to hold on, to run until the end.  It was just me and the road.  Me against myself and the time from last week.  I did it, 59 seconds faster than last week.

My reward is that I’ll be happier as I clean, and cook, preparing for the first night of Passover.  Happy Passover to everyone, may you celebrate the joy of freedom.

I ran for 38 miles last week, but more than half of them were on my long run.  My schedule for the coming week is as follows: Pounding the ground.
Monday: Off
Tuesday: Base Run + Drills: 9 miles @ base pace. 2×20 Stiff Legged Run, Running no arms.
Wednesday: Mixed Intervals: 1 mile warmup and cool down. 1X3K @1/2 marathon pace (8:39), 2 minute active recovery, 1X1 mile @ 10K pace (8:13), 2 minute active recovery, 1X1K @ 5K pace (4:59), 2 minute active recovery, 1X800m @3K pace (3:48).
Thursday: Tempo Run @ 1/2 marathon pace.  1.5 mile warmup and cool down. 6.5 miles at 1/2 marathon pace (8:39)
Friday: Recovery Run: 2-6 miles at recovery pace
Saturday: 1/2 Marathon Race
Sunday: Off

Wednesday night starts Passover, and a week of extremely clean dieting for me.

Today was another wonderful day for a run, especially a long run.  When my run started the temperature was 36F, 2C it was overcast and breezy.  Throughout the run the temperature remained pretty constant, never topping 40F, 4C.  This was another opportunity to run with the local running group.  About a month ago I was able to run with the group, and had a fabulous time, finding a running partner, Patty who ran at about the same pace as me.  Again today Patty was there.  Her schedule called for her to run 20 miles, so I adjusted my goals, and we headed off together to run 20.

We settled in on a good pace, ~8:50s.  We each felt that it may be too fast, but we were comfortable, and were knocking off one sub9:00 mile after another.  About 6 miles into our run we encountered another running group out together on the bike path for their long run.  I saw a former running partner, and a friend, who was training for her 4th marathon.  For a moment as I kept running into people I knew, I felt like the mayor of Burlington.  At ~8.75 miles the route crossed over the Winooski River, and onto a concrete path.  I did not enjoy running on concrete.  Slowly at ~9.5 miles Patty started pulling away from me.  We stayed together at the turnaround, and a portolette break, but from miles 10-13, I was struggling more and more to keep up with her.  At about the 1/2 marathon point I could no longer keep up with her, and my miles jumped from 9:21 to 10:07, and 10:29.  At mile 16 I took a bathroom break, ate my last goo, and tried to regroup.  My next mile was 11:02, and I struggled during my last 3 miles, concentrating on putting one foot forwards after the other.  Coming back I ran my last 3.5 miles 11 minutes slower than I ran those same miles at the start of my run.

Today I used 3 goo packs during a run that last nearly 3:20.  I need to either find a way to hold back during the start of my runs, or find a better way to get my body nourishment while running.  This run will be invaluable if I can learn from it.

After using yesterday as a rest day, I was uncertain what I should do for my run today, since I have a 18 mile long run looking in my future tomorrow.  I chose to have fun, and went for a short run with my dog Mookie.  I haven’t run with Mookie in at least 9 months.  It is great running with Mookie, because he truly enjoys being outside, off leash, and running.  At the top of the hill I take him to a large meadow, and we run a loop around the meadow, which is ~5/6ths of a mile long.  Mookie loves running 2 loops, but if I go beyond 2 loops he gets cranky.  The temperature this morning was 43F, 6C, and it was sunny and breezy at the start of my run.  I chose to run in shorts with long sleeves and gloves.  The cool air felt wonderful on my legs, and Mookie was romping through the grass and mud.  When I turned onto the meadow, it wasn’t vacant.  It was filled with over 400 cars as members of the VT Air Guard where parked there for weekend warrior training.  So instead of peacefully running in a meadow, we ran past the symphony of the hustle and bustle of the Air Guard Training. Still it was a wonderful run together with Mookie.

Today was a picture perfect spring day, sunny calm and clear, 60F, 16C.  I couldn’t wait to go on my run.  Today was my first run in ~ a year in Montpelier.  The route I chose today was flat, and meandered past the state capitol, out of town, following the Winooski River.  The capital lawn was awash with people enjoying the weather and playing frisbee.  The Winooski River was beautiful as it shimmered in the sunlight.  Everything was ideal for a fabulous run, but my legs felt leaden.  I tried to push myself for 2K, then 1 mile, then 1K, and 800 meters, but no matter how I tried to move my legs, I had nothing but heavy legs.  I didn’t reach my target pace during any of my intervals.  I still completed the run in under an hour, averaging about 9:29 per mile.

I’ve been dormant so far this week, finding excuses not to run as the weather has been rainy and cold.  Today was no different, so I waited until nighttime hoping that the weather would change.  By 9:15 the rain had stopped, but the wind was blowing with gusts over 20 mph.  It was 45F, 7C when I set out on an 9 mile base run.  

I felt good throughout my run.  My form felt controlled with a steady cadence.  Everything about the  run felt good except for the wind.  I ran in a big loop, but it never felt as if the wind was at my back.  That late at night the road had the same type of quiet as my early morning run, except for one yahoo who had to blare his horn as he passed me.  I cursed at him through the darkness, his horn and my foul reply were the only sounds to spoil the still, quiet of the night.  I enjoyed the tranquility and quiet, meditating as I ran at peace with myself, alone enveloped by the night.