I got my run in...

It was a great day for a run. 7 enjoyable miles.

X-Trained yesterday...

I wimped out, I admit it. I went to the gym yesterday and hit the elliptical instead of running outside in the rain and wind. I must admit, it felt good to be in a warm gym too. In fact, I almost decided to go to the gym again today and run on the treadmill. Then reality set in, and I decided I would hit the streets.

I missed a workout on Tuesday due to some scheduling issues and work. I'm not sure what I will do tomorrow, though I am considering getting up early and getting a little run or workout in at the gym AND going to yoga. We'll have to see if I can drag myself out of bed or not...

I am doing OK on getting back on the weight watchers plan, though I still find myself hungry before bedtime. Fortunately, I have left myself enough points to deal with this. My coach mentioned that he is in a group that is planning on running a 4 hour pace at the Marine Corps Marathon next fall.... Hmmmm.....

7 miles today....

I left the house in what felt like a sprint today. I felt great and when I heard the 'beep' of my Garmin at end of the first mile I was anxious to see the pace I was on. Then when I saw 8:47 show up, I was shocked!

It really was stupefying to me that I felt like I was running at my 5K pace but I was only at my half marathon pace. I didn't let it bother me for too long. I felt pretty good in general and did pick up the pace for next three miles and then slowed it down for the last three. Today was scheduled to be an easy run, so I didn't want to overdo it and not be able to handle my tempo run on Wednesday.

Today was kind of weird as far the temperature went too. I looked at the thermometer and saw 50 degrees, but when I stood outside it felt cooler. I struggled with what to wear and finally decided I would rather be a little warm than a little cold and went with the tights and long sleeve compression shirt with a t-shirt over it. I did skip the fleece headband and gloves though. It felt great and I am starting to seriously consider buying some compression socks when the weather warms up. I am afraid that Lee won't even hang out with me after races if I am wearing them though, so I may have to slip them off before heading over to socialize!

Day one of the food diary is almost in the books and if I can avoid my normal late night feeding frenzy I will be off to a good start. It is amazing how much less I eat, if I eat slowly and then force myself to step back and let the food settle for 20 minutes. I have to remember that at lunch time when I typically eat quickly.

Changing priorities....

Two things happened during marathon training. One - my well documented flop on the 18 mile run that was the valley of my short running career and two - I gained weight.

Along with getting back to 'fun' running, I am also getting back to a stricter eating plan. I am still right at my official Weight Watchers goal weight, but that isn't where I want to be. I can already see the potential for being comfortable with that weight and then slowly being comfortable with 5 more pounds and 5 more pounds.... all the way back to my pre-WW physique.

This week I am doing two things to combat this:

1) Going back to strict point counting. Even though I can pretty much run on auto-pilot, I think the practice will be good for me and help me catch the extra calories I am not paying attention too. Nutrition labels beware! I am back on the point calculating bandwagon.

2) Changing up my exercise plan. I am going to run, but I want to run less and add in some alternate forms of exercise. I think I will run four days a week and cross train two days a week. I hope to do yoga AND some cardio on Tuesdays. That will be a challenge because it will require me to get out of bed early and hit the gym before work on Tuesdays. On my runs, I hope to run Mon, Wed, Friday & Sunday. I am going to shoot for 7 miles on Mondays and Fridays, a 5-6 mile tempo run on Wednesdays and a slow 7-12 miles on Sundays.

My goal is to be back down to my early October weight by mid to late February and then hold there through the summer.

Springlike weather today....

I ran at 5:00 today and it was almost spring-like outside. It was pretty breezy, but downright balmy compared to the last several weeks. I ran one of my favorite runs, a ladder run where I start out at an easy pace and increase the pace each mile for four or five miles. I really enjoy the feeling of the tempo picking up each mile.

I didn't go too fast today, but I ran the negative splits for 5 miles and then took it easy on the last two miles coming home. It felt really good. Even though I am not a very fast runner, it feels like I am flying by the last couple of intervals because of the increased pace. I like to alternate an ladder run with a tempo run each week. I don't particularly enjoy tempo runs, but they do help with speed and race confidence. The only reason I don't like them is because it is hard for me to maintain race intensity when I am running alone. In a race, I thrive off of the challenge of keeping up with faster runners.

Tomorrow we are supposed to go tubing, so that should be fun. Hopefully the tube course will still have snow after the warm day today and the rain we are supposed to get tonight.

Fun Run....

I used to laugh when I saw something advertised as a 'Fun Run'. I couldn't imagine those two words going together. I grew up thinking of running as punishment. All the sports I played used running as a punishment. I saw nothing fun about it.

Somewhere in my brain that all changed last year. During the last few weeks of marathon training I had turned running back into something less than fun. I think my collapse on the long run was as much mental as physical. I am even more impressed with those that complete a marathon than I already was. What a great display of mental and physical toughness.

Today I went out for my first run since Sunday and it was fun again. I definitely made the right decision to bail on the marathon this year. I am looking forward to my next run and my next race, as long as it is a half marathon or less! I also think I am going to get one of those bumper stickers that says "My sport is your sport's punishment".

Why do I run?

This question was flowing through my mind a lot on Sunday while I was suffering through my run. I first started running because it took me too long to walk my four miles and I wanted to speed that up. I also had some encouragement from some guys on a weight watchers board, but the reality was I wanted to finish my workout faster and burn more calories.

Somewhere along the way, I started to enjoy the run itself. I can't really pinpoint it, but I think it was when I ran a mile without stopping the first time. It felt like I had accomplished something and physically, I felt great. As my distance increased, I got encouraged to enter a 5K and last March I ran three of them. I liked the fact that it was a competitive event without a lot of egos. After the race, everyone was smiling and having a good time no matter how fast (or slow) they ran. As more weight came off and my distances went further, I looked for new challenges. First I stretched the races out to 8K's and 10K's and finally a couple of half marathons. I felt great while training and running them.

Marathon training was always a little different for me. It seemed to put me on a much more rigid schedule and took a lot of family time away. I mean, I might as well take up golf if I am going to be gone out on a run for half a day on Sunday. I became uptight about making each training run. Basically, running became a job instead of a hobby. I think all that came to a head on Sunday when I crashed. Why was I running a marathon? It was the 'next logical step' in my running was the best answer I came up with. Well, now I realize that I want to get back to running for fun. I have a good enough base that I can stay in half marathon shape year round and enjoy races when they come up.

I am very happy that I didn't get injured in this and lose my ability to run for a few months. I am going to spend this week reviewing my goals for the year and making sure they are in line with 'fun running'. I want this to continue to be a lifestyle and not a short term obsession that I burn out on....

21 hours after hitting 'the wall'

Still having some IT Band pain on my right knee today and a lot of general soreness in my legs. I do yoga tomorrow (if the snow holds off), so hopefully I will be able to run some on Wednesday. I slept well on my decision to skip the marathon this year, so I am even more certain that it was the right choice.

I may try to do some long runs next fall and see if I can build up to an 18-20 miler then. Right now, I am going to adjust my schedule to be a little more relaxed. I think I am going to shoot for 25-30 miles a week with the occasional 35 mile week thrown in. That should keep me ready to run a half if I find one and in good shape for any 10K or 5K races.

I am considering running one of the Green Valley races in order to get my 'one race a month' goal for this year, but the timing doesn't work out well with the kid's basketball games. I'll have to see if there is anything else available. Right now it appears that I can still hit all my 2009 goals except for getting my 26.2 sticker.

A funny thing happened on the way to the 18 mile marker...

Cruising along on my 18 mile run today I discovered that there is a limit to how far I can run. It is 16.75 miles. Actually, I made it 18 miles but after 16.75 I wouldn't call it running. I now understand the 'wall' others refer to. This is an experience that I personally do not care to experience again.

I haven't decided if I just don't have a high enough overall mileage base or if maybe I'm not meant to run a marathon. Either way, I am glad to have found out about this at home instead of in a race. I feel confident I could run/walk the marathon, but I really have no desire to do that right now. I felt kind of like Forest Gump when he quit running. He was done. So am I, at least for now. I don't mean done with running, but done with pushing to see how far I can go.

I may change my mind at some point and try again, but right now I am at peace with the fact that I am going to focus on half marathons and shorter runs from this point on. I started this journey to lose weight and I have accomplished that. Along the way I discovered running and I am thankful for that. Today I discovered that I can take something I enjoy like running and make it into something I loathe. I don't want to do that. I want to enjoy running. I will continue to enjoy running, just at distances less than 16.75 miles!

Great weather for Yoga....

Today's cool temps made it a perfect day to get back to yoga class. I needed it too! I had felt my muscles tightening up over the last few weeks and it felt great to stretch them out. I told our instructor, Karen, that I was starting to have some IT band issues. If I am still having them on Sunday, it won't be her fault! We stretched out the IT bands big time and worked hard on core strength and our quads.

Almost every issue of Runners World has at least one article on core strength and/or flexibility. The exercises almost always are something we do in yoga. I am convinced that practicing yoga long term will really improve my running and lengthen the number of years that I can run.

I've mapped out one 18 mile route for Sunday, but I may tweak it. It will have some pretty big hills in it but there just isn't much of a way for me to avoid that and stay near the house. It really kind of amazes me how far 18 miles is when you map it out. In my mind, I plotted out what I thought was about 12 miles and it was only 7 when I put it on the mapmyrun.com site. Hopefully the temps will rise to the mid 40's on Sunday and the showers will hold off. I really want to get this run in.

I will be glad when the Swamp Rabbit Trail is completed. It will make long runs a little more enjoyable because you will be able to avoid traffic. You also will have the option of point to point runs if you want. The city seems to be moving very quickly on the parts they are responsible for, I hope the county catches up quickly. I know it will be difficult to find funding in this recession, so I don't expect much work to be done anytime soon.

Wow, less than 30 days...

Something close to panic set in as I glanced at the sidebar on my blog and saw the countdown is now less than 30 days away!

I have to keep reminding myself that I am right on schedule according to my training plan. I think I'll feel better after Sunday's 18 miler. Once that is in the books, hopefully I won't feel like 20 is impossible!

I got my five easy miles in today, and I did take it easy. It felt pretty good though. The key to Sunday will be starting out at slow pace. I always have a hard time doing that, even when I am not in a race.

It was not as cold as I had expected, though when I hit a head wind it did give me a little chill. Despite the coming cold temperatures, it looks like Sunday will be pretty good in the afternoon if the slight chance of showers holds off. I have some decisions to make on my route and I am having a tough time. I generally don't like doing a double loop, however I don't want to get too far from home either. I would also like to find some extended flat segments, but that just isn't very likely in my neck of the woods. I am going to hit mapmyrun.com tonight and see if I can put something together that is simple enough for me to remember... I can easily see me missing a turn and thinking I am about to be done only to find myself two miles short!

8 Mile Tempo Run....

Got the tempo run in today. Not quite the overall pace I wanted, but 5 miles was at a solid pace. My knee flared up a little at about the same mile. Afterwards, I put my knee support on and it felt great. I am going to run with it tomorrow and see how it goes.

I popped a GU 15 minutes before the run to see how that felt. It was awesome. I am going to get a bunch of them for my long run on Sunday.

It was nice and cold for my run, but I dressed for it and really enjoyed the crispness. At times I find myself yearning for the hot, sweaty summer runs. I know that when summer gets here I will be longing for cool runs... But right now, I like the idea of being able to throw on shorts and shirt and cut out.

Maybe Friday on Yoga...

I didn't have time to hit yoga today, so I put in 45 minutes on the elliptical. It felt good, I have not been on the elliptical in months and I enjoyed it. Whatever issue I had with my knee yesterday was non-existent today, so I plan on running tomorrow. I am scheduled for an 8 mile tempo run. I'll do my best for 8 miles, not sure about the tempo part.. :)

So far I've signed up for the Reedy River 10K and I am going to sign up for the Cooper River Bridge Run soon. Not sure about any other races yet as those take care of March and April. I still may do the Shamrock Fun Run on 3/21 just because I enjoyed it last year and I would like to see if I could PR there.

Only six?

My schedule called for six miles today and it struck me how far I have come since I started running when I had to think about how to shorten my normal loop to hit six miles. I don't say this to brag, but it was just one of those moments when I realized how I could never have imagined that I would have to 'cut back' to six miles. Of course, just when a case of the 'big head' sets in, reality tends to catch up and between miles four and five my right knee developed an odd pain. It kind of felt like it was under the kneecap on the outside half of my knee. It wasn't too bad and I ended up putting it out of my mind after about a half mile. I popped some advil when I got home and have felt pretty good the rest of the day. I have yoga tomorrow and if it even slightly bothers me on Wednesday, I'll do some cross training or take the day off.

I'm working on a shopping list and I just realized how much GU I will need between now and the end of the marathon. I think I am going to do an online search to see if it is cheaper in bulk!

One of those days.....

Yesterday was one of those days... You know, one of those days that you wish you had every time you ran. I was due to run a tempo run this week and had not done it as of Friday. I knew I wouldn't be able to run on Sunday, so I just took off yesterday with no plan other than to get 7 miles in. The first mile slid by at an easy 9:08 pace and I felt like kicking it in a little and the next thing I knew I was running negative splits through mile 5 with only a slight letup on mile 6 and then I picked it back up for the last mile. I topped out with a 7:54 pace on mile 5. It felt great. No cramps, no pain, no anything but a great run.

I rested today because I start my heavy work for the next 3 weeks getting ready for 2/14. The next three Sundays consist of an 18 and two 20 mile runs before the taper. I'm getting a little nervous about it, but I'm sure they will go fine. I need to actually map out the runs though because I don't want to do double or triple loops unless I have too. I also need to buy some Powerade after I finish the Gatorade I have because Powerade is what will be available on the course. I haven't found out if they will have GU or anything, so I am going to take my own.

This week is pretty light for me until Sunday (6, 8 & 5 miles). I hope to get back to Yoga on Tuesday, I know I will need it with the long runs coming up.

2008 Race Results....

Here are the results of my races in 2008. Lots of room for improvement this year... Especially in the 10K department.

Distance	Race	Date	Time	Pace
2 Mile	BMW	9/19	14:44:00	7:22
5K	Reedy River Run	3/1	29:16:00	9:26:27
	Shamrock Run	3/15	27:33:00	8:53:14
	Race for the Inlet	3/29	24:32:00	7:54:50
	GHS 5K	5/9	25:56:00	8:21:56
	Easley Lions Club	5/17	24:05:00	7:46:08
	Stars and Stripes	8/30	23:43:00	7:39:02
	Furman XC 5K	10/11	25:01:00	8:04:12
	Lungs 4 Life	11/8	23:14:00	7:29:41
	Taylors Turkey Trot	11/26	24:04:00	7:45:48
8K	Sunrise Run	6/14	42:00:00	8:27:03
	Harborwalk	6/28	41:31:00	8:21:12
10K	Pickens Count Y2Y	6/7	52:49:00	8:31:08
	Midnight Flight	8/29	52:02:00	8:23:33
Half	Spinx	10/25	1:54:14	0:08:43

Slow but steady....

Today was supposed to be a tempo run, but I really didn't feel like picking it up after my first mile. I went ahead and took it easy knowing that tomorrow would be three days in a row I was running. I felt better after mile four but decided to just keep it pretty steady even though I did run negative splits on two of my last three miles.

I think I have decided to 'run' the Green Valley 10 Miler the week before my marathon. I didn't run that race last year and it looks to be a pretty fun event. Plus, I want to get my points for the GTC running series. I don't think I will have any trouble pulling back and running at an easy pace. Long races are easier for me to ease up on because the pack tends to spread out and you don't constantly feel the need to pass someone (or avoid being passed).

I'm also going to sign up for Reedy River Run 10K as well. Hopefully it will be a good recovery race for me after the marathon. I ran the 5K last year as my first race. I will probably avoid the 5K in the future because of the huge numbers of walkers that feel the need to start in the front half of the pack and walk five wide.... I have nothing against walkers, but I wish the races would have a designated 'walker only' group line behind the runners. The 10K is pretty competitive since it is the state championship so I will definately be starting in the back of the pack for that one. The after race party is awesome and really the highlight of the day.

Ummm... Just a tad windy today.

Wow, that was some wind I ran in today. I felt like I was standing still when I was running into the wind. I wasn't cold but I am glad I wore my long sleeve compression shirt. This is the first time I have run in wind that was strong enough to move me while I was running. I got knocked sideways a couple of times.

It felt good to get back on the pavement, well after about 3 miles it did. As I was running, I started thinking about all the races I ran in 2008 and I struggled to name them all. I am going to make a list and post it soon. I have all my times recorded on a spreadsheet, so should be able to get the list together pretty easily.

I know I ran the following distances in races at least once: 2 Mile, 5K, 8K, 10K and Half Marathon. This year I hope to repeat them and add in a one miler and the full marathon.

OK, Now I am behind....

The server ended up taking all of yesterday as well and I didn't get my run in. Things are looking good for today, so I hope to get back out and start catching up. As it stands now, I could run today, tomorrow and Friday and be back on schedule. I was hoping to get back to yoga on Friday, but I think that will have to wait until next week.

I need to map out my 18 and 20 mile runs. I am tired of doing my normal loop 2 or 3 times to get the miles in, so I am going to try and come up with a long 15 mile or so loop I can throw in with some of my normal routes. Other than some wind issues, it looks like we have some good running days coming up in the short term. I hope to take advantage of them!

I have decided that compression shirts and shorts are my new best friend, so I am on a mission to find them on sale. I wore both on the half last Saturday and it made a big difference in how I felt afterward and I had no issues with 'chub rub'. :)

Rainy run today....

I just got back home from fixing a server that was giving me a problem all day and night.  Yesterday would have been a great day to run, but I guess I'll have to settle for a rainy day run.  At least it isn't cold.  I don't mind a little rain as long as it isn't cold too.

This is when I am glad I have kept a couple of older pairs of running shoes.  They still have enough life left in them for the occasional 'rain run' and it won't matter if it takes them three days to dry out....

Less than 40 days!!!

Really?  Less than 40 days to my first (will it be my only?) marathon?  It rained for 40 days and nights in the Bible when God flooded the earth, God gave those in Nineveh 40 days to repent and now I have a tad less than 40 days to get final prep work in...  I feel kind of like the Ninevites knowing that judgement day is coming in 40 days.

But seriously, I have a lot to do.  This week is the last light week on the training schedule until I taper, so I am going to enjoy it.  I don't feel any effects from the half marathon other than a little tightness in my calves today.  I'll stretch them out on an easy 7 miler later on.

I also have to get back on the weight watchers wagon full speed.  From Thanksgiving to New Years, I added some pounds back on and I want them off.  Lee and I took a big first step by cleaning out the excess Chex Mix yesterday.  Now that I am back on a normal schedule, I expect the weight to fall back off as well.  The good thing is that I have plenty of motivation since I got rid of all my clothes that were too big after I lost weight!  

I ordered some lightweight running tights from Sierra Trading Post and was real happy with them.  I got them for $10.  It looks like a great site to keep an eye on when looking for bargains.

Final wrap on the half....

The official results were finally posted and I ended up with a 1:55:09.  It was a bout 45 seconds off my first half last October and I wasn't running this one for a PR.  It gave me a lot of confidence to finish this race and feel as good as I did.

Now, I need to figure out whether or not to run the Green Valley 10 Miler the week before my marathon...  Any advice would be appreciated.  My training plan has me on an 8 miler that weekend already...

Resolution Run Half Marathon....

First of all, congrats to my wife Lee for winning overall 1st place in the women's masters division of the 5K!  That was a great accomplishment.

As for my half marathon, it went a little faster than planned but was probably what I needed to run.  I look at it as kind of like a long tempo run where my body practices running a little faster than race pace for the marathon in February.  My coach Allan and friend Jeff both ran with me and kept me going.  The start was a little interesting.  I forgot my Garmin, so it was definitely up to Allan to keep our pace up.  He made a last minute dash to the porta potty that was conveniently located right next to the starting line.  Well, the guy starting the race said 'Are y'all ready? Go!' and we were off, except for Allan.  He started his watch while he was doing his business and Jeff and I went on knowing that Allan would catch us (he is working on a 7:30 pace for the Houston Marathon in two weeks).  He caught up with us before we got too far and then we were together the rest of the way.

I liked the course.  It mostly avoided main roads and had great volunteers and police at any intersection that might be busy.  We ran a nice path through Furman as well.  The last 3 miles included 2 miles on the Swamp Rabbit Trail.

I felt good for the whole run and my heel was barely noticeable.  We finished pretty strong and I am still waiting on my official time, but it should be under 1:56.  Considering I was originally looking at a 2:10 or so, I am very happy with it.

I would recommend this race to anyone that is in the area next year.  The parking was a little far away from the packet pickup, but other than that it was a great event.

First run of the year....

Well, winter showed back up as we rang in the new year.  It was a crisp 34 when I went out for my run today.  I got to use my new running tights and they were great.  The cold did not bother me at all.  Unfortunately, a little PF in my left heel bothered me all day, though not too much on the run.  I wonder if my hike yesterday stretched my foot out in an unusual way?  Well, Yoga starts back Tuesday and I hope that will clear it up as it has in the past.

Hopefully it will subside enough for me to get through the half marathon on Saturday without much trouble.  The new Nikes really covered it up pretty well during the run.  It bothered me much more just walking around during the day.

I am going to do my best to hydrate well tomorrow.  I think that was a key to my first half marathon, good hydration prior to the race.  I also need to pick up some GU.

I also ate my collard greens and black eyed peas today.  I hope good financial luck follows the traditional meal....