I only run on days that end in a "y."

9.25 on the hilly route with 5 100m strides at the end.  Overall 8:30 pace.

Wonderful morning for a run - mid 40's.  Medium long run this morning - some hills in the first few miles - very even splits around 8:05 pace with 2-3 second variation.  Ran in the Kinvara's - I find it difficult to run slow in these shoes.  

Went to the gym at lunchtime.  Did 3 sets of 15,15, and 11 reps of the "Lance Armstrong" step up followed by 2 sets of 25,25 Bulgarian squats with body weight only followed by core work - planks, etc.

6.5 recovery miles on the soft trail. Overall pace 9:00.  

I have gotten interested in nutrition lately.  This was spurred on by being dizzy after Saturday's long run.  I began to wonder if I was eating enough for the workouts and mileage that I am doing.  I went to McMillian's nutrition calculator http://www.mcmillanrunning.com/nutritioncalculator.htm and punched in my age, weight, body fat % and weekly mileage.  The output said I need to eat between 2700 and 3000 calories a day!  2700 if I want to lose .5 lbs a week and 3000 if I want to maintain. Monique Ryan in her book Sports Nutrition for Endurance Athletes pretty much concurs with those numbers.  It is hard to say but I am fairly certain I have not been eating this much on certain days, nor keeping track of fat, carbs and protein.  I am certain after tracking the last 3 days that I have not been eating enough carbs.  I have started a journal to track my food.   It can be hard eating this many calories when I am not hungry.  Like everything I have a feeling it is going to be difficult to strike a balance between getting enough calories to fuel my workouts yet not too many to start gaining weight.  Anyway, I will be tracking over the next couple weeks to see how my body reacts.  I should know on Saturday's 20 mile run if I feel like I have more energy or not.   

Perfect weather for a run - 38 degrees to start.  1.5ish miles to warm up followed by 4x2k with 2 minutes rest inbetween. My legs felt stong this morning - I think the strength training is beginning to pay off.  I debated doing 5 but decided against in as Saturday's long run will be quite taxing.  In retrospec maybe I should have run the last one around 8:00 and then run a 5th 2k.  Oh well, still 5 miles of quality work for the day.

Interval pace based on Garmin lap times as we ran a couple of these over the 2k mark as we did not run on a track but on the Zilker park loop.

1. 8:20 (6:44 pace)

2. 8:03 (6:28 pace)

3. 7:53 (6:22 pace)

4. 7:35 (6:06 pace)

Tacked on a bit on the cool down to get to 2.5 and 9 miles for the day.

A few recovery miles this morning around 9:00 pace.

Perfect conditions for a run - low 40's and no wind or humidity.  I wore a singlet and was a bit chilly the first few miles but fine by the latter half.  Legs felt really good today.  I woke up around 3:30 am and drank 1/2 of a carb loading drink and finished the other 1/2 when I woke up again at 5 am.  70 carbs total and 280 calories. Tried shot blocks today and I have found a new fuel of choice (thanks Dan!)  Much easier to consume while running compared to gel.  I cut them in half and rubbed a bit of flour on them to keep them from sticking together.  I put them in the pouch on my fuel belt which made it very easy to reach down and grab one.  I think the nutrition helped my running today - I felt pretty good after the run compared to last week when I was really dizzy.  I did not struggle until the last 1/2 mile.  I didn't have my watch on auto lap the first couple of miles so I had to stop and mess with it - so no miles laps for the first 2 miles.

First 2 miles at overall 9:00 pace and then as follows: 7:38, 7:56, 7:58, 7:52, 7:45, 7:33, 7:26, 7:18, 7:16, 7:02, 7:07, 7:15, 7:10, 7:06, 6:55, 6:50, 7:07, 7:14.

Cold, dark and foggy - great day for a run.  Ran miles between 8:10 - 8:00 pace with 9 x 100m strides around 5-10k pace with 100m or so easy pace in between.  I had to guestimate 100m as I did not what to fiddle with my watch - looking back I did a fairly good job estimating. 

Dark and cold - I looked at the temp before I went out and it read 38 degrees.  I thought no big deal - I will run in a singlet in the 40's.  So I threw on a short sleve base layer and a long sleeve base layer on top of that with shorts.  Well, I did not account for a 19 degree wind chill!  I had gloves and a ear warmer head band but I was on the cusp of not being dressed warm enough.  After mile 2 it was better as I warmed up a bit, but still cold when the wind would get me.

Took the hilly course near the house - lots of hills - what joy!

Ran by feel and did not pay too much attention to my watch. All in all not a bad effort for the day.  9:10, 8:20, 7:58, 7:46, 8:05, 7:43, 7:50, 7:57, 8:31, 8:05, 7:58, 7:49, 7:41.

Lunchtime:  Strength workout at the gym. 3 sets of 10 Armstrong step-ups with 30lb dumbbells, 2 x 25 Bulgarian squats, core work.

Brisk morning - wasn't as cold as was predicted.  8 miles at recovery pace.  Overall 9:04 pace.

Nice cold morning - low 30's.  Met the group at Barton Springs pool and ran 2 miles warm-up followed by 8 x 1000m intervals with about 600m active recovery between each one.  Followed by 1.7 miles cool down.  Started intervals slow and finished fast. Counting active recovery distance into "easy miles" total.

1. 4:08 (6:39 pace)

2. 3:59 (6:24 pace)

3. 3:53 (6:14 pace)

4. 3:52 (6:13 pace)

5. 3:48 (6:06 pace)

6. 3:46 (6:04 pace)

7. 3:45 (6:02 pace)

8. 3:32 (5:41 pace)

This is the funniest thing I have seen about running.  I can't stop laughing! 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cw5MHsO-JI8

6 recovery miles on the indoor track.  Somewhere around 9 minute miles.

Cold, rainy, did I mention cold?  We ran the south portion of the Austin course.  The first 6 miles is a loop.  I had to stop at my car to change into my hoodie - at this point my long sleeve was soaked and I was cold.  Fortunately, the rain let up on the back end of our run.  My legs were complaining parts of the way - it has been a hard last 7 days.  Looking forward to a recovery week.  Also, the plan was to run 16 but I did a bit of extra credit before meeting up with the others so I ended up with 17.5 for the day. 

Met the group for an MGP run.  I wanted to run a LT tempo run instead as it was on my schedule.  So I decided to stick with the lead group and push myself to keep up.  We ran the hills on Enfield/Exposition.  I held my own until mile 3-4 of the tempo run until the lead 2 runners pulled away.  I ended up finishing ahead of the other lead packer though.  Good run - it's a confidence booster to push through some pain once in a while.  

2 easy warm-up followed by 5.5 miles tempo on hilly course with 2 miles cool down and strides.

Tempo pace miles: 6:58, 6:37, 6:32, 6:43, 6:38, last .5 @ 6:13 pace for overall pace of 6:39.

Cold, snow, freezing rain - so I ran 6.25 recovery miles @ 9:00 pace on the hotel treadmill.  I am glad it is a recovery week and I don't have to do any major workouts or miles while up here.  

5 AB miles on the hotel dreadmill.  Too many slushy puddles to try and go for a run outside. 

Awoke to a snow storm.  We had to catch our flight at 7 am.  I had hoped that since our flight was one of the first out we would not have a problem.  We made it out but they had to de-ice the plane so that put us behind.  We landed in Atlanta at 10:25 with our plane to Austin leaving at 10:55.  I thought for sure we would not make it.  I came off the plane and looked at the monitors - gate A20 - I looked up and we were are A19.  I couldn't believe it.  If the plane was at another terminal I would have missed the flight out.  

I picked up my son from school.  When my wife and daughter got home I spent some time with them and went out for a run.  I did an easy warm-up to the local middle school track and did Yasso 800's.  The theory behind this workout is what you can run 8 x 800's is what you should be able to run a marathon at.  So, a 3:20 800m would translate to a 3:20 marathon.  It is probably safe to add 5 to 10 minutes to that time.  Of course, you need to have been doing marathon specific training for this to have any validity.  I ran 8 of them - I was unhappy with my time on the last one so I ran a 9th one.  I did not stop to rest at all, but ran a 400m recovery lap between each 800m.

800m lap times:

1.  3:08 (6:03 pace)

2.  3:09 (6:03 pace)

3.  3:04 (5:57 pace)

4.  3:04 (5:57 pace)

5.  3:00 (5:45 pace)

6.  2:59 (5:40 pace)

7.  2:59 (5:44 pace)

8.  3:02 (5:50 pace)

9.  2:54 (5:33 pace)

Ran home @ a 7:30 pace.

Fantastic morning for a run.  The group met at 7 am today to rehearse the Austin Marathon start time.  My plan was to run 16 with the last 3-4 fast.   But then I found out one of our members who has a band and plays along the Austin Marathon course was going to be out practicing on today's course.  The catch though was in order to see him I had to run the 18 mile loop.  So in order to show my support I ran the extra 2 miles so I could have a chance to run by while he played.  His song selection was a good one.  I want to be sedated by the Ramones. Today though the group was feeling good and pushed the pace a bit early.  So in the end I ran a lot faster than planned on top of my 800m workout late yesterday afternoon.  It was good to push on tired legs though.  Well, at this point I would say I am ready for the marathon.  I just hope I am not peaking too soon.  Only 4 weeks to go.  

Overall pace for today's 18 miles was 7:29

Splits:  8:29, 8:11, 8:03, 7:47, 7:47, 7:40, 7:38, 7:35, 7:37, 7:28, 7:39, 7:33, 7:09, 6:58, 7:03, 6:56, 6:35, 6:34.

Nice cold morning - 8 easy @ 8:30 pace.  I am planning on going out at lunch as well.  I would like to hit 70 miles and then taper over the next 3 weeks.  

Mile repeats are on the schedule for tomorrow.

5.5 easy on the soft path near the office.  8:20 overall pace.

Perfect morning for running.  Met the group for an easy warm up followed by mile repeats. Repeats were done on a loop section around Barton Springs park.  We run one direction for one repeat and go the opposite for the next.  A couple good climbers in there for extra fun.  I had wanted to complete 6 of them, and after 5 I was on the fence but my legs were tired.  Half the group stopped at 4 with 3 of us doing a fifth.  I would have been on my own for the 6th.  Saturday, strength training on Sunday, and yesterday's mileage were catching up with me a bit as well. 

Splits:   1. 6:30, 2. 6:20, 3. 6:18, 4. 6:20, 5. 6:15.

Low 30's this morning - great weather for a run.  Ran 9.25 recovery pace miles
@ 9:01 overall average. 

I wanted to get in a medium long run but at the same time go easy on my legs.  So I drove downtown to the Lady Bird Lake trail.  I ran the 11 mile loop from the pool and tacked bit on before and after to get to 13.5.  It was in the 30's so great day for running.  When I left the house it was 39-40 so I wore shorts and no gloves or hat.  I think it was colder downtown.  The last mile was really cold - this is when the sun was just coming up.  When I got in my car the temp was 31.  Strange that it would cool off a few degrees during sunrise. 

Overall pace for the run was 8:20 - the last couple miles were in the 7:50's. 

Hey - finally a morning where gloves and hat not required. Low 50's so I broke out the singlet.  Final long run before taper time.  Felt pretty good but legs were a bit tired by mile 19.  It was a big week so I am not surprised.  The good news is that even with the slow miles at the beginning I would have qualified for Boston as long as I kept it together for 6 more miles. Lots of hills for the first 9 miles.  Overall pace of 7:30.  Splits:  8:47, 8:12, 8:09, 7:56, 7:47, 7:33, 7:23, 7:11, 7:20, 7:16, 7:11, 7:16, 7:20, 7:18, 7:19, 7:25, 7:20, 7:18, 7:19, 7:10.

That's 2 strong Saturday's in a row now.  Will be taking it easy the first few days this week - most likely running soft trails to let the legs recoup.  Probably taper something like 45, 35, 20. 

7 easy/recovery miles - calves were a bit sore from Saturday's run. 

Blustery, cold (30's) and raining when I woke up.  I really wanted to go down to Town Lake trail to run some miles on a soft surface.  I looked at radar and it appearred that most of the showers had moved on.  I had contemplated going to the indoor track. I don't mind cold but wet cold is another story. Then I thought of Dan running out in the snow and cold.  So I said to myself, "what the heck - I will go!"  I put on a base layer, hoodie and shorts.  I wore a jacket for the first mile but had wrap it around my waist as it was too warm.

Fortunately, the rain had pretty much died off by the time I hit the trail - a little wind and cold but no biggie.  I had to jump over a few small branches which had fallen on the trail and dodge some mega puddles.  It all adds to the joy of running, IMO.

I ran 9 miles - 7.5 around 7:50 - 8:10's and the last 1.5 @ 7:30 pace.  Legs a bit sore from yesterday's strength training session.  I think that will be the last hard session until after the marathon.

17 degrees and wind chill of 0.  Three 3 base layer shirts, tights, and a hoodie - it actually was not too bad except for the wind at certain points.  The only thing uncomfortable was my cheeks.  I don't have a balaclava but if I did I could have run a long run and been quite comfortable.  6 miles at recovery pace - 8:40's over all average, though I did the last couple a bit faster -  I wanted to get home and have some hot coffee and a hot shower.  

Keeping my miles low this week - shooting for 45-50 for the week.

This morning I dropped my daughter off to her pre-school that had no power.  They were caught in the mandatory blackouts going on across the state.  I guess too many people woke up cold and decided to max out their heater.  The school did not call me back to come get her so the power must have been restored.

It was another cold one - 20 degrees with wind chill around 5 degrees or so.  It did not seem as bad as yesterday but it was still chilly. 

Three of us were going to meet up and run 7-8 miles with 4 miles tempo.  One runner dropped out due to family issues so that left me and another runner who had just run the 3M half marathon on Sunday.  So her legs were not up to a hard tempo.  At that point I knew I would be running the tempo miles on my own.  We ran a couple miles warm-up and then I took off. The first 1.5 miles consisted of rolling hills. At the end of 4 miles I felt so good I added on another mile.  Close to a mile cool down afterward.  I don't remember running as well as I have over the last couple of weeks at anytime during the last 3 years.  The miles came quite easily to me this morning.

Tempo splits:   6:40, 6:37, 6:30, 6:26, 6:27.

Snow and ice day in Austin - it pretty much shut down the city until around noon time.  I knew my daughter's pre-school was cancelled and my son's school had at least a 2 hour delay, so I was able to sleep in.  9 1/2 hours of great sleep!  I also took a quick nap this afternoon.  My body is thankful for the downtime.  Wow - I did not run and I survived.  LOL. 

16 miles with 6-8 @ MGP on the schedule for tomorrow.

Wonderful morning - a bit cool  to start - high 20's - but once the sun broke it warmed up nicely.

We did 16 miles with 9 @ MGP.  I tried to push the last 2 a bit.  Overall good run.  

Splits: 9:14, 7:56, 7:58, 7:44, 7:57, 7:45, 7:45, 7:36, 7:36, 7:29, 7:25, 7:29, 7:22, 7:08, 6:55, 7:03, last .4 @ 7:00.

First I was going to run 6 miles, and then 7, and at 6.5 I decided to run some 100m striders so I finished with 8 miles.  Ran them all on the soft pathway around the small lake near the office. I estimated 100m and did not do a very good job - more like 400 feet.  6 x 100m @ 6:20 - 5:50 pace. Easy miles 8:10-8:20 pace.

Nice crisp morning - low 30's. Met up with 4 others to run this traditional pre-marathon workout.  I think it is one of my favorite workouts.  We ran the 11 mile Town Lake trail loop.  Part of the trail was closed and the detour added another half mile.  Anyway, the workout consisted of 3 mile warm up followed by 20 minutes @ MGP, 2 minutes easy, followed by 10 minutes @ HMP, 2 minutes easy followed by 5 minutes @ 10k pace, 1 minute easy, followed by 5 minutes @ 10k pace, one minute easy, followed by 5 x 1 minute @ 5k pace with 1 minute easy between each, with half mile cool down at the end.  

MGP pace: 20 minutes @ 7:20 pace

HMP pace: 10 minutes @ 6:45 pace

10k pace: 5 minutes @ 6:35 pace, 5 minutes @ 6:29 pace.

5k pace: 1 minutes @  6:17, 6:04, 6:05, 5:59, 5:50.

Decided to do some cross training today - 45 minutes on the stationary bike. 

Cold - 20 degrees and windy.  Met the group and ran to the track for some 800 repeats to get in some good turnover - did not go all out but it was a good effort.  Ran 200m active recovery in between each - 2.5 cool down.  Sprinted the last 100m of the last one - could not overtake my running partner but hung with him - but hey, he's only 22 and a bit of a lead that I had to make up. :-)

800 splits: 3:17, 3:12, 3:07, 3:05, 3:03, 2:58, 2:59, 2:45.

I came upon this Dr.'s website by chance.  He as a lot of very interesting articles as it relates to running and training. Everything he speaks of has been researched and studied.

 Here is one little blurb about how intervals increase both speed and endurance: 

http://drmirkin.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2010-11-11T18%3A18%3A00-05%3A00&max-results=7

"Going out and exercising slowly over long distances will not give you much endurance unless you also exercise intensely once or twice a week at much shorter distances. A person can run a marathon or ride a bicycle century much faster by training fast two or more times a week. The most common mistake made by endurance athletes is to exercise so much that they can't maintain their speed training on their hard interval days. This is often seen in runners or cyclists who perform so many miles per week that their fast workouts end up much slower than they should be."

Beautiful morning.  There was a pre-run meeting about Austin marathon strategies.  The weather as of now does not look that promising but we will see how the week progresses.

Just a short run on the Town Lake trail.  Not much to be gained at this point.  Picked it up at the end for a strong finish - ran the last quarter at around 5:25 pace.

 8:59, 8:24, 7:51, 7:57, 7:37, 7:32, 7:19, 7:11, 7:13, 6:50, .6 @ 5:58.

Met up with a couple runners and we did ran a few easy miles with 2.5 @ MGP and then a cool down.  

high 50's and high humidity - easy/recovery pace miles.  Not happy with the weather at all.  I was warm and covered in sweat when I got back at home.  Prediction for race day is 60 degrees and humid at the start.  Wondering if I should go up to Ft. Worth for the Cow Town marathon the following week.  Extended forecasts show a cold front moving in and that it would probably be around 40 degrees at the start.  Hmmm.

Had another run in with the neighborhood skunk - this time on the corner one house away from mine.  I ran fast and on the other side of the road and he still had his tail up.  Fortunately, his backside was facing away from me.

5 easy/recovery miles this morning.  

Could smell the skunk coming down the hill towards my house.  I think I need to come up with another route.

Stayed near the home and ran easy to the track followed by 4 x 400m @ 5k pace and 1 x 200m @ sub 5K pace.  Cooled down around the track and one mile back home.  Last part @ MGP - 7:15 pace which felt good.

Still - 66 degrees this morning.  I know my body does not tolerate heat that well.  At this point I have no idea what I am going to do about the marathon on Sunday.

I have decided to skip the Austin marathon and shot for the Cow Town marathon in Ft. Worth one week later.  I know that my body type does not do well in warmer weather.  It is not so much the 63-65 degrees at start that bother me as much as the 90% humidity that is forecast.  I know my body will start to overheat in those conditions over 26 miles.  It was a tough decision.  We will soon find out if I made the right choice or not.  

Anyway, I am going to run the Austin half marathon as a training run with some miles @ MGP. 

I ran this afternoon and it was 78 degrees but only 50% humidity.  My heart rate was pretty high during the 5 k paced stuff - I don't know what it was but it felt close to max at times.  I mean, a couple weeks ago I ran a 5 mile tempo run in the 6:30's - 6:20's no problem at all when it was in the 20's. 

Anyway, I ran 1.6 easy followed by 6 x 1 min @ 5k pace with 1 min recovery pace in between when the laps database on my watch filled up.  I had to stop and delete the old laps and then I set the fast time for 1:30 and 1:00 recovery pace and did 10 sets of those @ 5k pace with a bit of a cool down afterward. 

OK - so I met up with 3 others doing the full and half tomorrow.  They are all doing the Aussie carb load plan.  Did some easy miles followed by 1000m @ 3:15 followed by serious carb loading.  Even though I am only doing the 1/2 tomorrow I want to go through this exersice today anyway.  I am going to count tomorrow's mileage onto this weeks and then from M-F next week run 20-25.  That would put me back close to 50 this week. 

It was warm - 64 degrees at the start, humidity at 75-80% - and a hilly, tough course to boot.  I had pretty much told myself I would run 13 as a training run and drive up to Ft. Worth next Sunday for a chance at better conditions and a better course.  Still, I prepared for running the full just in case the conditions were not too bad.  I did the Aussie carb load plan on Saturday and had packed enough blocks and gu's with me Sunday morning.  I loaded up with electrolytes all day Saturday and then Sunday morning.

A runner from our group had offered to give a couple of us a ride to the start.  While driving to his house and about a mile away I saw a runner and thought "who the heck is that out here at this time?" It was another runner from our group who was going to pace a friend.  She was running to the same place I was driving.  I stopped and picked her up and on the short drive she told me to just run with no pressure as I had a back up plan.  Run to 13 or 14 and if I felt like a million bucks to keep going.  It was sage advice.

The three of us lined up in front of the 3:20 group.  We knew that because of the conditions we would need to run the first half - which is also the hilliest - conservatively to save up energy and run a negative split on the second half.  We stayed just in front of the 3:20 group until mile 12 or so and started pulling away a bit.  At 13 I still had not made up my mind but I was feeling strong.  At mile 14  I picked up the pace and the others started to fade a bit.  I ran the rest of the way alone. I pretty much gave up on hitting the lap button on my watch at each mile.  I just my ran what I felt was the right pace.  I looked down occasionally but was not obsessive about it.  I knew I was well ahead of the 3:20 group so I was confident that I would BQ running my pace.

From mile 14 on I was in a zone.  I really can't explain it.  Everything just flowed.  In my past marathons at mile 18 I would say something like "oh no, 8 more to go" and today I was thinking - "8 to go, bring it on!"  Instead of thinking "gosh, still 30 something minutes to go"  I was thinking, "only 4 miles to go!" 

I was passing a lot of runners which was a huge rush.  I think the weather bothered many.  People were dropping like flies.  I never let the weather even enter my mind.  I never felt hot and thought the wind felt great because it cooled me down a bit.  The clouds kept the sun away and that was huge.  I am not sure what would be better - 55 degrees, low humidity, but the sun beating down on you for 3 hours or a bit warmer and humid but no sun.  I am sure it slowed me down a bit but I didn't think about it.

Anyway, the miles just melted away. There were runners from our group all along the route.  With 10k to go 2 of them saw me and ran with me for a while - shouting and encouraging me on.  At mile 23 another runner was there with her dog.  She ran next to me for a short while shouting and cheering me.  At mile 24 our group's coach was out there on his bicycle.  He rode next to me shouting at me for about a 1/2 mile and at 25 a large support group from our club was out shouting and cheering.  The whole run was a surreal and awesome experience.  Yes, I could have gone up to Ft. Worth and probably ran 4-5 minutes faster, but there is no way the experience would have even come close to running my home town marathon with all of the support here, and BQ'ing as well!

Oh, I was about 5 feet from the finish when my legs started to buckle. Come on!  5 feet away!  I always push that last 200m too hard.  I had to walk over the finish line.  As I did I walked to the side to put my hand on the fence.  So my left leg with my timing chip went to the side of the timing mat.  I did not even think about it.  A volunteer wrote my bid number down and my time because he thought it did not register.  He was right.  Now I get the fun of sorting all of that out!  Note to self - make sure your timing chip crosses the mat!

Notes to myself - what I learned:  If you have a big base 12-15 weeks is all you need to train for a marathon. Speed work once a week made a huge difference for me. Strength training at least once a week worked wonders for me, too - it kept me injury free, I believe, and helped me in my speed work sessions.  Nutrition is critical - even during daily training.  I always felt like I had lots of energy for my workouts and recovered quickly.  Doing MGP on long runs helped quite a bit as well.

First day back since the marathon.  I happened to pick up a copy of little magazine called Marathon and Beyond at Barnes and Noble.  Serendipitously it had a well researched and written article about marathon recovery.  Specifically about biopsies that have been performed on marathoners immediately after completing a marathon.  What they found is some serious stuff going on.  The full article can be read here: http://www.marathonandbeyond.com/

In light of the article, I took 5 solid days off.  I finally got the itch to go running again today - 5.5 easy around the soft trail near the office.  8:20 overall pace.  It felt good, a little stiffness but no major soreness.

Met up with a running buddy and we did 7.5 recovery/easy miles on the soft town lake trail.  Wonderful morning for a run. First few miles very slow - 9:30 and gradual increase to 8:30's or so for the last couple.

I planned on doing some cross training today but when I arrived at the gym the spinning class was full.  I hemmed and hawed and decided to go out for a run. 

I went out on a "Zen" run - no watch, no mileage, no pace, no time.  I took a completely new course so I had no idea how far I had run.  It was a perfect morning; overcast, misty, and a slight breeze.  I was a great run.  I came back to the gym in just over an hour, so I will put 7 miles down as a good estimate by effort.  I think I will do more of these.  It is liberating to be unencumbered from technology for once.

Cross training today - tough spinning class - 55 minutes some points power peaked over 400 watts.  It was good.

Nice morning for a run - high 40's.  I had not planned route and had an idea about what mileage I wanted.  Ran a new route and worked my way back.  Ended up with exactly 10 miles - how about that.  Paces were in the high 8:00s to start and down below 8:00's for the last couple.  Legs felt pretty good but I can tell they are still not at 100% but close.

5 super easy/recovery miles - high 8:00's. I am trying to keep below 50 this week since it is only my second week after the marathon. 

Great morning for running - no one else on the road these days - not sure where everyone is.  I only saw 2 other runners.  

During this morning's run I contemplated how fortunate I am with the area of town I live in.  I can literally choose routes in every direction from my house.  I have flat courses, rolling hills, and mega hills, and even trails if I choose.   I have lived in this house over 3 years and found a new route yesterday that I really enjoy.  It has some nice rollers and then some flat parts.  Ran it again this morning but took it a couple miles further. 

 Today I ran by feel most of the way though I glanced at my pace occasionally. Hit some good aerobic base miles.  Most miles in the 7:50-8:05 range with the last at 7:45. 

OK - so the plan going forward is to start pushing the aerobic pace miles a bit.  I would like to stay in the 7:50 - 8:05 range. Somewhat warm but overcast and a breeze.  

 I ran 8 miles @ overall 7:52 pace.  

Since it is my birthday today I was thinking something special to do tomorrow to celebrate - say a 400m repeat for every year.  That would be 43 x 400m so I will probably chicken out and not do it.

My 3 year old daughter decided to wake up and have a party at 3 am.  We could never quite get her back to sleep.  After getting up around 5:30 I stayed with her so my wife could sleep in.  By the time I made it out the door for a run a front had moved through with 30MPH winds and some light rain.  I ran the mega hilly route out and came back the flatter but still steady incline route back in.  I had to fight the winds from 5-8.  I wanted to drop the hammer a bit on 7-10 but found it difficult with the wind.  When I got back I replenished my glycogen stores with a piece of my "chocolate explosion" birthday cake and washed it down with a hot cup of coffee.  Nice!

 8:05, 7:37, 7:37, 7:38, 7:58, 7:48, 7:54, 7:20, 7:15, 6:56.

 OK, so the new qualifying procedures were explained to me last night and I had to go reread them.  So, after registration opens to all others it is not first come first serve like I had thought.  Being accepted will still be based on time.  Therefore, the more that one has beat his or her qualifying time the better.  If one just "made it" then the chances of being accepted are less, of course.  So having a 3:17 should put me in pretty good shape if there are still spots left.  I guess we will see when the time comes.

If the field size is not reached after the first week and additional space remains, then registration will open to all qualifiers at the beginning of Week Two (September 19) and those who have met the qualifying standards by any amount of time will be able to apply for entry. The application process will remain open for the entire week, closing on September 23. At the conclusion of Week Two, those who are the fastest among the pool of applicants in their age and gender will be accepted. Accepted athletes will be notified on September 28.

40 degrees at the start but a beautiful sunrise that warmed things up a bit.  I took the road less traveled today - a bit of a country road with some mild rollers.  With 2 miles to go though there is a hill with 14% gradient at one point, levels off a bit and then another shorter and not as steep but most of the way back has a good incline to it.  7:50's - 7:40's on the country road but 8:30's up the hill portion.  Overall pace of 7:59.

Only had time this morning for a 5 mile run - will go out again at lunchtime.  Anyway - took the rolling hill route - overall 7:43 pace for the run.

Great day for a run though a bit windy.  I ran the soft trail near work during lunchtime. 5.5 miles @ 7:49 overall pace. 

Warm and muggy this morning.  I have not taken a day off in a while and my legs wanted some mercy today.  I complied and ran some slower paced miles.  8:35 overall pace with a real easy first mile.  I am planning on running in the Cap10k at the end of the month.  I will only have enough time for 4 quality workouts.  Therefore, I skipped today's hill repeat workout in lieu of tomorrow's 1000m interval workout.  I will get more out of the 1000's.  I don't have enough time to make the Cap10K a "key" race but there is a 10k in Fredericksburg at the end of April that I am going to shoot for.  The week before that race is the Bun Run 5k which I always run.  I will spend the next few weeks training for those 2 races and just go out at the Cap10k and see what happens.

Met up with the easy run group at BS pool and did a warm up mile with them and then we went our separate ways as I headed to the track.  Total warm-up was 2.5 miles.  The Mon-Wed group was at the track so I ran with them.  However, I ended up running by myself as there was no one running my pace.  Still good to be with other runners though.  I feel like I have broken through a bit to a new level because 3:39 did not feel too difficult.  I even contemplated running a 7th but coach said 6 was enough.  

1000m @ 3:50 (6:10 pace)

1000m @ 3:49 (6:08 pace)

1000m @ 3:39 (5:52 pace)

1000m @ 3:49 (6:08 pace)

1000m @ 3:41 (5:55 pace)

1000m @ 3:39 (5:52 pace)

My wife has a conference and we are at the Marriot resort just outside of San Antonio.  I am spending the day with the kids - a perfect day to sleep in and take a rest day.  I still woke up at 5am though.  I tried to fall back asleep - it was difficult.  It's a gorgeous day, though.

I found this article brief but interesting: 

"Many marathon runners think that they have to run 100 miles a week to compete successfully, but most will be able to run a marathon faster if they run fewer than 50 miles a week. Top marathon runners can run 100 miles a week and not be injured because of their superior genes. When most runners try to run 100 miles a week, they run too slowly in practice, and as a result, run too slowly in races."

Full article here:  http://www.drmirkin.com/fitness/marathon_miles.html

Up at 5am - nice cool morning - lots of rolling hills.  I just ran an out and back from the resort since I don't know the area.  Base mile run - overalll pace 7:45.

Up early.  A lot warmer than the previous morning.  I ran 8.5 over some rolling hills.  I wanted to run a 3 mile tempo run @ 10k pace at the end.  I had to contend with a pretty good sized hill and it is always a challenge to drop the pace significantly for the first mile.  The other 2 miles went much better. 

There was short 5k loop around the resort that others were using to go out for their runs.  I came upon a group of 3 runners somewhere along mile 2 of my tempo.  I flew by 2 of them and the third heard me coming and decided he was going to hang with me, or out run me, he must of thought is was one of his group.  I got next to him and told him the trick is to keep the pace up for a couple more miles.  I dropped the pace some more - sub 6 and he relented.  :-)  I did a turn around for the final mile and passed them again in opposite directions.  The other runner and I high fived so it was all in good fun. 

First 8.5 miles @ 7:55 pace, tempo miles at 6:55, 6:18, 6:29 followed by .5 cool down @ 7:40 pace.

Nice morning - 6.5 easy/recovery miles - no watch so no pace. 

65 degrees to start - took the new route with some rollers in it.  I got rained on between miles 4-6.  It was actually refreshing.  8 miles AB pace, though I picked it up on the last one:  8:35, 7:50, 7:54, 7:48, 7:46, 7:49, 7:41, 6:54.

Nice temp to start - I am going to miss these 40 degree mornings - I am sure there won't be many more this spring.   Today was hill repeat day - we run a hill on Wilke drive, so we just call it Wilke.  There is a slight incline and then wham - 150 feet climb over 300 feet or so - I think the gradient is around 18 - 20%.  At the top it levels out and we finish the run at a stop sign about 100m from the crest of the hill.  Start to finish is about 300m.   After 4 repeats the coach shows up and tells me to drop about 8-10 seconds off of my repeat time.  I was already running them 10 - 12 seconds faster than the last time I had done this workout a few months ago.  On the 7th repeat my legs were burning big time on the crest of the hill. Then it is time to push it to the stop sign as you try to pick it up again and finish fast.  I have not had the "I want to throw up" feeling in a while, but I had it this morning around repeat # 6.  After resting a couple minutes after the 7th I did one more.  Then we do 3 repeats backwards but only on the main incline of the hill.  These always let me know how imbalanced the strength in the hamstrings is compared to the quads.  But wait, that's not all, now it is time for 5 x 40m sprints up the hill.  OK - now I really am ready to throw up and my heart is ready to come out of my chest. 

So, 2.7 miles @ 8:04 overall pace to the hill, 8 x 300m hill repeats, 3 x 125m backward repeats, and 5 x 40m hill sprints.  2.7 miles back.  Grand total of 9.3 miles for the morning.

300m repeats: 1:31, 1:32, 1:33, 1:33, 1:17, 1:25, 1:28, 1:33

5.3 recovery miles this morning. 

45 minutes hard effort spinning during lunchtime.  Don't know how that translates to miles, but I am guessing 4.  It was a steady aerobic workout for 45 minutes.

Nice morning in the 60's.  Ran 2.7 miles warm up to the track and met up with the group.  The goal was 5 x 1200m repeats @ 1:30 a lap.  There were three of us in the group for the first 3 laps we each took a turn pacing.   The last lap there were just 2 left as the other had enough after 4 repeats.  The last one was hard - the legs were getting tired.  I believe there was still some left over tiredness from Tuesday's hill repeats.  I fought through it nonetheless.  Then 2.7 miles easy cool down - those are some of the hardest miles I have run.   My legs are usually dead after a hard track session.  Next time I will shoot for sub 6:00 - I would have liked to have seen 5:50's.

5 x 1200m at the track:

1200m in 4:36 (6:10 pace)

1200m in 4:30 (6:02 pace)

1200m in 4:30 (6:02 pace)

1200m in 4:29 (6:00 pace)

1200m in 4:29 (6:00 pace)

Met up with the group for the Saturday long run.  I decided on going 14.  After a couple easy miles another runner and me picked up the pace until we were running 7:20's - 7:30's.  The pace was relaxed and I wasn't struggling.  Coming back I dropped to sub 7:00's - I ran the last 4 in the 6:40's.  I don't have exact splits because I did not have autolap set on my watch.  I have to email the other runner to get out splits.  I kind of dropped him on the last 3 though.  Overall average pace for the run was 7:25. 

8 recovery pace miles - 8:50's.

Another great morning - only saw one other runner this morning.  Where is everyone?  I have not seen many runners in the neighborhood for a couple months now.

Miles 7:50's to 8:00. 

Mile repeats tomorrow. 

Early morning and 65 degrees / high humidity - had to meet the group @ 5:30 and I wanted to get some miles in before then so I woke up at 4:45.  Got downtown at 5:15 so I had time for a bit of a warm up, then met the early group and we did another easy warm up.  So I ended up with 3 miles easy.  Then on to mile repeats.  We do our repeats by Barton Springs pool.  The loop around the park is exactly 1 mile and includes a couple of good hill climbs.  We run one way one repeat and then the other direction for the next and alternate back and forth. 

I was going to do 5 repeats but coach told me 4 was enough with the 10k race coming up this weekend. 

I ended up running them alone as I was running these a bit faster than the others. 

Quite happy with the mile times given the hills on the loop.  Ran them just as fast as the 1200m workout and those were on the track.

Mile 1: 6:05

Mile 2: 6:07

Mile 3: 5:59

Mile 4: 6:00

Ah, a full 8 hours of sleep last night.  My body needed that.  

I think today qualifies as summer - full sun and 85 degrees.  I had to run during my lunch time since I slept in this morning.  I don't think I am ready for this yet.

I ran on the soft trail and was content to hold the pace in recovery range.  7 miles @ 8:59 overall average.

1.75 easy then met up with the group.  Another 2 easy then 10 x 1 minute fast (5:59-6:18 pace) with 1 minute recovery.  Followed some cool down miles @ 7:40's pace.  When I got back to the car it was still early so I added another mile.  I took a trail and ran until the trees covered the moonlight and then turned around.  Seems like it would be a good run to keep going - maybe I will bring my light with me next time.

Today was a scheduled day-off but I went to the gym and did an hour in-door cycling as recovery and get the blood going.  15 miles in 60 minutes.  I am going to put down 4 miles for the effort.   

I read a great article/interview in Marathon and Beyond with Brad Hudson who is a well known marathon coach (and a 2:13 guy back in his prime.)  A couple of the main points were: 1. marathon runners generally do not run easy enough on easy days or hard enough on key workout days and 2. a big mistake is to run long runs to slow.  He goes on to explain that a marathon is all about fuel and the only way to train your body to best utilize its fuel is to train no slower than 10% off of MGP during long runs but really the more miles at MGP the better.

I have been reading and hearing this a lot lately.  If one runs long runs too slow one cannot expect race day "magic" to happen  and all of a sudden run 26 miles at MGP.  It all sounds logical to me.  I personally had better results running MGP on long runs than when I did separate MGP runs during the week so maybe there is some truth to it.

Wow - slept in until 7 - 9 hours of sleep.  I think I slept too long.

Nice and easy around the neighborhood, 4 pickups at the end at 10k pace.

What an awesome day for a race.  A cold front came in last night.  I awoke to 55 degrees and a nice breeze with low humidity.  I could not ask for more.

I got up early.  The race was a late start at 9am.  I don't remember it being that late before.  I knew it was going to be crazy downtown as the race was sold out with 10,000 timed runners and 9,000 untimed runners.  I drove down 2 hours early and parked at Barton Springs pool and then did 1.7 miles warm up to the running club's annex.  I hung out there and met up with other runners from the group.  At about 8:15 or so we went out and did another warm-up.  We ran a loop to the starting gates but I had to job back to the annex to use the bathroom and then came back.  

I was not sure what I could do today but I did know I wanted to break 40:00 - that was my goal.  A good running partner, Kevin, told me he thought I could run in the 38:00's with how I have been running in training and that floored me.  I really did not think that was possible but he did plant a seed.  I have not run a 10k in 2 years so I was not sure what I could do.

Based on my goal of 39:50 I knew I needed to run 6:24's across the board.  This course is a steady and slow up to the state capitol building and then a sharp right with a big incline, a left and then after mile 1 another left followed by 2 miles of hills before the course turns fast - the final mile is a slight incline back into town.  My splits pretty much reflect this.

My strategy was to hit 6:24 the first mile and I was off - the timer read 6:44 or something and I panicked - I forgot about my chip time and that I was a few seconds back.  So I dropped the pace here and though the hills.  These were pretty tough but each steep hill is followed by a nice decline so the time can be made up.  I actually like hills so I did not slow down that much going up.  I was afraid this might come back to get me but it didn't.

I flew through miles 4 and 5 and at this time knew I had 39:00 in the bag and let my pace slip a bit.  I had no idea at this time that I could break 39:00 or I might have endured some pain and tried to push harder.  When I hit 6 though I dropped it and when I saw I had a chance at breaking 39:00 I ran hard.  My watch said 38:59 but I was not sure what my official time would be.  Well, happy to report that my official time is 38:57 - so I killed my last time and PR'd by almost a full 3 minutes!!

We ran 3 miles cool down afterward. 

Splits: 6:32, 6:20, 6:18, 6:05, 6:07, 6:15, last .25 @ 5:21.  Overall pace 6:14.

Can't wait to run a 5k to see what I can do.

In Las Vegas for a conference.  Took off towards the mountains though I never got that far.  10.5 easy, average 8:35 pace for the run.  

A shout out to the wonderful drivers of Las Vegas.  I had a several instances of drivers that actually backed up for me to cross a side road.  These drivers were waiting to get on the main road and when they saw me coming they cleared the road for me to get by.  Never had this happen to me before in my short running life.  Wonderful weather as well - low 60's, sunny and no humidity - dry as a bone.  

Someone pinch me - 50's and 29 % humidity.  Ran towards and past the airport.  I don't like running on the strip so I got off it as soon as possible.  Hit a nice long stretch - ran right past the airport.  There were a few sections of crushed gravel or grass next to the sidewalk and I ran on the softer surface as much as possible.  8:00 - 7:45 - most around 7:50 with last 2 at 7:17 and 6:55, .5 @ 6:57.  (My new MGP? lol!)

I started following Lolo Jones on twitter - she is an Olympic hurdler.  Love this tweet from her:

My legs are feeling a bit worn out - 3 big days in a row - so I went to the hotel gym this morning and ran 5.5 recovery pace miles on the treadmill followed by some core work.  

Saturday morning I am going to go on a helicopter tour of the Grand Canyon and Hoover Dam.  The helicopter lands at the bottom of the canyon for a 20-25 minutes for a quick snack/drink/look around.  I have not been since I was 5 years old so I am excited about it.  

Woke up at 6 am - only 6 hours of sleep.  I had Googled looking for a school close by in hopes that there was a track there.  I found a middle school that was a bit over 2 miles away.  I ran 2.7 easy only to find that there was not a track!  Oh, well, there were some nice wide roads around the school so I decided to use the road for 1000m repeats.  I ran 1000m easy to map out my course and then started.  My legs are still not 100%, I think I have been pushing it a bit too hard after Sunday's 10k without giving myself enough rest.  Tomorrow is definitely an off day.  

Anyway - I did 5 x 1000m with some active recovery or total rest in between depending on how I felt.  I looked up what I should be running these based on my 10k time and the range is 3:34 - 3:45 (5:44-6:02 pace.) That's a wide range.  I tried towards the faster end but did not get under 3:40.  Next time when my legs feel more fresh.

1000m @ 3:46 (6:10 pace)

1000m @ 3:40 (5:48 pace)

1000m @ 3:41 (5:54 pace)

1000m @ 3:42 (5:55 pace)

1000m @ 3:42 (5:55 pace)

2.25 miles back to the hotel @ 7:25 pace.

Uplifting video of our running coach:

http://www.youtube.com/TEDxAustin#p/c/1/kie6ArWL8Ug

 Last day in Las Vegas.  I finally had a pretty good night's sleep - about 7 hours and I only woke up once at 4:30.  I fell back asleep when my alarm woke me up at 6:00 am.  I probably could have sleep another hour or more. 

I got on the road about 6:30 and the sun was already coming up.  It was 82 degrees starting out.  The good thing is the low humidity.  Half way through the clouds came through and provided some cover from the sun. I felt very sluggish on the first half, definitely the first 4-5 miles and then I found my groove. Turning around early did cross my mind more than once. 

I had planned to run 14 miles.  But I got into a zone and when I looked at my watch my mileage was at 7.7 miles so I ran a bit further to a gas station to buy some Gatorade.  I loaded up my two fuel belt bottles and headed back.  I decided to try to maintain a 3:10 MGP pace on the way back. I tacked on a bit coming back to make it an even 8 miles.

First half of the run A/B miles:  8:35, 8:26, 7:57, 8:08, 8:03, 7:53, 7:51, 7:50.

Turned around and came back into town @ MGP pace:  7:17, 7:24, 7:14, 7:09, 7:04, 7:15, 7:15, 7:12.

Can't wait to get home and see the family!!

6.5 easy miles this morning.  Glad to be back in Austin, although I could do without the allergies which are hitting me already.  Miles around 8:55 pace.  

Also came upon a park a little under 2 miles from the house.  It has a nice crushed granite path but it is only a fourth of a mile.  Still, because of the softer surface I decided to go around a few times, ended up with 3 miles then back home on the pavement.

Woke up to windy conditions and 72 degrees with 70% humidity.  Blah.  My plan was to do 8-9 aerobic base miles but at about 2.5 I thought I would add some tempo miles.  I will be on the road tomorrow morning and won't get a quality workout in.  I ran 4 tempo pace and it was tough.  High mileage week last week coupled with allergies and this morning's heat and humidity made for a tougher than expected run.  I stopped briefly at 1.8 miles to take a drink from a faucet and at mile 3 I wanted to stop completely but managed to tough the last one out anyway.  Not as fast as I wanted.  Definitely not one of my better workouts.  

Easy miles:  8:05, 7:45, 7:42, .15 @ 7:37 followed by 4 tempo miles:  6:45, 6:48, 6:45, 6:40 with 1 cool down mile @ 7:37 pace.

Still not feeling too great today.  I woke up early and went for a 4 mile a/b run - average pace 7:50's.

I then drove up to Denton to the University  of Mary Hardin Baylor.  I signed up to be a part of a double-blind study that will show the effects, if any, of the consumption of the antioxidant Revertisol on endurance runners.  So today I had to get a DEXA body scan to determine my body fat (11%) along with a V02Max test.  The V02Max test consisted of running on a treadmill @ 7:00 pace with the incline increasing by 2% every 2 minutes after a 1 minute warm-up.  I got to 8% and 9 minutes before stopping.  I probably could have gone a bit further but it hurt.  She had told me that the results were not being used as part of the study but to determine what speed I need to run part II of the study at.  So my V02Max has not changed since I last did the test 2 years ago.  However, she said that was still pretty good considering that it will decline a few % points a year with no training as we age.  Certainly my running economy has increased dramatically so I am not letting the V0@Max get to me too much.  Of course we all like to see improvement.  As I said, I probably could have pushed the test harder but I don't think the result would have increase by more than 2-3. 

Part II of the test is to go back in two weeks and run on an 8% decline for 45 minutes (to simulate the muscle damage of a much longer run) while taking 3 blood samples.  Should be fun. :0

I felt very tired driving back - I wonder if it is from the allergy tabs I took last night.  It was hard to stay awake in the office as well.  I figured the only way to cure that was to go for a run.  So I ran 7 aerobic based miles on the soft trail loop near to the office.  Overall 7:54 pace. 

Nice cool morning - I keep thinking we won't get any more of these and then we do.  It has to end sometime.

Still not feeling too great.  I had ideas of getting in 10-12 miles but when I started running my legs were not feeling too great.  In fact, my calves were quite sore.  It took me a minute to figure out that it must have been the treadmill testing that did it.  

So I turned my run into a slower "recovery" run and ran 7 miles in the 8:20's. 

This has probably been done before but thought about this on the run while I was running a 7 mile "recovery" run.

 You know you are an endurance runner when:

You run a 7 mile "recovery" run.

Your long run was "only" 16 miles.

[Please feel free to continue...]

OK - so last night after work I felt terrible!  My wife had a work function to attend so I had the 2 kiddos.  When I took my 3 year old daughter to bed I checked my temp - it was 101.  Ouch.  I was quite certain there was no way I was going to run this morning.

I woke up at 4:30 am and I thought I felt much better. ( I went to bed just after 9 pm so I got some good solid sleep.)  I feel back asleep and woke up again - with no alarm - at 5:15.  I got up, knowing that I should stay in bed, and put my running gear on.  I felt pretty good except for a bit of a cough.  So much better than the previous evening.  

I drove downtown, did 2 easy warm up miles on the trail and met the group at the Austin High track.  I decided to stick with some faster guys and see if I could hang.  The workout chart says I should be running 800m repeats in 2:40-2:50.  I have never run consistent repeats below 2:50 before, usually it is the last one when I drop it.  What is great about being in the running group is there are always faster runners that you can hook up with to push you. 

Anyway, the first 3 went pretty easily, the 4 a bit harder, the 5th the legs were really complaining as well as the lungs, and the 6th was a tough-it-out-this-is-the-last-one kinda repeat.  I was shot after the 6th one.  1:30 walking recovery in between repeats.

Splits: Note: Paces per cool running pace calculator.

800m @ 2:47 (5:36 pace)

800m @ 2:48 (5:38 pace)

800m @ 2:44 (5:29 pace)

800m @ 2:46 (5:33 pace)

800m @ 2:49 (5:39 pace)

800m @ 2:46 (5:33 pace)

 2 easy miles on the trail back to the car. 

My wife was not happy with me when I came back, that's for sure! She thinks that running while sick is idiotic.  My daughter locked me out when I came home, too.  So much for a nice home coming! :-)

BTW - there is hope for us aging runners!

Dr. Gabe Mirkin's Fitness and Health E-Zine
April 10, 2011

Intense Training Maintains Endurance in Older People

        Last Saturday, a 75-year-old man and a 69-year-old woman
rode a tandem at the Sebring Tandem Rally, covering 51 miles at
an average speed of 18.9 miles per hour.  We used all the energy
we had trying to stay with the bikes in front of us.
        You lose power and strength with aging, but you keep most
of your endurance.  The limiting factor to how fast you can run or
ride a bicycle is the time that it takes to move oxygen from your
lungs into your muscles.  This is measured with a test called
VO2max.  The higher the number, the faster you move oxygen into
muscles.
        Dave Costill of Ball State University studied marathon
runners in their prime in the late 1960s and then again 25 years
later. In 1970, Derek Clayton of Australia held the world record in
the marathon at 2 hours and 8 minutes.  In 1992, his orthopedic
problems limited his running to 3-4 very fast miles per day.
His VO2 max remained the same.  His maximum heart rate slowed
from 188 beats per minute at age 28 to 176 at age 50.  He gained
only 2 kilograms of weight going from 73.1 kg to 75.2.  Other
world class marathon runners who continued competing over the
25 years had an average drop in their VO2 max from 70 down to
65, a small reduction.
        The world records for the marathon and mile for all ages are
less than 10 percent slower for 50-year-olds, and a rapid decline
in age group world records starts only after age 70.  This applies
to both men and women.
        You have to work gradually into any exercise program.  If
you are thinking of starting an exercise program or increasing its
intensity, you probably should check with your doctor.  Intense
exercise can kill people with blocked coronary arteries.  Training
for older people uses the same principles as those used by
younger ones.  You train intensely three days a week, and go 
slowly on the other four days.  We average close to 20 miles per
hour on our 25-mile rides on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays
and only 10-12 miles per hour on our four recovery days.
        As you age, you lose muscle fibers and strength.  However,
if you train intensely, you can maintain the size and number of
mitochondria in muscles that use oxygen to convert food to
energy, which helps you to keep your ability to move fast over
long distances.

Had a 101.5 fever this morning.  Went to the Dr - she had me tested for H1N1 and walking pneumonia.   Fortunately, both tests came back negative.  Still, no running today and I will probably take tomorrow off as well.

Not feeling well today.  No reason to push things and run.  I will chalk this week up as a recovery week anyway.  "One day does not a runner make." Me.  

It was nice change to sleep in and then spend the morning with my family. 

Well, what a difference a day makes. A couple rounds of antibiotics does not hurt either.  I am still not 100% but maybe 90%.  I woke up around 6:10 and was on the road at 6:35 am. It was warm and windy but the clouds were out so that helped later on.  Reminded me of the Austin marathon.  I also read that running at a 6 minute mile pace generates an 11 mph head wind. (Daniel's Running Formula)  Not sure what it is at other paces but the point when running into a wind a runner runs against the force of the wind plus the self generated wind.  I suppose this is why when running with the wind at your back you don't feel it as much since you are running away from it - so if a runner is running 7 mph and the wind from behind is 15 mph then is the runner only getting an 8 mph push?  Seems right to me since when the wind is at my back it never feels as strong as when running into the wind.  

 I don't have my Garmin as I left it in the office.  I figured I would run using my wrist watch as an estimate of how far I had run vs. time.  In the end it worked well.  I had an idea of the pace as I was running well.  I knew I was running at a good clip around miles 8-9 as I passed some other runners that I had seen in the distance with ease.  

The last couple miles were a struggle.  I did not eat anything and did not take anything with me but water.  I knew that my glycogen stores were empty or quite near.  I did this purposely in order to train my body to run at a fast pace while using fat stores as fuel.  

 I came home and used mapmyrun.com to map out my course - it said I ran 17.8 miles.  My time on the road was 2:08:00 and using the cool running pace calculator my over all pace was 7:12. Seems fast and it is an estimate, but I knew I was going at a pretty good clip. 

Cool morning??  Initially it felt good but 67 and high humidity isn't so wonderful.  Anyway, ran for 60 minutes.  No Garmin but I would say 6.5 miles at a very easy/recovery pace.

Medium long run this morning.  The weather was cool - 48 degrees - I actually had to put on a singlet.  :-)  I ran 3 miles and met up with a running buddy, Kevin, at a neighborhood park.  He wanted to get some miles in but wasn't going to run as far as me.  He mapped out a 7-8 mile course with plenty of hills.  It was great having someone to run and talk with.  The miles went fast.  We went our separate ways again at the park.  I wanted to get 15 miles in but time wise I knew this was not going to happen.  I figured 14 was doable but it would cut it close.  I had to be back at home a 7:35 to take my son to school.  When I hit 13 miles I had about 6-7 minutes to make it so I tacked on the extra mile taking the long way instead of turning and heading home.  I dropped the pace to sub 7:00 the last mile but had to contend with a long hill climb.  When I got to the house the watch beeped at 14 miles and I walked in at 7:35 on the nose.  Could not have timed it any better.

Overall pace of the run was 7:51.   [8:15, 8:05, 8:09, 8:20, 7:52, 7:55, 7:57, 7:34, 7:26, 7:46, 7:47, 7:50, 7:53, 7:04.]

6.5 recovery pace miles - have a bit of soreness in my right quad that won't go away.  I need to get out the roller tonight and roll it out.

Overall pace: 8:45

In other news Saucony is coming out with the new version of the Kinvara's. That is good news.  Why? Because the current version is being discounted, of course.  I ordered 2 pairs from runningwarehouse.com for $59 a pair.  I may have to buy a couple more pairs!

My current pairs are approaching 400 miles and still holding up well - much better that I imagined when I first bought the shoes.

Warm and humid morning - what a difference a day makes. Oh well, need to get used to it. Ran 3.5 easy and met up with the group at the Austin High track.

We did drills followed by 4 sets of 600m fast, 200m jog, 400m fast, 200m jog, 200m fast, each set separated by 2 min. recovery. I also tacked on one more 400m at the end. I wanted to run 5 sets but it was not happening - my legs were tired and I had to get back home.

I ran 2.25 miles back to the car. All in all a nice little quality workout.

Oh, so much for body composition theory of having to be 5'6" and 140 lbs to be fast - there was a runner with us who is maybe 6'2" - 6'3" and 20-30 pounds heavier than me - he killed us by 4-6 seconds per repeat. Some just have "it."

Set 1:

600m in 2:03 (5:29 pace)400m in 1:22 (5:29 pace) 200m in :41 (5:29 pace)

Set 2:

600m in 1:59 (5:19 pace) 400m in 1:20 (5:21 pace) 200m in :36 (4:49 pace)

Set 3:

600m in 1:58 (5:16 pace) 400m in 1:20 (5:21 pace) 200m in :38 (5:05 pace)

Set 4:

600m in 1:56 (5:11 pace) 400m in 1:17 (5:09 pace) 200m in :38 (5:05 pace)

Set 5:

400m in 1:20 (5:21 pace)

 55 minutes on the indoor cycle during my break - medium to hard effort.   Equivalent 4 mile run.

What a gorgeous day!  Ran 7 recovery miles @ 8:55 pace around the soft trail loop by work.  

Well,

I don't know what to make of these cool mornings.  I met up with the group at 6 am.  Many runners are in Boston or on their way, and there is also a big 1/2 today.  So it what a sparse group today.  Somehow I ended up running with a couple of the faster runners.  In a way that is good since it pushed me a bit, but in another way not so good since I deviated from my plan.  I wanted to run 8 easy followed by 10 MGP but after the first 2 miles I started out too fast.  We ran the Mt. Bonnell route - well, it's no mountain but quite steep for Texas standards. It's a really killer climb and the route to and from have quite a few hills as well.  

I managed some sub 7:00's but my pace was kinda all over the place.  I'll blame the hills and high mileage this week, and some mental weakness on my part.  Overall a pretty quality run.  I seem to feel pretty comfortable around 7:05-7:10 pace.  

Splits:  8:43, 8:21, 7:27, 7:20, 7:23, 7:10, 7:39 (Mt. Bonnell climb), 6:44, 6:57, 7:02, 7:12, 7:05, 7:07, 7:09, 7:17, 7:06, 7:22, 7:10, .25 @ 6:59. 

Ah, that's more like it - 72 degrees and humid at 5:20 am.  I miscalculated the time to run 10 miles so I had to pick it up and cut off a bit at the end to make it back in time to help my wife get the little one ready for school.  I made it, barely.  

All miles between 7:57 and 8:08.  The first couple were hard with my legs complaining the whole way but I found a good stride around mile 4.

Went out at lunch for 5 miles around the soft trail loop near work.  8:00's - 8:15's.  It was hot, sunny, and humid.  Fortunately, 1/3 of the trail has trees for shade.

72 degrees, high humidity.

I wanted to do a tempo run today and thought I would try a workout from Jack Daniels marathon training program.  His program is almost exclusively tempo and MGP runs.  The plan was to run 2 miles easy x 3 miles @ tempo pace (6:30's for me) x 1.5 easy x 3 miles tempo and then 2 miles easy.  

Now I know what the experts say about running too much or too hard and easy days in that it will compromise the key workout.  After the first easy mile I could tell I would have trouble with this workout - my legs were tired.  But after 2 miles I decided I would hit it and see what I could do.  I had trouble dropping the pace significantly.  I was running into a headwind and it was warm, but still, this should not be that big of a deal.  Well, I finished up those 3 miles and thought about shuffling back home but after 1.2 easy miles easy I thought I would try it again.  The next 3 miles were somewhat easier than the first three and I managed to hold in the 6:40's and the last one was at 6:38 so I felt a bit better.  Then it was 2 easy @ 7:40's. 

2 easy

3 x tempo (6:50, 6:44, 6:45)

1.20 easy

3 x tempo (6:44, 6:49, 6:39)

2 easy

Tomorrow will definitely be a recovery day!

Ran the trail and soft trail loop near the office.  Parks and Rec has been putting new wood chips/mulch down on the wooded portion of the trail.  There are some spots that are 2-3 inches deep.  Nice and soft but takes quite a bit off of pace.  I don't mind if I am running recovery though, in fact, I welcome it.  7 miles recover - just what the legs needed.  Tomorrow were are doing 400's, hope my legs are up to it.

I have to share this report from a friend who just ran Boston in 3:01 - a 9 minute PR.  It's a hoot, and his training was unconventional.  I remember when I told him that Salazar is the one who said "the only difference between 10k training and marathon training is the addition of a long run." At the time he was only focusing on 5-10k training and told me he was going to run Boston.  He just added a couple longer runs and did just one 20 mile run, but did a lot of tempo and interval work.

I this whole running/training thing is absolutely fascinating.   Goes to show that there are many ways to skin a cat.

Obviously, one needs to live in Austin and train with us to understand everything in his story, but the crux of the story is there:

 Here it goes:

....3:01:25. A 9 min PR and 13 min faster than Boston 2010. I'll take it! (!!!)

Training? Well, I have been training heavily since December, just not marathon training. Then around maybe end of Feb. some friends ganged up on me and said I HAD to run Boston or else. Ok, not really. "It'll be fun!" they said. "Party all weekend!" "You don't even need to train for it." Ok, ok! Game on!

But I was tired of getting injured training for Boston (2/2 up 'till that point). The grind and time demands of full-on marathon training seemed to be the culprit, combined with my bodily quirks or size or whatever, and since going part-time to get in all the cross-training required to stay whole wasn't really an option, a little switch-up seemed in order.

So only half-joking, and with the deepest apologies to G, I present to you...

A Fool's Guide to Training for Boston

1. Register for Boston, but change your mind and decide not to run it. Train for 3M and 5k's instead!
2. * Meet with Gilbert, get advice on how to get faster (on halves) and reduce injuries. (Tempo, strides, build foot strength, gym, ...)
3. Crazy 400's & 800's with Richard & Karen, until brainwashed into thinking they're actually fun recreational activities.
4. Core punishment by Carrie & Richard. Gym. Spin 'till dizzy. Rinse, repeat.
5. Show up for Boston pace runs, but make them tempos!
6. Run, don't walk, AWAY from any and all Lollipops (except the strawberry and grape varieties).
7. Do not exceed 40 miles/week. If violated, report to Pieter for remedial P.T./punishment.
8. Meriden @ 5k pace 'cause Coach says it'll make you grow up big and strong.
9. Zilker miles with Lee and Lisa. Pretend that your head isn't about to explode keeping up with them, then skip out after #3.
10. Tempo when bored, tempo for fun, tempo just to get that crazy seeing-exploding-stars kinda loving feeling.
11. Foolishly run one 20 miler - with Farshid, into a headwind (both ways), over every dang hill in town. Invade Albert & Karen's spotless remodeled house w/ muddy shoes just to get a break. Wrap up with cold rain.
12. Train with two uber-fast Scenic-loving pregnant gals.
13. Cookies. Lots and lots of hot, chewy, gooey cookies.....

Warm and very humid - felt like I came out of a shower after mile 2.  Summer has arrived.

Ran 1.5 miles to the annex and met up with the group and then ran 1.5 to Austin High.  The first warm up mile my legs were tight and tired but by the time we hit the track I felt pretty good.

On the menu today was 400's - 5 @ 1:25, then 5 @ 1:23 and then 5 @ 1:20.  I love 400's because I know the pain is short lived. :-) 

I tacked on one more by myself to make it 16 and an even 4 miles.  The first 5 we could not get into a groove but the next 2 sets we were dead on for each repeat.

5 x 400 in 1:23-1:26 (5:33-5:46 pace)

5 x 400 in 1:23's (5:33 pace)

5 x 400 in 1:19-1:20's (5:19 - 5:21 pace)

1 x 400 in 1:17 (5:09 pace)

2 miles easy back to the car.

Plan on hitting the gym later for some core work.

Afternoon run: Ran 3.25 miles to the Y, did a quick core and leg workout, 2.25 back to work.  I was able to run on the grass between the sidewalk and the road, or next to a road, and found another nice crushed granite pathway around a neighborhood.  I was probably able to run about 80% of the run on soft surfaces.]

Easy - recovery paced miles @ 9:00 pace.  Warm and muggy.  

70's and humid at 6am.  Went out with the group.  By mile 2 we were running in the 7:50's, dropped to 7:40s, most of the rest of the run 7:30's.  My watch's battery went out before I even started.  I need to check that the night before a run!  

At mile 7 I parted ways with my small group as they were going to run 14.  I ran the rest of the route by myself.  It was lonely.  At least the water and gatorade was out every 3-4 miles.  I needed it today.  I must have lost 3-4 pounds in water.   The last couple miles were hard but that should be the way it is.  I kept telling myself the "magic" happens in the last 2 miles.  

At the Mary Hardin Baylor sports lab finishing up the study.  I walked in and saw the treadmill's back end up on jacks.  The decline was 12% with the goal to induce as much muscle damage as possible in the least amount of time.  So instead of running 20 miles flat they jack up the back of the treadmill and have the runner go 45 minutes. 

I ran 5.5 in 45 minutes @ 12% decline.  I had my blood drawn 4 times, too.  Oh well, I have to keep life interesting. :-)

I will go back out a lunchtime to get some more miles in.

Warm and humid during lunchtime - 5.5 around the soft trail near the office.  8:06 overall pace.  Fortunately, the clouds were out.

Warm and humid this morning.  My plan was to drive to downtown and run Town Lake trail and then jump into Barton Springs to cool off.  I woke up early enough but messed around enough that by the time I got in the car it was really too late.  I hemmed and hawed and actually drove down the block but looked at my watch again and decided I really did not have enough time to drive downtown and get in the mileage I wanted.  So I drove back home and ran from there.  

My legs were sore from yesterday's downhill treadmill session but all in all not too bad.  I ran the first mile slow and then picked it up trying to stay in the 7:50's with the intention of running the last 2 miles fast.  It was a good run but tiring, especially in the heat.  Next week is a recovery week - I can't wait.  My body is telling me it needs some downtime to repair itself.

First mile 9:14, then 8:09, 7:51, 7:48, 7:51, 7:57, 7:43, 7:45, 7:38, 7:37, 7:00, 6:43.

Warm and sunny but the dry wind from the north made it a pleasant run in the end.  I managed to run about half the run on soft surfaces.  Overall pace 8:20.  

I am sure all the Texans will be talking about the wonderful cool weather this morning.  It was high 50's to start.  I drove downtown and parked at Barton Springs pool.  I ran 3 miles very easy - 9 minute overall pace - to the Austin High Track and met up with the group.  Today was 1000m repeats with 200m active recovery in between.  My legs were still a bit sore from Monday and my left calf particularly.  However, after the slow warm up miles it was fine.

I ran 6 x 1000m.  The small group I run with only did 4 so I ran the last 2 alone.  After the 1000 repeats I ran 5 x 200m strides with 100m slower pace in between.  I have never run 1000's this fast before.  I looked at what I had run them in March and they were in the 3:42 range.  Today the group pushed it even more.  I felt fine - I wasn't breathing that hard.  Another runner that has also been pushing himself and who has been running with us was right behind me during these repeats and was huffing and puffing like crazy.  My only thought was that he needs to run more mileage and get that aerobic base up there a bit more.  Anyway, here are my splits:

1000m in 3:42 (5:57 pace)

1000m in 3:34 (5:44 pace)

1000m in 3:33 (5:42 pace)

1000m in 3:30 (5:37 pace)

1000m in 3:32 (5:41 pace)

1000m in 3:33 (5:42 pace)

5 x 200m strides

Ran 2 miles back to the car @ 7:40's pace.

Moderate to hard effort on indoor cycle for 60 minutes.  Session was packed with fun - hills, hill sprints, flat sprints, more hills.  Great way to further tax the aerobic system without the pounding.  Putting down 4 miles for the effort.

Beautiful day - 80's with nice breeze.  No Garmin but I know the thr route.   7 recovery miles.  I ran about 4 miles on grass or soft surfaces.

New research shows the value of protein in aiding recovery and performance.  I always have a homemade protein/carb elexir after a run.  It seems to help me recovery quicker.

Dear Dr. Mirkin:  What should long distance runners and
bicycle racers eat to help them recover faster?

         During their recovery periods, they should eat huge
amounts of foods loaded with protein and carbohydrates. Since
the 1930s, athletes have known that they can recover faster
from hard workouts by eating extra carbohydrates: fruits,
vegetables, and whole grain bakery products and pastas. The
carbohydrates refill their muscles with glycogen (stored
sugar).  Sugar requires less oxygen to fuel muscles during
exercise than fat or protein. Anything that reduces oxygen
requirements during exercise allows the athlete to move
faster and stronger, and have greater endurance.
         Recent research from the University of Birmingham in
the UK shows that athletes can recover even faster if they
also take in extra protein (Medicine & Science in Sports &
Exercise, April 2011).  This is the first study to show that
several days of high-protein feeding hastens recovery during
several days of high-intensity training.   It doesn't make
any difference if they get their extra protein from dairy
products, meat, fish, chicken, beans, seeds or nuts.  The
study showed that trained male cyclists could ride
significantly faster time trials on their very intense days
when they were given a diet with extra protein. The high-
protein diet contained 3 g protein/kg/day) and the normal
diet contained 1.5 g protein/kg/day.
         All athletic training is done by stressing and
recovering.  The athlete takes one or more intense workouts,
and then when he feels very sore, cuts back on the intensity
of his workouts for a while. Anything that will help him
recover faster will allow him to take his next series of
intense workouts sooner and he will become stronger, faster,
and have greater endurance.  Previous research has shown that
taking extra protein soon after finishing an intense workout
can hasten recovery (Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 2004;287
(4):E712-20).  This is explained by the fact that a high
carbohydrate load immediately after finishing the intense
workout causes the pancreas to release large amounts of
insulin which drive the extra protein (amino acids) into
muscle cells so they heal faster (J Nutr. 2000;130(10):2508-13).

Warm - 73 - 75 degrees and humid - nice cloud cover though.  Started at Barton Springs and ran an easy 1.5 and met up with the group.  4 of us got behind the lead group and kept up with them as much as possible.  Miles 2-12 were hills and hills and hills.  This was a very tough course and with the weather and the hills a tough run.  Add to that the accumulation of miles over the past 3 weeks and my legs were really, really tired by mile 13 and I started to fade a bit.  I just ran 16 as an easy cool down mile.  

Paces: 8:59, 8:35, 8:00, 7:32, 7:19, 7:09, 7:09, 7:13, 7:09, 7:06, 6:57, 6:49, 7:11, 7:23, 7:35, 8:25. 

 Jumped in the springs afterwards - a cool 68 degrees.  It felt great. 

Taking a recovery week this week to allow the legs to repair themselves a bit.  I will drop mileage to around 50 and reducing intensity a tad.  It's perfect timing as I have a 5k on Sunday that I want to be relatively fresh for.  

A bit chilly this morning - I actually had to wear a short sleeve shirt.   8 miles in 7:50's.  

Chilly morning - 48 degrees and windy - I upgraded to a long sleeve base shirt this morning.  I ran the Lost Horizon hilly route - I don't think I have run this since I used it for Austin Marathon training.  

I ran pretty easy this morning and my aerobic system never felt taxed - must be the cool weather.  7:50's - 8:00's for the majority of the run.

Gorgeous day - 78 degrees with a nice breeze. I ran close to 9 miles in the 7:50's with an errant mile @ 7:34.

My alarm went off at 4:50 but I was out of it.  I woke up again at 5:15.  Plan A of meeting a couple runners early at 5:30 went out the window, but I could still make the larger group at 5:45. I arrived at 5:40 and had enough time to squeak in .75 miles before the group let.  Today was a progression run but we ended up making it a tempo run.  Even though this week will be less miles overall I am feeling a bit sluggish.  I figured I would feel fresh on all my runs.  I guess it does not work that way.  

Anyway, we started picking up the pace with 4 miles to go and held it in the 6:20's.  I glanced at my watch a few times and at points we were running sub 6:00.  I decided that it probably was not super smart with a 5k on Saturday so I backed off a bit to tempo pace and kept it there.  One of the runners that was pushing the pace fell off with 1 mile to go so that left the leader and me, and he was too far ahead for me to think of catching him.  I might have tried if the race was not 2 days a way.  With about 1/4 left I heard footsteps so I picked it up - I wasn't going to let anyone pass me at that point.  Afterward we ran 2 miles cool down @ 7:50 pace.

Total of 10 miles for the day.  8:39, 7:58, 7:52, 7:38, [6:35, 6:20, 6:25, 6:20], 7:50, 7:52.

6 super easy miles this morning.  9:00 pace.

I gotta to go pick up my son so full report later.  Let's just say it was an awesome race - I almost PR'd by a full minute and beat my stretch goal of 18:30!

Report:  I met up with a running buddy, Kevin, at a Big Lot's close to where we live and we carpooled down to the race.  We got there plenty early and I picked up my bib.  I was number 12 - I registered a couple months back when I got the post card in the mail.   I guess was the twelth person to sign up.

Alex, another running buddy who has been running and training with me at the group workouts found us immediately.  There were 2 other runners that we hooked up with and we all did a 2 mile warm-up.  It was nice and relaxing. Alex talked about how he thought we could go sub 18 with the repeats we had been doing.  I thought he was dreaming but he planted a seed.  Kevin said I had a shot, too, but still, that would be way faster than I had thought possible.  I think much of this running thing has to do with what we believe we can do just as much as what we are physically capable of.  I then had to go my car to drop off my singlet - it was 66 degrees so I knew the shirt had to go.  I then ran a bit more to the start for another 3/4s mile.  I found Alex at the start and the plan was to stick together.  Right out of the gate I was running a 5:35 pace and slowed a bit down to 5:50's.  After the first half mile the course turns and it is probably close to a mile of gradual uphill.  I slowed a tad here on the second mile.  The course turns again and it is very flat to a slight decline - very fast here.  I glanced at my watch a few times but did not keep track of my mile splits or overall time.  I was trying to catch a guy I knew from the group and he finally began to fade with a mile left.  At this point I felt pretty strong and actually picked it up and ran my fastest mile here.  I lost Alex right around 2 - 2.5 miles according to him.  We finally turned a corner into a big parking lot where there is a Costco.  At first I cound not see the finish but a couple hundred feet brought it into view.  I saw the 3 mile marked and made a push.  Normally I sprint but I did not feel like killing myself for a few seconds.  I finally saw the finish line with the time at 18:07 or something like that - I pushed pretty hard at this point but still did not go over the edge.  If the clock would have been at 17:50 I would have run as fast I could have but I was very happy with the time I had and cruised in. 

It was not easy by any means but I did not run as hard as I think I am capable.  Could I break 18 at this point?  I think it is possible - for sure it is in the cards with continued training.  I have always thought of the 17:00s as glorified territory and out of my reach.  Now it is very close and I have the belief that I will do it.  The age group winner ran a 17:54 so that will be my goal for next year.  That time would place me in the top 10 as well.

I did not have time to run cool down miles because Kevin had to get back home.  I dropped him off and got home in time to help my wife get my son out the door for piano lessons and then she took my daughter to a BD party.  I had an hour before I had to pick up my son so I went out for 4.25 miles.  Legs felt pretty good. 

Anyway, I hope this translates into a good marathon time.  Of course, my marathon prediction time keeps dropping with every new PR.  I am just making it harder on myself.  :)

Splits:  5:56, 6:00, 5:52, .12 @ 5:03.