Please Teach me to not Procrastinate!

So I went and done it yesterday. Just as my weeks were going well and the miles were racking up, I decided to sleep in and have an otherwise lazy Sunday. The plan was to head out in the late afternoon, get my five miles in and whip up dinner for everyone. But, life sometimes has it's own ideas of what is important and what isn't. Needless to say, I didn't get my run in. Doggone it! So I end up last week with a measly 26.5 miles. The good news is unlike a few weeks ago, at least I feel like I'm missing something.

On the plan for this week:

Monday: 3 miles GA, stretching and core
Tuesday: 6 miles GA
Wednesday: 3 miles GA, stretching and core
Thursday: Hit the track for 2 mis warm up, 4X800 with 400 active rest, 1 mile warm down
Friday: Rest (yea!)
Saturday: This week is a step back week with only 8 miles on the schedule
Sunday: 6 miles at pace
Total plan: 32 miles

I was up and at 'em early today and got my short three miles in before the sun was up. Likewise I'll be out early tomorrow to knock down the planned 6! See you later!

Killed It!

I killed a 12 miler yesterday. Did the Back Bay loop. A few months ago this is the run that used to clean my clock about 10 miles in. This is not an incredibly difficult run or anything, but it seems to have just the right mix of hills, humidity, and boredom that turns this into a real challenge for me.

The morning started out like any other Saturday. The Cal Coast group met at Corona del Mar High School and by 7:30 we were off on the trails. The Half Marathon folks were out for 8 miles and the Full folks out for 12. The group was going out the San Diego Creek trail, but for some reason, when we came to the trail split I decided I was up for the challenge that the Back Bay always seems to hand me. So I bid my fellow runners adieu and moved on into the dragon's lair.

The first four miles are about as spectacular as a run can be. Running around the Upper Newport Bay and it's estuary is a never ending display of nature at it's best.

It's the next four miles that get to me. Running through a residential neighborhood, followed by running along a busy highway, followed by running along a cinder block wall and a private campground kind of grinds me down.

I usually hit the last four miles pretty tuckered out. But for some reason, I hit the final four miles yesterday with plenty left in the tank. I ended up running a nice 12 miles aerobic miles (79% MHR) in 2:03 (10:20 pace). That's a full 10 minutes faster than the last time I finished this loop back in June. I'm not sure why. Nor am I going to ask. All I know is yesterday I slayed the dragon. I guess slow and steady can win the race.

Note: Just so everything's above board, these photos were taken in May of 2008 when the exact same run required 2 hours and 21 minutes at a *much* higher average heart rate....

Turkey Trot Thursday

I've become a little lazy here in the blogosphere. I've missed a couple days of posting this week. The missed days may not be good for journaling my exploits, but I'm not going to complain that everything is going smooth. Wednesday was such a day. I put in 3 miles along the Lower Newport Back Bay. Nothing else to report about that run.

Thursday though was time for some fun. And I don't mean at the dinner table. It was Turkey Trot Thursday! The past two years I've done the Dana Point Turkey Trot. But last year's 8,000 runners made it impossible to do much more than slow jog the first mile, and with reports that up to 12,000 were registering this year, I was on the hunt for an alternative. After a couple days of tweeting (have I told you how great Twitter is?), a number of us decided that the Balboa Lake 5K was going to become this year's tradition.

It was a perfect day for a little run. But first things first! Tweetup!


Left to right: @bfrein, @ridgeley, @sugigirl, @MsV1959 (Ms. V).

Ms. V and @anotorias getting ready for the start.

@ridgeley and @sugigirl trying to stay warm (It was a little nippy in the early AM).

I think the turnout was a little larger than the organizers were counting on because the scheduled 8:30 AM start time kind of came and went.

Since I was busy yapping it up with my newly met friends, I have no idea when the start gun finally went off. All I know is that I saw the starter with the gun pointed in the air and heard the pop as the trigger was pulled. Off we went!



My plan was to try to replicate something close to my previous PR of 25.24 from last April. To do so, I needed to hit mile 1 at about 8 minutes, run an efficient 8:30 or so for mile 2, then push a little the last mile before the final .1 sprint. I realized a few hundred yards in I was going out kind of fast. I glanced at my Garmin to get a bead on my pace. FAIL! I forgot to start the thing as I passed the start line. Oh well. I settled in to what felt pretty comfortable and turned my watch on. I was going to have to play this one by feel.

I passed the mile 1 marker on the course and started looking for someone to pace me through the second mile. I found her right in front of me! Thanks @ridgeley! She paced me right through the middle mile and then some!


I hadn't quite reached the turnaround when @bfrein was coming back the other direction:


Bob wins the award for the fastest Tweep yesterday!

Now - there's one thing about the weather in November in Southern California. Last year I ran in an absolutely miserable cold downpour. This year the temperature was pushing 80 and the humidity was in the low teens. I hit the turnaround point and moved off to the side with a cup of water to quench my parched throat. Mistake! (More about that later).

Soon I was on my way back to the finish chute. I passed Ms. V on her way to a new 5K PR:

I came on down the little hill (more like a hump) and pushed a little harder toward the finish. I now wished I had those few seconds at the start and the few seconds I had stopped with the water cup back. The clock? 25:45 with about 200 yards to go. I pushed as hard as I could. I crossed the line at 26 minutes and change. Grrrr!!!! Well - it's about 30 seconds faster than just a couple weeks ago, and has me thinking that maybe my old 25:24 wasn't a fluke!

After searching the ground for quarters for a few minutes, I rounded back onto the course and found Ms. V. @bfrein was running her into the finish, so I joined the party and was there to celebrate her new PR! Yea Ms.V!

I made one more loop looking for @anotorias out on the course:

Together we pushed into the finish where she completed her awesome run!

All in all my Turkey Trot day was a completely and totally awesome day! I had a good run and met a bunch of great people that I plan on meeting again soon. Hope all of you out there in the blogosphere had a great Thanksgiving Day!

Christmas is Coming!

In a Southern California way. Snapped last night:


I couldn't get out for my run until late evening yesterday (had some work in New Jersey - telecommuting from my office still beat having to get on a plane). But I did get out right before sunset and put in five easy miles. I'm glad I had my phone with me!

Ho ho ho! Or is it gobble gobble?

Week One Down

So my first week on my L.A. Marathon training plan was a success. No missed runs. One quality workout. One double digit run. Some easy aerobic miles. I finished up the week with a 5 mile pace run. I tried to hold my pace down, but it was tough to run that slow. Final stats - 31 miles. One session of three hill repeats (can definitely push myself harder on those). One 10 mile run. I feel like I'm back in the game.

On the plan this week is a little fun. I'll be running a Turkey Trot on Thursday in Van Nuys (in the San Fernando Valley about 60 miles north) that looks to be a *ton* of fun. I'm especially looking forward to our tweetup (the name given to a meeting of Twitter users) before start time. There looks to be somewhere around eight or nine people at this point. It's going to be great meeting some of my long time virtual runner friends - especially Ms. V!

The rest of the week shakes out this way:
Monday: 3 miles GA, stretching and core workout
Tuesday: 5 miles GA
Wednesday: 3 miles GA, stretching and core
Thursday: Balboa Lake Turkey Trot. One mile warm up and warm down, about 5 miles total
Friday: Rest
Saturday: 11 mile long run
Sunday: 5 mile GA
Total plan: 32 miles

Gotta Get Over the Hump

Ever since the Long Beach Marathon back in October, I can describe my training in one gunt - Meh. I've had trouble with consistency. Miss a day here. Pass on a day there. Don't finish the intervals. Unfinished runs. I know. I was in a recovery phase and shouldn't be too concerned about things. And to be honest, I wasn't too concerned about distance, but I *was* concerned about sometimes just not being motivated enough to finish a workout. I had been feeling like there was this little hill right in front of me, and I just didn't have what it took to make it over.

I'm breathing a little easier now though because this week has been a bit of a turnaround. So far I've made and finished every workout. Everything culminated yesterday in my first double digit run since marathon weekend a month ago. It was about as effortless a run as I've had in quite a while. 10 miles at an average pace of 9:43. I kept it aerobic with an average heart rate of 80% of max. Think I just made it over the hump....

Hills! Hills!

This morning's menu included gingerbread coffee and a small taste of some hills! I was a little worried because it has been months since I last did any hill work. In fact, it would have been back in March or April - the last time I used a Higdon plan (training for the Cinco de Mayo Half). I have my "special" hill that I use - 130 feet of elevation gain in 1/4 mile - a 9.8% grade. Here's a photo from this morning:

I put in a two mile warm up, 3 charges up the hill, and a one mile warm down for a total of 4 and half miles. My heart ended up reaching 170 bpm on my third hill, which really means I should be pushing a little harder if I expect to hit my max of 185!

On tap tomorrow - a scheduled rest day. Whew! I can get my blog reading caught up!

Wow!

What a sunrise! The funny thing is for many years I've been an early to bed and early to rise kind of guy. It comes from having East Coast customers calling at 8 AM. Their time. But while I notice that it goes from dark to light, I rarely look outside to enjoy the sunrise. Well, that's tough to miss the sunrise when the beauty of the morning is laid out right in front of me!

I started out this morning bright and early (well early) with my cup (plural) of coffee. he holidays are one of my favorite times because one of my favorite coffees is available - Trader Joe's Gingerbread coffee. Mmmmmm.

I was out the door at 5:40 and on the trail at 5:50. Before I started though, I had to snap a photo of an absolutely stunning canvas.

The run was an easy 3 miles. Averaged a 9:30 pace at 75% of max heart rate. And I finished up in time to take one more picture as the sun was getting closer to peeking over the horizon.

Tomorrow it's a hill workout. First one in several months. Woo hoo!

Another day in the Books

After yesterday's little frozen hands debacle, I stopped by one of my local running stores and picked up a pair of these Nike gloves:

They're more like liners than gloves, but they let enough air through to keep my hands from getting sweaty. Just what the doctor ordered! They have a cool key pocket on the palm of each hand. Unfortunately my key is too big to use the pocket though. Too bad the pocket's not big enough for a cup of coffee. Oh well. The best part is they were the least expensive gloves in the store at $17.95.

And with those, day two of morning running is in the books. I got out around 7AM today. While the thermometer showed the same temperature as yesterday, the addition of the gloves and the bright sun made it seem infintely warmer. I ended up putting in 5 miles at an average pace of 9:10 with an average heart rate at 80% of max. Right dead on in the aerobic zone.

On the plan tomorrow - 3 easy miles. I'm heading out earlier and not forgetting the camera.

Who Opened the Refrigerator Door?

I was out the door this morning at 5:30 to put in day #1 of my Los Angeles Marathon training. Only 125 days left! One thing for sure. Running in the morning is, well, different. About 15 minutes into my run I was really bummin' because I didn't have a camera. The sunrise was spectacular! Note to self - don't forget the camera tomorrow morning!

The other thing that really struck me was how COLD it was! As my hands were turning numb it occurred that the biggest difference between running at night and in the morning is that at night heat is still being released from the ground, asphalt, water, etc. In the morning though, any heat that is going to be radiated has been! Folks - it was FREAKING COLD out there! Now, I'm not going to tell you the temperature for fear I will be ridiculed by people East of Interstate 15 (which runs along the Eastern edge of the greater L.A. metropolis) but it took at least 30 minutes for my hands to thaw! And it's only November!

Stats on the run - 3 miles at an average pace of 9:13 with an average heart rate of 77% of max. On tap tomorrow - 5 general aerobic miles. And yes - I made it to my local running store and picked up some running gloves!

Weekend Update

So, for what it was worth, I wrapped up my four week marathon recovery cycle. I was was able to get out today to do a quick 40 minute, 4.5 mile tempo run.

The weather today was absolutely stunning:




Coupled with my easy 6 miler yesterday, I managed to squeak out pretty close to 16 miles last week. I'm satisfied considering everything else going on.

Tomorrow morning I start my next training cycle for the Los Angeles Marathon. On the schedule this week:

Monday: 3 miles GA
Tuesday: 5 miles GA
Wednesday: 3 miles GA
Thursday: 2 mile warm up, 3 hill repeats, 1 mile warm down, 4.5 miles total
Friday: Rest
Saturday: 10 miles GA
Sunday: 5 miles MP
Total: 30.5 miles

I am soooooo ready to get started....

Ready, Set, Go!

I'm about to head out for an easy six miler this morning. This will be my first run since Monday. I wanted to thank everyone who has sent their prayers and wishes for my father in law and my family. We're still on pins and needles, but each day delivers a little more good news.

I'm here for a quick running update - I'll be switching to a morning runner next week. It took me while to figure out that with everything else going on, the only way that I will get my training in is to do it in the morning. And getting back on the track is important since my next goal marathon is 18 weeks away.

I also wanted to thank everyone for the *very* sound advice about tackling my next marathon - making sure I'm over my last one first. Well, I think I am. I have been looking at pictures and video from Long Beach, and I get excited reminiscing. I'm also *super* excited about the new course that was announced for my next marathon. In case you hadn't heard, the organizers of the old Los Angeles Marathon sold the race to Frank McCourt last year. Yes - that Frank McCourt. The one who tried to buy the Red Sox and ended up buying the Dodgers. This is a race that needed a fresh shot in the arm. McCourt may just be providing that. This year's marathon route is completely new. They are marketing it as "a landmark every mile." From the start line at Dodger Stadium, the route makes it past El Pueblo de Los Angeles, where the city started, City Hall, Hollywood and Vine, the Kodak Theater (where the Academy Awards take place), down the Sunset Strip, through the uniquness of West Hollywood (WeHo), down Rodeo Drive (wonder if Paris Hilton will be there), through Beverly Hills, past UCLA, through Brentwood, to it's finish on the Santa Monica pier. Here's the promo video for the marathon:



All I've got to say is as a native Los Angeleno, I will be proud to run this race. It is high time we have a race that boasts about our city.

Yup! Los Angeles Marathon here I come!

Missing in Action

Life has dealt a hand that requires me to be husband above all else this week. Everything in my immediate family okay, but my father in law is in the hospital, and when you're 101 years old, it's tough to tell just how serious that is. Tuesday and Wednesday's runs had to be cancelled. Running will resume once we can all get back into a groove - hopefully today.

Final Week of Recovery

This week caps my four week Higdon recovery plan. I've had a tough time on this recovery cycle and haven't yet completed an entire week to plan. I did come close mileage wise last week, ending up at 26 miles (plan was 30), but I skipped my Thursday workout.

I'm going to go back through my blogs for the last three weeks to get down to the bottom of things. I know I've been a little physically thrashed since Long Beach - legs tired, knees sore, etc. And I can't help but thinking there is a little mental angst going on too. The hint that this is happening are the little things like putting my run last night off until pretty late in the evening. Speaking of which, I did put in just over 5 nice easy miles last night. And I did stretch and do some core work afterwards. So maybe things are looking up?

The plan for the rest of this week:

Monday: 5 mile GA. Stretching and core.
Tuesday: Track workout with the club. Somewhere around 5 miles.
Wednesday: 5 mile GA. Stretching and core.
Thursday: 30 minute tempo run. Should be somewhere around 3.25 miles.
Friday: Rest
Saturday: 9 mile medium long run.
Sunday: 40 minute tempo run. Should be somewhere around 4.25 miles.
Total plan: 30 - 31 miles

And with that - I'll be starting my next marathon training cycle. L.A. Marathon - here I come!

Now I need to be off to do some reading. I've been derelict in my blog reading responsibilities!

This is the Way a Race Should End

Sorry folks - I fell off the blog wagon over the weekend. I ran with my club on Saturday (5 easy miles). Normally I would have spent Sunday morning with my cup of coffee writing my blog and reading up on everybody's fun and success for the week. Instead, I was up and at 'em early (4:30) to get down to San Diego for the Shelter Island 5K. This race came highly recommended by a lot of people, so I figured it would be worth the hour and a half drive. Plus I was excited at the thought of a post race breakfast, and the promise of meeting the Herd! Yea!

This race was a low key affair. No huge vendor exhibition, no bands, no free samples. But, it was a well organized, well attended event. I got parked at 6:45, and got geared up at the car (Garmin, long sleeves, etc.) and still had my bib by 7:00 AM. I did a quick warm up on the course. And was in place fot the 7:30 start with time to spare. This race was truth in advertising. It was a *flat* course running along the harbor at Point Loma.

My performance wasn't anything to write home to Mom about. It had been a while since I ran a 5K, and with all the distance running I had been doing, I wasn't sure what to expect. I just wanted to follow my normal 5K plan of getting in a brisk mile 1, settling into a rhythm for mile 2, picking off runners one by one for mile 3 before the final sprint. I edged my way up toward the front of the start, but even after the horn sounded I still found myself dodging and weaving slower runners and walkers. Mile 1: 8:08.

About midway through mile 2, I stated suffering some serious wind suckage. Right at the end of mile 2 I slowed down a bit. Mile 2: 8:37. I kept things sane for the next half mile and started to push it a bit again. Mile 3: 8:39. It was just about then some guy pushing a stroller passed me. Heck with that! The finish was in sight, so I pushed the final 400 yards to drop into the 7:00 range. Final outcome: Garmin Time: 26.08, Official time: 26:27. About a minute slower than my 5K PR. But I was still happy. I still had something left in the tank, so I know I can push harder next time.

Now that the race was over, it was time for the important stuff! akaAlice and Irene had run into me right at the start, and we arranged to meet post race. I had no longer finished looking for quarters on the ground when I saw akaAlice crossing the finish. Way to go aka! I got my t-shirt (nice pretty colors) and goodie bag (yeah! reusable grocery bag! Cool!) and headed toward the food.

I don't know why, and honestly I don't care, but wherever I go, the people that I meet are always the most honest down to earth people. The herd is no different! I had planned on chowing down and heading back home. Instead I enjoyed a *great* couple of hours with akaAlice, Irene and her husband, Mik and Elsie! It was a pleasure meeting all of you ! Thanks for letting me spend a wonderful morning with you!

Here are some photos:

Take 1: Irene! Where did you and Mike go?

Okay - take 2. Elsie?!?!

Oh well. I guess you're just going to need to go over to the Heffer Blog for the entire group picture.

Coming in a close second to meeting the Herd was the post race spread. It was strange walking into a post race exhibition with an ocean view and no exhibitors.

What's even stranger is finding out that there's more than just water, bananas, oranges and bagels. How about smoked salmon. Mini bagels with cream cheese and capers. Actual hot breakfast food including potatoes, eggs, chorizo breakfast burritos, bacon, and pancakes. And what seemed like an endless stream of champagne, orange juice, and coffee:

What better way to spend a Sunday morning! Great friends. Great food. Great race. The only question I have - why would *anyone* miss this?!?!?!

Another Off Day

I think I'm seeing a Thursday pattern here. I had planned on mile repeats yesterday. Instead, I decided that a sore knee and sore groin would better be served with an extra night off.

I'm not sure the source of the pain. All I know is I woke up Thursday morning and felt like I had a pulled my right groin. And my right knee felt creaky and sore when walking. I figured that I slept on it funny or something so really didn't think much about it in the morning. But, when I still felt the pain in the late afternoon, I decided that the best thing to do would be to not push it. I couldn't help but taking lindsay's advice to heart - "Don't let the plan own you." I strained a groin last December, and it wasn't fun.

The good news is that it *must* have been the way I slept. I am totally pain free today! I am happy that I took the safe route and rested the extra day. In the big picture, the difference between 25 and 30 miles this week is inconsequential. But my peace of mind that there's nothing serious going on in there is priceless. On to Shelter Island on Sunday!

Exciting? Not So Much

Not much exciting happening on the running front. Such is the bane of recovery. The miles are racking up, but there's nothing earth shattering to talk about. I put in an easy 5 miles after dark. Final stats - 5 miles at an average pace of 9:45 with an average heart rate of 77% of max.

I *did* end up getting geeked out in my night gear and I was glad I did. I did a little bit of running (about a mile) on a fairly busy street and had to dodge more than one car. Let's be careful out there folks! I don't care whether the driver is at fault or not, the reality is he/she will win!

On a note related to collisions - my cycling accident is now officially a thing of the past. To recap, I was cut off by another cyclist on a bike path back in June of 2008. I gripped my brakes and tried to avoid a collision, went over the handlebars, and stopped the pavement with my face. I ended up with a concussion, a ton of road rash, a cracked jaw, a couple hundred stitches (most for an upper lip reconstruction) and some broken and chipped teeth. And a helmet that was in pieces.

Most of this was dealt with pretty quickly, but the teeth were an ongoing problem. I had numerous infections that resulted in four root canals, the last being Christmas Eve last year. There was some question whether the teeth would stay in. But, after a year, they looked stable. So, last week, I got them capped, and the last physical scars of the accident are a thing of the past. I can now smile without showing my hockey player teeth:


And yes Patrick - that is a Sabre's jersey (Derek Roy)

I'm living proof - cyclists - if you ride make sure you wear that helmet!

The Annual Night Running Post

Now that it's dark early, it's time for my annual post on night running. As most of you are aware, except for my Saturday long runs, I run in the evening. Luckily, most of my runs are on trails (paved), so I don't have to deal with automobile traffic. But there is a heavy mix of runners, walkers, cyclists, and even equestrians on many of the trails that I run. I've already been a statistic (remember my cycling acident?), and since I have no desire to repeat that episode, I gear up to be seen. Just as important to me is seeing where I'm putting my feet. I don't want to step in a pothole or trip over a crack in the asphalt (a tribute to my lack of athletic ability). Also, remember that equestrians use the trails. And folks walking their dogs.

So, here is how I geek up for a run. First, I will always try to wear a light colored (white) shirt. When it gets colder, I will actually wear a flourescent yellow long sleeve number. Pretty sexy. Then, over whatever I wear comes my reflective vest. Any cyclist with a light should be able to see this. And B.o.B. - you think your shoes smell? You should catch a whiff of this bad boy after a couple or three days of running:

That's not the end of it though. My biggest fear is getting mowed over by a cyclist who is either (a) sans light (yes - I see it all the time), (b) not paying attention, or (c) both. So, I also have this cutesy red blinking light that I clip on:

That pretty much takes care of the "being seen" part. Now for the "seeing" part. I am atually pretty amazed by the number of runners I see with a weak azz led headlamp or no light at all. Seriously folks - how are those going to help you see? Me? I solved the problem with a trip to (yes Meg) REI, where I picked up this headlamp:

It has a couple of lighiting options - 4 LED bulbs that put out a diffuse light (good enough for running at dusk or by a full moon), or a 3 watt halogen bulb that puts out a 100 meter beam bright enough to wak up the roosters. I've had this guy for over a year now and still have not had to replace batteries (3 AA). It *is* a little bulky, but it fits nicely over my running cap (which I wear just to wick perspiration), and provides all the light I'll ever need. I just need to be careful that I don't blind oncoming cyclists.

Here it is in LED mode:

And then, when I need the light of day, I can put it in halogen mode (note the placement of the cutesy blinker):

So there you go. All geeked out for the Vampire Club and read to put in some miles.

Speaking of miles, last night was track night with Cal Coast. After cutting my workouts short the last two sessions, I was determined to finish. The workout on tap was 4 X 800. Much nicer than the 1200s that we had been running the past couple of weeks. I finished all four and actually aired out my first interval:

Interval 1: 3:30 (Yes - really. Pulled out the stops)

Interval 2: 4:15 (Paid for interval 1)

Interval 3: 4:11 (Still sucking wind from interval 1)

Interval 4: 4:20 (Who the hell cares at this point?!?!)

Bottom line is I was pretty satisfied with my workout last night. I ended up in VO2Max range (HR > 90% of max) for about 8 minutes. And, after adding warm ups and cool downs I put in a total of 5 miles.

Tonight I'll get geeked up for 5 miles somewhere. Sigh. Probably after dark....

Eerie...

I've been a busy body the past couple of weeks. Hence today's late (and soon to be short) blog post. I'm managing to get my daily posts in for posterity's sake, but that's about it. I've fallen behind in my reading too, so bear with me. I'm hoping things kind of settle down toward the weekend.

I beat the darkness yesterday and got in a 5 mile general aerobic run. It was a nice evening out - temperatures in the mid 70's, sun going down over the bluffs and a light breeze blowing. It was a perfect evening to put in a run. Final stats - 5.12 miles at an average pace of 9:55 and an average heart rate of 76% of max.

I also wanted to share a neat photo with everyone. I was up pretty early this morning (unfortunately, even though I live on the West Coast, I have several customers on the East Coast). On my way to pick up my wake up juice (aka coffee), I noticed that it was foggy outside. Not strange for this time of year. I settled into my chair and started pounding away on my computer. I glanced up an noticed that it was sunny. Huh? Wasn't it just foggy? It never occurred to me it could be a little of both:

Tonight is track night. Gotta do the 800's this week folks.....

A Short Long Run

Just when I feel like things are going oh so well, all I needed to do was lengthen my run out a little. The run itself was decent - six miles on the Back Bay. The plan was to go eight miles, but I got out in the late afternoon, and had to get home in time to grill dinner for the family, so I cut a couple miles. Total damage for last week: 23 miles. At least it's better than the two prior weeks!

This week will have a new twist thrown in - running after dark! Guess it's time for my annual running after dark blog.

On the plan this week:

Monday: 5 miles GA
Tuesday: Intervals. Somewhere around 6 miles
Wednesday: 5 miles GA
Thursday: 3 X 1600 at 10K pace w/ 400 active rest. 2 mile warm up and 1 mile warm down for a total of 6.75 miles. If I can't get on the track, I'll turn this to a 5 or 6 mile GA run.
Friday: Rest
Saturday: 3 mile GA
Sunday: Shelter Island 5K. With warm up and warm down should be around 5 miles.
Total: Somewhere around 30 miles.

On another note, I wanted to send out a HUGE congratulations to lindsay who shattered her Marahon PR by six minutes this weekend at the New York Marathon. Way to go lindsay!

Just a Quickie

If flexibility was the secret to success, I'd be The Donald of running. On my schedule yesterday was an 8 mile run. It was time to renew my Cal Coast membership, so I met with the group at 7 AM. By the time we were done socializing, it was pushing 8 AM, and the group had a four mile run on the schedule. So, I flexed yet again, and did Sunday's 35 minute tempo run instead of Saturday's scheduled 8 miles.

This run actually felt really good. No. Like REALLY good. I put in a couple of miles at sub 8:30 pace, and ended up the day with a 9:15 pace including the climb back up the hill to CDM. I'm hoping this is a glimpse of things to come at next Sundays' 5K!

Off now to finish up yesterday's eight miler.

P.S. - akaAlice - Yes - Bishop. As in Bishop California. On the way to Mammoth. All the advantages of the Sierra Nevada without having to shovel snow.