Second Wind

First run of the new year and it was pretty much par for the course.  Added in a couple of faster miles at the end just to start the year off with a little bit of a bang.  Other than that it was a pretty average run.  Didn't get out running until around 8:00 due to staying up late on New Year's and having to go pick up the boys at their church activiry.  By the time I did get up my daughters were ready and waiting to go with me on their bikes.  Meg had already ran since she went to bed at a decent hour, so it was nice to have the company of the girls.  Somewhere in the first mile Jamie lost a peddle on her bike and so I sent them home to switch out the bike with another one while I continued around the loop.  They met me as I passed back by the house for the next loop and to my surprise Jamie had found a 4GB Ipod Nano in the gutter.  Was able to find the name of the nano and asked the one kid in the neighborhood we know with that name but it wasn't his.  I guess it's a lucky day for Jamie.  Sure wish I knew who it belonged to, I would really hate to lose one of those myself.  Did yoga after the run and then did yoga again in the PM.  I really like doing the PM session on my new yoga DVD, it's got some great stretching and is very relaxing at the end.

Time:  49:10  8:12/mile

Another standard 6 miles with Meg.  We were both having a hard time this morning with fatigue issues.  My legs felt kinda like lead.  I guess that's what happens when you have a belly full of jelly.  I've got some serious work to do this year to shed several pounds and get into good running shape again.  At least there was no wind today and the temp was a bearable 37^o.

Time:  52:22  8:44/mile

Finally logged a long run today.  This is my first long run since running the Las Vegas Marathon.  Ran the first 8 miles with Megan and then went out the Arbor View HS to run 6 miles with my Ragnar team.  Only 4 people showed up and we ran pretty slow, which was really good for me.  We were running just under 10:00/mile and it was uphill and into the wind on our return trip.  Temp was 47 this morning when we started out but it sure didn't feel like it with the wind coming from the north.  It was about a 15-20 mph wind with some pretty good gusts in there and when you were running into it it was chilly but when you were running away from it it was almost too warm.  Will probably do about the same number of miles next week leading up to Painter's and then take it easy the week of the race.  Not looking to PR at Painter's this year, just run with Meg again and maybe pace her to a strong race, we'll see.

Almost forgot to mention........the UTES ROCK!!!  What an awesome game.  I loved seeing all the stunned Bama fans that they kept showing on the camera.  Awesome for Utah, the state and the Mountain West.

Time:  2:06:30  9:02/mile

Rest.

It was a cold one this morning.  We started our run at 30^o and luckily no wind.  Had to break out the rarely used coat this morning.  Once we got going it wasn't bad but the first mile or so was a bit nippy.  Everything felt pretty good.  I am feeling some hope that the slower easier running and the extra stretching with the yoga may actaully be helping.  I did the Yoga again today and it always leaves me feeling pretty good.  I've even started to notice that I am slowly gaining a little more flexibility, which isn't saying much in my case because I'm as stiff as a board, but hey, a little bit always helps.

Time:  51:13  8:32/mile

Picked up the pace a little bit today with a few striders but other than that it was a pretty standard run.  It was 2 degrees warmer than yesterday at a whopping 32 degrees and again, no wind at all.  Did Yoga again this morning and really enjoyed it.  Encountered a dog on the run today but luckily he was more interested in other things than us so no worries.  Things continue to feel better and better each day, hope it keeps up all the way to Painter's and beyond, gotta stay healthy to make running enjoyable.

Time: 49:31  8:15/mile

Flew solo today because Meg had to get my youngest to the hospital for a fun little procedure early this morning.  Kept the pace pretty up tempo for the entire run but didn't over do it.  Temp was a little warmer than yesterday at 37 so we have a nice trend going in the right direction and there was no wind at all.  Did the PM yoga again this morning and it felt really good as usual.  Finally got our registrations mailed in for the Painter's Half, almost forgot, that would have been bad.

Time:  49:14  8:12/mile

Since Meg missed her run yesterday I think she had in her mind that we needed to pick up the pace a bit.  Well I wasn't arguing but it was my third day strait with a moderate paced run.  I will definately have to slow down the pace a bit tomorrow.  Run was good and actually felt better than yesterday's run which was a bit slower.  Lower back on the right side is the only thing that is still bothering me when I first get up in the morning but the pain is usually gone by the end of the run as it was today.  Don't know if it's tight muscles or nerve issues related to my lower back but I'm not terribly worried about it for now.  If it doesn't get better in the next month or two I will probably go get it checked out.  Contidions were a carbon copy of yesterday with 37 degrees and no wind....almost perfect.

Time:  48:53  8:09/mile

Finally reigned in the horses today and took it easy.  The wind was really whipping today at around 15-20 MPH but the temp was a real shocker at 50 degrees this morning.  With the wind I imagine it probably felt cooler but it actually felt pretty good.  Ran solo for the last couple of miles because Megan's ankle has been bothering her a bit the last couple of weeks and she would like to try and get it feeling better before Painter's next week.  I know her fitness is fine for the race I hope she decides to back off until the race and listen to her body.  A runner, listen to his/her body, ya right!?!?

Quick question for anyone that may have heard of this.  I was approached by my daughters basketball coach about doing some online fitness coaching for a company called Team Beach Body.  It's one of those amway type deals where you get your friends involved etc, etc.  He and his wife are making some pretty good extra side money from it but I am always very skeptical of these things.  If anyone has had any experience with this company in particular I would love to hear some of your thoughts and input.  Thanks.

Time:  52:33  8:45/mile

Pretty good day for running with fairly mild temps and a moderate breeze.  Things felt pretty good most of the way.  Started to feel a bit of fatigue toward the end of the run, probably due to my lack of training since Las Vegas marathon.  Felt like it was a good effort though and feel pretty good coming into Painter's that I will be able to run in the 1:45 range.  That's quite a bit slower than last year but I think it would be good considering my lousy December and the injuries I have been battling lately.  At least after today I know I can run a sub 1:50 and I can live with that.

Time:  1:47:55  8:14/mile

Rest.

Wind was still going this morning although it seems to have calmed down a bit since the weekend.  Hopefully this trend continues through the rest of the week so that we have calm, perfect conditions for Painter's on Saturday.  Temp was 48 at the start which was a bit warm when running with the wind but just right when running in to it.  I felt like this morning was my best run since LVM.  Not because of a fast time but because of the way I felt.  I wouldn't say I was completely without pain but I could tell that things are really starting to feel better and appear to be healing (knock on wood).  Ran the last couple of miles solo due to Meg's ankle still bothering her.  I really hope she gets that thing healed up in time for Saturday.

Time:  50:00  8:20/mile

Pretty much a carbon copy of yesterdays run with the same temperature same wind and same pace.  The only thing exciting that happened was me rolling my ankle on a pine cone and almost falling to the ground.  If Meg hadn't been there to grab on to I probably would have gone down.  I thought initially that it was going to be a pretty bad sprain and was sitting on the curb for a minute or so deciding whether to get up.  I finally did get up and was able to finish the run with no problems so luckily it wasn't too bad.  I still feel a little stiffness in it and didn't do yoga this morning because it was aching a little but I think it will probably be okay.  Just need to ice and take it easy today.  Ahhhh the joys of running in the early morning darkness.

Time:  49:57  8:20/mile

Took the day off cause the ankle was still feeling a bit stiff and didn't really want to push it with Painter's coming up in a few days.  It's feeling pretty good now that I am up and around so I'm not too concerned about it slowing me down.  Couple more slower and lower mileage days should be good for it and I will be ready to go.

Reduced the mileage today and the overall pace was a little slower than usual but I did pick it up on the last mile cause I had to get home in time to drive the kids to early morning seminary today.  Yesterday when we stayed home from our run there was no wind, today the wind was back again....figures.  The weather looks to be pretty great for Painter's but the wind is still an unknown.  I don't recall wind being a factor for the last two years, hopefully that is the case this year.  My rolled ankle from Tuesday felt just fine today so no worries there.  Did a little bit of Yoga after the seminary run and things feel pretty good.  Easy 3-4 tomorrow and we're good to go for Saturday.  Can't wait to see you all in a couple of days.

42:05  8:25/mile

Nice and easy run just to keep things loose today.  Ran solo because Meg wanted the extra rest for her ankle.  Did 4 100 meter strides this morning just to wake up the legs a little bit but overall just a fairly laid back run.  Can't wait to see everyone tomorrow.  Good luck to everyone doing the half or the 5K and I hope all you northerners get a nice weather weekend in Dixie.

Time:  25:36  8:32/mile

More later...

Really great day for a race.  With the starting line temps in the mid 30s and plenty of sunshine the running conditions turned out to be absolutely perfect.  Even with the perfect conditions I wasn't sure what to expect from myself today with my lack of any speed work or tempo runs since LVM I was just looking to come in somewhere under 1:45 and maybe the low 1:40s if I was lucky.  My main goal was to complete the race so I would be one race closer to meeting the runners series quota for the guaranteed SGM entry.

Saw lots of bloggers at the race and met many new ones.  It was really great to see everyone again finally put some faces with some names of the first timers.

In a state of not really knowing what to shoot for in this race I happened to meet up with an old friend at the starting line who was looking to run a 1:35 or better.  I knew that was going to be a bit fast for me but I figured running with someone would be much more enjoyable than going it alone so I told him to set the pace and I would try and keep up.

The start went fairly well and we didn't have to dodge too many people as we got going.  We took the first mile pretty conservatively and it came in around 7:30.  The next mile we decided to pick up the pace a little bit and came in around 7:10.  Mile three is flat for a bit and then you turn on to river road and get a nice stretch of gentle downhill for about a quarter mile.  That mile turned out to be my fastest at 6:55.  Mile 4 is pretty flat through the river bottoms and we held a nice pace through there at 7:11.  Then mile 5 includes a couple of pretty good hills coming out of the river bottoms and then up into the Bloomington Hills area.  We were able to eek out a 7:25 for that hilly mile.  Once we dropped back down to the river bottoms again we found a nice rhythm and just chugged along until we reached the start of the Bloomington loop where it turns uphill again a little bit and I started to feel some fatigue.  I told my friend not to wait up for my but to just keep it going and I fell back a bit.  I struggled over the next mile fighting with myself to try and catch back up to him but I just couldn't overcome the deamons.  From this point until about mile 12 I struggled pretty good and got passed by quite a few people.  It was also during this stretch that I promised myself I would give it everything I had in the last mile.  Mile 13 turned out to be a pretty good mile and I had lots of roadkill, passing as many as 10 people and just giving it everything I had left.  Pace for that mile ended up at 7:15 and average for the last little bit (according to garmin) was 5:50 but I would guess that is wrong, probably more like 6:30 but still a strong effort.

If this had been the same course as last year it would have been a 2-3 minute PR easily but as it stands it is about a minute slower than last year but with the course change it is a course PR.  My Garmin read 13.32 at the finish and Megs was around 13.26 so I guess I really didn't do much of job of running the tangents.  It's tough to run the tangents when the roads are open to traffic and you have to play frogger.

Meg had a nice run considering her ankle/achilies problems.  She came in around 1:47.  I ran back after my finish to see if I could see her and run in with her but she had already passed the place where I jumped back on the trail so I missed her at the finish.....ooops!!

All in all it was a really good day.  It was great to see everyone before and after the race and share all your great experiences.

Rest.

Just a nice and easy 3 this morning to kinda see what the body feels like.  Actually decided to stop the run at 3 miles because I just wasn't feeling it.  Sore muscles and fatigue were too much for me and so I decided it was best to just cut it short and try again tomorrow.  Overall I felt better than I thought I would but still didn't want to fight through it today.

Time:  26:23  8:48/mile

Still keeping it slow and easy today.  Felt better than yesterday but still not out of the woods yet.  Don't feel any major pain at this point like an injury, just feeling the usual aches and pains after a hard effort.  Weather was good this morning at 47 degrees and a light breeze.  This winter has been generally mild, I can't complain.

Time:  52:12  8:42/mile

Another slow and easy 6 today.  Each day the pain and suffering seems to diminish a little more so that I am almost back to normal pain and suffering, which is tolerable.  Almost over heated the engine today with 53 degrees and a light breeze I had to shed the gloves and hat but decided to leave the sweatshirt on just to work up a good sweat.  Yoga again today.  I forget to report that I do yoga every day but I do.  It has become a daily ritual for me and it's just part of the morning routine now.  Still doing the AM/PM yoga and using the PM routine.  I seem to be noticing some changes in my flexibility but make now mistake I am still very much a rookie when it comes to flexibility.

Time:  50:33  8:26/mile

Carbon copy of yesterdays run except for the part about over heating.  Today I wore shorts and a tech long sleeve shirt cause the temp was 54 degrees.  Started with gloves and a cap but had to shed those after a couple of miles.  I still seem to be feeling some lingering soreness and fatigue from the race on Saturday.  I just feel crappy for the first few miles but by the end I am usually feeling pretty good.  I guess it just takes a while for this old body to warm up.  I haven't had shin splints since my first year of running and I don't really have them now but they are a little tender like I am on the verge.  I imagine most of my issues right now are stemming from my lack of training and then running Painter's a litle too hard.  Next week is another week and I'm sure things will improve by then.

50:29  8:25/mile

Boy it's time for me to get some new shoes.  I have totally worn through the black soles down to the yellow cushoning on the outside of my heal area.  I am so rouogh on shoes it is amazing.  Maybe if I shed a few pounds on concentrated more on improving my gate I may not have this problem, is something like this even correctable?  Anyway, another fine morning for running.  Lots of cloud cover and a break in the rain made for a warm and comfortable run.  Temp was 56 and it was humid.  Shorts and long sleeves again today, SWEET!  Not too sweet for the natural gas company I work for but sweet for running in January.

Time:  50:47  8:28/mile

Long slow run today.  I split this run into two pieces today because my Ragnar group was having a 7 mile training run this morning.  So I ran the first 8 with Megan around our house at about an 8:30/mile pace then I went and ran with the guys at a much slower back of the pack pace around 9:30/mile.  It was really humid today with the recent rain but it was short and long sleeve shirt weather again....gotta love that.  Felt okay for the most part and easily could have run the second part of this run much faster but decided to hang with our back of the pack guy and chat with him a bit.  Ordered some new shoes from St. George Running Company yesterday but they were out of stock so I won't see them for a couple of weeks.  Oh well, it will give me a chance to get every last mile out of my old shoes.  Megs ankle is still giving her fits but I saw the ice pack out when I got home so at least I know she is trying to RICE.  Better a little than none at all I guess.

Time:  2:14:55  8:59/mile

Rest.

Picked up the pace just a tiny bit this morning and it felt pretty good.  I think that I am finally recovered from Painter's....Geeez, took long enough.  Ran in shorts again today but it was pretty chilly at 41 degrees and a little breeze.  Did yoga again this morning and it felt really good as usual.

Time:  49:37  8:16/mile

Slowed it down a little bit today.  It was cold and windy but not terrible, been in much worse.  Everything felt pretty good again with the usual aches and pains seeming to stay in the background a little more than usual.  I don't know if that means I am actaully starting to turn the corner a bit or if this was just a good day.  Maybe the yoga has something to do with it as well.  Oh ya, did the PM portion of the yoga again this morning.....always a good thing.

Time:  51:49  8:38/mile

Picked up the pace a little today by adding in 8-10 200-400 meter strides at an unknown faster pace.  Just picked up the pace for those stretches but didn't really check out the Garmin to see the pace.  I would guess they were right around 7:00/mile pace.  Everything felt pretty good again today as far as the aches and pains go.  The pains are still there but it is less than usual.  (No Smooth, not "pain free" just less pain).  Chilly again today at about 37 but the winds was calm so it wasn't bad at all.

Time:  49:18  8:13/mile

Didn't run today due to feeling like crapola.  Stayed home from work and enjoyed the day off.

Youngest daughter Kiara (8) was up all night very sick.  She has been having stomach issues for several months now and we haven't had any luck with a diagnosis.  We took her to the ER and she had a CT scan with the results showing nothing of any consequence.  The thought is she may be getting some temporary blockages in her intestines but no one knows for sure.  Sure stinks not knowing.  Didn't run again due to all the early morning stresses and getting the kids off to school while Meg was in the ER with Kiara.

Finally got a run in after a two day layoff.  Both Meg and I had a little spring in the old step today after the extra rest.  She was hoping her hip would feel better but it didn't.  She was able to grind out a tough 10 miles though, stubborn old girl.  I decided to make a half marathon out of it today and did 13.1.  Felt pretty good for the most part until the end when the fatigue started to set in a little bit.  Kiara is feeling much better today and it appears we are going to become much more diligent with taking the miralax as she was asking for it first thing this morning.  Doctors are talking exploratory surgery as the next step, I am talking "forget you buddy" there are plenty more things we can try before going under the knife.  Guess we'll see how the next couple of weeks go and go from there.  Oh, Kathie, it was 44 degrees and light winds this morning.

Time:  1:48:53  8:19/mile