Second Wind

Rest.

Was lazy again thsi morning so had to go the YMCA after work with the fam.  My son and I had a little contest of "how fast can this treadmill go"  We were pushing 10 mph but didn't dare go much beyond that.  He pushed it with me for a mile and then quit.  I turned it down for the last couple miles and called it good.

Time:  46:29  7:45/mile

Nice and easy this morning.  Temp was perfect and no wind.  Weather is usually pretty good from now until December so should be some good running between now and then.  After last nights treadmill contest I pulled it back today.  Felt pretty good considering I had run less than 10 hours ago.

Time:  49:30  8:15/mile

Perfect running weather today.  Moderate pace today cause I had to hurry, woke up late.

Time:  48:52  8:09/mile

Been a beautiful week so far and today was no different.  Ran with Meg for about half the way and just took it really easy today.  Things are feeling pretty good.  Time to start gearing up for the St. George Half in a couple months.

Time:  50:38  8:26/mile

Nothing exciting just the usual six.  Man I am putting a lot of miles on this pair of shoes.  Usually I have worn throught the black part of the sole along the outer edge by 300 miles but I am still not through to the foam so life is good.  500 miles will be the max regardless.  Don't know if I have altered my stride or if they are building the shoes better in that area.  Weather continues to be perfect in the 50s with no wind.

Time:  48:54  8:09/mile

Best week of running since the marathon.  Actaully made it out all six days.  By the end of this run I was really feeling the pain in my lower back and into my leg.  I don't have much pain in the area now that I am writing this so life is good.

1:45:58  8:09/mile

Rest.

Weather continues to be awesome!  I know it won't last too much longer but it is so nice right now.  Nothing exciting, just the usual six.

Another uneventful 6 today.

Did six on the dreadmill in the evening.  Had to take my son to the YMCA in the evening to finish the swimming merit badge.  So see swam and I ran.  Dreadful run!  Didn't feel good from the start and really had to fight to get through it.  Changed the pace of things to try and shake the crummy feeling but didn't seem to help much.  Oh well, another run in the bank.

Time:  48:30  8:05/mile

After last nights run on the dreadmill I got up this morning feeling dreadful.  Pace was really slow but not all that easy.  Legs felt hammered and everything just felt blaugh.  Stopped in at home to say goodbye to my son leaving for seminary and didn't want to go back out to finish the last 2.5.  Funny thing happened with the weather.  Last night before bed the temp was 59 this morning it was 65.  There was a breeze coming out of the South so I suppose that accounts for the warmer air.  Kinda weird though.

Time:  52:35  8:46/mile

Windy and a bit cooler today.  Legs still feel like crap!  Will continue to take it easy until things feel better.  Going up to Valley of Fire today for a campout with the young men and women in our ward.  Maybe I'll run the half marathon course since I won't be running the VOF half next week or whenver it is.  Just got put into the YM presidencey so I guess I better get used to the idea of camping more often.  Went and bought a padded cot for this and future campouts, too old to sleep on the ground anymore.

Time:  51:36  8:36/mile

As usual, didn't sleep really well at scout camp so wasn't really looking forward to getting up for a run.  Managed to scrape myself off my new cot which turned out to be not quite as comfortable as expected but much better than the ground.  Headed out around 6 am for a little jaunt around valley of fire.  There are almost no flat areas to run in this place and it was really a nice change to be mixing it up for once.  The weather was a little cooler than Vegas but not bad at all and very little wind.  The scenery throughout the park is incredible and it was nice to be out alone enjoying the morning and putting in at least a run of some distance rather than logging a zero.  Finished up in time for some quick breakfast and then spen the rest of the morning repelling with the young men and women.  Hadn't been repelling in over 20 years and it was simply amazing.  Finished off the day with a family reunion in Logandale, NV with Megan's side of the family and then crashed hard for the night after a very long and tiring 2 days.

Time:  1:00:02  8:34/mile

Rest.

The usual today.  It is starting to cool off here as it was 42 this morning.  I still went with the shorts, long sleeves and gloves and it worked out great.  Once it drops below 40 I start looking for running pants or sweats.  Felt pretty good this morning without too many aches and pains.  Legs were feeling better than they did all last week.

Time:  48:55  8:09/mile

Very cool again this morning but luckily there was no wind. Just enjoyed a nice easy laid back run. Lots of barking dogs this morning (luckily behind fences). Glad they're not my neighbors. Get to go with the elders tonight to teach someone in my neighborhood investigating the church. Haven't done that in a while, should be interesting.

Time: 50:58 8:30/mile

Sick with stomach issues, no running.

Still a little queezy so no running again.  Feeling better though.

Not 100% today but feeling better. 

Didn't run this morning because my sister in law offered to give me a VO2 Max test today at her lab over at UNLV.  I told her several months ago if they ever needed a test subject that I would be more than willing to go and give it a shot.  Needless to say the test was pretty grueling near the end but at least I didn't fly off the back of the treadmill. 

I guess there are a number of different ways the test can be administered but we opted for the consistent speed and increased grade.  So for the first 2-3 minutes I was walking.  Then I started running at 6 MPH which would stay constant for the whole test.  Every three minutes they would ramp up the grade by 3%.  By the time I got to 12% I was sucking air pretty bad.  With the mask covering my nose and mouth breathing was not all that easy.  I think I survived the 12% grade for 1:30 before dismounting gracefully.

Based on my height, weight and age the computer prediction for my VO2 max before the test was around 45.  The test results showed 71.  Not really sure how that translates into my running and what I need to do to improve my marathon performance.  I think it shows I have some potential and if I can maybe shape up the rest of my body (lose some weight and get some lean muscle in flabby places) I may be able to meet my BQ goal.  I think my overall running economy is pretty crappy due to my weight and excess body fat.  So bottom line is, I really don't know what these results mean but I hope I can gain some confidence and motivation to do what I can over the next year to get ready for another run at Boston.

Feeling sick again this morning.  No running again.

Rest.

Stomach still not cooperating very well but by the end of the day it was feeling better and I was able to eat a good dinner.  Not sure what in the heck has been going on, hope it's over though.

Nice and easy today after several days of sickness.  Temp was around 45 so not too freezing cold, good enough for shorts and a long sleeve shirt with gloves.  Ran with Meg almost the entire way.  Everything felt really good today after the several days of rest.

Time:  51:04  8:31/mile

Lazy.

Did a little 10K with Meg and my Dad and Sister today up in St. George.  It was a bit cooler up there than it has been in Vegas by about 10-15 degrees.  Had to bundle up and forgot my gloves so my hands were frozen.  Nothing very fast just stayed with the group and had an enjoyable run before feasting on turkey.

Time:  57:29  9:16/mile

Meg and I made it out this morning after doing our traditional black Friday shopping.  We were able to score some pretty dang good deals even though it's always a huge mess of crowds and traffic.

Time:  37:04  8:50/mile

Made it out for a big 10 miler today in St. George.  Again, it was cold and again, we were not very fast at all.  I think the morning temps over those days were somewhere in the 30-32 range where as in Vegas we have been around the mid 40s for much of the month.  This wrapped up another month and while it was an improvement over last month it is still going to leave me short of 2000 miles for the year.  Oh well, it will give me something to shoot for again next year.

Time:  1:28:47  8:53/mile

Rest.

Temps were much more comfortable today back in Vegas at around 48.  Had to really fight the demons this morning to get out of bed and out the door.  I really need to get in a routine for the next few weeks in gearing up for Painters.  I would like to PR this year on the new course but as is usually the case I end up a bit stale and out of shape coming off the holidays.  Hopefully this year it will be different.

Time:  50:29  8:25/mile