Second Wind

Rest.

The tempo runs are starting to increase in distance in the training plan.  Today was a 5 mile LT run with a three mile warm up and a two mile cool down.  My goal going into this thing today was to keep the tempo pace miles under 7:10/mile.  During the warm-up miles I decided to see if I could average under 7:00/mile for the tempo miles because I was feeling good and wanted to really see what I could do.  Here are the splits:  7:01, 6:51, 7:02, 7:04 and 6:58 with an average of 6:59/mile.  I may have gone a little too fast on that second mile but you never know for sure with the Garmin if you are slightly off on the mileage.  The longest tempo run on this training program is 7 miles and I think I could have maintained that pace for a couple more miles but I don't know for sure.  I would like to eventually bring that tempo pace down into the 6:50/mile range but we will just see how the training goes.  Fought with a little bit of a breeze this morning on the north facing sections of the course but other than that the temps were perfect at a balmy 46 degrees.  I am finally starting to see some movement in my weight again (in the downward direction) and hopefully it will keep going down as I am about 14 pounds from my current goal of 160.  If I ever hit 160 (and that's a big IF) I will have to reevaluate to see if I should go any lower or not.  With 12 weeks until Ogden things are still looking good.  The next two weeks will give me the bigger picture as they are some of the highest mileage weeks I will have ever run with 56 this week and 59 next week.  This will be the point were my body will break down and risk injury so I will be trying to run smart and stay healthy. 

As it turns out, today is a 10 mile (training) PR for me as well.  It was a better run than I thought.

Time:  7:41/mile

Just a nice easy recovery run today.  Had a little residual fatigue and sorness from yesterdays run but not as bad as I have felt it in the past.  I'm finding these easy lower mileage days to be a huge help in my recovery for the longer, harder days.  I'm still getting the running six days a week but I am getting better recovery for the runs that count.  Temp was 52 this morning but it was a little breezy even more than yesterday.  I don't mind the wind as much on a recovery day and pace is not an issue, so I just enjoyed being out and about today.

Time:  8:18/mile

These medium long runs can really throw a wrench in your schedule if you don't get starte right on time.  We got started about 7-8 minutes late today and then I had to make a quick pit stop at about mile 5 for a few minutes so I really had to crank out the last few miles so I wouldn't be late getting the kids to jazz band practice this morning.  I have typically tried to keep these medium long runs at around an 8:10-8:15 pace/mile put this morning with the rush I averaged 8:01/mile.  Things felt pretty good for the most part, not alot of aches and pains to contend with other than some minor back acheage.  The aerobic system seems to be doing pretty well lately as it has become easier to maintain this pace without going anaerobic.  I ran most of the run without Megan because the pace was a little too fast and she continues to struggle with a few of her own aches and pains.  Amazingly she still get the miles in most days and guts it out. Temp was 51 degrees today with slightly breezy conditions....again.  I guess the wind just comes with the desert.  Can't complain too much though, spring is upon us.

Time:  8:01/mile

Took it pretty easy today and made this a nice recovery run.  Instead of running the prescribed 5 miles today I ran 6 because after tomorrows run I will be at 200 miles for the month instead of 199.  Just couldn't live with coming up one mile short of the ever elusive 200 mile mark.  My previous longest month was July of last year with 193.5.  After that month I spent August recovering from injury.  I don't anticipate that being the case this year but you never know when something will jump up and bite you in the butt.  Another beautiful morning with mild temps and a fairly light breeze.

Time:  8:17/mile

Well.....I finally reached it.....200 miles in a month.  I ran my 200th mile today in symbolic fashion.....15 seconds faster than goal marathon pace just to prove to myself that I could.  I'm glad to have that milestone behind me so that I can now concentrate on the task at hand and that is train as hard as possible for the next 2 months while not getting injured.  If I can do that I will be going for the BQ at Ogden.  I was looking at the Ogden and SGM 2007 results for the 35-39 age group to see what percentage of men qualified for Boston in each race.  There is a wider gap than I expected.  Ogden had 10% or 13/129 and SGM had 23% or 108/465.  I guess I could come up with several reasons for this rather large difference but I won't even waste my time.  Ogden looks like a great course with some small uphill with mostly flat and downhill sections near the finish.  The plan right now is to at least start out at BQ pace at Ogden and see how far I can go.  The way I see it is if I don't at least try, I will never know if I could have.  What's the worst that could happen?  I would have to try again at St. George?  I can live with that.

Time:  8:02/mile

Very difficult long run for me today.  Today ends the highest mileage week ever for me and February was the highest mileage month ever.  I guess it stands to reason that I am a little fatigued and didn't feel refreshed and ready to tackle 18 today.  The main thing is that I got through it at a fairly respectable pace for me but suffered a bit of pain getting there.  The lower back muscles were screaming and my energy level was low.  I look forward to a the one day of rest before going 59 miles next week.  Weather was perfect for the run today with temps in the low 50s and no wind to speak of.  Ran most of the run in shorts and a long sleeve shirt.  I think its official....spring has sprung.

Time:  8:31/mile