Training - 26 Miles

I can't believe how fast time is flying!  Training is going very well, and I'm starting to string together some decent distances right now.  Since July 4th I'd been tossing around in my head about doing my own 'little' dualthlon.  Run - Bike - Run (3.1 Mile - 20 Mile - 3.1 Mile)  Well this weekend I did it.  The final 5k really hurt and I'd forgotten how difficult it is to transition into running after being on a bike for an hour, but I did finish the whole thing only having to walk a few mins over the final 2 miles.

I was kind of stupid to start this endeavor at 1:00 pm on Saturday in 82 degree heat, but I dressed for the occasion and drank plenty in the transitions and while I was out on the course.  I'm kind of surprised on how easy it was to complete the distance (just not very fast), and I'm starting to believe that I'm going to be able to finish my half marathon in September without walking.

My other workout have been pretty good also - my long run last week was 8.23 miles at a 10:23 pace.  The run itself wasn't too difficult, I did get a blister on my left pinkie toe for the first time in over 10 years..... While I was out on the course I'm guessing I could have run over 10 miles without stopping so I was happy with the workout, but my recovery afterwards really surprised me.  I ran my long run on Monday night and on Wednesday night I was still really sore.  I wasn't prepared for my body to be so slow in recovering from that effort, so I'll have to keep that in mind.

Abby and Cade in the rain.

Coming up this week I most likely will take it pretty easy.  I'm tossing around another 8 miler in  my head most likely toward the end of the week, depending on how my body reacts to my 'big' weekend this week. If I recover nicely I'm pretty sure I throw in an 8-10 miler, but if not, I'll most likely put some miles in on the bike and try to take it fairly easy.  I'm still looking at about 6 weeks before my run so I have plenty of time to get some long runs in, but the more I get in, the better my confedience will be when I toe the line on Sept 11th.

On my smaller runs/walks of 1-3 miles I've been searching out the local hills in the area to trek up.  I'm doing pretty well with this so I'll continue this practice unless my legs really need a break.

Keep Steppin'
Bob

5+ Miles Tonight - Feeling Good

Well, I've actually started working towards my half marathon today.  I ran 4 miles at a 10 min pace and then another 1.5 miles at around a 12-13 min pace.  The 10 min pace felt really good and I'm guessing I could have run another hour at this pace without too much difficulty which is a good sign since just a few weeks ago I was worried about my conditioning.

My long runs this training period (approx 8 weeks) will start at 6 miles working up to an 11-12 miler a few weeks before my race.  I'm going to start looking for a water belt this week so I don't have to worry about looping close to home on these longer run.

I'm going to through in some hill workouts hopefully about once a week also since this race is very heavy in hills.  I think this work will also help with my overall strength.

Training mileage should top out around 60-70 miles per week, with July mileage coming close to 200 miles for the month.  We'll see how this goes over the next few weeks, and I'll adjust if I have to.

I'll leave you with a few pictures of my Fourth of July......

Dana Point Harbor, Ca.

Beth and Cade

The Family

Not a bad group

Squirrel time

Eating out of Abby's hand - fearless.

I should get this guy to run with me over teh next few months....

Cade and Alex getting into it

Cade showing off his Ninja moves - getting the best of his older brother.

Out for a night sail to watch the fireworks.

Keep Steppin'

Bob

Massive Fail

I've written about difficult runs before and yesterday's run falls directly into this catagory.  The plan was to run 6.8 easy miles (9:50 pace) with Alex.  But as soon as we stepped out the door I knew I was going to be in trouble.  All of us runners know that feeling - no energy, heavy legs, shortness of breath.  Every step was like I was laboring from the get-go.  Now I'm never one to make excuses but I was pretty tired from the day before, I didn't hydrate myself properly during the day prior to the run, and we did run at 4:00 pm in 80 degree weather which I'm not used to doing.  I'm justifying the poor run in my head to these issues.  Otherwise I might not ever get out and run again :)

On a side note - I accepted a job offer yesterday and I start Monday.  Mostly because we're trying to free up some time for Beth so she can start using her Real Estate licence that she earned last month.  She's currently interviewing for positions with all the 'big' agencies and I expect her to land a position here very soon.  Because she won't be pulling a steady salary, I needed to make sure that I got something with a steady paycheck to pay the bills.  I'm still doing the stock market stuff - and I'm doing pretty well this year ($4k in profits - off $14 initial investment).  But this isn't enough to live off of, and I do want to re-invest about 50% in order to grow this liquid funds account.  My IRA account is flat this year so I'm good there also.

Getting back to running - I'm feeling really tired lately, almost sugglish but I'm guessing that I'm just being a little lazy lately.  I'm not sure why, but I am trying to push through this to keep my mileage up.  Last year during these 'phases' I'd take two-three weeks off and it really affcted my results throughout the year.  This is the first time this year that I've run accross this problem so I'm battling right now.

Tonight I'm hopig for an easy 3 miler to see how I'm feeling.  I have to remember just last week I was hitting new PB's.

Keep Steppin'
Bob

Not Much Going On

I haven't been running that much lately.  The kids are off on Spring Break and I've been kind of busy lately, so I've missed a few runs as of late.  I'm not worried, P90x is going well and I'm sure I'll pick up my workouts later this week.

Easer was fun, the kids had a great easter egg hunt and we spent the afternoon at my in-laws.  I have a ton of pictures and as soon as I get them downloaded I'll throw some of them up here to share.

I did get another 20 mile bike ride in over the weekend that felt really good. I recovered much quicker from this ride than the one I did the week before.  Hopefully I can work in this 20 miler every Saturday from here on out.  It really helps my hips and keeps my conditioning level up so an off day.

Monthly Totals were solid:

• Total Miles for March: 117.1 
• Miles for 2010:  423.9
• 4 mile PB: 37:34
• 10k PR: 57:25
• Ran 2 out of 31 days

Keep Steppin'
Bob

A Nice 4 Miler.......

So yesterday was a very good day to workout.  I didn't get started until pretty late just because I couldn't break away.  After dinner I took Bogey out for a walk 2.3 miles and 40 mins later we came back home and it was pushing 7:00 pm.

P90x was next once we got the kids setteled down to bed - by 8:30 Beth and I were working up a sweat (actually Beth doesn't really sweat, but I do enough for both of us.)  And we both felt pretty wiped after about 60 mins of Kempo.  Since we skipped the ab workout the day before we threw that 15 min workout in also.

Right after P90x I went out again for a run this time.  I had planned a 5k but I felt pretty good and since I had mentioned going for a 4 mile PB a few posts back I changed routes about 4 mins in to attempt a 4 mile PB.  My PB was set last year (4/18/09) at 42:47 so I knew I was going to set a new one.  (I really need to run this distance more.)  Plannng on the fly I wanted to run 9:40 mile pace and I knew this was totally within my grasp since I just ran a 9:14 mile pace for my 10k race last week.



MIle 1 was run in 9:55 - but I always start out a little slow on this course so I wasn't worried.  I slowly started to pick up my pace and I felt really good despite P90x earlier.  Mile 2 came in around 9:00 flat.  A little too fast but I did feel good and my legs felt pretty strong.  Core muscles felt strong also and I was able to get better movement throughout my hips which for me is has been uncommon these days.  As I get stronger in my midsection I've become less stiff while I'm running.  Mile 3 was uphill quite a bit and I was able to log another sub 10 min mile (I'm not sure what he actual time was here other than the face I was under 28 mins at tis point.) Mile 4 is all downhill and I finished off with a 37:34 total time.  9:14 pace!  I DESTROYED my year old PB by 5 mins!  I'm guessing I could have shaved another :30 - :40 seconds off this if I was really trying.

Total workout time:
Walking: 40 mins
P90x: 75 mins
Running/Cool down: 42 mins

Total Time:  2 hrs  37 mins

I'm very pleased with my runs recently - mileage is up, and my body is recovering very nicely between these efforts.  I' setting PB's almost everyother run right now and I feel like I'm still improving with plenty of room to grow.  I'm not sure how much more I'm goig to improve but for now I'm very happy with the results, workouts, and training runs.

I still haven't signed up for my half marathon, but I should get that completed sometime this week.  I know  can finish the distance, and I do have some 'goals' set this far out.  2:15:00 is my main goal with a stretch of 2:10:00.  I'd love to be closer to 2:05:00 but I'm not there just yet.  Still a 2:15:00 for my first half is a good goal right now and I can always improve on this at a later date.

Keep Steppin'
Bob

Weekend Gone

Well another weekend has past and I had a very good couple of days in my workouts. I'm already on a 12-day running streak and I'm not sure how that happened. I'm just trying to get out everyday and do something - it really doens't matter right not other than getting out the front door. If I do that the rest seems to come naturally.

Friday was an easy day for me with only a couple of walks logged - Cade joined me both outings and we almost logged 5 miles for the day. I was a little sore from Thursday night softball - I dove for a ball to my left and have a bruise on my hip that really ugly.

Saturday I meant to get up early and go for a bike ride (13 miles) but it was so cold I decided to stay in bed for a few more hours and had to push back my ride until the lat afternoon. Why? Well I had to coach Abby's soccer game at noon (they won 2-1) and then drive up to Asuza Pacific University (an hour north into LA) to watch Alex run the mile. Once Alex and I got home I had about an hour of time to get out on the bike. I snuck in a 20 miler in 1:13 so I was very pleased. Tired but pleased.

Alex's School at the Meet

Of course I got to the Meet just a little late....Again.

Today (Sunday) Alex and I ran an easy 10k together - it was a little too fast for me and my body was really tired from the day before but we did finish with a 9:34 pace so I'm good. Now after sitting a couple hours I find myself very sore from the waist down. As it worked out, Beth and I took the day off from P90x so I have a chance to recover a little.



Currently I'm sitting at 104.9 miles for the month with three days left. I'm hoping for about 15 more mies to finish the month off strong. That would put me at my second highest monthly total over the past two years (the highest being January of this year). With momentum building for April.


Keep Steppin'
Bob

Healing....

Well I've been takng it easy over the past few days, my toe feels better and the swelling is almost gone, but my thumb that I hurt at soccer last week is still tender to the touch.  I'm guessing that since this is the 'worst' pain I have than I'm good.  I dd do something to my right foot though, it almost feels like a strained arch.  Last night I woke up from a dead sleep with a massive cramp in my foot.  This is the first time in a while cramping has bothered me - I'll have to pay a little more attention to my diet over the next few days.

 Later this week I'm going to write my review on my new shoes - I'll start writing the review tonight but I don't think I can get it finished so look for it most likely on Friday.  What shoe did I pick?  Post a guess (make and model) and as a prize I'll link your blog to mine :)

Running hasn't really happened over the past few days - I'm getting in my daily walks and Beth and I are doing our P90x stuff but the running is just not there.  Tonight I am planning to get in an easy 2-3 miler just to test out my feet.  I'm only 11 days out from my 10k now and I do want to ge in a few more runs before the race just to keep my legs loose.  Other than my little aches and pains I do feel good - I feel pretty rested and relaxed so I'm hoping I'll actually 'run' in the past few days.  This time period includes a bad toe, rain, and a distance PB so I'm happy over my accomplishment.  Hopefully I'll be able to extend this PB (streak) upwards towards 30-days.

Somehow over the past 6-months I've become a blog addict - I'm now following over 120 blogs and trying to keep up with reading them all.  I don't comment a ton but I do get to read them all (most of the time), usually when I'm watching my Lakers on tv.  Please keep writing I lover reading about your running adventures.

Keep Steppin'
Bob

Another Day Closer

I'm kind of flying up to my 10k Race date now, it's suprising how fast it's approaching now only 18 days until the event.  The question I now have to face is; "Am I going to change my race goal since I've already run a sub 60 min 19k now."  After thinking about it yesterday and today I think I am going to revise this goal.

So here it is: 58:00 is now my goal.  I'll be happy with anything under 60 mins though, but I think I can do this.  Everything from here on out is going to be longer slower miles, no tempo runs period.  I just want to keep running up to my race date and take it easy on my legs in the meantime. 

Speaking of taking it easy, I'm currently on a 14-day running streak again and my legs are a little tired right now with the P90x workouts included.  Still I want to continue on my current streak and see if I can beat my PB of 19 days here.  Conditioning wise I'm ok, it's my shins that are tired, no shin splints, just tired legs.  So I'm watching how they feel here over the next few days - if they don't recover like I think they will I'll dial down my effort this weekend.

P90x is still going well - last night Kempo felt good even if Beth was kidding me that I was getting to into it.  I eally like that workout - it seems to work everyting for me, and I feel so good after doing it.  Right now almost every muscle in my body is sore to some extent - from my arches in my feet to my shoulders.  Very slowly I'm noticing a new 'cut' somewhere on my body, today it was a new muscle in my shins that are more defined (I'm guessing that's why my shins are so sore).  My weight loss has basically stopped this week (196 lbs) but I'm getting stronger in my core and that's all I'm really looking for right now.

Last night's run was really easy 2.23 miles with Bogey just to get out and get my legs loose.  We ran it at a 10:19 pace so I kept itreally slow, maybe a little too slow since I was shooting for a 10:00 pace.  Tonight my goal is the same run, just nice and easy.



Total workout time yesterday:
Walking: 60 min
Running: 30 min
P90x: 60 min

Total: 150 mins <--  I'll take this anyday since I consder this was an 'easy' day now.
Total Miles: 5.5 miles (approx)

Keep Steppin'
Bob

Nice Tempo Run

The last couple of days have been good.  My body has responded pretty well to running the 11.5 miler on Sunday.  Beth and I have done our P90x workouts, and they are getting a little easier (almost enjoyable).  I don't feel so tired doing them, an I'm seeing the benefits (still) during my runs.  The core workouts are helping me keep my form longer during my runs - overall I'm pleased with my results so far.

Tonight's run was a nice tempo run that I snuck in late tonight (after 10 pm).  And it didn't come until I had done my P90x workout.  The weather was nice, and I got in a quick tempo run 2.3 miles at a (9:12 pace) so overall I'm pleased.



The rest of this week I'm going to try to push myself a little harder and get in a few more miles so I can finish my month strong.  I need another 20 miles to hit my 100 mile goal and it's going to be tight for me to get there.  Even if I don't make it to 100 miles, the month isn't a total waste.  My overall mileage is looking solid, and steady; my body is reacting to the extra workouts pretty well; and I think next month I can even take my intensity level up another notch without hurting myself.

Keep Steppin'
bob

Distance Record!

For the past week or so I've been struggling to get my miles in and it has caused quite a bit of anguish on my part. Mostly because I was working to a schedule and I wasn't hitting my goals in both time and distance.  After taking abou a week off from my schedule I feel much better about my progress after today's effort.  27 days and counting for my 10k but I'm really starting to eyeball and gear myself to get ready for my half marathon that's in May.  The 10k I feel I'm ready for right now and I think I can reach my sub 60 min goal that I've set for myself and with that in the back of my mind, I've started to mentally get ready for my first half.

That all being said - I went out the front door (well actually my in-laws front door) and just started running.  I took Bogey along with me to help me keep my pace slow, but I felt so good over the first 20 mins I started to 'add' distance 3,4,5 miles went by without even a pause.  I felt great and the weather was just perfect for running - overcast with just a touch of a drizzle as I ran along the windswept ocean and harbor area (58 degrees).  After the 6 mile mark I was still feeling good so mentally I added another loop in my head.  Right about then I realized that I was closing in on a personal best in distance (9.5 miles).  But I was starting to worry about my running partner - Bogey had started to try to take 'drinks' out of the standing water collecting in the curbs while we were running.  Twice I stopped at water fountains to try to get him to drink out of my hands, but the stupid dog would rather drink out of the curb on the run.....  I lost about 3-5 mins trying to get Bogey to drink when I decided to just head home (approx 4 miles;  I wasn't quite sure of the distance at this point).  So Bogey and I fought our way home - 1:30:00 on the clock clicked away, then 1:45:00 and I reached the point where we were going to leave the beach behind.  I knew that from this point we were just a little over a mile away from finishing so I gave Bogey a quick little pep talk and we trudged our way home.  2:01:51 was our final time, but how far did we go?  I was guessing just over 10 miles, but I was suprised to see 11.45 come up when I mapped it out!  A personal best on a day when I just wanted to get in about 4-5 miles.



Now just barely removed from this PB I'm wondering if I could break 2 hours 15 mins for my first half?  This run was very, very easy - and the pace felt really good (10:39 per mile).  I walked three times (two of them water breaks for Bogey), and I didn't have any water, gu's or food for the distance - I'm beginning to think that it's possible.  Physically I'm tired, but not worn out and that leads me to believe that I can handle the half distance now and maybe even 'race' that distance.  First I have to see if I can do the sub 60 though before I start planning any thing else.  I have to remind myself that I'm stil training for my 10k.  "Don't get ahead of myself."      

Keep Steppin'
Bob

It Was a Good Day.

 

After a week of just being in the dumps - today was a good day.  It's 11:20 pm as I type this and I just got done adding up my time doing something active today:

Walking 1 hour
Running 40 mins
P90x 1 hour 15 mins
Softball 1 hour 10 mins
Totals: 4 hours and 5 mins <-- simply amazing!  I can't believe I actually put in a day like today.  Ice Cube just seemed to fit today.

My run tonight was supposed to be a very easy 2.3 miles - I stretched that out to 3.5 miles (with my cool down.) and I made the decision to scrap my plan - I'll finish my 10k training by feel and see if I can break the 60 min barrier in 30 days.  Pace for my run was a very slow 10:37 per mile, but my first mile was an 11:23 so I did lay down a good final two miles......



Softball was good even though we lost in the final inning.  I was 3-4 with a HR, 2 RBI's and 2 runs scored.  I'm sure the P90x is improving my power.  Normally I don't hit the ball that far, and in fact my only out was a deep flyout of left field.

P90x was tough today, plyometrics and abs today.  Slowly I'm getting better and I'm completing more and more of each move.  Weight is down about 5-8 lbs since we started and we're only on week 3 day 2.  I sweat like crazy during these workouts and I can feel me working muscle groups that I normally don't use, I can't wait until we reach day 30.

Alex called me tonight walking home from track practice - he was clocked running a 5:02 mile today by the Varisty Coach.  Dammit that's my PR.  He does three weeks of formal training and he hits my personal PR?  The kid is a natural -he's got another week to break the 5 min barrier and the coach will take him to the varisty open meet here in Orange County.  I'm not sure how I feel about that - he's never run in a pack before let alone a mile track pack.  Still as a sophmore, it would be a good expirence fr him......  We'll see what the kid can pull out next week at practice.  Either way I'm very proud of him.

Keep Steppin'
Bob

Hitting the Pavement

Well I made it out he door today for a run - not a very far run nor a very fast run, but I did make it out the front door and I'll take that as a win.  The run itself wasn't very good - my conditioning has suffered and I wasn't used to running in the warmer weather (almost 80 degrees today).  Needless to say I went out a little too fast and crashed over the final mile.  Still I was able to put in a 30:07 time over a 5k so I'm pleased that I got out the door.

Abby is still not feeling well so she missed her second day of school this week - hopefully tomorrow she'll feel better.  She looks much better today so I'm 99% sure she'll get back to class :)  Both Beth and I have been struggling with headaches and low energy.  I'm thinking we're spreading ourselves a little thin.  Beth is getting really close to taking her test and as the study time picks up, the more tired she gets.  Right now I think she's dead asleep with Cade in his bed - I'm tempted to let her sleep tonight instead of us getting our P90x workout in.....  I'll play it by ear.

Tomorrow I'm going to get in a few more miles - I'm tempted on ditching the 10k plan and just go back to 'feel' - "Why?" You ask, well at this time the plan itself is putting a little too much pressure on me to get the runs in.  I think I'm going to go back to running by feel - getting out the door and changing a 3 miler into a 5 miler.  I'm ready for my 10k race coming up in 31 days so I'm not worried there but what I'm worried about is stressing out and not getting in a run because I don't want to go 5 miles instead of 4.

The other thing is I've been running too many fast miles with Alex - I've crushed too many PB's in the last few weeks and I think it's put a little strain on my body, so I'm going to step back a little on thse run with him.  Shoot he's running over 60 miles per week right not so a couple of slower miles with his old man isn't going to hurt him.  BTW he just ran a 5:10 mile the other day.

Keep Steppin'
Bob

I Love Having Free Time!

Well today I had an early AM interview.  This is the second with this company so I'm hopeful I'll get an offer from them early next week.  They pulled in the Big Guns this morning and I was in front of  9 person panel.  Shoot it's a small manufacturing company, I think that was their whole staff.  I'm not sure of this but it had to have been close.

Anyway, I was done within the hour and since Maas was watching the little tyke, and Abby was still in school I had the morning/early afternoon to myself.  The rain left on Tuesday so the weather was back to our normal Feburary weather; sunny, windy, and just a little chilly.  I came home, changed, grabbed Bogey and we headed down to our local harbor area.  The plan was to get some longer slow miles in just because I had the time.  7.5 miles later I dragged Bogey back to he car - he was spent.  If fact he's laying at my feet outside in the sun right now a I type this - dead alseep.  In all fairness I think that was the furthest he's gone at one time so far.  He held his own, but I'm thinking he'll sleep pretty good this afternoon.



I thought about bringing the camera for this run, but I really didn't want to hassle with it today - so I enjoyed the ocean air, sun and other people.  Very easily I clicked off 10 min miles without any effort.  My overall pace was 10:04 per mile and I'm a little suprised how easily that came.  Shoot I stopped for a potty brake around mile 3 and at mile 4 I was stopped for about a min waiting for a light.  So I could have easily dropped this into the 9:40 pace range if I really wanted to - but I'm fine with the effort today.  The water was a nice light green, and there were some small white caps from the breeze, just beautiful.  At one point I was running along Capo Beach (just south of the harbor) and some guy was feeding the seaguls from his upstretched hand.  There must have been over a thousand birds hovering about an arms length from this guy.  I wished I had the camera at that point, just so I could have shared the picture with my readers - maybe I'll try to recreate some day.

Once I finished I was famished - and locally here is a great lunch shop for sandwiches - Cultured Kitchen in San Clemente.  I've been going here since High School and I had the craving - after a quick jump in the car I arrive and find out they don't take Amex. - damm, that's all I carry these days.  So I setteled for Baja Surf Taco's instead.  I scarfed down my meal within seconds - I don't know if I even chewed.

P90x is stll going - and Beth and I are doing well with it.  We're on week 2 day 3 now and I'm completing more and more reps (correctly I might add).  We're having a little problem getting the time we need to do the whole hour to hour and a half workouts.  So sometimes we have to split up the workouts between the kids baths, nighttime, and early mornings.  Still we're getting the workouts in and it's not affecting my running workouts too much.  I still think I'm benefitting more doing the program than just running more.  Today was Arms and Back with Ab's, and even with this workout this morning I was able to do the 10:04 pace just a few hours later.  I have dropped my normal lifting routine for the time being - maybe Ill be able to pick this back up in a few weeks once my body gets a little stronger.

I don't know if I've mentioned this before, but I also play softball - I've taken about 6 months off recently, but tonight is our first game of the Spring schedule.  I play second base and its fun just getting out and playing with the guys.  We have a good group of guys and we've been playing together for about 10 years now so it's always nice seeing them after an extended period.  We should have fn tonight - hopefully we're back down in the "D" league....... 

The rest of my running schedule is week is looking fairly easy.  3-4 miles tomorrow, and then 2 easy miles on Saturdy before I take on Becca's Virtual 10k Challange.  Right now my PB stands at 1:01:33 that I did back on Jan 23rd, I think I'm going to shoot for something right around that time.  I'm not looking to break the 60 min barrier on this run, but I just might happen if I'm feeling good.  It mostly likely will be decided while Im out on the course.  These miles should put me right around 35 miles for the week, a nice solid week of running and workouts.  Only 38 dys left before my 10k Newport Beach race - I think I'll be ready.


Keep Steppin'
Bob

Workouts Going Good

I haven't posted in a few days, but I'm still working out hard.  I've missed a few planned workouts so I have the 'guilt' thing going on, but I have to keep telling myself that in the big picture it's not going to matter that much.  My streak ended at 14 days - just too much rain to get out of the house over the weekend.  California just isn't used to getting 2-4 inches of rain in a 12 hr period.  The ground is just too hard (or made of concrete) to let that kind of water soak in.  And add the 4-6 inches we got last week; and the ground is totally saturated - I'm sure we'll get some more mudslides later this week when the next cold front rolls in (thursday).

P90x is going pretty good - week one is over (yesterday) and Beth and I only missed about 2 hrs of workouts during the week. Half of that was the day off stretching workout they have.  Bodywise I'm sore all over, and actually during my long run Sunday I was barely able to move my arms due to the fatague in my back and shoulders.  Still that run was nice.



My long run was 6.8 miles of 'hilly' terrian around my house.  Other than my shoulders and back I felt ok.  My legs were a little tired, but I was able to fight through that and I finished the run very strong (9:43 pace).  That's pretty fast for me and puts me right at a sub 60 min 10k that is my goal for March.  Considering that I was trying to keep the pace rather slow I'm pleased with the results.  Once again I'm going to go back to my improvement that is related to P90x.  With only a ween my pocket, I can attest that the program has given my confidencein my ability.  I'm pushing myself to the brink during the program workouts so I now know just how hard  can push myself during a run.  I thought I knew this already, but I didn't.

Tonight's run was sandwiched between my back/arm workout and my ab workout.  I only ran 2.3 miles plus a small cool down.  I started out just taking it easy, but I felt so strong after about 5 mins, I cranked it up a notch.  Then I cranked it up another - and finished with a 20:10 or a 9:03 pace.  That's 5k race pace for me!  And I did this on a hilly course!  My form near the end of the run was good, and I felt really strong.  I'm guessing if I really tried I could break 20 mins on this course - before too long I'll be logging a sub 9 min mile and that will be a major goal reached for me.

I'm thinking tomorrow I'm goig to try to get out on my bike.  It's been a month since my last ride - so I want to get some miles logged in the saddle.  Maybe 12-15 miles would be good.  I haven't decided if I'm going to add a run with this, but I'll have to play it by ear.  We'll see how I feel after my P90x morning workout.

I'm still following my 10k training plan but it being followed VERY loosely.  I'm getting the mileage in and maybe I'm doing just a few more tempo runs and now quite enough slow mileage.  I'm adare of this, and will try to adjust over the next few weeks.  I've also made another adjustment to the plan.  This weekend calls out a 5k race.  I was going to do this becasue I wanted to attempt a PB at this distance, but another blogger, (Becca) is holding a virtual 10k run over the weekend (12th, 13, or the 14th) so I decided I'll enter this.  If you want to join up, you still can, just check out the link and be ready to report your 'race'.

This week will be most likely mimial with posting - I'm working on taxes this week and I HAVE to get this finished.  I started this weekend, and hopefully I'll finished in the next few days bt until then I might not post as much as I'd like to.

Finally I'd like to welcome my new followers/stalkers.  Thank you for dropping by and reading what I have to say.  Seeing new followers always encourages me to write more and to share more.  Please feel free to ask questions, I'll try to answer anything brought to my attention - what I'm doing right, and what I might have done wrong.  I've been running now on and off for 30 years so I do have a lot in my head that I'm trying to get out. :)

Keep Steppin'
Bob

Quick Update

I just wanted to drop in quickly (it's 10:30 pm on a friday night).  Currently streak is now 14 days.  Alex and I snuck out of the house during a downpour and got in 2.5 miles.  We ran it at a 9:05 pace which is right at my 5k race pace.  I feel pretty good right now just a little tired from getting up early doing the P90x program.

Speaking thereof - the program is going well.  I can already tell that I'm getting stronger.  A couple of moves that I couldn't do earlier in the week I pulled off this morning in the ab routine.  The more I see of this program, the more I would recommend it.  Even if you don't get the results (visual) they like to show off.  I can tell that by the end of the program I'll be so much stronger and ligher.  This week so far I've lost 4 lbs so I'm doing somethng right.

I'll post more this weekend about the actual workouts but I just wanted to get something in tonight since I hadn't posted since Wednesday.

Keep Steppin'
Bob

BTW I'm only 2.5 miles away from 200 miles for the year already. :)

P90x day 3

So day two went by without too much of a problem.  The program has us doing Plyometrics and that fit perfectly into my running routine.  I felt really good thoughout the workout that was 58 mins long.  This time  took it a little easier and paced myself better so I wouldn't burn out at the 30 min mark.  I could work harder, but for the first time though these programs I'm going to pace myself better. 

Last night I was supposed to go out and do a 4 miler, but I was pretty shot so I stayed in and watched my new favorite show: White Collar.  I love this show so far, if you haven't seen it I'd recommend it to anyone.  So I skipped my 4 miler but still I walked twice for over 2 miles so I kept my 'new' streak alive at 10 days.  HopefullyI can break the 19 days I set in Jan.

Physically I'm bone tired. not really muscle tired, but weary like I used to get in HS and College after a tough workout.  So I know I'm doing things right.  I think I did one too many tempo runs with Alex over the weekend, and that plus the P90x workouts are starting to tire me out.  I'm keeping an eye out for injury possibilities so I'm not worried about pushing myself too hard - in fact I'm sure I'm only about two thirds to my max right now.

This morning was Day 3 of the program - Shoulders & Arms, and Ab's.  The shoulders and arms section was 58 mins, so Beth and I ran out of time and will be completing the Ab section later this afternoon.  This morning's workout was good, I felt under control but not helpless like the first day - I think I'm getting used to getting up in the morning and getting that workout done.  Also even though I haven't done all the different workouts yet, I feel like I know what to expect and how hard I need to push myself.  I'm already itching to do these workouts next week so I can improve on them.

Tonight's run is going to be an easy 4 miler this  time.  I feel well enough physically that I don't think I'll have any problems getting out the door.  (That was my 'real' problem last night.)  Actually I need to get some slower miles in this week - too many runs were too fast recently and mentally I'm having issues.  A slow run will do wonders for me right now.

Keep Steppin'
Bob

Pacing

We all have our own pace - having over 30 years of running expirence (wow that's getting scary) I can pretty much nail my pace without looking at a watch.  It really doesn't matter if I am in or out of shape, I just know in my head how far I've gone and how far I am from finishing a run.  Some of you most likely are saying, "What's wrong with that?  I wish I could pace myself like that."  But really this ability can be counterproductive when I'm doing a tempo run or trying to push myself harder through some 'pick-ups' during a run.  I tend to hold a little back on these runs becuase I know in my head I'm on my target pace when it would be more productive to my running growth (ie improvement) to beat my target pace for that run.  Tempo runs are usually the thorn in my side. 

In addition I tend to improve in leaps, like my 2 mile PB from the other night when I don't make any assumptions on what my pace will be before a run.  That way I tend to push myself just a little harder than the pacing voice that is talking in my head. I just wonder if I didn't have this pacing ability would I be a better runner in the long run? 

A prime example of what I'm talking about is from my long run from about a week ago.  I estimated to Beth that I was going to take 2 hours to finish over at her parents house, 9.5 miles later and 1:59:14 (Yeah :46 second off from my estimate.)  I crossed the finish feeling pretty good.  My overall pace was crappy but maybe if I couldn't pace myself so well I could have improved on this time.  Would running this training run faster make me a better runner?  Personally, for this example since this was a new distance I was pleased with my time.  And that's when I have to be careful, I have to plan exactly how fast I want to push myself before I leave the house.

I'm currently on a 7 day running streak again.  If it hadn't been for the rain and my hip during this month I think I'd be looking at 28 straight days.  Still I have to be pleased with my month.

Keep Steppin'
Bob

BTW yesterday I mentioned I wanted to run my 4 mile training run at a 9:50 pace...... I did it at a 9:53 pace.  Pretty damm close.

Too Much Information

I've got a ton to update today so I'm sorry if I ramble more than usual on this post, but I just want to get it all in.  Therefore you get bullets today.....

• I was going through my log for this month and realized that my consecutive day streak is actually 19 days not 18.  That's huge because it actually 'breaks' my record of 18 days rather than just tying it.  I've made the correction on my sidebar to reflect this.
• Monthly mileage is now up over 150 miles and I'm going to finish this month/week off strong with another 20+ miles.  That will DESTROY my previous best month of 108.6 miles.  I feel so strong right now I think I can add to this next month.  We'll see how I feel doing the P90x program too.  Because of this I've only scheduled 100 mile month.  Anything beyond this will be good.
• Last night was my first scheduled interval training session - I had a small problem.  The local college track was closed (by 7:00 pm) so tried a local HS, that was closed also.  I ended up coming home and running a tempo 2 miler.  I hadn't run this course in a while and I DESTROYED my previous time of 19:02.  I clocked a 17:25 or a 8:43 per mile average with more to spare in my tank!  This is my fist recorded run over a mile where my average pace per mile has been under 9:00 mins!  The 19:02 was done in March of last year so I expected an improvement and a :90 second improvement is wonderful, I'm completely jazzed over my results.  With the increase in monthly mileage I expect to see this kind of improvement to continue throughout this year.  Maybe not this big of a jump, but I can always dream can't I?
• Weightlifting is going well - no real pains and I'm on my third week.  If I wasn't doing P90x, I'd up these workouts - but I'm going to use these just to say I got the workout in.  Weights never hurt anybody unless you drop them o your neck. (see USC)
• Tonight I have a 4 miler easy pace planned.  Nothing special just right around a 9:50 pace would be good.  My hammies are a little tired/sore but nothing too bad.  Tired in a good way - which is what I want.  I should take my running buddy, we'll see, it all depends when I actually get out the door for this run.

• This distance coupled with my two walks and my warm up and cool down I should log about 7 miles today.  The weather is nice enough for this to happen pretty easily.
• My overall progress this month has been amazing - even though I want to change my 10k RACE GOAL, I'm going to stick with a sub 60 min goal.  The race is 52 days off and with my 10k race last week (1:01:33 - race report) that I struggled with I think a 2 min improvement during this time frame is more than good.  Continuous Improvement I've always said.
• Finally after three tries I found my next pair of shoes - in fact I ran with them for the first time last night, and set a PB!  I'll log about 50 miles in them and then FINALLY give you my SHOE REVIEW - here's my last one.  Isn't it amazing how good a shoe feels and how bad a shoe can feel?
• I've added music to my blog - if it's too much let me know.  Hey Nicole thanks for reading, and I have to give No Doubt some play time.  OC band, good music......  ok the song is kind of wierd in this context.  If anyone wants to put in music requests drop me a comment and I'll try to add it to my list, that is if I like it.  If the load times are getting too long for the blog please me know also - I'll cut back on some sidebar items.
• Beth and I did our P90x pretest last night.  Not too difficult - I can tell I need work on core muscles and suprisingly my quads.  The conditioning part I don't think I'll have too much of a problem but either way, I can tell this is going to be an intense 90 days.  We're starting the actual program Sunday, but we'll most likely do the one of the Bonus workouts between now and Sunday.  I'm so looking forward to working out with Beth.  If we don't kill each other it will be fun!  Beth still won't admit that she sweats...... she glistens.  Yeah right.  I still can't look too closely at my 'before' pictures.  I think the reality is slowly seeping in.....

Keep Steppin'
Bob

P90X

Well Beth and I took our "Before" pictures last night - I can't post them.  Just too horrible - maybe I'll get over it once I've finished the program but for right now I can't stand looking at them.  Tonight we're doing the fitness test to see if we can even handle doing the program and most likely we'll start the actual progam over the weekend.  We're both pretty sure the fitness test won't pose any problems but I'm still worried.

We're pretty much going to follow the program except for maybe the supplements they sell.  Foodwise we're going to eat better and clear out the house over the next 30 days.  After 90 days if we like the results I'm sure we'll do it again.  I'm looking forward spending that extra hour working out with Beth but it's going to be hard on me getting up an hour earlier, I'm such a night owl.

I'll keep everyone posted on our/my progress. 

On top of this program I am continuing my running and weight program(s).  So I'm upping my daily workout time from approx 1 hour a day to 2 hours a day - I know this is going to get me tired but I want to see how far I can push myself here.  I have enough base work put in over the past couple years I should be able to handle it.  I think the hardest thing for me will be the change in diet.



Last night I snuck in a 5k at an very easy pace (10:26 per mile)  that's a little too slow, but because of the two previous days at the quicker pace I'm ok with this.  Also my running partner kept stopping and wanted to smell the grass.......  My legs did feel pretty tired last night and I was overdressed for the weather (windbreaker and gloves).  I most likely could have gotten away with just my sleeves and no gloves but I was being a wimp because of the slight drizzle.  Still it was a good run, I got out the front door and put in the miles where I could have just easily sat in front of the tv so I have to be pleased that I put in the effort.  I've run this particular course 14 times now and this run is the second slowest I've done, so that kind of tells me I did take it rather too easy.

Today is turning out to be fairly nice (forecast called for 40% chance of rain today), I honestly don't think we're going to get it.  That's good because I want to sneak out and get my first speedwork workout in.  I haven't done any speedwork in such a long time it's going to be interesting to see how my body reacts.  I'm just wondering if I'm going to survive. :)

Because of the rain I'm basically two workouts behind schedule but I'm not worried about this at all. I'll just make them up along the way since I'm planning on doing more mileage than what my plan calls for anyway.  Friday's are scheduled rest days and I love running Friday nights so I'm sure I'll make one day up this week.  My long day - Sunday this week is only 5 miles so rolling in the P90x program this weekend works out well also.  The weight training is coming along but I haven't really seen any results from this yet, hopefully by the end of March the work I'm putting in here will begin to pay off.

Keep Steppin'
Bob

Rain, Rain Go Away.......

Well we've seen the most rain in that past five days that I can remember since grade school.  Crazy weather, we've seen just about everything and a lot of it.  Needless to say I haven't run since Wednesday now and I feel bad about that.  I lost my 'steak' at 18 days (I tied my PB with that) and I'm now behind in my 10k training program. No harm done and I can't really complain because my right hip was flaring up a little and it was time to take a rest.  I've already set a new PB in monthly mileage and I'm feeling pretty good so hopefully I'll get out sometime today to test out my hip.

Other than that nothing else has happened - I'm waiting for some new running shoes to get shipped, once they arrive and I get a few miles covered in them I'll write a review.  Also I have another review to write about a pair that I sent back.  I should have that done by the end of the month.

Today is the day I'm supposed to run my trial 10k.  I think I'll attempt it just so I can set an actual goal time for my race, but if my hi feels bad - I'll cut this run back.

Keep Steppin'
Bob