I'm a Bum - (Or Just Really Busy)

I just wanted to drop a quick note - I haven't died......yet. It's Saturday and I'm in the office. Why? That's a very good question. I think I've got almost 50hrs this week already plus the 1.5 hrs of driving time a day leaves me with no time. Long story short - no running this week. :( Hopefully I'll get my inventory done and I can get out this afternoon. We'll see.

Beth has been running/walking twice this week that I know of. She's kicking my a$$ in mileage this week. (She might have done more but I really haven't seen her at all this week so there's no telling :))

That's it for now - I'll post again after I actually get a run in. Have a great weekend!

Keep Steppin'
Bob

Week Ending Summary 1/25/09

This week was good for me. I got in plenty of miles even though I was very busy at work. As most of you know I called out Cassandra early in the week - well my week I logged 20.1 miles. Beat that.

Yesterday I got out for a bike ride - 15.9 miles. It felt good even though it was 57 degrees and I only wore a jersey and shorts. Still it was nice to get on the bike after seven weeks. And on top of that it was a PB for distance.

This week the plan is as follows:

1. Sun: 15.9 cycling
2. Mon: 4 miles
3. Tues: 3 miles
4. Wed: 4 miles
5. Thurs: 2 miles + softball
6. Fri: 2 miles
7. Sat: 6 miles

Total: 21 miles + 15.9 cycling + softball

Doing this I should reach a few of my goals this month (overall mileage) but I'm going to fail my 20-day in a row goal I gave myself and I missed my 2 mile time trail I had scheduled for over the past weekend. (I ran 6+ miles instead; which by the way was a very nice run). Maybe I can run Friday's 2 miler as a TT for a PB. I'll have to think about it.

Finally just to clarify - my vacation isn't until the 11th of Feb. I know I keep harping on making it to my vacation, but it's still a ways out and I have to deal with the stress level until then. Thank you all for the kind comments but no I'm still plodding towards my vacation time. (20 days)! Trust me I do plan on taking pics, running, and hiking while in Maui so I'll share all that with you. There may be a delay due to Internet access (and my willingness to sit in front of a PC) but I will share everything with you guys.

Keep Steppin'
Bob

It's Been Quite - Too Quiet

Not much going on the last few days. The weather has been crazy, my job been busy and up to last night I hadn't seen Beth in about three days other than saying 'Hello' in passing. Just a few more days of the craziness and things will settle down. Never before have I looked forward to vacation time like I'm looking forward to now. Maybe it's the stress, maybe it's because the whole family is coming (ask me after if I was glad the whole family came; plane flight, travel, etc.) But whatever the reason, I am looking forward to this time.

Running wise not much on the plate over the past few days. With going back and forth between the old office and the new office, I haven't had the chance to get my afternoon walks in. Plus the weather out in So Cal is playing games - rain, no rain, hot, cold I don't know what to expect right now (not an excuse, just stating something).

Hopefully I'll get in about 5-6 miles today total and end my week an a strong note.

Finally - I want to welcome a few readers I've picked up this week. (It's a little thing I have - thanks for reading). Please comment, I do read them all and enjoy the feedback.

Keep Steppin'
Bob

My Wife Went Running

Yesterday I got home and Beth told be she went running with the kids in tow. Abby riding her scooter (since it was MLK Day) and Cade riding in the running stroller. I was impressed. You have to understand when we first met she told me outright that she didn't like running at all.

Deep down I hope she enjoys it and continues to work on it. But if not I still love you honey!

For me yesterday was a good day. Over 7 miles logged throughout the day. Today I'm feeling it in my shins and quads. I'm planning about 3-4 miles today as a very easy pace just to get out and get some miles in. The stress level at work is the highest I've ever had (this includes being laid off in the past) so I'm hoping these runs will keep me sane.

Keep Steppin'
Bob

Heartburn

The last two days I've been battling the worst case of heartburn. It started on Friday night and got worse as the weekend wore on. I've got a lot of stress carried over from work that I've bottled-up and its starting to get to me. Nothing I can't handle, but enough that it's causing a horrid case of heartburn. All I have to do is get everything settled into our new building, pass a government ISO audit, inventory and close out our year end by Jan 31th. Then I have only two weeks before my vacation! I can do this. (yogi pose; hmmmmm, hmmmm)

Needless to say I ended last week (sat) weakly and started this week bad. Still I'm planning over 20 miles this week so that should keep me sane.

Another blogger I read posted a blog today about heartburn and motivation so I challenged her for total mileage this week; she accepted. (this could be a fun week) Granted I have the nice So Cal weather, but she's prepping for a marathon. Cassandra, let's see what you got.

Keep Steppin'
Bob

Motivation (Extra)

I've joined a on-line running group - 800 miles for the year. It's tied to my running log and I think it will help me stay motivated throughout the year. The YTD distance graph is kind of nice. Damm I want to beat that pace bunny. (Take a look at the link and you'll understand) I'd encourage anyone who reads and wants to do 800+ this year to join me. The group is very quiet and it would be nice to have more members.

Yesterday I had another good run - I did a route that I've only run once before so it was nice having a change. 31:08 was my time for a 5k distance. Warmup and cooldown was about a mile added to that roughly at a 14:20 pace. Today my legs are a little sore and I had originally scheduled a PB long run for 7 miles today but that will have to be scrapped since we are have some old friends visiting us tonight for dinner. Hopefully I'll still get out and log about 3-4 miles though.

With today being my last day for the week, I've had a pretty good week. Mileage is up where I want it, and back to levels before the holidays. If all goes well tonight I should end my week at around 23 miles. Not a bad week, I'll take that. Hopefully I can build on that all the way up to our Maui trip in mid-Feb.

Keep Steppin'
Bob

Log Entry 1/14/09

The other day I had a short day planned. An easy 2 miler plus my warmup and cooldown. I really haven't run this course in a while now since I've pretty much have moved on to longer runs, but I was running late and I was using this run as a recovery run to bounce back from some more intensive runs earlier in the week.

Long story short - I ran a 9:35 first mile and finished in 19:33! That was only off a PB by :02 seconds. Effort level in the first mile was super easy, but I struggled to hold pace the second.

Straight from my log:

Date: 1/14/2009 8:50 PM
Type: Easy
Course: 2.0 Mile TT Ladera Trail Run
Distance: 2 miles
Duration: 19:33
Pace: 9:47 / mile
Shoe: New Balance MR710RY (1)
Weight: 211.7 lb
Misc:
Quality: 8/10, Effort: 7/10
Weather: 60° F, Sunny
Notes:
First mile felt really good, and easy effort level. After that it was tough though. Effort level felt really high even though my second mile wasn't really any faster. Actually it was about :30 slower.
Statistics:
Calories: 320VO2 Max: 29.6

Overall it was a good run, not great but good. I love seeing my 'growth as a runner' over time and this run proved that what I'm doing is working.

Yesterday was a different story - I had scheduled an off day with just a lunch walk then softball at night; first I ended up going out to lunch with some co-workers so the walk fell through, then for softball we had the late game: 8:50, and the other team was a no-show. By the time I got home it was too late to get out the door so nothing was logged. :(

Keep Steppin'
Bob