26.Two

Victories

2011-04-08T20:26:00.000-05:00

It has been an insane amount of time since I posted! Nothing has happened. I lie, a lot has happened. As usual here are some highs, lows, and random thoughts.

About 4 weeks ago I ran my first 20 miler in prep for the Fargo Marathon. Common running knowledge says S-L-O-W and easy on the long runs. I listen to a podcast called Phedippidations produced by Steve Runner- in a recent episode he talked about needing a 'win'- it's exactly how I felt going into this 20 mile run- I needed a victory to get me back on track and engaged in my training. I needed to push it to see if I actually had a shot at 4 hours this year. A sub-4 hour marathon needs to be run at an average pace of 9:09 per mile. I'd say I ran this 20 miles at 85% effort and I averaged 9:14 miles. That was fast enough to get my head in the game (high school musical) and regain the confidence I needed. So much for following common knowledge?!?

The next week was a higher daily mileage/ shorter long run week. I was feeling good coming off the 20 miler and slacked a little. I had some guilt but the more of these marathon training cycles I do the more I believe in good rest and running when you really feel like running.

Last week was a slightly under achieving week topped off with a 22 mile long run on Saturday. I managed 4 runs instead of the usual 5. Total weekly mileage was low. I guess sometimes life gets in the way. Mentally I wasn't where I should have been going into 22 miles Saturday. It sounds crazy, but for me those 20+ mile runs are almost entirely mental. I can physically make it 18-20 miles without much trouble, to get beyond that I need to be filled with confidence, block out pain and focus on the finish. This 22 miles I didn't feel prepared for. I hadn't gotten all of my weekly miles in, it was Saturday not Sunday, I didn't have a planned route, I didn't have enough gels, and generally I felt like I rushed myself out the door. Almost immediately (like by mile 4) I was overtaken by doubt. I made it through because I was determined enough to do so but not without suffering. I still managed a 9:45 pace but the last 3 miles were painfully slow. Looking back I probably shouldn't have pushed my pace quite that hard early on. The victory that week came in completing those 22 miles despite wanting to quit several times.

This week is a travel week which always screws things up. I loaded up the beginning of the week with miles to ease my mileage commitments while working long hours and getting little rest. By Wednesday I had logged 20 miles. I'm looking to get another 13 in by Sunday. Wednesday itself was a 'victory' – actually 2 victories. The first... I ran in shorts (outside) for the first time this year (not counting a San Diego run). It's going to be hard to go back to pants unless we get more snow- please NO! The second... I managed a 7:45 pace for mile 8 of an 8.2 mile run . I have been trying to do more speed work this go round and about mid run I decided to see what I could do that final mile- sort of a 'got no energy left' test. I thought I could pull out an 8 and surprised myself with the 7:45. Especially since I'd worked the legs pretty hard in the previous 5 days (34 miles).

Next weekend I have entered a half marathon. I haven't decided how to I want to tackle it yet. Do I go all out and see what I've got? I mean, I've got over a month until the marathon to recover right? Do I hold back in an effort to 'save' some of what I have for the coming marathon? I mean, who knows this might be the sub 4 hour year? I go back and forth several times a day. I think it will be a night before if not a game day decision.

I spend a lot of time thinking about running a marathon in under 4 hours. Thinking about how to change up my training this time to make the difference. It's this very part of the process that I think I'm more addicted to than the actual race. I actually enjoy punishing myself for 22 miles and then almost immediately (or sometimes during the 22 miles) thinking about how I'll do it better or what I'll change in 2 weeks when I try to run 24 miles. The marathon is maybe a really good reason (or excuse) to keep doing this. I'll be overjoyed if I run a sub 4 hr race, that is the ultimate goal but it's this time, right now, as the training miles peak out around 50 per week that really keeps me coming back.

Rough start this week

2011-03-16T16:47:00.000-05:00

I guess the week is half over but my training for the week is really just beginning and it's gotten off to a rough start.

I took Monday off from running - I usually take Mondays off because I try to get my long run in on Sunday and need Monday to recover.

Yesterday I ran 5 miles- my pace was good and the weather was nice but I felt crappy the entire time. I got a side stitch that would not go away. It came on about 1/2 mile into the run and never left! I've never had one last that long. I tried all the usual tricks - focus on belly breathing, changing my stride, etc. nothing worked I just ran through it with discomfort.

Today I ran 4 miles on the treadmill over lunch. It kicked my butt! I was so slow and tired. Sweating like crazy. I haven't felt that drained in a long time.

Tomorrow the plan is for 8 miles. We'll see how that goes? I have a 20 mile run this weekend so I'd prefer to not be completely wiped out before then.

I am officially entered in the Earth Day Half Marathon in St. Cloud April 16th and the Fargo Marathon May 21st. I panicked when I got the Fargo Marathon newsletter and it said they were nearing capacity. Less than 800 entries left.

Where to start?

2011-03-14T11:28:00.000-05:00

Again it's been weeks since I've done this so a lot of stuff has happened - none of it's really exciting so I'll give the highlights.

This weekend I went home for my birthday extravaganza/spring break - I brought with the running gear and I hoped our Spring Break in St. Cloud would be warmer than Fargo. The weather was miserable for the most part which means I didn't get that much running in. I turned a 7 mile run into a 4 mile run on Saturday. It was cold and the wind was blowing. Sunday I took advantage of the extra daylight and got the 7 miles in once we got back to Fargo (still cold but not that windy). Overall last week was a downer- it was suppose to be a lower mileage week- higher mileage runs during the week and not a long long run. I only managed about 20 miles total with 4 days of running - a far cry form the 5 days and 30+ miles I had hoped for. It's not sitting well since 2 weeks ago during a similar planned week I didn't run at all!

The previous week (first week of March) was a great week of training. I ran an 18 miles long run on Sunday. It snowed the entire 3 hours I was out running which made it a bit more interesting. Snow hides ice very well and ice and running don't go together nicely. I had 3 close calls but never did go down and thankfully I didn't pull any muscles doing ballet moves to stay on my feet. It was a good 18 miles- not fast and not easy but good. I hoped to average under a 10min/mi pace but it wasn't too far into the run that I knew that was unlikely. I'm not a good winter/snow runner which makes it a bit slower and tougher. I was happy that I averaged 10:06 min/mile in those conditions. The best part was I didn't feel completely drained afterwards. I think that's how you are suppose to do these long runs - like you went the distance but not like another step might kill you. I definitely felt it but was still able to function the rest of the day. I ended that week with a little over 36 miles.

This week builds up to a 20 miler on Sunday. I feel like it's a bit early to be running that far in prep for a marathon May 22 but what do I know? If I'm not feeling it I'll cut it short and do 18-19 miles.

Overall I'm feeling good, I like the pace I'm running and I haven't been super fatigued. I think that is yet to come. I've consistently been able to keep the runs under 10 miles below a 9:00/mile pace without being totally spent when I finish. I think this is a sign my speed is improving or at least I'm gaining some ground in the right direction. Now if I can get my endurance to last beyond 3.5 hours or 20 miles I'll be set.

Almost a month since my last entry!

2011-03-01T12:31:00.000-06:00

I'm really not keeping up with the blog thing. I should try harder! Marathon training has been progressing nicely. I've had some encouraging long runs and with the exception of last week I've been keeping up with my training schedule.

Last week was a terrible week. I was working out of town and had some late nights and early morning trying to get equipment running properly. This lead to zero runs for the week. I did have the opportunity to run but I was just to drained to make it happen. I was disappointed in myself for letting it go a whole week but looking back now it might have been a break that will do me some good.

This week I got back into it and ran a good 4 miler yesterday. One of my goals is to keep my runs under a 9:00 pace for anything less than 10 miles. Anything over that I'd like to run between 9:00 and 9:50 pace. The long, long runs I'm going to keep on the high side. I think in past training I've run too comfortably during the shorter runs. I'm trying to push myself a little more this go around and see if it'll pay off.

So far my long runs have been 10, 12 and 15 miles. The 12 I ran outside on a miserable day with a wicked wind, terribly under dressed. Lesson learned. I was able to stick it out and get all 12 miles in a decent time- good confidence booster. The 15 miler I ran on a treadmill (Ugggh!). I didn't really have a choice since I was traveling and didn't have the proper attire and guts to run outside. It was a drag but I made it through and again gained more confidence.

This week I'm going to do 17-18 mile long run. The weather is suppose to be cool again. I'm not sure what my plan is yet. I'd like to do it outdoors but below zero wind chills kind of kill my ambition.

I haven't signed up for a race/races yet - I need to do that soon!

Marathon Training

2011-02-04T14:01:00.000-06:00

I'm ready for winter to be over!

I was suppose to be in Missouri this week but the storm of the century (3rd one this season) sent me scrambling back home. I thought this would mean I could stay on my training schedule but actually I haven't done such a good job. I'm sick of these storms, snow, and ice. I'm ready for summer. I wish we could go from snow to dry ground - no melting sloppy, dirty, wet month(s) leading into summer.

I'm about 3 weeks into marathon training and despite a small setback this week it's going quite well. I have done 8 mi and10 mi long runs and this weekend a 12 mi is planned. The daily runs seem to be easy thus far. Surprisingly it's harder to find the time than it has been physically on my body.

I didn't really keep up with my mileage from my big push to make 1000 miles last year. Essentially I took the first 2 weeks of Jan off from running. I had a trip to San Diego which included very little running (although conditions were ideal). The preparations and the actual trip had me thinking little about maintaining what endurance I had built up and more about relaxing. Naturally when I got home I went against popular advice and jumped from 2.5 to 23 miles in one week. To my surprise I was able to take it. Hopefully this will not screw me in the near future.

I'll attempt a 12 mile long run this weekend. Finishing that should boost the confidence a lot and hopefully get me more focused on the 20+ mile runs coming up. Hopefully the weather will cooperate and I can get those 12 miles in outside!

Current plan is to run the Fargo Marathon May 21st.

1000 Miles and Poor Blogging

2011-01-20T11:41:00.000-06:00

I'm terrible at blogging on a regular basis so I resolved to fix that in 2011. Jan is 2/3 over I haven't gotten much better!.

I made my goal of 1000 miles in 2010! With 1 day to spare. I really wanted to finish the last few miles outside but we had the Blizzard of the Century happening the last few days of 2010. The last 4.75 miles were run on a treadmill at the gym. At the time there was no travel advised in the city - yet the gym was packed- funny how when you aren't suppose to do something everybody feels the need to do it more. I added an extra .03 miles over 1000 but no more. I figure it would be more dramatic if I finished exactly at 1000 miles rather than 1001.

When I revisited this goal a couple of months ago and figured out it was still possible but not easy, I was full of confidence. I continued to be confident until I had about 30 miles left. I came down with a sickness that nearly turned into pneumonia. A week later I became really ill for about 24 hours. It was getting tougher and tougher to get miles in. With just about 16 miles left to get to 1000, I was moving the 3rd row seat from our car and I dropped it on my little toe. I thought maybe that was it and I'd end up 16 miles short. I gave it a few days and surprisingly I was able to finish those 16 miles pain free.

So now what? I guess I need to set a new goal for 2011. 1000 miles has been done, 1011 miles would be too easy. I'm thinking 1100 in 2011?

Spring marathon training has begun - about 18 weeks to the Fargo Marathon. More about that later!

6.2 miles, the 16 hour flu, I love my job, only 32 miles!

2010-12-17T21:53:00.000-06:00

This has likely been a week I won't forget for a long time. Here's the re-cap
Monday
It started off pretty good I was traveling this week and despite a weekend snowstorm in Minneapolis all my flights were on time Monday morning. I arrived at my destination and found out there was a gym about 3 blocks away that I had privileges to. I headed over there and got a nice 4.5 mile run in. I was determined to not let this trip keep me from making 1000 miles.
Tuesday
Met the people I was working with/for but part of their equipment wasn't working so we were shutdown early until Fed-ex could get us the part Wednesday morning. I thought it was a perfect opportunity to get a 6 mile run in at my NEW gym. I did just that and I felt so good that I thought I'll run 6.2 miles an even 10K! I grabbed a bite to eat and went back to my hotel room. After eating I felt full despite not eating that much. I thought it was due to running 6 miles. A few hours later I was sick. That was the beginning of my 16 hours of hell. Being sick is bad enough. Being sick out of town in a hotel room alone is worse. Knowing that you can't call in sick the next day is even worse. But running 6 miles just before that and already being dehydrated probably takes the cake. In my 40min sleep chunks I was woken up several times with painful leg and foot cramps.
Wednesday
Still sick, but knowing I had to work, I got myself mobile and felt like I was on the up swing. Fed-ex didn't show until about noon and it took them until 1:00 to get stuff working. That saved my life because I was pretty much worthless- I spent most of the morning sleeping in a rental vehicle. After the work day I crashed sleeping over 11 hours straight.
Thursday
I felt much better when I woke up and started pounding fluids. I decided to eat Thursday night- crackers, soup, and a grilled chicken breast. Eating worked, I felt good about that. I couldn't resist and I hit the hotel treadmill but I could only do about 2 miles- I was still a little weak.
Friday
Finished the work and thought it may be my last chance to get some miles in for this week. On my way down to the treadmill I was thinking 6 miles would be good. Once I started I knew that would be stretching it- not because I wasn't going to be able to do it but because I thought the treadmill would probably fall apart if I worked it that long. I managed 3.8 miles.

Again it was another adventurous trip full of excitement (sarcasm). I really like what I do and although the travel gets to be a lot it takes me to some crazy places. This week I was in Louisianian. It was my first trip to the state- it's was one of only a few states I haven't been to, so in a weird way I was interested to see what it was like- not that I expected much. I took these pictures (poor quality sorry!) in the small town we were working in.

This is a house or a store or a guy who has a house but wishes he had a store. All this stuff was stacked up outside- dressers, beds, chairs, benches, tables, exercise equipment, bird cages- For Sale. Each day I'd drive by at 6:30AM and it would all be out there literally inches off the highway and each evening at 5:30PM it was all still there. I doubt it was taken in each day. What happens if it rains in the middle of the night? Who's buying so many dressers in a town of less than 100 people? The best part is painted on one of the windows it said "Come In You won't Believe What's Inside" I think they might be right- I really can't (don't want to) imagine what's in there.

This photo is actually dresser guys neighbor who was probably jealous of the lucrative business next door. He decided to turn his double wide (with an addition) into a Bar-B-Q joint. He also sells concreate deer for yard ornaments and has a sign that says he's a Notary?!????? I love these kind of places! You can't make this stuff up.

I'm now down to 32 miles to make 1000 by Dec. 31. I have high confidence. If everything goes as planned and I don't fall ill in the next 2 weeks I should make it with maybe even a day to spare.

Less than 60 miles, Winter Running & Pneumonia

2010-12-09T17:01:00.001-06:00

I have less than 60 miles to get to 1000 miles in a little over 3 weeks - That should be easy but again it's Xmas and I like to eat and be lazy this time of year.

I ended last week with a 5 mile run outside. We've got 8-10 inches of snow on the ground so I opted for the bike trail that is usually plowed. It indeed had been plowed but not really that good. Lots of packed snow not a lot of bare pavement but thankfully no ice which is not a winter runners friend. In the winter I tend to stick indoors most often when it comes to getting miles in. I become reacquainted with the treadmill and try to utilize the indoor track. This winter I'm going to try to get outside at least once a week. This will likely be on the weekend, that way I can pick the warmest point in the day and run then - I also prefer to run during daylight hours. I find winter running slower and more technical than the summer alternative. In the summer I can let my mind wander as my legs get into the rhythm of a long run. In winter I'm focused on my next 3 steps - Is there ice? will it be a solid step? Do I need to lengthen or shorten my stride to miss that snow and ultimately keep my feet dry? There is also the clothing battle - it seems to take until spring to figure out exactly what is right for the given conditions- heavy socks? 2 base layers? gloves? hat? head band? both? Nothing can ruin a run like turning into the wind and instantly knowing you aren't properly dressed. This week I think I had it pretty close...I got a little hot the last mile or so but not bad for the first try.

After my 5 miles I relaxed as per usual for a Sunday afternoon. I've had a cough for about 3 weeks that just when it seems to get better it takes a turn for the worse. After a lengthy coughing spaz I decided I was going to the walk-in clinic. I saw a doctor who thought I was in the early stages of pneumonia. So, maybe running 5 miles that morning wasn't such a good idea? I got on some meds and I think it's starting to subside. a cough here and there but nothing like it was a week ago. I still will get my miles in this week but at a slower pace and I think at least for the near future I'll keep it indoors until I get back to full strength.

I've started planning for the next marathon- which will likely be the Fargo Marathon again. I've counted the weeks back and if I go with an 18 week training plan I should be kicking it off mid January. I'm determined to at least get a personal best this year and think I still have a shot at under 4 hours!

1000 miles in 2010

2010-12-02T17:12:00.000-06:00

I set a goal around Oh... Jan. 1st 2010 to run 1000 miles in 2010. I have run over a 1000 miles per year the past few years so I figured it would be easy to do again this year. I checked up on that goal last week and lets just say it's gonna be close. I've got about 80 miles to get in between now and New Years. That's certainly a doable amount but factor in the holidays and likely a week long trip to Louisiana and it becomes a little tougher!

Revisiting this goal has gotten me back from the month of sloth. Amazing how writing something down makes you want to do it so much more. I'm on track to get 21 miles in this week and I hope to gradually increase that each week. Besides accomplishing the goal it should set me up with a good base for spring marathon training. With a good base I should be able to do more structured workouts like speed and hills. Never really been able to work that in because I've always been playing catch-up to get the miles in.

Another 4 miles today gets me that much closer

Winter

2010-11-22T08:26:00.000-06:00

Winter just hit me really hard. The fall was pretty warm, just 2 weeks ago I was sporting a sweatshirt and getting too hot. I took a trip Indiana and the nice weather followed - 50's and 60's. Came home for a weekend and it was 30's but not unbearable and no snow. Took a trip to California where it was 70's and 80's. Now I'm home and it's snowing like crazy temp is about 8. Feels like I missed out on Fall. I know I'll kick myself this spring when it's 34F and 20MPH wind because I sat around and didn't run on such nice days in the fall.

I did get out one day in California. They have a spotty network of trails around SF bay for biking/walking/running. Fortunately I was staying close to a decent stretch of it and was able to get 3 miles in. Other than that I haven't put a whole lot of miles in.

Travel schedule looks to be busy heading into next year. Life would be so much easier without traveling all the time. Not to mention getting the miles in. I'm hoping for a good stretch Feb - April where I'll be able to buckle down and get good miles in for the bulk of my training.

Today I was at the gym early for a nice run on the dreadmill. Forgot how good it feels to get a few miles in before the day officially starts.

More than a month

2010-11-11T22:26:00.000-06:00

I'm sure it's been more than a month since I've posted. I really don't have an excuse. I'm still running although I've cut back dramatically. I'm limiting myself to 1 paragraph about what has happened since my last post to keep it from getting long so here goes:

I ran another 1/2 marathon on Oct. 9th. Generally it was not one of my better performances. I still managed to make it in under 2 hours (1:59:56). I was a mess by mile 11 but somehow managed to finish upright. I've taken several trips for work to exotic locations like Flint, MI; Brunswick, GA; and Ft. Wayne, IN. did little running on any of the trips. At a cousins wedding my brother-in-law and I decided we would run no less than 7 marathons in 2011. Chicago, New York and Austin were all on the list. The next day we decided it was a bit ambitious of a plan- maybe just 1? I started lifting weights with some regularity- enough to be sore a good amount of the time but not enough to be able to notice the difference (if any) it has made.

Those were the highlights (or lowlights) of the past month. I have decided a spring marathon would be a good idea. I had my eye on Grandmas Marathon but I'll probably end up running the Fargo Marathon again. That should keep me active this winter with training starting in Jan. I still like the idea of 2 marathons a year -Spring and Fall but not sure I have the self discipline.

For now I'm taking it easy. I've been trying to lift weights 3 days a week and run 1 or 2 days. The furthest I've run since the 1/2athon is 4 miles. I hope the weight training and core workouts will help me come Jan when I get back on a training schedule. It can't hurt right?

From the wife's point of view

2010-09-28T20:58:00.000-05:00

A special post from my wife. Reading it reminds me just how lucky I am to have found her.

Ok people. Here it is. A post from “The Wife”. You don't see me much. In the comments, I mean. It's because I always subscribed to the theory that anything I needed to say to Tom about his blog or his runs, I could say directly to him. I didn't 'need' to post my praise of him, or so I thought. But, I have decided that maybe I DO need to post it. At least occasionally. I thought this would be a good way to let it be known just how proud I am of him.

* * *

When I met Tom, he was not what I would call 'athletic'. I have to say, that when he took interest in the Fargo Marathon that very first year, I laughed at how he read every article about it in the paper so intently the next day. The section with all the pictures and articles actually had a place on top of our refrigerator for a while! (As everyone knows, the top of the fridge is where everything you want to keep, but have no place for, lives until you either find a better place for it, or throw it away. Honestly, I don't know if Tom chose to throw away that paper, or if it is hiding in our house in a box somewhere!) All I knew or had experienced of the Fargo Marathon was extreme frustration because I needed to get from our house on one end of town to a family function on the other end and did not, at that time, realize we lived in precisely the worst possible place if one needed to drive anywhere on marathon day.

I admit that while I never assumed it was an easy task to run a marathon (or around the block, for that matter), I did not give nearly as much credit as is deserved to those who are capable of such a feat. Tom could not stop talking about how these people who had no prior running experience trained and finished a MARATHON! I think he was embarrassed to talk about it, knowing people would think he was nuts for even entertaining the thought, but I know that newspaper section cemented in his head the idea that he would at least try to train for a marathon. Some people who knew him would just smile when they finally heard of his goal, in the way that adults smile at a child who has just proclaimed he or she will walk on the moon someday. “Sure, Dear. It's a possibility. I won't say it will never happen, but...” I'm ashamed to say I was one of those people. And every time I see him cross a finish line, in amidst all the pride and concern for his well-being that I feel (did he get a cramp? Is he cramping now?!), there is always a touch of shame that I didn't instantly do all I could to support him in his goal. The first night he left the house to run around the nearby golf course (less than 1 mile all-told), I thought he was crazy. And when he came home and sat on the kitchen floor red-faced and in a puddle of sweat, I laughed and asked him if he needed me to call someone for him, in a medical, save-your-life kind of way. In the back of my head, I thought, “ok, that was that. He'll realize running is nuts, and he's obviously so tired this crazy idea of his is done.” But, he kept on, running just a little bit more every night. When he finally could go the same distance as that first night, and not be exhausted, it was fun to see him come home tired, but not on death's door, and very proud of himself. Then, I became like a proud mom, telling people, “he ran 3 miles this morning!” ” Tom did 7 miles this morning!” “Tom has to run 12 miles tomorrow!” And even though the first 'race' I saw him finish was, I believe, a 10K, it could have been an ultra marathon for as excited and moved as I was, and I can't begin to describe how I felt when weaving through all the people on the Fargodome floor after he completed his first marathon, looking for, and finally finding him, exhaustion and “ I DID IT” plastered all over his face.

My daughters are proud too, of their dad. They like to watch for him coming down the road. They love to ring the cowbell, and make signs, and yell, and clap. It makes me happy, and sad, that he is doing this for them. Happy, because they will see how Dad is committed and doing something so healthy, but sad that they are too young to realize that he hasn't always been a runner, that he was inspired by other people who weren't always runners, and that the perfect example of how you can do anything you put your mind to is right under their own roof. At least I realize it, and can someday use 'plain ol' Dad' as part of the perfect pep talk if my girls don't have enough faith in themselves.

* * *
That's a little history about how the running began, and a lot more about how I feel. I think I felt the need to write this all down because I could tell that the lead-in to this last race was tough for Tom, and I think he was really wondering whether or not if it was just time to be done with the whole thing. I sometimes feel like, “Man, this whole running thing is getting old, I kind of wish he'd just quit with the training all of the time.” I DO like it when the race is over and there is a period of time when I'm not waking up to a note that tells me he's gone for a few 'short' miles, but I realized when hearing him talk about quitting that I don't WANT him to quit running. I like that he's passionate about it, and that it's something that he's really committed to.

* * *

Whew, that was long-winded! I didn't plan on that middle part being quite so sermon-ish. Sorry about that. I guess it's just easier to write it, rather than feel dumb sayin' it. As long as he is careful, and doesn't push so hard that he injures himself, and most of all, continues to ENJOY it, I guess I'm married to a runner.

And that's ok with me.

The 7th Half Marathon

2010-09-14T21:07:00.000-05:00

As I expected I showed up for the Dick Beardsley Half Marathon last Saturday. Although it was not a record setting day (fastest or slowest) it was perhaps the hardest I've had to work and the most filled with doubt I've been in any running event.

The start was your typical start to any other race. Not enough bathrooms to accommodate everyone who needs to go one more time before the start. A poor PA system so only the first 4 rows hear what's going on and an underpowered starting gun which also was only heard by about a 3rd of the field. While lined up waiting for the start I was looking around at all the people and I couldn't help but feel a little out of place, these were people that had trained for a half marathon, they were ready to run! I was not trained to run a half marathon and I wasn't sure I was ready to run.

The first mile was faster than expected 8:40 or so. My first thought was - not going to be able to keep that up for 12 more! I tried to hold back a bit.

At mile 1.5 they had "the stretch of silence" in honor of 9/11. There were military lining the streets holding flags on both sides. At the beginning of the 2 block section there was a military vehicle with a large bell in back... a solider rang the bell about once a second. There was no cheering - it was a section set aside to honor those who lost their lives. Nothing like getting the emotions going this early on in the race! The noise of the bell carried for a few blocks past the stretch...only to be overtaken by the noise of the first water stop.

Mile 2 the 5K splits and the field thins some it's also where the first water stop is and this time it wasn't nearly as chaotic as it could have been. The first 2 miles are run through the city of Detroit Lakes at mile 2 you start an 11 mile haul around the lake to finish back at the city beach. I was feeling pretty good and by the time I checked my watch I was almost 3 miles in. I was running about 8:45 miles.

Miles 4-6 were uneventful. I continued to amaze myself that I was running 8:45 miles. I knew it was unlikely I'd be able to keep it up but I figured I'd go with it as long as I possibly could.

My half way split was 56:36! I was shocked that I was making this good of time. I was still cautious because last week I crashed hard around 7 miles. I downed a GU and kept going- I pushed through and felt decent at mile 8. My new goal was to run this is under 2 hours - I was pretty confident now that I could do at least that!

Miles 9-11... I was full of confidence going into mile 9. The miles were going by quickly and I was feeling little pain. I knew there was a small hill in mile 9. I was focused on attacking that and getting to/through mile 10. I did a quick inventory of how I was feeling- everything was checking out fine. I could tell leg muscles were getting tight but I thought they would last the final 4 miles. I passed the hill... they were handing out GU and I took one but stashed it for the end of mile 10. Half way through 10 I could feel I was losing steam. I downed the second GU. I was so looking forward to mile 11. At mile 11 HWY 10 is on your right side and the lake to your left. To me it means I know where I am roughly and I can put in perspective how much I have left. The wind was blowing pretty good across the lake which was demoralizing with that little of a distance to go.

In a marathon the elites say mile 20 is where the real race starts. The first 20 miles are just a warm-up. If that's true then about mile 11 is where the race starts in a half. I'm not an elite runner and I wasn't racing for a place or to try to beat anyone- I was racing against my lack of training, my tired legs muscles and possibly my better judgment... and yes, at mile 11 the real race had begun for me.

I started to see people dropping down to a walk. I was determined to run it out as far as I could. I started doing math in my head to figure out how slow I could go and still make it under 2 hours. I could run over 10 min miles and still make it. I checked my watch I was running a 9:30 pace at the time. My legs were burning, I had hit my own personal wall but I had made it through mile 11.

Mile 12 was long... I'm almost sure it was twice as far as every other mile up to that point. The course was back in town and my focus now was keeping my legs running for the remaining 1.5 miles. I was passing some people but getting passed by far more than I was passing. I made it to about 12.5 and had no choice to walk. I felt a twitch in my right leg and I had a feeling it wasn't going to keep it at bay for the next half mile. I probably walked for 30 seconds but it felt like about 5 min. People were blowing by me someone said "come on you got this!" I walked a few more steps and started to run again. It was a slow run but I was making progress. My watch said I was going to make 2 hours unless it took me more than 8 min to cover less than a half mile. I knew from marathon experience I could walk under a 15 min mile in extreme pain so I was good. I was now running about a 10:05 pace which seemed like a crawl.

I turned the final corner and could see the finish, now my focus was not cramping up on this final stretch and looking foolish in front of all these people. I started scanning the crowds for my wife and kids. This kept my mind off my destroyed legs that were somehow still working towards the finish. I spotted them and shot them a smile and wave. I shuffled on to finish in 1:57:38.

It's my second slowest Half marathon time but I truly had to work those last few miles to make it under 2 hours. I met up with my family and my wife said "So how do you feel?" I said "I made it!" she replied "You seem surprised... did you really think you wouldn't?" Honestly until I saw the finish line I still had doubts.

Of the races I've done I felt the most unprepared for this one and the least confident. Oddly that combined with the fact that I pulled it off made it probably the most satisfying.

Another Week Passes

2010-09-10T08:22:00.000-05:00

It's been over a week since my last post and much has happened. I've traveled from the West Coast to the East Coast with a stop at home just long enough to spend a few hours with the family and run 12 miles.

That 12 mile run almost had me convinced to give up on the half marathon this Saturday. If I had to sum it up with one word that word would be miserable. It started out fine but around 6.5 - 7 miles I fell apart. I walked, shuffled and almost had to crawl back home. It's been a while since I've felt that defeated. It was not the confidence boosting run I needed heading into a half marathon that I already feel like I have under-trained for.

I took a few days off and hit the treadmill Wednesday. I pounded out 5 miles without trouble. It was a bit of a boost after the defeat last weekend. Yesterday I returned to the treadmill and did another 5 miles.It wasn't as great as Wednesday but still necessary to assure myself I can run this half.

I am confident that I can finish a half marathon. I'm not confident that I can finish faster than my slowest time for the distance. That's really what's been holding me back this week. For some reason I think I need to improve my times and I feel like a 'personal worst' would be a defeat. Yesterday while running my 5 miles I decided - it is what it is. By avoiding this race I'd be guaranteed to do no worse than I have in the past but I'd also be admitting defeat by not even trying. So unless I'm physically unable to make it to the starting line Saturday (or registration is closed) I'm all in! That being said- I'm hoping the 'less is more' training plan really pays off this time! I'm not expecting a good or even decent time by my personal standards - hope to finish in under 2:15.

Today I travel home, take it easy, ice the legs and get to bed early.

Tomorrow I try my best.

On and Off the Road Again

2010-08-31T07:42:00.000-05:00

It's been a few weeks since the last post but much has happened. I'm back traveling a lot for my job which means either running in scary/unfamiliar areas or a lot of treadmill time. When I'm on the road my running is usually off the road!

Fall always seems to be a busy work travel time for me. This year is no exception. It's hard to keep up with the mileage when you spend long days traveling and working. I'm gonna give it my best shot and I still hope to complete 2 half marathons this fall.

last weekend I ran the Potato Days 10K in Barnesville, MN. This is the 4th time I've run this race and despite it being a pretty low key event it has always been fun. This year my sister-in-law ran the 5K so I had some company for the 6:30 AM drive and while waiting around for the start. It was pretty warm compared to years past, It was probably close to 70F at the start. I remember one year it was barely 50F at the start. The wind was blowing pretty good too. I haven't felt the best about my running this summer so I wasn't expecting great things in this race. We lined up at the spray painted start line, they shot the cap gun and we were off. I held back for the first mile because I didn't want to burn out early. Around 2K the 5k split (which I'm guessing was 3/4 of the runners went the 5K way) I passed 3 people almost immediately after the split. About 2 miles in I was running alone. There were 3 runners about 200yd ahead of me and there was a big gap between me and the next runner behind me. My plan was to catch those runners in front of me. There is a turn-around point on a gravel road with a water stop. This allows you to see everyone coming back ahead of you. My plan was to count and see if I could figure my place. I saw the leader he was way out in front. I kept counting. I had made up the ground between me and the 3 people in front of me. At the turn around I was 21st. Last year I was 35th. The 3 people stopped for water I kept going now I was 18th. There was one other runner within reach a woman about 50 yds ahead of me. I tried to catch her and ended up passing her at the water stop about a mile from the finish. She zoomed back and passed me about 3 blocks later. She went on to stretch her lead to about 50yds again. I ended up finishing in 51:40. I think that's my second best 10k time, but I'm not sure. Last year was my fastest at 48:58. I think I finished 18th - I have no idea how many people did the 10K - there are no posted results and you were in charge of your own time(no fancy timing chips in Barnesville!) I told my father-in-law/trainer that 18th sounds good until you find out it was 18th out of 21. Regardless of time and place It was a fun race again this year. My sister-in-law bettered her 5K time by 6 min. finishing in 34:56.

Next stop is a half marathon in 2 weeks. I honestly don't feel ready for that! I hope to get a 12 mile run in this weekend so I can build a little confidence about the distance. I did manage to get a 10 mile run in a week ago and last week I ran a draining 8 miler with my wife riding bike next to me. It's been warm and that always slows me down and persuades me to not run as far. I have had 3 good weeks of running which is a good start but I think a soild base of more than 3 weeks is prefered when running 13.1 miles?

I guess I keep at it and see what happens.... there is no shame in walking, Right?

Today everything was clicking

2010-08-09T16:50:00.000-05:00

Last week was a much better week than the previous few - as far as the running goes. I did have to make a quick trip to Wisconsin for work which kind of screwed up my master plan for getting all my miles in but I was able to get a good run in this morning to make up for that.

It's been dreadfully hot and humid by North Dakota standards so I did the majority of my runs last week on the treadmill in the air conditioning. I ran 5 miles on Monday and 3 miles on Tuesday. Thursday I hit the hotel treadmill which appeared to be in good condition. It had a 'dead' spot on it that kind of made the belt catch if you stepped on it just right. It made for an interesting run. I wanted to get 5 miles in but I could only hack about 2 miles on that beast.

When I arrived home Saturday I was itching to get some miles in. The plan was to run 5 on Saturday and 8 on Sunday. I managed 4.7 miles on Saturday in a brutally hot run. I was seriously overheating- not fun!

Sunday I opted out of the run because I missed my window of opportunity around 5 AM when it was below 85F.

This AM I surprised myself by rolling out of bead at 5:30AM and hitting the pavement shortly after that. I had a fantastic 8 mile run. It was a slow run but it was more about gettint the distance than anything. I ran a 4 mile out and 4 miles back course. When I have a distance goal in mind I like to run this way because as long as I make my half way distance I have no other choice than to cover that distance to get home. It gives me a sense of accomplishment mid-way through the run instead of at the end - hopefully boosting my morale! Within a block of leaving my house I had a weird muscle spaz in my right leg. I thought I was going to have to cut my 8 miles short by about 7.5 miles but it faded fast and I just kept moving taking it slow. The first 4 miles were as usual- I don't think I really woke up until about 2 miles in. I was spending most of my time focusing on my right leg, constantly making sure it wasn't going to cramp up. It wasn't until around 6 miles that I totally blocked it out and I found myself in really comfortable rhythm. Seems like it's been a long time since I've felt that smooth on a run. That might be the most attractive part of running for - when you get the feeling that everything is just clicking - it's almost like your legs are mechanical and the rest of you is just along for the ride! I went with it for about a mile - then I had to stop for traffic. That pretty much screwed it up. I finished strong and although not fast I 'm happy I covered the distance. Turns out that it's actually pleasant outside at 5:30AM I'm guessing it was in the upper 60's with zero wind.

The rest of the week is going to have to be run on the treadmill or in the early morning because it doesn't look like we're getting a break from the heat. I hope to get a 10 mile long run in this week at some point and a 6 miler at a speedy clip also would be a good thing.

I have limited weeks until the first of my 2 planned half marathons so it's really getting down to crunch time.

Fargo Scheels 5K

2010-08-02T17:02:00.001-05:00

Last Thursday was my first 5K race. It went very well - I finished 'officially' in 24:59. More about the timing later. Overall it was great first 5K experience.

I picked up my race packet in the afternoon and was quite surprised at all the nice things I got for my $20 entry. a T-shirt, another nice bag, a bunch of GU samples, some electrolyte tab samples, sport beans samples. It rivaled the free stuff I got at the Fargo Marathon. I thought it was funny that for the marathon (also sponsored by Scheels) There weren't samples of GU or electrolyte tabs (a race distance they may be needed) but for the 5K I get 3 packets of GU and 4 electrolyte samples. I hope anybody didn't need 3 GUs to get through the 5K?

The race started at 6:30PM and thankfully it wasn't too hot. There were about 300 people and the pre-race announcements were give via bullhorn by the softest spoken woman they could find. I didn't hear a thing over the music Y-94 was blaring. People started running so I followed. A bunch of people went around the timing mat and there was sort of a bottle neck to get over it. I thought they were going to be awful disappointed when they didn't get a time but I think your time was gun time. Maybe they said something in the announcements to the effect of - everyone's time starts at the gun not when you cross the mat. I know I saw about 50 people skirt the starting mat and I didn't see anyone complaining about not getting a time at the finish. I also watched as people crossed at the finish and everybody was beeping as the crossed the line. my time on my watch was 24:42 and my official time was 24:59 adding more weight to my theory. Maybe this is normal for 5Ks?

I felt good at the start but maybe like I was pushing it a little much. My watch was saying I was running 7:45 miles but I've been questioning my watch lately because I've been getting different distances for identical runs. I slowed a little. First mile I felt great. Second mile I had slowed to about an 8:00 pace. The pack had thinned dramatically between mile one and two. I was sort of surprised (although I probably shouldn't have been)how many people rocketed out of the gate and were totally gassed by mile 2. I got passed right after the mile two marker by a speed demon but from then on I wasn't passed, I only passed people- with the exception of a guy who made a move with about a .5 mile to go... I didn't try to catch him...he just fell apart after about a 200 yd sprint and I passed him. I pushed it hard to the end and I was definitely winded at the finish. My watch said 3.08 miles so all along it was pretty close if not telling me a slightly slower pace than I was running.

I was happy with my time given the small amount of running I've been doing- I still think I can improve on that time. I've run a 10K in 48:58. So I should be able to get that time down some.

It was a good first 5K and it has invigorated me to train a little harder heading into fall. I ran a 6.2 miler on Saturday morning which put my weekly total over 15 miles - that's the highest weekly mileage I've had since I ran the marathon in May. Today I ran 5 miles and during that run I started thinking I've got to cram to be ready for an early September half marathon!

I've got a ton on the work schedule which is going to make the runs harder to get in but I think I'm going to shoot for a solid half marathon time in early September under 1:55:00 and if training goes well I'd like to try for a 1:45:00 half marathon in October.

This week more miles and hopefully an 8 or 10 mile long run!

Been a while

2010-07-28T12:19:00.000-05:00

So I'm not the blogger I once was. I have no excuses. I'm not even sure anybody will read this. Oh well. So much has NOT happened since my last post so you haven't missed much.

I've taken a few trips for work which I would like to blame for my lack or running but I just can't because they were pretty short trips. In fact I think on this last trip I did more running in the 5 days I was gone than I had done in the previous 2 weeks that I was not traveling. I've lost my ability to get up early and get some good miles in before work. I've been wimping out at lunch time cause it's either too hot, too windy, or raining. The result is less miles! I'm really starting to tell that I'm losing the fitness I had this spring. It was very evident in a 6 mile run I attempted 2 weeks ago. I made it... but not smiling when I got home.

I've really been trying the last week or so and I'm doing better. The runs are still shorter (around 3-4 miles) but at least I'm moving the legs and doing them more frequently. In an attempt to motivate myself I signed up for a 5K this Thursday evening. This will be my first 5K. I sort of skipped over the 5K in my progression to the marathon distance. I've wanted to run one for a while but never taken the plunge. I'd really like to go into it with a huge mileage base and lots of confidence but I don't have much of either. I run 5K almost every day that I run so I know I can do the distance but I'd like to do it fast! It's suppose to be hot and I'm not feeling particularly fast these days - so I have a goal time of 26:30. That's an 8:30/mile pace. I think it's doable I guess I'll find out?

Looking ahead

2010-07-07T16:49:00.000-05:00

June is over and as far as my running goes it was a terrible month. In other areas it was a great month... I took some vacation time, there was no travel for work, and I managed to waste an entire day smoking chickens. I ended up with a monthly total of about 32 mile of running. During marathon prep that was a weekly total. June was a month of rest, it was a time to relax and give myself and my family a break from the mileage I put on building up to the marathon. July is a new month...with more running!

I always feel a little more dedicated with a goal in sight. I'd really like to run a good half marathon this fall. It will give me something to focus on and I think with some work I can improve on my half marathon best. Currently I'm thinking about 2 half marathons the Dick Beardsley 1/2 marathon in Detroit Lakes, MN in September and the FM mini marathon here in Fargo in October. Right now I'm not sure I could post a good time for a 1/2 marathon... so I've got some work to do. I'm also looking to run a 5K -I've never run that distance in a race.

I'm starting to get a bit more serious now. I'm really going to try to work on speed. I have(or I can get back fairly easily) the endurance to run 13 miles so the focus now needs to be on getting faster at 13 miles. I'm not exactly sure how I'm going to approach running faster but I'm going to start by doing one day of interval training a week. I need to read a little more since until now I've always glossed over the 'get faster' parts of most things I've read.

Stay tuned it should be some super interesting reading!

Slacking

2010-06-24T15:29:00.000-05:00

I've been in major slacking mode for about 2 weeks now. I've only run twice in 15 days. This is the fewest days I've been out running in a 2 week stretch in about 3 years! Although I feel like a slug, at the same time I think it might be healthy to take a break and get focused again. I took some time off work last week and running fell out of my routine and now it's hard to get it back in the routine! This week I was suppose to give it some effort but it's already Thursday!?!?

Stay tuned

Time off

2010-06-07T16:58:00.000-05:00

I haven’t been blogging because well, I haven’t been running that much! I don’t really have an excuse as to why I’m not running … I take that back, I have about a million excuses as to why I’m not running! I shouldn’t say I’m not running- I’ve just cut back quite a bit. Probably the best excuse is that I have a sinus thing that's been going on since just a few days after the marathon. I can’t seem to shake it although it seems like it is getting a little bit better these last few days.

I have been out a half dozen times since the marathon but my longest run has been just over 4 miles. I had one run that went really bad, I had to walk about 2 blocks near the end because I was tapped out. It was the week following the marathon and I think I tried to go a little too fast a little too soon when it was a little too hot outside. I’ve been trying to get around 3 miles in every other day although I have missed a few.

I don’t really have a plan for the summer other than I'd like to do 2 half marathons in the fall. That should give me something to work towards without all the intensity of training for a marathon. I have been thinking about trying to get some 5Ks in too. I’ve never done a 5K and I think one or two can only help me? My next opportunity to get in on this would be this Thursday with the YMCA Chase Race. They have a 5K and a 10K. In my mind it's hard for me to do the 5K when the 10K is offered... why is that? If I do the Chase Race it will have to be the 5K because I don't feel like I could pull out a 10K with as much as I've been slacking.

I hope to get out tonight and get a good 3-4 miles in, that is if the regular afternoon spotty thunder showers hold off. My decision could be almost last second on the 5K. I'd feel a lot better about it if I could breathe through my nose!

2010 Fargo Marathon Recap

2010-05-24T13:34:00.004-05:00

The good news is I finished the marathon and I feel pretty good! The bad news is I fell a little short of my goal of 4:15... But I did manage my finish without any leg cramps and I was able to finish with my second best marathon time.

My sister and her family arrived in town around 10:00PM Friday night. Her husband was running the marathon too so they stayed with us. After they got settled in I headed to bed around 11:30PM. As usual I had a restless night of sleep- I was up several times because of nerves, the bathroom and fear of over sleeping. Finally about 4:45AM I just gave in and got up. I got ready, ate a banana and a peanut butter sandwich, grabbed my gear and my brother-in-law and I headed to the start about 6:00AM. Traffic was starting to pour into the Fargodome parking lot but it wasn't too bad. We got a parking spot a few feet from the starting area which turned out to be a good thing because it started raining a few minuets after we arrived. The 10K lined up and started at 7:00AM. My sister-in-law was running in that so we walked up to the start to see if we could spot her. By this time it was raining pretty good. With all the people we never did see her start. We headed back to the car to try to stay somewhat dry. The half-marathon started next at 7:30 we stayed in the car for that, again trying to stay dry. About 7:40 people were starting to line up for the marathon so I did some limited stretching and my brother-in-law, Perry and I lined up just ahead of the 4:15 pace group.

We stood there in the rain for what seemed like an eternity. Unlike the other marathons I wasn't that nervous. It was still raining and I was getting cold - Both Perry and I were shivering. Soon the pack started to move and we were crossing the starting mats. The start wasn't super congested and it was easy to fall into a comfortable pace. There were some people jockeying for position but it wasn't nearly as hectic as it's been in the past. Usually that first mile is slow because of the traffic but we did it in 9:05. I knew in my head I was starting out fast but I felt so good and it was a race, right? This may have been a fatal mistake.

Mile 2-3 went by quickly. I was sticking with Perry for most of the time. He stopped at a water stop and I kept going drinking from my 40oz. of Gatorade doped with electrolytes that I had strapped to my body. The plan was working out pretty good. He caught back up to me within a few blocks and we continued to run together.

Mile 4-5 we had crossed the river and were in Moorhead, MN. My sister, her children and my dad were positioned around mile 4 and cheering loud for us. Perry had forgotten his watch so before we started he called and had them hand it off to him here. We did some quick math on the run so that he could start his watch at mile 5 and still have a good idea of what his time was. I felt good but somewhere in my mind I knew I needed to throttle back some or I was gonna burn out.

Mile 6-8 we were heading back into Fargo still plugging along feeling good. I saw my wife's family around mile 8 and learned that my sister-in-law had finished the 10K in 1:13! - she had hoped to finish in under 1:30! It was good to hear she had a great race. They also said my family was right at mile 9 with more fluids for me. By this time it had stopped raining and it was pretty calm. The sky was still overcast and the temp was about perfect. If it could stay like that for the rest of the race I'd be OK. I had fished my first bottle of fluid and downed my first GU at mile 8. Everything was going as planned- except I was still running a little fast.

Mile 9 I saw my wife and kids and they handed me a fresh bottle of fluids. It was awesome to see them and they gave me a boost of energy to keep going. Perry was now about a half a block in front of me - I wanted to keep up with him but I knew if I stayed with him much longer I'd pay for it later. I kept trying to slow down some but I found it really hard to keep it around 9:30.

Mile 10-13 went on as planned. The course doubled back on itself so around mile 10 the leaders passed, they were already heading back to the finish. When they were at mile 16 I was at mile 10! The guy in the lead had at least a 2 min lead on the next closest contender. Around mile 12 it started to heat up. The clouds were breaking up and the sun was starting to peek out. When the sun did come out it got steamy. The rain on the streets was evaporating and it felt like a steam room out there. I was starting to feel it in my legs but I felt good that I was about 4 min ahead of my scheduled pace at the half.

Mile 14-15 The sun was out in full force now and the winds were getting gusty! I downed another GU at mile 15. I was thinking about mile 16. I slowed my pace a little because I knew I had a little time to burn and I wanted to make it through 16 strong. I was still following my drinking at every mile plan and that seemed to be working. I did take some straight water from several of the water stops. People had put out sprinklers so the runners could get some relief by running under them. I tried to hit as many as I could.

Mile 16 is my nemesis. I went into it feeling good - I was tired but I still had confidence. I tried not to think about all the troubles I had in the past at mile 16! About halfway through I saw a co-worker who came out to cheer me on. I actually spotted him before he spotted me. It was awkward because I don't think he realized it was me until I was almost past him. It was much appreciated that he came out and cheered! I knew my wife would be around mile 18 so I was focusing on that and trying to forget about the heat.

Mile17-18 I felt relief that I had made it through the dreaded 16th mile but now I was getting really hot! Everything I had on was wet from the rain. My socks were still squishy and I was feeling irritated - I was hot and wet. I still had 9 miles to go and I was thinking about being anywhere else but there! My stomach was not happy about 40oz of salty Gatorade and 2 chocolate GUs. I felt like I should switch to plain water and that may help. At mile 18 I saw my family again they hooked me up with a bottle of water and I was on my way. I just remember being really hot and uncomfortable then. Just around the corner I saw my in-laws and again the support was appreciated!

Mile 19 I was heading South now and I got my first taste of the wind. at times it was dead calm and then it would gust to 30MPH it almost knocked me off my feet! I don't remember much about mile 19 other than I knew I was starting to get into trouble.

Mile 20 was where my race pretty much ended. As if on cue I hit the wall hard at mile 20. It literally was at the 20 mile marker. I had to walk for a block or so. I was out of breath. I was tired and my legs just would not move anymore. I hadn't had any muscle cramps I just couldn't move with any speed anymore! I can't explain what it's like to hit the wall but it's not fun! Your body pretty much says no more. I didn't feel like I was in any harm but I kept thinking -listen to your body- it was telling me stop or you will be in serious trouble. It's at this point when your goal changes from a time to just a finish. I continued to walk and run as much as I could.

Mile 21-24 These were the longest miles of the race. I ate my secret weapon the Shot Bloks but by that time it was too late. I again shuffled, walked, stretched and ran when I could. I started doing math in my head to keep my mind off of the pain and struggle. I was trying to figure out if I still had a chance at 4:15 or at least beating my PR of 4:25. I had pretty much ruled it out but I had set a new goal for myself now which was under 4:30. That would still be my second best marathon time.

Mile 25 was another long mile but I felt like the end was at least near. I tried to run as much as possible but I still had to walk quite a bit. When I could run I was doing about 11:00/mile. walking I was doing about 13:30 /mile. I still had a good shot at 4:30!

The last mile was tough and I passed a guy who was sitting on the curb with only about 1/10 of a mile to go. People were telling him to get up and crawl in if he had to. I knew what he was feeling but I kept telling myself to use whatever I had to get to the finish. I was able to run almost that whole last mile without walking. I shuffled down the ramp into the Fargodome and finished in 4:29:41.

I had come in just about 5 min. over my previous record and about 5 min ahead of my Marathon times last year and without any cramps. I was short of my goal but it was still a victory!

I made my way though the finish area and found my family. Perry had gone on to finish with a time of 4:02! His last marathon 10 years ago he finished in 5:09! He had bettered his time by over 1 hour! I was amazed! He had an awesome race and should be very proud.

Here is a graph of my pace at each mile - the WALL at mile 20 really shows up nicely!

It wasn't my best marathon and I'm not sure anything really went wrong. I hit the wall and I'm not sure there is a whole lot I could do to fix that during the race. I'm sure going out a little slower may have bought me a little more time before I bonked but by the time I was there I couldn't fix it. Maybe the heat was the factor? I think I was on top of the hydration but heat and humidity take a lot out of me. I guess it just wasn't a 4:15 day!

From here I'm not sure what I'll do? I don't think a Fall marathon is in the works for me. Although I am still determined to beat 4:15 and ultimately 4:00! Summer is a hard time to train for me and I think I'll focus on a few half marathons in the Fall. Never say never - next week I may change my mind.

Overall I feel good about it and I'm sure I'll be back to take another shot at 4:15! Just the fact that I made it without cramping up is awesome - I know that I've at least conquered that beast. It was great to have the family and friends cheer me on! Congratulations to my brother-in-law and sister-in-law on their awesome races!

Almost Time

2010-05-18T12:18:00.000-05:00

Only a few days until race day. My confidence is high but it's been high for the previous 3 marathons I ran and they didn't turn out exactly as planned! I guess I should say it's 'cautiously' high. I know I have the ability to finish in 4:15:00 and I think I can do it in even less than that. I also know that if/when muscle cramps strike that's pretty much the end. I think I have a good handle on how to ward off the cramps and stay strong the entire race...guess we'll find out in a few days.

My race strategy is as follows: (it's not that you care what it is... it's more if I write it down I feel obligated to stick to it!) I will line up slightly ahead of the 4:15 pace group (that's 9:43/mile pace) last year I felt like I was trying to catch the pace group for the first few miles and I likely burned up some valuable energy. If I cross the start even or slightly ahead of the pace group I'll try to do somewhere between 9:30 and 9:43 miles for at least the first few miles (depending on congestion and how I feel) If I'm able to do 9:30's for the first 5 miles I'll decided then if I'm going to slow it down or stick with that pace. I'm going to have 40oz of fluids on me from the start and I'll have my wife resupply me about half way. I'm going to make my same mixture of Gatorade and electrolyte doped beverage I used on my 24 mile run. I'll supplement with plain water at some of the stops. I'm most concerned about mile 16- that has been my primary focus - getting through mile 16 cramp free. I'll take GU energy gels at 8, 15, 21 miles. I'll have Shot Bloks with for the final 5 or 6 miles. I also have a secret weapon.... a package of margarita flavored Shot Bloks they have 3x the sodium to fight muscle cramps they even say 'Cramp Buster' on the package. If I can power through mile 16 and 17 I think I'm home free- well only 9 miles or so until I'm really home free.

The weather has still be occupying a lot of my time. The forecast seems to be pretty stable these last few days. Could be windy I saw up to 22MPH winds from the South - Did I mention I hate the wind? This could slow us down a bit or speed us up while we run North! Looks like it won't rain at least not until later in the afternoon but the temp is gonna be heating up. Close to 60F at the start and could be approaching 80s near the finish! Hydrate! hydrate! hydrate! I have some concern about the heat but really not much I can do about it. Last year I don't think it got much above 40F during the race.

Last weeks running was good- I had a very nice 12 mile run on Sunday to finish the week with almost 30 miles total for the week. I'm breaking in my new shoes and I have decided they are the ones for this race. I ran 4.5 miles on Monday, I didn't run today. Wednesday I'll do 5 miles and Thursday I'll do 3 or 4 miles. Friday nothing and Saturday at 8:00AM I'll run 26.2!

Weather, Shoes, Still on the taper!

2010-05-14T19:57:00.000-05:00

The weather has been aweful most of the month of May. It really is like April and May were switched around. This week we had highs in the 40s? In April we had lows in the 50s? I actually don't mind it being cool but the rain has been miserable! Interesting how 3 days of rain seems like 40 days and 40 nights. The sunshine today was very welcome. The marathon is now only about week away and I've been checking the 10 day forecast on pretty much an hourly basis. My slightly OCD sister-in-law (who is running the 10K) and I have been exchanging e-mails several times a day for the last few days alerting one another of the changing forecast. The typical email is a one liner like:' just saw storms 60% chance now!' Like we need to be that on top of it. The forecast has changed from 60% chance of thunderstorms to 0% chance of rain everything inbetween. Good news is the forecasting trend seems to be heading towards no rain. Really no good can come out following the weather this closely.

I've tried out my new shoes. Their first run was a 3 mile run on the treadmill. The first mile I was convinced I would be returning them. By mile 3 they were feeling pretty good!?! I really wanted to try them on the road because it always feels a little different than the mill. Today I took them to the road and I think they passed. My legs felt good afterwards and I ran about 20 seconds faster per mile in them. The ultimate test will be a 12 mile run Sunday. That will determine if they are running the marathon with me or not. Right now they are top of the list!

The tapering is going ok. This week hasn't been too bad although a did feel like running more than 4 miles on Wednesday. It helped that the weather has been crappy. Next week will be tougher. After I run 12 miles on Sunday I think my longest run will be 4 or 5 miles Monday or Tuesday... I'll probably get 10-12 miles in next week leading up to the race. I guess the extra time I'll have not running I can use to check the weather!

Taper

2010-05-10T13:54:00.001-05:00

Less than 2 weeks to go to the marathon! Last week was a solid week of training which has me going into this marathon with confidence. I ended up with 35 miles for the week including a 13.5 mile long run on Saturday.

I ran 6 miles Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday - took Friday off and ran 13.5 on Saturday. The 6 mile runs were decent but nothing spectacular. Wednesday I ran at the indoor track because it was cold (40F) and windy and raining outside. My long run on Saturday was OK but it was pretty windy and still a bit chilly. I'm not sure why but I wasn't really feeling it Saturday. I made it through the run OK but I felt like I was dragging a bit and at times I checked my watch and was struggling to keep a 9:40 pace. I still felt good about the run and I did recover from it nicely. Sunday morning I ran 3.6 miles and felt great.

I've been having issues with my shoes for about a month now. Just before my 24 miler a few weeks ago I ditched the New Balance 769s because I had some knee pain and some discomfort in my right hip. I decided to go back to the Sacouny Stabil CS shoes that I had worn previously - I swear these shoes have about 800 miles on them and should be burned. I ran the 24 miles in them and had no pain... I've used them on and off to try to determine if the New Balance shoes are messing with me. I finally decided I was going to get another pair of the Stabil CS but it turns out they are changing the style and they are a bit hard to find right now.

So I did what every good runner should never do... buy something totally different 2 weeks before the big event! I figured the old CS should not be put through another marathon and after talking to the guy at Beyond Running it's probably not the correct shoe for me anyway. The guy really spent some time checking out my feet asking me about my running and what I liked and didn't like about the shoes that I have had in the past. I bet I tried on a dozen different pairs of shoes and I finally decided to try the Brooks Adrenaline GTS10. It's a step down from the full on super motion control bricks that the CS were. I've been in these ultra motion control shoes for a few years and have grown accustom to them. He seems to think that they probably aren't the best for me and actually way overkill. Apparently so has everybody else I ask about what kind of shoes I need. The difference is in the past they pushed me towards what I should be in- more of a stability or neutral cushion shoe but the degree of change was pretty dramatic and that's why I think they feel wrong and are giving me trouble. These GTS10 shoes seem to be the best of both worlds giving me some of the brick like features of the CS but more flexible and lighter.

Whatever... I guess I'll give them a whirl on the treadmill a few days and if they feel crappy I'll take them back and he said he is confident he can find me something that will feel right!

This week the plan is to get between 28 and 30 miles in - it's full on taper now until the marathon. I'm not a fan of the taper phase... It feels like you should be pouring on miles but you are cutting back. It just doesn't feel right but your brain knows it's the right thing to do. By next week I'll be eager to run 26 miles! There is little I can do now to make me faster or more prepared for a marathon... well, besides getting good rest eating good and staying hydrated. Oh and it doesn't matter how often you check the 10 day forecast in the same day cause it doesn't change that often- and it doesn't matter because they really don't know what the weather will be like until about 36 hours ahead of time.

Stay tuned to hear how these new NEW shoes work out! Ugggh!

One Mississippi, Two Mississippi, Three Mississippi

2010-05-04T13:46:00.000-05:00

Last week I spent a good portion of the week and weekend in Mississippi for work. It sucks to be working out of town and at an important time in training. No matter how hard I try to get my miles in ... it never seems to go as well a planned while traveling. That being said, I was able to get 28 miles in - which I consider success while on the road. I would have liked to have been over 30 miles for the week.

I knew I would have the problem with getting the mileage in so I tried to start the week off strong while I was still on my home turf. I had a nice 6 mile run Monday and a fast 3 mile run on Tuesday. Wednesday morning I had a 11:00AM flight to MS so I planned to get 7-8 miles in before that. It turns out I felt like crap so I only managed 3 miles.

Wednesday night I made it to Mississippi and it was friging hot! It had to be over 80 and about 85% humidity at 8:00PM. Uggh the last few weeks I've been back and forth from the South and the weather changes are really messing with me. The weather only got worse the next few days- stormy and more humid. It forced me to use the hotel treadmill. Lucklily it was a pretty new hotel and the treadmills hadn't been too badly abused yet.

Thursday I didn't run because I battled with the heat and humidity outside all day I didn't feel like sweating anymore.

Friday I was able to get 5 miles in. Like every other hotel workout room in the world it was about 85F and no way to adjust the temp. I think I lost 8 pounds in those 5 miles. Friday night I had an awful cramp in my right leg about 2:30AM. I love it when that happens!

Saturday it rained most of the day. Makes for fun working outside. I forced myself to get 10 miles in on the treadmill. Generally it went OK despite running it on a treadmill in what felt like the jungle. Early Sunday morning about 4:30AM lightning struck the flagpole directly outside my hotel room - literally 30ft away from me. It shook my bed... I jolted up just in time to see the brightest, whitest light I ever seen. Took me a few seconds to realize what had happened. A little adrenaline was flowing so it was hard to get back to sleep.

Sunday I got to come home. Weather was awful in the South storms from Mississippi up to Kentucky... I get to transfer twice- Atlanta and Minneapolis. I hate turbulence so I knew I was in for a great day! First flight was terrible - it was like a roller coaster but worse. Second flight was even worse than that. We got to the end of the runway to take off and they turn the plane around and tell us the wind gusts were too strong for this aircraft to take off. Never a good sign. We took off several minuets later - Apparently it was safe then? First hour of that flight was like hell - had to go to my happy place several times. Second hour was like heaven - smooth , calm , blue sky, peaceful! Glad to be home! No running Sunday - although my muscles were so tense all day long I think I probably got a decent workout.

Yesterday I took the day off from running too. It was my wife's birthday and I knew the best present I could give her would be to not ditch out for a run! It was a good day for a rest too... the temp only got up into the 40s??? Seriously the shock from near 90F and high humidity to 40F and low humidity can mess with you.

Today I used my lunch hour to get 6 miles in. It was windy but I tried to stay on a course that offered protection from it. I've got big plans for this week . I'm looking to get 35 or more miles in. I only have about 2.5 weeks left before the race so I must execute a carefully planed out taper. I took my first look at the 10 day forecast. There are almost 20 days to go but it never hurts to see where things will be in10 days from now. It looked a little warmer and maybe drier?

Tomorrow 8 miles!

Big Week, Water Stops and the Beauty of Technology, and 24

2010-04-26T18:26:00.000-05:00

Last week I took a good look at my running schedule for the final 5 weeks of marathon training. I was suppose to have a 24 mile long run 2 weeks ago but instead I ran the half marathon in St. Cloud. So I shifted that long run to this past weekend. With other commitments I have I think last week might have been my peak mileage week. I'm not sure if it's too early to peak with still 4 weeks to go - I'd feel better if it were only 3 weeks to go... I think I'll still keep the mileage high this week if I can but I don't think I'm going to get another 20+ mile run in after before May 22.

Sabrina commented about skipping the first water stop.... in the races I've done that always seems to be the worse stop. Everybody is usually still bunched up and I'm not sure why but people are so determined to get that first cup of water. I took an elbow in a race from a woman about a 3rd my size at the first water stop. Last year during a marathon the pace leader I was running by described the first water stop as being similar to a bar fight! I tend to avoid confrontation so I try to avoid that stop if I can - in training I usually don't hydrate until 4- 6 miles anyway (which is probably not the right way to do it - I figured that out this week...read on!) so It's not a like I'm breaking a routine on race day. In the marathons I've carried my own water to hydrate when I want to not just when there is a stop. If you expect that first stop to be crowded and can be patient in a race environment it's not a problem just be aware and ready! Usually by the second stop the field has spread out and they are fine form there on.

Rocco put my race report of the Earth Day Half Marathon up on the Run Minnesota blog. Naturally I had to check out the other race reports. It's kind of intresting to see how other people experienced the same race. I was reading Juile's race report and I about fainted when I looked at a photo she had of the runners lining up 15 min before the start. At first glance I thought it was a picture of my back... after closer examination I figured out it wasn't me. But I mean that was exactly where I was standing at the start. I saw people that I was running near for most of the race and people I know I was lined up next to. If you care to know pretty much what I saw during the race check out her race report. It's crazy, strange and kind of cool to read and see someones experience and know that I was probably feet away from it while it was happening. We have all been in the background of someone else photos at some point I'm sure... but how bizarre to see those photos and read that persons description of the event?!? Right now it seems strange but we've all got cameras on us 24/7 so I suspect in the future it will become more common. I love technology!

Saturday was my planned 24 mile run. I got my stuff ready Friday night and got up early to start thing. I was out the door by 6:30AM. I didn't have a route planned but I thought I run the half marathon course from last year because I knew the first few miles well and I wasn't quite awake yet. I started out slow (first mile in 9:50) I had a little feeling of "oh this is going to be a long morning" I settled into a 9:20 to 9:30 pace by mile 2 and started to feel much better.

I had 36 oz of Lemon Lime Gatorade that was doped with Elete Electrolyte add in. 2 chocolate outrage GUs and 1 pack of lemon lime Cliff Shot Bloks. I've suffered from cramps in my legs in the 3 marathons I've run and I am determined to get past them in this marathon. I decided to do a hydration experiment on this long run. My watch is setup to beep at each mile... each mile I would take a drink of my cocktail and see if hydrating early on helped. I had two 18oz bottles one on a belt and one with a hand strap. Since I was running the 1/2 marathon route I knew it was 13 miles back to my house so I planned to finish these 36 oz in 13 miles. I tried to ration it out so I would finish one bottle in about 6 miles.

Mile 3 I was sick of drinking this super salty Gatorade cocktail but I kept with my plan. The weather was ideal 50F very little wind overcast skies. I wore a long sleeve lightweight shirt and shorts I pushed the sleeves up early on cause I was heating up. There were a ton of runners out... More than I usually see. I probably saw 5-6 groups of 4 or more runners who I assumed were also training. I'm not sure why but it always motivates me a little when I see other people running- I guess it's cause I know I'm not the only nut out at 7:00AM on a Saturday morning getting his miles in.

Miles 4-9 were going great... nothing to complain about. I had made my way to North Fargo. I downed a GU at mile 8 and was now close to my office. I decided to stop there and fill up the one empty bottle with water and run out to the airport which would add about 4 miles onto my half marathon route. That would put me back at my house at 17 and I'd only have 7 left to go after that. I ducked in quick filled my bottle, took a big drink of water and hit the pavement again - total pit stop was less than 60 seconds.

Mile 10 was heading out to the airport. The path is straight and there is no protection from the wind. Although the winds were light I had to put the sleeves down and lower my head as I ran West into the wind. By mile 11 I had hit the end of the trial turned around and was running with the wind to my back. I was still drinking every mile but I was doing straight water now and saving the 2/3 bottle of my cocktail for when the water was gone. Mile13 I was back on the 1/2 marathon route and feeling really good. Something about being headed towards home felt good. I brought with a cheat sheet of mile split times for my 4:15 marathon goal. As of 14 miles I was 30 seconds ahead of marathon goal pace!!

I choked down another GU at about 15.5 miles then came mile 16...the dreaded mile...That has always been a bad mile for me. First marathon I started to slow down drastically at 16...second marathon I cramped up something fierce at 16. Last fall I lost my pace group around 16. I usually feel pretty good up to 16 then I start to fall apart fast. I hadn't run 16 miles this fast since my last marathon so I was anxious to see what was going to happen.

I made it through 16 and 17 still feeling great... I was within 1/2 mile of home! I planned a quick stop to refill the now empty bottles... my pace was about marathon goal pace and I had no signs of cramping so I wanted to fill them quick and get back out on the road. I filled both bottles up with more of the cocktail that I had mixed earlier and had left out on the porch. Another stop and refill in less than 60 seconds! Mile 18 I started playing with the idea of running a full 26 miles? I mean what was 2 more miles? I decided to see how I felt at 24 .I had the pack of Shot Bloks left and they are split up into 6 cubes. I decided I would take one cube each of the last 6 miles.I didn't feel like drinking or eating but If nothing else it gave me something to focus on for a few min. other than pain and discomfort.

I kept waiting to "hit the wall" but it wasn't happening ... I was drinking every mile and sometimes a sip or two in between. My pace was great - at times I was running 9:15. 20 miles came and went ...21 and 22 no problems. I kept thinking I've never felt this good this late in a run?! The further I went the more confidence I got. I was still thinking about 26. I was about 1 min over marathon goal pace now and I knew I'd get 24 miles in less than 4 hours. I decided I'd head towards home and stick to the 24 - no sense in pushing my luck. About 22.5 miles I hit a mini wall... Felt a little like walking but I kept running - my pace slowed to about 10:00/mile.

23 miles and I had made the last turn and it was now a straight shot home. I was full of confidence ... if I made it this far in the marathon and felt this good I knew I'd have a personal best. Everything was going great then I had to stop for traffic about 3 blocks from home. My right leg felt weird then wham I cramped up... it was the muscle on my inner right thigh (don't know it's name) it hurt so bad I couldn't walk.... I didn't even know how to stretch it? I walked/limped for about a block. Then I walked normal for a block it was feeling better. I crossed another busy street and thought I'd give running a try. I was able to run on it pain free!? I even did a lap around the track at the end of the block - I was running a 9:30 mile when I finished at my driveway.

I filled the tub with cold water and soaked the legs immediately. I'm not sure what the cramp was all about but I haven't had a bit of pain from it since. Usually those cramped muscles are sore for a bit? The rest of the day I put myself on light duty but really the legs weren't feeling that bad. They have felt much worse after much shorter runs in the past. By Sunday I felt almost 100% still a little sore going down the stairs in the morning. Today I was able to run 6 miles with no pain. I think I've recovered nicely!

Long story longer.... I think hydration is my key! Hey it only took me about 4 years to figure this out! Now I just need to duplicate whatever I did last Saturday and I'm sure to have a (personal) record setting marathon.

Up next.... more miles!

.

Earth Day Half Marathon

2010-04-22T12:35:00.000-05:00

Last Saturday was the Earth Day Half Marathon in St. Cloud. This was my 6th half marathon and I must say one of the more enjoyable ones.

Friday I ran a six mile loop in the morning. It was a taxing run. I kept wondering how the 13.1 miles the next day were going to go since I had trouble with the 6. I tried not to think about it too much. That afternoon we headed to St. Cloud and I picked up my packet... It wasn't much of a packet - a shirt, timing chip and number. I had to consult the website to get a start time and place although, I had a good idea what to expect from years prior. I know it's earthday and all but one sheet of paper with a map and important info wouldn't lead to that big of an increase in global warming.

Saturday morning I was less nervous than I have been for past races. I think this was because I didn't really establish a goal for this race. I wanted to do better than 2 hours but other than that I did much care... Even the 2 hour goal wasn't that big of a deal to me. Last year I went for a personal record and I ended up having a crappy marathon 3 weeks later so if those 2 performances were related I didn't want a repeat this year.
The race started on time and the weather was perfect- light winds, clear skies and about 45F but warming quickly. The first 3 miles went off without a hitch. I stayed between the 1:55 pace group and the 2:00 pace group. I skipped the first water stop which is always a disaster. I broke away from the 1:55 group and settled into a nice pace around 8:35 to 8:40. I had moments of speed where I'd see I was running an 8:10 or 8:05 pace but I knew there were some hills the last 5 miles so I slowed down when I noticed I was pushing it.
About mile 7 I knew I was in good shape and figured I'd make it under 2 hours even if I slowed to a 10:00 pace. I could tell I was slowing some and I knew there were hills ahead. At this point in the race there is a long straight path through a wooded area with few spectators. People around me were fading and I bet I passed a dozen runners in that mile. The next portion was a bit hilly and again people were fading, I too was fading but I felt a lot better than some of them were. The final portion heads North along a road and ducks in and out of some neighborhoods. The wind could be felt out on the road but it wasn't killing my pace. The final half mile is down hill and a great way to finish a race. I was feeling great and wanted to finish strong. I had a little left I'm the tank when I made the final turn into the stadium. I sped up a bit and just before the finish my right leg cramped up! I can only hope my finishing photo isn't of me in agony on one leg hopping across the line. My offical time was 1:53:37. Although not my fastest it was certainly a perfect day for a race and I didn't finish in pain (well maybe a little pain)

I'm terrible at blogging

2010-04-15T17:06:00.000-05:00

I admit I've taken a break from blogging.... just too many things going on. I just got back from a trip to Georgia for work and have been catching up on everything I'm missed while still trying to get my miles in.

Before I left for Georgia I ran a 22 mile long run. It went as good as could be expected. I felt pretty good up to about 14 miles. That seems to be my threshold recently. I started to feel the little pains and everything started to get uncomfortable about then. I continued on and "hit the wall" hard about 19 miles in. I've only really "hit the wall" a few times... it's a strange place and hard to describe if you haven't done it before. Everything shuts down... I tried to tell myself just walk a little bit but even that was uncomfortable. My mind wandered a bit and I guess you could say thoughts were borderline irrational... Like around 20 miles I started thinking "lying down in a front yard for a few minuets isn't that weird...if anybody asks I'll just tell them I've run a long way and need to rest, they'll get it" Of course the rational part of my mind tells me that's crazy and I kept going. the last mile or so I decided to do a run/walk ratio of 3 min. running to 1 min walking. Although this kept me moving, I found it really hard to start running after I've been walking for 60 seconds. I was in bad shape but I made it all 22 miles and hopefully it has done me some good.?!? I ended the week 3 miles short of my goal for mileage but I felt good about getting in the long run.

The next week I was off to Georgia - It was blazing hot when I landed 80's and 90's for a few days- Rough for me to adjust to the heat. I gave the hotel treadmill a workout the first 2 nights- the workout room was like a torture chamber - the thermostat was not adjustable and locked into 77F. It was humid and the treadmill had seen better days. I was able to crank out 5 miles on it one night but it truly was like torture.

I found out I had reciprocity through the gym I belong to back home with a local branch... I went with low expectations. I was pleasantly surprised ... they had nice treadmills, good music playing and the temp. was much cooler than the torture chamber. I finished the week and the weekend by running there.

This week I'm back home - it's already Thursday and I'm behind again on mileage. I'm suppose to do a 24 miler this weekend but I've gone and signed myself up for the Earth Day Half Marathon in St. Cloud. I've run it before and I think it helps get me in the spirit before the marathon. I'm not pushing for a personal record this time, but I'd like to be under 2 hours - we'll see I don't really feel that prepared...I think I'll just show up and see what the day brings? I've decided to cut out the 24 miler but I wanted to try to keep the mileage high. I'm not going to make it to the planned 42 miles for the week but I'd like to hit at least 35 - only a few days left!

Fresh Start

2010-03-30T20:12:00.000-05:00

Early last week I was down with the sickness, which meant I skipped a few days of running. I planned to make up for those missed days by doing a few extra miles over the weekend so I wouldn't get to far behind on mileage. Originally I was suppose to do a speedy 10 miles for my long run but I decided I'd do a moderate 12 or 13. By Sunday I felt like I had turned the corner on the sickness and I was ready to tackle 13 miles. Turns out I was wrong. The first 6 miles were good... not great just good... mile 7 was like mile 23 of a marathon I was gassed. I walked a block, started to run again only to be tired out in another block. Because I ran a 6.5 mile out and back I was sort of screwed in cutting it short. I knew there was no way I was going to make 13. I pretty much made a B-line for my house and ended up doing 10. I felt defeated! I think i went out a little hard after being down for 4-5 days. I was coughing a lot those last 3 miles and I could just feel the lungs weren't getting what they needed to keep going. I was probably still sick! Monday, still feeling defeated and only about 75% I decided not to run.

Today, still not 100% but close, I was suppose to do 6 miles.... I thought 5 was probably more like it. I went out cautious not knowing how the lungs would take it. First 2 miles went great... so I decided to go for the full 6. I felt strong and I was moving at a nice pace. I finished and couldn't believe I averaged a 8:54/mile pace overall. I guess I'm feeling better!

It was a perfect day - sunny close to 70F, I wore shorts and short sleeves for the run - first time this spring. The snow is almost all gone, only the really big piles left. It finally feels like summer isn't far off. I think I've finally turned the corner on this cold and most importantly I was able to get a good run in without coughing up a lung.

I'd say I spend a fair amount of time asking myself why I keep running...I'm not sure I really know yet and I'll probably never be able to come up with a good one or two sentence answer, but every once in a while when I finish a run I think - That is why I keep running! Today was one of those days. Just the fresh start I needed.

Windy

2010-03-26T16:56:00.000-05:00

Today after a 4 day break from most forms of physical activity I finally got out and ran. I debated if I should run outside or hit the treadmill. The temp was nice (40F) but the wind was fierce. 24MPH from the SSE with gust up to 35MPH. Being the smart guy that I am I ran into wind for the first 2.5 miles and then with the wind at my back for the last 2.5 miles. I think if I could get a nice 30MPH wind in my favor for the last 6.2 miles of the marathon I'd be in really good shape. I don't think that's likey to happen. My pace was good 9:05 overall (really it was like 9:40 into the wind and about 8:35 with the wind). It was good training because they don't cancel marathons when it's windy and it's pretty much always windy here!

I purchased some new shoes yesterday they are New Balance 769. I was surprised to find out that most of the shoe (70%) is made in the USA! New Balance has 6 plants in the US but unfortunately has to rely on oversees components because of costs and availability for the other 30%. I thought that pretty much all of the big shoe manufactures had moved production to Asia long ago. It was a welcome surprise - but to be honest I bought them because they felt good, they were on sale and my old reliable Saucony shoes are a special order item now. The 5 mile break in run was good I could tell they were a little softer shoe than the previous ones I've had but they still had a lot of support in the heel - which I prefer. They also seem a lot lighter - this is maybe because they are clean - my other shoes probably have 1/2 pound of mud on each one. We'll see how they hold up through the runs of the next few weeks.

Since I've taken much of the week off fighting this cold I'm not sure how to salvage the remaining 2 days. I think I'll shoot for 8 miles tomorrow and maybe try for 12 miles on Sunday. That'll still give me 25 miles for the week. I've got a pretty big week of running coming up next week ending with a 22 miler next Sunday and I'd prefer to not pile on two back to back 15 mile runs going into next week. Plus I think it's probably a good thing to let the body rest now and then.

Infected!

2010-03-25T16:25:00.000-05:00

So, after my fulfilling 20 mile run on Sunday I thought I was in the clear with this whole sickness thing. I was wrong... I was just getting over Phase 1. Phase 2 started with a killer cough. It kept me up at night and nothing seemed to touch it. I'm still stuck in Phase 2 but I feel like I'm starting to transition to Phase 3 - that would be the sinus phase.

I haven't run since Sunday. I figured I needed the time off to heal... so far that's not working. I hope to get out this evening and see if I can get 3 miles in.

Ugggh I'm sick of being sick.

20 miles

2010-03-22T13:08:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I completed the first of four 20+ mile runs I'll do in preparation for the marathon. I came down with a cold last week so I scaled back some of the runs during the week but still ended up with over 40 miles for the week.

Saturday I went out on a 3 mile recon run to see how the roads/sidewalks were for the upcoming 20 mile run Sunday. To my surprise things were pretty dry. I also wanted to see if this cold was serious enough to postpone the Sunday long run. I can't say there wasn't discomfort due to the cold but I decided I'd go though with the long run.

Sunday I headed out about 12:30 the weather was perfect, Sunny 40F light wind from the South. I dressed lightly because I knew I'd heat up fast in the sun. I started out by doing a 3 mile loop that was the Southern most part of the marathon route last year. Then I headed North for about 5 miles and snaked back West to the office arriving there at about 9.5 miles. I refilled the water bottles and started back South. The wind although light was chilly while running into it. I tried a little different route back to try to avoid as much wind as possible. I consumed some energy gel around 10 miles and felt really good through 14 miles. Around 14.5 miles I had a little ankle pain in the right ankle. Seems like I start to fade a bit around that point and I think I start to run really loose and sloppy when I get tired. I really have to concentrate to keep what little (and probably improper) form I do have from getting really bad- once I do that the little aches and pains start to go away. The legs were getting tired but I've definitely felt a lot worse. Took a few short walking breaks to change playlists on the iPod, switch out water bottles, and wait for traffic. Around 17 miles I took more gel which carried me to the end. No cramps, no severe dehydration, no injuries. I ended up averaging 10:10 miles. I'm feeling good about the pace, my goal for the marathon will be 9:45 miles. The first 12 miles were under 9:45 so I'm not that far off. The body is recovering nicely too. I hit the fluids hard and iced the legs a bit. I was sore yesterday evening but by this AM I was back to normal.

While I was out running the river was cresting. Because it was a nice day there were many people out and about. As I passed the Main Ave. bridge I could see there were probably 50 people taking pictures of the flooding from the bridge. I saw a school that had a couple of military trucks loaded up with sandbags, a neighborhood stockpile of sandbags with some Bobcats ready if the water got to high, and a couple of National Guard guys walking the dikes. Other than that is was a regular Sunday. Funny how calm it was this year compared to the chaos last year. I kind of feel bad for the journalists that got sent to Fargo to cover the flood this weekend because it was really uneventful for them. Thankfully it appears to have caused very little damage. Now hopefully we can start the clean up and get on with spring.

This week I've got about 30-33 miles of running planed. It's a lower mileage week with a 10-11 mile long run on Sunday. There will also be some speed work and some hill workouts... yippe!

Spring!

2010-03-17T14:01:00.000-05:00

photo from:http://bigfishservicecompany.files.wordpress.com/2010/02/red-river-flooding.jpg

Last week seemed to fly by. I only managed to get 3 good days of running in - mostly because I got lazy but partially because we were busy.

Here's the recap:
Monday was a planned day off.
Tuesday I did an early morning 7 miles on the treadmill.
Wednesday I slept in (unplanned)
Thursday I ran 6 miles in the morning on the treadmill. Thursday afternoon we took a spring break trip to St. Cloud - Oh so tropical!
Friday I ran outside in St. Cloud That was the fastest run I've had this spring outside. I averaged 8:52 miles. The snow was melting fast there...in the 3 days we were there it almost completely vanished!
Saturday was my birthday so I thought I deserved that day off!
Sunday was a gorgeous day in St. Cloud 55F sunny light breeze, hardly any snow, roads were drying up. I thought Ahh spring has arrived. I delayed my run until the afternoon when we would arrive back in Fargo.
As we got closer and closer to Fargo the temp. dropped and the clouds darkened. It started to drizzle about 10 miles out. Spring had not arrived in Fargo yet! There is still a lot of snow on the ground and the snow that did melt is threatening to flood the river again. For some reason this year there doesn't seem to be the urgency there was last year. I'm not sure if people just don't care or if last years flood is just too fresh in the memories to get anybody too excited? Hopefully it will flood quickly so we can get on with spring! The weather had me depressed so I postponed my run.

Monday, riddled with guilt I ran the 9 miles I was suppose to get in Sunday. It was getting dark and very wet outside so I opted for the indoor track. They have taken out the ice and replaced it with volleyball courts. This means it's now like 65F inside the building instead of 20F. It also means that there are a slew of brain dead volleyball players milling around. Although there were plenty of runners and walkers doing laps around the track, they think it's OK to stand on the track and socialize? . After a few laps you'd think they get the idea that it's an active track? Nope! It was kind of like playing Frogger from the cars point of view. The run was good but taxing. I ran too fast and it was warmer than I've been used to in there. That means this week is technically going to be a high mileage week. I've got a 20 mile run planned on Sunday and without the 9 miles I did yesterday I was suppose to get around 40 miles. I might cut a few of the midweek runs short so I don't run myself into injury.

The last couple of days I've come down with some kind of sickness... not bad enough to put me out of comission but enought to be annoying. Now it's the internal debate of should I take it easy on the running and try to get through this sickness or should I power through it? I'm leaning towards something in the middle - keeping the long run but cutting some of the other shorter and running a little easier.

The weather is suppose to be nice for a few days then cool off for the weekend, just in time for my long run! I'm planning the 20 miles for Sunday morning... just about the time the river is suppose to crest. Hope the levees hold and I don't get washed away!

Eighteen Miles

2010-03-09T08:32:00.000-06:00

Although I've done it several times it still amazes me that I can run 18 miles. That just seems so far... even by car! I know I did it cause I feel the pain but it almost doesn't feel real!?!
I had another awesome week of training- I ended up running just over 37 miles for the week. I think I actually over achieved by a few miles! I had a nice mix of indoor and outdoor running last week. I did the 'hills' and speed work on the treadmill and the other 3 runs I did outside including the 18 miles on Sunday.

Going into the 18 miler I wasn't feeling super confident. From the Friday and Saturday runs I had a good idea of what the conditions would be like outside and I was not looking forward to that. There was a lot of slush and some big puddles and tons of uneven running on pavement and snow/ice. The weather was nice 35F and a very light wind but for some reason I just had a feeling it wasn't going to be a good run. I ran a route that brought me by my workplace around 6.5 miles so I could refill my water. The run up to the office went very well. I filled my water and continued on. I felt surprisingly good - I was running an easy 9:45 -10:00 pace. About 3 miles after my stop I looked at my watch and discovered my foot pod that keeps track of distance and pace wasn't working- I stopped and tried to fix it will no luck! I had to get another 9 miles and I wasn't on a route that I run regularly so I pretty much had to guess my mileage. This guessing took my mind off my heavy legs. I took a few short walking breaks around mile 12 and 16 but nothing over 30 seconds. Around 17 miles I had a boost of energy I think because I knew I only had a mile to go- apparently I was ready to run 18 miles! I checked my distance on Google Earth once I got home and indeed I had run 18.3 miles.

Post run I hit the legs with icy water in the shower - shocking and painful (I'm never ready for cold anything!) but it really helped them recover the rest of the day. My legs have felt a lot worse after shorter runs than they did after this one. My ankles were really sore- I used some funky muscles that I'm sure I rarely use. All the running in the slush and all the uneven surfaces was torture on the poor guys. That soreness has since diminished thankfully. Most importantly, I developed my first blister... kind of strange- I think I've run over 3000 miles and never had a blister. I think it was because my feet were wet almost the entire time. It's a humdinger about the size of a nickel on the inside of my big toe. I re-aggravated it this morning while running 7 miles on the treadmill. It hurts to just think about it. I hope it goes away soon.

This week is high mileage days and only a 9 mile long run on the weekend. Next week a 20 mile long run yipee!

Fake Hills

2010-03-02T08:26:00.000-06:00

This AM I woke early gathered my things and was at the gym by 5:45AM. Still surprises me how busy it is until about 6:30 then I'm usually the only one around? Plan was to get 5 miles in with some hills. I set my pace to 9:30 miles and turned up the incline and speed every .25 miles until I got up to 4 (guessing that's 4%?) and down to 8:57 pace then I took a .25 mile rest at no incline I repeated this 3 times and then had a .25mile cool down at no incline. By the 3rd hill I was dead tired but I pushed through. I ended up averaging a 9:15 pace- not bad since I have little to no hill experience living on the plains of North Dakota.

This workout about killed me but when it was over I felt really good - it was one of those times when you feel really satisfied with working yourself hard. Lets hope I can keep this up right up to race day.

It's Official

2010-03-01T12:33:00.003-06:00

I flopped down my money and I'm official signed up for the Fargo Marathon-May 22, 2010! I feel more confident than ever coming off another excellent week of training. My motivation is up and I've gotten a lot of the missing drive back! All along my goal was to beat my personal record but in the back of my mind I wasn't wholly committed to even that... it was more of a just finish goal. I realized I've just finished 3 times already. I think that's been my struggle coming into this training - I wasn't really sure why I wanted to run another marathon. I decided I could keep doing it for the sake of doing it or I could set a goal of improving. I am now completely focused on getting that personal best down to under 4:20. My motivation has been getting better for the past few weeks but I have to credit my wife with this final push that has gotten me psyched to run a faster marathon.

Like I said I had a great week - totaled just over 29 miles this week. My Feb. total was 110 miles. This week my longest run was 7 miles - I did that Sunday with my brother-in-law who is also training for the Fargo Marathon. It was nice to run with someone, since most of my runs are done solo. It was a chilly (10F) run but I had no complaints. We have similar pace so it wasn't too easy or hard - just right! It was also a nice break to have higher mileage days during the week rather than ending with a mega long run on Sunday.

This week I aiming for around 35 miles with a 17-18 mile long run on the weekend. Mileage is building quickly but I feel good. 3 weeks from today I will have run my first of 3 scheduled long runs of 20 miles or more.

Did it!

2010-02-23T07:28:00.003-06:00

Another successful week of running. That's 3 solid weeks in a row of training. I'm very pleased with my increase in mileage and the body seems to be handling it well. Last week I ended up with just over 30 miles total - including a 15.5 mile run on Sunday.

I originally planned the long run to be indoors, either at the track or the treadmill. I did a 3 mile recon run on Saturday to see how the conditions were outside and decided I would try the 15 miler outside. The temp. was around 20F and the wind was light . The sidewalks and my usual bike path were covered with lightly packed snow. Only the heavily traveled roads are down to bare pavement so for my safety I stuck to the bike paths and the lightly packed snow- this translated to a slow pace! I felt like I was working as hard as usual but ended up being about a min. / mile slower. The places that were dry I could tell I was getting better traction and moving faster. At this stage I think it's more important that I worked the legs for a solid 2.75 hours than posting a good time. I felt very good through 13 miles then I started to get a little cold and sluggish. I ducked into a more residential area to get out the wind which helped some but I still needed a little extra time to thaw post run. I find it very difficult to dress properly for running in the cold - to many layers and I sweat and get cold - too few layers and I just get cold. I haven't yet perfected the happy medium - maybe if I ran outside a little more often I'd figure it out?

This week the plan is higher milage during the week and only a 7 mile long run this weekend. I'll still end up with around 30 miles total for the week. It's sort of a planned break from the increasing long runs.

Again, the 15 miles has boosted the confidence... I'm certain I'll have a decent marathon now and will likley lay down the cash this week and make my entry offical.

Motivation Restored!

2010-02-18T23:28:00.001-06:00

I'm blaming the olympics for my lack of blogging. There is just too much to watch each night. I have a severe addiction to these games... Since when do I care about short track speed skating relays?

My motivation is back... Not sure if it's the increasing daylight, inspiration from all the olympics I'm watching or just simply a good soild week of running last week?

I hit my target of 27 miles with a 12 mile run on Monday of this week. I planned for a Sunday long run but I had Monday off so I did it then. I wanted to do it outside but I'm such a wimp that I ran it on the track. I know it seems insane to run 90 some laps but honestly there were several other runners there nearly as long as me. Overall It was a satisfying run.... for me, confidence is a huge part of taking on the marathon. In additon to building endurance these increasing long runs do much to build up my confidence. My legs were a bit heavy later on in the day but I was able to put in a decent 3 miles Tuesday morning.

So far this week has been progressing nicely... Speed work on Wednesday and an 8:53 pace 5 mile run tonight. Tomorrow 3 or 4 miles and Sunday 15 miles.

Full

2010-02-11T13:46:00.004-06:00

Last night I was scheduled to run 4 miles. The plan was to head to the indoor ice arena/track for those 4 miles. I've been spending a lot of time on the treadmill and figured I needed a change. So after filling out Hanna Montana and Littlest Pet Shop valentines I broke away from the family and headed to the arena. From the start I knew it was not going to be a fun run. I had spaghetti for dinner about 1.5 hours earlier. I may have over indulged a bit because I felt sluggish and my tummy was 'thanksgiving dinner' full. All I really wanted to do was take a nap- not drag my body around the track for 32 laps. Each lap all I could think of was the episode of The Office when Micheal ate the pasta minutes before the Rabies 5K... that kept me laughing but not out of pain. I endured the 32 laps but not a half lap more. Lesson learned: Don't carbo load immediately before you run.

I'm having some trouble with motivation lately. This is the 4th marathon training cycle I've done and I think I'm the least motivated I've ever been. Right now my motivation is knowing how terrible I'm going to feel if I don't run as far as I have planned. I know the pain I feel for one more lap will last quite a bit less than the guilt I'll feel for not doing that one more lap. I guess that's OK motivation but I wish I had something a little more positive to keep me going. For some reason I don't have the I need to beat 4 hours mentality this time. I hope in the next few weeks I get that back or at least some other positive form of drive.

Tonight 5 miles, tomorrow 3 miles, Sunday 12 miles.

A Good Week

2010-02-09T08:18:00.001-06:00

Last week was a good soild week of running. Although I was out of town for most of the week and confined to the hotels heavily abused treadmill, I made my milage goal for the week without a hitch.

The highlight of he week had to be the 10 miler on Sunday morning. Honestly I don't think I've run 10 miles since my marathon last October. I had to run it on the treadmill because I couldn't mesh with the track schedule and a few inches of fresh snow prevented me from doing it outside. I wasn't really sure I had 10 in me and the treadmill was probably the best place to test that out. As much as a dread running on the mill it is sometimes nice to have that fingertip control over your pace. I pulled off the 10 without a problem... I am now convinced I can do 12 miles this week and a 15 mile run in 2 weeks.If you would have asked me that 4 weeks ago I would have laughed at you.

The 10 miles brought my weekly total to 24 miles. I increased my mileage kind of quickly in the past few weeks I hope that doesn't come back to haunt me! I'm very pleased with last week and I'm hoping I can continue to stay on track.

This week the milage goal is 27 miles. I took Monday off today I ran some hills via the treadmill and I will end the week with a 12 mile long run.

I Hate Flying!

2010-02-02T18:17:00.002-06:00

I was having a good week last week, on track for 21 miles. I would have made it if it wasn't for Delta airlines. Based on the sour attitudes and grumpy faces I think air travel adds an enormous amount of stress to about 90% of people. Delay after delay just break a person down. At some point you just admit defeat and go with the flow. So up until Sunday I had 18 miles with a 7 mile run on Saturday. Sunday I was going to get an easy 3 miles in... but it didn't happen.

This week the goal is 24 miles... with a 10 mile run on Sunday. I sat down and figured out the training schedule and it turns out I'm a little behind. So to compensate I'm going to have to push it a little this week. As usual I feel under prepared at this point but I'm confident I'll come around in a few weeks. This weekend will be big - confidence will come with a 10 miler!

I suck!

2010-01-27T14:31:00.001-06:00

Last night after a small scuffle with the ice,snow and the snowblower I was too wiped out to run. Just means I have to put in good runs for the rest of the week.

Well today sucked! I ran for 3 miles on th treadmill and it kicked my ass... I hate days like today. Just when you think your sitting pretty good 3 miles about kills you. Oh well tomorrow is another day.

Still not good at blogggggging!

2010-01-26T16:48:00.002-06:00

I really need to get back in the swing of blogging. I have the running part down finally! I had a good week last week - 5 days of running, total of 18.5 miles. My longest was a 5.16 mile run on Sunday at the indoor track. As mind-numbing as running in circles is I'm getting used to it and still prefer that to the treadmill. Still nothing beats outdoors but the weather has been crazy here- a good warm up than rain( in Jan.?) next a blizzard and now back down to zero? It all made for a nice layer of ice under a few inches of snow. Not ideal for running. For now I'm sticking to the track or the treadmill. Next week I'll be on the schedule for a spring marathon - Target is the Fargo Marathon, May 22 2010. I think I'm sitting pretty good, I wanted to be around 20 miles/week and running 5 days/week.

Yesterday I took the day off from running but tonight I'm out to get 4 miles in at the track. My goal this week is to get a 7 mile long run in.

Running Outside

2010-01-20T16:56:00.002-06:00

Winter is not fun. In North Dakota we have over a foot of snow and it's been very cold. This has really inhibited my outdoor running, forcing me to run on the treadmill or the indoor track. Last week we had a nice warm up (in to the 30s F) so I took advantage of it and got a couple of nice runs in. Running on the treadmill or in circles makes me bored and I lose motivation easily. As I build up for the start of marathon training I need all the motivation I can get. Those 2 runs outside have restored a lot motivation that has been lost since this fall. I tend to run faster outside and running a few miles under 9 min also helped restore motivation.

Of course this week I'm stuck out of town running on the hotel treadmill again. So far it hasn't killed my enthusiasm. I'm just a few weeks away from the official start of the 18 weeks of training for the marathon. My goal is to be running about 15-18 miles per week by the end of January. Last week I had a nice 6 mile long run and hopefully this week I can extend that to 7-8 miles.

24 Laps

2010-01-13T16:36:00.000-06:00

Although it was a tropical 20F outside last night I didn't feel like running in the dark with the very slippery conditions. Instead I opted for the indoor track/ice arena. I think it may have actually been colder inside there than it was outside? I managed to get about 3 miles in (just 24 laps!!). To my amazment I averaged an 8:35 pace. With all the slacking i've been doing I should have been running around a 10:35 pace. It was pretty obvious my endurance is hurting... I don't think I could have kept up that pace for much longer. Overall it was a satisfying run.

I checked the Fargo Marathon web site today and they have some updated info. Two things ignited a spark in me. The first is the route. I think each year they change the route either because of traffic concearns or flooding or both. This latest route seems like a combo of the previous 2 marathons. It's a single loop thankfully - last years double loop was not cool! It looks to be decent and hopefully dry! Also peaking my intrest was the guest speaker Dean Karnaze aka Ultramarathon Man. He has run and won all kinds of ultramarthons and not to long ago ran 50 marathons in 50 days- one in each state. I've read his books and I think he'd be very intresting to hear speak! So a few things to look forward to!

I suck at blogging

2010-01-12T16:35:00.000-06:00

Seems like forever since I've updated the blog. I have a million excuses but I'll spare you. Most importantly I have gotten myself back running on a fairly consistant schedule. I'm not nearly at the fitness level I was last fall but I'm working my way back.

The weather has been miserable for what seems like months but it's more like weeks. This has forced me to run on the treadmill a lot. I was able to get out last weekend and log 4 miles in the great outdoors. Although it was chilly it is definitely more stimulating than the treadmill.

I have a few weeks before I need to really start training if I plan to run the Fargo Marathon. I'm using this time to try to build up my fitness and prepare for the long training road ahead

Just a little update

2009-12-16T16:45:00.002-06:00

I'm still working myself into a regular routine. Seems like I'll have a good week followed by a 4-5 days of no running. I've been consistently putting in 3 miles when I do run- I think last week I totaled 9 miles :( I've got a few weeks without traveling now over the holidays - I'm planning to use this time to form some good habits so when I do get busy I'll be motivated to still squeeze a run in. I've got about a month and a half before I really need to start the training for a spring marathon.

Today I hit the treadmill for an exciting 3 miles over lunch - Thank god for sports center!

Looking Ahead

2009-11-18T21:08:00.001-06:00

I had a good week of running last week. I feel like I’m pulling out of my slump. I ended up with a little over 14 miles last week with 4 days of running. For now it’s a good place to be – running 3-4 miles at a time.

I’ve had some strange aches and pains – one morning last week I woke up with the oddest foot pain – just back from my big toe??? It lasted a day and vanished. I’ve also had some pain in my lower back on the right side… seems to come and go. Today I could feel it for about the first 1/4 mile I ran then it faded away? It’s not anything I’m worried about but I kind of feel old!

I’ve peeked ahead to count back the weeks from the Fargo Marathon in May. My plan is to start the official training the last week of January. That will give me about 18 weeks of training. Between now and then I’d like to build a solid base up. I’d like to be running 5 days a week totaling 20-25 miles. I need to build my long runs up to at least 10 miles by then too. It seems easy enough – although I know my work/travel schedule is not going to slow down anytime soon. That means suffering through many 4-5 milers on worn out treadmills in tiny hotel fitness centers! I’m really going to try to get at least one run in outside each week through the winter. The lack of daylight and unpredictable weather should help make that a challenge.

Working hard at not working hard

2009-11-11T08:51:00.001-06:00

It’s almost mid- November now and it’s time for me to start thinking about getting back into a regular routine. lately I’ve been working hard at not working hard. Leading up to the marathon I was starting to burn out. The high mileage workouts, worrying about being prepared and trying to fit the runs in around the weather, work schedule, and a regular life as a husband/father had me ready to call it quits with this whole 4 hour marathon quest. After the latest marathon, I ran a few times and then decided I wasn’t going to run until I felt like running again. I’ve spent these weeks in sort of a mardi gras. I’ve been eating at an alarming pace, not exercising at all and generally not thinking about running. I’ve managed to gain about 7 lbs.

I told myself November 1st was the end of the gluttony. Surprisingly Nov. 1st was the day I felt like running again. I went for a short 2.5 mile run and it felt great. I think the 3 weeks I spent not running were important to steer me away from total burnout but it really felt good to be moving again. I can tell I’ve lost some of the fitness I had a month ago –I was breathing hard that first mile and the muscles were sore the next day.

I’ve been out a few times since then and I’m slowly easing myself back into it. I still haven’t fallen into a regular routine. So far my longest run has been about 4 miles- I managed to run 3 days last week. This week I’m determined to get 5 days of running in.

I’m not sure why my motivation is so low. The weather has been great the last couple of weeks and looks like it will keep up for another week or so. I know in a month I’ll be kicking myself because I didn’t take advantage of these warm dry days.

Photos!

2009-10-24T21:10:00.001-05:00

It’s been a while since I’ve done this whole blog thing. It’s partially because I’ve been busy and partially because I haven’t been running much!

Here’s some photos of the TC Marathon:

This one is around mile 5 or 6. I was feeling pretty good! Everything going as planned!

Mile 14-15 still feeling Ok. More than half done!

Mile 21-22. This is when I told my fans “I feel great!” Ok so maybe I didn’t feel that great.

Finally finished!

My fan club!

A few weeks go by and you forget about how painful the last mile was. That’s probably why I keep signing up for these marathons- my long term pain memory is not working so good.

I’ve been taking it extremely easy these last few weeks. Only been running a few times. I need the break- after finishing the Fargo Marathon I plunged into training for TC Marathon within a couple weeks and didn’t really let up.

While I was training for this last marathon some family members have taken to running and were also training for races:

My sister ran her first 5K in July and ran the TC marathon 5K race – finishing in under 30min. Congratulations crazer!

My sister-in-law ran her first 5K in May (part of the Fargo Marathon) a wrong turn nearly turned her 5K into a 1/2 marathon. Apparently it didn’t discourage her because she braved the 30F temps to run the 5K in conjunction with the Fargo 1/2 marathon a few weeks ago. Congratulations LP!

My brother-in-law has come out of retirement to start training in an effort to capture a personal record in the marathon. Rumor has it he is thinking about doing this in Fargo next spring. I hope to join him in this effort –keeping up with him as long as I can or until I cramp up!

My plan right now is no plan for the short term. I suppose my next marathon will be the Fargo Marathon in May. I seem to have more time to train in the winter and I won’t need to start the serious training until mid Jan. That should give me some time to relax and ease myself back into it!

Twin Cities Marathon Report

2009-10-06T08:19:00.008-05:00

I made it, marathon number 3 is now behind me! My time- although short of my goal- was a 5 second improvement over my spring marathon time. Things didn't go exactly as I had planned but overall it was probably the most enjoyable of the 3 marathons I've run.

It started Saturday with the expo - packet pickup was a breeze! We milled around the expo for a bit - everything and anything related to running and then some. Fun to look at all that stuff. I realized none of it was going to actually make me any faster- It would just make me look like I was faster. Saturday night I carbo-loaded on an giant bowl of Pad Thai. My family had a spectator strategy session, I laid out all my stuff for Sunday and I was off to bed!

Sunday morning I was dropped off around 6:30AM near the Metrodome and made my way inside for warmth. The weather was looking good- light drizzle on the way there but looked like the skys were clearing. Temp was about 40F very light breeze. I wandered around the concourse of the Metrodome and just took it all in. It was a riot to see everyone practicing their pre-race rituals. Some strange stretches I'd never seen before, interesting use of garbage bags, a few people sleeping on the floor, lots of folks drinking massive amounts of sports drink and water, and many bananas and energy bars being consumed. Around 7:15AM I headed outside. I ditched my sweats in my bag and loaded them up on the truck to St. Paul. I wandered to the start area and lined up near the 4:15 pace group in corral 2. Myself and 10,000 others stood quite for the national anthem. As if on que the sun broke through the clouds and brighten up downtown Minneapolis.

The horn sounded and corral 1 was off. Corral 2 moved up to to the line and a few minuets later we were off. The start was good. For as many people as there were I expected more chaos. Everybody kept moving right along at a good pace. Compared to the Fargo Marathon start this was 100 fold better! I was sticking close to the 4:15 pace group. The leader 'Star' told us she was going to run 9:40 miles so we would have some time in the bank for the decent hill around mile 22. Sounded fine to me? We made our way through downtown, which was amazing - something about running through the urban canyon is exciting. The buildings faded away and the bells of the Basilica could be heard. The closer we got the louder and louder they rang. When we passed the Basilica it was so loud I could feel the ringing in my chest. An exhilarating way to leave downtown Minneapolis. I sharp turn to the left and a slight hill and there was the first bank of potra-potties - of course they were all full but that didn't stop the 150 people that "had to go" from using the near by wooden fence- quite a sight!

We had left downtown and were in a neighborhood now- crowd support was heavy! Lots of music, cheering and cow bell of course! Star - our firey pace leader began telling us how we were going to do this in 4:15:00. She frequently had to stop because the crowd was too loud for her to be heard. She warned that the first water stop was similar to a bar fight and to be prepared. I knew from my previous races she was not kidding. I experienced it first hand when I took an elbow to the ribs from a 5'4" 110lbs woman who was determined to get water ahead of me. Once I had my cup I slowed to walk and tried to stay out of the way!

Around mile 5 or 6 I saw my family - a welcomed sight! They were cheering loud and it gave me a needed boost. At this point I was feeling good - just another day running! As planned, I walked the water stop without loosing the pace group. Star and her ramblings were starting to get to me now. I enjoyed not having to worry about my pace and just sticking with the group but the marathoning lessons were getting old. I decided to run a bit ahead of the group where there was a little more open road.

Around mile 9 or 10 The pace group had almost 2 minuets in the bank! I think Star was running a little fast. I was OK with it - I'd much rather have a little extra than not enough. I was starting to feel it a little bit by now and I knew it wasn't going to be a walk in the park to finish.

We rounded another lake and it was the half way point. I was ahead of pace. The legs were getting tired but I had faith they would make it. Star thought it would be nice if we each went around and said where we were from and told a little about ourselves. At that point I had about had it with the yaking but I didn't want to leave the group. I tried to tune it out - it wasn't easy. I spotted the family again and their cheers gave me another boost.

I came upon the dreaded 16th mile - where I have faltered each time before. I could tell it was unlikely my legs were going to make it without cramping to the end but they were doing good for now. By mile 17 I could feel twitching in my legs - not a good sign! I slowed down and let the pace group go- I walked another water stop. At that point it was 1 mile at a time. 17 miles meant it was a single digit count down to the finish. I made it to 18- no cramps. Almost to 19 and bam I cramped up. Uggh!

I had been here before so I didn't let it break my spirit. I slowed down and walked when I felt a cramp coming on. At mile 19 I was still ahead of pace by a little bit. We crossed the bridge into St. Paul and that's when the real fun started! The first bit took us along the river nice and easy running with an occasional walk break to ward off cramps.

Turned a corner and I saw the dreaded campus of St. Thomas - it was hill time. You actually can't tell Summit Ave. is much of a hill at all but after 20 miles your legs definitely knew it was a hill. I struggled through a lot of it walking a good portion. At some point I felt pretty good and started running at a decent 9:50 pace. I kept that up for over a mile- I saw my family and told them I felt great- I wasn't lying- at that point I did feel great.

The next few miles were kind of a blur. I walked, shuffled, stopped to stretch, ran slowly and generally tried to make forward progress. After mile 25 you could see the top of the cathedral which marked almost done! There was a little downhill and a turn and there was the whole cathedral in view. It was enormous and with my mental state at that point in the race a very strange but awesome sight.

A few more little turns and I could see mile 26. I could see the capital. It was all downhill from here. That turned out to be not a good thing. My legs were not into going downhill. They weren't really into doing anything at this point. The streets were lined with people for this final stretch. I knew I had to run - I could not let myself walk this part of the race! I ran but slow - I guess it was more of a shuffle. People were blowing by me like I was a statue. I wanted to take off running full speed so badly but I knew I'd cramp up and roll like a ball to the finish. All I could think of was the collective gasp of the crowd if I fell down because I cramped up! I Frankenstein shuffled with cramped up legs and a ton of pain to the finish.

4 hours 33 minutes and 22 seconds after it started I was finished!

This is it

2009-10-02T21:59:00.002-05:00

1 day to go until the marathon! I'm feeling confident yet nervous. Not much I can do now but try to focus, hydrate and eat some more carbs. I managed to get 12 miles in this week. 6 on Monday and 3 yesterday and 3 today. Tomorrow I'll rest and Sunday is the main event. Temps look to be chilly 38F at the start maybe 50F by noon. Yikes that's cool! I'm still trying to figure out exactly how to dress. Wind looks to be light. No rain -partly cloudy.

I made myself a 4:15 pace bracelet (which is a 9:44/mile pace) So I guess that's the official goal time- 4 hours and 15 min. As I've said before the goal is really to finish in one piece and be able to function the next day. Stay tuned for the results!

Where to start?

2009-09-28T12:21:00.002-05:00

It's been so long since I've lasted posted I'm not sure where to start. I've made it back from San Francisco and a terrible 2 weeks of training. It hasn't so much been a taper - it' been less than a that. I'm home now for the final week before the big day and the nerves are in full swing.

Before I left San Francisco last week I managed to get 3 nice 6 mile runs in. I felt good about these. The best run happened last Friday- I ran my usual out and back route on my way back around mile 4 I passed another runner. When he passed me he immediately turned around and was running directly behind me. This is a pet peeve I have. I mean couldn't he have ran an extra 100yds and then turned around so we weren't running on top of each other? I decided either he or I was going to have to speed up or slow down. I chose to speed up. I picked up the pace and was able to run a 7:20 pace for about a mile. Then I slowed to about an 8:15 pace for the rest. I left him behind and it felt good to push it a bit.

Saturday I traveled on the always fun red eye flight home. Needless to say I was completely worthless Saturday. Come Sunday I was ready for my last long run leading up to the marathon. I thought I would run 13 miles then I decided on 10 miles. I got out there and could only make it 9 miles. I've been fighting the cough congestion thing for a few weeks and I think it has morphed about 3 times into it's current symptoms. I was so out of breath and physically tired I just couldn't push it any further. Today I got up and ran 6 miles on the treadmill. It was much better then yesterdays effort. I see that as a sign I may be shaking this virus.

The marathon is 6 days away now. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous - especially with the crappy performance yesterday. These last few weeks have been very busy and to be honest the marathon was close to the back burner. I received my runners guide in the mail which brought me to reality - this is going to happen in just a few days! I'm trying to go in with a positive attitude but I feel more unprepared than normal about this one. I keep trying to tell myself it may work to my benefit. In previous half marathons that I've felt unprepared for I came out doing quite well. My goals are set low which could also benefit me. If I'm not concerned about time and performance so much I can focus on getting to the finish - the ultimate goal. I'm confident I can finish a marathon but it's more about what condition I'll be in at the end.

My strategy is simple- it's the old tortoise and hare - slow and steady wins the race, although I'm not actually looking to win the race. Winning would be finishing in one piece and being able to function the next day. I'm planning on taking some short walking breaks about every 6 miles and walking through the water stops. I think if everything works out I can make 4:20 maybe 4:15. I'd be happy with anything under 5 hours and no leg cramps. Hydration and nutrition are going to play heavy into my strategy.

The weather right now looks good they are saying partly sunny - low of 44F high of 59F about perfect for a marathon. I'm a bit worried because Saturday calls for stead rains and Monday doesn't look too great either. This weekend it was in the 50's, raining with a 40MPH wind. I couldn't help but think how terrible it would be if the weather was like that one week from now.

Break Time is Over

2009-09-19T21:41:00.003-05:00

I've been in San Francisco all week and my training has suffered as expected. I've only managed 2 runs. Tomorrow is Sunday so that will be 4 days of rest and 3 days of running for the week. I think it may have been a good thing to take a few days off. By the end of last week I was feeling pretty burnt out. A few days off gave my legs some much needed rest.

By this afternoon I was ready to run again. I went for a nice 8.5 mile run. Again it was windy and hilly but I took my time and it went very well. Tomorrow if time permits I'd like to get 9-10 miles in. Monday starts a new week and hopefully I can finish these last two weeks with some solid confidence boosting runs.

I'm looking forward to the marathon but I'm equally looking forward to taking it easy for a while once it's over.

Less than 3 weeks

2009-09-15T21:57:00.003-05:00

Under 3 weeks to go until marathon day. Of course I've got a hectic work schedule right up to the day. I'm back in San Francisco which is both good and bad for my training. It's good because I can get some killer hill training in - which I've been told is important in the final stages of training for the Twin Cities Marathon. It's bad because the mileage and quality of the my runs always suffers when I'm traveling. I think I'm moving into the taper phase (although I would have liked to peak my mileage this week and start the taper next week) which should make it a little easier to get my target mileage for the week.

Following my 1/2 marathon effort on Saturday I awoke early Sunday for more running. I originally thought I would run another 13 miles on Sunday but because I probably pushed a little harder than I should have on Saturday and the leg cramp issue I settled for 10 miles. The weather was a bit cooler and the humidity was down which made for nice running. I ended up averaging a 9:30 pace. I have to say the pace felt pretty easy. I hope I have the discipline to keep myself at that pace for the early miles of the marathon. The idea was that running the 1/2 marathon followed by another long run the next day would be similar to running a 23 mile long run. I could definitely feel it in the legs and there was no doubt I had done some serious running the day before but I'm not sure it worked. I think I should have been way more exhausted than I was. Wait, Wait I don't mean to interrupt but Beyonce had one of the best videos of all time!

Monday I took as a day of rest. This evening I was able to get a nice 6 mile run in. The route I took here in San Francisco started with a wicked half mile climb. No better way to start a run than uphill! Then I followed the water for another 2.5 miles with some small rolling hills and a serious breeze from the East. I turned around at 3 miles and followed my path back. It was nice to finish that last .5 mile downhill.

I'm going to try to keep the miles up this week- 30-35 miles would be acceptable. We'll see what I actually get.

Dick Beardsley 1/2 Marathon

2009-09-12T20:41:00.003-05:00

Today was the Dick Beardsley Half Marathon in Detroit Lakes, MN. It's a very well organized race and I think it's gotten better each of the last 3 years I've run it. I left my house around 5:40AM to make the drive and pick up my packet at 7AM. I had my packet by 7:20 and was back in my car pinning 0n my race number. I walked over to the starting area and waited around for the start. It was cool and cloudy maybe 57F but the air was damp and there was a fog over the lake. I knew it was going to be a uncomfortable humid run.

Around 8:30 people started lining up. I heard Blah blah blah, Blah blah blah. The crowd got quite enough just in time for me to hear "...and the home of the brave" Ok I guess that was the national anthem. Just then Bang and we were off! The start was good - I was lined up about perfect, not a lot of passers and I wasn't doing a lot of passing. First mile I clocked in 8:40 - a bit fast. I wanted to stay closer to 9:00. Mile 2 was an 8:30 - so much for slowing down. Mile 3, 4, 5, 6 all flew by I was consistently running 8:30 -8:40 per mile. I was hot and sweating like mad but I was taking as much water as I could at the aid stations. Before I knew it I was at half way. I felt really good and thought no reason to take it slow if I'm feeling this good. Miles 7,8,9 went by just as fast- I was smoking and it felt great. Mile 10 and I started to get a little tired but I still had a 8:42 pace. Mile 11 I thought I felt a leg muscle twitch? I hit mile 12 and I felt I had a little extra in the tank so I thought I'd pick it up some for a strong finish. I passed a couple people and bam leg cramp! Uggggh! I kept running but my legs were tight I had 7/10 of a mile to go! I slowed my pace but continued. I cramped up 1 more time before the final turn to the finish. I was passed by about 5 people in the home stretch but I had to focused on not cramping up with everyone watching. Just as I crossed I had another cramp! I finished in 1:53:40 just 23 seconds slower than last year! I felt good about the time but I was disappointed in the cramps.

I think it was all about hydration today. I was well hydrated before the race and I drank at the water stops but sometimes my cups were only half full so at most I was getting 4oz of water if I could manage to get it all down. I was sweating a lot because of the humidity and I'm sure I wasn't able to keep up. I probably could have avoided the cramps if I would have taken it a little easier but I find it hard to slow myself down when I know I'm being timed in a race. Hopefully I can learn form this and apply it the marathon in 3 weeks.

Overall I was very pleased with my performance. If nothing else at least my times are consistent!

82F, 9 miles, 20oz water = tired and thirsty

2009-09-10T16:47:00.003-05:00

I've contracted some variation of a cold that has been circulating through the family. Getting up this morning was not easy. My head was plugged and throat scratchy - perfect way to start the day. My plan of getting 10 miles in before work was postponed to an extended lunch hour run. good thing is it seems to never make it past the feel like crap in the morning and at night but OK during the day stage.

Around 11:30AM I stepped outside to see how the weather was. Hot that's how it was and windy. Ah my two favorite things heat and wind! I set out with hopes of getting 10 miles in. About 4 miles in I decided I should cut it short since my water supply was over half depleted. I did a simple out and back run. On the out portion I was running into the wind which I thought would equal fast times on the back portion. What it really means is it's even hotter coming back because you don't have the steady breeze in your face.

About 6 miles in I was out of water. I found it tolerable to run in the shade but still warm. I wandered back and forth from one side of the street to the other like a drunk sailor trying to stay in the shade. I kept thinking I probably picked the hottest day in September to run 9 miles- brilliant.

I finished exhausted and thirsty - I plopped down and guzzled a quart of water. Of course I had a stomach ache 30 seconds later. I took a freezing cold shower and drank more water. Please weather gods don't let it be hot on marathon day!

Tomorrow I will not run, Saturday is the half marathon- Still shooting for under 2 hours! Stay tuned for a compelling race report!

Pretty Good

2009-09-07T20:16:00.004-05:00

I came up a little short on my long run Sunday. I started out good and felt like it was going to be a good run. The first 6 miles flew by. I was maintaining a 9:40 pace exactly where I wanted to be. I took a break to fill my water and a have delicious Chocolate Outrage GU at 9 miles. At that point I still felt like it would be a decent run.

The next leg took me out around the airport. Obviously it's open country out there and the winds were starting to pick up. My trip out there was fast with the wind at my back but my trip back was draining. Interesting enough I witnessed them shoeing birds from a runway with firecrackers and bottle rockets -not only did I jump when that first M-80 went off but I've never seen so many birds scatter!

Around mile 13 I could tell it was going to be hard to get to 24 miles. I started towards home because it was heating up and I knew my water wouldn't last. 16 miles and I was really feeling it. I took a short walk break and finished what little water I had left. I arrived home with just over 17 miles complete. My time was terrible, I felt like crap and I debated continuing on. I knew if I didn't get at least 20 miles in I'd be beating myself up.

I opted for the 3 miles and make it 20. I left and got about a mile and then I hit the wall hard. I was feeling it around 16 miles but at 18 I literally felt like my legs could go no more. I didn't experience any cramping in my legs but it was just like they said nope we're done. I walked about a block and decided to try to run a bit. I was able to run but my place slowed considerable.

I had truly hit the wall. Up until then I'm not sure I've technically hit the wall. In the previous marathons I've had leg cramps that hampered me but I felt if my legs didn't cramp I'd still be able to run at a decent pace. It was a bad feeling and I didn't like it. The bright side is I did not have cramping which is the ultimate goal of this marathon effort. I am confident I can run through it in the marathon I just have to be aware that it will slow me down tremendously.

Monday was a day of rest. Today I ran 5 miles in the morning. It went well- a little lingering soreness from the long run but nothing serious. I've got an ambitious week that is already almost half over. I'd like to have more than 20 miles in before I run the half marathon Saturday. That means at least 8 miles Wednesday and 8 miles Thursday. Ideally one of those should be a 10 miler - we'll see. Saturday half marathon goal is sub 2 hours.

Bottoming out

2009-09-04T16:49:00.004-05:00

I think each time I've trained for a marathon I've hit the bottom at some point during the training and been one step away from giving in and ditching out on the race. This time it's been building up for some weeks -Thursday I hit bottom.

It seems to happen at about this point in the training - burnout is looming because I'm spending a lot of time running and the miles are taking a toll. It was some burnout but also a pile of things too numerous and petty to get into that did it this time. It all added up to me nearly saying "screw it - why am I training for this stupid marathon!" It got me down and pretty much ruined most of the day. From the previous times I've been at this point I realized that what I needed to do was take a break and start fresh the next day with a good solid run to turn my thinking around.

Yesterday things were looking better. I made time for a 7 mile run over lunch and it was exactly what I needed. I went at a comfortable pace and tried to focus on the weeks ahead and my long run this weekend. It seemed to help turn things around.

This morning I was able to get 6.5 miles in. It was a perfect run! It was cool and calm and hardly a person was out. Again I took my time averaging about a 9:20 pace. I'm trying to save myself for a long run tomorrow.

My goal is 24 miles tomorrow. I'd be happy with 20, very pleased with 22, and feel really good about 24. If I hit 24 it will put my weekly mileage at about 45 miles. This sets me up for a 50 mile week next week which would be a nice point to peak. Then I'll have a nice 3 week taper to the marathon.

Excessive Running

2009-09-01T20:39:00.002-05:00

4 miles today over lunch break. Legs felt good no lingering soreness from the 20 miles Sunday. I averaged an 8:42 pace -which is decent. 40 more miles and I'll have myself another successful week of training.

I registered for the Dick Beardsley half Marathon in Detroit lakes, MN Saturday Sept. 12. This will be the 3rd time I've run this race. The past 2 have been excellent! It's a manageable number of runners (slightly less than 1000) so there isn't a lot of tripping and walker dodging. The course is a beautiful loop around Detroit Lake. There are some scenic spots but most of it is looking at the backside of expensive lake homes and cabins. There are a few decent hills but nothing too serious. It's a nice challenge for a flat terrain runner like myself. And they have ice cream at the finish. Each year they have a special guest 'legend' that supposedly runs the half marathon. I've never seen the legend or Dick running - but then again I'd be way behind them anyway! This years legend is Bart Yasso. I'm looking forward to it again this year.

My goal for this 1/2 marathon is a sub 2 hour time. I'm not gunning for a PR because I tried that in the spring with success but I had a crappy marathon 4 weeks later. We'll try a different strategy this time around and see how it works. I'm also going to try and run a good long run the next day so I don't want to completely wear myself out.

I'm toying with the idea of running the FM 1/2 marathon on Oct. 10. It's the week after the TC marathon and I'm not sure the body would be up for it. My first thought was that's crazy - then I realized I run nearly those distances that close together in training- so why not? plus I'd get another shirt. If I do run it the goal would be to finish. I have until 9/14 before the price jumps and it appears Oct. 4th is the online registration deadline. Looks like I'll have to decide before I run the marathon. 2 half marathons and a full marathon in about a 4 week time span - hmm? sounds excessive- I think I'll try it!

20 Miler

2009-08-31T09:35:00.003-05:00

I made my 20 miles on Sunday (actually 20.49 miles). It was another cool morning perfect for a long run. I ran one loop of the Fargo marathon route again (13.1 miles) and then added another 7.4 along my favorite bike path.

I started slow - about 10min/mile pace- and I admit I could still feel the effects of the previous days 10K effort. I knew if I was going to make this 20 miles I'd have to take it easy. The first 8 miles I ran pretty consistently at a 9:45 to 10:00 pace. I stopped around 8 miles filled my water bottle downed a GU and continued on. The next 6 miles I ran a little faster - around 9:20 to 9:30 pace. I stopped at my house around 14 miles for a short break to get another refill of water, more GU and ditch my water bottle belt. Around Mile 15 I started to get a little uncomfortable - legs were getting heavy, back was getting a bit stiff. By mile 16 I started to loosen up again and felt really good. Mile 17-20 went really good - my last mile was run in 9:08!

I was tired when I finished but I could have put in at least a few more miles. Most importantly my legs did not cramp up and I didn't feel like I "hit the w all". If I could finish the marathon and feel like I did yesterday it would be a success.

Each time I run 20 or more miles I think I lean something new. This time I finally figured out that pacing yourself early tends to payoff later. It's one of those things that seems like common sense but apparently it took me about 6 or 7 times to figure it out. Now I just need to remember that on marathon day. I also learned that Chocolate Outrage GU is by far my favorite flavor- on the other hand Tri-Berry is not.

The current plan is another 20+ miles this weekend. Because of my schedule I'm likely not going to get a 3rd 20+ mile run in before the marathon. So this weekend I'm thinking 24 miles. Next weekend I'm going to run the Dick Beardsley 1/2 Marathon on Saturday and I think I'll try to run 15-16 miles Sunday. I'm hoping that the combination of running the half marathon and another 15 miles the next morning give me the benefits of a long run. Supposedly it works for the Hansons? After that I'll shift into taper mode.

1.7 Seconds Slower

2009-08-29T13:21:00.007-05:00

I ran the 10K this AM and shocked myself by finishing in 48:59.8- yep 1.7 seconds slower than last year. If I just would have cut that one corner a littler sharper, cranked it up a notch in the final 100 yards, or pushed a little bit harder in the beginning I would have gotten a PR. Oh well, I'm still more than thrilled.

It was a very cool morning 45F at the start of the race (according to the car thermometer) and of course a very light rain to top it off. I overheard someone say that had about 250 people for both the 5K and 10K this year so turn out was good. My estimation was about 50/50 for 5Kers to 10Kers. But there seemed to be a fair amount of 5K walkers.

The start was good- old fashion gun start no timing chips in this baby. I was towards the front but not toeing the start line. Since there weren't a ton of people I was able to get to a comfortable pace quickly without tripping over anyone. I started to pass a few people and felt really good. Just then a guy came screaming by with a baby stroller. A good jab to your ego when your feeling good this early in a race. I was probably passed by about 4 people from the start but by about a mile in I held my position or was passing. The 5K split off and the field thinned to about half. Around the 6K mark the course turns back on itself (the end of a gravel road) I counted the people that had made the turn around ahead of me to get an idea of where I was. I counted 30 ahead of me. After the turn around I was able to pass one person. Therefore I'm guessing I placed about 30th. Of course it's almost impossible to get your official place/time since I'm not sure it's recorded or made public. I do know my watch said 48:59.8 and the big clock said 48:59.??

I was greeted at the finish by the kids, my wife, my mother in-law and sister in-law. My wife nearly missed the finish (almost a tradition) because she stopped to get me some coffee! It was really good coffee too! Several people asked where I got the coffee- I replied with a smile "my wife!" The kids wanted to run the kids run which was a 1/2 mile loop around the pond so I trotted around with them. Then it was off to the car show, street vendors, and FOOD!

It's the Potato Days festival so I thought it only right that I eat Potato products. I had this potato dumpling about the size of a baseball sitting in a pool of butter. Oh it was good - a little salt and pepper yum yum. I hadn't gotten my fill yet so I got me a potato sausage wrapped in lefse. The 'Our Savior Lutheran Church' folks make some good food. I was tempted to get another dumpling but pony rides were calling.

Tomorrow I've set my sights on 20 miles. I feel good now but I hope I didn't wear myself out today. I have a feeling it will be a S-L-O-W long run - which is perfectly fine with me.

Potato Days

2009-08-27T08:15:00.003-05:00

I've decided to run the Potato Days 10K this Saturday. I've run it the past 2 years and I figure why break my streak. It's a small 10K -I'd guess a 100 people would be a good turn out. It's sort of an out and back course. It starts in a park heads through town and then into the country side on a gravel road. Fittingly the turn around is where the gravel road ends. It's then back into town through a slightly different course.

2007 was the first year I ran it and it was my first road (gravel) race ever. I remember being nervous and having a goal of finishing in less than 1 hour. I believe I finished in about 53 min. which I was very pleased with! Last year I had been traveling the week before the race and arrived home on an 11:30PM flight the night before. I got up around 5:00AM to get ready and drive the 25 miles to Barnesville, MN I was unsure of how I'd do because of lack of sleep and not much training leading up to the race. I surprised myself by finishing in 48:58.1! I averaged under 8 min miles for 6 miles! On very little sleep.

This year I'm feeling the pressure. I should do better or at least similar to last year but I'm thinking I'll turn in a 50+ min time. I haven't been running super fast lately and my frequency and quality of runs has been less than ideal. I also need to get a 20 miler in on Sunday so I'd hate to burn myself out on a 10K and not be able to finish the 20 miler.

I've been going back and forth on if I should run this or not but I'm excited now that I've made my decision. It'll be good to be back in the race atmosphere even if it is pretty small and not the best course. Who knows I might just beat my time from last year.

The running this week has been good: 5 miles Tuesday, 3 miles with hills Wednesday and 6 miles today. The 10K on Saturday will have me up to 20 miles and a 20 miler on Sunday will put me at 40 miles for the week Woo Hoo!

Monday Morning Long Run

2009-08-24T07:51:00.005-05:00

The rest of my week went fairly well. I ran another "5K" on the hotel dreadmill putting me at 15 miles heading into the weekend. Saturday I ran a delightful 6 miles on my home turf with no problems. The goal this week was 39 miles which left 18 miles. Sunday I slipped into procrastination mode, around 3:00PM I decided to get this done. My daughter wanted to ride her bike around the old track down the street so I ran while she biked for a whopping 2.5 miles! Well short of the 18! It was hot and I wasn't in the mood. New plan was to get up ultra early and get those 18 miles in Monday morning. I did get up 'ultra' early and was at the gym by 4:15 AM (surprisingly busy at 4:15?) I ran 10 miles on the treadmill and then opted to finish outisde. Sad to say I only managed another 3 miles. I guess for getting miles in on a monday morning before work 13 is decent - but it's not 18! So I'm calling my weekly total 36. Next week I need 40 miles!

This week I'm not traveling so I plan to get some really good runs in and I will get a 20 miler in this weekend! Even if I have to crawl the last 10 miles. Saturday there is a 10K I'm thinking about running haven't decided for sure yet. It's a small 10K but has been fun in the past... it's the gravel road section that I really don't care for.

4 x 5Ks

2009-08-19T22:03:00.003-05:00

I'm back on track and have had a couple good days of training. I'm traveling again this week so I'm logging my miles on a treadmill. The hotel I'm at has these Matrix treadmills which appear to be decent but they are terribly confusing and not very user friendly. I can't figure out how to change the time on it. It seems to be stuck on 30 min. and it counts down (I prefer counting up) you cannot display the pace, just your speed in MPH - this is a problem because I know what pace I want to run but my head does not convert this to MPH easily. There are about 2 dozen buttons on this thing but very few of them actually do anything. 'Manual' mode actually has a mind of it's own - choosing your pace and incline at it's own will. After a few starts and stops I decided to just hit the button labeled 5K and start running. It then displays my distance as being 5 and counting down?? So now my time is counting up and my distance counting down??? Long story short, I ran 2 "5Ks" yesterday and 2 today. Although confusing, I think I've managed to get 12 miles in the last 2 days - A good start to 39 miles this week.

Eat, Sleep, Work, Run, Repeat!

2009-08-17T21:58:00.004-05:00

Yet another week has passed. I have tried everything I can to make time stand still with no success. I really only need it to pause for 1 or 2 weeks, just to get caught up. Seriously, summer is over and I think I missed most of July and the first half of August. I'm upset that it blew by so fast but the TC marathon is now close enough that it has revived my training.

By some miracle I was able to squeeze 33 miles of running in last week. I'm pretty sure I broke the 10% rule (the week before I ran 13 miles total) along with probably every other training rule. Determination is strange and I was determined to get more than 30 miles in and at least a 13 mile long run. It meant running 6 days including a 4:30 AM 2 miles on a treadmill before an early morning flight. It was a hot week, which made it an easy decision to get the weekday miles in on the treadmill.

On Saturday I braved the humidity (~78F w/88% humidity) with a 6 mile run. First 3 miles were decent but I could definitely feel it. Last 3 miles were hell! I felt like I was losing my breath the air was so dense - I was completely drenched in sweat and totally spent! I hobbled into the house and crashed in front of the fan - layed out on the floor like a corpse. After a few moments catching my breath I guzzled some water and was able to prop myself up for a cool shower. That easily had to be the most draining run I've ever completed. I'm so not acclimated to running in humidity!

Sunday I planned to run at least 13 miles. Needless to say I was a bit nervous after the previous days run in with the humidity. I got up early to try to beat the heat. I was disappointed to find out it was already 68F and 90% humidity at 6:30AM. The radar showed rains headed towards us but I figured I could out run it. Outside it was muggy and uncomfortable. I got about 2 blocks from the house and it started to sprinkle. By the time I finished the first mile it was a steady rain and it did not let up. The rain was welcomed and actually made the run more comfortable. I averaged a steady 9:37 pace and returned to my home like drenched rat. However, I didn't collapse in a heap from exhaustion -I felt remarkably good- probably the best I've felt after a long run in a while. Of course shortly after I finished the clouds vanished the sun came out. It turned out to be a beautiful, 70F, low humidity summer day!

The marathon is creeping up and I keep looking at the calendar trying to figure out exactly how I'm going to get a few 20+ milers in and still have a good taper. I think I've got it figured out but it's going to be tight! This week is key- my goal is 37-39 miles. I'm gunning for a 17-18 mile long run over the weekend. Next week I'll need to follow with another solid week 42-45 miles including a 20+ mile long run. I'm afraid from here on it's going to be eat, sleep, work, run, repeat. Why is it I enjoy the marathon again?

IOWA

2009-08-11T22:16:00.004-05:00

I'm still incredibly busy traveling for work. I had another touch and and go this weekend. Although it was a quick weekend I did get to spend the entire time with family and friends doing nothing but relaxing. I didn't get a long run in last week therefore my weekly mileage total was weak. I think I ended up with about 13 miles total, with only 3 days of running. It's still frustrates me when I think about it!

This week I'm in lovely Southern Iowa- hot, sticky, sweaty yuck! Seems every time I come to Iowa it's unpleasant weather. My last trip through the state included a 2 hour white knuckle ride down a snowy and icy I-80. It doesn't much matter what the weather is because I believe the running I do this week will be indoors on a treadmill. The hotel I'm staying in has a surprisingly nice treadmill and a working air conditioner. I'd prefer to run outdoors even with the heat and humidity but I just haven't had the time or drive to search out a good route. So far I've managed a quick 2 miler on Monday morning and 4 miles this evening. I'm hoping to get 6 miles in tomorrow and 6 on Thursday. This would set me up for a nice long run this weekend on my home turf. Sounds like a good plan but stay tuned to see how it plays out.

My schedule is still very tight for the next few weeks and I'm not sure how I'm going to pull off some quality long runs before it's too late. I've got a few races that I'd like to do too - The Potato Days 10K and maybe the Dick Beardsley Half Marathon. I guess if it was that easy to train for a marathon with a busy schedule everybody would do it.

Touch and Go

2009-08-04T23:06:00.001-05:00

I left San Francisco for the flats of Fargo almost a week ago. I visited my home just long enough to say hello to my family, relax for a bit and re-pack my bag just in time to hit the road again- what a pilot might call a touch and go landing. This time I’ve been shipped to lovely central Illinois! What a contrast in weather from central Illinois to the SF bay area. The humidity here is killer and I don’t think it’s unusually high for these parts. The temp. is only in the 80’s but with the humidity I was sweating before my shoes were tied. Compare that to last week when I almost wished I had long sleeves in SF!?!

It has been a crazy couple of weeks and it looks like it will continue for the time being. When I signed up for the Twin Cities Marathon I was apprehensive because I didn’t know if I would be physically ready to run a marathon in the spring and in the fall. Once I committed I thought it would more enjoyable training and I might be able to work at it a little harder since I’d have decent weather and lots of daylight over the summer. Physically I think it’s been easier than I thought. It was quite easy to just jump back into training after the Fargo marathon. What I hadn’t really thought about was how busy this time of year can get. My training is surely suffering and my blogging frequency is a reflection of that too. At this point any running is good running! I’ve more of less thrown the training schedule out and I’m doing what I can, when I can. I still have goals in my head but they are slowly getting throttled back. I know I’ll be in shape to complete the marathon, but since this is the 3rd one I need to be better than just a finisher. I’d really like to get in under 4:20:00, but I’m going to need to train better than I have been for that to happen.

All that being said, I actually had a fairly decent week of training last week. I ended the week with a 17 mile long run on Sunday morning. I surprised myself with how well this run turned out. I’m not sure it was the smartest move since I hadn’t had a long run over 10 miles in about 3 weeks but I really wanted to prove to myself that I was capable of 17. I felt completely comfortable through 13 miles. Around mile 14 I felt a little tightening in my right leg directly behind my knee. I backed off a little, slowed down and it disappeared. 15 through 17 were 3 good miles. I was even able to clock an 8:53 pace for mile 17. I ended up averaging a 9:37 pace overall, which is maybe a little fast but very pleasing. I felt really good for about an hour after this run, then I took a turn for the worse. I came down with a powerful headache which I think was mainly due to dehydration and my legs started to feel the fatigue. I iced the back of the trouble knee and some other sore spots which helped some but most of the day I just felt crappy. With that run my weekly total was 32 miles. I should be around 37 –39 miles by now but I can only seem to get around 30 miles in a week. I think I’ve only run 4 days a week the last 3 weeks and missing that 5th day is sure hurting my weekly totals.

This week I’ve managed to get one run in so far- a quick 3.5 miler and I think I’m probably only going to get about 20 miles in total this week. A long run may have to be put on hold for a few weeks –uggggh! stupid fall marathons!!!

The High Seas

2009-07-26T22:11:00.004-05:00

I'm still in San Fran working away on the high seas. I'm guessing at some point in every Geologists schooling they think about where they will be when they enter the work force. Maybe predicting earthquakes or volcanos... perhaps exploring for oil or minerals... maybe finding that undiscovered fossil. I'd have to say with complete honesty I didn't think I'd end up on a barge in the middle of San Francisco Bay, getting a crash course in tying off anchors from a giant captain named Mateo. I may not have dreamed it but it's been intresting and I probably wouldn't trade it for most other jobs. I may not be able to predict an earthquake or find oil but give me three anchors and a bunch of rope and I bet I could show you how to hold a barge perfectly still on a windy day!?!

For some reason it's way harder to find motivation to run when you're traveling for work. It hasn't kept me from running although it has persuaded me to not run as far or as often. I've managed to get a couple of nice runs in the last couple of days which has me feeling a little better about my training. Yesterday I mustered up the guts get through 9.75 miles and today I hammered out 8.5 miles. I'd have to say running a bunch of miles after rocking back and forth on the water for 8 or 9 hours is really strange. I felt like I was swaying back and forth, poor people on the trail probably thought I was on something. I didn't get a 'long' run in this weekend but the combination of the last two days runs brings my weekly total to about 28 miles. This is about 9 miles short of where I should be. Given the situation I think it's pretty decent and I'll take it.

As an interesting side note- the San Francisco Marathon was today - The winner ran it in 2:26:32... Because it runs across the Golden Gate Bridge they start crazy early- 5:30AM . I hadn't even begun the work day and someone had finished (and won) a marathon. Talk about getting more done before most people are awake than they get done in an entire day...

2 Steps Forward... 1 Step Back

2009-07-14T12:38:00.005-05:00

It's been a while since I've posted!!! Summer is half over... the days are slowly getting shorter, the weather is sure to heat up some more, the marathon is getting closer, the long runs are getting longer and I'm finding less time to blog! About 10 weeks until the TC marathon!

I don't even know where to start... I guess I'll hit the highs and lows again!

2 Saturdays back I was scheduled to run a 15 miler - my longest run so far this training period. I got up early and decided I'd run the Fargo Marathon course (1 loop) and add a few extra miles to get up to 15. I left my house and ran the 1/2 mile to the course then proceeded to follow the course (as best I could remember). Near the Fargodome I added an extra mile and continued back on the course to my house. It turned out to be a really good run. I took it kind of easy and the weather was great! It was yet another confidence booster. I finished the week with close to 36 miles. I was right on track if not a bit ahead of where I wanted to be mileage wise at this point.

The next week (last week) not so good. I stumbled through the week getting less miles in than I wanted but figured as long as I got a good long run in I'd be OK. Come Saturday morning I get up early got prepared and head out... before I got to the end of the block I was already looking forward to the end. I wanted to get 17 miles in but before I left the driveway I decided 10 would be OK. I just wasn't feeling it that morning. By 1 mile in I was thinking about how terrible I felt and how I wanted to be anywhere but out here running. I was progressively getting angrier at myself for being negative and wishing away a perfect morning for a run. It all boiled up and by 1.5 miles I turned around and went home. I was upset and angry and it hung with me for a few a hours. Looking back I think it was the wise thing to do. I've been out and wanted to quit before and talked myself into sticking it out - that happens practically every week. This was different, it wasn't just in my head... my whole body wanted to quit! I've heard and read that one of the most important things is knowing when to quit and when to continue on. This was without a doubt a day to quit! Although defeated I was able to get a short 3.1 mile run in Sunday evening that helped ease the stress a bit.

I'm in San Francisco now and traveling and good quality training runs don't always go hand and hand. I tried to plan for this... I've been pouring on the miles and I thought this week I'd back off a little since I'd be away. I guess I kind of did that last week so I'm going to try to stay on track this week.

Today I went out and ran 4 miles. In San Francisco they have hills... and they are not little speed bumps, they are real hills! They also have wind- not gusty wind- constant steady wind! This means I ran a 7:36 pace for about a mile while I had the wind at my back and running down a slight decline. When I turned around I took a different route back which was literally straight up hill into the wind- I was running a 10 min. mile... ugggh! This whole week will be hill training!

Busy Busy

2009-07-10T15:32:00.002-05:00

It's been a full week since the last posting... Perhaps this post should also be titled "Slacking"? Despite the heavy workload somehow I found the time to run - Maybe this is a sign that I should consider a 12 step program for this addiction? I have a feeling this week is just the beginning of many busy weeks! Our late summer and fall work schedule is full of projects out of town - always a joy to get your miles in while traveling!

So what have I done in the last week? Here's the short version:

Saturday - I pounded out 13.1 miles (for each of the original colonies)

Sunday I followed up with 6 miles in the heat.

Tuesday 6 miles turned into a 4.6 mile run on the fly

Wednesday 6.2 miles with some hill repeats

Friday 7.18 miles over lunch!

Here's the in depth highlights and low lights:

My 13 miles went well - I started off pretty easy around a 9:40 pace. Around 4 miles I felt like I was getting faster and working harder, I checked my pace and I was actually running a 9:59 pace!! I was a bit upset and decided to pick things up.. I ran the last mile in 8:58! Truthfully once I sped up I felt more comfortable and like I wasn't working as hard... Funny how that stuff works!

Since I'm a slave to the almighty mileage total I needed to get some miles in on Sunday. I was still feeling the 13 miles right away in the morning so I put the run off. I opted for running at likely the hottest time of day- I was up against the clock as I knew dinner was waiting for me when I finished. This means I averaged a 8:43 pace for those 6 miles. Who says I'm not motivated by food? I finished the week with 29.5 miles- Less than planned but I skipped a day!

I went out for 6 miles on Tuesday but after about a block I adjusted that distance to 5 miles It keep getting less until I turned around and went home. It just wasn't a running morning.

Hills on Wednesday- nothing to say but I hate hills even if they are little... There is a reason that competitive running tracks are perfectly flat - it's because sane runners don't do hills.

Friday I slept in and missed my morning run - I really need to work on this sleep thing. Currently I'm blaming my lack of sleep on my kids for talking me into doing a jigsaw puzzle with them... they lose interest quickly while I'm become more addicted to it. Again, because I'm a slave to my weekly mileage total I took a run over lunch- I was going for 7 miles... if you do the math, it is physically impossible for me to run 7 miles, shower and eat something in a 1 hour lunch break. Luckily it's summer and half of my co-workers took off early- I felt entitled to a little extra lunch break- I mean I'm actually saving the company money... Running is a healthy activity and the healthier we are as a company the more our insurance premiums will go down! Is that justification or what? Although it was getting warm out I still managed to run it at an 8:51 pace... probably the food motivation again - the quicker I run the more time I have to eat!

So this weekend I'm gunning for a 15 mile long run and then another busy busy week!

Slacking

2009-07-03T19:05:00.001-05:00

I’ve taken the last 2 days off. Thursday I planned to take off but today I was actually going to do my long run. Instead of waking up at 6AM I hit the snooze a a dozen times and ended up rolling out of bed around 9:45… oops! It had already started heating up so I ditched my plans of running. I think I'm going to try again tomorrow. My mileage will be down a little this week since I took 3 rest days but I don’t think anyone will notice.

Wednesday I attempted another hill workout. I did a 1 mile warm-up and then I ran 4 repeats up a hill ~300yds resting on the descents. On the 5th and 6th repeat I ran hard up and down. After that I blasted out the rest of my 6 miles – actually clocking in 6.71 miles. I averaged a 9:31 pace. It was a good run but I need to find some better hills or move to the treadmill for my hill training.

Tomorrow in honor of our country’s independence I’ll run 13 miles – 1 for each of the original colonies… not really- I had actually planned to run 13 regardless… I’m not that much of a goober!

The Man of Many Voices?

2009-06-30T08:32:00.005-05:00

Today was suppose to be an easy 4 miles - I woke up a little late which means either I don't get all 4 miles in or I'm going to have to break a record. The weather was perfect this morning- in the 50's very light wind, sunny - couldn't ask for better running weather. I headed out and felt good right from the start- peeked at my watch about a mile in and I was running an 8:20 pace! I haven't felt that good running that fast in a while! I ended up slowing down a bit and averaging an 8:40 pace for the entire run. Although I was running fast I still wasn't going to make it in time so I ended up doing 3.56 miles. I'll have to add a bit extra to another run this week to make up for it.

This run was for Danny Gans- I'm not really sure what/who this guy was? Baseball player, Comedian, Las Vegas staple, The Man of Many Voices? Huh? He died on May 1, 2009. Originally it was thought to have been a heart attack but was later ruled a mixture of prescription drugs and a pre existing heart condition. Seems to be a common cause of death of those in show business. I've never seen him and know very little about him other than when he died I thought -Hey that's the guy who's name was plastered everywhere in Las Vegas.

Tomorrow 6 miles uphill both ways!

A Good Weekend

2009-06-29T15:26:00.004-05:00

Turns out dedicating a couple of runs means you just end up dedicating more runs... My wife says "How come I've never had a run dedicated to me?" There has been some chatter about why did MJ get the longer run and Farrah get the shaft again by only getting a measly 6 mile run? Now Billy Mays is dead does he get a dedication? What about Ed McMahon? David Carradine? Isn't there a theory that these things tend to happen in threes? Seems there have been more than 3 celebrity deaths recently- so does that debunk the theory? I've deiced why not dedicate each run to someone different? I'll give it a shot until I run out of people or causes.

Now on to the weekends running:

Saturday morning I decided to do my long run- it was a wise choice because Saturday afternoon and through Sunday the winds were howling. I went out and pretty much ran until my watch told me I had gone 4 miles then I turned around and ran back home. I went on a route that heads South following part of the Fargo Marathon route near the Fargo Country Club and the river. I grabbed some more water at home and headed out to finish up... I actually ended up doing 12.13 miles - At mile 11 I was so deeply moved by Micheal Jackson's positive attitude and message of love that I figured I owed him and the world a little extra (or I didn't turn around until I was 2 miles away from home- so I didn't really have a choice but to run 12 miles). It's the longest I've run since the marathon this spring and I think it went well. I averaged a 9:27 pace which is about where I wanted to be. I was tired and a little sore but no aces or pains to speak of. It was really the shot in the arm that I needed to get myself back on track. It's a confidence booster just to know that I can still get that distance in. Michael would approve.

I needed to finish up the week by getting some miles in Sunday- I opted for 6 miles... I ran down to my favorite bike trail to see how bad it was flooded. I was able to run on most of it but had to jump over to the road for about a 1 mile portion that was still underwater. Looks like the water is going down so by tomorrow or Wednesday it should be completely open. I averaged a 9:20 pace which I thought was kind of slow - but I did have to wait for at least a min for traffic and I was bucking a hard wind from the West for about 2 miles of it. Regardless of the pace I was happy I got it in. The fact that I was able to get 18 miles in over the weekend again boosts my confidence. I know now that I am building my endurance back up. I'm not running as fast as I want to but I think that may have been my problem in the past - I focused too much on my pace and finish time. Building endurance is probably more important.

I was shooting for 31 miles last week and I actually ran almost 33. I started the week in a funk but really felt like I pulled out of it over the weekend. So I guess it was a good week of running- can't ask for much more!

Today I didn't run and I haven't looked ahead to see what I'm suppose to do tomorrow - I think it's suppose to be hills! Who could I dedicate that to?

Dedicated Runs

2009-06-26T12:55:00.003-05:00

Remember when he looked like this? That's the way I prefer to picture him in my mind. The diamond encrusted glove is perhaps one of the first items considered 'Bling". Hard to believe we thought that was cool. I think Thriller was one of the first cassette tapes my sister and I ever had. I swear I watched "The making of Thriller"- the music video more than 50 times one summer on HBO. From the beginning he was over the top and just kept out doing himself. Makes me think he wouldn't have had it any other way than to steal the spotlight away from another unfortunate icon's death on the same day.

I woke up today and decided to run my 6 miles that I skipped yesterday. I dedicated this run to Farrah since she got a raw deal yesterday. For the first time in awhile I felt like it was a quality run- I averaged a 9:07 pace which isn't blazing fast but I did run the last 3 miles about 20 sec./mile faster than the first 3 . It also helped that I ran a new route - I took the bridge into Moorhead, MN for a change and ran around the campus of Concordia College. It was a nice change of scenery and they have pretty good sidewalks over there! My heart rate monitor hasn't been working right for about 2 weeks and although I don't check it that often while running I do like to refer back to it after the run. So I'm not sure about my heart rate but I felt like I was working pretty hard! I'm not sure if Farrah was a runner but it wouldn't surprise me with her diverse resume. Either way she would have been honored to have such a quality run dedicated to her.

Tomorrow I'm going to crank out my long run for the week. Fittingly it will be dedicated to Jacko. Hopefully I make it through without ending up in a hyperbolic chamber, lose part of my hair in a pyrotechnics mishap, or end up with a deformed face. Again, I don't know if Mike was a runner - in fact I'd be surprised if he was - seemed to always have a face mask on, probably had allergies or asthma. Runner or not he too would be honored that I plan to hammer out 11 grueling miles in his name.

May you rest in peace Farrah and MJ

Fresh Start

2009-06-25T11:56:00.002-05:00

It's been a few days since I've posted. It's amazing how just because there are more hours of daylight in the summer you think you can (and attempt to) accomplish more.

The running hasn't been that great this week. I'm not sure if it's lack of motivation, a lack of sleep, or the fact that I've been feeling like the quality of my runs are getting worse rather than better.

I started the week by taking Monday off. Although I didn't run, I didn't feel like the rest rejuvenated me much. I had trouble getting to sleep that night too which didn't help either.

Tuesday I got up early and got 4.18 miles in. The weather was almost ideal- in the 60's and the humidity had dropped significantly overnight. I thought perhaps it would help me run a bit faster- I was wrong. I averaged 9:02/per mile. I was a tired and disappointed in the quality of the run when I finished. I put it past me because this was suppose to be an easy run.

Wednesday I woke early again and planned to get 6 miles in. It was suppose to be a hill day but my hill is underwater again! I decided to turn it into a sort of speed workout. My plan was go out easy at a 9:30 to 9:40 pace for 1 mile, then run at a 8:45 pace for 10 min, switch back to 9:30 for 10 min., etc until I had my 6 miles in. It didn't work out so good... I did my first 10 min of 8:45 OK but I was done after that. I dragged myself home and only ended up getting 4.59 mile in. My average pace was 9:10. Not so good for speed work!?!

Today I woke up early and the weather looked nice but I just didn't have the motivation to run. I went back to sleep and decided to worry about it later.

I'm not sure what the deal is? I'm hoping it's just a temporary thing and I can snap out of it. I think a really solid long run might change my outlook... I'm going to try to get 11 miles in this weekend and see what that does. I think I need a fresh start!

28 miles this week

2009-06-21T21:24:00.003-05:00

I finished this weeks training with a 9.6 mile long run this morning. It put my total at 28 miles for this week. I feel good at this point- I've got about 15 weeks until the marathon and I think I've got a decent base built up and my long runs have been around 10 miles. I'm ready to start increasing mileage and the distance of my long runs as well as adding some speed and hill training.

Here's what I ran to end this week:

Thursday 5 miles- there was a decent thunderstorm in the evening but once it cleared the temperature dropped and it was a very nice evening for running.

Friday- rest day

Saturday 3 miles - I went for an early morning run. I had to work hard but I average 8:33 per mile.

Sunday 9.65 miles - My run this morning kind of caught me off guard. the temp. was 70 when I left. I took a water bottle with me but I should have taken more. The humidity was pretty high and I could tell it was taking a lot out of me. The spring and start of summer have been slow - my last last long run the temp was in the upper 50's. I think I haven't fully adjusted to the warm weather yet. I was feeling good through about 6 miles - by 8 miles I was out of water and I starting to slow down. Hopefully I'll adjust soon!

Tomorrow starts the second week of the training schedule - I'll extend my mileage to around 31 miles and try to get an 11 mile long run in on Sunday.

Hills (take 2)

2009-06-17T21:16:00.002-05:00

Today was another hill day. I woke up around 5AM - there was an intense thunderstorm happening - not a good time to run outside. Plan-B... hit the treadmill! Went to the gym jumped on the mill and started running. Just as boring as I remember! Mile one -no hills ran it at at 9:00 min pace. Mile 2 started the incline- I didn't really have a plan so I changed the incline every 2 min. up and then down. Once I hit mile 2 I was sweating to the point of embarrassment. It was very hot and humid in the gym and I couldn't take it anymore. It looked like the rain and lightning had stopped so I decided to finish with 4 miles outside. It was still humid outside but the breeze made it feel a little better. I ran a couple loops through the NDSU campus and stopped at the baseball stadium and ran the stairs a few times - best I could do for hills in the area! I finished strong but I still felt like I didn't get a proper hill workout -Guess there's always next week.

Tomorrow 5 miles at marathon pace.

Vacation

2009-06-15T21:42:00.002-05:00

OK so week one of my training didn't quite go as planned! We took a long weekend vacation and I didn't bring my running gear with me! I figured the family could use a vacation from running too! I didn't run Friday, Saturday or Sunday. Last week was only a 14 mile week.

Today I got back on the horse and cranked out 4 miles bright and early. The schedule called for an easy 4 miles - I averaged an 8:44 pace and had no problems keeping that pace. I should have been a little slower but I didn't feel like I was pushing very hard at all. My heart rate monitor went crazy so I didn't have that to gauge my effort.

I've been complaining a lot about the weather and how it's been such a cold start to summer, well today that changed- at 6AM it was 61F but the humidity was high... I had forgotten how humidity and summer running felt. I wasn't uncomfortable but it made me think -what's it going to be like when it's really hot? I'm almost guaranteed my long runs will be some of the hottest days of the summer! I'm not sure I'll ever be satisfied with the weather.

I'm still tweaking my training schedule - it's parts of 3 training plans now!?! If I break 4 hours in this marathon I'll have to publish my final frankensteined training schedule and charge money for it! I'm trying to keep my Buckeyeoutdoors training log updated and have my log public so anyone can view it. I've also got the feed on the right side of the blog - but it seems to not be updating sometimes?

Next up- 6 miles...

Hill

2009-06-13T07:26:00.001-05:00

Thursday I headed out to get the 6 miles in I skipped over Wednesday. I took the dog for the first 1.6 miles...again he did well- completely ignoring the other dogs that were spazing out along our route. After I dropped him off I headed back out to do some hill(s). I found a hill in Fargo - most of it is man made! It is about 300 yards from top to bottom. The first 200yd rise very gently and the last 100yd are a fairly steep climb. I ran up to the top trying to keep a 9:15 pace, turned around and slowly ran down for recovery- I repeated that 4 times - my heart rate when I reached the top was usually close to 180. Recovering back to the bottom I was down to 155 or so. After the 4th repeat I did 2 more repeats trying to keep a 9:20 pace up and down the hill. By then I was exhausted! I had about 1.5 miles left to complete my 6 miles - I finished that near the river where there are some small hills. Total mileage was 6.31 and I averaged a 9:18 pace. Overall a good run. Plan is to run hill(s) once a week - yippeee!

Day 2

2009-06-10T15:40:00.002-05:00

Second day and I've already deviated from the plan! I was suppose to run 6 miles today on a route with as many hills as possible - If you've been to Fargo you know that's tougher than it sounds! The closest 'hill' is about 20 miles to the East! Honestly there are very few hills in Fargo - it's either overpasses or the banks of the river which rise only 20 or so feet. Finding the hills wasn't the main problem today, it was having enough time this morning to get 6 miles in. I postponed my run until lunch today and opted to run 4 miles instead. I'll make up the hilly 6 tomorrow! Today was perhaps a perfect day for running - 60F partly cloudy skies and an usually light breeze. I trotted out to the airport and back averaging an 8:42 pace. I was suppose to run this easy or at marathon pace which is about 1 min slower per mile than I did. Ooops!? Tomorrow I'll tackle those hills or should I say that hill!

Day One

2009-06-09T12:12:00.003-05:00

Today is the official unofficial start of training for the Twin Cities Marathon - Oct. 4th 2009. I've decided to base my training off the Runners World Marathon Challenge training schedule that is in the July issue. This schedule is actually a 16 week program and it's really 17 weeks until race day - that's why it's the unofficial start!

To mark the start of my training I decided to run a Fartlek this AM. I hate saying Fartlek, I hate writing it and from now on I'll use 'random intervals' instead. I've run these before but not as a regular part of training. Today it really got me! I warmed up for about .75 miles around a 9:20 pace. I ran my first interval for .25 miles averaging about a 7:40 pace. Recovered for about 300 yards and ran another interval of about 300 yards this one at about 8:00/mile pace. I was about shot so I recovered for about .25 mile. I did several more 300-400 yd. Intervals but not getting much faster than about 8:10/mile pace. I ran one last .25 mile interval at an 8:30/mile pace and then ran home slowly (9:30 pace). I was beat up after that! My average pace was only 9:06 and I only ran a bit over 4 miles. Not sure what the deal was but I wasn't feeling it today!

Since this is the first day I better lay down my race goals - I haven't given up on 4 hours but I'm postponing that goal for a bit. I've got a 3 level time goal:

Level 3 (should be able to do this) beat my Marathon PR 4:24:53.
Level 2 (my target goal) 4:15:00 - average pace of 9:43/mile
Level 1 (almost out of reach) 4:05:00 - Average pace of 9:20/mile

More than the time thing I really want to get through this marathon without cramping up to the point I can no longer run. Both of the previous marathons I really felt great until my legs began cramping around 16-17 miles in. I'm not going to truly recognize that I've RUN a marathon until I finish having actually RUN most of the race. This year I'd say I walked/hobbled 2-3 miles of the Fargo Marathon. Last year it was probably 1-2 miles of walking. For Twin Cities I want that to be minimal - like only 10 yards / water stop! I'll feel much better about my time if I run the entire race at a slower pace- than cramping up at mile 17 walking most of the remainder and finishing a few min. faster. I'm very confident I can do 4:15 - I've run 22 miles at 9:37 in training with no problem. My main goal this time is NO CRAMPING!

Sunday Long Run

2009-06-08T12:40:00.004-05:00

Sunday I ran 10.7 miles. Plan was to get up early but I was able to put it off until almost 2PM. I opted to run on my old trusty bike path near the river. I have been running on portions of it but I haven't run North of Main Ave. since the flood - that North section is pretty low and I figured it was still pretty messy from the flood. Turns out they have most of it cleared out. The path is cleared but it's pretty muddy off the path and still has that dead fish/river stench. I should have taken some pictures because they have pushed up piles of logs/garbage etc. that were blocking the path and it's pretty amazing how much stuff comes through with a flood. Besides the stink it was a good route and since I've been running the same routes recently it was a nice change of scenery. My average pace was 9:20/mile. I'm happy with that pace but it's funny that 3 weeks ago I ran 10 miles at an 8:39 pace! I had no complaints about the run, everything feels fine and I'm feeling good as I head into training for the Twin Cites Marathon.

I did work out a training schedule - based off of the same coolrunning.com plan I have used before. I modified it slightly but basically it's an 20 week schedule- 5 days a week running with increasing mileage each week topping out around 45 miles about 3 weeks before the race. In the July issue of Runners World they have a marathon challenge feature. It included a 16 week marathon training schedule- at first glance the 2 schedules look pretty similar. I'm thinking I might try the RW schedule just to change things up. I was planning to start this week but I'm taking today off - If I go off the RW schedule it doesn't start until next week - Ahhh procrastination!

One of my goals for this training is to keep a better or more accurate log of miles, heart rate, etc. I think I do a pretty good job of this now but it's in an Excel spreadsheet and it's not ideal. In the past I've used Buckeye outdoors online log but I thought it was kind of lame. I went there today and it is loaded with features now! So if I can figure it out again I'm going to try to utilize that.

Tomorrow I'm looking to get 5 miles in - hopefully the weather cooperates! unbelievable but they got snow in Western North Dakota this weekend! Tomorrow is suppose to be cold and rainy.

Car Doors Suck

2009-06-05T08:23:00.006-05:00

My hats off to people who work in auto body shops that have mastered the skill of interior door panel removal. I had to fix the driver side power window in our car which means I had to try my hand at this skill. I didn't do it alone- It took 2 of us about an hour to get past level one - it was a game of finding hidden screws, undoing connectors, twisting handles, and precisely coordinated pivots. A quick consultation with Google and 50 min. later - presto it lifted right off!!! Then Level 2- more screws, peeling of inner liner, and speaker removal - finally I could see the problem. Level 3- fixing -contortion of the wrist, using a micro wrench blindly- 10 min. - Problem solved!!!! Reassembly- clip, snap, screw - dropped critical screw inside door- Oh #%^!!! Use magnet to get critical screw- reassembly complete! total time 1.5 hours - pray you don't have to get inside your car door anytime soon!

To celebrate my technical achievement I ran 6.5 miles yesterday. It was a warm summer like evening- but of course windy! Temps were in the 70's wind 15-20 MPH - maybe the hottest day I've run this year. I took some water with me and I'm lucky I did because it was gone by mile 4! I averaged an 8:50 pace. I guess it was kind of a normal run. I need to get 3 miles in today - not sure if I'll do that during lunch or if I'll just skip it? I'm up to 15 miles already for this week so if I skipped today and I was able to get 10 in on Sunday I'd still have 25 for the week - although 28 for the week would be nice!

Next week I'll start the training schedule for the Twin Cities Marathon. The first week will be much the same as I have been doing. I'll do some speed work on Tuesday and I'll run with a little more attention to pace and heart rate on the other days. I'm going to try to use the McMillan Race Calculator as my guide for speed workouts, tempo runs, and long run pace. Just about 17 weeks to race day.

Summer?

2009-06-03T22:01:00.002-05:00

Today was the last day of school for the kids - marking the unofficial start to summer. It's really hard to believe because when I left the house this morning at 6:00AM it was 41 degrees outside! We had a frost warning last night!?! Did I miss summer?

I ran 5 miles today, yesterday I slept in and it was sooooo good! I'm still having trouble getting myself out there in the morning but each time I do I'm glad I did it. I averaged an 8:49 pace. I ran down the bike path 2.5 miles and turned around and headed home. I was taking it easy on the way out so when I reach half way I looked at my watch and tried to beat my time back... I did by about 2 min. Recently I've been into not checking my pace/time so often during the run. On today's run I looked at about 1.75 miles, 2.5 miles and then not until the end. It's a challenge especially when I was trying to beat my split time . I'm not sure if it will benefit my training any but it's something to spice up the runs.

The rest of the week looks good: Thursday 5 miles, Friday 3 miles, and hopefully 10 miles on Sunday

Last weeks runs

2009-06-01T13:17:00.003-05:00

I haven't posted anything since last Wednesday - kind of slacking! I have been running just not writing about it... here's what I was up to last week:

Thursday - Ahhh hmmm slept in no-running

Friday- Ummm slept in, but I did get a 4.5 mile run in that evening. Slowed the pace to a 8:58 and was really relaxed at that pace. A very nice night for running.

Saturday- Yeah slept in - no running

Sunday - finally I got myself out of bed and on the road! As I had planned, I ran 10.1 miles. I kept my pace easy I averaged a 9:05 pace over the 10 miles and at no point did I feel like I was working super hard. There was a 20MPH wind from the Southeast which did make it interesting- I chose to run near the Fargodome and Airport which is the least protected area from wind in the city (brilliant idea!) I was more than happy to get back to the tree lined streets after about 1.5 miles of that open area. I had no complaints about the run, my foot that had been giving me trouble last week was fine. About and hour after the run and pretty much the rest of the day I felt horrible - I don't know if I was dehydrated, I over exerted myself or what but I just felt like a slug... really tired and just not normal.

Today - I woke up early (that's 2 days in a row) and got a 3.5 mile run in. Pace averaged 8:50/mile. It was a perfect morning for a run except it's June 1st and I could see my breath? The weather has been crazy but enough with the 'Cold Fronts' already! Again I had no complaints about the run and I've been feeling much better today.

I should be starting my training schedule this week but the first week is about what I've been doing the last 2 weeks so I'm sticking to the routine. I'm looking forward to getting on the schedule because for some reason I like the idea of having a purpose to run. Training is maybe the best part of running a marathon, it lasts many weeks the race is over in a few hours.

Tomorrow - If I can roll out of bed 5 miles!

Lunch Run

2009-05-27T16:11:00.004-05:00

I used my lunch hour to get a 4 mile run in today. I was planing on an early morning run but again I was too tired to get up early. Seems like that's common problem these days! I ran out to the airport and back which is exactly 4 miles - I did it at a speedy 8:07 pace! I tried not to look at my watch just to see what I feel comfortable running at - I was surprised to see my pace so quick. Towards the end of the run I could tell I was starting to fade. A great run, but I think I'm going to force myself to slow down these next few days since I've been kicking up the pace. One more week until official training begins!

Tomorrow 5-6 miles

25 miles

2009-05-26T11:51:00.005-05:00

I ended last week getting 25.4 miles in for the week. Just about right where I want to be. Here's what I've run since my last post:

Thursday 5.11 miles at 8:40 pace - first 1.6 miles with the dog. He kept up until about the last .25 miles... he eyed up a cat and 2 dogs but didn't take off after them "good boy" we averaged a 9:15 pace for that 1.6 miles without any walking breaks. After I dropped him off at the house I went for a few more miles. I felt good and pace was quick - mile 4 was 8:04 pace and mile 5 was 8:02 pace.

Friday 3.11 miles at a 9:04 Pace- It was pretty windy 25- 35MPH I went down to the bike path near the river - trail is clear but the grass is all mud from the flooding - smells like dead fish! Temp was about 70F would have been a really nice day if it wasn't so windy!

Sunday 9.57 miles at a 8:39 Pace - started out about 6:20AM it was clear and calm. Pace was faster than I had planned but didn't feel like I was pushing it- I didn't look at my watch until about 4 miles in- couldn't believe I was running an 8:30 pace... train forced a break at 8.5 miles. Finished up and felt pretty good. Foot started to hurt last 1/4 mile. I iced it for about 30 min. and it was fine. Maybe I need new shoes? or orthotics? I celebrated my 9.5 mile run by heading to the lake and help put in the dock and boat lift- thank God for wet suits! I didn't warm up until about 11:00PM that night. Does that count as cross-training?

Today 3.57 miles at a 8:49 pace - I think I was still sleeping for the first mile- I honestly don't remember much of it. No foot trouble. I made it back to the house before 6:30AM I thought about going back to bed for 30 min. But instead made a big pot of coffee!

This weekend I worked out a rough training schedule for the TC marathon and I actually should start that this week!! I'm comfortable at the about 25 miles again this week and I won't start the ramp up in mileage for at least 2 weeks. I'll add a little distance to my long runs - likely a 10.5 or 11 mile run this coming weekend but won't up the total mileage for the week.

As for all the new things I planned to 'add' to the training - I did go for about a 30 min. bike ride but I haven't worked the core. I guess it's never too late to start those things - maybe this week???

Final thoughts on the Fargo Marathon

2009-05-21T12:49:00.008-05:00

A few final thoughts about the Fargo Marathon. I did my fair share of obsessing over the course and weather leading up to the race but it turned out almost ideal - weather was perfect for running cool temps and very little wind for Fargo ( if I would have made my time I would have missed the drizzle) really couldn't have asked for more. The double loop course was actually pretty nice- I didn't get bored, the flow of traffic was handled nicely, and I took some comfort in knowing when I reached the Fargodome the first time it was just one more time around!
So what went wrong? First, what I don't think went wrong - hydration, I've read a lot that dehydration is thought to be the source of leg cramping. By the time I had my first cramp I had consumed about 35 oz. of GU2O beverage while on the course and I had at least 30 oz before the race. I had to use the bathroom during the race and I was not dehydrated after the race. I was a hydrating machine in the final week leading up to the race so I really have a hard time believing it was dehydration. I've also read about low potassium and sodium levels being a possible cause - I had worked hard to increase my potassium and sodium I was getting no problem. If anything I was over potassiumed!
What I do think happened.... two things- First I was running at a pace that I didn't train distance at. I had run 3 20+ milers without cramps but I ran them 30-45 seconds slower per mile. Perhaps that was slow enough to not over work my legs? maybe I'm riding a thin line between what I want to do and what I physically can do? I really felt good through the half but I was no stranger to 13 miles at that pace. Secondly I went out too hard and pushed too hard again around mile 15. At the start I was a good distance back from the 4 hour group- I spent some time trying to catch up to them - this meant running 8:35 and 8:40 pace for a good amount of time at the beginning of the race. Once I caught the group I felt good and relaxed. When I used the restroom at mile 15 I was then trying to catch that group again by running 8:30 pace for a mile- until presto -cramps! I accept these reasons better than hydration or mineral levels. I think I was really focused on my time this marathon and that may have held me back. Had I run a little slower I likely could have fended off the cramps at least until later in the race- maybe not making 4 hours but likely beating 4:33. Every time I run 20+ miles I lean something- I try to not make those mistakes the next time. I've only run over 20 miles 7 times... so I'm still learning! I'm looking forward to running long for my upcoming marathon training. I'm anxious to see if I can figure this out.

I slacked off this AM and slept in - poor dog didn't get to run! Maybe tonight I'll get a little run in if Sully feels up to it!

Running with Sully

2009-05-19T12:41:00.003-05:00

I got up in time today to take the dog on his first run in about a year. I took him out a few times last year but he wasn't so good with staying where he was suppose to- he would always run right next to my left leg nudging me with his body most of the time. It became a safety issue because I had a hard enough time keeping myself up running normally... then I had to deal with him constantly pushing into me, I feared I would mis-step and either hurt myself or him.

He did way better today. He was sleepy as I approached him, usually he doesn't get rolling until about 8:30 or 9:00AM. The 5:45AM wake up today was likely a shock... he sprung to life when he saw I had his collar. I hooked him up and off we went. He made the classic rookie mistake of going all out at the start. I planned on running about a mile with him and for the first 1/2 mile I could tell he wanted to go faster. I had to get him to heel a few times cause he got out in front. By 3/4 mile he was running out of gas. We took a short walk break turned around and began running back towards home. On the way back we slowed our pace a bit and he kept up but wasn't eager about charging ahead. We ran a total of 1.34 miles at an average pace of 10:33. He was rewarded with a big dish of water and the new restricted portion of his food. He ate it up and I headed out for another couple of miles.

I ran another 2.25 miles at 8:35 pace. It was a bit cool but still a nice run. After all the miles of training 2 miles seems to go by so quickly. I stretched a bit upon returning (I'm trying to stretch more after running) and sure enough Sully was asleep. I wonder if he even remembers running this AM, or if it was like a bad dream to him? I can only imagine what it would be like to get jolted out of bed without warning - run a mile- eat some food- then be put back in your bed and fall asleep, all in the span of about 20 min.

Tomorrow I'm going to either bike a bit or head to the gym. We'll give Sully a day to rest but Thursday he's up for 1.5 miles!

My New Running Partner

2009-05-18T12:57:00.008-05:00

Sully - my new running partner... he's 104lbs - apparently that's overweight for him?

I ran 4.25 miles this AM... I planned to get up really early and take the dog with me for the first mile or so, turns out the vet says he's a little chunky and could stand to loose a few pounds. Both he and I are trying to loose 15lbs by this fall. Of course I slept in and had just enough time to get my 4 miles in without the dog. I guess he'll have to wait until tomorrow. I ran at a 8:50 pace and it felt almost effortless. Heart rate was in the 140's for most of the time. I'm sort of in a holding pattern for the next few weeks - I'll probably officially start training for TC Marathon about the 2nd or 3rd week in June. The first weeks will be easy since I have a good base built up form my previous training. For these few weeks in between I'm going to try to maintain what I've got while still giving myself a bit of a rest. I'd like to incorporate some cross training in too. I'm going to try to bike on one of my off running days -we'll see how that goes! I'd also like to get into the gym twice a week for some weight training and work on the all important core... I think I have a core? It's probably just buried in there somewhere. I said these are things I'd like to do. If I actually do them may be another story. I'm banking on the- if I write them down I'll hold myself accountable- theory. I'm thinking it's best to try to work these things in now rather than when I'm 9 weeks into my training schedule

.

Tomorrow I'll either run 3 miles (some with the dog if I can get up early!) or I'll take my bike out for a bit.

Home again

2009-05-17T16:45:00.003-05:00

I made the Jumbo-Tron!

After the marathon last week I had just enough time to pack a bag and hit the road again for work. I didn't bring any running gear with me because I figured I could use the break and if I didn't have running shoes I wouldn't be temped. By Friday I was ready to get back out on the road - funny how you're so eager to run a few days after it caused so much pain! Saturday afternoon the weather was almost perfect so I headed out. I ran 4.6 miles at an 8:47 pace. I tried to not check my pace too much because I wanted to see how fast or slow I'd run. I had a little foot pain in my left foot. I had the same pain after a 1/2 marathon last fall and a few days last week after the marathon. I think it's a plantar fasciitis thing. I didn't have my orthotics in for a good part of the morning yesterday and I'm willing to bet 26 miles with sloppy form the last 8 miles didn't help either. Otherwise I seemed to be fully recovered. I think the 6 days off was probably a good thing. I was dead tired at about 8PM last night. I think it was jumping back into this time zone after getting up at 5AM EST for a week that did it. I crashed and slept for a solid 11.5 hours! I felt good this morning but the foot still hurt some so I iced it and it's been fine since.

I haven't even looked at the calender to figure out my training schedule for the next marathon but I know I've got a few weeks before I need to have it all worked out. Until then I'm going to try to get about 20 miles/week. Tomorrow I'll set out for 4 miles.

Fargo Marathon Photos

2009-05-14T19:27:00.011-05:00

Some photos from the Marathon taken by my mother:

Mile 11 - that's me in the middle in red. Feeling good! I had no idea what lie ahead!

My nephew... he is not homeless! We could so easliy change the sign to "will work for food"

This is not me... although I bet his name is TOM- Can't you wait to check your voicemail until after the race?

This is the real TOM- about mile 23. I actually look pretty good... I was feeling terrible!

My big finish...thankfully I was able to run it in and finish strong.

Thanks again to my family and friends who came out and cheered me on. Thanks for all the gracious comments left on the blog too.

I haven't been running since the race... I'm working in Cleveland and purposely didn't bring my running shoes with me. The first few days it was a good idea but now I'm ready for a good run.

I haven't been dwelling on my performance - I'm surprisingly OK with how I did. I'm looking forward to giving it another try. 4 hours wouldn't be my goal if it was that easy to achieve!

I have been thinking about the Twin Cities Marathon and what I'll do differently to prepare for it. I have some ideas that I'll write about soon.

Tomorrow I head home - hopefully Saturday is nice and I can get a good run in.

Fargo Marathon (Part 2)

2009-05-12T19:49:00.002-05:00

Part 1 is here!

... After I stopped and massaged the cramp out for a few seconds I continued running. This is the same problem at about the same time in the race I had last year. A million things were going through my head like- is this a fluke? what did I do wrong? how am I going to make it to the finish? I ran almost another mile slowing my pace to near 9:40 before I had another cramp. Again it stopped me in my tracks I massaged it out and walked a few steps and shuffled on. This continued through the next miles. By this time I had given up on my 4 hour goal and now I was focused on trying to do better than last year. I knew at this point that might even be a stretch. I saw my in-laws again and told them I was cramping up. I kept on moving and soon I came upon my wife. I told her I thought it was over- the cramps were becoming frequent and I had decided I would just do what I could. She said they would be between mile 20 and 21 and see me there. The cramping was frequent and I knew I wasn't going to beat last years time. I changed my focus to finishing. I was still running more distance than I was walking but nearly equal time doing each. I kept thinking about just getting to mile 20.

Once I got to mile 20 it really hit me that I still had 6 miles to go. I was feeling terrible and 6 miles seemed far even if I had to walk it in. Soon after 20 I saw my wife again and I could tell they saw the pain on my face. They say the marathon is the great equalizer – you can't hide anything- it's true!! I ditched my water bottle with her and she asked “What are you going to do?” I said “I'll make it I'm just going to run what I can and walk the rest” I continued on running what I could. In an effort to avoid cramping I had changed my form unconsciously which did allow me to run some but it also lead to cramping in other muscles. I had a constant battle of adjusting my form to minimize cramping. About this time the 4:15 pace group passed me by. It was sobering to know there went my time, but I was working my new goal of just finishing!

By mile 22 I was walking quite a bit and doing what most people who are trying to complete these things do- picking a landmark and forcing myself to run there, telling myself I could walk when I reached it and repeating that over and over. 'Once I get to that stoplight I'm walking', 'just past the green house and I start running again' It seemed like it was taking forever. My brother in-law, who has run a couple of marathons told me you get to a point where you think- I could walk this thing... but the more I run the faster I'm going to be done - If I walk this could drag on all day. I felt exactly like that so I ran as much as my body would allow only walking during and shortly after a cramp which was happening about every 10 min.

Around mile 24 I had a very sharp pain along my inner thigh a painful cramp that stopped me in the middle of the street. I literally couldn't move my right leg and my calf went into a cramp about the same time. I hopped over to the side of the road and tried to walk it off although my right leg was stiff as a board. A volunteer who was helping with traffic must have seen this whole thing unfold because he came over and said “are you alright?” I said “yeah just a cramp” he said “I can call the medics, It's not a big deal” I said “no, no, I'll make it, I just need to walk it off.” All along the course people are trying to encourage you by saying “you look good, you'll make it!” deep down you know your almost dead but on some level you think-maybe they are right. When that guy asked me if I needed a medic I knew I was in bad shape!

My focus changed yet again- now I'm thinking I can't have one of these crippling cramps as I run into the Fargodome. Even if i had to walk the rest of the way I was going to run for the finish. I made it to mile 25 only to be overtaken by the 4:30 pace group, again sobering to see a finishing time pass you by! I continued taking walk breaks and running when possible I walked the last 200 yards before the barricades that lead into the Fargodome. I rounded the North side and headed down the ramp I was able to run it in with dignity and finished in 4:33:27.

Despite almost everything going wrong that second half I feel good about my time. Yes, I wish I could have made 4 hours or even beat my time last year. But honestly my body felt ten times worse this year than last year and I only added about 9 min. to my time. There was a point when I didn't think I was going to finish- so the finish in itself was a victory. I had feelings of disappointment for about 15 min. while I was on the course - I got past it and finished. I didn't accomplish my goal this time but I know I'll get another shot. Everything didn't go my way but it was still a good race.

Thanks to my family and friends that cheered me on during the race. I'll post some photos in the next few days.

Fargo Marathon (Part 1)

2009-05-10T21:26:00.007-05:00

Friday afternoon I went to the Fargodome and picked up my packet and got the kids stuff for the youth run. We spent the next couple of hours messing around with the youth run. I appreciate how much it was organized but with so many kids and adults it took forever to accomplish... first we waited to get to the staging area, then we stood in the staging area, then we waited at the starting line, finally we ran the 1/2 mile, then we waited to get the medals, then we waited to get out of the finishers corral, then we waited to get up the stairs, then we waited to get out of the parking lot. 2.5 hours to complete a 1/2 mile run!!! The whole family was fried after that and very hungry! I had family come to town and cheer so we met up with them and had a meal of pasta. I set out all my stuff and was in bed by 11:30... 4:30AM I'm jolted awake by a painful cramp in my left calf!!! I hop out of bed and hobble around until it's stretched out. I start thinking this isn't good. Just about the time I got back to sleep the alarm went off.

I got up Saturday morning got ready, ate a good breakfast and had myself to the Fargodome by 7:05AM. It was sunny but cool about 36F. I waited in the car where it was warm and had one last drink of water. I hit the restroom one last time and started to find my place for the start. I lined up just even with the projected 4:00 hour finish sign, and just to the left of the 4:00 hour pace group. After the announcements the wheelchairs were off and we were ready to go. As the group moved ahead I was sort of forced further back from the pace group. I could still see them but they were a good bit in front of me now.

The field was off and after a bit we were moving. I checked as I crossed the timing mat- a little more than 4 min since the official start. By now the 4 hour group was hardly in sight. I started running but couldn't get much under a 9:30 pace with all the people. I'm still surprised how many people I passed that were walking in the first 6 blocks. I'm all for it if you want to walk the marathon/half marathon, or use a run walk method but if you know your going to be walking in the first 6-8 blocks you shouldn't line up with the 9:00 min pace people because most of them are not planning on walking.

I spent the first 2 miles moving through traffic trying to get into a groove and close the gap between me and the 4 hour group. By mile 4 I had made it to the group and felt very good. I stuck with the group which seemed to have a good 9:00 to 9:05 pace going. I saw my in-laws and a few blocks down from them my wife and kids- spirits were high and I was feeling great. The fan support was awesome- it was cold outside for May even by North Dakota standards but it seemed like everybody was out cheering along the course. There were a lot of yard parties that looked like a ton of fun! I noticed that the pace group was stopping about every other water stop and walking for 10 seconds. I kept running and was able to get a bit ahead of the group... I had GU2O drink in a water bottle with me and I sipped that while slowing down a bit. I slowed my pace when I got out in front of the pace group too far and ran with them when the caught me. We passed the 1st relay exchange and rounded the course and started heading North. I passed my wife and kids again around mile 8 and handed off my empty water bottle for a full one.

I knew I didn't have any family waiting for me until near mile 11 so I hunkered down and ran with the pace group. I felt really good- relaxed, heart rate was around 155, everything was clicking. At times I felt like we were running slow. I thought this was a good sign I wasn't pushing it. I had some gel around mile 9 and I was feeling good. Next few miles were going great I spotted my family - and I could see the Fargodome in the distance. Mile 12 was a blur there was a group of fans that were super loud along 14th St. N. all I could do was laugh because they were just going crazy. We turned up University drive and there was a split for the half marathoners to head into the Fargodome for their finish. The full marathoners passed by and headed back around for one more loop. Our split time was good about 1hr 58 min for the half. I was really feeling good and thinking this under 4 hr thing might just happen.

Mile 14 the streets were less packed - the almost 5000 half marathoners would not be with us for this loop. I had to use the restroom from about the 8th mile but I thought I would put if off until after the half because there would be less people using the porta-potties on the second loop. I started looking around mile 14 and figured I should take care of this soon as it was drawing my attention away from running. Around mile 15 I found an empty porta-john and I headed in. A quick turn around and I was running again. The pace group was quite a ways ahead of me but I felt confident that I could catch up to them over the next few miles. My focus had changed from maintaining a 9:10 pace to running a bit faster and catching that group. By mile 16 I was closing the gap slowly I felt good and everything was going great.I downed another Gel and continued to hydrate myself. I was running about an 8:50 pace and felt still within my comfort zone at that pace. About 16.5 miles I felt a twitch in my left calf muscle. I thought Oh no not this! I took note but wasn't too concerned. About 2 blocks later I had a full blown cramp that stopped me mid stride. My first thought was - Ugggh there goes my 4 hours!

Part 2 is here!

1

2009-05-07T12:27:00.006-05:00

One day left... I'm still sick! I felt better when I woke up today but I'm definitely not to 100% yet! I'd put myself at 80%. Last evening was a tough night. I took some cold medicine thinking it would help me get some good sleep - it made me dizzy and I actually felt worse after I took it. I did get an amazing amount of sleep which I think is helping. The weather is suppose to be similar to the weather this morning high 30's for the start maybe 46 by the finish of the race, cloudy and cool. I went out this morning and ran 2.5 miles as sort of a dress rehearsal... it was cold and I think I'll have to wear long sleeves at least for the start. I felt just OK for the 2.5 miles - not great. I'm hoping the adrenaline of all the people will help me get past my sinus handicap. My goal is still under 4 hours. I don't think that's out of reach but I'm not sure I can do it with this head cold. I'll be happy with a better time than last year - which shouldn't be a problem. Under 4:10 and I'd be really happy. Currently I'm thinking I'll stay with the 4 hour pace group at least for the first 8-10 miles. I know I'll go out too fast and by staying with the pace group I'll be able to force myself to run those first miles slower... after 10 miles I'll evaluate the situation and decide if I feel like I can pick up the pace a bit, need to back off, or just stick with the group. I'm not going to stop at any water stations for the first half. I'll have my beverage with me and have my family restock me along the course. If the pace group slows down at the stops (I think they did last year) I'm going to keep going and hopefully bank that time for when I crap out around 23 miles! I know I can hit my target of 2 hours for the half because in training I've done that distance 6-7 times and always been right at or faster than 2 hours. It's the second half that I'm worried about- I think by hanging with the pace group I'll conserve energy early on and I believe that will pay off the second half. I just received an e-mail with my bib number and later today I'll head to the expo and pick up my packet - then the real fun begins! If everything goes as planned I'll roll into the Fargodome and cross the finish line at 11:58AM tomorrow!

Sniff Sniff

2009-05-06T21:07:00.003-05:00

Still have the cold - I hope it's peaking today! It would be great to at least be on the up swing by Saturday. The weather this afternoon was almost perfect. I'm sure this has to do with the fact that I hadn't planned on running.

I've been so occupied with trying to shake this cold and getting healthy that I haven't really thought much about the race- I've thought about it but only things like- am I crazy doing this with a cold, how can I get sick the week of the marathon, I've got 3 days to get over this sickness before the marathon. I should be thinking about things like- Am I going to try to stick with a pace group, do I wear long sleeves if it's less than 45F, Which water stops I plan to run through, walk through or just skip. Maybe this is working to my advantage - I'm not over thinking over every little detail.

Tonight I'm going to try and get a really good nights sleep and hopefully feel better tomorrow. Then I can start thinking about the important things!

Goodbye Elton John, Hello Porta-Johns!

2009-05-05T09:37:00.004-05:00

The trucks full of Elton John and Billy Joel stage equipment rolled out of the Fargodome parking lot Sunday. On Monday the trucks with Porta-Johns pulled in. A sure sign the marathon is right around the corner! Amazing how many Porta-Johns they have at these things and there is still always a line 10 min. before the start of the race.

I haven't run yet today- turns out I've come down with a bit of a cold - runny nose, congestion the whole deal. I'm fighting it hard and I think I'm going to pull through OK. My whole family has had it and I thought I was going to make it through without getting it, but it got me yesterday! I really felt like sleeping this morning and I thought it might be better for me than running in the cold damp air. I'm hopeful that it will be getting better by Saturday and not worse. We thought maybe I would need Kleenex stops instead of water stops.

I'm going to try and get 4 miles in tonight if possible... nothing spectacular- more just to keep the legs moving. Then maybe 2 miles Friday again, just so my legs remember how to do it.

Not much longer

2009-05-04T13:53:00.002-05:00

Saturday I got up early and ran 10.71 miles - the longest I'll run before the marathon this weekend. It was a very good run and a great confidence booster for the marathon. The weather was nice- 40F when I left and close to 50F when I finished- little breeze and sunny. I averaged a 9:10 pace which is right where I want to be for the marathon. I didn't feel drained after 10 miles, I still had quite a bit left in me. I felt very comfortable with the pace. It was another one of those runs where everything is just clicking and before you know it you're 8 miles into it. I only hope I can feel that come race day! Seemed like there were a lot of people out running Saturday morning, I guess it was just a good morning for it.

Today I ran 5.2 miles before 7AM (it's not just the Army that gets more done before 7AM than most people get done all day) it was a cool morning (38F) but I wore shorts because I'm trying to acclimate myself to morning temps. and how I'll be dressed race day. I wasn't freezing but running into the wind it was a bit cold. I averaged a 8:52 pace and felt very good at that pace. I only have a total of 6 miles left to run before the marathon - seems like so little.

I hate this part of the tapering- I know there is nothing I can do to prepare myself anymore, but for some reason I feel like I should get more miles in this week. Maybe it's a sign that I'm ready to go? I felt the same way last year - full of anticipation, nerves, excitement, and of course- regret!

Weather report continues to change almost hourly. I've given up -it's not like I'm going to drop out because of the weather! Although snow might do it?

Only a few days left - plan is to run 4 tomorrow and a short 2 on Friday just to burn off some of the nerves.