Trying to Get Back to Respectable

Sat, Mar 15, 2014

Sat, 15 Mar 2014 06:00:00

Pretty good run today. 1:10 which means I finished it at 7:36 minute miles. Not to bad, I hope that I can keep that pace during the half marathon. I am having some aches and pains which I will need to dull out during the race. The top of my foot is still hurting and whatever pain in my hip/butt is still there. I will just keep monitoring my issues and make decisions day to day.

Wed, Mar 12, 2014

Wed, 12 Mar 2014 06:00:00

30 minute tempo run. 10 minutes slow, 2:30 @ 8mph, 2:00 @ 8.5 mph, 1:00@8.8mph, 2:00 @ 8.5mph, 2:30 @ 8mph, and 10 minutes slow. Didn't feel terrible. Very tired afterwards. Feet felt like they were sliding in the shoes.

Tue, Mar 11, 2014

Tue, 11 Mar 2014 06:00:00

Took it easy tonight but the fun part of the run was I got to run the dog and then run the baby. It was a good night! Nice to enjoy a run without having to worry.

Sun, Mar 09, 2014

Sun, 09 Mar 2014 07:00:00

This was an interesting run. Used my new shoes and that helped greatly. Today was supposed to be an easy 3 miles but it turned into something faster. I don't know why but I felt great and my body held up well. Which allowed me to run 7:56 per mile pace. My first mile was kinda slow because I was adjusting to the shoes but after that, everything felt great and I motored on through it. Not trying to run fast but it all felt good so I cannot complain.

Sat, Mar 08, 2014

Sat, 08 Mar 2014 07:00:00

This was supposed to be a 1:45 timed run but my feet would not let me finish it. Good thing I planned on returning my shoes today because if I didn't, I would have started really considering it. These shoes were not meant for me. I have enough problems, I don't need shoes to be another one. I went up to the shoe store and I think that I ended up with a good pair that will work for me. The fun thing was, the shoes were half the price of the originals and they were having a huge sale so I got a shirt and shorts. Not a bad end to a day that started off with a poor run.

Thu, Mar 06, 2014

Thu, 06 Mar 2014 07:00:00

Took off yesterday trying to get things to get in order. Today didn't feel terrible but skipping yesterday meant skipping a tempo run. I would rather miss a tempo run one time then screw up my training. 1 month from today, I will have completed the Scranton Half Marathon which is very exciting to think about. Really want to just stay healthy and keep everything in order. Once this training plan is over, I will take a week or two off to heal so until then, it is all about working hard and training carefully!

Tue, Mar 04, 2014

Tue, 04 Mar 2014 07:00:00

Mon, Mar 03, 2014

Mon, 03 Mar 2014 07:00:00

Was supposed to do 3 x 1600 at race pace, but come on, that was not going to happen with all of the ailments I have been struggling with. What did I do? I did 3 miles of quarter mile hills with quarter mile rest in between. This was not the plan but it was going to give my hamstrings and calves a break, which it did. I think that as long as I am thoughtful with my workouts and careful, I can make it to the half marathon in April and get a pretty good time. May struggle after it but should be okay. Hoping to just keep this going and get a good time then time for maintenance.

Sat, Mar 01, 2014

Sat, 01 Mar 2014 07:00:00

Took Friday off in hopes to heal up the calf pain that I had Wednesday. Overall it felt okay, it did tweak after about mile 3 but it started to feel okay after that. This was supposed to be a 1:45 run and I did just that, I was able to do the 3/4 normal pace and then picked it up for the last 1/4 to get an average mile time of 8:04. Things are sore and not feeling the best. Trying to ice and stretch it all away. We are only about a month away from the race, so I am hopeful I will be able to get there and keep it together. Just need to keep walking on eggshells as I get there. Not the most glamorous training ever but it is not terrible either.

Wed, Feb 26, 2014

Wed, 26 Feb 2014 07:00:00

This was a tempo run and it should have been for 45 minutes. However, my calf started acting up so I did it for 40 minutes. The first 10 minutes were easy, then 10 minutes @ 7:30, 2 minutes @ 7:04, 1 minute @ 6:49, 2 minutes @ 7:04, 5 minutes @ 7:30, 5 minutes @ 8:00 and then 5 slow. Still trying to get over my 2 day cold and was just not feeling it today but the run went well. I was pleased, just disappointed with the ending but I am not overly concerned with 5 minutes of cool down. Just need to make sure that I stretch appropriately over the next few days.

Tue, Feb 25, 2014

Tue, 25 Feb 2014 07:00:00

Mon, Feb 24, 2014

Mon, 24 Feb 2014 07:00:00

This run was a 4x800. In between each, I ran a quarter mile. The first 800 was 7:24, the second and third 800 was 7:19 and then 800 at 7:04. It was a nice workout and I don't feel too bad after it. I was not looking forward to it, but I felt good and hope that I can keep the momentum rolling this week. Starting to feel sick though so that is really not good, but I will push through and kill it!

Sun, Feb 23, 2014

Sun, 23 Feb 2014 07:00:00

New shoes on this nice Sunday run. I made sure to get outside considering the weather was fairly acceptable. The shoes felt pretty good, I would like to see how they do on a long run (next Saturday). Run felt pretty good, the legs felt strong enough. I did not run using a watch today which was nice to give me a break from thinking about my times, so I don't know the speed. Sometimes you just need to do that to give yourself a break!

Sat, Feb 22, 2014

Sat, 22 Feb 2014 07:00:00

Good run and the mantra worked. I just wanted to have a consistent run.

7:02.8 7:09.7 8:00.1 7:01.0 7:13.1 7:15.0

1:41.8 (.25 left on the race)

Looks consistent to me. I feel like my times are low enough to have a pretty good half marathon in another 5 or 6 weeks. I was pleased with the run and felt very good afterwards. I really think that I am on the right path. The only thing I think that I have left is to stay "pain" free for the rest of the training. I bought new shoes today so that should help get me to the next place I need to be!!!! Good day, good race, and a positive outlook moving forward!

Thu, Feb 20, 2014

Thu, 20 Feb 2014 07:00:00

Wed, Feb 19, 2014

Wed, 19 Feb 2014 07:00:00

Today should be a 30 minute Tempo run. So I ran 10 minutes slow, then 3 minutes @ 7:30 pace, 1:30 @ 7:04, 1:00 @ 6:49, 1 @ 6:40, 1:30 @ 7:04 and then 3 @ 7:30; all followed by 9 minutes of a slow pace. This felt pretty good today. Glad that I took yesterday off. My body and mind was very tired. If I ran yesterday, I would have had poor mechanics and probably hurt myself. I will run tomorrow rather then taking the day off.

Mon, Feb 17, 2014

Mon, 17 Feb 2014 07:00:00

This was supposed to be a 6x400 but I did 2 miles with speed increasing every other minute and then going back to regular pace. I don't want to hurt the hamstring any more than it could already be. No real problems tonight.

Sun, Feb 16, 2014

Sun, 16 Feb 2014 07:00:00

Another 90 minute run. Last week was 3/1 pace but this week was supposed to be all the same pace. I ended up running a run similar to last week than what I should have done. I felt good through the whole run though so I feel like I am progressing. My minute per mile pace went from 8:05 to 8:04. I think that is a significant win along with the fact that I ran strong the whole run. I think that my pace was a little hindered by the crappy weather. Wish this snow would just go away! I am so ready for spring.

Sat, Feb 15, 2014

Sat, 15 Feb 2014 07:00:00

Had to do Sunday's routine today because there is a ton of snow outside and I am not mentally prepared to run 90 minutes on a treadmill. I would rather change my day before trying to run that much on a treadmill.