Needing a battery charge?

Crap.  The car stalled on me again.  Yesterday's somewhat big snowstorm also brought me a dead vehicle.  My Mercury Cougar's battery light came on Friday morning.  It was enough to get me to work and back home.  Ariel's 10 month dr. appointment was after work and I drove seperatly to meet Nicole and Ariel.  I tried starting the car in the parking lot.  No luck.

I went to Checkers Auto.  They told me I needed a new battery.  I bought a battery 2 years ago, which seemed odd.  Put the new battery in my car.  The storm made things cold.  I was able to get home and drive some today.

My MRI appointment was at 7:00pm for my right leg.  I was done at 8pm and started driving home.  I didn't make it too far.  Long story short...I think my car needs a new alternator.  Battery is dead, but just needs re-charging.  What an ordeal tonight.  Hopefully the car is safe where I left it...??...

I feel like my body needs a new re-charge.  Hopefully I will figure out the results of the MRI soon and I can get back to working out.

5 days in a row for Aqua swimming.  Not too day.  Will post more about it soon.

Now until Boston

5 weeks left or 35 days of training. 

Day after a half-marathon

My legs feel stiff, tired and worn out.  My spirits are high and my legs lay low.  I got 2 new pairs of shoes and gloves today.  I went Aqua Jogging in the morning.  25 mintues and 400 meters.  Not too bad.  This seemed to loosen my legs a little.

I attempted running on the treadmill during my lunch break. I made it about 1.25 miles in 17-18 minutues.  Yikes.  The pace was super slow.  It was a mixture of jogging/walking.  I pushed the treadmill dial to 8:41/mile.  This has been my standard slow run pace.  It was too fast and I couldn't keep up.  After I got off I did a few leg weights and some stretching.   Super short workout, even though I was moving slow.

What does this mean for BOSTON Marathon??

Yikes.  5 weeks left of training, and I can't run.  No more running until....

I have a MRI scheduled for Saturday.

My legs need to feel better.

I need to stop limping.

2-3 weeks of running.  Maybe cycling too.

Guess what that means??  More time at the pool AQUA Jogging.  Oh Boy.  I guess I need to get up earlier and be at the pool for as long as I can.  Maybe even 2 swim workouts a day?? 

Abs and Core exercises would be good too.

Boulder Spring Half Marathon

What a great way to represent GU!!  I wasn't sure if I should have raced this one.  I decided that it would be a great training/tempo run leading up to the Boston Marathon.

Dave Cook ran along side with me during the race.  We both ran the first half around 7:00/mile.  Not too bad.  I think we were hoping to run just a tad bit faster.  The second half was faster for the both of us.  Dave Cook and I parted ways at this point.  He blasted the 2nd half with amazing split times.  I was pretty happy with my 2nd half performance.

I beat my course PR by almost 2 mintues.  I thought about slowing the pace several times.  I don't think it would have made a differnce if I ran the race fast or slow.  Both ways it would have been hard on my legs.  There was a pack of runners that I kept up with for most the race.  This allowed me to run smart and even pace.

Official Time: 1:31:50
Pace: 7:01/mile
Overall Finish: 56th
Age Group Finish: 12 of 63

Mile 1: 6:45, Mile 2: 6:47, Mile 3: 6:55, Mile 4: 6:58, Mile 5: 7:06, Mile 6: 7:10,
Mile 7: 7:17, Mile 8: 6:33, Mile 9: 6:40, Mile 10: 6:45, Mile 11: 6:52, Mile 12: 7:09
Mile 13: 6:50

Leg pains that won't go away

Will my leg pains go away??  I am not certain how much rest I should take?  I went to the doctors almost a month ago.  I took a week off and my left leg pain went away.  2-3 weeks later my right leg started acting up and the pain has been much worse.  I've taken about 1 1/2 weeks off now and the pain still exists. 

I went to a physical therapist last Monday and he told me that my "Peroneus Longus and Brevis" are the cause.  He did some needle therapy, massage, and more to help fix it.  He mentioned that I had a few knots and the muscle is just very tight.

I've used ice, ibprofin, foam roller, massage, rest...and nothing is helping.  This injury is very frustrating.

Boston is less than five weeks away.  I don't want to take off too much time, but I want to complete the race too. 

I also have a half-marathon scheduled for this weekend and I am still deciding whether I should attempt it???

Long Run before Boston

Do I dare say it? Do I dare run it? I had a 24 mile run planned for today. I kept thinking, should I even be running today? A hard race yesterday and I want to run how many miles.


Nicole and I went to church early today so I could get an earlier start on my run. We got back home just before 11am. I got all my stuff ready and was out the door by about 11:25. I really wanted to get out a little sooner, but what can you do?

The first mile was a little tough. I wasn't quite limping, but I felt slightly awkward. The first mile is at small incline, so it's never the best mile. Mile 2 is downhill so I can cruise and work on my pace. Most of my long runs are at Cherry Creek State Park. Today was an extra challenge for several reasons. First, I had to get the mileage in so I took extra loops and paths around the park. Second, my brother David met me at mile 19. I needed a pit stop, so I called David a few days before and asked if he would be interested.

I had everything mapped out and I was supposed to meet David at mile 18. I was running behind schedule and was figuring I was going to run 18 miles in 2 hours. What was I thinking? I wasn't planning on running that fast. Around mile 13 I lost my glove. I took my glove off so I could get a gel. I put the glove under my armpit and the glove someone ran away. I realized I lost my glove, so I ran back to find it. I kept running and running in the wrong direction. I tried hard to find my glove, and never did. I asked a walker along the path if she seen it? She said she mostly looks down and didn't see it.

Shortly before I spoke with the walker, I speedy girl flew by. She was at warp speed and headed in the direction I was supposed to be going. The chase was on when I turned back around. I tried catching her. Almost thought she might have my glove...yeah right. I came close, but never did. She ended up turning around and we waved at each other. She didn't have my glove. Darn.

I was getting close to where David and I were supposed to meet. I pulled out my cell phone and let him know that I was coming by shortly. I told him less than 15 minutes and I will be there. Down hill most the way. My pit stop was just after mile 19. David brought me some water. I mixed my GU20 packet into my water bottle and I was good to go.

Five miles left and David was running with me. I didn't want to slow down my pace, but I didn't want to wear David out. The pace was still pretty fast, but David managed...until we hit a big hill. He struggled a little, but we met each other at the stoplight. I was extremely impressed with his running and pumped that I had some company. 2 more miles and we were home. The pace slowed down a little. No worries because the last 2 miles were supposed to be a cool down.

We finished and the run was over. We rested a little bit, and I took David back to our meeting spot. I drove back home looking forward to a nice long nap. Ariel woke up shortly after my shower...no nap for Daddy. We went out shopping for a few things. I was at a snails pace. Nicole even called me Grandpa.

The day after was pretty rough. I decided I was going to take the day off and swim instead. Great idea. Hopefully the days to come my legs will recover.

Here were my mile splits:

Miles 1-10: 8:21, 7:42, 7:35, 7:29, 7:43, 7:39, 7:53, 7:45, 7:55, 7:40

Miles 11-20: 7:32, 7:43, 7:50, 7:44, 7:30, 7:34, 7:28, 7:42, 8:09, 8:22

Miles 21-24: 7:43, 8:01, 8:11, 8:05

Frosty Frozen 10 mile

Frosty Frozen 10 Mile

What a weekend. Lots of activities planned...and not all just running.  I woke up pretty early because it was race day!  The race didn't start until 10am, so I had plenty of time. I even got to sleep in a little.

I had my morning race breakfast, oatmeal.  I try not to eat too big of a breakfast on race day.  I didn't have any coffee, but I sure wanted a cup.

I have been trying to get over all my leg injuries, so I wasn't sure how my run was going to be??  My right leg started bothering me on Thursday's run and I was a bit nervous.  I ran an easy 1 mile warm-up run.  I tried my best to get fully warm before the race started.  The temperature was rising and I was getting anxious.  I found several of my running friends.  Dave Cook and I will be running Boston together, so this race was perfect.

The race started. Dave Cook and some of my other friends took off.  I did not want my first mile to be under 6 mintues, so I let some them pass.  My first mile was 6:20, so I was pretty happy.  It amazes me how many people (just like me) go crazy for the first mile.  Almost a dead sprint...then everyone seems to slow down, or adjust.

Mile 1: 6:20, Mile 2: 6:15, Mile 3: 6:21, Mile 4: 6:09, Mile 5: 6:20
Total Time: 31:27
Avg Pace: 6:17/mile
The first 5 miles flew by.  I felt pretty good.  I wasn't too concerned about time split mile times.  I kept trying to push the pace.  I also kept catching other runners.  I ended up passing 10 runners after the first mile.  Not a single runner passed me.

Mile 6: 6:38, Mile 7: 6:24, Mile 8: 6:23, Mile 9: 6:23, Mile 10: 6:14
Total Time: 32:24
Avg Pace: 6:29/mile

I was catching Dave Cook.  I passed him about mile 8.  He was still running pretty strong too.  He kept up with me for most the way.  I looked back because I thought I heard him slip on some ice.  Dave did slip on ice, but didn't fall.  I passed one final runner with 1/2 mile to go.  I was picking up the pace and running towards the finish.  Dave sprinted towards the end, and nearly caught me.  He finished at about the same time as I finished.  Amazing.

Official Time: 1:03:51
Avg Pace: 6:23/mile or 9.4 mph

Don't count me out

Last week was hard.  I did not run once.  The entire week.  My last day off was Nov. 15th.  I was on a good streak. 450+ miles later I decided it was in my best interest to take a week of running off to heal my leg.

So instead I swam and rode my bike indoors.  I swam 4 times and rode my bike 3 times.  This was the first time getting in the pool and on the bike since the end of September.  It felt great to be back.

Did the time off help my leg.  Short answer: No.  Didn't really do a think.  Seems like a waste.  I am not counting it.  A slight change of pace is always a good think.

So what is wrong with my leg?  Not sure yet.  I think it might be shin splints??  I have been icing it twice a day now and I will wait and maybe see the doctor on Friday...or whenever I can get in for an appointment.  I iced my leg before my run today and I felt great.  Felt almost too good. I ran so fast and didn't give in.  Felt like I was running from daemons.

Pain Tolerance

A few weeks ago my left leg started giving me problems.  I kept running and the pain seemed to get worse and worse each day.  Not a pain to stop running, but very annoying.  I am not sure exactly what the issue is, but I have determined it's lower leg.  It could be shine splints??  It could be my ankle. Not sure.

After running 22 miles on Saturday and a 7 mile race on Sunday I decided to take a few days off.  I was only planning on 2-3 days, but it's been 5 so far.  The pain only occurs when I put pressure on the left.  This includes running, squats, and other types of lifting.

I have been cross training this week.  I've been swimming 5 times and cycling 3 times.  First time back in the pool and on the bike since the end of September.  Hopefully these activities are not making things worse?

This weekend looks like I will either run or take off completely.  I want this leg issue to heal.  At the same time I don't want to miss too many more running workouts.  It's amazing how you can go running from 80+ miles per week to 0.   On a positive note I will still have 8 weeks left to train for the Boston Marathon.

Hard workouts = feeling like crap

I had a very intense workout today. Lactate threshold - 11 miles w/ 5 miles @ 15k to half marathon pace. I think I pushed it too hard!


Miles 1-2: 8:16, 7:27
Miles 3-7: 6:14, 6:17, 6:17, 6:08, 6:31
Miles 8-11: 7:14, 7:42, 7:27, 7:52
Total Distance: 11.15
Time: 1:18:47
Avg Pace: 7:04/mile

Few things to note. First, after I slowed things down a little, I felt pretty good and the pace was still pretty fast but felt easy. Second, I did a bad job with hydration. I didn't drink many liquids until I think it was too late. Third, I felt extremely sick afterwards. I am getting over a cold, so this didn't help much. I have been having extreme bowel issues lately. I have been taking emergency stops and getting lucky.

My stomach seems to be a mess after intense workouts. Today was definitely the case. I felt so sick after today's workout. I left for home, and barely made it. I used the restroom several times and got home enough to say hello to everyone and right to bed.

Finally, don't use socks with holes in them. I was desperate and used a backup pair of socks, but one had a hole in it. A good size hole. Enough to rub and tear off some skin from my foot. Doesn't hurt too badly, but I am not sure how it will fair with today’s run.

Other Notes:
Last day off was Nov. 15th, 2009
Next day off...um...After the Boston Marathon.
Miles run since last day off 700+
Miles run in January: 300 and still counting...

Lots of running.  I nearly put in 80 miles last week.  This week has been a recovery week for me.  Recovery week is set at around 65 miles.  Wow.  I can remember when that was my max for marathon training.  This recovery week doesn't feel like a recovery week.

Sore all over.  It seems that another body part seems to ache each month.  First it's my hips, then my knee, then my back, then the bottom of my foot.  Now it's my calf muscle.  My back seems to be doing better after I quit playing the Wii Fit??

I've been meaning to post more on my blog, but life has been pretty darn busy.  I have written down some possible races for 2010 that I will be entering:

2/27 Snowman Stampede 5M/10M or Greenland 50K in May
3/14 - Boulder Spring Half Marathon
4/19 - Boston Marathon
9/19 - Boulder Half Marathon
9/25 - 24 hours of Triathlon event??  Maybe the 8 hours solo??
10/17 - Denver Marathon??

Lots of decisions to make.  Lots of thanks to Brooks and GU for helping me through my journey to Boston and beyond.