I'm getting concerned with my lack of miles. I'm 23 miles behind my goal after allowing for a zero-mile week. Otherwise it would have been a 53-mile deficit. Thank goodness next week is the last recovery week. It'll take some 35-40 mile weeks to get back on track.
Tally: Monday 4, Thursday 5, Saturday 7.5, Sunday 9. I'll call it 25. No blisters or injuries. Shiny new shoes.
Showing posts with label mileage. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mileage. Show all posts
Sunday, February 25, 2007
First "long" run in the Kinsei
When I trained for my first marathon, my buddies told me that at the peak of training, a ten mile run would seem like a tuneup. I thought they were crack smokers. At that time, my longest run had been six miles or so. Ten seemed like a looooooong way.
They were right. Or else I've been smoking the same crack. Progressively longer runs have made 10-milers less significant. Last year, 20-milers became routine. During the holidays, I would do one every other week without killing myself. Such an effort would have made me a bed-ridden pile of goo in the past.
So it pains me to say that today I did a long run of nine miles in the Kinsei. "Long" and "nine" seem like a contradiction in terms these days. When did that happen?
Nevertheless, the run was great. It was cool and overcast. I ran with friends for the first time in a week, which was a welcome change.
Another welcome change was that I had no problems breathing during the run. I was hacking beforehand, but an albuterol and atrovent cocktail seemed to do the trick.
The only niggling problem was that I got a hot spot on the forward part of my arch. No blister, but it probably would have developed, given time. My right shoe was probably a little loose. It had to be the shoe or the lacing because the socks were tried and true standard Asics.
The run for next Sunday? That one goes to eleven. Next week I'll feel like a runner.
They were right. Or else I've been smoking the same crack. Progressively longer runs have made 10-milers less significant. Last year, 20-milers became routine. During the holidays, I would do one every other week without killing myself. Such an effort would have made me a bed-ridden pile of goo in the past.
So it pains me to say that today I did a long run of nine miles in the Kinsei. "Long" and "nine" seem like a contradiction in terms these days. When did that happen?
Nevertheless, the run was great. It was cool and overcast. I ran with friends for the first time in a week, which was a welcome change.
Another welcome change was that I had no problems breathing during the run. I was hacking beforehand, but an albuterol and atrovent cocktail seemed to do the trick.
The only niggling problem was that I got a hot spot on the forward part of my arch. No blister, but it probably would have developed, given time. My right shoe was probably a little loose. It had to be the shoe or the lacing because the socks were tried and true standard Asics.
The run for next Sunday? That one goes to eleven. Next week I'll feel like a runner.
Sunday, February 18, 2007
Back in the saddle and weekly wrap-up
Valentine's Day worked out better than expected. I bought cards ahead of time, got flowers and chocolates the day of. Although I was pessimistic about fitting in a run, my wife let me squeeze in an easy run. Except it wasn't so easy. The marathon and subsequent layoff made the easy run slow and plodding. And it was treadmill. At least I got to watch "Dirty Jobs" on the Discovery Channel during the run.
One disconcerting aspect of the run was that I had a lot of trouble breathing. Not gasping for breath, but I had noticeable congestion in my lungs/bronchial area. This chest congestion has been recurrent since the marathon.
The congestion seemed to drive up my heartrate. That makes sense, because I'd be getting less oxygen, I think. Laughing hysterically at times during the TV show didn't help. The laughing usually ended with a small coughing fit. On the upside, my legs were creaky, but pain-free.
Put in another five-miler on Friday at lunch. Unfortunately, California had a heat wave and conditions were warm. Not as much trouble breathing during the run, but definitely had issues afterward. Legs were somewhat sore, but not too bad. I could have run Saturday, but decided to play it safe.
Today was a seven-miler. I ran around my neighborhood, which has plenty of hills. It was still warm outside. Knowing I might have breathing trouble, I hit the inhaler (albuterol) before the run. Nevertheless, I was congested from the git-go. Legs felt great, though.
Seven hours later, I'm not 100%. I have no significant aches or pains, but my breathing is still affected slightly. We'll see how next week's runs go. They're still primarily recovery miles.
Weekly miles: +17. Sense of self-worth: +95%.
One disconcerting aspect of the run was that I had a lot of trouble breathing. Not gasping for breath, but I had noticeable congestion in my lungs/bronchial area. This chest congestion has been recurrent since the marathon.
The congestion seemed to drive up my heartrate. That makes sense, because I'd be getting less oxygen, I think. Laughing hysterically at times during the TV show didn't help. The laughing usually ended with a small coughing fit. On the upside, my legs were creaky, but pain-free.
Put in another five-miler on Friday at lunch. Unfortunately, California had a heat wave and conditions were warm. Not as much trouble breathing during the run, but definitely had issues afterward. Legs were somewhat sore, but not too bad. I could have run Saturday, but decided to play it safe.
Today was a seven-miler. I ran around my neighborhood, which has plenty of hills. It was still warm outside. Knowing I might have breathing trouble, I hit the inhaler (albuterol) before the run. Nevertheless, I was congested from the git-go. Legs felt great, though.
Seven hours later, I'm not 100%. I have no significant aches or pains, but my breathing is still affected slightly. We'll see how next week's runs go. They're still primarily recovery miles.
Weekly miles: +17. Sense of self-worth: +95%.
Monday, February 12, 2007
Weekly wrap up: no miles
Today was a blogging milestone for me. Somebody read my blog. Not that my buddy Nick, my wife, and other friends aren't somebodies, but this was a STRANGER. And despite my parents' warnings, I talked to him back. I feel all grown up now.
Not running this week has really screwed up my sleep schedule. I go to sleep early or late, wake up in the middle of the night, whatever. It also screwed up my blogging. I chose not to do a series of "What I Didn't Run Today." That would have been riveting.
I was tempted to run here and there, but I forced myself to be sit. I had avoided post-marathon illness for the first time and didn't want to screw it up. I'll start running tomorrow.
My YTD mileage is the same two weeks in a row. That sucks. I remind myself that my yearly mileage goal allowed two idle weeks, but it's small comfort.
On the upside, this week I baked my first decent bread (the kind that people eat out of preference, not pity). My previous bread attempts sat for days, sealed in a Ziploc, conscientiously ignored by my wife and kids. After they grew mold, I threw them away in despair. The loaves, not my family.
This weekend, I finally made bread that my kids love. Chewy, crusty, Italian-style fare that works great with dinner and with sandwiches. My only brick-like failure was the whole wheat. I'll perfect that the next off week I have.
Not running this week has really screwed up my sleep schedule. I go to sleep early or late, wake up in the middle of the night, whatever. It also screwed up my blogging. I chose not to do a series of "What I Didn't Run Today." That would have been riveting.
I was tempted to run here and there, but I forced myself to be sit. I had avoided post-marathon illness for the first time and didn't want to screw it up. I'll start running tomorrow.
My YTD mileage is the same two weeks in a row. That sucks. I remind myself that my yearly mileage goal allowed two idle weeks, but it's small comfort.
On the upside, this week I baked my first decent bread (the kind that people eat out of preference, not pity). My previous bread attempts sat for days, sealed in a Ziploc, conscientiously ignored by my wife and kids. After they grew mold, I threw them away in despair. The loaves, not my family.
This weekend, I finally made bread that my kids love. Chewy, crusty, Italian-style fare that works great with dinner and with sandwiches. My only brick-like failure was the whole wheat. I'll perfect that the next off week I have.
Saturday, January 27, 2007
Long run and weekly wrap up
Long run was pretty easy this week: 8 miles at marathon pace. Ran our canal course and it was 43 degrees or so with no wind. Nice.
Had some blister issues. On Thursday I used some new socks my wife bought, Champion C9 with a thinner sole. They caused a blister on my left pinkie toe in less than seven miles. The blister was pretty painful, so I switched back to my generic Coolmax socks from Target. I'll stick to these for the race.
Left piriformis is tight, per usual. No issues on the right side.
Final tally: 5.4 miles speed work, 5.7 tempo, 2.8 easy, and 8 long.
Had some blister issues. On Thursday I used some new socks my wife bought, Champion C9 with a thinner sole. They caused a blister on my left pinkie toe in less than seven miles. The blister was pretty painful, so I switched back to my generic Coolmax socks from Target. I'll stick to these for the race.
Left piriformis is tight, per usual. No issues on the right side.
Final tally: 5.4 miles speed work, 5.7 tempo, 2.8 easy, and 8 long.
Sunday, January 21, 2007
Another bad long run
Training tip: the night before a long run, eat something. Friday night as I lay in bed obsessing over my blog, I didn't eat dinner. Well, I had a bowl of cereal, but that was it. The next morning, I got down a smoothie before my run. Big mistake.
The combination of bad eating, lack of sleep (only 4 hours or so), and fighting sickness finally caught up with me. I had difficulty running 8:09 for 13. I stopped after 11 and change, and managed only 8:39. Not catastrophic, but two bad long runs in a row don't build confidence. The marathon is 2 weeks from today.
What makes it more demoralizing is that this week was a low mileage week because of the taper. Yassos were 8.5, tempo was 5, and long was 11.5. 25 miles for the week. I'm fighting the urge to do 5 easy on the treadmill to make 30.
I'm still waiting on the new domain. Very disappointing. My new domain is with 1and1.com, and I'm not up after almost 48 hours. With godaddy.com, where I registered my other domains, I could get my blog on the domain within an hour or two. Oh well.
The combination of bad eating, lack of sleep (only 4 hours or so), and fighting sickness finally caught up with me. I had difficulty running 8:09 for 13. I stopped after 11 and change, and managed only 8:39. Not catastrophic, but two bad long runs in a row don't build confidence. The marathon is 2 weeks from today.
What makes it more demoralizing is that this week was a low mileage week because of the taper. Yassos were 8.5, tempo was 5, and long was 11.5. 25 miles for the week. I'm fighting the urge to do 5 easy on the treadmill to make 30.
I'm still waiting on the new domain. Very disappointing. My new domain is with 1and1.com, and I'm not up after almost 48 hours. With godaddy.com, where I registered my other domains, I could get my blog on the domain within an hour or two. Oh well.
Saturday, January 13, 2007
End of the week ... whew
Over 54 miles this week, including the half. Since I start my week on Monday, the half doesn't really count. I'm hurting, though. Thank goodness I'm starting my taper.
Did my 20 today and it was miserable. Temperature was in the low 30s and plenty of wind to make me feel horrible. My head and right ear are still hurting ... 8 hours after the run. To top it off, I ran 2:49 (compared to 2:45 two weeks ago) and only finished 19.75 miles (compared to a true 20). Bummer. At least the Eagles and Ravens lost today.
To think that earlier this week, I was running in 80-degree weather and complaining about it. Tally: 41 miles for the week. 62 miles for the year. Looking forward to two days off and the start of the new season of "24." Go Chargers.
Did my 20 today and it was miserable. Temperature was in the low 30s and plenty of wind to make me feel horrible. My head and right ear are still hurting ... 8 hours after the run. To top it off, I ran 2:49 (compared to 2:45 two weeks ago) and only finished 19.75 miles (compared to a true 20). Bummer. At least the Eagles and Ravens lost today.
To think that earlier this week, I was running in 80-degree weather and complaining about it. Tally: 41 miles for the week. 62 miles for the year. Looking forward to two days off and the start of the new season of "24." Go Chargers.
Friday, January 12, 2007
Mileage YTD 1/12/07
I made a New Year's Resolution to run 1500 miles this year. Previous years have been in the 700-1000 mile range. Today is an off day, so I can count up miles.
I was sick last week, so I took days off. Last Tuesday, speed work, 4x100 @6:15, 4.5 miles with warm up. Wednesday, easy 3.3 miles (9:08). Sick days. Sunday, OC Half, 13.1 miles.
That paltry 20.9 made me run extra this week, when I have a 20-miler scheduled. Idiot.
This Monday was 6 easy (9:02). Tuesday, 5 at marathon pace (7:45 or so). Wednesday was 5.4 easy (my watch said 4.65 because I accidentally paused it for 0.75). Thursday, those awful 2000s, 5.7 including warm up.
43 miles YTD. Tomorrow is 20 at 8:20 or so. 63 for two weeks. Back on pace.
I was sick last week, so I took days off. Last Tuesday, speed work, 4x100 @6:15, 4.5 miles with warm up. Wednesday, easy 3.3 miles (9:08). Sick days. Sunday, OC Half, 13.1 miles.
That paltry 20.9 made me run extra this week, when I have a 20-miler scheduled. Idiot.
This Monday was 6 easy (9:02). Tuesday, 5 at marathon pace (7:45 or so). Wednesday was 5.4 easy (my watch said 4.65 because I accidentally paused it for 0.75). Thursday, those awful 2000s, 5.7 including warm up.
43 miles YTD. Tomorrow is 20 at 8:20 or so. 63 for two weeks. Back on pace.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)