It's all about the speed!

Speed workout #2 was today and after taking my sweet time yesterday and the slow pace of my long run Sunday this was a pretty good workout although I definitely went WAY too fast considering the pace I was supposed to maintain. I think I would rather be consistent with my times although the fact I got faster with each mile was a good sign that the pace was something I was able to maintain, but I'll keep working on during my workouts. I do know I'm very much looking forward to my day off tomorrow and sleeping in until 630 before playing a round of golf! Since I went to school in Alabama I can be a little slow in reading things so it took me some time to realize why the time workouts are split up how they are. Including the day off, every other day is a timed type of workout beginning with Tuesday's speed workout, Thursday's marathon pace run, and Sunday's long run. The others are simply runs designed to build up the mileage and become adjusted to the ever-increasing distances. This week (week 3 of my training) I'm projecting somewhere around 26 miles, but by week 15, 3 weeks prior to the race, I'll rack up 51 miles so I'll definitely continue to build up that stamina necessary.

Goal: 3 miles of intervals at 10K race pace (7:45-8:00/mile)
Actual:
- Mile 1: 7:34
- Mile 2: 7:23
- Mile 3: 7:06

Monday was better than Sunday

I woke up this morning feeling sleepy, but knowing I needed to do my mileage. I wasn't to the point I didn't want to get up or my body was telling me to skip today so I went out. One of the big keys to running and training is to listen to your body and take a day off if you need it and, at 35, it's something I certainly pay more attention to than 5 years ago. It's a matter of understanding the bigger picture and remembering what the goal is. That's the same reason I stopped playing any sports that might hurt my knees or back: it interferes with golf! I was tempted to skip the day since the goal called for anything from 0 to 6, but within a few weeks there are no extra days off scheduled and I'd rather build in those miles so that as training continues and the weekly mileage increases I'm better prepared. One more workout before my day off and then my first marathon pace run--can't wait!

Goal: 0-6 miles
Actual: 3.28 miles in 27:57 (8:32/mi pace)
Weather: Clear, 74, winds NNE 5 mph

This one hurt!

After yesterday's race I wasn't sure what to expect on my run this morning. I do now: pain. Took a while to get started this morning as I felt sore. One thing I do know is that I'm going to have to rethink doing races on Saturdays even if it's once a month. With long runs on Sunday I just don't know that it's the smartest thing. Normally, my speed workout is on Tuesday almost as a sort of culmination of the training before a day off, which is fine, but races mean swapping workouts. A normal Saturday involves a regular run where the main focus is the miles and not the time. Once I got going it certainly wasn't too bad, but it took me a while to really get going--probably about 2.5 miles. The weather was great today and not very hot so I was able to really enjoy the day before the heat and winds picked up.

Goal: 4-8 miles at 45-60 seconds slower than marathon pace (9:00/mile)
Actual: 4.79 miles in 46:44 (9:45/mile pace)
Weather: Sunny, 77 degrees, winds from the W at 11 mph

Race Day!

Today was the Ambulance Chasers 10K; my first race since 2010 and it was a great time. It's always fun seeing so many other runners out there ready to have a good time and that's the big thing about it--having fun. Amazing also to see the varying ages of all of the runners; from small children to folks who have grandchildren they were out there. The scenery never hurts either and one of the aspects I really enjoy about race day! :) It was definitely a hot morning and I honestly wasn't sure how I would do since I'd run the two days prior, but the competitive juices were flowing and I certainly held my own. The venue, Las Vegas Motor Speedway, was awesome as they started on the starting line for the stock cars and we did almost an entire lap (1.5 miles) before running into pit road and heading out through the tunnels. From there we ran around the speedway then into the drag strip, which was insane. I'd never seen one other than television and it's amazing how much uphill there is, which makes sense since the dragsters need to slow down once the race is down. It's good for the cars, but definitely not for the runners. I just put my head down and didn't even bother looking up preferring to look at my feet the whole way until making the turnaround and heading back down. From outside the drag strip we went into the concession area of the speedway and the shade was a very welcome thing before proceeding back down, through the tunnel, and to the neon garage area for the finish. Everyone got a medal, which was cool--I'd never gotten one before so it was a nice touch. Overall I was very pleased even if I did have a few hiccups like on the drag strip incline where I slowed a bit and at the beginning of the race. I might need to do like some of the other runners and jog some just to get loosened up. We'll see how many more races I do, but I think they could serve as indicators of how my training is going. 4-8 miles tomorrow!

Goal: 3 miles at 10K pace (8:00/mile)
Actual: 6.2 miles in 48:10 (7:46/mile pace)
Weather: Sunny, 82 degrees, winds from the WSW at 8 mph

Today's run

Today's run had a bad movie feel to it: bad start, decent middle, bad finish. This morning was just not a good start at all as my breathing was off and my left knee was bother me a bit. Things actually started feeling great after about the first half mile; my breathing was good and my knee was finally warmed up. But starting with mile 3 everything went back to the crapper. I guess it's just one of those things I'm going to have deal with although as I continue building mileage each week I'll feel more and more prepared. I will say I'm certainly nervous about tomorrow's race if only because I'm curious about the pace and whether I can keep it up for the entire race. I think once I'm around other runners, though, that the competitive juices will start flowing and things will be a bit better.

Goal: 3-6 miles

Actual: 3.79 miles in 32:42 (8:38 min/mile pace)

Weather: Cloudy, 81 degrees, winds from the WSW at 5 mph

Falling behind on my posting

So it looks like a trend is beginning, but I'm going to try and snap out of it by posting twice today. Thursday's run wasn't too bad and something I was actually looking forward to after my day off. It was a good chance for me to see how running in the mornings would translate to getting ready for work and it seemed to go alright. I think with some of these longer runs I'll be getting up earlier in order to give myself enough time to cool down and take a shower. It is definitely starting to warm up as the temperature yesterday was 81 degrees and it's only going to climb. The only real relief is that the sun is just coming up over the mountains at that time and there isn't much to worry about in terms of that.

Goal: 3-6 miles

Actual: 4.36 miles in 35:50 (8:13 per mile pace)

Weather: Clear, 81 degrees, winds from the WSW at 7 mph

Tuesday's run recap

I would've written yesterday, but with so many things going on I wasn't able to get online. The biggest news for me was the fact I got selected for promotion to Lieutenant Colonel so that was a big accomplishment. Anyway, Tuesday's run really felt good compared to the long layoff run I did Monday morning. I actually felt really good until some point near the last half mile, but I feel like I'm getting my legs back under me. Two more runs before the 10K this Saturday followed by a long run on Sunday. I'm really intrigued to see how this week goes and what shape I'll be in. Tuesday's run was a regular 3-6 miles because of the race Saturday so the speed workout in essence gets swapped out. One of the biggest factors will now begin to be the weather. 76 degrees Tuesday morning certainly felt hotter and so it'll be important I get out as early as possible to escape as much of the heat as possible. Today was certainly a good break, but it's a little intimidating to think I don't have another day off until Wednesday!

Goal: 3-6 miles

Actual: 3.79 miles in 31:00 (8:10/mile pace)

Weather: 76 degrees, clear, winds out of the NNW at 5 mph

Why you don't take time off

So I hadn't run since the 8th of June because I was out of town playing golf in Chicago. That meant lots of golf, but not a lot of sleep, which meant no running. So this morning was certainly a harsh wakeup call when the alarm sounded at 5AM for my 0-6 miles. Definitely not an enjoyable experience and something I don't plan on doing again although there will be some unforeseen reasons why I can't run, but that's different. It was certainly good to start running again and I'll have plenty of runs by the time Saturday rolls around and I run a 10K race on Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Should be some good fun!

Goal: 0-6 miles

Actual: 3.96 miles in 32:59 (8:15/mile pace)

Weather: 71 degrees, partly cloudy, winds out of the north at 5 mph

So this is how you get your pace...

After my third consecutive day of running I can see how you end up somewhere around your goal pace. This program is certainly going to be tough and at 35 years old it'll be that much tougher. Because there is only one day of recovery it won't be hard to remember to take it slow, but I will say the speed workouts (and the strength workouts that come later) are going to be hellacious. Today was supposed to be my off day, but since I'm heading to Chicago on a red eye I won't be in much condition for a run in the morning. I'm looking forward to my day off although I'll be packing running gear for two days while I'm out there to at least pick up some more mileage in order to be ready for week 2 next Monday.

Goal: 4-6 miles
Actual: 4.69 miles in 39:21 (8:23/mile pace)
Weather: 67 degrees, clear, winds from the SSW at 5 mph

Speed Workout, 3 miles of intervals at 10K pace

Today was the first of many speed workouts and I have to say it was tough. The training consists of running intervals totaling 3 miles at a 10K pace. Any distance is fine so long as you don't go above one mile and you jog a quarter mile in between each interval. Since I don't have a set pace for a 10K, I went ahead and chose an 8-minute mile pace although I've run 11 miles before at an 8:21 pace and have done 9 miles faster than that, but I'm trying to be realistic with the understanding as my mileage increases I'll need to pace myself. I'd like to try the speed workouts on a track, but since I didn't feel like constantly looking at my watch I decided to go ahead and just do 3 1-mile repeats. The third interval was definitely tougher than the first two and I could certainly feel it by the end. This will be one of the keys for helping me with my pace although I have to admit at my goal of a sub-4 hour marathon a 9-minute mile pace seems like a crawl. They key for me is to remember I'm building up to something and while it seems like I could walk a 9-minute mile pace by the time it comes to the marathon maintaining my goal pace should be easier. At least that's my hope!

Weather: 64 degrees, 4 mph winds
Mile 1: 7:54
Mile 2: 7:53
Mile 3: 7:58

3.8 miles, 30:31, 8:02/mile pace, sunny, 63 degrees, SSW winds 18 mph

First run is down and I was almost at the top of what I was supposed to do today. The H-B plan calls for 0-4 miles on the first day. I'll need to keep the distances in mind and for sure start on the low end as I start out. The first weeks are definitely meant to ease you in with a low end mileage for the week of 10 and a high of 33. I'll try to be somewhere in the middle or so, but with a trip to Chicago this weekend it might be difficult. The key is to continue on and remember the training is long and there will be some tough days. The weather was good except for the wind which was not fun on the back end of my run. But the sun was out and the mountains looked awesome. It reminds me of running in Afghanistan--spectacular views of the surrounding peaks as the sun was coming up. My biggest goal for this week is to continue getting acclimated to the altitude. We're not very high here in Vegas, but compared to the Netherlands it might as well be a mile of altitude difference instead of the 2,000 or so feet it really is. Speed work tomorrow--first time ever for that!

Training plan

Now that I've decided to run the PDX, I need a plan. There are a lot of programs out there, but I found one that said no runs would be longer than 16 miles. Being naturally lazy I thought this would be an excellent plan so I decided it had to be the one without even reading about it. The plan is the Hansons-Brooks Distance Project (website over on the right) and it is designed to make you ready for the last 16 miles of a race. Many traditional plans call for long runs of 20 miles, which is great, but what about the last 6 miles? The H-B plan focuses on high mileage each week by having you run 6 times per week so that by the time you have your long runs on Sunday it's about all you can do to finish. I'm definitely intrigued and so I'm going to give it a shot and see how it goes. I read about the plan in Runner's World and here is the link: "New Year New You: Way of the Renegades"

First run is tomorrow with a 0-6 miler at a comfortable pace. Let's start the insanity!

Back from the dead?!

Been a LONG time since I've posted on here. So why am I posting now? I'm embarking on my first marathon so I thought I'd keep this updated as a log of my training. I had started running when I was deployed to Afghanistan in 2009. While I had run before, it was more when I needed to and not because I wanted. Then I began running three times a week and really enjoyed it so when I got back to DC I kept it up although only twice a week. Then we moved to the Netherlands and there were so many bike trails that I decided to up my running back to 3 times a week not really knowing how far I'd be going. Then one day 3 miles turned into 6 then 7 and so on. Running is so much fun and something that is about you and your surroundings. You can go as fast/slow and short/long as you want. While in Rotterdam I had been planning to run the Madrid marathon, but that was overcome by other events. I still had that itch to run a marathon to see if I could complete one and so that's how I've ended up getting ready to train for the Portland marathon on October 9th. So come follow along on my journey!