A Night with Olympians

We brought in Kara Goucher and Bernard Lagat to talk to the runners last night. Both are very down-to-earth and laid-back. Alberto Salazar showed up as well, which was a nice surprise. Very positive response from the runners.

Tuesday

Last night was a good workout. I did the 6 mile loop in Central Park with Run Club and then hit the pool for a 30 minute swim workout.

nothing overly exciting...I'm ready for the weather to warm so I can get back on my bike.

Come listen to Mr. Bergland

Kara and Lagat

Chicago Registration Opens on Feb 1

Just an FYI to those wanting to run the Chicago Marathon. I'll be skipping it this year (unless I somehow end up there for work, which I doubt), so the weather will probably be absolutely perfect after two years of grueling heat.

Gaining confidence in the pool

I got in a nice little tempo run today with Run Club. 1.5 mile warm up, 3 mile tempo (sub 7 min pace, but not sure exactly how fast), 1.5 mile cool down. I'm still a long way from where I need to be, but its nice to be getting back in shape.

After the run, I went to the gym and lifted triceps and did some core work. Afterwards, I hit the pool. I'm still swimming slow and likely inefficient, but I'm gaining confidence. I'd been swimming freestyle and then doing breast stroke to catch my breath. Today, I swam 12 continuous laps freestyle. Its not much at all in the grand scheme of things (ie the ironman), but its giving me confidence moving forward.

Snow!

I hate the cold, but I love running in the snow. Last night was no exception. Lower loops are a little repetitious, but understandable under the conditions. The park was pretty empty and the roads were covered in a nice layer of snow due to a full day of frozen precipitation. I got in 3 lower loops of the park for a little over 5 miles and chatted with Worku. He told me he's doing the 3M Austin half marathon this weekend, so I gave him a rundown of the course and told him I would print out a map and give more more details on the course.

The 3M half is the first half of the old marathon course before they changed the Austin Marathon to a loop. Its weird to think that I first ran that course 8 years ago, but that's how long its been. My first marathon is now 10 years ago this past weekend--Houston 1999. That was a brutal, brutal day. 4:52:xx worth of pain and suffering, which taught me that knocking out a few 7 milers isn't going to make a marathon very pleasurable. I was lucky, very lucky. I was also stupid. I could have easily been one of the people you read about collapsing on the course. I've come a long way. Hopefully in a few months, I will see a sub-3:10 finish.

Frigid saturday

Another productive saturday. I got in an hour run in central park with Run Club and then went straight to the gym. I lifted biceps and back and then hit the pool for a 30 minute swim. I relaxed in the sauna for 20 minutes after the pool and then headed home for a lay afternoon.

The foot seems to be ok, although I still haven't really done any mileage over 8 or 9 miles in a couple months, so we'll see how it responds to a gradual increase in mileage. Training for the Peak Ultramarathon and Poconos Marathon starts in a little over a month.

Wednesday Workout

I did the speed workout with Run Club tonight. It was a brisk night with an iced over track, so we headed to the west side highway for some fartleks. This was my first speed workout in quite awhile, so I wasn't sure how my body was going to react. I ran with the front group for the first three intervals (we did 3 mins at 5K pace with a 2 minute "recovery"). Then I dropped back and formed a smaller group for a slightly slower final two intervals. I probably got in 5+ miles in running.

After the run, I went up to the gym and lifted chest/shoulders before jumping in the pool for 30 minutes. I finally feel like I'm making more progress in the pool. I'm able to do more distance freestyle without having to switch to breast stroke to recover. I still can't get my breathing right on my left side, but I'm working on it.

Overall, it was a productive day. I'm on the road to getting back in shape...

2008 Ford IM on hulu!

The 2008 IM is on hulu. Completely legal and free. Enjoy!

Out of shape? Apparently not a problem.

Saturday was a productive day, starting with a new 5 mile PR. I ran the Fred Lebow Classic on a very cold morning yesterday. For the first couple miles, my leg muscles were very tight, which could have been due to the cold. Things started loosening up and I ended up running fairly well, although I was hurting. My splits were:

6:51 (mostly uphill)
6:36 (mostly downhill)
6:45
6:55 (big uphill at the end)
6:32 (flat and downhill)

I finished in 33:43, setting a new PR by 1 second. I crossed the finish line and promptly threw up.

After the race, I went over to Niketown to meet the group run and went out for an hour. After that, I hit the gym and lifted biceps and back before hitting the pool for a nice 30 minute swim. Finished off with about 15 minutes in the sauna and called it a day.

Not bad...

Today: Lots of time in the gym. Tomorrow: Fitness Test

Today I spent 2.5 hours at the gym. I called and reserved a lane in the pool, but I was early. I did a quick 10 minutes on the bike and then headed to the pool. I swam for 30 minutes alternating freestyle and breast stroke on each half of a lap. I got in a pretty good workout and then sat in the sauna for a little over ten minutes. Afterwards, I went upstairs and did a chest and shoulders workout using mainly the machines, but a few free weights. I would have preferred to do all free weights, but the gym was pretty busy. After weights, I went down and ran 3 miles at a 7:00 pace and then did a quick ab workout.

I know my fitness has fallen off some since I've had the foot problem, but tomorrow will show just how bad (or good) it is. I'm running the Fred Lebow Classic 5 Miler in the morning before work. Last spring I did a 5 Miler and finished in 33:44, so I'll see how close to that I can run. The two races are both pretty much the same course, so it should be a decent indicator of where I'm at.

48 cold, wet minutes

Tonight was one of those times where you say to yourself, "I'm a runner." I didn't get out the door until almost 11:30 pm. It was rainy, windy, and cold. I ran for 48 minutes and didn't see a single other runner. I ran a portion of the run on McCarren Track and there wasn't a soul out there. The foot felt, ok, but I didn't feel it a little. The good news is that one of our pacers who is a PT told me she would check out my foot next wednesday if it is still giving me problems.