Sunday 25 May 2008:
10 Miles / 1:20:34
Monday 26 May 2008
5 Miles / 39:08
Weights at the gym
Tuesday 27 May 2008
5 Miles / 36:52
Wednesday 28 May 2008
5 Miles / 36:53
Thursday 29 May 2008
6 Miles / 44:48
Friday 30 May 2008
4 Miles / 28:44
Saturday 31 May 2008
10 Miles / 1:15:12
Week Total: 45 Miles / 5:42:11 (7:36 Pace)
This is one of the best weeks of training I have had in a very long time. First off, I ran every day (even if it was shorter in the middle of the week). Second, my runs were faster. I haven't had a week at 7:36 pace in a long time. Considering the hills I did this week, this is a very good indicator that things are starting to come around!
Regional News From Colorado Runner
31 May 2008
24 May 2008
Week Log: 18 May - 24 May 2008
Sunday 18 May 2008
13.1 Miles / 1:40:46
Today was the Colorado Colfax Half Marathon. I decided to just run this as a long run. Surprisingly, I felt pretty good and was able to negative split the event. My calf was tight throughout, but it never really bothered me. When I felt it a little more, I just eased back the pace a bit.
This is a great way to start this week and I felt good, especially after doing 75 minutes yesterday.
See race report here.
Monday 19 May 2008
0 Miles
Weights at the gym
Tuesday 20 May 2008
9 Miles / 1:13:00
The plan today was to do mile repeats again. I was not sure how I would feel after the long run on Sunday, but I figured this was the only way to get back in shape. Plus, my calf was feeling OK so I thought I would go for it.
Last week, I did 4x1M on the treadmill with a 1/4 jog. Today, I thought I would do this at Waterton Canyon between the two and three mile markers. This meant that the first and third would be slightly uphill and the second and fourth would be slightly downhill. What I didn't realize until I started was that the uphill miles would also be in to he wind.
After a two mile warm up, I dropped my H2O bottle and shirt and started out on the first mile. I hit it in 6:39 and then jogged 1/4 mile up the hill before turning around and running the second mile. I did this one in 6:20. I then jogged the 1/4 mile to my bottle, got a drink and started the third mile. My legs were really tired at this point and the wind had picked up, so I decided to only go 1/2 mile and then jog 1/8 mile and then do another 1/2 mile. I did this on the way back too.
So, the workout turned into 2x1M with 1/4 mile jog followed by 4x1/2M with 1/8M jog. I was happy with the workout because my legs were very tired, but I would have liked to have done the 4x1M. The good news is that there was no tightness in my calf!
Splits - 6:39/2:55 (1M/Rest), 6:20/2:50, 3:18/1:43 (1/2M/Rest), 3:20/1:42, 3:01/1:36, 3:00/2:22
Wednesday 21 May 2008
4 Miles / 31:10
Thursday 22 May 2008
10 Miles / 1:17:31
My plan was to do a three mile tempo run but as I got into the warm-up, I realized that I was not feeling the greatest and that I should just do the whole run as an easy run. So, that is what I did. I ran the Frosty's Frozen Five 10M loop at Chatfield. I was going to do a three mile warm-up and then run a tempo to mile six and a four mile cool down. But, I just made it an easy ten miler instead.
I ran the first 5M in 38:45 and the second in 38:46 (but the last mile was 7:20). Overall, I felt OK. The last three miles didn't feel the greatest and I am glad I didn't do the tempo run. I will hold that until next week.
Friday 23 May 2008
0 Miles
Weights at the gym
Saturday 24 May 2008
6 Miles / 54:54
Week Total: 42 Miles / 5:37:21 (8:01 pace)
Overall, this was a great week, except for the last two days where I picked up a bug of some kind. The 13 miler on Sunday was great as was the workout on Tuesday. Even though I felt bad on Thursday, I still did a ten miler, which was something I haven't done in the middle of the week in a long time. I just hope I get over this bug ASAP.
13.1 Miles / 1:40:46
Today was the Colorado Colfax Half Marathon. I decided to just run this as a long run. Surprisingly, I felt pretty good and was able to negative split the event. My calf was tight throughout, but it never really bothered me. When I felt it a little more, I just eased back the pace a bit.
This is a great way to start this week and I felt good, especially after doing 75 minutes yesterday.
See race report here.
Monday 19 May 2008
0 Miles
Weights at the gym
Tuesday 20 May 2008
9 Miles / 1:13:00
The plan today was to do mile repeats again. I was not sure how I would feel after the long run on Sunday, but I figured this was the only way to get back in shape. Plus, my calf was feeling OK so I thought I would go for it.
Last week, I did 4x1M on the treadmill with a 1/4 jog. Today, I thought I would do this at Waterton Canyon between the two and three mile markers. This meant that the first and third would be slightly uphill and the second and fourth would be slightly downhill. What I didn't realize until I started was that the uphill miles would also be in to he wind.
After a two mile warm up, I dropped my H2O bottle and shirt and started out on the first mile. I hit it in 6:39 and then jogged 1/4 mile up the hill before turning around and running the second mile. I did this one in 6:20. I then jogged the 1/4 mile to my bottle, got a drink and started the third mile. My legs were really tired at this point and the wind had picked up, so I decided to only go 1/2 mile and then jog 1/8 mile and then do another 1/2 mile. I did this on the way back too.
So, the workout turned into 2x1M with 1/4 mile jog followed by 4x1/2M with 1/8M jog. I was happy with the workout because my legs were very tired, but I would have liked to have done the 4x1M. The good news is that there was no tightness in my calf!
Splits - 6:39/2:55 (1M/Rest), 6:20/2:50, 3:18/1:43 (1/2M/Rest), 3:20/1:42, 3:01/1:36, 3:00/2:22
Wednesday 21 May 2008
4 Miles / 31:10
Thursday 22 May 2008
10 Miles / 1:17:31
My plan was to do a three mile tempo run but as I got into the warm-up, I realized that I was not feeling the greatest and that I should just do the whole run as an easy run. So, that is what I did. I ran the Frosty's Frozen Five 10M loop at Chatfield. I was going to do a three mile warm-up and then run a tempo to mile six and a four mile cool down. But, I just made it an easy ten miler instead.
I ran the first 5M in 38:45 and the second in 38:46 (but the last mile was 7:20). Overall, I felt OK. The last three miles didn't feel the greatest and I am glad I didn't do the tempo run. I will hold that until next week.
Friday 23 May 2008
0 Miles
Weights at the gym
Saturday 24 May 2008
6 Miles / 54:54
Week Total: 42 Miles / 5:37:21 (8:01 pace)
Overall, this was a great week, except for the last two days where I picked up a bug of some kind. The 13 miler on Sunday was great as was the workout on Tuesday. Even though I felt bad on Thursday, I still did a ten miler, which was something I haven't done in the middle of the week in a long time. I just hope I get over this bug ASAP.
18 May 2008
Colorado Colfax Half Marathon: 18 May 2008
Today I ran in the Colorado Colfax Half Marathon. Two years ago, I ran in the first one and said I would never do it again because the course was terrible. 13.1M; 700 feet of climbing with most of it in the last four miles; Straight down Colfax Ave for 13 miles; no crowds; sun at your back the whole way.
Last years race was a disaster that we all know about (marathon was marked too long, no gels on the course, no port-a-potties at the start). But, they changed race management, changed the course and vowed that the race would be better.
So, needing to run a long run, I decided to run the half as an easy run, just to see how it was.
The first thing I noticed was that there were 80 port-a-johns at the start, which was no in City Park. The half marathon went out of City Park and ran east on Colfax out to Fitzsimmons before heading back to City Park via 17th Ave. It was slightly uphill on the way out and slightly downhill on the way back, which makes for a very fast course. I personally think someone could run 1:07 or 1:08 on this course. There were water stops every two miles - water, Gatorade, and at least one port-a-john at each stop. There were no gels, but usually you don't get those in a half marathon.
The marathon went out of City Park and ran west on Colfax all the way out to Sims. This still made for a long grind in the first half, but that was the high point of the race. After heading back on Colfax for a stretch, the marathon went up and around Sloan's Lake and then ran through a stretch of LoDo before hitting 17th Ave to return to City Park.
Overall, I think the race did an outstanding job of changing the perception that people had garnered last year. I think the new courses are much better (and they allow for the complete re-open of Colfax Ave much sooner in the day). The expo at City Park was very well thought out and very well attended.
The only downside of the race that I could see was parking. City Park is a large park, but there are not a lot of places to park your vehicle. Most of the people used the Zoo or the Nature Museum parking lots. I think for next year they need to direct people into the lots much better so that there is not a frantic run for the start line because of parking situations.
Results can be found at www.onlineraceresults.com and you can find out more about the race at www.coloradocolfaxmarathon.org.
Oh, I ran 1:41 and finished somewhere in the middle of the pack. Considering I had not run this far since last year's Denver Marathon, all I wanted to do was run easy, finish strong and stay healthy. It isn't time to for racing yet.
Last years race was a disaster that we all know about (marathon was marked too long, no gels on the course, no port-a-potties at the start). But, they changed race management, changed the course and vowed that the race would be better.
So, needing to run a long run, I decided to run the half as an easy run, just to see how it was.
The first thing I noticed was that there were 80 port-a-johns at the start, which was no in City Park. The half marathon went out of City Park and ran east on Colfax out to Fitzsimmons before heading back to City Park via 17th Ave. It was slightly uphill on the way out and slightly downhill on the way back, which makes for a very fast course. I personally think someone could run 1:07 or 1:08 on this course. There were water stops every two miles - water, Gatorade, and at least one port-a-john at each stop. There were no gels, but usually you don't get those in a half marathon.
The marathon went out of City Park and ran west on Colfax all the way out to Sims. This still made for a long grind in the first half, but that was the high point of the race. After heading back on Colfax for a stretch, the marathon went up and around Sloan's Lake and then ran through a stretch of LoDo before hitting 17th Ave to return to City Park.
Overall, I think the race did an outstanding job of changing the perception that people had garnered last year. I think the new courses are much better (and they allow for the complete re-open of Colfax Ave much sooner in the day). The expo at City Park was very well thought out and very well attended.
The only downside of the race that I could see was parking. City Park is a large park, but there are not a lot of places to park your vehicle. Most of the people used the Zoo or the Nature Museum parking lots. I think for next year they need to direct people into the lots much better so that there is not a frantic run for the start line because of parking situations.
Results can be found at www.onlineraceresults.com and you can find out more about the race at www.coloradocolfaxmarathon.org.
Oh, I ran 1:41 and finished somewhere in the middle of the pack. Considering I had not run this far since last year's Denver Marathon, all I wanted to do was run easy, finish strong and stay healthy. It isn't time to for racing yet.
17 May 2008
Week Log: 11 May - 17 May 2008
Sunday 11 May 2008
9 Miles / 1:11:30
Monday 12 May
0 Miles
Weights at the gym
Tuesday 13 May
7 Miles / 55:05
My plan today was to start doing some up tempo stuff to help increase my aerobic capacity. So today, the plan was to do mile repeats nice and easy. I thought I would start with three and build up to six over the next few weeks.
When I do mile repeats, I do them more as a speed workout as opposed to a tempo run/cruise intervals with really short rest. Instead, I do mile repeats with a quarter mile jog in between.
I planned to do them today on the Platte River Trail, but when I got up it was snowing! On May 13, it was snowing!! So, this meant I was doing them on the treadmill. This was probably a better idea anyway, as this would force me to keep an even tempo and not get going to fast too early. Since I don't know what it feels like to run even moderate pace, mile repeats done the wrong way could be really bad.
I started out with a mile warm up and then went right into the repeats. I set the treadmill at 9.2 MPH and went one mile. Then I walk/jogged a quarter. I thought I could do three, but I ended up doing four! Each one was just a bit faster also, so this was really good. My times were 631, 628, 626, and 623. The rest between each was 300-330.
Now, I know that this is not very fast considering I have done 6xMile with an average of 455 before. So, I do have a long way to go. But, to run four miles at or better than 630 is something I have not done in six months!
On Thursday, I plan to do a three mile tempo run. So, my schedule will be repeats on Tuesday and tempo run on Thursday. I also plan to increase my long runs on the weekends with a long term plan of hitting 15-20 on both Saturday and Sunday.
Wednesday 14 May
6 Miles / 45:58
Thursday 15 May
9 Miles / 1:10:17
The plan today was to do a three mile tempo run. I went to Waterton Canyon to run it because I wanted to stay flat. Even with the climb on the way out, it is very subtle.
I started out with an easy three mile warm up (24:21). Stopped and put my H2O bottle down and then headed off farther up the canyon. I wanted to stay conservative because this was my first one, so I was shooting for 645-700 pace. I hit the first mile in 7:01 and the 1.5M in 10:31. So, I was right on 7:00 pace for the first half, going up hill. I hit two miles in 13:55 coming back down the hill and finished it off with a 6:35 to finish it in 20:30.
I then started my three mile cool down back to the car. After about a mile of it, my left calf started to tighten up some so I stopped and stretched it out a lot. I started back up and it loosened up so I was able to run the while way. It was a pretty slow warm down (25:20), but it was good.
My calf still hurt for the rest of the day, but I kept stretching it. Hopefully it will be OK tomorrow, which is a planned day off anyway.
Friday 16 May
0 Miles
Weights at the gym
Saturday 17 May
9 Miles / 1:13:56
Week Total: 40 Miles / 5:16:56 (7:55 Pace)
Overall, this was a very good week for me. I got in 40 miles and two workouts. However, I need to keep an I on my calf over the next week and really do some stretching.
10 May 2008
Week Log: 4 May - 10 May 2008
Sunday 4 May 2008
8 Miles / 1:03:06
Monday 5 May
0 Miles
Weights at the gym
Tuesday 6 May
8 Miles / 1:02:05
Wednesday 7 May
3 Miles / 23:50
Thursday 8 May
7 Miles / 1:08:08
Friday 9 May
0 Miles
Weights at the gym
Saturday 10 May
10 Miles / 1:45:40
Week Total: 36 Miles / 5:22:49 (9:01 pace)
Overall this was a really good week! I wish the last two runs of the week had been faster, but I did a lot more climbing on those two runs, so it was bound to be slower.
03 May 2008
Week Log: 27 April - 3 May 2008
Sunday 27 April 2008
7 Miles / 1:01:41
Monday 28 April
0 Miles
Weights at the gym
Tuesday 29 April
7 Miles / 53:54
Wednesday 30 April
0 Miles
Weights at the gym
Thursday 1 May
7 Miles / 54:11
Friday 2 May
0 Miles
Weights at the gym
Saturday 3 May
7 Miles / 1:04:50
Week Total: 28 Miles / 3:54:36 (8:22/mile)
This was a good week for me in my slow climb back to full running shape. Next week I plan to increase the four days to eight miles, plus add a short three or four mile run on Wednesday. I am also going to cut the weights back to Mon/Fri and do only one set of 30 on each exercise instead of three sets of ten.
7 Miles / 1:01:41
Monday 28 April
0 Miles
Weights at the gym
Tuesday 29 April
7 Miles / 53:54
Wednesday 30 April
0 Miles
Weights at the gym
Thursday 1 May
7 Miles / 54:11
Friday 2 May
0 Miles
Weights at the gym
Saturday 3 May
7 Miles / 1:04:50
Week Total: 28 Miles / 3:54:36 (8:22/mile)
This was a good week for me in my slow climb back to full running shape. Next week I plan to increase the four days to eight miles, plus add a short three or four mile run on Wednesday. I am also going to cut the weights back to Mon/Fri and do only one set of 30 on each exercise instead of three sets of ten.
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