Me Again...

The lack of updates is directly correlated to my lack of interest in blogging lately. I'll try to get better though.

My wife and I have been running together a lot lately and it's been a wonderful change of pace! Our usual distance is 7-8 miles in about 1 hour and 30 minutes. She has improved vastly in a short time and seems to actually enjoy being out there sweating next to me. Her current 5k time is 34:16 and she can maintain under a 5mph pace through 4.5 miles without stopping. I am extremely proud of her! I still haven't conned her into the woodline for a bit of trail running, but hope is not lost!

My running has increased in the past few weeks. Last week, I made it past the 60 mile mark with two long runs of 16 and 24 miles. I have been somewhat lazy this week with my running (only two runs = 10m) and have felt very tired. I was hoping to pass 200m for the month, but I am short about 26 miles with only 3 days left. My yearly mileage has past the 1,000 mile mark! Hopefully, I will stay healthy throughout the year and pass the 2k mark by Christmas!

June:


Weekly Distances
6/23/2008 — 6/29/2008: 10.2 Mi
6/16/2008 — 6/22/2008: 60.1 Mi
6/9/2008 — 6/15/2008: 47.4 Mi
6/2/2008 — 6/8/2008: 45.1 Mi
5/26/2008 — 6/1/2008: 31.9 Mi
5/19/2008 — 5/25/2008: 34.9 Mi

For the year (1016 Mi):
June: 174.1 Mi
May: 140.3 Mi
April: 150.0 Mi
March: 215.1 Mi
February: 134.7 Mi
January: 202.1 Mi

Update

Sorry for the lack of updates (to the few people who may actually read this blog!).

My running has been on a upswing this month (so far). Except for a few trail runs, I have been staying on the blacktop. I have run Bartlett Park so damn many times that I am beginning to really dread going there. Shelby Farms is great, but it's slightly out of the way for weekday runs. Shelby Forrest would be a welcome break, but it's a 30 minute drive to get there. So...the streets of Bartlett have been my mainstay this month for weekday runs. I have even run before work the past two days! It's a bitch to get up and make my old, tired body to move that early!

My lovely wife has been kicking ass on her running! I ran with her the last two afternoons (so damn hot outside!) for 7 miles and 7.66 miles, which to date, is her longest runs! I have yet to convince her to hit the trails, though. I am still working on that.

The weather is very hot and very humid. It's good for becoming heat acclimated for the upcoming summer...but, it's still a pain in the arse! Running on the treadmill is never much fun, but at least the gym has air conditioning (and a bathroom, and a water fountain, etc).

New Shoes

My new shoes finally arrived today! They are Adidas Adizero XT, a light-weight trail shoe. The initial run was on the streets because I didn't have them time to run the trails. The adizero's are very light, but still have enough support to feel great on the blacktop. I averaged 9min/mile for this run, so I am happy with my new shoes so far!

More of the Same

Another run at Bartlett Park, but this time my body cooperated. I kept the pace steady and tried to only hike the uphills. My energy level stayed up and I was able to finish the run with a smile on my face.

On the most previous run at Bartlett Park, I used Clip2 in my Camelbak as my "energy" drink. The Clip2 has a supposedly has a light raspberry taste, but to me, it tastes like dookie. I used it a lot last summer with great success. There was one packet left, so I thought to try it again. The stuff works, but if I use it again I will definitely add some kool-aid flavoring!

For yesterday's run I used HEED. During the Mississippi 50, I had severe bloating issues that I blamed on HEED mainly because I used it for the first time during the race. I had two packets of HEED left from previous SWAG bags and wanted to test it again...during training this time.

The flavoring of the HEED leaves much to be desired...to say the least. It does taste better than Clip2, though. I had a 24oz hand-held with HEED and another with tap water. Pulling from both during the run, I had no real gastric issues except occasional belching. The training run with HEED went a lot better than the run with Clip2, so I will continue to run with HEED for the time being.

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Is It Summer Already?!

Saturday's run was at Bartlett Park. The original plan was for two laps, but that was revised before I made it half way through the first. It was hot and humid, without even a slight breeze. I did great for the first few miles and then steadily declined from there. My energy just disappeared. What started as a run ended up a hike. They say that there is no such thing as a bad run...but I have to wonder sometimes.



Sunday's run was mostly on the blacktop. I carried two hand-helds of H2O and a flask of gel. I figured that if I ran out of water, I could stop at a gas station and purchase more. The weather was the same as Saturday, the only difference being that I didn't have the comfort of the woods to shade out the sun.

I started the run without direction as to where I wanted to go. After a few miles, I found myself in a farmer's field off of Hwy 14. I did not feel like running back the way I came, so I went to the far end of the field to search for a way out to the highway. The woods were very thick and, I am quite sure, full of poison ivy and ugly spiders. I followed the woodline south, hoping for a passage out. Finally, I gave up and crashed through the woods and finding the highway. My shoes were full of burrs, stickers, and mud. I made my south on Hwy 14, toward Old Brownsville Rd. My plan was to refuel at the gas station but, of course, decided to keep moving since I had (what I thought) plenty of water left.

Needless to say, I ran out of water a short time later. Fuck. It was so damn humid and I was sweating like a pig at the butcher (pigs really don't sweat...but you get the picture). Not a damn store in sight. Quail Ridge Gold Course was in my current direction and I knew that they had water coolers on the course. I made it there still coherent and refilled both bottles. The golf course is only a couple of miles from my house, so I figured I would survive to run another day.



Yesterday's run was on the treadmill...boring, but I know exactly where the water fountain is!