Injury Timeout

Since just after the Dallas marathon I've had a nagging little pain in my left knee. It wasn't there on every run and didn't bother me during the Houston marathon but it would pop up here and there, though it never caused me to stop. But Sunday night it did. During my attempted long-run I had to stop and walk home after about five miles.

So the plan was to take the week off to let it heal. I really think that's all it's gonna take. And my time off became a no-brainer on Tuesday when I woke up with the flu that my 4 year old had. So, no running for a few more days, but that's what I had planned anyway. I guess if you're going to be sick the best time is when you're taking some time off anyway.

My 6th Consecutive Spectacle Spectacular 10K

Brian King and I headed down to Angleton this morning for the Spectacle Spectacular 10K (they also have a 5K). I wasn't expecting anything better than a 39 flat since I haven't really trained for the shorter stuff and am probably still recovering from two marathons in a five week span but I knew Brian would be ready to crush his PR of around 39:30. And my predictions were correct on both accounts.

I had hoped to hang with Brian, at least for the first few miles but wasn't in shape to run 6:10s. Kevin Regis (who just ran a 2:51 marathon at Houston at the age of 48) was there and he and Brian hung tight pretty much throughout the race, although at an ever increasing distance in front of me. Juancarlos Vielma was the rabbit today. We figured that with two other major runs around town today and with many still recovering from the Houston marathon that the talent might be a little thin at each race. But Juancarlos ran a fantastic race and had no one to push him, and not even a bicycle or motorcycle cop to follow. He turned in a very impressive 34:10 to win it going away and picked up a check for $150 cash. Susan Walters was first overall female at around 40:30 and picked up a check for the same amount. Overall masters wasn't recognized, although Kevin Regis would have won it for the men, with a nice 38:20, good enough for 3rd overall. I was next in behind Kevin, with a 39:12 (as I said, I wasn't expecting much better). Kevin took first in the 40-49 age group and I was second.

Brian King gets his own paragraph here. He was second overall, and killed his PR by more than a minute and a half, holding off a 2:51 marathoner and turning in a 37:48. He even ran a negative split. Great job Brian! Coach Lance is proud!

In the 5K, Brett Ramsey came down and picked up the win (and a check for $60), with a nice 17:34.

Conditions this morning were even better than at the Houston marathon because there were nearly identical temperatures but virtually no wind, and overcast. This is a nice little run they put on down there in Angleton. I wouldn't miss it. Today's time of 39:12 was by far the best time I've turned in down there. Give me a few weeks to focus on my speed and I'll be where I want to be, hopefully.



And by the way Minken, Kevin backed up what coach Jack Daniels told you. He said he did 80+ miles a week starting in late September. That's how you get to 2:51.

Informal Speedwork

Tonight I decided to do some informal speedwork out on the 3.82 mile New Territory big loop. The loop is sidewalk all the way but is intersected here and there with streets that cut into the interior of the loop. The typical distance between these breaks is .2 to .4 miles. I decided to go fast/slow and it worked out great. The weather was perfect (48 degrees). I alternated fast/slow until I had done five fast blocks and was about 2/3 of the way through the loop. At that point I took it easy for the final mile or so to the house. It was a nice way to do speedwork. No set distance and I didn't time myself. And heck, on a couple of the fast stretches I wasn't sure how far I had to go before I got to quit which made it VERY interesting. I guess it was a true Fartlek workout. I didn't push too terribly hard with the race Saturday.

10K Tune-Up

Well, now that all the longer races that favor strength runners like me are over, it's back to the shorter stuff and a renewal of my struggle against the monkey that often gets on my back during races of those distances. I haven't raced anything shorter than a marathon since Thanksgiving Day, and haven't had a really good short distance effort since July, when I went 18:37 at the Lunar Rendezvous 5K. This weekend Brian King and I are heading down to Angleton to run the Spectacle Spectacular. It will be the sixth consecutive year I've run it. I always look forward to it and go in with big expectations, given that it comes just after all the fall training when I should be in peak form. But I'm usually disappointed. Maybe this time will be different - we'll see.

I had intended to do speedwork last night but got a late start. It wasn't until about 8:15 PM that I was able to run and by then the enthusiasm for speedwork was gone. So I headed over to my old subdivision for an aggressive tempo on the 6.2 mile route. I didn't plan to go all out like I've done in the past just prior to a 10K but I wanted to go at 80-90% effort.

The weather was cooperative and I listened to the Aggies play Baylor in basketball. I kept trying to calculate how much time would be left in the game when I finished. Little did I know that the game would go FIVE overtimes and I'd be in bed watching the end of the 10 PM news before it was over (the Ags couldn't make free-throws and lost their third game in a row).

I did a 20:48 going out and felt fine. I typically run a negative split but the wind was in my face for much of the return. I still managed a 19:42 negative split and felt great. The total time was 40:30 and I'm not sure I'll be able to shave two minutes off that time Saturday or even 1:30 but I'm gonna throw it all out there and see what happens. Wish me luck.

Who Says You Can't Run In The Rain And Cold

Yesterday was one of those days where you could easily have talked yourself out of running (unless you run on a treadmill). It was in the 50s and raining, and the trails were bound to be water-logged. It was one of those "how committed are you to getting better?" kind days. Remember, when you're taking a day off, the person you'd like to beat probably isn't.

So with that in mind, I told Brian King when he called that no, we were still scheduled to run the Monday tempo run, hell or high water. I told him that we had to be like the mail man - sleet, rain, snow, all that stuff. So I headed over to the Greatwood loop to meet up with Steve Schroeder and Brian to get 'er done.

Our plan was to run two loops (7.1 miles total) at a good tempo pace (7 minutes per mile or better), which would put us in under 50 minutes. The rain had slacked to a light mist just before we started but got a little heavier as we got going. But I had a cap, a long-sleeve Cool Max, gloves and shorts. I never was really cold and rain doesn't bother me too much unless it's just torrential. The course was a bit sloppy but otherwise the weather never compromised our performance. Steve said our pace from the get-go was well under 7 minutes but it wasn't supposed to be an easy day so we soldiered on.

We hit loop one in 24:12, a 6:49 pace, and kept on going, fully expecting to negative split the two loops. Brian led the way, as he has on most recent hard tempo runs but he never got more than 30 or 40 feet ahead. I knew our pace was faster because at each benchmark we were ahead of our time for the first loop. Steve had peeled off after loop one to do some things on his own, but met us on the final 1/2 mile stretch for the finish. That was good because he was a little refreshed and thus made sure Brian and I had a rabbit to get everything out of us that we had left.

We finished loop two in 23:04 for a two loop total of 47:16 (6:39 pace) , one of our best two loop times ever. We were pretty whipped though. It was one of those runs that has you hating every minute of the final couple of miles but feeling very satisfied with the workout you've just put in once you're done.

Sorta Long-Run With Brian King

I met Brian King today at 2:30 PM over in my old neighborhood for a long-run. The wind was howling but the temperature wasn't too bad if you were dressed for it. We had to do alot of backtracking and doubling over routes we'd already run but we managed to get 12.46 miles before we ended up back where we started, and at a 6:59 overall pace. I had some pain in my left knee, similar to what I felt after Dallas but it eventually went away then and I'm sure it'll go away this time too. Today felt good.

One note about Brian. We've been wanting him in the Houston Striders for quite awhile now. Today David Minken stepped up and paid Brian's membership fee. Thanks Dave. Like I always say, you're my favorite Canadian!

Back In The Saddle Again

I'll take the Aerosmith version of that song versus Gene Autry. I got back in the saddle again today and laced 'em up for an easy run this evening to find out where my recovery stands. I've recovered physically much better than I did after the Dallas marathon. I was pain free by yesterday but wasn't sure whether the heart and lungs had recovered as quickly as the legs. But in fact it was just the opposite tonight. The heart and lungs were ready to go and the legs came along for the ride, but there is still a bit of soreness in my calfs that's not apparent just walking around. But no injuries - the calfs will be fine.

I covered about 5.8 miles in just a hair over 40 minutes. Pace was probably 6:45 to 6:50.

I'm gonna try to get in another run tomorrow and then go long(ish) on Saturday - 14 to 16.

20 Miles At The Red-Line, 6.2 at Death's Door

Since I finally got the sub three hour monkey off my back at Dallas five weeks ago my plan at the Chevron Houston Marathon today was to come out of the blocks firing on all cylinders and just see how deep into the race I could hold it. My overall goal was to best my Dallas time, however I got there.

Things started off well, as my buddy from the 2006 Houston marathon, Brian Belger, pulled up beside me before we'd even hit mile one. Brian and I ran 20 great miles together in 2006 before I hit the wall. It was great to have him running next to me again. Brian is a faster runner than me so I wasn't surprised that we were consistently running miles in the 6:33 to 6:38 range early on. I knew it was aggressive for me, but since my plan was to swing for the fences I figured, what the heck. We hit five miles in 33:03 (6:37 pace) and did the second five miles even faster - 32:55 (6:35 pace).

Our ten mile time was 1:05:58 (6:36 pace). Brian, who had separated his shoulder last weekend in a biking accident, dropped back somewhere around mile 12 or 13 and I hit the half in 1:26:39 (6:37 pace). That's the second fastest half I've ever run.

My third five-mile split was 33:33 (6:43 pace), getting me to 15 miles in 1:39:31 (6:38 pace), but I wasn't hitting as many mile splits at sub 6:40 anymore. In fact, I never would again.

Mile 20 saw me complete the 4th five-split in 34:20, a still respectable 6:42 pace, but I was about to die. My 20th mile had come in at 7:02 and had been a real struggle. Everything was slowing down, and unlike Dallas, I was unable to do anything about it. I wanted to quit, real bad. But of course that was an option.

Miles 21 through 25 were awful, and awfully painful. I posted a 36:44 for that five-mile split (7:21 pace) and watched my shot at besting Dallas fade.

Mile 26 was faster than mile 25, but was still only 7:23. It was all I had. I just wanted to come in under 3 hours again at that point. I clocked a 1:34 in the final stretch to post a 2:59:33.

It was the best I could do. I'm not sure if I wouldn't have still had the same problems in those last several miles even if I had been slower in the beginning. I mean, everything suggests that I went out to fast, and I probably did. But I still might have died at the end anyway. Who knows. I gave it a good shot and have no regrets. Two sub 3 hour marathons in five weeks at the age of 44 ain't too terribly bad I don't guess.

By the way, my wife, who had never run farther than down to the mailbox until May 2007, completed the half today in 2:27 and change and said she could have easily shaved another eight minutes off that if she hadn't been so cautious about her pace, and if she wouldn't have been forced into a nearly 15 minute mile one because of the crowd. Good job Susan Collins!

Abbreviated Speedwork

I met Brian King over at the track this evening for an abbreviated speedwork session. We didn't want to push it at all but wanted to get in a few quick laps around the track. We did 6 relatively fast ones - anywhere from 1:20s on the first few to a 1:30 on the final one, which is about what we had wanted to do them all in. But you know how fresh legs feel.

Brian was battling a last minute injury but thinks he's fully turned the corner and will be fine this Sunday. He's going to be targeting seven minute miles throughout, if possible, which would be a big PR for him. But he's fitter than he's ever been, has trained long, and hard, and is ready to uncork a great run. Same goes for my other training partner, Steve Schroeder. His injury has also submitted to the forces of ice, rest, stretching, and a few anti-inflammatories.

Below is a last minute check-list of things to remember for Sunday (some are specific to guys, ladies):

*Bandages for the nips
*gloves
*gels
*Water and sports drink to consume as soon as you get up and on the way down to GRB Sunday morning
*watch
*pace-band
*jock
*hat/sweatband/earband (whatever you wear on your head, if anything)
*lip balm
*sunblock if you're going to be out there awhile
*sunglasses
*body glide
*energy drink or whatever you use for a caffeine boost
trashcan liner or throwdown shirt - it's going to be pretty chilly at the start
*bandages to cover any toe(s) that typically give you problems
*a couple of ibuprofen to stick in that little pocket of your shorts to take if needed
*lay out what you're going to have for breakfast that morning (I go for oatmeal and have it all ready to just add milk and pop in the microwave)
*cell phone
*id/wallet/money
*race bib
*timing chip plus SEVERAL ties to attach it to your shoe!
*warm clothes to put on afterward including another pair of socks and possibly even another pair of shoes
*small towel to tuck inside the waistband of your shorts (Doug Schroeder told me about this - great idea to wipe your face/hands etc. when you slosh Gatorade down your chin or your fingers get sticky from a gel)
*A positive, "this-is-the-day" attitude
*A token of appreciation for the spouse or significant other to say thanks for putting up with this madness these past several months.

I'm sure I've left something out so by all means, add away.

Tapering

Not much to report. I did 4.5 miles Sunday night. Not the distance I was planning to cover but it was late and I was tired. And I still hammered a good pace (probably around 6:30 - I didn't time it) and felt great. Yesterday I met up with Steve Schroeder and we did about 4.2 here in New Territory at about an eight minute pace. I'm going to run tomorrow morning just for some last minute acclimation to the cold weather that we're going to be experiencing Sunday morning. It's been so warm lately that I don't want my lungs to go into shock at the cold air Sunday. The forecast has improved quite a bit. Now it's going to be upper 30s to around 40 at the start, and sunny. Fairly windy though, at least as of today. We'll see.

Friday Speedwork

Today after work I headed over to do repeats on the .4 mile oval in my old subdivision again. I was feeling fine but have been really battling to control my appetite this week. I've found that it's not nearly as easy to manage my weight as it was when I was younger nor as easy as it is when I'm maintaining high milage. Couple that with the fact that I haven't done much fast-paced running since before the Dallas marathon so I was a little unsure how things would go. But it worked out fine. I hammered six repetitions, with a .2 mile recovery, though I must admit, I had to walk about the first 100 feet of each recovery just so I'd be ready for the next one. Here are my splits:

2:08, 2:10, 2:11, 2:11, 2:10, 2:10

Compare those times to the ones I did two weeks ago:

2:16, 2:09, 2:13, 2:12, 2:11, 2:07

A little better this week I'd say.

As far as the Houston marathon goes, I'm concerned about the weather. Not sure if anyone else is looking ahead yet, but I'm seeing overnight lows on Saturday night of near freezing, with rain. Niiiiiiice. Maybe we can run the whole thing indoors at GRB.

Cold 10 Miler

I headed over to my old subdivision tonight after work for a solo 10 mile run. It was tough keeping warm. Seemed way colder than 40 degrees. I had on shorts (I don't don the tights unless it's in the 30s or worse), but wore a long-sleeve and short-sleeve tech shirt, and two pairs of gloves.

I maintained a pretty good pace but was really just going through the motions. I'm going to do speedwork tomorrow so I didn't really want to tear it up. And I'm not sure I could have anyway - I wasn't really feeling it tonight, but then again I had on some old plodders that have got to be approaching retirement milage.

Nothing hurts, no injuries, ready for Houston. However, I am having trouble keeping the weight down. I hate having to watch what I eat but when you cut back the milage you have no choice. My two running partners, Brian and Steve, are both dealing with what we hope are minor injuries. Cross your fingers for them.

Run details: 10 miles, 1:08:43 (6:52 pace)