Beautiful Day

I got out for a short run this morning -- 3.3 in 26:58. It was a gorgeous, cool, cloudless day -- just a perfect summer morning. I eased back just a bit on the pace (~8:12/mile) and it was a really nice run. Things were flowing, almost from the moment I got out the door at 6:15 AM. It was just one of those runs where I know I had a great one and it was a joy to be out and moving.

I kept it short because I'm running a 5 mile race tomorrow to support ALS research. It's Squirrel Run in Quincy. The husband of a woman with whom I work is an ALS researcher at Harvard Med. Mike Timlin -- relief pitcher for the Red Sox, FA -- came into his lab one day and said "Hey, do this run." So he is and so am I. Supposedly Timlin will be in the field. I'll write it up tomorrow.

Go Figure

I got out for 30 minutes this AM. I set up my sprinkler today and had it going by 6:30 and then set off. It was in the low-60s, but humid and there is more pine pollen around than I've ever seen. The humidity made breathing a bit hard and I was working on keeping the pace down -- though ended up covering the 3.7 miles in 30:16 . . . which is a solid low-eights pace (too fast for a mid-week run, honestly!).

The go figure part of this post is that the weather was sticky and sort of gross for my run but when I headed out to work it was really nice. A new air mass made it's way in while I ate breakfast and it's a perfect summer day.

Quick POst

I got rained out yesterday and got out today for 35 minutes. It was a beautiful day and nice to be outside - even if it was chilly. I'm having pace trouble, and going out really hard and I'm not sure what's up with that. Anyway, got out, one more run under the belt, not a bad thing. Back to work -- very busy at the new gig! It's cramping my blog style . . .

"There Is No Fight Club"

Time: 32:59
Avg HR: 152
Peak HR: 170
Calories: 526
Distance: 4.02
Start Time: 6:47 AM
Training Effect: 3.8
Temp: high-30s
Date: 10/2/07

"The first rule of fight club is that there is no fight club . . . "
"The second rule of fight club is that there is no fight club . . . "

With those lines I got sucked into a late night movie after watching the Pats beat up the Bengals. I didn't watch the whole of Fight Club, and did manage to get to bed before midnight but 6:30 came awfully quickly. Another thing that hastened the morning was some GI distress that kept rousing me from a fitful sleep. So, I was haggard this AM and not feeling so splendid as I ran my route. I got it in, and I didn't have to do anything that would get me arrested -- I, unlike VTR, do not live in a rural area. A good night's sleep is so key, for me at least, as my (not fleet) time for my 4 mile loop shows. Oh yeah, I actually wore my running jacket today -- the one with the light lining -- because it was pretty chilly out there. Fall deepens.

Family Run 2

I met one goal this weekend which was to get out with the whole family for another family run. We did a little different route and had a nice time on a gorgeous day for a 30 minute trot. Mrs. Agricola started out blazing and paid for it at the end. She's getting stronger and as a result is having some trouble with the pacing aspect of her workouts. That's a good problem to have I think; and the pacing piece will work itself out. The kids were ensconced in the stroller with animal buddies and snacks. Child Two was very quiet, uncharacteristically so, and Child One sang "Bingo Was His Name-O" over and over again.
We had a good time and are looking forward to the next run.

I didn't get out for my trail run Sunday, but I did manage to make a huge pot of Chicken Curry and an apple pie, so the day wasn't a total wash.

Saturday/Monday

Saturday
Time: 51:54
Avg HR: 158
Peak HR: 182
Calories: 838
Distance: 6.2
Start Time: 6:51 AM
Training Effect: 5.0
Temp: warm
Date: 8/4/07

I set out on Saturday AM for my second 50+ minute run before Falmouth. It went really well. It was a bit slower overall (about 39 seconds total) but I had no walking portion to get back on track, and the last hill was easier this week than last. I think it made a huige difference getting out an hour earlier because it was that much cooler, and the air was also drier this week than last. I noticed a difference in my runs in-between 10Ks. The longer run does so much to help the conditioning. I'm psyched I bucked up for these and got them in.

Monday
Time: 30:53
Avg HR: 148
Peak HR: 169
Calories: 422
Distance: ~3.8
Start Time: 6:41 AM
Training Effect: 3.8
Temp: cool -- classic August Morning!
Date: 8/6/07

Today was a day I felt the effect of the longer run that I mentioned above. It was a moderate run, just under four, in a time of about 8:07/mile. The HR was within a very comfortable range and the run felt good. It's as if I've turned a definite corner and it feels good to be here at this point in my training: two more runs this week and 6 days until Falmouth . . . I'm feeling good.

Adaptation

Time: 35:46
Avg HR: 151
Peak HR: 174
Calories: 539
Distance: ~4 miles
Start Time: 5:50 AM
Training Effect: 4.2
Temp: 62 F (94% Rel. Humidity)
Date: 7/24/07

Today was another really humid day so I adapted my pace and took it slower. It worked and I was able to run where I wanted to, and finish the whole, planned route. It was a bit tough on the breathing front but going out for first mile at 8:52 was wiser than 8:15 -- which is what I did last Friday. I had capacity to pick up the tempo in the later portion of the run and finish strong. I haven't done the pedometer for this course so I don't have an actual per-mile-pace, but the tempo picked up over the last half. All in all, it was a good run.

Pacing: A Follow-up

Addendum to my 7/10/07 AM post:
I know I commented about not worrying about mileage right now, but I got to thinking about pace etc. and so did up my route which is visible above. With a distance of 5.2339 miles (I love ten-thousandths of a mile!) in 41:57 I averaged about 8:01/mile. I'm pretty psyched about that!