10K

Got out for a mellow 10K today before running off to a meeting. It felt pretty good, not great, but not bad. It was mild and not raining today, so that was good. The sun came out after the run, but what can you do?

I'll try for another 10K tomorrow as well to get in the mileage. I noticed that my left leg was a bit sore today in the quad -- I think it has something to do with the fact that for much of the ES20 it was the leg on the high side of the road and it felt more tired during the run than the right leg (could be total poppycock, I don't know, but it seems like a plausible theory).

Final 2008 Run

I got in my last run of 2008 this morning, in the snow, again. Today was a tougher run than my solstice snow run. It was about 10 degrees colder, much windier and the snow was fine and abrasive. However the course works the wind was in my face very often and I could hardly see along certain sections of the road. The snow was caked in my eyelashes and brows and my face was wet and cold. I toughed it out though and finished the year strong.

On the gear front I wore my entire new Sugoi rain suit and it was nice. It's not as warm as my trusty Patagonia, but the jacket's neck fits more snugly and that's a great bonus. It was very comfortable and kept me dry and warm while breathing well.

So, here we are, again, another year in the books. I think it's been a good year on the blog. We've certainly posted a lot and run/worked out a lot. It's good to see. Thanks for doing this, it's very gratifying as the instigator of this experiment to see that it works -- both as a workout motivator and as a way to keep in touch. It's succeeded beyond my goals and that's because it's so active. Thanks guys.

A happy, healthy, safe, prosperous, blessed and mileage filled New Year to all.

Run 40

I got out this morning along a track beside the Puget Sound, a bit less than 3 miles out and back from my hotel. It was 46 degrees, and I was NOT prepared. All I had was a pair of shorts and a technical short-sleeve, so I threw on an extra t-shirt I picked up at a client's office yesterday and wore a baseball cap, which for me is atypical. In fact, the cold wasn't so bad once I got going. My hands stayed cold throughout the run, but the rest of me warmed up with the activity. Lesson learned: wear gloves. I have a thin pair of polypro glove liners that will likely do the job.

I wish I could say that it was a great experiential run, with the natural beauty of the harbor, etc. In fact it was a tough run. I didn't feel good doing it. And the weather was kinda nasty as well as cold. It was very cloudy, which obscured the view. All well. Check the box. The CCMR is in 11 days.

Peace,

Late Start

I  got out of the house late today -- 7:20.  I did my short route (3.3 miles) and ran it in 25:57 which I think might be a record for me for that loop.  It was a fairly uneventful run, I felt good and quick, the sun was up and the sky was crystal clear.  The temps were in the low-mid-40s.  I wore a long sleeve technical shirt, but shorts.  I did see my first jacketd, tighted, hatted runner -- though she had her jacket unzipped and was sweating pretty good.  Today is the type of day that makes you really appreciate the seasonal change -- it's can be so beautiful.

Foul

I intended to go running yesterday but I woke and everything huhrt -- my whole body ached.  It was like a delayed reaction from Tuesday night's endeavor.  It was a good ache and sort of cool though.

I got out this morning and the air was foul.  It wasn't too hot but it was super humid -- around 90%..  I had a weird dream about not being able to breathe and woke up feeling sort of congested, but I ran anyway.  I did my short route and kept off on the pace becuse of the humidity.  I didn't have my HR monitor on today.  I felt strong through the short distance -- sometimes you need short runs for confidence, I think --.I finished well and am glad that I got out.  I was making breakfast post-run and was leaving footprints all over the clean kitchen floor -- that's how much I was sweating. 

Houston, TX Run

We headed down to Houston this past weekend to visit my brother and his family. They have a new baby and a new house, and given that we're entering the final trimester of #3, the time was right. We arrived late Thursday, and just hung out Friday. I got out for a jaunt on Saturday (but not Sunday).

I was prepared to be the only runner on the road and was going to call this post "Not a Local." I met a runner from Houston when I was in Atlanta and he had told me that nobody goes out in the summer to run. Well, there were a bunch of us on Saturday, running. I ran from my brother's place, through a neighborhood over to the campus of Rice University. I did a complete circuit of the campus on a nice, gravel path, in the shade of some really nice trees. It was an approximately 4.5 mile loop and a nice run. I did it pretty quickly, 37 minutes, and enjoyed the spectacle. It was hot and humid however, and by the end, I have to admit I was a bit sapped. I can now add Houston to the list of cities in which I've run, and I got the best sweat I've gotten in a while.

I had a bad running week last week -- traveling, really busy, Celtics -- and a bad diet weekend -- travelling, family gathering. I'll get back on both tracks this week. I'm doing the Chase Corporate Challenge this Thursday, so that will be fun.

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.

Drizzle

I got a 33 minute run in this AM in a light drizzle. Now it's pouring out so I'm psyched that I got one in prior to the deluge.

Is That All?

So, I went out for my scheduled eight miler yesterday. I wasn't too amped about it, it was drizzling and cold, and I didn't go to bed early enough on Saturday night, but I went anyway.

As I ran along, it got rainier, and darker, and colder. I was soaked by three miles and considering turning around and just doing a 10K. I carried on. As I got to the point on the run that's about far from home as possible the weather went crazy. The rain poured down, the wind whipped, the sky got even darker and I was thinking to myself "OK, it's all good, I'm chalking up Karma Points for later."

Then, the next thing I knew, the sun broke through, the rain stopped and the wind calmed down. I started thinking to myself that the running karma points are pretty parsimoniously distributed if all I'm going to get out of them is that the back half of my run is dryer and less windy . . . is that all? Apparently that was all I was going to get. The rest of the run was pretty uneventful and I did it much more quickly than I did the first time I ran that distance (72 minutes, versus 88). Of my three long runs so far, I've run in a big snowfall and some funky, weird weather (yesterday was one of the weirdest weather days, ever -- rain, snow, thunder, wind. I'm looking forward to some nice spring days, that's for sure.

Big Weekend

I did 5.2 on Saturday with Child Two in the jogging stroller. I had him bundled up and had the rain shield down to keep the wind off of him so I couldn't completely hear all of his patter but he kept up an almost continuous stream of commentary for the whole run. We went later in the day and he kept saying how it was getting dark, and it was nighttime. It was fun. There were a couple of stops to adjust his Froggy Friend and his blanket and I covered the distance in 49 minutes. Not blazing, but not bad either, and thee was a point along the route where I really felt the joy of running. We were on long, straight, flat, quiet road -- running basically down the middle -- and I wasn't thinking about much except the great sense of motion and movement I was feeling at that time.

Sunday was a different matter. I went out in a pretty stiff snowfall and did 8.1 in a glacial 88 minutes. Traction was lousy, visibility was lousy in parts as I ran into the wind and the route I picked was hilly. I walked every 1.5 miles or so and swigged my water and I brought a light snack of pretzels and yogurt-raisins and this helped my energy, though I have to admit that right now this distance is a bit longer than I feel ready for. I don't know how much to factor conditions into this pace, but they definitely impacted me. Never the less, I got out and did it to it. I had hoped to be covering 20 miles/week for a month prior to training but now I'm finding myself ramping up training mileage and training for a marathon at the same time. Not optimal, and not my usual method, but I figure the best way to get fit is to push and go long.

Roadrunner & Coyote

Time: 27:04
Avg HR: 156
Peak HR: 176
Calories: 450
Distance: 3.3
Start Time: 6:08 AM
Training Effect: 3.7
Temp: Chilly
Date: 11/14/07

Yesterday was my day, but it was rainy and drizzly and I was a wimp and bailed -- I couldn't figure if it was going to pour or keep spritzing and I missed my run. I rolled out of bed today at 5:50 AM, sucked it up even though it was dark and cold, and was on the road by 6:08 AM. I had to get out early and keep it short because today was technically Mrs. Agricola's morning and I want to do 5 tomorrow (my scheduled day) so I had to get back in time for her to get in her workout (Mrs. A, coincidentally ran her longest distance this past weekend in a very nice Saturday effort).

Anyway, it was pretty dark, but the sky was lighting up in the East with the sunrise. A lady was walking a couple of dogs and I said "hello" to her as I started my run. I took a few strides, looked up and saw a coyote running very fast away from me, across the street that our street intersects, and down a hilly driveway into somebody's yard. I crossed the street to see if I could see him but he was gone into the dark woods. It was very cool, and I was surprised to see the coyote at that hour. The last time I'd seen him he was waking the neighborhood after getting into it with a cat that lives down the street -- I think the coyote lost that exchange, it must be a tough cat.

The sunrise was amazing -- brilliant fiery pink at the horizon fading into pale morning-blue sky into which Venus was rising ahead of the sun. The frost covered everything in a beautiful even coating. It was a a great morning, and a morning that I was glad to be a runner.

In another note, I'm starting a new gig next week that's about 55 miles from my home -- I'm re-entering the freelance world. I'm going to need to get up earlier to get in my runs, so if you see me not posting, get on me -- it's most likely because I'm being a wimp and lazy.

Animals

Time: 33:22
Avg HR: 160
Peak HR: 179
Calories: 587
Distance: 4.02
Start Time: 6:47 AM
Training Effect: 4.2
Temp: Warm & Humid
Date: 10/23/07

Today was a decent run. Not my fastest at this distance for sure, but fairly comfortable and uneventful. I really feel fall settling in on me -- I'm moving a bit slower and want to eat a lot more. No matter how much we try and avoid it, we're still animals and still somewhat in tune with Nature and her rhythms.

On a more prosaic note: what's up with our CCM team? Am I going to have to run like half of this marathon this weekend? That's going to be ugly.

Ch-ch-ch-changes!

Time: 38:18
Avg HR: 158
Peak HR: 178
Calories: 637
Distance: 4.7
Start Time: 6:46 AM
Training Effect: 4.3
Temp: 50s & Humid
Date: 10/4/07

Two days ago I needed a jacket, it was cold and dry and clear. Today I didn't stop sweating for 45 minutes post-run. The air was humid and funky and the sky was leaden.
Fall got a bit more shallow today, for sure.