Thursday Fartleks

Ran a good Fartlek today. Started a little fast and erratic. But after the first couple of fast rounds the sporadic pace college guy left and Sarah and I settled into a good consistent pace. Ended up doing a full nine two minute speed intervals, the last six of which were steady and controlled running strong, good form, and controlled breathing. At mile six I detoured to the spillover at the springs for a quick dip, then a brisk run back to mile zero. Skipping the two-a-days and more ice has really helped the leg. Maybe it's all the time I've been spending in the springs. Next week I'll pick it up back to some serious miles concentrating on form and a little extra speed.

Cool Seven and a cold Dip..

Today's seven at seven was a small group. Lambchop, la Mexicana, and myself.. We went out easy and turned the morning into an easy Fartlek.. Felt really really tight for first part of the run, but as the pace picked up, the legs loosened up. There's got to be some reason that running slower feels harder on my legs. Gilbert help me! I think my form sucks more when I run slow than it does when I run faster. Maybe that's what I need to do. Just crank up the speed and hope that the rest of me can keep up. Now if I could only get my lungs to agree to it...

Ahh.. Fall. Kinda..

Finally some cool weather.. Nothing too exciting today to report other than that. An easy seven miler around the lake and down Lake Austin Blvd. I have been experiencing some discomfort in mid-lower leg. I don't think they are chin splints, or anything too major, but it is unfortunately starting to play tricks on my head. I'll keep a close eye on it and do the best I can to listen to my body and keep self doubt out of the picture entirely.

Don't try this at home !!

Note to self... never do this at rush hour again!!! never ever !!! http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=397673.
I've never really thought of myself as an imbecile. Sure sometimes distracted, sometimes scatterbrained, and sometimes silly, but never have I done anything so stupid as try to run Stratford lane during rush hour traffic. It made perfect sense all day long as I planned my afternoon penance for missing this morning's mini-bomb run... My stomach was finally behaving and I was ready for a good long workout. So out I went. Excited about getting a good sweat on, on the hills of Stratford Lane. Well that comfortable little run all of a sudden became a life and death battle against luxury SUVs and zippy sports cars. That whizzed by just inches from my soggy Asics. Overall it ended up being eight miles of 'chiken' with oncoming traffic. Pace was all over the map. Happy, so happy to still be in one piece.

Arrgh!!

It must have happened sometime in my sleep Friday night. This whole week I've been super excited about the 22 miler Saturday morning. Some butterflies in the stomach, but excited none the less.. I went to bed a little hungry on Friday night and fell asleep almost instantly.. But during a restless night it all came apart... Somehow those butterflies in my stomach turned into some seriously bad running karma in my head... It took all I had to get out of bed and out to Barton Springs.
Earlier I had mentioned to Patrick that I would run the shorter route with him, but that was just a joke... I knew I had to do the 22. But by 2:00am friday night. I had already decided to shorten the 22 to whatever the 6:00am guys were up to.. So I changed the alarm clock, somehow got to the Springs by 6:00am, laced up my shoes, got plenty of goo, and stumbled into the stale steamy morning...... crusty sleepy eyes, lazy uninspired legs .. cranky and disoriented, I headed out with a motley pack of malcontents. Chops, Rudy, Fletcher, RockStar Duane and myself.. We worked our way North, bitching, crying, complaining, and generally having a great time.. The run wasn't pretty... it wasn't fast and it wasn't long.. But somehow we managed to make the most of it, logging 12 forced, muggy miles in all. Not what I was expecting for my long Saturday run. Thankfully the therapeutic chill of Barton Springs cleared my head of all the negative vibes that a shitty run can sometimes stir up.. It kinda put everything in perspective too. Does it really matter if I finish 50 or 60 or 70 miles this week? Will a 3 hour marathon make me a better person ? First and foremost this is for fun. Getting out there early, the camaraderie of good friends, some good spirited trash talk, and a serious workout. Sure a sub three hour marathon will be awesome.. Yeah Boston will be great when I finally get to run it.. But if I can't enjoy all the miles that get me there, chances are I won't enjoy those milestones either.. How's that for a crappy run disclaimer ?

Damn that Scotch !!

Well today's plan for a leisurely seven quickly turned into a brisk four when the snooze button on my alarm clock somehow got tripped. I don't remember a thing but i'm positive it wasn't me.. O.K. maybe it was the Scotch.. ooops... Oh well, it's probably for the best.. tomorrow is a long one and my stomach is already starting to knot up.. Might hit 70 this week. Now that definitely deserves some Scotch!

Funny Runner..

So apparently, I'm a funny runner.. no not funny ha ha.. just funny looking according to Gilbert.. he said this morning that I need to work more on my core, because my form is getting funny. And then he proceeded to imitate my running form... part old man country dancing, part penguin speed walking, and part constipated dog shuffle. HOLY CRAPOLA !!! how embarrassing. and all this time I thought I was cruising along like Bernard and Des.. and all those other uber-runners in town. o.k. that's a joke.. I know I run like a constipated penguin with longer legs.. I've come to terms with it.. I just wanna be the fastest constipated whatever that I can.. So this morning I had a great mental run.. went out way too fast on an easy seven mile loop.. a couple miles in a started to feel it, but resisted the urge to pull back.. I kept my breathing under control, concentrated on my graceful form, and somehow managed to keep the strong pace all the way to the end.. soaked and thirsty I finished solid and with plenty of gas in the tank for another lap later this afternoon. no watch today so I'll just call it 7 miles @ a 5:15 pace..
uhh..... that's a joke too.. more like a 7:00 min pace if I had to guess.

Thursday Part Deux
A good solid seven..Not fast, just steady, concentrating on form and breathing.. It was hotter than a mofo.. I wanted to stop about 47 times, but I held on and clocked a Timex 7:47. not too bad.. 14 for the day. legs are loose, will is good, ready for seven easy tomorrow and a long one on Sat.

50 minutes...

50 minutes in the bush.. An easy 25minutes out and back on the Greenbelt. The last time we did this one it almost killed Joseph Naraguma. Today's was much easier. Good company and an easy pace, I focused on not busting my ass on the rocks.. I don't know if there is any scientific proof to this, but I am convinced that these trail runs strengthen your feet and calves. It definitely feels like it. All the tiny adjustments that you have to make dodging little rocks, giant boulders, tree trunks, low branches, armadillos... what? armadillos... Two shot out in front of us at the end of the run.. No wonder you always see them flattened on the road.. they waited until we were literally right on top of them before jumping out into the trail...
It was a good morning run today.. but a long work day will make it the only run of the day... Tomorrow I go twice... Mileage so far for the week.. 26. Legs feel fresh. 60 days to Chicago...

Stiff and Squishy on the Fletcher Loop

Ahhh the Hills of Bouldin Creek, Wait a minute!! Hills in Bouldin creek.. Well, when you go out too hard on this little loop Fletcher dreamed up, you definitely feel every bump in elevation. I kinda like them. It's like a poor man's Stratford Lane that you can run harder and faster. We'll maybe not too much faster today. Legs are still a little sluggish.. and the heavy morning humidity had me swimmin in my waterlogged shoes. Good mental run today.. Pushed a steady pace the entire way. Overall it was a decent outing, 7.5 miles, one water stop at the Mile 0 watering hole.. ~7:40 pace
http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=382566

Part two on tuesday.. Five sticky, sweaty miles at 5:30.. The legs are finally starting to loosen up.. Noticed new quarter mile markers out there. Missed the Gazelle 1000's workout but the increased milage feels great. 12.5 miles for the day.. Grennbelt tomorrow early...

From firecracker to dud in thirty five minutes.

A good start to another week, today's bomb run was a real test. Some of the usual suspects were missing but there were plenty of diehards running this morning. First two miles were at a leisurely pace..Kinda hot but otherwise a beautiful Austin morning. Fletcher turned it up somewhere between miles two and three, and I stayed with him, running very comfortably for a while, hoping that my heavy legs would loosen up as we cruised along. They didn't, but I pressed on as hard as I could. I kept Fletcher in eyeshot for a good while but eventually he disappeared into the distance. I stopped for water at six and rolled in the last mile comfortably. I know I had more in my legs but as my confidence wandered so did my resolve to keep the 6:40ish(I think) pace. Part of me wants to say last week's mileage is what slowed me down today, the other part says it was a lack of mental toughness. I'm sure it was a little of both. Either way, I'm just happy being out there.

Three miles and a dip.

Once upon a time, Sundays were for resting. Not anymore. Chicago is just around the corner, and everyday counts, Sunday included. Went out for a very leisurely three miles today, finishing at the springs. The trail was busy at 9:00am, plenty of bicycle traffic and lots of runners. Ashley and I ran slow, enjoying the warm air and promise of an icy dip at the finish line. It was a great finish to my longest week ever.

"Are you Crazy..." 15+5=20

"Are you crazy..." was the first thing out of my mom's mouth when I told her what I ran today. Never in a million years would I have thought that I could run twenty miles in one day. Today was one of those days, and more. I did have a great time running with some Gazelle pals, but today's run wasn't my longest, fastest, or strongest. It wasn't particularly special. I've run farther plenty of times... But this was the first time that I ever did a long run and thought....hmmm, that wasn't enough.. I need to go again. I've been doing two-a-days for a couple of weeks now and they feel great, but it's usually been seven miles early and seven late.. Today was a longer morning trek up Mt. Bonnell. Not a simple jog around the seven mile loop... Part two came late this afternoon, hot, kinda sticky.. I laced up my still squishy Asics and drove to Barton Springs..took a Goo and ran for about forty minutes, finishing under the freezing cold waterfall at the spill-over side of Barton Springs... It felt awesome... About 51/2-6 miles total. Twenty-ish for the day. I remember it wasn't that long ago that running twenty miles a week made me feel invincible... This week I'll finish in the 66/67 mile range. I wish I could take credit for the progress, but the truth is that it's all Gazelle, if it weren't for all the help, I'd still be shuffling along the trail watching Gazelle after Gazelle zip by me... I think it's safe to say that I've got the bug.

Viva los Gazelles !!!