Running For My Life

I couldn’t sleep last night so I went for a run at 4 a.m.  I had planned to do 12 miles this morning but with the extra time I stretched it to 15.  It didn’t get light until around Mile 10 so most of the run was in the dark.  There is something neat about running in the middle of the night (okay, very early morning) with no traffic, no noises, no people, and a few critters (like the fox that ran in front of me in the first mile of my run).

I also must note that I am still in awe of my run on Saturday (see previous entry) and was also surprised that my legs were as fresh as they were this morning.  I was able to hold a steady 7 :55 to 8:00 pace and felt no sign of fatigue.  After I finished on Saturday, I was somewhat concerned that it might take me a few days to recover but that was not the case fortunately.

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 08/31/2009
• Time: 04:00:00
• Total Time: 1:59:00.00
• Calories: 1954
• Distance: 15 miles
• Average Pace: 7:56.19/mile

This was a very important long run for me in my quest to break 3 hours in the Lakefront Marathon in 5 weeks.  I set it up so it would replicate the marathon.  I had run for 12 straight days, including two straight hard runs, going into this morning’s run, and was finishing up an 80-mile week, so my legs were plenty tired.  I did the 11.5-mile “out” portion of the run at a 7:30 pace and was hoping to come back at a 7:15 pace.  I was able to push myself harder than I expected and did the “back” portion at a 7:04 pace.  I was in a lot of pain and had to keep pushing my legs to keep up the pace in the final miles.  What an amazing training run though.  If I do break 3 hours in the marathon, I will look back at this morning’s run as the reason.  I am running with a lot of confidence these days.

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 08/29/2009
• Time: 05:45:00
• Total Time: 2:47:30.00
• Calories: 2970
• Distance: 23 miles
• Average Pace: 7:16.89/mile

I typically don’t do hard runs on Fridays because I usually do them on Thursdays and Saturdays.  Today, however, I wanted to push myself a little harder so I can wear my legs out for tomorrow’s 23-miler.  I had intended to go 12 miles today but I took a wrong turn and it ended up to be a 13-miler.  No big deal…..more miles = faster Chris.

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 08/28/2009
• Time: 05:00:00
• Total Time: 1:39:06.00
• Calories: 1627
• Distance: 13 miles
• Average Pace: 7:37.43/mile

Now that darkness has descended upon the 5-6 a.m. hour, I have a difficult time doing interval workouts outdoors.  The roads are too busy and the path is too dark.  But I also don’t feel like taking things indoors to the treadmill when the weather is still so nice outside.  So this morning I tried something different.  There is a .75 mile stretch of isolated frontage road next to the highway, and I used that to do 800-meter intervals.  It worked out perfectly.  No traffic, no distractions.

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 08/27/2009
• Time: 05:00:00
• Total Time: 1:32:48.00
• Calories: 1523
• Distance: 12 miles
• Average Pace: 7:43.92/mile

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 08/26/2009
• Time: 05:30:00
• Total Time: 1:07:06.00
• Calories: 1013
• Distance: 8 miles
• Average Pace: 8:23.5/mile

“Boot Camps” seem to be all the rage these days.  If you don’t know what these are, it is typically where a bunch of women meet early in the mornings at a park to work out with a “boot camp instructor”.  I think the boot camp mentality is what is motivating these women; it gives them the discipline they need to get up and work out every morning.

During my morning run, I go by a park where one of these boot camps is held.  When I run by the first time, the attendees (or should I call them “soldiers”?) are just starting to arrive.  Then I run by again an hour later and they are just finishing up their session.

During my run this morning I got to thinking that I do the same thing they are doing; waking up early to get in a workout.  It just makes me wonder why they need something such as a “boot camp” to give them the motivation to do that.  But then again, I am probably the exception to the rule here….

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 08/25/2009
• Time: 05:00:00
• Total Time: 1:38:47.00
• Calories: 1492
• Distance: 12 miles
• Average Pace: 8:13.83/mile

Last week I ended up at 75 miles.  This week I am going to try to increase that to 78.  I did 12 this morning, then will do 12 tomorrow, 8 Wednesday, 12 Thursday, 12 Friday and 22 Saturday.  I am going to try to do much of Saturday’s long run at or near marathon pace (6:50).  After this week, I have two more big weeks before I start scaling back my mileage for the marathon.

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 08/24/2009
• Time: 05:00:00
• Total Time: 1:33:35.00
• Calories: 1537
• Distance: 12 miles
• Average Pace: 7:48.14/mile

My son’s first cross country meet is next week so I got him some spikes this weekend.  We tried them out on the course tonight.  I forgot how much fun it is running on a cross country course…….running through the fields and forests.

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 08/23/2009
• Time: 19:00:00
• Total Time: 00:19:21.00
• Calories: 254
• Distance: 2 miles
• Average Pace: 9:40.65/mile

My friend Bill and I tackled the hills of Lake Geneva this morning.  What a perfect day and a perfect run.  We went out at an easy 9:00 to 9:10 pace and then I cranked out 7:00-7:15 miles over the last four.  A few of the hills were absolute killers.  This is one I will have to do again.  Another fun thing would be to try the path around the lake instead of taking the roads like we did.

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 08/22/2009
• Time: 06:00:00
• Total Time: 3:06:32.00
• Calories: 2695
• Distance: 21 miles
• Average Pace: 8:53.33/mile

I was about 45 seconds off my normal training pace this morning.  My legs weren’t sore or sick (a.k.a. injured)…..they were just slow.  I had run hard yesterday and have a very difficult 20-miler tomorrow (lots of big hills) so iI just set the cruise control at 8:30 and cranked out 12 miles.   Tomorrow’s big run will close out a 70-plus mile week….the first of four straight in the 70-80 mile range leading up to my October marathon.

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 08/21/2009
• Time: 05:00:00
• Total Time: 1:41:10.00
• Calories: 1528
• Distance: 12 miles
• Average Pace: 8:25.62/mile