Catch me if you can

I got to work at 6:00 and ran on the treadmill for 3 miles.  M was off and S was sick so I after E got to work I ran another 4 miles on the treadmill.

I had an upset stomach so I didn't go to work.  I did an easy run on the treadmill and did strength training.  Dean's viewing was that night.

Dean' s funeral was today.  I got to work at 5:10 to get my run in.  I ran 4.5 easy miles on the treadmill.  It was a sad day.  Dean will be missed.

I started my run at the trail head 6:40.  I didn't start on the trail.  I did the loop twice and on the third time I went down the hill to to trail.  I finished the last 2.5 miles on the trail.  It was really windy going South, but nice running with the wind going North.  I felt pretty good.  My last couple of miles felt way easier than what the pace said.  My splits were 9:19, 8:22, 8:03, 8:52, 7:53, 8:23, 7:41, 8:33, 8:08.  Avg pace 8:22 

2 miles on the treadmill followed by an upper body strength workout.  I went to UVU to watch Taylor run the 800 m prelims.  She did so great.  She was ranked 11th and only the top 8 advance.  She ran a PR of 2:15 and made it to the finals.  It made my day to see her so happy.

I met Angela and Lisa at the trail on 12300.  We went out to 9000 S. and back adding a little extra at the end.  Average pace 8:22.

I ran 5 easy miles starting from home.  I came home a did the P90X Stretch DVD for an hour.

5 easy miles on the sidewalks around work.  Some guy in a red car purposefully turned right in front of me two different times.  Then a few a minutes later I saw him drive by me again.  It felt like he was taunting me.  I have no problem stopping and letting cars turn in, but this guy was just a jerk.

After work I helped Taylor unload her car then I did upper body weights.  

My goal is to have ripped arms and run a 3:30 marathon in October.  I know I can do this.

I met the group at Bingham this morning.  Angela even came.  Cheryl was in charge.  We warmed up for a mile.  Then we did serveral 1/2 mile repeats with recovery through the neighborhoods including Rustic Roads.  We came back to the track and did a few 800's and a 400.  Then we cooled down.  I ran 7 miles with the group, then I got to work and ran another 3.  I've got a lot of work to do to get my speed back, but I know with consistancy it will come.  Average pace for the 10 miles 8:24.

I rode the bike and lifted weights at work.  I also walked 30 minutes at lunch.

I started at the trail head, but ran on the street.  I ran the first 3 miles as a warm up and then a 3 mile tempo.  I started the tempo on a steep hill, so the first mile was a little slower.  Once I got back to the trail, I did several one minute pick-ups.  I wanted to run 10 today, but stomach was feeling off from flax seed muffin in a mug I had for dinner the night before.  I won't be making that again.  I still have heartburn.  No fun.  My splits were 9:46, 8:37, 8:40, 8:22, 7:50, 7:36, 8:10, 8:31 and 7:42.  Average pace 8:22.

My legs felt like lead and my left knee was pretty sore when I woke up.  I kept the pace very slow, between a 9:30mm and 10:00mm.  It was perfect running weather.  

I met Angela at the trail on 12600 S.  We ran North for 8 miles then turned around and ran back.  It was pouring rain the whole time, but luckily it wasn't too cold.  The last couple of miles were tough.  Average pace 8:35.

5.5 super slow miles including some walking.  My legs felt pretty beat.  When I got home I rolled and stretched out my legs.  I

I thought about running a 10k this morning but decided against it last night. I don't think I've been eating enough. I feel my runs are suffering. Now that I'm adding more miles and strength training I need more calories. I ran a very slow 6 miles.

I met the group at the church on 12400.  After a quick one mile warm, we started into the workout.  We did a lot of hill repeats and several intervals with short recoveries.  Average pace 8:19

I rode the bike at work and did upper body weights.

I met the group at Bingham.  Jeff joined us today.  We warmed up for a mile.  Then we started our workout in the neighborhood just South of the school.  We ran several different timed intervals with active recovery between.  Then we ran the new SJ 5k route.  We decided to run that 3 minutes hard and 2 minutes easy.  When we got back to the cars, I decided to run one more mile on the track.  I felt good today and pushed myself pretty hard.  Average pace including the slow recovery parts 8:16.

I must admit I really like running these slow runs.  It's easy to keep the pace at 9:30 - 10:00 for the first two miles, but after after that I have to keep reminding myself to slow down.  It was a beautiful morning.  Average pace 9:19.  I did the lower body strength training warm up before I ran.  After I did stretching and upper body weights.  I can definitely tell my arms getting more toned.

I ran with Angela and Celeste on the JRP.  I got there a little early so could run a slow warm up mile.  I really needed that.  My knees felt so stiff when I first started.  We ran out 5 and back.  There was a really strong head wind on the way back.  The trail was really crowded this morning.  There was a lot of bikers and also a race going on.  My splits for the 10 miles were 8:25, 8:06, 8:00, 8:05, 8:09, 8:34, 8:08, 8:24, 8:28,  and 8:15.  Average 8:16 

I ran 7 miles this morning. It was a little chilly. Perfect running weather. My left knee was really bugging me from 4 miles on. After I went to Bentley's blessing.

7 miles on the treadmill at work.  I figured the treadmill be better for my knee. 9:40 Avg pace.

They group started the later meeting time today at Bingham.  I got there early and after about a mile I ran into Peggy, Mike and Becky.  I ran with them for another 3.5 until everyone else got there.  Cheryl had us warm up and then we ran the 5k course again.  I finished with a mile on the track with Melanie.  I didn't run very fast today.  I decided that increasing my milage is more important than speed right now.  I'm signed up for 4 races over the next month and a 1/2.  I figure that will be all the speed work I need for now.  Average pace 8:50

3.75 miles from work.  Avg pace 8:50.  Dinner with the girls from the running group at Zupas.  Weights at home that evening

I ran at 5:00 am so I could do the pt test for Michelle's class at work. It was a really nice morning. I tried to push the pace but my time was pretty slow. Avg pace 8:25.

I met Cheryl and Peggy at Bingham and we drove to Potato Hill for a trail run.  It was a lot of fun.  The pace was perfect and the time flew by. 

I met the group at RHS.  We did a 10 mile loop with a water stop half way at Cheris' house.  Then I ran 1 more mile on my own.  At About 9:00 last night, my hips started hurting from the trail run.  I'm pretty stiff today.  Average pace 8:24.

I'm really enjoying my slow paced Sunday morning runs. It was another beautiful morning. Average pace 9:05.

I was up most of the night with a sinus cold. Yuck!!  I finally took a Mucinex D at 3:30 am and was able to get a little bit of sleep.  I got up at 6:30 to make sure Austin was up for his first day at cross country.  I dropped him off at the school and came home and started my run.  My body felt fine, but my head felt pretty crummy.  I'm glad I have the day off work.  I had thought about doing speed work today since my class has a PT tomorrow and graduation on Thursday.  It didn't happen.  Maybe tomorrow I can try to some mile repeats if I feel better.  Average pace 9:00. 

I have a bad cold and I don't like it.  I took Musinex D before I went to bed and it kept me up all night long.  I got up at 5:30 and ran on the treadmill for about 20 minutes before my class had their PT test.  Then I ran another 25 minutes after.  I had no energy.  I felt crummy all day.  

Last week I entered a contest on Facebook for a free entry to Utah Valley 1/2 marathon.  McNeil Printing in Orem was putting on the contest.  I found out last night I won.  I'm way excited.  It's this weekend so I hope I'm all better by then.  

I went to work just long enough to make sure everything was ready for graduation.  I went home slept most of the day.  Sick. :(

Everything I've read says it ok to run as long as the cold is above the neck.  I'm a bit nervous that I feel some congestion in my chest.  I ran at home before work.  I felt ok but my joints did feel a little achy.  I will run the 1/2 on Saturday, but I won't put any pressure on myself for a decent time.  Average pace 8:30

3 easy miles on the treadmill at work.  No sleep again.  Still have a cold.

I found out Monday that I had won a free entry into the Utah Valley Half Marathon.  I was pretty excited.  I told my sister and she ended up signing up too.  That same day I starting getting sick.  I've been sick with a head cold all week.  Angela and I decided to stay in Provo Friday night.  I worked a 10 hour shift Friday and went straight to Angela's house and then she drove us Provo.

We went to the expo to pick up our packets.  We were able to listen to Sasha speak.  He gave us some great tips.  It was nice to meet him and his cute wife. We finally got checked in and settled in our hotel room at about 9:00.  It was at this time that I realized I'd left my running shoes in the trunk of my car at Angela's house.  I was more than a little stressed out.  I called my awesome friend Cheris, and she went to my house and picked up some shoes for me.  Luckily we managed to find each other before the race started.  Onto the race.....

I didn't really know what time to shoot for.  I still didn't feel that great and the lack of sleep the past week make it tough.  I decided to start out slow and just run by feel.  That worked and I ended up running much better than I had thought I would.  We had a head wind for most of the race.  I stopped at the aid station at mile 6 to have a Roctane GU and I took some Ibuprofen.   I had forgot to take my Garmin off auto pause, so my time ended up being off by about 30 seconds because of this stop.  I'm happy with how I did.  I think this is a good starting point for my training for St. George.  

My splits were: 8:12, 7:47, 7:58, 7:43, 7:26, 7:45, 7:23, 7:44, 7:31, 7:39, 7:47, 7:34, 7:34 and 7:00 pace for .18.

Easy miles with a little walking her and there.  I just wanted to a slow recovery run and to help clear our my sinuses.  I ran 1.5 miles of it on the canal road.

Happy Father's Day

6.7 hilly miles with lots of wind.  I felt like I was running faster than I was.  Average pace 8:56

I ran with the group starting at the church on 11400 and 3300. I ran 4 easy warm up miles. The workout was 90 seconds fast with 60 seconds recovery. Satellite meeting at work so I had to hurry back.

Same run as Monday. The pace was a little faster today.

The group was meeting at the SJ soccer fields.  I got there at 5:30 for the early miles, but no one else was there.  I ran 3 slow miles then another 4 with the group.  My legs were tired.

I met Angela and Jeff at the park and ride in Bluffdale at 4:00 a.m. so we can ride up together.  I decided to start behind the 1:40 pacer.  I stayed about 30 feet behind her for the first 4.5 miles, then I picked up my pace and passed her.  I felt pretty good.  Just after mile 9, I had to stop and use the porta potty.  The cost me about a minute and a half.  Those last 4 miles were tough.  I felt so much stronger at Utah Valley 1/2 last week.  The 1:40 pacer must have passed me when I was in the porta potty, I saw her just before the finish line.  My splits were 7:30, 7:30, 7:19, 7:10, 6:52, 6:57, 7:07, 7:05, 7:28, 8:58 (bathroom break), 7:58, 7:47, 7:48 and 7:07 for last .16.  

I met the group at Riverton High School. I ran 6 miles with Cheris and Peggy.  Then I drove to the trail by my work and went out 2 miles and back.  I ran 2 of those miles on the dirt trail off to the side.  Average pace under 9:00.  My shins are sore to touch, but didn't hurt at all when I ran.

I ran at about 9:20 this morning at work.  It was hot but luckily there was a little breeze.  I got off work early for my Dr's appt.  I'm off until Tuesday.  YEAH!!!  I need to start getting my stuff ready for Ragnar this weekend.  

The group was meeting at O Roi Hardy Park.  Cheris, Andy and I were the only ones who came.  We ran North on the trail for 2 miles then turned around and ran back.  The next 2.5 miles were supposed to be tempo run looping through the neighborhood with a few big hills.  Cheris and I ran a faster pace, but it was still slower than my marathon pace.  I came home and waited about an hour until Taylor was ready.  I ran another 3 miles with her.  Average pace 8:38.

I swore I would never run this race again, but was talked into it after Dean died.  Originally Jameson had put together a team of fast master's runners called the Mangum Masters PR.  We decided to run in honor of team IronDean and our van consisted of all original BBK runners.  The bad thing was we had a 3:00 pm start time.  We started with the super fast high school teams.  It didn't take long before we were the very last runners.  It was nice to have the exchanges basially to ourselves for awhile, but I missed the competition.  

I was runner 6.  I started this leg at about 8:00 pm.  It was 6.9 miles.  I finished off the 1.5 miles uphill of Avon Pass.  Then I had 3 miles of steep downhill until it flattened out for about 2 miles.  It wasn't worth me getting injured on the uneven dirt road with switchbacks, so I was pretty cautious.  I finished that leg in 57:33.  I didn't see any other runners on this leg.  Average pace 8:21.   

I started my second leg #18 at 3:25 in the morning.  I hadn't had a any sleep yet.  At this point we had passed a few teams.  This leg was 8.2 "very hard" uphill miles to East Canyon Reservoir.  I started off feeling like I was running in my sleep.  It was pitch black and I was a little nervous being out there by myself.  There wasn't a lot of traffic, but there are a lot places where you can't see cars coming around the corners up the canyon.  I had to jump off to side once when a tow tuck driver came quickly around a corner.  I felt pretty strong running on this tough uphill climb.  I didn't walk until I got to the very steep parts at about mile 6.5 and even then I only walked a for a few seconds at a time.  I passed the only 2 runners I saw during this leg.  Average pace 9:16 with 944 ft of elevation gain.

After we handed off to the 2nd van, we drove about 40 miles to the next exchange at a high school.  We started seeing a ton of teams at this point.  We slept in our sleeping bags on the grass for about 2 hours.  

My final leg was #30.  I started at 2:06 pm.  It was pretty hot by this time and I was exhausted.  This run was only 2 flat miles.  I passed 4 girls on this leg.  A guy with an Ironman visor passed me at about 1 mile in so I just stayed about 10 feet behind him for the next mile.  Average pace 8:11.

I was so exhaused that night.  I had a lot of fun, but I probably won't do this again.

I woke up thinking I was recovered from the relay.  My plan was to run 4 miles by myself then come home and and run another 6 with Taylor.  Boy was I wrong.  My legs were beat and I had nothing.  I managed a pathetic 3.5 miles.  I came home and rode my bike next to Taylor while she ran.  She was running way fast so it was probably better for her anyway.  We came home and I ran a slow cool down mile with her.

The group was meeting at Bingham today.  I got there a little early and ran about 1.5 miles before the main workout.  Cheryl was is charge.  It was a really good workout.  After yesterday's pitiful run, I was happy to have a little bit of speed in my legs.

I started this run at 9:00 am.  It was already hot and my legs were just plain tired.  I ran the hilly route.   

I walked 3 miles on the treadmill.  Blah.  Super long day at work.

Because of the construction at the Riverton park, the race this year started at CR Hamilton park.  Taylor agreed to pace me as long as I promised to not run slower than a 7:50 average pace.  About 3+ miles of this course are on canal roads.  I'm not very fast on this type of course and the head wind didn't help.  The course measured long at 6.45 miles.  On my watch I hit the 10k at about 48:xx.  Taylor was funny and kept yelling at me to pick it up.  It was great having her there with me.  My splits were 7:37, 7:57, 8:06, 7:57, 7:26, 7:53, and 8:00 avg. for the .45.  Average pace 7:49.  We also warmed up for a mile and cooled down for a mile.

I ended up feeling pretty sick yesterday after the 10k. I'm pretty sure I was just really dehydrated. I met Angela at her house this morning for a long trail run. The first mile from her house to the trailhead by the equestrian park is uphill and so windy. I knew I was in trouble when we got to the trail. We ran on the trail for 5 miles then a added 1.5 miles on wasatch blvd. Then we turned around and ran back. It was one of the worst runs I've had in a long time. Angela ended up running an extra mile more than I did.

Easy miles with Taylor on the JRP. Average pace 8:45.

The group was meeting at o'roi hardy park. I got there 20 minutes early and ran 2.5 miles with Cheri's. After the others got there, we did another mile for everyone to warm up. Then we did several intervals of 3 minutes fast and 3 minutes recovery. My glutes are pretty sore so I must've pushed myself hard on the speed.

4 miles from work.  I went North on the trail and came out by the golf course.  Not feeling it today.

I parked at the trailhead but didn't get on the trail until about mile 3.  My legs are still feeling exhausted.  I think I may have pushed myself too hard on the speed work I did Tuesday.  I have a lot to learn.  I hope they feel better for Hobbler 1/2 Saturday.

Easy miles at 9:30 am.

My sister signed us both up for this race.  A few weeks later, she found out she would be at trek and couldn't run.  I decided to run it anyway.  I woke up at 3:00 AM and drove to Springville.  I probably didn't need to leave quite that early, but still had to pick up my packet.  I had heard that the times on this course were comparable to Utah Valley 1/2.  I decided to just try finish under 1:40.  At mile 4 the 1:40 pacer passed me and got quite a bit ahead.  I was really discouraged.  I knew I was pushing as hard as I could.  My Garmin was way off of the mile markers so I wasn't sure what pace I was really going.  At mile 6 you get off the road and run on a dirt road for about a 1/4 mile.  I didn't like that.  It reminded me of the canal road last week.  At mile 9 I passed the 1:40 pacers.  They were walking.  They must have realized they were way ahead. I'm guessing they were having the same Garmin issues I was.  I felt much better after I passed them.  I felt really strong all the way to the end.  I even passed quite a few people those last few miles.  My Garmin showed the distance as 12:93 so my splits are way off, but here they are anyway.

7:33, 7:26, 7:16, 7:23, 7:19, 7:21, 7:16, 7:26, 7:27, 7:36, 7:46, 7:45, and 7:24 pace for the last .93.  

I had a Gu at miles 4 and 11.  I also took Ibuprofen at mile 11.  I think that helps me a ton.  I ate a banana and bagel at about 4:30.  I took 2 Immodium when I woke up and 1 an hour before the race.  It worked.  I didn't have any stomach issues.

Easy run/walk around the lake at Daybreak.

I'm off work today so I started my run 7:30.  It was way hot by the time I finished.  My legs were still a little tired from the race.  I don't have another race until Hobble Creek next month, so hopefully I'll be able to start building my weekly milage up.  It's been fun doing all of these races the past 5 weeks, but the recovery time has made it hard to run as many miles as I would like to.

I met the group at the church on 11400 S. and 3300 W.   We warmed up for a mile and then started the workout.  We did 10 x 3 minutes fast with 2 minutes slow recovery.  I should be keeping track of the paces, but I haven't really cared to.  I felt I was myself pretty hard.  Most of the time when I looked at my watch the fast paces where close to 7:00 mm.  After everyone else left, I ran another 3 miles.  

I'm off work until Thursday so Taylor and I took Trax to Gateway.  We did a little shopping and saw Malificent.  It was a fun but hot day.

This morning I ran BST with Taylor and her friend Makayla.  It was a great run.  They are both super speedy college runners who could have left me in their dust, but they kept the pace to where I could keep up.  Jerry and Austin mountain biked while we ran.  We finished our run before they got back so I ran an extra mile until they got there.  Average pace 9:29.

The plan was to run 10 miles this morning.  At about 3.5 miles in I fell.  I tripped on a raised part of the sidewalk and fell hard onto the road.  I jammed my big toe and scrapped up my left knee, shoulder and palm.  There were a ton of cars around, so I jumped up quickly and kept going.  I ended up cutting the run short.  I hate when I fall.  The older I get the longer it takes for my body to recover.   

3 miles before work

I ran with Angela and Jeff on the trails.  We added an out and back on the Ghost Falls trail to get more miles in.  It was a tough run.  16 miles on the trails feels like 20 miles on the road.  

4 miles on the treadmill at work after Erin got there.

Not a good run for me.  Major stomach issues.  I had planned on 10.  I ran 5 then went into work to make sure someone was there.  I decided I was done and didn't run anymore.

I've had stomach issues all week while running. I may have been dehydrated.  I decided to play it safe and run on the treadmill at work. I warmed up for a mile, then I ran 3 minutes at 7:00 mm pace and walked for 2 minutes.  I did 7 repeats.  Then I cooled down for about a 1/2 mile.  It was hot in the gym with all the guys doing their workout.

I ran with Taylor from home to the trail.  We went South on the trail then turned around and ran back home.  We ran on the horse trail until we saw a fox.  Taylor got nervous so we turned around and got back on the paved trail.  We started at 7:30 and it so hot and windy.

Taylor and I met Cheryl, Lisa, Peggy and Debbie at the Coyote Hollow Trailhead this morning.  We ran 6 miles on the trails and finished with one mile on the road back to the cars.  It was a nice morning.

Angela was doing the Spudman Tri today, so I ran 13 miles with Jeff.  We met at the JRP trail and ran North for 6.5 and then turned around and ran back.  We kept the pace right at 9:00 mm the whole time.  It was a good run.  I hurried home and took my kids to kids to Park City for the family reunion.

I got to work early so I could get a longer run in on the treadmill.  The gym was locked so I ran 3 miles outside then went back and ran 4 more on the treadmill.  

The group was meeting at SJ soccer fields.  I love when we meet there because I know there will be a bathroom close by and I had to use it twice today.  I don't know what's wrong with me.  I got there 20 minutes early and got about 2.2 miles in before the workout started.  When everyone got there, we ran an easy paced 2 miles.  For the workout, we did 4 x 1200 with a 2 minute recovery between.  We started at 2200 and ran down to Redwood for repeats 1 and 3 and in reverse for 2 and 4.  The downhill repeats were at about 6:30-6:45 pace.  The uphill repeats were about 30 seconds per mile slower.  Then I ran until I hit 9 miles.  It rained a little while we ran and was very humid.  Just as I finished, the rain really started coming down. There are some big changes at work going this week that I'm really happy about.  

I ran 6.5 miles on the treadmill at work.  I also walked for 30 minutes during lunch.  I've noticed that when I walk during lunch I'm way more tired at night.  

Taylor and I met the group at the church on Tithing Hill.  We warmed up for about 1.5 miles.  We were supposed to run a 5 mile tempo run.  I ran with Cheris, Corissa and Jeff.  The pace was probably more like a marathon pace run than a tempo.  I cooled down until I hit 7 miles.  I walked for 30 minutes again during lunch.  

Taylor and I did a trail run up Corner Canyon again.  My knees are not feeling too great this week.

I met Jeff at RHS at 5:45.  We ran 5 miles and then we met up with Cheris, Peggy and Mimi.  We did a 7 mile loop and then came back to the cars again.  Then Jeff and I finished off with 5 more miles.  Avg pace 9:00 with the last 2 miles at 8:00.  I wore my new Brooks Adrenaline shoes.  They seemed fine.  Hopefully I can get this knee pain to go away.

Treadmill miles at home.

Treadmill at work. Avg pace 9:00

The group was meeting at RHS. I got there 15 minutes early.  Jeff got there at the same time, so we warmed up for 1.5 miles.  When the rest of the group got there, we ran another easy 1.5.  For the workout we ran 5 x 1200's through the neighborhoods.  The pace was between a 6:50 and 7:00 minute mile average.  I was happy with that.  They were hard.  Then I cooled down until I hit 9 miles.

3 easy miles on the treadmill at work.  My legs were beat from the speed work yesterday.  

My class had a PT test at work so I go up at 4:45 to run before.  I ran 5.5 miles on the treadmill at home before I got there.  After the test, I ran another 3.5 at work.  I ran the 1.5 mile course twice plus some easy running in the middle.  I was disappointed I only managed to finish the first one in 11:30. 

Taylor and I met Cheryl at Potato Hill treadhead for a nice trail run.  It was a new trail for me.  It was a nice run.  

I won my first 10k woo hoo.  My daughter Taylor was running the 5k and asked me to go with her so I decided to run the 10k.  We warmed up for about 1.5 miles before the race.  

Mile 1 7:36 - This mile is mostly flat with a little bit of uphill in the second half.  I passed two women in the first 1/2 mile and was the leading female for the rest of the race.

Mile 2 7:47 - This mile is pretty much all uphill.  I passed a lot of 5k runners here.  

Mile 3 7:35 - Gradual downhill for a bit until we start heading up 14400 S.  

Mile 4 7:14 - Nice downhill

Mile 5 7:18 - More downhill 

Mile 6 7:46 - This mile was tough.  We were running on 2700 W and it was under construction.  There were barricades all over and I had to step down and run in the rocks a few times to let cars by since I was running in their lane.  I passed an 18 year old boy on this section.  There were now only 3 guys ahead of me.  Taylor met me at 5.5 and ran with me.  I was breathing pretty hard and she kept telling me to get my breathing under control.  I was running on the path about .25 miles from the finish when I saw two of the guys ahead of me coming from an upper path.  There was a locked fence blocking the trail we were supposed to run on.  The two of them pulled the fence open just enough to get us all through.  I felt bad for those 2 guys.  I lost about 10 seconds, but they lost about a minute more.  The race director saw us and ran over and opened it after we'd passed.  

Last .21 1:19 (6:24 pace)

Overall it was really good race for me.  This was my best 10k time since 2010 so I'm happy with my progress.  Taylor did great and was the overall winner for the women in the 5k.   After the race we cooled down for another 1.5 miles.

I'm off work today so I went for a run on the JRP.  I started at the fishing pond at about 11000 at run South to 14400 and turned around and ran back.  I kept the pace at around 9 mm on the first half and picked it up the way back.  The last couple of miles were around 7:40 pace.  Average 8:34.  It was a little cooler today which was nice.

The group met at the church on 11400 and 3400.   I got there a little early and got a mile in.  After the warm up with the group, we did 6x1200's. 1, 3, and 5 are mostly downhill and 2,4 and 6 are in reverse and mostly uphill.  I pushed myself way too hard on #3 and run out of gas for the last one.  

1: 5:21, 2: 5:10, 3: 4:39, 4: 5:19, 5: 5:00 and 6: 5:40

Last night when I went to bed, my legs felt like lead and I didn't think I'd even be able to run fast at all.  It was a tough workout, but I ran better than I thought I would.  I cooled down until I hit 9.  My right knee is still really stiff and painful.  It doesn't hurt when I run, but it really hurts when I stand up after sitting and if I try to kneel down.  Ouchy.

Easy miles on the treadmill at work.

Easy miles on the treadmill at work again.

3 easy miles on the treadmill at work with several short pick ups thrown in.

I'm really happy with how this race went.  I think this was my 8th time running this race and I got a new PR today.

Cheris, Michelle M. and Aaron met at my house at 4:10 to carpool to Mapleton.  At the top, we warmed up by running farther up the road and back.  I think that helped.  I wanted to get under 1:35 and I felt strong the whole race.  I had Gu at miles 3 and 10.  Just like at Hobbler 1/2, I had 2 Immodium when I woke up and 1 more an hour before the race.  I also took Ibuprofen at mile 10.  No stomach issues again.  That makes all the difference in my racing. I had a pork salad from Cafe Rio the night before.

My splits from my Garmin were: 6:42, 7:07, 7:10, 7:06, 7:02, 7:05, 7:19, 7:07, 7:20, 7:28, 7:36, 7:20, and 7:31 pace for last .97   

I really want to get under 3:30 at St. George.  I need to start getting more miles in. 

Easy miles on the treadmill.

9 miles on the treadmill at work.

Met the group at the park by Lifetime.  I got there early and ran 1.5 miles before.  After the warm up with the group, we started the workout.  We ran on the trail.  We did a ladder of fast running followed by recovery.  It was really windy heading South so we did our speed with the wind and recovered into the wind.  Then I ran by myself until I hit 10.

Very easy miles on the treadmill at work.

The group was meeting at SJ soccer fields.  Jeff and I got there at the same time and warmed up for 15 minutes.  When the group got there, we did another short warm up.  Then we ran 2 x 3 miles loops with a recovery in between.

The first 3 mile loop we started South into the wind.  I stayed with the speedy people for the first mile but I couldn't hang with them for the next two miles.  7:09, 7:28 (mostly uphill), and 7:08.

The next loop we started North.  I was definitely slower this time.  7:59, 7:25, and 7:35.

My left calf has a dull ache and it hurts to touch.  I've been having this pain since during the run on Tuesday.  It makes me way nervous.   

I want to be smart and not let this calf pain turn into something that's going to keep me from running the marathon.  I ran 3 easy miles on the treadmill and stretched and iced.  I ran in my calf sleeves.  I've never had this before and I don't know if it's bad to run through it or not.  I really want to run 20 miles tomorrow.  What to do????

Yesterday I was questioning whether or not I should run 20 miles today.  I was dumb and defitinitely made the wrong choice.  My left calf and my right knee are messed up pretty good right now.

I was supposed to meet Jeff and the group at Dimple Dell at 6:00 am to run Wasatch Blvd.  When I got up at 5:00, it was pouring rain and windy.  The forcast showed it was supposed to clear up by 7:00 so Jeff and I decided to start then instead.

We started at a really nice and easy pace.  Peggy, Cheris and Michelle joined us a the church at the top of the big hill.  On the way back at about mile 12, I was running down the big hill with Peggy way faster than I should have and my calf started to really hurt.  I couldn't believe how stupid I was.  I planned on running 20 but I knew it I would better off to just end it when I got back to Dimple Dell.  

I spent Satuday and Sunday stressing out about my calf.  I stretched, iced, rolled and wore compressing socks.  I decided this morning that I would try running on the treadmill and if I felt any pain at all I would stop and get on the elliptical.  Luckily I was able to run 7 easy miles without any pain.  My calf is sore when I touch it and I feel a little bit of "something" every once in a while when I walk.  It does hurt a to stand on my tippy toes.  That makes me wonder if downhill will hurt.  I was hoping to run Mt. Nebo in less than 2 weeks.  That may be out unless I'm completely pain free.

I met the group at the SJ Soccer Fields.  There were several of us there for the early miles.  I warmed up for 4 miles then we did 4 mile repeats up and down Rustic Roads with easy running in between for 3 minutes.   I tried to hold back a little because of my calf.  I didn't hurt during the run, but shins are little achy and my left calf is still pretty sore when I touch it.   My mile repeats were all in the 7:40 range.

Easy miles on the treadmill at work.  I called it quits early because of shin pain.   

I met the group at the church on tithing hill.  Cheris and I got there at the same time and were able to run for 2.25 before the group started.  We ran a 7 mile tempo run.  I was feeling really good and keeping a good pace until I had to make a pit stop.  That kind of threw my rhythm off a bit.  A few minutes later I ran into Jeff.  We ran together for about a mile and then I ran ahead and finished up the big hill on Lampton View.  I cooled down with Cheris and Jeff.  I forgot to start my watch after I ran into Jeff and didn't notice it for about 1 mile.  Most of the tempo run was in the 7:40-7:45 range. 

Easy treadmill miles.

I had a great run today.  The group was meeting at Cheris' house.  I got there early and ran an extra mile.  Then I ran 2.5 more warm up miles with the group.  Then at 6:30 we started The Run.  It was very hilly.  It seemed like all of the long steep uphills were into a very strong head wind.  My visor even blew off my head a few times.  I loved it though.  I felt really good today.  Average pace for the last 13.5 miles was 8:30.

I got up this morning at 7:00 and my body felt tired and sore.  I laid back down for another hour and when I got up I felt totally fine.  Weird.  Anyway, I ran 4.5 very easy miles on the treadmill.

Treadmill at home

I had a class start at work so I wasn't able to work run before.  I tried running on the treadmill when I got home, but after working 11+ hours I was beat.  

I wasn't able to do speed work yesterday so I tried to run a little faster today.  

Met the group at the church on 40th . and 10200 S.  The race is Saturday so I just kept it at a steady conversational pace.  

My class had a PT test at 7:00 so I ran from home at 5:00.  It had stopped raining, but there was a lot of lightning close by.  It was a little scary. Average pace 9:11

Cheris and I decided to drive to Salem Hills the night before and stay overnight at her cousin Amber's house.  We got up at 4:15 am and headed over to Payson high school.  The weather was perfect.  I did my usual my pre-race routine of banana, white bagel and Immodium.  Once again it worked out well for me. My goal for this race was to run a 1:30.  The last 3-4 miles were hard.  There were a few times during those last miles that I worried I may have gone out too fast.  I'm very happy with how it turned out.  Cheris ran an awesome race and ended up taking 1st place for the women with a 1:22.  I'm so happy for her.

My splits on my Garmin were .10 early for every mile marker.  I ended up with 13.21 miles.  The placement of the aid stations were a little off from where I thought they would be.  I had Gu at mile 4 but no water until about 4.8.  Then I had my second Gu at about mile 10 but they didn't have any cups so I didn't have any water to wash it down.  I was hoping to take my Ibuprofen at mile 10, but I wasn't able to.  

6:54, 6:40, 6:34, 6:23, 6:29, 6:33, 6:35, 6:48, 6:45, 7:10, 7:42, 7:21, 7:26, and 6:54 pace for last .2 on the track.  

I am still so sore from the race Saturday.  Everytime I would roll over in bed it hurt.  I decided I would try to go for a walk today to loosen thing up.  After about a mile I discovered running hurt less than walking.  

I'm still pretty sore today.  It actually hurt less to run than it did walk.  We met at the park by lifetime.  After the warm up, we started on mile repeats on Parkway Palisades.  I'm not sure what my pace was but it felt hard.  After the 3rd one, I ran on the flat roads for a couple of miles.  Then I ran 1 more mile repeat on the hill and headed back to the cars.  My legs were pretty hammered.

Easy miles on the treadmill at work.

I met the group at the church on 10200 and 4000.  We warmed up for 2.6 miles, then we ran an 8 mile tempo with a few big hills.  I was hoping to run those tempo miles at an 7:30 pace, but my legs were still so tired.  I ended up with an 8:00 average pace.  I'm still not recoved from the race.  After the tempo, I cooled down until I hit 11 miles.

I met Cheris, Michelle M. and Jeff at the Kmart in Draper.  We warmed up for 2 miles on 1000 E before heading up to Wasatch.  We made a pact to not walk at all up the big hill.  We kept the pace a  little slower for the run and we didn't walk on any of the hills.   It was a good run.  Perfect running weather. Average pace 9:00.

5 easy miles on the JRP.  I loved the strong tailwind on the way out.  Lots of  bugs on the way back.  Average pace 9:00.

Easy miles on the treadmill at work.  I wish I had had time for more.

I met the group at Bingham today.  We warmed up for 3.5 miles and then started the workout on the track. 10 x 800's with a 90 second recovery between each one. There was a strong headwind from the South.

3:30, 3:29, 3:27, 3:27, 3:31, 3:35, 3:28, 3:28, 3:29, 3:25

Easy miles on the treadmill at work.

Easy miles on the treadmill at work.

I had to do my 20 miler today so I could fly with Taylor to her cross country meet in Las Vegas.  It was a fun trip.  Taylor ran her 5k in 18:xx.

I met Jeff at the Kmart in Draper.  We ran out and back on 1000 west and also the Porter Rockwell trail before making our way up to Wasatch.  It was a good run.  Average pace was somewhere around 9:00.  I tried to pick it up the last 5-6 miles. 

7 miles on the Jordan River Trail.  It was a cool morning with a light rain which I love.  The bad thing about running on the trail with a light rain, is the million little dead bugs that were stuck all over me when I finished.

4 easy miles on the treadmill at work.  It's taper time.  :)

Easy warm up for 3 miles then 12 x 400 with 1 minute recovery at Riverton Track.

1:36, 1:38, 1:36, 1:36, 1:42, 1:40, 1:39, 1:40, 1:40, 1:36 1:38, 1:35 

Easy miles on the treadmill at work.  My knees were sore yesterday's workout.

Warmed up 1.75 miles, then started the 5 mile tempo run.  Same course as a couple of months ago.  Starting on tithing hill, down lampton and finishing the last few miles on the trail.  Tempo miles were 7:39, 7:34, 7:51, 7:35, and 7:23.  Cooled down for 1/2 mile uphill.  It was a good run.  

I met the group at RHS. There was a light rain for the first 5 miles.  It really started coming down during the last 5.  The temps were still around 60, so other than being soaked it was a nice wet run.  Average pace 8:44.

Easy miles on the treadmill.

One easy warm up mile and 3 marathon paced (8:00) miles on the treadmill.  Marathon pace didn't feel too hard.

This was my 9th SGM and my 17th overall.

I went down to St. George on Friday with Cheris and Michelle. We went to the expo first and then got take-out from Olive Garden for dinner. I took 3/4 an Ambien at 9:00 and was in bed by 9:30. We got up at 4:00 and were in the bus line at 5:00. I ate a pop tart, bagel and banana when I woke up. I also had 2 Immodium when I woke up and 1 an hour before the start. Cheris and Michelle were able to go in the elite corral so I rode up with Angela, Jeff and Brittanee. We used the porta potties once then waited by the fire. The race started 15 minutes late.

I really wanted a 3:30, but I had my doubts. I ran some good downhill 1/2 marathons this summer, but I didn't have enough medium long runs in my training. I decided to run a more conservative 1:47 half and then try to negative the second half. I hit the half right at 1:47:17. After that I was never able to take advantage of the downhill. From miles 18 - 23 I had a lot of negative thoughts and wondered why I even bother running marathons. At mile 20 I started having a bad pain in my right knee and shin. It was altering my stride and I had to walk for about a minute. I had a volunteer rub icy hot on my shin and I took ibuprofen at mile 21. That helped so much. At about mile 23 I saw my angel Kris Bullock and the rest of the IronDean crew. I was wearing my IronDean jersey. When they saw me they started jumping up and down cheering me on. That was all I needed. I finished those last 3 miles feeling better than I ever have in a marathon.

I felt really great when I finished. It was so fun to run into different friends along the course. I continue to do the same training year after year and somehow expect different results. I need to try something different next year.

My splits were:

8:27, 8:17, 7:44, 7:39, 7:44 (39:53)

7:41, 7:43, 8:57, 8:31, 8:23 (1:21:11)

8:24, 8:24, 8:06, 8,14, 7:52 (2:02:13)

8:07, 8:01, 8:25, 8:39, 8:40 (2:44:08)

8:57, 8:48, 9:01, 8:03, 8:11 (3:27:11)

8:06 and 8:01 pace for last .29

My legs are tired but not very sore from the marathon. Going downstairs doesn't hurt at all. I was so sore after mt nebo half 4 weeks ago. I decided to run 4 easy miles today. Post marathon lunch with the BBKs at Mimi's. It was fun.