I woke up at 5:15 this morning to make sure I have plenty of time to get my morning workout in. Surprisingly, it seems to be getting easier and easier to wake up early to run; and the weather has been GREAT lately so it makes it that much easier. I ran my 7.45 mile loop this morning in 1:38. The overall time is not that impressive, but I started out rediculously and was able to progressively increase my pace the whole run. I averaged 8:35/mile for the first 2.9 miles, then 8:00/mile for the next 2.2 miles, and finally 7:42/mile for my last 2.35 miles. I then spent some quality time on the elliptical (40 minutes). I've noticed that the fitter I get, the harder the first mile of every run feels; but on the flip side, the fitter I get the better I feel the last 3-4 miles.
Run Streak = 51 days
Monday, August 31, 2009
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Interesting Conversations....
I had scheduled practice for 6:30am at the state park. I had 6 to 8 miles scheduled for the women and 6 to 10 miles schedule for the men. Typically, our Sunday runs are a lot longer, but this was the last day for their recovery week and I know a few of them are feeling pretty fatigued, so I decided to go easy on them.
However, three of the girls (Molly, Megan, and Haleigh) decided to run the inside loop at the park. They said it is a 10-mile loop and the time we ran would indicate that it is a 10-mile loop, however, I beleive it's probably a 9.1-mile loop as that's what all the maps seem to indicate. It was nice running with them. We had some interesting conversations regarded world affairs and feral children, but it didn't take long for the conversation to be steered towards relationships (mainly their relationships, as I have no life outside of running). It was a very interesting and informational conversation that last about 30-40 minutes. It was a good run.
Run Streak = 50 days
However, three of the girls (Molly, Megan, and Haleigh) decided to run the inside loop at the park. They said it is a 10-mile loop and the time we ran would indicate that it is a 10-mile loop, however, I beleive it's probably a 9.1-mile loop as that's what all the maps seem to indicate. It was nice running with them. We had some interesting conversations regarded world affairs and feral children, but it didn't take long for the conversation to be steered towards relationships (mainly their relationships, as I have no life outside of running). It was a very interesting and informational conversation that last about 30-40 minutes. It was a good run.
Run Streak = 50 days
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Cruise Intervals
I scheduled an early morning light workout with the team at the track. As group they ran for about 25-30 miles (Men 4 miles / Women 3 miles) followed by a few short hill repeats and a short cool down. I rode my bike with the men on their 4 mile group run. The atmosphere was pretty light today, which was nice after yesterday's stressful workout. I think everyone needed that, and I know I definately did.
I had 6 x 1600m scheduled for myself. I'm focusing heavy on improving my lactate threshold at the moment, so I had them schedule to be at my current 10 mile race pace with a 1 minute rest. I ran.... 7:07 - 7:07 - 7:03 - 7:12 - 7:01 - 7:09 for an average of 7:07/mile. It was a good workout. The weather was nice and I felt like accomplished what I wanted out of it. It felt good and I could have done a few more if I had wanted to, but I'm trying to be patient. I plan to work my way up to 12 x 1600m by Janaury. If I can do that, I should be ready to knock out a good Half-Marathon. I cooled down a mile to give my self 9-miles for the day.
Run Streak = 49 days
I had 6 x 1600m scheduled for myself. I'm focusing heavy on improving my lactate threshold at the moment, so I had them schedule to be at my current 10 mile race pace with a 1 minute rest. I ran.... 7:07 - 7:07 - 7:03 - 7:12 - 7:01 - 7:09 for an average of 7:07/mile. It was a good workout. The weather was nice and I felt like accomplished what I wanted out of it. It felt good and I could have done a few more if I had wanted to, but I'm trying to be patient. I plan to work my way up to 12 x 1600m by Janaury. If I can do that, I should be ready to knock out a good Half-Marathon. I cooled down a mile to give my self 9-miles for the day.
Run Streak = 49 days
Friday, August 28, 2009
Bad Mood = Good Running
I've been in a shitty mood the past few days and I think it's because I've been working 12-14 hour days to try to get all my work done (and I'm still behind). On top of that, when the morning workouts I have scheduled for the team don't go well I get in even more of a bad mood. So this morning's workout was a 6 mile steady run for the women and a 6 to 8 mile steady run for the men. Needless to say, it sucked!* So after biking 10.5 miles and running 2 miles to prep for practice, I ran 5 miles as hard as I could around town to run off some stress. So the run went well, but even on completition I was still pissed. I get extremely annoyed with excuses from athletes as to why they can't do the workout for the day. It makes me want to kick them in the nuts!
*So after getting cleaned up and after getting back into the office, one of my athletes comes by to pick up her shoes. She asks me what I thought about thought the run this morning. I immediately start telling her about how pissed I was and how concerned I am that the athletes can't handle a simple steady run. After talking a bit more about it, it comes to fruition that I wrote the wrong times down because I was looking at the wrong finish watch (I had 3 watches going for this morning's workout). I was about 4.5-minutes off on each finishing time for the women. So the workout didn't go as bad as I thought. On the bright side, I got a 5 mile hard run out of the whole thing!
Run Streak = 48 days
*So after getting cleaned up and after getting back into the office, one of my athletes comes by to pick up her shoes. She asks me what I thought about thought the run this morning. I immediately start telling her about how pissed I was and how concerned I am that the athletes can't handle a simple steady run. After talking a bit more about it, it comes to fruition that I wrote the wrong times down because I was looking at the wrong finish watch (I had 3 watches going for this morning's workout). I was about 4.5-minutes off on each finishing time for the women. So the workout didn't go as bad as I thought. On the bright side, I got a 5 mile hard run out of the whole thing!
Run Streak = 48 days
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Cruise Intervals
I had scheduled a relatively short set of cruise intervals for myself this morning. The exact workout was 2 x 2 Miles @ 12.5k Race Pace w/3-4 minute rest. The past couple of days have been extremely busy and today doesn't look to be any different. So I woke up at 5:30am and rode my bike over 'Forest Hills' to run a 2 mile road loop that I typically have my athletes do tempo runs on. I like the course as it requires a lot of uphill and downhill running (very little of it is flat). After a 2 mile warm up, I proceeded to run 14:10 for the first one and 14:06 for my second one. Which is right in the range I wanted to run. I was feeling really good after the first one, so I kept my recovery at 3 minutes and when I started the second one, I probably ran this first mile a little too quick (~6:56), so I backed off slightly to keep it under control in the second mile. It was a good workout, I felt like I could have done another one if I had needed too, but if I had I don't think I could have run much faster than what I ran the first two in. I'm looking forward to some mile repeats this weekend!
Run Streak = 45 days
Run Streak = 45 days
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Heat Wave
I ran the Heat Wave 5k this morning, which is one of the monthly club events for my running club, Seven Hills RC. There was a really good turn out which is always good to see. I like to say that there are two types of people in this world.... those who run and those who should.
I haven't done any heavy training the past few weeks. I've only averaged about 40 miles each week with no quality workouts. My goal today was the negative split and just get an idea of what kind of shape I'm so I can determine the proper paces for my workouts. I ran 10:51.1 (~6:57/mile) for the "out" portion of the out-in-back course. On the "back" portion I ran 10:21.3 (~6:38/mile) for a total time of 21:12.4. I was quite pleased with this run. I ran this exact same course at the end of April and ran 21:38. I was doing a lot more quality workouts at that time and my mileage was significantly higher then, so I was quited pleased with the run and with the fact that I ran almost 30 seconds faster. The weather was fairly nice for an August morning in Southeast Texas.
Run Streak = 42 days
I haven't done any heavy training the past few weeks. I've only averaged about 40 miles each week with no quality workouts. My goal today was the negative split and just get an idea of what kind of shape I'm so I can determine the proper paces for my workouts. I ran 10:51.1 (~6:57/mile) for the "out" portion of the out-in-back course. On the "back" portion I ran 10:21.3 (~6:38/mile) for a total time of 21:12.4. I was quite pleased with this run. I ran this exact same course at the end of April and ran 21:38. I was doing a lot more quality workouts at that time and my mileage was significantly higher then, so I was quited pleased with the run and with the fact that I ran almost 30 seconds faster. The weather was fairly nice for an August morning in Southeast Texas.
Run Streak = 42 days
Friday, August 21, 2009
Group Running!
All of my athletes moved into Huntsville yesterday, and this morning was our first organized practice. It was a good feeling to have the group back together and I'm pretty excited with the shape everyone appears to be in, particularly the freshmen girls. Today's run was real easy (5 miles @ 8:30-9:00/mile), but we didn't lose anyone. It's the first time in a while I've had that many girls at practice and all are able to complete the run. Hopefully everyone can stay healthy and we'll put together a good season.
It has been pretty hectic at work the past few days and will continue to be for at least another week or two. After that we'll get into a routine and life will be easy again. But dispite the craziness I haven't broken my streak yet and it's getting pretty easy to maintain.
Run Streak = 41 days
It has been pretty hectic at work the past few days and will continue to be for at least another week or two. After that we'll get into a routine and life will be easy again. But dispite the craziness I haven't broken my streak yet and it's getting pretty easy to maintain.
Run Streak = 41 days
Monday, August 17, 2009
It's too hot to run long....
Today was the first day of my new 7 month training plan in prep for the Aramco Half-Marathon and the Houston Rodeo Run 10k in January and February, respectively. I'm not making any major changes in the basic training approach as I will continue to focus on developing both my aerobic and lactate thresholds along with improving my maximal oxygen uptake (VO2 Max). However, I'm going to bump up my total volume of running and increase the distance of my long runs to 16.5 miles (hopefully).
I'm not too concerned with the increase weekly mileage, but the long runs are of a particular concern. With the warm weather, I've been struggling to when trying to run over about 8.5 miles. I tried to run 10.5 miles the other evening, but by the time I got to 7.5 miles I knew I was in trouble. Over the next two miles my place slowed from ~8 min/mile to ~9 min/mile. I stopped at 9.5 miles, as I didn't want the final mile to turn into a death march. I need to figure something out to combat the fluid loss I have through sweat. I can't wait for cooler temps!
Run Streak = 37 days
I'm not too concerned with the increase weekly mileage, but the long runs are of a particular concern. With the warm weather, I've been struggling to when trying to run over about 8.5 miles. I tried to run 10.5 miles the other evening, but by the time I got to 7.5 miles I knew I was in trouble. Over the next two miles my place slowed from ~8 min/mile to ~9 min/mile. I stopped at 9.5 miles, as I didn't want the final mile to turn into a death march. I need to figure something out to combat the fluid loss I have through sweat. I can't wait for cooler temps!
Run Streak = 37 days
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Streaking!
So I've started a running streak. It didn't begin with the goal of establishing a streak, but once I got to about 15-16 days I started to realize that I had a streak going. I went back through my log book for the past 6 months and realized that my longest streak had been about 15 days. So as of my morning run today, I was at 31 consecutive days. I'm only counting days in which I total at least 3 miles in one run. We'll see how long this lasts.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Thoreau
"If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours." - Henry David Thoreau (Walden)
This quote has a special meaning to me, and anytime I feel like I'm struggling to succeed in the ultra-competitive world of collegiate athletics I always resort back to this quote. It reminds me that the key to success in endurance running is dedication over an extended period of time and an unwavering desire to improve oneself. If one can stick to the training and truly apply themselves they will not only see their physical abilities improve, but they will discover who they really are and they truly find themselves in this world. Of all the success stories I've had with athletes in my short coaching career, I don't think I'll ever be more proud of any athlete than I am with the two athletes that come to mind every time I see this quote. They have done more for me than they will ever know and I will forever be indebted to them.
I had another very good run tonight. I knocked out 6.45 miles in 48:38 (~7:32/mile) around the streets of Huntsville. I've been spending quite a bit of time on the elliptical and I feel like that is having a strong, positive impact on my running. I felt smooth and undercontrol the entire run. I'm excited to get back into the full swing of training after next week.
This quote has a special meaning to me, and anytime I feel like I'm struggling to succeed in the ultra-competitive world of collegiate athletics I always resort back to this quote. It reminds me that the key to success in endurance running is dedication over an extended period of time and an unwavering desire to improve oneself. If one can stick to the training and truly apply themselves they will not only see their physical abilities improve, but they will discover who they really are and they truly find themselves in this world. Of all the success stories I've had with athletes in my short coaching career, I don't think I'll ever be more proud of any athlete than I am with the two athletes that come to mind every time I see this quote. They have done more for me than they will ever know and I will forever be indebted to them.
I had another very good run tonight. I knocked out 6.45 miles in 48:38 (~7:32/mile) around the streets of Huntsville. I've been spending quite a bit of time on the elliptical and I feel like that is having a strong, positive impact on my running. I felt smooth and undercontrol the entire run. I'm excited to get back into the full swing of training after next week.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Words to Live By
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son!"
I've been running in the HKC the past couple of days as I've been readjusting to the heat. My runs on that little 200m track always go by so quickly and I feel fast. Partly because I run each lap in under 60 seconds, partly because I go blowing by all the walkers/joggers, and partly because I get bored quickly - so I run faster than what I normally do outside. I've also been putting in at least an hour a day on the elliptical. I've found that the little personal TVs on each machine have me spoiled. I can watch my daily episode of Bones (Dr. Brennan's hyper-rational behavior is a turn on) while getting a good aerobic workout in.
Tonight I set our for an easy 7.5 mile run. I started off pretty conservative, given that I hadn't run outside the past few days and I didn't want to get 4 miles into the run and have to stop (again). I got to about mile 5 feeling great. I checked my watch and I was at just over 39:30. A little surprised with the ease of the pace, I picked it up a bit and hit 7.5 miles in a hair over 59-minutes. I decided to continue with another 3-miles to give me 10.5 miles. I finished in 1:23:14. Not only is that the longest run I've done, ever. But it was at a pretty decent clip and felt remarkably easy. I have no doubt I could have knocked out another 4 miles at the same pace. This just makes me even more excited for the Half-Marathon this January. I can't wait for the weather to cool off. If I can stay healthy, I feel this could be a very good Fall/Winter for me :)
Sunday, August 2, 2009
FML!!!!
It's too hot! I could barely manage a 3.5 mile run this morning. I can't believe I ask my athletes to run 60, 70, and even 80 mile weeks in this crap. I can't believe they are dumb enough to do it. FML!!!!
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