November 29, 2013

Running Log: 11/18 to 11/24

Well I think Old man winter is right around the corner. This past week started off with howling winds, and by the end we had 3"+ of snow. So far this week (thanksgiving week) it's been non-stop snow and it's only gotten colder. This morning (11/29) in Gaylord it was -3 when i woke up, luckily where where we are down South its only(!!) 22. 

Monday: AM; easy 4 miles with the pup. Winds just a howling. PM: explored Avalanche Preserve. Fun single track. 7.1miles. 
Tuesday: 9.1 miles. Didn't eat much before and by the middle miles I was feeling wobbly. Finished off with some strides post run.

Wednesday: 4 miles warm up/cool down. 4 miles of 4 minute cycles. Every 30 seconds I would get faster starting off around Tempo +5" pace for 2:30 minutes. Well I started off too fast and it didn't go as planned but that's ok. 2.64 miles at 5:36 pace.

Thursday:  6 miles rather slow. Just wanted a nice easy run. Cold out for sure.

Friday: A nice 9 mile progression run with strides thrown in at the end. Messed something up in my foot at work but it didn't hurt too much to run on it.

Saturday:  Snowed overnight got about 3+ inches. Made the roads slick, but the trails were fun. Just one of those days i didn't really want to get out, but i forced myself out the door convincing myself it would get better, and it did because by the time I reached 5 miles I wanted to do some more. The pup didn't argue either. 9 total.

Sunday: Played around with the Pup and Brittany on the sled. It was a fun time. 3 total. 
Total:  57 miles.

Didn't get the long run I wanted. I need to step up on those. Another good mileage week though and it looks like I'll hit 200+ for this month which would be the most in way too many months. Bring on the snow!

November 25, 2013

The Runners- A short Film.



If you haven't seen this. Watch it. It's a short film just talking to random runners on the street, but it's more than just answers as to "why do you run?" It catches people off guard, and brings out something remarkable in people. Great stuff!

**** The Runners is a short film made by Matan Rochlitz and Ivo Gormley. The film is supported by GoodGym and the London Legacy Development Company, it was produced by Banyak Films.
The film contains strong language, parental guidance is advised.

Gave me the shivers this morning. Off for a 10 mile run.

November 17, 2013

The Week in Training - 11/11 to 11/17

A great week for me running wise.
I was also actively posting this week. If you missed it, I've started a list of all the states, and counties I've run in here in Michigan and in Maine. It's fun to see where I've run and where I haven't at this point. Only 6 or so years running and I have quite the foot print. Maine is kinda sad looking. I grew up there and started running there and I still haven't run in all the counties. I guess I know what I'll be doing during my vacations up there. Michigan is going to be a challenge. There are 83 counties, spread across the upper and lower peninsula.

I've got my running cut out for me! Gotta run!

Training

This week was a really great week of running for me. Finally I was consistently out there. 6 hours total for the week, puts me where I would like to be on average across the whole year, but sometimes it just doesn't work out that way.

Late summer and pretty much all of fall was rough for me. Plus I put running on the back burner during the two weeks leading up the wedding.

Already this month I've racked up more miles than I did for October, which is a good sign. 

Monday: Snow overnight made the roads slick with snow and ice. Didn't put icespikes on which was a mistake. I was all over the place with no grip (10.1 miles)

Tuesday: Windy, still snow and lots of ice on the roads, but the IceSpikes made all the difference grip wise. Fun to get out there and be pretty much the only one on the back roads. (10.3 miles)

Wednesday: Another snow covered, icy-dicey road again. Ran a bit harder effort wise, with a great hill during mile 7. (9 miles)

Thursday: Planned on a solid workout from Jack Daniels Marathon Plan, but the roads were still icy in spots so I have to change it up a bit. Turned into a true fartlek (didn't run based on time or distance) by hitting the watch when I hit a clear section or icy section. Total up time ended as - 3.34 miles in 18:53  for 5:40 pace/mi. SOLID! For where I'm at couldn't be happier. (11+ miles)

Friday: Long day at work, heavy boots, and yesterdays workout made this run feel horrible. Working on the Michigan county list I hit up the local town I was working on. Probably a mistake to run this fast as I ended up making my left knee tight and antsy...(4 miles)

Saturday: Another long day at work and I didn't want to aggravate the knee any more. Plus this week had been great for me so far no reason to push it and take too large of a bite. (OFF)

Sunday: Knocked out some easy miles. warm out, with rain and even a tornado warning in effect for the county!..Knee felt a bit wonky at times, but with the proper warm up and cool down ( mobility excercises) it seemed better than Friday. (8 + miles)

Total: 53.6 miles.

November 16, 2013

States I've Run in.

ok. On a role here...States I've run in.Hmm..Short list for sure, but for a such a short running career I think I'm off to a good start.

Blue = Complete

November 15, 2013

Run them all: Maine Counties

Clearly I have some work to do in Maine. Spending the last 15 years in Maine, I find it hard to believe I haven't run in every county, but it holds true..I've gotta change this. I foresee my vacations as finding races in these counties in order to get them.

Have you completed every county in your home state?


November 13, 2013

Run them all: Michigan Counties

Michigan counties: started October 2013.
I've seen other people doing this recently and it sparked my interest to see how much of the state I've actually visited. I thought about breaking it down by town, but I'll be honest that's a lot of freaking work, and the lack of GIS information makes it pretty hard to do. So, counties will suffice.

Meet Michigan. I think this may take some time. Can I complete every county?

Have you completed every street in your town? Every Town in your county? Let me know!

It's a pretty cool challenge, and also changes things up a bit.

Running Log 11/4-11/10

Monday: 5 miles easy out on the lakes loop.

Tuesday: fartlek time! 4x4min min. Just wanted something to wake the legs up. Feeling like things are coming together slowly.

Wednesday: Calves continue to be tight. 6.3 easy

Thursday: 8.5 in the snow. roads clear. calves still tight, will it go away?

Friday:  6.5 miles easy, starting to sense a pattern? oh the calves are still soar.

Saturday: 4.2 in the pouring rain after work. I should have just worked earlier.

Sunday: Off. Calves were soar all week so I decided to drop the November streak and take a day down.

I had wanted to streak all November but that came to an abrupt end when the calves were soar all week. Skipped the long run in hopes this coming week would be better.

38.4 Miles Total. 1 core session.

November 5, 2013

Running log: 10/21 to 11/3

Well I'm slowly coming around and getting back out. I just have to have patience. I know i can't just get back out there and attack the hard workouts and long runs.

Mon: 5 miles easy. soar all over. Cold out, been in tights now for over a week. 28 degrees this morning.
Tues: 9 miles! Finally getting over the hump? A good snow cover this morning, about 1".Supposed to disappear fairly fast though.
Wed: 5 in the morning. PM: First decent looking workout in way to long. A little fartlek descending from 5 minutes to 1 minute. Not in any order but each  descending section faster than the previous. 10+ miles for the day.
Thur: another easy 5. running new routes nearly everyday right from the house.
Fri: Cold morning, icy roads. Just took it easy 5 miles.
Saturday: OFF.
Sunday: OFF

Total: 36.1 miles, two core sessions. One good workout. Honestly I'll take it. I just want to stay consistent over the next couple of weeks so i can start hitting up some races.

Mon: OFF. Well so much for consistency. Work from dawn to dusk just gets ya.
Tue: OFF
Wed: Off.....mhm, you see where this is going?
Thurs: 4.2 in the woods. Being in Gaylord, it's nearly the heart of XC skiing. Lots of trails (mostly flat) that are well maintained. I'm a bit worried about running into hunters though as I've been told whitetail season is a religion here even more than in Maine.
Fri: explored more trail but it quickly turned into a swamp fest. 2.5 in the AM. 4 in the PM with britt nice and slow.
Sat: about 2.5 miles from my house there's a nice bowl with a steep climb on both sides with about 100+ ft of elevation gain. Good place for workout. 8.2 miles today.
Sun: 10 miles! first double digit run in...eh, I'm not even going to count. Out and back through five-lakes. Didn't know the area, I could have easily just made it into a loop. Next time.

Total: 29.2 miles. Finally a long run. I think this may be a turning point. November = streak. EVERY.SINGLE.DAY. you heard it. Now see it happen.
A walk in the woods with the pup outside our house in Michigan.