A great wrap up to running in June.

After a strong run yesterday I had debated about whether or not push this run off to Sunday instead of running it today. I am glad that I did it today though. I had a very strong long run of eight miles. The Hal Higdon Novice Plan calls for a nine miler this week. I have adjusted his plan a bit and although I still ran nineteen miles this week, as the plan calls for, I decided nine miles was too large of a jump from the six I ran last weekend. All of that said I did consider running nine miles today because the first eight went well. In the end I decided that it would be foolish to risk injury for one extra mile so I did my cool down after eight, iced my ankle and elevated it. After today I have decided my long run pace should be closer to an eight forty five minute mile than nine minutes. I felt good through this run, as good as one can feel running eight miles. : ) Once again I was proud that my final mile clocked in at eight seventeen my fastest out of the eight. All in all a strong run and the perfect way to wrap up running for the month of June.

8 miles in 1:08:00

My best run since the injury.

I would not have believed it from the pace of my first mile but today was my best run since I sprained my ankle. Four miles were on the schedule today and I was planning to run them at a 8:10 minute/mile pace. I felt like I was exerting a lot of energy during the first mile so I was disappointed when it clocked in at a 8:20 minute/mile pace. I ran mile number two at 8:15 minute/mile which was better but I was starting to worry that my goal of an 8:10 minute/mile pace was now out of reach so I decided to run hard but to satisfy myself with an 8:15 minute/mile pace for the overall run. As I mentioned in the post previous to this one mile number three on my four mile route is a hill. Because of the hill my mile times usually increase for obvious reasons. Today was the exception. My legs must have finally warmed up and I was enjoying the cool temperatures in the mid fifties, mile number three was run at a 7:48 minute/mile pace. At that point I was feeling really strong so about a third of a way into mile four I figured out how fast I would have to run in order to have the entire run come in at an 8:00 minute/mile pace. I ran strong and for the first time since the Shamrock Shuffle in March I ran a 7:30 minute/mile pace which gave me an overall pace of 7:59 minute/mile! I am going to rest as much as I can today and I hope to run eight miles tomorrow. If I am not up to it tomorrow I will run the eight on Sunday.

4 miles at 31:54

Sleep running

This mornings run was one of those that would have been easy to skip but I am glad that I did not. Our youngest was up late last night and I was ready for bed around nine o'clock but no such luck. My wife got up with him at five this morning and I woke up at a quarter til six to run. I was sleepy and my legs felt tired so when I went downstairs I offered to take the little guy so she could go back to sleep. My wife is a saint though and told me to run. They both did end up going back to sleep not long after I left. Yesterday I had decided to run four miles today but this morning I knew that would be iffy so I decided to try to run four but if I ran three that would be fine. It was another hot and humid day, I remembered to check the temperature before I left the house and it was already seventy five when I left. Once I started to run I felt better about being out there but I still decided to take it easy and not push myself too hard. My first mile came in at 8:16 and I felt like there was a good chance I would run four miles despite the heat and my fatigue. Mile two was more of a challenge and at the end of it I took a corner too fast and my injured ankle bent a little too far into the turn. This was almost exactly at the end of mile two, the route I run if I am running four miles has me going up hill for mile three and I decided rather than risking aggravating my injury that I would turn back but still get in three miles rather than four. I think this was a smart decision and considering how I felt not a difficult one to make. My plan called for three miles yesterday and four today so all that has happened is I flip flopped the days. I am scheduled to run tomorrow but unless I get to bed early tonight, which is not likely, I will rest tomorrow and run Friday instead. I was proud that I got the run in and my legs feel heavy but nothing that a little rest won't cure.

3 miles in 25 minutes

It's a scorcher and I don't mean my speed.

Today was hot and that is an understatement. I woke up early and headed out the door at a quarter after five. As soon as I opened the door a cool breeze hit me and I was thankful to be starting so early as I knew the temperatures today are supposed to reach into the ninties. Boy was I mistaken, by the time I was at the end of the block I knew this would be a hot run. I didn't check the temperature before I left the house but it had to be at least seventy five. I was afraid that I came out too fast especially since I was already tired during mile one. I held it together and drinking some water around mile two helped. I have revised Hal Higdon's Novice plan to up the mileage a little but I noticed today that he has me running Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday every week. I am not sure I want to run three days in a row and I may prefer to do my long runs on Sundays rather than Saturdays. I will tweak it as I go to suit what works with my schedule but I don't want to change it too much since it obviously has worked well for so many people.

4 miles in 32:40

And one for good luck.

My plan on Sunday called for five miles and I wanted to run at a nine minute per mile pace. I was up late Friday night and my left leg felt pretty tight on Saturday so I was concerned about this run. However, there was nothing to worry about running really loosened up my legs and they felt great during and after the run. The weather was gorgeous and I was feeling strong so at three miles I decided I would run an extra mile. It was such a nice day and I was feeling so good I ran six miles instead of five and closer to an eight and a half minute per mile pace. I even changed up my route a little to hit some hills and slow myself down a bit but with little success. It was just one of those perfect running days where everything clicked. In the future I will have to more careful to run a slower pace on long runs. No complaints here though. I have an off day today, a little weight lifting this afternoon, and then a four mile run tomorrow.

6 miles in 51:20

I run on Dunkin'.

I had another good run this morning. I rolled out of bed at 5:00 AM to beat the heat and so I could get to work early but there was no heat. It was a great morning to run with temperatures only in the low sixties. On my way out of our subdivision I smelled a very sweet scent like someone was baking. This was at the beginning of my run and I remember wishing that I was having breakfast with those people. On my way back I caught the scent again and realized the Dunkin Donuts not too far from our house must be baking fresh donuts. This inspired me to kick it up at the end of my run so I could get home and eat something. I have been especially pleased with my run today and my run on Wednesday because my last mile was the fastest both days. Assuming I get my five mile long run in on Sunday I will have logged fifteen miles this week which is more than I have run in almost three months!

4 miles in 32:45

Hal Higdon here I come!

First, a little background on my recent running progress. After what I would call erratic training early in 2007 I sprained my ankle in mid April. To maintain my fitness level, or at least try, I began riding the stationary bike at the gym as well as pool running. I am back on my feet, literally now and after talking it over with my new friend Michael from the ChiADead group I have decided to start Hal Higdon's Novice Plan. It is not the plan I hoped to do and once I feel completely healed I may even try to jump up to the Intermediate Plan. First things first though, getting healthy and building a base are the priority for the next month. I had an off day today and a four mile run tomorrow.