Friday Tempo Run No.8

Today's plan calls for an Easy Run. However, I missed my Tempo Run yesterday, so I did that one today, instead.

DC Bike Path: 1/2 Marathon Training, Tempo Run. Dist: (6.03)mi. Pace-avg: (15:41). Speed-avg: (3.8)mph. Speed-max: (5.1)mph. Burned: (638) Calories.

Plan: Run (6) mi. including (1) mi. warm-up @ an easy pace, (4)mi. @ a (15:16) pace for a total time of (1:01:07)hrs., and a (1) mi. cool-down at an easy pace.
Actual: Walked a (1)mi. warm-up @ a (16:27) avg. pace, jogged (4.0)mi. @ a (14:43) avg. pace for a total time of (58:50.44)min., and walked (1.03)mi. @ an (18:39) pace to cool-down.
Fuel: Pre-run: (2) slices of wheat toast with butter and honey; Mid-run: nothing, just water and body-fat; Post-run: Dinner! Homemade beef stew and baked acorn squash.

Again, tonight's run went very well. I got out before sundown, but sunset was imminent all the same. I jogged four (4.0) continuous miles, with decent splits and a negative split on the final mile: Mile (1): (14:43); Mile (2): (14:44); Mile (3): (14:47); Mile (4): (14:36).

Definitely getting better. Now I am looking forward to my Sunday Long Run even more. I just need to make sure I maintain a good, sustainable pace like I did last Sunday.

-Lancer!!

Wednesday Easy Night Run

Today's plan calls for an Easy Run.

DC Bike Path: 1/2 Marathon Training, Easy Run. Dist: (6.05)mi. Pace-avg: (15:28). Speed-avg: (3.9)mph. Speed-max: (5.4)mph. Burned: (638)Calories. Running lights.

Plan: Run (4)mi. @ a (16:50) pace for a total time of (1:07:20)hrs.
Actual: Jog (4.00)mi. @ a (14:31) avg. pace for a total of (58:04.69)min., bracketed by a (1)mi. warm-up walk, and a (1.05)mi. cool-down walk.
Fuel: Pre-run: glass of Gatorade (Fruit Punch); Mid-run: nothing; Post-run: glass of Gatorade (Fruit Punch), a banana, and dinner.

Tonight's run went extremely well! Although I did forget to wear my Heart Rate monitor strap, I was able to maintain a sub (15:00) pace for my entire (4.0)mi. run! Even better: I achieved negative splits for the first time ever: Mile (1): (14:40); Mile (2): (14:32); Mile (3): (14:25); Mile (4): (14:27). I wasn't even trying for negative splits, but there they are all the same.

Cool weather runner

I made sure to check the temps outside before I left on my run, and I am glad I did. It was (51) deg. F. when I left the house, and it's supposed to get down to (42) deg. F. tonight. Since it was so cool out I decided to wear my Nike Running pants, my new Nike Element long sleeve running shirt, my new Brooks LSD Lite Jacket II running shell (yellow/black), my UnderArmor balaclava (i.e. ninja hood) and my Adidas running cap. Oh, and my yellow shooting glasses to keep the cold air out of my eyes. This collection of running wear kept me feeling just right on my run.

-Lancer!!

Another Tuesday Easy Run

Today's plan calls for an Easy Run.

Plan: Run (4) mi. @ a (16:50) pace for a total time of (1:07:20)hrs.
Actual: Jogged (4.0) mi. @ a (15:24) avg. pace for a total of (1:01:36.05)hrs., bracketed by a (1.0)mi. warm-up walk, and a (0.84)mi. cool-down walk.
Fuel: Pre-run: Pizza and salad; Mid-run: water; Post-run: dinner. 

Tonight's run went very well. I jogged a continuous (4.0) mi. this evening and it felt good. My split times tonight were: Mile (1): (15:10); Mile (2): (15:21); Mile (3): (15:34); Mile (4): (15:30). Overall, a very good run.

Other News: Registration is now open for the Modesto Marathon 2012, so I think I need to register. Still debating whether I should try for the half-marathon, or the full marathon.

-Lancer!!

Sunday Long Run No.11

Today's plan calls for a Long Run.

DC Bike Path: 1/2 Marathon Training, Long Run. Dist: (10.64)mi. Pace-avg: (17:13). Speed-avg: (3.5)mph. Speed-max: (6.0)mph. Burned: (1165) Calories. Running lights.

Plan: Run (13)mi. @ a (16:55) pace, for a total of (3:40:00)hrs.
Actual: Jog/walked (9.64)mi. @ a (17:18) avg pace, bracketed by a (1)mi. warm-up walk, and a (0.0)mi. cool-down walk.
Fuel: Pre-run: PowerBar Energy Gel (Strawberry-Banana); Mid-run: Honey Stinger Stinger Waffle (Honey); Post-run: PowerBar Energy Blasts (Strawberry Banana).

Tonight's Long Run went OK, but was incomplete due to a persistent ache in my left foot between my 3rd and 4th toes at the ball of my foot. I'm not sure what caused this to begin with, but this was only my second training run using my new Brooks running shoes. Maybe my shoes need a little more break-in time, or maybe I was overcompensating in some way by pushing off with my left foot more than in the past. Tonight the pain did not begin till I was well into the return leg of my run, so I got some good mileage out of the run. This intermittent pain sometimes occurs when I walk around the house barefoot too much. In any event, I did not want to just suck it up and power through the pain: It is only (6) weeks till the Las Vegas Half Marathon and I do not want to create more injuries before-hand.

Do you think the cars will see me?

I hope the drivers can see me on the road.

I was able to jog continuously for the first (6.03)mi. of tonight's run, then I walked about (0.22)mi., then resumed jogging for another (1.76)mi. before I had to stop and just walk the rest of the way. I wore my new Nike Element Long Sleeve running shirt with the tall collar and was suitably impressed: It kept me warm enough and cool enough at the same time; I did not overheat and oversweat. I brought along my new Brooks night running shell just in case it cooled off too much by the river, but it did not. It was very handy to have it folded up in its storage pocket and carrying it in an add-on pouch on my running belt. It's almost time to change the batteries again in my running lights. I was able to run long stretches in the park without the lights to conserve battery life, but some sections were too dark without the lights. No moon was out tonight, but there were several cyclists on my return leg that had multiple high power LED lights on their bikes and helmets. It was nice to see other people taking safety seriously.

-Lancer!!

Thursday Run in the Sun Day

Yesterday's plan called for an Easy Run, which I am going to do now.

DC Bike Path: 1/2 Marathon Training, Easy Run. Dist: (5.74)mi. Pace-avg: (16:09). Speed-avg: (3.7)mph. Speed-max: (5.2)mph. Burned: (619) Calories.

Plan: Run (3)mi. @ a (16:15) pace for a total time of (50:46)mins.
Actual: Jog/walked (3.0)mi. @ a (15:11) avg. pace for a total of (45:33.03)mins., bracketed by a (1)mi. warm-up walk, and a (1.74)mi. cool-down walk.
Fuel: Pre-run: Peanut butter on wheat toast, tea with honey; Mid-run: SportBeans (grape); Post-run: Long overdue lunch: Refried beans, Spanish Rice, Chicken Fajitas.

Today's run was a break-in run for my new pair of Brooks Trance 10 running shoes. The magic is still there: They feel great and with the Spenco running inserts they have plenty of arch support, and my Wright Socks are still keeping my feet blister free. It was a nice change to be running in the afternoon sun and there were other runners, joggers and cyclists in the park today. Since school is in session I presume many of the younger runners are from one of the high school track, or cross-country, teams.

Yesterday, I bought my second pair of Brooks Trance 10 running shoes at FleetFeet Stockton. I had put (439)mi. on the old pair, and now those will be retired from running, but will be used as gym shoes and regular walking around shoes (on those rare occasions when I do wear sneakers). I also bought a Nike Element long sleeve running shirt, a pair of Nike Sport (5) in. running shorts and a Brooks LSD Lite Jacket II running shell in yellow, so I will stand out from the rest of the background and (fingers-crossed) not get run over on my way to and from the park. Since I have also been itching to buy new running shades I decide to buy a pair of Tifosi Vogel Fototec (auto-tinting) sunglasses. I tried them on my run this afternoon and they were really good. I wanted a pair of shades that change tint on their own so I can go running with just one pair of glasses when I go out before sundown and return long after sunset. These will fill the bill. I will have to test them on a night run, too, which I plan to do later tonight.

Other News: Yesterday I started the Intermediate CompTIA A+ Certification Prep class and am looking forward to it. Gotta' keep moving forward on that path to IT certification goodness.

-Lancer!!

Tuesday Easy Run

Today's plan calls for an Easy Run. Yes, I skipped my Sunday Long Run because I was a little concerned about re-breaking my healing toe with so much mileage. Maye I'm just being overly cautious.

DC Bike Path: 1/2 Marathon Training, Easy Run. Dist: (6.15)mi. Pace-avg: (16:14). Speed-avg: (3.7)mph. Speed-max: (5.0)mph. Burned: (662) Calories.

Plan: Run (4)mi. @ a (16:55) pace for a total of (1:07:41)hrs.
Actual: Jog/walk (4.00)mi. @ a (15:28) avg. pace, bracketed by a (1)mi. warm-up walk, and a (1.15)mi. cool-down walk.
Fuel: Pre-run: Honey Stinger Stinger Waffle, (1x) Vanilla, (1x) Honey; Mid-run: PowerBar Energy Gel (Banana-Strawberry); Post-run: Dinner! Chicken Fajitas, Spanish Rice, Refried Beans.

Tonight's run went well. After too long sitting idle I was a bit more winded earlier on that usual, but I got over it on the return leg and was able to jog continuously for (1.82)mi. I guess it will take a while to work back up to a continuous (30) minute jog, and I am looking forward to getting back there, and beyond. It was nice to get out and run in the sun again. There were plenty of other people out in the park today enjoying the sun.

Other News: Dinner turned out pretty good. I cooked Chicken Fajitas last night, and tonight I made Spanish Rice following an online recipe and tweaking it on the fly. It could have turned out better: I could have burned the rice a lot less, and spiced it up a bit more. Next time I will try adding more McCormick's Mexican Seasoning ([2] tablespoons, rather than just [1]) and maybe half a (14.5) oz. can of the canned tomatoes (petite diced) and a small can of Ortega Diced Green Chiles. Those modifications might just make it as good as it should be.

As of tonight, I now have (439.34) miles on my Brooks Trance 10 running shoes. At this point, I will need to go buy a new pair so I will have them ready to swap out once I hit the (450-500) mile mark.

-Lancer!!

Thursday Tempo Run No.7

Today's plan calls for a Tempo Run. Actually, this should be Tempo Run No.9, but other circumstances kicked that aside.


DC Bike Path: 1/2 Marathon Training, Tempo Run. Dist: (7.31)mi. Pace-avg: (16:41). Speed-avg: (3.6)mph. Speed-max: (5.5)mph. Burned: (800) Calories. Day-time run!

Plan: Run (6) mi., including a (1)mi. warm-up and (1) mi. cool-down. Run (4)mi. @ a (15:26) pace for a total of (1:01:45)hrs.
Actual: Jog/walk (4)mi. @ a (16:09) avg. pace, bracketed by a (1)mi. warm-up walk, and a (2.31)mi. cool-down walk.
Fuel: Pre-run: Peanut M&Ms; Mid-run:PowerBar Energy Gel (Strawberry-Banana); Post-run: Some real food.

This morning's run was adequate, but could have been better. I was happy to finally get in a morning run for a change, rather than a middle-of-the-night run (even though I really enjoy moonlight runs). I was a little over-dressed for this run: I wore my Nike ProCombat compression shorts under my Nike running pants, my Bay to Breakers Centennial tech t-shirt, New Balance running pull-over, UnderArmor ninja hood and Adidas running cap. This definitely made it warmer than necessary.

Frankly, I expected the outside temperature to be much cooler than it was. I probably would have been more comfortable with my short running shorts (to get more sun on my legs), a running t-shirt, running cap and the ninja hood on the side for when I needed it to keep my ears warm. I also really should have eaten some real food before going out for my run; the peanut M&Ms did not really cut it, but then again, it was several hours between eating those and doing my run. Another thing I should have done beforehand: Warm up my legs by doing squats with, and without, weights, like I used to do before I started slacking off so much, and before I broke my toe.

Other News: I completed my Basic CompTIA A+ Certification prep class. Now I have to sign-up for the Intermediate class next week, or as soon as I get the money for it. I hope they will accept late registrations once the class has started.

-Lancer!!