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  My Running Log

Here's my daily running log for the month of July. You can also look at my previous logs by clicking at the links to the right.

Entries are entered chronologically at the top so the latest entries will appear at the top.

If you have any comments, tips, or think I'm not running enough, PLEASE email me and tell me to get my butt in gear! Or just abase me in my guestbook for the whole world to see so i can't just ignore your email.




  
Running
Log
   • Current
   • July
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My running log
DATE MILAGE or TIME RUN RATING
(out of 4)		 COMMENTS
7/31 45 minute tempo run I was planning a tempo run today since I haven't done that in a while. And the weather was just perfect for it; cloudy and around 75 and dropping. So I start off slowly, about 8min/mi and then gradually start dropping at the 1 mile point. I'd been hyping myself all day because I didn't think that I could hold the 6:40 pace I was planning but it wasn't bad at all. I hit the measured portion and see that I'm running around 6:36/mi! groovy! I'm passing people left and right and even catch two rollerbladers. I turned around at 22:30 because I wanted to run a total of 45 min. I head on home and though I'm beginning to tire, I'm not about to stop, it's feeling too good. I even charge up the hill at the end of the run. total time 45:30. Take into account that i ran down it on the way out and up it on the way up and I'll call that pretty even. 4 feet day!
7/30 32 easy minutes I just looked up where I should be according to Higdon's Chicago Training schedule and it seems that I'm right on track (no pun intended). And here I was thinking that I was WAY behind schedule. Not that I'm following any schedule. Hal says today should be a 3 mile day at marathon pace. The question is: I'm trying to go as fast as possible for the marathon so the goal pace is a moving target. This is why I don't follow a schedule. So I go about 4 miles at 7:30 pace. I'm feeling ok, but I've eaten too much before the run and it's bouncing inside my tummy. Not a good feeling. Call it 3.5 feet.
7/29 7 x 1/2mile with half distance recovery It's wed. AGAIN? Sigh. I guess I'll head to the track. The 1mile warmup run there leaves me feeling pretty good so I'm optimistic about today's track workout. I stretch for a bit then I start with the first 1/2 mile. 3:03:47. That's good! Maybe this speedwork thing IS working. Who would've thunk it? The rest of the 1/2's are as follows: 3:07:84, 3:05:91, 3:07:65, 3:05:83, 3:08:77, and 3:06:30. Hey! This isn't too bad! Looking back at last week's workout, my best 1/2 time was 3:07:xx so this is quite the improvement!
7/28 1:04 @~ 7:30ish pace After yesterday's fiasco, I wasn't sure what to expect today. I made sure to rest and really stretch the legs before the run though. I also decided to run a new route as the regular route was getting old. I start off and everything felt fine. But then again, I felt fine starting off yesterday. Anyway, I'm running down main street and there are just a ton of runners coming back from their runs. So this is where they've all been running. I make the turn onto Huron River Drive, site of my half marathon and run down it until I reach barton park and take that trail. This brings back memories of years ago when I was still exploring A2 with my bike. I'm feeling just fine, though breathing a little hard, so I decide to do a loop instead of an out and back. I retrace my old biking route from memory and manage to find my way to the hospital. I'm only at 45 min so I veer into the Arb to climb the hill I do for training. I do that just fine and head on home to celebrate a much better run than yesterday's. On a racing note: I've been itching for a race for a while now so I went ahead and entered the "Run through Hell" 10 mile race on Aug. 8th. I'll use it to gauge my training so far....
7/27 42 crappy minutes Today was just one of those days. Everyone has one so I guess it's just a part of running. I worked out the legs in the morning but since I was short on time, I just did an abbreviated workout. Then when it came time to run, I wasn't really in the mood but I thought that a short run would help me recover from yesterday's long run. Bad idea. When will I learn to listen to my instincts? I started off pretty good and stopped at 1 mile (as is my custom) to stretch. Then I'm off. I'm breathing awfully hard so I think I must be going at a pretty good pace. I hit the measured part of my course and find out I'm only doing a little less than 7min/mi.! What's going on here? I've NEVER worked this hard to run 7 min/mi. At the turnaround point, I'm totally shot so I stop to drink and recover and then start home. I tell myself to take it easy, but I got the feeling that any pace I went short of a walk was going to be hard work. But there was no way I was going to stop. It was a bad run but at least I didn't walk it. So a run that usually takes me 38 min ends up taking 42. Oh well. Maybe it was the hour of basketball after the long run that did it. Maybe it's just my body's way of telling me to back off. Who knows. I'll see after tomorrow's run.
Sunday
7/26		 2:10 min @~ 7:30 ish pace Long day. I once used to DREAD long days but now I actually crave it. If I could only find a was to run it in the evening and not waste the whole day. Today I added a new word to my running vocabulary: vaseline. Read on. Once again I get up late and get a late start at around 8:30am. Inside my place the temp. was cool but outside it was already becomming a tad hot. So I begin slowly and I'm feeling pretty durn good. Usually, I'm stiff as a corpse and the breathing is labored but today, none of that. I stop at around 1 mile to stretch. Then I'm off. Everything is still good when I stop at 38min at the same quickie-mart to buy a Gatorade. Then I run to 45 min, GU, drink some more and stash the bottle for the return trip because I hate carrying anything. By now it's getting a little hot and being that I'm in farm country with no one around, I take off the singlet and run half naked. I must have been quite the scary sight. I was only planning to run 2 hours flat but felt good enough to push for an extra 10 minutes so I eventually turn around at 1:05 and begin on home. At this point I'm beginning to feel the start of a rash on my inner thigh. I've never ever gotted a rash from running before and I didn't do anything different today. I'm still miles from home so I slog on. Near the end, the inner thighs are pure agony. ARGHHH. But I still felt fast nearing the end so I pick up the pace slightly and find that I'm running a 7 min mile. Whoops! Too fast so I back off to 7:15 and gingerly waddle on home. Shower, stretch, ice the ITB (it wasn't hurting, just doing it just in case...) and I'm off for 3 bagels and coffee! Life is good despite the damn rash.
7/25 none N/A rest day. basically goofed off. but did manage to strech them legs!
7/24 48 min hill workout What the hell. I felt pretty good today and the weather was about perfect for a good hill workout so I went for it. I had worked out the legs in the morning and didn't feel the effects of it. I jogged over the arb for a warmup and then went down the hill. That was the easy part. The hard part was going up. The first time up wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I turned around, went down the hill at an easy pace as not to stress my ITB and thought "the hills are my friends!" The second time up, I was wondering "how long is this hill anyway? It felt like half a mile at least and had gained at least 200 feet in elevation." I made up my mind to look this up at the local library but lo and behold at the top of the hill there's a map with scale and elevation readings! About 1700 feet long and 180 feet vertically. Is that good enough for a hill workout? The third and last time up was not problems either. This was easier than I thought! I didn't even stop once. Didnt' stop at the top but jogged on home to cool down. Success. Automatic 4 feet.
7/23 1:08 @ 7min/mi I didn't feel too bad after yesterdays track workout and the weather was just SOOOOO nice outside that I knew I was going to go longer today. So I set out at what I thought was a comfortable pace. When I hit the measured section of my run, I find that I'm running well below 7min/mi. Way too fast, so I slow down to about a 7min pace. I felt pretty good and no knee pains at all so I continue past my usual turnaround point and run to the end of the Gallup Park Trail, which added about 3 miles roundtrip to the run. I ended up running 1hr 8 min. At around 7 min/mi, that works out to 9.7 miles. Call it 9.5 miles just to be safe. It wasn't a 4 feet day because there was just something missing from what would otherwise be a perfect run.
7/22 3mi of track plus 1 w.u. & 1 c.d Ohnoohnoohno. The track again. Come on, just chant "The track is your FRIEND! The track is your FRIEND!" Last week's disasterous attempt at speedwork left me dreading this day. But IT HAD TO BE DONE. So I jog there for the warmup, stretch, and I'm off on the 1/2 mi's. The first one is pretty comfortable at 3:07! Yes. The next one is a tad harder at 3:08. Now comes the everlasting mile. At .5 mi, I'm still feeling good. "The track is my FRIEND..." The .75mi lap is not too bad, but I know I'm fading. A quick peek at the watch shows that if I bust my butt, I can sneak in under 6:20. I dig in and cross the finish in 6:17! YES! "The track IS my friend." After that, the two remaining 1/2's come pretty easy at 3:10 and 3:08. Not too bad for the second track session. Jog home for the cooldown and celebrate with some pasta! I finished the workout so that's an automatic 4 feet!
7/21 52 min @ ~ 7:15/mi The legs didn't feel tired at all. I was just planning to do around 6 miles but felt good enough to push it for that extra loop around Gallup Park. Chicago is less than 3 months away. All in all, just my average medium distance day. Nothing remarkable. Call it 3.5 feet.
7/20 none N/A Worked out the now-cooperative ITB. I think we might have come to an understanding. I'll stretch it well before and after the run, with some self massage thrown in and it doesn't bother me. I could live with that.
Sunday
7/19		 1hr 42min long run After yesterday's debauchery, I really wanted to punish myself for not doing anything. So I woke up nice and early and eventually got out for my long run at 8:30am. The weather was kinda warm but with some promising dark clouds in the distance. IT MIGHT RAIN! And off I go. I'm feeling really sluggish. But that's the norm when I run in the morning, as opposed to my usual evening run. On the way, there's a quickie shop that I buy Gatorade from. I wonder what the attendants think when this drenched guy in an almost obscene outfit comes in and hands them some damp dollar bills for the Gatorade? Let'em wonder. At the turnaround time (52.5 min), I GU and drink on the run as to not tempt my recalcitrant ITB. It started drizzling lightly then, which was a most welcome thing. I backtrack my route and finish with 1:42 instead of the 1:45 planned. Does this count as a negative split? Would have been a 4 feet run if I had felt better in the beginning. Top of the morning with bagels and coffee. Yummmm.
7/18 none N/A I was planning just to work out the ITB and quads today but instead, I wasted the whole day playing GOLDENEYE on the N64 with my friends. But that's what weekends are for, don't you think?
7/17 60 + min @ mixed pace FARTLEK! Boy do I love that word! The run started out as a medium pace medium distance run but I was just feeling FANTASTIC so it became an impromtu FARTLEK (kinda redundant, I know). For me that usually means keeping up with or chasing down unsuspecting bladers/bikers. It makes for a fairly good workout. I think my best pace was around 6:40/mi for 2 miles as I paced an attractive rollerblader who didn't know I was drafting her. I would have gone longer but then I hit the dreaded ART FAIR crowds. Did I mention that it was art fair this week? Madness. Pure madness. No one seems to notice or care that there is a RUNNER COMMING THROUGH! Messed my rythm up entirely. But that was near the end of the run anyway. Toss in some damn nice weather and you have an automatic 4 feet run!
7/16 35-40 min @ comfortable pace After yesterday's crappy speedwork, I wasn't expecting much from my legs so I went out for an easy recovery run. It wasn't too bad since the temps had cooled things down considerably. I think I averaged around 7:30 or so per mile but I was purposely not looking at my watch as to not end up racing against it.
7/15 2.75 mi of track plus 1 w.u. and 1 c.d. Track/speedwork. Man, I am definitely NOT a sprinter! Planned 2 x 1/2mi, 1 x 1mi, and 2 x 1/2 mi. with 1/2 distance recovery. My old speed routine. I've been out of it so long I didn't know what to expect. In my (ahem) prime, I used to the the 1/2 mile in 3 min ± 5 sec. and the mile in 6:10 ± 5 sec. So off I go. The first 1/2 is not too bad and I come in at 3:10. Not too bad. Do the recovery and the next one is definitely harder, and I get 3:13. Uh oh. I'm feeling pretty winded so I take a little longer break before the mile. Then I'm off. Halfway through the mile, I'm about to toss my cookies so I back off a litle. Near the end of the next lap, I'm gasping and about to pass out so I call it quits after .75 mi. I hate speedwork. I take a considerable break and do the two remaining 1/2's in 3:14 and 3:13, jog home and call it a day. Did I say I hated speedwork?
7/14 6 medium paced miles. Yeah, the legs were a little tired from the sunday long run and workout on monday, but not so bad that I couldn't catch and pass some slow rollerbladers! I love it when that happens. Now if I could only catch that biker.... Pace was about 7:20
7/13 none - rest day N/A Taking it easy today. No running, just working out the ITB and strengthening the quads.
Sunday
7/12		 1hr 30min @ ~ 7:45/mi Yes! I am happy to report that THE KNEE IS JUST FINE! This time, I didn't want to let the ITB even THINK about acting up so I didn't stop at the turnaround point. I just kept on running and everything was just wonderful! Well, it was kind of hot, but that was because I started pretty late (10 am). And I was really working hard to find a comfortable breathing pattern but that should come with more running. All in all, it should have been a 3.5 feet rating, but the ITB was cooperative so what the heck, the full 4 feet!
7/11 none - rest day N/A Legs didn't feel bad at all but I wanted them rested for tomorrow's long run. I'm aiming for 1.5 hours (again), hopefully with better results this time.
7/10 38 quick minutes Worked out the legs in the morning. I wasn't planning on running but it was nice outside and my legs were feeling pretty good so.... I went out for an easy run and felt so good that I went quicker than I thought I could, especially after doing leg exercises in the morning. I ended up averaging about 7:05/mi! Yeah!
7/9 50 min @ ~ 7:20 min/mi pace Another good run. No knee pain at all, though I find I'm breathing harder. Must be due to the heat. Even at 8:30 in the evening, it's still pretty hot and muggy.
7/8 6 miles @ ~ 7:15min/mi Far out! I felt really good today so I pushed the old knee a little harder. Am I pushing my luck?
7/7 30 gentle minutes ~ 4 mi I and the knee felt just fine but I didn't want to test the knee too hard. Overall, a good run.
7/6 rest day N/A Knee felt fine but I wasn't tempted to try it out. Went to the gym and worked out the legs instead.
Sunday
7/5		 45min out of a planned 1.5 hr run Perhaps I celebrated too soon. Everything started out well enough. Started out at a slow pace, around 7:45/mi and everything seemed fine. Stopped at the turnaround point (45min) to stretch, GU, and drink. Tried starting up again but the knee just wouldn't bend without pain. Yelled, cursed, and tossed things about, which caused a cop to stop and see what mischief I was up to. Limped home to strech, ice, and medicate the knee. Pray that this isn't an indication that my knee would never heal. Ohpleaseohpleaseohplease I really need this to heal.
7/4 55 min easy pace This was a celebratory run because it was the 4th of July. I was also testing to see how my knee would hold up above 40 minutes. Everything checked out! Kinda out of conditioning, but what do I expect. It was just durn hot out there. And that damn itching again!
Friday
7/3/98 		40 min @ ~ 7:15/mi My first official day of training for the Chicago Marathon! I had spent the past two months getting over my !@#*$& ITBS injury. Today, felt no knee pain. WooHoo! But it sure was hot out there! And what is this intense itching I get on the arms and legs during the beginning of the run? And man, side stitches! I haven't had those since I started running! Am I THAT out of shape? But all in all, a 4 feet run.

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