Exciting stuff

I got home this morning to find two exciting things waiting in the mail for me.

The first was a letter from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign informing me that the Department of Human Resource Education is recommending to the Office of Graduate Admissions that I be admitted to the online Master of Education program that is beginning with the Summer 2008 term.

The other exciting thing was my brand new copy of The Unnatural Inquirer by Simon R. Green.

I'm not gonna hold my breath

I ran today for the first time in a week. I felt very weird.

I had a nice day. It was about 55 degrees but there was a pretty nice wind out of the SE around 15 mph. I wore a long sleeve shirt, shorts and a ball cap and set out for an easy four miles just to see how the legs and lungs would feel.

I lifted yesterday for the first time in over a week and my shoulders were pretty tight from the pull-ups and shoulder presses I did. I also couldn't get myself to slow down. I wasn't paying attention and ran well past my one mile mark but still ran 8:03.38. Mile two was a bit short and I covered it in 7:53.96 (15:57.34). Mile three was even faster in 7:52.07 (23:49.41). I made myself slow down after that so I didn't finish in oxygen debt and ran my final mile in 8:01.26 for a total time of 31:50.67.

I only hacked a few times as I walked to my house and I immediately hopped in the shower and into some dry clothes afterwards. My chest feels pretty good but my nose is stuffy. I'm hoping that I feel less herky-jerky and congested as the week goes on and am able to make a reasonable accounting of myself in my half marathon on Saturday.

I'm throwing all expectations out and just hoping to run strong the whole race. I have no time goal other than to run faster than I did during my 13.1 training run on the old course (1:43:29) that made my IT Band flare up.

Anything under that is a bonus.

One thing after another.

I've had a bit of a cough for the last week or two that would bother me when I went to bed at night and when I woke up in the morning. I figured it was dry air or my allergies kicking in a little earlier in the year than usual and I ignored it until yesterday morning when I couldn't quit coughing all day. I went to the doctor and was given a prescription for Advair, Benzonatate, Z-Pak and was instructed to pick up some Claritin. I'm not exactly sure what the nurse practitioner diagnosed me with, either a sinus infection or bronchitis, but it is kicking my ass.

I medicated myself quite heavily last night with all the above mentioned meds, excluding the Claritin, and some NyQuil for good measure. I went to bed at 1930 and woke up coughing my head off around 0147. I got a drink of water and checked my temp and saw that it was 100.3. My alarm went off at 0600 and when I checked my temp upon rising it was 101.7.

My place of employment has an attendance policy that states a full time employee may not miss more than 3% of their scheduled work days (7.8 days) in a ROLLING calendar year. Thanks to a three day bout of bronchitis this time last year and Nathan's multiple ear infections I have missed more than my allotted days in my calendar year and have had my first warning. Three strikes and I'm out.

Needless to say, I wasn't going to let a 101.7 degree fever earn me a corrective action so I took my meds, ate breakfast, showered, dressed and drove to work. I've done smarter things in my days. I actually started feeling better about 1000 and was able to put in a whole day of work. I'm looking forward to going to bed in an hour or so though and seeing if another 11 hours of sleep can make me feel better.

I haven't been getting much sleep lately and put in close to 20 hours of overtime in the last two pay periods. It isn't a lot of overtime but with the lack of sleep, thanks to my wife keeping me up because she can't sleep, I think it has all caught up to me. I'm hoping to be healthy by the time the LMHM rolls around in 11 days.

Keep your fingers crossed. I am.

'Bye, 'bye Duke!

I just finished watching #7 West Virginia send #2 Duke home and I think my bracket is looking a lot better now because I picked the Mountaineers for the upset!

I always enjoy seeing Duke lose.

Final Long Run

I ran my last long run for the Lincoln Memorial Half Marathon today. I just ran ten miles in pancake flat Chatham and took it easy. The left knee got a bit stiff the last two miles but it has always done that so I'm not alarmed.

The weather wasn't as nice as it has been at 36 with 13 mph winds gusting to 18 out of the NNW, 74% humidity and a wind chill of 26. I've been fighting a bit of a cough the last week or so and I can't figure out if it is allergies or a cold. I'm not really congested at all and my cough is slightly productive but nothing alarming. My cough will go long periods without bothering me until the minute I lay down to go to bed and the minute I get up in the morning. It will also bother me after I work out. My albuterol inhaler helps out, cold and sinus medication with a cough suppresant also helps a little but generic benadryl doesn't seem to help. This is worrisome because I got a terrible case of bronchitis the day after the LMHM last year and I would like to avoid that again. Bronchitis, and the 103 degree fever that came with it, really sucks. The worst part was coughing and coughing but not getting up and giving myself a headache from the constant heaving.

I started my run a bit fast with my first two miles each covered in 8:02. I was planning on starting off at about 8:10 pace and going from there and I managed an 8:09 for mile three. Miles four and five went by in 16:02, I have no idea where the four mile mark is. At mile five I turned around and ran the same course backward. Miles six and seven went by in 15:51 and I finished up in 8:00, 7:49, and 7:25 for a total time of 1:19:20.

I felt pretty okay. I'm wondering how much sharpness I lost due to just running base miles the last few weeks. I still think I'm capable of a 1:35 if I get a good day as I feel that I am much more aerobically fit than I was last year. However, hill running isn't my strong suit and this course kicked my ass last year.

In a positive light, Abe's Amble killed me the first time I ran it but I ran two minutes faster the second time I ran it. I also ran a fairly strong 15K in the hills of Decatur a week after running a 19:02 5K in Havana. What helped me there was going out slow the first third of the race and running strong the last two thirds.

My plan for the half is to run the first five very easy, which is hopefully right about 7:30 pace. After that I would be very happy to run about 58:00 flat for the last 8.1, which is right about 7:10 pace. That would put me finishing in the neighborhood of 1:35:30. Truth be told, I would be happy with a time two minutes slower. Long races intimidate me. I have a hard time being patient.

Another easy day

I ran an easy six tonight in 48:19. It was pretty with temps in the mid 50s and a brisk wind out of the SE at 13 mph. I ran relaxed and ran all my mile splits between 8:10 and 7:51.

I just finished watching Puke pull off a last second, one point win over a highly ranked powerhouse, Belmont. I was hoping to see a 15 seed upset a 2. Oh well.

Seven and a Brief Shoe Evaluation.

Thanks to temps in the upper forties I had a pretty pleasant seven mile run tonight in 55:19. I started off a little faster than I needed and wasn 't able to slow down too much. I think my legs are rested and ready to run some fast stuff, maybe I'll do a short tempo run next week to knock the rust off before my half marathon. I ran my mile splits today in: 7:53, 7:52, 8:04, 8:09, 8:00, 7:52, and 7:29. I felt pretty good. The knee got a little stiff the last mile or two but didn't hurt.

The final verdict on the Adidas Supernova Cushion 7s is that I like them. They are light and feel more like a beefier racing flat than a cushioned shoe. They feel fast. I liked the Supernova Cushion 6s but they felt less responsive than the 7s. I also think that the 7s are slightly more firm and the upper is more airy. I think they would be a good, light shoe to run a marathon in.

Less than three weeks

My half marathon is in about 19 days. My left knee/IT band feels pretty good but is a little sore after my 8 miles yesterday. It doesn't seem to be anything to worry about but I am going to monitor the situation and keep working the rehab.

I ran my 8 in a pretty relaxed 1:04:37 with splits of: 8:03, 8:03, 8:15, 8:15, 8:14, 8:12, 7:47 and 7:46. I felt pretty good the whole time but wasn't able to stretch out afterwards because I had to get ready to go into work.

This weekend is the week where the running club runs the Lincoln Memorial Half Marathon course as a practice run and I am debating whether or not to partake. A link to the course is here. I think I am going to stay at home and test my knee on a ten miler instead of running 13.1 on the hills two weeks before the race.

Any advice leading into the homestretch? I'm open to it.

It was never snowing....

We were in Peoria yesterday to get a four generation picture of all the men in the family and since we spent Friday night at my in-laws' house I ran 5 miles on the Detweiller cross country course. When I was in high school we always ran at Detweiller at least three times a season, and more if we made State. Unfortunately for me, I never made State CC and never ran the course when it was snowing, until yesterday.

We have had a few nice days in the upper 50s and low 60s until yesterday when we only had a high of 45. I started my run at Detweiller about 0730 and by the time I finished my run 41 minutes later, the ground had a thin powdering of snow. It was a bit surreal at times as I kept reliving high school races during my run. I had a few good races on the course and more than a few bad ones but in retrospect, I always had a good time.

My knee was great the whole time and I am starting to worry less about the half marathon coming up in less than three weeks.

Hooray!!!

I just got back from an easy fiver in the drizzle. It was a nice night at about 47 with a slight wind out of the WSW and an intermittent drizzle that beaded up quite nicely on my jacket. I did some lunges and some front kicks for a warm-up and then oozed my way through an 8:32 first mile followed by and 8:35 mile that felt much faster in the dark. After that I got into a groove and ran an 8:00 mile before finishing my last two in 15:58 for a total time of 41:05.

The best part of all, no pain and very little stiffness in my left knee. Saturday morning, if I get up early enough, I'll try to get 6 miles in at Detweiller Park. Sunday morning, before I go to work that afternoon, I will try for 8.

The missing ingredient in my training this year has been a consistent amount of strength training. The last two years I did yoga and the Core Secrets Workout (with Gunnar Peterson) at least twice a week. I've done maybe two Core Secrets workouts and two yoga sessions in 2008.

I think I'm onto something.

Still not 100%

We had some nice temps in the low 60s today so I drove to the park and ran for almost 36 minutes on the grass. I had planned on running for a little over 40 minutes but my knee got a little stiff about 35 minutes in. The pain/stiffness was just inferior to the patella as opposed to the lateral side of my left femur. I don't know if it is related to my IT band at all or something different. My knee still cracks a bit during the day but it is doing it less.

Almost there

I ran an easy 5 miles in 40:47 tonight with no pain. I wore a new pair of Adidas Supernova Cushion 7s which are much lighter than the Supernova 6s I've been using. A combination of the light shoes and the low mileage over the last 7 days made me a little excitable and I ran my first mile in 7:54, which was about 20 seconds faster than I really wanted to run. Everything felt fine and stayed that way and after running I did my hip and knee exercises. If the knee still feels good at the end of the week I'll run an easy 8 on Saturday and maybe think about a little bit of faster stuff the week after that.

Progress

After waking up at 0600 with my son, feeding the both of us, washing the kid and the floors and emptying the dishwasher I made it outside for a run around 12:45. I warmed up with some shallow squats on the Total Gym and the exercises the Bionic Woman prescribed and headed outside to run. March up here is still chilly and temps were hanging out around 27 degrees. Throw in the wind and we had a wind chill of 19.

It has been a long winter and I'm ready for some warmer temps. I ran my easy days slower in the summer so I didn't overheat. I run my easy days too fast in the winter so I don't freeze to death. Spring and fall are in my Goldilocks zone, they're just right. The only bad thing about spring is the wind.

To make a potentially long, boring story a short, boring story, I ran four miles in 32:20 with mile splits of 8:05, 8:14, 7:57, and 8:04. My left knee felt much better but not better enough to make me thing about going back to my training schedule. The Lincoln Memorial Half is in four weeks and jumping back into my training schedule has more potential to hurt me than it does to help me improve in any way.

My mileage is quite a bit behind where it was at this time last year but I have run longer long runs and faster track work and tempo runs. I think I will still run well as long as I run a smart race early. I tell myself that every year and I never run smart in the early miles.

The plan is to run LSD miles this week. If my knee feels good at the end of the week I'll go from there.

Skipping

Since my 13 mile jaunt last Saturday my left knee has been bothering me. I figured I had a bit of runner's knee flaring up until Thursday when I felt pain on the lateral side of my knee as I was walking down the stairs at work. It isn't really pain as much as it is stiffness and a "rubbing" sensation. I believe that I have a bit if ITBS.

Thanks to some exercises from my pal the Bionic Woman I have made tremendous strides in decreasing the level of irritation. However, I believe that running the LSA 5K tomorrow morning would be a very bad idea for my long term running goals this year. I have decided skip the race tomorrow and try to salvage my training for the Lincoln Memorial Half Marathon on April 5th.

In retrospect, I believe that the crowned roads on the old LMHM course contributed to my ITBS. I don't think I'll be running 13 mile runs out there any longer.

During my 3 mile run at 8:06 pace tonight I felt a bit of tightness but none of the stiffness I had during my 6 miles on Wednesday. I think I caught it early and hopefully the exercises and decreased mileage will ameliorate instead of exacerbate.

Memory Lane

Looking back at my old logs from high school I noticed a few interesting workouts.

Starting with my junior year 1995:

2/22/95: The Can (our hilly 5 mile course) 30:48.79 (a PR at the time)
Mile splits of: 6:09, 6:05, 6:21, 6:10 and 6:02

Two days before the Can I ran 14 miles in 1:45:59, my longest run ever, at that time.

3/1/95: 6 x 1 mile (if I remember correctly, we would start a new repeat every nine minutes so we were getting a tad over three minutes rest.)
6:03, 5:59, 5:56, 5:41, 5:43 and 5:28.

My teammate Josh went under 6:00 for the first time this practice with a 5:46. He later ran PRs (his senior year, after only starting to run as a junior) of 17:28, 11:10 and 5:12. He finished his junior track campaign with PRs of 11:50 and 5:24. That guy worked his ass off.

My senior year, 1996, I ran a few interesting practices:

2/19/96: 12 miles in 1:29:02. It may not seem impressive but I never hurt during my long runs. In high school I could run 7:20 - 7:30 pace FOREVER.

2/21/96: 3 miles in 16:54.95
Mile splits of: 5:25.04, 5:36.07 (11:01.11), 5:53.84

This practice was a bet between me and Derek that I couldn't go under 17:00 in practice. I told him that day that I was going to run 2 miles as hard as I could, then hold on for dear life and that I would go under 17:00. He started me on my way and met me at each mile mark in his car and laughed his ass off when I crossed the line in 16:54. I think our bet was for ice cream or something.

3/4/96: 15 miles in 1:48:12. I ran 5 mile splits of 35:54, 36:51 and 35:26. Slowest mile was a 7:33, fastest was a 6:44 to close it out. I always got campus fever real bad the last two or three miles of my long runs. I still do.

13 miles and hungry

I ran my 13 today. It was in the low 40s with winds S 5mph. I was a bit sore from my tempo run and I didn't start my run today until almost noon. By the time I hit the ten mile mark in about 1:18 I was starting to fantasize about food. I finished up my run in 1:43:29 and actually ran a full 13.1 because I wanted to get back to my car real fast so I could eat. (My car was parked where the race used to end.) My post-high-school-second-coming PR for the half marathon is 1:43:23.

I wonder what I could do if I wasn't sore, hungry and was actually trying?