Running stuff...

Wow, a ton of stuff has happened in the last few weeks since I posted at the end of July.

I ran my 8:00 mile.  It was on a treadmill, it was indoors, but it was 7:51.  I'll take it because I could have run it faster.  In fact, just to prove it I may run a sub-8 mile out here at the park some time in the next few weeks.
The under 2:00 half marathon I was looking at for mid September is likely going to become just another training run because as of right now I'm less concerned with speed and more concerned with distance.  Why?  Well, that's because...

I just received notice that I was selected in the lottery for the Houston Marathon in January.  The goal for January is pretty much 40 miles, because I want the marathon distance to be well below my max extreme.  If it's below my max extreme, then running multiple marathons in the same month isn't going to be quite so hard to do.  In fact, 26.2 will be a proverbial walk in the park.  Target time:  3:59:59.99

That said, my 3 mile runs have become 6 mile runs.  My 6 mile runs have become 9 mile runs.  And my weekend runs, when I get off my ass to start doing them again, will be 11 to 14 mile runs.  For what it's worth, during the month of August 2010 I haven't run anything less than 6 miles at a stretch.  Last year during this month I only ran 6 miles once.  This is a very, very different year.

Even better, the weather is beginning to break a little.  Yes, it's still hot as blazes out there.  Yes, the humidity is ridiculous.  But it's beginning to break, and break early.  Usually we have to wait until mid September for the hottest of the hot days to be behind us, but there have been remarkably few 100 degree days this summer and the pattern appears to be holding.  There's still time for that to change, though.

My average mile so far this month is 9:45 over a 6 mile stretch.  It'll probably stay there for the remainder of the month while I start trying to stretch the distances out.  The next scheduled race is the Houston Half Marathon in October, but I may get a few 5k and 10k runs in during the interim to work on a little bit of speed work.

An interesting thing happens during my 6 mile runs, right around mile 3.5.  I smile.  Yea, I know.  It's weird.  It only lasts for about a half mile or so, then the grimacing death mask descends on my face, but that little stretch of the run is actually quite pleasant.  Not as pleasant as the nap following the run, but pleasant enough in its own rights.

Runner attacked

Has anyone heard of any incidents of runners in Houston having things thrown at them from car windows.


Things such as rocks, chunks of concrete, bricks, bottles, etc?

The run

I said yesterday's run was in jeopardy due to complete lack of energy.  Well, I managed to get up off the deck and post a decent run:   6 miles in 1:03.  It wasn't great, but wasn't so bad, either.  I've done better, but not since January.

But here's the kicker:  yesterday was a scheduled rest day.  The TUESDAY run was scheduled for 5 miles, but I was on the deck so hard Tuesday night my schedule was off by a block.  So, the rest day that I THOUGHT was today is actually a day scheduled for speedwork.

I so hate The Almighty Schedule I can taste it.

I've been tinkering with The Almighty Schedule anyway, so a little more tinkering may not be so bad.  I might skip tonight's run and overload the miles tomorrow (with a little speed work thrown in), tack on a 3 easy miles Saturday (scheduled rest day), and then be back on track for the LongSlowDistance run for Sunday (9 miles scheduled).  

Or, I might get in a long, easy run tonight, skip tomorrow, sneak in some miles Saturday, and be on track for the LSD on Sunday.
Or, I might rest tonight, run tomorrow morning with an easy 6, cross on Saturday, LSD on Sunday.

I don't know.  Maybe I just need to rest to the weekend and try and get my clock straight.  I'd hate to lose out on the miles for this week--I don't have any more time in July to make them up.

Setback... of sorts

Ok, I've fallen a bit ill over the last few days.  My energy level has been ridiculously low to the point where I was beginning to feel physically ill.  The last scheduled run on The Almighty Running Schedule was skipped as well as the two short bonus runs I had planned to squeeze into the mix.  Tonight's run is, to say the very least, in jeopardy.  The Almighty Schedule for the week is almost certainly trashed.  I can only hope to get back on track for next week, even though I have a business trip planned--all hotels do have treadmills and the mileage is light to moderate.  I may overdose the mileage simply to keep myself "normal" in a foreign city.

This could become, to say the very least, a problem.  Let's hope it doesn't go there.

True beauty in the park

5 good miles today. I'll try and knock down 4 in the morning tomorrow, but I have a very bad record of getting up in the morning and running.

But the real point of today's post...

Yesterday, while running in the park I saw a thing of true beauty. And no, it wasn't attached to a sports bra or in any way related to the "wildlife" that can be found in the local running Mecca of Houston during the deepest, hottest parts of the summer.

No, this was a thing of true, true beauty. An inspirational sight that my imagination STILL cannot release.

As I was chugging through my second mile yesterday at what I thought was a decent clip, it happened. Three guys come cruising up on my left in a V formation. Their backs straight, their heads held up high, eyes forward, a light banter going on between them. Then I looked at their FEET. They were keeping an identical cadence, all had identical strides, and their footfalls were so light. The balls of their feet hit at exactly the same time, just under their knees, and then seemed to just slide back.

It was so easy, so light, and so smooth.

It was truly beauty in motion.

For just a brief moment I was able to follow behind them and keep their pace (it was a blistering pace for me, but so light and smooth for them). It felt like I was running with gazelles! It was so light and breezy and inspirational. It's HOW I want to run.

And these guys... they were like ghosts. They seemed to appear over my left shoulder out of nowhere, and then after a few moments of pacing with them they were gone just as quickly as they showed up. I've actually seen them around the platforms--they're always there. But I've never seen them actually running.

But now I have. And wow. I so want some of that.

Report

Ran 5 miles in 51 min 29 sec @ 10:18 min pace, weather was humid, hot, and full of blech. typical houston july., temperature around 89 degrees, After a 5 day layoff where I felt generally like garbage, I finally took to the road again. The schedule had 5 miles at 10:30, I ran 5 miles at 10:18. I was going to run 7, but the first 3 miles were at a "blistering" pace of 9:48--much faster than I had planned. 1. 10:02 2. 09:41 3. 09:41 (last quarter mile was 2:00) 4. 10:01 5. 12:02

The first 3 miles weren't going to be that fast, but I got passed by a rabbit who was taking it far, far to easy to be passing me that quickly and had to chase her down. 2 miles later I not only caught her, but the person I mistook for her who was a half mile in front of her. So, that's why I didn't run 7 instead of 5--I overdid it for the first 3 miles. I need to do a better job of sticking to the schedule and getting my long runs in on the weekends. I'm satisfied with the intensity I'm putting in for the short runs, but intensity is no substitute for distance. It doesn't matter how big the pipe is if it's stuck into a shallow reservoir. So, I'm either going to have to start extending the shorter runs or actually DOING the LSDs.

Getting off, and on back on the rails

The Almighty Training Schedule is kind of bumming me out.
Generally speaking, I have a problem with authority.  When that authority is some sort of generic, outside designed round hole that I'm expected to jam a square peg into, then I start to have a real, real problem with the authority.

And that, for me, is what training programs tend to be.  Some guy (or chick) decided that in order for ME to accomplish my goals (in this case, sub 2:00:00 half marathon), I need to do X, Y, and Z.  Forget the fact that I've got schedule conflicts on three of those days.  Forget the fact that I have a travel schedule.  Forget the fact that I actually want to see my family on the weekends.  Nope, forget all that, and you get no alternatives.  Do the program, or good luck.

Well, you know what?  Bite my ass.

Don't get me wrong.  I understand the program is intended to help.  There are specific workouts that seek to deepen the reservoir, widen the pipes, and improve the pump.  Each one targets one, two, or (for a time) all three aspects of the machine.  I get it.  I really, really do.

I also get it that the program is a good starting point, and if I want to get more sophisticated with my training I should consult someone who knows a little more about me than some editor in Colorado (or where ever the hell he is) for Runners World Magazine.

You know what works really well for me?  A long, long run on Monday and Tuesday, then a rest day for Wednesday, then some speedwork for Thursday, and a shorter (but still long) run on Friday.  Then I can take the weekend off (when most people prefer to run their long runs) and spend time with the family that I haven't seen all week.  Maybe that'll change in the winter, but in the summer that's how the schedule works out.  Does that fit into the Almighty Training Schedule?  Nope.  Does it work?  I'll betcha it does.  In fact, I have yet to find anyone who can give me a good reason why it wouldn't work other than "that's crazy", "that's stupid", or "no program would have you doing THAT".  The problem, though, is if the schedule has me doing something else, and I'm not following the schedule, then the schedule simply doesn't work.

So, that's where I'm at right now.  I've got a schedule I've tried to stick with.  And for the weekday runs, I've done a pretty good job.  The weekend runs, on the other hand, I've not done so well sticking with.  I'm going to have to rejigger the schedule a bit and see if I can rearrange the runs and the days in order to fit them in a little bit better.  I might even wake up a bit early a few times a week and run before work--something I have extreme difficulty doing.

Nonetheless, though, I'll take a stab at reforming the Almighty Schedule into something that's more compatible, while at the same time reforming my own schedule to better accommodate the schedule.  Tuesday's 5 mile run will become Tuesday Morning's 6.5 mile run because I'm not sure where the 5 mile turnaround point is on my local route (maybe I'll run 8 miles, depending on how I feel).  The shoes, socks, and kit will be laid out tonight and when the buzzer buzzes at 10 to 5 tomorrow morning, I'll be out like a shot.