dedication, perseverance, self-discipline

I ran with Sasha this morning, as well as with Luz and her dogs for part of the run.  We ran out to the turn-around for 10.1 miles.  We had averaged just under 8:00 pace for the run when we started running with Luz and we slowed a bit, but not much, making it back to Sasha's house in 1:21:44, so just slower than an 8:00 average.  Luz then started to run with Sarah, and Sasha and I ran another 3.15 around the block to finish up for the day with a total time of 1:45:23 for 13.25

Well, due to problems at work last night (the other staff forgot to show up... again) I had to forego my run with Sasha this morning. Instead I slept in and ran later on in the morning. While I was running I began to think, with my thought process going something like this:

Sprinters always have a very high leg kick when running (angle of knee flexion from the calf to the thigh)

Elite world class distance runners also have a high leg kick

According to an article I read on running economy and Sasha's observations, runners with better running economy tend to have a higher angle of plantar flexion of the foot on toe-off from the ground and less of a range of motion in the foot during running.

Sasha and I have had various discussions about the performance variant that running barefoot as children may have had on East Africans.

Sasha has mentioned that running in Vibram 5 fingers (basically running barefoot) causes him to work harder with his gluts and in the fore-section of the lower leg (I can't remember what the muscle is called)

So I thought that if I could simulate the form that elite runners have when they run, would I go faster at the same effort. I decided to first try this running 4x100m sprints, followed by a 400. My goal was to focus on good plantar flexion on toe-off from the ground, while attempting to flex the gluts a little more to create a higher leg kick. I also wanted to try and stay relaxed. I did not want to go faster because I was working harder. The results of my 4x100 is as follows 13, 14, 13, 13. I had a running start to all of them just like always with a running clock. The 13s were all in the mid to high 13 second range, with the 14 being in the low 14 second range, so virtually equal for all of them. This was somewhat surprising, especially on the first repeat, because on the first 100 I was half expecting to come through in a high 14-15 seconds. It felt too easy to be run in 13 seconds as the effort felt the same as when I am normally running them with Sasha. I ended up running my 400 about 8 miles into my run. I purposefully ran it on the same section of trail that I last ran an all out 400 on a couple months ago (59s). This section of trail has a net uphill and is generally fairly slow. Again, just like the 100s, I ran it from a moving start with a running clock the whole time. I ended up with 56 seconds for 400 meters (POST MISSION PR!). Again, I focused on plantar flexion on toe-off, high leg kick, and staying relaxed. I made it through 100 either in a high 13s or a low 14s. I didn't get any other 100 splits because I was focusing on different things. By the time I hit the 300 mark I almost felt like I could not feel the toe-off and I was having trouble maintaining a high leg kick. My legs felt completely dead (This was also how I felt a couple of months ago when i did the same thing). I estimate that my overall time was anywhere from 56.0-56.3 based on where my clock was (59:08 at the start, almost 59:09 and 1:00:04 at the finish, almost 1:00:05). After running the 400 I finished up my run, finishing 13.1 miles at my house in 1:37:29.

I find the results of my little test to be encouraging and I want to try it out at longer distances in the future, maybe starting with 800s and then working up to a tempo run test, as well as trying it out in long slow runs to see how it feels. I also think that the 400 equivalent was faster than my actual 400m pr that I set in high school (?55.7?). My actual pr was set as the first runner in the 4x400m relay, and due to a three turn stager, the time is somewhat approximate. The time I ran today was from a start, but it was 8 miles into a run, I wasn't wearing racing shoes, I had run 4 semi-hard 100s before it, and it had a net uphill. On the other side of the coin, it did come from a running start, however I doubt I was going any faster than 12:00 pace by the time I started the 400. I honestly think that if I was focusing on this 400 today, and I ran it on the track with racing shoes I could have come close to or maybe even broken the 55s barrier.

Anyhow, it was a good run.  I will probably keep messing with this to see if I can keep improving and pushing my limits.  I will have to if I want to hit that OTQ in a few years.

I ran with Sasha and Adam this morning. We did a little test with Adam so that we could try to determine what is causing him to have a higher rate of neural fatigue, and a higher heart rate than average while running. He said that his blood glucose levels were low after eating when he had them tested, so that might be why, but who knows. Anyhow, we did a 2 mile warm up followed by 2x400 with 600 rest. We did the 400s in 1:21, 1:25. On the way back we sped up to 7:00 pace for 1 mile before finishing up running to Sasha's house for a total of 6.5 miles. Sasha and I then ran out and did the same distance again to finish with 13 miles. With about 2 miles left I started to feel a slight discomfort in the right anterior portion of my right leg. A little bit later it started to get painful. It almost felt like the muscle was cramping up. I think it was because of yesterdays workout. The muscle isn't used to that much stress and it didn't like it. I'd better be careful with how often I experiment with different things, because I don't want to get hurt. I think that I will be fine, I just better take it easy the rest of today. We finished our run in 1:46:20.

In the afternoon I took an accidental nap at work (whoops!)  It was strange because I almost never get a break there in the afternoons and today one of the guys fell asleep in the living room while another played video games in his room and the third watched tv.  The result of it all put me to sleep.  I am glad the guys didn't notice or it would have been bad.

I ran alone this morning. The original plan was to do 10 miles, but I ended up changing plans due to some unplanned events during my run. While I was running (about 3.5 miles into the run) I see a burnt out section of the provo river trail. This surprised me because it wasn't burnt out yesterday. As I run I keep seeing more burnt out sections. I was surprised that there was so much burnt, yet nothing big. Then I come upon a section that is still smoldering. I decided to put it out and I got super dirty in the process. I was afraid that it would catch fire again so I didn't want to leave it. Because of this I cut my run short as I had some time restrictions due to the fourth of July. I might try to get in another mile or 2 later on today to make up for the lost mile this morning. If not I don't mind because one mile isn't significant anyhow. I finished in 1:04:24 running the first 4.5 in 33:37 and the second 4.5 in 30:47.

I ended up getting a little bit more running in just after I finished my 9 miles in the morning.  I dropped my wife and her parents off so they could watch the parade after which I drove home and ran to watch the parade.  I ran more than a half-mile and less than a mile so I will count it as .5

I ran with Sasha this morning. We started at the shops at the riverwoods at the end of the provo river 10 miler and ran to the start of it, then back down. We started off fairly brisk today making it to about 7:00 pace before long. We stopped a little over a mile in for a quick vpb and again at 5 miles so that I could stretch out the muscles in my shin. I am still feeling it a bit after Wednesdays experiment. The muscles in my lower leg/shin area have really been kind of sore. More than anything they have just felt tired. Anyhow, we stopped for a minute so I could stretch it out which made it feel a lot better. We started off again and began our tempo making it to the turn around in 1:06:06 (1:06:05 by Sasha's watch). We started back down to continue our tempo, and Sasha took one more vpb shortly before we got to the bottom of south fork canyon. After we got back down on the river trail, we were consistently hitting miles in the 5:30s with our fastest being a 5:31 from what I figured. Near the end we were going just under or at 5:40 pace for the most part. We finished the second 10 miles in 56:13 for a total time of 2:02:19 (for what it is worth, Sasha had us at 2:02:16 as I stopped my watch a bit late). Total distance 20.1 miles as the 10 mile course is just a little long. This is the longest run I have done this year, not by much but it is the longest, and I am really tired now. I think that I am going to take a nap.

Good day at church today. We substituted in the nursery and had fun playing with the little kids.

Surge - 199.05

Ohana Racer - 209

Speedstar - 70.6

I ran with Sasha and Daniel this morning.  We ran about 6.5 miles with Daniel dropping him off and turning around at the start of the 5 mile tempo.  We then picked it up for a bit so we could catch another guy who was on the trail, but after about a quarter he had already turned around and was heading back so we slowed down again.  We ran the course of the 5 mile tempo still keeping it slow and then finished up running to Sasha's house.  Total time for 13 miles 1:42:19.  My legs are not yet feeling 100% after Saturdays hard tempo and the general fatigue I was feeling the few days before that, but they felt pretty good this morning.  I will probably try to keep the intensity a little lower during the first part of this week, and I will probably do a shorter slower long run on Saturday.

I ran with Sasha, Josse, Michelle, and Matt today. We did 6x1 mile repeats with a goal pace of 5:50. After a little less than 2.5 warm up we did our first repeat, finishing in 5:47. We did a quarter mile recovery followed by a mile back the same way we came out in 5:49. Another mile out in 5:46, followed by a mile back in 5:45, a mile out in 5:44, and a mile back in 5:42. Sasha was towing Josse, so their times were a little slower, and I was pacing Michelle and Matt. Michelle was hurting on the last repeat going through the half mile in 2:56 (5:52 pace) but then picked it up and ran the last quarters in 1:26, 1:20 to finish off the workout. We then ran back to Sasha's house to finish off the run. Total, 12 miles in 1:34:21.

PM - I was at work and one of the guys decided that he wanted to go to his mom's house.  I agreed to take him and I let one of the other guys ride my bike so we could get there quicker.  So, I was on foot and the other two were on bikes.  I ended up walking at times because I didn't feel like running the whole way, (I was wearing jeans and crappy shoes, I didn't want to go running too much in that and summer heat) and running at times so that I could catch up to the guys.  I will count it as half a mile of running.  I think it is about twice as far to her house, but I didn't run the whole way so I think it evens out.  Maybe I should count everything plus rectroactively add in the 30+ miles a week I was putting in on my bike for 3.5 months during school just to tick off all of those mileage board fanatics :)

I ran with Sasha and Daniel this morning.  We ran with Daniel through 3 miles and he turned to head back home.  Sasha and I decided to do the course of the uneventful half so we kept going.  we turned around at 5 miles and headed back but before we got to our last turnaround we ran into the guys from Provo High out running.  We decided to run with them a little, so we turned a little early and then added a little extra before heading back to Sasha's house for a total of 13.2 miles in 1:43:59.

I ran with Sasha this morning and after a warm-up we ran 6x400 in 75, 70, 70, 68, 68, 68 rounding my time down on the first two repeats and rounding up on the last four.  We then continued running out the trail and we ran with Luz and her dogs for a while before returning to Sasha's house for a total of 12.35 miles in 1:43:04.  We then ran 1 more mile with Julia in 10:00 to finish up for the day.

We took it easy today.  We ran out to the end of the trail and then added a little on the way back to finish at Sasha's house with 11.1 miles.  We then ran 1 more mile while we waited for Julia to get ready to go, followed by 1 more mile with her in 9:17.  Total time for 13.1 miles 1:44:08.

We took it easy again.  I ran with Sasha and another guy today (his name escapes me at the moment, but he is on the blog).  We ran 14.1 miles in 1:47:07 followed by 1.15 with Julia, the last mile being run in 10:00; then 1.5 with Jenny and Benjamin in 11:46, and finally another 1.5 mostly alone in 9:57 (last .5 in 3:01) for a total time of 2:20:36 for 18.25.

I got a lot of sleep last night, but I have been yawning all day. Oh, well. At least I am not tired.

Surge - 242.65

Ohana Racer - 209

Speedstar - 109.9

I ran part of the Des News marathon course with Sasha and Seth this morning.  I am not running the marathon with them, but I figured it would be a good workout anyhow.  We drove up to the start of the marathon and after I dropped them off I ran back down to the three mile mark where I ran a one mile warm-up before waiting for them to make it down to me.  The reason that I didn't run the first three miles is because it is a nasty downhill, and I didn't want to beat up my legs or put in as many miles.  Anyhow, I ran from there to the zoo which is about 12.75 from the 3 mile mark.  My total time for 12.75 was 1:16:57 and overall it didn't feel too hard.  My mile splits were:

5:10 - just finishing off the steep downhill, then a slight uphill.

5:23 - a mix between up and downhill, mostly down.

5:51 - starting to head up the hill before we get into immigration canyon.

6:36 - uphill pretty much the entire way.  Sasha asked us to back off a bit.

6:07 - mostly uphill, but it flattened out near the end and even headed down a bit.

5:19 - downhill mile.

 5:52 (40:18 for 7 miles) - has a couple downhill sections at a low grade, and one uphill section between the downhill.

After this we backed off to about 6:00 pace for a bit and then slowed down a bit more from there.  We made it from mile 13-15 (10-12 for me) in just under 13:00, so we didn't slow down too much, but it was downhill so it made it easier.  Overall the workout didn't feel like it was too hard of an intensity and we were moving pretty well so I am happy with it.  I was also pleased to see that I was still chatty while going through the main uphill section that we ran.  Seth was asking me about what my background was with running and I was chatting away for a while.

I ran easy with Sasha and Josse this morning. The run felt different at the beginning this morning, as I felt like we were going faster than we really were. There was really no soreness from the workout yesterday, but my quads did feel just a little tight for a decent portion of the run. We ran 10.1 finishing at Sasha's house, after which Josse and I ran two more miles to finish up with a total time of 1:35:10 for 12.1 miles.

We took it easy this morning. I ran with Sasha and we met Matt out on the trail. We ran to the end of the trail and back and we pretty much ignored pace the entire time. Finished in 1:20:34 for 10.1 miles. My foot was hurting more today than yesterday. I am not sure why.  I iced it after I got home from running and if it feels better I am going to run to work instead of biking to get a few extra miles in, miles that I would have gotten this morning if it wasn't hurting. I think it should be fine, but I'd better be careful just to be safe.

So, I iced my foot after running today and I took some ibuprofen.  By the time I went to work it felt fine, so I ran there in the afternoon.  It took me about 14 or 15 minutes to get there.  After work I ran home while Kimia biked along side me.  Coming home was a bit slower and we finished somewhere in the 16-17 minute range.  I am very pleased with the effort that Kimia has been making recently to eat healthier and to exercise.  She started coming to my work in the evening and riding the bike home while I drove so she could exercise and this week she has been running and walking a little as well.  Today, since I ran to work she rode the bike to my work and then rode it home while I ran.

I ran with Sasha this morning and we ran 10.1 together pretty easy.  We finished a little faster than we have been recently because we started a bit quicker than normal.  I think it might be due to the fact that Sasha is running fewer miles right now.  Anyhow, we finished in 1:17:55, so it was still pretty slow, but we started off a little faster than normal (we hit about 8:45 for the first mile compared to 9:30 or so yesterday).  After we finished I did another 3 miles alone to finish with a total time of 1:40:11 for 13.1 miles

I ran with Sasha this morning and we kept the pace about the same as yesterday, but we made it through the first 3 miles a little quicker so our overall time was faster. We finished 10.1 miles in 1:16:39. After this I drove home and then ran 2 more miles from home to finish up with 12.1 miles on the day with a total time of 1:31:48.

I ran a little with Kimia in the evening, about a half mile.  She does the run walk thing, but she ran for almost 5 and a half minutes without stopping today which is about 3 minutes longer than she has ever done without stopping.  It is a little step, but I am still proud of her.

Nothing special to report. I went to a little community 5k because Seth told me on Monday that they paid $100 to the winner. Well... they don't.  I got a plastic trophy worth maybe a dollar if that counts for anything. They did raffle off some gift certificates worth as much as $50 depending on what you got, but I didn't win one. So, I thought it was lame that here they are raffling off all of these gift certificates yet they don't give anything to the winner when they paid $100 last year.

Anyhow, I am just bitter because I thought I was going to win some money and I got nothing. The race was nothing special. It went through some neighborhoods and down a small trail similar to the provo river trail then back through some streets to the finish. There were no mile markers, so I have no clue what my pace was per mile. I think the course was also a little short by as much as 10-20 seconds but I don't know by how much (one guy had it at 3.04 on his GPS but I don't know that his GPS was right as the race people told me that they measured it at 3.1 with a GPS, so it is probably somewhere in between). I think that it was a good race considering my effort was not all out the second half due to lack of competition, (second place was Ryan Bybee, 39 seconds back) and I have been feeling pretty tired the last couple of days. I just would rather spend money on a race that is accurate, with some competition if I am not going to get anything out of running it. I could have run 3 miles hard on the river trail if I really wanted to and saved myself the $20. But, I guess I am just spoiled since I have gotten used to getting into races for free; maybe this will help me be more appreciative of the freebies I do get.

I ran another 15.1 miles a little while after the race once I got home.  I wanted to keep the pace right around 7:00 per mile.  I was pretty much right on pace for the majority of the run and at 12.1 miles I was 9 seconds ahead of the 7:00 guy.  Then, I stopped looking at my watch and I accidentally sped up a bit and averaged just over 6:50 for the last 3 miles.  Still right in my acceptable range for the run.  Finished in 1:45:08.

I felt fried after yesterdays run because of the heat and my legs are still feeling it today although it is very minimal. I fell asleep in church for a few minutes today because the relief society room was too warm. They need to keep the a/c on in there.

Surge - 297.05

Ohana Racer - 212.1

Speedstar - 133.75

I only ran 10 miles this morning. I took it nice and slow with Sasha and Luz for most of the run. After 8 miles I dropped them off and then ran 2 miles more at a slightly faster pace to finish the morning with a total time of 1:19:30 for 10 miles. I am going to run to work this afternoon as well, so that will get me another four miles if I run there and back.

I ran to work in the afternoon, and then home in the evening for another 4 miles.  My wife Kimia ran a mile straight for the first time ever today, and I am excited for her.  She actually didn't even stop at a mile, but she made it a bit farther and then ran for a bit longer after walking for a few minutes. 

I ran 6 miles easy with Sasha this morning, running the first 1.5 with Daniel, and about a mile or so in the middle with Matt.  I then ran another 7 miles alone.  I finished with a total time of 1:39:44 for 13 miles.

I ran 4 miles with Sasha this morning. After that, we took his kids out and got another 3 miles in. I plan on running another mile or so with Kimia in just a few minutes and that will be it for today. My leg started feeling weird yesterday, and after probing around I realized that there is some point tenderness on the bone in a similar place to where I had the stress fracture back last year. I don't even notice it walking or running, but just to be safe I am going to back off considerably the rest of this week. I might even back off next week as well. I will probably re-evaluate it later on this week.

I got 1 mile in with Kimia after I got home. 

I don't have time to write much, but all I can say now is... wow. It was a great race, and I edged Mike Vick out at the line to win (however he out chipped me by .02 so they declared it an official tie). We beat a BYU guy by 1:07 and Shin (Japanese guy who placed 5th at SLC marathon) by 1:08.

So, the race course starts at Timpview High School and heads North on Timpview Dr. At the starting line myself, Mike Vick, the BYU guy and Shin were all lined up next to one another. The rest of the field gave us a small gap, so we didn't need to worry about any bumping around at the start. We took off and I slid in behind Shin to draft off of him since there was a slight headwind, however Shin had different plans and he moved up a little quicker than I found comfortable. So, I moved over and started drafting off of both the BYU guy (Reagan Frey) and Mike Vick. There is a gradual uphill for the first mile or so and I stayed behind them the entire time. Shin had a 5-10 second gap when we hit the first nasty uphill dubbed goliath by the race directors which was near the mile mark. He immediately started to struggle and Reagan moved up and put about 20 meters on both Vick and myself. We passed Shin, who was breathing really hard heading uphill and once we crested the hill we started to close on Reagan.

The course drops after the crest of the hill and heads into some rollers for a while, and by the time we hit the 2 mile mark Reagan was struggling. Shin was already a ways behind us, but was maintaining the distance, and we dropped Reagan who fell back with him. At this point I started to push the pace a little more and a little over halfway through Vick asked if I could hold back a little. He suggested that we maintain pace a little longer and race near the end. I agreed and we backed off a little bit, but still kept the pace strong so that the other two wouldn't catch up to us. We headed down the hill by the Provo Temple and after getting to the bottom we started to pick up the pace again (about 4 miles in now).

Up to the three mile mark I had mostly sat on Vick, however from then on we mostly ran side by side and occasionally I would pull ahead followed by a small surge from Vick to pull back in front. This went on until during the last mile I started to fade a little as Vick pushed the pace faster. I dropped about 5 meters behind him and maintained that gap for a minute or two. I then realized how close we were to the finish and I decided that I needed to close the gap if I wanted to beat him. I closed the gap by the time we hit Timpview Dr once more and when we turned the corner I was right on his shoulder. I was moving to try and pass him as we turned left into the parking lot, but a guy finishing the 5k ran into us as he was trying to kick to finish his own race. This gave me 25-30 meters by my estimate to make up what was now a 1 meter gap between Vick and myself, and somehow I found a gear in me that is very rarely there and I blew by him to cross the line just barely in front of him for the win.

Reagan and Shin came in a bit later, with Reagan out-kicking Shin as he had to come from a ways behind to catch him at the end. They came through at 33:33 and 33:34. I had 32:32 on my watch when I crossed the finish line, so I think the timing started a few seconds late, as the official gun time had both Vick and me at 32:27.4 and the chip time had us at 32:26.9. Either way, it was a solid time and a new 10k pr for me on a slow course. I think that I could go sub 31:00 on a fast flat course at sea level, or one similar to Des News. By my recollection this is also the most competitive race that I have ever won, which is a great step forward for me.

I was somewhat sore today, which is surprising considering I only raced a 10k yesterday.  Anyhow, I kept the pace easy and I finished in 1:02:36.

I took it easy today and I kept the mileage really low considering that it is Saturday.  I just want to be careful to make sure that my leg stays injury free.  I ran into Matt out on the trail and he looked like he is still pretty sore after the marathon but he was running with me at about 7:00 pace.  I ran 7 miles alone, then one more with Kimia for a total time of 1:03:35 for 8 miles.  The leg doesn't hurt but I think that I will ice it just to be safe.  I already took some anti-inflamitory drugs to be safe as well.  I think that I will probably take it easy the first part of next week as well.

Good day at church today. We helped with the nursery again. I think it is fun to change church up every once in a while to go play with some 2 year olds. I am glad however that I don't have to do it every Sunday.

Surge - 318.05

Ohana Racer - 222.6

Speedstar - 159.75

I ran with a whole crew of people this morning.  Daniel turned around after just a little while because his knee is still bothering him.  James turned around after 3 miles, and Matt ran with us from about the half mile mark to 4 miles before turning around.  Sasha and I then finished the run together to end up with 10.1 miles in 1:20:58.  So, the 8 minute guy beat me by 10 seconds; not too bad considering we were over a minute behind him after 1 mile and almost 2 minutes behind at the halfway mark.

I ran with Josse, Sasha, and Michelle this morning.  We ran out to the trail and did 2 mile repeats with Sasha pacing Michelle and me pacing Josse.  I did 2 repeats with Josse at 6:20-6:55 pace followed by a few more easy miles to finish with 10 miles in 1:17:28.

I ran easy with Sasha, and for a little bit with James, and later with Matt.  Finished in 1:22:18.  Josse worked on me yesterday, and I could definitely tell a difference today.  It didn't hurt or feel tight while I was running, but I did not feel like I could or should run fast.  She told me to take it easy today anyhow because it was supposed to feel like this, so no worries.  I just need to stay aggressive with this thing so that it does not turn into anything serious.

I ran with Sasha and Benjamin today.  We took it pretty easy for the most part, but there was a short section where we sped up with Benjamin to about 6:00 pace for .25 and later on to a pace in the mid 6:00 range before slowing down just before we hit .5 miles.  After dropping Benjamin off at the house, Sasha and I ran a few more miles and we threw in one 800 in 2:29 to get a feel for the pace in preparation for Saturday's 5k.  Total time for 10 miles 1:19:20.