dedication, perseverance, self-discipline

I ran easy this morning on the Pittman wash.  Finished in just under 1:20:00.

I ran my long run this morning.  I had decided that I wanted to run a time trial, in order to simulate a race situation.  The initial goal was to run 10k on the track, and aim to hit 75 second quarters.  However, despite the fact that it was significantly cooler this morning than last Saturday, I still had issues with the heat, and it didn't help that there was a little wind either.  It also did not help that a bunch of parents and kids were arriving at the track for a kids football game while I was running, and they got in the way on virtually every lap, oftentimes setting their things in the middle of lane 1, or just standing there completely oblivious to the fact that the same guy who almost ran into them 1 lap earlier (because they stepped right in my way just as I was going by) was coming around again.  It was not the kids either, as not one kid got in the way, just parents here.  In their defense they eventually all figured it out and learned to stay on the grass, its just that more and more people kept showing up and not realizing I was there they stood right in the middle of lanes 1 and 2.  The worst was a few laps in when I had to go into the outside of lane 3 or maybe even lane 4 just as I was finishing up a lap, and about to head into the turn.

Anyhow, that is enough complaining on my part.  After 2 miles I ended up deciding that due to the heat and track congestion I would just run a 5k instead of 10, and then run another tempo later on in the run.  Finished 5k in 15:38 (4:59, 5:01, 5:04, 0:34).  I didn't feel as good as I would have liked during this tempo, but given the circumstances I don't think that I should put too much weight into this workout.  My quads felt shot after I finished, and I was running fairly slowly for a couple of miles, until I realized that I needed to hurry up if I was going to get home before conference started.  So, I sped up to 6:40-6:50 pace, which felt surprisingly easy given that just a 10-15 minutes earlier my quads felt completely shot.  Anyhow, I maintained this pace until I was about 14.25 miles into the run.  I then ran a three mile tempo, just aiming to stay comfortable at the beginning, with plans to speed up from there.  Hit the first mile in 5:34, which was a pleasant surprise, as I would have been happy with anything under 6:00.  Mile 2 was 5:31 on a significantly slower section of road, followed by a 5:20 on a trail section more similar to the first mile.  Finished 18.5 miles by running back to my house, getting home at 8:51am with 9 minutes to spare before conference started.  I hurriedly got ready, and only missed the announcements and a minute or two of Elder Hollands talk.

I am actually fairly pleased with this workout despite the not so great showing in my "time trial".  The ease at which I ran the last 3 mile tempo in warm weather was a confidence lifter for me.  It gives me a little more hope that I am still on track to OTQ next month.

I ran with Anita in the stroller not realizing that she hadn't eaten in a while.  This ended in disaster as Kimia had left to go to the grocery store while I ran with the baby, so when I realized that Anita was hungry I couldn't just take her home to get fed.  I kept her mostly happy until I had been out about 3.5 miles, at which point she started getting pretty upset.  So, at 4 miles I stopped at a park thinking that if I could get her some water in her belly maybe she would at least be happy enough to get home, and hopefully Kimia would get back by the time I did.  This didn't work at all, as the baby just ended up getting wet, which made her cold, which made her more upset.  So, I ran fairly quickly back home with the baby.  I took off her wet coat and wrapped her in my shirt to keep her warm until we got there, and we arrived home just as Kimia got back.  She then took Anita and fed her, and everything was fine, but my run had been cut short, and at this point I didn't have the time to run any farther.  Finished just over 1:00:00 for 8 miles (maybe 61 or 62 min, but not sure because I didn't get my watch stopped).

I ran to school this morning, and ran 2 x 2 "mile" repeats.  The first was probably actually pretty close to 2 miles and I had approximate mile splits of 5:33 (into the wind) and 5:25 (cross-wind).  The second 2 mile split was short, but I imagine that I probably averaged about 5:15 pace (actual splits of 5:01, 5:02).  Total time of 55:10 for 8.6 miles.

PM: I came home a little faster than normal, but I did not run any parts of it particularly hard.  Total time of 1:01:21. 

I ran to school this morning in 1:05:17 for 8.6 miles.  I kept the pace slow until I got onto Tropicana, at which point I picked up the pace to about 7:00 because I was "racing" the bus.  This lasted for a little over a mile until I turned into a parking lot at the university (by the way, I did beat the bus).

PM: I ran 5.1 miles home, at which point Kimia picked me up.  Kept the pace easy (right around 8:00 pace)

I ran too and from school today.  1:03:41 on the way too school, and 1:06:31 on the way home.  I kept the pace easy both ways, other than the occasional pick-up to get through a stop light before it turned red.

I don't know what it is, but I have been feeling really tired lately.  It was more of the same this morning, and I didn't get up early enough to run before I headed off to school.  It also didn't help that I had an upset stomach, which gave me less motivation to get out the door this morning.  I ran after I got home, but didn't have enough time to get in a full 10 before I needed to pick up Kimia from her new job, so I ran as long as I could and ended up with 6.75.

Today's run was supposed to be an out and back 20 miler on the mid mountain trail (a 34 mile loop near Henderson, Boulder City, and Lake Mead) with a 10 mile tempo during the second half.  Temps were a little warm at the start (high 70's) but not unbearable, and I felt comfortable throughout the majority of the first half.  I ended up turning around a little early on accident, because I miscounted the mile markers, so I ended up turning around at about 9.7 miles.

Once I turned around I began my tempo.  What I didn't know before coming here is that in the direction I was heading there was a mild uphill or rolling for most of the first 6 miles, followed by 1 steeper uphill mile, and then 3 miles that felt like you were getting dropped off of a cliff.  So, I began my tempo heading up a huge hill, just as the heat was starting to get to me.  Temps were in the upper 80's, and maybe even as high as 90, and there was absolutely zero shade, and I was running up a hill so steep that I was struggling to break 7:00 pace in some parts, and was never going faster than about 6:20-6:30 pace.  This lasted for what I will call 3.1 miles, at which point I got to run 1 mile downhill, and then another half mile semi-flat but still downhill.  At this point I was feeling terrible (hot, dehydrated, tired) and I decided to cut my tempo short.  Total time of 30:09 for 4.6 miles.

At this point I wanted to get some water, however I couldn't find the water fountains I thought were close to the trail.  I could tell I was overheating, so I slowed down even more hoping that I would be able to manage my body temps better while running slower.  This didn't work, so I started looking for someone that I could get water from.  I eventually got some water from a guy out with his dog, but the water was warm, and I had overheated enough at this point that I still didn't feel good after getting a small drink.  I stopped a couple minutes later and walked for a bit, hoping that my body would get temps under control if I didn't run.  This worked a little better, and after walking for about .4 miles I ran the rest of the way to my starting point.  Total running time for what ended up being 19 miles was 2:22:0X.  After finishing I got some water, and put my head in the bathroom sink to try and cool off.  I picked up some orange juice at the store and drank a lot of that as well.

after my ordeal on Saturday, I decided to take an extra day off to make sure that my system has time to recharge.  I am not sore at all, as physically I didn't really pound my body, but I am worried that I may have stressed my nervous system a bit too much, so I figured a lazy day was in order.

I ran to school this morning.  I ran a few sprints on the way, although I am not sure if you can call them sprints as they weren't very fast.  Total of 7 pick ups of 15-20 seconds each, simply to get the legs moving while trying to feel relaxed.  I was supposed to run home in the evening, but I was at school late getting a presentation ready for class tomorrow morning, so Kimia picked me up.  I figure that it is not too big of a deal, as this week will already have low mileage due to not running yesterday.

I ran to school this morning, and then ran to class after getting here because I was slow getting ready, and I didn't want to be late.  Total of 9 miles.  I ran 2 x "400" repeats on the way, simply to get my legs moving a little.  I was not trying to push the pace, and it was windy like always, so times were slow (1:18, 1:17).

PM:  I ran most of the way home, and met Kimia at the store a little ways from our house.  6.9 miles total in 53:16.  I felt very smooth while running. 

I ran to school this morning.  I ran a "half mile" at marathon pace during the run just to get a feel for pace during the marathon, and to try and stay relaxed.  It was windy as always, and the distance is approximate, so times don't mean much, but I wanted to go no faster than 2:40, and with the wind I thought 2:45-2:50 was more appropriate.  I also didn't want to artificially inflate my time by looking at my watch midway and then speeding up if it looked like I was running too slow, so I did not look at it until I finished.  I felt very relaxed, and ended up running a 2:47, which made me happy.  In fact I felt very positive about things this morning.  Part of it comes from a running quote my dad sent me yesterday, but also because I was thinking and Ether 12 came to mind where it says:

"I would show unto the world that faith is things which are hoped for and not seen; wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith." (v.6)

"For if their be no faith among the children of men God can do no miracle among them; wherefore, he showed not himself until after their faith." (v.12)

"And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness.  I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make the weak things become strong unto them." (v.27)

These words give me so much comfort.  I know that an OTQ time is within my reach.  I know that I have put in the work, and that by the grace of God I can run under 2:19:00 in a few weeks, but I must show my faith first, as it is not until after the trial of my faith that miracles will happen.  Now, I do not want to appear arrogant and proclaim that I have the faith, thus I will run an OTQ.  Nor do I want to trivialize the things of God and assume that it is in his best interest to aid my running performance, thus helping me to run an OTQ, as I know that spiritual things spoken of scripturally and temporal things are in decidedly different realms.  Nevertheless, these words bring comfort to my mind, as recently I have been weighed down with worries and mind games, wondering if I can really run an OTQ.  My mindset will be different in these coming weeks because of this, as I truly feel that if I do qualify for the Olympic Trials that it will be through the grace and aid of the Almighty, and I need to have the faith to allow that to happen.

PM: I ran home from school in 1:03:17.

Just an easy run this morning out on the Pittman wash.  1:16:42 for 10 miles

Long run this morning.  I was finally able to get a long tempo run in (10 miles) for the first time in quite a while.  I got up, and it was already 70+ degrees outside, but it didn't feel to bad.  Nevertheless, I decided that to be safe I needed to do my tempo early in my run rather than waiting until the second half when I would already be dehydrated and hot.  I warmed up for about 1.25 miles, and started the tempo at the 4 mile marker on the Pittman wash.  The majority of the way out on this tempo is uphill, so things were decidedly slower until I hit the turn-around.  There were also a fair number of twists, turns, and underpasses, which slowed me down irregardless of the direction I was heading.  All in all, I think that the downhill miles may together have been marginally faster than what I would find on flat, straight ground, while the uphill miles were considerably slower.

Anyhow, I decided to not push the pace too hard at the beginning in order to give myself a mile or so to decide how hard to run going uphill.  Splits were 6:01, 5:48 for the first 2 miles.  The first mile has the most uphill, but the second mile is probably equally slow due to lots of twists and turns, plus a bigger underpass than in the first mile.  Missed the split at mile 3, but the split at the turn-around for mile 4 was 11:32 (5:46 average, 23:21 for the first 4 miles).  Those 2 miles are definitely faster than the previous 2, with the 4th mile having only a mild uphill, and being flat for the second half mile, but for some reason I just relaxed and didn't speed up at all until after the turn-around.  Mile 5 was a 5:17 as I realized that I had been running too easy when I sped up to pass some trail construction and I still felt like I was barely working despite the increase in pace (28:38 for 5 miles).  I missed the 6 mile marker, but hit a two mile split of 10:50 at 7 miles (5:25 average, these miles are probably slower than flat miles despite the downhill due to underpasses, sharp turns, etc), followed by an 8 mile split of 5:11 (this one surprised me, but I think the downhill helped me a bit more this mile, despite another underpass, as the downhill is steeper).  Another turn-around followed at the end of this mile, and the last 2 miles were uphill again (the same stretch as the first 2 miles).  I hit these 2 miles in 5:48, 5:48 (27:37 for the second 5 miles, 56:15 total for 10 miles).

It was good to know that the same effort that got me an average pace of just under 5:20 for 4 miles mid tempo was the effort that got me the 5:48 miles at the beginning and end of the tempo, as it validated for me how slow the uphill makes those miles.  I was also glad that I felt as good as I did despite the warm weather (again), as it was 70 degrees when I started, and I imagine that temps were over 80 by the time I finished the run (the high for today was 93).  After the tempo I ran to a water fountain to get a drink, then ran to the high school so that I could get a drink there too (better water).  I was now at about 14.5 miles, so I ran 2.75 miles back out the way I came before turning around to head for home.  The same mile I hit a 5:11 on at the end of the tempo began a half mile after I started heading for home, and I ran a "fat" mile here in 5:39.  I was really just cruising, probably about a 5:50 effort on flat ground, but that was all I was shooting for anyhow.  I made it home to finish up 20 miles total in 2:09:XX.  It was good to finally get in one last long tempo before the marathon in three weeks in Indianapolis.  This was a good confidence boost for me.

I forgot that I parked my car in a different parking lot today than I do normally, so I ran from the wrong lot to the lot that my car was in, which got me about a mile.  After I got home, I ran 10 more miles, running the first 4 with Anita in the running stroller, and then running 6 more alone.  Total of 11 miles.

I ran to school today, and ran intervals of "1600", "1200", "800", "400", plus a little extra at the end (.1 mile?).  The 1600 was a little short, so I will call it .9 miles (4:41), with the 1200 just being 4:00 hard.  The 800 and 400 were probably pretty close to being accurate for distance, but I can't say for certain.  I threw the extra .1 in at the end to give myself an even 2.5 miles of speed work since the 1600 was short.

I was late leaving school to come home, so I ended up running sub 6:00 pace for about 3.5 miles to get home a little quicker.  

I ended up just running at school on the treadmill today, because it was raining, with lightning and thunder all day long.  10 miles, with a "fat" mile thrown in at about 5:40 pace.

I ran with Anita in the running stroller today.  She slept for over 8 miles out of the 10 that I ran.  I ran a "fat" mile with the running stroller near the end of the run in about 5:25 (there was a slight decline, but I was still surprised at how easy it felt running that fast with a stroller) and I almost got hit by a driver that wasn't paying attention as he turned out of his neighborhood onto the main street I was running on (I was already in the intersection when he pulled up, yet he still failed to notice me).  By the way, when I say me, I do mean that literally, as it was just me he almost hit, not the baby.

I woke up early this morning to run before I went off to California for the SWACSM meeting that I am presenting at this evening.  10 miles in the dark.  It started to get light near the end of my run, but it was dark the rest of the time.

I ran 15 miles in San Diego this morning before I went off to visit my mission for the first time since I came home 5 years ago.  I found a trail that went down to the beach, which was nice, however there was a lot of wind (that happens when you are by the beach) so when i did my tempo in the second half of the run I had a hard time gauging pace.  I started off my tempo with a half mile in 2:38.  I then slowed down for a bit because I took a wrong turn, and ended up waiting until I got on the main trail where there were more mile markers before I started again.  I then ran 4 more miles hard as I headed back to my hotel.  I had mile markers for about 1.5 miles during this time period.  I started off at about 5:30 pace, but then slowed down a bit because I had a fairly strong headwind.  Finished with a total time of about 1:38:30 for 15 miles.

I ran with Jeff Shadley this morning, as he is in town for work.  It is the first time that I have run with anyone in a while.  I ended up being pretty chatty during the run due to my long layoff from running with people, and I forgot to turn around at the right time, and ended up running a couple miles farther than planned.  Total of 14.5 miles in 1:39:XX.

I ran to school this morning, and ran intervals of "2" and "1" miles on the way.  I finished the first "2 miles" in 10:52 (5:26, 5:26) although the second "mile" was probably a little longer than the first as I had to cross the street mid interval.  Both miles were slightly windy (and they call Chicago the windy city... the wind here is incessant).  After a recovery of about a mile and a half, I ran one last "mile" in 5:06.  I think the last mile was a little short (probably more like a 5:16 I am guessing based on the effort).

On the way home, I ran a "fat mile" in 6:02.  Again, a little windy.  Minus the wind the effort would have probably given me a low to mid 5:50.

I ran to school today and I ran a few sprints mid run.  I didn't time them, and I wasn't really trying to make it a specific distance or run a specific speed.  I was just trying to sprint as fast and as smooth as possible until I felt like stopping.  I ended up running 4 or 5 of them.

On the way home, Kimia picked me up halfway between Eastern Ave, and Pecos, so I will guess it was about 5.3 miles based on the car measurements I have taken. 

I ran 7 x "400m" intervals on the way to school this morning.  As there are stop lights all over the place I couldn't really keep a set time or distance to space the repeats out, so I ended up taking long rest between all of them, with the minimum rest being approx 3 minutes, and the max being approx 8-10 minutes.  The first three repeats were just estimates for distance, which means that I ran, and when I felt like I had run equal to or just a little farther than 400m I slowed down.  Times mean nothing for these, (especially since the first two were run on a slight uphill grade) but the first three repeats were 1:14, 1:13, 1:08.  After this I was able to run a few repeats in areas where the streets have been arranged such that the measurements have been done for me, so the distance is pretty close to accurate, but not necessarily exactly 400m.  Finished these repeats in 1:05, 1:11, 1:08, 1:05.  The first 1:05 was a really hard effort, because the sidewalk was winding all over the place (so probably longer than 400) and I ended up slowing for a couple seconds as I ran through some ground cover, so I would guess that the effort was worth closer to a 1:00, 400 than a 1:05.  I ran the next a little slower just to relax a bit more, and then ran the last 2 at a good effort, but still easier than the first one in 1:05.  So, based on all this I think that the first three 400's were all a little long, as the effort was similar, but they couldn't have been long by much.

After school I ran home fairly quickly because I had an appointment with the missionaries.  I didn't run any mileage that I will count as marathon pace mileage, but I was going sub 6:30 pace the entire way home, and probably dipped under 6:00 pace near the end when I was running downhill.  I ran about a half mile extra on the way home, because I had to pick up the car from Kimia.  9.1 miles total on the way home.

I ran a little shorter this morning than I had originally planned, because I ran farther than planned yesterday (originally Kimia was going to pick me up partway home so that I could keep the mileage a little lower, but that didn't work out).  I ended up running 8 miles in 1:01:XX.  I felt pretty good.  In fact I have felt really good these last few days.  It gives me a little confidence heading into my taper week.  I guess that today actually counts as my first official taper day, even though my long run last week was shorter than normal, and mileage the last 2 weeks has barely broken 70, but whatever, all that really matters is how I do on race day and I feel like things are falling into place nicely.

I ran short today as I am now tapering for the marathon next Saturday!  Only 12 miles, however I ran 1 mile all out about 8 miles in, plus a tempo mile a mile after that.  The original plan was to run the mile on the track after a three mile warm-up, however there was a nasty wind blowing, and when I got to the track there was a pee wee football game going on that looked official enough that I thought it was a better idea to just not run on the track.  I ended up picking a section of trail to run my all out mile that is just slightly slower than flat ground, however I couldn't start the mile until I was 7.75 miles into the run.  I don't know how the longer warm-up affected me.  The wind died down a bit about a mile before I ran my all out mile, so it wasn't as bad, however I was running away from the wind during the mile, so it was actually a tail wind.  Even though it was a tail wind, I actually feel fortunate that the wind died down a little, because it means that my mile was aided less.  Took a vpb in a drainage tunnel off of the trail, then started.

I don't have any splits for the mile, but I know more or less where the quarter marks would have been if they existed, so I know general elevation change for each quarter during the mile.  1st quarter was flat for about half of it, then downhill into a tunnel going under the road.  I started off a bit too fast, and realized it and slowed down around the same time I started heading downhill.  2nd quarter was uphill for the first part as I came out of the tunnel, and then climbed a little more until it flattened out the last 100m or so.  3rd quarter had a solid downhill for about 150m near the beginning, then flattened out, followed by a slight incline near the end of it.  I realized about 3 min into the mile, that I had forgotten how to run the mile (I haven't raced a 1600 since high school, and even then it wasn't my main event, and I was slower than I am now, so I could never really hammer the pace because I didn't have the leg strength to do it) as I wasn't hurting yet and I was almost 3/4 of the way into it.  I started picking up the pace here, but I do wonder how much I cost myself by not pushing hard enough for the second and third quarters.  The 4th quarter rolls a fair amount, as it starts with a slight uphill, has some downhill followed by a little more uphill, and then flattens out near the end, but has a nasty turn that almost makes you stop about 40m from the finish.  I was pushing this quarter, and I was finally feeling like I was running a mile, but then I hit that last turn, and it killed all momentum that I had.  I sprinted to the finish from the turn, and stopped my watch at 4:31.

So, it was a mile pr for me, which is more indicative of how weak my pr was then the shape I am in, as my previous pr (actually for 1600m, but close enough) was only a 4:34, and was set in practice when I was a freshman at BYU.  I think that the terrain for the mile (overall slight net downhill) was probably slower than on flat ground or the track, however this was negated by the tailwind that I had, so I am guessing that given the conditions it was equivalent to something flat.  I wish that I would have pushed the pace more during the middle section of the mile, as I feel that I could have gone significantly faster, but I still achieved my purpose, which was to really get my legs working hard for a short distance in the lead up to the marathon next Saturday.

I took a mile to get my legs back under me after the all out mile, and then ran a tempo mile, which ended up somewhere around 5:30 (I wasn't really focusing on pace at all, I just wanted to go fast, so I didn't look at the time too closely).  I then finished by running home.  Not sure on the total time for the run, but average pace was pretty quick for most of the run, including the easy stuff early on (I made it to 7 miles in about 50:30 before I stopped paying attention, and eventually zero'd out my watch for my hard mile).