dedication, perseverance, self-discipline

Total score for week 2 of my competition with Kimia:  Kimia - 10, Jeff - 9

I ran 10 miles this morning in 1:19:38.  Average HR at 132.  My left leg still feels like something is not right.  Today, my back did not really hurt, and my groin did not really hurt, but things did not feel right.  I'm not completely sure what to think.  My right tibia has also been bothering me just a bit lately, as I smacked my leg on my bike pedal the other day.  My ankle bled a little from the hit, and over the last few days I feel like there is a little soreness in my leg while I run.  Part of this might also be the increase in mileage over the last month or so, and it is simply more noticable because I hit my leg.

I figured out yesterday afternoon that the tension I was feeling in my right leg was not due to the bike injury I got a few days earlier, it was actually due to a tight soleus.  I massaged the muscle out yesterday afternoon, which was somewhat painful.  During the run today I did a little heart rate fitness test to see what my HR would be at about 6:00 pace.  I ran a half mile in 3:01 (92, 89) with an approximate HR of 162 at 6:00 pace.  When I was in better shape my HR would hit about 155-157 at 6:00 pace (at altitude).  Unfortunately my little test was more than my calf could handle, and for the last 4 miles of my run my calf was complaining.  Total of 10 miles in 1:15:19 with an average HR of 137.

Some more pictures of life recently:

The pumpkin that I carved for the kids

Shayon standing with the pumpkin pie that Kimia made using fresh pumpkin

Kamran hanging out after his bath

I ran 10 miles this morning in 1:19:44.  Average HR of 128.  Not sure why the HR was lower this morning than on others.  A few factors were in play, as I left the house earlier this morning so I hadn't been awake as long, I started off slower (first mile in approximately 9:00), there was a lot of fog in the air so there was more moisture than normal, and I put wintercrest on my calf prior to stepping out the door (to help with the calf soreness).  Any of these factors could have played a role in the lower than expected HR, or possibly none of them (hopefully the later).  I averaged 7:51/mile for a 4 mile stretch with an average HR of 130, which is much more in line with what I used to see when out running (still a little higher, but much closer).

I was supposed to meet Tyler this morning to run, but he didn't show up, so I ran alone.  Total of 1:19:12 for what I will guess was 10 miles.  Average HR of about 130.  HR was lower again this morning, with similar conditions to yesterday minus starting out at 9:00 pace for the first mile. I averaged 124 bpm for a mile at 8:00 pace early on in the run.

Here are a couple pictures that we took last night before the ward trunk or treat.

Shayon, eating an organic lollipop while sitting on the toilet.  He was mad that I put face paint on him, so we gave him the lollipop as a distraction.

All the kids just before we left.  Anita is Rapunzel, while Shayon and Kamran both wore glow in the dark skeleton outfits.

10 miles this morning in 1:19:06.  Average HR of 132.  HR started off lower this morning just as it was the last two days, but it did not stay that way.  I felt tired this morning, and maybe that played a role, but I also left on my run later in the morning, and I have been wondering if my HR is naturally higher in the mid morning vs. early morning runs.  I recorded average HR for a few segments of the run to track things.  Early on in the run I averaged 132 bpm at 7:45 pace for 1.5 miles, followed by 132 bpm at 7:53 pace for 2.5 miles, followed by 133 bpm at 7:58 pace for 2 miles.  Basically, I was keeping my HR at a similar level throughout the run, but I was progressively slowing down.  Not a good thing.  I will hope that I was just feeling tired.  This was the first week where I have run 10 miles per day, and I have not been getting great sleep lately, so I guess I should have expected it.

Anita drew this picture today, with all of the members of the family "and lots of hearts".  On the left are pictures of Kamran, and Shayon on the bottom, and Anita on the top.  Her picture is bigger because according to her she is a big girl now.  Kimia and I are pictured on the right (Kimia's picture has the longer hair).

I ran 10 miles today in 1:16:33.  Average HR of 138.  I was originally planning to run 12 miles today, but I have been feeling tired so I was happy just to run 10 miles.  I'm not sure where the fatigue is coming from to be honest.  It seems to kind of come and go, as I will feel fine for a few months, followed by a few weeks or more where I feel run down and tired all of the time.  It is never too bad, but it is bad enough that when I got mono in July, I didn't really feel any different than I do when the fatigue hits me.

On a more positive note, my back and leg are feeling much better, just minor aches here and there.  Someone just needs to remind me not to do depth jumps anymore while wearing a backpack filled with books, as thats what got me hurt in the first place.  The minor aches that are bothering me now may not even be related to the injury to be honest, as my back bothers me at night while sleeping and it wakes me up, with this pain predating the injury by close to a year.  Also, sleeping on the floor, which helped with the pain due to the injury did not seem to help with the back pain at night, and eventually I started sleeping in my bed again.

Hmm... my effort to be more positive is not sounding so positive anymore.  Anyhow, I am glad that I am running with less pain than before.  I can deal with pain at night as long as it doesn't hurt while I run