Friday night was the last of the series of night adventure runs. So we had a team of 4 and attempted the long "championship" course. It was a lot of fun, running around in the dark searching for controls. In case we got separated, we came up with a call - instead of "Marco. Polo." We used our team name, "Booze. Cruise." It was quite funny. We found all the controls, and didn't finish last. Yay! Based on the course, I bet we ran close to 4 + miles.
Earlier in the day I had some extra time, so I took Henry for a long walk on the Luce Line trail. This time closer to Long Lake/Orno. I haven't been to that end of the trail, so it was a nice change of scenery. We walked for about an hour and 10 or 15 min, and went just over 4 miles.
Today (Saturday) I'm taking the day off from training. Tomorrow is my 10 mile race, so I figured tonight I can carbo-load (as if I really need to... ) hangout, and not worry about getting a workout in.
Saturday, November 05, 2005
Thursday, November 03, 2005
Thursday
Today I went for an easy 30 min run, to stretch my legs. It was nearly dark when I got home, so I headed right out with Henry and I both in our reflective vests. I could tell that I ran a little hard yesterday as I climbed the first couple hills. My legs were definitely feeling heavy.
Afterwards, I headed to the pool for a quick 1000 yd swim. Initially I did some drill work to spice it up, then added 4x100s with 20 sec rest. And a final 200 to cool down.
I was feeling a little tired, but overall it was a good workout.
Afterwards, I headed to the pool for a quick 1000 yd swim. Initially I did some drill work to spice it up, then added 4x100s with 20 sec rest. And a final 200 to cool down.
I was feeling a little tired, but overall it was a good workout.
Wednesday Run
Wednesday afternoon I headed our for an hour run on the Luce Line trail. It was another beautiful Indian summer day with temps near 65. I was able to go out in shorts and a t-shirt. It's hard to believe we're already into November!
I took Henry and we headed out towards Watertown, since I think that's the most scenic, and I'd have a headwind to start. It's great because that part of the trail passes lakes, fields, and huge stands of trees. My favorite section is about 3 miles out, and you run past a lake, and then into this canopy of trees that makes you feel like you're really out in the wilderness. I think I slow down, just to enjoy the crunching of leaves under my feet, and to gaze at the trees over my head. The sun was just starting to set, so it really illuminated the tree tops. It was so cool.
On the outbound 3 miles, I ran relatively easy, and averaged a 9:40 pace or so. I had my GPS on, so I figured I should check my race pace again before sunday. For the first 2 miles back I really pushed the pace, and found myself holding an 8:15 pace. And feeling good. The last mile in I used as a cool down. I could've run forever. It was such a perfect night, and you could feel the different temps of the air pockets as you ran through the different areas. And I felt strong, even at a faster pace, so I just enjoyed the feeling of running fast and listening to my mp3 player provide a soundtrack to the crunching of leaves under my feet.
Good times...
I took Henry and we headed out towards Watertown, since I think that's the most scenic, and I'd have a headwind to start. It's great because that part of the trail passes lakes, fields, and huge stands of trees. My favorite section is about 3 miles out, and you run past a lake, and then into this canopy of trees that makes you feel like you're really out in the wilderness. I think I slow down, just to enjoy the crunching of leaves under my feet, and to gaze at the trees over my head. The sun was just starting to set, so it really illuminated the tree tops. It was so cool.
On the outbound 3 miles, I ran relatively easy, and averaged a 9:40 pace or so. I had my GPS on, so I figured I should check my race pace again before sunday. For the first 2 miles back I really pushed the pace, and found myself holding an 8:15 pace. And feeling good. The last mile in I used as a cool down. I could've run forever. It was such a perfect night, and you could feel the different temps of the air pockets as you ran through the different areas. And I felt strong, even at a faster pace, so I just enjoyed the feeling of running fast and listening to my mp3 player provide a soundtrack to the crunching of leaves under my feet.
Good times...
Tuesday, November 01, 2005
Tuesday
I think I've finally caught up on my sleep from our Sunday morning antics. Since I only got one workout in 3 days in, I figured it was time to start up on twice a day workouts again. I'm not going really hard right now, so overtraining is certainly not an issue! But I'd at least like to burn off the calories I'm taking in - especially now with Halloween behind us, and the major holidays on the horizon...
Monday I got in a 4 mile run on lunch. Running on my 1 hour lunch break is a time management challenge since there's just barely enough time. But it was good excuse to push the pace, and see how I felt before this sunday's race. I hope to run hard on Sunday, and possibly set a P.R. To do so, I need to average an 8:30 pace. Not totally out of the question, but definitely challeging. Later on Monday I went to GF for the first half of the workout. I had to represent the "7:20 Slackers" from Sunday morning. It was fun to share our story with the group, and now everyone thinks I've lost my mind!
Tonight I headed to the pool for a 1000 yard swim. I did 75yd repeats with 10sec rest between them, then an easy 100 after every set of 4x75's. I'm still working on bilateral breathing, and it is getting easier. And I'm feeling a little faster, too. Probably not much faster, but tonight I was definitely working, and that felt good.
Tomorrow is my day off, so between packing up my house (we're moving to a new one, a half mile away) I'm going to try to get some running and biking in. I hope the weather is good. Until next time....
Monday I got in a 4 mile run on lunch. Running on my 1 hour lunch break is a time management challenge since there's just barely enough time. But it was good excuse to push the pace, and see how I felt before this sunday's race. I hope to run hard on Sunday, and possibly set a P.R. To do so, I need to average an 8:30 pace. Not totally out of the question, but definitely challeging. Later on Monday I went to GF for the first half of the workout. I had to represent the "7:20 Slackers" from Sunday morning. It was fun to share our story with the group, and now everyone thinks I've lost my mind!
Tonight I headed to the pool for a 1000 yard swim. I did 75yd repeats with 10sec rest between them, then an easy 100 after every set of 4x75's. I'm still working on bilateral breathing, and it is getting easier. And I'm feeling a little faster, too. Probably not much faster, but tonight I was definitely working, and that felt good.
Tomorrow is my day off, so between packing up my house (we're moving to a new one, a half mile away) I'm going to try to get some running and biking in. I hope the weather is good. Until next time....
Sunday, October 30, 2005
Short on sleep. Long on fun.
Question of the day - do you log a 2am run for that day or for the previous day since you haven't slept? That is the question I'm struggling with this morning. Did my run at 2am sunday morning count as Sunday's run or Saturday's run?
It's a long story... but Minnesotan runners are certifiably crazy. No question about that. To give a quick recap - a group of us did a run in April the night Daylight Savings Time started. We did 14 miles ending close to midnight. It was a hoot. It ended up being myself, and 4 of my favorite married men. We had one incident with a crazy guy looking for hug, but otherwise it was a great run.
So now that Daylight Savings Time has come to an end, a discussion was started about doing a run similar to what we did in the spring. In a collective effort to not be the "party pooper" everyone agreed that running at 2am would be a good idea - that way it wouldn't take any time at all - you'd run from 2am to 2am. Talk about a new P.R. finishing the same time you started!
So we organized ourselves a few minutes before 2am on the shores of Lake Calhoun for a run around Lakes Calhoun and Harriett. The "typical" Sunday morning run. Our group managed to grow to 8 of us total. There had been a call for costumes since we were running the day before Halloween. Most costumes were of the "Marathon-Wanna-Be" variety, but one soul did show up as a Caveman. It was too funny. Club and all to keep the "huggers" away!
Before we had scheduled the run, I had agreed to meet a group of friends for a night at the bar. So instead of cancelling bar night for a run - it worked out perfectly - it was the best way to stay away until 2am! Go drinking!! WOO-HOO! So 4 beers and a Captains and Coke (for the caffine, of course) later, we were on our way... I didn't feel too bad until I realized how dehydrated I was, and golly our pace felt fast! But as someone said, "when the run takes no time at all, it's gotta' be fast!" It was entirely too much fun.
In an effort to prove to the Sunday morning group we actually did it, we inscribed our initials in sidewalk chalk beneath the statement "7:20 Slackers, 2am-2am"
Good times were had by all, and since I had to be at work and functioning at 7:30 later that morning, I skipped out on a quality breakfast at Perkins, but I'm sure there are stories from that, too.
It's a long story... but Minnesotan runners are certifiably crazy. No question about that. To give a quick recap - a group of us did a run in April the night Daylight Savings Time started. We did 14 miles ending close to midnight. It was a hoot. It ended up being myself, and 4 of my favorite married men. We had one incident with a crazy guy looking for hug, but otherwise it was a great run.
So now that Daylight Savings Time has come to an end, a discussion was started about doing a run similar to what we did in the spring. In a collective effort to not be the "party pooper" everyone agreed that running at 2am would be a good idea - that way it wouldn't take any time at all - you'd run from 2am to 2am. Talk about a new P.R. finishing the same time you started!
So we organized ourselves a few minutes before 2am on the shores of Lake Calhoun for a run around Lakes Calhoun and Harriett. The "typical" Sunday morning run. Our group managed to grow to 8 of us total. There had been a call for costumes since we were running the day before Halloween. Most costumes were of the "Marathon-Wanna-Be" variety, but one soul did show up as a Caveman. It was too funny. Club and all to keep the "huggers" away!
Before we had scheduled the run, I had agreed to meet a group of friends for a night at the bar. So instead of cancelling bar night for a run - it worked out perfectly - it was the best way to stay away until 2am! Go drinking!! WOO-HOO! So 4 beers and a Captains and Coke (for the caffine, of course) later, we were on our way... I didn't feel too bad until I realized how dehydrated I was, and golly our pace felt fast! But as someone said, "when the run takes no time at all, it's gotta' be fast!" It was entirely too much fun.
In an effort to prove to the Sunday morning group we actually did it, we inscribed our initials in sidewalk chalk beneath the statement "7:20 Slackers, 2am-2am"
Good times were had by all, and since I had to be at work and functioning at 7:30 later that morning, I skipped out on a quality breakfast at Perkins, but I'm sure there are stories from that, too.
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