Thursday, December 6, 2012

Dec 3 to Dec 9, 2012 - BACK AT IT!

After a long XC season and an unprepared attempt a the Chicago Marathon...in back and itching to get back into good shape.  Since I started this blog last January it's been a busy year.  Baby Josie is now 7 months and while we are still adjusting to baby #3 things are finally starting to settle it seems.  This was a tough XC season, busy as usual, and even busier when I arrived home each night.  Thank God for my wife...without her I'd never do all I get to do. 

I made an unsuccessful attempt in running the Chicago Marathon.  I joked with everyone that I'd been tapering since the summer.  True...just that it was not planned.  My duties as teach & coach and my OCD tendencies to do too much simply got in the way.  However if not for a foot flare up the Monday before I may had popped a great race for minimal training.  Went in not knowing I'd even be able to run on the Friday before, to planning attempt a sub 2:30 running with my brother, to a change a plan a couple miles in that had me on pace up to the 20+ mile mark to run 2:25 and change.  Unfortunately the foot didn't cooperate and I was forced to pull up with a lame with a sore foot and a tight calve. 

After some time recuperating I'm feeling good and hoping for a good winter of running.

Here goes!

Mon 12/3 - Steady long run around CL.  Went through Veteran Acres, Covered Bridges, and up around Prairie Ridge. Awesome weather 70ish degrees.  Shorts and no shirt in December.  Nice!  1:20 total - 12 miles 

Tues 12/4 - Steady run with Quick, Sheehan, and Gates to Dundee and back via DG trail. 5.5 miles

Wed 12/5 - 61 min run around CL.  Through Veteran Acres to Covered Bridges where I did 25 or so of random Hill Fartlek.  Picking up pace on every uphill.  Reality of 30's and cold returned - 8.5 miles

Thur 12/6 - Steady run to Fremd and back with pick-up on return.  28:00 for 4.5 miles out/25:00 min for 4.5 miles on return.  Really got going on the way back.  Total time was under 6:00 pace.  Last few miles were 5:40 or faster with the last mile being 5:12. Easy mile cool-down afterward.  - 10 miles

Fri 12/7 -

Sat 12/8 -

Sun 12/9 -   

Monday, July 23, 2012

Summer Log 2012 - July 23-29

Mon 7/23 - Got in good steady long run with Quick and the boys.  Harper loop.  Pretty relaxed most of way, but a bit tired from little sleep and quick turn around from Sunday's late night run (10:35-11:15pm).  Last two miles in 5:15ish, then 5:07 with Gregorio (his fastest mile close on Rohlwing) Felt good once we got going.  1:32 total time running.  (13.5 miles)

Tues 7/24 - 45  min run in upper gym at PHS with Quick.  Morning storms kept us inside.  (6 miles)

Went out for second run at around 3:00pm before Jeremy and Tara came into town.  Went 61 min.  Pretty warm out by end of run.  Felt sluggish in the beginning, good by end.  (9.5 miles)  (15.5 miles for day)

Wed 7/25 - After missing Early Bird the day got really warm and sticky.  Went for run at 8:15ish.  48 min of steady running.  Felt OK considering we ate pizza at 6:30, as Jenny's parents stopped by to visit.  Not my best planning, but survived.  (7+ miles)

Thur 7/26 - 59 min run to Twin Lakes (plus 2 loops), added on way back with Anthony Gregorio, down past Home Depot and back Rand, to Williams, to Cunningham.  Good steady run.  Felt pretty good.  (9 miles)

Fri 7/27 -

Sat 7/28 -

Sun 7/29 -

Monday, July 16, 2012

Summer Log 2012 - July 16-22

Mon 7/16 - Rolling Meadows run extended.  Took Rohlwing all the way to Algonquin, then to New Wilke, to Central, and back normal route.  1:27 overall time.  Felt pretty good until taking a nasty fall on side walk running down Algonquin (hit metal rod sticking from concrete).  Hands, knees, both elbows, right shoulder and back (no shirt) rashed and bloodied.  Right hip took the hardest fall.  Very sore by end of run.  Shower was not fun.   Add in the warmest/most humid morning this summer...it was simply more pain to the misery.  But I did survive...we'll see how the hip is tomorrow, prognosis not great.  (13 miles)

Tues 7/17 - As expected, hip was really sore and struggled at start of run.  Even stopped after a couple minutes, unsure if I could handle the discomfort.  Felt OK after going for a while.  Easy 50+ min into Deer Grove East.  (7 miles)

Wed 7/18 - 2.5m warm-up to Hamilton.  12 x 800m at tempo effort with :90 recovery jog between.  Averaged mid-to-low 2:40's.  Warm and humid.  2.5m cool-down back to PHS.  Felt OK today.  Hip much better, but still far from 100%.  Felt good running in grass.  Effort was solid.  Changed workout plans as workout progressed...original plan was 3x (4 x 800m)....then decided to go 2x (6x 800m)....got to 6 and decided to keep going all the way through.  (12 miles) 

Thur 7/19 - Frontier Extended with Quick and EB crew. 6.8m in 42 min.  Added short Morning loop for another 4 miles.  72 min total.  Some hurdle drills with Ellen, Liz, and Sarah.  Hip still pretty sore.  Upper quad/hip flexor seems to be aggravated as well.  Feeling stiff in upper right leg.  Need to stretch better.  (11 miles) 

Fri 7/20 - 2.5m warm-up to Peacock.  Drills & Strides.  5x 1000m hill circuit (5:00 intervals), plus 3 x Hayleys to finish.  3.5m cool-down.  (9.5 miles)

50 min run around pushing Eli in stroller.  Legs sore and tired.  Hip/upper quad sore.  Happen to run by a house swarmed by major news media vans and reporters (spotted Rob Elgas).  Asked a bystander what happened. She said family's son was missing from Colorado Dark Night theater shooting.  Makes you reflect on how lucky we should all feel to be healthy, have our family, and be able to spend time with them.  (6.5 miles)   (16 miles total for day)

Sat 7/21 - Pushed Eli on 5 mile Rolling Hills loop.  Dropped him off and got in a couple more.  (49+ min total)  Hip/upper quad still a bit sore.  Harder to fully open stride with stroller, may be aggravating it even more.  Better, but slow to heal.  (7.5 miles)

Sun 7/22 - Had to beat the weekly clock to get in my last run of the week.  Left for run at 10:35pm.  Still hot and sticky.  No watch, just went by feel.  Rolling Hills loop.  (5 miles)


Miles for week = 71.5 total miles  Wasn't sure this would happen after Monday's hard fall. Hip at probably 85-90%, right wrist still pretty sore. Definitely the toughest week of the summer so far .  Starting to feel the fatigue of 70+ mile weeks, little sleep, and chasing kids around at home.  As well, it was tough running though the hip discomfort for most of the week  Happy with how things are progressing.  Slowly feel like I'm working towards some good fitness and hopefully racing. 

This next week will be tough with travel and visiting family, but hope to get near or top 80.  Hoping for some good runs in the Shawnee National forest and around home.

Monday, July 9, 2012

Summer Log 2012 - July 9-15

Mon 7/9 - Long run to Harper (plus loop around).  38:08 out/11:07 loop/35:31 back = 1:25 total.  Ran low 6:00 pace most of run.  Hoped to pick it up last few miles, but sore left plantar and fatigue from last nights run held me back. (23 miles in less than 12 hours).  Felt pretty good most of way...last 3 miles or so was rough.  Need to ice and wrap foot as it seemed to flair up again.  (13 miles)

Tues 7/10 -60 min run with Quick through Deer Grove East trails and grass.  Plus core circuit routine.  Foot felt much better today with little discomfort.  (9.5 miles)

Wed 7/11 - 2.5 mile WU with drills/strides.  6x (4 x 400m on track) at Tempo for 1-2-3 of each set, then pick up on #4.  (100m jog/400m set jog).  Avg around :78 for tempo effort, then :73-:74 for pick-up effort.  (approx 8 mile workout)   2.5m cool-down. 

Felt good, weather was nice.  Planned for :80's and sub :75 for pick-up.  Got tough to go sub-:79 last two sets, so maybe a bit too fast of some of the early reps. Either way, happy with results...6 miles at 5:15 pace or faster for most of workout.  (13 miles total)

Thur 7/12 - 45 min run at Hamilton with Guthrie & McIntosh.  Core circuit.  2.5 miles with girls back to PHS.  (7.5 miles)

Fri 7/13 - 2.5 miles to Peacock.  5x Hill Circuit in sub-5:00, then 2x Hayleys with pick-up.  (17 hills total - 3.5+/- miles) Pushed pretty hard and felt good.  Foot has been doing well with little issue since Monday. 3.5 mile cool-down back to PHS.  (9.5 miles)

Sat 7/14 - Steady run through CL Lakewood (Turnberry) for 72 minutes. (11 miles) 

Sun 7/15 - Steady 48 min run through CL/LITH.  Ran at 9:45am.  Warm and sunny.  (7.5) miles)

Miles for Week = 71 miles.  Reached my goal of 70+ plus for the week, plus a couple good workouts along the way.  Good stretch of running in the books.  Feeling fit and getting strong.

Monday, July 2, 2012

Summer Log 2012 - July 2-8

Mon 7/2 - Hersey Run extended (1:20) - last 5 miles with Woho (6:20, 6:05, 5:37, 5:34, 5:22).  Very humid this morning and felt a bit heavy from late run last night and late night in general with fireworks at Lakeside Fest.  Tough run.  Woho helped a lot. (12.5 miles)

Tue 7/3 - 7 mile run to Twin Lakes (+ 2 loops) and back steady.  1.5 miles worth of core circuit with team.  4 mile cool down afterward.  (12.5 miles)

Wed 7/4 - Decided at last minute (night before) to race on the 4th.  Figured it would be a good way to beat the heat early, see what kind of shape I'm actually in, and start finally racing in order to add some purpose to my running.  Went back and forth with race in Barrington, St. Charles, or Elmhurst.  Chose Elmhurst as I knew it would be the most competitive. 

Race was at 7:15am.  On my drive in the temp was already low 80's at 5:30 in the morning.  Not sure what it was at race time, but it felt really warm during warm-up. (Ended up being a record heat day in Chicago - 102 degrees tying record from 1911)  Did minimal warm-up..maybe jogging 10-12 min, easy drills, and 3-4 strides.  Ended up 6th overall (20:39 - 4:57/10:00/15:16)  Went somewhat conservative early, as I knew all the high school kids in front of me at 1 mile would fade.  Tried to keep top guys in site, but wasn't confident I was ready to mix it up in the front.  During mile 2 I moved up well into about 6th-7th, and was near top 3-4 early in the 3rd mile, but definitely started hurting good toward the later half of the 3rd mile.  Last mile was tough.  Passed by on guy mid-mile, let him go too easily, and nearly closed back to pass the last stretch. (20:38 to 20:39)  (Winner - Kyle Brady ran 20:04...he ran 19:31 in 2011)

Glad I went.  Really need to race more.  Probably the last time I raced hard in the summer was this same race in 2006 (where I coincidentally ran 20:40).  To race well you need to race with some sort of frequency.  I need to find more races and relearn how the challenge myself and deal with the discomfort and the mental challenge of competing. Good start, excited to do it again.

Went on 30+ min cool-down with Derks afterward on Prairie Path.  (10 miles) 

Thur 7/5 - Hodge-podge of easy broken running in AM as I had to measure course for No Frills while girls worked out at Hamilton (8.5 miles)

Ran some during No Frills in evening. Hot - 90's and humid. (4.5 miles)  (13 miles for day)

Fri 7/6 - Easy run with Quick out to Alemars and back.  Very warm again.  Legs sore, tired, and heavy.  Awaiting new shoes.  (7.5 miles)

Sat 7/7 - Easy run of 50 minutes in Palatine.  Hot and humid.  Took it easy.  1st run in Lunarglide 4's...so far so good.  (5.5 miles)

Sun 7/8 - Went for run at 7:30 in evening.  Had to go shortly after eating dinner....not advised.  Good steady run.  Great weather for a change.  59 min.  (9.5 miles)

Mile for week = 70.5  First time over 70 miles in a while. Tough week as well with the weather and racing for first time in a while.  Plan to be over 70 again this week.  Feeling strong and more fit.  Need to stretch more consistently and add more core work.

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Summer Log 2012 - June 25-July 1

Mon 6/25 - Ran wiith boys toward Meadows and added loop. (1:17)  Felt good.  Finished up front with Graham Brown in 5:40ish.  Relaxed and controlled the whole way.  Weather was great, upper 60's-low 70's...bit windy on return.   (12.5 miles)

Tues 6/26 - Alemars loop with Quick. Started easy and caught others by library.  Steady most of way.  56 min.- 8 miles.  Followed with Group Core Circuit - 1.5 miles (9.5 miles in AM)

Took Sophia and Eli for run in stroller (Sophia 20min/Eli 15 min) (5 miles in PM)   (14.5 miles total)

Wed 6/27 - 2.25m warm-up/drills/4x 100m strides.  6 x 800m with 200m jog rest (avg around 2:35-2:40), did 7th with girls (2:55).  2.25m cool-down.  Felt good.  Quads sore from last two days.  Plantar fascia on left foot still a bit sore as well.  (9 miles)

Thur 6/28 - 40 minute easy run with Guthrie at Hamilton on grass (5.5 miles+).  25 min core routine.   2.5 miles back to PHS with girls.  Hurdles with Sarah, Ellen, Courtney, & Tim.  (8 miles)

Fri 6/29 - 2.5 mile warm-up to Peacock Valley/drills/strides.  4 x 1000m hills (12) circuit + 3 x Hayley's with shift.  3.0+ cd back to PHS.  (8.5 miles)

Sat 6/30 - 46 min steady run in morning through CL.  (7 miles)

Sun 7/1 - 43 min run in evening through CL.  (6.5 miles)

Total miles for Week = 66 miles One of my biggest mileage weeks of the year.  Definitely most I've run in a while.  Felt good for the week.  Little hot this week.  Need to make sure to hydrate better.  Goal is 70+ for next week.

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Summer Log 2012 - June 18-24

I'M BACK!!!  After a whirlwind end of track season and school year, mixed in with a new baby I finally feel ready to resume serious training once again.  The past 6 weeks or so have been filled with pretty sporadic training.  Running, but with little purpose past maintaining some fitness.  Early Bird started this week, so I see it fitting to get back to some good training myself.  Wish me luck.

(Past few weeks I've run been sore...especially quads.  Also had to go back to LunarGlides, as Lunar Elites seemed to aggravate hip and shins...go figure.)

Mon 6/18 - Easy route past train station with the distance crew.  (6 miles)

Tues 6/19 - Steady run with Quick through Deer Grove East and back (46 min).  Added 30 min afterward for total of 78 min  (10 miles +/-)

Wed 6/20 - 2.5 mile warm-up to Hamilton (+some drills & few strides).  12 x 400m grass loop with 200m rec jog.  Ran pretty relaxed (low to mid :80's in grass loop).  First quicker effort in a while, so didn't push too much.  1.5 mile cood-down. (8 miles)

Thur 6/21 - Steady run to Frontier (+) in low 6:00 pace.  (6 miles).  Group Core with girls afterward.

Fri 6/22 - 2.5 miles to Peacock.  3x 1000m hill circuit.  Good effort, but controlled.  3 x Hayleys quick with full recovery. 3 mile cool-down back to school.  (7.5 miles)

Sat 6/23 - 45 min run at Cuba Marsh. Easy with Eli in jogger. (5 miles)

Sun 6/24 - 50 min steady in CL.  (7.5 miles)

Mileage for Week = 50 miles

Happy with first solid week back to running.  Felt pretty good.  Nothing too difficult.  Goal is to keep building, keep healthy, and get stronger.