Training has restarted

I've decided I've been on the shelf long enough.  On Tuesday I went for a run - the first in nearly a month.  I was pretty happy to be able to go.  I didn't go as far as I'd like, but I did go faster than expected.  Well, at least for awhile anyway.  I am going to follow some advice I received from a professional and start running again, just not every day.  I've taken some pictures, but for the life of me I cannot figure out how to get them to post here.

 Me and the starting line!

My ankle on Dec 14th.

My ankle on Dec. 16th

On Thursday I did get out for another run.  On that one, while I did go for a longer distance, I certainly went slower.  My ankle did bother me a bit on Friday but seems better today.

As I work on this blog, I also thought I would try to make it a little fancier.  If you don't like my experiment with text color, please tell me.  I wanted something besides regular old black and white.

This morning I got up, and was hoping to go for a run.  I checked the weather and saw a 6 degree windchill. I'm tough and all, but that is too cold for  little old me.  I've put off the run until the afternoon, or at least that was my thought.  I haven't made it out the door yet and it's already 10 past one.  My son and I did get hair cuts this morning, then a quick stop at the grocery store brought us to home and we made a pizza from scratch.  I learned a few things in the process and it was quite good.  I guess I have carb loaded ahead of time.  To be completely frank, I went out to check the mail while making the pizza and my ankle had some pain, so, I'm a bit up in the air as to what to do.  I want and need to go for a long run, but I don't want to hurt myself.  

Tonight I am going to the "Men Who Cook" fundraiser.  My brother and I have teamed up to make "Hot Fudge Ice Cream Dessert".  The proceeds support the Children's Advocacy Center, a very worthy cause.  Last year I got second for my cheesecake.  I hope to do better this year.  Only time will tell.  It's about 5 hours until the start.

Not to much else to talk about today.  I have some pretty exciting things on the horizon, but right now it's just too soon.  What excitement is coming your way this weekend?

Injury Report, et al.

Greetings and salutations!

Ok, here's the deal.  I've been shelved for a bit.  Readers of this blog (and those that know me closely) know that I sprained my ankle on December 13th.  Well, I've always been a bit stubborn when it comes to that sort of thing and didn't go to the doctor and didn't give it the rest it needed.  I continued to play basketball, occasionally run, do the elliptical and XBox Kinect.  When the swelling had not gone down to my satisfaction after 6 weeks, I went to the doctor who has now told me no running until I am 2 weeks post no swelling.  Now I really don't have much, but I figure I best lay off for at least this week.  I had been having trouble going down stairs, and I don't need this problem to get worse.  The part that upsets me the most is that the Illinois half is less than 90 days away and I don't even have a real base built up at this time.  I'm actually sitting here right now with some fairly debilitating back pain.  If I sit too long, I have real trouble walking, so I've been trying to get up and be mobile every 5-10 minutes.  I think I am going to go track down some Ibuprofen.  My self-written training program called for P90X chest and back today and a four mile fartlek tomorrow.  I know the run isn't happening, and I'm not so sure about the P90X.  Kids broke the handles on my resistance bands.  >:(  I'll see what the evening brings.  I think I should lay off the XBox as it seems to make my ankle tight.  It's too cold (for me) to bike, so my options are dwindling.

In other news, I have lost 2.5 pounds during January.  This is far behind my goal, but at least it is something.  I also seem to have lost an inch off of my waist.  I gave blood on Saturday and they measured my resting HR at 52.  I was surprised at that number as I had drank 4 cups of coffee and did a low impact workout (elliptical) that morning.  I think in the interim, before I can hit the pavement again, I really need to work on portion control.  I struggle with that as let's face it, I like to eat.

I am still hoping to do the Lake Sara Dam Run - which is an 8 miler on April 6th.  I'd like to do a race on 3/23 as well, if for nothing else it is my birthday and it would be cool to have a race shirt with my birthday on it.  If you know of a good race on the 23rd, shoot me a note.  I don't want to do a trail race at this time - leastwise, not the "toughest 10K on the planet", which is how the Mountain Goat describes their race, I believe.

Well, it is time for me to fly - run happy and safe my friends.

Saturday January 12 - I meet all my goals

An usually warm Saturday afternoon combined with a poor performance by the Illini on the court was the precursor for today's run.  I spent the morning reviewing some of my logs from last year.  It did not take for me to come to the conclusion that while I am disappointed in my current level of training, I am pretty close to where I was last year at this time.  By that I mean I am running about as often and about as fast.  In looking at January of 2012, I think the circumstances are there for me to be in better shape for the half-marathon in April.      

The overall pace on this run was slower than the last two, however, that is due to the .72 cool down/recovery that accompanied this run.  The purpose of today's run was to extend the length of my run and not necessarily increase the speed.  I intended to maintain an overall pace of 10:30, and with a finishing pace of 10:35, I will call that close enough.  

The first mile was completed at an easy pace of 10:25.  The second mile included the overpass and that split was 10:20.  I admit it, I was holding back.  I wanted a rockin' 3rd mile and that's just what I got.  Mile 3, with the route I was running, included the overpass again.  I was at 9:58 when I began the ascent and 10:29 at the crest.  I was not pleased with that result so I pushed myself.  It may or may not be noteworthy to some that at the crest I was at .4 miles. I stepped it up and quickened my pace and lengthened my stride.  It felt good to run "hard". I was able to complete this split at 9:42.  This effort left me breathless and wondering for a moment if I may toss my lunch.  At that point, I began the recovery portion of the run with a walk/jog the rest of the way.  This turned a 10:10 ave. pace to the 10:35 mentioned above.  

The weather is going to turn cold and nasty this evening.  This will likely be the last run in shorts and t-shirt for awhile.

Until next time, stay healthy and may you reach all of your goals.

Time to do a little writing

After more than a year off from the blog scene, I have decided to reenter and post some thoughts that many will probably consider random. Primarily I will probably write about running as I reengage with the sport and try to improve. I have set some lofty goals for myself, some of which are admittedly unrealistic. I will however try to complete them. From time to time, I will write about my family, including my children. I may even post a photo or video from time to time. I'll even tell you about my favorite gadgets that I am using - whether for running or some other activity. Let me close today's entry with this year's goals regarding my fitness:

Goals for 2013 - be in better shape in December than I was in January ( I missed this in 2011 and 2012 - I gained 1 pound in 2011, but 15 in 2012)

Total Running Goal - 525 Total Biking Goal - 200 Total Mileage - 725

Athletic Goals for 2013 Sub 2:00 Half Marathon (April 28 Illinois Marathon) 2:19:44 (first ever) in 2010, 2:11:42 in 2011, 2:15:34 in 2012.

My first tri (A sprint) (last chance tri at the Y, I hope)
A duathlon - The Charleston Challenge I hope.
Lose 45 pounds.
Howl at the Moon ULTRA August - do 50K
Sub 25:00 5K -- may try for 24 depending on circumstances
Sub 56:00 10K

At this point, I have lost 2 pounds, so I am off to a good start on that. The running is coming along slowly due to some injuries (sprained ankle) and general laziness. My faithful training partners await me every day though. My go to shoe currently is the Newton Distance S and my forever watch is the Garmin Forerunner 305.