Just catching up!

You gotta love weekends when you originally had plans, only for them to fall through and you end up just totally relaxing. This has been a major decompress 3-day weekend. The weather wasn't the hottest, even a little rain...but we spent time with great friends and that is all that really matters.

Last Friday I got a new tattoo across my upper back, the picture was just after it was finished, thus all the red skin. It's healing nicely. I love the fact that I am now carrying the cross on my back! He keeps me strong.


Last week was a good running week for me. I did a 10k in 47 minutes and then added a track workout a few days later. The track workout was a lot of fun because it brought back all sorts of old memories from when I ran track at Fresno State! I ran eight 400s with 60 seconds rest in between. Here are the splits.
#1 1:19
#2 1:22
#3 1:23
#4 1:26
#5 1:28
#6 1:25
#7 1:24
#8 1:22

I was thankful that I was able to stay pretty consistent and that the wheels did not come flying off the last two!

After the quarters, I ran ten 30yd hill repeats. The grade was probably right around 30 degrees. I was tapped when done and very happy to be finished!!

Today, being Memorial Day, Kendra and I ran the 7.4 mile loop. I was thinking I was going to do it 2X but decided not too, wasn't feeling it. We had a very mellow and enjoyable run nonetheless. It was a perfect way to celebrate our loved ones who are now in a better place:)

Keep on churnin'!

5k pics of my daughter!

I finally found her pics. Here she is on her way to a 25:14 finish (8:10 pace) in her first 5k!! YEAH!!

Oh, and I just had to share this pic of me and my honey. We'll celebrate our 14th anniversary this year:D Funny story, my wife ran a 5k loop the other day and she comes into the house after pushing her pace, she says, "Man, I was working hard. Too bad my 10-yr old would still kick my butt!" LOL. She is incredible, she was never a runner and 1.5 years ago she made a commitment to change it. Since then she has finished two halfs, and many local 5ks. She'll be gunning for her first marathon this December. I'm very proud of her!!

Craziness!

It's been wildly hot in the valley of Northern CA the last few days...so hot that 99 degrees was actually cool. For the first time this spring, I had to turn the solar down on the pool because 90 degree water just doesn't sound that refreshing. My family was swimming last night and after getting out of the water, it made 96 degree air temp seem cold...so my pool was so warm that it gave us the reverse effect of cooling down! That's funny!

I've been thinking about my sister, her friend Danny and my high school friend Mike because they ran the 50K Ohlone Trail run yesterday while the temps were north of 95! BRUTAL! I've only heard from them to know that they made it alive...and that it was incredibly difficult. But I am very proud of all three of them for gutting it out. Mike and and my sister GB both were the first male and female rookies to cross the line, so they took home Rookie of the Year honors! Way to go. As an ode to all the runners yesterday, I attempted to run a 10K in 104 degree heat yesterday...it was so freakin' hot that I only got through a 5K...I then swam laps for another 10-15 minutes (which in itself is a butt kicker for me!) I am glad I at least did that for all of them.

This morning I wanted to beat the heat, so I ran this course in my town that is used for a local 12K race. It's a fun little course with some nice rollers, nothing too crazy though. I last ran this course on race day in 53 minutes and change, but ran it today in 58:45. I was glad to run it sub-1 hour since temps were already in the high 70s - low 80s.

The killer thing...in a previous post I mentioned that my heel and the very back of my arch was sore...it was really sore today. I think I have achilles tendon bursitis (based on symptons I googled) and my plantar fascii is acting up too because of it. Unfortunately, I'll be needing a little rest, but I can still ride and swim! YeeHaw!

Hilly

I powered thru a 10.03 hilly run this morning. It was hot! I think that is why my calves felt it in the first 1.5 miles and I was praying that it wasn't a sign to come. I thankfully was able to get up two nice size hills (250 ft climb and about a 200 ft climb) before I went through the roller coaster. It's a stretch of the run that is almost two miles where it is up and down the entire stretch.

Basically from mile 2 to mile 6, you climb almost 400 ft in elevation. The biggest jump is miles 5 - 6 where the last 257 ft of climbing occurs. The good and bad part is that you see that last climb in its entirety when you are about 1/4 mile from it. Even with the calves not feeling so responsive, I was able to make my way up due to nice rythmic arm swings and leg turnover. I was thanking God!

After that, it is four miles of mostly downhill, albeit, slow downhills to the finish. There are some nice rollers near mile 10 just for the fun of it!

All in all, I felt pretty good considering I haven't had a double digit run in a few months now. It was a little slower than I wanted, but considering the heat, the amount of climbing and the lack of calf response, I am pretty happy!

Stats:
10.03 miles
1 hr 22 minutes time
8.10 pace
7.34 mph (all stats include my stops for the water fountain)
1361 calories burned!

Heres the map:

A couple of pics from the 5k a few weeks ago

I just found out that I won $50 for coming in 3rd in my age group, NICE!

Minor run

So this morning I was thinking that I would run a little 5 miler. Well at about the 2/3 mark, this cyclist passes me and I tell myself, if he goes straight (up the 333ft hill; 250 net gain) I will go straight too, and add another 1.2 to my run...thinking I would run a 10k then. He goes straight and I tell myself, "The decision is made, HAMMER TIME!" I felt great hitting this hill. The total length is almost a half mile. It's a nice easy downhill to the end. I thought I was running a 10K, but it ended up just a bit short. I was a little peeved. Oh well.

Time: 44:30
Distance: 5.93
Splits: 7:30
Multiple rollers, but highest climb: 250 ft.
Calories burned: 798! Not bad for 45 minutes of work.

To see the elevation gain, you'll have to click "full-screen mode" on the bottom.



My heel is bothering me a little bit. It's the very back end of the heel. It feels tender, like a bruise, but nothing is there. It's been that way for about a month. Any ideas??

It's nice to be able run again in my town as opposed to trying to run in LA. I'll tell you what though, I would love to attack some of those Hollywood Hills just behind UCLA. Next time I'm there, I will definitely.

Light track workout

I forgot to blog that last week I did a light track work out. I ran four 400 meter intervals and 2 300 meter intervals...and then ran out of time due to having to bring my daughter home from soccer practice. I did a 1:1 work to rest ratio.

Lap 1: 1:39, equal rest
Lap 2: 1:19, equal rest
Lap 3: 1:20, equal rest
Lap 4: 1:21, equal rest

first 300: 60 seconds, equal rest
2nd 300: 60 seconds, equal rest

I was taxed. It was a hammering 15-20 minute workout...talk about squeezing it in.

Traveling

Just a random share with you....
So I am traveling this week, within CA which is always nice. I'm staying in Hollywood. I'm on Beverly Blvd and Orlando, which is pretty much smack darn in the middle of all the hubbub. I'm actually right around the corner from Sushi Roku, and the Beverly Center...so for all you People or Us readers, you'll now of this spot. I'm also about 1/4 mile from The Ivy, and tomorrow, I'll be having dinner on Sunset Strip. I drove by the Beverly Hills hotel earlier today, love that hotel; but didn't get a chance to stop in and take in the charm. On a previous trip down here, I was blessed enough to enjoy the veranda while smoking a stogie and drinking a glass of port. Life is good. I've ran into my fair share of movie stars, it's always fun seeing them in their "regular" lives. All in all, it is fun, for a few days. I love visiting this place for work because I can get a taste of how crazy and different LA is while thanking God that I don't have to live in this rat race. The scary thing is that I pretty much know how to get around down here, without my GPS... I guess that means I've spent enough time down here. It's so funny though because when I do ask for directions, the locals have no idea where or what I am asking about...crazy.

I forgot to bring my running shoes, so I've only had a chance for a good calorie-burn fitness workout. I'm working out this week in a little gym on Beverly Blvd...it's hot as an oven, but it allows for a killer workout. Time is limited this week so I'm trying to fit in two workouts per session.

Monday:
Workout #1:
Four sets of 15 each for incline, flat and decline flys.
Four sets of 15 tricep pull and pushdowns
Four sets of 15 hanging leg/knee lifts, feet all the way up to vertical...ouch! Knee lifts the last 1.5 sets...stomach couldn't hang
Four sets of 15 side planks, raise and lower.

Workout #2:
4 sets of 15 repetition cycles each of front(15), lateral(15) and rear(15) deltoid raises, immediatly followed by 8-10 standing military presses

Tuesday:
Workout #1:
4 sets of 8-10 wide grip neutral wrist position pull-ups
4 sets of 8 pull-ups hanging from rope
4 sets of 10 lateral pulldowns with rope
3 sets of 10 standing bicep curls
3 sets of 10 standing hammer curls
2 sets of 10 each leg, bench high step-ups w/ 45lbs each hand...freakin' burner!

A ton of sweat and absolute anaerobic interval attained! I'm sleeping GREAT tonight. Can't wait to run though!!!

GODSPEED!

A 5K run w/ my daughter

I ran a 5k the Sunday before the Boston Marathon with my oldest daughter who is 10. She is the one that plays club soccer, where we are driving up and down CA. :) She met up with some other friends whose parents said that they would pay 'em $20 bucks if they ran sub-30. So obviously she hit me up with a similar proposition...I told her if she ran sub-27, i'd do something for her. Well, check out her time:
129 overall
5 F 1-14 (5th in age group...actually I think she was 2 or 3 because at least two boys were in the girls group)
25:14.5 chip time
25:18.0 gun time
0:03.5
8:10/M

So I ponied up a little with some greenbacks and also took her to yogurt, she was soooo happy. She then says, "Dad, can I run in more races?" I was like "Of course!" The only work I've done with her is on her sprinting and explosion, agility and plyo stuff, for soccer. And making sure her sprint stride is efficient. Her running, outside of soccer, is all her. She just loves it. My little one, she likes to run too, but she didn't want to do this race. After she heard about her sister, she was so proud of her, giving her a big hug. She also asked about running more races. My wife and I told them that any race they want to run, we'll do it. We are so blessed that we have kids who love these types of things and they don't even realize the foundation of health they are building.

I was very happy with my time. I know I am very blessed, and by the grace of God, He has given me some very good athletic abilities. It's knowing this that motivates me to want to push my training efforts for this coming CIM. I don't want to let it go to waste, the gifts that he's given me. I stay in shape as part of my lifestyle. Although I don't necessarily run all the time, maybe 2X/week (that's a stretch), I am still able to run up to a half-marathon distance. Some days I'll have ok speed, others are endurance days;) and as long as I have a good pair of motion stability shoes, it's all good.

At the start line I told myself, go for a PR, why not. Distance speed isn't necessarily my strength as I was a long and triple jumper in college. My PR from years ago is 19:50, but that was a decade ago. Anyway, I was close...here's how I finished up.
17th out of 831
37 age
3 M 35-39 (3rd in age group)
20:06.7 chip
20:10.0 gun
6:30/M

I'll take it! I'll post the pics once they are released. Enjoy the weekend, I am off to do yardwork!

I'm back!

After a long time away, I will start blogging again. First and foremost! Props go out to my sister http://www.sillylillie.blogspot.com/ for setting a new PR (3:17 and change) at the Boston Marathon. WAY TO GO!

I plan on keeping tabs on my fitness and running training as I get ready to run my 3rd CIM this December. It's been a few years since I last ran it, but I am looking forward to doing it again. I tend to get a little maniacal with my training so it will be fun to post my workouts and trade with others. My feeling is that you need to change your workouts in order for things to stay fresh and fun. Afterall, fitness should be a lifetime movement and it is definitely what keeps my family together and drives us (we're literally driving a lot because my oldest daughter is now playing club soccer, didn't realize how many miles we'd put on the sled:)). In health everyone!