Sleep.. It Does a Body Good

I'm on day 7 of my 9 day holiday vacation from work. And, something I've been getting more of is ... sleep. Coincidentally, my running has really been a lot easier lately. I ran 5, 6, day off, 6 miles in the last 4 days. It's sad to say, but I haven't had a 4 day stretch like that in forever. In fact, those 17 miles in 4 days are two short of my week total high for the last 6 weeks or so. So, yeah, it's nice to be home and sleeping.

Also, this little spurt at the end of the year has put me dangerously close to 1000. After tonight's 6 miler, I am 18 miles away with 5 days to go. There is a rest day in there somewhere (maybe Monday?), but it is looking awfully reasonable all of a sudden.

As for tonight's six miler, it was cold and wet. I had planned to do 4 with my dog when I got home from my sister's. But, when I got out there, I just felt like doing more. I can't remember the last time that happened. In fact... lately, the exact opposite has been happening. I got out for 4 and only get 3 in. So, I think the tables are turning... just in time for 2009.

Ivey and I on the Trails...

I was dreading my five miler today. To be honest, I needed a change of scenery. My normal courses are kind of old and tired to me at this point. So.. after mentioning that to my wife, she came up with a great idea. She told me to head over to Nolde Forest for a run. She said, "It's shady and you can take Ivey with you". Huh, why didn't I think of that?

One thing that I did kind of forget/neglect was how hilly it is over there. And, with Ivey running this way and that through the forest, it gets kinda tiring. That said, it was definitely a nice change of pace. We ran up the trails about a mile and came back down to the car. It was pretty humid, so I let Ivey play in a stream for five minutes and then we got back on the trails.

As humid and hilly as it was, I was certainly ready for the run to be over. But, it was anything but boring. I had a good time and got a really good workout in. The numbers don't mean much because of the terrain. But, here's the stats:

Run recap- 5.01 miles, 53:22, 10:39 pace

Quick Run Before Golfing...

I took the day off from work on Friday to go golfing in a tournament with a friend of mine, Bernie. Bernie is the husband of a good college friend of my wife and I (Jana). So.. Jana and Melissa went out all day and took the kids to a gymnastics place and Bernie and I went and played golf. But, since I knew I would be tired from a day of golfing, I had to get my 3 miler in before I left. The run went pretty well. It was really humid and I ran kind of slow. But, since I had a day of golf ahead of me, I didn't want to overdo it. So, I took Ivey (my dog) and off we went. Nothing spectacular during the run happened. But, we got the miles in. Here are the stats:

Run recap- 3.01 miles, 29:05, 9:40 pace


Then, came the golfing. We were playing a tournament at Deer Valley Golf Course in Hershey, PA. I was notified, the day before, that there wasn't a driving range at the course. That was kinda troubling because I haven't been out golfing yet this year. So, my first swing of the year came off the first tee. I swung and missed... wah wah. But, the rest of the round went surprisingly well. We were playing a "best ball" tournament. So, the entire team plays the best ball off the tee and then the best next shot and so on. We played my ball a number of times (not a lot, but enough). And, I was a pretty trusty putter. For not having played yet this year, I'd have to say I did very well.

But... the true story of the round was Bernie's drives. He's a big guy and he was hitting everything long and straight. We ended up finishing 9 under as a team. And, the winner came in at 12 under. So, we weren't that far off the lead. I think that was the best finish any team I have ever been on has done. That's not coincidence, I'm not a very good golfer. But... it was a lot of fun.

12.... no wait, 13 miles

My long run for today was supposed to be 12 miles. I had, what I remember as, a 6 mile loop planned to do twice. Well, my memory wasn't quite as good as I thought. And, it turns out that I ran almost a full 13 miles. There's not one thing that I can think of that is bad about this scenario. I wanted to negative split, and I did. And, I nearly got the full half distance in today. So.... that's encouraging. I still don't think I'm as fast as I'd like to be. But, only the race will tell.

On a related note... I took Ivey (my dog) with me for the first 6.5 miles. She did really good, despite a couple bathroom breaks and detours to chase random animals (mostly squirrels). She's now laying by my side out like a light. Good for her. We went to my college roommates house last night and the dogs spent the night on their own. So, she deserved a nice run.

This also was my last LSD before Lehigh Valley. So, let the taper begin. Woohoo!!

Run recap- 12.95 miles, 2:10:38, 10:06 pace
First half- 6.475 miles, 1:09:33, 10:45 pace
Second half- 6.475 miles, 1:01:05, 9:26 pace

Five Tough "Easy" Miles

I went out on my five miler today very optimistic after my negative split long run on Sunday. I took Ivey along with me (and will continue to take her on the shorter runs). I don't know if it was the wind, dog, fatigue or what... But, that was the toughest "easy" run I've ever been on. My legs did feel sufficiently trashed. But, I didn't expect this...

I ran 5 miles in ten minute miles and struggled to do it. Holy crud!! I must have really beat myself up on the long run Sunday. That's good and bad. It tells me that I'm putting in enough work that my legs are fatigued two days later. But, it also has been my downfall in the past. This kind of running has typically led to injury. The next two runs will really tell the story. If I'm still not back to normal on my "easy" run tomorrow, I'll know I over-did it. But, if I'm ok.... then, just a good work out.

Run recap- 5.0 miles, 50:00, 10:00 pace

Easy Five with Ivey (my dog)

I went for an easy five miler to keep my legs loose after the race yesterday. Ivey really enjoyed the run. Now that the weather is getting nicer, I'm going to make a concerted effort to take Ivey along more often. But, I'll have to watch how far I take her... Five miles is the upper end of her limits right now.

Run recap- 4.97 miles, 49:37, 9:59 pace

LSD and Dogs...

I did my LSD today with my dog Ivey. She helps me go slower when I should be going slower because she stops constantly throughout the run. It's fun to run with her though because I find myself smiling and just enjoying the run more often when I go out with her. And, you can't beat having a tired Lab for the rest of the day. So, it's a win/win for sure.

Anyhow, it was a pretty light run. I thought I was running faster than I was, but that's ok. It was meant to be an LSD anyway. No biggie.

Run recap- 4.97 miles, 50:26, 10:09 pace