Doing Too Much...

I've been running five days a week, swimming twice and playing soccer once a week the last two weeks. Absent from my schedule has been spin class. It's on Thursday mornings and is really tough to wake up for after a late night at soccer on Wednesday nights (not to mention how sore I've been after soccer). I'm desperately waiting for the weather to get nicer so that I can ride outside and not be so reliant on spin.

But, I think I'm doing too much. Once I add biking back in to the mix (this coming week), I think 5 days of running is probably overdoing it. I'm gonna start "counting" my soccer on Wednesday nights as a running day and not worry about it. In fact, if there is a "toughest workout" of the week, it would probably be soccer. So, I'm not feeling too bad about replacing a day of running.

I'm making this decision because my body is already starting to break down and I'm still pretty far from the triathlon. So, I'm gonna do a little preservation over the next 4-5 weeks until soccer is over. Then, I'll amp it back up again to the finish. I don't want to peak to early and I certainly don't want to drag myself to the starting line either.

Still Sore? Run it Out...

As you might know, I played my first soccer game in ages on Wednesday night. I thought I would be sore... but I had no idea I would the THIS sore. Thursday and Friday I was so sore it was comical. I was literally walking around like an 80 year old. I took a line drive off my right quad in the game. It didn't hurt that much at the time, but man did it make me gimpy. Not only that, all the muscles that I don't use running were sore (mostly my groin from the constant change of direction).

So... I've been running through it hoping it would just go away. And progressively (though not as fast as I'd like) it has. I ran 6 miles yesterday with Nate, Justin, Bill and Mark and it pretty much bothered me the entire time. I'd say 4.5 miles in it loosened up to the point that it wasn't that bad. But, it wasn't great either. I can live through it though. My real fear is that this happens every week. If I have to recover from my soccer game every week for 3-4 days, that's gonna suck. I hope that it was just a byproduct of not playing in such a long time. We'll see...

In regards to the 6 miler... It was good despite the soreness. We ran at an alright clip. We got faster as we went along and finished in just over 9 minute miles. I need these runs every once in a while because I haven't really been pushing the pace on my own lately. So, running with others has become very important to help me do that.

So.... if you are sore and you want to get rid of the soreness... Just keep running. That's what I'm doing.

Biking to Running

I did my first workout so far where I went directly from biking (ok, spin) to running. I thought I would be fatigued and it would be tough. But, it was actually a different kind of tough than I was expecting. Aerobically, it was fine, no biggie. But, since you use different leg muscles to bike, the running was really strange.

I did 45 minutes of spin which totally kills my quads and hamstrings and then went right into a 3 mile run. It took a whole mile for my legs to loosen up. I was really having trouble turning them over. I didn't want to run fast for obvious reasons. But, I also didn't want to just "jog" the whole three either. At the end of the first mile, my legs didn't feel as bad and I was able to pick up the pace and finish the other two miles at a nice average clip.

I'm curious though... I'm hoping that the more I do this, the less that transition affects me. If it takes me a mile to get started "running" in the race, that's gonna be a problem. I'm over 3 months away from the race though... so I've got plenty of time to find that out.

The "Triathlon" Went Well...

I thought it was going to be much worse than it was. It turns out the toughest part of the whole thing was waking up at 5:00 am. Other than that, it went pretty well. I started it off with a spin class and man those classes kill me. I'm not sure, but it feels like everyone is staring at me the entire time I'm in there. Everybody seems so into biking/spin who goes to those things.

Then, I went swimming on my own... The pool was pretty packed, but I was able to squeeze in and get my laps in. I'm actually getting pretty close to the full distance. I did 250, 100, 250, 100 again and it wasn't that bad (and that is immediately after doing spin). I plan to do 300, 100, 300 the next time I get in the pool. Amazing how quickly this is coming along. I can't wait to start focusing on speed... but, one thing at a time here.

Then, I went on a lunch time run of 4 miles with Justin and Mallory. This kinda sucked, but it's not like we were going slow or something. So... I'm pretty impressed. I made it through the adventure without too much trouble. I'm not saying that I'm going to be fast, but this tri isn't as scary all of a sudden. It's still a number of months away. But, I'm really starting to get excited about it. I hope this energy for it continues!!

Triathlon Tomorrow!!

Ok... not a real triathlon. But, I'm waking up at the butt-crack of dawn to go to my second spinning class (RPM). The class starts at 5:45 and I'm 25 minutes from the gym, you do the math. My plan is to sleep in my clothes and have my car packed for work tonight. That way, I can just wake up and get in my car.

Then, right after I do the spin class, I'm gonna head over to the pool for a swim workout (still undecided on what I'm doing). Then, over lunch, I'm going out for a run of 4 miles with "the crew". So, to say the least, I'm assuming I'm going to be trashed tomorrow. On the bright side, I should be able to eat whatever the heck I want! Sweet...

Swimming Maniac

I'm really getting better at this swimming thing. I've swam a little bit each of the last three days. I swam a shortened (wanted 500 yds) 325 yds on Saturday. Then, before I went on a 6 mile run in Harrisburg on Sunday, I did 500 yds to make up for it. And, since I was still pretty spent from my six miler (I haven't been doing long runs lately), I decided to take a light day today and not run.

So, what did I do? I went swimming! And, boy did I... I swam a total of 700 yds for the first time ever. I did 250 then 100 to bring my heart rate down, 250 again and then 100 to finish. I'm officially at half of the 500 yd sprint tri distance. And, I think I'm really not that far off from doing the full 500. I'm gonna continue to inch towards it. Then, as soon as I can actually do it, I will start working on times (I have no idea how slow I am at this point).

The six miler on Sunday went well too. I ran with a whole host of people... A guy I just met (Mark Rebuck), Justin (my work running buddy), Nate (my old work running buddy and good friend) and Bill (running buddy who I met through Nate). Then, everyone but Justin went and grabbed Indian food afterwards. Nate and Bill call it their Run4Naan. I dig it.

The run itself was really icy and not that pleasant. At times, it wasn't that bad, but here's a picture of the trail that we were running on...

Faster? I think so...

On Tuesday, I went to the gym to run on the indoor track (11 laps to a mile, ugh) and play a little basketball with Lisa. I had planned to try to run fast, mostly because I'm sick of running indoors. So, that's what I did...

I started out at a nice clip... low 7:00 mile. Then, the further into the run I got, the more I want to really pound the pace. I actually felt pretty good and I don't feel like I was going 100%. But, I ended up running 3.05 miles in 21:45. So... if I would have completed the full 5k (I had no way of knowing, since I was only counting laps), I probably would have PR'd. My PR at 5k is 22:51.

So.... I definitely wasn't running at full speed and I would have PR'd. Now, take into account the fact that it was on an indoor track, which I'm sure makes you faster. But, at any rate, I think I'm primed to break my 5k PR. Now, I just need a race to prove it. Must be the cross training and weight loss. Can't wait to see where I'm at...

Then, I finished up by getting wooped by Lisa in a few games of this relay shooting game we've been playing. It's definitely a nice after workout workout. I've been doing a lot of that lately.

A Quick Lunch Run With "The Guys"

No offense to the girls that I run with at work. But, I've been feeling kinda left out among the running guys at work. Well... one thing is that most everyone is faster than me. I don't consider myself to be slow. But, even my running buddy (Justin) has made big strides in getting faster. Part of me is like... awesome, great job. The other part is... man, I better get faster.

All that said, I got the chance to run with Marcus and Justin today. They actually weren't running that fast (for them) at 8:35 pace. But, it was still encouraging to not get dragged along by them. In fact, 8:35 didn't feel that bad over 3 miles for me either. However, if we had tried to do their tempo 7:00 pace, I would have absolutely died.

Eh... I'm sure I'll get faster. But, it's not exactly like I'm putting all my ducks in running right now. With having just started triathlon training, there's definitely enough mental energy going into that. So, the speed work will probably have to wait a bit. But, I really think all this cross-training is gonna add fitness without the wear and tear (ok, I stole that thought from Marcus, but I was already thinking it). So, maybe I'll gain with the weight loss and cross-training. Here's to hoping...

Well... I haven't drowned...

I swam for the second time today and felt a little bit more comfortable. I'm not swimming for time yet or even worried about how many laps I'm doing. I'm just trying to get used to it all. The breathing seemed a little more normal. But, still not right. I think I'll get more and more comfortable, the more I do it. I think I need to slow my pace down until I get my breathing right too. Otherwise, I'm going to be stopping every time I get done with one length of the pool.

I also ran around the short track at the gym (yuck). But, it was nice to run and swim in the same workout. I also shot some hoops in between all of that. Did I mention that I LOVE the new gym? Having a lot of fun so far. I really think this is the change of pace I needed.

1000 here I come...

Unless something disastrous happens tomorrow (knock on wood), I'm gonna get there. I ran just over 5.5 miles today over lunch and have about 5.3 miles left in my 1000 mile year. 2008 was a good one and I'm looking forward to shake it up for 2009. More to come...

Yeah, Great Idea

I went over to the YMCA to get in a treadmill run because it was misting and cold outside. When I got there, I realized that they were closed on Christmas Eve and Christmas. Drats. I took that as a sign that I am getting to reliant on the indoor running and I should toughen up and run outdoors. So, I went back home and did some pushups and then went out front to check the weather. It was still misting, but not too bad. Very runnable.

So, I put a pair of shorts on and a tech shirt with a hoody and headed out on my way. I told myself that I was going to do 6 easy miles just to build mileage, not speed. So... the first 3.5 miles were great. I passed my brother-in-law's house and he was out front with their rotweiler Luther. He feigned like he was going to chase me down, so I continued running instead of testing him.

It was right about then that the weather worsened. And I tell you, the next 2.5 miles were the longest 2.5 miles I've run since the marathon in 2007. Ugh. It really started coming down and it was windy and freezing. I was totally unprepared (dressed in shorts, you moron). And, the whole time I kept fighting off flagging down a car to drive me into town again. But, I eventually made it back. I did the whole 6 miles and am glad that I finished. But, that ranks right up there with one of the stupidest runs I've ever gone on. 25 minutes of misery. No good.

Running and Pushups...

With the holiday season more than upon us at this point, I've got some shopping to do. But, I'm gonna fit some time in for pushups and running too. In fact, this week (as soon as I go running today) will be my most mileage in probably 5-6 weeks (20 miles, sad I know). And, the pushup competition is going well so far. I've just been dutifully pumping out pushups. I'm not sure what the ideal method is to get to 100 consecutive pushups as quickly as possible. So, I'm just doing a lot of pushups. I'm on day 6 and I think I'm through the worst of the soreness. Almost one week in the books. 7 to go...

And This Is Why I Run...

I went in to work early this morning because I had a lot to get done. After only a couple hours of plugging away, my wife called and told me that she was feeling worse then she did last night and didn't think she could hack two little kids all day. Very understandable... but up goes the stress meter.

Then, I get home and get some things done. I dropped my oldest daughter, Sophie, off at my sister's house and Melissa and Juliana (my youngest) slept most of the day away. That allowed me to get my work done without too many interruptions. Not perfect, but probably as good as could be expected.

All that said, I still feel way behind. So, instead of getting too wound up about it, I decided to go on a run. And... darned if that didn't clear my mind. I feel 100% better now. Funny how that works, huh?

So Much For That...

So, my last post was full of optimism and I was on the cusp of getting serious about my running. Then, I go to Boston and NYC for three days and am so busy I don't fit one run in... NOT ONE RUN... So, I'm stuck this week trying to throw some mileage in before I run my Jingle Bell Run on Sunday. Ugh... Will I ever get ahead?

As usual, the new year brings a new challenge... (Read: New Year's Resolution). I think I am finally going to set out to hit 185 this year. After creeping up the scale a bit lately, I've realized that I need to recommit myself. I'm gonna try and make my way through the Christmas holiday without too much added damage. Then, I'm gonna really crank it up.

Running Has Been Going Better...

So, I recently wrote a post how I was going to back off it a bit over the winter and not worry too much about how much running I got in. That much is still true. But, the last couple weeks of running has been really good to me and I'd like to keep it up. I ran a long one on Saturday with Justin and he's coming down to my house this coming Saturday for another long one (maybe 10?). Anyhow, just when I was thinking about putting on the breaks, I got my second wind.

As for today, I'm gonna take Ivey (my lab) out for a 3 miler to prep for eating way too much food. I hope everyone has a very Happy Thanksgiving! Enjoy the time with your family!

Winter Slowdown...

Not that I have been pushing myself terribly hard for the last month... but I am going to back down the mileage a bit (maybe up the intensity, but maybe not) for the winter. I'm just going to use this time to keep fit and keep my mind in order. I have no races to plan for (aside of the fun Jingle Bell Run in December) and I think I just want some no pressure running until I get back into it in 2009.

I think it's going to look a little something like this... 3 or 4 milers during the week (3 or 4 of them) and a "long" 4-5 miler on the weekend. If I keep this up, I'll be in the 15-25 mile range every week and won't have to get frozen too often. Of course, building a plan like this leaves plenty of room for runs that are longer when I feel like it. But, I'll let that be the bonus miles....

Work/Life/Run Balance...

This is probably one of the most difficult, busy and rewarding times of my life right now. We just had our second child and it has been way harder than I expected. Ask my wife and she might tell you that it has been WAY harder than expected. Coupled with the fact that I had to put off traveling for work for the last three weeks of the pregnancy (which means my last quarter of traveling is CRAZY), and that makes life even harder....

Now, don't get me wrong, this isn't a pity party. I love my job, love my family and love running... But, keeping up with all three has become increasingly difficult. I'm kinda worn out and need to figure out how to make it all come together. I just found out that I have a couple vacation days that I need to take before the end of the year. Maybe that's what I need to do.

In regards to my running, I have an 8.8 mile stretch of the Harrisburg Marathon (I'm part of a relay) in a couple weeks. I've been re-ramping (is that a word?) my mileage up to accommodate the race. I did a nice 8 miler on Sunday and plan to go for 10 on this coming Sunday. That should get me there. Then, I'm running a Jingle Bell Run in December (5k). Should be an interesting last couple months of 2008.

Feeling Better

I still have not decided what it is I want to do. But, it was fun to go out tonight without the impending long run hanging over my head. I will run long this weekend. But, not 18 miles. So, I had the rare opportunity (maybe not so rare anymore) to run fast. Lots of fun and I really got to enjoy my run tonight. Apparently, running doesn't have to be a chore... :)

Run recap- 3 miles, 25:52, 8:38 pace

Breaking the Rules...

So... I still have 30 miles of running left this month and I'm already about 20% ahead of where I was last month. I think that gaining 50% of your mileage in one month must break some rule, but who knows?

As a side note... I think I'm going to run that extra 1/2 mile just so that I can have my first 150 mile month. Wooo...

Scared Stiff, LVC Alumni Game

For the first time, last year, I played in the LVC Soccer Alumni Game and things went pretty well. I played a couple "shifts" and didn't get injured. At this point, I'd consider that a success. But, the reason I only played a couple shifts last year was because I ran 7 miles the night before and trashed my legs.

So... I decided that I wasn't going to do that again this year. I'm going to make my marathon training secondary (for the week or a couple days) and try to go into the game fresh. I decided to run 4 miles on the trails yesterday so that I wouldn't get too much wear and tear. Well.... woops. I totally forgot how hilly the trails were (I hadn't gone in a while) and my legs are feeling kinda tired. Maybe I'll loosen up by 6 pm. I sure hope so.

Goals for the game? Again, my goal is to not get injured. But, would it be too much to ask to make one of the youngsters look silly once? Probably... but I can hope can't I? Wish me luck.

Trail run recap- 4 miles, 44:24, 11:06 pace (don't judge me, it was hilly)