11.5 miles and overcast!

Ran 11.5 miles this morning. It was 75 degrees, 91% humidity and overcast for most of it. I drank 4.2 liters of water, ate 360 calories (4 Hammer Montana Huckleberry gels) and had 5 Hammer Endurolytes during the run and one right at the end. We were out of bananas again and so I had two pieces of honey toast instead about 20 minutes before the run with a half of cup of coffee (like normal).

This was a good long run. It was sunny for the first mile and last mile but otherwise very overcast to raining. There were times during the run when I slowed for overheating (humidity), tired leg muscles, and overworked lungs. This is good as all three of those factors got pushed verses just overheating. I carried all of that water and so my pack got lighter as I when along. I hit every hill I can around town as we are largely flat here.

The best thing about this run was I was able to gamble a bit on the path I took since if there was no shade it wouldn't matter. I "found" a path off a normal route of my that lead around a housing development and into a local school and park. The connection (miles 3-5) between my normal routes and the park is great. It's very shaded to decent shading the whole way. So, I can use this path on sunny days. I'm still learning the best running paths in our town (I'm not from Franklin).

I saw a fox again in the soccer field near home. We scared each other as I came around a corner. We were both out for a run. I was glad the fox was the one to sprint away. I'm not sure I could have at that point. I'll have to start thinking of names for these foxes in the soccer field.

3.1 miles around the complex

Ran 3.1 miles this morning. It was 78 degrees, 81% humidity and sunny. I drank 0 liters of water, ate 0 calories and had 0 Endurolytes. Just took a hat and iPhone to listen to last night's PTI on ESPN.

Worked on not going faster, just a basic easy three mile run.

5.1 miles with lots of sweat going nowhere

Ran 5.1 miles this morning. It was 78 degrees, 90% humidity and sunny. I drank 1.2 liters of water, ate 100 calories (gel) and had 2 Endurolytes. Overall it was a good run and I found some more shade by running along the edge of some trees. The humidity was not fun but it almost never is. I set out to do at least 3 and less than 6.

On these hot humid summer days I am going to aim for 1 Endurolytes per 1/2 liter of water I intake. I don't mix them together until they hit my stomach. I'll keep this going for two more weeks or so and then I try to reduce it to 1 Endurolyte per 1 liter and see if I notice a difference. However, if I'm running well and not getting sore I may not change anything.

I've been using Nathan sports Quickdraw elite water bottle system for these shorter runs. It's a great little product. I can store a gel and other littles things and it's very easy to carry. I'm lucky in that the big park I hit during almost every run (Jim Warren park) has a few water fountains so I can refill on water.

Today I also give a second try to Cliff shots strawberry gel since I had one to use up. It was still not great but I would move it from the would never use category to the would try to avoid if possible category. Basically I would take a free one but would try to grab something else first.

Tomorrow's goal is 3 miles. An active rest day before the weekend long runs.

zero miles but "Born to Run"

Didn't run today for a number of reasons. Car repairs end up costing less than expected so it was a good day. Plan to run Thursday to Sunday (that sounds like a long way).

I am probably the last runner to read, "Born to Run" by Christopher McDougal. It is amazing in every way. You must check it out if you have not read it. Thanks to Chris for suggesting it to me.

6.5 miles (?): Schedule vs. Weather (and life)

Ran about 6.5 miles, drank 1.2 liters of water, had 100 calories (1 gel), took 2 Endurolytes. It was in the mid 70s and about 80% humidity, and NO sun for most of the run. The sun popped its ugly head out during the last 1/2 mile or so. It was the best run pace wise I've had in a long time; this is not shocking since it was the best weather day for running in a long time.

It was really nice not to have the limiting factor be solely overheating. I was able to push the pace and so add my lungs and legs as limiting factors. It felt great and was fun.

I use the Runmeter app to track my runs. It is great compare to the others I tried. Today it let me know the GPS had some trouble. You can see a triangle around mile 5 in the map above. I didn't ran a triangle. Normally I can tell the app is fairly accurate by looking closely at the map. It likely had problems because I put the phone in my pocket for a bit when running into the park. The app had me running 7 miles today but I know it was likely closer to 6.5 based on my pace and subtracting out that triangle.

My midweek schedule for this week is T: 3 miles, W: 5 mile and Th: 3 miles. So I was schedule for 3 miles but when I woke up and checked the weather I saw it was in the mid 70's and overcast and was going to be that way for a few hours based on the radar and forecast. I quickly decide to do my longer (5 mile) midweek run today and then once I was out running and feeling good I decided to add one some distance. This also works out well for my non-running life as tomorrow the car must go see the car doctor in the morning so a short 3 miles around the complex will work well.

This hot summer is making me think about the wisdom of a strict daily schedule planned out ahead of time. I'm thinking a better idea would be to have weekly or two-week mileage goals and a long run distance planned out but then do the individual runs based on the weather over that time period. A schedule is good for me motivation wise but building in more flexibility is something I am going to consider for next summer.

6.5 miles, 1/4 mile with fox

Ran 6.5 miles this morning after setting out for 5. It was 84 degrees, sunny and 65% humidity. Drank about 1 liter of water and had 100 calories (cliff shot razz gel), also had 2 endurolytes (1 at miles 2 and 5).

Felt good for the conditions and ran faster, on average, than yesterday. A fox ran with me for about 1/4 of a mile across a soccer field. He (she?) just sat down at the end of the field and watched me run off. Glad it was a friendly fox.

Normally I have a banana a half hour to 15 minutes before running. We were out so I tried a packet of sportsbeans. They were fine but I think they were too sweet to eat while running.

9 Miles

Ran 9 miles around town (above). Tried to hit as much shade as possible (the spikes off the loop) . Drank about 3 liters of water and had 180 calories (2 Hammer's Montana Huckleberry gels). It was very humid 80-90%, mid 80's to low 90's by the end, and very sunny. I felt fairly good for the first 7 miles, last 2 were not easy. Also took 3 Hammer Endurolytes pills (1 at miles 3, 5 and 8), since it's not a good idea to drink just water and I don't like to drink sports drinks while running.

I set out to run ten miles but running another mile may have busted my brain in this heat. I'll give myself a mile credit for carrying over 10 pounds of water and a pack. Something I will not be doing during the marathon.

5 Miles in the heat around town

Ran (well, went) five miles this morning. Drank about 1 liter of water and had 100 calories (a strawberry cliff shot gel). It was in the low 80's, very humid and really sunny. It went as well as could be expected under those conditions. I will not be buying the strawberry cliff shot gel again. I think if I was in the middle of a marathon or ultra it would have made me sick. This is why I test new gels, etc. or shorter runs.

Feeling much better but not 100%. I'm not sure what was going on but my wife was sick too. I actually hope it was a bug of some sort because I don't think the pollen is going away anytime soon. I know I wasn't 100% percent but had the feeling running was not going to make it worse. Yesterday I felt ok and maybe could have run but I wasn't sure that it (my sickness) would not get worse from running.

Tomorrow's long run should be interesting. The forecast is for temperatures near 100 with high humidity. My GoLite Rush pack will be full (3 liters inside, 1 liter in side bottles). I could carry less water by filling up around town but I am training to run with the pack so when I am training for ultra's I will be able to do long trail runs with the pack and that will not be a new thing for me. Plus, the pack allows me not to carry my iphone. I'd rather carry a few pounds on my back than a few ounces in my hands.

Sick: no running

This stinks. I have a bad head cold and who knows what else. Will likely take today and tomorrow off and run on Friday, a normal day off, if I am feeling better.

I'm not really happy about this but I'm ok with taking a step back in miles this week since I've been adding miles every week for the last 4.

Rough 3 miles around housing complex

The weather was not bad (Low 80's, overcast, normal high humidity for the south) but I have a head cold from allergies (?) and was a bit sore. No water or calories during the run. The second mile was rough but the third was ok. This is why I like running greater distances. I don't think my body knows what's its doing until I've run a few miles.

Somewhat worried I picked up something at an indoor playground I took Sam to yesterday. Hopefully, it's just pollen.

First day of training: No running

Today is about 18 weeks out from the Philly marathon and my official training kicks off. I'll roughly following Hal Higdon's Intermediate two schedule. I followed this schedule exactly for my last marathon (also Philly) and was happy with the results. My time was about 20 minutes faster than my first 26.2, I didn't get hurt and I had fun.

I need to reverse the Saturday and Sunday runs in order to fit them in the family/work schedule. This is fine because the goal is to run an ultra in the late spring and those plans call for both Saturday and Sunday long runs. So this fall, if I have the time on Sunday, I might add a few miles on to those runs. For the past four weeks I've been doing my longest run for the week on Saturdays to get ready. I also plan to add a few miles per week on to the base intermediate two schedule whenever I feel like it (have the time and no pain). The schedule will be the minimum I plan to run but I'll be fine with it if I don't do more.

My goals are: 1) Have fun in training 2) Don't get hurt 3) Finish the marathon 4) knock off another 20 minutes from my last marathon*.

*I'm not too interested in speed because I would rather run for 3 hours slow than run for 2 hours at a faster pace. I do want to get a bit faster just to have a better chance at finishing within cut-off times for any ultras I end up doing.

treadmill Sunday

Ran 5.5 miles on the treadmill. One mile warm up (long run pace) followed by 4x1 mile tempo runs. The tempo speed roughly 30 to 1:30 minute faster than the long run pace. I ended with a half-mile cool down at the long run pace. The tempo runs are not part of a fancy plan. I also was on Sam (our son) watching duty and so had to check on him and the house if he had not come in for a visit during the last mile or so.

Ate 190 calories during the run. I don't need to eat when running less than ten miles but was testing out Powerbar gel blasts. I don't want to try anything new on big running days and so like to test out new gels/food/drinks on shorter runs. Drank about 0.75 liters of water. My need for water goes way down when running indoors and with a good fan.

I could tell my legs were not 100% before getting on the treadmill as a result of yesterday's run but it didn't seem to affect me at all.

Ran 10.8 miles. The sun stayed in and that was great. It was humid and warm but without the sun. Drank about 3 liters of water and had 400 calories (two gels and some Cliff bloks) during the run. Felt good at the end of it. I may have been able to go faster but the primary goal was to go the distance and not be too sore tomorrow. I "found" a new park to run during the run. I'm not sure the town takes care of it and so nobody was there but the bathroom was unlocked and clean. A major bonus.

Ran three miles today in the heat, high humidity and Sun. My normal one mile loop in our housing complex. A bit worried about running 9 or 10 Saturday in these conditions. Must look for more shaded routes.

New blog

I'm turning 40 in under two years and I feel the need to do something special during that 40th year. The plan is for me to run my first at least 40 miles or longer ultramarathon. I've run two marathons fairly slowly and I'm signed up for another one this fall. If all goes well, I'll sign up for local 40 mile ultra in the spring.

This blog will help me record some training details and it might be a place I can send people that ask me what I'm doing or if I'm crazy. Ran 5.5 miles today. The normal route to downtown Franklin, TN and back.