I did this run tonight. I was in a metric mood, and I do enjoy the 15k distance. It's not quite a long run, but it's definitely long enough to make you feel like you're running, for sure. I have to say, I felt remarkably spry tonight- the weather was perfect, the air was dry, I was well rested, everything came together to give me an amazing run. Here's the damage:

15k (9.3 miles) in 1:18:57 (8:28 pace)

including:
Mile 1- 8:40.95
Mile 2- 17:06.01 (8:25.06 mile)
Mile 3- 25:29.61 (8:23.60 mile)
Mile 4- 34:30.41 (9:00.80 mile)
(Mile 5 mark was missed)
Mile 6- 51:26.95 (2 miles in 16:56.54)
Mile 7- 59:54.16 (8:27.21 mile)
Mile 8- 1:08:14 (8:20.37 mile)
Mile 9- 1:16:29 (8:15.38 mile)
9.3- 1:18:57 (2:27.60 three-tenths)

Because my right achilles tendon was kind of sore, I went back and forth between heel and mid-foot striking. There were no other issues that came up to that end.

I had a 10oz cran-apple juice between miles 3 and 5 and that was it, I didn't feel I needed anything else because I felt so good and everything felt real relaxed. Lauren called around mile 6.5 and that was a huge boost and lifted my spirits for the last third. It was a nice, new, longer route (a lot of my runs, even the long runs, have been on repeated 3 and 4 mile routes, this was a full 9.3). I remember thinking to myself around mile 8.5 that I was sad to see this run end, and that it had not felt like I just ran as far as I did already. I remember seeing Curt at the gym later and mentioning that I had only done an easy 15k, and realizing that that's not a mileage that most people think of in terms of "only" or "easy". We long distance runners are a rare and different breed. HAPPY RUNNING INDEED!

Tonight I drove Laur into Manhattan where she was babysitting on the Upper East Side. My plan was to hang out in the city while she babysat and use it as an opportunity to do a nice, leisurely long run, taking advantage of Central Park and surrounding areas. First I ran from the east to the west sides looking for a Citibank and a grocery store, which took me about 30 minutes and 3 miles, I figure. Then I took a little break and finally set off on my long run about 2130. I decided I would run to Central Park from my car, do a loop, head back to my car for refueling, and then run around the city a bit. That's just what I did, and to great success. I don't know EXACTLY how far I went total, but I mapped out my approximate route from memory afterwards so here's the damage:

14 miles in 2:05:30 (8:55 pace)

including:
Central Park lap: 54:24 (9:04 pace)

For the second half I ran back to the Park, clockwise around it attempting to follow the NYC marathon finish route, then over to the West Side and back to Columbus Circle. Then I headed downtown along 6th & 5th Avenues. Basically whenever I came to a red light, instead of stopping to wait I just crossed the street or ran up towards the next avenue so I could be in constant motion. I made it down to 42nd & Broadway, where I ran into a bajillion tourists and ran in the street for a bit. Then I got a call from Laur around 48th & 5th that she was done, so I booked it back to 72nd & 1st, coming in just over 2 hours for the entire run. Mid-run refueling consisted of a few handfuls of peanuts, some orange and cran-apple juices, and some milk chocolates. My legs felt good (I had both wrapped with pre-wrap) and while they were sore and tired afterwards, there are no lingering or nagging injuries or pre-injuries. They actually feel BETTER than they have been! Hope this continues for the next 5 and a half months :)

I had intended to do a run of about 6-7 miles today but I just never got going and by the time I headed out the door to do my run, I had to hurry it up because Lauren was going to be getting into the Wantagh train station at 1835 (giving me about an hour to run, shower, get to the train station). I decided to run a little quicker than I have been and do only about 3-4 miles. I felt good, even if it was brief. Here's the damage:

5k (3.1 miles) in 23:10

including:
Mile 1- 7:30
Mile 2- 15:10 (7:40 mile)
Mile 3- 22:34 (7:24 mile)
5k- 23:10 (36 second for 0.1 mile)

This felt pretty easy, obviously a faster pace than I've been doing for my runs of late but I guess one quick run won't hurt. The funny thing is, this is only 30 seconds slower than the 5k I ran in September and I was really shot at the end of that. How far I've come! Anyway, I managed to shower and get down to the train to pick up the darling girlfriend and a good time was had by all :)

I drove into NYC today, Laur and I had tickets to see The Hush Sound, Phantom Planet, Motion City Soundtrack, and Panic! at the Disco there at 6. I was mostly excited to see her, to see The Hush Sound, and thirdly to run in Central Park. I got in early enough to go next door with her and watch her eat the most delish looking smac (mac& cheese) ever. Which is big for me to say, bc as a rule, I tend to hate mac & cheese and have only had it once in my life, a few weeks ago at her parents house. Maybe it was because I was hungry, or maybe because this was "gourmet-ish" mac& cheese. Afterwards, I got changed into running attire and headed to Central Park to do an easy outer loop of the park, very much like the first time I went there, only without being too shy to see Laur afterwards. Central Park running is always good for knocking you down a peg or two if you're getting a bit too full of yourself, because there is always people there that look like they've been at it for much longer and are much faster/talented. Instead of being discouraged by seeing this, it gives me something to aspire to now (new Mark outlook :]). The weather was bee-ee-ay-you-tiful, my only regret is not getting to share it with Laur. I got into a rhythm of heel striking the downhills as that seemed to put less stress on everything and midfoot striking everything else. I love that it's hilly, it helped change up things from the mostly flat running I've been doing, and gave me enough feeling of pushing myself, even on an easy run. Here's the damage:

6 gorgeous miles in 49:40 (8:13 pace)

and a ROCKIN' GREAT TIME with the darling girlfriend afterwards! :)

Tonight I set off to do a run at an easy pace and it worked marvelously. The hot-ish weather helped keep me there, but at any rate I'm proud of myself. I did the route I ran the evening of my last 5k, it's a good route that takes me all around campus- by the Towers, Main St, the Green, the Beach. I picked a perfect time to go, too, as the weather had cooled off from the very overbearing heat of the mid-afternoon. The run itself was nothing special, as in- nothing particularly interesting happened. I got some looks for my short shorts, but no catcalls or insults this time.

Oh, I DID run without a knee strap or anything on either knee for the first time in as long as I can remember, I think since January. And my knees felt FINE! Because I was midfoot striking, my achilles and calves got a little tight towards the end and around mile 6 I stopped to stretch them out. I didn't mean to speed up at the end, I wanted to maintain an even pace, but oh well, it ain't no thing. Here's the damage:

7.5 miles in 1:04:54 (8:39 pace)

including:
Mile 1- 8:35.35
Mile 2- 17:26.55 (8:51.20 mile)- included ~20s stretching
Mile 3- 25:42.94 (8:16.39 mile)
Mile 4- 34:31.19 (8:48.25 mile)
Mile 5- 43:08.99 (8:37.80 mile)
Mile 6- 52:06.59 (8:57.60 mile)
Mile 7- 1:01:00 (8:54.23 mile)
7.5- 1:04:54 (3:53.87 half mile)

This morning Laur and I got up ridiculously early to head to Philly to run our very first Broad Street Run, a 10 miler that literally goes from the north end of Philadelphia to the south end. I'd originally thought we needed to leave before 0600, because the website said to park on the south end and take the subway to the start and you should do this before 7. Well we left a little later which wasn't no thang, and got to the parking lot around 7(?). Then we had to wait for porta potties for a while and boarded a subway around 745. At that point there was still a large number of people on the platform waiting for another train to come. We realized we weren't going to make the start on time, but we both had watches and it was chip timed so it wouldn't really matter- this was supposed to be a fun race for us, a chance to take in the sights of Philadelphia and the thousands of fellow runners, plus this was the first time Laur was running since her half, so it wasn't a race to set world records.

( The long of it )

Because I am currently in a university study where I can only eat foods pre-prepared for me, I couldn't enjoy any of the finish area goodies except ice cold water. We found a spot on the huge lawn in the Navy yard, in sigh of the massive Navy ships, and I stretched her out. As a result, a photog from the Philadelphia Daily News snapped some pictures of us and now we're famous! Well, not really famous, but if you follow this link to the slide show and click through, we're at the end with me stretching out Laur's left hamstring! How cool is that?!?!

We both agreed as we walked back to the car that this is definitely going to become a tradition of ours, like many other races already have and many more will. It's always a wonderful day when the two of us can share running so completely. So see you next year, Broad Street Run!

Now for a much needed nap!!!

the short of it:
10 miles in 1:58:30

including:
Mile 1- 10:12
Mile 2- 19:50 (9:38 mile)
(2:24 break to stretch out)
Mile 3- 35:49 (13:35 mile)
Mile 4- 48:47 (12:58 mile)
Mile 5- 1:00:50 (12:03 mile)
Mile 6- 1:12:49 (11:59 mile)
Mile 7- 1:24:30 (11:41 mile)
Mile 8- 1:36:45 (12:15 mile)
Mile 9- 1:48:29 (11:44 mile)
Mile 10- 1:58:28 (9:59 mile)

Had plans to go to work, then drive up to Philly for the Broad St. Run expo, pick up Laur's and my race packets and then her at the bus depot, getting a run in Philly in between the end of the expo ,6pm, and her ETA, 8-8:30. It was supposed to only be an easy 6 miles, but I hit a telephone pole...with my car. Obviously I'm alright. My car, notsomuch. I had to wait around for my wonderful friend Becca to pick me up in Wilmington and then drive to the Enterprise dealership to get a rental...a sweet rental- a Saab 9.3. A smart person said, "The only thing that could make this car cooler would be a sun roof." (I have to agree Lauren!)

Anyway, this all conspired against me to cut short my run. I was going to skip it altogether, but I realized that I was so frazzled and I needed 3 things, in order: Laur, a run, and a beer. So I ran around by the National Constitution Center for 20-25 minutes whilst waiting for her bus to get in. Combined with the half hour walk from the accident scene to downtown Wilmington (something I wouldn't recommend you do at night, by yourself, or with a big sack of money or drugs) I'm going to give myself credit for 3 miles today. I won't factor in time, but 3 miles</a> today is what I will add to the training log. Tomorrow I think I may take off or run, depending on how crazy it is. Either way, Sunday is the first race I get to do with Laur in way too long, and it's going to be our longest race together to date :)

I decided that today I would do my long run of the week in the morning, after I dropped off some food at the lab, instead of waiting to do my run in the evening. My rational for this was primarily because today is Thursday which means an all new Office episode at 2100. I have Clinical Measures in Exercise Physiology on Thursdays from 1600-1900 so doing long runs means I'll be cutting it very close getting a run in and getting home in time. The Office takes precedent over almost everything, including running. Last week I found myself cutting my run short, but also running too fast because I was worried about getting home in time. So today, I solved my problem by doing my 12 miler at 0930! Yikes! I think this is the furthest I've ever run before noon, races notwithstanding. It's also the furthest I've run since my marathon. I was really excited about today though. Here's the damage:

12 miles in 1:40:26 (8:22 pace)

including:
Mile 1- 8:35.20
Mile 2- 17:18.95 (8:43.75 mile)
Mile 3- 25:46.58 (8:27.63 mile)
Mile 4- 34:10.32 (8:23.74 mile)
Mile 5- 42:35.95 (8:25.63 mile)
Mile 6- 50:50.70 (8:14.75 mile)
Mile 7- 59:08.48 (8:17.78 mile)
Mile 8- 1:07:23 (8:14.99 mile)
Mile 9- 1:15:37 (8:14.04 mile)
Mile 10- 1:23:58 (8:20.62 mile)
Mile 11- 1:32:16 (8:18.64 mile)
Mile 12- 1:40:26 (8:09.85 mile)

1st half: 50:50.70 (8:28 pace)
2nd half: 49:33.92 (8:15 pace)

1st third: 34:10.32 (8:32 pace)
2nd third: 33:13.15 (8:18 pace)
3rd third: 33:03.15 (8:16 pace)

Like I said, I started off a little after 0930, which is when T-Th classes start, they get out at 1045, at which point I was still running and had to dodge the influx of undergrads walking to and from class, which actually added some interestingness to the run. I had my short shorts on today which cover about a quarter of my pretty impressive thighs. I decided to check out of the corner of my eye how many people took notice and gave me weird looks as I passed them. Needless to say, I lost count around a dozen by halfway ha! Around 4 miles in, a light drizzle started that was actually very welcome because it wasn't too cold and it helped refresh me because I was getting a little heated.

Throughout the entire run, I kept thinking to myself that the McMillan running calculator told me my long runs should be about 8:03-9:03, and I was focusing on keeping my pace there. I knew I felt good, despite still being a little sore from lifting Tuesday night, really good and really strong and I knew if I didn't focus I'd let the pace drift too fast and I wouldn't gain as much as I should out of this run. I'm very proud of how my pacing went to that end. Tomorrow possibly a run in Philly while waiting for Laur to get in after picking up our race packets, then a 5k Saturday (not a race, just the distance) and the Broad St. 10 miler with Laur on Sunday :)! to round out the week. Hooray running!

Today, I decided that I will consider this week the official start of training for the Mohawk-Hudson River Marathon on October 12th. As of this past Sunday I have 24 weeks left.

I will dedicated 17 of those weeks to steady aerobic base building, 5 to focused speed work, and 2 to tapering. I have a loose idea of weekly mileages and I will consult with some online training schedules to finalize it, but I am very much all systems go.

The first time around I had been sick from August-mid-September, then I slowly eased into exercising of any sort for most of October, running MAYBE 15 miles/week before jumping into a 19 week training plan for the Shamrock Marathon- which I managed to still eek out a 3:29:36, besting my seemingly lofty goal by a few seconds. My highest mileage week didn't crack 50, the last few weeks of training were kind of undisciplined and scattered and I dealt with some minor injury issues a few times. Basically I went into it blind and it was a great learning experience. I DID have an excellent "online coach" and the BEST support I could ask for (both in training and during the race): Lauralee.

This time, I have the marathon under my belt, along with the aerobic benefits that come with it. I have knowledge of previous mistakes and also knowledge that I CAN DO THIS! I've been running solidly for about half a year now, so I'm not starting from scratch, I'm starting with a pretty good fitness level, a VO2 max of 69mL O2/kg/min (which is pretty good) and all of the stuff I learned the first time through this. I have 4+ months to build up my aerobic base more, and I'm committed to being disciplined in this approach- last time too often I ran my "easy" runs much too fast and thus didn't fully benefit. This time around I STILL have a great resource in runners and the BEST support I could ask for in Laur- who will be moving in with me June 1st (can you say a summer full of running and exploring Wark together? SO FRAKKIN' EXCITED!). This time I have a loftier goal. Before March I thought 3:30 was a reach. I surprised myself. This time I know what I'm capable of, and while I don't have an official goal yet, something sub 3:20 seems fairly reasonable. This is really exciting to me and I just needed to get this all down. I can do this. I will do this. Wish me luck!

So because today was a pretty easy day, and tomorrow is going to basically be the same if not easier, I figured tonight was a good night for weight training. I'm still going to have to figure out how to regularly and routinely work this in but it's not as important as the running, obviously. Anyway, here's the damage for this evening:

squats:
warm-up: 1x10x95
4x8x145

lunges- with 30lb dumbbells
2x15xBW+60

calf raises (on hack-squat machine):
2x12x180

abs- exercise ball crunches
2x12xBW+25 (1st set straight, 2nd set side-to-side)

I could have done more but I haven't lifted in something like 2 weeks and I could feel my muscles getting sore even before I left the gym- a good kind of sore though. Obviously I will build on this but the goal is to get stronger so I can get faster and more efficient with my running, not so I can set squat or deadlift PRs. To that end, tonight was good. Had a chocolate milk back here and watched some DWTS (YEA JASON TAYLOR!). Sleep and a much easier day to follow. Goodnight all

Did the exact same run as I did Friday, only better I feel. I was feeling a lot of adrenaline surges and dealing with some things that would normally cause me to just go out and run way too fast, 7:00 pace fast, lung-searing fast. In light of that, I am very proud of how I was able to run easy and not go too hard or fast today ::pats self on back:: The weather had been gloomy and murky all day which didn't help matters, but somehow managed to brighten up a bit just as I started. The temperature was much more pleasant than Friday, but there was also more wind, which I didn't mind. All in all, I needed this today. Thank you, running.
Here's the damage:

5.5 miles in 46:04.13 (8:22 pace)

PMRI to track (1 mile)- 8:27.33

on track:
Lap 1- 2:06.15
Lap 2- 2:08.28
Lap 3- 2:02.97
Lap 4- 2:13.15 (8:30.55 mile)
Lap 5- 2:06.98
Lap 6- 2:05.71
Lap 7- 2:06.96
Lap 8- 2:05.08 (8:24.73 mile)
Lap 9- 2:07.40
Lap 10- 2:04.06
Lap 11- 2:03.80
Lap 12- 2:03.12 (8:18.38 mile)
Lap 13- 2:05.13
Lap 14- 2:03.98 (4:09.11 half mile)

track to PMRI (1 mile)- 8:14.03

A little slower than Friday, but also consistent and gradually faster from start to finish (first mile is very downhill so the effort was actually quite easy). As I went on in the run, the effort level remained the same but the pace picked up very incrementally.

More news to come later.

this afternoon I had to work and then I was headed to NY for the weekend. But in between those two things, I had some time to get in an easy few miles. I decided to just head out from the parking lot of my job at Christiana Care's PMRI location to the track off route 141 that belongs to Ursuline Academy. conveniently enough from lot to track is 1 mile. I didn't know this going in, but by the time I got near the track I figured it had to be close to a mile away. My plan was to do 5 miles, figuring ~1 there, 1 back, and 3 on the track where I could figure out what pace I was going. I wound up doing a bit more just to be on the safe side...and because I felt so good! This was also the first run of the year I used sunblock and ran shirtless because it was so frakkin' hot and I was sweating just walking around. Took an ice water and was off. Here's the damage:

5.5 miles in 45:24 (8:15 pace)

including:
PMRI to track (1 mile)- 7:30.09

3.5 miles
Lap 1- 2:06.50
Lap 2- 2:10.42
Lap 3- 2:09.40
Lap 4- 2:07.40 (8:33.72 mile)
Lap 5- 2:07.53
Lap 6- 2:07.85
Lap 7- 2:06.03
Lap 8- 2:09.45 (8:30.86 mile)
Lap 9- 2:04.99
Lap 10- 2:08.40
Lap 11- 2:06.91
Lap 12- 2:06.41 (8:26.71 mile)
Lap 13- 2:04.30
Lap 14- 2:06.20 (4:10.50 half mile)

track to PMRI (1 mile)- 8:13.07

The first mile was quick thanks to the pretty big downhill from PMRI to the track and fresh legs. I had the track all to myself which was nice. As you can see by the lap splits, I was pretty good about being consistent with my pace. I felt absolutely fine as far as effort level- this DEFINITELY qualifies as easy pace now, and I kept it right where I wanted it. Running on the track itself was such a wonderful and welcome change of pace from running on asphalt and concrete! It felt like I was running on air almost, and my legs felt so good I really had to concentrate on not pushing. The heat actually helped me keep my pace honest, because I knew if I pushed harder I'd definitely lose it quickly and cramp up. Overall, the end of a very good week of running, 4 days in a row! Next week...30+ miles and ramping up to 50 by the end of June!

Tonight I had visions of doing a 12 miler around campus by doing the 6 miler from earlier in the week and doubling back on it. But Thursdays revolve around The Office for me. As much as I love running, I can do it whenever. An all new Office episode is only on at 9pm Thursdays. It's very personal time. Laur and I watch and call each other during the commercials, and later on in the week I'll have a talk with my best friend Andie about it too. This will be the same for Mondays at 9 starting next week when House starts. So tonight, to make sure I wasn't going to miss any part of The Office, and also because the heat was pretty brutal, even at 2100, I cut the run to 9 miles (using the 3 mile run of Main St. and The Green, out, back, then out again).

Like I said, the temperature was prolly still in the upper 60s/low 70s. I brought a bottle of Gatorade and figured that this would be a good way to study what I'm learning in Advanced Physiology of Exercise (which would be thermal regulation and heat acclimation and all the fun stuff that happens when you exercise in heat, etc.) Here's the damage:

9 miles in 1:10:28 (7:49 pace)

including:
Mile 1- 7:34.57
Mile 2- 15:18.56 (7:43.99 mile)
Mile 3- 23:14.39 (7:55.83 mile)
Mile 4- 31:01.82 (7:47.43 mile)
Mile 5- 39:11.24 (8:09.42 mile)
Mile 6- 47:18.12 (8:06.88 mile)
Mile 7- 55:13.32 (7:55.20 mile)
Mile 8- 1:02:53 (7:39.99 mile)
Mile 9- 1:10:28 (7:34.90 mile)

first 3rd- 23:14.39 (7:44 pace)
middle 3rd- 24:03.73 (8:01 pace)
final 3rd- 23:10.09 (7:43 pace)

I was a little surprised when I saw the first mile split but I didn't feel like I was pushing particularly hard. Even still, I told myself to ease up a little. By the end of mile 2, I realized that this run was going to hover around 8:00 pace throughout and I accepted that. I rationalized it by telling myself that this was still conversation pace so really, it was ok, even if it was near the faster limits of ok.

I can't believe how many people still are stupid enough to smoke! I know I sound like a broken record but there is NOTHING I hate more on a run than running past a cloud of smoke, especially if they are walking ahead of me in the same direction. My runs turn into fartleks there, because I speed up to get away from it and try to hold my breath as long as possible. Tonight it seemed there were more than usual even, but maybe that's just because I ran longer around populated areas. I was particularly annoyed at the audacity of three shitheads who were walking across the North Green, in broad daylight, smoking marijuana! I don't care what people do in the privacy of their own homes- be a degenerate and get high and whatever, fine, but DON'T SUBJECT ME TO YOUR FUCKING SMOKE! It felt like I was back on my HS track at night in December with the local stoners getting high in the bleachers and talking about their guns. Only worse! I had to run right through this thick, visible cloud of marijuana smoke. I managed to get through most of it with my breath held (and I had half a mind to tackle all three of the assholes and beat the crap out of them-adrenaline can be a dangerous thing!) but I definitely got more than a whiff of the very unpleasant and overpowering smell. UGH! >:O

Aside from that, my run was pretty good. There was a noticeable lull in the middle when my legs started to feel heavier and the calves started getting tired from the mid-foot striking. But I had enough to not continue to slow through the end. In fact, my last third was my fastest third, which I consider a positive.

I noticed probably a 4:1 ratio of females to males running, myself included. This is an observation I've been making for years now around here, and I wonder what gives because it's definitely not representative of the campus population on the whole. I also noticed that of the dozen or so people running that I passed, ONE acknowledged me and gave a smile and a nod. Everyone else looked quite miserable and/or unpleasant. What gives people? You're running outdoors and it's beautiful. oh well.

Not much else to say, it was a nice 9 miler. It felt good to get my legs moving for longer than a couple miles, I'm up to 19 for the week, hopefully I'll tack on another 11+ by the end of the week. My legs feel like they can handle it.

and on an unrelated note- I noticed that online registration for the Mohawk-Hudson River Marathon is now open! I'm excited!

I did this old run tonight. I had thought about doing 5 or 6 miles but decided to shorten it because I was getting a late start (damn Yankees game distracting me and working really late). I set out to do this easy and relaxed, focus on midfoot striking again, which has my calves nice and tight and sore (but in a good way!) and not push it. I'd say I definitely succeeded in that endeavor. Here's the damage:

4 miles in 33:04 (8:16 pace)

including:
Mile 1- 8:17.26
Mile 2- 16:57.89 (8:40.63 mile)
Mile 3- 25:17.69 (8:19.80 mile)
Mile 4- 33:04.92 (7:47.23 mile)

1st half- 16:57.89 (8:28 pace)
2nd half- 16:07.03 (8:03 pace)

When at all possible I ran on the grass, which was a wonderful change-up. The last half a mile or so was on Main St. running west to east (which I'm convinced is actually slightly downhill) and I felt REALLY good, which explains the ridiculously quicker final mile. My HR was about 180 at the end, and I'd guess ~165 during most of the run, so just where I want it at. Not much else to write home about here, a few cat calls and stares on Main St. at the end from the gathering bar crowds, which always makes me smile because I feel like I'm doing something more productive with my time. Tomorrow will be a longer run, tonight will be stretching my calves!

I mapped out a new run tonight, I wanted to do an easy 6 miles and I wanted this one to start ON campus, not by the Newark HS track. I wanted to once again focus on mid-foot striking, which was successful. After a nice long weekend of rest (physically, however it was quite the busy weekend of FINDING AN APARTMENT and hangin with the girl) I was rip-roaring ready to get some miles in those legs. I added it up and from the 5k Sunday through the White Clay run Friday, I did ~33 miles in a week period (actually, a 6 day period but whatevs). This week I'd like to get a comparable mileage and work my way up to 45-50 mile weeks by the middle end of May/beginning of June. Today was the start. Nice little run that went all over campus. Here's the damage:

6 miles in 50:16 (8:22 pace)

including:
Mile 1- 8:16.16
Mile 2- 17:01.59 (8:45.43 mile)
Mile 3- 25:21.64 (8:20.05 mile)
Mile 4- 34:00.37 (8:38.73 mile)
Mile 5- 42:10.01 (8:09.64 mile)
Mile 6- 50:16.31 (8:06.30 mile)

1st half- 25:21.64 (8:27 pace)
2nd half- 24:54.67 (8:18 pace)

I had plans of doing an easy run, possibly even on the track at UD today, considering yesterday's pretty grueling 11.5 miler on the hills of northern Newark. This was the plan when I was in the lab dropping off food and discussing with Megan when I will be starting as a subject in her study. Dr. Knight, who runs the senior seminar I'm taking, came in and mentioned to Megan that some of the professors were going to run at White Clay Creek state park at noon and she was welcome to join. Then he realized that the subject she was talking to was actually me, and quickly added that I was welcome to join too. I was caught a little off guard by the invite and the wrench in my plans that it created, but I thought to myself, "It's a really nice day, I haven't run at White Clay in a while, and we'll probably only go about an hour easyish," so I said sure I'd come along. I planned on driving up to the shopping center on New London Rd. and running the 1.5 miles up to the park to meet them. After agreeing, I went and found Justin and convinced him to come along too. It's nice getting someone down here who is also interested in running, and who I can talk about it with, nice guy that Justin.

So around noon I started running up to the park and Dr. Knight pulls over and gives me a ride to the park after I had been running for about 5 minutes. We got to the parking area and waited around for the rest of the group to arrive. Turns out a good 4 or 5 professors from the exercise science department came, along with Justin, Maria, and some other guy, so we had a nice group. I figured I wouldn't have any trouble keeping up but I didn't want to set the pace either so once we started I settled in towards the front but making sure to be behind Dr. Rose (who happens to be probably in his 50s and easily the fastest one of all of us), chatting with Justin and some other people around.

The run itself was amazing. The first 20 minutes or so I was talking about Lauren to everyone who was asking me all about her and about me. Everyone was taking such a personal interest, it felt wonderful, it felt like I was really starting to belong in this department :) We ran along a trail I was familiar with but then we took a few twists and turns. Early on we saw a monument that Dr. Rose pointed out marked the border between the states of Delaware, Maryland, and Pennsylvania...neat! We also wound up running along Creek Rd. at some point around 40 minutes in. At this point Justin asked me if I wanted to speed up for a little bit. Always up for a little pick-up I went with him and Dr. Rose caught up to us. Then we hit some serious hills which were pretty brutal. Dr. Rose and I wound up dropping everyone else and had a lovely conversation about my marathon training and how he ran Boston and NYC and all that. I got to explain how Laur and I are doing our qualifying races for NYC 2009, he thought that was cool.

We finally got back to the parking lot but kept running around a bit, I finally stopped after having run for a little over 1 hour. I have no idea how far we ran but I'm going to venture at least 6 miles total, which would give us a 10:00 pace, so that makes sense to me. The only issue with the run was that I only had one bottle of Gatorade and a PowerBar energy gel, which wasn't enough...I was really feeling the heat by the end and spent a good minute at the water fountain. I also wound up getting my arms sunburned (I should've taken my shirt off sooner haha!)

All in all, a great run. not the easy, relaxed run I had anticipated, but I think it worked out better! Maybe this becomes a regular occurrence now that the weather is getting nicer :)

Today I was in the mood for hills! Don't ask me why, because honestly, I haven't a clue, ever since that hilly 10k debacle I've wanted to push myself more and start adding some hills to my workouts, considering that the area around school HAS hills which is more than can be said of Lawn Guy Land. With that in mind, and a masochistic heart, I mapped out this run, I know it's called the Newark 10 miler of DOOM, but if you look it over, it's 1.5 miles longer than that. Check out the elevation profile, hehehe. I was really LOOKING FORWARD TO THIS! Well it went as well as I could have imagined. Here's the damage:

11.5 miles in 1:30:37 (7:53 pace)

I'm not going to bother with the mile splits because they are probably off, but the final time is accurate. I do know I got up Paper Mill Rd. in ~34 minutes. I did manage to record a 1 mile split along Creek Rd (from the 2 mile mark to the 3 mile mark on the 5k course), ran that mile, very late in the run and after the early hills, in 7:39! I finished very strong along Main St. and Academy.

Highlights include:
-Thompson Station Rd. and Hopkins Bridge Rd. which were terrifying at times because there are multiple blind curves, extreme hills, and absolutely no shoulder- at least a dozen times I had to jump off the road into thorny branches that really tore up my shirt and skin, or onto a guardrail. When I got to the bridge by Creek Rd. I did a little fist pump and let out a whoop of victory...victory being that I got to this point without getting run over!
-Heard quite a few catcalls/jeers/etc from the early bar crowd on Main St. Some jackass even saw me coming and actually blew smoke IN MY FACE as I passed, laughing about it with his stupid townie buddies. So I instinctively reacted and turned and spit at him as I ran past. Fortunately I had been holding my breath as I approached so even though the smoke was in my face, I didn't have to inhale it (this is a regular occurrence with me, I hold my breath around smokers, it gets a little ridic but I particularly don't want to be inhaling it when I'm on a run! Stupid smokers!!!)
-Creek Rd. is always a treat to run
-Finishing on Academy and still having enough time to make it home for THE OFFICE!

a Very fun run!

Set out to do an easy 6 miles tonight. Did two 3 mile laps of this route. I dunno if it was the nice, perfect running weather, or just the tons of rest I've got this weekend, or what but my "easy" run doesn't look too easy, pace-wise. Oh well, here's the damage:

6 miles in 45:45 (7:37 pace)

including:
Mile 1- 7:36.59
Mile 2- 15:17.04 (7:40.45 mile)
Mile 3- 22:59.70 (7:42.66 mile)
Mile 4- 30:33.00 (7:33.30 mile)
Mile 5- 38:23.55 (7:50.55 mile)
Mile 6- 45:45.36 (7:21.81 mile)

1st half- 22:59.70 (7:40 pace)
2nd half- 22:45.66 (7:35 pace)

Once again I focused on midfoot striking and running relaxed, these are two things I want to start making a habit. My calves were still pretty tight and sore from Sunday's double, however there is a decided lack of pain anywhere, especially in my knees!

I was really surprised how easy the pace felt but I was able to easily maintain it throughout with no heavy breathing and my HR stayed within aerobic limits. I guess maybe I'm starting to reap those supposed post-marathon aerobic benefits? time will tell

So I ran a 5k this morning. I set an official PR by over 2 minutes. It was pretty awesome. But 5k just doesn't do it for me anymore. 5k feels a bit too short, like I didn't get enough out of running today. My legs still felt pretty good and I wanted to do an easy run to start recovering for tomorrow. So I mapped out a 7 and a half mile route around campus and went out to do it. I did this run. It was a rather pleasant evening, here's the damage:

7.5 miles in 1:01:45 (8:13 pace)

including:
Mile 1- 8:29.84
Mile 2- 17:06.39 (8:36.55 mile)
Mile 3- 24:51.83 (7:45.44 mile)
Mile 4- 33:12.19 (8:20.36 mile)
Mile 5- 41:16.61 (8:04.42 mile)
Mile 6- 49:29.15 (8:12.54 mile)
Mile 7- 58:07.88 (8:38.73 mile)
7.5- 1:01:45 (3:38.10 half mile)

The whole run felt good, I focused on landing on my midfoot instead of my heel hoping that this will help to prevent future injuries by making myself run more biomechanically efficient. I had some issues with the knee strap later one, it kept getting loose and I had to keep fixing it-probably mostly a mental thing but whatevs. This slowed down mile 7 especially. I managed to finish strong and relaxed, with no pain issues other than general soreness from the race this morning.

This morning I attempted to shake the disappointment of last weekend’s not so fantastic 10k out of my mind by running the 2nd Annual UD Nutrition Club 5k. This race was a complete impulse decision made Thursday night at around 11:50pm. If I registered before midnight it was $5 cheaper and I said if I didn’t then I wouldn’t do it. Well I did and wasn’t looking back.
Saturday afternoon I biked around campus and decided to bike the route I’d be doing. It started up on North Campus and ran down to Creek Rd which runs along White Clay Creek. I’m glad I biked the course because it helped me know what to expect today which was a big mental boost when I was running today.
Woke up around 7-7:30 to get ready for a 10am start. Made myself a bowl of oatmeal with brown sugar and ate that. Started feeling that stomach unrest that comes with pre-race nerves I’m so used to. Also may have had something to do with the two delish burgers I had from Five Guys Burgers. (Not exactly pre-race carbo loading but oh well). Finally got out the door around ten to nine. Got to north campus a little after 9 and picked up my bib, pinned my tank top (I made an exec decision that even though it was chilly, I was probably gonna sweat like a pig (correct) so I wanted something light. Did about 20 minutes of warming up, ran the first little bit of the course down Creek Rd. and was glad we finished before the massive hill at the beginning. Then I headed back to the start and had about 5 minutes to prep myself and get to the line.
At the line I noticed that the field wasn’t very large, I guessed about 60 max. I recognized a guy who I had seen at other Delaware races- he had tattoos on his neck, his arm, near his ear, everywhere so it was easy to recognize him and I knew he was fast as heck. I also recognized a black guy with blonde hair and a blue racing singlet from Friday night when I watched a 5k on Main St. I lined up at the front with a handful of fast-looking types, the race director gave us a quick summary of the course and then the horn went and we were off.
I had three goals today. Sub 20:00 officially, place in the top 10 overall, and place top 3 in my age group. I figured these were all fairly realistic if I ran smart. The beginning took us up and around the Tower’s parking lot, a slight initial uphill and then downhill quickly and steeply for most of the first mile. We were following the race director who was driving a truck and when we got down to Creek Rd, he explained, the Newark police would handle the minimal traffic from there out.
The lead group consisted of 6 of us: a tall, lanky guy and the tattooed guy pushed ahead early and opened up a few seconds lead. I was a few strides behind a young-looking guy and a skinny Asian guy, right next to a blonde haired black guy who I recognized from watching a 5k in town Friday night. I figured that I could hopefully hang with them and use it to run a good time and maybe outkick some of them.
I knew the first mile would be significantly faster than the rest of the race because of the extreme early downhills and I figured that would be ok, that I’d keep my effort constant and give some of that time back on the rolling hills the rest of the way. As we crossed the bridge and made the left to Creek Rd (and the steepest downhill on the course), the two leaders had starting putting some real distance on everyone, and the Asian and young guys had pulled a few meters ahead of us. I was still with blondie. Creek Rd. was nice because White Clay Creek runs along the entirety of it (and we actually passed quite a few people out fishing) and there’s ample shade from trees.
We crossed over the finish line, I looked down and thought to myself, “See you soon!” and kept on. We crossed an old bridge after the course flattened out and then a turn where we came to the first uphill, right around the 1 mile mark. Hit the watch and saw 5:43! YIKES! I honestly wasn’t THAT surprised though- the day I ran my unofficial PR of 19:56, the first mile was 5:58 and that wasn’t nearly as downhill as this. I knew I was slowing some but I tried to keep focused on my effort level and the people ahead of me through the second longer and more gradual uphill. At this point I was really thankful that I had knowledge of what was coming already, it helped me mentally prep myself for it.
Shortly after mile 1, I heard a clomp-clomp of footsteps and could tell someone was right behind me and gaining. I was trying to keep pace with the footsteps but the next uphill was a bit much and on a long stretch I was passed by an older guy (who I guessed correctly to be in his mid-50s). It was seriously impressive to watch him pull away, unfortunately I couldn’t stay on his tail and go with him. Instead I threw up some bacon cheeseburger in my mouth (yuck!) and was dealing with a familiar tightening in my stomach like the one I’d felt the last time I ran a fast 5k. The six guys ahead of me were getting a bit further but I could still see most of them.
There was a steep, short downhill that took us to the turnaround mark. However the speed I built on the downhill was wasted because I had to go right back up the now steep uphill. At the turn I saw the female leader was close behind and that was really it. I realized then that, barring a catastrophe, I was assured a top 10 placing. I was happy about this and it gave me a boost.
Hit mile 2 at 12:49, a 7:06 mile. While this seemed bad, I was expecting something close to this and knew the last 1.1 miles would be more gradually downhill than up and I’d make up some of it. I was starting to tire some and was worried that I would epically fail at my goal time like the previous week’s 10k. I just kept moving the legs and trying to think through the course to the end, knowing I had JUST run what I had to double back on and knew EXACTLY what was coming and where. I also kept telling myself that 1 mile is really not a whole lot at all, and to just hurt a little bit and be done with it.
Shortly after mile 2, the lead female caught me and slowly passed me. This time I was able to go with her for a bit and get closer to blondie (everyone else was out of realistic reach at this point). Alas, I couldn’t follow her all the way and let her go. I glanced at my watch and thought that 20:00 was probably just out of reach but didn’t let that thought slow me down.
Nearing the end, there was a quick left, then right that I thought was closer to the end than it actually was. I started accelerating and realized I still had more to go than I thought and temporarily eased up because I wanted whatever I had left for the very end. A few hundred meters later I spied the 3 mile mark and steeled myself for the uphill sprint finish. I opened up and went for it as hard as I possibly could. The people at the finish were clapping and cheering encouragements. I crossed the line in 20:18, an 8th place overall finish and about 20 second behind the overall female winner and the blonde guy.
I lingered a bit, walked around and shook out my legs, sucked down some water, watched the other finishers and cheered them on. Then we all went back up to the commons area for awards. A quick call to a sleepy Lauren to tell her the good news and then inside to have some peanut butter, bagels, bananas, and OJ. I thought I might have an outside shot at an age group top 3, depending on how old some of the guys in front of me were. Much to my surprise, they got to the 20-29 year old age group and called the Asian guy as the AG winner, and then they called ME as 2nd place!!! Yessiree…2nd place, 20-29, 8th place overall, a shiny silver medal and some self satisfaction.
All in all, a good race. I warmed up much better and smarter this time than in the past. I should have eaten much better the night before but I’ll take this as a learning experience, a bounce back race, a confidence booster, and an official 5k PR by more than 2:15! And I’m pretty sure that it’s just a matter of time before I cross the line sub 20:00 in an actual race. I’m guessing sometime before the summer, there’s a bunch going on down here over the next few weeks, I’ve started training harder again and added some weight training to my schedule to gain some strength and power, especially for these short, more-sprint-type races. Happy running!

The short of it:
5k results:
20:18 (6:33 pace)
Mile 1- 5:43.07
Mile 2- 12:49.51 (7:06.44)
Mile 3- 19:38.84 (6:49.33)
Finish- 20:17.87 (39.03 final tenth)

8th place overall, 2nd place AG (19-29)