OH MY MY MY! What a run today! I wanted to hit the trails at White Clay, and I did. I figured the soft, packed dirt surface would be nice on my joints for a longish run. I've been seriously falling behind on marathon training and this is the all important base-building stage so I'm sorta kinda freaking out. I know I can make up for it and I'm already at a level far beyond what I was at when I started back in November but still, the mileage totals for the past two weeks have been 15.5 and 24! WHAT?! So I decided to start this week off with a longer than normal regular run. I took it nice and easy on the trails, stopping to walk occasionally, including a lovely 5 minute brisk walk when Laur called near the end. I didn't forget that White Clay is hilly, but actually running in it is like a slap in the face each time, and I LOVE IT! I got hot, sweaty, tired, a little sore, but when I was done I felt GREAT and I definitely could have kept going. Methinks some of my harder long runs will take place on the 3.6 mile trail at White Clay! Here's the damage:

10.1 miles in 1:42:22 (10:07 pace)

This included a 1.2 mile run from my car to the trail head, two 3.6 mile loops, and 1.9 miles back to my car. I know the pace is much slower than what I'm normally accustomed to but I don't mind because this was on a very hilly trail and my effort and HR were comparable to my normal runs on pavement. Good run, goodnight!

Finally got a nice longish run in. It had been quite a while since my last true long run. The weather was beautiful, sunny, maybe a trifle hot, but there was a breeze and I decided to run down the bike path. Originally I had planned on 16-17 but cut it short because I didn't want to push it too much too quickly and 14 was more than enough. I only brought a PowerBar and a bottle of cran-rasberry juice, because that's all I could carry. It wasn't much too big a deal except I was flagging quite a bit on the 4 miles from the bike path back to my house. I am actually quite surprised I made it in the time I did. But my first few miles were strong and the miles on the bike path I kept getting faster and faster. Here's the damage:

14 miles in 1:58:41 (8:28 pace)

including:
1st 4 miles- 33:35.31
mile 5- 42:13.75 (8:38.44 mile)
Mile 6- 50:39.45 (8:25.70 mile)
Mile 7- 58:59.56 (8:20.11 mile)
Mile 8- 1:07:12 (8:13.31 mile)
Mile 9- 1:15:25 (8:12.57 mile)
Mile 10- 1:23:30 (8:05.33 mile)
last 4 miles- 1:58:51 (35:21.15)

By the time I got home I was shot. I ran inside and turned the shower on, cold!, stripped down and jumped in. It was FREEZING but it felt SOO GOOD at the same time. And I completely credit it with my lack of general soreness afterwards. If only I had the time for an ice bath. Oh well. This was a quality run and next week I'll up it a bit further. No knee issues to speak of really.

One of the best parts was actually before my run, I was getting set to leave and I tell my dad goodbye and that I was going for a run, he asked where and I said down to the Jones Beach bike path, he said, "You mean you're driving down to it?" and I replied, "No, I'm running down there, running it and running home." He just stared at me incredulously. Runners, yeah, we're different.

Ran from Columbus to Central Park's bridle path, lap of the bridle path and then back to my car on Columbus. Had to go quick because I was strapped for time. sub 7:00 pace did not feel hard AT ALL! wow!

3.05 miles in 21:20 (6:59 pace)

also did a mile with Scott this morning (only a mile because it started thunderstorming so we went back home, oh well. That means that

all told today I did 4 miles

Drove up to NYC to pick up Laur at work, got a late jump so I didn't have time to do as much as I would have liked but got a run in nonetheless. Here's the damage:

6 miles in 52:55 (8:49 pace)

I went from Kidville UWS to Central Park, didn't complete a full loop of the park, started around 83rd (?) and took the W90th St exit and ran the streets back to Kidville on 82nd so I'll just credit myself with 6. From Kidville to Park was 2:55.52, Park loop to Kidville- exactly 50:00.00! :)

Felt very listless at start but settled into a rhythm and didn't push too hard because I haven't run in a while.

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 :)

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 weekend was EXACTLY what my body needed! I spent most of it horizontal in bed with Laur (get your minds out of the gutter...or not). I had planned on doing the inaugural Caesar Rodney 5k which took place an hour before the half marathon start. The very same half marathon that I chose to make my debut to the world of distance running almost exactly a year ago, on shoes that were totally wrong for me, knees that had been breaking down, and training that could be considered pathetic and scattered and unfocused at best. And yet I managed to slog through 13.1 miles in 1:37:30, a 7:27/mi pace. This time around I'm doing double the distance but I've also quadrupled the training, in amount of miles put in and in the focus, thanks in large part to the wonderful advice gleaned from runners, especially travelogger.

So the plan was to do the 5k Sunday morning as a tuneup race of sorts before the marathon. But with daylight savings and the fact that we didn't get to bed til roughly 6am, I figured it best to skip the official race and do a time trial of sorts today. Granted, this would be different, nothing can exactly match the way a race feels- the adrenaline, the crowds, the support, that nauseous feeling right before the start and the thrill of crossing the finish line and seeing your results posted later. Regardless, I was still very psyched to run this "Inaugural Mark Run 5k As Fast As He Can Race". Partly because it would give me a chance to really open my stride and see what all these months of training have accomplished, if they would, in fact, pay off finally. It gave me an excuse and a chance to go fast, really fast, to test my limits and my considerable VO2 max that I had tested- 5.02L O2/min (64.9 mL O2/kg/min) in case you were wondering, well above average- (I love being an exercise physiology grad student and doing these kinds of tests for class that some people pay hundreds or thousands of dollars for, bee tee dubs!) Also, I was looking for a confidence boost that running a fast time here would give me. And finally I had a time goal, or really a pace goal that would translate into a time goal...6:30-6:35 pace which meant I'd be happy with anything under 21:00. I remembered the day I ran 3 miles with Kenny at the MacArthur track and how I did it in 20:05 and I was shot at the end. This would have to be faster. I also remembered that my last official 5k that I ran as fast as I could was only the third or fourth time I had run since being cleared of mono, September 30th, 22:40, 7:17 pace. I remember being dead on the final stretch there too.

I didn't have a flat place to run, let alone a track. I opted to run on the James F. Hall trail because it was marked every 0.1 mile and it wouldn't be crowded, I wouldn't have to wait for cars or slow people or anything. I was going to go out 1.5, turn around to the beginning, turn around and do 0.1 to finish. The way it worked out, I would be starting headed downhill for the first ~0.3 miles, so I knew my time for the first mile would probably be slightly higher than my goal pace and I was ok with that because I knew that coming back I'd have to deal with it going uphill. In fact, going out felt much more downhill than up and vice versa for coming back in. Fortunately that meant the last 0.1 would be downhill, my reward for doing 2.7-3.0 at the steepest incline of the course.

The weather for the run was PERFECT. A little chilly but not terribly so. I had to do a 2 mile warmup first, so I parked my car across the street in the Pep Boys lot and jogged a mile in and a mile back on the trail, going over what splits I needed to hit and psyching myself up. A mile into my warm up I sucked down a PowerGel and then I got back to my car, stripped to just shorts, t-shirt, knee-strap, gloves, and hat and headed back to the start. I made a split decision to lose the t-shirt- I didn't want to be running at the end bogged down with a sweaty, clingy tee. Shirt off, a few rubs of my legs and imaginary gun went off in my head! Here's the damage:

5k (3.1 miles) in 19:56 (PR BY 2:44!!!)

including:
0.5- 2:55.27
1.0- 6:05.53 (3:10.26 split)
1.5- 9:23.85 (3:18.32 split)
2.0- 12:43.65 (3:19.80 split, 6:38.12 mile)
2.5- 16:02.43 (3:18.78 split)
3.0- 19:19.23 (3:16.80 split, 6:35.58 mile)
3.1- 19:56.42 (37.19 tenth of a mile)

WOO-FRAKKIN'-HOO!!!! ::allows self a minute of celebration::

Like I figured, I started the first part faster even then I figured on going. From the first step, my legs felt spry and quick but it was a comfortable feeling, as if they realized that I was allowing them to push their limits for the first time in months, actually- like I had never really pushed them before. I went through the first half mile (which included a moderate uphill from 0.3-0.45, at 5:50 pace and was really shocked but I knew that was the "fast section" so I allowed my body to maintain the effort level. I remembered at this point reading an article about a study done that found when a group of girls was told to go a little faster than planned at the beginning of a 5k, they wound up running a faster overall race. I figured I'd do that too and hope for the best.

Blew through mile 1 feeling good, and about 30 seconds faster than my goal pace. I knew I wasn't going to negative split this and I was ok with that. From 1.0-1.5 was fairly flat, a little rolling. I took the turn at 1.5 without slowing down considerably and I knew I had done almost half, that was an encouraging thought. On the way back from 1.5-2.0 it felt a little more uphill, around this time I was thanking myself for deciding to go shirtless because I was dripping. Right after the turnaround I also took off my hat and shoved it in the side of my shorts to cool myself a bit better. Coming to mile 2, I felt my lungs working harder to suck in the necessary oxygen and I knew I was running right around my anaerobic threshold. More uncomfortable was my stomach, not so much GI distress, just a tightness in it as my body moved up and down quickly and forced air into my chest cavity. I dealt with it.

I was really looking forward to 2.5-2.6 as it was a downhill now, and ahead of me I saw the 2.7 mark which signaled the start of the climb to 3.0 that felt so nice going down. I hit the uphill and really focused on maintaining pace by increasing effort and my stride. I felt my quads powering as they pushed my legs off the incline with my goal so close at hand. I had been keeping track of my splits and I knew that after the first mile my splits were all over 6:30 pace and I didn't want it to get away from me. I worried for a brief moment about bonking so close and quickly pushed the thought of slowing down or failing to meet my goal out of my head. Right after 2.8 the trail turns left and I got a view of the last 0.2 to the start.

As I was approaching 2.9 I thought to myself maybe I would just turn around there and thus give myself a 0.2 mile downhill finish instead of having to go up the steepest part to 3.0 and only going downhill for the last 0.1 mile. After giving this a second or two of consideration, another voice chimed in "WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?! THIS ISN'T A RACE! THIS IS A TRAINING RUN! WHY THE HELL ARE YOU SO WORRIED ABOUT MAKING IT EASY OR RUNNING A FASTER TIME!? YOU ARE NOT GOING TO BE A FUCKING WIMP! YOU ARE GOING TO RUN UP THE FUCKING INCLINE AND FINISH STRONG! NOW! GO!"

And that's just what I did. I went all out and attacked the uphill. At 2.9 I had noticed it was still in the 18:00s and that I may have a shot a 20:00. That was the first moment I had entertained the thought of breaking 20 minutes. When I reached the 3 mile mark and hit the split button, I glanced down as I was turning for home. "19:19! Holy crap, I can do this, but I'm gonna have to go all out, I can't slow down now!"

I opened my stride further and was running as fast as I could at that point, letting gravity aid me. I knew it was going to be close and I just kept repeating "DON'T SLOW DOWN! DON'T SLOW DOWN!" I hit the "tape" and stopped the watch and looked down as I slowed to a jog...SUB 20:00!!! I HAD DONE IT! I lost it, totally lost it. I jumped as high as my tired legs would let me and pumped my fist in the air and let out a loud, excited YES! I just kept bouncing up and down (actually it probably looked more like seizing because my legs didn't have the energy to properly bounce) and yelling "YES" "WOO!" and some expletives. I could not believe what I had just done. An almost 3 minute PR. I know this wasn't an official race, but I ACTUALLY ran the distance and that's how long it took me. I was thrilled. I still AM thrilled. This was the biggest confidence boost yet for the marathon this weekend. I of course immediately called Lauren as I was walking around campus to cool down and regaled her with the nitty gritty details. In a way, I couldn't have done it without her, the positive encouragement that she gives me on a daily basis, how proud I know she is of my achievements, her support and love really have pushed me to get a bit higher than I would've gotten on my own. This running thing is most definitely a team effort.

So that's that. I'm already thinking ahead to the next official 5k I can run, thoughts of age group placing dancing through my head and maybe someday even an overall place! Wow! Amazing what one run can do. Happy running indeed!

There's going to be a lot of lasts from now until marathon day. Today was the last interval track workout. The weather was not being very cooperative- it was drizzling to full on raining all day- but the temp wasn't freezing and that's all I care aboot. I went to the UD track, which I had never been on, although Kenny and I went down to it one night but it was locked. So today I got there and had the track pretty much to myself. Two football players showed up while I was warming up, looked like they were doing some sprint workout themselves for spring conditioning. I did my warmup and stripped off my sweats and psyched myself up mentally. It's not that I don't like sprints, I actually do...they are quick and hard and then they're done. Repeats suck but I realize they play an integral role in increasing overall speed via VO2 max improvement and improved oxygen uptake efficiency in the muscles.

This workout called for 8x400 at 5k race pace
Here's the damage:

Lap 1- 1:24.48
Lap 2- 1:28.50
Lap 3- 1:25.80
Lap 4- 1:26.85
Lap 5- 1:26.07
Lap 6- 1:25.50
Lap 7- 1:26.53
Lap 8- 1:24.07

I gave myself ~50-55 seconds rest in between each one. Like I mentioned, it was raining light to moderate the entire time with ~10-15 mph winds.

On the whole it was a pretty difficult workout, as well it should have been! I went a little too fast but was also very strong through last lap. The pace for those (~5:40-6:00) is not really where I anticipate my 5k race pace being at (6:30-6:40) but I'm happy I didn't slow considerably and ran consistent splits from start to finish. Great final speedwork session! Now for a relaxing weekend with my lovely girlfriend!

Tonight was the last longish run of marathon training for me. I decided that I wanted to run on campus again and I enjoyed breaking up my last Delaware long run into smaller, repeated segments, so I mapped out this four mile route:


I'm getting pretty fancy here with this embedding routes in my blog and everything now, huh? go me. Anyway, I got myself a new knee strap, The McDavid Jumper's Knee Strap, which I found worked phenomenally- it stayed on my knee and didn't slip AT ALL and it helped alleviate some kneecap pain on my left knee. Here's the damage:

The schedule called for:
12 miles, easy, w/last 8 miles @ goal marathon pace (8:00/mi)

12 miles in 1:39:03 (8:15 pace)

including:
Mile 1- 9:21
Mile 2- 18:12 (8:51 mile)
Mile 3- 29:19 (11:07 mile)
Mile 4- 39:06 (9:47 mile)
Mile 5- 46:40 (7:34 mile)
Mile 6- 54:28 (7:48 mile)
Mile 7- 1:02:03 (7:35 mile)
Mile 8- 1:09:43 (7:40 mile)
Mile 9- 1:17:16 (7:33 mile)
Mile 10- 1:24:38 (7:22 mile)
Mile 11- 1:35:04 (7:26 mile)
Mile 12- 1:39:03 (6:59 mile)

1st 4 miles- 39:06 (9:46 pace)
last 8 miles- 59:57 (7:30 pace)

1st half- 54:28 (9:04 pace)
2nd half- 44:35 (7:28 pace)

So as you can see, I went out very leisurely the first 4 miles, I was steeling myself for the last 8, I wanted to make sure this was a good, solid run and a confidence booster so close to show time. I stopped a few times during the first 4 miles, twice to pee, a few times to stretch out my legs and rub down various sore parts. My legs were tight, especially my right leg, around the back of the knee. I can't tell if it's a hamstring tendon, a knee stabilizer, or something else but I know it doesn't feel quite right. But it didn't get worse as I went along, just annoying, so I took that to mean it's ok to run on it and I'm not worsening anything.

Once I hit the 4 mile mark on Main St, I turned the speed up a notch or two. I had sucked down a PowerBar PowerGel, which I'm really starting to like, around 3 miles, and then had another one right before I started the final 4 miles. These really helped. I also finished my water bottle around the 8 mile mark. I wanted to run strong and my legs felt better almost as soon as I started opening up my stride and moving at the faster pace. I have to say, I'm really pleased with the last 8 miles. I ran consistent times for each one of them and got faster and stronger as I went along. I was really cruising down Main St. at the end there and remember hitting the watch, glancing down and seeing a sub 7:00 and doing a little jump/fist-pump combo and letting out a "YES!" much to the bewilderment of the Wednesday night bar crowd at Kate's and Iron Hill. Oh well, none of them had just run a 7:28 pace for the last 8 miles of their 12 miler. I know this was over half a minute faster than goal marathon pace but it felt SO GOOD to push it like this- incidentally I'm almost positive the final 8 miles set a PR for me for any 8 mile run, ever- this was a HUGE confidence booster and really encourages me for the marathon. Afterwards I walked around the parking lot area excitedly relaying the details of my run to Laur and preventing venous pooling in my legs. There's only one more pretty hard workout and then one moderate workout left and the rest are easy to really easy runs before the 26.2 in Va Beach. A run like tonight has me really stoked for it

Today was unseasonably warm in Wark (that's Newark, DE for short) and I took advantage of it to do an easy 6 miler on campus. Today marks what I guess could be considered the official start of my marathon taper. I've been cutting back some for a few weeks now though- there was one Mon-Sun week where I only logged 18 miles!- but those were unintentionally forced to by my body, whereas this cut back will be intentional, so as to get my legs fresh for the marathon. I know come March 16th , I'm going to be bouncing off walls with anticipation and energy. Fortunately I did this run in the am, before we got a bit of miserable drizzle. I mapped a 3 mile loop that toured some of the pretty parts of campus (Main St, the north and south Greens).The route is here in case you were wondering. So I had every intention on running this nice and easy, but at the same time, in the back of my head I was thinking that I hadn't had anything close to even 9:00 pace in almost a week and that sort of worried me, not that it should have. My plan got a little bolloxed by a combination of how good I felt and the fact that towards the end classes were letting out and we all know how I tend to speed up when I'm running past people, it's a subconscious-I-don't-want-to-embarrass-myself thing. Here's the damage:

6 miles in 47:38.58 (7:55 pace)

including:
Mile 1- 7:35.08
Mile 2- 15:44.86 (8:09.78 mile)
Mile 3- 23:56.31 (8:11.45 mile)
Mile 4- 32:00.84 (8:04.53 mile)
Mile 5- 40:17.56 (8:16.72 mile)
Mile 6- 47:38.58 (7:21.02 mile)

1st half- 23:56.31 (7:58 pace)
2nd half- 23:42.27 (7:54 pace)

I felt good, the first mile didn't feel hard at all, struggled to keep even pacing, had to slow to adjust knee strap a few times, my right leg (back of knee area, inside) felt tight towards end, but was able to comfortably push during last mile. Like I said the weather was warm, and somewhat muggy: 63 degree, 65% humidity, overcast outside- big jump from what it's been.

Of note is that I was running with two brand spanking new pieces of running equipment: My New Balance 768s and my Timex IronMan watch. I walked from the Newark shopping center on Main St. to Smith Hall and then to the start on Main & S. College. That was my warmup and my attempt to break them in a little. They felt FANTASTIC! They feel like they stay on my feet a little better and snugger than the 767s, especially in the heel. I feel like I don't have to lace them as tightly to get a snug fit and when I land, my foot feels like it's landing evenly and smoothly.

The watch is also awesome. You'll notice my splits are far more exact than usual, that's the watch's doing. It also records up to 30 splits and is lighter and less clunky on my wrist, plus it doesn't do that annoying "I started but then stopped immediately fucking up the timing of your run" thing the old one did. Can you tell I'm thrilled with my new purchases? Thank you Laur for picking the watch out!

Anyway, so the run was pretty good, I ran pretty evenly throughout and had quite a good deal of energy at the end. Success.

This morning was the second 5k of the weekend for Laur and I. Initially I was thinking I'd do the midnight one with her and run this one in earnest. I smartly changed my mind and did this one with her too, I'm really happy about that decision. We didn't get much sleep, I stayed over at her place because it didn't make sense to drive home to the 'Tagh just to come back to Bayside and drive into Washington Heights in the morning. Bleary-eyed, the two of us drove on a mostly empty road all the way to Washington Heights, where our directions got us kind of lost, but we managed to find the right place in time (barely) and get to the starting line (or the 10:00 mile area of the starting mass of people) just about as the clock started.

We did the Coogan's Salsa, Blues, & Shamrocks 5k. This was race number 1 in our plan to do 9 NYRR races, volunteer for 1 race, and thus get automatic entry into the 2009 NYC Marathon (a little earlier than Lauren's quarter century but oh well). The course was hilly, a straight out and back up Fort Washington Ave and into Fort Tyron Park. course map here We didn't expect to duplicate Friday night's time because of the hills and the wind. Here's the damage:

5k in 32:58 (10:37 pace)

Apparently I didn't cross the start until 1 second after Lauren so my time was ever so slightly faster, even though she had a sick finishing kick for the last 0.1 mile, a kick that surprised me and I think she may have finished a hair in front of me, good job!

Official results here

I came in 2,574th out of 3,263 (1,551 out of 1,779 male)
She came in 2,576th out of 3,263 (1,025 out of 1,484 female)

I'd have to say this race was more impressive because of the challenging course. Both our knees held up well and we finished strong and then horded bagels and cream cheese, went home, crashed out a bit and made breakfast. (After I successfully complained to the parking lot manager that I was not paying for the 45 minutes I froze my ass off online waiting to pay!) Then we finally got out to the Sayville Running Company to buy my new shoes because the New Balance 767's I bought in November have 500+ miles on them. Apparently, New Balance updated the model, so I am now the proud owner of brand new New Balance 768's.

Officially two weeks til the marathon, yikes! Two weeks of tapering off and running smart and staying healthy and carbo loading. I cannot wait!

So this weekend, Laur and I are planning to run two 5ks in 3 days. I will be using these as easy runs because 1- I want to run these races with my darling girlfriend and help pace her as she is just starting to run again after about a month off thanks to wonky knees, plus running a race with her is supremely fun as is the kiss I get at the finish and 2- my knees have been a bit painful of late, the left one feeling the the patella tendon was irritated and the right one felt more like a hamstring tendon or MCL tightness. So two 5ks with Laur=good idea and a great way to do something that helped us get so close in the first place.

Tonight's run was in celebration of the Leap Year. The Republic Airport Leap Year Midnight 5k. It was done ON THE RUNWAY! of the airport, Republic Airport in Farmingdale. The only issue was the fact that it started POURING a few hours beforehand. It was right around freezing and that meant that the rain was more a freezing rain/ice mix that sucked. Being in such an exposed area, we were pelted with strong winds too, and it was freezing. All things considered though, the run went well. Laur and I ran a good race and enjoyed the fact that an airplane took off on the next runway over! It was neat. Her knees started hurting, mine were tight but we finished strong. I remember her looking at me as I sort of eased up at the end and yelled at me for even considering letting her finish ahead of me. oops. Here's the damage:

5k in 31:58 (10:19 pace)

We tied for 196th out of 269

I came in 142 out of 169

She came in 55 out of 100 Right in the middle, aweSOOME!


Overall, a good, wet time and definitely a different race experience.