The Good Lord has His ways....

Well, I was planning on 3 to 4 miles in the morning to test out the ole IT band. But, at 4am yesterday morning I woke up sick. I have had a chest cold, coughing, and full body aches the entire weekend. Just my luck with this being my wife's weekend off work. I did go to church this morning to run the sound board, but it took all I had to do it. So I guess the Good Lord is telling me I need to rest for a few more days. I talked to Rich today and we are going to try and do 3 or 4 on Thursday. I have to be in Nashville at 8am for an all day conference on HR issues, so I need to get to feeling better. CONGRATS to Amy and Vandy-Montana on their good showing at the Running to Beat the Blues 5k on Saturday. I was thinking about that race while I was trying to keep from throwing up!!!!

Thanks Brian for the suggestion on a new running schedule. I might have to work up to 6 days a week though. I like the looks of that schedule. I could increase mileage with it and cut some of the runs back to so I don't end up doing too much all back to back. I plan on buying the Daniel's Running Formula book this week if I can get to Barnes & Noble to pick it up. Keep the suggestions coming.

BTW, I think my County Music 1/2 marathon plans are going to be shot also. I am thinking of working on my base mileage and then hitting some 1/2s and maybe a full this fall.

well, it has been 2 weeks...

Tomorrow will be exactly 2 weeks since I last run. It sucks, but life goes on. I have not been blogging much just to keep my mind off running. Rich text me early in the week to see if I wanted to run 3 miles with him. I said sure, but then I was afraid of how my IT band would do. Well, it didn't really matter, it rained that morning and we cancelled. I plan on trying a very EASY 3 miles Monday to see how I do. I hope everything goes well!!!! I have to get back to running soon, but I want to get better too. I have been looking over base mileage info on the net the past few days. I think when I get back to running, I will spend more time just building a good base. I would like to run 5 days a week with Saturday being my "long" day. I am looking at a schedule something like this to begin....

Sunday-off
Monday-4 miles
Tuesday-2 miles
Wednesday-off
Thursday-4 miles
Friday-off
Saturday-6 miles

I know it is only 18 miles in 4 days, but I am unsure where to put another 2 to 3 miles in. Should I do it on Sunday for a "recovery" day, or put it in on Wednesday or Friday. I think starting slow and working back up to 30-40 miles per week will help me stay healthy. I REALLY want to run the CM 1/2, but I don't want to chance hurting again. I would like to run 5 days a week so that when I do get to 40, 50, or 60 miles a week, I will be comfortable running 5 out of 7 days.

I also know I need to be in the gym doing full body strength training and core workouts. I have been VERY VERY lazy the past 2 weeks. I have not been eatting as good as I was. I don't need to put on weight while trying to nurse injuries.

Well, wish me luck. I think I am at a BIG point in my running career and I need to make some good decisions to keep my career going.

Any advise or comments are welcome!!! What do you think?

It's been a week...

Well, It has been a week now since I last ran. My IT band is feeling better, but not healed all the way yet. I went for a fly ball at my son's baseball practice yesterday and it hurt on about tthe 3rd step I took. There is still a nagging ache there when I go up or down stairs. The thing that confuses me most right now is my left shin. It has gotten really tender since I have not been running. It usually aches after I run and for the 1st mile or 2 when I start running. No it is just aching all the time. I am hoping my body is just repairing any damage that might be there. I am still planning on resting for this next week. I then will get back to running. I figured I would start with 2 miles. If all goes well, I will rest one day and then run 3 miles the next day. I thought I could build up to 8 miles or so that way. Then I will run 8-10 miles and rest 2 days between running days. I hope to get 12-13 miles on one run before the Country Music 1/2. Time will tell.

Here are some side notes to my life the past week.

1. Noah's evaluation for private baseball lessons went well. We will be starting them sometime this week and plan on doing them 2 to 3 times a week. We are dropping the coin for 14 sessions, so he better take it serious. In the 30 minute evaluation Thursday, I seen a big difference in his batting stance before and after they showed him what to do. I also ordered his ComBat Da Bomb 2 baseball bat from eBay Friday night. That thing was $250!!! But he uses the 1st model of this bat and it is outstanding, so I don't mind spending the money on it.

2. Jen is able to start tapering off her high blood pressure medicine now that she has lost over 32 lbs. She will be completely off of it in a few weeks.

3. I am back down in the 170's now. I weighed at my mom's house the other day and was 178. I was at 177lbs last August when I hurt my left knee. I have been eatting like a horse this week with no running, so I figure I probably am back up to 183-185lbs now.

4. Gracie has been doing good at her softball practices. The coach told Jen and I that we are not allowed at practice anymore. She plays better without us there....hehehe. She is throwing and hitting better this year. We still need to work on her catching the ball though.

Well, that is enough for now. I am waiting to hear how everyone did at the 20 miler this past Saturday. I want to send a BIG CONGRATS to RunnerMom for her 20 miler on Friday. KEEP IT UP!!!!!

Now for an update...

Taking a break sucks!!! I already miss running and it has only been 3 days. I went to the sports medicine doctor on Monday afternoon. He confirmed what I thought, it is my IT Band. He wants me to take a 6 week break and go to phsyical therapy again. I can do the therapy stuff at home and the gym, been there done that!!!! I still am planning on taking 2 weeks off and then slowly working back up to the Country Music 1/2 Marathon. My knee still has a small pain in it when i go up or down stairs and attempt anything faster than a walk. This afternoon at my son's baseball practice, I tried to shag a ball and took about two steps and it hurt like hell!!! One of the other asst. coaches was laughing at me. I have not got into the gym yet...hehehe. I have kinda enjoyed sleeping until 6am instead of 4:30-4:45am. My wife has been hitting the gym harder the past week. She text me tonight when she got to work. She is down 32.5 lbs in 8 weeks or so. I am stoked for her!!!!! We are taking my son to Bowling Green Thursday night to be evaluated for private baseball lessons. They have a good baseball training facility up there and we are going to check it out. A friend of mine went last Friday night and loved it. We are looking at 10 to 14 private lessons on hitting, fielding, catching, and throwing. I don't care about him learning to pitch right now though. It is too much stress on a kid's arm. My daughter had a good softball practice tonight. I think she gets the game this year in her 2nd time around. She has improved alot and we have not even worked on anything in the off season. I hope it comes natural for her.

Well, that is all of my boring life for you today....I will post more later in the week...

Everyone stay safe out on the roads and trails running....stay healthy

WOW!!!

After rubbing and icing my IT Band all day and night, IT FINALLY LOOSENED UP!!! I can bend my knee again.....YAAAAAAAAA!!!! When it gave in and relaxed, it was almost orgasmic...hehehe...yeah I said it.

Can you tell I am bored? 3 post in about 3 hours. I suck!!! I can't fall asleep AND I suck!!!!

UK is a #4 seed in the NIT tourney. It is bad enough we didn't make the NCAA tourney. Now were are a #4 seed. What's next? Losing in the 1st round of the NIT? Oops, better not joke about that and jinx us.

The End Is upon Me

Well, all good things must come to an end. I have decided to shelf my plans to run the Country Music Marathon. I am tired of my nagging pains and just want to get healthy again. After talking with other runners and searching online, I have decided that I need to work on building a good base of mileage before I tackle the training for a marathon again. I plan on taking a couple of weeks off from running completely to let my right IT band heal and my shin on my left leg get better. This is all self diagnosing. I have an appointment with a sports medicine doctor tomorrow to have everything checked out. As long there is nothing serious going on, I plan on a 2 week break. I will be hitting the gym to do some core strengthening and low impact cardio. I hope to maintain some of my "running wind" by doing this. I plan on starting to run again with 4 weeks to go until the Country Music 1/2 Marathon. I am going to start off slow, and if all goes well, run the 1/2 Marathon. You can see by the Scheduled Races list on the right that I want to run alot this year. This list is not an absolute thing, but they are races I would like to do. I made this decision to help my running career. Why settle for a marathon once and hurt myself so I can't run, or back off, train better and run many of them.

Thanks to everyone for your support in my marathon training. I am sorry I am letting you down, but I have to do what is right for my body right now. PLEASE, stay tuned to my blog as I continue my training. I will be watching yours to see how you are training/racing.

OH YEAH, GO RIGHT NOW AND BUY YOU SOME COMPRESSION SOCKS. I picked up some on Friday to wear during the 1/2 on Saturday. My calves were not even a bit sore today. I wore them during the race, came home and washed them, and then wore them the rest of the day. Between the socks and the ice bath, I had NO SORENESS in my calves. For that matter, I had no soreness in my legs except for my right IT band.

Now back to icing down my knee.....I hope to see everyone in a few weeks at a race somewhere.

Tom King 1/2 Marathon Report

I am not sure if you know this yet or not, but, I RAN MY 1ST 1/2 MARATHON YESTERDAY! I know it will not be that big of a deal to some of you. But to me, I am very happy. This is not that bad for a guy who started running in April of 2008. Now if I can just get healthy again like last summer....

Now on with the race report. I drank a few Endurance Fuel mixs Friday night to make sure I was primed for the run. I got in bed around 9-9:30pm and slept pretty well. I got up at 5am to start getting ready to go. I wanted to make sure I gave myself plenty of time to get ready. This included my usual morning bathroom business. I figured my day would be bad when I burnt my toast I was going to eat for breakfast. I just gave up on that idea and turned to the ole stand-by, Special K bars. I ate 2 Strawberry ones and drank an orange AMP (sorry, but I have to have caffeine in the morning). I got out the door about 5:30am. I stepped out of the house, and sure enough, it was raining. Not a hard rain, not sprinkles, but just enough. I have ran in the rain before, so I was not that concerned about it. I was just worried about staying warm. I made it to the stadium at 6:30am (plenty of time for an 8:30am start). I made my way into pick up my shirt and packet. After that, I walked around a bit and looked for a girl I went to school with. Later I found out she had woke up, seen it was raining, and went back to bed. She didn't want to run again in the rain, so she said she "pulled a Jay." I watched the start of the 5k race and then headed back to my truck to pin on my bib and get dressed for the race. I drank some more Endurance Fuel and headed out to start warming up. I stretched out for a good 30 minutes or so. With about 10 minutes to the 1/2 start, I ran into Amy and Vandy-Montana. I finally got to chat it up with them for a bit before I had to make another bathroom run. When I came out, everyone was making their way to the start. I found a spot about 3/4 of the way back in the pack. I was feeling alittle nervous since I have never ran a 1/2 marathon race before. I have done the mileage before, so I knew I could do it, but I have never raced the mileage. I was also kinda worried about how my legs would do. They felt great after the week of rest, but I was still worried I would get a few miles into the race and they would die on me. Before I knew it, the gun sounded and everyone started moving. It took a full minute or so before I crossed the mat to start my timing. I punched my Garmin and started out. The start was very congested and it was hard to find a good stride. I weaved in and out of people and finally things cleared up a bit. At about .5 miles in, I checked my Garmin and I was running an 8 min/mile pace!!!! Even though it felt good to be running again, I knew I had to slow down to be able to finish. My first 2 miles were quicker than I had planned, but boy did it feel good to be running. The 1st water stop was a rowdy one. It was my favorite one. The rain was not bad and I never really got too hot or too cold. The only thing I didn't like about it was the puddles. They were not that bad until later on in the race. It seemed like we were in Shelby Park in no time. I was really unsure of where exactly we were running too, so I just followed everyone else. I thought we might be going around the lake again like the CMM, but we stayed straight and headed out of the park on the greenway. This is the part of the course that sucked. There was nothing to look at. I just kept putting one foot in front of the other and trying not to get going to fast. One bridge we went over felt like it was going to fall apart. It was bouncing really bad with everyone running on it. We passed a few water stops here and there, but I kept running. I had a 20oz Endurance Fuel I was carrying with me, so I just took a couple of sips everytime I went through a water stop. About 5 miles or so into it, I hear some cheering and yelling. I look ahead and see the leaders barreling down on us. THEY WERE FLYING!!! I could not get over how fast these guys were actually moving. It was 2 guys stuck together, one or two more just behind them a bit, and then a bigger pack. Man, were they moving. It was not long after that I seen Vandy-Montana coming. He was moving on good too and looked strong. We exchanged words on the fly. I tried to look for Amy too, but missed her somewhere in the mix. About 45 minutes into my run, I ate my 1st pack of Jelly Belly's. I like them and all, but I think I will have to swap to GU. I just about choked to death trying to swallow one. I thought I was actually going to have to stop and hack it up. Anyway, I hit the turn around and checked my Garmin. I currently was on pace to break 2 hours!!!!! I was really happy, but I was starting to feel the effects of taking the week off of running. My breathing was slightly labored and faster than it needed to be. I took a few deep breaths and fell in behind a guy running a 9:20-9:30 pace. I was thinking of the guy as my running partner Rich. I was just trying to stay focused and on pace. When we turned off coming back and made the loop (or whatever you call it), I ended up having to slow to a fast walk for a minute or so to catch my breath. I checked my watch and I was still on pace to finish in 2 hours, but I had to stay on a 9:30 pace or below to make it. At this point is when the rain started to suck. The puddles on this part of the greenway were covering the whole track. Some of them were ankle deep!!! I had kept my feet fairly dry until now. I ended up finding the ankle deep puddle and SPLASH!!!!!! Both shoes were soaked. I ended up fast walking while I ate my 2nd pack of Jelly Belly's just to keep from choking. I picked up the pace a bit and tried to make up for some lost time. This was a mistake. I should have not been racing the time of 2 hours. I ended up starting to get a side ache and had to walk to get it to stop. At 2 miles out, I knew I was not going to make it in under 2 hrs. I think I had to do the last 2 miles in like an 8 min/mile pace to even come close. I just tried to settle into a good pace that was as quick as possible, but not too fast. I ended up passing a few people on the last 1/2 mile or so. I came down the slope into the stadium thinking I was ready for this to be over. My knee was starting to flare up and I knew I would pay for running when I got done. I ended up getting passed coming around the end zone by a girl, BUT she was wearing a UK hat, so I let her go. We chatted for a few seconds about UK before she left me in her dust. I crossed the finish line at 2 hrs and 4 minutes. NOT TO BAD FOR MY 1ST 1/2 MARATHON. The finish was VERY uneventful though. The Titans cheerleaders were out numbered by kids 3 to 1. I walked through the kids to get my medal from a pretty cheerleader. I deserved it after running 13.23 miles (anyone else get a different mileage than 13.1). After the cheerleader tent, I knelt for a quick prayer and then started up the ramps out of the stadium. MAN, DID MY KNEE START HURTING ON THE WAY UP!!!!! I started limping after the 1st incline, but struck up a conversation with a woman who was a 1/2 marathon newbie too. We both were extremely happy!!! I grabbed some water and a few bananas and walked around some. I thought I might find Amy and Vandy-Montana to see how they did and chat for a few minutes. I didn't find them, but the food sure looked good. I was not up for breakfast though and decided to head home. I called my wife and let her know I was done on the way home. She was proud of me. When I got home, I could barely walk. My right IT band was so tight I could not hardly bend my knee. I ended up taking a 20 minute ice bath and then a shower. Then a nice nap...hehehe. So all in all, it was a good race and I am happy I finished. I tried to wear my medal to church, but my wife said I couldn't....dang it!!! Now to hang it and my medal on my wall in the office at work with my other race bibs. Here are my splits....

Mile 1 - 8:29
Mile 2 - 8:52
Mile 3 - 9:03
Mile 4 - 9:15
Mile 5 - 9:15
Mile 6 - 9:17
Mile 7 - 9:30
Mile 8 - 9:23
Mile 9 - 9:36
Mile 10 - 10:17 (fast walked to eat Jelly Belly's)
Mile 11 - 1o:11 (fast walked to get rid of side ache)
Mile 12 - 9:45
Mile 13 - 9:52 (fast walked due to trying to kick it in the last mile...not a good idea)
0.23 - 1:57

My pace was 9:27 min/mile. This is where I would like to be for my marathon.

I COMPLETED MY 1ST 1/2 MARATHON!!!

I did it in 2 hrs and 4 mins. That is 5 mins slower than I wanted (under 2 hrs), but I will take it. After not running all week, I was happy with it. I will post more later or tomorrow. I got 12 celebration drinks to take care of.....now off to the bed for a nap!!!

The night before....

well, at 8am in the morning, I will be starting my 1st 1/2 marathon. I am excited about it, and then again, I am scared. I know I can do the mileage. I know I can do it under 2 hrs. What I don't know is how my body will do. I have rested my legs this week and everything is feeling good. I don't mind running in the rain, but I am not sure how I will react to cold AND rain. I won't be using my MP3 player. I don't mind it getting wet (it's an antique), but I don't want to ruin my $100 Bose earbuds. I was hoping to tag along with Vandy-Montana and/or Amy. But Vandy-Montana is going to bust out hard, and after reading Amy's post today, she is going to kick my butt too. I guess I will just run my own pace and see what happens. I hope I don't look like a dying wet monkey or something worse when I am on the jumbotron!!!!! SO, let the good times roll!!!!!

Here is my pre-race plan for tonight.
1. I have been hydrating ok today, but I drank a few extra waters and some Endurance Fuel tonight
2. I ate pizza and pasta today for lunch. I got a pizza in the oven right now for supper.
3. I plan on getting in bed by 9pm (if the kids will let that happen)
4. I plan on getting to the race at about 6:30am or so. That way I have plenty of time to warm up and get ready.
5. I plan to do a no rain dance prior to going to bed to stop the rain tomorrow.
6. I plan on PR'ing in this race. (Of course I will, it is my first! Unless I DNF!!!)

Well, look me up tomorrow. I should be the wet running who is trying to stay warm...hehehe. I plan on running in my highlighter yellow M.T.M.O. t-shirt over my under armour. If it is really cold, I will have on my long sleeve white KENTUCKY t-shirt.

Hope everyone gets a good night's rest....

Another crazy week.....

OK, me and long runs don't get along. After the 18 miler, I didn't run the next week due to soreness in my calves. Now, after the 14 miles I ran Saturday, I have not run this week either. My IT Band on the right leg has been acting up all week. I got some tips from Vandy-Montana to help take care of it. It feels better today though. I have spent the last to nights icing and rubbing it down. I am beginning to think I have something more than soreness going on in my left calf. It just will not quit hurting. Right now it is just a nagging pain, but after I run it hurts like hell. I am thinking about getting some compression socks to see if they will help. If it hurts after Saturday again, I think I will just go have a X-ray. I am worried it might be a stress fracture in my fibia (the medical side coming out in me). So, if you see me dying Saturday, it is because I have not ran a bit this week. I think I might have gotten in over my head with this marathon thing.......

Until next time....

It's official....

I can't back out now.....I have officially entered the Tom King 1/2 marathon as of 11:30 tonight. Now just to get through it healthy and get ready for the full marathon!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I think I need an ice machine....

I have used so much ice in the past 3 days. Between the ice bath after my long run Saturday to icing my calves and right knee every waking minute, I have used every ice cube in my house. Guess I need to start buying bags of ice to but in my freezer in the garage. I have gotten paranoid now after long runs. I really don't want to miss another week of running due to soreness. The good thing is, RICE helped my knee. The tenderness is all but gone today. My calves are sore, but I feel like I am going to be able to run on them. Just in case, I have ice on them as I am typing....hehehe.

I set the alarm clock for 4:45am this morning and planned on getting in a SLOW 6 miles. It went off, and I hit snooze. It went off, and again, I hit snooze. The next time it went off, I turned it off and laid there willing myself to get up. Then, next thing I know, It s 6:35am and I have to leave the house at 7:00am to get the kids to school and get to work. Sooooo, I missed my run this morning. My son had baseball practice this afternoon, so running is out for today. My wife is at the gym now. As of Saturday, she has lost 30 lbs. I am very proud of her. But as I said above, I am icing down everything!!!!! On a side note, I have a pretty rotten sinus infection too and I felt like crap yesterday. I even left church early because my head was pounding. I have taken a ton of allergy and sinus pills since yesterday, so it feels better atleast.

Now to get some rest, since I lost an hour yesterday, and get ready to pound the pavement tomorrow....

The end of week 9 and a recap of February

Well the run yesterday at Percy Warner Park ended up my 9th week of training. It was a good week. Right now, all I am having is some soreness here and there and a nagging pain here or there. All in all, I feel pretty good. I awoke this morning to some soreness in my calves, thighs, and butt. After moving around for about an hour or so, most of the soreness was gone. My right knee is tender on the lateral side. I am keeping ice on it as much as possible and keeping it wrapped when I am up walking around. I don't think it is much to worry about though. I am planning on 4 miles tomorrow and 6 miles on Tuesday. I probably will go for 4-6 miles on Thursday and then rest for the Tom King 1/2 marathon on Saturday.



So on now to the weekly and monthly totals....


End of week 9 totals
Scheduled miles - 30 miles
Actual miles - 28.59 miles (I did 14 yesterday instead of 16)
****Not too bad, pretty close to scheduled miles****

Month of February Totals
Scheduled miles - 97 miles
Actual miles - 64.22 miles (23 miles missed in week 8 after the 18 miler)
****Mileage is down from where it needs to be. The missed week hurt it more than anything. This was still my highest mileage month to date. July 08 I ran 48-49 miles. Hopefully March will be my new best month.****

Now to get up in the morning and get a slow 4 miles in to see how the legs feel......

The PWP 11.2 and ice baths

Everything worked out and I was able to go to the Nashville Strider's 21 Mile training run this morning. I got in bed last night alittle later (9:45pm) than I wanted too (8:30pm). Between the dog getting up and down all night and the smoke alarm going because the battery was low, I got about 4 hours of sleep. I had set the alarm clock for 4:15am to give myself plenty of time. I ended up crawling out of be at 4:45 and rushing ot get out the door. I made sure I started hydrating yesterday and I spent all day yesterday carb loading. I still drank a gatoraide and a bottle of water on the way down, just to be sure. When I arrived around 6am, there were about 50 people standing around. Shortly after getting out of my truck, they began to do a group stretch. I thought it was still alittle early, but I stepped in and started to stretch with them. While trying to get my MP3 player going, I seen Peter getting stuff out of his car and setting up the 11.2 water stop. I figured out real quick I was not with the Striders, but another training group. So I made my way over to Peter and the othe Striders that were there.

We got started right at 6:30am. I spent most of my time between 6:00-6:30am stretching. While Peter was giving the run down of the run, I spoted Vandy-Montana and Amy. They were towards the back of the crowd, so I didn't want to yell at them. When everything started, I seen them go by, but was unable to say anything to them. So maybe at the Tom King 1/2, we might actually get to talk prior to the race.

We left from he water stop and headed into the park. Now I have already heard about the PWP 11.2 and how hilly it was. I remember ready somewhere about 1 mile hill. Well, about 0.2 miles into the run, we were already climbing our 1st hill. I decided this run I would try to stay around a 1o min/mile pace. I dropped into the pack of runners towards the back on the start and slowing started making my way up the 1st hill. Well, I found out later that there are more hills then I care to describe here. Some of them where short and steep, and some were long and steady. There is not that much flat surface on this run. There was one hill that just kept going and going. I seen the top ahead of me just around a curve. I just kept telling myself that it was alittle bit more to the top and it would be over. When I got to the curve and rounded it, there was another good stretch of hill left to climb. I was heartbroken. But, I put my head down and kept going. I did make it to the water stop at the Steeplechase and stop for abit to get some fluids. After cramping up 2 weeks ago, I didn't want to skip out on fluids. Before the water stop, I meet Bonnie. She is from Kentucky and was training for her next marathon. I believe she told me she had ran 54 marathons so far and was working on running one in every state. She has 34 out of the 50 states completed so far. I ran with her for probably 6 miles just chatting and talking about running. She was running at a pace that was comfortable for me, so I just followed along. The last mile of the run seemed like it was all downhill. I liked that because I think it was the only downhill I had seen all day. When I got to the 11.2 water stop, I stopped to get some fluids again. I felt good since I had just slayed the 11.2 PWP dragon...hehehe. My truck was 20 yards away, and I thought about calling it a day, but I didn't. I headed out down Belle Mead Blvd and then turned on Tyne (I think) on my way towards Radnor Lake. I only had 16 miles to do today, so I didn't want to do anymore than that. I made it to the stop sign on Tyne and decided to start heading back. I ended up cutting my run 2 miles short. I know I can't do that in the marathon, but after running those hills, I was tired. I did end up walking about 5 times throughout the run. Most of them were to eat my Jelly Bellys and drink some fluids from the water I had carried with me. I walked once on Tyne going away from the park, and then once more on my way back to the park. All in all, I was happy with the run and proud of myself for doing the 11.2 loop. I don't want to go back anytime soon though. All in all, I got in 14 miles today in 2 hrs and 27 mins. I think my pace was 10.33 min/mile. That was alittle slower than I had planned, but the walking probably caused it to go up alittle.

I got home and decided to try the ice bath thing again. This time, I followed Amy's instructions on how she does it. I ran cold water in the tub and then got in. OUCH!!!! It was really cold on the boys and I sat down. I then took all the ice out of the ice maker and poured it into the water. It took the ice cubes about 15-20 mins to melt totally. It felt good on my legs, but man was I freezing. I was wrapped in a towel and shivering when my wife came in. She just laughed at me. Now I am sitting watching my beloved Wildcats flush their season down the drain against Florida. I got alittle soreness in my right knee. I have it wrapped with ice right now and it elevated. I ain't that worried about it. Alittle pain after a good run is common for me now.

Now it is time to see if the ice bath works for me tomorrow morning. I plan on running on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday of next week before the Tom King 1/2. I hope my legs are ready!!!!!

Happy Running tomorrow....It is a rest day for me (even though I thought of doing an easy 2 mile run just to help recover).

Headwinds stink!!!!

We (Rich and I) were out at 5:15am this morning for more mileage. We decided to add in the Richland Park loop for a total of alittle over 5 and 1/2 miles. Everything felt good for me and the weather was not hat cold. Just a pretty good breeze blowing. Well, when we took off, the wind was blowing right into our face. We ran all the way to the park and around half the loop with it pounding us. We were doing about a 9 min/mile pace, which we do pretty much everytime. This time though the wind was killing me. After about half way through the run, I had to back off for a few minutes to getting my breathing back normal. We have steady hill that is probably 1/4 of a mile or so on our return run. When we got to the top, my legs were feeling it. This was alittle before 50 minutes into the run. I have been in the habit of eatting my Jelly Bellys at 45 minute intervals. I feel sure that if I were going further, I would have been ok with a pack of Jelly Bellys at this point. I think they are probably all mental, but whatever helps!!!! We finished up the last 1/2 mile at a 8:45-9 min/mile pace. When all was said and done, we got in 5.58 in 52:10. It was a good run and I was happy that nothing was hurting afterwards. I plan on heading down to PWP on Saturday morning to run 16 miles of the 21 mile Nashville Strider's training run. The hills will probably kill me, but what don't kill me will only make me stronger......

Look forward to running the next few days, it is going to be beautiful.....

Well, today's weather was nice

Got up at 5am to get in a run with Rich. At 5:30am, we started from his house on our way for an out and back for a total of 4 miles (d0ne in 36:10). This was supposed to be done yesterday, but we opted for the warmer weather this morning. It was alittle chilly when I went outside, but I got nice and warm while running. We chatted the whole way about The Biggest Loser, baseball, or me running the 1/2 or full. I think I am going to keep putting down the mileage that my marathon training program has planned. I will do 16 this weekend, but the 18 next weekend will only be 13.1 (Tom King 1/2). I plan on running it has fast as I can to push the pace some. I kinda figure the 5 miles I will miss out on will be made up for if I push the 13.1. The 20 miler that is on my schedule will be the Strider's 20 miler planned for the 21st. After that, I think I will start tapering down. There is one more 20 miler on the schedule, but I think I will do 16-18 miles that day. It is only 3 weeks out from the race, and I don't want to be too fatigued or hurt something. My calves are fine now. They felt good this morning while running and I have had no trouble through the day. My right arch is doing better. It is still slightly tender if I mash around on it. So, of course, I am not mashing around on it. It is just a small nagging pain while running, so I am not going to worry about it anymore. I plan on just putting my head down and running the mileage. This week calls for a few more miles during the week. We plan on doing 5-6 miles in the morning. Next week will be a couple of 6 milers and a 4 miler before the 1/2.

So, if you can't tell, I have changed my mind again. I plan on staying on track for the marathon. If anything happens (knock on wood), I will drop down to the 1/2 at the Expo.

Hope everyone has a good run in the morning. It is about warm enough now to run in shorts during the morning.....

Well I made my decision

Well, I went to bed last night and could not go to sleep. I was tossing and turning for at least 30 minutes before I decided to get up. I was lying there thinking about my training so far and where I am at today. I have come along way since I got back from my mission trip to Honduras on Jan. 27th. I have ran 18 miles, which I didn't think I could do until after I did it. I was thinking about my training to come. I have scheduled 16 miles for this Saturday, 18 after that, 20 more the next week, then down to 14 for a week, then back up to my last 20 miler. I look at that and want to puke. I have a full plate of work, church, kids' practices, and family time to consider. I don't know if I will honestly have time to do all the long runs like I need too. I then started looking at the training plan for the 1/2 marathon. The longest run for it is a 12 miler. That would be very good for Saturdays when both kids have practice on Saturday morning. I would not have to punish myself into missing another week of running from soreness after a long run.

With all that said, I DECIDED LAST NIGHT TO PUT MY PLANS FOR A MARATHON ON HOLD AND JUST DO THE 1/2.

I still want to do a marathon, and might try for one late fall/early winter of this year, but for now, I will do the 1/2. Afterwards, I can spend the rest of spring and summer building a good base of 20-30 miles a week. I plan to hit atleast one 5K /10K a month anyway.

Fast forward to now. Vandy-Montana and Amy (someone needs to show me how to hyperlink) think I should keep training and run the marathon. Rich told me Sunday afternoon that he felt I could get the full without walking or with walking a short bit. Some of the people I talked to today want me to keep going. Vandy-Montana did say to sign up for the marathon and keep training. Come time, if I don't feel ready, change to the 1/2 at the Expo (Plus he is going to make fun of me when I run by with a 1/2 big on!!!!). So I don't know what the heck I will do.

Anyway, Rich and I decided to run tomorrow morning in 40 degree weather instead of this morning in the low teen's chill. We are doing 4 or 5 in the morning and then 4 or 5 Thursday. I may do 1 or 2 more for a total of 6 miles on one of the days.

Well, I need to hit the bed to get some sleep before running tomorrow morning.....

I hate treadmills....

Well, this morning started out butt cold again. I decided to just hit the gym for my mileage today. I headed there around 5:30am to give me enough time to do 6 miles and then get ready for work. I got there and hit the treadmill after stretching. I decided to just do a 10 min/mile pace to not overdue it. After about a mile and a half, I wanted to shoot myself. I HATE RUNNING ON A TREADMILL. I felt like I was going to fall off the damn thing. My new shoes are wider than my old ones. They got on my nerves slapping the belt of the treadmill. The sound of the treadmill was driving me nuts. About 3/4 of a mile into running, my MP3 player locked up, so my music was shot. I was forced to listen to Channel 5 news while trying to run. After 2 miles, I decided to call it quits. The bad thing was, the 3 miles I ran yesterday were in the back of my mind. So, I really only dropped a mile instead of 4 miles. But I know in the long run, I need the 6 miles to be all at once. I am worried about testing the calf and arch though. I really don't want them hurting the next 7 weeks before the marathon. I have decided to move my Tuesday morning run to Wednesday morning. It is going to be 20 degrees warmer, so that is a no brainer. Rich and I are going to do 4 miles on Wednesday and then 4 more on Thursday. I got 16 miles planned on Saturday. I hope I can go to PWP for the Striders run, but I am not sure when my daughter's softball practice is. I might have to get up at 5 am and do 16 miles here in Portland to make it to all the practices on Saturday. Anyway, I'm off of here to go take some more Aleve.

Hope the treadmill don't shoot me off of it next time I try and run on one......

End of week 8...Start of week 9

Here is a random pic of my wife and I on a bowling outing with the family.

Well, I have not posted anything over the past few days. I have been just kinda hanging out around the house. Vandy-Montana was encouraging me to come out and run the Race Judicata race Saturday. I had not run all week and was still worried about how my calves would do. I finally made up my mind that I would head down to run both the 5k and 10k. I wanted those arm warmers!!! Anyway, I was scheduled for 12 miles on Saturday and planned to run both races and call it a day. Well, when I woke up at 5:15am Saturday to get ready to go, it was cold and pouring down rain here in Portland. I decided I didn't want to freeze while running, so I chickened out and climbed back in bed. Later, I got a message from Vandy-Montana that I had missed 2 good races. Looks like he and Amy both did well in the races. So CONGRATULATIONS!!!! In the pics I seen, everyone looked like drowned rats....hehehe. I decided on Saturday I would rest the calves until Monday and then start on Week 9. Well, this afternoon I got a text from Rich. He was planning on running 3 miles from our neighborhood to his church to pick up his car and he wanted me to go with him. I decided it was time to try out the ole legs. We left at 3pm and headed out into a strong headwind for our 3 mile run. Nor he or I had ran much this week, so we both were trying to get our breathing right. I was going to run 3 miles to the church and then just run back, but after eatting eggs, bacon, and toast for lunch, I decided not too. They were in my throat at about mile 2.5. We finished our run in 26:48. We were surprised we had done it that quick, but I think we were just trying to get out of the wind. The good news is, MY LEGS DID GREAT!!!! I stretched really good before and after I ran. I was just happy to get out and run again and make it 3 miles without pain. Now for 6 miles in the morning. Not sure if I will brave the cold and run outside, or head to the gym to hit the treadmill. Week 9 brings 30-32 miles, so I am more than willing to knock them out. Rich is still unsure if he is going to run the 1/2 marathon at the CMM. If he don't run, I think I will just sign up for the 4:30 pace group and run with them. I don't want to try and pace myself because I suck at it. I will start out way to fast and die at the end. So, bring on week 9 BABY!!!!

On a side note, I am an assistant coach for my son's baseball team. We had a coach's meeting tonight to decide on our practices. We have 3 1 and 1/2 hour practices a week. I am happy to get in as much practice as possible for a group of 9 and 10 year olds. But, I also will have 2 to 3 1 and 1/2 hour practices for my daughter's softball team. Looks like I will be living at the park for the next 4 months. Once again, BRING IT ON BABY!!!! I love my kids playing baseball and softball!!!! They have a blast and I have a blast watching them. But with work, church, softball/baseball practice AND training for a marathon, I wish I could clone myself!!!!!

End of week 8 totals
Scheduled miles - 24 miles Actual miles - 1 miles (WOW, don't everyone clap at once) ***Atleast I got some rest***

Now for week 9 and 30-32 miles....