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While this is technically the first week of my training plan for the St. George Marathon, the first scheduled run doesn’t happen until Saturday. However, I’m hoping to get in some good mileage leading up to the weekend.

Last Week:

After getting off to a good start last Tuesday & Wednesday, I turned into a lazy bum the remainder of the week. The only real positive is that I got in 4 solid days of cross training activities, including 2 upper body workouts, 2 leg workouts, and 2 abdominal workouts.

I also mapped out my weekly cross training schedule for St George training…

(Click to Enlarge)

My goal is to get in 15 to 20 minutes of cross training each day until race week. Now that training has officially begun, there can be no more lazy days off from running or cross training!!

Tuesday

After struggling to hit my “easy” run paces last week, and having a miserable run on Sunday, I felt really smooth during my 6-mile run yesterday afternoon on the Harpeth River Greenway. The temps were in the mid 80s, but I still hit my target pace for every mile, except the first by 2-seconds when I was still warming up. Here are the splits (goal range 8:26 to 9:05):

My legs were a bit stiff during the first mile, but generally felt good after that. Glad to finally hit my “easy” pace.

For cross-training I got in a short abdominal workout last night. Working on finalizing my cross-training schedule for St. George.

Wednesday (Today)

I met some friends at the main gates of Percy Warner Park at 5:15am for a hilly, 6.5-mile run in the park. Most in the group were running 9-miles, but my plan was to run just past the 3-mile marker, which is a climb of just over 1000 ft., and then head back down the same route. My goal is to get in some downhill running that closely approximates what the St. George descent will be like. With that in mind, I didn’t worry too much about “easy” pace since anything would be greatly skewed by the elevation change (my overall avg was 9:15 per mile)….

Overall I felt pretty good considering that I had barely over 12-hours between runs. My legs felt better than they had in a long while during the climbs. My friend Marc also only wanted 6-miles, so it was nice to have him accompany me back down. As many times as I’ve run the main drive in PWP, this is the first time I’ve ever done an out-and-back to the top of “3-mile-hill.” Will likely make this a regular part of my St. George training.

After mid-week Bible study tonight, I came home and got in the following short leg & back workout:

• Balance Lunge (25 each leg)
• Calf-Raise Squat (25 reps with 2 x 15 lb dumbbell)
• Reverse-Grip Chinup (10 Reps)
• Super Skaters (25 each leg)
• Wall Squats (1 min 30 sec)
• Wide-Front Pull-Up (8 Reps)
• Step-Back Lunge (15 each leg with 2 x 15 lb dumbbell)
• Deadlift Squats (20 each leg)
• Switch-Grip Pull-Ups (8 Reps)

Beast Mode…ON!

My intention was to wake up early before worship service this morning and knock out a 6-mile easy paced run. However, I couldn’t get myself out of bed, so that meant I got to do the run this afternoon.

Early this morning it was in the low 50s, but when I started at 2pm it was in the 70s with full sun and high humidity. I was already tired from yesterday’s 10-miler, but the addition of the heat and humidity made this a miserable run.

I parked at the entrance to Percy Warner Park and ran through the streets of Belle Meade, mostly on Belle Meade Boulevard. I mentioned in yesterday’s post that my objective leading up to the start of St George training to practice my target paces. For an “easy” run, my range is 8:26 to 9:05 per mile. This topic leads to the strangest thing about today’s run. As awful as I felt, I was still too fast of 3 of my 6-miles…

This is baffling to me. I wasn’t intently focused of my watch today, but when it would beep at the mile splits I was shocked when I saw that it was too fast. Ever since I came back from the half marathon in Indy, I’ve been inexplicably pushing the pace on most of my runs.

Anyway, even though I paid the price for my lack of discipline in getting up early, at least I got the run done today. Also, because I count my “running week” from Monday to Sunday, this was my first 5-day-week since coming back from my latest injury.

Beast Mode….ON!

In the lead-up to the beginning of my training schedule for the 2014 St. George Marathon, my goal is to keep building my base to prepare for the higher mileage weeks, and to practice the designated paces from the Hansons Plan for various types of runs. During this week I’ve been practicing “Easy” pace, which is supposed to be between 8:26 and 9:05 per mile. I nailed this on my Monday run, but was waaaay too fast on Wednesday.

Yesterday (Friday) morning I met Brian for a 4.5-mile run through the streets of Bellevue and on the Harpeth River Greenway. During that run we hit the goal for all 4 of the complete miles….

Today my goal was to get in some practice doing a 10-miler at “Long” run pace, which is supposed to be between 8:05 and 8:25 per mile. I started out with my running group at the Edwin Warner Park Nature Center. They were planning on doing approximately 10-miles on the Harpeth River Greenway, but I wasn’t sure if anyone else would want to run that pace since most are coming off recent marathons. About 30 seconds after starting I realized this would be a solo effort.

This pace is a lot faster than I’m used to for a long run, but I felt really good for the first 7 or 8 miles. Generally I did a decent job of keeping most of the splits around my goal range, but tended to be a little fast. My last two miles were a bit tough, but I still kept a good pace. I made the mistake of not carrying water, and was very dehydrated by that point.

My overall average was 8:04, so just a touch too fast, but not a bad first try. After grabbing some much needed water, I ran an additional 1.2-miles at a much more modest pace as a cool down back to the Nature Center. Feel good about this effort though I know it is only gonna get harder as the Summer temps arrive.

I normally don’t run on Sunday, but if I can be disciplined enough to get up early tomorrow I’m hoping to get in another 6-mile easy run before morning worship service.

Beast Mode…ON!

With thunderstorms in the area this morning, I decided to come home from work a bit early and try to squeeze in an easy 6-mile run before midweek Bible study. It was cloudy, windy, and a bit cooler (mid 70s) when I started but the humidity was NASTY. I also knew more heavy rain was on its way so I was hoping to knock out the run before it arrived.

I parked my car across from the Old Harding Road driving range, and ran 1.5-miles out-and-back both directions on the Harpeth River Greenway. My legs felt really good from the start, and my pace quickly got a bit too fast. The plan was to try and keep all my splits between 8:26 and 9:05, which is my “Easy Run” range under the Hansons training plan that I intend to start in a couple of weeks. I was good for the first two miles with 9:00 and 8:27, but then mile-3 was 8:07. As I started the second out-and-back I kept telling myself that I needed to slow down.

About a 1/2 mile into the second segment I started to feel a few raindrops and then after another 1/4 mile the bottom completely fell out. For some crazy reason I decided to run without a hat, and I could barely see anything with the downpour. I took off my shirt and made a quick, makeshift bandanna, which did a surprisingly good job of keeping the rain out of my eyes. Since I was already soaked, and there was no lightening, I decided to just finish my planned route. While the rain was a little irritating at first, I quickly started to feel fantastic. The cool rain was much more tolerable than the intense humidity at the beginning, and my body just dropped into a nice groove. Of course this also resulted in me continuing to run faster than I planned as my splits below demonstrate:

For some reason my body just wanted to go faster today, and all-in-all this run felt fantastic. The good thing is that the last mile really didn’t feel much faster than any of the others.

So, hoping to get in another easy 6 over the next two days before a 10-miler with the group on Saturday. Trying to build up my base a little over the next two weeks before St George Marathon training officially begins.

Beast Mode….ON!

This looks daunting when written down, but below is my tentative training plan (click to enlarge) for the 2014 St.George Marathon. It is based on the Hansons Advanced Marathon Training Plan:

(Click to enlarge)

It’s gonna take a LOT of discipline the make it through this schedule, especially considering I’m having a hard time finding running partners these days. The total weekly mileage peaks in the mid-60s, but the longest single run is only 16-miles (that’s right….NO 20-milers).

I shifted the Hansons plan a bit so I could end up with my Speed / Strength workout on Thursday and my tempo runs on Saturday. My plan right now is to do the speed workouts at the Vanderbilt track with the JSRC track group. I won’t be able to do the same workouts as everyone else, but at least it will give me access to a track. When it comes to the strength workouts I plan to do these on local greenways.

By far my two biggest concerns are consistently doing 6-days of running each week AND the tempo runs at goal marathon pace. Those are gonna hurt!

Beast Mode…ON!

Just found out about an hour ago that I was selected in the lottery for the 2014 St George Marathon! So excited to be participating in this race. Definitely one of my bucket-list marathons and a chance for redemption after dealing with multiple injuries over the past 18+ months. It is also the perfect race to celebrate my 40th Birthday! Can’t wait!!!

Now, I’ve got to work-out travel arrangement and my training plan. On training, my goal is simple….3 hours 15 minutes. I’ve broken it once before, but this time it will be for a BQ. Everything I do in training will be aimed squarely at this target. I also know that to get there I have to avoid injury, which has been a problem for the last year and a half.

I mentioned in my post yesterday that I hoped to get back on the road today after taking last week off. I got in a solid 6.25-mile easy run on the Harpeth River Greenway. It was pretty warm and humid, but overall my legs felt fantastic. If I decide to go with the Hansons Marathon Training Plan, my easy-run target pace will be between 8:26 and 9:26 per mile. Today I averaged 8:40 pace, which is right in-line.

Beast Mode….ON!!!!

Well…tomorrow is the day I find out whether or not I made it into the 2014 St George Marathon. Feeling a little nervous, because I REALLY want to do this race to celebrate my 40th birthday and return to marathoning. If I don’t get in, then I hope to quickly select an alternate race. Either way I plan on mapping out my training plan ASAP, and am strongly considering doing the Hanson’s Advanced Plan. More on that later if I choose to go this direction, still in the middle of reading the Hansons Marathon Method book.

After the 500 Festival Mini Marathon last Saturday, I took an unplanned week off from running this week. Just felt tired and decided to take a week to recover. My plan is to get back on the road tomorrow. I did a new core workout yesterday morning, and my obliques are more sore today than I ever remember before. This is definitely a problem area for me, so hoping this new routine will help out there.

Beast Mode….ON!

Not sure about the quality or quantity of the hay, but whatever I have is in the barn for the 500 Festival Mini Marathon tomorrow in Indianapolis.

I was able to get in 2 tune up runs this week. The first was an easy 4-miler on Wednesday through the streets of Bellevue at approximately 9-minute pace. After taking 3 days off I was surprised at how bad my legs felt. I guess this was a lingering result from my miserable 13-miler on Saturday.

The second was a 4.75-mile run yesterday on the Harpeth River Greenway. After a 1-mile warmup, my plan was to do 3-miles at goal race pace. I ended up running waaaay too fast with an average pace of 7:34 per mile. This was a mistake for several reasons:

1.) I was pretty tired at the end, which is not smart. Didn’t want to trash my legs for the race.

2.) My goal pace is closer to 7:40, but I have no idea if this is attainable. I know I can complete 3-miles at 7:34, but this doesn’t tell me much about how I would have felt at 7:40 pace.

3.) This offered no practice at maintaining 7:40 pace.

So, tomorrow I’m just going to run by feel and hope to keep every mile under 8:00. This will guarantee a finish of 1:45 or less. If I push much harder than this, especially early on, I’m afraid I may end up walking.

Cross Training

Haven’t done much this week, but did get in a half set of P90X Chest and Back on Monday and X-Stretch last night.

Beast Mode…On

Since this is race week, I’m only going to run 3 days at the most before the race on Saturday. Here is my plan:

Tuesday – 3 to 5 miles easy
Thursday – 5 miles with 3 at race pace
Friday – 2 mile shakeout run

After my dreadful 13-miler on Saturday I have no idea what to expect in Indy. I was hoping to better my 1:41 from the Tom King Half in early March, but I’m honestly just going to run according to feel on race day.

Cross Training

Even though I didn’t run today, I did get in another half set of P90X Chest and Back. It is humbling how much upper-body strength I’ve lost, but I’m determined to get it back.

Beast Mode…On!

While thousands in Nashville were running the Country Music Half Marathon, I was doing my own 13.1-mile run this morning. There was not a group run today, so did a solo-run starting off at the Chickering Rd entrance of Percy Warner Park and then running to Radnor Lake and back. While I did have one stretch from miles 7 to 10 where I felt good, the majority of this run was brutal. I made the mistake of not carrying fluid with me, and the temperatures got up into the mid-70s before I finished. I was also dealing with a lot of soreness and fatigue from my hard track workout on Thursday.

I really struggled with the fatigue and soreness on the way out, and several times I thought about just cutting it short. However, the payoff in the middle was awesome getting to run for a little bit by the beautiful Radnor Lake. I was also finally able to get some fluids (and take a GU) at the Nature Center.

Once I started back, my legs came alive for a few miles, and I got into a nice little groove. This lasted until I was about halfway through mile-11, and the heat started getting to me. I still kept a decent pace, but couldn’t wait for the run to be over.

Even though this was clearly not one of my better runs, I still did all but 3-miles under 9:00 pace (I was not trying to push it). Hopefully there will be cooler conditions for the Indy Mini Marathon next weekend.

Beast Mode….ON!

Today’s Run

As usual for Thursday, tonights run was a track workout with the JSRC. I have been feeling crummy the past two days, so I almost didn’t go. However I knew I would regret it if I bailed.

Since almost everyone from our running group ran Boston on Monday, there were only 3 who showed up at the track. I ended up running all of the repeats with Andy, who is WAAAAAAAAAYYYYY faster than me (even if I were in peak fitness). He ran a LOT slower than normal so we could do them together, and in turn I ended up pushing quite a bit harder than I had planned. However, Andy kept giving me lots of encouragement (and even some coaching), and it turned out to be a great workout. I forgot my watch, so I can’t remember what all of my splits were, but here is a rundown of the intervals:

• Warmup (1.3-miles)
• 6 x 100m Stride Outs
• 800m fresh (200m recovery)
• 600m fresh (200m recovery)
• 400m fresh (200m recovery)
• 3 x 200m fresh / good / fresh (100m / 400m recovery)
• 600m fresh (200m recovery)
• 400m fresh (200m recovery)
• 800m Straights & Curves
• Cool down (.25 miles)

I felt fairly louse through the 200s, but started to find a groove during the last 3 intervals. All-in-all I’m definitely glad I didn’t bail on track tonight.

Cross-Training

After getting home I did a half-set of P90X Arms and Shoulders. Of all the P90X workouts, this one is where the after-effects of the brachial neuritis in my left shoulder rear their ugly head. I can be lifting a 30-lb dumbbell in my left arm with no issue, and then with the slightest turn it’s like I’ve got nothing at all. There was one particular shoulder workout where I could easily use a 30-lbs dumbbell with my right-arm, but could barely lift 5-lbs with my left. Anyway, I got through the workout, and should be better prepared for how to approach it again next week.

Today’s Run

After a hard progression tempo effort yesterday afternoon, today’s run was a little more conservative. I ended up doing an easy 5-miles utilizing the flat section of the Blue Trail in Edwin Warner Park and the Harpeth River Greenway. The weather was perfect with sunny skies and temps around 78º with a gentle breeze. My legs were quite tired and heavy from yesterday, but felt a lot better by the time I was finished. I actually briefly considered doing a full-on trail run today, but thankfully decided against it. That would have DESTROYED my legs. Anyway, here are my splits:

Cross-Training

After finishing my run I did the P90X Ab-Ripper-X workout, which I have not done in a long time. The intent is for each set to be 25 reps, but I started modestly by doing 15 of each. Hoping to slowly work my way up over the next several weeks.

Tomorrow will be a planned rest day from running and cross-training.

St George Fallback Plan

Yesterday I posted about entering the lottery for the St George Marathon in October. In my post I mentioned needing a fallback plan in case I’m not selected, and want one that would be a great destination for celebrating my 40th birthday (and return to marathoning). Well today I found out that there is still a way to get into the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, DC. as part of the Runner’s World Challenge. The fee is a bit more, but would be worth it to have a great fall destination race. Likely won’t sign-up until after the lottery drawing on May 5th, so I hope there are still spaces available. Any other suggestions out there?

Beast Mode….ON!

American Strong: The Untold Story of American Teamwork and How Ryan Hall Helped Meb Keflezighi Win Boston (LetsRun.com)

I’m sure like almost everybody who was paying attention to the Boston Marathon yesterday, I was blown away by Meb’s performance in becoming the first American winner since 1983.

Last night a story was posted to LetsRun.com by Robert Johnson about how American Ryan Hall, along with other American elite runners, worked together to help Meb accomplish this amazing feat. This is a great read, and an even better story. Amazing that Ryan coordinated all of this when his own personal race was going so poorly.

Must Read >> American Strong: The Untold Story of American Teamwork and How Ryan Hall Helped Meb Keflezighi Win Boston

So Is This A Running Blog or What?

It’s true that this blog has been little more than a mirror of my Instagram feed and a place for my Bible class notes for the past 6-months or more.  Honestly, my running has been fairly aimless since returning from my many injuries in the fall of last year, and there hasn’t been a lot to write about. I have been making goals each month, but very inconsistent in hitting them. My running base and overall speed is improving, but I need a LOT more structure to have any shot of getting back to where I was in the spring of 2012 when I set my current marathon PR of 3:12:28 at Rock n’ Roll New Orleans.

I also have to find a way to be more disciplined in cross training. To this point in 2014, I’m averaging just over 100 miles per month with absolutely NO cross-training. This is a sure-fire recipe for getting injured again. To get back to where I want to be will require 150 to 200 miles per month, and there is no way to do this without dedication to cross training.

So, starting this week I’m trying to get more serious about making a return to marathoning this fall. This will include putting together a detailed training schedule (trying to decide whether or not to hire a coach for this), and also schedule for upper and lower-body cross training activities.

Also today I put my name in the hat for the St. George Marathon lottery. This is a bucket-list marathon, and would be a GREAT place to mark not only my return to marathoning, but also my 40th birthday. I was hoping to get a group together for the race but didn’t end up having any takers, so if I get in it will be a solo effort. This seems appropriate since running is such an individual sport. It will also provide an opportunity for a little mini vacation with Olivia.

However, I know that the odds are against being selected in the lottery, so I need to pick our a backup plan. Trying to find a marathon that would be a great destination for celebrating my 40th, but is also a fast and scenic course. Any suggestions for the fall?

Today’s Run

I went out to the Harpeth River Greenway after work with Olivia and the Girls. Both Sara and Kate are completing miles toward the ING Kids Rock Marathon this Sunday (Sara’s first kid’s marathon), and still have a little ways to go. I started off walking with the girls before moving into a progression tempo run over six miles. Here were my splits:

My BQ time for a fall marathon will be 3:15:00 (7:26 pace), so it was nice to get in the last two miles under this pace. I felt really good throughout, and it was good to criss-cross the girls several times during the run. After the 6th mile, I ran an easy half-mile cool down with Kate as she was finishing her 4th mile, and then walked another quarter mile with Olivia, Kate & Sara. All-in-all it was a good afternoon run.

Cross Training

Tonight I knocked out a half set of P90X Chest and Back. I’m still feeling the affects of Brachial Neuritis in my left shoulder when attempting push-ups, but still got in a fair number of reps. I feel quite confident I’m going to be VERY sore tomorrow.

Looking Ahead

A week from Saturday I’m planning to run the 500 Festival Mini-Marathon in Indianapolis. I had a deferred entry from missing last year, so I finally decided to give it a go. This will be my 5th Mini. Hoping to improve upon my 1:41 from the Tom King Half Marathon back in early March. I didn’t have a qualifying half-maration time from the previous year, so it will be strange not being in a seeded corral near the front.

Beast Mode….ON!

I just updated my Race Log and Personal Records page with results from today’s Tom King Classic Half Marathon. Happy to finish my first race in 13-months! Glad to be able to add to the log again, and hope to keep it going this year…injury free!

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As we move into March, the slow rebuilding of my running endurance and speed continues to go well. In February I completed 2 runs of 15-miles, and had a great, hilly 12-mile race-pace workout with my group that was a big confidence builder. I’ve still got a long way to go, but I continue to see small improvements each week.

Tomorrow will be a big step for the NEXT Chapter, as I attempt my first race in over 13 months at the Tom King Classic Half Marathon. I know my finish time will be a far-cry from what I’ve done in the recent past, but I’m looking forward to feeling the excitement of race day! Also, I’ve been stuck on 13 marathons and 13 half-marathons for quite a while, and I really want to complete another one to prove to myself that I’m still in the game. No real goals tomorrow other than to finish without injury!

At the beginning of the year, I decided that I was going to take it month-to-month with my goals, and try not to get too far ahead of myself. Here is a quick review of my February goals:

(1) Complete at least 110 total miles running

Missing the first Saturday of February due to illness really hurt me here, but I still managed to complete 105.5-miles during the month. If you expand that by only 1 day to March 1, then the total would be 120-miles. Not bad considering February only has 28 days. I’ll consider this an overall Win.

(2) Complete at least 2 trail runs and 2 road runs with over 1,000 ft. of elevation gain (strength)

I ended up with 3 road runs with over 1,600 ft. of elevation gain, and 1 trail run (1,550 ft) for the month. Not precisely the mix I was shooting for, but I still think the overall result was consistent with my objective. This is another Win!

(3) Complete at least 2 track workouts and 2 race pace workouts (speed)

Similar to #2, my mix was a bit off, but I did 3 track workouts and 1 race pace workout. Still think this is a Win!

(4) Complete at least 4 leg workouts (strength)

Everything related to cross-training has been terrible so far this year. I just can’t seem to get motivated. Only did 1 leg workout in February. FAIL!

(5) Complete at least 4 abdominal workouts (strength)

No ab workouts in march. Another big FAIL!

(6) Lose at least 3 pounds

After losing 8.5 pounds in January, I lost another 2.5 in February. A tad short of 3, but I’m still on the right track. Consider this a Win!

Here’s a rundown of my March goals:

• Finish the Tom King Classic Half Marathon WITHOUT Injury!
• Complete at least 110 total miles (Not pushing this much since we have a week-long spring break vacation)
• Complete at least 4 leg workouts (let’s try this again!)
• Complete at least 4 abdominal workouts (need more discipline)
• Lose at least 2 pounds

Well, there you have it! Wish me luck for the race tomorrow!

Rebuilding my Base

So far my running in January and February has gone really well, other than a silly fall on some ice a couple of weeks ago that resulted in some minor abrasions and a broken finger!! I’ve been pleased with how well my hips and legs have felt after the injury last year, and have been surprised at how quickly my endurance has returned. I’m beginning to get excited about my running again! After only running 32 total miles in November and 33 in December, I was able to complete 95 in January, and this included my first run of greater than 13.1-miles since the injury.

At the beginning of the year, I decided that I was going to take it month-to-month with my goals, and try not to get too far ahead of myself. Here is a quick review of my January goals:

• Run an average of at least 20-miles per week

My average for January was 21-miles per 7 days, so this was a WIN!!

• Workout for at least 30-minutes per day (except Sunday)

Didn’t come close to hitting this one, and I know that my cross-training MUST improve to remain injury free, and get back to where I want to be.

• Lose 8 pounds

Lost 8.5 total pounds in January so this is another big WIN!!

Now that I’m starting to get my mileage base back, I need to start focusing on two things for February:

1. Strength
2. Speed

Even though my endurance is coming back, I feel like a Mud Turtle! This was especially true during my two track workouts in January. I felt like I had a 50 lb pack strapped to my back.

To help with my strength, I did a 6-mile run with a few members of my group this week in Percy Warner park. Our total, cumulative elevation gain for those 6-miles was over 1,600 ft:

Even though I did ok, it really demonstrated to me how far I have to go!

So, with that in mind, here are my February 2014 goals:

1. Complete at least 110 total miles running
2. Complete at least 2 trail runs and 2 road runs with over 1,000 ft. of elevation gain (strength)
3. Complete at least 2 track workouts and 2 race pace workouts (speed)
4. Complete at least 4 leg workouts (strength)
5. Complete at least 4 abdominal workouts (strength)
6. Lose at least 3 pounds

Well, there you have it! About to head out for what I hope will be my 3rd track workout of the year so far.