6/6-8/14. rest/stretch. 3 miles and yoga. 9 miles.

Friday.  my rest day, but i hit the gym at 5:30am for some mobility work.  T will go the gym by herself any hour of any day, but she seems to love dragging me out of bed on my Friday rest day to go to the 5:30am class.  Must be revenge for when I used to drag her with me to the 5:30am friday class on her day off from work.  So I foam-rolled and band stretched and worked some mobility issues while she WOD'd.  it was nice to loosen up a bit, but i sure could have used the sleep.  at lunch hour at work, Mike Allsop gave a presentation.  Mike is an ANZ pilot and an adventurer.  He summitted Everest.  He ran the highest elevation marathon ever.  He ran 7 marathons on 7 continents, in 7 days. He gave an interesting presentation with a lot of pictures and video.  the primary message consisted of 3 points: 1. set a goal, 2. develop a reasonable plan, in bite size pieces, that will get you to your goal, and 3. never give up.  even if injury or fate causes a set back, get back up and try again.  He was a pretty cool guy.  His tales of Everest scared the shit out of me, though.  Not going to be on my list of goals, for sure!  But I won an autographed copy of his book, which I am looking forward to reading.

Sat.  early morning 5K trail run.  T's yoga class.  the trail run was awesome, as usual. since my last trip into Japanese Gulch, the ferns and plants and leaves have really exploded in growth.  i didn't recognize my way very often, ended up running some extra distance.  no problem, though, it was worth it.  and yoga, as usual, stretched me out, relaxed me, and aided in reducing my recovery time. 

Sun.  9 mile run.  this was my longest run in over a year, maybe longer.  really was a tough mental challenge to keep running past all my usual loop turn backs.  maintained an avg pace of 8:27 min/mile, which was exactly what i was shooting for on this run.  funny thing is, conventional wisdom says that you don't really see the true physiological benefits of a long run (endurance building) until after the first hour in. so basically I burned an hour on the streets, then had 16 minutes of productive running. that's truly discouraging.  some days its hard to envision that I will ever run a full marathon again, let alone in 15 weeks and 6 days...

6/5/14. thurs. run. strength 2.

Up by 4:45am, on the street by 4:55am, knocked out 3 early am miles.  its really been getting light earlier, and it felt pretty warm (just over 50 degrees).  ran in a t-shirt and shorts, felt pretty good.  i have read that if you feel pretty comfortable when you first set out (temperature wise), then you are probably over-dressed and you are going to get really hot/sweaty.  I tend to agree.  wore the New Balance LED armbands again, had a little sleeve/armband interference.  funny how the little things irritate you on a run.   but they are really visible and I feel better wearing them.  the miles went by without too much effort, time was consistent with a 3 mile training run pace.

in the afternoon, a funny thing happened in the gym - I felt good lifting weights. not stiff, not sore.  the weight didn't seem terrible.  there were a hell of a lot of people in the gym, lots going on, a lot of friendly faces.  I really enjoy that when i can get it, because the road is a solitary place.  it took me a little longer than normal to get my sets in, but mostly that was due to talking to others.  and I'm OK with that.  back squats, deadlifts, front rack barbell lunges, russian twists, toes to bar. 

6/5/14. coffee. orange. almonds/sunflower seeds. thai soup. pad kee mao. protein shake. spaghetti/meatballs. salad. more cherries than a human should eat in one sitting.  lots of water.

6/5/14. wed. 5 mile, mid-week "longish" run

was very pressed for time, had to get E to a little league game by 4:30.  stressful trying to get up early, work all day, hurry home, run 5 miles, get him to the game on time.  wasn't an easy day.  my GPS watch died after about a mile.  I must have left it on after tues morning run, and 36 hrs later it was dead.  i know my 5 mile route, and i know when i started and finished.  so although i couldn't watch my pace or track my miles, I know I ran more than 5 miles in about 43 minutes.  avg pace of 8:36 min/mile, which is pretty much what i was shooting for.  i probably over-ran by about a tenth of a mile, because depending on the route my run finishes at slightly different point in my neighborhood.  so in all likelihood, i probably had a slightly lower pace (a little more than 5 miles in the same 43 minutes).  got all my requirements done in the day, but i am told i may have been a little grumpy and snappy.  i doubt it though.  i'm pretty sure it was everyone else.

6/5/14. run. coffee. orange. nuts. pasta/sausage/peppers/asparagus.  apple. granola. salami/cheese sandwich. nuts. chicken teriyaki, rice.  lots of water.

6/3/14. tues. 3 miles at 5am.

i knew it was going to be a busy day, so I got up early and ran before work.  woke up at about 4:00am, tried to sleep on and off until 4:30, procrastinated getting up until 4:45, then on the streets by 5am for a 3 mile run.  it was actually warm enough to run in just a t-shirt and shorts.  i felt bad not wearing my nike flash jacket, but I wore my 2 New Balance flashing LED armbands.  they are nice armbands and the flashing LED is a wrap around surface.  they are very visible and eye-catching.  but i don't care for the attachment straps.  they loop back in a slot to shorten, like a strap for backpack, but they slide until they are played out.  there is enough adjustment with the other end doubled over (velcro to hold it shut), but i don't think its a good design.  when i got those armbands (christmas) i was also given a New Balance LED "stirrup".  it clips onto the back of your running shoe and is a really bright flashing LED strap.  unfortunately, the stirrup design sucks and it pops off your shoe.  i have tried to run with it twice, and it popped off within half a mile each time.  I cannot recommend the stirrup.  the armbands at least stay on, and are really good functionally.  just a crappy strap design.

very visible, not too bad design, but not a great strap: http://www.newbalance.com/Safety-Armband/52016,default,pd.html?dwvar_52016_color=Black_with_Red&start=3&cgid=116500

very visible, seems cool, but really poor design and probably not tested at all (popped off my shoe after half a mile, every time): http://www.newbalance.com/Visto-Shoe-Light/52025,default,pd.html?dwvar_52025_color=Black_with_Red&start=2&cgid=116500

got the run out of the way before work, so I could attend family business after (dinner with parents, orchestra concert, etc).

6/3/14. run. coffee. orange. almonds/peanuts/cashews.  pork roast. corn. ramen. apple. tea. a "special" burrito the size of my forearm from wrist to elbow. nachos. lots of water.

6/2/14. monday. strength 1.

nothing special today.  back in the gym for strength 1.  no run planned today.  this was just one of those days when you just get into the gym and follow the plan.  nothing spectacular, wasn't too enthused, just staying on plan and trying to do some lifting.  this was my first set of pull-ups since Murph.  seemed especially tough, but this must have just been mental.  its been a week, so I am sure I am recovered physically.  Strict Presses, pull ups, bench presses, GHD sit ups, GHD back ext.

read an interesting article linked by crossfit everett this morning.  my main take away from this was a nice summary of the "basics" that need representation in your regular training plan. (from http://www.t-nation.com/readArticle.do?id=5795651 )

1. Look for Gaps.  In programming, I keep my eye on two basic concepts that open the way for a third. First, I'm all about looking for gaps in training. Gaps consist of anything you should be doing, but aren't doing. Here's my list of the fundamental human movements: Push, Pull, Hinge, Squat, Loaded Carry, (Everything Else).

So I think I am hitting the Push (strict presses, bench presses, push ups), the Pull (pull ups), the Hinge (deadlifts), the Squat (back squats), Everything else (weighted lunges, sit ups, back ext, toes to bars, russian twists).  I think I would like to work in some farmer carries to cover the Loaded Carry.  I also want to work in some bench rows (another Pull).  Seems reasonable to me.  I also want to learn how to use the Rogue Reverse Hyper we have in the gym.  I think it might help my hamstrings.  I am really feeling like I need that 3rd day in the gym.  things are too busy this week with the family (orchestra concert, little league games).  Starting next week I'm going to add the 3rd day and keep it up for as long as i have energy (maybe until the miles really start to add up on a weekly basis).

6/2/14. Strength 1. protein shake. coffee. orange. almonds/peanuts/cashews. shishkabob (beef, peppers, onions, mushrooms) and noodles. apple. nuts. shrimp/tomatoes/orzo. salad. cherry pie. lots of water.

on the move challenge update...

well, as i mentioned, i appointed myself the captain of my work group's "On the Move" Team.  As in, i created a team, and i invited the group to join it.  I have 11 people on the team. i have been giving updates in our group meetings.  i plan to expand into fitness/health/nutrition info in my presentations.

the guy i challenged to run his first 5K?  he has run approx 40 miles since I created his plan.  he is on track for a 5K, and has signed up to run the Everett Yankee Doodle Dash on 7/4/14.  So far, 2 other people on my team have signed up for the 5K.  I'm going to sign up my whole family(T, A, and E).  We'll all run it together.  Nice, yeah?

I talk about crossfit at work, to anybody that seems remotely interested.  and to some that don't seem interested.  its hard not to proselytize, or to sound like a zealot.  but its so hard, when something is such a big part of your life, and such a big part of your family's life.  when you see the incredible positive results you have made in fitness and health, and when you have made such incredible friends, its hard not to want to share it.  so one of my co-workers on my team expressed interest.  i gave him a business card, got his assessment set up (and he completed it last friday) and he's staring the foundations class this week.  he seems interested in it, and I think he'll stick with it.  I'm excited to have someone else at work to be able to talk working out with.

so chalk up 2 successes for me so far...

5/31/14-6/1/14 5 mile pace run. 8 mile longish run.

saturday Hal called for a 5 mile pace run.  so this would be trying to hold the pace you think you would like to be able to run for a long distance.  I wanted to maintain 8 min/mile for my 5 mile run, which would have been a 40 min run.  it was hard.  I felt like i was working, not taking it easy.  i'm sure my HR was up, i know i was breathing heavy.  i finished my 5 miles in 39:04, for an avg pace of 7:49/mile.  I was pretty happy with that.  It will be hard to try and maintain that pace on longer pace runs, but that's what training is for.  I managed to hit T's yoga class in the afternoon.  this was really good for me.  I know I like to bust on the yoga class, but i really feel it helps shorten my recovery time after the long runs and I am hoping it is another tool in my box that is helping to keep me injury free.

Sunday's long run was 8 miles.  it was little league day at the mariners game, so i needed to get up early and knock my miles out so we could have the day downtown.  i was up at 6am, and on the streets by 7:30am.  coming the day after the pace run, this felt like a long run on tired legs.  good training.  I really allowed myself to go slow, and take it at whatever pace felt right, not pushing it at all.  ended up running the 8 miles in 1:09:57, so just under an hour and ten.  felt fine, held an average pace of 8:45 min/mile.

all in all, it was a good running weekend.  the weather was fantastic, i managed to get it all down and still spend some time with my family.  this was a good one.