Been a while, on the Cap 10K

Justin and I have been training (albeit somewhat sporadically ) for the Capitol 10K, which is this weekend. Here's a good article I saw on running the race.

13.1

Well, there was some bitter and some sweet. First the bitter. It was cold as balls....colder than balls, really. I woke up at 4:15, got to the finish line at 5, rode the bus to the starting line at 6, then found out that the race was postponed until 7:30. I sat in the Freescale careteria for over an hour before waiting 15 minutes in line for the porta potty. That's not even the good part. At about 8.75 miles, we were crossing Mopac on a bridge. I had a pebble in my shoe so I thought it would be a good idea to jump onto the sidewalk and get the pebble out. However, the sidewalk was completely iced over, so I slipped and fell. I fell mostly on my ass, but managed to pull something in my knee, which initially hurt really really bad.

OK, now on the good part. When I fell, I was totally kicking ass (for me) on my pace. I didn't want to give that up so I gritted my teeth and kept on running. The fact that I could still run was also a good thing. I passed the 10 mile mark at 1:48, beating my 10 mile run by 8 minutes! I ended up finishing in 2:20, which was a 10:41/Mile pace, almost a minute faster than my 10 mile run. Overall, I'm very pleased.

When I got home, I still felt ok, until I took a shower. When I got out, I was cold, way cold, and I couldn't get warm. I think I just didn't have enough blood sugar left to warm myself. It was pretty intense. So, I'm sitting here in multiple layers of clothes and a blanket, with the heater on, a roaring fire, and a heating pad. I ate an orange, drank a cup of coffee, and then had a Sonic double cheeseburger, fries (no guilt, I assure you) and am finally getting warm. The knee hurts, but less after 3 ibuprofen. The kids are asleep, I'm watching copland, life is good.

Now, after a short (hopefully with the knee) rest, I'm going to start working on my speed, starting with the Cap 10K.

getting ready to freeze my patooties off

I've been enjoying the nice weather in the last two weeks leading up to the half marathon. I've been taking it easy, not even wearing the GPS since I've been "rest" running. Yesterday's running weather was positively balmy. That's all about to change though, starting with tomorrow's run (40's). What's worse, its probably going to be in the 40's and raining on the morning of the race..... Suckage.

Looking like a solo race for me as I haven't been in touch with Reagan regarding running the race together. Although the race ends up at Northcross mall (right by my mom's house), I think the weather is going to work against having anyone cheering for me. That's ok though. Some of my best runs have been solo, and I'll still have somewhere to dry off and change clothes right after the race. I'm planning on parking at the mall (at 5AM...ugh) and then riding the shuttle to the starting line. That way, after I'm done, I'll have the car right there.

One other thing I'm kind of excited/amused by is the fact that they have a special clydesdale division for men over 190 lbs. You have to get yourself weighed at when you go pick up your packet. I think they should have a "big dog" division for men over 250, but that's just me. I'm going to try and get myself entered in that group for fun.

10 miles yesterday

Yesterday morning's run started and ended at Barton Springs. When I got there, I already knew that Justin and John were going to be out, but waited a little while for Reagan since he had said he was going to show. Reagan didn't show. So, at the first, I was a little disappointed at having to run by myself. However, I have to say that doing the run solo was a lot of fun. Very peaceful. I didn't even take the mp3 player, just listened to the morning sounds of the hike and bike trail. It was a pleasant surprise how good it felt, too. I was taking my sips of gatorade every 15 minutes per the plan, and running pretty fast (about 11:35/mile). I ran the whole 10 miles and then took off my shoes and soaked in barton springs for about 10 minutes. Man, did that feel good! I think that that's going to have to be a regular deal on the long runs.

After thinking about it for a while, I decided that I deserved to feel this good not only because I had put in the training, but also because I had been really careful about my diet and about getting my rest the day before. I think I'm a believer in the whole diet thing now.

Anyway, this was the peak for the training prior to the half marathon itself in two weeks. I'm excited, I think its going to be fun.

P.S. I feel pretty good today too. The ankles held up better than I was expecting. Woo hoo!

Everything Hurts

Today was tough running, although it was only 3 miles. My ankles and shins are noticing what I'm doing to them these days. John had some aches and pains as well. I think I'm hitting a wall of what my body will put up with if I don't accompany the exercise with changes in diet and getting a lot more sleep. I've also found out that I don't have the time, energy, and youth to exercise enough to make up for my diet. I saw some early results just from exercise, but I'm going to have to change the diet and the sleep to keep making progress. Sunday's 10-mile looms. I'm hoping its not going to kill me and knock me out of training. Going to have to be good to myself tonight and tomorrow.

8 Miles Yesterday. Hard to believe.

Justin and I ran 8 yesterday! It was a good run. Chilly at first, but it warmed up. We kept a good pace, 12:18, which was even a bit faster than a 4 mile we ran on January 5th. I was pretty tired during the day yesterday (even took a nap, although I shouldn't say that because Justin had to go work all day after. He's tougher than I am), but feel surprisingly good today. I discussed this with Justin, but I think your body gets used to not only the running, but to healing from the wear and tear that running puts your body through. Let's just hope we can hold up for the 10-miler we have scheduled for Sunday!

Tsk Tsk

John and Travis,

 

Unexcused absences today, dudes.  Very troubling. J  I ran anyway.  I guess that means everyone is going to be loaded with energy for our 8-Mile run on Sunday.  Maybe we should get ready for the run by listening to Eminem.  You know, Eminem….  8-Mile…..Sorry, had to.

 

--Matt

 

Getting a little faster...

Here's a speed vs distance vs time pic of our runs. Thought it was pretty cool. Check the pink line. We're getting gradually faster.

Proud of the Big Dogs today

Today was our makeup run for yesterday. We ran the lamar loop twice, going for 6 miles. Well, according to the GPS (click here and go to the run called "6 miles") we actually ran just under 6 and a half miles, which makes that the longest distance I've ever run at a stretch. We kep a pretty good pace too, even with pushing the stroller. That's almost exactly half of the half marathon distance we're working towards. Good stuff.

NOW THIS IS A RACE

I am so down for this it's not even funny...well it kinda is. follow this link
http://i-run.com/2006/01/18/krispy-kreme-challenge/ On a side note we did'nt run because of the rain. John ran, but he is insane. I get to live longer now. Thank you Jebus!

WHAT'S HAPPENING TO ME

So I've been doing the running thing pretty diligently for a while now. I've been taking my vitamins, I don't drink anymore and I rarely stay awake past ten o'clock. This I thought would be a good thing. Every time I go out running now, it gets harder and harder, almost like I'm doing more harm than good. I feel like I am going to die on some of the running segments. We're running six miles tomorrow. Six miles. Further than I've ever gone before. Matt seems very cheery about this. Am I wrong to think he's f*cking nuts? This is why I hate this blog. Accountability...oh lament...oh mimsy....oh Meriwether. So I will post about how this goes. (or not if I die) On another topic I would like to address those folks who holler out words of encouragement to us runners alike. Let me give some examples..."come on...you can do it"..."Almost there...Keep pushing"..."You got it...You're almost there". I hope you all choke on your sunny disposition and here's why...How do you know I'm not doing my best. I may be pushing as hard as I can and you look up from your evian (backwards that spells naive) and see me chugging along looking as though I've been dragged behind a truck and you feel the need to uplift my spirit, motivation whatever. I like most other fat people am going as fast as I can. We can't go as fast as you...you know why...CAUSE WERE FAT THAT'S WHY. That is why were running, to not be fat and you stand there, height weight proportionate and think that I don't try as hard as I can. Must be nice in those 34" waist jeans. Gee, if my waist were that slim, I MIGHT NOT LOOK AS RIDICULOUS AS I DO WHEN I DO RUN. So, in closing, keep your comments to yourself and talk about the fat guy you saw on the trail behind my back like a descent human being. Thanking you in advance, Justin.

Doh!

Met John to run today and kept a pretty good pace. I really wanted to share it with you, but I realized as we were in the last half mile that I had forgotten to start the timer on my GPS. Doh! Just wanted to share. :-)

We're going 6 miles this Sunday as we prepare for the Freescale Half Marathon. This should be interesting...

I freaking rock!!!

I forgot that Justin starts school today and that we go on an alternate schedule this week, so I showed up at the trail at the normal time. Since I was solo, I decided to push myself and see how fast I could go. I still did the same 4mins/90secs intervals, but really picked up the speed during the running periods. Check out my run by clicking here , then selecting "Fast 4 Miles" from today. My previous fastest overall pace (granted I had Jillian in the stroller that time) was 11:00/Mile, but today, I did it in 9:40/Mile. It was cold as hell (44 degrees) and super windy (12-15 mph Northwest). It was especially windy during the last three quarters of a mile as I was running North East along the North shore of the lake. If I accomplish nothing more today, at least I've had a good run.

Wonder if this will work

Doing something that won't help my run tomorrow. Checking out a band called Chili Coldblood at the poodle dog lounge. These guys sound fresh. Three piece, guitar, drums, and lap steel. Very blues/groove oriented, but not shuffles. A lot like RL Burnside. I never knew a lap steel could sound so heavy, but I guess there are some low strings. Almost sounds like drop D with a slide or seomthing. Anyway, it was surprising how long they could keep rehashing a groove withouth it getting boring. Really like the sound, the bass wasn't missed at all. Makes me wanna dust off the old axe and play. I recommend these guys. Got their CD.

Dorking out on the trail

So, my lovely wife Cassie got me the Garmin Forerunner 201
for Christmas this year. I didn't really get into it at first until I discovered what you can do with the data. Check the link on the right and you'll see my uploads to MotionBased, a software company whose service really adds value to your GPS data. The Forerunner 301 includes heart monitoring too, but I already had that, because I had bought myself the Nike Triax C8 right before the Turkey Trot. Now, I've really gotten into having all of the telemetry right there. On the watch, I'll track the run/rest intervals that we're doing as part of the Galloway method along with my pulse. Then, on my other wrist, I'm tracking pace, distance, and total time. This, of course, means that I am the dorkiest person on the trail at any given time. Oh well.

Check here for information on the next generation of forerunner that has several improvements over my model.

WAY TO GO MATT

SO I START RUNNING WITH MY LONGTIME PAL MATT. THIS STARTED ROUND ABOUT...OH, LAST OCTOBER NOVEMBER SOMETIME. I LIKE RUNNING WITH MATT BECAUSE LIKE MYSELF, HE IS A LARGE INDIVIDUAL. I DON'T LOOK SO LARGE STANDING NEXT TO HIM. I HOPE HE FEELS THE SAME WAY. ANYHOO HE SAYS TO ME..."JUSTIN HOW ABOUT RUNNING IN THAT TURKEY TROT THING ON THANKSGIVING". OR MAYBE I ASKED HIM. I DON'T REMEMBER. THE IMPORTANT THING IS THAT WE DID IT AND WE DIDN'T FINISH DEAD LAST. I SEEM TO REMEMBER SOME OCTOGENARIAN AHEAD OF US FOR AN UNCOMFORTABLE AMOUNT OF TIME. SO WE CONTINUED RUNNING AFTER THAT ON A REGULAR BASIS. THEN MATT DROPS THE BOMB. "I'M STARTING A WEBSITE CALLED IRUNWITHTHEBIGDOGS.COM TO TRACK OUR PROGRESS". MATT IS A BUSY GUY. SURLY HE WOULDN'T HAVE TIME TO DO THIS WITH THE THREE KIDS, THE JOB ET CETERA. I HOPED HE WOULDN'T HAVE TIME. IF YOU'RE READING THIS YOU MIGHT BE SAYING TO YOURSELF..."SELF, WHY WOULD JUSTIN SAY THAT. THEY HAVE KNOWN EACH OTHER FOR A LONG TIME AND JUST WHY WOULD HE JUST SAY A THING LIKE THAT. IT MAKES ME UNCOMFORTABLE". WELL I'LL TELLS YOU WHY. NOW I HAVE TO DO THIS. NOW IF I WANT CASUALLY DWINDLE DOWN MY RUNNING TIME TO SAY...I DON'T KNOW NEGATIVE TWO MILES A WEEK...I CAN NOT. NOW PROGRESS IS BEING RECORDED. GREAT, ACCOUNTABILITY. MY ARCH NEMESIS. WITH A PICTURE OF ME BEING ALL FAT AND RUNNING. SO I HAVE TO PUT A PICTURE OF ME UP THAT'S NOT SO PUDGY. THAT MEANS I HAVE TO RUN AND RUN AND RUN AND RUN...YOU GET THE IDEA. SO HERE'S TO YOU MATT. LET'S RUN THE RACES AND MAKE THE FACES AND CHART THE PLACES. LETS DO THIS. I'M COOL WITH IT. I HOWEVER CAST MY DOUBTS ON A HALF MARTHON BY FEBUARY. WE'LL SEE.

Hello?.....This thing on?.....

Seriously, though. Hello, and welcome to my initial post.

Here's a photo of Justin and I running the Thundercloud Turkey Trot. It was five miles and it took us just over an hour. The clock showed 1:06, but we spent about 5 minutes from the gun waiting to crose the starting line.

That was back in November and Justin and I have been running a couple of times a week since then. We're making steady progress, although Justin might not admit it.

I used to run pretty fast in High School, but that was 12 years, 3 kids, and 80 pounds ago. I want to keep the kids, don't have a choice about the years, but I'm ready to lose the pounds, or at least a good chunk of them. So, I plan to talk a little bit about my journey of getting faster, including losing some weight.

Justin and I are currently training for the Freescale Half Marathon
and will run in association with Team Justin . We've been running 4 miles at a stretch, so we'll need to up our distance over the next 5 weeks. Over the next 5 Sundays, we'll run 5, 6, 8, 10, and 5 miles. Should be fun.