Groundhog and Groundhoglet

The week of running came to a close today. I put in a 4 mile tempo run on Thursday which included a mile warmup, 2 miles at an avg of 7:30 and a cool down mile. A scheduled rest day (SRD) on Friday included sit ups and pushups. Saturday I missed my 5 miler because we had a lot of stuff going on...which leads us to today...and the annual Indy Runners Groundhog 7.

I debated whether or not I would register for this race and then finally decided to go for it and registered on Thursday. The race is free, save for the requested can good donations for a local shelter. Another nice feature about the race is the Groundhoglet run for kids. More on that in a minute.

The weather was great, for February, with a temp hovering around the freezing mark and wind gusts few and far between. Most of the ice and snow was melted off of the course. About 220 brave souls and 440 soles lined up for the start. We covered the trails of nearby Zionsville and went through several neighborhoods. The race was well staffed by volunteers. I crossed the finish line in 58:08. A 7 mile PR (personal record) but then any time would have been a PR since this was my first race at that distance.


Liz and the girls were on hand to cheer me to the finish and get this picture.


Now it would be time for Anneliese's go at the Groundhoglet. A race that stretched from here to there and offered a sack full of goodies for finishers. Anneliese missed the first heat of the race due to, well, a pit stop. She and the other straggler kid lined up for the second heat. She fell behind quickly but soldiered her way to a new PR as well! The extra practice from the night before really paid off.

Anneliese heading for the finish



The Indy Runners group took more pictures during the race and I will add a link to those pictures later in the week.

Mini Workout #1, Hill Repeats

Tuesday I officially kicked off my Mini training plan with a workout consisting of "hill repeats." A little background for you on hill workouts. A runner (in this case me) does a warm up run (I did one mile) then finds a hill about 200 meters in length (half the distance of the inside lane of the standard track that you find around a high school football field). Starting from the base of the hill the runner charges up the hill at a pretermined pace. On Tuesday I ran up the hill six times at a brisk pace. Then the runner does a cool down run (1 mile back home for me).

The weather was great for a run, although a bit windy. The temp hovered right at the 50 degree mark and only a spattering of rain from time to time. I wore shorts, a short sleeve shirt and arm warmers and actually got a little too hot. I am happy with the start and looking forward to a rigorous and rewarding training period!

Spirit of the Marathon

Last night I went to the limited release showing of "Spirit of the Marathon." The film is a documentary that features runners during their training for and racing of the 2005 Chicago Marathon. The strories of the athletes, ranging from elites to 6:00 hr/plus runners is inspiration and moving. The film resonated with me as it mirrored many of the challenges and joys that I faced as I prepared for that very same 2005 Chicago Marathon. As I watched memories of race day rushed back to me and left me anxious for my next run.

As you are enjoying the heat wave this weekend (High 3o's) think about me out on the road huff and puffing my way along the road. I officially start my training for the Indianapolis Minimarathon on Monday. I am looking forward to tackling some lofty goals in running this year and appreciate your support. While the half marathon is sold out there are still entries available for 5K which takes place concurrently with the half.

A battle for the ages!!!!

What happens when two super powers collide? find out here!

It has been almost two weeks

since I posted anything here. I have been running. Not as much as I would like to but I am still getting in some miles. I ran about 4 1/2 miles tonight. The windchill made the temp 26 degrees, still no match for my beard. I bought a pair of Pearl Isumi arm warmers to wear with my technical t-shirt which has been good so far. Tonight I added a wind breaker. I felt like I had a good pace going throughout the run. Looking forward to getting in some solid mileage this weekend.

Anneliese is getting excited about Christmas, every night we count down the days by removing a link from the Advent chain that she made at school. Here she is next to the stockings that Liz made for the girls (and lucy)



Emmeline is crawling and we have proof



Standing tall

This past week...

So far this week I have completed 2 40 minute treadmill workouts. I hope to get in 40 minutes of running outside today and a 10 miler tomorrow. At my weigh in yesterday I came in at 179. Another step closer to my race day Indianapolis Minimarathon weight goal of 165.

Speaking of the Mini, the half-marathon is now sold out.

If running isn't your thing, you can always experience a different kind of marathon...



I picked up a six pack of this Greek Lager at World Market. Not bad.

And the fam:

Anneliese the pilgrim



Dueling pianists



Putting up the Christmas tree







Anneliese on ice

Happy Thanksgiving...

I hope that everyone had a great Thanksgiving. I ate more than I should have just like I do every year but it gives me more incentive to get outside and work hard in training. Here's the weeks recap:





Tuesday, 3 miles at a light, steady pace.


Thursday, 5k (3.1 miles) at race pace, finished the run in 23:34, first mile was around 7:15.


Friday, 5k, ran the same course as the day before but in the opposite direction. Recovery run at about 9 minutes per mile. It was a little colder than I thought and I had the first hint of frost in my beard during a run for the season.





Measuring a run can be done by driving the route, using a GPS watch like Garmin, or software that is available on the web (usatf.org or favoriterun.com offer this software for free). The most accurate way to measure, and the way it is done for certified races is using a bicycle wheel. For training any of the other's are fine but may be off by 1-2%.