I feel the need, the need for speed.

Tuesday was my speed workout day. I normally do speed work on the track but since I was running during my lunch break I had to make other plans. I used the map tool at the USATF website to map out a run. The first part of the run was a .82 mile warm up, followed by 3 X 1 mile, followed by a 1.9 mile cool down. My times for the mile repeats were 7:04, 7:16, and 6:57. These are major improvements for me over last year. (still not near my speed in my early 20's when I could cover 3 miles in under 20 minutes) I wrapped up my midday workout with some bench presses on the Nautilus machine at work and some leg lifts on the Roman Chair for my abs. I finished up my Tuesday workout plan with 80 pushups and 100 situps during the Biggest Loser. I also had my Tuesday weigh-in. No weight loss for the week. Still hanging at 171.5.

I was scheduled for 7 miles today but it didn't work out since my right knee was a little tender. I will do pushups, situps, and the core workout program tonight and make up the run on Friday.

Burrito Challenge



Of the three major chains that are available in Indianapolis who has the best burrito? A couple of my coworkers and I will be taking on the two burrito challenge in a few short weeks. Most likely at Moe's on "Moe Monday" but out of curiosity, which burrito do you like best?

Moe's?
Chipotle?
Qdoba?

post your vote in the comments....

Running&Eating!

I am going to begin with the weekly running wrap up. This was a particularly strong running week for me. After a rest day on Monday I came back with a 6 mile run on my lunch break Tuesday, followed by an evening track workout on Wednesday, and a nother 6 miler during lunch on Thursday. The weather here last week was perfect for running. I was able to get outside and run without layering clothing.

Wednesday's Speed workout:

1 mile warmup
800M @ 3:16
800M @ 3:24
1600M (about 1 mile) @ 7:41
800M @ 3:36
1 mile cool down

The first 800M time was right where it should be, the other times were a little slow but not bad for my first track workout of the spring.

I ran a little earlier than usual on Thursday to add a few hours of recovery time for my Saturday 15 mile run. Friday is usually a recovery day and was this week as well.

There are mental and physical components to every run. Sometimes the mental part is the most difficult. This week I did everything that I could to make sure that my long run would go well. My plan started with the earlier running time on Thursday that I mentioned and went on to include other little changes. I iced my left shin on Thursday and Friday night because I had been feeling a twinge of pain and feared shin splints. I upped my calorie intake on Friday from my normal 2000-2200 calories to 3000 calories and I skipped my Marine Corps Workout for core muscles on Firday to conserve energy. Friday night I planned out my 5 mile loop route that I would run 3 times.

On Saturday I woke up and had some cereal and a couple of glasses of water. I got together my water bottle and gel packs that I would use between loops and placed them in the garage. And I planned my time to leave so that I would finish up before the rain started. Still the mental part kicked in. What if I can't finish 15 miles? What if my shin starts hurting right away? What if it is cold and rainy earlier than I thought it would be?

Turned out that my 15 miler went great! I kept a steady pace throughout and felt great afterwards. I really felt like I could have take on a few extra miles. I even ran the final mile in 7:00 minutes which is about 2 minutes faster than the overall average pace.

15 miler by the numbers:

3 X 5 mile loop
about 2000 calories burned
2 gel packs of 150 calories (1 between each loop)
43:xx minutes first loop
46:xx minutes second loop
43:xx minutes third loop
7:00 min/mile for the last mile
4:30 xtra 1/2 mile that I ran
6:00 minutes estimated wait time at 2 stoplights on the course

Today I have a 5 mile recovery run scheduled. The pace will be about 8:45 min/mile.

The Eater....

We have been working with Emmeline on using sippee cups and eating finger foods. SHe was a little slow to pick up on these things but is getting better. At first she thought she was practicing for a pie eating contest. Check her out in action:

Sunday wrap-up...

Sunday was my long run day for last week. I ran 11 total miles in two consecutive segments. I first ran 7.5 miles out to the nearby park and back home where Liz had some water waiting for me. I quickly drank the water and got back underway for the final 3.5 mile segment. The first part of the run is very hilly. I struggled to keep pace at around 9 min/mile on my legs that were feeling heavy. The last part of the run was flat and I put down 8:30 per mile. My legs recovered pretty quckly once I got home and stretched. They felt great today. My total mileage for last week was 27.

Today is a SRD. I will be running 7 miles tomorrow morning (gulp), followed by a speed workout on Wednesday, and another 7 on Thursday as I tune up for Saturdays 15 mile run. I am looking forward to the warmer weather coming later this week.

Just a dusting....

Another major snow storm passes by leaving us with a dusting. For my friends and family in Cincinnati the story was a bit different as they were getting the full 10-14 inches of snow that was predicted for them. While Anneliese may be a little disappointed that we didn't get that much snow, I'm not too upset about it. Have fun shoveling :).

As Promised: Anneliese the Balerina!



Anneliese has been in a dance class since the fall. She is learning lots of cool moves, enjoy!

Today's run...

I will be running 5 miles today and moving my long run to tomorrow when the temps will be in the high 30's. I'll do my push ups and situps tonight and take a day off from them tomorrow.

Be safe out there if you are traveling!

3-5 Inches of Snow on the way...

Seems like we have been getting a bit more of the wintery mix of ice and snow this year than usual. I have had to resort to running on the treadmill at work for my midweek workouts. The challenge for me on the treadmill is much more mental than physical. I have a hard time staying focused and keeping from getting bored. The fitness room does have a tv but only get's 4 or 5 channels. I have seen more Matlock reruns while running then I ever have any other time. Still I have to get my miles in and the TM has been the best option. This weekend we are looking at 3-5 inches of snow with wind gusts up to 30 MPH. I will be running my long run of 10 or 11 miles outside this weekend and contending with the elements. I may do my short run on Saturday and hope for better condions on Sunday.

Training is going pretty well so far for the mini. I did wake up with some pain in my left foot a couple of weeks ago that shut me down for a week. Whatever caused the pain went away and has not been an issue since. This weeks mid week runs have included .25 miles X 6 at 1:30 per mile on Tuesday, a 5 miler on Wednesday, and 3 miles on Thursday with the second mile at 6:50 MPH. I started breaking in my new shoes yesterday and they felt good. Today is a scheduled rest day from running. I will do my Marine Corps core workout and that is about it.

So Long to Bernie....



Anneliese's favorite show is The Biggest Loser. Liz and I have gotten into it over the last couple seasons also. At the start of the current season Liz recognized one of the contestants from her college days. Bernie, the witty Chicagoan, was a former classmate. We cheered for Bernie throughout hoping to see him land the spot as the Biggest Loser. He showed his loyalty last week when he allowed his partner to have immunity which he did not know would seal his fate. Still he accomplished a lot from his time on the show dropping from 283 #'s to 173.

Speaking of losing weight. My race day goal is 165 #'s. I weigh in on Tuesday's to check my weekly progress. This week I tipped the scales at 173. That leaves me 8 #'s to lose in 8 weeks. I am well on my way!

The girls...

I hope to get some videos up this weekend of Anneliese and Emmeline. Check back for updates. Emmeline is walking behind a push toy and has some new shoes to help her with stability. Anneliese has some new dance moves you need to check out.

Gloomy Tuesday

The temp was nearly 50 degrees today so I took advantage of a rain free lunch hour to get out for a run. I covered about 5 miles at a pretty good pace. Today was scheduled to be a track day of 7 X 400 meters but I opted for an easier run to make sure that my legs have recovered from the race on Sunday.

As promised, here are the links to the pictures from the Ground Hog 7 and the Groundhoglet


Anneliese at the hoglet

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.