Sam Costa and the week in review...

Looking back at last week I would classify my training level as about a 7 on a scale of 1-10. I went hard on Tuesday for about 5 miles, rested my legs on Wednesday, then put in another 4.5 miles on Thursday.

I could tell as the week progressed that my lower calorie diet was impacting my training performance. It leads me to question the amount of calories I should be taking in to maintain a higher training level. At the same time I still want to shed about 4.5 pounds in the next 5 weeks. As my mileage increases in the next 3 weeks the number of calories will increase too but I will still try to burn about 3500 extra calories a week.

Sam Costa Race Report

On Saturday, March 29 I lined up for the Sam Costa half-marathon which winds through Carmel, IN. This is my second straight year of running a Sam Costa event (quarter marathon finisher in 2007). The weather was sunny but the temps wer about 35* with a wind chill in the mid-20's. The race went off a few minutes late which made the cold a bit worse. About 325 people started the race and would come across the finish line.

I had made my race plan weeks in advance. Start out with the first two miles at 9 min/mile then speed up to about 8:30 for mile three and begin to shave 10 seconds off each mile until I peaked at 7:30 over the last 3-4 miles. That was the plan.

Plans are only useful if they can be executed properly. I started out mid pack as I normally would. Within the first quarter mile of the race I kept hearing a loud talker running not too far behind me. I sped up to pull away until she was out of range. As I approached the first mile marker I heard another runner mention that he was right on pace at 8:10. I looked at my watch and sure enough we crossed the first mile in 8:10. I knew that my original plan had to be revised. I passed the second mile marker at 16:10 for an 8 min/mile. At that point I decided to just have it out and see what was going to happen.

The results were a mixed bag. I passed the 5 mile marker at 40:34 which is 4 seconds faster than my fastest 5 mile race. Then I passed 15K (9.3 miles) in about 1:17 which is 3 minutes faster than my fastest 15K race. After that things sort of came unglued. I pushed my way through the final part of the race with some walking and some spurts of hard running. Around 12 miles in my calves tightened and my hamstrings were stiff. I walked a bit more to loosen them up as best I could. I turned the bend for the final 3/4 of a mile, straight up hill, and bore down with all I had left to finish strong. My final time was a 5 miute PR of 1:56:17.

The mini course is much flatter and faster. On a scale of 1-10 I would give Sam Costa a 7.5 because of the hills while I'd rate the mini at about a 3. I think I can put together a solid effort to knock my time down to 1:40-1:44 range. I have 5 weeks left. Three weeks to work hard with a 14 and 16 mile long run planned and two weeks of taper to let my legs rest and recover before the mini.

March Madness!

The tournament of 64 has begun. 64 college basketball teams will play there way towards the title of National Champion. In case you didn't know, you can catch all the games online at March Madness On Demand.

In order to maximize my lunch break time for basketball watching I ran this morning before work. I was hoping to do a 5 mile tempo run but woke up a little late and opted for 2 fast miles. I will attempt to get in a prework 5-7 miles tomorrow to catch up on the workout I missed yesterday.

Fatherly duty calls so that is all the time I have for this post.

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.