The New Treadmill Arrives!

I guess I'm not surprised, but I'm disappointed that John Edwards is no longer running for president. I really liked him and was looking forward to the opportunity to vote for him. Nevertheless, I like both both Clinton and Obama. But it's Clinton I'm backing now. Between the three, Edwards, Clinton, an Obama, I don't think the Democrats can go wrong. What a rare treat!

Yesterday I ended up running twice. The first time, it started to pour down rain when I was only a half a mile into my 8 mile run. I bagged it at 1.5 miles and went home. Later, I managed to squeeze in a fast five miles at the treadmill at the gym while Sarah was at ballet.

5 miles recovery today. Same route as yesterday -- that is, the treadmill at the gym, LOL. Then the workout:
Front and Rear lunges (8 lb dbs), 15 each leg x 3
Bosu squats 20 x 3
Plyo stepups, 30 alt. legs SS pushups (15) X 3
Ball pikes (10) SS Ball side obliques (10, 10) SS Ball crunches (15) x 3
Deadlifts (12 lb dbs) x 15 SS Curls (12 lb dbs) x 20 X 3

The new treadmill was delivered today. I'm going to break it in tomorrow for an 8 mile general aerobic run. I already went to Blockbuster and rented three DVDs because we're supposed to have a few days of cold weather. I'm prepared!

Sharpening

First, I did some crazy workout at the gym. 3 miles on the bike then lateral squats over the bosu SS with push-ups on inverted bosu; Single leg lunges with the giant band; mountain climbers, single leg extensions and back extensions. Everything was timed. As many as I could do for :30, 1:00, 1:30.

After coming home and dealing with some computer issues due to my son having an imac and the rest of us on pcs, I finally got to run. I decided to do a "kick my ass/hill workout."
I ran 6 miles (avg. pace 9:25) which includes 5 hills whose asses I kicked. I was going to do hill repeats, but do to various constraints, I had to settle for four different hills (I did repeat one). I'm listing my splits because I'm in awe of them myself!

Mile 1 9:37
Mile 2 9:26 (Hill 1)
Mile 3 9:30 (Hill 2, 3)
Mile 4 9:27 (Hill 4)
Mile 5 9:23 (Hill 5)
Mile 6 9:08

I was hoping to get the last mile under 9:00 but I'm getting close.

20 Down

Push-up rows (10 lb db) 3x15, 15 SS Single leg on air pad db curl (5) 3x10, 10
Single leg extension (10) 3x20, 20
Jumping jacks on bosu w/ rev. pike 3x10
Explosive single leg lunges 3x20
Single leg band lunges 1x10, 2x15

5 mile recovery run. 10:22 avg. pace. Probably a little fast, but I was running late for an appointment.

5 down

Today started at the gym. I warmed up on the bike for 20 minutes, did some stretches, then
Single leg band squats 3x10,10
Leg scissors - 3x20 SS pushups 3x10
Cross plyo box step-ups 3x30 SS jumprope 3x130, 150, 100 (3rd set alt. feet)
Seated row alt (20.5) 3x15 SS wall sits 3x1:00
abs (knee slides, leg raises)

As I was leaving the gym, one of the trainers said, "Well, you're finished for the day!" and I said, "nope. 5 miles left to go."

There was a detour on the way home, so I had to drive the route that is 4 miles from the gym to my house (instead of 2). I was thinking "jeez, this is a really long street. Oh, my, it's taking a long time to get home on this detour." Then I realized that I was driving half of my running route. The one that I was going to do today. How's that for reverse motivation?? If it seems long in the car, you know what it will seem like when you run it.

I managed 5.5 in 51:49. Six seconds slower than I ran the same route last Tuesday as a tempo run. Today, however, I didn't use the Garmin.

5 down; 45 to go.

Thursday: Parts 1 & 2

Part 1

Strength this morning. 5 miles warmup on the stationary bike plus some stretches for my hip flexors.

Plies on bosu w/ 7 lb ball - 3x15, 15
Seated row (straight bar -12) 3x20 SS Pikes on swiss ball 3x10
Pushdown (17.5) 3x20 SS Push-ups 3x10
Calves (90) 3x29, 20, 25

Tonight I'll do a 5 mile recovery run. In the meantime, I'm getting a manicure and running a zillion errands. I wish I'd had that talk with my son about sharing carpool duty for my daughter. I'm suddenly wondering how I'm going to get her.

Part 2

Clearly I was behind on my news today. I read in this morning's paper that Luciano Pavarotti had taken a turn for the worse and was still hospitalized, but when I was listening to NPR this afternoon I heard this: "By now you've all heard of the death of Luciano Pavarotti."

Well, no, I had not heard and for some reason I found it very shocking and sad. My hands came off the steering wheel and flew to my mouth as I gasped in shock. For some reason, I thought that that magical voice would go on for many more years. With Beverly Sills death in July, this makes two beloved stars of the opera in one summer. So, here's one to make you cry Pavarotti video and one to make you laugh Beverly Sills & Muppets. Both are perfection.

I did get a 45 minute recovery run in this afternoon when I took Adam to the gym. It was on the treadmill in the dungeon of the gym. A little under 4.5 miles. I'm looking forward to tomorrow's rest day, the first in a week.

tsk, tsk

Well I managed 1.5 slow and easy on the treadmill before my workout. Lots of stretching before and after.

Woodchops (7.5 lb ball) 15x4
Single leg squats 10,10x4
Unilateral hip lifts (bosu) 15, 15x4
Pushups on inverted bosu 15x4

Aaron yelled at me today when I told him I had a poptart before both my weekend runs. THEY WERE GOOD RUNS!!! Apparently, my nutrition is not up to snuff anymore and he's disappointed. I just don't have time to make oatmeal when I'm trying to get out the door before it's 90 degrees! I promise I'll be better once cooler temps are here to stay. Last night's run was nice though. I could probably switch my Tuesday run to Monday night and my Thursday morning run to Thursday evening. I don't think I have any kid conflicts with those evenings.

I'm changing the schedule a little this week because of the Half I'm doing next week. Instead of 19 on Sunday, I'm going to go ahead and make it 20 -- hey what's one mile between friends? I just feel like completing three 20s is an integral part of the program, mentally, that I don't want to miss one. 19 is so close to 20 anyway. I was kind of feeling that it was taking forever to get to that part of the program. Then, next week I'll probably taper a little bit, and cut back Saturday's run significantly. I don't see much point in doing this race if I'm not going to give it what I've got.

Grind

Looks like Monday's are becoming another rest day by virtue of my schedule changing and having to move my strength workouts to Tuesday. Try as I did to find the time yesterday to go to the pool, it just didn't work out. I thought about getting on my bike, but by the time I was able, the temps were up in the mid 90s. What can ya do?

I'm so, so, so, so, so tired of getting up early to run. I know the weather will change soon, but can't we just have a little taste of cooler weather? Even 10 degrees will do.

I got up at 6:15, which was still not as early as the boys have to get up to go to school. I was out the door by 7:02 for a 4 mile "tempo" run. I ran easy the first mile, built to about a 10k pace for about 20 minutes, and tried to resist walking the remaining half mile. My splits are almost identical to last Tuesday: 10:00, 9:29, 9:38, 10:08.

Then it was off to the gym for an "easy core workout." Ha! Whose definition of "easy" are we using?

I started with some stretches then it was
Squats (45) 3x20
Split squats (5) 3x15 SS Kneeling ball rolls 3x10
Rev. lunge bosu 3x20
Uni deadlift (Body weight) 3x15
Pushups on bosu 3x15

16 Down

I'm finding it much easier to get through the week just by taking it one day at a time. The heat is oppressive. Schools are closed!

I forced myself out of bed at 6:30 so I could run 4 miles recovery. I finished in 43:06 which is one minute faster than I was aiming for. Pace is all relative though. It was still 4 minutes slower than I ran the route on Tuesday, which is a good thing.

Shower, breakfast, and then it was on to the gym for a stength/core workout.

Squats (45) 3x25
Split squats (10) 3x10 SS Deadlifts (power band) 3x15
Lateral raises kneeling on stability ball (5lb db) 3x10
Seated row (straight bar 12.5) 3x20 SS Sled calves (90) 3x20
Stretch

Kneeling on the stability ball is unbelievably difficult. I don't know how other people do it. It also put alot of stress on my knees, so obviously I'm not doing it right and that's also probably why I have such a hard time staying on the ball.

Sarah's having a birthday party today and she also has a checkup. I think she gets a few shots today -- Gardasil for sure and maybe meningitis too. Bummer for her.

Another Double

Now I know how early I have to go to bed in order to be fresh at 7 AM. 9:30. Ok, it's not like I get to sleep straight through. I still have to get up at 4AM to give Freddie medicine, which really means that I get up around 3 and stress about not hearing the alarm on my watch. So, given a night of interrupted sleep, that's what time I have to go to bed. And I'm exhausted when I do go to bed at 9:30!

7 AM: I'm up with the meds for Fred and dressed and out the door for 6 miles at marathon pace by 7:45. My goal is 4:20 so I aimed for a 10min. pace. Not happening. Every mile I thought to myself: "10 minute pace" and every mile my Garmin said under 10. What to do? Stress about it or just go with it? Here's what I'm talking about:

Mile 1 9:41
Mile 2 9:30
Mile 3 9:41
Mile 4 9:30
Mile 5 9:46
Mile 6 10:13

Avg. Pace: 9:44. It's pretty close and I'm giving myself bonus points for consistancy. There was a time, not to long ago, that it would have taken a miracle to see those kind of numbers. I'm not going to stress about it. Maybe it just takes about that many miles to hit my target pace. Anyway, I still have 106 days to work on it. (LOL-- I just got an email from NYRR yesterday that said 107 days till the marathon).

Ok, so, the run out of the way, it was time to hit the weights. Upper body focus today. And by-the-way, I wouldn't ordinarily lift on the weekends because of the intense running schedule, but my schedule is out of whack this week with taking care of Freddie.

Calf raises on the sled (13) 3X15
DB curl into reverse military press (8) 3X20
Rev. lat pull (20lb) into pushups (15) 3X15
Rope pushdowns uni leg (7.5-22.5) 4X10 [increased weight each rep]
Core work on bench: reverse crunches and a bunch of other hellish stuff.

Tomorrow is supposed to be another gorgeous day, even cooler in the morning than today, so I plan to enjoy my 8 mile LONG run.

_______

On another unrelated topic, today is HP Day: Harry Potter Day. I ordered the book from BN.com and it's guaranteed to arrive today. Freddie is opening the front door every ten minutes looking for the book. Even I am a little bit caught up in the hype and I've only read books 1-3. I guess I have some catching up to do. I wonder how many miles I'd have to run in order to listen to HP books 4-7 on my ipod?

Shredded

I'm really becoming a genius at time management. I can't leave Freddie home alone with all the medication he's on, so I'm being as creative as I can with scheduling my workouts. I'm not an evening runner, but I may have to become one as long as someone has to watch Freddie all the time. It's not as if I can put him in a jogging stroller -- LOL -- that would suck.

I got my first strength workout of the week in this morning. Of course, because I told my trainer that I was running 6 miles sometime today, I ONLY WORKED LEGS. Hello? What's with that? Aren't you listening Personal (Non-runner) Trainer? SIX MILES! TODAY! Apparently not. This is what I did this morning:

Squats on bosu 20 x 2
Reverse lunges on Bosu (15 ea. leg) SS Jump squats on riser (20) x 3
Hamstring curls (10 ea. leg) [I think I'm forgetting something here]
Leg Press (90 lb) 20 SS Stairs (5) X 3
Front step ups on plyo box (10 ea. leg) Side stepups on box (10 ea. leg) x 2

After that I made a quick stop at the grocery, came home, and took a 2 and a half hour nap. Those 4 and 7 am medicine runs are murder.

Tonight my parents came over so I could get my 6 miles in. You would think it would cool off as the sun goes down, but it doesn't. I chose the hard six by way of the park just so I could have the diversion of the wooded trails. When I got home I was drenched, but I managed to watch the last half hour of Dancing With the Stars without offending anyone.

It's 10PM and I still haven't showered. Freddie had some visitors come over about an hour ago and I'm ready to go to bed.

Working out my Life

Weights today. No mercy from the trainer.

Leg extension 55lb 4 X 15
Split squats (10 lb dbs) 4 X 10
Deadlifts on bosu (10 lb dbs) 3 X 15
Unilateral hip lift on bosu 3 X 15
Stairs (every other) (10 lb dbs) 3 X 5
Military press uni leg (10 lb dbs) x X 10

I told Aaron (my trainer) that the most recent issue of Runners' World referred to a study that suggested that running stairs didn't simulate running hills and that to run hills better, you need to run hills. Aaron agreed, but stated that since I have improved on the hills and I run stairs also, that I am evidence that running stairs does help somewhat. So, my little strategy to get out of running the stairs didn't work.

Freddie, my oldest son, goes into the hospital for surgery this Thursday. Of course, I am wondering how this is going to effect my training schedule. I wonder if there is a gym with treadmills at the hospital? I plan on staying with him at the hospital and that will result in some challenges to getting in my Saturday and Sunday runs. To run 11 miles on Sunday will mean taking 3 hours off from the hospital (including drive time, run time, and shower). I wonder if I could get away with running just half that many miles, say 6 miles, and still jump back into the program. I'm pretty sure that I can since my fitness base if pretty high and my running fitness is too. I guess I'll just have to wait and see how things pan out over the weekend. I'm also toying with the idea of not running at all on Saturday and Sunday.

A Run in the Park

I thought about taking a day off to rest my legs, but no. Friday is "rest day" and it's only Thursday.

Strength today:

Squats (bar) - 4x20

Deadlifts (bar) - 4x15

Rev lunges (bosu) - 1x15

Rev lunges (bosu) (5lb db) - 3x10

Rebounder 4x20 (7lb ball) SS plank 4x 1:00

I needed to run 3 miles, but I wanted to go slow so I stopped at the park on my way home. Nothing slows me down like the trails. I ran 3.33 miles in 44 minutes. Yup. Nothing slows me down like the trails. However, nothing gives me peace of mind like the trails either.

When I was almost done, I briefly lost focus and turned my ankle. I fell and caught myself, then did a brief body check to see if everything was still working. I can feel a slight twinge, but I think it's fine.

Here's a few photos of the park where I run. I took these in the evening so it looks completely different than when I run.

French Park, Amberley Village

Hot & Sweaty

Today was the hottest day of the year so far. I worked out twice: AM and PM.

For the AM I did my strength workout. I didn't ride my bike, but got a ride with a friend who I talked into working out with me. Hey, once you hit 40 everything starts to go south if you're not proactive about it. I can't stress that more. She did a wimpy "beginner" workout, while I was subjected to a particularly sadistic brand of Trainer Torture:

Deadlifts (bar only) 20 x 4
Stairs (2 at a time on the up) x 5 Super Set (SS) Pushups x 15 This one left me in a withering heap on the floor in something like "child's pose"
Recumbent bike RPM >100 for 2:00 SS Rebounder x 15 & Victories x 10 x 4 sets
Seated row (27.5 lb) x 20 SS Forward walking lunge the Reverse walking lunge x 4 I did these outside the gym on the driveway and fantasized about how I'd look on a Vespa.

I put off my run until the PM thinking it wouldn't be so hot. It was 87 degrees at 5:00 when I headed off to the park. I drove to the trail, because I am a wimp. When I got there, another runner was getting ready to start and I ran on ahead, faster than usual, because I wanted to look, well, fast. In my haste, and while listening to The New Radicals "You Get What You Give" I lost concentration (hey, it's a REALLY good song) and ran past the trailhead. That meant I ended up coming back down to where my car was parked and taking the next trail a different direction. But this turned out to be fortuitous because I learned that if you run the opposite direction on a wooded trail, even a familiar one, it looks like an entirely NEW trail! How cool is that!?

My euphoria was shortlived, however, as the heat and this morning's workout soon caught up with me and I ended up dragging myself over the next trail.

I think the run was 4 1/2 miles. It took about an hour. Garmin died after 2 miles, but, to answer this question: Yes, it does count as a workout if you don't use your watch. I think my quads and glutes would agree.

******************************

On a totally unrelated subject, like many V-Team bloggers and trail runners, I love living and running with wildlife. I don't like them in my vegetable garden and I can do a spot-on impersonation of Mr. MacGreggor chasing a critter with a garden shovel, but that's another story. Anyway, last week, at the bank, I saw this unbelievably beautiful moth sitting on the window ledge. It's only the second time in my life I've seen this creature, and the first time I saw one, it was dead on the sidewalk. So I was delighted to be able to take a photograph this time and I'll post it here. I took it with the camera on my TREO so it's not the best, but it's the best I could do.

If you are interested, you can learn more about the Cecropia Moth, which is the largest moth in North America, by clicking here.

Count Down

As I enter the last two weeks of training before the marathon, I am committed to making every run count. I want to maintain the intensity of my runs and workouts even while reducing my mileage and training load.

That said, today's workout was no exception.

I ran a total of 4.5 miles today, including 6x400 intervals.

2 Miles easy warmup at 10:32 pace
Intervals were: 1:59, 2:03, 1:55, 1:59, 2:02, 1:58. Rest intervals, which I walked, were 2:00. Cooldown was a little less than .5 miles.

McMillan's training calculator indicates I should be doing 400s between 2:03 and 2:10 which is based on my MORE HALF MARATHON time, but I think my Half would actually be faster now and I'm quite satisfied with my splits. In fact, my first and last 400 are almost the same time, so my consistency bears out my training.

Later this afternoon, I hit the gym for strength training -- upper body and core. Bunch of bicep curls, bunch of shoulder presses on the Bosu, bunch of pushups, some tricep torture, whole lot of bent over rows, rebounder w/ 4 lb ball, stretching. I'm sure there was more but I was talking about Sunday's Pig the whole time and I can't remember. Marathon Brain.

__________
I just got done watching American Idol. What a disappointment. I like the BeeGees, but really, who else can sing their songs like they do? And will somebody please confiscate the Crayon box from Paula? Her eye makeup was positively distracting