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Treadmill at lunch. Suboptimal, but all choices are suboptimal right now. I wanted to do a light workout to ready for the 5k on Thursday. I warmed up 3 and then did 1600@5:27, 1200@3:58, 800@2:33 and 400@1:15. 2 minutes recovery including slowing down to 8:00 pace and speeding back up. All was at a 1 incline but the last 400 at 1.5. Cooled down about 2.75 with no incline. 60 minutes total. 

I felt much stronger today than last Thursday when I did the treadmill intervals. The shoes definitely made a difference as did the no lunch prior.

Another treadmill run at work. Plan was 8-9 easy but you know how it goes. I started at 8.6 mph and worked slowly up to 10 after 3 miles. Then I did 1 mile at 10, 1 at 10.2 and another at 10. Then worked my way back to 9. 60 minutes total all at a 1 incline.

I want to call my 6:00 miles and my 5:52 mile marathon pace, but my HR was in the low to mid 140s which isn't my marathon pace effort. So all easy. 

I have to get back out on the road tomorrow morning.  

AM

Met up with Sandy at 5:45 at Highland and did an easy loop up 2300 E to 500 S and back via Guardsman/1500 E. Did two laps of the park and some quicker sprints down and up the hills on the SW side. Easy pace for the race tomorrow. 1:12:57 with 400+ ft of climb.

My hamstring/glute pain is slowly coming back and I could really feel it sprinting uphill.

PM

Around 5:45 pm, I jogged slowly to the West High track and did three miles barefoot on the grass. I got stung twice but otherwise enjoyed it. Did a few striders on the straightaways including two fast ones on the track itself. 40:08 total with the barefoot laps at 7:20 avg. 

I am alone for the next 2-3 days so I expect to get in some big mileage. 

AM

The rain made it feel cooler, but when I warmed up running the course I got quite sweaty. So sort of hot and humid.  I saw my old pal Teren running the course to warm up and said hello to him for the first time in more than ten years. It was nice to see him and his dad, my old high school coach.

My goal was to run sub 5:30 miles, but it was not to be. I lined up with Sandy and Ashley and shot out not far behind the leaders. I ended up right behind Steve Anderson with Sasha and Benjamin 5-10 seconds ahead. I stayed that way the entire race but was able to catch Steve in the last mile. It was a fun race and a nice morning.

Splits 5:49, 5:39, 5:44 and 44 seconds to finish.

Saw a number of bloggers and folks at the end and it was kind of hard to talk to everyone so I ended up alone for my cool down. 

Lunch

Went to a flag ceremony and pancake breakfast in Taylorsville. My mom took me so I brought my shoes and ran back home. I had to carry water, phone, wallet, keys and I had sandals in my back pockets. I was also wearing some heavier patagonia hiking shorts, so certainly not ideal.

I left right before noon and ran from their house at about 6100 S and the canal road down Jordan River Parkway and home. At 10 miles, my pace slowed from 8:00 to 8:30. Heat and cumulative fatigue from the day I suppose. So, I stopped running at Pioneer Park and walked the last 1.8 miles including a stop at Maverick for some chocolate milk. Heat went from low 80s to high 80s but cool relative to other days. 13.1 miles at 1:47:02, 8:10 pace. Strava says 600 ft of climb, but I will say 250 or so.

Now for a nap! 

In Bear Lake drinking beer to pay for wireless. Ran from the cabin up a four wheeler road nearby. 42:30 up and 30:30 back down with 1200 ft of climb.

It's 1:30 Saturday and I've yet to do my long run. It might get pushed to tomorrow thus killing my chance for a 100 mile week.

So, no run yesterday. We were sleeping in the same room as our kids and Colin had a rough night so I turned off my alarm to make sure he slept as long as possible. When I got up at 7, I had a strong resistance to running. My legs felt fine, but I knew there was some cumulative fatigue from the heavy mileage.

At 11, I got dressed and ready to go. I grabbed my phone and I'd missed a call from my boss. So, I had to go down to the bed & breakfast nearby for wireless and worked for 90 minutes and then, after two beers, my mojo was gone.

So, I got up this morning at 7 and ran. I felt ok at first but the fatigue in my legs manifest itself around mile 8. I was trying to maintain sub 7 minute miles and couldn't. I was running along the Bear Lake shore where it is rolling hills the whole way but nothing steep in either direction. 2:19 and change total or a 7:20 average.

I acknowledge that I've been going hard lately, so I think I take a step back this week in terms of workouts. I will still have a lot of mileage because of the Sunday/Saturday long runs but maybe keep the weekday mileage to 45 or so.  

Out and back up Emigration canyon during lunch. 48:58 with 500+ ft of climb. Felt ok but still like this should be an easy week.

Easy Wasatch out and back at lunch. Upper 80s but I feel like I am acclimating. 1:11:56 total with 700 ft of climb.

Legs felt good today but I am still taking it easy this week. 

Not able to run until 4:30 at work and had a call at 5:30 so a shorter run. I started at 9 mph and sped up to 10.9 by mile 7. I new it would quit on me at 5:30 pace so I watched and it killed right at 7.82 and 48:23.

May try to sneak in a little more after the kids go to sleep. 

5:30 am

9 easy with Sandy up city creek via memory grove. We were 20 seconds per mile slower than the last time we did this run so a good sign that I was taking it easy. 1:11:46 total with 900 ft of climb.

Lunch

Forgot my shoes so I did a treadmill run in my socks. They heated up pretty good but they are made of good quality synthetic material that holds up well. 15:23 total. Some stretching and rolling thereafter.

Easy on the BST north to dry creek and beyond. 1:09:57 total with 1200 ft of climb. High 70s but it felt hotter and I got dehydrated with no water.

Left at about 10:00 am and it was low to mid 70s for the run. From home up City Creek down Memory grove and back home. I wanted to go fast on the way down to prepare for the Timp Half. 

Going up was 6.35 miles with 1500 ft of climb in 50:52 or an 8:00 avg. I went via the capitol and Bonnevill Road going up.

Then I reset my watch and did a very aided 10k going down 1,382 ft descent finishing just past memory grove. 34:31 total, 5:33 avg. 17:06 first half and 17:25 second half. 163 avg HR (90% max), 169 max.

Splits:

Mile Split   Down Up   HR

1      5:26     285    0    154

2      5:30.5  213    0    161

3      5:33.7  191   23   164

4      5:38.1  219   16   163

5      5:42.3  214     0   166

6      5:27     216     0   166

.22   1:39.7   41      0   166   (5:33 pace)

I am trying to get used to running 5:40 without breaking down. I had a lot of help, but it was after a strong climb so I got exactly what I wanted.  1:35:03 total or 6:55 avg with 1600+ft of climb and 154 avg HR.

Jeremy Ranch Road with Fritz. Since it was just the two of us, we decided to go 20. I knew I might slow in the last few miles and I did. Sub 7 average through 13 but I had 3 7:30 miles and 2 8 minute miles over the last 7. I told Fritz to go ahead around 15.5 so I suppose he stayed closer to 7. 7:11 average for the run for me. Good conversation and it felt fairly cool and nice overall.

Sat in the creek afterward which was a godsend. 

9 easy. Heat acclimatization project continues. High 80s/low 90s for an out to around and back from Sugarhouse Park. Took water at 3.25 and 5.65 in the front yard on 15th. 7:40ish out and 8:20ish back. 1:12:23 total with 700 ft of climb or so, almost all on the way back to work.

2x15mt@ HMP-10K pace with 1 mt rest. 2 up/ 2 down.

 I was set to go to bed at 9:30 last night when my bro in law and his boyfriend came over to chat us up. My 5 yr old hadn't fallen asleep yet so he came down to join the fun and then the thunderstorm started. So, 10:45 bedtime and I failed to get up when my alarm called me at 5:30.

Yesterday's 90 degree run wore me out, so I stayed inside for a treadmill run. If you read my blog, you know that my treadmill kills at sub 5:30 pace and I am thus limited in what I can do and for how long. I can't adjust to a faster pace to get closer to an outdoor equivalent. 

I did the entire workout at a 1 incline. The first 15 minutes were at 5:46 for 7.5 mts and then 5:39 for 7.5 minutes. Great. Then a drink and one minute to get back to pace. At mile 5.61 at right over 35 minutes, it died at a 5:33 pace. I resumed after a minute and kept it at 5:42. Then down from 5:39-5:30 for the last 7.5 minutes. 2.06 cool down for an even 9.5. 61 minutes total.

Hot in there, so very sweaty but HR checks were low 150s. I am counting these as marathon pace because it was a tough effort.

Super early lunch to get out while it was still in the 70s. Ran from work to the yellow memory grove gate on Bonneville Road via HCI, Fed Heights, 11th ave and back. 77-82 temp wasn't so bad but I think it had some effect. 6:55 pace out and 7:45 pace back. 144 avg HR and 161 max. 600+ ft of climb.

AM

Woke up at 5:40 after going to sleep at 11. Felt ok and I finally got out for a morning. Plan was a half marathon primer. 5x2k at 10k pace with 3 minute recoveries. 2 up and 2 down

Did these at the west high track. I think my 10k pace is somewhere between 5:53-5:43 so I thought I would shoot for 5:45 and see if it stuck.  Since I was on the track, an even 1.25 or 5 laps made more sense. So that's a 7:12 interval. Splits were 7:19, 7:17, 7:28, 7:24, 7:27. That's a best pace of 5:49.6 and a worst of 5:58.4. My garmin disagrees with the mileage on the track (shows auto lap miles of 5:29, 5:38, 5:38) so I am going with the track time observed.

The workout wasn't taxing but I didn't feel like I had much more speed in me. Perhaps a bit tough to get going in the morning and some cumulative fatigue from a high mileage week. Cooled down only 1.17. Felt a bit warm - mid 60s maybe finishing around 70 and some humidity. Also, a bit of a headwind going south but that subsided after the first couple.

Lunch

1 mile treadmill warm up. 6x8 seconds at 15 incline and 12 mph. Stretching and core. 

Very boring treadmill miles. 52:58 at a 1.5 incline for the first 6 and 1 for the last 2. Varied the pace from 7:30-6:22. HR checks were high 130s/low 140s. Some times you just have to get it in.

Met with Fritz to run up Emigration and back. I did a warm-up of .25 while waiting at the start. Jon Kotter joined us for the first 10 so we ran up and down and then back up another 3 to get in some faster downhill miles. The 10 in about 70:15 with 650 ft of climb and the 6 in 39:12 with 350+ ft of climb with miles back down the canyon in 5:48, 6:03 and 5:57. Fritz did these last three much faster. Good to end a peak mileage week with some quicker pace. 6:50 avg for the run. Nice morning. Lot's of people out.

Thinking of doing the DesNews half... 

Easy out to liberty park and around. Did a few murphys on the way back. Feeling great right now. 1:06:57

Ran the last two miles of the desnews half from S Temple and 200 E. After the drop to 100 S, its pretty much flat as a pancake. The finish line was marked and though it shows on their website as halfway between 600 E and Green St, the finish was dead in the middle of Green St, about 650 E. According to the course tool, that's pretty spot on distance wise. It looks like the finish for all the races and they all vary a bit on their website.

Day off. Did a warm-up on the stationary bike and then some stretching and core stuff. 

AM

Easy to west high and then 8 laps and 20ish meters in 11:55 then back home.

Excited for tomorrow. Goal is to break 1:15. Plan is to stay in the 5:30s for as long as possible and get those last two in sub 6.

Lunch

Stationary bike for 10 minutes then a stretching, core and hip strength routine. 60 minutes total.

Splits: 5:31, 5:27, 5:37, 5:30, 5:38, 5:31, 5:38, 5:54, 5:33, 5:55, 5:54, 6:05, 6:23, 50 (6:03 pace for .14 according to garmin).

I signed up for this race last Saturday because I was feeling less than enthralled with the Timp Half as a St. George prep race. I did a few workouts that caused me to decide to shoot for 5:30s for the downhill and hold it together on the flats, hopefully sub 6. 

I woke up at 3:25 and was able to accomplish my morning routine without any complications. I recognized Ben Van Beekum as I was waiting in line for the Honey Bucket and met up with he and Riley after I finished. Sat around for a while then warmed up two miles going up the canyon road and back. Felt good and the temperature was very nice. Still cool and very little wind.

I got to the start and said hi to a few bloggers and met Brandon Dase. I learned that he was shooting for a sub 75 like me and Ben. It started pretty much on time and we were off. We kept the first mile under control as many darted out. After about 3 or 4, Ben separated and I worked with Brandon for a while. I learned later he had a bad side stitch and I lost him right after the turn onto Foothill.

No pain to this point but I was in new territory as far as speed and distance so I wasn't sure how I would hold up. My pace slowed to the low 6s for the flat on Foothill leading to 500 S which I took as a bad sign for the last 2 miles. Mile 8 on 500 S had some good downhill and I restored pace a bit but slowed again on the flat on 1300 E again to low 6s. Legs were feeling tired but no pain.

For the turn onto S Temple, I perked up my form and sped up a bit because I knew my boss would be looking for me at about 1050 E. He got up a bit early to cheer me on. I told him to look for me from 6:55-6:57 and there I was in the 6:55 time frame. I maintained sub 6 pace on S Temple but slowed from 5:30s to 5:50s. After the turn onto 200 E and the initial downhill, I struggled to keep low 6 pace. Then the turn east on 900 S caused a bit more slow down to the 6:20s. A 10ker challenged me at the finish line, so that was the last bit of excitement I experienced.

A very aided PR with 1600 feet of drop, but good prep for St. George. A 3:37 improvement. Met up with Fritz, Kevin and Collin and ran the woodchips. We found Matt Poulsen and Mike Nelson not too far along and they joined for the rest. On the second lap, we lost a couple and added Brandon and a couple others. 2.9 cool down. 

Then a couple miles walking and watching the parade with my brother and son. Then Eggs in the City with their meat lovers hash with eggs. A nice day thus far. 

Will still run Timp. I have no idea what to expect. We'll see how I feel Friday. 

Legs are a bit sore but not too bad. I ran on the treadmill just in case. Wanted about 6 in 45 and ended up doing 6.5 in 44:20. 1.5 at 7:30 pace, 1.5 at 6:58 pace, 2 at 6:27 pace and then 4x20 second strides at 5:00 pace and a cool down. All flat. Felt strong throughout.

If I was a betting man, I would put me in the 1:18 range for Saturday's race but I would like to beat those odds. 

5 easy. Went to the U track at 11 and ran four straightaways. Then 2x400 in 81 and 75 seconds. 40:07 total for the run.

Legs are feeling good. They got a lot worse yesterday and were sore and achy at the Flaming Lips concert and walking around downtown. I was kind of afraid I wouldn't run well, but they perked up substantially this morning. 

Everything about this race was kind of surreal. I spoiled it by running Des News on Wednesday and I had no idea what to do with myself. I recovered well from Des News but I didn't want to push my luck. James - runmehappy - was hoping for some pacing help so I decided it would be a good idea to run some goal marathon pace and see how it felt. I just had to convince him to go out that fast. With 1400 feet of drop in the first 8 and only 90 in the last 5.1, this is set up to blaze down the canyon. So the deal was 6:05-6:10 for the first 8 and then every man for himself.

We met John Hille from the blog at the start and he was shooting for something in the 1:20-1:25 range and decided to join our little pace group. Unfortunately, I left my Garmin at my friend's house in Orem so I had to use runkeeper which is somewhat inaccurate - and with the canyons, even more so. We avoided going out too fast and kept the miles pretty steady. I think we were averaging about 6:07-6:08 after exiting the canyon, hitting mile 8 on the parkway. I did mile 9 in 5:50 or so and then decided to ease off because I didn't want to go hard enough to require any recovery. I ended up averaging 6:09 for the run and feeling strong and fresh at the end. Encouraging to feel that good at goal marathon pace.

Big congratulations to James and John on their PRs today.

The race was well organized until the last few miles. A runner turned left at a crosswalk and I followed him but the cop said "He's the only guy who's turned left." So I turned back after a small deviation and the other guy did after a bit longer of a deviation. I let him catch up to me and I just followed him in. At the Alpine Highway, there was no one and no sign telling us to go under the highway so we went above it. On the cool down, we saw hundreds of runners doing the same with traffic stalled and everyone confused. Apparently the guy that was supposed to direct the runners didn't show up and they didn't post any signs to tell us where to go. Then the awards ceremony was excruciating. I usually don't stick around for these, but they were giving out some stuff. It took a good 45 minutes to get to the male 35-39 category with a slow delivery and numerous interruptions.

Also, I did none of my usual pre-race routine. I ate indian food and chicken wings the night before and didn't go sleep until 11. I got a banana, cliff bar and rockstar java (b/c there was no hot coffee) at the convenience store across from Lone Peak and didn't finish eating until later than usual. Luckily no GI issues though.

A nice down week of just over 60 miles for me. Time to get back to the grind. 

Easy run from Steiner with Fritz, Kevin and a doc named Adam. Nice sunday morning. 1:13:29.

8 easy at around noon from work - high 70s. Did my wasatch out and back. Felt really good at first but then my legs kind of faded; particularly my right felt a bit sore and heavy.56:51

I broke 300 miles in a month for the first time with today's run. 

5:30 am

Ran from home to Emerson where my son will be starting in a few weeks. Precisely 5 miles. Did 12x30 seconds fast on the way back. Felt sluggish today. 1:17:16 total.. 

Lunch

1 mile treadmill warm-up then 8x9 seconds at 5:00 pace and 15 incline with intermittent stretching, core and hip stuff. The hip always feels good after a session. I should do more than once a week.

In The Woodlands. Flew in early this morning so 5:15 pm was the first chance to run. Being in the 90s and humid, I did the treadmill in the Hilton here. Much harder than at home with HR checks in the 150s for 6:44-6:58 pace.  55:33 total with miles 2-7 at 1 incline.