AZ Run Dad

10.5 Miles avg. 6:44 pace.  I did 5 easy then 5 moderate then 6 strides.  I felt pretty good today despite the warm and humid conditions.  Completely drenched after this one. 

Fall racing schedule is up on our blog

Ran about 5 miles then went straight into 8 x 1 mile w/1 min jogs. Goal was 5:45 for those. Actual splits were 5:42,5:39,5:42,5:41,5:41,5:41,5:42,5:34. This one looked tough on paper since I just ran 5:55 pace for the half marathon a couple of weeks ago. The first few were pretty easy, middle few was working, and the last 3 felt like I was in the latter stages of a half marathon. I'm pretty happy with this one given the hot an humid conditions. I feel like things are coming around for me. Cooled down until I hit 16.

8+ easy then some strides.  Got to sleep in until 4 today which was nice.  Got a run in and done before the kids got up.  Mom and Dad not at work and not out running when the kids wake up is a big deal.

AM: 10 miles: Warmed up about 3.5 miles with drills and strides then did 8 x 800 w/2 min jogs in between. Splits were 2:30,2:29,2:29,2:29,2:29,2:29,2:29,2:30. Cooled down about 1.5 miles after. I'll take this one. I ran by myself but it was great to get out to the track with other people for the first time in a long while.

PM: 4 miles: The normal easy four on the way home from work at Freestone Park.  Felt way better than I was expecting.  I could feel that morning workout in my legs throughout the day.

8.5 miles easy including strides

AM: 12 miles 6:23 avg. A hot and hard one! Hopefully this is one last punch in the gut from the weather. 87 with 67 dew point at 3 am. I ran 7 miles quickly getting into a moderate effort and down to 6:30 pace for miles 6,7 before going straight into a five mile tempo with splits of 5:57,5:58,5:49,5:51,5:56. The tempo portion started pretty comfortable and then I got a nice boost from a GU I took at mile 7 for a couple of faster mikes but then I actually started to fade a bit in the last mile and I was definitely tired and ready to be done. I'm happy to get a good solid run in these conditions.

PM: 4.13 miles w/4 easy + 4 x 10 sec hill sprints.  Legs felt good.

Speed intervals: Did some shorter faster intervals this morning with close to full recoveries. Workout was 8 x 400 near mile race pace w/400 recovery jogs. Splits were 70,70,68,68,67,69,68,67. Recovery jogs were about 2:10-2:15. This was a good workout. I felt pretty smooth today for that speed. Warmed up about 4 miles with drills and strides and cooled down 2 miles. Cooler weather today (77) but extremely humid.

18 mile long run: I hadn't done a long run with the group for a while and I actually had two group runs to choose from. As usual, I opted for the earlier run and ran with the Bandidos down on the Phoenix Canal. I knew a couple of guys that also had 18 on the schedule so it worked out well. I started out very slow but I was just talking with people and not really paying attention to pace. We were pretty easy for the first 10 and then I noticed a pickup in the pace after that. We went up 32nd St. twice on the way back in for some hill work. All in all a good solid long run and the conclusion of a week that had lots of quality for me. I don't think I would have done well on a hard long run today. It was great to run with people I hadn't seen for a while. Avg. 7:09 pace

6 miles easy with strides in the last mile

AM: Warmed up about 2.25 miles w/drills and strides then did 5 x 2k (1.25 Garmin) w/3 min jogs on the roads. Thought was 10kish pace. Splits were 6:39,6:37,6:37,6:40,6:36. I wanted to be around 6:40 so this was a good one. It was getting tough the last couple but 5:20 pace is feeling much smoother than it did a month ago. Temperature was much better (73) but extreme humidity left me 100% soaked.

PM: 4 miles easy

8 miles recovery + strides. Legs were tired this morning.

Ran about 9 miles then I changed into my new Saucony Fast Twitch shoes which I will wear for CIM in Decemer. They felt great. I ran another mile before finishing the last five with a progression tempo run. Goal was start at 6:10 and come down about 10 seconds every mile finishing around 5:30. Splits for that portion were 6:07,6:00,5:45,5:37,5:26. It felt really good and even easier than my recent tempo runs around 5:55 pace have felt. Good sign for sure. Better weather helps. Have a great day!

20.43 miles: Plan today was 20 miles with 5x3 miles in sub 18 with mile recovery in between. I warmed up just 1 mile an then went straight into the workout which felt very awkward at first but in order to not do too much mileage that's I what I had to do. This is one of the best long runs I have ever done. The break up of the mileage made it easy to focus mentally on the smaller segments. I kept the recovery miles at my normal recovery day pace to keep things honest. The weather was great and I never had the feeling I was hitting the wall. Idea was marathonish effort. This was a great way to get 15 miles in atmarathin effort. Here are the splits:

1 mile warmup 6:52

5:53, 5:57, 5:55 (17:45)

7:00 Recovery

5:55,5:58,5:55 (17:47)

7:16 Recovery

5:55,5:58,5:58 (17:51)

7:08 Recovery

5:58,5:58,5:56 (17:52)

7:23 Recovery

5:54,5:55,5:44 (17:33)

.43 jog in at 7:12 pace

6:15 avg for the run

8 easy + strides.  First mile was sluggish but after that I felt pretty good.  I was happy with how I felt today after yesterday's run.  I can't believe the Cardinals beat the Patriots. Wow!

8 miles easy with 6 short pickups in the last mile (basically strides).

AM: 10 miles Warmed up 4 miles with some drills and strides then did 4x1 mile w/3 min rest. Splits were 4:55,4:56,4:58,5:01. First rest period was jogging and the last two were walking. I was going for 4:55 but that was biting off a little more than I could chew at that pace. I'm still very happy with this workout and it's the fastest I have ever done mile repeats. I cooled down with two easy miles in the opposite direction around the track.

PM: 4 miles easy.  Legs actually felt pretty good considering this morning was pretty tough. 

Typical 8 miles easy + strides.  Not too exciting today.

AM: 12 miles on the Phoenix Canal with a group of six.  We had a nice group for 4:30 am.  We just ran at a nice easy conversational pace. 

PM: 4 miles easy then 8x 10 second steep hill sprints with a walk down recovery.  I'm glad I didn't do anything too intense today.  I could tell I wasn't all the way recovered from Tuesday yet.

A shorter long run today but with a large chunk at a faster pace. Goal was sub 59 for the last 10 miles. Turned out to be 58:40. I thought this would feel easier than it did. It was never easy right from the start but it never got too difficult either. Kind of a weird run. I picked it up a little the last few miles but I really didn't feel like I had a ton left to offer as far as picking up the pace towards the end. All in all a very good run just a little harder than I was expecting. Warmed up 6 at about 6:55 pace then splits for 10 mile portion were: 5:56,5:57,5:54,5:53,5:53,5:53,5:53,5:51,5:50,5:41. Jogged home .3 or so very slowly. Avg. 6:17 for the run.

8 easy + strides. Felt good today.

A friend of ours ends his 923 day run streak today. His father died on 9/23 a few years ago. When he started he didn't know that 923 days would fall on 9/23. Amazing. Anyway it's a great story and he is having a celebration run to end his streak today. Check out his blog:

www.mcdowellmountainman.com

Another easy 8 today.  Legs felt really good so this is a good sign.

AM: 9 miles: Warmed up 2.8 miles with some strides and drills then did 6 x 1k w/200 jogs. Splits were 3:06,3:07,3:08,3:06,3:07,3:06 and I kept the jogs to 1:00-05. I felt pretty good throughout although the last two the legs were burning. I'm feeling more and more comfortable running 5 min pace. This was a good workout heading into 5k Saturday. Cooled down about 1.75 after. Wore my new A5s today. Felt great!

PM: 4 miles easy

8 miles easy.  Had nice weather this morning.  We're almost into the 60s in the mornings.  It feels so good.  I can't wait to see what 55 feels like. 

6 miles easy + strides to get ready for 5k tomorrow.  Feeling pretty fresh going into this one.  I'm hoping for a sub 16 and a road PR on a legit course. 

9.5 miles total this morning: Really happy with this race. I've been wanting to go under 16 for a long time and I finally did it! I went after from the start today so it hurt early but I train for the pain so I was all in today. I was in the lead at the first mile but I could hear plenty of footsteps. Right when we passed one mile(5:03) two guys passed me and I went with them. I was feeling pretty comfortable with this position and the pace even got a touch faster for a bit. I had my watch set on km (.62) alerts and I was trying to keep everything under 3:10. We came through the two mile right around 10:07 and at that point Norberto Robles had one more gear that I didn't have. I still finished the last part at close to 5 min pace. The course was long by .07 which is a little longer than normal but that part is what it is. I came through 5k in 15:38 on my watch. My km splits were 3:05.88,3:08.53,3:04.24,3:06.81,3:12.58. The extra .07 was 17 seconds (4:23 pace). Really happy with the race but a little frustrated with the timing (right now I have a 16:20 next to my name). I ended up 2nd about 15 seconds behind 1st and the same ahead if 3rd.  Allison won the women's race in about 17:20. 

They have fixed the results so 15:55 was the official time.  Allison was 17:20

20 mostly easy miles.  20 miles is never "easy" but I kept the pace relaxed most of the way.  I picked it up a little the last few miles but not too fast.  I was really pleased with the way my body felt after racing yesterday.  It was just a 5k but usually I'm sore and today I felt pretty good.

Blog on yesterday's race