Pain Sweet Pain!!

After the little shoelace fiasco I decided to take yesterday off. It worked. My leg didn't bother me anymore. I did an easy 5 miles this morning and went to my regular Raleigh Running Outfitters run this evening. The weather was great and I was feeling a little frisky after not running yesterday. I ended up Running with my friend Fila Chris(He works for Fila) for ten miles. Paul ran with us for the first 4.5 miles but decided to drop back when we picked up the pace as he is doing heart rate training and did not want to go out of his zone. We decided to take a detour at mile 6 and head back to the store by way of North Hills. By Hills I mean rolling hills that seam to never end. It didn't help either that Chris was pushing the pace below 6 minute miles for a bit. I tried to drop back but he would not let me. I guess in retrospect that I'm glade he kept me going. It will pay later on during races.
Ended up doing the 10 miles in 60 minutes flat. I've got a weekend of distance coming up and the weather is looking to be nice. See everyone out on the trails.

The Small Things.

The workout tonight was 10 by the half mile. I was actually looking forward to the workout when I found out about it. Everything was going great until about the sixth 800. My leg was bothering me a bit and I thought I would be able to just run through it. Then it came. Halfway through the second lap of the seventh 800, a sharp pain from my right ankle up the shin. Turns out that my shoe was tied too tight and once my feet had swollen a little from running, it hurt like hell. It just goes to show you that you can't overlook the small things. It sucks when something like this kills your entire workout. But then again, I guess you can't spend all your time worrying about the small things or running would suck.

Easy Mondays.

This morning I did a very nice 5 mile recovery run. It was a bit humid but not too hot and I felt rather good. One should never underestimate the power of a good recovery run after a hard workout. I have a speed workout coming up tomorrow. It should be a good one. Don't know what it is yet, but I like the mystery of not finding out what we are doing until Tuesday afternoon. The forecast is for it to get cooler later this week. Maybe fall is finally here. Can't wait!!!

The Unforeseen Long Run?

Today, which I will admit is supposed to be my long run day, I did 18 miles with Sam and The Polish Eagle(a.k.a. John). I had been thinking during the week of doing 18 today but by this morning had decided I may only do 15 to 16. In true runner form though, Sam and The Eagle talked me into doing a few extra. I think that in the long run it will prove to be beneficial for me but that does not mean that my body is not paying for it now. OUCH! The pain will go away and my legs will be all the better for it. It is good sometimes to have people push you a little further than you wanted to go. How else will you truly find what your limits really are?

A Bit of Speed and a Little Recovery.

I just got back from doing my 5 mile morning recovery run. We had an awesome storm blow through last night and it cooled the air right down for perfect running. I must admit that I needed a run like that after doing the speed workout we did last night. The workout consisted of 5, 1 mile repeats at about 5:40 pace with a 1/4 mile recovery between each mile. It was loads of fun. Trust me. Ben, who I've been doing most of the speed workouts with, pointed out that these mile repeats are a lot easier than when we first started them a couple months ago. True, but they're still hard. It is nice though, to be able to see an improvement in your pace and abilities as you progress through your training. Until next time, keep running!

The 16 Miler!!

This morning I finally went on my first, somewhat, long run during my training for the Richmond Marathon. I did 16 miles at about 6:45 mile pace. It was my friends John, Paul, Ben and Me on the run. Seeing as how they have been doing there long runs for much longer than I have (And they don't let me forget it) they went farther. But I am easing my way into the long runs. I'm in no rush to get 110 miles a week under my belt. Anyhow, the temperature was perfect (In the low 70's) It was sunny and I felt great. In other words, it was a stellar run. I can't wait for the marathon.

Great Run!!!

I had a great run this evening with Paul. We did a nice 10 miles at 7 minute pace. Feels like the humidity is going back down after the hurricane has moved out. Maybe I'll get a good nights sleep tonight. I am gearing up for a 15 miler on Sunday. This will be my first run longer than 12 miles in a while. Should be a good run.

Can't Sleep.

It's about 2:30 on Thursday morning and I have woken up and cannot sleep for some reason. Maybe it's because I didn't run yesterday. For some reason I decided it would be good to start this Blog. I am sure it will come in handy as things change over the next year and it will allow me to tell others what is going on in my world and what I think about worldly stuff and other things of that nature. I am going to try and go back to sleep now, so you'll just have to wait to get anything else out of me.