March 23rd- March 29th

"A good friend is like a four-leaf clover, hard to find and lucky to have." - Irish Proverb

-- Lucky to have the friend group that I have.... will always cherish you all.  You all know who you are.  

Monday:

11 AM: 8.7 miles w/ 400ft of vert averaging 7:30pace.  Easy cruise from work around Link Lake and back. This is becoming my normal hour'ish run from work and also really the only way to get some hills around work too.  Legs little tired from the hills this weekend but otherwise good.

5 PM: 55mins VASA Lift with Paula this evening with a leg focus..  lot of RDL's

Tuesday:  

Finally had time early this morning before work to look through all the Salida Marathon photos from 2 weeks ago.  Looks like I am barely running but still ran the best time I have there... 

11:30 AM:  7.8 miles averaging 7:40pace. Super chill jog from work over the lunch hour. Legs are trash today, probably a combo of all the vert from the weekend and lifting yesterday. Hopefully they will come around for tomorrow's hard run.

-- Had me an visitor outside my office window at work today.

Wednesday:

--  This was in my inbox this morning... only 60 days to go... fuck I feel like I am not even close to be ready.

10:30 AM:  14 miles averaging 6:45pace.  Workout Wednesday done over at Davidson Mesa over the lunch hour.

20 min warm up

15k at marathon pace working down to finishing the last 4-5k at half marathon pace

20 min cool down

One of the worse workouts I have done in a while. Just could not keep pace and the HR was super high for the pace I was going. Also stopped a lot when the HR got to high to let it come down. Did not realize it was over 80 degrees until after I was done so guessing that was a huge part of my problem plus the wind coming from the west. Paces where so much slower heading towards the hills (west) into the wind (constant 10mph with 20mph gust). Basically the Inner Bitch won today... nothing else to say.

5 PM:  50mins VASA Lift with Paula... upper body today.

Thursday:  

  -NOTE:  Weight check in:  166.6lbs w/ 8% bodyfat... gained a little bit but not surprised since my miles were down a little bit last week while also eating like an asshole for 4 days while in San Fran.  Still right were I want to be, around 165...

9:30 AM:  9.8 miles averaging 7:35pace.  Easy cruise from work mid morning before it got to hot out again. Learned my lesson yesterday, it was still 70 degrees out when I got done which is way better than over 80 that it was yesterday. Legs are pretty shot today but whatever, onwards.....  20mins in the hot tub in the afternoon when I got home from work.

--  This evening a bunch of us went to "The Cutoff" down in Denver. Soooo good!!!!  I just love that they are making a movie about the back of the pack instead of all the elite front runners.  These people are the true heartbeat of the sport.  

Friday:

7 AM:  Treadmill 5.2 miles averaging 7:15pace.  Metabolic testing to see my resting calorie burn and also what my burn rate is at different running paces. We started at 7.5mph (8min pace) and worked down to marathon pace which was 10mph (6 min pace).  Spent 4mins at every 0.5mph increase for measurements.  This test breaks down the burn into how much fat verses carbs you are burning as well at each pace to see where that crossover is. I don't have the results yet but did see some raw data. It was interesting because I crossover at an easy pace but my fat burn rate stays about the same no matter how fast I am going, I am an even fat burner at about 50% all the time verses those who end up dropping to 10% fat/ 90% carbs. That somewhat explains why I don't need as many gels and carbs during a marathon.  More to come on this once I get the results back next week.  If  you are interested in this let me know and I will pass on the information to Dina.

10 AM:  6.5miles w/ 1300ft of vert averaging 8:45pace.  Lap of Flagstaff from Chapman shortly after the metabolic testing this morning. Took the whole day off just to burn some vacation time since I have to much right now. Testing of the new Nike ACG Ultraflys, these shoes are awesome.... Not sure they will be a Hardrock shoe but about any other 100 miler they would be at the top of the list.

5 PM: 50mins VASA Lift with Paula... today was full body.  Pretty active day today, tired tonight.

Saturday: 

7 AM:  10 miles w/ 2100ft of vert averaging 9min pace.  Some miles over at White Ranch solo while Paula was running with her friends. Been a bit since I have been over here and always forget how nice the trails are here once you get up the hill a little bit. The first - to 2 miles are not that great but everything on top is fantastic! Took the new Ultraflys out again and they were awesome, maybe they might be a Hardrock shoe after all, more testing to be done.  Went for a treat after the run and  finally found the best cinnamon roll in Denver  after years of searching, Mr. Biscuits in Wheatridge.

Sunday:  

7:30 AM: 20.2miles averaging 7:15 pace. Laps at Davidson Mesa to make fueling easy and Taylor joined me for the first lap. Legs were tired today from the past 2 days of trail running and vert, well that is why I think they were tired. Just cruised and worked on fueling for the most part keeping a bottle and gels at the trailhead for each lap, 2 bottles of 45g of carbs each, 1 Beta Fuel, and 1 Precision for a total of 160g of carbs. Then 60g carbs and 20g protein drink right when I got done. Little bit of a gut training day. Pretty tired after this one but not wasted.

-- Speaking of shoes, I came across these in my size at Boulder Sports Recycle this afternoon for $55 a pair and they are all brand new.  More new shoes in the stable.  HAAAA!!  I will have to put up a photo of all the running shoes I have, it is somewhat silly.

Total Weekly Numbers

Finally an awesome week of training in the bank.  Little tired and sore this Monday morning as I am typing this but that is just part of the process.  Have another 90min jog on tap this morning.  Building is going well right now, tired but well so just rolling with it. Don't have any other travel plans on the schedule for the next 6 weeks so it is time to buckle down and get as fit as possible.  LFG! 

Food for thought I came across this week..

ONE THING FOR YOU TO THINK ABOUT

Your life simply reflects what you’ve prioritized.

What you've achieved tells you what you were willing to suffer for.

What you failed at tells you the opposite. 

March 16th- March 22nd

“Attention is the rarest and purest form of generosity.” – Simone Weil

Put down that phone.... I have been really intentional of not being on social media as much as I used to be the past 6 months or more.  Thinking of taking it up another notch.  Right now it is blocked during the workday 8am to 4pm Monday thru Friday.  May start blocking it at night too only allowing myself on there in the mornings when I am drinking coffee or maybe during the weekends too.  Have to give this more thought on the best approach.  Tired of all the bullshit AI stuff among other things.

Monday:

10:30 AM: 8.7 miles w/ 400ft of vert averaging 7:40pace.  Easy lunch time cruiser from work over around Link Lake and back hitting up all the small hills around work. Still tired and sore in the legs, especially the quads but a lot better this week than I was after Black Canyon which has the same amount of downhills. Progress for sure!!

5 PM: 50mins VASA lift class with Paula--  Legs but kept it light, still recovering from the weekend some what.

Tuesday:  

2 PM:  10 miles w/ 500ft of vert averaging 7:25pace.  Easy afternoon cruise from work at the hottest part of the day. It was 70 out and felt so damn hot today. A few 20sec strides thrown in about halfway to help my legs remember how to turn over a bit. Can still feel the marathon a little bit in the quads but that is about it.

Wednesday:

9 AM:  13 miles averaging 6:25pace.  That one got me after interval 5... I was dry heaving some and the rest periods kept getting longer and longer after 5 through 8 but got it done.  Pacing was better than I was expecting I could hit, I thought I would struggle to hit 6min pace but guess I was wrong.  First half mile of every rep was in the 5:30s then got slower has the heartrate got high... might have to take bi-carb before one of these one week to see if there is a difference.  Another brick in the wall.

20 min warm up

8x1 mile at half marathon effort (start these at marathon effort and work into it if feeling tired) 60-90 sec rest between each

20 min cool down

5 PM:  50mins VASA Lift class with Paula…. Upper body day

Thursday:  

  -NOTE:  Weight check in:  165.4lbs w/ 7.9% bodyfat.  Been a long time since I have been 165lbs... might have to keep an eye on this so I don't drop much lower.  Over 10lbs lost in the past 8 weeks.

6 AM:  4.1 miles averaging 7:40pace.  Quick shakeout jog before heading to the airport to fly to San Fran for the weekend. Just an easy cruise around the open space next to the house.

-- Hell of a travel day today.  Took FOREVER to get to the hotel about 20 miles north of the Golden Gate Bridge.  Spent over an hour in TSA line at DIA, then they lost my luggage in San Fran but I did find it about an hour later in a different terminal, then it was about 90min wait to get my rental car, and finally, the normal 40min drive was doubled to the hotel.  Just one of those travel days where nothing went right.  Just have to roll with it, not a damn thing I can do about it.

Friday:

8 AM:  10 miles w/ 2100ft of vert averaging 8:45pace.  Went to the start of the Big Alta 50K and took off about 15mins before them to get up the trail some and take some photos and video. Then ran out to mile 5 on the course and turned around. What awesome trails this race is on! I think I may come back next year to run the 50K and also maybe the 28K.

-- Spent the rest of the day exploring around San Fran getting back to the hotel about 11pm.  That is a late night for me!  Hit up Christi Fields, Golden Gate Park, Fisherman's Wharf and did the tour over to Alcatraz.  What an awesome day!  Also got to visit a little bit with Tom (Bob's brother) since I parked my car at his house and took a Waymo around the city. 

Saturday: 

11 AM:  11 miles w/ 3300ft of vert averaging 9min pace.  Started at the finish line of the Big Alta 100K and ran the course backwards until I could find a hill that would work good for this workout below. This hill and the heat (80ish) kicked my ass. I spent the rest of the day licking my wounds and being unproductive at the hotel.

20 min warm up
4x8 min hill reps with run down recovery think 10k uphill effort
20 min cool down

Sunday:  

5 AM: 4.3 miles averaging 8:30pace.  Easy treadmill miles at the hotel early before leaving to fly home.  Ended up having to sit on the plane for over 2 hours before we could take off.  Another challenging travel day getting home.  I don't have anymore travel planned right now until my marathon at the end of May.

Total Weekly Numbers

I thought I was going to have a bigger week mileage wise this week but at least I got a bunch of quality work in both in speedwork and hill work, so guess that will have to do.  Looking back I guess it was not a bad week considering I did run the marathon pretty hard last weekend then rolled right into this week with no days off.  Don't have anymore travel plans as of today until the marathon at the end of May so time to buckle down and grind for the next 6 weeks or so. 

March 9th- March 15th

 "The bounty of nature is also one of the deep needs of man." -Lady Bird Johnson

Seemed like a good quote for this week.  I needed that trail time in Salida this weekend.  Way to much road running the past 6 months or so, starting to wear on me a bit.

Monday:

1 PM: 8 miles averaging 7:30pace.  Easy afternoon cruise in the afternoon with Taylor from work before going to PT. Not actually a hamstring issue I have been dealing with but an abductor issue caused by super tight quads. Needled the shit out of my quads and the problem abductor. Right into the hot tub when I got home, that made me sore.

--  Another postcard for the board arrived today as well.

Tuesday:  

11:30 AM:  10.9 miles w/ 400ft of vert averaging 7:15 pace.  Hopefully last manual entry in my online workout log, new watch should arrive tomorrow.  Had to visit a supplier in Longmont this morning so did loops around Lagerman afterwards. Workout was 40mins of 50K pace in the middle which I took at around 7min pace for a flatter trail.  Felt okay for the most part.  Still trying to figure out how I am going to approach the Salida Marathon this weekend, most likely will just be a long easy supported run.

5 PM: 53 mins VASA Lift Class with Paula- Leg day.  Lots of RDLs.

Wednesday:

9:30 AM:  11.4 miles w/ 500ft of vert averaging 7:30pace.  New watch day!!! Whooo!! Anyways long loop from work between meetings this morning. Just cruising and not pushing. Legs still a little sore from the needling on Monday but much better than yesterday.  

Heading back in to get more blood work this afternoon, good times....  Love getting old.  

Thursday:  

9 AM:  7.75 miles averaging 7:45pace.  Easy cruise from work... holy shit that wind just kept getting worse and worse... glad I got out when I did, looks like it is increasing through out the day.  Legs are dead today, or at least felt like it.

5 PM: 50mins VASA Lift with Paula, upper body

Friday:

  -NOTE:  Weight check in: 168.4lbs w/ 8.4% bodyfat.  Been a bit since I have been under 170.

10 AM:  4.3 miles w/ 1200ft of vert averaging 10min pace.  Shake out jog...  Very tired legs today… felt awkward on trails, couldn’t find a rhythm. I can tell I’ve been doing too much road running. All good… I’m thinking tomorrow is just gonna be a long run and not a real race, but we’ll see in the morning how the body responds and how it plays out.

Saturday: 

8 AM:  26.4 miles w/ 3800ft of vert averaging 8:30pace.  Salida Marathon- 16th overall and 1st in 50-59 age group. Also a PR time for this race by about 3 mins which surprised me. I did not go out hard with the intent to race. Just went out moderate for the first 8 miles settling on the single track. When we hit the 5 mile climb up a dirt road at mile 8 I started grinding some and basically pushed until mile 24 where I started dry heaving on the last climb up S Mountain, HR got to high. LOL... just cruised it in from there. Basically it turned into a progression run with a 2 mile cooldown.  Super happy with today.... my previous PR is from 10 years ago at the age of 40.  

Had plans to say until Sunday morning then drive home early but the weather forecast changed on me and decided to head home shortly after the race.  They were calling for 4-10 inches of snow with 70mph winds on the mountain passes I had to drive over to get home... not doing that in the van.

Sunday:  

8 AM: 7.4 miles averaging 8:35pace.  Super chill recovery jog on the treadmill at VASA. Windchill outside was 0 degrees and it was icy. Considering how sore I was, I did not want to risk falling so treadmill it was.

Paula and I spent the afternoon with Don and Tasha checking out the Legos exhibit at the Denver Museum.  If you can make it there before it leaves, DO IT!  So cool!!

Total Weekly Numbers

Not a bad week overall with a trail marathon thrown in the mix.  Seem to be recovering better this Monday morning as I type this than after Black Canyon last month so I will take that as a win.  Was supposed to do the Big Alta 100K next weekend in San Fran but I am pulling out of it.  Not quite the stimulus that I need to get ready for the marathon in May and I don't want to lose 2 weeks of training trying to recover from the 100K.  I am still making the trip and spending the weekend at sea level training instead of racing.  Actually really excited for the trip and have a few things I want to do there that I never had time to do on past trips.  Hopefully another solid week of over 70 miles with efforts this week... Starting to feel like I am getting on a roll.