100K

4.5 on the elliptical at the gym. Burned 700 calories!

First run over 5 miles in a few months. Started off kinda sluggish, settled in around 4  miles. 2 really big hills. groin was a little sore from the elliptical. Got through it, felt really good afterward.

Same route as yesterday. Settled in a little quicker, though was pretty sore. But was doing really good. Felt really good at the end, felt like I easily could have gone another 3-4 miles. 2 huge hills again.

night run. Side of the park. Starting to hit a groove. I think the hills had a huge impact. Speed is coming back, and endurance as well as energy. Settled in fairly quickly. Wasn't too tired at the end. Wasn't really sore either. Knees and everything else are totally perfect. Felt really good. Very quality run. Really looking forward to the weekend runs. Planning a pair of 8 milers.

4.5 miles on the Eliptical. Working at a really strong pace. Really hammered it out. went for 48 minutes on it. Sweatin like crazy the whole time. On top of working out with free weights and stomach exercises for an hour and a half before hand.

Getting my strength and energy back, and really ready to get back in great shape and lose these 15 lbs I dont want.

4 miles at the gym on the elliptical after bench pressing and shoulder weights.  Took it a little slower because of my planned running this weekend. Burned about 500 calories.

My first 10 mile run since the marathon. Felt really good. Started off laboring to stay around an 8:00 minute mile pace. Was feeling a bit dehydrated. My vision was a little cloudy too. Thought I might not make it 10 miles.  I stopped at the water fountain at 3 miles and filled up like a camel. Cloudiness went away and I slowed down a bit. Got to upper park and decided to go up the side of the canyon. Havent been up there in months. Loved it. Totally didn't realize how much I missed going up there. Had a really strong run up the hill, felt like I was good for another mile or so up it, but stopped after 2 and turned around. Finished off 10 miles with a pretty fast pace and was really happy with the run.

Back to back 10 mile runs! Beast mode is back!  Well sorta. Running at a way slower pace. I ran the whole thing at just about 9:00  minute miles. Didn't want to go too hard. My legs and feet were getting a bit banged up by the end. Think I may have done too much too soon, but i dont have any soreness or anything. Hopefully nothing tomorrow. I will be staying off running for a couple days as a precaution. It did feel absolutely great to do 20 miles on a weekend. I havent put in that kind of mileage in a long time. Feel the pounds melting away. I still have about 18 lbs left to lose before I am at my ideal running weight. 

First run in a long time while that was sub 8:00/mi  the whole way. Average 7:54/mi for the entire run. Felt really good and had it under pretty good control. Knees were fine and everything, no soreness the next day. Have been working pretty hard, but feeling really good about getting my speed up and continuing to do that.

45 minutes on the elliptical at the gym. Burned a lot of calories. Heart rate was much lower than it has been at the same resistance level and calorie burning rate, so I'm definitely making progress and getting back into form. Weight 162 at the end of the night on the scale. down 7 lbs from when I started hitting the gym and running regularly again.  Feeling great. Definitely a breakthrough this week. Or a re-breakthrough I guess since I'm getting back into my top physical form. Need to lose 15-20 lbs before I am at my speed running weight. 148 would be good. Even getting back down to 155 soon will be better weight than I have been in 3 months.  Pounds are definitely going to be melting off quickly now.  I can sense that my metabolism is up and after this weekend I expect to be at 157-159. 

6 miles on the trail before going to kristy's house.  Was pretty sore. not sure why. Had 1 day's rest and the day before was the elliptical. Day before that was 7 miles at a fast pace and felt very good. hoping Im not sore for this weekend. I planning another pair of 10 milers, but we'll see what happens  after the first.

10 miles today in Redding on the river trail, near Kristy's house. Getting a little banged up i think. Have a bit of a shin splin on my right shin. Wasn't really painful but was going at a 8:55/mi pace. Think I'm gonna do a short 4.5 mile run tomorrow, and then stay off for a couple days. Shin splints have never been a problem, so I'm not worried about this. My knees were fine, and everything else was good. Got in a good .5 mile uphill run with steep inclines. Powered through it pretty well. Finished the run strong too. So that was good. Was a bit cold at 43 degrees. 

Ran the trail near Kristy's. Had a good quarter mile uphill in it. Was running kinda slow cause feeling the effects of the 10 miler the day before (all on concrete)  My calves and shins have been a little sore, but not unbearable. Need to get off the concrete and run on dirt more soon. Daylight savings is coming up next month so that will help.

5.25 on the elliptical after doing chest and stomach strength training at the gym. An hour and a half lifting weights, and 50 minutes on the elliptical. Burned 800 calories on that. Heart rate is staying lower, and it's easier to work the higher resistance. Definitely getting my vo2 max back up as well as endurance. 

7.25 mile night run. Didn't have GPS with me, but I think it was a pretty good pace. Felt really good. Started off with a bit of soreness in my shins and calves again, but for the most part that went away and was not an issue. Pace was definitely strong. Considering 4 weeks ago, I would have been working really hard to maintain this pace, as well as go just 5 miles instead of 7.25, I am definitely advancing back to my previous level of fitness. Looking forward to this weekend.

Pretty fast run tonight. was taking small strides, but very quickly. My heart rate was pretty high up, sweating a lot. Knees were good, but shins and calves are sore. Probably should give them a rest, but it's not really unbearable or anything. Overall pace was around 8:00/mi but I had some pretty quick ones in there too. Probably around 7:30/mi for at least 4 miles or so.

 Looking forward to trail running this weekend in upper park!

11.25 mostly on the trails. Slower pace, but had about 4 miles at around 7:50-8:00/mi.  Calves were a little sore at the beginning but settled in, i should probably give them a rest, but they dont keep me from running. And once I warm up after 3 miles or so, they dont keep me from going fast either.

Chest and Shoulders at the gym for an hour and a half and then Elliptical for about 45 minutes.Burned 700 calories on the Elliptical. Was working the maximum resistance for about 3 minutes with a heart rate of 185 while burning 21 calories per minute. Averaged at around 169 HR and burning 16 calories per minute. It's a lot easier to do higher resistance for longer than when I first started. Also my 11 mile run last week was no problem, had plenty of energy at the end and felt like I easily could have gone at least 3 more miles comfortably.

Got in a really fast run this time. My GPS said I did 7.75 miles in 59:34 for a pace of 7:39 but I think it was a little off and it was more like 8 miles total. Felt great to run at a relatively fast pace for 8 miles. I'm still not to where I was was, but this was definitely a breakthrough in getting back to it. 8 miles at sub 8:00 is definitely a big deal. Knees felt great, though i did feel a litttttle bit of the effect on them towards the last mile or so, but it's hard to tell if it was anything more than just fatigue. I was also running on pavement. I'm thinking I should keep my pavement runs slower.

3 miles on the Precor AMT at the gym. Did it in 25 minutes, resistance setting was mostly at 15, but also put it at 18 and then 20 (max) for about 8 minutes. Got a good sweat out of it.

Started off the run at a fast pace and decided to slow down after about 3 miles. It was  beautiful out on the trails in upper park. I ran to the top of monkey head and down and then continued in down the hill. Went pretty far down it. I slowed down a bit but then started picking up speed again in the last couple of miles. My right knee started getting a little unhappy around mile 9. It was very mild but if i had been running faster it most likely would have been worse. Im thinking i might be coming back a little strong with my long runs and should keep the speed and distance down. It could be the shoes though especially considering they are nearing 400 miles.

6 slow miles on the trail. Wanted to take it really easy after the 12 miles yesterday. Felt really good and like I could have handled a lot more, so that was good. Probably couldn't have handled it at a faster speed though. Rest tomorrow and gym on Tuesday.

6 miles on the AMT at the gym. Burned 850 calories. Not bad. Was a little surprised to see that I weighed 163 coming into the gym when I weighed only 162 on Friday and this weekend I had dont 18 miles of running plus the Friday workout. I'm guessing cause I had some food in my stomach and water weight. Probably will be back at 160 on Thursday.

8 Miles in my New New Balance 410 Trail shoes. Right away my left foot was getting sore, but it started settling in. Was running on about half and half soft ground and half pavement. These shoes will be nice on the trail.

 I think I need to keep my speed down and just focus on getting the miles in for the next few months.

4.25 miles on the AMT at the gym after biceps and triceps. good workout. WAs at the gym for 2 hours and 15 minutes total. Was liffting heavy weight, really good workout.

Well my GPS said I did 8.25 miles in 7:39/mi pace, but it really didn't seem like I was going that fast. Maybe im just getting into the groove finally. I dunno I'll have to see how easy it is doing 8 miles on my normal trails where i know the distances accurately.

 My knees did do fine throughout the whole run in the new shoes. The left shoe seemed a little out of place  to start, but i think they settled in and are taking shape well. I am pretty optimistic that they will not cause any knee pain.

8 Miles at a decent pace. GPS was saying I was going way faster than I was, but I definitely wasn't going slow. And this was more or less effortless too. It was the pace that I barely could maintain for 2 miles when I first started back up. Nice to be getting it all back. Felt pretty good. Kristy also ran great. I usually start off behind her and further back and catch up to her at just half way, and then i run ahead and up a quarter mile hill and back down, and usually she hasn't reached the hill by the time i come down, but this time she had beat me by a minute or so, so she has been doing great! She also is coming off a cold and sinus infection and hasnt been able to run much the past 2 weeks for various reasons so this was a really good run for her!

3.5 very slow miles with kristy. She got in a good 25 minute workout doing strength training while I did some ab stuff, but not a whole lot. Then we decided to go for a short run. It turned out to be really good for her and she had an average pace of around 9:45/mi except going up hills. We did about half a mile of all up hill and she did great on them and she never stopped once. I am very proud of her and I know she'll do great in her 10k in April.

5 Miles on the AMT at the gym after a good pecs and shoulder workout. Been a bit sore since the 20 mile weekend, all on pavement.

5 Miles on the AMT after a pretty good bicep and tricep workout. Felt a little dehydrated so stopped after 45 minutes instead of going 50+ like I planned, but still got a good 5 miles in and burned 700 calories.  Almost below 160 lbs.

About 9 miles on a new trail in Redding. It was all dirt and pretty nice. A beautiful day for a trail run too. I liked the trail and it has access to a lake to swim in so it would be a great hot summer day run.  Kristy ran 8 miles and was only a few minutes behind me. She did a great job. I am a bit worried it may have been too far for her, though she has been doing 4 and 5 miles pretty consistently for the past 3 months with no issues. She's been doing hills as well and her speed is improving and obviiously her endurance as well. She's definitely ready for her 10K and going to work on speeding up her time. It would be awesome if she could finish it in under an hour.

8.5 miles on the pavement. Started off slow and then got into a groove and turned up the speed for a few miles. 3 hills mixed in for almost a mile total of uphill, that was pretty good. i need to start doing the hills faster cause the current pace ive been doing them is getting too easy.

5.25 miles on the AMT at the gym after a chest and shoulders workout. Burned 720 calories

Ran up monkey head and back down. Decided to go fast after the first mile for a few miles and was able to do the 2.5 miles in under 19 minutes, so that was cool. I probably could have clocked in under in around 17 minutes if I had ran fast the whole way. Getting speed back, but i am wondering how it will be once the weather heats up, also, not sure if i can keep up the speed regularly, but i am enjoying slower paces anyways. 8:15/mi is a nice pace.

6 Mile on the trail today. A little tired and lethargic at first after not running since Tuesday. I was sick with a mild cold and sinus infection for a few days, but I managed to kick it and I am back to normal. Very happy that it only lasted a few days because in the past I would get sick for am few weeks with a runny nose and sinus infection and be miserable the whole time. I now use something called "Astepro" which is an allergy medication but it works amazingly well from keeping your sinuses from producing mucus, so if there's no mucus, and they stay dry, the bacteria dies and the infection can't spread. It works better than antibiotics.

 Looking forward to getting back into the gym and 30+ miles this week.

9 miles on the trail. Was struggling the last couple of miles and running slower than normally, but I got through it. I think part of the reason was coming off the sinus infection and col, but the other part was cause i didn't have any electrolytes before the run, I was feeling a little dehydrated at the end.

4.5 miles on the AMT.  Burned 650 calories. Worked out biceps and triceps. Good workout, especially coming off the cold. Think I'll 100% by Friday actually.

3.5 miles on the AMT at the gym after a good chest and shoulder workout. 

6 miles on the trail. 5 were at near marathon pace. Was running really fast, pretty happy wit the pace and strength I had. I even had eaten ice cream a couple hours before at work and it didn't seem to slow me down much. One thing I think I've been doing incorrectly since I started running a lot is breathing right. I realized I wasn't breathing deeply until 5 miles into the run or so. At which time I picked up the pace and started focusing on my breathing. It made a very big difference.

7 miles on a new trail outside town. Was a fun trail, but i was way underfueled and not enough water. A lot of the run was uphill and that was really hard to maintain a good pace. I stopped at a stream that was pure snowmelt from up above and drank some water. Best tasting water ever. After that I ran better and then the 2nd half was alot of downhill so i was able to pick up the pace. did the 2nd half over 3 minutes faster than the first. Afterwards kristy and i went to a good mexican food place and i stuffed myself. 

3.5 Miles on the AMT at the gym. Good bicep and tricep workout before that. Really getting my full strength all the way back now. Going to be able to start building up past my previous bests.

11 miles up past monkey head on the upper rim trail. Was a little tougher than I was expecting, though I didn't eat anything beforehand, so I actually did pretty good considering that. I think that even at my peak form, it may have been a tough run for me without eating an apple or banana or something first.  Felt pretty good, though towards the end I was feeling a little beat in the legs and joints, but I'm walking around fine right now. As long as I get stronger on the long runs it's ok. I think I need to start doing some 14's. now. I'm probably ready. 3.5 miles were at a pretty good pace. Around 7:30 or so.

5 Miles on the AMT after chest and shoulder workout. 

6 Miles in the park. Been raining like crazy all day and there was a slight break for an hour or so and Kristy and I got in a short run.

Good run in the muddy trail. Made it fun to dodge the obstacles. Was pretty cold and wet, but I was well prepared for it. Did fine. could have ran further, could have ran faster, but didnt want to overdo it for my first run of the week.

4.25 on the AMT after a pretty solid bicep and triceps workout.

6 miles in the cold, on the trail. Very muddy, not as fun as Monday's run. Was really tired and no energy, probably from the gym and run the day before.

6 miles on the trail. A decent speed, but it was harder than it should be to keep up. I think all this rain and hardly any sun for the last 2 weeks is starting to affect me. Also might be affected from the gym. Either way, I've gone easier this week and Im hoping for a good bounceback run tomorrow.

Had a great run. Started off at about a 7:22/mi pace and kept it going for a good 3 miles before I started feeling the beating and slowed down to just below 8:00/mi or so. Did that for about a mile and a half, but somewhere in there all the carbs I loaded up on last night kicked in and I powered through the next 3 miles at a BQ pace. Finished overall at around 7:25/mi pace average for 8 miles, so I was really stoked on that. It was pretty tough the last mile or so but I am pretty happy nonetheless, especially considering that I've just been feeling so tired on run the last week. We've had no sun for the last 2 and a half weeks and I can tell it's affecting my energy level. I'd never survive in places that rain a lot. 

Fast run up Monkeyhead and back down. Really turned up the speed after going all the way to the top of Monkeyhead. Must have opened my lungs more or something after going 1/5th of a mile stright up a mountian. Anyways, I didn't have my GPS,  but the time was about an hour and 13 minutes and the distance is 9.5 miles about so it was around 7.40/mi average. Good average for 9.5 miles and I felt really good. No lack of energy the whole way, easily could have maintained that pace for 5 more miles minimum. I could probably have gone faster as well. I imagine I could have done the whole thing for a near BQ time like on Saturday.

Feeling good about these last couple runs. Either pigging out on a lot of carbs and food over the weekend is giving me more energy, or the return of the sun, or both.

4 miles on the AMT at the gym. was way easier than last week. 

11.25 miles and was feeling kinda beat at the end. Out of energy as well as feeling it in my legs a little. I think the main reason for being out of energy was working out yesterday plus 4 miles on the AMT and 9.5 miles the day before that, but I think I may have done better if I had eaten an apple or banana. I did run the first 3 at almost a BQ pac, but it was fairly hard to keep it up. I'll make sure I eat a banana or something before my next run.

Had a really fun and good trail run  in Redding. It was a beautiful day. Warm and very sunny, but not too intense. Got in lots of sun, got a good sweat but wasn't too hot. Was properly hydrated and fueled up before hand.. I wasn't sore in my inner quads like I was the previous 2 days from my long Wednesday run. Was a little sore in my shins, but nothing unmanageable. The trail was about 4.4 miles long so I went to the end and back for a total of about 8.75 or so. The last mile was almost all uphill and an elevation change of at least 1000 feet. It was pretty gruelinng but I handled it really easily. So that was nice. Beautiful scenery. lots of streams running through the trail to create fun obstacles to get over/around. Lots of rocky area that was pretty hard on my feet going downhill. Ended the run with plenty of energy. Felt like I could have easily drank another bottle of water, eaten a banana, and then turn around and do iit all over again, no problem. Might do that soon. There was also a fantastic network of trails in this area, I am really looking forward to running them all.

12.25 on the north rim trail. Pretty far back. Pretty good run. Kept it slow on purpose but still finished it at 8:48/mi pace. Not bad considering most of my times for any run of this distance and uphill and rocky terrain has been well over 9:00/mi. So that is pretty cool. I think that I should start taking Emergen-C before runs again. I think not taking it is slowing me down. I also should eat a banana or apple every time like I used to.  All in all, a solid run.

7 really tough miles. No idea why it was so hard. Maybe lack of fuel or energy, maybe eating couple donuts at work. Either way it was a total bonk of a run and only 7 miles. Wish I had got more in this week, too busy.

Ran a half marathon distance after work today. 3.5 miles of it was uphill on rugged terrain. But I was feeling really good, could have gone faster too. I had a lot of energy. Fueled up well before hand. I wasn't even very hungry afterward. I taking emergen-c before runs again after not taking for about 5 months. I think it's had a major effect and I'm looking forward to see how much better I do using it regularly.

5 Miles on the AMT at the gym. Started off pretty sluggish, but was able to get up to 12 on resistance for quite a while, probably could have gone more. Also a strong workout before that. Definitely think taking emergen-c again is making a big difference.

8 Miles running at a moderate pace and then went and played a softball game. lots of speed at the game, but I'm sory in my left inner quads. Same thing happened last game after a lot of fast base running. I am gonna need to stretch out more or not run as fast, i hope im not getting to old to handle sprinting.

7.4 miles on the Swasey trail. I love running that trail now. It's got so much different terrain and features. Some of it feels like running through meadows, some feels like wooded forrests and others feel like the side of a mountain cliff. i did the first half at a fairly moderate pace, but coming back down i turned up the pace and finished off with around a 7:20/mi pace.

6 miles on swasey again, another good run, wish i had more time, started off slow, but quickly got into a groove, would have been able to keep it going for a long time.

5 miles on the AMT. high resistence, lots of energy, strong workout.

12 miles on the trail. Thought i was gonna do better, but it was a little harder than I thought, though not too bad considering I've ran 4 days in a row now + lifting weights. But I was thinking I'd go at a better pace, and have more energy. By the end I was pretty beat,  more than I felt I should have been.

8 miles on the trail. First 4 were fairly moderate, but decided to speed it up the second half. Averaged around 7:25/mi Good pace, felt pretty easy, knees and everything were handling it fine. No soreness or anything after the run, felt pretty good. 

5.25 miles on the AMT at the gym. Good workout, put up the most I have on the bench in over a year. Very strong workout to say the least, feeling good about that.

6 Miles on the trail before Softball game. Strong run, had plenty of energy at the softball game as well. 

6 slow miles on the trail, and it was hard. Maybe needed to eat a banana or something beforehand or I need a days rest. Been working hard lately.Oh well, it's in the bank, and i'm doing two long runs this weekend.

Another tough run on the trail, but had more distance than yesterday. Slower though, and in sunlight for about half the run too. Was starving at the end but I got through it and put in good mileage for the week.

9.5 Miles up to monkey trail. Good energy. 

10.5 miles to monkey head and past it then up it the mountain. Was feeling very strong on the run and obliterated the uphill part to the top of the mountain, maybe one of my best runs up to the top of  it. All along the run I had good energy and picked up the pace. I probably finished the second half faster than the first. I had fueled up very well before hand. I also ate a bunch of buffalo jerky the night before. I think I need to increase my protien and fat sources. More avocados, more nuts more olive oil, more rice and beans too. I hadnt been eating a lot of them because of how much weight I put on after the last marathon, but I think it may be time to start eating them again. Excellent run.

5 Mile quick run after softball game. Adrenaline from the game gave me a boost. Good run, but mostly on the pavement, first time I've had to run on pavement in a few months.

12 miles on the trail, strong run. Ran the first 4 miles at around a 7:45 pace. Blasted up the mountain to monkey face at probably my fasted climb ever. There were some people at the top that had been watching me climb it and they were totally amazed that I was able to pull it off. I couldnt hear what the guy, but i think he was asking me if i was training for an ironman or something. lol.

 Overall, a great run. Was feeling a little bit of stress on my right knee, but I think it might be because I need a new pair of shoes.

8 Miles after our softball game. I was a little scraped up from a head first dive into home for a run, but not to bad. Also a little bruised on my  hip from slipping in the outfield. Took the run pretty nice and easy, could feel it was wearing me down a little, but I think I'll be fine tomorrow and ready for a 10 miler.

12 tough miles. Was tired from all the workout this week. Not a single day of rest from Monday-Friday. Got it done though. It got a little easier as kept going. Miles 4-9 were easier than miles 1-4 and 9-12.

5 Very slow recovery miles.  Didn't think I was going to be able to go too far, but my body handled it pretty well. Probably could have squeezed out 3 more if I wanted to, but I'm happy with my mileage for the week, and I also didn't want to risk overworking my legs.

10 Miles up to monkey head and back. Was going at a pretty good pace for the first 2.5 miles and then slowed down to about 8:30/mi on the way up to monkey head. Pace was slow going on trail as usually, just can't go too fast on it. I did go up to the top of monkey head pretty strongly.

5 miles after softball game. Under fueled and it was getting tough around mile 3 but picked up a 2nd wind shortly after. Could have easily done a lot more probably with a stop for water/

Ran the first 2.5 miles at a 7:10 pace or so. Was feeling pretty good about it too. Probably could have kept it up for at least a half marathon distance so that's good. Glad that I still have that sort of speed and considering I wasn't fully rested that was good too. I also got up to monkey head and back pretty quickly. So all in all another strong run.

8.5 miles on pavement. Around my new neighborhood. I moved to another city with my girlfriend. Lots of new places to run but have to drive/ride bike to them. The route that is right outside my door I can squeeze out about 9 miles on, but all on pavement (paved trails, or quiet neighborhoods) but on the bright side there's about a mile of steep hill climbing so that is a big positive.

 Was my first run in almost 2 weeks. Actually did pretty well, though I was much more tired and a little sore all over afterwards. But I am glad I handled it so well including the heat.

9 miles split on a trail and on pavement in 95 degree heat. I also did 1 mile of hill climbs all near the end. After the last hill I was pretty beat. Took a lot out of me. I was well hydrated and fueled too. But 95 degree heat and the incline was a lot to handle. Should get better at it over the summer.

Ran 7.5 miles in heat around 88 degrees or so. First run since leaving for Europe. First run in about 7 weeks. I did better than I thought I would on speed. I was at my normal running speed and my lungs were doing pretty well with it. Energy wise I was ok though I think I normally would be a lot stronger after only 7.5 miles, however I was not loaded up on carbs and hadnt drank as much water as I normally do on a run day, so I think I may have been stronger if I had a fueled up right. All in all it was a good showing after being out for 6 weeks and only having run once or twice in the heat. I'll be ready to run in 100 degrees again soon.

8 Miles on the asphalt trail. Did all 3 hills very strong. Good run. Felt pretty good on it and definitely could have gone longer. Temperature was only around 85 so that made it easier.

7.5 Miles out the door on asphalt trail. Legs weren't enjoying it near the end. Could be because of soreness from 5 hours of dancing at my friend's wedding. Decided to skip 1 hill. Did the other two, including the longer one. Heat was around 90 degrees. Stopped a couple times to pick blackberries really fast.

8 Miles on dirt trail. Was in Chico for work and then went for a run around 4:30 on my old regular trail. Was really nice to be back on it, but I sure wasn't prepared. It was around 95 degrees. The run through the parts in the shade wasn't too hard, but the stretch in the sunlight was very difficult. I did only 1 mile in it and did not bother with trying to run up Monkey head. I think I need to take a water bottle with me on these hotter runs in the sun, I am not close to being at physical conditioning to handle 12 mile runs in them again.

6.5 Miles on asphalt neighborhood trail. Wasn't too hard, but decided to save energy for gym tomorrow and not climb every hill. 

3 Miles on AMT at our new gym. Was hard for some reason. Wasn't really fueled up I guess.

3.7 Slow miles with Kristy. We needed to get in some exercise for the day so we went for a night run around the neighborhood. we did 2 hills though so that was a really good addition. I also broke in my new new balalance shoes and they are feeling great.

Great heat stroke run! Was about 95 degrees with 3.5 miles full sun. Ran up to monkey head. Was a lot harder than it had been in the spring and not in 95 degree temp, but I got up it pretty easily. Probably would have done it better if I hadn't slacked off on Running for 2 months, but the heat was also a big factor. Either way it was a solid run in extreme conditions. I was very well prepared. Ate pasta for lunch, had 3 endurolytes caps and a banana before the run. I also had a hat and a water bottle. I could have definitely done much more under the conditions. Easily could have pushed it to a 12 mile run or more. Really good run, felt my lungs opening up at the end, one of those types where I know I'm gonna run even better next time. 

 Also, my new shoes were feeling great on the trail. Wish I could run on dirt all the time again, but oh well. Hopefully they feel as good on asphalt.

Started out slow running with Kristy but eventually turned up the speed and went on my own. Did 5 sets of hills in this run. Almost 2 miles of steep inclines. Pretty good run. Was running at a good speed and good energy, could have kept going but it was getting late and needed water. The new shoes handled the asphalt very well. Knees were feeling good and everything but not as nice as on the trail the day before. Either way, happy with this run coming off the heater yesterday.

Got a few sub 8:00 miles in. Loving my new shoes, they are handling the asphalt great. Knees and shins and calves were all doing great the whole run. Did 5 hills in this run. Felt great to do that many and the last two I really blew up. Very happy with this run from start to finish. Also happy that it was such a strong run even with all the running and working out I've been doing. I think eating dinner before running is a big help with energy.

5 mile "power walk" with Kristy. It was middle of the day and we didn't want to run in full sun 90 degrees. So we did a power walk. Got 5 miles in in about an hour and a half, so a pretty brisk pace. We were both sweatin from it and feeling it, so it was good exercise. Wish we had been running, but I'll count it.

This was a great run. I ran the first 2 with Kristy at a slow pace for her. but then took off on my own and really poured on the speed. I blasted up 3 sets of hills and had a lot of stamina. My lung capacity seem much much stronger than it was a week ago. I thnik the run up to Monkey Head and my Rhursday night run were breakthroughs for this. This was my first really strong run on the summer it seemed, where I had great speed with minimum effort. It all just seemed really easy. One factor was that it was cooler tonight than it has been recently. It was around 75 degrees by the finish and no sunlight, so that may have been a huge factor, but I've done some fairly cool night runs this summer too and they weren't this strong.

Looking forward to tomorrows hardcore run in chico. Will be going for at least 10 miles with 4 of it in full sun and temps will be around 90-95 degrees.

9.5 On dirt trail in Chico. Lots of sun, lots of heat. Good run all things considered. I should have eaten pasta before the run but I did it pretty handily. Getting stronger in my runs.  Looking forward to next week.

7.5 miles after being on my feet for 6 hours cleaning out garage and other work. My feet were really sore before the run, but it was still a great run. Surprised I had the energy that I had for it because I ran it really well, especially up the hills. Was afraid this weekend was gonna be a wash after having to skip 2 runs and almost this one, but 24 miles for the week isn't too shabby.

8 miles out the door on asphalt. 3 big hills. Did the hills very strong. Started off the run with vision a little cloudy and was feeling like it was going to be a tough run, but hit a stride about 3 miles in and it got really easy. Powered up the hills and finished the run really well. Wanted to conserve energy for next day's run.

Wasn't too hot today so the run wasn't that difficult. Ran at a pretty decent pace but it was a little hard, probably because of yesterday's run. I ran up to the top of monkeyhead a little slower than normal, but did it pretty well, and wasn't even out of breathe when I got to the top. Probably should have tried it a little harder.

Turned up the speed for the last mile and a half or so and finished the last half mile at around a 6:30/mi pace. 

 Not a bad run all things considered.

8 Slow Miles on asphalt. Taking it easy since ER visit with heart skipping beats continuously for 2 hours. Doctors say it's no big deal. Who knows got an appointment with a cardiologist this week. EKG says no big deal as well.

8 miles on asphalt. taking it easy. Just going for distance.

8 miles, taking it easy, same route as monday.

8 miles on pavement around neighborhood. need to get on a dirt trail soon.

8 miles on the pavement around neighborhood

30 minutes/3 miles on the AMT,  Ran it on high resistance with a lot of ease. Was pretty happy with that.

13 Miles up the north rim. Would have liked to go to the end, but needed to get back. Was going pretty strong, but starting to wear down at the end. I would attribute most of it to no being very fueled up since I've been limiting my calorie intake in an effort to shed a couple more pounds for my 50k coming up. And also, I was only 2 days off a leg press work out and still feel soreness in my legs.

 It was definitely a positive considering I could go as far and well as I did with little hydration or fueling up and still sore. Also the next day I wasn't sore at all, so 13 miles or more is well in my limit. Will be trying for 18-20 miles this weekend. But I am definitely concerned that I have no put in enough training to do a 50K. Then again, it's a trail race with lots of up and downhill. I tend to run very strong on uphill trails and downhill. The last 8 miles will be all downhill, so I figure if I can just make it up the 4 miles or so of uphill starting at mile 19 I should be able to cruise to the finish.

Either way, I know  I will finish it. I just don't know what condition I will be in at the finish. Hopefully the weather will be cloudy and cool as it has been the last week. But we had a couple of 90 degree weekends last year, so I hope it doesn't happen now.

6 Miles up the hills.

9 Miles on Swasey Trail. Felt really good to get out on a trail. It was in a  nice light shower too so it kepted me really nice and cool. About 2 miles of the trail was heavy incline to a total of around 1500 feet or so. Did the 9 miles in 1 hour 17 minutes which I thought was pretty good considering a lot of it was uphill and all of it was rough trail terrain, and I wasn't working very hard.

5.75 Miles on the AMT at the gym. Got a good workout in, but my heartrate was way higher than it should have been for the resistance I was on. Wondering if I was just tired from yesterday and not enough fuel in the system.

3 Miles on the AMT. Good sweat.

5 Miles on the AMT, after a quick bicep/tricep work out.  Was pretty tired at the end.

3 miles on AMT

5 miles, trail in chico.

3 miles on the AMT

Ran my first ultra! Couldn't have picked a more brutal one either!  over 10,000 feet of elevation changes. Very little flat ground.

Had to do a lot of walking, mostly uphill after mile 10 or so mainly because the hills were so steep.

There was one section that was basically like climbing through a jungle with about 10 stream crossings. It was a lot of fun in that area. It was pretty hard to run through it, so I just walked for most of that section even when it wasn't uphill.

 The main reason I had to start walking even when there was no uphill was I started getting really bad cramping around mile 18 or so. Not sure why this happened again because I was very well hydrated and had been taking plenty of sodium and electrolyte caps. I think it's mainly that I just wasn't physically conditioned for this amount of distance. But I never remember cramping up this bad during my first training runs over 15 miles either. Perhaps I always cramped up during marathons but never really paid attention because I was always going for a fast time, and these last 2 long distances I have been running with main intention of just not overdoing it, so it makes me more sensetive. Either way, it's a little frustrating because I could have complete the race much faster if not for the cramps which made it hard to breathe deeply. I hope these are cramps, and not something else. I was very sore in my stomach and chest the day after the race as well. Maybe I just need to condition myself some more and I will handle the long distances fine again.

 I told myself I was crazy for doing this 50k and never going to do it again, and now I'm already thinking of signing up again next year and really training hard to get a good time. I feel I could easily get a sub 6:00 and probably somewhere around 5:30 if I am able to run without cramps.

4 miles out the door and down the hills and back up again.

3 miles on the AMT at the gym after a pretty good workout. Getting all my energy back!

6 Miles on the trail in Chico. Recovery pace.Felt mostly fine, but definitely need to take it easy for another couple of weeks.

4 miles AMT

4 Miles, AMT at the gym.

3 miles on AMT at the gym

6 Miles around neighborhood, and up 3 hills. recovery pace still.

4 Miles walking with Kristy around neighborhood. Had to get some exercise today after sitting around all day watching football.

6 Miles. Didn't go as fast as i could have, but kept up a pretty BQ pace. Glad that I'm still running near top speed. 

6 Miles at a good pace. Probably around 7:35 pace or so. Feeling good. Muscles and joints and everything almost back to 100% Respiration seems to be stronger. I feel like I could start working on speed training and be ready to qualify for Boston in Spring if I wanted to. Thinking about it. Maybe I'll wait.

4 miles on AMT at the gym.

6 miles on pavement.

6 Miles on chico trail. First 3 at a pretty brisk pace, would put it around 7:25/mi

 Ran very well, but was short on energy. Both from not enough fuel, but also fighting off a cold. Run helped, I think.

2 miles on the AMT at the gym after a really good workout.

9 miles around my mom's house. Lots of hills, tons of elevation changes. probably 3000-4000 total elevation changes. good run was feeling pretty good the whole time. Calves were really sore the next day. Need to start running more regularly.