Little Angry (Gene Clines)

 23.2 miles today at 10:56 pace.  Time for a few easy days.  Pirates are just crushing the Marlins and I am loving it.  It’s been 45 years, time to dominate in the World Series.

I’ll be back

 Tried to get out moving today just to shake the pummies out.  I actually felt reasonable so I jogged and walked at a pace that was under that needed to finish in 12 hours.  Got in 7.7 at 13:56 pace.  That’s what I have to do to be able to move around tomorrow and hopefully have a run near 12’s.

 At this point the whole strategy is on the weekly long run and losing weight.  I can’t try and grab too many extra miles, or I’ll be in the funk.  I also plan on taking Friday’s off to at least have a shot at a decent Saturday.  I would much rather pile up miles even if I walk a lot to get them.  However, I need to run more than walk to have the confidence needed to beat the clock.

 A person can cover more miles with executed walk breaks.  You need the right combo of maximizing rest and achieving the best pace per mile.  The challenge at Ice Age is it is constantly shifting topography.  No gigantic hills, but continuous rollers, turns, and terrain.  Hard to get a rhythm with the walking, but I have as good a chance as any with my course knowledge.

The 4 rail fence

 The past week I contemplated not running Ice Age.  I received a bit of wisdom from Spider and State Champ.  The event is 7 weeks from today.  So out I went today after light walking, a bit of slow jogging, and Friday off this week. I covered 21 miles in @ 12:29 pace.  All of it jogging.  The last 4 miles were difficult and I was in the mid 13’s the last couple of miles.

 I checked in at 182 pounds.  I only took water.  On the next effort I believe I will conduct a run/walk sequence and take in calories.  I am setting a goal to be at 172 pounds for Ice Age.  Now it is calorie counting time.

 There is no sound plan as it seems dependent on my energy level.  I went to the Doc for the kidney discomfort and they think it may be muscular.  They gave me some type up muscle relaxer, but I only pop that before racking.

 So don’t dance on my grave yet.  My hope is this is not being right at the cutoffs all the time.  

Butch Patrick

 Having to re-tool for Ice Age means going back to more miles with a lot of slow jogging and walking.  Back to 15-20 hours a week of slogging along in hopes of a good day, some tasty waves, and walking skills for May 11th.  Crawford has mentioned she would fist fight the course with me if necessary.  Very honorable gesture.

 With the time change it is back to the headlamp.  The sun didn’t come up to 7:35 today.  Dang.  Perhaps it is better this way so folks don’t have to see me with the Al Lewis shuffle.  

...and loving it

 Oh special bikers, many thanks for gracing the paved trail with your presence.   Thanks especially to those free wheelers who clip by unencumbered by any rules or manners.  Please...many times bowing to clear the path so your peak of athletic harmony is on display for us to see.  So special.  Please forgive those of us who might not be looking up and down the 46 mile paved trail about 12' wide to triple check if you may be asked to squeeze over 1' 4" and divert the straight path.  You are truly the Golden people and I get a little tingle as you go by in your uniform.  

 11.5 miles today at 13:45 pace.  I am contemplating going ham (wicked hard) for about a month to achieve close to 50 miles a week of 13 pace and then doing a trail 50k by feel.  If 13:30 pace isn't achievable then I may have to drop Ice Age.  I'm going to do whatever I can to do it, but I'm not going to go if dropping is a higher probability than finishing and I think I know enough to determine this.

 Everything is good.  The issue is it takes me about 1:30 to cover 7 miles in training.  Do the math.  I need to consider getting near 15 hours a week of training to move the needle as 15-20 of this is walking.  Not by choice.  Not that my watch is super accurate, but I burn 1000 - 1500 extra calories above my base metabolic rate a day and am gaining weight.  I put 4 pallets of sod down last week, worked my job, kayaked, and still gained weight.  The Sargeant Carter lifestyle is quickly losing its appeal.  If it sounds like I am whining it's because I am.  I feel healthy,  but can't as Red Buttons used to say, "Can't get a dinner. "

Here’s looking at you

 I am going to attempt a long run tomorrow.  For that reason I took today off.  Taking days off is something I don’t like to do a lot for the simple reason it is difficult to hit 50 miles a week.  Two days off this week is above average.

 When you spend time around folks near the end one tends to hear comments like they did real well today, or things seem to be getting better.  This is common when one is at the stage you can’t care for them any longer.  It’s reality.  The same thing happens with aging pets.  The thing is, you don’t end up mastering this time continuum.  The process does not reverse.  It is a very real situation and decisions have to be made.

 That’s where my running is.  I’ll always lumber a few miles a day.  I have to balance the value versus the other things in life.  I was unsuccessful in the 100 mile.  I was jogging and walking 15-20 hours a week and did like 367 miles in December.  I averaged 50 miles a week last year.  It takes too much time when I have to walk so I can accumulate more miles.  It’s not going to get better.  To much effort to hit the 12 hour cut off for 50 miles.  My last 6 of them have been 11 hours plus.

 I don’t live my life laying around all the time.  When running leaves me too tired then everything else is a struggle.  I usually pass out before 7:30pm.  I’m that guy.  He looks better today.  Freakin’ guy looked like Ivo Van Damme on those 800’s today.  Well…it might have felt like it, but I end up feeling like an old wash rag that’s been wringed out and left like a scourged pile of nothingness.

But other than that things are awesome.

Fire and rain

 Covered 6.5 today at 13+ minutes a mile.  Good to be out.  The increased dosage must be working.  I guess that’s a good thing.  This might be the last Ice Age.  The training is too hard just to make cut offs.  Perhaps I’m just in a funk.  Time will tell.  Cut me Mick.

Skin’em up Pilgrim

 A day off from running is in order.  Tired all day physically.  No matter.  Twern’t no grizz left anyway.

I’m a runner not a brick layer

 In a funk right now.  Covered 6.5 miles today in an hour and thirty minutes.  I have nothing…just beat.  All I can do at this point is rest up and see what tomorrow brings.  

Get out of my mind

 Tough day.  Wanted to stop after a half mile, but ended up jogging 6.8 and walking a mile with Wayne.  The average was 13:30.  Just wore out.  Perhaps tomorrow will bode better results.

Sleep faster

 The workout today was going to be a bit difficult as I was fairly worn out.  The warmup was 3.5 miles.  The total effort was 10.5 miles and within this were mile repeats of 8:22, 8:16, 8:00, and 7:51.  The good news was when I wound up the big engine I actually didn’t feel bad legging it out.  All the slow miles were clunky, slow and uninspired.  Not sure what this is telling me, but honestly the repeats really weren’t that difficult except a bit on the last one.

 It was a decent week.  Running with a purpose, along with the other parts of life is draining at this age.  Sometimes you just bull through it and other times you compromise.  For the first time in quite awhile I am napping on the weekends.  I put in almost a 2 hour nap yesterday.  In the past they were 15-30 minutes.  Now when I awake I start the coffee routine just to get the brain some clarity and make arrangements with the rest of the body to get cracking.  I expected to be tired.  It was this way 20 years ago.  Back then if I just kept running I could rally at some point.  Today I can effect a mini rally, but it borrows from the reserves.

Come one, come all

 On March 10th the clocks move forward, crushing much of the daylight the early AM runners enjoy.  Though I enjoy the longer evenings, it is more of a challenge always plunging into the darkness.  It is the coolest part of the day.  Soon the heat and humidity will also triumph over us early folk.

 I struggle running after work around 5PM.  My body is just wasted by then.  So I don't.  I quickly learned any side deals with myself to run later does not happen.  And because there are no cool people to meet up with and get myself out later, it makes it a bad option.   

 Today was as expected.  I ran 10.7 at 9:53 pace and it was a bit of work.  I then walked 1.6 miles for the cool down.  Otherwise I might have stayed out a bit too long as I want to get in 4 or 5 mile repeats tomorrow.  I just want to do the work.  They will be a solid effort off the watch.  I won't be keeping track of the time.  Ten weeks to Ice Age.  Can't get motivated to lose poundage.  Going to the Strawberry Festival today.  I'll be knee deep in Carney food.

Dewey Rock

 I was surprisingly clunky today.  My left leg was like a tire low on air.   It was about 80% compared to my right leg.  I am a lefty so that is my dominant leg.  By the end of my 6.2 mile jogfest it was 85%.  It is clear that the 10 mile tempo did take a toll on me.  That's okay.  It can't always be blue skies and hamburgers with bluegill filets piled on top.  More commonly known as the Butternut special.

 Looking forward to a solid effort of around 11 miles tomorrow.   Hoping to feel good averaging sub 10 pace.  It is starting to warm up.  I was soaked today and it was low 60's.