Dec. 31

AM: 10 miles moderate

Got in a morning run along Bayshore Blvd before spending the day at Busch Gardens with the family and Valerie. 

I wanted to post my annual mileage, but I don't have my training log with me from the first 3/4 of the year, so I'll put it up later this week when I get back in town. 

Dec. 30

AM: 16 miles easy

Got in a long run along Bayshore Blvd. in Tampa. Flat and along the bay the entire time.

Dec. 29 - Blizzard Blast 5k (83 miles/week)

AM: Blizzard Blast 5k, 15:55 (PR), 2nd place, 8 miles total

I decided to jump into a race in Tampa while I am down here visiting some family. A 5k near the Bucs stadium was really my only option, so I jumped into this one. The name is a bit misleading because it's really humind in Florida. It was only about 70 degrees, but I was dripping with sweat afterwards. I at least got to run the race sans-shirt, which is a welcome change from the tights-only weather in Maryland and DC.

The race really wasn't that complicated. It went out pretty fast (71 sec for the first 1/4 mile), and by the time everything settled in, I was really only running with three guys. We came through the mile in 4:56, which felt exactly as it should have. Shortly thereafter, I made the only mistake of the race. One guy (the eventual winner) surged, but because there was one more guy with us, I opted to stay with him, thinking we would work together over the next mile to overtake him. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but of course that didn't end up happening as I ultimately settled for second.

Over the second mile, there were two small little bumps in the road (not big enough to be considered hills). I surged on both of those, dropping the guy who was with me. I hit 2 miles in 10:08 and spent the rest of the race trying to reel in the guy in the lead. I didn't quite catch him, but when I hit 3 miles in 15:23, I knew I had a good shot at sneaking under my PR, which I did.

Overall, this race was very promising. I definitely haven't been doing any 5k-specific work. The last time I ran a PR in the 5k, it was on the track in college, and I was on the track 2 or 3 times per week. I had halfway settled on the fact that because of my mediocre speed, it could have been a while before I saw another 5k PR. Today showed this was obviously not the case.

I'm also coming off of my two highest weeks of mileage since September, and two hard workouts this week. I also need to consider that I didn't run a step for four weeks in October, and I've only been running full time for a couple of weeks now. I didn't expect to come back in PR shape so soon.

So even though I lost a race I could have won today, it is at least a little bit encouraging that I can PR in a weak distance without much specificity in my training. It makes me believe I'm setting myself up for a strong Spring at the longer stuff where I am generally more competitive. Today was the end of a good 2007, and it was definitely a positive step into 2008.

I'll be in Tampa through Tuesday evening. Valerie and I will drive to Savannah for a night, and then back to Maryland on Wednesday. The warm weather (82 dgrees this afternoon!) is a huge relief right now, even compared to Atlanta.

Dec. 28

AM: 7 miles easy

I got in a quick run in the cold rain before driving from Atlanta to Tampa to see some family over New Years.

Dec. 27

AM: 13 miles easy

Tired legs today. Kept it pretty easy around Westminster and Memorial Park.

Dec. 26

AM: 10 x 800m @ goal 5k pace with 300m jog/2:00 recovery, avg. 2:26-27, 10 miles

PM: 6 miles easy shake-out

Ran a track workout this morning at Westminster's really nice mondo-surface track (I wish we had that when I went to high school there!), though I accidentally erased my splits during my second run. Whoops. 

Except for a couple of outliers (2:24 and 2:29), I was pretty consistent hitting 2:26-2:27. I started off way too fast in the beginning, but I was hitting even lap splits by #3 or #4. This is this first time since my stress fracture that I've been on the track. The week when I figured out I had a stress fracture back in early October, the big red flag came when I started limping during a track workout and had to drop out. I also tried out a new pair of spikes today, a pair of Nike Eldoret II that I got really cheap before coming home for Christmas. So far, so good--they could be the most comfortable spike I've ever worn. 

Dec. 25 - Merry Christmas!

AM: 12 miles easy/moderate

Between Christmas stuff in the morning and Christmas dinner in the afternoon, I squeezed in a run in 40-degree rain. Christmas morning is one of the few days of the year that I get to run on the golf course near my mom's house. It's normally a pretty busy public course near downtown Atlanta, so they don't take to kindly to runners. This morning, however, I had the entire place to myself, save for a few freeloading golfers. The only other days that I get to run on the course are when it's cold enough for the greens to freeze (so the course closes), which ain't that often in Atlanta. 

Afterward, I ate a lot of delicious food at Christmas dinner. I subsequently came home and passed out on my bed, laying horizontally. I then got up, sprawled out on the carpet in front of the fireplace, propping my feet up. My family's yellow lab plopped down next to me on the floor; judging by the licks to my face and cold-nosed nuzzling, he apparently wanted to snuggle. I obliged and fell asleep for another hour right there on the floor until I snored so loudly I woke myself up. 

Merry Christmas, everyone. 

Dec. 24

PM: 10 miles easy, core

When I drove up to the parking lot at the River this afternoon, I wondered, "Who's the joker running in the Santa hat?" 

Upon closer inspection, that joker was of course my running partner, Fellows. We (he) got some funny looks from some people along the trail, but obviously they just didn't have enough yuletide cheer. 

The rest of the day (and the past three days) was filled with quality low-stress family time.

To everyone else, may tonight bring you visions of sugar plums dancing in your head. Also, I have no idea what a sugar plum is, nor have I ever eaten or seen one.

Speaking of the same poem, evidence in a few lines of "T'was the night before Christmas" clearly shows that Ol' St. Nick was nothing but a carbon-emitting, baby-seal-clubbing tobacco smoker:

"He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot/

And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot."

"The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,/

And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath."

But for bringing joy and hope to billions of people around the world, I suppose he gets a mulligan. It is Christmas, after all. 

Dec. 23

AM: 1:00:00 easy/moderate over hills, immediately followed by 30:00 tempo, plus cooldown, 17 miles total

I ran the hard portion in Memorial Park in Atlanta, which is about 2.95k around. I tried to run as evenly as possible: 9:55, 9:59, 10:01. That gives me 5:26 pace, at least according to an online pace calculator. The tempo section was "comfortably hard," that sort of oxymoronic phrase often used to describe tempo runs." At about half marathon pace" for 30 minutes is probably more accurate, because that's what it felt like. No flats today, just trainers--I probably won't buy a pair of marathon racers until later in the spring, which I'd normally wear for a harder long run to get a feel for racing in them. 

Building up to Boston in April, this workout will gradually become the 1 hour easy/1 hour sub-marathon pace run that I like a lot. It's a good marathon simulator, in terms of getting really, really tired, but running fast and even. 

Dec. 22 - 84 miles/week

AM: 7 miles easy/moderate

A little recovery day caps off the end of a good week. 

Dec. 21

AM: 30:00 easy/moderate plus 10 x 1:00 hill repeats (Farmington Drive), 9 miles

Got up early for the workout before my 10.5-hour drive to Atlanta, making it progressively farther up the hill (at Farmington Dr. near Jones Mill Rd. and Beach Dr.) each time. A lot of driving today, but it's great to be home for Christmas. Rest for the weary. 

Dec. 20

AM: 12 miles easy

PM: weights, core, stretching

I met up with Patrick M about 3.5 miles into the run and went through Rock Creek Park. I was exhausted in the evening. I can tell I haven't slept enough this week; my body has that stretched-out, lingering fatigue. I'm driving home to Atlanta on Friday, where I hope to get in some better sleeping than I did this week. 

Dec. 19

AM: 10 x (3:00 on/1:00 off), 10 miles

PM: 5 miles easy, treadmill

Ran three Meadowbrook loops for the morning fartlek (13:27, 13:18, 13:30). Solid effort. I might actually try to get on the track when I'm home for the holidays, but right now that's a little difficult given the lack of daylight after work, when it's easiest to get on a track.

Dec. 18

AM: 8 miles moderate plus strides

PM: 8 miles easy

Played with my new heart rate monitor during the second, easier run.

Dec. 17

AM: 10 miles easy recovery

PM: weights, core, stretching

Cold and windy this morning. Last week before Christmas, and it can't go by soon enough.

Dec. 16

AM: 15 miles moderate/hard

Went up to Riley's Lock with Klim, Dylan, Nate and Steve Crane. Rainy and cold...37 degrees. Started off at a decent clip along the towpath, then went out to some country roads, before Klim and I picked it up for the last 25 minutes (and also added a cooldown). Hit 11:10 for the last two miles, which was OK through the mud, and because my running pants were so water-logged that they kept falling down.  Whoops. Should've worn tights today. Klim dropped me pretty hard in the last two miles--bad for the ego, but ultimately probably good for my running.

Dec. 15

AM: 10.5 miles easy

PM: 5.5 miles easy

Ran with the GRC and a few Pacers guys in the morning from the store. Shake-out run with Samy, my college roommate, in the evening before his Festivus Party.

Dec. 14

AM: 12 x (2:00 on/1:00 off), 10 miles

Hilly fartlek through Rock Creek Park. Lots of fog this morning.

Dec. 13

AM: 9 miles moderate, strides

PM: 60 min. stationary bike

Chevy Chase neighborhoods in the morning before work. 

Dec. 12

AM: 10 miles easy

PM: weights, core, hashbrown omelet

Dec. 11

AM: 5 x (6:30 on/:90 off), 10 miles

PM: 60 min. stationary bike

I set out this morning with the intent on just running some mileage, planning to do this workout tomorrow. However, when I got out the door, my legs felt light and crisp, so after a quick warm-up, I just rolled right into the workout. Normally, I take the time to stop and stretch, change into flats, and maybe do some strides, but today I just went with it. Finished up my 7 mile loop in 40 minutes for the entire workout, including recovery jogs, though I "cheated" the last recovery jog, running hard through it so I could see a nice even number at the end--perhaps a little obsessive-compulsive on my part. Some days all systems are just going to feel good, so I'd rather make it a real workout day instead of a mileage day run too aggressively.  

Dec. 10

AM: 15 miles easy/moderate

PM: weights, core, stretching

I didn't get a long run yesterday, and since I've missed my fair share of them already, that meant dragging my ass out of the door early before work. It turned out to be a decent run as the cold and rain stayed away--a pleasant change from this weekend. 

I haven't seen the sun in about a week. I'm beginning to miss it. 

Dec. 9

AM: 6 miles easy/recovery

Got in an early morning shake-out before driving the 8+ hours back from Ohio. Great trip all around for several reasons aside from the race, which I've already discussed in length:

1.) Learned what an "A.C. Slater" is. And a growler. And a heater. They pretty much all mean the same thing. 

2.) Saw Delilah of "Hey There Delilah" fame--and it turns out she's pretty damn quick. She won the women's race.

3.) A wilder than expected post-race party, where one or more runners were tasered by the cops. Turned out to be some of the Atlanta Track Club guys, who I've run with and raced against before. 

Dec. 8 - U.S. Club XC Nationals (67 miles/week plus 2.5 hours cross training)

PM: 10k XC race, 255th place, 36:21, 13 miles total (including morning shake-out)

I can say without hesitation that this is one of the most difficult races I've ever done. All of the snow in Ohio melted, making the entire course a huge mud pit. Plus, we were the last of five races that day, so everything was incredibly chewed up. The entire run was as intense as any championship college race.

The almost first two miles were chaotic, and I may have lost my cool a little bit. This admittedly may have not been the best "rust-buster" race, because my racing senses were a little dull. Moving anywhere was tough in what amounted to a sea of bodies (~450 guys). I freaked out too much--my confidence was a little shaken from all of the time I missed, even though I know I'm reasonably fit--and all of the mud and ice flying in my face just shook me up more. Thus, I wasted a lot of energy in the first half of the race running through some of the worst parts of the course: ankle deep, soul-sapping mud. I'd try to cover someone's move, but then I'd hit a mud hole and would find myself running backward again and have to negotiate a hay barrel to boot. The entire race was spent reading myself, the other runners, and the course itself...but, hey, that's cross country for you. It's hard for a reason. The time is supposed to be irrelevant, and it was. Times across the board were a full three minutes slower than the road or track.

So I really felt like I didn't start "racing" until about 4.5 miles into it, when I was already well into oxygen debt but was able to find some new gears and snap out of it and reel some guys back in. I started closing early, and I finished ahead of some guys who I've never beaten, and close to some guys who have run a lot faster than me at other distances. So even though I felt like the event was one of those blow-up, did-you-catch-the-number-of-that-bus kind of races, my performance ultimately wasn't all that bad. I have to remind myself that this is really the beginning of the return to running, training, and racing, and since that's the case I don't consider this a bad start. It just wasn't a great one, either. 

The race and the entire trip with the GRC guys was a blast; don't get me wrong. I've never experienced conditions like that, and you only get so many races as deep as that one was. In the end, covered in mud, dejected and exhausted, I above all just felt glad to be back to racing. 

Dec. 7

AM: 7 miles easy, strides

I'm flying out to Ohio this evening after work for U.S. Club XC Nationals. There's four inches of snow on the course right now. Interesting to see how this will go--I have no real expectations except that it's probably going to hurt like hell given that I'm still "coming back," and that it'll be really, really cold.

It's beginning to sound like quite an adventure--if there's enough snow perhaps I'll find a yeti?

Dec. 6

AM: 8 miles easy/moderate, treadmill

PM: 45 min. elliptical

Remember the scene from Rocky IV, where it shows Rocky and his hulking Soviet opponent Ivan Drago training simultaneously? Rocky is outside in Siberia, running through the snow, up 14,000-foot mountain peaks, and lifting logs to get ready for the big fight. Meanwhile, Drago is indoors, hooked up to all of these high-tech machines that measure punch velocity, caloric expenditure, using crack Soviet scientists to prepare him for his big fight with the Italian Stallion.

With all of the time I spent working out indoors today on various machines, I felt more like Ivan Drago than Rocky. Well, except for the steroids.

"I must break you."

Dec. 5 - snow!

AM: 8 x 3:00 on/1:00 off on grass, 8 miles

PM: 60 min. elliptical, core

Put on my spikes for the first time in a while and ran fartlek on the grass field at Beach Drive and East-West Hwy. The loop is about 1,110m, at least according to Google Earth, which makes it perfect for this workout. I was fairly consistent throughout, hitting close to the same splits and finishing each "on" in the same spot. With a light dusting of snow, the conditions are probably similar to what we'll see this weekend in Ohio. That race is looking more and more like the type where you just throw away the watch and race, which I guess is the romanticized ideal of what cross country is supposed to be, anyway.

The snow kept falling throughout the day. We got a few inches, which is fine until it refreezes, when it just becomes a pain in the butt. I'm crossing my fingers that it'll be gone by the time I get back this weekend.

Dec. 4

AM: 9 miles easy

PM: weights, core, stretching

Bought my first Christmas tree today! This will be the first tree I've put up since high school--I got a little nostalgic.

The Christmas tree smell is amazing. It's a good thing I enjoy the smell so much, too, because the sap stuck to my hands like a noel-napalm. It doesn't want to come off.

Dec. 3

AM: 8 miles progression run over hills

PM: 45 min. elliptical, core

Progression run in Rock Creek Park before work.

Dec. 2

PM: 14 miles easy/moderate

Ran in Greenbelt Park with a bunch of UMD guys. It's been a while--I hadn't run with any of them since the summer. 

Dec. 1 (56 miles/week plus 3.5 hours cross-training)

AM: 11 miles easy/moderate, stretching

PM: weights, core

Hilly run with some Georgetown Running Co. guys in Rock Creek Park. 

Nov. 30

AM: 25 min. tempo, 8 miles total

PM: 45 min. stationary bike, core

My first tempo run in quite a long while. I felt like hell and had a horrible R.I.C. the entire time, so given all of that I was glad to hit my splits (~5:30). My first loop (around the stables in Meadowbrook) was quicker. I slowed on the second loop, but managed to pick it back up to pace by the last mile or so. 

Nov. 29

AM: 7 miles easy plus strides

PM: 45 min. elliptical, core

Nov. 28

AM: 60 min. elliptical w/ 5 x (6:30 on/:90 off)

PM: 8 miles easy with Fleg

Ran with Fleg after work in the cold and dark through the Chevy Chase neighborhoods. Solid cross-training workout in the morning.

Looks like I'm headed to Ohio to run an XC 10k at U.S. Club Nationals weekend-after-next. I didn't think I'd be ready by now, but given my race on Thanksgiving, I'm not quite as rusty as I thought I'd be. I'm flying out next Friday after work, racing Saturday afternoon, and then driving back Sunday.

I've done a little research on the course, which is near Cincinnati. It's as flat as a pancake (looks like they put in hay barrels to slow it down--sort of like the boxes at Arkansas' Chili Pepper course). However, if it rains on the days leading up to it, the course could be sloppy.

Sure enough, it's supposed to rain--and possibly snow--on the days leading up to the race.

Nov. 27

AM: 75 min. pool run w/ 4 x (6'/4'/2') on 1:00 recovery

PM: 45 min. elliptical

This, I hope, was my last pool run for a really, really long time.

Nov. 26

AM: 7 miles easy recovery

PM: weights, core, stretching

Yesterday's run didn't come without a price: my legs felt like someone had beaten them with a sledgehammer this morning, especially my quads. The foot felt OK, however, it was just the rest of me that gave a collective "what the hell, man?" when I rolled out of bed this morning.

I should have expected this. My longest run in two months, plus lots of hills, and then stir in a little progression run on top of that--yeah, I could see how that might make me sore.

Nov. 25

AM: 14 miles long/progression over hills

My first long run in about two months, and my last run while home in Atlanta before my flight back to DC this evening. My foot, in addition to everything else, felt just fine. The progression run isn't rocket science. It's just a run split up into thirds: easy, moderate, and finishing hard. The last third starts to feel pretty uncomfortable, and the hills did a good job today of mixing up effort and intensity. The pace of the overall run ends up being roughly around marathon pace.

Nov. 24 (45 miles/week plus 6 hours cross-training)

AM: 90 min. elliptical w/ 10 x (4:00 on/1:00 off)

PM: 5 miles easy/moderate, stretching

Probably stayed out too late last night with my friends in Atlanta--I had definitely had some Friday-night sins to purge this morning. I really tried to crank it in the morning cross-training workout, pushing my heart rate way up there. I felt great afterward. Fortunately, there are multiple recorded species of hummingbirds and small marsupials that have a higher tolerance for alcohol than me, so I'm pretty good about not overdoing it when I actually do opt to stay out late. Typically a long, hard run or hard workout is exactly what I crave the morning after a long night out, and it rarely fails to return me to some sense of normalcy.

I suppose "overdoing it" is fairly subjective, especially regarding the consumption of alcohol. Let me put it into personal context: while I was cooking Thanksgiving dinner with my family on Thursday, I casually drank about a glass and a half of champaign. Shortly thereafter, I had to step out of the kitchen and take a seat, and before long I was dozing on the couch, while the turkey had yet to even come out of the oven.

Some names I have been called in the past, including last night: "cheap date"..."lightweight"..."pretty lame." Those are all more or less accurate. I've accepted this.

Nov. 23

AM: 30 min. stairmaster

PM: 8 miles easy recovery, core

Got in a recovery run with my old buddy Fellows, who I ran with in high school and during some of the summers in Atlanta in college. I took it nice and easy on the back trails on the Chattahoochee River (one of my favorite running haunts in Atlanta), just shaking the legs out. The downside to not running hard in two months is that my legs are ridiculously tight today.

Nov. 22 - Happy Thanksgiving

AM: 5k turkey trot (Marietta Gobble Jog) in Atlanta, 16:05 for 5th, 8 miles total plus core work at home

Like I said before, today was just a rust buster, so I accomlished that much, even if I was a full minute behind the winner. This was just 8 seconds away from my track PR, so considering I didn't run a step for four weeks, basically all of October, I suppose I can't complain too much. Moreover, I haven't run faster than a 5:30 mile or anything resembling a "real" workout in about two months.

It was an interesting course, and I mixed it up with some collegiates and local guys. Two compontents were definitely lacking: hill strength, which doesn't surprise me given I've only resumed weight-bearing exercise for about four weeks now, and speed (which I've never really had, anyway!).

The course was pretty average--a rolling first mile, a second mile that was nearly entirely uphill, and a last mile that was downhill for the first half before hitting one last uphill with about 800m out, and then flat to the finish.

I didn't have much of a shot at the leader. I went out in second place through the first mile in 4:55, and he was at least 10-15 seconds in front of me. At about mile 1.5, a group of three caught me, and I spent the rest of the race hanging on to them. This is where my absence of speed definitely showed its ugly head.

My splits were all over the place, given the nature of the course. Like I said, 4:55 for the first mile, and hit two miles in 10:38. I was horrifed at this point, thinking I had totally blown up on the long uphill. Fortunately, I stuck to the group in front of me, regaining composure and hitting 3 miles in 15:29. My guess is that the markers were a bit off, but even so, I held it together enough to run my last mile about as fast as my first.

Since this is really the "beginning" of my winter/spring season, I have to think this is a sign of good things to come, given how much running I've missed over the last two months (Needless to say, I'm now a pool-running convert. It works.) The winner today has run in the 14:30s this fall, but was only 15:02 on the course today.

I may be in better shape than I think. Depending on how the next few weeks go, I might be able to set some more ambitious goals this spring. I race again in two weeks at a pancake-flat 10k in DC. If there will be some people to run with, I don't think it's unreasonable to threaten my PR there.

P.S. That is my old high school coach on the left giving me a quick pre-race pep-talk. Man, did that bring back some old memories!

Nov. 21

AM: 9 miles very easy, strides, stretching

I just was just going for an easy jog around my home neighborhood in Atlanta, when I ran into my old high school coach, who I still stay in touch with. I was only planning 6 or so, but I started catching up with him and just added on a little bit. My legs were still stiff from the flight home last night, but the run really loosened them up, as did the strides I did afterward with my family's energetic yellow lab, Dewey. Got in a good stretch afterward.

It's so nice to be home. I had a strange dream last night: I pictured myself standing in front of a mirror, getting ready to go to work. I stood in the same place every day in the dream, buttoning my shirt to get ready for work, except that days ticked off like seconds. But there I stood, getting ready in the same mirror, buttoning the same shirt--every single day.

Freud I am not, but to me it sounds like maybe I'm overdue for this brief break from the daily grind. I shot awake from the dream, and I can't tell you how relieved I was to find myself in my bed in Atlanta. When I fell back asleep shortly thereafter, I fell hard. Last night was one of the best quality sleeps I've had in weeks.

Glad to be home.

Nov. 20

AM: 85 min. elliptical

Got in a morning workout before work. I'm flying home to Atlanta this evening, so this will be about all I'm able to get in today. I can't wait to get home--a few days of kicking back are definitely in order.

Nov. 19

AM: 80 min. pool run with 24 x (2:00 on/1:00 off)

PM: 8 miles easy/moderate

I really felt back to my old self during the evening's run.

This morning was--I hope--my last pool run for a while. Can't say that I'll miss it, but I know it's been a major help because the process of coming back so far has gone about as smoothly as I could have hoped.

Nov. 18

AM/PM: 7 miles easy/moderate followed immediately by 75 min. elliptical

It'll still be another week or so before I get a "real" long run in, so this will have to do for the time being. Writing this now, though, I'm pretty damn tired. It sure felt like a long run to me.

Nov. 17 (30 miles/week plus 8+ hours cross training)

9 miles easy, weights, core, stretching

This was my longest run in about a month and a half. Everything felt fine.

I desperately need a haircut. If I run my fingers through my hair and open my eyes really wide, I look like the lovechild between a treasure troll and an episode of Dragon Ball Z.

Nov. 16

AM: 7 miles easy plus strides

PM: 50 min. elliptical w/ 4 x 6:30 on/:90 off

The strides were pain-free, and my legs even had some pop to them. Good sign of things to come.

Shitty nutritional day today. Mexican food, if consumed without moderation, will wage a war with the body. And 9 times out of 10, the body will lose.

Nov. 15

AM: 75 min. pool run w/ 7 x (3'/2'/1') on 1:00 recovery

PM: 45 min. elliptical, core

Lots of cooking ahead this weekend and next week. Good times.

I also plan to jump in a 5k on Thanksgiving to see where my fitness is right now. I hoping at best to be pleasantly surprised, and at worst not to be embarrassed. The original plan was to run the Thanksgiving half-marathon in Atlanta, but that's totally out of the question now. Even though my speed for the 5k sucks even when healthy, coming off of a month of pool running it will probably be my best option. The longer stuff can wait for '08.

I've been cross-training intensely for more than a month now; it'll be an interesting experiment to see how it translates to running fitness.

Nov. 14

AM: 1:15:00 elliptical

Nothing fancy here, other than that the gym didn't have on ESPN as usual, which made the workout go by so much slower. The local news stations reminded me of just how bad and sensationalized local news coverage is nowadays. You'd think the NY Post is now running the local DC TV stations. "WHAT'S IN YOUR WATER? IS THERE LEAD PAINT IN YOUR CHILDREN'S TOYS? WHAT HAZERDOUS CHEMICALS ARE HIDING IN YOUR HOMES? Find out...news at 10:00!"

PM: 7 miles easy/moderate

Was planning strides, but there are still some phantom cramping and pains, so I'll leave those for Friday.

I am so ripped right now...

I started putting back in a weight routine about twice a week when I was out of action in October. I needed something aside from pool running to consume all of the pent-up energy I had. In addition to being a good supplement to my running, it also forces me to get into the gym, where it's harder for me to blow off the important "little things" like getting in a good stretch with a rope and staying on top of core work.

Here's my general weight-lifting routine, which is partially taken from what I used to do back in college. I usually super-set: I'll do one upper body set and immediately following with a lower-body set or a set of core work for an active rest period:

• 1 x push-ups to max with feet elevated
• 2 x pull-ups to max
• 2 x 15-20 lunges (alternating legs) with weight plate or medicene ball
• 2 x 20 incline dumbell press
• 2 x 20 hamstring curls
• 2 x 20 "Arnold Press" (sort of a twisting military press with dumbells) on stability ball
• 1:00 heel walks
• 2 x 20 dumbell curls
• 2 x 20 dumbell rows on stability ball
• 3:00 mirror runs with 2- or 3-pound weights (pumping your arms fast, like you're kicking at the end of a race)
• Then I usually finish with a good stretching session and core routine that includes some planks/bridges and supermans

That said, I love going to the gym. In college, I loved seeing frat-dogs waltz in, usually in pairs, often wearing matching wife beaters and/or gold chains and/or baseball caps turned askew and/or "old school" New Balances: walking, talking stereotypes. There aren't a lot of these type of bros in the gym where I go now, which is in a neighborhood where the people as a whole seem pretty friendly, happy and down-to-earth. Not that I miss vain assholes who love to monopolize the bench press, but it was always guaranteed comic relief.

Tuesday 11/13/07

AM: 80 min. pool run w/ 10'/9'/8'/7'/6'/5'/4'/3'/2'/1' w/ 1:00 recovery

PM: weights, core, stretching

The morning session is one of my favorite workouts. It touches on a lot of different intensities, and it's easy to add onto it to turn it into a long run-type effort in the pool. Long runs in the pool, even with interval workouts, are still more or less a miserable experience. Nothing will make you want to run on land like a two-hour pool run.

I interviewed an Atlanta-based coach, Roy Benson, last night for a freelance piece I'm writing this month about pool running. When I asked about how to combat the inherent boredom in pool running, he really didn't have much of a solution. "Maybe singing to yourself?" was the best he could come up with. This guy has been around for a while, so it seems fairly obvious to me at this point that there is not magic secret to making pool running exciting.

November 1 - November 12

Thursday 11/1/07

AM: 55 min. bike w/ 5 x 4:oo on/1:00 off, plus 15:00 easy running on grass

PM: weights, core, stretching

As it turns out, my neighbors in the unit below me didn't appreciate me hammering on the indoor bike trainer at 7:00 in the morning. When they started banging on the ceiling with broomsticks, I got the idea, and headed out for a short run to finish up.

Friday 11/2/07

AM: 26 x 2:00 on/1:00 off, pool, 90 min. total

PM: core

I'm going to keep up the pool workouts. They seemed to keep me relatively fit, and it doesn't seem like a good idea to abruptly abandon them just because I'm running again.

Saturday 11/3/07

AM: 20:00 easy plus 70 min. elliptical

Sunday 11/4/07

AM/PM: 180 min. bike

I did most of the ride outside, much of it with Patrick. We managed to find some pretty rough hills. Then, I came really close to getting hit by a car when I made a U-turn without looking behind me first. As a runner, I'm not used to cars tailing me on the side of the road. While it was entirely my fault for not looking, there was also no traffic to speak of, so there's no reason the driver couldn't have gone around me. Anyway that left me a little shaken, so I did the last 40 min. or so indoors.

If there's one lesson I could take away from today's ride it's this: I'm sticking to running. My inherent clumsiness has no place on a bike, at least not everyday.

Monday 11/5/07

AM: 9 x (3'/2'/1') w/ 1:00 recovery, pool, 85 min. total

PM: 5 miles easy, core

Another pain-free run. Good stuff.

Tuesday 11/6/07

AM: 25:00 hard/5:00 off/10:00 hard/5:00 off/10:00 hard, elliptical, 90 min. total

PM: weights, core, stretching

Wednesday 11/7/07

AM: 6 x 8:00 on/:90 off, 6 x :30 on/:30 off, plus 10 min. kicking, pool, 80 min. total

PM: 5 miles easy/moderate

I'm feeling pretty tired by the end of this week; getting up every day at 5:30 gets harder as the week goes on. I added three days of cross training doubles, which likely explains why it's getting tough to get out of bed in the morning.

Thursday 11/8/07

AM: 75 min. elliptical

PM: 45 min. bike, spinning class

I tried a spinning class with Valerie after work. While it was a decent workout, I just felt goofy the entire time following the instructor's direction choreographed to awful techno. I guess it's just not my cup of tea.

Friday 11/9/07

AM: 7 x (6:30 on/:90 off) plus 3:00 all-out, pool, 75 min. total

PM: 4 miles easy

20 miles this week. Slowly but surely, I'm building the miles back up. The foot feels slightly sore, but not in the same way when it was injured. These are more phantom pains, and I'm definitely not limping. It's nothing I didn't expect.

Saturday 11/10/07

PM: 7 miles easy, weights, core, stretching

Today was my first day of just running since early October. I just took it easy on the soft, flat surfaces of the Capital Crescent.

Sunday 11/11/07

AM/PM: 2:15:00 elliptical

Unfortunately, I don't get a real long run for a little while, which means I'm stuck inside for the long efforts unless I want to bike for three or more hours. That wasn't happening today. At least with TVs in the gym and football season, there's something to keep me from killing myself out of boredom on the elliptical.

Monday 11/12/07

AM: 8 x (4:00 on/1:00 off), stationary bike, 80 min. total

PM: 7 miles easy, core

I managed a solid workout on the stationary bike before work, getting my heart rate way up there. I ran in the dark on the Capital Crescent with Patrick after work, icing afterward.

Cleared to run again

10/31/07

AM: 5 x 10:oo on/2:00 off plus 10 min. kicking, pool, 80 min. total

PM: 15 min. easy

I saw the podriatrist today, and my x-ray was clear. As suspected, I'm a quick healer. Just four weeks earlier, there was a big crack in my second metatarsal, but that's now nicely patched itself up. As I had suspected, my podiatrist thinks that I got it wearing a pair of thin and beat-up 5k flats during a half marathon. The good news is that I hit 10-mile and half-marathon PRs in the race (54:52 and 1:13:04...I can't believe I couldn't find five more seconds), so at least my brief hiatus started on a high note. If you're doing the math on the 10-mile and HM splits, then you're correct--the last three miles of the half marathon fell horrendously off pace. But I did have a crack in my bone, so give me a break (pun horribly intended).

I've been meaning to start putting my training online for a while now, and coming off of four weeks of injury seems like an appropriate place to start.

I've been pool running like crazy over the last four weeks. Surprisingly, I trimmed off about 4 or 5 pounds in the process, which came as a pleasant surprise, especially since I don't have too much extra to lose, anyway. I'm down to about 155 now, which, given that I had to cut weight to get to 152 pounds my senior year of high school (5 years ago this winter), suggests that I'm pretty trim.

During my time off, I started lifting again a couple of times per week (careful to stay off of the foot, though), stretching, adding more core work, and icing diligently. I feel like I did everything I could to take care of myself, so we'll see how it pays off in the weeks and months to come.

Naturally, the first thing I wanted to do after getting the OK from the doc is to go out for a run, so that's exactly what I did, even if it was still shorter than a pre-race warmup. My legs had a surprising amount of pop to them, bolstering my blind faith in the benefits of pool running.

Glad to be back, even if the weeks to come are still going to have a lot of cross training. To play it safe, no serious mileage for me until the first of the year, and my hard days will still have to be cross-training for the next month. Fortunately, I have some other cross-training options other than the pool now that I can resume weight bearing excercise (i.e. the bike and the elliptical). Pool running definitely works. But, it's not the most exciting thing in the world, I have reeked of chlorine for a month, and my hair is so dry that, if stranded in the wilderness, I could rip it from my scalp and use it as tinder for a fire.