Woman Gives Husband a Kenyan for His Birthday!

Given our Kenyan training method, I thought you would alway want to read this article. :-)

Woman Gives Kenyan as Birthday Present

Thanks for the Advice

Thank you all for your running advice. I've weighed your suggestions with those I received from the other blog. Given the continuing pain in my knee even on non-running days, I've decided to cancel today's run.

I'll continue to re-evaluate, ice, and take ibuprofen, so as to recover as quickly as possible. I'll try to run on Saturday, if I feel good, otherwise the next run will be in the snowy tundra of Wisconsin. I present a relatively recent picture as proof that I'm not just exaggerating.

Advice. Given and Wanted

First, I would like to share some advice. It is in the form of the Peanut Butter and Banana Sandwich. It's amazing. I've been eating them for a few weeks now, and they are the answer to all my prayers, of which there are admittedly few. However, if you look at the Peanut Butter and Banana Sandwich it's pretty damn good runner's food. 1) Whole grain bread- carbs, whole grains, all good. 2) Peanut Butter - good source of protein and some unsaturated fats-- I buy an organic one here consisting of only Peanuts and salt. 3) Bananas-- Excellent source of potassium. It's got everything a runner needs.
On running days it tides me over for quite some time, and on non-running days it takes me well into the afternoon. Great food.

Second. I need some advice. I've been suffering from a little bit of runner's knee. My right knee has been a little problematic for about two weeks now. It's getting a little worse. I've iced it tonight (which isn't easy given the German aversion to refrigeration) and will take Ibuprofen for the next few days. However, I'm hoping I can get some advice from the other runners.
I have a run scheduled on thursday. It's a 6 mile tempo run. Should I do it? Or should I get some rest and a little more ice?

P.S. in true DrunkRunner form. I've had a couple glasses of wine and just managed to post this message to the wrong blog. Oops.

Week 6 of 40 and kickin' A**

Just got in from the final run of the week. Yes, folks, that's 6 straight weeks without a missed run. Hot Damn!

Thursday was the first speedwork workout, and it was a tough one. Total distance was 5 miles. But I had 2 miles to do at 8:40 with 800m cool downs. Sounds easy enough, except that I've barely broken the 9:00 mark. Let alone do it twice. Luckily I found a loop near my house that is almost a mile long, so I could at least try to pace myself (maybe it's the clouds in Berin, but I've not been too thrilled so far with the way the Garmin keeps my pace.). The first fast mile was smashing! 8:14. The second mile is harder to judge because I forgot to hit the lap button. However the 3rd and 4th miles were both at about 9:40 so I think I managed to hit the mark on the second mark.

The only complaint this week? Runner's knee. Yes, folks, I'm getting a little bit of runner's knee in the left knee. It's not too bad, and as I recall it does eventually go away as you build up miles. Still I'll be using some ice packs and trying to take it easy.

Nothing remarkable about today's 6-miler. The big deal for the week is the consistency I've been able to maintain. This is the first time I've been so vigilant about a training schedule, and it's really paying off. I'm feeling stronger and more comfortable. And there is something to be said for just putting in the miles. It's very important.

The next two weeks are going to be very interesting. Next week I need to bump up my running schedule so I can get my long run in Saturday instead of Sunday, because I'll be flying home on Sunday. I'll spend Sunday and Monday getting home and then will have to run again on Tuesday. Which means 6 miles on Christmas Day. Not a bad way to celebrate the holiday.

This week's Stats:
Distance: 13 miles
Overall time: 123:54
Average Pace: 9:32/mile
Overall Impression: I'm Slowly Getting Used To The Clouds. I Might Go Snow Blind Running In Wisconsin. (ISGUTTC. IMGSBRIW)

Daddy Runner

Thanks for making the baby announcement on our behalf, Sixpack! I wasn’t able to get anywhere near the blog for a few days, for obvious reasons.

It is true that my wife and I welcomed our first baby into the world this past weekend, and for that reason I haven’t posted in a little while. Basically, the baby didn’t leave much time for running in the first couple of days, and I happily sacrificed my Sunday “long run” in order to stay home and change diapers while Tessa recuperated. Actually, now that I think about it, we actually both drove to her parent’s house so they could pamper us while we both laid immobile on their many couches.

I have been able to run two runs so far this week, though. On Monday I ran six miles and on Wednesday I managed just over five. Tomorrow I will try and get out of the house for another hour-long run if at all possible. If not, that’s okay. Changing diapers is much more fun than I ever thought it would be!!!

Week 5 of 40 and Rollin' On!

YYYEEEEESSSSS!!!!!! Five weeks in a row! I really can't remember the last time I made all of my training runs for five straight weeks. I'm actually more proud of this than I am of my distances and times at the moment. It's been so motivating having each week behind me. I was lying in my nice warm bed this morning thinking, "I could wait until after lunch and then run." Then I thought to myself, "No! I'll probably have wine with lunch (Jenn and Steve are coming over.) and that will be the end of it." So I got out of bed and ran six miles. Clyde has always fought Sybill and usually won. I must say, I have rarely won that fight when I was lying in bed. I guess she likes to kick a man when he's down. :-)

So, on to the runs. Two miles Wednesday were more or less unremarkable. Except of course that it was snowing. And I mean snowing! It was cool. I'm making sure to do these runs, because I'll need the conditioning before I get to Wisconsin where it will be much much colder.

Five miles on Friday were difficult, but rewarding. I've begun training a little bit according to the Under 4 Hour Marathon book. A main principle is the negative split. I'm to run the first third slower than planned, the second third at the planned tempo, then the final third at faster than planned. IT WORKED!!!! I ended with a pace of about 9:16 which was my goal. I was worn out, and my legs still felt it this morning.

Today six miles. Nothing remarkable. Slow, just under 10:00 miles, which is right on track. The long runs aren't to be run trying to beat anything. I'm slowly learning this. The goal is to run the distance. So, when I find my self running too fast, I slow it down. It worked. I ran so far today that I could see the Reichstag (German Houses of Parliament). I had no idea it was so close to my house. Three miles, yes, but this is a massive city. It was a great run. I was a little tired on the way back, but maintained my pace with little difficulty. Great day!!!!

Week's Stats:

Miles: 13
Overall Time: 2:04:20
Average Pace: 9:34 -- That's only 34 seconds off my goal pace! Not bad. Not bad.
Overall Impression: I Like Running Almost As Much As I Like Beer (ILRAAMAILB)

P.S. For those not in the know, Baby Deetschei (it's a girl!) was born Dec. 5 at 11:45 a.m. in London. Congratulations Dr. Papa Deetschei!!!

To chase a Turkey

Dear beloved Drunk Runners and Stumblers, I have missed you. But fear not, while I may be a complete slacker in the realm of blogging, I have not slacked on my running. Since last you heard from me, I have successfully completed weekly runs totaling 11 miles per week. While this is nothing to brag about, particularly since the memory of putting in 11 miles in one run are not so distant, I am happy to be consistent at this point. My times, I am even happier to say, are better than I had anticipated after 3 months off. I have been averaging 8:55-9:00 paces despite (or perhaps because of) the hills I have been running. After purchasing cold weather running gear (you know I LOVE to blog about running apparel - sometimes I wonder if I don't run just because of all the neat clothing and accessories. I am soooo girly), and reflective accessories for safety since it gets dark around 4:30 here, I decided I might as well sign up for a 10K Thanksgiving Turkey Chase to give myself a little challenge. Stupid me, I 1) naively assumed that anything called a Turkey Chase wouldn't involve hills and 2) had totally convinced myself that I would keep a steady pace and not go out too fast. Wrong on both accounts. Mile 1 was FABULOUS at a 8:20 pace. Mile 2 still fabulous at an 8:29 pace. Miles 3-6.23 less fabulous as miles 3-5 were steadily uphill with the occasional flat surface for intersections. Okay, okay. I am sure I am exaggerating a little. If you Google Earthed Wisconsin Ave heading from Bethesda toward Chevy Chase, I am sure it is not that extreme, but after you foolishly push too fast your first two miles the last 4.23 seem like they are never going to end - especially when you haven't "trained" for it. I really honestly thought I had told myself that this would just be one of my three weekly runs. And in the end, it wasn't horrible. My goal was to finish just under a 9:00 pace, but I was content to finish under 9:30. In the end, I split the difference with 9:16. Went home and took a nap while hubby prepared duck (apparently the other Thanksgiving meat).

So, that is what I have been up to and I wish I had been in London, 'cause the last time the Drunk Runners were all in town together and suppose to run, the drink got the better of us all and I now regret it. I fondly think back to that painful but rewarding first 12 miler I did with Deetschei and Sixpack in Napa. Those were the days!

That is just a quick update from me and I hope to be better about actually blogging about the running I have been doing once classes are over next week. WOOOHOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Post-Marathon Week Four. Possibly Week Five.

Last week was my first week in which I broke fifteen miles since the marathon. Because of rain on the previous Sunday, I had to move my five miler to Monday. I followed that with three miles on Tuesday, and then another three and five miles with Sixpack when he was in town.

The first two runs weren’t really notable, but the last two were fantastic. Sixpack pretty much summed it up: it rained on us both times, and there were a few hills involved. On the first run, we went out towards the track where I did all of my speedwork for the marathon, which involved going through the Brockley conservation area and a lovely park in Ladywell. The second run was less “lovely”, in that we ran through Deptford towards Greenwich, but I tried to distract Sixpack from all of the crime and seediness by reminding him that we were actually running on the actual route of the London marathon, a “World Major Marathon,” and that his feet were treading the same asphalt as many a Kenyan.

Speaking of Kenyans, we should have been hungover the entire time because of the amount of beers we drank. However, remarkably neither of us felt too bad on the days after the nights of drinking. In fact, I should be hungover right now as I type this, two days after he left. It’s a miracle and a reason to give thanks. I haven’t run with a drunk runner since my wedding day, a year and a half ago. And that was the first run I had completed with a drunk runner since about a year before that.

In a way, the fact that Don and I could get out and run together and not feel like we have missed a beat is due to this blog, which has really served its purpose of keeping a few close friends together in spite of the fact that they now live thousands of miles apart, in different countries. So, one more time, “YAY to the blog!”

Week in Review:

Total Miles: 16
Total Time: No idea
Avg. Pace: No clue
Overall Impression: Happy Thanksgiving, Fellow Runners! (HTFR!)

London: Week 4 of 40

Yep folks. Last week was mostly run in London with Deetschei. First and foremost I would like to say that it rains a lot in London. And when I say a lot I really mean all the time.
Friday morning after a hedonistic Thanksgiving we were actually able to get up and run 3 miles. Right now the focus is not at all on speed, but on distance, so we took it very easy. It was nice. Lots of puddles to dodge, and don't even get me started on whether I should look left or right. Let alone what I should do at a dual roundabout. Thank God I didn't have to drive there, just run.

We went through a fantastic neighborhood of old houses and nice tree-lined streets and finally made our way to a park. It was a great run. Although, I have to say, I could have done without the hills. They weren't very big, but I'm way out of practice. It was a little rough.

Sunday was 5 miles. Again, we had been out the night before, yet somehow British beer seems to not cause hangovers. Especially when combined with Indian food and multiple viewings of "Kung Fu Panda." (We watched it twice because Deetschei passed out the first time. I passed out too, but I had seen it before, so I was excused.)

It seemed a bit of a struggle to run 5 miles through Deetschei's hood. Mostly because there aren't those long boulevards I'm used to in SF, to say nothing of the highways of southern Wisconsin. We did a lot of weaving here and there, a lot of puddle dodging and a lot of puddle missing. It was, however, a fantastic run. We kept it at a relaxed pace. I aimed for somewhere between 9:30 and 10:00 on the Garmin, and we kept pretty well to that pace. The final paces were a little over 10:00 because I never stopped the watch for the many crosswalks.

It was fantastic to run again with Deetschei. It had been way too long. Just like running with any of the DrunkRunners. There is something VERY inspiring for me in running with my fellow bloggers. We've put a lot of time together on the road and this only makes me want to continue.

Tomorrow is 2 miles, then 5 miles, then 6 miles. Holy Heck! It's going to be a rough week, but I'm ready.

Stats:

Miles: 10
Time: 99:01
Average: 9:54
Beers Consumed: ~ 22 + 1.5 bottles of wine

Overall Impression: With Weekends Like That London Could Become My Favorite City! (WWLTLCBMFC!)

Week 3 of 40

Yeah, I know. It's a boring title, but it's kind of motivating for me. I'm on quite a roll right now. I can't remember the last time I made 3 1/2 weeks of training runs uninterrupted. It's been great. I'm doing great. I'm feeling great.
Can't complain. I've added a few exercises to my normal run preparations. In addition to some ab work, which is doing good things, I've also added some calf work which my PT recommended the last time I was complaining of ankle pain. So, I do those exercises every time I'm headed out for a run, and I really do think it's helping. I haven't had ankle issues in over a week despite the fact that mileage is increasing every week.
This week was 9 miles. Quite a jump up from the 7 miles the week before, and it left me quite exhausted. Monday was a long day of stair climbing. Quads and Hams were sore and the calves were not much better. It felt amazing!!!
Running 4 miles on Sunday was quite a milestone. I was tempted to walk some, but didn't. I ran the whole thing. As Deetschei put it on the phone the other day, "Remember when running 5 miles was just a warmup?" It's tough to think back to those days, but I'll get there. Slowly but surely.
This weekend: London, the Thames, Warm English Beer, and Two Runs. I can't wait. It's a 10 mile week and I'll be with Deetschei for 8 of them.

Week in Review:
Miles: 9
Time: 56:21
Average: 9:35
Overall Impression: Neither Snow Nor Sleet Nor Drunken Night Will Keep Me From My Run! (NSNSNDNWKMFMR)

Marathon Plus Three Weeks

Today marks the four week mark from the marathon, and I celebrated by running the five miles I wanted to run yesterday. I was intent on running yesterday. I really did want to. But it was freezing, literally. And it was raining. And as I was peering out the window debating on whether the rain had let up enough that I would only get wet and not drenched, Tessa pointed out that to run for an hour in the rain when not specifically training for something bordered on the insane. I looked at her, saw the wisdom in her beautiful brown eyes, and decided she spoke the truth. Why the hell would I run in freezing rain unless I had to?

So we went to the science museum instead and played with an infrared camera that could show the outline of her bra through her sweater. Sweet.

Since I skipped Sunday’s run, I only ran eleven miles last week. But since those levven came in two runs, I was pleased. Tuesday’s run was six miles, and Thursday’s run was five. I must say that these runs do continue to leave me exhausted at the end of the day, but my legs felt pretty strong throughout the runs themselves. I was looking forward to a solid three run/fifteen mile week, which is why the rain yesterday disappointed me a little. BUT, having said that, I’m cool with two runs for eleven miles.

Besides, I was reading some articles on Runner’s World, and they were pretty unanimous in stating that recovery from a marathon takes four weeks. That means that my taking it easy was in line with my recovery, and now I should be free to slowly build back up to twenty mile weeks.

But lets not get ahead of ourselves. This week I will be running three miles on Tuesday, three miles on Friday, and five miles on Sunday. The last two runs have a super significance because Sixpack will indeed be blessing London from his Sixpackmobile this Thanksgiving, and we will have the chance to run together for the first time in, um, literally years I think. (Dude, when was the last time we ran together, anyway?) I’m looking forward to depleting London’s wine and beer supplies with him and then hitting some of the paths through the urban jungle that I term “running routes.”

It’s gonna be sweet.

Week in Review

Total Miles: Eleven
Total Time: No Idea
Average: Got Me
Overall Impression: Loving the fact that I’m mobile. (L.T.F.T.I.M.)

The Trials! The Fibrulations!

Well, it snowed today! Yes, folks. Sixpack had to run in the snow for the first time in a very long time. Wait. I don't think Sixpack has ever run in the snow. He wasn't a runner when he moved to California. F@#$%^& Hell! This makes today a Banner Day!
When I awoke it was snowing. Not hard, but those great big flakes that are fantastic for snowballs. I decided to wait it out and see if it was going to continue or stop. It stopped. At 1 p.m. I went out for my 3 mile run. It was freezing! Literally. (I can finally say that.) I don't have a hat yet, but I will be getting one soon. I wore my gloves, my tights, my running jacket. I was bundled up. Much of the run was pretty uneventful. There were a few puddles that were not fun to deal with, but I managed.
Getting home I was absolutely exhausted. My quads have been heavy since the run. Living on the fourth floor doesn't help. I'm hoping that just means it was a good workout. I feel great otherwise. And especially proud that I didn't let a little bit of snow get in the way of completing one of my runs. So far, I'm on a three week streak, and I'm loving it. Feeling fitter every week, and my ankle seems to be getting stronger. Wish me luck for the 4 miles on Sunday. Ugh!!

The progress of a stumbler!

Well folks it was a rough start! I went out for a 2 mile walk last Tuesday or so, but that was the last one. I have got an infection in my shoulder (well ....... had) and it has been really tender.  I can't seem to find my motivation, it's hid worse than my balance on a good night of drinking! In time I'm sure I will find it again, I just wish I hadn't lost it. I never thought I would say this but I wish Sybil would come back, I could really use her right now to push and annoy the living day lights out of me.

On saturday I went out and bought an elliptical to use, hoping this will allow me to keep my cardio and the muscles I use for running in shape. I tried it yesterday and it was weird  only being able to swing one arm, I felt like a fish out of water, a one winged plane, a one legged man in a butt kicking contest.I was able to do it but it never felt right. I only went five minutes though, today I will go for 20 and work up from their, I want to be at an hour and a half by the time I can go outside and run. Which will coincidentally be about the time Six Pack will be back in the states. So other than the elliptical I will still be going outside for walks to keep acclimated with the weather. Keep up with the running and the posts, it helps to get my now fat a$$ moving again! So happy running and drink on.

Setting a Marathon Goal

Read a brief blurb in Runners World recently. I don't know what the overall article was about, but it suggested a very sensible strategy for setting your next time goal for a marathon. You should in fact, have about 4 goals.
1) Your training goal. What goal do you want to attain in your next marathon while you are training.
2) Closer to race day this goal is adjusted to an ideal goal. What time would leave you absolutely ecstatic?
3) What goal do you think you can easily attain. Given a few kinks, where do you know you are fit enough to come in.
4) What makes the day worth it. If cramps hit at mile 16 what time will still leave you with head high at the end of the day.

An example:
1) training goal: 3:00
2) Adjusted race day goal: 3:15
3) Easily attainable: 3:45
4) Still acceptable: under 4

Finally, and most importantly NO ONE ELSE should know about goal #2. That way, if you do hit it, EVERYONE is ecstatic. And if you only hit goal 3. Only you know that that wasn't the real one.

Just a little FYI. So, when I tell you my goal is to always kick Clyde's ass, you will know that my true goal is to make him look like a little wussy girl!!!!

Week 2 of 40

This week went pretty well. I must say. So far the streak of workouts has extended to two weeks. Something I am very proud of. It's been a very long time since I could say that I had run everyone of my training runs.
Numbers are still very low, and even the recovering Dr. Deetschei is whooping my butt. However, the miles are good. My times are coming down on my shorter runs, but I did learn yesterday that my longer runs are going to suffer for some time. Not that that's to be unexpected.
Yesterday was the first 3 mile run. It's been a long time (get used to that phrase, I have a feeling as I continue training I'll be using it a lot) since I thought that 3 miles was a long run, but it sure felt like it. When I got to the halfway point it was hard for me to believe that I still had to run all the way home. Right now, I'm making sure I'm doing out and back runs. It's a good way of making sure I can't chicken out. Plus, I'm looking forward to seeing just how far I can go. As many of you know there is a canal through Berlin, and I live about 1/2 mile from it. I run to the canal and then run along it until I reach 1/2 way. Yesterday this meant that I ran one mile along the canal before turning around. It's quite nice, but I must say playing "Dodge the Smoking Germans" is not necessarily my favorite past time.
And about smoking! It's incredible here. You can't escape it. On a 3 mile run I encounter at least a dozen cigarettes. I've thought about counting, but it would just upset me. In fact, to let you know how prevalent smoking is here, I'll provide and example from my marathon book that arrived today "Marathon unter 4 H in 6 Monaten" (Marathon under 4 hours in 6 months). One of the example people for checking whether one is fit enough smokes. The suggestion was not that the person quit, but that he cut back on his smoking. Can you imagine training for a marathon and still smoking? I can't. Yes, Dr. PP we know about your friend, but seriously.

Stats:
Dist: 7 miles
Time: 65:40
Pace: 9:23
Overall Impression: Legs Still Feeling Good. I Think The Situps May Be Helping. (LSFG.ITTSMBH.)

Running Again

Last week I ran three runs for a total of thirteen miles. It was pretty straightforward. On Tuesday I ran five miles. Thursday was four. Sunday I completed four in the misty rain.

I was really pleased because the five mile run occurred exactly two weeks after the Dublin Marathon, and I felt really empowered by the fact that I could manage a decent distance without having any problems so soon after the marathon. Once I knew I could run the five miles (gingerly, of course), my next question was wether I could string together a week of runs. I didn’t want to try for four runs in a week yet because I think its still way too early for that. But three runs seemed like a doable task.

My four mile run on Thursday was the real test because it required me to go out with only one day’s rest since the last run. I was surprised by how un-problematic it was. I expected some weak knees and tightness in my quads, but I really didn’t have any problems after the first mile. The same could be said about Sunday. I felt a little sore and tight for the first half mile, but by the time I was wrapping up the run near Tessa’s parent’s house, I felt remarkably strong.

One of the nice things about running the shorter distances is that there is really no pressure to “train.” In fact, I haven’t even been timing these runs. I haven’t even been using the NikePlus or my iPod. It has just been me and the runs. And I really like that. I even got to run through a park near Tessa's parent's house that I hadn't run in for ages because I have recently been concentrating on such long hauls and didn't have time for it. Running through the park was like catching up with an old friend.

I don’t think I would be a very happy camper right now if I couldn’t run at least a little bit, so once again I stand here amazed at how well this whole entire marathon experience has gone, compared to the last one. No, that does not mean I will be training for another one any sooner than my two mile self-imposed hiatus…but I can envision jogging throughout the winter and hopefully therefore avoiding both the holiday weight gain that tends to accompany all of that eating that I plan on doing, and the sympathy weight I will probably put on as I continue to snack along with my pregnant wife while watching Strictly Come Dancing. Thank god I can run, because I would hate to say no to all those Rittersport and cookies!

Week In Review

Total Miles Run: 13
Total Time: No Idea
Overall Impression: Woohoo! I’m Not Crippled! (W!INC!)

Working my way back into it

I really want to avoid the four month lay-off that I had after my last marathon and have been very carefully easing my way back into running. I've been taking it easy, but am proud to say that I ran three miles twice last week. The first run was done very gingerly, and I could definitely feel some stiffness in my knee and quads. By the second run, I felt a little bit more, um, normal during the runs. The only real difference was that I was absolutely beat AFTER my runs. By the time I was ready to go to bed on both nights, I felt like I had run a lot more than three miles.

Yesterday I decided to try five miles. I like five miles because it is a route I have run a million times, and it is a route that at least takes me to the threshold of Greenwich Park. Even if I don't get into the park, I like the feeling of being able to run far enough so that I may actually see it.

In short, the run went really well. And I slept really well again last night. Its amazing but I think that if I keep on taking it easy for the next few weeks, I should be running again like normal within a month. And if things really go well, I would like to run a half marathon sometime this spring. With a jogging stroller and a baby! :)

Bay to Breakers report!

Well folks knowing that a good percentage of us are Bay to Breakers Alumni I thought you would be interested to know that it is a marathon! Well at least that was the comment on the television shoe Eli Stone. The line was quote " I haven't sweat that much since the Bay to Breakers Marathon" end quote. So we can all add one or more marathons to our tally board, I mean come on it was on TV so it has to be true. 

Well that's all for now. Whoops one more thing, since I am off work I get to go to a gait analysis clinic and learn about that. This part time job at Fleet Feet just keeps getting better.

Happy running to all!

Forest is done now!!

Hello fellow drunk runners, 

I have been back to reading the blog again as I have a lot of spare time again with yet another rotator cuff repair. I did this one as early as possible so I was healed in time to start training for my 3rd marathon. My motivation has been really low the last year really and while out on a run which is where all my great ideas come from, I figured out why. Like forest once I finally worked through my issues with women (really just the one......no man can figure out women as a whole) I just sort of said I'm done now and walked home. But that is not what I want to do, I really like ............LOVE running so I have decided to change my name to.................. wait for it.................. Clyde S. Dale, which is perfect for me. I will probably always run like I'm pulling a wagon full of beer ( but lets say NGB's Road Slush instead of Bud) but at least I'll be running. 

I will start training for Madison really slow, for now all I can do is walk so walk is what I will do. Tomorrow I will get up and go for a 2 mile walk and build up until I'm okayed to run again. My motivation is Madison coming up and the fact that I lost my standings as a Drunk Runner and that my friends that is not an option. I started all this as a Drunk Runner and will always be a Drunk Runner, that and all 3 of you going back out and giving it hell helped. Oh yah and that if I don't get back out now while the temperature is dropping I know I'll never go out and start in January when It's below Zero. I would like to wish Six Pack luck with his 1st marathon training in a cold climate, You know I swore I wasn't going to laugh while I typed that but it's impossible not to. Good luck to all, I'll be posting and responding to posts to help keep the motivation going. It's good to be back and I look forward to all the posts from everyone again. Now PLEASE  re adjust the number to 4 Drunk Runners and drink on runners drink ooooon!

Week 1 of 40

Yep, that's right. 40 weeks to train for the next marathon. I'm already really glad I have given myself so much time, because, let me tell you, I was out of shape. I use that "was" lightly. I am still out of shape, but already feeling better than I was.
I've crossed a bit of a hurdle this week. As of today, I have successfully completed 5 consecutive training runs. I haven't done that since perhaps April. I haven't always kept such good records, so I can't be exactly sure.
This weeks goal was simply to get back on course. I've run the numbers for a 1/2 marathon training course that will finish right when I should be starting the other training, i.e. Sub 4-hour Marathon in 6 months (the book has not yet arrived). This means I was slated for 6 miles this week, which I have completed.
Each run got successively easier, to the point that I already know that running 3-miles next Sunday will not be a big deal. Which, I'm very excited about. If it is this easy this early, hopefully my muscles will continue to remember the strains it has previously been under, and will continue to perform.
The Garmin running watch is also great. It has freed me up a lot in my running. I just need to consult it occasionally to find out where I am and when I need to turn around. Right now I'm not so worried about time, although I'm averaging a good pace. A pace, that if I can keep it up, will mean only needing to take 16 seconds off per mile in order to run a sub 4-hour race. Not bad. Not bad.

Next week: 7 miles.
This Week's Stats:
Distance: 6 miles
Time: 55:33
Average Pace: 9:16
Overall Impression: Is This Thing On? Am I Really Running That Fast Already? (ITTO?AIRRTFA?)

First Post-Marathon RUn

I had my first post-marathon run yesterday. It was ten days after the marathon, and it lasted three miles.
There's not too much to report, other than it was another run in the rain and I didn't have too many problems. I didn't have any problems, really. Although, I could tell that I didn't have much more in the tank than three miles. By the time I got home, my legs were increasingly tired and I could feel my knee slowly tightening up. By the end of the night, my legxs felt like they had run ten miles!

I'm going to run two tomorrow, and will let you all know how the post-marathon running continues.

This is my Sportsbra...

Hell, why not? Might as well hop on the bandwagon! I, too, have been inspired to lace up the running shoes and hit the road again after a 3 month hiatus. Thanks to the examples set by ROWC and Dr. Deetschei, my competitive nature has been awakened from its lazy, bacon-induced coma. Because ROWC won't toot her own horn, it is my sisterly duty to toot it for her ;) Since April, when she ran her first race - the OKC half-marathon, she has completed two additional races. Her most recent race was a 12k, which she finished with a pace 1 min. faster than her last 5k race! Woohoo! And as far as Dr. Deetschei goes, he totally whomped my time, as he promised to do! I am really proud.

As a matter of fact, I know it isn't quite time for the year in review, but I feel that certain accomplishments should be reiterated. Not only did Sixpack pass his QEs, he also completed another marathon. Not only did I get a job, but I completed my first marathon. Not only did Dr. Deetschei join the ranks as DR., but he completed yet another marathon. Fan-freakin-tastic, folks! And the year isn't even over yet...

Okay, so back to that bacon-induced coma to which I was referring. I totally let myself fall into the routine of slacking by telling myself that the new job was just sucking all my energy and that I deserved to lay around on the couch in front of the tv with what little free time I have had. But enough is enough. The weather has cooled significantly, which makes it a little easier to run than in the summer - however, if you know me, you know that I will now start complaining about how cold my ears are or how I can't feel my kneecaps ;) I can't say that I have definitely convinced myself that I will be attempting to break 4 hrs anytime soon, but I can say that the first step is just getting back into a routine.

Like I said, it has been about 3 months since I last ran. I knew this to be true, not only because my Garmin told me so, but because my lungs felt like they were being jabbed with a glowing fireplace poker within approx. 3 mins of my run. Ok, part of this was due to the stupid pace (8:30) I allowed myself to slip into. I really shouldn't have worn a watch, it only gets me in trouble - remember that competetive side I mentioned... At some point while gasping for air on an uphill climb, I decided to just run as long as I could without doing too much damage to myself. I managed 3 miles with several stops in order not to pass out. DAMN, I hate that I have let myself get so out of shape. Argh! Grrr! S*np@zu$$$! And any others you can think of. Like Sixpack, the next few months will be spent simply getting reacclimated to running and getting the lungs back on board. The legs are sore today (boo!) but nothing a little bit of stair climbing won't fix. I need to look for upcoming local races to keep me on track and to keep me from backsliding. I'll keep you posted.

Again, I want to tell both ROWC and Dr. Deetschei what great inspirations they have been!

This Is My Hat.....

And this is me throwing it in the ring.

I've decided to take up Deetschei's challenge, and have already chosen my next marathon. It is November 2, and they are currently running the New York Marathon. What better day to make such an anouncement than today?
My plan is as follows:
For the next several months I work on getting my fitness back. I'm still able to run 2 miles with little soreness. Mind you, I haven't run 3 times in a week since sometime in May, maybe even April. So, it's been a while. November, December and January will be rough months while I increase weekly mileage by 10% every week.
Staying on track of this will mean that by the end of February I will be running 21 miles per week. Not bad for someone in my current condition. I'm toying with the idea of working up to 4 runs per week in the near future. The next few weeks would look like this:
Week 1: 3 runs at 2 miles
Week 2: 2 runs at 2 miles, 1 run at 3 miles
Week 3: 4 runs at 2 miles
Week 4: 3 runs at 2 miles, 1 run at 3 miles
Week 5: 2 runs at 2 miles, 2 runs at 3 miles
And so on, until I am running 4 times a week at 5 miles per.

In March the true training begins. I have ordered the book: Sub 4H Marathon in 6 months. Actually, it's called Marathon unter 4H in 6 Monaten--the book is not available in English. I've not read it yet, but am already toying with the idea of offering to translate the book for Runner's World (It's their book). It's really something that should be available for the English market, but that's another story.

6 months of training takes me to the beginning August and to the Paavo Nurmi Marathon on August 8 in Hurley, WI. It's way northern Wisconsin. In fact, it lies just a bit south of Lake Superior on the Michigan border. WAAAAAYYYY North. It will be a good race to try to break 4 hours on, because it should be relatively flat, as most of northern Wisconsin is. It's also nearby, and I can drive there. I'll do my best to make sure Forest joins me at least as a spectator. I'll need to import as many as possible, because there are only winner's medals for the first 300 entrants. I'm guessing this means they rarely have more than 300 entries.

So that's that. I'm off today for a 2 mile run and the true beginning of my training. I ran on Friday, but that will not count toward my plan. Just a little warm up.

The Dublin Marathon

My flight for Dublin was Sunday morning. Tessa drove me to Stanstead while it poured rain, and I mentally checked off everything I had packed, looking for anything I had missed. Everything was there, oddly enough. I was definitely wearing a new watch that I had to buy last week, because a German watch-maker ruined my tried and trusted Nike running watch by improperly affixing the back after replacing a battery. I noticed this after I got out of the shower one day and checked the time, only to find out that it was “foggy o’clock.” The watch I was (am) wearing was a cheapo replacement watch that held up to sixty laps in its memory, meaning that it didn’t do much, but if I wasn’t too tired after the marathon I could run a second one and throw a 10 K onto that for good measure, all while keeping track of my splits.

Oddly enough, that option never came up.

Once in Dublin I met up immediately with Sixpack and his friend, Catherine, whose husband agreed to take my luggage home for us while we went to the expo and registered. Without even getting to the marathon yet, I need to say right now that Sixpack’s Irish friends are good people. And by “good people,” I mean “fantastic people who grill you steaks and make you hot whiskey drinks while letting you ride around town in their Audi TT and play with their beautiful children.” We stayed with his friend Claire, who single-handedly made sure I was constantly fed, washed, and remained generally overly content. Catherine, meanwhile, ferried our friends around on marathon day, also kept me fed, and always maintained a high level of fantastic-ness that was simply awesome. I am a firm believer in contentedness leading to a less-miserable marathon, so I owe both ladies, and their families, a major shout out. Soooo, *major inhalation*, SHOUT OUT to the Irish homies!

Anyway, back to the marathon…

Sixpack and I met my friend Keith at the expo and hatched a simple plan for the following morning. Since Keith and his wife were staying in a hotel right next to the finish line, we would meet there an hour before the race and get ready. Keith is a good friend of ours and when I heard he was running Dublin, I knew I wanted to give it a shot and see what it would be like to run with him. Although we didn’t train for the marathon “together,” we kept in solid contact for the few months of training and both felt that our times were more or less compatible enough to run together. In all honesty, though, he is quite a bit faster than me. I just kept hoping that adrenaline and the miraculous “taper boost” would propel me up into his speed group.

As I showed up at Keith’s on the day of the race, I was pretty nervous. I only slept around five hours the evening before, and my breakfast didn’t go down well at all. I was continuing my Michael Phelps plan of eating two giant plates of pasta two hours before the run, but nerves just wouldn’t let me keep anything down easily. Sixpack was quick to help me calm down with lots of encouraging words, and he reassured me he would be at many mile markers to cheer me on. Still, I was pretty nervous but trying not to show it. I knew I could finish the marathon…but I wasn’t sure if I could finish it at the pace I wanted to finish it in. I had joked earlier about a 3:45, but I knew that I would never reach that because of injuries while training. As a result, I quietly modified my goals to the very hazy “somewhere around four hours” range. Since my previous marathon involved lots of tears, lying on the ground, a little crawling, and possibly even a somersault or two, even this modified goal wasn’t a given.

The main thing to tell you about the race was that it was very, very, very cold. It was near freezing when we started, and although it warmed up considerably about halfway through, it felt near freezing again by the time I was winding through downtown Dublin, looking for the finish line. Also, you should know that there were many hills. Many, many hills. Dubliners are clearly drunk when they tell you that the marathon is flat. Because it isn’t. Not only do they lie to you in the program, they lie to you on the course, as well. I can’t tell you how many people stood at the base of one particular hill near eighteen miles shouting assurances that it was the “last hill of the marathon.” Not only was it not the last hill of the marathon, I am convinced that they were spreading these rumors intentionally, and taking glee in the knowledge that each runner would be devastated with each incline that they encountered after it.

Keith held true to form in the marathon. He ran about twenty seconds a mile faster than I typically do, and I was able to keep up with him for the first half marathon. By sixteen miles though, I had to send him forward. I was feeling the pain already, and I didn’t want to jeopardize anything by pushing too hard for too much longer. I slowed down my pace and found that I was relatively comfortable until around eighteen miles, which is when things got tight and my calves started aching.

At twenty miles, I was really sore. I think I had fallen a few minutes behind Keith at this point, but I was buoyed by the knowledge that I was going to finish. I worked my way through “the wall,” and tried picking people off who were stopping to stretch or walking a lot. That helped me psychologically, but by twenty-two miles I realized that there was no way I could run the full marathon non-stop. This dawned on me when I noticed that a short walk made me want to die a little less, so I made the executive decision then and there to stop and walk a minute for each mile. Basically, once I hit a mile marker, I noted the time, and then just walked for exactly one minute. I would have liked to say I ran the whole thing without walking, but I think this method may have prevented me from worse problems. It may have saved my time.

There’s not much else to write about the last few miles other than to say that they hurt, a lot. I had a massive blister explode on the bottom of my foot at twenty-four miles, and by the time I was circling Trinity College towards the finish line, I was ready to be finished. There were no poses when I crossed the line. I just walked to the nearest barrier so I could hold myself up. I was dizzy and exhausted. I was exhilarated from finishing. I was proud. But honestly, I was mostly very cold.

I made my way back to Keith and Kate’s hotel room, where we took pictures with Sixpack, Claire, and Catherine. I bathed, showered, and then napped. I dreamt of “Murder, She Wrote,” because that is what Kate watched from underneath Kenny’s comatose, drooling body. (He deserved to be exhausted, because he finished his first marathon in about 4:06. What an amazing achievement.) Then we all woke up and went to the pub.

Although I was initially dubious about the concept, there is something amazing about a few Guiness after a marathon that I can’t describe. I felt like I was getting nourished by the calorific, stouty, goodness while my muscles were being relaxed by the alcohol. We threw down some chicken tenders and chips, and I damn near felt normal. Everyone told their war stories, and Sixpack shared some great pictures he took while cheering on half of Dublin in every language he knows. (Apparently he knows about fifty-two of them.) After the pub, we hit a bistro and loaded up on more food and, um, Hefeweizen. Sixpack and I then went home for some well earned rest.

I’m finally back in London, and my legs are sore, but I don’t feel crippled. Generally, in fact, I feel pretty good. I know I voiced some hesitation about my training plan in July, but I can only say now that it must have been the right one. I improved my time by almost forty-five minutes, and challenged breaking the four hour mark (I finished in 4:08:45). That is almost mind-boggling to me, because I’m not a “fast runner.” I’m much more of a “zen runner.” I can’t tell you how happy I am to have finished, and finished well. And I also can’t tell you how great the weekend was. I was lucky to have such a great support network, both in Dublin, and back at home.

Needless to say, I’m not going to be running another marathon for a very long time. It took two years between Cologne and Dublin, and I am not rushing to say when the next one will be. I figure that if there even is another one, it will probably be in another two years. I do know that I set up a great challenge for my fellow Drunkrunners with my time, and I would really like to see Sixpack or Dr. P.P. pick up where I left off and be the first one of us to break four hours. We’re pretty close to that as a collective goal, so while I sit here and heal up my aching bones, one of you guys needs to start training and beat my time.

Dublin Result, More to Follow

Hi everybody!

I am checking in to report that I finished the Dublin Marathon in 4:08:45.

It was a long day, and I can't write about it properly until I am home, but I just wanted you all to know that I finished and am very happy with the result. It is now up to Dr. Pavement Pounder and Sixpack to be the first to break the four hour mark. I'm done with marathons for a little while. :)

Details will come tomorrow.

One Run Left

Ahhhh, I'm at the end of the training plan.

I had my last run last night at the local track. It was five miles, three of which were supposed to be eight-minute miles. It went by like a dream. I felt nice and relaxed, and I am looking forward to this marathon.

I keep reminding myself how much it is going to hurt because I think it is important that I am not surprises when the pain sets in. However, I also keep reminding myself that no matter how much it hurts, I will be able to finish. I know this because I have finished a marathon before. I have it inside of me...somewhere.

I hope everybody has a great weekend. I am meeting Sixpack in Dublin on Sunday, and you can believe that Monday night we will be toasting all drunk runners everywhere at the pub.

Seven Days to Go

Well, this is the sixteenth week. In exactly seven days I will be standing at the starting line of another marathon.

All in all, I feel pretty good. I ran eight miles yesterday, and all of the nuts and bolts seemed to be welled greased, while no cogs or springs flew off my body whenever I tried to turn. As Tessa keeps reminding me, I seem to be in much better shape than my last marathon.

I’ll post a bit more as the week goes on, but I just wanted to metion quickly that my handle has changed. Following in the footsteps of Pavement Pounder, I have added a “dr.” to my moniker, in celebration of the successful filing of my degree. It might sound sad, but updating my screen name on blogger may have been one of the things I most looked forward to when getting ready to submit my dissertation. Sixpack, you’re next!

Twenty Wet Miles

I ran twenty miles yesterday.

It rained a lot.

Those two sentences don’t really do the whole event justice. In actuality, it rained as I woke up at six to eat two plates of noodles and a banana. It rained as I topped up my fuel belt with sports drink. It rained as I stretched and got dressed. And then it rained when I started. It continued to rain as I ran through Leytonstone, and you better believe it rained when I hit the Tower of London. Guess what I saw when I crossed London Bridge? (rain). And the Globe Theater, where I turned around, was situated firmly within the environs of Rain Town, UK.

On the way home, the puddles turned into lakes, and I swam at least two kilometers. If I had thought to bring a bike, I could have completed my first triathalon. By the time I got home I was so wet that my leggings had begun to foam at the kneecaps. This sounds weird, I know. But, apparently there was residual detergent or fabric softener left in the fabric, and the continual bending of my knee mixed with the steady rain to work the material into a lather. It was pretty funny.

Almost as funny as the helicopter ambulance I saw in the East end that was sponsored by Virgin.

The run itself went pretty well, but there were hiccups. I tried to stay true to form and break it up into three one hour periods, and then micromanage each period. In honor of Tessa, who is currently pregnant with our first mini-runner, I declared that each hour would be termed a trimester and that all pain and agony that I experienced through my “training pregnancy” would magically cure her of any pain and agony in her real pregnancy. In a very general way, the run did follow vague trends of pregnancy. The first hour was not very comfortable, as my muscles sorted themselves out and my body generally warmed up. The second hour was pretty much a cakewalk. Then, sometime during the third hour, wheels fell off and shoulders sagged, and the whole experience became a lot less fun as pain set in and the impatience to reach the finish line became palpable.

Did I mention the rain? After three hours of running in heavy rain, I don’t care how optimistic and annoyingly positive you (and I try to be both of these things, in spades), you are going to begin inventing new swear words at a fantastic pace.

Oh yeah, at about twelve miles my left knee locked up as the IT band called foul. I stretched it while waiting at a streetlight and slowly worked it back into action. My feet posed no problems, so right now that is the one thing I am asking Santa to fix before the marathon. It really is a pain, in more ways than one.

As for times, my ipod died at 17.3 miles, so boo. BUT, it had been acting up a little before that, so I was able to monitor it before it died. This means I got my time right before it went down, and luckily it crashed right as I was passing under a major landmark. My time and my exact position gave me a chance to project my final time, roughly.

My first ten miles came in at 1:33, and when the ipod died at 17.3, I had been running 2:41 minutes. So, even if my pace dropped from 9:18 per mile to 10:00 per mile (and it did drop somewhat as the weather finally broke me, although I don’t think it dropped to that extreme), then I finished the twenty miles in 3:08 or so. If I maintained my pace, then it was just over 3:06.

Honestly, I felt like I didn’t finish as strongly as I did when I ran twenty miles last month. I’m a little bummed about that. However, I did run it about ten minutes faster. I also ran through the worst weather I have ever run in my life. I am not in the business of making up excuses or anything, but I have to draw some positives from this run. I think the biggest positive is that I know that no matter how bad things are in Dublin, I can handle it. I might not break four hours, but if knee problems pop up and the weather is absolutely dreadful, then I will know that I had seen it all before.

That has to count for something.

One Day at a Time

That's the new motto. No more telling you all how much I'm going to run, how far, how often, blah, blah, blah. Instead I'm using all of my free time here to just get back into enjoying running. I'm not planning any races at the moment and won't be for a little while. I'm just going to run. That's it.

Went for what I think was two miles on Thursday. Not sure though, because my $300 watch decided not to find a satellite. WTF? I mean, I live less than a mile from an airport. Don't they need satellites? Has the Stasi disrupted my signal? I don't know what was going on, but 12 minutes into my run I looked down and the watch had registered a distance of 1/4 mile. I'm slow, but I ain't that slow.

I'll head out again today and try to do some troubleshooting with the watch. In the meantime I'm enjoying trying to figure out how to "run around the block" in Berlin. Seems the only way to do that successfully is to follow the remnants of the wall. Otherwise what I think should be around the block ends up being miles and miles and containing many missed opportunities. It's interesting when a modern city is still laid out according to old cow paths through the swamp. Soon I'll try a lap around the airport!

Good Time for a Recovery Week

I just looked over my running schedule, and realized I didn’t miss as many runs due to injury as I thought I had. In fact, the couple of runs I missed were all over three weeks ago. I guess this means a couple of things. First, I need to stop whining. Second, I need to stop whining.

Even though I am removed from the days when little elves poked fiery stakes into my foot with every step I took, I still couldn’t help but feel like I needed my scheduled recovery week last week. I just felt like I was a half step behind everything, and the ensuing consternation over where I was compared to where I wanted to be made me lose sight of my marathon goals and all of the little things I had been doing to try and make them a reality.

A week with two eight mile runs interspersed with seven miles of non-speed work helped me get my concentration back. It was brilliant. I didn’t need to worry about fatigue, overstressing body parts, or anything else really. I just ran. And I was able to keep well within the prescribed, albeit modest, speed goals without any problems. This made for a happy deetschei, and I am once again looking forward to a marathon that is, actually, not that far away.

This week I am gearing up for my final twenty mile run. The last one went so well, I am almost afraid to run it again. I feel like I couldn’t possibly repeat the generally pleasant experience of finishing twenty miles without wanting to amputate massive parts of my lower body. In actuality, I’m setting the bar higher this time because I need to run it faster. Who knows what will happen. My money is on the amputations.

I do know that there have been some lingering issues with the IT band which have kept me busy on some of my longer runs over the past couple of weeks. It isn’t something that forces me to quit, but it does require some pretty steady maintenance and that constant search for the right stride, in which every step is either a little shorter or a little longer and the foot is planted a little more on the heel or the toe, all while trying to find that sweet spot where the knee doesn’t tighten up and those outside twinges don’t grow into something more. Ideally, I won’t have to waste the mental energy worrying about how to step, nor the physical energy of continually adjusting my stride, in the marathon itself. Let’s all put our faith in the taper.

But before that, comes the twenty. Because it’s there.

Remember Me?

Remember Me?

Apparently foot injuries hurt. In my long and whatever-happens-to-be-the-opposite-of-illustrious running career, I had never actually injured my foot before. Once, in the Bay Area, I bought a new pair of Adidas running shoes that caused some mad arch pain after about a mile of running, so I threw them into the closet and bought new shoes. Problem solved. Those Adidas came out occasionally as walking shoes and whenever I listened to Run DMC, but I never ran in them again.

The day after my last twenty mile run I needed to go to the post office for whatever reason, and it was this very pair of shoes that were nearest as I lay on the couch watching ‘Deal or No Deal.’ I rolled over, put them on, proceeded to walk down the stairs, and felt a twinge, that was not a good twinge, on the outside of my right arch. I took off the shoes very quickly, put a hex on them, and switched to new shoes before limping off the to post office. Turns out, the damage was done. My foot was not right for over two weeks. Walking was a chore, and running was out of the question. I ended up missing speedwork during the week after my twenty-miler, and when I thought I had it all sorted out, a four mile run aggravated it to the point that I had to cancel the sixteen miles that were scheduled on the following Sunday. I labored through my “normal run” that week and completely made a mockery of speedwork on that Thursday. By Sunday, I knew I needed to run sixteen miles, but I wasn’t sure if I could hack it. I did it, even if it wasn’t pretty. I had to stop every few miles and stretch my foot. I ended up with a semi-decent time of 2:39:56, which was okay for a guy hobbling, but it was way off my goal pace.

That was probably the darkest moment in my training so far. All I knew was that I seemed a million miles away from my happy twenty miler, and that everything went wrong the day after I finally registered. Thanks to those shoes.

This all made me very unhappy.

Luckily, things improved on the following Tuesday. I felt fresh as I embarked on a six miler and finished the run in less than 52 minutes, without really feeling like I was forcing things. Then, on Thursday, I had what was supposed to be a tempo run in which five miles were to be at an 8:04 pace. I had been doing all of my speed- and tempo work on a track, and I was pretty sure that twenty consecutive laps were going to kill me no matter the pace I did them in. I got through it though, with about 7:58 per mile. This was reassuring. I think I labored through the run a bit more than I was supposed to, but the fact that I got through it meant that I hadn’t lost all of my fitness, right? Right?

I had my second of three twenty milers scheduled for Sunday, but I didn’t feel ready because my foot still feels pretty tender. So I downgraded the run to a sixteen miler, knowing that I have another twenty coming up in two weeks. The run went well, although I had some surprise (bonus!) ITB problems in my left knee that made things less than totally pleasant. I finished the run in 2:31:58, meaning that I shaved about eight minutes off my time for the same distance from a week previous. I dare to dream that I am coming out of the darkness. In fact, this time was actually a little faster than my target training time.

It’s a little frustrating to deal with injuries, as everyone knows. This time feels particularly bitter. It seems like an overuse type of injury, but I know that I am not running excessively more miles than I was before I started training. I even checked my log and noticed that I logged more miles in the month leading up to last winter’s half marathon than I did in the month leading up to the disintegration of my right foot. But, there is not much use in whining, I suppose. I dropped a couple of runs, which I try not to do, but I suppose it isn’t that bad. My last seven long runs were supposed to read like this: 16, 18, 20, 7, 16, 20, 16. What I ended up with was something like this: 17, 18, (sick), 20, (injured), 16, 16. Essentially, I had to drop a seven miler and a twenty miler. Its not the end of the world, considering I still have a couple more weeks before tapering, but it means I might need to revise my goals. Whereas my ideal goal was 3:45, I think now I might need to try and look towards 4:00 being my target. We’ll see how these last few weeks of training sort themselves out. I’m still optimistic, and I still trust in the plan.

I think things are going to be okay.

$400 Worth of Motivation

Yes Folks, I spent $400 on running gear last weekend and now I'm feeling more motivated to get back out on the road. I think it's been clear through my posts over the past several months that I have been lacking in motivation. It's been tough to get out of bed and strap on the shoes. So, I thought, why not a new pair of shoes? And while I'm at it, why not pick up the Garmin Forerunner 405. I had actually been planning on getting the Garmin for some time, I simply needed to wait until I was paid for working in Beijing. Once that was done, I was ready to go.
This morning then was the first run with the new shoes and the new watch. It went very well. I'm still on way low mileage--8 miles scheduled for this week--but it is feeling good. I was encouraged by the accuracy of the watch as it measured my 2 mile run. I think it was off by an amazing 6 feet over the two miles.
There are many features I haven't even begun to explore like the virtual training partner--I can already see how that will come in handy on speed workouts.
My run was otherwise uneventful. It's going to take a lot of time to get back into shape. In fact, I've already decided to downgrade Dublin to a half marathon. I don't want to hurt myself, and I'm working on plans to run the Western States 100 in celebration of my 40th birthday in a few years. I need to stay in shape and keep running if I'm going to do that.
Speaking of shape, I'm still the same. Haven't lost any weight, but I haven't gained either. That's a plus. Now that I'm back on the road I might work toward those abs I've been looking for. Has anyone seen them? I lost them years ago.

Make Mine a Venti

Best 20 mile run ever. No tears. No pain. Just tired by the end.

The weekend was a gluttonous one, so I knew I would have plenty of fuel to burn. Tessa’s aunt was in town to celebrate her 60th birthday, so this meant that copious amounts of food and wine were constantly at hand. Friday night, I think I ate an entire lamb myself, and I am pretty sure I put a few vineyards out of business by drinking everything they had ever bottled, then flying to Bordeaux and actually eating all of their grapes. And their vines. And their roots. And their soil. And their berets.

Saturday I cut out the alcohol but helped myself to Hungry Man portions at a family barbeque. I then went home and made a big pasta dish for the following morning out of fusili, tuna, and an aioli-like substance. (For the record: This did not taste good.) …You can see how I am obsessed with food right now. Its all about the Michael Phelps diet in this camp. If I eat like him, I am sure to grow seven inches and put on twenty pounds of pure muscle…

Sunday, I woke up at six and ate. I had the hardest time keeping my pasta dish down because I wasn’t that hungry at that hour, and as I mentioned, it didn’t taste so great. “ots of water helped. I took down two bananas as well as I mapped out my route. I had actually crashed out at my in-laws house, so I knew the route I would run from previous experience. It was pretty much a straight shot from their house to the Millenium Bridge/Tate Modern, via London’s east side.

The run was urban without being urbane (see what I did there? Eh, eh? What a loser!) It was exactly how I remembered it: lots of eel and pie shops, lots of people still partying from the night before, lots of tourists from the Tower to the Tate, and no Amy Winehouse laying in a gutter. I actually enjoy the route because it is easy, even if it is not as immediately beautiful as some training runs I have done in Germany, Switzerland, or even Chelsea. There is a certain rugged energy to London’s east side which somehow contributes to better running. That must be why the Olympic village is being built near Stratford. They are counting on the athletes to be similarly pushed by the fear of muggings and Jack the Ripper’s progeny.

I won’t give a mile-by-mile recap here, but it generally went down similarly to my 18 miler in Cologne. I brought three gel packs and three bottles of sports drink. I stretched at street lights and just focused on keeping my form throughout. I mostly listened to NPR, and by the time I was home, I was tired but not desperate. I ran a little slower than I was supposed to: I finished 20.6 miles (I had to round up while mapping it out in order to get to a discernable landmark) in 3:20:55, which was a 9:45 pace. To be honest, I’m okay that I ran it slower than the schedule plans, because I have two more twenty milers to run, and I can work on speed then. This time, it was all about me wrapping my head around the distance and showing myself I could do it. That part was accomplished, and I feel good.

Well, I felt good.

On Monday I put on an old pair of tennis shoes, and as I was going down the stairs I felt the arch in the bottom of my foot tighten up. It hurt oh so good, so now I am off my feet. I tried running yesterday and stopped at a quarter mile. I have speed work tomorrow, and will probably put it off until Friday in order to maximize the recovery.
It’s about right, though. I have agonized through twenty miles and wanted to die, only to turn around and run just fine immediately afterwards. This time, I got through this twenty miler with a relatively decent amount of ease, and pulled up lame from walking down stairs the next day. You would have to love running. If it didn’t constantly make you want to cry.

Back on the Road!

Well, I'm back in the USA and attempting to get back on the road. I went to Fleet Feet yesterday and had my gait analyzed, by Forest of all people, and realized I might be more comfortable in a neutral shoe. That is as opposed to the stability shoe that I've been wearing. So, I'm going to give that a try. I'm also going to give the new Newton's a whirl. I'm hoping some of these changes will make me a better runner and lead me to more marathons and less injuries.

This morning I ran a whopping 2 miles and covered it in about 20 minutes. I'm making some assumptions here. I felt it better to run for 20 minutes and not worry about distance, than to try to push myself farther than I should. After all, I haven't run consistently since April. This is a very bad thing, that has also proven to be a pretty good thing. I feel terribly out of shape, but at the same time I do believe my tendonitis is healed and that I'm ready to go back at it again.

I'm going to run some numbers through Runner's World today and find a training plan to get me back on track for a marathon slowly and sanely. In fact, although I will run the Dublin Marathon, I think I'm going to give myself 6 months to train for the next one. Perhaps the Paris Marathon which will be run on the day before my 38th birthday. I'll, of course, keep you all posted.

For now it's back on the road and back to getting fit.

Overall Stats:

Distance ~ 2 mi.

Time: 20 min.

Pace: ~ 10:00 min/mi

Overall Impression: Seriously? Did I Really Run a Marathon in May? (S?DIRRAMIM?)

366 posts, a cold, and two year birthday

I wanted to note here that this is the 366th post on drunkrunners.blogspot.com, which means that we have a leap-year's worth of commentary about running and drinking. That's a pretty big achievement. Even better, in early August we passed the blog's two year birthday. That mean you have all been drunkrunners for some time now, and I can't even begin to count the marathons, half marathons, Bay to Breakers and other races that have been run since that time. I think the most fun I have had as a reader of this blog would be reading about all the shenanigans that occur while training for these races. Of course, the race reports are always fantastic and awe inspiring as well.

Currently, I am battling a cold. I switched my first twenty miler from last weekend to this weekend, and am now just trying to stay awake. I will post a large post about the past two weeks as soon as I hit the asphalt.

Running On and Off

I, too, have been a bit spotty with my running lately. Some weeks I manage 12 or so miles total, other weeks 0-4. Boo! Unfortunately, I don't have as good an excuse as Sixpack. I only have myself and my stress to blame. However, I can report that the runs I have been doing are a decent pace (9 and under) and you will be proud to know that I intentionally include more uphills than downhills in my route. It hit me the other day that I could probably alter my route so that I ran uphill only 1 or 2 times and that the remainder of my run was either flat or downhill. But, being who I am, I realized I would have been cheating myself. Hills still suck, don't get me wrong, but they are sucking considerably less. Formal numbers and more details coming soon.

Not Running

Just a note to the group that I haven't run since my last post. This job has not offered much time to do anything. I felt guilty today running to the post office for an hour.

Deetschei-- I will still begin training again ASAP and will at the very least do run/walk marathon in Dublin. I'll have a free place for us to stay, that should make up for my poor performance. :-)

More when I get back to the states. Only 6 more days in Beijing.

Running in Germany

I was warned that the weather in Germany would be horrible this weekend. Although that never materialized, when I went to the university to do my speedwork on Monday, I saw at least five girls wearing scarves. When it was 23 C out. You gotsta love Germany.

I love running in Germany, anyway. Things went really well this week. Thursday’s speedwork was challenging: I had 3 x 1600meters at 7:33 per mile, with 800 meter jogs in between, but I managed to get it all done in spite of some pretty bad humidity. In retrospect, the biggest challenge was getting myself clean afterwards after having forgotten to bring a towel…or finding a place to stash my things after forgetting to bring a padlock for a locker. On the one hand, I felt stupid for thinking I could get by without these essential items, but then I remembered that I always lived around the corner from the track and never needed to bring these things before. It was just a force of habit, I suppose.

And by “biggest challenge” I naturally mean “second-biggest challenge”. My biggest challenge was suppressing the urge to vomit after my tenth lap of near-sprinting. I found it fascinating that my time per lap (400m) was the exact same time the women were running 800m during the Olympics. I think that makes me half as fast as an Olympic athlete, which is completely mind-boggling. If I ever tried to DOUBLE my speed I’m pretty sure my legs would rip out of my hips and get bloody sinewy grossness all over the track. Which would be hard to clean up. So I won’t even try it.

Sunday’s run is the big story, however. My alternately discouraging/encouraging 16 mile run last week that ended up being well over 17 miles left me alternately hopeful/apprehensive about 18 miles. I decided to just the bite the damn bullet and do everything I could to make it a decent run. I bought a fuel belt for more isotonic drinks. I bought vanilla flavored goo. I didn’t drink alcohol on Saturday. AND, I woke up at 6:30 Sunday morning and ate two giant plates of salmon pasta even though I had no hunger whatsoever that early in the morning.

I hit the turf at 8AM, and had what could only be described as a moderate, comfortable run. Don’t get me wrong, I was tired by the end, but this was the most relaxed 18 miles I think I have ever had. I am not going to make any bold statements, and will re-test things next week for my first twenty miler, but I think I may have made a breakthrough in fueling myself before and during runs. I simply never hit a wall and never felt, well, pain.

Basically, as I ran along the Rhine I tried to concentrate on my form and simply break the run into three one-hour increments. I just kept telling myself to “manage this hour”, and I basically did. I had three bottles of fluids and two goo packs, and made sure I took down one of each by the hour mark. By the third hour I had enough juice left in me to speed up and I ultimately ended up with negative splits: The first 9.1 miles took about 1:28, and the second took about 1:25. My total time for 18.26 miles ended up being 2:53:44, which put me exactly at 9:30 per mile. This was exactly my target speed for the run, so I was very pleased.

Concentrating on my upper body form helped in two ways, I think. First, it kept my mind off my legs. Second, it kept me from getting overly sloppy, which hopefully conserved energy and helped me keep going forward. I don’t know. I do know that before Sunday I had never run 18 miles without immediately afterwards thinking anything other than dreadful thoughts about adding another 8 miles to the distance. This time, I felt pretty good about everything. I think the weight training on my non-running days is paying off, although Tessa claims that my arms are heavier and now I am no longer allowed to put them around her when we sleep for fear of crushing her. Because I'm that huge. Right. ;)

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think I can run a marathon tomorrow. But I feel like by focusing on “managing” the pain and breaking down the run into workable increments, I can create a system that will get me through the marathon at the end of my training plan.

Oh, and I think my giant breakfast that morning certainly helped. Next week I will eat the same, and try adding bananas.

16 Miles.* Still Bonking.

Dear dudes and girl dudes, my apologies for not covering the recovery week. It was three runs of six miles, and I skipped the weight training. I figured that you guys didn’t want to hear about it, so I decided to conserve my energy and watch Top Gear instead of posting. If it seems like I have been watching a lot more television than I ever have before, it is because I am victim to so much quality programming. Watching television is okay in a foreign culture, because it constitutes research. I am learning about the Brits every time I watch The Daily Show.

Week five was a big week. My tempo run on Thursday was sixteen laps at 2:00 per lap, which worked out to a 8:05 mile for four miles, plus two miles warm up and cool down. The tempo was good, in that it kept me going just outside of my comfort zone. I would have happily slowed down at any point, but it didn’t get excruciating until the twelfth lap. Those last four laps were less than fun, which may have been heat, or it just may have been the fact that the runs were doing the work they were supposed to do. Which was kick my ass into shape.

Sunday’s run was less than grand. I met some friends Saturday afternoon for a Beer Festival in Earl’s Court, and heavily restricted my beer intake in preparation for the run, but I’m not entirely sure it helped. All that I know is that when I was in the thick of it on Sunday, I didn’t feel good at all.

I just didn’t have the energy to finish well. In fact, as I hit the last two miles, I was even heckled by a street performer who stopped doing a magic trick long enough to remind me that he could walk faster than I ran. I couldn’t even argue with him. He was probably right. I don’t even know how fast as I was going at that point, but I know that I was exhausted and cramping. And I think it was due to eating way too little before the run. And nothing during the run. Soooo, I’m back to square one with my bad habits, and have decided that I need to wake up extra early on Sundays just so I can eat a big breakfast and then have time to digest it somewhat before the run. Next Sunday we will try something along those lines, and I will let you know how it goes.

Other than the bonking, the run was actually beautiful, but extremely windy. And the wind didn’t help. I finally moved things up into central London and ran almost the entire distance along the Thames. I started at London Bridge, traced my way along the South Bank, went through Battersea Park to the Albert Bridge, then doubled back through Chelsea to Parliament Square and Green Park to just short of Buckingham Palace. The thing was, there were 20-plus mile an hour winds along the Thames, and I was getting blasted like I was in a wind tunnel. I had to deal with this for the first five miles, and then once I made the turn home from Parliament Square, again on the Chelsea side for another three miles. I was exhausted by four miles, and feel like the wind might have contributed to my bad run more than anything…but nonetheless, if I had a bit more food in my system, then maybe I would have been able to finish fast enough that I could escape the silent heckles of the abusive mimes. I finished it nonetheless, but I ended up with mile averages that hovered around 10:30 or so. Like I said, it was a challenging day.

This week promises some real fun. I am flying to Cologne Thursday morning, so I will do my track work at my old track on the Unigelände. Its not as nice as the track at Ladywell, but its considerably more free. Sunday I run eighteen miles along the Rhine, so I am essentially switching one big river for another. It should be considerably less windy though, because the Rhine is much wider than the Thames and lacks the giant buildings on either side that funnel the wind into your face no matter which direction you face. This will be a sentimental run. I’m looking forward to it. But not as much as the ginormous breakfast I am going to eat at six o’clock that morning.

* (Update: I just checked my route on USATF for the first time, and it turns out I ran about 17.3 miles and that my Nike+ seriously needs to be re-calibrated. The real new lesson is to check your routes before you run them, unless you have a GPS! :) So instead of 10:30 miles, I was closer to 9:35, which is only a little slower than my goal pace. I'm officially less discouraged by this run. I am also dreading the 18 miles next Sunday a little less, knowing I only have to run an additional .7 miles or so. After that big breakfast, I should be sorted. Hopefully.)

Third Week Review! Action! Comedy! Hijinks!

14 miles. So very, very long. When did it get to be so long? I don’t know. But man, somebody added bonus miles to my long run last week. Quite frankly, I don’t think its cool, at all, to mess with somebody’s long run by sneaking in at least six miles extra. I mean, fourteen miles? Who are we kidding? That felt like it was at least twenty miles. Maybe even 22. Whoo boy.

Anyway, as you may have gathered, my third week involved challenges. And determination. And alterations.

I knew that things would need to be juggled slightly because Tessa and I were going to Stourhead Saturday night for some fireworks and fancy dress, and also to Wells to visit our friends Megan and Andy. So, in order to accommodate this wrinkle, I did something unprecedented: I moved my long run forward instead of back. Knowing that my weekend would be jammed full of friend-type goodness and farm time chicken chasing, I woke up very early Saturday morning and ran. And ran. And ran. In fact, I’m probably still running at this very moment, and if you should see me in Greenwich, ask me what I did with my keys.

The things is, my body just doesn’t understand Saturday long runs. It just didn’t catch on that it was supposed to be partaking in an endurance building activity. It thought that it was supposed to be on the couch scanning the TV for O.C. reruns, and as a result, it never got into the groove. It didn’t step to the beat. So the long run lived up to its name, and I didn’t enjoy myself as much as I could. Considering I was running around Greenwich Park while holding a giant banana for sustenance, I should have been having a blast. I mean, parks + bananas = tomfoolery of some sort, doesn’t it? Don’t answer, P.P. because I already know your response, and I know it involves George Michael, and both he and I don’t find it funny. Not one bit. ☺

Anyway, week three is over and I am in the middle of week 4, which is an oh so savory recovery week. Three runs of six miles, and nothing more. Its been fantastic, and I am really looking forward to waking up Sunday morning, strapping on the shoes, and being home again in less than an hour.

So I can get back on the couch and find those reruns of the O.C..

Last Weeks Miles: 23 miles

Last Weeks Average: Somewhere around 9 minutes per?

Total Impression: Halfway to Halfway There on Sunday! (HHTS!)

Outside Run, Not So Bad

As you all know I hadn't planned on running outside while here in Beijing. However, desperate times call for desperate measures. And surely this morning was desperate times.

I awoke at 5:15 and I was wide awake. There was just no sense in going back to bed, and if I was going to get a run in today I was going to have to go right then and there. So, I did. Oh and the gym doesn't open until 7. I braved the heat and had a nice time.

The path around Workers Stadium seems to be quite a popular place to run. I passed several! WOOHOO 3 WEEKS IN AND I'M ALREADY PASSING PEOPLE!!!!!! Furthermore, the pollution isn't so bad. I can still feel my lungs and my allergies didn't react too badly. Of course, the effects of pollution are usually much longer term than just a 20 minute cooldown, but at the same time, I'm really feeling like the pollution here isn't as bad as has been reported. But then, how do you measure pollution with the naked eye? Further, reducing traffic emmissions, shutting down factories, and yesterday's rain all have added to the cleanliness of the air today.

Overall Stats:

Distance: 3.2 miles
Time: 29:02
Pace: 9:40
Overall Impression: The Chinese Seem To Like The Hayes Street Haters Shirt!!! (TCSTLTHSHS!)

Beijing Update

Well I did it. I ran today. I was supposed to do 4 miles, and I'm afraid I didn't quite get it all done.

The gym here is crazy. It's empty. During my 40 minutes on the treadmill I saw two people. One when I got there and another when I left. That was it. The treadmill was nice. Complete with television. Not a bad deal really. I turned on Chinese MTV and enjoyed a nice run.

Well, nice if you like running in 85 degree weather. Yes, I know I told you I was at the gym, but evidently it is not air conditioned. The thermometer on the wall read 85! I couldn't believe. No wonder I was sweating my balls off.

At about 3 miles I did something wrong and invoked the emergency shut down. Sweating, panting and feeling a little light headed I decided that was far enough. I showered and went home. I've been making up for the distance with a lot of walking, so I don't feel so bad, but I will try to beef up the next few runs to make sure I do all my mileage.

I found the runners! My mistake was thinking that no one here runs, I was looking in the wrong place. Actually the wrong time. When we headed to dinner tonight I saw all sorts of runners. They were waiting for the cooler weather. It was even breezy tonight and was therefore approaching something you might call comfortable. That run outside may actually happen. As I get acclimated to the weather here I'm starting to think it may even be feasible.

I'll keep you posted.

Running in Beijing

The short version of this post is that it hasn't happened yet. I have, however, been doing a lot of walking. And I do mean a lot. I have decided, after tackling Tiannenmen Square, Banhei Park and the Pearl Market already today, that my run will be tomorrow morning. This will keep me a little off schedule, but the walking is surely helping, and quite frankly I'm having some weird leg pains. Can't figure those out yet, but it will come in time.

I will not be running outdoors. Period. Two reasons:

1) This picture

That is Beijing at about 5 p.m. It has looked like that since I got here. Now imagine that humidity with 90 degree weather. I'm sorry Dr. PP but that is worse than anything Texas has ever seen.

I still await someone who can explain the fascination with building world capitols on swamps. Berlin, Washington, D.C., Beijing. I mean, WTF?

2) I have been here for three days and seen One, count him, One runner. That's it. It just isn't done here. Besides, if you knew the chaos that is crossing the street WITH a green walk light here, you might understand my apprehension to put myself in harms way just for a run. BTW, I have been here for 3 days and am yet to see a cab driver use a turn signal. I feel so at home!!

That's it. As soon as I run at the gym here, I'll be sure to post.

Week 2. Done and Done.

Week Two is now in the books.

When last we met, I wasn’t sure if I could squeeze any more miles out of Greenwich. I did manage to get twelve miles from it last week, but just barely. Greenwich Park opens up to a group of very large fields in Blackheath, and I thought I would worm my way around the periphery of those just to see how far I could go without having to retrace my steps. It accommodated my needs, but I will definintely have to run somewhere else next week. If anyone has any suggestions, I would love to hear them. But please understand that I am trying to keep unsavory experiences such as stabbings, muggings, flashings, shootings, and even maimings to a minimum. It’s a tall order when you live in the big bad city ☺

Speaking of the city, I officially had a horrible run on Tuesday. I don’t even want to blog about it (But I will). And the thing was, it had nothing to do with me. I felt great physically, but it was if London completely conspired against me. Don’t get me wrong, I know I poke fun at London a lot. You kind of have to give the place a hard time simply because Londoners take themselves so seriously. But it really is a great place to live most of the time. I mean, its silly to say, but there are only a handful of cities in the world that have as much going on as London at any given moment. And by handful, I mean maybe three. And I only speak the correct language to be understood in maybe one and a half of them.

Nonetheless, Tuesday was the day London let me down. It was hot and smoggy. The sky was literally brown. For some reason, traffic was horrible so I was running by permanent gridlock, which meant I was constantly inhaling exhaust. There was even more garbage than usual on the sidewalks (and in this part of town, there be more than a little on good days). To top it all off, there was a plague of flying ants. I kid you not. They were everywhere. You know how sometimes you run through a cloud of gnats and the cloud drifts along with you for a few feet, so that you get temporarily nervous that it will stay with you constantly and you will never be able to stop going “ptff ptff ptff” with your mouth? Well, that happened to me Tuesday, except it was with flying ants, and the cloud literally stayed with me for the duration of my four mile run. I had bugs crawling on my jersey when I got home, and it stung when they bounced off my arms and face while running. I had to shower even faster than usual just to wash off the unclean feeling. By the time I was out of the shower, I generally hated everything about the city and wanted to move to the forest and live in a house made of candy. It was not a quality day for urban appreciation.

Soooooo…that was that. London and I have since hugged and made up, but I still don't trust it completely. Everything else is going pretty well. I have been lifting weights for my cross training, and feel pretty good about the three runs a week. Speed work and tempo runs are all under control, although the super nice track I found near us costs £2.40 to use. I think I should get them to sponsor my marathon fee… seriously.

Last Weeks Miles: 23 miles
Average Pace: about 9:15
Overall Impression: Ant Free For Two Days! (AFFTD!)

Swimming a 9:30 mile!

Yes, you read that correctly. I went out the other day for my 3 mile run and finally realized what Dr. PP was talking about when she needed to grow gills. It's awful. I felt like I was aspirating the entire run, but I did it! Well, almost.

I headed out of the house and decided to run the driveway--that's a 1/4 mile already! And just headed on down the road. Aside from the need for goggles and fins, I have to say it all went very well. I didn't exactly have the distance mapped out, and I haven't found the other half to my Nike+ since the move, so I was judging the distance by my watch. My previous 2-mile runs had been at 9:30 so I assumed that would be my pace for 3.

On my way back my newfangled shoe laces proved to be not so cool. They are elastic "never tie your shoes again" shoe laces, and I have to make some adjustments to them, for I could feel the blister on my heel at mile 2.3. Mind you, I haven't had a blister since the finish line of my first marathon 2 years ago. I tried to push through it and keep running, then I remembered that I had promised myself I wasn't going to be injured this time around. I know that sounds a little wussy, but a blister can set you back a few days and I didn't want that to happen. So I stopped and walked home. I measured the course yesterday and it turns out I had actually already run 2.8 miles, so I was pretty happy.

Today I undertake the 3 mile that I should have run yesterday (letting the blister heal) and will begin treadmill training later this week. My schedule will be a little f'ed up this week what with a flight to china and all, but I will stay on track!!!

BTW, I have started a blog to relate my travel experiences and will be letting everyone know of my exciting journeys through that. You can find it atVagabunt. I won't be able to tell you everything until I get back from China. Word is our internet activity and our conversations will be monitored. Oh how I love China!!!!

Week One in Review

Week One is in the books, and in retrospect it went pretty well. I found a track through Google Earth that is about one mile away, so I will be able to do my tempo runs and speed work without any problems. The track is actually pretty sweet: it is rubber, it is well maintained, and I have yet to see the chalk outlines of dead bodies on the way there.

So I got that going for me, which is nice.

The long run on Sunday was switched a long run on Monday, proving that it is never too early to start shaking things up. I was in Bournemouth for a three-day bachelor party this weekend, and after wakeboarding and flying like crazy around a ropes course, I was feeling a little “fragile” by Sunday afternoon. If you throw in copious amounts of alcohol and a trip to clubs and pubs that literally ended after the sun was coming up, then you could imagine my desire to postpone those ten miles. (Quick aside: My wife will testify that I am obsessed with the idea of staying in bars until daylight, which is pretty humorous because I tend to go to bed before ten PM. Having actually realized my lifelong ambition, I can assert both that it was wonderful and that I deserve a ticker-tape parade of some sorts for actually staying awake and coherent the entire time. I have two words and a coordinating conjunction for you: Vodka and cola.)

In short, the extra day’s recovery didn’t help. Hell, I didn’t feel right until Wednesday. The ten miles? Let’s just say that I did them in a time that was very close to the prescribed time and leave it at that. Oh, and this week’s training is still on schedule so I won’t be missing any runs, either. Nice recovery, methinks. Now if I could only find my liver.

On the technical side, I bought a new sensor for the Nike+ so I am not running watch-commando any longer. Well, I had my watch with me the entire spring, but I just chose not to use it. I highly recommend going without if you aren’t training for anything, but its just a matter of choice. Granted, I am going to come up much more than a hundred miles short at the end of this year’s calculations, but it’s all good. I’m back on the clock now and keeping close count of everything with an intricate system of punch cards and sundials. Granted, I’m not quite as clinical about my preparation as, say, the Russians are in Rocky IV, but I don’t have the best of Soviet technology at my disposal. I like to imagine that Drago and I share a few attributes, however, and that I still gleaned some important training strategies from that montage in which he pummels a red cushion with his communist rage.

This week should be pretty chill. It totals twenty-two miles with a twelve mile run on Sunday, which will involve a lot of circles in Greenwich Park. As I look over the next few weeks, I realize that Greenwich is failing to offer me the miles I need, and that I will have to start directing my attention northwestward, towards the city. London running is always a mixed bag, but if I can cut across London Bridge on a Sunday morning, then I should be able to find it almost entirely vacated, save for the zombies. Today I have five miles, with two miles at 7:38, which are in turn broken up by 800 meter jogs. Tuesday I ran five miles, but I don’t remember the time requirement. It was a modest goal that only left me half dead. But, then again, that could have just been the bachelor party’s revenge.

Last Week’s Miles: 21
Last Week’s Time: Ack, I’m not online right now! Let’s say I did them all in six
minutes.
Overall Impression: In Training Limbo. Not Quite There Mentally Yet. Marathon
Still Too Far

And I Ran...

"I ran not far away, but I ran...." (Sung to the tune of Flock of Seagulls) Come on everybody! You know the tune. Sing along.
That's the story of the beginning of Marathon training. It's going to be a long slow training, but I'm very optimistic. Deetschei and I are training for Dublin and clearly he is going to kick my ass, but he's younger, he'll probably always do that.
This should be week 2 of the training, but it is really just week 1. Aside from Forest and I's 2 mile run on Sunday I have run about 35 miles since the end of April. That included the marathon. Not good. Therefore, I've stepped way back to the beginning and will do a training plan that is registered as "very hard" but starts with an assumed 6-10 miles a week. That's more than I have been doing, but I'm hoping it won't stress me out too much to start that low.
Training absolutely had to begin today, 1) because it is now 15 weeks to the marathon, and B) because I weighed in at 200 pounds yesterday. I haven't weighed this much in a long time, and I will now be taking care of that. You all know that I am recently singled and with my new found poverty, I'm sure losing weight will not be difficult, however, in the land of cheese and beer I am already finding it tricky.
Well, Cheese, beer and French Toast Fantasy. Ann Sather restaurant in Chicago serves French Toast Fantasy. Thank god for me it is 200 miles away. I would be a house. Start with two cinnamon rolls. Slice them in half (like a bagel) dip them in egg batter and fry like french toast. Nice start, eh? Well, then you slather some Mascarpone cheese in the middle, top with gronola and fresh fruit. Then you can finally serve. You'll be happy to know I didn't use the syrup she provided, although it certainly would have been decadent.
But, I digress. I'm going to look around and see what other training plans might be out there and maybe more appropriate for my fitness level, but for now, I've got 8 miles scheduled this week. 2 today, completed in 19 minutes--not bad, not bad. 3 on Friday, 3 on Sunday!

Wish me luck. The goal, as I've discussed with Forest, is to finish this marathon injury free. I know I said that about the last one, and I didn't injure myself at the marathon. I did it beforehand. So, in a sick way, I didn't injure myself with the last marathon. Anyway, I'll be taking it slow. Icing, Ibuprofen, etc.
Nutrition is also going to be a big part of it all. I've been working on following a different eating plan, one devoid of foie gras, and will slowly improve my diet and overall health, so that on race day I will be svelt and ready to go. :-)

Glad to hear everyone else is doing so well. Keep up the good work!!!!