got the runs

Taking today off so iI'm rested for a longer run tomorrow, when it's sunny and beautiful and not chilly and rainy.  Amazing that I didn't plan this.  I think Virginia likes me to be happy when I run...

5-mile out-and-back on the WOD near my house.  First time I've run that portion of the trail in a while, and it felt great!  Lots of enthusiastic people out on the trail. ~7:45 avg pace.  No problems with legs, but left quad was rather tight by the end.  I smelled the barn for the last mile and a half, which was likely the cause of the fastest pace of the run.  I was hungry and I knew i had some  of my leftover Chipotle burrito waiting for me.

Approximately 20-mile spin on my roadbike in this glorious weather.  Nice to give the legs a break but still crank the heart a tad.

Virginia winter has its merits.... 

Lunchtime WOD run. 

Felt nice 'n strong.  Great weather at low 50's.  ~7:40 pace.  Good to see that this is my comfortable pace nowadays, as it was ~8:30 throughout most of the late summer/fall season.  My only problem these days is not quite enough sleep... 

3.5 mile out-and-back on the WOD near home.  Felt oddly strong tonight; averaged ~7:30 with best mile at 7:05.  I think I actually felt fit for the first time in a while!

My enthusiastic running of yesterday caught up with me a bit, with a bit of tightness in the legs.  Still, a wonderful evening of running, averaging close to 7:45 pace.  Incredible weather, these past couple days!  65 degrees of pure t-shirt and shorts bliss.  Ahhh...

Looks like we have some competition...crazy.

http://sweat365.com/signup/?gclid=CIPr05j9tJECFQUalgodiGEodw 

Nooner WOD run today.  Beautiful day for a run, averaged ~7:45 pace.  I'm having strange pains just behind the large bone that's behind the big toe...left foot.  I feel like it started from wearing my Keen casual shoes, but i'm not entirely sure.  If it continues/worsens, I think I'll go buy a new pair of Wave Rider 11's, as the WR 10's are complete disappointments.  Long run tomorrow.

I decided to shoot for 12 today because:

1) i felt like it, and

2) it was beautiful out.

I was out near Great Falls, VA today for a day of hiking and running.  I hiked the Billy Goat trail with some friends in the morning and thought that, following a small nap, I could run a 6-mile out-and-back on the C&O trail.  This is precisely what I did, but I should have rested a bit more in between and I should have done a better job of hydrating.  The 12 went quite well:

7:48, 8:09, 8:09, 8:13, 7:53, 7:57, 7:45, 7:44, 8:21, 8:20, 8:15, 7:54

Slight downhill on the way out, slight up coming back.  I was pretty dehydrated by the end, but felt pretty good.   The quads were a bit tight by the end, but I think it was related to stressing them on the hike before running.  Encouraging run! 

Lunchtime run. Tight quads, but still functional. 50:03

22 degrees is very different from 68. hmm....

pm: 1 hour gym; mostly upper  body 

same ol' nooner run. Quads still a bit tight, but feeling much better.

~7:45 pace.

What with the freezing rain and low temps and all, i figured this was a good day to lay low.  One hour in the gym at night.  Minimal leg exercises because a speed workout is in order for thursday. 

Great to have the sun back again!  I stretched the lunchtime run a bit today because it was so gorgeous and i felt strong (after a day off).  ~7:20-7:30 pace and a big smile on my face.  Now that's just sweet.

Wow wow wow!  Absolutely gorgeous out today!  Best run I've had in a while, and i've been having some good runs.  Just the standard lunch-time run, but felt very strong (given my sleep deprivation and general fatigue).  Miles were between 7:14 and 7:30.  Happy friday.

10 mile hill-workout on some roads in West Virginia.  First hill workout in a really long time, really got the heart going and blood pumping.  I was quite happy to hop into a hot tub at the end of this run, what with my burning quads and all...  A pretty good run!
 

A nice, slow little 3-mile leg-stretcher with some good friends and their dogs in Charlottesville.  

No miles today--just a travel day getting back up to DC.  

nooner 7-miler at <7:30 pace. Feelin' so fresh after a day off, but ready to dig right back in. Shooting for a solid running week with enough SLEEP!

pm: ~1 hour at the gym.  Mostly upper body, but some lower to try and built just a tad more strength before next saturday. 

noon: 6.25 miles. Great weather and felt strong. Between 7:10 and 7:30 miles. So far so good...just gotta do one more decent-sized run and then maintain (stay healthy) now! (47:19)

Typical noontime run today. Sunny, crisp, and surprisingly chilly. Perfect for running. ~7:40 pace, and didn't want to push much beyond that. A bit tight from yesterday. (48.43)

A brisk 4-mile run.  good times.

Long run for the week.  I waited until around 3:00 in the afternoon to take advantage of some warmer temps, and I initially thought I screwed myself by doing so.  I was dog-tired for the first two miles, but was happy to switch over to auto-pilot soon thereafter and crank out a decent run.  miles were:

7:46, 7:43, 7:47, 7:42, 7:35, 7:25, 7:32, 7:38, 7:35, 7:32, 7:34, 7:31, 7:26

for a total of 1:31. (Average 7:36)

I was very pleased with these times, mainly because I wasn't necessarily pushing it at all meaning I have finally brought my "comfort pace" down to where I've wanted it.

BUT, all this fun at the price of some peace of mind.  My knee is threatening a slight "tickle" in the same spot where I injured it 1.5 years ago.  I was very "delicate" in the last ~2 miles or so so as to baby it a bit, and then I was as lazy as possible the rest of the day and spent some frozen peas'ing it.  Walked ~3 miles sunday and things felt agreeable.  We'll see how things transpire the next couple weeks...

Zero running miles today, ~3 miles walking.  great weather, good times.

This was sort of a test-drive of my potentially-injured knee.  I tried to take it easy at first, but quickly realized that "taking it easy" = going slower = putting breaks on = easier to hurt a knee.  So, I probably proceeded at around 7:45 pace with little/no discomfort.  However, a couple hours after running, I started feeling phantom pains creeping in.  Sure enough, i need to be careful.  I iced it last night and took some ibuprofins and will stay off it for a couple days.  I don't want to stop running, but i know i don't have an option...especially if i want to race moab.  don't worry, Dave, you won't be alone.

Took today and yesterday off to appease the knee and let it simmer down a bit.  I'll take her for a test run tomorrow...

~4 miles today during lunch. I felt some serious "tickle" in my knee, so i will only run enough to keep the legs savvy in the next couple weeks, and will supplement in the pool. crap.

pm: half hour lapswim; freestyle.