2012 Smuttynose Rockfest Half Marathon 2:02

 Race Reports, Running  Comments Off on 2012 Smuttynose Rockfest Half Marathon 2:02
Sep 302012
 

Finished in 2:02, which is a personal best for me, 10 minutes faster than my previous best of 2:12:43 at Twin Lights Half in 2011. Still waiting for the official times to be posted but this should be within seconds of their number. This is the first race since my injury a year ago where I felt like a runner again. I guess the diagnoses of activity induced asthma was correct because using my new inhaler totally crushed the breathing problems I had 2 weeks ago at the Allstate Half Mary, even though the temperature and dew point were similar.

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Weekly Training Report for 2012-09-30

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Sep 292012
 

Workouts 5
Time 264 min
Running 20.2 miles
Walking 2.0 miles

  • tue: Locksley-Essex out and back. Ran 4.3 miles for 47 minutes at 10:53 pace. Easy miles on taper week. Just concentrated on form and staying lose.
  • tue: warm up / cooldown. Walked 1.0 miles for 35 minutes at 35:00 pace.
  • thu: Sherwood Forest Loop. Ran 2.8 miles for 25 minutes at 9:12 pace. Faster run than I should have done on a taper week. But it felt good and I have two days off before the race.
  • thu: warm up /cool down. Walked 1.0 miles for 35 minutes at 35:00 pace.
  • sun: Smuttynose Half Marathon. Ran 13.1 miles for 122 minutes at 9:19 pace.
 Posted by at 8:00 pm

Weekly Training Report for 2012-09-23

 Training Log  Comments Off on Weekly Training Report for 2012-09-23
Sep 222012
 

Workouts 4
Time 263 min
Running 25.7 miles

  • wed: Locksley-Essex out and back. Ran 4.2 miles for 40 minutes at 9:36 pace. First run since the half marathon on Sunday. It went pretty well, but there was some things I didn’t like about it also. I think I still have some leg fatigue since I tired more rapidly than I usual.
  • thu: Locksley-Essex out and back. Ran 4.3 miles for 44 minutes at 10:08 pace. I think the run went well. I am still trying to find a pace that is slow enough that I can run more miles per week. I think this was too fast for that, so it was an interesting experiment. In other words the effort, heart rate and leg fatigue at this pace was “moderate” for me and therefor too hard to be categorized as “easy” miles. Does that make sense?
  • sat: Running for miles. Ran 5.5 miles for 59 minutes at 10:46 pace. My new mantra.. its all about the miles, not the pace. I tried to keep my heart rate down but i did let it creep up a bit last 2 miles. I would like to finish a run with my average HR under 150.
  • sun: Running for miles. Ran 11.6 miles for 119 minutes at 10:16 pace. Ran the first half at 11:30 pace and 140 heart rate, then bumped it up to 9:30 pace at 166 heartrate. Finished last half mile at 8:30 pace and 180 heart rate. And yes thats not even my max HR, which is a rediculously high 205. I am tired, but I am going into a rest week before my half-marathon next Sunday
 Posted by at 8:00 pm

Running Slow

 Running  Comments Off on Running Slow
Sep 212012
 

I was reading a great thread on the runningahead forums  about impatience with running improvement and how important it is to SLOW DOWN and run a lot more miles over a lot of years to get a lot better. I was suprised to see people who run 1:30 half marathons say they run the majority of their weekly miles at a 10 minute pace. Proportionally that would be me running the majority of my miles at a 11:30 pace or even slower. I average about 25-27 miles a week running and I would love to bump that up. But to do that I would need to run “easy” miles, which means conversational pace… not “I…am…talking…(gasp)…in…bursts…as…I…run…(gasp)”. Truth is I really enjoy “easy” runs… I notice the scenery more, get my heart pumping, sweat going (eventually) and recover enough to do it all again the next day.

But the ego… the ego.. is embarrassed at posting 11:45 mpm pace times. It is so stupid because honestly no one cares how fast I run. Non-runners don’t understand paces and speeds and other runners really care about their own issues. So why do I care what people might think? I am not even sure that is the whole dynamic… If I don’t run fast today then I won’t know if I can run fast. or what my limits are, or if I’m improving, etc. blah.. its such a confusion for me. I think it is because running is important to me and I take it seriously, and I feel part of a community of runners (like on here) that feel the same. A 11:30 easy pace is what I used to run 2,450 miles ago, except that was my best pace. To start logging 40 miles a week at that pace seems… hard to take.

Allstate Half Marathon for Autism

 Race Reports, Running  Comments Off on Allstate Half Marathon for Autism
Sep 162012
 

Perfect day for a race. Cool, sunny and with gorgeous views. I had a great long run last weekend and a great taper. Too bad this race turned into a total train wreck for me. Yes I finished (whoohoo) my first half marathon since I ruptured my Achilles tendon last year, so I need to hang on to that.

Course Map

But I really struggled through most of the race. The interesting thing is that my legs and body were strong the entire race, but after mile 4-5 or so I started having trouble catching my breath. By the end I could not even take a full deep breath without pain and that continued for over an hour after the race was over. Did I go out too fast in the beginning with cooler air? I just can’t explain it. Oh well, I have another half marathon in 2 weeks, so I better figure out what went wrong!

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Weekly Training Report for 2012-09-16

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Sep 152012
 

Workouts 6
Time 248 min
Running 21.7 miles
Walking 1.0 miles

  • tue: Sherwood Forest Loop. Ran 2.8 miles for 28 minutes at 10:09 pace. Slow easy run. Low milage week preparing for Sunday’s half marathon
  • tue: Cooldown. Walked 0.5 miles for 10 minutes at 20:00 pace.
  • wed: Lynnfield 3 mile route. Ran 3.0 miles for 30 minutes at 10:00 pace. Slow mid week miles.
  • wed: Cooldown. Walked 0.5 miles for 10 minutes at 20:00 pace.
  • thu: Sherwood Forest Loop. Ran 2.8 miles for 27 minutes at 9:47 pace. Low milage week preparing for half-marathon
  • sun: Allstate 13.1 Half Marathon for Autism. Ran 13.2 miles for 143 minutes at 10:50 pace.
 Posted by at 8:00 pm

Low-carb Cheesecake

 Recipes  Comments Off on Low-carb Cheesecake
Sep 092012
 

I know it seems crazy to consider, but it is actually possible to make a cheesecake (that most indulgent of deserts) with only 2 grams of carbohydrates per serving.  The following recipe was proclaimed by my daughter Lauren (who is quite the Cheesecake lover) as “Yummy!”   I think the almond-meal crust actually comes out better than a traditional graham cracker crust.  The first time making this it might seem that it is complicated because of the two step process of baking the crust and then the cake, but the second time around it should seem much simpler.  I also think the water bath might be intimidating to some, but really it turned out to not be that big a deal.

Each serving has 2 grams effective carbohydrate plus 1 gram fiber, 6 grams protein, and 221 calories
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Weekly Training Report for 2012-09-09

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Sep 082012
 

Workouts 7
Time 283 min
Running 27.0 miles
Walking 0.5 miles

  • mon: Sherwood Forest Loop. Ran 2.8 miles for 26 minutes at 9:25 pace. Quick run around the neighborhood.
  • wed: Sustained Pace run. Ran 2.2 miles for 19 minutes at 8:52 pace. Fast run at the beginning of a 10K workout. Yes I know, I should reverse that right? Way too hot.
  • wed: Slow heat jog. Ran 4.0 miles for 44 minutes at 11:00 pace. Slow jog following my faster pace run. I was basically overheating the entire way. I waited too long to take my shirt off… it was much betetr after that. Funny that I still feel weird running without a shirt. Like I am streaking or something.
  • thu: Locksley-Essex out and back. Ran 4.2 miles for 46 minutes at 10:54 pace. Slow jog to put in some miles. Very humid. Heat index was 85 I just kept it slow to avoid overheating.
  • sat: Cool down. Walked 0.5 miles for 10 minutes at 20:00 pace.
  • sat: Sherwood Forest Loop. Ran 2.8 miles for 28 minutes at 10:09 pace. Tried to do an easy jog and keep the heart rate down but it was so humid. Once I overheat my HR jumps way up. It makes me feel like an 80 yo asthmatic
  • sun: Lynnfield 11 mile out and back. Ran 11.0 miles for 109 minutes at 9:57 pace. I ran with a neighbor and the time passed quickly. I ran perhaps faster than I normally would for a long run since I think he is more comfortable with a fast pace. But he was great with slowing down since we both agreed the distance is what matters.
 Posted by at 8:00 pm

Weekly Training Report for 2012-09-02

 Training Log  Comments Off on Weekly Training Report for 2012-09-02
Sep 012012
 

Workouts 5
Time 257 min
Running 21.7 miles
Walking 1.2 miles

  • tue: Lynnfield 10K Loop. Ran 6.2 miles for 80 minutes at 12:54 pace. Train wreck of a run. Too hot and I just bonked and walked home the last mile
  • thu: Lynnfield 7.28 mile loop. Ran 7.3 miles for 70 minutes at 9:37 pace. Pace run. Nice and cool this morning which made for a very enjoyable time. This pace is right around my target for the September 30 half mary. There are a lot of hills on my run, so I would be faster on the actual course, which is relatively flat.
  • fri: Warmup and cool down. Walked 1.2 miles for 22 minutes at 17:36 pace.
  • fri: 2 mile time test. Ran 2.0 miles for 15 minutes at 7:38 pace. 2 mile blowout at nausea inducing pace. The first mile was joyous and I felt like i was flying. The second mile felt like I was being tortured. I hope to someday be able to run this pace normally. I am so envious of people who run this fast all the time… it is really an amazing feeling to move along that fast!
  • sat: Lynnfield 10K Loop. Ran 6.2 miles for 69 minutes at 11:16 pace. Slow morning jog for miles. Nice and cool temps but it started to warm up at the end. I tried to play a game with my heartrate and see how fast I could go while keeping it at 150 or below. It is interesting to try different stride mechanics and see the impact to pace and HR. By mile 4 I was finding that more difficult and at the end any hill would take my HR to 162 or so.
 Posted by at 8:00 pm