Back in the Saddle

Well it's been forever since I posted here. Quite a bit has happened, new job, new kid, new house... I'm finally back on track again though. I may have to reevaluate my goals for the year, or maybe not. Right now I'm focused on the Victoria Marathon as my next race, and my training is going well. So far I've hit 12 miles on my long runs and I'm shooting for a 7 mile mid-week run tomorrow morning. Unfortunately though, I've lost a lot of my previous base and put some weight on in the process. I'm glad to finally be back at it again though!

Thursday Run Log

Today was an extremely cold 11-miler. I ran a nice little out-and-back that put me right in the middle of Silverdale. Pace was slow, but I'm not complaining considering the weather. Chances are I'll be running in the cold quite a bit over the next week, with possible snow over the weekend. And my 11-miler put me in 3rd place in my Fitocracy challenge today. Can't wait to see what my 18-miler does this weekend!

More Running

Alright so last Friday I ran 8 miles, and on Saturday I ran 4.75 miles. The Saturday run was a bit split up, and the first 2.3 miles or so was at a fairly quick pace (I'm estimating pretty close to a 9min/mile). Unfortunately I missed my 12 mile run on Sunday because of work. It was a bit frustrating, but all I can do is just continue on with my schedule.

Yesterday was a 10 mile run which I completed at 10:04 pace. I felt pretty good about the run, and because I finished so much more quickly than I expected I was able to clean up and get in a short nap before work!

Today was a very cold 4 mile run at a 10:50 pace. Tomorrow is likely going to be another very cold run, so it should be a cold 11-miler before the weekend.

I've joined a running 'challenge' on Fitocracy. The challenge started on Sunday (of course, the day I missed my run), but I'm still hanging in at 7th place for mileage. I have a feeling I'll be moving up quite a bit though, I have 32 miles planned over the next four days!

Run Back-Logs

Okay, so I've run a lot, and I've missed a lot of updates here. Some of my highlights included some great runs out in Sammamish around Christmas. I had at least four Bald Eagle sightings during that time! While in Sammamish I ran 9.3 miles at a 9:14 pace and 14 miles at a 9:37 pace, both were great runs!

Last Sunday (New Years Day!) was my first true long run on my current training program at 17 miles. The whether was actually fantastic and I enjoyed the run quite a bit, I even did a bit of trail running on the Clear Creek Trail in Silverdale. I felt a little rough at the end of the run (not a big surprise since I never broke 14 miles in December), but it still felt better than my first 15 miler back in October. The best part of the run is that it brought my daily average for 2012 to 17 miles per day... at least for the rest of that day.

Tuesday was another cold early morning run. This is an easy week so the run topped out at 8 miles. On the hills I noticed my legs were still a bit fatigued from Sunday.

This morning was a quick 5-miler. I ran it at about a 10:30min/mile pace which is slower than I was running over my Christmas vacation, but isn't terrible for being back in the early morning. For comparison month ago morning runs were in the 11:30-12:30min/mile range for the 5-6mile distance. Maybe in another month my morning runs will be down in the 9:30min/mile range :)

Tuesday Run Log

Tuesday was an early morning 8 mile run. The weather was actually very warm considering the season, and the run was a nice easy/standard run. My pace was under 11min/mile, I ran my 8th mile in under 10 minutes. No other comments really.

Sunday Run Log

Yesterday I ran my first 'LSR' on the new plan. This run reminded me a lot of what I like about running. One of the things I like about a good 'LSR' is it gives me an opportunity to go explore new areas. On Sunday I ran through a neighborhood called Eldorado Hills. In this neighborhood there was a 500ft elevation gain in roughly a half mile. The end result was some outstanding views of Dye's Inlet, and even an 'I can see my house' moment. From there I continued through rural Kitsap, before looping back down to Silverdale and finishing on my usual stretch through Chico. The run was 12.5 miles which puts me at 32.5 miles for the week.

Saturday Run Log

Alright, today was another good Saturday run. So far my Saturday runs have been relatively short (4 miles each) which has been a good opportunity for me to stretch out my legs a bit. I ran later in the evening today, but it was still quite warm despite the early sundown. The first two miles were a bit slow as I climbed to my high point, then the return trip was pretty quick. I finished my final mile in under 8 minutes, which brought my average for the 4 miles to about 9 minutes each. These weekend short runs are something that is in the new plan (Pfitzinger) that wasn't in the old plan (Hal Higdon Novice I). In the winter morning runs are cold and dark, which usually means a slow pace for me. So the Pftizinger plan has allowed me to push myself more than HH Novice 1 did, and I like it.

Edit: I almost forgot the best part of this run! While I was running past a local park, I noticed a grassy area that was well lit by a streetlamp. Sitting in that grassy area, probably no further that 10-15 yards from me was a large owl. I would put it between 1ft and 2 ft tall, it watched me curiously as I passed with my glowing headlamp.