Relentless

morning - 5.05 Fire Station Hills x 8 (w/team). (Cumulus red 213.15)

evening - 9.5 5x1000's.  Went out to the fields to find the flattest place in So. Ut. to run this workout, 2 miles warmup.  Then went into 1000's - which are .68 miles roughly.  It was pretty tough, and I am not sure if I liked doing the speed workout more or less on the roads than the track.  Cooled down with 2 minutes between and then finished the run home.  1-3:39, an ant that climbed aboard as I dropped my water bit me and it cost me a few seconds when I stopped to kill the sucker.  2-3:44, notice that the distance between .5 and .68 is tough (slight uphill on this one - Chipman's hill). 3-3:39, brought it back down and I felt the best on this one.  4-3:48, starting to get pretty pooped.  5-3:52 didn't have anything left and just tried to gut it out as much as possible.  I think I'll give this one more try and see how it goes.  Overall, not so impressed with myself.  My times should have been better.  But I am glad that I didn't let myself talk me out of the last one.  (Landreth 336.5) 

morning - 5.75 (5 w/team) Parkway.  Ran with Kimzey.  He's a pretty stud freshman.  I think he could develop into a very fine young runner.  (cumulus orange 269.25)

evening - 9.8 Club run out onto Entrada.  Ran three at threshold with Clyde when we got back onto paved trail and extended it down to Sunset then recovered back.  Although I had forgotten to set my watch to automatic splits, every time I looked at my watch it was 5:40 or quicker (mostly quicker).  Felt good to get up and go a little.  (Cumulus red 222.95) 

morning - 10 out in Bloomington Hills (6 w/ team).  Then extended it out onto river trail and around BH.  Tired and felt dehydrated.  (Cumulus orange 279.25)

PM -7 Grapevine Springs.  Tried out a new ending up Parkway and across newly excavated road.  I like that better than going up Cottonmill Ave.  (Glycerin 463.95) 

morning - 15.2 Sunrise Valley.  Went on a new run out into Sunrise Valley.  the run would have been great had the dump not smelled so horrid.  It about made me puke.  Didn't go with the club because of family obligations that I couldn't miss today, and those fellows have run me ragged this week and I didn't need those kind of miles.  As it was, I was aiming for 100 and didn't want to get over it.  But because I teach English and History, not Math, I hit over 100.  Oh well... Hopefully I get some legs back this weekend.  (Cumulus red 238.15)

This week had mixed reviews.  Good mileage, but felt a little dragging throughout. 

Goals for next week:  Get some spring back in the legs.  Hit right around 80-85 miles for the week.  No speed this week - Except for a lot of speed on Saturday at the 1/2!  Run a good race, have a lot of fun, enjoy seeing my girls again (by the time we go up for the race and to pick them up from Grandma's I won't have seen the older two for 2 weeks), and give it all I can in the race (which hopefully means sub 1:10).

AM - 20 (10&10) Junction for first ten at an easier pace.  Then a 5 minute break and Wendy's loop trying to get as close to 6:00 as possible.  At first it wasn't happening well.  Then I had to do a "bio" break.  Finally, I started to run a little better right toward the end.  11-6:59, 12-6:43, 13-6:42, 14-6:25, 15-6:48, 16-6:49, 17-6:30, 18-6:19, 19-back up the hill to my house 6:50, 20-6:38.  Mixed reviews on the run.  Happy that I didn't let last few miles slip too much, but really didn't hit the goal times I was going for.  A little tired.  And a lot sleepy.  (Landreth 356.5) 

morning - 8.45 around FireStation desert. Then I headed back and did 8x100 barefoot grass striders. I really needed the striders. I was slow and slower throughout the run, but the striders kind of got me going again. The feeling of putting my shoes back on and finishing the .5 miles back to my house is such a strange one. (Cumulus red 246.6)

PM - 5 Washington Parkway. Nice run out on the Parkway. Pushed the pace a little coming down the Parkway. (Glycerin 468.95)

AM - 7 Green Springs.  Very nice temps this morning.  Trying to get my body on a schedule that will fit with the race.  (Cumulus orange 286.25)

afternoon - 7.45 mall run from PVHS and then Bank run from PVHS with team.  A little hot running right in the afternoon, but at least its not 115.  (Glycerin 476.40)
 

AM - 7 DogPound with Trail and 11th extensions both ways. Nice morning run. I think the legs are responding well to the shorter mileage this week. Hopefully they will be nice and fresh for Saturday. (Landreth 363.5)

noon -5 Sandberg's Pond.  Sneaked out during lunch and got my 5 in.  No big deal, just warm.  (Cumulus red 251.6)

AM-5 out and back to Grapevine Springs.  Nice easy run.  Left Plantar/Spur hurting a bit more the last few days.  Right ach. and left outside ankle that had been hurting earlier in the week have no pain in them.  (Cumulus orange 291.25) 

PM - 4.85 Sego Lily loop in Sandy.  Easy run to shake the legs out.  Things should go well tomorrow.  (Cumulus orange 296.1)

warmup of probably about .6 miles. Met up with Sasha and Ted at the start of the race and Sasha talked about sharing the lead for 1/4's. I agreed with a little bit of hesitation. (Although I feel good about running fast, it is still a bit intimidating.) 1-5:02 start off strong and feel good about it all. 2-5:14 sharing the lead is working out well. 3-5:03 I think it was around here or so that we were joined by Mike Dudley and he joins the rotation. 4-5:36 still doing well. 5-5:19 the pace seems very manageable and I am feeling positive. 6-5:07 Take a Gu around here sometime and hit a little drink of water. 7-5:52 The uphill and wind on this mile is pretty tough, but I see why Sasha said he didn't want to be alone here. The group is really helping. 8-5:11 Get back into the groove as we make the turn back down the canyon. 9-5:19 I am feeling a bit tired, but am thinking of how well it is all going and thinking if I can just keep up to take my turn, I won't have a lot left. 10-5:55 I am not really sure why this mile dropped so much, but right at the end of it came my turn and I surged up but couldn't hold anything and Mike and Sasha pull away. Keep positive and stick with it, is all I am thinking. 11-5:21 I recover pretty quick and stick right at the same distance from Sasha. 12-5:24 Try a few little surges to work back to Sasha, but everytime I do, it seems like he just keeps the same distance. It's okay though, because I am not settling in. 13- My watch ended it at 12.98 and the pace here was 5:42. Didn't dare look at my overall on the watch because I didn't want to be disappointed with the time. I just thought keep pushing with all you have and it is what it is. Now as I think about it, if I would have looked, I might have been able to dig out that little bit to go under 1:10.

Finished with a 4.3 cooldown.

Overall, I am very happy. This might be my best run ever. I held it together good throughout. Recovered quickly when I started to lose it. And finished strong. I am really please with what happened today and where it is going to take me. Thanks Sasha and Mike for pulling me along. (Ohana 105.4))

AM - 10 on Junction. Feel so much better than after Bryce. I think with a day or two of just running and not worrying about pace, I will be able to get back to training. Didn't time the run today, but it was not much slower pace than usual based upon clock time when I left and got back. A good positive attitude to start the week off with. (cumulus red 261.6)

afternoon - 5.85 PVHS to PVMS and around the fields searching for a x-country course - no luck really.  Blasted hot!  (glycerin 482.25) 

AM - 8 on Treadmill at 1%. Drago was an intimidating site today as I have not had to use him much all summer (except when Al was in NY). Added to the dread of the treadmill was my youngest deciding that it was okay to be up at 5 and with Mom gone to the gym that meant I was supposed to do something. So she came and laid on the floor next to me for a few minutes. That ended and she started to get into everything and I just needed to be done - not quite ready for 10 with Drago yet, but I guess I better get there quick. So I just ended it at 8. (cumulus orange 299.25)

afternoon - 8 on River Run.  Not as bad as yesterday's 109, but 105 and 8 miles don't mix well.  Got pretty hot and dipped my shirt and head into the river just before I got back onto the road for the last 1 1/2 miles.  I'm a little worried about my kids starting hard afternoon practices because it seems hotter than last year.  (Landreth 371.5)

Feel like I will pick it up tomorrow with some hills and then tempo on Thursday and some speed Friday with a long run Saturday some time.

AM - 9.15 Green Springs and 10xFireStations Hills. I am so tired I may not make it through the day. I really didn't have to get up crazy early a whole lot this summer, so these 4:45'ers may destroy me. I was asleep on my hills and they weren't that great. (Cumulus orange 308.4)

afternoon - 5.4 Mall run from PVHS reverse.  Went up a new paved trail between the mall and Foremaster, a nice trail but it just ends - so it is kind of pointless.  Felt a little fatigued/dehydrated from yesterday afternoon's run.  I've been trying to get on top of it all day. (Cumulus 449.1) 

afternoon - 6.2 Foremaster.  Went out on another hot one.  Body still acting pretty drained.  (Landreth 377.7)

PM - 11.5 club run from store to Ivins and back.  At first I was really feeling tired, fatigued, and drained, so I worried about how I was going to do.  But luckily we kept it at a nice pace for the first 5 or so.  Then Clyde got us going.  I'll have to come back and put in my exact times, but we hit 4 or so good miles.  Even that took me a little while to get into, then it flowed pretty good.  But by mile 9 I was ready to be done.  So I just backed it off and took it easy in.  (Cumulus red 273.1) 

AM - 9 on Arctic Circle x 3. Right back up at it this morning. Run, Sleep, Run. That's the formula I guess. Hit Arctic Circle with three different groups of kids this morning. For the most part, they all ditched me and I spent most of the time hitting just under 8:00 pace which is the exact reason I didn't do a hard workout this morning. Although I didn't have one planned, earlier in the week, I thought I might try one. But the ol' body is a little spent. (Cumulus orange 317.4)

PM - 6.2 DinoTracks.  A great evening for running.  The temps were cooler with a little overcast, and the wind was just breezy enough to move out the humidity but not hold you back.  Nice run for running's sake.  (Cumulus 455.3)

PM- 15 Fields Little Valley run.  Decided to get some much needed sleep this morning before getting up for the x-country race and did the run this evening.  Had planned on hitting some Tempo type of stuff in the run.  Initially however, I thought I might go long today, but decided that 15 with some quality is better than 20'ish of crap.  So... Started off with 3 into the fields of warmup and then decided to hit 6:00 for the middle 9.  Usually I don't just plan my run on a whim like this, but I was a little all over this week and wanted to end it with something worthwhile'ish.  Once again, so... I didn't quite hit 6:00, but was at 6:10 pretty much the whole 9.  Then brought it back in.  I did lose some time on one mile when I stopped to let a skunk pass.  It was dark and I barely saw him before I ran right on top of him.  Overall, happy with a decent, but not great, run to end the week.

Made it through the week.  That is about what it came to.  School started, x-country in full swing, dehydrated myself one too many times (dropped to 149 before Sat run and came back at 145), and just wasn't feeling positive, so I am happy I made it through the week.

Goals for next week:  Get back into the groove - that is my theme for next week.  Be Positive and have fun at school, running, with my family all that stuff, and let this take to a good Happy Place that will create a good groove for me. 

AM - 6x1000. Warmed up with Arctic Circle 3 with first group of runners. Then hit the track as the 2nd group ran for 1000's with 200 recovery. 1-3:31, 2-3;32, 3-3:34, 4-3:38, 5-3:37, 6-3:31. I am in kind of a funk. My body has decided to go slow and my mind is agreeing with it. Times were a bit slower than they needed to be. I just really kept drifting off mentally; then I would find myself in a jog until I snapped out of it. Not pleased with the workout - my effort on the workout, I should say. Then cooled down with the 3rd group as they did the Arctic Circle 3. (Cumulus orange 327.9)

PM - 7 Grapevine Springs Trail (North) - Nice run up the trail and back.  Felt pretty good and had an enjoyable experience.  Went quicker when I felt like it - which was actually much of the run. (Glycerin 489.75)

AM - 10 on treadmill at decline. Throwing in a little decline running here and there to prep the old legs for SGM. Warmed up for a mile. Then 4 at 6:40. They felt okay and weren't too bad. Then 3 at 6:00. Again felt pretty good with no real issues. Then last 2 at 5:49. A little fatigued at the end, but a good moderate workout. Nothing crazy, but a few good miles to get the legs moving after what was supposed to be a hard day yesterday. Wanted to get one more in for a cool down, but I was later getting going than necessary and needed to get ready for the day. (Landreth 387.7)

Not sure when I will get my 6 in tonight with Back-to-School Night. But I figure something out.

PM - 6 MillCreek Trail and around Green Springs area.  Not a very good run.  Felt very tired and sleepy.  My head was pounding.  And my stomach was fighting me the whole time.  When I got home I didn't feel well.  (Cumulus red 279.1)

Well... I guess I'm sick. The last few days I have gotten progressively worse. I tried to tell myself that my allergies were just acting up and that I could run through them. But after last nights run and during the night, things just got worse. It is just a head cold, but it has knocked me out. No run this morning and I missed practice trying to get every ounce of sleep I could. Although it will severely mess up my miles for the week, I think I will take tonight off as well and try to rest and get better. It is just tough to "give in" and miss a workout when I hadn't missed one all summer. Oh well, it was an easy day anyway.

AM - 6.5 Treadmill. Warmup .75 and then the rest at a nice easy 7:30. Felt pretty good, with no real fatigue from being sick. It was hard not to run last night as I started to feel a little better. I watched those miles just fade away and forced myself to sit still. A challenge for me the rest of the week is going to be to not worry about making the miles up. I know I shouldn't be a slave to miles, but let's face it, we all are a little bit. I feel stronger and quite a bit better today, so the rest helped me physically and I think mentally a bit too. I was kind of drained of running, and now, even with just one day off, I want to get back out there and do some damage. (cumulus orange 334.4)

PM - 12 Club run.  Started with 2.75 up past Chuckawalla on the paved trail and back before everyone got there.  Then we went out to Red Hills golf course and we all did 3xcourse and had a good run talking cross-country and stuff.  Then I wished the racers well this weekend and continued on for 2 more laps around the course and really enjoyed the solitude, cool, and beauty of it.  It was a fun and  regenerative run.  And I only almost killed myself tripping just a few times.  (cumulus red 291.1)

AM - 11 2xGreen Springs clubhouse and 1xArctic Circle with team. Nice enjoyable runs. The 2nd Green Springs was especially nice as Monty and I hit some pretty good running. Feeling a bit better. The old nasal cavity is still experience a little log jam, but all-in-all improving. (Landreth 398.7)

afternoon - 8.6 Powerline and back to PVHS.  Hot!  so I cut it shorter than planned.  Passing out does no good.  (Landreth 406.9)  Forgot to bring another pair of shoes so they hadn't recovered yet. 

Bummer - cold is back with a vengeance!  Fell asleep on the bus ride home from Cedar and just felt like crap all day.  Doped up and went to sleep early.

Week was kind of blown because of this blasted cold.

Goals for next week:  #1, get feeling better.  Once that has happened, do what I can to make it a productive week.  I want to hit two good Tempo sessions as well as a solid long run.  Let's do it!

One more day of rest.  Yesterday was marked by sleep and a distinct soreness in my jaw.  I hope this cold doesn't move into my ears - I get the worst ear infections and it could still be there all the way to the SGM.  So I figured take another one off and get it better.

AM - 10.25 Arctic Circle x 3. All right! Back at it today. What an amazing morning for a run. An awesome lunar eclipse made it nice and dark, so you could see the Milky Way so clear. Then as we started a huge shooting star streaked across half the sky! Very Cool. And I feel quite a bit better. I didn't take it hard, and won't for a day or two. Maybe a short run this evening to top off the ol' 30th b-day. (cumulus red 301.35)

PM - 5 Washington Parkway. After a glutton of cake and M&M's (and Chocolate Soy Milk!) went out for an easy 5 on the Parkway. Good run and had some good energy. Hopefully it will stick around for a few days, and I can get better all the way. (Landreth 411.9)

AM - 11 2450 x 2 and Arctic Circle with a few laps thrown in here and there.  A little sluggish at first, but it felt okay.  This will be my only run for the day as we have a meet in Cedar and I don't want to push it too much just yet until I am sure I am feeling better all the way.  (cumulus orange 345.4)

As I ran, I thought back to previous years and realized that I often get sick at this time of year.  Last year, I am not so sure (Pre-blog and didn't keep that good of records), but it seemed like I developed a bit of an ear-infection around this time that affected me for about a week.  2005, I was pretty sick for 3 weeks leading up to Top of Utah, and it really wiped me out.  I think it is a combination of things: not as much time to rest (being at school), being in close proximity with many kids, and needing more rest because teaching really takes it out of me.  Now that I am seeing a little trend, I will watch out for it next year and try to prepare for it better. 

AM - 6 Treadmill at decline. 1 mile warmup and then Drago and I went for a little jog at 7:03 pace. Decent run as I watched the World Championships - that Lagat 1500 is something! Bone Spur on left foot has been giving me fits the last few days, so I am back to ice, ice, ice... which I really shouldn't have left off anyway. (Landreth 417.9)

evening - 10.7 Powerline with Clyde.  Great run that started out with a boom.  Just as we hit the trail a flash of lightning hit within a few hundred yards of us and I screamed like a girl and jumped into Clyde's lap (we can't post what Clyde said!).  We recovered and headed up the trail in the rain.  Hoped a turtle might be out, but no such luck.  As we made the turn onto Millcreek, the rain had compacted the sand perfectly and we made a nice 6:10 pace out of it all the way home (about 6 miles).  My best run since Provo.  (Cumulus orange 357.3)

AM - 10 Arctic Circle x 3 with a little track between groups and some extension on the 2nd and 3rd.  Not really a fast set of runs today.  In fact, the kids were ditching me.  But it was good to get out and go with them.  (Cumulus red 311.35)