Long(er) Run

"Patience is critical to success in endurance sport. It comes from self-confidence. Self-confidence is found in the mentally tough." @jfriel

A.M.
run 24 miles 3:34:25

P.M.
32kg kettlebell swings 5 x 10

Another run in the dark.  It was a bit slow, but my legs felt good.  The last 4 miles were sub 8:00 min/mile, so it appears I started to wake up near the end.  I have two long runs left before the race.  I may just cap them at 20 miles and try to run them faster.  We'll see how I feel next weekend.   

In the afternoon I got some kettlebell swings in. I will write more about those in a couple of days. I would like to start getting some weight work in, and they are a good start.

Sports Illustrated article on Boise State quarterback Kellen Moore:

“There’s no magic. A lot of times there’s this misconception that people are just given this talent, that they never had to work hard to get where they are.” Their common denominator, he says, is the willingness to submit to “that grueling, grinding, not-fun task, and to do it over and over. That’s what successful people do.”

Yup.

This was where I ran today.  Of course it doesn't quite look like this with a headlamp, but you get the point. 

Nice Run With New Friends

"Start holding yourself to a higher standard. Don't be afraid of greatness. Strive to excel in all aspects of your life. Stop hesitating."  @bobbymaximus

run 7 miles ~56 minutes

Gotta love the internet.  I follow a great blog by a guy named George Zack who lives in Colorado (check it out here).  Earlier this week he mentioned that he would be in Reno on business and we were able to catch up for a run this morning.  He is in killer shape (even though he just ran a 100 mile race ) so his version of "easy miles" is a little more fired up than mine.  However, I was happy I was able to keep up and still have a conversation.  Also met a local runner named Darren who hopefully I can get out on the trails with in the spring. 

I run alone so much that it was great to hang out with a couple of athletes who are so much more accomplished than I am.  I believe that if you want to get better you need to hang around people who are better than you.  I was fortunate to do that today and hang with a couple of very nice guys.

Crazy video:

Working Harder is a Mental Choice - Not a Physical One

"One of the hardest tasks in life - and we face it almost every day - is to know the difference between can't and won't."  @gymjones
run 10 miles
22 pullups

Working harder is a mental decision, not a physical one.  Read this blog post for an example. 

Excerpt:

My top pro rider uses a 50 lb weight vest to run stairs (two at a time) and also to hop them....100 feet verticle in about 35-37 sec's for running....he can hop 'em as fast as I can fast walk them....by the time he gets to the top he almost has the dry heaves.....he can do 6 of those babies before he gets light headed and wants to puke....all his workouts are based on my ancient ones I used to do back in the early 80's....he has also ridden back and forth to his work site, about 2 1/2 hours (one way) while wearing a 50 lb backpack....



Tahoe in the fall (source):

No More Vitamins?

"A good plan violently executed now is better than a perfect plan executed next week."  George Patton

treadmill 5 miles 34:46
25 pullups

Sounds like vitamins might be a waste of money .  For what it's worth, my doctor told me this a year ago and I haven't taken vitamins since.  I can't say that I have noticed any difference one way or the other in how I feel. 

A picture from the article:

Another Run In The Dark

"Persistence is the master virtue. Without it, there is no other."

run 22 miles 3:07:41 (21 pullups at mile 4 and 16)

Another busy weekend, another 4 a.m. run. I'm actually kind of getting used to it.

I find myself being a mental wimp leading up to these long runs. I spend all week rationalizing why I don't need to go long on the weekend. Then after all of the drama, the run ends up being no big deal. Whatever.

The jack o lanterns we carved with the kids last night:

Cool Pullup Video

"Training is like turning a styrofoam cup inside out. Go slowly & you’ll do it. Rush & you tear the cup. You are the cup." Gordo Byrn

run 10 miles (20 pullups at mile 9) 1:20:50

Maybe someday I can do as many pullups as this guy (source)

Crazy Mountain Biking Video

"In so many areas of life, you need to be a long-term optimist but a short-term realist." C. Sullenberger

treadmill 5 miles 35:22
23 pullups

If you have not heard about the 100 year old guy that finished marathon, the article is here.   This was his eighth marathon.  He started running at age 80 and ran his first marathon at age 89.

You don't see this every day.

Early Morning 20 Miler

"It's hard not to be inspired to push your limits when you're surrounded by people who do it every day. You become what you hang around."  @BobbyMaximus

run 20 miles 2:49:41 (20 pullups at mile 4 & 16)

Took it pretty easy today. I had no time to run this weekend, so up at 3:30 a.m., out the door at 4:15 a.m. and home by 7:00 a.m. You can always make time if it's important to you.

Love this guy's blog.  Some of the best running stuff on the internet.  This post is about him running a marathon by himself on a track (105 laps) in honor of his grandfather who had done the same thing in 1981.  Good stuff.

This picture is from the same blog.  Check out the archives, he has some great pictures in there.

Don't Fall For Food Advertising

"Being a professional is doing the things you love to do, on the days you don't feel like doing them."  Julius Erving

run 10 miles (20 pullups at mile 9) 1:19:53

This is disgusting.   No wonder people have a hard time eating right.  Always remember that food companies are in business to make a profit, and they will do everything they can to manipulate your emotions and taste buds to buy their product. 

“I make my living basically taking food and painting a reality with it,” says Mr. Somoroff, leaning back in a chair in his office as the team preps another set-up. “And if I succeed in a given moment, you’re going to go buy that dish because you’re going to identify with the experience we’ve created.

Picture from the article:

54 Days to the CIM Marathon

“In all activities of life, the secret of efficiency lies in an ability to combine two seemingly incompatible states: a state of maximum activity and a state of maximum relaxation.”  Aldous Huxley

run 5 miles (Arlington) 44:22
25 pullups

What a crappy run.  I'm still a little thrashed from Saturday's race and for some reason my stomach was a train wreck this morning.  I suppose you need a miserable run once and awhile to appreciate the good ones.

I signed up for the California International Marathon a couple of months ago thinking I would just sort of half ass run it to get my marathon PR time down.  I have only run two marathons, one about 6 years ago and the Lake Tahoe Marathon last year.  The Lake Tahoe is a brutal course, and my time was around 3:43.  I figured I could jog the CIM and break 3:30. 

But now I am thinking I am going to go all in on training and see what I can really do.  I am in pretty good shape now, and I have six weeks to ramp up my marathon distance speed.  That should give me time for six 10 mile tempo runs and six 20 mile long runs.  I will stick to my 3 day/week program, with one fast treadmill day and the 10 and 20 milers being the core of the program. 

Probably more importantly, I am going to try and lose 5 pounds.  I have been racing at 170 pounds all year, and I think dropping to 165 will help my time a lot.  For some evidence of the effect of weight on running speed, check out this link.

I think a 3:15 marathon will be a big stretch for me, but I'll give it a shot.

Bizz Johnson Half Marathon

Bizz Johnson Half Marathon 1:34:34 11th overall, 1st age group (35-39)

Jen (my wife) and I ran the Bizz Johnson Half today.  I really recommend this race, it was well organized, the trail was amazing and the scenery is among the best I've seen at a race.  It's a point to point course.  The Express Half is on Saturday and the marathon is on Sunday.  For the half marathon they bus you up to the 14 mile point on the marathon course and then you run the last half of the marathon course.  As you can see from the profile, it's about 1000 feet downhill, so its a fast course. 

The entire course is on a packed dirt road.  This is actually an old railroad line where they have taken the tracks out and switched all of the bridges to walking bridges.  There are even two tunnels to run through. 

Here's one of the tunnels:

I'm not sure what to make of my performance in this race.  I paced very well and pushed hard, but my time was a minute or so slower than I would have thought.  Maybe the dirt slowed me down a bit or I ran the course a bit long, but you can't make too many excuses on a 1000 foot elevation drop course. 

I came in 11th overall (out of about 200) and first in my age group, so I must have done something right.  Most important, I was pleased with my overall effort and a pretty consistently paced race.  My half marathon PR is still about 45 seconds faster than this (run at sea level though), so I have a bit of work to do in the future. 

More important, I was so proud of Jen's result.  She set a PR by 2 minutes in her first real race after having our second baby and not putting very many training runs in.  She also placed first in her age group.  I am really lucky to have a wife who enjoys running too.  I was totally excited for how well she did today. 

Half Marathon This Weekend

"There's a fundamental fallacy in our cultural thinking: if you work hard eventually it gets easy. WRONG. It just gets easier to work harder." @danharm

treadmill 5 miles 35:40
23 pullups

Mellow run right around goal half marathon pace. Now 2 days off and we will see if I can get after it on Saturday.

Portland:

Sea Level

"Success in anything seems to be connected with action. Successful people keep moving. They make mistakes but don't quit." @thecoolhunter

treadmill 6 miles (sea level) 41:55
20 pullups

In Oregon for a couple of days. Running is SO much easier at sea level. 7:00/min miles felt like nothing.

Just Another Day

"If we all did the things we are capable of doing, we would literally astound ourselves." Thomas Edison

run 10 miles - Arlington 1:21:24 (25 pullups at mile 4)

Funny stuff from this post:

Here is a funny text conversation I had with Zach who has also been dealing with severe hip issues all year...


ME- Now that I am jogging I thought that my drive to get back into shape would be huge but it just isn't there. I keep breaking off my runs/hikes early

ZG- That is because running is dumb and once you get a taste of how awesome it is to not waste time running, you really have no reason to be motivated to go run.


Another photo from the Bizz Johnson Trail near Susanville, CA: