A MIXED BAG OF TRAINING

     Let's just call this week training for a mixed bag of races.  The Erie Half Marathon is 2 weeks away. The Battle Frog Race is 4 weeks away, and the Columbus Marathon is 7 weeks away.  Luckily while training for Columbus I basically was training for Erie. In fact the Erie race will be a nice little gauge of where I am just a few weeks out.  The Battle Frog Race is something new to me and I just found out I would be doing it on Wednesday so I have just begun my training for that, which in this post you will see I am out of my element as of right now.

MONDAY:  So if you read my post on last Sunday, you know I was nursing a shoulder/neck injury.  When I woke up Monday I felt pretty good and decided running after work would be my true test to see how I really felt.  I wanted to push it a little hard and see how it felt so I did 10 miles at a medium pace.  I finished just a bit over 1 hour and 30 minutes on a course that can be challenging.  I felt good mentally and physically. My neck and shoulder help up for the most part, there was times when it would get sore.  This actually helped because I would focus on that and forget about running all together and it made the time go by quickly.

TUESDAY: One thing I noticed during my 10 mile run was my hips were a bit sore when I was finished so I wanted to do some cross training and work on them.  I did a leg workout at the gym, followed by an Ab workout.

WEDNESDAY:  This was an exciting day for me. I was contacted by the Battle Frog Race Series and it was confirmed that I will be running their 15K Obstacle Race September 27th.  It is a day before the Great Race so it looks like I will be selling my entry.  Normally I would be pissed about missing a race but I get to do the BattleFrog for free and have the perks of media. Pays to blog people.  Now I know I can run 9 miles no problem but the obstacles will be the challenge for me.  I have made it known that I will not deviate from Columbus training so on this day I did a 7 mile tempo run.  My legs were sore from the workout yesterday but I pushed through and still managed to get a decent time.
I am still pushing for someone, anyone to do this race with me.  It may be a little pricey but the medal is nice, and all funds go to a great cause.

THURSDAY:  The more I thought about the Battle Frog race the more I started to question the physical aspect of the race.  Now I am ready for Erie so that is not even a concern, but Columbus means a lot to me.  I redesigned my training program and will throw in 2 days of cross training instead of 1.  I will just make my runs more productive from here on out.  No more junk miles as people would call them.  I headed to the gym again and did a arm workout followed by a core workout.

FRIDAY:  With Erie only 2 weeks away I wanted to get in at least one more really good speed workout.  I headed to the track and did an hour of all different things.  200's, 400's, 100's, 1600's, and I even did some speed work on a hill.  I felt really good, and I even walked away thinking the old Shaun is starting to come back.  I am now excited to see what I can do in Erie.

SATURDAY:  Lets just call this day an eye opening experience.  I woke up and set out on a 18 mile run.  The weather was perfect, overcast and a nice little breeze.  I felt really good for most of the run and I was really paying attention to when I take water.  My lungs felt really good and I had no trouble breathing through out the run. My legs did start to ache towards the end and once again my hips seem to be at the center of the pain.  When I got home all I wanted to do was lay down, but after talking to my cousin Chris my plans changed.  Chris informed me he and his wife would be taking their daughter to the park.  Normally I would make fun of him for going to the park, but on this day I invited myself to go.  I figured what does a park have that I need? The answer my friends is monkey bars. I mean if I am going to train for an obstacle race why not train on things that will be on the course. So if you drive by a park and see a 35 year old man playing with kids, don't call the cops that's just me training.   Anyway, as I am at the park my cousin is coaching me along this climbing/hanging thingy we will call it.   Now let me first say, I always was the athletic type. I have played sports probably from the time I could walk, so I just assumed I still have it.  Ya, I was wrong.  As I am hanging from this thing trying to get across (which I did) this little girl comes over and goes across this thing like it was easy as can be.  This is the point I realized I am out of my element.  So I am going to still train my normal way for Columbus, but I will throw some after run activities in to help build strength.  Like I said I live for a challenge and this is just what I need, plus this will actually benefit me for Columbus.  A stronger, leaner body will only help.

SUNDAY:  Normally I would call this my rest day, but with all these races I have decided to skip the rest day once in a while.  I headed to the gym early and did some shoulder and back workouts. Once again this helps for all the races.  The rest of this day will be spend doing Fantasy Football Drafts.  I have 2 today.  One live one and one online.  I look forward to this day like it's Christmas.

All these races have me very excited, but I have my eyes set on Columbus.  The other 2 races are ways to help me along the way..

Do you have any fall races coming up, and how is the training going for you?

Columbus Training Week 7

10 WEEKS UNTIL THE COLUMBUS MARATHON!!!!

That's right only 10 more weeks until the Columbus Marathon.  This week my plan was take an extra rest day and conserve some energy for my long run.  I was planning on a 15 miler for Saturday, but I was also using the other week days to bump up the mileage as well.  Lets just say this week didn't go quit as planned but I walked away happy. And I mean that in 2 ways which you will see shortly.

MONDAY: Normally I would run 4-5 miles on Monday and work on my form. This day I did 6.5 miles in the heat and humidity and still worked on my form.  I ended with a pace of 8:50 per mile.  My form is starting to come together and I have really learned a lot about what works for my body this time around with training.  I plan on continuing the form day as I call it through out training.  I have definitely added some length to my stride and I seem to be using less energy than before.

TUESDAY:  This was my first rest day.  Me and my wife went to THE YARD in Shadyside to eat dinner.  If you like gourmet grilled cheese this is the place for you.  I had a grilled cheese with chicken and some kind of barbecue sauce. It was unreal, so good in fact that sandwich was off the plate and in my stomach before my wife was on her 3rd bite.

WEDNESDAY: This day I planned for a 8 mile run. As I was running I come to an intersection with a car. I stopped and waved the car on. The car didn't go, so I waved again. The car still didn't go, so I started to cross the intersection.  As soon as I got in the middle of this assholes hood he or she ( the windows were so tinted I honestly couldn't see the driver) decides to floor it. The car hit my hip and I quickly threw my hands hard on the hood and kicked my legs to the side and safely landed on my feet.  The asshole floors it again and takes off.  I was so pissed I forgot to look at the license plate. I did call the cops and give the description of the car, and with some help from my friends I was able to locate the car and take down the license plate.  After the incident I was so pissed that I couldn't get into my run. I only made it 4 miles and had to call it quits.  Either I really pissed someone off and they wanted to hurt me, which is highly unlikely since I don't have any enemies that I am aware of. It probably was a person just not paying attention and didn't look and got scared and drove off.  My third theory is my wife got a new car and didn't tell me.  This one still remains a mystery.

THURSDAY: After the incident on Wednesday I figured go to the track, at least there no one will try to hit me with their car.  Since I have a 5K coming up in 2 weeks I wanted to work on my speed for the shorter race. This will still be good for the marathon though.  I did ten 200 meter repeats with a 200 meter slow jog in between.  I also did a mile warm up and a mile cool down. I have always been fast but I can tell I have lost a step over the years.  Now that I am really focusing on my speed this training I can see that I am starting to get back to where I was years ago. I don't think I will ever get to the point I was 10 years ago, but I may be able to come close.

FRIDAY: Rest day number 2  Knowing Saturday is my long run day I wanted to have fresh legs for the 15 miles I had planned.

SATURDAY: I set out for a slow 15 miles.  As I was running I started to plan my course.  The goal was to do my normal course and add some miles on backstreets here and there.  As I got to mile 5 I was out of water and wanted more.  I knew in 2 miles I would run by Tru Runner and they usually have water set up outside.  On this day they did not for some reason.  I knew there was a park about 3 miles away that had a fountain and I decided to change up the course and head for the park.  This was great because I knew they had water and I was starting to really need it.  The problem was it threw in a shitload of hills. After I got my water I was in Frick Park and decided to hit the trail for 2 miles.  After I came out of the trails I stopped my watch.  I decided to walk back to where my car was since it was basically 1.5 miles straight up some big hills.  I could of ran it, but I think it would of beat me pretty good. So i ended with a 12 mile run and a 1.5 mile fast paced walk.  I will say even though I didn't go for the 15 planned I am happy with the 12. It was a brutal course and my legs felt really good later in the day.

SUNDAY: Cross training at home. A lot of ab workouts and some light arm workout.

The goal for this week coming up is to continue to increase the miles while not getting hit by cars.

    I know this goes off the beat and path from running but I wanted to share a neat little thing I am doing.  My cousin @mikesmithwriter wrote about music on his blog and made a little challenge. You find another person and for 20 days you take turns sending a link to your top 10 favorite songs that inspire or motivate you.  Me and my cousin Katie are currently doing this with each other, and even though we are family just after a few days we started to notice things about each other and our taste of music.  I guess you can really tell a lot about a person from the little things.  I want to do this with someone who isn't family so if anyone is down for a neat little thing let me know.

2 Weeks Till PIttsburgh

    Happy Easter Everyone!!!!!!!

    Good luck to all the runners that will take to the streets of Boston for the marathon tomorrow. I can't even begin to imagine what the atmosphere will be like on the streets.  This year has so much meaning behind the race. It shows the resilience of a city, fans, and runners.  I wish each and every runner the best of luck and I pray they have the perfect day to run.

     While Boston may be tomorrow for a lot of runners, 2 weeks is all that stands between a lot of us and the start of the Pittsburgh Marathon.  Yesterday I did my final long run, 18 miles. I honestly felt like shit for most of the run. My calf muscles were screaming in pain and it took about 7 miles to loosen up. Once I got loose I felt good but the pain would come back here and there. I am hoping the pain was from some bad decision making the night before. I attended the Pittsburgh Pirates game and may have drank a few too many beers.  So I am sure I was dehydrated the next morning. It also didn't help that I was out of Energy Bits. No need to worry I just received another shipment of them.  I have to weeks now to get in some good foam rolling and massaging and hopefully work out any tightness.
     This week was also a lot of speed workouts. Monday I was doing a tempo run but made the mistake of running by my old high school. Just my luck there was a track meet going on. So now I am left with the decision keep running or stop and watch some of the meet.  Like I said once before I am a sports fanatic and would watch people dodge traffic if it was a sport.  Side note on the track meet, I don't know if when I ran the guys were just that good or the kids have lost a step. I was not impressed at all by the times. When I ran though there were a good amount of above average runners so I guess I can't say to much about the times, but I left wanting to see something amazing.
     Tuesday I ran 5 miles and my goal for the whole run was to run negative splits. I started at a 9:23 pace then dropped down to a 7:50 pace for the last mile.  I felt really good for the run and it was a huge confidence booster. During the marathon my goal is do negative splits for most of the race. If everything goes as planned my final 6 miles will be my fastest.
     Wednesday I cross trained at the gym and rode the bike for 6 miles and did some core work.  I feel that every time I am in the gym everything is improving. From riding the bike to lifting, I have gotten stronger and my stamina has improved so much.  I use to be one of those runners that would rely on raw skill. As I get older I have come to the realization that I need to encompass all aspects of training.
     Thursday I ran 7 miles and held a 8:20 pace for the entire run. I felt really good and the only problem continues to be my asthma. The weather has not been cooperative at all to runners this season. 70 degrees one day 35 the next. How can the body get used to that? I mean really if someone has an answer please share with me. I did however push through the run and I am finally starting to feel like the old Shaun.  The confident runner that was cocky and thought he couldn't be beaten in a race. I obviously know I will not win, but I am starting to take the attitude of if there is thirty thousand runners in a race. 29,999 are in my way and you can either step a-side or come with me and challenge me. I know this sounds super arrogant but sometimes that is what it takes to light that fire under your ass and get you to conquer your goals. 
     Friday was my day off from training.  Like I said my wife and I went to the Pirate game with friends and enjoyed the night out.  Also Friday is the day I received my email saying what corral and my race number for the marathon.  Look out for number 635 in corral A. 
     This week I will still run but it will be a short hill workout, a speed workout, and a few 6-8 mile runs with some cross training thrown in. 

     How is your training going if you are running the marathon?
     What Corral are you in?
     And is it wrong to take on a cocky attitude when running?

Heaven Is Made Of Foam?

      So I guess you can call me late to the party on this one, but I just recently purchased a foam roller.  Heaven is the best way I can describe it. At first I was hesitant to purchase one. I would see everyone writing on #runchat how much they loved them and how they would use them for recovery workouts and I have to say I was skeptical.  I am not the type of person that runs out and buys whatever other people are saying works. I am a minimalist when it comes to using products to improve my running.  
     It was a little over a week ago I was talking to a friend and he told me had just purchased one and how it was helping him out a lot.  Now what I had already heard from so many other people I was hearing from a friend who I consider reliable.  My friend has been dealing with plantar fasciitis for quote some time and it seemed like nothing was helping him. So when he texted me that he had got the foam roller and it seemed to be helping him I was sold.  I went out that night and purchased one. My friends chiropractor told him not to spend a whole lot because they all basically are the same and do the same thing.  It just so happened that me and the wife had to run to Walmart to buy my nephew a birthday gift and since we were there I figured it couldn't hurt to check and see if they sold one.  Lo and behold I found a Gold's Gym one for 18.99.

     At first It seemed hard to me. You have to be able to hold yourself up for a lot of the stretches and it was tiring.  Once I started to get into the groove over the next few days it became pretty easy and I quickly noticed I was recovering quicker from my runs and my leg pains were not coming on during runs like they sometimes would.  The best part is my roller came with a picture showing all the exercises and stretches you could do with it.  But if you are not as lucky as me, that is why there is the internet.  I searched and found tons of stretches to do and you could even print out the pictures to make it easier to look over.

    So now that I am a believer of the roller I suggest if you do not have one you go out and get one soon.  They are fairly cheap and they really work.  I like to think now that if there is a heaven it may just be made of foam because the feeling you get from using it is surreal. 

Do you use a foam roller? and any particular stretches you do?