The Lost Summer of 2012

The only miles I've been racking up this summer have been Delta miles. Priorities have gotten all messed up and fitness has taken a back seat to work. Family is first, but work has even gotten in the way of that. Tomorrow is the third Wednesday evening triathlon of the summer. I have missed the first two because of work. I'm now debating skipping the third just because my training has been so infrequent.

I was off to a great start this year. Unfortunately, I think that I peaked in the middle of winter. I did manage two PRs this year. I dropped my half marathon by over 1 minute (1:41:34, 7:45/mile) at the inaugural Ann Arbor Marathon. I also got to within 6 seconds of breaking 20 minutes in the 5k back in Feb. Now I'm just trying to find some time to get back into a few runs each week. Maybe recover enough for a fast fall 10K or half marathon.

This year is a good year to remember that even when goals get trashed, there will always be another race and another chance to set a PR. Work craziness is only because things are going well. And I still have the best family in the world cheering for me.

Maybe I will do that tri tomorrow, just to remember the feeling and have fun with it. If nothing else, I'll get a 80  minute workout!

Saline Summerfest 5K

Hill Yes

Great 6.8 mile run with my friend ME this morning. He is training for a fall marathon and was up for some hill training. We kept the pace well below 8:00/mile which felt good given that I have done a lot of long slow running lately. 6 months ago my PR for a 5K was 24:17, now I am comfortable holding 7:45 for almost 7 miles. The progress has been fun and has come mostly from just getting out and putting the miles in. Losing weight helped a lot with speed too.

I love the run depicted above cause you do all the work early and then have 2 miles of downhill running to get home. It doesn't look that daunting, but the small second hill is actually the killer on this run. It is a bit steeper and it comes after you thought that you were done with running uphill.

It was a perfect morning for a run, cool and clear. It was just one of those days that you just keep thinking, "what a great run"....

Can't wait to do this again.

Sunrise Sunrise

This morning was a great one for a run. I left the house with my headlamp and reflector vest on and came home with my sunglasses looking at a beautiful sunrise. I ran the dirt roads just across from my neighborhood which take me past new build subdivisions, barns (functional and falling down), working farms, and miles of fields. I saw only one deer, but the birds were out to provide a soundtrack to the run.

My knee felt a little better and my hip felt a little worse. I think I've been walking funny to compensate for a few days. It wasn't a fast run, but that wasn't the point. I feel great and I've got 6.3 more miles for the log.

Hopefully I'll be able to get out tomorrow morning and it will be as nice as today.

Vibram Fivefingers - Five Toes

I did something that I vowed not to do. I purchased a pair of Vibram Fivefinger "foot gloves". I wanted something to mix it up a bit. My left knee has been hurting a bit over the last week and I'm eager to try anything that seems to create evangelists the way that Fivefingers do. I went with the TrekSport model, size 43 for my size 10.5-11 feet.

I ran 3.2 miles in my toe shoes yesterday and then slipped back on my Nimbus 12s for another 6.1 miles. There were noticeable differences. The first was that I was SLOW in the Fivefingers, about 30 seconds per mile. The second was that from about halfway between my knee all the way to the ground my legs got a very different workout. That is the idea, I know, but everything from my achilles to my shins to my ankles felt very tired while running. My stride was shorter, my heel striking was limited, they performed as advertised.

Putting the Nimbus 12s back on felt like jumping onto a trampoline. It was very strange for about the first 1/2 mile. I noticed a difference in my stride that carried over from the Vibrams that must be okay. (I'm not ready to say that all things associated with Fivefingers are great). All in all it was a nice Sunday morning run.

I'm going to keep with the Fivefingers 2 times per week, 3 miles per shot. I'll see if I keep noticing anything. They are still crazy looking. I'll try to use them on my early AM runs!