5 miles, easy + Gym
Ran on the treadmill after work. It's surprisingly crowded at the gym for 7 weeks after New Year's. I suspect that the gym manager has recruited new members without regard to his capacity to handle these masses. I was able to do core work and some hamstring curls, but I lost patience waiting to do leg extensions. I'll have to try going to the gym another time of day.
2.23.2009
Sunday, February 22nd
16 miles, moderate
35 degrees, damp, windy
Met with the GRCers to run the usual RCP long run loop. Thankfully we have amended the loop to run up Calvert Drive instead of through the Zoo. I dropped off at the end of the loop with 'Tias while Jake and PR added on a few more miles.
In the evening John and I hosted a glamorous Oscar celebration (complete with red carpet and life-sized Oscar statue) attended by many of the runners. It was a smashing success and hopefully the first of many Oscar Bashes.
35 degrees, damp, windy
Met with the GRCers to run the usual RCP long run loop. Thankfully we have amended the loop to run up Calvert Drive instead of through the Zoo. I dropped off at the end of the loop with 'Tias while Jake and PR added on a few more miles.
In the evening John and I hosted a glamorous Oscar celebration (complete with red carpet and life-sized Oscar statue) attended by many of the runners. It was a smashing success and hopefully the first of many Oscar Bashes.
2.21.2009
Saturday, February 21st
12 miles, hard
30 degrees, sunny
Ran an abbreviated version of last year's point-to-point 2 mile workout on the canal with the guys. This time we started at Riley's Lock with the usual warm up loop and ran 3 sets of 2 miles on (~5:20 pace), 1 mile off. The day off on Thursday must have helped since my legs felt much stronger than in the workout on Wednesday. I also found a second wind midway through the last interval and surged from last to a few seconds behind Reaves. Great day for a good workout.
30 degrees, sunny
Ran an abbreviated version of last year's point-to-point 2 mile workout on the canal with the guys. This time we started at Riley's Lock with the usual warm up loop and ran 3 sets of 2 miles on (~5:20 pace), 1 mile off. The day off on Thursday must have helped since my legs felt much stronger than in the workout on Wednesday. I also found a second wind midway through the last interval and surged from last to a few seconds behind Reaves. Great day for a good workout.
Friday, February 20th
9 miles, easy
23 degrees, sunrise
Met with Max, P.Hughes, and a new guy to DC for a morning run in RCP. With the sun rising earlier we can actually run on the trails. I should enjoy this while it lasts... we'll be running in the dark again March 8th.
23 degrees, sunrise
Met with Max, P.Hughes, and a new guy to DC for a morning run in RCP. With the sun rising earlier we can actually run on the trails. I should enjoy this while it lasts... we'll be running in the dark again March 8th.
2.19.2009
Wednesday, February 18th
10.5 miles, hard
40 degrees, dark
Ran the usual Wednesday track workout with the GRC gang. This time I ran a hard 1600 followed by 4x800 with short rest. I generally felt slow and lethargic tonight and "only" ran 5:06; 2:29; 2:31; 2:32; 2:31. The mile was much slower than I had hoped, but I salvaged the 800s. Still, they required much more effort than they should have. I felt great on a mile of 200m in-and-outs though. It must be the increased mileage affecting me.
40 degrees, dark
Ran the usual Wednesday track workout with the GRC gang. This time I ran a hard 1600 followed by 4x800 with short rest. I generally felt slow and lethargic tonight and "only" ran 5:06; 2:29; 2:31; 2:32; 2:31. The mile was much slower than I had hoped, but I salvaged the 800s. Still, they required much more effort than they should have. I felt great on a mile of 200m in-and-outs though. It must be the increased mileage affecting me.
2.17.2009
Tuesday, February 17th
8 miles, easy
25 degrees, sunrise
Ran a surprisingly illuminated morning run with Max and P. Hiddy. Felt especially tired this morning, but just need to take a day off/easy to recover.
25 degrees, sunrise
Ran a surprisingly illuminated morning run with Max and P. Hiddy. Felt especially tired this morning, but just need to take a day off/easy to recover.
2.16.2009
Monday, February 16th
AM: 11 miles, easy/moderate
35 degrees, sunny
PM: 4 miles, easy
30 degrees, dark
Met with Jake for a President's Day run from The Line. We ran his "6 Hills" loop which was generally familiar save for one monstrous hill. I didn't even know that trail existed, much less how difficult it is to run up it. A good effort, though, and a good conversation.
I took advantage of the day off and ran in the evening as well. I'll need to keep up the doubles if I want to increase my mileage.
35 degrees, sunny
PM: 4 miles, easy
30 degrees, dark
Met with Jake for a President's Day run from The Line. We ran his "6 Hills" loop which was generally familiar save for one monstrous hill. I didn't even know that trail existed, much less how difficult it is to run up it. A good effort, though, and a good conversation.
I took advantage of the day off and ran in the evening as well. I'll need to keep up the doubles if I want to increase my mileage.
2.15.2009
Sunday, February 15th
18 miles, easy/moderate
40 degrees, sunny
Ran a surprisingly easy 18 miles at Greenbelt Park. We started with a sizable group and eventually finished with Jake and Patrick.
40 degrees, sunny
Ran a surprisingly easy 18 miles at Greenbelt Park. We started with a sizable group and eventually finished with Jake and Patrick.
Saturday, February 14th
9 miles, easy
45 degrees, sunny
Went to the GW Birthday 10K in Alexandria to cheer Matias, Melissa, Alex, and Jonathan. Afterwards Jake, Dylan, Billy, Diego and I ran from the store. Rather than run one of our typical routes we decided to explore Georgetown and ran easy around the campus, graveyard, and National Cathedral.
45 degrees, sunny
Went to the GW Birthday 10K in Alexandria to cheer Matias, Melissa, Alex, and Jonathan. Afterwards Jake, Dylan, Billy, Diego and I ran from the store. Rather than run one of our typical routes we decided to explore Georgetown and ran easy around the campus, graveyard, and National Cathedral.
Friday, February 13th
9 miles, easy
35 degrees, sunrise
Ran the usual RCP loop with P. Hiddy before work.
35 degrees, sunrise
Ran the usual RCP loop with P. Hiddy before work.
2.12.2009
Thursday, February 12th
AM(ish): 10 miles, easy
55 degrees, sunny, WINDY
PM: 3 miles, easy + Gym
After the workout last night I overheard that Jake was giving Reaves a ride to DCA (I refuse call it by the "official" name after listening to the author of Tear Down This Myth on NPR). I invited Jake to Alexandria for a lunchtime run and to give me an excuse to get out of an awkward meeting at work. Jake met me and we ran an out-and-back on the Mt. Vernon Trail and had a good chat. I followed up with a workout at the gym after work.
I would also like to acknowledge the bicentennial celebration of the birth of two great men: 16th President of the United States Abraham Lincoln and Evolution Theory discoverer Charles Darwin. Happy Darwin Day!
Oh, and it's also Arsenio Hall's birthday today too. And, for the sake of making this a slightly less partisan blog post, I especially wish a happy birthday to the distinguished senator from Pennsylvania Arlen Spector.
55 degrees, sunny, WINDY
PM: 3 miles, easy + Gym
After the workout last night I overheard that Jake was giving Reaves a ride to DCA (I refuse call it by the "official" name after listening to the author of Tear Down This Myth on NPR). I invited Jake to Alexandria for a lunchtime run and to give me an excuse to get out of an awkward meeting at work. Jake met me and we ran an out-and-back on the Mt. Vernon Trail and had a good chat. I followed up with a workout at the gym after work.
I would also like to acknowledge the bicentennial celebration of the birth of two great men: 16th President of the United States Abraham Lincoln and Evolution Theory discoverer Charles Darwin. Happy Darwin Day!
Oh, and it's also Arsenio Hall's birthday today too. And, for the sake of making this a slightly less partisan blog post, I especially wish a happy birthday to the distinguished senator from Pennsylvania Arlen Spector.
Wednesday, February 11th
11 miles, hard workout
55 degrees, dark, windy
Met with the GRCers at BCCHS for the weekly workout. This time we ran the same workout as last week (3x1600) but with only 400m rest. Ideally we would have run the same splits as last week,
but we quickly learned how tired our legs still were from the weekend. I ended up running (coincidentally) even splits: 5:08.8; 5:08.5; 5:08.6. By the end my calves were in knots, but thankfully I had my STICK!
55 degrees, dark, windy
Met with the GRCers at BCCHS for the weekly workout. This time we ran the same workout as last week (3x1600) but with only 400m rest. Ideally we would have run the same splits as last week,
but we quickly learned how tired our legs still were from the weekend. I ended up running (coincidentally) even splits: 5:08.8; 5:08.5; 5:08.6. By the end my calves were in knots, but thankfully I had my STICK!
2.10.2009
Tuesday, February 10th
10.5 miles, easy
40 degrees, sunrise
Met with Max and P.Hughes for a morning run. We tried out a new loop: Park-Tilden-Connecticut-Nebraska-Wisconsin-R-Florida. It was a little longer than usual, but a nice change of scenery. The morning felt unusually warm too... I could get used to this.
40 degrees, sunrise
Met with Max and P.Hughes for a morning run. We tried out a new loop: Park-Tilden-Connecticut-Nebraska-Wisconsin-R-Florida. It was a little longer than usual, but a nice change of scenery. The morning felt unusually warm too... I could get used to this.
2.09.2009
Monday, February 9th
4.5 miles, easy + Gym
Ran outside from the gym for an easy 4.5 miles. Followed up with stretching and core work.
Also, today saw the world premiere of Towpath's epic film documenting Saturday's USA Cross Country Championships:
GRC Races at the 2009 USATF XC Championship from Tow Path on Vimeo.
Ran outside from the gym for an easy 4.5 miles. Followed up with stretching and core work.
Also, today saw the world premiere of Towpath's epic film documenting Saturday's USA Cross Country Championships:
GRC Races at the 2009 USATF XC Championship from Tow Path on Vimeo.
2.08.2009
Sunday, February 8th
15.5 miles, moderate
65 degrees, sunny
Met with the GRC for a long run from "The Line." This time we had a few new faces and visitors from the race yesterday. We had a steady, solid run, but I felt somewhat sore from yesterday.
65 degrees, sunny
Met with the GRC for a long run from "The Line." This time we had a few new faces and visitors from the race yesterday. We had a steady, solid run, but I felt somewhat sore from yesterday.
Saturday, February 7th - USA XC Championships
13.5 miles, race
65 degrees, sunny
Today was the first big race of 2009: The USATF Cross Country National Championships. I'll be the first to admit that I was pessimistic before this race. I had never run well on this course - even in a workout. Last November I ran an 8K race at the Agricultural History Farm in just over 30 minutes, 20 of which were miserable. I even went as far as to describe the course as Chinese Water Touture; no single part of the course was truly difficult, but the repetition of each lap wore you down until you cried "uncle."
So, with that in mind, I executed a conservative race plan. My only goals were to have fun and not get lapped. Thankfully the weather was beautiful and the GRC had vocal support on race day. When the gun went off I deliberately held myself back and went through the 1K mark at 3:22. At the (rediculously) muddy hill to 2K guys were already starting to slow down. I was comfortable through 6K and planned to surge after 8K if I still felt comfortable. By this point in the race I was truly enjoying myself and milking the support of Earnst, Melissa, Bain, and others who gathered to cheer us up the muddy hill.
Through 8K I was already running much faster than in November (28:44 vs. 30+) - likely a product of my improved training and conservative race strategy. As I began the last 4K I gradually picked up the pace with the goal of catching my teammate Dylan. Over the second to last lap I was also racing to stay ahead of the cheers for Meb as he closed on me. After climbing the sloppy hill for the last time I quickly closed the gap with the pack in front of me. I ran with Dylan for a few hundred yards and passed P.Hughes at 11K. I finished strong in 43:19 and still felt like I had another lap in my legs.
Shortly after we all finished we learned that our team won the team title - a complete surprise! Everyone ran well today and earned this title. After the awards ceremony we cooled down and tailgated at Jarrin's primo parking spot. I ran into Artie and Rebecca (who finished 5th in the women's race and earned a spot on the Worlds team!) at the afterparty and enjoyed a few margaritas with the team.
65 degrees, sunny
Today was the first big race of 2009: The USATF Cross Country National Championships. I'll be the first to admit that I was pessimistic before this race. I had never run well on this course - even in a workout. Last November I ran an 8K race at the Agricultural History Farm in just over 30 minutes, 20 of which were miserable. I even went as far as to describe the course as Chinese Water Touture; no single part of the course was truly difficult, but the repetition of each lap wore you down until you cried "uncle."So, with that in mind, I executed a conservative race plan. My only goals were to have fun and not get lapped. Thankfully the weather was beautiful and the GRC had vocal support on race day. When the gun went off I deliberately held myself back and went through the 1K mark at 3:22. At the (rediculously) muddy hill to 2K guys were already starting to slow down. I was comfortable through 6K and planned to surge after 8K if I still felt comfortable. By this point in the race I was truly enjoying myself and milking the support of Earnst, Melissa, Bain, and others who gathered to cheer us up the muddy hill.
Through 8K I was already running much faster than in November (28:44 vs. 30+) - likely a product of my improved training and conservative race strategy. As I began the last 4K I gradually picked up the pace with the goal of catching my teammate Dylan. Over the second to last lap I was also racing to stay ahead of the cheers for Meb as he closed on me. After climbing the sloppy hill for the last time I quickly closed the gap with the pack in front of me. I ran with Dylan for a few hundred yards and passed P.Hughes at 11K. I finished strong in 43:19 and still felt like I had another lap in my legs.
Shortly after we all finished we learned that our team won the team title - a complete surprise! Everyone ran well today and earned this title. After the awards ceremony we cooled down and tailgated at Jarrin's primo parking spot. I ran into Artie and Rebecca (who finished 5th in the women's race and earned a spot on the Worlds team!) at the afterparty and enjoyed a few margaritas with the team.
2.05.2009
Thursday, February 5th
4 miles, easy
@ Gym
I'd like to say that I was deliberately taking an "easy" day after last night's workout. My calves ARE sore after all... But really I was just too lazy to get up this morning and run outside (but, in my defense, it was -1F with wind chill) and I predictably ran out of time to run after work. Oh well. Let's just say I'm "tapering" for Saturday...
@ Gym
I'd like to say that I was deliberately taking an "easy" day after last night's workout. My calves ARE sore after all... But really I was just too lazy to get up this morning and run outside (but, in my defense, it was -1F with wind chill) and I predictably ran out of time to run after work. Oh well. Let's just say I'm "tapering" for Saturday...
Wednesday, February 4th
10 miles, hard
25-30 degrees, dark
Met with Jake, Diego, Sam, and Nate for a track workout at BCCHS. This workout was the first in Jake's plan for 5K dominance, and I joined out of nostalgia for my Tuesday workouts with Harry Groves. We ran 3x1600m with 800m jog recovery at just over 5K pace. I had a good night, and felt fast in my new 3.0 oz. Nike Mutumbos running 5:04; 5:01; 4:55. Nice negative split.
25-30 degrees, dark
Met with Jake, Diego, Sam, and Nate for a track workout at BCCHS. This workout was the first in Jake's plan for 5K dominance, and I joined out of nostalgia for my Tuesday workouts with Harry Groves. We ran 3x1600m with 800m jog recovery at just over 5K pace. I had a good night, and felt fast in my new 3.0 oz. Nike Mutumbos running 5:04; 5:01; 4:55. Nice negative split.
2.03.2009
Tuesday, February 3rd
9 miles, easy - moderate
35 degrees, sunrise
Met with Max for the usual morning run in RCP. Felt pretty good.
35 degrees, sunrise
Met with Max for the usual morning run in RCP. Felt pretty good.
Monday, February 2nd - Groundhog Day
4 miles, easy + Gym
Babe. I got you babe. Seriously, the first song I heard today was Sonny and Cher's "Babe." It brings back memories of being a carefree college student and driving to Punxsutawney in the middle of the night to see a groundhog predict the weather. That was some night, and after surviving 6 hours in 5-10 degrees before sunrise, I lost any reason to bail on attending the Inaugural Events last month.
Thankfully on this Groundhog Day I did not have a ball-busting workout awaiting my sleep-deprived and half-thawed butt in the afternoon. Instead I took it easy and went to the gym to pump some iron.
Finally, as a nod to this most sacred of holidays, I'd like to acknowledge that NYC Mayor Bloomburg was bitten by SI Chuck at a lesser known groundhog ceremony this morning. That's what you get for worshiping false rodents.
Babe. I got you babe. Seriously, the first song I heard today was Sonny and Cher's "Babe." It brings back memories of being a carefree college student and driving to Punxsutawney in the middle of the night to see a groundhog predict the weather. That was some night, and after surviving 6 hours in 5-10 degrees before sunrise, I lost any reason to bail on attending the Inaugural Events last month.
Thankfully on this Groundhog Day I did not have a ball-busting workout awaiting my sleep-deprived and half-thawed butt in the afternoon. Instead I took it easy and went to the gym to pump some iron.
Finally, as a nod to this most sacred of holidays, I'd like to acknowledge that NYC Mayor Bloomburg was bitten by SI Chuck at a lesser known groundhog ceremony this morning. That's what you get for worshiping false rodents.
2.01.2009
Sunday, February 1st
16 miles, moderate
50 degrees, sunny
Enjoyed a long run with Jake and Sam through RCP. It was a great day to be outside and we ran smart so we weren't exhausted at the end.
50 degrees, sunny
Enjoyed a long run with Jake and Sam through RCP. It was a great day to be outside and we ran smart so we weren't exhausted at the end.
Saturday, January 31st
11 miles, hard
25 degrees, somewhat windy
Met with the GRCers for a last workout on the XC course before next week's big race. The ice from earlier this week still has not melted and caused several guys to fall (or, more accurately, caused Sam to fall several times). We started running 6x"as far as we could go before we lost our footing" which was only about 1K. We jogged the other 1K and started over. After two laps I bailed with Alex and Dylan to run on the road. Eventually the others followed. We salvaged the workout and ran 5x 3 minutes on, 90 seconds off.
25 degrees, somewhat windy
Met with the GRCers for a last workout on the XC course before next week's big race. The ice from earlier this week still has not melted and caused several guys to fall (or, more accurately, caused Sam to fall several times). We started running 6x"as far as we could go before we lost our footing" which was only about 1K. We jogged the other 1K and started over. After two laps I bailed with Alex and Dylan to run on the road. Eventually the others followed. We salvaged the workout and ran 5x 3 minutes on, 90 seconds off.
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