My new beard

Well...I haven't written anything in far too long. I apologize. I have been too busy running huge miles and growing this absolutely glorious beard.

But training has been going really well the past few summer months. I have traditionally been a low to mid-mileage person, but have made a concerted effort the past 2 years up here in Gunnison to try to get to the point where I could handle much higher mileage. I finally feel comfortable running 100 mile weeks with a few quality workouts. Where 90 mpw used to be a huge struggle, now it feels very under control (knock on wood.)

My hope is that the new strength will really pay off later this Fall, but particularly in the Winter and Spring.

But until then, I am hoping to see some progress in the next several weeks. I am going to attempt my first 1/2 marathon on October 16th (The Murfreesboro Half)! I figured if ever I was going to be in a position to run a half, now is probably the time. I haven't started Max VO2 intervals that would lead to a fast 5 to 8k yet, but I think my longer tempo runs the past several weeks should help over a half. We will see, I guess. :)

I hope everyone's training is going very well and you all are enjoying the cross season.



Paul

One Day at a Time

Back in August I drove over to Grand Junction to have an evaluation done by a biomechancis specialist. This specialist has credentials a mile long and I trust his judgement along with my physical therapist's, both have come to the agreement that I have a pelvic instability on the left side. I have been working hard the past few weeks to address this weakness and as my body adapts to new mechanics new issues are inevitably popping up. Although what I am dealing with right now has me questioning whether it is from changing mechanics or something more acute. Something is wrong with my knee--I have heard everything from tendonitis to a stress fracture and still have no concrete idea of what is going on so I am working around it and treating it with ice, massage, anti-inflammatories and modalities (like iontophoresis and ultrasound). One of the things this summer has taught me is that I have to just go along for the ride, weather the ups and downs without letting either dictate my motivation. This has been a hard lesson to learn, but one I think I have figured out (at least today).

Tomorrow before work I am planning on running an hour or to right before my knee locks up and doesn't allow more running. I am taking things one day at a time but staying hopeful that I can keep training. My goal tomorrow is to make it through the whole hour without the excruciating knee pain that has happened the past few times I have run over an hour. Hopefully I will be successful!

When you have more than one blog post in a row it starts looking like you have no life...but seriously, we are really slacking here you guys. I know some of you have some phenomonal race results that you're just dying to share....am I right? Don't be shy now.

Since I have no problem rambling about anything, no matter how pointless, I will start by saying, "HOORAY for cross country season!" That's where it's at. If cross country could go on year round, that would be fine by me. None of that round oval track nonsense--that stuff is for the birds (or more like those with actual leg-speed. I've always been a little jealous of those folks.). Anyhow, on that note there have been a couple lower key collegiate XC races here in town over the last couple of weeks, both of which were generous enough to let unattached folks in. First was the 3rd annual aptly named UCCS "Rust-Buster" Invite a couple of weekends back. That one was a 6k that wound its way through Monument Valley Park. It went well, I felt good, and it was good to see everyone and get to see all of the current UCCS runners, a lot of new faces, and plenty of alumni as well. A good time for sure.

Last Saturday, Colorado College hosted its Tiger Invitational. That one was another 6k in Monument Valley Park (I really like racing there...) but a slightly different course. That one went alright as well. I finished behind Steph Bylander, who won the show. That one was a bit different in that they combined the college and open races and it was fun to mix it up. I almost felt like I was re-living the glory days, just like the Bruce Springsteen song. So next up is the Boulder Shootout up at CU in a couple weeks, I am a bit nervous for that one. But what else is new.

As an aside, I am in the process of figuring out a good running goal. I realized the other day that I'm almost at the quarter century mark of life, and since a person's athletic ability dwindles quickly with time then I have to figure out what to do with what time is left! There is a lot of urgency here. I don't particularly want to be a marathoner, for some reason that race hasn't ever appealed to me, I don't really like the track that much but will do some of that this spring for PR-ing's sake, cross country is unfortunately far less popular than it would be if I was in charge of everything (which I am not), I really like road racing but don't know what distance to focus on, and I think I need to do a couple trail/mountain races to figure out if I have a niche there because I've never tried it. I guess I will just do some of everything till I figure it out.

A Step in the Right Direction

Things are still slowly and steadily on the up-and-up. I'm okay with that. I finally got up enough nerve last weekend to actually run a race. I went up to Denver on Saturday to do the Erace (that's not a typo, it's a pun) Homelessness 5k in City Park. After my previous and somewhat disasterous attempt at a "race" about a month and half ago, I didn't go in with the highest of expectations--in fact I was trying to not have any expectations--I just wanted to improve upon what I did the time before and get a decent idea of where things stand fitness-wise. Both objectives were accomplished, I got second (Lori Walker soundly trounced all of us--kudos) and got to actually take home prize money for the first time ever. My time was nothing to write home about, although supposedly the course was about 100 meters too long, but that could be one of those self-esteem boosting rumors that runners conjure up when no one runs that fast on a particular day and we all want to comiserate with each other. But according to Andy Rinne's GPS (here we go with this technology business again) the course was 3.2 miles long. It was a fun race on an interesting course, and I would have to say that the highlight was when some random aid station worker guy pitched a cup of water directly into my face at mile 2. I still don't know what that was all about. Maybe I looked like I was falling asleep out there, I'm not really sure. But I'm sure that it was done with the best of intentions.

Adam, Andy, Robby, Ashley, Russ and me at the start line.

Cross country season is in full swing now, and I always get all nostalgic this time of year, not to mention really jealous of all the college and high school runners gearing up for another year of racing. I really miss that stuff. I mean, I kind of get to pretend to be on the Palmer High School team since I'm always with them and everyone asks me if I run for them (I'm almost 25 for crap sakes, do I LOOK like I run for a high school??!!). It's a bit different (nope, it's a LOT different) when you're not stepping up to the line with a team at your back with everyone counting on you and on each other to give it everything and a bit more on that day. It's a totally different mind-set and it's taking some serious getting used to even though I've been working on it for over a year. The whole Every (Wo)Man for Themselves mentality is a bit more mentally taxing I think.

At any rate, there are plenty of XC races to jump into this fall, and next up is the UCCS Rust-Buster down in Monument Valley Park on the 11th of September. Great race to run and great races to watch. After that, I'll probably jump into the Colorado College Invitational then the Boulder Shootout a week after to get ready to race fast (hopefully) at the Tufts 10k in mid-October. Although at the moment I'm having a lot of trouble getting into that race, hopefully it'll work out.

Great job to everyone in all your races this weekend, and keep up the good work!

Hope for the Future

I have been doing everything I can to get back on track and nothing seems to work long term. I have tried many things that have worked in the past and yet my body still seems to be spiraling downward and out of control. At times I am so tempted to throw in the towel...enough is enough. I am 30 years old and I have basically been dealing with one injury since I was 18 and thus all of the complications that come with an injury and still training on it--compensation. So, for the past 12 years I have been trying to fix my hamstring problem and now it is worse as my whole left side is unhappy and has been since May. I have been dealing with this more than half of the years I have been running. Just writing that sentence makes me want to cry, but for some reason I am still feeling the desire to train and to run hard, to try to reach my potential whatever that might be. So instead of burning all of my running shoes I am going to gather them up along with some running clothes and head west to the other side of the mountains to try to get some help figuring out what is wrong with me and hopefully learning the best way to return to top form. There is a biomechanics guru that has helped a lot of different runners with a lot of different types of problems, and despite being warned that we might not find the "smoking gun", the guru himself seemed confident that he will be able to figure out what is going on with my body and how to come back from this injury. So, I am hopeful.

Knowing that I have had some decent results in the past while battling this does give me hope for the future though. I haven't made it through a cycle or season since high school without losing precious time training to address an injury. So, one of the key components to successful distance running hasn't been there for me, ever--and that is consistency. My coach and PT have done a phenomenal job at dodging injuries and keeping me moderately healthy and able to show up at some starting lines feeling ready, but that deep ache in my upper hamstring was always there impacting some part of the performance (even if it just hurt my confidence and not my physical ability). And I am tired of constantly wondering how my body is going to rebel next. So, I am diving in and ready to face down and do whatever I need to in order to be healthy and training at level that is needed for post-collegiate running. And once I am over this hurdle, it is going to make the good races that much sweeter! I can't wait.

Coming Back to Life!

Today I got called "old school" by an old guy*.

Today's workout (which was a really good one, I might add, but I'll get to that) I was joined by Chris Bittinger--or "Bit" as he is sometimes referred to. Upon discussing the day's mission while warming up on the trails around Monument Valley Park (while he calibrated his GPS...or Garmin....or whatever that was...), he asked me how I typically determine my average mile pace in a workout. I just told him that since I start workouts in the exact same place pretty much every time I do them (the exact place in this case being the little bridge up by the parking lot at Monument Valley) and that the distance from there to this random little tree a ways down and around the trail past the Second Bridge (the Bridge-to-Bridge bridge, I know, I know...the terminology is terribly confusing. Don't even get me started on Upper Loop, Big Loop, Small Loop, Middle Loop, and Around the Water Fountain) is a mile, then I usually just check my watch when I pass the Little Tree Down Past The Bridge-to-Bridge Bridge to see where I am at and then just try to maintain that pace. It's all very technical you see. With that explanation he laughed at me and called me old-school. I call it being Technologically Impaired. I don't have a heart-rate monitor, or a GPS, or a Garmin, or any of those fancy bells and whistles. I do have a stopwatch however, and I would really like a measuring wheel. Anyways, the point of this is that I am not very techno-savvy, however I justify this by saying that the Kenyans don't have Garmins, and they're pretty decent at this running buisiness. But even if I did have any of those things it would take me about two years to figure out how to use it, by which time it would be obsolete and it would be necessary to learn how to use something fancier. It practically boggles the mind.

I was really happy though post-workout because it was by far the best workout that I've had since early March, and last Sunday was my longest long-run in an equally long time. Plus, it was incredibly helpful to have someone pushing me the whole way, I forgot how much I like not doing the workouts solo. The occasional solo run or workout isn't bad, but having someone else to pace off of is immeasureably helpful and actually reminded me of how to be competitive. I was starting to think I forgot how.

And thanks to the help of Chris's Garmin or GPS thingydoo or whatever, we could determine how much ground was covered and pace per mile more accurately than we could through the use of my Bridge to Little Tree Down Past The Bridge-to-Bridge Bridge Measurement Method. However I still can't invest in one of those things because he spent the cooldown overanalyzing things worse than I already do without it. Nonetheless, technology is amazing!

As long as the wheels stay on, the future is looking bright and shiney!


*For clarification purposes and in defense of Chris, he is actually not "old." He is, in fact, a pretty kickass middle distance master's guy. I just consider anyone older than me to be "old(er)", and anyone younger than me to be a "whippersnapper". So he is "old" only in that context. And since they say that you're only as old as you act, that makes him about eight.

Chicago

I did my first ever Rock n Roll event last weekend in Chicago! It was a blast. I love coming back here to race. I always see a lot of people I know plus I love the city atmosphere. Having bands along the course was really nice too.
The race went great...I felt really strong the whole way and ended up with 1:13:36. I really only planned on running marathon pace but it just felt too slow. And what can I say.... I got a little competitive about half way through.
I stayed a couple days at sea level to get in another big workout before heading back to altitude today. I'm so sad to be leaving! I really love it here.
But I don't love the heat and humidity. We were in southern illinois a couple days ago for my grandmas bday and the heat index was 110. I ended up in the ER. I was freezing cold and couldn't stop shaking. Turns out it was just dehydration so I kind of feel like a wimp but I'm glad I'm ok!
I also don't love the traffic near the city. It took us about an hour and a half to move 10 miles yesterday.
So I will probably be sticking with Colorado for the time being. But I'll be back in a couple months for the marathon and I can't wait!

On the road again...

I love running because it truly is a lifelong sport. There is rarely a time when I have thought, "Well I've hit my PR, I think I'm done now." Even when we reach that long-awaited goal, we make another and another, always striving for the next step. That's one reason why I love this team, it allows you the freedom to continually improve your running without a ton of pressure to perform 365 days a year, as well as having the patience and understanding that runners get hurt.

I had a very rough 2009 season, with injury after injury. I got so discouraged. After getting a cortisone shot in a bursa in my knee in February, I have been pain-free and slowly building up mileage and intensity. I finally feel like after 5 months of good base and slow progression, I have made some good progress. It hasn't been the easiest journey, my first 5k back I ran 19:45. One week later at Sailin' Shoes I ran 19:07. This past weekend I ran the Evergreen Town Race in 18:16. I am so pleased with the progress and after being laid up for so long, and I realized that I had to enjoy the journey. Fitness never comes quickly, but getting there doesn't have to be a job. I have a new coach who is incorporating some much needed drills and circuit training into my running. I feel stronger and more balanced already and I am trying to do my part by being consistent with both running and drills. I plan on running the Park to Park 10 miler in September and ultimately hope to be in great shape for Club Cross.

I have to do some 'shout-outs' because this has been a really tough journey for me and I owe them one. I want to give a big thanks to Cody for keeping me on the team even when it looked like I would never be healthy again, Mark Plaatjes for always knowing what is wrong and for all the help with my form, and to Jay for being patient with me, loving me through the bad times and for being my most dependable running partner ever (even when it is a 5:00 AM). See you all on the road!

Big Week

Marathon training has begun! My body is still adjusting to the big miles and I've been really tired. But I was able to put together a decent "race" at the classic 10k yesterday. I was a little nervous going in because I had been feeling pretty bad all week and I've never done a race off such high mileage before.
I didn't feel great but it wasn't bad and I placed 2nd in 33:58. I really only expected to run just under 35 so I'm pretty pleased.
Today I did a LOOONG run on the treadmill. Yes, I know I'm crazy but I love it. I enjoyed a variety of reading material including the saturday Denver Post (the sunday paper hadn't come out yet), USA today, Vogue, Time, Health, Money, and Women's Fitness magazines.
I don't always do long runs on the Tmill and I really enjoy outside running as well. two weeks ago I ran magnolia road and last week I did my first run at rampart reservoir. I loved it! 9,000 feet, beautiful views, and not too hilly. My all time favorite run is still flagstaff trail in Boulder but rampart might be 2nd.

11 weeks till Chicago!!!!!!!! until then, back to the grind.

T-Minus 24 Hours

I was informed today that I'm allowed to pout about a bad race for no more than 72 hours. Since said bad race was last Saturday, that gives me through tomorrow. However, after much deliberation I have decided that I don't need 24 more hours. You see, lately I have decided that I need to model my life after the ever-optimistic and comletely non-nuerotic Tommy Neal. So from henceforth, before I act in any situation, I must pause, I must scratch my chin, and then I must ask myself, "What would Tommy do?" In this case, Tommy would chalk it up to a rough day at the office and get back to the grind! Right Tommy? Right! What I'm trying to say is that I am, get this: OVER IT. No really I am. Seriously. I AM.

Ok, but in all seriousness it was REALLY ugly...I mean it made the Gate River Run look like my best race ever. I won't go into details. Let's just say I ran WAY faster on the same course....um....five years ago. And a 19-somethingish 5k race has never hurt so flippin bad. Sometimes results like this really make me question the whole "money in the bank" theory of training. You know, the idea being that every mile contributes a little something in the long run. I was a believer....now I am not so sure. But ANYWAY...
...not a pretty picture....

So I did a bit of post-race overanalysis like always and decided that maybe I'm not being reasonable with myself and perhaps to expect to race in the 18:20's on that course on that day after two hard on-land workouts since getting back into the swing of things a few weeks ago just isn't reasonable at this point and that I should keep the bigger picture in mind. Did that entire thought just come straight from MY brain? Why, yes it did! Egad! Eureka! Heavens to Betsy and Hallelujah! No, but seriously, I guess that running a bit sub-par tops not running at all BY FAR. I will take that any day, at least there's somewhere to go from there. That goes without saying.


I once watched a FloTrack interview with Lauren Fleshman and she explained that one of the most important things you can do as an athlete to keep things in perspective is to take everything one day at a time and always run in the present without comparing yourself to what you were when you were at your best, but still keeping in mind what you want to be.There is simply more work to be done, onwards and upwards, and Club XC is the main goal at this point for 2010.


The day will come when my first sentence in this silly blog will be "HOLY CRAP!!! I HAD A BREAKTHROUGH RACE!" That day is not today, but stay tuned.