Ya either Love 'em or Hate 'em

Mondays that is!  I try my best love love them.  I mean come on, it's Chest day in the gym.  Who don't like going back into the gym after a two day hiatus and try to destroy every fiber in their chest!?

Any how...... Today was a good day.  My lower legs & feet still hurt, but I'm hoping that is just from the increase in mileage and will at least ease off soon.  I have to keep adding to the mileage though, with two ultras coming up QUICK it is almost a must!!

Today's Training Schedule
Lunch Gym

Flat Dumbbells: 55# WarmUp, 75# (8), 80# (8), 85# (6)
incline Dumbbells: 55# (10), 65# (10), 65# (10)
Dumbbell Fly: 45# (10), 55# (10), 60# (10)
and of course we had to end will pull ups.
3 sets 5 Reps - Full Dead Hang Pull ups

After work decide to get my run on.
5 Miles in the cold & dark through some hills......However the nice thing about running at night during this time of year is ya get to look at all the Christmas lights.  Nice surprise tonight!

Ok friends, Keep on Running, Keep Healthy & SAFE !!

...and again

Had a good 10 miler today with a friend.  We decided to go down the A.T.T. since his 1st ultra is going to be on a very similar surface.  I honestly was a little worried about what pace I would be able to keep since I am still having some leg pain issues.  All in all the day turned out well and I'm glad we went.

We started off a little slow, again worried about my legs, but then after the 1st mile we settled into a mid 8 pace.  Then about mile 4.5 I absolutely crashed & told my buddy we would have to stop at mile 5 and I will have to shed some clothes.  When we left I was cold and was therefor wearing too many clothes.  So after a short break and me removing 2 outer garments we were on our way again.  I hit a Gu Energy Gel & slugged some H20 and was good to go.  The rest of our run was without incident and finished feeling strong.  After the run I stretched & caught up with another tribe member.

A little later on and my legs are feeling ok  I did however wrap them for about an hour today.  It's really a roll of the dice to see what they are going to feel like in the morning.  Tomorrow is an off day then we will be back on it.  Hope everyone has a great weekend, stay safe & healthy!!

Hi everyone, I can not seem to write a blog post without whining right now.  So I will still hold off and just start posting workouts.  Hope everyone is doing well & Merry Christmas to ALL!!

Hi Everyone,
Just a quick note to let you  know that I'm not dead.  Just taking a short break from the Blogger.  Cya'll on Monday.  BTW that's the Day I get to start Running again !!!

Holla!

bla..bla...bla

 Well it's Monday again, and all that means is here we go again.  Had a good weekend with some much needed rest.  I am, however, curious on why I am always so tired during the day.  It would seem that from about 1:PM on I am absolutely exhausted and by 9:PM I'm done!
Friday night was awesome.  The wife & I got to take my boy to the fair to see Newsboys.  That group put on one heck of a show for $10.00 / Person & Best of all my boy LOVED IT!
Other than that, slept in really late on Sat & Slept in a little on Sunday. 
Hope everyone had a great week!  Just remember, If you can run be thankful, hahaha, only 21 more days!

Monday Randomness 1600 Yds, 1 Hour
Warm-Up (100)
Ya right this was a dumb way to start the workout......but it definitely got me huffing & Puffing!
100 I.M.
Main Set (1300)
5 X 100 on 2Min
50 Sprint (27 Sec)
3 X 200 on 30 Sec Rest
200 I.M Swim (25 / Kick 25)

Cool Down (200)
2 X 100 SLOW

Lunch Time Strength Work

Flat Bench Press
135# X 10
185# X 06
205# X 04
225# X FAIL (Again, UGH)
185# X 6
815# X 6

Incline Dumbbell presses
45# X 15
55# X 10
55# X 08

Tricep Cable Pullovers
100# X 10
110# X 10
120# X 10

Bicep Cable Curs (With Straight Bar)
70# X 10
70# x 10
70x x 10
80# x 10

Tricep Single Arm Pull downs (Palm Up)
30# X 10 Each Arm (3 Sets)

HAPPY THURSDAY !!

Today was kind of an adhoc day.  Had some friends who said they would be at the pool early today so I figured I would show up and work out with them……humph, go figure I was the only one to show…..Oh well.  Had a GREAT workout anyhow.  Then lunch time rolled around and had a GREAT Strength chest workout.  All in all today is shaping up to be a great day.  Maybe later on tonight I can fit in a “Cage Fitness” workout tonight at Black Belt Leadership Academy!!

Tomorrow AM starts with…..ummmmm let me think… OH YA, More Swimming.  Then an appearance at the weekly Friday Morning BCRT Run.

On today’s menu we have the following workouts.

25 Min + 5 Min Cool Down on the Elliptical

RPM: >85 mostly above 90

HBPM: > 165 mostly above 180

Aprox miles: 3.2 (Don’t think this is even close but…..)

Cool down was done in reverse direction

Swim

I did not have a set workout this morning, therefore I have no Idea on my yardage.

However I can tell you I did a bunch of

50yd With 30Sec Rest

100yd with 45Sec Rest

Bunch of 25X12.5X12.5’s (25 Catch-Up Drill X 12.5 Swim X 12.5 All Out Sprint)

Afternoon Strength Chest Workout

Bench Press

10 X 135

10 X 155

08 X 175

04 X 205

Incline Dumbbell Press

45 X 12

55 X 12

55 X 12

Threw some light tri pull-downs in for good measure.

Strength Training
ughhhh, Shoulder workouts make me cranky.  Ever since my spine surgery these routines just really hurt my Levator Scapulae Muscle & Trapezius.  I will prob. be in some sort of pain for the next 2 weeks because of this. Anyhow....


Dumbbell Shoulder Presses 3 Sets of  25# X 25 Reps
Machine Lateral Raises: 50# X 12, 50# X 12, 60# X 12, 70# X 12
Abs: Too Many to list, Incline Bench + Weighted Crunches
ISO Machine Shoulder Presses: Machine+45# X 12, 45# X 12, 70# X 12

BRICK

Well, a Mini-Gym-Brick workout that is....I am so tired of not running that I had to do something.  I figure that I am a full 4 weeks in recovery and a little elliptical can not do that much damage.  Since both of my workout partners tanked on me it was a perfect day to do this.  Here is today's workout.

20Min High Intensidity Elliptical.  The machine said somewhere around 2800 steps taken & the note taped, lol, on the machine said that about 1400 steps = 1 Mile.  Anyhow I had a good sweat going on and my heart-rate was eleveated, which is what I was going for.  Distance really does not matter.  Next time I will have my heart-rate monitor and will at least have accurate calorie & heart-rate data.

Next was straight into the pool for
5 X 100 on 2:00
5 X 100 on 2:30

My goal for the pool is to increase stamina which right now is so low it is not even worth mentioning.  Just time to fix it.

I am really looking forward to Spring Racing season and getting back into Triathlons, Biathlons & Aquathons!

Well that's all for now.  Stay Running & HEALTHY friends.  LISTEN TO YOUR BODIES !

Back & Bi

Love'm some Pull-Ups, Pull-Ups, Pull-Ups!
Today's Strength Training Workout is Back & Bicept

Pull-Ups 3 Sets
10, 8, 6 - These felt suprisingly easier than usual today.  I'm hoping that I'm getting stronger & the Swim Training is helping.

Seated Rows: 3 Sets 105# X 10 Reps
Lat Pull-Downs: 3Sets 120# X 10 Reps

Standing Curls (With EZ Curl Bar)
3 Sets: 60#, 60#, 70#
Mixed in some ISO Machine Lat Pull-Downs.
3Sets: Machine + 35#, 45#, 55# X 20 Reps

Finished UP with Machine Seated Curls: Burn Out Sets
30 Reps total for 2 Sets
45# X 10 Reps + 35# X 10 Reps + 25# X 10 Reps.

These are done with no stops between weight changes.  Your partner takes the weight OFF and you keep going.  This extercise REALLY burns and you have to push through the Latic Acid.

Monday AM .... Again

Hi All,
Woke up this morning and went a swim'n.  Nothing spectacular, lots of 100's on 2 Min & several 50's on :45,  just trying to get some sort of stamina back.  With this stress fracture healing & the weather being absolutely FREAK'N awesome the urge to run has been almost insatiable!  So to NOT help that feeling any, I think I am going to sign up for 5K five days out from when I am going to start training again (Links below).

Now I know some of you are thinking, Your an idiot, or maybe , you just stupid T.M.T.S. AGAIN!  But I'm hoping that you are wrong.  The 5 days of running before this race will set the tone for how I run it.

The race is very unique and probably a One-Time only race.  It is being held on a new Toll Road that is getting ready to open up.  Check out the links & let me know if you are going!





Event Website: http://www.TriangleExpresswayTrot.org
Active Registration: http://www.Active.com/running/research-triangle-park-nc/triangle-expressway-trot-2011

Weekend Round-Up

Well since there is no running there are no race reports...sigh......so we will recap a wonderful weekend spent camping with the cub scouts. VIA PICTURES. 

What an awesome weekend to be camping the weather was absolutely wonderful with the days in the mid 70s and the nights in the mid to high 40s.

We followed that up with an early A.M. camp break-out and an awesome day at Church.

A Little fishing

A Little Pumpkin Carving

A Little Eating

A Little Ga Ga Ball

Step It Up

What Up Peoples, and welcome back.....  We now that the parents are on their way home it's time to get back to stepping up the swim work-outs.

Have a great day everyone, and just think only 33 more days until I can start running again....sigh, this might just kill me! HAHA

The warmup on this one was good but I think I would like to switch the 100 and 200 around. 

Here is the workout (that is if you can not view the photo)

Total Distance - 2400m
WarmUp - Total Distance: 500m
  200 Free Non-Stop
  100 Drills I.M.
        Fly (1arm for 1/2 the distance & Switch)
        Back (1 arm  for 1/2 the distance & Switch)
        Breast (6 Sec Glide)
        Free (1 arm Finger Drag for 1/2 the distance & Switch)
  100 Kick I.M. No Kick Board
  100 Swim Free
Main Set - Total Distance: 1400m
  2 X  50 on :60
  2 X 100 On 2
  2 X 150 on 3
  1 X 200
  2 X 150 on 3
  2 X 100 on 2
  2 X 50 On :60
Kick Set - Total Distance: 400m
  100 Kick
  50 Fly, 25 Back
  50 Back, 25 Breast
  50 Breast, 25 Free
  50 Free, 25 Free
Cool Down - Total Distance: 100m
  100 Pull - EASY

Just a quick post to record today's activities.
Lunch Strength Work
Dumbbell Incline Press 4 Sets at Increasing Weight
45#, 55#, 65#,65#

Close Grip Press (Bar +25's)
3 Sets (20 Reps, 25 Reps, 30 Reps)

Triceps Pulldowns 4 Sets Increasing Weight
Triceps Pushes (ISO Machine) 4 Sets

Day off

'sup peoples!  Well today is a day off of work for me today.  Work, that is the job that pays my bills! haha.....I will probably work harder today around the house than I have all week at "work"....Anyhow.

Was up at my normal time today (5:AM) and met up with one of my buddies for swim workout at 5:30.  We did a SIMPLE & QUICK ladder workout today. (See Details Below) Then I hurried home to start the rest of my day off.

The parental units are in town this weekend so Dad & I will putz around the house working on the deck and siding, the never ending project, mom will hang out in the house.  Doing whatever Mom's do in the house.

Later on it's Church time. There is a HUGE woman's conference this weekend that I will be running the sound & media for.  Apparently this group that is coming in is really well know, so this should be interesting.

After setting up the band, it's time to go to my daughter's High School for homecoming, where she is part of the court.  Tailgating before the game, then shooting photos during half-time.

Like I said, busy..busy..busy weekend on tap.  Oh, and don't forget about the state-wide push for camping this weekend.  I think we are going to pitch a tent in the backyard tonight or Sat night.

L8R Y'all!

I have no photos for ya today....so here is a general warning for everyone!






Swim Work-Out (1350 m)
Warm-Up (400 m)
100 Drill (High Elbow, Right Arm Single Stroke, Left Arm Single Stroke)
50 Kick
50 Free (Long & Slow)
100 Drill (50 Closed Fist, 50 Drill)
50 Kick
50 Free (Long & Slow)

Main Set - Ladder (750 m)
25 (fly)
50 (Sprint)
100
200
200
100
50 (Sprint)
25 (fly)
Cool-Down (200 m)
2 X 100 Free (Long & Slow Strokes - Really Stretch)

COC-NC

Hello Friends, I know you have missed me...and I'm not back yet.....but wanted to drop a quick not in and advise you that this weekend is the annual Camp Out Carolina!  Everyone go to the link and check it out.  Let me know if you participate.  eMail me photos and I will put them up here on the blog.  Also, make sure to register so you can be entered to win the prizes....


Link: http://www.campoutcarolina.org/

Entrenamiento de natación el lunes

Short post today.  BIG day on tap at work.
I hope all of you had a good weekend and did not train or race too hard.  I heard there were a lot of local races going in so if you were in one I hope you did well.

Still no running for me.  Since my last running day was 9/14/2011 I have set me target date to start back on November 14, 2011 that will give me just over 8 weeks off the run.  I will start back slow and hopefully everything will be fine.

Today's workout.  Same as last week but with a little twist.

Distance & stroke wise same EXCEPT that I pulled all but the kicking portion and I did the main set on timed intervals.

Total Distance 2,200 Meters

Warm Up (Do 2x) - Total Distance 200m
100 Free Drill (Rest :35)
50 Free Kick (Rest 30)
50 Free Swim (Rest 1:00)


Main Set - Total Distance 1,200m (PULL)
12 X 25 Free (On 30's)
6 X 50 Free (On 1:00)
3 X 100 Free (On 2:00)
300 Free

Kick Set (Do 4X) Total Distance 400m
4 X 25 I.M. (Rest :20)

Cool Down Total Distance 200m (PULL)
200 Free Easy

SW1 DONE!

X-Train Swim Week 1 DONE ! LIKE A CHAMP (Cue "Eye of the Tiger" please)
That's right, 2,200m on Mon, Wed & Fri that's 4.1 Miles y'all.....Sweet!

Ok, ok enough gloating, left on tap for today is
Lunch-Time strength training (Major Muscle Groups Only) tonight I have a CubScout Lock-In with my boy.  Then it's REST TIME !!! YAYYYY

Saturday is full with a Morning Event Photo Shoot for the Alzheimer's walk (Check out last year's photos here).  This year the Running Tribe will be leading the route so should be a good time.  After that it's  yard work & house work.

Sunday is, of course, church then HOPEFULLY a family portrait photo shoot.

Will prob. fit in some Ab Ripper X & Maybe some cycling on the trainer during the evenings.  That is if I can find some cycle shoes.

I hope everyone has a great weekend.

Why does crazy crap happen to me?  So here I was last night, just set up my old road bike with it's new wheels and was sooo excited to get on and spin for a few min. 

Went and got my cycling shoes and WOW did they stink!  It was like a cat had performed some weird bathroom ritual in them.....sigh, so I went and put them in the washing machine, little soap, little OxiClean, and an Ounce of beach for good measure.

Went back when the washing cycle was done AND LOOK WHAT I PULLED OUT !!!! UGH, I don't have the money for this crap, I mean really!  The ridged soles completely detached from the uppers and the uppers all but disolved! 

Well let's hope today will get better.  If anyone knows where I can get an inexpensive pair of cycling shoes from let me know.... 'Till next time.

Peace & Blessing

Blog Updates

Blog updates are always make me feel like I have accomplished something.  I don't know if it is the writing down of all the day's activities or just the reflection of what you have done.  But I always feel better know I have updated it.

Speaking of updated blogs.  I just updated this one to cover last weekend, Monday & Tuesday.  Ya have to go and look, haha.

Today's swim work-out was the same as Monday's.  However I somehow seemed to drop about 10 min off my total water time.

So in the classic style of Dori, from Finding Nemo. I tell off you you Just keep swimming,Just keep swimming,Just keep swimming, swimming, swimming, swimming..........


Oh and P.S.  I really (Still) don't like Kicks Sets!  Ok now I have said it.  L8R on Peoples!

Total Distance 2,200 Meters

Warm Up (Do 2x) - Total Distance 200m
100 Free Drill (Rest :35)
50 Free Kick (Rest 30)
50 Free Swim (Rest 1:00)


Main Set - Total Distance 1,200m
12 X 25 Free (Rest :30)
6 X 50 Free (Rest 1:00)
3 X 100 Free (Rest 1:30)
300 Free

Kick Set (Do 4X) Total Distance 400m
4 X 25 I.M. (Rest :20)

Cool Down Total Distance 200m
200 Free Easy

Afternoon Strength Workout
Dumbbell Shoulder Press
35# 12 Reps
40# 12 Reps
60# 10 Reps Assissted heavily
50# 10 Reps UnAssisted

Cable Machine Circuit
Bicep Curls Using straight bar
Tricept Pull-Downs using V-Bar
Lat Pulldowns

Moving in succession to all 3 stations = 1 Set
Set 1
Bi: 70#, 12 Reps
Tri: 60#, 12 Reps
Lat: 75#, 12 Reps

Set 2
Bi: 78#, 12 Reps
Tri: 70#, 12 Reps
Lat: 90#, 12 Reps

Set 3
Bi: 80#, 12 Reps
Tri: 75#, 10 Reps
Lat: 105#, 10 Reps

Single Arm Bicep Cable Curls (Isolation Curls) 30#
10 Reps Per Arm, 3 Sets

Strength Training

So today is Tribe Tuesday :-( and  I get to go and take photos today of the Running Tribe doing what Running Clubs do........RUN.  It's like being on a fast and sitting in a buffet restaurant!  Oh well, what doesn't kill ya makes ya stronger right?

Lunch Time Work-Out
Triple Threat Bicep Curls
30#, 25#, 20# - Ten Reps Each Arm Moving Down in Weight w/o any rest
Total of 30 Reps / Arm / Set
Repeat 3X (3 Sets)

Triceps Cable Pull-Overs
100#, 120#, 120# - 12 Reps at Each Weight

Narrow Grip Bench Press With Curl Bar
Bar + 25's (75#)
3 Sets - 30 / 30 / 20

Let the Cross-Training Begin

So, last weekend was a big weekend for me.  I finally got off my wallet and with some birthday money that I recieved I went and re-outfitted my OLD triathlon bicycle with new wheels.  Check out the photos of the death & Resurrection of the TRI-BIKE!

Resurrection

DEATH

Next purchase on tap was some new goggles!  I have not purchased any new goggles in who knows how log, so off to the local sporting goods store I went.  Walked up to the display and did not recognize any of the styles so I just grabbed a pair of the Speedo branded ones, checked the return policy and off I went.

I ended up buying the Speedo Vanquisher 2.0  Needless to say these are HUGELY different from my old Racing Sweeds!  But after my 90 Min workout this morning they seem to do just fine.

 Now on to this mornings main course

Swim WorkOut-Total Distance 2,200Meters

Warm Up (Do 2x) - Total Distance 200m
100 Free Drill (Rest :35)
50 Free Kick (Rest 30)
50 Free Swim (Rest 1:00)


Main Set - Total Distance 1,200m
12 X 25 Free (Rest :30)
6 X 50 Free (Rest 1:00)
3 X 100 Free (Rest 1:30)
300 Free

Kick Set (Do 4X) Total Distance 400m
4 X 25 I.M. (Rest :20)

Cool Down Total Distance 200m
200 Free Easy


Afternoon Strength Workout


Dumbbell Press Press 12 Reps / 3 Sets 35#, 40#, 45#
Incline Dumbbell Presses 12 Reps / 3 sets 45#
ISO Lat Pull-Downs 10 Reps / 3 Sets 45#(Per Side), 70#(Per Side), 70#(Per Side)
Tricep Cable Pull-Downs 15 Reps / 3 sets 60#

Late Night "Monday" Work-Out
P90X Chest & Back
P90X Ab Ripper

Went home and passed out.
Keep on pushing friends, all this work will pay out someday..........I Hope :-)
Peace & Blessing

TYPE-A

In typical Type-A class and style I have a case of TMTS!

Too Much Too Soon, so I guess starting my 1/2 marathon training with a 13 mile run and about killing myself then following it up with a 14.6 mile run at 5K training pace is not the way to do it (See Catch-Up Post Here). All this without stopping or decreasing any of my normal millage.

So after after about 2 weeks of pain in my left Tibia and hoping it was just shin splints I broke down and went to my Ortho.  Some discussion and x-rays we agree that I probably have stress fractures and need a bone scan.  That has been ordered for Friday so will know more then.  However I am prepping myself for 4-6 wks of no running and cancelling my Pamlico Jack Challenge (8K+ Half Marathon) and 3 other races I had on-tap.

Well now I have been talking to my trainer and we are going to start on a stress fracture friendly training program that will keep my running cardio up and keep me in shape so hopefully the recovery to running again will not be so bad. Triathlon X-Training Here I come !!

Ortho Appt

Well I broke down and called my Ortho.....Never thought I could get an appointment with the guy I wanted to see and the conversation went something like this.

Me: Hello, what is the possibility of getting an appointment with Dr.B
Rec: hahahahaha, your name?
Me: TimP
Rec: Oh we know you; Hold on please.
Rec: Be here at 3:30 and we will work you in.

Is that a bad thing?
Updates will come later.

Peace Ya'll!

Late Weekend Post

Well no running this weekend, No new running shoes, No New Calf Compression Sleeves, No New Vibrams....Ugh..  

The REI Garrage Sale was kinda a bust.  I did come out of it with a used Petzl Head Lamp and an almost new pair of Merrell Radland Shoes.

Now onto the bad news.  I think a trip to the orthopedic surgeon is in order for the upcoming week.  MY LOWER LEFT LEG IS KILLING ME!  I am hoping it is just shin splints but I doubt it.
Additionally I have all sorts of pains going on and don't know what to do about them.  I have laied off the run now for a few days and it seems to only get worse.  My foot (the broke one) is having some real problems and I think my neck is making my fingers numb and hurt again.

More on all that in another post.  Now time for bed and when we wake tomorrow a call to the Doc.

Oh well......have a great week everyone.

Birthday stats

Today I am.....
38 years old that's
456 months old
or  1,982 weeks old
or  13,879 days old

Current Old Man Stats
I stand 5' - 11"
Weigh in at 79 Kg (174lb)

Unofficial Running PR's
1 Mile:  6:58
5K: 21:51
1/2 Marathon: 1:48:20

Short Run

Tonight's run was a short run do to some requests for me to shoot photos in the local Co. Fair.

2 mile warm up
3x hill sprints
50 sec sprint up the hill
Recovery as I walked back to the start.
Run back to the house at race pace.
Walk cool down
Stretch

Total miles. 2.43 miles
Oh well will shoot for a long run this weekend

It was bound to happen

Hey everyone, lol like anyone but me reads this! Anyhow.........
I'm back in the gym again.  I'm officially participating in the USMC Mud Run with a team of friends who had a temmate drop out..sooooo my reserve card got pulled.  I just checked out the website and looks to be a pretty intense Obstacle course.  About 5 miles and 32 Obstacles see the included map for more info on the rout and click the link for a description for all the Obstacles.

Flat Bench 135 X 10 - 4 Sets
Standing Dumbbell curls 5 per arm 2x (Total of 10 Reps) - 4 Sets increasing weight on each set. 20, 25, 35
Standing Tri Pushdowsn using rope handle 4 sets 60lbs 20 Reps
Standing Bicep Curls using straight bar on the cable machine. 4 Sets 80lbs 15 Reps


Nothing hard just trying to get some reps in.  Let the pain come so we can work through it.  I will be modifying my schedule to accommodate a Lunch-Time weight program and as soon as the time changes will start doing more Two-a-Day weight training workouts.

Still want to keep my run up however I am excited to start cross training.  Hopefully I will get to pick up my new wheels for my road bike this weekend from REI and I can start spinning SOON.  Additionally when the time changes I will start my swim training in the mornings.  There a lot of change getting ready to happen peoples!  Stay tuned..............

Tribe Tuesday

Today, like every Tuesday, is TRIBE Tuesday.  However this is a special meeting as it is the 1st ever Brick City Running Tribe Monthly Awards Tuesday.  Awards you say?  Yup, after earning 10 running credits, which are earned by Tuesday runs, Friday AM runs, or any other race with your BCRT shirt on, you earn a "Super Fly" BCRT Medal ! There were 14, I think, members that have earned their 10 or more credits and received one of these.

Now on to the running.  Nothing spectacular to mention.  I did the short run, my lower left leg still hurts but I stopped at mile 2 and stretched my calf's and that seemed to help a little bit.  After the stretch one of my buddies cruzed on by me so I tagged up with him and finished the last 1/4 with him somewhere around a 6:35 pace.


After the run the club went to a local Italian restaurant and handed out the medals and did a raffle drawing.

Race Day Recap-9/11/2011 Cara 5k

FAIL - Well 90 % FAIL......
Unofficial GPS RunKeeper Results: Time: 21:51

Ok so by now we all know that I was amped up for the CARA 5K race.  It got cancelled, I was not going to get rescheduled but then I did get rescheduled but with no chip timing and was presented as a "Just for Run Run".  On top of all that It was rescheduled for September 11th.....UGH, could it had be a worse day?  Maybe, but that would have been tough to beat.

Race Day

Sooooo I'm not sure what happened to me but somewhere along the way I think I lost interest in this race.  I only say that because I think it was the worse race I had ever run.  there was EVERY opportunity for me to have an ultra fast race.  #1) I had  two great people to chase.  One of them is in the Running Tribe that I am a member of and the other was a guy wearing a TAF singlet.  My friend runs just a little slower than me but I like to let him lead for most of the course then at about mile 2 I turn it on and its all he can do to keep up with me.  However the TAF guy was running at about my 5K race pace.  The problem that I had was I had no Chase, and yes I like to chase, I had no Kick.  Nope, did not even kick it into high gear at the end when everyone was watching....and I had no desire to do either one of those.

Now I can come up with all the excuses that I need.  Foot pain, neck pain, shoulder pain & the leg pain I am dealing with right now.  Yup they were all present that morning but I would be lying to you If I told you that is what held me back.  The real reason is I just did not "Want It".  BTW I could have easily passed my buddy from the run club and I'm almost sure I could have at least caught the TAF guy, however that will wait until another day.  Maybe next year.

Now for the 10% Good.
Yes, I did PR the course.  A full 43 sec faster than my quickest run on this route
Yes, I did make it to church on-time.  (Race started at 8:15, I was in my truck leaving at 8:40, at church at 9:30 :-)  The Lord was pleased!)
AND......I WON THE GRAND DOOR PRIZE !!!!!!  Check out the cool swag below.

Well another race, another bib and another shirt.  Next time WILL be better.

Peace out Peeps!

Basket Contents !!!!
3 Running magazines
Frog Toggs Chilly Pad Cooling Towel
Feetures Elite Running / Cycling Sox
Sneaker Balls Shoe Freshener
Stick of Body Glide
1 Pair Yankz Sure Lace System
Brooks - DNA Playing Cards
Omega Sports t-Shirt
Brooks Sillicone Bracelet
Nathan L.E.D. Safty Strobe
Animal Rescue Magnet
Sneaker Keychain
Bag of Sweet Potato Tortilla Chips
Larry's Beans Organic House Blend Coffee
4 - GU Energy Gels
Clif Shot Bloks
Clif Bar
Extreme Sports Beans

Grand Prize Basket

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Bad Runs

So I will be honest, I can not stand a bad run.  I mean it ruins the rest of whatever day I have left.  If I have a bad run at lunch time the rest of the day is shot.  If I have a bad run in the evening I go to be mad.  I just ruins everything.

Last night was one of those runs.  I started out with a sore shoulder / Neck & a sore left foot & Shin.  I figured I would do a walking warm-up then stretch then ease into a jog.  All that went well, some mild pain but overall it was ok.  After that I started my run.  It seemed like every step I had someone hitting my left shin with a crowbar, I don't know what have done, so I decided to do some interval stuff. 3 Min Run W/ 90 Sec walk.  I did this for about 2.5 miles then finished up with a light run to my turn around point.

At the turn around I stopped and stretched my neck, calfs & Quads.  Reset my RunKeeper and off I went determined to finish out the last 2 miles at a decent pace.  I ran back to the neighborhood holding about a 7:15 min/mile pace.  It hurt but I was able to push through it.  I hate days that that.

Well, later on friends.

RunKeeper #1

RunKeeper #2

Get Inspired with Garden Salsa | USA Triathlon

Check this Garden Salsa out. Sounds good, think I will try it.

Get Inspired with Garden Salsa | USA Triathlon

Huge Catch-Up Post as promised

ok, so here we are again. Playing the old Blog catch-up game. So much has happened since my last entry that I don't know if it is even worth going through or should I just start fresh AGAIN! Ugh, well I think I will at least try and catch-up on some notable items.  Sorry for the extremely long post but here we go.....

Notable Item #

 1) I registered for the C.A.R.A. 5K

2) Trained on the actual route for the 5k. Hills, yuck, I don't do hills very well but non-the-less I trained on them.

3) Hurricane IRENE showed her tail

4) C.A.R.A. 5k Cancelled at the last min. & could not find another replacement race. I did try though. Anything within reasonable driving distance was cancelled as well.

5) After church on the 28th came home and thought I was 19 and super-fit-man and wanted to see if I could actually run 1/2 marathon distance. So on a whim out the door I went. No fluids, nope none the day before nor any that day. No Breakfast and nothing out of the ordinary the night before. The temp when I decided to do this was about 88 deg however quickly shot up into the 90's that day.

NEEDLESS TO SAY; I think I about killed myself that day. I ran about 10k and was tired but ok and decided to push on. Stopped for a stretch & quick drink from the fountain and off I went. So to get in the millage that I was hoping for I ran the above mentioned CARA 5k course twice back to back. Did I mention that I do not do hills very well? I have a really bad habit of pushing up the hills in fear of loosing time that I end up sprinting by the end of the hill and this course has a MAJOR incline at mile 2. 56ft in 1/4 mile. So now after that I hit the fountain again and on the home stretch. The temps were up and my body was hurting, never in my life had I run / limped that far in my life.....this was all new to me. Guess I should not have started out the run at my normal 5k training pace. Well I made it home and rad directly to the shower where I stayed for the next 15 min trying to get my core to cool down. Oh my gosh, worst possible physical experience of my life! You can look at the route here if you want a good laugh.......I vowed to NEVER do it again! The whole adventure took me 2:24:48 and my "Semi-Moving" time was 2:06:29. I was a complete failure!

6) Two days later was the regular meeting of the running Tribe and out we went on yes more hills. I ran ok but hooked up with one of the other guys who was struggling and paced him for the last 1/2 of the run. (RunKeeper Here). First half was somewhere in the 7's and the last half was at about a 9:30 pace. The last 1/2/ was a welcome pace after the brutal run on previous Sunday. Interestingly enough, the run was good and I was not as sore as I thought I would be.

7) Sept 2, ran the Cara 5k rout again this time with much better results. The hills are still difficult but are getting better all the time. Still have that nasty habit of trying to sprint up them, oh well keep on working.

8) NOW HERE IS THE BIG NEWS! You remember in item #5 when I said I would never do that again?! Well that was last week, hahahaha. I decided to give the 1/2 marathon distance a try again. This time I would do some proper prep work.

The night before I went to a local Italian place with the wife and had a HUGE plate of pasta carbana, completely hydrated the previous day & went to bed at a decent time. Got up that morning & ate a piece of toast & 1 egg packed up my phone, spice drops, and filled my Camelbak with water and out the door I went to meet one of my friends from the Tribe. We drove to the American Tobacco Trail where we put in 14.68 miles! That's right folks, 14+ miles and what was great about that is I never got winded and my body did not start shutting down until about mile 11, not bad though. Somewhere about mile 12 my hams, quads & calfs wanted to give out. They hurt so bad but it was one of those pains that we as runners expect and just have to push through, which I was able to do. I was very impressed with myself at the two mile markers that I wanted to give up I was able to really focus and push through and ended up putting in sub 8Min miles (Miles 11 & 13).

So you keep asking what is the BIG NEWS........well...........an 8:22 average pace! That's right folks, 14.68 miles in 2 hrs 2 min and 48 sec!!!!! AND I DID NOT DIE, it was a great run.....It is amazing what a little planning will do for your runs. I did have one problem though, my right shoulder developed this sharp shooting pain in the front-dead center and my neck started to really hurt. I'm sure this has to do with the stupid plate in my neck but I am also wondering if I have a gate / pronation problem....more on that some other time. PLEASE I encourage you to take a look at the RunKeeper map & stats and provide any feed back that you would like!!!  
Note: about mile 13 there is a drop in pace.  This is where is briefly stopped to help a guy out with his horse trailer on hwy 64......strange, but ok :-)

mi	Pace (min/mi)	Elevation (ft)
1	8:40	21
2	8:16	22
3	7:45	-14
4	8:00	10
5	8:33	74
6	8:23	18
7	8:14	-39
8	8:44	2
9	8:10	44
10	8:07	-41
11	7:52	-74
12	8:47	29
13	7:51	-12
14	9:29	-24
15	8:49	-13

9) Lastly after spending 30 min in the basement with the wife & kids riding out tornado warnings on Tues I met up for our weekly Running Tribe meeting at 6:PM. Run was terrible my neck and shoulder hurt very bad so I only ran 1/2 the course. It was very stormy & raining so no "Official" gps reading from RunKeeper but I did manually enter in my time.

Things of NEED
NEW SHOES, Winter Running attire &
A GPS Watch. I would really like to find something that I could wear as my everyday watch, but that is not a deal breaker

Looking at the new Nike watch, but wow $300.00 for a newbie in the GPS Watch game? Not so sure about that.



 Looking at the Garmin 405cx, but not sure about the whole touch bezel








Looking at the Garmin 310Xt, has ALL the features that I want. BUT HOLLY SMOKES, $350.00 NEW!!!!





 
Finally considering trying to find a used Garmin 305. Seems to be the tried-and-true watch that everyone sets as the standard. As always Keep on running friends and give me a shout-out !! Later

Catch-Up

Playing Catch-Up is never fun HOWEVER there should be a New post on the way today !
With updates since my last post, ya I know I'm sorry.  Then let's pray that I can keep my updates going.

Peace out & Keep Running

ohhhh

ohhhhh, my legs ache today.  Not good, they are all tight and sore.

Well tonight I have the 1st of 4 Pace group runs that I am leading in prep for the race on the 27th.  We will run the actual route from start to finish.  Not sure how I am going to run today, probably all out if I know me, the course is very hilly and there is a killer hill at about mile 2.5.  More on this later on tonight along with course details.

Getting Ready for the Count Down

Had a good run tonight, not as fast as some people I follow but was good for me.
The time of the day was a little bit of an issue.  When I left out from the church it got dark faster than I had anticipated.  I did bring along my little friend the Guardian Safety Light but still had several close calls on the way.

The route was good.  First 2 miles are an up and down, mostly down stretch followed by the next 2+ miles of Up, Up, Up hill to my finish.  Splits were good and steady.

Race on the 27th so I will keep on pushing.  I'm a little worried about my hamstrings though, tonight they are cramping up and yesterday they tightened up in between my two runs.......Oh well, only time can tell what will happen.

Actual Mile Splits
Mile 1: 7:01
Mile 2: 7:01
Mile 3: 8:00
Mile 4: 7:41

Check out the route.

ok, I know it has been forever since I have posted but it has been a busy week.  Updates to come soon I promise!  Plus results of the Old School Aquathon #3!

Afternoon Run

My runs are getting a little better.  I ran today and was less wore-out that normal. I mixed a new route with an old route and kept the mileage under four miles.   No automated RunKeeper tracking today, however I manually plotted my rout and entered a rounded up time.

Route Here

Weather

Time         Temp Dew   Humd

11:51 AM 87.1 °F 63.0 °F 44%

12:51 PM         90.0 °F    64.0 °F 42%

Solo Kayak Camping Trip ReCap

Okay, now that I am back all safe & sound let’s recap this weekend’s adventures.

Friday
Packed up the kayak will all the essentials that I will be taking on the Sep. trip and loaded it into the back of the Truck.  This took longer than expected so that put me on the water almost an hour late, about 7:00.  Since everyone else bailed out of this trip I launched solo at Buckhorn Dam heading downstream towards Raven Rock St. Park.  Immediately I started running into issues with the water depth, there were several times where I could have got out of the Kayak and drug it over the rocks and one time that I actually had to.  Other than that, quite an enjoyable trip down the river & the Heat was not bad.  There were quite a few people out enjoying the river from the homes & porches. I paddled 8.32 Miles in 2hrs.

Upon my arrival at Raven Rock it was almost dark, and by the time that I portaged all my gear and got my kayak up to the camp it was pitch black!  Next I built a fire and proceeded to setup camp.  I was doing as much as I could so that I would not let me insecurities of me being out in the woods, almost as far away as I could be, alone bother me too much.  Up to this point I was still holding my own and was not wigged-out at all.  Eleven O’clock rolls around and it was time to call the wife to tell her goodnight.  Just as soon as I hung up the phone from here a BOBCAT starts growling at me !  Now, I don’t know about you but this send me to Wig-Out land !!  For the next four hours I focused on keeping my fire going, actively scanning the woods with my light, and an all encompassing worry about what is out there and what is going to EAT me!  Ughhhh, between that bobcat, the hundreds of bats flying over my head & the raccoons that were trying to sneak into my camp I was so freaked out that I ended up packing all my gear up and moving to the bath-house for the rest of the time.  The bath-house was not much better, yes, it had four wall but those walls were lifted up off the ground about 3 Inches !  HA, so now I had to worry about all the creepy-crawly things.  Needless to say, no sleep was had Friday night.  To add insult to entire experience, at some point before I moved to the shelter, something (Probably the bobcat) came into my camp and stole my entire food bag! On top of everything else, I popped all of my stitches on the kayak trip down and my finger was now bleeding.  WOW, What a night!!

Saturday 
Morning finally arrived and I walked to the trail-head, 2 Miles away, to wait for my kayak friend and while there I was talking to one of the park rangers about what he thought I might have experience.  He confirmed that he would be pretty sure that it was a bobcat as well.  He did however share with me that some guest of the park just last weekend reported watching some bears head into the park!  REALLY !  Don’t you think that is something that they should tell campers?? Anywho……

My friend finally arrived, and we carried his kayak back down the trail, 2miles, to the river and launched about 9:00.  He and I continued our kayaking down the Cape Fear to our extraction site in Lillington where my wife was waiting for us., The river was rough and we had a head wind the entire way. However we finished that
paddle in just over 1hr 30min.

Good time was had & was wore-out when I got home.

Lessons learned this weekend
I am NOT a solo camper
I have no interest in ever camping at Raven Rock again.  However, I probably will
I WILL have a better head lamp next time I camp.  I use to think that $40.00-$60.00 was overkill, YOU WOULDN’T IF YOU HAD JUST GONE THROUGH WHAT I DID.
ALWAYS bring extra batteries, not matter how long you THINK you might be gone.
Invest in a bear-bag to keep your food in.
I need a longer kayak for my September trip.
I need more water when doing primitive overnight kayak camping.  One 2l CamelBak is not enough.

First Aid Checklist: Expert Advice from REI

In preparation for my overnight kayak camping trip this Friday.  I have come across a couple of helpful check lists.  These will also be hand for my Sep. Fayetteville to BattleShip Kayak trip!

First Aid Checklist: Expert Advice from REI

Canoe Day Touring Checklist: Expert Advice from REI

Backpacking Checklist: Expert Advice from REI

Ughhhhh, REALLY!?

  So today’s post work activity / workout was to paddle a new portion of the Deep River, about 6.8 miles of it.  TO BAD IT NEVER HAPPENED !

Why, ‘cause I’m stupid that’s why.

  On the way home from work I stopped to get gas in my motorcycle and broke the kay off in the gas tank lock.  I called the wife and asked her to bring me my spare.  Well, while I stand there waiting I decide to try and get the broken part out of the lock.  I went to my Tail-Bag and returned with the wire portion of a binder clip.  Carefully I placed the end of it into the whole where the key was broke off and tried to rotate it back to the lock position so I could actually get some gas and go home to worry about the broken part there, but alas the lock would not budge. 

  Now comes the super idea of the day !  My knife had a broken tip on the blade that looks like it just might fit beside the broken portion of the key and with the handle at a 90degree angle (not locking the blade out, 2^nd mistake) I wedged it down there and started trying.  The more I tried the more frustrated it got.  Finally out of an act of aggravation I put more pressure on the handle and twisted really hard.  POP, the blade flew out of the key hole and …… yup you guessed it, sliced a nice hole in my right-hand index finger.  Ughhh, an even longer story short, called some friends to come and get my bike and take it to a local shop and off we went to the urgent care. 

Five stitches, a tetanus shot and a prescription for antibiotics later we were on our way home.  So much for paddling today!