Thursdailies

I was able to get a surprise last night as I was getting ready to leave work. My wife called me and said that the kids were going to spend the night with their auntie, and that they would be coming back home tomorrow. That very rarely ever happens. We have never let our kids stay overnight anywhere, except for with their grandparents in Ft. Lauderdale... so this was the first time we were doing this. But after our initial reservations, we decided to have a little fun with the break that we had. My Wednesday work day was a 12.5 hour shift at work, so I got home around 9 pm; so we decided to go and catch a 10 pm movie. Didn't get home until close to 1 am. It was so nice to get out though. I woke up at 6:30 (tired as can be) and headed out to do a 10 mile run. It started out crappy (literally)... and I didn't feel well at all. The lack of sleep, and pounding down popcorn and fruit punch at 11:30 pm, while at the movies was catching up to me very early in the run. But there are times that I have felt worse than this, and usually, my body just starts to warm up during the run.... which is exactly what happened this morning. By the 3rd mile, I was feeling better and luckily the sun didn't come out, so it made the run quite manageable. Usually when I run on the Suncoast Trail, it is very nice quiet time for me because you just don't find too many people biking or running during the week at that time in the morning. This is pretty much how it looked this morning on the Suncoast Trail:

While running, I glanced down at my watch and saw that I was running at a pace that only 1 year ago, was my pace that I ran my tempo runs at. It was very satisfying to think of how my fitness levels have improved over the last 10-12 months. I guess that is why my relationship with running is still in the "honeymoon" phase... because my improvements have been so drastic, that it just seems like this is how it will always be... but I know that is definitely not the case. I did think that when I used to run 9:30/mile runs, I never thought I would get to the point that I could run a 9:00/mile pace for more than 5 miles... but it happened. And the improvements have continued... so you never know. Anyways, I will continue to enjoy the "honeymoon" phase. This weekend, I will do a 5 miler on Saturday and a 13 miler on Sunday. That will put me at 36 miles for the week, which has been around my average before starting this structured program for Chicago.

It's all in your head!!!

First of all, Happy Father's Day to all the daddies out there. I was able to have quite a nice Father's Day. I started it off with a 12 mile run with Ben at 6 am this morning on the Suncoast Trail. When I got home, my wife and kids presented me with cards with beautiful words... as always. We got Chinese food after everyone got home from church, and they presented me with cake and ice cream and sang, Happy Father's Day (Birthday style!!).

Running with Ben during my long runs has been very beneficial for me. First thing, is that it is allowing me to run without an Ipod... which I plan to do for my marathon. I enjoy talking with him, and he has so much great information to offer.

Today we talked about sports on a whole, and the mental training that it takes to succeed. We both felt as though we could do much better in running if we had a better mentality when it comes to "gutting it out". When I read stuff on message boards on Runner's World, and people give their race reports on marathons that they have completed, if they don't do well, there is almost always an excuse of some sort.... "too hot", "too hilly", "too flat", "didn't sleep well", "garmin wasn't working properly"... and I am no different...

As we continued to talk about it, we came up with a conclusion on why we mentally fade when the pressure is on.... most of us can't handle the fact that if we run a marathon (or train for any other sport for that matter) and give it everything we have in training... and fail? Well, we just can't handle it... we don't want to accept the fact that even your best effort at times will still not be good enough... that's a tough pill to swallow. Ben even said that when he didn't get under 3:00 hours in his marathon, he said he knew (while running the 26th mile of the race) that he would get a little sympathy because of all the excuses that he had... valid excuses... but excuses nonetheless.

For me, it's the same thing... Disney was because of poor preparation with hydration before the race (the water is not at fault...) I screwed up.

Lance Armstrong's coach was interviewed about 3 years ago on the Jim Rome show, and Jim Rome asked him if Lance did not get cancer, did he think he would have won 7 Tour DeFrance titles...
He answered, NO!!!! He said that when Lance realized that his life was nearly taken away, he said that he was no longer afraid of giving it everything he had, and was able to deal with the consequences of failing and just not being good enough.
Today, I watched a tennis match in which the #2 player in the world played the #3 player in the world. It was a very tightly contested match, but the #2 player won.
During the post ceremony speeches, the #3 player wanted everyone to know that this was only his 2nd tournament played on a grass court, and that he was very happy with his result.... again, I know his result weren't bad, but that was a bunch of nonsense.... he knew he could have won, but just didn't... because the other guy was better... but he had his string of excuses lined up to kind of sugar coat him not winning the match.
As I am typing this blog, I am watching the final round of the US Open golf tournament... and I just find it ironic how every time Tiger hits a bad shot, the announcers blame his knee as the culprit... but when he nails a ridiculous shot... he is just the best mental competitor of all time (which he is, IMO)... but my point is why are they trying to make excuses for Tiger if he happens to lose???? I mean, if he wasn't able to play, then don't play!!!

Okay, I don't want to go on a rant and get side tracked here, but at the end of the day, I realize, it's all in our heads...for the most part. We just have to believe in ourselves, and not be afraid to fail... and if we do fail???? Oh well.... try again another time... no excuses!!!!

Gettin' by....

I was a little nervous about this week. I sometimes get a bit fidgety if I know I'm going to have a rough week ahead of me. Chris has been on vacation this week, so I have had to work a bit more than I usually work. The work part of the week wasn't so much of an issue, but we also have my brother-in-law (who is 12) and niece (10 years old) here this week, so I thought it would be tough to get in my runs for the week. Well, everything has worked out fine. It's Friday, I feel fresh and strong, and I was able to get in a 7 miler on Tuesday and a 9 miler yesterday. I had a shorter day yesterday, and we were able to take the kids over to a local pool by my workplace. Once we got home, we were able to watch "Gameplan" and even got to watch a little bit of the Lakers vs. Celtics, last night. So now all I have to do is a 5 miler tomorrow, and a 12 miler on Sunday with Ben. My cousin and his family is coming up from Ft. Lauderdale today, and he has just recently started to get into running. Maybe he will accompany me on the 5 miler tomorrow... if he is up to it.
One of the reasons that I enjoy running so much is that I basically can eat whatever I want. I'm not saying this to brag in any way, but when you run as much miles as I am running... you really have to eat to keep your weight stable. The bad thing for me is that my stomach is very sensitive... actually it is quite unstable!!! So, for me I am trying to really get my nutrition down to the point that I am eating good food for my body, but at the same time not having Tofu for dinner... I would just strangle myself if I had to do that. So, that is what I am trying to figure out.... what is right for me? What can my body handle? What can I eat that will keep me healthy, but sane?
Any thoughts????

I need a Red Bull!!

Today starts my formal training for Chicago. As usual, I run on Tuesdays, but I usually decide to run in the morning vs. the evening, based on if I can wake up early enough Tuesday morning. For me to run, I have to get up by 4:30-4:45 am. It usually takes me 5-10 min. to get ready to go, and I usually run for at least 1 hour. I don't set an alarm, because, as I said in earlier posts, I just don't want to turn running into a chore. If I wake up, I go.... if I don't, I'll just have to run at night. Well, my daughter woke up in the middle of the night and crawled into our bed, so I couldn't sleep great after that. That was my sign to get up and go.
So, I did a 7 mile run + 10 x 100 meter sprints at the end. During the run, I was shocked to see two ladies that were walking around 5:30 am. It was nice to have a little company, even though you only see them for like a second or two. As I got to mile 3 or so, I started to envision the race and running with all those people. So cool... I hope I get to the starting line to really experience it. The run went great, and my body felt very good afterwards. I showered up and felt great on my way to work. Well, I'm not sure what has happened since then (maybe because I've now been up for 10 hours and it's 1 pm), but now I feel blah!!! My eyes are shutting down, and I thought I would feel better after lunch, but I am still yawwwwning!!!! Well... the good news is that I should be home by 4:00 pm. Ok... gotta go... my first patient after lunch is here.

So Here's The Plan....

I had a great run this morning. Ben, my new training buddy, met me at my house at 6 am. We drove over to the Suncoast Trail and went out on a long run. We completed 14 miles, and it was a very good run for me. I'm not sure if the weather was better than usual or what, but I was able to keep my heart rate down for much of the run. Even more importantly, I was able to keep my own pace, and even though Ben is much faster than I am, he allowed me to keep the pace, which kept me quite comfortable. The most beneficial thing about it is that he gave me so many good tips on marathoning and endurance sports on a whole. As much as you think you know, you can always learn off of someone's good fortune or mistakes of what they have done. I am very grateful for what he told me today. The good thing is that he told me about what he does with his marathoning training, and what he really focuses on during his training. I guess the really good thing is that he thinks that the program I am going to use is very good, and that my times should significantly go down based on the program. So... here is my plan for the next 4 months:
I will start my marathon program this upcoming week. It will start out at 32 miles/week, and will peak at 55 miles/week. I might add a couple of miles to my program, or bring up the intensity a little bit on my long runs if my body feels up to it. During the 18 week program, I will try to do 2 races (hopefully a half-marathon,10k, or 15k) to gauge where I am at with my training. Also, I am still quite new to races, and I want to feel much more comfortable with getting into "race" mode.

My main goal as always is to stay injury-free, and be able to run Chicago.... that is the most important thing. I want to be able to experience what it feels like to run with 35,000+ people in the same race. Gives me goose bumps just thinking about it.

Second goal is to finish the marathon, with running/jogging the whole way. I want to demonstrate mental toughness, and run the whole way... not necessarily fast, but just continue to move... Ben told me today that usually once you stop... you're done. That is what I felt like at the Ft. Lauderdale race when I stopped... you just can't get back into the swing of things.

Third goal is to run a smart race....meaning that I can adjust my pace based on the weather conditions for that day, etc. I can't necessarily say that I have a specific goal pace yet ( I think I will wait for another month or two, when I do a time trial or race, and then I will figure it out from there), but I need to run smart.

I will always have fun. So that is not a goal. Running has always been fun for me, and my competitive spirit is what drives me to try to put together a good performance. Running keeps me focused and goal driven, which helps me with everyday life. When it stops helping me with staying focused and is no longer fun, I will stop it... Hasn't even come close to that. I love to run, and I am so excited to start my training.
For me, it is not only the actual race that I enjoy, but it is the journey and training it takes to get there.
As always, Thank you Jesus that you have blessed me with two legs that allow me to run, and have fun!!!

I got a "running" buddy!!!!!

This morning, I had no clue on to what pace I was going to run. I knew I wanted to run at least 10 miles, but with how hot it has been, I didn't know if I really wanted to run too hard. I didn't want to plop down somewhere on the trail... but I didn't want to run too slow. Anyways, I ended up going out fairly slow for the 1st 2 miles, and then I started to pick up the pace a bit. I decided to try to keep my pace around 8 min/mile or lower, and just see how long I could keep it up.... it's weird because at some points during the run, you feel pretty tired, and then it's like your body goes into another gear, and you feel good again. At the 5th mile, I had to take a potty break, and since I didn't bring any water with me, I decided to take a water break at that time also. I also decided to change my Ipod playlist.... so who knows... it could've been a 10 minute break or so. But whatever... I was able to get back into the swing of things within a 1/4 mile. So, basically I was able to run 8 miles under 8:00/mile with the rough heat. I was extremely happy with my run. The last mile was a little tough, and I could feel myself slowing down (I think due to dehydration), but I just did what my body told me... for me, unless it's a race, I'm not pushing the issue. So, I get to the 10th mile, which was my 8th mile of running hard, and then I went down to a very slow pace to start cooling down. All of a sudden, I sense someone sneak up right by me, and it startled me a bit... but the person started to run right next to me, and started to talk... I couldn't hear a word he was saying, so I took off my headphones. He basically introduced himself as "Ben", and he is from New Zealand. Apparently, he is visiting his brother for a few months here, and he is an avid runner. So we ended up running together for another 1 1/2 miles, and right before he came up to me, I was pretty exhausted..... once we started talking, I felt fine... I guess it took my mind off of my fatigue. So anyways, he just finished his 3rd marathon 1 month ago, and his time???? 3:00:08... WOW!!!!!! So, I told him that he was way above my league... and asked him if he was sure he wanted to run with me. He told me that he is not used to this heat and humidity, as New Zealand is nothing like this, so he has been struggling and needs to run a lot slower... so that sounds good to me!!!! I would love to learn off a runner that is that fast!!! He has run 2 other marathons, and finished both in 3:00: 48, and 3:00: 52.... so he wants to break 3 hrs... He has also completed a full Ironman, (2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, and 26.2 mile run). He is doing a 5k race this Saturday, and we decided to meet up to run on Sunday... we will probably run around 12-14 miles. I will take him on the Suncoast Trail, so he can see different areas to run around here. So, I am excited... always nice to have someone to talk to every once in a while when running. I like my alone time, but I also enjoy times when you can chat about stuff with people. Especially people you don't know... I am shy, but once we get in a conversation, I won't stop....
So... my plans for this weekend are to run 5 miles on Saturday... whenever, definitely not too early, and then do the big run on Sunday with Ben.
Should be fun....

BTW, here is my run from today.

Trying to fight it off...

This whole week, I have felt like garbage... just haven't been able to completely get over that cold I was dealing with last week. Sometimes I feel right, sometimes I feel weak, and it has obviously affected my running. I'm usually a morning runner, but because of the way I have felt, I have not been able to get myself out of bed to run.... by the end of the day I'm usually better, and I will go out and just test my body out. As usual, running makes me feel better, and I end up doing more miles than initially projected. So... here are my runs for the week...
Tuesday Run: Easy effort - 7 miles
Friday Run: 10 miles (Felt like an eternity): 10 miles
Saturday Run: 10 miles (Next to the clinic)
I decided to switch it up this weekend, and run next to the clinic, since I had a meeting this morning there. It helped to have different scenery this morning, and I ran fairly slow, but it was my best run for the week.
So, I have been able to run 27 miles so far this week... hopefully tomorrow, I can finish off the week with a 3-5 mile easy run... take off Monday, and start again on Tuesday.

Even though this hasn't been a great running week, it has been a great week overall. Adryana just finished preschool. It has really been a monumental week for us, because we realize that our little girl is getting bigger and bigger. Adryana is also doing swim classes, and really starting to overcome her fear of the water.... very proud of her.
We also had family come in town last week and spend 4 days with us over the Memorial Day weekend. We had a good time with them.... always nice to be around family. I only have 1 week left before I officially start my training for Chicago. I am praying for good health throughout my training cycle. Let's see how it goes.....