2009/03/05 - Camp (12 x 220 yards)

Tonight's workout was 12 220s with a 220 rest in between each. Goal time was 50 seconds for each of the 12 220s. This is the first real speed work that I have done since my knee started bothering me, and it is feeling pretty good after the workout. Not 100% healed, but it does seem to be holding up better these days. Maybe the stretching and exercises are working. Here are the splits:

43s
41s
51s (shoe came untied!)
42s
43s
42s
42s
40s
39s
39s
39s
40s

2009/03/04 - Camp (5.1 mi @46:30)

I didn't make camp last night, so I did the workout tonight instead - 1K at 5K pace repeated 5 times with a slow 220 in between. My goal was to run the 1Ks in about 7 min/mile pace and while I didn't quite achieve that, I'm still satisfied with the effort. My paces were 7:10, 6:50, 6:55, 7:15, and 7:31. Just like in a race, my first 3K is pretty good and then I hit a wall.

Long Run - 2009/03/01 (7.35 mi@1:04:47)

Just a really long run, on a really windy day, around a really big mall parking lot!

ESPN The Weekend 5K (5K@22:17)

Official Results

Overall Place: 55 / 1450
Gender Place: 45 / 753
Age Group Place: 6 / 76

Run (Long) - 2009/02/22 (6.3 mi@1:02:07)

So much for taking it easy! I wasn't going to run at all this week and I ended up putting in 17 miles. This run included about a 1 mile walk starting at about 3.75 miles. My knee was acting up again, and I have at least learned to back off when it starts to hurt. After the walk, I was able to run the rest of the way, so that is a good sign I think. I did discover that when I concentrate on not twisting my foot inward after foot strike, the pressure on the outside of my knee is greatly reduced. Something new to try, but I do plan on taking this week off in preparation for the ESPN The Weekend 5K at Disney next weekend. We'll see!

Run (Long) - 2009/02/22

Run - 2009/02/21 (3.06 mi@26:04)

I had planned on taking today off to rest the knee, but I felt so good on Friday, I decided to give it a go. Besides, we were having coffee and donuts after the run, so I had to be there! It was a crisp, breezy morning, but the sun was out and it was a perfect morning for a run. I didn't push it all the way to the beach, which was probably a good thing. My knee did get a little sore towards the end of the run, but keeping the miles low does seem to keep it from hurting for days.

Run - 2009/02/21

Zoo Fun Run - 2009/02/18 (1.68 mi@14:07)

In preparations for the Stingray Shuffle 3K in a few weeks, The Running Zone is hosting three fun runs at the Brevard Zoo over the next three Wednesdays. The goal is to get the animals somewhat acclimated to people running through the zoo. Even with my knee aching, I decided to give it a try with Mrs. Larry Who. The course is very twisty and is made up of every surface you can think off: dirt, concrete, pavers, mulch, brush, etc. I did manage to make it the whole way, but I could hardly walk afterwards. This knee thing is starting to make me mad! This will be a very slow race given the number of turns and the uneven terrain. I'm still on the fence about actually running in this one. I guess I'll wait and see how the knee is progressing before I decide.

Zoo Fun Run - 2009/02/18

Camp - 2009/02/17 (4 mile tempo run)

Tonights 4 mile tempo run came with a target pace of 7:15/mile. With my knee feeling better, but not 100%, I decided to shoot for 7:30/mile. My splits came out to be:

Mile 1 - 7:28
Mile 2 - 7:21
Mile 3 - 7:38
Mile 4 - 7:30

Not bad. My knee did start to flare up during the 3rd mile, but it wasn't too bad, and I was able to mostly push through it. I'm back on the ice and ibuprofen tonight, and hopefully it will feel better in the morning. It was good to be able to run fast again!

Camp - 2009/02/17

Injured (but, hopefully on the mend)

So I finally pushed too hard, and I hurt myself. All the running books and magazines talk about it - increase distance and/or intensity too fast and you will likely end up injured. Well, I'm proof that this theory really is true. Everything had been going great, but when the running camp started last month, I definitely ramped up the intensity too fast. My weekly mileage didn't change that much, but the twice weekly camp workouts have been tough.

After running the Tiger Dash 5K last weekend in near a near PR time for me, my right knee really started to complain! This is supposed to be for fun and health, and I was in pain. I self diagnosed myself with ITBS (Iliotibial Band Syndrome) and prescribed the usual treatment - RICE (rest, ice, compression, elevation). I ended up working late on Tuesday, so I missed running camp, but I needed more of the R, so I was OK with that.

By Wednesday night I was chomping at the bit to go for a run! Bad idea! My knee hurt, and my whole leg felt like it wanted to collapse on me. I made it 3 miles, but very slowly. So much for healing quickly. I went back to the RICE, but the R part only lasted 24 hours this time. Thursday was camp night again, and I thought I would give it a go. Nothing too hard, just an easy run while the rest of the group did their 330 meter repeats. Well, there was nothing easy about that run. Again, my knee hurt and my right leg had no strength. I only made it 2.5 miles before I gave up and went home in pain.

After more research, I decided to add ibuprofen to the RICE recipe, and I think that did the trick. I hate taking pills, but in this case I made an exception. I kept up with the ice too, and today I was able to go for a 4 mile run with just a little pain. I'm still not 100% (more like 75%), but I feel like I'm on the mend. The leg is still weak, so I'll stick with the ice and ibuprofen for a few more days. Here's to a much better week!

I'll include links to all 3 runs for this week in this entry. None of the runs were worth writing about by themselves.

Tiger Dash 5K

It's been a couple of days since the Tiger Dash 5K, and it's about time I blogged about it. I should be more excited about the outcome of this race, since this was the first time I actually won my age group! But I'm not, and I have many complaints. First, I wasn't able to improve on my best time. I think my time was respectable given 1) my sore right knee, and 2) the twisty, turny course, but I'm used to improving every race. There were 3 - 180 degree turns and at least 9 - 90 degree turns over the course of the 5K. If you know me, you know how I hate running where there are lots of turns and corners. I think that is how I hurt my knee in the first place. Also during this race there were two long stretches where I had to run single file because of two way traffic on a side walk. After reviewing my watch data, it looks like I was slowed substantially during one of these stretches, and that was probably enough to cost me a PR. Given all of that, my time was only 10 seconds off of my best time.

So, after all of that, I guess it could have been worse. I'll just have to try harder at the ESPN The Weekend 5K coming up at the end of the month. That event should be well run and a lot of fun.

Results

Here is the watch data:

Camp 2009/02/05

OK, so it is freezing here in East Central Florida, and I'm running circles in a parking lot! The workout for tonight was actually relatively easy: warm up for a mile, 20 X run fast 20 seconds, then run slow 40 seconds (20 minutes total), cool down a mile or so. I didn't really try to hit a specific pace on the "run fast" parts, I just ran about as hard as I thought I could manage. I ended up running 4.74 miles total. My right knee is still bothering me, but I'm hoping I can run through it. I'm actually going to go shoe shopping tomorrow. Maybe I just need a new pair of shoes!

Camp - 2009/02/03

After a week away from camp, it was time to hit it again. For tonights workout I was supposed to run 2 X 2 miles at 7:00/mile pace with a 5 minute rest after the first 2 miles. Sounds easy, right? I programmed my watch for the entire workout which included beeping at me when I went too fast, or more likely, too slow. Well, after the warm up mile or so, I was ready for the first 2 mile interval. I mistakenly hit the "Stop" button instead of the "Lap" button. I tried to get the watch back on program by hitting all the buttons I could find, all while running somewhere in the neighborhood of 9 miles an hour! I decided that I was back on track, but the watch never made a sound, and I knew I wasn't running exactly the right pace. After running for what seemed like 2 miles I hit the "Stop" button again, and I saw that I had only completed 1.92 miles of the first interval. I ran a little longer for good measure, but the precise logging of the run had been lost. I did my 5 minute rest, and completed the last 2 mile interval without incident. Once I got home I was able to piece enough of the workout together to see that I missed my goal time of 7:00/minute miles:

1st mile 7:02, 2nd mile 7:08, 14:10 total for first interval
3rd mile 7:08, 4th mile 7:17, 14:24 total for second interval

Not bad considering I had really no idea how fast I was really going. Here is the link to what I was able to capture:

Camp 2009/02/03

Run 2009/02/01 8.0 mi@1:08:16

Today was long run day, so a friend and I decided to go run along side A1A in front of Patrick AFB. The view of the beach was nice, and the weather was perfect for a run, but there isn't sidewalk the entire route, so we ended up running through the grass at the side of the road. I prefer to run on hard surfaces, so we will look for a new route for next weekend.

Here is a link to a new website that I am using to track my runs. It is called Run Saturday and I really like the features that it has:

Run 1/31/2009 4.65 mi@36:50

I'm back, it's sunny, and I saw the ocean this morning! It could be warmer, but at least I don't have to worry about snow or ice. This was my first run since the 5K last weekend. My knee was bothering me after the race and I had some business travel early in the week, so this was a good week to take it easy. I haven't had a week off in a while, and my knee feels fine after the run, so hopefully I can hit the camp workouts hard this week.

Run 1/31/2009

HFMC 5K

This was the race where everybody was gunning to beat me. After I posted the 21:49 at Disney a couple of weeks ago, I became the target for the running group. Well, I couldn't stand up to the challenge today! I finished at 21:51, just 2 seconds slower than Disney, but everybody else had awesome days. They claim my time motivated them to do their best. I'm satisfied with my time, especially given that I am working my tail off in camp. I'm sure those repeats that I did Thursday night had some kind of negative impact on my time. I won't peak until April/May, so we will see what happens then.

Results



I forgot to hit the stop button on my watch again, so the time and distance is a little off compared to the official time.

Camp 1/22/2009 4.78 mi@41:45

For the workout tonight, I was supposed to run 8-12 330 yard repeats with a 110 yard jog in between. Target pace was 1:12 for each 330 yard interval. I set up my Garmin to tell me when to run fast and when to run slow. I didn't however set it up to tell me what my interval time was, so I just ran what I thought was the right pace. Turns out I was right on for the first 8, but I tired for the last 4.

Warm - 10:14 (1.07 miles)
1 - 1:12 (0:38 rest)
2 - 1:11 (0:42 rest)
3 - 1:11 (0:38 rest)
4 - 1:10 (0:40 rest)
5 - 1:12 (0:45 rest)
6 - 1:13 (0:45 rest)
7 - 1:12 (0:45 rest)
8 - 1:15 (0:43 rest)
9 - 1:17 (0:44 rest)
10 - 1:20 (0:44 rest)
11 - 1:21 (0:43 rest)
12 - 1:19 (0:43 rest)
Cool - 7:55 (0.71 miles)

Average for first 8 intervals 1:12

Average for all 12 intervals 1:14

Camp 1/20/2009 5.6 mi@45:09

The total time doesn't tell the whole story for this log entry. The goal was to warm up, do a 4 mile tempo run at 7:15/mile pace (which is only 14 seconds/mile slower than my fastest 5K time), and then cool down. I didn't make the goal time, but my excuse is the wind. Motionbased shows the wind at 18.4 mph, and that's what it felt like. My splits looked like this:

1 mile split @ 7:24
2 mile split @ 7:22
3 mile split @ 7:36
4 mile split @ 8:11

The tail end of mile 3 and most of mile 4 I was running straight into that wind. I think I could have been close to overall goal time on a calmer day. So for this tempo run my goal was 4 miles at 7:15/mile and I ended up with 4 miles at 7:38/mile.

Run 1/18/2009 5.0 mi@44:27

Not a bad run considering we spent most of the day at Sea World walking around. It was a perfect day for visiting a park, low 70s, plenty of sun, and not too crowded. We saw several shows, had some lunch, and promised ourselves that we would be back to see Shamu in a couple of weeks!

2009 Planned Races (Replan)

After one week of running camp, it is clear to me that I can't run all of the races that I planned to and do the camp, so I'm replanning. Here is my updated list:

Circle of Life 5K
January 9th, 2009

Harris Family Medical Center 5K
January 24th, 2009

Tiger Dash 10K
February 7th, 2009

ESPN The Weekend 5K
February 28th, 2009

Brevard Zoo 3K
March 7th, 2009

Downtown Melbourne 5K
April 4th, 2009

Melbourne Art Festival 5K
April 25th, 2009

Run for the Gecko 5K
May 9th, 2009

So far I have removed:

Run for the Light 5K
January 31st, 2009

Eye of the Dragon 10K
March 14th, 2009

Space Walk of Fame 8K
April 11th, 2009

Run 1/17/2009 3.45 mi@27:06

Boy was it chilly this morning! Low 40s and a little breezy going over the causeway. Other than that it was a beautiful morning for a run. After we all finished we enjoyed some coffee and we tried to grill up some pancakes on my portable grill, but it didn't work too well. I think the breeze kept the heat down and the pancakes wouldn't brown. Oh well, at least we tried.

Camp 1/15/2009 5.25 mi@44:46

Day 2. This workout included a 1/2 mile warmup, 16 X 220 meter intervals (with 220 jog in between), and then a 1/2 mile cool down. Target pace was 48 seconds for each of the 220 intervals. I didn't set my watch up correctly, so I don't have accurate times for the intervals. One of guys I was running with was timing his intervals, and his times were between 42 and 47 seconds, so I was in the right ballpark. I think I earned the pizza and beer I'm going to consume tonight!

Camp 1/13/2009 3.71 mi@29:13

First night of running camp. This run included a 1 mile warm-up, a 2 mile time trial, and a .71 mile cool down. Should be a fun 4 months!

Run 1/11/2009 7.12 mi@1:04:45

First run since the 5K on Friday. My legs are still tired and I got some pretty bad side cramps at about mile 6. Walked for 1/2 mile or so, and then finished up with a slow jog. I'm actually glad tomorrow is an off day! Set Goals Not Limits camp starts Tuesday. Bring on the pain!

2009 Race Results

Here is my running list of race results for 2009:

Circle of Life 5K
January 9th, 2009
21:49 (7:01/mile)

Harris Family 5K
January 24th, 2009
21:50 (7:02/mile)
Results

Tiger Dash 5K
February 7th, 2009
21:59 (7:05/mile)
Results

Circle of Life 5K, Walt Disney World (5K@21:49)

First, I want to thank all of those that sponsored us for this race. Our family raised over $700 for TSA, and all of the TSA runners here for the Disney Marathon Weekend managed to raise over $40K for the organization.

We got over to Walt Disney World about 7:00 PM on Thursday to pick up our race packets at Wide World Of Sports. We were all surprised to see the number of people doing the same thing. It confirmed all I had heard about the popularity of Disney's Marathon Weekend. We picked up our packets without incident, and then headed over to the Swan hotel to get checked in. The Swan is very nice and our room was nice and conveniently located near the elevators and the ice machine (more on that later). After getting settled, we headed out to find some food. We walked over to the Dolphin hotel and found a little place called The Fountain. I have to say that the food wasn't that great, but it was convenient and at least the desserts were good!

With dinner behind us, we headed back to the room to watch a little of the NCAA National Championship game between Florida and Oklahoma. We managed to watch into the 3rd quarter (Florida was up 14-7) when we called it a night. We needed to catch the bus to Animal Kingdom at 5:45 AM, so I set the alarm for 4:30 and turned the lights out.

At about 2:00 AM the commotion began. People were laughing, talking, yelling in the hallway like they were in a bar. Nobody was quiet. The elevator was busy non-stop and the ice machine was working overtime. I tried to hear if I could figure out who won the game, but nobody was laughing, talking, or yelling about the game. This went on for over an hour. I think I got about an hour of sleep before the alarm went off at 4:30. Turns out Florida won the game, and I suspect what we heard was the aftermath of the victory. Go Gators!

We all slowly got going and made it downstairs for the bus right on time at 5:45 AM. It was still dark and pretty chilly (mid 40s). The bus made a few stops at other resorts and we made it to the drop off at Animal Kingdom right about 6:15 AM. You would think that the buses would be dropping people off close to where the start of the race would be, but you would be wrong. We had to walk about 3/4 mile to the start area in the dark and in the cold. That was a little annoying, but the walk probably helped us get our muscles loose.

I left M & M at the walkers area and went to check my backpack and hit the porta-potty. By the time I got back to the walker area, there were so many people I couldn't find M & M. We had agreed to meet at the porta-potties at the end of the race as a last resort, and I figured they would be OK in the crowd, so I headed up towards the starting line to find my starting place. The whole starting area was fenced off, so I started heading back towards the walkers area looking for the end of the fence so that I could get in the starting chute. I couldn't find the end of the fence! I gave up and headed back towards the starting line, found the place I wanted to start, and hopped over the fence! At this point we were about 10 minutes from the start of the race, so I stretched and took it all in. This was my biggest race by far, and the atmosphere was pretty awesome. Disney music playing over the loud speakers, Disney characters everywhere, a couple of commentators, and a helicopter overhead.

The countdown to the start of the race involved more loud music and fireworks, and then we were off. The sun was just starting to come up and it was pretty foggy. The first mile or so of the race was in the Animal Kingdom parking lot. I finished the first mile in 6:55. The next mile was up and down and all around inside the park. I was so focused on running, I don't really remember much of the surroundings. I was on a mission. I finished the first two miles in 14:11. I knew then I had a chance to reach my goal (22:45) if I could just keep it up. The third mile was more of the same and I tried to keep up the pace. Several people that I had been chasing from the start fell back, and I passed them. I hit mile three right around 21:00 (I can't remember the exact time) and I knew then that I had a chance to finish under 22:00. I ran that last 10th of a mile as fast as I could and finished the race in 21:49, a full 1:07 below my previous best 5K. After crossing the finish line, I got a nice Circle of Life 5K medal and a TSA medal. The TSA representative told me that I was the first from Team TSA to finish. I enjoyed some food and drink at the finish line and waited for M & M. They crossed the finish line some time later in 1:05. This was M & M's first 5K, and they were slowed down to take pictures and tie shoes. They have both expressed an interest in training with me for future races!

Here is a link to my GPS data for the race. It looks like the GPS had a little trouble getting a good track on me at the start, so the overall distance came out to only 3.05 miles. The total time matched the race clock minus the few seconds it took me to get to the starting line. I started my watch as I crossed the starting line and not when the gun went off (seems only fair!). Since this race was considered a fun race, no official times will be posted. I'm hoping when the pictures are posted that Disney took they will have one that has me crossing the finish line that also shows the clock. I think the race clock said 21:52 as I went under it.



We had a really great time. We are all a little sore today, but I'm looking forward to next year already. Thanks again for your support.

Run 1/6/2009 4.35 mi@36:42

What a difference a day off makes! After the long run on Sunday I felt pretty rough, but tonight I felt great. Nice and loose. I guess it helps that it is 70 or so degrees outside. That will probably be my last run before the 5K on Friday morning at Walt Disney World. I hope I feel just as good for the race.

Run 1/4/2009 7.0 mi@1:00:49

Run 1/3/2009 4.65 mi@38:37

First miles of the new year.