So it starts

So after a two week break (and binge...I had to get rid of the leftover food and beer from the post-Ascent party, you know, since someone left me to drink it all by myself), my marathon training started. I actually went for an 1:05 run with the boy last weekend, but this was an earnest DISTANCE run.

We headed out for a 20 mile run at a 3:1 ratio (3 min running, one min walking). Highlights of the trip: two dudes climbing out of a tent under an overpass. Not homeless dudes, regular looking dudes? Who knows? Happened to be running by the Air Force Academy and got to watch the cadets skydiving on our way out. On our way back we got to see the pre-game flyover (AF had their first football game of the season today). Yes, we ran that far! We passed a fellow teacher from my school and we saw a crane in the creek (by far the least feared creature I've seen on that trail in the past 12 months). In case you're wondering about this "we" thing, my 2 year old boy and his jogging stroller joined me on the adventure. There were two sides to this: On the positive, it was fun having him around and his stroller makes it easy to stash lots of gear and water. On the downside, when he needs something (which in his defense was seldom) it required me to come to a full stop. The other negative? neither he nor the stroller are light and dam some of those hills were rough. So I felt good until about mile 17 when the insides started to turn, or should I say drop. If I ran, I really had to squeeze the cheeks, which then made my insides feel like caca. If I walked it wasn't too bad. So I walked for about 5 minutes until i reached a bike shop and marched my non-spandex wearing self in there and pooped a good poop. The problem was that it was pretty rough getting running again after that and I ended up walking in most of the final 3 miles.

Over all I was satisfied with my workout. I'll do the same one in two weeks and if I can run all 20, I'll increase my ratio to 4:1 two weeks after that. If I can't, I'll do this same one again. As for injuries: one chaffed nipple, one big blister and some soreness. Not bad considering I need new shoes and haven't actually "run" in quite a while (I've been on my feet for upwards of 5+ hours several times in the past 2 months, but very little of that was actually running). Total time 4:40

I ate pretty well today also.

Nice job on the weight loss NM, put in a good week and the 270's will be upon you!

The big day...

... and the big disappointment! I recorded my first official DNF today, though not by choice and not because of the way I felt, the way I was prepared, nor the speed at which I was going. The only good news is that about 750 out of 1600 other runners didn't get the opportunity to finish either. My goals for today were a) finish b) break my PR of 5:05 c) break 4:55. Well, I was on pace to accomplish all three goals today and feeling great with about 4.5 (out of 13.2) miles to go. I was warm, though wet from sweat more so than rain, and getting ready to start my push. Then the dreaded outcome happened, the course was closed, the runners turned around , and my 2008 Pikes Peak Ascent was over. The good news is that I felt great running my 8.5 miles back down hill and felt pretty good for a putting in a 17 mile day. The reason for the closure was a combination of lightning, unsafe trail conditions, and a large number of hypothermic runners reaching the top. In addition, the road was closed to ALL uphill traffic as well. Thankfully, due to the COlfax Mar. , I've only been focused on this race since May and not since November like years past.

It's a bummer, what can I do??? I suppose I start training for San Antonio on Monday!!!!!

Then move to Wednesday

I did a three mile run on a school track. Perhaps it was the flatness of the course or the speed at which I ran, but I have been pretty tight since then. The eating is what it is.

Let's start with Monday

Did a little 33 min. hilly run today. I would have gone longer but the thunder scared me back to the car.

I'll spare you the details and say the the eating was OK, but with high quantities (we'll call it the carb load).

Can you see the lump in my throat?

Sorry, my friend, but that says 96 days until the big event. Just seeing that and reading your post, my insides just tightened a bit.

Took Sunday off for rest day and calves were were really tight after the hills work on Saturday. Didn't make it out of bed this AM (damn Olympics keeping me up all night), but planning on hitting the gym for the first time tonight, so treadmill at the least. In any case, the first potential disaster of the day was averted when I hit the scale this morning. Three days in Vegas didn't do quite the damage I was afraid of, but I still have mucho work to do before that ticker gets too much closer to its expiration. God help us all.

Sunday comidas: big bowl of oatmeal w/blueberries/raisins/craisins for breakfast, Costco dog for lunch, handful of tater chips (dammit) at the folks' place, then a nice healthy dinner of grilled chicken kebabs (light bbq sauce) with a grilled corn/green onion dish and salad that my lovely GF pulled together for dinner, and some ice cream w/berries for dessert (dammit redux). Gotta do better today. And the next day. And the next.

Did I mention it's 16 on Saturday?

Counter!!!!

Does that say 98 days until San Antonio? That's 14 weeks. Take out a couple for a taper and this week for Pikes Peak and we're looking at around 11 weeks of training (me freaking out right about now!?!?!?!).

The last hill

Well my mountain and high altitude training is over for the season (those would be tears running down my cheek...NOT!). My next trip up PP will be for the whole enchilada - a fat free one with no cheese of course. I'll do a couple of short runs in town this week to keep the legs loose, then leave it all on the hill.
Drove to the 14, 115' summit...again, saw a herd of mountain goats....again, stared at the clouds....again, figured they wouldn't throw bolts of lightning at me and headed down hill...again. I was the third car on the summit this time, although the toll plaza and parking lot were packed with runners getting organized to come up. I headed down to the 2 miles to go sign, peed off a nice rock, then headed up. My time from 2-1 was great (2 min. PR) and my time from 1 to finish was seconds off a PR, which is good considering the PR was set starting at the 1 to go. I then headed back down, helping out a few of the crews getting the trail in race condition (I mainly acted as a steam roller and packed down dirt and rock they had already moved, but I still contributed). My next mile wasn't great, but it will probably more likely simulate race day pace. I then stuck around for about an hour on the summit making those red blood cell.

Bowl of cereal upon return, three pieces (not normal pieces) of pizza for lunch. Fish and veggies for dinner. 2 bowls of cereal for a late night snack...damit! Oh yeh, and a couple of tortillas with jelly somewhere in there...damit again.

Work starts tomorrow so, which means a fair amount of food being provided to up for the first couple of days - wish me luck. I probably won't lose much this week since I'll also be carb-loading and salt-loading and water-loading this week.

Wed - Thurs - Frid - Sat

Apparently the word "taper" has the same meaning to me as "nothing" because that was the amount of my workouts for Wed and Thurs. I did some work in my classroom, but not much else. I wouldn't say I ate completely for shitake, but I doubt it was any better than you ate...and you were in Vegas!!! I thought I was being good on Thursday as I bought a salad for lunch, in addition I bought a pack of 8 small bags of MM's. My thought was that I'd have the will power to limit myself to one bag a day, thereby taking care of the craving for sweets. Well so much for that theory, but at least I had a salad for lunch.

Friday I simply couldn't workout because our principal demanded.forced.made me/threatened that I had to go on a white water rafting trip with the new teachers for my first "official" day back at work. I did paddle, ate very little (until I got home) and even went for a couple of swims..on purpose. Oh yeh don't forget, all of that while holding a paddle and being weighed down by a PFD!

da da dada da da da (the Olympic theme song). With the exception of days when I'd drink a lot and be completely hung over the next day with nothing to do (obviously pre-POAAKs), today might have been the laziest day this household has ever had. Even the kids were lazy. Between the four of us I think we took 9 or 10 naps. We did nothing - except watch the Olympics!

Last big mountain workout tomorrow morning.

I'll never make the Olympics

Five AM came awful early this morning. Group did a 6 miler up in the foothills which was pretty nice; lotsa rain last night, so everything was nice and cool, even after the sun first came up. Mucho ups and downs, so my time was for shite, but given the abuse I'd just subjected myself to on the trip I guess I should just be glad that I was out there doing it.

Hit the crackhouse afterward for a smoothie, had some more fruit at home, and then a quick turkey wrap for a later lunch. Some pasta w/oil, olives and parmesan for dinner with a handful of Hot Tamales for dessert. Worth noting that I was doing some work at the 'rents this afternoon in the 90+ heat. Nothing strenuous, but by the time I was done, I was more tired and dried out than I had been after 6 miles this morning. Killed a 32oz G2 on the way home without even blinking.

Oh, and next week's big run? 16 miles. I'm gonna die.

Under the Century Mark

Back from Vegas. Most everything I predicted would happen did. Lost money. Ate poorly-ish:

Day 1: salad w/chicken breast for lunch, seafood buffet that night (at least fresh fish/shrimp/crab ain't exactly bad for you, right?), but mucho, mucho beer

Day 2: a grande chai from Starbucks, fruit plate at the cabana, shrimp burrito for lunch, grilled salmon sandwich for pre-show 'snack', and chicken quesadilla for post-show dinner; multi 'ritas at the pool and more than a few beers

Day 3: 6-inch cheesesteak for late breakfast/lunch; buffet at Planet Hollywood for dinner (easily the worst for me meal of the trip); many cheap beers (except for the $65 one at the Hilton) and cheap 'ritas; the good thing is we probably walked 10-15 miles on the day

Day 4: steak and eggs w/bloody mary for breakfast, smoothie at airport on way home, chicken fajita taco w/beans and rice for dinner

Training-wise, not the best effort, but there was some good news: broke down, bought the gym pass and got in two workouts on the treadmill (Vegas outdoors was a freakin' swamp - 100 degree days and wicked humid; reminded me of the worst days in DC back in the day). Made it a bit easier to eat and drink w/abandon. And avoided the usual carb loading that comes with a trip to Nine Fine Irishmen and ended up skipping the pasta at Battista's. Maybe next time if I can ever afford to go to Vegas ever again; place is getting crazy expensive.

Now, back to the grind with a vengeance. That trip to San Antonio is no longer a figment of my imagination.

1-1-1

I was at the Pikes Peak toll road gate 10 minutes after it opened and headed up the mountain. Saw a nice big herd/swarm/flock/gaggle/? of Bighorn sheep on the way up. The clouds looked a little scary but they cleared up on my way down for my 1st of three trips up from the mile to go sign. I had a nice workout and all said I did 6 miles above 13,500 feet. Hopefully the altitude training pays off next week.

2 slices of toast for B, a Schloskxkzsys SMALL sandwich for lunch and pasta for dinner. I feel like I had a few snacks in there as well, but I would put today at a 7/10. My plan is a workout Thursday, Saturday, Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday before Saturday's race.

They charge you to workout? Who wants to workout so much that they'll pay extra to do it?

Monday

Did nothing as far as working out and didn't eat the greatest: 1.5 breakfast burritos, and a few snacks and a big Jason's Deli salad (probably too big).

The 100 day mark is closing in on us FAST. Enjoy LV!

Now comes the minefield

Spent the last two days recovering from the 14 on Saturday. IT bands were really tight, especially any time I sat for any period of time (ie. work, class, home...pretty much any time I got up). Feel pretty good this morning, though. So of course, rather than going for a run, I'm headed to Vegas for 4 days. That's right, endless buffets, bottomless beers, lotsa sitting on the bunda time. This is not a good idea, training wise. I'm taking the running stuff, though. My goal is to get in at least two of the training runs this week done while I'm gone(with high's in the 100-106 range, I'm probably looking at treadmill time), maybe while everyone else is poolside. Because lord knows my beached-whale looking carcass doesn't need to be anywhere near the pool.

I'm sharing the portion control problem, and it's routinely coupled with the "I didn't have time to eat earlier when I should have, and now I'm starving and going to eat more than I should" syndrome. Not good. Hence the week's result. Hopefully, with class over now, I can get more regular about eating, doing training runs, and starting to hit the gym. Already have the 1st appointment with the trainer set for next week.

Anyway, I'm off for a few days to lose money and to try not to gain weight. I'm not too likely to succeed on either point.

Good luck with the Ascent training.

And though it's a bit late, RIP Bennigan's; underage beers rarely tasted so good.

P.S. Just checked out the hotel's site about it's fitness center - $19 per visit for hotel guests!!! They do give you the option of a $45 three day pass, though. Mighty big of them.

I hate Vegas.

Could I have done less?

I did watch some golf, but only because the US Senior Open was being played a few miles away here in town. I finished a book. Gave the kids a bath. Made dinner. That was the extent of my involvement in the day. We'll consider today a recovery day, and with the Ascent 13 days away, I need to be tapering anyway. I wouldn't say I ate too bad, but not great. I still need to work on PORTION CONTROL, probably my biggest enemy right now.

Sorry the 14er didn't go so well. You may need to a) carry more water then your belt can hold b) get there early and stash some that will be just for you or c) make the girlfriend be your personal aid station. Perhaps you need to simply go back to the basics..just water and some gels (that's all I've been doing since before Colfax, water, gels, and Ecaps and it seems to work well, it also makes those last few gels tolerable, which they were not when I was having gatorade too. Don't you hate the untrusted farts?

You're still doing great man! I'm interested in tomorrow's weigh in...for you, not me.

4 days of summer left:( Did I tell you I'm coaching 7th grade football this year? should be fun.

My Own Private Bataan

So it was pretty much everything I was afraid it was going to be and more. And of course most of it was probably my fault.

Flashing back to Friday night, we went out to celebrate the girlfriend's going away from the office. She's slated to start a new gig after the Vegas Run (already worried about the eating), so took her out to a watering hole to commemorate. I stayed away from the bad bar food save a stray chip and a single mozzarella stick, but the Guinness was calling my name and I had a pint. OK, maybe two. But then I got back to the water, so not too much damage, right? Of course the cold pizza when I got home sure as hell didn't help.

Got up at 5 Saturday morning, and already the insides were, uh...in turmoil. Had a cup of yogurt and some fruit, mixed up the Cytomax at 1/2 strength and headed out. We were a bit late to the meeting place and dashed from the car out to the trail. Got about a quarter-mile in when I had to make a pit stop. WARNING, NEXT FEW LINES FAIRLY EXPLICIT: You know when you're standing there draining the lizard when things around the corner 'shift' and you have to turn off the faucet for fear of other things happening? Yeah, that was me. So tucked everything back in its place and got back on the trail. Made pretty good time for the first 3-4 miles, but had to make another stop somewhere along mile 4 1/2 - 5 1/2. By this point, the tossing in the gut had turned to gas, but gas that couldn't be trusted, if you know what I mean. Also had learned that I do not like the Cytomax fruit punch; even mixed at only half the recommended strength, the stuff is sickeningly sweet, to the point that I need to rinse my mouth out with water after drinking the stuff. NOT what I'm looking for in a 'performance' drink.

So, made the halfway mark and looked forward to refilling the water bottles at the Igloos the coaches had set up. Since I'm almost always at the very back of the pack, I was worried that there might not be enough water, and my fears were pretty much realized. About 200 yards shy of the water station, saw some viejita, clearly not part of our group, walking her dog who decided to avail herself of the water. So she's walking away from the station when I get there and find just enough water in the two coolers to fill one of my 8 oz bottles. By now the sun was in full effect, the temps were probably already in the mid- to high-80's. And things just went downhill from there...

Sparing you the rest of the details, but time on this jaunt wasn't much better, if any, than the Colfax way back in June. One good thing; per the Garmin, burned nearly 2,100 calories. Had a smoothie later that morning, had a bowl of cereal with fruit for lunch, and then a shrimp/rice/cabbage burrito (REALLY good stuff; have to take CS there next time he's in ABQ) with an orange cream soda for dinner. And honestly I think that's all I had on the day.

But criminy did that run suck.

On a lighter note, welcome back, CS. Don't get to talk enough, so it's nice to have you back here.

I told you I'd be back

and I am! Let me recap my workouts for the past long while:
Friday 7/18 - altitude work at the top of PP, short mileage, but high intensity
Tuesday 7/22 - 95 min on the 'mill alternating between a jog and a incline power hike
Wednesday 7/23 - lots of bike riding (and one fall)
Thursday 7/24 - 49 min on a groomed trail. I bit slow, but I'm still trying to get back to the running and quick leg turnover
Saturday 7/26 - 2:10 min, about 11-12 miles. I felt OK but was a bit sore afterwards (the 2000 ft lower altitude helped a lot too
Monday 7/28 - Pikes Peak summit #2, 5:15. Great workout! I was about 40 minutes faster then summit #1 this year and this is my 2nd fastest time ever (fastest training run ever). I felt good the entire way.
Wednesday 7/30 - trail run pushing the jogging stroller. Did this run in 52 min (same run as last week) but considering I was pushing a 22 pound little girl and the stroller....
Thursday 7/31 - about four hours of bike riding in Denver with the family. Nice easy pace, but still pedaling nonetheless. I also had to carry my bike about 200 yards as I got a bad flat and had no repair stuff with me.
Saturday 8/2 - seven miles of altitude work on the PP summit. Lots of people up there training. My times were were i expected and more importantly it gave me three hour above 13,000 ft.

My eating seems to follow a similar pattern every week: do well for four days, do OK for two and do terrible for one. All the big family events are over so that should help some and work starts up again next week so I'll be back on a schedule. Tried on some clothes for the coming school year and for the most part I'm down to a size 38 ( a little tight) but 40's are too loose.

CS is out!

Is anyone else glad to see me?

Let me begin with several congrats to NM. First for the consistent blogging. Second, for the consistent good eating. Third for the the steady weight loss. At two pounds a week you'll drop another thirty prior to the 26.2. One piece of advice for your 14er this weekend: don't go out and eat 5000 calories in food during the rest of the day despite the fact that you'll be hungry. On the other hand, make sure you eat something to start the recovery process (they say PB and banana with a chocolate milk is the best. I need to run (no, not that kind of run) so I'll finish this manana.