BQ by 40: July 2008

Thursday, July 31, 2008

 

Day 3, Week 4: Hundred Pushup Program

Third day of week 4 of the hundred pushup program:

Exhausted to start out with. 6 miles running today, mowed the lawn tonight. Probably had nearly 4 minutes before the max set.

Set tally, "-"=2-minute recovery period. "[#]"=max

Pushups:  30-22-22-20-[40], 134 total.

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As for me, I plead insanity.

I'm shooting for 60 miles this week all of a sudden, after 42 last week. My legs/brain may change my mind later.

Lunch workout: 6 miles in 55'09" at a 1% incline on the treadmill (Precor 966i).

Ran to the Rutter Requiem...


It's not nearly long enough for 6 miles at my pace (under 40 minutes), plus I need some noise-blocking headphones to hear 50% of the work. Crazy that I even attempted to listen to it, but it came up while I was shuffling through the music library.

Queen's "We Will Rock You/We Are the Champions" and Hurd/Canedo "Mass of Glory" rounded out the listening selections. Church music geekdom on this run.

Modified 8/1/2008:
I slept in and missed my 6 miler. No 60 mile week for me this week.

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Wednesday, July 30, 2008

 

Okay, maybe treadmill running would be beneficial

I broke myself of the treadmill habit after

With the new treadmills on 1%, I built some solid strength. Other benefits that I missed:

I still went too fast: 5.68 Miles in 50:00... 8'49" pace. I tried starting at 6.4 mph, but my entertainment options on the TV were limited. Also, someone asked to "borrow" the remote for the TV. I did not see it return, so I was stuck on the current channel unless I wanted to break stride. Because of this, I sped up to wrap up. Such are the perils of a treadmill in a gym.

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I love the smell of garbage in the morning.

I love the smell of garbage in the morning. Passed two garbage trucks in the neighborhood at the end of my out and back, along with several freshly emptied cans along the way. Yuck. Not exactly a motivating smell in the morning when the air is already thick from humidity.

Supposedly, all of this humidity was supposed to be in the form of fog, and probably would have had the temperature gotten closer to the dew point. Instead, I experienced a warm morning run at 80-90% humidity.

Devil dog appeared over the privacy fence (via high jump) in the same neighborhood. I've heard the doberman before, but saw her head today. Twice.

Slight variation of my normal morning run.

Distance:8.24 miles in 1:15:01
Pace: 9'07" / mile
Weather:76° F, Overcast, Humid

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Tuesday, July 29, 2008

 

Day 2, Week 4: Hundred Pushup Program

Second day of week 4 of the hundred pushup program:

Exhausted to start out with.

Set tally, "-"=90-second recovery period. "[#]"=max

Pushups:  27-21-21-18-[28], 125 total.

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A bit warm for the work out and back

The parking lot was hot and windless, but most of the run had a little bit of breeze.

Even better... I came back to my desk to the following KAIRE e-mail. Considering half of my run is in an industrial park, I should probably take more notice of these.

An Air Quality Alert has been declared for the Louisville Metro area for Tuesday, July 29. Fine particles (PM2.5) are expected to reach an AQI of 106. The area has experienced unexpected high levels of fine particles this morning. Levels are increasing as we head into the afternoon and are expected to peak in the Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups range.


Pollen forecast... allergies not really bothering me today.

Today's allergy levels:
Tuesday - 6/Medium

Today's predominant pollen:
Grass, Nettle and Plantain.


Total Time 0:55:40 (9:04 pace)
Distance 6.13 miles
Temperature 84.2°F avg temp


Elevation Gain (ft) +270 / -275


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Monday, July 28, 2008

 

Morning Run Elevation Profile

Ran this 8.2 miles in 1:12:35 (8'50" pace) this morning, slight muggy, 72'F. Ran last 2/10ths of a mile in 1:15 (6'04" pace). Legs weren't too sluggish this morning. Not peppy either, though.

Elevation Gain (ft) +415 / -418

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Sunday, July 27, 2008

 

Day 1, Week 4: Hundred Pushup Program

First day of week 4 of the hundred pushup program:

Today was a bit of a rush, trying to get sets in in between everything going on in the household.

Set tally, "-"=60-second recovery period. "[#]"=max

Pushups:  27-20-20-17-[41], 125 total.

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Hatfield-McCoy vs Flying Monkey

What do these have in common?

Hatfield-McCoy


Flying Monkey


This weekend's long run in which I bonked from mile 12 on.

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Saturday, July 26, 2008

 

It's been a year and a half since 18 miles hurt so much.

I seem to be making a habit out of faltering on my long runs. I got started late--7 am. My hips and abdominal muscles were already sore. My right ankle was stiff. Mile 16 was an 11:29 mile, despite running for 95% of it.

Conditions were 75.6°F average temp and 79% humidity with virtually no wind, mostly cloudy during the run.

Total time, 2:49:53 for 18.00 miles (9'26" mile pace). Target pace was 9'18". It hurts to move anything from my waist down at the moment, and the inflamed tendon is letting me know how ticked off it is. On the positive side, this is my first 40 mile week in a while.

Elevation Gain (ft) +1,086 / -1,089



I bonked on the NE side.

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Thursday, July 24, 2008

 

Day 3, Week 3: Hundred Pushup Program

Third day of week 3 of the hundred pushup program:

Set tally, "-"=2-minute recovery period. "[#]"=max

Pushups:  30-22-22-20-[32], 126 total.

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Tabata Intervals

No run today.

Reading about Tabata Intervals. 20 seconds x 8 intervals plus 10 sec x 8 rest. Basically, 4 minutes of high intensity. Something to look more into... probably more for just strength training instead of running for me.

Lean & Hungry Fitness Article on Tabata Intervals

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Wednesday, July 23, 2008

 

Trying to actually run easy.

Very nice weather this morning. 65'F outside, partly cloudy, and not too humid. Rain came in about an hour before my run.

I tried to run "easy" based on my 5k time. According to Vdot Calculator and Training Paces based on a 21:54 5k (using Daniels' Running Formula, 2nd edition), that should be 9'18" per mile. Today's workout was 11.31 miles in 1:43:33 (9'10" pace). Amazingly, 9'15" was a bit of a challenge for most of the run.

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Tuesday, July 22, 2008

 

Day 2, Week 3: Hundred Pushup Program

Second day of week 3 of the hundred pushup program:

Set tally, "-"=90-second recovery period. "[#]"=max

Pushups:  27-19-19-15-[30], 120 total.

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What a difference 20'F in heat index makes

Yesterday, my "easy" pace was difficult outside. 90'F and 100'F heat index.

This afternoon, 80'F and 81'F heat index. Ran ~tempo pace this time. 8 minute miles for about 5.73 miles. Ran the McCrea loop again. The breeze had a slight coolness to it today--occasionally.

My right posterior tibial tendon, right knee, and possibly left posterior tibial tendon are all less than thrilled about today's run. However, I've been off the NSAIDs for two days.

UPDATE: I've finally increased monthly mileage for the first time since January of this year:

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Monday, July 21, 2008

 

Hotter than advertised.

My last check on the weather prior to heading outside today in the office park said that it was 86'F outside. I didn't really pay close attention to the heat index.

Big mistake.

Heat index ~ 100'F. 5.69 miles in 48:20. 8'30" average. First mile first okay, second mile was a little warm, but the office park winds were decent. I lost the wind after going into the neighborhood at mile 2, and it never came back.

By mile 4, I was feeling a little bit light-headed. Tendonitis was a little irritated afterwards, but feels okay now.

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Sunday, July 20, 2008

 

Day 1, Week 3: Hundred Pushup Program

First day of week 3 of the hundred pushup program:

Set tally, "-"=60-second recovery period. "[#]"=max

Abdominal muscles still sore from yesterday's 16 mile run. That's pretty atypical.

Did the week 2 end-of-week test earlier in the day. Had to reset after 10 pushups because of my daughter trying to jump on my back to "assist." Test was 47 pushups.

Pushups:  25-17-17-15-[29], 113 total.
2 additional 10 pushup sets after.

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Saturday, July 19, 2008

 

Nice little "rural" Fern Creek run.

Crossed paths of cyclists on Seatonville Rd five times this morning. Most of them were pleasant, one of them was a bit anti-social.

I've decided that my favorite drivers are in the 60+ age group and drive 10+ year old pickup trucks in very good condition. Generally, these drivers pass carefully with a decent amount of room, and always wave when I acknowledge their courtesy.

At the opposite end of the spectrum are people with brand new trucks, especially those that are not being used as work trucks. They seem intent on creating as much wake as possible when they drive by.

I ran my 16 in 75'F weather, without Camelbak, hat, or cell phone. Pretty liberating, really. Didn't feel any ill-effects from a lack of water. I hit my target of 8'45" miles with 2 seconds per mile to spare. Elevation Gain (ft) +903 / -899

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Thursday, July 17, 2008

 

Day 3, Week 2: Hundred Pushup Program

Third day of week 2 of the hundred pushup program:

Set tally, "-"=2-minute recovery period. "[#]"=max

Dropped the lifts. Too much overlap & hard on the back.

Pushups:  15-15-12-12-[23], 77 total.
Situps : 15-15-12-12-[25], 79 total.
Curls : 15-15-12-12-[20], 74 total.

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Hard to get going this morning

Slow start. Sore knee, ankle felt iffy to start. Had trouble breaking 9:30 pace for first 1/2 mile.

Decent run after that... stayed along Bardstown Road for 3 miles of the run. Even at < 6 am, that's pretty annoying--but I didn't want to do the hill in Vettiner Park this morning, or do multiple loops in the neighborhood.

5.21 Miles in 44:18. 8'31" pace.

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Wednesday, July 16, 2008

 

Nice warm lunch time run

5.7 miles in 48:51--8'35" miles, around 11am. Didn't do anything crazy on this run. No sprinting at the end, no fast miles. I was just trying to keep a steady run going the whole time.

I mostly accomplished this.

85'F, sunny, and not too humid. Knees were a little unhappy, but this was also my first time for running three days in a row in over a month. Ankle hurt a little later in the day.

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Tuesday, July 15, 2008

 

Easy, but hilly 5 miler

I ran my morning run at an easy tempo, except for pushing up hills. A little bit of knee pain this time... Probably to be expected, since my legs are still returning to previous strength. Heel and ankle coming along fairly well.

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Day 2, Week 2: Hundred Pushup Program

Second day of week 2 of the hundred pushup program:

Set tally, "-"=90-second recovery period. "[#]"=max

I felt pretty worn out after this set, more so than at any time during week 1.

Pushups:  16-13-11-11-[23], 74 total.
Situps : 16-13-11-11-[24], 74 total.
Curls : 16-13-11-11-[16], 66 total.
Lifts : 16-13-11-11-[16], 66 total.

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Monday, July 14, 2008

 

Slightly up tempo 4 miler

I had a slightly up tempo 4+ mile run today: 4.27 miles in 34:55, or 8'11" pace

My "sluggish" first mile ended being 8:16. I decided to try and kick it up tempo for the next mile, finishing in 8 minutes even. I took it easier the 3rd and 4th miles, although still well under my target of 8'45" pace. At the 4-mile mark, I decided to run with everything I had... 0.27 miles at 6'07" pace.

Not as much kick as I'd like to have, but still good to have that back.

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Sunday, July 13, 2008

 

Day 1, Week 2: Hundred Pushup Program

First day of week 2 of the hundred pushup program:

Set tally, "-"=60-second recovery period. "[#]"=max

I felt pretty worn out after this set, more so than at any time during week 1.

Pushups:  12-12-9-7-[22], 60 total.
Situps : 12-12-9-7-[22], 60 total.
Curls : 12-12-9-7-[20], 58 total.
Lifts : 12-12-9-7-[13], 51 total.

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Saturday, July 12, 2008

 

First long run in a while

I barely consider 14 a long run anymore, but consider it's 6 miles longer than my longest run in 3 weeks, it was a long run.

My goal was to hit 8'51"/mile for every mile. I averaged it, but went over on three different miles.

My tendon next to my ankle hurts quite a bit now.

Mile # Dist Time
1 1 Mi 08:45
2 1 Mi 08:46
3 1 Mi 08:46
4 1 Mi 08:45
5 1 Mi 08:52
6 1 Mi 08:44
7 1 Mi 08:42
8 1 Mi 08:49
9 1 Mi 08:45
10 1 Mi 08:35
11 1 Mi 09:15
12 1 Mi 09:01
13 1 Mi 08:48
14 1 Mi 08:37
88 Yd 00:30


Elevation Gain (ft) +713 / -719:

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Friday, July 11, 2008

 

How much does a pushup weigh?

http://www.fit36.com/archives/how-much-does-a-pushup-weigh/

Given that I'm doing the 100 Pushups Challenge, this is an interesting question. The answer in the article is 65-75%.

Interestingly enough, the Flying Pig in Cincinnati has an associated event (for the 5k, 10, half and full) Pump and Run. The benchmark weight for a 19-39 year old male is 75% of body weight.

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Thursday, July 10, 2008

 

Day 3, Week 1: Hundred Pushup Program

Third day of week 1 of the hundred pushup program:

Tried to do round robin instead of all sets for each exercise. Not enough rest.

Set tally, "-"=2-minute recovery period. "[#]"=max

Pushups: 15-13-10-10-[20], 68 total.
Situps : 15-13-10-10-[32], 80 total.
Curls : 15-13-10-10-[20], 68 total.
Lifts : 15-13-10-10-[15], 63 total.

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Second day after doctor's appointment

The NSAID regimen is doing wonders for recovery. Similar to last week, the second day in a row of running was considerably easier than the first. It was almost like my muscles woke up today.

Ran 8.1 miles in 1:09:54. Weather was 67° F, humid, and partly cloudy. Started my run before 6am, and got to see the sunrise peek through the clouds on the horizon for about half of my run. I had a little sprint of 6'16" pace for 0.10 mile at the end of the run. Couldn't break 6 minute pace this morning, but I still feel pretty good.

These runs are on the 18th hour of a 24-hour dose... listed half-life is 15-20 hours, so I'm at least not running completely numb to pain... I do feel some, but it's pretty manageable. I keep working icing into the routine as well.

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Wednesday, July 9, 2008

 

First day back since the doctor's appointment

...and since the 10k race in Lexington

6am this morning. 8.02 miles in 1:10:21... that's 8'47" miles. Relatively tough for an easy run. 73° F, Overcast, Humid, 83% humidity.

Leg muscles, heart, and lungs were not happy. I felt okay afterwards. Did a little icing (frozen bottle rolls). The NSAID dose today helped calm pain down more today than yesterday. I'm walking pretty normally tonight, but I'm stepping on an ice pack at the moment.

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Tuesday, July 8, 2008

 

I'm glad that I'm no longer a complete n00b.

Be careful not to take things too seriously in a race... and never, ever, try something new on race day.
Vaseline or gel?

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Posterior Tibial Tendonitis

No major damage detected.

--NSAIDs for 10 days
--Don't try to double my mileage by next week.
--Stretch calves.

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Day 2, Week 1: Hundred Pushup Program

Second day of week 1 of the hundred pushup program:

Sunday's workout was 9pm, today's workout was at 4am, so less than 36 hours of recovery involved.

Set tally, "-"=90-second recovery period. "[#]"=max

Pushups: 12-12-10-10-[26], 70 total.
Situps : 12-10-10-10-[20], 64 total.
Curls : 12-12-10-10-[14], 58 total.
Lifts : 12-12-10-10-[17], 63 total.

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Monday, July 7, 2008

 

I don't like it.

I sweated it out on the exercise bike because my foot could not take the treadmill today. 40 minutes at about 28 mph? I set it for 500 calories burned.

Exercise bikes are annoying. I'm just hoping that I got a decent workout.

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Sunday, July 6, 2008

 

Day 1, Week 1: Hundred Pushup Program

I've decided to use the hundred pushups program to structure my strength exercises in general: pushups, situps, bicep curls (30 lbs, each arm), and dumbbell lifts (30 lbs, each arm).

My max reps at the end were the absolute limit. On the situps, I slowed down, but kept going for 51 reps. Ouch that hurt.

Set tally, "-"=1-minute recovery period. "[#]"=max

Pushups: 10-10-8-6-[25], 59 total.
Situps : 10-10-8-6-[51], 85 total.
Curls : 10-10-8-6-[ 9], 43 total.
Lifts : 10-10-8-6-[10], 44 total.

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Friday, July 4, 2008

 

Bluegrass 10000 Race Report

I noticed something this morning preparing for the race: I had received what appeared to be a seeded bib despite last year's 57:27 time in this event.

In registering, I'm sure I might have had some lofty goal such as 45 minutes... about 1:26 off my 10k PR... but nothing seed-worthy. I'm sure it was a mix-up involving people wanting to give out pretty red bibs with double digit numbers on them.

Of course, I didn't remotely think about lining up in the seeded area, but perhaps I should have lined up in the area right behind it--with 3,000+ registrants, there are a lot of downsides to being modest about your abilities when lining up.

Weather was periodic drizzle and mild.

I lined up in about in an area where most people appeared capable of a 7-8 minute pace, and set my Garmin 305 to pace a 7'25" pace for 10 miles (46 minute 10k). By the first 1/4 mile, I had fallen 150 ft off that pace, and rapidly lost ground until about 300 ft. I slammed my tender right foot into the ground stopping for a wall of walkers, and limped for a few paces until the adrenaline overcame the soreness.

I managed to hit 7:45 pace for the first mile, despite the crowd. The second mile, I went on a passing frenzy. By the third mile, I had very little left. I managed to push it the 6th mile to salvage a respectable time--47:47--1 minute and 20 seconds off my PR from the 2008 Rodes City Run. I should have lined up better, but given my ankle issues and lack of conditioning recently, a decent performance.

Splits from my Garmin (6.25 miles. That's either a very efficient run or a short course.)

1 Mi 7:45 7:45 7:45
1 Mi 7:06 14:51 7:06
1 Mi 7:55 22:46 7:55
1 Mi 7:52 30:38 7:52
1 Mi 8:05 38:43 8:05
1 Mi 7:16 45:59 7:16
0.25 Mi 1:45 47:44 7:00


Elevation Chart:

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Thursday, July 3, 2008

 

Hundred Pushup Program

Need to start somewhere with maintaining a good burn rate outside of running, especially in lieu of my reduced mileage because of minor injury.

I've decided to incorporate the Hundred Pushup Program into my routine.

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Stupid? Maybe.

I made an appointment for Tuesday @ 9:30 am with the doctor. Really hoping that there's nothing to see him about by then, but it has been two weeks and pain still causes limping occasionally. I start feeling better then get worse, although the general trend seems to be in the getting better direction.

Doing frozen water bottle rolls and ice on the ankle. When my heel is thoroughly frozen, I'll switch back over to heat.

Oh, yes... I'm supposedly racing tomorrow.

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Tuesday, July 1, 2008

 

Somewhat recovered from injury

Today was the second day of my first back-to-back days of running since the Hatfield-McCoy marathon. I'm running at a considerably more sane pace than 8 minute miles.

I have noticed that my body seems to be a little bit unfamiliar with running now. Still, 6.4 miles yesterday... below my established 8'50" easy pace. Had to wrap in FreezeIT after. This morning, my first mile was rough, but 8'33" pace overall for 8 miles. My heel and ankle hurt a little bit, but I'm actually feeling better after today's workout than after yesterday's.

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