Holy Moley

After a fun weekend back home in Toledo, where we did some alumni rowing races and a fare amount of drinking, I got back into the swing of things monday with an 8 mile run on a beautiful day. The heat caught me a bit off guard, not to mention the throngs of Chicagoans enjoying the 80 degree weather. Enjoying it a bit too much though, past 2 days I saw multiple kids (usually young men who happen to have tramp stamps... surprise) getting thrown into the back of a padiwagan. I had one encounter with an obviously drunk kid who wanted to play chicken with me (he literally looked around, saw me, and stepped off the beach in front of me). So I did what anyone with common sense would of done of course... I put my sunglasses on the top of my head, stared right into his eyes, and turned on the boosters. Lets just say he didn't stay put (although he did have some choice words for me, but I kept running). That mentality never made sense to me, why do people want to pick fight with a random stranger... eh... off topic

My run was good monday, produced ALOT of sweat, and got me back into it. Today I tried something new. I've been reading a great deal of marathon websites with training schedules, and they talk about doing higher intensity, shorter runs. So today I did 4x1 miles with 3min rest in between. I did 5:28, 5:52, 5:58, and 6:12. First one was by far the easiest, and I actually though midway during the 2nd run that there was NO way I could do 2 more. There was a fare amount of dodging and weaving, and people were definitely looking at me funny, but I was pretty excited once all said and done. I hadn't done a workout like that in years and I was pretty impressed with myself (toot toot).

Side note... i stopped watching lost this season... and with the series finale just happening, I got pulled back in! Different experience this time, I watch them on fast forward so I can finish them sooner... it's pretty intense! Still no better season than season 1

Morning run tomorrow with a core workout after... keep your motor runnin...

A Good Week

Wednesday was my fast 7-8 mile run, and I'm still somewhat surprised/encouraged by my performance that day. So Thursday I decided I should take precaution and do a recover run: shorter and slower in the morning. Well didn't exactly get myself up at 5:45AM (damn snooze button is so inviting!) and I had to make up for it in the evening. It was a beautiful day and when I got home my roommate Loren was looking for for a running partner. I thought this was perfect because I'm a bit faster than Loren, and he usually doesn't run for too long. We got on the beach path and I decided to make up for the speed difference, I'd run in the sand while he ran on the pavement. This lasted about a mile and was really tough. I am definitely going to add sand running into my off day repertoire! I barely kept up with Loren, and was happy to see the sand end after about a mile. But then Loren said something that made something click in my head. He said, "alright man I'm going to turn here and head to Ana's (his g/f's) and you can keep going." Maybe it was ego, maybe it was just my years of following instructions in rowing, but once he said that I just thought "ok" and kept going. I ran a total of 9 miles and had to force myself to turn around. My speed varied, as it always does, dependent on the distance of people running in front of me. See for some reason I have to pass everyone. In my head even a training run is a competition, and even if someone is running significantly slower than me, if I see them a quarter mile ahead I kick it up a notch. I had tried to keep myself to 7 min miles, but at times I was going 6:30min/miles. In the end I ran those 9 miles in a little over an hour. Faster than I wanted, but it felt GREAT.

Today was a lift/cross training day, so I got to the gym and went through my core routine and high rep lifts. It's disheartening sometimes doing the lifts because I top strength has left me a bit. I have to remind myself when I can only do 14 pull-ups that I can always go back to heavy lifting after 10/10/10, that I need to focus on becoming a runner. After the lift I did some erging (god i hate that machine) and hoped on the dreaded eliptical. 1.5 hrs at the gym felt good and I feel stronger in the right places (core, legs, and back).

Tomorrow I have to do a morning run because I'm driving back to Toledo for my high school's alumni rowing race. Very excited to see some old faces and splash around in the Maumee River. I should be able to get some runs in Saturday and Sunday. Until Monday I'll leave you with a pic of the lake front at 6AM a few months ago. It's brighter now adays at that time, and I miss the view of the sun rising over the lake. Gotta love Chicago!

Attempt of a Video Blog

So after a pretty decent recover run Friday and a low key gym workout Saturday, I had a pretty lazy Sunday and Monday (read I may have imbibed a bit too much... who me???? noooo). So today I got out on the path with the goal to run close to 8 miles, FAST. I had my GPS watch and I averaged 6:40min miles, which was way faster than i expected! I toyed around with 6min miles, just to see how fast it felt. Pushed me past AT threshold for a bit, which was probably good for my speed but bad for my knees! Anyways, I tried doing a video blog before leaving for the workout... lets see if it works!

"Recovery" Run

Got home from work today a little later than usual. Was exhausted all day, but felt like I needed to do some sort of run being that in the past 7 days I've only been able to get in a few mediocre workouts. So I reheated some coffee from the morning and pounded down a bowl of cereal before gearing up. The plan was to do a short run, about 4 miles, at a slower pace... well that didn't exactly happen. I think it was a combination of the caffeine kicking in around mile 2 and my new ipod playlist that just kept me from wanting to turn around. The weather wasn't even nice! But somehow I just zoned out and found myself farther than I had ever run down the path. Round trip the run was 11.26 miles, and from the reading on my new GPS watch, I was moving at a decent pace (7 min miles... a 3 hour marathon is about a 6:53 min mile). It was just one of those run where my brain turned off and everything felt great. It was pretty surprising being that I am just getting over this bug! Heart rate was in the right range, between 150-165 hpm, and with some sprint work I should be able to get that down a bit. In a couple months I have to do a 20 mile training run (i think a few weeks before the race) and at this rate that should be a breeze!

On another note I need to get involved with the American Cancer Society of Chicago pretty soon. The training is alot, but I have done a good deal of morning work and can volunteer in the afternoon. Luckily the adminstrators at ACS are extremely helpful, and I think they will be able to point me in the right direction.

Also I need to get a video camera to make some video of the training, volunteering, and maybe a few video-journal entries. Ebay here I come!

New Weight Regimen and Video of "The Path"

Check out my beach path on a windy day last week. Pretty cool right? Definitely my favorite part about Chicago.

Last week I started a new weight routine that is more inline with my marathon goals. That means no more "beach weights," it's time to work the high reps low lbs. No more mass building, now it's all about building core strength and getting some lean sinewy muscle like Usain Bolt (sorry I dont know the names of any famous marathoners)! I'm still recovering from this annoying bug, so I didn't want to push it too hard today but I didn't want to be a couch potato either. The gym was basically empty, it was a sunday (not to mention mother's day), I could get to each station without a wait, and I was strug-el-ing! It was good to do though, can't let a little sickyness get in my way. Hoping tomorrow I will be closer to 100% and can get a long run in after work. I also think starting tomorrow I'm going to publicize the blog... hopefully to critical acclaim of course!

PS
I just saw that they are bringing back NBA JAM... I remember spending hours playing that with my childhood friend Joey. BOOM-SHAKALAKA!!!!! HE'S ON FIREEEE!!! This remake looks like a bunch of bobble heads playing basketball though... which is a good way to describe what it looks like when I play basketball, but doesn't fly with professionals... oh well I'll try it of course SLAMAJAMA!

Minor Setback... and a Life Lesson

So minor setback… Tuesday was my birthday and to celebrate I decided to do a longer run at my marathon pace before going for dinner and drinks with friends. The run was along the lake (my preferred path) and for a change it wasn’t too windy. The past few days on the path have been a battle against the wind on the return trip, which obviously means the trip out was a breeze with the tailwind. Back in the day during rowing practices, you would sometimes swear you were going into a headwind both ways. With running it is very clear which way the wind is blowing, so I always begin to dread that moment when I have to turn around and face that two headed, foaming at the mouth windy beast. But this time the wind was pretty tame so I decided it was time to push it and work on my technique. Marathon runners always seem to run with a short stride, and being that I am alotta leg, my stide isn’t exactly short. I relate that technique to rowing with a “poppy” feel. It’s what we used to say when we needed to be a little quicker through the water and usually used during longer races. Use a little less energy and quicken up your turnover. It makes things more efficient and allows the rower (runner) to conserve energy for the long haul. Overall the run was successful. I ran 7.66 miles at a pace of 8.6 mph (my marathon pace is 8.7) and felt like I could have gone much farther.

And here is when the “setback” began. Lets just say that what was supposed to be a quiet dinner/drinks with friends turned into a quiet dinner/drinks with friends and a night of drinks with the boss’s son. Yes life is random, actually had a random run in on the path too, and I found myself boozing with Hightower Jr (you’d get it if you knew my boss). Next day was tough, and then for 2 days after I was under the weather. So I am hitting the sack early today (Friday) and hoping to get out on the trail and in the gym tomorrow morning. I did gain 1 good bit of knowledge from my birthday night: never mix scotch, beer, vodka, beer, whiskey, and champagne… it never ends well.

Let the Adventure Begin....

The goal: Raise as much money for cancer research
The plan: Run my first marathon in under 3 hours
The reality: I am 6'4, 200lbs, with "child-bearing hips." This is not going to be easy!

In the beginning of April I started running regularly along Lake Michigan. I've always had the idea in the back of my head to run a Marathon (although if you had asked me what I thought about marathons you may have thought I had the conception that marathons were created by Beelzebub himself) but never had the opportunity. Now that I am settled in a new city (Chicago) with a great job (evil financial minion), I am ready to give it a shot. But there were 2 stipulations: do it for charity and break 3 hours. The first was a no-brainer. So many people in my life have been effected by cancer and I hope this small act will help people much smarter than me find a cure sooner rather than later. My father beat cancer 8 year ago. And my aunt has beat it 3 different times over 12 years (her most recently battle was this past Summer). They are easily two of the toughest people I know, and my main reason I am running. But so many other people in my life have been effected by cancer: friends, neighbors, co-workers, teachers.... the list goes on. And that is why I want this blog to not only be my training journal... but also a journal about the people who have lived with/through cancer in some aspect of their lives.

Now "why 3 hours?" you ask. Well... if I'm going to put myself through this horrific race, I might as well go after it. I came up with 3 hours because that is the number I've been told is "impressive." Two year ago, while living in NYC, I got on a treadmill thinking I would be doing a short run and ended up doing a half marathon in 1hr27min. Yes I know the treadmill is likely easier, but I'm going to actually train for this! And you can read about it here! I know you are just overflowing with excitement, so I'll leave you now to go think about just how much fun it is going to be reading this blog over the next 5 months :/ I do promise to try and make it entertaining and also somewhat educational. I will end with my first plea for donations: DONATE! (PS: over the next few months I will have goals that if we hit I do silly things... ideas are welcome for those prizes!)

And here... we... goooo