February 22nd, Friday

So, today I did a lot of good stuff for about an hour on a warm, cloudy afternoon in St. Augustine. I started with some hip and leg activation exercise pausing only to take a picture of a very nice couple on the beach. Next I did 10 short speed segments gradually increasing distance and intensity. All that took in excess of 20 minutes because I  recovered fully between each segment by walking. Next I ran 3 miles in 31 minutes stopping a few times to stretch my quad and calf muscles which were marginally annoying me. Each mile was about a minute quicker than the previous one. By the end my legs were totally pain-free and I felt ready to do some more work. I proceeded to cover another half-mile adding 3 x 50 stride speed segments trying not to hurt myself by running too fast. My Garmin tells me that on one of those segments my pace hit 6:19 / mile.  Next I went to the pool and did few laps and ran a few minutes in the cold water adding some leg exercises also.  The cold water felt good after a hot workout. It is so sweet that I am still the only person in this complex using the pool all to myself.

I am now asking myself will I need a full three to four mile warm-up to be fully prepared to run a 5k next Saturday? That really seems like a lot.

Stats –

Weight today is 153 lb

Heart rate remains steady at 54 beats per minute

Diet has been very good

I’ve been getting 8 to 9 hours of sleep every night and occasionally afternoon nap.

I wish I was stretching more and doing more body weights but I’m getting better.

I have been doing more foot rolling lately throughout the day and my morning pain levels have decreased for plantar fasciitis and remain very good for Achilles tendonitis.

February 20th, Wednesday

“I am not a machine that can be wound up every day.”                 Herb Elliott

Rest day after progressive miles yesterday.  Thank you, Herb.

February 21st, Thursday

With quads still tight and heavy I did a lot of gentle work today.  Started out with a  bike ride on the beach for 20 minutes.  Then I swam and ran in the chilly but tolerable pool for another 20 minutes.

Steady stats.

February 19th, Tuesday

Today I had  a very positive workout on a number of levels.   Here is the data;

– A prolonged warm-up starting with 20 minutes of heat , proceeding with hip activation drills and 10 x short runs of from 30 to 50 strides at progressively quicker pace.

– Then 5 x 1 mile on the beach – first half north into a steady, tough ( but not cold) wind; followed by a  relaxed, wind aided half south.  I took from 2 to 3 minutes to recover between each mile.   I set out to do 4, but as each got more comfortable and quicker, I added a 5th.  It seemed remarkable to me that the time was dropping with each mile while I was exerting the same perceived effort.

The times were;  13:29,     11:15,     10:55,     10:31,     9:45!

Positives –

– longest mileage in St. Augustine 🙂

– no leg and foot issues 🙂

– showing strength over time.   42:28 for final 4 miles total 🙂

– aerobic capacity seemed unlimited – ended workout only out of fear of injury to legs 🙂

“It is a wise man who knows when courage ends and stupidity begins.”                             Jerome Cady

– ended day with 15 minutes in the still cold pool  🙂

Stats-

Weight = #152.8

Diet = 8

Sleep = 8/9 hours average

Positive morning indexes as result of 2 recovery days.

Steady heart rate @ 54 bpm

Stretching good,  body weights mostly absent

 February 15th, Friday

“Everyday you have to test yourself.  If you don’t, it’s a wasted day.”

Terry Butts, Marine Corps Male Athlete of the Year

Today’s plan was to try quick mile on the beach preceded by a warm-up that Rich Refi and I have been discussing lately. This warm-up does not consist of any slow running at all.  It consists of leg drills, short bursts, more leg drills + 2 x 40m is at 90 to 95%.   Conditions were good on the beach for a time trial; 60*, no wind, firm sand and a friendly, early evening cloud cover.  So I started out with a minimum goal of braking 10:00.  The pleasant result was an 8:25 mile run.  Now, I am training with a goal to run 1500m under 6:00 in June. So, 8:25 does not sound very close to that pace. So I am forced to seek mitigating factors to explain the slow pace.

It’s a beach not a rubberized track with spikes.

I am wearing heat saving tights.

The run was straight down and back with a 180* turn around.

My right quad was aching most of the way.

It was not a competition.

I never attempted to run at 100% effort.

It’s still February.

It was an experimental warm-up.

I had a double workout yesterday.

OK, I am reassured.     🙂

Stats –

Sleep = 9 hours

Weight = #152

Diet =10

a.m.HR = 54bpm

Morning Achilles tendon discomfort remains a wonderful 0.

Morning plantar fasciitis discomfort is getting better.

Daily stretching and daily Body Weights rating is fair.

February 13th and 14th

Wednesday –  Non impact day.

5 miles on bike in 35:00

Thursday – Double run today!

Finally did a run that covered 3 miles this morning.  It was not fast,  It was 3.0 in 37:19, but fed accomplish the goal.   Later I did some quicker work for 2 miles in 26:00.  That included 6 x SS of 30 seconds with max speed of 6:45

Stats-  Steady

February 12, Tuesday

“If I can get better, why not.”  Emil Zatopek

It was a summer like day in St Augustine today; high puffy clouds, deep blue sky, temperature in the mid-80s and a steady soft southern breeze.  We went to the beach and set up our little tent and  cool, new Tommy Bahama beach chairs (Hot $5.00 buy at an estate sale.) at about 1:30 p.m. . The idea was to have a walk and a workout run. That idea was quickly abandoned amid the overbearing heat.  We enjoyed the summary conditions for about an hour before heading back home for an early dinner.   Dinner at 4 p.m. and a cool run at 6:30 p.m. became the new plan. That worked out very well because by 6:30 the temperature was about 65 degrees as the sun was setting. I ran on the dark beach, a little spooky, for 53 minutes and covered 4 miles. Throughout the run I did frequent SS including three x 400m and 13 x 75m. My pace for the 400m segments was at 8:00 per mile and the  75m segments came in at between 7:00 and 6 :00.  My Garmin actually clocked my last SS at 5:40 pace.  That’s pretty quick!

Steady stats.  A no impact day definitely helps to keep plantar fasciitis in check.

February 11, Monday

Seven leisurely miles on the flat roads in 1 hour with a few detours.

Stats-

Weight  = 151.5 after ride, almost “fighting weight”

Sleep = 9 hours

Diet = Excellent

a.m.HR = 54 bpm

a.m. discomfort indexes.  PF = 3. AT = 0

Stretching = G       BWE = F

February 10th, Sunday

60*, overcast, foggy, crisp north wind; a perfect running day

Speed Segments (SS) is my new vocabulary term1 for what I have previous!y referred to as strides or pick-ups.  My training going forward will be focused on using fast running to build more and more powerful mitochondria.  So there will be many SS included. l will still include long runs and high intensity middle distance interval training (HIMDIT).

Today: 4 miles in 54:54 including warm-up of 1 mile w 5 x SS of 50 strides followed by 3 miles consisting of 17 x SS.  Each speed segment consisted of 30 seconds and 75 to 85 strides. Each was followed by a recovery phase of 1 minute with 30 seconds walking 30 seconds jog.  My HR was consistently in the range of 135 to 150 BPM.    Running north I enjoyed battling the wind: running south was a little like floating on the firm but forgiving sand.  The workout was quite exhilarating.

Good stats all around…

February 8th, Friday

Two great quotes when seen together:  (I am loving this book.)

Percy Cerutty,  “Great people and great athletes realize early in their lives their destiny, and accept it.”

Jim  Ryan, (My hero)  ” I ran to get a letter jacket, a girlfriend.”

Today I wanted to see if I could run a 10 minute mile or better on the beach. After I thought about it for a while I decided to just try for half a mile. I did about a 15 minute warm up that included 8 pick-ups from 25 to 50 strides. I was looking for a 5-minute half what started out running way too fast. I was very comfortable at 7:30  to 8:00 and completed the 800 meters in 4:25 after backing off considerably. At that point two simultaneous things were  happening. I was thinking of pushing the trial on to the mile distance, but my right quadricep muscle was starting to hurt. I did push on pretty strong to the 1200m mark, but stopped out of an abundance of caution. I was experiencing no aerobic stress at all. That was a very good sign. I walked and jogged a half-mile back and then began trying a few more pickups.  I think it is possible that, had I warmed up for 10 more minutes before the trial, I may have not experienced the quadriceps pain at all.

I am not unhappy with the results of this effort today.

I want a letter jacket!

Stats-

Weight = #153.5

Sleep  = 9 hours

Diet = 7/8

Morning heart rate consisted of 54 beats per minute

Morning indexes good after 2 out of three days of rest.

I am adding two new indexes so that I become more aware of my behavior. The first is for daily stretching (DS) which will be rated as Good, Fair, Poor or Absent. The other will be a measure of my daily behavior concerning body weight exercises (BWE) for upper body and arms and core based on the same ratings.

Today – Stretching = P .    PWE  =  A

February 5th, 6th and 7th

“If the furnace is hot enough, it will burn anything.”

-John L. Parker Jr.   in  Once A Runner

Tuesday – Rest day

Wednesday – Another day with even faster pick-ups                                            -35 minutes total                                                                                             I ran 10 x 30 seconds with a 60 second walk or                               jog recovery flanked by a short run before and                             after.  My pace descended from 9:00 to 6:40 as                               I became warmer and more fluid.                                                         I concentrated on short quick strides.                                                 The stride count reached 160 per minute.

Thursday – Rested today with tired legs.

Stats have been consistent in positive range.