Easy Run

Distance: 4 miles
Time: 36:58
Pace: 9:14 min/mi

Comments: Weird little run. Started off a bit stiff. Guess the sweat run on Thursday took more out of me than I expected. The weather was nicely cool with even a bit of mist. But the ultra-humid air took its toll with a quickness.

I seemed to hold a solid pace the first half of this workout but fell off considerably on mile three. Like "25 seconds slower pace" considerably. Regrouped for a respectable final mile but what the hell? Control-wise this felt pretty good. I was able to focus on turnover and such pretty well the whole way. Still, when the hell do I get the payoff from all the awful July runs?

Conditions:
Hour: 6:15 a.m.
Surface: concrete
Weather: overcast/light mist
Temperature: 70 degrees
Humidity: 96%
Wind: 5 mph
Location: Lewisville, Texas
Shoes: Brooks Adrenaline GT 14
Injury update: The right hamstring fluttered a bit on the last lap.

Long Run

Distance: 6 miles
Time: 57:52
Pace: 9:38

Comments: Being off today I figured I'd try and get in a daylight run. That might not have been the best idea. With the front that pushed through last night it was downright sweltering. For any relief in temperature the rains brought, the humidity was far worse.

So, yeah, outside of the first two miles this was a bona fide slog. I slowed down by 15 seconds or more per mile after mile two. It has been awhile since I felt as flat miserable in a run. On the plus side, the ache in my hamstrings seems to have eased off somewhat. So running overslow might have been helpful on that front.

Conditions:
Hour: 9:00 a.m.
Surface: concrete
Weather: overcast
Temperature: 75 degrees
Humidity: 94%
Wind: calm
Location: Lewisville, Texas
Shoes: Brooks Adrenaline GT 14

Injury update: Nada.

Easy Run

Distance: 4:00
Time: 36:36
Pace: 9:08 min/mi

Comments: I got a pretty good nights sleep for once and woke up feeling rested rather than bleary. Getting out the door wasn't too tough either. Still, I was determined not to get all excited and try and blow out a tempo workout and injure myself just when I'm feeling better.

So I kept a lid on the pace and tried to monitor how my legs were feeling throughout the run. Things went well and, despite the governor, I felt pretty strong this whole way. Given it was a bit cooler this morning, but I really had a sense of control over this run I haven't enjoyed except in spurts up till now. And it was reflected in the splits which were very regular once again -- the first a bit slower for the warm up and the last a bit quick for the finish.

Conditions:
Hour: 6:00 a.m.
Surface: concrete
Weather: partly cloudy
Temperature: 74 degrees
Humidity: 75%
Wind: calm
Location: Lewisville, Texas
Shoes: Brooks Adrenaline GT 14
Injury update: Right hamstring was stiff starting out but warmed up quickly. Right hip the same but less intense.

Easy Run

Distance: 4 miles
Time: 39:22
Pace: 9:50 min/mi

Comments: After the unpleasantness of the conditioning workout on Friday I decided to make this week a recovery week. I had to work Sunday morning so skipping the long run and giving myself two days recovery worked better anyway. There are no conditioning workouts this week so I'll just try and get runs in on the new schedule and see how my legs respond.

The hamstring issue still has me concerned so I deliberately ran this one slow; just better than a jog, actually. I wanted to really monitor how my legs were doing and see if I need to start doing more preventative measures. Right now I'm hoping cutting back will get me back up to speed but we'll see.

Conditions:
Hour: 5:40 a.m.
Surface: concrete
Weather: partly cloudy
Temperature: 83 degrees
Humidity: 60 percent
Wind: calm
Location: Lewisville, Texas
Shoes: Brooks Adrenaline GT 14

Injury update: The right hamstring was still a little tight this morning but loosened up pretty quickly once I got started. The outside of my right hip was feeling a little sore at the end.

Conditioning Work

This was the last workout of this month's "camp" and, as a result, it was pretty brutal. After a very thorough warm up effort the menu of the morning was a lot of high intensity conditioning work followed by a hard run. The conditioning part kept lengthening as the workout went on. It was not intended to be a pleasant experience.

I started in the hole and didn't make much progress from there. I woke up too early and overtired. I got out to the workout but could feel I was lagging and my right hamstring was not cooperating at all. I got through the warm up OK but on the first set of the "real" workout I could tell I was in trouble. I pushed it as hard as I could on the run but the hamstring was not happy. I battled through the second set and that was about as much as I was willing to push my luck with the leg.

To compensate for missing out on the run I made a real effort to get all the way through the conditioning drills and get some more core work while I was at it. I don't think I came even close to the goal of the workout but I definitely gave it about all I had on a not-so-great day.