Fitness Run

Distance: 4 miles
Time: 38:31
Pace: 9:37 min/mi

Comments: The race is fast approaching and, while I don't think I can do much more to improve my conditioning, I need to get my weekly runs in. With the recent weather that meant going out in cold and wet conditions. I hoped there would be a long enough break in the rain for me to squeeze in my run but, of course, that wasn't happening.

Since I am technically tapering, I did not intend to run this particularly fast but the cold spurred me on a bit. Partially to keep warm and partially to get the thing over with. Still, I didn't overdo it by any means. Just a pretty workmanlike effort on my way to the starting line.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4 miles
Time: 40:13
Pace: 10:03 min/mi

Comments: Storms are forecast to be pushing through the area intermittently over the next few days. So getting a run in will be a matter of taking advantage of breaks in the weather. I got a chance pretty early this morning so I took it.

The storms are feeding off high moisture in the area and I felt it on this run. Temperatures were a bit warmer (but not insanely hot like it will get later in the year) and I could feel the drag on my legs and then see it on the pace which eroded drastically every mile. I'll chalk this one as an early warm-weather acclimation run.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4 miles
Time: 39:26
Pace: 9:51 min/mi

Comments: It rained most of yesterday morning and, after considering it some, I realized I felt pretty fatigued. So I opted for an extra day off. It works well with my plan for every-other-day until two days prior to the race next weekend as well.

This run was pretty consistent. The first downhill mile was a reasonable effort and the second slightly faster. The first and second uphill mile went very much the same. That speaks a lot to my improving conditioning.

The strength I have built over the past six weeks is making more of a difference, which I could really feel on the final mile. The big question for next week is how well my stamina has come along.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4 miles
Time: 40:38
Pace: 10:09 min/mi

Comments: Felt surprisingly good when I got up today and, wonder of wonders, the temperatures weren't sub-arctic for once. There is a front due in the next 24 hours so I thought it would be a good idea to take advantage of the balmy conditions.

And, as one might expect, I was sweating hard by the end. Which was a nice change. I started deliberately slower in light of yesterday's blistering pace and let myself ease up some every mile afterward. The final effort was still pretty good compared to, say, a month ago.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4 miles
Time: 37:13
Pace: 9:17 min/mi

Comments: That was a hell of a lot better than the last run. I was really concerned that the awful of Monday would seep into the rest of the runs this week but I felt pretty strong out there today.

I did the first two miles on a steady pace that turned out to be a good 30 seconds per mile quicker than I was expecting. I did make an effort to push things on the back half of the run and was remarkably consistent pacewise on them both. Partially because I did really surge the last quarter mile.

This was a good chance to shake off the post-race creakyness but I need to be more conservative with the efforts over the next week if I want to survive the half marathon at the end of the month.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4 miles
Time: 44:38
Pace: 11:09 min/mi

Comments: I knew this run would suck and it did not disappoint. Running too hard on the 10K left me pretty sore on Saturday and not particularly sprightly yesterday. Things weren't substantially better this morning so I knew I would have to work for it today.

And it was another cold start. I'm going to regret saying this in six months, but I'm ready for warmer weather to arrive. I started slow and then got progressively slower. There was nothing positive about this effort except for surviving it.

Dash for the Beads 10K

Race: Dash for the Beads 10K
Watch Time: 58:17
Official Time: 57:02
Pace: 9:08 min/mi

Comments: "Hey! Why don't I do a 10K?" I said to myself one day while out running.

"There's one coming up right in the neighborhood and I can just walk over to it," I said passing a sign for said event.

"It will be a nice casual tune up and a lot of fun," I said as the warm winter sun dappled my face.

I should never listen to me.

I'm certain the Dash for the Beads is a charming neighborhood event on most years. This was not most years. As I expected going in, it suffers from the chaos of smaller events. But this iteration of the event featured one really rough complication; the weather.

The temperature at 6 a.m. was right at 60 degrees. Almost ideal. By 8 a.m. it had plummeted more than 20 degrees. By race time it was hovering in the mid 30s and still falling. And there was a nice torturous breeze to go with it.

I walked over to the race and by the time I got there my face felt frozen solid. I knew I had to dress for the run but the throwaway sweatshirt wasn't blunting the breeze. Thankfully they had a warm event tent. I waited inside until about 10 minutes before the race start and headed to the starting line. It was just as cold as before.

Then the race start was delayed. We waited. And waited. And waited. I was not the only runner who started going into pretty violent chills. Finally, a full 15 minutes later we got to go. Of course I went out too fast in a desperate effort to warm up.

The first half of the race was a mess. A lot of hills (that I expected) which kept me from finding a comfortable groove. I did focus on keeping a constant pace on the hills and not letting the early ones burn me out. And I was still running too fast which didn't bode well for the second half of the thing.

Then, just before mile 4, I started to feel in control. It kinda came out of nowhere and surprised me. I found my pace was strong and I started reeling in a few of the folks who had passed me early. Then I ran into the hoards of 5K walkers complete with strollers, dogs and little regard for anyone trying to pass them. Dodging these morons took a good minute off my time.

I finished under an hour which was my unspoken goal. My average pace was in striking distance of 9 minutes per mile which I would be overjoyed over if it holds going forward. All in all, a strong effort for my return to racing.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4 miles
Time: 39:52
Pace: 9:57 min/mi

Comments: Much better weather today but still pretty chilly out. I waited a while but didn't want to put this off all day. I also did my daily upper body workout before the run. That is going to take a bit of getting used to.

No land speed record today. No negative split. The only big positive was keeping it under 40 minutes. But I really wasn't planning on having a world beating effort today. With the 10K on Saturday I just wanted some solid miles and not too much fatigue.

The real breakthrough was hitting more miles this year than I amassed in all of 2017. That might be more of a reflection on how little I did last year but I'm pretty pleased nonetheless.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4 miles
Time: 42:48
Pace: 10:41 min/mi

Comments: I intended to go out yesterday for this run but felt like butt the entire day. Kind of like a really bad hangover day without the hangover. For now, I'm chalking it up to the hard runs on the weekend and the travel schedule. I'll revisit that diagnosis if the issues drag on at all.

As a result, I decided to keep this one slow and deliberate. I expected a slog and a slog I got. It was also on the cold side which made things that much more miserable. But I felt good about the effort and I'll wait until Thursday to decide where I am at physically.

Fitness Run

Distance: 4 miles
Time: 37:49
Pace: 9:27 min/mi

Comments: Weird little run but, in the end, very satisfactory. I knew I had to get today's run in to meet my goals but found myself more hesitant than usual to get out the door. I also didn't follow my routine of eating at least and energy bar before going out.

I knew I had a pretty strong pace but, at the end of the first lap I was feeling like I might not be able to sustain it through the planned run (or, possibly, even finish). Then I got a boost out of the downhill and found myself cruising through the second half. I even considered going for six miles but decided to play it safe.

Split-wise, this was a very strong effort with every mile faster than the last. The sub-9:30 total pace was not my best for this run but the splits were far more consistent than on runs I've done this fast.