Training Week 30 Dec 2013 to 5 Jan 2014

December Monthly Totals:

Miles: 226

Time: 43 Hours

Gain: 24,469'

Beers: 37 (plus half a dozen glasses of wine and several- at least 8 mixed drinks)

This Week Weekly Totals:

Miles: 60.8

Time: 9:14

Gain: 5,293

Beers: 5 (and 2 glasses wine and several mixed drinks on new years eve)

Monday 30 Dec: Off day today. The legs felt great despite the long fun run yesterday but I am trying to focus on spending time with the family and getting stuff down the house on my week of staycation. With more free time than normal and somehow I can't find the time to update this daily so today and tomorrow may not list all the food I ate because I can't remember what happened 2 days ago.

Running Stats:

•             NA
• Did squeeze in 3 sets of 20 pushups while bathing my son.

Diet Stats:

• Breakfast: Black Coffee, Creamed Egg on Toast
• Lunch: Gourmet salad
• Dinner: Brined and Roasted chicken, and roasted vegetables (home grown potatoes, green and red bell, red onion, in olive oil and rosemary.
• Beers: 1

Tuesday 31 Dec: Snuck in an 8 miles today. Decided to set aside the Maffetone stuff and lay the hammer down. Besides the upset stomach and 2 pit stops to empty the guts, my actual moving time was like a 7:16 pace. The first 3 miles, were sub 7 min pace and then after the turnaround at 4 mi, I had a strong headwind and it was hard to hold pace. Despite that, this was my second fastest 8 mile ever. Got in some elevation gain at the Cheyenne mountain zoo hiking around with the family too but not counting it. Probably a couple miles and a few hundred feet.

Running Stats:

• Miles: 8 + .3 cooldown
• Time: 58:05 + 4:47
• Pace: 7:14
• Gain: 44
• Surface: Gravel
• Additional: NA
• Feelings: Well other than an upset stomach at 3.8 and 6.1 miles, pretty good. Haven't turned it up like that in months.
• Weather: Strong headwind on the return 10-12+ mph

Diet Stats:

• Breakfast: coffee, Cheese Grits, 2 Fried Eggs, and 1.5 strips bacon
• Lunch: Bag full of mixed veggies and bag full of leftover meats, cheeses and water
• Afternoon Snack: Hot cocoa and coffee at the zoo.
• Dinner: Home made fondu
• Beers: 2 (and several mixed drinks)

Wednesday 1 Jan: Hmmmm. Another nice but unneeded rest day although I was a bit sore from laying down the hammer yesterday. I just did stuff around the house all day that has been piling up. When you run a lot, that kind of happens so a stacation is nice. Got out to my sister's house for dinner and a movie testing their new surround sound too.

Running Stats:

•             NA

Diet Stats:

• Breakfast: Leftover Creamed Egg on toast and black coffee, and OJ
• Lunch: Leftover grilled eggplant, Annie's Mac and Cheese with Beef Kielbasa, and leftover roasted vegetables.
• Dinner: Artichoke and Green Chili appetizer on french bread slices with lots of melted cheese, chicken wrapped in bacon and cheese, whole wheat spaghetti noodles soaked in butter, steamed broccoli with melted cheese on top, 2 biscuits and home made popcorn.
• Beers: 2 (and 1 glass wine)

Thursday 2 Jan: Wasn't planning on 2 faster days but I ran the first lap with Joe from work and after the first 4 miles of chatting it up, we average about a 7:20 pace. When he turned in to call it, I went for another lap and it felt easier because I wasn't chatting anymore. Man I need to stop this fast running stuff. It is addicting but it's gonna get me hurt. The 2 days off early in the week is too much rest apparently. Hoping for 2 a day tomorrow with the incline before work and the standard 8 during lunch break. This is because I realized my first race, the Salida Run through time trail marathon is in just 2 and a half months. I'm still in a base building period but need to probably start doing speed work once per week and keep getting elevation gain and mileage. Ideally I would like to build to at least 80 MPW before my taper for that but it has to all balance with family and work. I believe balance is healthy and important for sustainability including sleep and rest for the increased work not to mention I have school starting back soon as well. Getting up early is an option but I need my beauty rest, my long runs, and my elevation gain to make all this work.

Running Stats:

• Miles: 8.01 + .45 Cooldown
• Time: 58:55
• Pace: 7:22
• Gain:  249'
• Surface: All paved
• Additional: finally decided to go for more. 3 sets of decline (45 degree) situps alternated with 3 sets of 10 full dead hang Marine Corps style pullups.
• Feelings: Felt pretty awesome
• Weather: 42 and 10 mph wind

Diet Stats:

• Breakfast: 2 Fried Eggs and 2 Slices Canadian Bacon, 2 Cups Black Coffee, and Green Tea with honey
• Lunch: String Cheese and Gourmet Salad with Roasted Chicken and ACV with Olive Oil Dressing.
• Afternoon Snack: Cup of Almonds, Cutie, and an apple 
• Dinner: Ribeye Steak Fajitas, Black Refried Beans, and Cantaloupe
• Beers: 0

Friday 3 Jan: Started this morning with the incline with my friend Sean. It was nice to get out with him after a resting and healing period. Nice steady pace. Not too fast and averaged at or below MAF while ascending. Then a gentle trot down the icy Barr trail back to Memorial Park at the bottom of Manitou where we started for 6 miles and 2k feet of much needed ascent. Second run out was afternoon lunch run at work. Ran 8 miles (the standard work lunch double 4 mile loop) with the new small hill spur both laps. MAF was feeling good until a direct headwind and then I decided to maintain an 8:30 or so pace rather than slowing up more. 2 a day! Hoping for 18-20 flat miles tomorrow in the cold but really need the wind to blow east-west so I don't have nasty headwinds running on the plains to Peyton or I might freeze to death. Then with similar mileage Sunday with the incline club and maybe a climb of Cameron cone I can finally hit 70 MPW since I only have 71 days until my first race.  Oh and I NEED NEW SHOES. Bandaids over the toes after sewing them twice to keep my big toe from popping out. Thankfully I get my Merrells back next weekend but those aren't stack miles on shoes so I gotta come up with something quick.

Running Stats For run 1:

• Miles: 5.94
• Time: 1:32:14
• Pace: 15:31
• Gain: 2,296'
• Surface: Rocky, Icy, Road ties and steep 
• Feelings: Really great. The hammies started a little tight after 2 faster runs this week and my left arch was a little tender. Hoping to roll it on a tennis ball during the day today before the second workout and maintain MAF pace through today and stack on mileage with back to back long runs this weekend in the cold front that is coming in behind this unseasonably warm weather.
• Weather: Incline was strarting at over 40 degrees at 5:40 AM and was close to 45 when finishing. It was a little windy up high but not so bad as Falcon with the tree cover.

Running Stats For run 2:

• Miles: 8.0
• Time: 1:06:06
• Pace: 8:15
• Gain: 174'
• Surface: All paved
• Additional: just up 7 floors a few times at work today like normal
• Feelings: Pretty good. Maintained MAF until the wind got bad and then went a little over
• Weather: Mid 50s and sunny but 15-20mph wind.

Diet Stats:

• Breakfast: 2 Hard Boiled eggs with 2 slices canadian bacon.
• Morning Snack:
• Lunch: Gourmet salad with feta, beef kielbasa and acv with olive oil
• Afternoon Snack: sugar snap peas, banana, cutie, apple
• Dinner: Potluck- 2 Pieces Pepperoni Pizza, 2 Breaded Drumsticks, salad, 4 chocolate chip cookies, 2 glasses sweet tea, home made mashed potatoes, chips with salsa and guac
• Beers: 0

Saturday 4 Jan: After going to bed a couple hours later than planned, today's run was not as early as hoped for. Got in a solid 15 miles by going most of the way to Peyton and back. Wanted all the way but thought wife had to leave by a certain time. It was a strong headwind with blowing snow for the way out and tail wind with blowing snow coming back. Only drank water for the distance. Had to drink a swig per song to keep it from freezing in the tube. Hopefully despite the snow, I can grab some gain and distance tomorrow. Wanting 25 miles and at least 5k of gain but we will see if that happens in the 5 degree weather and lots of snow up high.

Running Stats:

• Miles: 15.1
• Time: 2:13:54
• Pace: 8:52
• Gain: 154'
• Surface: 3ish inches of fresh snow over gravel
• Additional: NA
• Feelings: other than cold hands, I felt pretty good given the effort.
• Weather: 18 Degrees and hard blowing snow.

Diet Stats:

• Breakfast: Artichoke, Mushroom, and habanero cheese omelet with home made salsa and sour cream, 2 slices turkey bacon, cantaloupe, 2 cups black coffee
• Morning Snack: Hard Boiled Egg right after run
• Lunch: Gourmet salad with Ham and some cashews and cinnamon almonds
• Afternoon Snack: 3 Christmas cookies and hot cocoa
• Dinner: BBQ Chicken Thighs (2) and Butternut Squash, and Ice Cream
• Beers: 0 (glass of red wine)

Sunday 5 Jan: With temps in the single digits and strong winds, I didn't feel like getting blasted worse than yesterday. The roads were too bad to drive across to the good hills and my normal route would have had several brutal miles in head wind causing well below zero wind chill conditions. Ended up being on my feet almost all day doing house stuff and then hitting the dreadmill for 15 miles. Did 7.5 at 6% grade and 7.5 flat. On the flat miles, I was pleased to know that I could maintain my 155 MAF heartrate at about a 7:19 pace where when I started this MAF thing a couple months ago, my first MAF mile was 7:35 and I got slower from there to about 8:12. That's probably over a minute per mile improvement at aerobic pace in a couple months! I need to do another treadmill MAF test and someday when there is no wind and it is warm, a track MAF. So I wanted 70 for the week again and if the weather was good for it today, I would have. I ended up getting just over 60 and am happy with that. I need to be consistently at 60 or over until taper time and hopefully building closer to 80. The pace today included walking warmup and cooldown as always for my night time run between roughly 7 and 9 PM.

Running Stats:

• Miles: 15
• Time: 2:12:34
• Pace: 8:50
• Gain: 2,376'
• Surface: Rubber
• Additional: Just on my feet most of the day as well as lifting lots of stuff around the house.
• Feelings: Pretty good but hot and sweaty since it was indoors.
• Weather: below zero outside. 60 inside.

Diet Stats:

• Breakfast: Eggs with veggies and cured ham with plain yogurt mixed with honey and blueberries.
• Morning Snack: slice of habanero pepper jack cheese 
• Lunch: Was a later lunch but a subway foot long oven roasted chicken on honey grain oat and all the veggies. That new creamy Sriacha sauce is bomb diggity.
• Afternoon Snack: 4 Christmas cookies
• Dinner: Leftover bbq chicken thigh, chips and salsa, leftover butternut squash, and then a can of chicken and glass of strawberry milk post evening run.
• Beers: 0