Training in Montana

5 miles this morning on the trail above the rims. Slow and steady the first couple miles, then the legs warmed up and they went faster the last couple. Right foot is sore, I think it's plantar fasciitis but I'm not sure. Rolling it out with a golf ball helps. Right calf shin splint thing is feeling better. Friday I could feel the tightness with every step while walking, but got better through the weekend. Good call to not run on Saturday. It warmed up pretty quickly today. Will just take it easy. I think I've got a case of the Too's: too much, too soon, too fast. It wasn't all that much or fast, but too soon for sure. Hopefully DesNews will still come together but I have some doubts. No worries, but doubts.

AP: 9:01. Paces 10:39 (still getting stuff together, started clock too soon), 9:07, 9:01, 8:27, 7:35.

Until today I was unfamiliar with Zoe Romano. Her journey of running the Tour de France right now is pretty amazing. I hope she's successful.

8 steady miles this warmish morning, 66F with 68% humidity. No wonder it felt different. I need more running in warmer temps so I'll take it.

Right calf hasn't bothered me in a couple days. A little tight, but not like on Friday. The right foot I'm almost certain is plantar fasciitis, probably from running too fast on hard surfaces while my legs were still tight from the 50K. Live and learn. I'm concerned that it will slow down my training over the next few weeks, but hopefully it won't impact the actual race as the foot is fine once I warm up. Left hamstring is a little tight but I think it will go away.

My schedule today called for 10 and I seriously considered it as I'm a slave to the schedule, and I figured "what the heck" but at the 4 mile turnaround spot I decided to turn around. My legs didn't feel great, body wasn't loving it, and 2 miles won't make a difference for good but could add to the bad pain.

AP: 8:37

Sitting here at my desk with my shoes off rolling a golf ball around on my right foot. Hopefully the fascia will flee at the sight of the hard goodness of the ball.

Yes, I was "that idiot" out running at 12:30 pm in 95 degree heat. While I knew it would be hot and I prepared for it by bringing along a water bottle, I wasn't as prepared as I thought. The water heated up to 95 degrees after 25 minutes and it was hooot. The wind helped feel cooler but probably didn't help too much. I doused myself a bit, but I was running on a trail so no chances for sprinklers. I stopped running at 4 miles as I was starting to feel a little woozy, and I stood inside an under-the-road tunnel for a few minutes to get some shaded. I then had 1 mile to go to my truck, so I walked the first quarter mile and as it was downhill slowly jogged the rest of the way. Weighed myself when I got back to the Y and I was at my goal weight of 158. I haven't seen that number since I was 19. That means I lost about 4 pounds in only 5 miles.

While my goal of getting in some heat training was achieved, it wasn't the smartest thing to do. Guess I'll stick to lower temps or shorter miles next time. Lesson learned. No harm, no foul.

Did my first ever Yasso 800s, and did them on my normal 8 mile route. Great workout! Warmed up for one mile and since it was already warm (72) figured that was enough and started. First couple 800s had some uphill which was tough to maintain but great cardio. Actually half or more had some uphill, and a few times I was gasping for air at the end. I kinda liked it actually.

Splits: 3:40, 3:22, 3:16, 3:12, 3:17, 3:16, 3:12, 3:10. Took an ice bath with 5 lbs of ice. Not too bad really, but helped hugely with recovery. 

10 pace miles this morning as that's what my modified schedule called for. Drive into town so I could run the miles on a mostly flat route, so I chose the last six miles of the Billings marathon for an out and back. Warmed up one mile, then got going. It was tough to keep a 7:24 pace. Partly because it was a slight uphill most of the first five miles, partly because I had done 800s yesterday, and partly because I have a hard time going on cruise control. I also have a hard time staying focused. My mind would wander and my pace would as well.

Paces: 7:25, 7:28, 7:34, 7:31, 7:34, (4:00 walk break), 7:35, 7:26, 7:23, 7:24, 7:18. Walked 3/4 mile back to the truck.

Drove home, took a 15 min ice bath with a 10 lb bag of ice. It's way colder with 10 lbs vs 5 lbs like yesterday.

18 slow miles this morning. Legs are tired, body is tired from not enough sleep but I slogged out these miles. My right plantar fascia was screaming at me yesterday from the 10 pace miles, but 12 hours after running today my foot feels good. I'm not worried about it but it is annoying. I'm a bit concerned about my left hamstring which shot a pang up to my butt cheek yesterday doing the pace miles, but I continued on. Today I felt it a bit mostly on the uphill. I'll try and roll it out and baby it as much as I can.

AP: 9:12. Took a couple healthy walking breaks, one at mile 16. I was beat and out of water. Took another ice bath and recovered well enough to fully enjoy the day with my family. Maybe I was a bit muted but I was fully present. 

1 mile on the trail, but after 1/2 mile I realized I had some inside business to take care of, so I turned around and drove to the Y to run on the treadmill. It was a very wise decision.

Ran 4 TM miles at 2%, first 2 at 8:34 pace, next at 7:56 pace, last at 7:24 pace, last 1/4 at 6:22 pace. The first trail mile was soooo slow, a 10:00 pace. My legs were a bit sleepy still.

The plantar fasciitis wasn't near as bad over the weekend, so I'm following the symptoms from the literature. When I run fast on hard surfaces, it hurts after running. When I run slower on softer surfaces it doesn't hurt as bad. I had Kaylene use a rolling pin on my legs Saturday night and I thought she'd taken up a new profession as a PT, it hurt so bad. My left hamstring right above my knee is super tight, and my right calf just above my ankle is super tight. I think the rolling pin helped a lot, and the calf rolling helped my plantar fasciitis, I think. It makes sense that a tight calf makes the PF tight so I'll have her keep doing that. I'm feeling pretty good about the DesNews though. My plan is to run 20 this Saturday, which is 2 1/2 weeks out, then my taper begins.

8 trail miles this morning. Beautiful morning. Massive thunderstorm last night, so lots of muddy spots which was sort of fun. No slipping thankfully. I need to stay on soft surfaces to keep the right foot happy, but hard to maintain good paces with all the up and down of this trail.

AP: 8:45

Very tired body and legs, tough to get out the door this morning. Finally forced myself out and did 4 miles, very slowly. I'm looking forward to some nice rest with the taper.

AP: 8:47

6 X hills. I wasn't exactly sure what to do but I think I recall that this is one of Hal's favorite small workouts. Find a hill and run up it 30-60 seconds and repeat. So, I jogged 1/2 mile, found a little hill and ran up it. Best was 38 seconds, slowest 46. I got some quick short bursts in there which is probably exactly what I needed.

I'm a bit concerned about my left hamstring as it was twinging a bit on the way back after a slow jog around the park. I'll have Kaylene rolling pin it for me tonight. That seemed to really help.

1 warmup mile, 4 pace miles, 1 cool down mile. Between 80-84F, 35% humidity. Warm but not killer. About perfect heat training for me.

Paces 7:20, 7:17, 7:19, 7:16.

12 fairly warm miles. Didn't start until 9:30 a.m. 70F to start, 83F at the end. Thankfully there was a north breeze and it cooled me the last 5 miles. Tried MP the last four, but on the first mile I tried to drink at the top o of a small hill. What was I thinking? Coughing, gasping, choking. Sweet. Stopped and walked to regain composure, hard to get to pace again but I did it. Next three miles were comfortably hard but doable.

Paces: 7:17, 7:16, 7:08. 

4 miles at lunchtime in 84+F heat. Pretty warm, but I'm more used to it now than I was a few weeks ago. I felt pretty tired, and I just now realized that after the 50K I switched from a 5 day a week plan to a 6 day a week plan. That extra rest day is pretty big and may be why I'm really looking forward to this training cycle being over, and right now my mind set is that I'm done training for a while. Before I was planning on a fall marathon but right now I'd rather not. That may change, but that's what I'm thinking now. My legs are tired.

Ran the last two miles of the Billings marathon, and it's also the same route as this Friday's evening 5K. The forecast is calling for a high of 90, which could be much worse on July 19th. It's a tough course and starts at 6 PM in the middle of summer so I'm hoping for a PR, but not very confident. It's an out and back course. From the start, after 1/4 mile you go up a short steep hill, then after 1/2 mile go up another short small hill, then it's a small rise until the turn around. Add in the heat and it will be rough. Just before the turnaround the fire department will be there with a hose spraying the runners, so that will be nice. I'm already looking forward to it. The coolest part is at the end. You get to cruise down the short steep hill and gain momentum for a 1/2 mile flat cruise which takes you to the stadium, where you run 300M around the track to the finish. This is part of the opening ceremonies for the Big Sky State Games, so there will be 1000 or so people there. Pretty cool. And Meb Keflezghi is our honored athlete that night and will light the flame. Really, really cool. Can't wait.

6 miles this morning in some fantastically cool temps, 60F with 44% humidity and a 10 mph breeze. Felt great! I had no goal paces for this run, but I was feeling good so I went with it. Quite a few times when I looked at my watch I was in the 7:20s or 7:30s and I was feeling really good so I kept the pace steady but didn't push it or force it. Again ran along the 5K route and I'm looking forward to stretching out the legs a bit.

AP: 7:48

No run today, taking a well-deserved break. Training tiredness is in full effect. Will do 4 slow miles tomorrow, then the 5K Friday, 6 miles at altitude on Saturday (Jackson Hole), then a few more miles next Monday at altitude (Heber City) and then DesNews. Bring it on.

4 miles this morning, along the same route as previous runs. Didn't sleep much last night but the legs still felt good today. GPS always takes a while to acquire a signal when I run from the Y, so not sure of overall pace but near 8 or below. Last mile was 7:28. Not really trying to go fast, just focusing on not slacking off. It helps running on roads for the last few times as my normal route of hills and gravel roads is great for training, but hard for learning proper pacing. Now ready for tomorrow night's 5K, where the high will be 92. It could be worse. :)

Got to meet Meb Keflezighi today at work and watch his press conference as he kicked off our Big Sky State Games. What a nice man. Got my picture, as you can see. Run To Win. Great book if you haven't read it.

90 degrees at race time, 20% humidity. It didn't feel too bad. Warmed up for maybe a mile then changed into my flats. Started right at 6:15. I started slower than those around me and ended up passing most of them later. After 1/4 mile there's a short steep hill and I powered up but didn't kill myself. Took me awhile to get back to a 6:30 pace. There's a smaller hill after a half mile and that slowed me again. At one point I looked at my watch and I was running 6:08 and wasn't dying. I thought I kept that pace so didn't look at my watch for a while. Next time I looked it was 6:44 so I picked it up. At the turnaround I was still above 6:30 so I tried to pick it up. The last mile was my best. I took a small drink at 1 mile then again when I went back through the station but I mostly dumped it on my head to stay cool and got every spray of water I could find. The neighbors are awesome and the fire department had their ladder truck spraying water at about 1 mile. Hit it coming and going. Kept pushing it and felt a little light headed but not bad. Hit the last downhill and was under 6 pace for a bit but then held 6:30 until the track. 300 on the track and I kept it steady until the last straightaway and pushed it. Finished with a 30 second or so PR. Felt good about it, then turned around to find my 12 and 9 yo boys. Ran in with my 12 yo as he was struggling. 9 yo missed 30 minutes by 7 seconds. He was ticked when he found out. Should have trained harder and worn a watch! Lessons learned for him.

6 miles on a warm afternoon in Jackson, WY. Legs a bit sore to start off, not bad. I only had 90 minutes before my wife's class reunion, so thought only 4 but then I got going and went for 6. Good run, at 6000 feet, in the heat. Very glad I went. Reunion was fun also! Off to Park City then Heber tomorrow.

2 miles while staying in Heber for the week. Pretty warm by the time I got going, at least 80, but for a short run not bad. Once I warmed up kept a good pace up the small hills, and marathon pace on the downhills was easy. I'm hoping everything goes well on Wednesday. High temp will be 95, low temp 72 in town. Hoping to be done by 8:45, and hopefully won't be too hot by then.

Having a fun time with my family this week at a house we're renting. Fun times, mellow times, and I'll have lots of support from my family to give me cold sponges and gatorade a couple times in the last 6 miles. 

Prepped the day before by drinking lots of water (no caffeinated Diet Pepsi, which was really tough for me, especially being on vacation all week) and resting as much as possible. I also used a sharpie on my forearms for all my mile splits from allie & James' DesNews split calculator. I got a really good night sleep the night before the night before, so I knew that any sleep I got the night before the race would suffice. We were staying in Heber at a rental house so my family that was running the 10K and 5K drove down to my sister's house in South Jordan. This included my wife, so I didn't have to worry about waking her in the morning which was nice. I got to bed just after 10 and woke up on my own at 2:30 am and I felt very rested. Showered, got ready, and woke up my Dad. He drove me to the start of the race, so I got at least an extra 30 minutes sleep. I dressed for cold weather on the mountain top and while it wasn't super cold, I still was very glad for my sweat pants, down sweater, warm hat and gloves. It made the hour and a half before the start very comfortable. I had a chance to visit with allie a couple times before and I also tracked down Sasha and visited with him. Really nice people. I downed 32 oz of Gatorade and a bagel before the race. My stomach rebelled slightly so not sure if it was the raisins in the bagel or what, but I might rethink that strategy. I had the chance to use the POPs a couple times and I was successful, but maybe could've used a bit more time in there before.

In the POP lines I noticed a person wearing a pacer shirt and holding a 3:15:00 sign. I was stoked! Talked with him and sure enough, he and another guy were pacing. When they said they were going to "bank time" on the hills I should have veered away from them realizing they didn't have an actual plan, but I didn't. Big mistake. The race started right at 5:30 and I stuck on the tail of the 3:15 pacers. The first mile came through in 6:41 (should've been 6:59 or so) but I felt good, so stuck with it. Mile 2 was 6:52, then 6:46, then 7:11 with some uphill. The pacers were 10 yards ahead of me but still in striking distance. I had stop to pee at mile 5 and I lost the pacers for the rest of the way, but they had already done their damage. Mile 5 was 7:26, then the uphill began. 7:43 for mile 6, 8:38 for mile 7. The up was tougher than I expected, which I realize now meant that my legs were trashed from the fast first five miles (alliteration always awesome). Mile 8 was 8:08, more than half of it uphill if I remember right. I knew I was in trouble when mile 9 was 7:27 and I was going downhill. I read my forearm wrong and thought 7:25 was okay, but that was for mile 10. I knew mentally I should be around 7 on the down but I had a hard time convincing my body that was a good pace. I'd been following a group of disparate guys for a couple miles and now they started to pull away a bit. Mile 10 had the uphill out and back, 7:41, then I started feeling a bit better with mile 11 7:11. I took a gel every 45 minutes so I had one in there (all with 1X caffeine) and that must've kicked in. I knew that mile 11-15 were my last strong downhill, so I focused on hitting my paces. Mile 12 7:09, then 7:18, then 7:39 (don't remember why so slow), and I met Kam at mile 15 with a 7:22 mile. Along the way I hit the 13.1 marker at exactly 1:37:00 and the math told me news was not good. I had "banked" 1 minute in the first half, and I needed more time than that to conquer the second half. My legs felt way too rough for 15 miles. At the 16 mile aid station I think I dumped my first glass of water on my head and hit a 7:38 mile with the uphill to the golf course. I was struggling from this point on. 7:44 for the next mile with Kam cajoling me onward to hit that speed, which was now 20 seconds off my pace. Mile 18 was an 8:05, next 8:10, back to 8:05, then mile 21 a 9:14, my first stop to walk. I walked through most aid stations as I knew getting proper fluids was more important than gaining a few seconds, but I also stopped twice along the course to rest my legs. Mile 21 was tough. That uphill portion went on and on, and I was just waiting for the Boy Scout office to go downhill. Apparently that woke me up as mile 22 was 7:41, but then I reverted to an 8:12, then a 9:09 for mile 24. Mile 25 I improved to an 8:25 and the last 1.2 was an 11:20, which is a 9:26 pace. My brother and his wife rode their bikes next to Kam and me for the last couple miles and that was great. My kids met me at the last turn and I ran in with my 9 year old and 12 year old boys. That was a lot of fun. I was so happy to finish.

When I turned the corner I could see 3:24:33 and I thought that I could easily break 3:25, but I didn't realize how slowly I was moving. Even with my "kick" at the end I was probably still in the 8s, my legs were that thrashed. My watch said 3:25:03 but my chip time came in at 3:25:01. I'll take it. 43rd overall out of 420 finishers, 7th in my age group. 10 minutes and 1 second off my A++ goal of a BQ, but I'm really happy with my finish. I so appreciate Kam pulling me in. He definitely gave me the PR as I think I would've been well over 3:30 without his help.

Afterwards I ate creamies, had some french toast, congratulated allie and met James as well, I got a massage, and even ran into my wife's old roommate who was watching the parade, so I was able to connect those two. A truly great day. Congrats to allie for the win and PR and Sasha for 2nd place! A great FRB day. 

I'm writing this over a week after the race, and nearly all soreness is gone. The first day after I could barely walk and the second day after when DOMS fully kicked in I was a major hobbler. On Sunday, 4 days after, when I could walk forward down stairs I rejoiced. DesNews is a great race, it is a heritage race for anyone with Mormon pioneer ancestors like I have, but I think I will give the marathon a fond farewell and stick to the 10K or Half from here on out. It is a brutal beast and I'm a better person for having finished it twice.

Paces: 1) 6:41, 2) 6:52, 3) 6:46, 4) 7:11, 5) 7:26 (pee stop), 6) 7:43, 7) 8:38, 8) 8:06, 9) 7:27, 10) 7:41, 11) 7:11, 12) 7:09, 13) 7:18, 14) 7:39, 15) 7:22, 16) 7:38, 17) 7:44, 18) 8:05, 19) 8:10, 20) 8:05, 21) 9:14, 22) 7:41, 23) 8:12, 24) 9:09, 25) 8:25, 26) 11:20 (last 1.2 a 9:26 pace).