Training in Montana

3 miles on the TM at the YMCA after work. Generally don't workout after work, but I had a PT appointment at Noon, then needed to head to my sister-in-law's house at 7 for a niece's birthday. Quads were sooooo sore. Walked a lot, ran a bit, walked, stretched, ran, stretched, walked, ran fast to see if the soreness would leave, walked, and ran a bit more to get 3 miles.

4 TM miles this morning at the Y as my 14 yr old son has early basketball practice for another few weeks. Quads still wrecked, so I first sat in the steam room for 5-10 minutes and tried to warm them up. Not sure if it helped or not, but it was odd then having to dry off and get dressed to go workout. I walked for a bit, ran for a bit, stretched more, then ran at 8.1 for over a mile and felt decent, but decided to walk at 2.0 miles, then ran more, walked at 3.0 miles, then ended running pretty darn fast, and that was cool. I think the quads are nearly ready to be healed.

30 situps.

4 TM miles early this morning at the Y. Legs feeling better, but not there yet. Ran a bit, walked, ran, walked, ran a bit more. I ran super darn fast for the last 0.35 miles, 10.1 mph, 5:56 pace. How's that for darn fast Preston? :) :) :) !!!!

Ran 1 mile early this morning at the Y after dropping my boy at bball practice, but I wasn't feeling it, had no noon meetings, so I ran 4 good miles at lunch time. After warming up, bumped to 7.1 until 1 mile, then 7.6 for mile 2, 8.1 for mile 3, 8.6 for mile 4. I bumped it to 9.1 from 3.5-3.75, then 10.1 after that, but legs were ready to give out, so at 3.85 I hit the cool down button and walked the rest of the way. Finally wore my new Christmas shoes. I love the new model! Totally redesigned the Adrenaline, and it feels extremely lightweight. I normally don't care about a new shoe, but I like these A LOT.

Weighed myself this morning after the steam room and I was down 1 pound from yesterday. We'll see if that will hold over the weekend.

10 challenging miles on my normal Saturday route. Icy and slushy, but very warm for an early January day, especially where it was far below zero last week. I stopped by Scheels before the run and exchanged my knock off microspikes for proper Kahtoola brand ones, and they work awesome. They bug my right foot, right under the ball of my foot, so I need to figure that out. Took off my right one with 4 miles to go and it worked great to have my left foot grip and my right slip a bit. I'm still recovering from last week's run so I'm excited that I was able to persevere through all 10 miles. 

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/2418702541

AP: 9:51 (I walked a lot up hills)

4 Noon TM miles at the Y. Wasn't great, wasn't horrible. Longmire is a good show to watch while on the TM.

30 situps, 10 knee pushups (still going to PT for my shoulder).

Wife woke me up in the morning to tell me I'd had 3 seizures during the night. I felt fine, but then as the day (and later days) progressed I realized what rough shape I was in. I literally felt better the day after my 50 mile run in 2015 then I did 4 days after these seizures. It's brutal. Not sure what the body went through, but it was rough. It's now 1 week later and I'm finally back to work, but not sure when I'll get back to running. The doc added another med to my twice-daily intake, which will hopefully stave off any future seizures, but who knows? Argh. I'm registered for the Bighorn 50K in June, but who knows if I'll be able to hold to any training schedule? Hmph. Quite discouraging....

2 miles of mostly walking and some running on the TM this morning. Felt decent, not great, but not poorly, so that's encouraging.

Woke up early as my new meds don't let me sleep in very well, so I put on some warmish clothes, a windbreaker, and my microspikes, and went for a walk. First 3/4 mile was total ice on our dirt road, so glad I had the spikes on, then walked on my normal running route, but took a detour to see the house that burned last month not too far away. It's a total loss. Looks like a mother-in-law apartment on the property that was untouched, but the cars don't look driven so the family must be in town. I don't know them, but feel for them.

Walked back, and felt good about it all. Wanted to go for another walk later in the day but it never materialized.

2 TM at the Y after work. Finally felt decent enough to do something, felt pretty good. Hoping for more miles soon.

2 TM miles before work. Legs are weak, so I ran some, walked some, but I finished.

Then did 25 pushups (shoulder doing better, but not fixed yet), 30 situps, and should exercises.

From having stomach issues since Sunday and not eating much at all the past few days, I lost nearly 7 pounds. Great weight loss program.

3 TM miles this morning before work. I ran the entire time, so big improvement from yesterday or the past 3 weeks, so that's exciting. Ran 1.5 or so at 10:00 pace, but that was boring so kept bumping it up and finished the last .75 at 8:30 or less.

20 pushups, 30 situps, 45 second plank, and my shoulder excercises.

A few miles outside in balmy temps: 33F with a slight West wind. Legs felt okay but not great, had to stop and walk a few times, but hills outside are tougher than TMs inside.

TM running in the afternoon. 7F outside with a windchill of -12F seemed a bit extreme.

4 miles outside today. Wasn't too bad, but snowy road so I wore the microspikes. 17F with not much wind, but snow flurries gently coming down the entire time. Kind of enjoyable actually. Legs don't feel great, this run which I've done 100s of times has been really challenging the past few times, but I guess this is the first time in nearly a month I've gotten all the way to 4 miles, so that's a win. It's just been such an automatic route and run that I have never thought about it. Getting back into shape is challenging, especially when it wasn't anything I did that got me out of shape.

4 morning miles, again wearing the microspikes. I expect most outdoor runs will include the spikes for a while. It is our youngest's 12 birthday today, so I got up extra early to run before we gave her breakfast in bed. I barely made it, and was super hot and sweaty, so I stood outside in only my running underwear in 24F temps until I cooled down. Didn't take too long... :) Colder weather and more snow is coming this weekend, so I may be hitting the TM more often.

Pace is coming back, but still way slower than normal. Hopefully no more seizures.

4 snowy cold miles. Frozen eyelids are fun. The winter clothes I've purchased over the years and the microspikes I recently got were essential on this run and I was not only not cold, I was hot and sweaty. Perfect on a -2F morning (thankfully no wind).

4 miles this morning outside. -4F, -23F with windchill. Sounds bad, but I have acquired lots of winter clothing over the years, and I was not only warm, I was sweating a lot at the middle and end. I wonder when my legs will come back. I stopped and walked for a bit at mile 1, at 1.5 and nearly turned around, but decided to keep going to do 4 miles. Glad I did. Felt much better on the way back, as it’s nearly all downhill. The wind was in my face going out so I had the mask over my face and hat pulled down nearly to my eyes on the way out. Hard to breathe with a frozen mask, but better than having a frozen nose. Pulled down the mask on the way back the pulled it up when I went back into the wind. Decent run, but had 3 layers on top and bottom, plus micro spikes on the shoes. Lots of equipment, heavy stuff.

4 TM miles at the Y at Noon. -5F in the morning and family had the day off school so I didn’t feel like getting up early and putting on all my warm clothes. TM running is much easier and shorts and a tank top are way better than 3 layers, hat, neck gaiter, gloves, and micro spikes. I’ve been doing 0 incline and did the same today - need to increase that in the future so it will better mimic the real world. Warmed up at 6 mph, and increased every 1/2 to 1 mile, ending at 12.4 mph, which was flying (4:45 mile), for the last 0.1 mile. Yikes. The world elites are amazing.

3 TM miles @ 2% incline during the Noon hour at the Y. 2% incline is much harder than 0%, so cut the run short. I still kept a solid pace, and pushed myself. Need to keep doing this as it will get my legs back quicker than just an easy 0% run.

Decided to sleep in this morning and forego my planned run to instead make pink pancakes for the family. A good idea. Ran a bit before noon, and continue to improve. Ran at 2% incline and was able to go 4 miles without stopping, and progressively got faster. Started at 10:00 for first 1/2 mile, then bumped to 8:57 next 1.5 miles, then next mile at 8:27, then 1/2 mile at 7:57, then dropped to 7:29, then 6:57, and last .25 at 6:29 or so. Felt good to go faster without the legs giving out or needing to stop. Onward and upward.

Woke up early as I had a Noon meeting, but didn't realize how much it had snowed and drifted until I got out the door. I had all the gear and microspikes, but it was a lot of snow in places and on most of the road. Turned around at mile 1 as I didn't want to be on an unplowed 50 mph road, just wasn't safe, and I knew I had quite a bit of shoveling work ahead of me. Finally got to work at 8:30 am. I need a plow on something next winter (which if it doesn't snow at all would be fine with me).

4 TM Miles, 2% incline. Slower but still very sweaty. I realize I need to go slow for a while and let me legs catch up.

6 miles! It was 20-25F out, so no worries about total cold, but still brought the gear and needed it into the wind, but was very warm with wind at my back. Glad to go so far, even though it wasn’t far for me. 

4 TM miles at the Y at Noon as it is currently 2F outside and I don't like bringing all my gear to work. I haven't decided what works better for me - run progessively faster each 1/2 or 1 mile until I'm moving, or go slower then end at a decent pace but not fast. Today my legs felt a bit rough so I walked a bit during mile 2, then ran the rest of the way.

Did 30 situps, 10 pushups, 10 stretch-things from my PT, and 10 pullups. Weighed myself after, and that's a number I've not seen in a while. Slowly slowly catch a monkey they say. Would like it to keep declining as my mileage ramps up.

4 miles from home this morning in what I thought were -2F temps, but turns out was -10F. There was no wind, so it honestly wasn't bad at all, and I was actually dripping sweat on the return trip. I did bad math on the run (I never can do math while running) so I raced back the last 2 miles to try and get my kid to the bus on time, and we still didn't make it. Not only was I not cold, I couldn't cool down for 30 minutes after my run, so I ended up bringing my dress shirt and tie with me in the truck. I drove my kid to school, and me to work in a short sleeve tech shirt, while continually wiping the sweat from my forehead and head with a hand towel, and once I finally cooled down I pulled into a parking lot, put on my white shirt, hopped outside and tucked it in and tied my tie, put on my v-neck sweater (it is -10F after all), and got to work with no sweat. I did bring my hair gel with me and headed to the bathroom to make myself look half decent. Oh the joys of an early morning run when time gets away from you.

AP: I have no idea. But the last 2 miles were 7:35. Legs felt pretty good, maybe I just need more motivation to run fast. Mind over body.

4 cold miles again this morning. Weather app said 2 degrees, so I only 2 layers vs 3 when it was colder, but when I got outside I could tell it was below zero. I was still never cold, and sweating profusely at the end even though my last 2 miles are nearly all downhill and the effort isn't huge. First 2 are of course mostly uphill and I guess it's harder than I think, especially with an extra pound or two of clothes and microspikes, and having to worry about slipping on the snow and ice. Overall was a good run, but dreaming of warmer days with shorts and singlet. Someday soon I'll be in those conditions and dreaming of colder days without so much heat....

4 more subzero miles this morning. Thought it was -2, but afterwards I turned on my truck and it said -8, so I'll go with that. Wore lighter layers today and it felt much better, and I also left my microspikes at home and I ran fine without them and much lighter. Much easier run, but still challenging. Maybe when it warms up I'll be running better, but had to stop and walk at 1.25 miles. Rest of the run went well, and was again sweating like crazy after, even with only 2 layers of clothes on. The body is certainly a furnace factory. This should be the last subzero run of the winter, but looking forward to the above freezing runs which should be coming soon.

I intended to go 6, but I got a bad side ache 1/2 mile into my run, and the SE wind was fierce, so I cut my outside run to 2 miles and hopped on the TM for another couple miles plus a bit. Turns out that eating a couple pancakes slathered in Nutella and Peanut Butter plus drinking a  Gatorade right before running midday is a bad idea. Who knew? 🧐

2 TM miles at the Y. I wasn't feeling it, not sure what's going on. Did some situps, pushups, and pullups after, then hit the steam room. Normally I'm sweating so hard after a workout I can barely cool down to get back to work, so it was nice to steam up and stretch sore shoulder muscles.

4 TM miles at lunchtime. Listened to Pandora instead of Netflix; Smashing Pumpkins station; and it was much better than watching Longmire. I think I focused better and the time went faster. I felt stronger, not sure if it was music or what, but I ran much better. I also switched incline to only 1% so that helped, vs 2% which better mimics outdoor running, but I don't seem to be up for it yet (no pun intended). 30 situps, 20 pushups, 10 pullups after.

Darn it, I tweaked my left calf muscle yesterday while running and thought little of it and continued on, and in fact ran faster and faster until I finished the last bit at a 6 minute mile. All on a tweaked calf. This morning I went out for a run and took it easy, but after 3/4 mile in I hit a low incline hill, and I couldn't even run. I walked/limped to the flat, then was able to run, so turned around at 1 mile and slowly ran back. Now I'm limping as I walk, even though I have it wrapped and have been icing it. Bummer. I'm reading articles about what to do, so I'll RICE and go from there. Hmph.

3 elliptical miles at the Y. Wore a calf sleeve to work today, and during the workout, and it feels much better with the sleeve. Calf was pretty tight the first bit, so I need to find a way to warm it up next time before hitting the elliptical, maybe cycling, not sure yet. After a bit it felt fine and I was able to up the difficulty and got a little bit of a sweat on. Followed with 30 situps, 20 pushups, 10 pullups. Pullups are hard!

3 elliptical miles. Not bad! Warmed up by doing some calf strengthening on the stairs (I forget the proper term, but lower the heel, up with the tow, lower again. Repeat 10-20 times, then switch.) I've done them before - concentric heel drops is what they're called - and they work great for sore achilles and/or calf strains. Doing much better, no limp when walking.

3 or so cross country skiing miles with my wife and 14 yr old son. I never really broke a sweat as it was my son's first time, and cross country skiing is tough, especially when going uphill. Had a fun time, got snowed on, and enjoyed being out amongst gorgeous snow covered pine trees and a mostly frozen creek nearby. Gorgeous.

3 elliptical miles.

2 miles walking from home this morning. Chilly and snowy roads, hopefully it will all melt soon.

I found my new routine while my calf is still healing: 10 minutes on the recumbent bike first, then hit the elliptical. I did 3 miles in 10 minutes on the bike, resistance was 10, then an elliptical machine opened up so I did 2 miles there, at resistance of 15, then 16 after a while. I got my sweat on! Didn't think it was possible on the elliptical.

2 miles on the bike, 2 miles on the elliptical, and I was warm, so I used the TM and ran 0.5 miles! No pain - wahoo! Went slow, 10 minute pace, but felt fine. Would've gone more but needed to be somewhere. Cooled down with 50 concentric heel drops - I think these have helped my calf heal the quickest.

2 miles running this morning! Got up early, did some concentric heel drops to get the calves warmed up, then headed out way overdressed, and went very slowly. No watch, but it was a turtle's pace. No pain or niggles, so that's a good sign. Hope to do 4 miles tomorrow. Fingers crossed.

4 miles! It's the furthest in weeks. I was being pulled by our dog Hazel. She's just over 1 year old and the last time I tried to take her she was horrible - ran all over the place, not just straight ahead. She pulled me - the entire way. My arm is sore from trying to pull her back. Bought her a harness later in the day, looking forward to trying her out again. She certainly loved it.

Since then, my quads and legs have been crazy sore. Kind of nice.

3 TM miles at the Y, 1% incline, mostly slow, but finished at 8:27 pace. Quads sore, effort was harder than it should have been. 30 situps, 20 pushups after. Left shoulder still sore, need a massage and chiro to fix it.

3 TM miles at the Y. 1% incline, 1/2 at 6.0, 1/2 at 6.5, 1 at 7.0, 3/4 at 7.5, then stepped up to 8.1, and 8.6 for the last 0.1.

4 miles! TM at the Y, 1% incline. Similar to yesterday. 6 mph 1/2 mile, 6.5 1/2 mile, 7.0 1 mile, 7.5 1 mile, 8.0 3/4 mile, then faster last 1/4 mile. 5 minute cool down.

30 situps, 25 pushups, 10 pullups.

3 TM miles at the Y after work. 1% incline, 6.0-8.0.

I let Hazel drag me this morning for 5 miles. It went pretty well, and she learned a lot since the run last week; she stayed on the side of the road (although she went after a car that drove past), and she (mostly) paid attention to my "uh uh" or tongue clicks or "Hazel" calls or leash pulls. The harness is definitely much better than the neck collar, but I need to buy a waist leash so she doesn't pull my right arm out of my socket. It was nice to go 5 miles for the first time in a while, but the left calf niggle came back up as I forgot to wear compression sleeves/socks and I forgot to warm up with concentric heel drops before running. I need to do that.

4 miles early this mornig and Hazel appeared as I was getting ready to head out, so how could I say no? She was so excited. I honestly think she could go 10 miles with ease, with no previous training. She pulled me most of the way, until I tugged at her harness multiple times in a row on the return trip and she sort of figured it out. I again forgot calf sleeves/compression socks and forgot to warm up my calf first, so the niggle returned, and continues this morning. I will keep doing concentric heel drops in the stair well and hope nobody else uses the stairs (rarely used above the 3rd floor, and I'm on 4th).

4 miles this morning with Hazel. She has quickly figured out that if I'm up early, I'm probably going for a run. I got up, got ready, then woke up our Junior at 6:00 as he's taking the ACT and wanted to be up early. Hazel found me in his room and was going berserk. She was being very good - she sat without being told to, kept looking at me and trying to lick me. So funny. My left calf niggle is still a thing, so I warmed it up, wore compression socks, and headed out slowly. I kept about an 8:30 pace the whole time, which seemed to be okay. No clouds in the sky, so a gorgeous very pre-dawn Eastern sky, but the headlamp was still needed until the very end of the run. A nice way to start the day.

Unfortunately my day ended poorly for my left calf muscle. I took my two youngest to the NAIA women's basketball championship game (we had free tickets all week). As we exited my kids both did the heel click thing (jump, click heels together) and normally I can do a nice funny high kick to my side. When I did this, I felt a pop in my left calf and I hobbled the rest of the way to the car. Poop. Might be a while before I run again.

2 elliptical miles. I haven't done anything since reinjuring my calf last Tuesday, as it's not been feeling well at all. It didn't hurt walking normal, but even half running across the street to beat the light, or half jumping on the bed to pretend attack someone I felt a jolt of pain in the left calf. Argh. Then, been busy in the mornings and at lunchtime, so finally snuck away for an hour today. Elliptical isn't too satisfying, but better than nothing. 30 situps, 20 pushups, 1 pullup (right forearm hurts).

2 recumbent bike miles, then 3 elliptical miles at a solid pace. My headband was wet when done. A good workout. My left calf has been feeling good the past few days, but I don't want to push it. I'll hold off on running until I get to San Antonio this weekend. I look forward to running on the riverwalk trails. I don't recall why I was there before, but I remember enjoying those runs immensely.

3 more elliptical miles, and it was a solid effort. I look forward to a nice run Saturday morning in San Antonio, and hoping my calf will stay happy with me the rest of the year.

30 situps and for the first time since November, 30 pushups. Left shoulder/traps area is still sore and I need to find exercises to fix it, but didn't start hurting until pushup 15 or so, which is progress.

3 solid elliptical miles, with #2 in the 7s, and #3 in the 6s. I got a good sweat.

30 pushups and situps afterwards. Calf feeling pretty good.

Interesting that my weight this week has been the same to the decimal point. 10-15 lbs more than I want it to be, but interesting no less.

No idea how many miles I actually ran due to the tall buildings blocking the gps, but I got lost in the maze of the San Antonio Riverwalk and ran for over an hour trying to find my way back to the hotel. I left my phone holder at home so I decided to leave my phone in the hotel as I didn't want to carry it. Bad idea, but fun run. I finally had to ask a worker on the Riverwalk where my hotel was, and he gave me perfect directions. I didn't realize how obscure the sign and entrance to the hotel was, so I likely ran past it a few times before asking the guy. Calf felt perfect. Yay! 

Update: calf is now horrible. Felt a niggle walking to the conference, then while stretching it by doing concentric heel drops I went a little too far down based on how tight it was and I felt something tear, similar to 2 1/2 weeks ago. Not totally limping when  walking, but can’t even trot across the road without it hurting. Not sure what to do going from here... Hmph.

Approximately 3 elliptical miles this morning at the hotel gym in San Antonio. Got my sweat on for 30 minutes. Then lifted a few weights, including a kettle bell thing that made my right hamstring sore, so I'll ease up on that for future. Left calf still sore, but able to walk on it without a limp, so that's positive, right? Elliptical for life. I need one of Meb Keflezgi's elliptigo thingies to do this around town. Or, you know, just ride a bike.

Again, approximately 3 elliptical miles this morning at the hotel gym in San Antonio, but 1 hour earlier than yesterday so we could catch our flight. 30 minutes on the machine, then did 10 shoulder shrugs (50 lbs each arm), 20 curls (25 lbs), 30 pushups, 30 situps, 10 leg raises (ab workout using the machine-type device), 5 pullups. Then I showered and we all took a taxi to the airport and promptly waited around for 1 hour until the flight boarded. Could've slept in an hour....

4 elliptical miles during lunchtime. Like Ricky Bobby, I went fast! A little too fast, as I got a niggle in my left calf in a brand new spot, and I was almost limping later that night.

15 curls (25), 10 presses (40), 30 pushups, 30 situps, 2X30 sec planks, 5 pullups.

3 elliptical miles this morning. Rolled out the left calf before starting, seemed to help a tiny bit, then did 2 bike miles before starting out. Calf felt okay but definitely could feel it. Went quite a bit slower than yesterday and didn't get a massive sweat on like yesterday, but still some moisture.

15 curls (25), 10 presses (45), 30 pushups, 60 sec plank, 5 pullups, rolled out both legs.

6 miles on the recumbent bike. Pushups, planks, curls, chest press.

Weight inching upward. Yay (said nobody ever). Oh well. Hoping I can get back to running shortly, but I will take it veeerrrryyyy slowly now - been returning too soon, but I forget I'm older and it takes longer to heal.

Today I rode the recumbent bike 15 minutes, then 15 minutes on the elliptical but took it very slowly as my calf was bugging me when I went fast. I recognize that last week on the elliptical I went too fast, as my calf bugged me for days afterwards. When going fast, my body is in full motion with nearly full extension of the calf. Slower doesn't engage the calf muscle much. I also realized that if I keep my body low, trying not to move my head, I don't engage the calf muscle but can go faster and generate more heat and sweat. Not nearly as sweaty as I'd like to be. Grrr.

I then did 15 curls (30), 15 tricep dips (40), 6 chest presses (50). I need to do tricep dips last, as that killed my chest press. Then stretched, did 30 pushups (getting easier every day), and 60 seconds of a plank. Yikes.

20 minutes on the recumbent bike. I got a decent sweat on. Then did 15 curls (30), 10 chest press (100), 10 tricep dips (40), 30 pushups, 60 seconds plank. Solid quick workout. I'm hoping my weight gain is because I'm lifting a few weights, but I'm pretty sure that's not it! :)

Boot camp for the first time in a very long time. I think over 2 years, and I used to do this 2-3 times per week plus run 40-50 mpw. In reading my old blog entries, I realize my best races coincided with this type of cross training. With my calf still jacked up, I’ll try and hit this as many MWF as possible. I was gasping for breath and light headed so many times today, it was sad. I used to breeze through this tough class. Lots of guys older than me do this regularly, hopefully I can get back in shape (and lose some weight along the way). 

3 miles walking early in the morning. At noon, 6 miles on the recumbent bike, then 20 minutes on the elliptical followed by weights, pushups, plank. My legs are still crazy sore from Monday's session.

Boot camp. Kicked my butt (and legs, arms, chest). Left when I started getting a headache from working too hard. I forget how in shape you have to be to do these exercises, so I got lightheaded a lot as I'm trying to do them like I used to when I attended BC regularly. Hopefully won't be too many weeks before I get back into the rhthym.

Recumbent bike 15 minutes, got sweaty, elliptical 25 minutes slower than I would have liked so I didn't engage the calf muscle much. 25 lb curls x 20, 50 lb presses & dips x 15, 30 pushups, 60 seconds plank. I'm not sure why the weight dropped, but hopefully it continues a downward trajectory.

Boot Camp. 5 minutes bike to warm up, then beat the crap out of myself for the next 45 minutes. I'll be sore!

15 minutes recumbent bike, 10 minutes elliptical, 30 lb x 15 curls, 50 lb x 15 presses, 50 lb x 15 tricep dips, 30 pushups. Good workout. Sore from Wednesday - especially hip flexors from the side kick flutters. Yowzers.

Lots of walking around in Twin Falls, Idaho. Woke up earlier than planned, went for a walk, then during the tournament walked a lot, then at night went for a walk with my wife. About 9 miles total according to my iPhone. Not sure how accurate that is, but seems decently accurate.

Noon Boot Camp. My shoulders (and other body parts) will be sore tomorrow. I think Chantelle is evil but she's always smiling and laughing. I bet she tortures puppies.

Quick session before an all day team meeting. 10 minutes bike, 5 minutes elliptical. Got some decent sweat on for a short time. Curls, Press, Dips, Pushups, Plank.

Rode the bike for 20 minutes before work. Hoping to hit Boot Camp at Noon.

Did Boot Camp for 25 minutes then tapped out. I was getting dizzy after 10 reps or so, and it wasn't getting any better. After getting back to the office I drank a couple non-diet sodas, ate sandwich and soup, and a small bag of potato chips. Not sure if I was sodium deficient or what, but it felt odd. Friday I wasn't struggling like this and the exercises weren't all that different.

I need to stop eating so much. Can't wait to run again so I can keep eating but still shed pounds. Or not.

35 minutes on the recumbent bike, worked up a decent sweat. Then some weights - 25 curls x 30 lbs; 15 presses x 50 lbs; 15 tricep dips x 50 lbs. 30 pushups, 60 second planks, 5 pullups.

Noon Boot Camp. Finished it.

25 minutes bike, 15 minutes elliptical, curls, press, triceps, pushups, plank.

Noon Boot Camp. Shoulders, hamstrings, and lower back muscles (the good ones) will be sore tomorrow.

25 minutes recumbent bike at a 13-14 resistance, 3:00 pace. Good amount of sweat from a low impact exercise. Then did some weights. Then showered and hurried back to a meeting.

Noon Boot Camp. I realized last night that I could likely run if I went slowly and didn't extend my calf, so for the first time in nearly 2 months I slowly jogged during the warmup and in between each station. It felt good to jog and I felt no ill effects.

25 minutes bike, then 15 minutes on the treadmill at a 10:56 pace. No pain. Followed by weights and plank.

3 slow miles in Parker, CO on the river trail near my brother's house. Feels good to jog, but I really want to go faster. AP: 10:40

3 slow miles while in Parker, CO. 10:21 pace.

3 slow miles from home this morning. Favoring my left calf, so putting extra pressure on the ball of my right foot. Hopefully it won’t cause any problems. AP:  10:16

3 slow miles from the Y at Noon. AP: 10:12

No left calf pain niggles at all, so that’s a good sign. 

Noon Boot Camp. It was a brutal leg fest with oodles and oodles of sweat. An hour later I've finally stopped sweating.

I'm not sore from yesterday's double runs. I know part of it is the slow pace, but I should've been somewhat sore and I really wasn't at all. I think the cross training I've done on the bike, elliptical, and Boot Camp have helped my body tremendously. I'm glad I realized the right recipe for success, and I hope I can get back into running 30+ miles per week along with Boot Camp as that's when I feel the best.

I can't figure out how my weight is 2 lbs different from yesterday. I was busy all day yesterday and only had a granola bar for dinner. I did drink a lot of water during Boot Camp, and didn't drink any water on my Noon run yesterday. Hmm...

2 miles in the morning, slow going, but felt good. Lots of rain last night, dirt road had runoff ruts and the side pockets, typically dry at this point of the year, were full. Crazy storm. AP: 10:26

Noon Bootcamp. Very sweaty.

AP: 9:20. Dry needling works.

Started Boot Camp but tapped out after 15 minutes as I couldn't lower my heart rate, and continued to be dizzy. Just wasn't feeling it. Went up to the TM to run and after 1 mile of plodding along I called it quits and walked for another 10 minutes or so. Just wasn't my day. Felt odd until I ate lunch, then no more problems. Funny how the body takes breaks sometimes. 

Took son super early to Drivers Ed then ran from the Y around my normal 4 mile loop. It was crazy humid for Billings: 96% humidity at 6 am. Our average is 20-30% humidity, and we haven't had rain for days. It wasn't bad to run in, 60F, but I was sweating like a horse. At the Y, lifted some weights, did a plank and some pushups, and dripped sweat all over the floor. When changing I wrung out my headband and it was 4 wring out wet. Glad to be back running, hoping it will continue with no problems. 

AP: 9:10

Noon Boot Camp. It worked well, had sore abs all weekend.

Ran 4 miles this morning in beautiful 47 degree temps. Hands were cold! Beautiful. AP: 8:54 (I hope I'm not going too fast too soon, but the legs feel good and a comfortable pace for me on the flat is 8:30 or so).

Noon, did Boot Camp. I forgot the gym floor is being redone, so the class was at a nearby park. It was .8 miles away, and I booked it there. Had some tough exercises, plus lots of running, so I did nearly 7 miles today. Legs feel good. Heading to PT again this afternoon for round 2, and likely final round, of dry needling.

Nice run this morning, again in cool temps of 50 or just below. My hands were ice cold on the out with the sun to my back, and warmed up going into the sun. Legs felt good (but sore from yesterday's efforts) and calf feels great. Hit Physical Therapy again last night and did the dry needling for the last time, hopefully. No twitching with the stimulation, which was odd, but a lump in the calf went away so it must've worked.

Stretched, 30 pushups, 60 second plank, 10 pullups.

AP: 8:36

Noon Boot Camp. About 2 miles between running there and back, and running around the track. It was a good one, but hot. No clouds, sun beating down, and on the fake turf it was hot as blazes. Lots of legs, arms, and core exercises.

I signed up today for a 5K on Saturday. I'm not in racing shape, so we'll see how it goes. I haven't done a 5K in a long time.

Ran the 5K course this morning before work. It is a goofy course with lots of turns, but it ends at our minor league baseball stadium and they found a course which doesn't require a lot of busy roads to be blocked off, which makes sense. What I struggled with is the course description isn't an actual description or a printable map - it is a link to Google Maps with different colored lines for each distance (2 mile, 5K, 10K). It actually worked well, as I could see my blue blinking dot on the map, and it showed where I went off course either because they couldn't mark it within the University grounds, or where I wasn't looking down and missed seeing the white 5K arrows going left or right. The course isn't easy. Starts slight downhill, then flat, then uphill, flat, uphill, flattish, up 1 level of a parking garage, then it's downhill or flattish, and finishes with a solid downhill. Not a Utah/mountainous downhill, but it must lose 100 feet the last 1/2 mile. I plan to fly down that. Will run the course again tomorrow morning and Saturday before the race.j

Ran the 5K course again and didn't get lost this time. Glad I ran it a 2nd time. Ran fast the last 1/2 mile, and probably shouldn't have. Felt a left calf niggle while jogging back to the Y, so I stopped running and walked the rest of the way. Rolled it out, doesn't seem to an issue, and hopefully it won't be. Supposed to be 50 and raining tomorrow morning. Ugh.

Being youngest in an age group is nice. Not in great shape, but nobody showed up and my effort was good enough for 1st AG. I ran my race, which was nice for a change. Rainy day, 52F at start time and light rain. It dumped in the night time, then lightened up a bit before the race. My initial plan was to run the course again to warm up, but because it was raining I hit the Y to warm up, which isn't far from the start line. Hit the bike for 1 mile, then the water rowing machine for 90 seconds (that is hard), then ran 1 mile at a fairly slow pace. It was getting close to the 8:15 am start, so went and changed and decided on singlet with arm warmers, thin gloves, headband, compression socks, running shorts, and long-billed running hat with nearly clear sunglasses. Perfect combination. Parked halfway between start and finish, so wore long sleeved shirt to walk to the start. Moved right to the front of the start line, took off the long sleeved shirt and rolled it up to tie around my waist. Gun went off on time, and the start is downhill and I took off but not too fast. Faster than I thought, or the GPS was wrong, but I hung back of a guy older than me. A lady around my age smoothly cruised past both of us and I was jealous. She won the Master's womens division by a large margin. After the initial downhill the rest of the first 3/4 mile is flat, then a big uphill that I run regularly. It slowed all of us down. Then 1/4 mile flat, and another 1/2 mile of up. I was feeling pretty good, but breathing hard yet controlled. I continued with a solid pace, about as fast as I could maintain, and kept that up and most of us picked it up the last mile. With 3/4 mile left a guy close to my age passed me by 5 steps. I was waiting for the last 1/2 mile which is very downhill. I picked up the pace, as did others, and once we hit the flat (maybe 1/4 mile left) I picked it up more, and about 150 yards out I started sprinting. Passed the guy who had passed me, and finished strong. I could've picked up the pace sooner as my legs still had a lot left in them at the end, but I'm still happy. I was absolutely soaked at the end, as was everybody. A steady drizzle throughout, and lots of puddles we ran through. I didn't know how I did, but after collecting free stuff from vendors, walked to my truck, drove to the Y and cooled down, then checked results online. It showed the Men's Masters winner had a time of 22:15 (which seemed slow) and my time was faster than that, but I couldn't find me in a search. I hurried and showered and went back to the finish line to argue with someone. I had my number on my shorts, not my chest, so I thought they may give me grief, even though that's how I've done every race. Turns out the Master's winner was 19:42 or so, but I did win my age bracket. Not hard when you just turned 45 and it was 45-49. That worked in my favor 5 years ago at a 5K, so glad it worked for me even though I am not in decent shape. Good enough, and I'm happy. 

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/2781686542

I have turned into a weather wimp due to this cold and wet spring we've had. I ran at Noon, it was sunny, temps 62-65F, 65% humidity, and I was drenched with sweat at the end. Legs still sore from Saturday's 5K, which is insane to me. Just another testament of how out of shape I am as I don't recall ever being sore after a 5K. 30 pushups, 60 second plank.

AP: 8:39

4 miles this morning from home. After running in town for a long while and not at home, it's now apparent how tough my 4 miles from home is. 

AP: 9:09

AP: 8:49, harder than I expected. Ran my standard 4 mile loop from the Y this morning. Cool temps, cold hands on the out. I warmed up with a slow mile 1, then as my legs warmed up I naturally went faster, and then forced myself to maintain a faster speed. Averaged just over an 8 minute pace for miles 2-3. Legs weren't feeling it for mile 4 so I walked for a bit to slow my brain down, then jogged it in. Felt good, but definitely needing more running to up my fitness level. Just keep running, just keep running.....

1 TM mile. Rainy outside, needed to get to work, but got to watch part of the Brazil match. WC for the win.

6 hiking miles with a church youth group, including a couple running miles down the trail. A significant climb to a gorgeous lake, Mystic Lake. Beautiful setting in a high alpine valley. Ran quite a bit downhill as I was trying to catch up with my son. That was fun, and I was sore the next day, which I love. Means I'm alive.

Furthest I've run in one stretch in many moons. Legs didn't feel good at all, but I powered through, and glad I did. Nice weather out, but still drenched in sweat at the end.

AP: 8:49

Went to bed late, slept in a bit, and only had time for a couple miles from home. Felt decent. Can't wait for legs to feel great again. High humidity (71%), which is odd for us.

AP: 9:12

3 miles from home this morning. My first mile pace is so slow, it's odd. Might be a while until that declines since I incline quite a bit during mile 1, but it never bothered me in the past after many years of getting used to it. I plan to do Boot Camp on Wednesdays, including today.

AP: 9:19

Noon Boot Camp. Copious amounts of sweat. We determined a new measurement of effort: shimmery shins. They were today.

6 from the Y this morning. Felt decent but still a hard effort, will take awhile.

 AP: 8:30

5 miles backpacking with my 12 yr old daughter to Lost Lake. She had a 15 pound pack; mine was more like 50, but I didn't weight it as I didn't want to know. And I carried hers for 2 of the 5 miles. But we had a blast, and no cell service = bliss. 

5 miles on the return backpacking trip. 5 miles downhill is much easier, and the packs were a bit lighter. Great weather, fun times. 

6 miles from home on a gorgeous morning. About to get hot, glad for the cooler temps. Hard effort, will take a while to regain form. GPS watch was haywire on the out, finally got it working on the back, and was just under 8 minute mile downhill. I was swot and heaty when done.

July goal = 100 miles. I'd like to consistently do 100+ miles each month for many months. In looking at my annual graphs I didn't realize how much my training drops off after a race - it's been significant drops, with very few injuries in there, just a general lack of desire. No wonder my times haven't been what I hoped for. Consistent high mileage yields great results. Build up mileage is helpful, but I've been lacking a consistent no-holds-barred base since 2010, when I started running. I wish I would've figured out running in my 20s as I think I could've done pretty well, relatively. Now I'm mid 40s and I hope I can still post some good age group times, but we'll see if my body agrees.

5 miles a bit before Noon. Decent temps, 66F, nice run. At 1.25 I saw a white haired runner a ways ahead of me and I couldn't help it - I started chasing. A mile later he stopped to cross a street, then started walking. I never would've caught him - he was crusiing and I was in the mid 7's trying to catch him. Kept that mile under 7:40 just because, slowed up for mile 4, and sped up again for mile 5. Felt good to go "comeback fast".

AP: 8:05

4 morning miles from home, with the pup who I'm not a huge fan of. She did well until the end when I let her off her leash. She was trying to go see neighbor dogs and wouldn't listen to me - I'm not okay with that. Dogs need to listen to their owners. I had to run and grab her drag her home. Ugh. Other than that, a good run. Pup was super tired the last 2 miles after dragging me the previous 2 miles.

AP: 8:43

1 mile hiking in the mountains in the afternoon, after we did the Red Lodge parade at noon. Very cool small town parade with lots of horses and smelly horse poop. After 1/3 mile of the hike my 12 yr old daughter had a bad stomach so I turned around with her as mom & son carried on. I would've liked to continue on, but will have to wait for another day. 3 times going to the mountains in 10 days; a new record for me, and I quite enjoyed it.

4 Noon TM miles at the Y. TM is both easier than outside and more difficult. I did 1% incline and I was struggling. I finally warmed up, but was still laboring pretty hard to keep a decent pace. I did keep a decent pace, but was sweating A LOT. Good workout, glad I did it.

6 miles from home this morning. Much warmer and more humid than normal, so I was exceedlingly sweaty when done: 63F and 87% humidity. Temps went up a bit and humidity dropped before I ended. Took the dog and she did pretty well; she's learning. Unfortunately we got hosed when buying a "no pull" harness for her, as it turns out to be a "pull the runner along" harness. Turns out that the new 2018 version has a no-pull hook in the front, but oh well. Earlier this week I took her 4 miles and she was dying the last 2, but this time I let her wade in a pond at 1 mile, then 2.5 miles, and twice again on the way back and that saved her paws and gave her some water. Still a decent time even with the stops; lots of uphill on this run.

AP: 8:51

Update: I realized late last night that my lower back, left side, hurt really bad. Thought it was from some tasks I'd done earlier, but after my run today I realize it's my left piriformis. Not sure if it was from TM running yesterday or going too fast or what? Trying to roll it out and get it to release and seeing some success. Not sure if I'll run tomorrow or not. I need a PT or deep tissue massage soon.

4 miles while camping near Columbus at Itch-Ke-Pe Park. In the first mile I learned which road NOT to run on (speedy traffic and no shoulder), so turned around and ran last 2 in town. Warmish and humid, copious amounts of sweat. New watch, Polar M200 I scored for $31 my cost on Amazon. $122 plus shipping minus $25 gift card from McKinsey & Associates for a product review - $70 gift card for signing up for Amazon Visa card. Why not? So far, so good. I like that it has a wrist HR monitor and it shows current pace. Old watch only showed average pace for that mile.

AP: 9:02 Avg HR: 136

4 miles from home with Hazel. She needs a new harness that is actually no pull as she pulls so hard the first mile, it's annoying. Low average pace as I stopped in mile 1 to fix Hazel's harness. Not a bad run, good temps, high humidity at 62F and 90% humidity. I live in the desert! This is weird to have such high humidity.

AP: 9:21

Noon: Boot Camp, with guest teacher Lindsay. She is a beast, and a legend at the Y. I haven't been to her classes in years as they aren't the right times or the right exercises for my taste, but she kicked our tails. Did double pyramids at each station, followed by 4 down & backs on the basketball floor pushing sliders with our hands, then followed by 1 lap around the block, which is probably 1/3 mile. I had super shiny shins, and I'm still sweating 35 minutes later. Doubles on light running days should help me prevent injury and get me back into shape quicker than just running.

6 miles from home this morning. Crazy humidity for us; 68F, 84% humidity. I was drenched, but a good prep for Florida next week. Realized shirtless running in humidity is the only way to go, as scary as that is for bystanders. I hope the humane society isn’t called to help a beached whale...

AP: 8:57

6 more miles this morning in warm temps & humidity (67F, between 78 to 61% humidity). Went shirtless again, and while a scary sight for others, a good choice as I was dripping in sweat at the end. Legs still tired from Monday's double, and from yesterday's 6, so not great times, but I'm thrilled I can do back-to-back 6 mile runs after a 30 mile week last week. Big improvements for me and I'm stoked that my overall health continues to improve. Seizures impact every muscle tissue in the body, and each neuron in the brain. It took me a while to realize this, but it appears to be true. After 6 months of no seizures, and some hard work on my part, I am close to feeling like a runner again.

AP: 8:50

4 am miles from home. Took the dog/puppy and she pulled me up the hill and I basically dragged her down the hill, silly animal. Next time I guess I'll take water for her, but maybe she'll learn to chill so she has some on the return trip. Headed on vacation tomorrow for 12 days, and we are giddy to go. First 3 days in Bear Lake, then Salt Lake for 1 day, then fly to Orlando & New Smyrna Beach for 7 days then 1 day to drive back to Billings. Can't wait for Orlando - I'm on the only one who's been there. We're doing an Everglades airboat tour and I'm stoked, and can't wait for surfing lessons. should be a blast! And hot, humid, and sticky. Shower X 3/daily should work well.

AP: 8:47

6 miles while staying in Bear Lake. It was a good run. That is all. 

AP: 8:31

6 miles on Legacy Parkway trail while staying at my sister’s house in Woods Cross.

AP: 8:50

3 miles this morning in Orlando before hitting Universal. 

AP: 8:06

Got to Universal by 8:15, walked and walked and walked and walked. Feet hurt, spent way too much money, had a lot of fun, it was worth it. Now gators then the beach tomorrow. 

2 miles before Universal Studios.

AP: 8:34

Tough run. Planned to do 6, but I died after the turnaround and quit at 4.3. I knew we had surf lessons later that morning so I didn’t push it too hard, but even if I didn’t have anything coming up I’m not sure if I could have done 6.

AP: 9:29

Beach run. Hard to run in humidity and heat. 

AP: 9:43 (but felt like 7:30 effort)

4 miles on the beach, our last morning in Florida. Changed things up by driving 5 miles south to look for dolphins. Didn’t see any, but I did see some Sea Turtle tracks from the night before, including one who laid a nest. Pretty cool. It was a beach at Sand Dunes state park, so nobody was on the beach, and it wasn’t a flat beach so tough to run on, but fun nonetheless. 

Stopped a lot without stopping the clock so AP was high, but I ran 7:30s the last mile as the clouds were dark and I thought it would downpour. It didn’t.   

Run from home. I love running in the West, hands down so much easier than heat, high dew point & humidity, even though at sea level. today at 6:30 it was 60F, 49F dew point, 67% humidity. I'm surprised it was so humid as it didn't feel like it. I guess high dew point is what makes running so tough. Today my hands were a little chilly on the way out! So nice.

I took the dog and I won't make that mistake again. She is not well trained, and had done well on a few previous runs, but she was awful today. Kept pulling me on the out, and pulled me sideways on the back. I was not pleased. I will stick to what's worked for me the past 9 years: run alone. I'm a good running partner for myself.

AP: 9:13 (it was better than this, but I stopped a few times because of the dog)

6 Miles again, much harder effort than yesterday, heavy legs. Great temps again, 57F, 51F dew point, 83% humidity. 

AP: 8:48

5 miles from the Y at lunch. A bit warmer out, but very manageable at 74F, 51% humidity. Direct sun which does zap the energy. Quads still really sore from the runs this week. Hoping to do 8 miles tomorrow, longest since early January, but we'll see. I'd much prefer fresh legs to do 8.

AP: 8:30

8 miles from home this morning. Longest run since my January seizures. It was hard, but mainly because I’ve run far (for me) the last 3 days. Hoping to get my Saturday long runs back up to 10 miles soon. Time will tell if the seizures took a much bigger impact on my body than I thought or if it’s the meds or both. I do know I felt great in early January and ran my regular 10 mile route and felt fine, then had seizures a few days later and the effort since then has been very different: much more effort required to achieve the same results.

AP: 9:03 

6 miles from home. Beautiful morning, sun rose just before heading out. Nice SW breeze cooled me off coming and going; hands chilly on the out. After a day of rest, my legs felt good and the pace felt comfortable. HR was high most of the way, but I didn't feel it.

AP: 8:36

Noon: pulled a double, and did Boot Camp. I did pretty well considering, but bailed out on a few of the exercises and my legs were pretty wiped so my running was turtle slow. Glad I did it, and I need to go once a week to keep my other body parts tuned up. I also need to get back to my 30 pushups and 60 second planks every morning after my run.

4 miles outside at Noon. 81-87F, 33-22% humidity. It was actually nice to run in some hotter weather as it seemed to grease the joints and tendons. Last couple miles I picked it up and did a faster run. I was keeping in the 7:40s for most of those miles, but the AP for those miles was higher than that, but I'm happy with the progress.

AP: 8:11

6 miles from home, 62F, 55F DP, 78% humidity. After 1 mile my legs continued their pace from yesterday and I followed along, then upped the pace the last 3 miles. Fastest 6 miles in a long time, and fastest paces I've done since the 5K. I was surprised by how fast my paces were uphill as this is a difficult course for speed.

AP: 8:06; Total Time: 48:44; HR avg 156

4 miles from home this morning. Tough-ish run, could feel the workout from yesterday. Wanted to walk most of the first 2 miles, but didn't, and the 2 return miles were smoother sailing.

AP: 9:05

6 miles from home this morning. Different route = more energy during a tough morning.

10 morning miles while at a campout in Pryor, on the Crow Reservation. Started up a dirt road which I've been on before, but after 1.5 miles I ran into the cows. The first one was startled then began running, and as I continued to run so did nearly every cow in the herd. Must've been 200 running towards the canyon I was trying to get to. After 2.5 miles I felt bad for making them run and turned around. When I got back to the main road I headed South towards the Pryor Mountains, a direction I'd never gone. I'd prefer not to run on the main road in Pryor. Only saw 2 people, so that was nice. The first five miles I felt pretty good, but miles 5-7 on the road were tough and felt soooo long. Finally got over that and mentally felt better, so miles 9 & 10 were solid. Signed up for a 5 mile race next Saturday and my goal is 7 minute miles, but I have a feeling I can get below that. Lots of downhill, should be a fun one to see how I'll do. 

Splits 10:49 (had to wade through water 3 times), 10:10, 9:22, 8:56, 9:47, 9:44, 11:34 (stopped to type my thoughts), 8:47, 8:14, 7:36. AP: 9:31. 

4 miles from home. Recovery run, legs felt rough after Saturday and all of last week. Nice and cold, 54F, from last night's cold front and rain.

AP: 9:33

Noon: Boot Camp at the Y. Guest instructor and she wasn't Lindsay-beastly, but definitely different from our normal crazy lady/awesome instructor. I'll be sore tomorrow, especially upper body. I figure I'll do 4 miles on Mondays then Boot Camp and hopefully that will be enough cross training. Maybe I need to mix it up more than that and do cycling on Wednesdays? We'll see. 

6 miles from home, a bit earlier than normal as I needed to drop off my daughter early for youth camp. Woke at 5:15, out the door at 5:30, and gorgeous morning. Sunrise at 6:05, and I caught it on camera, and in a new spot as typically I'm on the out route, but this time was on the return. Beautiful. Felt pretty good once I warmed up. Excited to race on Saturday.

AP: 8:41 

4.5 miles at Noon from the Y on the last few miles of the 5 mile course for Saturday. It was 80 or so, and I ran 2 miles up a steep hill, turned and bombed down the hill. At least I learned what not to do - I went way too fast down that section and was in the 5:30-6:00 range, which is way too fast for these legs right now. I then hit flat, slowed down quite a bit, then missed a turn as I wasn't paying attention. At that point I put the brakes on and walked a little bit, ran most of the rest of the course, but quit early as my legs were shot. I'll do some slow miles tomorrow and Friday and legs should be rested for Saturday morning.

AP: doesn't matter

Didn't want to wake up or run, but finally got out the door. Was planning on 4 miles, but I and my legs weren't feeling it, so I cut it short at 1.5 and turned around.

AP: no idea, don't care, but slow

4 hot miles at Noon to stretch out my legs. Slow pace, glad I brought water.

Small race in Billings. 5 & 2 mile, but seems the 5 mile attracted most serious runners. My A goal was to break 35:00, and I accomplished that but just barely. I am not in 5-6.2 mile racing shape, and without 600 feet of elevation drop I would not have met my goal. Happy with the result, and with my racing tactics as I’ve learned by reading so many race reports on this blog: hold steady, run your race, don’t give it all too early, then give it all you’ve got and when you’re seeing stars, hope the finish line is very close. All those happened today.

Now on to continuing to train for the sake of training, which is just fine with me. I like to run as it keeps me sane.

Blow by blow for posterity's sake. I was tired last night and got to bed just after 11. However, I woke up at 3:00 am as a bug bite on my right foot was itching just like the night before. At this point I was up for a while. Tried to sleep on the couch and as I was drifting off at 4:10 I gasped: I hadn't remembered to get my packet, and it was at the bank where I work, but in the lobby, where I don't have access. I quickly sent an email to someone who could help me, but I doubt she checked her work emails over the weekend, let alone by 6 am on a Saturday. 8 am race time, bus to the start would leave at 7:15. Slept for a bit, woke up 5 minutes before the 6 am alarm. Got dressed, grabbed my stuff, and got to my work just after 6:30. I then had a massive brain fart and couldn't remember my code to get in the door. I tried 3 times and couldn't get in. What the what? I've worked in this building 13 years. Went back to the truck and finally figured it out. Got in the building, and saw a sign to call Security with questions. Called and a regular guy came over, let me into the bank lobby, and I found my packet. Phew! Headed over to the Y, right near the finish, and dropped my stuff off so I could change after the race. Got to the finish line and waited for a bit for the (short) bus to show up. Pushed my way onto the bus and rode standing at the very back to the start line. Went for a warmup jog of maybe 1 mile and only saw 1 other person warming up; it was my son's former classmate and runner for University of Minnesota. He won by a mile and beat last year's time by 2:30 minutes. Got to the start line, turned on the GPS, and got ready. My goal in this 5 mile race was to be just under a 7 minute mile and be less than 35 minutes. Race started and I was at the front and was quickly passed by 15 or so people. First 2 miles are mostly flat, with a slight downhill. I looked at my watch often and stayed just below 7:00 most of the time. A couple people were ahead of me and I wanted to reel them in but told myself to hold off, run my race, and if I catch them at the end, I catch them. Just after 2 miles the huge downhill starts. I could easily run a 5 minute mile pace on this stretch, but as I found out Wednesday, if I do that it destroys my legs, so I held back. Those in front of me gapped me by quite a ways, but I stayed at a 6:37-40 pace most of the way down. Turned onto a mostly flat road for a couple blocks. and two guys about my age passed me. I stayed close to them, ran my pace, and passed them not long after that. After 1/2 mile we turned into a park and followed the path for a bit then came out on the other side of the park. It was less than 1 mile left and I was doing well and feeling pretty good. 1/4 mile later the short hill hits. I've run up this hill dozens and dozens of time, and it helped greatly today. I ran up it fiercely, 7:16 pace and I think I dropped some people here. After the top, a turn East for a short stretch, then the final 1/2 mile stretch to the finish. I started picking up the effort (hopefully the pace but I don't know). It was tough and I thought I heard footsteps, so I kept going and going. I was struggling to keep going, but I kept going and upped my effort. I saw the finish and as I got closer I saw 34:xx and knew I had my goal if I could continue on. Just before crossing I was nearly to the point of seeing stars. I think another 0.1 mile and that might have happened. Finished just under my goal, grabbed some water, and walked around the block. After the walk I felt a bit better. Got my time printed out, found a co-worker and asked her to grab my age division prize as I needed to leave. Grabbed a Dilly bar, banana, oranges, granola bars, more water, and headed to the Y to change. Good race, nice to hit my goal. I haven't done too many shorter races, so it was fun for me to finally hit a goal I wanted. 

6 miles on a hazy smoke-filled sky this morning from home. Smoke seems to be distant, no breathing problems for me. Last I heard, this smoke is from the California fires which is amazing to me. Today's run wasn't easy. Glad for a day's rest, but the downhill racing miles left a little mark. I thought about walking a lot in the first 3/4 mile but didn't, then thought about turning around at 2 miles, but didn't. Glad I kept at it.

AP: 9:01

4 slow miles at lunch. Legs were trash, so after walking at mile 1, I slowed way down and  it felt much better.

Later tonight while at home, my left lower back seized up. I realized the pain started in my left quad and hamstring. I never stretched after my race or after my Tuesday run. Idiot.

Sat in the steam room to warm up, then stretched, then rode bike and did stair stepper and stretched more. Seems to be feeling better but still sore. 

Not sure how I lost a pound when not running. Loss of muscle mass? :) Ran at Noon from the Y. Slowly jogged is a better descriptor. Lower left back muscle was very sore - the one that runs vertical next to the spine, right above the left butt bone. I felt it with every step until I'd warmed up. Should've hit the bike first or done some dynamic stretching, but alas. It warmed up and the run went well. Ran 10+ minute miles for a while, then naturally went faster but I consciously slowed down to keep it a mild run. AP: 9:59

Afterwards stretched & rolled it for a while. Left upper butt muscle has a big ol' knot in it. Hoping it releases soon.

Morning: 4 miles from home, easy pace, back felt pretty good.

Noon: 10 minutes recumbent bike, 10 minutes stair stepper, 2 miles easy outside. 89F, back felt good. Stretched & rolled the butt and legs, knot is reducing. Left side is very tender on the roller; more than normal. I need to roll more often at home, work, and the Y.

After spending most of the day installing a backsplash in the kitchen, went for a dinner time run. Very soggy. Rained all day today and was only trickling when I left. It started raining harder after mile 1. I was mostly prepared for it, but I didn’t know my iPhone unlock wouldn’t work at all with wet hands. Next time will take a small hand towel in a Ziplock. Who knew? Felt like lead boots the first 1/4-3/4 mile. Difference between morning and evening run I guess. Would’ve gone 5 out & back but I knew we were headed to a wedding reception so turned around just after 3.5 miles. Good run, felt good once I got going. Hopefully can keep up the gains.  

Got up at 5:45 (or a few minutes later) and got ready to go outside and run, so checked the Weather app to see the temp: 52F. Thankfully I noticed a weather alert and saw the radar: nasty thunderstorm incoming. My lunch is booked today, so I first thought about going outside and getting soaked again but then saw the lightning was pretty fierce and I wasn't keen on being struck (or soaked), so I grabbed my work clothes and went to the Y. When I got there I grabbed my phone which had been in my workout bag, and saw I'd missed 4 calls from my wife...before 6:40 am. Huh? I call her back and she was a bit frantic; "where are you? I was out looking for you!" Umm... at the Y... :) She was asleep when I left so I didn't wake her, but the thunder must've gotten her up. She saw my location and thought I had driven down the hill to run, so she was coming to save me, then my location kept getting further and further away so she turned around and drove home. Kind of sweet of her, and hilarious. I keep my phone close when I expect someone to call; I rarely get calls before 7, so didn't think anything of it.

Ran on the TM for 20+ minutes at 2% incline and only 10:00 pace. It wasn't easy. I saw outside the rain stopped, so I headed outside for 3 miles. Felt great, really cool (51F), and I just ran. Saw some nice paces on the way back. Stretched for a good while then got ready for work.

AP: 8:13 outside

6 from home this morning. Rained all day yesterday, but checked the weather and it was cold (49F) and foggy, but 0% chance of rain. Wore a short sleeved shirt under my long sleeved running shirt, and wore some gloves. Didn't need the short sleeve shirt, should've left it at home. After 1 mile I took off the long sleeved shirt. On the out I was a little warm and legs were a bit tight but warmed up after 1-1 1/2 miles. At the 3 mile turnaround I was surprised to turn into wind with spitting rain. 0% chance of rain??? It wasn't much, more fog spitting moisture, but my front was pretty soaked when I finished. Felt pretty good, legs felt strong especially on the return trip. 

AP: 8:45

4 slow miles this morning. Legs are tired. 

Noon tried to do Boot Camp but it was partner day and I was the odd man out so I went and lifted some weights, did some pullups, then 5 minutes on Jacob's Ladder. That was tough but interesting. 

Rested today. I'm very happy with the choice; I've been pushing too hard with too little sleep, and feeling the effects. At 95 miles this month, with a goal of 100 per month, so I can back off a bit and be smarter with my mileage.

6 miles from home this morning. Nice and easy, and legs felt great from a rest day.

AP: 9:13

10 miles up my Veyo hill. Nice to finally return and see my friend again. Didn’t stop at any point.

AP: 9:02

5 miles this fine blustery morning. 52F, a solid Westerly breeze made for some chilly hands, so I wore gloves, took them off, put them on, took them off, put them on. Wore a long sleeved shirt and that was too much, so it was pushed above my elbows the entire time. I didn't go fast, not a hard effort, so not sure how I sweated so much - my headband was drenched at the end. I am just a heavy sweater, that's all there is to it. :)

AP: 8:53

4 miles from home. Unseasonably cold, 45F during the run. Gloves and long sleeved shirt were perfect today. Legs felt a bit tired, oddly, not sure why. Had a nice rest Sunday. Maybe residual effects from Saturday's 10? Not sure.

AP: 9:00

6 miles on a perfectly chilly morning - gloves and short sleeved shirt. Took it nice and easy on the uphill out, then the body naturally started going faster on the down. 5th mile average was 7:25, similar for 6th mile.

AP: 8:30

20 minutes Jacobs Ladder, weights, pushups, plank.

Nothing like weighing myself in the morning after a 6 mile run. Finally hit a number on the scale I've been hoping to see for quite a while now. I know it's not a true number during the day, but I'll take it.

Ran from the Y this morning after dropping off my Freshman at early morning seminary. Our Senior was up late last night so I gave him a break and let him sleep in. It worked out great for me. Was able to run on a normal course, no huge up, no gravel roads. I felt pretty good during the first 1/2 mile, and as I warmed up my pace kept increasing. Nothing to special, but felt good to be in the mid 7s during my run without pushing it too hard - it just felt good.

AP: 8:07

My 10 mile Saturday run once again! So stoked to do this twice in a row. Legs were rough from yesterday's tougher effort, but I just kept going and didn't stop at any time, which felt great. I could tell my legs were still in rough shape as my last mile was the hardest and I struggled to maintain a solid pace, even though it's downhill.

AP: 9:29

6 cooollllddd miles in Stevensville, MT while staying at my sis-in-laws. I didn't even think to bring gloves, but I should've worn some. I was in a singlet and shorts, and it was in the mid to low 40s with a breeze. Arms felt pretty good, but hands were ice. About mile 1, I passed a group of ladies walking their dogs and they were in full winter gear - jackets, hats gloves - and I was in my singlet and shorts with no gloves. I'm sure they thought I was crazy, and I may have yanked the gloves off one of them if I had the chance.

AP: 8:40

4 miles this morning on another chilly morning (47F), which is the new norm. I'm fine with it. Didn't feel great on the run, likely tired from the drive home yesterday.

AP: 9:11

Showered at the Y this morning and weighed myself. Was fixing my wife’s car early when NAPA opened, so no run. Then went to lunch with my son instead of go for a run. It’s his last day in Billings, so I sacrificed. I’m a great dad...  I really wanted to go for a run instead, but we had a nice time. He’s a good kid and I worry about him. 

6 miles from home. Legs felt a bit sluggish on the out. Maybe the higher-than-normal mileage the past 10 days? Most likely, plus a couple travel days in there. Felt decent on the return, but harder than expected.

AP: 8:41

Considering doing a 5K on Saturday. I haven't done any 5K specific training, as I know I should do if I want to break 20:00, but I might give it a shot anyhow. We'll see how my Saturday shakes out.

4 miles from home. Felt decent, not great. Decided to do the 5K tomorrow as it’s a flat course. With 14 turns I’m not expecting a PR, but will give it a shot. Plan is to warm up by slowly running the course, then try and maintain a 6:24 pace to break 20:00.

AP: 8:41

I tried to break 20:00 in a 5K for the first time ever, but I didn't as I need more speed training. This is a tiny race, 170 registered, and with it being cross country season, no college or high school kids showed up. I led the race the first 2.3 miles - how weird is that? I was trying to maintain a 6:24 mile to break 20:00, but I wasn't even close: 6:32, 6:37, 7:21.

I ran the course to warm up, tried to go slow (but didn't turn on GPS during the warmup so maybe I went too fast?). I planned to only do part of it so I could know all the turns, but ended up running the entire thing. 15 turns, so a very weird thing through a neighborhood. Kind of cool, though. The race started and ended at a city park. It was a gun time, and I started at the very front. I expected to get passed like I do in all races, but it didn't happen until the last mile. 30 feet into the race I heard footsteps and a guy came to my left and said "you look like you know what you're doing" and I said a few words, but I was not running a conversational pace so I stopped talking and kept running. He slowed down fairly quickly and finished 4-5 minutes after me. There was a small hill about .5 miles, and that slowed me a bit, but for the most part I thought I was running a 6:29 the first mile. I guessed a few seconds under my actual pace. Second mile I was struggling to breathe - my throat felt constricted - so I tried breathing differently. Seems that slowed me a bit, but I thought I was doing close to a 6:30 mile. I need more speed work to get the feel. With .8 to go, I was still in the lead, felt rough, but I was trying to push it and I felt like I was starting to go in oxygen deprivation. I wasn't going to beat 20:00 so I gave up trying to hit that goal as I knew it was out of reach. I stopped and walked for 10 seconds or so, and a guy passed me. I started running again, close to a 7:00 mile. Turns out nobody else was even close behind me as I kept asking the course guards if anyone was back there. I took 2nd place, which didn't matter to me. I didn't get a prize as only top people got prizes.... I wasn't racing for a place, I was racing the clock. Onward and upward! If I can keep doing 25+ a week and add in some speed work, I have no doubt I can break 20:00 in the next few months. 

Noon Boot Camp. I intended to run this morning but it didn't work out, so I did cross training at BC and it was a butt kicker as always. We did run around the block a few times, which is probably 5-600 yards or so. My legs were a bit tight from Saturday's faster effort. 

6 miles this morning from the Y. I forgot to bring running gloves, so I grabbed some yellow work gloves from the truck and they worked great. Padding on the knuckles protected from the chill. Forgot to us the restroom before leaving, so hit the Great Harvest bread store for a pitstop. Towards the end I saw a former co-worker so stopped and chatted with her for 1/4 mile. All those things put my official pace as much less than it was, but it was likely around 8:50. 

Weight keeps dropping little by little. I'm curious as to where it will end up without any significant/purposeful diet changes. I am eating differently as I pay attention to what my body craves, and trying to stay away from the bad stuff, but I'm not being shy about eating full meals with good food. 

4 miles from home. 

AP: 8:55

8 from home mid morning. Felt pretty good. Walked first mile while talking on the phone with my buddy in Utah, so the average pace is messed up.

 AP: 9:49

3 from home, then Boot Camp at Noon.

10 Saturday miles up my hill. Tough effort, hungry, kept going . Only stopped to eat after the turn. Good tough run. 

3 slow morning miles, then Boot Camp at noon.

Left early to go cut firewood with a friend, so no running today. A pretty good workout to run a chainsaw then load the wood into a trailer.

6 miles from home. Wore tights for the first time this fall season. Fall arrived early for us- the high today will be 49... what the what? The normal high for today is 71.

AP: 9:06

6 morning miles from the Y after dropping off Dylan at early morning seminary. During the first mile I thought about my desire to break 20:00 in the 5K and how it won't be possible unless I do speed work - I just don't have the legs, cardio, or mentality to embrace the suck for that long. So I decided to run a 5K pace during mile 2. I didn't have my watch setup for doing that well, so I don't know how long I actually ran 5K-ish pace, but it was probably close to a mile. Also, that stretch of road I ran has massive old growth trees to the South, so my GPS was off quite a bit. I knew I was about a 6:25-30 pace and my watch told me I was 6:45 or higher. So I went for quite  a bit, then stopped, really no idea of distance or pace. It tells me 7:15 pace for mile 2, but I started a while after my watch hit mile 2, thinking I could start the mile split when I wanted. Anyhow, that was helpful. I then decided to do another fast mile during mile #5. This time I stopped my watch and reset the screen to show pace and mileage for that lap. I also was in a small tree neighborhood so that helped. I managed a 6:14 pace and it was tough, but manageable. Having not done much speedwork in my life, my pace was all over the place - as low as 5:50 to as high as 6:30s, so I tried to stay in the teens and it worked. I think I'll do Workout Wednesdays and do some faster miles those days, hopefully downtown at the track or on the flat. 

4 miles from home, pea soup thick fog to start, the rose above it at 1.75 miles. Beautiful with the sunrise.

12 from home 

5.5 from the Y in the morning. Friend called at mile 3 so I walked the next two miles as we chatted.

Noon Boot Camp

Afternoon run. The joys of being out of work - I can run anytime I want (which is actually throwing me off as I like being tied in to a schedule. Felt good after mile 1 (during which I got a call from a hiring manager telling me I made the final interview next week) so I started going faster and then kept it up and went faster until I was done with fast and hard breathing. Even my last mile, which I meant to be a recovery mile, had me dialing in to an 8:20 pace, which seems to be my new comfortable pace.

AP: 8:15, miles: 10:05 (walked during phone call), 7:55, 7:33, 7:03, 8:36

5 hilly miles at Noon from home on the Lupine/Hillcrest loop. Steep Downhill the first 1.5, then a brutal climb most of the way back. 500 ft drop, 520 foot ascent, mostly over 1 1/2 miles. It was hot (mid 60s) and I was dripping sweat. Glad I wore my visor, as I have a funny headband tan (forehead is not very tan from eyebrows to hair...). 

AP: 9:04, which blows me away as I went slowly downhill and uphill. My endurance is returning, which excites me.

4 miles from home mid morning. The scale at home seems heavier than the scale at home, but it’s tough to judge. Maybe I’ll take the home scale to the Y sometime and weigh side by side.

4 TM miles at Noon at the Y

Busy day today, didn't feel like getting up at 5 to go for a long run, so I skipped it. After weeks of upping the mileage, it felt pretty good to give the long run a break this week. 

5 miles from home on a cold, foggy morning. Weather app said 38, but I think it was colder than that. Wore a running top then my new medium weight cold weather top - has a hood, no zipper, and long sleeves. It was perfect for these temps. I need new thin mitt gloves. These work fine, but would like a mitt to cover my thumbs. 

4 miles from home. 15 degrees warmer than yesterday, which throws me off mentally. Wore my warmish tights, a long sleeved shirt, and thin gloves. Could've gone with shorts and a t-shirt and been fine. Was doing lots of thinking about a job interview later this morning, so I ran slower times, but got some good thoughts of what to focus on during this 2nd round. 

Much welcome rest day. My throat is scratchy, nose runs more than normal when I'm running, but it is colder, so I don't think it's a cold. I actually took a nap today, a rarity. Hoping if I am getting sick, rest will knock it out. 

5 miles (I think). GPS was whacked out today, measured me way short. I know I hit 5 miles, maybe more. Felt pretty good. I like cold weather running, and it's starting - it was 31F on this morning's run from the Y. Dressed appropriately as I was slightly chilled until I started sweating, then felt good, and my shirt was fairly wet when done. 

4 miles outside in the morning.

Noon Boot Camp

10 miles, 38-45F, nice temps. Felt good, kept a solid pace and hit high 6’s in the last mile.

6 morning miles from home. Ran fast the last 3.

6 miles from home. 

Left calf had a knot in it from yesterday's activities. I ran, then went pheasant hunting and walked through lots of tall grass. I should've stretched after my run, and after my hunting. I didn't, but was able to work out the knot. 

4 morning miles from the Y. Decent temps (a bit cold @ 30, but no wind), decent run. 

AP: 8:32

4 chilly miles. Cold temps after a brief snowstorm yesterday evening left ice on houses, roofs, cars, and the road depressions. Road itself didn't seem icy, just the spots that saved the snow which melted to water. Unseasonably early, and supposed to return to normal next week. Legs felt pretty tired from more "hunting" yesterday, but if you don't see any birds and take no shots, it's only hiking with a gun. 

AP: 9:05

10 cold snowy miles in unseasonably cold weather. It rained earlier this morning and I won’t run in the rain anymore - too chilling - but the cold and snow don’t pose a problem as it doesn’t soak through. Did my normal 10 and felt good. Achilles was a bit sore during the run, which was odd. Seems fine hours later. 

Boot camp today. 

4 miles from home this morning. 

Annual week long elk hunting trip high in the mountains of Montana (8100 feet) so lots of hiking,  dragging out 2 cow elk, and glassing the hills. Thursday through Wednesday. 

4 “fast” miles from home in the windy afternoon. It was a hard effort.

AP: 7:20

4 slow miles right after doing 45 minutes of Boot Camp. One of the perks of being laid off = as long of a lunch break as I want.

Busy day, tired legs, took a break. 

6 from home, 48F. Slow on the out, solid on the return. 

AP: 8:45

8 morning miles from the Y. Trying to get 24 miles between today and tomorrow so I hit 100 for the month. AP: 8:40

6 afternoon miles from home. Not easy, but not as hard as I thought it might be. Stiff breeze from the West I had to run into about 1/2 mile twice. Fun. AP: 8:39

10 early morning miles from home. Tough but I made my 100 October miles.

AP: 9:03

4 morning miles from home. Good run, 36F but not too windy, very hot at the end, return miles in the 7s.

AP: 8:04

3 quick miles in South Jordan while at my sisters house.

4 morning miles in South Jordan before driving home. 34F. Warmed up first two, steady uphill, ran faster on the return. 

AP: 8:06

6 cold miles in my winter gear, 24F with not much wind. After a couple miles my winter jacket was too warm so unzipped it most of the way the rest of the way. Felt good, but had a couple phone calls during the run so had to walk a few times. Need to run earlier! :)

AP: 9:03, but last mile was 7:06.

4 TM mid morning miles at the Y, progressive run, last .15 at 5:42 pace. I 

4 TM miles at the Y. Planned to do 6, but legs were tired. Likely ran too fast or could've gone farther. Weights and pushups and planks after. 

8 morning miles from home. 34F, not bad until winds picked up last 2 miles. Cold but not horrible those miles. 

4 windy miles from home. Did 2 half miles fast. Not sure I’m up to speed.

6 morning miles from home. Good run, did 5K pace for 1/2 mile X 3. Tough to maintain a below 6:20 pace, I'm worried for a sub 20:00 Turkey Run, but I'll give it my best shot. 

6 morning miles. A bit windy, but love the new mittens - bought Gordini Stash Lite running mittens and they will be heavenly. It was warm this morning, 44F, so sweaty hands, but they will be great for 30s and below. 

4 morning miles with the headlamp. I'm not looking forward to a long winter of headlamp running, but it beats the treadmill. 

Last miles in the 7s.

Busy day from 7 am-11:30 pm so no run. 

6 nice and easy miles from home at 9 am. Nice weather (for MT), and a good return after a 2 day break.

6 miles from home with a stiff breeze which made it much colder than it should have been. New mittens were nice but backs of hands  cold 🥶 from the wind. Hopefully ready for a Turkey Day PR. 

Short run to stretch the legs. 

Annual Thanksgiving Day run in Billings - my favorite 5K anywhere, as it's fully flat through downtown Billings. I missed my PR, and might have had a chance to hit it if I had started at the front. A couple things went wrong: 1) I forgot to put on my race bib, and the gun went off as I was jogging back to the start line. I was about 90 seconds behind the leaders and weaved through the crowd the first 1/2 mile, which slowed me down significantly. The good news is I was never passed during the race. The bad news is I likely lost 30 seconds and more, as I also added some distance by weaving. 2) I forgot to start my watch at the start line, so I never knew my exact time - that threw me off.

No need for me to recap the race, as overall I just wasn't feeling a PR. In looking back, maybe I could have gotten one, but I don't know. The 5k is mental and I'm more of a long distance guy. I did finish 30th out of 2000 people, but most were walkers and joggers. The mile is an easy race - I liked that. Didn't come close to my 5:48 from 5 years ago, but still fast enough for 8th and 1st in Masters. Sadly, it's no longer the RRCA Montana Mile championship - I was hoping for a 3 time win in the Masters category! :)