Back on the wagon...

Last night and today I took my mountain bike over to the local ski hill (if you can call it that), put it in it's lowest gear, and went up and down the hill. Nutt Hill is by no means tall, but it is steep. When I was in football in high school, friends and I would try to make it up and down the hill without stopping 4 times. We never did. The record still stands at 3 and a half. It was a good workout on the bike also, as my HR would get up to around 175 by the top of the hill, and when I got back down to the bottom it would be at 140-150. I did this over and over again for about 45 minutes this morning, then went over to a local park and ran 15 minutes in the grass. My avg HR for the run was 160, which tells me I was probably running at a decent clip, perhaps 7:00 or 7:15 miles. The heel did not act up at all--completely asymptomatic. This was a great experience. This weekend I will be heading out to the Greenbush Bike/Hike Trails, where I'll be hoping to put in around 15 miles (3 loops on the purple trail) at planned marathon pace.

A stationary progression...

My foot is definitely progressing with some rest, and I'm trying to keep getting work in on the bike. I biked for an hour and a half Sunday night and will go out again tonight to get in some time on the trails. I'm finding it's much harder to get the HR up into the zone I'd like it to be, but I actually might just find a hill and go up and down on it a while to get a workout in. The foot was pretty sore yesterday, kind of aching throughout the plantar fascia. Today that has improved, and I have a GooseBump ball permanently attached to the bottom of my foot whenever I'm sitting (even right now!). It's amazing how a little setback like this can throw off an entire routine. I've seen differences in my diet, my sleep pattern, my energy during the day. I need to run again!

A good friend of mine, Hack, would often tell me at high-anxiety times, "The hay is in the barn!"

No need to worry! I've put in the time.

I'll be fine.

Positive thoughts...positive thoughts...

This is me being an idiot...

I really should have rested today. But the progress in my right heel that was made in the last couple days really made me want to run today. So I did. I did a nice 5 mile loop in town, and unfortunately found my heel really hurting at about mile 4, but I could "feel" it the whole time. It's official, I need some rest. Overall, I ran good, finishing 5 miles in 35:20, with an average heart rate of 161. I just really want to get the leg straightened out and get in at least one long fast run before I begin my "Taper Madness," of which I struggle every time. I don't know what it is about resting, especially in the tapering portion of the training, but I'm terrible at it! Just one more run...a couple more miles...just to make sure I haven't lost anything...

On the mend...

Well, David Miller, Hand & Foot Reflexologist, is amazing. I had been told he'd really make me "sing" when he went to work on my legs, and that was proven true. My soleus muscles and Achilles tendons proximally were very sore, but it's amazing the difference between today and yesterday. I still have some very mild tenderness in my right heel, in the area that a heel spur may develop. I xrayed it today to make sure all is well, and it is. So now it's time to ultrasound twice daily for the next two days, stretch, keep working with a Goose Bumps ball, and loosen up my Achilles even more. I'm hoping to run a 22 miler this weekend, again on a "criterium" course. It will probably be a 2 mile loop, run 11 times. I prefer this, as it allows for me to keep a better gauge on my splits, and also makes me lighter, as I won't be carrying bottles. I need to be smart, however, and be sure my heel is ready. I don't want to run on it and simply aggravate it more. If it's not better by Sunday afternoon, the 22 miler will be scratched for a week.
Tomorrow Ellie and I are going to a Dave Matthews Concert. I will need to refrain from dancing, which will actually be a good thing, as the people around us won't be in nearly as much danger of injury.

Giving credit where credit is due...

The inspiration for my Journal title is an ultra running site that I can't seem to find. It isn't the headline of the site, but something to the effect of "Left, Right, Repeat" is a subtitle of the site. Proper citing will be made once I stumble upon the site again.

The Season, thus far, in review...

As I mentioned, I've been looking for a better way to keep track of my mileage and progress. I had been keeping a record on Hal Higdon's website, but I'm ending that and continuing here. Here's the info thus far (reading time...7 minutes)...

5/21
Well, it's time for a blog for me. I've been looking for a place to keep track of mileage, times, and other information as I attempt to qualify for Boston this Fall. My best time currently is 3:36 and change (at Chicago 2006), and yesterday I ran the Green Bay Marathon as a kick-off training run in 3:47. So here we go...I'm going to train using the FIRST system and focus much more on track workouts and hills than I ever have before. I run marathons for a foundation, raising money for my best friend from high school. My blog name? Well, it's LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon Boston Qualify for Nic W Giebler, Doctor of Chiropractic.See you in a couple miles!

5/23
First run of the "summer" was last night, a nice 3 miler from the office to the softball diamond in town. I really need to get my left shoulder checked out. Left Levator Scap and Upper Trap are in a knot that showed up after only about 1 mile running. Other than that, I was a little sore, but that was about it! Not a bad run.

5/30
Well, run #2 of the new season, and it went great! I ran 2.5 miles at a consistent 6:50 pace and felt pretty good afterward! Only a slight ankle tweak from this past weekend (I was dumb again and went on a trail run/hike) keeps this run from earning a 10/10. Hopefully the new shoes arrive today, as I've literally run holes into my current shoes. Fingers crossed! Nic

5/31
Another good run this morning! 3 miles, around 27 minutes. I got stopped by an old friend and we chatted for a while. That explains at least 2 minutes of the run! My new shoes are in, and I'm going with a motion control shoe to help slow down my over pronation. so far so good!

6/2
It was a beautiful morning for a run, and I ran 14 miles in 1:49. I was hoping for a bit quicker time, but I'll take it. The legs felt good and it was humid. Here's to speed work improving that pace...

6/6
I've been excited to write this one since I finished the workout! Yesterday was a track workout day consisting of a 10 minute warmup, 3 1600 repeats with 1.5 minute recovery, a 10 minute cool down. My target time for the repeats was 6:30 per mile.Being TERRIBLE at math, I thought I had to average 1:07 per 400 to get it done. I know, I know, I'm an idiot. Needless to say, my pace was a bit quick on the first one.1: 5:552: 6:103: 6:18So my pace slowed a bit, but overall, a pleasant experience, that is, once I realized 6:30 wasnt THAT fast!

6/11
This weekend got hectic...Wedding, Triathlon, Yard Work. I did manage to get a run in, although not as long as I had hoped. On a hot and humid Sunday morning I ran 7 miles. I hoped to pace it at about 7:00-7:30 per mile, which I did for the first 4 miles. Not sure about after that...My stopwatch accidentally got reset when I was checking it at somepoint. I'm pretty sure I finished in about 55 mins, so I think I slowed down a bit, but still...not bad!This week it's time to get serious. Xtrain today, Track tomorrow, Xtrain Wednesday, Tempo Thurs. It's ON!

6/13
Not a bad start to the week! On Tuesday I continued with the track schedule, and even had a couple high school cross country runners lead me around. The workout was a mile warmup, then 4 800 repeats in the following times (I was aiming for a 3:07 800)1. 2:552. 2:593. 3:004: 3:01I'll take that! Then I was told by the athletes that there best times were low 2:00s for the 800...sheesh, talk about feeling your age....This morning was supposed to be a cross training morning, but a great friend of mine (a best man in my wedding) was in town and wanted to do a run. We met at a local trailhead (after I ran over a possum on my way...) and did a nice and easy 3.75 mile loop, chatting the whole time. It was relatively rugged and hilly, but the ankle felt good, and the time was right around 29 mins. Another beautiful morning in Wisconsin!

6/14
Because of a wedding this weekend, I decided to do the long run today. I may regret that this afternoon as a busy day in the office awaits...oh well!I ran 15 miles this morning, North on Hwy E, to Elkhart Lake on A, and then back home. It got pretty warm towards the end of the run, and my pace suffered a bit, finishing in 2:18. Still not a bad way to spend the morning!

6/18
Another nice weekend, with a run on Saturday morning of 7 miles...it was on a treadmill as we were out of town at a wedding. The first mile was a 9:00 pace, and the second mile I ramped up to the PMP of 7:00 pace. At this point I felt something I really don't want to think about in the distal 2nd metatarsal...stress fracture. I have had some metatarsalgia in previous years..we'll rest a bit and go from there. I finished up the "run" on an elliptical, keeping the 7 minute pace in mind. it went well!

6/20
Another Tuesday, another track workout...20 min warmup1200, 1000, 800, 600, 400. 20010 min cooldownI was joined by several local runners and a couple high schoolers, and it was great! I got beat up pretty bad, and was exhausted today, but all in all, it was a blast!this thurs is a tempo run, and saturday is 17 miles. gotta keep picking up the pace...

6/25
Well, I missed my run on Thursday, which was supposed to be a tempo 7 miler. I'm kicking myself now, but at the time I guess something told me to take a day of rest. Yesterday I got in the long run, 17 miles in 2:25. I'm happy with that. I got stronger as the run progressed, so here's to another week down!

6/27
Last night was the weekly track workout, this time consisting of 5 1K's with 400m rest intervals. My bro Doug joined me for the "fun." Splits:1: 3:552: 3:453: 3:414: 3:415: 3:40I was aiming, according to my program, for a 3:43 pace. I blame the first one to Doug being in the lead. What does piss me off is the fact that Doug has done pretty much nothing this whole summer, and even inhaled some substances that one would think would slow him down, and despite this he stuck with me for all 5, right behind me. I even tried to lose him in the last 200 of the last run, and he just grunted (literally) his way to the finish. GRRRRRRRRRRR!Quite an athlete for sure. I hate him.

7/2
another week, another missed tempo run (grrrrrrrrrrrrrr) and another quality long run. as i continue to run around with my head cut off business wise, i missed another tempo run, but did get in some quality mountain biking. on sunday i ran 20 miles in 3 hours. I felt great, but still need to find some speed...unless of course i just suck it up over those last 6.2 miles of the marathon and run them in 10 minutes!

7/5
Happy 4th! I sandwiched the holiday with a track workout Tuesday night and a Temp run today. the track workout:3 1-mile repeats with a 1 minute RI1st: 6:142nd: 6:133rd: 6:04Not bad, considering my goal was a 6:45 pace! Today I did a six mile tempo, first and last miles easy, middle 4 miles at a 7:00 clip. Goal accomplished, even with a walk break at mile 3 and 4...it got HOT out today! I'm off to a wedding in Iowa this weekend but I'm hoping of getting back at a reasonable time on Sunday to get in a nice 18 in the late afternoon. My main concern at the moment is that I'm not picking up enough speed on the long runs. My hopes are in the track workouts and tempo run, and that as the summer progresses into august, the longer runs will pick up...am I way off in this assumption?

7/6
This morning I hit the trails early and put in 10.2 miles on the mountain bike in 48:02. It was a great way to start the day, and I wanted to strain my quads a little before we leave today for Iowa. As an added bonus, I can feel my calves tightening also! I was home in time to surprise my wife with an omelette for breakfast. Off to the office for a full day, then off to Iowa!

7/10
I gutted through my weekly track workout today. I was oh so close to calling it after only 3 of the scheduled 6 repeats, but, in all honesty, it was a pretty simple thought that got me going again!I had an extra slice of pizza yesterday, and I remember thinking as I ate it, "This doesn't taste nearly as good as it should, for the way my gut is going to feel in about 30 minutes."For some reason, that thought stuck with me. I can't indulge on Monday night and then cut the work short on Tuesday. So I gutted it out...First, 2 1200 repeats with a goal time of 4:30.1: 4:272: 4:24Then, 4 800 repeats, goal time of 2:59. By the way, all of these had 2:00 RI's.1: 2:582: 2:593: 3:014: 2:56I kind of discovered something in the last 200 of the last repeat also. My split was a little late, so I really focused on pumping arms, hoping that the natural running movement would pull my legs along and get me home. It worked amazing. Instead of concentrating on getting one leg in front of the other, I pumped at the shoulder and elbow joints, and it seemed to keep me rolling, turning what could have been a 3:04 into a 2:56. Smiles all the way home (10 minute cool down and then a car ride home)!

7/16
These last two weeks have been nuts, but it's going to at least calm down a bit from here on out, so I'm looking forward to that. I'm done with the weekend beers I've been having, and going to get back to a decent diet (now that the majority of the parties are over) as I make my final training push into the fall season. I ran a 5K in town today, which included at mile 1.5 the largest hill Plymouth, Wisconsin has to offer. The legs felt good, and I had a nice sweat built up while maintaining a 7 minute pace. Tomorrow is a track workout, and from here on out I need to push it. "It shouldn't feel good. It should hurt like hell."-- Ultramarathonman

7/18
Yesterday's track workout consisted of 6 800's at a sub 3:00 time. Success!1: 2:552: 2:553: 2:584: 2:585: 3:016: 2:52It was hot and humid, but the workout felt good, and I'm happy with my legs afterwards. Today I'm going to get in some hill work to work out those calves and quads, and it's on to a long run tomorrow.

7/19
Yesterday I got a massage, then biked home from about 11 miles away. I wanted to strain the legs a bit, so I went after it pretty hard, finishing in 32 minutes. The best part about it is that today I'm going to take the long way back to the car and put in a 20 miler. I'm hoping for an 8:15 pace on this one.

7/20
This morning I completed the 20 miler, in what had to be 80% humidity at the beginning of the day. I ran to Waldo (insert "Where's Waldo jokes now) then Sheboygan Falls, and ended up at my parked car in Kohler. Now the best news: I finished in 2:40, which equals an 8:00 minute pace for the run! Looks like the speed work may be starting to kick in on the long runs. I began to struggle with about a mile to go, but kept to it. I hadn't looked at my watch since mile 7, so the final time was a pleasant surprise, so I jogged a 1/2 mile cool down! I also wore a heart rate monitor for the first time in a while, and I might keep doing that. My avg heartrate for the entire run was 152, which accounted for my walk breaks...and one other break involving squatting against a tree . I ran most of the time at a heart rate of 165-170. Not sure what this means, but I'm going to do some research and find out!Off to the Office...

7/20Tomorrow I'm running in a 2 mile race in town, then working the event. I would LOVE to break 12 mins in the race, but we shall see. As a nice little cross training workout, I biked about 5 miles in the trails. This sounds funny, but it's quite a 'massage' for sore legs. I'll be ready for tomorrow!

7/21
Back from the Cheesehead Chase, quite an event! There was a 5 mile and 2 mile run, and I did the 2 mile and then helped people out afterwards with stretches and A.R.T. I was hoping to run the 2 miles in under 12 minutes, and I finished in 11:37, 6th overall! I had an incoming high school freshman following my pace the whole time, and he tried to make a move on me in the last 100 but I held him off...for now. I"m guessing I should enjoy it now, as next year may not be the same. Now it's off for a bike ride. It's a PERFECT day in Wisconsin.Oh yeah, at the event today, I had the pleasure of meeting Roy Pirrung. He ran the 5 miler today. I have followed his running for a while now, and it was great to get to know him. Little known fact, his 93 year old uncle is a patient of mine! If you're not familiar with that name, check out these:http://www.usatf.org/athletes/bios/MountainUltraTrail/Pirrung_Roy.asphttp://www.roypirrung.com/

7/23

So, after missing my tempo run yesterday because of my Dad's birthday (we went out to eat. I was going to run home from dinner, but the menu was FANTASTIC--Bleu Cheese Steak Tenderloin=YUMMMMM), I decided to do it today after work. A couple facts made this an interesting run.1. Today is day one of a 21-day cleanse Ellie and I are doing to right the ship on our diets. Due to the holidays (4th of July), special events (Housewarming Pig Roast), and stress-related home deliveries (Domino's after a rough day at work), our diet has wandered from our normal routine and we're both feeling the effects of it. While I'm not looking to lose weight during this cleanse, and will be watching that closely, I am looking to curb the high glycemic, bad fat foods I've been having, thus making the caloric intake much more specific.2. It was humid as HELL today. Ok, so it's not Hell, but it was humid.3. I used my HR monitor again today. I'm assuming my Max HR is 193, and the last two mornings I've checked my resting HR in bed, and found it to be 49 and 52. I'm going with 50 as my avg resting HR. This brings my lactate threshold (85% of max HR) to be around 172. I kept my run tonight in the high 160's and low 170's. Over 6 miles, my time was 46:49, for a 7:48 pace, and my avg HR was 167, with a max of 182. The 182 came in the home stretch as I was "curious" to see what I could do. Anyway, it's time to make some salmon and FEAST!

7/25

Yesterday's track workout got cut a bit short because of a speech I gave last night at a local fitness club, but overall it was a good run. It consisted of 6 400's at a 1:20 pace, with 1:15 RI's. Splits:1 1:182 1:173 1:224 1:195 1:176 1:14I then took a 2 minute RI, and did 4 more, all under my goal time. On the last stretch I even played with my HR monitor again, seeing what I could get the ol' ticker up to. I hit 180 at the finish, so my current record remains at 181. I'm not sure about the plans for tomorrow and this weekend, regarding running. I would like to do 20 tomorrow, but considering I'm cleansing, I'm not sure what kind of energy I'm going to have. I think I'm calling myself Day-to-Day, and we'll see tonight and tomorrow how things are moving. I've felt great lately, but this morning I was really tired. We shall see!

7/26 Wow, the temp is climbing, and so is the humidity. I ran a very difficult 10 mile loop today, with two killer hills to end it. My max heart rate is now at 184 (hit on hill #2 today). I'm pretty wiped out by this run. Between the cleanse and the heat, I am feeling it. Here's to a decent (FULL) day in the office, followed by a Lions Meeting, and then we're getting together with friends. I may be crawling into bed tonight! 10 miles1:238:18 paceAvg HR 171

7/28 Yesterday Ellie and I biked to the local ski hill (http://www.plymouthgov.com/Parks/skihill.htm) and ran it three times. That is only about 12 minutes of exercise, but that's all it takes to be gasping. I thought for sure my HR would jump up there into "new record" territory, but it really didn't. In fact, it only reached numbers that it normally stays at for my long runs, in the 165-170 range. Kind of odd, I thought, but I guess, after all, it was less than 15 minutes of exertion. Today I ran a nice 5 miler at an 8:00 pace, easy and comfortable. No issues in the body outside of some soreness in my left foot (again).

7/30 That's what my Sunday afternoon consisted of, and I really can't complain. My legs on Sunday morning felt tired, and they didn't really improve. I think the mistake was Nutt Hill on Friday. That's supposed to be an easy day, and it really wasnt. I still got my workouts in, and I do think the rest came in handy. This week I'll be back at work, with a nice bike workout today, track Tues, rest Wed, Tempo Thurs, rest friday. I'm going to race on Saturday (Brat Trot in Sheboygan) and long run on Sunday. Overall, I think the rest was the best thing for the training at the moment.

7/31 Well, back to the track tonight. Yesterday was a decent mountain bike ride, and I'm feeling my glutes and hamstrings, so I guess I'll call that a sucess. Today's workout:1 mile 6:15400 m RI2 miles 12:30800 m RI800 2:59400 m RI800 2:59

8/2 Not a good day. I headed out this morning with an anticipated 6 mile tempo run, with the middle 4 miles at about a 7:05 pace. That didn't exactly happen. As I sit here, I'm not nearly as bummed as I was when I first got home, but I definitely am frustrated. It took me about an hour to cover the distance. Not good.I chalk it up to:1. This cleanse. I haven't really recovered yet from last Thursday's 10 miler, and even after my little ride on the bike on Mon, my hamstrings are still sore.2. It's humid. I can't chalk much up to this, as there was still a nice breeze.The speed work on Tuesday's hasnt been that bad either. Today was hopefully just an off day. Well, I guess this week has just been an off week. On Saturday morning I'm doing the Brat Trot 4 miler, so there's another chance for a nice tempo run, and I'm still aiming at Sunday to do a long run. It might just be a time run, where I simply stay out there for a couple hours, not worrying about how much ground I cover.

8/4 This morning I ran in the annual Sheboygan Brat Trot, and had a great time. It is a fast 4 mile course, with mostly downhills (including a BIG downhill at the end) from Kohler to Sheboygan. My final time was 25:28, and that was after a nice easy 1 mile warmup. My miles were:1 6:132 6:303 ?4 My last mile I really picked it up, and I'm guessing it was around 6:00.So that was good. I got in my tempo run that so miserably failed me on Thursday. There is hope!

8/5 Well, I was on a mountain top yesterday, and today I guess I didn't want to come down yet. It's muggy to the point of constanty misting here, with the humidity in the mid to high 90's and the temp a manageable 72. I took off on a 20 miler and had a great run. I finished in 2:47, for an 8:03 pace, and felt great after. It actually ended up being a 20.71 mile run, and I ran all the way in to my house. I weighed myself going out (158.5), drank 24 oz of gatorade and 24 oz of water during the run, and weighed 154.5 upon return. That's a loss of 5.5 lbs if you take in to account the fluids I took in on the run. (I believe 32 oz of fluid = 1 lb of weight.) I really did feel good throughout. On to next week.

8/8 Tuesday I worked in my weekly track session, again in the middle of the day to take advantage of the heat. I did 6 1200's with a goal time of 4:39 for each. 1 4:452 4:393 4:414 4:375 4:396 4:39Not bad for consistency! "Today I ran a nice easy 5 miler, without even knowing what time I ran. Ellie (my wife) was running behind me with headphones on and got FREAKED by a dog. We were on a country road, obviously running at the shoulder of the oncoming traffic lane. She suddenly felt something on her right hand, and it was a very large dog, which had crossed the highway and was barking at her. It was actually so loud that I heard it about 200 yards ahead of her, stopped, looked back, and saw it barking. I really really don't like strange dogs in the country, to the point that I avoid new roads or carry mace on roads with dogs. It scared the crap out of me to see Ellie get that afraid. I mean, ok, if you've got a dog and you live in the country, that's fine if it's loose in your yard. But when it leaves the yard, crosses a highway, and then chases a passer-by, that's where I cross the line. I was pretty pissed and felt bad. Ellie told me she yelled to the owner to get her dog on a leash if it's not going to stay in the yard. I have to agree.Tomorrow I'm running 10 miles at my PMP (Planned Marathon Pace, of 7:05). This is a big one for me. This will be the first time I stretch out my speed work that far. I'll let you know how it goes! I've been visualizing this run as the part in Chicago where you head West for miles 13-20. That's a tough part for me, where I"ve seen my pace fall apart a bit. Send the vibes my way!By the way, be sure to check out the new chicagomarathon.com page. As of recently it's pretty new and cool!

8/9 I ran 10.2 miles this morning in a time of 1:11:47. That's a 7:02 pace! I'm thrilled, but the realist in me says that to do it for another 16 miles seems pretty tough. But hey, I'll take it. The only hiccup was the minor inconvenience of having to stop and relieve myself. If I count those precious minutes, I'm up to 1:13:47, but that's still under 7:15 a mile, so I'm still happy.Today is my wife and my 4th anniversary, so I made a big breakfast today, with eggs, rice, and bacon. This was the first time in a WHILE that I had many of those foods, being on the cleanse and all (still...), and it came back to haunt me. But boy oh boy did it taste good this morning!

8/13 Well, my 15 miler on Saturday was a good run, with some heat training included, and I loved it. The elevation change was 200 feet of ascent, and the map I used to plan my trip was...WRONG. What was supposed to be a through road ended up being a dead end. I didnt know this until I had already run about 3 miles on it. From the dead end, I decided to take the "road less traveled" back to the highway. I came out looking pretty beat up. Once back on the highway, a State Patrol officer actually stopped and asked if I was ok. I told him I took a wrong turn, but that I was fine. I finished up 15.2 miles in 2:12. A little slower than I was aiming for, but I'll take it. It's another long and fast run on Thursday, with some speed work in between.

8/15 Tuesday Night's Track workout turned into Wednesday Morning's Track workout, but it was still a good one. After a mile warmup, I ran :1K in 3:512K in 7:401K in 3:471K in 3:45I then cooled off. The legs felt good, the pace (based on a 6 minute mile) felt good too. I think I might put in a couple miles tonight also, just to move the legs around, and then its another early wake up tomorrow, as I'm running 22 miles...and hoping to be home by 7:45! Wish me Luck!

8/16 I ran pretty early this morning (out the door at 5:05) and headed out for a 22 miler. Early on I could tell I didn't have an extra "hop" in my step. I'm not sure if it was the time of day, the fact I did a track workout yesterday, or what, but I was feeling tired despite a low heart rate.I guess sometimes that happens. It ended up being 21 miles, in 2:47. That's the fastest I've ever run that distance, which is nice, and my avg HR was still only 146. I had a max HR of 178 (no idea when that was), but was consistently in the 140-150 range. I guess overall it was a good run, but it just felt sluggish. I'll take it though.

8/19 Yesterday I ran in and worked at the Lake Street Run in Elkhart Lake. It was a fun event, with 2 mile and 5 mile races. I ran the 2 miler so that I could be back at the finish line to do some marketing work. I took 3rd overall, with a time of 11:11, so I'm happy with that! Ellie won her age group also, running the 5 miles in 39 minutes and change. It was a great day for both of us, as we brought home some pretty hefty hardware for age group wins. Ok, they weren't pretty, and they weren't hefty.We then drove up to see our good friend Brock Hansen, who is my running inspiration. We have had a blast. I'm hoping to make it back at a reasonable hour and get in a 7 mile tempo run. Take care all!

8/19 Today was wonderful! I intended on running 7 miles, with the middle 5 at a sub 7:00 pace, if possible. After a slow warmup mile, I was off. The run felt great! So great, in face, that I didn't stop at 5 (which was run in 32 minutes) and ended up running 13.3 miles in 1 hour and 34 minutes. That resulted in a pace of right around 7:08 per mile. It really did feel good, and my avg HR throughout was 157, which is right where I'd like it to be. The max HR was 170. It felt good going up hills, and the only discomfort came on pretty strong in my right heel, right where the plantar fascia inserts into the heel bone. Normally my left foot is the "problem" foot, so I'll get on this pretty quickly and get it doing better. In the last 1/2 mile I was avoiding heel striking all together. Probably not a good thing...

8/22 After my big (and prettty successful) run on Sunday, my legs--especially calves--are still feeling it, so yesterday I didn't do my scheduled track workout. I was supposed to do 3--1 mile repeats but instead I ran a relatively easy 3 miles. I think it was the right decision. I thought about getting the track workout in today, but I'm not sure. It's still kinda tight down there. I read something the other day: "Better to be 100 miles undertrained than 1 mile overtrained."Tomorrow is a 10 miler, or 15 miler, at my planned marathon pace.

8/23 My scheduled workout for today was a 10 miler at marathon pace. I got through the first 5 mile loop in sub 7:00 pace, but my right heel was really acting up again. I (wisely) called it quits at that point. I'm seeing a reflexologist that specializes in hands and feet this morning. I'll let you know how that goes!

I was tired of post-it notes...

and other poorly contrived ideas for keeping track of my training and other trips, so here I am...with a blog. Truthfully, I'm not really a big fan of the word "blog." Hence, in my subtitle, I refer to this website as a journal. I am hoping to not use the word "blog" again. It just sounds dumb, in my opinion. Anyway...
I'm a chiropractor in Plymouth, WI, and I've been active my whole life. I started running marathons about 4 years ago when my older sister decided we should run one together. So we signed up for Chicago in 2004 and finished in about 5:15. Upon finishing, I knew two things. 1: I was doing this again. 2: I wanted to do it a lot faster.
I am now training for my 8th and 9th marathons this fall. In exactly one month (September 23, 2007), I'm going to take part in the Quad Cities Marathon, and then on October 7th I will be running the Chicago Marathon for the 4th straight year. This year is different, though. All summer I have followed a pretty strict running schedule, have tried to eat better (read: less beer), and have seen some amazing improvements in my speed.
I run in honor of a good friend of mine, Brock Hansen, who has a genetic disorder known as Neurofibromatosis Type 2. You can just call it NF2. I am trying to raise money for the Children's Tumor Foundation, which researches a cure for NF2. I'm sure there will be more on that later. As for now, I think this will suffice for my first entry into my new...journal.
See, you probably were expecting me to use that word that we shall not speak of... :)