7/16/10 PM Easy Run, 7.1 Miles, 14.5 Miles for the Day

7.1 Miles
49:25
6:57 avg

Ran most of this run w/Geoff, as we met along Blossom and headed to and around the park. Felt pretty darn good for this run. No Achilles issues to be too concerned with today. Great stuff.

7/16/10 AM Easy Run, 7.35 Miles

7.35 Miles
53:28
7:16 avg

Just an easy loop from house to and around the park and back. This was a strange run...I didn't run on Thursday, as I should have done in the morning. Time just didn't work out for it, BUT I did make it to the store to get my new Pearl Izumi SyncroFuel trainers, so this morning was the maiden voyage. They performed well, and I feel good about the purchase.

The Achilles, however, did not respond well to 36 hours of no running, from Wednesday afternoon's 7 miles through this morning. They were both stiff when I got out of bed, all the way through getting out the door. That concerned me, and was rough for the run to the park. I was running pretty gingerly until I got about half a mile into the park. FINALLY, they both were loosening up and I was able to move a bit more fluid. I saw Coach Wade twice as I made my way along the path at Memorial. The final 2-miles were the easiest.

First 2 miles - 15:26 (7:43)
3 miles @ the park - 21:48 (7:16)
Final 2 miles - 14:03 (7:01)

7/14/10 PM Easy Run - 6 Miles

6 Miles out and back
43:19
21:43 out
21:35 back

The run went just about the way I wanted it to. After kinda pushing it earlier and in some pretty rough heat, I wasn't feeling really good about how well I'd rehydrated, although I wasn't feeling bad at all. So, I just took it out slowly. Chatted briefly with Sean as I hit the road at the start, and was on my way.

The Achilles got a little achy as I made my way back, but after about 3/4 mile of aggravation, the feeling actually subsided as I neared the end of the run. All in all, a good day, hitting 12 miles and not feeling all that much worse for the wear.

7/14/10 - Lunch Run - 6 Miles

6 Miles out and back
20:40 out
20:10 back

With no Garmin, I'm only estimating distances. Ran from home to the 3-mile mark just before getting to the tennis center. Ran 13:48 to the Crestwood water fountain (2-miles), then about 6:52-ish when I turned and headed back.

The run didn't happen on purpose, really. After a late night and not getting in till about midnight, I opted for sleep over running before work. As I headed home to eat for lunch, I had two discussions with folks about running, so when I got home I just headed upstairs and changed quickly and hit the road before I could think twice about it. I just felt the need to Run Like An Animal....yes I'm excited about my upcoming purchase, which should be tomorrow, of my new Pearl Izumi SyncroFuels. They sure felt great in the store and taking a few quick strides up the sidewalk. Guess we'll see how they feel.

Anyway, the run culminated without issue, and I felt pretty good for having run well in pretty rough heat. Great stuff.

7/13/10 - PM Easy, Quick Run - 3.5 Miles

Got out to the Cloverleaf for this one. It takes me about 2:30 of easy, easy jogging to get over from my place to the CL. When I get there, I will generally click the lap on my watch just as I go around one light pole and start my CL loops.

I had to be at my 2nd jay oh bee by 6:30, and with construction on Post Oak as I tried to get home, time got cut short. I sorta inadvertently ran a progressive short run here. The CL loop is not quite a mile, as generally I have to run about 10-15 seconds further for a full mile, but I didn't have exact measurements, so I only have my loop times. Completed them in 6:06, 5:46 and 5:24, then headed home. I was pretty wiped at the end of those...again lending to the knowledge that I'm not in great fitness shape, but it was fun to run that way.

7/12/10 PM Easy Run - approx 6.5 miles

6.5 Miles

Got out and went for a repeat of the morning's run. I've since deleted the info from the run, but essentially ran about 45-46 minutes for this run. Stopped when the Achilles pain came in. Starting to think there is a daily mileage threshold present. Hmmm....

Either way, I'm happy with the day's mileage, and looking forward to the remainder of the week.

7/12/10 AM Easy Run

7.35 Miles
53:03

This run felt great... no issues in the Achilles. I'll update some of the last week's stuff later. What I will say though is that Saturday's long run was a good one... stopped after an hour and 20 minutes, though. My fitness is GONE, it seems. But not issues on the Achilles. Good stuff.

I'll be back out on the roads this afternoon, working on getting mileage back up. Also, been working on getting my weight back to where it needs to be. Honestly, part of my problem with my Achilles' might have been tied to a little extra poundage that I was trying to carry all those miles. I definitely need to stay fueled, but I also need to shed a few "lb's" as I start upping the mileage again. The weeks are clicking away as Twin Cities gets closer, and I'm not changing the goal time right now. When it gets closer, if I'm just not at the fitness level I need to be, then I'll get with Coach Wade and re-evaluate.

7/6/10 PM Easy Run, 7.35 Miles, 12.6 Miles for the Day

7.35 Miles
49:35

A successful run of one of my usual routes from my place, to and around the park and back. Felt great. I was probably...no make that definitely...running faster than I should have for much of the run, but I just went with what I was feeling. Got to the park and just cruised around...felt great.

After 5 miles, my Achilles began to make its presence known, as I began to ease up on the pace. As I got further down Memorial towards my place, it became more prominent. After crossing Shepherd, I saw Jon Warren down there, as his group did their workout along the bayou. I stopped and chatted with him for about 3-4 minutes. When I got running again, for the final 3/4-mile to my place, the Achilles pain was pretty much gone, as I cruised on into my place. He did invite me to join them any Tuesday to do the workout. Looked like an awesome course they had set up as they ran along the bayou. I just may do that in a couple of weeks, as my leg gets stronger and more "reliable", so to speak.

Overall, great day of running. I won't jump to conclusions and say "I'm back." That's evident by the pain I felt that got up to probably a 7-8 on the pain meter for about a mile and a half. But I'm encouraged by the way it subsided after a brief break. I liked that a lot. Both the left and right got a dose of ice as I watched some TV and ate my dinner. Going to get after it again in the morning and afternoon tomorrow.

7/6/10 - AM Easy Run, 5.25 Miles

5.25 Miles
36:55

Not much to say except... pain free. Loved it. Let's see what happens in the PM.

7/5/10 - 6.2 Mile Easy Run

6.2 Miles
45:30

Easy run... legs didn't feel too bad, but there just felt like there was no push off, no "explosion" in my steps during the 2nd half of the run. Felt like if I was in a race, it would have taken forever to pickup the pace. If I had to stop for a car or something, I couldn't just get back on pace right away...had to slowly pick it up.

Overall, however, happy with the run that I was able to get in 6 miles with "minimal" discomfort.

7/4/10 - Easy Run, Approx 5.5 miles

5.5 Miles
39:00

I had to pull up about a mile short of the desired run distance here, but for 90% of the run, felt really good. As soon as the Achilles pain became too much, I stopped. The battle is not yet to be fought. Right now, it's taking care of the injury and working on fitness.

7/3/10 Kenyan Way "Long" Run, Approx 9 Miles

1-hour run

Did a portion of the route with the Kenyan Way, in to downtown, around Minute Maid Park and back to base. Added 1-mile loop and called it a day. Might have been the best thing, as the Achilles is still not 100%. I had planned on 14-miles, but opted to cut it short while it was feeling good still.

The strange part was that during the first couple of miles, it was aching the whole time until we got to the first water stop, about 2-3 miles in. After that, ran a much faster pace that felt good on the legs, but took its toll on me, fitness-wise. I'm not quite in shape to have run the way I did for a long run, but it was promising as far as my injury goes.

7/2/10 - 4 Miles Easy on Treadmill

30 minutes on the treadmill, during the torrential downpour.

7/1/10 - No Run