Run Buffs Run!

Only ran six miles today after my long day tommorrow. I am feeling good (a little sore/tired today), but prepared to talk to the CU coaches tommorrow. I feel confident that if I get a chance to train with the team, then I can definitely make it on. I guess I will just see what happens.

Ran 8.5 miles total today consisting of 2X3 mile tempo runs and 3 easy miles. For the first three mile tempo I got 16:15 (slightly uphill) and then ran 2 easy miles. On the way coming back I saw the CU team. I would have turned around to run with them, but I needed to complete my tempo workout. Feeling dissapointed with my 8k time, and that the CU coach didn't give me much of a chance to prove myself, I decided to really go at the second tempo run. I hit 2.75 miles in 14:14, which averages out to a 5:10 mile pace. I don't know what got over me, but I needed to release some anxiety. It hurt, but not as bad as I would have expected. Too bad I was not in an official 5k when I ran this. I may have set a new PR without even attempting to.

Rna 12 easy miles today. I am feeling a bit sick, so I ran fairly slow and relaxed. I felt ok, but a bit tired at the end. In all, though, a decent run.

Ran 8.5 miles total today, with a 4.5 mile tempo run. It was an interesting experience because I met a marathoner from South Africa that just moved to Boulder yesterday. His PR for the marathon was 2:13, which is absolute madness. He ran my tempo run with me for 25 minutes, and seemed to be just "flying" along while I was expending energy with every step I took (mind you we were running sub 5:25 pace). I managed to keep up with him the whole tempo run, though, which made me feel good. I have a small shin splint, so I backed off the miles a bit today, and I am hoping that it will get better soon. In all, though, a very solid workout today.

Ran 10.5 miles today, but it might as well have been 13-14. I decided to run on some trails today to allow my shin splint to heal. The problem was, however, that I ended up running a hill that kept between 7% and 9% incline (reaching as high as 11% in some areas) for just over 45 minutes. This was a huge quadburner, making me work for every step that I took. I felt very good today though, so I was able to really push hard and keep on moving at a steady rate. When I reached level ground again, I felt my body "take off" and really plow down a couple of miles. In all, I felt very good today.

Good luck to everyone who is running SG tommorrow!!!

Ran a four mile tempo run today. It felt very forced and difficult for some weird reason (I don't quite know why), and I hurt the whole time. Luckily, I managed to maintain a 5:30 mile clip even when I felt bad. I also ran 4.5 easy miles, totaling 8.5 miles for the day.

Today was an easy day for me. I only ran 8.5 miles at easy pace and really tried to relax. I feel a bit tired and sore, but in all, ok. I might take another easy day tommorrow to fully recoup before I hit the grindstone again.

Only ran approximately 8 miles today due to terrible weather. It rained drops the size of golf balls all day. I guess this would not be so bad if it was warm, but I was unlucky in this department too. It was just under 40 degrees (F) when I left to go, which might not seem cold, but when you are drenched and wearing those mini running shorts that provide no sort of insulation, it is frigid. Knowing that I would not be able to go too far or too long, I decided to make my time count. I ran with some good pace (6:10 min mile for 5 miles, ran a very steady but long uphill (one mile) at 7:00 min pace and then cranked through a downhill at 5:30 pace for just over two miles). In all, a bit dissapointed that I didn't have the ability to go for something a bit longer, but sometimes you do what you got to do.

Ran 12 easy miles today at about 6:40 pace. I felt very sluggish and never got into any real rythmn, which seemed to prolong the pain. In all, though, I am glad to have gotten a decent amount of miles in.

Ran two tempo runs today, one for 2.75 miles and one for 3.5 miles. I ran the first tempo run (2.75 miles) in 15:19 (the slightly uphill direction), which is a new record for me for that uphill route by nearly 40 seconds. I then ran 2.25 miles at easy pace, mentally preparing for the pain of the next tempo run to come. I ran the 3.5 tempo miles in 18:43, which averages to a 5:20 mile. I felt decent considering the pace I was averaging, but towards the end, I really had to pull from deep inside of me to keep on moving. This workout really hit my trouble area, fast tempo for a sustained amount of time. More of this and I think I will be able to fly through the 10k. In all, I feel very good about this workout.

Ran 10.5 miles today at easy pace. I felt comfortable at about 7:00 min/mile pace, so I knew that if I went any faster or slower, than I would break the "comfort barrier". In all, however, a decent run.

Ran 6.25 threshold miles again today (the same workout as on Thursday). My times for both the 2.75 mile and 3.5 mile were ten seconds off of my previous pace. I think that this has to do with my recovery. I really went all out on Thursday, and I think my body still needed recovery time, so when I ran today I was fighting an uphill battle. This run hurt terribly. I don't know what it was, but man did I struggle. I think that runs such as this (really pushing it when my body tells me enough) will really help out my times.

Only nine miles total for today. I feel tired and my body feels a bit sluggish, but in general, I feel fine. I also played a soccer game after I ran, so I am definitely going to relax for the rest of the day.

Yes!!! I ran with the CU team today! I happened to run into them on my usual long run route, and joined their group. I introduced myself and the team captain said he recognized me from the time trial (In the leaders group before I konked out and slowed down). They all seemed really cool and invited me to run again with them on Thursday. This may just be the break I need to make it on the team. I think that once I train a bit with them, they will recognize my ability. Hopefully, this may be a back-door method of getting onto the team!

Ran 2.5 miles of speedwork today, but had to do so on an indoor track because of snow outside. Ran 10X400 meters. My slowest time was 70 seconds, my fastest was 64. The workout felt very hard, but I also had a hard week of running, so I figured that my times were ok for my present situation. I am going to take tommorrow off, and run with the CU team on Thursday.

Ran 11 miles today at easy pace. I took yesterday off, and tommorrow I am going to hit the grindstone again.

Ran 6.25 miles of tempo workouts today. One tempo for 2.75 miles, one for 3.5 miles. I was forced to take a bit longer path today due to muddy conditions, but surprisingly my times were very close to my records for the run. With this in mind, I think these may have been my best tempo runs yet. Right when I finished, I ran into the CU team and ran with a couple of their runners for a while. It is nice because they seem to recognize me now, and freely allow me to run along with them.

Ran 10 easy miles today. It snowed a bit last night, so I was forced to run on pathways and streets, not the usual trails I like to run on. Felt a bit tired (possibly from staying up unitl 3:30 am the night before), but such is the life in college.

Only 5.5 total miles today, two of which were hill running. I had very limited time today, so I decided to make the workout short and hard. I ran to the base of Chataqua park (a park near my dorm), and found a very good hill to do some hill repeats. The hill was approximately 300 meters long, and although I am not quite sure what the exact grade was, it was quite steep. I ran 10X300, pushing it as hard as I could. After five, I wanted to die. After ten, the pain was unbearable. My legs were "quivering" and I was in severe oxygen debt. In all, though, this workout seemed to be very efficient.

An easy 11 miles today at an average of 6:40 pace. I felt good (a bit sore from yesterday, but good in general) and managed to keep some decent pace going. I ran with a CU team member a bit of the time and talked about the team and school. In all, today was a good run.

Ran 11 easy miles again today at decently easy pace (about 6:40). I am still sore from Saturdays workout, and did not feel much like any tempo running. I definitely feel drained, and am goiong to take a day of rest tommorrow to try and recoup. In all, though, today was a good run.

Ran two tempo runs today, each 2.8 miles long (I would have run a bit longer for them, but the snow from last night restricted me from doing so). I was also forced to run a bit further than the usual 2.75 mile tempo due to the mud on the usual dirt trail I run on. I ran the uphill section in 15:17, two seconds faster than my pr time when I was only running 2.75 miles, and I had to fight through slush leaving my shoes filled with water. It was like running with bricks on my feet. I ran a mile in between this run and the second tempo run, and did so in about 7:00. On the second tempo run, I decided to really crank down a good time and ran the 2.8 mile in 13:49, averaging out to a 4:56 mile pace. It was sort of funny because I really didn't care how wet or cold my legs got, so I ran straight through slush and snow with disregard. I think that these obstacles slowed my time down a bit, though. I am definitely pleased with the run, though. I really want to try running a 5k now, mainly because I am curious as to what time I could run it in. I think that around Thanksgiving time-frame I will enter a race and check out where I stand.

Me and a friend ran flagstaff mountain today. The mountain ascends nearly 2200 ft. in total, and you definitely feel every foot of that. When we ran back downhill, it was almost harder than running up, mainly because my legs were constantly pounding down on the cement (I am sure this is not good for your knees). In total though, a good run.

An easy eight miles today at relaxing pace. It felt good to really just relax on a run (something I typically don't do). In all, a good day.

Ran two more tempo runs today (the usual routes). I ran the first tempo (uphill portion) in a new best time of 14:59 for 2.75 miles, and ran the second tempo in 18:06 (for 3.5 miles). In both tempo runs I beat my previous best. I beat my time on the first run by 18 seconds, and beat my time on the second tempo run by 37 seconds. I really didn't feel like I ran any faster that the previous times, but somehow I managed to really turn down the throttle today. After seeing these types of improvements in my times, I know that my main problem with the 5k and 10k was my ability to hold a specific tempo for an extended period of time. Hopefully my consistent work to correct this will help out my times!

An easy 8 miles today at slow pace. I feel good and refreshed, though, so I think that tommorrow should be a good workout day. This felt like a good distance and pace to run between hard days, mainly because I get my legs moving but rest up at the same time. In all, a good run (cold though).