LONG RUNS!

Saturday is becoming long run day and will be until we reach the marathon with the exception of weeks where there is an event we are doing on a Sunday like the Lacamas Lake Half Marathon on July 26.

Denise ran 11 miles this morning for her longest run ever. She did it 3 seconds per mile faster than her target pace and felt very strong afterwards. I ran 15 (my longest run since the Portland Marathon in 2002) at 7 seconds per mile faster than my target pace. All in all two very good runs.

We have both settled on a marathon training schedule and both are produced by the Furman Institute of Running and Scientific Training (FIRST) located at Furman University in SC. You can find out more about their training methods at http://www.furman.edu/first/. The key premise is that you run harder but less frequently - three days a week plus two cross training days. This will take some getting used to since I normally run 6-7 days per week but really like the look of the program.

In addition to todays runs, I did 4.25 miles yesterday, 5.5 at the track on Thursday evening plus 9.5 miles on the bike trails around the lake that morning, and on Wednesday I did 4.25 miles on the Heritage Trail.

Denise's mother is in town so we also went out on the lake in our boat for a few hours this afternoon and now everyone is having a little quiet time. Tomorrow I will update the list of names added to the training shirt.

Cross Training

This is not something I am very good at doing - Denise does a much better job. Cross training is some other form of exercise than running, but for me it is often a different kind of run i.e. track, hills, slow jog, etc. Cross training is important to give your running muscles a break as well as to strengthen other muscles. Swimming and bike riding are the two most common forms of cross training.

Today I rode my cross bike along Lacamas Lake, Round Lake, the upper and lower falls on Lacamas Creek and through several great wooded trails. It was a ten mile ride early this morning. Denise has found what looks to be a great training schedule for the Marathon thanks to Paul Bate from FIRST (Furman Institute of Running and Scientific Training). This week is the official start to the training programs - - previous training was to establish a solid base of running and fitness.

My friend Shannon's father underwent cancer surgery today and in her words it was "very successful". His name is David Wear and he is being added to my training shirt today. Please let me know who else's name should be added to the shirt.

PR

Runners are always trying for a new "PR". This stands for personal record. It doesn't matter if it is just the fastest quarter mile interval, or a complete marathon - runners celebrate their PRs.

Today Denise ran 10 miles in a new PR time. During the run she also broke her 5-mile and 9-mile PRs as well. Way to go!!

I also had a good run today going 14 miles. I set PRs for 11, 12, 13 and 14 miles and what would have been a PR at the 1/2 marathon distance of 13.1 miles but since it wasn't an official course will leave that one for another day.

Denise didn't have any blisters, knee or back problems on the run today and felt the best she has in a long time. I felt really strong the entire run with the last three miles being my fastest three of the run with an 8:05 on mile 14. 5 weeks to the Lacamas Lake 1/2 marathon - let us know if you would like to run it with us.

Speed Work

Tonight was our weekly track session. We are really having a lot of fun with this. The boys bring their bikes and scooters, my Mom comes out and walks and we do our intervals, Yassos and some warm up and cool down laps. Tonight was 2 miles of warm up/cool down with 5 X 800 and 2 X 400 in the middle. After we finish at the track we come back to the house for dinner and relaxing. Having three generations participating together in training and dinner if fantastic!

Since the last post on Sunday I ran 7.25 on Monday, 3.25 on Tuesday, 5 on Wednesday and the 5 mentioned previously today. Denise did 4 yesterday and 2.5 tonight with another 1 of walking with Mom. Our long runs are coming up on Saturday so tomorrow is a rest day. This doesn't necessarily mean no running, it just means that if we are running it is at a very slow jog to keep loose but not to the point of fatigue so the long run is meaningful.

One of our clients passed away last week. Charlotte Martin bravely battled cancer and we will miss her. She is being added to the shirt this week.

Sunday Morning

Just finished a 5 mile recovery run around Round Lake. The "recovery" is from the 10 mile run I did yesterday with Denise. Her cousin was down from Canada for the weekend so we were able to get out and run together while they watched the kids. It is always a special treat to train together rather than just doing our solo runs.

We simulated part of the 1/2 marathon coming up next month by running the hilly part of the course as well as parts of the Heritage Trail. Thursday night was our speedwork at the track and Friday was actually a rest day for both of us.

After our run in the morning Andrew and Zachary had their last t-ball game of the season and then we took a hike to the top of Multnomah Falls. It was the first time the boys had made it to the top. Last night was a special couples dessert for MarriageTeam and Jackie did a great job pulling everything and everyone together and we had a great time. This week I added Rhonda Pengra to my training shirt.

Mid week Post

This has been a good training week for me and it seems that Denise is starting to get comfortable again after dealing with blisters, knee pain and back discomfort. She put in a good four miles yesterday and will do four miles tonight with me at the track for our weekly intervals session.

Since Sunday's 7.5 mile race I have put in 5 on Monday around Round Lake and along the Heritage Trail at Lacamas Lake. This was a beautiful new run with some very challenging hills. Tuesday was my normal 4.25 miles to the west end of the Heritage trail and back and Wednesday was what we refer to as the Fillmore 5 named after the VW bus from the movie cars since there is one we pass on this route that my boys have named Fillmore and the street it is on they call Fillmore Lane. Fillmore Lane is one of the tougher hills to run in the area and comes at about the 3.3 mile mark on the 5 mile loop. Today was another 3.25 miles to the east end of the Heritage Trail and back with 4 miles planned for this evening for intervals.

There are no races this weekend, but Denise and I are planning a long run on Saturday while her cousin is in town. Training milage is now up to 293 miles. I have added my friends Evie Parker (cancer survivor) and Don Roppel (currently going through therapies but with great reports) to my training shirt. Also added to the shirt are Bert Colpitts, Rhonda Buck and Terry Sutton who are family members of friends of mine. If there is someone else you would like me to add please let me know.

First Place!

This morning was the Vancouver Waterfront 12k race. I had been complaining all week about the tapering part of training with reduced milage and watching the carbs and proteins to get the right energy stores for the race. The field was small but the weather was great. I took off too fast with a 7:12 first mile and paid for it later on but built a fairly comfortable lead early and was able to hold on to finish first overall in the men's division and 2nd overall to a lady that really ran a great race.

Although it would have been nice to run in an event with a much larger field it was a good training experience to run at the head of the pack and to have to push myself hard to stay there. At the end I was also able to relax knowing that my time goal and finish goal were secure and I didn't have to push it extra hard risking injury or extra fatigue that I would pay for later on in my training. I cannot remember the last time I finished first in a race - it has been a very long time. The race also included my fastest times at 3 miles, 5 miles, 6 miles and 7 miles so I was able to be fairly consistent with speed. The 7.5 miles today added to previous training runs now brings me to 277 miles of marathon training so far.

Taper Week

I really enjoy my daily runs and Saturday long runs - they are not so much a part of training as they are now part of a lifestyle. That makes race weeks particularly frustrating. Races are necessary to gauge training, get experience running in packs, etc. However, the week before the race a runner should reduce milage while boosting carbs and maintaining weight. Not an easy combination.

This week I have only done 20 miles unlike the 40+ last week and a more normal 30 or so. My body and mind really want to get out and run and run quicker but a taper week is about discipline and preparation for the race. Tomorrow is the Vancouver Waterfront 12k and this will be my longest race since the Shamrock Run in mid-March. The only normal workout this week was speedwork on Wednesday where I increased my 1/2 mile intervals to 4 from 3 and reduced my 1/4 mile intervals to 4 from 6. This is part of the Yasso 800 program.

Denise and the boys were at the coast all week and she got in two runs of 4 and 3 miles. The 4 mile run she set a personal best at that distance as well as running her fastest single mile of the year. She is still fighting through the blisters and also has some knee pain the last two days. This is part of run training that is least fun - dealing with the injuries.