The MS Runner

Running While Battling Foot Blisters, Leg Cramps, Black Toe Nails - and MS

Archive for the ‘training’

← Previous Entries

I eat, therefore I am

Published September 19th, 2009 in knee, wedding, training, marathon, Jason, beer, North Carolina | 1 Comment »

Wow.  It’s amazing to me that when I’m not running, I eat like a pig.  This past week was a “no running zone” week.  I decided not to run and see if my knee would heal up.  I finally headed out today, one week after my last run, and ran 14 miles.  So far so good.  The proof in the pudding will be tomorrow.  If my knee is going to explode again, it will happen tomorrow.  Right now it feels fine.  So I didn’t run all week, and I was starving.  I would eat breakfast and be hungry an hour later.  I would eat lunch and look around to see what else I could stuff in my face.  Luckily at dinner, I would eat and then drink 6 beers and not really be all that hungry.  Maybe I should be drinking beer all day?  I’m hoping my knee is going to be okay because I’m almost at the peak of my training.  Next Saturday I do 22 miles, and then 2 weeks after that, I do 24.  Eight weeks from now is the marathon and if I lose any more days because of my knee, it’s going to really set me back.  Blah, blah, blah.  Woe is me.

On a lighter note, my son Jason got engaged this weekend and it looks like the wedding will be next summer.  Mmmm….maybe I could work that around some marathon in North Carolina?

The predonderance of pondering

Published June 7th, 2009 in Miles, Rocky Mountain Half Marathon, Undy 5000, Red Wings, Tigers, beer, training, Running | 2 Comments »

Next week is the Rocky Mountain 1/2 Marathon in Denver, and my goal for this one is to just break 2 hours.  I haven’t been running a whole lot since my last 1/2 marathon, which was only 3 weeks ago, and I can sure tell.   But that’s okay.  This was never a target run or anything like that, just something to keep the adrenaline going.

The Detroit Red Wings are playing well at home, and lousy on the road.  They are up 3 games to 2, and game six is in Pittsburgh.  As much as I would like to see them win at home, they need to get it over with now.

We finally got cable the other day.  Now my question is, “do I now have DVR, and can I get rid of my VCR”?  My dog Miles chewed the cord on my VCR anyway, so it’s not like I’ll miss it.

How do so many people think that what President Obama is doing is so great?  His massive, massive spending is going to ruin this county.  Soon we will all have to send the government over half of our paycheck.  Shit, I already send my ex-wife almost half my paycheck.  He wants government run health care?  The government can’t even run the post office or Amtrack effectively.

Not to be outdone, but the Detroit Tigers are in first place.  I haven’t been following them yet (it is still hockey season), so I don’t know if they are a good team, or just that there are so many bad teams.

Why is it that I cringe at the beer store when my favorite beer is about $8.00 for a six pack, but when I go out to the bar, I’ll not even think about paying $4.50 for one pint?

Did I ever mention that Tom Brady of The New England Patriots is great?  I think that if I were gay, he’d be the one.

There is a 5K that I’m going to sign up for and it’s coming up soon.  It’s called the Undy 5000, and instead of  getting tee shirts, you get boxer shorts.  This run is really going to be “brief”.

2 steps forward, 1 step back

Published April 28th, 2009 in knee, training, Colfax Marathon | No Comments »

I think I should just get a knew knee (yes, I purposely spelled it that way).  I’m back doing some more shots because it was hurting again, and I was sick for a few days, so I lost about 2 weeks of training.  I very rarely get sick, so that was a new experience, but the whole knee thing just caps it off.  Get it, cap, like knee cap?  Tonight was my speed workout and I was supposed to do 2 miles at a 7:08 pace, do another mile at a 8:30 pace, 2 more miles at the 7:08 pace, and then another mile at the 8:30 pace.  But that didn’t happen.  I did do a mile at at 7:30 pace, a recovery mile, and another mile at the 7:30 pace, a recovery mile, and then one more mile at about a 7:45 pace.  I really struggled with the whole thing, and it’s affecting my mental state of mind.  Well not really because my mind isn’t even in this state.  I can’t remember where I left it.  So anyway, the Colfax Marathon is less than 3 weeks away, and I hope to be able to get back somewhat to where I should be.  We’ll see what happens, and if it seems like I’m still struggling, then that’s okay.  I really like my training and the fact that I targeted a half marathon instead of a full.  I would be upset if I was training for a full, and this all happened, but the fact that it happened during my training for the half, it just doesn’t seem as bad.

Runnin’ of The Green

Published March 23rd, 2009 in Runnin' of the Green, training, Denver | No Comments »

The first big race in Denver every year is The Runnin’ of The Green in downtown.  It is a 7K and they tout it as being the largest 7K in the country.  It might be the only one for all I know.  The biggest problem with this race is that it’s on Sunday, which is the day after almost everyone parties for St. Patrick’s Day.  So for me anyways, I wasn’t expecting a great time or anything, just a chance to run a race and see where I stand with my training.  There were over 4,000 people in this race, and I think all the slow ones were ahead of me at the start line.  I hate that.  There were even walkers ahead of me.  I think next year I’m going to put on my singlet, strut to the front, and pretend I’m an elite runner.  By the way, why is it that no matter what the weather, the elite runners wear a singlet (tank top)?  There were also strollers and a few dogs.  This is way too big of a race I think to have strollers and dogs.  It’s bad enough that I’m trying to run around the slow pokes, but I have to be careful that I don’t run into little Dakota in her stroller wearing stupid green St Paddy’s Day sunglasses, and a tee shirt that says, Burp Me, I’m Irish.

Otherwise, the race went well, and I did about what I thought I would.  I ran it in 33:47, which is a 7:47 pace.  Out of 4,266 total runners, I came in 557th.  Not too bad.  At least by the time I finished, there weren’t too many people yet in the beer line.

This time of year sucks

Published February 14th, 2009 in training, brewery, football, beer, Diane, Running | 1 Comment »

You know that time where it’s after football season, and before summer.  The dreary days of February are the worst.  It’s still cold, which makes it harder to run outside, and there’s no football to watch!  There are very few races to run, and if you belong to a fitness center, it’s packed.  The only thing that I have going is drinking beer.  But I’m afraid for some of these micro brewers around here.  With the economic conditions being what they are, I hope they all survive.  I know Diane and I are doing our part in supporting the micro brews.  You should see our recycle trash can.  It’s full of empty beer bottles.  I usually try and support the local (meaning Colorado) breweries, and right now I’m drinking a Red Truck IPA from Palisade Brewery in Palisade, Colorado.  Mmmm……tasty.  Diane is drinking a Single Track which is from the Boulder Brewing Co in Boulder, Colorado.

I did run 10 miles this morning, and I feel great.  I took it easy and my goal was to be around a 9:00 minute pace.  I ended at a 9:03 pace.  Is that cool or what?  I ran the first 5 miles with a guy I know, Ted, and he pooped out so I had to run the last 5 by myself.  But it felt good and my knee feels fine.  I’m trying to stick to the plan that’s outlined in the book, Run Less, Run Faster, and for the most part, I’ve been able to.  One thing that they stress in the book is cross training, and I really haven’t done any of that yet.  But Diane and I joined this fitness center near here so I’m going to go and use the stationary bike as my exercise for cross training.   I am digging the run less part :).  As it is, I only run 3 days a week.  It’s 13 weeks to go until my half marathon, and I believe that training this way will help prevent any more knee issues, and, I hope, will keep me fresher.  Actually taking a shower will keep me fresher.

One week to go

Published January 11th, 2009 in Tom Brady, Rock and Roll Marathon Arizona, training, football, treadmills | No Comments »

The Rock and Roll Phoenix Marathon is almost here and in a way I’m looking forward to it, but I’m also not looking forward to it.  My training hasn’t gone on all that well because of my knee and I really don’t want to go out and do this half ass.  But then again, I have no real expectations and I can just relax and enjoy it.  Umm, how can anybody enjoy running 26 miles?  It’s also tough to train for a marathon early in the year when you live in a cold weather state.  I hate getting up at 5:00, going out in the darkness, when it’s 20 degrees out there.  I tried out the local fitness center, and even with 20 treadmills, it’s hard to get one.  It seems like everybody is there.  And if you think about it, I’m training in the freezing cold for a marathon that is is Arizona, and it will be 70 degrees.  That just doesn’t seem right.  But then I look back at my previous training for marathons, and it’s the same way.  Last year I trained mostly in the cold (Jan - April) for a marathon that when I ran it, it was 80 degrees.  Another one was when I trained all summer for a marathon in the fall, and it was 34 degrees and freezing rain at that one.  So when you think about it, you’re not really training in the right type of weather.  It’s always something.

I’ve refrained from talking football for awhile mostly because my team went 0-16 and my fantasy teams sucked.  I can’t seem to enjoy it as much this year.   I think it all started in week one when my best friend, Tom Brady of the New England Patriots, went down for the year with a knee injury.  It hasn’t been the same with out him.  Okay, he’s not really my best friend, but I’m sure he would like me if he got to know me.  Hurry back Tom.  Football (and me) need you.

My lame excuses

Published December 14th, 2008 in Rock and Roll Marathon Arizona, Miles, blak lab, knee, Kari, Michael, Diane, training, Jason | 1 Comment »

Wow.  I can’t believe how long it’s been since I’ve written anything.  No real excuses, but I do have some that I will share with you.

After the half marathon I ran, my daughter Kari got married 2 weeks later.  The ceremony was in Florida on Sanibel Island and it turned out great.  There were just a handful of people that came to it since most friends and family are from Michigan.  The ceremony was on the beach right at sunset, and the weather that day turned out perfect.  I was there for 4 days and most of the time I hung out at the beach with my boys Jason and Michael.  Of course we all ate and drank too much and I only got one run in.  I needed to go 18 - 20 miles, but all I could do was 14.  Possibly too much drinking the night before.

We now have a new addition to the family.  His name is Miles and he is a Black Labrador.  Diane and I got him when he was 6 weeks old, so he is for sure a handful.  He eats like he’s never eaten before, and chews up everything.  He’s 10 weeks old now and almost potty trained.  I guess that’s not too bad when you consider it takes 2 years to potty train a baby.  I’m looking forward to the days that we can go running together (hence the name Miles), but for now he sniffs and eats everything along the way when we go for a walk.

My training for my next marathon, the Rock and Roll Phoenix Marathon, is not going well.  I re injured my knee on a run 2 weeks ago, so I had to miss almost 2 weeks of my training.  I was scheduled to do 22 miles last weekend, but I ended up just working out on the elliptical machine at the gym.  I ran 14 miles yesterday, and although my knee is sore, it feels okay.  I will attempt 20 miles next weekend and see how everything feels.    It’s 5 weeks until the marathon, and I have some ground to make up, but I can’t be too aggressive in my training for fear that I hurt my knee again.

Well that’s my story,and I’m sticking to it.  I will try and be more diligent in my writings, and actually try and make it worthwhile reading.

Now you’ve gone and done it

Published April 20th, 2008 in quad, Greenland Trail, training, Colfax Marathon | 2 Comments »

I had a feeling this might happen.  I woke up Saturday and drove to the Greenland Trail race that I was going to be doing, and my leg felt pretty good.  There was still some soreness, but not too bad.  Before the run, I was able to do some easy quad stretches, and I didn’t feel any pain at all.  As I stated in earlier post, I have been having a sore quad muscle.  Anyways, I started out running slow, mainly because of the trail conditions, and the number of slow runners in front of me.  After mile 1, the elevation started going up and within a span of 4 miles, went from an elevation of 6,875 to 7,425.  I believe that was my downfall.  I still ran (of course.  I am a male!) and once I started going back downhill, I thought I’d be fine.  The course is 8 miles, and I was going to do 16, which meant doing 2 loops.  I hope I didn’t lose anybody there with my overly educated math skills.  I finished the first loop and started back on the 2nd 8 miles.  Well after a little bit of elevation gain again, I was toast.  My leg really started hurting, and I tried to over compensate for it and ended up starting to put a strain on my knee.  At this point I stopped, put my tail between my legs, and turned around.  I was officially a DNF (did not finish).

It’s not so much that I didn’t finish, it’s that I think that I really did some damage to my leg.  Today it hurts like hell and I had a hard time going up and down stairs.  I’m really worried that this is going to set me back on my training and maybe even make me postpone doing The Colfax this year.  That would really suck.

18 Miles? Bring it on!

Published February 17th, 2008 in pikes peak, training, Running | 1 Comment »

This past Saturday I ran 18 miles on a somewhat of a hilly route, and I feel great! I thought for sure that I would be moaning and groaning the rest of the day Saturday, and into Sunday. The weather was a tad chilly to begin with. Only 28 degrees and windy. Of course I took it easy though and my pace overall was 9:15. I started out real easy and for the first few miles, I was at a 9:45 pace. After 6 miles, I picked it up a bit and I was doing about an 8:30 pace. It felt real smooth and I probably could have done a bit faster, but I didn’t want to push myself . The last couple of miles were slow and by that time, the sun was really shining, and as I started to come down this hill, off to the horizon I could see Pikes Peak clear as day. It looked magnificent and I almost didn’t want my run to end.

pikes peak

Seeing that made me forget about how my legs ached going up that last hill. It made me forget about how cold it was when I first started out. It made me forget about how I forgot to start my Garmin when I started running. Was this mile 17 or 16? It just didn’t matter anymore.

Another Week Bites The Dust

Published February 11th, 2008 in training, beer, Running | 4 Comments »

I enjoy reading some of the other running blogs that I come across because they sometimes have good information, or some type of training tip that is useful.  It is a struggle sometimes to come up with something on my end that is useful, and maybe just slightly entertaining.  If this was just a journal that I listed how many miles I ran today, what type of terrain, and what the weather was like, I wouldn’t want to share that because for the most part, I don’t think anyone really cares.  “OMG, Dave ran 10 miles today and it was only 20 degrees!  I hope he’s okay!”  That being said, I ran 10 miles on Saturday and it was 35 degrees!  And I’m okay.  This was a recovery week and even though I only ran 10 miles, I did 4 miles of it at a 7:45 pace which for me is great.  Along the way, I spotted a bald eagle in a tree and it was totally awesome.  That thing was huge!  One bonus lately is it is staying lighter out later now, so at least when I get home from work and go running, there still is some daylight.  (Who cares Dave?  We can see that it’s staying lighter out.  We are not blind.)  Um, well I did stick to my guns about drinking only light beer despite my son Jason giving me shit about it.  He is somewhat confused in that he thinks that I’m either 260 pounds or 150 pounds.  I did decide though that Amstel Light is the way to go.  It is the best tasting light beer on the market in my opinion.

This week the new gym I joined opens up and I am going to try and work out in the mornings now, and go running after work.  I will see how that goes.  It may be that the gym will be packed because it’s brand new, and I won’t enjoy it if I have to fight over the equipment.  Stay tuned for more breath taking details on this, and many other earth shattering events to come.

« Previous Entries