Strawberry Fields Hills

Today: 10 miles

Week: 10 miles

Workout: 4.5 miles on bridle path, 2 sets of (6x400m) up Strawberry Fields Hill, 1:30 recover between each 400, and 2:30 recover between sets.

I ran the bridle path @8:00/mile. The first set of 400m repeats were done in 81 seconds, 81, 80, 78, 74, and 74, which comes out to an average of 78. The second set was done in 72, 71, 71, 71, 70, and 72, which works out to be an average of 71. I guess I was holding back a little on the first set.

The Best Part of my Run Today

I neglected to mention something about my run today. I knew David was going to be in the race. So I positioned myself around Mile 1 and waited. Sure enough, David came through looking relaxed. It was a 2-loop course, so I just waited there for everyone to come around again. But, while people were still going through their first loop ... I saw my WSY friends, Courtney and Meggie run by!!! I yelled, "Meggie" but neither one of them heard me. (They had caught me off guard, and I didn't yell until they were already passed me.)

On the second loop, I saw Courtney, and she saw me. Meggie wasn't with her. But when I saw Meggie approaching, I made sure she saw and heard me this time. And THAT was the best part of my day!

The Big 7-0

9 WEEKS UNTIL THE NYC MARATHON

Today: 8 miles

Week: 70 miles

Workout: Run from home to Van Cortlandt Park and back.

It was a beautiful day for a run even though my legs were still feeling tired from yesterday. I watched the Henry Isola 4-Mile cross country race going on at Van Cortlandt before heading back home.

I reached 70 miles in a week for the first time this year.

LONG RUN

Today: 21 miles

Week: 62 miles

Workout: 3 mile warm-up around the lower loop of Central Park, 20 minute break, 8 miles with the Nike Run Club from 65th St, up the west side of the park to Harlem Meer and back to 65th St, another long break of 30 minutes or so, then, 10 miles on my own - a full loop of Central Park plus an extra 4 miles.

I did the 8 miles with a small group @ approximately 8:30 to 9:00/mile. I did the additional 10 miles @ 7:30/mile. It was the longest training run I've done this year. I hope it doesn't take too long to recover from it. The total time of the run was 2 hours 50 minutes. I hope to do three more 20+ mile training runs before the marathon.

Inwood Hill Park

Today: 6 miles

Week: 41 miles

Workout: Run through Inwood Hill Park and Fort Tryon. Did a couple sets of pull-ups.

I was actually a little cold today as I began my run. The slight drizzle was nice. Cool weather for a change. I recently joined a couple of "challenges" on the Nikeplus website and find myself constantly checking to see where I stand on the "leaderboard".

I Can Feel Autumn Coming!

Another guilty pleasure!

Today: 7.5 miles

Week: 35 miles

Workout: West Side Y - Niketown - Full loop of Central Park

I was running late to my Niketown workout. So I sprinted to Niketown from the West Side Y, dodging walkers along the way. It served as a nice warm-up for the workout today. I ran a full loop of the park with four people. We kept up a nice pace of about 7:42/mile.

As for the Snyder's of Hanover, Hot Buffalo Wing Pretzel Pieces, they were recommended to me by my friends Erika and Denie, and let's just say that I've been able to put aside my cravings for the Spicy Sweet Chili Doritos for the time being. As you prepare to open a bag of the Hot Buffalo Wing Pretzel Pieces, make sure you have a napkin handy. You will probably find yourself drooling uncontrollably. Yes, they're THAT good!

While the Coaches are Away, the Runners will Play!

Typical breakfast this summer

Today: 10.5 miles

Week: 27.5 miles

Workout: Lower loop on my own. Then did the WSY workout, which was a warm-up around the lower loop to 72nd Street Transverse. From there we did the entire 6-mile loop of Central Park.

I ran a little extra by running back and meeting up with some other runners. Our two coaches were not here today. They're out running the Hood to Coast Relay in Oregon. So I took over the coaching duties for the day. And no one took advantage of the coaches' absence, unless you count walking back to the Y from the east side.

I walked over to Jamba Juice after the run and got a FREE drink by purchasing a $20 gift card! YES!!!

Strawberry Fields Hills

Today: 6.5 miles

Week: 17 miles

Workout: West Side Y - Niketown - 72nd Street Transverse - 6 loops of Strawberry Fields - 72nd Street Transverse - 65th Street.

Ran one loop of Strawberry Fields, 1 minute recovery. Ran 2 loops, 90 seconds recovery. Repeat. My times on the loops were 2:30, 5:02, 2:19, 5:04. Felt good, considering I did intervals yesterday too.

At the end of our workout, Rafael Nadal rode through on a bike with some other people. They came straight through our running group. I didn't even know it was him until other people mentioned it. If I would have recognized him, I would have said, "6-time Grand Slam champion, coming through!"

800 Meter Intervals

Today: 10.5 miles

Week: 10.5 miles

Workout: Central Park bridle path. Warm up to West Side Hwy bike path at 56th Street, run hard to Intrepid (approximately 800 meters), rest 1:30, run hard back to 56th Street. Do 6x800 meters.

I felt great on my bridle path run and thought I would be fine on the intervals. But I misjudged how short the recovery period would be and suffered through my last two 800s. My times on the 800s were: 2:57, 2:49, 2:48, 2:51, 3:00, 2:59.

Before the workout, there was some discussion about our facial hair contest. The contest began on August 1st, and was supposed to go until the end of this month, but some people needed to end earlier. There were quite a few unanswered questions.

Who was in the contest?

What criteria should be used in judging everyone's facial hair?

How will people vote?

I'm still not sure about the answers to these questions, but there are pictures of Denie, Bruno, and me on my Facebook page. I don't think the pictures came out all that great, so stay tuned for some better pictures in a couple of days.

Easy Day

10 WEEKS UNTIL THE NYC MARATHON

Today: 3.5 miles

Week: 62.5 miles

Workout: Through Fort Tryon Park ending at Dunkin Donuts :-)

I think this was my highest mileage week of marathon training this year. After my breakfast of coffee and a bagel, I had an afternoon snack of Doritos and Zingers. Did you know that Zingers have 16g of fat and 63g of sugar?! That was too much sugar, even for me!!!

On a totally unrelated note, will I be the only person who refuses to say "Chad Ochocinco" this football season?

LONG RUN

Today: 18 miles

Week: 59 miles

Workout: Niketown - Park Ave. - Across Brooklyn Bridge and back to Niketown. 1-mile on Park Ave to meet up with some freinds. 15 minute break. Then, Niketown - 65th St in Central Park - 5-mile loop - plus a little of the lower loop.

It was another uncomfortable day to be running. I was praying for rain that never came. By the time I got back to Niketown, I didn't want to run any further. However, quite a few people ran BEFORE the Run Club workout, and that inspired me to go out and do more miles. I'm glad I decided to do the extra miles. I don't think I would have been able to do a long run by myself tomorrow.

Inwood Hill Park

The calm before the storm

George Washington Bridge

A forest in Manhattan, Inwood Hill Park

Today: 5 miles

Week: 41 miles

Workout: Through Fort Tryon Park and Inwood Hill Park

I ran 8:00/mile. I meant to go out earlier. By the time I was out running at 11:30 a.m., it was already too hot.

Easy Day

Today: 7 miles

Week: 36 miles

Workout: West Side Y - Niketown - 65th St - 72nd - West Drive - around Harlem Hill - back to 65th St.

I took it nice and easy today, probably averaged 9:30/mile. I was impressed how many runners came out to Run Club tonight despite the heat and humidity. The people who take care of Central Park have done an amazing job clearing debris from the storm that passed through two nights ago.

86 Degrees and #%*! Humidity

West Drive in Central Park

West Drive in Central Park

Today: 14.5 miles

Week: 29 miles

Workout: 63rd Street - Central Park Bridle path with an extra loop - back to West Side Y. Then 5-mile loop.

Last night I got stuck in a diner while a severe thunderstorm was passing through. The windows of the diner were rattling. I didn't think much of it until I went out on my run today. There were downed trees in the 90s on both sides of Central Park all the way to the northern edge of the park. Some of the trees that had been uprooted were huge. It looked like a tornado had passed through Manhattan. It was clear that some of the trees had fallen across the bridle path but had already been cut up. One tree had fallen onto the 102nd Street Transverse. I hope no one was out running in the park last night.

I had intended on going at least 18 miles today, but I gave up that plan after the 2nd mile. Not only was the humidity stifling, I had only eaten a bagel, coffee, and GU all day. By the time I reached the 13th mile, I was so weak that I had to walk. Fortunately, I was at the top of Cat Hill and a food cart was there. I bought a strawberry fruit bar and it worked wonders. It gave me a jolt of energy, and I made it back to the Y without a problem. Of course, I was still the last one to finish the workout.

Still Feeling the Effects of the NYC Half

Today: 9.5 miles

Week: 14.5 miles

Workout: West Side Y - Bridle path - one loop of reservoir - East Drive - Niketown. 40 minute break. Then 65th Street - East Drive - 85th Street - bottom of reservoir - West Drive - 72nd Street Transverse - 65th Street.

I ran the first 6.5 miles today at 7:30/mile and did the rest of the run at different paces, anywhere from 8:00/mile to 10:00/mile. Once again, the humidity was bad.

Human Race Kickoff Event

11 WEEKS UNTIL THE NYC MARATHON

Today: 5 miles

Week: 5 miles

Workout: South Street Seaport - south to Staten Island Ferry - Whitehall - across Brooklyn Bridge and back to Seaport.

Over a hundred people gathered (including Alan Webb, American Mile Record Holder) at the South Street Seaport for either a 3-mile or 5-mile run. After the run, there was a party at Water Taxi Beach. It got a little crowded on the Brooklyn Bridge, but the view was great!

The Human Race in NYC will be on Saturday, October 24th in Prospect Park. Registration began today. You can register at the nike website.

NYC HALF MARATHON

NYC Half Marathon Finisher Medal

Farbod, Denie, and Megan after the race.

Today: 13 miles

Week: 61.5 miles

Workout: NYC Half Marathon - 1 full clockwise loop of Central Park beginning on East Drive around 85th Street - exit at 7th Avenue at the bottom of the park - run through Times Square - 42nd Street - West Side Hwy - Battery Park.

The race went very well. I woke up at 4 a.m., was out the door by 5:00 a.m., and arrived in Central Park at 5:50 a.m. Although it was already warm and humid (77 degrees and 74% humidity), it wasn't as humid as I thought it would be. I immediately went to my corral and was amazed at how HUGE it was. Then, I just sat down and waited for an hour.

When Farbod showed up, I stood up and began to stretch a bit. About 15 minutes before the start, Catherine Ndereba ("Catherine the Great"), a world class runner, walked right by us. She was obviously in the wrong corral and moved into the corral with the professional runners. When Paula Radcliffe, the women's marathon and half marathon world record holder, was announced, my corral let out a huge cheer. It's funny how professional long distance runners are only celebrities to other runners. If they were walking in the streets, no one would notice them.

Since I knew it was going to be hot today, I planned on making the race a training run. I simply wanted to run 1h 30m (6:52/mile). However, early in the race, Tiffany caught me and I decided to run with her. Tiffany had told me early in the week that she wanted to run 1h 23m. There was no way I wanted to try running that time. But when she caught me, it didn't seem like she running at that pace. I ended up pacing her all the way to the finish. We ran some very even splits.

Mile 1 6:25

Mile 2 13:00 (6:35)

Mile 3 19:51 (6:51)

Mile 4 26:31 (6:40)

Mile 5 33:15 (6:44)

Mile 6 40:01 (6:46)

Mile 7 46:37 (6:36)

Mile 8 53:17 (6:39)

Mile 9 no split

Mile 10 no split

Mile 11 1:13:17 (avg. 6:40/mile for Mile 9, 10, and 11)

Mile 12 1:19:57 (6:40)

Mile 13 1:26:35 (6:37)

Finish 1:27:13 (0:38)

Average for race: 6:40/mile

As if running through Times Square wasn't good enough, the song "YMCA" was blaring from the speakers. I had on my West Side YMCA singlet and pointed to it as I ran by people, eliciting cheers. After the race, volunteers were handing out ice cold, wet towels. They felt soooooo good!

There were plenty of people out on the course who cheered as I went by, Chris, Alanna, Josh, Bruno, Jeanne, Pamela, and people from Nike Run Club. I hope I'm not forgetting anyone. It felt great to have people out there cheering for me in the race. It gives me such an energy boost.

I had a great breakfast after the race, and now, I'm still trying to hydrate. 64 oz of Gatorade, and I'm still thirsty!

Summer Streets

Today: 4 miles

Week: 48.5 miles

Workout: Niketown - Park Ave. - Union Square and back.

Today was the second Saturday of Summer Streets, where the city closes Park Ave. from the Brooklyn Bridge to Central Park. We took advantage of it and ran down Park Ave. Some people ran across the Brooklyn Bridge and back to Niketown. I turned around at Union Square because I'm doing the NYC Half Marathon EARLY tomorrow morning.

Easy Day

Today: 4 miles

Week: 44.5 miles

Workout: West Side Y - lower loop of Central Park - Engineer's Gate - lower part of reservoir - West Drive - Y

I was going to do the 5-mile loop, but my legs were feeling tired from the past couple of days.

Marathon Pace Run

Today: 7.5 miles

Week: 40.5 miles

Workout: 65th Street - Engineer's Gate - extended bridle path - plus extra 1.5 miles on East Drive (out and back) @ sub 7:00/mile pace

It was a nice comfortable run with guys from Niketown Run Club. It was a little humid, but I'm anticipating worse weather for Sunday's NYC Half Marathon. I'm definitely leaning toward a slower pace for Sunday, something closer to 1:35.

Medium Run

Today: 11 miles

Week: 33 miles

Workout: 2 lower loops of Central Park, one 6-mile loop, and another lower loop.

I ran the first lower loop with Allyson and the second one by myself. Then I ran the full loop with Denie, Carl, Farbod, Rob, Stacy, and Greg. I decided to tack on one more lower loop with Farbod. The total time was 1h 28m, about 8:00/mile.

The run was supposed to be at conversational pace, and we definitely kept it at that pace because there was a LOT of conversation going on. Some of the topics: Carl's new job, our facial hair contest, the upcoming NYC Half Marathon, the Philadelphia Marathon, ...

Speaking of the NYC Half Marathon, I want to make it a training run. But I can't decide whether to run it at marathon pace 1:35, which assumes I'll do my NYC Marathon in 3:10 or if I should try for something faster, maybe a 1:30. I think that I could run a 1:26 if I ran hard, but I don't think I could run fast enough to run under 1:23, and keep pace with Farbod. I don't want to run so hard that I get sick and take days to recover.

Recovery Run

Today: 5 miles

Week: 22 miles

Workout: 65th Street - 5-mile loop of Central Park clockwise.

I wasn't sure I was even going to make it out for a run today. Yesterday's 17 miles took more of a toll than I expected. But once I started today's run, I felt better. I'm looking forward to a few easy runs this week, leading up to the NYC Half Marathon this Sunday.

Good Day to Stay Inside with the A/C

Today: 17 miles

Week: 17 miles

Workout: 10.5 miles in Central Park on the bridle path and various pedestrian paths, 6.5 miles w/WSY up West Drive to track, 6x400s with 300 recovery.

I did the 10.5 miles with Bruno and Farbod. We were running just under 7:30/mile. If it wasn't for the shade along the run and the breeze, I probably would have skipped the WSY workout. The weather today was extremely uncomfortable. My 400s averaged in the high 70 second range.

The best part of the workout? The Gatorade that Bruno had waiting for us at the end!

Sunday, August 9, 2009

12 WEEKS UNTIL THE NYC MARATHON

Today: 7.5 miles

Week: 43 miles

Workout: One loop of Central Park, plus one loop of the reservoir.

I thought about trying to run 10 to 12 miles, but my legs just weren't having it.

Team Championships

West Side YMCA Road Runners

Today: 7 miles

Week: 35.5 miles

Workout: 2 mile warm up from YMCA to 102nd Street Transverse, Team Championship 5-Mile Race.

Both the women and men of WSY really came through today. The women were 19th out of 30 teams, and the men were 20th out of 31 teams. Many people from the team set PRs or were very close to PRs. We were fortunate to have the exact number of men necessary to field a team, 10. For the past couple of weeks, we were worried that we wouldn't be able to field a team. Some people really sacrificed to be here today.

I ran 29:39 in the race. It was the fastest 5 mile race I've run since the 29:28 I did in the Team Championships of 1999, 10 years ago!!! My splits were 5:47, 5:47, 6:02 (Thanks Farbod for pacing.), 6:13 (Damn you Cat Hill!!!), 5:50 (Thank you WSY women for cheering at the finish!).

After the races, we had a great picnic! Loved the curry chickpeas and brownies!

Pre-Race Easy Day

Today: 3 miles

Week: 28.5 miles

Workout: 186th Street, past Fort Tryon Park, left on Dyckman, run along Hudson to foot bridge, turn around and come back.

I ran nice and easy @8:00/mile pace, just trying to loosen up the muscles so that I could stretch out afterwards. I'm looking forward to the Team Championships 5-mile race tomorrow and the potluck following the race.

Bridle Path

Today: 8.5 miles

Week: 25.5 miles

Workout: West Side YMCA to Niketown, Niketown to Engineer's Gate, 1 loop of the extended bridle path, hop onto the reservoir at 86th Street on the west side, 1 loop of the reservoir, exit at 84th Street on the east side, run back to 65th Street.

It was a nice comfortable run at around 8:45/mile. The low humidity made the run much more enjoyable.

Morning Run

Today: 2 miles

Week: 17 miles

Workout: Run through Fort Tryon Park at 7:00 a.m.!!!

I rarely run in the morning unless it's a race. This particular morning, it felt like I was running through a swamp. The humidity was ridiculous. It took me about 16 minutes to run the 2 miles and about 20 minutes to stop sweating. If it's like this on Saturday for the Team Championships, I will have to readjust my goal for the race.

800 meter intervals

Today: 5 miles

Week: 15 miles

Workout: 1 mile warm up from West Side YMCA to Niketown, 3 mile run in Central Park with two 800 meter intervals @ 5K pace, 1 mile cool down from Niketown to YMCA

Everyone else who was running had a short break between their intervals. However, I had a looooonnnnnng rest between my intervals because I was making sure runners were making the correct turns in the park.

1000 Meter Repeats

West Side YMCA Road Runner Club

(WSY)

Today: 10 miles

Week: 10 miles

Workout: 3.5 mile warm-up in Central Park, run from the West Side Y to West Side Hwy bike path & 59th St, head north, 5x run 3:45 hard (a little more than 1000 meters, under 6:00/mile), and run a 1:50 recovery at a nice slow pace.

I ran the workout with Joe, Farbod, and Bruno. I thought I wouldn't feel too good because of the 19 miles I ran on Saturday, but I felt fine. Before the workout, we received our new West Side Y running singlets. I must say we looked pretty damn cool wearing them.

60-Mile Week

13 WEEKS REMAINING UNTIL THE NYC MARATHON

Today: 5.5 miles

Week: 60.5 miles

Workout: Run through Inwood Hill Park and Fort Tryon Park.

This week was my first 60-mile week of marathon training. Today was also my 30th straight day of running. I think I feel a day off coming soon.

LONG RUN

Today: 19 miles

Week: 55 miles

Workout: Begin at the 6th Ave. entrance of Central Park, run to the west side, get on the bridle path, two loops of the extended bridle path, 1 loop of the reservoir, and 1 lower loop. 11 miles total. After a 15 minute break, run one 5-mile loop of Central Park, and a 3-mile loop.

The first 11 miles were at a conversational pace. I did the last 8 miles @ 7:00/mile.