Week One..

OK, 6 days in and I have 26 or so miles of running done. I'm going to take a break and cross train tomorrow.

Today on my run I had oh so many questions... How long before I see results from this "run everyday" plan? What exactly will these results be? How did I make it this far (7 years and an Ironman) in triathlon without trying some fairly regular run specific blocks?

Yep, I'm well aware I just need to be patient and see what happens.

Anyone want to take bets on which day/week I crack and try to go mountain biking?

Weekend Update: Days 4 & 5

It's the weekend. I ran a bit farther. I did a new route and an old route I hadn't been on in a while.

Saturday, I hit the river trails for some slower cruising around. It was nice to mix it up. In the back of my head I was trying to determine how much trouble I'd have on a mountain bike. 5-6 miles total.

Today, I ran down to the lake. I went by the beach. I thought this might be a gutsy (or gusty) move with the cooler temperatures. Turned out not too bad. Since running in 20F Friday, mid-30's seemed great. 6-7 miles total.

This brought my weekly total to nearly 22 miles. If we consider I didn't start until Wednesday, this is a good start to the new run frequently plan. I won't say my shins aren't tight. While it's too soon for weight numbers, I feel lighter. And like most times I run more, I'm more encouraged to eat somewhat more appropriately. Win, win, win. I'll take it.

Day Three

Quick update here.

It was harder to get out in 20 degress. Big picture, 20 is not so bad. But, just getting out in a brand new 20 for the year is more difficult. Check off day 3 though. I ran.

Day Two

Day two of the "run everyday" plan.

Three miles yesterday. Four today. Easy, repeatable runs.

Happy Turkey Day all.

Hate to Say It

I got punk'd. Some bug / virus had me sleeping on the floor of the bathroom for 12 - 16 hours.

Then when I felt better, work started falling out of the sky.

Now I'm not 100% (see work falling out of sky at 1am,4am,6am,etc).

Food-wise I need to be mindful of my opportunity to hit the reset button.

And the right thing to do (gasp) might be to (gasp) run for a while. Run daily. Run short, run medium, run lots slow, run fast a bit, run run run. I'll report back what happens.

I'm not totally out on Hell's Corner's CX race, but that weekend is piling up quite mightily.

What's the worst that could happen? My run might improve?

Thank You Run.

This morning I got up for a "Thank You" run. I was pleasantly surprised at the temperature. After letting the dog out and feeding her (the other dog sleeps in), I got set to go.

The Thank You run was down to the War Memorial (how ever far that is**) and back. I stopped to pay my respects. And on the way back, I had time to think about how lucky I am.

Thank you.

** For the numbers geeks, it was about 8 miles.

172+

What is it about guys and numbers?

I rode my tri bike on the trainer last night. I decided it needed some redeeming quality other than "much easier than rollers". So I popped the ol' cadence-o-meter on there. I spent some time just riding. Then I spent some time seeing what various cadences felt like. It's been some time since I used cadence, and I think I've improved my range over the year. Yay!

Who knows why, perhaps because it was my first day with it back on.. I had to find a max. It doesn't count of course, because I was shacking the bike all over and could barely read it. But it was in the 170's. Maybe next time I work on something like "max effective cadence".

Maybe it's better that I don't have a power meter.

Good luck Iceman entrants !! Go get 'em!!

As Good as it Gets

Setup: Estabrook Cyclocross Race.

I was looking forward to this one after the crash and burn last week in Washington Park. I thought I had a better chance on that one geared bike in Estabrook.

Pre-race variables:

Spent a good 12+ hours yesterday putting up a swing/play set for the wee ones. They better like it!! Climbing wall, swings, rope ladder, house... all kinds of fun! Then this morning I woke up a new kind of sore.. I couldn't put it together. Then 20-30 minutes after I woke up, I looked out and saw that set. AHHHH!! I guess that's what happens when you wait for coffee. I'm still terribly sore, hours later. Quick breakfast, plenty to drink and I head off for the race 1 mile or 2 from my house.

Onsite:

It's thinking about raining and finally decides to rain. Just enough to wet down the leaves and allow for a bit of mud on the well worn paths. I rode a couple easy warm up laps then signed up for cat4.

Maybe because it's the east side, but I got more comments on the Milwaukee than normal. I dig the bike, but I'm a bit shy on the legs it takes to race it. No worries, we're here to have fun!

Goals : Not last. And continue to improve my mount/dismount. Next year I can work on cornering...

How it went:

Well, I'm not entirely certain. But I think I accomplished "not last". I certainly passed some folks, though joked with others that they clearly had chucked their bikes and walked home in disgust after seeing me pass.. I must be the reaper (woo good costume idea for next Halloween CX).

I'll take the fact that I was "darn close" (or much closer) to not getting lapped at all as a win in my self competition world.

They added a few million (or 20) turns to the race, making it much more interesting in the rain. See also my need to work on cornering.. Apparently, one can have faster times if one brakes less often.. Go figure. (see also, why I think I have to get much better before I don't think I need a geared bike)..

Ran into the regular crew, Rick, Liz, Toolman, TCrosser, J, and a few others. It's the people that make this fun.

One last note: For those of you I suggested to go watch, I didn't see you. I hope you went after I headed for the b-day party. It's fun to watch!