The Training Blog of freerangeathlete

Nice pair

of runs that is. Nothing great, but I'm finally back after some time off. It was mostly too much work and other things going on, but I was also very mentally drained after the DNF.

9/26/2006 - 6.1 miles/53:43/Brooks Axiom/home neighorhood
9/27/2006 - 6.0 miles/56:25/Mizuno Inspire/Treadmill(Golds)

It's been a while since I've put in two good runs in a row. I was a little tight in the back right after the run, but I'm feeling much better no. Another attempt in the morning if I can drag myself out of bed.

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My first DNF

Lake Bryan Trail Run - 25K/2:58:00/Brooks Axiom

The 50K sounded like a really good idea. No realy stress. Check my progress. See if running a 50 in October was possible. I am such an idiot.

On the positive side, the trail was nice. It was one of those where they manage to fit in 15 miles of trail in 3 miles by making it twist and turn until you get dizzy. Nothing is straight. Not the most efficient way to run, but these are the types of trails I love.

I decided to start in road shoes: Brooks Axioms. My only trail shoes now are Nike Air Steens, and they are not working well for me. I also brought an old pair of Vasque Light Speeds with me, but they are hardly ever used. Although most of the trail is soft, the few roots and rocks I stepped on put some stress on the feet. It was more in the effort to flex off of them than any impact. Felt early on like I would be changing about midway.

The first 10K loop was very smooth. No issues. I was slower than expected but felt good overall. Heading out on the second loop, things were still good, but I was looking forward to short walk breaks more. By the time I hit the aid station, the water bottle was empty. I drank half of it there and filled again. The Gatorade bottle was still half full. I would survive about 2 or 3 more miles before I would hit the wall. Actually, it felt more like falling in a pit. Although the overall pace wasn't bad, I found myself struggling through what were probably 17 - 18 minute miles. Upon finally making the start/finish, I dropped. It is sad as I have used the fact that I have never DNFed to motivate me at times to continue.

So what went wrong? I have my excuses. In reality, I lacked the fitness, toughness, and stupidity to continue. The fitness was a problem. I've done nothing over 18 miles since January; although, I've been in the 14 - 15 mile range several times. The heat and humidity were horrid. Dew points were in the mid 70's. Temps would eventually hit the upper 90's even with the scattered showers. I am not heat trained. And I really need more than 2 hours of sleep to do this. I had worked all day Saturday, couldn't sleep from stress, got up and worked some more. Then woke up at 3:15 to drive to Bryan.

But the real factor was my back. After several weeks of almost no pain, I found my back tightening up as the pace slowed. I think this is where the stupidity factor played. I have taken months off from running. Nothing about finishing this race seemed to be worth going through that again. I'm feeling back to mormal already, which wouldn't have been the case had I continued.

I'll update with results later. No Palo Duro for me this year. Maybe it was the heat/sleep/etc. But too much of it was me.

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9/14 Run

Town Lake Hike and Bike Trail - 4.7 miles/40:27 (+.7 miles) (Mizuno Inspire)

Nothing very special. It was a nice to keep up a pace even if I'm way too slow. I may have been able to pick it up a little, but I don't think I had too much more. Weather is still hot, but the humidity wasn't quite as bad. I had planned to go out again Friday for something short, but it looks like this is the last run before I try for 50K at Lake Bryan on Sunday.

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9/11/2006 Run

Barton Creek Green Belt - 14 miles/2:34:32

Not the best weather for a run, but it was better than I have been dealing with all summer. The humidity was still quite high although it wasn't quite as hot.

I started on some very dry, dusty trails and was feeling I should have taken the small, green light. I found I don't see as well with the green LED light, but when the trails are very dry the color is light enough that I can see. When they get wet, I need the bigger, brighter light.

But things ended up working out for the best as I soon found wet trail. I seem to have missed all the rain but did get hit by a few drops falling from the trees. There wasn't enough water for mud, but it did keep the dust down a little. The trip out was slow. Things picked up on the way back after putting the light in the pack. Unfortunately, the later sunrise has me running half the trip with a flashlight. And that is increasing each week. I may be doing almost the whole thing in darkness before the end of daylight savings time give me a little break.

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Chilli weather? Almost

Town Lake Hike and Bike Trail - 14.25 miles/2:17:11 (+ .7 extra)

Nice weather for a change. Temps were in the low 60's as I headed toward downtown. In the city and around the lake, it wasn't quite that cool, but it was a very nice change from what I have been dealing with. Funny thing was all the long sleeves and thermal shirts I saw today.

I had hoped to put in 17 - 20 in the nice weather, but I got a late start. I also had some back pain which made me careful about pushing it. It was a nice run; energy was good the whole way. I could have probably gone 20 - 25 without much of a slowdown.

Skipped the weights to get more work done. I've had some long days lately.

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9/4/2006 non-run

So I was supposed to get up and hit the greenbelt for a run. Didn't happen. I got the Boston Terriers around for 2.1 miles, but I didn't have it to run. I did get a nice couple of extra hours of sleep though.

2.1 miles walking

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9/5/2006 Run

Barton Creek Green Belt - 4 miles/49:28 (+2.1 walk)

Some days your heart just isn't into it. I normally love to run in the rain, but a late start and a forgotten hat didn't start things off well. And the wet ground was dark and hard to see with the little green LED light.

I turned around at the 2-mile marker and pushed the pace back to the car. It still wasn't fast, but it wasn't bad considering how hard it was to see the technical trail.

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9/2/2006 Long Run

San Gabriel Trail - 17 miles/2:46:09

Not quite the run I was hoping for. I was sure I could hit 20 today. But the cool weather we had earlier this week is gone, and the early start did not happen. By the time I gave in around 1:00, it was already 98.

On the positive side, the pace was good overall. It was very smooth the first 8 - 10 miles. I was fading hard by 12. I wanted to go back out for the last 8, but the 5 more was tough to muster.

Now I'm dealing with a headache from the dehydration. I went through 120 oz of Gatorade during the run, fueled on Hammer Gel, and took Succeed. But I just can't keep up in this heat.

I'll take tomorrow off. I'm not sure about Monday yet. It may rain. I'll probably run in the rain if it does. Otherwise, I may try to recover a little more from this effort.

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