Waffle Day! Woo-Hoo! watching 'blizzard conditions" out the window......

Hey, me too! We have a foot of powder already, and it's still snowing. And I made waffles for breakfast. Glad I went for a long-ish run yesterday, when it was 50 degrees! Lots of long runs completed already today, with progressions for some of you too! Holly, I'm with you, not sure I'd have enough gas left to push it at the end of 20 miles. The only good thing is that the last mile to my house is downhill, so no matter how carpy the run was, I always enjoy the last part.

Post-waffle posting for me. After my run, I had to rush the shower a bit because there was some mechanical issue with DD2's car which needed to be checked out before she took off at 1. I was surprised to wake up to bright sunlight at 7am. Not that I was surprised there was bright sunlight at 7, just not used to waking up to it is all. PDR was already out and about by then. To join in the progression run "fun", I did my planned 20. Targets are MP+20%, MP+15%, MP+10%, and MP to MP+5%: Workout: Target(distance) w/u(1), 9:25(4), 9:00(5), 8:35(5), 8:15-7:50(5). Actual(HR) 9:16(139), 8:52(141), 8:20(150), 7:45(167). Pretty tired after 19. Overall: 20.25, 2:53 The last 5 were uphill on this route, elevation gain of +187, with a serious hill at 17.5. I like this route because it's our own heartbreak hill, at about the right place in the route. Good runs to all! Now where are those relay reports?

Nice to see a Tall posting! Waffled a 6 miler in just shy of 56 mins. for a 9:23 pace. Tried the running by feel approach and enjoyed a absolutely beautiful sunny run! Chris

Now I’ll join DH outside to do some yard work, not the snow is finally melted. Happy Sunday!

No yard work here since we still have at least a foot of snow still on the ground, but in a moment of optimism at the store yesterday I bought a new rake. It had a metal handle and said it was guaranteed not to break or clog.

good afternoon to all. out at 7 this morning for a very leisurely 3.5 in 36 minutes. even just a little over my normal 3.2 lake loop felt good. first half of the hill loop was crusty snow from the snow and rain of Saturday, and the second was plowed clear. So half with the yaktracs and half without. And--BTB, I finally iced the shins afterwards. Used Eliz's suggestion of 1 to 3 ratio of rubbing alcohol to water to make a nice cold slushy ice pack. Stayed cold the whole 20 minutes. things feel good. Kevin

Yeah! Survived my first experience as Race Director. It went off with no problems other than a couple volunteers showed up a little late but not too late. Although they had me worried for a couple minutes. Our falls yesterday resulted in slightly sore necks from the whiplash motion. Shouldn't affect our running. Thank you everyone for your thoughts and concern about the race and the falls. This site is GREAT!

Happy Sunday gang! fussyrunner- nice long run yesterday. Did you end up racing today? Looking at your training log, it looks like you're ready to run a good 1/2 in a couple of weeks. munchkn- good to hear you were able to get out and run yesterday. Ribs- you do know you can get cinnabons in your supermarket now, don't you? Imagine having a fridge full of them at home? fbgrrl- way to go on the weight loss goal! Keep up the great work! You are very inspiring! dtoce- your run home yesterday sounded just a bit scary. Time change next week, you'll get the extra daylight you need then. eliz- sorry to hear the sinus bug has bitten you too. I'm glad you're being smart about it. deez4boyz- I don't remember hearing any whining yesterday. Great job rebounding and getting to the gym, sometimes just getting going takes a superhuman effort. Well done. And your list of comfort foods are some of my absolute favorites! What time is dinner tonight? Teresa- You are really on a roll with your running! Awesome! And congrats to your speedy son and his team. wildchild- you gotta get one of those doggie showers for your pooches. When does mud season end? sarge and sargette- when you two do things together, you really mean it. Hope all body parts are functioning ok today. evryday- how cool that you were able to hook up with people to run with in Atlanta. Sounds like you made a new friend too. Free socks too! You had a great trip! craneium- It's good to hear about a PE teacher who is practicing what he preaches! Tallrunner- thanks for checking in and for starting us off! Good luck with the doctor appointment tomorrow. Stress doesn't help things either. I'm glad you have your salvations to keep things in check for you. Take care. breger- Awesome run! Look at that strong finish, over a minute/mile faster than what you started at. You earned those connamon rolls! nonoruns- brrrr! 8.5 miles of goodness... I like that. I'm glad Mr.Stitch left you alone today. JJJ- I'll bet that spring water is nice and cold this time of year. Hope your run went well. Tramps- I like your idea of fun. Holly- Max needed a trip to the basement this morning. Hey just getting in 20 miles is great in itself. I don't usually butt my head into other peoples training programs, but perhaps you may want to consider a stepback week? You're consistently cranking out 50+ mile weeks, every now and again it's good to drop back for a week to let your body soak up and adapt to all the stresses you've been putting it though. It's also good for the head. Yardwork... I guess that's one of the drawbacks of having the snow melt! RoyC- I didn't comment on your training program, because you had already gotten good advice. Careful please. Nice run today! PDR- that was a great run you had! What a confidence booster that must've been! Tim- how are the injuries? That fact that you got a nice 20 miler in has me thinking you're doing ok. rochrunner- hopefully what you're feeling in your leg is just it getting used to being used again. Keep us posted. And you son sounds like he's on typical college time. halllar- another strong finish run today! A lot of that going around here today! Fortunate One- I'm glad the knee held up ok. WRFB- Again, you were ahead of your goal times. Awesome. Good deal setting up your run to end up the way it did, perfect for Boston. Looking good! Henry- Funny about the runner traffic jam. The locals must be used to it by now. Very cool. Good luck with the dental procedure tomorrow. Chris- Sounds perfect! CNY- welcome back! I was thinking of you and your 22 miler. I'm glad it went well. Actually it seems it went more than well! Good company, nice trail, great pace! Must be that ocean air. Or more than likely, it's all the hard work you're putting in. The waves in the windswept water were amazing today, weren't they? Pancakes can cure just about anything. Dave- I'm not surprised your back is sore today! I like your recovery plan. stumpy- We just want to see you enjoy what it feels like to not worry about aches and pains from running. Next we have to talk about the joys of ice baths... pfriese- wow, what a run just a day after an awesome race! Sarge (again)- you survived! Both the fall, and the race! Volunteers are so important, and so hard to get, for races. As are good race directors. Thank you. "The long run is what puts the tiger in the cat." - Bill Squires For marathon training, I think this is so true. Not only to you get the physiological and psychological benefits, but you also get a chance to work out all the kinks that go along with the marathon ahead of time. These runs are the time to practice everything associated with race day... your nutrition beforehand, your clothing, your pacing, your hydration, your ability to relax and stay strong when you're tired. By the time race day comes, it should be nothing more than something you've done a bunch of times already in training, only with a lot more people around you. Race day shouldn't be the time for guesswork. In preparation for Boston, I've moved my usual early morning long runs to later in the day, to simulate the later start at Boston. I got up at 6am to eat a decent breakfast, then just chilled out for a while, took the dog for a walk (simulating walking to the buses the AM of the marathon), spent the next hour in church (sitting on the bus to get to the start line), ate one last snack then started my run around 10am. It was a nice sunny day, but temps were in the low 30's with winds gusting to 40mph. Also, I was feeling a bit lightheaded and woozy, I'm wondering if it's due to the prednisone that I just started taking in an effort to do something about this month long sinus issue I've been dealing with. In all honesty, I wasn't thrilled about running in these conditions or feeling the way I was, but you can't count on things being perfect on race day either, so you do what you gotta do and do the best you can. THe plan was to run 18, getting progressively faster, finishing up at marathon pace. I picked the hilliest route I could find for this area. The first 12 miles flew by effortlessly. I made sure I stayed relaxed, especially on the hills, both up and down. Especially down, where you don't want to start using your quads as brakes to slow you down, you need to stay smooth and relaxed. Proper hydration is something many people take for granted. There is a fine line between drinking too little and becoming dehydrated and losing performance, and drinking too much, forcing you to find a port-o-john during the race. My hardcore friends tell me to just go in my shorts as I'm running, but I'm not quite that hardcore yet. It takes a lot of practice to find that balance. Also, I drink at approximately the same intervals that the aid stations will be out on the course on race day. Over the next 6 miles, the pace picked up from MP+20 seconds to eventually MP. I saved some of the more challenging hills for this part. The focus here was to stay relaxed, maintain form and rhythm, not blow up on the uphills, all while keeping pace while tiring. Ended up with a cooldown mile for just over 19 miles. The hardest part though came after the run, trying to stay relaxed while sitting in a tub of ice. Early on in the run, I passed by two boys walking along the side of the road. Next thing I know, I hear footsteps clomping behind me after I passed them. I look back to see them running trying to keep up with me. I told them they were doing an excellent job, just 17 more miles to go. One of them said "17 miles? Are you kidding? I won't even be able to keep this up to my house which is right up the road." THat was fun. I was happy with the run today. It came at the end of a long mileage week for me, and I'm hitting paces fairly easily for this point in the program. The only thing that worries me is I traditionally start breaking down when I get up into these miles. In the fall, I was at exactly this point of the program when my body decided to call it quits, laying me up for 8 weeks. There is a saying that the light burns brightest before it burns out, and that seems to hold true for me. I'm hoping that by being diligent with yoga, massage, and foam rollering, I'll be able to get over the hump this time around. As usual, I've gone on far too long.