12/11/11 to 12/17/11

Summary – Like most weeks, it was an up and down week. It didn’t go according to plan but still was a really good week overall for running. I was sick almost the entire week with sinus issues and pink eye. We were also traveling and visiting so our sleeping was off – largely non-existent. This was my biggest week of training yet with 12 hours of running. I didn’t get much else in though because every time I thought about or tried anything other than running or walking, I would feel terrible with sinus pressure.

The downside is that we didn’t get in the planned long runs. We had thought of doing back to back four hour runs early in the week but after not getting much sleep and realizing how uncomfortable 20 and 30 degree temperatures can really be, we skipped them. However, the two hour runs were awesome, especially the ones at 7 minute pace. We also planned on running a longer run in Findlay at the end of the week. We also bagged this after getting only a few hours sleep and with me still feeling crappy.

We’re off to Alabama Sunday night and hope to get healthy and back into a routine to get some more ultra specific training in while enjoying a warmer climate.

Total running time: 723 minutes (12 hrs 3 mins); Walking: 380 minutes ; Core: 41 minutes; Stretching: 60 minutes

Saturday –We were all going to get up early and run four hours. Eric, Jeff’s friend that will be doing Leadville with us, hasn’t been running much yet and had a long drive, Julie’s knee was hurting, Jeff normally does 27 minute runs, and I don’t like running early. Many things against us.

We ended up running for 2:18 in the snow before completing our tour of Findlay. We started shortly after 6am and neither of us got out good morning poops. We all had to stop at a gas station 45 minutes into the run. Very unpleasant because I was holding mine in for a good 20 minutes before getting to the gas station. It was a fun group but we were all slow and sluggish. My cold hasn’t gotten much better and I now have pink eye too. Glad we at least got out there, even though we have failed again in getting in long runs.

Julie and I went for a 45 minute walk later in the day to finish up the day’s exercise.

Friday – I was going to take the day off completely but was motivated by dinner plans with our friends, the Hubers. So I got to work late in the day, walked for 40 minutes, started the hour long P90x core workout, got 25 minutes in when my brother got home from Wisconsin. He needed to get a run in for the day so I dropped the core workout and ran 50 minutes with him.

It was then time to go to dinner. I had in 1:55 for the day, 65 minutes short of my second meal deal. However, we didn’t get home until midnight and I called it a day at that point. My first failure on the new diet.

Thursday – Ran for an hour with Julie in the rain on the trail. It wasn’t too cold but it was definitely unpleasant as the rain was coming down pretty hard. Julie’s knee has been bugging her and she didn’t want to go too long today so we made a deal that we’d do the P90x stretching together and do a shorter run.

So we did the stretching; much more fun to do it with Julie than on my own. We also did the P90x ab workout (16 minutes), and then we walked for an hour with Justin and Allison in Columbus – we walked to and from the ice cream parlor.

Wednesday – Met with Chris again at the trail at 9am. We did another 17 mile run, this time in right around 2 hours. Legs a bit tired by the end but we weren’t pushing the pace at all. Finished averaging 7:02 pace with the last few miles between 6:40 and 6:50. I’m still battling the sinus infection, and what now seems to have pink eye on top of it, but this morning I woke up feeling like some of the sinus pressure had lifted so I’m optimistic that the worst may be past. Either way, I’m really happy with all the longer runs and how well I’ve felt on them.

We went to Skyline after the run to refuel and get a little taste of Cincinnati. We also picked up Cheese Crowns from Graeters to round out the Cincy experience.

Julie and I walked for an hour around the neighborhood before dinner. Feeling good about my running and exercising but I’m still feeling pretty sick.

Tuesday – Ran another two hour run (our third day in a row), this time with Julie at the bike path around 11:30am. It was a little warmer (40’s) and we went a comfortable pace, ~8:40’s. My quads were somewhat wrecked from yesterday. Though yesterday was comfortable, I haven’t run that pace in awhile and my legs let me know it. Today was nice though and felt easy since I didn’t have to lift my legs much to keep up with the pace. We did 14 miles.

I walked the neighborhoods alone this afternoon for an hour to meet my 3 hour quota for the day.

Monday – Ran with Chris again, this time at the flat bike trail at 9am. We started with Julie for the first half mile and then gradually pulled ahead. We had a great conversation and I didn’t watch the watch or pace at all. As we were coming to the end of the run, Chris informed me that we’d done 17 miles and had been running sub 7’s for the past few miles. I was really pumped because it was a very relaxed and non-taxing run aerobically. We ran for 2:05 total and covered a little more than 17 miles.

Julie and I did our traditional after dinner walk of 55 minutes to get in our time for the day.

Sunday – Met up with Chris Reis and some good runners from Cincinnati at Hyde Park Square at 8am. We didn’t plan well though and I pulled a DM and left Julie without telling her how long I was going or without anyone to run with.

I realized how bad this was about 15 minutes into the run whereupon I turned around to try and find her. I ended up running around Hyde Park Square for a little over 90 minutes never finding her until after the 2 hour mark. At that point, we both called it a day – thankfully she wasn’t upset about running alone.

Despite feeling sick, I felt good running and it was nice getting in close to 30 minutes at a faster pace.

For the remainder of the day, all I felt up to was walking so I got in an hour after dinner.

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