Gym Run and Weights

I was out with my cousin watching the Longhorns play in the College World Series last night so I didn't get up for the Gazelles workout. I hit the gym instead for a quick run and weights. I got a bad treadmill which kept pausing on me which sucked and when I switched machines my stomach blew up so it was a very short run for me today. I did get in my full weight and ab workout which was good.

Stats - 4 miles/35:00/8:45 pace

Cruise through Circle C

Today was a another warm weather morning in Austin, but at least there was a little breeze out there today. Since school is out, we were able to do a loop around Kiker without much traffic and then hit the park for another loop. I am feeling weird and slow at the beginning of the run and then once I get warmed up I really feel like I could run a lot longer than the 6 miles I ran today. I guess it is a function of water availability because it is just too hot to go more than 5 or 6 miles without water. I am hoping this bodes well for the longer runs beyond 14 miles this summer and for the marathon in October.

Stats - 6.05 miles/53:04/8:46 pace

Lunch with Teacher

Today I had the opportunity to have lunch with one of my two favorite teachers from my second high school, Deer Valley High School in Glendale, Arizona. It turns out I was in one of Mrs. Cota's first full time teaching classes 28 years ago...yes I am that old! She retired in May and is out here visiting her son and grandson...two very cool dudes and another area where she did great!

I was in her American history class and she was one of those rare teachers that went way above and beyond the call. She made class fun by adding many outside things to class. It wasn't go read the book and take a test. She made it fun and it took time and effort to make it happen for us. Now that I am a parent, I really appreciate all of her efforts when I probably didn't so much back then. My 90 minutes with her today brought back some very good memories.

Thank you Mrs. Cota for all you did for all the students that passed through your doors at Deer Valley High School!

Monday Gazelle Torture Session

Today was my last Monday torture session as we head into the meat of fall marathon season. I wanted to get up early and workout with the group so I could catch the end of the US Open. I was talking to G so I had to run over to AHS by myself. I went the long way, did a couple of sets of circuit and did most of the core workout. Some of that stuff just plain hurts my back. We finished with some jumping and fast feet. I know I complain about torture Mondays, but it was fun!

Stats - 5.76 miles

First Visit to "Mountain Bonnell" this Season

Today we made our first visit to Mt. Bonnell of the fall season. I haven't slept too well the last two nights so I didn't know what to expect today. I think I am used to the heat now, but lack of sleep just plain sucks. I started out with my group and we started out slower than we have been going. I tried to push the pace a little, but wasn't feeling up to it. We were able to get by "Wicki" on Pecos and head on up to Mt. Bonnell. I went up pretty slow and it was the slowest mile of the 14 at 9:32. I got water at the top and headed down. I left my mates and was on my own most of the rest of the run. I ran with Paul (bearded guy) and Mike Andrus for a bit and chased Alex for the last few miles. Although my pace was below my goal of 8:30 for long runs this summer, I ran a nice negative split and ran my fastest miles at the end. Miles 11 - 14 were 8:25, 8:08, 8:20, and 8:13 for the last .93 miles.

I had to run off to get to the girl's swim meet so I skipped the strides and stretching. I am definitely paying for it now with some major soreness.

Stats - 13.92 miles/2:00:09/8:37 pace

8+ Miler

I ran my usual 8 miler with Wish today. My legs were a bit heavy from the 400s yesterday, but I got stronger as the run went on. We stopped for water at Dick Nichols park on the way back. It was a good recovery run.

Stats - 8.23 miles/1:12:06/8:45 pace

16x400 at AHS

Today we met for 400s at Austin High School. I parked at AHS so I could make a quick escape afterward. I did about a 2.5 mile warm up with Anne toward Runtex until we hit the group coming our way. We did our drills and it was time to run. The goal was 16 at 10k pace. I started with the fast group, but they rolled out at a lot faster. I stuck to my 10k pace which is around 7:00 per mile and translates to around a 1:45 for a 400. I stayed with my steady pace throughout the workout and felt like I could do more so I was successful. I averaged 1:44 for all 16 with a slow one of 1:45 and a fast one of 1:34. I did a 1.5 mile cool down with Brian and called it a day.

Stats - 9.01 miles

Loops in Circle C

Today I did a couple of different loops in Circle C with the goal of hitting around 6 miles. The hot weather isn't going anywhere and it was brutal again this morning. I ran the first loop around Kiker and then stopped back at the house for some water. I picked up Caroline who rode her bike with me for the second loop around Clayton.

Stats - 6.25 miles/53:03/8:29 pace