I'm back

I have been away from my blog for two weeks but am making a comeback. I run more often when I write about it.  Training has been going really well as we start to ramp up the miles. 17 weeks until the marathon.

Today I went out for a nice 2.3 mile run along the Salt Creek trail before work. It was my first day with my new watch. I had been contemplating buying one for some time now and saw the Garmin 310xt on sale last week. Pretty much just charge and play out of the box. Even paired with the heart rate strap automatically. Looking forward to a lot of runs with this little gadget.

Distance 2.3
Time 19:29
Pace 8:28

Easy 5k

Just a simple 3.1 morning run along the Salt Creek trail today.

Splits:
10:06
9:28
9:07

Im excited about the official marathon training. First weeks are easy so it is a nice break from the running I have been doing the past 2 months. It ramps up pretty quickly and so will the temps. Looking forward to some great runs.

CMT – Chicago Marathon Training begins

I met up with the club Monday night for a training commencement run.  I think there is upwards to 10 of us that are registered for the Marathon in October, so we have solid group to keep training interesting over the next 18 weeks.  We went for a 5 mile out and back starting at Brookfield Woods.  It was warm and humid and I was still feeling the effects of Saturday’s maximum effort but managed to keep the group in sight.  I covered 5 miles in 43 minutes.  Swallow Cliff is on the docket for Thursday.  Looking to stretch and rest until then.

Allstate 13.1 Chicago Marathon Recap

The 7:00 AM start coupled with my commute downtown plus a shuttle bus to the South Side made for an early morning.  Any alarm set with a number 3 as the hour is bit ridiculous for a “local” race.  Logistics aside, couldn’t have asked for a better race day.  54 and sunny at the start, probably 64 by the time I finished.  It was getting warm and the sun was relentless, but humidity was low, so almost ideal racing conditions.  Throughout the course there were bands and other entertainment.  Ample bathrooms, which I sadly had to use at mile 8 (#1 luckily), and water and Gatorade stations were evenly spread throughout the course.  I really liked the fact that our names were on our bibs.  Random people cheering out your name is a good motivator.

I had my first negative split in a race which made for a rewarding finish as I passed other tiring runners.  Starting out slow to let the blood start pumping seems to be the way to go.  I reached the halfway point in 1 hour and 30 seconds and finished in 1:57:48.  This was a 9 minute improvement from my Palos Half in May.  I figure if I run a half each month and improve 9 minutes each time I’ll punch my ticket to Rio 2016.

Allstate 13.1 Chicago - Less than 10 hours to go!

I had some cheese pizza for dinner since it worked out so well on a training run last week.  I'll have a light breakfast when I wake up along with 2 big glasses of water.  From there its all about staying relaxed and having fun running on Lake Shore Drive as the sun climbs up over the water.

Four of us from the WCRC are car pooling downtown together.  It's a rematch from the Palos Half in May.  The Irish Kenyan is still the underdog, but the others will surely be looking over there shoulders hoping not to be swallowed up by his devastaing final kick.  Good luck everyone.  See you in the beer and pizza tent after the race.

I’m not as good as I once was….I’m better.

Toby Keith should try running.  I bettered my 5 mile PR in a training run by 12 seconds this morning.  The PR was from the Shamrock Shuffle 11 years ago in 2002! This was my final tune-up going into this Saturday’s Allstate ½ Marathon.  I have a little nagging pain in the left outer sole of my foot, otherwise couldn’t be happier midway through race week.

Splits

1 – 9:01

2 – 8:45

3 – 8:39

4 – 8:27

5 – 8:00

5 Miles – 42:52

Full Loop at Waterfall Glen

Sunday June 2^nd.

We had a great turnout Sunday for a “Run what ya Want” group run.  Even my brother and his wife made it out so that was an extra bonus.  They are both training for the marathon as well, but we haven’t been able to sync up for a run.  Six of us stuck together through 6 miles and then we were down to four as the pace quickened.  I was trying out a new race day mix that included Gatorade and Red Bull.  That along with a gel at mile 7 had me ultra-focused and full of energy.  At the 9 mile mark, I tried to break away from the other 3 in the pace.  I finished the final mile in 7:15 minutes, but Dan was still able to run me down with his sub 7 kick.  Another great group run.  I’m going to shut it down the rest of the week as I prepare for the Allstate half this coming Saturday.  Looking to do get in one more quality work Wednesday morning.

10 Miles

1:32:04

9:12 Pace