Today's Run - 6/29

This morning I was able to take Ella to ACAC. Ella hung out in the kid zone and I hit the treadmill. I needed to run 2miles all out as part of the registration for the Charlottesville Track Club Marathon Training Program I am thinking about joining. In thinking of this challenge I set my goal at something better than two 8min miles. Short distance sprints are not something I have really worked on in my training. I typically work on distance and maintaining even splits. I did not really know what to expect when I started to crank out the treadmill.

As I got into the run, I found myself pushing the speed up in steady increments. As I started to close in on 2 miles I was also closing in on 15mins. I pushed hard to beat the 15min mark but finished at 15:10. I think I can break 15mins, it will give me a good goal to work on in the coming months with speed workouts.

Today's Run - 6/27

Today was my first run since the birth of my son, Wes. I have been itching to get out to run even with the limited / interrupted sleeping situation at the hospital. Emily gave me the green light for a run,I was not able to get out in the morning, but I was able to get a run this afternoon. I headed out about at 5pm and it was hot! With the heat index the temp was in the high 90's or low 100's. The temperature definitely affected my pace, but I was able to get in ~4.5miles in 45mins. I stopped a local store to get a Powerade about 3/4ths the way through to replenish my fluids because I did not have my water belt with me.

While walking around the hospital the past few days, I have been practicing some of Chi Running techniques. The walking practice was great because I had a good feel for it when I headed out for my run. On this run I worked on pealing my feet of the ground during my stride and keeping my back straight with a slight lean. I have found that the small tweaks and changes of Chi Running have affects on the way I feel during the run and even my legs after the run.

RunKeeper did a great job today. The music started when I started my run, it tracked my pace and distance well. I hope that this the start of a nice trend as it is nice when it works as advertised. I like most of the new additions to the new RK website. The combined graph showing pace, elevation, and duration is a nice addition and the new look and feel are nice. I am hoping that they add the ability to modify the previously defined routes and making routes from a previous activity. There is an issue with the embedded map feature which has not been resolved in the last 3days. I hope the embedded maps will be resolved soon.

Runkeeper... do you even know where am I?

Recently I have struggled with the Runkeeper application. I have been a Runkeeper user for almost a year and worked with the BETA team to evaluate new releases. There is a lot to be excited about with the Runkeeper application but as with much in life, I am pondering if you get what you pay for with this application. Things I like about Runkeeper are that it is cost effective, starting to get a good following / community and it is building its features rapidly. The most critical feature of app is the GPS tracking and as of late this has been the weakest performing feature in the app. I have see disparity in the distances recorded and actual distances of runs. I have also had issues with the app crashing, stop tracking my distance during a run, and not starting the selected music playlist during an activity.

Based upon these issues I am evaluating getting a Garmin Forerunner 405CX. Runkeeper recently released a new version with support for iPhone IOS4. I will give it a couple weeks and decide.

Today's Run - 6/25

Today was a special day, that I was excited to start of with a run. I decided to do a quick little run of ~3miles from the house out to 250 and back. Last night a big rain and wind storm came through town and toppled multiple trees causing substantial damage in the neighborhood. I enjoyed seeing the impact of the storm on my run. It is sad to see big tree destroyed by storms but at the same time it amazing to see the swift power and impact of nature. I enjoyed pondering the effects the storm while thinking of what else the day would bring. After my run, Emily and I packed our bags and headed to the hospital for the birth of our second child! Not a bad day of activities after celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary.

Today's Run - 6/23

Today's Run - 6/23

Today's Run - 6/22

Today's Run - 6/19

After a couple days off of running this week I was ready to get out for a long run this morning. I left the house a little after 7am. The sun was starting to warm the air, but overall it was cool and not to humid.

I have not had a long run in the last few weeks and I was happy to finally get one in. I pulled together a number of my shorter tracks for this 7.75mile run. It was a good mix of up hills, down hills and relatively flat stretches.

Today's Run - 6/16

Today's Run - 6/15

Today's Run - 6/11

Today's Run - 6/10

Today's Run - 6/8

Traveling to CT again and staying at my home away from home, the Trumbull Marriott. I ran a familiar route this morning a quick out and back 5.25mile run. The first half is down hill which means the return is up hill. I ran a bit faster this morning, with an average 8.28 pace. The spring and early summer in CT is great for running. It was a little cool as I headed out and no humidity which was a nice change from the muggy weather in VA lately.

Today's Run - 6/5

A nice sunny early summer morning run today although it was a bit humid. I was able to get ~4.5miles in before the heat really started to set in.

Although I had a banana before I left the house I definitely ran out of energy on this run. I should have had an energy bar or something else before I headed out. I will need to start carrying my water belt again as the increased heat is increasing my need to hydrate even on the short and mid distance runs.

Today's Run - 6/3

I was traveling on business and was able to get a quick run in with a colleague before a busy day. It was a good run and nice to have someone to run with.

I forgot my running shoes, so I had to pick up a new pair of Asics 1250s. The store did not have the 9 Width 2E, so I got the standard 9. It is a little tight in the toe box but overall not bad.

Today's Run - 6/2

Did the same route as yesterday, but faster today.   I worked on my Chi Running technique by focusing on my foot alignment and core strength.  I really needed to concentrate on my keeping my abs tight and my foot alignment, but the results were more than 30Secs/mile off yesterdays pace.

Chi Running

I started reading "Chi Running" by Danny Dreyer. The writing is a little dry, but it provides an interesting framework to help you improve your running form in hopes of improving running capabilities and reduce risk of injury.

Today's Run - 6/1

 I can't believe it is June already!  Where has the year gone?  The early summer runs are great because the heat is not to bad, the sun is up early.

I took two spinning classes this weekend and I am feeling a bit sore in my hamstring.   It was tough to get out and run this morning, but I wanted to take advantage of the great weather for a recovery run.