This week

Tomorrow: Mile warmup, 4 x 500-yard hill up Linden Drive and back down. Goal: 20 minutes. Mile cooldown. 4.5 miles.

Wednesday: 3 miles, 30 minutes.

Thursday: 4 miles, throw in a fartlek or two.

Friday: Rest

Saturday: 57-58 minutes, 6 miles.

Sunday: 3 miles.

Total: 20.5 miles.

Then I want to do two thresholds a week for three weeks.

53 minutes

My longest run yet, 53 minutes, about 5.5 miles. I ran to the four corners and back twice, the second time going past pep stop to the point where I would get in 53 minutes. It felt good ... I love the soft gravel on the shoulders. I felt very strong.

Today, 3 miles. I felt good despite having run yesterday. But I got real weak at the end ... didn't have enough to eat. I threw in a 4:17 800 at one point.

19 miles for the week.

UI XC course run

I ran a little over 3 miles on the UI cross country course. It is about a mile and a half around the perimeter .... give or take. The second lap, I pushed it for quite a while until I got really sapped. It was hot and humid, about 84. The grass was a welcome surface. I felt good pushing it for about 10 minutes or so. Actually, it was my third run in three days ... a record for me lately. My knee is feeling it a little bit.

After a well-deserved day off tomorrow, I will try to do my longest run (53 minutes) on Saturday.



Miles for week -- 10.5

Getting stronger

Tonight, after a day off, I ran about 4.5 miles -- on the track. Every lap, I would run the homestretch 100 pretty hard (26 or 27 seconds -- 6:56-7:12 pace), then ease up to about 8:50 pace for the other 300. So it made my laps average about 8:20-something pace. So it was a good quality run.

Saturday -- 3 miles. 1/2 mile to Old Threshers, then 4xloop. I started and ended at the last tree on the gravel road, to make it a complete round trip. My times: 4:27, 4:12, 4:10, 4:12.

Sunday -- 4.2 miles at about 9:00 pace.

So I had about a 20-mile week last week. My running is going very well.

5 miles

After Upward Bound training, I hustled over to the Hoover Trail. I ran 24 minutes out and 23:35 back for a 47:35 run. I am figuring 5 miles. The knee is sore, but it's OK. Good run. I've been very happy with my eating/weight loss. I'm losing a little bit; for me, it's so much about how many calories I consume. I read somewhere that I have to eat 1/3 fewer calories now than when I was younger, and that is what I am shooting for.

12.5 miles for week.

Gutty run

I got up this morning before I went to upward bound and ran about 4 miles. I biked to Eastlake, ran the park road loop as a warmup, then ran a fartlek workout, 4 x the .7-mile driving range-soccer fields loop. I was pushing it pretty hard at times -- for good stretches. Then I would settle in for a regular run. Laps of 6:41, 6:38, 6:30, and 6:29. I guess I'm not going to go by times as much as I am effort. the effort was there. I was trying to be quick and light on the hard-running portions. Then a .6 cooldown, the park loop.

4 miles
7.5 miles for the week

Hot run

This morning, I ran with Kara and Kylie -- park loop and cowpath and back -- 2.5 miles. Then I ran a mile on the track at Eli's pace -- about 8 minutes. 31:25 of running, 8:58 pace. It was hot, but I held up well. I feel strong.

Plan for this week-- run Wed-Thurs, then Sat-Sun. I'm planning on a 19-mile week, with a long-run of 5 miles.
Next week -- Tues-Wed, Thurs-Fri, Sun. (20 miles, long run 5.5 miles)