Rumpus in Bumpass

This past weekend the two older boys and I drove down to Lake Anna to watch some of the comically-named triathlon Rumpus in Bumpass. We enjoyed seeing the race, even though we missed the swim, and we met Beth in person. Beth still lives in Pittsburgh and we've corresponded on her blog, and via email and facebook. It was nice to meet her and her husband Oscar in person. We hung out at the race for the awards and the went to Noodles for lunch. The boys made some very interesting vegetable sticker creations. I think the trip from Pittsburgh to Virginia was worth it since Beth not only won the race but set a course record in the process.

I'm still training sporadically. I'm busy enough with three kids in the first place, and Jenny's still coaching lacrosse for the next few weeks. I'm debating running a 5k at the beginning of May but we'll see.

Off the Wagon

I haven't run much at all lately. I'd really like to say that I haven't had time, but really I've just been lazy. It's been easier to just reset my alarm and go back to sleep. I'll try again tomorrow.

Crazy

This past week was crazy. Between work and my personal life, I had a lot going on. Jenny's coaching lacrosse, meetings two nights, picking up her sister and their family from the airport, trying to slice off her thumb with a knife... It was hectic.

With all the activity, I was tired, and slept in instead of running for a few days. This week should be pretty much back to normal. The weekend runs went well. This morning I ran in shorts. It's sunny and gorgeous. It looks like spring will be here soon. Almost all of the snow has melted. It's kind of funny seeing green grass after all that white snow everywhere.

Where's My Motivation?

The end of last week did not work out like I had hoped. Thursday I ran easy, and then Friday I took a zero. I couldn't drag myself out of bed. Saturday I finally got around to the tempo run, which went ok but could have been better. Saturday night I was up late with a sick child, so Sunday I slept in and didn't run either.

I read something last week that the way to keep a habit is to just do it. You don't need fancy tricks, you just need to get out and do it. Nike was right. That was on my mind this morning as I headed out for my run. Mornings like today make me wish for spring. It wasn't too cold, but it was windy. You run for a minute or two when it's calm and you feel fine, then the wind picks up and you're freezing. I was lucky that this morning's run was out and back with the out into the wind.

Day Off

When my alarm went off this morning, I felt really tired. It was likely due to the workout yesterday coupled with staying up later than I would have like last night. I hit the snooze button a few times and still felt tired, so I reset my alarm and went back to sleep.

Yesterday's workout went well. I couldn't have asked for better conditions. It was in the upper 30s and since it didn't get below freezing overnight I didn't have to worry much about ice. The workout was simple: run one particular loop, pushing the pace on the hills. There are two hills on this loop, one that is shorter and steeper and one that is more gradual but longer, that made the loop good for this workout. I was happy with the how the workout went. I was able to pick up the pace on the hills without feeling too bad.

Monday's run was easy, tomorrow's will be easy, and maybe a tempo on Friday.

The Great Snow Melt

The temperature got into the 40s this weekend, and some the couple feet of snow on the ground started to melt. You can actually see grass in some places already.

Last week was one of the better weeks of training I've had this year. I'm not quite up to the mileage I'd like yet, but I'm moving in the right direction. I took Wednesday off as a result of fasting for Ash Wednesday and Friday was a very easy day because I was feeling tired. The other days were solid.

I was searching and found another possible goal race in my time frame: The Parks Half Marathon. I ran it a few years ago, and other than the fact that I got there a little late and had to hustle to pick up my number and get to the start, it was a good race.

Getting Back to Normal

Now that the snow has stopped, it's time to get back to my regular training schedule. Between the storms and sickness and general laziness, I didn't run much last week. The roads have been plowed and there's enough space to run that I don't feel like I'm going to be hit by a car every time one drives by. Plus I've been using a headlamp my wife gave me to both help cars see me as well as see any icy patches. I had a great run Monday, really feeling like I was rolling on the second half.

I'm looking at running either the new Woodrow Wilson half marathon or the Army 10-miler this fall. I've run the Army race in the past and like it, but I'm always concerned about the size of the field. The half marathon is smaller, but $70 seems a little steep. Maybe there's another race around that time I'm just not aware of yet.

Snow!

We had quite the storm this past weekend. This was the view from my window Saturday morning.

I spent a few hours Saturday afternoon shoveling. Sunday was sunny and the boys had fun outside.

Good thing we had the big trucks to clear the snow.


I didn't get any running in over the weekend. Between the snow shoveling and a sick wife, there wasn't time. Monday morning I ran, and then I got sick Monday night. I'm feeling better now but completely over it. Good thing work has been cancelled the past two days. And we're supposed to get more snow tonight! I may get the whole week off the way things are going.

Sick

I've had a little cold for a few weeks now. First it was a cough, and then that got better and I thought I was over it. Now it's become a stuffy nose. It's not severe at all, it's just dragged on for quite a while. I hasn't hurt my running and in fact the last few days I've run a little longer. My wife has questioned on a couple occasions why I don't just take a few days off and sleep in and see if that helps. I'm hesitant to do that because first, it's not that bad, and second, because I've got myself into a nice routine and I don't want to take time off for fear that I'll mess it up. So unless it gets worse, I don't want to stop the good thing I've finally got going.

We got a few more inches of snow last night. With the snow in the trees this morning's run was beautiful. There's a chance of another big storm this weekend. Partially I look forward to it and partially I know it will be so disruptive I hope we don't get too much. All I can do is wait and see.

A Little Workout

I've been a little antsy to run fast lately, so this morning I ran a "workout." I ran over to the middle school and ran a brief fartlek workout on the soccer field. I alternated a lap hard with a lap easy for eight laps. It was not hard at all, but it felt good to get the legs moving a little.

Why did I run the workout on the soccer field? I watched a video last week on Flotrack that featured some athletes in the Nike Oregon program doing a workout on grass. It seemed like a good idea, so I tried it. You get the benefits of running fast without the pounding you'd take on the road.

Update

This weekend has gone by way too fast. Is it too much to ask for another Saturday and Sunday? I'm not looking forward to going back to work tomorrow--I know this week is going to be hectic.

Training went well this week. Having a tired wife who wanted to go to bed early helped. I'm running about 45 minutes a day now, and I want to add in an extra 15 minutes per day over the next week or two.

I still don't have any definite racing plans. I'm thinking about the Army 10 Miler as a goal race, though.

Three-Day Weekend

I finally took my first day off in 2010 this weekend. I was out late Friday with friends, and slept in Saturday morning. I was just unable to get myself out of bed before my wife left, and then with the kids and a house there's just too much else to do on a Saturday to run any other time than the first thing in the morning.

Sunday and Monday's runs were good. I want to get up to running an hour a day and then begin some tempo and fartlek work. After running Monday morning, the kids and wife and I went to IHOP for breakfast. It's become something of a tradition to go out for breakfast on federal holidays. Plus, we had some gift cards from Christmas we hadn't used yet.

Update

There's not too much going on with my running at the moment. I'm getting out the door each morning, getting consistent as I think about building up the daily mileage. I'm working on putting together a plan for the year. I don't think I want to run a marathon, so I'm going to try and find some shorter distance races and maybe a half-marathon this fall.

I'm sure everyone's seen the destruction in Haiti by now. I have a friend who has some family there. They're ok, but can't get out of the country. I was also glad to hear that the kids at an orphanage run by two women from Pittsburgh will be able to come to the US.

Hunger

One way that I know I've been running is my appetite. I certainly feel more hungry and am eating more than I was a month ago when I wasn't running much.

The weekend was pretty good. I had a good run Saturday morning, and just a short run Sunday morning. I was up late Sunday night, so I just ran for half an hour this morning. It's amazing how much different it feels without the wind. This morning was probably the coldest temperature-wise, but without the wind it was much more bearable.

We took the Christmas tree and decorations down this weekend too. Our living room and front yard are so empty.

New Snow

Last night we received a dusting of snow. I've always loved running in the snow, and had a great time this morning as I made footprints on the sidewalks.

Thus far I've run every day in 2010. I don't expect to run every day this year, but a week and a day of consistency is nice since I don't think I had that for the majority of last year.

I've been slacking off on my core exercises this week. Last week I did well, but this week I've been lazy.

Winter Weather

I've lived in Virginia for seven-and-a-half years now, and this is the longest stretch of cold weather I can remember. It's been colder before, it just hasn't remained cold for this long before. It reminds me a lot of winter in Pittsburgh.

In addition to the cold, this weekend featured 30 to 40 mile per hour winds as well. Running into the wind felt like standing still at times. Saturday and Sunday I ran for about 40 minutes.

This morning was cold, but at least the wind had died down. Like the past two days, I ran for 40 minutes. Now it's time to finish up work, and since the wind has lessened when I get home I can fix the Christmas decorations that were blown out of place.

New Year

I'm not a big fan of new year's resolutions. It's not because I don't like resolutions, but rather I think the new year is an arbitrary date and could just as easily be replaced by July 24. That being said, it's the first day of 2010 and I'm writing in my blog again. This year, I resolve to write on a regular basis. We'll see how long that lasts.

I started of my new year with an easy half hour run. I'm still trying to get consistency back into my running. I don't have any concrete plans for 2010 yet, but I'm fairly certain I won't be running a marathon this year.

I hope everyone has a happy new year!