October 09 - October 15

Weekly Totals ~ Time: 2:26:04 Distance: 18.40 mi. Vertical: 1,154 ft.

Weekly Averages ~ Time: 0:36:31 Distance: 4.60 mi. Vertical: 289 ft.

Recovery week's are great when they coexist with colds. Not that I enjoy colds, but they are much easier to handle when running takes a lower priority. Sometime last week, most notably, after my 17-miler (3:20:XX) in the woods of Cougar Mtn., I took on not just leg fatigue, but a cold. Bronchitis-ish. The cold forced an unplanned rest day last week, and this week I've been thankful to not have to force a run. I've stuck to the roads this week, for the most part, just to encourage the mental change between trail and asphalt because I've decided to run the Poulsbo Marathon on Sunday. I'll be running it just as a training run, so I'll have my pack, camera, and won't be looking to set any course records. Honestly, from a spectators standpoint, I just think that's going to be funny to see. That's my life, though. I'm not ashamed. Here are some pics from a 17 miler last week: (Figure I owe it to the blog for being lazy and not posting any lately)

Phil's Creek Trail. Shaky video. Sorry.

It's interesting going into a 'race' this way. Mentally I'm sort of nervous, but mostly not. I'm excited, but know that the true battle will be in controlling my urge to race. Running races as training runs have huge benefits come race day. The anxiety is much the same, the preparation is very similar, but the stress and fatigue of the race isn't as draining because you're not pushing the envelope. Using races as training runs keeps things fresh, allows for training analysis, and can be a jump start for extra motivation in the final weeks leading up to a goal race.

Sunday, October 09 ~ Off Day
Time: n/a
Distance: n/a
Vertical: n/a


Monday, October 10 ~ Lake Boren Out-&-Back (Road)
Time: 0:39:08
Distance: 5.01 mi.
Vertical: 377 ft.

Recovery/Base Run. An easy run, today, in anticipation of tomorrow's Long Run. Stretched for 30 minutes pre-run and 30 minutes post-run. It's a recovery week, so I'll try -once again- to implement a more routine stretching program. Average heart rate was a little higher than what I'd like to see, but not over the top.



Tuesday, October 11 ~ It was raining. It's my recovery week, no way am I going out there.
Time: n/a
Distance: n/a
Vertical: n/a

Wednesday, October 12 ~ 'Round the Hood (Road) / Work to Home Run Commute (Road)

Run #1	Run #2
Time: 0:24:30	Time: 0:22:33
Distance: 3.10 mi.	Distance: 2.63 mi.
Vertical: 100 ft.	Vertical: 404 ft.

Run #1:
Recovery Run. Street sounds, today: cars, wind, foot steps, and a guy that passed me twice boasting how happy he was to see me, as he said, "the man with the perfect legs." Whatever his intentions I'll take it as a compliment. I could definitely tell I didn't do shit yesterday, legs were a tad uncoordinated. Cough is still lingering, and the heart rate is still higher than normal, so I think I still have a cold.

Run #2:
Recovery Run. Commuted home, by foot, tonight. Felt great. Temp was cool (54 F), and the post-work run is definitely something to add into the schedule. Right calf has an annoyed feeling, no concern, just noteworthy.



Thursday, October 13 ~ Off day
Time: n/a
Distance: n/a
Vertical: n/a

Friday, October 14 ~ Newport Hills Park
Time: 0:59:54
Distance: 7.66 mi.
Vertical: 273 ft.

Base Run. Tested out the new Evoskin by Inov-8, today. I hated the feel of the Vibram FiveFingers, but I've always lived by the mantra, "try anything once," and I've got to admit the molded silicone casing that Inov-8 uses for their 'barefoot shoe' is by far the new mark to meet, in my opinion. Ran a total of 4.5 miles mixed between AstroTurf and grass.



Saturday, October 15 ~ Stretched, but no running. Marathon tomorrow!
Time: n/a
Distance: n/a
Vertical: n/a