Start to Finish

Cross Timbers "Race" Report

2011-02-20T08:56:00.000-08:00

I finished the Cross Timbers Trail Marathon yesterday in over 6 hours. The first half of the race went wonderfully, hitting the halfway point in 2:45 with plenty of energy. I ran with an older gentleman named Mack from Vicksburg, Mississippi and a guy named Paul from Fort Worth. Both were very experienced runners and it was great hearing about the various races they had run.

The primary mistakes I made in the first half all had to do with nutrition and hydration. I had hoped that I could use the race to practice eating from the aid stations and drinking whatever electrolyte drink they had on hand. I spent hours walking on the trail lamenting the fact that I tried to use a race on a hot day to practice nutrition and hydration. At the 3:45 point in the race my stomach locked up and I couldn't keep anything down. Mack and Paul left me behind and the vomiting began. I threw up a few times but tried to keep running. Finally, my stomach completely emptied what appeared to be all the liquids I had consumed so far in the day. Not only was my stomach queesy, but the heat started taking it's toll. I couldn't even keep water down at this point so I became very dehydrated and considered dropping out at the last aid station. I had never been this dehydrated before and it was a very odd feeling. I poured a bunch of water over my head at the last aid station (2.5 miles from finish) and the water that ran down my face was saturated in all the salt I had lost. I felt very defeated at this point because my stomach felt terrible, my head hurt and I had zero energy. I kept thinking that there's no way I'd every be able to particpate in ultra events if I couldn't even finish a trail marathon. I also remembered reading online about some pretty epic failures other runners have had and the only way to get over the bad days is to focus on lessons learned and apply this knowledge in the future. I don't have a choice but to look at it this way since I've already signed up for the Grasslands trail marathon next month.

Lessons learned:
1) I haven't practiced eating real food enough and should stick to gels or shot bloks during races
2) Stick to water rather than Heed or whatever else they are serving (also need to practice with electrolyte tablets to replace sodium)
3) Take it easier than usual when temps get over 70.

Cross Timbers trail is a relatively difficult trail and makes Northshore seem flat as a pancake. There are a few sections that you have to climb/descend using your hands to navigate the terrain. The first 6 miles are definitely the most difficult and take a great deal out of you. The race is out-and-back so you get to cover this section twice. I was worried the course would be muddy from all the snow and ice from the weeks beforehand. Apparently the heat we had in the days leading up to the race dried everything out, so footing wasn't a problem. I'm very impressed by the 20 or so runners who participated in the 50 mile event out there. It'll be a while before I would consider trying 50 miles out there, especially in those temperatures.

My feet were uncomfortable during the last few hours, but no blisters formed and I didn't have any issues with toenails. Next race I need to use a little more Bodyglide on my feed just to be safe. New Mizuno running shirt kept me pretty cool and dry during the hottest part of the run.

While I spent many hours yesterday cursing the course, I'd definitely like to run the marathon there again sometime.

Cross Timbers Trail Run

2011-01-29T09:06:00.000-08:00

I recently signed up for the Cross Timbers Trail Run which takes place on February 19 on the shores of Lake Texoma (the Texas side of course). I participated in a practice run last weekend on the trail and found it to be much more difficult than expected. I finished 20 miles in just under 4 hours. The practice run provided me with an appreciation for the difficulty of running this particular trail as well as trashed quads (took 5 days to fully recover).

I finished a second 20-miler this morning and will be tapering over the next couple of weeks. My training has only been consistent for about 6 weeks so I fully anticipate struggling through the race. I placed this early marathon on my race calendar in an attempt to get motivated and increase the consistency of my training - it seems to have worked.

Cross Timbers provides 50 mile, marathon, half marathon, and 5 mile race options. It's historically been a small race but has received favorable reviews. I'll be running the marathon. Trail marathons by nature are more difficult and time consuming than street marathons. That is especially true of races like Cross Timbers that take place on relatively technical courses with considerable elevation gain/loss. CT Marathon has over 5,000 feet of elevation gain/loss. With all that said, my primary goal is to simply finish the race without sustaining a terrible injury caused by falling down one of the steep drops. My secondary goal would be to finish in the 5:15 - 5:30 range. Looking at last year's finishing times, that what I would need to finish in the top half of participants. A reasonable finish should propel me toward a few weeks of consistent training leading up to Grasslands in March.

Rockledge Rumble

2010-06-14T08:08:00.000-07:00

In order to get motivated and back into a running schedule, I've decided to run the Rockledge Rumble on November 13th. It's a 50k trail race held at Lake Grapevine on the North Shore Trail. I chose this race as my first ultramarathon because its relatively short (31 miles is considered the minimum distance for an ultra - most are 50 or 100 miles) and is held on the trails very close to my house that I'm able to run on a few times each month. From everything I've read, there are huge benefits to running your first ultramarathon near home and in a familiar area. I'll have to get the most out of every week between now and then in order to finish the race. I feel like I'm starting from scratch and wasted all the endurance I developed during 2008.

OHT Section 2

2010-06-14T07:45:00.000-07:00

From May 21st - 23rd we (EA, Keaton, Keith, Seth) hiked the second section of the OHT. This section began at White Rock Mountain and traveled east to Cherry Bend Road. The section covered about 20 miles and included a considerable amount of elevation gain. Whiting mountain was the largest climb and increased in elevation over a pretty short distance. As with our last trip, we spent only one night out on the trail.

The parts of the trip that really stand out to me were the extremely dense jungle sections (probably b/c I'm sure that's where I picked up the bulk of my poison ivy), the bushwacking we had to do in order to get up Whiting Mountain, and the time we spent eating and relaxing at Fane's Creek. As with the first trip, my favorite part was hanging out by the water while filling water bottles and eating lunch. Having a few cups of coffee after lunch definitely didn't hurt. Having an opportunity to wash off the dirt and cool off in the river rejuvenated the group and prepared us for the remainder of the day's hike.

We finished the hike late in the day on Saturday and stayed the night at a large campsite across the street from the Turner Bend Store. We were all able to shower and change into clean clothes. Unfortunately, there were a number of loud, drunk idiots staying at the campgrounds which prevented us from getting decent sleep before the long drive home on Sunday.

Gear:
I used my new Osprey Aether 70 (which was about half full) and carried everything comfortably. I had no discomfort on the trail and am extremely happy with the pack. Because of the warm weather, we were able to make the trip without sleeping bags, which had a significant impact on our pack weight (I think my bag is just over 3 pounds). I wore my Salomon XT Wings and had comfortable and mostly dry feet the entire trip. I got a little wet on one crossing, but the shoes dried quickly and a change of socks did the trick. Keith and I utilized our new Steripen and Pioneer Pro water filtration system with great success. Our water tasted much better than when we used the iodine pills. We cooked with an old aluminum pot of Keith's and the MSR SuperFly stove, which worked well. My menu consisted of Starkist tuna packets, tortillas, ramen noodles, oatmeal, trail mix, and Clif bars.

Lessons Learned from my second trip:
1. Wear Pants. World Record case of poison ivy.
2. Coffee on the trail is a great luxury. I'm glad Keith invested in a coffee press.
3. Water is still really heavy.
4. Taking a bach in a river at the midway point enhances everyone's mood.
5. Hiking is great for weight loss when you don't eat three meals at the Swinging Bridge Cafe and carry too much food.

Ozark Highland Trail Section 1

2010-06-14T05:21:00.000-07:00

I believe I've officially become a hiker. To date, I've hiked approximately 40 miles of the Ozark Highland Trail in Arkansas. The trail stretches 165 miles from Lake Fort Smith State Park to the eastern boundry at the Buffalo River State Park. I hiked the first leg of the trail last fall over a three day weekend. We hiked from Lake Fort Smith State Park to the top of White Rock "Mountain". This 19 mile section proved difficult for the group - EA Hoppe, Keaton Hoppe, Keith Reasons, and myself. All of us were out of shape and carried too much in our packs. Although, my pack was relatively light b/c I was carrying a small Kelty Redwing and Keith carried the tent we were sharing. It's more typical to share weight on items you're both intending to use.

We ended up hiking about 7 miles on the first day and 13 on the second. In hindsight, we should have done a better job of splitting the mileages especially given the climb up White Rock on the second day.

Gear:
I carried my small Kelty Redwing. It was relatively comfortable and I ended up with none of the hip soreness I expected. I wore a pair of old running shoes rather than purchasing hiking boots. I'm sure having such light weight shoes helped me finish the section comfortable, but the lack of water resistance continually worried me on the trail. We had a number of small water crossings that took me a while to get through due to fear of getting my feet wet. We borrowed a cookset from Keaton that used propane and worked well for oatmeal and ramen noodles. The rest of my menu consisted of Starkist tuna packets, tortillas, trail mix, fruit bars, and Clif bars. My Marmot Neverwinter sleeping bag worked extremely well as did the MSR sleep pad. I used a stuff sack with clothes for a pillow.

Lessons learned from my first hiking trip
1. Water is freaking heavy. 2.2 pounds per liter is no joke.
2. Spend time analyzing your food choices to find the right balance of calories and weight. I ended up bringing too much food - especially since we at at the Swinging Bridge Cafe three times.
3. I can't sleep well in the woods even on my relatively comfortable inflatable pad.
4. Iodine pills make your water taste terrible.
5. Don't pack something unless you know it will be used. B/c it was going to be chilly at night I packed too much clothing.
6. The OHT is a great trail that is extremely well marked. We didn't get lost once.

Race Results

2010-03-25T19:04:00.000-07:00

Results of the Grassland run were just posted. I finished in 3:03:00. That's terribly far from my Personal Record of 1:38:00, but is a time I'm proud of due to the conditions on that day. I finished 47th out of 139 participants. There were 280 people signed up to participate which means half the field was too chicken to participate in the mud run. I look forward to participating in the event next year (marathon hopefully), assuming its dry and warm.

Muddy and Bloody

2010-03-20T17:25:00.000-07:00

Today (March 20, 2010) I ran my first trail race - the Grasslands Half Marathon. The race takes place on horse trails in the Caddo-LBJ National park north of Decatur, TX. The event is sponsored by the North Texas Trail Runners and they offer half marathon, marathon, and 50 mile races.

The weather was awesome leading up to the race - highs in the 70s with lows in the upper 40s and 50s. Of course this type of weather was too good to be true and a cold front blew in Friday night with a good dose of rain. When I awoke on Saturday morning, it was around 40 degrees, windy and raining. I had emailed the race director on Friday afternoon to see if there was a chance the event was rained out. I never heard back so I assumed the race was going to take place regardless of the weather - which is what I figured given that so many trail runners and events pride themselves on being tough (you need to be if you're going to run 50 or 100 miles in a day).

I packed a bag of different clothing options because I wasn't sure what the weather would be like up in Decatur and what condition the trail would be in. I definitely planned to bring my semi-new trail running shoes (Salomon XT Wings - which have given me a blister on my last two runs). The rain was coming down pretty hard the entire hour and fifteen minute drive to Decatur. As I entered the camping area where the race was to start my question about the event being cancelled was answered for certain when I saw some of the 50 mile runners out on the course (their event started at 7:00 and mine started at 8:30). I parked my car in the campground and followed everyone else to the check-in area. It was freezing and the dirt/gravel road I parked on was complete slush, which did not bode well for the dirt trail we were to run on. The rain had slowed, but hadn't completely stopped. I waited in line until the volunteers passed me a race bib (#506) and my awesome Patagonia race shirt.

I warmed up in the car for a few minutes and tried to figure out what I'd wear. Once I'd done that, I geared up and headed to the start area. There were 280 registered participants and I believe about 100 showed up, no doubt due to weather. In hindsight, I can't say I blame them. The race director gave us our instructions regarding directions and trail conditions and the group was off. After talking to a few people at the race start I was happy to learn that I wasn't the only beginner. There were quite a few actually. Everyone tiptoed through the first muddy section and through the first half mile even. That's where we had our first water crossing. So, 10 minutes in and my feet were soaking wet. No tiptoeing after that.

The trail was even muddier than I could have imagined. My shoes were weighed down with water and mud and I slipped and slid through the first four miles. At one point we had a major log jam due to a pretty steep incline. All the runners were forced to climb up a hill using feet and hands in order to keep from sliding back and taking out other runners. At the four mile point the race volunteers had set up the first of two aid stations. They were stocked with sports drinks and random foods like pretzels, fig newtons, and bananas. Half marathons don't usually carry these types of foods, but our 13.5 mile loop was a part of the marathon and 50 mile course. I just drank water and rested with a small group of runners. One woman, who appeared to be an experienced runner, stated that was the toughest four miles she had ever run. I didn't doubt it. At times it felt more like cross country skiing (or what I imagine cross country skiing would be like). I had carried a second pair of socks but decided not to change them b/c people would think I'm an idiot for changing socks when they'd just get wet and muddy like the ones I'd be taking off. I had a small cup of water and headed out.

It was tough to look up from the trail long enough to get a good look of the grasslands. There wasn't a great deal of high grass as I imagined, it was mostly mud, a bit of grass, and knarly trees with no leaves. I thought the next aid station was 4 more miles away. Turns out it was about 6. This spacing normally wouldn't have been a problem, but the pace was so slow (a function of the trail conditions) that I was getting hungry and thirsty. It was between the aid stations that I followed a group through a wrong turn. Fortunately one of them realized the mistake and we all turned around after running about a quarter mile off track. When we got back we had to fall in line with a bunch of runners we already passed. Passing was difficult because there is usually only enough room on the side of the trail with decent footing for one person. Generally, we were always in single file constantly looking down for decent footing. We were rarely able to run in the middle of the trail and were forced to run on the edges. This was a problem because the edges were rarely flat and they were often lined with thorn bushes or other scratching plants. I was one of the few not wearing tights so I received my share of bloody scratches. I'm actually glad I didn't wear the tights because they undoubtedly would have been torn. After 6 more miles I finally made it to the second aid station. This time I decided to eat some food b/c I'd been tired and hungry. I ate a few pretzels and some Oreos. An old guy volunteering at the aid station looked at my legs and said, "Muddy and bloody, that's the only way to go."

Shortly after leaving the aid station I decided I needed to change socks. The pair I was wearing were shorter than the tops of my shoes and there was a large bloody spot on my right achilles. I knew the socks I was carrying would do a better job covering the area. I felt like a million bucks after changing socks. Of couse it only lasted a minute because I stepped in a muddy puddle shortly afterward. After a couple miles we were running parallel to the road we rode in on so I knew I was almost to the end. I didn't wear a watch, but I'd bet the last mile was my fastest. At this point I began passing people who where taking long walk breaks. It felt good to have something left in the tank after such a long, difficult run. I got ahead of myself at one point and lost my balance. Well, I lost my balance a hundred times today, but this time I fell. No harm done, just popped back up and kept running. I didn't wear a watch and the clock at the finish line was set for the marathoners, so I don't actually know what time I ran. It'll be posted online in a week or so.

All in all I really enjoyed my first trail race. It was definitely the second most difficult run I've done so far (White Rock being the first). I'm proud to have finished the long, muddy, and bloody event.

Run Commute

2009-12-21T12:36:00.000-08:00

On December 16, I ran to/from work for the first time. I took my clothes and toiletries to the office on Tuesday so that I didn't have to carry much with me. I used my new GoLite Rush backpack to carry the few items that I needed, inluding my breakfast, keys, wallet and phone. I've used the backpack/hydration pack three times and so far it is relatively comfortable to run with.

The run to work was about 3.85 miles and the run home was about 3.75 miles. There are good sidewalks most of the way - but crossing Interstate 35 is a bit tricky.

Turkey Trot

2009-12-03T07:48:00.000-08:00

I ran in my third straight Dallas YMCA Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving Day. Even though I'm terribly out of shape my ego wouldn't let me run anything less than the 8-mile race. This year they had an official 5k rather than the usual 3-mile run, but that event is so extremely packed that running isn't really an option. And because the events start at the same time, you pretty much have to walk/jog the first two miles of the 8-miler as well.

The Turkey Trot has become my favorite holiday tradition and I've already started working on Paige to run with me next year. I have a year, so hopefully I can make this happen. Due to my lack of fitness, I decided to run with no time goal in mind and just enjoy the sights and sounds of the race. I kept a steady 9:30/mile pace and felt great the entire time and had no soreness afterward.

Additionally, the Trot has helped me build my motivation to get back to a steady running routine. 2009 has been a tough year as far as motivation is concerned. I strained my Iliotibial Band early in the year and put in few miles. I updated my running log over the weekend and was saddened by the extremely low numbers. I felt as though I wasted a year of running that could have lead to great improvement.

Year in Review (Running)

2009-01-07T10:44:00.001-08:00

This chart shows my running mileage by week throughout 2008. You can easily see the progressive increase in mileage as I went through marathon training.

This chart shows miles run each month. As you can see, I definitely blew it in December. I think this drop in mileage played a large part in my marathon performance.

My total mileage for the year was 1,564.2 miles. That's the equivalent of running from Dallas to New York City. That averages to right at 30 miles per week. That's not bad for a beginner, but is something I definitely plan to improve upon in 2009.

Marathon

2008-12-30T09:34:00.000-08:00

I completed the Dallas White Rock Marathon on December 14, 2008. I had a great deal of family support and want to especially thank Paige and Allie for their understanding and sacrifice during my 6 months of marathon training. The Tenery's were also in full effect that day. Thank you Jim, Jane, Chad, Jami, Scott, Kelly, Greer, Karlie and Annie for all your support and encouragement. I'd also like to thank Darryl and Marisol for making the long trip from Mexico to see me cross the finish line. Thank you to my friends Eugene Anthony Hoppe IV and Ashley for being there. Y'all are awesome for braving the windy conditions to meet me along the course and offer encouragement, water, and food.

Most people know by now that the race did not go as planned. I trained for and expected to come close to a 3:30:00 finish. My actual finishing time was 4:02:00 - a disappointment to say the least. Here were my splits:

Mile 1 - 8:39 Mile 2 - 7:46 Mile 3 - 7:48 Mile 4 - 7:44 Mile 5 - 7:49

Mile 6 - 7:49 Mile 7 - 7:56 Mile 8 - 7:51 Mile 9 - 7:51 Mile 10 - 7:55

Mile 11 - 8:12 Mile 12 - 7:55 Mile 13 - 8:12 Mile 14 - 8:08

Mile 15 - 9:04 Mile 16 - 9:22 Mile 17 - 9:31 Mile 18 - 9:33

Mile 19 - 9:19 Mile 20 - 10:57 Mile 21 - 10:28 Mile 22 - 10:59

Mile 23 - 10: 23 Mile 24 - 12:20 Mile 25 - 13:20

Mile 26 - 10:22 Mile 26.58 - 13:05

Total - 4:04:41 (I walked around at the end for a few minutes before turning off my Garmin)

I began to slow at mile 15 and during the next 3-4 miles the wheels completely came off. During this time, I began experiencing numerous muscle cramps. These included both calves, left quadricepts, and right groin. The left calf and quad were by far the most severe. Each completely seized up on numerous occassions causing me to stop and massage until the cramp ceased.

There are a number of important lessons I learned about racing, training, and myself during this experience.

1. I like running marathons and plan to continue running. Marathons are long, and so is the time it takes to improve marathon performance. I plan to be conservative and not race another marathon until the fall/winter of 2009. Between now and then I'd like to increase mileage while introducing cross-training (weights and biking).

2. 60 degree temperatures and 25-35 mph wind is not optimal marathoning weather. Because this was my first marathon I never would have considered not running, but in the future I will consider sitting out and signing up for a different event so as not to waste the 6 months of training on a sub-par performance. Given that not running was not an option, I should have significantly changed my goals. To achieve my 3:30:00 goal, I needed to average 8:00 min/mile. Looking at my splits, I definitely went out way to fast - even if conditions had been perfect. In hindsight, I should have shot for 9:00 min/mile for at least the first half of the race.

3. Traveling out of town prior to the race is not a good idea. I spent 5 days in Washington, D.C. prior to the race. I spent too much time on my feet and ran few quality miles.

4. Keep training hard during the last month prior to the race. My peak weeks were behind me at this point so I began to relax mentally. This lead to more days off than I should have taken. Next time I plan to keep to my schedule much more closely during this important time.

5. Follow a detailed nutrition plan during the last week of training to ensure proper nutrition and hydration during the race. I simply winged it and feel that this is too important not to take seriously.

Achilles

2008-12-06T17:10:00.000-08:00

Last Monday I stretched my left achilles tendon too strongly and strained it. Since Monday I've only run twice for a total of 6 miles. This is not good. I'm not overreacting, but I really don't want to end up dragging my left leg behind me for 26.2 miles - which I'll do if I have to.

It doesn't exactly hurt, but after about 4 miles it starts feeling pretty uncomfortable. I've really hesitant to try again. I am scheduled to run 12 miles tomorrow and hope it goes well. If not, I'm in trouble.

Two Oh

2008-09-28T19:08:00.000-07:00

I ran my first twenty miler on Saturday (9-27-08). I finished in a little over 2:58:00, which was what I expected. I ran west on 3040 until it ended at Main St/1171. The part of the route that was more rural made for a nice change of pace. I remember feeling awesome through about 13 miles. After that, it became more like work. At about 18.5 miles my right achilles began to tighten up. It's still a little sore today, but hopefully it will not affect my 9 miler tomorrow.

Fortunately, my arch only ached a little and my knees held up real well. I also think my stomach is getting better at handling the gels I've been eating during the run. Drinking enough water is still difficult.

During the last 5 miles I kept thinking how much of a genious Pete Pfitzinger is. He's the author of the book and I'm using to train. While running 20 miles is never easy, I was amazed at how doable it was. Following the schedules outlined in Pfitz's book, Advanced Marathoning, has helped me know when, how far, and how fast I should run on a given day. All I have to do is get out of bed and get it done. Which is easier some days than others.

Surviving this run has given me a lot of confidence that I'll reach my goals at White Rock.

August - 196

2008-09-08T09:23:00.000-07:00

I ran 196 miles in August. By far my most productive month. Just as in July, my only ailment is my right foot. It aches badly when I get up in the morning, but the pain subsides very quickly once I walk around. It hasn't hindered me at all while running. I keep telling myself the pain isn't caused by stress fractures b/c my assumption would be that pain associated with stress fractures wouldn't subside once I become active. I do not plan to go to a doctor until the pain is present when I run.

Other than running, life is going well. Work is difficult at times but Allie and Paige help me through it. Thank God for them.

July 2008

2008-07-30T08:00:00.000-07:00

Despite it being hotter than hell this month, I was able to log 140 miles. This is the second most miles I've logged in a single month - January 2008 being the highest at 160. Given that I fell apart physically in February and March, I'm anxious to see how the next few weeks will go. I'm experiencing minor aches and pains, but nothing serious. Mostly, I'm dealing with a sore right arch on my foot and achy knees. Fortunately, my hips are holding up to the increased mileage.

Last night I decided to re-dedicate myself to slowly losing about 10 more pounds over the next 4 months. That'll put me at about 174 pounds on race day. If I happened to get any lower than that I might just start out running with the Kenyans and Ethopians up front. I created an Excel spreadsheet this morning to help with counting calories. This method should ensure that I don't eat too many or, just as importantly, too few calories.

I ended up purchasing about a year's worth of shoes this month. Generally, runners are very particular about their shoes, so when you find one you like its a good idea to buy in bulk. I found great deals online and purchased four pairs of New Balance 768s.

I also registered for the White Rock Marathon taking place on December 14 in Dallas. Jeff Christ planned to run Houston in January, but the event sold out quickly. I didn't want that to happen to me so I went ahead and paid the $107 to get registered.

Tagged

2008-07-14T11:40:00.000-07:00

I was tagged by a fellow Runner's World Forumite to list 6 random things about myself.

1. I dream daily about taking a trip to Europe - I've never been.
2. My favorite color is green (Kelly Green to be exact).
3. I have two brothers that live in Ireland (they're awesome kids).
4. I played organized baseball from the time I was 5 years old all the way through high school.
5. I plan to run (and hopefully survive) the Dallas White Rock Marathon on December 14, 2008.
6. My favorite television show of all time is Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO).

Marathon Prep

2008-06-11T13:42:00.000-07:00

I'm set to begin marathon preparation at the end of June. I've got a day planner in which every run I'll be doing over the 24 weeks of training is written down . I enjoy having the ability to look at any given day and know exactly how far and fast (speed is relative of course) I'm supposed to run. The structure will keep me from making excuses and needlessly moving workouts around - which I do now when I don't want to get out of bed.

Every book, magazine, and website I've read states that first time marathoners should not worry about a time goal. For me, the time goal is a large motivational factor. With that being the case, I've set three seperate goals. One for the best case scenario - perfect weather, great night sleep beforehand, no nagging injuries - which is a 3:30 finish time. My fallback time goals are 3:45 and 4:00. 3:30 is a pretty lofty goal, especially given my history of minor nagging injuries (foot and hip) and lack of experience running 26.2 miles at one time.

I'm using the month of June to increase the consistency of my runs. Over the past few months I've only averaged about 25 miles a week and didn't always get in a decent long run. This month I've structured each week similar to the first week of the official training program. This should help me make it through the first few weeks of marathon training a little easier.

Still in Austin

2008-05-06T13:59:00.001-07:00

Today was my second day of running in Austin. I ran along the hike/bike trial parallel to the river on the south side of town. I ran east until the trail seemed to end (in the ghetto). Then, I ran back to the hotel using Cesar Chavez Blvd. It was an interesting run that allowed me to get a closer look at a part of the city that few people choose to visit. I ended up only running 4 miles according to mapmyrun.com. I plan to get in another decent run this evening to make up the distance I missed.

I've been eating so poorly on the trip that I've taken to riding a stationary bike in the hotel workout room before bed. It allows me to sleep a little better knowing that I worked off some of the guacamole that I consumed.

Austin

2008-05-05T07:27:00.000-07:00

I'm in Austin this week for a bus conference. I flew in on Sunday, the 4th, and will be flying out Wednesday afternoon. Before leaving, I decided that I would work hard to get plenty of sleep, eat right, and run during the conference. I usually fail to do all three. Last night I went to bed at about 9:30 - which was a good start. I woke up at 6:00 this morning and headed out for a run.

Unfortunately, my Garmin died about 5 minutes into the run. Somehow the battery went out even though I had charged it for several hours over the weekend in preparation for my trip. I was pretty unhappy at first, but decided to make the best of it.

My hotel is on the southern end of downtown near the convention center (4th and San Jacinto - Residence Inn). I ran north up San Jacinto/Congress toward the Capital building and UT. I enjoyed running through the campus. It was pretty dead at this time of the morning, which I appreciated b/c running in traffic is not much fun. Generally speaking the campus is pretty nice. Much different than Harding, but it has a lot of character for a university of its size (50,000 students I think).

Running around the Capital was fun also. Its a pretty awesome building that puts many other state capitals to shame. After circling the capital, I ran west on 6th street in order to check out REI and the shopping center on the west side of downtown. Of course REI was closed, but I wanted to make sure I knew where it was b/c I plan to head back there during the trip.

After visiting REI, I headed back to the hotel. Fortunately, the hotel has a hot contentinental breakfast and I sure made use of it. The Texas shaped waffles were awesome.

5K

2008-04-06T18:09:00.000-07:00

This Saturday I ran my first "race" since the White Rock Half. It was more of a "fun run" than a race. The event was sponsored by the Denton County Health Department as a way to increase the activity of citizens in Denton County. Being the good citizen that I am, naturally I wanted to participate. I also wanted to see how much faster I could run since I've been pain free and have lost weight since my first 5K last summer. Unfortunately, I didn't get an accurate 5k time. According to my Garmin the course was only 2.86 miles rather than the 3.1 which equals 5K. We also didn't wear timing chips so I wouldn't really have an official time even if the course was long enough. On the bright side, the event was a success in that there were a whole bunch of overweight people out there jogging and walking the course. Then they proceeded to eat their body weight in bananas, oranges, and free smoothies after the race.

One important lesson I learned is that I shouldn't eat before a 5K. I didn't throw up my breakfast, but if I had run all-out I think I might have. Even though I held back a little, I still ran decent times over the first two miles. 7:17 and 7:15 respectively. That's pretty darn quick for me. Especially considering my first 5K time was 25:48. I really think with a little speed training and no breakfast I could get close to a 21:00 5K. That would be something.

Other than the 5K running is slow going. I'm in a bit of a rut. I think I overtrained there for a while and my body began breaking down. After taking a break b/c of my foot, it's been tough getting in a groove. I'm going to run 6 miles after posting this. Hopefully that will begin a more productive week.Also - my daughter turns 2 years old in 11 days. That's nuts.

Tough Few Weeks

2008-03-10T08:22:00.000-07:00

The last three weeks have been tough. I haven't posted anything new b/c I have only been running off and on due to foot pain. The tendons on the top of my foot appear to be bruised, inflamed, or something along those lines. I went to the doctor and received an X-Ray that came back negative. Luckily, it's not a stress fracture but my frustration continues b/c my doctor doesn't know what caused the problem. He just directed me to a podiatrist.

During this down time I joined the recreation center near our house. I started lifting weights and riding the stationairy bike in order to stay in shape. While cross-training is a good thing and will benefit me in the long run, it wasn't what I wanted to do. I wanted to keep building mileage until I could "easily" run 50 miles a week. I've averaged 15 miles over the last two weeks with a few hours of bike riding. Most of those miles were run on the treadmill - which is ridiculously boring (as is the bike for that matter). Fortunately, I do enjoy lifting weights.

My plan is for this to be my first official week back. I ran 6 miles yesterday and four this morning. I'll need to rework my running schedule, but I should be able to get in at least 25 miles this week. Perhaps 30 if I can manage at least 10 miles on Saturday.

Freakin' Fifteen

2008-01-27T17:05:00.000-08:00

Saturday I completed a long week of running with a 15-mile run - my longest so far. The run went well and I finished strong. This week I made sure to eat more the night before and take a Gu Gel during my long run. Last week I ran 14-miles and was totally out of gas at the end. As I finished, I really felt that this was a major milestone that will help propel me toward the Marathon. Of course I still have a really long time until the White Rock Marathon, but if I can run 15 miles in January, there's not a doubt in my mind that I'll be able to run 26.2 miles in December.

My body held up decently to the 41 miles I ran this week. My knees are no more sore than usual and my hip isn't getting worse. I went in for an annual physical last week and found out that I have "minimal degenerative changes" in my left knee. Apparently that means I've got a mild case of arthritis. I was given the choice of an MRI or to continue taking Ibuprofen for a while to see if that reduces the inflammation in my knee and hip. I plan to take the Ibuprofen for a few months and as long as the pain doesn't get worse I'll hold off on the MRI. While my knees have bothered me since before college, this hip pain is new. I really can't even explain what it is, but my doctor and I assumed it was just inflammation. So far I've been able to handle the discomfort. Generally, it only hurts during the first quarter mile or so then it disappears completely. My doctor didn't say so, but I think continuing to lose weight and decreasing the strain on my joints will help a lot.

This coming week is a cut-back week. Every four weeks I take a break from increasing mileage and run fewer miles. I believe the shedule has me down for 32 miles. My overall running plan is to build up to 50 miles per week and run that amount consistently before adding speedwork. From everything I've read, its not a good idea to build mileage and include speed workouts at the same time. It greatly increases your chances of injury - which I desperately hope to avoid. If I can make it all year without a single overuse injury I would be very excited, and surprised.

This week I also decided to start counting calories - eaten and burned - to see if I could figure out why my weightloss had stopped. So far this has proved to be very beneficial. There for a while I fell into the practice of eating more than I should with the thought that I would run it off. Turns out I wasn't burning more than I was eating. Watching what I eat a little more closely allowed me to lose about 4 pounds this week.

Losing weight while trying to increase mileage is a bit tricky. I think 4 pounds in a week is excessive - I may have gotten carried away since this was my first week of adding everything up. I'll try to keep weightloss closer to 2 pounds per week over the next few months. That should bring my energy level back up and allow me to run more miles closer to 9 minute pace rather than 10 minute pace.

This thing has gotten long...Varner out.

P.s. You should run too, it's awesome.

Good Week

2008-01-12T13:46:00.000-08:00

A few hours ago I finished my fifth run of the week. I always run my "long run" on Saturday because I have the time to run and rest afterward. Today I ran 13 miles. My current schedule has me increasing weekly mileage but my long run won't go over 15 miles until I get closer to real marathon training. I'm hoping to get up to 45-50 miles per week over the next couple of months. I'm trying to take a very conservative approach to training to stave off injury. A friend of mine from church who is also a runner recently went to the doctor and is afraid he probably has stress fractures in his lower legs. That's definitely something I want to avoid if possible.

This week I ran 36.5 miles. That's my third straight week over 30 miles. I felt strong all week and really didn't have as much soreness as I'm used to. Of course today my knees are pretty sore after the long run.

I've done some research and am pretty sure that I've got a bit of patellar tendinitis. After running I usually have some discomfort in my lower knee. I've found a wealth of information on the internet regarding how to treat the tendinitis and hopefully it won't be on ongoing issue. I'm also going to the doctor next week for an annual check-up so hopefully he can give me more information on treatment. It was much worse when I was in college, so I'm confident I can handle it.

On another note, Paige bought Allie a "potty" today. We're not planning to start all out potty training, but its time to introduce her to the idea. I can't wait until she can wipe her own butt.

Year in Review

2008-01-04T09:02:00.000-08:00

According to my Runner's World running log, I ran 412.8 miles during the last 4 months of 2007. I began running in May but unfortunately didn't begin tracking miles until September. November and December were my most productive months - I ran 118 miles both months. Cumulatively I ran for 69:19:47, which is 2 days 21 hours. It sure felt like more than that. I realized yesterday that I ran just about every single mile on concrete - which is no bueno for the knees (which have been somewhat sore).

I ran three races throughout the course of 2007. One 5K, one relay (3.79 miles), and the half marathon. Lord willing, this will be the fewest races I'll run in a year.

I ended up reaching my goal weight of 200 pounds. I now have a revised goal weight of 185 (sounds ridiculous and unreachable to me), which I plan to discuss more when I post our 2008 goals and resolutions (if we ever get around to it).

Here are a few non-running events that took place:
1) Allie had her first birthday.
2) Paige and I celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary.
3) I completed my 3rd year in the "real world" as a DCTA employee.
4) We traveled to NYC and San Francisco.
5) Paige and I both turned 27

That's all I can think of at the moment. With Paige's assistance I'll add more later.

New Year Resolutions

2008-01-02T09:26:00.000-08:00

I've never really sat down and thought long and hard about making New Year Resolutions. I've never used this as a time to plan out my next year or set goals and developing a plan to reach those goals. Perhaps this year should be different. It may be a good idea to sit down with Paige and Allie and decide what short term goals we'd like to accomplish in 2008 an what we can do this year to move toward our long term goals. It may also be a good idea to evaluate our long term goals to see if we're on the same page as a family. I think Paige and I will easily agree on the long term goals, but the implementation is where we'll probably do some head-butting. Through my education and training in Public Administration I've really learned to value and "sweat" the implementation side of things. Its not enough to set a goal, you have to work out how you will reach that goal, and details are the key. I'm not generally a detailed oriented person, but I know that goals must be measureable and you must have a semi-specific plan as to how those goals will be accomplished. Otherwise, you end up with great goals, such as making more money, or becoming a better Christian without any idea as to how those goals will be accomplished on a periodic basis. In many cases, setting intermediate goals provides wonderful benefits. You're able to see your progress and with each intermediate goal that is accomplished, you're motivated to reach the next goal.

Paige forwarded me an email from our church, Prestoncrest, regarding an outreach campaign they are starting to help people read the Bible in 2008. Each day you get an email with verses from the Bible. If you read the emails every day, you will have read throught the Bible in one year. Its steps like this that help us achieve our goals. With each goal, you have to determine what you'll do on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis to further the achievement of that goal. Our annual goals aren't accomplished on December 31, they are accomplished bit by bit throughout the year. We have to make conscious efforts and base our daily decisions on those goals. Otherwise, they will be forgotten after the first week - which is generally the case with most Americans who make annual resolutions.

As Paige and I sit down and work through our plans for 2008, I'm sure we'll decide on many of the same goals or resolutions as most of the people I know (except the marathon thing). Where I hope we differ from most people will be the details we work on together that will help us accomplish those goals. It will undoubtedly be a challenge to follow the plan, and it may have to be amended here and there (afterall, plans aren't set in stone), but anything worth achieving is never easy.

The Half

2007-12-09T18:45:00.000-08:00

Today I ran my first Half Marathon. While it's only half the distance I plan to race in 2008, I definitely feel this is a major accomplishment. It's the culmination of almost eight months of work. The vast majority of my training runs were completed at around 9:30 or 10:00 min/mile pace. I managed to average under 9:00 min/mile pace for the Half. More importantly, managed to accomplish my goal of finishing under 2 hours (1:58:39 official chip time). I wore my Garmin during the race and found that I actually ended up running 13.31 miles due to all the weaving through traffic.

I didn't cross the start line until about 5 minutes after the official start. I wanted to be at the back of the pack in order to stay out of the crowd. This approach accomplished very little. There were so many walkers in front of me that I still ended up running all over the place trying to avoid people and maintain a decent pace. I haven't done the math, but I ran the second half of the race much faster than the first. This is primarily due to the fact that I ran slowly b/c of the crowds and because I felt really good after mile 7. Mile 13 ended up being my fastest mile - exactly 8:00.

I can't say how important Paige's support has been. She's been incredibly understanding and hasn't complained (much) about the great deal of time I've spent running over the past 8 months. Not to mention the money I've had to spend on shoes and clothes. Paige's parents have also been at my last two races and their support has made the events that much more fun. I'm hoping these types of events will continue as a regular part of Varner life.

According to my Garmin, here are my split times:

Mile 1 - 9:26

Mile 2 - 9:46

Mile 3 - 9:17

Mile 4 - 9:25

Mile 5 - 9:15

Mile 6 - 9:12

Mile 7 - 9:05

Mile 8 - 8:46

Mile 9 - 8:37

Mile 10 - 8:26

Mile 11 - 8:26

Mile 12 - 8:23

Mile 13 - 8:00

I plan to take tomorrow off and begin full marathon training on Tuesday. It should be an interesting year.

Last Long Run

2007-12-01T18:46:00.001-08:00

This evening I ran my last long run prior to the Half marathon next weekend. I ran 10 miles and felt pretty good. After not taking an ice bath after the 14-miler last week, I didn't make that mistake again. I'm hoping I can recoup quickly so there's no soreness during my shorter runs next week. I had some weird pain in my right leg during the first half mile of the run today. I definitely hope that isn't an ongoing injury b/c it didn't feel too good.

I haven't been too excited about running lately. I've been tired and don't think I'm getting enough sleep. I will definitely rest a lot this week and hit the hay early each night. Anticipation of the Half should get me back into the groove.

Rainy 14

2007-11-26T07:50:00.000-08:00

I was bound and determined to get my long run in this week. I was scheduled to run 14 miles on Saturday, but Paige and I ended up staying with her folks in Arlington all day. We got home Sunday afternoon and it was rainy and cold. I decided to wait until that evening to run in the hopes that the rain would subside. Unfortunately, it did not. Around 6:00 PM I decided to give it a shot. Afterall, it was only sprinkling. Sprinlking turned into rain and I was drenched after the first 7.5 miles (which is when I made my pit stop at the house). I was cold and wet, so I changed clothes. I could tell Paige was a little "peeved" b/c she thought I was being stubborn for running in the cold, rainy weather. Through the last 2 miles I was wet, cold, and achy - and I'm not afraid to admit I was a little chafed as well. While the run was hard, I felt great mentally afterward. I'm undoubtedly ready for the White Rock Half next month.

Bearded Turkey Trot

2007-11-26T07:27:00.000-08:00

The morning of Thanksgiving day I, along with 30,000 other folks, participated in the 40th Annual Dallas YMCA Turkey Trot. The 8 mile course wound through the southern end of downtown Dallas. The race began and ended at Dallas City Hall - which can be seen in the background of the picture I've included. Paige, Allie, and Paige's mom were nice enough to brave the cold weather and meet me at the end of the race. I thought the run went pretty well. My official finish time was 1:19:19 (9:55 per mile). Very acceptable given the fact that it included a quick visit to the Dallas Museum bathroom (the portapotty lines at the beginning of the race were ridiculous). I had intended to run the race with some friends from church, but the massive crowd prevented us from finding one another. I've dedicated the race to my beard.

Lucky 13

2007-11-04T19:32:00.001-08:00

The cool thing about training for a long distance race for the first time is that each week I get to run further than I ever have in my life. This Saturday I ran 13.1 miles. I ran the additional .1 because that's the exact distance of a half marathon - which I'll run officially on December 9th. I thought the run went well. I ran the majority of miles around 9:50 per mile, which is nothing to brag about. There are three major areas that I feel that I'll need to improve upon if I'm going to be a good runner. These are my weight, my speed (which will undoubtedly be impacted by weightloss) and my mental toughness. While I'm glad to have pinpointed these deficiencies, I also struggle with being patient and giving myself time to develop in these key areas. I guess we'll see how it goes.

100 Mile Month

2007-10-31T08:50:00.000-07:00

October marks the first month in which I ran 100 miles. I actually ended the month today with a 6 mile run that put my total at exactly 100 miles. The month included an 11 mile run and two twelve mile runs. The second of which went phenominally well. I felt like I could have "easily" run 15 that day, but decided to stick to the schedule and not get ahead of myself. I just checked my schedule (I'm following a personalized schedule I found on the Runner's World website) and found that I'm actually scheduled to run 141 miles in November. Should make for a long and productive month and get me ready for December 9th.

I'm also down to 205 pounds. I don't think I've put much in this journal about my weightloss (which was my sole goal when beginning this thing), but I'm currently down 35 pounds and feeling pretty good. While weightloss is still important, its become a bit of a secondary goal. The primary goal being to keep running races in an attempt to one day qualify for the Boston Marathon. Of course that goal is years away since I've yet to finish a single marathon, but hopefully it will keep me going.

Great Week

2007-10-22T14:40:00.000-07:00

I just finished up my best week of running so far. I capped off the 30 mile week on Sunday with my longest run to date - a 12 miler. I finished in 2:02:02, which I'm preatty happy with. I've got 7 full weeks until my half marathon and I think I'll be more than ready by then. I plan to get in some more speed workouts to hopefully bring my time down. I'd like to finish the half marathon under 2 hours but I've got a long way to go before that happens.

After my run on Sunday I took my first ice bath. Sitting in a tub full of cold icewater may not sound like fun, but after 12 long miles on the road it was pretty great. This probably sounds crazy to some, but ice baths are supposed to aid in muscle recovery. I really think it did the trick. I feel pretty good today and am only slightly sore in my calves and quads. I'll rest up today (fortunately my softball game was cancelled) and hit the road again tomorrow with a 4 mile run.

Besides speedwork, the other area of running I feel needs improvement is my mental focus. The last 2 miles of my long run weren't particulary hard on my body, but my mind was feeling pretty weak. I wasn't focused and let thoughts of quitting creap in. From everything I've read in books and the web, the mental preparation that takes place during long runs is just as important as the miles being run. Hopefully I can develop the ability to shut out those annoying thoughts and focus on the benefits of the long run.

Rock 'N Relay

2007-10-19T16:53:00.000-07:00

My second race was the Rock 'N Relay on September 30, 2007 starting at Winfrey Park in Dallas. I ran with three friends from church and one of their friends. I ran the first leg - which was 3.78 miles long and finished in 32:39, which I felt was acceptable. This was my first time to run near White Rock Lake. Its a great area for running and there were a lot of recreational runners and bikers out there that day.

Charlotte, North Carolina

2007-10-19T14:31:00.000-07:00

I recently spent five days in Charlotte for a public transportation conference (American Public Transportation Association Annual Meeting). These conferences are generally detrimental to diets and workout routines because there are innumerable receptions, dinners, and lunches - all of which are free and include all the booze you can consume. I'd like to note now that I didn't partake in a single sip of an alcoholic beverage, although my coworkers drinked their weight in alcohol during the week. Free food is undoubtedly my kryptonite. I was really determined to make this trip an exception. I planned on sticking to my running schedule and getting plenty of sleep.

I was scheduled to run 4 miles on Saturday, the day I flew in, but I decided to watch Texas get thumped by Zero U instead. Not a great start. I was scheduled to run my longest run to date on Sunday morning - 11 miles. The first problem was that I never got around to figuring out an 11 mile route on Google Earth. With no way of knowing how far I was running, I decided to just run for two hours. I had run 10 miles in 1:45 so I figured that two hours would get me close to 11 miles. The second problem I faced was the best way to stay hydrated. I decided to run by CVS and pick up a bottle of Gatorade during my run. Carrying a heavy bottle of Gatorade while running really sucked, but it did keep me from passing out.

I ran counter-clockwise around downtown about 4 times. I'm not used to running in a large city, so it took some getting used to. The intersections were pretty annoying and really slowed me down. There were some pretty substantial hills on the north side of town. My routes at home are nowhere near as hilly - so that was a good challenge.

I ran three easy miles on Monday to get the soreness out and another four miles on Tuesday. Charlotte was a good city for running, but there wasn't much else to do. I spent most of my free time checking out the transit system. After all, I was there to learn about transit.

First Race

2007-10-19T14:18:00.000-07:00

The first race I participated in was the Lewisville Race for the Children on September 15, 2007. It was a very small event centered in downtown Lewisville. I finished 35th out of a field of 130 with a time of 25:48. I was happy with my time considering the minimal amount of training I had put in. My only goals were to break 26 minutes, win a door prize, and not get beat by anyone under the age of 10. I accomplished all of these, just barely. Lewisville has some pretty quick 4th graders.

Garmin

2007-10-19T14:12:00.000-07:00

Happy early birthday to me. My wonderful wife allowed me to open my birthday present a few days early. She gave me the Garmin Forerunner 205. Its an awesome piece of equipment that should prove invaluable as I work to improve my running. I plan to get plenty of use out of it.

Background

2007-10-19T13:38:00.000-07:00

I've decided to start a blog dedicated mostly to my new found "love" of running and the transformation of myself into a dedicated runner. I do so with the understanding that only a handful of people will ever read it. I'm hoping that one day I will be able to look back on my progression, which will be detailed in this blog, and learn something about myself.

I began running regularly in April 2007 after realizing that I had put on 20 pounds since Allie was born. This was a bit demoralizing because I had worked hard to lose 35 pounds prior to Allie's birth. My motivation to lose weight the first time was what I called "Wedding Season." I participated in three weddings that summer and wanted to look my best. Having a newborn daughter obviously changed the way I spent my free time.

Seeing all that hard work go down the drain really motivated me. I decided that since we were young parents, young professionals (a.k.a poor), and new homeowners that getting a gym membership with a personal trainer was on the opposite end of the continuum from where I needed to be. Running immediately availed itself due to its cost effectiveness - and those who know me know that cost effectiveness is my middle name.

I'll continue to add a few posts focused on backfilling information on the last 5 months of training and racing that I've been able to do. Hopefully that will help me see the overall picture at some point. That way the blog will provide details from start to finish.