800 miles and still runnin'

Day 237 - April 30, 2008

April came to an end today and I celebrated cracking the 800 mile mark. I'm well off my anticipated pace for completing 4000 miles - yeah, I'd say 37 days is a bit off pace. Maybe it was bit ambitious - maybe I've just been a slacker. Either way, I've still run 237 straight days.

Day: 237 Time/Date: 6:15 AM 4/30/2008 Weather: Clear, 35F
Run: N Carnation-Davis Miles: 3.6 Time: 26:42 Pace: 7:25 min/mile
Miles to Date: 802.1 Total Running Time: 98:15:40

Easy day

Day 236 - April 29, 2008

Recovery day after yesterday's tempo run.

Day: 236 Time/Date: 7:20 PM 4/29/2008 Weather: Clear, windy, 53F
Run: Amicus 2 mile Miles: 2.0 Time: 14:42 Pace: 7:21 min/mile
Miles to Date: 798.5 Total Running Time: 97:48:58

Exceeding expectations

Day 235 - April 28, 2008

Decided to run a tempo run today and chose a 3 loop route around the neighborhood. There are plenty of small hills to mix it up on the loop and not a run I normally do for fun. Typically, the loop takes 9:40 to 10:00 minutes to complete so I was hoping to run the 3 loops in under 29 minutes.

As I started out on the first lap I found it really hard to catch my breath. My chest felt tight and I'm not really sure why. The rain had cleared out and the air was crisp and clean. I pushed through it and eventually was able to gather my breath and pick up the pace. The first lap ended in 9:28, which was well under pace.

As the second lap went on, I felt my breathing picking up and my pace getting faster. The watch confirmed that. The second lap split was almost 25 seconds faster at 8:51. I thought I was struggling on the third lap. My breathing was really hard and I developed a side stitch. I thought I had just hit the wall, but it turns out it was the good pain that comes from running too fast. I finished the third lap in 8:37 - 50 seconds faster than the first lap.

It was good to run fast over a tough course. I feel like I'm starting to bounce back from the Feb-April lull that was holding me at 14-16 miles a week. We'll see if I can maintain it.

Day: 235 Time/Date: 5:50 PM 4/28/2008 Weather: Cloudy, 61F
Run: Twin Lakes Miles: 3.9 26:56 Pace: 6:54 min/mile
Miles to Date: 796.5 Total Running Time: 97:34:16

Faster than the day before

Day 234 - April 27, 2008

Same run as Saturday - just a little quicker pace.

Day: 234 Time/Date: 11:30 AM 4/27/2008 Weather: Cloudy, 60F
Run: N Carnation-Davis Miles: 3.6 Time: 25:49 Pace: 7:10 min/mile
Miles to Date: 792.6 Total Running Time: 97:07:20

Racing the Thunder

Day 233 - April 26, 2008

Squeezed in today's run just as the second storm started. I was racing the black clouds trying to get home before the rain and just managed to turn into the driveway as the first drops started to fall. It was a cool storm that dropped the temperature 10 degrees in about 5 minutes.

Day: 233 Time/Date: 4:30 PM 4/26/2008 Weather: Cloudy, 75F
Run: N Carnation-Davis Miles: 3.6 Time: 26:36 Pace: 7:23 min/mile
Miles to Date: 789 Total Running Time: 96:41:31