Daily Quote: "Come on, admit it, some of us postpone racing until we can reach that promised land known as 'peak condition.' We refuse to compete at anything less than optimal fitness for fear of looking foolish. Only one problem: Racing is an integral part of the journey toward 'peak condition.' Racing makes us stronger both physiogically and psychologically. Besides, 'peak condition describes a Utopian future that, for most of us, never arrives." --Pete Magill, Running Times Magazine, article "Pre-race Jitters," pg 21.
Totally agree with the above quote, which is why this year I decided to participate in the "Las Vegas Track Club Competition Series" as well as run my first ultra race. I have only three weeks until the "Cirque du Soleil 5k Race" and six weeks of training left before the "Labor of Love 50k," I may not be in peak condition for either race, but it will be interesting!
SUMMARY: FEBRUARY 22-28, 2010
Last week ran six days for a total of 54 miles, which is my highest mileage week since last September. Next week would have been my scheduled cut/back week, but decided to have my cut-back/recovery week two weeks from now, which would also be a taper week for the "Cirque du Soleil 5k Race." I also accomplished an 18 miler this morning that's my longest run since my hip joint injury last September, I may not have enough significant mileage for my upcoming "Labor of Love 50k Race" on April 11th, but hope to have at least three long runs in the 20+ mileage range before the race.
I've lost one pound and now weigh 176 pounds on my six foot frame. My weight goal is still to reach my racing weight of 165 pounds.
I've continued my modified weight circuit training with additional hip strengthening exercises. I accomplished three sessions of upper body circuit training and did hip strengthening exercises every day. I've been pretty consistent with my weight training this year, I'm so regular with maintaining my routine it's like brushing my teeth!
A few other crosstraining activities: Swam for 30 minutes in the pool on Wednesday before work. Bowled three games tonight during "Sunday Night Special" bowling league and practiced bowling yesterday with three games. Cab business has been very slow and have been walking many laps around the cab holding area at the airport.
My morning heart rates are still good, approximately 38-41 bpm, which was the deciding factor on whether or not I should have a recovery week this coming week. Would be much better to wait an additional week for a cut-back week as to have the recovery also serve as a taper for my upcoming 5k race.
A short recap of last week's training:
Monday: Recovery Run, 4 miles.
Tuesday: General Aerobic Run, 7 miles. Weight Circuit Training.
Wednesday: Hill Repeats, 6 miles.
Thursday: Medium Long Run, 12 miles. Weight Circuit Training.
Friday: REST DAY
Saturday: General Aerobic Run, 7 miles. Weight Circuit Training.
Sunday: Long Run, 18 miles.
Overall weekly mileage: 54 miles.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Sunday, February 14, 2010
SUMMARY: FEBRUARY 8-14, 2010
My first week as a 58 year old and ran six days for a total of 46 miles. The beginning of the week was somewhat of a recovery from my 5k race on last Saturday, but finished the week on a strong note. My next race isn't until March 20th, which is the "Run Away with Cirque du Soleil 5K Race," plenty of time to build my base mileage and get lighter for the race.
The weather is finally getting sunny again with no rain, therefore all my runs were on the roads last week! I've been having Friday as a rest day and the timing works well as most of my races are on Saturdays and could use Friday as a taper and the most stressful day at work is on Friday.
I'm still 177 pounds on a six foot frame! The upcoming extra mileage, plus eating a low fat diet primarily of plant protein, undoubtedly helped me to lose those two stubborn pounds. My goal for 2010 is to reach my racing weight of 165 pounds.
I've continued my modified weight circuit training with additional hip strengthening exercises. I accomplished three sessions of upper body circuit training and did hip strengthening exercises every day. I may replace one day of weight circuit training with swimming, it all depends on how exhausted I am from upcoming conventions.
A short recap of last week's training:
Monday: Recovery Run from race, 4 miles.
Tuesday: Recovery Run from race, 4 miles. Weight Circuit Training.
Wednesday: General Aerobic Run, 7 miles.
Thursday: Easy Run, 5 miles. Weight Circuit Training.
Thursday: Medium-Long Run, 10 miles.
Friday: Rest Day.
Saturday: General Aerobic Run, 7 miles. Weight Circuit Training.
Sunday: Long Run, 16 miles.
Overall weekly mileage: 46 miles.
The weather is finally getting sunny again with no rain, therefore all my runs were on the roads last week! I've been having Friday as a rest day and the timing works well as most of my races are on Saturdays and could use Friday as a taper and the most stressful day at work is on Friday.
I'm still 177 pounds on a six foot frame! The upcoming extra mileage, plus eating a low fat diet primarily of plant protein, undoubtedly helped me to lose those two stubborn pounds. My goal for 2010 is to reach my racing weight of 165 pounds.
I've continued my modified weight circuit training with additional hip strengthening exercises. I accomplished three sessions of upper body circuit training and did hip strengthening exercises every day. I may replace one day of weight circuit training with swimming, it all depends on how exhausted I am from upcoming conventions.
A short recap of last week's training:
Monday: Recovery Run from race, 4 miles.
Tuesday: Recovery Run from race, 4 miles. Weight Circuit Training.
Wednesday: General Aerobic Run, 7 miles.
Thursday: Easy Run, 5 miles. Weight Circuit Training.
Thursday: Medium-Long Run, 10 miles.
Friday: Rest Day.
Saturday: General Aerobic Run, 7 miles. Weight Circuit Training.
Sunday: Long Run, 16 miles.
Overall weekly mileage: 46 miles.
Saturday, February 6, 2010
"Run For a Wish 5k Race"
Today was my "Kendall Tenney's 9th Annual 'Run For a Wish' 5k race!" This race is the second event in the 12-event Championship series. All track club entrants will earn five participation points for finishing and may earn additional points for a high placing. Since this event is by definition a “large race” (more than 200 runners), any LVTC member who finishes in the top-20 overall will earn up to 20 points. Likewise any club member who places in the top-10 in his or her age group will earn up to 10 points, assuming there are more than ten entries in the age group. Last week I earned 6 points in the "LVTC Championship 10K Race" and will earn additional points today for just finishing the race.
Awoke at 7:00 a.m. and was able to sleep for six hours, which was unusual for me, normally I would only be able to sleep four hours due to my working nights as a cab driver. I was able to get to bed by 1:00 a.m., and since the race doesn't start until 9:00 a.m. had plenty of time to get extra sleep. Ate my usual pre-race breakfast meal of Gatorade and a granola bar and left for the Town Square Mall.
The Town Square Mall is located in South Las Vegas near the McCarren Airport, in fact, the venue was so close to the airport that I thought we had low flying fighter jets from Nellis AFB greeting the runners...nope, just a passenger jet making a landing! The race is inside the Town Square Mall, which resembles a small village, it's outside with streets, sidewalks and cute village store fronts. The side streets were closed with shops on the sidewalks having sales...reminded me of the San Luis Obispo farmer's market many years ago when I attended the Cal Poly Running Camp. Yesterday I studied the course and posted a map here. What a confusing mess of a race course and had fears that I would get off course like last week.
Since I ran a 10k race last weekend, and today I'll be running many tangents in the rain, decided not to race this course, but to run strongly at 90% of my effort. My main goal today is not to get an injury due to the wet, slippery asphalt. Like last week, to stay true to my resolve of not going crazy with my pacing and time, I've left my beloved Garmin Forerunner, heart rate monitor, and even my wrist watch at home. My race report won't be too detailed without my mile spilts and heart rate numbers. This is my very first race in the rain and wasn't quite sure what to wear. I remembered a fellow blogger, Nat, who recommended light clothing when running in the rain , which was in her blog many months ago and decided not to wear my thermal top nor long shorts, and no gloves, just a coolmax shirt and shorts as I didn't want to be weighed down with wet, heavy clothing.
I was surprised at the huge number of people participating in the 5k race and walk! (Later I discovered 936 runners participated in the timed 5k race, while over 4,000 untimed walkers attended.) Since this week we'll actually have computer chips and I'm not in race mode I decided to place myself in midpack, which in retrospect might have been a mistake as I was surrounded by children and in front of me was a woman with a poodle on a long leash! I casually moved a little forward in the pack, all I needed to do was trip on a leash. Vegas was between rain showers, and thought we might get lucky and miss the rain, but like clockwork it started raining as the race was about to start.
The race director was above the crowd in a cherry-picker, and as he was preparing to start the race...one of the comedian-runners screamed, "HE'S GOT A GUN!!!" His humor had everyone laughing and helped eased my tensions. The starter pistol banged as we were off in a mad dash to the first tangent.
The first mile was so crowded that I was practically in lockstep with other runners and couldn't even come close to hitting my first tangent sharply. I didn't have to worry about losing my way through this maze of a course as the mass of runners would carry me through. We, Las Vegans, are not accustomed to racing in the rain and noticed many runners around me were slipping, sliding, and a few runners were falling around me, which made me very conscious of my own running and started taking smaller strides and arms farther out from my body. I was surprised to see a water-stop at the first mile mark, which I passed on the far left as many runners were stopping for a drink?!?
The second mile the course was slightly wider and was able to wiggle around many slower runners. We still had many corners, while I poorly maneuvered the crowded tangents, my main focus was on passing as many runners as I could and thinking the farther forward I become the less crowded. A child of about nine years old was in front of me and was trying to jump over a speed-bump, slipped backwards and fell...I didn't want to jump over her, therefore I quickly scooped her up and gently placed her on the sidewalk. She must have been o.k. as the only words out of her mouth was, "BOY ARE YOU SURE WET!!" We both had to laugh! I only lost about 20 seconds on this maneuver and eased back onto the course like a car merging on a highway entrance ramp. The end of the second mile saw another water-stop, which I again passed to the far left...runners are acting like this is a marathon event and refueling as much as they can.
The last mile went fast as I no longer jumped over puddles, but splashed right through them. It's a weird sensation of totally saturating your foot in cold water, the shock definitely wakes you up and having you living in the moment. I didn't notice the time as I crossed the computer chip mat, but I'm sure it's going to be a very slow time. Nevertheless, I had fun, ran a different course with unusual Vegas weather and survived the race with no injuries!! I didn't stay for the award ceremony, raffles, food, and other activities, I just wanted to arrive home and get out of my wet clothing and into a warm bed.
Later I discovered my time was a slow 24:32, with an average pace of 7:55...surprisingly, I took second place in the 55-59 years old age group, which consisted of 18 runners!! Maybe the faster runners in my age group were smarter than me and avoided running in such hazardous conditions?!? I should have waited for the award ceremony. No photos have been posted by the event so far.
Thankfully, my next LVTC Championship Series race isn't until March 20th, which is the "Run Away with Cirque du Soleil 5K Race." That race is close to my home at the Springs Preserve and have ran it once before. I will be in better race condition and have plenty of time for speed training. It'll be a blast!!
MALE AGE GROUP: 55 - 59
Place Gun_tm Chip_tm Pace Name City,state
1 22:32 22:31 7:16 GREGORIO BRAVO LAS VEGAS NV
2 24:53 24:32 7:55 BRUCE ROBISON LAS VEGAS NV
3 25:00 24:50 8:01 CURTIS INGLE LS VEGAS NV
4 30:25 26:23 8:31 RICH GILES LAS VEGAS NV
5 27:35 26:38 8:36 DAVID HUNTER LAS VEGAS NV
6 27:50 27:31 8:53 JAMES ANDERSON LAS VEGAS NV
7 29:30 29:30 9:31 DONALD CAMPBELL LAS VEGAS NV
8 31:42 29:50 9:38 RANDALL WHITT LAS VEGAS NV
9 31:09 30:20 9:48 RICK KELTING HENDERSON NV
10 34:35 32:24 10:27 RICHARD SOBRERO LAS VEGAS NV
11 35:32 33:02 10:40 JACK HENDERSON LAS VEGAS NV
12 34:13 34:04 11:00 JERRIE CROWL LAS VEGAS NV
13 38:13 36:33 11:48 BRUCE GALE LAS VEGAS NV
14 38:04 37:20 12:03 PAT MCMILLIN N LAS VEGAS NV
15 38:07 37:58 12:15 DENNY CLARKSON LAS VEGAS NV
16 41:31 38:31 12:26 MARK DEPEW LAS VEGAS NV
17 53:43 50:12 16:12 GARY HOSEA LAS VEGAS NV
18 1:00:38 57:31 18:33 GARRY NICKERSON WILBRAHAM MA
Awoke at 7:00 a.m. and was able to sleep for six hours, which was unusual for me, normally I would only be able to sleep four hours due to my working nights as a cab driver. I was able to get to bed by 1:00 a.m., and since the race doesn't start until 9:00 a.m. had plenty of time to get extra sleep. Ate my usual pre-race breakfast meal of Gatorade and a granola bar and left for the Town Square Mall.
The Town Square Mall is located in South Las Vegas near the McCarren Airport, in fact, the venue was so close to the airport that I thought we had low flying fighter jets from Nellis AFB greeting the runners...nope, just a passenger jet making a landing! The race is inside the Town Square Mall, which resembles a small village, it's outside with streets, sidewalks and cute village store fronts. The side streets were closed with shops on the sidewalks having sales...reminded me of the San Luis Obispo farmer's market many years ago when I attended the Cal Poly Running Camp. Yesterday I studied the course and posted a map here. What a confusing mess of a race course and had fears that I would get off course like last week.
Since I ran a 10k race last weekend, and today I'll be running many tangents in the rain, decided not to race this course, but to run strongly at 90% of my effort. My main goal today is not to get an injury due to the wet, slippery asphalt. Like last week, to stay true to my resolve of not going crazy with my pacing and time, I've left my beloved Garmin Forerunner, heart rate monitor, and even my wrist watch at home. My race report won't be too detailed without my mile spilts and heart rate numbers. This is my very first race in the rain and wasn't quite sure what to wear. I remembered a fellow blogger, Nat, who recommended light clothing when running in the rain , which was in her blog many months ago and decided not to wear my thermal top nor long shorts, and no gloves, just a coolmax shirt and shorts as I didn't want to be weighed down with wet, heavy clothing.
I was surprised at the huge number of people participating in the 5k race and walk! (Later I discovered 936 runners participated in the timed 5k race, while over 4,000 untimed walkers attended.) Since this week we'll actually have computer chips and I'm not in race mode I decided to place myself in midpack, which in retrospect might have been a mistake as I was surrounded by children and in front of me was a woman with a poodle on a long leash! I casually moved a little forward in the pack, all I needed to do was trip on a leash. Vegas was between rain showers, and thought we might get lucky and miss the rain, but like clockwork it started raining as the race was about to start.
The race director was above the crowd in a cherry-picker, and as he was preparing to start the race...one of the comedian-runners screamed, "HE'S GOT A GUN!!!" His humor had everyone laughing and helped eased my tensions. The starter pistol banged as we were off in a mad dash to the first tangent.
The first mile was so crowded that I was practically in lockstep with other runners and couldn't even come close to hitting my first tangent sharply. I didn't have to worry about losing my way through this maze of a course as the mass of runners would carry me through. We, Las Vegans, are not accustomed to racing in the rain and noticed many runners around me were slipping, sliding, and a few runners were falling around me, which made me very conscious of my own running and started taking smaller strides and arms farther out from my body. I was surprised to see a water-stop at the first mile mark, which I passed on the far left as many runners were stopping for a drink?!?
The second mile the course was slightly wider and was able to wiggle around many slower runners. We still had many corners, while I poorly maneuvered the crowded tangents, my main focus was on passing as many runners as I could and thinking the farther forward I become the less crowded. A child of about nine years old was in front of me and was trying to jump over a speed-bump, slipped backwards and fell...I didn't want to jump over her, therefore I quickly scooped her up and gently placed her on the sidewalk. She must have been o.k. as the only words out of her mouth was, "BOY ARE YOU SURE WET!!" We both had to laugh! I only lost about 20 seconds on this maneuver and eased back onto the course like a car merging on a highway entrance ramp. The end of the second mile saw another water-stop, which I again passed to the far left...runners are acting like this is a marathon event and refueling as much as they can.
The last mile went fast as I no longer jumped over puddles, but splashed right through them. It's a weird sensation of totally saturating your foot in cold water, the shock definitely wakes you up and having you living in the moment. I didn't notice the time as I crossed the computer chip mat, but I'm sure it's going to be a very slow time. Nevertheless, I had fun, ran a different course with unusual Vegas weather and survived the race with no injuries!! I didn't stay for the award ceremony, raffles, food, and other activities, I just wanted to arrive home and get out of my wet clothing and into a warm bed.
Later I discovered my time was a slow 24:32, with an average pace of 7:55...surprisingly, I took second place in the 55-59 years old age group, which consisted of 18 runners!! Maybe the faster runners in my age group were smarter than me and avoided running in such hazardous conditions?!? I should have waited for the award ceremony. No photos have been posted by the event so far.
Thankfully, my next LVTC Championship Series race isn't until March 20th, which is the "Run Away with Cirque du Soleil 5K Race." That race is close to my home at the Springs Preserve and have ran it once before. I will be in better race condition and have plenty of time for speed training. It'll be a blast!!
MALE AGE GROUP: 55 - 59
Place Gun_tm Chip_tm Pace Name City,state
1 22:32 22:31 7:16 GREGORIO BRAVO LAS VEGAS NV
2 24:53 24:32 7:55 BRUCE ROBISON LAS VEGAS NV
3 25:00 24:50 8:01 CURTIS INGLE LS VEGAS NV
4 30:25 26:23 8:31 RICH GILES LAS VEGAS NV
5 27:35 26:38 8:36 DAVID HUNTER LAS VEGAS NV
6 27:50 27:31 8:53 JAMES ANDERSON LAS VEGAS NV
7 29:30 29:30 9:31 DONALD CAMPBELL LAS VEGAS NV
8 31:42 29:50 9:38 RANDALL WHITT LAS VEGAS NV
9 31:09 30:20 9:48 RICK KELTING HENDERSON NV
10 34:35 32:24 10:27 RICHARD SOBRERO LAS VEGAS NV
11 35:32 33:02 10:40 JACK HENDERSON LAS VEGAS NV
12 34:13 34:04 11:00 JERRIE CROWL LAS VEGAS NV
13 38:13 36:33 11:48 BRUCE GALE LAS VEGAS NV
14 38:04 37:20 12:03 PAT MCMILLIN N LAS VEGAS NV
15 38:07 37:58 12:15 DENNY CLARKSON LAS VEGAS NV
16 41:31 38:31 12:26 MARK DEPEW LAS VEGAS NV
17 53:43 50:12 16:12 GARY HOSEA LAS VEGAS NV
18 1:00:38 57:31 18:33 GARRY NICKERSON WILBRAHAM MA
Friday, February 5, 2010
Town Square Race Map
I'm very nervous about my next race, the Kendall Tenney "Run For a Wish" 5K at Town Square in Las Vegas this Saturday, February 6th. This race is the second event in the 12-event Championship series.The above map is tomorrow's race route! Click on the map for a better view. What a confusing mess of a course! The race is inside the Town Square Mall, which resembles a small village, it's outside with streets, sidewalks and cute village store fronts. The course is going to be flat as a pancake, but so many turns...it'll be a challenge cutting all those tangents. The streets are small and it'll be difficult to maneuver around other runners. Also, rain is in the forcast for race morning, which will make cutting those sharp turns rather slippery. I haven't decided what to wear either...maybe something lightweight as not to be weighed down with wet clothes.
I'm making Friday a rest day as to be fully recovered for the race. I just finished a 10k race last Saturday, and now I'm prepared to run a vigorous 5k race...am I crazy? I've never ran a race so soon after another race and I'm not sure what my strategy will be tomorrow.
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