Two intense workouts

Last night I had bike tempo intervals (5x6 minutes at tempo pace, 30 min warmup and 30 minute cooldown), and it was INTENSE. Really enjoyed doing it with my new crankset. It actually makes a difference. The pedal strokes seemed smoother and I didn't have to shift during each interval, which felt awesome. Definitely my best tempo interval workout on the bike yet. I hate the trainer, but I'm getting more and more comfortable on the bike, not to mention stronger.

This morning was a really REALLY hard swim workout. Descending 300s at an aerobic pace (1:33 pace). Five of them. Did the first one too fast (at 1:28 pace) and paid for it on the last two. I was keeping at 1:30 pace until #5, when I felt like my arms were going to explode like two 50-megaton atomic bombs. I had to really force myself to do that last 300, but I got through it at 1:33 pace, which is WHAT I SHOULD HAVE STARTED AT! Ratdangit!

But the intensity was awesome.

2009 goals/results and 2010 goals

RUNNING

1-mile
Goal -- 4:45
Actual -- 4:38
2010 Goal -- 4:32

5K
Goal -- 16:30
Actual -- 16:25
2010 Goal -- sub 16:00

8K
Goal -- 28:30
Actual -- 28:15
2010 Goal -- 27:15

10K
Goal -- 34:45
Actual -- 34:05
2010 Goal -- 33:30

10 mile
Goal -- sub 1:00:00
Actual -- 1:01:28
2010 Goal -- 59:00

TRIATHLON/DUATHLON

Goal: Win age group in at least one race
Actual: Won age group in 6 races
2010 Goal: Win age group at Columbia and sprint races

Goal: Place top 10 in at least one race
Actual: Placed in top 10 in 7 races
2010 Goal: Win a sprint triathlon

Goal: Win a multisport race
Actual: Won the Hagerstown Duathlon
2010 Goal: Qualify for Duathlon Worlds

Goal: Get sub 2:15:00 in Oly distance triathlon
Actual: Best time was 2:18:10 at Colonial Beach Oly Triathlon
2010 Goal: Get sub 2:08:00 in Oly distance triathlon

15 hours!

I'm really happy that I was able to put in 15 hours of workouts last week. And they were hard workouts too, lots of speed and hill related stuff and 2 long rides.

Had a great swim this AM. Did the same workout as on Saturday (1200m of t-pace intervals, 1000m of drills) and I felt much better this time around. Was able to keep the 100s right on t-pace and even down to my new t-pace of 1:26 (haven't been able to get back there right away because of my week off) and average under 1:30. Life is back to normal and so is my fitness. Sweet!

I had a dream last night that I was swimming with Ian Thorpe, the Thorpedo, my favorite swimmer. I was perfectly emulating his freestyle form, something I have been working on the past month. The Chicken Tender Runner appreciates Ian Thorpe.

Tough week of training ahead. REALLY long rides this weekend and freezing temps, high winds, and freezing rain and snow. ARGH. Give me a break. I'm sick of long trainer rides.

Well, I gotta do what I gotta do to reach my goal.

Regaining what I lost

Today was a long day of workouts. Morning swim, noon hill run, afternoon endurance ride.

The swim was short intervals, with 1000m of drills followed by 1200m of t-paced 100m and 50m intervals. This is my least favorite workout of them all. I'm usually dead tired after I finish the drills, and I'm not even halfway done! The isolated arm drills are really tough, especially when I'm not at 100% fitness. Lots of kicking too. But I held pace today and was able to get through every drill and interval at the correct pace (between 1:26 and 1:30 t-pace). I'm getting back to where I was, although the process of getting there is painful and tedious.

The run was relaxing, with Steve, Scott and Philippe, a pro triathlete. Got some good tips from him as we took it to the hills of Seneca Creek State Park for about 8.5 miles. I learned about how I shouldn't take race failures hard and ways to prevent myself from doing so (I have a bit of a problem with that). He advised me on other aspects of triathlon training and goal setting that should prove to be very useful.

The ride was fine, uneventful, as it was a 2 hour trainer ride. Got a little dizzy at the end but I was hungry and tired. Early bedtime for me tonight!

My week totals will be back in the 15 hour range, thank goodness.

Oh, and I got a new car! Same as the mashed-up one, but the color is a little better. A dark metallic gray. Cooooool.

Death by plow and Drunken Wu Tang!!

Last night's Famous Dave's run was slow for the snowy parts, good pace through the neighborhoods.... and speedy through the lights at Seneca. Jordan, Scott and I were running with the line of cars at Seneca until we passed a park employee in a snowplow. Jordan looked into the plow, caught the eye of the driver, who realized we weren't supposed to be there and shouted "hey... HEY!!" We ran out butts off to get out of there! Scary! We were half expecting to see the plow chasing after us through the trails and closed-off part of the park. Mr. Plow-man wasn't happy to see us, that's for sure.

Got to do a trainer hill workout prior to the run and it felt pretty darn good. I felt strong. I watched Drunken Wu Tang, my favorite kung fu movie, during the ride and it inspired me to dominate.

Old Devil of Drunken Wu Tang displaying his balls of steel.

Monday Swim and Run

I was able to get to the pool, finally, after missing about a week of swim workouts due to my cold and the blizzard over the weekend.

My schedule called for 5x300s, which, at least to me, didn't sound like the best way to get back in the water! They were as tough as I thought, but I was able to keep pace (1:30 t-pace) and do the 300s in 4:30 with 30 second recoveries. I wasn't able to do the 5th as I was pretty tired, but at least my body is capable of the workload still, just my fitness needs to catch up, but should be fine after a few practices. Totaled around 2000m with warmup and cooldown.

Ran with Jordan and Scott on our normal Monday run, nothing of note here except that it was icy and fun as always.

So I'm feeling good overall, I just want to get back into full swimming shape and regain my "feel" of the water, which I was really starting to build up before last week.

A new week

After last week, I'm really looking forward to this week... I did only around 9 hours of training out of 13 planned hours. I have close to 15 scheduled for this week, so here's hoping I'll meet that.

This is of course barring any car accidents or illnesses, both of which I hope I don't encounter again (or at least for illnesses, not until the next season's ailment).

Biked for about 90 min yesterday after a long run through plowed road and untouched trail. Definitely gave my hip flexors a tough workout this weekend!

9 miles of snow

I got out into the 7 or so inches of snow and put in a good, albeit slow 9 miles. It felt like I was pushing a TEMPO pace, but really was chugging along at 8-8:30 minute miles. That's probably the slowest yet most strenuous run I've ever done. It actually felt like I was biking as my strides were circular.

It was surreal. Aside from my iPod, there was absolute silence, save the occasional plow or SUV. I've had so much noise in my head this week and the silence was welcome.

And just got off the bike from a trainer hills ride. I could feel the effects of missing 5 days of biking, but it was nice to be back on the saddle and I look forward to quickly returning to form.

Back on the trail

Finally got out for a run yesterday, 10 miles on Greenway. First run since Monday, and it felt amazing. I wasn't particularly worried about feeling out of shape, and it really felt like I was fresh. Not necessarily rested due to all the stress of the week, but I wasn't tight or hampered physically.

I took uphills hard and flats and downhills easy as part of the workout. I was able to find focus during the run for the first time in a while as well. All this week was full of frustration, confusion, depression, anger at myself and all of what happened to me. But after a mile or so I found myself imagining Columbia, DuNats and VICTORY.

And that felt AWESOME.

Looking to continue that in the snow today.

Tough week

A tough week as in bad week, not tough training, unfortunately. I got sick on Monday evening, so I didn't get to do my planned bike, strength or swim workout Tuesday and Wednesday morning...

And then the unthinkable happened on the way to track practice... got in a pretty bad car accident. Car pretty much totaled, but I'm undamaged except for a bruised thumb. Needless to say, no track last night either.

Got in a strength workout today but was still too sick/tired to bike. I should be ok tomorrow to make up one of the rides and get a good 70 minute run in the AM.

Just a rough week overall. I got a few days off so that's nice, but I didn't want to HAVE to take them off.

JAW 10K = PR!

Today was the Jingle All the Way 10K and my last chance of 2009 to achieve my 10K goal of under 34:30. Conditions were favorable, at most a very light drizzle and mid-30 temperatures. No wind either, which is rare for West Potomac Park / Hains Point.

Met up with the team, got my number and warmed up. Slightly tight from the run yesterday, but I think it was more nerves. Decided on my DC Tri shirt rather than my usual racing jersey, due to my string of luck wearing that shirt in races. The Chicken Tender Runner is a little superstitious, after all.

Got to the starting line and lined up about 3 rows from the front, so I wouldn't be tempted to sprint out with the Chris Sloanes and Wilson Komens of the world. Good idea. I started fairly far behind them and had no intention of catching up.

Miles one and two were right on target, both clocking in at 5:29. Mile 3 seemed a little harder, 5:31... but I still felt great. Hit the 5K at 17:08. Right on target for a sub 34:30! Now the key was to keep it up. This time, I had no problem with that. I started to negative split and when I hit mile 4, I felt good enough to really start racing, not simply run for time. I put distance on the first Pacers girl (who of course drove the opposite running runners wild! I was nothing but chopped liver!!) and caught up to one guy and stuck with him for the next 2 miles. I negative splitted, as well, running them in 5:27 and 5:26. I tried to catch up to Matias in sight as well, but he was just a little too far ahead and I was too tired to make that much of a surge...

But when all was said and done, I looked at the clock... 34:05!!! Hot diggity! I crushed my previous PR (from a month ago of 35:16) and far exceeded my goal for 2009. I feel really awesome about this. Really sets me up for next year getting into the mid to low 33s. Maybe under 33? We'll see! I'm feeling pretty confident now. I finally solved the unsolvable 10K.

Splits... 5:29, 5:29, 5:31, 5:30, 5:27, 5:26, 1:01

Sub-35 10K, second attempt

Time for another PR-friendly 10K. Hopefully I'll make good on my long-yearned goal this time of a sub-35, with the epic goal of sub 34:30. I'm not a very good 10K runner at the moment. Never had much practice and have only run 5 or 6 of them. But I've PRed in 4 straight. I'm going to make sure that trend continues!

Now if only Mother Nature can hold off that "light wintry mix" for a couple hours...

Bike 3 mile TTT and tenders

Yesterday was the second of my three time trials this week: the 3 mile bike tempo time trial. 3 miles on a flat (or in my case, slightly rolling) course at 9-11 bpm below HR zone 5A. I last did this trial in early November in 8:08 (22.2 mph). It was warm and not windy that day, optimal conditions. For this TT, it was cold, but fortunately not windy. The cold though affected my breathing a little and my legs felt a little stiff.

I warmed up and started the TT... My HR went up way too fast and I had to back off on the uphills. Not sure why my HR rose so much during this TT, but I managed to get it under control about halfway through. When all was said and done, I finished with a 7:59:56! Another improvement! That puts me at around 22.6 mph at sub-race pace on a rolling course. Getting ever closer to my goal of 23.5 mph race pace.

Fairly easy and confusing 6-mile run with Jordan, Scott, Steve and Jamie in the evening followed by extremely delicious Famous Dave's chicken tenders.

The chicken tenders were awesome... Definitely the way I'm used to. No spilt honey mustard, well-seasoned, and the fries that came with them were better than usual. That definitely made my evening.

I accept the challenge.

1K Swim TT

Today was a 1Km time trial for swimming. I did this last month and clocked in at 14:52. I felt good about my time then and it gave me a 1:30 t-pace. I expected a little improvement, maybe 5-10 seconds for today's TT with how much swimming I've been doing (at least 3 workouts a week).

I kicked off and immediately worried that I was going too fast. I felt really fast... but to my surprise not really tired after 300m. Hit the halfway mark and quickly glanced at my $5 waterproof CVS digital watch... 7:15. On target for a 14:30... exciting! I started to feel a bit tired in my shoulders around 700m, but I kept pushing and began to pick up the pace with 200m to go. I didn't sprint it in, as I didn't want to hurt myself. I was shocked when I finished and looked at my watch... 14:24! Sweet!! I improved my 1Km race pace time by 30 seconds in only 4 weeks!

That puts me at a 1:26 t-pace for my workouts now and about a 24:30 mile. I finally am beginning to feel really strong in the water...

Frozen Slopes XC 6K

Just what I needed... a cross country race! I hadn't run one since November 1, and that's 4+ weeks too many! I love cross country races because of the terrain navigating and the variety.

So this race lived up to its name... low 30s, snow, wind, already saturated trail conditions... exciting. I went into the race not expecting much, doing it to secure my placement in the MCRRC cross country standings and to have some fun. However, after being confronted by a couple of rivals who challenged my manhood, I decided that I needed to get serious, without getting TOO serious.

I went out slower than usual, which I considered practice for the road races. A teenager took it out very fast and was breathing (panting, rather) quite heavily by mile 1, but continued to push the pace... but it was clear he was fading. After a couple last ditch sprints to keep the lead, he fell behind me and Mark Hoon quickly. It became a showdown between Mark and myself. I had a winning streak against him so I hoped I could keep the lead through the finish. At the same time I knew he's a very experienced XC runner, so I made sure I kept my head and stayed patient, not panicking if I heard him get closer to me.

Halfway through, I was feeling wonderful. The snow provided some slippery conditions, but I was wearing my trail running trainers, so I felt sure in my footing. I wasn't tired and felt I would have a strong second half. Mark was still within 5 seconds of me. I remained patient. Then I saw the 5K marker... only 1K to go and I'm still strong. I begin to pick up the pace and lengthen my stride. I heard Mark behind me... and then I didn't. I looked back and I didn't see him. I cruised to the finish in 25:35(Something like that... a pretty good time for the course), winning by at least 15 seconds with a little energy to spare.

That's race victory #5 on the year! And I still feel great physically. I'll definitely be at full strength for Jingle All the Way next weekend.

This victory was exactly what I needed.

Good start to the week

I always am happy when I can start out the week with two strong days of training. Monday and Tuesdays usually entail all three sports plus strength training, so they are usually good gauges of how I'll do the rest of the week.

Monday I swam and ran. 300 repeats at t-pace (1:30), with kick recoveries. I was surprised how good I felt. I often do 100s at t-pace, and am dead tired after 3 or 4. For some reason, I felt fantastic doing t-pace for three times as long! Strange! My body must not get used to the pace after only 100 yards. I'll take it!

Ran around 7 miles with Scott from WJ and took it harder on hills. A little rain and chilliness didn't hurt too bad.

Today was strength, which was good as usual (my back felt like nothing ever happened to it, yes!), and bike tempo intervals. The tempo intervals were fun. I was able to keep my HR in zone 3 without a problem. Re-adjusted my aero position and it felt much better in the neck region.

So a good start to the week. I'm excited for Frozen Slopes 6K this weekend, as it is my second to last race for at least 4 weeks!

Up and down weekend

Well, mostly up.

The (sort of) down was Turkey Burnoff. Ran the 5-miler. It was windy (18mph winds) and hilly. I started out too fast. Again. Got passed around mile 3 and couldn't hang onto 1st place. 2nd overall, around 28:15 (5:39 pace and a 5-mile PR, which shows how poorly I ran Vet's Day). Need to find my own pace on these road races. I never seem to have this problem at cross country races. I guess the excitement of running fast overtakes my senses. I need to control that. I'm not sure how many times I've told myself that in the past month...

Biking was good this weekend. Biked around 2 hours on the trainer at HR zones 2-3 and did a long brick on Sunday with Michelle, who is just on fire right now, getting PRs left and right. I hope once I take my break from racing I can come back and dominate at the level she's at right now.

Frozen Slopes 6K is this weekend. I'm excited as I haven't done an XC race for a while... not since September.

Injury fright

Had my first real injury scare since I started training seriously over the last year. Was doing my usual seated rows at half my max weight when on the second set, 4th rep, my back suddenly seized up in pain. For a moment I couldn't breathe without pain and had to stop what I was doing. After 2 minutes the pain lessened and I finished my workout slowly and with lighter weights. Spent the rest of the day icing, stretching and popping Aleves. It feels much better today and seems centered on the right side of the lats, so I think I'm out of the woods in terms of a true back injury. Thank goodness I didn't really screw anything up. It now feels like just a pull and I did the right thing by backing (pardon the pun) off.

I skipped bike spin-ups yesterday because of my back issues. No point in making it worse.

Ran 10 miles with Jordan on the Millenium Trail today. We kept a good recovery pace, with strong winds going against us for more than half the run. I'm getting better at staying strong for longer distances. I hope this means I'm becoming a more balanced long distance runner. I would like to do marathons at some point in my career, but not yet.

Turkey Burnoff 5-miler tomorrow. Was going to do the 10, but I don't feel like running 2 loops of the Seneca course. I train there and have seen enough of it!

Wet runnings

Yesterday was a tough day... brutal swim in the AM, very long run in the PM.

The swim was nothing out of the ordinary, distance-wise, but was very intense, with a lot of drills and t-paced 100s and 50s (on 1:30 and :45). My arms felt dead afterward, but a protein bar and recoverite soon brought me back to my normal, stiff self. My form is getting better. I find myself touching my hips with my thumbs, which is a good sign that I'm not keeping my arms straight under the water. Any progress is fantastic the swim!

The run wasn't bad at all. I went for 8 miles at a 6:30 pace, got a little wet in the drizzle, and met up with Jordan and Scott for another 7 miles through Seneca at an easier pace. So I ran 15 miles yesterday... that's a LOT for a Monday workout, at least for me.

Chicken tenders at Famous Dave's. They weren't seasoned as well as usual and were served with spilt honey mustard sauce on 2 of them. I wasn't pleased. But they hit the spot after 15 miles of running!!

Bike tempo intervals tonight. Looking to stay in better control of my heart rate.

Training weekend

A race-less weekend means plenty of time for training.

Saturday I ran long (between 9-10 miles) and at a good pace. Ran with the GRC guys for the first time. Good group, got to know a couple of the guys. Hopefully as I develop I can help the team at races and in training. Biked hills for 1:40:00 on the trainer and got a flat tire (how many people get flats on the trainer?!). I assume it happened because I pinched the resistant wheel too tight against the bike wheel, causing the inner tube to take on too much pressure. Oh well. 100 minutes on the trainer is more than long enough.

Today, ran 6 miles at 6:45 pace for the first 3, 6:30 pace for the final 3. Followed with a 2 hour brick (26 mile bike, 3 mile run). Despite some major problems keeping my handlebars in place, I was able to put forth some good effort on the hills. The run was very fast. Probably could have toned it down a little.

Looking forward to a tough week ahead, lots of swimming and running, as well as the Turkey Burnoff at Seneca.

Track to Columbia

Had my first full track workout last night since probably mid-October, and it was great. So good to be back on the track. I don't remember having that much fun or feeling that awesome at a speed workout. But I'm glad to be back. Did a ladder (4-8-12-16-12-8-4) and maintained a balanced pace throughout (around 5:00-5:05 mile pace). Had Jordan and Stefan to push me too. That helps a lot.

I also had visions in my head during each interval. Images of Jingle All the Way 10K... images of Duathlon Nationals... images of Columbia Tri... all of which I fed off of and pushed the pace even harder. This is how I was before the past few weeks, being able to focus on what is most important. I saw the finish lines, the transition areas, other competitors, and it all motivates me.

A day of repair

After the Veterans Day 10K, I was in an ample amount of pain in my toes, calves, quads and hips... not to mention my shoulders and neck. I didn't recover correctly after the race because I was frustrated with my time. Big mistake. Monday was a day of hurt.

But yesterday, Tuesday, was a great day! I lifted in the morning and that seemed to help stretch out the sore muscles. I do a lot of leg and back work in the gym, so that worked well for me. I did a ride in the afternoon... tempo intervals. 5 by 6-minute intervals at zone-3 / tempo pace. Pedaled strong and was able to balance out my heart rate to the appropriate zone. I'm getting better at controlling my pace. That should help me out in longer races. Averaged about 21-21.5 mph for each of the reps.

My evening run was awesome. One of the best in a long time. The bike and weights helped stretch out my legs enough so I had little or no soreness. As a result I was able to push the pace and glide up the hills at Seneca for about 8 miles. Definitely helped my confidence, which was pretty low after Sunday's race.

I feel a renewed sense of dedication to running, in due part to last night's run... it's been a while since I've had one that felt so good. I am excited for track tonight.

Tender Thoughts, vol. 1

This section will be dedicated to chicken tenders and will be updated weekly.

It's been a great week for chicken tenders. Tough race over the weekend means a need for comfort. I find comfort in chicken tenders.

Monday featured Famous Dave's chicken tenders. I like these. They're well-seasoned and crispy on the outside, and the honey mustard dipping sauce is great. Jordan again screwed up the art of chicken tender eating, and he doesn't seem to care to rectify his errors. We got tooted on by a waiter too. That was odd, but it did not take away from the joy my chicken tenders brought me.

Last night was Glory Days tenders. No seasoning, but the chicken itself tastes better, although the honey mustard leaves plenty to be desired. I still prefer Famous Dave's currently. Steve and Jordan even attempted the blasphemous act of stealing a tender from my plate. I will not stand for it. Don't do it again.

Veterans Day 10K

Well, not many ways to classify this race... it was pretty much a fail... sort of. Missed out on my goal by a minute, but PR'ed by a minute.

Overall time -- 35:16. A minute faster than my Pike's Peek time, but I ran such a spectacularly dumb race, it almost feels like I didn't get any faster. I had positive splits, starting out way too fast with a 16:40 first 5K. That's not the way to do it.

I initially told myself that I would follow my Garmin and stick with 5:30/mile. But I got anxious and decided to hang onto some guys who were probably a little too fast for me. I told myself and others I wouldn't do that. I did anyway. I need to wear blinders or something so I have nothing to see but my watch.

And then I had to take a dump around mile 4. That didn't help. At all. Miles 4-6 were pure hell. I suddenly dropped to 6 min/mile after running a pretty even race, when my bowels told me that they weren't pleased. I totally lost confidence but was able to speed up for the last half mile out of desperation. Lesson learned.

So overall, a disappointment but something to build off of. Despite a bad race I still PR'ed by a minute. As a friend noted, this is setting me up for another PR. Looking forward to Jingle All The Way. I feel I'm going to come back in a big way...

Anticipation

This Sunday is the Veteran's Day 10K at Hain's Point in Washington, DC. I generally haven't considered running races to be really key races for myself this year, as I'm mainly training for triathlons. But this race is going to be an exception. I've been eyeing it for some time now.

My aim is to reduce my 10K PR by about 2 minutes. That's 2 minutes in 7 months. Granted, I've gotten a heck of a lot better since April of this year, what with track workouts, fast training partners, a triathlon coach, and a general renewed dedication to being the best I can be.

Going for a 34 minute 10K. My current PR is 36:12. I know I can do it, I just need to run smooth and smart. The nerves will be strong, but this time I'll conquer them and get it done.

Improvement!

Yesterday, Tuesday, was my first bike time trial in about 2 months. 3 miles, keeping my heart rate around 163-165 bpm, at the Germantown Rec Park. In early September I did this in about 8:29, same location, same conditions, same bike.

Started out the TT a little hot, with my HR jumping to 170-175 bpm. Had to cut that down a bit and finally got into a good groove at around the 1/2 mile mark. Pedaled hard and kept it going until mile 3. Ended up with a time of 8:05, a good 24 seconds faster than last time... All the strength training and isolated leg training on the trainer are really starting to pay off. My legs felt stronger, and they can pump faster and harder under the same conditions as my last time trial. Definitely great motivation to keep up the hard work.


Followed it up with a 5.5-mile "run" which entailed Jordan and Steve running 7.5 miles and me stopping several times to shake out my legs and look at the unlit Seneca Creek light show.

Followed of course by chicken tenders. Famous Dave's chicken tenders. They're pretty good. Better than average. Seasoned with spicy salts... Had to teach Jordan how to eat them. He tried to simply eat the tenders. I taught him the fine art of sectioning the tender and enjoying it.

There really is an art to chicken tenders. And I still have much to learn, I'm sure.

Lots of biking

Right after the Candy Cane City 5K, I embarked on the longest bike ride I've ever attempted in my life... 3 hours on Beach Drive. It's part of my current base-building phase in my tri training, and I was excited about it. It was what I thought it would be... cold, long, slightly tedious, but smooth. I've been doing shorter stuff, longest rides being no more than 2 hours or so, but this felt good despite the neck pain and sore quads that accompany it.

Kept up a good 19-20 mph clip for about 56 miles. That's half-iron distance there! Also discovered that my handlebars were about 3-4 degrees downturned... no wonder my neck hurt.

Killed a hornet by accident and saw a biker decked out in full triathlon racing gear... Spiuk helmet, Zipp 1080s and all. Overkill for a training ride, I think.

These rides are teaching me to enjoy the biking more. I'm looking forward to the next long ride.

Candy Cane City 5K

I was anticipating this race for quite some time, as it was the first really flat 5K that I had a chance to participate in. My goal was to get under 16:30, with a pipe-dream of sub 16:15. I figured that if I could pull off a 16:33 at the Autism Speaks 5K with all of its rolling hills, I can certainly do better with all the improvements I've made since.

Got to the race, found out that it was going to be pretty competitive, which is good for knocking down one's time. First really cold race that I have run in in a while, around 35 degrees at the start, but I wasn't feeling like my breathing was compromised in any way.

Got off to a rather slow first mile at the front with #1 and #2, first mile was probably around 5:18. Mile 2 felt possibly a little slower even, maybe 5:20. By mile 2, I wasn't feeling really tired... not a good thing more than halfway through a fast race. I felt like I could have kept that pace for 2 more miles. But I was right behind the leader the whole time. We finally picked it up for the last mile and I came through with a 16:25.

I met my goal for the day, but to tell you the truth, I'm not satisfied. I know I'm faster than that and I had no courage to lead the race and set the pace. I recovered quickly and felt I had more to give. All in all, a rather disappointing feeling, despite achieving my 2009 goal of sub 16:30 in 5K. I really need to keep working on my mental game...

First entry

This will be my introduction. I am using this blog as a way to share my training/racing with those who are curious and also to get in touch with other endurance athletes interested in the same bottom line as me: victory and glory.

I'll attempt to update my training for each day and give observations of triathlon/running related matters pertaining to me or of interest to others.

I hope I can stay committed to this. It seems like it will be fun.