I Lept All the Way

I had to run today as we won't get another chance to run on Feb 29 for another 4 years!

It was sunny, high 50's, and very windy today. Thankfully, the wind was coming from the west and I only have short stretches of my routes that go east/west, so I didn't have to slog it out against the wind for long periods of time.

I glanced back at my Monday run and was pleasantly surprised that I bettered it. With the wind and feeling a bit worn out from work, I figured I'd be pretty slow. Guess that shows you how much I know!

As has been my routine as of late, I took Denali with me the first mile. I think she's getting used to running with me as I can give her a little slack and don't have to tug on the leash as much to get her to run alongside me.

4 mile run done in 4!

There's a four mile run. I've been taking Denali the first mile, so I have at least one stop that I make for her to relieve herself. I've been thinking about picking her up for the last mile as I pass the house at that point, but I haven't yet done that.

4 mile run done in 3!

Here's my scheduled 4 mile run. I cut it short due to time crunch (had to be somewhere), weather (26 degrees and windy), and conditioning (that fourth mile would have been murder.)

I'm going to cut myself some slack because I really am getting back into shape from a long layoff, and I don't want to hurt anything in the process. I'll shoot for the same schedule next week - 4 miles, 3 miles, and 4 miles.

Ugh Run

We've all been there: Had a long day of exhausting work, been tired all day, get home and just want to veg. sigh. Yeah, that was me today.

So, I laid down on the couch for about a half hour, closed my eyes, and rested. Then, feeling somewhat refreshed, I headed out for a mile with Denali and two on my own.

Today's Ugh Run was a victory. Yay on me.

Happy Presidents Day

I was off today, but unfortunately, my marathon session of Star Wars: The Old Republic did not happen.

Fortunately, my four mile run did happen! It was sunny! It was 40 degrees! Denali ran with me the first mile! I can smell Spring in the air!!

Unfortunately, in Anchorage, the smell of Spring is all the dog poop thawing.

Fortunately, in Indiana, the dog poop is already thawed!

Unfortunately, in Indiana, the skunks wake up near Spring and waddle in front of cars.

Fortunately, I haven't hit one...yet...!

5K...OUTSIDE!

Running outside, what a concept. It was a balmy 49 degrees and sunny after work, so I had to get outside for my run. I was very comfortable in my long sleeve tech shirt and shorts. No ear protection or gloves required.

As you can see, I went out a little quick, although I wanted to average around 10 min miles for the run. I set my pace alarms to keep me between 11 and 9 minute miles. Yeah, I know, you can drive a truck through those limits. I need to customize my limits again so that I can tighten them up.

9.2 miles for the week; that's a good start, I think. Next week, I think I'll shoot for an easy 4 miler, a tempo 3 miler, and an easy 4 miler, in that order.

5K

I thought about doing another negative split treadmill run, but I decided to do my first mile faster and keep the pace. I did increase the speed to 6.5 mph for the 1/10th.

Friday (or Saturday) I will run another 3 or so miles to get 9 miles for the week. Next week, I'll look at increasing one or two of the runs to 3.5 or 4 miles with a tempo three miler.

Forgive me Father-in-law

It has been 11 days since my last confession of running. I've been needing a little motivation as the winter blahs have set in, so my father-in-law is looking into coming through Indiana a little early and running the Carmel half marathon.

And he thinks the 8K run would be perfect for me! That's roughly 5 miles, so yeah, I can get behind that idea. Training revitalized!

Sausage Day

Last year, on Sausage Day, I ran 4 miles on the treadmill at a 9:30 pace. This year, I ran outside at a 10:24 pace. So, I was faster last year, but I got to catch some rays this year.

I'm thinkin' I like this year better.

Oh, and as to the title...what is sausage - just ground hog...