12/30/08

Took my father fishing today. We let off at Sun and sand road around noon. The tide was extremely low so we went north or right to explore. As the tide starting coming in we caught some small trout and started to think the day was going to be a bust and headed back to hit some shallow water and some oyster bars. That was the ticket. We ended up with 3 reds. Below is a couple pictures.

12/14/08

The Titans lost their second game of the season today. Bad call by Fisher cost us the game but you can't win them all. I would rather loose some now than in the playoffs. After the game I went out for a run. My stomach was bothering me the whole run. I don't think I am getting sick because I had plenty of energy but I might have eaten something shady yesterday. All in all I am glad I got in 5 today but it was a rough run.

12/13/08

Only 52 degrees today at 1:15 pm. Decided it probably wasn't going to get too much warmer to took off. I put in 5 miles. Took it easy. My stomach wasn't cooperating today but I made it through the run none the less. I need to get 5 miles in tomorrow and all next week. Sunday I am going to Run 8. Next week starts the 3 half marathon in 6 weeks training.

12/11/08

I was finally able to find some running shoes at a decent price. I got two pairs of Asics 1130's for $35 a piece. $5 more than I would have liked to have paid but when in major need you do what you have to do. I will be keeping my eyes open for more so I don't have to take any more extended breaks. So I got out this afternoon and but in 5 miles. It was a little slower than normal because I haven't really run in over a month but it felt great getting back out there. I am starting a new work out regiment today as well. Nothing like getting back in shape.

Thanksgiving Day

Went to Clearwater Beach with the Family to enjoy a few days in the area. As soon as I arrived it was off to the beach for a little jog. I ended up running 5 1/4. The wind wasn't horrible but definitely was blowing. I saw some people fishing but no catching. It was a nice run. I was able to use my trail shoes since I had to retire my other two pairs. The rest of the weekend we went to Busch Gardens to ride roller coasters and drink the free beer. Saw some cool animals and over all it was a good time.

10/25/08

Boston Georgia Mini Marathon.

This town is the definition of a Small town. In the middle of no where population almost nothing. I wake up this morning thinking the rain should be gone and the sky's a bit cleared up. Well that didn't happen. On the way to the race it was on and off rain. I arrived about 45 minutes early so I could pick up my shirt, get my number and get ready for the race. My only real plan for the race was to run with my Father to the half way point(the turn around) then run my regular training pace the rest of the way in and to finish in under two hours. The first three miles we took it at an easy 9 mm pace and picked it up just a tad to the turn around....turned around at about 57 minutes. At that point I picked up the pace a bit and ended up finish with a time of 1:50:49. This happens to be a new personal record for me at that distance. What is really surprising to me is number one I ran the first half of the race really slow and number two the course was really challenging. If I had been able to run as much as I like the past two days I would have gone out and really tried to get a PR but with the course as hilly as it was and the lack of running because of the rain I just said screw it and took it easy.

The two things I learned. One more base mileage makes these races a million times easier. Number two I am much faster for longer periods of time because of number one.

The race it self was pretty good. Plenty of water stations along the course. The mile markers were impossible to miss. The finish had plenty of spectators and the after race food and drinks were plentiful. I have one complaint and it is massive. The road condition was horrible. There where so many cracks in the road I wore a blister on one of my left foot toes. I the roads were paved I would definitely go back to this race but until that happens I might not return.

All in all I am pleased with my performance and I look forward to my training days ahead. Marathon scheduled for 2/1/09. I am considering doing the Jacksonville Half in December but the weather will have to be right. I have a 10k on Thanksgiving that I will run for time as of now. Time to head to the FSU game. Take it easy party people.

10/24/08

Rain. Someone forgot to remind mother nature that Florida is the fricken sunshine state. The last two days has been nothing but rain. It reminds me of living in TN during the winter. Days and Days and Days of Rain. Unfortunately this has kept me from running. I know I normally ignore the rain and go out there anyway but when the temp outside is below 70 I don't run in the rain. The good news is the system is pushing out of here this evening and it will be in the low 60's for my race tomorrow and great for running on Sunday. Look for more reports starting tomorrow.

10/22/08

During my runs the past few weeks, I have seen a kid with down syndrome riding his bike in the neighborhood and we always wave to each other as we pass. It has always been a pleasant addition to my run seeing this boy and on days I don't I always wonder if I just missed him or if he didn't get out a ride his bike today. Yesterday on my way home, I noticed a person I hadn't seen running in the area before heading in the opposite direction and wondered who it could be but he was to far away to even guess. Today on my run I was lucky enough to find out. My DS friend had decided to take up running. About .25 before my turn around on my out and back course I passed the mysterious runner and it turned out the be the boy when I turned around and started heading back we passed each other again and I was lucky enough to get a big smile a huge high 5. Talk about putting a smile on your face. I let him know I looked forward to seeing him out there again tomorrow and he said you bet.

10/21/08

Well being no one really pays attention to this any way I am guessing you haven't missed my boring rants. However if you have I am sorry but I had a really easy week last week. My body was tired and I was dragging around so I decided to take it easy and it was a damn good idea.

I went out today after three straight days of not running and had the best run I have had in a while. While I only put in 5 miles I felt great the whole time and enjoyed myself. Averaged 8:13's which isn't fast by any stretch but it felt like days past where 8:13's where comfortable and sub 8's are the ones that where really pushing it. Hopefully I can keep that up as I move forward.

10/15/08

We have a presidential debate this evening. Should be relatively interesting to see who does the best and not answering the questions or whose answers make the least sense in the over all scheme of how the government impacts our lives.

I have taken the last two days off from running to ensure that my calf doesn't give me any more problems. I was a bit tight from my run on Sunday today but I don't think my calves are going to be an issue any more. I will keep my fingers crossed. I have a relatively easy week. I am going to try and put in 7 tomorrow and Friday , 6 on Saturday and 9 on Sunday. The following Sunday is the Boston Georgia Mini Marathon.

Work is more glorious than ever. I can't wait until that changes. All in All things are running there course. More pointless dribble tomorrow.

10/12/08

I got back from St george around 4:30 this afternoon and immediately headed out to get my run in. I went over to Tom Brown park. The place was crowded as can be. They had a mountain bike race going on . the kids kingdom area was slammed and half of the pavilions were cram packed with people grilling and hanging out. Even the bike and running path had people blocking it. You would think people wouldn't block the path that people run and bike on but nooooo I had to bob and weave more than anticipated.

I put in 13 miles today. 3.25 per lap and I ran 4 laps. I think some of the people in the dog park thought I was crazy. I passed one lady on 3 of the laps and she finally asked me how many more times I was planning on passing by. Always puts a smile on my face when people can't believe you are still running.

My calf did start to give me trouble on the last lap. I made sure I ran with good form and it never hurt too bad but I am going to make sure a stretch the rest of the week on a regular basis.

10/11/08

5k Race on St George Island. This was an out and back race. the first half of the race was rather quick. We had 15mph winds at our backs. the problem with that of course is having to turn around and run back into it. The last mile and a half was definitely much harder but I came in with a time 2 and half minutes faster than my goal time so overall I was very happy. My calf didn't bother me which of course is a good thing.

10/9/08

Ran 5 miles today. I tweaked my calf on the return leg of the run. I am going to be taking tomorrow off just in case. I hope it isn't a real problem.

10/08/08

Six miles in the pouring rain today. Good times all around. My over all run time was a minute and a half faster than yesterday even with the puddles and heavy soaking wet shoes and clothing to deal with. I received at least 15 looks of what the hell is wrong with you as I was passed by people on the way home from work. I also received some waves and smiles from the regular walkers in the neighborhood who came out toward the end of the run when the rain was calming down. The whole community thinks I am nuts and I am loving every second of it. :)

10/7/08

Back from a well deserved day off. I put in 6 miles in the rain today. I had a cramp the whole run but pushed through it anyway. I am putting my mid range runs at the beginning of the week so I can run 3 on Friday before my race on Saturday and so I will be rested for my twelve miler on Sunday. Should be an interesting week. I am going to watch the debate. Later.

10/5/08

Today was an interesting run. When I woke up this morning I was very tired. My body felt like it hadn't rested in months. I watched the Titans barely beat the Ravens and decided to go get in my run regardless of how I felt I was at least going to get the mileage in even if it was really slow.

The first three miles took me ages. My legs were screaming at me and my body was getting close to telling me where to go. But after the third mile I started to loosen up and was sort of able to get into a groove. By the end of the 5th mile I decided to pick it up a little bit....at the end of the 6th I decided I would finish the last two miles in a decent time. The seventh mile I ended up running in 8:46 and the last mile I ran in 7:30. Over all it took me and hour and thirteen minutes which is slower than I should be running but considering how my body felt and the last two miles of the run I really can't complain. Tomorrow is my day off I hope to recover well so I can get back to my training and be ready for the 5k on Saturday and the twelve miler on Sunday. Too bad I have to work tomorrow the weekends just aren't long enough.

10/4/08

Tomorrow I am going to get 8 miles in. I ran an easy 3 today. Upper 80's a little humid out but not too bad. I expected my time to be about 30 seconds slower per mile than I ended up with so I think the extra miles are starting to help me out. I have a 5k next weekend on Saturday and a 12 mile long run on Sunday. The miles start adding up from here on out. Half marathon on the 25th is right around the corner. I am going to be using that as a training run and nothing more but it is still weighing on my mind.

Go Titans!

10/3/08

TGIF for most people. I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend.

Quick and sweet today.

5 miles in the books. My legs were rather tired from the hills yesterday so I took it easy the whole run just making sure I logged the miles. I felt great after the run was over as usual and look forward to 3 or 4 tomorrow and 8 on Sunday.

10/02/08

6.1 Miles today. I fell short of my goal by 50 seconds. The hills made it difficult but I gave it a good try. Not a bad showing being my first time to try the course. I started out the run with a stitch in my stomach but I was able to breathe it out about 2 miles in. The First hill didn't really phase me but the second one reminded me I still have some work to do. I was able to take the last hill in stride considering. I had a negative split and ran the last mile faster than the previous five but the second hill just messed me up. I fell great now that I am done and look forward to doing it again tomorrow. I am not sure if I am going to run that course again or hit up the local park so I can check out the "scenery" I guess we will find out tomorrow.

10/01/08

Well September is over and October is here. My little sister has a birthday this month, Halloween in around the corner and I have a new budget to be concerned about.

Things accomplished on the first day of the tenth month that have no significance in the over all picture of life. 1. I purchased a bottle of the new Versace. 2. I paid for a years membership in the Gulf Winds Track Club so I can receive the newsletter and get all the discounts lol. & #3. Decided I will never again purchase something from Sports Authority.(That places close out prices are the competitions every day price. Ridiculous)

Today I only had to run 3 miles. I ran 8:06 per mile. A little bit faster than I have been running but still 30 seconds per mile slower than where I want to be so I of course have room for improvement. The good news is I feel great now that the run is over. I get to put in six tomorrow. I have plotted out my course and I have to say it is rather challenging. I am going to have to get my self pumped up for this run. The run has 3 hill all at points in time I would prefer not to have to run up hill. I love to torcher my self it builds character. You would think I wouldn't do that to myself but in the end it is for the best. I am going to shoot for sub 54 minutes...

9/30/08

Work Related- I hit my budget so I will get a nice paycheck. YaY! On to more pleasant subjects.

Yesterday was my day off from running. A nice day to give my legs a little rest. Today I put in 4 miles on my "hilly" course. I felt good the whole run. My calves were a little upset with me the last half mile on the way up the final hill but nothing too horrible. I took a minute and a half off the second half of the run. Reverse splits on a recovery run are always nice. I am still ridiculously slow but tomorrow and Saturday I am going to push it a little bit harder on my short runs to see what I can expect on the 11th. I am very happy now that I got my run in . Looking forward to tomorrow. I hope anyone reading this has a great evening.

9/29/08

Today is my day off from running. I anticipated being rather sore today but I woke up and was pleasantly surprised that wasn't the case. I can tell that my muscles are a bit tired but that is what the day off is all about. I am going to be picking up my overall mileage a bit this week. I am looking to build my base so I can start working on speed. My form isn't where it should be because I am running slower than I am accustomed to. I have a 5k race on the 11th and a half marathon on the 25th. That should give me a good understanding of where I am in my training.

Today was an interesting day outside of running I look forward to giving anyone who is reading this some insight in the near future. Until then pretend I didn't say anything :P

9/28/08

Well well where to start. I woke up this morning with the greatest of intentions. I wanted to get up and get my run in before I went fishing. Well when I woke up I had no desire to get out of bed so I fell back asleep. When I finally wake up it is time to leave for fishing. I said what the hell I will just run when we get to the spot. Bad decision #2 of the day. I got my 10 miles in today and I am very pleased that I did but the course was horrible. The road was graded so I had to put more pressure on one leg on the way out and the way back. I hate that it screws up my form and just makes life in general more difficult. The road I was running on was also way heavier on traffic than I anticipated and the people driving the cars didn't really like to get out of the way so I was always back and forth between the horrible graded road and the grass. Good news is I completed the run and I get to do 12 next weekend, good news number two is I know I will never run that course again. Anyway. Have to get some stuff done back to work tomorrow.

9/27/08

I took yesterday off because my left knee was telling me to be careful with it. After a good evening of rest I was ready to go this afternoon. With a ten miler in front of me tomorrow my idea was just to take it easy and run my easy three mile route at the house. When I got to the end of the road I decided to go left to run my 3.5 route instead when I got to the turn around I decided to keep on going and hit my favorite hill and just made it an easy four miles today. I took a minute off my best time on that route which really isn't much to brag about because of how slow I have been running lately but I was happy with the results. Tomorrow is the ten miler and I am looking forward to it.

9/25/08

Work was its usual pleasant self today. I would say I look forward to the weekend but I don't really ever get one so off we go into something that won't get me riled up.

Today's run was great. It was only 79 out when I went for my run. A slight breeze would kick in from time to time and unlike yesterday I didn't have a cramp. I only ran 4 miles and only anticipate doing 5 tomorrow and 3 saturday before my big day on Sunday but what made today so great was the unbelievably beautiful woman I passed running with her dog. I have never seen her in my neighborhood before and I can honestly say I am rather disappointed about that. The first time I passed her I was impressed but was convinced i just didn't get as good of a look as I should have but I passed her again and I was even more impressed the second time. I can only hope I am lucky enough to continue the trend.

9/24/08

Well today was rather boring so I will skip to my run. I had the grandest of plans for this afternoon's run. I was planning on getting 5 miles in..I had my route planned out. I had a nice hill included as always. I set out and bam I have a stomach cramp right out of the gates. It wasn't bad at first and I tried to breathe it away but it just wanted to be a stubborn old cramp so I had to struggle through my run. I got just under the two mile mark and decided that if I didn't want to ruin the rest of my day I should turn around at the 1.75 mark and just run 3.5 today. So I turned around and damn am I pleased I made that decision. I got to the 3 mile mark and the cramp decided i wanted to let me know who was boss. I told it where to go and finished the run with a relatively decent time I suppose. Now that I am done I feel great but man that bastard was mean.

side note. Fat women in cars need to realize that some people in this world enjoy exercising and they shouldn't eat a donut at 6:30 at night while talking on their cell phone and backing up their SUV out of the driveway. They might hit someone like me if I am not paying attention to your nasty ass driving with your knee. Just because you can't turn the steering wheel with out it rubbing up against your leg doesn't mean you should drive with it so you can eat and talk at the same time. Okay Rant over.

9/23/08

Well after a wonderful day off yesterday I got back in the saddle. I was rather sore which I wasn't expecting today but I set out to do a short run a bit faster than normal and that is what I did. I am happy I was on the road today and I am looking forward to getting a good 4 or 5 in tomorrow. I am busy today so that is all for now.

9/21/08

Sunday.

I woke at 4 this morning and did some fishing. The wind was a bit of a problem but I was still able to catch some red fish. It was the first time I was able to get out there in a month. The Titans as usual did everything they could to lose their game but the defense wouldn't let it happen. That makes them 3-0, the first time since 1999. Good stuff.

After the game I went to the St. Marks trail for the first time and got in 8 miles. The course is rather flat however there is an up hill grade on the way back. Nothing to write home about but it is up hill none the less. I was able to get in a negative split take a minute of my fastest mile on the last one. It felt good getting some real mileage in again. Next weekend I get to run 10.

In closing I purchased the 3rd book in the inheritance trilogy saturday and have knocked out about half of it at this point. So far the reading is easy and the writing is good. Looking forward to what happens next.

9/20/08

I have been on the hunt for a new pair of running shoes all week and haven't had any luck. I found some really good deals on shoes for some friends and family but I couldn't find anything in my size so I am a bit put off however I was able to get a new hat and three pairs of new shorts at a really good price so I can't complain too much. After work today i got in a quick 5 k. Half way through I started getting a cramp and was able to control it with my breathing. The 8 miler is tomorrow. I plan on going slow and just finishing but I am sure it will be interesting. I picked up a new book today and I look forward to diving in to it. That is about it Go Gators...i love watching UT get their asses kicked.

*** Side note. I ordered a new external hard drive the other day. I should receive it on monday. Once it is in I plan to get all my music back on my computer so I can start getting so good mixes together for my long runs. Any suggestions are welcome.

Catch up

For the past few months I have been getting back into training shape. I have to run an 8 miler on Sunday to get me where I need to be for the start of training next week. Over all things have been going well but my times are a bit slower than I expected. Getting older is much harder than I expected. Only 30 and I am already complaining. I am going to be the old man yelling at the kids to stay off my lawn just wait and see.

Training Begins

I made the decision a few months ago to train for a marathon. Assuming I don't get injured I plan to run the Tally Marathon in February. Its been a while since I trained regularly so this should be an adventure. To keep my mind in the right spot I have decided not to drink and record my thoughts here. Good luck to anyone who reads this my mind is rather odd.

Test

This is a Test. I bet you couldn't have guessed from the title.