Sunday Night Sadness

You ever feel so tired and drained that you just want to cry? My kids are sound asleep in their beds and I should be too, but the thought of going to bed without my hubby is making me sad. I want to postpone it as long as possible. I just miss him when he's at work even though I know I will see him after his 24 hour shift. Anyway, that's besides the point. Or maybe it's not. The baby will be 3 in December and can you believe that my hubby and I have not had a real date or a weekend away without the kids since the baby was born! How I long for some time alone with my spouse. It saddens me.

But I know all this hoopla is temporary. The kids will be older one day and then I'll miss them when they're gone. The grass certainly is always greener on the other side. I just need to accept my life NOW and go with it. I'm crying as I type this. I think this is the most personal I've ever gotten on this stupid blog! Forgive me. I hope it's just PMS.

I had a busy day today catching up on stuff around the house. I think the cause of this exhaustion was getting up at 5 a.m. to do a 12 mile run at 5:30-ish. I did 24 half-mile out and backs, to stay close to the house. It was kind of neat doing that. Went faster than I thought it would. Got it done at an average of 8:00/mile. I did 2 x 1 mile pick ups at mile 7 and mile 10. The first pick up was 7:03 and the 2nd pick up was 6:48. Miguel said not to go faster than an 8-min. mile except when doing the pick ups, and not to run the pick ups faster than a 6:40 mile.

Anyway, after the run it was just go, go, go for the rest of the day. I think the laundry in this house has a mind of its own because piles of it appear out of nowhere within a couple of days of me washing it all. Same with the dishes, and the baby's toys. And then we grocery shopped, and I hate to grocery shop. The day did come to a nice close when the kids and I went to evening Mass. The toddler is so good in church nowadays. Very mellow. :) Jumping ahead... as I tucked my older son into bed tonight he said, "Thanks for taking us to church, mom." I'm so glad he enjoys going! So does my daughter, even though she won't admit it.

I'm sleeping in tomorrow morning. Forget running at 5:30, for once. I'm gonna run at 10 a.m., and like it. My legs are tired, my mind is tired. I need some sleep. I've run everyday since June 1. I haven't been counting the days, but it's a streak for me. On the day I actually take a break from RUNNING, I might go into shock. That day is coming though, after the Half on Aug. 3, I'm going to enjoy some downtime from running and I'm going to be cross training a lot more until marathon training starts. Honestly, I can't wait!

I will say this, I really, really enjoy working with Miguel on all my training stuff. He is so knowledgeable and encouraging. I completely trust his coaching. It's funny, he literally will tell me in his notes on my training schedule, "You'll feel fatigued on this day because of the workout you did on such and such day," etc., and he's RIGHT! Or he'll predict the paces I will run based on a workout I did a couple weeks back and based on the rest I've gotten before the workout. He's always within mere seconds, or one second! I hope I keep up my end of the deal and live up to his expectations. I'm feeling pretty confident about it, and I'll certainly do my best.

I just have to get over this Sunday night sadness. Time for bed. It's 11 p.m. and this is the latest I've been awake in over 6 weeks! Thanks for letting me cry 'on your shoulders.'

A Little Taper

Thank you so much for reading and leaving your comments. I REALLY appreciate that. I feel your good vibes and they inspire me!!!

After last week I am now in taper mode for the upcoming San Francisco Half Marathon. I think I mentioned before that I'll be running the 2nd half (the easier one -- of course). ;)

This week I've done the following:
Monday - Easy run on the canals. 7 miles in 1:01:42, 8:47/mile average
Tuesday- AM Easy run on the roads. 6.1 mile in 50:57, 8:21/mile average
PM Easy run on the roads. 3.2 miles in 29:00, 9:03/mile average (95-degrees)
Wednesday- 2 mile warm up and 4 x 100 meter strides followed by 2 miles in 13:09 (6:36, 6:33), 3 minute recovery, 1 mile in 6:22, 3 minute recovery, 1 mile in 6:19, 2 miles cool down. This looked easy on paper, but it was FAR, FAR from easy. I had never pushed myself so hard before and I think Miguel only had me do this for one mile for psychological reasons more than physiological. It took me out of my little comfort zone and I need that in order to improve. It was out of this workout that I posted the following on Runner's World online:

"I thought about Squirrel's thread this morning before my workout. I had a feeling the workout would hurt when my coach wrote in his notes to me:
" Don't be afraid to push yourself hard for this last mile."

The workout itself wasn't long. It was to be run at a high intensity, sandwiched in between a couple miles warm up and couple miles cool down.

2 miles at slightly faster than 5K pace, 3 minute recovery.
1 mile about :10-:15 faster than 5K pace, 3 minute recovery.
1 mile 'as hard as you can.' Thus the, "Don't be afraid..." statement.

I was still hesitant to let it all go until the half mile point, and then I ran my heart out (literally). I felt the lactic acid in my shoulders and arms and my breathing was crazy. I even drooled on my chin because swallowing took too much energy! I don't know that I've ever done that before. My heart rate was 178 bpm, which leads me to believe that maybe my max IS closer to 181 than I thought. The effort just felt so HARD!

The workout was good for me psychologically. I need to push myself past my comfort zone and know really well what that "pain" of all-out effort feels like. That way I won't be 'afraid' when I feel it in a race.

I think I'll get over my fear as I push myself harder. He commented once that he has seen me finish races and has also seen some of my goal race pictures, and he said that I looked too full of energy the entire time, and especially at the end. It's true. I think I play it safe too much.

I know there is racing smart and there is racing timid... I think I've raced timid too long! Time to get over it! "

Anyway, today I ran 5.5 easy on the treadmill, ~47:00, ~8:32/mile average.
MY SWEET HUSBAND BOUGHT ME A TREADMILL AND SET UP A MINI GYM IN OUR GARAGE LAST NIGHT!!!!! He is the best!
I could not do all this stuff without his support and encouragement. Thanks darlin'!

I followed the run with 6 x 10 second strides to loosen up the legs and fire the fast twitch muscle fibers. Then I did 3 rounds for time of 21-15-9 reps of 30# overhead squats and Burpees. Took me about 10 minutes! Yikes. I'll get better... I hope. Yesterday I did Fran, scaled to very light weight and jumping pull ups, in 4:38.

Okay, time to get on with the day. Will be doing a series of 400s tomorrow (at 85-87 seconds). Not really super fast, but just enough to get the legs turning over again.

75 Miles - A New Mileage PR

I've never run 75 miles in one week before, and I feel pretty good. It's been a hard week of running and I'm glad it's over. I'm just thankful that I was able to do it. I know that God helps those who help themselves, so I put in the leg work, but I always ask God to help me through pretty much everything. And all evidence points to Him listening and helping!

Yesterday I ran 8 miles instead of 5 because I did not do the afternoon run the day before. My body just pleaded for the afternoon OFF of running on Friday, so I listened. It worked because yesterday I cranked out the 8 miles in an average of 8:10's while pushing the toddler in the jogging stroller, and felt so fresh. And today was even better.

I was out the door at 6:30 a.m. and ran a 2.45 mile warm up including 4 x 100 strides. Changed into the Brooks Racers and then ran the 8 x 1Ks at 5K pace or faster (target pace was 4:00 for each 1K, or a 6:27 mile average). I took 2 minutes active recovery between each interval. I set the Garmin to beep at the 1K mark and just ran... did not even look at the thing once during the intervals and went straight by feel. Here's how they panned out.

4:00
3:58
3:51
3:52
3:54
3:56 (My legs began to feel like bricks here)
4:01 (I thought I was running super fast on this one, but obviously I wasn't)
3:53

I ran a 2 mile cool down. I felt like I was working pretty hard, but like I was still in good control of my form and not gasping for air like at the end of most races lately. I was very happy with the workout, and when I talked to Miguel, he was pleasantly surprised. He had actually given me a goal of 4:00-4:06 for each of these, based on my recent 5K time from the end of June.

Anyway, to celebrate my 75 mile week I am going to have some good red wine tonight and yummy pot roast sandwich with sauteed onions, bell peppers and shredded cheese. Can't wait!

For those interested in seeing how Miguel Nuci trains, here is the link to his Motion Based training log.

Tempo Intervals, so lovely

Ha! I say they're lovely with my tongue firmly in cheek.

Woke up at 5:00, down 16 ounces super concentrated sports drink, out the door by 5:45. 2 mile warm up, strides, quick stretches, changed into my racing flats and off I went.
First 2 miles: 13:40 (6:50/mile average) felt kind of cold and tight
3 minute active recovery, jog, walk, stretch, fluids
2nd 2 miles: 13:29 (6:45/mile average) felt loose, good, working hard but controlled
3 minute active recovery, like the one described above
3rd 2 miles: 13:33 (6:47/mile average) felt loose, good, working HARDER, but still ended up slower.
2 mile cool down.
Stretch & coffee.

Total miles for today: 10.4
Was supposed to do a 3 mile shake out run tonight, but my legs are SORE! I think the race on Saturday, the 20 miler on Tuesday plus the 10 miles Wednesday and 7 on Thursday finally caught up to me today. Legs were feeling some fatigue during those tempo intervals. I will not lie! In fact, I had to crash and burn on the couch while the baby napped today. I'm so glad my older kids are understanding! My son teased me about snoring so loudly! Oops.

Tomorrow I'll do anywhere from 5-8, very easy! Another hard day on Sunday (lots of 1Ks). I should top out at 75 this week... then tapering down for the SF Half. Yaaaaay!

First 20 Miler Since May

I ran 20.05 yesterday. Miguel said this was going to be a 75 mile week, and a tough one. So far he's not kidding. Anyway he said to start at an 8:20 pace and pick it up throughout the run and finish at a 7:40-7:50. It was 76 at the start and 85 at the end, and believe me, I felt that heat.

My first 7.17 miles was at an average pace of 8:06/mile.
My second 7.38 miles was at an average pace of 7:54/mile.
My last 4.5 was at an average pace of 7:45/mile.
The overall pace for the 'working' part of the run was 7:56/mile average.
Mile 20 was my cool down mile, which I walked a 1/4 of because I was so cramped!

I practiced drinking a higher concentration of sports drink. I also took 2 GU's. Overall my carbohydrate intake during the run was 200 grams. My fluid intake was about 20-25 ounces per hour, mostly in the form of sports drink. I definitely needed more electrolytes (i.e.: more sports drink). I washed the GU's down with water. The calf cramps attacked fiercely at mile 18-1/2, so it was just the last half mile of the first 19 that I had to battle them... but then they stuck around big time for the cool down mile. Seriously, ouch.

I was glad I was able to complete the task the way Miguel prescribed! He was happy too. He sent me an email from where he's altitude training (Mammoth Lakes) and he was very excited (I think surprised) that I was able to do it. Anyway, after this week I have two weeks of taper like running in preparation for the San Francisco Half Marathon on August 3rd.

This morning I ran 6.7 miles recovery and I'll do 3.3 this afternoon. Another recovery day tomorrow, and then a tough tempo interval workout on Friday. Wooohoooo, can't wait. (I'm rolling my eyes as I type that, but I actually am kind of excited for it).

Have a good week!

TUNE UP Races

I love races, of all lengths. I don't know which distance is the most difficult. I think they are all freaking hard in their own right. Yesterday I ran a 10K and it was a nice, flat course. I was primed and ready for a big PR too, but I didn't count on the wind at the turn around. Ugh.

The good news is I won. I also PR'd, but only by 7 seconds. I don't know, I feel guilty even calling it a PR. The bad news is I didn't break 41:00. My finish time was 41:19. My splits were 6:30, 6:33, 6:35, 6:41, 6:52, 6:41 and 1:27 (for the last .2ish miles, course was a tiny bit long). Can you see where I hit the wind? By mile 5 I was steps away from WALKING. My body wanted to go so badly, but my mind was tired of running into the wind and wanted to stop working. It was weird... definitely a mental thing yesterday.

I felt so, so good before that turn around and even at the turn around. I thought we'd get a tail wind on the way back because there was a slight headwind in last part of the 3rd mile. Oh well, I was wrong. NO tailwind. I let my negative thoughts get the best of me though. Instead of thinking, "Everyone else feels this wind too," I thought, "Might as well kiss that sub-41: good bye." And wouldn't you know, it went bye bye. :(

I finished the day with 11.2 miles total. Anyway, it felt good to finally win a 10K! I won a $100 gift certificate toward Mizuno shoes. Time to try the Mizuno Wave Elixirs. I hear they're a great shoe for slight over pronators. Finished the week with an 8.45 mile run today and total miles for the week were only at 54. I'll be back up in the 70's range this week.

After the run this morning I did the CrossFit WOD, substituting jumping and kipping pull ups for the L-pull ups.
For time:
15 Handstand push-ups
1 L Pull-up
13 Handstand push-ups
3 L Pull-ups
11 Handstand push-ups
5 L Pull-ups
9 Handstand push-ups
7 L Pull-ups
7 Handstand push-ups
9 L Pull-ups
5 Handstand push-ups
11 L Pull-ups
3 Handstand push-ups
13 L Pull-ups
1 Handstand push-up
15 L Pull-ups
My time was not fast, but I got it done.
I finished with 60 sit ups and some other core strengthening from Running Times magazine.

HOT outside!

It has been so hot in the last few days. The high yesterday was 106. The high today was 108. I actually ran 4 miles this afternoon when it was 108, and it wasn't too horrible. It wasn't the best, but I managed to stay very well hydrated. The hard part was the heat made my legs feel like they were full of lactic acid. It was hard to run faster than an 8:30 pace. I did feel a little dizzy and woozy around mile 3, but the feeling left as soon as it came about.

GOOD NEWS: My husband is HOME and all is great! He got home late last night and scared the living daylights out of me, but it was so, so wonderful to hold him again. He's home for 5 days before he has to go back to work. We are all so happy!

Quick recap of the workout from yesterday:
Ran this at 5:30 a.m., around 75 degrees and humid!
Did 9.2 miles total which included a 2K at 10k pace, 3 min. recovery, 1K @ 10k pace, 2 minute recovery, 400 at faster than 5K race pace, 3 minute recovery, and then repeat. The 2Ks were a lot harder than I thought they'd be. By the end of the 2nd one, my body just felt DONE. It was like a full out effort to get to the end of it. I think I almost passed out, but then was finally able to stop when my Garmin beeped. But overall, a great workout.

Did an easy 4 this morning at 0800 in 85 degrees, and then the 4 this afternoon in 108 degrees. I finished exactly 1 minute (down to the second) slower than the a.m. run. So today's heat differential made me almost 3% slower than I was in the morning. As I ran this afternoon, I imagined what the Badwater runners must feel like running 135 miles in 130 degrees. I know I could NEVER do it. The heat and I are not good friends.

Anyway, have a great week and I'll be posting sometime on Saturday after the 10K race. Wish me luck! I hope it's not in the high 70's again at gun time.

Running with a GRACO stroller

Let me say it's like pushing a wheel barrow, not the easiest thing in the world.
That's how I got the miles in today because the jogging stroller has a flat and I'm too lame to fix it.
Hubby might not be home until WEDNESDAY now. :(
I miss him so much that I'm having dreams about him, just holding him close and smelling him. I hardly ever dream about him!
Anyway, 12.25 miles at easy/recovery pace (had to be, pushing that gargantuan beast of a stroller).

An easy 7 tomorrow, and a mini taper week for the 10K on Saturday. :)

A Little Bit O' Speed

I did some speed work today and it felt good. It was difficult to get in the mind set. In fact, every ounce of me was saying, "This is gonna suck. Maybe today is not the day to do this." You know, trying to talk myself out of it. But then I thought, "Look, as soon as I get started the sooner I can get it done." When things started to hurt I just envisioned Shalane Flanagan, Kara Goucher and Jen Rhines running their hearts during the 5000 final. By the way, way to go, Kara!

Ran my warm up and strides, changed into the Brooks Racers and off I went.
1 mile at 6:17
4 minute recovery jog
1200 at 4:34
3 minute recovery jog
800 at 3:01
3 minute recovery jog
400 at 1:26
200 recovery jog
200 at :40
400 recovery jog
Then a fast 400, repeating the above 400-200 sequence.
I repeated the 400- 200 segment a total of 4 times and each split was within a second of each other, so I was pleased. Stayed in the 1:27 and the :40 ranges.
I could feel the lactic acid building in my by the 3rd round, and definitely getting a bit harder to deal with in the last round.
Did cool down miles, and that was that!

Then the toddler and I met up with the running club and we rode the bike next to the runners. It was fun to relax and socialize with everybody.

Tomorrow the little guy and I do 12 easy miles. I'll be around 72 miles for the week. Can't wait to race the 10K next weekend.

Happy Birthday, USA!

Happy 4th of July everybody!
Started the day off with a nice 8 mile run. It felt so good and I felt very fresh. Will do 3 more this evening with the toddler in tow. My older kids will be at their step mom's and I'll miss them, but they'll be back on Sunday.

I don't have much going on today. Just relaxing at home, maybe swimming with the little guy. Laundry, watching the track and field trials that I DVR'd last night. We'll probably watch fireworks off the balcony tonight if he can stay awake. My hubby is still fighting fires. He called last night during a break and said they had a good day of work, but their shift wasn't over until this morning! I can't wait until he gets home.

The kids and I are heading out to the coffee shop for some goodies. Have a wonderful holiday and stay safe. Remember the saying on 4th of July? Safe and sane? :)

What's Up With The Running...

It's all good. :)

I haven't been posting about running much lately, but believe me, it's been going on. I ran 17 miles on Sunday at an 8:12/mile average and it felt pretty good considering I had a challenging few days prior w/ CrossFit, and then the 5K race the day before. I was pretty dehydrated though, as the several episodes of diarrhea after the run let me know. Sorry, TMI.

Monday, 8 easy, Tuesday 10 easy.

Today, 12.28 miles, 5 a.m. :
I weighed myself before the run (yes, a whopping 129.6)!
Drank 1 GU diluted in 8 ounces of water over the course of a 2 mile warm up with strides.
Changed into my racing flats quickly.
Did 4 x 100 meter strides.
Ran 1 hour at 88-92% of maximum heart rate. My MHR is incorrectly figured at 220-my age. I haven't done a good heart rate assessment test yet.
That hour felt too slow, and I averaged 92% for the entire time. That's why I think my MHR is wrong. However, I did pick up the pace in the last 1.28 miles because I just WANTED to go faster. I ended up with 8.28 miles in 60 minutes, and my last 1.28 miles averaged 6:44/mile.
I drank a heavier concentration of Cytomax every 15 minute during the hour. Surprisingly my stomach did not get upset. I think I'll be drinking Cytomax from now on!
2 mile cool down.
Finish weight was 127, so 2.6 pounds of water weight lost. Got to replenish that.

Tomorrow and Friday are easy/recovery days with strides thrown into the mix to keep the fast twitch muscle fibers alive.
Saturday is an interval workout (will do it on the roads). Sunday is a medium long run of 13. I should be up at 70 miles this week.

On a CrossFit note: I attempted to do the benchmark workout, Cindy, yesterday afternoon. OH MY GOODNESS, my quads and pectorals IMMEDIATELY protested! I can't believe how sore and tender they STILL are from the certification last week! I stopped the workout because it felt like I'd pull some muscles if I proceeded, and I don't want to do that.

Okay, time to eat breakfast.

Fire Calls

My dear husband shipped out today to fight the fires in Butte County. I'm sad but okay. I already miss him. I'll post more later.

5K - Dirty Air - No PR - But I Won!

After CrossFit on Tuesday and Wednesday, I had a hard time walking and using my arms. My legs were better this morning, but my arms were still toast. My dad and daughter accompanied me to the race, which was so nice of them. I love it when any of my family members come to races. After a 1.5 mile warm up and some strides, I got to the start line and off we went. There were 5 of us women who formed a nice little pack and we all stuck together for the first mile. It was very cool and surreal... it felt like we were all working together, pacing each other. We hit the first mile at 6:25, right on target.

At the mile 1, another runner and I left the pack and stuck together. It felt good to push each other. At the turn around I left her. We had a headwind going back and man, did it slow me down. I forgot that the entire 2nd mile is on a dirt path so that was kind of tough to maintain good speed on. My 2nd mile was much slower at 6:42 (I think). By the end of mile 2 I was thinking, "GET ME OFF THIS DIRT!"

Finally left the dirt and headed back to the start running on the road. I felt my upper body starting to seize up from all the lactic acid (left over from CrossFit AND building up from the race). No big deal, just run through it. My legs felt pretty fresh.

Then I started to feel this tightness in my lungs, kind of burning. No side stitch or cramp, it was like a weird sensation and then I started to feel like my airway was blocked a little. I know my lungs can handle racing a 5K, but I didn't realize just how much the nasty air from all the California fires would affect me. It affected me! My lungs actually hurt (well, something deep inside my chest and ribs hurt). Instead of taking my normal, heavy breaths at the end of a fast race, I was taking these short, shallow gasps. It didn't feel all that great.

Anyway, last 1.1 mile was 6:54 (or thereabouts). I finished the 5K in 20:44. Still way off my PR from before Boston, but that's okay. I'll get there eventually. I ended up winning the women's division so I got my 2nd trophy in the series. Two more of these 5Ks to go. I feel pretty confident that I'll get that sub-20 at the end of July.

Once again, GREAT job by Larry! (He's the race director). And to Shaun (owner of the running store where we work). Together they have organized a great little, local race series. I love it!!!

I'll post some pics soon. :)

CrossFit CERTIFIED

Yea!!! Oh man, so much to discuss regarding CrossFit. To sum it up, one of the main goals of CrossFit is to train your body to move the largest load (itself) across the longest distance (could be a running a marathon to doing a pull up) in the shortest amount of time (which makes the intensity un-freakin-real).

I learned that the exercises aren't specialized, meaning CrossFit doesn't specialize in anything. The workouts are based completely on functional movements. Basically, the exercises are actions your body does every single day without you even thinking about it. The "workout" and intensity comes from doing those movements repeatedly, at full range, sometimes with added weight sometimes without, in the fastest amount of time possible. An example is to do 5 rounds of 15 squats and 15 push ups as fast as you can, while using proper body alignment and form. Do that and you will know why I am having trouble walking today.

The beauty of CrossFit is that the 'exercises' can be scaled back for everybody. If you can't to a standard push up, then do them with your knees on the ground but maintain plank alignment from your head to your knees! If you can't do a squat, then do sit to stands (basically rise up from a chair and then lower yourself back down until your butt just barely touches the chair and then stand back up again). There are 60+ year old adults doing CrossFit, as well as kids as young as 5! Like I said, it's all functional movements, everyday movements. And it's beautiful.

Now back to running... :)

It's a cut back week for me. Let's see, 3 weeks ago I was somewhere around 53-54 miles. And for the past 2 weeks I've held steady at 63-64. This week will be 51-55 and then I go back up toward 70 next week. I had a hard, hard time running intervals yesterday after CrossFit (yes, CF can be THAT intense). So I actually cut the last 2 intervals out of the run and just did easy miles the rest of the time. This morning I ran a very mellow 5.1 miles and my body was like a stiff board moving through the first couple of miles. Tomorrow it's easy miles again and some strides and then a 5K on Saturday. I'm working for a PR I want to break 20:00. I just hope my body is recovered by then!

Time to eat breakfast. Thanks for reading and have a wonderful day!

Running in the HEAT

Oh boy. I worked today at the running store and have I mentioned I love that? I do! It is so fun to help people figure out the kind of shoes they need for their feet, and then to see them get all excited about running. If I were selling ANY other shoes, I'd hate it, but running shoes??? I'll sell them all day long! I'll also buy them all day long, so I'm glad I only work there once a week.

Speaking of feet and shoes, since I've started running a higher amount of weekly miles my feet have changed! Wearing "neutral" shoes now kill my feet. I have started wearing low stability shoes as well as arch supports and the difference is phenomenal. NO foot pain and my legs feel very fresh. I also FINALLY bought The Stick. All I have to say is what was I waiting for??? That thing is the bomb. I can feel the tingling through my trouble spots where things are starting to loosen up.

I've also been faithful about stretching every evening before bed. I will sometimes roll on the foam roller first and then stretch, or I'll do some core work ala CrossFit and stretch. Yes, I'm using The Stick when I need some quick, trigger point relief and the foam roller to help me maintain the loose muscles. I figure if I have the time to watch TV at night, I can multi task!

Back to running... After work I headed straight to the track a little over a mile away to do 200 meter sprints with 1:1 recoveries. Little did I know that running ANY amount in 105 degrees would be a significant challenge, but I did it. It was kind of painful, but I nailed my splits. I finished with a couple of miles cool down (if you can call it that). By the time I finished, it was 104 degrees. At least it cooled down. ;) I prepped for running in these temps by hydrating all day and drinking sports drink. It really did help.

Tomorrow I get to do an easy run and I'm looking forward to doing that in the cool, early morning hours. Time to get cleaned up and hang with the hubby.

Running Happenings

My body is getting used to waking at 4:30 a.m. to run at 5. It's also getting used to doing doubles (miles in the morning and afternoon or evening), and averaging 60-some odd miles per week. I get to cut back next week to the mid 50s and then I'll be back up to the 70s range the week after.

I have been napping everyday, sometimes twice if there is time. I'm glad I'm working only part time because it helps! I think the naps are my body's way of saying, "Hey, we need to rest and recover." Seriously, as soon as my head hits the pillow, I'm out.

Yesterday I did mile repeats with minimal recoveries to simulate a half marathon (basically lactate threshold pace). Tomorrow I do a long series of 200s with 200m jog recoveries and Sunday I do a bunch of 400s with 1:1 recoveries (in other words, I recover for the same time it took to run the 400). I like the track again! It's a dirt track, nice and soft. But I can't wait until the college track is finished next fall so I can get back to that all-weather surface.

Anyway, this morning's run of just 4 miles at 5 a.m. was beautiful. The weather is so nice at that hour. There are people out doing their walks or runs or cycling and it's so cool to see them at that hour. The weather during the day has been hovering around 100 and I don't like running in that, but I will be later today. Oh well, at least it's a recovery run.

Lastly, I thought I'd share a family portrait taken on Father's Day. This is me, my hubby, our kids and his niece. Have a great afternoon!

Updates

Thanks Rick, Kirk, Layla, Victoria, Mike, Terry, Jen and Eva for your comments. I spoke to the officer who fired the shot on the suspect and he and his family are handling things okay, but he asked for prayers. I don't blame him because it had to be tough and probably still is, not only to witness something as horrific as that, but then to use deadly force to stop it from happening any further. Imagine. Or better yet, don't.

He didn't talk much about what he saw except to call all of it "very gruesome." I know you're all praying for the baby and his family, and possibly even the baby's father. Please include Officer Ramar in your thoughts and prayers, too, as well as those who tried to fight the baby's father off.

And regarding the fallen officer, his killer was found and arrested. Thankfully.

Seriously, be safe and take nothing for granted. I promise I'll get back to blogging about running soon. And no worries, I'm still running.

Brutal and Heartbreaking

This particular entry has nothing to do with running but it has been weighing so heavily on my mind and I just need to get it off my chest. Don't read this if you don't feel like getting upset.

Lastnight I went to bed early (before 10) and when my husband came to bed he woke me up to tell me about something he had seen on the news. He was so choked up about it he fought back tears as he told me. Yesterday evening in the south end of our town, a man in his 20's who was driving down a county road with a toddler stopped on the road, removed the toddler from his truck and proceeded to stomp, beat and kick the toddler to a point that the toddler was no longer recognizeable. Other drivers passing by stopped and tried to pull the man away from the baby but he fought them off and continued to stomp the helpless little child. People were able to call 911 immediately and although ground patrol officers were unavailable, the police officer flying the helicopter responded and witnessed the brutality from overhead. He was able to land in the field next to the scene of the crime and as he exited the helicopter he repeatedly commanded the man to stop as he approached the man and child. The man would not stop and so the officer immediately fired upon him, striking him and killing him. The baby was transported to a local hospital and pronounced dead on arrival.

From all accounts, everybody that witnessed this horrific act did everything they physically could to try to stop that man from killing that little child. I just can't understand why this would happen. It is beyond comprehension. I spent a lot of time awake lastnight thinking about what happened and praying for all those involved... but had a hard time feeling anything but loathing for the now-dead suspect.

I looked at my children this morning and remembered the times of frustration I've felt toward them, but was so grateful that love, patience, law and common sense have always prevailed over anger and frustration. It's hard to come to terms with brutality like this, but asking God, "Why????" seems to take some of the burden away.

And on top of that, this morning on the news I saw that another police officer was shot and killed in a town a couple of hours north of here. The last I saw was that the gunman was still at large, and armed. At least police have the possible suspect identified and the news has plastered his photo all over the place.

I know incidents like these have nothing to do with me and are completely out of my control, but that doesn't take away any of the sadness and anger I feel about them.

Anyway friends, be safe. Love your loved ones. Do what you can to spread love.

My Kids

I have to admit that running with my kids next to me on their bikes DOES have its drawbacks sometimes. Today was a rough day. We did a "double" today. 5.7 miles in the morning and then 4.4 miles in the afternoon. (They were troopers). For some reason, though, they just weren't paying really good attention to their surroundings as much as they usually do and so I found myself constantly reminding them to look for cars and pedestrians and to look up instead of down, etc. Trust me, talking to them nonstop while pushing my 2-1/2 year old in the jogging stroller is kind of tiresome. Mentally draining. I felt more stress running with them today than I had in a while. But we got through it and they actually had a GREAT time (or so they said). And after both sessions, we all jumped into the pool to cool off. It was great. That took away a lot of stress.

On the way back from the first run, they pointed out a small bird in the road. It was having trouble leaving the ground and after watching it for a few minutes, I realized something was broken. I had no idea how to help it, but I scooped it up and gently put it on the grass on the sidewalk. Poor thing. It was already over 80 degrees out and there it was, stranded. We backed off and watched as its friends came over to try to help it. With that, we left. :(

I was so exhausted after lunch that after I put the toddler down for his nap, I crashed out in bed for an hour. The kids were great and let me sleep. I could NOT keep my eyes open.

On our 2nd run we took the same route but didn't see the bird again. I hope that was a good sign. My kids hoped so too. Thank goodness they're optimists. Anyway, that 2nd run was HOT. 93-degrees. I'm so glad we don't have to deal with humidity on top of the high temps. I don't know if I could handle that. The kids were much more alert on the afternoon run. I was too, but the heat slowed me way down.

As soon as we got home, I started to get a migraine headache. Popped 3 ibuprofen and within minutes it was gone. I've been hydrating and hydrating and hope to stave off another headache.

COOL NEWS: I finally lost one of my pinky toe nails. Yes, the Ohlone 50K is still with me in spirit. That left pinky toe nail was hanging by some dead skin so I just clipped it off and now I have no nail at all. It's true, you really don't need them. Doesn't hurt one bit! The right pinky toe nail is looking pretty bad too and I know it's a gonner (sp?) any day now.

CONGRATULATIONS are in order to Mark Tanaka and Rick Gaston for not only completing the Kettle Morraine 100 miler in Wisonsin last weekend, but for placing 2nd and 3rd respectively. Two San Francisco Bay Area boys representing well! And much love and congratulations to Bob Gentile for giving the KM100 all he had. It was a tough day for him AND MANY OTHERS, but Bob, your 100 miles will come soon, and you will have your redemption!

Please visit their blogs when you get a chance... they're listed on the right side of my blog.

Run well, friends! Smile, be happy to be moving!

Running and Loving It

I really like running right now. Last week I logged 52.85 miles and this week I'll probably log about 60. I've been following Miguel's advice and I've never felt better AND more tired. ;) I'm tired because I'm getting up at 4:30 a.m. several days per week to get the first of two daily runs in. Don't worry, they're not hard runs. He has me doing doubles on recovery days. Surprisingly my body is adapting. I just need to train myself to get to sleep earlier at night.

On a non running related note, I love having the kids home and out of school. It's just nice! They've been riding their bikes next to me as I do recovery runs and the company is awesome.

Anyway, my running focus for summer is to build up to a good solid mileage base (I have a feeling it's going to be 70+ mpw instead of 60), run low 19:00 or high 18:00 in a 5K and run a high 39:00 or low 40:00 in a 10K. Miguel is happy about me doing a 50K in early August because that gives me a nice reward for the work he'll have me doing and it also gives me enough recovery time before I start marathon training. I also have a tune up half marathon in October in which I'm aiming to run sub 1:25. I'm knocking on wood as I hope to stay injury free.

Work will be keepig me busy in July and August, so I'm going to enjoy June as much as I can!

I smell tacos downstairs so time to eat dinner. Have a good one.