i've decided small towns are no longer "quaint"

so... i needed to mail something to reebok today. i so wrongly assumed i could go to the local post office like any other "normal" town but no, the po was closed from 11-2.

although i don't really get the impression i would've been able to have my stuff packaged anyway, and i wasn't too confident in the service.

there probably aren't even enough people in the town to use all those po boxes.

i know i said i'd "get on it" nutritionally this week but i've only done a halfass job so far. i haven't had any cake or cinnamon rolls, but i can't resist the yummy chocolate chip cookies at the hotel after work. the running is still going (12 days straight), so at least that makes up for a bite or two of the cookies.

my legs have been tired and a little sore/achey (in general) monday and tuesday. i probably won't have time to run thursday so i'm planning on a short, super easy run wednesday, and taking thursday off.

monday (4/6) pm run: 5 miles, 44:45 (8:57 avg pace), avg hr (151)

i gave in to my legs and forced myself to run extra easy. it's hard (for me anyway) to slow down on the 'mill because i just want to get the miles over with already. after the short, recovery run i ellipticized for 10 minutes and it actually felt kinda good. (i've never been a fan of the elliptical, i'm too awkward on it.)

tuesday (4/7) pm run: 9.5 miles, 1:15:10 (7:54 avg pace), avg hr (164)

this was a tough interval day (tired legs), but i kept pushing myself through it and dangling my upcoming 'day off' in front of me.

the scheduled called for these intervals by time (4 minutes at interval "i" pace with 3 minutes rest) and i decided to go with it instead of translating it to distance. i roughly did 1000m+ in the 4 minutes of i-pace (avg mile pace 6:26), completed all 5 reps, and didn't cut the cooldown short.

now head over to the happy runner and check out her 200th-post giveaway!

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cigarettes and jean shorts - for elite athletes only

week in review (3/30 - 4/05):
total miles: 47.51* (5 easy runs, 2 interval days)
time spent running: ~6 hours 40 minutes
avg hr: 162.57
abs & yoga: 2 ab days, 0 yoga (don't see this changing anytime soon)
off days: zero, zip, nada. needed to punish myself.

*slight improvement from last week's 14.63

ahh a much better week. i forced myself onto the treadmill everyday after work, and even got in a 'long' run today. feels good to be back to running decent mileage. next target: nutrition. easier said than done with my 32 sweet teeth.

saturday (4/4) pm run: 4 miles, 34:13 (8:33 avg pace), avg hr (161)

legs were mucho tired and a little achey from friday's intervals (and probably the fact that the intervals totaled 9.2 miles), so i just did a short and easy run. we tried going down to keeneland to watch some horse races but apparently they only take cash at the admissions gate and don't have an atm you can actually find. who carries cash ever? hello, american express.

view from the top of the carew tower

sunday (4/5) afternoon run: 10 miles, 1:19:14 (8:55 avg pace), avg hr (158)

finally, a 'long' run. a short-long run, but double digits are a rare thing in my training log lately. huge thanks to runner leana for the running-location recommendation! after hanging out in cincinnati for most of the morning/afternoon, j and i drove over to lunken airport to run on the bike/running path that leana recommended. it was a great path (98% pancake flat!) and the weather (72* and sunny) was gorgeous. (although, they are forecasting snow tomorrow.) there were a bunch of folks out running, walking, biking and rollerblading.

we saw a handful of people working out in jeans/jean shorts - not sure what was up with that. i mean a) jean shorts should not be allowed on a man period and b) hello chafing. there was also a dude smoking and biking at the same time, and near the end of my run i saw a guy run/walking who stopped for a smoke break. maybe if i take up smoking and wear jean shorts on my runs i'll get faster. anyway, if you are ever in cincinnati, the path by lunken airport is a great 5-mile loop for running and only a few minutes from downtown. it's not lit though, so don't go when it's dark. thanks again leana, this was the most enjoyable kentucky-area run thus far and will be hard to top!

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we now return to our regularly scheduled program

you've got to get up every morning with determination if you're going to go to bed with satisfaction.

- george horace lorimer

i've had an easy transition to actually-working five days a week (though i'm sure i will miss my off-fridays dearly) for about 11 hours/day, and still having energy to run. making myself go to bed at 10pm helps - i've even started to wake up naturally at 5:30 so i get to work on time. i know, how exciting. i'm definitely not complaining. the hours are longer, lunch is almost non-existent, but the work is plentiful so i don't have to sit and twiddle my thumbs like i did back in the office. obviously i'm still digging the jeans/t-shirt attire; i totally wore one of my marathon shirts in earlier this week.

i forced myself to re-hitch a ride on the running wagon and am now going on 8 days straight. (last week was so crappy, i logged more mileage on monday and tuesday alone this week.) i'm not aiming to have some incredibly long streak, i just need to get myself safely away from the hole i dug. however, i am still desperately slacking nutritionally. hopefully i'll clean it up (for the most part) this weekend and crack the whip monday. i've had a few not-so-lovely stomach aches lately and i know it's from all the crap i keep plowing down.

wednesday (4/1) pm run: 6.26 miles, 53:42 (avg pace 8:34), avg hr (162)

nothing exciting - just an easy run on the hotel 'mill followed by 10 minutes on the bike.

thursday (4/2) pm run: 3.52 miles, 30:00 (avg pace 8:31), avg hr (157)

this was an 'optional' workout day but i figured i'd go for a few easy miles and continue my little streak. there was a dude on the tm when i went down to run, but he said he only had about 9 minutes left so i pedaled away on the bike (10 min) while he finished up. the bike is positioned so that you can see the tm's dashboard, and when i sat down he cranked up the speed a little. swoon.

just kidding, at least he was running. a few minutes into my run and a super bad rain storm rolled in. i could hear the thunder and rain over all the noise of the treadmill and tv. i had briefly considered running over at the high school a few miles away, so i was glad my confinement to the tm paid off for once.

friday (4/3) pm run: 9.2 miles, 1:11:58 (avg pace 7:49), avg hr (164)

like i mentioned, my diet has been less-than-spectacular all week, and extra worse today. i had a delicious, warm, gooey cinnamon roll at 6:30am, moist homemade chocolate cake at 9, cheesecake for lunch, and chips/dip and donuts sprinkled globbed in between for my afternoon snack. (and yet i wonder why i can't seem to get rid of my buddha belly. it's a mystery.) i felt 20 pounds heavier with each bite, but i deserve it for being such a sucker for sweets and chocolatey goodness. yes, i still have my food allergies, but i know they won't kill me so sometimes i suck at being good. :(

anyway friday was interval day. as i shoveled junk food in all day, i was a little worried about how i'd hold up. since i had cake for breakfast and lunch, i had a slice of (pepperoni) pizza around 3pm to ensure i at least had some nutrients. ...riiiiight. so i fueled terribly, but i survived. definitely won't be fueling like this again though.

the plan: 20 minutes easy, 2x(10x200 repetition "r" pace with 1 min easy), 10 minutes easy after each set. (my r-pace for 200m is 0:44)

i was quite intimidated by the "2x10" part, but figured i'd get through the first set and try to do as many of the 2nd set as i could hang on for. i got competitive with myself and completed the workout as prescribed, what a good feeling!

1st set - 0:45, 0:44, 0:45, 0:42, 0:45, 0:43, 0:45, 0:41, 0:45, 0:42
(avg 0:43; mile pace 5:49)
2nd set - 0:41, 0:45, 0:42, 0:44, 0:42, 0:45, 0:42, 0:45, 0:42, 0:45
(avg 0:43; mile pace 5:46)

all-in-all, it feels good to be back in a routine and logging normal mileage. i wish i could run outside more (/ever) but i'll have to savor that on the weekends when i have the time to drive somewhere populated and runner-friendly (sidewalks/shoulders).

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