Welcome to my room of twisted ramblings, recovery from a traumatic brain injury, athletic training, vegan munchies, music sensations, confused social barking and such.
Thursday I guess I am still pretty tired since running the Vermont City Marathon last week. Yesterday's run was difficult ant I ended up run/walking; which was quite depressing. I am probably needing some rest and/or some shorter runs. If I run today I will reduce my mileage and not focus on maintaining a specific pace. I have a few short courses or I can run the trash heap or I can just rest. Decisions, decisions.
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Well shortly after posting (above) this morning, I went out and ran. Easy to simply snap the legs back to life and brush the 'junk' away. It actually was a pretty nice run at a comfortable pace. With that said, I ran 8 miles about 6 minutes faster than the pace I set on yesterday; reaching mile 8 at 1:10. I guess no further proof is needed. I was/am fatigued and my mellow run was needed today.
Tuesday I do not want to be redundant but, I support Bernie Sanders as the nest president of the United States. Do your diligence, American friends, and learn up on his strategies. In a nutshell, his agenda is for the 99% - a rebel and the leader of a political revolution.
Sunday
At this point in the year I need to develop a plan and find a few races to keep my focus sharp. i really haven't planned my training and racing well; for the remainder of the year. Luckily my training is off to a great start volume wise so now I just need to plan a few races to keep the intensity high.
Training this week: (0 rest day) Run 74.03 miles
Sat Run - 8.54 mi - 1:12:00 - 8:26 easy run Fri Run - 8.46 mi - 1:11:23 - 8:26 pace - 127 avg hr
easy recovery run
Thurs AM Run - 8:08 mi - 1:04:46 - 8:00 pace - 135 avg hr Much better than yesterday. Still tired but some life is returning to my legs.
Thurs PM Run - 5.13 mi - 37:47 - 7:21 pace - 135 avg hr
Runners Depot club run - some tempo
Wed Run - 11.63 mi - 10:09 pace - 129 avg hr
Ugh ran the first 8 slow; then the heat,humidity and wind won the battle and I walked/jogged home. A tough day.
Tues AM Run - 7.63 mi - 7:55 pace - 140 avg hr
a little faster today, hot and humid - still struggling Tues PM Run - 5.19 mi - 7:20 pace - 136 avg hr World of Beer club Run
Mon Run - 10.12 mi - 8:36 pace - 136 avg hr
slow, tired, jog
Sunday Run - 9.25 mi - 9.43 pace - 130 avg hr
Trail run at the trash heap with 850' of elevation gain.
Last week (3 rest day): Run 55.98 milast month 272.28 milast year 2,670.88 mi
Friday I am so sick of hearing nonsense like this from the climate change deniers.
"We have been over this - I'm not a scientist, but global warming is hoax" - USGOP
Obviously, God is crying that is why the oceans are rising. You know it makes sense...
Wednesday
We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
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The past week in Vermont was so excellent. The weather was amazing, I ran a fine marathon, watched Bernie Sanders announce his run for president and enjoyed a trip to Lake Placid, NY with Mimi and her uncle, Fra. Today we fly home to South Florida and what looks like a hot and steamy week. It will be interesting as I try to adapt my training to the steamy days ahead.
Tuesday
I think today will be another rest day. I still feel considerable thigh tightness. Normally, I would run anyway, but it is our last full day in Burlington and a lot of walking is on tap so I think that I will leave it at that and resume training tomorrow. - Later today is the Bernie Sanders presidential kick off at Waterfront Park. It was originally scheduled to be held at a 300 seat auditorium; but the excitement has grown tremendously and it his been moved to a much larger setting complete with an Occupy Wall Street march to the event (which I will certainly partake in). - and I ran across this Bill Maher/Sean Penn exchange today: "that when you have a precedent set like that, and you have somebody, George Tenet, acknowledging in his book that he knew that the administration was deceiving the American people into a situation that is murdering young men and women from this country and others; that George Tenet and Dick Cheney and Condoleezza Rice and George Bush et al, should be in fucking jail."
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Monday Today will be a rest day. I think we will probably have some sort of travel adventure. Perhaps a ferry ride across Lake Champlain and a short drive to Lake Placid, NY. Rest is good.
- Does anyone remember the WHA (World Hockey League)? The league ended up merging 4 teams into the NHL; including The multi-time Stanley Cup winners, The Edmonton Oilers (1972–1979). I was a huge Whalers fan and watched Marty, Mark and Mr Hockey, Gordie Howe, play on the same line. I loved The New England Whalers (later the Hartford Whalers). I feel at home here in Vermont.
Sunday
Vermont City Marathon
It is 2 am and I am restless. As is my usual race night condition, I cannot sleep. Hopefully my run goes well today. Last year my finish time was 3:36:38 and my most recent marathon was completed in 3:16:24 on Feb 14. I have faith in my training, but I question myself as my post TBI running development has been steady, but oh so slow. My friend and mentor once said, "let the day come to you" - indeed. -
Last night Deena Kastor - Olympic medalist and American record holder - was the pasta dinner guest of honor - motivational speaker (last year it was Joan Benoit Samuelson), and her speech was extremely insightful. I will keep her words in mind during the race. Mimi and Fra were lucky enough to get their picture taken with Deena. The Vermont City Marathon race promoters sure do a nice job recruiting elite athletes to motivate the field of competitors. I can only wonder who it will be next year.
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I may or may not go back to sleep tonight. I did go to bed early and only had 2 beers after dinner, so I am well rested and okay with just lying here and tapping on the keyboard. in a few hours it will be time to rise and prepare myself for my morning run through Burlington, VT. It is a beautiful course and the crowds that line the streets are loud and supportive. My intention is to embrace the day. Mimi and Fra are running the marathon relay (each a 13.1 mile leg). At 77 years and 1 day old, Fra has designs on a half marathon personal record (PR) and I predict that he will reach his goal. Mimi is an accomplished Ironman triathlete and her dedication to training and race experience will likely fuel their team to a time that is faster than last year. It is exciting.
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I too just had a birthday. I turned 50 on the 14th and this will be my second race as a masters runner. Hopefully this one goes better than my first race, The Keys 50. I did not finish this year and settled on letting it be a last long run in preparation for today. Quitting at mile 21, I hope has left my legs fresher than they were last year; as I did finish the 50 miles in 2014 and I was very fatigued. Well, as I wise man once said, it remains to be seen. I will try to start at a comfortable pace and concentrate on early hydration and fuel. Often I start too fast and try to hang on to the finish. Maybe today it will be different, but my nature is what it is and I will race as smart as I can. - I have returned from the Burlington and the race went well. I was 20 minutes faster than last year at The Vermont City Marathon. Also, the course had a vertical gain of 663 feet (Garmin measured .15 miles long too). Unfortunately, I did not record a post TBI personal record today despite running this course 20 minutes faster than last year. I did something that must be very rare, I finished two consecutive marathons with exactly the same time in a two month window. On a super-awesome note, I had a breakthrough run today. I am still far away from my sub 3 hour marathons that I ran pre injury, but I did record 4 sub 7:00 minute miles with a few more right at 7:00-ish. These days it is extremely rare for me to run any sub 7's even on training runs. This pleases me greatly. My pursuit of going sub 3:00's again continues and my resolve is strong.
Training this week: (0 rest day) Run 55.98 mi
Sat Run 8.37 mi - 1:11:00 - 8:29 pace - 125 avg hr Easy run - my legs are still tired from the marathon on Sunday and it was really hot and humid
Fri - Run 11.76 mi - 1;33:23 - 7:56 pace - 135 avg hr
a good run with a bit more distance today
Thurs - Run 9.5 mi - 1:11:-09 - 7:29 pace - 137 avg hr first run after the Vermont Marathon. It went well, a little soreness that I need to pay attention to.Wednesday - travel and rest
Tuesday rest
Monday rest
Sunday 26.35 mi - 3:16:24 - 7:29 pace
Vermont City MarathonWhat is the chances that a person can run the exact same time in two consecutive marathons. The difference being this race had 665' of elevation gain and my Garmin measured the course .15 miles long. Wow! -
Last week (2 rest day): Run 35.66 milast month 318.92 milast year 2,670.88 mi
Taking it easy today - maybe a few strides to zap some fire into my legs. The Vermont City Marathon start is at 8 am tomorrow morning. - and in national news, I feel strongly about #BerniSanders presidential bid.
Thursday
Our first night in Burlington, VT was highlighted by an excellent vegan dinner at Revolution Kitchen (with Fra and Matthew Fahey). In a word, outstanding. I am already anticipating a return trip this week!
Wednesday Mimi and I are flying to Burlington, VT today to run the Vermont City Marathon this weekend. I love that town so it will be a fun week of travel. - Keys 50 update. First and foremost, I had a really great time in the Keys with my friends and I am humbled by Sam Horowitz - a stellar race and finish! He was so inspiring; last year my pacer and this year a finisher! Personally, I did not cross the finish line. I probably went out too fast and was walking a lot by mile 21. I was still maintaining 6th place overall and could have struggled on but I knew it was going to get really ugly for me. Plus, to do so would destroy my legs and perhaps my spirit as well. I decided that with a marathon scheduled a week later it was probably a good idea to treat the race as a last long training run and call it a day. Hopefully my decision pays off and I have a good race. We are heading to the airport in an hour or so. I really don't like the whole airport/flying thing. I look like a terrorist and generally I am treated like one too.
Tuesday .Our friends are not food.
There is scientific evidence that some animals are capable of experiencing the same range of emotions as we can. The brains of mammals are surprisingly similar to the human brain.
Monday I enjoyed a rest day in Marathon yesterday. Today is a drive day baeack home to Coral Springs. Now its time to get a few good marathon prep runs in and pack for our flight too Burlington, VT. I am looking forward to the cooler weather and seeing Fra and Matthew. Who knows, maybe I will get to see Charlotte's sister, Minton, while there too.
Sunday Starting off the week with a nice relaxed day on Marathon Key. I may or may not run a few easy miles later. I feel great and I am ready to embrace the days ahead.
Training this week: (1 rest day) Run 35.66 mi
Sat 5.11 mi - 40:23 - 7:54 pace marathon tomorrow Fri 5.1 mi 42:16 - 8:17 pace - 118 avg hr easy jog Thur - 5.29 mi - 40:12 mi - 7:35 pace - 130 avg hr
Stretching the sticks out - marathon on Sunday
Wed - rest - travel day
Burlington, VT
Tues AM Run -1:01:52 - 8.42 mi - 7:21 pace -142 avg hr good run - marathon prep with tempo
Tues PM Run - 35:22 - 4.0 mi - 8:50 pace - 115 avg hr
World of Beer run
Mon Run 58:00 - 7.74 mi - 7:30 pace - 134 avg hr
Good run with a little tempo
Sun rest day
- Last week (1 rest day): Run 66.0 milast month 318.92 milast year 2,670.88 mi
Saturday So I did not finish today. At about mile 21 I made a decision to quit despite being in 6th place overall (3:30 into the day). The heat was too intense and I was already in survival mode. I couldn't/wouldn't torture myself endlessly today. I had mixed feelings about quitting but the price that I would have had to pay was too much. I am running a marathon next week and to hopefully save myself for one good race, I decided to make a choice. I'm glad that I did too. The conditions were so severe and I was definitely not alone in the DNF category. I was on pace to have a solid race, but my time goal would have been impossible and knowing that I want to run well next week made my choice easier. - On a positive note, Sam Horowitz found an unbelievable will and finished. I am humbled by his talent and drive. Yesterday was his day and I glow with pride.
It is 4 am and predictably I cannot sleep. I managed 5 solid hours so that is pretty good. I spent a lot of nervous energy worrying about this race and now its just a few short hours away. I cannot tell myself enough, start at a slow and slow down., fuel early and often , stay positive and enjoy the day. I have done the work - I am ready. Friday PM (8:55) We Got to Marathon Key early this afternoon. After settling in we had a pasta dinner. My water consumption has been excellent today and I am feeling extremely restless. Mimi left Coral Springs at around 7 and should roll in before 10:39 pm. My pacer from last years race, Sam Horowitz, is physically and mentally prepared to complete the 50 mile trek. I am pulling for him too. However, my focus is personal. Gear is arranged for a simple morning departure. Sign-in is shortly before our mandatory pre race meeting at around 9 am - The start is at 10:00. The weather looks favorable (mid/high 80's) with winds from the east between 10 -20 miles per hour. hopefully the wind is a cross wind and not an head wind. I really intend to start at a conservative pace. I would love to keep a steady pace and improve last years time. Whatever happens, finishing is goal one. - AM Driving to our beach pad near the Start of the race this morning. The race starts about 3 miles north of the 7 Mile Bridge. I may or may not run a few miles today with a few strides- I don't know. Mostly I need to just hydrate and prepare my head for the task at hand. I have a healthy respect for the distance and I am nervous and ready.
Thursday Happy Birthday to me - 50 years old an its okay. I feel fine. Wednesday Today is a needed rest day from running. I feel unsettled because this puts limits on how much junk and booze that I can stuff into my pie hole on my lose the fat diet today. I suppose I will not drink anything more stiff than water. Its only 2:30 pm and to maintain my allotted caloric allowance I need to eat less than 600 calories. Or, I can just say screw it... hmm. Maybe I will drink coffee and take my dogs to the park. Yeah, I get bored, I eat, I stay bored, I drink, I get fat, I get angry, I get bored, I eat, I drink, I grow. Its an awful pattern for sure. But last night at the World of Beer run club, Darley's Angels said (unprompted) that I look like I have lost weight. Well that is music to my ears. Tomorrow I will put an honest run effort in, then Friday we drive to the beach pad. Golly gee, I am obsessing-fearing this race. I will be okay once I am running. Tuesday I am feeling the reality of The Keys 50 as race day quickly closes in. My 50th birthday is approaching even faster. I will be 50 in 2 days. Then the next day we drive to the Keys and settle into our beach pad, wake up and go run. - and run and run. I know at one point it sounded like the thing to do. I finished this race 1/2 tries (last year) - and it shouldn't be that extraordinary of a thing to do, right? Well, I am freaking out a bit. I feel great about my training and my running improvements but I am afraid. Yeah, I'm not a natural at this ultra running thingy. I have finished a few and DNF-d (did not finish) a few more. I like to run but the reality is, I like to run faster and shorter distance races. Unfortunately, I am not fast anymore (since my brain injury); and I fight. I think I originally signed up for the Leadville 100 in 2012 because after my hospitalization, I immediately hit the streets and began to run. I thought that by training for Leadville, my running sticks would come back to their pre TBI life. After all, it is what I did and remembered. However I couldn't run as I did. I went out every day at a 10:00 - 12:00 per mile pace. It angered me as a frequent sub 3:00 marathon runner. That winter while running I slipped on ice and broke my tibia and fibula requiring surgery and the insertion of titanium hardware throughout my leg. Another setback! I couldn't run for months so I rode my bike a lot. This is a long story (that of my ongoing comeback) so I will jump ahead and leave it with, A traumatic brain injury is a massive destruction of the whole person. Everything is broken and has to be rebuilt. I am trying to prove that I can successfully return to a level of athletic performance that will belie both my injury and my advanced age. Over the past few years I have run multiple marathons in the 3:45 range (disappointingly). I have now dropped it down to 3:16 and have designs on a return to sub 3 hours. Today I am looking inside the belly of the beast. My 3rd attempt at the Keys 50. In 2013 I did not finish. I probably went out faster than my fitness level would allow and quit at mile 23. Not to mention that I was undoubtedly trying to do something a little soon in my recovery. In 2014 I had a successful race. I won my age group and finished 15th overall. This year it looks like great things are possible, but 50 miles is a long way and I will need to race smart. My pacer from last year, Samuel Jay Horwitz is doing the race himself, so I will not have him to pace me. Mimi has arranged a great team to pace and crew for the race. I am very fortunate. Thank you, Mimi. I love you. Sunday
6 days until race day. I boosted my training over the last two weeks and averaged 85 miles per week. I dd manage a few long runs including a back to back to back long day efforts. This week will be critical and rest days are essential. I intend to keep my legs firing with a few shorter quality runs and keep my nutrition and hydration focused. I am confident that I have put the miles in and I am running well. Based on my improved race times so far this year and my increased overall mileage, I am as ready as I can be. There is nothing to be gained by heavy training this week (yes, I am pep-talking me up); but plenty to lose. The goal is to keep my running sticks firing and to arrive to the starting line rested and ready.
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I am excited about the upcoming Elliott Smith documentary that is scheduled for release. He is one of my all-time favorites and one of my favorite concert promotion memories... I booked him two times in Denver, CO and both shows failed miserably. On the plus side, we became friends.
#ElliottSmith
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Training this week: (1 rest day) Run 44.95 mi
Sat Run - 3:30:08 - 21.23 mi 9:54 pace Keys 50 DNF Fri rest - travel Thur Run - 1:41:00 - 11.81 mi - 8:33 pace - 127 avg hr easy pace - Wed rest day - 50 mile run on Saturday.
- Tues AM Run 1:14:05 - 9.25 mi - 8:00 pace - 140 avg hr
Good strong effort... PM Run 41:29 - 5.34 mi - 7:46 pace - 126 avg hr World of Beer club run -Mon Run 1:03:23 - 8.4 mi - 7:32 pace - 139 avg hr
Good steady run on the Royal Palm route
Sun Run 1:17:23 - 10.15 mi - 7:37 pace - 139 avg hr Good run today. Now its time to taper and rest up.
- Last week (1 rest day): Run 88.95 milast month 318.92 milast year 2,670.88 mi
Saturday Ah... just one week until The Keys 50 and I have trained well - I think. My total running mileage this year is over 1200 and I have been averaging about 75 miles per week. My race times are faster this year than last too. Now it's time to concentrate on preparing myself mentally and physically for the heat of the Florida Keys. I had a great week running. I logged about 90 miles even though the week included 1 full rest day. I feel good physically and I will begin a subtle taper now. Friday I am happy about my training yesterday. I needed some substantial time on my feet. I ended up running over 25 miles total. I managed over 20 in the morning and added another 5 at the Runners Depot run club in the evening. If anything, my confidence is lifted. - I continued the long run fever with another 15.11 miles this morning. My legs felt yesterdays effort and that was my intention. I wanted to run a longish run today on tired legs and maintain what I hope is my race pace next week. Sunday
Crunch time now. Exactly two weeks until The Keys 50. I don't really know how to train for ultra races but I have put in a lot of miles. I think I am at least as prepared as I was for last years race. I have a lot of miles logged and now it is time for me to wrap my brain around it and trust my training.
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Training (this week: Run 88.95 mi)
Sat Run 2:09:05 - 15.11 mi 121 avg hr Back to back to back long runs . 7 minutes faster than yesterday.
Fri Run 2:16:28 - 15.11 mi - 120 avg hr Back to back long runs - pretty slow today, but near my anticipated race pace for next week
Thurs AM Run 2:5706 - 20.12 mi - 8:48 pace - 127 avg hr Long run - probably my last long run before the Keys 50. Pretty much a steady pace.
Thurs PM Run 41:06 - 5.14 mi - 7:59 pace - 121 avg hr
Runners Depot club run
Wed rest
Tue Run 1:34:03 - 12.21 mi Good run at a steady pace
Mon Run 1:24:30 - 11.1 mi - 7:42 pace 127 avg hr Good morning run in Ocala, FL wit some tempo Sun Run 1:35:203 - 10.161 mi - 9:21 pace - 109 avg hr
Trail run with rolling hills. About 400' of elevation gain.
Last week (0 rest day): Run 82.21 milast month 318.92 milast year 2,670.88 mi
Friday I am happy to report that I managed 318.92 running miles in April. My two month pre race training total has averaged over 75 miles per week. This is a great amount for me. Even in my pre TBI 'fast years' I rarely ran more than 60 miles in a week. So as May begins I will begin a preparing for two races. May 16 is my return to The Keys 50 and May 24 is the Vermont City Marathon. I am nervous but it will be interesting to see how far my recovery has come. I think my training is on schedule and I should trust my training and lift my confidence. As for the 50 mile race, I will have to race smart. Hydration and fueling is going to be paramount. If I keep my pace controlled for the first half of the race, my chances of improving upon my finish time will be increased. My nature is to start too fast and keeping myself in check will be difficult. I don't have any expectations in the Marathon. I will not try to improve on last months A1A marathon time of 3:16:24 but I do hope that my tired legs will allow me to improve on last years time of 3:36:38. Thursday I am very excited that Bernie Sanders is running for president of the United States. Although I will support Hillary Clinton, I know that Bernie's voice is one of political truth and the American public needs to hear his wisdom. Both parties will be called out with Bernie in the race. I know his nomination is unlikely at best, but I stand behind him. My dream ticket (a formidable one too) would be one that included Elizabeth Warren.
Wednesday The month is winding down. April has been my last full month of training before I embark on my journey to Key West. Today's run will push me past 300 miles logged (following last months 297); so although April will fall way short of my miles logged this month in 2014, this years training total is far ahead of last years pace. So overall, along with my improved race times, I am as ready as I can be. However, I still feel the need for 1 or 2 long runs in the 3 hour range and I hope to manage those. Other than that - it remains to be seen if I have what it takes to finish again; ideally by about 40 minutes faster. Sunday Down to 3 weeks until I run the The Keys 50 Ultra race. This week will be a solid - typical training week, then I will taper down over the two weeks leading into the race. I will still run a lot but more rest will be included. I don't want to put the flame out before the race. I just want to be prepared, uninjured and ready. Well, ready is relative. Last year I may have had a better overall build up leading into the race (mileage wise), but my race times are faster this year so hopefully I am ready. Still, I don't feel very confident.
Training (this week: Run 82.21 mi) Sat Run 2:22:05 - 17.1 mi - 8:18 pace 126 avg hr good run; especially first ten miles and then a gradual slow down Fri Run 1:02:25 - 8.41 mi - 7:25 pace - 136 avg hr Good run with some tempo Thurs Run 2:34:00 - 16.1 mi - 9:33 pace 122 avg hr I got out the door early today (6:15 AM) - decent distance Wed Run 45:26 - 5.29 mi - 8:35 pace - 121 avg hr Recovery jog
Tues AM Run 1:03:06 - 8.16 mi - 7:43 pace - 132 avg hr Morning jog out at Vista View. I stayed off the hills and just ran steady in the flats today. Tues PM Run 48:16 - 6.26 mi - 7:42 pace - 123 avg hr Word of Beer club run Mon 1:18:05 = 9.17 mi - 8:30 pace - 139 avg hr 2nd day in a row of record Florida heat for April - I am wiped out Sun Run 2:00:16 - 11.72 mi - 10:21 pace - 119 avg hr
We got to the heap at 7 am to avoid the 95 degree heat foretasted for today. I ended up climbing 900 feet according to my Garmin. Slow and steady.
Last week (1 rest day): Run 78.89 milast month 318.92 milast year2,670.88 mi
As a vegan, I a cannot count how many times I have heard the comment about protein and/or lack of it. As the picture clearly demonstrates both of these world class athletes do not appear to be protein deficient.
