RECAP : Jan 14 - Jan 20

Monday - 01/14/13

Pineridge - 38:40

Started from dog park.  Felt good.



Tuesday - 01/15/13

Speed work

Workout went like this:
1 mile warm up
4x800m (2:31 - 2:30 - 2:34 - 2:33)  all with 100m recovery.
1 mile cool down.

Track was actually worse today than it was last week.  Mostly covered in an icy snow pack, which made this workout all that more interesting!
Anyway, overall a good run. Felt good and comfortable out there.

Was planning on running an easy 40 mins later this evening just to get in a few more miles, but some things came up and had to skip workout number 2 of the day.



Wednesday - 01/16/13

Pineridge - 27:10

Felt great today. Started from Maxwell TH. One lap around Pineridge.



Thursday - 01/17/13

Treadmill Climb - 3,205'

Workout went like this:
5 min warm up
60 minutes @ 10% grade @ 10 min/mile pace
5 min cool down

First treadmill climb of 2013 and felt great!  I plan to keep these going throughout the year on Thursdays with varying grade and overall distance.  On nice days I plan to substitute treadmill climbs for a hard effort run up Towers or by running a handful of  shorter hill repeats. (road or trail)

I fully believe these treadmill climbs do wonders for your overall endurance and strength...and even speed to a certain degree.



Friday - 01/18/13

Easy 45 minutes on the road at night.  Trails were closed due to muddy conditions....

Saturday - 01/19/13

Ran with Steve up Towers starting from the Horsetooth Liquor store (yup...we both need to get a parking pass)

Climb up Towers - 34:10

Total time -  1 hr 24 minutes

Trail conditions were ok, with icy spots here and there.  Took the pace easy for the first mile or so up Towers...conversation effort.  Steve was feeling the hill and had to back off the pace slightly just after the Stout intersection and I forged on....clocking a modest 34:10, Steve chugged in about a minute later.
 I would like to plan a "drop the hammer" type of Towers climb sometime in the next few weeks.  It would be nice to get some mid-winters form base-line Towers time trial data.

I broke 30 minutes once last year (29:36) ---  planning to better that time this summer.



Sunday - 01/20/13

OFF

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• First week of speed, treadmill climb and a long run.  Finally feel like I am breaking out of my winter form. Both speed and endurance are coming together nicely.  A great place to be in mid-January!  Prepped and ready for some hard running later this summer.

• As the spring/summer nears I plan to add total volume to my 3 main staples of my training week....  

• Summer training week goals:   Speed workouts (20-50 repeats all with short 100m recovery), Treadmill/hill climbs (2hrs of climbing) and long run (will vary, but at least 3-4hrs each week). --- but for now, January, I like where I am at.

RECAP: Jan 7 - Jan 13

Monday - 01/07/13

Pineridge - 31:10

From Maxwell TH


Tuesday - 01/08/13

Track Workout - Workout went like this:

1 mile warm up
3 x 800m (2:31, 2:34, 2:32) --- 100m recovery
1 mile cool down

First speed session since last summer (yup...time to get back into again), so took it easy in terms of the number of repeats. Still keeping recovery down to only 100m.
About 80m of the track was covered in an icy crust in lanes 1-3.

Felt good to get the legs moving again.



Wednesday - 01/09/13

45 minutes at night. easy.



Thursday - 01/10/213

Pineridge - 27:15

Was originally planning on running hill repeats or a treadmill climb today but some things came up and had not time. Resorted to another easy lap around Pineridge.



Friday - 01/11/13

Pineridge - 32:46

Saturday - 01/12/13

OFF - Busy day with family plans from the get-go!  Decided to take the day off.  A rare occurence for a Saturday.



Sunday - 01/13/13

Foothills Trail / Pineridge - 1hr 40 mins

Starting from the dog park I basically ran an out and back through Pineridge and up and over the hill on Foothills trail --- To the base of the North dam, then turned around and ran back the same way.

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• Felt great to get the wheels rolling again with the speed work on Tuesday. Starting out with 3 repeats is not much, but in the upcoming weeks I plan to slightly back off the pace (from low 2:30 to low 2:40) and start to increase the overall volume as the spring/summer rolls on.

• Planning to include a weekly hill climb of some sort on Thursdays from here on out. 

• Starting to get back into a general weekly workout schedule again.....good times!

RECAP: Dec 31 - Jan 6

Monday -  12/31/13

Easy running at night -  50 mins.

Cold - 20 degrees


Tuesday - 01/01/13  (New Years Day!)

Pineridge - 39:45

Ran while it was snowing --- perfect!


Wednesday - 01/02/13

Foothills Trail (medium loop) - 42:40

From Maxwell


Thursday - 01/03/13

Easy 45 mins at night. Cold -- 17 degrees.


Friday - 01/04/13

Pineridge - 33:01

From Maxwell TH


Saturday - 01/05/13

Pineridge - 37:40

Started from Dog park.


Sunday - 01/06/13

Foothills Trail (medium loop) - 37:37

From Maxwell TH

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RECAP: Dec 24 - Dec 30

Monday - 12/24/12

Pineridge - 32:28


Tuesday - 12/25/12 (CHRISTMAS!!)

OFF - Day of rest with family.


Wednesday - 12/26/12

65 minutes at night

Ran from my house to Pineridge, through part of Pineridge, and then back home.


Thursday - 12/27/12

Another night run, 54:48

Ran from my house to campus, through campus and back home.  The quietest time on campus --- Christmas break.  Didnt see a single person on campus during this run. --- nice for a change.


Friday - 12/28/12

OFF - Busy day, no time.


Saturday - 12/29/12

Pineridge - 42:18

Started from the dog park.

Sunday - 12/30/12

Pineridge - 75 mins

Ran two laps around Pineridge starting from the dog park.


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RECAP : Dec 17 - Dec 23

Monday - 12/17/12

 Pineridge - 32:28

From Maxwell.




Tuesday - 12/18/12

Pineridge - 31:53

From Maxwell. Snowing.



Wednesday - 12/19/12

Easy 25 minutes at night.

Started at 9pm. Ran through the neighborhood.



Thursday - 12/20/12

Foothills (short loop) - 37:15

Felt great to trot on the snow covered trail. Very refreshing.



Friday - 12/21/12

Foothills (medium loop) - 41:24



Saturday - 12/22/12

OFF


Sunday - 12/23/12

Pineridge + Foothills Trail (medium loop) - 90 minutes

Starting from the Dogpark I ran one loop around Pineridge > Maxwell TH > foothills trail up the hill > medium loop > returned same way.

Again, felt great to run in the snow. Slower of course, but having the crisp winter air whip across your face while sludging through the snow-pack always feel good.


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• Ahhhh....a few weeks off from work for Christmas and New Years coming up!  Always a great time of year to sleep in and kick back and relax.

• Still planning the 37 mile run from Fort Collins to Estes, but with the snow covering the shoulder of the road up the canyon ---its gonna have to be placed on hold for the time being.

• Might take a couple of days off next week -- busy week coming up with Christmas, my Moms Birthday and New Years plans. 

• Planning to post my New Years Running resolutions in next weeks blog update!

• Still haven't ran at the track, or performed any treadmill climbs and haven't really ran much vertical this month (outside of Chubby Cheeks).  I plan to address these topics in my New Years resolution list next week.

RECAP: Dec 10 - Dec 16

Monday - 12/10/12

Pineridge - 32:10

From Maxwell.



Tuesday - 12/11/12

OFF

Busy day at work and after work. No time.



Wednesday - 12/12/12

Pineridge - 33:19

From Maxwell.



Thursday - 12/13/12

Pineridge - 32:03

From Maxwell.



Friday - 12/14/12

Pineridge - 34:09



Saturday - 12/15/12

Pineridge + Foothills Trail (medium loop)- 1 hr 30 min

Starting from the Dogpark: ran one loop around Pineridge > Maxwell TH > up the hill > medium loop > returned same way.



Sunday - 12/16/12

OFF

Spent the day and evening at my in-laws for my niece's 6th birthday party.
No time for a run.


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• This was my "week of Pineridge" running.  No time to get in a run anywhere else. Easy short runs with a nice run on Saturday morning.

• Super easy week overall. 

• Hoping to get in a few longer training runs in the week between and Christmas and New Years...until then....busy busy!

Chubby Cheeks 50K

*Not sure if this counts as a "race" or not -- but decided to post this along with my race reports anyway. At least it will be easier to find this way*

The 3rd annual Chubby Cheeks race took place today up in Horsetooth and Lory state park.  This is quickly becoming a FCTR winter classic!

I have been wanting to run this for the last couple of years but for different reasons I have always had to opt out.  However, this year I was sticking to my plan of running it.  The only question mark I have had in my training during this fall/winter off season was the complete lack of any long runs lasting longer than 90 minutes...in the last 2.5 months!   Up to this point the majority of my training has been easy 30-40 minute trots here and there.  I had the perfect excuse not to run this year.  But I am generally not one to use past workouts as an indicator of what I can or cannot do for future workouts.

The 50K run started at 7am sharp, with temps around a balmy 22 degrees. The course takes you up and over...up and over.....and up and over hills throughout Horsetooth and Lory State Park.

Horsetooth Rock summit 

Coming back down Horsetooth Rock - Photo, Kris K

The 50K course takes you to the summit of Horsetooth Rock and then eventually over to the summit of Arthurs Rock....before making the slow grind back up Towers rd and then down into the valley before finishing.

A few recorded splits:

Slapping Horsetooth summit - 40:10

Mill Creek / Loggers intersection - 2:02

Slapping the summit of Arthurs Rock - 2:43

Arthurs Rock summit

I felt pretty good most of the morning, however with my longest run in the last few months having been only about 90 minutes, I could feel the lack of long runs by the time I approached my 4th hour of running.  I wanted to run somewhere between 6hr 30mins and 6hrs 45 mins today, which I felt like was a realistic goal despite my complete lack of any long endurance type stuff lately.

By the time I hit the climb up Sawmill, my legs were really starting to feel....ummm....tired.  I decided that from the halfway point up Sawmill, all the way back up to Towers/ Westridge I was going to alternate between power hiking and jogging the climbs and making sure to jog the few flat and any down hill sections. 

As soon as I finally grunted my way back up to the rollers on Westridge, I felt much better.  And from here on out....I knew the rest of the way was nothing more than another training run up in the park.

About 100 yards or so from the turn off onto Wathan, trail studs Clarkie and Krupicka  came rolling on by.  

Finished the 50K course (about 8,000') in 6:23 (I think good enough for 2nd)

I think if I had done ANY previous long runs in the weeks leading up to this I might have been able to knock off some time on the last 2 hours of the run...and maybe run somewhere around 6:10 or below.

A few notes :

• The trails were marked at EVERY intersection, with either flour arrows, red ribbons...or both! . kudos to all the volunteers who spent the time in marking the trails. 

• Another thanks to the volunteers who manned the aid station at about mile 22 or so.  Snacks and salty items, and fresh water...ahhh that was a welcomed site!

This was a great run, on a challenging course, with a handful of local trail runners --  which I highly recommend for anyone looking to get in a solid long run.