2012: The Year in Running

I say this over and over again, but I have been terrible about updating this blog. I don't do resolutions, but if I did one of them would be to write more. There have been some developments in my running that will hopefully prompt me to do so. But right now let's take a look back at 2012, the year that was.

The big thing in 2012 was my 12 for '12 project: 12 races, one a month, half marathon or more. It was a success in that I was able to accomnplish the goal, but it was a failure in the sense that I thought that doing so many races would force me to train better and improve my times. Neither happened. I trained haphazardly and in some cases the races themselves were the training runs. As a result no personal bests were recorded. I was nowhere near my best. My fastest time was a 1:46 in Ventura in June, which was about 40 seconds faster than the Pasadena Rock n' Roll Half Marathon in February. The slowest half marathon was August's America's Finest City in San Diego. The culprit there was a hot day. I was burning up by mile 4. I managed to get in at 2:00 flat. My official chip time was 2:00:00, which is kind of cool. The rest of the races ranged from a 1:48 in the last race, December's Santa to the Sea Half Marathon to a 1:55 in May's Pasadena Half Marathon.

Here are the 12 for '12 races:

January: Rose Bowl Half Marathon - 1:52:16
February: Pasadena Rock n' Roll Half Marathon - 1:46:52
March: Los Angeles Marathon - 4:05:41
April: Hollywood Half Marathon - 1:51:57
May: Pasadena Half Marathon - 1:55:21
June: Ventura Beachfront Half Marathon - 1:46:11
July: San Francisco Half Marathon - 1:54:29
August: America's Finest City Half Marathon - 2:00:00
September: Montreal Rock n' Roll Half Marathon - 1:50:18
October: Long Beach Half Marathon - 1:53:55
November: Santa Clarita Half Marathon - 1:53:36
Decemebr: Santa to the Sea Half Marathon - 1:48:38

It turned out to be a very fun endeavor. I got to run my first international race in Montreal, ran in San Francisco again, and ran in several smaller races that turned out to be well-organized and extremely convenient. Ventura's post-race snacks inlcuded tuna wraps. Enough said.

While the races above are the official 12 for '12 races, I actually ran a couple of other races for one reason or another. In October I ran--well, mostly walked--the Los Angeles Rock n' Roll Half Marathon with a friend. I actually used another friend's bib so it wasn't officially my race. Since Audrey had not trained for this race, it actually took us 3 hours to complete the race. I can tell you that I was probably more sore from this race than any other just because of the amount of time I was on my feet. I also ran the Paramount Ranch Half Marathon in December, which made it my final race for the year. This was a trail race, part of my training for the Leona Divide 50 Mile Trail Race in April 2013. The time for this race was 2:15 which is my slowest half ever. Since it was on single track trails, it was difficult to pass people along the way. In addition to these half marathons, I once again took part in the LA Frontrunners Pride Run in June as part of the West Hollywood Pride festivities. I did the ultra again--both the 5K and 10K--but my times were nothing to brag about. No PR's but the times were respectable.

Now, looking to 2013, as I mentioned I am training for Leona Divide. This will be my first ultra marathon and I am once again training with Team in Training. I'm still a little apprehensive about the whole thing. Running 10 miles is hard enough but 50 just sounds crazy. I figure with training I should be able to accomplish this, but I've been a bit lazy so far. Much like my writing.

So, in 2013, expect to see a littl more writing from me but a lot of the subjects will probably be dominated by my ultra marathon training. It's a new thing and I'm excited.

That's it for now. I have other things to wrap in 2012, but for now this is about running. I'll see you all in 2013 with more pieces about my ultra marathon training.

Happy New Year!

I'm Back!

Didn't realize I was gone? Well, I was. I took a two-week jaunt to the Philippines to visit family and relax at the beautiful El Nido Resort. Fact of the matter is I relaxed way too much. I ran not one step during my stay. By the third day my legs were feeling like jelly. By the fourth I was going into heavy withdrawals. I wanted to run! Unfortunately there was no good place to run where my parents live. Not only is it hot and humid, but I'd be placing myself at risk trying to run by the side of a busy road. If not running wasn't bad enough, I barely did any walking either. I took my pedometer with me, but I stopped carrying it after a couple of days because it was depressing me how inactive I was. At my parents' house all I really did was wake up, eat, watch TV, eat, watch TV/nap, eat again, watch TV. Not the ideal set-up for me.

I got back on Tuesday, and I'm still adjusting to the time difference. The first night I fell asleep at 4am and slept straight through until 2pm. The next night was 3am. Last night was 2:30am, so I'm getting close to my usual bed time of 12:30ish.

I also went on my first run in two weeks yesterday, a nice, easy 4.5 mile run at an 8:30 pace. It wasn't as bad as I expected but I still got pretty winded, and this morning I'm feeling the ache in my legs. They've had too much rest. Thankfully the San Francisco Half Marathon isn't until the end of the month. I have some time to regain some fitness and hopefully shed some of the weight I put on.

I'm way behind on posting. I have yet to write up my June race, which turned out pretty well: a 1:46 at the Ventura Beachfront Half Marathon. It's a small race, 700 runners, but very well managed. I'll write more soon.

Race Report: 02.19.2012 Inaugural Pasadena Rock N Roll Half Marathon

Chip Time: 1:46:52
Avg Pace: 8:10/mile

What a great inaugural race for the Pasadena Rock N Roll Half Marathon! As can be expected from Competitor Group, the race was well-organized, efficient, and a ton of fun. There were no traffic jams parking or leaving the Rose Bowl, there were plenty of port-a-potties, no long lines, plenty of water and Gatorade, and the race started right on time. To top it all off, the course was beautiful. I love Pasadena and the organizers did a great job laying out the course so that it displays the city at its best. From the Rose Bowl to Old Town to Cal Tech to Colorado Street Bridge, the city's sights were well-represented. I'm looking forward to running this again next year. Rob and I already signed up.

As for the running part of it, it turned out to be better than I feared. Having run only a couple of times in the last three weeks I knew a PR was not possible. A 1:50 race even seemed unlikely. However, I wound up running a respectable 1:46:52, and I could have been even faster had it not for the cramping that started in mile 10. By mile 12 cramps in both calves had me hobbling to the finish. I think the lack of running definitely contributed to the cramping. My legs were out of shape, but aerobically I was fine. I felt good, even. So while I'm glad I had a decent race even with the lack of training, I'm disappointed that it couldn't be better. I guess I'm just greedy.

I ran a consistent race. I started out too fast, though, because I was running in the first corral and tried to see if I could keep up with the others. I could not. The first mile clocked in at 7:28 and the second mile was 7:51. After that I slowed down a little and ran a steady 8 minute pace. At mile 8 I started slowing down a little, but I figured I'd make up some time towards the end. One good thing about being so famiilar with the race course is that I knew where I needed to save my energy and where I could make up some ground. Unfortunately my cramping kept me from making up that time in the end. Under 1:45 would have been great, marking my fastest half in over two years. But thinking about it all now, I'm just glad it wasn't the disaster I feared.

With a good race under my belt, I'm feeling a little more motivated moving on to the L.A. Marathon next month. I have a month left to train and i'm going to have to ratchet up my mileage quickly. I'll try to do 18 miles this weekend, possibly 20. If not this weekend, then a 20 miler the following weekend. Apart from the long runs, I also need to run more often during the week to get my legs back into shape. It won't do to cramp up 13 miles into a marathon. That would be a disaster!

Pics from the race are already up. There are probably more, but so far nothing that makes me look like an impressive runner. I never look great in my running pics. I always look like I'm trudging rather than sprinting.

Runner's Block

Is there such a thing as runner's block? If there is, mine also goes by the name "work." For the last three weeks I've been working long hours, including weekends. It will probably be another week or so of the same. As a result, my running has suffered. I've been managing to get in about two runs during the week, but this week it's unlikely I'll get in any. I didn't leave work until 10 tonight and yesterday. I'm guessing it will be the same tomorrow and Thursday. It is frustrating since the Pasadena Rock n' Roll Half is in a couple of weeks and the LA Marathon is in about a month.

I have managed to get in some long runs, though. Last weekend I ran a 16 miler and then on Sunday I ran over 11 miles while cheering/pacing Rob at the Surf City Marathon. Rob finished in 3:40, which is much faster than how I've been running my recent marathons. I've been hovering around 3:52 the last few times.

In any event, I'm hoping this week will be the nadir of this work craziness and things will improve. Sitting behind a desk for 13+ hours can wear a guy out.

Race Report: 01.22.2012 Rose Bowl Half Marathon

Time: 1:52:16
Pace: 8:35/mile

No PR was set this weekend, but I didn't really expect to. The Rose Bowl Half Marathon, while familiar territory for me since I run the course every weekend, isn't a race to PR in. The trails are too rocky and if you're as clumsy as me, you can risk spraining your ankle pretty badly. I had a small slip once, but I also almost got taken out a couple of times by other runners who lost their footing. There are also spots where you have to walk because it gets too crowded and there's very little space to maneuver. My goal was to run 1:50, but after not running for a week, I lowered my expectation to under two hours, so I'm happy with my 1:52.

I was a little surprised that I felt good most of the way. As usual the first five miles were the toughest. I was OK the first couple of miles but my legs started feeling fatigued early on. Then, just as quickly, I felt fine. I couldn't speed up too much around miles 7 through 9, but I started picking up the speed around mile 10 until the end. Overall, though, my pace was pretty consistent. The first mile was 9:05 then followed that with an 8:14 second mile. My slowest mile was a 9:55 for mile 8. That was due to the goat trail, which I mostly ran but had to walk because of traffic going up. This was the point where I also encountered the overall winner as he ran down the hill ever so quickly. I'm amazed by people who can run down that hill. I slip every time I try to move fast on it. My best miles were the last two, aided by a slight downhill to the finish. Mile 12 was a 7:34 and mile 13 was 7:31. That's a good way to finish, but unfortunately I did get passed right at the finish line by a woman who sprinted by me just as I was about to cross. Show off.

As for my next race, I had hopes that I may PR there, but the way my running has been going lately it's beginning to look unlikely. Work has been incredibly busy and I haven't been able to go out to run. This week isn't looking any better. Who knows though? I did OK on this race, so maybe I'll surprise myself with the next one.

The Week in Running

What a terrible of week of running! The thing I feared would happen did happen as I didn't run once from Monday through Friday, unless you count the brief, two-minute attempt on a rickety treadmill at the gym. Monday I actually got dressed to run but just wasn't feeling it and came up with a terrible excuse not to do so. I told myself I'd get up early Tuesday but did not. Tuesday night wasn't an option since I was going to see "Fela!" at the Ahmanson. Wednesday night I attempted to run at the gym in Koreatown which has equipment that is at least 20 years old yet the gym is always packed. I managed to get on a treadmill fairly quickly but it was a treadmill that probably should be taken out back and put out of its misery. The tread was rubbing agains the machine and squeaked like crazy. I probably would have put up with it a little longer if not for the fact that the treadmill was stuck on an incline and would not go down. The treadmill was fit for a slow walk not a run. I just gave up. Rather than waiting for another, likely equally crappy, treadmill, I just went home. Thursday was another night on the town. FJ and I went to see a terrific concert by M83 at Club Nokia.

Thankfully I salvaged the week with two great long runs this weekend. Sonia, Rob, and I ran 13.1 miles on Saturday followed by a 10 miler the very next day. 23.1 miles in two days. It's a decrease from the 31 miles the previous week, but considering where I was I'd take it.

This week also isn't looking promising. Work is incredibly busy and I'm getting stressed. I'm hoping to get runs in to help alleviate the stress, but we'll see how productive I am. I'd like to at least get two or three runs before the half marathon on Sunday. I have no big expectations for that race since it's a difficult course, but I'd still like to finish under 2 hours, hopefully closer to 1:50.

So to recap, the goals for this week are two or three runs. I'm thinking I'll head to the gym in downtown to do some speedwork on the treadmill especially if work keeps me in the office until late (like tonight).

Happy running!

Punishment

Last night I got home at 8pm and promised myself that I would go for a six mile run. I got dressed and put my watch on, when I noticed that it kept saying the memory was full. I thought the Garmins automatically deleted old records when space is needed. It even said so on the instruction manual. I had to have my watch or else it wouldn't count, right? I fiddled around with the watch until I finally figured out how to delete a few runs manually. This took but a few minutes but by the end of it, even though I was already dressed, I just didn't feel like running. In return I promised that I would run before work at 6:30am. I even upped the stakes by promising to donate $20 to a charity should I fail to do so.

Of course, I did not run this morning. My alarm went off, and I knew I would not get up.

This happens all too often. Even as I was negotiating with myself last night I knew I was just being lazy--it's too late to run, it's too cold, it's too dark, I'll do it tomorrow, my leg hurts. All excuses. The watch thing was an obvious excuse. I could have run without it as I did the other night and all the time before I bought the Garmin. Instead I used its malfunction as a reason to postpone and ultimately cancel my run

In any event, my only other likely window for running is tomorrow night. I could try and force myself to run in the morning, but weekday mornings are typically no-go's for me. So after a good start to the year last week, I'm taking a step back this week.

Anyone have any charities to suggest that would like my $20?

The Week in Running

It wasn't a bad start to the new year. I ran a total of 31.84 miles this first week including a couple of ten milers. Saturday's 10 miler was particularly good. It started off badly when I had to stop a mile and a half into the run due to a coughing fit. I couldn't seem to take a deep breath. This is a recurring problem for me. I feel like an old guy with a lot of phlegm for the first few miles during my morning runs. My pace was about 10:00 for the first four miles, but I brought that down with a fast second half, finishing at about a 9:15 pace. In fact, I clocked in my tenth mile in 7:45.

Last night's run, though, was shorter but I just felt sluggish through all of it. Still, I was glad I overcame my tendency for laziness and got the run in. I'm planning to run again tonight and I hope it's a lot better. I need to get this run in tonight because it's going to be a busy week. I'm sure work will be crazy but I also have a couple of fun events. I'm seeing "Fela" at the Ahmanson on Tuesday night and then on Thursday I'm seeing M83 with FJ. It's possible that I may not get another run in this week! Hopefully that won't be the case. The Rose Bowl Half Marathon is in a couple of weeks and I need to stay in shape since that won't be an easy one.

Announcing 12 for '12 and 2011 in Review

To motivate myself in 2012 to keep running I've decided to commit myself to running twelve races in 2012--12 for '12--catchy, huh? The rules are simple: one race (half marathon or greater) a month. Davey broached the idea one night and I think he's committed too. Right now I'm booked for the first three months. I have the Rose Bowl Half Marathon in a couple of weeks, the Inaugural Pasadena Rock N' Roll Half Marathon next month, and the L.A. Marathon in March. The rest of the year is still open, but I did apply for a spot in the New York City Marathon in November. I'll probably stick a lot of cheaper, local races since this could cost me a pretty penny if I tackle too many big, out-of-town races.

It's sort of an experiment, too, really. I know the idea is to run fewer races and train more, but lately I find myself lazy about running unless there's something I'm training for. Not to brag, but I think I've taken running half marathons and marathons for granted since I know I can do them. For the LA Marathon in 2011 I started training in January. It's turning out the same this year. At least if I commit myself to a race a month I will (hopefully) consistently run. Maybe it will mean I'll finally lose the weight I've been trying to lose for so long. Nutrition should really be a part of my training, but I love to eat too much. I'll tackle that some other time.

As for 2011, it was a slow year. As mentioned I ran the Los Angeles Marathon. It was a memorable one to be sure with the crazy weather. I still managed to run a respectable time of 3:53 but a new PR has eluded me once again. That's a continuing goal this year. 3:45! I also ran the Los Angeles Rock N' Roll Half Marathon this year with little to no training and it showed in my finish time of 1:50. I also ran another Ragnar Relay this year, and that was a blast. As much work as it is and as uncomfortable riding around a van for a day may be, these Ragnar races are just fun. I'm thinking I may take a break from relay races this year, but I'm not making any promises. If someone plans it all out and all I have to do is show up, then count me in.

To start off the year, here's a picture of me and some of my regular running gang who help inspire me to wake up early on Saturday/Sunday mornings. We ran the Rose Parade route early on Monday morning and--as usual--had a great time.

The Month in Running

I mentioned in my last "The Month in Running" post that September was off to a bad start. As it turned out, it was a good running month. Fueled by Ragnar, I wound up running 103 miles. If it were not for the running gods conspiring against me in the last week, September would have even surpassed March in total miles ran.

My longest run was an 11.11 mile run appropriately enough on 9/11. I also had a 10 miler last week. But if you count my Ragnar runs as one, that would have been 20+ miles over the course of a day. My shortest run was 3.86 in Ktown. I ran from home up to Rossmore and back. All together, I ran 16 times in September.

September also marked the beginning of the Garmin era as my new watch arrived. I was motivated to run in order to use the watch, which in turn motivates me to run faster. It's a neat piece of equipment, and I'm enjoying seeing the details of my run--my pace, where I slowed down, where I was fast, elevation change, We'll see how long the novelty lasts. I'll play around some more with the Garmin and see about putting the charts on the blog.

Overall, I felt good progress in my runs during the September. I think I may have even lost a couple of pounds. I hope to carry it through October, which is off to a good start so far as I have run on its first two days. Hopefully I'm not jinxing it.

The Month in Running

August turned out to be a not-so-bad running month. I didn't hit the targeted 100 miles for the month (87 miles), but it was still more than I thought I would run. My longest run of the month was only 10 miles. Work and health issues kept me sidelined more than I would like, but I also felt that this month found me finding a good balance between time and running. Towards the end of the month my runs have been better, so I'm hoping that means I'm making progress. I need to start doing longer miles too, especially with the half marathon coming up next month and a long 9 mile leg at Ragnar. Yikes, Ragnar is in two weeks!

Unfortunately, September isn't off to a good start. I intended to run today but got home too late and felt too hungry to run. I'll try to make up for it this weekend.

The More the Merrier

I can definitely vouch for this article's argument in favor of exercising socially. I probably would not have run all these marathons had I not trained with a group. They keep me honest and knowing that my friends are out there waiting for me gives me a sense of obligation.

To My Health

My quest to become the paragon of fitness is failing. Then again, I never had a chance at succeeding, but even by my own lowly standards I'm a failure.

Back in July, after running and feeling bonked out after the San Francisco Marathon, I resolved to rededicate myself to running and improve my speed. I had three months until my next race, the Los Angeles Rock n' Roll Half Marathon, so I had plenty of time to train and improve. How did I do?

Lousy.

I still ran, but there was no significant improvement in the quality of my runs. I just ran and didn't work on strength or speed. I essentially maintained my fitness. Sadly, I can't even say that--a week away from the half marathon--that I'm in as good a shape as I was a month ago. I'm going to go into this race really in bad shape. I was running about three times a week until I came down with a cold a couple of weeks ago and a busy schedule coupled with laziness on my part kept me from running. Feeling guilty, I forced myself to run over 10 miles on Saturday morning, the first time I've reached double figures since the marathon in July. I did it, but it didn't feel good and I wonder how it will be this weekend. I have no doubt I can finish the run. It just won't feel good.

As for my run yesterday, it actually went OK. I was tired by about mile 8, but I finished at just over a 9-minute/mile pace. Ideally for the half I would like to be closer to 8 min/mile. I doubt I will be able to maintain that pace in the shape I'm in, but the course is a fast one, so that will help.

This morning I got in a hike with Kevin and Dan up Sandstone Peak in the Santa Monica Mountains--over 7 miles--in the rain to boot. For the rest of the week leading up to Sunday's race, I'm hoping to run at least three more times. That shouldn't be a problem. I can run Monday, Wednesday and Thursday then rest until Sunday morning.

After this race I promise to work harder!

Hiking and Running

I've been mostly inactive the last couple of weeks. Since the marathon I have run once. This weekend must have been a shock to my body then as I took it on a rigorous 10 mile round trip hike up to the summit of Mt. Baldy and back down again. Six hours of climbing and resisting the pull of gravity as we navigated the steep mountainside on the way down. It was a fun but strenuous hike but well worth the effort. It wore me out so much that I crashed at 10 pm. Granted, though, that I woke up before 5 am to set off on the hike.

The next day my legs were somewhat sore, but I woke up early any way and met up with the gang for a run at the Rose Bowl. 7 miles. We took it easy in the first half, but in the second half we stopped taking walk breaks and in the last half mile we were sprinting. I started my sprint too early and couldn't maintain the pace towards the finish. I had passed Rob and Rachel but they eventually passed me again before we crossed the finish line. I should do that more often, though, if I really want to build up my speed.

After all that activity, the soreness caught up with me last night and I started to feel it more in my calves, hamstrings and butt. It's a nice soreness. Tonight I'm hoping to get in a short run, but we'll see how I feel after trivia.

Pics from the hike:

Vacation's Over

For the last week since the marathon I have been on a weeklong running vacation. I actually hadn't planned on taking a hiatus, but as an excuse for my unwillingness to run on Thursday, I decided that I was taking the week off. It's not a bad idea. I earned the right to not run for a week. The only pang of guilt occurred when I thought about the fact that I barely ran the last couple of weeks anyway, but that is neither here nor there.

Today I ran for the first time--just four miles to the Hollywood Farmers' Market. I started a little later than I would have liked and by then what haze there was had burned off. It wasn't too hot, though. I tried running a fast pace but I was out of breath quickly and had to walk a bit after a couple of miles. The route was also uphill on Rossmore from 4th all the way to Sunset. It wasn't the best run, but it's good I forced myself to run even though I was desperately trying to think of an excuse out of doing so.

After my disappointing run in San Francisco, I decided I need to get a little more serious about training. Lately I've been in the habit of "maintaining" rather than "improving." I've contented myself with running the same pace for the last year and haven't forced myself to improve. It's really laziness on my part and also an aversion to discomfort. Well, it's time for me to get uncomfortable.

As part of this change in attitude, I've decided to set an immediate goal for myself for my next race, which will be the Los Angeles Rock N Roll Half Marathon in October. For that race, my goal will be to run a personal best under 1:40. This should be doable since my best half marathon was 1:41. I'll only have to shave a couple of minutes. I'll just need to get myself in the same shape I was when I ran that time in San Jose almost three years ago.

Other minor goals: 1) get a watch 2) renew my gym membership 3) run at least three times on weekdays.

One last thing, here are the only good pictures of me from the marathon this past weekend:

When It Don't Come Easy

I guess my body didn't really want to run tonight.

There are times when running is more of an effort, but most of the time I can just plow ahead and get over it. Soon enough I'm feeling fine or at least well enough to finish the run. Tonight wasn't one of those nights. I felt it in the very first step.

It wasn't that anything hurt. My legs felt fine. Instead it was as if my whole body was throwing a tantrum and was refusing to cooperate. It was sitting this run out and I was going to have to force myself to finish. I ran a more casual pace but even then I had to take some walk breaks just to gather myself and summon some saved up energy to finish. If it wasn't for the fact that the marathon is this weekend I probably would have sat tonight out, but instead I went for a late evening 6 mile run (10pm). I probably won't have an opportunity to run again until Thursday, so I felt like I needed to get a good long run in tonight. I hope that the issue is just that I'm tired from my run yesterday. More likely, though, is that it was just one of those nights. The body says no. I got through it, though, so that counts for something.

As I mentioned the race is this weekend and I'm excited. Not about the race so much but about being in San Francisco and sorta getting away for the weekend. It looks like all my meals are pretty much planned with some good eats. I guess it's a good thing I'll be burning 3,000 calories on Sunday.

Lastly, tonight I played trivia at Casey's all by my lonesome and I almost won! I came in second, beating out teams who had as many as six people. Had I been more confident and used the "Double or Nothing" option at least one more time, I probably would have won. Instead I played it a little conservatively in the first two rounds even though as it turned out I was right on all those answers. The host likes to draw attention to these things, so I had to suffer through looks--albeit impressed stares--as I claimed my second place prize. For the free drink round, each team had to send a member up (which meant I had to go up) and we played an elimination round where we each took turns naming universities and which division they were in (ex. UCLA/Pac-10). I surely thought I would lose this round--and I did--but I was surprised to find myself one of the last two. I was only confident about Pac 10 and Big 10 teams, so I decided that I would only name Pac 10 teams. Surprisingly it worked. Others were probably showing off and named teams from different divisions. I got eliminated because I repeated a school someone had already said. I didn't realize it had been said before. I doubt I would have won anyway since the other guy seemed to know the make-up of all the divisions. Still, I did better than I expected in that round, but it also marked the first time I have lost the Free Drink round.

More trivia on Wednesday as we play the third week of the tournament qualifying at Sardo's. It's not looking good for us, though. Competition at Sardo's is stiff and the winning teams have been scoring at least 120 points. For us to have any chance we would have to win the next two weeks. It's possible but unlikely.

12 Miles

Tits. I have tits--and my knee aches.

Let's get the facts out of the way. I ran 12.2 miles in less than 2 hours. Since Rob and Katie couldn't run any way, I just stuck close to home and ran a slightly different course. From my house I ran to Olympic and headed west. I turned north on Fairfax and then headed back east on Sunset. Fairfax is all uphill. Rather than turn on La Brea, I continued on Sunset to Vine and took that back to Beverly, made a quick turn towards Larchmont and ran south to 3rd where I picked up my usual route on 4th Street back to my house.

It was a good run. Getting motivated to actually get up and put on my shoes was the toughest part, but the promise of food was enough to kick my ass into gear. When I woke up, though, I had a slight twinge above my right knee cap. It wasn't painful, but it was bothersome. I ran and it didn't bother me. When I got back, though, I noticed that the ache was back. Still, it didn't hurt badly. I went about my day and on Monday I didn't feel any thing.

Tuesday morning, though, I woke up and it was back. Aaargh! I ran on it tonight and again it didn't bother me, but afterwards I felt it more. It seemed to get worse after sitting around eating dinner in Thai Town. I walked trying not to put too much stress on the right leg. The ache lessened once I was moving, but it's still there. I just hope it's not the recurrence of my phantom knee pain--and I hope it doesn't affect my marathon, which is already next weekend!

As for my tits, I do have them. I've known for a while that I have them. When I run I check my reflection often to see how badly my chest and belly are heaving. I've noticed in some pictures the jelly-like consistency of my chest when the photographer catches me at just the right moment. I'd like to think that I just have overly developed pectoral muscles, but that isn't the case. Yes, there is muscle there but there is also fat, and the combination of the two makes for a chest that heaves like the sea during a hurricane.

I thought that I was the only one that really noticed how bouncy my tits are, but during my run I finally got confirmation. I can't quote exactly what he said, but as I passed a stoned-looking guy on the sidewalk, I distinctly heard him say "titties" and I vaguely heard him say, "It looks like he's got titties." Again, the only word I heard clearly was "titties," but I am sure that he was referring to me. I have tits and other people notice! I wondered why runners often stare at me when I run by. Now I know that it must be my man tits that are catching their attention.

After hearing the guy's comment I kept cupping my tits to see how badly they were undulating as I run. They don't feel as if they're bouncing too much, but seeing my reflection clearly shows strong heaving. I really ought to strap these things down.

In any event, there's not much I can do. I've had tits for most of my life, and I doubt they'll go away soon or easily. I would have to lose that last 10-15 pounds I've been trying to shed for 10 years now. Of course it doesn't help that after running as much as I do, I stuff my mouth silly with food. On Sunday, post 12 miler i joined the family for lunch at Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles where I gorged myself on Scoe's #1 - 2 big waffles and a quarter chicken. I could have finished the whole thing, but shame caused me to leave a quarter of my waffles on my plate.

Oh, tits. I guess we'll be together until the end of time.

A Fourth of July Weekend

Katie, Rob and I completed our 20 miler tonight, and it went well--much better than the 18 miler, and it even went better than the 12 miler last week. We were shooting for a marathon pace during last week's run but missed it and finished with a pace over 9 minutes. Our pace for the 20 miler? 9:04. We ran faster for 20 miles than we did last week for 12.

While I usually run during the evening hours, it's rare for me to do a long run in the afternoon, let alone 20 miles. Due to Rob's holiday travels, though, Monday afternoon was the only time all three of us could run. We figured starting out later in the afternoon might be slightly cooler. Yeah, right. The run's beginning was slightly disheartening. While it wasn't excessively hot, it was still warm and kind of humid. I was sweating profusely in just the first three miles--wearing black was a bad idea. I finished my sports bottle full of Gatorade in the first three miles--a bottle I was planning to last me 10 miles. Quite an inauspicious start to a very long run. What shade there was, though, made a huge difference.

We ran 2 laps around the Rose Bowl to start and then headed north in our usual route. The heat was still troublesome, and while I thought I was maintaining a fast pace, I kept falling behind Rob and Katie. Realizing now that we were actually running fast, I understand why my "fast" pace just wasn't fast enough. We were planning to run as far up the forest trail as we could, but on the way up we encountered a sign saying the trail ahead was closed. That didn't stop us, though, and we kept running. We reached the wood bridge I excitedly proclaimed that we were halfway done. Then it happened. I once again rolled my ankle. I rolled my ankle twice during the 18 miler. This time I not only rolled my ankle but tripped and fell. I didn't roll my ankle badly nor was I hurt by my fall apart from a small scrape on a knee. While on the ground, though, I felt like I couldn't get up. Katie and Rob helped me up and brushed off the dirt on my back. As they were doing so, a forest ranger pulled up and told us the trail was closed in as nice a way as possible. Rather than risk a ticket, we turned around and headed south.

Thankfully, it started to cool down by this time, or at least the shaded regions got larger. While I felt better, I still kept lagging behind Katie and Rob. I think it was partly me holding back so I had something for the tough, late miles, but I also slowed down to avoid rolling my ankle again in the rocky terrain along the arroyo. I was as much as a minute behind the two of them. Eventually I caught up as we turned around near South Pasadena. I ran ahead thinking that they will catch up, and they did. In the end, though, I guess I saved up more energy or I just got a second wind, but I finished ahead of Rob and Katie ad the end. All in all it was a great run and it helped that it got cooler towards the end. Now we taper. Only 12 miles next week.

The 20 miler was a great way to cap a terrific and busy holiday weekend. A recap:

Saturday
-Ran 8 miles to break in my new shoes prior to running with them for the 20 miler.
-Helped Chaps move into his new apartment.
-Went on a bike ride on the Whittier Greenway Trail, a 4.6 mile bike/pedestrian trail converted from an abandoned railroad right-of-way.

-Met up with Liza and Alice for dinner at Wurstkuche, which was then followed by drinks at Royal Clayton's, which was then followed by bread pudding AND chipotle fries at Pete's.



Sunday
-Laundry
-Hamburgers with family in West Covina. While there I watched a "Deadliest Catch" marathon. Geez, gripping stuff that show.

Monday
-Slept until 11 am. It was great!
-Watched Toy Story 3. Yup, I choked up at the end. Terrific movie.
-Ran 20 miles (see above).
-Grocery shopping.
-Cooked steak and mashed sweet potatoes for dinner.

Thanks to the long weekend, though, I feel well-rested and mostly ready to face the next four days.

06.20.2010 - 18 Miles

Perhaps I shouldn't be surprised how rough this morning's 18 miler was. My 18 mile runs have historically been tough runs, and this was no different. I expected that the warm temperatures would make for a tough run. The heat became a factor late in the run, but to be honest, it really wasn't that hot. I've run in hotter temperatures, but the fact that I was running on fumes and expended most of my energy early in the run made the heat seem more stifling than it actually was.

The crew today consisted of Rob, Katie and Linda. Linda ran 12.5 miles with us, which was probably 4 miles more than she had planned on doing. We ran up north first, intending to turn around after 4.5 miles. When we found that we could go farther now that the trails have opened up, we did so. It was rocky footing, though, and where it wasn't rocky it was sandy. The terrain has definitely changed since the fires and the subsequent floods during the winter. Some of the trail got washed out and now they are in the process of restoring them.

One catalyst for why we wanted to go farther up Angeles National Forest was the shade and pleasant weather there. We all knew that we weren't going to be so fortunate later on when we're out in the sun. For the shade alone we were willing to go through the trouble of running on rocky terrain. We ran to Elmer--my first time since before the fires--and kept going, another 1.5 miles or so. It was tough, though. The trails were washed away and we had to cross the stream several times. What trail there was was sandy and rocky. We used up a lot of energy running here, or at least I did. I'm not the most agile person, so I had to be extra careful running on uneven terrain--not to mention keeping an eye for possible snakes! I probably was too careful, though, which led to rolling my right ankle twice. Once would have been fine, but the second was too much. I finished the run fine, but afterwards my lower leg has been a wee bit sore. I'm not limping and it's not sprained, just a little overworked.

It was such an effort to keep running past Elmer and into the campgrounds that our pace slowed to over 11 minutes per mile. Figuring out where to cross the streams took a lot of time. When we finally turned around, when it was obvious that the trail wasn't going to get any easier or simpler, we were able to run back at a faster pace. We took a circuitous route to get up, but running back was a more direct route. In fact, we shaved a quarter mile running back than we did running up.

As I expected, though, the latter half of the run--the remaining 5.5 miles south--was a tough one. As rugged as the terrain was up in the mountains, it was at least cool and shady. The sun quickly sapped my energy in that last part. I was whining--a lot. I tried keeping up with Katie and Rob, but it was no use. I ran my own pace behind them and tried to keep my spirits up. My single goal was to not fall too far behind. I was about a minute behind, but at least I could still see them. I'm not sure what our finish time was, and I really don't care. I was just glad to get 18 miles under my belt. When we got back to Lot K we just sat in the shade for a good half hour. Katie had the foresight to pack a cooler and we enjoyed some cold water and Gatorade.

The good thing about tough runs is that it makes you appreciate the effort more. I had a rough time, but I'm proud that I plowed ahead even though it felt like crap. I kept running. Also, as bad as the run was, it was also enjoyable. Certainly the scenery of running in the forest was something I've missed. We also encountered a couple of attractive guys. One was a fireman camping with a buddy by the stream. Definitely a nice thing to see deep into a run. The second was a guy who seemed like he was riding in from a movie set. He was on a horse and rode towards us and gave us a movie star smile as he passed. Katie and I were tempted to run back and get another look.

After the run, Katie and I grabbed breakfast at Le Pain Quotidien. It was a fortunate melding of the minds as I had been craving their praline butter during the run. We then met up with Nate and checked out the Chalk Festival at Paseo Colorado. Had I not been so tired I would have stayed a little longer and taken in the car show and other entertainment. Still, I saw the impressive art work being done. My favorite was this depiction of the movie "Up" which prompted me to watch the movie again tonight.



I had planned to hang out in West Covina in the afternoon, but I was so tired that I changed my mind and headed home instead to shower and take a nap. I was so exhausted. Next week we're planning to run 8 or 10 miles but at our desired marathon pace of 8:30-ish. It's a shorter run, but the pace will make up for it. This week I'm hoping to get in three runs, but I'd be lucky if I get two.

16.5 Miles

Marathon training is progressing. Now that I'm officially registered I can't slack off any more. Today I was up at 6:15 am to meet up with Scotty in Brentwood for a 16+ mile run.

Since Katie and Rob couldn't run with us any way, we decided not to run at the Rose Bowl. Instead, we opted for a nice, cool beach run. It was a nice change of pace. I love running at the Rose Bowl but a change of scenery is very welcome now and then, and since it was forecast to be a hot day, we would avoid the heat by the beach. And we did. It was cool and overcast during the entire run. The different setting and the nice weather definitely helped make for a great run. It also helped running with someone like Scotty for whom my pace is a piece of cake. A good pace for me is an easy jog for him.

Scotty and I met up by Barrington and ran down San Vicente to Ocean (3+ miles). We then ran down Ocean to the pier (2 miles) and took to the bike path along the beach and ran north to Will Rogers State Beach (3 miles). We turned around where the bike path ends at around Temescal Canyon Road. Our time for the 16.5 miles was 2:24 (about an 8:45 minute/mile pace), which does not include a couple of bathroom breaks. I felt good for the most part until we were on our way back and ran up the pier. After that my side stitch just had the best of me and I had to take a few walk breaks. I really need to work on my core.

Some of the highlights (or lowlights):

- Taking a potty break at a beach restroom where there were no doors on the stalls and my lone companion was a creepy looking man in the next stall.

- Running by the UCLA cheer squad, yelling "Go Bruins!" and getting no response. They also looked too cheerful considering John Wooden had just passed away.

- My failed attempt at jumping over a foot-high wood plank on the sidewalk. I'll never make it as a hurdler. In my defense, it was 14 miles into the run.

-French toast and coffee at Amandine post-run.