For Whom the Dogs Bark

One hour on the elliptical at the hotel.  I couldn't work out on Friday due to our travel and work schedule and I had a limp most of the day.  I kept working it though, walking whenever I could and forcing myself to put pressure on the ankle.  I am doing this entry on Sunday morning in Hong Kong -- basically the ankle felt great during the workout Saturday morning and I had no limp all day long.  It got a little tired toward the end of the day but is otherwise OK.  Hopefully this is behind me.  Probably good for me this week to work it hard without overdoing it, and then let it rest.

So Friday and Saturday I was in Shenzhen, which is across the border from Hong Kong in China.  It used to be a sleepy little fishing village, but China decided to pour money into it to compete with Hong Kong, so it has broad boulevards and large new buildings, very different from Hong Kong or Beijing, the only two other places I have visited in China.  The hotel there was opulent but had a strange, sterile feel to it.  It is built on a Spanish theme; the doormen are even dressed like matadors.  It felt out of place; just like you wouldn't go to Wall Street for barbeque, you wouldn't go to China for Spanish culture.  I mentioned to someone that the decor felt like one of Saddam Hussein's palaces, and others seemed to agree with that description, though none of us has ever been to Iraq.  Anyway, we enjoyed the visit and particularly the company of the Chinese members of our party -- we had a good time and we got a lot done.  We start back home in the morning (Monday), arriving late Monday Houston time.  This hotel in Hong Kong doesn't have a gym, so it may be Tuesday before I get to train again.

The weather here feels identical to Houston, warm and moist -- now if they could just make the ground flat.

75F, clear, wind WSW 2 mph, 43% humidity.  Great running weather this morning -- clear, sunshine and almost no humidity.  Very little sweat on my shirt despite the higher temperatures.  We are going up to 90 today and yesterday was 92, basically mid-summer temperatures.  Ran 6.21 miles in 1:01:22, average pace 9:53 per mile, regular shoes and no heart rate monitor.  Slept in trying to get past the jet-lag fog and finally made it out the door at about 9 o'clock.  I was hoping my left ankle would not be an issue and for the most part it wasn't.  I could feel it a little bit, though it never affected my form or my speed.  As a result I decided to cut the run short and see how the ankle feels throughout the day.  If it still feels OK after walking on it all day and getting a good night's sleep, I'll ramp up some more tomorrow.  It's great to be home.

76F, clear, wind SW 7mph, humidity 52%, great running weather.  Ran 10.05 miles in 1:38:37, average pace 9:49 per mile, no heart rate monitor and regular shoes.  I was on pace to average 9:30 per mile through about mile 7.5, then got stopped by a big red-neck hound dog off its leash and never got going very well after that, not that I wanted to push too hard today anyway.  I got out late this morning after working late last night so heat was a definite factor, but I believe that I have lost some conditioning as a result of my ankle problems.  The cross-training helped some but didn't completely compensate.  Interesting that my quads were sore from the 6 miles I ran yesterday at a pretty modest speed.  No ankle issues, so assuming that holds throughout the day I will go back to my regular long, slow pace tomorrow, with fast miles at the end, and eventually get in some time in my very fashionable flats as well.  I still think the best way to train is either slow or hard.  I am a little skeptical of in-between miles like I ran today, although certainly the main thing is just being out there and going at it.

66F, cloudy wind SE 1 mph, 95% humidity, great morning for running, except that I slept in.  A thunderstorm came through last night and reset my clock back to midnight, so I woke up with light seeping through the windows.  Felt great to get 8 hours though.  Only had time for 4 before taking my daughter to school.  Plus the dog ate my homework.  Average pace 11:29, low heart rate and regular shoes.  Definitely not back to normal.  Might go out again later today, depending on how my ankle feels.  It started hurting yesterday afternoon, but never got to the limping stage and felt OK this morning. 

70F, 90% humidity, wind S 6 mph at start, 72F, 94% humidity, wind S 8-16 mph at end.  Beautiful morning for running.  Worked late and got to bed late last night but went ahead and set the alarm for 5:00 so as to sure and have adequate time to run before the day started.  Instead I woke up at 4:00 (lovely being old), finally got up at 4:45 and was out the door by 5:15.  Ran 8 at low heart rate, which this morning meant a pace just slightly under 12, not too good but my ankle felt fine.  After a quick bathroom and water break (yep, Bald, I stopped the clock), I ran the last 2 and change at marathon pace, splits were 8:36 and 8:14, with an 8:13 pace for the stub split.  It actually felt pretty easy, though I could feel residual weakness in my ankle as soon as I sped up.  Assuming my legs hold up I can probably start doing some 7s again before long.  My next milestone is a 10K at 7:00 pace, not sure how long it will take to get there, especially in the heat.  Overall pace this morning was 11:12, but it was really two runs.

We are headed to 93 today, almost a record.  Then the wind is turning to the north tonight and tomorrow, supposed to be in the 10-20 range but it won't cool much, only down to 67F tonight and hitting mid-80s tomorrow.  Our breezes might not be much by Abilene or Kansas standards, but I'm gonna go ahead and call it windy here.  If my ankle stays OK today I'll probably attempt a regular long slow run in the morning.

71F, wind NE 3 mph, humidity 73%, wind picked up a little and temperature up a little during the run.  It was a great morning for running, clear at first and then clouding over right about sunrise.  I ran 20.28 in 3:47:02, average pace 11:12, regular shoes.  I ran the first 10 at low heart rate, which was about a 12-minute pace, not sure why but I think it is the heat.  Then I picked it up the next 10, intended to run low 11s, but ended up mid-10s.  My last 6 splits were 10:30 (153), 10:26 (154), 10:40 (152), 10:22 (157), 10:20 (159) and 10:06 (162).  So my heart rate was moving up gradually the whole time but it never broke 160 until mile 19. 

Basically I had quite a bit in reserve, but my ankle was a little sore from running fast yesterday and I didn't want to dig myself a hole for Monday's session.  The other good thing I did was manage hydration better.  I have been a bad boy when it comes to drinking (don't get the wrong idea, we are only talking about water here), basically I don't bother.  But a long run in the heat and humidity forces the issue.  This time I started early and took a respectable drink every two miles or so, hauling a water bottle with me so I could do it.  It wasn't enough water to make my stomach slosh but it staved off dehydration.  I felt cramps coming on a couple of times and they might have been an issue if I had been running faster, but as it was I was able to control it by changing my stride a little to stretch my left hamstring.  In order to control cramping I need to think about taking salt, but that stuff really sends my stomach into orbit.

Well, no St. George for me and my siblings this year.  As a group we whiffed in the Lotto, and my brother who entered with my cousin also whiffed.  We are just not good gamblers.  One alternative is simply to do another fall marathon and I'll probably do that anyway.  But I'm thinking about doing the Utah Valley Marathon on June 12.  The course looks sweet, just not sure if it's too soon to BQ.  According to the McMillan Calculator, I can BQ if I can run a 10K at a 7:47 pace.  I have already done 7:53 for a 10K about a month ago, and I'm thinking that the course might be just fast enough to make up for the altitude.  But I might be pushing my ankle injury too hard, and I am close enough to the magic pace that if anything goes wrong it will probably do me in.  Lots to think about and not a lot of time to decide.

73F, wind SSE 7 mph, 87% humidity, storms moving in.  Good running weather.  Ran 10.02 in 1:59:16, average pace 11:54 per mile, low heart rate and regular shoes.  My ankle was tender for 3 miles then not an issue, so that was encouraging after Saturday's long run.  Not much else going on, except the strap on my hat came loose.  It will have to be re-attached, because I am not giving up on this hat.  I have run every mile I have ever run in it since my first marathon.  I wear it in races, I wear it training, I wear it to work, and to bed.  Maybe kidding on the last two.  Even more important, it covers my questionable hairline.  Bald is cool for some guys, like that blogger in Pittsburgh, but others have yet to embrace it.

75F, wind SSE 5 mph, 82% humidity, cloudy, great running weather.  Completely screwed up my Garmin this morning.  Forgot to re-set it going out, so I was running on top of yesterday's clock.  Then I hit the lap button, not sure what that did but nothing good.  Then after my sprint I turned it off, not sure why, for about 3/10 of a mile, so everything today is an estimate.  I ran the first 7 miles at low heart rate in regular shoes, mid 11s.  Then switched to flats and went as far as I could at a 7:10 pace, trying for 7:00 but that wasn't happening.  I ran out of gas after about 3/4 of a mile, but hey, I got my first distance in at close to my next goal 10K pace, just have to run that hard for another 5.5 miles and I'll be good to go.  After that I went back to original pace, although my heart rate was in the 140s because of the sprint.  On my sister's orders I iced down my ankle after the run and so far it feels great, like I don't have to wait 12 hours for the inflammation to fade.  We'll see how it holds up today, but I might have stumbled on to a pretty good solution here.

Well, I took the plunge.  I'm going to run the Utah Valley Marathon this year, signed up last night just before the fee went up.  It is way ahead of schedule to get a BQ, but the ankle is improving, I'm in range, the course is fast and the weather should be cool.  So I'm going to try.  I still have a few weeks to improve, so maybe it will work out OK.  I have to run 8:37 pace to qualify, pretty ambitious, but I'm glad to just have a chance.

75F, 84% humidity, wind SSE 10-18 mph.  'Twas a great running day.  Ran 12.03 in 2:18:03, average pace 11:29 per mile, low heart rate.  Ran the first two miles in flats then switched to regular shoes.  First five splits were 11:42, 10:45, 11:17, 11:22, 11:13.  Ignoring the first mile, which I always run slow until my heart gets warmed up, this is pretty good evidence that on the same day in the same conditions I am 30 seconds per mile faster in my flats, possibly more than that because my fastest mile is usually my fifth mile.  That is too much advantage to pass up, I need to get my ankles in shape to wear flats for the marathon, so I'll be trying to wear them every day for at least part of the run.  I could feel the weakness in my ankles for the first two miles, then my feet felt more support when I put on regular shoes, so I think it is just a matter of building up to it.  I have enough time if I keep at it.  I iced my ankle down and it feels fine so far today.

Also worked on hydration this morning.  I realized that if I try to drink all the time, even if I'm not that thirsty, maybe I can increase my ability to absorb water.  Worth a try.  Also weighed myself, down to 165, so making progress.  That is 35 off altogether from the beginning.  I ran St. George in 2009 at about 180.

75F, 85% humidity, wind SSE 10-20 mph.  Good running weather.  Ran 12.22 miles at a mixture of speeds, overall pace 10:58 per mile, low heart rate on the easy miles.  I warmed up in flats then tried to run at 7:00 per mile, my new 10K goal.  Had to quit after .32 miles (7:02 pace) because the house key fell out of a hole in my pocket.  (Bet that's the first time anybody heard that one.)  So I jogged for a while longer then tried it again.  This time I made .87 miles at 7:09 pace (top heart rate 186 bpm) before the wind picked up and slowed me down.  Then I jogged back to the house and changed to regular shoes, ankle was feeling it a little bit and still is.  I went back to low heart rate (about 12:00 per mile, some higher some lower) until mile 9.  Even though the regular shoes felt heavy and clunky, I knew I needed some marathon pace miles, so I did the last two at 8:37 and 8:26, although it was hard to hold a steady pace, I kept wanting to go to either 8:00 or 9:00.  Anyway, it went pretty well, I thought it would be harder than it was after running ten miles including a little bit of fast stuff, but probably a good thing it wasn't, otherwise I wouldn't have a prayer for a BQ in a month.  There is a workout that people talk about, which is to do a 20-mile run, first half at MP plus 1.5 minutes, then 8 at MP then 2 at 10K pace, accelerating to 5K pace for the last 400.  They say if you can do that one you will have confidence that you can make your marathon pace in the actual marathon.  I have a few Saturday's left, maybe I'll try that one a couple of times if my left ankle holds up.

About 10 degrees cooler this morning, great running weather, didn't run though.  Was up very late working and the ankle was a still a little iffy this morning after yesterday's frolic.  It gets more sore as the day wears on, which probably means that inflammation builds up from sitting all day.  So I did elliptical for an hour this morning after sleeping in and taking my daughter to school.  Actually ran the machine pretty fast -- I didn't bring my heart rate monitor but I could tell it was racing by the time I finished.  Still, I'm not going to put down anything other than 6 easy for an hour on the elliptical.  It feels much better today so I think I can run in the morning, not sure how far.  Kind of frustrating to be training around an injury while trying to get ready for a race, but so far it has worked out.

Maybe it was the high sustained rate on the machine, but driving around to my meetings today I felt wonderful.  I guess it was endorphins but it almost seemed more than that, like all the toxins were flushed out of my system.  That sounds pretty new-agey I guess.  So I stopped and bought fries.

66F, 100% humidity, wind NNW 6 mph.  66F was nice running weather, felt great for the first 100 yards but I embraced it even after that.  I looked at the 10-day forecast and it is showing thunderstorms everyday, first time I have ever seen that.  The forecasts never actually happen exactly as predicted, but I think we have a lot of moisture coming in.  Thunderstorms are the one no-no I impose on my running, but usually they boil up in the afternoon so I should be OK. 

Oh yes, I went for a run this morning.  I went 11.02 miles, average pace 9:49, regular shoes.  The plan was to do 20, first half at marathon pace plus 1.5, then marathon pace for 8, then 10K pace for the last 2.  My ankle was very stiff to start out but it loosened up and I did the first 10 at about 9:55 per mile.  Did the next mile at 8:38, one second over marathon pace, then a few steps into my second mile I re-pulled my groin, in a single step.  I knew instantly what it was because the identical thing happened in my last marathon.  It is posible to run through it but not smart.  I stopped immediately and walked home, otherwise I would pay a price that I have learned is too high.  Probably bad form caused it.  I was smelling this run, it was there.  I am pretty sure I could have finished it as planned, though the 10K splits at the end might have been a little iffy.  So I think I am going to play it conservatively and go back to the machines for a week.  Then I will run in Utah this next weekend since I am traveling there for my son-in-law's graduation; maybe I can get acclimated a little for the Utah Valley Marathon in four weeks.

The way I figure it, for UVM I have three things going for me:  Temperature/humidity, taper and downhill.  The altitude is against me.  I believe the temperature will at a minimum make up for the altitude, it is very draining to run in high humidity at 65F+.  So I net out to plus 2, the taper and the downhill slant of the course.  I should be OK, but race day will tell the tale, as it always does.  You are what you ran last, and until I run something better I am a 4:13 marathoner.

Happy weekend, all y'all.

Great running weather indoors today.  Ran .33 to the rec center then did 85 minutes of elliptical (counting 8.5, even though the meter read more than that).  Tonight I propped up the back of my wife's treadmill and did 3 more at some sort of a downhill slant, 10:54 per mile (5.5 mph).  Not exactly sure of the incline, I'll have to measure it, but I need to do this almost every day so I don't crater at the end of UVM.  I raised the TM about an inch, so probably something like a 1.5% slope, probably should raise it another inch, maybe experiment with higher speeds and get some blood flowing as long as I am on the machine.

Is it possible to get injured on the elliptical?  I was hurting bad enough when I was done this morning that I decided to walk home, almost made my daughter late for school.  I thought I could wear flats and it wouldn't make a difference, but my ankle felt better tonight in regular shoes.  In fact, it felt as good on the treadmill tonight as it did on the elliptical this morning.  Ditto with the groin, go figure.  Just have to see how it plays out this week.

Similar routine as yesterday, did 90 minutes on the elliptical and 2 on the treadmill tonight, plus ran to the rec center and back.  I set the treadmill at 4% negative slope.  If you can't stand the treadmill, I recommend trying the elliptical.  It makes the treadmill an absolute pleasure.  It looks to me like the average decline at UVM is 1% (1500 feet net elevation decrease over 26.2 miles), so getting used to running at 4% should be adequate if I get in enough distance.  Ankle feels OK today, not great but it should make it.

9 on elliptical, 3 on treadmill tonight at 4% decline, no running outside today, all regular shoes.  I wore a monitor for the elliptical and I mostly stayed at low heart rate, though it climbed in the last 20 minutes to about 140.  Interesting that it doesn't do that when I run until I get over two hours.

So tonight was the tale of two daughters.  We took our youngest daughter to her junior high school awards ceremony.  She got some good academic awards but we had to sit through a half-hour speech by the principal about excellence and everybody is a winner.  My middle daugher didn't go, she has never been to one, never had the need; but she knows about the speeches, she calls them words for nerds.  She is the food nazi so she was home cooking dinner while we were gone, and still cooking long after we got home.  Finally we got served about 9:30, some healthy little pasta thingy, bless her cholesterol-free heart.  Good thing my wife bought ding dongs today or I might have starved.

9 on elliptical, 0.66 running and 3 tonight on the treadmill.  Elliptical and running was in flats, but my ankle was still barking at me a little bit.  The treadmill was in regular shoes and felt better.  I also walked about 2 miles around downtown this afternoon going to a meeting, feels fine to walk, it's just the pounding from running that aggravates it.  Iced twiced today, which always feels good.  This concludes my regularly scheduled program for the week.  Actually, I'll do machines in the morning, then travel to SLC for a graduation and try to get in some runs over the weekend at altitude.  My wife says it will be raining, what kind of a deal is that?

Yesterday I went into the rec center a little later because I noticed the day before that everybody left for work by 7:30.  So I waited until I dropped my daughter off and had the rec center all to myself -- for about 20 minutes until the Stepford wives came in with full makeup and $500 workout suits.  Some of them must have been up since 4:30 getting ready.  They had obviously provided Christmas for a lot of plastic surgeons.  There was a cardio coach yelling somethng about "abs" and "reps", but I am pretty sure not one of them can run a mile under 10 minutes, if at all.  Not sure how I ended up in that situation, but at least they were done in about 15 minutes.  This morning I was back at it, fighting for time on the machines with the sweaty earlybirds and happy to do it.

60 minutes on the treadmill, then got on a plane and traveled to SLC for a graduation.  Planned to run tonight, but the schedule would not permit.  Trying to put a couple of runs together for tomorrow, in between graduation events, hoping to acclimate to the altitude a little.

Woke up early in SLC this morning and did 6.0 treadmill miles at about a 10 minute pace.  Then went to my son-in-law's graduation and broke away in the afternoon for a drive down to Provo to run.  I hooked up with my brother and we ran 7.1 in Provo Canyon at 8:53 per mile, slightly slower than marathon pace.  We started about a mile and a half above Vivian Park on the South Fork Road where we parked a car, ran down to the main road then down the paved trail to the parking lot at the mouth of the canyon, driving back up to retrieve the car. 

The object today was to get some familiarity with the course and get in some running at altitude, but more importantly to see how big of an impediment the altitude is going to be for me.  It is a big impediment.  I can write it off to a few factors that wouldn't be present on race day:  running in the afternoon, second run of the day, rusty legs from not running outside all week, not wearing racing flats, no taper, etc.  Some of that might mitigate, but the fact is I struggled to maintain pace at this altitude.  I could have run it harder, but it wasn't easy enough and I am skeptical about being able to do it for the whole distance.  I assumed that low temperatures and downhill would compensate for altitude, but that did not happen today.  At sea level, I ran better in the heat on flat terrain as recently as a week ago.  I realized the obvious, which is that altitude is a limiting factor rather than an adjustment factor.  You might get better at running in altitude, but you will always be faster at sea level.

So not sure whether to go ahead and do this race.  I have heard they are flexible about deferring entry fees and I haven't bought a plane ticket yet, so it wouldn't be that big of a deal financially.  But I hate to change plans.

Anyway, my wife and I had a wonderful time in Utah.  My son-in-law graduated from medical school at the U, wearing his red gown with unusual pride for a BYU grad.  He said he requested blue and was politely refused -- maybe not so politely.  Also got to see both brothers who live in the area, running with one, as well as visit my uncle and aunt, my son and his wife, and my wife's brother and his wife who are both running UVM.  We ate at a great restaurant on 13th East called Market Street Grill.  I look forward to more visits so I can work my way through their extensive seafood menu.  Today I started by ordering steak.

89F, 43% humidity, wind SE 18-22 mph.  I am in Dallas for a wind power convention through Wednesday.  Finished up for the day and went out about 4:00 in the afternoon for a run through downtown to the American Airlines Center, then got on a path called the Katy Trail.  It is about 5K, 10K round trip.  Nice trail, with drinking fountains every mile or so.  I tried to hold marathon pace for as long as possible, but eventually the heat caught up with me, so I switched to holding a 175 bpm heart rate (92% of maximum), which eventually caused my pace to fall into the 10s.  I was very tired and my face was very red when I finished.  But it was a good workout, no dehydration issues, and I am glad I did it.  No ankle problems today, so pretty encouraging on that front.  Comparing this heat run to Saturday's altitude run, I think the heat was harder, but not sure whether it does any good except preparing to run in the heat.  I'll have to see if there is some information on that.

I really need new clothes, I am starting to look like a scarecrow man.  The old ones aren't worn out and it is against my nature to throw out perfectly good clothes.  Hopefully I will never need that size again.

AM, 6.0 on the treadmill at the hotel, about 11 minute pace, in flat shoes.  PM, ran the same 9.66 mile course as yesterday, regular shoes, 1:39:52, average pace about 10:30 per mile, 89F, 42% humidity.  Some fairly quick miles in there about marathon pace + 45, but overall 5 minutes slower than yesterday.  I forgot my heart rate monitor and I am a little afraid of working too hard in this heat.  I worked plenty hard anyway.

I found out there is a 5K race for conference participants in the morning on the Katy Trail, the same one I have been running, but I think it is too late to register.  Not sure I want to do any speed work right now anyway.  My ankle has held up pretty well the last few days and I probably shouldn't try to push my luck.

I have been hydrating well and my absorbtion rate has been good, no sloshing.  If nothing else, that one aspect of heat training should help me get through a marathon better than I have done in the past.  I can't believe anybody could run a marathon in this much heat, at any speed.  It is just beyond me.

75F, 70% humidity, very Houston-esque.  Ran the same route (Katy Trail) as the last two days in Dallas, 9.66 miles, but this time ran it in the morning and at low heart rate, regular shoes.  Took about 2 hours.  Much easier but my legs needed it.

The trail in the morning is very crowded, great for people watching.  I guess the strangest thing I saw was coming up on a lady with a baby stroller.  I saw everybody coming the other way looking into her stroller.  As I passed I glanced back and it was the strangest looking baby, actually it was a dog.  Something is very wrong there.

I passed on the 5K this morning, no way to register and probably wasn't a good idea anyway.  They were just putting everything away except the outhouses as I ran past the start line.  Coming back the other way toward the end of my run I decided that the port o potty placement was very strategic.

So last night after returning from Dallas I turned around and drove to Temple, Texas, about 2-1/2 hours from here, to meet my daughter and her family who had just arrived from Utah with their moving van.  My son-in-law and I unloaded the whole thing by ourselves.  He is a clever guy and strong but he needed me and my wisdom acquired through the ages, especially when it was time to unload the piano.  (Into the living room without a scratch.)  We finished at 1 a.m.  I slept on the floor, got up and drove back to Houston.  Then put in almost a full day at work.

Bottom line, 6 on the treadmill tonight, 4% decline, 6 mph as I watched the Lakers steal one from the Suns, texting with my brother who lives in the Phoenix area.  Sorry Burt, but I think your team still has a chance, they look good right now.

70F, 98% humidity, wind 0 mph.  Ran 10.16 in 1:43:34, average pace 10:12.  Started out in flat shoes and ran 3 miles at low heart rate, 12:34, 11:37, 11:37.  Flat shoes felt really good this morning, especially in my knees, it was like there was no pressure whatsoever in that area, very encouraging.  Then I switched to regular shoes and sped up to 10 minute miles through mile 8, then the last two at marathon pace, 8:36 and 8:26, heart rate 175 on the last one, then jogged it in.  Got back just in time to take my daughter to the bus stop.  Grabbed a new water bottle on my way out the door.  I was never in a fraternity but I chugged it all waiting for her bus.  She got out silently and walked away.  I think I may have caused some psychological damage there.

72F, 80% humidity, clear.  Great morning for running under a full moon.  I had to make a trip to the airport to drop off my daughter and her husband for an early flight, so no long run today.  I will do it on Monday, which is still 12 days out from UVM and should be OK.

Ran 10.06 miles in 1:38:40, average pace 9:49 per mile, most splits between 9:38 and 9:55, which is MP + 1:10 or 1:15.  I ran in regular shoes today.  I was hurting in multiple places when I went to bed last night, but woke up early and felt good so I went out and got the run in before I had to leave.  Basically I ran the first half of the planned long run, the second half would be at marathon pace.  Monday will prove whether I can put it all together.  My heart rate started at 138 for the first mile, progressed rapidly to 155, then held steady until the last two or three miles, ending at 159 on a 9:37 final mile.  I can hold a 178-182 pace for 10K, so I can see some possibilities here.  If I can stay below 165 through the first half of UVM, I might just have a shot at my BQ.  But if I am at 175 at the half I don't think it will happen, because I would be at 185 or higher for the last 10K, too high to sustain.  I'll get more data on Monday.

My daughter and son-in-law left on a post-graduation vacation, leaving our two granddaughters here.  It is a reliable sign you are getting old when you would rather watch grandkids for 10 days than go on vacation.  Also when you wake up at 3:30 without an alarm clock, ready to run.

72F, 92% humidity, wind calm, 75F at end  Rained last night but just made it more muggy, no break in the temperature.  Today's plan was to do 20, 10 at MP + 1.5 then 10 at MP.  First 10 went pretty well, heart rate stayed at or below 155 through the first 9.  When I sped up my legs felt heavy, then disaster -- I got to my water stop and somebody had taken my bottles.  I was already soaked to the skin, the sun was up and I couldn't risk running without water in these conditions.  So that was it.  Honestly, my heart rate had already climbed to 175 during miles 11 and 12 and I am not sure I could have made it another 8 at that speed anyway.  I lost net 5 pounds of water during the run, 169 down to 164.  Overall, 12.01 miles in 1:56:26, average pace 9:42 per mile. 

I think of runners as a pretty mellow group, but not everybody thinks running is a great thing.  Kind of discouraging when something like this happens.  It happened once before and somebody who saw me looking for my bottles came up and said they thought they were just cleaning up litter, so hopefully that is all it was.

So now I have a decision to make.  It looks like I am not in a position to BQ right now.  Might be a good idea to keep training instead of using up a month tapering and then ramping back up, I might be further ahead in the long run.  Plus, there are a lot of work pressures and pressures with the family's summer schedule.  The logistics and training for this marathon are starting to look difficult all of a sudden.  I need to decide soon.