For Whom the Dogs Bark

75F (75 DP), 100%, W 5 mph.  Same dew point as yesterday, boil-off from a rain last night put us at max humiity; but somehow it felt more comfortable than the 81F/84%/75DP combo from yesterday, maybe the brisk wind out of the west was the difference.  I ran a few miles at LLHR and got good results for 4 miles:  11:41, 11:12, 11:07 and 11:03 = 11:16 average (121 bpm).  Probably fair to put it at 11:25 if I had gone a full 10 so we'll call it that, 11 seconds per mile better than Wednesday.  Some of that is weather-driven, but still undeniably making progress.  I met Wade at about mile 2.5 and ran another 2 at LLHR after that but didn't want to make him run that slow, so picked it up to long run pace through mile 7.5 where Wade peeled off to go back home; after that I ran another 4.5 by myself, overall 12.00 miles in 2:00:13, hitting mostly upper 8s for the last 4 or 5.  Total run was10:01/mile, 128 bpm average, 161 max.  Pretty happy with how my heart rate is behaving this week.  Hopefully I have something left in the tank for a good run tomorrow.

69F, 99% (68F DP), calm.  Unbelievably cool morning for this time of year -- the first two weeks of August are the hottest of the year, should have been 10 degrees warmer today.  Didn't argue, just tried to make the most of it.  Got a late start, 5:35 and cooked a little bit when the sun came up after mile 8 with no cloud protection, but not too bad.  Ran 20.00 miles in 2:52:45, 8:38/mile, 156 bpm average, 181 high.  My overall pace was only 1 second off the old BQ standard for my age group, before they tightened it down by 6 minutes, so I was working it pretty good.  Average heart rate was about the same as last week, though the high end was significantly higher today, 181 bpm ompared to 169 last week.  Started out at 9:42 but caught the 9:00 guy at 4 miles, the 8:50 guy at 8 miles and the 8:45 guy at 11 miles.   Biggest difference was the DP:  79 last week compared to 68 today, with the result that I ran 35 seconds per mile faster for the full 20, compared to running only 16 last week.  Nauseous at the end, so I guess I ran hard enough.  In fact, I probably cannibalized Monday and Tuesday but that isn't too important so long as I don't come up with an injury.  I did cramp up some after finishing, first cramps I have had in a while.  This is the best week I have had in a very long time.  If dropping 10 degrees makes that much difference I wonder what the boost would be at race temperatures in low 50s/upper 40s.  Seems like it should be worth another 30 seconds/mile but no way of really knowing.

75F, 95%, 74 DP, ENE 3 mph.  Pretty good weather today.  Out the door at 4:00 a.m., ran 10.10 in 2:00:57, 11:59/mile, 119 bpm, surprisingly good considering Saturday's sweatfest.  I think I pegged last Monday's run at 12:20, so this is an improvement.  Even though last Monday was somewhat muggier, today's heart rate was lower, so I'm calling it a wash.  Slowest mile today was 12:05, fastest 11:53, nice tight pattern.  Trying to take it easy this week; nothing long until Saturday.

75F, 98% (75 DP), N 1 mph.  Even though there is a slight wind on record, in reality it was essentially stagnant air out there and so it felt warmer than yesterday.  Ran 10.00 in 1:57:27, 11:45/mile, 121 bpm.  Tailed off quite a bit the last 2 miles, 11:52 and 11:58, but otherwise felt OK.  Stretching and weights at gym.

75F, 100% and calm.  Basically the same weather as yesterday, stagnant air, but really not paying that much attention anymore unless it goes back up to 80F, which is possible.  But at 75F I can run all summer long, not that I have a choice.  Another 10 at LLHR, 1:54:26, 11:27/mile, 120 bpm, still improving.  First mile was 11:53, last was 11:37, fastest (mile 6) was 11:10.  Legs were heavy the first 3 miles then I got into a rhythm, the second half actually faster than the first half by about 4 seconds per mile at a similar heart rate -- which is good because the object of this type of running is to build endurance.  My "fall off the cliff" point has been moving further out in the run, probably at about 8 miles now.  Eventually 10 miles might not be far enough to keep the training effect going, but that would be a good problem to have.

78F (96%) (78 DP), S 3 mph.  Got out a little late on minimal sleep and ran slower than yesterday, mostly due to the extra heat.  10.00 miles in 1:56:27, 11:39/mile, 120 bpm.  Fastest mile was mile 5 @ 11:17 (yesterday mile 6 was fastest at 11:10) and miles 9 and 10 were 11:50 and 12:00.  So not bad, just too hot and too sleepy.

81F, 93% (78 DP), SSW 2 mph.  Heavy hot air settling in for the long haul it appears.  This is the kind of weather that breeds hurricanes, hope we don't get any this year.  Close to a dew point PR this morning, figured the run would be a disaster but went out anyway.  Began at 5:27 a.m., 10.00 miles in 1:58:08, 11:49/mile.  Fastest mile was mile 5 again, 11:33.  Finished at 12:13, which was the slowest mile.  121 bpm average.  Other days in this range this year were July 21 (12:43/mile), July 23 (12:09/mile) and July 28 (12:08/mile); so I am happy with this LLHR pace, so long as it goes back down when the temperatures recede.

79F (78 DP), 97%, SSW 5 mph.  Went out at 5:00 for a long run but gave up halfway through.  Trying to target 9:00 pace, but heart rate was climbing quickly.  I took it from 161 to 167 in mile 8 and came out 4 seconds slower, at which point I decided nothing good was going to happen today -- did not want to be paying for a long run for the next 5 days, which is what happens in these conditions if you push it too hard for too long.  Been feelling sluggish anyway for the last 3 days, apparently I am overtrained at these ridiculously low heart rates; either that or I never recovered from the last long one.  Averaged 9:04 for 10.5, then took the dog out for a 1.05 mile cool down. Next week is a new week.

78F, 96% (78 DP) and calm.  Still not a grown-up runner, even though I have been doing this for over 6 years now.  Felt the need to try a re-do from Saturday.  Succeeded just fine, but probably undermined my workouts for the entire week as a result.  20.00 miles in 3:01:37, 9:05/mile, 157 bpm, 176 max, pretty even pace throughout.  Nothing over 9:09 and only a couple under 9:00.  Despite the childish nature of this workout, there was nevertheless a bit of grim satisfaction to be had.  78 DP at sea level is sky-high and I did 20 in it at a fair pace, within 3 minutes of BQ.  

76F, 97% (76 DP), calm.  I was convinced that any run I could get in today would be a disaster, could barely walk when I fell out of bed because my right foot always gets stiff, more so on harder runs like yesterday, from which I usually take a day off.  But after stumbling around a while the foot felt more normal so I headed out at 4:40 a.m., intending to only do 6, all LLHR of course.  The first mile came in at 12:12, which surprised me.  Averaged 11:37 for the run and did 10 instead of 6, 120 bpm average heart rate, felt absolutely fine, almost like I hadn't run at all yesterday.  I have no explanation, it was a slightly cooler but not enough to really make any difference.  Indulging in a long run yesterday felt like robbing the bank; this morning felt like a clean getaway.  Also had a good stretching and weight session afterwards.

76F, 98% (75 DP) and calm.  No running on Wednesday and Thursday due to work pressures.  Felt great going out the door but heart rate was high today compared to Tuesday.  10.00 miles in 2:03:30, 12:21/mile, 120 bpm.  No available explanation.  Off to stretching and weights.

79F, 94% (77 DP), SSW 4 mph.  Running symptoms of some sort, slept in fits and starts all night and decided in the middle of the night not to go 20.  Finally got out the door at 6:00 a.m. for a quick 10.  Heart rate standing at my front door was in the mid70s instead of low 60s.  I then sat down to see how low I could make it go and 64 bpm was the bottom, so 10-12 bpm higher than normal resting start, which explains what was going on yesterday.  So I just ran whatever speed felt good, stayed under 150 bpm for the first half and under 160 bpm for the second half.  10.00 miles in 1:32:53, 9:17/mile, a bit quicker than I would have predicted.  Felt better when I was done, should be back to normal by Monday.

79F, 93% (77 DP), S 5 mph.  10.00 in 1:56:49, 11:41/mile, 120 bpm. Recovered from whatever was ailing me on Friday, so this is OK under the circumstances.

79F, 95% (77 DP), SSW 5 mph.  10.00 miles in 1:56:19, 11:38/mile, 120 bpm.  Almost identical to yesterday in every respect.  Finished with stretching and weights.

76F, 100% and calm.  Felt warmer than yesterday for some reason.  Another run very close to the other two this week.  10.00 miles in 1:56:02, 11:36/mile, 120 bpm.  Last mile was 11:56, excactly the same as yesterday.  At least I'm not getting worse, and I had weightlifting hangover in my legs, so this is probably an OK run.

80F, 97% (80 DP) and calm.  10.00 in 1:59:04, 11:56/mile.  New DP PR.  Really happy to pull back ahead of SlowJoe, he tried beating me on temperature yesterday, caught me napping, but I'm back on track this morning.

80F, 93% (77 DP), S 6 mph.  Ran the usual, 10.00 in 1:56:18, 11:38/mile, 120 bpm average.  Quite a bit faster than yesterday even with a lower heart rate.  So out of curiosity I checked the temperature again (Weather Channel) when I finished, and it showed 73F (100%), meaning a 4-degree drop in the dew point?  Pretty sure that is wrong; dew point tends to stay constant as temperature rises and RH drops in the course of the day, beccause it measures the actual amount of moisture in the air and stays the same until new weather moves in.  Right now it is 82F (89%), translating to a 78 DP, so either the moisture moved out then moved back in over a 4-hour period or the second reading was wrong.  I have my own weather station, but it is still boxed up waiting for a pergola to be built in the backyard.  I am looking forward to having accurate weather data.

76F, 97% (74 DP), calm and clear.  Slightly lower temperatures this morning, thought I might be able to hit 20, which turned out to be the case.  Started at 5:01 a.m. and so the last 5 miles or so were in the direct sunlight; took quite a toll but I made it.  Had a bottle of gatorade and a bottle of water and drained them both.  I was nauseous for about an hour after the run but never threw up.  Layed down and waited for my heart rate to get down into the 80s and then I was OK; took a long hot shower and I am moving around pretty well now, though lots of chafing on the outside of my legs, for some reason that was the rubbing spot today.  20.00 miles in 2:59:08, 8:57/mile, 157 bpm average heart rate, 175 max.

75F, 98% (75 DP), N 1 mph.  LLHR run again, 11:48/mile and 120 bpm, not too bad for a Monday.  Weather is starting to ease up just a bit this week, hope it holds.

77F, 84% (72 DP) and calm.  Warmed up at LLHR for 3.5 miles, about 11:25/mile at 119 bpm, feeling good.  Busted out a 5 x 1K workout at 7:33, 7:18, 7:09, 7:19 and 7:03 paces jogging out each mile.  Then ran the dog for a mile to cool down and finish off the 10.  I have a 5K race in about 10 days, so figured I should at least see what I can do.  My 5K PR is a 6:41 average pace, if I remember correctly, so a long way from where I am right now.

Not sure how I will feel the rest of the day, but this seemed to go pretty well.  Who knows what would happen if I actually did workouts regularly.  But even running fast it's all about the aerobic base, I don't regret any of the slow miles, except while I am running them.

PM weights and stretching.

75F, 87% (71 DP), N 1 mph.  Considerably cooler this morning, and even though I did a workout yesterday and weights late last night I still ran quicker this morning, 11:25 pace for 9 miles, then finished 1 mile untimed with the dog.  An interesting thing is that mile 6 was my quickest mile, 11:11, and by the 9th mile the pacing still hadn't deteriorated, it came in at 11:24, so mile 10 would have still been OK.

76F, 87% (73 DP) and calm.  Late night last night, got a late start, almost daylight by the time I got out and it was beating down by the third mile.  9.1 miles at LLHR, 11:17/mile, 121 bpm.  It looks better than yesterday, but my heart rate was higher today in the sunlight so really about the same, maybe a little slower actually.  Finished with stretching and weights. 

75F, 96% (74 DP), calm.  Didn't run yesterday due to work issues then couldn't hit 20 today, everything was hurting.  15.19 at 8:56/mile.  Just waiting for summer to end at this point.