For Whom the Dogs Bark

80F, 88% humidity, wind W 3mph.  Ran 8.04 in 1:37:46, average pace 12:09, low heart rate  Bleh.  Something has happened to my conditioning, or else the few extra degrees of heat make it disproportionately more difficult, certainly possible.  I'll just make do, but today felt like the wrong direction.  At least it won't get any hotter, I am pretty sure.  Every year about this time, as I look at 8 more weeks of heat, I promise to move out of Texas, but I always stay.  It has an economy and a lot of really nice people, so some other things we just put up with.

Yesterday we moved my son into his apartment and this morning he started medical school.  Life happens quickly.

75F, 100% humidity, calm and cloudy.  Great running weather, a tad humid.  Ran 9.32 miles in 1:29:42, average pace 9:38/mile, regular shoes.  Object was to see how fast I could go at a 160 heart rate.  I warmed up two miles then sped up.  My fastest mile was mile 4, 8:47, heart rate 155, then it climbed quickly, I ended up finishing in the 175-180 range.  I planned on 10 but stopped immediately well into my last mile when I felt a twinge in my ankle.  There appears to be no consequences, everything is good.  But I felt fine even at that high of a heart rate.  I think in cooler weather I might feel much more fatigue at that high of a heart rate.  Interesting stuff.  Happy with the run, but hoping to do better.  Last year I got a big pop in speed when I got out of the heat to run the marathon, I am hoping that happens this year as well.  If I can run 20 miles at a 9 flat pace I should have a good chance of hitting my goal.

81F, 89% humidity, wind SW 6 mph.  Nice crisp morning.  Ran 10.09 miles in 1:59:40, average pace 11:52 per mile, low heart rate.  This run was better than Monday's at 12:09 per mile, and I controlled my heart rate better.  Still, it was interesting how the speed dropped dramatically after 4 miles -- today my fastest mile was 10:59 and slowest was 12:35.  It doesn't do that at normal temperatures, where I can hold a steady heart rate and speed for much longer.  I am going to try a few miles in my flat shoes tomorrow, there is potential there and I need to get into shape to wear them consistently.  Right now I am running a little bit in the dark, both literally and figuratively, because I don't have anything to measure progress against.  Definitely low heart rate measuring sticks are out the window, they change every time it gets a couple of degrees warmer outside.  Running fast is one way to combat it, feels like there is improvement there, but there have been enough injuries this year that I am afraid to do it too much.  So bottom line I won't really know until things cool down how much benefit I got out of running this summer.  It's OK, just an interesting process.

78F, 91% humidity, wind SW 4 mph, partly cloudy.  Nice morning for running.  I started a little bit later because I had to get out some work.  I met a neighbor, who is a runner, yesterday morning and she mentioned that it is cooler at sunrise than an hour before.  I would have known that if I had thought about it but just hadn't ever considered that before.  So I wasn't worried about starting a half-hour late.  I ran 4 warmup miles, two in regular shoes and two in flat shoes, all at low heart rate, then put regular shoes back on and they felt like work boots.  I then ran 3 miles at about a 7:55 pace, maximum heart rate 186.  Was hoping to do six at that pace but happy to get three, it was a complex but successful run. 

I'll get to six soon, barring injury, knock on my bald head.  If I can run six at 7:45 that translates to 3:45:30 for a marathon, so that would give me enough cushion to feel comfortable about a BQ in October in cooler temperatures.  Also, if I can lose 5 more pounds that should help a lot -- after 35 pounds I still have a modest layer of fat on my torso.  Don't see how I could run much at all back at 200 pounds. 

After the 3 fast miles I slogged it in for 3 more miles at a consistent 160 bpm, which translated to a steady 10:20 pace.  I don't think 160 is my long-term target heart rate, I felt like I could go forever at that pace. I may find that I can cover the marathon distance at 165, creeping up to 175 and even 180 toward the end.  Still experimenting.  Overall this morning I ran 10.18 miles in 1:43:35, average pace 10:11 per mile.

The other interesting thing, I was reminded this morning that I feel very different after a run that includes high heart rate.  More invigorated than tired.  I think the difference in my body's reaction shows that running slow works on a different system than running fast.  Hard to explain, but after a fast run the endorphins hang around longer, whereas there is a certain deep but low-level fatigue that hangs around for a while after running a couple of hours at low heart rate.  I look at it as a validation of the theory that you should run your slow runs slow and your fast runs fast.  Running in between is fine too, of course, and I do it a lot, but it might be the case that the most benefit is at the extremes of the spectrum, if your legs can handle it.  Good stuff for nerds like me.

80F, 90% humidity, wind S 8 mph, clear.  Felt good out there this morning.  Ran 10.20 miles in 2:00:35, average pace 11:50/mile, low heart rate and flat shoes.  Wanted to do a whole run in flat shoes and see how my right heel held up.  Giving it a B+, looks like I will be OK but it isn't ready for prime time yet.  The other good thing was that even though it was about the same speed as Wednesday, the pace at the same heart rate stayed steady throughout.  Almost every mile was in the 11:45 to 12:00 slot.

As an experiment, I weighed myself just before I went out and as soon as I got back, before eating anything or catching up on liquids.  I lost 5 pounds net -- including a half liter bottle of water that I took with me and drank, a total of 6 pounds of sweat in 2 hours.  I had no idea, kind of scary in a way.  I have seen some numbers on what is safe, but I can't remember what they are.  If I don't feel bad I must be OK, but that is a lot of weight loss for 2 hours of running.  My guess is that a similar run at 50F would only cost me a pound.

Going long tomorrow, part of it with the group.  They are running 6 but my friend Wade and I plan to do 18.

80F, 87% humidity, calm and clear.  Beautiful morning for running.  Met Wade at the Y at 5:00 and ran 9 with the early group, then went out with the late group.  They were running 6 and we planned to run 9, but only got 8.  My friend has been running outside only on Saturday and this was his longest run since March.  So even though he is a faster runner than me, today I had more in the heat.  We kept a 10-minute pace through the first 9, but the "back 9" was slower.  He was feeling it pretty badly at 14 miles and we walked most of a mile before jogging in the remainder.  He said he felt as bad as mile 23 of the marathon we ran together on new years day, which got me pretty worried.  The heat can sneak up on you very quickly.  On that day he beat me by about 15 minutes then started throwing up, pretty bad shape.  This morning he laid down on a picnic table when we got in, I poured water over him and in about 30 minutes he was OK.  Altogether we ran 16.95 miles in 3:03:25, average pace 10:49.   Heart rate never got above 162, and averaged 147.  This was not a goal workout for me, but it was good to see that I have been getting some benefit from running outside all summer, and I managed to keep it easy for the benefit of my right foot.  Today I don't feel much different than a regular weekday run.  Ideally, I would be able to do a Saturday long run with the first half at 9:30 and the second half at 8:30.  I can see that I cannot do every Saturday with this group.  My methods and goals are not fully compatible.  It is nice to meet other runners, but most of my progress happens when I run alone.  Today was fine, though, honestly I needed to take it easy on my foot, which responded fine.

Can't wait to read all the race reports today.