Tune Up

Another raw autumn day today and my workout coincided well with the cross country team's run. They were running LSD on the local trails and I used a one mile loop on paved trails that would enable me to check up on them while doing my own prescribed workout.

Ran a mile to warm-up, two miles at tempo (6:32, 6:29) and a mile to cool down. With temps in the lower 50s and a light rain falling, a mile to warm-up would normally not be enough but I didn't want to do more than four. Went well all the same, fortunately.

Another four miles tomorrow but all at a legit easy pace. All systems go for Sunday. Ready to throw down and leave everything on the course.

Ran 4.0 miles @ 7:23/mile pace.
Paved trails.
Flat.
Lower 50s, overcast, light rain.
Saucony Kinvara 3, shorts, short sleeved shirt.

A Hike Up Ossipee Hill

Kate and I are both off of work today, so we decided to take advantage of another awesome fall day and hike up the local mountain.

Lots of people out and about, which was great to see. We drove up to the upper parking area, leaving only a little under a mile to reach the summit, but given the marathon now just six days away, that was perfect.

Oooh....

Ahhh....

Kate on our way down. 

Hiked around 2.0 miles.

Jeep trails and trails. 

Extremely hilly. 

Upper 40s to lower 50s, partly sunny. 

Merrell Trail Gloves, jeans, sweatshirt, short sleeved shirt.

Running Weather Perfection

Does it get any better than this? Thanks to the cold front pushing through, the weather was perfect this morning. Around 45F/7C when I headed into the woods and it only warmed up to the lower 50s when I finished. Nice to keep the long sleeved shirt on comfortably throughout the run.

Ran in the woods out back. Trails were a little muddy in spots from all of the rain the last week(s) but all in all in great shape. It was awesome. Crisp, clean, cool air and colorful leaves. I was in heaven. 

Legs felt great. I mentioned yesterday that it's easier for me to keep my pace in check on the trails. That was true today. However, there is a section near the end that is on flat and fast fire roads and I had to remind myself to slow down a few times. My legs feel so full of springy energy right now and the temptation to let'er rip is hard to resist, but except for a two-mile portion on one of my runs next week, everything will have to be short and very easy. That'll be hard, but eyes on the prize. One week to go.

Ran 7.2 miles @ 9:31/mile pace. 

Technical trails, some fire roads. 

Very hilly. 

Mid 40s to lower 50s, sunny. 

New Balance MT110, shorts, short sleeved shirt, long sleeved shirt. 

To Catch a Falling Leaf

Had a fun morning helping out Jeff with the Craig Cup 5K. I teamed up with Ian to help mark the course which was especially fun as it seems like I haven't spent some one-on-one time with Ian in a while. It was great catching up. The race itself went well and it was fun to see everyone. Afterwards, headed home, ate lunch, took a nap and then went for a run.

Really warm out by the time I headed out the door. Bit humid as well. A cold front was approaching but doggonit... unfortunately, I beat it and the rains and cooler temps it brought with it. Temperatures dropped at least 12 degrees a few hours after the run. Glad we'll have very cool weather all next week though.

Felt out of sync at first, likely because of the warm temps, grogginess from the nap and the recent lunch. However, by the time I climbed the ridge I felt better and the pace began to drop, and a bit too much at that. Should have done a better job at keeping myself in check, but I can take solace in that I'll be doing a trail run tomorrow and I can govern my pace a lot better on the trails. Legs just feel so dang springy and spry right now. Taper worms....

Windy out today as well. It made catching falling leaves during the run a lot of fun. Leaves are closing in on their peak colors in my area and the scenery is fantastic. So great to run in such a variety of color, especially when it's contrasted against overcast skies. I love autumn.

Ran 10.1 miles @ 7:31/mile pace.
Leaves caught: 5.
Paved roads.
Very hilly.
Lower-mid 70s, partly cloudy to overcast, windy.
Saucony Kinvara 3, shorts, short sleeved shirt.

More Rain

Really low mileage so far this week, even for a taper, so I allowed myself a little more speed today. Nothing crazy, just five miles with one mile to warm up, three miles tempo (6:44, 6:30, 6:32) and a mile to cool down. Felt great to get the legs moving. Quite enjoyable.

Another cool, rainy day today. For some reason, a hunch was telling me to keep the warm-up pants on throughout the run. A little over two miles into the run, I was beginning to think that hunch was stupid. It was around 60 degrees out... ample weather for shorts. I tend to trust my hunches since the results are usually favorable, but today was one of those anomalies.

Sun tomorrow, but more rain this weekend. I like it. The overcast skies contrasted with the bright colored leaves of fall really make for some awesome scenery. This is truly the best time of year to run.

Probably will take tomorrow off. Have to be in Lewiston for work and then we have a meet in Windham in the afternoon. If I wasn't in a taper, I'd try to squeeze something in but I'm not going to stress about it.

Ran 5.0 miles @ 6:58/mile pace.
Paved roads.
Slightly hilly.
Around 60 degrees, overcast, raining.
Saucony Kinvara 3, long pants, short sleeved shirt.

Squeezing In A Run

Not a lot of time this afternoon. Fit in a short run after cross country practice and before I had to give a 90-minute presentation to a group of grad school students this evening. Just had a short run on tap anyway. Yay for tapering!

Just did a slow 2.5 mile trail run on some trails next to the school. Pretty uneventful. Legs feeling great. Looking forward to a week from Sunday.

Ran 2.5 miles @ 9:21/mile pace.
Trails.
Slightly hilly.
Around 60 degrees, overcast, light rain.
New Balance MT100, shorts, short sleeved shirt.

Easy Day

Normally would take a rest day today since I ran 15 yesterday and with the marathon less than two weeks away now, easing up and taking things chilled out gets priority. But we have a long field trip planned for tomorrow, so opting to make that a rest day instead. 

Joined the cross country team on their warm-up and cool downs. Nice and slow and pretty uneventful. 

Ran 2.2 miles @ 8:45/mile pace. (w/u)

Ran 1.8 miles @ 9:13/mile pace. (c/d)

Paved roads. 

Mostly flat. 

Mid 60s, mostly cloudy. 

Brooks Mach 13, shorts, short sleeved shirt.