Tuesday Time Warp

I've been following other running related blogs primarily Life's Little Epiphanies and OliveToRun.  Each day they seem to have a theme for their posts.  I feel that I should follow their lead, but somehow, I don't want to appear to just outright copy them.

I have been absolutely terrible about posting to this blog, I probably don't have too many readers following me anyway, but that's alright.

As some of you know from a previous post, I have been unemployed for about 6 months, it has been a very humbling experience and one that has made me reevaluate what is and isn't important in life.  I have been sending resumes, about 300; received two phone calls; and two interviews.  I was getting discouraged and started losing sleep over my next moves.

Until I received an e-mail for an interview, for a job that I really liked and wanted.

The company is based overseas, but they have offices in Houston.  They flew me down, put me up in a hotel and conducted the interview.  After two weeks, I received word of an offer!  I tried to remain calm and began reviewing the offer numbers over the phone before verbally agreeing to the offer.  The offer is very generous and will go a long way to righting the ship...  It will, however, mean relocating overseas, which I am very willing to do and excited at the opportunity.

 So in coming months, my GPS run location will be interesting...

In the meantime, here's today's run stats:


See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - General
Duration:	0:42:33
Distance:	4.00 mi

Fantastic Friday

Things are going well this week.  The running has been on track and consistent, I only blew off one day and that was weather related...well, sort of, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

This week was also the 50th Anniversary of the March on Washington, my family and I participated in a local rally that highlighted many of the same issues, only with a new twist...just look up anything having to do with North Carolina politics lately for a synopsis.  In the middle of all that though, I joined the NAACP and began working with a local college student to help him get elected to the city council.  My thought is that I really should be more in tune with the grassroots politics happening around here rather than bury my head in the sand and ignore it.

On the job hunting front, I received an e-mail for an interview for a possible position outside the country, it sounds interesting, is right up my alley as far as the work goes.  I'll provide more details as things develop.

On the running front, it appears that I might have a bout of Plantar Fasciatis on my left foot.  I have some treatment ideas that I will aggressively pursue and will stay aware of it.

Here's the stats from today's run:


See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - General
Duration:	1:20:19
Distance:	8.00 mi

Tuesday Time Warp

I know I have been very bad about keeping this training blog going, but I have bbeen good about mytraining and that is a plus.

Today was Interval Day, (6 x 800m with 400m Recovery), in addition I did a warmup with Little Mac Dog, because he really can't handle the distance or speed of the intervals, and there is no way I can get out of the house in my running gear without him.  He is also pretty good at holding me accountable and making sure I don't skip out on too many runs.

I've not been as good about the Marine Corps Marathon Training as I should be, so I decided to use it as a tune up for the California International Marathon.  This also allowed me to get  myself back on track with training and have fun.

I decided to give the Hanson's Method a try this time, the premise is that you don't spend big chunks of your weekly mileage on the Sunday Long Run, but use the other days of the week to get the mileage in and force yourself to become comfortable on tired legs later in the race.  We will see, how that works out, because doing 20 and 22 mile runs can feel pretty daunting.

I know I need to find other places to run, but the idea of getting in the car, driving somewhere, warming up, running, cooling down and driving back is just too much work, and really, I can get most of my miles done in my neighborhood.  I have a built in track, that is 1.5 miles and makes it easy to get the intervals in.

Enough Jabbering, here's the stats:

5.76 miles in 54:03 for a 9:23 average WU: 10:26 (1 mile) I-1: 4:12 R-1: 2:37 I-2: 4:11 R-2: 2:36 I-3: 3:59 R-3: 2:35 I-4: 4:10 R-4: 2:37 I-5: 4:16 R-5: 2:37 I-6: 4:29 (Last one kicked my ass) CD: 5:13 (1/2 mile)

Tough couple of months

It has certainly been a tough couple of months recently and if it were not for running, I would probably go insane.

Here's the story:  Not long after I returned from a business trip, I received a call from my employer telling me that I was being laid off due to not having enough new contracts forecast for the year.  Needless to say, I was absolutely stunned and not sure how to proceed.

I began applying for positions and even had a couple of nibbles, that ultimately failed to pan out.  That meant I needed to start filing for unemployment.  Of course, the week I begin that process, my state reduced the amount payable to individuals on unemployment.  On the plus side, my former employer reported my eligibility to a different state and it looks like I will be able to collect a higher rate, but I am going through the difficulty of doing everything by phone.

I updated the resume, and have been floating it around to potential employers, including some in the running and endurance sports industry.  That would be the best ever combination, public relations and running, what a sweet combination.

Throughout this process, I have been feeling down, and dare I say it depressed.  Nothing to the point of requiring medical attention, but enough that I needed to pull myself out of this darkness.  To accomplish this, my spouse and I bought new running shoes, and I started hitting the roads with Mac, my four-footed running partner.

I often feel better after each run, and motivated to continue pushing through the job search, I also have to thank my fellow run bloggers for continuing to post and getting me motivated to hit the keyboard once again.

Overall, the running has been going well, and I have many more runs posted on my profile at www.runningfreeonline.com.  Additionally, I started a 30-day squats challenge and began lifting weights a couple of times each week.

If anyone has a position available for a Public Relations Specialist, Public Affairs Specialist or Communications Specialist with 20+ years of experience willing to relocate, please send me a an e-mail.

This morning's run:

See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - General
Duration:	0:31:38
Distance:	3.00 mi

On the road for work...again...in Arkansas...again

I'm back in Conway, Arkansas for work and scheduled to be here for the next 8 days or so.  There's not toom any running routes arond here, at least not that I can find.

There's too many fast food restaurants and a few semi-decent food options.  I was driving around, exploring and found a running store called The Sporty Runner, I'll have to make time to check it out and maybe pick up a shirt or visor with the store name on it.

Little did I know, but Conway has an abundance of colleges, and I found one that has a track, I'll have to go see if it's open to the public for interval day...

I'm missing Mac Dog, as he's the best running buddy ever.

Here are the stats:


See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - General
Duration:	0:38:43
Distance:	4.00 mi

Monday Long Run

This morning Mac Dog and I did our Long Run, we were supposed to do it yesterday and have Monday as a rest day.  I was little lazy yesterday and decided to bag it, knowing I could do it today.

We were right on target for our average pace, but do need to work on the individual splits.  We managed to pull off negative splits, getting faster at the end of the run, so that is a positive.  The wind was blustery at 20 mph with the temperature in the upper 40's, I'm sure the wind chill knocked it down a few more degrees.  This Spring has been a bit of a tease, warm with a touch of humidity one day and cold the next...I'll be much happier when it's warmer and I can run without a top and put some color on my winter pasty white skin...

So much has happened in the Boston case, that I don't even want to bother with comments, my only hope is that we get an answer to the why.

For those of you in the Hampton Roads area, Running Etc. is holding a group run fund raiser  for the One Boston Organization at both of their locations tonight at 7 p.m., A $20. donation will get a limited edition shirt, with all proceeds going to One Boston.  For more information, visit their site at runningetc.com

Enough rambling, here are the stats:

See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - Long Run
Duration:	0:51:37
Distance:	5.01 mi

Drizzly Run, and other thoughts...

This morning, Mac Dog and I went for a run, we were scheduled to go 4 miles, but due to a drizzly rain about halfway through the run, we cut it a little short.


See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - General
Duration:	0:33:42
Distance:	3.44 mi

As I got back, my son filled me in on the Boston suspects.  Maybe I'm numb to the whole thing, I'm not celebrating, but I'm not unhappy that one is dead and the noose is tightening on the other.

I used to live in the Boston area, and it is weird to see the streets of Boston empty.  Someone on MSNBC just said, this is the goal of terrorism, putting a city of 600,000 give or take on lock down, I just never thought I would see it in the United States.

Reports are saying that the suspects are two brothers from Chechnyans that have been in the country for about 10 years coming here with their parents.  I hope they catch this one alive, because, I'm curious as to why they did this...Maybe I need closure.

UPDATE: Just before I hit the publish button, MSNBC announced that BPD has a location for the remaining suspect.

First set of Intervals

Whew, Mac Dog and I made it through our first set of intervals this morning.

We set out to do 3x800M with 400M recoveries.  Our target was a 7:48 pace, and we were consistently in the low 8's.

I was very happy with the splits; 4:02; 4:04; 4:05.  While they were not negative splits or right on the money, the fact that we kept them within a 3 second spread is better than I expected.

For those keeping track, here's the data:

See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - Intervals
Duration:	0:41:01
Distance:	3.91 mi

Why we're motivated to Exercise

I just read an interesting article about exercis motivation on the New York Times Well Blog.

Essentially, scientist at the University of Missouri wanted to see if there were genetic variances in lab rats when it came to exercising.

Researchers created their own avid runners and couch potatoes by breeding male and female rats that had a propensity to run.  They bred the male and female runners together' and the couch potatoes together through 10 generations.  At that point, the running rats tended to spontaneously exercise 10 times as much as the physically lazier animals.

They looked at the bodies of the rats, to determine if there were physiological differences between the active versus sedentary animals.  Aside from the lazy rats being slightly heavier, the rats were essentially equal.  The running rats seemed to enjoy the activity, while the lazy rats avoided it at all costs.

This lead researchers to look at genetics, and here, researchers found differences.

So what does this mean for us humans?  Are some of us genetically pre-disposed to exercising (and enjoying it) while others are not?  Can some of us use genetics as an excuse not to exercise?

Using myself as an example, my parents were/are not particularly athletic or active people, so where did I get my passion for running?  My son, doesn't seem to have the motivation to want to exercise, so it seems that there must be some other factors to look for...

It's amazing how far you regress with a week off

See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - General
Duration:	0:44:03
Distance:	4.28 mi

Last week, I traveled for work and only got one run in last week.  This morning, Mac Dog and I ran a little over 4 miles, the Spring Training Plan was supposed to be 5 miles, but I'm not going to quibble over being a little short today.

I felt a little sluggish, maybe because the coffee hadn't kicked in yet, or maybe it was the week off, either way, it was bit slower than I wanted, but that's okay.

Tomorrow, we are scheduled to do our first Interval Sets, I'm not expecting much from that run, but will use it as a baseline for tracking improvement.

Today, I'm feeling better about my rambling post on the Boston Bombing.  I think I needed to see and hear about the first responders, doctors and others that worked so hard to care for so many.  Will Rogers once said, "We can't all be heroes, because somebody has to sit on the curb and applaud when they go by."

Processing Boston

This post is going to come across as a rambling jumble of words, but that's okay, because, I'm trying to process what I saw in Boston yesterday afternoon.

I am a runner, pure and simple, I love to lace up and go out for a run, with my favorite four footed running partner.  I run because, it is a release, a way to get away, to decompress.  Throughout my runs, I have run 4 marathons, and about 14 or 15 half marathons and countless 5 and 10Ks, the part I love more than anything is the camaraderie of the runners and spectators, people are cheering for you, even though you don't know them and they don't know you.

I get a thrill out of giving high fives to the kids along the course who are there watching for their moms, dads or simply excited to get a high five from a runner.

I know I'll never win a marathon, but that doesn't keep me from feeling like a competitor, a real athlete. I have an awesome sense of being, when I "race", because I am on the same playing field as the professionals.  I might be a decent football player in a backyard pickup game, but I know that I will never be a starting quarterback in the Super Bowl, however, in a marathon, I'm potentially on the same course on the same day in the same conditions as the world record holders and that gives me the sense of being part of the brother/sisterhood of runners.

My dream is to one day run the route from Hopkinton to Copley Square, making that turn on to Boylston and crossing the line at the Boston Marathon.  I have a lot of work to do to get a qualifying time, but that doesn't mean I won't stop trying.

What makes this whole Boston Bombing hard to process for me is two things; first, the time on the clock is pretty close to my average finishing time, and I can't help but feel that my family and friends would be watching me cross the line and could have been affected by the blast; second, this feels like an attack on my dream, a dream I share with many other runners around the globe.

I know I will recover and continue pursuing my dream, but right now it just stings!

Traveling for work

This week I'm traveling for work and trying to make sure I get my runs in.  Nothing special, I figured out a quick little 4mile route that's not far from the hotel.  It is however along a busy road, it's a good thing I brought my reflective gear.

Here are the numbers:


See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - General
Duration:	0:40:10
Distance:	4.00 mi

First Long Run during Base Training

Today marked the culmination of a good week of running.  Mac Dog and I completed 21 miles for the week which is a 25% increase in mileage.  Conventional wisdom says to increase only by 10%, but I think we are going to be okay.

Next week, I will be travelling for work, hopefully I can get a a few road runs in during the week, simply for the location changes more than anything.  If not, it's going to be hotel treadmills, and that will not be fun.  Wish me luck.

We cranked out 6 miles today and finished with 01:01:01 on the GPS.  I couldn't hit that time if I tried.

For those keeping track:


See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - General
Duration:	1:01:01
Distance:	6.00 mi

Feeling Good

Mac Dog and I are two weeks into our base training, and feeling pretty good.  Last week we pulled in almost 17 miles, so far this week we are at 15 miles, so we are on track.  As a general rule we shouldn't increase the mileage by more than 1%, but we are feeling good and not pushing too hard with an almost 20% increase.

We need to come up with some new routes, but I'm a bit nervous about taking Mac Dog outside the neighborhood and the idea of driving to a trail for a run seems like a bit too much work when I can just head out the door.

For those keeping track here are the stats:


See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - General
Duration:	0:47:53
Distance:	5.00 mi

Still on track

Happy Wednesday!  Mac Dog and I rolled off for our daily run, peeling off 5 miles.  He really enjoys his runs and is a good pace dog.

Spring Training begins on April 15th and the workouts will be much more structured.  I'm looking forward to getting back in the training groove.

Mac Dog's Blog is coming along, but he's having to redesign his blog before he's completely ready to publish.  I keep asking him what's the big deal and he says you try working a track pad and keyboard without thumbs.  Good point!

For those keeping track, here's the stats:



See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - General
Duration:	0:48:22
Distance:	5.00 mi

Off to a good week, so far

Monday is my usual rest day from running, though I must admit I rested on Saturday and Sunday also, partly due to getting chores done and partly due to some laziness.  Overall, last week was a good week to get back on track and we bumped up our mileage toward the end of the week.

Mac and I started off this week's runs with an easy 5 miler.  For some reason, Mile 3 is always the slowest, I call this the "marks a lot mile" because he usually stops to sniff every clump of grass along this part of our route.  He makes another deposit too, if you know what I mean.

I found a weight training workout for upper body that I would like to start in on.  I think I will not be working on my legs, since they get a solid workout with the runs.  I know, I know, the legs still need some strength conditioning, but I will save that until the "off season".  The program is flexible enough that I can use it two days a week for upper body conditioning.

I still plan to continue working on the 7 Weeks to Fitness Abdominal Program 3 days per week, and adding this weight training on Tuesday and Thursday.  The runs will happen in the morning.

On another note, Mac Dog was getting a bit flustered that he couldn't add his two scents to this blog and requested that he start his own.  So coming soon, look for Little Dog Running on Blogger in the coming days.  That blog will be written by Mac and provide valuable running advice to the four footed running companions in our lives.  I'll throw a little Linky Love his way...

If you are keeping track of the daily runs, here you go...



See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - General
Duration:	0:49:32
Distance:	5.00 mi

Got it in! Paleo and thoughts on diet and exercise.

This morning started off slowly and almost lead to taking a rest day.

Mac Dog overslept a bit this morning which didn't give him enough time to finish digesting his breakfast before we went out on our run.  I was tempted to call it a rest day, but found the energy to make the run happen at lunch.  We even tacked on another half mile, and now Mac Dog is laying on his towel snoring away.  A sleeping dog is a good dog.

Mac Dog is in early negotiations to set up his own running blog and I encourage you to stay tuned for the official launch.

This morning, a blogger I follow made the announcement that they were going to try the Paleo Diet.  It seems to be a popular diet, but I'm a bit skeptical of these new fad diets.  Maybe it's a bit unfair to call this a 'fad' but it just seems to be gaining popularity unchecked and that screams 'fad' to me.

I read a recent article over at the Outlaw Fitness Blog that points out some serious flaws in the Paleo Diet.  In the end though, the article, while negative towards going Paleo points out that it's really all about calorie deficit and some of the concepts behind the Paleo Diet are sound, such as trying to eat more naturally, eating your vegetables and avoiding highly processed white grains.  Toss out the cookies, cakes, sugary drinks and fried food.

Oh yeah, and one more thing, go outside and be active!

See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - General
Duration:	0:44:12
Distance:	4.50 mi

Disappointed

Yesterday, the Marine Corps Marathon opened it's registration to the general public, a race that has received accolades for the way they manage a world class event.  For some though, the registration process didn't win any awards.

For an event that hosts 38,000 participants every year, some glitches are to be expected.  This year the glitch began with the registration process.  MCM partners with Active.com to register runners, while I personally have never had a problem using Active.com, yesterday it appears they couldn't handle the heavy volume.  This is the second major marathon this year to experience issues with Active's event registration process.  While it is likely due to the popularity of this event and large volume in a short period of time, I certainly hope they can figure out how to correct this in the future.

MCM Officials took a page right out of a public relations textbook, apologizing for the glitches, talking about the testing and monitoring process they followed with Active.  They talked about clearing any double registrants, and even encouraged runners who didn't get in to run the MCM for charity or wait until June when the transfer process opens.

I  have to admit, I love this race so much, because they go out of their way to take care of their runners; they give early registration to military personnel, allow you to defer your race for one year (I have taken advantage of that twice over the last 7 years) allow you to transfer your bib, and even provide runners opportunities to gain registration by participating in other events, most notably, the recent 17.75 K, where everyone that completed was given registration to the MCM.

So why am I disappointed?  Was it because I didn't get in?  No, I used my deferment from last year and was able to register a couple of weeks ago.  No, I am disappointed in my fellow runners and their posts on the MCM Facebook page.

Most of the comments are directed at their frustration about not getting in to this year's race, understandable, but I read a fair number that started personal attacks on other runners. Why did some feel they could stoop so low?  It blows my mind that we are a community of runners, looking out for each other on the roads, encouraging one another except when someone didn't get the chance to play and decided to throw a hissy fit.

Come on people, it's running...

Feeling sluggish today

Today was day three of getting back on track.  Mac Dog and I got our morning 4-miler in, but somehow I felt a little sluggish.  The average pace was only about 1 minute slower than yesterday, but it seemed a bit harder to get there than usual.

I should keep in mind that this is three straight days of running, and is designed to get me back in the running groove, I guess you could call it pre-base-building.  I still have a couple of weeks before Spring Training begins and that is designed to get me ready for training in mid-June.

For those of you following along:

See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - General
Duration:	0:40:36
Distance:	4.13 mi

Finally getting my ass in gear

See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - General
Duration:	0:39:37
Distance:	4.12 mi

So this week seems to be better in getting my schedule together. Maybe it's the fact that the Marine Corps Marathon registration opened up today to the general public and sold out in 2:27 minutes. That's faster than my marathon time! MCM Officials experienced some issues with registration crashing, but fortunately I'm registered due to my deferral from last year. Next year, though, I will have to deal with this madness by registering with the general public. I must get in next year, since that will be #5, and allow me to get guaranteed early registration. For those following along, I also registered for the California International Marathon and decided to run a race I've never done before. I've heard nothing but good things about this race and hope it lives up to expectations. I have almost 8 months before that race, so we'll see.

Pi Day Run

In an effort to show off what a geek I am, Mac Dog and I ran 3.14 Miles on Pi Day!  Yeah, I know, not really original, but at least I ran...



See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - General
Duration:	0:30:46
Distance:	3.14 mi

Two marathons within 6 weeks of each other

I must really be a glutton for punishment.  In a moment of craziness, I committed to running the Marine Corps Marathon on October 27 and the California International Marathon on December 8th.  So what does that mean?  Either I'm freaking crazy or I need to get off my ass and start running more.  So I wrote out a plan on paper this time, for the MCM and the CIM.

Yesterday was Elliptical, due to rain, but today was great.



See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - General
Duration:	0:41:15
Distance:	4.11 mi

Replacing Running Shoes

I read this great article on the NY Times Well Blog about when to replace running shoes.  I've found that my running style really wears down the forefoot pretty quickly, I often get about 200-225 miles out of a pair of shoes.

This would take about 2-3 months, and was getting expensive.  Fortunately, I was working in a running store and able to get them at a reduced rate.  But still, it was about $500 a year just in shoes...and they say this is an easy sport.

If you want to read the article, 

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/02/18/when-to-retire-a-running-shoe/?smid=pl-share

Twas supposed to be an Interval Day...SIGH, I'm coming back

Looking at the calendar, this was supposed to be an Interval Day, but Mac Dog and I need to ramp up smartly and not overdo it.

On the plus side, the scale was friendly: -1.3

See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - General
Duration:	0:35:36
Distance:	3.77 mi

Mac Dog & I need to drop a little weight

So not only has my weight increased, but so has Mac Dog.  He gained 4 pounds since his vet visit in November.  Four pounds may not sound like much, but it made up 25% of his weight.

UNACCEPTABLE!

So that was my motivation to get my four-footed companion out of the door at lunch time and run 3 miles.

See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - Easy
Duration:	0:28:07
Distance:	3.01 mi

Spirit of the Marathon II

Slacking...No excuses, jut being an F'n slacker

There are no excuses the fact that I have not been running lately.  On the plus side, I have been keeping my food intake down.

Time to get my shit back together...

Sunday Long Run

I didn't do much running in the last two weeks, so my expectations were low.  That coupled with a last minute decision to join my friends (thanks Priscilla and Alison) and 4 hours of sleep, well the result was actually pretty good.

Nice consistent splits within a 20 second window and I was pretty happy.

See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - Long Run
Duration:	1:08:22
Distance:	7.00 mi

Is There an Ideal Running Form?

I read an interesting article in the NY Times Well Blog this morning asking the question 'Is There an Ideal Running Form?'

In recent years, an emphasis on barefoot or more realistically, minimalist shoe running has been taking hold in the running community.  Much of this I think is due to the popularity of the book 'Born To Run' by Christopher McDougall.  I won't spend all day discussing the merits for or against barefoot running, but I think there are merits to focusing on running economy and focusing on better running form.

I've seen plenty of heel strikes run fine with little or no injuries for years, and I've seen forefoot strikers with stress fractures.  What does this mean?  Near as I can tell, run comfortably!

I made some adjustments to my running form, primarily because I was looking at increasing my speed and endurance.  So I adopted a fore/midfoot strike and I found that I was faster when I centered my body mass over my feet, and shortened up my stride.

I think the best practice is get out and run, stride and form will naturally follow.

Outta Gas

Today was an 8 mile Long Run with friends.  for multiple reasons, it wasn't the best of runs.  My guess is that I didn't fuel properly before or during the run.  I took off too fast and I thought my fitness is where it was a year ago.

Overall the time came out decent, but not pretty.

See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - Long Run
Duration:	1:21:11
Distance:	8.00 mi

Saturday

This week I was very pleased with my, ahem, training.  I actually did more than one run this week.  I managed to get a couple of 4 milers in at a decent pace, a little faster than the 9:40 I was planning, but not too horribly fast.

I completed all of my core workouts and feel good about completing the prep program of 7 Weeks to 300 sit ups.

One thing I also did this week was weigh myself at the beginning and end of the week.

Monday: 180.4
Friday:    177.5
Net loss of 2.9

Here's today's run:

See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - Easy
Duration:	0:37:19
Distance:	4.01 mi

Lunch time run

Today I needed to get out and dust off the cobwebs...  Nothing spectacular...

See the activity on RunSaturday

Type:	Run - Easy
Duration:	0:38:40
Distance:	4.11 mi

Weekly Workout

Week 4 (Warm Up)

Jan 7-13

Day	Workout	Notes
Jan 7	300 Situps	Set 1: :60 Plank; 14 Hip Raise; 16 Leg Lifts :30 Rest Set 2: 16 Wipers; 12 Bird Dog; 10 Sit-Up :30 Rest Set 3: 16 Reverse Crunch; 12 Cobra; 12 Stability Ball Extension
Jan 8	Tempo Run	5 Miles at 8:24
Jan 9	Easy Run	6 Miles at 9:40
	300 Situps	Set 1: 10 Band Twist; 16 Superman; 10 Mason Twist :30 Rest Set 2: :60 Plank; 12 Sit-Up; 14 Hip Raise :30 Rest Set 3: 14 Ball Crunch; 12 Ball Extension; 12 Bicycle Crunches
Jan 10	800 M Repeats	6 x 800 meters in 3:54(7:48)/800.  Recover with 400 meters easy
Jan 11	Easy Run	5 Miles at 9:40
	300 Situps	Set 1: 16 Situps; 16 Hip Raises; 14 Mason Twist; :30 Rest Set 2: :65 Plank; 22 Crunch; 12 Superman; :30 Rest Set 3: 18 Wipers; 16 Mtn. Climbers; 12 In & Out
Jan 12	Easy Run	5 Miles at 9:40
Jan 13	Long Run	8 Miles at 10:20