Arie's Running Blog

8:20AM sart 55F no wind and sunny. Duke West to East Campus, this time without the loop. Nice pace (7:23).

26:13

6:10AM start, 60F, light wind, sunrise. I planed doing 7M but I felt really good and extended it to 8.4M. I am trying to control my pace and not go too fast in these long runs. I checked my watch and I actually did negative splits. The route was really nice. The first 1/3 was just smi-urban stting. the middle section was on the Americal Tobacco Trail (ATT). If you ever come to this part of the country you should check it out. The last part was hart residential part trail (part of the trail around Duke Golf course - another great running trail).

1:05:32

9:15 AM start, 65F some wind and sunny. Did two loops around Duke East Campus. It felt good. I wanted to go easy but I ended up doing it in 7:19 pace. I need to learn how to run slower in my easy runs and of course in my long runs but I can't seem to be able to do it. Any ideas?

0:24:08

I felt like I need to take a day off running. I have some inflamation in my knee and maybe in the achiles tendon of my right leg. Nothing serious. I will be OK tomorrow for a 5 mile run. I really need to learn to do my easy and long runs slower.

8:10AM start, 60F no wind and sunny. I did 3 loops around Duke East campus and a little bit more to make it a 5 mile run. I felt quite good. I tried to run slower and keep it a constant pace. I did quite well. Each loop is 1.65 mile and I did 12:12, 12:12 and 12:14 for the 3 loops respectively and then I ran the last 100m in 33 seconds.

0:37:11

Today is Israel's memorial day. In this day we ramember the soldiers who made the miracle called Israel possible and especially those who made the ultimate sacrifice. We also rememeber those who payed with their lives just for being a part of this miracle called Israel and were killed in so many terrorist actions in Israel and abroad. I am dedicating my run today to all of them. God, may they rest in peace. Tomorrow is Israel's 60th birthday. The sharp switch for the saddest day in the year to the happiest day in the year is perhaps the best way to explain who we are. God bless Israel - I miss you so much.

Arie.

AM run 4.75M

8:00AM start, 60F rainy. It was just a drizzle when I started but it got stronger and it was raining by the time I was half way through. It actually felt good running in the rain. Lucky me I keep a towel in my office. I planned to run another course which is 3.7M but due to some changes in my schedule I ended up running again the Duke West to East campus + the East campus loop. It felt good to run more. I controlled my pace to about 7:40 minutes per mile.

0:36:27

PM run 2.2M

I decided to run back home from work. It was about 75F and very humid so it wasn't the best conditions. But I did a nice pace. This is the first time I do two separate runs in a day.

0:17:10 

Today it's Israel's 60th independence day!!! Mazal Tov!

6:15AM start, 60F light wind, sunrise. I didn't sleep much last night. We had a friend over  yesterday and he stayed longer than I was hoping. The first couple of miles were a bit sluggish with lots of negative thoughts. But I pulled myself together and started to feel stronger.

What are you thinking about while you're running? I was thinking about all sort of things this time but most of the time it was about work. Somewhere between mile 6 and 7 I came up with an idea that will make my FORTRAN program run faster. I was now even more motivated to get home fast so I can implement it :-)

Over the pace was good 7:47 on average with the last 3 miles better than the first 3. It was the exact same course as last week and I did it a few seconds faster.

1:05:19

9:05AM start. 55F sunny and light wind. I started late this morning. I did what became my usuael run between the two Duke Campuses and the loop on the East campus. It felt good. It was moderate effort and the weather was nice after two days of rain. The pace was 7:42.

36:34

The plan for this week is as follows:

Monday - 4.75

Tuesday - 4.75

Wednesday - 4.75 (or maybe 6 if I feel good that morning and slept well)

Thursday - 4.75

Friday - I'm driving up to DC

Saturday - 7-8 miles in the beautiful DC

Sunday - I'm driving back to North Carolina.

I will not have a chance to have a longer run this weekend because of my travel. But at least I plan to move from 4 days run a week to 5.

8:10AM start, 55F, sunny and light wind. I ran what became my usual run between the two Duke campuses + the loop around the East campus. I also added two fartleks of 50 yards in what I think was my 10K pace.

0:36:31

During my run around East campus a guy was playing with his dog and he let the leash off and the dog was jumping on me and licking me and sniffing me. I don't hate dogs, I fear them usually but I don't hate dogs. What I hate is dog owners who make themselves a nuisance. It wasn't too bad this time but a year ago a guy who ran with his dog went on my left side while letting his dog go from my right side and the leash just cut me pretty bad. It was right when I was about to go on a 4 mile run. I ran inspite of the fact I was bleeding. I still have  a 5 inch long scar on my right leg. The guy didn't even stop to say he's sorry or offer help. The guy from today felt really bad and appologized but I was cursing him. Not nice of me, I know. I kinda regret it.

8:40AM start, 55F mostly sunny, some wind. I run the usual West to East Campus plus the East campus loop but this time I als added a small loop around the main quad on east campus (about .6M). I added a couple of fartleks in 10K pace on the way back.

0:40:21

So far the plan of moving from 4 times a week to 5 times a week is working fine. I plan to keep doing it for at least a month till I attempt 6 days a week. I am also not going to increase milage at first, perhaps only on the weekend long runs. On 4th of July I will run a 5 mile race and I think a 7:00 pace is at reach for that race. In November I will run a 10K and we'll see if I can do that also in 7:00 pace.

I decided to go to the gym after running the same route for three consqutive days. I ran 35 minutes on a moderate incline in moderate speed (7:42). It felt good. I so far ran 4 straight days. I'm going to rest tomorrow. I will be traveling to Washington DC. On Saturday morning I am planning to do my long run from Arlington to the the monuments in DC and back. Looking forward to it.

0:35:00

6:50 AM start, sunny and windy.

I'm in Arlington VA for a conference. I had a great run this morning. I ran to the airforce memorial monument (I think this is how it is called) near the Arlington cemetary and then back pass my hotel and through Arlington downtown and eventually to the Mount Vernon Trail (MVT). The trail is very nice. I ran just a small part of it. The part I ran went along the Regan National airport (great for seeing planes just as they take off) and then on the banks of the Potomak north till a small park and back. It's a narrow trail and full of bikers but they were nice and courteous and for the most part you can run on the grass next to the trail. The view was beautiful. The conference is good too so it's been a great day. I miss my family tho. 

1:06:41 

8:50AM start, 60F light wind, sunny. I ran the usual West-East Campus + loop course. I was a bit tired this morning and had some back pain. I was driving 4.5 hours from DC back to Durham NC and this prolonged sitting and driving probably did it. Then I was doing extra holding my kids whom I missed so much. But I'm happy I didn't use it as an excuse. I ran in a good pace 7:36.

0:36:05

Paln for this week:

Monday: 4.75

Tuesday: 4.75

Wednesday: 5.5-6

Thursday : 4.75

Friday: Rest/XT

Saturday: 8-9 miles

Sunday: Rest.

The transition to 5 days running is working well. In a month I will move to 6 days. I also plan to keep it in the 25-30 miles range for alittle while till I push it above the 30 miles.

8:50AM start, 65F, windy at times, cloudy. I change the course a bit today. I ran through downtown Durham (if you can call that a downtown) and then back through East Campus. I ran it too fast (pace 7:26). I think I am back to my old habbit of trying to beat the clock. If I go down just a bit to 7:45 it will good. Need to work more on myself.

0:36:27

Over all it feels good to run more miles and more days. I'm resisting the urge to increase milage too fast. I think I want to keep the current level for 2-3 weeks and then increase a bit. My goal is to run the 5M on July 4th in a 7:00 pace and then the 10K in November at the same 7:00 pace. I think a solid 30 miles per week can get me there. What do you think?

Also, here is an interesting article on the benifits of maximal strength training:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18460997

9:10AM start, 60F sunny, no wind. I slept little last night and was a bit tired this morning. Of course I didn't use that as an excuse! I ran in a somewhat slower pace (7:44). These extra 10-12 seconds a mile made the run really comfortable. What puzzles me is that this pace suppose to be my marathon pace. I can see myself run at this pace for 5 miles maybe 10 miles, but a whole marathon? I know you people here say that speed will come with increasing the daily distance and moving to 6 days a week. I hope you are right :-)

0:41:23

Note to self: go to sleep before 11PM tonight.

6:10AM start, 52F, just sunrise. I got up early so I decided to go for a run. I did two loops around Duke's golf courses. Each loop is 2.9M. I did 22:29 and 22:55 splits. First I ran it counter clock wise and then clock wise. The course is pretty hilly and that way I can benefit from short steep hills as well as from long medium sloped hills.

0:45:24

Everyone was asleep when I left but when I came back my wife told me our older son woke her up at 6:20. She was not happy about my early run, to say the least. What a bummer.

9:30 PM start, 65F, a bit humid. I haven't ran at night for quite some time. It is usually not my choice. I couldn't run in the morning so I went to my long run after the kids were in bed. I also ran a bit less than I planned. Over all it was a very good week. My total approaches 30 miles. I will gradually increase it over the next couple of weeks.

0:59:42

Running 5 days a week feels great. I was afraid that moving up from 4 days to 5 would make me tired but it's actually the opposite. I'm looking forward to moving it up to 6 days a week. I just want to do things gradually.

9AM start, 65F sunny and windy at times. I was feeling tired and a bit down this morning. I'm glad I overcame these feelings and went out to run. I ran in not much slower pace than usual (7:45).

0:36:50

I am dedicating my run today to all the US soldiers who serves this country and especially to those who paid the outmost price for the freedom of this country. I am not a US citizen but I have lived here for 11 years and I love the people here and have a great deal of appreciation for this country.

8:50AM start, 65F sunny. Humidity is rising. Temperatures are still comfortable in the morning but one can sense that summer is already here. I didn't feel very strong this morning but I clocked a nice pace (7:40). I have too little sleep and too many worries. I just hope that my 7:00 pace for a 5 mile race is realistic. The race is a 4th of July one so I still have time to get stronger. The routes I am running on are more hilly than the one I will be racing on so that's good too. There is no such thing as a flat course in this area but relatively speaking the 5 miles race in down town Raleigh is quite flat. I ran my 5K PR and my first 1/2 marathon in that area and it's quite nice.

0:36:27 

10:30AM start, 68F drizzle and humid. I felt really crappy this morning. Illness of my son, problems at work, bad weather, etc. But I didn't give up and I went for a run. I changed the course a bit to make it interesting and I ran on campus to the trail and then back. A little less than I hoped to do but I had a good pace (7:40). I'm sure tomorrow will be a better day.

0:35:10

11:00 AM start, 70F but breezy. This was a really crappy week. My older son has some health problems and I have tons of problems at work and to top all that I have a cold with a bit of heartburn too. So you can imagine that I was not in the mood for anything, including running, this morning. I am proud of myself for eventually going out of the door and running. I took it easy and started slower than usual and felt great. In fact after the 2nd mile I felt so great about myself that I decided to extend my usual 4.75 to 6.40 miles by running an extra loop around East campus. Looking at my splits, I did the 2nd half of the run slightly faster than the first one and over all I averaged 7:48 which is not bad at all. Things got to get better from this point on, I know it.

0:49:54

One thing I have to do is sleep more but there are so many things to do after we put the kids to bed. Both me and my wife are working full time and have demanding jobs and we give full time to our kids too so 24 hours a day are not enough. Can I get an hour extension here and there?

6:30AM start, 65F, 90% humidity. yuck!

Boy that was one miserable run. I was so tired after only 5 hours sleep (my fault I know). But I pulled myself together and went on a "long" run. I was slow especially in the first 2 miles. I did want to stop and walk at more than one point but I was thinking to myself "what will I write in my blog? that I was weak? that I gave up? no way!". So I kept going and I actually did a not so bad pace (7:53). The course was quite hilly and the humidity didn't help either. But I went out, I ran it and now I'm happy.

1:06:13

I woke up at 6:10 and I knew it was going to be bad. I didn't want to wake up so early but I had a nightmare. I was dreaming I am at a conference and I suddenly realize that I had to check out of my hotel that morning and it's already 1PM and I was running back to the hotel when I woke up. Can anyone solve that dream?

I know that very few people (if anyone at all) read my blog, but it's such a great and inexpensive substitute for therapy!