This sticky post will be updated after each run. I will continue to add up the mileage I have ran, along with some other random stats. Thank you for following my journey!
Miles Ran: 1,000!
Miles Left: 0!
Percent Complete: 100%!
Total Runs: 151
Total Time Running: 153 hours, 27 minutes, 38 seconds
Total Calories Burned: 146,046
Yep. Still cold down here in Texas! We got our first freeze of the fall/winter season.
I ran my weekly long run today, a nice 14 mile run. Next week will be 22 miles and then I have a two week taper from there.
I was nervous about the cold weather but I didn’t let that stop me. It wasn’t windy so that was nice. The wind is what really wears you down while you run long distance in my opinion.
I dressed perfectly for the run because I was never too cold or too warm. That’s a win! I wore regular workout socks, long tights, shorter tights as underwear, and standard shorts over top. Then I wore a tech tshirt and my lightweight running jacket over that. Then on my hear I wore my “sleeve” that I always wear (highly recommended for bald guys to help catch sweat) on top of my head and then another ear warmer over that. I also wore lightweight running gloves. 34′ felt perfectly fine.
When you get that type of win and you feel good on a day that could be miserable, it gives you an energy boost.
I finished my audiobook at mile 7 of my 14 mile run. I typically listen to audiobooks or podcasts for two reasons. It gets me thinking about other things while I run, not just about how far I’ve gone and how far I have left. And number two, I’ve heard every song on my iPod about a million times. Even though it’s good music, it gets old, quick.
But after the audiobook was over I turned on my workout playlist. Crazy how much of an adrenaline boost you can get. Thunderstruck by AC/DC came on and my pace immediately quickened. I had to intentionally slow down because I still had 7 miles to go!
Overall, I’m happy with the run. I had a nice negative split and my last mile was at 7:23/mile. Next week’s long run will be the ultimate test. 22 miles. Yikes!
Stats-
Distance: 14.00 miles
Time: 1:57:59
Average Pace: 8:26/mile
Calories Burned: 2083
Fall weather has officially hit South Texas. We got some 40′ temperatures today and it helped get me through 9 miles.
With the changes in weather, my running attire has changed up a bit. I wore long socks today instead of my moisture wicking ones. I wore a light running jacket over my tech shirt and wore a pair of lightweight running gloves.
At times I was too warm and other times I was a little chilly. Overall it balanced itself out.
It’s funny how much more consistent I run in the cold. My mile splits are pretty average and I feel like I have more pep in my step. Maybe it’s just because I’m not as dehydrated. Not sure. Either way, once you get past the chill, running in the 40’s is nice!
Stats-
Distance: 9.00 miles
Time: 1:12:22
Average Pace: 8:02/mile
Calories Burned: 1357
20 miles is a long way to run, there is no kidding yourself.
I’ve ran two full marathons before, and a few 20 mile training runs, so I knew what I was getting myself into. However constantly running for 3 hours is no easy task.
My run started off crappy with my trail being flooded. The place where I wanted to run 10 miles out and back, was flooded at mile 1.25. So when I got back to where I parked, I had to create another 17.5 miles on the fly. That isn’t how you want to start the long run.
I decided to run down the access roads to one of our highways here in San Antonio. Again, not ideal because of traffic and construction. But I made lemonade at of lemons and did my best. I weaved down a few side streets to help chew up some of the distance. It worked pretty well and I was able to time my run and distance decently.
My goal was to run the first 16 miles at a 9 minute per mile pace, and then turn it up for the final 4 minutes. This was the first time I had ever intentionally used the pace function on my Garmin. It confused me a bit at first because it kept my overall pace on the screen and not my current pace. Some miles were around 8:48 and others were 9:13. However once i figured out the nuances and my own pace, I was able to keep it within a 5 second buffer on either side of a 9 minute mile.
The course I ran was pretty hilly. Nothing too crazy, but just hilly enough to be considered sneaky. It’s funny how you don’t realize you are running down hill, until you turn back around and have to run back up it!
When I finished mile 16 I took a Gu and dug deep. The plan was to run 8:45-8:30 miles from there on out. I want to be able to finish strong and have a negative split. However, it didn’t happen. 20 miles is a long run. And thinking that you can simply “turn it on” after running for 2.5 hours is kinda bizarre. I tried my best but it didn’t happen. My last four miles were 9:14, 8:52, 9:12 and 8:53. Pretty much on par with my other miles.
With all that being said, I’m proud of myself for running 20 miles without stopping. I did it at an 8:59/mile pace and “on track” to break the four hour marathon. That will be my ultimate goal on December 7th when I run the San Antonio Rock N Roll Marathon.
It makes me a bit nervous though, 20 miles was pretty tough. Adding another 6.2 at the same speed sounds pretty intimidating. Either way, I’ll do my best and forget the rest!
Stats-
Distance: 20.00 miles
Time: 2:59:43
Average Pace: 8:59/mile
Calories Burned: 2980
I ran 4 miles today in a slight drizzly mist. It wasn’t miserable, but it was kinda dangerous.
My 4 mile route has me running around my neighborhood and along a decently busy street. I started before sundown, however with the overcast and rainy conditions, it got dark pretty quickly.
I started the run puddle jumping, however when it got dark, all bets were off. My shoes, socks and feet were soaked at the end of the run. I was sprayed by a car as well, however it was only from my waist down.
Tomorrow I have a 20 mile run. Yikes! I plan on running at a 9 minute per mile pace for the first 16 miles and then I want to see if I can pick it up for the final 4 miles to a 8:30-8:45 pace. Wish me luck!!!
Stats-
Distance: 4.00 miles
Time: 30:12
Average Pace: 7:33/mile
Calories Burned: 604
Just finished a 7 mile run today. I didn’t have much energy, or want, to get out and run today but I still did it. And I am glad I did.
I told myself it would be an easy seven mile run. I wasn’t going to look at my pace or anything. I wanted to keep it around a 9 minute per mile pace and just knock out the 7 miles.
It worked pretty well, I am glad to report. I usually struggle between miles 1-3 while I get my legs, breathing and rate rate synced up. But today felt pretty good. And by holding that steady pace, I never felt challenged or uncomfortable running at all.
I am sure the 18 mile run 3 days ago helped out with that. What’s 7 slow and steady compared to 18 a few days earlier!
Stats-
Distance: 7.00 miles
Time: 1:00:21
Average Pace: 8:37/mile
Calories Burned: 1045
Marathon training is going great. I can not complain.
Today was my long run for week 7, 18 miles. I’m doing a modified version of Hal Higdon’s Novice 1 program. It is 1: weeks and I have two 20+ mile runs.
My feet and legs are a little sore, but nothing crazy. Basically what you expect after running 18 miles. Lol. I don’t think it’ll ever be “easy”.
My pace wasn’t amazing by no means, however I never stopped and walked and my last few miles were faster than my average pace. I’m proud of that. I have a 20 mile run coming up in two weeks and a 22 mile run in 4 weeks. I think my game plan will be to pace myself at a 9 minute mile for the first 3/4 of the run, and then try to pick it up a bit after that.
I have been taking each run as it comes and not really paying attention to my pace per mile. Today it averaged 8:58, however it ranges from 8:15 to 9:30. My goal is to run a sub 4:00 marathon on Dec 7th. That is an average of 9 minutes per mile. I’ve always heard that negative splits are the way to go. I feel confident that I can hold a steady 9 minute pace for the run, it just makes me nervous about turning it on from mile 20-26.2.
Either way, that is what training is for. I’ll practice that game plan for my next two long runs and see how it goes. If I’m not comfortable doing that, I’ll just run by feel. That’s what I’ve
been doing my entire running life.
Stats-
Distance: 18.00 miles
Time: 2:41:18
Average Pace: 8:58/mile
Calories Burned: 2680
Today’s quick run was a 4 mile lap around the neighborhood.
I have a few different loops that I make around my neighborhood to maximize the mileage. But they get boring after a while. So I try to change it up, but that’s little dangerous.
Not that I run through dangerous neighborhoods or anything, it’s hard to gauge when to start heading back home. I don’t run an out and back run, I kinda meander throughout the neighborhood. However with today’s 4 mile run, it turned into a 4.4 mile run.
So that’s the dilemma. Get burned out by running the same course, day in and day out, or try some new things and have a run that’s shorter or longer than expected. I definitely don’t want to be burned out, so I think I’ll continue to change it up.
Stats-
Distance: 4.4 miles
Time: 34:27
Average Pace: 7:50/mile
Calories Burned: 659
My 13 week marathon training program is nearly half way complete. Albeit the easy half…
Today’s 3 mile jaunt through the neighborhood was good. Legs felt a little wimpy at the end of the run, but kinda too be expected. I took off a few days to get out of town and propose to my girlfriend.
She said yes and we had a great time in Wimberely, TX. We zip lined, went to a few wineries, had some casual meals and some fancy ones as well. We enjoyed the quaint town so much that we think we will be getting married there!
This week’s training is laid out for me and my schedule. Today was 3, tomorrow will be 7 and Wednesday will be 4. Then I have a (gulp) 18 mile long run Sunday morning. I’m hoping the 3 days off won’t be too long. No reason to over think it though. With my schedule, it is what it is.
Stats-
Distance: 3.00 miles
Time: 22:48
Average Pace: 7:36/mile
Calories Burned: 452
I’m not sure exactly what was going through my mind today, but I decided to try and break my 5k PR of 21:29.
I didn’t run a race and I wasn’t at a track or anything. I decided to run a 3.1 mile lap around my neighborhood.
About a mile in (7 minutes flat for the first mile), I realized that this wasn’t the best location to try and PR. There are two DISTINCT hills on the loop I was taking and many other smaller rolling hills. I’m not sure what I was thinking. But nevertheless, I pushed on.
At the beginning of mile two is the first distinct hill. However on the other side, is a distinctive downhill. I was only a mile in so I hammered up the hill pretty hard, knowing that I could recoup on the downhill. Mile two was 7:01.
And then we get to mile three…
Mile three starts off with about a quarter mile of flat land and then it hits the second big hill. Ok, maybe it’s not BIG, but it’s definitely there. And when you climb this hill, it levels out. No easy downhill to regain your legs, breath and energy.
The hill was tough and my legs didn’t want to push that hard after hitting the top of the plateau. I turned on Lose Yourself by Eminem to try to get a little extra push. But my legs and arms couldn’t pump much harder than they had already been going. I finished mile three in 7:17.
The last 0.1 mile runs uphill as well. Nothing crazy like Mt. Everest I just finished (;P) but it wasn’t an easy coast. The last 0.1 was in 40 seconds.
Final tally: 21:57, 28 seconds from my PR. Next time, I’ll go to my flat and fast trail and shave off a minute!!!
Stats-
Distance: 3.1 miles
Time: 21:57
Average Pace: 7:05/mile
Calories Burned: 464
My Journey: 1,000 Miles in 2014 