my introduction to "the wall"

we did 18 miles today and i don't know what happened but about half way through my body just decided that it was going to play some really nice tricks on me. soreness and aches in my legs from my ass down through my calves to the point where i had to walk the last mile of the route. at the end there my calves were so tight it felt like they were about to split open. needless to say, i'm very disappointed. i know this kind of shit happens to everyone and the fact that it hasn't happened to me until today is pretty amazing but still... i can't shake the thought that my body let me down in a big way today.

or rather... i failed my body in a big way. chalk this one up to dehydration. apparently i wasn't drinking nearly as much water as i should have been and seeing as how i started at a deficit - drank wine last night (although, really frikkin good wine) not properly hydrating all last week - today's run was destined for a wall like the one i experienced, i think.

and now as i write this my legs feel fine... just a little residual soreness in my right ankle but nothing unusual and certainly nothing leading me to think that i ran for a little over 3 hours today. lesson learned... in a big way.



one really cool thing though... max brought this shirt back from hawaii for me. that's right, baby! mestizo pinoy!

i leave for spain in a few days... going there to attend the wedding of my guide from niger last year. the whole group from that trip is going to be there too. can't wait to see them again and reconnect. after the last 2 weeks of 15-hour work days and today's run, i'm ready to recharge my soul.

pride... pure and simple

ok so those of you who know me, know how proud i am of my brother and his many achievements.

fast forward to today when i receive an envelope from my parents containing the recent issue of u.s. news and world report that features an article on my brothers company entitled "Bets On Biotech". there he is (on the right)... my brother... and his colleagues... smirking back at me from the pages of a respected news journal.

words cannot express the pride or gratitude i'm feeling at this moment. this is today's vanguard of responsible and socially conscious science. investors take note.

running by yourself sucks ass

max and jim are off in hawaii this week with their significant others leaving me to fend for myself on the milage run for today. i much prefer running with people, lemme tell you. it was hotter than i expected, and i got a later start than usual so the motivation just wasn't there today and it seemed like every mile was a struggle. amazing what a difference it makes to have people to run with. we adjusted our training schedule a bit by pushing everything forward by a week so that we three wouldn't have to run the really long distances alone - today was supposed to be 18 miles... instead, i ran 10. i managed to put in a 9:26 pace but still... man it was tough.

"go home gw"... awesome

i'm not a big fan of his music but moby has some interesting things to say about today's nyc visit from dubya. apparently years of eating rocks and tanbark has put a little bit of vitriol in his system. that or maybe he's just pissed that gw's stealing his birthday fire. whatever the case... it's a very entertaining and poignant rant.

mileage run #14: 16 miles!!!

holy crap! 16 miles today! (here's or course via motionbased.com and mapmyrun.com).

this was a great day for a run. a thick marine layer that stuck around until we were done, cool but not cold, slight breeze... perfect. bandaids over my nips so no chafing, didn't have any overheating problems, barely sweat. just overall a great day. i did manage to injure myself last night moving my tv around... not very smart. dunno what i was thinking. i ended up straining my right achilles tendon which flared up and reminded me of it's presence around mile 6. after that it was a matter of just blasting the heavymetalmusic™ and trying to ignore it until the end of the run... not easy by any means but i did it. gotta ice this puppy now.

once again we had our support crew of robyn and teresa meeting us every 3 miles or so to give us water, orange slices, cold washcloths, etc. seriously don't know how this would even be possible without them! if there are any other runners out there looking for a support crew for hire these girls are the best! in fact i may have to be their manager or something. hmmmmmm....

we're taking a break from the long mileage runs while max, robyn, jim and teresa go gallavanting around hawaii. then on the 30th it's 18 miles. GAH!

bridge to breakwater battle wound

so instead of doing our normal weekend mileage run, the 3 of us decided to enter a 12k (7-point-something mile) race in san pedro today. here's our course according to my gps doohickey. the experience of participating in a race, even one this small, was very different. the mentality changes and, for me at least, you become way more competitive - something i have to keep in check because at the start we were tapping out around an 8 min/mile pace... way too fast. in the end i my pace for the race was right around a 9 min/mile. which is pretty damn good i think. felt strong all the way through despite the heat and humidity. i also go a chance to put my new nike+ ipod running sensor thing to the test and, surprisingly, it did really well. almost exactly matching the accuracy of my gps unit. very impressive considering that on the maintenance run i did with it thursday it was about 50% off in mileage from what i actually ran. so, overall, a great experience.



another milestone for the day... i was talking before about my first experience with nipple chafing... well as a distance runner i've officially earned some stripes... today my nips actually bled! eeeeewwwwwwww..... i thought, "it's only 7 miles what could possibly happen?" well... there you have it.

next week it's 16 miles! and i'll be wearing band-aids.