2016 ~ The Year of Power

I had been coming up blank as far as running goals for this year.  They were sounding like a repeat of last year.  Since 2015 was such a good year, that's not a completely bad idea, but I wanted more.  More is now on its way in the form of a belated Christmas present called Stryd.  What is Stryd, you ask?  Stryd is the world's first power meter for running.

What is a power meter?  Cyclists have used power meters for years to measure their output.  Yes, they look at speed (instead of pace) and heart rate, but power shows exactly how much energy they are using no matter the conditions (hilly, windy, drafting, etc.)  Les started using a power meter in 2013 and has seen significant increase in his overall abilities.  He likes to go out and do intervals on his bike, watching his watts (power.)  He has a number that he knows he can pretty much sustain for long periods on the bike.  When he's on an endurance event (100+ miles) he knows that if he pushes his power number way above the magic threshold, he's going to blow up and his speed will drop significantly.  On the other hand, he knows when he's taking it easier than he needs to and can pick up the pace if he wants.

Until now, there hasn't been the technology to measure this for runners. From Stryd's website:

Power is the only number you need to pace yourself to a new PR at any distance.
Power is consistent and reliable. It doesn’t vary with conditions. Hilly course? No problem, Stryd has you covered.
Power is a better measurement of performance. And better measurement leads to better results.

The Stryd design is a chest strap. I've been wearing a heart rate monitor for more than a decade, so this will not be an added piece of equipment, it will replace the heart rate monitor I currently wear.  It will still give heart rate information, but will also include power.  It pairs with many sport watches on the market, including my Suunto Ambit2. There is a very informative article on Ultra Runner Podcast.com. I thought what it had to say about power vs. heart rate was very helpful:

So why a power meter instead of heart rate? 
After using a heart rate monitor for almost every run, race, or workout I have done for the last year, heart rate is a nice tool, and that is it. Don’t get me wrong, I still use a heart rate monitor but I do not trust it to be consistent. Your heart rate is influenced by temperature, humidity, altitude, stress, illnesses, fatigue etc. It is usually the same day after day, but not always. As you first start running with a HRM it takes about 10 or so minutes for most monitors to be accurate. If you had a bad night’s sleep or you are coming down with a cold your heart rate could be as high as 10 to 15 beats per minute higher than the week before. Pacing yourself at a race or a workout will leave you running slower than your legs can actually allow. The other downfall of using heart rate for intervals is that your heart rate is too slow to react to your effort, which will leave you unsure if you are giving enough effort. After multiple intervals your heart rate will also start to get higher after each interval, called cardiac drift.

A power meter will not be effected by any of these situations. It gives instant feedback. It does not change when you get tired or have not warmed up yet. This is the reason they are so popular in the cycling world, and will soon be popular in the running world.

I realize this is more than most of us really want to study and understand, but I have my own personal power meter coach!  Do I see the value?  I'm sure I won't fully appreciate it until I've used Stryd for a few months, but I was already thinking about how it will impact my training.  For instance, I ran 10 miles on Saturday and it was very windy (15+ mph.)  I ran every step and my average pace was 10:35.  I knew I was pushing and there were times when I saw my pace slow, but did that mean I was putting out less effort or were the conditions making me actually work harder?  Hopefully, knowing the answer to that question will make training better, turning me into a better runner!

It's now been shipped and I am expecting it to arrive on Thursday. I'll be blogging about it as I learn.

2015 in 2015!

It's time to say goodbye to another year.  2015 was a really good year for me.  I was healthy (except for one bout with the flu) and injury free.  I set a bunch of goals on January 1st, here's how I did:

Running
1 - Run another marathon.  Revel Canyon City Marathon with a 7:02 PR!
2 - Improve my pace.  I focused on interval workouts each week during marathon training and saw my pace improve so much.  I plan to get back to speed work next week.

Mileage
I want to cross the 2,000 mile mark again this year.  Done!  I crossed the 2,000 mile mark yesterday, then rode 10.64 miles this morning and hit 2015!  I know those cycling miles are what kept me injury free this year.  Even during marathon training I continued to ride.  Easy run days became cycling days.  My 51 year old body is happy!

Breakdown of miles:
Running 835.89 - 145 runs, longest run 26.33 miles
Walking 287.67 - 85 walks, longest walk 5.62 miles
Cycling 891.44 miles - 78 rides, longest ride 20.18 miles

My longest ride was still shorter than my longest run.

Weight and Health
I'm currently 13 pounds over my goal weight.  I am still 13 pounds over my goal weight.  I have been the same weight (+/- 3 pounds) all year!  I guess I can be happy that I didn't gain. I still want to lose that weight, but my doctor said he wasn't concerned.  All my numbers are good.  We have our 25th wedding anniversary on May 25th, so I'd love to weigh less than I do now by then.

Truth!

Some other highlights:
Brio Ice Cream 25k - this was such a fun, hard race on Oahu!  And who doesn't love ice cream on a hot Hawaiian morning?

Mexico Beach Community Garden Turkey Trot with six family members!

Here's to a healthy and happy 2016! Did you set and meet any goals in 2015?

THIS Close!

I just updated my mileage for the year and I am so close to my goal of 2,000 miles!  1,980.80!  Less than 20 miles in five days, I do believe I've got it.  This will be my highest mileage year since 2011.  I ran my first marathon in 2012 so my training changed a lot.  I did a lot less cycling and a mix of short runs and long runs.

I'm really happy with how this year went, especially my marathon training.  Cross training on the bike made such a difference, physically and mentally.  I am closing out the year with no injuries and not feeling the least bit burned out.

Of course now I'm wondering, should I try to hit 2015 for 2015?  Did you set, and will you reach, a mileage goal this year?

2015 MapMyRun Year in Review

I received a fun email from MapMyRun this morning.  My Suunto Movescount is connected to MapMyRun and usually updates each day. They're a bit early with their "year in review" because I don't plan on stopping now, but the stats were cool anyway.

With three weeks to go, that's a lot of exercise!

I actually get tired of pizza during marathon training.  It is my go to fueling for long runs, which means it doesn't feel like a treat.

This is slightly lower than the miles I have in SportTracks, which I consider my "true" log.  Still working on hitting 2,000 for the year.

This is one full day per month!

I have no idea where it got a 7:51/mile run!  That is not in my official records, either.  I did a 3 mile tempo run at 8:31, pretty sure that was my fastest.

 

You know you're a runner when your longest run is longer than your longest bike ride!  Very proud of that 26.33 miles.   I'll do a full review on my goals and accomplishments in a few more weeks, but 2015 has been a good year.

Marathon Goals, Tracking Info and Weather

Forty eight hours from now I'll be on highway 39 making my way from Crystal Lake Cafe to Azusa Pacific University.  Sixteen weeks of long runs, intervals, easy runs, foam rolling, and recovery all comes down to this.  Since this is my fourth marathon, I know it's going to hurt, it's not going to be over quickly, but I'm planning on a great day! Janae, at The Hungry Runner Girl had a great concept on her blog yesterday from the Hanson's Half Marathon Method book:

"Step back and spend a moment thinking about your training, reminding yourself that you are fit and ready to race.  Training doesn't lie.  Be realistic in pondering the difficulty of the race, but also remind yourself that all your training has prepared you to handle it."  I have put in the miles, but I still need to respect the distance so I can hit my goals! So about those goals...

A+ Goal (stretch goal): Sub 4:00, BQ
My training plan has been for a sub 4 hour race and I would love to see that happen.  A sub 4:00 would also qualify me for the Boston Marathon.  I'm going to be looking for the pace group at the expo tomorrow.  I'd really like to know their strategy.  Since it is downhill for the first half, with rollers from about mile 13 to 18, I'm curious what pace they plan.  I don't expect a negative split.  I ran 1:53:44 (8:41 pace) for the first half when I trained up there and I was not trying to run my fastest so I feel cautiously confident that I can run it faster!

A Goal:  Sub 4:20
This is about a 10 minute/mile pace and I would be thrilled to finish in that time.

B Goal:  PR, sub 4:53
My fastest marathon to date was my first!  I think my training this time around has been very similar but I also have experience on my side.  I also know I did not do speed work for my other 2 marathons.  Intervals have been tough this time around but I know they've helped me get faster.

C Goal:  Finish
I realize that anything can happen during a marathon, just like it can during training.  GI distress, tripping, the wheels just coming off, a freak snowstorm.  If that happens, it happens, but I still plan to finish!

I've been getting lots of emails from Revel about the race.  Bag drop, pictures (all professional photos are FREE at this race!), parking, etc.  There is also live tracking if you're interested in how I'm doing.  Click this link.  Or look up my name (Kathy McElhaney) or bib number 2776.

My biggest dilemma is what to wear.  Right now it's showing a low of 43 Saturday morning at the start, but it was 24 there this morning!   If it was going to stay cool I wouldn't worry, but it's suppose to be about 70 at the finish line.  Dropping 5,100' is going to make layers a must!

Q3 Update

Happy October!  Another year is flying by.  I set some goals on January 1st.  Here is my update for the first nine months of 2015:

1 - Run another marathon.  The Revel Canyon City Marathon is next month!!  Super excited about this race.  I feel like my training has been so much better this time around - more like how I was in early 2012.

2 - Improve my pace.  I'm not as fast as I would like to be, but definitely faster than I have been the past couple of years.

3.  I want to cross the 2,000 mile mark again this year.   As of September 30th, my year to date miles are 1516.33.  I am right on track!  I had some making up to do after the first quarter, but I'm feeling really good about hitting this goal.

4.  I'm currently 13 pounds over my goal weight.  Ugh!  This has been the worst part of my year.  I have diligently counted points, then I switched to counting calories, I have cut out hidden sugars, and nothing!  The scale has not budged.  I have my physical this month so I'm hoping my doctor will have some ideas.  I was chatting with a running friend a few weeks ago and she has the same problem.  She's a nutritionist and 4 time Ironman finisher.  Menopause doesn't care!  I guess I should just be happy that I haven't gained any weight!

Mid-June Update

It's been too long since I've done an update!  2015 has been an interesting year so far.  Some good, some not so good.  I set a bunch of goals at the first of the year, let's just see where I am today:
 
Running
1 - Run another marathon.  I registered for the Revel Canyon City Marathon on November 7th and I'm really excited about that!  True training starts on July 19th.  I reapplied my training plan in TrainingPeaks and noticed some changes.  I'm really planning on working on my pace this time, I neglected speed work last year big time!
2 - Improve my pace. I really haven't gotten much faster overall, but I am working on running fast downhill.  This is important since most of my marathon is downhill.  My fastest downhill mile is 7:53.  I have a new route that is 8 miles - 2 miles up, 2 miles down, 2 more miles up and finishing with 2 miles down.  I did it for the first time last Sunday.  My downhill miles were 9:05, 8:53, 8:36 and 8:35!  It wasn't easy, and I'm definitely planning on doing this route some more.

Mileage
I want to cross the 2,000 mile mark again this year. I am currently at 871.60 miles.  I had a slow start due to the flu in January, but I've slowly been gaining momentum:

January 101.58
February 150.43
March 127.00
April 175.71
May 200.00*
June (through 6/17) 116.88

*I really couldn't have hit exactly 200 miles in May if I tried - that just happened!

Cycling wasn't listed in my goals, but I have really upped by riding lately.  I've been riding the trail and riding on the street and I'm seeing a lot of improvement!  I rode 13 miles this morning then came home and ran 2 miles with Les.

Weight and Health
I'm currently 13 pounds over my goal weight.  My doctor wants me to lose 8 pounds.  So goal number one is dropping 8 pounds, then I'll work on that additional 5. 
UGH!! This has been the worst part of my year.  I've lost about 20 pounds and gained about 20 pounds!  It's one pound up, one pound down.  I have been so diligent in my eating and tracking everything, I'm not sure what to do anymore.  I'm actually only 2 pounds overweight for my height, but that's higher than I want to be.  I'm not giving up, and am hoping that eventually my body will respond!  It seems this lovely thing in life called menopause has meant metabolism pause for me.

I will say that I'm feeling really focused and good about my activity lately.  Even though I'm not officially training, I just want to make my workouts count.  I'm healthy and injury free, so in spite of a non-budging scale, I'm calling it good!

2015 ~ Reset

I'm so excited for this new year!  I have some goals in mind, but first let's look back at 2014:

Mileage totals
Running: 983.18
Walking: 272.13
Cycling: 480.01
Total:  1,735.32

Not my highest mileage by a long shot, but good.  Things I'm happy about - finishing marathon #3 without injury and consistent splits.  Things that need work - my weight is still up and my pace is slow.  And that brings me to this year:

RESET

I started this morning with zero miles (but ran 8.2 by 7:30!)  I started this morning with 26 points plus to use wisely.  A blank page to write on.  What a relief! I have a few goals:

Running
1 - Run another marathon.  I'm not sure when or where, but I really enjoy the entire process.  The training.  The planning.  The mental break throughs.  The actual race.
2 - Improve my pace.  I know the extra weight I'm carrying is a huge factor.  I want to be smart about this by slowly increasing my pace.  January get back in the 11 minute range.  February 10:30 pace.  March 10:00 pace.  And finally in April get consistently back in the 9 minute range.

Mileage
I want to cross the 2,000 mile mark again this year.  It's been several years since I've crossed that milestone (2011.)  This includes running, walking and cycling.  I need to average 40 miles a week and know I can do it!

Weight and Health
I'm currently 13 pounds over my goal weight.  My doctor wants me to lose 8 pounds.  So goal number one is dropping 8 pounds, then I'll work on that additional 5.  I have some cute clothes in my closet that I've missed being able to wear!  At one pound a week that puts me in April.  Q1 is about resetting!
I know I've got to get back to tracking and eating better.  For the four weeks leading to my marathon I cut out desserts.  I felt so much better!  Some very wise women have told me that sugar is a major trigger to menopausal symptoms, so I'm committing to less sugar, a LOT less sugar!  The key is not having it in our house.  I'm not saying I'll never have sugar again, I just need to do a lot better.

And this...

I don't know what's happened to me, but I have become a total klutz!   I almost always have a bruise somewhere on my body.  Every day.  I spill things, run into walls, trip over my own feet.  I did read somewhere that dizziness/balance issues are just another of the many menopausal symptoms.  Yeah, so just wrap me in bubble wrap and all will be well!

Here's to resetting and a great 2015!

Strategizing

I'm only 24 days away from my next marathon!  Since this one includes a flight to a time zone two hours behind California, I know I need to have a solid plan in place.  Key areas:

Weather
Of course I can't control the weather!  But I do know what to expect.  65 degrees at the start, warm and humid.  It's 45 here this morning.  Humidity a couple days ago was 7%.  What I can do:

• Arrive 12 days before the marathon.  I've read that it takes about 14 days for your body to adjust to a different climate, so I'll be close.
• Wear an extra layer while running here at home.  I've struggled with this one!  I love running when it's below 55!  I wore a fleece lined jersey on my long run last week and will do the same this week.  I plan to wear an extra layer next week as I start transitioning towards the warmth.
• During the marathon I will be drinking early and often.
• I'll be applying extra Body Glide.  With the heat and humidity, I sweat so much more - more chances for chaffing and blisters.

Nutrition
It's time for a confession - I have been a complete sugar addict for the past two years.  If it has chocolate in or on it, it has my name on it.  Mini candy bars have been my "drug" of choice - they're only a point each.  But those points have added up.  We've been having way too many desserts lately, too.  As of Monday, I'm about 8 pounds heavier than I was when I ran my last marathon.  That's not gonna help.  Last Friday, November 14th, was declared the start of "No Desserts Marathon Countdown Month."  Les is joining me and we are allowing one exception - Thanksgiving day!  Since last Friday I have not had any desserts.  No cookies, candies, ice cream, not even a substitute like a WW bar (something I ate even while losing in the past.)  I will weigh again tomorrow.  I'm also upping my water intake.  Both previous times that I lost weight on Weight Watchers, I started in the Fall and lost weight during the holidays.  It can be done.  The rest of my eating is pretty good, but the sugar is weighing me down!

Pace
I really don't know what my pace will be.  I'm hoping to average under 11 minutes a mile.  My run on Saturday was slower than that, but had about twice the elevation gain.  I expect the excitement of the race to speed me up some as well.  I'm hoping to find a pace group of 4:30-4:40, but I don't know if they'll have one.
I just re-read my first marathon recap.  My pace for the first half was 9:38, my pace for the second half was 12:46!  I do not want to go out too fast and completely fall apart again.  I have noticed that my pace on my long training runs has been much more consistent.  Nothing super fast, but nothing super slow at the end.

Goals
A+ Goal:  Finish in 4:35:17, 10:30 pace
A Goal:  Marathon PR of 4:53:32 or faster, 11:11 pace
B Goal:  Sub 5 hours
C Goal:  Finish and not die of heat stroke!

It's gonna be a great day.  I'm starting to get super excited.  The crowds will be massive.  I KNOW I won't be the last one.  Some finishers took 10 hours last year!  Pretty sure I can walk a marathon faster than that.  Twenty two miles this Saturday, 15 and 12 the next two and it's GO time!

Weekly Review

Next week is my last "free" week.  Marathon training starts a week from tomorrow.  After running my 10k on Tuesday, I didn't have a lot of motivation the rest of the week!  I did cross the 1,000 mile mark for the year this week.

Sunday - Ran 5 miles in 55:45, 11:09 pace.
I opted for a hilly route. 

Monday - Rest day

Tuesday - Ran 6.21 miles in 59:49, 9:38 pace
Shew!  I was so glad to get this done!  I would love to run it even faster, but that was tough!  It's a long distance to go all out.
Also walked 1.12 miles, warm up and cool down.

Wednesday - Rode 11.70 miles in 1:01:17, 11.5 mph
My legs didn't feel sore when I got up but as soon as I started up the first little hill they hurt!  I decided against the trail and just rode around the neighborhood.

Thursday - Rest day

Friday - Rode 13.2 miles in 1:29:17, 8.9 mph
Trail ride.  Saw lots of bear tracks.  I've been seeing them about every other week or so.  I'm not interested in seeing the actual bear.

Saturday - Walked 3.9 miles in 53:52
After yesterday I had about 37 miles for the week.  I knew if I ran a half marathon I would have another 50 mile week, but I just didn't have it today.  My Strava title was "New Shoes, Old Legs."

Total
Running - 11.21
Walking - 5.02
Cycling - 24.90
Total  41.13

Another Week, Another 50

I had another good week and crossed over the 50 mile mark once again.   I feel like I'm starting to get in marathon training mindset, which is a good thing since real training starts two weeks from tomorrow!

Sunday - Rode 8.8 miles in 51:15, 10.3 mph
This was suppose to be an active recovery ride, but I didn't feel much recovery going on!  It hurt :)

Monday - Rest day

Tuesday - Ran 6.2 miles in 1:00:08, 9:42 pace.
So close to breaking that one hour 10k!  Also walked 1.08 miles - warm-up and cool-down.
I also cleaned the ceiling fans in our house - our bedroom has a vaulted ceiling, so I spent a lot of time on my toes.  Calve raises for the win!

Wednesday - Rest Day

Thursday - Rode 13.71 miles in 1:34:14, 8.7 mph
Trail ride.  I rode further up than I have in a long time.  Still not to my first goal of Sunshine Mountain, about halfway, but getting there.  I really should have gone for it - temps were a perfect 57 when I headed out!  All the pictures in this post are from that ride.

Friday - Ran 7.03 miles in 1:23:05, 11:50 pace.
Back to back days on the trail.  If I don't do a trail run each week I really miss it! 

Saturday - Rode 13.81 miles in 1:14:24, 11.1 mph
This is a new to me road route.  It starts off nice and flat, then has some uphill, some fast downhill, then a mix of rollers.  I spent a lot of time concentrating on high cadence.  This is the first week in a long time that I rode more times than I ran.

Total
Running - 13.23
Walking - 1.08
Cycling -36.32
Total  50.62

10k Tuesday - I Was THIS Close!

Today I ran my second attempt at a sub one hour 10k.  Here are my splits:

Mile 1 - 9:14
Mile 2 - 10:13
Mile 3 - 9:35
Mile 4 - 10:00
Mile 5 - 10:02
Mile 6 - 9:13
Mile 0.2 - 1:51

Total 1:00:08!!   Average pace 9:42

I'm looking for another route since this one has two stoplights that I have to stop for.  I think that just might make the difference.  I had to push SO hard and I was SO close!  I have never felt like I was going to puke while on a run before today.  I was pushing so hard during my 2, I really thought I would.  I took two 20 second walk breaks and that's it.  Average HR 155, max 166. 

I don't really hate every minute of training, but there are some minutes in there...

Weekly Review

It's been a really long time since I've done one of these!  I've been active outside, but not motivated to blog about once I'm home.  Now that I'm working towards some goals, I'm more inclined to blog.  I had a really good week.  I did realize that the schedule I posted on Tuesday is not going to work.  Doing speed work, a trail run, then a trail ride on back to back to back days is not a good idea!  I was really sore after Tuesday's 10k and was really feeling it on Wednesday's trail run.  I took Thursday off, then did my trail ride yesterday.  I woke up extremely fatigued today so I opted out of a long run.  I need to train smart as well as hard so next week I'm making a few tweaks to see how it goes.

Sunday - Easy bike ride 7.29 miles in 41:49, 10.5 mph
I took this super easy since I ran a half marathon the day before.  Any time I started to press too hard, I down shifted.  My legs ended up feeling really good.

Monday - Rest day

Tuesday - 10k 6.2 miles in 1:00:59, 9:49 pace.  Also walked 0.41 miles
I turned my Suunto off and restarted it after 6.2 miles so I would have real time numbers. 

Wednesday - 7.53 miles in 1:37:19, 12:56 pace
This was a trail run, so I knew it would be slower, but not that much slower!  The trail was really crowded with a bunch of boot campers and my legs were shot!

Thursday - Rest day

Friday - 13.11 mile trail ride in 1:26:51, 9.1 mph

Saturday - 4.54 miles in 1:15:07, 16:32 pace
I'm calling this my "Military Walk" - fatigued with GI issues!  I tried running a couple of times but every time I did my stomach started complaining.  I know better than to try a long run after a hard trail ride, another adjustment I need to make to next week's training.

Total
Running - 13.73
Walking - 4.95
Cycling - 20.40
Total  39.08

2013 in the Books!

2013 was a long way from my highest mileage year, but overall it was pretty good.  The challenges of travel, heat, humidity, and life made the first three months tough, but I definitely turned a corner in April. 

My mileage as of Saturday was 1,791.59.  I forgot how close I was when I ran yesterday.  After I got home, I realized I was just 1.11 miles shy of 1,800!  I couldn't let that happen.  I could have taken a walk yesterday afternoon or sometime today, but decided to put an exclamation point at the end of 2013.  I ran 3.11 miles (5K) in 29:28, 9:29 pace!  I think it's easier to run a fast pace on a longer run because you can warm up in your first mile then make up time as you go, but 5K is short for that kind of pace.

Favorite running locations:
Diamond Head
Tantalus Mountain
Ala Moana Park

Monthly Distances:
January - 105.96
February - 132.66
March - 111.02
April - 171.31
May - 169.69
June - 164.13
July - 156.13
August - 180.92
September - 167.45
October - 147.49
November - 148.67
December -146.57
Total - 1,802

I have several ideas that I want to implement in 2014.  It's a big year for me - I'll be turning 50!  I'm still trying to lose some of the weight I gained this year - 2 pounds up, 1 pound down, 1 pound up, 2 pounds down.  But I won't give up!  We will be "moving" back to California for good on February 7th.  Once we are home, I plan to start mountain biking again, too.

I'm also going to start following my marathon training plan again starting next week.  Since my marathon isn't until next December (unless I find a Spring one!) I'm going to try a new way.  I will repeat a week until I hit my pace goals.  In other words, if I'm suppose to run 4 miles at 10:05 and run it at 10:45, I'll repeat that week until I can hit 10:05.  I don't want to add speed and distance at the same time - that's a recipe for injury, so I won't go to week two until I can nail the times for week one.  I'll still run hills and not worry about pace on those days.  I'm thinking 2-3 days of pace work is plenty.

Goodbye 2013, it's been quite a year!

Yippee!!!

I checked the Honolulu Marathon website yesterday and saw they had a special going for "locals."

$26.20 Registration fee for Hawaii locals!

We have lived in Hawaii for almost a year, so I called myself a local and registered!  $1 per mile was too good to pass up!

I am now registered for Marathon #3!!

20 + 13

We are in the final 10 days of 2013.  Strava has one final challenge for the year - 20 + 13 - run 33 miles in 10 days.  It starts today and ends on December 31st.  I'm off to a good start - I ran 5 miles this morning.

Here's to finishing 2013 strong!

Weekly Report

I had a really good week.  Three strong runs and one not so strong!  I'm going to start posting any Strava awards that I get.  They will include PRs (Personal Records) and CRs (Course Records.)  Course Records mean I am the fastest Strava user to run a particular segment.

Sunday
Ran 8 miles in 1:29:52, 11:14 pace
I didn't run as long as I hoped but I did put in some really tough hills.

Monday
Ran 8.08 miles in 1:36:47, 11:58 pace
I decided to hit the trail one more time before heading to the airport.  My view of the canyon.  I've taken lots of pictures on our island this year, but we've got some pretty cool views in Simi Valley as well.

 CR on Las Llajas Climb (03:28) - this is a really tough segment - 0.30 miles with an average grade of 10.1%.  I ran it last week in 3:59, which was enough for second place. 



This picture was taken at my turn around point.  Over 900' of elevation gain in 4 miles.

Trail running is not for people who don't like to get dirty!!

Tuesday
Walked 2 miles

Wednesday
Rested

Thursday
Ran 7.43 miles in 1:24:15, 11:20 pace
I was so sluggish this day!  But the sunrise over Koko Head was worth getting up for.
Also walked 2.6 miles

Friday
Walked 2.7 miles

Saturday
Ran 8.64 miles in 1:31:03, 10:33 pace
I was feeling good this morning! The weather looked threatening but I stayed dry the entire time.

PR on Diamond Head Rd (south) (15:57)  This is a 1.5 mile segment with a long pull up. My previous PR on this was 16:12 set way back in March!

I'm on pace with my 200 kilometer goal for this month.  Currently I am at 52KM with three weeks left in the month.  I got my first distance award for this month, they appear in 40 KM increments.  One down, four to go!

Total
Running  32.15
Walking 7.30
Total miles:   39.45