Planned: 5mi @ 7:16 Tempo Run
Actual: 5.04mi @ 7:04
Average Heart Rate: 168bpm

I can’t think of anything to write outside of “ouch”. But that sums up all my runs lately. Still, it feels so much better to have a focussed plan, no matter how much it hurts.

My headphones, the ones designed for working out, are dying. I am now a firm believer in buying $10 headphones and accepting the fact that they’ll have to be replaced instead of buying $50 headphones and praying that you get your money’s worth. They sound good (or “sounded” good), but what’s the point if the lifespan is shorter than my crappy cheap ones? Sennheiser jerks.

Every time I look at this running plan, my eyes bug out. While it only lists three runs per week, none of those runs are easy. Rather, they’re brutal — every one. This weekend is supposed to be 9mi @ 7:41. What?! I think I’m going to be running with EW this weekend and he’s gearing up for San Diego so I think we may be going longer (and hopefully slower). But next week is the exact same run. There is no escape.

I guess it’s no fun if there’s not a challenge. Sheesh.

Planned: ~3mi @ 8:00
Actual: 3.05 @ 7:32 (active)

This is scary. Apparently the Garmin knows when you’re running and when you’re waiting for a light to change. If you go by the stopwatch alone, I ran an average pace of 7:46. But because I’ve got Skynet wrapped around my wrist, I get to post 7:32. That makes me feel better since I felt like crap after this run was over, but it also makes me very, very nervous about the future of humanity. Clearly, this watch knows too much.

Planned: A Run
Actual: 4.48mi @ 7:32

I have Nike+ withdrawl. The graphs, the challenges, the inaccurate distance measurements…oh, wait. Now I remember.

I’ve been waiting for Runner+ to finally deliver on their promise of Garmin support but apparently it’s not as easy to implement as previously believed. That, or they’re waiting for Garmin to finish work on the new Garmin Connect which could take on some of the heavy lifting while still handing over the data to be messed with at will. Garmin Connect is late.

So in the mean time, I’ve decided to explore the precursor to Garmin Connect: MotionBased. It’s basically Nike+ wearing geek glasses and a chugging a pot of coffee (and it’s designed by Garmin for Garmin devices). More data, more ways to view that data, and generally more useful. However, if you want certain features, you need to pay them $100/year. And I’m not going to do that. But even the lite version is cool. For instance, I ran at Balboa Park on Saturday and you can check it out for yourself with a map, some stats and even the ability to take that route and download it to your Garmin if, say, you wanted to race me…which you can…through the website…virtually. See what I mean about the geek glasses?

I “raced” a couple of other people who’d run the LA Half Marathon along with me and wore their Garmins. You can see where you took the lead or got whomped. Not especially useful, I guess, but neat.

Anyway, in the excitment (I know, I know) of discovering these things, I forgot about my blog. At some point, I may be able to tie the Garmin data directly into these entries with little effort on my part (minus the initial headache of figuring out how to do it), but until Garmin Connect or Runner+ or some other upstart gets their act together, there will be little to no flashy bits at this site. Bored now.

Planned: Some Running
Actual: 4mi @ 7:09

I was feeling fat.I work in an office with no windows (by necessity), four computers, four monitors, three keyboards, etc. Cabin Fever is not a little uncommon. You get tired of watching people in movies living their (admittedly fictional) lives. And today I snapped. I even left work late which meant I’d be running in darkness, but I really didn’t care. I needed out. And it was nice.

This self-imposed running embargo’s not going to last. I’m not going to punch up a new Smart Coach workout anytime soon, but the endorphins are starting to live up to their natural drug status and I need more. Sunday seems like a good day for a trail run, no?

Planned: 5mi @ 7:41
Actual: 5.03mi @ 7:20

I haven’t been able to run all week. If I didn’t run on Thanksgiving, it would mean four days off and I don’t think I can afford to do that when I’m supposed to be running 13.1mi in just over a week. So I was up at 6:45 and out the door by 7:15. The turkey was scheduled to go into the oven by 10. I didn’t have time to screw around.

I didn’t mean to go this fast but it was cold when I started (and foggy!). If I run Friday or Saturday, it’ll be slower. Promise.

Planned: 1mi easy; 2mi @ 7:16; 1mi easy; 2mi @ 7:16; 1mi easy
Actual: 1mi easy; 2mi @ 7:15; 1mi easy; 2mi @ 7:09; 1mi easy
Average Heart Rate: 155bpm (Max: 177bpm)

This is one of those workouts that sounds much worse in your head than it is in practice. I mean, it’s not easy. But it’s not impossible either. The only problem is that it was dark by the time I was on the last two miles. And I wasn’t wearing anything reflective.

This is the first workout that I’ve taken verbatim from the FIRST Half Marathon Training Program. I meant to start this stuff weeks ago, and if I had I would be a monster by now. But because of the fires and my fear of change, I am weak. And small.

I was supposed to run 15mi last weekend apparently. I ran 7. Slowly. Sunday I’m supposed to run 10. That, I think I can do. But I’m supposed to do it at a 7:20 pace. What were these guys smoking when they came up with this plan?

Planned: 6mi inc. Warmup; 4mi @ 6:26; Cool
Actual: 6.11mi inc. Warmup; 4mi @ 6:24; Cool
Average Heart Rate: 154bpm (162bpm during Tempo)

When I saw the plan for this run I freaked out. The tempo pace looked ridiculous. I mean, my race pace for 3mi is barely faster than that.

I spent the whole drive to my running area thinking about how hard this was going to be. The warmup mile was slow in preparation for the pace to come.

And when the tempo portion started, I took off at 5:30. Whoops. My friend JE says my Garmin is a crutch. It’s true. I have very little internal sense of pace. Whatever. I’m not sure it’s something I can learn. And even if I concentrated on learning it, how else would I do that unless I knew what a particular pace felt like?

Anyway, the tempo turned out okay even with a strong wind pushing against me for part of the run. I should just trust SmartCoach. It tends to know what it’s doing.

Planned: 5mi inc. Warmup; 3mi @ 6:26; Cool
Actual: 5mi inc. Warmup; 3mi @ 6:27; Cool
Average Heart Rate: 168bpm (during tempo phase)

Felt pretty good overall — I mean, considering that I was out running my butt off.

I checked to see where my heart rate is supposed to be for a tempo run: 164-173. Not bad. Not bad. Maybe I’ll be able to grow into this workout plan after all.

Nike+ stinks at recording workouts like this. Look at that graph!