What ever it takes!

5:00 am.  Not sure how this keeps happening to me but some how I woke up once again in California.  This time in Palo Alto right across the street from Stanford University.  Little did we know that there was a Stanford vs. USC game @ Stanford last night when we got in.  That was a big mistake, trying to get to our hotel right across the street from the Stadium. 

My plan was to just run on the hotel treadmill since I have no idea where I am or where to run, got the the gym at 4:45 only to find it didn't open until 6:00am.  I hate hotel gyms that aren't open 24 hours, next plan run across the street and run on the Stanford University Track, got there and it didn't open until 8:00 am.  So I just started aimlessly running around the campus, found a road called campus loop and just started following it, it was pretty well lit all the way.  I kept trying different little trails that looked interesting but they kept leading to dead ends.  So I really have no idea how far I went, how fast I went or even where I went, I'll try and plan a better route tomorrow.  I was out for 45 minutes and am just guessing 5 miles due to stops and turns.

Oh, I left my Garmin at home with my wife, that's why I have no idea what I'm doing.  Maybe I'll try an iPhone app tomorrow to get a little in site into what I'm doing.

5:15 am.  Mapped out a loop around Stanford University last night so I would know where I was going today.  It is 1 mile from the hotel to the loop, and 3.5 miles around the loop, the first time around I still had to check my maps a few times to figure out where I was so I was a bit slow, the second time around I knew where I was going and tried to push myself pretty hard for the 3.5 miles.  Stupid iPhone app didn't give me very accurate spits but I would guess around 6:45 pace for my second loop.  Perfect morning temps for a run, I really enjoy that route, will probably do the same route for the next 3 days I'm here.

5:00 am.  Almost considered not running this morning, worked pretty late last night and knew I had to wake up early to take my co-worker to the airport, but my body woke up at 4:30 even though my mind didn't, I figure if my body is ready to go even if my mind isn't I should probably go.  Didn't have time to do the Stanford loop twice so I just did it about 1 1/4 times for 5 mile and then 1 mile out and back from the hotel.  My hamstrings where pretty tight this morning so I never really pushed it, but I did try to concentrate on a steady pace.

7 miles in about 50 minutes.  7:08 avg. 

Thursday is a day between conferences so I think I will try and get some speed work on the Stanford track Thursday morning.  I've never ran on a real track before. I know pretty sad.

5:15 am.  So I put together an off season schedule so I at least have something on the calendar so I know what to do each day when I wake up. It's a 1/2 marathon schedule aimed to get me a 1:15 1/2 marathon time.  Today was suppose to be a 7 mile run with 5 at 5:54 pace.  Since I don't have a watch I went and did the Stanford loop and pushed myself for the only distance I thought I knew.  I thought it was 3.5 miles around the loop, so I jogged to the loop stretched for a minute and then took off.  The first 2 miles of the loop is slightly uphill and the second 1/2 is down.  I felt like I was pushing pretty hard, up the hill but knew I probably wasn't at 5:54 pace figured I would make it up on the downhill.  So coming down I pushed it as hard as I thought I could.  Ended up doing the loop in 24:40.  I was pretty disappointed with that thinking it was 3.5 miles.  So I came back and re-calculated and found it to be 3.72.  So a little better but not 5:54 pace.  6:35 I think, so disappointing, I blame the hill..  I really need a watch for these sort of workouts.

Yesterday in my down time at work I researched recovery methods and kept coming across articles about ice baths.  I thought the idea of an ice bath sounded way to intense and thought I would never try it,  But last night I got back to the hotel and the power to the entire hotel was out, so no gym, no TV, nothing to do.  So I did the natural thing in that situation and filled my tub with ice and cold water, and hopped in.  Sat there for about 20 minutes, it's really not as terrible as I had invisioned.  So this morning after my run I did it again.  Only had time for 10 minutes but it actually feels really good right after a hard run.  I'm going to try it for a week or so every day and see if it will help my leg pain.

6:15 am Got done with 1 of 2 conferences last night and have a day off today, so I got to sleep in, very nice.  Last day at Stanford so I did my loop once for a total of 4 miles and then noticed that the track was open. I went to the track and just started running around.  My watch malfunctioned so I didn't get any splits, I just ran 12 laps and a pretty good clip to get a feel for the track.  There was some really young track girl that decided to use me as a pacer I guess, she got out in front of me and every time I started catching up to her she would surge ahead.  I decided on my 12th lap I would pick it up and pass her but she stopped at 11.  It was like I was in a race but didn't know how far I was running.  Kind of funny but it was fun to have someone to keep my pace up.  Rested for a few minutes and then did 2 x 400's just for fun.  I did get those splits, 1 in 75 and 2 in 76.   I went out way to fast on both more like 100 m pace and then kind of died for the last 200.  I'm sure with practice I could get the times down.

Off to San Mateo tonight, not sure if there are any good runs there.  I guess I'll find out tomorrow.

Last night I was sitting in the hotel hot tub with another couple and complained that this hotel was terrible cause it was surrounded by freeways and there where no good places to run.  They told me there was a bike trail about 6 miles away up in the hills between San Mateo and Half moon bay.  So I came back to my room, and found it on a map.  Borrowed the rental car keys from my co-worker and this morning set out at 5:30 to find it.  It was very dark up there and I considered turning around and just coming back to the hotel treadmill, but when I found the trail head there were already about 7 -8 cars there so I decided that there were at least 7 or 8 people crazier than me running in the dark in the woods so I put on my head lamp and headed off.   The first 1/2 was pretty spooky, lots of critters running around in the bushes watching me run by, but by the time I got to the turn around point, (a Dam) it was starting to get light.  The run back was amazing,  I could really see what I was missing, on one side was a really pretty lake and on the other side was a game preserve, there where deer all over the place just standing on the side of the road as I ran past.  Quite a few people out for morning walks too,  amazing that a place like this is just 5 minutes away from one of the busiest freeways in the country.  I definately want to go back and try it again in full day light.  Perfect running temps too, about 45 degrees out.

 10.2 miles in about  1:10:00.

 
   

6:30 am.  Absolutely awesome run this morning, set out to run the same trail I did yesterday but I wanted to go the whole 6 miles to the end and I wanted it to be light.  So I waited in my hotel room until 6:15 and drove to the trail head, sat in the warm car for about 5 minutes and noticed there where quite a few people already walking the trail so even though it was still pretty dark I set off without my head lamp.  It was light enough to make out the outline of the trail and within 20 minutes it was plenty light.  Very nice cool morning here in Northern California, my kind of running weather, planned on just taking a nice easy 12 miler the whole run today, got to mile 5 where I turned around yesterday and took some pictures of the lake with the sun coming up and fog hovering over the trees.  It was really neat.  From mile 5 to 6 it was a very steep uphill out of the valley so I just tried to keep a nice even pace going up.  Got to the end of the trail mile 6 in about 43 minutes, took a potty and water break and turned around, coming back down the hill was very fast, without even thinking about it I hit mile 1, or 7 which ever way you look at it in 5:30.  Decided then that since my legs where moving I would do a 6 mile tempo run back to the car.  Everything felt great, lungs felt good, legs felt good and I was just enjoying every moment.  There where starting to be tons of people on the trail, which made it easier to keep my pace up to try and pass people.  At mile 9 a bike casually past me so I started pacing off of him.  I hit mile 5 of my Tempo in exactly 30 minutes, right where I wanted to be, then my wife called and told me the elders quarum was looking for me to play football this morning.  That slowed me down a bit, but I had my headphones in already and didn't have to stop to answer the phone.  Ended my 6 mile tempo in 36:48.  6:07 avg pace,  Very happy with that, total run was around  1:20:00.  Excellent morning, now off to work. 

Pretty busy the rest of the trip so I doubt I will make it back to that trail this trip.  Hotel treadmill from here on out :(