Wednesday 3/31

RUN

6 miles, 9:35 pace, 134 avg. HR. Slow and lovely. Three pretty good days in a row. I had a vision: When I'm finally able to run like an unhinged madman, I'll be so overcome with gratitude I'll just burst into tears and render my great run a really adorable yet pathetic event.

Watching 6 year-olds color hard-boiled eggs and trying to find the best way to connect in my community. Looks like Time Warner Cable is out and AT&T is in.


RECOVERY

We went to Oggi's last night because we had a coupon (and on Wed. kids eat for free). Between you and me the only reason Oggi's is on my map is they have Arrogant Bastard on tap, among a string of other taps with their own sub-par "craft brews." Sound lame on my part, like I have a problem? Whatever. AB is good beer, it's on tap and the restaurant is very family friendly (games for kids, food for everyone, and TV's galore). So we pull-in.

Wife and I order a full balsalmic chicken salad, I order some wings and get Jack his little pizza. The waiter brings me a stout. I can see it landing, but don't say anything initially. I take a couple of sips. Yip, didn't order a lame coffee beer (definitely not a Bear Republic like stout). So, the guy (used to be a waiter, now just some guy. See: ETHOS) comes around again and I say, "This isn't Arrogant Bastard." He says it is. I shake my head, no. I hold it up for him to take it, he does, takes a whiff, shrugs his shoulders and walks away. He's gone for a while. I see one of the bar schleps poke his head around the corner and look at me. My wife is looking at me like a started something. I'm thinking one thing: Bring me my ale. He finally comes back empty-handed, squats down like a dog that knows it's done wrong and says, "you were right. We're out of AB." By the way, no problem, but you could just tell they were trying to hide this information, continue to operate as if they had it on tap. I say, "Bring me the IPA." This is reference to their weak IPA. He says they're switching taps now. He suggests I try their "Scottish." I guess this is an ale. At this point, I don't care.

The beer was an under-achievement. Not surprising. AB is the only way to go at such a mainstream establishment. It's a bummer to think that probably 90% of people would order AB on a night like that, get their Crap stout, or Scottish rag-weed Ale, and not think twice about it.

I am not a snob. I told my wife if beer tasted like this, I would not drink beer. That should say something about my beer program.

Come-on, Oggi's. Step your game up!

The moral of the story: Respect Beer!

Tuesday 3/30

RUN

7 miles nice and easy. My HR never got higher than 137 and I swear I wasn't walking. I did this run on a treadmill. Frankly, it's a great place to do this kind of "running review." The road beats me up and the "others" associated with the road can tarnish that work-out; the trail requires a stronger respiratory system than I have right now, the spring bloom is already here along with THOSE allergies, hills demand fitness I don't have, so a lot to contend with, which the treadmill systematically removes.

These easy runs are like yoga or other types of meditative exercise. Unless there is something fundamentally wrong with mechanics (or you fall-down) you can not get injured. It's almost not running. I love it for what it is.


RECOVERY


Took the family to How to Save Your Dragon. So good. Then Stone IPA draft with a couple of onion rings. Yikes.

Monday 3/29

First . . .the ole leftover recovery. . .Green eggs and turkey "ham." Yum.



RUN

6 easy miles. Feel great. I might try to do something this afternoon only because the weather is so nice and I feel so good. But no need. Program I devised this morning after some contemplation of the importance of consistency is 6-7 miles everyday until I can handle more. All easy miles. That's the smart approach. The six today will not jeopardize the seven tomorrow. If I do more this afternoon, perhaps that undermines tomorrow. But maybe a hike this afternoon. We'll see.


RECOVERY

Think I might get up to N. Park to watch my buddy's band.

N. Park is home to some ale houses. Pretty sure I'll hit Toronado's which is just down the street from where the band plays. I have never been to Toronados. Seems like a must.

Might hit Blind Lady's and/or Hamilton's. Sound like a little much.

A couple at Tornado's sounds perfect, especially considering what's on tap!
_________________________________________________________________________

I decided to stay in and go to bed. Damn, I'm good.
But prior to sleep I did spend a little time on Beer Advocate,
perusing reviews of some of the beers on the local pub tap lists.

If you're going to have only two during a particular "session," make them count!

Sunday 3/28

RUN

7 miles easy. I think this will be the regimen for as far as I can see. I worry some about my allergies. Doctors always give you that "I just farted" look, which undermines a lot of credibility, but that's, I guess, the way it is.

The run felt great. I slept well, consistency is coming back and the easy run is the name of the game. One of my favorite twitters said something to the affect of don't be a hero in the spring and a zero in the fall. I'm buying that. I have a long way to go . . .to where I want to go. So, this will be the regimen: As many ez miles as I can get in with out being completely freaked-out.

I think 34 miles on the week. Yay.


RECOVERY

Alpine IPAs. If you aren't on these, you are on the outside looking in.

Saturday 3/27

RUN

AM - 4 miles easy before coffee. Stuffy but feel pretty good. Time for some hoops with a couple of 6 year-olds. Bring it!

That's all I did. Between hoops with the chillins and un-packing, I'm just going to crack a grog. . . and watch this great college hoops.


RECOVERY

Just so happens that a little half ironman went down in Oside today. I did that beast twice back in the day. Gnarly. And I gotta give BW major props. That ironman training is working. She qualified for Kona. Congrats. This Racer 5 is for you and all the other beasts that killed it out there.

Friday 3/26

RUN

Very solid 8 miles on trail/road. We'll see how my system bounces back, but I feel great, especially after that little (and I mean little) nutrient-rich Whole Foods salad! Their beer selection is very mediocre considering what they're trying to represent.

The run was great. I finished feeling light and quicker than when I started. It is going to be a warm weekend.

This post is not finished ;-)

As I said. . .


RECOVERY

Feeling great post that 8 miles. I said 8 miles; not impressive, but, hey MAN, it's 8. It's my wife's favorite number. Mine's 23 or 3 if you want to simplify things.

I bought 2 beers this afternoon. It's Friday, the 8th day of the week. And here we are, 2008. I bought 8 beers this afternoon (actually, I bought only 2).

They are both 8% ABV. Maybe these are in my top 8 beers all-time. Either way, Pliny the Elder and Alpine's Pure Hoppiness are epic.

And yes, my jar holds, exactly, one 22oz. bomb.





I know. Smithsonian and shit.

Thursday 3/25

RUN

Super slammed with work. Cross your fingers that some things happen because of this hard work!

Only 5 miles, super ez. I feel much better now; felt pretty crappy last two days. Running is just not on the front burner right now. My health is quirky, work is a little crazy and I'm just not going to worry about it.

Wednesday 3/24

Tuesday 3/23

Happy Birthday, Mom.

RUN

(Monday I worked and recovered from that horrible 10 miler on the road.)

10 miles. Toughed it out. Tired. Slept toward a f'ed-up neck/shoulder last night. Err. Forgot how tired that'll make you by the mid-end of the day. And the allergy meds leave me a little fagged.

1800ft. of vert. and all on a trail. Stoked and wiped! Legs feel good right now. Everything feels pretty good. Just tired.


RECOVERY

Car was parked very close to Pizza Port Solana Beach. First time I've ever been there. Good taps. No bar, but I am not complaining.

Pint of Green Flash 30th St. Pale Ale. Yum. First sip 20 minutes after my run, cocoa-nut water, Gatorade and banana.

Then had a pint of Port Shark Attack. Yum. Perfect recovery bliss after this duo.

Chilled, headed home and had a little take-home sushi and chick wrap.

I have a lot of WORK to do, but I need to double tomorrow.

GO!

Sunday 3/21

RUN

13 miles. 3 mile hike with Jack around noon and then I got out for 10 miles. First 5 miles felt good, but the last 5 dragged. Road run. 1700+ft. of climbing though it seemed flat. The road sucks.

First day since Tuesday I was able to run. The week was hectic due to our move. No need to hash the details; we all know what moving is like. JW had a great recount when he and BGW moved a few months ago. Unfortunately, we had a ton of shit to move and a 6 year-old to keep us on our nose, toes, whatever. It's been pretty crazy. The most important part is this: I LOVE OUR NEW DIGS! Put it this way, a couple of Chargers live in the development. My neighbor says she sees Antonio Gates in the gym. Yeah, there's a gym, killer lap pool, playground, tennis courts. But that's outside. Inside, our pad is just plain dope. New. Dialed in. My backyard has a built-in BBQ. Already ran that thing with some flank steak. Money. I'm so stoked to be in and un-packing.

However, no running since Tuesday. The stress of getting up early each day and coordinating, working, moving, etc., was too much to try and mix-in a run. Even if I had gotten-up at 5:00 for a run, I'd be pushing too hard. I did not want to become obsessive about training for a race I'm really targeting in 2011 :-)

20 miles on the week. All things considered, I'm happy.
Besides, I did some serious climbing/lifting. Just ask the movers I hired.
They were impressed. Our new pad is a tri-level. And we have a lot of books.
Translation: get it, dog!

It was enough to work on the move, stay hydrated with water, and get to bed early ("maybe I'll sneak down to the gym tonight, or throw-on the head-lamp and get some mileage done." Those thoughts crossed my lame brain.). Now, it's Sunday, I feel great (have definitely gotten closer to 100% than I've been in a while), I'm watching a college basketball tourney game in my "media room," and thinking about dinner (left-over steak salad and beer).


RECOVERY

I had a couple of beers here and there this week.

Couple of Red Rocket Ales at Sammy's with a killer Greek Salad (wife had a gluten-free beer from Anheuser Busch - you could put it in your water bottle for a long ride ;)

A few Guinness by the can.

Pliny the Elder (the first beer I cracked in my new pad. Obviously)

Bear Republic's Pale XP. Pretty good, creamy, orange but hoppy with some good herbs.

Ale Smith's ESP. Good beer.

And La Fin du Monde (the end of the world). Solid triple fermentation ale, 9%, smooth. This was gooood. And the only thing I wanted from Ralph's supermarket, which officially has the worst beer selection of all time. None the less, a solid find drinking this trappist style ale with my flank steak and wedge salad. Yum!

It's nice to be back and ready to go.

This week's goal: 45 to 50 miles.

Tuesday 3/16

RUN

Took Monday off because it was the worst -- no need to dwell on that!

Today ran 1 hour in the beautiful afternoon sunlight. ~7 miles.
Felt tight (legs) and out of shape until I was done. Then I felt great.

Taking a couple of days off sucks. I bet the week benefits from the recovery, but geeze. I could feel it. I ate like crap on Sunday and I think the moving and whatever else I'm stressing about made the days-off even heavier.
Can't wait to ramp it up the rest of the week.

Can't wait.


RECOVERY

Salad with romaine, kale, red peppers, olives, carrots, garbanzo beans, a couple of pieces of tofu, red onion w/ olive oil, Braggs, crushed red pepper and fresh lemon juice.

Sunday 3/14

RUN

Went to the park and ran a bunch of sprints barefoot. There was a whiffle ball and bat involved and a few "Hey, Dad, where are you going?" Beautiful weather and the moving is its own endurance sport. The break for the park was needed. That's it.

I think I got 35 on the week. Pretty pleased, took two days off if I count today. A few doubles have opened that can of worms. Almost anything is possible if doubles become more common. And health-wise, I'm better some days than others. I live in an old house and the moving is only stirring-up more of what the medical community has pretty much determined is my achilles heal: the dust mite. I know, everyone's allergic to dust. No, you don't know. Moving to a new place (it's a lot newer, hardwood floors) will help a ton. At least I hope.

So, 35+ not feeling 100% is great for me. The doubles feel good. The body feels good; all of that lifting is definitely paying off. If I continue to feel better, I'd like to see 40+ this week. By April, I oughta be bangin'-out 50+ comfortably feeling better and better about my program.

Don't think I'll make the GC trip with GZ and the boys. That would be a little reckless on a couple of fronts. In the end, I need to get back to CO and hope to do so in 2010, but we'll see. I just need to keep building, running more trails, climbing more as the body gets healthier and stronger day by day.


RECOVER

Some cold Gatorade throughout the day. And some frozen yogurt after the park :-)

I hope everyone had a great weekend!

Saturday 3/13

RUN

AM - 3.5 on the treadmill feeling a little congested. Uhg.

PM - 3.5 around the neighborhood, a little climbing, running comfortably though a little push here and there only because I could. Again, just felt okay.

7 miles.


RECOVER

Friends brought over some white chili, wife home made some pizza and I had a little red wine and a couple of beers (a Blue moon and a Caldera IPA to be exact.

Friday 3/12

RUN

Snuck in a 29 minute run this AM which amounted to about 3.7 miles (drove it on the way home from Kindergarten). Here this: I am not really concerned with these things. I am just running these days, trying to keep it very comfortable. I felt very good and just ran, and the first half of the run is up, maybe 500ft, maybe more, I'll check one of these days. That's the neighborhood. Out the door, right is up, left is down.

Bottom line, the 4 miles this morning (yeah, I'll tag-on the extra .3 miles cuz I've been taught that's what you do) were awesome. I had a Hammer gel before the run. Plus, I have to admit that my big night of sleep included some good dreams, one of which starred my mother, which always gives me life!


Did another 6.3 miles on the treadmill. It was fine despite the epic weather. I got a taste of that on my earlier run. HR max 152 only because I finished the run with a 5% grade 3 minutes. It was a mellow run.

I finished with 10 for the day. HUGE. Things are coming around (I can only hope and keep my fingers x). I am more pleased with the 10 miles than I am my beer selection.


RECOVER



I also picked-up one can of the GUBNA. $4. Kinda pissed me off but who am I going to blame? A can of imperial ipa, 10%. We'll see. Sounds good.

Right now, I am enjoying the Pure Hoppiness of Alpine. Pretty nice. First sip was not too special since I've grown accustomed to the west coast IPA style. But its complex hops are starting to stir within. Big hops for sure and definitely a contender. Feeling really good and about to put together some steamed veggies, and salad with some chicken.

Now it's the Nelson. Holy shit. Alpine is an IPA orgy. Off. The. Chain. Nelson is an IPA with a little rye which definitely gives it some flavor and affects the color, etc. This is IPA heaven, ole Alpine.

Tomorrow I hope to be out the door early for a run since I have a long day of packing for our move.

Thursday 3/11

RUN

Easy 4 miles. Got disoriented again the second half of the run. And became ravenously hungry. I'm just not fueled. What's odd is that I did 9 yesterday (a much harder run) and felt great. However, I didn't eat much today (some cereal for breakie, then a little bag of raw almonds and 2 tangerines, a power bar, a bunch of water and some sunflower seeds). I just have to fuel much better.

I'm at 18 for the week and feeling pretty good.


RECOVERY

I just ate too much Mexican food. I'm beat and I want to run bigger tomorrow. Pliny and maybe a couple of his buddies might be cruising over manana.

Adios.

Wednesday 3/10

RUN

9 miles ~2100ft climbing. Longest in a while. The first 2.5 were tempo (in hills) to get to my kid's school to watch him and his classmates dance and do yoga for ~ hour. That "rest" was almost too long. Then I hit a store for some vittles before finishing. Maybe a mile of flat. Hardly anything flat around here. Felt pretty damn good.

You know how while you're running/cycling/whatever, and you might obsess a little about blogging, so you think about what you're going to write. I was going to write about wealth, how I feel really wealthy. Today is a perfect example. All I'll say is I was able to drop-off my kid, go home and get a little work done, then run down to his school to watch him 'perform' at school, and continue on my little run before returning home to get more work done. That's rich. I may not have a lot of money, but I feel freakin' "loaded."

Speaking of which. . .

RECOVER

So far, I know PtE is coming for dinner. But we decided to postpone our recovery engagement. Instead, Hop Rod Rye drove by and got mugged. Oh my. I don't think I've had one before, which seems odd since you see it everywhere (if you're looking for such things). But this is dreamy. Great dark amber, creamy head that settles, so smooth the 8%ABV just slips through the cracks and you have yourself a good bit of irony. I'm the one who got mugged :-)

If people are interested in the best buys in ales post, I'm the guy. I am ALL ABOUT THE DEALS. And there is a strange trend. I don't have to spend much money for what turns-out to be some of the best craft beer on the market. There are, unfortunately, some rip-offs. Good beer, but way too much $$$.

A good end to a good day.

Tuesday 3/9

RUN

I felt great today! Good news. Yesterday's cold hilly run beat-up my little white ass. But I slept great and felt unreal today.

Big day of work. Got a lot done. Driving home I thought I might head to the gym or run around the neighborhood before I "recovered," but the "off day" certified itself. Things are going well. No worries. Having made that decision, feeling really good about it, I drove by my craft beer store looking for one particular beer company's beer.

RECOVER

Alpine Beer Company.

I've heard some great things about these beers and some of the best local pubs have them on tap, but I have not tried them.

Today I picked-up a Duet. Check it out. Classic west coast IPA.
Great hops, but really refreshing, 7% ABV. Less aggressive than GF IPA. Just another solid Dego IPA!

And it's not one of their hoppier beers. My guy expects some Nelson and Exponential Hoppiness tomorrow. I can't wait.

Monday 3/8

RUN

Got out for about an hour and hit some mud at Mission Trails. Pretty sloppy, but I found some good footing and climbing. The stormy conditions were, well, stormy, but no rain, just cold with a pretty soggy running surface. How can you not be a little inspired by the folks battling gnarly weather outside California as well as local folks hitting and relishing the wet conditions, even if some of them are on bikes. I guess a smidge of HTFU on my part.

5 miles and 1044ft. of climbing. Felt okay but not great. I was pretty congested. Allergies are just a bitch. I have no cold, no infection, just allergies that I have to deal with. I think running earlier in the day might help. NO dairy is a great idea. Taking my medicine helps. Today's running was the kind of medicine I want to take. I can't wait to be healthy enough to really run in the hills. I'm keeping things pretty mellow right now because it's that time of the year for me and I'm still not 100%. So, I am not going to be too bummed about the muzzle I'm sporting.

Today, I also exchanged some women's athletic tops I bought my wife for Christmas at Roadrunner Sports. She tried them on; they sucked. She said I could have the return. I got a $20 voucher from Roadrunner because of some "settlement." That 20 plus the return on the lame tops means I have $100. Unfortunately, Roadrunner Sports is LAME. Their customer service is okay, but their data system sucks (they have NEVER been able to retrieve my account even when I would pay the small fee for VIP status - that enables one a few discounts), and I'd like to have the people servicing me be actual runners. Sure, I don't know exactly what some of these people do in their spare time, but from the looks of things, running doesn't get much love.

So anyways, in 2008, when I was a VIP, I bought 6 pairs of shoes from Roadrunner, which entitled me to a free pair of shoes. This happened at the end of 2008 and when I called to collect, they mentioned they had discontinued that program. Bullshit. I talked to a manager and got my free pair. Since I was just starting to break-in my Brooks Cascadia 3s, I bought the next generation, Cascadia 4. However, I have not worn them at all since my running has been pretty limited for whatever reasons (see: HTFU!). I tried to switch the Cascadia 4, for the Cascadia 5.

Right, I know. A lot of bullshit about shoes. I want the green ones. Those Yellows are freakin' pretty bright. And ole Roadrunner denied the exchange.

Looks like I'm going to be hitting those 4s starting soon. Like tomorrow.

My 3s got pretty muddy today.

NO BEER for me.

Sunday 3/7

RUN

Wow. Crazy run. Got about 25 minutes in and felt very heavy, slow, a little dis-oriented. And hungry. Found some food: protein shake, protein bar, apple and V8. Waited about 10 minutes and finished the run. I even had some oatmeal this morning and a piece of turkey bacon, preparing for the run. Not enough. I've had that feeling many times while exercising. FOOD!

65 minute fatigue-ridden run. That's what's happening right now. I've been eating and sleeping a ton. Today clinched it that that's what I'm dealing with. I have been running about 2 weeks since my "down time." I guess this is my first adjustment. I wanted to do about 80 minutes today, but I like the consistency.

I think I've done ~25-30 miles each of the last two weeks.
This next week should be more.

Checked the HR today and could not get it even close to the 140s until I ran 7:30 for the final 4 minutes of the run. Hit a whopping 147. But that is not fitness. That is fatigue. My old coach Lucho would confirm that for me if I asked him or if he wasn't such a blob snob.

Can't wait for tomorrow.

RECOVERY

More of the Sierra Nevada I've had in my fridge.

I really like the Glissade. It's like a gooooood lager.

Sharing my beer with this

Friday 3/5 and Saturday 3/6

No running or recovering on Friday.
Between volunteering, errands (we're moving. . .)
and watching my son star in The Little Red Hen, nada.

Saturday

AM - 50 minutes on flat and pretty hard terrain. This was a good reminder
of how out of shape I really am. Yikes. Plus I hate flat and hard.

A mid-day espresso made pretty clear why the run was so tough :0

Sierra Navada Glissade for lunch with my arugula tuna salad.
I like this beer, especially with food.

Relaxing after a busy day of purging/packing. Couple of Sierra Nevada Torpedos.

Thursday 3/4

RUN

AM - 50 minute hilly, windy, chilly just running. Felt slow which is exactly where I'm at. A little odd to get used to these runs before coffee and my morning bowel-movement. This is a period of waking-up the system, getting back on track. Felt great to be out in the morning's fresh air. Good to be getting back my schitt.
No beer last night so I felt a little sluggish this morning ;-)

And got a give a shout-out to my Balega socks and my Skinfit shorts. It's nice to have a few higher-end items to make the experience a little more enjoyable. But that's easy for me since I prefer many times to run in regular shorts with a belt and a cotton shirt.

PM - 30 minutes on the beach. Parked in front of OB ale house, which is near the beach, so that after the run I could walk right into a pint . . .

BEER

Walked into a pint of Stone IPA Ruination.

Then went to my craft beer merchant and bought
1 22oz of Ale Smith IPA and
1 22oz of Port Hop 15.

Just kickin' it tonight. Great day of fresh air.

Humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less.
-C.S.Lewis

Wednesday 3/3

RUN

AM - 45 minutes, felt great. Kid's home with a fever, wife has a little nagging cold, and I'm trying to break through the ice. Before wife left for work, 45 minutes, avg HR 138. I'll check HR every once in awhile.

Tending my feverish 6 year-old all day and starting to pack. Uhhhg. Dust and germs.

Wife got home so I went to return some movies and, fully dressed in jeans, etc., I drove to the bottom of Lucinda, and ran up the steep bottom part a couple of times, in the dark.

Tuesday 3/2

RUN

Mid-day 40 minute run around the neighborhood which isn't flat and I didn't care. Felt very good today. Probably the best I've felt. Lighter, clearer, thinner snot rockets, you know, all good. But I'm still hesitant to say GO.

Off to take lunch to my wife at work. That's right. That's what I call a good brick work-out. Then back to my kid's school for 2:10 p/u: "Dad, I don't want to go to [after-school program]." You got it, son. Question remains: how will I recover?


BEER

Pint of Port Beech St. English IPA.
Pour of Green Flash Grand Cru. Boom.

They had Racer 5, GF Hop Head Red, Port Wipeout, among others.

Now I'm done.
No I'm not.

Went to Hodad's for a buddy's B-day. 2 Sierra Nevada Pale Ale's on tap.

Monday 3/1

RUN

50 minutes at the track going around and around nice and slow (~5.5 miles). I am very sensitive about my breathing right now. Felt so so today. Did the follow-up with my Dr. I'm on the way back. Felt better as the day progressed. For me, the weekend was big, so this is fine for a Monday. I can't wait for tomorrow.


BEER

I read of someone enjoying a Sierra Nevada Glissade. It's seasonal, it's not a wimp and I enjoy most of Sierra Nevada's beers so I bought a sixer.

I enjoyed it. Really easy to drink, light with smooth malt and euro hop flavor. Great with some chicken!

_______________________________________________________


Remember: if you're in a rut, go for a run and try a (good) beer you've never had. Tough to beat that combination.