Brink Tri's

A nice easy run around Elk Ridge. I met up with Tyler with about 1 mile left and he ran with me back home.

I went over and ran with the Spanish Fork group.  I ran mostly with Jill and Michelle Erickson and Dave.  It was a bit nippy, but not too bad.  We ran over to the top of Harvey's Hill and back.

I went over and tried out the Provo Rec Center for the first time.  I will miss the Orem Rec.  The PR is a dive, the pool is only 25 meters, no hot tub, no steam room, no sauna.  Very basic, run down, no frills - but cheap.

I had a pretty bad run today.  I went running at lunch time.  I forgot my shoes, so I just wore the ones I had on for work.  They didn't work very well and my shins starting hurting.  I turned around at 2 miles and did some walking.  I had my shoes set out to take with me (as well as socks) but forgot them by the door.  Now I have to wear sweating socks for the rest of the day - but at least I didn't skip my run.

I had a much better run today than Tuesday.  I finally remembered my shoes and socks.  I'm still feeling a little fat and sluggish from the extra holiday weight gain.  We ran just under 9 minute pace with a 7:55 mile tempo run in the middle. I ran with John, Jared and Mike who all helped to push me along.

I went to the gym today.  I haven't been going very regularly the last few months.  I set a goal to get there more often this year.  One thing I'm going to try to work on is my Bench Press.  I won't report each time I go but as a benchmark for my Bench Press I will report today and compare it with the end of the year.

 10 x 95
1 x 117
7 x 95

I went swimming at the Provo Rec today.

I did my normal run up Provo Canyon.  It's reported that it's a bad red-air day today.  It didn't seem as bad to me as it was yesterday.  Hopefully running near the canyon the air is better than what they are reporting - wishful thinking?  I'm still feeling a little sluggish with the recent weight gain, but hopefully I can get back down to where I should be soon.

I ran with John up Provo Canyon.  

Another run up Provo Canyon.

I missed my normal Tuesday run because of a team meeting so I went today.  5 miles up Provo Canyon.

I ran with John up Provo Canyon, the normal Thursday run.

I forgot my garmin, but I did have my Timex Ironman to keep track of pace a bit.  I started out slowly, just happily running with my wife.  We did the first mile in about 9:30, but Lori decide that was to fast and decided to slow it up.  I went ahead trying to keep my pace around 9 minutes.  I was in no big hurry, I just wanted to get in under 2 hours.  I kept track of all my miles, but I hit a wrong key after the race and deleted them all. 

It was fun to go down and run in St. George and see a lot of friends.  I have a lot of excuses for not doing well:

10. Forgot my Garmin
9. Christmas Fudge which has turned to after Christmas Pudge.
8. The weather was less than ideal.
7. I started out to slow.
6. I couldn't find my buddy Will at the start to have him pace me.
5. Full-time training to be a Firefighter since November has thrown my training off.
4. Wearing a jacket because of threat of rain made me to hot.
3. My right foot has had a nagging pain ever since the Marathon in October.
2. I had to drive 5 hours yesterday.

And the #1 excuse...
1. I still broke 2 hours that's not to bad for an old fat guy.

I went to the Provo pool but after I got there realized that I didn't have my goggles.  I still swam 250 yards without goggles.  It's always good to train once in a while under non-ideal conditions.  Last year at the Salem Tri I didn't have goggles so it's good once in a while to swim without them I suppose.

After missing about a week of running I made it out today at lunchtime.  5 miles up Provo Canyon.

Pool today.

5 up Provo Canyon.

5 up Provo Canyon with John.  A little faster than yesterday.  We did about a 7:30 tempo mile on the way back.

I went swimming at the Provo Rec.

I went with the SFRC.  We had a pretty good sized group today.

I was planning on running today, but forgot to bring my shoes to work. I decided to go swimming instead. I was a little disappointed since I had been looking forward to running today.  It was really nice weather.  But at least I got a workout in, I just need to remember my shoes for tomorrow.

I just ran up the Provo Canyon Trail.

I ran with John up the Canyon.  We did a 1 mile tempo run coming back.  It was just over 7 minutes.

I ran with SF.  It was a really good run for me today.  I felt better today than I have for a long time.  

I took the family and went to the pool today, since it was a holiday.  I only swam 350 yards and then messed around with the kids for a while.  We also played some racquetball before we left.

A nice run up the canyon today.  The weather was nice, high 40s.

I gave blood today, so I didn't do any exercising today.  

I ran with John today up the canyon.  We had a good run, the weather was nice, we had a good tempo mile run towards the end.

I didn't have much time today so I just went and did a quick swim.

I ran up the canyon today.  It felt like a pretty good run today.  I need to start bringing a watch so I can track my time and pace, but it felt like I was pushing the pace a bit.  It was sunny but a little cold, mid-30's when I left.

Just my normal Thursday run up Provo Canyon with John.

I went with the SF group.  I didn't go particularly fast or all that far, but I sure felt beat up after today's run.  I have lots of aches and pains that are not normal after a 10+ mile run.  I'm either getting to old for this or I need to take a couple of weeks off - maybe both.

I went swimming today at Provo Rec.  I sure wish Provo Rec had a hot tub and I would have just spent my time soaking in that today.

A nice bike ride up the Canyon today.

I have not been running much this month.  After having two surgeries on my thumb last Friday I'm just happy to be out running again.  I did an easy 5 miles up Provo Canyon with John.

A nice ride up Provo Canyon.  I didn't go very far or fast, I still only have limited use of my thumb.

I went with John again up Provo Canyon.  Only my second time running this month.  I've just been trying to recover from some injuries.

I went swimming today.  It was the first time in a couple of weeks because of my thumb.  I finally got the bandage off this week and I was able to go.

This month has been a disaster.  I was just happy that I was able to make it to the race and actually finish.  On March 5 I had to have two surgeries on my thumb.  One that was botched so they sent me to the ER in Provo where a 'real' hand surgeon had to open it up again and finish the job.  I've also had a bit of Plantar Fasciitis, so it's actually been good to have some time off.

I had to have an echocardiogram a few weeks ago because of some other problems that I'm facing.  I'm happy to report that the tests came back positive - mean that there was only good news and I was cleared to run as far and fast as my little heart desires.

My wife and I both ran this race.  We awoke at 3 AM and started driving around 3:30.  We arrived in Ivins around 7:15.  We picked up our packets and then loaded the bus around 8:00.  My wife is use to getting up early, but I am not.  I did get about an hour of sleep on the way down.  We saw Hal and Kent Wing.  We also saw many of the Rhodes family down there and Jenny.  It was good to see everyone.   The course if beautiful and I was kicking myself for not bringing a camera.

After the race we went and hiked the 'Temple Quarry Trail' which is an easy hike up by the airport where the pioneers quarried rocks for the temple back in the 1870's.

We grabbed some lunch and drove back home.  It was a fast but fun trip.

Up Provo Canyon

Up Provo Canyon

Went with the SF group.

Swimming at Provo Rec.

Provo Canyon

With John up Provo Canyon.

I went with the SF group.  Mark was there this morning.  It was good to see Mark since he has moved to California.  

Went up Provo Canyon.

I went with John up Provo Canyon.

Provo Canyon.

SF group.  We went down powerhouse road and then out west.  

Rode my bike up Provo Canyon.

We ran up to the Cemetery.  It wasn't very far but it was a good hill workout.

Provo Rec.

Ran with John up Provo Canyon during lunch.

I didn't get out of bed early enough so I had to run by myself.  I just ran around Elk Ridge.

Later in the afternoon Tyler and I rode our bikes up to Four Bay and then over to Payson Canyon by the scout camp and back.  We found some awesome single track that we rode.  It was a good ride - 2.5 hours.

I went over and ran the Cinco-de-Mayo 5k after work.  It was a fun little race.  Very well organized, lots of volunteers and even an aid station - which is generally unheard of for a 5k.  There 225 people registered and the weather couldn't have been better. 
I went over with John and Dean from work.  John took off and I couldn't keep up with him, but Dean caught me at about 1 mile and we ran the rest of the way together.

They had lots of good treats at the end, chips/Salsa, magarittas (utah style), and fruit.  You entry fee also got you two tickets to the hale center theater and a nice running shirt - even if it is orange.  You couldn't ask for a better bargain.

I wasn't sure if I would get a run in this morning.  It was Father-and-Sons campout last night.  We were suppose to head up SF canyon to meet the rest of the group.  There was a bad accident which shut down the canyon.  We waited about an hour and then went and camped in the back yard.  

The boys weren't too happy, but I was.  I was able to get up and go running with the group.

I did a little brick work at lunch time.  I rode my bike as hard as I could to try to tighten and wear my legs out and then ran for about 2 miles.

I went with Jared and John.  We went out along Carterville round until we had gone 2.5 miles and then came back.  Most of that is along tree lined road/trails.  It was a nice change of scenery.

I went over and ran with SF.

It was kind of rainy and cool today, so I decide to stay in and go swimming instead of running.  I swam the whole 800 without stopping - that's good for me btw.  Getting ready for the salem spring tri in a couple of weeks.

I ran up the canyon.  I did some fartleks just for fun.  Beautiful day.

This was the annual Payson Region 5k.  Each ward in the region is a team.  Last year our team (ward) won the coveted 'golden shoe award'.  We didn't have nearly the participation this year as we did last year.  We went to defend the shoe, but alas we lost the shoe.  We didn't even have enough people to place this year.  It is scored like cross country, with the first 5 team member scoring.

The day was a little cold and rainy, so a lot of people were scarred off, I think.  I was second from our ward.  The rain held off during the race, so it turned out to be a pretty good day for running.

I was going to do a little brick session, but my bike tire was flat, so I settled for running.

Ran with John up Provo Canyon.

I had the day off from work and went down to Salem Pond to check out the Triathlon course for next Saturday's race.  

The pond was really nasty (just like every year).  I ran into a dead fish.  There was enough scum on top that I thought I could run across the pond faster.  It stunk.  Fishermen were mad at me for scarring fish.

I finished the swim and jumped on my bike for one loop around the bike course.  I forgot my helmet.  I don't like riding without a helmet, especially after my crash last year, but it was just a good reminder to remember it next week.  I didn't ride that fast, but kind of easy to get a feel for the course and transitioning. 

I then ran a modified run course.  Sort of the same as the race, but shortened a bit.  It was a good day of training.

Another little brick session to practice running after riding my bike.

I rode my bike up Provo Canyon and then ran about 2 miles down around Riverwoods.

Rode my bike to work today.

I went running with John at lunch time.  We went up to the track and did some speed work.  I was not feeling that great and didn't participate as much as I would have liked to.  I think I may have been a little dehydrated. 

I really like this race.  It's close to my house and well organized.  The Salem Pond is not the nicest lake to swim in, but it's still a great race.  The day could not have been more beautiful for a race.  

I thought I was doing well in the swim, I didn't take many breaks - back stroke etc, but time was longer than I had expected.  It was as crowded this year because of the way they had the different heats broken up.

The bike started out a little slow.  There was a small hill at about 1/4 mile and then a big hill at about 1/2 mile.  So it was about a mile into the bike before I could catch my breath and really ride.  We had to do two loops so we got those hills again.  I picked up a lot of speed for my second run at the big hill and sped up half of it the second time around.  Then I shifted down a little lower and made it up the hill a little better than the first attempt.  I was also pretty happy with my bike ride, but again my time was not that great.

My run felt like it was in slow motion.  I didn't have my garmin, so I didn't know my pace, I didn't want to take the time to put it on after the swim.  It just felt like I was running greater than 10 minute miles.  My legs felt really heavy and it was hard to get into a rhythm.  I wanted to walk, but forced myself to keep going.  At about mile 2 Will came running by.  I pushed my self to keep up with him.  I ended the running 27:00 minutes for the 5k, so I was just barely under 9:00 pace.  

My total time was 1:28, I was hoping for around 1:25-1:26, a couple of minutes better than last year.  I did beat last year, but only by about 30 seconds. 

I mostly worked on some drills and took it easy, recovering from the race on Saturday.

I ran at lunch time up Provo Canyon.

I rode my bike to work again today.  I don't time it every time, but I did today, to see if I could get a better time.  My previous best was 1:20.  I did today in 1:16.  There is a lot of luck that goes into getting a better time, like getting stopped at traffic lights, headwind/tailwind, temperature, etc.

I got to SF a little late, because of the rain.  I started running, found Allie around mile 1.5, ran with her back to Osborns.  We found Dan and ran with him up past Harvey's.  I turned around while those two went up Harry's hill.  

Just up Provo Canyon.

I ran with John up Provo Canyon.  Ron caught up with us and ran for a while.

I skipped the run, because most people were in the Wasatch Back.  Instead I joined the Noble Sports bikers and rode with them up Payson Canyon.

I've had a pinched nerve, sciatic, the last few day so I took a couple of days off.  I decided to go out with John to day and run through it.  After about 3 miles I was not able to walk.  I had to sit down and rest, my left leg was hurting, numb - felt like it was 'falling to sleep'.  

After sitting for a while it regained feeling and I was able to go again, but it would only last for a mile or less before I had to sit again.

I went riding with the Nebo Riders out of Noble Sports/Downhill.

I haven't been able to run much lately due to a pinched sciatic.  I'm

able to ride my bike, so I guess I'll stick to that for a while.

Still just riding my bike for now.

I rode over to Payson looking for the Nebo Riding group, but never found them.  I rode up main street and up by the canyon then back home.

Yoga - No running. :(

I went and rode my bike for a short ride during lunch.

I went swimming at lunch time.

I rode my bike to work today.

I went running for the first time time month, which will keep me from getting 0 miles for a month - (which I haven't done for about 15 years). I started taking medrol yesterday, which is suppose to help my pinched nerve/sciatic.  I felt ok this morning when I got up and started running.  The first mile was ok, but shortly after that my leg started getting some pain and going numb.  I was on a dirt road and there was no where to sit down.

About a mile and a half I got to asphalt and sat in the middle of the road until I got feeling back into my leg.  I ran straight home getting about 3 miles with one stop.  So far the medication is not helping at all.  I'll keep taking it and see what happens.

I went swimming today at the Provo Rec.

I rode my bike into work today.  I had to bring a backpack that was full of stuff and it got to be a little heavy towards the end.  But, otherwise, it was a good ride - uneventful - which is good.

I decided since I'm not able to run any distance that I'd go do speed work at the HS.  I did a little warm up and then did 1/4 mile repeats.  After each repeat I'd sit on the track and allow feeling to return to my leg and then I'd be off again.  I only did 6 repeats, so my leg never got real bad.  

I ran 9 miles this morning.  I started around 4:30 with Lori, Ronda and Todd.  I am still suffering from a pinched sciatic.  At the beginning I was able to run about a mile before I had to rest to allow feeling back into my leg. Toward the end of the 9 miles I was having to rest about every half mile.  Between resting I was running around 8:30-9 minute pace.  I would just sit down in the road or on a fence or something.  During that 9 miles I had to get off my feet 13 times to regain feeling in my leg and be able to continue.  

My Dr. gave me a medrol dose pack last week, but it didn't seem to make any difference and I'm taking 1000 mg of Naproxin a day which also doesn't seem to be doing anything.

It's going to be a fun marathon if I have to sit in the middle of the road every mile (try not to step on me).

I rode my bike a little bit at lunch time.

We had a ward activity at the pool in the evening.  I got a little swimming in between playing with the kids.

I went to Orem High with John and we did some speed work.  John was doing 1/2 mile repeats.  I did the first one with him and then I had to sit and rest more because of the sciatic.  He would do one lap and then I would join him for the second lap.

I won a free entry into the inaugural Herriman BlackRidge Triathlon, so I went up Saturday with my family and did the race.

It was a fun venue.  The lake was really small, we did a complete circle around the lake for a 400-500 yard swim (not sure exactly how far it ended up being).  The water was really warm, wetsuits were not required but I wore mine anyway.  Lori helped me get my wetsuit off, it takes me forever when I try to do it myself.

The bike started really fast, with a downhill start.  Someone had crashed just a block away from the lake.  After a fast start the rest of the first half was uphill.  We climbed up my Kennecott copper mine.  Then it was downhill to the bike finish.

I put on my running shoes and took off for the run.  I'm still having problems with my sciatic, and had to take a rest break at about the half way point of the run.  I sat for maybe a minute, stretched and then took off again.  By the end of the run it was getting pretty painful, but I was able to make it with only the one break.

My time was around 1:30.

I went to the Provo Rec swimming, but to rest and recover from the race Saturday.  It was just some easy swimming and some skill drills.

I went to the track and did 3 half mile repeats, with a warm-up and cool down.  

My St. George Marathon weekend did not start out the way I had planned.

 First of all let me start out in June.  Back in late June I notice that my left leg would go numb after running for only about 2 miles.  The numbness would start down in my toes and work its way up.  If I continued running my entire leg would be numb.  Pain would eventually start in my left glut and the pain would slowly work its way down until I could no longer run. 

I found that if I sat down the numbness and pain would go away in just a minute or two.   It didn’t help to just walk or stand I had to take the weight off my leg.

I took a couple of weeks and tried running again but had the same problem.  The problem seemed to get worse I couldn’t stand in a store line without getting the numbing in my leg.  Anywhere I had to stand for a period of time my leg would start to go numb. 

I took off most of the summer.  I went out and did two 10 mile runs, where I stopped every 1-2 miles and rested my leg.  I also did four 5-mile runs.  That was the extent of my training. 

During this time I went to two different Chiropractors that said they could fix me right up.  They adjusted my back and stretched me good.  They charged me $20-30 bucks a time and it didn’t seem to do any good. I went to a medical doctor who gave me a couple of prescriptions.  I filled the prescriptions and took them faithfully, which didn’t do any good.  I went to a physical therapist who did electric stimulation, inversion therapy, massaging, etc.  These things seemed to work for a while, but gave no long term results.  I was in the same pain when trying to stand, walk or run.

The next step is to get an MRI I guess.

I would have just skipped the marathon but my wife was running and we already had a condo rented and paid for.

I took Thursday and Friday off of work so we could drive down on Thursday.  Just as we were walking out the door, around noon, I got a text from a friend at work telling me they were having a massive layoff.

Worried, I came back in the house, turned on my computer and started monitoring my email.  About 30 minutes later my boss called me with HR on the phone and I was laid-off over the phone on the last day of the month.  My health benefits only lasted until the end of the day. 

I was just sick, we went to St. George because everything was paid for, but it made for a miserable weekend both mentally and physically.

 The Marathon (this was my 11th St. George Marathon)

 I knew it was not going to be pretty.  I started toward the back so if I had to stop and sit on the road there would not be so many people to trip over me.  The problem was that I could still run a 9 minute mile, being fresh at the beginning and the people around me were running 12-minute pace.  I was weaving and dodging people for miles. 

I made it to mile 3, the first water stop, found a chair and sat in it for a while, while I stretched my leg. 

My next stop was at about mile 6.  I stopped to stretch.  A friend found me on the side of the road and we ran for a while.  It’s good thing they don’t do drug testing at the marathon.  I had taken a 500 mg naproxen and some muscle relaxers.  My friend offered me a Tylenol 3 – with codeine.  I was willing to take anything at that point to get me to the finish line. Around mile 12 a stranger gave me something for cramps. 

I think the Tylenol really helped.  I did have to stop many more times, but not as often as I had thought I would.  I had to walk a lot also, because I was so out of shape. 

I finished the marathon at 5 hours and 15 minutes.  Compared to last year when I had 3:43.  I was over an hour and 30 minutes longer.  It was also the first time being over 5 hours.  It was 45 minutes longer than my previous worse – a few years ago when I also had an injury and wasn’t able to train properly.  But… I finished and lived to tell about it.  Now if I can just find a job and get this problem with my leg fixed.