See BamaDave Run (and Lift)

[gobbla]

wow...that really blows. sorry to hear that. especially when you were well set for PR's accrost the board. [img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]

next time

[kmwest]

Jackasses... that's the kind of thing that race organizers should be able to take care of in their sleep...

[BamaDave]

I'm more mad at myself for missing the turn, although I do think there should have been a guide at that turn. If so many of us missed it, the marking must not have been obvious - I can't believe that so many of us are that moronic! The race organizer is extremely nice, and I know they have problems lining up volunteers. Volunteering is something I need to do as well -- you know, the thing about being part of the solution and not part of the problem! OTOH, hell, we pay $25 to enter this race. I'd rather they use some of our money to pay somebody to stand on a corner and point instead of t-shirts! LOL. Also, I was surprised with this race, because all markings were on the road. Usually with our major races, they have signs up for all of the mile points and arrows at major turns.

I guess if there is a consolation, I still came in 9th out of 38 in my age group and 44th out of 297 overall. I'm still bummed, though, because my finish would have been over 2 minutes faster than the guy who won overall third place. And I would have definitely won the 1st or 2nd place age group award, unless I tripped or somethin' in that last 1.3 miles. Very frustrating, because of our popular local races, this is the only one where I have a chance to do that well.

I'm probably going to run a 5K in mid-May and then a 10K in Huntsville, AL on Memorial Day. The 10K is a big race, with lots of out-of-towners, and well over 1,000 entrants (which is a lot for Huntsville). I'll have to go for a PB in the 10K. Looks like there is a substantially hilly stretch on the course, but not anything like yesterday's race. There are several entrants in the 10K who can run sub-35 minute 10K's , so should be challenging and fun to run with so many elite, superhuman runners.

[kmwest]

I know what you mean about superhumans. One of the guys I run with on Wednesdays ran the 10-miler yesterday in 1:04. And he was only third in his age group...

[cappuccino]

That's a bummer Dave!

You still had a great run even if you didn't get the trophy to prove it.

You should come to Narlins for one of their 10ks. You could hit a superhuman pace on those flat roads, if you can steer away from the potholes. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[BamaDave]

Thanks, Cappuccino! I probably will try to run a race in New Orleans sometime. My in-laws live there, so we are usually in the area sometime during the Spring anyway. Believe me, I know all about the potholes!! I don't think the streets in Uptown New Orleans have been repaved in about 75 years.

[BamaDave]

WORKOUT UPDATES --

SUN. APRIL 24th --

1. STRAIGHT LEG DEADS (on platform): 8x120; 6x150; 5x180; 5x190; 5x200

-- decided to do straight leg deads and good mornings instead of heavy regular deadlifts -- didn't feel up to it due to leg fatigue following race

2. GOOD MORNINGS - 10x140; 10x150

3. S/L DEADS - BACKOFF SET: 12x140

** actually, these exercises nailed my hamstrings better than anything I have done in a long time, so I may keep doing these for a few weeks and then go back to heavy deads

4. PULLUPS - BWx5; +30 x5; +32.5 x5; +35 x5; +15 x6; BWx7 (so much for those "higher rep" backoff sets!)

5. CHINUPS - +40 x2 (faied on 3 -- ooops- too heavy!); +30 x 4 (Dang, I sucked on these after pullups)

6. STANDING BB CALF RAISES - 220x8; 220x10

7. EZ BAR/ BICEP CURLS - 102x5; 102x3

8. HANGING LEG RAISES - LEGS STRAIGHT OUT -- 11

9. SWITCHED TO LEG RAISES (STRAIGHT OUT) ON DIP BAR -- 17 (Ahhh - arms not as tired doing this as they are when hangin')

10. WEIGHTED CURLUPS WITH TWIST: +25db - 30 reps

-------------
MONDAY 4-25-2005 - off

TUESDAY 4-26-2005:

1. BB BENCH PRESS: 8x110; 5x130; 5x185; 3x190 (oh well, so much for surpassing my previous 4x190 this time)

2. DB INCLINE BENCH: 5x65; 5x65

3. DB DECLINE BENCH: 5x65; 5x65

4. BB BENCH PRESS/BACKOFF: 8x140; 10x120

5. OVERHEAD SQUATS: 8x60; 6x80; 5x100; 4x110 -- haven't done these since last Summer during Homegrown Muscle. I forgot how much I like these - but it was hard keeping that bar overhead after all the bench pressing.

6. FRONT SQUATS - 5x200; 4x200; 12x140 -- My depth wasn't great on the two heavy sets -- just past parallel. Last set, I went all the way... Need to work on depth in the heavier sets next time.

I may stick with the Overhead and Front Squats for a few weeks before returning to regular heavy BB Squats.

7. HANGING LEG RAISES WITH TWISTS - Left-Center-Right: +20# ankle weights - 21 (7 each position)

8. WEIGHTED CURLUPS +50db (303 tempo) - 22 reps

9. BICYCLES - +20# ankle weights - 30 reps

------------------

WED. APRIL 27, 2005

AM RUN -- Didn't sleep all that well... Go with the flow run, no attempt at high intensity -- 6.3 miles, time was around 47 minutes... ~7:30 average pace.

[BamaDave]

THURS APRIL 28, 2005

Pretty good workout last night. I ate like it was my last day on Earth yesterday, so maybe that gave me some extra fuel.

1. STANDING BB SHOULDER PRESS: 8x60; 6x80; 5x120; 5x120; 5x120 --- *excuse me, did *I* actually improve in shoulder presses? I felt like I could have used more weight or done more reps on the first two 5x120 sets as well. Last week I could only get 5x120, 4x120, 3x120. Probably an anomaly. Maybe it was the Mexican food for lunch.

2. DB SHOULDER PRESS (SEATED): 5x52.5; 4x52.5

3. STANDING BB SHOULDER PRESS/ BACKOFF SETS: 9x95; 9x85

** Good day for shoulder pressing! I'll look forward to my next one in 2006 or 2007.

4. BENT OVER BB ROWS (hold 1 sec. at "Top"): 8x90; 6x110; 5x150; 5x155; 5x160; 9x130

** These went okay - I'm not sure my form is where it should be and I may not be getting enough of a squeeze at the top. I'm wondering whether I should back off on the weight a little and concentrate on the squeeze and the hold at the top. At 130# for the last set, I can get it.

5. BB SHOULDER SHRUGS: 8x210; 8x210

**Nice challenge for the grip. I broke the glove habit recently (except for heaviest deadlift sets - and I bet as it gets hotter and more humid in my basement this Summer, I'll need them for pullups/chins), and my grip has definitely improved. I could never have done these bare-handed with a pronated grip a couple of months ago. My hands are coverd with callouses, now, and my wife is telling me I need workout gloves! [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

6. AB STUFF:

- Incline Bench Sit-Ups (+30db) - 13

- Dragon Flags (+20# ankle wts) - 13

- Russian Twists/Feet Elevated/ +30#db - 11 (ow!)

Time to go running this AM - another night under 6 hrs. of sleep, so I don't know how this will go... but I'm not doing anything high intensity this week.

[BamaDave]

FRI. APRIL 29, 2005:

AM run went a little faster than I expected. 6.1 miler - down the mtn. and back up. Time = 42:21, which was an ave. pace of 6:57. Not my best time on this run -- I didn't run as fast on the first half as previously, although that seemed to allow me to run back up at a similar pace as I did when I ran it at a higher intensity for better overall time. My fastest split was mile 2 at 6:33 pace. Slowest was the entirely uphill mile 4 at 7:46.

[BamaDave]

SAT. APRIL 30, 2005:

7.2 mile run; 52:04. Ave. pace = 7:14. Last mile was 6:12 - that was the only split I checked.

I also worked at the finish line of a 5K yesterday for the first time, which was fun. I was worried, at first, about possibly getting ranks out of order when tearing the tags off from the bibs, but it went okay overall. Lots of runners from a "Couch to 5K" program the Birmingham Track Club has been running for new people trying to get into running. It's a great idea, and you could tell that being part of that training group really motivated many of them to finish.

We had friends over last night, so lots of eating again and a couple of Margaritas. I'm planning a long run and hopefully have myself completely rehydrated! Definitely should have the glycogen reserves.

[BamaDave]

SUN MAY 1, 2005:

15.0 mile run; TIME = 1:55:05. AVE PACE = 7:40

Longest run in several weeks - hard course. The weather was cool (but very windy! and why is it cool on May 1st in Alabama? Weird), which was a good thing since I had no fluids or gels with me. I need some kind of fluid contraption for my long runs this Summer, because I'll never make it, and I want to try to do around one per month in this distance range through the Summer to keep me as close to marathon condition as possible.

Overall, this run went pretty well. That has to be a personal best for that course, which I am happy about since I am over 2 mos. post-marathon now.

My watch deleted the first two splits for some weird reason...

SPLIT TIMES: [distance point of split]- [time for split] - [total time to point] - [split pace] - [ave. pace to point]

5.4 miles (split was 3.7 to 5.4) - 12:02 - 39:14 - 7:05 - 7:16

6.35 miles - 7:48 - 47:03 - 8:13 - 7:25

8.6 miles - 18:52 - 65:56 - 8:23 - 7:40

9.55 miles - 6:50 - 72:46 - 7:12 - 7:37

11.25 miles - 12:48 - 85:38 - 7:32 - 7:37

12.3 miles - 9:09 - 94:44 - 8:43 - 7:42

14.0 miles - 13:23 - 108:07 - 7:52 - 7:43

15.0 miles - 6:57 - 115:05 - 6:57 - 7:40

I seem to be slowly adapting more and more to these longer runs. Back in January when I was marathon training, this run would have wiped me out for the day and cause leg spasms. None of that today (although I am not motivated to do the yard work I should be doing). I was advised to stretch my quads as a possible solution to the irritation in my left knee - and since I have been doing this before my runs this week, I have experienced much less aggravation. I have some soreness on my left knee, but nothing like after the 15K last weekend. Hopefully I can keep this under control!

[BamaDave]

WORKOUT - TUES 5-3-05:

1. STRAIGHT LEG DEADS (on platform): 8x120; 6x150; 5x190; 5x200; 5x210

2. GOOD MORNINGS - 10x150; 10x160

3. S/L DEADS - BACKOFF SET: 12x150

4. PULLUPS - BWx5; +30 x5; +32.5 x5; +35 x5

5. CHINUPS - +30 x5 ; +30 x 5

6. PULLUPS - Backoff Sets: BW +10 x7; BW x6

** I am not getting my chin completely over the bar for final rep or two in some of these pullup/chinup sets, although I am close. I'll probably keep my weights stable and work on form. The "Backoff" sets are no exactly backoff sets in terms of number of reps - I guess I should do bench assists to add more reps at the end.

7. STANDING BB CALF RAISES - 225x10; 225x10

8. EZ BAR/ BICEP CURLS - 102x5; 102x5

9. LEG RAISES (STRAIGHT OUT) ON DIP BAR -- 20; 14

10. WEIGHTED CURLUPS WITH TWIST: +30db - 30 reps

-------------------------------------

WED. 5/4/05 MORNING RUN

-- I actually fell asleep quickly after my workout last night, so I had 6-1/2 hours of sleep before getting up to run.

6.2 mile run -- 42:55 (ave. pace = 6:55)

SPLITS: (mile point) - (split time) - (total time) - (pace for split) - (ave. pace to this pt.)

1.0 miles - 7:16 - 7:16 - 7:16 - 7:16

2.3 miles - 9:17 - 16:34 - 7:08 - 7:12

3.35 miles - 6:47 - 23:21 - 6:28 - 6:58

4.4 miles - 7:36 - 30:58 - 7:14 - 7:02

5.2 miles - 5:52 - 36:50 - 7:20 - 7:05

6.2 miles - 6:04 - 42:55 - 6:04 - 6:55

This turned out to be a great run. First mile was okay... I lost a few seconds trying to get a black lab to stop playing with me. LOL. From 1.0-2.3, I did a few intervals. 2.3-3.35 is a downhill segment. 3.35-4.4 was the reverse of the downhill - this was my biggest effort segment for the run - tried to keep my pace up as much as possible and focused hard on controlling my breathing and "belly breathing." Definitely a PB on that uphill stretch. Of course, I ALREADY BLEW MY HILL RACE, but no doubt running hard on this stretch is great training for anything. 4.4-5.2 -- definitely a recovery segment -- not nearly as much uphill as previous split, but my pace dropped off anyway. I kicked it up for the final mile - especially the last quarter mile where I was close to sprinting.

It looks like my schedule is going to work out to run a 5K on May 14th. This will be my first 5K race. I'm not sure what the course is like -- it's in a section of town where it could be fairly level or obnoxiously hilly.

[BamaDave]

THURSDAY 5-6-2005:

1. BB BENCH PRESS: 8x110; 5x130; 4x185; 4x190 (regressed on the 185 set; went up versus last week on the 190 set --- overall, no progress, really)

2. DB INCLINE BENCH: 5x67.5; 5x67.5

3. DB DECLINE BENCH: 5x70; 5x70

4. BB BENCH PRESS/BACKOFF: 8x140; 9x120

5. OVERHEAD SQUATS: 8x60; 6x80; 5x110; 3x115 -- I'm really limited on these by upper body stamina. I should probably do the squats before all the bench pressing.

6. FRONT SQUATS - 5x200; 5x200; 7x140 -- Depth was marginal on first set, better on the second. For the 140 backoff set, I tried the cross-arm approach for holding the bar. At first, it seemed much better than having my arms bent back, but the bar kept slipping off of my sweaty shoulders, and I lost it completely after the 7th rep. Last week I did 12x140 for that set with the regular method for holding the bar.

I really like both Overhead and Front Squats, but I am missing that complete hammer from traditional BB squats with a lot of depth. I may need to back off on the pounds for the Front Squats and focus on going close to the bottom, as I did for regular squats. Alternatively, I may work in a set or two of reg. BB squats, although this is already a long workout.


7. HANGING LEG RAISES WITH TWISTS - Left-Center-Right: +20# ankle weights - 24 (8 each position)

8. SWISS BALL SIDE RAISES +30db (303 tempo) - 11 ea. side

8. WEIGHTED CURLUPS +50db (303 tempo) - 28 reps

9. BICYCLES - +20# ankle weights - 35 reps **ouch**

-------------------------

FRI. 5/6/05 MORNING RUN

Not a great night's sleep - about 5-1/2 hours.

7.2 mile run - 52:45 AVE. PACE = 7:20.

Laid back run, overall - mostly go with the flow. I ramped up the final mile and did it in 6:00. One second short of my PB for that final mile ramp-up. LOL. I would have made it a few seconds shorter if I hadn't lost momentum when I had to stop briefly to deal with the overly friendly Lab. I had two pauses on this run to deal with dogs. Sheesh.

Sometime I need to do some track training, especially if I want to run some 5K races. I really don't have a good feel for pacing myself on a shorter race, and my training grounds are not optimal for developing a sense for this. On the other hand, a flat track is not representative of local race terrain - but it would probably still help. My 5K split in the recent 15K was probably around 19:20 - so I should be able to knock some time off of that for a 5K. My fear is starting off too slow and losing lots of seconds or too fast and not being able to maintain momentum through the race.

[BamaDave]

SAT. MAY 7, 2005:

6.1 mile run. Time = 39:22. Ave pace = 6:27.

My plan was to do this as a tempo run. The first 1.05 miles was 6:17 (5:59 pace), which was a little faster than I planned. I wanted to conserve some energy for the long uphills in the second half. So, since energy conservation was blown, I then decided to just keep it at faster tempo for the entire first half. Next mile = 5:48 (very happy with that - since a combo of up and downhills), and next mile was 5:39 (almost entirely downhill). Total time for the first half (3.05 miles) was 17:44. Definitey the first time I have done that, although there is a net elevation change of ~ -300 feet on this half, which of course helps (esp. in the third mile).

Second half (reverse of first half) - First mile took 7:52. That's the reverse of the previous mile, so 2:13 longer going back uphill - LOL. I knew I would not have the stamina to PB on that particular mile, so I just focused on keeping an even pace. Next mile took 7:03 -- again mostly uphill, and I needed recovery from the previous one. The last 1.05 miles took me 6:41 (pace= 6:22).

Overall - a great training run. The "runner's high" from going fast is definitely different than, say, a super long run.

Today is my longer run day - probably in the 11-12 mile range this week. Looks like I won't be able to do it until later in the day, so could be hotter than I am currently used to.

[BamaDave]

SUNDAY MAY 8, 2005:

I didn't get my long run in on Sunday. Both girls were home with me Sun. morning, whereas usually they are at Church while I engage in the heathen activity of running. Then I had tons of yard work on Sunday afternoon. Motivation for a long run was gone by evening, so I decided to do weights Sun. night instead.

1. STANDING BB SHOULDER PRESS: 8x60; 6x80; 5x125; 4x125; 3x125 --- I continue to think that I may be experiencing some strength gains in shoulder exercises.

2. DB SHOULDER PRESS (SEATED): 5x52.5; 5x52.5

3. STANDING BB SHOULDER PRESS/ BACKOFF SETS: 8x95; 11x85

4. BENT OVER BB ROWS (hold 1 sec. at "Top"): 8x90; 6x110; 5x140; 5x145; 5x150; 10x130

** Backed off on my pounds for these to do a better job with keeping the 1 sec hold at the top and form in general.

5. BB SHOULDER SHRUGS: 8x215; 8x215

6. AB STUFF:

- Incline Bench Sit-Ups (+30db) - 14

- Dragon Flags (+20# ankle wts) - 16

- Russian Twists/Feet Elevated/ +30#db - 11

- Full V-Sits (20# ankles/ 30#db) - 14 (I think)

--------------------------

MONDAY MAY 9, 2005:

MORNING RUN. 9.3 miles. 69:12. 7:26 average pace. This was my substitute for yesterday's long run. I planned to go a little longer, but didn't have time. Not very satisfying overall -- too short for a slower-paced long run. I didn't feel like I got much out of it. Nice morning, though -- pleasantly cool (around 60 degrees), and the scenery from the top of the "mountain" was nice with fog settled into the valleys. It won't be much longer before the early AM runs are in thick humidity and temps. near 70, although that still beats running in the afternoon or evenings.

[BamaDave]

WORKOUT - TUES 5-10-05:

1. STRAIGHT LEG DEADS (on platform): 8x120; 6x150; 5x210; 5x220; 2x230 (lost grip); 3x230

2. GOOD MORNINGS - 10x160; 10x170

3. S/L DEADS - BACKOFF SET: 10x160

4. PULLUPS - BWx5; +30 x5; +32.5 x4; +35 x3

5. CHINUPS - +35 x4 ; +35 x 4

6. PULLUPS - Backoff Sets: BW +10 x7; BW x5

** Focused on better form for weighted pullups, but wound up doing less reps than last time. May have been fatigued from increases on S/L Deads. Or maybe just a sub-par day.

7. STANDING BB CALF RAISES - 230x8; 230x8

8. EZ BAR/ BICEP CURLS - 107x5; 107x3

9. LEG RAISES (STRAIGHT OUT) ON DIP BAR -- 20; 18

10. WEIGHTED CURLUPS WITH TWIST: +30db - 30 reps

--------------------

WED. 5-11-05:

MORNING RUN. 8.9 miles Time = 64:56 Ave. Pace= 7:18.

Splits: 1.0 mile - 6:57; 4.5 mi. - 33:24; 5.55 miles - 40:15; 6.6 miles - 48:46; 7.9 mi. - 58:21; 8.9 mi. - 64:56.

Tough course and my legs felt like they were weighed down. Probably due to last night's hamstring work. Pace was decent on more level sections, but I was slow on inclines. My next run will be Friday morning, but that will be a lower intensity effort since I have a 5K race on Saturday. I'm planning squats for Thursday night, which I may regret on Saturday morning!