Once upon a Marathon

Super Secret Contest

2009-06-02T12:54:00.000-07:00

Yes, Hi, I was wondering when the prize was going to be handed out for the Super Secret Contest?

Thanks,
Andy

4 Days Left

2009-05-26T19:38:00.001-07:00

Did a wierd workout.

2 x 1 mile at marathon pace

The rest is helping. 9:10 felt very comfortable.

Joe

Last Speed Workout

2009-05-19T17:51:00.001-07:00

12 days left!

1.2 mile warmup there

4:07 - 1st 1k

4:18 - 2nd 1k

4:16 - 3rd 1k

4:12 - 4th 1k

4:13 - 5th 1k

1.2 mile warmup back

8.28 miles

2009-05-15T05:48:00.000-07:00

Tempo run yesterday. I cut it short because I was being lazy. I started off with what I thought was slow and really picked up the pace when I hit the Queensboro bridge. 1:05:17 for 8.28 miles which is approximately 7:51 per mile.

Today is day 2 of moustache growing. Exciting!

Precision

2009-05-13T05:34:00.001-07:00

It's funny how human's don't get much credit for being precise. Well, I guess when people think of precise, they imagine very little if any variation. But, my damned track workout what very precise by my standards. So my track workout yesterday was as follows:

1.2 mile warmup

800 - 3:20

800 - 3:19

800 - 3:18

800 - 3:15

800 - 3:28 (paid for the 3:15)

800 - 3:21

800 - 3:18

800 - 3:16

1.2 mile cool down.

I was pretty happy about this since my track workout last week were all just under 3:30. So I guess I am getting faster.

Monday I did 45:00 on the bike at a whopping 16 mph.

Sunday I did a wonderful 4.5 miles at 9:16 per mile

Saturday I managed to do 46 miles on the bike which I am excited about

The ride didn't hurt and my legs were feeling quite fresh after. Almost fresh enough to run 13.1 miles after. Happy training everyone. Hotel and flight booked and we're excited to get out to San Diego.

And I'm growing a moustache.

Mansard Roof

2009-05-06T18:26:00.000-07:00

The Triathlon Bike

2009-05-04T17:39:00.000-07:00

So with some future considerations of triathlons in my future, I managed to go home and grab my tri bike. Yes, a tri bike and a road bike in a small Astoria apartment may be a bit excesssive, but I love it.

I've ridden the Felt for the last 2 days today doing 45 minutes averaging 16.5 mph. It feels pretty decent.

Hope everybody's training is going well. Bajojo.

Titi,

Joe

Last Long Run of the Plan

2009-05-02T18:54:00.000-07:00

Today was a milestone day. Last long run of the plan, after the last 2 weeks of bad long runs I managed to clock in a decent one today. Not my fastest but hopefully with the decreased volume over the next few weeks I'll be set.

So I did 22 miles. Berto managed to join me for 10.6 miles. He rocked with his longest run ever and we clocked that portion in at 1 hour and 45 minutes which is about a 9:54 per mile pace. I managed to clock in the whole run at 3:28:09 which puts me at about 9:27 per mile. I'm hoping this will be good enough for me to pull a 9:15 per mile at San Diego.

Cross your fingers.

Love,

Joe

Send Love to Dave

Today's Super Run

2009-04-30T18:02:00.000-07:00

Did a tempo run today. It was fascinating. 1:08:33 for 8.5 miles. That should be a second or two above 8:00/mile. Maybe 8:01 or actually probably 8:05/mile.

Andy ran today hopefully it was fast.

Video Update

2009-04-29T18:58:00.000-07:00

This was not fun

2009-04-27T17:50:00.000-07:00

Felt very sluggish despite going way slower than the 18 two weeks ago. Ah well.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/4246891

Roses are red.

Violets are blue.

Joseph wants to do an ironman.

But that's too hard to do.

A Poem for Dave

2009-04-27T17:39:00.001-07:00

Dave Dave
Save Save
Dependent on your autoclave
Like wind that cleanses
Like corrective Lenses

Four four
No more
Greg, Andy, Dave, Joe
Know know
I persist and go

Relax-o-rama

2009-04-25T13:11:00.000-07:00

Today I had the pleasure of being joined by Roberto for 6 miles of the 18 I had to complete. It was a little hot out there but all in all it was a decent relaxing run. Legs felt fine, no cramping, but the heat was taking a toll on me.

I pulled in a nice 3:11:42 (some breaks thrown in here and there to talk, get liquids). Good day.

Love,
Joe
To,
Dave
Love

Funtastic Run

2009-04-23T17:47:00.000-07:00

Dear All,

I was dreading my 8.5 mile tempo run today since I also like Dave missed a majority of my workouts since Saturday. But like Dave I did run well today from my perpsective. Total time was 1:07:57 for 8.5 miles which I think translates into 8:00/mile.

Love,

Joe

P.S. I love you Dave

Lost Ground

2009-04-22T20:01:00.000-07:00

So I missed my pace run on Saturday and all subsequent workouts until today. Stupid work. At least I felt good today though I ran faster than I intended to run.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/3988528

Not looking forward to the 20 on Saturday. Well - I am in a strange way. But I'm not. As always -- I love you Joe.

Smooth and Simple Run

2009-04-22T17:25:00.001-07:00

Six Smooth Slow Miles

The Last Couple of Days

2009-04-21T17:18:00.001-07:00

So I haven't posted because I really haven't done too many workouts in the last couple of days. So here's a not-so-quick update of what's happened in the last few days.

Wednesday: I did a quick 6 mile run

Thursday: I started getting sick so I decided not to do the tempo and just take the day off

Friday: Feeling guilty I rode the bike for 1:15:00

Saturday: We had the awesome Alumni regatta (got to see some good friends and had some good fun haha wings, keg stands, and rowing) and I did a fantastic 1000 meters of rowing which hurt alot sadly...

Sunday: Drove 240 miles

Monday: 1:00:00 on the bike

Tuesday: Track workout 400, 800, 1200, 1600, 1200, 800, 400 most of them under 7:00/mile pace except for the mile which was 7:04

Rock and roll - slightly scared about the 18 miler this week since I missed my long run this past weekend.

Happy Training,

Joe

Something Different

2009-04-15T18:40:00.000-07:00

Per Joe's Request

2009-04-13T19:32:00.001-07:00

Here's a link to the info recorded by my new gadget:

Notice that I ended up in Inglewood instead of continuing down the beach like I was supposed to . . .

Also if you click on the "Splits" button you can see the breakdown by mile and laugh.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/3387531

Today's Workout and the Super Secret Contest

2009-04-13T17:23:00.000-07:00

Finally got my wheel back from the bike shop. I broke a spoke riding the other day... most likely caused by the massive wattage that I put out. Did 45 minutes worth of cycling to recover the legs for tomorrow track workout. 8 x 800 tomorrow.

Now for the run part. I have devised a contest to blatantly attract people to this blog. The contest is as follows:

As you know Greg, Andy, Dave and I are running a marathon "together". We're each training and running at our own paces and will undoubtedly encourage eachother because we came together to do this.

Now here comes the fun part. Up for grabs is 20 bucks out of my pocket, I'll mail you a check, a giftcard, whatever you want that's 20 dollars (no joke, for those that know me you know I have nothing better to do)! All you have to do is look through our blog, predict our each of our marathon times and the closest person wins! This is not the Price is Right so the closer you are whether or not you are over are under wins. The person with the lowest total variation wins. A sample entry would be like the following:

Joe - 2:15:00

Greg - 2:14:00

Andy - 2:14:00

Dave - 2:13:00

If our actual times were -

Joe - 2:16:00

Greg - 2:15:00

Andy - 2:15:00

Dave - 2:12:00

Your total variation would be 4 minutes and you would be damn close!

So place your entries as a comment on this post and I'll start compiling them in an excel spreadsheet. Spread the word! I will no longer accept entries after May 15th, 2009!!!

A Slow Train Wreck

2009-04-11T16:59:00.000-07:00

If that guy was Filipino, that would be me today. I have devised a perfect equation to describe today's run:

(Rain + Cold + Wind)^Underdressed + (Cereal and eggs the day before) = Really junky run

3:41:14 which I think translates to 10:18 per mile compared to my same exact 21.7 2 weeks before at 9:15.

But it's ok. I figure there's one more 20 miler in my plan to redeem myself. Wish I had the Garmin Forerunner, actually thinking of getting the 305 since I don't really like the heart rate monitor anyway. Hope everybody else's run goes well this weekend. This race is going to be awesome possum.

Warmest Regards,

Joe

18

2009-04-11T11:57:00.000-07:00

Ouch.

Update

2009-04-10T10:09:00.000-07:00

Ok so it has been a while. Work has been stressing me out and making training difficult (though I am still on track). 15 week before last went alright - felt pretty good. I've got an 18 for tomorrow and will update on that. Meanwhile . . . if you can't train well, you can buy cool gadgets! I bought the Garmin Forerunner 405 watch which is fantastic - just tested it out today on an easy 40 minute run and it is really great to use. The "current pace" is a bit sketchy and I don't really trust it, but the overall mileage and pace are pretty accurate and it is nice to be able to run around my 'hood without plotting the route ahead of time. Should be nice tomorrow - I'm planning on running the majority of the 18 on the path on the beach - up to Malibu and then down to Hermosa Beach. Coolest thing is that you get home and the watch wirelessly uploads all the info from your run to the computer - shows you the route on a map or google earth and all of the info including heart rate if you wear the strap (which I won't for 18). Ok. Back to work. I am getting excited about the race - my shins hurt. As always, I love you Joe.

Speed Workout

2009-04-07T19:17:00.000-07:00

10 minutes there

1st mile - 7:21

2nd mile - 7:12

3rd mile - 7:07

4th mile - 6:55

10 minutes back

Simple.

Rock and Roll Relay

2009-04-04T13:00:00.000-07:00

That has a nice ring to it. Unfortunately, I found this under the terms and conditions of our registrations. Please read:

Section X.I.V Article 12: Persons who have already signe up for the full marathon are disqualified from running the relay in the next 7 participations of the marathon.

Sorry about that Andy. I guess we'll just have to do the whole thing.

On another note I've been away for half of this week. I went to Chicago for a conference. I got most of my training in this week:

Tuesday - Track Workout (400, 800, 1200, 1600, 1200, 800, 400)

Wednesday - Quick/easy 6 miler

Thursday - 40 minute tempo run (avg pace 8:19) - *hotel treadmills suck

Saturday - 17 miles @ 2:32:00 (8:56.4 min/mile)

I guess it was a good week but I've been feeling very apathetic with my training. This usually happens just past the midpoint for me because I feel like I've stuck to the plan for 9 weeks and feel like I don't need to train anymore. Hopefully this lull will pass, I have my most heavy mileage this week. I think it may be close to a 50 something mile week.

Happy Running,

Joe

Lets put the Team in Marathon

2009-04-04T08:38:00.000-07:00

Took a nice light 5 mile run today, both in celebration of my heretofore lack of training and to ease into the what will have to be a quick increase in weekly mileage. Somehow I have managed to under train and over train at the same time, with biking not translating even half as much as I was hoping into run worthy workouts.

On another note, I’ve started compiling a top ten song wish list for the San Diego Rock and Roll Marathon (to be released next week), thinking if we submit multiple lists the bands will listen and maybe, hope upon hope, even add in some Blondie.

And one more note, just throwing this out there:

https://www.rnrmarathon.com/features/rnrrelay.html

Just look at all those smiling faces.

Good luck with the runs,
Andy

Knock Knock

2009-03-28T08:36:00.000-07:00

Who's there? Joe? Anybody else? The world wants to read our posts and I've been getting feedback from our viewers. One person said:

"Joe's posts are great but I really want to hear about Andy, Greg, and Dave" - Jon Kacobs from Boston, MA

So anyway. After reviewing some mail from our loyal readers (5 a day) I went on a run in Potomac, MD. I'm here to visit my love Kathryn while she's away for 2 weeks of training. I was nicely surprised by 2 mile long 6-7% grade hills and some interesting terrain. It's a beautiful area, saw lots of bikers. Posted a 2:14:00 for 15 miles for 8:55/mile. All in all a good good day despite the hills.

Love,
Joe

The Track

2009-03-24T05:48:00.000-07:00

Moseyed on over to the track this morning for my speed workout. I was accompanied by at least 10 people running/walking on the track this morning. Shocker. Did:

10 min warmup
8x800 with 90 seconds of rest in between
10 min cooldown

Most of the 800s were at 3:30. Felt pretty tired by the end though. Another workout down. Approaching the halfway point to the San Diego Rock and Roll Marathon. I need new Saucony running shoes. I like my Apple iPod. My Adidas running rights are awesome and so is my New Balance top and Pearl Izumi vest.

Long Run

2009-03-21T18:59:00.000-07:00

Ridiculoso run today. Did 21.7 miles in 3:19:40 or 9:12/mile. It was awesome. Hope everybody had good long runs today.

Oh and Angela was supposed to run 10 miles with me in Central Park but she didn't wake up until 7:02 PM. Ha.

Love,
Joe

Kefir!?

2009-03-17T17:32:00.000-07:00

Kefir. Bless you. What!?

Speed workout day. Too lazy to put the times up but basically did 3 sets of:

1 x 1200 (10k pace)

0:30 rest

1 x 400 (5k pace)

2:00 rest

As always it was sandwiched by 10 minutes warmup/cooldown running to and from the track. Had some Kefir. I hear it's good for you. It's basically yogurt. I really can't tell the difference. I hear its good for the stomach.

Does anybody know who I can see to help me with assymmetry in my running gait, legs, etc.? I think I have a significant leg length discrepancy.

Peace

The Chaffing Point

2009-03-16T08:38:00.001-07:00

Realized a couple things after my weekend training run for the San Diego Rock and Roll Marathon… 10 miles seems to be around the distance where a significant amount of friction builds up in certain, now uncomfortable, parts of the body. Will need a remedy for this if anyone has any suggestions. Vaseline? Baby power? And stretching is a lot like flossing, the importance of it doesn’t really sink in until not having done it. I’m feeling that importance in my calves right now.

Then 10 miler went well though, trying to add in some hills after looking at the elevation chart Dave posted for the San Diego Rock and Roll Marathon.

Good luck to everyone’s endurance training tomorrow night,
Andy

18 Miles for Freedom

2009-03-14T12:38:00.001-07:00

Today I celebrate St. Patrick's Day with a lovely 18 miler clocked in at 2:58:20. This is calculated to be around 9:54/mile.

I was pretty happy with this. I'm really getting comfortable running at these paces and I feel really on track with everything.

To reverse this I will be celebrating my Irisih heritage as of 3:41 PM. I am starting with drinking a Killian's. Wish everyone could be out here to celebrate this. Should be a fun time with the roommates.

Thank you,

Joe

The Last 2 Days

2009-03-12T16:35:00.000-07:00

So my new discovery of the track in Astoria led me there again. There's something about running around a track that's relaxing. Killed an easy run on the track; ran there, ran 4 miles, then ran back for an aggregate of just over 6 miles. I ran into a running club there the Hell's Gate Road Runners. I'll have to look them up and see what this is all about.

Today, I had to do a 8.5 mile tempo run. I was feeling lazy so I decided to take it slower. The pace today was about 8:21/mile finishing the run in 1:10.56 and it felt awesome. And in response to my bro's comment below is the satellite imagery of the track. Hope everybody's enjoying their runs!

View Larger Map

Speed Workout

2009-03-10T17:15:00.000-07:00

Did a speed workout today...

10 minute warmup

400 -1:35.75

800 - 3:40.43

1200 - 5:22.00

1600 - 7:15.94

1200 - 5:15.00

800 - 3:31.10

400 - 1:25.34

10 minute cool down.

Pretty fun. Nice weater. I also just found out using Google Maps that we had a track in Astoria at the park. A very nice track. That would have been useful a couple of speed workouts ago. Anyways, hope everyone had a good training day. The elevation map Dave posted looks interesting. Rock and roll.

Joe

An Interview

2009-03-09T19:14:00.000-07:00

2009-03-09T16:18:00.000-07:00

The elevation chart.

Ouch

2009-03-07T18:18:00.000-08:00

Doing a 12 miler today reminded me that I like doing marathons --- I just don't like training for them.

I'm Fast!?

2009-03-07T12:37:00.000-08:00

62 degrees was the magic number when I headed out. 68 is the magic number when I came out. Today was the first official day everyone came out of their hibernation and ventured into Central Park. I could tell because the pain on everyone's face was evident. Last week was around freezing and the majority of the people out running in these temperatures are elite and fast.

Hence, this is why I passed a majority of the people today with my mind-numbing 9:17/mile pace. Did 14 miles in 2:10:41. Beautiful day today in New York. It's a taste of the San Diego Dream. Manifest Destiny...

Take care,

Joe

Out of the sands

2009-03-07T09:04:00.000-08:00

Today I was garnered with some wisdom from a man whose house is in a shopping cart and beds besides bus stops: 'you shouldnt run, it's bad for your joints'. Luckily I was past the point of no return, so to speak, and had some motivational words from Dwight Schrute in my head: 'In the wild, there is no health care. In the wild, health care is, 'Ow, I hurt my leg. I can't run. A lion eats me. I'm dead.' Well, I'm not dead. I'm the lion. You're dead.' So better to keep on running.

8 miles down on the road to the San Diego Rock and Roll Marathon, intermingled with frequent walks. Timed in around 70 minutes. Ive found that after warming up it helps to re-tie my shoes again. Not sure if this is because the feet start swelling up during the run or just the added rest, but it certainly relieves some stress. Also, if anyone knows some good calf stretches please lay them on the blog.

have a good weekend,
Andy

Non-Running Topic on the Day Off

2009-03-06T15:49:00.000-08:00

Since I'm not running today I might as well blog about something not related to running. I'll blog about the Biggest Loser - Montefiore Medical Center Edition. Of course we call it the Weight Contest.

Anyway we had started this contest 4 weeks ago at the beginning of February. With my work clothing (standard business attire) and after lunch I weighed in at 169. In the mornings I have been weighing around 158, 159. This makes sense since lunch and breakfast and tea are all in me plus clothing.

As of today I weight 166.5. I'm in 6th place out of about 19 people. Hopefully I can get into one of the top 3 because I think that person get's 100 or 150 dollars after the competition.

So that is my exciting topic for the day. Rest days are nice. Tomorrow's 14 will be even nicer. Ahhhh... an easier run than last week.

Joe

Me and the Bathroom are Friends

2009-03-05T19:23:00.000-08:00

"Milk, milk, lemonade, around the corner chocolate's made, stick your finger up the hole, and then you have a tootsie roll."

So I did my 8.5 miles worth of tempo run and I hate to be graphic but I've been to the bathroom 4 times in the last 2 hours. All number 2.

I'm attributing it to my run today. Went to Fatty's Cafe after running and they probably made the best burger I've had. It was a mixture of ground beef and ground chorizo seasoned with cayenne pepper, paprika, and garlic. Wowee was it good.

Anyway so back to my workout. Let's hope that this makes the Rock and Roll Marthon San Diego easier for me to run. So... format was the same as last week. I did 4.25 miles with 30 seconds rest with another 4.25 miles.

1st - 34:14 ~8:04

2nd - 34:11 ~8:03

All in all a good day. Take care y'all.

Joe

Another Day

2009-03-04T17:26:00.001-08:00

ell yesterday I did some cycling in the morning because it was way to cold to run (13 degrees at 5AM) and today with more acceptable weather I did 6 miles (34 degrees at 6PM).

I really can't say too much about the run. It was an easy 6, felt good, under an hour. It was actually quite pleasant. Lately I've been pretty fed up with working out in the cold. I'm just not motivated to freeze myself so I am definitely looking forward to the spring, or at least daylight saving time (the s was purposely left out because I found out today its "saving" not "savings").

I was talking with Andy today it seems he's going to do a long run this weekend, which I am happy about. Hopefully everyone is training well. I leave you with a picture of me before I ran so you can peer into my life.

Joe

Cycling Again

2009-03-02T17:42:00.000-08:00

40 minutes of cycling today. Legs feel ridiculously sore. Tomorrow hopefully the snow melts and I can run. Very hungry.

Work and Workouts

2009-03-02T12:51:00.000-08:00

Lately work has been interfering with training. Hopefully I will find a way to fit my workouts in. Saturday I did 7 miles - 2 miles easy and then 5 at "race pace." It makes me nervous that the pace was not too easy. One would think that 5 miles at race pace would be a cinch.

Looking Forward to a Light Week

2009-03-01T17:27:00.000-08:00

So. I'm sitting here on a Sunday night enjoying some TV. I'm looking forward to the rest of this week. It's a lighter training week. Well, relatively.

Monday - Glorious 45 minutes on bike

Tuesday - 8 x 800

Wednesday - Easy 6

Thursday - 8.5 tempo

Friday - Rest

Saturday - 14 (thank you so much)

And that's it. Hope everyone is doing well.

20 miles

2009-02-28T13:33:00.000-08:00

Did 20 miles. 3:40:14. 11:00 minutes/mile and still no cramping. Just a lot of fatigue. Thank you.

39 degrees outside. Windy. The Queensboro bridge was way too windy. Central Park was nice. Hey I saw Rachel from 4th floor chem free in Oneida walking around the park.

Ugh

2009-02-27T19:56:00.000-08:00

20 miles tomorrow. Not really looking forward to it.

Something is Wrong

2009-02-26T16:44:00.001-08:00

Most likely I'm tired. I'm also bloated in the stomach. My shoes felt wierd when I put them on. I had to analyze a lot of data today. I just wasn't mentally in the game. Not sure what's happening, but I finished the workout today.

I had to do a 6.5 mile tempo run. This is a much better change from last weeks 8.5 mile tempo run.

So what I did to "cheat" a little was split the tempo runs into 2 small runs of 3.25 miles with 30 seconds of rest in between.

So the first 3.25 was 26:30 and the second 3.25 was 26:32. They're borth around 8:00 mile pace I think, if my math is correct. I don't know why I felt so off today. It could be that I got 6 hours of sleep last night. Regardless, tomorrow is a day off and I am excited about that.

Now I am going to get eat some Brazilian food with Kathryn. Maybe order myself a caipirinha. Mmmmmm... caipirinha (I'm wondering if I spelled that correctly).

The usual Tish

2009-02-25T17:58:00.001-08:00

6 mile easy recovery run. That's all I have to say.

Quality #4

2009-02-24T16:48:00.001-08:00

That's the name of the run in my plan for today.

10 minute warm-up

1st 1600 - 8:00

2nd 1600 - 7:33

3rd 1600 - 7:41

4th 1600 - 6:44 (oops)

10 minute cool down

I probably could have tried harder on the first 3. I didn't realize that I could do 6:44 with some effort. I'm tired though.

Have fun training today.

Joe

Woke Up This Morning

2009-02-24T09:02:00.000-08:00

And said no. I dressed up walked outside and it was 22 and so windy. I was supposed to do mile repeats but it was so innappropriate outside. Instead I got back in my pajamas and slept another hour. Hahaha.

Cycling Rocks

2009-02-22T13:19:00.000-08:00

Got on the good old Cannondale today. Basically did 45 minutes of cycling with 5 minutes moderate and 5 minutes moderately harder.

It was good stuff I definitely want to take the bike out to Central Park one weekend.

The legs feel decent today. They are definitely somewhat sore but I think my body is getting use to this long run thing on the weekend.

Have a good day y'all!!!

Joe

The Journey to Central Park and Back

2009-02-21T13:42:00.000-08:00

I lay in bed anxious, stirring around. The clock was quietly ticking away, each strike of the second hand was more amplified than the last. "Wake up (tick), wake up (tick), wake up (tick), wake up (tick)," said the clock.

It seemed eager to remind me that when the alarm went off at 11:00 AM, I had to run. Had it been any other day I would have been fine. Running is serene. Running is therapeutic. Running soothes my soul. But today was different.

One number was burned into the back of my eyes. 18. Today I had to run 18 miles.

So I slid out of bed, feet hitting the cold tile, a reminder that time still lay in the middle of February. I walked over to my cupboard, pulled out the box of cereal with dehydrated strawberries and prepared the meal that I would trust to sustain me through just about three hours of running.

The cereal bowl was a sand timer. Every diminishing scoop of cereal meant I had to get dressed and go running. Crunch, crunch, crunch. Everyone and everything was mocking me today.

I finished the bowl of cereal and put my clothes on. Tights, check. Sweat wicking long sleeve shirt check. Socks, check. Windproof vest, check. Hat, check. Shoes, check. Fuel belt, check.

I walked over to the kitchen and like a mad scientist mixed the elixir of hope. I scooped the magical, holy powder into the each of the 3 neon green flasks, added the second ingredient water, and watched the mystical drink flash with a brilliance that could only soothe my anxiety.

I snapped the bottles onto my belt. Each one a hand grenade to ward off the enemy. Mr. Cramp. I put my watch on and walked over to my computer. I thought hard about whose serene voice I wanted to hear in my ear as my feet pounded the pavement. I knew who I wanted. Taylor Swift.

I uploaded her album onto my mp3 player, grabbed my gloves, and walked out the door.

"Joe," whispered a voice, "just stay in."

No. I wasn't going to.

I walked down the stairs I had once ridden down on a folding chair in my immature days and threw myself out the door into the cold. I lifted my left leg, pushed with my right and off I went into the cold winter day to Central Park...

Mile by mile passed by. Taylor said, "Romeo take me somewhere we can be alone..."

I ran and ran, she sang and sang. I conquered the Queensboro bridge, I assaulted Central Park, and I managed to get back into Queens without any scars. What was going on? Was it my new cadence inspired by the cross training on my bike and Lance Armstrong? Was it that I brought an extra flask of magical elixir. Or had mile after mile added strength into my legs that I've never felt before.

All I knew is that I made it. I made it. And my crotch hurt.

Run stats:

18.1 miles

3:17:41 - ~10:52/mile

Have a good training day!

Five miler

2009-02-21T08:52:00.001-08:00

Went out for a medium paced 5 miler this morning in my comfortable, running enhanced (Your brand name here) shoes. Started out fine until I hit the board walk, where looming competition and the 75 yr old runner shadowing me pushed up my pace to a little under sprinting. Ended up running 3 miles at around 6.30 pace and slogging back the rest of the way. It’s going to be tough maintaining some semblance of pace control in the marathon crowds.

Stats:
Miles trained, to date: 13
Marathon time goal: 4.3(repeating of course) hrs
Current forecasted time: 5.6 hrs

Good luck on the training, and the weather,
Andy

Post #2

2009-02-20T15:39:00.000-08:00

Training is going well.... except that today I was supposed to run 6 miles but its snowing really hard with 20 mph winds so I think I'm going to have to shift it. My legs are starting to feel stronger and my lungs are adjusting to the cold. Looking forward to the warmer weather. Hopefully spring comes early. On a humorous note I was poking around on facebook and found that someone posted a really interesting picture. Took me a while to figure out was I was looking at but once I figured it out I was laughing really hard. I wont give it away you will have to look for your self. Andy if you don't start running soon we might have to take drastic action and something like this may happen to you again!

Days Off

2009-02-20T13:27:00.000-08:00

Days off are the most wonderful thing in the world. Why?

1. I don't have to get up at 5 which usually sends memories of rowing practice flashing through my mind. 4x2k, towers, a 2k erg test, 1 2 3 2 4 2 3 2 4 2 3 2 1 or whatever that day was.

2. I don't have to feel like I'm still in college and fight to stay awake during meetings or not drool on my notebook.

Ummm, I think those are the 2 big ones. Waking up really sucks especially if you have to go to work and can't sit in a dining hall molesting grapefruit and putting soy sauce in the waffle maker. All stupid things we used to do.

Oh well. Tomorrow I'm not really sure how to run 18 miles. 18 is like taking a quick 4.5 mile run 4 times. It's mostly the boredom that gets me. How long can I possibly listen to Mozart or Ratatat? Not too long. So please wish me luck and all of us luck as we approach the glorious weekend.

Love,
Joe

New Glasses

2009-02-19T18:53:00.000-08:00

Ouch...

2009-02-19T03:45:00.000-08:00

It's 6:44. I just got back from a difficult tempo run. I learned a valuable lesson today.

1. Splitting the run into 2 4.25 mile segments does wonders psychologically. The 1 min rest in between doesn't take away too much of the benefits of runnig continuously, or at least I thought.

First segment was run in 38:01 and the second was in 36:06.

Now I just want to sleep insteadnof going to work.

Oh and whoever (if anybody) reads this regularly could you click on follow this blog so Andy, Dave, Greg and I could feel good about ourselves.

Joe

I still hate the Erg

2009-02-18T14:32:00.000-08:00

Joe - I still love you.

I am in D.C. for work and the hotel gym has only 3 treadmills. After 30 minutes of running I noticed someone waiting and the sign that said "when others are waiting please limit use to 20 minutes," so I decided t hit up the erg to round out the hour that I was planning on running.

I set the monitor to 5K and off I went . . .

It hurt.

One of Those Days

2009-02-18T03:34:00.000-08:00

Ever since I started my new training cycle in January every run felt decent. I hypothesized I had a good base going into this marathon and I was mostly right. The runs I've had felt doable. The hard ones were hard the easy ones were easy. But I guess every now and then you have to have one of those bad training days.

Today was an easy 5 miler and the legs felt like lead. Oh well. It was accomplished and I can move on. Hopefully tomorrows 8.5 is better.

Mobile Blogging from the Subway

2009-02-17T15:24:00.000-08:00

That's where I am. Going to Manhattan to hang with some friends. Today I did 3 sets of...

1 x 1200@ 10k pace (1 min rest)
1 x 400 @ 5k pace (3 min rest)

It hurt a bit. My 1200s were at 5:30s and my 400s were around 1:30. Oh well I can do better.

Happy Training.

More Cross Training

2009-02-16T10:45:00.000-08:00

Basically did more cycling today. I had to because the Tour of California is happening rigt now and that gets me into cycling, plus the plan allows for cross training during the week. I wasnin the trainer for 45 minutes doing some good moderate cycling.

Have a good President's Day!

45 minutes on the Trainer

2009-02-15T09:37:00.000-08:00

Today I had the choice of either 5 miles easy running or 45 minutes cross training. I opted to get on the bike today and did 45 minutes of moderate cycling.

It felt good since cycling engages pretty much the opposite muscle of running. Cycling utilizes the quads more than the hamstring and running does vice versa.

But that's all I did today. Legs feel pretty good from yesterday's run.

Good luck today.

Hello Blog!

2009-02-14T17:12:00.001-08:00

Whats up guys, thanks for letting me crash your marathon party. This is something I have always wanted to do, wasn't planning on it this year but I thought to myself well you can wait till your 30 something and run some random marathon by yourself or you can get in shape and do it with three good friends in sunny S.D. It was pretty much a no brainer. My only goal is to finish. So I have this book (The non runners marathon trainer) and its 14 week plan and I'm going to go for it. I ran two 10 mile races last summer but thats about as long as I have run. Just finished the first week of the plan. The longest run so far was 5 miles. Not quite caught up to Joe yet (the idea that I will at some point have to wear a hydration belt and contemplate how many electrolyte beverages to carry along is blowing my mind right now) but the plan says I will be ready by May 31st. Its been really cold here (in the 20s) but it has been sunny and the roads have been dry so it hasn't been to bad. Hoping its a mild 2nd half of the winter. We have already had 115" of snow how much more could we possibly get? Im just happy to be outside and running. Really excited to be a part of this. Hope everyone is doing well. I will try to post once a week, so Joe isn't the only one. In closing:

Dave- whats up man its been a long time
Joe- No matter what you tell me I will not run the race in a Binghamton Crew Uni suit.
Andy- As tempting as it will be im not getting drunk with you the night before the race.
Is Berto officially in yet?

Over the River and Through the Woods

2009-02-14T15:10:00.001-08:00

16 miles hurts. Did that today. Felt really good in the beginning. The small hills in central park really hurt me for some reason and the run back was nice. Overall it was a good time for all.

Bye.

Meal Before the Marathon

2009-02-12T18:12:00.000-08:00

My idea for the night before the marathon...

Gels, Asymmetry, and some other Random Thoughts

2009-02-12T17:50:00.000-08:00

I went to GNC today. I bought some gels for this weeks long run on Saturday. Even though I know I should bring more than 16 oz of Cytomax, I like running with only 2 flasks on my belt. I figure since the 2 flasks were good for my 14 miler, 2 should be good with 2 gels to get me through my run this weekend.

The run's going to be over the Queensboro into Central Park and back.

I've been feeling asymmetric lately as well. I have a feeling one leg is longer than the other and I'm not sure how to fix the problem but I guess I can deal with it for now. I should probably go to a specialty shoe running shop and have them watch my run.

Office is coming on so I have to go.

Bye.

7.5 Tempo Run

2009-02-12T06:58:00.000-08:00

Tried to run at a relatively uncomfortable pace, which of course was the goal. Finished the 7.5 in just over an hour averaging around 8:30 per mile. Felt a little off today, definitely not what I expected to run. I was hoping I be around 8:00 per mile.

Oh well. Tomorrow rest day, means I dont have to wake up at 5. Relatively anxious about Saturday's 16 miler. I'm at a high mileage so early I'm the plan but it should be fine.

Love,
Joe

They say you should...

2009-02-11T17:27:00.001-08:00

Adjust your eating on the days of training that are light. Well today was a light day and I thought Burger King was a good idea.

Mmm... Burger King:

Whopper.
French Fries
A Large Iced Tea

That's the way it goes.

Hope everybody had a good day of training.

Duh... my training distance today

2009-02-11T04:08:00.001-08:00

5.5 miles this morning.

In Response to Dave's Comment of Love

2009-02-11T04:03:00.000-08:00

Yes Dave, we started a blog. I know you may hate the transparency of our training but you'll learn to love it.

Being a engineer/mathematician I'm formulating a correlation in my head that I'd like to test out.

Does a lack of blog posts directly correlate to a lack of training? That's the question of the day folks. Hahahaha. Sorry guys I'm an idiot.

That being said I woke up about 2 hours ago and cruised on my EASY run. I love easy run days because it's the most relaxing thing to run in Astoria and to think we are all united because of this wonderful idea.

Still don't know why you guys registered...

Happy Training to all today...

Love,
Joe

And we're back...

2009-02-10T05:54:00.000-08:00

So apparently Google thought our blog was a spam blog. That was a close one because I thought Andy deleted it so he dent have to run. Anyway Saturday did 14 miles. It was a beautiful day at 42 degrees.

This morning I did 6 x 800 with 10 min warmup and 10 min cool down. The 800s were at 10k pace.

Back to work.

Oh news flash! Greg is running too. Andy you have to add him to this.

21 precious degrees to keep me warm

2009-02-05T18:52:00.000-08:00

6.5 miles in 52. Felt good in the cold. Tomorrow rest day... thank you very much. Saturday a 14 mile.

I just downloaded the complimentary Active Trainer advanced marathon plan. Interesting. I think I like mine better.

Time for my lovely 8 hours of sleep.

Anyone else wanna do San Diego with Dave, Andy, and I.

Love,
Joe

Oh! The Weather is so Beautiful!!!

2009-02-04T16:37:00.000-08:00

These last 2 days I had a fantastic workout. Tuesday was 5 x 1km with 2:00 rest in between. Today was a 5.5 miler nice and easy. It's hard to believe that you're going to run this thing Andy. I'm very excited about it. It should be hilarious.

On other news, I'm almost done filing my taxes. I'm sitting here in my apartment, just chilling. Dave has yet to write on this. Maybe well see him appear.

Oh and the looks you get running in the cold are hilarious. I think people are very confused.

02/04/2009 Route
Find more Runs in New York, New York

Roof Roof

2009-02-01T17:05:00.000-08:00

14 Miles in Philadelphia

2009-02-01T16:55:00.001-08:00

Went to see some friends in Philly... old co-worker friends. Saturday morning went for a 14 mile run from South Philly to Center City down the Schuylkill and back. I counted about 7 other runners. The weather was perfect at just about freezing. Did the run in just a little over 2 hours. Weather must be nice in San Diego...

120 days till

2009-01-31T07:43:00.000-08:00

Wow man nice run... I must have had turtles after me, or three legged giraffes, just clocked in 'race pace' 4 miler at 38 minutes. Was thinking tomorrow speed but that might change to rest.

6 Miles in 31 Degrees on Thursday, 1/29/2009

2009-01-30T17:41:00.000-08:00

We're blessed with good weather in Astoria, NY. I ran 6 miles in 31 degrees. Panthers were chasing me around mile 3 so I had to speed up. I ended up running 6 miles in 30 minutes. I was 3 minutes off my PR. Oh well gotta rest up for Saturday's 14 miler.