update: distance day

OMG.
started GREAT
ruling the world.
at mile 6ish, started to hit grandpa pace
got a bit lost somehwere around mile 7
was supposed to be 8 mile run
at mile 9ish, hands turned clammy and cold
at mile 10, lost spincter control, and had to clench my butt for the net two miles, an intriguing exercise to say the least

today:
12.8 miles
10:07 pace

RAWR!
G

update 5: better

4 miles @ 8:45 pace
conditions:
85 degrees vs. 98 degrees makes BIG difference
ate hills for breakfast
ready for big 8 tomorrow
28 cumulative miles!! :)

my contact yoga class is tonight
has been significant emotional conversations between J and L and I regarding intimacy. looks positive. 20+ people signed up so far +20 tenatives. the start of something great!

we are ON

runner passes confirmed!!!!
I will let you know as soon as we need to get them actual registration info so we can get our bibs etc.

YES!!!!!
G

update #4 of xx: survival good

4+ miles
sub 9:00 pace
secret to success: less than a 6 pack the night before :)
getting much easier
hills even becoming manageable... but hills still suck!

registration update: looks positive, but still need 10 or so days to confirm. keep the faith, bro!

xo,
G

YES: status report #3

beat the granpa pace of 10:00
ran 4.1 @ 9:30 pace
hills still suck
iPod has serious issue with overheated flesh. could only get it to work once i ran my hands under cold water. this may be serious issue! :)
gettting stronger every day.
rock on!
G

Run Two: Calibration Continues

powered by minor caffeine,
first 2 miles a complete breeze
next 2 miles made on willpower
dunked head in river at mile 3 -- very good idea, air temp 92 and body temp soaring
still have good speed
mile 5, first really big hill
hills suck
everything i could do to keep going
slowed down significantly after that point
had to walk about 3 times, a bit demoralizing
right knee started to really hurt at 8.5 miles
walked for 3 minutes then
finished strong running decent pace last mile

got home and almost cried

original goal: run a marathon and survive
new goal: optimize personal health condition (alchohol low, caffeine low, eating healthy, sleeping healthy) to make running a marathon easy

now am positive that willpower can get me through anything, tho that is not the pretty approach

life was saved by support crew bringing me ice cold water twice during run. may need to start running with camelbak if heat remains high.

Next: on to a 5 hour acroyoga partner session tonight! :) luckily that includes 1.5 hours of massage :)

Run Report #1

just got back from my inaugural run.
if i can do that, i can do anything.
pre-run warm-up: massive steak, crab claws, bread, 4 beers.
1st mile: SUCKED. thought i was going to have a heart attack. amazed at how superman greg felt so crappy running. left hip felt like it was about to fall out. note to self: practicing extreme gymastic splits and distance running is not good combo.
2nd mile: at grandpa pace (see attached graph), thought about turning around. then committed. will make the circuit. doesn't matter how fast or slow. only rule: must be running. which, remembering from high school, means that only one foot can be in contact with ground at any one time and there must be a brief period of aerial hop between footsteps. got it.
3rd mile: unremarkable. except that it was uphill.
4th mile: still uphill, and amazingly i started to run faster and feeling stronger. deep long breaths. angina gone. hip felt much better and lubed.
5th mile. kind of like this. smiling like a maniac at passing cars. decide my race moniker will be "trailbeast"

did i mention? conditions: late at night on side of roads in massive thunder & lightning storm.
advantage: can drool and spit on my chin and is immediately washed off by rain.
super advantage: 96 degrees in the shade here this summer. remarkably cooler in rain.

Tomorrow: 10!

Oh, this was 4.6 in 46 minutes. I know. pace will improve. promise.

Marathon @ Burning Man

Just realised that week 2 of training will be in the desert on LSD! :)
well, at least there's other athletes about!

The Beginning

I did a little bit of design work for a man named Barg. He liked it a lot. 10 days later, he asked me if I could comp up some screenshots an iPhone app for the Marine Corps Marathon. I did. He said the meeting went positive. I said "great, when we get the job, I'll expect 2 complimentary passes so I can run it!" He replied "are you serious?" and I said "absolutely."

A quick phone call later to my brother, and he agreed to run it with me, as long as we began training immediately. The marathon was just 75 days away.

10 days later I got the email from Barg: "We've got the job, and I've got your passes."

Get ready to run.