Friday, October 15, 2010
End of the week run
After a very full week I headed out of the office at 4:30 in hopes of making the 5:30 ferry - no such luck, still ended up on the 6:20. It did allow for a run and after taking Thur off, I felt great and had a very nice run. Did 5-miles at an 8:06 pace, very good for me and I'm pleased to have put 4-training sessions together all under 8:10/mile. The evening was very brisk which I enjoyed, actually cool enough that I ran in a light jacket - I do like the cooler temps and will keep that in mind for the spring marathon my son and I are targeting. Looking forward to the weekend and getting a couple of longer runs in.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Missing the long run & blessings
Well, I've partially answered my question from my post yesterday - how can I run faster and increase my pace? Answer: Go too far out on my evening run and have to race the ferry to the dock! So I now also understand "negative splits" 8:10 pace for 2-miles going out, then 7:58 and 7:50 for the 2-miles coming back - wow, what a run.
So glad to be getting the sanity-runs in and I'm happy I've been able to enjoy the good weather in the evenings, according to the forecast that is about to change for the worse. I have missed the longer runs this week though and hope to get a 10-12 mile run in over the weekend if time permits. Thankful for a healthy body that allows me to run - it's these things that we take for granted each day but I was reminded tonight as I ran past a young women pushing a friend along the waterfront in a wheelchair, we each have much to be thankful for each day, often it is being aware of the blessings that we are lacking, not blessings themselves. The wisdom of the old church hymn "count your blessings, count them one by one, count your blessing see what God has done..."
So glad to be getting the sanity-runs in and I'm happy I've been able to enjoy the good weather in the evenings, according to the forecast that is about to change for the worse. I have missed the longer runs this week though and hope to get a 10-12 mile run in over the weekend if time permits. Thankful for a healthy body that allows me to run - it's these things that we take for granted each day but I was reminded tonight as I ran past a young women pushing a friend along the waterfront in a wheelchair, we each have much to be thankful for each day, often it is being aware of the blessings that we are lacking, not blessings themselves. The wisdom of the old church hymn "count your blessings, count them one by one, count your blessing see what God has done..."
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
October Sky
So I need to find out how much of a pace “swing” other people have when they run a hilly course versus flat. Last night I ran in the neighborhood, and it is hilly. I ran 5-miles in 44 minutes so that worked out to an 8:54/mile pace, certainly nothing to write home about. Tonight I ran in Seattle, very flat along the waterfront, and got a bit over 4-miles done in about 33-minutes resulting in an 8:11/mile pace. So, moving from hills to flat cut 43-seconds per mile off, wow. I must be doing something wrong on running hills, which is every time I run on Bainbridge!
Now that I’ve ranted – tonight was a good run, sunny in Seattle and a perfect October coolness in the air. Lots of people out along the waterfront enjoying the evening and preparing to watch the sun set over the Sound and the Olympic Mtns – it was a beautiful sunset. I was reminded of the Psalm I read this morning that was a prayer of “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” (Ps 51:10) – this would be a good prayer to start each day with.
Now that I’ve ranted – tonight was a good run, sunny in Seattle and a perfect October coolness in the air. Lots of people out along the waterfront enjoying the evening and preparing to watch the sun set over the Sound and the Olympic Mtns – it was a beautiful sunset. I was reminded of the Psalm I read this morning that was a prayer of “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” (Ps 51:10) – this would be a good prayer to start each day with.
Monday, October 11, 2010
Family visit weekend
Had a great weekend with my parents who were in town for the weekend. It was great to have them with us and I am reminded how blessed I am to have parents like this. They genuinely love us and care about what we are doing, how we are doing, and most importantly are praying daily for each of us – what a great example they are of my Heavenly Father who is “interceding” on my behalf all the time!
Did get some running in this weekend although Sat was in the gym and on the treadmill. Did manage to get 30-miles in last week and started this week off with a solid 9-mile run during the afternoon on Sunday. That run felt really good and I could have kept going so I know now that I’m recovered from the race. What is interesting to me though is that my pace does seem to be 15-20 seconds off earlier training times, I need to research that a bit and see if that’s normal or something to focus on. Getting home early today so I’m looking forward to a run on the Island before dark.
Finally, I need to share and proclaim a miracle! A local Seattle Christian radio personalty’s wife had a massive heart attack in mid-July. I was praying for her and sent the husband an email proclaiming God’s protection and specifically seeking a complete healing and restoration of her heart and I know many others in the Seattle area were praying the same way. Well they found out last week that the recent tests are the heart shows no damage nor any scar tissue on the heart – AMEN to that and praise God for this miracle!! I suggest reading Psalm 40:10 to understand why I am posting this but I will again say that God is good and He gets all the praise and glory for restoring this woman’s heart!!
Did get some running in this weekend although Sat was in the gym and on the treadmill. Did manage to get 30-miles in last week and started this week off with a solid 9-mile run during the afternoon on Sunday. That run felt really good and I could have kept going so I know now that I’m recovered from the race. What is interesting to me though is that my pace does seem to be 15-20 seconds off earlier training times, I need to research that a bit and see if that’s normal or something to focus on. Getting home early today so I’m looking forward to a run on the Island before dark.
Finally, I need to share and proclaim a miracle! A local Seattle Christian radio personalty’s wife had a massive heart attack in mid-July. I was praying for her and sent the husband an email proclaiming God’s protection and specifically seeking a complete healing and restoration of her heart and I know many others in the Seattle area were praying the same way. Well they found out last week that the recent tests are the heart shows no damage nor any scar tissue on the heart – AMEN to that and praise God for this miracle!! I suggest reading Psalm 40:10 to understand why I am posting this but I will again say that God is good and He gets all the praise and glory for restoring this woman’s heart!!
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Fall in Seattle
What a great evening this was in Seattle – sunny, mid 60’s temp – a perfect evening for a run! Got a quick 4.5 miles tonight waiting for the ferry, I know I’ve said this before but what a perfect way to de-compress from a busy day. This is the first run in 10-days that kinda felt normal, which is great. Quickly fell into my stride and held an 8:20 pace, not fast but comfortable, got the heart rate up and just felt like I was “in the groove”!
As I ran I reflected on God’s faithfulness. This morning I had a 3-hr meeting that I was very anxious about, a mental marathon, and I was praying for clarity of both word and thought. Although the meeting was very tense and not easy by any stretch of the imagination, it did go well and God was faithful, giving me clarity and wisdom – even to the point of when to hold my tongue, thank you God for your faithfulness. I was further reminded of this in a debrief with a friend on a difficult meeting he had today as well, I had been praying for both him and the employee he was addressing and God positively directed their conversation as well. What a great assurance that God is not only interest in our Salvation (not only… poor choice in words as this is paramount and eternal) but also in our daily activity and work. In Jeremiah He promises that He “knows the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you” and I was also reminded that we are promised in the Holy Spirit that He will put the words into our mouths if we are seeking Him and asking for direction – we must be listening though, right? So a good end to a hard day but I am grateful to God for His grace and faithfulness.
As I ran I reflected on God’s faithfulness. This morning I had a 3-hr meeting that I was very anxious about, a mental marathon, and I was praying for clarity of both word and thought. Although the meeting was very tense and not easy by any stretch of the imagination, it did go well and God was faithful, giving me clarity and wisdom – even to the point of when to hold my tongue, thank you God for your faithfulness. I was further reminded of this in a debrief with a friend on a difficult meeting he had today as well, I had been praying for both him and the employee he was addressing and God positively directed their conversation as well. What a great assurance that God is not only interest in our Salvation (not only… poor choice in words as this is paramount and eternal) but also in our daily activity and work. In Jeremiah He promises that He “knows the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you” and I was also reminded that we are promised in the Holy Spirit that He will put the words into our mouths if we are seeking Him and asking for direction – we must be listening though, right? So a good end to a hard day but I am grateful to God for His grace and faithfulness.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Half Marathon - completed!
It’s official – I’ve now completed 13.1 in a race. Lots of thoughts and comments on it but first want to comment on how well the event was organized – recommend the race to anyone that is considering it next year. The race started right on time, parking was easy, lots of staff and volunteers, etc. Now I’m not a veteran racer but it would be hard to imagine an event that could go better.
So race day; we woke up to a good steady rain in Lynden, where we spent the night with family, but by the time we got to Bellingham that rain had stopped and had transitioned into a typical WA mist… by race time though it was dry and the rain generally held off through the entire race. The course was relatively flat (by Bainbridge Island standards) but had some extended hills around mile 4”ish” and then a few at the end that felt bigger than they were. A highlight was around the 11 mile mark where we ran along an elevated pier out over the water – that was cool.
Results were ok – missed my revised goal of finishing in the mid-to high 1:40’s with a completion time of 1:52 and an average pace of 8:29. Not bad but leaves lots of room to improve in the future. Oh yeah, one highlight I missed above was a Dad that ran pushing his handicapped son – the crowds cheering for him almost brought a tear to my eyes (literally) – it was really cool to see this guy cruising (yes he passed me) pushing a large jogger and hearing the people along the route cheer him on – really great. www.bellinghamherald.com/2010/09/23/1634612/bellingham-bay-marathon-father.htmlFinally, my 17-year old son also raced in the 5-k; his first race too. He had a blast and finished 3rd in his age group at 22-minutes and a pace just over 7-min/mile; oh to be 17 again!!! It was a fun run and weekend made all the more special by being with my son and daughter (didn’t race but had fun hangin with her cousin). Now back to the local roads, work out some of the tightness, and see about improving my pace!
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Rest Day(s)
Taking today as an off-day to begin the "pre-race" rest period - if time permits I'll try and get a light workout in tomorrow evening but want to make sure I'm feeling rested for the weekend race. We have a bit of a "bug" going around the house and my son has it now but is still focused on doing the 5-K on Sunday. Now I'm hoping I miss the bug all together - that would be a real dissapointment after all the preparation and mental "hype" I've put myself through. Did get a short run in yesterday (Wed) waiting for the ferry, 3.5 miles so I've logged in 20-miles week-to-date which should set me up for Sunday...I hope.
One final thought I will post is that I was convicted earlier this week about all my focus, energy, excitement, and thoughts on the upcoming race - why don't I have that same level of expectation in my walk with God? Each day is a new race with it's individual challenges, opportunities, and hurdles. If I spend the same amount of time and energy preparing for each coming day with God, the way I do for this race, what would my life look like? I'll answer that it would look very different, I do spend time each day in God's word and praying, but honestly, not to the same extent that I do in any of my training runs. Just as I set aside time on the weekend to get my "long run" in and commit 2-hours of time to the run, why do I struggle doing the same time in prayer and seeking God - I know for a fact my week will look different if I was committed to setting that time aside on a Sunday afternoon or evening.
Well, it is good to prepare and train - both physically and spiritually, in I Timothy 4:8 the apostle Paul even says that exactly, BUT he does emphasize that the latter is more important than the former. So food for thought for all of us...
One final thought I will post is that I was convicted earlier this week about all my focus, energy, excitement, and thoughts on the upcoming race - why don't I have that same level of expectation in my walk with God? Each day is a new race with it's individual challenges, opportunities, and hurdles. If I spend the same amount of time and energy preparing for each coming day with God, the way I do for this race, what would my life look like? I'll answer that it would look very different, I do spend time each day in God's word and praying, but honestly, not to the same extent that I do in any of my training runs. Just as I set aside time on the weekend to get my "long run" in and commit 2-hours of time to the run, why do I struggle doing the same time in prayer and seeking God - I know for a fact my week will look different if I was committed to setting that time aside on a Sunday afternoon or evening.
Well, it is good to prepare and train - both physically and spiritually, in I Timothy 4:8 the apostle Paul even says that exactly, BUT he does emphasize that the latter is more important than the former. So food for thought for all of us...
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