Week II, Winter Wonder Land

Every decade or so, we are blanketed with more than a token amount of snow here in SE TN. This past week we received any where from 6-9 inches which created days of fun in the snow, what will be 10 straight days of no school and a couple of great runs kicking up Chilhowee and Big Frog Mountain.

So, over the past nine days I have been able to get up Big Frog twice and to the top of Chilhowee once which has been the majority of my running over the last week. The long hard runs in the snow and ice have been beneficial for my fitness as I adjust to adding miles per week and speedier runs in the near future. Also of note I did take one of my better falls the other day while decending into and across a dry creek bed. A root jumped up kicked my toes squarely as I then tumbled into a an awkward fireman's roll across the rocks. It hurt but the pain quickly faded as my legs and attention warmed up to the precarious nuances of the trail.

The Highlights from the week:
-Snow and Ice running
-Marking a fun run with Mark Mason
-Bear tracks in the snow

1st Day, 1.1

After a bit of rest, traveling to see family, tending to sick kids... I kicked off the new year with an easy 5 miles on the treadmill along with some stretching, push-ups and sit-ups. An easy start to what I see as being a great year for running.

Key races in which I look to race in during the first half of the year and look to do well in include Mt Cheaha 50k, Oak Mountain 50k, and the MMT 100.

5 miles easy on treadmill
100 push-ups
120 sit-ups
stretcinh

Rest

Dr.'s orders one weeks rest which started Monday the 21st. The rest will most likely be good for the tendons, muscles and psyche.

12.17.10

Hit the Big Frog Trail at 8:00 AM this morning. Temp. was a moist 32 degrees at sun up with a good breeze on Big Frog. Legs were feeling pretty good so I pushed the pace on the up hill, maybe a little too hard as my energy level at the top was low. It was a winter wonderland on the upper parts with a little snow left where it had drifted but the trees, branches and all had about a quarter inch of shimmering ice. Took it easy on the down hill.

Miles- 11
Elevation Gain-
Time- 1:46

Running Journal

It is time to start keeping a bit of an online journal of my running. I am looking at 2011 as being a good year on the trails. My speed is improving with increased mileage and more importantly some consistency in training. I would definitely consider myself a low mileage runner as my only training weeks where I have logged over 100 miles, or even close to 100, would be the weeks where I have completed a 100 mile race. So, my goal for 2011 is to gradually increase the mileage while maintaining a consistent training schedule. I look for 2011 to be the year where I move from a low mileage trainer to a high mileage trainer and I hope to keep track of it here.