Showing posts with label Boot Camp. Show all posts
First time back to Boot Camp after my vacation and I end up in the parking garage…
I spent last week on a road trip with my son and took a little break from running.  We did a ton of stuff, so it was kind of a break (but not much sitting around).  I even did a crappy treadmill run Monday morning (I really do hate running on treadmills).
So Monday morning I show up for Boot Camp knowing that I am going to feel every bit of it the next day.  We did an active warm up and then I heard those dreaded words, “We are going to the parking garage”! 
It may have just been me, but I am pretty sure I saw a little evil smile on the faces of the Marines…
We broke up into three ability groups and I ended up in the “fast” group (aka “Oh! You think you can run fast, so we are going to try to kill you!” group). 
Here is the workout for all of you masochist out there (the parking garage has eight floors):
Run up each ramp as a group (warm up) - alternate on each floor: side shuffle, backwards run, sprint.
Roof
        Lunges, Sumo Squats, Lunges
Steps (down)
        Run down the steps
        Each floor – sprint the length of the garage
Steps (up)
        Pyramid (start with hitting each step and then every other and then every third step)
Roof
        Abs (plank, crunches, dead cockroaches, side plank, etc…)
Repeat all (x4)
Run back to the gym and do more abs.
Your legs and abs will hate you in the end, but who cares!
4/27/2011 08:32:00 AM
After a six month break from Boot Camp I am back at it!

Last year, I decided to take off the Summer and Fall sessions of Boot Camp to concentrate on my long distance running.

The break was good in that I was able to start increasing my weekly mileage and I made it through one ultra and three marathons without any injuries.  The downside is that my short milage speed decreased and my overall fitness suffered from the break.

The MUSC (Medical University of South Carolina) Boot Camp is intense.  Its run by Marines that are in the MECEP program at The Citadel.  The workouts go at breakneck speed from the beginning to the end and push you to your limits.  The amazing thing is that there are so many people doing it that there are two classes, one in the morning and one at night (this works out really well for my wife and I - she goes in the morning and I go at night).

My main goal for this session is to increase my speed and strengthen my core.  The workouts alternate from upper body to lower body, but alway have a core element.  The evening class is only on Monday and Wednesday nights so I am also adding in a few nights of P 90 X core workouts.  My wife and son think I am nuts standing in front of the television doing the workout, but I have a feeling they will be joining me in no time.

I thought I would have to rearrange my running schedule to fit in the extra workouts, but the Monday and Wednesday night schedule lines up really well with my normal routine.  I am still recovering from the Charleston Marathon so my weekly mileage is relatively low right now, but I plan on increasing it as I get closer to my first 50K of the year.

The thing about doing class style workouts for sixty minutes is that you end up pushing yourself to do so much more than you think is possible.

I missed this feeling during my training last year.  There is something about being able to look back at these workouts as you hit mile twenty of a marathon and know that you can do anything for an hour.

Now drop and give me twenty!!!
1/24/2011 09:17:00 AM
I think "urban trail running" sounds a little better than "running the streets", but a lot of people have used that title for their blog posts already...

I have been talking to one of my buddies from high school who is an ultra runner and lives in Colorado (he ran the North Face 50 last year). He has a great blog Summits and Valleys: A Mountain Runner's Life about his running, snowboarding and anything else he thinks up. After reading about his trail runs, I started looking for some local trails to try out. My running experience is limited to the last three years and I have never experimented with running on trails. I am planning on running a new half marathon trail run (the Dirt Dash) in September as part of my marathon training. The Dirt Dash goes through the swamps of the Francis Marion National Forest (only a few miles from my house) so I may try to train on some of those trails before I do the race.

I was thinking about trail running when I went for my first run yesterday and realized that I was doing some of the same things I might have to do on a trail:


- Running on uneven ground - It really does not get much more uneven than the sidewalks and roads in Downtown Charleston.






- Dodging obstacles - There are so many tourists in town that it’s like running through a forest.



- Running over rocks and streams - Cobblestone roads / sidewalks and horse piss from the carriages - enough said.





- Inclines and Declines - The Cooper River Bridge adds some much needed elevation from the ten feet below sea level where I start my run. Not to mention the steps of the Customs House that I run up to do my Rocky pose.



So I ran the eight miles and acted like I was running on a trail the whole time (urban trail running). I ran all over Downtown, up the Cooper River Bridge and then made my way up the steps of the Customs House for my Rocky pose (I think I startled the homeless guy at the top). When I got back to my office I was totally pumped! I can't imagine how I would feel if I had just run a real trail.

I did my second run last night. It was a short four mile out and back route from my house. Not much to say about that run, but I did feel really good getting in twelve miles for the day.

This morning I decided to go to Boot Camp to hurt some turtles (see past post about turtles). After our warm up, we broke up into three groups and did a three station, fifteen minute each circuit.

My group went to the track to run laps and sprints. There is nothing like a Marine yelling at you to sprint to get the blood flowing. I have not run that hard in a while and it felt good to go all out. Next, we went back to the gym and worked with the medicine balls. I paired up with another guy and we did chest passes to each other from our knees. We started about ten feet from each other and eventually moved to about thirty feet apart. The goal was to spring forward, throwing the ball, and drop into a pushup. My arms were a mess after fifteen minutes. We then moved to the striking station. One person held a pad while the other person threw punches. Then one person laid on the ground while the other person straddled them and held the pad in their face. The person on the ground then did elbow strikes. After that we stood up and did alternating knee strikes to the bag. I was wiped out!

I could tell everyone was exhausted, but as we finished with group exercises the whole group was loud and motivated. This is what keeps me coming back to Boot Camp.
4/13/2010 03:30:00 PM
This could be one of those posts that has too much information... 

Wednesday morning I ran my five mile tempo run from home.  The pace was pretty good for a solo run (9:08, 8:24, 8:25, 8:34, 8:45).  I ran alone because when I woke up at 5:00 am to run with the group, my head was killing me and I went back to bed for a few more hours.  The night before, I had to have my ears irrigated (cleaned out) at the doctor's office because they were full of wax and pool water (I told you this was one of those TMI posts).  By the way, this could be another reason I was hating running on the treadmill for the past three days.

Thursday morning I went to Boot Camp.  It was a good workout with lots of running so I was pretty happy.  We broke up into two groups.  One group did exercises while the other group ran laps.  We were given a certain amount of time to run the laps and get back so the other group could go.  This was really good speed work because we were being threatened the whole time if we did not run fast enough!

Later that day I went to the track with my son.  He wanted to do a "real" track workout.  I came up with a 50 meter sprint workout:

1x400 warm up
4x400 (100 meter jog, 50 meter sprint, 50 meter walk, 100 meter jog, 50 sprint, 50 meter walk)
1x400 cool down

He loved it!  I had to drop cones at the 50 meter marks, but otherwise he didn't have any problem doing the workout.  I ran it with him and we had a blast "racing" the 50 meter sprints and stomping on leaves during the 50 meter walks.

Friday morning I was back at the track for my workout:
1x800 warm up
Drills
6x800 (3:43) full recovery
1x800 cool down

I was a few seconds fast, but consistent.

I had really been running at a fast pace this week and I was looking forward to a nice slow long run in the morning.  Well, Coach Greg quickly stomped on that day dream.  He advised me that I would be leading the eight mile group in the morning and I needed to do it at around 7:30-8:00 pace.  Crap!

Saturday morning, I woke up early and drove to meet the running group.  Its the second Saturday of the month so that means its time for the Pancake Run with the Charleston Running Club (dutch of course).  There are three groups: 4 mile (no one gets left behind), 6 mile (10:00), and 8 mile (7:30-8:00).  There were only three people in my group (counting me) so we took off fast in an attempt to get back at the same time as the other groups (we didn't want to miss out on all the pancakes).  We ran at a good pace for the whole run and even picked up another runner (Jon) at mile two (8:32, 7:58, 8:05, 8:01, 7:55, 8:05, 7:50, 7:45).  The route was through the Old Village and it was an absolutely beautiful morning!  We finished our run just as the other groups were coming in - mission accomplished!

My favorite part of this run is meeting everyone afterwards at Alex's for breakfast.  We really have a good time just sitting around talking about crazy stuff.  Really, at one point we were talking about having to pee at races and how funny it is to see so many people lined up on the side of the road peeing.  At another point (remember, this is at breakfast) someone was talking pooping during a long run (see, TMI).  We really do have a great time.

I came home, rested a few minutes and then played basketball with my son (it is Saturday - did you expect me to lay around on the couch?).  I got a text about meeting for our second run at 3:30pm (part of my Palmetto 200 training).  The group was only going to run four miles so I decided to run to where I was meeting them to get in an extra couple of miles (I miscalculated the distance and ended up running two and half miles to meet them) (9:37, 9:04).  I met Annie (aka Amy), Heather and Joe "No L".  We decided to run two miles to the Bridge and back.  We started together, but Joe "No L" was pushing the pace and I ended up running with him for most of the way out (9:29, 9:58).  I decided to slow down and run with Annie and Heather for the return (10:58, 11:03, 10:29).  We made it back to their cars, parted ways and I headed back to my house.  As I was running home, I noticed blood on my shirt.  Crap!  Of course I was wearing the same shirt as I wore at the Marine Corps Marathon (see bloody shirt episode).  I ran into a gas station and asked for a band aid.  I know, you're thinking this is the South and of course they gave me a band aid.  Nope!  She pointed and said "over there".  I almost never carry money with me when I run, but today for some reason I had my key and a ten dollar bill in a plastic bag.  I purchased the "box" of band aids and put one on my bloody nipple right there in the store :)  I felt great after that and ran the last two miles at a pretty good pace (9:16, 8:51).

I ran further than I had planned, but it felt good to run seventeen miles today.  This was a great way to end the week; friends, speed work, long runs and bloody nipples...
4/10/2010 09:34:00 PM
Not sure where to start...

Monday afternoon I went for a six mile recovery run.  I did an out and back to the Citadel.  I know I use this route a lot, but it is so nice.  I get to run down Queen Street and then around Colonial Lake.  Then I get to run next to the Ashley River all the way to the Citadel.  You can't ask for much more.

Tuesday I went to Boot Camp in the morning and was treated to one crazy workout.  First we partnered up (I was with Ninja Stuntman).  We were given some instructions and then one of us held on to a punching pad and the other one did the workout.  We hit the bag with an open hand, then a closed fist, then elbows, then knees.  This was for five minutes straight.  We switched and did this two more times.  There was a turtle on the bag that I swear people were hating.  Plus, I realized that there is a lot of angry people in Boot Camp.  They were really pummeling that poor turtle...

Wednesday I ran a five mile tempo run in the morning and then a five mile run in the afternoon.  It felt great to get in two good runs.

Today was a wash.  I am going to count this as a rest day and forget about it.

Tonight I am going to speak to the Healthy Charleston Challenge participants (kind of Charleston's version of the Biggest Loser).  I am going to talk about setting big goals.  Funny how things can change over two years.  I never dreamed that I would have finished three half marathons, two full marathons and would be training for a 200 mile relay as well as another marathon on my 40th birthday.

I may talk about those goals or just tell them about beating up turtles and running hard...
3/04/2010 05:41:00 PM
5 exercises x 100 reps = worn out...

Yesterday was a tempo run and I ran it on the Cooper River Bridge.  We had a big group of about twenty runners and really pushed the pace the whole way (9:35, 7:46, 7:55, 8:48, 7:10).  I have been fighting a cold and was not feeling one hundred percent, but the run felt awesome!

Now back to this morning.  Boot Camp was just plain brutal.

We were all standing around waiting for the Marines to come in the gym to start our stretch (I was showing off my new crazy injinji socks) when all of a sudden the Marines run in and yell, "GET ON YOUR FACE!".  Something was a little different about today...

We immediately started doing pushups and then did four laps around the track for a warm up.  We came back to the gym to find a list of five exercises posted on the wall:

Body Squats
Burpees
Start Jumpers
Pushups
Crunches

We had to do 100 reps of each exercise (any order and in any amount).  This workout really tests your integrity, it would have been very easy to do less or just cheese the effort.  Although the Marines were walking around the gym "inspiring" us, this was about pushing yourself as hard as possible to complete the task.

I changed up the order of the exercises a little, but mostly did sets of 20 each until I was finished.  I was dead!  I  finished in a little over thirty minutes.  After that, we were sent to the track to start running.  I did a recovery lap and then picked up the pace.  As I was coming around the corner, one of the Marines yelled at me and three other people to get on the rowing machines.  We went max effort for about three minutes and then went back to the track and ran some more (my legs were numb).

We went back to the gym and did some more exercises (which I can not even remember at this point).  We finished by running to the center of the gym yelling our best war cry (I barely remember that)...

oorah!
2/25/2010 10:23:00 AM
I made it back to Boot Camp this morning - ouch...

I took a full rest day on Sunday after running my race on Saturday.

I was able to get in a 5.6 mile run yesterday morning.  I left my car at the garage over the weekend and decided to run there and drive back.  I did a loop around the Old Village.  This was a recovery run so my pace was pretty slow (9:45, 9:31, 9:23, 9:33, 9:20).  It was still dark out, so I used my cool new blinking red light.  I have had a few close calls lately so I decided to get a PETZL e+LITE that can go on a hat, shirt or just wrap around my wrist (I went with the wrist option this morning).  I only had two cars pass me the whole morning - what a rip...

Back to today.  Why did I pick today to get back to Boot Camp?  Once again it was full on abs!  This time the Marines even mixed in some medicine balls (how thoughtful).

We did a quick stretch and then ran four laps around the track.  We came back down to the gym and started running in a circle.  One of the Marines yelled at me to come with him (that's what you get for missing a week).  We went to another workout room and I helped him carry a huge storage box of medicine balls (that's right, not a few medicine balls - A BOX OF MEDICINE BALLS!).

After that, it was "abs time"!  They broke us up into two groups and told us to find a partner.  I paired up with my friend Michael (known forever more as Ninja Stuntman).  We got into two long lines and faced each other.  One person did crunches, while the other person held their legs (max effort - 1 min, 45 sec, 30 sec).  Then we did a ton of other abdominal exercises.  After that we switched with the other group to do more abs (this time with the medicine balls I helped bring to the gym).  We stayed with our partner and moved about ten feet apart.  One person would throw the medicine ball to the other person (as you threw the ball, you would come down and do a push up).  We did a bunch of other exercises with the medicine ball until my abs and arms felt like they were going to explode. 

I thought it was funny when the Marines said to be ready for a "real workout" on Thursday (except no one was laughing) - ouch...
2/23/2010 02:44:00 PM
To all my fellow Palmetto200 runners, I am sorry you missed my company this morning...


Monday was so hectic I was unable to run until after 9:00pm. I would have skipped it, but I needed to run off some of my Super Bowl munchies.

I thought it was going to be much colder and I way over dressed. I was wearing running pants and two long sleeve shirts. By the time I had gone a mile I was sweating.

I ran an out and back down Coleman Blvd to the top of the Shem Creek Bridge. It was really windy on the bridge (the only place I felt properly dressed). I was able to see all the shrimp boats docked and there were a ton of people heading in and out of all the restaurants (very cool at night). I was not paying any attention to my pace, I just wanted to run. I ended up running a little over five miles (9:28, 9::46, 9:48, 9:30, 9:06).
Tuesday morning I woke up and went to Boot Camp. I havd not been able to make it for the past few days so I was looking forward to getting back. I had no idea it was going to be "kill Noah's abs" day. I am still hurting!

We started off with the normal stretches and warm up exercises and then ran three laps around the inside track and then a bunch of laps around the gym (about one mile total). Then it was ab time.

I swear to you, it was forty minutes of pure abs! Plank, crunches, Russian twist, plank, crunches, leg lifts, etc... I noticed last night that my neck was killing me. It must be from raising my head off the floor the whole time. It hurts like hell today (I wonder if anyone else is feeling the same thing)...

I woke up late and missed my tempo run this morning. It was cold and windy, but I was really looking forward to running with my group. You may have guessed already, but I am a kind of a loud mouth and show off, so I sent out emails yesterday stating that the wind would make us run faster. Today I have received several emails and Facebook postings that are not so kind. But I still think the wind made them run faster :)
2/10/2010 03:16:00 PM
My abs are wrecked, as in I feel like a truck ran over me!

This morning's Boot Camp workout was brutal.  Apparently, someone told the Marines that they were getting a better workout with a different group.  I doubt anyone will be saying that for a while.  These guys have really stepped it up.

Recap of my workouts for the last few days:

Friday - I missed the morning track workout so I went for a six mile run in the afternoon (9:05, 9:10, 9:15, 9:26, 8:59, 9:05).

Saturday - Group run - I ran four miles on my own (10:20, 10:10, 9:52) and then met up with my running group to do six more miles.  We ran over the Cooper River Bridge and back to the Old Village.  I was leading the pace so I started off slow and then did negative splits on the way back (11:50, 9:24, 9:25, 8:54, 8:48, 8:24).  It was a great run!

Sunday - I did a track workout with my son.  I warmed up with him for a mile.  That's right, my six year old son can now run a one mile warm up with me!  As I did my work out (10 x 200 80% max with 200 rest) he ran (8 x 100 with 100 rest).  I did some drills after that and then did a cool down 800.  My son ended up running a total of 2 miles!

Monday - Boot Camp - we did six abdominal exercises and then ran two laps around the track (x3 ).  After the third set we paired up and did leg throws (one person down and one person up - top person throws the other person's legs down and that person raises them back up - its tough!).  Then we did paired up crunches (2 minutes max, 1 minute max, 45 seconds max).  I felt bad for the girl I was partnered with because I was a sweaty mess!

Legs feel good, abs are a mess...

www.mooreonrunning.com
1/25/2010 02:04:00 PM
Not sure I can top the Saturday night run in the rain, but I have had some good workouts this week.

Sunday I went for a six mile run over the Ben Sawyer Bridge to Sullivan's Island.  The sun was setting as I crossed the bridge.  On my way back I stopped for a few seconds and just took in the beauty.  The clouds looked like they were exploding.  It was such a cool site.

Monday morning I got up and went to Boot Camp.  Crazy workout!  We ran across the street to the parking garage (because the huge gym and roof would not do for the Marines).  We split up into ability groups and ran up eight floors.  On the top level, our group broke into two groups.  One group ran clockwise and the other ran counter clockwise (one circle inside the other).  When one group stopped to do exercises (mostly abs) the other group ran.  We switched every other minute.  Then we would run down the stairs and back up the stairs.  We did this for the entire workout (my abs are still hurting).


Monday afternoon I went for a six mile run in the Old Village to the Old Pitt Street Pier.  That place is so incredible.  When I got to the turnaround spot I looked to my left and saw the Ben Sawyer Bridge and on the right I saw the Cooper River Bridge.  They seemed so far away, but I had run on both of them the last two days.  My legs were pretty tired from the morning workout so I took it easy on this run.

Tuesday I rested.

Wednesday morning I did a group run.  I signed up for the Palmetto200 (a 200 mile relay in South Carolina from Columbia to Folly Beach).  We have two groups of twelve runners and are going to be doing a lot of group runs.  I am really excited about the training and this crazy race.  Anyway, it seemed like there were over thirty people on this run.  We started as a large group and then broke up into three ability groups (there were eleven people in my group).  The run was five miles.  The first mile was a slow warm up.  The middle three miles were speed play.  One runner would pick an end point ahead and we would sprint to that spot.  We would then run at a recovery pace and the next runner would pick a spot and we would sprint to it and then recover.  This went on for the entire three miles.  We then finished with a one mile cool down.  I loved this run.  It was the first time I had done it and it was very different than a long distance run, a steady run or a tempo run.  Just what I needed to break up the typical training.

Seventeen miles and a Boot Camp, not bad for the first part of the week.
1/20/2010 09:33:00 PM
Not sure when I hurt my left knee, but it hurts like hell!

Thursday I went to Boot Camp and part of the workout was doing duck walks on the track.  I am pretty sure this was the cause of my knee injury.  Not a bad exercise for someone who is twenty one years old, but this old guy is never doing them again.

I got up the next day and felt fine.  I met up with a group of runners for an inside track workout.  Six times around the track equals a mile and we were doing lap repeats with one lap rest.  After a half mile warm up we started the repeats.  I was running with a friend of mine (Michael).  We ran 1:02 - 1:04 each lap (6:12-6:24 mile pace).  We did 10 repeats and then ran a half mile cool down.

I was feeling great after the track workout, but had to drive two hours for a meeting that morning.  When I was driving back, I felt some pain on the outside of my left knee.  It was actually sore to the touch.  I got home and was really hurting.  I took some Advil and started icing my knee.  I did this for several hours.

I was going to get up in the morning and run my long run with the Charleston Running Club, but my knee was hurting all night.  I had to stand most of the day and by Saturday night I was really in pain.  I took more Advil and iced my knee some more.

My knee was feeling a little better on Sunday.  My son wanted to go to the track so we went out and ran one mile.  We played football and soccer while we were there as well (that could be an entire blog post).  Later, I got in the hot tub for a while and tried to stretch out my leg.  It started to feel a lot better.

I was still sore on Monday so I skipped Boot Camp and my afternoon six mile run.  All of this "rest" was making me a very grumpy guy.  I was not feeling good about missing all of these workouts.  I was also completely stressed about my future (who am I if I am not a former fat guy that runs?).

By Monday night my knee was feeling much better.  Funny how rest can do that...

I went to Boot Camp on Tuesday morning, but was not too happy to find out that we were going to be doing our Physical Fitness Test (PFT).  I warmed up and did the push up and crunches.  I went to the track and decided I would take it easy on the one mile run.  I ran it in 7:20 (about one minute slower than my last test).  I was a little bummed about it, but I figure I can crush it at the end of this Boot Camp session.  Better than wrecking my knee for a one mile run.

That afternoon I went for a five mile run.  I tried to keep a steady pace and just have fun while taking it easy on my knee (9:09, 8:59, 9:19, 9:00, 9:18). My knee felt a little tight, but there was no pain.

Yesterday afternoon I went for a six mile run (9:13, 8:52, 8:58, 8:56, 8:35, 9:10).  This was as close to a tempo run as I was going to do this week.  My knee felt fine and I felt awesome after the run.

I am going to listen to my body and take it easy for the rest of the week.  Skinny guys will never understand how hard it is for fat guys (or former fat guys) to take a day off.  Its very hard to differentiate excuses from a real need to rest.  You see how far you have come and you know what it took to get to that point...
1/14/2010 08:36:00 AM
Another title for this blog post could be "Cold Sucks!"

I am still pumped from the 5k on Saturday!  For some reason I think my wife maybe getting tired of me telling her about my new personal best.  I think it was the ninth or tenth time I told her the story she just fell asleep -she might have just been sleepy...

Anyway, I usually take Sunday as a rest day, but Friday was a light track workout and Saturday was the 5k (you know, the day of my new personal best) so I went out for an eight mile run (9:14, 9:40, 9:22, 9:30, 9:03, 9:40, 9:16, 9:00).  I went down Coleman from my house and went up the Cooper River Bridge and then back home.  It was cold, but the run felt great.


Monday morning was the first day of the new Boot Camp session.  I was excited to get back into it (How sick is that?  I was excited to go back and have a bunch of Marines yell at me and make me do pushups!).  Anyway, that's exactly what they did.  We started out with a bunch of pushups and stretches (strange combination - not sure which fitness expert suggested this to the Marines, but they all seem to have adopted the practice).  After that we worked out abs and upper body (with the exception of the ninety degree squat and bounce exercise they have started to use).  The group is about 150 strong and the gym was packed.  Should thin out by next week.

Monday afternoon I went for a six mile run out to the Citadel and back (9:28, 9:40, 9:50, 9:40, 9:28, 9:40).  Another cold run.  I am running out of cold weather clothing.  The run felt good, although my knees always hurt after we start Boot Camp (could be all the jumping jacks - I mean "side straddle hops").

This morning I got up and went back to Boot Camp (it was way too cold and the Marines told us to dress warm for an outside workout).  I found some clothes to wear and made my way to the gym.  Apparently the fitness center was either fearful for our safety or fearful that half the class would run out so the outside workout was scratched.  The part that sucked was that I was dressed to go outside.  I was sweating my ass off in the gym before the workout even started!  There are so many of us that we had to break up into four groups (two lines facing each other).  We did four sets of crunches (1 min, 45 seconds, 30 seconds, 15 seconds - max effort).  We then did exercises and took turns sprinting on the inside track.  More abs and upper body - oh, and more of those ninety degree squat and bounce exercises that were developed in workout hell...

This afternoon I waited for the top temperature of thirty eight degrees and went for a five mile run (9:18, 9:27, 9:57, 9:14, 9:10).  It was supposed to be six miles, but I was too cold and every part of my body hurt!  I went out to the Ashley River and back to my office.


My toes hurt, my legs hurt, my abs hurt, my arms hurt, my fingers hurt and for some reason my eyes hurt.  Okay, this could be from staring at this crazy looking guy in Boot Camp this morning.  Not sure if he just woke up with this hairdo or if he really keeps his hair this way, but all I could think of was the 80's band Flock of Seagulls.  It took everything out of me not to start laughing.

Just thinking about it makes my stomach hurt...

www.mooreonrunning.com
1/05/2010 10:01:00 PM

I think now is a good time to look back at last year and set some goals for the new year.

2009
- Maintained my weight loss for another year (that makes two).  
- Ran a total of 1,454 miles (not too shabby).
- Set several personal records (5k - 23:50, 8k - 39:40, marathon - 4:18:34) .  
- Finished three Boot Camp sessions - I have the t-shirts to prove it (well, all of them but that damn red shirt!!!) 
- Ran the Citadel Bulldog Challenge - my team came in third place (first co-ed civilian team).  
- Ran two marathons - Myrtle Beach Marathon (February) and Marine Corps Marathon (October) -now that's crazy
- Raised over $2,500 for the Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund

I look back on the training I completed for both marathons and I am amazed at how many things I thought were completely impossible.  I was so nervous and apprehensive about going out for such long distances.  I questioned myself prior to those long runs and celebrated after each one (who goes out for a twenty mile run on a Saturday morning at 4:00am???). 

Now to a brand new year.  I went out on the track this morning for my first workout of the year.  It was not too hard - I'm running a 5k in the morning.  It felt good to be out there (even if I did over sleep a little), to know that I was starting the year with the desire to keep moving. 

Here are a few of my goals for this year:


2010
- Maintain my weight (maybe even lose five more pounds)
- Run a 5k under 23:50 (could happen in the morning)
- Run the Cooper River Bridge 10k under 52:00
- Run the Palmetto200 Relay
- Run the Qu'est-ce que c'est? 12 Hour Run (run more than 31 miles)
- Finish the Monumental Marathon in Indianapolis on my 40th birthday
- Finish a marathon under four hours

So there it is...  A list of goals...  In writing...  

Now all I have to do is run, run and run some more...
1/01/2010 08:28:00 PM

Not a race, just a Christmas Eve Morning Run...

I ran my five mile tempo run this morning.  It's Christmas Eve and a beautiful day.  It was over 50 degrees this morning and the sun was beating down.

There were a lot of runners out, but one stood out.  I usually wear black shorts and a white top (not sure why, but this makes up most of my running color spectrum).  I recently bought a dark blue long sleeve shirt that I wanted to wear this morning.  You can't wear black shorts with a dark blue shirt, so I put on my only non black shorts which are light grey.  So there I was running in my dark blue long sleeve shirt and my light grey shorts and what should I see running in front of me?  You got it, some guy in the same outfit!  What the hell?  We were running on the same street, about twenty yards apart, at the same pace.  We looked like we were on a team.  He was not aware of this because he was in front of me.  I came close to speeding up my pace just so I could pass him and he would have to think about the chances of this happening, but the turn to my house was coming up and if he increased his pace we would end up running next to each other and I would totally look like I was stalking him.  Such are the things one thinks of when running on Christmas Eve...

Recap for the last week:

Wednesday - 5 Mile Tempo Run (12:43, 7:56, 7:58, 7:56, 10:08)
Thursday - Rest
Friday - Track - 8 x 400 with drills
Saturday - 10 Mile Long Run Over the Bridge(10:03, 9:51, 9:52, 10:00, 8:57, 9:38, 9:33, 9:15, 9:17, 9:05)
Sunday - Rest
Monday - Boot Camp Workout
Tuesday - No workout (had visitors)

Merry Christmas!
12/24/2009 04:29:00 PM
Yesterday I ran the Charleston Reindeer 5k with my son.  It was wet and cold, but we had a blast!

We woke up and dressed for the cold.  Its Charleston, anything under 50 and we are throwing on cold weather gear...

There were a lot of people walking around the starting line with dogs and costumes.  My son was really excited about running the race.  My wife and I had done the Turkey Day Run the week before and he was really jealous (how cool is that?).

The race started and my son took off.  He understands sprinting and walking (he does not get pace yet).  He did the whole race on his own and ended up finishing in 44:46(PB)!  We had so much fun.  We did a lot of short races as we went along and he was laughing most of the way.  He finished fourth in his age group (6 and under) and even got a trophy!





I am getting back into the groove of my training and it feels good.  Here is a recap of my training from last week:

Monday (11-30) - 6 mile run (9:46, 8:46, 8:34, 8:37, 8:46, 9:32) - Downtown in the afternoon
Tuesday (12-01) - 6 mile run (9:54, 9:21, 9:32, 9:18, 9:12, 9:13) - Downtown in the afternoon
Wednesday (12-02) - Rest
Thursday (12-03) - Boot Camp in the morning (2 miles) / 5 mile run (10:13, 7:51, 10:37, 7:59, 9:59)
Friday (12-04) - Track workout (6x200, 6x300, 2x400 + drills) - 4.5 miles total
Saturday (12-05) - Ran the Reindeer run with my son - 3.1 miles
Sunday (12-06) - 6 mile run on the Cooper River Bridge (not much of a workout yesterday so I threw this in for fun (9:59, 9:23, 8:34, 9:41, 9:20, 8:21).
12/06/2009 12:03:00 PM
Most of this month I have devoted to recovering from the marathon.  I think I am as recovered as possible and ready to start doing more tempo runs.  I am also ready to get back on the track and increase my long runs.

I am running the Charleston Turkey Day 5k in the morning.  This will be the first 5k I have run in a while.  Not sure what kind of time I will run, but it should be fun.  Here is a list of my last few days before the race.  

November 18 - Ran 6 miles (9:42, 7:41, 9:35, 9:37, 9:30, 10:02 )
November 19 - Boot Camp
November 20 - Ran 6 miles (9:10, 7:47, 8:59, 9:19, 9:05, 9:03, 9:08)
November 21 - Ran 8 miles (10:24, 9:38, 9:11, 9:50, 9:50, 9:23, 9:25, 9:30)
November 22 - Rest
November 23 - Boot Camp
November 24 - Boot Camp
November 25 - Rest

On the 24th I went to Boot Camp and there was a Marine Captain that came out to lead our workout for the morning.  He was pretty intense when he walked in.  He was holding a traffic cone in one hand and yelled at all of us, "This is my cone, you will not touch my cone unless I tell you to touch my cone!".  He then walked across the gym and placed the traffic cone in the corner.  We of course yell, "Yes Sir!".

There were about one hundred grown men and women standing there with confused looks on their faces (including me).  We had already stretched and warmed up so he went right into his workout (mainly core building for an hour).  As he walked around the gym he started pointing people out, "You call that a plank? Go touch my cone!!!".  "Get your butt out of the air!  Go touch my cone!!!".  The person would have to jump up, run to the cone and touch it.

You can imagine that we were all doing our best to keep a straight face.  My stomach was already hurting from all the abdominal exercises, but now I was really hurting every time he would yell at someone to go touch his cone.  This went on for the whole hour.

I thought the workout was a little easy while I was doing it, but this morning I could feel it.  The Marine Captain never cracked a smile during the workout.  I have no idea how he did it, but it sure made for a fun workout.
11/25/2009 08:54:00 AM
It's been a while...

I have not been updating my blog each day as I did when I was training for the Marine Corps Marathon. Not sure why, but maybe I just needed a little break.

I did take it easy for a few days after the race. I have kept my runs to not more than six miles and have tried to run at an easy pace, but I am itching to get back in the game.

So here is a recap of what I did after the race:

October 25th - ran the Marine Corps Marathon

October 26th - walked around DC and visited the Zoo - did you know that the zoo is on a hill? Well, after running a marathon it felt like I was climbing a mountain! My son had no mercy.

October 27th - walked all over DC - my six year old son really has no idea how much pain I went through so he could see the Air and Space Museum and the Natural History Museum (twice!)...

October 28th - drove back home - rest!

October 29th - rest

October 30th - rest

October 31st - ran 6 miles (9:45, 9:17, 9:43, 9:34, 9:41, 9:35) - I ran by feel and did not look at my watch until I got back.

November 1st - ran 4 miles (9:41, 9:30, 9:32, 9:16)

November 2nd - first day back to Boot Camp

November 3rd - Boot Camp

November 4th - rest

November 5th - Boot Camp in the morning and then ran 4 miles in the afternoon (9:48, 9:53, 9:33, 9:41)

November 6th - rest - it was my birthday...

November 7th - ran six miles (9:39, 9:15, 9:05, 9:09, 9:13, 9:26)

November 8th - ran 4 miles on the track - mostly 200's and 400's with my son

November 9th - ran 6 miles (9:53, 9:19, 9:42, 9:27, 8:56, 9:11)

November 10th - Boot Camp

November 11th - Boot Camp

November 12th - I ran the James Island County Park Holiday Lights Two Mile Run with my son and we did it in 32:15 (he said he beat me by 2 seconds though)...

November 13th - ran 6 miles (9:18, 8:46, 9:35, 9:20, 8:35, 9:27)

November 14th - rest

November 15th - ran 6 miles (9:21, 9:39, 9:32, 9:05, 9:25, 8:52)

November 16th - Boot Camp

November 17th - rest

So that's it! I have been running easy and trying to recover and still get in some miles. I have also been reading Bart Yasso's book and I love it! What an amazing story.

What now? I am planning on running the Charleston Turkey Day 5k on Thanksgiving and then trying to figure out my race schedule after that.

A group that I run with wants to do the Palmetto200 (a 200 mile relay from Columbia, SC, to Folly Beach, SC). I am really excited about doing it next year.

The biggest thing I am planning next year is a marathon on my 40th birthday! The Monumental Marathon in Indianapolis is on November 6, 2010 and I am going to break four hours!

I have a sister that lives in Indianapolis and most of my family lives in Kentucky, so I have asked all of them to run or walk that day to help me celebrate. How cool will it be if all four of my sister run on that day?

I am rested and ready to go, should be a fun year!
11/17/2009 09:57:00 PM
What a day...

I started out with an awesome run this morning and then did a TV interview in the afternoon about raising money for the Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund.

If you want to check out the video click here: Live 5 News CBS Charleston, SC.

I have now surpassed my original goal of $1000! I can not begin to tell you how much it means to me to be running this race in support of the Semper Fi Fund. I have so many friends that are Marines. I also have friends that have spouses that are Marines and are serving over seas. Finally, I owe so much to the Marines that have spent so much time "motivating" me at Boot Camp.

Its hard to even talk about my tapering, but this is a workout blog and not just for my rambling...

I made this post earlier, but decided to change it to include the whole week of tapering instead of just doing each day.
On Tuesday, 10-20-09, I went out in the cold morning and ran a five mile tempo run. It was in the lower 40's so I was wearing running pants and a long sleeve shirt. I ran down Coleman, over Shem Creek and back home. My pace felt great from warm up to the end (10:11, 8:34, 8:38, 8:40, 8:40). I did not do too much of a cool down so I walked for a few minutes when I got back home.
On Wednesday, 10-21-09, I did my last track workout before the race. It was a cool morning, much like the race day will be. I made a point of wearing just about the same thing as I would on Sunday. The workout was mostly to dial in our marathon pace.
1 x 800 - warm up
2 x 400 - (2:12-2-16) 60 second passive rest - Do this until pace is correct
3 x 1200 - (6:40) 2 minute passive rest
1 x 800 - cool down
I was a little fast on most of my splits, but not too bad. I always go a little faster on the track, but I think I have the pace down for the marathon. My 1200's were (6:27, 6:26, 6:30).
On Thursday, 10-22-09, I went down to the gym for a two mile slow run. I met up with a small group and we ran around the inside track while Boot Camp was going on. After Boot Camp the Marines called us in and wished us luck on the race.
Friday I am planning on doing three slow miles to keep my legs loose. After that I will be resting and hydrating.
My legs are really feeling strong and I am mentally geared up for the race. Time to head to the big city for the race!
10/20/2009 08:56:00 PM
I got back to Boot Camp this morning.

It was fun to cross train a little. We were on the roof for most of the morning. We did an indian run and then sprints. We also lined up and did squats, frankensteins, steam engines and a bunch of other crazy exercises across the roof.

I made sure I got in a slower running group so I did not over do it. After Boot Camp I finished up with a three mile recover run (9:50, 10:30, 10:29).

The workout and the recovery run felt great. It's much easier to recover from a twelve mile run than from a twenty two mile run...
10/12/2009 03:07:00 PM
I was happy to get back to Boot Camp this morning. It was a hard workout, but not as crazy as the last two weeks. I was glad that it was back to normal Boot Camp. OK, OK, it was somewhat normal (civilian adults getting yelled at by Marines at 6:00am is not so normal to begin with, but at least I could understand what we were supposed to do)...

We did group stretches and then warm up exercises (someone came in late so we had to do extra push ups). We were split into two large groups. My group was split into three ability groups and sent to the roof to run Indian Sprints around the track. I went in the middle group so I would not over do it after my long run on Saturday.

I love doing Indian runs. I get to sprint and do some of my recovery run at the same time. We ended up covering about two miles. After our run we went back to the gym and did a body bar workout, another one of my favorites. My arms were burning after this workout.

Both groups formed up in the gym for an abdominal workout at the end. It was a nice workout.
9/21/2009 02:48:00 PM
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