Zero day

Today ended up being a zero miles day. I felt ok during the day but just ran out of motivation as the day went on and it became night. The worst part of these days is that all I find myself doing is beating myself up for not running. In a way what is worse, a crappy run or killing myself over and over in my head ?

Here is another link to a video that I find good to watch to get me pumped up to run. I guess I should have seen this before the day got to late so I might have got out huh ? It is a video in Ritz

Totals: 0

I made it !!

Well with the crazy cool weather once more today I decided to give the tredmill a try once more. This time I used my parents one. I went after it with the two prog attack. I put in a video of a Boston marathon and last years NYC marathon, as well as using my ipod. I seem to need everything to make this darn thing work. What was funny is that it seemed to work pretty good for about 30 min's or so. After that it got harder with the last 10 min's of my 50 min run seeming taking 30 min's by its self. I did feel real good which was good since I normaly feel like crap on the tredmill.

Let me also say that those darn Nike Haywards I got felt just great !!! It is still light but has a great fit in the toebox. Quickly becomming my favorite training shoe I am using now.

Totals: 50:15 7 miles ( Nike Hayward )

Beautiful and Moving

As many people who know me will tell you I LIVE and LOVE this sport of ours. There is so much in running that I Find beautiful and moving. Whether it be the person who is not a runner and has never run like my Mom running her one and only race a many years ago to the epic battles we have seen in races like the 5k and 10k to the marathon. To the ultra marathon runners like Minnesota's own Scott Jurek reining supreme 7 years in a row at Western States. I could go on and on about all the runners who give me faith in what I believe is a sport about faith in ourselves and our training. Distance running is beautiful to me. I tell my wife that life is one big running race. We train everyday to be the best parent, spouse, worker we can be. There are bonks along the way but we never give up on the finish line. This Video I added today to the blog of the duel in the sun is a great example of pushing yourself and not giving up and in the end recognizing your competitors who bring the best out in you. We do not do it alone !!! Enjoy.

A busy day @ the Dome

With the bottom dropping out today I was thinking there would be a bunch of people at the Dome to run inside. It is crazy to think that when including the windchill it was a 100 swing in temperature from the day before !!! Well I was not let down at there was plenty of people running around and around. In some ways I thought there would be more but was happy that it was not the case. Anyway it was a good day to be inside and it works out good that Tuesday is my up tempo day.

I was looking to continue my ways with adding some more speed work to my weekly workouts. I was not sure what to do. I knew I wanted to do something a little longer but not to long. I settled on one of my favorite Dome workouts which is 1200 repeats. I like to keep this stuff pretty loose and fun. There is no need to go to crazy in January, it is a long season ahead of me. I started out with a two mile warm up then jumped into the 1200 repeats. I felt ok but not great today. I just did not feel like I was in a groove. The times where a bit faster than I thought considering I did not feel like I was going to hard. I think I pretty much averaging between 5:40 and 5:47 mile pace. I even felt like I kept the pace ok during the cool down. One thing that did suck big time was I forgot my body glide and my legs started to chafe toward the end of my cool down run. I was forced to cut it short because it just plain was getting uncomfortable. I made sure I put a bottle of body glide in my bag when I got home asap !! Tomorrow looks like more of the same weather wise so I am not sure what I will be doing. I do not know if it would be smart to try to run in like -45 degree weather ??


Totals: 1:00:48 9 miles ( Nike Jasari )

Is the warm weather a good thing ?

So it was crazy out today. It was like a daytime high of like 45' which felt very warm. Now as good as it can feel at the time I for one do not like it because I know it will be super icy later. I hate ice !!!! I was able to run after work for one of my Monday night runs with my friend Liz. I knew from the walk to my car that this could be a crazy run as the water on the roads freezing minute by minute. I almost fell walking to the car if it was not for my cheetah like instincts.

As I ran to Liz's house I knew this was going to be a slower run and one that I needed to stay on side streets so I could run in the middle of the road. I hate that feeling of being so stiff trying to brace yourself in case of a fall. Man it was like that for most of the run. Liz has been sick the last 5 days so we where going to keep it slower and maybe a bit shorter. It was great to get my weekly catch up with her. I guess she is going to Florida at the end of the week for a little vacation in the keys, Nice !!! We kept our part together to 30 min's. So after I dropped her off I took the longer way home so I would get at least 50 min's of running. I felt real good other than the stiffness of hoping not to fall on the ice. Tomorrow is a workout day at the Dome which I think will be a good thing given the fact they are saying that with windchill it could be like -35 to 40' at night. That is a 100 degree swing in 24 hours !!!! Only in Minnesota, but I LOVE this place.

Totals: 50:15 7 miles ( Nike Haywards )

Sunday fun with Sonya

Sonya and I where very lucky today and got our friends Carri and Simon to watch Evan so we could run long together. They live out in Plymouth so we ran out from the Luce Line trail head down to Medicine Lake, around the lake and back to the car. We did add a bit on the end to make it just over 2 hours. I felt very good. The weather was pretty good for us as well. It was like 25' when we ran which was perfect for footing and all. Having this time with Sonya is so important to me !! So with this great run after watching a great movie in Rescue Dawn the night before I had a awesome 24 hours that was for sure.

She wise I ran in another new pair of the new Nike Haywards. These are supposed to be made off of drawing that Steve Prefontaine did for his perfect shoe. Who knows if it is true but I did like them.


Totals: 2:10:11 15 miles ( Nike Haywards )
Week Totals: 64

St Paul Winter Carnival 1/2 marathon

Today was the St Paul Winter Carnival 1/2 marathon which has been a yearly tradition for Sonya for many years in a row now. So Evan and I got all bundled up at took his Mommy to the race. This years weather was very nice all in all. Much better than the freezing weather last year, which was good since I knew there was no way Evan was going to sleep through it this year. We where able to get to like 5 different places to watch her and other we are friends with Like Pat Russell and Nicole Cueno run. Ithink all in all everyone was pleased with the effort. Nicloe won the women's and Sonya was 3rd. Pat was like 15th or so but was just running easy. He has won this race like 4 other times I think. What was funny was that times where slower this year with better weather ? Who knows was but I was proud of Sonya and the gang.

I then had to work till 5pm so I ran after that. Let me tell you this night was one of those great nights where everything feels great !!! I was so smooth and feeling fast. I had some great tunes rolling in my ears as well !!! I wore the Jasari's once more. What a great shoe. I kept it at like 8 miles since I knew I had a longer run in the morning tomorrow.

Totals: 55:42 8 miles ( Nike Jasari )

So So

The girls had school off today so I had all three kids from the get go. We had to drop Summer off at my mom and dads at around 11am so they could get ready to go up to Duluth to visit my brother Kraig and his wife Cassi. They where very excited to also watch the start of the Beergreese sled dog race. So I figured I would take the opportunity to run from my parents before they took off. It was a pretty good day weather wise. I was feeling pretty good all in all since I took the time to have some oatmeal with Evan for breakfast. Boy oh boy that makes all the difference to have some fuel in the take before running. I did a nice little loop out by my old high school Armstrong and back home. I believe I was 55 min's or so in the end. All in all pretty good. At least it was much better than yesterday. Plus hell a run in a new pair of Nike Jasari shoes was sweet !!! They are a great lightweight shoe !!! Check them out.

Totals: 55:18 7+ miles ( Nike Jasari )

Off Day

The title says it all today. In what in some cases would have been a good day not to run became a nightmear run for awhile. So I thought I was going to get out later in the day but on my way back from droping my daughter Summer off at school Sonya called to say I could get my run in when I got home since she was not going to be leaving for work for a few hours. I figured what the hell let's get the run out of the way. So I got already to go and went out the door.

I was feeling real good as I made my way back to Lake Harritt. I even was good as I went around the back side of the lake. It was when I was 20 min's into the run that all hell broke loose. I had one of the melt downs when it is like someone turns off all the energy. The next 15 min's SUCKED big time. I knew then that most likly what was killing me was my lack of food for the morning. I was not planning on the run so I did not eat anything before hand to hold me over till I had a real breakfast. I am also wondering if maybe my body is fighting something of since about everyone I know has been or is sick. Either way that time on my feet sucked. I started to feel better as I got close to home but by that time I was wanting to just stop and eat.

Totals: 45:18 6 miles ( Nike Skylons )

Colder than I thought

So when I went out tonight for my run I was very surprised on how cold it was. I did not feel like it was so bad during the day but I am sure with the sun down and I think the wind turning up some it made for the extra cold feeling. Toss that in with the fact that I had to pee so so bad but did not want to stop since I knew I would freeze. I ran from work down to the lake to meet Sonya and Nicole who where running. I was able to jump in with them for about 45 min's of my run. Nicole is so cool and I know how much Sonya loves running with her. Nicole is getting ready for the upcoming women's Olympic marathon trials in Boston. We are very proud of her !!!

As for the details of the run I was feeling real good during the run. Nice and smooth. It is a good feeling to string together a good few days in a row. I am looking forward to the the weekend long run. I am hoping to get back in that above 2 hour limit after falling 11 min's short last week.

This a good read on perspective from Team USA'S MN Matty G http://www.nyrr.org/races/pro/usa_distance/mattgabrielson.asp

Totals: 1:10:32 9 miles ( puma trailfox )

First test

Another Tuesday and another night of running at the Dome. This is like my 3rd or 4th Tuesday in a row of running at the Dome. The first few times there running I was just looking to run in shorts and stretch out my legs a bit. Tonight I was hoping to test myself a bit with a little speed. It has been a long time since I have tried to do anything faster. One of the things with the sports hernia was that it hurt the most when I tried to do speed work. So with that in mind I shied away from speed work. So tonight I was just looking to see how I felt going a bit faster than my normal pace.

I started out with just a pretty easy 2 mile warm up. I did pick it up a bit the last two lap's of my warm up. Kind of like strides I guess. After going to the bathroom and a little stretching I started up. I was looking to do 800's. I figured I did not want to go to long of intervals to start so that is why I picked 800's. I was looking to run like 2:30 pace for the half miles. Let me tell you I would be lying if I did not say it felt good to be picking it up some, feeling fast. I came through on the first one in 2:27, and they got faster from there as I was getting looser. I ended up running 6 repeats. The last one was the fastest in 2:14. It was very encouraging with how I felt. Maybe next week I will look at doing more like a tempo run ? We will have to see.

I ended up the run doing a cool down and talking to a friend I have met in this crazy blogger world, Steve Quick. It was nice to talk to him and run some lap's. He was coming of a 30 mile run the day before !! Nice run huh.

Totals: 1:19:00 11 miles ( nike skylon )

Monday night fun

So my friend Liz and I have been trying to run at least 1 night a week now for a while. It seems like Monday's have been working out best for us so tonight after I got off work I changed up clothing and ran on over to her house. We had gotten a little snow during the day which made for a nice little blanket under my feet. The temp's where pretty good compared to the weekend. I think it was like around 1' at the time of the run. It is funny when something as low as 1' can feel so good. We did our normal loop down and around Lake Harriet. We seemed to have lot's to talk about which made the run go bu super fast. Hell Liz even added on a bit with me on my way back home. It was great to hear her say she was feeling good on the run. It had been some time since I have heard her say that. I was also feeling real good. In many ways i wish I would have kept going and got in a longer run. But I knew I had much to take care of at home so I called it a day after 1:06 and I am guessing 8 miles. I ran tonight in my Puma trailfox shoes. They are great !!!!

On a sad note I still can not believe what's going on in Kenya. I have been following it and it just makes me sad. I just do not know what goes through people's minds sometimes. All the death for what ? and this is just one spot in the world. I hope people all around the world someday wake up and smell the coffee and see that there will always be people who think different than what you think. Is that so wrong ? Either way killing people is not the way to "make" people change. Every country/ person could learn from that.

Totals: 1:06:18 8 miles ( Puma trailfox )

How Cold ?

That was one COLD run today. I met up this morning with Russell, Nick and Paul for our long run. When we started it was -15' air temperature outside. Thanks god there was not much wind for a killer windchill. It was crazy we had ice on our eyes in the first 4 min's of the run !! It was great to talk with the guys. I had not run with Pat for a few weeks. He seems to be coming along real well. I guess he is having eye surgery on Tuesday. Good luck buddy. We ran over the Ford bridge and down the river road till it became Sheppard road. From there we went through St Paul for awhile till we got back to river road. We went up to Lake street bridge and back down the other side of west river road back to Pat's house. I was hoping for 2 hours once more today but pulled the plug at 1 hour 48 min's. I was just getting to stiff from the cold. All in all it was a good run. I felt real good for the most part. I think the run was like 14 miles.

Later in the day Sonya and I took Evan to the Sesame Street "Elmo grows up" show at the Target Center. Let's just say for a 1 1/2 year old who LOVES Elmo he went nut's at the show. I did not know how much he would get but was very glad we went to the show. It was a great time for the three of us.

Miles for the week= 43

Picking my poison

It was SO cold out today Sonya and I decided to drop Evan off at my parents and go to the YMCA for our run. Part of me was feeling wussy about it all but figured it was only one run. When we first got there we went upstairs to the very small indoor track. It was 18 laps to the mile !!!! After 8 min's Sonya wanted to go to the treadmill. I went with her but after 10 more min's I was going crazy as well. It was time to pick my poison. I took the small track. So after like 60 some more laps I was done. I had hoped to get a few more miles for the day but had to stop. I just have to be free outside I guess. Better luck next time. I ended up with like 40 min's and like 5+ miles for the day.

Frosty Kurt

After taking Thursday off I went out for a easy before Sonya took off for work. When I left the house it was 4' with a windchill of -20' outside. I dressed pretty good for the weather. In some way's I felt to warm. The cold did not feel as bad as I thought till I got down by the lake. Then the wind sucked. On days like this I need to stay in the neighborhoods, or in the woods on a trail. I did not have a ton of time so I kept it to a easy 5 miles. I was trying to run some hills today. I hope to keep doing that over the next few weeks. I need to get stronger and running on the flat parkways by the lakes will not get that done.

On a side not I got the running movie Indulgence the other day. It is documentary on Anton Krupicka. It is pretty good. I think sometime some of the stuff you read make him sound a bit different. The dvd does a good job giving you some in site about him and his views on stuff. I also like the more minimal type shoes. Now not to the same leval is him, but he is onto something. The "extra's" has so real good stuff !!! I would recommend it to trail runners/ runners.

The Cold is comming

I ran tonight after work with Sonya. She was in the area after a work call so we ran from the store. I was feeling good after my dome run last night. It was nice to have that momentum. One thing that sucked was getting from the store down to the lakes and parkway. It was very icy on the sidewalks !!! Once we got to the lakes it was good. We looped both Lake Harriett and Lake Calhoon. We had lot's to talk about so the time just flew by. Sonya was going to add on at the end and by the way I was feeling I wanted to go as well. But I needed to get to my parents to pick up the kids and help Summer with some homework. Either way it was nice to get in a hour with Sonya. I wish we could run more often, but it is just to hard in the winter. I think it ended up being like 8 miles.

Dome sweet Dome

Tonight I ran at the Metrodome. The dome is a good way to be able to run in shorts in the winter time here in Minnesota. It is also a good way to talk with people you have not seen in a long time and sometimes get in a little speed work. I felt very good tonight. I new I had 1 1/2 hours till Sonya was going to show up and we would swap out Evan and she would have the last 1 1/2 hours to run there. It was a real family run outing for us. I bet no one else was swapping their kid at the dome. I ran for most of the run with a friend Mark who also does the 24 hour ultra runs like me. It was great to catch up with him. Like I said before I felt very good. I ended up with like 11 miles I believe. Happy night !!!

Kurt & Nicks hill loop

So this is the link to the hill loop my buddy Nick and I do in the Tangletown are of Minneapolis.

As for me no run today.
www.usatf.org/routes/view.asp?rID=188009

Weekend wrap 1/12- 1/13

Saturday I awoke to some light snow !! I for one was excited to see the snow because I feel like the snow we have had so far had made for a softer surface to run on, as well as add some traction on top of the ice. As much as that warm felt good I knew in the end it was going to lead to lot's of ICE !! I had to run after work since I decided that I was wanting to sleep in a bit. One of the things in the winter that sucks is that for both Sonya and I to run in the morning one of us needs to get up so early since we can't use the baby jogger. When I started out I thought I would just go say 5 miles at the most since I was running very long the next morning with Paul. But as I got more into the run I was feeling real good and was enjoying my time out there. I had my ipod rockin in my ears and my body felt good. I even at times did a few pick ups. I also felt real good on the hill climbs. It was one of those nights I could have gone on for a long time but I needed to stay the course and remember I had a big fish to fry the next morning. I ended up with like 57 mins which I am guessing is like 8 miles.

Sunday I met Paul down at the river bottoms in Shakopee to run on the snow trail. We met pretty early at 6:30am so we needed to use our headlamps for the first 30 mins or so. The footing was very good with the resent warm up and cool down, plus the snowmobils had packed it down real good. I had put like 6 crews in each shoe for extra traction. This worked real good !! Paul and I where looking at getting in 2 1/2 hours. I felt real good the first 3/4 of the run but could tell how my body was getting worn out after the 2 hour mark. I think the snow pack played a bit into this but I am also sure that the extra 20 min's more than I had gone before was part of that. In the end I think we got in like 19 miles. All in all a good day.

Trying to run the Hills

I got out this morning for a run with the idea of doing my tangle town hill loop. I was not feeling super good at the start but thought I would just let things unfold slowly. As I got into the hill loop I was feeling OK but not great. The first of many hills on this loop is a good 3/4 mile long, so it hits you hard at the get go of this run. Today was also one of those run's where I was not feeling good in my head as well. I do not know what it was but I just was not feeling it and the tiny voices in my head where beating me down. After two more of the hill climbs along the run I just gave up. It was not to be my day. Sometime I think it is just better to not force it. I was disappointed in myself but did not know what to do. One of the down sides of this great hill loop is that it is very close to home so it is VERY easy on these days to just toss in the towel. Oh well better luck next time I guess. I got a whopping 4 miles in today.

Good to have friends

Last night I ran with by buddy Liz. She and our other good friend Matty G live like 1 mile from our house. It works out pretty good for me because when we are able to run together I just run down then we do our loop and I run back. It is a easy way to get a few extra miles added on. Liz is a very good runner but has been having many problem with her energy levals for sometime now. I hope she is able to get it all figured out soon because I know how that can drive you very crazy. While she has been trying work this all out she is still able to get out for easy 5 mile runs. So I took her up on the offer and met up with her at her house. While there I was able to say hi to Matty G. He is part of Team USA MN. Matty is off to Houston half marathon this weekend for the USA 1/2 marathon championships. I wish him good luck and perdect he will be in the top 3 there.

Once Liz and I got out we did a easy but great run around Lake Harriett. I was feeling very good and think Liz felt pretty good as well. It was a nice night for a run. No wind and temps in the 30's. We had many funny stories going on during the run. I hope we are able to run aging soon. All in all it was a nice night of running. I got to run with a good friend and able to see another good friend who I do not get to see much anymore. It is good to have friends !!

Why do I run ?

So it's been a week since I last did a blog entry. There has been a reason for that. For some time now I have been in this somewhat tortured state of mind. Lets just say there is much going on in my head. Running has been forever for me my salvation. When feeling bad I could always depend on a good run to knock me out of it and back into a great frame of mind. That has not been the case anymore for sometime now. I even feel like now when I am feeling bad I just pull away from running ? Do not get me wrong at times it still gets me going, and I still LOVE getting out there with people. It just is not the for sure cure all it once was for me. I do not know why that is, but I know that with time I will come around. There is much I need to get straight with and I am sure that will help.

I have been getting in some runs and all during this time. After some easy runs for a few days I had a great 2 hour run Sunday with Sonya and Paul. Nick joined us for some of it as well. I love running with those guys. I did not run Monday but had a pretty good run at the dome on Tuesday. I got in 10 miles in all. I just put on my ipod and took it one 600 meter lap at a time. I ran a bit with friends Jenna Boren and Dave Tappe at the end of the run. Great people! Jenna is looking great. She is training for this coming April's women's Olympic marathon trials. When I was done I saw I ran 10 miles in 1:07 which was under 7 min pace. It had been some time since I had run that pace for that long. Like before I had surgery. Wednesday was also a non running day. I just could not get myself out there.

So that brings me to the question why do I run ? Well I run because I love the feeling of being free outside. I love the feeling of sharing stories with my wife and friends. I love the self adventure side. Seeing how I can challenge myself both mentally and physically. I love the competition side of the races. I guess I just love to run !!! It is a love that will never die in me. It shows me a blueprint for how to live my life. To set challenges, to work hard, to understand that there will be setbacks but you will always rise up. I look forward to the coming weeks and months of training as I get ready for the Leadville trail 100. I know with my friends and loving wife I will get there. I am very luck to have her ! I LOVE RUNNING !!!

Feeling Good

Bring it on I tell myself on last nights run. That is two more days of good running. So far I can say 2008 I have not had a bad run !! OK I do know that we are only 3 days into the year but you have to start somewhere.

On Wednesday night I ran from work to Nick's house and we did a nice loop from there. The temp's where still pretty cool. In someways it felt colder than yesterday even though it was not. I think it was because it was dark out. The sun can have a big effect on things that is for sure. Nick was looking for a easy 7 miles so I figured by running from work that extra going to and back would be perfect for getting just that little bit extra. As I thought it was perfect. I got in a nice easy 9 miles. I wore a pair of New Balance 874 trail shoes I got from the NB Rep. Over all I like them but I found my right forefoot got a bit sore. I still like the version they had out like 2-3 years ago better.

On Thursday night I got out for a little Tangletown hill loop. With the 50th street bridge out I had to make a few changes but overall it was the same as I normally do. I decided the night before while running with Nick I needed and wanted to start doing some hilly runs. Not to run them all hard but just get into that climbing rhythm which will be so important all next year. I did feel real good. I love running things like this with my ipod rocking in my ears. So good tunes this night made the run a A+ in my book. I also tried a new pair of New Balance 800 trail shoes as well. They are much more striped down. I liked them as well. So far I still need to give my vote to the Puma's. If the races started today it would be trailfox's all the way. I believe my loop was like 6 miles. That makes me on track for a great week !

A New Year

I had a great start to the new year. My Mom took care of Evan so Sonya and I could go for a run together. It was pretty cold out but not to bad with the correct clothing on. We did a nice loop around Medicine Lake in Plymouth. I like running this loop and hope someday to put on a race there. 1 loop around the lake the short way is like 9.5 miles. I felt very good today. I also think Sonya was feeling pretty good for the first time in awhile. I was more happy about her feeling good than myself. I have felt real bad seeing how much she has struggled mentally not feeling good. I know that feeling as well and it is no fun. The path had snow on most of it which was nice with the sub zero temps outside. The Puma's worked well once more. I think I am going to start trying my New Balance 800's and the Inov-8 310's soon as well.