Night Running

May 28th (Tuesday): Made the normal drive back to NY at 5:00AM. Leftover catering pasta for lunch. Home to just chill for a while on the couch.

Goup headed back to work for 7pm. I feel asleep on the couch for an hour or so. Goup and I finally left for a run at 8:45pm. Just shy of 10 miles (69:20) around some neighborhoods. As soon as we turned onto the main road, a biker passed us and told us, "You should have lights on." You gotta be f***in kidding me! This guy has a black road bike and dressed in all black. No reflectors or lights. It threw us off and we just continued on with our business with any remarks.

Back by 10pm. Protein shake and bed.

 

Killing it.

May 29th (Wednesday): 6:20am wakeup. Out for 2.5 miles (NT) in the morning. Normal day at work. Right down to the dealership in Albany to check out some VWs and Mazdas (for Goup) to pick out a new ride! Uhhh! Test drove a 2009 Mazda3 (standard). Smooth and spacious ride. Goup sealed the deal and the salesman tried to work his magic on me, but I ain't no fool. I'm a brick wall when it comes to convincing/persuading me on anything (some people might say stubborn). He told me I should just lease a car. I replied with, "My money is going no where. A car is an investment." He let me know a car is not an investment. Once I buy a new car, I plan on holding onto it for atleast 7-10 years. I think they might be a "small" investment. I want something I love and is reliable. I am thinking of learning how to drive manual. Goup said he would teach me that night. Sweetness.

Driving back to the house and my iPhone notified me that there is a tornado warning in affect until 7:30pm. So we decided this is a good time to teach me standard on the Acura while we wait out the storm. Beat it up before selling it. 2nd attempt at it. First time I was still in high school and was still learning to drive. Not a good combo. I was nervous, but did better than I thought. Starting on the hill was tough. I wasn't giving it enough gas. Goup might have some whiplash. Sheets of rain coming down so it allowed me to focus on the shifting.

10.5 miles (68:06) total at about 8:30pm. 20 minute tempo along the bike path with Goup. Covered 3.5 miles. 5+ miles before the tempo. A few miles back to the house to have 10.5. Solid workout.

May 30th (Thursday): 2.5 miles (15:44) quick on my own. Work 7:30am-4pm. Drove down to the dealership to grab the new whip! Goup finalized all the paperwork and we were on our way back to Ballston Lake.

10 miles (69:48) in the evening. Made it out the door a tad bit earlier by rolling out at 7:45pm. Explored some new roads and somehow clocked out 10. A one point we weren't sure if we needed to turn around. Silent confidence that we would pop out on a main road we recognized. We did. NBD.

Back by 9pm to put a steak in the oven and sauteed some shrooms/onions on the stovetop. Side of ranch and destroyed half the steak. Bed at a decent hour.

 

And a pitcher of Gatorade.

Holiday Weekend

May 26th (Sunday): 8am wakeup. Rolled around on the couch (Goup and I slept on the ends in the recliners) for the night. Mel, Goup and I hit up Walmart for breakfast items. Goup and I made eggs, bacon and cinnamon buns for breakfast for everyone. Chilled for the morning and back to Leominster by 2:30pm.

Quick shower and changed. Over to Bob's cousin's grad party. Sorta chilly out so lots of activities to stay warm. Baseball, volleyball, and badminton. Tons of food and brought 5+ pounds home in a plastic container.

Home by 9pm. Relaxed for the night. Once Sarah and Bob went to bed, I spoil Tucker by allowing her up on the couch (she isn't allowed anymore, but her Uncle Eric allows her).

 

So innocent. 

 

Tired.

May 27th (Monday): Slept in like a champ. Sarah and I ran some errands around town. TJ Maxx, Marshalls, Dick's Sporting Goods and Target. Some quality purchases and Starbucks as a snack (obviously Sarah ordered some crazy combination that wasn't coffee for me).

Grocery store for some major dinner shopping. Lots of organic and non-GMO verified food. We made this bomb Asian salad and these noodle see through wraps with cucumber and carrot. All of it was the shiznit.

Bed by 11ish. The classic drive early in the morning. Always a fun time in Leominster with Sarah and Bob.

 

Tucker is a trooper.

 

Seriously. Cabbage leaf.

Wachusett Mountain Race Report

May 25th (Saturday): 5am wakeup. For some reason I was wide awake and couldn't fall back asleep. Surfed the web for a while and updated the blog because I was behind a week. Sarah made some Belgium waffles for breakfast. Changed up and headed over to Wachusett by 8am.

Arrived at about 8:30am. Inside to register and back to the car to get ready for a warmup. Jogged it out with Brandon Newbould. 2+ miles (15:49). Decided on my racing attire back at the car. I was prepared for anything. Went with sleeveless shirt, half tights, hat and gloves. I found out it was mostly pavement Friday night so I only had my trail trainers (Saucony Kinvara Trails) and Inov8 Talons. Kinvaras was the obvious choice.

Up and Down.

Down to the starting line for a couple strides and just stay moving. Some rain coming down made for wet roads and wet conditions overall. Checked out some of the competition and noticed a couple guys from the winning Reach the Beach team, Hello Kitty AC. Those guys are Syracuse alumni so I knew I was possibly up against some strong runners. A couple other obvious guys, Brandon Newbould and Kevin Tilton. The goal/plan was to wait until 4 miles to make any moves (Goup's orders). We climbed the first 2 miles in a tight group (so close we fit under a lamp shade) with everyone switching positions. I made it a point to stay back and sit behind the lead guys. Mile splits were roughly around 6:30, 6:30, 7:00. I made my move just after 2 miles to see if anyone would react to a surge. Not much response so I continued to push and opened up a decent gap. Once we hit the summit, we had to run around the summit building. I didn't know this and the cones ended at the edge of the building. I had to turn around and throw my hands up with a polite remark of "Where do I go?!" I received a response with "Around the tower! Around the tower!" So around the building. Okay. Gap diminished to nothing. Yelled a couple "Around the building" as I was descending for the next few runners. Decided to not mess around and throw in a wicked hard surge to open the gap back up. Redlined for the remaining 3+ miles down the pavement/dirt roads to the finish. The 3rd place finisher splits (obtained those on the cooldown) for the down hill miles were 4:48, 4:48, 4:57 and I was roughly 25 seconds in front of him. I think most of that time was put on in the 4th mile. So I am thinking mine were around 4:35, 4:40, 4:50. So I was rocking the downhills and running in fear that someone would catch me. Arms flailing and yelling at myself because I was going fast enough. Finished up in 35:50.

Thanks Scott Mason for the photography (even in the rain).

5.5 miles in.

Within 2 minutes of finishing, I was jogging back to the car to get dry clothes on for the cooldown. Extra slow cooldown with a bunch guys. 4++ miles (42:45) through the trails and on some roads. Give myself 12.5+ miles on the day. Awards and raffle outside underneath the overhang. Gift certificate for the W and a Trigger Point foam roller from the raffle. Sweetness.

Drove back to Lem Vegas (Leominster) to shower and head to Warwick, Mass for a housewarming party at Brandon and Melanie's new home! Fun time and spent the night. Scheduled day off from running tomorrow (Sunday).

A Week At A Time

May 20th (Monday): Travel in the morning from Massachusetts. Stopped off at the house to make a protein shake and a quick wrap for lunch. Work 8am-4:30pm. Easy day at work. Home by 5pm to change up and met our buddy Shaun for the SMBA trails in Saratoga. 10 miles total (67:07 + 6xstrides).  Nice tradition for Mondays and easy on the legs even with some of the rocky, hilly terrain.

Goup and I checked out the Honda dealership in Saratoga. Home to have another protein shake and an everything bagel with peanut butter/honey combo. Bed at a decent hour.

May 21st (Tuesday): 3 miles (20:44) on the my own. Work just like any other day. Protein shake and bagel for breakfast. Double decker PB&J, a Nature Valley bar and a bunch of raisins for lunch. Once home, another Nature Valley bar for a snack before out for 7 miles (48:23) with Goup. 

Last mile, a bug/gnat directly flew into my eye and scared the sh** out of me. Made it home to find the creature chilling at the bottom of my eye. Wiped it out. Good to go.

42 inch Vizio television arrived today from Woot. Boom baby! Wicked excited. Goup and I set it up immediately (before the 2nd run) because it was that important.

Thunderstorm at night time. Tried to get a picture of the lightning, but this is the best I could do.

Sorta artistic.

May 22nd (Wednesday): No morning run. Worked on the contractor safety orientation (revising the entire thing for Globalfoundries) so I've been at for a few hours a day since last week. Another PB&J for lunch with a Nature Valley bar. 

Around 1pm, my eye started to bother me and it became progressively worse by the time I got home. Wicked bloodshot. Hurt like a b****h to move my eye around when my eyelid was closed. I stopped at Hannafords to pick up eye drops, honey, and potatoes. A couple home remedies I came across because I am a hippy. I tried some salt water flush (ouchies), a honey drop directly in the eye (never will do that again) and the eye drops. Just made it more red. 

Oh well, off to the Burnt Hills track for a workout. 6x1000 (400 rest), 4x200 (200 rest). 3 mile (21:24) warmup through the neighborhoods. A couple guys on the track doing some speedwork. Cruised through my workout and I didn't even notice my eye. 3:02, 3:03, 3:02, 3:02, 3:01, 2:59, 34 (dogged it), 32, 31, 30. 6+ miles on the track in 35:05. The time inlcluded the moving of the benches and table off the backstretch on my first rest interval. 

12 miles on the day. Sent out an email letting my manager know I probably won't be coming in tomorrow due to the eye. Called my mom on the way home from work to let her know. Being the best mom she is, she searched for an urgent care place in the area for me to stop in the next morning. Sent me the website and everything. 

Macknight classic to add the hot pepper rings.

May 23rd (Thursday): 6:30am wakeup. Over to the urgent care place in Clifton Park. Vitals taken, doctor checked my eye out, and prescribed me a couple eye drops. Cool doctor with a wicked sick name. Axel Herrmannsdoerfer. He had a thicker accent and I thought he mumbled his name when he introduced himself. No, it was just a mouthful to say after I looked at his ID tag. Great guy and helped me out.

Over to Walmart to drop off the prescriptions. Cruised through Walmart for some essentials. Cereal (non-GMO), body wash, shaving cream, Clif Bars (30 total in 4 different flavors), hand soap, and a new hamper.

Boom.

Bang.

Pow.

Obsession.

Stopped at the pickup counter for my prescriptions. The drops for the infection (with coupon from doctor's office) was $25 bucks. Coolio! The other stuff (drops for allergies even though I don't have any) was $153. Whoa! Talked with the pharmacist and I let him know my incident with my eye. No need for the allergy stuff. Phew! 

Swung by work to pick up my laptop so I could work from home (the PowerPoint). Home by 11am. Out for a run at 11:30am. 4 miles (29:47). Back to foam roll and make myself a quick protein shake. Work 12:30pm-6:30pm. No television was put on or anything. Short break for a bowl of cereal around 3pm. PowerPoint is getting a complete makeover. It helped to work in a extra quiet environment and not have anything else to do. Productive time.

Out for a 2nd run at 7:15pm. 9.5 miles (67:14) and it was an relaxing exploration run of some walking path I always pass. Soft terrain and made some connections with the Zim Smith trail. Always a plus. Picked up my package from Julbo. A couple pairs of sunglasses. Uhhhh! Ran the last 1/2 mile with the package. The mailboxes are located in the Hannafords shopping center at the end of our complex. Brought the key along because I saw that it was delivered before my run (the power of online tracking). Probably looked strange to innocent bystanders driving by as this guy is running with a package down through the main road of the complex.

Back to stretch, foam roll, and stay motivated to clean/organize my room for the 1st time since we moved in back at the end of April. Put away all my clothes in my closest. Set up my shelf to put away more clothes. Done by 11:45pm. Bed.

May 24th (Friday): 3 miles (21:12) on my own. Friday was work. Eye feeling exponentially better after 24 hours. It was almost instantly on the upswing after a few hours of the first drop Thursday morning. Ca-chang. Home by 4:30pm. Folded some shirts and packed simultaneously. Protein shake and on the road by 5:15ish. Some traffic on the on-ramp of the Mass Pike in NY. Other than that, smooth sailing with some periods of rain through the drive.

Mackie's.

Mezcal with Sarah and Bob for dinner. Burrito and big servings of guacamole. Home by 10:30pm. Bed by 12am.

Stacking Miles

May 19th (Sunday): 8am wakeup. An egg and oat bran for breakfast. Changed up and packed up for the race. Arrived by 9am. Picked up the number. Met Goup for a warmup. 2 miles (14:51). Inside to use the restrooms. Some strides and switched into flats. Late start to the race so some extra strides and jogging around the starting line. Ran by myself for an easy win in 16:17. 3 mile cooldown (21:45) with the 2nd place finisher David Brooks, Goup and my sister Sarah. Another 3+ miles (the course, 24:07) with Goup. 10 for the morning.

 Mmmm.

Back to the house to stack some wood. Eat some leftover burritos. Stopped at Dick's Sporting Goods and the grocery store. Sarah baked a cake and Bob picked up some Kimball's ice cream. Late lunch so ice cream and cake for dinner! Before devouring lots of desserts, I headed out for another 8+ miles (52:54 with the last 5k+ in 19:26). Tempoish run that was in the rain and felt great. 19 miles on the day.

Dog bone.You can look up pizzle.

Rewarded my 85 mile week and solid day of miles with some ice cream and cake and cake! Chilled the rest of the night and bed by 11pm. Leaving for NY in the morning.

Played this while I ate my first bites.

Almond cake. Best cake ever.

Raspberry chocolate chip from Kimball's.

Wood Splitting

May 18th (Saturday): 7am wakeup. Rolled around on the couch. A couple pretzels before jumping out the door for an easy morning run. Explored some the roads and ending up getting a little disoriented. Just shy of 11 miles (74:38) in the heat.

 

Pinch points. Slightly purple.

 

Back to make a quick protein shake with some fresh strawberries before tackling a whole bunch of log splitting. 10am-5:30pm was dedicated to straight work. A couple short breaks including another serving of hotdogs with mad good condiments. Luckily, I've used a splitter couple times (US Forest Service and with my dad back in Newtown). We split between 3 to 4 cords of wood total. The only real labor was the picking up of the logs to place them on the splitting. Basically I squatted about 250 squats (not much weight necessarily, but it added up). I did catch my thumb once. Dang, it hurt.

 

More dogs.

 

Returned the splitter to Home Depot and stopped at the ghetto Market Basket for dinner items. Gourmet burritos. Ground turkey, pinto and black beans, corn, rice, sautéed peppers and onions, guacamole, salsa, sharp cheddar cheese, cilantro, and lime juice. Two hefty burritos and I was stuffed.

Sarah home by 9:30pm and chilled before crashing for the night. 

 

Loaded.

Respirator Fit Test

May 17th (Friday): 6:30am wakeup. Out the door for my single run of the day of 8 miles (57:07) before the 8 hour workday. Protein shake for breakfast. Traveled down to Latham for my respirator fit test at Access Health Systems. 1 long hour between the respirator fit tests, EKG, and physical. Drove down the road a couple mile for the chest x-ray.

Back north to stop off at the house to whip up a steak wrap and changed up for a half day at Globalfoundries. Easy 4.5 hours of work with lots of computer work to finish up before the weekend. Back to the house to pack up for a weekend at Leominster. 

Some traffic along the way on the Mass Pike and arrived by 8pm. Threw in a load of laundry. Bob made it back from his softball game around 8:30pm. Sarah was doing the Reach the Beach (Massachusetts style) Friday to Saturday evening. Guys night of some television watching and some dogs on the barbie (hotdog/chicken sausage on the grill). Dressed them with all sorts of condiments (BBQ sauce, relish, ketchup and sriracha chili sauce).

Fell asleep hard on the couch. Out cold.

 

Chicken based.

Tempo 10 + Clean Shaven

May 16th (Thursday): 6:20am wakeup. Out for an easy 3 miles (20:53) on my own. Beautiful morning with some brisk weather to wake me up. Back to stretch, foam roll and make myself a protein shake. Work 7:30am-4:00pm. Normal day at work. Some computer work, some field work. Ham, pepper jack, tomato and avocado wrap for lunch.

Home to pick up my Running Warehouse package right from the garage. No need for swing by the office by 5pm. It's like I have a house. Ca-ching! Ripped it open like a little kid on Christmas morning. Two new pairs of trainers (Kinvara 3 and Kinvara 3 Trail) and a couple pairs of BOA neon shorts. Boom!

 Brightness.

Nature Valley bar for a snack before gearing up for a classic Keene State workout. Tempo/progression 10 miler in about 58-59 minutes. Mapped out a course and ready to hit the pavement. Smooth run and cruised right through it. First 2 miles in 12:10 (6:05 pace). Next 2.35 miles in 13:50 (5:53 pace). Next 2.75 in 15:36 (5:41 pace). Last 2.9 in 16:18 (5:37 pace). 57:54 for the 10 miles with a couple of solid climbs along the way.

 

Lava Lamp.

 

Shaken, not stirred.

Inside to foam roll, stretch, and make myself a protein shake. Scheduled appointment for my respirator fit test the next morning so I had to hack off the facial hair. Here comes baby face Macknight.

Chilled and bed at a decent hour.

 

Billy Goat.

 

Baby Face.

Ogres Are Like Onions

May 15th (Wednesday): 6:20am wakeup. Bathroom due to the large amount of steak I ate the night before. Goup and I headed out for an easy 3 miles (23:22) on the normal loop. Protein shake for breakfast. A bunch of meetings today with quality information. Good things for the future. Pizza served at one of the meetings. Raisins at the end of the day to hold me over.

Stopped at the Burnt Hills Post Office to pick up our key for our mailbox:

4A Sylvan Trail, Ballston Lake, NY 12019 (if you wanna send any food/baked goods/etc)

Some bills in the mailbox which is always such a wonderful thing.

Goup and I headed out for an easy 7 miles (49:49) along the Zim Smith trails around 6pm. I had to stop in the woods due to the combination of the raisins and pizza. Back to foam roll, stretch and make myself another delicious protein shake. Ogres are like onions. We both have layers.

 

Before the Magic Bullet.

FaceTimed with my mom to help her set up her new iPod Nano from Mother's day. Success! Headed upstairs to shower and head to bed soon after.

Speed Demon

May 14th (Tuesday): 6:30am wakeup. A little late out the door and just ran 2.5 miles (17:39) on my own. Rushed around and headed to work to teach first thing. Work 7:30am-4pm. Quick protein shake for breakfast. PB&J and a Nature Valley for lunch.

Home to chill and have a quarter of a toasted bagel with a thin layer of peanut butter and honey drizzled on top for a snack. Changed up for the workout. Goup was doing mile repeats around neighborhoods. I had speed scheduled for the workout so to the track. Swung by Burnt Hills, but lacrosse game on the field. Asked Siri to give me directions to Skidmore College up in Saratoga. Followed Route 50 and Saratoga High school was along the route. It was closer and empty. Stopped there instead.

2.5 mile warmup (16:42 + strides on the track). Felt alright, but no feeling the workout. 4 sets of 200, 200, 400 with 800 rest between each set. So it went 200 interval, 200 rest, 200 interval, 200 rest, 400 interval, 800 rest (1 set = 2k), 200 interval, 200 rest, etc. The plus was after each 400 interval, I had 2 full laps of recovery. It motivated me well for the 400's. Powerbar Gel while sticking and doing strides.

Workout went as followed:

33, 33, 67, 32, 32, 64, 31, 31, 62, 30, 29, 61.
Each set of 2k: 7:21, 7:19, 7:15, 6:59 for a total time of 28:53 for the 8k.

Even intervals and felt wicked smooth. Surprised with my last 2 sets. 3 mile cooldown (21:37) with part of it through Saratoga State Park for some soft terrain. Back to the car to stick and throw on some warm clothes for the ride home. 13 miles on the day.

Marinated some steak strips right after work. Texted Goup to preheat the oven so I could throw em in as soon as I walked through the door. Boom! Steak tossed in ranch dressing, sauteed mushrooms and onions, and shredded cheddar cheese. Mmmm. Washed it down with a 2nd protein shake of the day.

1st Day Of The Week

May 13th (Monday): 6:40am wakeup. Eggs with cheddar cheese and a protein shake for breakfast. Work 7:30am-4pm. A couple half bagels with peanut butter for lunch. Obviously, I did not go grocery shopping yesterday like I said I did. The Hannafords in Ballston Lake is not open 24 hours like the one in Clifton Park. Oh well.

Grocery shopping after work. Lots of doubling back on aisles to find things. Just need to get used to where things are located. Goup and I headed out for a run around 6ish. 10+ miles (69:55). 6 x 100 meters strides with some light jogging in between. 11 miles on the day.

Protein shake for dinner. Wicked good one. Banana, chocolate protein powder, splash of cranraspberry juice, milk, blueberry yogurt, honey, and chocolate syrup. Delicious. Before I Magic Bullet it, it has layers of amazingness. Bed by 10pm.

Weekend of Miles

May 10th (Friday): Slept in. No morning run. Protein shake for breakfast. Work 7:15am-3:45pm. Another egg and cheese on rye bread for a 2nd breakfast in the cafeteria. Sriracha sauce and ketchup for condiments. PB&J and Clif Bar for lunch. A couple cookies for a snack at work. Leadership walk with the higher ups. For some reason I was chosen to accompany them for the walks that occur about twice a month. Sounds good to me.

Some dishes and laundry before changing up to head to Burnt Hills high school for a workout. Goup was pacing Renee for her workout. My workout was 3xmile (800 rest), then 4x400 quick (200 rest).

Over to the track by 5:30pm. Dropped our stuff off at the track. 2.5 mile warmup (16:05 + strides) around some neighborhoods. Legs were feeling alright. Asked Goup what I should start at and he said 5:00 and work down. Felt better/smooth halfway through the first interval. 4:53 (2:27, 2:26), 4:48 (2:24, 2:24), 4:44 (2:21, 2:23). 67, 66, 65, 66 for the 400's. 33:28 for a total time of the 6 miles. 5:35 pace. 2.5 mile (18:34) cooldown around the campus fields. 11 miles on the day and felt wicked smooth on all the intervals. Boom.

Back to the house to just foam roll, stick, and just relax. Protein shake. Bed at some point.

May 11th (Saturday): 6:30am wakeup. Bagel with butter and honey for breakfast. Down to Fleet Feet to run with some of the Fleet Feet people. 10 miles (76:14) through Albany. Beautiful weather. Stopped off at Walmart to look for the the Fast and Furious movies. All in a row at the rack. 2 Fast 2 Furious, Tokyo Drift, and Fast 5 were purchased. Some king sized candy right before the register (Reese's Peanut Butter Cups and Hershey's bar with almonds) were picked up "accidentally." Oh well.

 Great combination (courtesy of Sarah and Bob).

Home to make a mushroom and onion omelet with cheddar and Muenster cheese. Two movies watched. Break for a shakeout 3 miles (20:59) on my own. 13 miles on the day. Gavs stopped by to chill. Swung up to Saratoga around 8pm for drinks and hang out. Cab ride home around 1am.

May 12th (Sunday): 9am wakeup. Chilled in the morning hours. Omelet with cheddar and Muenster cheese. Fast and Furious (4) and Fast 5 until 3pm. Drove down to the Zim Smith trails to run some miles with Renee. Added a couple more with Goup to make it 10, then I continued on through the neighborhoods to make it 15+ miles (1:48:35). Back for a protein shake with some cranberry/raspberry juice, honey, chocolate syrup and milk. Mmm. A great addition I've noticed is the honey, Stonyfield Blueberry yogurt, and a splash of cranberry/raspberry juice.

Chilled the rest of the day. Some grocery shopping. Bed early.

80 miles for the week. Solid week with one workout and a long run. The next 5 weekends will be racing weekends. 5 weeks until Mount Washington Road Race. Woohoo!

Easy Doubles

May 9th (Thursday): 6:20am wakeup. Out for 3 miles (21:33) on my own. Almost didn't make it back to the house to use the bathroom. Close call. Protein shake for breakfast. Work 7:15am-4pm. Egg and cheddar cheese on rye bread for a 2nd breakfast at work. Burrito mix for lunch. Delicious, but definitely gives me terrible rancid gas.

 

Hot sauce and ketchup.

Back to the house to chill out for a while on the couch. Bowl of cereal for a snack. Easy 7 miles (50:40) on my own through some of the trails from the day before. Protein shake. s10 miles on the day. Another bowl of cereal for dinner and bed early. Doubled on runs, protein shakes, and bowls of cereal. All good things in life.

Recovery with Easy Miles

May 6th (Monday): 5am wakeup. Out the door by 5:20am from Ferenc's back to NY. Lena and Ellie (his two dogs) slept on the futon with me. Lena headed upstairs around 3am. Lena jumped up when my alarm went off (barking dog) and was on the alert. I turned it off before she could truly register the bark and go crazy. Smooth and scenic ride through Vermont in the early hours of the morning.

Arrived at the house by 7:35am and showered up (since I didn't yesterday). Work 8am-4:30pm. Quick protein shake for breakfast. Wings for lunch. Famous Amos cookies from the vending machine to hold me over after lunch.

Home to change up quickly and eat a Clif Bar as we walked out the door. Scheduled run with Shaun and Jen Adams. 10 miles (74:24) through all the trails at Saratoga State Park. Straight soft terrain that felt great on the legs. Legs were a bit junky, but not terrible.

Chilled at Shaun's truck after the run to catch up and just chill. Home by 8:20ish. Swung by the grocery store for decent shopping ($50 bucks worth). Thinly cut steak, mushrooms & onions, and pasta for dinner.

Bed by 10:30pm.

  

Boom.

May 7th (Tuesday): 6:30am wakeup. Out the door for 3 miles (20:57) at 6:40am. Honey Bunches of Oats and a protein shake for breakfast. Work 7:30am-4pm. Slow day overall at work. Steak and pasta for lunch. Goup was heading to Skidmore in Saratoga for a workout. I wasn't in any rush to run so I just sat on the couch for a while. Drove down to the bike path off Ruhle road and explored some hiking trails at 7:45pm. Not too extensive, but easy on the legs. 7.5+ miles (57:34). Ran along some power lines and out to the main road. Popped into some trail off the main road (Eastline Road) and it just continued further and further. Once I saw a couple tree stands for hunting, I made the smart decision to turnaround. Beautiful skies (again camera would of been nice) and great weather for a night run.

Back to make an egg omelet almost immediately because I was hungry. Chocolate milk to accompany the meal. Bed by 11pm.

 

Ketchup and hot sauce.

May 8th (Wednesday): Tough to get out of bed. No morning run. Protein shake for breakfast. Work 7:45am-4:15pm. PB&J, carrots with ranch dressing and a Clif Bar for lunch. Added a Blueberry (artificially flavored) Redbull in the mix to push through the 2nd half of the work day. Tired, just need some extra sleep the next couple days.

Home to change up immediately, but just sit on the couch. Waited for the rain to pass. Out at 6:30pm or so for an exploration 10 miler (74:26). Found a trail system that we almost got lost in right by the house, but it was all single track and nice. Popped out at the trailhead and checked out the map. Not as extensive as well, but not a bad place to get lost for a bit. Straight back.

Dinner preparation almost right away again because I was starving. Burrito mix (with the addition of ground turkey). Fresh avocado on top. Watched the Miami Heat game. Showered up. Dropped the hot sauce on the kitchen floor. Glass bottle didn't break, but the top shot off. Hot sauce started pouring out. Windexed the floor and good to go. Smooth moves. Bed early with a shot of Nyquil to put myself out (and a precautionary act).

 

Pile of deliciousness.

Sleep Hollow Weekend

May 3rd (Friday): 6:30am wakeup. 2.5 miles (17+) on my own. Protein shake. Work 7:30am-4pm. Taught the contractor safety orientation in the morning. Each time gets better and better. Keep putting my own twist on it with stories and whatnot. Home to pack up real quick and on the road by 4:30pm.

Stopped at top of RT 9 VT at Little Pond Trail Head (part of the Green Mountain National Forest) to get in 5 miles (34+) in the middle of the car ride. Soggy trails, but wicked fun to just hop out of the car and pop into some trails. I ran on a couple ice caps (yeah buddy!) that were maybe 3 or 4 feet long. Craziness! Sweet views. Wish I brought my phone along for the run or had something smaller to take with me. Might be an investment soon.

 

Trail head.

 

Start of the trail. 

Parking lot.

Dinner with Kimber at Athens after chatting it up with her friends for a while at Margaritas. Home by 11pm. Bed soon after we arrived in Peterborough.

May 4th (Saturday): Lots of sleeping in. No real breakfast. Out for 5.5 miles (40:38) around 1pm. Some major sweating due to the 80+ degree weather. Super easy run on my own. Back to Kimber's to stretch and Stick my legs. Showered and stopped at the Bagel Mill for lunch. Sausage, egg and cheese. Chilled by the water and ate lunch. Soaked up some rays.

Over to Ferenc's for the night. Stopped at Da Choppa for dinner groceries (burrito mix ingredients and Gatorade). Beans, rice, avocado, salsa and cheese in a wrap. 3 wraps destroyed. Watched Old School before bed. Crashed on the futon in a sleeping bag.

May 5th (Sunday): 5am wakeup. Rolled around before jumping out of bed to get out the door. On the road by 5:30am to head North to Huntington, VT (Sleepy Hollow Mountain Race venue). Registered, longer warmup (29+ minutes) and changed into different shorts (current shorts weren't ideal for hot weather). Threw the Inov8 X-Talon 212's. Some strides at the starting lines.

Race was a tough one. Still new to the mountain racing scene. I tend to race it like a road race. I can't exactly do that. With the first 3/4 of a mile being uphill, I was redlining and in oxygen debt within about 2-3 minutes of the start. Off the line hard and up the hill. Ferenc and Newbould lead the pack to the King of the Hill point. Mile 3 was a tough grass hill that had me trotting up it (Jim Johnson coached me the 2nd half and keep me positive). Took me the next couple miles to recover before charging again for the last 2 miles. Stayed strong and lots of yo-yoing throughout the middle of the race. Mile 5 was single track and I started to make moves (closing the gap on Newbould). Last mile was overall downhill and wide open. Let gravity do it's part and opened the stride up. Ended with a 2nd place finish (40:04). Good stuff and ready to re-strategize for Wachusett in a couple weeks. 44 minute cooldown with the top guys (Ferenc, Newbould, DoubleJ, and Todd Callaghan).

 

Charging the first hill.

Courtesy of Scott Mason.  

 

 

Ridge.

Courtesy of Scott Mason.  

 

Ferenc and I stopped at Huntington Gorge for a dip in the swimming hole. "Shock to the whole body" cold, but wicked refreshing. Stopped for BBQ chicken pizza and Barq's root beer at Jimmz. Back to Saxtons River for another 3 miles (27:19) in the trails. 18 miles on the day.

Bike ride down to the nearby river to rinse off. Changed and out for the wings special. Back to the house to watch Inception and crash from a long day. Waking up early to make the trip back to NY.

76 miles for the week. Solid 2 workouts and the first mountain race of the circuit. Ready for recovery and a relaxing weekend.

 

Top 3.

Courtesy of Scott Mason. 

A Little Extra Never Hurt

May 2nd (Thursday): 6:40am wakeup. Out for a quicker 3 miles (20:09) on my own. Back for a protein shake, foam roll, and a shower. Double decker PB&J and a Clif Bar for lunch. Busy day of meetings and whatnot so I had to eat during my meeting. Productive day and saw Eamon (local buddy) on site because he's a surveyor. Super bright day out today. Amazing weather.

Home by 5pm. Chilled for a while on the couch. Some blog updating and television watching. Changed up for a run at 6pm. Mapped out a 10 mile loop and wrote out the directions. Out the door by 6:30ish to start the 2 mile warmup, 5 x 30, 60, 90 and the remainder as a cooldown/tempo. Solid through 5 miles (29:53). Of course, I took a wrong turn around 6.5 miles. Realized I was running down the road. As soon as I took the wrong turn (left instead of right), a guy doing yard work decided to cheer me on. Something along the lines of "There we go runner! How many miles you running?" I responded with 10 miles. Continued with "You can hold that pace for that many miles? You're awesome, you're the best!" I just kinda smirked to myself and thanked him. I had to pass him again because I made a U-turn. Again, "Yeahh, runner!" Cruised the last 5k in 17:18 and completed my "10 mile loop" in 67:47. 11.62 miles after I mapped it out. 5:50 pace overall. Boom.

Stretched, foam rolled, protein shake, and washed some dishes/loaded the dishwasher. Straightened up the living room and kitchen before Goup made it home from his run. Some more television. X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Grilled cheese on a everything bagel with bread & butter pickles and ketchup. Bed by 10:30ish.

First Half Of Week

April 29th (Monday): 6:30am wakeup. Protein shake for breakfast. Work 7:30am-4pm. Over to Clifton Park to do about 90% of the cleaning and pack up the belongings. Home by 5:30ish to unpack quickly and head up to Saratoga to the SMBA trails with Shaun Donegan. Just shy of 9 miles (57:04 + 5 strides up the dirt road). Solid run. Some gnarly terrain that's making me anxious for the mountain series.

Hit up the Forno Bistro on Broadway for the $8 special. A medium sized personal pizza with a brewski. Bianca pizza with spinach and chicken. Fresh grated parmesan and red pepper flakes sprinkles for some spice. Red Hook Red Ale to wash it all down. Delicious. Left half the pizza to have leftovers for lunch.

Home after 9pm to shower and head to bed.

April 30th (Tuesday): 6:20am wakeup. 3 miles (20:56) on my own. Protein shake for breakfast. Work 7:15am-3:45pm. Pizza and Clif Bar for lunch. Over to Clifton Park to finalize the cleaning (shower and kitchen) and drop off the keys at the office. Officially moved out of Clifton Park.

Stopped at Walmart to pick up a few things. Gatorade, bagels, milk, orange juice, and cereal. So hungry that I ate a bagel on the way home to Ballston Lake. Workout was 4x800 and 4x400. Tried out the hill on Sweet Road.

2.5 mile warmup (15:47 + strides). Steep section in the first 200 meters or so. Flat to the 400. Gradual climb to the 800. 2:39, 2:39, 2:39, 2:38, 77, 77, 77, 78. 2+ mile cooldown (14:58). 13 miles on the day. Protein shake for dinner.

May 1st (Wednesday): 6:10am wakeup. 3 miles (NT) on my own. Everything bagel with honey for breakfast. Double decker PB&J and Clif Bar for lunch. Work 7:30am-4pm. Bowl of Honey Bunches of Oats as a snack when I arrived home.

Out for a run around 7pm. 6++ miles () on my own. It was only supposed to be a 5 miler, but I missed a turn and made it home within only a little more mileage. No complaints. Beautiful weather out. Chilled on the couch and fell asleep without showering. Eventually made it to my bed in the mid-morning hours.

 

Slippers at work? Yes, this is in the bathroom.

Weekend in Massachusetts

April 27th (Saturday):  5am wakeup. 7 miles (57:49) with Sarah. Protein shake with goji berries and other healthy stuff for breakfast. Down to Boston to pick up my other sister, Erin, that flew in from San Francisco for the week. Starbucks before my parents arrived. Sarah ordered me some ridiculous drink with a banana in it.

The girls (sisters and mom) went wedding dress shopping while my Dad and I wandered to the North End. Checked out the local market, the Holocaust Memorial, street performances (dancing, modern jester, drumming on some pots and pans) and a fundraiser for Boston that involved about 100 people working out on one of the greens to music and a guy yelling to them what to do each exercise. Small salad for a snack at a local restaurant.

 Boston Strong.

 

I would check out crane work while walking around in Boston.

Home by 6pm to a delicious dinner Bob prepared for everyone. Homemade pasta, homemade sauce, turkey meatballs, bread, and other goodies. So friggin good. Chilled the rest of the night and crashed on the queen sized air mattress with Erin.

Vanilla ice cream with whipped cream and butterscotch caramel (and some real maple syrup).

April 28th (Sunday): 7:30am wakeup. Oat bran for breakfast. Down to Doyle Field by 9:40ish. Picked up the number and out for a warmup. 3 miles (20:53 + strides). Quick off the line and by myself soon. 15:51 on my own. No mile splits or anything. Just cruised. Jogged back to cheer on Bob (2nd), Sarah (1st woman) and Erin (killing the 5k on the roads). Long cool down divided into a couple sections. 8 miles total for a cooldown and 14 miles on the day.

Bob's face?

The rest of the day was relaxing. Mom's potato salad for lunch. Stopped at the Cider Mill (antiques shop). Checked out Sarah's wedding venue. Final stop was Kimball's for an early dinner and ice cream.

 

Fried fish sandwich.

 

Doubledae. Cookies and cream, vanilla peanut butter cup, and moose tracks. 

Peanut butter, hot fudge and whipped cream.

Dad and I secured my grill with some wire because it was possibly falling off. Cleaned the headlights before hitting the road back to NY. Home by 10:30pm.

77 miles for the week and a wicked awesome weekend with the family. Good times.

Friday Coverage

April 26th (Friday): 5:30am wakeup. Out the door by 5:50am for an easy 6+ mile (42:43) shakeout on my own. Back to the house to stretch, shower and have a protein shake before heading to work. Work 7am-3:30pm. Covered for a co-worker on the contractor safety orientation. Good practice for me and went better than Wednesday's training. Becoming more comfortable with presenting the material. Ham and cheese sandwich for lunch.

Home by 4pm. Quick packing and a protein before hitting the road for Leominster. Made it in a new record of 2 hours and 40 minutes. No speeding and no traffic. Smooth sailing.

Hung out for the night and ordered in some sushi and Chinese food. So good. Spicy yellowtail, Alaskan, Una Avo (cooked eel and avocado), veggie thin rice noodles, vegetarian dumplings (steamed), and some spring rolls & egg rolls. Devoured almost everything except for one spring roll.

Bed by 11:30pm.

 

H.A.M.