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Running:
First a recap of the rest of my week. The weather sure turned cold on us here in Wisconsin again. Temps with wind chills most of this week have been below zero, especially in the mornings. In the middle of the week the wind chills didn't get above zero all day. On Thursday 1/28 I got out for a lunch time run of 8 miles in 1:5:30. I did the same 8 miles as the previous weeks with 3 laps around a local subdivision. On Friday I did my Springdale/Davidson loop of 7.5 miles in 1:2:12 during my lunch break. Saturday morning I ran the same 15 miles I have the previous 3 Saturdays. I ran it in 2:05:05. This is two loops around my favorite home course. I can drop water about a mile out so I can grab it on my second loop around. This morning I got out for a nice 10 mile route around Pretty Lake and back. I ran this loop a little slow in 1:25:51, but it was an enjoyable morning.
This year is off to a very good start. The runs above capped off a 65 mile week for me. I only had one week all last year higher than this total. That gives me 244 miles MTD/YTD. Again last year I only had 1 month with a higher total. My run log shows me I averaged 55 miles per week in January. The Odometer is now up to 25,410. I'll for sure be taking Monday off for a rest day. I will also be looking to take a fall back week sometime soon. Just not sure if it will be this coming week yet though.
Hunting:
I did pick up the two deer heads from the taxidermist last week. They look fantastic. I can't wait to get them hung up for display. I'll get a picture of them posted as soon as I can.
Gardening:
I really need it to warm up a bit now so I can get out to prune all my fruit trees. I have a couple months yet I suppose to get it in. As long as you prune them while dormant it will be OK. Not much sense working outside on this job when it's this cold. Running or hunting isn't bad, but working in it isn't fun for me. Dormant oil spray will also need to be applied, but I know you can cause bud damage if it is too cold when you apply it. Should be lots of time before the end of March to get this done.
Running:
It's been a good month running so far. For this week I mentioned Monday mornings run already in the last post. Monday during my lunch break I continued my cross training with 20 minutes on the elliptical to warm up followed by extra weights, and stretching. Tuesday I again went in the morning before work for a 9 mile run in 1:15:08. It's back to cold again especially early. Had to be careful for icy spots where the melting snow froze along the sides of the roads. Wednesday I ran my hill repeat workout again. This is the 4th week in a row I was able to do this. I ran the out and back and 8 repeats of the hill in 1:05:13. Again a slight improvement from last week. The runs this week have pushed me to 204 miles MTD with a few more runs to get in. All except 7.5 miles have been outside. Not a bad number for January and certainly a good start to the year.
Above is a couple of pictures of my training hill. From down below looking up and above looking down. You can get an idea for the steepness of the hill, but can't see the full length because of the turn at the bottom of the hill. I would guess this is about 75 to 100 foot incline over .20 mile. The .40 up and back repeats take somewhere around 3:30 to complete.
Hunting:
Wednesday I got some good news from the taxidermist. Today I will be able to pick up two deer that I brought in. The one I shot in 2008 with my bow and the one I got last year during gun season. I'm excited to be able to get these back in my possession. I still don't have one deer I brought to a different taxidermist back after three years and a month. Shows you how one taxidermist has totally been ignoring my job when you see how quickly they can really be done. Last I checked about a month ago I was 8th on his list to be completed. I'll have to go check again.
Running:
I need to recap a few runs. On Friday I got out for 7.5 miles during my lunch break. I ran my Springdale loop in 1:2:01. Based on the forecast I knew I would need to get out for my long run on Saturday so I'm glad I got out early. I did the same 15 mile course as the previous week. I ran it Saturday in very close to the same time as last week in 2:6:59. So up to this point the week was exactly the same as the previous one. At this point I don't see much need for running more than around two hours. Too many miles too fast will likely get me burned out a bit before I have anything even planned for sure. Sunday morning the rain was really coming down. I knew I had to run in the morning if I was to get out, so I opted to end my outdoor streak for January and just did 7.5 miles on the treadmill in exactly 1 hour. This gave me 53 miles for the week and 179 MTD. Since I had a little easier weekend than anticipated I got out early this morning for 8 additional miles in 1:5:58. I will likely still work out at my lunch break today, but no additional running. I'll see how the week goes, but maybe I won't take an off day. Just an easy/shorter day or two.
Running:
Looking like ground hog week. So far the same exact runs and training as last week. Monday was an off day. Tuesday was a lunch time run of 7.5 miles in 1:1:40. Wednesday I ran the hill repeat workout again. 8 repeats and a total distance of 7.5 miles in 1:5:30. This was over a minute faster than last week and I felt stronger running them. That's a good sign. Thursday was another lunch time run of 8 miles in 1:6:03. Three loops of 2 miles around a local subdivision plus out and back. Forecast calls for rain starting later on Saturday and lasting for the rest of the weekend. Will have to get the longest run of the week in on Saturday morning. So far all my runs in January have been outside. Sunday that could change. Good luck to those who might be running in the indoor marathon or half marathon this weekend at the Petit center. I can't imagine doing 90+ circles for the full. I have no desire to ever try this event.
Hunting:
Not much going on in this area except reading my usual websites and blogs and dreaming of next year. I found a couple of things to share. Here is a music video to a country song called Crazy white boy
Seems to fit. The fish jumping in the boat in this clip are Silver or Big head carp. These have been in the news around here recently and are threatening to invade the Great Lakes. Can you imagine boating on Lake Michigan and being in danger of these things flying at you?
Here is a short clip to part of a training video. Couple of kill shots along with practice tips. Good TV program. Arrow Affliction
Running:
Every morning since last Saturday there has been freezing fog in the morning. Temps have been in the mid 20's making the fog freeze on everything making for some interesting scenery. Here is a link to some pictures from Sunday 01/17. Sunday I got out for another 11 miles in 1:29:44. This gives me 57 miles for last week, 126 miles YTD and 25,309 on the Odometer through last week. I again took Monday off and did some cross training, extra stretching, and weights. With the higher mileage weekends this is working well. Pretty soon I'll have to nail down some kind of schedule for spring so I can adjust training. For now I'm just going to try to build back the base and stay healthy.
Hunting:
I found this excerpt of an acticle by Ted Nugent. If you didn't know he is quite a big hunter. There is a lot of controversy about deer baiting in Wisconsin. I kind of agree with uncle Ted on the issue.
Gardening:
Doesn't really fit here but back in November, I attended the Packer/Cowboy football game in Green Bay. Here are some pictures of that Packer Game
I finally got some of the Christmas pictures downloaded. Here is a picture of the concolor fir we had this year. We had a nice Christmas tree 2009
Running:
It's been a good month so far. Everything has been going pretty smoothly despite the colder weather. The last few days the temperature has moderated somewhat. Still have to wear winter clothes, but not quite as heavy layers. So far my MTD/YTD number is 115 miles as of today. Wednesday I got out during my lunch break and ran hill repeats again. 8 repeats plus warm up and jog back was 7.5 miles in 1:6:56. Thursday I got out for 8 miles in 1:6:32. I ran a mile out, then 3 loops of 2 miles each around one of the subdivisions, and then the mile back. Friday I ran my usual work 7.5 mile loop up Springdale in 1:2:58. This morning the temperatures were in the mid 20's with fog. The roads were OK, but the fog was freezing on everything else making for some pretty scenery. I decided to lengthen the run a bit today and get my first long run of the year in the books. In fact other than the marathon in October this was my first long run since 9/20/09. I ran 15 miles this morning in 2:06:16. This morning also was busy for the wildlife. I saw several deer bedded down in one of the "kettles" on the state land. They were there on both loops that I ran past the same spot. Also saw at least 50 turkeys right on the road in an area I usually see them. Actually chased some of them aside as I ran through the flock.
Running:
As was the case last week, Monday was an off day. I did go 20 minutes on the bike just to break a sweat and then worked on core exercises, stretching, and weights. Tuesday I got out for a lunch time run. The usual 7.5 miles in 1:03:33. It was nice with temps near 30 and the sun out. You could actually feel some warmth from it.
Since not much else is going on I thought I would take some time today to blog about running in the cold and bypass any hunting or gardening update. The cold really doesn't bother me once I get out there. The motivation is affected somewhat in that it's a little harder to get everything ready and get out there especially those dark and cold early morning runs. One question I'm always asked is "Don't your lungs hurt from breathing the cold air?". Really the answer to that for me is no. The coldest days I'll wear a face mask which warms the air somewhat and on the other days I really don't even notice it. I suppose if I ran a race where I would be sucking in air hard it could hurt. It hurts in the summer sometimes too. Another question is "Aren't you afraid you are going to slip and get hurt?". I suppose this could happen, but I'm always aware of this and careful when called for. I always run on bare pavement if available even if that means running in the tire tracks or even the middle of the road. I do own a pair of Asics Arctics that have many spikes on the bottom of the shoes for the worst days. When the snow is dry and cold it's really not slippery. Wet and slushy conditions are worse. This typically would be the day after a large snowfall when the road salt and sun haven't finished melting to bare pavement yet.
For clothes, by trial and error I've learned what works for me. I have a wide variety of gloves, hats, running tights, wind pants, running shirts, wind breaker jackets etc... and adjust to temperatures. Everything is synthetics of some kind. Cotton is not your friend as a runner and even more so in the cold. Typically I will wear two layers on my legs. One pair of running tights and a pair of wind pants. Again these are of varying thickness and material. On the coldest days as an example I will wear the heaviest tights along with an insulated wind pant. On the upper half I typically will wear three layers. I always wear an Under Armor type shirt first. Something that fits tighter and wicks sweat away. This is followed by a breathable shirt of some kind. Sometimes a turtleneck or zippered type and sometimes just a long sleeve of some kind. The outer layer is typically a jacket of some type that will break the wind. Sometime insulated and sometimes not. For cold, non windy days I will sometimes have the wind break material in the middle layer and a fleece jacket over that. This keeps me from over heating as the fleece allows some cold to pass to the middle layer. Remember mittens are warmer than gloves and having a pair that has wind stopping material is important on the coldest days. Facemask is a must on the coldest days as well. There are lots of good types of running hats, but I like ones that cover my ears and don't allow the wind to pass through. Again I adjust the hat if I'm wearing a facemask on the real cold days.
Running:
January is the beginning of the rebuilding of the base cycle for the year. The last several years after my fall (October) marathon my running totals fall off. I run just enough to not start completely over to give this old body a bit of a break. Just completed the first full week in January with a total of 51 miles and 69 YTD. This is a pretty good number to start back with. All 69 miles have been outside this year. Pretty good considering how cold it has been.
Thursday was a lunch time run at work. This was in the middle of the 8 inch snowfall we received that day. It was a little slower going, but not bad. The Arctics worked great on the 7.5 mile run that I completed in 1:04:21. Friday was another lunch time run. The roads were a little more sloppy so I opted for several loops through the plowed subdivisions to get to the total of 7.5 miles again. A little faster run because there were no hills involved and I ran on clean pavement for the most part. This run took 1:01:44. Saturday morning I got out early for an 11 mile run. I did this run in 1:29:41. This run was interesting in that I only passed five cars on the entire run, but three times had to jump/step into the snow bank on the side of the road to keep from being hit. Two times cars passed me going both directions at the same time. With the narrowly plowed roads and the drivers on my side either not seeing me or refusing to yield it made it feel too close. The third time a truck came around the biggest corner hugging tight to the right and seemed to have no clue I was there. It wasn't dark and I was wearing a neon yellow vest. Just crazy. Sunday morning I got out for another 10 miles. I ran this one in 1:21:57. No mishaps or close calls this time. With the wind chills this run felt colder than Saturday's. I had sweat icicles hanging down from where my glasses met my face mask. I'll have to get a picture of this on the next cold day.
Hunting:
Kind of a bummer hunting season is over already. I could go out after squirrel or rabbits through the end of this month if I wanted to. No one would eat them anyway except for me so probably not. I will likely get out over the next few weeks ice fishing or hunting for fish I guess you could say. I have seen lots of deer tracks and trails on my runs through the neighborhood. This is a good sign for next year in that plenty of deer made it through the hunting season.
Gardening:
Not much going on in this category. I continue to monitor and nurse my pond through the cold weather to keep it running. I have a drawer filling up with garden catalogues to go through one of these weekends.
Running:
I started off the week with an off day. I think for now I'll continue to take Monday's off if I can run both weekend days. I'll try to use it as a cross training day with some extra weight lifting and maybe some biking or elliptical. Tuesday I got out during my lunch break for the usual 7.5 mile run. The worst part of this run is along Greenfield avenue for about a mile. In warm weather there is a sidewalk to run on. When we have snow I have to run on the road shoulder. There are two lanes of traffic and most people move over a bit, but sometimes it feels pretty close. I did this run in 1:02:52. Wednesday I decided to add some hill repeats to the training. I think as long as I can get out I'll continue to do this on Wednesday's. I run about a two mile warm up to the bottom of the hill, run 8 repeats (.40 miles each) for 3.2 miles, then about 2.5 miles back to work. This gives me a total of 7.5 miles similar to my other runs in distance. I ran the entire workout in 1:06:15.
Hunting:
I found this picture of a Christmas tree made of old deer antlers. Pretty cool idea, but I don't think it would fly at my house next year. I could probably scrape up enough horns to make a version of this, but likely won't happen.
Gardening:
For sure the slowest time of the year for anything garden related. It is interesting all the snow/snow cover we've had this season. More is coming today maybe up to 6 inches. This is the most for the longest time since we've been in this house I think. It will be interesting to see what difference this will make next spring/summer growing seasons. Still have some of the lower evergreen branches bending over quite a bit from the early heavy wet snow we got.
Happy New Year
Running:
I started off the New Year with a rest day. I was hitting it pretty hard at the end of December to make my goal miles for the year. It was a travel day anyway as I was heading back home from up in Bayfield. This is the first time in 6 years I didn't have a New Years run. On Saturday 1/2 I got back into it. It was a very cold morning with temps somewhere around -5 and wind chills -20 or better. I geared up in my warmest stuff and the Asics Arctics and went out for a 10 mile run. I can always shorten if I need to, but everything was fine. I managed the 10 miles in 1:20:49. Sunday morning was very cold also. Not quite what Saturday was, but still in the negative range, but with less wind. The road conditions were fine, so I just used a regular pair of trail shoes with no spikes. I only ran 8 miles and ran it in 1:08:35.
I'm still trying to figure my schedule for 2010, but have my eye on running the Trailbreaker marathon or half in March, Ice Age 50K in May, Green Bay marathon or half in May, Grandmas marathon in June, Paavo Nurmi marathon or half in August, and undecided about Fall.
Hunting:
Deer season is now over. I managed to get out Saturday evening in the bitter cold. I only went out in the back yard for the last hour of the day and saw nothing. Last night I choose to watch the Packer game instead of getting out for the last time this season. It was fun for Sandy and I to go to a friends house to watch the game and have dinner with them. I think I had enough deer anyway. Now to get ready for next year.
Gardening:
I'm managing to keep the pond and waterfall going so far. I need to keep my eye on things closely to keep it from freezing completely. There is a layer of ice covering everything, which somewhat helps to keep things insulated to some degree. The water then runs under this sheet of ice. So far so good, but the forecast looks like things will remain below freezing for two more straight weeks at least.
