Mike Kirk has been paroled to Idaho

Footbridges, 5 miles, am. I felt okay.

I started a run in the afternoon but aborted it. The top of my left foot is very sore. I think I have bruised the top of my foot somehow.

Treadmill, 8 miles. I felt good and my foot was only slightly sore.

Dog Park, with 2 x 2 miles (roughly). The reps were on the Des News course, miles 18-16 then 16-18 (Wasatch Drive). The 18 mile mark was covered by snow so I estimated. The effort was fairly easy but I need more practice in holding a pace. 11:30's for both efforts.

Jeremy Ranch road with Tom. It was scraped so the footing was okay. The air was clean but cold. The road is a tough rolling dirt road in the summer but a great place go when it is hot.

From Mt. Dell GC clubhouse. I warmed up to the DN 6.0 mark then ran tempo to the top of Little Mtn. I ran fast but relaxed down to the 9.0 mark then tempo back to the top of Little Mtn. Fast but relaxed to the 6.0 mark. Legs good, foot good, air good.

Treadmill. I increased the pace during the run and changed the grade every mile. I did a nice mile at 1% and 11 mph (5:27). Since I'm trying to get ready for Houston I ran with fluids but without a fan. The room temp was 67F but running at a good pace without any air moving I felt much warmer.

U of U, 15th, Sugarhouse, with 3+ miles of AT (15th, around Sugarhouse, to the Ward). I finally felt strong on a longer run. It has been since St. George that I have felt that good. My foot was a little sore on the cool down.

HR average during the AT: 172 with a 181 max. I hit my max HR after climbing the hill next to the pond in Sugarhouse Park. I really had to work to recover because I still had a mile to go.

Treadmill, very easy. I helped Amy take the kids to the pool. Once they were settled with her I ran on the treadmill. I managed 6.5 miles before the kids were ready to go.

Treadmill. Adrienne was sick so I got in a run when I could. 5 miles in 32:25 @ 1%. 7:13 6:47 6:27 6:12 5:44. I would have liked to run more but that was all of the time I had.

Old Mill. 2 sets of 4-3-2-1 min with 2 min recovery. HR ave during repeats 173-172-170-167-174-173-171-170 (171 ave). 162 ave on intervals. With warm up and cool down I ran 66:45.

Cotton bottom. I felt good but ran easy. This run climbs a lot in the last few miles.

Memory Grove with Tom. We ran a little faster than usual. It felt good.

Footbridges, 5 miles, am. Very warm.

Parley's, 8 miles, pm. I held back because of tomorrow's long run.

U of U, 15th E, Sugarhouse run, modified because of the snow on the trail. Bob and I saw Neal Gassman on the road near the Zoo. He ran with us for 20-25 minutes before branching off. It is hard to believe that he is turning 40 this year. I hope we all PR at 39.

Bob and I did our standard 15th E tempo. We had to run single file through 15 & 15th because of traffic. That was the last I saw of Bob's face. My HR pegged at 171 although I felt fine. I am noticing that I can talk at that HR but my legs won't move any faster. Bob finished our 20 minute tempo in 19. He is looking strong.

On our way home we ran better than the previous few times. Usually he is dragging me but I'm starting to regain some fitness that I lost from not running fast after St. George.

parley's

Treadmill. I wanted to get in a good speed workout so I ran indoors. I ran 8 x 2 minutes with 2 minute recoveries. I stopped after 8 because my wife call; one of the pitfalls of treadmill running. Overall I felt very good. I noticed that 11-11.1 mph felt fast but comfortable while 11.2-11.4 was close to my AT. 11.4 felt good but I probably could not maintain that pace for more than 12-15 minutes without racing. Recovery pace was 9 mph.

I have felt lethargic for the last few days. I measured my resting HR around midmorning to see if I was elevated. I wasn't but I finally have a resting HR lower than my age. I am officially old!

Dog Park

treadmill, 1%

Treadmill with Bob at Stiener. 3 mile warmup in flats. Change shoes to lightweight trainers. 1 mile at 5:45, switch treadmills to a better one and the one beside Bob. Ran 10 k at 10.8 to 11.0 mph. Both of us did the workout without fans to prepare for the heat (if present) in Houston. The air temp was 70 F so around us I'm sure it was slightly higher. Managed a 34:20 10 k. HR was high, 176-179, but I could carry on a conversation.

Merry Christmas! (Yes, I know that I'm typing this on the 27th) I liked Sasha's Christmas thoughts. I only wish we all would show our spiritual side as freely as Sasha.

Treadmill. Wanted to do 8 x 2 min @ 11.0 mph but my foot was sore.

Parley's. My foot warmed up quickly. I wore thicker socks which helped cushion my foot better. I felt quick and light. What a different story from yesterday.

Parley's at night. I wanted to run Dog Park but the footbridges were icy so I did Parley's instead.

Footbridges. It was all I had time for.

Usual long run. I ran steady and then picked it up on the usual section. I tried to remain comfortable. I ran relaxed until I noticed that I was on pace to hit my normal time. It is hard to run relaxed when you start thinking about times and marks. My main focus was being light with my left foot. You can't run fast if you stay on the ground too long. Impulse-Momentum Theorem. I don't get much of a chance to say that these days so I thought I'd end the year with it.