Breaking the Wall

April 19, 2024

15% off for Fast Running Blog members at St. George Running Center!

Location:

Orem,UT,United States

Member Since:

Jan 27, 1986

Gender:

Male

Goal Type:

Olympic Trials Qualifier

Running Accomplishments:

Best marathon: 2:23:57 (2007, St. George). Won the Top of Utah Marathon twice (2003,2004). Won the USATF LDR circuit in Utah in 2006.

Draper Days 5 K 15:37 (2004)

Did not know this until June 2012, but it turned out that I've been running with spina bifida occulta in L-4 vertebra my entire life, which explains the odd looking form, struggles with the top end speed, and the poor running economy (cannot break 16:00 in 5 K without pushing the VO2 max past 75).

Short-Term Running Goals:

Qualify for the US Olympic Trials. With the standard of 2:19 on courses with the elevation drop not exceeding 450 feet this is impossible unless I find an uncanny way to compensate for the L-4 defect with my muscles. But I believe in miracles.

Long-Term Running Goals:

2:08 in the marathon. Become a world-class marathoner. This is impossible unless I find a way to fill the hole in L-4 and make it act healthy either by growing the bone or by inserting something artificial that is as good as the bone without breaking anything important around it. Science does not know how to do that yet, so it will take a miracle. But I believe in miracles.

Personal:

I was born in 1973. Grew up in Moscow, Russia. Started running in 1984 and so far have never missed more than 3 consecutive days. Joined the LDS Church in 1992, and came to Provo, Utah in 1993 to attend BYU. Served an LDS mission from 1994-96 in Salt Lake City, Utah. Got married soon after I got back. My wife Sarah and I are parents of eleven children: Benjamin, Jenny, Julia, Joseph, Jacob, William, Stephen, Matthew, Mary, Bella. and Leigha. We home school our children.

I am a software engineer/computer programmer/hacker whatever you want to call it, and I am currently working for RedX. Aside from the Fast Running Blog, I have another project to create a device that is a good friend for a fast runner. I called it Fast Running Friend.

Favorite Quote:

...if we are to have faith like Enoch and Elijah we must believe what they believed, know what they knew, and live as they lived.

Elder Bruce R. McConkie

Favorite Blogs:

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Miles:	This week:	0.00	Month:	0.00	Year:	870.94
Saucony Type A Lifetime Miles:						640.15
Bare Feet Lifetime Miles:						450.37
Nike Double Stroller Lifetime Miles:						124.59
Brown Crocs 4 Lifetime Miles:						1334.06
Amoji 1 Lifetime Miles:						732.60
Amoji 2 Lifetime Miles:						436.69
Amoji 3 Lifetime Miles:						380.67
Lopsie Sports Sandals Lifetime Miles:						818.02
Lopsie Sports Sandals 2 Lifetime Miles:						637.27
Iprome Garden Clogs Lifetime Miles:						346.18
Beslip Garden Clogs Lifetime Miles:						488.26
Joybees 1 Lifetime Miles:						1035.60
Madctoc Clogs Lifetime Miles:						698.29
Blue Crocs Lifetime Miles:						1164.32
Kimisant Black Clogs Lifetime Miles:						720.62
Black Crocs 2023 Lifetime Miles:						1312.70

Sun, Aug 22, 2010

Easy Miles	Marathon Pace Miles	Threshold Miles	VO2 Max Miles	Total Distance
0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00

Sarah gave birth to Stephen Alexander Pachev at 12:20 AM at our home. At around 11:10 the labor was not progressing as fast as we wanted to do, so her midwife gave her some homeopathic medicine to get it going and told her to go for a walk to put some pressure on the cervix. Sarah decided to go for a short run instead. She started off at around 8:00 pace. I was not expecting that and had to shift gears to keep up. She slowed down to a more reasonable pace for a woman in labor dilated to a 7 after about 40 meters, but it was still quick. After about 100 meters she decided it was good enough and we walked. She ran some more at the end of the first lap around the block. The combination of the medicine and the cervical pressure from a quick run got things going fast. After two laps of walking around the block (0.7 miles), we got into the house and Stephen was born 15 minutes later. He looked like a runner when he came out - 20 inches, 7lb 4oz, long thin legs. Very nice quiet baby, asks for food politely.

Will post the pictures when I get my hands on the camera.

Kids stayed at the neighbor's house, and the kids and I were able to make it to church in the morning. The subject of the talks was salvation by grace. The doctrine of salvation is laid out in 2 Nephi 25: "It is by grace that we are saved after all that we can do". The LDS church gets a lot of flack for that, and in all honesty I do not understand why. The nature that God created should teach us about how it works, if only we would learn. Does the harvest a farmer gathers come by grace or by works? Sure it comes by grace. The soil, water, sun, and seeds are provided by God's grace. So is the inherent ability of the seed to grow. But that grace is wasted when the work to plant, grow, and harvest is not performed. Thus by failing to work we waste the grace. So it is with salvation. If we do not keep the commandments we waste the grace of Christ and make a mock of His Atonement. If we do, we gather the harvest that was grown through His grace.

Night Sleep Time: 5.50	Nap Time: 2.00	Total Sleep Time: 7.50

Comments

From Kam on Tue, Aug 24, 2010 at 13:36:31 from 68.66.163.179

Sasha, Congratulations to you and Sarah on the new arrival. We had 2 at home. What an experience.

From jtshad on Tue, Aug 24, 2010 at 16:25:09 from 204.134.132.225

Congratulations on the new addition to your family, I hope that Stephen and Sarah are doing well.

From Eric Day on Wed, Aug 25, 2010 at 11:29:08 from 189.192.22.1

Sasha, congratulations on the new member. Best for all the family.

From Kim on Wed, Aug 25, 2010 at 14:14:21 from 67.199.180.90

Congratulations on your sweet, new baby boy! What a trooper that Sarah is! She didn't mention the running just prior to delivery excitment!

I also enjoyed your thoughts on your Sunday talks!

From rAtTLeTrAp on Wed, Aug 25, 2010 at 14:24:46 from 72.102.161.137

Congratulations! Running is definitely a way of life for your family. I can just picture Sarah running around the block while in labor. Priceless :)

From Jason McK on Wed, Aug 25, 2010 at 14:38:23 from 63.255.173.99

Congratulations, father of 7!

From Scott Ensign on Thu, Aug 26, 2010 at 16:37:47 from 63.228.217.162

congrats to you and your wife on your new addition!

From Mark on Sat, Aug 28, 2010 at 19:52:43 from 173.168.88.68

Congratulations on the new baby! That's incredible about Sarah's method of getting the baby to move along. I'm sure little Stephen will be quite fast some day.

From RAD on Tue, Aug 31, 2010 at 20:53:38 from 67.172.229.125

Congrats on the new baby! I love that Sarah was running in labor. People thought I was crazy when I told them I was going to run the 5 miles to the hospital.

I LOVED your analogy with salvation and the Harvest, thank you for sharing.

From Sasha Pachev on Wed, Sep 01, 2010 at 17:44:23 from 192.168.1.1

Thanks, everybody. RAD, I think if you can run 5 miles to the hospital, you might not need to go there at all and deliver at home just fine.

From Nan on Thu, Sep 02, 2010 at 12:25:06 from 24.8.144.22

Wow, congratulations Sasha! What a great birth story. Good for Sarah, running in the final stages of labor. Yay for home birth!

RAD-Sasha is right. Plus, home birth is much more comfortable than on a sidewalk two miles from the hospital.

From RAD on Thu, Sep 02, 2010 at 14:03:42 from 67.172.229.125

I should clarify that I wasn't IN labor. I was being induced and the hospital gives you an hour notice before you need to be there and the hospital is 5 miles away...so I figured it would be a great time to get an extra run in.

I'm not a home-birther. I really wish I was, but my body doesn't cooperate that way. I did have a neighbor that was my nurse this time and it honestly felt like the most comfortable and supported birth I've had. As close to a mid-wife and home birth I think I'll ever get.

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