Breaking the Wall

Week starting Jul 15, 2012

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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: 25.00 Year: 668.87
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
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
58.750.252.750.7562.50
Green Crocs 4 Miles: 62.50
Night Sleep Time: 48.00Nap Time: 0.00Total Sleep Time: 48.00
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
0.000.000.000.000.00

Day of rest. Went to church as usual. Was tired, fell asleep during one of the talks. Getting up at 5:00 AM twice last week got me. Caught the other talk, though. It was on unity. Then went to the investigator/new member class where we had a lesson on creation, and then we had the Elders' quorum lesson on missionary work.

Night Sleep Time: 8.00Nap Time: 0.00Total Sleep Time: 8.00
Add Comment
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
10.500.000.000.0010.50

A.M. Ran with 6 Benjamin, 2 with Joseph, and 2 myself. Jenny and Julia did 2, Jacob 1. Jacob did a mile time trial. We tried to break 7:30. He started OK, but was having an off day. His laps were 1:50, 1:54, 1:56, 1:57, and the total time was 7:40. We will try again on Friday hopefully with better results. My legs were quite sore from Saturday, mostly quads, but also calves. So I ran only 10 total.

P.M. 0.5 with William. 

Green Crocs 4 Miles: 10.50
Night Sleep Time: 8.00Nap Time: 0.00Total Sleep Time: 8.00
Add Comment
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
12.000.250.000.2512.50

A.M. Did a 400 meter time trial with Benjamin on the track at Orem High. Took him through the first 200 in 31, then let him take over to see if he could drop me, but he got a bit complacent and did a 17 for the next 100, so we were 48 at 300. After that both of us tried to accelerate, but had a hard time shifting gears. So we ended up with 64.8. Next time we try this, I'll just have him try to outrun me in the last 100. Nevertheless, it was a good result for speed given that we have not worked on this distance at all, and he is only 13 years old.

Then we paced Jenny through an 800 meter time trial. It started with some confusion. I told her to go through the first 400 in 90, and then if she could not keep the pace run the best that she could. She went through the 400 in 90 and then stop because she felt she could not hold 90 anymore. So we clarified the confusion, gave her some time to rest, and made the best of the situation. Now she was too tired to go with the plan A, so we did the plan B. First lap in 95 or so, and then try to hold it. She was too scared and ran 98. Then I told her she could break Joseph's record if she sped up, and she did closing in 94 with the total time of 3:12. This is the first PR in distances 800 or longer that she got in over two years.

Then we ran home and ran with other kids. Julia, and Joseph did 2, Jacob did 1. Benjamin total of 6. I added 6 more after that for the total of 12.

P.M. 0.5 with William. 

Green Crocs 4 Miles: 12.50
Night Sleep Time: 8.00Nap Time: 0.00Total Sleep Time: 8.00
Add Comment
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
10.500.000.000.0010.50

A.M. 6 with Benjamin, 2 with Jenny, Julia, and Joseph, 1 with Jacob, 1 more alone, total of 10. Tapering for Deseret News.

P.M. 0.5 with William. 

 

Green Crocs 4 Miles: 10.50
Night Sleep Time: 8.00Nap Time: 0.00Total Sleep Time: 8.00
Add Comment
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
9.500.000.500.0010.00

A.M. 7 with Benjamin. Jenny and Julia ran 2, including 1 with Jacob. I ran 2 more with Joseph, and 1 more alone. Felt like turning the legs over a bit and ran 0.5 uphill by the house at 5:30 pace. 

P.M. Sarah took William for 0.5. 

Green Crocs 4 Miles: 10.00
Night Sleep Time: 0.00Nap Time: 0.00Total Sleep Time: 0.00
Add Comment
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
9.000.001.500.0010.50

A.M. Today was Jacob's last chance to break 7:30 before turning 6. So we did a time trial on the track.We drove to the track so that Jacob would not have to run too much for his warm-up. A little kid needs only maybe a quarter mile jog, no more, before a mile time trial, and he does need to do strides. Joseph, Jenny, and Benjamin were assisting in addition to myself. Aside from bragging rights a personal Palm Pilot was at stake. Yes, I know Palm Pilots are old, but my income, while good and sufficient for our needs, does not yet allow us to provide more expensive devices for a 6 year old even if they earn them. In the meantime, Palm Pilot can be used to read the scriptures, to play chess, and to learn about various mathematical functions on the calculator among other things. Jacob was quite excited about the prospective of owning his first electronic gadget. 

The first lap was 1:52, just as planned. On the second lap I became concerned because we did it in 1:55 with me having to keep asking Jacob to give me a low five.  So Joseph, Benjamin, and I explained to Jacob in no uncertain terms that he needed to speed up. His natural tendency to obey came handy, and he sped up completely on faith believing that even if he thought he could not do it, if Joseph, Benjamin, and I thought that he could, then he could. His third lap was 1:50. This dropped Jenny - she said she was not feeling good. We do need some instruction that when you are helping your little brother in a time trial, even if you do not feel good, you should just push through it and keep the pace. But it was not the time for this type of instruction as we were trying to get Jacob to do another lap in 1:50, which would give him 7:30 for the mile. He hesitated some, hitting the next 200 in 57, so now he needed a 53. Then he got going and hit 26 for the next 100. Now he had it in the bag, more or less, but a 5 year old kid never has it in the bag. He can always panic and slip to some out of character pace, and lose the precious bird that was already in his hand. So in the last 100 I started clapping out the rhythm and saying ta-ta-ta, as Benjamin and Joseph kept cheering. His last 100 was 24, and he finished the full mile (not just 1600!)  in 7:27.8. I ordered the Palm Pilot as soon as I got to the computer.

Jenny, Benjamin, and Joseph ran back to the house (about 1 mile), while I drove Jacob. Afterwards, Joseph and Jenny ran another mile with me, and I ran 2 more with Julia, and 3 more alone with a pickup in the last 1.5 in 8:36 - this gave me the total of 8. Benjamin ran 6.

P.M. 0.5 with William. 

Green Crocs 4 Miles: 10.50
Night Sleep Time: 8.00Nap Time: 0.00Total Sleep Time: 8.00
Add Comment
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
7.250.000.750.508.50

A.M. Ran 8 miles with Chad. In the first 2 miles we ran with Jenny, Julia, Joseph, and Jacob. Today was Jacob's birthday. He turned 6. 

Then we ran 6 more miles with Benjamin. I thought it would be good for all of us to shake the legs out, so I proposed a 1.25 mile pickup down the Provo Canyon. I gave Benjamin a chance to pick the pace, he said if I let him choose the pace, it would be 8:00 mile. So with this deferral, I said the pace would be 82 seconds per quarter (5:28 per mile), and I would run in front to set it. We did the first quarter in 82 as planned. However, to do that we had to work against a gust of headwind. So applying the same effort the second quarter ended up being 80. I noticed that Benjamin was fine at 80, so I just kept it. But it ended up being too fast for Chad and he dropped back a bit. The next quarter was not marked, however, we did the next half mile in 2:38. I suppose I was getting a bit excited. So we had 5:20 at the mile. Then I realized that if we ran under 76 Benjamin would get a mile record for the last mile of the pickup. So I silently picked up the pace to see if he would respond. He did. Our next 200 was 37. In the last 200 I cranked it up some, and Benjamin kept responding, and even trying to pass me, so we ended up with 33 for the last 200, 70 for the last quarter, 6:30 for 1.25, and 5:08 for the last mile. This is Benjamin's new canyon mile record.

Chad finished .1.25 in 6:46, with the last mile in 5:24.

P.M. 0.5 with William. 

 

Green Crocs 4 Miles: 8.50
Night Sleep Time: 8.00Nap Time: 0.00Total Sleep Time: 8.00
Add Comment
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
58.750.252.750.7562.50
Green Crocs 4 Miles: 62.50
Night Sleep Time: 48.00Nap Time: 0.00Total Sleep Time: 48.00
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