Training, Opening, and 25 & counting...

Hello. It's been a good long while since I've had a blog post. I've been busy with our student staff training and then preparing for opening. Yesterday, we successfully moved in about 1000 people and we now have about 1400 living on campus. I think it's hard to know what I actually "do" for a living--especially if you've never worked in housing. We work hard, train hard, and have great fun. We're in the business of helping students have an outstanding on-campus living experience and really helping students succeed in college. It's fun work! I've posted some pictures below. I am blessed to work with a tremendous staff and we have had a great start to the year.

Running in August is ALWAYS difficult for me because of the intense schedule. But...I have managed to keep the 40 mile/week streak alive this month. This week was the 25th consecutive week of hitting the 40 mile or more mark. Since 3/1/2010, I've hit 40 miles every week. That's a little over 1000 miles in about 5.5 months. It's been hard and I've been up running before 6a about 14 days this month. It's rough to get up when the clock reads 5a or so--at least for me. I'm looking forward to having it be more reasonable.

I'm really excited about running this fall and with the base I've been able to build I think it's going to be a fast fall season of running. AND...A BIG THANKS to my wife Sarah for being patient and understanding with me this month while I've been so busy. Happy running! Enjoy the photos...

HOT!

Wow has it been HOT this week in Indianapolis. Just absolutely smoking hot. I've been running in the morning, but it's even really hot before 6a. For those of you somewhat new to running, when it's this hot you have to drink lots of water and Gatorade and make sure not to run at peak heat times (i.e. Noon). When it's in the 90s I typically run at 6a or so or at 6p or later.

Despite the heat, I had an outstanding 12 X 200 workout at the track (equals 3 miles). The workout is comprised of 12 laps around a track with half of each lap (200) run at a fast pace and half of each lap (200) run at a recovery pace. Today, I ran very well and was able to keep the difference between my fast pace and recovery pace within about 15 seconds. To give you an idea of the improvement (time for three miles)

May 21: 19:26
June 15: 18:40
July 19: 18:43
July 26: 18:44
August 12: 18:09

Typically, when I can hit this workout in the mid 17s then I know I'm in great racing shape. I'm getting closer to that mark. The 35 second improvement in two weeks is a great sign that all of the miles I've been putting in is paying off. Typically, it takes about 2 good years of uninjured running to start to run at what you are capable of running. So...I'm just at about a year of injury free running (fingers crossed). I just have to keep pushing and keep running in the low 40s in terms of miles for a week. If you ever want to really improve you speed, then try this workout. It's a killer, but it's a good one. Happy running to you. I'm off to camp with our Student Leader Staff this weekend.

A long work week...

Hello. I've been pretty crappy about updating my blog. I admit it. However, August for a person who works in a university housing program is an absolute sprint. I worked well into the 70 hour mark this week. You might ask, what the (bleep)? Well...I love it. I've said it and I'll say it again: I am a Housing guy and love it. The worst professional year of my life was the year I spent out of college housing work, so I'll take the 70 hour week every now and then and love just about every minute of it.

Sarah and I dogsitted for my brother's dog, Elvis. I had no idea how much work you have to be willing to do in order to care for a dog. Wow. Elvis is a very cute dog, but he's a pup. So...our hands were full, but we were glad my brother asked us to look after Elvis.

Honestly, I thought on Friday morning that I would not make the 40 mile mark. But...I ran 17 miles this weekend (Sat & Sun) and hit the 40 mile mark for the 23rd consecutive week. I'm happy about that.

News from the TRI from last week. I finished 257th in the swim, 212 on the bike, and 1st on the run. The run really helped me and I finished 55th overall. Not bad for such a rough swim and bike. There were about 550 finishers in the race.

Have a great week. I'll try to write more, but don't be surprised if my blogs are junk until September. But...you should read anyway! Happy running to you...

The story of #895...

What happens when you take a pretty good runner and throw that person into a Triathlon? Well...that's what I tried to find out today. First and foremost, I had a blast at Tri Indy this morning. Tuxedo Brothers, who put on the event, did a great job moving over 1200 people through three legs (swim, bike, run). Pretty amazing. Results are not posted yet so whatever I write below may be off just a bit in terms of time and place.

It all started with a 500 meter swim. Does not sound so bad, does it? I knew that of the three events that the swim would be the toughest for me, but I think I underestimated just how tough it would be. For some reason I ignored the fact that the last time I swam for exercise was in 2007. The swim was in the man made Canal in downtown Indianapolis. It was kind of gross in there, but not nearly as gross as I envisioned. So...I get to the water start about 30 minutes early and wouldn't you know that I start to feel the urge to pee. BUT...there are no porta potties. So...the "urge" is not that bad, so I ignore it. It's finally my time to get into the water and I jump in and immediately go into "oh shit" mode as it's cold and I cannot see anything through the goggles. But...I did not have to pee anymore because I think the cold water froze it in my bladder! I adjusted pretty quickly and got going, but after probably 25 meter (felt like 500), I'm winded and gassed. I'm like, "omg, this is going to be rough." So...after trying to swim freestyle for about 25 more meters, I decided to go into the all to effective breast stroke. Yes, folks, that's right, I'm swimming breast stroke in a triathlon. Obviously, this is NOT the stroke you are supposed to swim because I SWEAR a couple women who looked like they could be my grandmother passed me. All in all, the swim was ROUGH. It humbled me. For a visual image I want you to think of a one winged, one legged chicken on crack because that chicken would've beaten me. I was bad. I don't have the full results yet, but I do know I was 254th out of the water for the sprint tri. Wow. AND...I never did pee--Yeah, I know, gross. But...even though I thought about peeing in the Canal, I just could not bring myself to let it go. This was not a smart move.

After the disaster for the non-swim-master, I headed for my bike and started riding. The transition was pretty smooth and I was surprised at how well I was able to move on the bike. I've not cycled for exercise in about a year, so I did not know what to expect. Fortunately, running fitness translates well to cycling fitness and I moved up considerably. However, I still felt like I needed to pee. Sometimes, like at the movies, you can hold it because you're just sitting there. On the bike, though, I just knew it was going to be a case of how long could I hold it and still perform well. Anyway, I rode the 11.5 miles in about 37 minutes--which evidently is pretty good. Not great, but pretty good. I moved up in place as I hit the run transition point. Everyone tried to tell me my legs would not work the same way after the bike and I thought, "hell, you're talking to a guy who runs 40 miles a week...I'll be fine." Once again, Josh was WRONG!. My legs felt like strawberry jelly (and I don't even eat jelly) and I was not able to really even keep my balance when I ran my bike to the area where I needed to change into my running shoes. Anyway...all in all I thought the bike portion was pretty good and I felt more like a triathlete and less like a rookie.

The run was awesome and my legs finally settled down to the point where I hit the first mile in 5:45. Still had to pee and was afraid I'd have to tell the ABC joke from elementary school about "where's the pee...it's running down my leg." I was passing people and just felt great and felt encouraged because I was now catching those folks who killed me on the swim. I hit the second mile in 11:35 and I knew I could just keep cruising, although my legs felt tired. As I passed my friend Kat (who came out to cheer me on at the Campus Apartments), I was still passing a ton of people. I suspect I passed about 150 people in the 5K part of this event. Anyway, I finished the 5K portion in a respectable 18:30, which isn't bad after a swim and bike.

All in all, my unofficial time was around 1:11 and I'm waiting on the results for the official time. What is amazing from the unofficial results is that I got out of the water in 254th place and ended up finishing in 47th overall. Just imagine if I could actually swim.

All time goals aside, this was just a great time and a great event in which to compete. There was a time when my competitive nature would have never allowed me to enter this if I was not at my best in all three areas. I'm a competitive guy, which is why I don't like to compete against friends or even talk about sports involving Indiana with UK fans. I love my friends who love UK, but UK is no friend of IU. That same competitive force is what drives me to run daily and when used for good I am able to really compete hard. That aside, I'm glad to have done this because it was just really cool and fun. Much like running, it's all about just doing your best and taking a risk. We will see if I'll actually do this, but I'm thinking in the future that the winter is for base building, the spring is for mini-marathons, the summer is for triathlons, and the fall is for fast road racing. Who knows if I will do that given how much I love to run, but I just may have caught the TRI bug today--and maybe some other "bugs" too while swimming in the canal.

P.S. I finally found a porta john at the end of the race and found great relief! Happy running to you...

P.S.S. #895 was my bib number for the race.

The day before the TRI...

By this time tomorrow I will have completed my first triathalon. I'm totally doing this on a whim, but I think I'll enjoy it. It's a 500 meter swim, a 11.5 mile bike, and a 5K run. I'm not so worried about the bike or run, but the swim is where I'll be least prepared. At least that is the first leg of the TRI.

This week has been crazy with running and combining that with work and trying to be a good husband. We are in the middle of our professional and graduate staff training and that takes up a ton of the day and then it takes a considerable amount of time to prepare and then answer the day to day email load. I've had to work a lot longer (until 6p or 6:30p), and I've tried to really not come home and be distracted--which means no running after work. So...I've been up between 5a-5:30a every day this week (sans today) to try and slide in 8 miles before getting to work around 7:30a. All in all, I've been able to hit the mark for the week, but damn I'll be glad when it's September and I can have a more normal schedule.

Had a great month of running in July hitting 187.2 miles for the month. I'm now at 1210.4 for the year, which averages out to 172.9 miles run a month. In order to hit 2000 for the year I need to average 167/month. I'm really pleased with the progress so far. If all goes well this month, then I will eclipse last years running total by late August. Here's to trying.

I'll write more about the triathalon tomorrow when I finish. Wish me luck...

A new adventure...

Hello. It's Sunday evening and I'm getting ready to hit the rack. Busy week ahead and I'm getting up early tomorrow to run (5 a.m.). I don't really like running at 5a
but I don't have much of a choice tomorrow. I think the difference between me and folks who do not run is that I'll get out of bed at 5a even when I don't want to. It does not make me any better (might make me dumber), but it does make me a runner--an identity I wholeheartedly embrace.

I am going to give a triathalon a shot next Sunday in downtown Indianapolis. I was looking through the race websites trying to find my next race, and I saw the ad for the triathalon. I've always wanted to do one and never have. Ive not swam for fitness in over two years and I've not been on my bike in over a year, but I"m going for it. Sometimes, you just have to go for it and see what you have. I figure with my running fitness coupled with my ability to swim and bike should help me. Even if I fail, at least I tried. I'm looking forward to it.

This week was a good running week as I hit 41 miles for the week. I ran a mile time trial yesterday on the IUPUI Track and hit 5:27 on a hot and humid morning. I hope by November I can put that under 5 minutes. I guess we shall see. Another week in the books and I'll hit 1200 miles for the year this week. Looking forward to a great week. Happy running to you...

An am track workout...

On Monday I decided to hit the track at 6a, which is new for me. Typically, I just run distances in the morning and I don't worry about speed. However, it's summer and it's hot and I'm busy, so running a fast track workout really is only realistic in the morning. On Monday, I was able to run a good 12 by 200 with a 200 meter jog in between each interval. It's a staple workout that my XC Coach (Coach Rowe) used to have us run. If I run this workout for the next 4-6 weeks, then my legs will be ready to really pop a fast 5K time soon. The workout went well and my fast 200s were faster than they've been in a long time. Good sign.

Running this week has been hard as training for our Professional & Graduate staff has started. Basically, if I'm going to run, it's going to have to be early. It's worth it, though. I'm blessed to work with an outstanding team and the folks I lead are all outstanding. They are looking to me for leadership and I have a duty to provide it well. So...if that means getting up at 5a to run, then so be it. At IUPUI HRL we are trying to be great--not good--great. So...all of us have to make some adjustments.

Had the chance to visit the Muhammad Ali Center in Louisville, Ky today. What an AMAZING place. Ali was a true champion in the ring--but a bigger champion for racial equality and Social Justice. He simply made it his priority to refute racism--even when it meant he had to sit out three years from boxing. I admire him and just love that he was willing to sacrifice what he loved for a greater cause. I hope if I'm ever in a similar situation, I'd choose the right thing over running. The best boxer of all time gave up boxing to stop oppression and racial discrimination. That's just an amazing sacrifice. We all just be committed to making sure all non-violent people--no matter what--are valued, important, and respected.

Have an outstanding evening. If you are able...Go Run!