Chris's Bringin' Sexy Back

Getting Our Groove Back

Nice tempo workout this morning. JP, Rick and I were the three amigos. It's a good thing Cahn is too wimpy to do an early morning workout. The north headwind would have shaken that little guy up. My 2 lb dominance kept me moving in a positive direction.

Yes, the winds were strong, but not enough of a deterrent to keep us from having a good workout.

Eight miles total, six at tempo. I have no idea what my heart rate was, but managed the following laps: 6:44, 6:54, 7:39, 6:30, 6:28, 6:18.

Ed, you need to let us know when you can run next week.

Annie Ryan Run - Elmhurst - May 20th - 9 AM

My former boss has a 5K in Elmhurst each year to honor the memory of his daughter who died ten years ago as a result of an undetected brain tumor. Proceeds benefit the Children's Brain Tumor Center at Lutheran General. http://annierun.com/main.html

It's a good cause and an opportunity to WIN a 5K for anyone that can run under 18:45. In past years... that's what it took to win.

If you guys are interested... we could do a few miles on the Prairie Path, run the race and then do another hour or so on the Prairie Path.

I think the race starts at 9. Rumor has it that Ed will be in town. I'll be driving past Forest Park on my way to Elmhurst (Ed's hometown) if anyone wants to ride along or get picked up on the way.

Brunch at Egg Harbor to follow the race and any post-race miles.

I'm thinking I will look to run for an hour or so before the race and another hour after the race.

Any takers?

Tues LT Report: 6 Miles @ 6:27

Coach called for 45 minutes @ LT. There was a light rain coming down which filled me with a certain amount of dread for the upcoming workout. As we got going the rain actually felt quite refreshing and then shut off after about 15 minutes into the run. I was pleasantly surprised to be hitting my time splits (going for 6:30's). After all was said and done, it really felt great out there tonight.

The rain kept the turnout pretty low. Fearghal and John M were the only others who showed up to run the LT. When finished both Fearghal and my legs had a nice stucco finish from the sloppy path. Too bad JP didn't show up. It would have been a great night for splashing through the puddles.

Ledesma Muffin Top

The Ledesma Muffin Top Effect has started. 1 week without running and there is already a noticeable increase of the belly area...

One can only imagine what it will look like after I get back from Spain in mid July...

Cheers,

fatty eddy

Tues LT Report: 4 miles @ 6:30*

Tuesday night was a perfect night for an LT. Nice temps, and for once no real wind. We also had celebrity runner appearances by Bob Fencl and Kevin M to push the pace. Pearman ran strong even with running a 1/2 Marathon just 2 days ago. John McGreal was like the energizer rabbit out there. I'm not sure his legs are even moving when he's running. He just sort of glides along the ground hitting his base drum. Okay, strike the base drum part.

* Full Disclosure: The Ledesma shortcut at the Lawrence underpass was taken.

CONGRATS!

Nice job Chris... on your way back.

I myself have not run in almost one week. The long slide down has begun!

See us soon

First long run

Well, 8.96 miles in 1:10, if you call that a long run. The ankle is a little sore today. Other than that, I felt and still feel pretty good.

Help!!!!

No time to run... End of year exam upon me! It is an oral exam in front of a panel... like the inquisition!

Aggghhh I cant wait to be done!

I will be in chi-town for 5 days, May 20 - 25...

Bloomsday....hills & hills

After a decent performance last week at Ravenswood, it was time to head west to Spokane for the Bloomsday Run 12k. I was assured of a PR on this course because it was the first time that I had ever run it. Unfortunately, the "seeding" priority for this race makes the second seed very challenging to make, thus putting me back with the masses. Lots of new running shoes with cotton socks. Additionally, with the second seed was the "Corporate Cup" runners , aka slow people running/walking 5 wide for their company competition. I was dodging them less than a mile ahead even though the staged the waves by 5 minutes.

Bloomsday is a good race, nice course, but the hills are legitimate leg burners. The course starts with about 3/4 mile flat followed by another 3/4 mile of significant downhill. You are repaid by a bi-level burner that is about 1 1/4 mile long. Another 1/2 mile of flat, 1/2 mile of downhill and then Doomsday. I would rate the first hill as more challenging, but Doomsday comes in at 5 miles in and with exhaustion factor, I could see it taking its toll.

I slipped in a 49:34, about 95 seconds slower than I'd hoped, but reasonably satisfied. Additionally, Dani and Jen cruised in around 1:13 with a bathroom break that might even make Ed proud. Photos and course elevation below. I think this would be an interesting run to get a "crew" to attend next year or the following. With 45, 000 participants, it is a legitimate big run with some good pain sprinkled in......