Goodbye 2011, Hello 2012

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Happy New Year everyone!  There’s a lot to look forward to in 2012 like goals, resolutions, and the end of days.  But first I want to take a quick look back at 2011.  It really started with a shift away from running.  I completed my first triathlon (and three total).  I was sure transitioning to triathlons was going to be the theme of 2011.  Well, after a big scheduling issue, I refocused on running.

Even with my stint in the triathlon world, I had some pretty good totals for the year.  Overall I ran 1623 miles* in 219 hours 28 minutes.  That comes out to 8:06 min/mi (or 7.4 mph for you treadmill folk).  Also, my average run was a hair over 8 miles.  I set my half marathon PR and marathon PR this year too!  I consider it a big success.

As for my 2012 goals, here’s what’s up:

I want to run 2000 miles this year.  If you want to be cute, 2012 miles would work too.  That comes out to 168 miles per month.  It’s doable, but somewhat dependent on the next goal.

Here’s the big one:  I want to qualify for the Boston Marathon (run a marathon under 3:04:59).  As of now I’m off by about 11 minutes 30 seconds.  My target race is going to be the Vermont Marathon in late May with Colin.  Between now and then my training is going to get cranked up to 11.  If I qualify for Boston in Vermont, I may re-refocus on the triathlon scene.  If not, we’ll keep on chugging away.

So 2012 has its work cut out for itself.  I’ll keep blogging if you keep reading.  Deal?  Good.  Stay classy.

*PS- Colin ran 2627 miles in 2011.  1000 miles more than I did!  Insanity.

 

Austin Distance Challenge – Decker Update

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Now that the 10K, 10 Miler, and first Half Marathon are behind us, I figured I’d give a quick update in the standings.  Since my lackluster, not-trying IBM 10K, I’ve been moving up in the standings nicely.  The results still need to be split out into the Half and Full tracks, so it’s possible there could be a shake up at the top.  In the meantime, I’m sitting pretty in 3rd place!  Now, if the two guys ahead of me are doing the Full challenge, then I’ll be in 1st place all by myself with no intention of looking back.  Regardless I should be happily perched upon the podium when the challenge comes to an end after the Austin Half Marathon in February.

 

#ATXBOS Food Blogger Swap

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I didn’t mention it earlier, but late last month I signed up to participate in an Austin to Boston Food Swap. An Austin food blogger and Boston food blogger are paired up and send each other some hometown favorites. I was lucky enough to be paired up with Janis Tester. I mean, I write about food, but she’s a legit food blogger. Just look at her site and tell me she isn’t awesome! Although she may deny it, she’s something of a local celebrity [citation needed]. We were limited to $30 and should capture the spirit of our city in food (and cater to the preferences of the recipient).

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The Decker Half Marathon Preview

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Short version: Run up a hill. Run down a hill. Repeat.

Longer Version: The Decker Challenge is this Sunday out near the Travis County Expo Center. As I mentioned awhile back this isn’t just any ol’ 13.1 mile run. This is an act of aggression against runners of all kinds. Here’s the elevation chart again. At least the weather will be runner-friendly: 42 degrees, cloudy, not too windy.

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p style=”text-align: left;”>I’ve been semi-seriously preparing for this course, picking out hilly routes and focusing on speed work. The best tactic I had though was actually going out and running the course. It wasn’t quite as bad as expected, but certainly demands respect. At this point my goal is to go sub 1:40. As Colin pointed out (based on my past goal-compared-to-result) I’ll probably come in around 1:34. I’m not so confident, but we’ll see how it all shakes out. I’ll be wearing

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Running with the Haze

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Four feet down, one ear up, one tongue out. That’s the checklist for my running buddy. She’s a minimalist — no watch, no music, no shoes. She runs for the love of running (and to maybe chase a squirrel or two). Her name

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is Hazel and she’s my dog.

Recently Hazel has been tagging along on leading my morning runs. On our first few outings she’d try to run as fast as possible, so I’m thankful she’s starting to get that we’re not in the Iditarod.

Now we’re at the point where each morning as I’m lacing up my shoes, she trots over and pushes her nose into my hands. She’s either trying to tell me I’m tying them wrong or she wants to make doubly sure that I know she wants to run. The guilt I feel when I leave her behind is nearly enough to entirely scrap my training plan to take her along.

So what’s her plan? I’m looking to get her up to 10 miles. At this point she’s run 6 miles, leading the way the whole time. Recently she tagged along from some intervals totaling

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5.5 miles. For now I’m looking to take her out twice a week for a 5-6 mile run as her “long” run and maybe one other shorter jog. Hopefully in six months or so she’ll be able to get up there. The big unknown is how far she could go right now. She cruised through 6, but we’ll take it slow from here.

It’s great having a running buddy to enjoy the dark, early mornings. With her logging more and more miles, you’ll be sure to see her make more blog appearances soon. And I should point out, where she really wins is, after our run I go to work and she gets some R&R.

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Hill Country Pierogi – Get Polished

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Do you like dumplings? Of course! How about ravioli? Who doesn’t? Kolaches? Duh! And empanadas? Yes. Get to the point. The point is, every culture has its own take on dough filled with something delicious and then cooked. Well the Polish have something pretty fantastic known as pierogi and they’re taking Austin by storm. A couple (Brit and Rob) from New York City NEW YORK CITY!? yes, New York City, are showing Texas a thing or two showcasing traditional recipes and modern twists of a understated delicacy.

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Push Yourself

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Thanks to some Twitter motivation, Ev and I are embarking on The Push Up Challenge. The brainchild of @melruns and encouraged by Austin Fit Magazine, the idea is simple:

Day 1 – Do 1 push up

Day 2 – Do 2 push ups

Here’s where it gets tricky

Day 3 – Do 4 push ups

Day 4 – Do 8 push ups

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p>Each day double the number of push ups from the day before. Take this all the way up to 100 push ups (or for the binary-minded, 128 push ups). It’s a daily goal, not an in-a-row goal, so it’s fair game to break them up. Just get them done, however you need. After that you can keep increasing or just

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stay at 100 per day. The choice is yours. Good luck and get started!

Worst Case Scenario

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I’m taking a brief step away from the typical Mike-centric post to tell a story of heartbreak, disappointment, and superhuman abilities that indirectly affects me. This past Sunday my long-distance running buddy/nemesis frenemy Colin ran the Philadelphia Marathon. “Run” doesn’t really capture the whole story. You see, Colin has been busting his hump with the singular goal of qualifying for the Boston Marathon. New qualifying standards were put in place this year making it more difficult. The requirement for a 26 year old male is to run a marathon under 3 hours 5 minutes. To put it another way, crazy fast.

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