Running Excels Beverly 13mi Run

Andy, John and I flipped flopped our long run days to run the the Running Execls group this morning. Nice meeting DMs Joseph T. and Jim T. .It was nice to run with a 8:30 pace group.

Oak Lawn Neighborhood

Solo training run around the neighborhood. I waited until after the rain, humid but cooler 86degrees. You know it is a good workout when the sweat is running down your legs.

CCH Track Speedwork

Another hot day at the track for speedwork. Today we did warmup, 12x400 and cool down with 2 minutes rest between each split.

Temp 90° Total Miles: 5.34

Warm up
Dist           Time     Pace
1.30mi      12.02    9:14

Speedwork
Dist    Time   Pace
400     1:43   6:44
400     1:47   7:09
400     1:46   7:04
400     1:44   6:54
400     1:44   6:54
400     1:41   6:44
400     1:41   6:44
400     1:40   6:40
400     1:39   6:36
400     1:41   6:44
400     1:40   6:40
400     1:38   6:31

Cool Down
Dist         Time       Pace
1.03mi     9:32      9:14

Oak Lawn Neighborhood

Solo today around the neighborhood, 3mi training run which turned into a 5mi run.

Swallow Cliffs 8mi Loop

John, Daisey and I at Swallow Cliffs for our 8mi training long run. I was off pace, still tired from the Mud Run. Time to pick it up this week!

Mudderland 5k MUD RUN Obstacle Course

The Kingsbury, Indiana course on the largest motocross track in the Midwest  was a 5K run with obstacles. Wall climb, zig zappia, gi joe crawl, spiderman, hill running, hollows way, mud pits and the finish line a 52' tall rope swing.

Tough, tough hills and more hills plus 10 obstacles. Andy finished 19th/488 and I finished 24th.

Me, Steve, Angelica, Sal and Andy still smiling at the end!

Andy, Steve, and I(left to right)

Oak Lawn Neighborhood

John and I on our 3mi training run. Not as hot today, nice leisurely run, more of a recovery run from yesterday's speed work.

CCH TrackSpeedwork

Hot day at the track for speedwork. Today we did warmup, 4x400, 4x200 and cool down with 2 minutes rest between each split.

Temp 91° Total Miles: 4.18

Warm up
Dist           Time     Pace
1.58mi      15.11    9:38

Speedwork
Dist    Time   Pace
 400   1:37    6.27
 400   1.35    6.19
 400   1:34    6:15
 400   1:33    6:11
 200   0.45    7:19
 200   0.42    7.14
 200   0:45    7:04
 200   0:47    6.31

Cool Down
Dist         Time       Pace
1.08mi     9:58      9:13

Oak Lawn Neighborhood

Andy, John and I doing our 3mi training run around the hood. Hot out today 92 degrees. Tomorrow we do our speedwork and it is suppose to be just as hot.

Turtle Lake 10.5mi

Andy, John, Mike  and I at Turtle Lake. Overcast but humid run after the rain on Saturday night. This marks the end of week 2 of the marathon training program, 16 weeks to go. The first few weeks is a drop in mileage for me, a good time to re-group and prepare for the longer mileage weeks to come.

Country Lane 5mi Loop

Maria, Andy, John, Mark, Daisey and I at Country Lane. Nice early morning run except for the bugs. I love running the trails but the flies and mosquitoes can really be a pain. I forgot the bug spray, just need to run faster and don't stop!

Oak Lawn Neighborhood

Solo training run around the hood. A little on the warm side. Only 3.7 mi, but it was difficult.

CCH Track Speedwork

Today's speedwork consisted of 2 mile warm-up, 1600, 2 min rest, 2400, 2 min rest, 1600, 2 min rest followed by 1 mile cool down. I forgot my Garmin and ended up running with the wrong group. The pace was suppose to be our marathon pace minus 30 seconds. I ran with the group that was running a 8min/mi pace and I should have been in the 7:30 or 7:45 group. I ran the three splits just under 8 but running the outside lanes around the turns to give myself more of a workout. Overall not that hard of a workout.

Oak Lawn Neighborhood

Quick solo training run around the neighborhood.

Argonne WaterFall Glen

Andy, John and myself on a beautiful early morning log run as part of our marathon training program. Good thing we got there early is was starting to get warm and crowded.

Swallow Cliffs 6mi Loop

Angelica, Andy, John, Mark and Mike at Swallow Cliffs. Nice Saturday morning run with the group. It was suppose to be a pace run(marathon goal pace) of 8:30 but I kept doubling back for the slower runners and ended up with a slower pace.

We ended up losing Mark, so Andy and I headed off in different directions looking for Mark, add on 1 more mile.

Chicago Christian HS Track Speedwork

Missed the group speedwork on Wednesday and had to do the workout solo on Thursday. The group had did ladders 400, 800, 1200, 1600, 1600, 1200, 800 400, with 2 minutes of rest(5 minutes after the 1600s) between the splits. I really missed doing the speedwork with the group, it is tough keeping the pace when running alone. Very tough workout.


Temp 78° Total Miles: 9.2

Warm up
Dist          Time     Pace
2.13mi      19:56    9:22

Speedwork
Dist    Time   Pace
 400   1:37    6.27
 800   3.20    6.40
1200  6:09    6:54
1600  7:08    7:08
1600  7.19    7:19
1200  6.25    7.14
 800   3.33    7:04
 400   1:28    6.31

Cool Down
Dist         Time       Pace
2.07mi     19:04     9:1

Danada County Trails, Herrick Lake

First Day of the 18 week marathon training program for the 2012 Bank of America Chicago Marathon on October 7th, 2012. The scheduled run call for 3 miles, so I originally planned to just run on the tread mill at work, but the weather was so nice that I opted to run outside. For a 2 mile run, I only got to about a quarter mile of the limestone trail before having to head back. Since I wasn't planning on running outside, I didn't have my Garmin so I just used my watch to time a 27 minute run would should be just a little over the 3 mile mark.

The Minneapolis Half Marathon, Minnesota

Sunday, June 3rd

Ran the Minneapolis Half Marathon, number 6 of 12 in my 2012RUN12 campaign to run 12 half marathons for NF in 2012. For details and pictures about my experience Clilck Here

Minneapolis Half Marathon in the Land of 10,000 Lakes

We’re headed to Minneapolis for the Minneapolis Half Marathon.  This will be our sixth state and my sixth half marathon in my 2012Run12.  I think I am going to surprise my wife and take her to the Mall of America.  She has been supportive through my many miles of running and so far this year I’ve run almost 700 miles.

Each place we visit has its own fascinating history and Minneapolis is no exception.  Minnesota is known as the Land of 10,000 Lakes and its name comes from the Dakota word meaning sky-tinted water.  We’ll take in some of the great sites before and after the Minneapolis Half Marathon.  We’re also looking forward to the Minneapolis Half Marathon Post Race Party at the Bohemian Flats Park which is along the Mississippi River.  There will be live music from The Brute Squad and a free beer.  Bohemian Flats is near the Washington Bridge that had collapsed on August 1, 2007 and has since been rebuilt.

I am looking forward to running the Minneapolis Half Marathon.  As a runner, there are always challenges with a new course in not knowing what to expect but there is excitement because the scenery is new and running the course always gives you a different perspective of the area and the communities within them.  Each time I run though, I am reminded of those who can’t run and can’t feel the rewards of crossing the finish line and receiving a medal.  I have set a goal of running 12 half marathons in 12 states in 2012 for those individuals you are struggling with Neurofibromatosis.  Neurofibromatosis affects over 2 million people so as I run the Minneapolis Half Marathon I will be thinking of them.  My goal is to raise awareness and money for NF Midwest who offers support to families struggling with Neurofibromatosis.  If you would like to make a donation and support my efforts, please visit http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/michaelblaha/nf-midwest-run4nf.  Every donation big or small will help someone struggling with Neurofibromatosis.

My wife is looking forward to the Minneapolis Half Marathon because she selected a hotel that is practically at the starting line of the race.  She says I can roll out of bed to the starting line.  Not knowing what to except of the new area, with roads closed and parking, we usually leave our hotel before the sun comes up but this time will be different.  So as we head off to the Land of 10,000 Lakes, we begin another journey in my 2012Run12.

When I return home from the Minneapolis Half Marathon, my Chicago Marathon training will officially begin and so another chapter will begin.

Oak Lawn Neighborhood

Early morning run around the neighborhood before leaving for Minnesota for the Minneapolis Half Marathon on Sunday, the sixth half marathon of my 2012RUN12 campaign. Only 49 degrees, a big difference from the 90plus degrees from this weekend.

Chicago Christian High School Track Speed-Work

The speed-work  was broken down to 6, each interval consisting of 800meters(2 laps = 1/2 mile) at your designated pace, followed by 2 minute rest. The designated pace was 1/2 of your 2 mile race pace(run 2 miles as fast as you can) from last week, minus about a minute. So for our group the designated pace was in the 6:15 - 6:30 pace range.

The first 2 intervals my average pace was: 6:24.
The second 2 intervals my average pace was: 6:11
The third 2 intervals my average pace was: 6:16

Total Distance 3 miles, plus 1 mile cool down at 8:30 pace.

Chicago Christian High School Track Warm Up

Speed work at the track. 2 mile warm up. This was my first experience doing speed-work. Last week we just ran 2 miles as fast as we could to gauge everyone's ability. To day we split up into groups for speed work. Nice cool day for our first real session.

2012 RidgeRun 10K

Andy(center yellow) and I at the Start

John, Andy and I ran the 2012 RidgeRun 10K this morning.  It was hot, no PRs today. I was a minute faster at last year's RidgeRun. Nice treat at the end, Rainbow Ice Creams for race finishers!

35th Annual Ridge Run 10K

It’s been a fun and busy year.  So far this year I have run over 650 miles.  Some of those miles have been in different states but most of them have been in areas close to home such as the Country Lane Yellow Trail in the Cook County Forest Preserve, Swallow Cliffs and throughout some of the neighborhoods of Chicago’s southside.  Some of those miles have been in races but the majority of them have been part of my regular running schedule.  There are some races that are on my list of favorites, the Annual Ridge Run 10K is one of them.  This year will be the 35th Annual Ridge Run, which is on Memorial Day.  This will be my 4th Ridge Run 10K.  I am looking forward to the race.  The first time I ran this course, Memorial Day fell on my birthday and my son had returned home safe from the US Marines and I remember wearing my Proud Marine Dad shirt.

The first time I ran the Ridge Run 10K, is a memory I will never forget.  I did not know what to expect.  Most of my running had been me listening to the sounds of my feet hitting the ground and thinking about life in general.  When I ran the Annual Ridge Run 10K, the Beverly Community was right there with me.  They displayed an overwhelming amount of patriotism and support for the runners as we ran through their beautiful community.  That feeling has stayed with me and has made the Annual Ridge Run one of my favorites.

Andy and I at the 2011 RidgeRun

This year the Annual Ridge Run 10K falls again on my birthday.  A day that reminds me of the many blessings I have been given including good health.   But this year when I run the 35th Annual Ridge Run 10K it will be different.  I am dedicating this year’s running of the Chicago Marathon, 2012Run12 and many of the other races, to raise awareness for Neurofibromatosis a genetic disorder that affects over 2 million people.  I am running to honor a former student John, who is 22 years old and has had the disorder since birth.  Neurofibromatosis Midwest needs our help to continue to offer support to those who struggle with Neurofibromatosis on a daily basis.  They do not have a big name spokesperson or a big budget.

If we were to be running and see another runner fall, we would stop and offer assistance.  This is our opportunity to offer assistance to those with Neurofibromatosis.

Click here to help support NF Midwest http:

http://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/michaelblaha/nf-midwest-run4nf/event

Thank you for your support and Happy Running!

Swallow Cliffs 6mi Loop

Nice Saturday morning leisurely run on the Swallow Cliffs trails with Angelica, Andy, John, Mike and myself. Rest on Sunday and the 10K RidgeRun  on Monday morning!

Country Lane Yellow Trail

Early morning run, hit the trail at 6:00AM. Beautiful sunny morning! Cooler temps allowed for a non-stop run. Good week for running, after tomorrow's run it will be close to a 40mi week. Looking forward to the Ridge Run on Memorial Day, it is gonna be hot!

Chicago Christian High School Track

First day of the Running for Kicks Wednesday Speed Work Training at the Chicago Christian High School Track in Palos Heights, Illinois.

Nice turnout, my guess is around 30 runners. This was the first time for speed work for several of the runners including myself. The goal of first day was to just gauge each runners ability by doing a 2 mile run as fast as possible.

We started out by doing a 1 1/2 mile warm-up, some sprints, the 2 mile race/run and ending with a 1 mile cool down. Next week the actual speed work starts based on our times for the 2 mile run.

1.5 mile Warm up

2 Mile run

1 Mile Cool Down

Country Lane Yellow Trail

Tough run on the Yellow Trail today. From the start I was just not mentally motivated, a little tired from Monday's weight workout and hard 6mi run. Temps were good, nice sunny day, just didn't have my mojo, stopped 3 times for a water break, but I least I finished the full 11.

Ishnala Neighborhood, Palos Heights

John and I ran the 6mi course with the Running for Kicks group today. Nice cool temps for a run. For me it was the first run after three days off. I can't remember the last time I took three days off in a row.