Last Day of October

 I had a good start. Felt good and with positive thoughts. I did the Ridge Road Loop doing 8.91 miles in 2:07:50 for a 14:20 minute per mile pace with an elevation gain of 193 feet with an average heart rate of 193 feet at a temp of 62 degrees at 93 percent humidity. It was sprinkling a bit , but it was comfortable. A return to more seasonal temps tomorrow. God Bless!

Going Higher

I woke up this morning feeling slightly better than Monday. Yesterday was a busy day with a doctors visit, school, and then picking up the church after trunk or treat. I found out that my blood pressure is still high. I called my primary care doctor to set up a sooner appointment to switch my medications. My workout this morning went fine. I did my standard figure 8 loop doing 8.6 miles in 2:06:33 for a 14:42 minute per mile pace with an elevation gain of 147 feet and an average heart rate of 111 bpm at a temp of 57 degrees and 100 percent humidity. A good day at school too. God bless!

Later Start

I’m taking half a day since I have an appointment with my Gastro doctor today to set up my plumbing date:).  I was able to get up a bit later , and I took Bekah to work. I’m enjoying being a bit lazy. Heading to work after my appointment. I did the Longwood/Medford/ Kastal/ Ryan Loop doing 9.48 in 2:21:06 for a 14:53 minute per mile pace with an elevation gain of 332 feet with an average heart rate of 116 bpm at 52 degrees and 96 percent humidity. It was drizzling for much of the workout. I saw both Chuck and neighbor Christine. Trunk or Treat at church tonight. God is good!

Always Blessed

Life has been difficult at times, but God has always provided. Today as I traveled the roads of Ridge, my mind was flooded with the issues confronting me that seem so difficult to overcome. I took both days off this weekend to recover as I have been feeling a little under the weather. Today I did my Ridge, Randall Loop doing 8.27 miles in 2:01:53 for a 14:44 minute per mile pace with an elevation gain of 156 feet with an average heart rate of 118 bpm at a temp of 50 degrees and 94 percent humidity. Have a blessed day!

River Road in Wellsville

I got in late last night, but I always enjoy the opportunity to workout in the country and in a different place. Sunrise is late here in western New York so I had to pick a place where at least I could be sure of my footing. The River road goes past Jace’s vocational school in the River bed. I did take one dead end road which took me up a good hill to a farm. My brother called which slowed me down a bit, but the conversation was good. I did 8.55 miles in 1:58:43 for a 13:52 minute per mile pace with an elevation gain of 315 feet with an average heart rate of 126 bpm at 42 degrees and 99 percent humidity. It drizzled at times, but I thoroughly enjoyed the beauty and solitude as well as the bright colors of the foliage in overcast western New York. Off to Corning with Char now.

I’m Back(at least for a day)

This has been a busy week in preparation for our trip after school to visit Jace in Western New York Thursday evening. It’s been busy, spending extra time with my brother-in-law and last night attending the first service of Redemption Hill Church in Mastic. I managed a good workout on the figure 8 loop doing 8.32 miles in 1:50:38 for a 13:17 minute per mile pace with an elevation gain of 154 feet with an average heart rate of 129 bpm at a comfortable 43 degrees and 78 percent humidity. I got out a little on the late side,  so the speedy pace more than helped to cut the deficit. Looking forward to a potential country work out. God Bless you!

Tuesday/Wednesday

I did the Woodlot/Randall Loop yesterday and today I did the Ridge Loop. Tuesday- 8.16 in 1:57:17 for a 14:22 minute drive with an elevation gain of 198 feet with an average heart rate 114 bpm at a temp of 50 degrees at 86 percent. Today I did 8.87 miles in 2:06:06 for a 14:13 minute per mile pace with an elevation gain of 168 feet with an average heart rate of 118 bpm at a temp of 65 degrees and
92 percent humidity. There was a lady runner at the end that so I decided to blow by her. Finally someone that I can beat. God bless!

Monday Fog

Mondays are always a transition day. The state of mind goes from relaxed/dreaming to focused/in-the-now. I got out a minute or two later than what I hoped, but I decided to stick to the Medford/Randall/Woodlot Loop. I did 8.86 miles in 2:07:27 for a 14:23 minute per mile pace with an elevation gain of 163 feet with an average heart rate of 116 bpm at a temp of 53 degrees and 87 percent humidity. Felt decent overall, looking to the Lord for strength. God bless you!

Pleasant Sunday Stroll

I headed out the door at roughly the same time as Char going to church. I did the Woodlot Randall Loop doing 8.22 miles in 2:28:09 for a 18:00 minute per mile pace with an elevation gain of 150 feet with an average heart rate of 94 bpm with a temp of 40 degrees and 98 percent humidity. Listened to Brooklyn Tabernacle. It’s been a good morning! God Bless!

Good Week

This was a feel good week. A week of increased positivity with some decent production. I think that being on pregnasone for the week definitely increased my energy output. I had a pre-injury sort of workout week. Another thing that had helped is changing my kettle bell press and deadlift to one set each every other day as opposed to five sets a week. I’ve gone back to the single arm presses and have increased the weight and decreased the reps to 6 ‘s. I did 9.12 miles in 2:07:38 for a 13:59 minute per mile pace with with an elevation gain of 322 feet with an average heart rate of 116 bpm at a temp of 52 degrees and 65 percent humidity on the Longwood Loop. Very grateful to the great week of training. God Bless!

Windblown Thursday

Last night we had heavy rains followed by strong winds. There was lots of debris in the road, but not enough to hinder the workout. I decidedly to do the Ridge Road loop doing 8.98 miles in 2:10:03 for a 14:28 minute per mile pace with an elevation gain of 230 feet at 52 degrees and 68 percent humidity. The times and distance is effected by having to stop and take my watch case off in order to stop the time. Have a blessed day!

It’s Been a Long Time

I did the Medford/Randall Loop again doing 8.97 miles in 2:04:49 for a 13:55 minute per mile pace with an average heart rate of 116 at a temp of 46 degrees. My phone charge was down so I only went out with my watch. First time averaging under 14 minutes per mile since pre- injury. Have a blessed day!

Thought I was Fast, but I was just...

average. I put on my headphones as I have been kind of sluggish and I cruised along thinking that I was fast. When I got back I realized that I was just average. Here are the stats for Medford/Randall- 8.62 miles in 2:07:54 minutes for a 14:50 minute per mile pace with an elevation gain of 179 feet with an average heart rate of 119 bpm at a comfortable 50 degrees and 70 percent humidity. Bible study tonight— God Bless!

Trifecta

On Saturday Char and I did the 6 mile loop out on Shelter Island with out friend Ian Jennings. It was a delightful day— not too hot and not too cold. The things I like about Shelter Island is that it is quiet like Maine and remote. On Sunday I did the Calverton loop doing 9.31 miles in 2:50:38 for an 18:19 minute per mile pace with an  elevation gain of 171 feet with an average heart rate of 106 bpm at a temp of 54 degrees and 80 percent humidity. Today I did the Ridge Loop doing 9.01 miles in 2:08:50 for a 14:17 minute per mile pace with an elevation gain of 187 feet with an average heart rate of 121 bpm at a temp of 55 degrees at 95 percent. A blessed day with Ryleigh spending time with us. God is good!

Breezy Friday

I was a bit tired as I watched the Patriots game last night. So when my alarm went off this morning it did not have as strong an effect as usual. I did my usual loop doing 8.21 in 2:03:38 for a 15:03 minute per mile pace with an elevation gain of 206 feet with an average heart rate of 112 bpm at a temp of 55 degrees and 61 percent humidity. Have a blessed day!

Finally, hitting my Stride

I woke up to Alexa at 3:37 am. I read my Bible, drank coffee, and headed out the door. It was a coolish fall morning with the wind blowing a gail. A tree had fallen down on Medford road, basically cutting off all traffic. Thankfully I had my head lamp on and wad able to step around and over it. I did the Medford/Randall/Woodlot. I did 8.82 miles in 2:08:51 for a 14:36 minute per mile pace and an elevation gain of 182 feet with an average heart rate of 119 bpm at a temp of 54 degrees at 72 percent humidity. Charlotte is back today from her cruise with friends to Bermuda. Glad that she is home. Glad that I get to go on some of her trips with her. God Bless!

Rainy Yom Kipper

I stayed in bed a bit later, but I still managed an earlier start considering this was a no school day. It wasn’t long before the rain — light, but steady became an issue. I did the Scenic Hills, Niewood, Longwood, Medford, Kastal, Ryan Loop. I did 9.33 in 2:16:25 for a 14:36 minute per mile pace with an elevation gain of 351 feet and sn average heart rate of 117 bpm at a temp of 59 degrees and 68 percent humidity. The workout went smoothly and I was able to enjoy my time on the road. One more day until my Char arrives home. God Bless!

Earlier Start

I set my Alexa alarm to make sure I woke up in time this morning. Everything went fairly smoothly as I headed out for my usual loop. I did 8.12 miles in 2:00:41 for a 14:51 minute per mile pace with an elevation gain of 172 feet with an average heart rate of 121 bpm at a temp of 61 degrees and 73 percent humidity. I am fine with being alone , but don’t like it when Charlotte is gone. Have a blessed day!

Behind, but not Out

I slept through my alarm this morning. I should have put the watch on my wrist. I decided to keep going and get my workout in, even though I was way behind. The workout helps me to deal with my stress. I did  8.44 in 1:58:54 for a 14:11 minute per mile pace with an average heart rate of 122 bpm at 69 degrees. God bless!

Wertheim/ Calverton

Doing some hikes with Charlotte on her cruise. Gives me something to do to keep busy and forget that I miss her. Slow, fun hikes. Here are the stats- Wertheim( Saturday) 8.12 miles in 2:49:01 for a 20:48 minute per mile pace with an elevation gain of 112 feet with an average heart rate of 93 bpm at 58 degrees and 38 percent humidity. Today got out early at Calverton- 9.26 miles in 2:51:58 for a 18:34 minute per mile pace with an elevation gain of 186 feet with an average heart rate of 94 bpm at a temp of 53 degrees and 81 percent humidity. Char is off on a Bermuda cruise with a couple of her friends— seemingly a yearly event for good measure. Keeping the lowly home fires burning. Communication is not happening with zero reception. Have a blessed evening!

A Little Bit Better

I headed out the door with a little extra sleep from the night before. I wasn’t fast, but at least I wasn’t tired. There is something special about the early morning hour. The funny thing is when you actually see another person working out. This morning I saw my friend Arlem the last part of Woodlot. I also saw a raccoon on Kastal, and a dear on Ridge Road. When I think of how much slower I am these days, I remind myself that the health to workout is a blessing indeed. The experience of the early morning workout is strangely the sam whether it was the early running days or the present  speed walking. God is so so good! Here are the stats- 8.26 in 2:04:25 for a 15:04 minute per mile pace with an elevation gain of 154 feet with an average heart rate of 110 bpm at a temp of 59 degrees and 97 percent humidity. My wife goes on a cruise to Bermuda tomorrow with a couple of her friends. I’m blessed to go on half of her vacations with her. Also, it was drizzling again this morning. God bless you! Oh yes, Jace comes home for a couple of days!

Early Start Countered My Slowness

I got out earlier than usual, but my pace was slow. It was a drizzly cool autumn morning. It was peaceful and enjoyable. We had a good time with my granddaughter Ruby last night as we ate out in Rocky Point. I did 8.22 miles in 2:10:46 for a 15:54 minute per mile pace with an elevation gain of 163 feet with an average heart rate of 107 bpm at a temp of 56 degrees and 88 percent humidity. I’m thankful to train even when my times are slow. God bless you!

Tired and Grumpy

I got out at the usual, but I couldn’t get any sort of speed going. I did my typical loop doing the Woodlot/Randall, Kastal/Ryan .  I did 8.41 in 2:07:55 for a 15:12 minute per mile pace with an average heart rate of 109 bpm. I left my phone at the house so I am not sure of the elevation gain. The temp was a balmy 71 October degrees. Everything about today just makes me feel behind. Have a blessed day!

Monday/Tuesday, Eastport/Hope

I did two beautiful workouts in two beautiful places. On Monday I headed out very early, venturing into the dark with my headlamp on my visor. I decided to stay on route 190 keeping the workout relatively flat since I knew that I had to ref the  Eastport/Perry soccer game later in the day. I don’t do a lot of sprinting so I tried to save my quads. As it were, I made out fine in the game. My Tamaflex joint supplement has been a godsend and has helped tremendously to the point where my knees feel normal. Thank you Lord. I went all the way to BRS school and back from Harris point. I did 9.29 miles in 2:14:35 for a 14:29 minute per mile pace with an elevation gain of 342 feet with an average heart rate of 125 bpm at a blustery 43 degrees at 72 percent humidity. The scenery is beautiful and solemn even though it’s an out and back loop. With the ocean on both sides even though it was low tide it’s a beautiful route. There was a point when I did the 190 as my go to loop for several months. Today (Tuesday) I did the Howe Hill Loop reversing my base 3 mile loop so that when I returned from Howe Hill , I would have less than a mile as opposed to a little over two miles. I reversed the loop so that I wouldn’t have to deal with the traffic at the end of my route. With this route I finished with no traffic. Here are the stats. I did 9.02 miles in 2:18:58 for a 15:24 minute per mile pace with an elevation gain of 888 feet with an average heart rate of 125 bpm at a damp 48 degrees and 93 percent humidity. There was a light drizzle throughout parts of the overcast workout. Thankfully I was able to get some extra sleep and see my dad before he left for work. I headed out the door a bit past 6:30. I’m on the ferry now headed for Long Island. Thank you Lord!