Good Running

I put in some solid runs this weekend. On Saturday, I met up with Steve, Frank and Meghan for 13 miles of hills. We kept a good pace going (8:30 average) in some hot and humid conditions, and I felt strong - much better than last week. Frank had stashed some iced water and orange slices at the 7 mile mark, and they were greatly appreciated. So too was the wonderful shade coming down Shoal Creek. Most welcome on what was a hot and humid day.

I got home to do some babysitting as Nancy was meeting up with some friends to go shopping. I wanted to make a quick lunch for us boys, so I decided on sandwiches. I make sourdough bread most weekends, so I cut some thick slices and spread them with some mayo. I laid them open and filled the bottoms with spinach, crispy bacon and pepperoni, and the tops with Havarti cheese. I grilled them open-faced under the broiler for about a minute, and added some sliced avocado just before I closed and sliced them. Gavin and I wolfed them down - they were delicious, and I discovered that Dylan absolutely LOVES Avocado.

I've been having some Achilles niggles for a few weeks now - nothing that would stop me running, but it's noticeable and I wanted to get to the bottom of it. I didn't think it was the Achilles itself, so I traced the pain further up my calf and found a huge knot just below my knee. I iced it, blasted it with the stick, and got Nancy to dig her elbow into it and try to work it out. It hurt, but it worked because it felt so much better after that.

Sunday morning I picked up Naresh to do 10 miles of road hills around Ladera Norte. We started at 6am, and the humidity was stifling - the air felt heavy. Despite this, we had a nice run. The Achilles felt much better, though Naresh noticed I was slightly favoring my left leg - the right one was still bruised from the massage!!! It was good to spend some time with Naresh who has been struggling through some injury problems, but he's such a strong runner. Especially going uphill!!!

We finished in time to change into trail shoes and get some more hills around the trails of Bull Creek. By the time we were done, we really were done.

I drove home to find Nancy and the boys at the school near our house. Gavin was running loops, and Nancy was timing him. He did 10 of them, and he was going full out for every one.

We hoped it would tire him out.

No such luck. I would love to take a nap this afternoon, but I don't think Gavin is going to cooperate - that boy does not believe in naps, and his little brother is taking after him. They're both wonderful boys, but they are also both very high energy, with wicked looks in their eyes and mischief in their souls.

You definitely need to be in shape to look after them!!!