Training Log - Saturday, July 9, 2011

So I finally arrived back in the US of A this Thursday evening after spending the last 2 weeks in India and China, trying to maintain some type of running routine which was nearly impossible. Fortunately, I was able to get in one really great run on the Hong Kong Trail. Now back in the US, it was time to reconnect with my running buddy Richard for our, as of lately, favorite trail run from the bottom of Monte Sano mountain to the top (at the burnt down ranger station) and back.

Rich and I met up at his house at a fairly late time of 8:30AM to tackle this fun 10 miler before the heat and humidity got too bad to handle. Well, we should have left earlier. It was already extremely muggy and hot and it did not get any cooler as we approached the top of Monte Sano mountain. While I was completely soaked in sweat by the time we returned from our run and looking like someone who had jumped into the neighborhood pool fully dressed, I really enjoyed being back on the local trails for some technical trail running and hill work.

We actually completed today's run in a reasonable amount of time considering the weather conditions we dealt with. I plan to get back into a healthy running and cross training routine starting this week, watching my diet at the same timne in an attempt to finally drop the last 10 lbs I've been wanting to shed for some time now. It won't be easy, but I want to get ready for a couple of 100 mile races in the near future and improvements in speed, core strength and lean body mass are my primary objectives in preparing for these events.