MLB Stadium Count and Rules

 With the White Sox game in Chicago, I have reached the 20 mark.  Only 10 to go and my goal is to finish the challenge by the end of the decade.  Here are the 10 that I have NOT seen:

National League:

Marlins, Gnats, Phillies, Cubs, Brewers 

American League:

Guards, Tigers, Twins, Angels, Athletics

The only ones that might require a special trip are Twins, Gnats and Phillies but I am hoping that by some miracle, I will be healthy enough to combine it with a race.  

Like the Visit All 50 States, there are debates as to what constitutes an official visit.  The most strict standard only counts a home game played by the team that plays there.  The most lenient actually counts walking past it from the outside.  Here's what I count and don't count:

Exhibition game played by other teams in the same sport- COUNTS.  

For example, the 2025 MLB All Star game will be in Atlanta this year.  If you attend that game, you can check off Truist Park and the Braves without seeing a Braves game. Also, a World Baseball Classic in Miami counts for the Marlins.  I don't expect much dispute over that.  

Though I have no plans to see all 32 NFL teams, I did see a college football game in the Carolina Panthers stadium in Charlotte.  I would count that too.  

This is probably a moot point now but what about multi-purpose stadiums?  Let's say that you saw a Steelers game at old Three Rivers in Pittsburgh.  Can you count the Pirates because they shared the same venue?  I say NO.  You never saw the baseball dimensions.  Every football field is 100 yards.  A ball hit 400 feet to dead center field may or may not be a home run.  I heard about a hockey game at Boston's Fenway Park.  No, you can't count the Red Sox for a hockey game.

Teams that move to a new stadium or a new city:

I saw several Atlanta Braves games at old Turner Field.  Yes, I did see the new park but it was not required to check off the Braves.  I heard that the Kansas City Royals may be getting a new stadium in 2028.  I've seen the old one so the new one is not required.  

Edit: Can you count a Montreat Expos game for the Gnats?  I am undecided but would lean towards no.  Although it is the same franchise, it has been totally rebranded.  The Oakland Coliseum counts for Las Vegas because the team will remain the Athletics.  If the re-located team became the Gamblers instead, I would have to re-think it.

Both the Tampa Bay Rays and the Oakland A's are temporarily playing in minor league parks.  If you see an MLB game there, can you check off that team?  I say NO.  It's only a temporary home.  I did not see the Oakland Coliseum when I was in the Bay area last summer.  I will have to wait until they play in their permanent home in Las Vegas.  The plan is an overnight layover from Hawaii.  Also, a Dodger game in Japan doesn't count.  You have to see Dodger Stadium.  

Stadium Tours:

This is probably the most controversial.  It's debatable but I say YES, it counts.  You pay money specifically to the home team and in many cases, you have access to areas that are off limits on game day.  Not only can you sit in the stands, you can often access the press box, the dugout or even the field itself.  For the Mets, Red Sox, Cardinals and Mariners, I have yet to see a game but did do the tour and I count it.  

Concerts or other events:

A hard NO on concerts.  Same with any other non-baseball events.  I've done a few races with a stadium finish.  NO, I don't count that even though I did step foot inside and on the field.  Walking past a stadium in which case you only see the outside?  NO way!  That's the equivalent of an airport layover.  

Chicago/Alaska/SF Trip Report

 

5/21- Early wake up for a 6:40 flight to O'Hare airport in Chicago.  The main destination was to be Anchorage, Alaska but the plan was to break it up to reduce the risk of delays and allow for some fun instead of spending all day en route.  The flight went off on time and we landed just before 9:00 local time.  Chicago's subway system is connected to the airport and I got a 24 hour pass for unlimited rides that cost me just $5.  Smokin' deal.  The trip into the downtown loop normally takes 45-60 minutes.

As expected, the weather wasn't great.  Temps were in the low 50s all day with occasional drizzle.  Could be worse.  At least it wasn't a downpour and with relatively calm winds, I wasn't too uncomfortable out there.  After dropping my bag off, I took a short walk to Grant Park and saw a nice fountain and a view of Lake Michigan.  I had plenty of time before the game and actually arrived before the gates even opened.  My losing streak continues as the Mariners beat the White Sox 6-5 but it was a pretty good game in a decent ballpark, number 20 for me.  Only 10 to go.

It was nearly 5 PM when I got back to the hotel and I relaxed for just a few minutes and decided what to do for the rest of the day.  No use seeing a skyscraper because it was too foggy at the top.  I took the Red Line to Grand then walked a fair distance to Navy Pier and Ohio Street Beach.  The latter looks like it will be nice in the summer.  Water temperature hits 70 by July but wave action is rare.  

I hit the Magnificent Mile on Michigan Ave on the way back and got some Chicago style pizza there.  It was good but I still prefer the New York style.  It was now past sunset and I took a nice little walk by the river but called it a night pretty early.  I did meet a guy from Trussville, AL on the way back. Tomorrow's flight would leave at 9:30, so that meant that I had to be out the door by 6:30.  

5/22-With 3 days in Alaska, I only hoped for one sunny day with good views of Denali.  I would get 2 good weather days (sunny and 60-65), which turned out to be the nicest weather of the entire trip.  I arrived just after 1:00 local time and took it easy.  Even though jet lag is not as bad going west, I was still quite tired from the long flight.  I decided to just chill in Anchorage for the rest of the day.  I did check out a couple of parks and got a steak dinner and a drink at a bar, where I had a good conversation with a guy from Seattle.  

5/23- With Anchorage as my home base, I could be flexible with my plans.  Though both of the next two days turned out to be good, the forecast looked better today.  I headed north to Talkeetna, which is basically a one street town with a few restaurants and hotels.  It serves as a gateway to Denali and does have a nice lake with views of the mountain. 

 From Talkeetna, it's about an hour to the South entrance of Denali State Park with the North entrance being another 30 miles up the road.  There are a couple of other trailheads in between.  I drove up to the North entrance first, then turned around.  The best hiking trail here is Curry Ridge, which rises above the trees for spectacular views of the mountain.  IMO, this is better than Denali National Park and doable on a day trip from Anchorage.  

I got back at a decent hour then saw a beautiful sunset over the bay.  The sunset was at 11:00 PM this time of year and it does not get fully dark until after midnight.  A few hours further north, it never does get fully dark.  It's a little surreal for it to be so bright at 10:00 and I got a bit of a second wind.  Yes, I was able to sleep but awoke much sooner than usual.  About 5 hours of sleep was all that I needed.

5/24-Headed South to Seward and arrived by about 9:45.  I walk through town then up and down the coast until the restaurants opened at 11.  I got some good seafood then stopped at the Visitor's center.  In a change of plans, I decided to get cruise tickets for the Kenai Fjords NP.  Probably a good call but I have mixed feelings. The views were awesome but it was just too long and too expensive.  

 The shortest cruise was 4.5 hours, which meant that I would have to skip the hiking trails, which were located almost an hour away.  Maybe I could have done it, but I would have arrived very late back in Anchorage with a plane to catch the next morning.  Oh well, I did plenty of hiking the previous day and wasn't feeling great because of the pills.  I only wish that a 2 hour cruise was available, which would have allowed me to comfortably do both.  

5/25- Slept in a bit more but still got out the door at 8 so I could get a sit down breakfast at the airport.  There was a short delay but I landed in San Francisco just after 5.  The BART ride and the walk to my hotel took almost an hour and a half so that left me with about a 2 hour window for sightseeing before dark.  As I predicted, I had time for either Baker Beach or Golden Gate Park but not both.  

With overcast skies and no visible sunset, it was an easy call.  I went to Golden Gate Park.  I climbed Strawberry Hill, which offered nice views of both Stowe Lake and city streets.  By this time, I was feeling better and my mood had brightened.  I got some quick pizza then took Muni back to my hotel.  Before calling it a night, I went to a fun karaoke bar.  As usual, Californians treated me very well.  

5/26- Rough day.  I had 2 flights on tap today and wasn't scheduled to land until 11PM.  That's the price you pay if you want to squeeze in more sightseeing.  I awoke to foggy conditions, as is common this time of year.  I still enjoyed the hike up to Twin Peaks but could not see anything at the top.  I passed the famous Castro theater on the way back.  By 10:00, the weather was nice but I couldn't wait.  Check out was 11 and my flight was scheduled to leave at 2.  Because of bad weather in Dallas, both flights were delayed and I didn't get home until after 1 AM.  I took 2 hours off work.  Should have taken an earlier flight with a different connection city.  Good trip overall.  

Training 5/19-5/25

 5/19- Struggled mightily.  1.5 miles in 17:48 on Lakeshore (11:52 pace) with a slight positive split.  Did this on neither Taurine nor Malic Acid but didn't feel much better after I did take it.  

Good news is that I found the culprit.  It was Lactoferrin, which is another autoimmune supplement that showed promise when I first tried it.  Malic Acid was SUPPOSED TO STOP INEXPLICABLE REACTIONS!  I did read today that it is involved with Aluminum detox, which makes me feel a little better.  Perhaps it's just too much detox action as was the case with Melatonin.

Distance-1.5

5/20- Repeated the 1.5 mile distance on Lakeshore and showed significant improvement.  Time is down to 16:48 (11:12 pace).  Exactly 60 seconds faster than yesterday but almost all of it came in the first half.  Splits were 8:07-8:41.  Did not take Lactoferrin last night, which was clearly the difference maker.  Again, no Taurine or Malic Acid.  Not sure why Taurine helped.  Malic Acid made it worse if I took too much Lactoferrin.

PM- 2 miles at Veteran's Park for a change.  Finished in 21-flat (10:30 pace).  Probably translates to 10:15-10:20 on Lakeshore.  Another solid improvement but this is not a quick rebound but a slow climb off the floor.  I can't afford another relapse if I want to race San Diego in August.

Distance-3.5

5/21- Planned rest day.  Flight to Chicago.

5/22- Elective rest day.  Long flight to Anchorage.

5/23- AM- Half mile loop on a relatively flat but gravel trail.  Finished in 5:15 and had nothing.  Worse than 3 days ago.  Perhaps Taurine is a problem now 

PM- Frequent urination today, which could be a sign of detox.  I was better this session.  Repeated the half mile distance and improved to 4:36.  Out and back at Delaney Park.  Popped a Taurine at the midpoint and it had no effect.  I was fractionally faster with it.  I consider that good news.  No pill should make a night and day difference, especially not a single dose 

Distance-1.0

5/24- Confirmed that Taurine is a non-factor.  Today, I was fractionally slower but it made essentially no difference.  A more worrying trend is my reaction to Malic Acid.  I was noticeably WORSE after just half a scoop.  To my relief, I was better after I popped some Vitamin C.  If I am to stick with the Malic Acid, it MUST be taken with C.  I'm not messing with any other pills, especially not ones that are involved with detox 

Distance-1.0

5/25- Elective rest day.  Flight to San Francisco but felt better there by the evening.

7 miles

USA Bucket List Update/ Alaska Preview

 The Alaska trip is just around the corner.  Weather is a bit of a concern.  Chicago will not be pleasant.  Temps will barely make it out of the 40s with occasional rain showers and it will probably be windy as well.  Could be worse.  At least it won't rain all day.  I imagine that the baseball game will still be played.  Again, I don't care if I miss part of it.  I just want to see the ballpark and reach the 20 mark.  I'll probably limit my sightseeing at the Riverwalk and Magnificent Mile and spend more time indoors at Navy Pier.  

As for Alaska, the forecast is about what you'd expect this time of year.  Highs will be in the upper 50s with partly to mostly cloudy skies and a low chance of rain.  I don't care if it's dreary in Seward but I want it to be sunny in Denali.  Since I am staying in Anchorage all 3 nights, I can be flexible.

San Francisco's weather will be NICE.  Perfect sunny and 65.  I just hope there will be no flight delays so I can see both Golden Gate Park and Twin Peaks.  Baker Beach could be too tight.  

After this trip is complete, I will have been to all 50 states at least twice.  There are still 6 more bucket list trips after this.  Then, I will go heavy international.

#1 National Parks in Washington State. 

 Probably the front runner for Labor Day weekend.  Fly to Seattle.  I've been there before and thought it was an okay city.  I wouldn't mind seeing Kerry Park again.  I got a sample of Rainier but didn't really do it justice.  What I really want to see is Olympic and North Cascades.  I could take a ferry to Victoria, BC for a day if it's not too far out of the way.

#2 Pacific Coast Highway.  

Fly to LAX.  Take a dip at Manhattan Beach then head north to Santa Cruz via the Interstate.  I'll start the next morning with a Redwood Park then take 2 days on the PCH back to LA.  First night stop will probably be Santa Barbara.  I will likely hold off on this one because the beaches in Malibu are probably still damaged by the fires.  

#3 San Diego and Orange County 

If by some miracle I am healthy, I've wanted to do a half marathon in San Diego for a long time.  I didn't do justice to that city and largely missed out on Laguna and Huntington Beach as well.  I can see an Angels game too.  The race is in August so if I am to do it, there will be no Labor Day trip.  

#4 Great Lakes

Fly direct to Detroit for a Tiger game then drive through Canada to Niagara Falls then loop back on the USA side with stops in Cleveland, Erie and possibly Buffalo.  Summer is definitely the time to do it but crowds could be a serious issue especially at Niagara Falls.  

#5 New England Foliage

Fly to Hartford, CT.  Only 30 miles north is the Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Mass.  I'll take a scenic drive through the Berkshires then cut down to Greenwich, CT with a stop at the FDR Museum in New York state.  From Greenwich, I can take a train to NYC.  I really want to see Central Park in Fall and the Brooklyn Bridge lit up at night.  

#6 Hawaiian Islands

I have been to Oahu and the Big Island but not Maui or Kauai.  I'd have to take 7-10 days off but it might be possible to hit both islands on one trip.  I'll take an overnight layover in Vegas for an A's game on the way back.

Training 5/12-5/18

 5/12- Real workout was nothing special.  1.5 miles in 13:41 (9:07 pace). Caffeine withdrawal hasn't passed fully and this was done without Thym Adren.  Splits were 6:45-6:56 but I wasn't spent at the end.  I was more interested in my interval test afterwards.

Opener in 84.  Slightly worse on the Thym Adren.  Slipped to 86.  That means I should be able to safely quit that stuff and switch to the modulator.  Good news.  Next up was the Malic Acid test.  I was hoping that my time would be about the same but I improved to 79.  That gap remains about the same.  Roughly 45 seconds per mile give or take.  I do hope that gap will diminish in time 

Distance-2.0

Caffeine withdrawal hits between 24-48 hours of the last serving.  Therefore, use every other day or every third day is the worst thing to do.  It's either every day or never 

5/13- Caffeine withdrawal usually peaks around 48 hours then goes down.  Today is Day 3 and it was the worst.  Tried to run in the morning and quit after less than 100 meters.  

PM- Not much better.  Lap and a half at Montreat in 5:28 (10:56 pace).  Splits were 1:59-1:47-1:42 so that suggests that better days are ahead.

Distance-0.5

5/14-AM- Much better but not as good as I hoped.  Full mile at Montreat in 9:40. Double the distance and 76 seconds faster on the pace.  Negative split again (4:55-4:45) but this is still 2+ minutes away.  Day 4 off caffeine and it should only get better from here.  Plan to be back out this evening.

PM- Quit after a half mile in 5:28 and was getting worse with every step.  Concern, panic or doom?  I'm going to say Panic.  I shouldn't be getting worse on Day 4.  I did drink a bottle of green tea today (20 mg caffeine) but that should not affect me.  I can handle at least 50 mg.  I am beginning to suspect that it might be the pills.  I sure hope that I am lacking in something rather than intolerant to something.

Distance-1.5

5/15- AM- Took a 2nd scoop of Malic Acid shortly after the first one.  I was slightly better after the 2nd one but not enough to be considered significant.  Still very stiff and sluggish today.  

PM- Day 5 and I cheated.  Kinda had to in order to make it through the day.  Showed marked improvement after drinking a Rockstar but it was not the caffeine that helped.  It was the Taurine, which is an ingredient in most energy drinks.  

Took some Probiotics after I got home and was noticeably weaker.  Makes sense because Probiotics deplete Taurine.  For the last interval, I took 1500 mg of Taurine with no caffeine and clocked a 59 second half lap (5:54 pace).  This is a game changer!  

Distance-1.0

Reaction:

The sudden downturn after Day 3 without caffeine was NOT lingering withdrawal symptoms.  It happened because my supply of Taurine was cut off.  Why did that happen?  I'm not sure.  Malic Acid does not deplete Taurine but it's possible that the detox did.  At any rate, Taurine must be added back to my formula but it must be used in combination with Probiotics or else Taurine will get too high and Probiotics will be depleted.

Is it extreme dependence?  Probably not.  Once I restock my supply of Taurine, nothing will happen if I miss a day.  Also, I must NOT be forced to take an exact ratio of Taurine/Probiotics.  That seems unlikely too.  Back off caffeine tomorrow and hopefully a 1 day slip does not trigger another withdrawal.

5/16- Vestavia Mile in 8:21.  Took 1000 mg Taurine before I started and passed halfway in 4:27 with splits of 2:11-2:16.  Figure that I probably just barely sneak under 9 without any further intervention.  Popped another 500 at the midpoint and my pace immediately quickened to the 8:00 range.  Found another gear in the homestretch with a last 200 in 53 seconds.  That's it for today.

Distance-1.0

Reaction:

I do NOT like this!  I was more than 1 minute faster per mile because of 1 friggin pill!  I can't even imagine how badly I would have done it I didn't take any beforehand.  I'm probably over 10.  Hopefully, it will just take time to rebuild my supply of Taurine.  The amount in the energy drinks is probably enough to prevent a total collapse but not enough to get in decent form.

5/17- Cheated again but not because I craved sugar and caffeine but because of the Taurine deficit.  Opened with a pathetic 1:54.  Got down to 1:30 after 1000 mg of Taurine.  Expected a 1:22-1:23 after a scoop of Malic Acid.  In a REVOLTING development, I was much WORSE.  Slipped to a 1:47.  

Vitamin C made it worser then I was only slightly better on additional Taurine.  Only good news is that I was better after going to the toilet.  It's detox.

Distance-1.0

5/18- Opened with a poor 1:44 and was much better on Taurine (down to 1:27).  The moment of truth came when I took just a pinch of Malic Acid.  It was tolerated and I improved marginally to 1:25.  On the full scoop with C, I managed a 79.9 but suffered a diarrhea attack.  Added a cool down.  The Malic Acid is doing what it's supposed to do once again.  The gap was about 45 seconds per mile, just like usual.  Can I prevent this from happening in the future if I take Taurine every day?  Maybe it's not such a good idea to quit caffeine at this time.  I'll try again after Alaska.

Distance-1.0

-8 miles 

Update on the 3 Demands

 1. Stable and manageable cocktail of pills.

 ON THE WAY.  Jury is still out but it's looking good.  I've had to tweak the Thym Adren dose but it's been steadily trending down and I never had a horrible day because I took too much.  I was merely a little more sluggish and just a few seconds slower in my interval tests.  I may end up switching to the modulator soon.  I've only recently read that toxic metals may have been responsible for the adrenal dysfunction all along.  When they're out, I will be in much better balance.  Again, even if this works, WHY DID I HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL I AM PAST MY PRIME?

The other thing that did anger me was being forced off the Melatonin, which looked like a miracle last Fall.  It may not matter however.  The Malic Acid may render it unnecessary and the combination triggered too much of a detox reaction.  That's understandable.  All of my other pills are well tolerated.  

2. NO Extreme dependency on any pill

ALMOST READY TO DECLARE VICTORY!  Today's workout was very encouraging.  Even after 2 missed doses, I was not half bad.  Malic Acid does give me a boost but it's not a night and day difference and positive effects don't last long.  Still, what is most important is that the comedown is gentle and I can still function without it.  What would happen if I forgot to pack it for a long weekend?  I'm pretty confident that I would be okay.  Not great but okay.  There would be no crash and I could still enjoy myself.  That's something that would have been impossible 12 months ago.

3. At Least Adequate Energy Every Day

Sadly, I still have a long way to go.  I remain abnormally sore, stiff and sluggish.  My 5K time right now would probably be in the mid 28s and still over 60 minutes for a 10K.  How long can I hold a sub-2 half marathon pace?  Probably around 3.2-3.3 miles, which is only a quarter of the way there.  Another 10 miles seems insurmountable at this point. Another 23?  Forget it!  Other strenuous activities such as skiing,  hiking and surfing are very draining.  It's not realistic to expect to maintain my early 30s performances but I certainly wasn't expecting this much regression either.  I've got to get up to at least 25-30 MPW.  I believe that I can IF #1 and #2 hold up.  

Alaska Trip Plan

 I'm doing something interesting on this trip, which I have done before and may do more often in the future.  I'm hopping on the way up and the way down.  

5/21- Early morning flight to Chicago.  The scheduled landing is at 8:47.  No car rental.  I will take the Blue Line downtown to the Loop then drop off my bag at the hotel.  From there, it will be the Red Line down to the White Sox stadium.  The game starts at 1:10 so that leaves me nearly 4.5 hours until game time.  Barring a flight delay, that should be plenty of time.  I don't even care if I miss a couple of innings.  The ballpark looks decent but the team sucks.  I would have preferred to see the Cubs, but they are on the road.  I'm now committed to all 30 and this is a good opportunity to check one off. 

Figure that I'll get back around 5 PM so I'll have more than 3 hours of daylight left.  I want to see Navy Pier, Magnificent Mile, the Riverwalk, a beach and possibly the John Hancock building again.  I'll get some deep dish pizza.  I sure hope I get good weather.  A rainy day would be a bust.

5/22- Direct flight to Anchorage.  It's early but not super early.  I gain 3 hours and land around 1:30 PM.  I'll have plenty of time to explore Anchorage.  I've been there before but that 9 years ago.  Sunset is around 11 PM and civil twilight lasts beyond midnight.  Only about 1-3 AM will be completely dark.  

5/23-24- Play it by ear depending on the weather.  Normal high temperature is in the upper 50s to low 60s with a low chance of rain.  I'm staying in Anchorage for 3 nights so I can be flexible.  I want a sunny day for the best views of Denali but don't really care if it's cloudy for the Fjords and glaciers.  Both Talkeetna and Seward can be done on a day trip from Anchorage.

5/25- In what may be a questionable call, I'm stopping in San Francisco for the night.  I get in around 4:40 so that leaves about 4 hours until dark.  The plan is to take Muni to Golden Gate Park.  I could take a bus to Baker Beach for a sunset view of the Golden Gate bridge but I may not have enough time.  

Neither BART nor Muni opens until 8 AM the next day.  The plan is to walk to Twin Peaks in the morning and hope it's not foggy.  Wish I had more time in SF.  I suppose I could stay an extra day but prefer not to.  Dallas could be a fun night layover in the future but not this time.  I won't be too upset if I have to spend a night there 

EDIT: Getting from Anchorage to Birmingham in 1 day would be a royal pain.  It involves either a red eye or a super early morning departure and 3 flights with close connections.  High risk of a missed flight.  San Francisco is probably the right call.

Training 5/5-5/11

 5/5- AM- 1 Mile at Vestavia in 8:27.1.  Good pacing.  Splits were 2:05-2;07-2:10-2:05 but breathing was labored early.  Rate of improvement is definitely slowing but I'll still take it.  Pulled to within 57 of the reset PR without Malic Acid.  Added a cool.  With a scoop, I am probably under 8 but short of the PR.  

PM- 2.5 on Lakeshore in 22:28 (8:59 pace).  I wasn't sure if 1@8:27 was any better than 3@9:25 from last weekend but this is definitely better.  Even if I slipped to 10 minutes pace in the next half mile, I am still almost a minute faster for 3 miles.  Positive split again (11:08-11:20) but that's still decent pacing.  Good job.  

Distance-4.0

5/6-Planned to rest but did 1 easy Mile in 9:43.  No cause for alarm.  I only did this because the weather looks iffy tomorrow.

Distance-1.0

5/7- PM- Weather held up.  Did 2 miles on Lakeshore in 17:46 (8:53 pace) with perfect splits.  Figure that I only matched Monday's performance give or take a few ticks but I am still pleased.  I FORGOT to take a scoop of Malic Acid this morning and I was NOT THAT BAD!  This is NOT extreme dependency!  I did consume a lot of caffeine and I might have to pay for that over the next 2 days.

Distance-2.0

5/8-AM.  Breakthrough.  Vestavia Mile in 7:51.8.  Pulled to within 22 of the reset PR.  That's within shouting distance.  Splits were 1:56-1:59-2:02-1:54.  Pretty good pacing.  Took a scoop last night but not this morning.  I bet I PR if I had but that will come soon enough.

PM- North Lakeshore 3 in 27:54 (9:18 pace).  Never felt good and really struggled at the end but I was able to push through and rallied to shore up the sub-28.  Splits were 13:42-14:12.  I'm probably just worn out.  This was my 3rd session in the last 24 hours.  

Distance-4.0

5/9- PM- Easy 2 on South Lakeshore in 18:30 (9:15 pace).  Good to be back in negative territory with the splits (9:19-9:11).  Felt pretty rough this morning but improved by the afternoon.  I'm okay with the time because I deliberately took it easy.  Granted, it was a shorter distance but I was much more comfortable than yesterday at the same pace.  Should be ready to go full throttle tomorrow if the weather cooperates.

Distance-2.0

5/10- Hoped for 5 miles but settled for 4.  Finished in 39:44 (9:56 pace).  Not a total loss but I was not pleased with this.  At least I did go beyond my comfort zone.  I believe it's only the 2nd time this year that I went beyond 5K.  

I thought yesterday's pace was almost sustainable and I passed 2 miles just about on target at 18:40.  I wisely turned around because I knew a massive fade was coming.  Back half was 21:04.  Mile 3 was really ugly but managed a small rebound to shore up the sub-40.  I know I'm better than this and I'm not sure about the problem.

Distance-4.0

5/11- Trak Shak loop for a change.  Skipped the first hill and the homestretch and finished 2.5 miles in 22:10 (8:52 pace).  Added a half mile cool.  Surprisingly decent and better than expected.  Splits were 11:00-11:10.  No, this pace was not sustainable but I'm betting that I could have done yesterday's 4 in the low-mid 37s today, which is a significant difference.

What made the difference?  I'm afraid the answer is caffeine.  If I am to use it, it must be high levels every day.  No more of this in between stuff and certainly not off and on or I'll frequently be in withdrawal.  I will try again to quit.  It's possible that it's useful as a detox aid but it may also contribute to inflammation and sore muscles.

Distance-3.0

I have reason for optimism.  Hit 20 miles on the week and even my bad days were not completely pathetic.