I know it was just a half marathon, but it was a good effort for me. But that means disrupted sleep patterns. Next time: I have to take care of hydration and rest.
Yesterday: I did some light weights: (trap bar: 10 x 134, 10 x 184 low, 10 x 244 4 inch), walked 2 miles and went to Indian buffet.
Later: Game with Barbara. The Chiefs lead 4-3 in the top of the 9’th when the Cubs hit a 2 run home run to win the game 5-4.
The night before: the Chiefs gave up 8 runs in the 7’th to lose 9-3.
As expected, blogging gets non-existent when the Chiefs are in town and I am still teaching.
Here are the workouts:
Tuesday: hill course 4.14 miles in 1:01:05 (14:46)
Wednesday: short walks of 2 and 1.4 miles.
Pull ups: the usual 50 reps (a few sets of 6 were chin ups), bench: 3 sets of 10 x 134 Swiss, high incline: 3 sets of 10 x 94 (trying to get “even”), trap bar dead: 10 x 134, 10 x 184, 4 inch: 10 x 244
Thursday: 4.14 miles in 56:00, or 13:32 (felt it that day)
Yesterday: 2.1 commuter, light weights: 50 reps (5 sets of 6, 1 of 10, 2 of 5)
bench: 3 sets of 10 x 134, high incline: 3 sets of 10 x 94
Today: in Springfield for the half marathon. I’d love sub 3 hours but..we shall see. Weather: high 40’s. Do I wear leggings under my shorts?
Chiefs: well, the first two games were interesting.
Tuesday: the Chiefs came out on fire and led 7-1 after the first and cruised to a 10-1 win. Wednesday: well, the weather was warmer and so were the Cubs’s bats. They shelled the Chiefs pitching for 17 hits and won 13-1.
There weren’t many there to see either of those games.
Finally, on Thursday, we had a nice game and the Chiefs got an insurance run in the 8’th to win 5-3. I didn’t see last night’s 8-6 loss as I was on the road, but I hope to take Barbara and Tracy to tonight’s game.
It turned out to be a good Easter weekend after all. I hope to cajole my wife into walking later.
First: the workouts. Yesterday: I managed my hilly 10k course (slightly wet and 50’s) in 1:27:31 (14:07). I was 58:30 at mile 4 so the last 2.2 was in about 29 minutes. Then I walked 1 mile (3 laps) in Dozer between the two Bradley Baseball games (12-3 and 9-4 losses to Evansville)
In an improvement, Barbara managed a 0.2 mile walk under her own steam (no rollator) after lunch on Saturday.
Today: slowish 3.2 mile walk at 16:27; just cruising around campus and on Moss. Before that: trap bar deadlifts.
Low: 10 x 134, 10 x 184, 10 x 230
4 inch: 1 x 300 (felt bad so I aborted), 5 x 300, 5 x 300, 5 x 300. Felt ok.
Bradley Baseball: they suspended Friday’s game with the Braves down 7-0 in the top of the 5’th. I missed Bradley scoring 2 runs so it was 7-2 when I arrived. BU cut it to 7-3 in the top of the 9’th, when Evansville slammed the door with 5 runs to win 12-3.
Second: Evansville started out 3-0 and lead 6-0 before cruising to win 9-4. It is a long season for BU.
Easter: great brunch with Barbara and Jennifer. I forgot how much fun Jennifer can be.
That I have not posted much is good, actually. Things have gone well at home.
Sunday: 5k walk after deadlifts:
10 x 134, 10 x 184, 10 x 230 low handle
10 x 260, 5 x 300 4 inch handle.
Monday: 2 mile walk to work.
pull ups: 50 reps; can’t quite remember how I got them.
Bench: Swiss bar: did 2 sets of 10 x 134, regular bar: 2 sets of 10 x 134 (sore shoulder)
high incline: 3 sets of 10 x 94
Tuesday: 10k course in 1:24:32; 13:38 pace.
Wednesday (today)
pull ups: 4 sets of 5 (2 were chins), 2 sets of 6, 1 set of 10, 2 of 5 (one was chins)
bench: 3 sets of 10 x 134 Swiss
High incline: 3 sets of 10 x 94
low: 10 x 134, 10 x 184, 10 x 230
2 mile walk over lunch.
Weekend baseball: I saw Bradley lose 11-0 and 14-3; not much more needs to be said.
The day started out cool and never really got hot. But my stride was just sluggish from the start and never got better. I’ll call this walk 10.15.
I won’t say that it was difficult; it really wasn’t until that final steep hill.
I wonder if I’ve gained weight. The weird thing is that pull ups have improved quite a bit and that is inconsistent with weight gain.
Peoria Chiefs: they were down 2-0 early before a 4 run 4’th put the Chiefs up 4-2. But the Cubs got two of their own in the 5’th and it remained tied going into the 8’th. A new closer appeared to struggle, but in the end he kept the Cubs scoreless throughout a tense 9’th and 10’th…he even survived an errant throw made on a ground ball.
Then with 2 out on the 10’th, Cho slammed the ball off of the center right wall to drive in the winning run.
I watched the Chiefs dismantle the Cubs this week on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.
Tuesday: the Chiefs lead 3-1 going into the bottom of the 8’th and then had a 9 running inning to win 12-1.
Wednesday: 10 -2 victor starting off with a 4-0 first inning.
Thursday: Harry and Vickie were there and the Chiefs won a closer game 5-2
Illinois 52 Western Illinois 3
The Illini drew a very good crowd (56000+) given that the opponent was a bad FCS team (Western Illinois)
Aside from an opening mini drive that made it from their 25 to the Illini 42, it was all Illinois..save one “almost TD pass” in the second half. It was 31-0 at the half and ended 52-3. The reserve quarterback came in half way through the 4’th.
We didn’t learn that much; Duke will be a much better test.
Interestingly enough, I saw Navy win its opener against VMI by a 52-7 score in a very similar game (28-0 at the half, with 3 Navy quarterbacks getting to play)
A few years ago, I was at a Chiefs game. A pop foul came my way and an age peer (60s) was standing just behind me, to my right. He reached out his hand and snatched the ball out of the air.
I looked at him wide-eyed and said “you must have played.” He got a “happy/sad” look on his face and admitted that, at one time in his life, he was a A league minor league player; he now had an office job related to baseball.
And yes, to play A level minor league baseball, you have to be better than the vast majority of college players, who in turn are better than the vast majority of high school players, who I think are pretty good.
But only about 10 percent of those that I watch at Chiefs games will become a Major League player. Just being excellent won’t get you there.
And that reminds me of these two threads posts:
Here is a 28:00 10000 meter, 1:48 800 meter runner who works at McDonalds to finance his training. Yes, he could run for some college teams and get financial assistance for his education. But his times need to be something like 27:20 or 1:43 to even sniff earning a living through his running.
Then I read this inspiring story of a runner who progressed from a 5:26 mile in 9’th grade to a 4:07 in college (as a senior) to a 3:59.37 three years after college. Only a tiny percentage of all middle distance runners have gone sub 4 for a mile. He IS elite but…well, he needs to be at least 10 seconds faster (a quantum leap at that level) to even sniff a pro contract. He won’t be earning his living as a runner, despite being elite.
And that is what it is like. An average engineer can make a nice living, as can, say, an average accountant. But even an elite athlete can peak out before the “earn your living at it” level.
I still like recording a bit of what is going on, mainly so I can see where I was.
First baseball: I saw the Chiefs on Wednesday and Thursday. The Wednesday game: the highly touted starter didn’t last past the first inning, giving up 3 runs. But the Timberrattlers got only 1 more and the Chiefs opened it up with 3 in the 3’rd and 3 in the 6’th to win 6-4. They got 11 hits in all; very fun game. There was a good crowd too as it was “Faith and Family” night. No, it wasn’t the crowds of 10 years ago (when that night sold out) but 3501 took up half of the stadium seats. That was perhaps the largest non July 3’rd-July 4’th Wednesday crowd of recent memory.
Thursday: can we talk about Wednesday again? The Rattlers bombed the Chiefs for 5 runs in the second and ended up crushing the Chiefs 9-0 behind 10 hits. Though the on the field action may have been boring, the umpire stuff was wild. The home plate umpire ejected the Rattler’s manager for arguing a batter’s pitch clock violation strike, ejected the Chief’s bench coach for arguing the same thing..and, well, the ball 9 was a CALLED third strike which even made the Chiefs crowd gasp.
You have to have a sense of humor. In the 9’th, the Chiefs sent a catcher up to finish the inning: he gave up 1 hit and no runs. Fans joked that he was our best reliever.
In the bottom of the 9’th, the Chiefs managed to load the bases and those still left (crowd was sparse to begin with and most had left) were chanting for the Chiefs to score. Didn’t happen.
The highlight was Richardson getting brushed back (for the second time) with some chin music…stepping up and ripping a double anyway.
That’s probably the most fun 9-0 loss that I’ve ever endured.
Other personal stuff: reading more Bond novels (finished 3 Morse ones). The main characters are complete horn-dogs! And if “colonialism” is a deal breaker for you, ..well…don’t read these books.
Workouts:
Thursday: very irritated and it was hot and gross. 1:37:55 for my usual 10k (15:48)
Friday: slow 2 mile walk and weights.
Pull ups went very well: 10, 10, 10 (ok 8) 2 penalty reps, 6, 6, 5, 5 (mixed grip for the final 2 sets, chin grip for the sets of 6)
bench: 18 x 134 (wanted 20), 3 sets of 7 x 150
high incline: 10 x 94, 5 x 110, 5 x 100
Saturday: slept in due to getting in late from A Few Good Men (the play)
low handle: 10 x 134, 10 x 184, 10 x 225
4 inch: 10 x 244
Then a slow 2 mile walk.
Note: I’ve signed up for the Quad Cities Half marathon and will do it, provided the Illinois vs USC game is NOT a Saturday night game. Given the current night TV Big Ten schedule, I don’t expect it to be.
Things are going along ok, and then comes the call “I’ve been in an accident…”
Ok, this time the medical stuff, aside from a dreary trip to the emergency room, went ok (for B: I was at home when the accident happened)
Now the details…ugh.
Monday: no walk due to a lot of time at the car dealership. Yes, new vehicle (a boring old person’s vehicle)
weights: 7,6, 7, 6, 7, 5, 5 pull ups
bench: 10 x 134, 5 x 160, 4 x 160, 4 x 160, 5 x 160
high incline: 10 x 94, 6 x 105, 5 x 110
Tuesday: 7.15 mile walk: 5 mile course with a special 2 mile loop: it is the go up Cornstalk the old way but then turn left to go further up, go down the hill then around the bottom of the hill along the lower loop course. I added a loop around the median. 1:51:52 for 15:39 (slow today)
Wednesday: 2 mile walk afterward (slightly more) with weights
Pull ups were easier: 10, 10, 10, 7, 6, 5, 5 (all overhand)
bench: 10 x 134
incline: 5 x 134, 5 x 134, 5 x 134, 1 x 155 (missed this the last time)
high incline: 10 x 94, 6 x 105, 5 x 110
trap bar: low 10 x 134, 10 x 184 4 inch: 10 x 228
Chiefs: they lost to the Rattlers 5-3; the second batter hit a towering home run that went OVER the left field berm. It was 3-3 though before errors doomed the Chiefs, including an errant throw home.
But the final Chiefs pitcher was spectacular and..in the bottom of the 9’th with 2 out, runners on 1st and 2nd, one of the better hit a shot to right field that I thought would tie the game: spectacular catch to end the game.
Well, I’ll start with the workouts first:
Thursday: 6.3 miles (Bradley Park out and back plus a lower loop plus going out to Bradley ave) in 1:37:44 (15:31) 86 F, 69 percent humidity.
Friday: upper body weights plus a 2.2 mile walk at just under 17 minutes per mile. The weights:
pull ups: 5 sets of 6, 10 (almost), 2 sets of 6 (mixed grip), set of 3 penalty reps
bench: 10 x 134
incline bench: 3 sets of 5 x 134
curls: 3 sets of 10
dumbbell shoulder: 3 sets of 10 x 40 (supported)
Saturday: thunderstorms so I did trap bar and straight bar deadlifts plus a 2 mile walk (break in the rain)
straight bar (small bar) 10 x 105, 10 x 149, 10 x 193
Trap bar low 10 x 224
trap bar 6 inch: 10 x 260
Sunday: started just after 9 am. 84 F, 80 percent humidity. There was some cloud cover.
To Bradley Park, out and back, then two loops where I did the upper park loop with a double back on the “middle” road, down to the start of Cornstalk, then along the bottom of the hill to the Bridge and up to Dog Park hill, one lower loop, one mini loop. Garmin got 10.15 miles; “course correction got 10.51 so we’ll call it 10.3 in 2:49:08, or 16:25. I did NOT go fast, and my stepson’s friend got a photo of me. No, my support knee was not straight.
Damn, I am really bad at what I do (in terms of sports/fitness)
Baseball:
Well, I caught games on Wednesday, (solo), Thursday (Lynn), Saturday (Tracy), Sunday (solo)
The opponent was the West Michigan Whitecaps, who lead the Eastern Division. And yes, they are good.
Wednesday’s game: a rout. The Whitecaps got out of a 9-0 lead and cruised to 9-4 win. Few were there due to the heat.
Thursday: The Whitecaps got out to a 5-0 lead after 2, and I thought “this one is over.” But the Whitecaps would not score again, and the Chiefs rallied with 3 in the 3’rd and again in the 5’th and then got some insurance to win 9-5. That might have been the finest game of the season: Arias threw two shut out innings to close.
Saturday: we got there late to see the Chiefs lose 8-3 on a game that was postponed due to lightning on Friday. The 3 runs cam in the 9th.
Then came the second 7 inning game. The starter for the Chiefs struggled just a bit in the first but only gave up 1 run. Then he was on fire for the next 4 innings. On the other hand, the Whitecaps starter was fire for the first 4 and then wilted in the 5’th. The Chiefs rocked the starter for 4 runs in the 5’th and picked up 2 more in the 6’th to breeze 6-1 in what was their best game to day, surpassing Thursday’s win.
Sunday: this one was a sloppy game: 5 errors between the two teams, plus several “not on the score sheet” errors. But this also featured some spectacular plays too (unassisted double play by the Whitecaps first baseman off of a line drive, a running catch in deep right center). It was 5-1 Whitecaps going into the 6’th when the Chiefs rallied to tie the game. But the Whitecaps came back with 2 (off of a big home run to left center) in the 7’th, and the Chiefs made up 1. But they could get no closer.
Very entertaining game though.
Note: some of the Chiefs officials appeared to be confused at the company I kept. Barbara was scheduled to go both on Thursday and Saturday, but did not feel up to it. She made Tuesday’s game though.
Life of an old goat 