In the bank.

Legs. Whatever. The miles are in. I went well over 50 miles running this week, because sometimes I get lost on long runs and they run a little too long. The 21 miler was pukey for some reason, but I was able to keep moving. The long brick was rainy and the roads were flooded and scary. But zones were hit, paces were there, and my brain was happy just to be feeling healthy and getting the hours in. When I finish a 15 hour week I look back and wonder how the age groupers I read about are fitting in 20 and 25. The body might take it, but there really aren't enough hours in the day. Fifteen is a perfect big week for my life.

I broke the law this morning and ran the Niketown 5k. As in the coach is going to kick my ass when I log it. Here are my excuses in case he's reading: It was a fundraiser for my kids' school, and I figured with 10,000 racers and great prizes, I could just tempo run it and head home under the radar. And 5ks are really really short. As I headed for Waikiki at dawn, I realized that I've been up before 5 every day for two weeks. I love the early morning. For the first time in my life, I didn't go out sub-6. Huge milestone, as I usually run the first mile of a 5k in 5:30 and then have a panic attack. The first mile was a comfortable 6:20 in zone 3, and I was out in front a little ways. I picked it up a tiny bit and went 6:10 for the second mile, still zone 3, still enjoying myself, now running back into the hoards of walking humans on Kalakaua. Last mile I realized that this time might be visible in the results. As in, the winning time should really not be over 19 minutes or everyone reading will realize that said winner only won because of poor attendance. So I picked it up into zone 4 and ran a 6 flat across the line. My time was what I expected the day after a bonky 21 miler - 19 min. Nowhere near a PR - hell, I was faster at the tri last weekend, but hey, it was fun. And I get to buy lots of nike crap next week - $300 worth of free run shorts!

There is bigger news here than my dumb training. Huge news - it opened:

Hawaii officially has a good grocery store. In Berkeley I could look out my kitchen window and see the red Trader Joe's sign. Since moving home to Hawaii, there have been carry-on bags stuffed with TJ's and Whole Foods grub with every mainland trip. This is going to make staying off the sauce (choc) easier. Curry from the hot food bar is a good recovery breakfast, right?