David Taylor Gonzales

VO2 Max has increased to 56 ml/kg/min. I’m never quite sure if the Garmin data is that reliable but the increase in easy runs has helped. I’d like to get my VO2 Max tested sometime. I only ran 13 miles this week so the legs feel really fresh. My buddy lives in a small apartment and asked if he could set up his squat rack in my garage so I spent last week focus on strength training. I haven’t lifted like this in awhile and I discovered that repping out 5 sets of 5 at 145 pounds on the bench press was not realistic so we throttled back to 125. I was able to do 3 sets of 5 pull ups but I had to jump and do slow eccentrics on the last set which was a bit disappointing. The goal is to get stronger, no matter what the numbers say. I constantly have to remind myself of this.

I’m going to buy two more 45 pound plates and a trap cage for rows and deadlifts. I want to have a strong back. When I consider what longevity looks like for me in the next 10 years, I think of my dad pulling his back when I was in middle school. It sidelined him for a long time, and worse, he was fearful of doing it again. I don’t know if there’s any scientific evidence to this, but I like to think I’m pushing those middle aged man injuries further and further back when I show up for my workouts.

Friday morning it was pouring down rain. Travis texted me to cancel the run but instead of crawling back into bed, I made coffee and started reading my Bible. I finished 2 Samuel, reading about David’s exile and his son Absalom trying to overthrow his reign. It was heavy but I enjoyed spending some alone time with God in quiet reflection. I turn too many of my recovery workout days into hard training when the whole point is to listen to worship music, run slow, and enjoy the outdoors. This morning was a good reset for me.

I noticed that my quads and abductors took a long time to recover from back squats. I did 26 reps total over 3 sets at 125 pounds which, while challenging, wasn’t close to an all out effort. That was Wednesday. I’m writing this Friday. I still feel lactic acid build up in those two muscle groups. According to ChatGPT, it’s possible that the barbell back squat engaged my abductors more than my usual air squats for high reps or goblet squats with the 50 lb dumbbell. I’m running 8 miles tonight so we’ll see how I recover.

Okay back from my run. I decided to try to PR my 10K since I rarely run that distance. Perceived effort: 9/10 Average pace: 7:36 per mile. This was a very challenging and rewarding run. I ran the first 5K at 24:10 pace so I knew I could break 48 minutes if I finished with a strong negative split. I was able to complete 6.3 miles in 47:55. I really surprised myself overcoming the moderate quad soreness for this one.

Saturday was a gym workout. I experimented with ChatGPT and it gave me a very difficult full body 3 circuit anaerobic workout. As one would expect, lifting in a garage with no insulation and no air conditioning makes for some high heart rates. Average HR 121 BPM. Peaked at 160 BPM. I’m really happy I invested more time in the gym this week. I felt strong and I think it’s going to pay off next week when we ramp back up to our regularly scheduled programming.

I finished this week with only 13 miles on the legs but almost 2 1/2 hours of lifting spread over 3 sessions. I wish I could’ve added another run to get to 20 miles but I’m happy with the week. I’m glad I had the self-discipline to emphasize my strength training. Too often I feel like a day is wasted if I don’t run. They’re not, and I felt an increase in my overall fitness by switching up my training emphasis.

This week I’m thankful for quality time with my family, quiet time with God and the opportunity to train. It’s easy to forget how lucky I am when I’m in the midst of a tough workout. God has given me good health, the time needed to workout, a supportive wife, and more grace than I deserve.

Keep Going!