Just pay the guy already!

Unless I am running/training or working, I have been glued to the tube as the NFL is finally back in business.  It has been very stir-crazy with all the quick moves and surprises that haven taken place.  There are many more about to happen with more trade talk and free-agent players continuing to seek new homes around the league.  I for one am very happy to see that there will be a football season.  I really don't know how I would survive without it. 
  Now, one problem I am having with my beloved Iggles is the fact that Star Wide-out DeSean Jackson is up for a new contract after this season.  D-Jack is slated to make $565,000 this year which makes him well within the middle of Philly's Salary rankings (from last season):

 1.Jason Peters OT $11,456,000 $11,456,000


 2.Asante Samuel CB $8,895,000 $5,900,000

 3.Michael Vick QB $5,200,000 $0

 4.Trent Cole DE $2,900,000 $2,900,000

 5.Ellis Hobbs CB $2,799,000 $0

 6.Reggie Wells OG $2,400,000 $0

 7.Juqua Parker DE $2,300,000 $3,500,000

 8.Marlin Jackson CB $2,000,000 $4,000,000

 9.Nick Cole C $1,759,000 $0

 10.Jerome Harrison RB $1,759,000 $0

 11.Akeem Jordan LB $1,684,000 $0

12.David Akers K $1,650,000 $0

13.Todd Herremans OG $1,500,000 $1,900,000

14.Bobby McCray DE $1,500,000 $0

15.Omar Gaither LB $1,176,000 $0

16.Max Jean-Gillis OG $1,176,000 $0

17.Darryl Tapp DE $1,176,000 $0

18.Sav Rocca P $1,101,000 $0

19.Mike Patterson DT $1,100,000 $1,400,000

20.Quintin Mikell S $1,050,000 $0

21.Jamaal Jackson C $825,000 $925,000

22.Jon Dorenbos LS $795,000 $800,000

23.Brodrick Bunkley DT $625,000 $635,000

24.Victor Abiamiri DE $550,000 $0

25.Stewart Bradley LB $550,000 $0

26.Brent Celek TE $550,000 $0

27.Kevin Kolb QB $550,000 $1,550,000

28.Gerard Lawson CB $475,000 $0

29.Jamar Adams S $470,000 $0

30.Jeremy Clark DT $470,000 $0

31.DeSean Jackson WR $470,000 $555,000

32.Trevor Laws DT $470,000 $555,000

Is he worth more??? 
http://youtu.be/1sNHgJTxWR4

The answer is...YES

  The guy put the team on his own 5'11 - 160lbs back on numerous occassions in his four years in the league.  To discredit the man and not give him the salary he deserves and on top of it, pay more money for some of the names that are above Jackson on the team salary rankings is ridiculous.  Two consecutive Pro-Bowl appearances says enough.  This is not at all to belittle the players being paid higher than Jackson (Lineman/Running Backs/Full backs etc) tend to have shorter careers on average than a dynamic wideout of D-jack's caliber... But 565k a year??? Really?

  Now that I got that out of the way, this week has been going well with training (week 2).  I am getting in some good miles early on this week:
   
  I am still keeping the miles around 80 for the week.  Amped for big things this Fall.  Getting stronger and injury free is my number 1 priority in life this fall.

I "ALWAYS" welcome heat and humidity...

Until this friday came along...

  I have always (for what ever reason) have been able to handle the heat and more importantly humidity quite well.  I don't know what the reasoning behind that is but it seems that the faster (or harder) I run in it, the better I seem to feel.   This was until the tail end of this week.  I was surprised how good i felt through much of the week (especially with the raise in miles off a 3 week hiatus-rest and light running).  The week went as follows (all easy effort runs-base phase for the next 3-4 weeks):
   
      Mon: 11.5 miles
     Tues: 11.5 miles
     Wed:  10 miles (am) / 5 miles (pm)
    Thurs: 10 miles
     Friday: 10 miles
     Sat:  9.0 miles
    Sunday: 13.5 miles
 
   I ended up with an 80 miles week and overall I feel very good.  I struggled a lot on saturday's 9 mile run at Cabin John due to not being hydrated enough and waking up just prior to the run with Ryan and Sam.  However, after hydrating all day saturday, I was able to rebound a finish week 1 feeling very good.  I will stay at the 75-80 range for week 2 and then will uptick to around about 85 for week 3 and continue this progression.  I am not placing a ceiling I must hit in miles because for me the mileage is not the key ingredient for the recipe for my success this fall.  It is the quality.  Coach and I have discussed and have come to the common conclusion that I must raise the volume to have the gas tank I need for the 26.2 distance.  Overall, it is not going to be the "End all, Say all" for my training.  I will not be a mileage hound and get myself caught up in it. 
   I am excited to run again, which is exciting.  It is not a chore like it has been in the past.  If it gets that way again, I will not hesitate to take a step back as this is a key indicator of burn out.  I am adding in 2 days/week of 1 hour + of cycling on the trainer that will take place of an hour morning run.  This will eliminate the excessive pounding on the legs that have hurt me.  I also feel i get more out of cycling on the trainer than I do in the pool aqua jogging. 
 

The next step...

I had the last week to rest and reflect on my life as a whole.  Obviously, running is a big part of my life. My teammates, competitors and all the passionate runners out there can all agree that the drive for success that runners have is what gives a runner the added edge/competitiveness in all walks of life.  I am so thankful for my family, friends and job that God has blessed me with.  I also am thankful for the gift of running.  I feel that i have never totally appreciated my ability to be able to run.  I feel i have gone through the motions.  I mean, don't get me wrong, I have trained very hard over my career as a runner, however I feel I have been running aimlessly for many of those years.  I am 29 years old and I know I won't be able to run forever.  My only goal i have now is to enjoy the journey as a working runner.  I will still have time goals to work towards but more importantly I am out this time around to enjoy the feeling of being competitive, thrive on the feeling of running fast, Smiling to start a race and definitely after the race and above all, to throw down the best performance i possibly can, each time I am on the road, course or track.