Monday, August 31, 2009

More Runners

After taking a break from running this weekend, it was good to be back to it this morning. The morning was cool without a hint of humidity and my pace felt right – easy but still working. It was just what I needed to round out my mini-hiatus.

I felt guilty skipping my run this weekend but I know it was the right call.

I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the number of runners I’ve seen lately out on the bike paths early in the morning. The few times a year I run in the evenings there are runners galore; however, that wasn’t the case in the mornings, especially pre-dawn. Usually, I see a few older guys and once in a while a speedy younger guy and maybe a walker or two; however, lately I’ve been seeing quite a few runners of all speeds and breeds.

I’ve quite a few more women out running, along with the guys, and that always puts a smile on my face. I’m not sure I could pinpoint exactly why but I experience a moment of pride when I see more ladies out there, pounding the pavement. I’ve even come across a running group – 10-15 women strong. Wow!

Usually, there is a surge in the number of runners out on the trails when the Marine Corps Marathon (October) or the National Marathon (March) start to get closer but it is too early for pending races to explain the increase.

Perhaps it is the heat and humidity, or rather people wanting to escape the sun in the afternoon and evenings after work. If this is the case, I wonder if I’ll start to see fewer and fewer runners on the trails in the morning now that cooler weather is here. I hope not. I am enjoying the company.

Daily Dozen
5 miles easy in the morning
Strength training in the gym (planned) @ lunch hour

Friday, August 28, 2009

(Weird) Week in Review

It has been a weird week of running. On days I felt sluggish and tired, my pace was actually on target; however, on the days I felt like nothing could stop me and I’m flying down the bike path, I look at my average pace at the end and it is slooooow.

Here’s my week:

Sunday (evening): 8 mile long run slog-fest in the heat and humidity, pleased to see a 10:40 average pace

Monday – 4.3 miles easy without effort, I felt like I was running marathon pace, turns out I was running 11:05 average!

Tuesday – 6.7 miles of hills, good run that was intentionally run hard 10:38 average pace

Wednesday – 3 miles on the treadmill at lunch, tired but running fast felt good – 10:23 average (but I had to slow myself down at the end, it was supposed to be an easy run after all)

Thursday – 5 miles that felt tremendous, I was in the zone…in a 10:59 pace zone!

Friday – 7.1 miles run to work, tired, struggled a bit and my legs muscles were sore due to strength training yesterday but managed a 10:43 pace

To be honest, I don’t care that the days I felt like everything was perfect end up being 11 minute pace days because they seriously were great runs. I don’t tend to look at my mile splits while I’m running and so regardless of my pace, Monday and Thursday were almost too good to be true. I was sad to see them end. These are the runs that make me relish being a runner. Does it matter what my pace is after such a run? Of course not.

I will admit to an initial disappointment but then I got over myself (and my pace). If a run felt great it doesn’t matter the pace.

However, I do think this is an indication that I might need to back off a little bit because I might be getting in to over-training (read: injury) territory. I am thinking about either cutting back my long run (just an hour) or skipping it all together and coming back fresh on Monday.

Run smart, run for life!

Daily Dozen:
7.1 miles run to work

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Short and Sweat…erm, Sweet

I just love a good run. There is no better feeling than getting in an easy but good (read: sweaty) run – just cruising along, in the zone, happy to be moving.

I’ve only had the opportunity to workout during my lunch break at work for under a year but I absolutely love it. The day seems short since I am looking forward to the workout beforehand and then the day is almost done when I get back to my desk afterwards. It is the perfect way to spend an hour during work.

Oddly, it has only been recently that I’ve been running during the hour. I’d shied away from the treadmill, shunned is more appropriate really, for no other reason than I thought that’s what “real” runners do. Yet, I love my short 3 mile-ish runs that breakup the work day. I get to run and sweat and feel great.

The feeling afterwards is even better. While sitting at my desk, back hard at work, I feel like I am carrying around a secret for the rest of the day. No matter what happens, I got to run, I got to sweat and it feels wonderful. The mid-day run feels almost naughty.; like I skipped school for an hour, went for a joy ride and then came back, not to gloat but just to savor the rebelliousness of it.

It is a strange way to view a run, I mean; it is just a run after all. It holds no special powers. There is no one to be impressed by it. It is a short and sweet little secret that I get to savor.

Daily Dozen
3.56 mile treadmill run @ lunch hour

Just Run

When did running get to be so complicated? Wait, better question: why did running get so complicated?

When I started running three years ago, I just ran. Sure I had downloaded a training plan to get me from the couch to finishing a marathon so I knew the mileage I was supposed to run on that day but I never gave any thought to how fast I would run or the purpose of the run. Tempo? Intervals? Hills? None of that matter. The purpose of the run was the run. All that really mattered was that I stepped out the door with the intention of running and then I did it.

Heck, I didn’t even own a Garmin at that point so I don’t know if I was even running the “correct” distances. I knew I ran at about a 12 minute pace so I looked at the schedule, multiplied the number of miles by 12 and then divided that in half. If I was scheduled to run 7 miles, I would run for 84 minutes. Divide that in half; 42 minutes out, 42 minutes back, run done. If I felt good, I ran fast and if I didn’t, I ran slow. I just ran

That’s how my first round of marathon training was run and I had a great first marathon experience. In fact, it was my best marathon experience in terms of finishing strong and happy. Some where along the path between then and now complications have been added, including a Garmin to track pace and precise distance, specific types of runs with a purpose, and a goal to get faster, faster, faster. But really, I haven’t gotten that much faster. In the two years since my first marathon, I’ve only taken 25 minutes off my first marathon time and both times, I was hurting when I crossed the line.

I’ve run with purpose…run a faster marathon but I haven’t run a strong marathon like my first.

But what if running with a purpose isn’t the way to achieve my larger goal of being a lifetime runner, literally running through each phase of my life? What if the injuries have stemmed from these complications and the feeling down about bad races and slower than intended runs? Can I go back to that way of running?

OK, it might be hard for me to give up my Garmin but what if I didn’t let the distance and purpose of the run rule my running. What if I woke up in the morning, looked at my schedule and told myself today is x miles, that’s x minutes, let’s do it.

Time on my feet and miles on my legs, that’s the name of the game.

Almost all of the beginner’s running plans I’ve seen, leave out “quality” runs (the runs with names…fartlek, intervals, tempo, etc.) with the exception of the long run. Every weekday, there is a prescribed mileage or time and you are meant to simply run them. Don’t run fast. Don’t run slow. Just run.

However, the minute a runner moves beyond the beginner phase all of the complications start getting added. A runner must to do strides at the end of the mid-week long run every other week and intervals once a week starting with three and working up to eight, and run a tempo run that is “comfortably hard”…and, and, and….blah, blah, blah.
Why so many rules and guidelines? What happened to just running?

Today, I read an article in the Wall Street Journal about Kara Goucher, an inspiring and up-and-coming American distance runner who seems to have done just that – thrown out the rule book and just runs (although I have a sneaking suspicion that that isn’t entirely true…regardless it is a nice idea). I’ll never be a runner anywhere close to that level but I’m motivated by the idea of “just run” because it can mean different things to different runners and still get us both to the finish line strong and happy…and ready for more running.

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

It’s Not About The Bike

Yesterday I finished reading Lance Armstrong’s first book, It’s Not About The Bike. The book chronicles Armstrong’s childhood, relationship with his mother, his pre-cancer cycling career, his marriage and the birth of his son, his post-cancer cycling career and Tour wins, framed by his surviving cancer.

I can’t say that I have ever been a “fan” of Armstrong’s but I would read any news about him with interest, especially when it had to do with him running (something he took a stab out during his brief retirement).

The book has been out for years now and many, many things have happened since it was published including 5 more wins at the Tour de France, making him the only rider to win the race 7 consecutive times, divorce, more kids, retirement and another, more recent come back resulting in a third place finish in the 2009 Tour. However, I had never read it and finally found the time this past week.

Armstrong’s story is riveting and I couldn’t help but cheer for him as I read (knowing full well the outcome, I couldn’t help but get caught up) about his cancer diagnosis and his fight to survive. I nearly cried as he described his first Tour win and then compared it to the birth of his son.

Armstrong didn’t give up on himself, although he came close, and he accepts and even thrives off the pain of his athletic endeavors. As I read about him climbing mountains on his bike, holding off relentless attacks, pushing harder, faster, stronger through the pain, I wondered how I could apply that to my own pursuits.

I may not be fighting for a Tour de France win but I want to be a fighter. While I race, I am not fighting off a whole horde of other runners whose sole mission is to take me down but that doesn’t mean I shouldn’t race like there is. Armstrong shows a tremendous amount of passion and confidence while he’s on his bike, why shouldn’t I do the same as I run?

Run like you’re one of the lucky ones.

Strange Motivation

Something strange is going on with me this week. On Sunday, I decided to bail on my long run (my piriformis was feeling a little tweaked from the run to work on Friday, it was hot, even at 6:30 in the morning, and I just didn’t feel like it). Instead, I decided to play around with the Wii Outdoor Challenge game.

Outdoor Challenge uses a power pad on the floor and the Wii-mote to simulate all kinds of activities – hurdle jumping, jumping rope, skateboarding, kayaking, etc. I figured why not get in a little fun, burn a few calories and get back to running the next day, refreshed and raring to go.

The Outdoor Challenge was indeed fun and I worked up quite a sweat during my 45 minutes of playing the game so I was very satisfied with my choice.

That is, until I woke up on Monday.

Both of my calves were on fire. They have never been this sore! I couldn’t even walk without pain and going up or down stairs was near unbearable. I skipped my morning runs Monday and Tuesday; however, both days I felt compelled to run over my lunch break. My legs were less sore, still hurt while walking but just less so and when I jumped on the treadmill I was surprised to find out that running didn’t hurt.

For the past two days, I’ve made the choice to skip a morning run in favor of a run on the treadmill in the middle of the day. What?! Even as I am making the decision, it strikes me as out of character.

Once again, I made the same decision this morning. As I packed my gym clothes for work, I thought, I should finally do some strength training at the gym but the idea of skipping the mid-day treadmill run had me feeling disappointed. Could it be that I would actually miss jumping on the treadmill for a run? Me, the adamant morning, outdoor runner for the past year. Really?

Yes, it’s true. This week, or at least for three days in a row so far, the mid-day treadmill run has been my motivation. It gets me excited. I don’t know how to explain it. Maybe it is because it is something new and the soreness in my calves has forced me to change a routine I didn’t realize was getting stale? I use to do almost all of my running on the treadmill and maybe my passion for running will go through cycles. Could it be that I’m on my second round of treadmill-running cycle?

Even as I type that, I’m torn. On the one hand, I am telling myself, “of course not, don’t be silly, you’re going to be right back out on the roads tomorrow morning.” Yet, I can’t contain my excitement for today’s treadmill run. I am really looking forward to it. Can the two co-exist?

No matter what is motivating me to run – the secret of a pre-dawn run, the whirl of a treadmill that breaks up the workday, or an afternoon sweat-fest with a friend – running is running and I’ll take it anyway I can get it.

Daily Dozen
3.5 miles easy, treadmill @ lunch hour

Monday, August 3, 2009

Any Number of Things Could Have Gone Wrong

When something goes wrong a run, any good runner will start to analyze their recent routine – sleep, previous workout, nutrition, and pacing – to see what the cause might be. While I do believe that the right reaction to a bad run or race, is to move on and not dwell; I also think it is good to try to learn from the mistakes made leading up to, or during, the run.

On Sunday morning, I set out for a two-hour run. I didn’t have a set mileage goal in mind but rather I knew I wanted to get some “time on my feet.” I headed toward the Mount Vernon bike trail to run for an hour along the Potomac River and then turn around and make my way back home by the same route.

I took my time as I made my way along the bike trails, enjoying the smell of fresh rain that had only recently stopped and playfully avoiding the puddles. I was feel very good about the run and as always, I enjoy the scenery along the route – DC and all the monuments across the river.

I hit the hour mark and turned around to head home. About halfway home, about 1 hour 30 minutes in to the run, the wheels started coming off; my legs were feeling unusually tired and I was breathing harder than usual. Climbing one of the hills, not far from the top, and with only a little over 2 miles to go I had to do something I’ve never done before – stop and walk.

I’ve walked during my runs before but it is usually for a good reason – drink water, eat food, something started to hurt or it was planned – but I’ve never just not been able to make it. I can always muster enough strength to make it to the top, get to the next light pole, etc. This time was different. I just couldn’t go anymore, I just had to stop and rest.

After walking for about 5 minutes, I took off at a slower pace and I finished out the run; ecstatic when my Garmin beeped that final hour was finally over. During this 2 mile trudge I started to analyze just what could have gone wrong.

Sleep
I was up later than normal on Friday, not getting to bed until after midnight so I made the decision to move my weekend long run to Sunday morning instead of my normal day of Saturday. I took a short nap on Saturday and went to bed at a decent hour that night so I didn’t think it was lack of sleep that had caused the bad run; however, maybe the late night on Friday had affected me more than I thought. Maybe I didn’t sleep that well on Saturday. Sleep could have been a contributing factor but I really didn’t think it was the culprit.

Previous Workouts
Thursday I had done a hard strength training workout and even through Saturday I was feeling some residual soreness in my legs. However, due to a commitment at work, I decided to skip my Friday run and take a rest day. With two days of near complete rest, I know that Thursday workout couldn’t have been the reason I had to stop during Sunday’s long run.

Nutrition
Ah, I think we are on to something here. I haven’t been making the best choices when it comes to food lately; I knew that, so lack of quality nutrition can definitely sink a run. In addition to that, I didn’t have a big dinner Saturday and I only had a banana before heading out for the run on Sunday. I had simply run out of fuel and as I was running up that hill that is exactly how I felt, like a car running out of gas, I just couldn’t go any further.

After my run had concluded, as I walked home in the rain, I did this quick analysis and felt confident that I had determined the problem. I could learn from these mistakes and move on.

However, when I got home and plugged in my Garmin to download my paces from the run, I discovered a much more glaring error.

Pacing
I wasn’t paying attention to my pace during the run. I was running by feel and I was feeling good. I knew I had to take it easy and slow to last the entire two hours and I thought I was. Before I crashed on mile 9, my pace for the most of the previous miles was closer to the 10:00 minute/mile range, way too fast for a long run. I should have been in the 10:30 range and as a consequence, I had to stop and walk and then plodded through the end of the run at 11:00 minute/mile pace.

Running at a pace much faster than I should have been coupled with the lack of fuel and probably dealing with a slight lack of sleep, I just couldn’t hold the pace on the long run and that is why I had to stop and walk.

Lesson learned.

Daily Dozen
Strength Training @ lunch hour
3 miles easy after work
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