Ed -
I'm excited.
This week I'm wrapping up my "rest phase" which began back on August 4th right after my silver medal 800 at the State Games of America. Since then I dropped my runs to three times a week keeping them at a moderate pace to keep my endurance at a good level, but not doing anything intense running-wise. I also hit the gym three times a week to add some muscle doing a chest day, back day and leg day. I had dropped to only 135 pounds or so by the end of track season so I really needed to do something about that.
I now weigh 147 so I'm not all that impressed with how much I've gained. Mental note has been made and I'll make some serious diet alterations next year to go along with the weights. I'd like to have about 10 more pounds on me at this stage.
The last couple of weeks I've actually gone to the track to do some 1 mile intervals and long ladders, but kept them at a comfortably hard pace. Those were interspersed with Tempo Runs of 3 miles inside 7 mile runs. Once a week I also did a sprint workout after an easy 5 mile run. Those sprints augmented the squats and deadlifts I was doing to build raw strength in my legs. Doing them on semi-fatigued legs increased the benefit of that work. All that combined to form a six week cycle designed to improve my VO2 Max (stamina) and prep me for the more serious speed work.
From here I should be able to handle extra reps of fast 200's through 800's right out of the gate.
My first speed workout of last year wasn't until the 2nd week of December and it was a 4 x 800. I was really happy with that workout and they went 3:07, 3:03, 3:00 and 2:55. I didn't write it down but I'm pretty sure I was doing those with two minutes passive rest between each rep. This year I should get 5 out at close to 3 minutes flat. After that I'll be moving around through interval and ladder workouts to build speed and stamina. I will also be keeping one long run each weekend that will include fartlek and be done as either a progression run or fast finish. That will keep my overall endurance at a high level.
There are two other pieces to the weeks ahead.
First, I'll keep a Tempo Run of three miles in there during my midweek 7 mile run. I was lacking that last year and I think it cost me time in the Mile and 1500. After that run I will do my 100 meter strides/sprints. I did those last year and saw some serious gains in my ability to kick at the end of a race. That last 200 meters in the 800 of the State Games will stick in my mind for a loooooonnng time. I want that feeling again and again.
The second piece is an addition to last year. I'm keeping one day a week in the gym doing a combination of chest, back and squats. I finish that time in the gym with three sets of skips in the gym. Starting tomorrow I'll be wearing my 10 pound weight vest to do those. I believe this once a week workout will help my race times by simply keeping my full body strength at a much higher level than it was at last year.
Having a plan gets me worked up anyways, but the fact that I feel as good as I do right now and running faster on my "moderate" runs than last year by a pretty good clip is a real bonus. Last year at this time my runs were pretty consistently done at 7:50 pace or higher and now I'm running below 7:40. Just yesterday I wrapped up a 10 mile fartlek run at 7:29 pace. So far so good. Now it's time to see if my 400's will be faster than last years'.
That's the other part of coming out of the rest phase that has me pumped. I'm hungry for running fast again. The rest phase is designed to rest the runner mentally and emotionally as well as physically. And right now I feel like I've been holding back the last month or so. I want to run HARD. I want to leave myself gasping for breath, dropping to my hands and knees and puking at the corner of the Midlothian Middle School track.
I am chomping at the bit, baby.
Showing posts with label running shoes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label running shoes. Show all posts
Sunday, November 24, 2013
Tuesday, November 12, 2013
Outer Banks Marathon Weekend
Outer Banks Half
I had a great time over this past weekend and didn’t even
run.
It was the Outer Banks Marathon weekend in my adopted home
town but I wasn’t going to be running in any of the races this year. Kind of odd how many people thought it was weird
that I wasn’t running and it came up in every conversation I had.
“So are you running the Half?”
“Nope, just volunteering this year.”
“Why not? Are you hurt?”
That conversation was repeated a bunch.
I just did the MCM10K and am wrapping up the Rest Phase of
my training for the year, so my training needs to get pretty particular at this
point and I’m planning my rest days as much as I’m planning my workouts. I need to have fresh legs to get the most out
of the track and the hills, so tossing in a 13 mile run haphazardly isn’t
really the best idea, plus it ain’t cheap.
Next year I’ll put it in there and maybe even see if just doing long,
steady state runs can get me a decent time in the Half. That’s what the Fall is for me: three runs a
week of moderate effort and weight lifting to put back on some weight lost in
the summer track season. Not the best
thing for racing, obviously, but not horrible either. And, of course, I could make it for fun
instead of for ego. ; )
The weather in Dare County was great for races and a lot of
my friends had great races.
David was running his first ever marathon after going
through an amazing weight loss transformation.
He was a sprinter and talented athlete in high school, but had gained a
bunch of weight after that. The past
couple of years he buckled down diet-wise and started running. Now he’s a challenge sort of guy so simply
doing a marathon just wasn’t enough: he
signed up to do the OBX Challenge and run an 8K on Saturday followed by the
Marathon on Sunday. When I raced my Half
I did the same mini-version of that by running the 8K with a 13.1 mile
chaser. David hit a sub 7 minute pace
time for the 8K then turned around and ran a 3:31 Marathon! Dude…
Gretchen is a friend of mine who I helped along with a plan
so she could “finish a Half Marathon and not die.” She clocked in her first ever Half with a
time of 2:16! A whole lot faster than
what she figured it would take because she didn’t have to walk any of it.
Another longtime friend of mine, Blake, was down from
Maryland and surprised me with a 1:36 in the Half! Geez…and the guy always tells me he’s not
very fast. Puhleeeze….
There were bunches of other great stories, too including
Kathy who was celebrating her 1 year anniversary of beating cancer by running a
13.1 mile “victory lap” with her sisters.
Made me smile AND cry.
As for me, I got to experience the races from the other side
of the barricades. I’m being literal
there. Literally, I was on the other
side of the barricades during the race.
I also got to set up those barricades the day before. You should see what goes into the finish line
area. One serious logistical exercise
being done with smiles and enthusiasm by volunteers, and it was a lot of
fun. Plus, I got to hang out and talk to
friends I haven’t seen in a while which is always fun for me.
I took a couple of pictures of the “chute” and the emergency
area that is massive, but somehow on race day you almost don’t even notice
it. It’s an entire hospital just like on
MASH! Okay now that just showed my age….
Friday, May 3, 2013
It's Always Something
This morning was my speed work day, so I was back on the track behind the Middle School.
This time of year is becoming my favorite because the temperature is just fantastic, about 46 degrees today, and the sun isn't up when I step outside around 5:40am, but rises quickly during my workout. The awakening of the sky and world around me is a pretty special thing and another wonderful gift given to me by running. Another is just the little things that happen during those peaceful, quiet times in the day that most people miss because they're simply still in bed.
Just about every week on the track I see this guy who comes there to walk his two dogs. Normally, he moves off when I show up or encourages them to stay to the outside, but he only has to talk to one to keep him from running along with me. That one's a big, yellow lab that just loves to run near me without chasing me. He'll pull right up along side and a lane away and just run along looking up at me and panting like it's a great game. The other dog always stays near the man and when I got the chance one day I asked him why the black, older dog stuck so close to him all the time.
"She's blind," he said.
"But she walks around away from you sometimes," I said, "and goes off in the infield some."
He told me that she likes the track because she can feel the edges really well and has learned that it's smooth and there's nothing in the way. She always stays where she can hear him walk and he pointed out that she always stood still whenever I approached because my footsteps threw her off some. She did come up and let me pet her while we talked, which was cool. Such a sweet thing.
They were there again this morning arriving as I was finishing my first 800. The big, yellow one barked hello, but sat when his dad told him to stay. They strolled around the outside of the track as I continued my workout and was joined by a young guy I had never met before.
I lined up on the opposite corner of where I was starting and finishing, and watching him warm up I could see he was serious about his running. Plus, he was blazing fast in his warm up striders.
On my third 800 I started my watch and lunged forward then midway through that first turn I noticed a baby bird hop right into the center of lane one. I stepped inside to avoid it and looked across the track to see the new guy trucking along beginning whatever workout he was going to do. I tried to telepathically tell him to watch for the bird, but figured it would be tough to miss it. I looked over my shoulder when I thought he might be near the bird and he seemed to move on by without noticing it and I just kept pushing to try and hold my pace which I had done pretty well the first two reps. 2:53 both times.
I rounded the turn for lap two and the bird was still there, being harassed by a parent bird. I guess it was trying to get it to move back out of the open, but because I showed up the thing went into camouflage mode: It scrunched down a little bit and held very still. I moved inside again and ran by. Huffing pretty good now and my thighs were beginning to feel hot. I finished up at 2:54 and walked around the first turn to begin my rest lap. And the baby bird looked up at me then abruptly looked away and scrunched down again. But no movement. By now both parent birds were flying back and forth out of the trees to squawk at the baby and swoop at me to keep me moving away.
Sort of motivational actually.
The new guy was apparently doing a pyramid because after his 400 he turned an 800 keeping pretty much on the same pace as me, but gaining a little ground.
I lined up again for rep number four of five and looked out at the turn to see the baby bird still parked there. This time I moved around the outside because one of the parents was taking up the rest of lane 1. I knew I only had two reps to go so it was time to pick it up some, and I finished that one in 2:51. A couple of starts and stops trying to catch my breath and not heave and there was the bird again. Just sitting there ignoring it's parents.
Typical.
I watched as new guy finished up a 1200 and he didn't look like he was trying at all.
One to go. Fast, boy. Fast.
I paced the first 400 right where I had hit the other first laps, about 1:25, then did my best to hold on until the final turn and 200 to go. Usually in it's in here that I start to talk to myself about how this is what the end of the 1500 is going to feel like, and that I'll be pushing towards a PR so I better not quit on it. I began to fall apart that last 100, but I just pushed hard and did everything I could to accelerate. Pumping my hands, striding long and fast. I finished up and looked at my watch. 2:47. Nice!!
And then I just doubled over and gagged a couple of times. Very nice.
I had to look at my spreadsheet before I realized that was my best 800 workout ever. Such a cool thing to figure out after sitting around eating breakfast and wondering why I couldn't do it the pace the McMillan Calculator had set. Ummmm...that turned out to be the pace I printed off after assuming I could run a 4:55 mile. Apparently I'm not quite there yet.
Anyways, after recovering from the dry heaves I walked over to the baby bird, picked it up and moved quickly to the woods dodging one of its parents that was doing it's best to dive bomb me and get me to leave its baby alone. I got to the spot where the bigger birds kept flying and figured it was near the nest. I put the bird down and moved back over across the track.
Good deed for the day.
New guy flew by just then and gave me the runner head nod.
I started my cool down run home, but stopped to introduce myself and meet the new guy, who is now Scott.
We talked the workouts for a moment and then he said, "can I offer some advice?"
"Sure!" I always want to learn.
"When you were finishing that last rep your speed was good, but you started to heel strike bad. Over striding."
I nodded. I knew I did that when I was tired and going slow, but didn't know I did that when running fast at the end. Makes sense though.
He asked me, "Have you ever tried running barefoot?"
"Yes, and dude, I just gave that advice to a friend. I guess I need to get back to it."
"It really helps straighten out over striding in your sprints."
I told him thanks and trotted off up the hill and back to my house planning to run barefoot for a mile, and some striders on Sunday.
It's always something...
This time of year is becoming my favorite because the temperature is just fantastic, about 46 degrees today, and the sun isn't up when I step outside around 5:40am, but rises quickly during my workout. The awakening of the sky and world around me is a pretty special thing and another wonderful gift given to me by running. Another is just the little things that happen during those peaceful, quiet times in the day that most people miss because they're simply still in bed.
Just about every week on the track I see this guy who comes there to walk his two dogs. Normally, he moves off when I show up or encourages them to stay to the outside, but he only has to talk to one to keep him from running along with me. That one's a big, yellow lab that just loves to run near me without chasing me. He'll pull right up along side and a lane away and just run along looking up at me and panting like it's a great game. The other dog always stays near the man and when I got the chance one day I asked him why the black, older dog stuck so close to him all the time.
"She's blind," he said.
"But she walks around away from you sometimes," I said, "and goes off in the infield some."
He told me that she likes the track because she can feel the edges really well and has learned that it's smooth and there's nothing in the way. She always stays where she can hear him walk and he pointed out that she always stood still whenever I approached because my footsteps threw her off some. She did come up and let me pet her while we talked, which was cool. Such a sweet thing.
They were there again this morning arriving as I was finishing my first 800. The big, yellow one barked hello, but sat when his dad told him to stay. They strolled around the outside of the track as I continued my workout and was joined by a young guy I had never met before.
I lined up on the opposite corner of where I was starting and finishing, and watching him warm up I could see he was serious about his running. Plus, he was blazing fast in his warm up striders.
On my third 800 I started my watch and lunged forward then midway through that first turn I noticed a baby bird hop right into the center of lane one. I stepped inside to avoid it and looked across the track to see the new guy trucking along beginning whatever workout he was going to do. I tried to telepathically tell him to watch for the bird, but figured it would be tough to miss it. I looked over my shoulder when I thought he might be near the bird and he seemed to move on by without noticing it and I just kept pushing to try and hold my pace which I had done pretty well the first two reps. 2:53 both times.
I rounded the turn for lap two and the bird was still there, being harassed by a parent bird. I guess it was trying to get it to move back out of the open, but because I showed up the thing went into camouflage mode: It scrunched down a little bit and held very still. I moved inside again and ran by. Huffing pretty good now and my thighs were beginning to feel hot. I finished up at 2:54 and walked around the first turn to begin my rest lap. And the baby bird looked up at me then abruptly looked away and scrunched down again. But no movement. By now both parent birds were flying back and forth out of the trees to squawk at the baby and swoop at me to keep me moving away.
Sort of motivational actually.
The new guy was apparently doing a pyramid because after his 400 he turned an 800 keeping pretty much on the same pace as me, but gaining a little ground.
I lined up again for rep number four of five and looked out at the turn to see the baby bird still parked there. This time I moved around the outside because one of the parents was taking up the rest of lane 1. I knew I only had two reps to go so it was time to pick it up some, and I finished that one in 2:51. A couple of starts and stops trying to catch my breath and not heave and there was the bird again. Just sitting there ignoring it's parents.
Typical.
I watched as new guy finished up a 1200 and he didn't look like he was trying at all.
One to go. Fast, boy. Fast.
I paced the first 400 right where I had hit the other first laps, about 1:25, then did my best to hold on until the final turn and 200 to go. Usually in it's in here that I start to talk to myself about how this is what the end of the 1500 is going to feel like, and that I'll be pushing towards a PR so I better not quit on it. I began to fall apart that last 100, but I just pushed hard and did everything I could to accelerate. Pumping my hands, striding long and fast. I finished up and looked at my watch. 2:47. Nice!!
And then I just doubled over and gagged a couple of times. Very nice.
I had to look at my spreadsheet before I realized that was my best 800 workout ever. Such a cool thing to figure out after sitting around eating breakfast and wondering why I couldn't do it the pace the McMillan Calculator had set. Ummmm...that turned out to be the pace I printed off after assuming I could run a 4:55 mile. Apparently I'm not quite there yet.
Anyways, after recovering from the dry heaves I walked over to the baby bird, picked it up and moved quickly to the woods dodging one of its parents that was doing it's best to dive bomb me and get me to leave its baby alone. I got to the spot where the bigger birds kept flying and figured it was near the nest. I put the bird down and moved back over across the track.
Good deed for the day.
New guy flew by just then and gave me the runner head nod.
I started my cool down run home, but stopped to introduce myself and meet the new guy, who is now Scott.
We talked the workouts for a moment and then he said, "can I offer some advice?"
"Sure!" I always want to learn.
"When you were finishing that last rep your speed was good, but you started to heel strike bad. Over striding."
I nodded. I knew I did that when I was tired and going slow, but didn't know I did that when running fast at the end. Makes sense though.
He asked me, "Have you ever tried running barefoot?"
"Yes, and dude, I just gave that advice to a friend. I guess I need to get back to it."
"It really helps straighten out over striding in your sprints."
I told him thanks and trotted off up the hill and back to my house planning to run barefoot for a mile, and some striders on Sunday.
It's always something...
Saturday, April 13, 2013
2013 Monument Avenue 10K Results
There. That title should help with some web searches out there...
What a terrific weekend!
As I approached this year's Monument Avenue 10K I felt sure I could beat my time from last year, which was a 44:04, because I knew I'd been training with more distance and tempo runs. Optimism. Then I looked at that pace, 7:04 per mile, and how in my last three tempo runs I couldn't hold a sub 7 minute mile for more than 3 miles. Hell, my last one I only made two miles! 7:04 for over six miles seemed a little out of reach. Anxiety.
So I pulled up my training log from last year and found I hadn't run crap over 7 miles back then, and I've been getting in at least one 7+ mile run or workout in every week since January. Optimism. I also have been able to negative split my 10 mile runs finishing them at about 7:30 pace overall and even got a couple of sub 7 final miles in there. More Optimism.
Then on Thursday night something weird happened I still can't explain. I came home from having dessert with my grand kids and their parents, walked upstairs and almost couldn't get back down! I had this very sharp, stabbing pain in my left heel where my Achilles tendon connects to my heel. I tried stretching it some and that was horrible. I hadn't twisted it, strained it or anything and yet it was if I had a very bad case of tendinitis. Anxiety.
I took a handful of ibuprofen, and put a bag of Brussels sprouts (I couldn't find any ice packs) on my heel and watched some TV.
It felt a little better.
Before I got in bed I smeared a glob of Blue Emu cream on it and went to sleep.
It still hurt the next day, but only when I tried to stretch it out or walk down stairs. Walking and even hopping a little didn't bother it too much but it felt hot. I decided that after work and hitting the expo for packet pickup I would buy some ice and soak this piece-of-shit-old-ankle-that-got-injured-for-no-damned-reason when I got home at night.
During the day my leg didn't feel too bad, but I was careful not to stress it and just limped whenever I had to go down some stairs. Fortunately, the expo was all on one floor and I was able to move around that with no problem.
I love running expos. All the people (read that "all the cute running girls"), the energy, and the stuff! I love stuff. Especially buying it. And I found one piece of stuff that I had hoped to find and picked it up pronto. It's called The Stick.
The Stick is a massage tool that looked to be a very effective piece of plastic and fiberglass. And all the cool kids at Indoor Nationals had them, so I knew I should have one, too.
The sales people they had at the booth were actually very knowledgeable about physiology and massage therapy. I told the lady about my Achilles and she said, "you're going to roll this up and down the back and both sides of your upper calf."
"Ummm. OK."
"When you do that you're going to find a trigger point (sharp pain) in one of these three spots," as she pointed to the back of my calf muscle under my knee and off to the outside about three inches below my knee. "Those spots are where knots form that tighten up your calf and restrict blood flow to your tendon."
Damn if she didn't nail it.
That spot on the outside of my calf made me jump when I hit it. I went more gently and after a few rubs it worked out a little.
I bought The Stick.
Now I look like the cool kids when I stretch after a run.
On my way out of the expo I met a guy named Daniel Komen. He was manning a booth with a sign "Train With the Kenyans." Google Daniel Komen. Holy cow.
I was standing there chatting with the only human ever to put two sub 4 minute miles back to back. The world record he set in the two mile back in the 90's still stands, along with his world record in the 3000.
He was super nice and he and his booth-mate David Cheromei run a running camp that is put together as part of a mission trip experience to raise money for the school that Komen started for orphans in Kenya. My wife and I, along with some friends of ours in our church in Manteo, sponsor a child through Heart for Africa and he was familiar with that and spoke highly of it. He asked me to come and support his school and said the kids get a lot out of seeing people there to help them and run with them. He smiled and said, "Kenya make you fastman!" I've got all their info for doing a trip to Kenya for the camp and then working with the kids at the school or doing grounds/building work while there in hopes I could actually do that some day.
Daniel told me he would autograph my bib number and I got a picture with him.
So cool!
So it was home to use The Stick and ice both ankles since I discovered bad knots in both of them.
In high school I had a nice case of tendinitis in the same area and the Trainer had me do a little icing routine using a big bucket and the jacuzzi. I shoved my leg down into a bucket of 1/3 ice and 2/3 water for two minutes, then immediately shove that leg into the jacuzzi where the water temperature was about 100 degrees. Sounds painful doesn't it? It is. Ridiculously painful. But I only had to do it twice in two days and the inflammation was gone and I raced on it like nothing had ever happened.
I don't have a jacuzzi and I remembered how much moving into that hot water felt. I figured I'd do without all that this time and just do the ice part. So I dumped about half a large bag of ice into a paint bucket and filled it with water. Then I grabbed a beer and used my phone as a stop watch. Three times in and out and that should do it.
What a terrific weekend!
As I approached this year's Monument Avenue 10K I felt sure I could beat my time from last year, which was a 44:04, because I knew I'd been training with more distance and tempo runs. Optimism. Then I looked at that pace, 7:04 per mile, and how in my last three tempo runs I couldn't hold a sub 7 minute mile for more than 3 miles. Hell, my last one I only made two miles! 7:04 for over six miles seemed a little out of reach. Anxiety.
So I pulled up my training log from last year and found I hadn't run crap over 7 miles back then, and I've been getting in at least one 7+ mile run or workout in every week since January. Optimism. I also have been able to negative split my 10 mile runs finishing them at about 7:30 pace overall and even got a couple of sub 7 final miles in there. More Optimism.
Then on Thursday night something weird happened I still can't explain. I came home from having dessert with my grand kids and their parents, walked upstairs and almost couldn't get back down! I had this very sharp, stabbing pain in my left heel where my Achilles tendon connects to my heel. I tried stretching it some and that was horrible. I hadn't twisted it, strained it or anything and yet it was if I had a very bad case of tendinitis. Anxiety.
I took a handful of ibuprofen, and put a bag of Brussels sprouts (I couldn't find any ice packs) on my heel and watched some TV.
It felt a little better.
Before I got in bed I smeared a glob of Blue Emu cream on it and went to sleep.
It still hurt the next day, but only when I tried to stretch it out or walk down stairs. Walking and even hopping a little didn't bother it too much but it felt hot. I decided that after work and hitting the expo for packet pickup I would buy some ice and soak this piece-of-shit-old-ankle-that-got-injured-for-no-damned-reason when I got home at night.
During the day my leg didn't feel too bad, but I was careful not to stress it and just limped whenever I had to go down some stairs. Fortunately, the expo was all on one floor and I was able to move around that with no problem.
I love running expos. All the people (read that "all the cute running girls"), the energy, and the stuff! I love stuff. Especially buying it. And I found one piece of stuff that I had hoped to find and picked it up pronto. It's called The Stick.
The Stick is a massage tool that looked to be a very effective piece of plastic and fiberglass. And all the cool kids at Indoor Nationals had them, so I knew I should have one, too.
The sales people they had at the booth were actually very knowledgeable about physiology and massage therapy. I told the lady about my Achilles and she said, "you're going to roll this up and down the back and both sides of your upper calf."
"Ummm. OK."
"When you do that you're going to find a trigger point (sharp pain) in one of these three spots," as she pointed to the back of my calf muscle under my knee and off to the outside about three inches below my knee. "Those spots are where knots form that tighten up your calf and restrict blood flow to your tendon."
Damn if she didn't nail it.
That spot on the outside of my calf made me jump when I hit it. I went more gently and after a few rubs it worked out a little.
I bought The Stick.
Now I look like the cool kids when I stretch after a run.
On my way out of the expo I met a guy named Daniel Komen. He was manning a booth with a sign "Train With the Kenyans." Google Daniel Komen. Holy cow.
I was standing there chatting with the only human ever to put two sub 4 minute miles back to back. The world record he set in the two mile back in the 90's still stands, along with his world record in the 3000.
He was super nice and he and his booth-mate David Cheromei run a running camp that is put together as part of a mission trip experience to raise money for the school that Komen started for orphans in Kenya. My wife and I, along with some friends of ours in our church in Manteo, sponsor a child through Heart for Africa and he was familiar with that and spoke highly of it. He asked me to come and support his school and said the kids get a lot out of seeing people there to help them and run with them. He smiled and said, "Kenya make you fastman!" I've got all their info for doing a trip to Kenya for the camp and then working with the kids at the school or doing grounds/building work while there in hopes I could actually do that some day.
Daniel told me he would autograph my bib number and I got a picture with him.
So cool!
So it was home to use The Stick and ice both ankles since I discovered bad knots in both of them.
In high school I had a nice case of tendinitis in the same area and the Trainer had me do a little icing routine using a big bucket and the jacuzzi. I shoved my leg down into a bucket of 1/3 ice and 2/3 water for two minutes, then immediately shove that leg into the jacuzzi where the water temperature was about 100 degrees. Sounds painful doesn't it? It is. Ridiculously painful. But I only had to do it twice in two days and the inflammation was gone and I raced on it like nothing had ever happened.
I don't have a jacuzzi and I remembered how much moving into that hot water felt. I figured I'd do without all that this time and just do the ice part. So I dumped about half a large bag of ice into a paint bucket and filled it with water. Then I grabbed a beer and used my phone as a stop watch. Three times in and out and that should do it.
I soaked for two minutes in and five minutes out, then just kept them in there for a full five minutes the last time. Geez, that was something. Brrrrrr.
Then I massaged with The Stick, popped a couple more ibuprofen, rubbed on some more Blue Emu then went to bed.
When I woke up I felt fine.
Moved around the room. Stretched. My calves felt sort of tight and sore liked I'd worked them out hard, but there wasn't any sharp pain, even when I walked downstairs.
Sweet!
The race itself went about perfect. Just like the weather. 55 degrees, sunny and a very light breeze.
I decided to do this race differently than I usually do, which is out fast and see how long I can hang on, and do the negative split thing I'd been doing on my long runs. According to the things I've been reading it's best to go out for the first quarter of whatever your running at a pace that is slower than what you actually want to average for the race. Then you steadily speed up, but just barely. It makes it seem easier and it feels like I always have something in the tank along with speed if I want it. I was surprised as I got to mile 2 at 7:10 pace and had been telling myself to take it easy. Hold back.
At the 5k mark and the turnaround point I was at 7:04 and felt very strong. It was also the only point where I got a good picture. I took about five during the run and they all looked like crap. But this one looks cool:
Hitting the turn hard
I pressed the first half mile after the turn and didn't get passed again the whole way. I would look at my Garmin and watch as the average time dropped steadily. At mile 5 I was dead on 35 minutes and a 7 flat pace. I was going to PR this bitch.
I reminded myself of how dead I felt last year at this point and how hard I was fighting just to hang on. "Completely different," I said out loud. A guy next to me glanced over and I continued, "compared to last year. I feel great this year!" He smiled and grunted, and slowly faded off behind me.
I was grinning as I looked ahead and started pumping. My hands were relaxed (except for holding my phone), my legs were driving along, and I kept on accelerating.
I covered that last mile in 6:26 and was smiling ear to ear when I came across the finish line.
I swear there are very few feelings in this world like the one I get when I run fast. I don't even know how to describe it except that I always remember that day I was laying at the top of my stairs exhausted, sick and weak, then compare it to what I was doing in the last strides of that race.
And I just smile.
Sunday, April 7, 2013
The Song of Gilligan
It is exactly three weeks from the half marathon. Three weeks. This will be the fifth time I have done this particular one. I remember when I did it the first time. I said it will be my last one...ever. So, five of these and a couple of other ones later and I'm still at it. I keep saying that I'm not going to anything with the word thon in it again. But, I keep signing up. As the pain goes away from my last marathon, I am even considering doing another one of those. I kind of feel like the last one beat me. I'm trying to decide if I can live with that. My biggest realization in the last few weeks is that I am pretty much full of shit. I don't mean to be. I fully intend to concentrate on shorter races, like 5k's, but then something happens and I get the urge to do something else. I've done three Tough Mudders. I thought the first one would be my last. The second one definitely was my last. Until the third one. The third is probably my last. The cost is getting prohibitive. That is my main reason. The cost is crazy high. I have also gotten to the point where I don't just sign up for lots of stuff anymore. The costs of numerous races is just a lot of money. I'm trying to pick and choose the ones I really want to do and the ones that are for a good cause. I would like to do something Tough Mudderish, because I like to climb over stuff and I like mud. I like the upper body challenge. Blah, blah...blah. This is really boring. I am boring myself to tears writing this. Do I stop? Have I gone too far to delete? It is sort of like an out and back run. Once you go too far, you have too far to go back. All the sudden you are running a crap ton of miles, or in this case, writing a crap ton of words. I'm like the Gilligan of blog post. Go out for what you think is a three hour tour and then I'm stuck on a island for years. This post is my island.
Let's regroup here. Due to the fact that this is a running blog, I'm going to say something about running. Today, while running through the woods with my friends, I made the statement that I could run forever if my legs didn't get tired. They laughed, because the legs always get tired, but what if they were so well conditioned that they didn't? At least for a long time. When I was coming off my plantar's issue a few years back, I experienced a moment of zen. I had such a bad case, that I could not do regular runs for months. That is when I started doing the step workout, switched to training in Vibram's, running in Kinvaras and fully embraced the minimalist thing. Taught myself to run on my forefoot again, like I did when I was a sprinter in high school and college. Got my stride back, and stopped being a plodder. Anyway, I strengthened my feet and my calves by doing lots of step work. Also, did lots of kettlebell work. When I started running again on the road and the trails, I made sure that I did a quality run. Quantity did not matter at the time. I just wanted to run and finish strong and with a positive attitude. If that was two miles or three miles, it was fine...as long as I finished strong. The kettlebells and the steps worked my legs in a way that was just incredible. Flash foreward to my first 5k after my comeback and my legs never died. They felt strong the whole way. I was actually surprised to see the finish line. It was awesome.
Knowing that my long runs have not been real good leading up to this half, I have been beating my legs up in other ways. They are sore and tired. I am hoping to pull all this together in the next few weeks and have a decent performance in the half. In a way, this is like my first one again. I just do not know what to expect. I know I can finish. I know that I can do okay, but I'm just not sure what okay means. Last year I knew that I could do a sub 1:50 if I was on my game. This year, I'm not sure. I'm getting excited to find out. Then on to bigger and other things.
I believe this is one of the reasons I still love running. I'm still surprised and amazed to see what my body will do on any given day. I have to stop writing now and find a way off this island.
Let's regroup here. Due to the fact that this is a running blog, I'm going to say something about running. Today, while running through the woods with my friends, I made the statement that I could run forever if my legs didn't get tired. They laughed, because the legs always get tired, but what if they were so well conditioned that they didn't? At least for a long time. When I was coming off my plantar's issue a few years back, I experienced a moment of zen. I had such a bad case, that I could not do regular runs for months. That is when I started doing the step workout, switched to training in Vibram's, running in Kinvaras and fully embraced the minimalist thing. Taught myself to run on my forefoot again, like I did when I was a sprinter in high school and college. Got my stride back, and stopped being a plodder. Anyway, I strengthened my feet and my calves by doing lots of step work. Also, did lots of kettlebell work. When I started running again on the road and the trails, I made sure that I did a quality run. Quantity did not matter at the time. I just wanted to run and finish strong and with a positive attitude. If that was two miles or three miles, it was fine...as long as I finished strong. The kettlebells and the steps worked my legs in a way that was just incredible. Flash foreward to my first 5k after my comeback and my legs never died. They felt strong the whole way. I was actually surprised to see the finish line. It was awesome.
Knowing that my long runs have not been real good leading up to this half, I have been beating my legs up in other ways. They are sore and tired. I am hoping to pull all this together in the next few weeks and have a decent performance in the half. In a way, this is like my first one again. I just do not know what to expect. I know I can finish. I know that I can do okay, but I'm just not sure what okay means. Last year I knew that I could do a sub 1:50 if I was on my game. This year, I'm not sure. I'm getting excited to find out. Then on to bigger and other things.
I believe this is one of the reasons I still love running. I'm still surprised and amazed to see what my body will do on any given day. I have to stop writing now and find a way off this island.
Thursday, April 4, 2013
Training for Fun Running
Since the Indoor Masters meet a couple of weeks ago I'm now back in my groove and training again for the meets coming up in the summer. I'm using the pattern I laid out in my last post: one long run, one tempo run, one speed workout and one sprint workout combined with weight training. That leaves me two days of rest, or a day or two of easy running, each week. It's very apparent that I haven't done my long run in three weeks now and it shows most in my tempo runs.
I can't hold what should be only 85% pace for more than two miles. That's a little disappointing, but I've got time and it'll come to me if I keep at it all.
The sprint workout this week was better than last week and I wasn't nearly as sore. I felt completely recovered just two days after that even though my tempo run was a little weak. We'll see how the 400's go tomorrow and my 10 mile run on Sunday morning.
I'm really psyched about the schedule and the variety of workouts I've found over the past year and now I get to put them into action. That 800 race has really bolstered my confidence in my plan and I can't wait to see where it takes me this summer.
I always feel better when I'm running. I feel strong, free and a long way away from where I was just four and half years ago. Makes me smile.
Being in shape, being able to push through some discomfort and getting faster is just a fun, fun feeling.
As awesome as that is, it's not quite as fun as hearing my oldest step-daughter telling stories about how she's screwed up the Tooth Fairy a bunch of times.
For some reason that little transaction keeps slipping her mind in the middle of the night. One time she woke up and realized she didn't swap the tooth out so she runs into Ava's bedroom yelling, "Ava! Get up! I need your help! I can't wake your father up and he's going to be late for work!" Ava sort of stumbled out of bed looking at Amy like she was nuts, walked into her parents' bedroom only to find her dad was up and in the shower. Meanwhile, Amy was grabbing the tooth and shoving a dollar back in it's place.
Another time she walked into Ava's room as she was waking up with an armful of folded laundry and pretended to trip and threw it all over Ava. As she tried to dig herself out of the pile of clothes, Amy made the exchange again.
The best one, though, was when both parents realized they had blown it again when Ava came walking into the kitchen fighting back tears. You see Ava tends to take things very seriously and she holds onto information forever.
A couple of years ago to get Ava to brush her teeth better, and answer the question "what does the Tooth Fairy do with the teeth?" they told her that the Tooth Fairy used the teeth to pave the roads in it's home town. And to build beautiful, white buildings. The Tooth Fairy only gave money for the best, cleanest, well cared for teeth, so brush well!
Fast forward to that moment in the kitchen. Amy's having coffee and trying to wake up as she hears Ava. ..sniff....sniff....."I.....didn't......" she opens her hand slowly showing her tooth "...brush...well enough!"...SOB!!!
Amy hugs Ava and starts to yell, so Sean can hear upstairs. "Oh no honey! You brushed fine!" (getting louder) "The Tooth Fairy didn't ignore your tooth! We just had the house painted and the windows must be stuck! I'll be the Tooth Fairy TAPED YOUR DOLLAR TO THE FRONT DOOR!! Meanwhile Sean is tearing down the stairs with tape and a dollar yelling, "I'll check the door you guys stay in the kitchen!"
He barely got outside the door before Ava came running out of the kitchen hoping for all she's worth the Tooth Fairy really did get locked out.
I don't think Sean actually put the dollar on the door he just held it up for her to see.
Tragedy averted.
I can't wait till the next tooth comes out!
I can't hold what should be only 85% pace for more than two miles. That's a little disappointing, but I've got time and it'll come to me if I keep at it all.
The sprint workout this week was better than last week and I wasn't nearly as sore. I felt completely recovered just two days after that even though my tempo run was a little weak. We'll see how the 400's go tomorrow and my 10 mile run on Sunday morning.
I'm really psyched about the schedule and the variety of workouts I've found over the past year and now I get to put them into action. That 800 race has really bolstered my confidence in my plan and I can't wait to see where it takes me this summer.
I always feel better when I'm running. I feel strong, free and a long way away from where I was just four and half years ago. Makes me smile.
Being in shape, being able to push through some discomfort and getting faster is just a fun, fun feeling.
As awesome as that is, it's not quite as fun as hearing my oldest step-daughter telling stories about how she's screwed up the Tooth Fairy a bunch of times.
For some reason that little transaction keeps slipping her mind in the middle of the night. One time she woke up and realized she didn't swap the tooth out so she runs into Ava's bedroom yelling, "Ava! Get up! I need your help! I can't wake your father up and he's going to be late for work!" Ava sort of stumbled out of bed looking at Amy like she was nuts, walked into her parents' bedroom only to find her dad was up and in the shower. Meanwhile, Amy was grabbing the tooth and shoving a dollar back in it's place.
Another time she walked into Ava's room as she was waking up with an armful of folded laundry and pretended to trip and threw it all over Ava. As she tried to dig herself out of the pile of clothes, Amy made the exchange again.
The best one, though, was when both parents realized they had blown it again when Ava came walking into the kitchen fighting back tears. You see Ava tends to take things very seriously and she holds onto information forever.
A couple of years ago to get Ava to brush her teeth better, and answer the question "what does the Tooth Fairy do with the teeth?" they told her that the Tooth Fairy used the teeth to pave the roads in it's home town. And to build beautiful, white buildings. The Tooth Fairy only gave money for the best, cleanest, well cared for teeth, so brush well!
Fast forward to that moment in the kitchen. Amy's having coffee and trying to wake up as she hears Ava. ..sniff....sniff....."I.....didn't......" she opens her hand slowly showing her tooth "...brush...well enough!"...SOB!!!
Amy hugs Ava and starts to yell, so Sean can hear upstairs. "Oh no honey! You brushed fine!" (getting louder) "The Tooth Fairy didn't ignore your tooth! We just had the house painted and the windows must be stuck! I'll be the Tooth Fairy TAPED YOUR DOLLAR TO THE FRONT DOOR!! Meanwhile Sean is tearing down the stairs with tape and a dollar yelling, "I'll check the door you guys stay in the kitchen!"
He barely got outside the door before Ava came running out of the kitchen hoping for all she's worth the Tooth Fairy really did get locked out.
I don't think Sean actually put the dollar on the door he just held it up for her to see.
Tragedy averted.
I can't wait till the next tooth comes out!
Friday, March 29, 2013
Choices
This was a pretty good week of running. I did 13 miles on Sunday. That is the most since the marathon in October. It seems like it has taken me a long time to get back to this distance. Both physically and mentally. The physical thing started with the knee issue. That got better, but I couldn't seem to push it. Couldn't get past certain mileage. For a while, I thought I may have lost my love and desire for running. It seemed to coincide with my loss of feelings for my business. I love to build. I've spent years teaching myself the trade and the ins and outs of the business. I made many mistakes. My business plan was to make cabinets and sell them. Pretty simple, really. I jumped in and made lots of cabinets. I loved it and I grew. I got lots of jobs. Too many jobs. Knee deep in cabinets all the time. I got behind. I had some horrible customers. I had some employees that milked me dry. I was not the best manager. When I say that, I need to make it clear that I would love to work for someone like me. Someone who is passionate about what they do, and really only cared that the end product was good. I am a person who hates being told what to do. I'm quiet about it, but I hate being told what to do. Probably makes me not such a great employee. But my work ethic is strong. I will work like a mule. When the economy started to tank, I still had lots of jobs, but not lots of money. I told myself this is not why I got into the business. I did not want to be a manager who told people what to do and watched. I'm hands on. I want to be involved in the designing, the building, the installation, etc. I started the business with a cavernous workspace. Hardly any electricity, no showroom, no office. On my first appointment, I had a brochure of door styles and a piece of paper to take notes. I got the job. I started framing out a showroom and office and making displays. I worked all the time. It was exciting. Every time the phone rang it meant opportunity. Over time, I became a slave to the business. Payroll every week. Overhead expenses. I would dread when the phone rang. I wanted to throw my cell phone in the river. I finally had enough. I wanted to downsize. I wanted to be just me again. But how to finish all these jobs with no employees? Work all the time is how. I had to deal with the fact that I was going to be behind, but the product would be nice. I had some angry customers, but all the jobs got done. I am proud of all of them. The jobs, that is. I got stiffed royally a few times. Not getting paid at a time that I was already a bit sour on things really added to the fun. But, I knew it would all be over as long as I stuck to my plan of not taking a job just for the money and not getting dependent on an employee or any other help. This process took about two long years. I finally cleared the slate around December of last year...2012. I took a part time job. Not because I didn't have work, but to see what it was like to do something else. A couple days a week. I like the job. It is easy. Just go to work, do my thing and go home. Rinse and repeat. It was a bit hard to balance that with the business at first, but I started to get used to it. I thought maybe I should just get out of the business entirely.
My running during the last few years sort of became my sanity. I would run when I could fit it in. I'd save my Saturday mornings for the running group. I would almost always work after the run, but I wouldn't schedule anything until I had run. I remember having an appointment after a 13 mile run a few years ago and I could barely stand up. I am in much better shape now, but then 13 miles was monumental. I had to ask them if it was okay if I leaned on their table. I explained that I was training for a half. I would laugh sometimes at what I thought was going on in people's minds. Here's this cabinet guy who could barely walk and he's saying he is going to do a half marathon. He has to be full of crap. Anyway...my worst days in the business sort of coincided with my best days of running. 2012 had me dreading work yet I was pr'ing in every race I entered. The year ended with the marathon in October, running wise. Business wise, it was December.
I still don't blame my knee issue on running. My knees have gotten much stronger since I have been running more in the last few years. I blame my job for my knee issues. Kneeling, carrying...whatever. But, my knee was hurting for a long time. Did the marathon hurt it? Did the job hurt it? Both. probably, but for the first time, I could not do both. I needed to take a break from running. Because of the business. If I can't walk, I can't make money. Two things that I loved to do were hurting me. One financially and physically and the other physically. I considered quitting both.
My part time job offered me a full time position this week. I had a few days to think about it. My running, to me anyway, pretty much was not going well. I was thinking why bother anymore. I can lift weights, and do other things. Then, this week happened. 13 miles and it felt good. Sprint work a few days later and that felt really good. 5 miles and dinner with some great friends on Wednesday, and today another 6 with more great people. After my run today, I installed a bathroom vanity that I custom made. My customer told me what nice work I do. I called the part time people and told them that I was going to stay part time. I've decided to stick with the business and the running. I have way too much invested in both to quit.
I've been reading a book by Og Mandino. The Greatest Salesman in the World is its name. I haven't read a motivational book since my days in the mortgage business, but I thought I could use it. Here is a quote that I like from it.
"I will live this day as if it is my last. And what shall I do with this last precious day which remains in my keeping? First, I will seal up its container of life so that not one drop spills itself upon the sand. I will waste not a moment mourning yesterday's misfortunes, yesterday's defeats, yesterday's aches of the heart, for why should I throw good after bad?
Can sand flow upward in the hour glass? Will the sun rise where it sets and set where it rises? Can I relive the errors of yesterday and right them? Can I call back yesterday's wounds and make them whole? Can I become younger than yesterday? Can I take back the evil that was spoken, the blows that were struck, the pain that was caused? No. Yesterday is buried forever and I will think of it no more.
I will live this day as if it is my last."
Now, I've got to get some sleep. I have to run in the morning and I have lots of shit to build.
My running during the last few years sort of became my sanity. I would run when I could fit it in. I'd save my Saturday mornings for the running group. I would almost always work after the run, but I wouldn't schedule anything until I had run. I remember having an appointment after a 13 mile run a few years ago and I could barely stand up. I am in much better shape now, but then 13 miles was monumental. I had to ask them if it was okay if I leaned on their table. I explained that I was training for a half. I would laugh sometimes at what I thought was going on in people's minds. Here's this cabinet guy who could barely walk and he's saying he is going to do a half marathon. He has to be full of crap. Anyway...my worst days in the business sort of coincided with my best days of running. 2012 had me dreading work yet I was pr'ing in every race I entered. The year ended with the marathon in October, running wise. Business wise, it was December.
I still don't blame my knee issue on running. My knees have gotten much stronger since I have been running more in the last few years. I blame my job for my knee issues. Kneeling, carrying...whatever. But, my knee was hurting for a long time. Did the marathon hurt it? Did the job hurt it? Both. probably, but for the first time, I could not do both. I needed to take a break from running. Because of the business. If I can't walk, I can't make money. Two things that I loved to do were hurting me. One financially and physically and the other physically. I considered quitting both.
My part time job offered me a full time position this week. I had a few days to think about it. My running, to me anyway, pretty much was not going well. I was thinking why bother anymore. I can lift weights, and do other things. Then, this week happened. 13 miles and it felt good. Sprint work a few days later and that felt really good. 5 miles and dinner with some great friends on Wednesday, and today another 6 with more great people. After my run today, I installed a bathroom vanity that I custom made. My customer told me what nice work I do. I called the part time people and told them that I was going to stay part time. I've decided to stick with the business and the running. I have way too much invested in both to quit.
I've been reading a book by Og Mandino. The Greatest Salesman in the World is its name. I haven't read a motivational book since my days in the mortgage business, but I thought I could use it. Here is a quote that I like from it.
"I will live this day as if it is my last. And what shall I do with this last precious day which remains in my keeping? First, I will seal up its container of life so that not one drop spills itself upon the sand. I will waste not a moment mourning yesterday's misfortunes, yesterday's defeats, yesterday's aches of the heart, for why should I throw good after bad?
Can sand flow upward in the hour glass? Will the sun rise where it sets and set where it rises? Can I relive the errors of yesterday and right them? Can I call back yesterday's wounds and make them whole? Can I become younger than yesterday? Can I take back the evil that was spoken, the blows that were struck, the pain that was caused? No. Yesterday is buried forever and I will think of it no more.
I will live this day as if it is my last."
Now, I've got to get some sleep. I have to run in the morning and I have lots of shit to build.
Sunday, March 24, 2013
Racing Over Your Head
I knew when I signed up for the Masters Indoor Nationals that I would be facing some really good competition. Last year I ran in a Regional meet up in Delaware and got third in my age group in the mile, but there were only four people in it that day. I ran a 5:52 in the mile and the first two guys ran just about 5 flat! That opened my eyes some so this year I decided to just enter the 800 since I really wasn't ready for that distance back then.
Yesterday as I walked into the Prince George's Sports and Learning Complex up in Landover, MD I realized my eyes hadn't been opened at all.
After parking my car I met a guy getting out of his car and he was quite obviously a distance runner. Just had that look along with the shoes and warm ups. He said, "Hi," and commented about how far the walk was going to be to the complex. He'd been here the day before to check it out since one of his races was today, the 4x800 relay.
"You run the 800?" I asked, "that's what I'm running."
"What age group?" he asked me.
"45 to 49."
"Hey, I've got the world record for that age group!"
I had just met "Salli" Allah. This guy ran a 1:54 back when he was 46. He's now over 65 and his team was going for the world record in the 4 x 800 later in the day. He turned in a 2:21. Holycow.
And the world record holders, American record holders, national champions, world champions and even several medalists from the Olympics, just kept coming. Turns out this is one of the biggest meets in the country and its open to international competitors to make it even tougher! Sheesh.
Earlier in the week I had gotten to see my seeding and the times of the other entrants in my race and age group. You know what happens when you sign up for a National Championship meet, you've only barely broken into the top 50 in your event and 16 guys sign up for the same race?
You're getting 17th.
And I knew that was where I was winding up. I did not belong at this meet.
That feeling was confirmed when Sal and I walked in the door. He showed me where the packet pick-up was and I said I wanted to poke my head into the field house and see the place.
Yesterday as I walked into the Prince George's Sports and Learning Complex up in Landover, MD I realized my eyes hadn't been opened at all.
After parking my car I met a guy getting out of his car and he was quite obviously a distance runner. Just had that look along with the shoes and warm ups. He said, "Hi," and commented about how far the walk was going to be to the complex. He'd been here the day before to check it out since one of his races was today, the 4x800 relay.
"You run the 800?" I asked, "that's what I'm running."
"What age group?" he asked me.
"45 to 49."
"Hey, I've got the world record for that age group!"
Sal Allah meets Ed!
I had just met "Salli" Allah. This guy ran a 1:54 back when he was 46. He's now over 65 and his team was going for the world record in the 4 x 800 later in the day. He turned in a 2:21. Holycow.
And the world record holders, American record holders, national champions, world champions and even several medalists from the Olympics, just kept coming. Turns out this is one of the biggest meets in the country and its open to international competitors to make it even tougher! Sheesh.
Earlier in the week I had gotten to see my seeding and the times of the other entrants in my race and age group. You know what happens when you sign up for a National Championship meet, you've only barely broken into the top 50 in your event and 16 guys sign up for the same race?
You're getting 17th.
And I knew that was where I was winding up. I did not belong at this meet.
That feeling was confirmed when Sal and I walked in the door. He showed me where the packet pick-up was and I said I wanted to poke my head into the field house and see the place.
Wow. I'm running here...
The facility is huge and crowded with people moving around all over the place. Very exciting and a rush to be in, but overwhelming when I thought about the fact I had to get down there and run in front of everyone and get last. I got the shivers...
I got my packet, bought my shirt and then hunted around to find my teammates and coaches. I found Keith Witherspoon just about to start his 60 meter race. Keith went to UVA and is always ranked in the top 10 in the country in his age groups in the long jump, triple jump and the 60 indoors. He's over 60 and still a serious beast.
I mean look at the back on that guy!
He got second in the 60 and in the triple jump this year, and coached me as well. He told me that "some guys will have the race of their lives," while poking me in the chest, "and other guys will fall apart," as he spread his arms out like that's what will happen to everyone else.
I watched a couple of other members of our team compete then headed up to Annapolis to watch my niece in a softball game and then spend the night at my mom and step-dad's place.
The whole night I was running my workouts through my head thinking that best I could hope for was a 2:30. And I didn't know how I could do that with my fastest 400 in a workout being a 1:13. I had done all the stuff that I had read about and added the sprint work that Spoon and Kaestner got me into to move up my top end speed, but I wasn't feeling confident. I knew I could beat a 2:38, no problem, but I was beginning to tell myself that I'd be happy with a 2:34.
When I got to the meet and was warming up I saw several people I had met at other races over the last couple of years, shook hands and said "good luck" as I kept picturing myself staying with the back of the pack as long as I could. And while I was talking to myself Remus Medley gave me a head nod so I went over to say, "hey." I met him once just a couple of years ago at a meet in Richmond so I reminded him of that and we shook hands. He is in the M40 group and is a sub-5 miler and runs the 800 close to 2 flat.
He asked what I thought I could do and I told him my guess and a little about my workouts, but he said, "you ran a 1:13 as your last rep in a 10 x 400? How much rest?"
"About 90 seconds."
"And your last hard workout?"
"A 5 x 400 with three to four minutes rest and the last two being 1:15's."
"You'll do a 2:30. Got to. Your workouts say so."
He was so matter of fact and confident about it, that I thought that McMillan workout plan must be dead on because it said the same thing. I felt better.
Turns out only 13 guys showed up for the event, and in looking at the field it was the 12 fastest and me.
When they called us to the track I got to line up next to a guy named Khalid Mulazim. They introduced him listing off his national championships and age group records in the 400 and whatnot. All I knew was that he was this 6'2" 190 pound superhero looking guy. This is him from the web.
Yeah. There are pictures of him on the web.
So I look up at this monster, stick out my hand and say, "good luck and have fun!"
"This is just for fun," he said seriously then smiled, "I've never run this event before."
I didn't feel any better since he could run the 400 in 50 seconds flat.
They gave us our instructions and called us to the line. I felt remarkably calm. I told myself to just relax the first 100 and fall in with the back of the pack. Don't burn it up in the first lap. Just stay close.
The gun sounded and away we went. And, DAMN did the front guys go. I got left back immediately and then had to accelerate just to stay up, but I caught myself and slowed my chase so I would just stay with the last two or three guys in front of me. We came to the end of the first lap and the big clock (they have a big clock like the meets on TV because this a big meet like the ones on TV) and it just clicked to 35 as I passed it. I felt good and kept my breathing slow and deep as I stayed with only two guys ahead of me now, thinking that my first 200 in my fastest 400 workouts were 36's and that 10 x 200 workout I was only doing 34's and those felt hard!
But that one didn't feel hard. I cruised around and watched the clock as I finished the first 400 and it was on 1:09 as I got to it, clicking to 1:10 just out of the corner of my eye.
Now I was scared.
I felt okay. A little winded, but that was 5 seconds faster than it should have been. I was scared I wasn't going to be able to put two 1:15's back to back and here I just did the first one in 1:10. Stupid.
Except that I was breathing well and my legs weren't burning yet. I was okay. Slowing some, but okay. My fear had me slow down in the third 200 but so did the guys ahead of me. They weren't getting any further ahead and then all of a sudden I saw the guy right in front of me pogo stick off the track as he pulled his hamstring. I felt bad for the guy, but had to make up some room between me and the next one ahead of me, so I started to push some as we got to the bell lap.
That's a very cool moment hearing that bell and knowing there's only one to go.
I pushed a little and felt my legs respond. My lungs were good, but I was breathing hard now. Still, I kept trying to accelerate and I began closing on the guy.
We got to the beginning of the last turn and he had four or five strides on me.
I dropped my hands and thought, "take off!" and my legs said, "Okay!"
I closed on the guy so fast I had to move out to the second lane to go by. Even with the extra distance I knew I had come on so fast he was not going to be able to get me back. As I passed him I drifted halfway into the first lane again so he'd have to go wide if wanted by, but he wasn't coming and I was closing on the guy ahead of me.
I kept expecting to feel that tightness in my stomach when I'm gonna hork from exertion, but it wasn't there. My training was right and I was ready for this race.
I looked to the left as I drove hard across the finish line and saw that 2:24.
I couldn't believe it!
Friends got pictures near the finish, though they were blurry, and then my daughter took a picture of the board.
The Kick
The Finish (left him!)
The Time
When I got to the bleachers Spoon and Kaestner were saying, "we told you! we told you!" And they had.
I still got absolutely crushed by the leaders of this race, it was won in 2:02, but my confidence in how the sprint work had helped me out was soaring. I had just cut 16 seconds off of my fastest 800 from last year, and it turned out that time just placed me in the Top 25 in Masters Rankings for the 2013 Indoor Season! There are still a couple of meets in different parts of the country going on so I might get pushed out, but for today I'm ranked 23rd. Big Smile!!
I feel like I can still improve on that and get in there with "the big boys" if I can figure out how to balance the rest and work stuff. But it's getting clearer. Sprint and weights once a week, one long run per week, one tempo run per week. Now to see if I can do an additional speed workout and still get enough rest in there to recover and keep making gains.
Regardless. I can't wait to keep working at it!
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Rest is an important part of exercise
I took a couple of days off.
My hips hurt, my legs felt tired and during my last few runs
I’ve had little pains show up. Both
Achilles tendons have felt hot or tight here and there. My glutes, or at least that tendon at the top
of the hamstring, definitely have a little inflammation thing going. With the intensity of my training the last
two months along with all the heavy work I’ve been doing around the house on
nights and weekends had taken its toll.
None of this is anything I couldn’t ignore and keep
going. I’m sure I could cut my pace back
quite a bit on my easy days, still keep my mileage up, and heal up just fine,
but these are things I shouldn’t
ignore.
My coach during my “comeback”, Robin, once told me that
during the peak times of her training she actually set her schedule over a two
week period as opposed to weekly. That
way she could keep speed workouts at least ten days apart to allow her body
time to fully recover and adapt. I’ve
really fought that advice. I keep laying
stuff out by the week and definitely squeeze those HIIT (High Intensity
Interval Training) runs closer than seven days apart. I’ve had some weeks when I did two of those
workouts. I’m pretty sure I do that
because I never put them that far apart when I was 18, so why should I now?
Because I’m 49, not 18, that’s why.
I’ve gotten much faster than I was in January, but I feel
like I’m struggling now as opposed to feeling stronger. Not the way I should be feeling with less
than two weeks to my first competition.
So I took these two days to just rest the legs and
joints, and it’s time to lay out my training to get me through May, June and
July anyways. I’m going to try and pay
more attention to the spacing of my workouts and force myself to go easier on
my “easy” days. The trick is figuring
out what to do on the days that I’m not planning anything intense.
I’ve found precious little that talks about anything other
than specific workouts that will build endurance, speed or stamina. There’s plenty out there on workout ideas and
plans, but the workouts always add up to something like 10 to 15 miles of
running and then they just toss in a weekly mileage total of 30 to 40 with no
explanation of how you get there. A
couple of ten mile runs? Four 5 mile runs?
What?
I do have one good source, 10K & 5K Running, Training, & Racing: The Running Pyramid by David Holt,
and he actually lays out nice schedules that show what to do
each week for about a year in order to peak for a one month period for
those types of events. That’s
helpful. He only runs four days a week, but other folks I read suggest five days a week. I think I'm finding out that I should stick to four ...
So I've had two days off and tomorrow morning I get on the track again to do a pyramid workout. 400, 800, 1200, 800, 400. This will help with my stamina (endurance at speed) since that's where I feel the weakest right now. After that I'll have a couple of fartlek runs, then real easy to nothing by the middle of next week.
Sunday morning is the 800.
And I'll be wearing these!!
I was not in the market for racing spikes, I have a pair and seriously how many does an old guy with this hobby need?, but I had won an award from GM for work and that came with a gift card. Just a couple of days after getting the award notification I got an email from a member of our track team and these babies were on sale for $20!! So I added two more pairs that were on sale and am donating my two older pairs to the thrift store in Manteo.
Here are the other two pairs. One for shorter, faster training runs and 10K or longer races...
and the others for longer training runs.
Now to just lay out what all those runs will be over the summer....
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
The story that should not be told
Bob
Okay. Here is the thing. My knee hurts. It has since the marathon. I have been running since then, but it has not been the same. It will get better. It does when I rest it, but what exactly is rest? Here is my philosophy. I have an active job and am on my feet all day, so I can't really rest. Therefore, if I can't really rest, I may as well run. This has worked in the past, but not so much recently. Frustrating. I did not run in an event on Saturday in order to rest it and not aggravate it more. Guess what, it felt better. But...and this is a big ole but. I am totally aggravated. Not running, even for a few days makes me mad. I'm like an angry bear that got his salmon taken away. The salmon is right there, I can taste it almost, but it got away. Or the bear can taste it. I get all mixed up in these analogies, or metaphors, or whatever they are. Am I the bear? Or am I like the bear? Or, am I the salmon. Or, since I am toxic, am I salmonella? It reminds me of the old story, Salmonella and the Seven Dwarfs. Salmonella's evil stepsisters would not let her run with her seven dwarf running buddies and she turned into a pumpkin at midnight. Right in front of a prince. So close to marrying a prince and she turned into a pumpkin. Come to think of it, I could be the seven dwarfs. When I can't run, I turn into the Sybill of dwarfs. 7 personalities of non running fairy tale dwarfs. Wimpy, Grumpy, Gimpy, Tubby, Sobby, Ingy and Rex. In addition, I start to get mad at other runners. I typically love all runners. So much fun. So happy. Improving. Running. Running, etc. But when I am not running, I think, "why are they running? Where do they think they are going? They are going to hurt their knee. Running is bad for you." I feel, in my case anyway, that the whole being smart and listening to my body thing is not my deal. Remember Woody Hayes and his three yards and a cloud of dust philosophy? Mine is close to that, except it is "put your head down, stupid, and run straight." The point of the whole thing is that I will tell you and anyone else that rest is good. And it is. In all seriousness, I am actually kind of careful when I run. I have been injured before to the point of not being able to run. I made that better. I have figured out what works for me and how to work around certain pains. I said I would not let that happen again. This one kind of snuck up on me. I don't consider it an injury, but rather something that is slowing me down to a degree. I am at the point in my life that I do not want to slow down. I want to keep getting faster. I got away from some of my core workouts. My strengthening workouts. I gained weight. None of this is good for someone with some pre-existing problems. I'm fixing it. Getting stronger, watching what I eat and concentrating on my form. The bottom line is that this pumpkin wants to be a princess again. I really need some new slippers too, but that is a story for another day.
Okay. Here is the thing. My knee hurts. It has since the marathon. I have been running since then, but it has not been the same. It will get better. It does when I rest it, but what exactly is rest? Here is my philosophy. I have an active job and am on my feet all day, so I can't really rest. Therefore, if I can't really rest, I may as well run. This has worked in the past, but not so much recently. Frustrating. I did not run in an event on Saturday in order to rest it and not aggravate it more. Guess what, it felt better. But...and this is a big ole but. I am totally aggravated. Not running, even for a few days makes me mad. I'm like an angry bear that got his salmon taken away. The salmon is right there, I can taste it almost, but it got away. Or the bear can taste it. I get all mixed up in these analogies, or metaphors, or whatever they are. Am I the bear? Or am I like the bear? Or, am I the salmon. Or, since I am toxic, am I salmonella? It reminds me of the old story, Salmonella and the Seven Dwarfs. Salmonella's evil stepsisters would not let her run with her seven dwarf running buddies and she turned into a pumpkin at midnight. Right in front of a prince. So close to marrying a prince and she turned into a pumpkin. Come to think of it, I could be the seven dwarfs. When I can't run, I turn into the Sybill of dwarfs. 7 personalities of non running fairy tale dwarfs. Wimpy, Grumpy, Gimpy, Tubby, Sobby, Ingy and Rex. In addition, I start to get mad at other runners. I typically love all runners. So much fun. So happy. Improving. Running. Running, etc. But when I am not running, I think, "why are they running? Where do they think they are going? They are going to hurt their knee. Running is bad for you." I feel, in my case anyway, that the whole being smart and listening to my body thing is not my deal. Remember Woody Hayes and his three yards and a cloud of dust philosophy? Mine is close to that, except it is "put your head down, stupid, and run straight." The point of the whole thing is that I will tell you and anyone else that rest is good. And it is. In all seriousness, I am actually kind of careful when I run. I have been injured before to the point of not being able to run. I made that better. I have figured out what works for me and how to work around certain pains. I said I would not let that happen again. This one kind of snuck up on me. I don't consider it an injury, but rather something that is slowing me down to a degree. I am at the point in my life that I do not want to slow down. I want to keep getting faster. I got away from some of my core workouts. My strengthening workouts. I gained weight. None of this is good for someone with some pre-existing problems. I'm fixing it. Getting stronger, watching what I eat and concentrating on my form. The bottom line is that this pumpkin wants to be a princess again. I really need some new slippers too, but that is a story for another day.
Monday, November 26, 2012
I Did It
The Confessions of A Former Runner Turned Non-Runner Who Was Dragged Into Running the Marine Corps 10K by His High School Friends
By Darren
About 14 months ago, I
met up with some friends of mine from Mt. Vernon High School. Yes, we are all
aging extremely well (if I may say so myself), and I noticed the common thread
was that we all were still active and exercising. If you underestimate the
importance of doing both - staying active and exercising - we've all seen where
that leads. I digress, and will step off the soap box now...
In the late 1970s, I
was a Mount Vernon track stud, along with Ed Montgomery and Bob Nourse, the
founders of this illustrious blog. Unlike Ed's lifelong love affair with
distance running, my path ran more like Bob's...middle distance runner who used
to wish evil things upon MVHS track coach, Ken Gaudreault, when it was
suggested we run over 1 mile. We'd complain the whole time, and act like we
were the Greek messenger sent to Marathon, Greece (and subsequently died upon
running the 26 miles). To put it mildly, we didn't run much distance, and, I
must confess, really didn't know how.
So, when my dear
friends (who I wished evil things upon when they tried to talk me into running
the MCM10K) suggested I run with them, I initially said "No", and
probably looked like a toddler throwing a tantrum at the same time. I left the
restaurant that evening wishing them well, but not wanting any part of their
proposal.
Well, I am a lifelong
recreational (some competitive leagues "back in the day") softball
and basketball player. I also like a challenge. I also hate to be challenged,
and fail. I'm also about 10-15 pounds overweight...or was at the time. Put them
together, and you have me messaging them shortly after that I wanted to run
with them in this year's MCM10K. Great! Except, I have no endurance, and really
never have. Damn!
However, I had a year
in my favor, a challenge in my head, and friends that I would not let down. So,
first things first...buy some running shoes, and dip into the pool slowly. I
have trained for things before, and know that going out and running a few miles
the first day, or pushing too hard leads to injury, dejection, and quitting.
My wife and kids
laughed at me when I ran around the block a couple of times a week for a month.
The wife runs all the time, one daughter lettered every running season possible
in high school, and the other daughter is a competitive soccer player...so, all
run, and all have endurance - and the will to tease. All of their good-willed
teasing just provided motivation...so on to running an entire mile in one day!
Well, you know the
story, as all of you reading this are probably runners. The really discouraging
moments, though, came during basketball and softball seasons, when little
injuries popped up, or when the work/family schedules consumed my time. It may
not be a problem for someone training to run regularly, but the "work
stoppages" made it really difficult to get going again.
This is where I will
recommend to anyone getting started in running that, to do this right, you need
a support structure of runners. They're infectious, energetic, motivated, and
generally wonderful people, who have had a lot of "alone time" to
think about things. It was wonderful to receive the advice, motivation, and
positive thoughts from my runner friends, and it pushed me through beautifully.
Let's make a long,
boring story a bit shorter, and jump to a month before the MCM10K. I still
hadn't really progressed past 3-3.5 miles. Finally, Tina sent me a training
schedule for one month out, and Shelli, Teri, Carol, Jon, Bob, and Ed were
wonderful in asking me how things were going. Exactly, 3 weeks out, I had an
epiphany, and it boiled down to me not wanting to disappoint them - and myself.
So, I gutted out a 5.5 mile run, which in the grand scheme of things was more mental
than physical, and knew I was ready.
The big MCM10K
weekend: First, let me just say that red wine and gourmet appetizers are not
good "carb loading", but that's another post...
After riding the train
with Shelli, Teri, Carol, and my new BFF, Karl, it was time to do this thing.
Miles 1-3 were a little sketchy, but the crowd sort of sweeps you up in it all,
and keeps you going. It was at this point that I realized that to train for a
city run across bridges, highway ramps, etc., that you MUST put some hill work
into your training. Sadly, I did not.
By the way, why do
they go out of the way to call it a 10K, if they're going to put mile markers
all along the course (not one marker with a "K" on it)? Anyway, miles
4-5 were a "bitch". They were lonely and they were hard, but having
about 1000 Marines, and other "motivators" is a total winner. It's
what made this race possible to finish, because it certainly wasn't my
magnificent training.
MCM10K
isn't all roses, however. Miles 5-6.2...designed by a Marine, I am sure. They
happen on Route 110, at the Pentagon, by Arlington Cemetery, and into the Iwo
Jima Marine Memorial...all uphill, progressing into this, what I thought to be
about a 30% uphill grade. Three thoughts popped into my head: 1. Hey, there's
Carol...catch up to Carol! 2. If all these amazing people in Arlington Cemetery
gave the ultimate sacrifice, the least I can do is shut up and finish the race.
3. The cheering of the race supporters was drowned out by the internal voices
of the friends that talked me into this in the first place. Finish and you'll
be one of them...for a day, at least.
Sunday, November 11, 2012
Turning a negative into lemonade
Bob -
I will admit that my running has been not so eventful for awhile. Some soreness, lots of work and other issues has kept me from exercising as much as I would like. I tend to beat myself up over this and other things in my life that disappoint me, until I can find some rationalization for everything. Then, I can somehow make myself feel better. In the past, I have referred to this phenomena as going into my man cave of denial. This is where everything is better than it seems. My happy place. It just isn't real, which may or may not make me crazy. But, like Freud used to say back when he was alive, "you ain't crazy if you don't think you are." I really don't know if I agree with that, because my personal opinion is that those of us who admit that we are a bit nuts are far more sane than those who think they aren't. When and if I complete my time travel mechanism, I am going to go back and have a talk with Freud and maybe have a cigar and some scotch. What does this have to do with running? Who knows? The point of it all is that I haven't run enough as of late and I feel a bit out of sorts. So, I analyzed the situation and came up with some stuff that I can feel good about. Instead of feeling bad about not running so much, I figured that I will focus on the positives. For example, on Thursday, I wasn't even hungry, yet I was able to eat a double cheeseburger from Wendy's. I then pushed myself to consume all the fries as well. All this while driving. I got my head stuck in the bag driving 65 mph trying to get the last fry and was still able to control the car. This takes tremendous athletic ability and cat like concentration...or reflexes. Whatever, I did it. What I don't like to talk about, because it makes me seem like I am bragging, is that I ate the burger without having any ketchup or salt. Consuming the whole thing without it having its full flavor potential was tough, but I got through it. I pushed myself like I do for the last mile of a half marathon. Think of the finish line. Think of the medal. In this case, my medal was the tomato I found plastered to my sweatshirt a few hours later. I display that tomato with my marathon and half marathon medals. On the wall of my office. The great thing about a tomato medal is that you don't need a hanger for it. You just throw it on the wall and there it sticks. I did a double workout that day as well. Some good friends and I ran under the stars and then went to Five Guys to eat. I had another double cheeseburger. With everything. As bad as my first double cheeseburger was, the second was incredibly awesome. Because I was sitting at a table, there was no medal. Every morsel made it into my stomach. Good, good day of eating. So, my running has been bad, but I am eating like a champion. Chariots of fire filled with fries and donuts.
Today, I decided that I have had enough of riding the gravy train. The chuck wagon of self pity is pulling off the trail and I am putting on the running shoes. I have been running, but my diet has been pretty awful and I can feel it in my workouts. In all seriousness, I love to eat. I am not going to stop, but I have been going crazy for a while. Too many calories, not enough exercise. Up to recently, I have been able to enjoy a lot of the food I like and work it off through running and strength training. I said to myself today that this is it. Time to get back on track. As Freud loved to say, "sometimes a cheeseburger is just a cheeseburger, but with the right amount of condiments, it's a meal." He was a strange guy.
I will admit that my running has been not so eventful for awhile. Some soreness, lots of work and other issues has kept me from exercising as much as I would like. I tend to beat myself up over this and other things in my life that disappoint me, until I can find some rationalization for everything. Then, I can somehow make myself feel better. In the past, I have referred to this phenomena as going into my man cave of denial. This is where everything is better than it seems. My happy place. It just isn't real, which may or may not make me crazy. But, like Freud used to say back when he was alive, "you ain't crazy if you don't think you are." I really don't know if I agree with that, because my personal opinion is that those of us who admit that we are a bit nuts are far more sane than those who think they aren't. When and if I complete my time travel mechanism, I am going to go back and have a talk with Freud and maybe have a cigar and some scotch. What does this have to do with running? Who knows? The point of it all is that I haven't run enough as of late and I feel a bit out of sorts. So, I analyzed the situation and came up with some stuff that I can feel good about. Instead of feeling bad about not running so much, I figured that I will focus on the positives. For example, on Thursday, I wasn't even hungry, yet I was able to eat a double cheeseburger from Wendy's. I then pushed myself to consume all the fries as well. All this while driving. I got my head stuck in the bag driving 65 mph trying to get the last fry and was still able to control the car. This takes tremendous athletic ability and cat like concentration...or reflexes. Whatever, I did it. What I don't like to talk about, because it makes me seem like I am bragging, is that I ate the burger without having any ketchup or salt. Consuming the whole thing without it having its full flavor potential was tough, but I got through it. I pushed myself like I do for the last mile of a half marathon. Think of the finish line. Think of the medal. In this case, my medal was the tomato I found plastered to my sweatshirt a few hours later. I display that tomato with my marathon and half marathon medals. On the wall of my office. The great thing about a tomato medal is that you don't need a hanger for it. You just throw it on the wall and there it sticks. I did a double workout that day as well. Some good friends and I ran under the stars and then went to Five Guys to eat. I had another double cheeseburger. With everything. As bad as my first double cheeseburger was, the second was incredibly awesome. Because I was sitting at a table, there was no medal. Every morsel made it into my stomach. Good, good day of eating. So, my running has been bad, but I am eating like a champion. Chariots of fire filled with fries and donuts.
Today, I decided that I have had enough of riding the gravy train. The chuck wagon of self pity is pulling off the trail and I am putting on the running shoes. I have been running, but my diet has been pretty awful and I can feel it in my workouts. In all seriousness, I love to eat. I am not going to stop, but I have been going crazy for a while. Too many calories, not enough exercise. Up to recently, I have been able to enjoy a lot of the food I like and work it off through running and strength training. I said to myself today that this is it. Time to get back on track. As Freud loved to say, "sometimes a cheeseburger is just a cheeseburger, but with the right amount of condiments, it's a meal." He was a strange guy.
Ed's lunch on Friday: Double Cheeseburger, fries, Egg Nog Shake, and a diet coke.
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