Faced the past, had a blast

Yesterday me and AG did our usual end of the week run in Central Park. We returned to the Bridle trail in Central Park that we ran a few months ago. That previous run was difficult for me. I wore a non-breathable rain jacket and between the heat from that plus the very giving mud-caked trail I had a hard time with pace and distance. Much has improved since then, the weather was cooperative but very warm and the trail was in much better shape than before. We ran the trail and circled the reservoir for a total distance of 4.6 miles (per Garmin) and 4.2 miles (per Central Park map). It was a great run. We didn't push ourselves and while our pace was moderate we had quite the workout. I was also able to carry on a conversation with a minimum of huffing and puffing. That may have had more to do with our pace than my fitness but I'll take it. Near the end AG decided to step up her pace and I watched her take off at a speed I could not match. I did try to keep her in my sight and though she finished well ahead I didn't embarrass myself.

This morning I switched my plans for a Bethpage run because the US Open has taken over that location. I was pressed for time so I did a 3.8 mile run in my neighborhood. I took a different route than normal and followed the western and northern boundaries of the neighborhood running parallel to a couple of major roads. The northern section has a decent hill that gave me pause but turned out to be much easier than I'd anticipated. I tested the QStarz sports recorder for the first time and was knocked out by the rich amount of information that it provided (click on the above picture to see an example of how it interfaces with Google Earth). I'm going to live with it for a couple of weeks and then post a full review on Runner's Tech Review. I'll use it again tomorrow when I hope to cover at least 5 miles.

Rest, rain, rest, run!

I had high hopes for a pre-work day run in Central Park this morning. I'm trying to optimize my readiness for my race on Sunday and I took yesterday as a rest day. I planned on a final training run today before resting again tomorrow. We had rainy weather this morning and while I actually enjoy running in the rain I didn't think it would be nice to spend the rest of the business day looking like a wet dog.

As I headed into the office I was disappointed to see the rain was coming down lightly but steady. I figured that I'd have to put off my morning run until later in the day. I made my way over to AG's office and she was already dressed for running. I tried to convince her to run later but she pointed to her calendar which showed meetings throughout the day. She said she was going to run with or without me so I gave in and changed into my running gear. It was rainy as we ran up town to Central Park but the air felt nice and cool. We started our timed run on the south end of the park and did one circuit around the lower loop which measured 1.76 miles. We ran at a fairly fast pace (8:30 overall) and I was happy that I was holding my own with AG - at least most of the time. Lately I've inhibited the pace when we've run but I think running in cool weather in the morning, for less than 2 miles, really helped. With our slower paced run from our office to the park we covered a total of 2.5 miles and it was a great final run before Sunday's 8K.

My concern that I'd look spent and soaked for the rest of the day was unfounded and I was very happy that AG shamed encouraged me into running despite the wet weather. I wish I could run in those same conditions on Sunday but the reports are saying 65 and partly cloudy. Come to think of it, that's not too bad either.

When all else fails blame the shoes

After watching the ever-changing weather yesterday we made a decision to head to Central Park at the end of the workday. It was still a bit misty and somewhat cool as we walked to the park and it seemed to be great conditions for a run. Adventure Girl led the way taking us on the Bridal trail along the western side. With respect to the weather I wore a light but non-breathable windbreaker over a short sleeve jersey and a hat. That turned out to be a mistake because the weather cleared soon after we started and I began to overheat very quickly. I also wore my Nike Kutu trail runners because of the rainy conditions and it was a good idea to have trail shoes since the running surface was muddy and uneven. I never really liked the Kutus that much, I bought them too small and while they are okay for shorter runs they aren't so good overall. Consequently, I had a tough time almost from the beginning and AG was gracious to stick with me even though I was maintaining a glacier-like pace around 10:00 per mile.

She had joked about being concerned about keeping up with me before we ran. That was not an issue and I have many things I could blame (clothes, shoes, heat, time of day) for my slow pace. In my defense it was a hilly course and I'm just not used to a surface like that. The intended course was about 4.5 miles but I had to stop at 4.3 miles (ave 9:53/mi) with the last half mile on a paved surface. My legs were tired during most of the run but I wasn't winded. We walked back to the office and it felt good. I had a great time and I wish I was a better running partner but now I know what I need to do in terms of preparing next time.

This morning I decided to do a relatively easy run to assuage my damaged ego and did a 3-mile run through my neighborhood. I felt pretty good and the difference between the Nike Turbulence 13s and Kutus was evident. I ran slowly compared to recent street runs finishing with an overall pace of 9:10. We went out to do some errands and while my wife shopped with the kids for summer swim clothes I tried on some running shoes. The place we were at had some good brands but not the high end shoes. I decided to pass on buying any of the shoes I tried although they were inexpensive but at the last minute I saw some New Balance 460 trail shoes on sale so I tried them and really liked the way they fit. I'm going to run with them tomorrow to see if they feel good running. If that's the case I might keep them at the office. I'm thinking about buying some shoes to replace the Turbulence 13s which are rolling up to 400 miles. I don't know if that's necessary since they still feel pretty good.

Today Adventure Girl is conducting a training session with her relay team on the trails in Prospect Park. I'm not sure she even broke a sweat yesterday so I think she'll be fine for that rigorous activity. My wife ran 30 minutes today which is very impressive and I'm hoping that we can get to the track again soon. I'm targeting at least 4 miles tomorrow. It would be great if these new shoes feel as good on the street as they do in my den.

Running for office

Over the past few years I've noticed another commuter who always gets up from his train seat as we head into the East River tunnel and then proceeds to do calf and leg stretches as we come into Penn Station. When the doors open he's already moving, bounding up the stairs on his way to work. I've recently noticed that this man wears running shoes and despite the fact that the rest of his wardrobe (coat, suit and tie) is all business I'm guessing that he runs to his office each day.

Although running to my office each day from Penn (approximately 1.3 miles) presents an opportunity to add more miles to my weekly total I don't think I'll follow his lead. There is merit to the concept but I don't need to show up at my building each day looking like a damp washcloth. I did a great pre-workday city run a few weeks ago but that was in cooler weather and we wore real running clothes. Tomorrow afternoon Adventure Girl and I have planned a run in Central Park late in the day. It's a 4 mile route that includes the reservoir. It sounds like a great way to end the work week and a good jumpstart to my weekend training. I'd like to start a running club with colleagues and members of my team because so many people from my office are runners. We've even joked about doing a staff meeting as a group run. Of course, it would be great if my company had showers available to people who wanted to break up their day with some exercise but in these days of cost cutting that's not likely.

NYC running: all is forgiven

This morning's workday started with a St. Patrick's Day run in Central Park organized by Adventure Girl as a kickoff to her Ragnar relay race in May. We gathered at Lululemon Athletica on 64th Street in Columbus Circle and after a brief review of our route we headed out for a 4K run. The weather was perfect for running and Lululemon provided a running trainer who guided us through the route and answered questions about technique. The course took us through Central Park where we encountered many other runners, bikers and some walkers. The run pace was about 9:00/mile but I got a little impatient and ran ahead for about a third of the run. I enjoyed running with other people, their pacing helped me regulate my stride and cadence and I discovered I can run and talk!

This wasn't a competitive run and considering that I had no shower option I fared pretty well. The combination of not wearing a running jacket and having moderately cool temperatures helped minimize the sweat level. AG and I considered a run back to the office but in the interest of time we hopped on the 1 train and made it in before many of our co-workers had arrived. It was one of the best running experiences I've had since returning to the sport and I hope to do more of this. I'm concerned about high temperatures as we move closer to summer. 90 degrees and no shower is bad combination for business...

My '90's running experience was not so good and I always blamed the inhospitality of the city for that. If I was exposed to conditions like this I might have viewed it much differently. What a great way to do a weekday run.