Showing posts with label walking. Show all posts
Showing posts with label walking. Show all posts

Friday, November 11, 2016

Neighborhood walkers explain Tuesday's results

Good decisions require good judgment  
Today's run (street): 3.2 miles

Happy Veteran's Day.  This is a holiday that actually means something and I always take the time to appreciate the men and women who have served our country. I'm disappointed that our country will soon be led by a man who has neither served nor sacrificed, but thinks it's okay to insult Gold Star families and expresses disrespect for war heroes, "because they got captured."

As I ran through my neighborhood this morning, I thought about Tuesday's election result and the fact that close to half of American voters voluntarily chose a woman-hating racist over his far more qualified opponent. That had made no sense to me until I rounded a corner and saw two people walking abreast on the right side of the street.

It clearly didn't occur to this pair that they had better, smarter and safer choices, such as the sidewalk. If they absolutely had to walk on the street, they had the option of staying on the left side where they could see oncoming cars rather than trust the drivers behind them. I'd never understood why people will make such clearly bad decisions until I saw the election results on Wednesday morning. I finally understand that many people just aren't smart enough to anticipate the consequence of their actions.

Do I think people who voted in the president-elect are stupid? How about people who walk on the right side of the road and trust that distracted drivers aren't going to run them down? That's not for me to say. But I will suggest that both are examples of bad judgment, something usually correlated to low intelligence.

Saturday, September 13, 2014

Lots of company on a neighborhood run

The neighborhood gang
Today's run (street): 5.3 miles

My schedule this week threw off my options for weekday morning runs. I've committed to running at least once during the week, plus on Friday mornings when I generally work from home. Yesterday required a trip into the office, so I missed that running opportunity. The only workout I've done since last Sunday was Thursday's 20 minute treadmill run that I did at a 4% grade.

I got home early on Friday and considered doing a run. We were expecting guests later in the afternoon so I decided not to do that. I didn't want to get sweaty and have to shower so close to when people were arriving. We had a nice evening that included my wife's college friend who she hadn't seen for almost 20 years.

This morning I got out early, happy to see that the rain would hold off until the afternoon. The temperature was in the low 60's and the heavy cloud cover blocked direct sun. These conditions brought out a lot of people, including dog walkers, run-walkers, walker walkers and runners. I saw the same woman in pink four different times along my route. It seemed as if she was running my exact route from the opposite direction.

I was pleased with the feel of my run. As usual, I started easy and picked up speed after a couple of miles. I'd planned to run between 3-4 miles so I'd be back before our weekend guests got up, but I felt so good I decided to run five-plus.

Tomorrow is supposed to be a better day weather-wise, and I'm looking forward to another early run. We have a big family event happening tonight so I'll have plenty of carbs to fuel my morning workout.

Tuesday, May 27, 2014

And all this time I thought I was running!

 It's official!
This past Sunday I wrote a post about my declining pace performance. I showed a graph with speeds in MPH based on GPS watch data. My Garmin often under-counts my distance, so the speeds on the graph are probably 3.2-4% slower than my actual average speed. I was a little surprised to see a comment that seemed targeted to the lowest pace on my graph. The comment said, "The official name of anything below 5.5 is 'walking.'''

This is good to know, because all this time when I was running 10-something paces for ten or more miles on the Bethpage trail, I thought I was actually running. But what about those race-walkers that reach paces in the 6:00/mile range? Very confusing. Technically, I believe it is considered running when both feet leave the ground, versus walking, where one foot always remains on the ground.

I know this commenter was just being sarcastic (if a little mean). Perhaps he/she can clear up some other questions for me, such as, "What's the official difference between rapping and singing?" In the meantime, I'm declaring anyone who calls themselves a runner to be one. And no matter what speed they actually run, it's still running.

Monday, May 26, 2014

SA Elite bargains: Cascadia, coat and curry

Trifecta
My new schedule doesn't provide much flexibility for running during the week, so I considered using my Monday rest day for my first workout of the week. I'll admit that I've taken it easy since the half marathon, running only three times last week for a total of 12 miles. That was due primarily to a lack of time in my work schedule, plus a couple of days that I'd planned for recovery.

The weather this morning was sunny and cool and I felt like getting outside. Despite having limited running time, I decided to walk around the neighborhood. It's a different experience walking roads that I usually run, and a little strange to be "the walker" when the occasional runner passes by. But when you walk, you notice details you never see on a run. You can also appreciate the smell of the spring air a lot more when you aren't focusing on using oxygen for fuel. I ended up covering about three miles. Very pleasant.

We didn't have a very Memorial Day themed holiday today, although we almost got caught in the middle of the Westbury parade. Our destination was The Gallery at Westbury Plaza on Old Country Road. This shopping center had four places of interest: SA Elite (for me), The Paper Source (for Mrs. ER and the kids), Trader Joe's and Noodles & Company.

I've been wanting to return to SA Elite, a Sports Authority specialty store that only carries adult running clothes, shoes and gear. My Brooks GTS-10's, that had a 600 mile career as my primary running shoe and perhaps another 800 miles as my weekend casual shoes, were due for replacement. I went looking for a shoe bargain, like the one I got on my Saucony Virratas last year.

As soon I walked in, I spotted a very nice Brooks running raincoat, but it was priced at $85. A lightweight coat like this is my white whale, and I've been looking a long time for a replacement for my ASICS rain jacket that has a broken zipper. Whenever I look at these jackets, they always seem to be too expensive, in weird remainder-type colors or either size small or XXL. I soon found an ASICS packable jacket priced at $40 but discounted to $29.95. This jacket had a hood (bonus), was available in my size, and looked good. Sold!

Next, I headed to the shoe section, first to the clearance section where I found a pair of Brooks Cascadia 7's priced at $39.99. They were a half size too large, but that would have been okay for wearing as a casual shoe. Unfortunately the Cascadia 7's were the color of vivid green camouflage and Mrs. ER rejected them for anything but running. After trying on a pair of well-priced ASICS Nimbus-14's that didn't fit as well as I'd hoped, I spotted a pair of Cascadia 8's in conservative blue and grey. $47.97 and my size. Ring 'em up!

After that, we headed next to Noodles & Company, where we could all have the genre of food we wanted as long as it was noodles. Or soup. Or salad. I had the Bangkok curry noodles. Fantastic. This is my new favorite place.

This was a great long weekend, with perfect weather. I'm not a fan of shopping, but today was really great. Now that I have the Cascadias, I'm definitely thinking trails next weekend.

Friday, January 31, 2014

The Federal Reserve workout

Watch your feet
Today's run (treadmill): 3.2 miles

I spent yesterday in the city and covered about 5.25 miles on foot. Most of that distance came from walking from the Financial District back to Penn. I was downtown for a meeting that included a tour of the Federal Reserve Bank, which is located on the quaintly named Maiden Lane. It was an interesting experience that I highly recommend. We got to see lots of gold bars and learned (happily not through this experience) that each bar weighs 12.4 kg and if you drop it on your foot, your foot will break. Apparently the Federal Reserve manages the nation's monetary policy and inflation as well, but I think it's mostly about moving gold bars on a cart between lockers.

Due to my schedule on Thursday, I wasn't able to run, but all that walking provided a good alternative. Today was the first day in a long time where the temperature rose above 40°. Even so, the roads still have snowbanks so I elected to run again on the treadmill.

The warmer weather provided some additional humidity that I appreciated every time I reached for the remote or touched part of the treadmill during my run. Lately the cold dry air has been causing huge shocks from the built up static electricity. It can get so bad that it resets or even shuts down the treadmill's display. Not much to report on today's run except to say it seemed to go by faster than normal. I had a call scheduled close to my projected finish time and, as things got close, I amped up the speed to complete my targeted distance.

I'm hoping to finally get outside for a run tomorrow and perhaps take on the northern section of the Bethpage bike trail. It's been a long time since I've run on pavement, but I'm sure it won't be hard to re-adapt my stride.

Thursday, January 9, 2014

Not the best excuse for skipping a run

Now where did I leave that phone?
After many months of intensive work, I brought a big project to a close yesterday. This involved me and my team giving a long presentation to our client in the city. Due to the timing, I didn't get a chance to run, but I did put in a lot of miles on foot. My victorious day was undercut when, on the train ride home, I realized that I'd left my phone somewhere in midtown. When I got home, I was thrilled to see an email from a friend saying she had my phone.

I had an important meeting in the city this morning but I'd planned to do a workout before I left. The missing phone complicated my schedule and I ended up skipping my run so I could catch an earlier train. I needed to get to my friend's office to pick it up before my first meeting. The walking that was required for me to get everywhere I needed to go around the city provided a quasi workout. It was certainly not the same as a run, but I covered a lot of miles.

The end result was another good day for business and a joyful reunion with my phone (try to get through a day in NYC without phone, email or text capabilities). The downside is that all the walking I did yesterday and today really roughed up and blistered the bottom of my feet. I'm hoping that the rain holds off tomorrow so I can get outside for a run. I'm counting on a pair of good wool running socks and the cushioning of my Saucony Virratas to get me through tomorrow's return to the road. As for my phone, it hasn't left my side.

Friday, November 22, 2013

Walking the walk because of the work

Love the concept
I'm wondering if my intense focus on work this week is what's causing my leg heaviness when I run. Last week, all my runs had good energy leading me to believe I was heading in the right direction in terms of race readiness. Both Tuesday's and Thursday's runs were disappointing and uncomfortable. I blame this week's work process because, in terms of activity, the past two weeks have been very different.

Last week  I spent every day moving, with a couple of high mileage days walking in the city on top of my running. This week it's been mostly conference calls and working on my laptop in my home office. It's important that I do it, but it's terrible in terms of movement. After a few days of tense muscles and not enough exercise, it's no wonder that my legs feel this way.

This morning I took a mid morning break and used the treadmill (it was cold and rainy outside). Instead of running, I set the speed to 4 MPH and walked about 40 minutes. No stress and no sweat, but it was a good way to shake out my leg muscles without straining them. The day grew intense after that, so I'm glad I took the opportunity when I had it. I'm thinking of doing another 30 minutes as I wind down the work week. There's a fine line between conditioning for fitness and honing the fitness that you have. I'm hoping that this taper strategy works for me on Sunday.

Friday, September 27, 2013

Knee problems? Don't blame running!

 
If you think walking is a better way to exercise than running because it's easier on your knees, you would be incorrect. That is according to a Canadian study that tested both the force and frequency of steps for runners and walkers. The New York Times published an article about this study on Wednesday. The conclusion stated, "Measured over a particular distance, 'running and walking are essentially indistinguishable,' in terms of the wear and tear they may inflict on knees."

I know a few people who claim that they used to run, but can't anymore, "because it hurt their knees." I have no doubt that they think that's true. I've always thought that knee problems are predetermined and would surface regardless of any sport that these people practiced. The article also quoted a doctor and kinesiology professor who said, "the study’s results intimate that running potentially could be beneficial against arthritis." I thought so!

Today my wife and I repeated last Friday's Bethpage experience with a 70 minute walk, primarily on the wooded trails. We alternated our walking with a few minutes of running. My wife runs 45 minutes a day on the treadmill, but she has never done a trail run. She loved the the spongy feel of the main trail and I took her on some of the less groomed paths within the interior sections. We walked the last couple of miles on the bike trail. I'm not sure how much ground we covered because I forget to bring my Fitbit.

Tomorrow I may return to Bethpage to run, using the metronome to try to further increase my cadence. It will also be an opportunity to run a few hills as I prepare for the long uphill climb on my upcoming 5K.

Friday, September 20, 2013

Minor taper violation at Bethpage

Today's workout (Bethpage bike trail walk): 4.4 miles

Tapering is harder than you'd think. Not hard in the sense that it takes any effort. It's really the opposite of that. Even someone who embraces downtime (like me) can find it difficult to be completely inactive. After focusing on training for a month, our bodies are tuned for action. At least they should be.

The morning was quiet on the business side, so my wife and I decided to head over to Bethpage State Park for a low impact walk on the bike trail. I figured that level of activity wouldn't significantly violate my taper, and it might just help shake out some built up lactic acid in my leg muscles. The weather was cool and sunny and we went south on the trail as far as the Beach St. exit. We're both brisk walkers, but we kept it at a comfortable pace today.

On the trail back, we talked about the number of cyclist we'd seen who weren't wearing helmets. I noticed the sign above that encouraged the use of helmets with the plea, "Do not lose your head." Good advice.

We'll be heading to the Laurel Ave school in Northport a little later today, so I can pick up my bib number and race bag. My family won't be joining me tomorrow, so I won't have any place to stow my race shirt in the morning. I could do the UPS baggage check but, with 5,700 other runners, the wait for pickup can take a while. It's hard to believe that it's just hours until the start of Cow Harbor. I hope I'm ready.

Friday, May 24, 2013

A glimpse (perhaps) of another emerging runner

Two routes to a healthy life
Today's run (street): 3.25 miles

This morning I noticed a guy walking around the neighborhood while I was out running. Everything from his noticeable gut to his white New Balance walking shoes reminded me of myself, five years ago. My journey from a sedentary life to being a runner started with early morning walks around the neighborhood. That routine led to walking with some running, then running with a little walking. After six weeks, I was just running.

I don't know this walker or his story, but I admire him for getting outside and moving. I have no idea if he's been a dedicated walker or whether he has plans to transition to running. One thing that walking did for me was reinforce the benefits of of an active lifestyle. I lost 30 pounds between August and November of 2008 and half of that weight came off before was exclusively running.

This week I've struggled with a cold and decided to forgo yesterday's workout. During my run today, I thought about that cold and realized that I was recovering fairly quickly. I wondered if my running had helped me hold off colds in the past, and if my immunity was stronger because of running.

I completed my run and noticed that my overall time was nothing special. I'd taken it easy in deference to my still present (but diminishing) cold and I think that was a good decision. I know that running keeps me in good shape and it might just be keeping me healthy. I'd like to think that the walker I saw will follow my path and get to his ideal level of fitness. Whether it's by running or walking, the end result will be a happier life.

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Shouldering pain from a long day on the streets

Relief is imminent
Today's workout (treadmill): 30 minutes + 8 miles walking

I had planned to be in the city today and tomorrow, but some meetings have shifted to next week. I consolidated the remaining business into today's schedule, making it a very long day. NYC is a big place and my meetings are often located many blocks apart. I try not to use the subway unless it's raining, or I don't have enough time to walk.

My workout was really tiring this morning and I was concerned that I'd pushed too hard. I knew I would be covering a lot of ground on foot and I'd also be carrying my laptop. Today I went from 33rd to Union Square, up to 54th, down to E. 34th and then back to Penn.  I wasn't feeling great when I arrived at my first appointment, so I went down to the subway and put $5 on my MetroCard. I wanted to be prepared in case I wasn't up for walking forty-five blocks uptown to my next meeting.

After lunch with some friends, I was feeling much better and did my walk as planned. My Fitbit is now showing 11 miles and 21,900 steps for the day, including this morning's treadmill run. I'm really feeling it in my shoulder, probably because the weight of the laptop caused some additional strain. I really could use some rest and naproxen sodium. I'll decide tomorrow whether to take an unscheduled break.

Thursday, April 18, 2013

City trek dwarfs morning workout

And the day ain't over...
Today's workout (elliptical): 25 minutes + 7 miles city walk

I figured I'd be covering some ground today, but I had no idea that I'd travel over seven miles in the city on foot. My meeting locations varied between east 53rd Street and Spring Street, with a couple of other spots in between. I could have used the subway, but I didn't see the point of that when I could just as easily walk.

Before I left for the city, I did an elliptical session. I wasn't thinking about the fact that I'd be getting a second workout later. The Fitbit recorded a couple of miles from the elliptical and, fortunately, I remembered to bring it with me when I left the house. I'd forgotten to take the Fitbit on Monday when I covered significant territory around Manhattan. The Fitbit recorded none of that, causing me to look like a slacker on the Fitbit dashboard. But today was a different story.

Should have that distance number over 10 miles tonight

Wednesday, April 10, 2013

An eight mile workout on top of another

Supremely lucky
Today's workout (elliptical): 30 minutes + 8 mile walk

It's another beautiful day in NYC, but I ended up doing my workout indoors this morning. No matter what, time always seems to influence action. I needed to make a mid-morning train and I'd squandered the early morning hours putting the final touches on my new business website. The elliptical made the most sense in terms of time efficiency, so I picked that over the road and the treadmill. If I'd known how much walking I would do today, I may have skipped my workout altogether.

My travels took me all around NYC today. With exception of a subway ride from Penn Station to Chamber Street, I walked up, down and all around. When I got back to Penn at the end of the day, my Fitbit showed 18K steps and 8 miles walked. My feet were fairly sore, but that's what recovery shoes are for. I put on a pair the second I got home.

The purpose of my trip downtown was to visit the Manhattan County Clerk's office at 60 Centre Street. I needed to do some legal work related to my new business. The Clerk's office is located in the basement of the Supreme Court building, and it looks like it hasn't been renovated since the 19th century. Seriously, go there and see for yourself.

It turned out that the filing (and its sizable fee) was unnecessary. Except for the cost of a subway ride, I came out well ahead. I walked from Centre Street to midtown, and eventually, back to Penn Station. Today showed that not every workout needs to involve aerobic intensity to make an impact. Sometimes it's a matter of taking some steps - maybe eighteen thousand or so.

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

My go to workout for running injuries

Cures all running ills
I decided to substitute this morning's run with a walk that I did on the treadmill at a 5% incline. I'm not fully convinced that my injury is related to my IT band. That's because I don't really know exactly where my IT band is. All I know is that the problem suddenly popped up, got worse and then steadily improved. From everything I've heard about Iliotibial band syndrome, it doesn't improve that quickly. Besides that, the Wikipedia definition states that ITBS is a lateral knee issue and (thankfully) that's not part of my problem.

The reason I chose to walk was simple. In the almost-five years that I've been running, I've noticed that there's no injury that walking hasn't helped. It may be the reduced impact, plus some physiological intangible, but a good walk seems to be the best method to combine conditioning with recovery.

Hours later, the pain and soreness have fundamentally subsided. I'll continue to apply ice and some massage via a small roller that I have. If time allows, I may take another walk, this time around the neighborhood after dinner  If a little walking helped akready, a little more can't hurt.

Monday, January 7, 2013

The problem of running too fast

I have two friends who tell me they simply cannot run slowly. When running alone, they claim to always push their pace to a level of discomfort. They have a difficult time easing up when their coaches tell them to slow down during training sessions. If these guys weren't two of the nicest, most secure people I know, I'd chock it up to macho posturing. After thinking about it, I'm beginning to understand their perspective.

Unlike my friends, I can run slow anytime that I'm asked. But ask me to walk slowly and you'll get a different response. I often find it maddening to walk the streets of NYC, especially in midtown where I work, where my path is constantly obstructed with dawdlers of every type. I've always been a fast and impatient walker. This trait that makes for efficient travel across the city, but it can really annoy others who aren't in a rush.

I envy my fast running friends because I really do enjoy the experience of moving swiftly on a run. I just have trouble sustaining an urgent pace unless I'm in a race. I'd always assumed that a person who can walk fast for miles would also be able to run fast for long periods. Sadly, that's not the case. I know I've become competitively complacent since October's Town Of Oyster Bay 5K. Perhaps now is the time for me to start picking up the pace.

Friday, October 26, 2012

Anniversary walk on the Bethpage trail

Today is my anniversary and I didn't have time for a run this morning. I felt a little guilty about that until my wife suggested that we take a walk on the Bethpage bike trail. We headed over to the park shortly after the kids left for school and made our way to the trail extension.

I run at Bethpage almost every weekend. It's my favorite place for longer runs because the trail allows me to do distance training without needing to cross busy roads. The extension that runs north of the original bike trail has three segments. The first runs through an area that used to be an unpaved trail and terminates at Haypath Rd. That's the section we walked this morning.

It was fun showing my wife the route that I run on weekend mornings. The leaves have started changing and it felt a lot like fall. It was a nice change to cover this route at a walking pace. We covered about three miles on our out-and-back route. I still feel a little guilty for skipping my workout, but the bike trail proved to be a perfect choice for an anniversary walk.

Monday, October 8, 2012

October made me a runner

Burning up the treadmill four years ago
October has been a significant month for me in my history as a runner. Modern history I should say, because my running experience in the early '90's (and before that) is hazy and undocumented. But in August of 2008, I took my first running steps during my walking workouts. I steadily increased the ratio of time I spent running during my walks, all through September, and then into early October.

The reason I know the details of my early progress is because I'd used a Nike+ wristband and chip and I'm still able to look back at my workouts and see the histograms that show my pace and distance. It's interesting to see the first run/walks, where I traveled at about 15:00 min/mile, with short sections dropping into the 10:00 range.

A scan of the log shows that I averaged 9:34 per mile on October 21, 2008, making that my first full run over a mile with no walking. One year later I ran on a relay team at the Cape Cod Marathon where I achieved a then-personal record distance of 8.75 miles (over two relay legs). Two years after that, I took my big spill on the driveway at the end of a morning run that scraped me up so badly that I still have scars a year later. You have to take the good with the bad.

I guess the longer your running history, the more you'll have to look back on every month. Still, I'll always look at October as a most important month, because that's when I truly became a runner.

Thursday, September 20, 2012

I love running, but do I actually love the run?

Race walking: not the best of both worlds 
Today's run (street): 2.5 miles

Back in the early '90's I lived in the city and walked just about everywhere that I needed to go. It would be nothing for me to cover 20 miles or more on a weekend. My wife is exactly the same. We'd walk 90 minutes a day back and forth between our office and our apartment on 74th Street despite rain, snow, heat or humidity. It kept us in great shape and it was easy because we both enjoyed the experience.

I thought about that on my run this morning as I made my way around my regular route. I was pushing myself harder than I had prior to re-employing my heart rate monitor and my resulting pace reflected that extra effort. I was pleased with my performance, but it occurred to me that the enjoyment of a hard run comes when you're finished, while a brisk walk is usually enjoyed in the moment.

I'm not saying that I don't enjoy a good run. When I'm on the trails I can really appreciate the experience with all five senses (well maybe not taste) and I do appreciate the feeling I get when doing an easy run on a crisp fall morning. It would be interesting if I could enjoy every run the way I do when I walk.

On the other hand, the sense of accomplishment, endorphin rush and the athleticism that comes from a run is something that cannot be easily attained by walking. I suppose race walking could fill that void but, frankly, it just seems a bit silly.

Sunday, July 22, 2012

Wackos and backward walkers at the track

Round and round (and round) we go
Today's run (track): 1 mile warm up, 8 x 220 M, 2 mile run = 4.15 miles

I finished my training for this week's 5K with some speed work on the local high school track. I'm always ambivalent about track running because I find the experience excruciatingly boring. At the same time, with its precise measurement and flat surface, the track is a great place to run intervals. Plus, there's always an interesting cast of characters to help distract me from the tedium.

The temperature was in the 70's and the humidity was moderate when I started my workout, with a warm up mile that I completed in 8:19. I wore my Hattori's that I've kept in the closet over the last few months while I ran with the Spira's, Kinvara 3's and my Brooks test shoes. The Hattori's felt fantastic and I'm tempted to go back to them as my regular trainers.

My track-mates included a guy who had about a decade on me, running shirtless. He was covered in sweat and moving at an impressive pace. I wondered how long he could keep that up. Pretty long, it turned out. I suspect he'd been at it for a while when I arrived, and he continued for the first 20 minutes of my workout.

Also on the track was an older Asian woman whom I'd seen before. She circles the track walking backwards. I'm not sure why, but that's her thing. There was a stocky guy with long hair and a beard walking the whole time I was there. I noticed that he'd switched to a trot around the time I was leaving. I also saw two or three other fitness walkers, some fast and some slow, whose orbits coincided with my laps at various points on the track.

One of the walkers was a guy in his 40's who I first noticed when he ran the steps in the grandstand. I expected to see him run when he got to the track, but he walked. He did a couple of sprints and, oddly, it was only when our paths crossed (I'd reversed direction on the track). Was he trying to prove he could run as well? He looked angry the whole time he was there and I noticed that he sped out of the parking lot in his big BMW, with gravel flying, after he'd finished his workout. What a wacko.

I felt good running the 220 splits and averaged 7:01 for that mile. I know I could have done better than that, but my goal was to generate some speed without injuring myself. It had been a while since I did any speed work. I did the last two miles closer to a 9:00 minute pace and I was satisfied with what will be my last training run before Wednesday.

While I'm ambivalent about the track, I can almost guarantee my runner's high after a workout like that. I count on that to help me through the less-than-stimulating experience of running in circles.

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Why do I walk so fast and run so slow?

Today's run (street): 2.5 miles

Yesterday morning I took a walk with a colleague to Central Park to scope out locations for our division Fun Run. She's a fast fitness walker, but I was able to keep up with little effort. I typically walk faster than anyone I know and I always have. It's easy for me and it probably has something to do with my long stride length. So, why then, am I such a mediocre runner?

Before I started running I used to think that I'd be fast, simply because I walk fast, but four years of history tell me that's not true. I sometimes wonder if there are things that I do when I walk that get lost in translation when I run. My stride length when running always seems short to me and I know my cadence is typically 8% less than the ideal of 180 steps per minute.

This morning I went out again on a cool morning run and moved along fine, but I barely cracked the 9:00 range for my pace. I know that if I'd put in more effort I could have improved by 30 seconds per mile, but not much more than that. It would be great if I could apply my walking speed to running, but I don't see an easy way to do that. And, no, I have no interest in race walking, whatsoever.
 

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