Running bargains, get them while they last

Friday run: note the runner on right side of picture

Today's run (Bethpage bike trail): 5.2 miles
Yesterday (street): 3.2 miles

I got out early on Friday before my day started and covered my minimum distance for a run (5K). When I stepped outside, I noticed the scent of spring in the air. The temperature was 59° with a steady breeze that energized me from the start. It seemed quiet for a Friday, perhaps because I went out early. No recycling trucks or buses, just me, the road and a surprising number of people out walking. I also saw a runner (see picture) who decided that the middle of the road was a smart place to run.

Today's route

This morning the weather was cooler, high 30's according to News12, and I dressed for it. I wanted to cover five miles and headed over to the Runsketeer rendezvous point on Haypath Road. My route plan was to start at Haypath and run to Washington Ave. as my turnaround point. I had plenty of company on the bike trail, including some people walking with large dogs. I was careful to leave a lot of room each time that I passed by.

Later in the day we went to the Gallery at Westbury and saw (as I'd predicted), that the SA Elite store was closing. This used to be my favorite place for running clothes and shoes. In the beginning it was a beautiful store with most of its merchandise related to running. I've bought a lot of shoes and running clothes there over the last few years.

My bargain jackets

I ended up buying a duplicate of my dog-bitten ASICS rain jacket (discounted to $13!!) and a high reflectivity ASICS jacket for $23. We also got some old-school Onitsuka Tigers for my son for $30, a yoga mat for my daughter and a couple of shirts. The whole thing came to less than $100. There's still a lot of merchandise, so I recommend a visit soon. They say the store will close when there's nothing left to sell.

One last  thing - I want to give a big shout-out to Runsketeer SIOR for running a great 15K race on a very hilly course in King's Park this morning.

Me and the Tartan track personnas

Counter clockwise and counter-counter clockwise

Today's run (track): 4.1 miles
Yesterday's run (street); 3.4 miles
Friday's run (treadmill): 3.1 miles

It was a busy week and I didn't manage to get a workout in before Friday. My Friday schedule was jammed with meetings from 9:00 to 5:30, so I needed to get my run done fairly early. I worked from home on that day and was lucky that I didn't have to do my long commute in falling snow. But outside conditions were slippery, making the treadmill my only option for running.

No surprise to anyone, I found Friday's run almost unbearable and was determined to get outdoors the next day. The snow on the roads had melted, but conditions were still pretty rough. The local news station showed  a temperature of 30°, so I dressed for moderate cold. It was sunny when I stepped outside and I was concerned that I'd overdressed. A few minutes later I was wishing for another layer.

Saturday frozen face syndrome

Feels like freezing

The moment I turned the first corner on my run, I was hit with a blast of numbingly cold air that gave me an instant sinus headache. I quickly thought through my intended route to determine whether I should change streets to minimize the wind. By the time I'd reached my first mile, I'd heated up enough to manage through the cold. It was a low performance run overall, but I managed to get through my miles and I didn't get bit once.

I usually reserve my longest run of the week for Sunday, but this morning I had a serious motivation problem. None of my favorite venues seemed appealing (Neighborhood: ho hum, Bethpage: too many hills, Stillwell: too many mountain bikers) and I wasn't going near the treadmill again. My wife suggested the track and I couldn't find an argument against that. So off I went.

Although running around the track can be viewed as monotonous, I find it much much more pleasant than the treadmill. At least the track provides sensory stimulation through forward movement. On top of that, I always encounter a different cast of characters as I circle the Tartan track. By the end, I've usually monitored their workouts and made up names for each of them.

This morning, it was just me and walking man, a big middle aged guy who was wearing air buds but no hat or gloves. Walking man and I were soon joined by high school running girl who eventually lapped me. But while high school girl had speed, I had endurance, and I noticed her slowing down and eventually talking walk breaks. So I won. Walking man started running, slower than me if that is actually possible. A young guy also joined us, running his laps pretty fast.

I did my first two miles going in the traditional counter-clockwise direction and then did two more clockwise, allowing me to see the faces of the other runners. Most importantly, running that way prevented the humiliation of being lapped by young running man and a young running couple who came by a little later. I did manage to lap the walking-to-running man and a bunch of miscellaneous walkers who'd also come by.

I did a little more than 16 laps and focused on my shortened stride which I'd hoped would enable a higher cadence. It did not, and the end result was an unprintably slow pace. That is, except for the last lap where I said "screw it" and ran about a 9:15. That was when I lapped walking-to-running man.

So, this week it's been three very different runs with the common theme of low performance. I don't really care about that, but I sometimes feel guilty for not going out with the, "All you need is all you got" attitude that I had a couple of years ago. I'm really going to try for four workouts this week and may even stretch it to five if my schedule isn't as insane as last week's.

A choice between boring and freezing

Today's run (treadmill): 3.2 miles
Yesterday's workout (elliptical): 30 minutes
Last Sunday's run (treadmill): 3.2 miles

It's cold. The real feel in my town is -5° and it's going down to -16 tonight. I'm doing my best to avoid the freezing weather. I haven't been in a blogging mood so I didn't post anything about last Sunday's run. Here's my writeup for 2/7:

I got on the treadmill and ran 3.2 miles and then stopped.

I worked from home on Friday. I would normally do a neighborhood run before beginning my workday, but due to our tight morning schedules, my wife and I had the same time window for our workouts. She doesn't care for the elliptical and I don't mind it, so we divided up the machines and exercised together. It was like having our own version of Equinox in the guest room. The only thing missing was the juice bar.

This morning it was even colder. The sidewalks are still covered in snow so there was no way I was going to run on the street. I liked the change of pace using the elliptical on Friday, but I really felt I needed to run today. The heat in the house was not energizing and I stalled as long as I could before facing the treadmill. I didn't expect to enjoy the run.

And I didn't. Treadmill running would be tolerable if there was a way to turn off  my brain or redirect it from a constant thought-stream that usually goes like this: "OMG is this boring...I can't believe I'm still on the same minute...why do the news stations have so many commercials..." I find treadmill running very tedious without the sense of progress I get when running outdoors.

To distract myself and combat my treadmill frustration, I challenged myself and pushed my speed to the edge of tolerable. Actually, that was only true for the last half mile. Most of my run involved self pity. I ended up having a pretty good run which is different from have an enjoyable one.

The weather isn't supposed to be much better tomorrow and we have a full day planned, I expect to be back on the treadmill in the morning. Yay.

Shoveling, shoeing and even some running

ER (left), Mrs & ER Jr (right)

Today's run (treadmill): 3.1 miles
Yesterday's workout (shoveling and snowshoeing) 

If I look back on the past seven days in terms of formal workouts and running mileage, it might seem like a low production week. My weekly workout schedule is, at best, a compromise, but I still aim to do at least three runs a week, plus an elliptical session. Occasionally strong weekly efforts come from different places and that was the case this week.

I try to work from home on Fridays, where I can do almost everything I do at the office (including participating in meetings via video chat). This past Friday I elected to go into work because there were a few things I needed to do face to face. I usually fit in a post-work elliptical session on Thursdays, but I got home a little too late that day. So it was all left for the weekend and a big storm was coming...

We awoke on Saturday to a substantial amount of snow and 20-plus MPH winds. I watched the local news at 6:00 AM in between storm related cable outages. I realized that we'd only just begun. Instead of doing my usual Saturday morning run, the Emerging Runner family was out shoveling the first 5" of what ended up to be 23 inches of total accumulation. Our driveway gets much more snow than our neighbors, because of the unique way the wind channels through. The drifts added another foot of snow to our driveway in spots.

The winds were unrelenting and there was a layer of ice underfoot. I was able to stay on my feet and move what I've calculated to be 1.4 cubic tons of snow. Mrs. Emerging Runner probably moved even more than that, because I spent some time in the snow not shoveling at all. I should say near the top of the snow, in my new Tubbs snowshoes.

My wife gave me snowshoes in October for our anniversary, but this was the first time I'd had a chance to try them. After getting my Timberlands securely locked into the bindings, I bravely set out for a backyard adventure.

Tundra ready

The snowshoe kit included trekking poles that were helpful and gaiters that kept my boots dry. I stepped out onto the deck and sank about three inches into what was, at the time, about a 10" accumulation. I trekked around the yard trying to understand if the snowshoes we providing a big benefit over snow boots. Sinking only a third of the way down was better than post-holing. In some spots, where the snow was less packed, it was easy to see how the snowshoes helped.

By the time I finished, the entire backyard was covered with my tracks. I discovered that it was easier to move over the areas where I'd already trekked, because that snow was compressed. I tried to run with them, but it was akin to running on sand. I think I'll do better with denser snow.

This morning we went out for our fifth round of shoveling and faced some big drifts. Once again, there was a wall of snow that the town plows deposited across the end of our driveway. We made short order of that and were happy to see the end of the blizzard.

I have my methods to minimize wasted effort when moving snow, but it still ends up being a lot of upper body work. I really needed to give that half of my body some attention, but I thought it would also be a good idea to run a few miles indoors. I headed upstairs and fired up the treadmill. After watching the news people desperately trying to fill air time talking about the snowstorm, I decided to shut off the TV.

Although I missed one of my running days yesterday, I feel like I put in the equivalent amount of effort (or more) throughout the weekend. My goal this week is to get back to routine with at least three runs - possibly four if I switch my elliptical workout with another run. It was hard work shoveling this weekend, but the effort was well worth it. I'm really looking forward to getting out on my snowshoes again under more snowshoe-friendly conditions.

Two-fer workout on a rainy day

Rainy day resolve

Today's workout: (Treadmill) 3.1 miles, (Elliptical) 15 minutes

Rainy day and Mondays always get me down. While I'm not looking forward to this Monday, or any day this week for that matter, I had to deal with the rain today. I was optimistic that I would be able to get out this morning before the torrent. But even at 6:00 AM, it wasn't a situation fit for running. I had little choice but to use the treadmill, something I hadn't done since last October.

We're coming up on our first year with our FreeMotion treadmill and I have to admit that it's a pretty good unit. I had some bad experiences with it early last year, but that was due to pushing too hard during a run and severely aggravating my disc injury. The FreeMotion is far more stable than its predecessor, the Sole F63, and it feels more solid, like a hotel treadmill, than a home unit.

I was curious to see how it felt to run on the treadmill after so much time away. The experience of going from street running to treadmill running isn't that pronounced, but it is different. I set the speed to my usual pace and set my mind on running three miles, the longest I can go on a treadmill before going insane.

Once I reached that milestone (get it?), I hopped on the elliptical for 15 minutes of cross training. It was a good workout on a day when I had no other option but to stay indoors. I got through my rainy day and tomorrow I'll deal with Monday. I won't get a chance to work from home this coming Friday, so this may be a relatively low mileage week.

Non-traditional Christmas day run

Wacky weather: roses on Christmas day

Today's run (street): 3.75 miles

Nothing says Christmas like 94% humidity on top of 57° weather. That's okay, at least it was dry and clear for my morning run. As expected, there were few cars on the road when I went out. I only saw one other runner and a few people out walking.

As I made my way around, I saw people packing cars with gifts or arriving at houses to drop them off. I could hear people's voices and Christmas music coming from homes as I passed them by. The warm weather didn't match the holiday, but everything else felt like Christmas. I pretty much floated through my run and was disappointed with my overall pace. This run was really more about the experience than performance, so I didn't let it bother me too much.

Before the stir

Since we don't follow Christmas traditions, like having a big family meal with turkey, ham or fish, we went a different way. My daughter and I made tofu stir-fry which is more modern vegetarian than old testament traditional. It was a big hit and we finished with homemade frozen banana sorbet with chocolate truffle sauce. Time to start watching calories again.

I'm not exactly streaking, but I have strung four nice workouts in a row and I plan to continue that through New Year's, if possible. We have guests coming to stay this weekend and I'm hoping I can get in my runs without disrupting our plans. I just need to get out and back before everyone wakes up because I'm the only one who knows how to use the coffee machine.

A run in the brume

Can you see the oncoming bus?

Today's run (street): 3.2 miles

As the song goes, it's the most wonderful time of the year. In terms of working, it really is. I worked from home both yesterday and today and my office will be shut down on Thursday and Friday, I'm also taking next week off. All that time translates into more time for running. This week got off to a good start with an elliptical session yesterday and a nice run this morning.

I knew we'd get rain today and it looked pretty gloomy at "sunrise." I planned to do something but I figured I'd be doing it inside. At around 7:00 AM, I verified no rain was coming down. I dressed for the 49° temperature and headed outside. As the garage door rose, I saw that my neighborhood was enveloped in thick fog. Fortunately I'd worn high visibility gear.

Running in the fog was an ethereal experience. Like freshly fallen snow, it made everything look a greeting card photo. I appreciated the visual effect, but I needed to be careful because visibility was measured in feet today. If I couldn't see school buses, they couldn't see me. The roads were reasonably clear, but I did need to detour over to the sidewalk a couple of times.

A year ago, I was doing my Christmas week run in much colder weather. It's supposed to hit 71° on Friday. Me and the Runsketeers will be carrying on our New Year's day Hangover Run tradition on January 1st. It's really fun to hang with my buddies before the start, but we're usually shivering up until the horn goes off. I won't complain if this weather hangs around until then.

Running hot and cold

Wool I buy more?

Today's run (street): 4.5 miles

Yesterday's pleasant weather gave way to freezing cold today. I happen to like cold weather running so I didn't mind facing the chill. The 13 MPH winds weren't inviting, but I dressed appropriately with windproof track pants and two layers on top. Plus gloves and an over the ears running hat. That outfit kept me toasty at the start and during periods when I was running directly into the wind. When the wind stopped, it was more like a sweat-suit in a sauna. You can't have it both ways.

How dare we have December weather in December? 

I was planning to run intervals, but I thought the wind might make that difficult. There's something about the location of our local track that seems to amplify wind. I've had situations where the wind was so bad in the winter that I had to remove my glasses to avoid total face freeze. I elected to run locally, a loop around my neighborhood and a loop around the business park. I followed that with another loop around an adjacent neighborhood. My pace was disappointingly slow, but I'll blame that on the wind.

This morning's running ensemble also included some great Ballston wool socks that my wife picked up for me last night at Marshall's. Great socks make a huge difference and nothing beats wool in the winter. They were a great bargain and I want to go back and buy five more pair on top of the two she bought. In the meantime, I'll be wearing the other pair tomorrow. If it's not too windy, I'll be heading to the track.

Perfectly pleasant, yet forgettable run

 

Today's run (street): 3.2 miles

I usually stall before I run on Friday mornings, but I got out early this morning, The rhythm of my neighborhood shifts from minute to minute. Leave too soon and you risk running into a caravan of middle school buses. Leave too late and you're dealing with the maniacs driving sanitation and recycling trucks. I managed to time it just right today.

Someone described perfect racing weather as 50° and overcast. Those were the conditions this morning. I felt strong from the start, and enjoyed the peaceful experience running along quiet roads. Without the distraction of traffic, I was able to mentally prepare for my first video call of the day. It was just me, the sound of my footsteps and the bare December trees to keep me company.

I made my way around my route and felt as good at the end as I did at the start. It was a completely pleasant run, but so indistinct that, hours later, I'd forgotten whether I'd done my workout. I'm not sure where or when I'll run this weekend, but I'm glad I got a few miles in today. It may be time to get to the track for some intervals. If I want to break out of my "easy does it" running habit, I need to work a lot more on anaerobic conditioning.

Warmer and slower one year later

Today's run (street): 3.8 miles

I'm not sure what it was, but I wasn't feeling too great this morning. I had a brief moment when I considered a lesser workout or even skipping it altogether. Then I remembered that I felt a little off before my run with KWL yesterday, yet I still ran okay. Encouraged by that, I dressed for my run (short sleeves and running shorts today) and headed out with no route in mind.

I took it very easy and thought about the fact that the last race I ran was exactly a year ago: the 2014 Jingle All the Way 5K. I had recently developed a disc injury, although I didn't know it at the time, and ran a decent race. As I recall, SIOR and TPP both won their respective age divisions. They tend to do that. In fact, SIOR just became a certified trainer. Contact her through her site if you want to learn how to dominate your age group.

I also thought about the early fall-like weather today and compared that to a year ago when we had 9 MPH winds making it feel like 31°. We'd spent most of our pre-race time huddling near the large fire pits that were placed around the registration area. My objective was to cover a little more distance today than yesterday, but not at the cost of making myself feel worse than when I started.

I did not come close to the pace I ran a year ago this morning, but I wasn't going for performance. I'm hoping that I can fit in a couple of extra runs this week. It's almost Christmas week and, if things start winding down at work, I may be able to get them done.

20th anniversary run and fun

Getting the scoop (or the schmear) at Bagel Boss

Today's run (street): 3.5 miles

I took the day off from work today because it was my 20th anniversary. Besides enjoying the luxury of sleeping until 5:30 AM and not driving 35 miles and back today, I got in a nice morning run. The weather is currently monsoon-like, but just before 8:00 AM it was cool and overcast with nary a drop of humidity. I like to start my weekday runs at 8:00 because that gives me about 40 minutes between the caravan of high school and middle school buses and the secondary wave of elementary school buses and kid drop-offs.

The buses don't bother me that much because I can hear or see them coming at a safe distance. I always hop onto the sidewalk in those cases. Parents dropping off their kids are a different story. They're typically aggressive speeders who don't even pretend to slow down for stop signs. I stay hyper aware at all times.

This morning I saw a car that was going at least 10 MPH faster than the speed limit almost collide with a car coming around a blind corner from the opposite direction. Besides that, I ran past a house as a car started backing out of the driveway without looking. I anticipated that and she heard my yell loudly and clearly.

The rest of the day was spent doing various anniversary-like things, including having lunch at our favorite Thai restaurant and going to Home Dept twice. We also walked into a location shoot that the local news station was broadcasting from a neighborhood shopping center. I have no idea what they were talking about, but it appeared to be bagel-related.

Tomorrow it's back to work, which doesn't seem fair as today felt so much like a Friday. Still, I did get in my run and I'm looking to do the same on Friday morning. We have family staying part of the weekend so I have to remember to grab my Saturday running gear out of the guest room before they arrive.

Recovering on the Bethpage trail

Today's gear. Black is the new black.

Today's run (Bethpage Bike Trail): 5.6 miles

As the song goes, what a difference a day makes. The work week was exhausting and I counted on Saturday for recovery. Unfortunately, I felt ill all day with a pounding sinus headache that persisted throughout the evening. This morning I woke up feeling one hundred percent better and looked forward to getting outside. While Saturday's perfect weather gave way to much colder temperatures today, conditions were still great for a run.

According to the local station, it was 33°, so I pulled out my Opedix running tights, Alpine Design quarter-zip top and ASICS lightweight running beanie. Not my warmest collection of gear, but good for today's weather. I also wore my Saucony Triumph ISOs thinking they would be warmer than the Kinvaras. It turned out they aren't and next time I'll remember to wear wool socks.

I wanted to cover 5+ miles so I went to the Runsketeer staging area off Haypath. I ran south to Bethpage Stage Park and turned around at the start of the north trail. The Bethpage bikeway is a rolling path with a couple of steep but short sections between the park and Haypath Rd. I know the constant elevation change is great for conditioning, but I always dread those hills.

I ran north all the way to Old Country Road, passing many walkers along the way. Most were bundled up against the cold. There were surprisingly few runners and cyclists so the path was relatively clear. My gear kept me perfectly comfortable with the exception of my feet that felt the chill when the wind was blowing.

Today's route

I would have liked to cover another .4 miles to make it an even six, but I ended up back where I started and felt good about how I'd run. Yesterday's workout contributed to my fatigue that lasted throughout the day, while today's run is still producing energy. One day made a huge difference, and I'm happy to be ending the weekend feeling this great.

Knight sighting on my run

This jacket is actually neon bright

Today's run (street): 5.25 miles

While it wasn't a great week for running volume, I was glad to get a couple of decent runs in over the weekend. Yesterday's treadmill workout was the right way to go. For some reason, the running experience on our Life Fitness machine is much better than on our old Sole F63. Today I had the opportunity to get outside and was rewarded with perfect weather conditions.

 

Rain wasn't expected but the skies were low and cloudy with 55° temperatures and a 9 MPH wind. That was a chilly combination, so I decided to wear my new running windbreaker. Its high visibility orange color would stand out on a dark morning. I was concerned that the jacket's lack of venting would build up heat as I progressed through the run. I managed to stay comfortable by opening up the front zipper and letting in wind-cooled air.

I wanted to cover at least five miles today and that meant running on almost every street in the neighborhood. Not much to report, although I did encounter some guys dressed like Templar knights running around inside a small park with an un-costumed guy following them. I assumed they were filming their own sequel to Monty Python and the Holy Grail. I was tempted to stop and take a picture, but I was moving along well and didn't want to stop.

I received my replacement charging clip for my Garmin F210 this week and was able charge my watch without having to precisely position rubber bands to attach the broken unit to the watch. As I mentioned yesterday, my work schedule is getting a bit tighter. I'm committed to getting back to at least four workouts a week and will need to do one or two before my work day -- or after. Easier said than done.

More work could mean less workouts

Today's run (treadmill): 3.4 miles

A couple of years ago I left a long term job with thoughts of working only when I felt like it. I started consulting and found myself just as busy. Still, without a daily commute into the city, I had far more flexibility for running. After one of my consulting engagements turned into a permanent role, I found myself spending more time working and less time running. This week I accepted a promotion at my new company that greatly expands my responsibilities. The downside is that it will further restrict my workout opportunities during the week

As a result, I missed working from home this Friday. Worse, I skipped my usual Friday run that kicks off my weekend activity. Besides dealing with another long drive to and from the office, I'm feeling the guilt of going from four workouts per week to only two this week. I intend to resume my working from home on Fridays, but my new role involves a lot of interaction with people. As I transition to this position, those discussions are best done face to face.

At least I'm home on Saturdays and it was good to run regardless of what else was happening. "What else" turned out to be driving rain and I found myself on the treadmill for the first time in at least a month. I have no love for the treadmill, but it met the need. The outside temperature was 53° and the guest room felt cool and comfortable. I locked into a pace and set my mind on a time to finish.

The treadmill has a great fan and it made a big difference when set to high. The miles went by surprisingly fast. I turned off the TV after the first ten minutes because the noise was beginning to bug me. That was an improvement and before I knew it I was ready to stop. I won't have a high number of miles this week, but after five days off from any type of exercise, I felt good about today.

While my 3-something mile treadmill run was a decent workout on a rainy day, my fellow Runsketeer SIOR managed to run 26.2 miles high in the sky in St. George, UT this morning. Not only that, she did the marathon in around 3:30 on a course that required running up and down a volcano.

Stillwell running with my fiscally fit buddy

Post-run photo at the Emerging Runner HQ

Today's run (Stillwell Woods): 4.25 miles

It's hard to believe that a couple of weeks ago I was cursing the August heat and humidity. This morning our local station reported a temperature of 58° at 6:00 AM, signaling fall is truly here. I was pretty psyched about that because my friend and financial guru Steve was coming by to discuss the Emerging Runner family portfolio. We planned to follow that with a run.

Near perfect conditions during our run

Steve is a dedicated CrossFit guy who has focused lately on weight training. Although running is only a component of his workout regime, he is always up for a run on the road or trail. A few years ago, when we both had offices in midtown Manhattan, we'd meet for runs along the West Side bike path and around Central Park. Steve and his family moved to Atlanta a couple of years ago, but he comes up frequently to see his clients in the NYC area. We're always talking about fitting in a run when he comes up, and today was the perfect day to do it.

We decided to run at Stillwell Woods today. It's been months since I've done a real trail run and the cool conditions made it a perfect choice. I wore my Brooks Cascadias but Steve had his Brooks Glycerins, so I routed us along a less technical section. Giant Bicycles was running a clinic at the western end of Stillwell and I feared that we'd be overrun by mountain bikers. That didn't turn out to be the case, but we ran into swarms of high and middle school cross country runners who frequently blocked our path.

Today's route

Considering my current struggles with speed, we moved along nicely and I was able to maintain my end of the conversation. The weather clearly helped both my breathing and my energy level. Although Steve hasn't run in a while, he had no trouble with the course or the distance. We ended up covering 4.1 miles per Garmin, but I mapped the route using Gmaps and determined that we'd actually covered about 4.25 miles.

Considering the fact that one trail mile equals 1.18 road miles in terms of effort, it was as though we ran 5 miles today. Actually, I made that up, but I'll bet you believed me, I may aim for an actual five miles tomorrow. If weather conditions are anything like today's, I might even do more.

Pouring without raining

 

Todays run (street): 3.5 miles

 As expected, I woke up around 5:30 AM to the percussive sound of rain on the skylight. This continued for at least an hour, but by 8:00 AM, conditions had improved enough for me to venture outside. The skies were dark and overcast and I couldn't tell whether the rain had completely stopped. Surprisingly enough, my Garmin grabbed a signal almost instantly and I was off.

I hadn't gone more than a few tenths before I felt a cascade of water drops as I rounded the first corner. Despite the rain, I decided to keep going. Interestingly enough, the "downpour" stopped as quickly as it came, and I realized the "rain" was merely droplets of water shaken off the trees overhead. I continued along, getting intermittently splattered every time I ran under a group of trees.

My route today was three 1.15 mile loops that started and finished in front of my house. As time went on, things began to dry and the tree showers became less frequent. The sun started showing through the clouds, but not enough for me to regret leaving my sunglasses at home. It was a decent run and I was pleased that the weather hadn't relegated me to the treadmill today.

Tomorrow is supposed to be dry all day and, if I get out around 8:00 AM, the humidity level should be a tolerable 52%. That would be a big improvement compared to all my other runs this week. If I get in eight more miles over the next couple of days, this could be my highest mileage week this year.

As exciting as it gets on a neighborhood run

And I guess that was your accomplice in the wood chipper

Today's run (street): 3.6 miles

I was berating myself at the beginning of this morning's run for being such a sloth and not working out since last Sunday. Then I remembered that I was home for the extended July 4th holiday on Monday and did an elliptical session that morning. I don't remember how long I worked out (35 mins?) but at least it was something.

I was up at 6:00 this morning and spent almost three hours working on business stuff. It suddenly occurred to me that if I didn't get outside soon, I'd lose any opportunity to run today. My schedule had me on calls and virtual meetings from 10:00 through the end of the day. Instead of stalling, I quickly changed into my running gear and got myself out the door.

The temperature was 72° and if the humidity was high I didn't notice. The wind was blowing briskly and that kept me cool throughout most of the run. The strong breezes made the uphill sections a little tougher, but I kept my mind on my stride and my breathing. I tried to focus on diaphragm breathing (versus chest) as suggested by a recent Runners World post.

Friday's are my weekend kick-off runs and I usually keep them between 3-4 miles. That's a perfect distance for me psychologically, short enough to feel quick and manageable (especially since I'm usually time constrained), but long enough to feel like a decent workout. Since the schools are closed now, the roads were pretty clear except for the army of landscaping trucks and their gardeners riding on the street between homes on industrial strength mowers. I still prefer that to avoiding school buses.

There's only so much to talk about when describing a neighborhood run, so I'll just say I ran on lots of roads and saw lots of houses and cars. There were people out walking, but no other runners that I could see. The big excitement came from a tree removal company that had set up a huge chipper and was griding up trees. A group of neighbors had gathered to watch the spectacle despite the 120 decibel roar.

I didn't stick around, but I assume they eventually ran out of trees and switched to chipping up trash barrels and lawn furniture. That's what I would have done. I managed to get through the rest of my run in time to shower and make my first call of the morning. I'm not sure what my morning schedule looks like tomorrow. If I'm able to get out early enough, I may head over to the track to try some intervals or head over to Bethpage for another crack at the bike trail..

Predictions variable, but not the humidity

Foggy as humidly possible

Today's run (street): 3.9 miles

Once again, Saturday night predictions of Sunday morning thunderstorms have turned out to be wrong. I was thrilled because I REALLY didn't want to spend any more time on the treadmill this weekend. It looked pretty iffy outside when I was getting ready for my run. I opted to stay local just in case it started pouring and I had to dash home.

I did a quick check out the door before choosing my gear and noticed it felt cool and a little breezy. The local station was showing 63° and I picked a long sleeve hi-visibility shirt to go with running shorts. The low clouds had darkened the sky and I wanted to make sure I was easily seen by drivers.

While I stood waiting for my Garmin to acquire its GPS signal, I caught a flash of yellow in the corner of my eye. I saw that my next door neighbor had started his own run and was bolting down the street. I didn't even know he'd taken up running. He headed south, then west through the middle school, while I went northeast. Even though our neighborhood has dozens of streets and side roads, I predicted I'd see him at some point on my run.

My prediction came true after I'd completed the northern loop of my route and was on my way to the southern end. I saw my yellow-garbed neighbor in the distance coming back towards the school. I don't think he noticed me and I was too far away to catch up to him. I put my focus on catching up and passing a number of walkers who were making their way along the road.

 Today's run conditions per my Garmin

What promised to be a cool and energizing run turned out to be a very humid one. My long sleeved shirt ended up being a bad choice. Even at 94%, the humidity wasn't completely oppressive. This was probably due to the clouds blocking the hot sun. But the humidity fogged my glasses throughout much of the run. Not enough to impair my vision, but enough to be annoying.

I was fortunate to have clear conditions to run outside  this morning and, even with my busy work schedule, I managed to get in over 2 hours of running this week. I really do need to figure out how to consistently get in an additional workout during the week. When I complain about my declining performance, I have to remember that I used to run six days a week without fail and that I'd typically cover over 20 miles in a week.

What I've learned about running from non-runners

Credit: http://www.runnersworld.com

Today's run (street): 4.5 miles
Yesterday's run (treadmill): 3 miles

Have you ever started a conversation about running with a non-runner and ended up regretting it? Like politics, religion and parenting, running is a subject that generates strong opinions. Generally speaking, most runners -- even those at different ends of the performance scale -- will agree on running related topics. Whether we run seven or eleven minute miles, we all sweat, have to deal with weather and wish we were faster. But discussions with non-runners can sometimes go like this.

Non-Runner: What did you do this weekend"
Runner: I did a couple of long runs on Saturday and Sunday.
NR: Wow. I'll bet your knees are hurting today.
R: Running doesn't hurt your knees. In fact it's been proven that running is good for your knees.
NR: Tell that to my my friend [sibling, spouse, friend of a friend, guy I work with...] who used to run until it ruined their knees.
R: Do you run?
NR: No! I don't want to hurt my knees and besides running is so boring!
R: Nice talking to you.

If you think I'm exaggerating, I had this conversation with someone at work this week. Others have warned me of other potential maladies, including heart attacks. I will say that the majority of conversations I've had with non-runners are positive. I've heard just as many people tell me they admire runners and wished they had the patience or discipline to run themselves.

I haven't been much of a runner this week myself, as my increasingly busy work week has cut into my workout time. I took a vacation day yesterday so I could go out east to the Atlantis Aquarium in Riverhead. We needed to get on the road early and I opted for a treadmill session to save time. Conditions were humid, so I did what I could to move air around the treadmill room. I used the big floor fan and set the built-in fans on the treadmill console to full power.

That helped, but only so much. Although I only covered three miles, it felt like six and I was wishing for a nap on the way to the Aquarium. We had a great time in Riverhead, and Atlantis is always a good experience. After a tough week, it was nice to do our first family activity since the kids began their summer break.

This morning conditions felt more like spring than summer. It was 65° when I went out and the humidity was far lower than on Friday. I've felt ambivalent about my workouts lately, but today everything worked. The air felt cool throughout my entire run and I was pleased with my stride. I've been reading an article excerpted from Meb Keflezighi's new book and tried to do some of the things he recommended to improve to my form. I felt that today's run was one of the best I've done this year.

Scattered thunderstorms are expected to start tonight and continue through most of Sunday. That's disappointing. But you know, weather conditions are just one of the many problems we runners face. I know a few non-runners who would tell you that.

Early run on an early Father's Day

Obligatory selfie at the business park

Today's run (street): 4.2 miles

Although Father's Day is officially on Sunday, we always celebrate it on Saturday. That gives my family an entire day to spoil me without the specter of the workweek starting the next day. On top of that, my son is still studying for Regents and finals that he'll finish on Tuesday so Sunday will be a big review day. So today is Father's Day (observed).

We had lots to do before lunch and I thought I would miss out on a chance to run in the morning. Like yesterday, I got out early and managed to get my miles in by 7:30. I'm planning to run with my buddies tomorrow morning and I'm targeting about 6 miles for that. I decided to cover less distance on today's run to ensure that I stayed on schedule.

I got my GPS signal and went directly over to the business park to run a few loops. Although the elevation loss and gain is the same in either direction, I prefer to run this route clockwise. That allows me to get most of the gain out of the way in the first third of the loop. I did two full and one partial circle before turning back for home.

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, I'm still struggling to generate speed. The perceived effort I'm putting in feels higher than the numbers I'm producing. Today's weather was as good as I could ask -- 70°, moderate wind and relatively low humidity, so I would have expected a little better performance.

We had a nice lunch in Huntington this afternoon and more Father's Day things will happen tonight. I'm looking forward to seeing the Runsketeers in the morning, although I may be seeing them through sheets of rain.