Saturday, November 7, 2009
The great (internal) debate
I've had some tough runs this week and AG, who is the best coach I've ever had regardless of sport, suggested that I skip this weekend's runs so that I can fully recover from the Cape Cod Relay and last week's seven mile bike trail run. Skipping a run during the week is always a self-debate but ultimately an easy decision. My weekend runs mean something different to me and I really look forward to them throughout the week. In the past I've only skipped a weekend run day when resting for a Sunday race. Still, since AG recommended it, I needed to take that seriously. While I read through Runner's World this morning I saw a piece that reinforced the idea of maintaining a consistent running routine with the point that to maintain fitness the workout can still be easy.
The pleasure of a Saturday morning run plus the RW article tipped me toward running and I set off with the intention of going 30-35 minutes without regard to pace or distance. I dressed warmly since the temperature was 30 degrees and I didn't want to be tempted to run fast to warm up quickly. I felt very good and actually worked hard to keep my pace moderate. I covered parts of my neighborhood and parts of neighborhood #2 going 3.9 miles in about 37 minutes. I was surprised that my pace was mid 9:00 because it felt slower but I verified the distance on Gmaps. It was the best run I've had since the relay and although it wasn't taxing it produced the requisite level of endorphins to reinforce the value of the workout. I think I characterized this type of running as "comfort food miles" and that's how they felt today. I'm considering a very brief speed workout tomorrow (4 x 800m) if I feel strong. Otherwise I may just rest. Hopefully AG will approve!
Friday, November 6, 2009
Cold and snag season
Although I should be used to it by now I'm still surprised to see TV commercials promoting Christmas shopping this early in the season. This week I'm starting to see a lot of them and it's only a few days since Halloween. I was still waking up to the expectation of heat and humidity on my run as recently as mid-October. Suddenly it's the holiday season and the morning temperatures are reinforcing that point, certainly with today's run. I've started to add layers to my usual outfit of running shorts and short sleeved jersey and I'm thinking that I still could use a thermal top for when things get really cold in January. The Champion tight running pants that are/were bargain-priced at Target are a good weight for now but I will need to switch to my Nike compression pants when the temperature drops. There are always regular running pants but I don't like using them until the weather gets really cold.
I had a couple of snags this morning, one literal, before and after my run. When I put on my reflective vest I saw that the plastic clip on one side had broken off so I had no easy way to connect the front and back. I ended up wedging an adjacent plastic piece into the receptor but that fix didn't hold for long. I stepped out and realized that the 37 degree temperature was misleading because there were some strong winds kicking up leaves and providing a chill that made it feel much colder than it was. I took off anyway and hoped I'd warm up quickly from running. The wind dislodged the clip on my vest so it became unstable and flew in front of my face each time I got a direct gust of cold air. I said to myself that today was about getting through the workout and I ended up covering 2.4 miles in a little over 22 minutes. Like my two other early morning runs this week I felt sluggish most of the way through. I wonder if I'm not well enough rested to do these runs this week.
When I returned home, I slipped through the garage into the den and one of my new ASICS gloves got snagged in the door of the mud room. I had to struggle to detach my hand from my glove in time to disarm the security alarm before the 120 decibel klaxons went off waking my family and the neighbors. Fortunately the delay provided enough time for me to do that. The last thing I needed was a discussion with the police who'd have been dispatched by our alarm company if the alarm actually did go off. I still need to figure out how to fix my vest for next week and I'll know to be very careful with my glove the next time I come back in from a run.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
New running gear cures all ills
When I got to City Sports I noticed that they had really nice cold gear from ASICS, Brooks, Mizuno, Adidas and others. I'm always tempted by this stuff but I know that my less compelling but functionally competent cold gear would carry me through another season. What I really needed were a mid weight hat that would cover my ears but not affect the position of my glasses when I run. I found a Brooks Vapor 2 racing cap for a very good price and I was pleased to accomplish at least one task. Along the way I found a pair of ASICS Winter Run Hybrid gloves marked down to less than $10 (from $28) so I was happy about that. I spend a little more time looking at running shoes and saw they had some of the new ASICS models. They also had some excellent bargains on shoes in their clearance section. As much as I'd have liked to buy a pair of $140 shoes for 35% off it wasn't the right choice for me. I returned to the office happy with my purchases and felt better overall.
This morning I used the new hat and gloves on my run but they certainly didn't help my performance. It may be that I am fighting a cold or just over tired but through the entire run I felt like I had a tether holding me back. I couldn't generate much speed and I ended up covering 2.4 miles at a mid 9:00 pace. All the same I did get back out today and despite my sluggish run I liked the way the new cold gear performed.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Daylight savings time doesn't help at 4:05 AM
At 4:05 this morning it looked the same as it does every day although today I was helped by a full moon. It was 40 degrees and dry when I went out to run and ended up covering only 2.25 miles in 21 minutes. I went out slow and didn't speed up appreciably throughout the run owing to tiredness. All the same it was better than not running and I'll file today's workout under "maintenance run." I'll go out tomorrow and aim for a better pace. I should be running closer to 9 minute miles on a regular basis, especially without the excuses of heat and humidity.
Monday, November 2, 2009
Halloween weekend running - no tricks, just treats
It was a very fun Halloween weekend for the family and I was happy to relax and watch the NY Marathon coverage on DVR between other Sunday activities. At around 4:30 my daughter asked me to go for a run and despite the fact that I was psychologically finished with running until Tuesday I could not say no. We did our usual loop of 1.25 miles at a ten-something pace. Perfect for me because I could run at that speed without breaking a sweat in the 50 degree weather. As usual, we had a ball, the running was fun and the conversation was great. For the rest of the month I'll concentrate on speed instead of extra miles - unless the miles include other opportunities to run with my daughter.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Marathon day training run
I ended up covering my distance at an 8:45 pace after pushing hard in the last quarter mile. I was actually surprised that my time was as slow as it was because I'd tried hard to move quickly throughout the run. It may be that I've put in a record number of miles since Sunday (28!) and I just didn't have enough left to draw upon today. I watched the marathon after my cool down and shower and was pleased to see that Meb Keflezighi, an American, won the the men's race. For the first time I appreciated watching this race with the perspective of a runner who has experienced competition. I don't mean that my experience is anything like those who covered five boroughs over 26.2 miles today. I hope, with a little rest and a lot more fast training runs, that I can be competitive in my upcoming 5K at the end of this month.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
The toughest seven miles so far
All the same I really do want to break the ten mile barrier so upon AG's suggestion I decided to focus one weekend day on distance and location and the other on either speed or recovery. In terms of location, the idea is to get out of the neighborhood and see more interesting things than houses and cars. I headed over to Bethpage State Park that has long paved bike paths, trails and a cross-country course that overlaps through soccer fields and (possibly) golf courses. When I arrived I saw numerous yellow buses and groups of high school age students running in packs. There was some sort of XC meeting happening so I decided to head to the bike paths because the crowds seemed to be avoiding those. The entrance to bike trails starts with a steep but short hill and I felt fine through the first few miles of rolling hills. I'd decided to run about 30-40 minutes in one direction and head back at that point. The first 3.5 miles were fairly easy despite some frequent hills at the beginning. Most of the rest was either level or downward-sloping. I appreciated that in the moment but dreaded the hills for the return. I passed most runners that I encountered on my southern leg but on the way back I was passed by three very fit (and friendly) runners, one of whom I encountered again upon his out-and-back as I was coming in near the finish.
I averaged 9:20 for the first half and 9:40 for the return, covering 7.1 miles around 9:30/mile. With all those hills I was happy to make the pace that I did and I was exhausted from the workout. As far as being able to cover 10 miles in single run I still have work to do. When the time comes to tackle that distance I hope the route is less challenging than today's tough run.
Friday, October 30, 2009
NY Marathon Expo - so many booths, so little time.
Yesterday was the first day of the NY Marathon Expo at the Jacob Javits Center in NYC. For those unfamiliar with Javits, it's a huge conference center on the west side in the 30's that, for some reason, was built far away from any public transportation. The closest subway will still require a 15 to 20 minute walk. The way the event planners get around this limitation is to run busses all day from local hotels. The buses are free and the system works. The only issue I have with it is that buses + mid day traffic = long wait times to get to the place. I anxiously checked my watch concerned that by the time I arrived I'd need to get back on another bus in order to return for a 2:00 meeting. As it happened I was able to spend about 40 minutes at the Expo. Upon arriving I was puzzled to see that the main event was a technology security conference which would normally be of interest. I couldn't see anything resembling a marathon expo. Finally, another person who was also looking spied the far away entrance and we headed over. The Expo was huge compared with any I'd seen before it. Every shoe, apparal, technology and health/exercise company had booths (although I don't recall seeing Nike which was fine with me). The ASICS booth was so huge it could have been an Expo on its own. I spent time talking with some people promoting their races, chatted with someone representing Newton running shoes and then headed back to the office with lots of pamphlets and a few samples.
I wish I had more time to revisit the Expo today. I encourage anyone to go - it's free!
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Running hot and cold
I shouldn't complain about the weather or my location though. One thing I've discovered is that running is more interesting with variables. Perhaps if I lived at the foot of a redwood forest in the northwest with trails leading out from my backyard I'd wish for more diversity: "Gee, if only there was a place with lots of paved streets where I could run by houses and cars for an hour." Who knows, maybe I'd end up missing that.
After my 9 miles on Sunday and 6.6 more since then I decided to try an elliptical session this morning. 25 minutes at mid level resistance felt very good and I saved time by not needing to take the usual 25+ steps I follow prior to my morning run. It was a good workout but I missed the running experience. Back to the street tomorrow, no matter what the weather.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Rainy anniversary day run
At around 7:45 AM the rain had slowed enough for me to venture out. It was only about 50 degrees outside so I wore compression shorts under long basketball shorts, a long sleeve tech shirt and my ASICS light raincoat. Despite all those clothes I was still cold throughout much of my run. The rain picked up after about ten minutes but I was determined to get in at least 30 minutes of running time before starting my day. I ended up covering 3.28 at 9:17 per mile. I ran with my Adidas Response 15 trail shoes that are very comfortable and perform as well on pavement as they do on the trails.
Today is my anniversary so I took a mini vacation this week, starting with our trip to Cape Cod this past weekend. Despite the rain my wife and I got out for a nice lunch along with some other planned activities. I'll be back to the office tomorrow but the weekend is just a couple of days away. I really hope to get some trail time in at least one of those days.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Post race recovery run
Before I ran this morning I used the Active Wrap in heat mode on my quads since I was still sore from Sunday despite taking Monday as a rest day. As I made my way around the middle school I was amused to see that orange cones had been set up along the perimeter of one side of the parking lot and along the front driveway. It was like a moment of deja vu as I followed them, just as I had done on Main Street in Falmouth on Sunday morning. It took a few minutes to fall into a comfortable pace and I decided to run whatever distance I could cover within 30 minutes. It turned out to be 3.27 miles that I did at a 9:09 pace. It really does make a difference when you run among others, especially in competition. The first leg of the relay was approximately the same distance as this morning but I ran that segment a half minute faster per mile even with a couple of challenging hills.
After my run I tried a bottle of the EAS Myoplex Vanilla Cream nutrition shake that we got in our goody bags at the race. To be honest I was averse to drinking it because it contained sucralose and I really can't stand sugar substitutes. However, it tasted fine, although there was a slight medicinal quality to it. I found it convenient compared to having to prepare a recovery breakfast and it helped reduce the time between my run and my shower. I'm not sure if I'll make a habit of Myoplex but I do have another bottle that I'll try after my next hard workout. Tomorrow I'm going to try to take advantage of having one more day off this week and do a longer run. After all, my next race is but 31 days away!
Monday, October 26, 2009
Cape Cod Marathon race report
As I mentioned last night, the Cape Cod marathon race weekend was an amazing experience. Heading to Massachusetts always makes me feel like I'm going home and the Cape is a special place for me because our family spent many a summer there as I was growing up. We arrived on Friday night in the dark and cold and barely had time for anything before getting to bed. Saturday morning was overcast, cold and rainy but that didn't matter because we weren't running until Sunday. My wife and kids explored the hotel while I organized my gear. When I opened the shades to our room I was happy to see the ocean view and it reinforced that we were actually here on the Cape for the relay.
We met up with Adventure Girl at the Expo where we got some guidance from the race organizers on where things would be happening and where my family could situate to watch the race. The Expo was fun and I tried on a few pairs of ASICS and Mizuno running shoes that were temptingly priced but I didn't bite. I still have a some miles left in my Brooks. AG went off to drive the course while we went into town and had lunch at Liam Maguires pub. We met up with AG for a little time before we headed back to our hotel. We all met up again later for dinner at the British Beer Company where we had a great meal and AG and I had a pints of stout and porter respectively in the name of pre-race carb loading. Later that evening the kids quizzed AG for one of her mid term exams and during that time we got a call that one of our teammates was diagnosed with Swine Flu and he would not be able to make the race. AG reassigned our routes, swapping my second leg to the 3rd segment instead of the 4th. This way it ensured that AG, me and MM (our third teammate) were all able to run by the ocean at some point. In so doing AG took on legs 4 & 5 so she ended up running close to a half marathon.
We met as a team on Sunday morning at 7:00 AM and tried to stay warm. Despite the 57 degree temps it felt chilly. Soon AG and MM went off to locate exchange #1 where I would hand off to MM. My wife and kids stayed with me and situated themselves in front of the Black Dog on Main Street. I got into position on the starting line and at 8:30 they fired the cannon to start the race and I was happy to high-five my family on our way up Main Street as I headed through my first leg. I came into exchange #1 after running about an 8:30 pace. The end of the leg has a big hill but that effort was mitigated by the most beautiful view of the ocean. The road split to allow relay-ers to do their hand-offs without interfering with the full marathon runners. I handed off to MM and AG then drove us over to exchange #3 where I picked up the baton for my second leg of 5.7 miles. That route was very rolling with a number of hills but I felt great and after passing under Route 28 I knew most of the big hills were over. Around that time I started talking to another runner, MG, who was not registered for the race but was running it as a practice for a marathon she's running in a couple of weeks. She was a strong runner and she helped me keep a good pace through the end of the leg. MG continued to run after I handed off to Adventure Girl and the two even ran together for a bit. MM and I made our way back to the start/finish area and waited for AG to come in and finish. My wife and kids joined us just in time to see AG coming through mile 26 and my kids took off with AG all the way to the finish while MM and I followed behind.