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.
Friday, October 26, 2012
Thursday, October 25, 2012
Where JavaScript and running meet
 |
| JSON born |
In my past life I studied programming languages and applied it at various jobs throughout my career. I liked the combination of structure and art that comes from programming. The structure was the syntax and logic and the art was the creation of an experience that came from typing many++ lines of code.
This blog allows me to do some fun stuff with HTML, but lately I've been playing with JavaScript. I've challenged myself to writing a process that will pull JSON data from Daily Mile that I can parse, query, calculate and display on the site. Daily Mile has widgets that do that, but they display more info than I want to show. With the work I've done so far, I can see that this will be a real challenge.
I was thinking about my approach to writing this process as I ran through my neighborhood this morning. It was a nice distraction and, more than once, I found myself further along on my route than I'd realized. I thought I was running faster than what the numbers showed, but perhaps thinking deeply and fast pacing are not compatible concepts. I ended up with a respectable time along with some new ideas about approaching my new coding project.
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Benefitting from the indoor option
Today's run (treadmill): 25 minutes
There was a period in 2010 when I avoided the treadmill for a period of months. It didn't rain most mornings when I planned to run and, if it did, I'd use the elliptical instead. I hated the treadmill because it was tedious, hard and a little bit scary to use. In spring of 2011 we replaced our twelve year old machine with a Sole F63 and I began to view treadmill running somewhat more positively.
It seems like the frequency of rainy mornings has increased since that period in 2010 and there's no elliptical option because the machine has been down for parts throughout most of the year. That has put me on the treadmill one or two times a week. Today's iffy weather put me there again this morning.
I didn't really enjoy yesterday's run that took me over a mile to find my stride. Today's was much different, even though I was very tired when my alarm jolted me awake. I briefly considered taking another rest day but reason (i.e., guilt) prevailed. This morning's progressive speed run landed me within my desired heart rate zone and the time went by quickly. A good workout is a good workout, no matter what the surface.
There was a period in 2010 when I avoided the treadmill for a period of months. It didn't rain most mornings when I planned to run and, if it did, I'd use the elliptical instead. I hated the treadmill because it was tedious, hard and a little bit scary to use. In spring of 2011 we replaced our twelve year old machine with a Sole F63 and I began to view treadmill running somewhat more positively.
It seems like the frequency of rainy mornings has increased since that period in 2010 and there's no elliptical option because the machine has been down for parts throughout most of the year. That has put me on the treadmill one or two times a week. Today's iffy weather put me there again this morning.
I didn't really enjoy yesterday's run that took me over a mile to find my stride. Today's was much different, even though I was very tired when my alarm jolted me awake. I briefly considered taking another rest day but reason (i.e., guilt) prevailed. This morning's progressive speed run landed me within my desired heart rate zone and the time went by quickly. A good workout is a good workout, no matter what the surface.
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Dressing for cold when the running gets hot
Today's run (street): 2.5 miles
It's often difficult to determine the right amount of layers to wear in cooler weather. On hot summer days we wear as little as possible (I stop at running shirtless in public, though many don't). When the temperature begins to drop, I find myself reaching for long sleeves and running pants but often regret those decisions some time into my run.
A check of the weather last night prompted me to go with short sleeves and running shorts this morning. I did lay out my calf sleeves that would provide more leg warmth, but I'd already put on my running shoes by the time I noticed them. I also put out some lightweight running gloves in case I felt they were necessary. I decided to forgo the calf sleeves and gloves and just ran with what I had.
The temperature was in the low 40's at 4:00 AM, and though it felt nippy, I was satisfied with my gear. As I waited for my Garmin to acquire a signal, I concluded that I was no more uncomfortable than I'd typically be lining up for a race on a cold fall morning. I hoped that the chill would prompt me to get to speed quickly but I had some trouble pushing my pace.
I ended up running the first half of my route fairly slowly but made up for that on the second half. Although I was sweating when I walked back into the house I wasn't soaking wet. I think I guessed correctly in terms of layers. Once the temperatures drop into the 30's and 20's it will be more obvious what to wear on a run. One thing I know for sure: it's far better to error on the side of cold at the start than risk overheating later.
It's often difficult to determine the right amount of layers to wear in cooler weather. On hot summer days we wear as little as possible (I stop at running shirtless in public, though many don't). When the temperature begins to drop, I find myself reaching for long sleeves and running pants but often regret those decisions some time into my run.
A check of the weather last night prompted me to go with short sleeves and running shorts this morning. I did lay out my calf sleeves that would provide more leg warmth, but I'd already put on my running shoes by the time I noticed them. I also put out some lightweight running gloves in case I felt they were necessary. I decided to forgo the calf sleeves and gloves and just ran with what I had.
The temperature was in the low 40's at 4:00 AM, and though it felt nippy, I was satisfied with my gear. As I waited for my Garmin to acquire a signal, I concluded that I was no more uncomfortable than I'd typically be lining up for a race on a cold fall morning. I hoped that the chill would prompt me to get to speed quickly but I had some trouble pushing my pace.
I ended up running the first half of my route fairly slowly but made up for that on the second half. Although I was sweating when I walked back into the house I wasn't soaking wet. I think I guessed correctly in terms of layers. Once the temperatures drop into the 30's and 20's it will be more obvious what to wear on a run. One thing I know for sure: it's far better to error on the side of cold at the start than risk overheating later.
Monday, October 22, 2012
The trick to beating stress is remembering the obvious
Happy Monday. My morning started with water pouring through the kitchen light that came from an overflow from an upstairs shower. Despite that annoyance, I feel great today and glad to rest after yesterday's hilly run.
Monday rest days are perfectly timed for easing my way back into the work week. Although I'm the first to say that running reduces stress, I don't always see it as a way to blow off anxiety or tension. In fact, it's often the opposite. On mornings when I am particularly stressed, I'll think about skipping my workout. Part of that relates to getting extra rest, but some of it has to do with avoiding anything difficult.
The trick is to remember that the end of almost any run produces an endorphin response that leaves you feeling better. When I am able to overcome my reluctance to run on stressful morning, I always appreciate how my mental state improves after the workout. There are studies that show established runners sometimes achieve their "runner's high" while they are still running, because they can anticipate the rewards that follow. On those stressful mornings it would be great to start with the endorphins and go from there.
Monday rest days are perfectly timed for easing my way back into the work week. Although I'm the first to say that running reduces stress, I don't always see it as a way to blow off anxiety or tension. In fact, it's often the opposite. On mornings when I am particularly stressed, I'll think about skipping my workout. Part of that relates to getting extra rest, but some of it has to do with avoiding anything difficult.
The trick is to remember that the end of almost any run produces an endorphin response that leaves you feeling better. When I am able to overcome my reluctance to run on stressful morning, I always appreciate how my mental state improves after the workout. There are studies that show established runners sometimes achieve their "runner's high" while they are still running, because they can anticipate the rewards that follow. On those stressful mornings it would be great to start with the endorphins and go from there.
Sunday, October 21, 2012
10K training run on the old Bethpage route
 |
| I'm going to stick with the SPIbelt |
Today's run (Bethpage State Park): 6.2 miles
It's been a busy weekend but I did get in a few runs. Yesterday morning I had to get blood drawn as part of my annual checkup, so I elected to do a moderate length run on the treadmill. I've learned from past experience that losing blood, even small amounts like this, can effect your stamina. I didn't suffer fatigue at any point in the run but I capped my time at 35 minutes. I needed to reserve some energy for the day ahead.
The Emerging Runner family headed into the city to see my dad, along with my aunt and uncle who are visiting from France. Later, we were excited to meet up for dinner with Adventure Girl, who was in town this weekend for a friend's wedding. They are all great people and we had a great time with everyone. I was glad that I didn't push myself too hard in the morning, because I was exhausted by the time we arrived back home.
I headed over to Bethpage State Park this morning to get in some extra miles and to take on a few challenging hills. I love the new trail extension to the north but I had not run it in the southern direction in a long time. I headed down the bike trail feeling energized by the crisp fall air, but I was regretting my decision to take the RooSport to carry my phone instead of my SPIbelt.
The RooSport hangs over the top of your running shorts and stays secure with magnets that connect the inside and outside flaps. I had some issues the last time I ran with it, but I thought it was related to the shorts I was wearing. I had on different shorts today but, from the start, I felt like the pouch was slipping. I feared that it might disconnect and fall off, so I took it off and ran with it in my hand.
Other than that, my run went very well. I covered the first three miles barely breaking a sweat. My heart rate was only 84% of max despite the hilly route. On my way back I boosted my glycogen with half a GU Roctane that I had diluted 4:1 with water in my gel flask. The helped take the edge of the first of two challenging hills that need to be managed on the way back.
There were less runners and running groups today than I expected to see. Friends TC and FS, who are running the ING NYC marathon in a couple of weeks, are doing their 10+ mile workouts this weekend.. I thought I'd see more marathoners doing the same but it was mostly cyclists, including a woman who was riding a tall unicycle.
After last week's 14 mile total (due to running the 5K race and two less training workouts), I wanted to get back up to 20 miles this week. I think I might have made it but I'll have to check Daily Mile. I have a month to train for my next race, the Long Beach 10K Turkey trot. Today's 10K base run was a great start to that training.
Friday, October 19, 2012
A little love for the treadmill
Today's run (treadmill): 25 minutes
I've been running well lately, but I found yesterday's workout disappointing. It may have been my mental state at the time of the run, but I didn't enjoy the experience at all. I usually associate tedium with the treadmill and prefer the changing conditions that happen when running outdoors. Thursday's run felt like a maintenance effort, nothing more. But, as the saying goes, "I've never regretted a run."
Knowing that heavy rains would be sweeping over Long Island by morning, I planned for a treadmill workout and actually looked forward to a change from the road. As I've written, the treadmill provides two advantages over street running (along with numerous disadvantages): instant availability and the option to introduce variables at the touch of a button.
I like that the time I take between waking and running on the treadmill is almost half of what it takes to gear up and get outside to run. I can sometimes save as much as ten minutes, which becomes ten more minutes to relax after my workout is completed. The treadmill allows me to custom design my workout by varying incline, and speed. The speed flexibility is key. If I want to run slowly outdoors, I need to either shorten my route or risk getting behind schedule. On the treadmill, I can jump off when I get behind and already be home.
I still prefer the trails and the road to the treadmill, but I liked my workout this morning. I followed my usual practice of starting easy and working my way up to race pace using my heart rate as a guide. The best part was when I finished. One minute after after hitting the stop button I was downing my coffee and preparing for another long day.
I've been running well lately, but I found yesterday's workout disappointing. It may have been my mental state at the time of the run, but I didn't enjoy the experience at all. I usually associate tedium with the treadmill and prefer the changing conditions that happen when running outdoors. Thursday's run felt like a maintenance effort, nothing more. But, as the saying goes, "I've never regretted a run."
Knowing that heavy rains would be sweeping over Long Island by morning, I planned for a treadmill workout and actually looked forward to a change from the road. As I've written, the treadmill provides two advantages over street running (along with numerous disadvantages): instant availability and the option to introduce variables at the touch of a button.
I like that the time I take between waking and running on the treadmill is almost half of what it takes to gear up and get outside to run. I can sometimes save as much as ten minutes, which becomes ten more minutes to relax after my workout is completed. The treadmill allows me to custom design my workout by varying incline, and speed. The speed flexibility is key. If I want to run slowly outdoors, I need to either shorten my route or risk getting behind schedule. On the treadmill, I can jump off when I get behind and already be home.
I still prefer the trails and the road to the treadmill, but I liked my workout this morning. I followed my usual practice of starting easy and working my way up to race pace using my heart rate as a guide. The best part was when I finished. One minute after after hitting the stop button I was downing my coffee and preparing for another long day.
Thursday, October 18, 2012
The habitual runner
Today's run (street): 2.5 miles
At some point in my life I became a creature of habit. Twenty years ago I'd vary everything in my life, from my morning routine all the way through to my bedtime. Marriage, kids and commuting by train necessitated an eventual compliance to daily schedules and structure. But when I began running in 2008, all bets were off in terms of where, how and when I would run. Even on the streets of my neighborhood at 4 AM, I would rarely cover the same route two days in a row.
That has all changed, and my running routine now contains less variability than a watch assembly line. Every night my running gear is readied for morning, and my process going from waking to running is done on a minute by minute schedule. Instead of mixing up my route each day, it's always the same roads run exactly the same way to cover exactly the same distance (2.53 miles).
After almost four years of competing, my race schedule has also become a bit of a habit. My expectations were upset this week when I discovered that the Run for the Warriors 10K has been pushed forward from mid-November to this weekend. I love that race but my schedule won't work with the timing. I feel badly about missing this race, because even though I've only run it the past two years, it's on my racing schedule.
I took to the streets again this morning and, like yesterday, it was cold outside. I dressed with more layers today and didn't get around my route as quickly as I did on Tuesday. In fact, it took me over a minute longer, which calculates to about 30 seconds per mile. One thing that remained the same was my route. Some habits are hard to break.
 |
| Daily miles |
That has all changed, and my running routine now contains less variability than a watch assembly line. Every night my running gear is readied for morning, and my process going from waking to running is done on a minute by minute schedule. Instead of mixing up my route each day, it's always the same roads run exactly the same way to cover exactly the same distance (2.53 miles).
After almost four years of competing, my race schedule has also become a bit of a habit. My expectations were upset this week when I discovered that the Run for the Warriors 10K has been pushed forward from mid-November to this weekend. I love that race but my schedule won't work with the timing. I feel badly about missing this race, because even though I've only run it the past two years, it's on my racing schedule.
I took to the streets again this morning and, like yesterday, it was cold outside. I dressed with more layers today and didn't get around my route as quickly as I did on Tuesday. In fact, it took me over a minute longer, which calculates to about 30 seconds per mile. One thing that remained the same was my route. Some habits are hard to break.
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
The quick and the cold
Today's run (street): 2.5 miles
This time of year it's hard to judge the weather for running. Last night's report showed temperatures in the mid-40's that would seem positively balmy compared to the 35° conditions at last Saturday's race. This morning I dressed in a similar way to Saturday, with a long sleeve shirt, shorts and calf sleeves. When I stepped outside to start my run, I was hit with a wave of cold that made me consider going back inside to add another layer.
I decided to accept the cold as is, following the practice of dressing for your second mile. The cold can be a good incentive to get quickly up to speed in an effort to raise body temperature. It was odd to be running through the frosty air while lawn sprinklers were spraying water all along the street. I avoided that freezing mist as much as as I could.
A quick check of my heart rate motivated me to pick up my pace. I was starting to warm up, but sweating was beginning to work against me, amplifying the chill. I continued on at a moderate speed and was later surprised to see that I'd paced 30 seconds per mile faster than I felt I was running. My best race times seem to come in the colder months so clearly there's a correlation between cold and performance. I wonder if my pace would have suffered had I added that extra layer prior to my run.
This time of year it's hard to judge the weather for running. Last night's report showed temperatures in the mid-40's that would seem positively balmy compared to the 35° conditions at last Saturday's race. This morning I dressed in a similar way to Saturday, with a long sleeve shirt, shorts and calf sleeves. When I stepped outside to start my run, I was hit with a wave of cold that made me consider going back inside to add another layer.
I decided to accept the cold as is, following the practice of dressing for your second mile. The cold can be a good incentive to get quickly up to speed in an effort to raise body temperature. It was odd to be running through the frosty air while lawn sprinklers were spraying water all along the street. I avoided that freezing mist as much as as I could.
A quick check of my heart rate motivated me to pick up my pace. I was starting to warm up, but sweating was beginning to work against me, amplifying the chill. I continued on at a moderate speed and was later surprised to see that I'd paced 30 seconds per mile faster than I felt I was running. My best race times seem to come in the colder months so clearly there's a correlation between cold and performance. I wonder if my pace would have suffered had I added that extra layer prior to my run.
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
Fastest running shoes? Oh, it's ON!
 |
| My pathway to six minute miles |
Yesterday, a friend of mine sent me a link about the Kona Ironman triathlon that listed the types and brands of gear used by competitors this year. The shoe makers were mostly familiar, but 11th brand on the list was "On", worn by 23 competitors. I looked up On running shoes and discovered that they are a Swiss company that sells its shoes primarily in Europe.
What intrigued me about these shoes (besides their interesting outsoles) was how On characterized the performance profile of each of their models. The Cloudracer has a targeted speed of 6.4 minutes per mile, while the Cloudster seems to be the shoe for us 9:00 milers. But I was thinking, "Hmm, if I ran in the Cloudracers then I too could run 6 minute miles!" If only it worked like that.
During yesterday's unpleasant migraine, I wondered if I'd ever feel well enough to run again. By last night I had recovered enough to set up my running gear for a morning workout and when I woke up I felt surprisingly good. I didn't want to push it too hard, so I settled in with a moderate pace and slight incline and ratcheted up the speed as I progressed through my 25 minute run. But if I was wearing On Cloudracers, who knows how fast I would have gone?
Monday, October 15, 2012
Well timed rest day
If my existing and anticipated ailments clear by tomorrow morning I'll be back on the road for a run. I've always found sleep to be the best medicine. But right now, it's hard to believe that I'll have the energy to do anything as strenuous as running.
Sunday, October 14, 2012
Easy doesn't always do it after race day
Today's run (street): 5.4 miles
Between tapering and running just 3.1 miles on race day, I usually come up well short of my weekly average when I run a 5K. That was the case this week where my total miles barely cracked the teens. Despite the lower volume, I can say confidently that both runs this weekend were high quality efforts.
I usually rest the day after a race, not because it's a good practice, but because most races are on Sundays and my rest day is Monday. For Saturday races, I usually try to get out for a recovery run because I read once that an easy workout that follows a hard effort effectively forces out lactic acid that can cause leg soreness.
My lower output this week prompted me to target at least 5 miles today. The last couple of times when I followed a race with an LSD run, I found myself struggling after 30 minutes despite going slow and easy. I realized last time that running a little harder actually felt better.
I had that in mind when I went out this morning, taking the first mile at around a 9:00 pace before settling into a mid-9 pace for the duration of the run. I chose the hilliest streets in the neighborhood to get my heart rate going. After a race, almost any effort below race pace feels easy and that was the case today. I could have gone another few miles but I didn't want to overdo it. Besides, we are celebrating my son's birthday today and I needed to get home to shower before we all went out.
I look forward to tomorrow's rest day but I'm eager to start training for two 10K's in November. I have always run my best 10K times at these races and that's probably due to the cooler weather and relatively flat courses. Still, I'm planning to maintain my hill training because that seems to make me a better runner, regardless of the elevation.
Between tapering and running just 3.1 miles on race day, I usually come up well short of my weekly average when I run a 5K. That was the case this week where my total miles barely cracked the teens. Despite the lower volume, I can say confidently that both runs this weekend were high quality efforts.
I usually rest the day after a race, not because it's a good practice, but because most races are on Sundays and my rest day is Monday. For Saturday races, I usually try to get out for a recovery run because I read once that an easy workout that follows a hard effort effectively forces out lactic acid that can cause leg soreness.
My lower output this week prompted me to target at least 5 miles today. The last couple of times when I followed a race with an LSD run, I found myself struggling after 30 minutes despite going slow and easy. I realized last time that running a little harder actually felt better.
I had that in mind when I went out this morning, taking the first mile at around a 9:00 pace before settling into a mid-9 pace for the duration of the run. I chose the hilliest streets in the neighborhood to get my heart rate going. After a race, almost any effort below race pace feels easy and that was the case today. I could have gone another few miles but I didn't want to overdo it. Besides, we are celebrating my son's birthday today and I needed to get home to shower before we all went out.
I look forward to tomorrow's rest day but I'm eager to start training for two 10K's in November. I have always run my best 10K times at these races and that's probably due to the cooler weather and relatively flat courses. Still, I'm planning to maintain my hill training because that seems to make me a better runner, regardless of the elevation.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
Posts
