Sunday, August 31, 2008

Labor Day Weekend '08

So my plans to get in two rides, a swim and a run have devolved into a good run on Friday, a good run yesterday and a decent ride in the afternoon.  I didn't get my swim in yesterday even though I was at the pond.  flying solo with even one kid negates the ability to swim for even 15 minutes.

I went out Sunday morning and ripped a 26:02 for 3.3 miles.  I think that's my best at that distance by about a second and I felt pretty good.  It was a good run because I didn't give to fatigue and I didn't get lazy -- I kept pounding it out and just let myself run and breathe. I've had this weird head thing where I keep telling myself you shouldn't be winded, you shouldn't be tired and that's been impinging on my running. Just run and breathe, baby.

I went out in the late afternoon on my bike and went to a pond and trail near my house.  I did a loop around the pond, saw some sick hills into which other mtn. bikers have carved some gnarly, steep tracks.  Needless to say, Mr. Timid here didn't tackle those.  I did tackle some interesting single track along the Charles river and through some interesting marsh land.  There were some parts of the trail that were very challenging due to rocks and some really intense root systems that made the going tricky.  I passed between 8-10 fot marsh grasses on wooden boardwalks and even through a creepy tunnel under a Commuter Rail track. It was cool and I started to feel more comfortable on the bike but not completely yet.  I kept repeating the mantra keep you feet moving, keep pedaling, keep moving.  Much of the single track was fairly rock/root free.   There is one sort of steep section that was covered in roots that now that I've seen it once and walked my bike up it I think I'll try and tackle another day.  I did fall once, into some bushes, no biggy. One final thing about the ride -- I was on the bike for about 50 minutes and it did not add that much to my workout score on my HRM -- if I'd run it it would have been an out of control workout.  Bikes are different.

Did it

I got in my long run this morning. 2 hours 21 minutes. It had the normal ups and downs, but it was pain free (very important) and relatively uneventful. Good brain space on this run, which I enjoy. Also, lots of "team in training" runners on the route. It was good to see so many into the sport. Passed a cyclist (albeit an old one) at about 40 minutes in, and he didn't pass me back. That always feels good.

Enjoy the day.

Hammy!!!

So works been cutting into my running time for the past week. I needed to run 3 today to keep up my 10 miles for the week. I went to the local H.S. track to calibrate the HRM for distance, get the miles in and get in some speed (relative) work. All was going to plan until my 4th 100m stride. I was starting to feel real good on the speed as I loosened up. Unfortunately, with 20m to go, I popped my hamstring...badly. I was able to walk, with a significant limp, back to my car and get home within 15 minutes. Iced it for 30 minutes. It still hurts. I'm supposed to play in a 9 hole golf tournament in 3 hours with Bee. Its not looking good. Tomorrow morning should be interesting. Injuries suck.

Run Ready?

I went out for 31.14 on Friday. Felt good. Nothing else to report on that one, just posting to keep up to date.

Gearing up for a longish run this morning. Halfway through my coffee and contemplating eggs. Will that help me run or is it just procrastination? Jury's still out. Back's a little tight, but I think the run will help there. Somehow got a dab of poison ivy on the top of my foot. Hope it doesn't itch during the run. (OK, now I'm procrastinating.)

Have a great Labor Day Weekend boys.

Friday, August 29, 2008

Two for One

I set my alarm this morning and rolled out of bed around 6:25 AM.  Both kids were up and starting to goof around so I joined in as well for a few minutes then rousted them outside and threw them in the stroller.
We went out for my usual stroller-run out and back through the center of town covering about 4.5 miles.  It was fun and both kids were chattering and singing with only minimal violence directed towards one another.  I came back faster than I went out and covered the distance in 39:26.  It was a lot of fun.

I've got to go swimming this wekeend and plan on taking my bike into the woods for a couple fo rides to get more comfortable on the new pedals.  One thing that I was thinking about my last ride was that with the exception of one decent sized climb I was never gassed on the ride.  My CV fitness is good right now and even after that climb I recuperated quickly.  I was mainly slow because I was tentative.  My crash tri-training has broght some fun and variety into my regimen and it's much appreciated.

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Necessary

I went out for 1:09 today. It was necessary because I've been slacking on the running lately and, more importantly today, I have some important decisions of the life/career variety to make over the next two weeks.

The run was an out and back at a reasonable pace. After some time off, my legs felt rested and great. I had no set distance in mind when I started out, which was cool. Just ran until I felt like turning back. A luxury given my injury-riddled spring/early summer.

Evening Session

SO, I went out and did my evening session.  I feel pretty good from a workout perspective but got pretty banged up on the ride . . .

I swam 450 yards -- over-distancing again -- and then got on my bike.  I went with a group that was going quicker because they were covering more of the race course.  I was not terribly comfortable on the bike and should have gone with the slow-pokes.  The leader of my group circled back and was giving me some advice, some of which was to bail on the last mile or so of the ride (chagrin, kind of).  I went down hard in one spot, landed square on a boulder got a beautiful abrasion and charlie horse on my left upper thigh, tweaked my ankle and because of the wierd wrenching motion of the fall got a horrible cramp in my calf.

The ankle is sort of swollen -- an hour of icing between 3 AM and 4 AM helped -- in an area near the where the leg joins the ankle, so it's just on one connector, but it doesn't really hurt, just sort of feels aggravated; the thigh and calf are sore.  I'm not terribly hobbled, though a bit humbled, however I must say that I did OK for not having ridden off-road for nearly a decade.  Mrs. Agricola and I are both wondering about the wisdom of adopting toe clips at this time and I'm wondering if maybe I should I have started my tri-life with a road-tri rather than an off-road-tri.  A bit of practice this weekend should help me get more comfortable on the bike though I predict getting smoked on the bike, and none of my bumps and bruises are so bad as to keep me off the road tomorrow, I don't think, though I'll play it be ear.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Morning Session

Today is a cool day for working out -- literally and figuratively.  I actually wore a long sleeve running shirt today to fight the chill a bit.  Of course, I was the only runner in long sleeves but I was happy for them as there was a little bit of that late summer chill in the air.  I had told Child One & Two that I would take them both with me but Child One was sleeping so soundly that I didn't have the heart to wake her up.  Child Two and I headed out and he chattered and sang the whole way.  He asked to have the sun roof unfurled on the Chariot and I complied even though I find it a huge impediment to conversation.  We saw a neighbor on a constitutional and other runners, one with a stroller and child that was in front of us and elicited many questions about the age, gender and name of the child -- all of which were impossible to answer because the we saw them from a distance, and only from behind.

We only went out for 30 minutes this morning, and not our usual 40 and this is where the figurative coolness of the day comes in.  I'm bailing from work on the 4:40 PM train and then heading to the pond for a swim and trail ride workout.  I got new tires and toe clips/biking shoes for my ancient mountain bike.  I'm really looking forward to the swim/bike brick and will attempt a ride/run brick sometime this week as well.  Next Tuesday we put all three disciplines together at the workout so I want to do some practice this week and weekend.  I practiced on the toe clips last night and only fell once, on the pavement.  I think I've got them down and am pumped for the workout -- I'll post about it tonight.

Lube

Forgot about this necessary step prior to longer runs. Hit the 1.5 mile mark today when I realized yesterdays run did leave a mark. Cut the run off at 2 miles before I did significant damage. Ouch. On a positive note, I felt pretty good muscle wise today. I thought I'd be a little sore having run more yesterday than in 2005-7 combined.

Monday, August 25, 2008

Runs 21, 22

Ms. FA and I got out to Banff and Jasper National Parks for about eights days, just back last night. We left the little FAs home with grandparents, so had the time and the space to run together, which we did last Sunday (Aug 17) in Banff, about 3.5 miles along the Bow River from downtown Banff towards the Banff Springs Hotel. This included some moderate trail running, which was a thrill and I'd like to do it again. We got out again on Friday (Aug 22) in Jasper, which was worthwhile but poorly executed as we selected a trail used frequently by groups on horseback and, well, as you might expect the trail itself was sub-optimal for running.

We spent the intervening days in the backcountry and put on several 10+ mile hikes with some significant elevation change, and so had some great cross training with the benefit of truly extraordinary scenery. We also ate and drank as befit a 10th anniversary getaway, so we're feeling strong, but rounder than we'd like.

Peace,

Staycation Week

I'm psyched to see so much activity on the blog in my off-week.  I completely unplugged starting on 8/15 and didn't log-in again/open a computer until this morning with the exception of 15 mintes to pay some bills last Wednesday.  That said, I had a pretty good week of exercise.  I'm doing a mini-tri (400 yard swim, 5.3 mile mountain bike trail ride and a 2.3 mile trail run) on 9/7 so you'll notice some more activities creeping into my regimen.

Sunday 8/17
This day marked a big shift for me -- I left New Balance and purchased a pair of Mizuno running shoes.  I'd not been psyched with my NB 1222s (they've been replaced in the NB lineup by the 1223s) but I ran on them a long time and ran them into the ground.  I'd loved the 1221 but felt it was time a for a change so I didn't just make the jump to the 1223.  I purchased the Wave Inspire 4 They are light and fit great and offer moderate support.  My older sneakers had been giving more support but my visit to Marathon Sports and a gait assessment revealed that the mechanics of my footfall are solid.  My over-pronation is only moderate and the fact that my shins are slightly bowed outward helps to  minimize the pronation.  I'm happy with the shoes.

I did a short swim of about 110 yards to test out the muscles and see how it would feel to swim a bunch.  Cardio-vascularly speaking it was fine, but my muscles -- esp. the deltoids -- were screaming.

Monday 8/18
I tested out my new shoes and took a 36 minute run.  The shoes felt good and I felt good.

Tuesday 8/19
We belong to a pond about 15 minutes from home and there is a triathlon training group meeting there prior to the tri which will take place on the pond and in the reserve.  We started with a 400 hundred yard swim (the tri distance) and then transitioned to a 30 minute trail run.  The swim was hard on the muscles but I never felt in danger of drowning.  I threw in a couple laps of breast stroke to rest the afflicted freestyle muscles.

I thoroughly enjoyed the run.  I went with a group of folks who were going for 3+ miles and we kept a nice pace.  I was near the front of my group and loving the trail run -- it's so much more vivid than the roads because you've got to be really aware of the ground etc.  It was fun and I felt good.

Wednesday  8/20
Rest Day

Thursday 8/21
I ran by myself for 31 minutes on the trails.  My pace was problematic and my HR monitor wasn't working great -- it wasn't recording my date for nearly half the run, though it was on.  Anyway, the run, alone in the woods, was cool but I was lucky to make it back and not get lost.  I'm not actually sure how I actually navigated my way back to the return trail but I did.  I mention my pace because on the group run I felt good and felt like I was back to my old self.  This run made me question my fitness level again and I'm not sure what's up.

After returning from my run I did a 450 yard swim.  I did only two lengths of of breat stroke and 8 of freestlye.  I felt stronger and tighter in the shoulders and chest and feel good about the swimming.  I added in an extra length for good measure -- just to over-distance a bit so on the day of the tri I won't be crying at 375 yards . . .

Friday 8/22
Museum of Science butterfly room and dinner with friends.  I managed to undo some of my good work during the week with Dark and Stormies and a cigar!

Saturday 8/23
I did a 450 yard swim again.  I felt even stronger and more confident after this one -- it took about 17 minutes.  I'll not be setting any world records but I'm enjoying the swimming.

Sunday 8/24
I headed out Sunday AM and did a 40:47 minute road run.  I'm not sure of the distance, it's somewhere in the range of 5 miles.  I did my out and back on which I usually take Child Two but I ended up going further.  I got to my normal turning point at 18:50 and so went a bit further out.  I went out in 20:43 and back in 20:04.  This is where the pacing thing got weird.  In the middle of the out-leg I focused on my stride and my push-off.  I felt as if I were gliding.  On the way back I felt slow and gassed.  I don't know what's up.  I feel as if I'm trying to bite off more than I can chew right now and putting pressure on each run to get back in better form even though I know that I can't do that.  It's odd, running is sort of up and down for me right now and that may be why I'm enjoying the swimming so much. 

Tomorrow, 8/26 I'm doing a swim bike workout at the pond and am psyched -- I got new off-road tires and invested in toe clips.  I'll be outside tonight and practicing on those.

5 @ 10

Started a little earlier today (still very dark) and set out to run 4 or 5 today depending on how I felt. Tried a new route from my office out to Castle Island through South Boston. Its basically a 4 mi out and back run with a 1 mile loop around Fort Independence. I almost bailed out at the 2 mi mark as I was getting tired and didn't want to start cramping at the furthest point in the run. After a brief conversation with myself, I continued on. At one point, I could see my office across the bay. It looked VERY far away. So I stayed focused on the path ahead and tried to zone out for a mile. Once I reached the 4 mile mark, the anxiety was gone and I cruised in the last mile (9:42). Covered the 5.0 in exactly 50 minutes. No aches or pains either. Good start to the week.

(I run at the office to beat the traffic and to utilize safer routes. I'm questioning the latter as I passed my second active murder scene this morning on consecutive runs. Not good.)

Friday, August 22, 2008

10 miles...

..for the week. This is actually an accomplishment for me as I haven't run 10 in a week since I last ran Falmouth ('00?). Ran three miles yesterday. While the run felt good and the pace was decent, I felt like crap in the afternoon. Legs sore, lower back sore and very low energy. Probably has more to do with the 4 hours of sleep I've been averaging this week than the run. (I love the Olympics but can't wait for them to be over.) I would have skipped today's 2 miles if it were not for the 10 mile week goal, new shoes and a new HRM. (I also had 6 hours of sleep.) I feel much better today. I suspect/hope the back problems are partially do to the old shoes. Next week I'm going to focus more on distance (12-15) than pace. I have a busy work week but I'm starting to get used to the 5:30 AM runs.

Question for you all. Do you keep training logs? If so, what information do you record?

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

40 minutes, clear head

Damn, I just lost this post as I was about to hit publish. Here's the brief version:
- Crisp, clear day, perfect for running
- Had trouble motivating, but glad I got out for 40 minutes
- Still love how the creative, productive thinking kicks in after about 20 minutes on the road
- Need to kick up the pace, but I figure my body needs the rest for now, so I'm taking it. The mileage will come.

Later boys.

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Still going...

Yesterday's run was the first I didn't time. I needed to get out for an easy run as I planned on running longer today. Its was great to just run and not focus on time at all. Finally ran 3 miles today at around 10 minute pace. Lungs felt great at the end, legs were a bit tired (probably has something to do with the 20 lbs I need to lose). I was also passed, for the first time, by a woman who looked in no better shape than I. With my new zen attitude, it didn't bother me at all. I've come to grips with the fact that until I can run under 8 min. pace, I've got no business being competitive. Tomorrow is day off.

Stress Fracture

We've been feeling a bit of stress up here due to job searching stuff and the usual end of the summer exhale. We always need some downtime to regroup after a summer of charging around trying to take advantage of the good weather. As a result, I've taken a break from the running this week. Really, this is when I should be running more to help deal with the stress, but it's easier said than done.

I got in a 30 minute run on Saturday, but skipped both long runs that were scheduled for the weekend. Looking to get back on track this week, maybe even today since temps are in the 60's. Still feeling healthy, so it's just a matter of doing it. We'll see how that goes....

Friday, August 15, 2008

Run 20

Run 20 was Wednesday night and well, was not what I'd hoped. I was tired and still trying to kick my head cold, and despite great weather just not into the run at all. I slogged through my loop and walked more that I have since Runs 1 - 6. I'm not feeling like the retropsective post I had planned. You'll see me drop off the blog for about eight days, while Mrs. FA and I get away for a while. We'll be running during that time, so I'm aiming to get my groove back, such as it was. 'Till then, peace.

Thursday, August 14, 2008

Climbing The Hill, Again

Rolled out of bed at 6:10 this AM, tok my stuff downstairs and got dressed in the kitchen.  I headed out for about 36 minutes and really focused on just staying within myself and enjoying the run.  My quads and hammes were tight today -- a sure sign of decline.  I've given back much of my hard work during the spring and am feeling in less than excellent shape.  It happens.  Something has to give sometimes in my life and family time and work are non-negotiable.  I'm going to go tomorrow for a short run, and see what happens on Saturday.  I'm taking a vacation at home next week and totally looking forward to it.

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

The Piriformis

So I think I've been having trouble with my left piriformis muscle. It bugs me only a little while running, but becomes uncomfortable when i sit for a long time. So I am fairly certain it is not sciatica. I've been doing a lot of hip streteches, which help. Anyone know more than I do about this one?

Run 19 and Rest

Run 19 was last Friday afternoon, and it was what now is a fairly typical 3 miler for me, from the aprtment, around the central park resevoir and back again, taking around 35 minutes. I dislike Friday afternoon runs. With an after-work run on Friday I can squeeze in my miles all during the work week and skip the weekends, which is convenient when the FreeArtists are upstate and the agenda is focused on other things. But by Fri afternoon I'm pooped out, and would rather lie on the couch and watch the news than run. The impulse to lie on the couch is what I'm fighting, of course, and so I run on Fridays.

I came down with a nasty head cold over the weekend and had to fly on Mon, Tues, and so haven't run since then. I feel good for the rest.

Mrs. FA and I are running the Susan G. Komen for the Cure 5K in September. As I'm running the distance now in ~35 minutes, I'm aiming to run it sub-30.

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Starting over

So I promised myself that I wouldn't post again to the blog until I was "over the hump" and running consistently again. After three weeks of running at least 3 times per week, I hope I'm there. There were many factors in my desire to start running again. Stress at work, stress at home, low energy, low motivation... While I'll probably take some ribbing for this, my declining golf game was also a significant factor. When the one outlet you have to relax and get some exercise turns into something that causes more frustration, stress and injuries, things are not well. Perhaps more notable is what is not on the list...losing weight, "keeping up with the Jones" (i.e. you all) or training for a specific event.

So I started running at lunch at work. I used to like running in the heat. The first day was 90+ but I figured running a couple of miles along the waterfront wouldn't be so bad. I can't ever remember being so hot my life. It wasn't so much from the air or sun, but the pavement. I ran for 20 minutes. After 15 minutes of walking, a shower, 15 minutes in front of an industrial A/C unit, 10 minutes to get lunch, and another 15 minutes in front of the A/C unit (helps to run the data center), I finally stopped sweating. My second run, while not as hot, took almost as long to cool down from. My next three runs were on the same route at work but at 5:30 in the morning. Considerably cooler and faster. Interestingly, even though I was up early and exercising, I felt like I had more energy at the end of the day. Encouraging.

The only goals I have are to run 3x per week and increase the mileage gradually. So far so good.

Monday, August 11, 2008

Embarrassing Disappointment

I "ran" Falmouth yesteday.  I broke an hour, but it was ugly.  If you want to see my time check out the race website.  I'll not recount anything here because it was a total disaster of a run and personally embarrassing.  I basically broke down at 5K and struggled the rest of the way.  I didn't train properly and if you want to do well you've got to train.  I didn't hydrate or eat right.  I completely misjudged the heat.  It was a total disaster.  I only ran about two minutes slower this year than last year and it's amazing how awful those two minutes feel.  My pace was a mess, my heart rate was sky high and my breathing was all over the place.

I heard some fat woman on the last hill say, "he's dying" as I ran by . . . I heard the same thing two years ago, same place, same person no doubt, and it steamed me then and it's steaming me now.  If you get on the last big hill as a spectator, only to call out others' pain don't camp out there, you useless piece of crap.  Put down your ciggy, put down your mimosa, and try it.

Oh well, there's always next year, and tomorrow, to get better.  Tomorrow I'm going to go to a tri-training thing at our pond.  Ever onward.

Sunday, August 10, 2008

Weekend exploits

I'm into the brief posts these days. Here's another:

Saturday - 29 minutes
Sunday 1:59, 14 miles. 1:00 out and 59 minutes back. Felt strong for most of it. Started to bonk at 1 hour in, but was saved by a Cliff Bar (peanut butter, yum) and some Gatorade. Was back on track by 1:20 and finished strong. Reeled in a woman ahead of me over the last 3 miles. She was about a half mile ahead, so it took a while. Got in some good strategery (Bush is speaking on the tube right now) and clear thinking at about 45 minutes -- what a luxury that is amidst hectic summer days.

Later boys.

Friday, August 8, 2008

Jaunt

Did a 30 minute out and back yesterday. 15.30 on the way out, 13.37 on the way back. Trying to keep grinding. Rest day today before a (planned) big mileage weekend.

Thursday, August 7, 2008

Run 18

Got out on schedule last night for 36 minutes. Nothing unusual to report. Got some technical shirts, and so was a fair bit more comfortable sweating, and undoubtedly more handsome.

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

Logging

Trying to log the longer runs, even if I miss some of the shorter ones. Got in just under 1 hour today. 30.03 on the way out and 29.32 on the way back. I pushed and it felt good.

Tuesday, August 5, 2008

Run 17, Roughly

I got out at 8:30 last night, and it was a beautiful night to run in NYC. Temps in low 80s, minimal humidity, and a breeze. The skyline over the Resevoir was dazzling.

So I ran my (roughly) three mile route in (roughly) 33 minutes. I started stronger and faster than is typicaly for me, reaching the resevoir from my starting point, a distance of (roughly) one mile, in (roughly) 8:30, which is loads faster than my usual 10 - 11 minute mile shuffle. Though I did stop for a short walk in the second half.

I got home around 9:10 and had a late dinner. Maybe the combo of running and eating late kept me up and restless until about 2:00am. Rough stuff.

Monday, August 4, 2008

Weekend Report

I did a hilly, 33 minute run on Saturday AM.  I went at it pretty hard and it felt good.  My legs were actually sore yesterday and bit today as well.  I went out this morning for a quick run and it felt good to get out in the AM.
Life is normalizing a bit for me, and the pressure is lessening at work so hopefully I can get out and run more at the tail end of summer.  I've identified a tri to try -- in September, 400 yard swim, 5.5 mile trail ride and 2.3 mile trail run -- it should be fun, I'm going to get trail tires for my bike and try and train some for it over the next month.

Rain Run

If you ever have a chance to run in the rain (pretty likely this summer), do it. I went out for a long run under threatening skies on Sunday, and ran right into a huge front. The radar painted the picture clearly, but I went for it anyway. I needed to get out.

And I got soaked. Within about 15 minutes of my start, the skies opened and stayed open for about 60 of the next 75 minutes. My legs felt good, breathing was in check, and I wanted to run, so the rain was more liberating than limiting. The fact that I was getting after it when I normally would have bailed made whole run more enjoyable. The deluge also brought a little bit of play into the run -- I felt like a little kid getting soaked in a storm.

So, don't let the weather keep you inside. It's fun.

Details -- One hour, 30 minutes. Somewhere in the neighborhood of 11 miles.

Run 16, Sort of

Rushing to get in a run between work and the long drive north on Friday, I had a very unsatisfactory run on the basement gym's treadmill. Hate the treadmill. I was bored, tired, and had brought the smallest FA with to get her out of Mom's hair, and she was bored and tired, too, and so became a big distraction. I didn't hit 3 miles or 30 minutes, and ended up walking a load just to say I did it. Pile on that the many beers I drank at a reunion of sorts on Saturday night. Aiming to get back out on the road tonight, and back to feeling like I've started something. Peace, boys.

Friday, August 1, 2008

One hour

I've had only one 30 minute run since the triathlon last weekend, so today was my day to get out. I did one hour, which I think was about 8 miles. It felt good.

Nothing else to report. Just checking in.