Lunch Run

5.1 miles
41 minutes

Had a good lunch run with a couple of colleagues. This one was just about getting the miles in. Felt good overall with a little tightness in the outer band on my left knee. It was a perfect day for running. Probably 58 degrees, no wind, sun poking through the clouds.

Turning Corners

Saturday, April 28
7:38am
14.2 miles
2:04.27

With a day under 4 weeks until the race, my marathon training is hitting another gear, and I'm feeling good about it. I did my third long run on Saturday, and felt significantly better than I did during the 13 miler last week. It felt like my body took note of the increased mileage and responded. For the first time, I could see myself actually getting into longer distance runs. They are much more of a journey and opportunity for observation (internal and external) than the shorter jaunts.

I'm sure the location of this run also helped my overall performance. We made a 36 hour stop in Hingham for a wedding, and the change of scenery invigorated me. I cruised through old friends' neighborhoods, ran the path I used to walk to elementary school, even ran miles 9-14 with an old friend, who's house I incorporated into the loop.

Now that I'm back in VT, it's all about the schedule again. I have 5, 10 and 5 milers to do this week, and a big 20 miler on Saturday. I've (finally) bought into the program, which takes my lack of motivation or laziness out of the running equation. If it's on the chart, I have to run. I'm actually going out today to get ahead a bit in case the week gets hectic.

Now if I only had this focus for my work....

Contagion or Exhaustion

Time: 31:06
Avg HR: 155
Peak HR: 176
Distance: TBD (~4) miles
Start Time: 7:55 AM
Training Effect: 4.5
Temp: ~40

I'm not sure what's up with me and the spring. Last spring was a health disaster with one sickness after another and this spring is only mildly better. Saturday was my day to hit it but it wasn't happening. I felt like I'd been run over by truck. I'm not sure if it's a cold -- I've been spewing gouts of nasty yellow stuff from my nostrils all week -- or if I was just wiped from my weekend in Chicago and a very full week at work.

I don't know . . .

Anyway, I went out today. Not much to report. I went a little extra distance today, added maybe half a mile or so. It was more painful that I thought, but given yesterday's weirdness I should have expected it. Spring is really a weird time for me. I'm psyched that it's warming up and greening up, but the weather is super variable and it's often not pleasant (today was only in the 50s and drizzly all day). I'm just in a poor mood right now.

The Park

When I bought the bike last fall I was suffused with the romantic notion of rides in Central Park. Truth is, the Park is not a fun ride. Unless it is empty, which happens only before 6:00am, the roller bladers, families of six with double-wide strollers, kids on scooters, and pedestrians who forget that they are crossing a city street, all contribute to make it one of the riskiest rides in the NYC area.

I rounded the corner today on my fifth lap, 32 mile, just less than 1 lap from my goal and feeling strong when WHAM....about 10,000 Walk for Parkinson's suburbanites were like a wall to wall carpet, as far up the road as I could see. I pulled over and watched the other cyclists round the same corner, and use the same profanity, as I had. Some of them tried to wade into the throng, but surface roads took me home.

Dist: 35.57 miles
Time: 2.35.31 hrs (including the 15 miutes or so I stood gaping at the walkers.)
Mx Speed: 26.3 mph
Av Speed: 13.7 mph

Have the heart monitor now, but still figger'n it out. Mx heart rate was around 176, on the great hill.

Two-fer

It's amazing what a schedule and a goal will do for you. I'm staring at 26.2 in 4.5 weeks with a week of vacation ending the day before the race. Between now and the start of vacation, I have to run about 110 miles according to my schedule. Now that I'm on countdown, I am fully bought in to the program. I am determined to 1. relax at the beach and drink my fair share of beer on vacation, and 2. still be prepared for the marathon.

What does that mean when you work and have two kids? Today it meant doing 3.1 at lunch and 3.1 after work to get in my scheduled 6 for the day. Overall it means that I have a supportive wife who takes both kids on for extra duty while I'm out running. The spousal support merits its own post, so you'll see more on that from me later.

Later boys.

3.1 in the sun

I just got in from a 3.1 mile lunchtime run with a colleague. After running solo for the past couple of weeks, it was good to have a partner. We ran a solid pace, and I never really thought about running. Because of the conversation, my legs just pulled me along like they were on auto-pilot. It was a welcome change from some of the grinding runs I've had lately. The fact that it was a perfect running day (about 65 degrees, no wind, no clouds) also helped.

Gorgeous Morning

Time: 27:02
Avg HR: 156
Peak HR: 178
Distance: 3.3 miles
Start Time: 7:06 AM
Training Effect: 4.3
Temp: 40ish

And the water shone like diamonds in the dew.
-- Neil Young, "Thrasher"

I was not feeling it this morning when I headed out -- congested, hacking and suffering a little headache . . . I then went out and ran my fastest time yet on my 3.3 mile course. Running is like that -- sometimes you eat the miles, sometimes they eat you.

Everything was dew covered this morning, and it was really lovely. Lots of lawns were silver-green and water droplets on branches blazed in the sun. The words I quoted above kept echoing in my brain as I ran. I spent a lot of time on the run trying to remember the words to "Thrasher" -- I did pretty good -- which is one of the finest tunes ever written, in my opinion. Good run.

The data on my Chicago run:

Time: 40:59
Avg HR: 160
Peak HR: 173
Distance: 4.8 miles
Start Time: 7:46 AM
Training Effect: 5.0
Temp: 50s

"Addicted"

This appears to be one of the last spots for Nike Running Shoes to come out of the Wieden & Kennedy (that shop is based in Portland, OR but this ad comes out of their Amsterdam office). Crispin was just awarded the contract and I'm curious to see what they do with it. I wonder if their willfully weird and ironic style will resonate with the runner. The Nike/Wieden partnership was one of the longest running and I think most influential marketing relationships ever. They really caught the essence of sports -- esp. running.

Running

Nice weather as I began my leisurely jog yesterday morning at 6:15. I am not a big fan of morning runs as my body is not quite awake and the body's blood is still reaching parts of my body, particularly the legs, that have lain still for close to 6 hours. 25 minute run and my HR was 160. Not bad and I felt decent. Followed the run up with a little rock climbing at 9:30 at night at the local indoor gym. Supposedly it is the third largest climbing facility in the US and my final climb was a 5.7 degree of difficulty. I covered 70 feet in about 20 minutes. Nothing like hanging off a rope suspended in mid-air.

I will see how long this will last for me, but it is a good start. I have rowed on the ergometer with my team, but only in short distances and I can't really count them as workouts over the past two weeks. They have made me realize just how out of shape I am and I am no longer the athlete I once was.

Perfect run day

Got in a quick 40 minutes after work. It was about 57 degrees, blue sky, no wind. Perfect for running.

Today I realized that I'm finally at the point where I don't want to miss a workout. Sure, I'll take a rest day, but only if it's on the schedule. It feels good to be slightly obsessed.

Chicago Run

So, you guys have been busy while I've been in the great state if Illinois. Lots of good posts. Firstly, traveling with small children on short jaunts is somewhat exhausting. Yesterday was my day but after rising at 5:45 AM to make it to our flight at O'Hare I had no juice in the tank for yesterday's scheduled trot after getting back to Boston. This morning we all slept until about 8 AM and I missed my window -- which is a bummer because it was perfect weather, but what are you going to do?

That said, I took a great run on Saturday.

It was a beautiful morning and there were loads of runners, bikers, walkers etc., and you really can't beat Lake Michigan as a back drop. It was a lot of fun to run in an urban environment with other people. It took me back to my Brooklyn running days and got me reflecting that much of my running career has been an urban running career. I still recall one of my early forays into running, just after moving to NYC in 1998, and how amazing it was to cover so much ground and see so many things in a brief span. I remember one run where I went from the West Village to E 12 St and 2 Ave and then wound my way back across Manhattan at rush hour -- dodging people and jumping over garbage, it was a blast.

I love to run in the country, don't get me wrong, but I covered nearly 5 miles in 40 minutes and I attribute it to the people who were around. It was great and I think Chicago is great. My brother and his family are moving to Houston in June and I look forward to adding that city to my running locales.

Merganser

Ran for just over 2 hours today and covered 13.2 miles of mostly dirt roads along what was either the Winooski or Little River (have to look that one up). Anyway, it was a perfect day for a run, and this was a new route for me, which kept it interesting.

The highlight was spotting about 6 common Merganzers (4 male and 2 female) along the way. I only know about this duck because we saw some yesterday up on the lake. About 35 of the birds were frolicking 200 yards off camp. Even at that distance, you could see that it's a pretty bird. It was an unexpected bonus to see them up close today. This picture doesn't do them justice, but it gives you an image for the post.

http://www.xmission.com/~cldavis/mrgnsrcmn1cd.jpg

As for the run, it was a grind. The weather and scenery pulled me through, but 13 miles is tough. And I signed up for 26?

Red Winged Blackbirds

Start at Crown Point, cross the bridge into Vermont, head towards Middlebury but turn along the bikeway and watch the cows and the lake for about 45 minutes, repeat in reverse.

I fell 2x (more later on that) but stopped counting red winged backbirds at 13. A gorgeous day.

Time: 1.33.02 hrs
Mx: 32.2 mph
Av: 14.1 mph
Dist: 21.95 mi

Cardio data should come online in about two weeks.

Blue skies

50 minutes
6.3 miles

Felt tight, fast, slow, effortless, grinding at various points throughout the run. Couldn't get into any real rhythm during the run.

Still, it was a gorgeous day. Man, does it feel good to see the sun.

This was my first run of the year in shorts.

Bands on the Run

Having avoided regular, organized exercise for most of my adult life, my cycling venture is bringing me close to many issues I've been able to avoid. Like dealing with regularly with pain. It appears that I suffer a bio-mechanical problem....I pedal bow-legged, which strains my IT Bands, particularly on the right side. Inflamed bands make staircases and lateral motion difficult and painful. So I've researched stretches specific to bands and am careful to warm up and wind down. But the trainer has become particularly important for this reason. The lack of landscape and shifting topography allows me to use trainer time for improving pedaling form: knees in, flex the foot on the down pedal. It's made a great difference.

I spent a few thousand reward points on a heart rate monitor and am anticipating its arrival shortly, so I'm looking forward to gaining greater insight into my physiology and performance.

Make it mean something

It was a gorgeous day, and I would have felt really bad if I blew off the run. Luckily, I squeezed one in right after work, thanks to my wife's simple question, "what about your run?" when I called to say I was on my way home. I definitely would've ditched if not for that support. Anyway, it was 5K in 24 minutes -- a good, fast pace for me.

About half way through the run, I found myself saying/thinking, "make it mean something" to keep me going at my stepped up pace. Since I have a marathon coming up in 6 weeks, I know that piling on more 3 milers isn't going to get the job done. That I couldn't run further today was purely a function of time, or more accurately a lack of time because I had to get home to see the kids before bed time. So rather than just cruise through the run, I turned it into a "speed" workout. It felt good, and mixed up what is getting to be a fairly boring route.

I have to acknowledge that simply getting out there on a regular basis "means something." It was a nice feeling, though, to have something from within pushing me just a little bit harder today.

Patriots Day

Time: 28:18
Avg HR: 153
Peak HR: 173
3.3 miles
7:03 AM start
Training Effect: 4.2
Temp: 34

“What a glorious morning this is!” —Samuel Adams to John Hancock at the Battle of Lexington, Massachusetts, 19 April 1775

Historically, this is a glorious day in American History. Contemporaneously it was cold and drizzling. I worked today to limit my pace and go out a bit slower. I added 25 seconds onto the run and it was a more comfortable process -- I also ate better yesterday and I think that helped. We're heading to Chicago tomorrow for my niece's Christening so look for a Windy City post.

CSI

I started late so only rode for thirty minutes tonight, all on the trainer, standing still in my living room. I comfortably spin between 16 and 18 mph most nights, so that's roughly 8.5 miles, I didn't bother to check the computer. I don't have a heart rate monitor yet, so that's all I can say about it.

There isn't a lot to look at when you train at home. During my first few outdoor rides of the year last week it was remarkable how much more quickly time passes with the changing landscape. Finding the proper living room diversion has become a small obsession of mine.

Reading is out of the question. I am on my road bike, on a trainer, there is no gym-style-stationary-bike-shelf-for-your-magazine thing. I've tried the iPod, and while it spares my sanity on long flights it just doesn't do the job on long rides. I don't have the proper patience to build a kick ass playlist, and when Zep's The Girl I Love She Got Long Black Wavy Hair downshifts to Annie's Song (that's John Denver, fellas) it's tough to keep your dick up.

So I've come to define what works on television. Nothing too cerebral or hard to follow (I'm short Syriana), nothing too talk-oriented (tried Barefoot in the Park once. Short that.). The right show needs a little action, a jaunty tone, and a good story, enough narrative force to pull you along without drowning you. Right now that's CSI. Back to back reruns from 7 to midnight on Spike TV. Beauty.

Quick one

I have to say that two recent posts -- one from Agricola who braved the raw, wet weather to get in a run, and the other from FreeArtist, who's getting ready to spin for hours on end in his living room -- inspired me to quit with the excuses and get back out on the road for a run. So, after work I went for a quicky, and it felt great. It was about 3.1 miles, 25 minutes or so. My legs felt fresh from a combination (I think) of time off the roads and cross-training via the snowboard.

I have one funny story from the run. At one point on this particular route, I transition from the road to a bike path via a set of stairs. When I got to the top of the stairs today, a runner buzzed by me. There was enough space that I could have cut out in front of him, but he was going at such a clip that I paused for a second, let him pass and fell into my pace behind him. He pulled ahead but stayed in site, which was fine. We went our separate ways about a mile later as I cut back to the road to make my final push back to the office and he continued on the path. Now here's the funny part. As I approached my final turn that would take me the last quarter mile of my run, I saw the runner who cruised by me earlier approaching from the opposite direction. While I honestly didn't care that he left me in his dust once, I absolutely was not going to get beaten twice in the same three miles. I literally thought (and might have actually said), "No way this joker's beating me twice!" I never met the guys' eye and never looked over my shoulder to see if he made the turn behind me. I just kicked up my speed a notch or two. A few strides in, I heard him approaching and stepped it up even higher. Ten yards later, I convinced myself that he was probably catching me, and I kicked it up yet again. By the time I reached my stopping point, I was at a full on near-sprint-but-trying-not-to-look-like-I'm-really-trying-that-hard pace, and I was very pleased to have won my own personal race. Only then did I casually turn and glance over my shoulder, only to see an empty road. He never even made the turn.

Anyone who claims that running is primarily a physical event has it all wrong. This sport/activity all happens above the shoulders. Play the right mind games and you'll push yourself harder, run longer, and feel better for it.

The joker on my run today has no idea that he was schooled today on the "course", but I know it and I feel that much better for duping myself into believing he wanted the win as much as I did.

What games do you guys play to keep it interesting?

Damp, All Around

Before I get into the trivialities of my running post I'd like to take a moment to express my condolences to the families of the people murdered at Virginia Tech and to remember the victims -- you were in my thoughts this morning as I pounded the pavement.

Time: 27:53
Avg HR: 157
Peak HR: 176
3.3 miles
7:01 AM start
Training Effect: 4.4
Temp: 30

So, I'm sure when it's steaming hot up here in Mass. this summer I'll long for cooler temperatures, but I must say I'm looking forward to warm weather running because today was pretty nasty -- damp, gray and cold with a steady mist and a stiff breeze. All in all though, the problems were trivial and the run went off without a hitch, though it was harder than I wanted it to be.

Yesterday was sort of a dietary disaster for me -- my comments about changing my diet not-withstanding, yesterday was an anomaly -- and I think that impacted this morning because i was not running on the right fuel. Another thing that impacted getting out of the house was that I packed my gear when it was still damp from my Cape runs and when I put it on everything was cool and damp . . . I needed to go find some other gear. Stinky I can deal with, damp and cool, no thanks.

Congrats to the runners of the Boston Marathon -- who ran in sub-optimal conditions.
Welcome to FreeArtist who joins this blog as he trains for a cycling century.