As we prepare to head out of town for Thanksgiving, and relieved that my training plan does not call for a long run this week, I went out for my last run of the week this morning planning on doing 6 miles. I just have to say that today was one of the most delightful runs I have ever had. The weather was perfect, and the scenery was gorgeous - at times it appeared like it was raining leaves as the wind blew them off of the trees. I ran downtown, and saw my favorite homeless guy - who once again cheered me on. I ran past kids waiting for the bus, and a couple of little kids started acting like they were chasing me, and of course, I played along. Absolutely just an amazing morning, and the run felt great. I ended up doing 7 miles, with an average pace of 9:01.
I also wore a new pair of shoes today. I've had 3 pairs of Asics Kayano 15s. I loved the first pair so much that when they wore out, I bought the exact same shoe - and it was a bonus because by then the Kayano 16s had come out, so the 15s were on closeout. Since the prices had dropped so much, I went ahead a week or so later and bought another pair, and that way I could cycle my shoes. I had read that it is a good thing to do to rotate your shoes if you run on back to back days, so that is what I've been doing for months. But I began to realize that one of the pairs was really starting to wear down, so I went back to Omega Sports, and low and behold they had the Ascics Kayano 16s on closeout clearance, because the Kayano 17s are now out. I tried them on, and loved them - so I bought them. I plan on heading back in a week or 2 to get another pair of 16s so that I can keep this rotation thing going. The shoes felt great - cushioning was perfect, and the support exactly that I need. Highly recommend them if you need stability control shoes.
Have a great Thanksgiving!
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Gutsy Run
Saturday while Aaron had soccer practice, Jacob and I were out on the field just kicking the soccer ball around. Having just run 14 miles the day before, I must admit that my legs were feeling a little heavy, so just running around a little bit and kicking the ball didn't feel the best, but I knew it was good for me. At some point as we were just kicking it, one of us (me) challenged the other to race the length of the field. I have no idea why one of us had that idea, but once the challenge was issued, there was no backing down. Fully anticipating my speedy son to completely destroy me, I even let him do the count - "ready . . . set . . ." I think he was expecting that I was going to cheat (as most Dad's do) on the start, so I fully let him say "go" and once I saw him running, I started as fast as I could. I could not believe that I quickly took the lead, and as I lengthened my stride I began to pull away even more. By the time we got to the end, I was able to let up and cruise to the end. Jacob could not believe that his old man had just beaten him, and I was in some shock about it myself. It's not like he's a little kid anymore - the kid is a speedy almost-13-year-old who plays soccer year round with a travel soccer club. I've marveled at his speed on the soccer pitch, as he would track down another player from behind to break up a breakaway. And I just beat him in a flat out sprint. That showed me how much I have grown as a runner, because I could not do that last year.
All that being said, I paid for that sprint. I could feel it in my thighs Sunday and yesterday, and I could still feel it today. Yesterday I did run a nice, easy 6 miles, and it definitely helped break up that soreness. It was so neat how the stiffness that I felt at the beginning of the run faded, and how I got so much stronger and looser by the end. Today was my day for interval training, and I was actually looking forward to it after my "race" on Saturday. I pushed it really hard in my intervals. For my intervals, I run at a local park, there is a lap that is a little more than 400M. I ran a hard lap, then jogged a lap, and then repeated those 2. I think broke up the lap, and would run hard a half-lap, followed by the jog. Lastly, I quartered the lap, followed by a quarter jog. For my own records, I ran 2 full, 2 half, 4 quarters, and sprinted up the hill out of the park. Add in the warm up and cool down, it was 5.1 miles, and even factoring in the slow jogs after the hard intervals, my average pace was 8:45. One more run tomorrow, and then we head South.
All that being said, I paid for that sprint. I could feel it in my thighs Sunday and yesterday, and I could still feel it today. Yesterday I did run a nice, easy 6 miles, and it definitely helped break up that soreness. It was so neat how the stiffness that I felt at the beginning of the run faded, and how I got so much stronger and looser by the end. Today was my day for interval training, and I was actually looking forward to it after my "race" on Saturday. I pushed it really hard in my intervals. For my intervals, I run at a local park, there is a lap that is a little more than 400M. I ran a hard lap, then jogged a lap, and then repeated those 2. I think broke up the lap, and would run hard a half-lap, followed by the jog. Lastly, I quartered the lap, followed by a quarter jog. For my own records, I ran 2 full, 2 half, 4 quarters, and sprinted up the hill out of the park. Add in the warm up and cool down, it was 5.1 miles, and even factoring in the slow jogs after the hard intervals, my average pace was 8:45. One more run tomorrow, and then we head South.
Friday, November 19, 2010
What drives you?
I've got to admit that while I say that I enjoy running, there are times that I don't. I mean, what kind of sane person could actually look forward to punishing their body for a few hours, so much so that you will feel the effects for a couple of days? I've built up my base mileage now so that a normal, slow-paced run will not bother me too much - but I still dread the long runs. Recognize that "long run" is a relative term. This week my long run was 14 miles; last week it was 12. Today, if I had had to run only 12 miles, then it would not have seemed as long as it did last week (though I have to admit - it didn't really feel that long last week). In a couple of weeks, my long run will be 16 (next week scales back a bit, and that couldn't be better news considering we're going to Disney for Thanksgiving). As the mileage keeps building as I prepare for the marathon, I tend to dread that long run - no matter the distance. Presently I don't have a training partner for those long runs (anyone interested? Taking applications . . .), so spending a couple of hours by myself sometimes gets to be tedious, and dare I say boring? As much as I love music, there are some songs that just will not inspire you to keep going when all you want to do is stop, sit down, and wait for someone to ask you if you need help, to which you would reply, "Yes - umm, I think I pulled something and I need a ride home, please."
So today as I was slowly trudging along at a nice slow 9:30 per mile pace, I began to really wonder what pushes me to do this to myself. Some of it without a doubt is to maintain good health. I celebrated last week having to buy some new pants in a size that I haven't come close to fitting in since college But I can assure you that my waist size is not the thing that drives me to run. Sometimes the thing that drives me to run is that it really is a neat time to commune with God. Spend hours alone (relatively, considering all the traffic driving around) in the beauty of His creation, it definitely is a refreshing feeling to draw so close to Him. But frankly, I can do that in the quiet of my backyard, so that's not what drives me to run.
I think I finally boiled it down to two things that actually drive me to run. One, it proves to me that all things ARE possible through God. Sometimes I will set out on a run with a defeatist mentality, telling myself from the start that there is no way that I would be able to run the alloted distance for that day considering how I feel, but in the end when I finish it I know that I didn't do it on my strength alone. I swear, when I finished my first half-marathon I felt like there was nothing in the world that I could not do! I had just run 13.1 miles, and if I could do that, I could do anything. Later when I ran the marathon, as miserable as I felt physically, I was an emotional wreck! I was doing everything I possibly could to hold back the tears because of the amazement and joy at what I had just done. Running for me allows me to push the limits of what I can do, and it teaches me to lean into the everlasting arms to meet what He can do.
The second thing that drives me to run is other people - people that inspire me, and people that I hope that I inspire. I used to run back in high school and some in college, but I gave it up years ago. But then a couple of years ago I was talking with a friend from high school who had become a runner, and I was so inspired by the tales of their marathons that I just had to start running again. Next thing you know, my boys wanted to run a 5K with me. Next thing you know, other friends start running. Next thing you know, I feel like I can't let down those who inspire me, and who I hope to inspire. Today, honestly, it was this second motivation that got me through my run.
I just knew that this was not going to be a great run - sometimes you can just feel it in your gut . . . literally. I truthfully wanted to quit around mile 5, but as I was running on the sidewalks of downtown Goldsboro, I encountered this homeless guy that always cheers me on. This guy is so down on his luck, but as I approached him and said "good morning," he got excited and smiled and said, "He went that way!" As I started laughing, he kept that great smile and said, "You're doing great - keep going!" It gave me chills - and no, it wasn't just the cold temps. It was just awesome how he inspired me. Later, when I starting feeling like crap again, I really just wanted to cut the run short, but then I got to thinking about my friend Doug, who last weekend completed his first marathon at the OBX Marathon. Doug had an injury flare up between mile 3 and 4, and he would not give up and he pressed on to complete the full 26.2. I got to thinking about Doug on my run when I wanted to quit, and I thought, "what excuse do I really have to quit now? If Doug kept moving, then so will I!" Funny thing is that by the time I finished, I really didn't feel that bad. I don't think I would have wanted to run another mile or two, and certainly not 12 more today, but I realized that because I had been inspired by these two guys from polar opposite worlds, I was able to push myself beyond what I thought I could do. That drives me.
Long story short - 14 miles in the bank. Average pace was 9:43, which includes a bathroom break that slowed my time (funny how much a 2 minute stop can impact your average time). 29.3 miles for the week. It's about time to get a new pair of shoes.
So today as I was slowly trudging along at a nice slow 9:30 per mile pace, I began to really wonder what pushes me to do this to myself. Some of it without a doubt is to maintain good health. I celebrated last week having to buy some new pants in a size that I haven't come close to fitting in since college But I can assure you that my waist size is not the thing that drives me to run. Sometimes the thing that drives me to run is that it really is a neat time to commune with God. Spend hours alone (relatively, considering all the traffic driving around) in the beauty of His creation, it definitely is a refreshing feeling to draw so close to Him. But frankly, I can do that in the quiet of my backyard, so that's not what drives me to run.
I think I finally boiled it down to two things that actually drive me to run. One, it proves to me that all things ARE possible through God. Sometimes I will set out on a run with a defeatist mentality, telling myself from the start that there is no way that I would be able to run the alloted distance for that day considering how I feel, but in the end when I finish it I know that I didn't do it on my strength alone. I swear, when I finished my first half-marathon I felt like there was nothing in the world that I could not do! I had just run 13.1 miles, and if I could do that, I could do anything. Later when I ran the marathon, as miserable as I felt physically, I was an emotional wreck! I was doing everything I possibly could to hold back the tears because of the amazement and joy at what I had just done. Running for me allows me to push the limits of what I can do, and it teaches me to lean into the everlasting arms to meet what He can do.
The second thing that drives me to run is other people - people that inspire me, and people that I hope that I inspire. I used to run back in high school and some in college, but I gave it up years ago. But then a couple of years ago I was talking with a friend from high school who had become a runner, and I was so inspired by the tales of their marathons that I just had to start running again. Next thing you know, my boys wanted to run a 5K with me. Next thing you know, other friends start running. Next thing you know, I feel like I can't let down those who inspire me, and who I hope to inspire. Today, honestly, it was this second motivation that got me through my run.
I just knew that this was not going to be a great run - sometimes you can just feel it in your gut . . . literally. I truthfully wanted to quit around mile 5, but as I was running on the sidewalks of downtown Goldsboro, I encountered this homeless guy that always cheers me on. This guy is so down on his luck, but as I approached him and said "good morning," he got excited and smiled and said, "He went that way!" As I started laughing, he kept that great smile and said, "You're doing great - keep going!" It gave me chills - and no, it wasn't just the cold temps. It was just awesome how he inspired me. Later, when I starting feeling like crap again, I really just wanted to cut the run short, but then I got to thinking about my friend Doug, who last weekend completed his first marathon at the OBX Marathon. Doug had an injury flare up between mile 3 and 4, and he would not give up and he pressed on to complete the full 26.2. I got to thinking about Doug on my run when I wanted to quit, and I thought, "what excuse do I really have to quit now? If Doug kept moving, then so will I!" Funny thing is that by the time I finished, I really didn't feel that bad. I don't think I would have wanted to run another mile or two, and certainly not 12 more today, but I realized that because I had been inspired by these two guys from polar opposite worlds, I was able to push myself beyond what I thought I could do. That drives me.
Long story short - 14 miles in the bank. Average pace was 9:43, which includes a bathroom break that slowed my time (funny how much a 2 minute stop can impact your average time). 29.3 miles for the week. It's about time to get a new pair of shoes.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Long time, no post . . . but still running
As I was recently reminded by one of the 3 faithful followers of this blog (thanks David!), I haven't posted on my training lately. I am officially in the training mode for my next marathon - Myrtle Beach Marathon, which is February 19, 2011. What is pretty awesome is that right now, my long runs don't seem so long! 12 miles this past Friday really wasn't bad at all, maybe because it was only a few weeks ago that I ran the half-marathon. Right now my training consists of a nice, slow steady run of medium distance on Monday, Interval training on Tuesday, Day off on Wednesday, Light run on Thursday, and Long run on Friday. This Friday I am scheduled to do 14 miles, and I feel ready for it. I'll get back to giving more info in the coming days, but yes David, I am still running ;-)
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