Running in Life's Slow Lane

No miles for the second day!

Foot was really hurting today. So much so that it woke me up a few times in the night. I tried using pillows to keep it still but inevitably I would move and get a nice sharp pain as a result.

This is driving me nuts as I came off of Sunday's 5K results energized to get out and work on building my distance ahead of the 5K I plan to race at the end of April. Watching my newly constructed workout plan get chewed up because I can't get out on the street is disheartening. Yet I know I can't do something stupid with it hurting this much.

*Sigh* Here's hoping I can get out there in the next few days.
 

Well it appears there is a visit to the doctor in my near future.

I have very little pain from my ankle now and it only gets tender after I have spent quite a bit of time on my feet. However, the swelling that arrived Thursday night is still prominent and while I have no sensitivity to touch I am thinking that several days of this sort should probably be investigated. While I feel as though I could probably run there is no way I am going to do so with confidence until the swelling is gone.

At least an entire week of running has been lost at this point. Arrrrrgh. 

Oh the difference a day makes.

1.0 mile in 11:40
1.5 mile in 18:38
2.0 mile in 24:02
0.25 mile walked
0.25 mile ran
0.25 mile walked
0.25 mile ran (3.00 miles)
0.25 mile walked
0.5 mile ran in 4:30 (9:00/mi pace!)
- walked to house

When I went to bed last night I had plans of calling the doctor just to get an opinion about my week-long ankle tenderness. Waking up this morning though the swelling was minimal and I only had pain when I turned my ankle near its limits. With nothing to really show to the doctor I decided a trip to hear "Stay off of it a while" wasn't worth the effort. Instead I would go for a run and if I experience pain then I would head straight to the doc.

My goal was 5K at a 12:00 pace with the realization that I had not been on my feet for a week. At the two mile mark everything from the hips down were complaining of mistreatment so I started with the walk/run routine that I use so often. I told myself that none of the running could be at less than the 12:00 pace as I want to train my body to the idea that it is my slowest acceptable tempo. Somewhere around the 2.5ish mark I could feel my body loosen up and the 0.25 mile that I ran from 2.75-3.0 felt really good. The next time to run was at the top of a gradual downward slope pointing towards home so I opened it all up and ran through a full 0.5 mile at a 9:00/mi pace. It felt like I was FAST! Far from competitive fast but Kelly levels of fast.

I don't feel any pain or tenderness at the moment but I am headed off to soak the foot in a cold bath just as a precaution.

Location: Lawton, Oklahoma
Temp: 73F
Humidity: 61%
Conditions: Dry, Overcast - feels like spring thunderstorm weather
Winds: S steady at ~15mph gusting to ~25mph

Asics Gel 1120 - 256.97

1.0 mile in 11:20 (11:20/mi)
1.5 mile in 17:12 (11:44/mi)
2.0 mile in 23:04 (11:44/mi)
2.5 mile in 28:14 (10:20/mi)
3.1 mile in 34:55 (11:08/mi) (11:16/mi overall)
0.26 mile walk home

Best training run to date. Close in fact to my official race time from my recent 5K. Definitely got a good sweat going and my quads are tired. Developed a knot in the outside of my left calf but it passed. Time to get the boy off to soccer practice.

Location: Lawton, Oklahoma
Temp: 68F
Humidity: 43%
Wind: Steady, NNE at ~17mph
Conditions: Dry, Sunny

Asics Gel 1120 - 260.33

No miles today. Too many lightning-rich thunderstorms moving through the area in waves. I will run in rain but lightning scares me.

Just as well since the quads and glutes were very tired. A day of rest will do me good.

1.0 mile in 11:40 (11:40/mi pace)
2.0 mile in 23:44 (12:04/mi pace)
5.0 mile in 1:01:04 (12:13/mi pace)
1.28 mile walk to find the car

1st mile was an attempt to calibrate the latest (3rd) Nike+ sensor. It was along a flat stretch into the howling wind and down a fairly steep hill with the wind at my back. I failed to get a calibration since I had installed the sensor upside down.

2nd mile was another attempt to calibrate the sensor. This mile was up the hill, into the wind and then back along the flat stretch at the top. Got the sensor to calibrate at a distance about 2% shorter than the GPS reading. Good enough.

With the sensor calibrated I set off once more around the track and then into the residential area south of the track. The residential area shaded me from the wind and did not involve the big hill. I figured twice successfully climbing the hill while facing into the wind was enough for one work out. Finished up at the 5 mile mark. Yea!

I am thrilled to see the pace for the entire distance was close to 12:00/mi considering the course and weather.

Location: Elmer Thomas Park, Lawton, Oklahoma
Temp: 73F
Humidity: 33%
Wind: WSW 24mph gusting to 34mph
Conditions: Dry, Overcast

Asics Gel 1120 - 266.61

4.27 in 51:17 (12:01/mi pace)

For the second day in a row I was forced to run shortly after dinner and it showed up in another side stitch. Since I was focused on a nice slow 4.0 mile run without any concern about pace I was able to slow up and focus on some deep breathing to get rid of the pain. A few nagging twinges in the left knee and some soreness in the lower abdomen but nothing that reached the uncomfortable level.

Since I ran with the Nike+ I don't have any mileage splits, however the paces shown on my chart at the website were
11:11/mi at 1.0 mile
12:30/mi at 2.0 mile (my turn around point was at the top of a small hill)
12:17/mi at 3.0 mile
12:17/mi at 4.0 mile

I thank Van Morrison and his laid back music style for keeping me at a nice smooth pace tonight.

Location: Lawton, Oklahoma
Temp: 61F falling to 59F
Wind: NW steady at 7-10mph
Conditions: Dry, clear, crisp - a wonderful spring evening


Asics Gel 1120 - 270.88

2.25 mi (12:07/mi)

My scheduled called for another 4 mile run today so I took my running stuff along with me to Norman, Oklahoma where I was helping the MacArthur Middle School academic team as they challenged for the state title in Class D (whatever that means). I got through about half of the run before Kristoffer called letting me know they had lost the round and were finished, taking home the 3rd place trophy. The guys were a little down but they had a good chuckle watching me run up to them with sweat dripping off of me.

The distance is an estimate since my latest Nike+ sensor and my iPod were not talking. That is the 3rd sensor so I am really skeptical that the sensors are the source of my problem. I am going to try other pieces of the system and see if my receiver or perhaps the iPod itself are causing my technological distress.

Location: Norman, Oklahoma
Temp: 61F
Humidity: 43%
Wind: NW 10-15mph
Conditions: Dry, partly cloudy

Asics Gel 1120 - 273.13

1.0 mile at    11:51 (11:51/mi)
2.0 mile at    25:00 (13:09/mi)
2.5 mile at    31:40 (13:20/mi)
3.0 mile at    39:00 (14:40/mi)
3.5 mile at    45:50 (13:40/mi)
4.0 mile at    52:10 (12:40/mi)
4.5 mile at    59:21 (14:22/mi)
5.0 mile at 1:06:00 (14:22/mi) -- 13:12/mi average

This was one of those workouts where I knew even as I tied my shoes that it was going to be rough. The busy weekend that resulted in not getting to bed until 0130 today left my legs lifeless and me without much excitement about running. Lack of energy and sleep showed in my very slow pace. In the entire scheme of things the slow pace is no problem because I got the distance done which burns calories and endurance but wow, it was tough.

If I get to run my planned 3.1 miles tomorrow once I arrive in Virginia, it should feel like a vacation after today's run.

Location: Lawton, Oklahoma
Temp: 59F
Humidity: 24%
Wind: NW 15-20mph
Conditions: Dry, clear -- beautiful view of the Wichita Mtn range after the turn around pt

Asics Gel 1120 - 278.13
 

2.25 miles in 27:10 (12:05/mi pace)

My "schedule" called for 3.1 miles today but I wimped out. Nice run though with no major aches or pains and while my mind was on work frustrations it was not busy telling me how much I didn't want to run. I got through it and at a pace nice enough to work my heart and lungs.

I plan to sleep well tonight and eat well tomorrow so here's hoping I get to a full 30 minutes or more on the next workout.

Location: Chesapeake, Virginia

3.63 miles in 42:34 (11:44/mi)

Today's goal was a 45:00 run but I got back to the car before the time was up. Just as well since I was definitely tired. Trying not to focus on distance or pace and instead just focus on getting good workout time. Around 0.5 mile I got the side stitch again so that makes a full week of runs bothered with pains in the right side. Did my best to relax, breathe deep and take my mind off the pain. I don't remember when it stopped so clearly it didn't turn into a huge factor.

Location: Chesapeake, Va

2.66 miles in 31:14 (11:45 pace)

Ran through the park and down the road towards a residential neighborhood. I really need to get a new route since this one is becoming a bit too familiar. This weekend is supposed to be really nice so I am flirting with a run along the promenade at Virginia Beach and perhaps scouting some other runs in the area. Some of the routes that I have scouted thus far would be okay except they are really heavy with traffic around the times I like to do my jogging.

Really need to get me a running hat. The balding head does not want sunburned and with my hair thinning there is nothing to keep the torrents of sweat from reaching my eyes or ears.

Location: Chesapeake, Virginia

Asics Gel 1120 - 286.67

3.34 miles in 44:55 (13:24/mi)
6 strides of about 0.05 mile in length (19+, 20+, 18+, 18+, 19+, 17+ seconds)

One of the first runs I have done in full sun and warm temps so my body reacted accordingly. I walked a few times and about 0.5 mile was spent running on the grass along the baseball fields. No real objective to this run other than get my workout in and enjoy it as much as I could.

Today I tried out the notion of running strides. The parking area between the dog park and the kids' playground seemed about the right length and I ran through there going one direction before walking back as part of the recovery. I felt very fluid but didn't feel how hard I was working until I got to the end of each rep and could feel how hard I was breathing.

Location: Chesapeake, Va

Asics Gel 1120 - 290.31

1.0 mile @ 10:03
2.0 mile @ 22:17 (11:09/mi)
3.1 mile @ 35:04 (11:19/mi)

On a lark I went out to the City Center of Newport News, Virginia and ran the 7th Annual Junior League of Hampton Roads 5K this morning. The area was beautiful and the race seemed well organized. Many people like myself registered this morning and I was happy to take bib #190.

Walked and jogged a bit before finding the start line. Lots and lots of serious runners in the crowd. Made me feel a bit trollish to have my slowness in such a fast looking group. No shame in being in the back of the pack though. Someone has to be there.

The first mile was WAY too fast. I have no business running anything close to a 10:00 pace if I am going the distance. If it had been a long downhill perhaps but since this was a flat course I was not being helped by gravity. Even running too fast I was at the far end of the pack by the first mile mark. I must say though, it is a remarkably enjoyable site to see a long line of folks outfitted in bright running gear trodding along together in the bright morning sun. You probably don't get to take in that site when you are running up front.

My second mile was where I needed it to be but the nagging side stitch showed up again. I applied all my old tricks of deep breathing, stretching, etc. and couldn't shake it. So when I hit the 2 mile mark I stopped and walked past the water table just focusing on letting everything settle down. I estimate that I had to walk about 0.2 mile. Picking up my stride from there it was amazing how relaxed I felt.

The last 1.1 mile was probably at my usual 11:30ish pace or perhaps slower. A nice young woman that stood about 6' tall came along and I used her to maintain my pacing. I felt bad when about 0.25 from the finish I kicked into high gear for the finish. It's not as though you are trying to best them at that point but ... ya know? Anyhow I got my pace up to about 9:30/mi as I crossed the line. It was all I had in that short distance and I quickly found a nice planting behind the edge of a building in case my feeling of nausea turned into something more serious.

After I had gained my breath I stood at the finish line and applauded some of the later finishers. I think that is the best part really, getting to see people crossing the line with "I did the whole thing!" or shouts of "We did it!" Makes you remember that not every run has to be a race against something. Instead some races are FOR something.

Did another lap through the area to enjoy the morning followed by some long stretches before climbing back in the car.

Location: Newport News, Va

Asics Gel 1120 - 294.51

0.93 mile in 10:00 (10:46/mi)
0.83 mile in 10:00 (12:03/mi)
0.75 mile in 10:00 (13:20/mi)
0.98 mile in 10:00 (10:12/mi)

Okay, so today I took my camera and ran along the Noland Trail that adjoins the Mariner's Museum in Newport News, Virginia. It is a winding, hilly trail that follows the banks of Lake Maury through a gorgeous mix of forest plants including dogwood, pine, elm, maple, magnolia and the fascinating little may apple. The squirrels and ducks along the trail are obviously accustomed to human activity as they rarely did more than get out the trail when they saw me coming.

Anyway, my strategy was to run as hard as I could for 10 minutes before stopping to snap a picture or two and walk a bit. The hills here are not the gradual slopes of the road but the up and down calf-killers you find on scenic trails. To add to the degree of difficulty, the people maintaining the trail used timbers across the trail to prevent erosion. Good idea unless you are trying to run along the trail and constantly having to adjust your stride to step on or over the timber. A newbie like me finds that quite a challenge.

The last 10 minute segment was along The Meadow Trail which is mostly flat and I gave it all I had left.

Felt good and with the moisture hanging in the air between rain showers I sweat enough to get the bottom of the ring within about 4 inches of my belly button. The tough downhill stretches still get me though as the soreness in my groin returned. Maybe I am not striding right when going downhill?

Location: Newport News, Virginia

1.75 miles @ 20:00 (11:26/mi)
3.10 miles @ 36:43 (11:51/mi)

This is one of those days when guilt made me run. It had rained all day and was raining when I left the lab so I decided to skip a workout. Instead I chose to get an early dinner and get plenty of sleep. While those were my plans, when I came out of the restaurant the skies had started to clear and I immediately felt guilty about not running. So I waited an hour and then got out on the streets.

I ran the first 1.75 miles in 20:00 and then took a 2 minute break to walk before finishing up my 3.1 miles in 36:43. Glad I did it when I was finished.

The rest of the mileage was my walk back to the hotel through the many parking lots around here.

Location: Chesapeake, Virginia

0.77 mile  in 10:00 (12:59/mile)
1.55 miles in 20:00 (12:49/mile)
2.35 miles in 30:00 (12:30/mile)
3.15 miles in 40:00 (12:30/mile)
3.93 miles in 50:00 (12:49/mile)
4.79 miles in 60:07 (11:46/mile) 12:33 avg pace

So I have switched around my focus to be on time rather than distance. As a result today's "long run" that was originally slated for 5 miles was converted into a 60 minute workout. Also, finally listening to everyone who has been reminding me that running 5Ks was just a secondary product of my effort to improve my health and that running faster is less important than getting in long slow runs to burn fat.

Very happy with the results. Fairly consistent pace once I got rolling and still plenty of energy to pick up the pace in the last 10 minutes. Never felt the need to take a walk break.

Tomorrow it's a shorter run!

Location: Chesapeake, Va
 

0.80 mile at 10:00 (12:30/mi)
1.60 mile at 20:00 (12:30/mi)
2.40 mile at 30:00 (12:30/mi)
3.20 mile at 40:00 (12:30/mi)
3.61 mile at 45:00 (12:12/mi) 12:28/mi avg

Well, clearly I was Mr. Consistent today.

It was pure effort to keep going for the full 45 minutes as my legs were so dead from yesterday's long run. I told myself that I was going to quit at 30 minutes but then guilted myself into going the full 45 as I had originally planned.

Hopefully I will sleep better tonight, eat better tomorrow and get a nice 5K test run in the evening so that I can set goals for Sunday's 5K run in Oklahoma City.

Location: Newport News, Virginia (streets around the Mariner's Museum)

5K in 36:03 (12:01/mi)
walked to the car

I didn't bother to note the split times today so I don't have good measurements. Nike+ tells me my pace at the mile marks were 11:44/mi, 11:17/mi and 11:04/mi. Since the average pace was at 12:01 I clearly lacked the consistency I generated yesterday.

Given today's results and the conditions I expect on Sunday's run, I am going to hope for a 34:45 - 35:15.

Location: Hampton Inn 5K

No miles today as I traveled from Chesapeake back to Lawton and I am resting my legs ahead of Sunday's Oklahoma City Memorial 5K Walk/Run.

No miles today. Attended OFMC state vocal competition and then picked up registration packet for tomorrow's 5K.

A noncompetitive 5K Walk/Run event is held along with the Marathon and Half-Marathon events. Teresa and I chose to run the 5K along with thousands of others. Before the race it was announced that over 16,000 people were participating in one of the day's events.

Everything that I might dislike about a race start was rolled into this one event. It was too early, too dark, too cold, too wet and way too many people. From the time the clock started for the competitive marathon and half marathon it was almost 16:00 before Teresa and I got across the start line.

Walkers are dangerous. Significantly dangerous when massed together and turned loose as cattle.

My main focus for the first mile was too keep Teresa safe from all that was going on around her since this was her first race. She was timid about maneuvering around the walkers so I took the lead and would put my shoulder to good use if my shouts of "Runner on your left" or "Traffic on your right" was not heeded. Entire families had lined up 5-6 across and apparently did not understand the notion that they had to share the asphalt with others. I saw more than one runner chase up the heels of a walker that chose to change direction without warning. Luckily Teresa and I avoided those issues.

I have no idea what our split times were but tried to keep myself at 11:00/mile (by estimating with my watch since I had stashed the iPod away in my pocket) or under as long as I didn't feel any strain on the legs. Definitely made an effort to push on the long hills including the one at the 2.5 mile mark. Really felt smooth running and knew my pace was better than usual ...

...until I charged ahead and crossed the finish line.

 
When I looked at my watch it said 35:15! That was unbelievable given the way I had been running and the long sprint I made at the end. Teresa finished about 20-30 seconds behind me and commented that it sure felt longer than the 5K that she had been running at home. Looking at my iPod it said the distance was 3.26 miles so I am not sure if the course was long (my guess since it was a noncompetitive event) or all the weaving cost us the extra distance. If I accept the 3.26 distance then my pace was 10:48/mi which matched what I was feeling and had estimated with my watch during the race.

No official times of course so I will go with the 35:15 as my time for the event and believe that I may have run something less.

I talked to lots of folks that did the 5-person relay marathon and am committed to having a team that runs that event next year with me on the middle 12K leg.

Slow 45 minute trail run with a bit of walking at the midway point. Plenty of hills, soft footing, and tired legs kept me from worrying about the pace and just focused on burning calories.

Location: Wichita Mtns Wildlife Refuge

0.85 mile in 10:00  (11:46/mi)
1.69 mile in 20:00  (11:54/mi)
2.48 mile in 30:00  (12:40/mi)
2.89 mile in 35:00  (12:12/mi) 12:07/mi average
- walk back to the car

Ran the dirt trails at Elmer Thomas Park. First time I have tried those and will use them more in the future. They are a good alternative to the concrete trails in that same park.

My ankles were a bit cranky after yesterday's trail run and I had to stop and walk from 22:30 to 25:00. The fact that I still had a 12:40/mi pace in that phase of the workout shows that my pace was too fast throughout. Right now a 12:15+ pace feels less strained and is my target for my easy days.

Tomorrow's goal is a 45 minute easy jog so I need to remember as I start to ease up just a bit to maintain a good pace throughout the entire workout.

0.83 mi in 10:00 (12:03/mi)
1.63 mi in 20:00 (12:30/mi)
2.41 mi in 30:00 (12:46/mi)
3.17 mi in 40:00 (13:09/mi)
3.58 mi in 45:23 (12:12/mi) 12:34/mi avg pace

Course: S Flowermound Out and Back

I had forgotten how much of this run involves a long gradual incline on the return leg of the loop. It really shows up when looking at the paces I ran today. Significantly so when combined with the 20-25mph winds. My legs felt like rubber trying to get over the last bit of the climb.

I notice that the course tool apparently does not have access to the elevation data for my area or else I'm doing something wrong when I tried to analyze the course.

Calves were a bit cranky today. And I seem to notice that my ankles are bothered when I run several days of hills in a row (e.g. Sun, Mon, Tue, and Wed of this week). Could it be that I am pitching a bit too far forward as I struggle up the slope, putting strain at the area right where my ankle connects in the flat surface of my foot? Suddenly I realize I know almost nothing about the anatomy of my feet.

Wildflowers are gorgeous!

Location: Lawton, Oklahoma.