Most Boring Run Ever (maybe)

You know how sometimes even the seemingly easy runs, both on the body and the mind, turn out to be excruciatingly boring? Thankfully these occur rather infrequently for me, but today was one of those days.

After two slightly faster 8km runs this week, and two leg strength sessions, my legs were tight. In particular my left calf, which worried me a bit having felt that twinge/cramp/tear in the past that results from ignoring just this type of soreness. So, I headed off to the gym at lunch (rain and cold outside) to get on the treadmill for what was supposed to be an easy and slow, steady run.

Well, the run was slow and steady (8km at 6.8mph and 2.0% incline, or about 5:28/km pace not adjusting for the incline), but definitely not easy on the mind. I was clock watching within the first five minutes and couldn't stop, try as I might. That 44:08 of running felt like a lifetime. A slow, easy, boring lifetime...

Is it possible that I am actually looking FORWARD to an off day?

Hmmm...

Registered, and Funky Data

First, I registered for the Toronto Waterfront Marathon, set to go on September the 26th of this year. Yup. The deed is done. I just hope it works out better this time around than the DNS from last year...

Second, the Garmin gave me more funky ass data on today's run home from work. I won't even bother trying to evaluate what the hell is going on, but seriously people; can't this friggin device compensate for tall buildings somehow?! I mean, there's more than a few on this planet where people run and use Garmin devices.

Sheesh.

I did end up running 8km at a pace that was a bit too fast (5:02/km average, with the last kilometre at 4:32), and I'm sure to pay for it later. Mental note to self: next two runs this week must be slow and easy!

Oh yeah, I also did some upper body weights at lunch. There's a six pack hiding under there somewhere. Maybe.

Spring Please Stick Around

Man, if this weather is to be short-lived then it's a major tease! We've been blessed with such nice weather over the past four or five days that it's hard to believe we are still technically in Winter. In any case, I am loving it.

Case in point, I would normally go at lunch to the gym and climb onto the treadmill for a run in the 6-8k range. Today I did go to the gym, but after doing a bit of core exercises and stretches I walked right past those belted beasts of burden and out into the glorious sunshine.

This wasn't completely spontaneous, mind you, because I did bring the Garmin to work with me for just such an eventuality, but it did feel great to be going outside, and in shorts too!

I ran straight down to the lake shore, negotiating traffic, pedestrians, and lights the entire way. Once down there though it was smooth sailing and I had an awesome run. Lots of others were out running and at one point a group of three popped out in front of me and were running at a decent clip. I decided to just see if I could follow them since their pace was not too different from mine, and this also offered me the opportunity to not worry as much about the route I was taking. Having never run down by the harbor before I just assumed that these runners knew where they were going. We meandered around all the boardwalks near the water for a while before I had to let them go because it was time for me to get back. Someday I will definitely have to find a group to run with because it seems easier somehow.

In the end I ran 8km at a relatively good pace of 4:59/km (8:01/mile). This was definitely faster than I'd intended to run, but it felt pretty good to just run and I can't say it was particularly stressful to maintain this pace or anything. The Garmin seems to have gotten confused while I was running in the downtown core on account of the tall buildings, and in particular in the second kilometre (4:13/km pace) and the last kilometre when it recorded that I was running at 6:14/km. I guess those two average out, but it does annoy me that the GPS stuff gets so affected by buildings. Looking at the map it sure seems like the Garmin is totally losing it - a max speed of 699.5km/h? Yeah, real accurate...

Upon returning to the office I iced down my knee, just in case, having also remembered to bring another ice pack into work given that somebody stole the one I had left at work for the past few weeks (who would steel an ice pack, honestly?). I definitely look forward to more of these lunchtime runs, of the outdoor variety, as the weather continues to improve. Spring is just the best season, isn't it?

Say What?

Seems like Blogger is deciding to throw a wrench into my otherwise mundane blogging world and is telling me that FTP publishing will no longer be supported as of May 1st. I don't know what all that crap means, but it sure smacks of effort.

I'm not a fan of effort. Especially when it is required of me! I would like to keep this little spot of mine on the web going, but if it it starts to look like more than the least amount of attention is required then it will be difficult to justify. I think I'm far enough along in my running to stay motivated without the need to update the blog and such, but it still provides a good reason to ensure that the runs get done. At least I have until May 1st to figure out what all this means...

As far as effort goes, this past week has been the highest mileage week to date since last Summer when I went down with injury. After a nice 7km on the treadmill on Tuesday, I did the usual walk to work and run home thing on Wednesday where I added another 8km to the total. On Friday I stayed home with one of the kids who was suffering from a fever and so I took my run outside at the end of the day for another 8km. On that one I managed two things: 1. I wore my new Asics GT-2150s for the first time, and 2. I put in two faster kilometres, the first at 4:27/km (7:10/mile) and the second at 4:21/km (7:00/mile). These felt pretty good actually, and my heart rate did not go up as high as I though it might, so I was quite pleased with the effort. My ankle was a bit sore on Saturday and so I gave myself a full day off. We took the little one to the Toronto Zoo while the bigger on was away at Winter Camp.

Saturday night the little one went for a sleepover at my Dad's so that I could take the wife out for a nice dinner to celebrate her recent birthday. Let's just say that the dinner was AWESOME and I ate a tonne, with a few drinks to boot.

Sunday morning I woke up with a small headache and slowly dragged my ass out the door for a planned 15km run. I ran from home down to the lake and out around the Leslie Spit. As I was running out on the Spit I realized that my run would either end up being a bit longer than planned or I would have a few kilometres to walk at the end. I decided to just keep going, and stopped running at 17km not wanting to push it any further. I only had a half-kilometre to walk the rest of the way, and that was probably a good thing.

The total for the week was 40km, which is a nice round number if I say so myself. I should probably run a bit less this week to give my legs and ankle a bit of a break, but if things are feeling good then I might inch up towards the same total next week.

In any case, I am on track to average 35km for the month of March, as planned.

Now off to my Dad's to rescue the small loin-fruit...

Oops...

My plan for holding back during yesterday's weight training worked well and I was feeling pretty good...

... up until I got to Owen's school and took a tumble down some stairs! It was one of those accidents where time seems to stand still just long enough for one to consider all the potential outcomes while flying through the air, and all signs pointed to broken bones for yours truly. Luckily I don't seem to have cracked anything, though my left shoulder is sore as hell and I have a big bruise on the palm of my left hand that aches constantly. I did think that my collar bone had cracked when I first landed, but by the time I walked home it was feeling better and I'm quite certain that nothing is broken (other than my pride, of course).

Anyway, after that little mishap I watched Owen play scooter hockey (they sit on these little four-wheeled platforms and move an orange puck around with a paddle) at his school's Olympic celebration. His team lost in the final and they had a great time, but standing around for three hours did not do my shoulder or lower back much good. Boy, it sure sucks getting old, doesn't it?

So today I was wondering what kind of run I would have, if any. Toronto was hit by a small snowstorm and I ended up not biking to work, which would have been very painful given the bruised palm and such and I likely would have chosen to take public transit even if the weather had been perfect. The lack of biking meant that I really, really wanted to get my run in and so I trekked through the snowdrifts to the gym before lunch and had a go.

After doing some core exercises, as usual, I hopped on a treadmill and started off at an easy pace that I felt my body could handle, and that was also in keeping with the whole recovery week theme. I ran 6km at a pretty easy and steady pace setting of 6.5mph, which works out to 5:44/km on level ground and at 2.0% incline it's about equivalent to 5:25/km according to hillrunner (I always set the treadmill to 2.0% incline, and I'm starting to forget why, but I see no reason to change). The shoulder and arm didn't bother me at all, though it was tough doing some stretches before and after the run because I couldn't lean palms down on the floor or pull on my ankle to stretch the quad properly on the left side.

At least I was able to run! Here's hoping people around the city clear the snow off their sidewalks for my run tomorrow.

Recovery Weeks Piss Me Off

On my new and improved training plan (insert sarcasm on the heavy side here) I am not even two months in, still feeling pain in the ole right knee, and am finding it really hard to hold back during the recovery weeks. What's up with that?

Am I not training hard enough in the three weeks leading up to recovery time? (My answer is clearly NO!, but I do think I am training as hard as my body will allow without being sidelined with major injury or injuries.) Or, more likely, is my brain continuing to try and write cheques that my cannot cash?

Don't know how others do it, and based on the running sites and blogs that I've read over the past year or so, taking recovery seriously and actually doing it right is not an unusual issue. That being said, I am trying my best and have laid out a plan for the entire year that has me running three weeks "on" followed by a fourth week "off". And "off" is the right word, because recovery weeks are pissing me off.

Today I walked to work 6.2km, did upper body weights at lunch, and ran 8.2km home (well, to get Owen at school actually). Now that's what I call recovery! Though I must say that these recovery runs, slow and easy as they are, leave me more stiff and sore than I would like. Perhaps it's the leg weights that I've been doing that has led to this because I have not been including weight training as part of the whole recovery plan. Or maybe NOT running isn't particularly good for me, just like running too much.

Anyway, tomorrow I have leg weights on the agenda and I might actually take it down a notch and do an easy workout for a change. Things always seem to change once I'm at the gym and I end up doing more than I'd planned, but I am seriously thinking of holding back a bit. Here's hoping...

So Far So Good

The third week of February is now finished and I am staring straight down the barrel of another recovery week feeling like I don't even need it! No worries about ignoring the plan and running longer and harder than I should since I know the consequences of such a decision will be injury somewhere in the next two to three weeks. Instead, I am just happy knowing that I am on track with my training for the second straight month.

My plan to average 30km per week for the month of February is, in fact, ahead of schedule. This week I completed 39km after running the longest training run of the year on Saturday at 15km. That was a great run and felt easier than I'd anticipated, even though it included the longest and steepest hill I've ever had to run at around the 10k mark. I ran from Variety Village, where Owen has indoor baseball practice every Saturday evening, down to the Beaches and along the boardwalk all the way out to Ashbridges Bay Park, turning around at 7.5km. When I got to the descent down from Kingston Road to the shore I was really concerned about my chances of making it back up the hill without walking. I guess all the leg weights I've been doing are paying off because I made it up no problem, even if my pace slowed considerably. Not caring about pacing yet it was just gratifying to be able to run up a kilometre long hill without completely dying.

Today I cross-country skied for nearly 12km and then we all went out for a massive meal at an all you can eat place up in Barrie. I feel a bit guilty about all the food that I ingested, but sometimes you just have to.

In the coming week I only have to run 15.6km to get to my goal of 120km for the month, so I suspect I will blast past it by a few clicks. I'm limiting myself to just three runs, and won't run until Wednesday, giving me two full days off.

Also, I purchased a patellar tendon strap for my knee and am finding that the knee feels about the same when I run, but nowhere near as tight afterwards. I will continue to use it and monitor the situation for a couple of weeks before I fully decide whether it's worth continuing to use it long term.

A Typical Wednesday

And by "typical" I mean walking to work (6.5km), doing some weights at lunch (just upper body stuff), and then running home on freshly fallen snow. Seems like once a week we get some snow, it always lands on Wednesday, and I always seem to have less than ideal footing for my run home. Oh well... The picture says it all.

Although that image is from last week's run home, it's been typical for pretty much every one this year. Today it snowed all day, but luckily none of it stuck! The sidewalks were wet, and I did have to navigate around quite a bit of black ice, but I'll take today's conditions over a slushy, snowy mess any day. I ran a total of 9km with the first 8.45 on my own and the last 0.55 with my five year-old since he wanted to "run with Daddy" and told anyone who would listen that that's what he was going to do. It was fun, naturally, even if a bit slow.

Where does the time go?

Man, I can't believe I went through an entire long weekend (Family Day holiday here in Ontario) and couldn't find a spare moment to update the bloggage on my running. Between the rather disappointing Opening Ceremonies, featuring the unique inferiority complex apologetic rhyming stylings of neckbeard man and the questionable dancing abilities of our First Nations, more Birthday Parties that the boys attended, skiing, doing work for work on a weekend (blah!), and house related duties the three days just went by and I woke up this morning wondering what the hell happened.

Anyway, as far as running went I managed 6km on the treadmill on Tuesday; I walked to work and then ran over to Owen's school at the end of the day for a total of 8.3km; and then I ran 8km on the treadmill last Friday. Both of the treadmill runs were at a setting of 6.8mph and at 2.0% incline, but the Friday run felt much easier than Tuesday's for some reason. I think I was overheating of Tuesday or something. However, by Friday night my right knee was not cooperating and I was pretty down thinking that my running "career" was in jeopardy.

I am over that little lull somewhat, but I still am wondering when this bloody joint will hurry up and heal already! On Saturday morning I was faced with the prospect of missing my run, but by the afternoon I talked myself into trying it out. For the first time since last Summer I wrapped up the knee (don't even know if it helped the knee, but my brain appreciated the extra support) and decided to run laps of the neighbourhood just in case I had to bail and crawl home. I ran super slow and gingerly four times around the same rectangle for a total of 11km and even though it was near walking pace I was happy to have finished it. The knee felt no worse afterward, so I took that as a good sign, and am now icing the sucker on a regular basis. Also, I am still on track to average 30km per week for the month of February since I managed to run 33.4km during this past week (32km the week before). I just hope I can run about the same amount this week, but with less pain.

Sunday we went skiing, but because of work that I had to prepare I decided to stay in the cabin while Monica and the boys hit the trails. Giving myself the first full day off since early January was a good idea given the knee, or so I consoled myself.

Monday I headed off to the gym and did my usual leg and upper body routine. The legs are definitely getting stronger, but I am still feeling less than confident that this will provide my knee with the support it requires to finally heal completely. I will give it another month, but if I am still feeling pain at my scheduled physical in the middle of March I will ask my doctor for a referral to a knee specialist of some sort. Maybe there is a tear or something that will never heal on its own? I sure hope not, and I hope I am completely pain free by then and this becomes a moot point.

Today I had meetings all day and could not fit in my usual treadmill run so I went out in the evening. Once again, I wrapped up the knee (and thought of buying a sleeve for the knee to give me support) and ran an easy 7km while Malcolm, Owen and Monica attended the annual Scouts pancake dinner (on Mardi Gras, so I suppose it fits). The idea of eating pancakes for dinner makes me ill and I was happy to skip the festivities. I ran nice and easy at the beginning, kind of feeling out the knee, but picked up the pace as I went along. It was fun, and really, that's the best thing one can say about any run.

February off to a Good Start

Week one of February has come to and end, at least from my exercise perspective as I hear there some sort of a football game on later tonight (BTW: Go Saints!). As far as my running went it was a very successful week, with and asterisk.

The success was completing a total of 32km for the week, my highest total since last summer. I am on track to average 30km per week this month, as planned. I've already posted about the first two runs of the week, but the other two went like this...

After an off day on Thursday, when I did leg weights and rode on the stationary bike for a half-hour, I hit the gym and the treadmill at lunchtime on Friday for what turned out to be 7km. I went a bit too hard in retrospect (resulting in the asterisk mentioned above) and paid for it with worse than normal pain in the right knee. I started off at a relatively easy 6.5mph and had notions of sticking to that pace for 6km, but feeling pretty good I decided to shake things up a little and ended up running a pyramid in this fashion:

• 5 minutes @ 6.5mph
• 5 minutes @ 6.8mph
• 5 minutes @ 7.1mph
• 10 minutes @ 7.5mph
• 5 minutes @ 7.1mph
• 5 minutes @ 6.8mph
• 2:14 minutes @ 6.5mph

The whole thing ended up taking me 37:14, which meant I ran at an average pace of 5:19/km. Although in and of itself this should not have posed a problem, I think the fact that the treadmill was set at a 2.0% incline means that I actually worked harder that the pace would have indicated. In any case, by the time I got home my knee was tight as a finely tuned banjo string and I was forced to pull out the ice pack for the first time in months.

By Saturday I was feeling better, though not 100%, and went out for another run through Rosedale. It was pretty cold out, but nice and sunny and pretty still. The only time I was really chilled was when I ran over a few bridges and had the wind blow right through me. I ended up doing a nice and comfortable 11km at a (for me, and for the moment) decent pace of 5:43/km.

Today we cross-country skied and it was great. It was cold when we started out (-12C), but sunny and no wind. The wax on our skis was working perfectly for the most part and we managed a really fun 13km before eating lunch and heading home.

The best part about the first week of February? I can't wait for the second.

Humpback - Summary of the Last Few Days on a Wednesday

Another Wednesday, and another successful day of exercise. Though the right knee still reminds me that I have to "take it easy" and "watch it" and "run less than you think you should", I cannot help but delude myself into thinking that all the weight training that I am subjecting myself to will ultimately shut that sucker up for good.

Case in point, for the past few days I have been feeling, and this is a poor description to be sure, somehow "properly packaged". Not almost any piece of cheap ass electronics that come in those impossible to open, never to disintegrate, clear, hard plastic, "g'damn it why won't you open without a chainsaw!!!" coverings, but rather like everything is starting to work the way it was intended to.

I had a great run last Saturday where I went way faster than I should have, but those 8.25km felt so very good, easily the best run of the year. I really felt like keeping going, but remembered that my body has a nasty way of slowing me down if I don't stick to the conservative plan and so I stopped, happy that I still had energy to spare.

Then, skiing on Sunday was fun and it was just cool to take things easy and not worry about "getting a workout", something I suffer from both in self-imposed guilt as well as physical injury. 12km on the trails with my better half while the kids were taking their lessons.

Monday I had a great leg workout at the gym (things are starting to feel like they are getting stronger, and I actually look forward to doing squats!). In the evening I rode the stationary bike for a half-hour to finish off the day.

Tuesday saw me doing more weights, this time of the upper body variety, and running on the treadmill, where I completed just over 6km holding a nice steady 6.5mph pace even though I had a huge urge to try and match the 7.0mph setting of the guy running next to me. The fact that I didn't inch my speed up to that level shows a level of maturity that surprised me. Am I actually getting smarter, or just old, lazy and complacent? Either way, I was proud to have held back. It also helped that my would be adversary had to stop and stretch out his obviously shitty hamstring at one point before making a failed attempt to resume his run. Ha!

Today was another walk to work, run home day. I walked just over 6km to the office after dropping of the boys at the school bus. I attempted to maintain a decent clip, though I was slowed down by the snow that had fallen overnight, making traction a real problem the entire way. At lunchtime I once again hit the gym for upper body weights and had a good time of it. I am even beginning to like doing ab exercises as I am really seeing progress. Now if only I could limit my intake of highly processed, and ultimately useless, carbs that six-pack of my swimming youth days may actually make a cameo. It's tough giving up sweets for me...

...because they're soooooooo sweet.

The run home from work was pretty good, all things considered. It took a while for the Garmin to locate satellites, which is always annoying, but once the watch was ready I took off at a slow and steady pace towards Owen's school. The snow from the morning, which had made walking a bit tricky, seemed to be completely gone and I was quite pleased with this until I hit the Viaduct and was faced with a slippery, slushy mess. For the entire second half of the run I had to contend with slush, snow, ice and all three combined. This made the run more of a challenge than it otherwise would have been, but I made it through OK, a bit overheated. In the end I completed a decent 8km, changed into a dry shirt at the school, and walked home without freezing my ass off too badly. Some stretching later this evening is definitely in order...

The Week in Brief

It's been a typically busy week for me, even though I've been diligently sticking to my plan and making sure this was a recovery week for my wonky legs.

As such, I've still been going to the gym lots, riding the stationary bike now and then, and after skipping Tuesday (when I would typically go out for an easy 5k or so) I walked to work and ran home. The run was not too bad, but about a kilometre and a half from Owen's school I had to stop to wait through a red light and once I started up again my right knee decided to remind me that it was not fully healed. I felt a pretty bad twinge under the kneecap and had to stop to stretch and evaluate my options. I was very close to home and considered heading there, grabbing the car and using that to pick up Owen. Instead I decided to jog as gingerly as I could.

Perhaps that was a mistake, perhaps not. I finished the 8km run and walked home, a bit chilled in the wind and rapidly cooling winter weather. The temperature has since gone totally frigid and Toronto is finally feeling like Winter has arrived.

Anyway, Thursday I didn't run, but made it to the gym for some leg weights and then rode the stationary bike in the evening. My knee feels a bit better this morning and I am planning to do an easy 5-6k on the treadmill at lunch.

Here's an early summary of my January exercise exploits to date (because I do not have the time or energy to go into it in detail). The month is rapidly coming to a close and I enjoy seeing this calendar filled up with stuff. A surprisingly good motivator!:

A Really Tough Run

After my first full week of weight training I am more than a little sore, though it is a good feeling and I am glad to feel this way because it tells me things can only get better and the ceiling is way up there. Along with that comes the highest mileage week I've run since last Summer, making things even more difficult. In a month or two this will be considered a real short and easy week, but now it's a bit of a milestone.

So, when I headed out for my morning run I was not feeling so hot. My legs were sore, I had very little energy, and the wonky ankle was hurting me more than I'd like. Nevertheless, I was determined to put in a good 10k or so, no matter how slow it was.

I chose a new route just to make things interesting and ran through one of the more affluent parts of town. Although I felt totally out of place the houses and properties I saw along the way kept me distracted from my pain.

I ran a total of 10.5km at a very lethargic pace, but was happy just to have finished. The weekly total ended up at 29.5k and my body is ready for a nice recovery week. I will run just three times next week and max out at 22k before getting back to building up mileage in February, hoping for a weekly average of 30k for the month.

Tomorrow it's back to cross country skiing! And some football watching, no doubt.

A Little More Treadmill

I went to the gym again at lunchtime and ran a nice and easy 5km on the treadmill. This being the day after my first leg workout, and with my hamstrings feeling a bit sore, I figured it was better to stay really conservative. So I set the speed at 6.2mph and ran for 30 minutes. I felt pretty good, all things considered, and I look forward to walking to work and running home tomorrow.

After the treadmill I did some upper body weights, again really easy and light because I don't wish to be too sore, or worse, in the first week back at weight training. The routine was pretty easy:

• Bench Press 2X15 95lbs
• Seated Rows 2X15 80lbs
• Standing Dumbbell Shoulder Press 15-12 20lbs
• Dumbbell Biceps Curls 15-12 25lbs
• Cable Triceps Extensions 2X15 40lbs
• Captain's Chair 2X25

That is all...

Another Full Weekend

Whew! What a weekend.

Saturday: two Birthday parties to attend, one by each loin fruit. Then baseball practice for Owen. Before that I ran 9.1km to complete the week at a total of 27km. Slowly, but surely...

Sunday: Off early to cross country ski, where I managed 13km adult style, and another 2.1km with Owen after lunch (total of 15.1km of skiing, at is was fun!). We definitely were tuckered out when we got home. I spent the evening cleaning dishes, washing kids, folding laundry, and watching the Jets pull off a great upset over the Chargers. Here's hoping they can do it again next week.

Today I went to the gym to do my first leg strengthening session. It was light, short, and I got through it without too much trouble. The routine went like this:

• Crunches 2X50
• Captain's Chair 2X25
• Dead lifts 2X15 (20lbs dumbbells)
• Leg Extensions 2X15 (20lbs, 30lbs)
• Squats 2X15 (10lbs per side, on the Smith Machine because the squat rack was being used)
• Calf Raises 2X15 (75lbs)
• Adductor thingy (1X25)

I really hope that this will eventually lead to complete recovery of my ongoing patellar tendinitis. My right leg is definitely weaker than my left, and that explains the problem I suspect. In fact, I measured the circumference of my legs and my left is almost an inch bigger than my right! Today was the first step towards balancing that out. I'd love to be able to do one-legged squats someday...

This evening I rode the stationary bike for 30 minutes and called it a day. I'm not even sure why I still ride the stationary bike on days when I don't run, seeing as I bike 20-25 minutes each way to and from work, but it seems like the right thing to do somehow. I don't count commuting as part of my fitness regimen, though I suspect it does help a little bit.

Tomorrow I am probably going to hit the treadmill for my run unless the weather is really nice. If it is nice I will instead do some upper body weights. That's the plan, anyway...

Back on the 'mill

Had my first treadmill run in well over a year today, and it actually was fun! I remember dreading the treadmill, but that was when running outdoors was still a novelty. Now the novelty is the treadmill itself.

It was my first visit to the gym in well over a year as well, and now that I have a corporate membership prepaid for an entire year it will become a key part of my fitness routine. My main goal is to strengthen my legs for running, but secondary goals include strengthening my upper body and utilizing the treadmills to up my mileage.

With that in mind I hopped on and ran for a total of 30 minutes, completing 3.37 miles (or 5.4km) (works out to 5:32/km or 8:54/mile pace). It seems that all the treadmills are set up to work in miles per hour, so I will have to do the conversion to my more familiar metric units, but that doesn't bother me so much. I ran a bit of a pyramid this time, and I don't even know why, other than it was fun:

5 minutes at 6.2mph
5 minutes at 6.5mph
5 minutes at 6.8mph
5 minutes at 7.1mph
5 minutes at 7.5mph
1 minute at 7.0mph
1 minute at 6.8mph
1 minute at 6.6mph
1 minute at 6.4mph
1 minute at 6.2mph

Way more complex when it's written down than it was while I was running.

Afterwards I "familiarized myself" with some other equipment in the gym and did a few leg and upper body things that are not even worth mentioning. As I was moving around trying this and that I also realized that I don't work very well without some sort of plan. As such, I will have to devise some basic leg routines and upper body routines so that I don't walk around aimlessly wasting time wondering what to do next.

Tomorrow I have 10-12k on the books to complete, and I will run very slowly indeed. Sunday we are back at cross country skiing, this week hopefully to get more of a workout that last. Have a great weekend!

As Smoothly As Can Be Expected

Here we are just a couple of weeks into aught-10 and I am already taking stock. WHA?!

OK, perhaps not taking stock so much as looking down the line and trying to figure out if I am going to be able to do what I intend for the coming year. The latest thought, of many as far as variety goes, is that I would like to average 25k/week in January, 30k/week in February, 35k/week in March, and 40k/week in April. That would lead into May where, if all goes well, I can average 45k/week, or that magical 25 miles, that I believe will prepare my body for the planned marathon training, which is due to commence in June and lead me across the finish line of my first 26.2 at the end of September.

Is it just me or is there just never enough time? When I was planning on building a good base for marathon training I was really hoping to run 25 miles per week on average for a good three months before starting training for the marathon, but given my history of injury I am hesitant to hike up the weekly mileage so aggressively.

It also doesn't help that the Internet articles, and those in running books, are all over the place when it comes to advice for building a solid base prior to marathon training. What I've described above is conservative as conservative can get, but even with that in mind I still have reservations about how my body will respond to this plan, which amounts to more running than I've ever done.

With that in mind I am still on track for another successful week. On Tuesday I made it home in time to strap on the old Garmin and such and run an easy and enjoyable 5km on my way to get Owen. Then, on Wednesday, I walked to work (6km total) and dashed out of work to run to Owen's school and a parent-teacher interview that was rescheduled since early December because the teacher was ill.

This 7.5km run was a bit frustrating. My Garmin would not lock onto any satellites and so I had to just push the start button and go or risk being late for the interview. I ran about 2km before the thing picked up a signal and then started giving me really odd readings throughout the run. Noticing that I was running a bit late I also pushed the pace a bit more than I would have liked and got there with exactly one minute to spare. However, because of the pace, my right knee was bothering me for the rest of the evening and continues to hurt today. I'm hoping that the day off will help it heal and allow me to stay on track for the next two runs, a short one on Friday and a slightly longer one on Saturday.

Also, my gym membership starts tomorrow and I may end up doing my Friday run on the treadmill! It's been over a year since I've used one and my hatred for these contraptions has been dulled by the passage of time; I actually look forward to getting on one again. That will also mean that I don't have to rely on the Garmin, which is in my doghouse at the moment for screwing me out of my prized metrics...

Of course, a large part of the reason for joining the gym was access to weight training equipment so that I can work on my legs and (hopefully) leave my patellar tendinitis issues behind me for good. I find my legs to be weak and I can't seem to get any real progress doing exercises at home.

A Weekend Packed With Accomplishments

Wow, what a weekend! Sometimes it’s actually a relief to be back at work, though equally rewarding to look back and be happy with all that was accomplished.

On Saturday the first thing I did was go for a run. I wanted to go somewhere between 8 and 10k, but ended up running a bit further because I misjudged the length of the route I had decided to take. As a result I ran further than I had since last summer, a total of 12km. My pace was decent as well, even though I am not yet concerned with it and don’t pay attention to it while running. It ended up being 5:39/km (9:06/mile), which is pretty good for me at the moment. The whole thing took 1:07:58 to complete and my right knee felt pretty good as well. I was worried that running that far, when my previous longest run since my surgery and layoff was 9km, would be bad, but in the end I feel fine. Must keep doing the exercises that seem to be helping…

The rest of the day was spent driving one kid to a birthday party, taking the other one grocery shopping, dismantling the Christmas Tree and putting all of that stuff away (a surprisingly time consuming task), preparing our skiing stuff for the next day, and taking Owen to his first indoor baseball practice of the year.

On Sunday we were off just a few minutes past 8am for our first cross-country skiing trip of the year. The weather was absolutely perfect for the kids’ first lessons, and for the parents’ own jaunt on the finely groomed trails. After two hours we all met up for lunch, where tonnes of food was consumed thanks to the packing of said massive amounts by the lovely Monica. After lunch I took Malcolm out on the trails while Monica went off with Owen. Malks was so good on the trails too! He got over his fear of downhills and showed off his new gliding abilities. He was so cute! I did a total of 10km of skiing, which was a decent amount for the first of the year. More imprtantly, the knee didn't bother me at all, which means I will be able to push a bit harder on subsequent trips and actually get a great workout!

After we got home I had to work on my bike to get it ready for the week, a task that is not always pleasant, but so necessary given how grimy everything gets during the winter with all the salt that gets put down on the roads. Not sure why I’m mentioning this here, but it does feel like yet another thing that got accomplished, and my bike ride to work this morning was very smooth as a result.

Whew! What a weekend… Next weekend looks to be much the same, except BOTH kids have separate birthday parties to attend. There just simply isn’t enough time to fit everything in.

A Couple of Runs and Squeezing a Tennis Ball

This week is almost at an end (well, the working week anyway) and I managed a couple of runs after skipping Tuesday's due to discomfort in my right knee (more on that later).

After walking to work on Wednesday I ran home for a total of 6.2k. It was pretty nice out, all things considered, though the city seems to be putting down way too much salt on the sidewalks for my liking, making everything all slushy and gross. My running was very slow and even because I had a pretty heavy backpack on, but overall I felt pretty good. The right knee gave me less trouble than I'd expected.

On Thursday I made it home in time to make a quick decision about fitting in another run before picking up Owen from his school. I ran a total of 6.8k and again felt pretty good. Though my pace continues to be super slow (as in right around the 6:00/km, or 9:30/mile range), I am not worrying about it right now. My focus is on listening to my body and slowly building up my weekly mileage. I really want to have a consistent year of running rather than the up and down, off and on sort of thing that happened throughout 2009.

As far as the right knee is concerned, I think I have found something that might help. As I continue to read up on all the potential causes of the dreaded "runners knee", I came across an article that talked about a potential cause that I hadn't encountered previously: lateral quad strength out of balance with medial quad strength. Everything else I'd ever read just referred to overall quad weakness as the culprit, and so I continued to work on hip flexors and glute meds, all the while completely ignoring the inner thigh. For the last couple of days I've been doing a very simple exercise that seems to be helping. I squeeze a tennis ball between my knees while in the sitting position. And let me tell you, those muscles are not very strong!

So far, the knee seems to feel better while running, but it's only been a few days. I look forward to trying other exercises for the medial quads, especially once my gym membership kicks in and I have access to all sorts of fancy equipment. I think the technical term for this motion is adduction, but I get it screwed up with abduction. Either way, I figure a little of both is in the cards. (I also look forward to having treadmills at my disposal, which will hopefully help in the process of gradually upping my mileage at a nice controlled rate.)

This weekend I have a run of between 8 and 10 kilometres on the books for Saturday, and then we are off to cross-country skiing for Sunday. Looking forward to both!

The Beginnings

I have been more than a little lax in keeping up with this blog, and I hope that this does not signal the beginning of the end because I am just as committed to running as I've ever been. My time, however, seems to be more scarce than ever before and so I have trouble working up the energy to fire up the computer to write something about my running travails.

That being said, I do have a few things that I should record on this little thing. First, I have been running and listening to my body. Six days into the year and at least I've made it that far without breaking that resolution! Case in point, yesterday I skipped my run because my right knee was bugging me. The fact that it was snowing and more than a bit windy helped in the decision making process, but I'm confident that I would have stayed home even if it had been perfect weather for running. Instead I did some stretching and hip flexor/core strength exercises, then rode the stationary bike for 30 minutes while watching the World Junior Hockey final. (Great game, BTW, and a big kudos to the team from the USA who coughed up a two goal lead with three minutes to play, but still won it in overtime.)

Today, I walked to work and am going to run home the 6 or so kilometres nice and easy. The knee problem has been a persistent pest for a good year now, off and on, and I am really hoping that I find a solution soon. I continue to work on my glute and hip flexor strength, but now I am also thinking that my quads are weak. When I look at my legs in the mirror and tighten the muscles (bringing the kneecaps up, just so you can picture it) I notice a significant difference in the size of the Vastus Intermedius on the left as compared to the right. That's the muscle right in the middle of the quad, and I'm guessing this might have something to do with it. I plan on correcting this problem as fast as is safely possible. My new gym membership starts in a couple of weeks, so that will give me access to all sorts of equipment to aid in this endeavor, but until then I will be refocusing on stretching and strengthening at home.

Also, we are starting our annual weekend cross-country skiing trips this coming weekend with the boys. They will be taking two hour lessons on their own this year, and this will give Monica and I a chance to ski on our own. I am very much looking forward to it since it is a lot of fun and an awesome workout as well! The next eight Sundays in a row, at the very least, will be dedicated to hitting the trails and so my weekend run will be confined to Saturdays.

I guess that's enough for now. Will try to rededicate myself to maintaining this blog as it does help in the motivation department. Here's hoping!

Back in the Valley

It's a hectic week leading up to the Christmas Holidays, as usual. I always mean to be prepared well in advance, but it simply never happens. With both kids in school and taking part in extra-curricular activities it seems that I have even less time these days than in years past.

Oh well. The stress of the Holiday Season is nothing new, but this is the first time that I am trying to keep up a running regimen on top of all the other responsibilities. Last year, although I'd been running for the entire year, December found me taking an extended leave due to one of my numerous injuries. This year my enforced time off happened earlier, and so I am trying to keep up with a consistent training schedule throughout the Holidays.

I ran a pretty uninteresting 4km on Friday, getting home after work and straight out the door to head towards Owen's school to pick him up. This time I didn't freeze on the way home because I took my jacket and fleece off inside the school and dried out a bit while collecting Owen. Much better than my Wednesday experience!

Saturday we were out shopping for Christmas and my right knee was feeling pretty tight so I didn't run. Therefore, I got up fairly early (for me, anyway) and went out for a decent run this morning.

I was hoping to run about 6km, but I decided to see how it played out with the knee and all. Feeling pretty good I decided to just keep running and headed down to Riverdale Park and onto the trails of the Don Valley. It was great to be running down there again! I managed a decent 7.5km and feel pretty good. We then took the boys out to a local restaurant for breakfast and I stuffed myself solid with their "big breakfast". No need for lunch given how big this thing was, and how late in the morning I ended up eating.

And now for something completely different...

No, I am not into my own take on Monty Python, and somehow relating it to how I am struggling with running these days, but I do secretly wish for such creativity. Instead I have decided to add something new to my "training"...

After reading "The Lore of Running", as mentioned here, I was intrigued by the training techniques of the best runners of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. If you haven't read Chapter 6 of this book I highly recommend it for entertainment alone! Specifically I was shocked by how fast some of the cotton-wearing masters of the Victorian and WWI era were able to run on the diets that they recommended to other athletes. Don't know about you, but I wouldn't get very far on stale bread, flat bear, and old mutton. Gross.

Anyway, where was I? Oh yes, how does this particular Chapter impact my so-called "training". Well, in a word: walking. It seems that the marathoners and ultramarathoners of a bygone era were big on walking, LOTS of walking. I am not planning on 30km every morning like some of these folks, but I figure a bit of walking can only help my running in two ways:

1. By adding extra mileage to my training without the destructive pounding of running.


2. By working out complimentary muscles which running ignores.

And so I decided to start by walking all the way to work so as to allow me to run home afterward. I was pleasantly surprised at the pace I was able to maintain, and thought I'd be hard pressed to stay around the 10:00/km mark. Instead I managed an 8:37/km pace for the entire 6.05km distance, with the whole trek taking just 52 minutes and change. Nice!

Then, after a day of desk sitting, I ran home. My right leg was a bit stiff from the walk (remember those complimentary muscles getting worked out?), but this didn't seem to affect my running. I ran slow and steady all the way until I was pretty close to Owen's school, stopping at 7.3km. I easily could have gone the extra half kilometre to the school's front door, but given that the longest run I've been on since starting up again was 6km I figured I'd pushed it far enough.

The only thing I did wrong was neglecting to put on the extra fleece vest that I had in the backpack and, therefore, nearly froze on the walk home. Live and learn...

Reading and (hopefully) Learning

As I try and get "back" to the type of running that I was doing in the summer I find the process tedious and frustrating. I am not running nearly as much as I thought I would be more than a month into my return to running. My right knee continues to bother me a bit, though nothing like what I was feeling at the end of August when I was sidelined with this ailment as well as calf strains galore.

Anyway, I am really really trying to be more conservative and have set no goals for the year other than wanting to run a marathon next Fall. Even this goal is not set in stone, and I am not registered for any races whatsoever. In between the little bit of running that I have been able to accomplish I have been reading books on running like never before. The two most useful ones I've found are Hal Higdon's "Marathon: the Ultimate Training Guide" and Timothy Noakes' "The Lore of Running".

I am not, at this point, interested in any training plan per se, but I am very much in need of reinforcement of the concepts of not over training, listening to your body, setting realistic goals, etc. Both of these books do a great job of describing the common mistakes that rookies make, which ultimately lead to burnout or injury, and I have found more than a few that either I've already experienced or can relate to. As such, I am continuing to stay positive no matter how often, or how far, I am running on a weekly or monthly basis.

Case in point: Last week I ran 4km on Monday, then took the rest of the week off because I was fighting off some sort of throat ailment. On Saturday I went out for what turned out to be an awesome feeling 6km. It was easy, and I had a great time.

Sunday morning I was hoping to run again, but decided that my right calf was still feeling a bit too sore after Saturday's run and stayed home. Instead, I rode the stationary bike for 30 minutes and did some stretching.

I've also started doing a few new exercises that I found in the Noakes book, especially ones with stretch cords that work the hip flexors in a variety of ways. A particular one that I've never done before works out the front of the hip, where you have to lift your leg up until the thigh is parallel with the floor while having a stretch cord attached to the ankle. It's amazing how weak those muscles are and I immediately feel the difference in my knees after only a few days of this activity.

Anyway, I would love to be out there running 20+ kilometres every Sunday, but it is simply not possible at this time. Instead, I have to think super long term and get back to that sort of mileage when my body allows. I just hope that all of this new found wisdom doesn't leave me as the Spring racing season approaches and I am tempted, perhaps against my better judgement, to enter a race or two. I hope that I can race a few, but will not bank on it just yet.

I have also signed up at a gym around the corner as part of a reduced monthly rate plan through my work. The membership doesn't start until the middle of January, but I am doing this to have access to treadmills again, and to specifically work out my core and legs in order to get rid of these "swimmers legs" once and for all. Must strengthen to absorb shock better!

One of those weeks...

Man, it's been "one of those weeks" for me. After the weekend I went out for a nice run on Monday evening and had a decent time of it, completing a relatively uneventful 4km with a short walk break at the halfway point.

Then on Tuesday evening, when I was not planning on running, my throat started hurting. I shrugged it off and figured it wouldn't lead to anything since over the past month I've had the same feeling creep up one evening only for it to go away by the following morning. This time I wasn't as lucky and by Wednesday morning it was super painful to swallow. Although I didn't go to the doctor (I know, I know) my self diagnosis is that I had a touch of tonsillitis given that I didn't have the usual strep throat symptoms.

Anyway, needless to say, I did not run that evening and have pretty much been more than a little worn down the entire week. Today things are feeling a bit better, though my throat still continues to give me trouble and I am very lethargic.

The one nice thing about being a bit out of it is that I've been reading a lot recently. I won't bother listing the training manual type books that I've perused since they are in the "usual suspects" category and I'm sure anyone who is into running would have checked them out already. However, if you haven't checked out these two books you definitely should:

Duel in the Sun by John Brant was an awesome read. I couldn't put it down and finished it in one sitting! What a story, and not just of the race between Salazar and Beardsley, but mainly their lives before and after that pivotal race.

Strides: Running Through History with an Unlikely Athlete by Ben Cheever is also a fast read and very entertaining indeed. Lots of humour throughout, and many historical anecdotes makes this a lighthearted history of running book.

Hopefully I can get some running done this weekend. Have a good one everybody!

Another Busy Weekend

Man, it seems like the weekends are flying by and getting busier and busier! No rest until the New Year, I suspect, but at least I am still getting my runs in despite all the other stuff that needs to get done.

This weekend we celebrated my Dad's 65th Birthday and retirement, which meant a lot of cleaning of the house ahead of the Sunday evening dinner. We went a little overboard on some things (case in point, dismantling and cleaning the sliding patio doors), and didn't touch others, but all in all everything went well.

In amongst all that prep work I managed to run twice. On Saturday morning I encouraged Owen to come with me for a short run, and even got Malcolm in on the act. Owen and I ran 2km together, then picked up Malcolm for another kilometre for a total of 3km. It was chilly out, near freezing, but definitely fun. Then we had an energy audit conducted on our house, after which I took Owen to get measured for his jersey for baseball "spring training" - they start indoor workouts at the beginning of January and go every weekend right through until the end of April.

On Sunday Owen said his heel hurt a little bit (little guy needs new running shoes, me thinks) and so I went off on my own for another easy run. This time I ran 5km. It also marked the first time since last winter that I ran in below freezing temperatures as the thermometer read -0.5C when I left.

Running wise it was a good recovery week. My calf hurt a bit, but I think I've traced the issue to doing some extra calf raises that tired the muscle out a bit so I am not worried about it. It didn't bother me very much on the weekend, but clearly I need to strengthen my calves. My total for the week was a meagre 13km. This week I will try and run a bit more, though I must admit that this slow build up in mileage is getting on my nerves. I just wish my body would accept a more aggressive approach, but I'm afraid that is not to be. Just have to stay the course...

Strange...

Went out for a run after two full days off and happened upon something that always seems like it comes out of nowhere for me. After about 2km of easy running my left calf (i.e. non-wonky ankle side) started to feel a bit stiff, so I took a short walk break before starting to run again. I ran three more kilometres, taking brief walking breaks after each click, and tried to stretch the thing out, but to no avail. I had gotten home from work early enough to run over to the school to collect Owen, and was not particularly warmly dressed given that the weather was pretty mild. I wore shorts, and perhaps that was the source of the problem. After a total of 5km I finally got to the school.

On the walk home with Owen the calf really started to hurt. It didn't help that it started raining that cold, late autumn type of rain and I was definitely feeling chilled. Today it feels a bit better, but definitely no running for me this evening, as I had planned. Perhaps my calves are even weaker than I had suspected? I'd better start doing some strengthening in that area once this settles down.

Just hoping to run on the weekend...

Weekend Update

This is brief since the weekend is not yet over and I still have a lot to accomplish with the few hours that I have left.

On Saturday I went for a run early in the morning and had a decent time of it. I ran 3.5km with no breaks and felt pretty good, all things considered. Then I spent the rest of the day getting Christmas lights and putting them up on the outside of the house. It's amazing how long it takes to get that done!

Today I also went for a run in the morning. I didn't feel as pressed for time and so I decided to take it easy and took brief walking breaks after every kilometre. These really are barely walking breaks as I tend to take about ten or twenty steps and then run again. I ran a total of 5km and broke the 20km mark for the week (total of 20.5km). Not much of an accomplishment, but still...

I think this week I will actually try and take it down a notch and run a little less. I've decided to try and give my body a break every three or four weeks, and I might as well start now. The right knee, though getting better, is feeling a bit tight and can probably use a bit of rest.

Now I have to figure out how to install a garage door opener...

Oh yeah, we took the kids skating at Nathan Phillips Square this morning. It was fun! Malks fell and hurt his bum though. That was not much fun...

Late Afternoon Run

Got home a bit earlier than expected after my appointment with the surgeon (another post-op check up) ended at such a time as to make going back to the office useless. And so I took advantage of the extra time allotted to go for a run. Monica had gotten home early from a conference downtown as well, and was in a rather poor mood due to some stuff that was bugging her at work, and I dragged her out to run with me.

We jogged and chatted and it was great. We took very brief walking breaks at every kilometre and eventually made it around to Owen's school after 3km. Monica thought it would be good to pick Owen up and so I headed off alone to get Malcolm at his school.

I continued to run and tacked on another two clicks for a total of 5km for the day. After I picked up Malcolm he wanted to race home and so I likely ran another kilometre chasing him all the way home, but I didn't have the Garmin turned on by this point so it went unrecorded.

Now, post shower and dinner, it's time to get the boys to bed. Ahhhh. The routine.

Wish I could say it "eases the pain"...

Early Morning Jog

Without any plan I, once again, on the spur of the moment, went out for a short run this morning. I would think that if I was to do anything more than the 3k that I ended up running then it would have never happened. But I'm happy to just be getting out there for these short runs. My body seems to be responding OK as well, though I have a long way to go as far as leg strength goes.

In any case, the weather was pretty much perfect for a morning run: +9C and a bit wet, though not actually raining while I was running. It's been a very mild month and it's nice to be able to take advantage of the weather as I get back into running on a consistent basis.

Now, with the run finished, I am faced with taking both of the boys, and myself, for flu shots this evening. Happy Wednesday!

This is becoming a habit...

Never, and I mean NEVER, have I gone out for a run three days in a row. Sure, my distances are short and my pace is turtle-ish, but tonight marks the third day in a row that I've gone out for a run. I am pretty much just going out for runs whenever I feel like it, both physically and mentally. I didn't plan on this run, but when I came home and put some meat in the oven for dinner I had no interest in biking over to the school to pick up Owen, and I definitely hate using the car for such short trips. The school is a little less than a mile away, and I had time to strap on the old Garmin and running shoes and headed out for a jog.

I decided to run three kilometres and took a bit of an around-about way to get to the school. Walking breaks every kilometre, as has become my habit, and I arrived at the school with just a little less than the three clicks, so I ran around the playground and back to the front door.

When I collected Owen I didn't expect anything other than a nice walk home, but he noticed that I'd been running and said he wanted to run home. His reasoning was pretty good, saying that running would get us home faster for dinner and, ultimately, get him to his Cubs meeting on time. So off we went, me carrying his backpack, for another kilometre.

A total of 4km was what I did, and it feels pretty good. There is definitely something in commuting by foot - I love it! Can't wait to be in shape enough to perhaps run to and from work sometime in the new year...

Couple Short Weekend Runs

This weekend was a lot of fun, and some running was accomplished as well. On Saturday morning I went out for an easy 3km run on my own since Monica had run with Owen the previous evening and the little guy was not up for another one so soon. I took brief walking breaks at each kilometre marker and felt pretty good. In fact, although not blazing or anything, I ended up running about thirty seconds per kilometre faster than intended. Afterwards we all headed off to Darlington Provincial Park and had a great hike through the woods and along the beach. The boys had a great time spotting dear tracks on the train, and leaving a long trail of driftwood thrown into the water along the beach.

Today Monica and I took advantage of the fact that the boys were with my Dad and drove down to Ashbridges Bay Park for another run together. It was great! We managed 4km with walking breaks, and really had a lot of fun. The terrain was really varied, which made for a soft ride: wooden boardwalk, some asphalt paths, wood chip sections, and even a bit of a dirt trail.

I finished the week having run five times, which is unusual for me, and feeling pretty good. It's so nice to be enjoying running again. My right knee continues to have a bit of pain under the kneecap, but I am continuing to do lunges and can feel my legs slowly getting stronger. I think as long as I do this, and stretch consistently, the knee will continue to improve. What will be difficult is holding myself back from running too much too soon, and too fast. That's why I am running with no goals at the moment...

Rain Rain Rain

Not much to say other than...

Got soaked biking to work.

Got soaked biking back home.

Figured since I was soaked anyway, why not run and pick up Owen at school?

So I did.

3.8k was how far. Don't really care at this point how fast. Just happy to be running again.

Good Morning Boiler!

This morning ended up a bit different than the norm.

I woke up just before 6am to this loud vibrating and buzzing noise that sounded like something was not happy and about to leak or blow up. I suspected the new boiler that we'd had installed a couple of weeks ago and went down to the utilities room in the basement to discover that, indeed, this was the source of the disturbance. We're not very happy about our new high-efficiency boiler making all this noise and waking us up, though it does heat the house up really quickly, and we will be following up with the company that installed it, but for the moment I was able to at least muffle the noise a bit by shoving a sponge between the gas pipe and the water pipe that were vibrating like crazy and hitting against each other. I also moved the front panel on the boiler itself a bit until the noise was slightly better, though I had to go through some spots where it would rattle like we were in the middle of an earthquake or something.

Anyway, with the boiler having woken me up, and it being a little past 6 in the morning, I felt that I had a decision to make. Go back to bed for twenty minutes before the alarm wakes me up once more, or head out for the 3km run that I was planning to do in the evening?

I chose the run! It was nice to be out with the City just waking up (people in cars rushing off to beat the traffic, shoving handfuls of something that was supposed to resemble breakfast as they went by was somewhat entertaining), and I do not do this enough. Never have, and probably never will.

I ran all the way without the walking breaks that I've been taking since getting back into running, and felt none the worse for wear. Maybe is was the reading of Dean Karnazes' book "50/50" that inspired me to do an early morning jog?

Whatever it was, I'm certainly glad to have had the opportunity to do it. So, thank you boiler!

Now shut the %^$& up!!!

A Jog with a Wee One

Got out after work for another run, and had a surprising running buddy for the last bit too! After getting home, starting dinner, rushing off to pick up Owen, dropping him off at home, going to get Malcolm, coming home, grabbing Owen and taking him to a bus that would take him and his Cub Pack to some observatory up at York University, then getting back home I decided a run was in order.

So I set off on the now typical 3km with walks after each click. Upon getting home Malcolm came running out of the kitchen all ready to go for a run, so I was back out the door to "race" the five year-old. We had a great time, and with only a couple of short walking breaks, we managed to reel off another kilometre for a grand total of 4k for me, and 1k for him. Pretty good pace he was setting too, and a great companion for conversation. Not a dull moment the entire way! The little guy kept on doing "acrocatics" (that's how he seems be convinced it's supposed to be pronounced) - skipping and twirling periodically with me trying my best to not burst out laughing or topple right over top of him.

Now I am waiting for Owen's bus to get back. It was supposed to be back at 9pm, but as I was sitting in the car waiting another parent knocked on the car window and let me know that they would be back around 9:45pm. Great! One last errand to run before I can finally nod off for the night.

A Couple More

Managed a couple more of the same type of jogs in the last few days. On Friday I went out on my own after work and did the same walk, run a kilometre, walk, run thing for a total of 3km. It was a bit faster, though still definitely in the slow and tentative range.

Today, Monica and I had an opportunity to run together and we did the same routine for another 3km. Things are feeling pretty good, and it would seem that the plantar fasciitis, which I've been battling for over a year, has finally healed. Those two and a half months of, over a week of which was spent in bed on account of the surgery, fixed that annoying issue I guess. Now I just have to be conscious of my foot so that it doesn't flare up again. That means doing some exercises.

I have also been doing more leg exercises as well, such as lunges and squats. The runner's knee on the right side isn't completely gone, but I can feel it getting better as my legs get stronger. I will not start upping mileage to any significant degree until I feel absolutely no pain.

I am also thinking of joining a gym around the corner from my office so that I have access to more weight training equipment than I do at home. It's a corporate deal thing that wouldn't start until the middle of January, but it would force me to work on something other than endurance. Also, if this does come to pass, I will be focused on lower body and core strength. As a former swimmer my abs are in pretty good shape, but the muscles that absorb shock as I run are poorly developed.

It's great to be back at running again! Slow and easy, but at least I'm back out there.

Out Again

Yesterday was both Remembrance Day and Polish Independence Day. The first is a chance for all to remember all those who served and or perish, or continue to serve, in the military. The second is a celebration of Poland becoming a country once more on November 11, 1918 after over 100 years of being partitioned between the likes of Prussia, Russia, and the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

And I went running again...

Monica and I both had the day off on account of Remembrance Day and I spent the morning studying for yet another exam, but in the early afternoon we drove down to the Beaches and did our little run-walk thing on the boardwalk. It was sunny, a bit windy at first, but it was a lot of fun to be jogging together. Like last time I ran a kilometre, walked a little, ran another, etc... until I managed to complete 3k. I felt pretty good, all things considered, though the achilles tendon on the right side feels tighter than I'd like it to on account of the wonky ankle, and all. I'm not too worried about it since my ankle has always improved the more I use it, and so I am planning to do another 3k jog either on Friday or Saturday.

It's the start of the long road back to proper training, but at least it's a start...

Tentative New Beginnings

I've been out of touch for a while as far as this blog goes, but I just couldn't come up with any real reason to get on here and post something as long as I was laid up and unable to walk, let alone run, for a period of time. After my surgery I was the (un)lucky recipient of a blood clot in my leg that hurt like a mofo and promptly put me on my back for over a week.

As an aside, being on medication sucks...

Anyway, it took a while after that for the pain to go away to the point that I didn't feel like I was ripping the calf muscle right off of the bone, and then out of nowhere my wonky friggin' ankle flared up on me something fierce on Halloween weekend and I felt like I was once again taking two steps back. A full week went by and now, finally, I am starting to feel better.

I hadn't run a single time since August 26th, but managed to head out on Sunday morning for a very slow and tentative trial. I walked for a bit to "warm up" and then jogged for three kilometres with a bit of walking in between each click. It was slow, sure, but at least it "was". Twenty minutes or so of jogging and now on Monday morning I feel a bit stiff. Pathetic, I know, but I'm just hoping it is the beginning of my glorious comeback.

No goals at this point other than getting back to running regularly and relatively pain free. Here's hoping for a healthy rest of 2009, and a 2010 with lots of running and racing.

Another Short Test

Seems like every run I do these days becomes a test of how the body, and more specifically the knees, will hold up. Tonight was no exception as I got out after dark for a late run. I had eaten a big dinner a couple of hours prior to heading out and didn't know how that would sit, but I really just wanted to go slow so I figured that, if anything, the full stomach would force me to stick with the plan.

I had been out for another rollerblade last night and my legs were a bit tight, especially in the hips. That's the spot that has to work to keep my knees from taking the brunt of each step's impact so, if anything, I was hoping I could feel those glute meds working.

For some reason I wanted a nice controlled environment to run on and headed towards the track. It's a familiar place now and I do all of the rollerblading there. No traffic, no unexpected holes in surface, so little chance of accidents. Given that it was dark I didn't want to risk doing something stupid.

I ran really easy and managed a total of 8km in 47:12 for an average pace of 5:54/km (9:29/mile). A couple of kilometres I picked up the pace a little into the 5:30s/km, but other than that it was all pretty steady around the 6:00/km mark. The heart rate definitely shows this to have been an easy run, coming in at 138bpm average.

It just remains to be seen how the knees feel tomorrow. A week ago I had a good run and felt fine afterwards only to wake up the next morning to really bad pain in both patellar tendons. Here's hoping...

Garmin don't lie.

Still Trying

Been off from running since last Friday, partly due to pain in the knee(s) and partly because there simply was no time. Baseball tournaments all weekend meant that I had to skip my planned long run whether I liked it or not. The fact that my knees felt like lead didn't help matters any.

So, long story short, running continues to be a mystery to me. I've been doing all the stretching and strengthening stuff that's supposed to help with the knees, and I've seen the massage therapist a couple of times, but getting to a relatively pain free and happy state continues to be my White Whale.

Tonight I went out for a jog and it wasn't too bad, all things considered. I didn't feel like doing any hills and just meandered through different neighbourhoods, watching people and running past houses where "the other half " (i.e. 2%) live. As far as the run went I will reserve final judgement until tomorrow and my first attempt at walking down the stairs. I managed 10km in 56:56.78 for an average pace of 5:41/km (9:09/mile). I'm bummed about the training plan, which was going so well for the first six or seven weeks, but has completely fallen off the rails in the last four. Other than that, life is good!

Garmin don't lie.

Dog Days - 300 and Counting

Yup, that's right. I am on the brink. As much as I hate to admit it, running is reaching the "chore" end of the scale where once it occupied the "can't wait to do it again" section. I suppose it's a good thing that I haven't even begun to contemplate the "kiss my ass, and pass me another piece of cheese cake!" portion, but it is not out of the realm of possibility if I don't break out of this funk, and fast!

Ever since my calf went mental on me a few weeks ago (for reasons I've yet to figure out, which makes it all the more frustrating) I've been either waiting to run again, or suffering through those crappy slow runs that are better classified as "jogging" (spit on it!). I'm not asking for much here, just to get back to a regular training schedule that allows me to actually feel like I've accomplished something from each run. I thought that my last run would kick start the last six weeks of training toward the Half Marathon, but instead I limped the entire day afterward with muscle soreness and knee tenderness the likes of which I wouldn't wish upon my worst enemy (except Michael Vick, though he's not an enemy of mine or anything. Why the Eagles signed him is beyond me!). Bringing ice packs to work is getting old, not to mention embarrasing (or is it just me getting old, and ...).

In short: AAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!

This being my 300th post I should be celebrating the fact that I'm still running after all this time, but instead I am just frustrated. Can I have "that time of month" if I am not the proud owner of a uterus? As I keep telling my wife on a regular basis, "It's uterUS, not uterYOU!" We all suffer to a certain degree...

No matter. Just keep telling myself that this, too, shall pass (like the inevitable kidney stone that I'm dreading will eventually occupy one of my two organs at some point in my old age. Can't I just have them remove the whole kidney when that happens? Having two must have an advantage of this kind...)

Anyway, here's what I managed (and I cannot say "accomplished") on this hot, humid day:

I started off a bit apprehensive, to say the least. My legs felt like crap, and my right knee was really not good. I taped it up and hoped for the best. All I was hoping for was to slog my way through at least 10k without too much pain. Within three kilometres I was so drenched with sweat that the tape on my knee came right off and I had to toss the remnants in a garbage can. I'd have to do the rest without it and just kept on chugging along. It was slow, that's for sure, but at least I was moving. I was also happy that I'd had the foresight to bring along my own water even though it was a short run. The humidity was pretty bad and I needed to drink constantly.

As I jogged along I actually started feeling a bit better and my pace improved just slightly. It was still in the jogging and range, but at least I didn't slow down to a crawl. In the end I ended up running 10.5km in 1:04:27 for an average pace of 6:08/km (9:52/mile). Like I said, slow, but at least I didn't skip the run and didn't cut it short. Here's hoping things start looking up from here on out.

Oh yeah, almost forgot. I ran in my new pair of Asics GT2140s today. They were great, just like the pair I've been using. I've put almost 400 kilometres on the first pair and I figured having a second pair in the rotation was a smart thing to do.

Garmin don't lie.

Trying to Go Faster Again

For a change of pace, literally I tried to change the pace a little bit tonight. This calf strain that sidelined me for a bit put a real damper on my training and I've been really stuck in a rut as a result. It's one of those things that makes one feel like running at a pace that doesn't resemble "jogging" is an unattainable dream...

After work we took the boys swimming at this nice outdoor pool that we've been to almost daily since we discovered it was open on the weekend. My little guys are a little afraid of the water (and as former competitive swimmers, both my wife and I have no clue how to teach non-swimmers how to get over it) so we just try and get them to have fun in and around the water. To my great delight they've both made great strides in the past few days, and so are we are all very enthusiastic about swimming. Anyway, after that my wife was kind enough to take the boys home and start dinner while I headed out for my run.

I am still feeling a bit weak in the right calf, but thought that after a bit of a warm up it would be good to do a few faster kilometres. Nothing approaching interval speed, but rather just some pace to get the heart pounding a little bit. It was hot and humid, and so I felt that the calf would be as warm as possible, thereby minimizing the chance of another cramp.

I ran the first two kilometres nice and slow and they felt good. I then decided to alternate faster kilometres with slow recovery splits. My first split of the faster variety was a bit quicker than I'd anticipated it would be at 4:24 (7:05/mile pace). I then ran a slow click, and then got into my second fast split. This time it was a bit harder and the calf was really feeling weak. I guess I babied it a bit and ran the kilometre in 4:31 (7:17/mile pace). This brought me to the hill leading out of the valley up Beachwood Avenue and I decided to run two slow kilometres since the hill was going to take a toll on the calf and I figured a bit more recovery was warranted. I then ran the third fast kilometre in 4:25 (7:07/mile pace). By this point I was really quite drained and sweating like never before. (I do not generally sweat very much, so when I do it comes as a bit of a surprise.)

In the end I ran a total of 10km in 54:35.98 for an average pace of 5:27/km (8:47/mile). The calf is alright, but we'll see if there are any adverse effects tomorrow. Here's hoping that it's all good and I can get back to training properly again. It was fun to just run a bit after all the jogging I've been doing. I realize that I like running, but hate jogging. Just seems pointless in so many ways...

Garmin don't lie.

Long, Slow, and Humid

As I type this there is a wicked thunderstorm happening right over my head. Well, I'm indoors, but the time between the lighting and thunder is zero at the moment and I am a bit worried that our house will get hit at some point. I suppose this has been brewing all day, given how humid it's been. We had a pretty big rain storm earlier, but right now it's like nothing that I've ever seen. The lighting is going off every second, though mostly cloud to cloud. It's like a fireworks show really.

Anyway, I did run this morning once more in my return from that pesky calf strain. Got up a bit later than I wanted to, so by the time I was out it was well past 8am and already hot and sticky. No real problem given that I wanted to run slow, but I was sure happy to have a bottle of Gatorade with me. I didn't bring any water, but did stop for a big drink at a water fountain in Taylor Creek Park. Other that that it was OK. Early in the run I had to adjust my stride a bit since I was feeling just a hint of that calf, but the tightness went away gradually. Towards the end of the run the outside of the left knee tightened up and I stopped a couple of times to stretch, which seemed to help make the discomfort go away for a couple of kilometres each time.

I ran a total of 20km in 1:58:57 for an average pace of 5:56/km (9:34/mile). The heart rate averaged out to 149bpm, raised mostly by the last few kilometres when I was really running out of steam. This evening, after swimming with the boys and then coaching yet another baseball game, the calf tightened up a bit more, which is worrisome. It may mean no more running until Wednesday, but I'll have to see how it feels tomorrow.

Garmin don't lie.

Running Again!

Just a short post since it is late and I am tired. I finally made it back out running after nine full days off on account of the calf strain. Happy to report that this was not an issue tonight at all! The knees felt kind of kinked, but I'm hoping that's just rust after the lengthy lay off.

I ran 10km in 57:50.84 for an average pace of 5:47/km (9:18/mile). Average heart rate was 143bpm, and overall the run was easy. The last couple of kilometres I felt a bit sluggish, and coming out of the Don Valley up Pottery Road I slowed down quite a bit, but still finished feeling pretty good. I certainly wasn't spent or anything and look forward to another run on Sunday. Hopefully a long one.

Garmin don't lie.

Body Knows Best - Dropping to the Half

Well, it looks like my body will be the one who decides whether I run the Full or the Half in September. In fact, it will decide whether or not I run at all! This morning I went out for what was supposed to be a nice, easy 10k and had another setback. I was having a great time running along, minding my own business. The pace was not concerning me too much and I just ran on feel. It was just fun to be running properly again, and I took advantage of it. Also, I got out before work (which is a rare thing indeed for me) since I was preparing to help my Dad move some heavy old radiator down the front steps of his house to the curb. He'd arranged for someone to pick it up there, but they couldn't bring it down since their crane was not long enough. I was a little concerned about injuring myself while trying to move this 300lb cast iron thing, but I never would have suspected that I'd be hobbled long before I had that chance.

As I was crossing the Bloor St. Viaduct (that's the main bridge that crosses over the Don Valley and connects Bloor St. to Danforth Ave.) I felt a sudden sharp pain in my right calf that stopped me in my tracks. It came totally out of the blue, and is the exact same thing that I felt last Wednesday when I had to abort my interval workout. Now I am faced with the prospect of missing at least a week of running right in the middle of marathon training. Or perhaps I should start calling it half-marathon training...

BTW: thank you to all those who left helpful and insightful comments on my last post. It is very good to hear from experienced runners that my train of thought on this matter is rational and sound. I agree that there is a lot of value in just finishing a marathon (though I cannot speak from experience, of course), but given my history of bouncing from one ailment to another it's simply prudent to do the shorter race. Another year of running will give me the base I need to train and complete the marathon strong.

I guess my decision can be summarized by the phrase, "Respect the distance." I do.

I managed to complete 7.75km in 41:16.52 for an average pace of 5:18/km (8:32/mile). It was a good run up until that last metre! I ended up walking slowly to the end of the bridge and then using a payphone to make a collect call (a local one and all!) to Monica to plead for a pick up. She did, and I didn't have to walk all the way home. (Monica and Malcolm, if you are reading this, Thank you!) Now facing the prospect of at least a week off, and perhaps more, I am pretty bummed out...

Garmin don't lie.

A Wet Weekend, and a Run

It has been a really strange and wet weekend, and I don't even know where to start. We were out of town for Owen's baseball tournament in Ancaster, but staying about a half-hours drive away (for some strange and inexplicable reason the coach chose this location) in Burlington. We arrived Friday afternoon, and I skipped my usual tempo run since my right calf still felt like someone had punched it repeatedly. I wasn't too optimistic about running at all during the weekend either.

We had a nice time Friday evening, with the kids of the team and many of the adults (including myself) swimming in the hotel pool and generally having fun just hanging out. We'd also gone out to dinner as a team and I had to stop the kids after they'd each consumed numerous packets of sugar and got really hyped up. Let's just say that getting mine to sleep was not easy.

We woke up the next morning for our first game and came outside to find that our car had become the personal toilet for what seemed like hundreds of birds, all of which had come down with some sort of intestinal ailment all at the same time:

Then we played our first game, and unfortunately due to one bad defensive inning by our guys we ended up losing. Here's a shot of the team in the dugout:



We then returned to the hotel since our second game was not to happen until 3pm (the first was at 9am). In the end it never happened at all since the skies opened up and it just rained and rained and rained. Again the kids and adults played in the hotel pool and such, with yours truly taking full advantage of the sauna and hot tub on account of the calf cramp. By the time the evening rolled around we were all totally tuckered out.

I decided to try and run this morning and woke up to find my calf was not feeling too tight. I also found my boys in this sleepy state:



I then headed off to revisit a familiar site: the spit of land that surrounds Hamilton Harbour that all racers taking part in the famous Around the Bay 30k have to cross. It was a beautiful day for running, but I found the going rather tough right from the start. It was going to be a battle, and I decided to just go nice and slow. Here's a picture I took from the drawbridge that's made of that corrugated iron stuff one can look through to the water below, with Hamilton off in the background: (when running across this thing back in March it was really slick on account of the rain, but today I just used the sidewalk.)



Then I snapped another one at the halfway point from the beach looking back towards Burlington from whence I had come:



In the end I ran a total of 21km in 2:06:29 for an average pace of 6:01/km (9:40/mile). It was really easy cardio wise, but my legs felt super tight and sluggish. I was just happy that my calf held up OK. Now it feels a bit tighter than I'd hoped it would, but I am not planning on running again until Wednesday. Entering the last nine weeks of marathon training I am really hoping that this calf is the only and last setback I will have to face.

Unfortunately for the kids, the entire tournament ended up being rained out and we headed home having only played one game. There is talk of a makeup day sometime in August though. At least the kids got to play together a lot and hopefully they bonded as a team.

Garmin don't lie.