BMImpossible

On January 20, 2015 By Emerging Runner13 Comments

Off target

Today’s run (street): 3.5 miles

It’s always nice to have a three day weekend, because it gives me an extra day to run during the week. If I’m lucky, the weather will cooperate. Unlike yesterday when the rain chased me indoors, today looked sunny and clear. Except for the near freezing temperature, it looked like ideal conditions for a run.

I dressed for cold but didn’t put on too many layers this time. I stepped outside and confirmed that my gear matched the weather. I noticed that the driveway, that was covered by a shadow, had a thin coating of ice. When I reached the sunnier road I was happy to find it ice-free. That happiness was short-lived. By the time I reached the half mile point, I was dealing with patches of ice where the sun didn’t reach the road.

It wasn’t bad enough to stop, but I needed to be careful. I put aside any thoughts of performance and focused on landing on my mid-foot to maximize my stability. I didn’t have any close calls like yesterday, but it didn’t make for a very pleasant experience. For a fairly short run, it was exhausting.

I’ve continued to watch my portion sizes and have already lost a few pounds (I believe this is the primary reason women resent men). Based on the advice I recently got from a nutritionist, I did 12 push ups after finishing my run. I considered doing 15, but didn’t want to invite upper arm soreness on top of of my diminishing (but still present) sciatica. Fellow running blogger Renee recommended the Matt Fitzgerald site to calculate my ideal racing weight and BMI (see graphic at top). Will I get down to 14.8% body fat? That would be a no.

Snowy, icy Bethpage run

On January 11, 2015 By Emerging Runner6 Comments

Stretching the definition of “great shape”

Today’s run (Bethpage State Park): 3.75 miles

This morning I looked out the window and determined that the roads were too messy for running. With the temperature stuck below zero since last Thursday’s snowfall, there was still ice along the curb and snow on the sidewalks. I’d heard a tip that the dirt trails at Bethpage were in “great shape.” That got me out early for a run in the park.

It was very cold so I wore numerous layers, more than I needed as it turned out. When I arrived at Bethpage, I encountered a group of runners making their way downhill along the main driveway. Seeing people running off the trail was my first sign that the paths were in pretty bad shape.

The lot was barely plowed but I parked in one of the few open spots. I decided to run up to the north path extension and then cut over onto the dirt paths at the first trail head. There were a surprising number of runners braving the thick coating of icy snow on the paved trail, but no one followed me into the woods when I turned in.

Off the ~~snowy~~ beaten path

From what I was told, I’d expected the paths in the woods to be in better shape than the main trail. In fact, they were a mess, with thick snow along the edges and rutted ice at the center. Neither easy nor safe to run. I followed the route back to the main trail and then headed south on the snowy paved path. My plan was to head back toward the lot and run on the road as that group was doing when I arrived.

No chukkers in the snow

Before I made it all the way there, I noticed that a path leading into the soccer and polo fields was clear. With nothing to lose, I followed it around and saw that it looked clear all the way to the golf course. I’d been chased out of this area in the summer because no running is allowed during the season, but I had little concern about that this morning.

View from the 12th hole

The path continued southeast and I followed it all the way to its termination point on Round Swamp Road. There were a few steep downhills that became noticeable hills on the way back. When I reached the south side of the polo field, I saw that I could continue on the clear path southwest. I stayed on that until I reached a wider snowier road that took me back to the north trail head and ultimately back to the lot.

Looking north from Round Swamp Road

I crossed paths with the same group of men and women at different points during my run. They were moving along well despite the snowy surface. I last saw them entering the woods as I was getting into my car. Based on all the places I spotted them, I’m guessing they were covering close to ten miles. All my layers contributed to overheating, except for my face that was freezing for most of the run. I had hoped to cover at least four miles today, but conditions were ultimately difficult.

Later, when I got back to my neighborhood, I spotted a few people running on the road. The streets looked clearer than when I looked in the early morning (probably due to the sun) and I realized, if I’d waited, it probably would have been safe to run them. No matter, I got to run some new parts of Bethpage Park on a combination of trails, pavement and golf cart paths. I may not have covered my targeted distance, but I had a great workout. When I got home I did ten push ups. Just because I could.

Snow good reason to run outside

On January 10, 2015 By Emerging Runner14 Comments

Pretty snow. Awful run.

Today’s workout (run): 1.2 miles, (elliptical): 25 minutes

Just a snow flurry moving quickly through the area, nothing to worry about. That’s what they were saying at 6:00 AM when I started planning my morning run. The news stations began reporting heavy snowfall had started in NYC around 6:30. I naively assumed it wouldn’t reach Long Island for a while, nor did I think we’d have much accumulation. Wrong.

After a cup of coffee, I made my way upstairs to change into running gear. I saw that my wife was already on the elliptical. I also noticed that the snow was coming down pretty hard. No problem, I’d dress for bad weather and wear my Cascadias for traction. After all, running in snow is fun, right? I took one more look at the elliptical and considered that option before heading out into the winter wonderland.

This was to be my first run since New Years Day. I’d resisted the temptation to resume workouts once my sciatica pain began to lessen and targeted today to start. The soreness remains, but it’s minor. I knew that the inch-plus of snow would slow me down and provide a softer surface than pavement. I hoped that both factors would help minimize the chance that I’d re-aggravate my injury.

The temperature was in the mid-20’s with moderate wind. I made my way through the neighborhood, keeping to the sidewalk for safety. Between the spongy snow and uneven sections, that seemed equally risky. By the time I reached the top of the first road, my feet began to feel numb. The volumes of snow blowing around made it hard to see and I felt sinus pain where my freezing glasses touched my face.

I’d intended to run about three miles but the growing discomfort changed my mind. I redirected my route and returned to my house after covering 1.2 miles. By the time I returned home, it was almost white-out conditions. So much for a fun run in the snow. Even with my Opedix and under-layer, three top layers, a waterproof running jacket, headband and cold weather beanie, I was uncomfortably cold.

I quickly headed upstairs and shed most of those layers before jumping on the elliptical. Compared to the cold, slippery conditions I’d just left, the elliptical experience felt great. I completed a 25 minute session and capped it off with ten push ups. We had a nutritionist in the office yesterday and I talked to her about fat burning efficiency with aerobic, cardio and weight bearing exercise. The nutritionist told me that strength focused workouts are the most effective way to reduce body fat while maintaining muscle mass. Thus, the push ups.

Tomorrow should be free of snow but still still extremely cold. It warmed up into the 30’s this afternoon so there’s a chance the roads may be clear of snow. Last January there was so much snow that I was forced to use the treadmill for over 70% of my workouts. The current condition of our treadmill makes that an unappealing option. In the meantime, I’m back to running and that’s the progress I’ve been hoping for.

Super Bowl Sunday but not a Super run

On February 2, 2014 By Emerging Runner6 Comments

Go teams!

Today’s run (treadmill): 5.1 miles

Apparently there’s some big football game happening today. I’m not much of a sports fan (except for running), especially at the professional level. My youthful obsession with the Boston Red Sox and Bruins gave way to the practical realization that a favorite player’s loyalty only extended to the length of his contract. In terms of my interest in today’s Super Bowl, I’ll go as far as to say that I’m curious to see some of the commercials.

My plan this morning was to get outside and run in my neighborhood, something that I have not done since January 15th. Conditions were okay to do that, with moderately warm temperatures outside and fairly clear streets. There was fog, but it was dissipating. I have some high visibility clothing (and pulsating LED lights) that would have ensured that I’d be easily seen.

I was tired after I’d woken up and I found it hard to motivate myself to get out and run. I knew I’d do it, but as the morning grew long, I decided to follow my wife on the treadmill after she’d completed her workout. I was determined to put in my five miles, even if it was going to happen inside.

I started my run at a brisk pace, but dialed it down at the two mile point. I wasn’t fatigued, but I thought the original pace would be hard to sustain throughout the next three miles. The warmer temperatures outside translated into hot conditions inside. By mile three, it felt as hot and humid as summer. I ended up bringing my speed back up to my original pace for the last half mile. When I finally finished, I debated whether a nap would be preferable to a shower. I went with the shower.

Tomorrow is my rest day and I’m looking forward to some recovery time. I’m debating whether I’ll even turn on the game later, but I am interested in the fact that it’s taking place in the NY area. Either way, I’ll be glad when I’m finally be able to walk through Time Square without dodging Super Bowl events. Even more, I’ll be thrilled to get past the ongoing debate between New York and New Jersey on the provenance of the Super Bowl.

When pacing average is better than average

On August 7, 2013 By Emerging RunnerLeave a comment

Today’s run (street): 3.5 miles

I spent most of the day in the city, but I managed to get out for a run around 6:30 AM. I always walk down the driveway to get the paper while my Garmin acquires its signal. This morning I was struck by the pleasant coolness in the air and the soft light from the sun that would feel much hotter in an hour. The difference between running at 6:30, versus 7:30 AM, when I usually go out on weekdays, is measurable.

It was probably due to the speed work I did on Sunday that I took off with an energy that I haven’t felt in many weeks. My stride was smooth and I felt the sensation of moving. That might sound funny, but my runs can sometimes feel static and plodding. I guess that happens when you run faster. I should probably do it more often.

My overall performance was right around my average training pace. My 2012 average, that is. This year I’ve been averaging 15 seconds slower than that. But that’s about to change. I don’t know why my focus on speed tends to drift over time, because I generally enjoy running fast tempos and intervals. I guess I should try to remember that more often.

Summer is coming, but spring running is here

On June 4, 2013 By Emerging RunnerLeave a comment

Work in progress

Today’s run (street): 3.3 mile

Our house has been taken over by tree service people, who are taking care of some much needed trimming. The pool is now open, but the water color is closer to Pantone 364C than sky blue. That should clear up after a few days of shock treatments. The only thing left is to replace the fence on the outward side of the pool that was damaged by overzealous county workers doing Sandy repairs. The new fence goes up next week. Summer is coming.

Happily, it’s still spring, and the humidity and gloomy skies have finally moved on. I went out for my run this morning, right after the last school bus exited the neighborhood. There aren’t too many days in the year where running conditions are near perfect, but today was one of them. It may have been the lack of heat, or perhaps the cooling breeze that made my start effortless. This run came after my one weekly rest day, so that could have been a factor as well.

Before I knew it, I’d passed my first mile and I was tempted to do a true distance run, rather than a standard weekday 3.x mile workout. I reminded myself that, although I follow a flexible schedule these days, I still have work to do. Especially on a day like today, when business will keep me in the city late into the evening.

I enjoyed my run today and finished with an overall pace that was lower than any run I’ve done in the past week. The great weather certainly helped that happen. I enjoyed the run a lot and, like so many great things, it was over all too soon.

Trail running on the Bethpage feather bed

On May 13, 2013 By Emerging Runner7 Comments

Wood-chipped trails as soft as a featherbed

Today’s run (Bethpage State Park trails): 3.6 miles

Happy Mother’s Day!

After yesterday’s workout washout, I decided to go to Bethpage for a run on the wooded trails. It was rainy and overcast early in the morning, but the weather reports were predicting the sun would return by 9:00 AM. Once I saw that was true, I headed over to the park and made my way up the hill where I could pick up a trail on the southern side.

Once I got past the basketball courts and picnic area, I cut into the woods and encountered a wide, wood-chip covered path. I haven’t spent much time on these trails since hurricane Sandy and I was surprised how much work was done to return them to pristine condition. Running along the path gave the sensation of being on a very thick carpet or a feather bed. Even though we’d gotten a soaking yesterday, the wood chips were doing a great job keeping things dry.

I wanted to increase the challenge, so I took some side paths that were more technical, narrow and steep. I wondered if I’d run into the paved path that runs parallel to the top of the woods, but I stayed tucked inside. The low tree cover and the dry air acted like nature’s air conditioner I made my way back to the east end and followed a few trails that I’d never run before. One of these trails ran parallel to the start of the new paved bike path. I’d run next to it a number of times before, but never on it.

Trail running miles can feel harder than pavement miles and that was the case today. I felt like I had a very good workout and it was great to be back to the woods. The trail was as comfy as a B&B mattress, except when I was running on twisty, narrow single-track. In each case, my surroundings made the experience an energizing way to spend a cool Sunday morning.

Glittery roads lead to an indoor challenge

On January 26, 2013 By Emerging Runner4 Comments

From sparkly to sludgy

Today’s workout (treadmill speed and elevation run): 50 minutes

The snow began falling last night when I left the office and it had coated the streets and lawns of my neighborhood by the time I got home. The reflections from the streetlamp revealed ice in the mix, prompting my daughter to compare it to glitter poured all over the road. By morning, that beautiful scene had changed to a dangerous combination of dirt and ice and my only choice would be an indoor workout.

The freezing cold has made outdoor running hard over the past week and I’ve grown tired of the treadmill. I wished we’d already received our new elliptical because it would have been the perfect workout for this cold morning. With no other options, I headed to the treadmill with some new ideas about the run.

Since it was the weekend, I had more time for my workout. I decided to focus the first half of my run on elevation and the second half on speed. I started with 1% elevation and increased that every few minutes until I hit 4%. I maintained the same speed throughout these elevation increases and watched my heart rate climb toward zone 4. At the 15 minute mark I began stepping down the elevation. At 25 minutes I was down to 1% and soon leveled off while blipping up my speed.

It was tough to get through the first 25 minutes with both the elevation and the indoor heat. I began to feel a second wave of energy around the 30 minute mark and wondered if it was induced by ketosis. I took full advantage and increased my speed periodically until my heart rate reached my target. I maintained that pace through the remainder of the run.

It was a really tough workout, far more challenging than my usual treadmill session. I was pleased with today’s effort and glad that the speed and elevation workout had distracted me from the tedium of the treadmill. Tomorrow I hope to be back on the road or trail. I’d like to cover enough miles to reach my weekly goal.

Even with this freezing weather, my friend KWL is planning to run his first half marathon tomorrow morning in Central Park. I’m wishing him the best, and I know that he’ll do well. I’ll be thinking of him and my friend FS (who will do this Half or a different run) while we all go out in the 18 degree temperatures. Why do we do it? That’s probably a good subject for a future post.

Stillwell trail run, frozen paths and a near collision

On January 5, 2013 By Emerging Runner2 Comments

Today’s run (Stillwell Woods): 3.9 miles

I was hoping to get a trail run in over my last vacation but the timing never worked out. I did manage to cover a lot of miles during my time off, but the only time I traveled to run was the Hangover Fun Run on New Year’s Day. I was determined to get back to Stillwell this morning, where I did my first trail run of 2013.

It has been cold all week and today was no different. I dressed for freezing temperatures, including a base layer under my running pants. I was glad to have layers top and bottom when I stepped out of the car at Stillwell Woods to start my run.

The trail head and the main trail leading from it were covered with ice. I needed to step carefully as I made my way to an interior trail. There were a number of mountain bikers getting ready in the parking lot and I wondered how they’d fare on the slick and frozen surface. I never did see a biker on the path today. Perhaps they rethought their workouts after seeing the condition of the trails.

I wore my Helly Hansen Trail Lizards that eat up rough terrain. Their only shortcoming is the lack of a rock plate, which is normally a non-issue. Today it would have been provided great benefits, as the interior trails consisted of mud that was grooved by bike tires and refrozen as hard as rock. I needed to watch the trail closely to avoid slipping on the uneven surface.

About half a mile into the woods, I detected movement behind me. Thinking it might be bikers I moved to my right and soon saw two runners passing me on my left. There was no courtesy “Thank you”, which is fine, but I would have liked to know there was a third runner trailing behind them. I had just started to move back to the center when the third runner came along, and we almost collided. People generally say, “On your left!” in those situations but these guys were jerks.

I did my usual loop a couple of times and noticed that, in the short time I’d been running, the sun had started to melt the ice. What had been frozen earth became soft and slippery mud and I needed to adjust for that. I saw a few people out walking with their dogs but no other runners today. I completed my second loop feeling like I’d worked fairly hard, even for a run that didn’t quite go four miles.

Overall, it was a decent trail run. My last trail run went poorly (at Caleb Smith) and I appreciated the difference. I’m not sure where I’ll run tomorrow, but today I’m happy to have had another great experience in the woods.

Harsh weather, a tough run and a happier mind

On December 27, 2012 By Emerging RunnerLeave a comment

Lots of protection from 5 little ounces

Today’s run (street): 3.4 miles

Last night’s wind and rain carried over into morning and the world looked dark and dreary when I got up. I hadn’t thought much about running except for the hope that the weather would clear. I really wanted to avoid another indoor workout if I could. The gray skies and slick roads did little to motivate me so I waited a few hours before deciding to head out.

The cold had prompted me to put on a couple of top layers, but I didn’t realize how nasty it was until I finally stepped outside. Conditions were chilly, wet and windy and I immediately returned to the house to grab my running windbreaker. I’d bought this ASICS Serpent jacket at a race Expo four years ago and have always found it effective against rain and wind. My only issue with it has been its tendency to trap heat. Today that worked to my advantage.

I’ve been fighting the beginning of a cold and set out at an easy pace, running into headwinds and a spray of light rain. My gear selection: three top layers, City Sport winter weight running pants, gloves and an over-the-ears wicking hat, kept me surprisingly comfortable over the first mile. As I moved through the streets, the wind began to pick up and the rain got heavier. I laughed at the unpleasant conditions but chose to keep going. I hoped that things would improve, but they never did.

The winds were challenging and, at times, it felt like they undercut my speed by half. After three miles the conditions had become exhausting and the rain made it increasingly difficult to see through my glasses. I hurried home through the final set of roads, pushing as hard as I could just to get to the end.

Despite the harsh conditions I was very glad that I did this run. I wasn’t in the best mood in the morning and had considered taking a rest day. My wife wisely (and strongly) suggested that I get out, saying that a run would change my perspective. Once again, she was right. Tough runs often lead to a far better outlook.