I wish my run training worked like the movies

On June 23, 2019 By Emerging Runner5 Comments

Another day, another 3.64 miles

There’s a common trope in film, where the lead character goes all out training for a major challenge. There is usually one scene, played out in a series of quick cuts, showing the overwhelmed hero progressing beyond his or her physical limits. Typically, this is all done to the tune of “Eye of the Tiger.” Two minutes later, the protagonist is ripped and ready to make something big happen.

I thought about that on my run this morning. Since I’m the hero of my own personal movie, I’ve set my sights on returning to performance levels I haven’t seen for a few years. I’m not completely delusional. At my age, I know I’m not going to match my best times and that’s okay. My issue is that I’m not where I feel I should be for my age range. In competition, I would usually finish between the 25th and 50th percentile (I placed best in 5Ks and worst in halfs). I’m not sure I’d even show up on the bell right now.

So my equivalent of this cinematic convention is the work I’m doing to build up my monthly mileage. In my movie, you would see a series of shots of me taking off on my daily runs, with a calender showing the day of the week superimposed transparently over my disappearing silhouette. In one shot, I’d pull up at the finish, look at my Garmin, and gasp at the evidence of improvement. My legs would bulge with muscle tone and I’d resemble one of those ectomorphs who start races in the front row and finish before most runners reach the halfway mark.

Well, in the 50 days since I rebooted my running approach, I’ve made some gains, but it’s nothing dramatic. I’ve doubled my monthly distance in that time and my average run is a half a mile longer than it was in April. Despite all this running, my average pace has improved zilch. However, in the same period, my average heart rate during runs has dropped 8 bpm. That’s telling me my fitness is improving, but I’m not taking advantage of it. I’m going to try to focus on that tomorrow to see if it’s that simple. In the movies, the hero turns their hard work into victory. I’d settle for a mid-pack pace.

Building up the monthly miles

On May 27, 2019 By Emerging RunnerLeave a comment

On the comeback trail

Happy almost Memorial Day. It finally feels like summer and I’ve been doing my best to get out for runs early to beat the heat. I did that today and was rewarded with a cool and comfortable 66° temp. I wore a mid-weight shirt and shorts and wished I went with a lighter top by the end. I recently read that a worn heel is not a good reason to discard a running shoe because, “to patch such a heel prevents proper adaptation of the shoe to the runner’s particular heel strike pattern.” That inspired me to pull out my well worn Kinvara 5s for today’s run.

One of my goals for my post-work life was a return to running 18 miles per week. When I was doing 2.5 mile runs on weekdays and 7-8 miles over the weekend, I averaged about 75 miles per month. Over the past five years, my monthly average has steadily declined. Now that I’m running almost every day, I’m looking to build back to the 70+ mile target. A look back over the last 12 months shows an embarrassing monthly average of 30 miles with some pathetically low totals Jan-March.

The highest monthly total I’ve reached since June 2018 was 45.9. Now that I’m running six days a week, I was expecting to easily exceed that high point. A quick check on Garmin Connect made me think it would come down to the wire for May whether I would hit a new monthly high. When I went out on Saturday morning, my May monthly total was 40.8 miles. I was thinking I’d need to cover 5.1 miles before Monday.

We were invited to brunch yesterday and I was pressed for time, so I finished up after covering 3.2 miles. That left me thinking that I still needed 2.2 miles to reach my highest monthly total in a year. I beat that easily, and when I uploaded my final May runs to Garmin I realized that May doesn’t end on the 26th. I actually have until next Saturday to build on that total. My new goal for May is 60 miles, double my 12 month cumulative average. 60 miles a month is a big improvement, but it’s still less than 14 miles a week.

I will be aiming for 70 miles in June which would get me to almost to 90% of my target (18 miles per week). That means another 2.3 miles per week, either added to my shorter daily runs or as a step toward returning to long weekend runs. In the meantime, my performance is steadily improving. The gains aren’t dramatic but they’re real. Is it more frequent workouts, more miles or getting more sleep? Yes.

It’s not fair that I have to try harder to run better

On November 19, 2016 By Emerging Runner2 Comments

Apparently you also need to put in more effort

Today’s run (street): 4.1 miles
Yesterday’s run (street): 3.2 miles

Considering how much I run, I’m not really that good at it. People tell me that I need to run more intervals, do more hill, core and strength training, run longer distances and run more frequently. I’ll concede that those things could help, but they all require more time and/or the acceptance of more discomfort. I’m not a physiologist, but I’ve always understood that if you do something a lot, you get better at it. If I’m putting in a dozen or more running miles a week, shouldn’t I see continuous improvement?

My running experience since late summer has been positive. I reduced my intake of sugar and simple carbs and that led to some weight loss. Running with less weight would usually yield direct improvement, but it wasn’t until my friend KWL surprised me with a Garmin 35 watch that I started to see gains. That’s because I was paying closer attention to my running data, especially heart rate. Using percent of HR max as a guide to pacing myself on runs helped me improve my average pace by almost two minutes a mile.

While I did see a measurable improvement from that, I’ve still been averaging 30-40 seconds a mile slower than my average pace from a few years ago. I know some of that is due to getting older, but it hasn’t been that long since my overall performance began to noticeably drop. Of all the helpful suggestions people have made to me, the point about running frequency probably hits closest to home.

This morning seemed like a perfect running day and I expected to run as well as I did on Friday when I exactly matched my current pace. But today felt much harder. When in doubt, I always look at the data. My average heart rate for my last two runs were exactly the same. Rate of effort was the same — 76% of max with the last six minutes pushing closer to 85%. Today’s run also matched yesterday’s for average cadence. The only variable was stride length, with Friday’s being a foot longer than today’s.

So if effort was the same, why was my stride so short? I did feel fatigued throughout run and that surprised me because I’d had a good night’s sleep. There’s really nothing that can explain why I did worse today (by 50 seconds per mile) except that every stride carried me 175 feet less every minute than yesterday.

I’m hoping that tomorrow I’ll bounce back and open my stride enough to get back to current pacing. I know that some of my friend’s suggestions for improvement would yield a quicker cadence which is the other lever I can pull to improve. But increasing cadence is tough and I still maintain that I should be getting faster because practice alone should be enough to make perfect.

Giving some credit to my NB Zante V2s

On November 6, 2016 By Emerging Runner2 Comments

These are a few of my favorite things

Today’s run (street): 4.4 miles
Yesterday’s run (street): 3.2 miles

I didn’t really think much about running this week but it didn’t stop me from having two good runs since last Sunday. Friday was a work from home day and I ran early so I’d have time to shower. I needed to be presentable in video meetings. Although they can’t tell I’m wearing sweats, they can still see my face.

It was 48 degrees but the air felt chilly when I got outside. I probably overdressed but the weather didn’t make me regret the light short sleeve shirt that I wore under my top layer. The cool weather prompted me to start fast. Looking at my splits, I saw why that pace wasn’t sustainable. All the same, I missed averaging in the nine minute range by only a few seconds.

As I ran along, I thought about my New Balance Zante 2s that I bought to replace my venerable Kinvaras. I think the Zantes may be my favorite running shoe of all time. Like the Kinvaras, they are light, low and surprisingly well cushioned. Unlike the Kinvara, they are slightly less flexible and that’s why they’re working me for right now. The energy return is good and they respond very well on grass.

Since switching to the Zantes, my cadence has increased 1.2% and my average stride length has increased 5%. Some of that increase is due to my focus on heart rate, but I do credit these shoes for helping me move along.

This morning was ten degrees cooler than Friday, but I dressed about the same. That worked out, although, in the 40 or so minutes that I ran, the temperature rose almost five degrees. I tried to push as hard as I did on Friday, but I wasn’t quite able get to match yesterday’s speed. I see that my pace has increased in recent weeks relative to HR, which I see as evidence of improved fitness. I’m almost 30 seconds per mile faster at 80% HR max than I was a month ago.

I’m not sure what I’ll do tomorrow but I’m thinking about running in the woods at Stillwell or Bethpage. I’m curious to see if my newfound speed will carry over to more technical terrain. I’d also like to do some speed drills to help further increase my cadence. If I can get myself out early enough, I may go to the track instead so I can run before the crowds show up.

Breaking the nine minute ceiling

On October 12, 2016 By Emerging Runner4 Comments

Can you tell I ran faster?

Today’s run (street): 3.2 miles
Monday’s run (street): 3.25 miles

Two very different holidays this week provided me opportunities for weekday runs. My company was closed for Columbus day so I had a nice three day weekend and was able to fit in an extra workout. I took advantage of being home and accompanied my daughter to her college to hang out before her classes started. It was great spending time with my her. Even with that, I got home early enough to get out for a run before 8:30.

Conditions were chilly, 50° with 14 MPH winds, making it feel like low 40’s. With those strong winds, I kept my expectations moderate, but I found the conditions energizing. I haven’t radically changed my approach to my running, but I’m increasing my effort a lot more right now. Over the past few years I’ve slipped into an easy running style. Some of this was due to carrying extra weight, making any level of effort feel hard. I’m now at the same weight that I was when I was running faster. There’s definitely a correlation between weight and performance.

I finished my run and calculated my true pace (elapsed time and Gmap’d distance) and saw that I’d averaged 10:08 per mile. On many people’s scale that might look slow, but for me it was a big improvement over where I was a month ago. My goal right now is to run consistently in the 9’s (9:59 is okay) but according to Garmin Connect, I haven’t broken 10 minutes on a run since December 2014. That was the Jingle All the Way 5K that I ran shortly before I suffered a herniated disc.

Today was a different holiday, Yom Kippur. This is a day when the observant fast and atone and the non-observant think about life and get in a few miles. I didn’t go out with expectations of speed and would have been glad just to come close to Monday’s pace. The weather was cool but a little humid (87%) and I gave no thought to my performance until I came through my first mile a few ticks over ten minutes. That made me think I had a real chance of breaking the 9:00 ceiling.

I maintained this level of effort and noticed that my heart rate was still at 75% of max so I stepped it up to 81% through the second mile and did the last mile (my fastest) at 86%. The highest I got was 88% so I know I have more to draw on. I ended up breaking into the 9 minute range on this run, with an overall pace of 9:48.

I’m going to try to consistently hit high 9’s before I start thinking about even greater performance. Getting in some extra runs and miles has helped. My biggest challenge right now is to keep that going. Tomorrow Adventure Girl and I will do a trail run near my office. I can’t remember the last time we ran together, but it’s been years. Me and my family are excited to see her and catch up on her wild life in Montana. AG taught me almost everything I needed to know about running when I took it up in 2008. I look forward to more lessons tomorrow.

Good running beats treadmill tedium

On October 9, 2016 By Emerging Runner2 Comments

Oh, hello deer

Today’s run (treadmill): 4.1 miles

Mother nature can be thoughtless when it comes to my running preferences. I woke up this morning to driving rain that wouldn’t stop no matter how many times I looked out the window. Once I started to believe the weather reports, it became clear that my only option would be to run inside on the treadmill. I really didn’t want to do that, and thought one more time about braving the rain and the accompanying high winds. Ultimately, I decided that running outside in those conditions while wearing glasses would not work too well.

I stalled as long as I could by setting up the floor fan and gearing up for my treadmill session. As I did all that, I thought about the performance gains I’ve made in recent weeks and hoped they would translate to this type of workout. I finally hit the start button and set my speed to what I averaged for pace on yesterday’s outdoor run.

I know I keep mentioning the Garmin FR 35, but that’s because it surprises me (in a good way) every time I use it. This morning I selected “indoor run” and hit start. Once I got going, I saw that it was tracking my pace and distance (and of course heart rate). That’s a huge upgrade from my old FR 210 that required a foot pod to capture any run data. As I went along, I compared my speed and distance between the treadmill and watch display that were roughly equivalent.

The tedium of the treadmill experience motivated me to dial up my speed throughout my run. I ended up pacing only 19 seconds per mile slower than my next big performance target. I would have hit that had I done today’s run one minute faster. Still, it was my fastest pace on the treadmill since I ran intervals on it earlier this year. My cadence and stride length were also captured and showed improvement from yesterday.

Later in the day, the ER family went out to lunch and then stopped into Dick’s in Mellvile. This store has just doubled in size with the addition of a Field & Stream store. My efforts to find some decent lightweight track pants went nowhere (and by the way Dick’s, have you heard of any other clothing brands besides Nike, Under Armor and Adidas?) but it was fun to explore the adjacent Field & Stream store.

I don’t do guns and have only fished a few times, so I wasn’t interested in any of that stuff. However, the outdoor clothing was fun to look at and I always want to buy one of those Carhartt heavy duty hooded sweatshirts when I see them. The showroom had a big display with a bunch of real (stuffed) animals, including elk, moose, wild turkeys and this caribou (see picture at the top) that took a selfie with me.

Tomorrow is Columbus day and that will give me another weekend day to get in a run. There’s no rain expected for tomorrow, so I’ll be doing that outside. Today’s treadmill experience was mostly positive and I was pleased with my performance. But ten times out of ten, I’d rather run outside.

Performance gains from running by heart

On October 8, 2016 By Emerging RunnerLeave a comment

Getting to the heart of the matter

Today’s run (street): 4.4 miles
Yesterday’s run (street): 3.2 miles
Monday’s run (street): 2.1 miles
Sunday’s run (Bethpage bike trail): 4.2 miles

I’ve been doing more running than blogging these days, with four workouts since my last post. Every time I’ve gone out since last weekend, I quietly thank KWL for sending me my FR35. While I have made stamina gains resulting from cutting out most processed sugar in my diet (and losing a few pounds in the process), it hadn’t done much for my performance. The FR35 has been a real catalyst for some measurable gains in that area. So thank you once again KWL.

Last Sunday I went to Bethpage to run the bike trail and ended up covering a little more than 4 miles. I ran it about 9% faster than my average pace over the past six months. Having my heart rate showing in real time helped me apply more effort that resulted in better performance. I respond to HR feedback positively, while tracking pace tends to discourage me.

I went home from work early on Monday and went out for a rare afternoon run. It was only two miles, but it was the fastest two miles I’ve run all year. Yesterday morning I did my usual Friday route. I didn’t get around as fast as I had on my prior three runs, but it was fast compared to a couple of weeks ago.

This morning I aimed for a little more distance and headed out with performance running on my mind. Performance is relative of course, but my perceived exertion matched the 80%-92% max HR that my Garmin recorded. I ended up pacing around my new average, but I’d hoped for more.

In terms of performance, I’m still 5% slower than the top end of my current target and I’m 10% away from where I really want to be. More significantly, I’m running 30 seconds to a minute per mile faster than just a few weeks ago. When I get to the pace range I’m aiming for, I’ll consider racing again.

No longer running like a broken down car

On July 23, 2016 By Emerging Runner2 Comments

Out and back on the north trail

Today’s run (Bethpage bike trail): 4.4 miles
Yesterday’s run (street): 3.2 miles

Going back into the office after two vacation days was a challenge. I didn’t get back into workout mode until yesterday. I’m happy to report that I’ve maintained my nutritional discipline, cutting out the bulk of processed sugar in my diet and avoiding conditions that may spike blood glucose and insulin response. The results speak for themselves. I’ve lost some weight, gained more energy and I’m handling work stress far better than before.

As far as running, there has been impact, but no tangible performance gain. Using automobiles as a analogy, I would compare my running a month ago to one of those cars from the ’80s or early ’90s that I often see on my daily commute. These junkers sound like they need mufflers, transmissions and valve jobs and struggle just to keep up with traffic. It takes everything they have just to get where they’re going. That was me in June. I struggled through every run at paces that were 2-3 minutes per mile slower than I used to go, just a couple of years ago.

Using the same analogy, my current running is more like me in my car. I can keep up with traffic without struggling. If I want to drive faster, I can. The only reason haven’t pushed the pedal any harder is that I’m enjoying running for the first time in a long time. I now look forward to getting outside instead of dreading the effort. The question is, when should I shift to focusing on pace?

Yesterday’s run around the neighborhood was easy and I threw in some speed at times. I’d gone out around 6:30 AM before the sun was baking hot and the humidity reached 90%. That would have been a good idea this morning, but I didn’t get to Bethpage until 8:00 AM when the temperature was already in the mid 80s and getting hotter.

I had the same energy at the start that I’ve experienced since my diet change, but I did have some trouble loosening up. It took about a half a mile before my stride felt fluid. The trail was fairly shady and it made a big difference when I was shielded from the sun. I didn’t feel as strong as I did on Friday, but the difference in temperature probably had a lot to do with that. Despite weather conditions making it tough, I still felt like I could cover more ground today.

I considered running past Washington Ave which would have extended today’s run to five miles. I had the energy, but I hadn’t fueled properly and didn’t want to overdo it. Better to run well and appreciate the effort than to go too far and regret it. The trail was full of cyclists today, many more than usual. Curiously, there three or four dead mice on the trail, something I rarely see. I also saw a fair number of bunnies who were happily hopping around.

If I can get my act together I may get out really early and run at the track. I’d like to do a few intervals to activate muscle memory and push myself out of my current pacing. I’m looking forward to running tomorrow, no matter where I go or what I do. That’s a great change in a very short time.

Bethpage’s hills didn’t scare me today

On July 10, 2016 By Emerging RunnerLeave a comment

Where bike trail meets dirt trail

Today’s run (Bethpage bike trail): 4.3 miles

I’m discovering that my new approach to eating has yielded some improvement. As I mentioned yesterday, a measurable reduction in processed sugar intake and longer breaks between meals has given me more clarity and energy. Although it has been less than two weeks, I’m noticing positive changes, physically and mentally. It’s too early to know if these changes are producing real results or if the improvements are more of a placebo effect. It may be a little of both.

I got out to Bethpage this morning and parked at Runsketeer HQ off of Haypath. I usually run north to Washington Ave., but today I decided to go south toward Bethpage State Park. Like yesterday, I felt great from the start to the end of my run and I truly believe it has to do with reducing refined sugar and minimizing insulin response. While this change is exciting, my performance hasn’t improved.

Great run despite 88% humidity

Today’s pace was fairly typical compared to what I’d normally run for four miles. The difference is that maintaining that pace is now far easier. I normally grit my teeth to get through my runs and focus on the end result: finishing. There was none of that today, even though I took on some challenging hills between Haypath Road and my turnaround point on Picnic Polo Road.

So what about performance? If I continue to feel the way I did on my last two runs, I can start focusing on speed. That’s something that I haven’t done in a long time. Either way, I’m enjoying, rather than enduring the experience in way I haven’t in quite a few years.

How Dr. Phil (not that one) is helping my running

On July 10, 2016 By Emerging Runner4 Comments

I’m sweet enough already

Today’s run (street): 4.25 miles
Yesterday’s workout (Treadmill and elliptical): 40 minutes
Tuesday’s run (street): 3.5 miles

Roses are red, violets are blue, sugar is sweet and so bad for you. I recently read Christopher McDougal’s newest book, “Natural Born Heros” that at one point focused on Dr. Phil Maffetone whose methods have helped many elite athletes increase performance. The key takeaway for me is that most assumptions about fueling athletes are incorrect.

Two examples of this both relate to hydration. One, that runners are at much higher risk of dying from water intoxication than from dehydration. The point being that humans are made to endure long periods without water and that’s why we are successful hunters. The other example is that hydration drinks like Gatorade, that contain large amounts of sugar, provide little benefit compared to the damage they do. High sugar drinks will spike both glucose levels and insulin response and can contribute to disease, inflammation, depression and increased body fat.

A lot has been written about how processed foods, especially those with refined sugar, are quickly stored in the body and become very difficult to burn. I started thinking about my own diet, which is pretty good compared to many, but it’s higher in sugar and simple carbs than it should be. I decided to address this in a logical way that doesn’t require a big change. I believe this has already yielded benefits.

I currently eat a vegetable-rich diet and that won’t change. I get protein from high quality sources (mostly chicken, turkey, nuts or tofu) and that won’t change either. But I am reducing the amount of refined carbs I ingest (far fewer) and sugars of any type that have anything more than a low (value of 10 or less) glycemic load. An important aspect of these changes is that I am increasing the amount of time I wait between any meal and any snack that follows it. This is to prevent insulin spikes that promote the conversion of glucose to stored fat.

It’s been about 10 days since I made these changes and I believe there’s something to it. I haven’t sacrificed much except cutting a few hundred sugar-heavy calories from my daily intake. I’ve lost a couple of pounds and my energy level is noticeably higher, while my crankiness level is lower (Mrs. ER debates this but I know better). Work pressure is high right now, but I’m feeling far less stress than I usually would.

That’s all well and good, but here’s the best part. Today I had my best run of the year. It wasn’t my fastest, and it certainly wasn’t effortless, but not once did I wish for the run to end. I felt like I did back in 2011, when my running was at its peak. I took a few opportunities to throw in speed during the run and snapped back without feeling overtaxed when I resumed my natural pace. I felt great in both mind and body.

Will I feel the same tomorrow when I run? I hope so, but I know that every run is different and I’ve had bad runs follow good ones. I may not achieve today’s level of energy and spirit, but I think these practical changes have yielded real results. It’s hard to believe such a simple change could provide so much improvement. It will be interesting to see if I feel this way in a couple of weeks.