The short and the long of it

On October 17, 2009 By Emerging RunnerLeave a comment

I learned a valuable lesson Friday morning about checking the temperature before heading out for my run. As I prepared to go out it felt warm, even humid, although the heat didn’t seem to be on. I skipped the compression shorts I’ve been wearing under my running shorts on cold mornings and when I stepped outside and got hit with the 20-something degree wind chill I knew I was in for a frosty run. As I set off I realized how cold my hands were and I questioned whether I’d manage to break a sweat in the 22 odd minutes I allocate for this workout. I didn’t want to push speed because I hadn’t had a chance to stretch prior to the start. I was tempted to throw in some sprints to get my heart rate up and try to get a little warmer but I was concerned that could lead to a muscle pull. Along with the cold, there was some light precipitation and I soon realized that it was, in fact, snow. The outside temperature, with the wind, was in the high 30’s so there was no accumulation although the streets were wet. Given the distractions of cold and wind, the run went by very quickly and I completed 2.4 miles at about 9:13 per mile. By the time I reached home my hands were really hurting from the cold and from the sting of the wind and the rain. I won’t forget my gloves again.

This morning I got out by 7:00 AM and the weather was mild compared with yesterday but it was still pretty cool. I bought some tight running sweats at Target last weekend and I wore them with a double layer of tech jerseys. I also wore gloves and it was a perfect set of gear for my run. I wanted to cover more than five miles to reinforce distance as I move closer to the race on the 25th but I had no specific plan. After running north to Jericho Turnpike I headed west and ran about a mile in that direction before ducking into the western edge of neighborhood #3. This is a big neighborhood and I have no familiarity with the layout of the roads so I headed south and guessed where I was in relation to my own neighborhood that’s separated by a busy road. I ended up guessing well and crossed the road, heading south along the main road to the highway service road. I was little past the three mile mark and I felt some fatigue along with some pain in my right quadricep. After some time I cut over to neighborhood #2 and I realized that I often hit a wall at that point and today I decided to ignore it and wait for a second wind. I did a loop through neighborhood #2, passing a number of people who were out walking their dogs. I headed back to my neighborhood and reached home feeling strong after covering 6.53 miles at 9:11 per mile.

After my post-run shower I iced my right leg quad and calf with the Active Wraps. The unit fit well and my leg felt pretty good. I’m planning to try it with heat later today. Tomorrow I may head to Stillwell for some trail time although I’m wondering it it would be better to practice for memorable hills in the industrial park. I’ll decide tomorrow. Tonight I’ll just enjoy the fact that I had a very good run.

Marathon relay training with 14 days to go

On October 10, 2009 By Emerging RunnerLeave a comment

I’m thinking about one of my work colleagues who is running in her first half marathon today in Baltimore. By now the race has already been run and I’m hoping she is celebrating a great experience. Last time I spoke to her she was concerned about an IT band injury. She was concerned about how that injury would affect her performance. She told me that her doctor discouraged her from getting a cortisone shot. The advice was that she should be able to feel the injury and, therefore, know when to stop or protect it if things got worse. I have a feeling things went well.

I’m less than 15 days from my marathon experience in Cape Cod. Not quite a half but longer than I’ve ever run in a single day. I keep thinking about the pluses and minuses of running two legs totalling 9 miles versus running that distance at a single time. I’m starting the race with a three mile leg and then running the fourth leg (six miles) after my teammates complete about 12 miles in between. Depending on how quickly they cover their distance I’m guessing I’ll have 1:30 to 2:00 hours in between my runs. While I’m happy to have a rest in between I’m worried that my endurance will be affected by the lapse. The concern is that I will build up so much lactic acid after the first leg that my legs will be dragging halfway through the second. I suppose there is a strategy to help lactic acid dissipate sooner, probably through stretching or massage. I’ll happily take guidance and suggestions.

I was feeling a little weak yesterday after my run and throughout most of the day. I had hoped to run five+ miles today on the street to ratchet up my conditioning as I move closer to race day. I’ve averaged 20 miles a week over the past couple of months but I’ve stepped it up to 23 miles the last couple of weeks. I felt okay when I went out this morning and headed straight for the industrial park because I need to train for “memorable hills” and there are some long steep ones there. I split off into neighborhood #4 and then tracked further east into the next town. I felt good although I did hit the wall somewhat at 33 minutes but I knew that I could endure it. Since I’m going to be on the trails at Stillwell Woods tomorrow I didn’t want to burn out today so I redirected home and finished with 4.75 miles at a Gmap verified 9:09. I felt good about today’s effort because my level of conditioning transcended the weakness and fatigue that I’m experiencing today. I hope this continues tomorrow, it’s been weeks since I’ve been on the trails and Stillwell is no place for weakness.

Dark windy rainy running

On October 7, 2009 By Emerging RunnerLeave a comment

My first thought before I changed into my running gear this morning was how easy it would be to skip my outside run and spend 30 minutes on the elliptical machine instead. Not that I’m so much a creature of habit that I can’t occasionally deviate a little from my routine (Thursdays are normally my elliptical days) but a decision to not run would indicate a lack of discipline. While I proceeded to change I noticed some sounds outside that made me wonder about the weather. At 4:00 AM it’s very dark and difficult to see much out the window. It sounded like wind so I chose a long sleeve tech jersey for its more thermal properties.

As I watched the garage door rise to reveal the conditions of the day I saw that the driveway was black with rain coming from a moderate downpour illuminated by the street lights. I rethought my plan to run and reconsidered the elliptical but decided to go for it despite the rain. I have been fortunate to avoid rain for months on these morning runs but I knew that some day that streak would end. I started the Garmin and headed out thinking I could always head back home if it became too unpleasant. As it turned out my experience was great. The air had a strong ocean smell, the temperature, while cool, was still comfortable. The rain helped maintain the coolness and I was pacing briskly.

During the run the rain started falling harder but let up soon after. Between the wind and the trees I got plenty wet but it wasn’t unpleasant although the wicking properties of my running clothes were quickly overwhelmed. My jersey probably accumulated 8 ounces of rainwater during the 20+ minutes I was out running. I came home after covering 2.3 miles at 8:48. I thought I was running better than normal for that time of day and the numbers showed that to be true. I’m not hoping for rain tomorrow but if it comes I’ll know how to make the best of it.

Anticipating the weather

On September 23, 2009 By Emerging Runner1 Comment

Every morning when I go out to run I anticipate the weather. As the garage door pulls itself up to reveal the morning conditions I brace for what I’ll see. This morning I saw that the driveway was spotted with rain and the air felt extremely humid. The past two weeks have been cool in the early hours and I’ve enjoyed that. I even needed two layers during a run last week. I set out with no particular route in mind, hoping that the rain had passed for good.

Around ten minutes into my run I began to feel some drops. I laughed about the fact that the rain always seems to come when I’m at the farthest point from home. I didn’t really care as long as it stayed at a drizzle. Anything more and I begin to worry about my watch and my phone. Plus I don’t like to get my shoes wet. I mentioned yesterday that my headlamp didn’t throw enough light to illuminate my path when I’m running in total darkness. I stand corrected, all it took was a quick on-the-fly angle adjustment to solve that issue.

I ended up covering 2.5 miles at 9:08 and considering how slowly I started it turned out to be a decent pace. Worrying about beating the rain can definitely motivate you to hustle. It never really rained during my run so my luck held once again. I’m anticipating the day my garage door opens to reveal a layer of freshly fallen snow. Treadmill or trail shoes? What would you do?

False start for my LIRRC 4 mile race

On September 13, 2009 By Emerging Runner4 Comments

I’ve had some frustrations this weekend starting yesterday when my iPhone, once again, went completely dead. I have the worst luck with Apple products (my iMac has a history of abruptly shutting down with no warning, my first iPhone 3GS arrived D.O.A. from the factory and my
current iPhone has failed twice). I’ve concluded that Apple just makes poorly designed hardware. It’s hard to rely on the iPhone as a business tool when it is so unreliable. I really wish RIM made iPhones (I guess the Blackberry Storm is their equivalent – so no thanks). I traded in my third Blackberry for my company issued iPhone and went from fantastic phone service (Verizon) and reliable hardware to a quirky device with poor integration to email and calendar, a poor texting interface and shoddy construction. Of course the other capabilities that come with the iPhone make up for most of the aggravation. But today I’m ready to throw it out a window.

Compounding my frustration was my race day experience this morning. I didn’t race today because I had too much trouble finding the race. I’m sure that the LIRRC is a fine organization and it is dedicated to the sport and its constituents. I’ve been frustrated with the LIRRC website
because it doesn’t have a lot of the information that I look for when I’m considering a race (e.g., details about the individual races, course maps). What the site lacked today was anything to tell race participants that the directions to the race were wrong because the 2009 Trek Women Triathlon Series event was going on and access to the race was blocked all over the park. Despite multiple attempts to get to the Main Field House I kept running into Park police who were blocking off traffic from every direction. We arrived early enough to absorb the first setback
when my wife dropped me off where we thought the race would start, only for me to discover that it was the triathlon area. The triathlon seemed like a great event. As I looked for someone who could tell me where the LIRRC race was being held I found myself getting screamed at for walking on the running course. I didn’t understand why there wasn’t a single sign showing where to go for my race.

We eventually set off for a different part of the park and encountered another big road block. I asked a Park police officer how I could get tothe location and she said I couldn’t, not by car. We ended up parking far away and started to walk over but by then time was running out and I
decided it wasn’t worth the aggravation. I ended up heading home and running at a local park. I extended my run into neighborhood #4 and into the adjacent industrial park. In all I ran 3.66 miles, not the four miles I would have covered had I raced and I averaged 9:00/mile overall.
It wasn’t my best run and the humidity and sun were in full force. I’m very disappointed with the LIRRC for its lack of communication and signage but I’m sure most people found their way and ran today despite the obstacles. I’m still considering the LIRRC 5K that’s scheduled two Sundays from now. However, if there are any other local races in September I’ll choose them instead. Fool me once…

A PDR for TER

On September 7, 2009 By Emerging RunnerLeave a comment

I had read that performance is often tied to attitude and I wondered if there was any correlation between my mental state and some disappointing runs I’ve had over the past three days. Friday was a tough run, mostly due to my physical state. I’m not sure what was affecting me but I was tired and I struggled to cover the 3.9 miles I did in Central Park. The Central Park run should have been a great experience with my side trip through the Rambles but I didn’t really enjoy it and it felt a lot like work. Saturday’s neighborhood run was really just maintenance and I clocked 5K with little in reserve by the time I got back home. I tried to break the streak yesterday with a run at Stillwell Woods. Trail running has become a passion and I anticipated the experience but I lacked strength and feared the hills instead of embracing them. I ended up covering 3 miles but it felt unsatisfying. Later that day my daughter and I ran 1.25 miles and that felt great and I realized that much of the reason was that she was by my side. My head was in the right place for running for the first time all weekend.

This morning I woke up feeling great. Perhaps it was a good night’s sleep or the cool temperature and low humidity but I set out on my run this morning with the right attitude. I didn’t plan my route except for the beginning section that I call neighborhood #4, a departure from my usual course that would provide a good distraction. I’m a bit fed up with the GPS apps on my iPhone so instead I relied solely on my Garmin to track distance and used Pandora on the iPhone for music.

At about the 20 minute mark I realized that I still felt very strong with more energy than I had at the beginning of my last three runs. After covering that initial neighborhood I did a loop around my own, covering the south, west and northern roads until I passed the five mile mark. It was at that point that I realized I could probably do 6 miles for the first time since the Dirty Sock 10K. Once I reached that point I decided to go for a personal distance record which, for me, was 6.62 miles. I re-routed my direction to get another mile between me and home and ended up covering 7.4 miles @ 9:31 (by Garmin) or 7.58 miles @ 9:18 (by Gmaps). Either way it was a personal distance record for the Emerging Runner. Better still, it was validation that my training was going in the right direction and that my conditioning was where I wanted it to be. I guess all it took was a good attitude.

A run most perfect

On August 29, 2009 By Emerging Runner2 Comments

.
My plans to run in Stillwell Woods this morning were changed in deference to weather. I had hoped to run the trails with my nephew, a member of the local high school track team who trains there regularly. It had rained a lot overnight and we were concerned about the muddy conditions, especially at Stillwell, where the going is tough even when it’s dry. Instead we headed out for a road run where we ducked into neighborhood #2 for a few miles before exiting back into the main roads nearer to home to complete our circuit.
.

We started off in light drizzle and maintained a steady (if modest) pace of 9:30 per mile over 4.3 miles. With the humidity as high as it was that was a smart decision. My nephew was a good sport about keeping my pace although, like AG, his natural pace is faster than mine. What was nice about this morning was that we were both comfortable running and talking throughout the course and that’s what made it such a great experience. He shared a lot of information about the way the track team trains and we talked a lot about my favorite related subjects: running shoes, gear and nutrition. About ten minutes into the run I noticed that my foot pod had not paired with my Garmin so it wasn’t capturing pace or distance but at least it was capturing timing and that’s how we were able to calculate pace, after mapping our route on Google Earth.
.

We returned just as my wife and kids were coming back from the local bagel store with plenty of recovery carbs and protein in tow. It was a very satisfying and relaxing run and I’m looking forward to many more runs with my nephew. I think I’ve convinced him to participate with me in the Bridie Goldstein Run for Children 5K that takes place in November. In the meantime we’ll attack the hills at Stillwell and the trails at Bethpage State Park. As much as I enjoy the escape and peace that comes with solo running it’s really nice to run with others. The conversation and the sense of mutual purpose is gratifying. While I’m still not convinced that I want to join a running club I certainly look forward to my next runs with AG, DaveADK, my nephew, my kids and a few select others. One of these days I’ll get to those intervals to work on my speed. In the meantime I’ll enjoy the experience of recreational running.

At the edge of 9:00

On August 11, 2009 By Emerging RunnerLeave a comment

9:00 per mile has always been a psychological barrier for me. I’ve broken it many times and even broken 8:00 on a 1.5 mile run but in terms of regular running 9:00 is probably my mode pace. This past weekend, with the hilly trails at Stillwood and the relatively long distance on the Belmont Lake Park trail, I was fine with pace times that edged around 10:00 per mile. But on the street my expectations change and I really want to see an ‘8’ before the colon on my Garmin when I finish a run. I had no real expectations for this morning’s run. I wanted to cover about 2.5 miles and with yesterday as a rest day I thought I’d have a chance at a decent pace. I was delighted to see my iPhone acquire a PS signal with MotionX fairly quickly and I took off knowing the belt-and-suspenders combination of my Garmin 50 and the MotionX GPS app would capture my metrics fairly well.

The run was nice but unremarkable. I took advantage of the early morning, barely awake mode and floated through the course thinking about many things. I checked my Garmin for time elapsed, saw 6:55 and again thought I had run further than that. I have become somewhat impatient on these early runs. I noticed that the MotionX interface was continuing to show it had a signal and I was glad of that since I sort of lost track of exactly which streets I’d run. I knew the mapping file would tell me all that later. I turned east to finish the last loop and reached home having run 2.63 miles in 23:40 for an overall pace of 00:8:59:92, 8/100ths short of 9 minutes. I accidently switched to a different screen on the iPhone when I tried to hit the stop button (the touch screen is vey sensitive) but I saw the elapsed time as I did that. Later I mapped the run on Google Earth and saw that I’d covered .15 miles more than the GPS reported due to its margin of error.

I’ll admit that knowing I broke 9:00 this morning made me happy. I’m thinking about pace times for the Dirty Sock 10K and I’m hoping to maintain a 9:30 pace or better. But you never know with races, how great would it be to have an 8-something time on that? If that’s the case I’m throwing an additional $20 into the Garmin 405 fund.

Cool running

On August 6, 2009 By Emerging RunnerLeave a comment

Unlike the last couple of days, the temperature outside at 4:00 AM this morning was cool and the humidity was minimal. I almost decided to take today as a rest day but I’m planning a long trail run on Saturday and wanted to use Friday for rest instead. I decided to go simple this morning and leave the iPhone behind. My experiences with the GPS apps have been disappointing and while I’ll continue to use them I didn’t see a need today.

Equipped solely with my Garmin 50, I made my way out to the neighborhood. Over the past few months I’ve become impatient with my progress while running, feeling like I’d covered some real distance only to see elapsed time of 7:55 on my watch. You’d think it would indicate that I was running a fast pace but you’d be wrong. I think the issue is simply that I’m outgrowing my neighborhood and the familiarity of the route distorts my sense of distance. Or something like that. I returned home wishing I had another 15 minutes to run so I could extend the enjoyment of the experience. I was feeling fine, the air was still cool and there was a nice tang of ocean breeze in the air. Unfortunately I had run out of time and needed to make my way back upstairs to prepare for the work day. This was the first time I’d ever strung together three consecutive 4:00 AM runs during the week and I was pleased to have done that. I can only hope that I do as well on the trails this weekend.

City bookend run

On August 1, 2009 By Emerging RunnerLeave a comment

Yesterday afternoon AG and I completed our last city run before she heads back to school. The weather predictions were for storms through the afternoon so we switched our plans to run the trails in Van Cortland park in favor of the West Side bike path. Instead of rain the weather turned extremely hot and humid as we made our way west from the office. I wore my iPhone with MotionX GPS to track our route and also used the Garmin 50 for comparison.

Before we started our run we had some honey energy chews, but nothing for lunch. About 15 minutes into the run I began to feel tired which I’m sure related to hunger. It reminded us of how I struggled the first time AG and I ran together. It was on the bridal path in Central Park where the heat, hills and mud made it a rough time. In between these tough ones were a bunch of great runs. That’s not to say that yesterdays run wasn’t great. We moved along well and ducked into Chelsea Piers where we could run some blocks free of the sun. The run along the water was beautiful and the breeze was welcomed but the heat forced a quick hydration stop after 3.8 miles. We ran another mile before calling it a run. Despite the conditions we averaged 9:13/mile. I’m going to miss these summer city runs.

We have some guests this weekend so I got out early before they were up and ready. I used the iPhone again and the GPS application did much better outside of the city. In the interest of time I kept it under 50 minutes covering 3.8 miles at 8:53. That’s another $20 to the Garmin fund but with MotionX I’m re-thinking whether to even make that purchase.