The persistance of treadmill memory

On January 19, 2009 By Emerging RunnerLeave a comment

My apologies for writing such a bad Dali pun as a headline but I have discovered something interesting about treadmill data. The cold weather and snow that we have experienced this past week has forced me to spend a lot of time running indoors. The treadmill is clearly a subject for discussion as most people view it either as an enabler or a necessary evil but you can’t argue with its convenience. After using it as my third choice after street and track for months I realized that my basic assumption of its measurement accuracy is flawed. I’ve always assumed that maintaining a constant speed on the treadmill will accomplish the same for the runner. In other words, assuming the reading is accurate, when the treadmill says 7 MPH you’re running 7 MPH.

The treadmill forces you to run (as long as the tread is moving you’d better be running) but there can be a measurable variance in treadmill speed and runner speed. I noticed this on Saturday when I had a strong start and after a mile my Sportband showed my distance about .05 miles ahead of the treadmill’s. Throughout the run I saw that gap begin to close and at 2.7 miles the treadmill distance began to exceed the Sportband distance. This intrigued me and also annoyed me because I knew I’d need to run a little extra at the end to achieve my planned distance. After thinking about it I realized it makes sense. You don’t have to run the same pace of the treadmill as you run on it as long as your feet are moving. There is a minimum speed you’ll need to maintain lest you get swept off the tread but there’s some latitude there. My experience showed me where I peak in terms of pace and where I begin to lose speed over time. Knowing this will help me better tune my performance by pushing my crossover time further and further into my run.

I was hoping to run on the track today but, like yesterday, we’ve received another few inches of snow. I ran about 3.5 miles yesterday on top of Saturday’s 3.6. I may shoot for longer distance today or go the other way and cross train with the elliptical and the shovel.

99 days and counting

On January 9, 2009 By Emerging RunnerLeave a comment

I noticed that it’s 99 days to my four mile race. That gives me 13 more weekends to work on speed and distance. I’m confident that I can handle the distance, as I’ve run further, but now it’s about pace. Earlier this week I started increasing the pace of my daily run and I’ve noticed that running a little faster than my usual pace (about 15 sec./mile) has been surprisingly easy. In fact, I believe that stepping up my pace has been more energizing and is helping me finish stronger. Right now I aim to complete the race with a 9:30 or better pace and I’m going to work on my splits this weekend to determine the best way to use my energy in the race. Since New Year’s I’ve increased my weekday run distance by an average of 25% and I plan to step this up incrementally each week going forward. I’m hoping for a good result in April and plan to run a faster pace two weeks later for the 5K.

Trail running – the Emerging Runner’s next frontier?

On January 4, 2009 By Emerging RunnerLeave a comment

I was looking at a magazine called Trail Runner which focuses on running in more rugged terrain. AG, one of the Emerging Runner advisers, had told me about a good running trail near where I live and I was looking for information about running trails in the area. There was another running trail, about three miles south of my town, listed in the magazine’s directory of races as well. I’m going to try the Muttontown Mystery Trail because it’s very convenient to my home. My wife and kids like hiking so perhaps I can mix a run with a hike. The only downside to trail running is that the shoe requirement is different and I don’t have trail shoes. Yet.

Today is the last day off from holiday break. Although it hasn’t even been two full weeks I feel like I’ve been away for a month. I had a great time with my family and many great opportunities to run under many different conditions. I’m very pleased with the progress that I’ve made. After yesterday’s difficult run I was concerned that today’s would be hard but I got an early start and ran 3.2 miles through the neighborhood. I felt great from the first step and although it was over ten degrees colder than last night there was little wind. I wasn’t going for speed and my pace reflected that but I really enjoyed the experience. Tomorrow will be a return to 4:00 AM running and shorter distances until the weekend. I plan to map my distance progress to see what adjustments are necessary for proper conditioning for the 4 mile race.

Two miles the hard way

On January 3, 2009 By Emerging RunnerLeave a comment

After a very full day I decided to do an early evening run at the track. It’s near the end of our vacation so we’ve tried to pack a lot in over the last few days and I didn’t get an opportunity to run in the morning. Today was cold and I dressed for the weather but the wind chill was tough. I was only planning to run a couple of miles today but at a faster pace than normal.

As I’ve mentioned before, the wind at the track really comes in hard at certain angles and it almost feels like running uphill. The wind picked up greatly after the first ten minutes and the effect was palpable. If not for passing a couple of people walking the outside lanes I would have thought I was standing still. My splits were pretty wide with the first mile at 8:39 and second at 9:52 for an overall pace around 9:25. I had to push hard to maintain a sub-10:00 pace for the second mile and when I finished the back of my throat was really burning. I was happy that I ran but today’s run was much more work than fun.

Caution: icy roads ahead

On January 2, 2009 By Emerging Runner1 Comment

I had a great run this morning despite the fact that the neighborhood roads still have patches of ice. There was snow and ice on less trafficked areas, like the Middle School, where I often begin my runs. I was careful to navigate around those hazards and I also encountered ice patches around the lower ends of some hilly streets.

Today’s run was about 3.2 miles which I did at an average pace of 9:49. I thought that was good since I needed to slow down a lot when the roads were bad. I bought some running leggings last week that are very comfortable and perfect for temperatures in the 20’s and 30’s. The down side is that I have no place to put an ID or my phone (I usually keep them in the back pocket of my running sweats). The other thing about the leggings is that they are form fitting and you get the sensation that you aren’t wearing pants. I actually checked the first time I used them last week to make sure I hadn’t forgotten to fully dress.

I’ve definitely stepped up my average distance per run but it’s mostly due to having more time on vacation. I really want to extend my morning runs between Monday and Friday that are constrained by my schedule. I can probably start slightly earlier by preparing more the night before. Even five minutes gained would make a difference.

A good running start to 2009

On January 1, 2009 By Emerging RunnerLeave a comment

I planned to skip exercise yesterday in support of my resolution to do one rest day a week. I even thought about it as a good bookend to the beginning of 2008 when I wasn’t running. However, I gave in and ran about 1.25 miles after dinner. Despite the short distance it was an extremely taxing run, I had a lot of cramping, probably due to running after eating a full meal. Earlier in the day I was talking to a friend who came by about the benefits and liabilities of training every day. This friend is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist® (CSCS®) who teaches high school students about training, nutrition and physiology. He told me that there is no right strategy for training but that I should listen to my body. If I’m exhausted I should not train. If I have energy there’s no reason to skip a run. The point is that a person can recover overnight provided that the day’s effort was at a recoverable level. I’d expect that anything over 5 miles for me would require more than an overnight recovery at this point in my training. This morning I ran 3.7 miles at a 9:31 overall pace. I was happy with that and I felt very strong up until the end. I could have easily run another 15 minutes but I want to run tomorrow and didn’t want to overdo it.

My poll to collect preferences for what the Emerging Runner should cover has closed. Motivation and running technologies came up most often (although with 5 responses it’s not exactly statistically significant). But for those who chose to vote, thank you. I will concentrate more on those areas.

I hope everyone had a great New Years and are planning to do some great running in 2009!

In this case you is me and I need to constantly remind myself that despite a strong dedication to running I still fit somewhere between the blue and green sections of this chart. How much harder do I need to run to move up a level? I find that most established runners run about four times a week, four to six miles per run. That’s certainly a stretch for me. I run almost every day but my distances are between 1.5 and 4 miles depending upon how much time I have. The idea of a 4+ mile standard run on weekends is at least six months away, perhaps longer. But it’s a 2009 goal.

If I want to be able to compete in 10K events I need to be able to run at least 6.2 miles without a break. I’m not trying to rush it, really. I love how it feels to run 2 or 3 miles at a moderately brisk pace. There are definitely endorphins at work there. Many established and accomplished runners (these terms are mine, not tied to any specific criteria) tell me that they begin to feel stronger around mile three and can maintain a faster pace after that threshold. I’m beginning to see some of that now. This morning I ran 20 minutes at 8:40/mile which for me was challenging but for many established runners it’s only a decent practice pace. I followed that with 20 minutes on the elliptical. Despite my daily focus I recognize that I have a lot of climbing to do on my chart to catch up with the other runners I know. But running is a sport that rewards dedication, especially at the beginning when measurable gains are more easily attainable. I wonder if established runners have more problems with motivation as progress becomes more incremental. Perhaps cutting five seconds off a 7:30 pace is as rewarding as cutting :30 from a 9:00-something pace.

Running in the great indoors

On December 20, 2008 By Emerging RunnerLeave a comment

We’ve had a few snowstorms already this year despite the fact that winter doesn’t even start until Sunday. With 3+ inches of snow on the street I needed to stay indoors for today’s run. I actually enjoy the treadmill and although the view doesn’t change it was still nice to look into the backyard (see above) and watch the snow falling. I also like that I don’t need to put on layers of running gear when I run inside. A short sleeve wicking shirt and running shorts were sufficient and I opened windows at both ends of the room to let in that 23 degree outside air as a way to stay cool. As I was watching the snow I began to think about the need to reserve some energy for shoveling. But of course I didn’t.

This morning I ran 3 miles at 9:26/mi which is not bad considering that I shoveled snow twice yesterday plus I ran about the same distance as I did today. No muscle pull issues either. I’m glad I listened to my friends about respecting the injury. I wonder if anyone ever runs outdoors when there’s this much snow on the ground. Seems risky but, like running in the rain, kinda fun.

Improving my 5K pace

On December 9, 2008 By Emerging RunnerLeave a comment

Instead of merely getting through my morning run today I concentrated on maintaining a faster pace. As I gear up for my first 5K (144 days from now) my focus has been on increasing my distance and duration rather than speed. I think we all have a natural pace where we run without thinking about running. I’m guessing this is why most people run, to reach a state where exercise and enjoyment come together. This morning was not one of those times. I started out at a 9:55/min pace as a warm up and brought up my speed to the point where I finished with an average pace of about 9:15. I have run faster than that – in fact I once did a mile in about 7:50 but I haven’t come close to that time again. This leads me to think that I never really attained that pace in the first place, perhaps my Nike+ Sportband was not properly calibrated. By the way, it appears as though Nike is no longer listing the Sportsband on their online store. I hope they decide to fix the problems with this unit rather than give up on it. There’s nothing else out there that provides the same utility for anything close to its $59 price. The alternative is to use the Nike+ sensor with an iPod but since many (including myself) don’t own an iPod or like to listen to music while running it’s an unsatisfactory solution. Besides that, an iPod costs a lot more than the Sportband.

Emerging Runner

Tag: pace