Although I haven't made an update in nearly a week, it hasn't been because I've been slacking. been worth the wait.
Last Wednesday I managed a good but uneventful run down the trail and back.
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/45289562
After a few days off for recouperation, last night I did five miles down Wilshire.
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/46935378
This was a really good run for me, as I made it nearly the entire way without stopping for traffic lights. As a result my overall time was extremely good. I've discovered it's a lot easier on my legs to run at around a 12 minute pace, so it will be a challenge to train my lungs up to pushing enough oxygen to make this happen.
These two runs mean I finished week one of the marathon training program. For week two I'll need to stretch that five miles in to six, which will likely be a tall order given that this is a holiday weekend and I'll be out of town. I'm going to ensure I get my 3/4/3 in first so that I keep up the stresses on my body and it keeps adjusting itself to being more and more used to running.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
60 days to go
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/45909074
I went for a late run last night due to both the heat we've been having and the fact that I forgot to plug in my ForeRunner until about 8. After letting it charge up, I geared up and went out to tackle a longer run. This week I'm going to make it through week 1 of the training program (for real) which means I need to run 3-4-3-5 miles this week. That's really quite a lot for someone who couldn't make it two miles without dying for the longest time. I didn't run much over the weekend, so I decided to take the 4 mile run on while my legs were still relatively fresh. Of course, since it was so late by the time I went out it would have been a poor idea to run the trail since it's unlit. That means I'm left with one option: hills.
It had been a couple of weeks since I had tried to take on the big hill near the office, so I decided to do that instead of going directly up to the office complex where there's a flat half mile-ish loop that I can run over and over. I mistimed the light right before the hill and had to sprint across the intersection - not a good start. As the angle started becoming more steep, I remembered back to just after I had moved here and started walking to work once in a while. The first day I walked up the hill I had to stop part way up because my legs hurt. I was so un-used to that physical exercise and especially hills, so I was going to show the hill who was boss. And I did. And then I kept going. I took the short downhill before the office loop to recover my legs, then padded my distance on flat terrain before heading back down the hill overlooking the parks. As I got closer to home I realized I was going to come up short of 4 miles unless I ran the very steep hill near the apartment, and that wasn't going to happen since I was starting to feel tired. Instead I ran down to the ball fields and in front of the school before turning around and heading back up. By the time I stopped running and walked I was at about 4.3 miles.
I ran the whole thing, except where stoplights made me pause. Since I was out so late I only had to wait once, so this was essentially a continuous run. It was not only the furthest I've made it without stopping, I did it conquering a pretty mean hill. I'm getting somewhere, and it feels damn good.
I went for a late run last night due to both the heat we've been having and the fact that I forgot to plug in my ForeRunner until about 8. After letting it charge up, I geared up and went out to tackle a longer run. This week I'm going to make it through week 1 of the training program (for real) which means I need to run 3-4-3-5 miles this week. That's really quite a lot for someone who couldn't make it two miles without dying for the longest time. I didn't run much over the weekend, so I decided to take the 4 mile run on while my legs were still relatively fresh. Of course, since it was so late by the time I went out it would have been a poor idea to run the trail since it's unlit. That means I'm left with one option: hills.
It had been a couple of weeks since I had tried to take on the big hill near the office, so I decided to do that instead of going directly up to the office complex where there's a flat half mile-ish loop that I can run over and over. I mistimed the light right before the hill and had to sprint across the intersection - not a good start. As the angle started becoming more steep, I remembered back to just after I had moved here and started walking to work once in a while. The first day I walked up the hill I had to stop part way up because my legs hurt. I was so un-used to that physical exercise and especially hills, so I was going to show the hill who was boss. And I did. And then I kept going. I took the short downhill before the office loop to recover my legs, then padded my distance on flat terrain before heading back down the hill overlooking the parks. As I got closer to home I realized I was going to come up short of 4 miles unless I ran the very steep hill near the apartment, and that wasn't going to happen since I was starting to feel tired. Instead I ran down to the ball fields and in front of the school before turning around and heading back up. By the time I stopped running and walked I was at about 4.3 miles.
I ran the whole thing, except where stoplights made me pause. Since I was out so late I only had to wait once, so this was essentially a continuous run. It was not only the furthest I've made it without stopping, I did it conquering a pretty mean hill. I'm getting somewhere, and it feels damn good.
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Wherein we crack a barrier.
Last night I went out for a run before heading up to Santa Monica. I took this as one of the lighter 2 mile runs for the week and hit the pavement hard so I could get back and get showered before I had to be on the road. Since I knew I was only running two miles, I pushed myself to see how fast I could knock those two miles out.
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/45289562
23 minutes for two miles isn't amazing by runner standards, but it's important to me for a big reason. What this one doesn't tell you is that my first mile took me almost exactly ten minutes. If you cut out the time where I stopped to re-tie my shoe, I ran a mile in under ten minutes. When I started, I couldn't run a mile without stopping period, and so my time was more like 15-17 minutes for a mile. I didn't think I'd actually crack the ten minute mark at any point during my training. Granted, that pace isn't sustainable, but a ten minute mile is something that has always eluded me going back to the Presidential Fitness Tests in grade school.
It's a sure sign progress is being made, and it's encouraging.
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/45289562
23 minutes for two miles isn't amazing by runner standards, but it's important to me for a big reason. What this one doesn't tell you is that my first mile took me almost exactly ten minutes. If you cut out the time where I stopped to re-tie my shoe, I ran a mile in under ten minutes. When I started, I couldn't run a mile without stopping period, and so my time was more like 15-17 minutes for a mile. I didn't think I'd actually crack the ten minute mark at any point during my training. Granted, that pace isn't sustainable, but a ten minute mile is something that has always eluded me going back to the Presidential Fitness Tests in grade school.
It's a sure sign progress is being made, and it's encouraging.
Monday, August 16, 2010
68 days to go: wherein we learn to be like Chun Li
... and lead with your heel.
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/44886875
To this point I haven't been concentrating on where my foot was striking on the ground, so tonight's focus was making sure I landed heel-first or more flat. The marathon training guide says that you shouldn't be running on the "balls" or front of your feet when doing long distances, and it turns out I've been doing just that. The difference in foot fatigue was very significant, though I was stretching some other parts like my calves more than I was used to. It will take some getting used to, but the reduced fatigue is well worth it.
I didn't get any running in over the weekend, primarily due to the horrendous sunburn I got on the back of my knees that made it hard to stand on Friday. I do feel like I'm finally at the point where I can do 30 minutes of running each training day, so that means I'm out of the warmup program for the marathon trainer's guide. I'm going to try and make it through the first week of training this week, with tonight counting as a 3 mile run. I'll need to do 2x 2 miles and one five mile (ulp) before the week is out to meet that goal. If I can manage to stick to the progression I'll hit week nine by the time the half marathon rolls around and I should be in really good shape to tackle it.
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/44886875
To this point I haven't been concentrating on where my foot was striking on the ground, so tonight's focus was making sure I landed heel-first or more flat. The marathon training guide says that you shouldn't be running on the "balls" or front of your feet when doing long distances, and it turns out I've been doing just that. The difference in foot fatigue was very significant, though I was stretching some other parts like my calves more than I was used to. It will take some getting used to, but the reduced fatigue is well worth it.
I didn't get any running in over the weekend, primarily due to the horrendous sunburn I got on the back of my knees that made it hard to stand on Friday. I do feel like I'm finally at the point where I can do 30 minutes of running each training day, so that means I'm out of the warmup program for the marathon trainer's guide. I'm going to try and make it through the first week of training this week, with tonight counting as a 3 mile run. I'll need to do 2x 2 miles and one five mile (ulp) before the week is out to meet that goal. If I can manage to stick to the progression I'll hit week nine by the time the half marathon rolls around and I should be in really good shape to tackle it.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
73 days to go: my ass hurts
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/44170499
I went a different route for two reasons tonight: 1) variety and 2) the nights are coming sooner already. I didn't head out until 8:30 and it was already dark, so I decided against running the trail and tripping over something in the dark.
Hills still kick my ass. The long 15 minute climb to the top of the hill (intersection of Columbia and Aliso Creek) tapped me out pretty hard. I had to walk the last 20 yards or so to the stoplight, but I kept my pace up through the office complex well enough. I only needed to make it 2 miles tonight, so I am pretty happy with 2.3 and some change considering the elevation involved. Fortunately I seem to be recovering well once I stop; it's only a few minutes removed from the end of the run and just my feet that hurt right now. I might take some pre-emptive ibuprofen tonight though.
I went a different route for two reasons tonight: 1) variety and 2) the nights are coming sooner already. I didn't head out until 8:30 and it was already dark, so I decided against running the trail and tripping over something in the dark.
Hills still kick my ass. The long 15 minute climb to the top of the hill (intersection of Columbia and Aliso Creek) tapped me out pretty hard. I had to walk the last 20 yards or so to the stoplight, but I kept my pace up through the office complex well enough. I only needed to make it 2 miles tonight, so I am pretty happy with 2.3 and some change considering the elevation involved. Fortunately I seem to be recovering well once I stop; it's only a few minutes removed from the end of the run and just my feet that hurt right now. I might take some pre-emptive ibuprofen tonight though.
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
74 days to go
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/44041919
What a difference it makes from sunshine to cool evening temperatures. I ran more than I did last Friday at a better pace with notably less effort, despite being a mostly lazy pile of crap over the weekend. I managed to run the whole 3 miles (it's 3 miles dammit, the GPS didn't kick in right away) without stopping and without dropping my pace off too hard. I clocked out mentally a few times and had to re-focus on my running form and footfalls to keep my energy conservation reasonable.
The fields by the school were flooded with kids playing soccer and moms watching them play, so I didn't get to run in the grass as much as I prefer to. I was noticing that I had to work harder on the uphill sections moreso tonight than I have in the past, probably due to me apparently becoming okay with running on flat surfaces to the point where uphill seems like more effort than just a variation on dying by inches. My shoes have broken in well and I experienced no discomfort from them tonight.
Weekend catch-up report: a bit of running around on Saturday for a scavenger hunt and a mile walk to the farmer's market on Sunday. This was easily offset by the huge meal we had Sunday night to send a couple of Katie's friends off on an adventure, so no real progress from the weekend.
What a difference it makes from sunshine to cool evening temperatures. I ran more than I did last Friday at a better pace with notably less effort, despite being a mostly lazy pile of crap over the weekend. I managed to run the whole 3 miles (it's 3 miles dammit, the GPS didn't kick in right away) without stopping and without dropping my pace off too hard. I clocked out mentally a few times and had to re-focus on my running form and footfalls to keep my energy conservation reasonable.
The fields by the school were flooded with kids playing soccer and moms watching them play, so I didn't get to run in the grass as much as I prefer to. I was noticing that I had to work harder on the uphill sections moreso tonight than I have in the past, probably due to me apparently becoming okay with running on flat surfaces to the point where uphill seems like more effort than just a variation on dying by inches. My shoes have broken in well and I experienced no discomfort from them tonight.
Weekend catch-up report: a bit of running around on Saturday for a scavenger hunt and a mile walk to the farmer's market on Sunday. This was easily offset by the huge meal we had Sunday night to send a couple of Katie's friends off on an adventure, so no real progress from the weekend.
Friday, August 6, 2010
79 days to go: I'm a workout vampire (I hate the sun)
Today I attempted to make up for a mid-week slump of laziness by running at lunch (it wasn't going to fit anywhere else in the schedule for yesterday or today).
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/43397365
I say attempted because the sun is an evil, evil thing. I know I sweat pretty hard when I run but I guess I didn't realize how much heat that's pumping out of my body until today. Running in the sun (there's no shady trails near my place) cooked me in my skin after about 15 minutes and I was not able to keep up a running pace for the entire run. I still managed two and a half miles, but probably only ran a mile and a half of it. I also repeated a previous mistake and snugged my shoes up before the run, so once my body temperature shot up and my feet swelled I once again experienced some foot cramping. By the 1.75 mile mark my body was calling it quits not because I was out of breath or that my muscles ached, but simply because my body was overheating. I am definitely going to need to stick to morning or evening runs for a while until my body's efficiency improves.
I also missed an update from Tuesday night where Katie and I ran to the ocean and back for a whopper of a 6 mile outing. Our pace wasn't very aggressive and there was a lot of stop and go from the traffic lights but we still managed a 10K on a random Tuesday night! We were both tired but neither of us was completely spent afterward, though I am pretty sure I ate somewhere north of 3000 calories on Wednesday due to ravenous hunger at running the 3 days previous.
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/43397365
I say attempted because the sun is an evil, evil thing. I know I sweat pretty hard when I run but I guess I didn't realize how much heat that's pumping out of my body until today. Running in the sun (there's no shady trails near my place) cooked me in my skin after about 15 minutes and I was not able to keep up a running pace for the entire run. I still managed two and a half miles, but probably only ran a mile and a half of it. I also repeated a previous mistake and snugged my shoes up before the run, so once my body temperature shot up and my feet swelled I once again experienced some foot cramping. By the 1.75 mile mark my body was calling it quits not because I was out of breath or that my muscles ached, but simply because my body was overheating. I am definitely going to need to stick to morning or evening runs for a while until my body's efficiency improves.
I also missed an update from Tuesday night where Katie and I ran to the ocean and back for a whopper of a 6 mile outing. Our pace wasn't very aggressive and there was a lot of stop and go from the traffic lights but we still managed a 10K on a random Tuesday night! We were both tired but neither of us was completely spent afterward, though I am pretty sure I ate somewhere north of 3000 calories on Wednesday due to ravenous hunger at running the 3 days previous.
Monday, August 2, 2010
83 days to go
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/42942126
That's right, after nearly a month since my initial order, the third time's a charm and Amazon has delivered unto me a Forerunner 305. Let there be grafs! Not only that but I purchased some new running shoes this weekend which should be a little bit better than my old ones. These aren't as wide and are lighter, so I don't feel like I am plodding along so hard when I run.
My goal for tonight was 30 minutes of jogging without stopping. I should be able to do this four times in a week in order to start on the marathon training program. I didn't make it, but I did reasonably well considering I was breaking in new shoes and wasn't really fueled up. The biggest problem was that my right foot was very cramped up through the latter half of the run, and the point where I stopped (31:00) was to loosen up the laces and re-tie the shoe. These shoes run wide, but they aren't the 4E width I'm used to so I guess it isn't surprising I had to relax the laces a bit. I'd loosened up the left shoe in a similar manner yesterday, so here's hoping this is the last of the adjusting. After I did that the rest of the run was better, so I'm hopeful the next run is 30 minutes without stopping.
Not really worth charting was the weekend activity of a 4 mile run/walk in which Katie and I did a loop around the country club near her place, then walked to the farmer's market and back to purchase large volumes of deliciousness (fruit, mostly).
That's right, after nearly a month since my initial order, the third time's a charm and Amazon has delivered unto me a Forerunner 305. Let there be grafs! Not only that but I purchased some new running shoes this weekend which should be a little bit better than my old ones. These aren't as wide and are lighter, so I don't feel like I am plodding along so hard when I run.
My goal for tonight was 30 minutes of jogging without stopping. I should be able to do this four times in a week in order to start on the marathon training program. I didn't make it, but I did reasonably well considering I was breaking in new shoes and wasn't really fueled up. The biggest problem was that my right foot was very cramped up through the latter half of the run, and the point where I stopped (31:00) was to loosen up the laces and re-tie the shoe. These shoes run wide, but they aren't the 4E width I'm used to so I guess it isn't surprising I had to relax the laces a bit. I'd loosened up the left shoe in a similar manner yesterday, so here's hoping this is the last of the adjusting. After I did that the rest of the run was better, so I'm hopeful the next run is 30 minutes without stopping.
Not really worth charting was the weekend activity of a 4 mile run/walk in which Katie and I did a loop around the country club near her place, then walked to the farmer's market and back to purchase large volumes of deliciousness (fruit, mostly).
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