Day off

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The Uninspired Runner

Maybe this post should be called “The Uninspired Life”

I haven’t had much inspiration with my blog or running or life in general lately.  I have been trying to figure out if it was overtraining or a nutrient that I have been missing or something else.  This is one reason I reduced my running to 19 miles last week compared to almost a 50 mile average week for the month of June.  I also had been really sore so I thought now was as good a time as ever to rest.

Yesterday was dreadful.  I woke up at 2:30AM and couldn’t go back to sleep.  I was grumpy and angry at the world.

I had a thought.  I have been suffering for some time with congestion in my sinuses.  Also a couple of weekends ago I had non-stop headaches.  Last week I had a sore throat for a few days and Sunday I had a really bad headache.  I never get headaches.  I remember my family physician telling me once that a sinus infection can “hide” and a person my not really know that they have one other than tiredness and fatigue.  So, I decided to go to my ENT and get checked out.

Guess what?  I had a sinus infection.

He gave me a steroid shot, an antibiotic shot and a prescription.  I feel so much more human today.  I am alert (I’m sure the shots didn’t hurt in that area) and I am feeling so much better.

I took yesterday off from running as Monday is my normal off day.  Even though I have only run once since Thursday, I figured I should get another day of rest in before picking things back up.  I have been dreading my running for a couple of weeks.  I guess my sinus infection had just worn my body down to the ground and I couldn’t get the energy to enjoy basic things, let alone run.

Today, Lord willing, I start a 45 mile week.  I really want to try for 15 miles for my long run this weekend.  I had hoped to do that 2 weeks ago, but just couldn’t.  Hopefully things will be different this week.

Funny how something so little can have such a big effect on running and life.

I still don’t know how my running will go this week, but at least I am looking forward to it for the first time in almost a month.

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Another day off from running – Tough recovery week

I took yesterday off running as I said in my post yesterday.  It was a busy day anyway and I honestly would not have had time to run until evening, so it worked out.

I am actually considering taking today off also. I woke up this morning and was still sore all over.  This week is way off from my running plan anyway and so I may as well take advantage of my time and rest today and begin fresh tomorrow.

I am trying not to over analyze the situation in which I find myself.

Slowly but surely I am recovering and I hope and pray that this time off will be just what I need.  I must admit the difficulty of taking a few days off while training for a marathon in 2.5 months.  However my long runs have gotten shorter and more difficult and even my daily runs aren’t easy, so I figure my body needs this time to heal and get whole again.

Thank you for the emails and comments.

Encouragement is always a good thing and appreciated!!!

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Running, thankfulness and tomorrow

Yesterday was a day off from running, my second in 3 days.  I thought of taking Saturdays off, but it was too much having to run for 5 days straight after my long run.  So, I took Monday off and will just run a shorter run on Saturday to get the mileage up as I prepare for my marathon in September.

I want to thank my Lovely Wife and my kids for being so supportive of my running.  It is really starting to take up a lot of time.  I am going to have a record month and tomorrow I’ll update my blog with my miles for the month, but just to give an idea, since the first of April, I’ve run over 24 hours.  That is a lot of time that I am out running and not home hanging with the family.  I know that they want to support me and do it happily, but I just want to thank them for being so patient as I pursue my goal.

It is amazing how much of running is mental.  Everyone who runs knows that is true and those who don’t run… well they should run and find out what it is like.  Today is a workout day and right now I just don’t “feel” like doing it.  Of course it is early and I don’t run until this afternoon, but I know by now I can’t go on my feelings.  I have a goal and that is what pushes me forward.  As I reach higher and higher mileage and more and more time on the road running, it almost becomes robotic. I do it because that is what I do.

I love running and am thankful that I can run.  But sometimes I have to make myself get out there even when I just want to go home and watch a show and relax.  Every time I finish a run though, I look at my iPhone and am excited I made that run count.  That motivates me and gets me looking forward to my next run tomorrow.  As long as there are tomorrows, I’ll be running whether I want to or not 🙂

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When should I take my running day off?

Yesterday was a good day.  I ran 7 miles and about half way through came across TJ and we ran the last half together.  I was trying to run a bit slower run as I have had a long week since my last off day was last Saturday and I’ve been running ever since.

I am still struggling with how to work my off day.  The way I see it, I have 3 options.

  1. Take Saturday off:  This would help with keeping me fresh for my long run Sunday morning and since I am increasing my mileage on Sundays I think this is important.
  2. Take Monday off:  After a long run, it really helps to have that day after off for recovery.  This week I ran Monday after a 15 mile run on Sunday and, though it didn’t go badly, I was tired all week and I wonder if I just never fully recovered from that long of a run (my longest to date).
  3. Take Saturday and Monday off:  This was my Big Brother’s suggestion on the phone yesterday afternoon.  He mentioned this in context of my long runs getting longer and said it might help overall.

I must say, I think choice #3 will eventually be the way to go.  I hate losing a day of running, especially as I am trying to increase my mileage, but since taking Saturday and Monday off both have positive effects, I think it might be a good idea.

What am I doing next week?  I am taking today off as I said earlier, and I will probably take Monday off.  I think next Saturday I will try a short easy run just to keep things moving.  As we hit the summer heat, I will probably enjoy the Saturday early run when it is somewhat cooler.

I don’t usually solicit advice directly in this blog, however if anyone has any thoughts about how to prepare for a marathon and or about when to take off days, I’d appreciate the input.  

Remember that I am a 50 year old man wanting to run my first marathon in September at 3:30 (8:00 pace).  At least that is my goal so I can qualify for Boston – as if you didn’t know that by now.

🙂

 

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After the tragedy, we pray and then we run

I am a runner.  I think I can make that declaration now.  I have been running over a year.  I run between 40 – 45 miles a week on average.  I have run over 1,200 miles in the past year.

Why do we as runners run?  Why run 5, 10, 13.1, 26.2 miles.  Why do people put their body, mind and spirit into running?

I run because of the challenge.  It is about the goals.  It is about the ups and the downs.  It is making my body do what I never thought it could.  It is about doing what no one thought I could ever do.  Like most runners, I am determined.  It is a part of my life now.  My off day form running is misery, not the days I run.

I have a goal.  I put that goal in the url of my blog so that I would keep it before my eyes.  In some ways, in just a short period of time, it has become part of my identity.

Boston

Yesterday was beyond belief.  I really have no words to express my shock and sadness that something like that could happen.  When tragedies that that occur, it seems to take away something from us as people, as a nation and now, as runners.

Life is about the finish.  When we run a race, we run for the finish.  When we see that line in front of us and we are exhausted and tired, wether a 5K or a marathon, we push harder.  The finish is the goal for the race.  What happened yesterday at the finish line  turns everything on its head.  The finish of the Boston Marathon went from victory to tragedy in a split moment.  Lives where changed forever, not in the way people had thought earlier that day, the way of victory and joy, but in the tragedy of those blasts.

I am praying for those who were hurt, those who lost loved ones.  Those whose lives will never be the same.

We are runners whether we run 1 mile a day or 10 miles a day.  We will continue.  We will persevere.

We will pray for everyone affected and then…

We will put on our shoes and run.

 

 

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Day off yesterday, long run in the rain today

I took yesterday off for obvious reasons if you read any of my posts this week (other than Friday).  It has been a difficult week running and I figured that since I only planned 4 miles yesterday, it would be good just to give my body a break.

Today is my long run day.  I planned 12, I hope to make 13.  It is going to be raining pretty consistently the entire run.  I never look forward to running when it is raining, however I usually run better in the rain for some reason.  Well I run better until my shoes get wet and heavy, but you can’t have everything.

I’ve had my water, eggs and banana, so I am good to go.

Here’s to a great run today (he says as he heads out the door)…  I hope.

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Running hills on my running off day…

How do you run hills on your running off day?  Well I did it.  Okay, not the wisest choice I know, but it started off with an easy run with TJ.

We both had the day off from work, so we thought we would go explore a nearby neighborhood.  We are always looking for new areas to run in since running the same places day after day can get a little boring.

So off we went.  I knew getting to the neighborhood was going to be a little uphill since I have been in that area before.  Unfortunately it was uphill for a lot of the way once we got out of our neighborhood.  We finally got there and decided to run around a bit.  Now these hills aren’t as steep or as long as the hill we run on our hill day, but there were nonstop hills from the moment we entered the neighborhood until the moment we left, 2 miles later.  The hills weren’t small by any means either.  In fact, one of them we decided to walk up since it was so big and it was our day of after all!

It was a lot of fun running with TJ.  We don’t run together much, so when we do it is always a fun.  Also we did run slowly, even compared to my normal pace.  We ended up with a 9:11 pace, which is down from 8:30 for me and down much more for TJ, so it was a good run on our off day.

Ultimately this will help me get to my goal of 48 miles this week.  I believe that will be record mileage for me if I stick to my plan.  Then next week I’ll back off my mileage a bit in order to not overdue it.

All in all it was a great day.  Run early, doctor appointments in the afternoon and then I walked a couple of miles in the evening.  I love the Spring!!!

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Running has made me love the outdoors!

Yesterday was my off day from running to let my body recuperate, and my body needed that day.  Our workouts last week were the first I had done in a month or so and though it had positive effects on my running, my muscles didn’t like it much.

So yesterday I got home from work and went for a two mile walk.  It is funny how after running each day for a year now, I enjoy the outdoors for the first time since my childhood.  I had gotten into the routine of essentially being outside for a little as possible.  I’d go from my house to my car and from my car to my work and then eight hours later reverse that processes.  I hated to be outside.

Now, I am outside about an hour a day and I love it.  I think that because I decided to run in any weather (except for lightening), I have begun to enjoy all weather.  In the summer I really appreciate rain and wind, since it is so hot.  In the winter I appreciate the cold and the feeling after a mile or so of my body heating up under my running clothes like a furnace.  I really have learned to appreciate the days with moderate temperatures and no clouds in the sky.

I tend to learn from experience rather than from what people tell me.  Experience has taught me that being outside helps my mood.  Running does a lot of help for my mood also, don’t get me wrong.  But there is something about the outdoors, especially in the sun, that makes me feel better and seems to keep me healthier and happier.

Of course you don’t have to run to get outside and experience this feeling of, ahhhh.  But for me, running outside in all types of weather has made me a better person at home, at work and in general.

Okay, these are just my experience as I mentioned before.  But I have been challenging those I know who suffer from depression and health problems to just get out of the house.  One day, if it hasn’t been done already, researchers will prove that being outside and hour a day will make you healthier, happier and live longer.

Experience is a great teacher.

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Running, Weight and Boston

It was a good first week back to running.  My long day was Sunday and I chose to run only 6 miles, which put me at 23 for the week.  Not bad for the first week back after a 2 week break.  I think the cardiovascular effects of the time off surprised me most.  On Tuesday, I ran 3 miles at a 9 minute pace – ugh, had I fallen that far back in only 2 weeks?  No, it only took a couple of days to be back in the 8:30 pace.  Yesterday I ran 6 miles at an 8:23 pace.  I am happy with that result.  Although my hips are acting up some, I am still trying to stay away from anti-inflamatories to keep the pain down.  It is tolerable, so I will keep with my hope of not needing to go on them again.

All in all, things are progressing, however I am fighting my old friend, carbs.  I am back to battling the intense need of carbs and my need to keep my weight off.  As of this morning I have gained back 5 lbs.  I am not happy with that.  I can see where I went overboard this weekend a couple of times and eat too much bread, but I also ran quite a bit. This is the most difficult thing about running for me.  How do I control the urge to eat and run at the same time.  My metabolism isn’t strong enough to just keep the weight off.  I don’t eat a lot, but evidently it is enough to gain weight.

Ultimately running will win out and I’ll just work at keeping the weight off.  This is not easy, but neither is running 6 days a week.

Finally, I have decided to make a real effort to qualify for Boston in the Jacksonville marathon this next December.  I will do all I can do to make that goal.  Goals in running make it that much more interesting and fun for me.  I will do my best and see what happens, but I wanted to put it “out there” to make it more real to me.

Today is my off day.  Tomorrow… It all starts over again.

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Running makes life an adventure!

5 more days to go on my diet and run recovery.  I am using a physician’s weight loss diet and am now at 182 lbs which is the least I’ve weighed since college.  It is going to be great to run again knowing that I have about a bowling ball less weight to run with.

I am a bit worried about getting running after my diet.  Mainly I know I’ll have to go slow since I’ve had almost no fat or carbs for a while.  I tend to want to push the envelope a lot and I want to be sure I don’t do that.

TJ is working with me on a running plan for our next race.  It is going to be the “Spring Scramble” in the first week of April.  This was our first 5K we ran after we began to run in March of last year.

Wow, a whole year is almost up.  I began running on March 25, 2012.  Is amazes me how far TJ, RS and I have come in a year.  Looking back at our first 5K, I barely finished in 32 minutes.  My goal for this year is to finish in the 20 minute area.  I am sure with TJ’s help, I’ll get somewhere close.

Life is always an adventure if you make it one.  That is why “I love running”.  Running is all about getting out there and doing it.  It is up to me to run.  Sometimes things get in the way like injuries or other responsibilities, but for the most part If I run, I do better at running.  If I run, I feel better about myself.  If I run, I feel like I have accomplished something.

The more I run, the more I love running.

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Two weeks off of running

I’ve decided that this would be a good time to take some time off for several reasons.

First, I completed my goal of a half marathon and I think my body needs rest. I have been running 5-6 days a week for almost a year.  I need some time for my body to heal.

Second, I have a minor procedure on Friday that would mean that I can’t run for a week anyway.

Third, I am going to try to cut back on carbs that I have been eating and get my diet back in line.  I have been eating more because of my running and in prep for the race, and I have gained about 5 pounds in the past month.  I need to cut back on the carbs and sugars and cleanse out my system so I can get back to normal eating and running.  Plus I can feel the extra weight and know it isn’t going to be helpful to my running.

All that to say, my journal of running (this blog) may not be as up to date during this time.  Who knows though, I may post interesting articles or thoughts or just musings of my anticipation of getting back on the road with my running shoes.

I miss running already 🙂