training

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New leg muscles found. Weekend run the Culprit!

I have run over 1,600 miles since I began in March 2012…  I just found new muscles in my legs.

Explanation:

Last weekend I ran a new course as I mentioned in my post yesterday.  We were visiting Chattanooga for the weekend and I had to find somewhere to run.  I decided it would be fun to run in a place called “Riverwalk”.  The biggest difference between Riverwalk and my neighborhood was its flatness.  It had some hills, but for the most part it was so flat that I couldn’t tell if I was going up or down hill except for the feeling in my legs.  This is opposite from my neighborhood which is all hills.

I ran on Saturday and had a really good time.  I pushed myself.  I thought that this path might be a good comparison to what our marathon will be like in September.  The Lehigh Valley Marathon is a relatively flat course with a net 240′ drop.  Saturday, as I said, I pushed myself.  Sunday I had a much harder time.  I felt tired and lethargic.  I didn’t want to go out running in the morning.  When I finally got out and ran, it was okay, but I finished it feeling discouraged as I completed only 8 of 15 miles (partly due to time restraints and partly due to feeling poorly).  My thought as I drove back to the hotel was, “How am I going to run 26 miles in 10 weeks if I can barely make 8 today”.

Now for the new muscle part.  I worked yesterday and it was a normal day.  I sit at work since I do a lot of programming.  However my job makes me get up a lot to go help others with IT needs.  Yesterday afternoon as I got up from my desk, I felt something I hadn’t felt since last year.  My legs were really sore.  This wasn’t just my normal running aches and pains, this was soreness.

I now realize that my runs this weekend were using different muscles that what I use in my neighborhood.  Since I was running on a flat surface I had to use muscles that I don’t normally use.  This was an “aha” moment for me.  I need to run in a flat area to get ready for the marathon rather than the hills in my neighborhood.  If I am this sore after 16 miles in 2 days, what would 26 miles feel like?

I am fortunate to have a track nearby that is made from asphalt.  Though it isn’t perfect, it will at least be a level area to run some miles to get my body used to that type of running.

Go figure.  I run hills for 16 months and now I am sore from a flat surface.  I guess I should have realized that would happen, but better figuring this out now than in 9 or 10 weeks.  🙂

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Vacation / running / record month

It was a great weekend thanks to HM.

For Father’s Day HM took my lovely wife and myself to Chattanooga, TN.  He paid for the hotel, food and gas.  It was a great time and nice to get away for a couple of days.

Of course, as I planned this trip, I had to figure out where to run.  I looked online and found out that there is a bike/pedestrian path that runs next to the river appropriately called, “Riverwalk”.  So Saturday morning at 6:00 I went out to find this Riverwalk and to run my 8 miles.

It took a while for me to find the beginning of the main path, but some nice people on bikes pointed me in the right direction and I was on my way.

I had a great run.  It was beautiful, peaceful, and the course was relatively flat, especially compared to my neighborhood.  Here are some images I took with my phone as I ran…

The Riverwalk path

The Riverwalk path

The view from the Riverwalk path

The view from the Riverwalk path

My run on Saturday went really well.  I took Friday off running as I had run the 9 days prior and we had to travel after I got off of work.  So Saturday my legs were fresher and I felt much better than I had the past week.  It also didn’t hurt that it was about 30 degrees cooler than the last day I ran in my neighborhood.  So I pushed myself a bit, which I haven’t done in a while because of the heat.  I worked a few miles at trying to keep my marathon pace and was fairly successful.  To be honest, if it weren’t for my trying to find this path in the beginning, I would have averaged in the 8:00 – 9:00 range for the whole 8 miles.  Alas I ended up at 9:02 pace which isn’t bad.  In fact it is the best pace I have had since the heat kicked in serval weeks ago.

Sunday was different.  I woke up at 3:00 and couldn’t get back to sleep.  I really didn’t “feel” like running.  I was tired and sore, but I went out anyway and ran the Riverwalk.  It wasn’t nearly as fun, but I still managed a 9:58 pace for 8 miles.  My goal was to run 15 miles, but I ran out of time as we had to eat and check out of the hotel.  Also I was just tired and couldn’t do the extra miles, even after we got home yesterday afternoon.  So, sadly I missed my first 200 mile month by 7 miles.  Still it was my first month over 150 miles, so 193 isn’t shabby.

Looking forward, I think I will cut back this week and try to let my body heal.  My achilles is better, but did bother me yesterday.  Also during my Thursday run/walk in 101 degree heat, I wasn’t paying attention and tripped in a crack in the sidewalk.  I lunged forward and had to catch myself.  It really messed with my left hip which hasn’t been a problem since the half marathon in February.  It was better Saturday, but much worse on Sunday and last night I woke up in pain.

So, with 1o weeks to go to my marathon, I am having to pull my training back to recover.  On the bright side, it is not supposed to get out of the mid 80’s here for the next week.

Today is another planned off day and I’ll see how I feel tomorrow.

Thanks again HM for the trip!

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Quick running update…

I didn’t get a chance to write this last night, so this will be short.

Let me just say:

  • 8 miles yesterday
  • 101 heat index
  • 9 days running in a row
  • 70 miles in a row
  • Taking today off running 🙂

I may not post this weekend as I have a lot going on.  But rest assured I’ll be back Monday with another 23 more miles under my belt!!!

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8 miles closer to Boston

It was a hot, humid, lonely run yesterday.

I really enjoyed it.

I enjoy climbing mountains.  Well, actually, I enjoy the top of the mountain.  The finish.  The results.

So, to be honest, I didn’t really enjoy the run itself.  I ran well for about 4 miles and then got a phone call.  That really affected my momentum.  After that I ran/walked the rest of the 8 miles, which is unusual for me.  I think it was a combination of the heat, humidity and that I didn’t get my day off this week since I need to take Friday off.  Also, this is a record mileage week/month for me if I get it all in.  So I am trying to be wise and still get my full running in for the week.

To continue where I started, I really like setting a goal and then reaching that goal.  This is probably why I am trying so hard to qualify for Boston this year if at all possible.  It is my ultimate mountain to climb.  It won’t be the end of life as I know it if I don’t achieve the goal I have set, but I will do all that I can do to achieve it.

People ask me why I don’t wait another year to try to qualify.  I guess it is the thrill of doing something few have done in a way that few have tried and succeeding.  It may be my midlife crisis, but it is ultimately cheaper and has many more benefits than a new sports car. 🙂

It is hot and humid today.  At 4:30 AM on my way to work it was near 80 and near 100% humidity.

I can’t wait to climb another mountain this afternoon!

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I may not get my chance to qualify for Boston this year

Yesterday was a bit difficult the whole way around.

I did run in the morning and got in my 10 miles.  That put me at 37 for the week and 145 so far for the month.  That is exciting to me as I was working toward my marathon in September.

Then I was told news that might change my plans of running the Lehigh Valley Marathon…

I messed up.  When I looked at the location of the marathon, somehow I thought it was in Altoona, PA.  An old friend who was reading through my blog noticed that I had said Altoona and it is actually in Allentown, PA.  Ugh…

Altoona is 1 hour from my mom’s home. My plan was to visit her which I do each Fall and then run the marathon with TJ (RS is too young) and then head back to her home afterwards.  Allentown is 3 hours away!  My plan no longer works.  The race starts at 7:00 AM.

I have been thinking over my options all day yesterday. I just can’t make this work, at least at the moment.

So, Boston may have to wait for another year.  We may go to Jacksonville in December and run that marathon, but then if TJ and I qualify we will need to wait until 2015.

I like to set goals for myself and work hard to achieve them.  This throws my goals into chaos.  I know people will say, “you probably need another year anyway”, and that may be true.  But I had a goal and this just makes it hard.  It is one thing to try and not make it, but to not be able to try… Oh well.

Life goes on.  There may still be a way to qualify for Boston before September registration.

Never say never.

 

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Is my iPhone 5 GPS measuring my runs wrong?

I had an awesome run with Neill ( @BigBigGeek ) yesterday around the same lake as a couple of weeks ago.

I don’t generally trail run because there aren’t any trails near me to run, but I really enjoyed getting on a surface that wasn’t asphalt.  Up and down hills, around roots, over rocks, it was great.  It is also fun to be able to run with Neill.  He and I have a lot in common as he works for Dell and I buy from Dell. 🙂

One thing that bothered me though was the way my iPhone 5 measured the distance.  By the time we finished Neill’s Nike watch said we had run 5 miles under a 12 minute pace.  My iPhone said we ran 4.58 miles at 13:11 pace.  This really made me think.  Last weekend on my long run I was running with my iPhone in a belt and though I should have been able to keep up with the goal pace I set, it was like I was behind the whole way.  I ended my 13 mile run having to run 1/2 mile further than I thought I had too.

I guess it is better to have my phone measure me as going slower and less distance than I actually ran since in a race the distance and time are correct, but it is frustrating that I might be running a minute a mile faster than I think and not know it.

Maybe a Nike+ Sportwatch is in my near future.

Not much more to report today.  I am a bit behind since I didn’t get to this last night.  I hope everyone has a great weekend.

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Life is cyclical and so is running – Yesterday was a good day!

Life is cyclical – that is something that I have been realizing lately.

If one of my kids come to me and say that they are having a difficult time with work or with a friend, I say, “life is cyclical; if today is a bad day, a good day is coming and, unfortunately the same is true in the other direction.”  There are good days and bad days.  If you can’t see beyond today, then you believe everyday will be the same as today.  That can lead to depression or to exhilaration; both are bad if you can’t see past today.  The key to life is to understand that you can learn from good days and bad days.

That was a bit of my philosophical side coming through there, but it applies to running and to my blog.

I have found out over the past 14 months of running that there are great days and horrible days running.  In between those days are just normal days.  I have been having a bit of a difficult time lately because of the heat.  I have gone from running an average of 8:30 pace to getting excited to hit 9:30.  To me that has been a bit depressing.  I have been telling myself, it is the heat.  It is the Summer setting in (of course we are still in Spring).  Still, to go through 3 or 4 weeks of slowing down and just being happy to finish and meet my mileage goal rather than my pace goal has been difficult.  Even on my Run Plan tab above, I have changed the emphasis to mileage and not pace.  What really worries me is that in September I need both mileage and pace.

Then there was yesterday.

It was a little cooler and overcast when I went out to run.  I have a reduced week of running this week to recover some from the higher mileage I have put in, so that is also a help.  I began my run and it began to rain.  It rained hard!  Then the thunder hit about mile 1.5.  I decided to head home and hope it passed by.  After about 10 minutes the thunder stopped and it was still pouring outside, but I decided to go back to my run anyway.  I had to stay close to home so I could go inside if lightening started, but it was still fun.  The rain made it cool and my run went great.

I began running at about a 9:00 pace.  The next two miles were near 8:30 pace.  The forth mile was near 8:00 and my final mile was 7:55!  It was soooo nice to be able to run faster for a change.  Of course 7:55 is going to be my marathon pace so that one mile will be my average for 26 miles, but who is counting.  I am just ecstatic that I ran well and had a great time in the rain.

Life is cycular.  I know there will be hot, humid days ahead where I’ll be glad to hit my 9:30 pace.  But today I am so thankful for my run yesterday.  It gives me hope and keeps the fire burning.

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How many pair of shoes does it take to get to a marathon?

I love my running shoes.

I wear Saucony Fastwitch 5 and they are the one shoe that has gotten me through my achilles problem and allowed me to keep running.  Saturday I put on my old Kinvara’s and after 2 miles was in a moderate amount of pain.  So I went by the house and switched to my Fastwitch and felt much better and finished my run.

All that to say, I just bought 4 pair of Fastwitch 5’s from Running Warehouse. Being more of a built up racing flat, I can only get 200 – 300 miles out of them and my current pair feel like they are getting worn.  So I did the math and 4 pair will get me through my marathon in September.  I wanted to make sure I got them so that I would not be having to use a different shoe by the time of the marathon.  They were $38 a piece at Running Warehouse (after discount)  so all in all I got 4 pair of shoes for $150 and they are sent 2nd day air for free!  Tomorrow will be like Christmas!

As I pondered getting all those shoes it makes my marathon become more and more a reality.  It is like I am on a path to Pennsylvania and it is a straight path, an unalterable path.

Last night TJ said he really believes that I can run the Lehigh Valley Marathon and qualify for Boston.  That was the first time I can remember him saying that to me so directly.  I have  also had  bloggers say the same thing, like Runningtoherdreams said yesterday, “I have no doubt you will rock the Lehigh Valley Marathon!”.  I am going to print that statement out and put it on the wall of my office so that I look at it everyday!  Many other bloggers have given me encouragement as well over the past few months.

Each day I wake up, work, run, see the family, eat dinner and go to bed.  Some of this has gotten a bit tiring to be honest.  But I have a goal.  I have to do all within the power that God gives me to make it to my goal!  Now that I have 4 new pair of shoes, it has become more real.

This week is a little break in my training.  I am cutting back 25% on my mileage to give my body a break.  TJ has helped me with my plan and I am thankful as I couldn’t figure this out on my own.  So now I am running 5.25 miles a day rather than 7.  That will be nice.  And this week is supposed to be cooler than last week.

Gotta run (literally).  Have a GREAT day!!!

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My virtual coach – a big help running

Yesterday’s run went well.  It was a bit tough since I had run so late on Friday, but not too bad.  No walls which is good and since I ran early in the day, it was cooler.

I have been really trying to follow my virtual coach’s instructions on my run (from the iSmoothRun app).  I think this will be a huge help in my marathon.  I have issues with starting too fast and then burning out quickly.  Since I have been using it the past two days, I not only start slower, but I keep a fairly consistent pace throughout  my run.  This has helped me conserve energy and be able to finish much stronger than I used to.

Today will be a good test.  I am going for my long run of 13 miles (TJ did 21 yesterday – wow!).  I am going to do the first mile slow to warm up (especially my achilles) and then try to keep about a 9:30 mile.  That has been my pace as the heat has hit.  I did get up early so that I can get my run in while it is still the cool of the day, but in the South, mornings can be hot even before sunrise.

Anyway, I will use my virtual coach today and see how it goes.  I hope to finish my 13 miles feeling good and get my confidence up for longer long runs as our marathon is just 12 weeks away.

On a side note, the cooling shirt that TJ got me for Father’s day that I was so excited to use for the first time on my long run was way too small.  Very strange as I got a large.  It wasn’t even a comfortable tight.  So I’ll take it back today and hope they have an extra large.  I am disappointed, but at least I am running most of my run before the heat kicks in.

Happy Fathers Day to all you dads.  Go for a run and everyone have a GREAT DAY!!!

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Marathon training – renewed inspiration

I had a revelation Yesterday.

Marathon training is a lot like running a marathon.  If this is true then I am at the 20 mile mark of my training. I have hit a wall.

I realized yesterday as I was watching “Spirit of the Marathon II” that my training has gotten to me.  Of course if you read any of the past couple of weeks of my blog you could probably have told me without me having to see a movie.  The movie was great and inspiring and really made me think.  Running a marathon isn’t easy and neither is marathon training; especially running in 100 degree heat in the summer.

I am inspired.  I am going to do this.

I plan on methodically carrying out my plan.  I will stop if I need to, but I also don’t want to give up too early on my dream of qualifying this year for Boston.  If I run the Lehigh Valley Marathon in September and finish, that will be huge.  If I run and qualify for Boston, then that will be another mountain climbed and conquered.  Either way, I win.

So I resolve, with the inspiration of watching 7 people training and running the Rome Marathon in this movie, to run and to finish.  It will be hot.  It will be hard at times and I will tell all here on this blog. I will do it.

I recommend this movie; it helped inspire me.  Unfortunately it was only in theaters yesterday, but if you can watch at home sometime, do!

Me, I’ll be running.  Because of the heat, maybe slower, maybe not as many miles, but I will be running.

Maybe one day I’ll be in “Spirit of the Marathon III”.  Hopefully it will take place in Boston! 🙂

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Qualifying for Boston, making the impossible possible.

I really had no idea how much time running and preparing for a marathon would take out of my life.

As many of you know, I plan on running the Lehigh Valley Marathon in September and I hope to qualify for the Boston Marathon at that event!  It would be a major accomplishment as I have only been running for 14 months (as of now) and have never run more than a half marathon.  Also, 2 years ago I weighed 278 lbs and now I hope to qualify for Boston.

I must be crazy.

I admit this drives me probably more than it should.  I look on it not only a challenge, but also the chance of accomplishing something beyond my own ability.

As a 16 year old, I wanted to become a DJ.  In order to get on the radio you had to get a license and in order to get that license you had to pass a grueling exam. Everyone I talked to said I had no chance at passing the first time.  My sister knew two people who took the test 3 times and failed each time and they were in college.  It became a challenge.  I spent the whole summer studying and memorizing the material.  It wasn’t anything I knew or understood, but I learned.  One day my dad asked me what page of my textbook talked about radio towers (or something in that vein).  I gave him the page number from memory. We looked it up and I was correct.   I went to DC and took the test with 30 people much older than myself and passed the first time.  Understand, my dad once said that I was the first of his children (the youngest of 4) that he was relieved when I brought home a “C” in a class.  Getting this license was way above my ability, but after I passed I felt like I could accomplish anything.

You may be able to understand the parallels between getting my radio license and running a marathon, but just to spell it out…

Qualifying for the Boston Marathon is way beyond my ability.  In fact just running a marathon is beyond my comprehension.  I not only have to run it, but I have to run it under 3 and a half hours.  I have to keep at least an 8 minute pace for 26.2 miles.  I feel like I did going into that exam room with everything against me.  I questioned myself if I had prepared enough.  I questioned everything.  I was nervous and anxious.  I passed.  I want to pass this test also.  I want to, in just over 2 years, go from obesity to qualifying for Boston.  For me, it is making the impossible, possible.  If I can do this, I can do anything.

So I run.  I run 6 days a week and walk the 7th.  I ran 9 miles yesterday, my longest mid-week run ever.  I need to get to 50 miles this week and then into the 60s by next month sometime. My speed is way down, but I don’t think that matters right now.  I feel that miles matter more than the speed.  It is hot and humid and that makes it hard to run fast.  Yesterday I ran a trail for a couple of miles which made the run more enjoyable, but was also harder than running on pavement.

I guess I never finished the opening thought.  Running takes so much time that I really only have time at night to write my post.  I really don’t have time to read other blogs or twitter much anymore.  Even emails go unread for days sometimes.  Right now my life consists of working, running and family.  I say this to say thank you to all you bloggers who read my blog each day and those who comment and like my posts.  Please don’t take it the wrong way that I haven’t been on yours for a while.  I do read them when I can, but until September 8th, it may not be often.  I appreciate the effort it takes to blog and one day I will catch up on my reading, but for now…

I run.