Now that school has been out for several weeks, running has not been the priority I want it to be. It was easier when I had the structure of being on campus and being at a certain place by a certain time. I knew what to do the night before and the next morning.
So I set monthly goals in Garmin Connect of 90 miles for the month. Goals I reached in both March and April, mainly by breaking it down even further, into weekly segments of 20+ miles. Long runs weren't a thing, so I'd run enough four and five-milers to make it happen. It's pretty amazing what you can accomplish when you set your mind to something and commit to it. Georgia heat and humidity are both in full effect so not all of the runs have been good ones, but I'm concentrating on closing the door behind me and taking off.
Through five-plus months of the year, I've run 410 miles, averaging almost 19 per week. I'm off to a good start this month, with a rare Sunday run (an eight-miler, which is also uncommon) leading to me being well ahead of schedule for June. Hopefully I can put a big number up and erase the 70-mile deficit I've made.
My goal by setting the bar at 90 is to make it to 1,080 miles for the year. Still very much within reach. I'm incredulous at one of my running friends who has already made it to 1,000 miles, or about 40 miles weekly. I'm only north of 40 when I'm in marathon mode, and that isn't happening anytime soon.
Another priority I made at the start of the year is to be OK with shorter runs as I finish school. It required a change of mindset, as I used to think I hadn't really 'ran' that day unless I bagged a six or better. Shorter distances are working well for me at this point, and I'll add in some 400 and 800 repeats along the way.
Tuesday, June 7, 2016
Tuesday, May 31, 2016
Twilight 5K PR
A few weeks ago I raced my second race of the year-- the Twilight 5K. It's a running event that is encircled by a big cycling event, the Twilight Criterium. There was also a $1000 mile later that afternoon, for the top 5 male and female finishers.
I felt like I was in decent short-distance shape, having had two decent months of training but not much speedwork. Since I don't race much, I never know what to expect.
The weather was nice-- not too hot and sticky, and not rainy/crappy like it was in 2015. So I toed up and took off. The first half of the course was relatively flat... the second half was not. I went out at 3:30 for my first half split. I was pleased, but I knew I couldn't hold that pace the whole time, especially with hills coming.
My splits stayed near 3:35, give or take a second, as this turned into a red-line event. I gave it what I had that day-- I left it all out there. There were two hills on the back stretch that gave lots of us trouble, myself included. After the second one, I found that I couldn't reach down for a deep breath. I didn't have any lung capacity to make it work. I guess that's what happens when you go full out.
I sprinted the last 10 or so yards and got it up to a 5:20/mile pace right at the very end as someone tried and failed to pass me right at the finish. I set a PR by about 25 seconds, so I was very happy with this. I wear a race belt and try to keep my number on my hip, so the pad didn't pick up my chip at the end. As a result I didn't make the official race results list, but Mr. Garmin said I ran it, so I'm counting it.
Now the training has become more sporadic, with no goal race and lacking the structure that the school year provides. Now that I got into better shape, the plan is to stay that way and even take it forward from there.
I felt like I was in decent short-distance shape, having had two decent months of training but not much speedwork. Since I don't race much, I never know what to expect.
The weather was nice-- not too hot and sticky, and not rainy/crappy like it was in 2015. So I toed up and took off. The first half of the course was relatively flat... the second half was not. I went out at 3:30 for my first half split. I was pleased, but I knew I couldn't hold that pace the whole time, especially with hills coming.
My splits stayed near 3:35, give or take a second, as this turned into a red-line event. I gave it what I had that day-- I left it all out there. There were two hills on the back stretch that gave lots of us trouble, myself included. After the second one, I found that I couldn't reach down for a deep breath. I didn't have any lung capacity to make it work. I guess that's what happens when you go full out.
I sprinted the last 10 or so yards and got it up to a 5:20/mile pace right at the very end as someone tried and failed to pass me right at the finish. I set a PR by about 25 seconds, so I was very happy with this. I wear a race belt and try to keep my number on my hip, so the pad didn't pick up my chip at the end. As a result I didn't make the official race results list, but Mr. Garmin said I ran it, so I'm counting it.
Now the training has become more sporadic, with no goal race and lacking the structure that the school year provides. Now that I got into better shape, the plan is to stay that way and even take it forward from there.
Monday, May 23, 2016
It has a name, but...
I think most people are on board with the fact that fast 400 meter repeats on the track aren't much fun but yield positive benefits.
Now I've never been a big speedwork guy-- I've never had a rigid schedule unless I've been in marathon training, and even then it was more about pouring on the miles. However when I was prepping for the 2014 Publix Marathon in Atlanta, I squeezed out 16x400 with some of my running friends. I was as surprised as anybody. Speed days since then have maxed out at 8x400, doing three-minute intervals. Run the 400, and recover for the time left over. For example, if I ran a quarter in 90 seconds, I'd have 90 seconds to rest before the next repeat. I found the rest period worked better than an easy 400 jog.
Recently, I read in Runner's World about Jonas Hampton of New Britain, Connecticut who runs 30x400 on his speed days as one of his key workouts during marathon training. My eyes about popped out of their sockets. 30? Quarter-mile repeats? Are we sure that's right?
Well, yes it is. Here is his session:
Now I've never been a big speedwork guy-- I've never had a rigid schedule unless I've been in marathon training, and even then it was more about pouring on the miles. However when I was prepping for the 2014 Publix Marathon in Atlanta, I squeezed out 16x400 with some of my running friends. I was as surprised as anybody. Speed days since then have maxed out at 8x400, doing three-minute intervals. Run the 400, and recover for the time left over. For example, if I ran a quarter in 90 seconds, I'd have 90 seconds to rest before the next repeat. I found the rest period worked better than an easy 400 jog.
Recently, I read in Runner's World about Jonas Hampton of New Britain, Connecticut who runs 30x400 on his speed days as one of his key workouts during marathon training. My eyes about popped out of their sockets. 30? Quarter-mile repeats? Are we sure that's right?
Well, yes it is. Here is his session:
“It has a name, but you can’t print it.” Warm up with 3 miles followed by 10 minutes of dynamic stretches. Then run 30 x 400, with 200-meter recovery jogs. After every 5 repeats, recover with a 400-meter jog. Cool down with 2 easy miles.
I wonder if we could crowdsource a printable name for this workout. He runs three miles before he even gets to the fun part. Excluding the recovery jogs, he's sitting on a 12.5-mile workout. Yikes. Just saddling up for that distance requires a little extra prep for me. Obviously it's a bit different for him.
I'm not arguing the methods-- I'm amazed at them. Hampton ran a 2:15 and won the Hartford Marathon in 2015 and competed at the Olympic Marathon Trials back in February. What makes this all the more remarkable is that he's got a day job as a highway design engineer.
Thursday, February 18, 2016
Race Management
A few weeks ago, I ran the Chilly Dawg 5K, which is sponsored by my wife's department at The University of Georgia. I've done well at this race the last two years, hovering right around 22-minute finish times. Enough to win my age group, but just barely missing out on the master's title. Last year stung a bit, particularly since I missed out by less than :10.
So I was motivated to do well at this race. That is, until I started having trouble with my calf again. The combination of that, graduate studies, and putting on a little weight led me to temper my expectations.
Additionally, the gentleman who beat me the last two years was not in attendance. So I thought maybe this would be my day.
I would say the course has rises, not hills, but you'll still work to get over them. Given how out of shape I was and how little speedwork I did, I was pleased to clock in at 22:30. I aggravated my calf the week prior and stayed off it until this, and my calf may have fallen off had the race been 3.5 miles and not 3.1. Anyway, I left it all out there.
That's when the fun began.
I received a finisher's card with a #7 in the corner, so I allowed myself the thought of achieving my goal. There was no big board with finishers taped to it, and the clock over the finish line was unclear, so I didn't really know for certain. We hung out for the awards ceremony, only to find out someone else (who I beat) was named master's winner. Needless to say I was not pleased. All I could do was let it ride, since you can't create a scene during the presentations. Then, when I learned I won my age group for the third straight year, the announcer got my name wrong. Missed it by a mile.
My dear, sweet wife worked back channels at the office and found that I won the master's division, and I'll be getting the snazzy coffee cup that comes with it. It's a victory, but what's missing is the recognition of my effort. The timing company got it wrong. I fully expected to hear my name as the master's winner, and it was pretty rough seeing someone I passed get the Shiny Metal Object (a catch-all term) I earned. Disappointing.
Wifey also learned the timing company from the last two years is more expensive than the group brought in for 2016. So you do get what you pay for. My belief is that attendance suffered as a result, nearly 400 runners last year, probably because this had been a grand prix event. With that out of play, 255 finished this year. So there's that.
It won't stop me from coming back next year. I just hope they get it right.
So I was motivated to do well at this race. That is, until I started having trouble with my calf again. The combination of that, graduate studies, and putting on a little weight led me to temper my expectations.
Additionally, the gentleman who beat me the last two years was not in attendance. So I thought maybe this would be my day.
I would say the course has rises, not hills, but you'll still work to get over them. Given how out of shape I was and how little speedwork I did, I was pleased to clock in at 22:30. I aggravated my calf the week prior and stayed off it until this, and my calf may have fallen off had the race been 3.5 miles and not 3.1. Anyway, I left it all out there.
That's when the fun began.
I received a finisher's card with a #7 in the corner, so I allowed myself the thought of achieving my goal. There was no big board with finishers taped to it, and the clock over the finish line was unclear, so I didn't really know for certain. We hung out for the awards ceremony, only to find out someone else (who I beat) was named master's winner. Needless to say I was not pleased. All I could do was let it ride, since you can't create a scene during the presentations. Then, when I learned I won my age group for the third straight year, the announcer got my name wrong. Missed it by a mile.
My dear, sweet wife worked back channels at the office and found that I won the master's division, and I'll be getting the snazzy coffee cup that comes with it. It's a victory, but what's missing is the recognition of my effort. The timing company got it wrong. I fully expected to hear my name as the master's winner, and it was pretty rough seeing someone I passed get the Shiny Metal Object (a catch-all term) I earned. Disappointing.
Wifey also learned the timing company from the last two years is more expensive than the group brought in for 2016. So you do get what you pay for. My belief is that attendance suffered as a result, nearly 400 runners last year, probably because this had been a grand prix event. With that out of play, 255 finished this year. So there's that.
It won't stop me from coming back next year. I just hope they get it right.
Monday, December 21, 2015
Beer Mile
I've been seeing more and more stuff about the beer mile-- apparently it's becoming more and more of a thing these days. There's even a www.beermile.com website, with rules, FAQ, forums, and such. It also lists which beers were the most popular, as well as verified world bests. As of this writing, the world record beer mile is 4:47. Seriously-- someone ran a 4:47 beer mile! Shotgunning the beer is against the rules, so someone is really, really good at drinking beer quickly. Wow.
Yesterday I competed in my first beer mile event. You know the drill-- drink a beer, run a quarter mile, repeat until you've run a mile. I typically like to keep my beer and my running separated, but I had to give this a shot. It's not about the winning, but I was still a little nervous as to how I would respond-- would I barf my guts up (resulting in a penalty lap)? Would I feel miserable with all that sloshing around going on?
So I got a six pack of beer I wouldn't mind chugging and got out there. I'll enjoy the 'good' beer when time is not an issue.
It went a lot better than I expected, and it turns out people shouldn't be allowed to have that much fun. The sloshing around thing was not a concern, but the carbonation was. Feeling bloated was the biggest thing. As long as I could burp, I didn't really mind. The only time I felt like I might be sick was after my first quarter mile, when I felt like a beach ball. But three or four good rips and life got better.
As for the running, I was also pleased. No calf concerns arose-- still healthy on that front. I even ran an 8:06 mile, which is pretty solid. I was far more concerned about the beer than I was about the running part of things-- I didn't run to put up a good number, but I could have gone faster.
There were 11 of us altogether and I think I took 8th, with a time of 14:20.
Yesterday I competed in my first beer mile event. You know the drill-- drink a beer, run a quarter mile, repeat until you've run a mile. I typically like to keep my beer and my running separated, but I had to give this a shot. It's not about the winning, but I was still a little nervous as to how I would respond-- would I barf my guts up (resulting in a penalty lap)? Would I feel miserable with all that sloshing around going on?
So I got a six pack of beer I wouldn't mind chugging and got out there. I'll enjoy the 'good' beer when time is not an issue.
It went a lot better than I expected, and it turns out people shouldn't be allowed to have that much fun. The sloshing around thing was not a concern, but the carbonation was. Feeling bloated was the biggest thing. As long as I could burp, I didn't really mind. The only time I felt like I might be sick was after my first quarter mile, when I felt like a beach ball. But three or four good rips and life got better.
As for the running, I was also pleased. No calf concerns arose-- still healthy on that front. I even ran an 8:06 mile, which is pretty solid. I was far more concerned about the beer than I was about the running part of things-- I didn't run to put up a good number, but I could have gone faster.
There were 11 of us altogether and I think I took 8th, with a time of 14:20.
Thursday, November 19, 2015
Inserts
It's been a couple of slow weeks running around here, since I was pretty bummed about my right calf acting up most recently. A combination of that and schoolwork mean that I haven't hit the pavement much recently.
Today I went back to the therapist to hear what they had to say. Thankfully, the dry needle toteboard remained at five, but she did rub out my left calf and Achilles with a metal stick and some sort of scraper (didn't see what it looked like, only what it felt like) to help remove scar tissue.
Then I got to run on the treadmill for a gait evaluation, which I kind of wanted anyhow. I'm doing fine on the new and improved midfoot landing, but it turns out I am a very mild pronator. I learned that about 4 degrees pronation is OK, but my angle of pronation is at about 11 degrees. This means instead of my Achilles going straight up and down at footstrike, it leans in about that much. She showed me video of my brief running episode, and it's amazing what their technology does. She just recorded me on an iPad, played it back, and even showed me the geometry involved. I was wowed, but also happier that I knew something now that I didn't before.
So that means I need mild stability in my shoes. I panicked once the therapist told me this, since I have so many pairs of neutral running shoes. The good thing is that a Superfeet-style insert should work well, I'll just have to move them in and out as I cycle through my shoes. No worries.
This helps me better understand the concept of inserts, and it furthers my thought that just because you are 'getting away' with something (i.e. not getting injured), does not necessarily mean you're doing it right. I found out my biomechanics are different (not much I can do about that) but that there is equipment available that will help further minimize my risk of injury.
I'd been a big-time heel striker who didn't run with any inserts in my shoes, but now I've learned better ideas on staying healthy while running.
Today I went back to the therapist to hear what they had to say. Thankfully, the dry needle toteboard remained at five, but she did rub out my left calf and Achilles with a metal stick and some sort of scraper (didn't see what it looked like, only what it felt like) to help remove scar tissue.
Then I got to run on the treadmill for a gait evaluation, which I kind of wanted anyhow. I'm doing fine on the new and improved midfoot landing, but it turns out I am a very mild pronator. I learned that about 4 degrees pronation is OK, but my angle of pronation is at about 11 degrees. This means instead of my Achilles going straight up and down at footstrike, it leans in about that much. She showed me video of my brief running episode, and it's amazing what their technology does. She just recorded me on an iPad, played it back, and even showed me the geometry involved. I was wowed, but also happier that I knew something now that I didn't before.
So that means I need mild stability in my shoes. I panicked once the therapist told me this, since I have so many pairs of neutral running shoes. The good thing is that a Superfeet-style insert should work well, I'll just have to move them in and out as I cycle through my shoes. No worries.
This helps me better understand the concept of inserts, and it furthers my thought that just because you are 'getting away' with something (i.e. not getting injured), does not necessarily mean you're doing it right. I found out my biomechanics are different (not much I can do about that) but that there is equipment available that will help further minimize my risk of injury.
I'd been a big-time heel striker who didn't run with any inserts in my shoes, but now I've learned better ideas on staying healthy while running.
Saturday, November 7, 2015
Knots
Dry needling toteboard: 5.
The last few weeks of running had been solid, by recent standards. 12 miles last week (3-3-3-3) and 13 last week (3-3-3-4). Since these were good weeks of running and my calves had been behaving, I ran 4.25 on Monday after work but my right leg was tugging at me a little. Not enough to stop, just enough to let me know it was there. I was going to rest Tuesday, anyway.
Wednesday I wanted to see what I could do, speedwise, on my 5K route. My half-mile splits were just under 4:00, which is booking for me. With a half mile to go, my right calf knotted up on me. The right one. Not the left one, the problem child. So I was pissed, even though I was able to run-walk the rest of the way home.
So I explained it to my physical therapist, who found knots in both calves. It was worse in the right than in the left. He decided to dry needle me after finding knots in both legs, even though my left calf has been OK lately.
That was Thursday morning. It's worth noting that I'm able to walk around better now after these dry needle sessions than I could before. This was helpful, since Thursday was a day full of meetings and walking.
I'm just back in on a Saturday morning from trying to run to the local YWCO but my right calf barely got me a quarter mile out and quarter mile back. So it's another setback. I feel I've been concentrating on form and hitting various checkpoints along the way, such as trying to run tall, 'pop' my knees out as I run, and focusing on landing just behind the ball of my foot. Midfoot striking is the key.
I thought I'd been doing OK, but now it seems as though more patience is called for. I'd wanted to run a fast 5K in January, then I settled for running well at Thanksgiving and Holiday races, now I'll just settle for running at all.
So it's a bummer.
The last few weeks of running had been solid, by recent standards. 12 miles last week (3-3-3-3) and 13 last week (3-3-3-4). Since these were good weeks of running and my calves had been behaving, I ran 4.25 on Monday after work but my right leg was tugging at me a little. Not enough to stop, just enough to let me know it was there. I was going to rest Tuesday, anyway.
Wednesday I wanted to see what I could do, speedwise, on my 5K route. My half-mile splits were just under 4:00, which is booking for me. With a half mile to go, my right calf knotted up on me. The right one. Not the left one, the problem child. So I was pissed, even though I was able to run-walk the rest of the way home.
So I explained it to my physical therapist, who found knots in both calves. It was worse in the right than in the left. He decided to dry needle me after finding knots in both legs, even though my left calf has been OK lately.
That was Thursday morning. It's worth noting that I'm able to walk around better now after these dry needle sessions than I could before. This was helpful, since Thursday was a day full of meetings and walking.
I'm just back in on a Saturday morning from trying to run to the local YWCO but my right calf barely got me a quarter mile out and quarter mile back. So it's another setback. I feel I've been concentrating on form and hitting various checkpoints along the way, such as trying to run tall, 'pop' my knees out as I run, and focusing on landing just behind the ball of my foot. Midfoot striking is the key.
I thought I'd been doing OK, but now it seems as though more patience is called for. I'd wanted to run a fast 5K in January, then I settled for running well at Thanksgiving and Holiday races, now I'll just settle for running at all.
So it's a bummer.
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