Running, Wonky Ankle and All

Most Boring Run Ever (maybe)

2010-03-12T18:29:00.000-05:00

You know how sometimes even the seemingly easy runs, both on the body and the mind, turn out to be excruciatingly boring? Thankfully these occur rather infrequently for me, but today was one of those days.

After two slightly faster 8km runs this week, and two leg strength sessions, my legs were tight. In particular my left calf, which worried me a bit having felt that twinge/cramp/tear in the past that results from ignoring just this type of soreness. So, I headed off to the gym at lunch (rain and cold outside) to get on the treadmill for what was supposed to be an easy and slow, steady run.

Well, the run was slow and steady (8km at 6.8mph and 2.0% incline, or about 5:28/km pace not adjusting for the incline), but definitely not easy on the mind. I was clock watching within the first five minutes and couldn't stop, try as I might. That 44:08 of running felt like a lifetime. A slow, easy, boring lifetime...

Is it possible that I am actually looking FORWARD to an off day?

Hmmm...

Registered, and Funky Data

2010-03-10T20:10:00.004-05:00

First, I registered for the Toronto Waterfront Marathon, set to go on September the 26th of this year. Yup. The deed is done. I just hope it works out better this time around than the DNS from last year...

Second, the Garmin gave me more funky ass data on today's run home from work. I won't even bother trying to evaluate what the hell is going on, but seriously people; can't this friggin device compensate for tall buildings somehow?! I mean, there's more than a few on this planet where people run and use Garmin devices.

Sheesh.

I did end up running 8km at a pace that was a bit too fast (5:02/km average, with the last kilometre at 4:32), and I'm sure to pay for it later. Mental note to self: next two runs this week must be slow and easy!

Oh yeah, I also did some upper body weights at lunch. There's a six pack hiding under there somewhere. Maybe.

Spring Please Stick Around

2010-03-09T20:33:00.001-05:00

Man, if this weather is to be short-lived then it's a major tease! We've been blessed with such nice weather over the past four or five days that it's hard to believe we are still technically in Winter. In any case, I am loving it.

Case in point, I would normally go at lunch to the gym and climb onto the treadmill for a run in the 6-8k range. Today I did go to the gym, but after doing a bit of core exercises and stretches I walked right past those belted beasts of burden and out into the glorious sunshine.

This wasn't completely spontaneous, mind you, because I did bring the Garmin to work with me for just such an eventuality, but it did feel great to be going outside, and in shorts too!

I ran straight down to the lake shore, negotiating traffic, pedestrians, and lights the entire way. Once down there though it was smooth sailing and I had an awesome run. Lots of others were out running and at one point a group of three popped out in front of me and were running at a decent clip. I decided to just see if I could follow them since their pace was not too different from mine, and this also offered me the opportunity to not worry as much about the route I was taking. Having never run down by the harbor before I just assumed that these runners knew where they were going. We meandered around all the boardwalks near the water for a while before I had to let them go because it was time for me to get back. Someday I will definitely have to find a group to run with because it seems easier somehow.

In the end I ran 8km at a relatively good pace of 4:59/km (8:01/mile). This was definitely faster than I'd intended to run, but it felt pretty good to just run and I can't say it was particularly stressful to maintain this pace or anything. The Garmin seems to have gotten confused while I was running in the downtown core on account of the tall buildings, and in particular in the second kilometre (4:13/km pace) and the last kilometre when it recorded that I was running at 6:14/km. I guess those two average out, but it does annoy me that the GPS stuff gets so affected by buildings. Looking at the map it sure seems like the Garmin is totally losing it - a max speed of 699.5km/h? Yeah, real accurate...

Upon returning to the office I iced down my knee, just in case, having also remembered to bring another ice pack into work given that somebody stole the one I had left at work for the past few weeks (who would steel an ice pack, honestly?). I definitely look forward to more of these lunchtime runs, of the outdoor variety, as the weather continues to improve. Spring is just the best season, isn't it?

Say What?

2010-03-07T16:22:00.003-05:00

Seems like Blogger is deciding to throw a wrench into my otherwise mundane blogging world and is telling me that FTP publishing will no longer be supported as of May 1st. I don't know what all that crap means, but it sure smacks of effort.

I'm not a fan of effort. Especially when it is required of me! I would like to keep this little spot of mine on the web going, but if it it starts to look like more than the least amount of attention is required then it will be difficult to justify. I think I'm far enough along in my running to stay motivated without the need to update the blog and such, but it still provides a good reason to ensure that the runs get done. At least I have until May 1st to figure out what all this means...

As far as effort goes, this past week has been the highest mileage week to date since last Summer when I went down with injury. After a nice 7km on the treadmill on Tuesday, I did the usual walk to work and run home thing on Wednesday where I added another 8km to the total. On Friday I stayed home with one of the kids who was suffering from a fever and so I took my run outside at the end of the day for another 8km. On that one I managed two things: 1. I wore my new Asics GT-2150s for the first time, and 2. I put in two faster kilometres, the first at 4:27/km (7:10/mile) and the second at 4:21/km (7:00/mile). These felt pretty good actually, and my heart rate did not go up as high as I though it might, so I was quite pleased with the effort. My ankle was a bit sore on Saturday and so I gave myself a full day off. We took the little one to the Toronto Zoo while the bigger on was away at Winter Camp.

Saturday night the little one went for a sleepover at my Dad's so that I could take the wife out for a nice dinner to celebrate her recent birthday. Let's just say that the dinner was AWESOME and I ate a tonne, with a few drinks to boot.

Sunday morning I woke up with a small headache and slowly dragged my ass out the door for a planned 15km run. I ran from home down to the lake and out around the Leslie Spit. As I was running out on the Spit I realized that my run would either end up being a bit longer than planned or I would have a few kilometres to walk at the end. I decided to just keep going, and stopped running at 17km not wanting to push it any further. I only had a half-kilometre to walk the rest of the way, and that was probably a good thing.

The total for the week was 40km, which is a nice round number if I say so myself. I should probably run a bit less this week to give my legs and ankle a bit of a break, but if things are feeling good then I might inch up towards the same total next week.

In any case, I am on track to average 35km for the month of March, as planned.

Now off to my Dad's to rescue the small loin-fruit...

Month 2 In The Books

2010-02-28T19:49:00.004-05:00

February is at an end and it's been another successful month on the running and exercise front for yours truly. The short and sweet recap goes like this:

Ran 128.6km, averaged 32km per week (goal was 120km, 30km per week).
Weighed in at 193.0lbs (started the month at 195.5lbs).
Didn't miss any runs while listening to the ole creaky body.
Continued weight training and am seeing improvement everywhere, especially core and leg strength.

Like I said, successful.

For the month of March the goal is to average 35km per week, which will require a total of 155km of running. Now that cross-country skiing is over it means that I don't have to do back to back days of running more than once per week, and I think this will help the knee feel better. The plan is to run Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday. As long as I continue to be smart about how much, how fast, how soon, and all that, I can't see why the coming month can't also be a success. The knee will determine whether or not I will be able to incorporate some better pacing, or just stick to the slow and steady routine that's been working okay so far this year.

Now I have a tonne of laundry to catch up on after two weeks of Olympics taking over my life. So what if Canada didn't win the overall medal count - a record number of Gold Medals is pretty sweet! Going from being the only host nation to not win a Gold Medal, and doing it twice, to holding the record for most home Golds in a Winter Olympics as well as most Golds ever in Winter Olympic history is not a bad consolation prize indeed.

And that hockey game was one hell of a way to cap it off!!!

Oops...

2010-02-26T13:18:00.001-05:00

My plan for holding back during yesterday's weight training worked well and I was feeling pretty good...

... up until I got to Owen's school and took a tumble down some stairs! It was one of those accidents where time seems to stand still just long enough for one to consider all the potential outcomes while flying through the air, and all signs pointed to broken bones for yours truly. Luckily I don't seem to have cracked anything, though my left shoulder is sore as hell and I have a big bruise on the palm of my left hand that aches constantly. I did think that my collar bone had cracked when I first landed, but by the time I walked home it was feeling better and I'm quite certain that nothing is broken (other than my pride, of course).

Anyway, after that little mishap I watched Owen play scooter hockey (they sit on these little four-wheeled platforms and move an orange puck around with a paddle) at his school's Olympic celebration. His team lost in the final and they had a great time, but standing around for three hours did not do my shoulder or lower back much good. Boy, it sure sucks getting old, doesn't it?

So today I was wondering what kind of run I would have, if any. Toronto was hit by a small snowstorm and I ended up not biking to work, which would have been very painful given the bruised palm and such and I likely would have chosen to take public transit even if the weather had been perfect. The lack of biking meant that I really, really wanted to get my run in and so I trekked through the snowdrifts to the gym before lunch and had a go.

After doing some core exercises, as usual, I hopped on a treadmill and started off at an easy pace that I felt my body could handle, and that was also in keeping with the whole recovery week theme. I ran 6km at a pretty easy and steady pace setting of 6.5mph, which works out to 5:44/km on level ground and at 2.0% incline it's about equivalent to 5:25/km according to hillrunner (I always set the treadmill to 2.0% incline, and I'm starting to forget why, but I see no reason to change). The shoulder and arm didn't bother me at all, though it was tough doing some stretches before and after the run because I couldn't lean palms down on the floor or pull on my ankle to stretch the quad properly on the left side.

At least I was able to run! Here's hoping people around the city clear the snow off their sidewalks for my run tomorrow.

Recovery Weeks Piss Me Off

2010-02-24T20:34:00.002-05:00

On my new and improved training plan (insert sarcasm on the heavy side here) I am not even two months in, still feeling pain in the ole right knee, and am finding it really hard to hold back during the recovery weeks. What's up with that?

Am I not training hard enough in the three weeks leading up to recovery time? (My answer is clearly NO!, but I do think I am training as hard as my body will allow without being sidelined with major injury or injuries.) Or, more likely, is my brain continuing to try and write cheques that my cannot cash?

Don't know how others do it, and based on the running sites and blogs that I've read over the past year or so, taking recovery seriously and actually doing it right is not an unusual issue. That being said, I am trying my best and have laid out a plan for the entire year that has me running three weeks "on" followed by a fourth week "off". And "off" is the right word, because recovery weeks are pissing me off.

Today I walked to work 6.2km, did upper body weights at lunch, and ran 8.2km home (well, to get Owen at school actually). Now that's what I call recovery! Though I must say that these recovery runs, slow and easy as they are, leave me more stiff and sore than I would like. Perhaps it's the leg weights that I've been doing that has led to this because I have not been including weight training as part of the whole recovery plan. Or maybe NOT running isn't particularly good for me, just like running too much.

Anyway, tomorrow I have leg weights on the agenda and I might actually take it down a notch and do an easy workout for a change. Things always seem to change once I'm at the gym and I end up doing more than I'd planned, but I am seriously thinking of holding back a bit. Here's hoping...

So Far So Good

2010-02-21T17:17:00.003-05:00

The third week of February is now finished and I am staring straight down the barrel of another recovery week feeling like I don't even need it! No worries about ignoring the plan and running longer and harder than I should since I know the consequences of such a decision will be injury somewhere in the next two to three weeks. Instead, I am just happy knowing that I am on track with my training for the second straight month.

My plan to average 30km per week for the month of February is, in fact, ahead of schedule. This week I completed 39km after running the longest training run of the year on Saturday at 15km. That was a great run and felt easier than I'd anticipated, even though it included the longest and steepest hill I've ever had to run at around the 10k mark. I ran from Variety Village, where Owen has indoor baseball practice every Saturday evening, down to the Beaches and along the boardwalk all the way out to Ashbridges Bay Park, turning around at 7.5km. When I got to the descent down from Kingston Road to the shore I was really concerned about my chances of making it back up the hill without walking. I guess all the leg weights I've been doing are paying off because I made it up no problem, even if my pace slowed considerably. Not caring about pacing yet it was just gratifying to be able to run up a kilometre long hill without completely dying.

Today I cross-country skied for nearly 12km and then we all went out for a massive meal at an all you can eat place up in Barrie. I feel a bit guilty about all the food that I ingested, but sometimes you just have to.

In the coming week I only have to run 15.6km to get to my goal of 120km for the month, so I suspect I will blast past it by a few clicks. I'm limiting myself to just three runs, and won't run until Wednesday, giving me two full days off.

Also, I purchased a patellar tendon strap for my knee and am finding that the knee feels about the same when I run, but nowhere near as tight afterwards. I will continue to use it and monitor the situation for a couple of weeks before I fully decide whether it's worth continuing to use it long term.

A Typical Wednesday

2010-02-17T18:29:00.000-05:00

And by "typical" I mean walking to work (6.5km), doing some weights at lunch (just upper body stuff), and then running home on freshly fallen snow. Seems like once a week we get some snow, it always lands on Wednesday, and I always seem to have less than ideal footing for my run home. Oh well... The picture says it all.

Although that image is from last week's run home, it's been typical for pretty much every one this year. Today it snowed all day, but luckily none of it stuck! The sidewalks were wet, and I did have to navigate around quite a bit of black ice, but I'll take today's conditions over a slushy, snowy mess any day. I ran a total of 9km with the first 8.45 on my own and the last 0.55 with my five year-old since he wanted to "run with Daddy" and told anyone who would listen that that's what he was going to do. It was fun, naturally, even if a bit slow.

Where does the time go?

2010-02-16T21:36:00.000-05:00

Man, I can't believe I went through an entire long weekend (Family Day holiday here in Ontario) and couldn't find a spare moment to update the bloggage on my running. Between the rather disappointing Opening Ceremonies, featuring the unique inferiority complex apologetic rhyming stylings of neckbeard man and the questionable dancing abilities of our First Nations, more Birthday Parties that the boys attended, skiing, doing work for work on a weekend (blah!), and house related duties the three days just went by and I woke up this morning wondering what the hell happened.

Anyway, as far as running went I managed 6km on the treadmill on Tuesday; I walked to work and then ran over to Owen's school at the end of the day for a total of 8.3km; and then I ran 8km on the treadmill last Friday. Both of the treadmill runs were at a setting of 6.8mph and at 2.0% incline, but the Friday run felt much easier than Tuesday's for some reason. I think I was overheating of Tuesday or something. However, by Friday night my right knee was not cooperating and I was pretty down thinking that my running "career" was in jeopardy.

I am over that little lull somewhat, but I still am wondering when this bloody joint will hurry up and heal already! On Saturday morning I was faced with the prospect of missing my run, but by the afternoon I talked myself into trying it out. For the first time since last Summer I wrapped up the knee (don't even know if it helped the knee, but my brain appreciated the extra support) and decided to run laps of the neighbourhood just in case I had to bail and crawl home. I ran super slow and gingerly four times around the same rectangle for a total of 11km and even though it was near walking pace I was happy to have finished it. The knee felt no worse afterward, so I took that as a good sign, and am now icing the sucker on a regular basis. Also, I am still on track to average 30km per week for the month of February since I managed to run 33.4km during this past week (32km the week before). I just hope I can run about the same amount this week, but with less pain.

Sunday we went skiing, but because of work that I had to prepare I decided to stay in the cabin while Monica and the boys hit the trails. Giving myself the first full day off since early January was a good idea given the knee, or so I consoled myself.

Monday I headed off to the gym and did my usual leg and upper body routine. The legs are definitely getting stronger, but I am still feeling less than confident that this will provide my knee with the support it requires to finally heal completely. I will give it another month, but if I am still feeling pain at my scheduled physical in the middle of March I will ask my doctor for a referral to a knee specialist of some sort. Maybe there is a tear or something that will never heal on its own? I sure hope not, and I hope I am completely pain free by then and this becomes a moot point.

Today I had meetings all day and could not fit in my usual treadmill run so I went out in the evening. Once again, I wrapped up the knee (and thought of buying a sleeve for the knee to give me support) and ran an easy 7km while Malcolm, Owen and Monica attended the annual Scouts pancake dinner (on Mardi Gras, so I suppose it fits). The idea of eating pancakes for dinner makes me ill and I was happy to skip the festivities. I ran nice and easy at the beginning, kind of feeling out the knee, but picked up the pace as I went along. It was fun, and really, that's the best thing one can say about any run.

Registered!

2010-02-08T14:55:00.005-05:00

Today I took the plunge and registered for my first race of 2010. It's not for a while yet, but I am very excited to run (if all goes well) my first half-marathon! It will be during the Ottawa Race Weekend on Sunday, May 30th and I can't wait.

Well, I can wait because there's a lot that I have to do between now and then to ensure that this will be a fun and worthwhile experience. It's far enough away that I can continue on my present course of building a solid base and yet comes at the perfect time, just when the base building phase is finished and marathon training begins. I don't think I will be running this race with any specific time goal in mind, but the main objective is to run it strong and finish without any injury or problem. In short, it will be a nice solid reward after many months of diligent base building.

Also, as I looked back upon the Friday treadmill run that left my right knee in a painful and worrisome state, I did some research on what the pace equivalents are on the treadmill based on incline settings. I realize that this is an issue perpetually to be debated, but I did find the chart at hillruner.com to be somewhat helpful in explaining why my knee balked. Turns out that at the 7.5mph, 2.0% incline setting that I ran at the peak of my pyramid the equivalent pact was not 8:00/mile, but rather 7:40/mile (not 5:00/km, as I believed, but the much more challenging 4:45/km). Anyway, I don't know how accurate this chart is, but I will use it to plan my treadmill runs in the future and hopefully avoid adding too much speed to my training before my body is ready for it.

Oh yeah, today at lunch I did a nice session of leg weights, and it was good! I'm slowly getting stronger, but still pathetically weak in the lower extremities. Tonight I plan on a moderate effort stationary bike ride for a half-hour, as usual.

February off to a Good Start

2010-02-07T15:55:00.003-05:00

Week one of February has come to and end, at least from my exercise perspective as I hear there some sort of a football game on later tonight (BTW: Go Saints!). As far as my running went it was a very successful week, with and asterisk.

The success was completing a total of 32km for the week, my highest total since last summer. I am on track to average 30km per week this month, as planned. I've already posted about the first two runs of the week, but the other two went like this...

After an off day on Thursday, when I did leg weights and rode on the stationary bike for a half-hour, I hit the gym and the treadmill at lunchtime on Friday for what turned out to be 7km. I went a bit too hard in retrospect (resulting in the asterisk mentioned above) and paid for it with worse than normal pain in the right knee. I started off at a relatively easy 6.5mph and had notions of sticking to that pace for 6km, but feeling pretty good I decided to shake things up a little and ended up running a pyramid in this fashion:

5 minutes @ 6.5mph
5 minutes @ 6.8mph
5 minutes @ 7.1mph
10 minutes @ 7.5mph
5 minutes @ 7.1mph
5 minutes @ 6.8mph
2:14 minutes @ 6.5mph

The whole thing ended up taking me 37:14, which meant I ran at an average pace of 5:19/km. Although in and of itself this should not have posed a problem, I think the fact that the treadmill was set at a 2.0% incline means that I actually worked harder that the pace would have indicated. In any case, by the time I got home my knee was tight as a finely tuned banjo string and I was forced to pull out the ice pack for the first time in months.

By Saturday I was feeling better, though not 100%, and went out for another run through Rosedale. It was pretty cold out, but nice and sunny and pretty still. The only time I was really chilled was when I ran over a few bridges and had the wind blow right through me. I ended up doing a nice and comfortable 11km at a (for me, and for the moment) decent pace of 5:43/km.

Today we cross-country skied and it was great. It was cold when we started out (-12C), but sunny and no wind. The wax on our skis was working perfectly for the most part and we managed a really fun 13km before eating lunch and heading home.

The best part about the first week of February? I can't wait for the second.

Humpback - Summary of the Last Few Days on a Wednesday

2010-02-03T18:37:00.002-05:00

Another Wednesday, and another successful day of exercise. Though the right knee still reminds me that I have to "take it easy" and "watch it" and "run less than you think you should", I cannot help but delude myself into thinking that all the weight training that I am subjecting myself to will ultimately shut that sucker up for good.

Case in point, for the past few days I have been feeling, and this is a poor description to be sure, somehow "properly packaged". Not almost any piece of cheap ass electronics that come in those impossible to open, never to disintegrate, clear, hard plastic, "g'damn it why won't you open without a chainsaw!!!" coverings, but rather like everything is starting to work the way it was intended to.

I had a great run last Saturday where I went way faster than I should have, but those 8.25km felt so very good, easily the best run of the year. I really felt like keeping going, but remembered that my body has a nasty way of slowing me down if I don't stick to the conservative plan and so I stopped, happy that I still had energy to spare.

Then, skiing on Sunday was fun and it was just cool to take things easy and not worry about "getting a workout", something I suffer from both in self-imposed guilt as well as physical injury. 12km on the trails with my better half while the kids were taking their lessons.

Monday I had a great leg workout at the gym (things are starting to feel like they are getting stronger, and I actually look forward to doing squats!). In the evening I rode the stationary bike for a half-hour to finish off the day.

Tuesday saw me doing more weights, this time of the upper body variety, and running on the treadmill, where I completed just over 6km holding a nice steady 6.5mph pace even though I had a huge urge to try and match the 7.0mph setting of the guy running next to me. The fact that I didn't inch my speed up to that level shows a level of maturity that surprised me. Am I actually getting smarter, or just old, lazy and complacent? Either way, I was proud to have held back. It also helped that my would be adversary had to stop and stretch out his ~~obviously shitty~~ hamstring at one point before making a failed attempt to resume his run. Ha!

Today was another walk to work, run home day. I walked just over 6km to the office after dropping of the boys at the school bus. I attempted to maintain a decent clip, though I was slowed down by the snow that had fallen overnight, making traction a real problem the entire way. At lunchtime I once again hit the gym for upper body weights and had a good time of it. I am even beginning to like doing ab exercises as I am really seeing progress. Now if only I could limit my intake of highly processed, and ultimately useless, carbs that six-pack of my swimming youth days may actually make a cameo. It's tough giving up sweets for me...

...because they're soooooooo sweet.

The run home from work was pretty good, all things considered. It took a while for the Garmin to locate satellites, which is always annoying, but once the watch was ready I took off at a slow and steady pace towards Owen's school. The snow from the morning, which had made walking a bit tricky, seemed to be completely gone and I was quite pleased with this until I hit the Viaduct and was faced with a slippery, slushy mess. For the entire second half of the run I had to contend with slush, snow, ice and all three combined. This made the run more of a challenge than it otherwise would have been, but I made it through OK, a bit overheated. In the end I completed a decent 8km, changed into a dry shirt at the school, and walked home without freezing my ass off too badly. Some stretching later this evening is definitely in order...

January Recap

2010-02-01T08:43:00.002-05:00

The first month of 2010 is history, and so a recap of sorts is in order.

I started the month with the goal of averaging 25km per week, and with secondary goals of shedding a little weight while starting to improve my leg strength via a new gym membership. How did is pan out?

On the running front I managed to amass 113.75km, which averages out to 25.68km per week. Check!
On the shedding weight goal, I started off the month at 201lbs and weighed in this morning at 195.5lbs. Check!
And in the weight room I am beginning to see some improvement in my leg strength even though it's only been two weeks, and four leg sessions. I think the month of February will really help out my troublesome right knee. At the very least I am sure hoping that it does. I give this one a Check! as well.

The running goal in February is to push the weekly mileage up a bit: 30km per week. I will have to run 120km this month, and given that it's shorter than January by three days this means I only have to add 6.25km to the previous month's total. Naturally it will be a little tougher because the time is compressed, but I look forward to the task. Again, the plan is to run the next three weeks at or above 30km before drawing back for the fourth week with the goal of recovery. I really have to stick to this plan because my body seems to break down after every four weeks or so of steady mileage increases, and I am determined to avoid this mistake the entire year. (Marathon training may make this a bit tough to achieve, but that is still very far off...)

The Week in Brief

2010-01-29T08:49:00.000-05:00

It's been a typically busy week for me, even though I've been diligently sticking to my plan and making sure this was a recovery week for my wonky legs.

As such, I've still been going to the gym lots, riding the stationary bike now and then, and after skipping Tuesday (when I would typically go out for an easy 5k or so) I walked to work and ran home. The run was not too bad, but about a kilometre and a half from Owen's school I had to stop to wait through a red light and once I started up again my right knee decided to remind me that it was not fully healed. I felt a pretty bad twinge under the kneecap and had to stop to stretch and evaluate my options. I was very close to home and considered heading there, grabbing the car and using that to pick up Owen. Instead I decided to jog as gingerly as I could.

Perhaps that was a mistake, perhaps not. I finished the 8km run and walked home, a bit chilled in the wind and rapidly cooling winter weather. The temperature has since gone totally frigid and Toronto is finally feeling like Winter has arrived.

Anyway, Thursday I didn't run, but made it to the gym for some leg weights and then rode the stationary bike in the evening. My knee feels a bit better this morning and I am planning to do an easy 5-6k on the treadmill at lunch.

Here's an early summary of my January exercise exploits to date (because I do not have the time or energy to go into it in detail). The month is rapidly coming to a close and I enjoy seeing this calendar filled up with stuff. A surprisingly good motivator!:

A Really Tough Run

2010-01-23T17:43:00.002-05:00

After my first full week of weight training I am more than a little sore, though it is a good feeling and I am glad to feel this way because it tells me things can only get better and the ceiling is way up there. Along with that comes the highest mileage week I've run since last Summer, making things even more difficult. In a month or two this will be considered a real short and easy week, but now it's a bit of a milestone.

So, when I headed out for my morning run I was not feeling so hot. My legs were sore, I had very little energy, and the wonky ankle was hurting me more than I'd like. Nevertheless, I was determined to put in a good 10k or so, no matter how slow it was.

I chose a new route just to make things interesting and ran through one of the more affluent parts of town. Although I felt totally out of place the houses and properties I saw along the way kept me distracted from my pain.

I ran a total of 10.5km at a very lethargic pace, but was happy just to have finished. The weekly total ended up at 29.5k and my body is ready for a nice recovery week. I will run just three times next week and max out at 22k before getting back to building up mileage in February, hoping for a weekly average of 30k for the month.

Tomorrow it's back to cross country skiing! And some football watching, no doubt.

A Little More Treadmill

2010-01-19T17:12:00.000-05:00

I went to the gym again at lunchtime and ran a nice and easy 5km on the treadmill. This being the day after my first leg workout, and with my hamstrings feeling a bit sore, I figured it was better to stay really conservative. So I set the speed at 6.2mph and ran for 30 minutes. I felt pretty good, all things considered, and I look forward to walking to work and running home tomorrow.

After the treadmill I did some upper body weights, again really easy and light because I don't wish to be too sore, or worse, in the first week back at weight training. The routine was pretty easy:

Bench Press 2X15 95lbs
Seated Rows 2X15 80lbs
Standing Dumbbell Shoulder Press 15-12 20lbs
Dumbbell Biceps Curls 15-12 25lbs
Cable Triceps Extensions 2X15 40lbs
Captain's Chair 2X25

That is all...

Another Full Weekend

2010-01-18T20:39:00.002-05:00

Whew! What a weekend.

Saturday: two Birthday parties to attend, one by each loin fruit. Then baseball practice for Owen. Before that I ran 9.1km to complete the week at a total of 27km. Slowly, but surely...

Sunday: Off early to cross country ski, where I managed 13km adult style, and another 2.1km with Owen after lunch (total of 15.1km of skiing, at is was fun!). We definitely were tuckered out when we got home. I spent the evening cleaning dishes, washing kids, folding laundry, and watching the Jets pull off a great upset over the Chargers. Here's hoping they can do it again next week.

Today I went to the gym to do my first leg strengthening session. It was light, short, and I got through it without too much trouble. The routine went like this:

Crunches 2X50
Captain's Chair 2X25
Dead lifts 2X15 (20lbs dumbbells)
Leg Extensions 2X15 (20lbs, 30lbs)
Squats 2X15 (10lbs per side, on the Smith Machine because the squat rack was being used)
Calf Raises 2X15 (75lbs)
Adductor thingy (1X25)

I really hope that this will eventually lead to complete recovery of my ongoing patellar tendinitis. My right leg is definitely weaker than my left, and that explains the problem I suspect. In fact, I measured the circumference of my legs and my left is almost an inch bigger than my right! Today was the first step towards balancing that out. I'd love to be able to do one-legged squats someday...

This evening I rode the stationary bike for 30 minutes and called it a day. I'm not even sure why I still ride the stationary bike on days when I don't run, seeing as I bike 20-25 minutes each way to and from work, but it seems like the right thing to do somehow. I don't count commuting as part of my fitness regimen, though I suspect it does help a little bit.

Tomorrow I am probably going to hit the treadmill for my run unless the weather is really nice. If it is nice I will instead do some upper body weights. That's the plan, anyway...

Back on the 'mill

2010-01-15T14:22:00.006-05:00

Had my first treadmill run in well over a year today, and it actually was fun! I remember dreading the treadmill, but that was when running outdoors was still a novelty. Now the novelty is the treadmill itself.

It was my first visit to the gym in well over a year as well, and now that I have a corporate membership prepaid for an entire year it will become a key part of my fitness routine. My main goal is to strengthen my legs for running, but secondary goals include strengthening my upper body and utilizing the treadmills to up my mileage.

With that in mind I hopped on and ran for a total of 30 minutes, completing 3.37 miles (or 5.4km) (works out to 5:32/km or 8:54/mile pace). It seems that all the treadmills are set up to work in miles per hour, so I will have to do the conversion to my more familiar metric units, but that doesn't bother me so much. I ran a bit of a pyramid this time, and I don't even know why, other than it was fun:

5 minutes at 6.2mph
5 minutes at 6.5mph
5 minutes at 6.8mph
5 minutes at 7.1mph
5 minutes at 7.5mph
1 minute at 7.0mph
1 minute at 6.8mph
1 minute at 6.6mph
1 minute at 6.4mph
1 minute at 6.2mph

Way more complex when it's written down than it was while I was running.

Afterwards I "familiarized myself" with some other equipment in the gym and did a few leg and upper body things that are not even worth mentioning. As I was moving around trying this and that I also realized that I don't work very well without some sort of plan. As such, I will have to devise some basic leg routines and upper body routines so that I don't walk around aimlessly wasting time wondering what to do next.

Tomorrow I have 10-12k on the books to complete, and I will run very slowly indeed. Sunday we are back at cross country skiing, this week hopefully to get more of a workout that last. Have a great weekend!

As Smoothly As Can Be Expected

2010-01-14T08:57:00.001-05:00

Here we are just a couple of weeks into aught-10 and I am already taking stock. WHA?!

OK, perhaps not taking stock so much as looking down the line and trying to figure out if I am going to be able to do what I intend for the coming year. The latest thought, of many as far as variety goes, is that I would like to average 25k/week in January, 30k/week in February, 35k/week in March, and 40k/week in April. That would lead into May where, if all goes well, I can average 45k/week, or that magical 25 miles, that I believe will prepare my body for the planned marathon training, which is due to commence in June and lead me across the finish line of my first 26.2 at the end of September.

Is it just me or is there just never enough time? When I was planning on building a good base for marathon training I was really hoping to run 25 miles per week on average for a good three months before starting training for the marathon, but given my history of injury I am hesitant to hike up the weekly mileage so aggressively.

It also doesn't help that the Internet articles, and those in running books, are all over the place when it comes to advice for building a solid base prior to marathon training. What I've described above is conservative as conservative can get, but even with that in mind I still have reservations about how my body will respond to this plan, which amounts to more running than I've ever done.

With that in mind I am still on track for another successful week. On Tuesday I made it home in time to strap on the old Garmin and such and run an easy and enjoyable 5km on my way to get Owen. Then, on Wednesday, I walked to work (6km total) and dashed out of work to run to Owen's school and a parent-teacher interview that was rescheduled since early December because the teacher was ill.

This 7.5km run was a bit frustrating. My Garmin would not lock onto any satellites and so I had to just push the start button and go or risk being late for the interview. I ran about 2km before the thing picked up a signal and then started giving me really odd readings throughout the run. Noticing that I was running a bit late I also pushed the pace a bit more than I would have liked and got there with exactly one minute to spare. However, because of the pace, my right knee was bothering me for the rest of the evening and continues to hurt today. I'm hoping that the day off will help it heal and allow me to stay on track for the next two runs, a short one on Friday and a slightly longer one on Saturday.

Also, my gym membership starts tomorrow and I may end up doing my Friday run on the treadmill! It's been over a year since I've used one and my hatred for these contraptions has been dulled by the passage of time; I actually look forward to getting on one again. That will also mean that I don't have to rely on the Garmin, which is in my doghouse at the moment for screwing me out of my prized metrics...

Of course, a large part of the reason for joining the gym was access to weight training equipment so that I can work on my legs and (hopefully) leave my patellar tendinitis issues behind me for good. I find my legs to be weak and I can't seem to get any real progress doing exercises at home.

A Weekend Packed With Accomplishments

2010-01-11T08:42:00.001-05:00

Wow, what a weekend! Sometimes it’s actually a relief to be back at work, though equally rewarding to look back and be happy with all that was accomplished.

On Saturday the first thing I did was go for a run. I wanted to go somewhere between 8 and 10k, but ended up running a bit further because I misjudged the length of the route I had decided to take. As a result I ran further than I had since last summer, a total of 12km. My pace was decent as well, even though I am not yet concerned with it and don’t pay attention to it while running. It ended up being 5:39/km (9:06/mile), which is pretty good for me at the moment. The whole thing took 1:07:58 to complete and my right knee felt pretty good as well. I was worried that running that far, when my previous longest run since my surgery and layoff was 9km, would be bad, but in the end I feel fine. Must keep doing the exercises that seem to be helping…

The rest of the day was spent driving one kid to a birthday party, taking the other one grocery shopping, dismantling the Christmas Tree and putting all of that stuff away (a surprisingly time consuming task), preparing our skiing stuff for the next day, and taking Owen to his first indoor baseball practice of the year.

On Sunday we were off just a few minutes past 8am for our first cross-country skiing trip of the year. The weather was absolutely perfect for the kids’ first lessons, and for the parents’ own jaunt on the finely groomed trails. After two hours we all met up for lunch, where tonnes of food was consumed thanks to the packing of said massive amounts by the lovely Monica. After lunch I took Malcolm out on the trails while Monica went off with Owen. Malks was so good on the trails too! He got over his fear of downhills and showed off his new gliding abilities. He was so cute! I did a total of 10km of skiing, which was a decent amount for the first of the year. More imprtantly, the knee didn't bother me at all, which means I will be able to push a bit harder on subsequent trips and actually get a great workout!

After we got home I had to work on my bike to get it ready for the week, a task that is not always pleasant, but so necessary given how grimy everything gets during the winter with all the salt that gets put down on the roads. Not sure why I’m mentioning this here, but it does feel like yet another thing that got accomplished, and my bike ride to work this morning was very smooth as a result.

Whew! What a weekend… Next weekend looks to be much the same, except BOTH kids have separate birthday parties to attend. There just simply isn’t enough time to fit everything in.

A Couple of Runs and Squeezing a Tennis Ball

2010-01-08T08:48:00.001-05:00

This week is almost at an end (well, the working week anyway) and I managed a couple of runs after skipping Tuesday's due to discomfort in my right knee (more on that later).

After walking to work on Wednesday I ran home for a total of 6.2k. It was pretty nice out, all things considered, though the city seems to be putting down way too much salt on the sidewalks for my liking, making everything all slushy and gross. My running was very slow and even because I had a pretty heavy backpack on, but overall I felt pretty good. The right knee gave me less trouble than I'd expected.

On Thursday I made it home in time to make a quick decision about fitting in another run before picking up Owen from his school. I ran a total of 6.8k and again felt pretty good. Though my pace continues to be super slow (as in right around the 6:00/km, or 9:30/mile range), I am not worrying about it right now. My focus is on listening to my body and slowly building up my weekly mileage. I really want to have a consistent year of running rather than the up and down, off and on sort of thing that happened throughout 2009.

As far as the right knee is concerned, I think I have found something that might help. As I continue to read up on all the potential causes of the dreaded "runners knee", I came across an article that talked about a potential cause that I hadn't encountered previously: lateral quad strength out of balance with medial quad strength. Everything else I'd ever read just referred to overall quad weakness as the culprit, and so I continued to work on hip flexors and glute meds, all the while completely ignoring the inner thigh. For the last couple of days I've been doing a very simple exercise that seems to be helping. I squeeze a tennis ball between my knees while in the sitting position. And let me tell you, those muscles are not very strong!

So far, the knee seems to feel better while running, but it's only been a few days. I look forward to trying other exercises for the medial quads, especially once my gym membership kicks in and I have access to all sorts of fancy equipment. I think the technical term for this motion is adduction, but I get it screwed up with abduction. Either way, I figure a little of both is in the cards. (I also look forward to having treadmills at my disposal, which will hopefully help in the process of gradually upping my mileage at a nice controlled rate.)

This weekend I have a run of between 8 and 10 kilometres on the books for Saturday, and then we are off to cross-country skiing for Sunday. Looking forward to both!

The Beginnings

2010-01-06T08:59:00.003-05:00

I have been more than a little lax in keeping up with this blog, and I hope that this does not signal the beginning of the end because I am just as committed to running as I've ever been. My time, however, seems to be more scarce than ever before and so I have trouble working up the energy to fire up the computer to write something about my running travails.

That being said, I do have a few things that I should record on this little thing. First, I have been running and listening to my body. Six days into the year and at least I've made it that far without breaking that resolution! Case in point, yesterday I skipped my run because my right knee was bugging me. The fact that it was snowing and more than a bit windy helped in the decision making process, but I'm confident that I would have stayed home even if it had been perfect weather for running. Instead I did some stretching and hip flexor/core strength exercises, then rode the stationary bike for 30 minutes while watching the World Junior Hockey final. (Great game, BTW, and a big kudos to the team from the USA who coughed up a two goal lead with three minutes to play, but still won it in overtime.)

Today, I walked to work and am going to run home the 6 or so kilometres nice and easy. The knee problem has been a persistent pest for a good year now, off and on, and I am really hoping that I find a solution soon. I continue to work on my glute and hip flexor strength, but now I am also thinking that my quads are weak. When I look at my legs in the mirror and tighten the muscles (bringing the kneecaps up, just so you can picture it) I notice a significant difference in the size of the Vastus Intermedius on the left as compared to the right. That's the muscle right in the middle of the quad, and I'm guessing this might have something to do with it. I plan on correcting this problem as fast as is safely possible. My new gym membership starts in a couple of weeks, so that will give me access to all sorts of equipment to aid in this endeavor, but until then I will be refocusing on stretching and strengthening at home.

Also, we are starting our annual weekend cross-country skiing trips this coming weekend with the boys. They will be taking two hour lessons on their own this year, and this will give Monica and I a chance to ski on our own. I am very much looking forward to it since it is a lot of fun and an awesome workout as well! The next eight Sundays in a row, at the very least, will be dedicated to hitting the trails and so my weekend run will be confined to Saturdays.

I guess that's enough for now. Will try to rededicate myself to maintaining this blog as it does help in the motivation department. Here's hoping!

Good Bye 2009 - Hello 2010!

2009-12-31T13:02:00.003-05:00

A brief review of my year in running tells me that there's only one way to describe it: Up and Down...

Up: Ran four races, ranging in distance from 5k to 30k and achieved my goal of breaking 45 minutes in the 10k.

Down: Had to pull out of the planned Fall marathon due to injury.

For totals, I came up just shy of 1000km for mileage, achieving 975.5km with today's 9km run. A cursory look at my training log and I should be happy with this result, and I am.

As far as 2010 goals go I have just one major one: LISTEN TO MY BODY! If I can do this I shouldn't have to take any major time off at any point. All other goals are secondary, but a first marathon in the Fall is up high on my list.

So, here's hoping 2010 is the best running year ever for everyone, and most importantly that it brings health, prosperity, and happiness to you and yours.

See you on the flip side!!!

Happy Holidays!!!

2009-12-24T14:35:00.003-05:00

May the Holidays bring everyone all that they desire, and most importantly health and happiness. And may 2010 be the best running year EVER!!!

All the best!

Vava