Fantastic is the best way to describe today's run. Since I've been feeling stronger lately, it was time to really test myself. I started at the Art Museum and ran to Strawberry Mansion Avenue and back. To date, my longest run was 4 miles on Monday. This one was 5.5 miles. Hopefully in a couple months I'll be laughing at how short and easy it was, but right now this is a big accomplishment.
I started off strong. I was a little worried because my hip was tight early on, but it got better as I ran. There are too long stretches of stone to run on during this session and that was a big help in cushioning the pounding that my knee took. The second area of stone was tricky because of the way it drains, it forms hills. It was still helpful though.
One thing that always worries me are all the geese out there. When I was passing a walker, a goose started running towards me a couple steps. I paused and it stopped and I kept going. I'm not really sure why it came towards me. Later on, I ran in between about 20 of them. They aren't too bothered by runners I guess, but I just never know. I'm especially concerned because some of them have babies this time of year and might protect them.
I was very surprised at how well this run went, especially after the halfway point. Shortly after turning around and heading home, I became tired and felt sluggish. My feet began dragging. I concentrated on keeping good form though. I also started using all the bridges that run overhead as intervals, telling myself "take it one bridge at a time."
I felt some minor soreness in my leg as I came towards the end of the run. More than that though, the long distance was wearing me down. I began thinking that I'd probably be able to finish, but the end of the run was really just junk miles.
Then I got to boathouse row and saw a slow female runner a few hundred yards ahead. I wanted to pass her before the end of boathouse row and I was able to do just that. It's amazing how much a runner up ahead like that can cause you to pickup your pace. When I pushed it the soreness and tiredness were forgotten. That was the start of my strongest finish yet.
Right after passing her, I started heading up big hill on the side of the Art Museum. This was the final hurdle in this long run. Getting up the hill was a little tough, but for whatever reason I was just made to run hills. I guess a lot of people probably slow down and tire easily going uphill. I do the opposite, I push harder and get up it much faster. I'm not really sure what causes that, but I've always excelled on hills. I actually slowed down a lot after I reached flat ground again. I then finished the final few hundred years in sprint mode.
It was great to not only run far, but really push myself at the end too. My knee is really starting to bother me less and less. I think the gradual buildup combined with some good stretching is really helping. Actually, the one thing that was sore today oddly enough was my right arm. I'm not sure why that was the case, but I had to stretch it out a bit. Of course now that I'm done running, just about every muscle is sore sitting around here.
I'm really starting to look seriously into running a marathon. I checked out the Philadelphia Marathon website yesterday to see some of the basics. I also read the first two chapters in a marathon training book that I had. If my knee can hold up and I can get up to doing 10+ mile runs within the next two months, I'm going to give the marathon a go. The Philly one would work out good because it is in late November so I'd have a lot of time to prepare. I can't believe how far the course actually goes. It would be a tough challenge, but it's something I definitely want to do.
Tomorrow and Sunday will be relaxing off days. I think I'll do some shorter runs on Monday and Tuesday. I'll likely jump on the bike on Wednesday and do some speedwork on Thursday. I'm now approaching my sixth week of running and I'm very happy with the progress I'm making. Let's hope it stays that way.
Friday, May 29, 2009
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Back on the Bike
Today was an easy ride of about 7 miles on the bike. It felt weird because I hadn't been on it in over a week. I thought the weather was perfect when I first got on, but it actually turned out to be quite windy. The wind wasn't strong enough to have a big impact on my ride though. It just made me a little uncomfortable.
I rode to Strawberry Mansion Avenue and back. This is where I hope to do a long run tomorrow. The ride was easy and I didn't tire myself out. At the same time, I still did sweat quite a bit and got a decent workout.
One of the nice things is that the weather hasn't been outstanding in Philly yet. It was only the low 70s today. That's great because when it gets too warm, boathouse row is really crowded. I was able to cruise through that area at full speed today.
The other good thing thus far is that I haven't skipped any workouts due to laziness. That was always a past problem that I had. Weather and other factors have caused me to change my mind on a couple occasions and give myself more rest, but I haven't done it simply because I was lazy and didn't feel like heading out. Those skipped runs are really what held me back in the past when I did run. I always had unused potential because of those days.
As I said, tomorrow is a long run, followed by two rest days. Next week will include a speedwork session. Hopefully, two weeks will be a road race.
I rode to Strawberry Mansion Avenue and back. This is where I hope to do a long run tomorrow. The ride was easy and I didn't tire myself out. At the same time, I still did sweat quite a bit and got a decent workout.
One of the nice things is that the weather hasn't been outstanding in Philly yet. It was only the low 70s today. That's great because when it gets too warm, boathouse row is really crowded. I was able to cruise through that area at full speed today.
The other good thing thus far is that I haven't skipped any workouts due to laziness. That was always a past problem that I had. Weather and other factors have caused me to change my mind on a couple occasions and give myself more rest, but I haven't done it simply because I was lazy and didn't feel like heading out. Those skipped runs are really what held me back in the past when I did run. I always had unused potential because of those days.
As I said, tomorrow is a long run, followed by two rest days. Next week will include a speedwork session. Hopefully, two weeks will be a road race.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Pulling Back
I made today's run short and easy. I started at Lloyd Hall on Boat House row and ran south to do the Walnut Street loop. On the way back, I finished up after the train bridge behind 30th street station. It was probably less than a 2 mile run.
The weather was terrible on Tuesday so I took the day off rather than biking. It was cold, rainy and windy and wasn't worth the short ride that I was planning on. I wanted to stick with a short run today and that definitely became the case when I started out sluggish.
I did more running last week and Monday than I had previously done and it was starting to take its toll on me. My legs were really sore for the first half mile and I was slow. Although I still plan on a 5 or 6 mile run on Friday, it is time to stick with some more biking and short runs in between my long runs. I don't want to wear myself out too early on.
I still certainly have plenty of energy and desire. I'm looking into running my first road race (probably a 5-K) when I go to my parents house on Father's Day weekend. It'll be a good way to gauge where I'm at from a speed perspective. I haven't run a race in years and I'm eager to see what I can do.
I'm continuing to think long term too. My goal is obviously just to run the half marathon next year faster than I did in 2000, but I'm really starting to think about a full marathon too. I can't seriously consider that though until I'm able to at least comfortably run 10 miles when I go out. I'd love to complete a marathon sometime and even better would be to qualify for and run the Boston Marathon.
Anyways, back to reality and the world of my short runs. Tomorrow will definitely be a bike ride. Friday I'll be trying to complete a 5 or 6 mile run.
The weather was terrible on Tuesday so I took the day off rather than biking. It was cold, rainy and windy and wasn't worth the short ride that I was planning on. I wanted to stick with a short run today and that definitely became the case when I started out sluggish.
I did more running last week and Monday than I had previously done and it was starting to take its toll on me. My legs were really sore for the first half mile and I was slow. Although I still plan on a 5 or 6 mile run on Friday, it is time to stick with some more biking and short runs in between my long runs. I don't want to wear myself out too early on.
I still certainly have plenty of energy and desire. I'm looking into running my first road race (probably a 5-K) when I go to my parents house on Father's Day weekend. It'll be a good way to gauge where I'm at from a speed perspective. I haven't run a race in years and I'm eager to see what I can do.
I'm continuing to think long term too. My goal is obviously just to run the half marathon next year faster than I did in 2000, but I'm really starting to think about a full marathon too. I can't seriously consider that though until I'm able to at least comfortably run 10 miles when I go out. I'd love to complete a marathon sometime and even better would be to qualify for and run the Boston Marathon.
Anyways, back to reality and the world of my short runs. Tomorrow will definitely be a bike ride. Friday I'll be trying to complete a 5 or 6 mile run.
Monday, May 25, 2009
Back Home Again
Not in Indiana, but instead in Nazareth. After a long and fun weekend in Indianapolis, it was back to Pennsylvania. I didn't run on race day so I decided on a long run today (Memorial Day). I went back to an old 4 mile loop that I used to run all the time a decade ago.
This route used to be an easy day for me when I was at my peak. I was able to finish it today and it's the first time I've definitely run 4 miles or more since I started running 5 weeks ago. When I started off today, my goal was to finish this run, but I figured I'd probably fall short.
The course is much more hilly than what I'm used to in Philadelphia. There are plenty of hills in my hometown, but not much in the City of Brotherly Love. I was never fast on flat surfaces, but I used to be outstanding making up time on the hills.
I really thought the hills would bother my knee injury and just wear me down in general. That didn't happen until near the end of the run though. Going uphill did bother my knee some, but I battled through it and it never got too sore. I am definitely building up strength in my knee and the stretching I'm doing seems to be happening soon. The cool weather late in the evening helped too.
It is interesting how some days play out. In the past few weeks, I felt great early on in runs but couldn't finish. Today, I was sluggish at the start, but got through it and ran pretty well. I tried to just keep up good solid form during the entire run, especially when going uphill. Although, I was dead at the end, I still could've actually pushed harder. My goal was to just finish the run though. I didn't keep my time, but I think I would've clocked pretty well too.
One of the interesting parts of the run was that I ran into two bugs that almost derailed my run. The first one flew right in my eye about halfway through. I managed to get to the point where it didn't irritate me anymore. Towards the end, a bug flew in my mouth and caused me to cough. I've certainly come across bugs from time to time, but it doesn't happen that often and I don't think I've ever had that happen twice on the same run.
I have run a lot over the last week, so tomorrow it's time to get back on the bike. I'll likely do a short ride then and follow it up with a short run on Wednesday. I'd like to try to run 5 or 6 miles on Friday. Some rest and time on the bike this week will be a key to being able to do that though. I'm really happy with progress I've made in these first five weeks. Now, I just have to keep it up.
This route used to be an easy day for me when I was at my peak. I was able to finish it today and it's the first time I've definitely run 4 miles or more since I started running 5 weeks ago. When I started off today, my goal was to finish this run, but I figured I'd probably fall short.
The course is much more hilly than what I'm used to in Philadelphia. There are plenty of hills in my hometown, but not much in the City of Brotherly Love. I was never fast on flat surfaces, but I used to be outstanding making up time on the hills.
I really thought the hills would bother my knee injury and just wear me down in general. That didn't happen until near the end of the run though. Going uphill did bother my knee some, but I battled through it and it never got too sore. I am definitely building up strength in my knee and the stretching I'm doing seems to be happening soon. The cool weather late in the evening helped too.
It is interesting how some days play out. In the past few weeks, I felt great early on in runs but couldn't finish. Today, I was sluggish at the start, but got through it and ran pretty well. I tried to just keep up good solid form during the entire run, especially when going uphill. Although, I was dead at the end, I still could've actually pushed harder. My goal was to just finish the run though. I didn't keep my time, but I think I would've clocked pretty well too.
One of the interesting parts of the run was that I ran into two bugs that almost derailed my run. The first one flew right in my eye about halfway through. I managed to get to the point where it didn't irritate me anymore. Towards the end, a bug flew in my mouth and caused me to cough. I've certainly come across bugs from time to time, but it doesn't happen that often and I don't think I've ever had that happen twice on the same run.
I have run a lot over the last week, so tomorrow it's time to get back on the bike. I'll likely do a short ride then and follow it up with a short run on Wednesday. I'd like to try to run 5 or 6 miles on Friday. Some rest and time on the bike this week will be a key to being able to do that though. I'm really happy with progress I've made in these first five weeks. Now, I just have to keep it up.
Indy Run #2 (May 23rd)
Of course today was another interesting run at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. I started off with a goal to run around the outside of the track. I knew this would be tough since there isn't a clear cut way around the backstretch. I didn't complete the run in its entirety, but I surprised myself with how much I did accomplish.
Even though I didn't complete the full lap, I still managed to run about somewhere between 3 and 3.5 miles. Even though it was still in the 80s today, the start wasn't nearly as bad. It was hot, but most of the front straightaway bleachers covered me in the first half of the run. That combined with a nice breeze made for an excellent start.
After going past turn two and into the backstretch, I encountered the expected problem of no direct route around the back of the track. I made a left at the first road I could. That took me through a neighborhood before hitting a dead end. I had to go further around the track then. After running through a shopping center parking lot, I decided to give up. I thought I was closer to the track than I actually was.
I had about a mile walk back from my stopping point. That was difficult in the blazing sun after a long run. The heat wasn't a problem early on, but really took its toll in the later portion of the run. It was also tricky today because I ran on many different surfaces. I started off on smooth sidewalk. I ran some on the grass. I also went over some deteriorated asphalt in the neighborhood behind the speedway. My knee was sore at times, but it is definitely getting stronger.
I didn't complete the goal set run, but that's mainly because I didn't really know where I was going. Today was definitely one of my furthest runs to date. All that and it was one of hottest days I've run too. I'm really starting to make progress. Taking a day off in between runs was a big help this weekend too.
Tomorrow is race day and then we're traveling back home. It's likely that that will be another rest day. On Monday, I'll be back at my parents house. The goal is to attempt to run the old 4 mile loop that I used to do in HS and early college years. That'll be a challenge though because there are more hills back there than I'm used to. I'm looking forward to it though. Of course, I'm much more excited about the race tomorrow though.
Even though I didn't complete the full lap, I still managed to run about somewhere between 3 and 3.5 miles. Even though it was still in the 80s today, the start wasn't nearly as bad. It was hot, but most of the front straightaway bleachers covered me in the first half of the run. That combined with a nice breeze made for an excellent start.
After going past turn two and into the backstretch, I encountered the expected problem of no direct route around the back of the track. I made a left at the first road I could. That took me through a neighborhood before hitting a dead end. I had to go further around the track then. After running through a shopping center parking lot, I decided to give up. I thought I was closer to the track than I actually was.
I had about a mile walk back from my stopping point. That was difficult in the blazing sun after a long run. The heat wasn't a problem early on, but really took its toll in the later portion of the run. It was also tricky today because I ran on many different surfaces. I started off on smooth sidewalk. I ran some on the grass. I also went over some deteriorated asphalt in the neighborhood behind the speedway. My knee was sore at times, but it is definitely getting stronger.
I didn't complete the goal set run, but that's mainly because I didn't really know where I was going. Today was definitely one of my furthest runs to date. All that and it was one of hottest days I've run too. I'm really starting to make progress. Taking a day off in between runs was a big help this weekend too.
Tomorrow is race day and then we're traveling back home. It's likely that that will be another rest day. On Monday, I'll be back at my parents house. The goal is to attempt to run the old 4 mile loop that I used to do in HS and early college years. That'll be a challenge though because there are more hills back there than I'm used to. I'm looking forward to it though. Of course, I'm much more excited about the race tomorrow though.
Indy Run #1 (May 21st)
Today was an interesting run. It's not everyday that you get to run by the greatest auto racing circuit in the country. I started off running down the smooth sidewalk in front of the front straight away at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The straightaway itself is nearly a mile long. After that, I turned and went to the church that I'll be going to on Saturday or Sunday.
When I started off, my hamstring was tight. It loosen as I ran though. Even though it was 80 degrees, there was a nice breeze in my face along front stretch. When I turned right though, things changed dramatically. It suddenly became very hot. It's been rather cool back home and this high temperature and humidity (even at 6 PM) was tough to handle.
I drank a bottle of water about half an hour before starting my run, but even so I was still dehydrated within the first mile. The heat really took its toll as I hit the church, but I pushed on and back to the campsite. I made it to the edge of our camping area, but couldn't make it all the way to our camper.
The heat really destroyed me and of course I felt it even more after I was done running. My knee was a little sore too, but I ran through it without any real problems. The hard concrete sidewalks really gave my knees a pounding. I managed to survive that and the blazing heat too. I end up running about 2.6 miles total. Not great, but not too bad either considering the circumstances.
After how difficult today was, I'll probably take tomorrow off. There's no activity on the track on Saturday, so I'll likely run at some point then. Today I ran the opposite direction as my track workout two days ago. Not sure if that really reduced stress on my leg or not. Regardless, I'm probably going to run the normal direction Saturday. I want to run on the outside of the 2.5 mile track. Sunday will be a race and travel day too so I'll likely rest then as well. That'll allow me to really push it on Saturday. All in all, it was a very productive day.
When I started off, my hamstring was tight. It loosen as I ran though. Even though it was 80 degrees, there was a nice breeze in my face along front stretch. When I turned right though, things changed dramatically. It suddenly became very hot. It's been rather cool back home and this high temperature and humidity (even at 6 PM) was tough to handle.
I drank a bottle of water about half an hour before starting my run, but even so I was still dehydrated within the first mile. The heat really took its toll as I hit the church, but I pushed on and back to the campsite. I made it to the edge of our camping area, but couldn't make it all the way to our camper.
The heat really destroyed me and of course I felt it even more after I was done running. My knee was a little sore too, but I ran through it without any real problems. The hard concrete sidewalks really gave my knees a pounding. I managed to survive that and the blazing heat too. I end up running about 2.6 miles total. Not great, but not too bad either considering the circumstances.
After how difficult today was, I'll probably take tomorrow off. There's no activity on the track on Saturday, so I'll likely run at some point then. Today I ran the opposite direction as my track workout two days ago. Not sure if that really reduced stress on my leg or not. Regardless, I'm probably going to run the normal direction Saturday. I want to run on the outside of the 2.5 mile track. Sunday will be a race and travel day too so I'll likely rest then as well. That'll allow me to really push it on Saturday. All in all, it was a very productive day.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Disappointing Day
Today was a disappointing workout to say the least. The plan was to do an easy two miles around the neighborhood after a tough track day yesterday. I don't even think I made it to the 3/4 mile mark before my knee was acting up. I guess I should've just taken the day off.
I probably would've taken off if I felt sore while walking around the house in the morning. I felt good though. The soreness didn't take affect until I started running. I knew early on it would be difficult because my legs didn't feel like they had much in them.
The neighborhood roads haven't been paved in years and that made for a rough surface. What really messed with me though was the circle at the end of the block. I ran it in the same direction as I ran around the track yesterday and that really bothered my knee. After that, I made it a little farther, but elected to stop before a hill.
It was disappointing, but I'm also glad I didn't push it. Hopefully I saved enough to run tomorrow and Friday. It would be good to get on the bike, but I'm not taking one with me to Indianapolis. I think I might try to run in the opposite direction out there, if I elect to run around the speedway. It should be a great weekend of auto racing and maybe I can get some good runs in.
I probably would've taken off if I felt sore while walking around the house in the morning. I felt good though. The soreness didn't take affect until I started running. I knew early on it would be difficult because my legs didn't feel like they had much in them.
The neighborhood roads haven't been paved in years and that made for a rough surface. What really messed with me though was the circle at the end of the block. I ran it in the same direction as I ran around the track yesterday and that really bothered my knee. After that, I made it a little farther, but elected to stop before a hill.
It was disappointing, but I'm also glad I didn't push it. Hopefully I saved enough to run tomorrow and Friday. It would be good to get on the bike, but I'm not taking one with me to Indianapolis. I think I might try to run in the opposite direction out there, if I elect to run around the speedway. It should be a great weekend of auto racing and maybe I can get some good runs in.
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