So… I talked myself out of it…

And then ran anyway…

Distance: 6.5(ish)

Time: 1:00

Splits: 9:20 (ish)

I hadn’t planned on going that far today.  Tomorrow is my long day and I hope I didn’t put too much into it today… we’ll see.  The group actually runs for an hour on Saturday.  I guess we just went short last Saturday (40 minutes).  There was actually somebody there faster than me this time (not that difficult to do!) but he was nice enough to run with me for a while.  I tried to push the pace a bit and then just turned him loose at the halfway point and let him go.  I was puffing too much to talk and he wasn’t even breathing hard so I knew he could go faster.  I appreciated his effort to humor me and run with me though.

From now on, I think any time I go over 45 minutes I am going to bring water and a Hammer Gel (or something like it).  It makes such a noticeable difference in the last half of my runs to get that little spurt of calories and not be cramping up or hurting because I didn’t drink enough.

Today was good, though.  Nice run, nice people, pretty day.  I’ll take that!  Tomorrow is 10 miles!!!  Another psychological barrier for me.

Weakness(es) exposed

I was at a conference for the last 3 days and I unfortunately only got to run on one of those days. Partly due to scheduling and partly due to laziness. The one day I did run I did the 5K course around the resort which, although beautiful, was very hilly. It is some of the steepest hills I have run since I started all this again and my legs were not happy with it. I forced myself to use the hotel stairs as much as I could, just to work out all the lactic acid that I could feel in my legs… blech…

Not only did I commit the deadly sin of sloth while I was at the conference, I did a bit of gluttony, too. I didn’t eat horribly bad, but I did eat worse than usual and more than usual. It’s just really difficult sometimes to fit it all in when you are working a crazy conference schedule. I know… I know… Discipline. Yeah… well… it’s a weakness… I’m working on it… I have a long list of others and it hasn’t made it to the top yet… *sigh*

Taking food with me is really not an option and I don’t have time to run out and buy/prepare food at a conference in a hotel room. I usually don’t even have a car. I’m just glad “conference season” is over for this year. I may still have to travel, but not nearly as often and I won’t have to stay as long. I’m hoping I didn’t do too much damage… Hopefully an extra mile here or there over the next month will help balance things out…!

Anyway, today is a slow group run (no… really… the group is SLOW… mostly walkers) so maybe that will get me back into it. If nothing else, maybe I can get in a bit of a run before the rains come. It’s monsoon season in central Missouri. Think “puddles everywhere, soggy shoes and good old midwest clay soil… on everything you own…”

And I feel bad… but not too bad…

I eat when I’m bored.  Or stressed.  Which is not a good thing when I am 1.) Not running today (planned day off) so I have extra time and, 2.) Staring down the barrel of a 3 day conference in which I will present 3 topics that have never been presented before… to the most technically savvy audience of the year.

That said… I want junk food…  Lots of it… and beer to wash it all down with.

That’s the emotional side of it.

The rational side of me politely accepted the sausage biscuit I was given this morning (after repeated requests not to be included in the sausage biscuit list) and promptly slid it into the trash can.  I feel bad… but not too bad…

And I sit here and stare at the cookies and other crap that were brought in by those who are “just trying to help” and  know that, unless someone eats them, they will rot because I won’t touch them.  And I feel bad… but not too bad…

But there are those times, rarely, when I will bend to the call of my favorite alcoholic beverage or succumb to the call of a cookie and I know that, because I am working out regularly and eating better, that this is OK…  And I will feel bad… but not TOO bad…

Better “Day After the Long Run” Result

Mileage: 3

Time: 27:30

Nothing spectacular today. Although I did feel much better than I thought I would after my 8 miler yesterday. Stiff at first but I kept an easy pace and stepped on the gas on the uphills, then coasted the downs. I’m happy that I’m not sore. After the week before last where I hurt for 2 days after the run, I was kinda worried. I think staying hydrated and having a little shot of something (Gu, Hammer gel, etc.) really helped me during the run and also in the recovery.

Taking a day off tomorrow to give my legs a break. Oh… and in one of those “decadent indulgences” I was speaking about before, I couldn’t resist at the store while I was standing in line so I got a Coke Zero… sigh… I love those things… I’m sure the carbonation will make me bloat up or cramp or something… but I don’t care. It’s been so long since I had anything carbonated I think I’ve forgotten how to belch… Time to go practice!

Yer killin’ me…

I have known all along that if I put in the miles and train right, I would be able to eventually run a marathon.  What I have had my doubts about all along is my ability to handle the “dinner table discipline”.  Since I have decided that this is a lifestyle change, not a diet, I have set “standards for acceptable behavior” to live by.  These are nowhere near as strict as some diets but are much easier to maintain over the long haul.  There is no punishment for a slip up or french fry every now and then.  However, my standards are that every now and then needs to be a RARE event (once a month), not once a day (instead of 3…!).  Yes, I have to eat much better in order to lose weight and be healthy, but I also still have to LIVE and have fun every once in a while.  There is nothing wrong with this and it keeps me, mentally, from loathing the whole fitness kick because I can never do anything fun involving food.

But leave it to my wonderful friends to make a sport of tempting me and testing my will power.  I was sitting at my desk this morning when my buddy comes in and plops a bag of chocolate chip cookies and a bag of chocolate dipped pretzel sticks down in front of me with a HUGE grin on his face… rotten, stinking, rat bastard…  Apparently his 16 year old daughter heard that I was training for a marathon and wanted to do something to “help”.  He gleefully encouraged her… of course.  And then there is the other buddy who has a keg of beer at his house all the time and is always looking for people to help him float it.  GEEZE!  This is like living in a minefield!  Everywhere I turn there is junk food and other crap I can’t eat and TONS of people who are “just trying to help”.  They say things like “Training for a marathon?  Well… with all those miles yer runnin’, you can eat just about anything!  Here!  Have a deep fried, bacon wrapped, lard coated potato ball!”  “Oh… and aunt Matilda says they taste better with this cheesy mayo dip…”

…gah…

Low and slow

Distance: 8 miles

Time: 1:17:00

As I took off this morning to head out for my LSD (long, slow distance) day, a couple of thoughts popped into my head. I drove past a couple of trails I usually run and for the first time thought… “ya know… these trails just aren’t long enough any more…” Now, considering that 6 months ago I was certain I would never be able to go end to end on any of them… that’s quite a change in thinking. Then I started thinking about that lying, evil, sadistic, rat bastard scale of mine. I think it’s time to just kick it back under the sink and forget about it for a while. I need to enjoy running and the fact that my pants don’t fit anymore because they are too loose. Just revel in the success for a bit. I’ll go back to obsessing about it later.

I took a fanny pack with water and a gel pack this time and what a huge difference. I forced myself to drink (it’ll take practice but I think I can make it work) every mile and I took half the gel pack at 2 miles and the other half at 6 miles. I could FEEL it working on my legs. It was a Hammer Gel pack. I will be using them on any run over 6 miles from now on. To finish my longest run in 11 years (you are going to be hearing that a lot…) with a little gas left in the tank was a new experience for me and one I would like to experience more of!

I felt so good, in fact, that I REALLY had to fight the urge to add more miles. I think I could have easily gone 10 miles today and I really had to resist my desire to push. I felt kinda wimpy for not pushing but I have a program, durn it, and I need to stick to it. I’ve been reading a lot about how overtraining early on can lead to injury later and I’m trying to avoid that… but I really wanna…!

This week will be a bit lighter on the mileage and I will have to cram my runs in around a conference I am presenting at, so it should be fun to try and squeeze it all in… I think… or at least that’s what I’ll tell myself anyway…

Beautiful morning

Distance: 3.5 miles

Time: 36:00

Went down this morning to run with a group that is just getting started in Columbia called The Starting Block.  The Columbia Multisport Club hosts an informal group run on Saturday mornings.  Of course, the Columbia Track Club also hosts a run about an hour before these guys but it is for a different group.  I was, by far, the fastest runner there except for the triathlete that was our leader (and I am WAY slow) and most people just walked.  In the other group, I would definitely be the slowest and most people run in the 6-7 minute range (for about 12 miles), which, although a dream of mine… ain’t gonna happen anytime soon.  So I just ran slow with the group for a mile or so and then picked up the pace and finished my run.  I’m sure that as the group grows there will be more runners as well and everyone was nice, so I will go back.

The run itself was beautiful.  Slight mist in some places but the sun shining through the trees in one spot on a little creek cascading over the rocks mesmerized me so much that I nearly crashed into a park bench while staring at it.  Coaches note:  Keep nose and toes going in same direction while running…

I know that I am going to have to start doing more runs in the mornings as the temperatures heat up.  I cannot run in the heat.  I wilt and lose so much water that I dehydrate.  I just can’t drink enough to keep up.  The only way to defeat this is run early or late, which, around here, can mean 9:00pm and I just can’t run that late.  So I am slowly changing over to morning runs as much as I can.

After tomorrow’s 8 miler I am going to start looking for a 10K to run.  It seems this area is abundant in 5Ks and half marathons, but not many 10Ks so I may have to dig for one.  I really don’t want to travel too far, but if I have to, no biggie.

Better times and crunchy knees

Mileage: 4.6

Time: 42:23

I’m a bit out of sync with my posts so I”m trying to catch up here.

I didn’t get to run in the rain (it stopped about an hour before I got off work) but the good news is that I ran this route almost 5 minutes faster than the last time I did it! It’s a loop around a big park on the side of a big hill. It’s really pretty but there is a hill on the backside that seems much longer than it really is. I really worked on keeping my cadence the same and using my arms more on the ups. I think this is really helping on my hill workouts.

My legs still felt a bit sluggish, and in odd places, like the high outsides of both thighs, but the achy pain in my shins and knees was gone. I’ve heard a lot of talk about Glucosamine, both positive and negative. I started taking it over a year ago when I started running again. I would finish my run and then walk up stairs and my knees sounded like I was stepping on crackers. It was nasty… I never have had any pain from it… it just sounds bad. What I do notice though is that when I take the glucosamine, this gets much better. The crunch is still there but nowhere near as loud. Most of the stuff I’ve read about it says that it only helps if you have a severe problem… *sigh* Add it to my list of ills… This stuff helps though, so I’m going to keep taking it until somebody tells me it will make my (insert body part here) fall off or make me sprout a third eye… whatever…

Tomorrow, if I can get my sad, saggy butt up early enough, there is a group run at one of the local shops. They say it’s “all times and ability levels”, so I might be able to find somebody slow enough to run with me… Otherwise, it’s another opportunity to meet people so what the heck. If I run 3.4 or longer tomorrow and then 8 on Sunday I will hit the magic 30 mile mark for the week…!

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Idiot’s note: I can’t add… I think I actually only need to go 2 miles tomorrow and then 8 on Sunday to hit 30. Since I will probably go at least 4 tomorrow, it’s all good. I’ll pull out the abacus on Sunday if I live through the 8 miler… heh!

Zee-Row (and a test of will power)

Yesterday’s mileage: 0 (and I have no guilt…!)

I still felt kinda sore yesterday afternoon so any stupid thoughts I had of running anyway went away pretty quick.  After taking the boy to a class at the library we came home and for some reason I was completely exhausted.  I was barely able to stay awake past 8:30 and finally just gave up and went to bed about 8:45.  Although I woke up early and I’m a bit groggy, I think I feel better.

It’s pouring down rain right now and the forcast calls for more, but I am going to try to get my run on this afternoon after work.  There is a 4.6 mile route around a local park that is all concrete bike path so the water shouldn’t be an issue.  The best news is that I pulled out my Gore-Tex running windbreaker (the one I bought for the LA Marathon over 11 years ago but never wore) for the St. Patty’s Day race and it actually FIT!  I was so excited.  Now granted it was a bit tight but that will get better.  I’m just glad to be able to wear it because this means I can run in the rain!  I know… sick… but I think it’s fun (as long as it’s not cold!) and today is supposed to be about 70 so I’m actually kinda hoping it DOES rain.  I’m so weird…

I’m wondering, based on my discussion with myself night before last, how on earth I am going to be able to cut back my calories enough to both lose weight quicker and still have enough fuel in the tank to run these increased miles.  Does it really matter?  Will the extra miles take more weight off?  Do I need to shave portion sizes and change what I eat even more?  My will power seems to be holding (I was offered a thick, gooey cinnamon roll this morning, given a McDonald’s sausage biscuit which I politely refused AND invited out for beers this evening by some work buddies… which I painfully and tearfully turned down as well) but I’m just not real good at analyzing my food.  I usually eat it and THEN say “wait… was that good for me?”  Ah, well.  Lot’s to learn and re-learn… sigh…

Casting Shadows

I had a tough time sleeping last night so I had some quality time to spend with what’s left of my brain.  It’s times like these that are dangerous for me because I have a negative streak that I try to keep buried but it seems to surface from time to time, usually when nobody else is around.

Last night this shadow caster was fully awake with me and got me pretty depressed.  I keep saying that I need to be at or below 170 pounds.  Well me and the shadow caster did the math last night and for that to happen, I need to lose just over 5 pounds A WEEK for the next 6 months.  Considering the fact that I barely lost 40 pounds all of last YEAR… I now have my doubts firmly in place.  It’s not going to deter me in any way, but it brought me down a bit.  I know that increasing my mileage up towards marathon distance should help.  I should top out at or near 30 miles this week (A NEW RECORD!) and by the time I hit marathon central I should be almost twice that.  But I just don’t know if, even if I’m a good little boy at the dinner table, it will be enough to get me to the line by October.

I know, I know… I have said that the most important thing is weight loss and fitness, so  if I am at 175 in October I wouldn’t necessarily call that a loss, but it would be frustrating.  Just another reason to secretly kick myself for letting me get in this condition in the first place.

No matter, though.  I can only do what I can do each day.  Today, I give my legs a break and rest.  I need to run just short of 9 miles on Friday and Saturday combined so that with my 8 miles on Sunday I hit 30 for the week.  I need to focus on that right now and then fight my urge to go on a depression binge at the Pizza Hut buffet line…!