Monday 8/23 -- Monday Mistake!

I knew that I needed rest as soon as I woke up, but the desire to run won out over all logical arguments that opposed it.  I went to what I thought was going to be Plycore class but found out that classes would be canceled for the week due to the gym refurbishing.  Several members from class had decided to show up anyway and planned to do their own class in areas that were still open.  They began with a 2.67 mile capitol run, which I joined.  I felt good for about the first mile, but right after the mile marker my tank hit empty.  I quickly fell behind but was able to keep running.  The next mile was difficult and my achillies were starting to flare up.  The wise thing would have been to stop and walk, but I've never been one to embrace wisdom once I am determined to do something, and by the end of mile two I was determined that I would not give into the fatigue I felt in my legs.  My quads felt like they were made of lead, but I was able to gut out the last bit of the run.  After retuning to the gym, I just showed my face to the class long enough to prevent them sending out a search party then I went and did a good bit of stretching in hopes of easing the discomfort in my achilles.  However, the stretching didn't really do much so I resolved to start taking some Naproxin and rest up over the next two days before deciding what to do next to get past the issues surrounding my achilles.

Sun Aug. 22 Post Race Recovery.

I felt fairly good after my race, but my energy level was really low.  My body had been pushed pretty hard, and I was feeling proud.  However, I couldn't stop thinking about my next race, which is on Oct. 9th, it seems so far away, but it is really right around the corner.  I am not sure what my official goal for that race will be yet.  I will more than likely wait until about a week before the race to set my official goal.  However, I all ready have an idea of where I would like to be for that race, but I need to see how much preparations I can get in before hand.  The achilles is still a big concern, which needs to be resolved quickly.  I also noticed that I had strained a tendon on the top of my foot that was giving me some pain primarily when I was going down stairs, but I knew that it was nothing more than a very mild strain and would work itself out. 

I decided that it would be best if I just did a good stretching session and rest up for Mondays class.  I didn't realize that the Y would having the floors resurfaced the next week, so all of the classes were canceled, but more about that later . . . I have noticed a pretty significant increase in my flexibility over the last few weeks, which is a good sign in my book.

Good Omen: White Deer Dash 5k

I knew that the race would go well for me when the handed me my bib: #29!  I went to look over the course and pick up my packet on Friday before the race.  The course looked pretty good.  It seemed fairly flat, just like my work buddy, who I was running with had said.  So, I felt really good about my prospects for getting 27 minutes.  I am not sure why 27 minutes becames improtant to me, but it had become my goal time and was all that I could think about. 

The morning of the race was pretty much perfect not that humid and my legs felt alright.  The achilles felt good but my quads seem a little tight from the run on Thursday.  But, overall I was still really optimistic, a little nervous but optimistic.  This would be the first timed race for both me and my friend from work, so neither of us really know what to expect.  They were using chips,  so I felt good that I would get an accurate time.  The starting line was not where we thought and was down a little slope, nothing big, but we would still start out with an incline that we had not expected.  But, over all the start was fine, but one difficulty was that someone seemed to drowned themselves in bug spray, and I was running in thier vapor trail for most of the first mile.  Also, my quads felt pretty tight and my legs were heavy at the start.  My legs started to feel better by about a mile and a half, but by now I had begun to notice that the course had more of an inclines to it than I thought.  Still, I was going fine by my watch.  I had done the first mile in around 9mins and the second around eight. 

The third mile went by without me even really noticing, there was a good size slope and two long stright stretches. Once I got to just before the 3m mile mark, I could feel that I was starting to pick up the paced.  I was about to look at my watch when this old guy went by me.  I didn't even here him coming.  He was like a ninja!!! I was right behind him when we turned the last corner, so I opened it up and went right by him and a young guy who was stopped and thowing up alongside the pathway.  I looked at the race clock a little was out and saw 26:26!!  So ,I turned it on and came in at 26:30.8!!!! I am so happy with this time!  Nearly a full 2mins off of my last race time!  I was beat when I finished, but I kept moving because I thought that If I stopped that I would fall over.  My freind came in just over his goal time, but he still did really well.  Most importantly, we are both already talking about our next 5k.  Mine will be on Oct. 9th and my goal will be 26 minutes flat.

Thursday 19th: Practice 5k

***Please Don't Take My Training as the Proper Way to Prepare for a 5K***

For some reason I got it in my head that I needed to run a practice 5K on Thursday, and then rest on Friday.  I wanted to run on the indoor track because of the flat surface and the ability to track the distance.  The track at the Y is 1/15th of a mile, so I figured that 47 laps would be a 5K.  I was afraid that this would get tedious, but it really didn't because I had to stay focused on the count and monitor my achilles, which got a little sore in the corners, but other wise held up pretty well.  I was able to maintain around  9 min. pace for all three miles and didn't see any real drop off, which really encouraged me.  I finished the run in 27:08, surprising the heck out of me and making me pretty optimistic about my prospects for the 21st.  I hadn't really opened it up when I was running on the track; eventhough, the 5k would be out doors and in the heat, I knew that the course was not too hilly and that these tight turns on the track and other people had caused me to slow down a bit, so I felt pretty confident that I would get my goal time of 27 Min's.  My only real concerns were that I would get too excited in the beginning and fail to pace myself and I would falter in the last mile, or that my achilles would give out causing me to have to back off but neither of these were that much of a worry because of how well the week had gone.

Addiction!: Weds. 18th Sports Conditioning (Abs only) And a Run.

The 5k was just around the corner, and I really didn't know how much I should or shouldn't be running, but I just couldn't hold myself back. Some major changes are taking place. I love to run! Pushing myself to go farther and stronger than I thought I could is so appealing. I used to dread the thought of running, not the running itself so much, but the thought of it used to make me ill. I would turn into Ferris Bueller on a fine spring day in Chicago and find myself licking my palms and faking stomach cramps, but now it is more likely that I will be ignoring pain in my legs and trying to convince myself that a short run will help me loosen up the muscles that are strained than anything else. It is crazy, my Netflix queue is full of running documentaries and Steve Prefontaine Movies, and my YouTube history is worse because it is full of inspirational running/sports commercials for shoe companies. Here is my favorite:



The most difficult part of this transformation is dealing with the regret that fills me anytime I think about the years that I wasted sitting on the couch watching Real World marathons or worse sitting in some coffee shop smoking.  Honestly fighting off those thoughts is harder than gutting out the last half mile of any run.  When they creep in and nest in my brain, I just try to remember that regrets are boring but challenges are much more interesting and force myself to think about things to come.

Wednesday morning, I got to the gym early so that I could run before the Sports Conditioning class.  I did the Capitol run which with one lap around the building is around 2.68 miles which I did in under 27 minutes, so I felt good about my pace.  then I joined the SC class for their first 15 to 20 mins. of abs, which was what I had planned, so with two more days to my race I was feeling pretty good about things.

The Answer is No!: Tuesday 8/17: One Mile Run & Toning Class

I wasn't planning on running at all on Tuesday, but I got to the gym earlier than I expected and could not resist the urge to run on the track just to see how my achilles would hold up after the insomnia run the day before.  I decided to limit my self to one mile because I didn't have much time before class.  I decided to use the indoor track and as I began running everything felt really good, so I thought that this would be a good opportunity to push myself and see just what I could do if I tried.  By about a half of a mile I could tell that I was running better than I had run in a very long time, and that I could still open things up a bit more without risk of injury.  By the time I finished the run I had put down a 7min. mile, which is a really great pace for me!!  I knew that I could not keep that pace up much longer than one mile, but it still felt really good to hit that pace and not be exhausted.  Granted my heart was pounding a bit, and I was sweaty as all get out.  The tough thing was that I still had to do the toning class and could not back out because my wife was taking class with me, nor did I want to slack off in the class.

The class was really rough and not just because of the run!  After the class my wife and several other members commented that the class seem more challenging that it had been in recent weeks.  We did a couple of new exercises, but for the most part I think that it was because we did longer sets on several of the timed exercises like bicycles.  By the end of class I was having trouble staying up in the plank position because I was sweating so much.  It didn't matter how much I dried myself or the floor.  I really think the combination of a good short run and toning class was exactly what I needed.  And, my achilles made it through fairly well, which gave me hope that I would be able to do well in the 5k on Saturday.  By the way after seeing to picture above, I had to ask myself -- Self, am I beautiful when I sweat? -- Self replied with magic 8 ball certainty . . . my reply is No!

Monday 16th: 3am Insomnia Run

I took Sunday off to rest up for what I knew was going to be a big week.  With the 5k being only a few days away, the plan was to take the morning class Monday, go to toning on Tuesday, do the abs portion of Wednesday's class and run outside, and Thursday run a practice 5k on the track, before taking Friday off to rest.  However, for some reason I just could not get to sleep on Sunday night.  I watched a really good documentary: Run For Your Life: The Fred Lebow Story.  I am not sure if that just amped me up or if I just had a lot on my mind, but I couldn't get to sleep, so at a round 3am I gave up and went for a run. 

It was very peaceful and allowed me to just relax and appreciate my neighborhood.  It felt really good to just give up on the idea of sleep and put my mind to running.  I turned on my I-pod and listened to The : The Black Keys Brothers Cd, which is great for running.  I ran just shy of 3 miles in 30mins.  It was a great run with two decent size hills, and there was very little traffic on the roads, a few cars, some cyclists and a couple making out on a porch were the only other people out at that time.  By the time I got home, I felt pretty good and knew that I would be able to sleep once I stretched, showered, and cooled down.

Sat. 14th: Quick Run

After running my practice 5k on the previous day I had planned to take this day off.  However, it was a positively gorgeous day and the temperature was pleasant by noon, which is a rarity in Raleigh in August, therefore I felt that it would be a criminal offence to spend the whole day shut in my apartment.  Also, my achilles had responded pretty well to the practice run the day before, and I started thinking that it might tighten up if I didn't do anything that day.  I decided that around noon that I would go for a short run through my neighborhood.  The temperature was still pretty nice and the humidity was still more than tolerable.   The run was nothing big at all, just shy of 2 miles, and I completed it in around 20 mins.

Friday the 13thPractice 5k!

Last week I was just getting back to the point where I thought that I would be able to participate in the 5k that I had signed up for on the 21st.  I was feeling a bit worried about running that distance because I could feel that my conditioning level had dropped off from before I was injured.  Also, I wasn't sure how my achilles would respond to the pounding of running that distance outside.  I figured that I need to put myself to the test and run a practice 5k on Friday.  The fact that I would be doing this on Friday the 13th did cause my a little trepidation, but my eccentricities  don't normally stray into superstitions, granted I don't normally test my fate by seeking out black cats or dashing under ladders, but other than opening umbrellas indoor, I am mostly indifferent to superstitions, so I decided to run Friday the 13th be damned!!  The Run itself went really well.  I didn't push things too much and didn't feel any real discomfort.  I was able to complete the course that I had mapped out in just over 30 minutes, and I was able to get stronger as the run progressed without any real drop off at the end.  I was pretty tired after the run and made sure to put in some good stretching following the run.  This practice run left me cautiously optimistic about the 5k on the 21st.

Wed. 8/11 Sports Conditioning . . . sort a kind a!?!

The achilles is progressing and I want to get back to normal, but I know that I need to do things in a measured way.  Plus my second 5k is on the 21st, so I don't want to do anything that will put my participation at risk.  That said, I still want to train so that I have a shot at improving my time from my last 5k.  So last week I decided that until the 5k was over, I would only do the ab portion of the Sports Conditioning class.  That's why last week I did the 20 mins. ab portion of the class then went and ran two miles on the indoor track.  I really enjoyed it, and I might do this every once in while once I am healed just to avoid getting bored with the class.  I really need to do the abs, so I am committed to that portion of the class, but a lot of the other things that we do in the class are things, which we do in other class or that I do as part of my solo workouts.  And, recently I have begun to enjoy running on the indoor track, which is better on my body than the hard pavement.