It was a tough 8.2 mile run today. I remember why it's useful to run with people. It was easily the most gorgeous running day of the year. It was 3C, sun was beating down, and there was just a whisper of a wind. Grasshopper, who was booked for an 18-miler (gawd, I don't miss those AT ALL), graciously allowed me to join him for part of this epic run. It cost me a glass of water when he showed up at my door at about 12:15 pm, a little later than we'd semi-planned but that was entirely a miscommunication.
We set off. By this time I'd already redrawn his proposed route. I had to be at my sister's for 2pm before she was heading to the airport for a week on the West Coast (I should mention, she's doing a St. Patty's 5K this weekend. That is not the principal reason for going, but cool). I had shortened Grasshopper's route by 2 miles, with the expectation that after the loop down to the water and back to my house, I'd make up the balance by running to my sister's.
There weren't too many stops. A few traffic lights. A water stop and washroom break at the local running shop. A small detour into a new cupcake shoppe I didn't know about (I stop at all cupcake shops, whether or not I intend to buy something. I really wanted one, but it's not really intra-run food is it?) Note to self, stick to completely residential roads so there's no danger of window shopping.
The scariest part of the run was not the hill at close to Mile 4. It was when Grasshopper nearly got mowed down by a careless driver coming out of a driveway. It was probably a good thing that we slowed down for a microsecond to do a Jellybean transaction (he was carrying and passing one to me). The driver didn't seem too apologetic, and we just kept on going.
Eventually we made it back to my house, where I had a small costume change. I ditched the jacket and the protective pant layer (for the puddles). And we had another water break. And then off to my sister's. At this point, I was running better. Must be the flat road. I'm semi-concerned about these Cinci hills.
My breathing was pretty labored today. I struggled at times to keep up, mostly on the inclines and hillier portions. But I'm glad I had a running buddy today. I would have walked way more. And ran much slower. About 22 miles in total for the week! How's that for picking it up.... I had a nice long nap. Then proceeded to work on my taxes. Now I'm going to take a break and go run in the virtual world of Outland and kill some stuff.
Saturday, March 15
Friday, March 14
performance predictor
One of the best predictors of performance is food.
Food as reward: For one reason or another, it's thinking about pizza that sometimes gets me through a long run. Or it's the promise of a short stack of pancakes with real maple syrup or a fluffy Belgian waffle with strawberries, either treat must come with a side of bacon, that makes many a weekend long run so satisfying (but particularly majestic post-race).
Food as motivator: It's not entirely the best pre-run meal but it's a good predetermined guarantee I'll put on some running shoes not too long afterwards. Food guilt? Maybe a little. What did I do? I went to McDonald's for lunch and it cost me 830 calories. Give me points for having a diet Coke?
And that is why I ran 3miles after work today.
......Then I proceeded to go to the bar for a going-away party, where I had one beer, fish and chips and a couple of chicken fingers.
And that is why I plan on running 8 miles tomorrow. The vicious cycle.
You are what you eat.Food as fuel: The bowls of pasta we eat the night before a race is there to store enough energy to get us to the finish line. The electrolyte-laden drinks and pure water keeps us hydrated. Gels give us that extra boost down the stretch. We try to stay away from binge drinking and deep fried foods during serious training periods. Eat greens.
Food as reward: For one reason or another, it's thinking about pizza that sometimes gets me through a long run. Or it's the promise of a short stack of pancakes with real maple syrup or a fluffy Belgian waffle with strawberries, either treat must come with a side of bacon, that makes many a weekend long run so satisfying (but particularly majestic post-race).
Food as motivator: It's not entirely the best pre-run meal but it's a good predetermined guarantee I'll put on some running shoes not too long afterwards. Food guilt? Maybe a little. What did I do? I went to McDonald's for lunch and it cost me 830 calories. Give me points for having a diet Coke?
And that is why I ran 3miles after work today.
......Then I proceeded to go to the bar for a going-away party, where I had one beer, fish and chips and a couple of chicken fingers.
And that is why I plan on running 8 miles tomorrow. The vicious cycle.
Wednesday, March 12
Lost nerve, and window shopping
Another sunny day, chalk up 4.5miles more for me. I no longer feel bad about hibernating all winter. I thought about repeating Monday's effort (like I'm sticking to a training plan anymore) but I sort of lost my nerve about 10 minutes into it. Twas windier than expected, and the chill seemed to pierce right through my jacket today and the sun wasn't warming. I decided to shorten the run and tried to remember past routes (it's been so long!). I headed toward my sister's place, that would be about 4 miles. But, I decided I should throw a hill into today's run. Because there are hills, and quite the doozies in the Cinci route I hear, and so I thought I should practice just a little. Three-quarters of the way through the run, I found myself on Queen St between the neighborhoods of Leslieville and The Beach. Lot of stores were catching my eye, not to mention many a menu of the local restos. So, it wasn't the most productive mile there, with a lot of stops. I guess I lost a bit of momentum because the last mile was the toughest -- and not just because there was a hill looming. It was a tremendous effort to just put one foot in front of the other. I ended up walking quite a bit.
But at least I ran up the entire hill.
But at least I ran up the entire hill.
Monday, March 10
"We had a pact!"
Somehow R. and I had agreed to not train for the half marathon in Cinci. I don't really remember why. Anyways, I broke the pact last week -- twice. So not to be entirely outdone, R. went out this weekend and ran 16.5K in one shot. Hmmmmph.
So, in the spirit of one upmanship, I made the most of the incredible sunshine this afternoon. I had bought myself a new toque during my lunch break for cold weather running (it doesn't seem like this snow is ever going to end! ....). because, you know, it was the hatless running that was stopping me all winter. The giant square route around the eastern part of the city before it becomes real suburbs took 90 minutes but I'm not fussing too much about that. There were a lot of puddles, people in the way, unshoveled portions of sidewalks, and I had to stop for about 5 minutes because I was so fascinated by the sight of snow removal by a convoy of trucks. All told, 6.5 miles (10.5K)! So I didn't quite beat R.'s distance, but maybe we'll both start getting into some kind of different groove. Ah, spring....
So, in the spirit of one upmanship, I made the most of the incredible sunshine this afternoon. I had bought myself a new toque during my lunch break for cold weather running (it doesn't seem like this snow is ever going to end! ....). because, you know, it was the hatless running that was stopping me all winter. The giant square route around the eastern part of the city before it becomes real suburbs took 90 minutes but I'm not fussing too much about that. There were a lot of puddles, people in the way, unshoveled portions of sidewalks, and I had to stop for about 5 minutes because I was so fascinated by the sight of snow removal by a convoy of trucks. All told, 6.5 miles (10.5K)! So I didn't quite beat R.'s distance, but maybe we'll both start getting into some kind of different groove. Ah, spring....
Wednesday, March 5
This just may become a habit
Jogging and blogging twice in one week? Something's happening.... a half-marathon training is in progress.
Did the same 5K route as Monday, but in the other direction. Again, it didn't look promising weatherwise this morning (overnight storm), but by the time I got home, the sun was shining and people were outside shoveling their portions of the sidewalks with t-shirts on. Also, I had to fit in a run today because my monthly dinner club is on tonight and we're going to Lebanese buffet. Mmmm, lentil soup and kebabs in an hour!
Did the same 5K route as Monday, but in the other direction. Again, it didn't look promising weatherwise this morning (overnight storm), but by the time I got home, the sun was shining and people were outside shoveling their portions of the sidewalks with t-shirts on. Also, I had to fit in a run today because my monthly dinner club is on tonight and we're going to Lebanese buffet. Mmmm, lentil soup and kebabs in an hour!
Monday, March 3
baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack-the sequel
SIXTY DAYS to train. That's enough time to prep for a half-marathon that I just want to complete, right? Right? I'm saying it more to convince myself as the winter training I thought I would do sort has just withered to nothing. One might say I never really got started. I have been so sedantary this winter I'm surprised I haven't gained much weight... Almost none.
Well, it's upon us and the time to get serious about training might be now. Or yesterday. So here I am, starting again. Because everyone else I know who's signed up for the Pig is miles ahead in training. Let there be no more excuses.
I am still not 100-percent healthy. About 98 percent, I'd say. I thought I had kicked whatever it was (bronchitis?) just out of pure stubborness, but a cough crept up on me the other day. And no, I haven't gone to the doctor yet. Still. Yes since New Year's Eve. But I do have an appointment on Thursday. Really.
It was remarkably balmy this morning and I thought to myself, okay today is the day I start over and run outside because it's 60 days before I take my place....at the back of the pack. That first half of the thought lasted for as long as it took me to take my next step because I nearly slipped on some black ice. And I proceeded to nearly wipe out another dozen times along my 10 minute walk to the subway. By the afternoon though, as I was staring out the window, it was sunny and I figured the ice would have melted by now and I'd be safe on the sidewalks of Toronto. Except for all the puddles, and patches of thick ice not yet removed by the city... and the smattering of rain and dark clouds. But guess what, I went anyway.
3.3 miles (5.2K) in about 40 minutes. Still got it.
Well, it's upon us and the time to get serious about training might be now. Or yesterday. So here I am, starting again. Because everyone else I know who's signed up for the Pig is miles ahead in training. Let there be no more excuses.
I am still not 100-percent healthy. About 98 percent, I'd say. I thought I had kicked whatever it was (bronchitis?) just out of pure stubborness, but a cough crept up on me the other day. And no, I haven't gone to the doctor yet. Still. Yes since New Year's Eve. But I do have an appointment on Thursday. Really.
It was remarkably balmy this morning and I thought to myself, okay today is the day I start over and run outside because it's 60 days before I take my place....at the back of the pack. That first half of the thought lasted for as long as it took me to take my next step because I nearly slipped on some black ice. And I proceeded to nearly wipe out another dozen times along my 10 minute walk to the subway. By the afternoon though, as I was staring out the window, it was sunny and I figured the ice would have melted by now and I'd be safe on the sidewalks of Toronto. Except for all the puddles, and patches of thick ice not yet removed by the city... and the smattering of rain and dark clouds. But guess what, I went anyway.
3.3 miles (5.2K) in about 40 minutes. Still got it.
Tuesday, February 5
baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack
.... and about time, huh?
It's been 38 days since I last ran, which was the fun run. I fell pretty sick pretty much immediately after the run and haven't checked in on my own blog or others during this whole time. Yeah, pity party of one this whole time so that I didn't want to read about anyone's running progress, hear about anyone's running progress, or think about my non-progress. My sister is pretty sure I had/have bronchitis, but she's not a doctor although she actually went to one and was diagnosed with it. I still have a lingering cough, so maybe I should go see my doctor, but I did not cough once during the 21 minutes I was outside. I'm healed! Maybe fresh air does help.
Mileage: 1.7 miles
YTD: 1.7 miles
It's been 38 days since I last ran, which was the fun run. I fell pretty sick pretty much immediately after the run and haven't checked in on my own blog or others during this whole time. Yeah, pity party of one this whole time so that I didn't want to read about anyone's running progress, hear about anyone's running progress, or think about my non-progress. My sister is pretty sure I had/have bronchitis, but she's not a doctor although she actually went to one and was diagnosed with it. I still have a lingering cough, so maybe I should go see my doctor, but I did not cough once during the 21 minutes I was outside. I'm healed! Maybe fresh air does help.
Mileage: 1.7 miles
YTD: 1.7 miles
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