I ran two miles tonight with my HRM and a goal to keep my heart rate under 149 again. I was getting pretty high readings right away again, but I made sure the sensors where wet and then everything seemed to be fine. I really struggled to keep my heart rate down though. It's so hard for me to run 11.30 miles. A couple of times I had to walk to get my heart rate down to where it should be. The thing is I'm pretty sure I actually sped up once I started walking. So I'm going to stop worrying about my heart rate until after my next two races (3k on 6/9 and a 5k on 6/24). I'll be sure to do my easy runs easy but I'll at least feel like I ran once I'm done.
I'm not giving up on low heart rate training all together though, just until I'm done with my races. I really like everything that I've read about it and feel like it is the right way to do things. So after the races I'll watch my heart rate again as I work on building my aerobic base (more on that very soon).
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Catching Up
I had a very nice weekend out at Amy's grandparents. We just helped them out around the farm and relaxed. I haven't posted about my runs lately so to get caught up here is a summary of my last few runs.
Thursday - May 24th
I ran my second run with my HRM. I went 1.5 miles with the goal of keeping my heart rate under 149 (70% of my max according to the 220-age formula). My watch started beeping at me after just a few steps, I checked it and it said I was at 183. I knew there was know way that was right so I kept going, but it kept beeping. I stopped and walked and it went down to about 115 right away. But as soon as I started jogging again it jumped up to over 200, I just keep going and it kept going up. I think the highest it got to was 232. I walked for awhile again and it dropped pretty much right away. When I started jogging again it stayed about where I expected it to. The whole way back it was fine. The only thing I can think that it might have been is that my HRM didn't have a good connection, but once I started sweating a little the connection was better. Anyway, it was a lot easier for me to keep my heart rate under my target on the road than it was on the treadmill, well once it quit acting up anyway.
Friday - May 25th
No run, I just rode in the car for about 6 hours.
Saturday - May 26th
I ran a 2 mile fartlek on the country roads. I used the nifty interval feature on my watch. I ran easy for 3 minutes then hard for one. I'd say I went ran at about 90% for the hard parts. I couldn't quite to it for the whole minute for the last one though. The whole run took 18.22 and my heart rate averaged 163.
Sunday - May 26th
Repeat of Friday.
Yesterday - May 27th
We went out to Yanney park and did a 3.5 mile long run. I look forward to my long runs because it is really nice to run out there. It was an out and back run again. My target heart rate for the run was 149 again, I'm going to keep using that for the next few weeks for all my easy or long runs. On the way out I tried to keep my heart rate under 140 so I had a little room to work with on the way back. I did a pretty good job of that. I turned around in 19.17. My heart rate crept up on the way back but I only went over 149 twice for a total of 30 seconds. My final time was 40.09, or 11.29 per mile. It's hard for me to run that slow but as my aerobic base gets built (more on that later) my times will come down, or at least that's what I've read.
Today
I took the day off from work and I was pretty much just a bum all day but I plan on doing some yoga later tonight. My MP3 player came today and I went out picked up a new pair of headphones, a couple technical shirts and a pair of shorts (adding another $60 that I've wasted on stuff for running). I've been spending a lot of time trying to figure out my plans after the races I have coming up in June. I think I got it all figured out today, but I'm going to leave you in suspense...
Thursday - May 24th
I ran my second run with my HRM. I went 1.5 miles with the goal of keeping my heart rate under 149 (70% of my max according to the 220-age formula). My watch started beeping at me after just a few steps, I checked it and it said I was at 183. I knew there was know way that was right so I kept going, but it kept beeping. I stopped and walked and it went down to about 115 right away. But as soon as I started jogging again it jumped up to over 200, I just keep going and it kept going up. I think the highest it got to was 232. I walked for awhile again and it dropped pretty much right away. When I started jogging again it stayed about where I expected it to. The whole way back it was fine. The only thing I can think that it might have been is that my HRM didn't have a good connection, but once I started sweating a little the connection was better. Anyway, it was a lot easier for me to keep my heart rate under my target on the road than it was on the treadmill, well once it quit acting up anyway.
Friday - May 25th
No run, I just rode in the car for about 6 hours.
Saturday - May 26th
I ran a 2 mile fartlek on the country roads. I used the nifty interval feature on my watch. I ran easy for 3 minutes then hard for one. I'd say I went ran at about 90% for the hard parts. I couldn't quite to it for the whole minute for the last one though. The whole run took 18.22 and my heart rate averaged 163.
Sunday - May 26th
Repeat of Friday.
Yesterday - May 27th
We went out to Yanney park and did a 3.5 mile long run. I look forward to my long runs because it is really nice to run out there. It was an out and back run again. My target heart rate for the run was 149 again, I'm going to keep using that for the next few weeks for all my easy or long runs. On the way out I tried to keep my heart rate under 140 so I had a little room to work with on the way back. I did a pretty good job of that. I turned around in 19.17. My heart rate crept up on the way back but I only went over 149 twice for a total of 30 seconds. My final time was 40.09, or 11.29 per mile. It's hard for me to run that slow but as my aerobic base gets built (more on that later) my times will come down, or at least that's what I've read.
Today
I took the day off from work and I was pretty much just a bum all day but I plan on doing some yoga later tonight. My MP3 player came today and I went out picked up a new pair of headphones, a couple technical shirts and a pair of shorts (adding another $60 that I've wasted on stuff for running). I've been spending a lot of time trying to figure out my plans after the races I have coming up in June. I think I got it all figured out today, but I'm going to leave you in suspense...
Friday, May 25, 2007
Memorial Day Weekend
We are heading out of town to go visit Amy's grandparents near Hemingford, NE. They don't have internet out there so I won't be posting for a few days. I have two runs planned when we're out there, a 2 mile fartlek and a 3.5 mile run. I'll also be sure to wear sunscreen when I'm working out there this weekend.
I hope everyone has an enjoyable and safe memorial day.
I hope everyone has an enjoyable and safe memorial day.
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Yoga
A few months back Amy and I used to do yoga on a somewhat regular basis. I don't know anything about yoga other than what is on the DVDs that we have so I'm sure I'm did all kinds of things wrong, but I enjoyed doing it. I never did improve my flexability much, but my posture did improve (and there is tons of room for improvement) and I felt better about myself. Those effects wore off since I stopped doing the yoga though. Since I'm trying to improve my general well-being I've been wanting to start doing it again. Since I didn't feel like just sitting around tonight I figured tonight would be a good night to start.
So I got out our MTV Yoga DVD and went through about half of it. It's kind of weird how it wears you out just stretching and doing different poses. When we first started before I couldn't get through the whole thing either, but after a short while I could. So I figure I'll be able to get through the whole thing if I do it once a week in a month or two.
Here are a few articles I've read on yoga and running.
Yoga for Runners on Run The Planet
Yoga for Runners on Yoga Journal
Flex Time on Runner's World
If you have any recommendations on websites, DVDs, books or anything else on yoga and running share them in the comments.
So I got out our MTV Yoga DVD and went through about half of it. It's kind of weird how it wears you out just stretching and doing different poses. When we first started before I couldn't get through the whole thing either, but after a short while I could. So I figure I'll be able to get through the whole thing if I do it once a week in a month or two.
DVD and went through about half of it. It's kind of weird how it wears you out just stretching and doing different poses. When we first started before I couldn't get through the whole thing either, but after a short while I could. So I figure I'll be able to get through the whole thing if I do it once a week in a month or two.Here are a few articles I've read on yoga and running.
Yoga for Runners on Run The Planet
Yoga for Runners on Yoga Journal
Flex Time on Runner's World
If you have any recommendations on websites, DVDs, books or anything else on yoga and running share them in the comments.
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
1st Easy Run with my HRM
On schedule for tonight was a 1.5 mile easy run. After getting my heart rate monitor and trying to find my max heart rate yesterday I was anxious to see how an easy run would go. For easy runs I'm supposed to keep my heart rate under 70% of my working hear rate which comes out to 144 beats per minute. It was raining out tonight and the Spurs game was on so I ran in the clubhouse on the treadmill.
In the past I've been doing my easy runs at about a 9 min/mile pace, 6.6 mph, and that has felt really easy to me. So that's what I started out with tonight. After running for a couple minutes my watch was beeping at me for going too hard. So I slowed the pace down to 6 mph and rate at that speed for a few more minutes before my watch started beeping at me again. So I slowed down even more. After running about a mile I finally just stopped to let my heart rate go down for awhile because I had dropped the pace down to about 4.5 mph, and I can walk that fast if I try a tiny bit. After the rest I ran the last half mile at about 4.8 mph, but I still pushing 70%. I don't even feel like I ran at all tonight, but I suppose that might be the point.
Tonight's run makes me feel even more certain I didn't get up to my max heart rate last night. If I would have used the highest number from the formulas I only would have had an extra 7 beats per minute to work with. I'm thinking about running an extra 1.5 this week at that pace just to see how it feels. I don't think it will hurt anything to stray from my program by adding an extra easy run. What do you think? Will it hurt anything if I add in an extra 1.5 miles this week? Should I go with the max heart rate from one of the formulas or the use the max I calculated?
In the past I've been doing my easy runs at about a 9 min/mile pace, 6.6 mph, and that has felt really easy to me. So that's what I started out with tonight. After running for a couple minutes my watch was beeping at me for going too hard. So I slowed the pace down to 6 mph and rate at that speed for a few more minutes before my watch started beeping at me again. So I slowed down even more. After running about a mile I finally just stopped to let my heart rate go down for awhile because I had dropped the pace down to about 4.5 mph, and I can walk that fast if I try a tiny bit. After the rest I ran the last half mile at about 4.8 mph, but I still pushing 70%. I don't even feel like I ran at all tonight, but I suppose that might be the point.
Tonight's run makes me feel even more certain I didn't get up to my max heart rate last night. If I would have used the highest number from the formulas I only would have had an extra 7 beats per minute to work with. I'm thinking about running an extra 1.5 this week at that pace just to see how it feels. I don't think it will hurt anything to stray from my program by adding an extra easy run. What do you think? Will it hurt anything if I add in an extra 1.5 miles this week? Should I go with the max heart rate from one of the formulas or the use the max I calculated?
Heart Rate Monitor
My heart rate monitor came today. So instead of doing the 1.5 mile fast run that was scheduled I tried to find my max heart rate(MHR). I found a couple of sites with different methods on how to find it. There are a lot of different ways to just calculate it based on your age. Here are a few that I came across.
220-age=MHR
205-(.5*age)=MHR
210-(.7*age)=MHR
I'm 25 so these calculations come out to 195, 192, 192 respectfully. Obviously these calculations are very general. I did some research and come up with a couple different methods to determine your MHR by doing stress tests on a treadmill. I found a couple other methods that don't involve a treadmill that I'll probably try out later too. But I think it would be easier to use a treadmill, so that's what I did.
One method is after a good warm-up to run as fast as you can for three minutes, rest for two or three minutes, then run for another three minutes at your max pace. During the second three minute run you should hit your MHR. As I found out it's hard to pick the perfect pace for this. As I tend to do I made my pace too fast, which meant I didn't get to my max heart rate because my legs where too tired and I completely died. Amy watched my watch for me and came up with a MHR of 180. I think it would be pretty easy to pick too slow of a pace also.
I was pretty tired so I just sat down and watched the Cavs/Pistons game for awhile. After a quite few minutes I felt pretty good so I decided to give it another go. This time I used method number two. I modified it though, because I didn't remember how it was supposed to go exactly. I started walking at 3 mph with the incline on the treadmill at 1. Every minute I increased the incline by one and every other minute I increased the mph by one. I kept that up for about 10 minutes before I couldn't go any longer. That got my heart rate up to 184. After reading how I was actually supposed to do it I bet I can get it higher than that. So that will probably be my next hard workout.
Overall I wound up running about three miles tonight trying to figure this out, instead of the 1.5 I was supposed to run. But a little over a mile was a warm-up and then there were the easy parts of the first method and the first half of the second method was pretty easy. So I'm say I ran less than 1.5 miles hard but I feel like I got in a pretty good workout.
I calculated my resting heart rate (RHR) as well. This one was a little easier, I just put the HRM on after I got home from work (not the ideal time to find your RHR but you have to play with a new toy once you get it right?) and the lowest heart I hit was 54. Like my max I'll use that until I can prove that it is something else. I'll try and get into the habit of taking my heart rate every morning to see what I come up with.
Why do I care about my max and resting heart rates you might ask? Well when I run I either want to run hard or I want to run easy. There isn't much benefit to running in the middle. When I run easy I want to ensure that my heart rate stays below 70% of my working heart rate. For hard runs I want it around 85%. The following equation is how you can determine your working heart rate.
((MHR-RHR)*intesity%)+RHR=Target Heart Rate
Well I think that's enough info for tonight. After I get a chance to play with all the features on my new watch I'll give a full review on it. I'll continue to write posts about training with a heart rate monitor as I learn more about that too. If you know of any good sources for more information (books, web sites, old guy down the street, etc.) I'd love to read about them in the comments.
220-age=MHR
205-(.5*age)=MHR
210-(.7*age)=MHR
I'm 25 so these calculations come out to 195, 192, 192 respectfully. Obviously these calculations are very general. I did some research and come up with a couple different methods to determine your MHR by doing stress tests on a treadmill. I found a couple other methods that don't involve a treadmill that I'll probably try out later too. But I think it would be easier to use a treadmill, so that's what I did.
One method is after a good warm-up to run as fast as you can for three minutes, rest for two or three minutes, then run for another three minutes at your max pace. During the second three minute run you should hit your MHR. As I found out it's hard to pick the perfect pace for this. As I tend to do I made my pace too fast, which meant I didn't get to my max heart rate because my legs where too tired and I completely died. Amy watched my watch for me and came up with a MHR of 180. I think it would be pretty easy to pick too slow of a pace also.
I was pretty tired so I just sat down and watched the Cavs/Pistons game for awhile. After a quite few minutes I felt pretty good so I decided to give it another go. This time I used method number two. I modified it though, because I didn't remember how it was supposed to go exactly. I started walking at 3 mph with the incline on the treadmill at 1. Every minute I increased the incline by one and every other minute I increased the mph by one. I kept that up for about 10 minutes before I couldn't go any longer. That got my heart rate up to 184. After reading how I was actually supposed to do it I bet I can get it higher than that. So that will probably be my next hard workout.
Overall I wound up running about three miles tonight trying to figure this out, instead of the 1.5 I was supposed to run. But a little over a mile was a warm-up and then there were the easy parts of the first method and the first half of the second method was pretty easy. So I'm say I ran less than 1.5 miles hard but I feel like I got in a pretty good workout.
I calculated my resting heart rate (RHR) as well. This one was a little easier, I just put the HRM on after I got home from work (not the ideal time to find your RHR but you have to play with a new toy once you get it right?) and the lowest heart I hit was 54. Like my max I'll use that until I can prove that it is something else. I'll try and get into the habit of taking my heart rate every morning to see what I come up with.
Why do I care about my max and resting heart rates you might ask? Well when I run I either want to run hard or I want to run easy. There isn't much benefit to running in the middle. When I run easy I want to ensure that my heart rate stays below 70% of my working heart rate. For hard runs I want it around 85%. The following equation is how you can determine your working heart rate.
((MHR-RHR)*intesity%)+RHR=Target Heart Rate
Well I think that's enough info for tonight. After I get a chance to play with all the features on my new watch I'll give a full review on it. I'll continue to write posts about training with a heart rate monitor as I learn more about that too. If you know of any good sources for more information (books, web sites, old guy down the street, etc.) I'd love to read about them in the comments.
Sunday, May 20, 2007
3 Mile Milestone
I ran 3 miles tonight for the first time since I ran the 5k that got me back into this whole running thing about 6 weeks ago and it'd been a long time before that (probably not since high school and I graduated in 2000). It's not really that big of a milestone but it something I've been working slowly towards for the last month. I hope that each milestone I reach is as easy to get to as this one was.
We went out to Yanni park and ran an out and back route along the trail there. It was a really nice run. The trail runs along the creek that is out there and it really flat. I'll probably end up doing quite a few of my long runs out there. I took it easy and ran a time of 28.34. I turned around right at 15 minutes so I pushed a little bit harder on the way back, but still keep it pretty slow.
Today's run was the first one of week 5 of my training program. That means that I'm halfway done with it. So far I've only missed one run, and that was during the first week. So I'm pretty happy with myself for sticking with the plan. I'm starting to almost feel like a runner.
We went out to Yanni park and ran an out and back route along the trail there. It was a really nice run. The trail runs along the creek that is out there and it really flat. I'll probably end up doing quite a few of my long runs out there. I took it easy and ran a time of 28.34. I turned around right at 15 minutes so I pushed a little bit harder on the way back, but still keep it pretty slow.
Today's run was the first one of week 5 of my training program. That means that I'm halfway done with it. So far I've only missed one run, and that was during the first week. So I'm pretty happy with myself for sticking with the plan. I'm starting to almost feel like a runner.
Friday, May 18, 2007
Spending Money
Sorry I haven't been posting the last few days. I've been installing and setting up Ubuntu Linux on my laptop. I think I got most everything setup how I want it with the exception of a few little bugs.
To follow-up my post about how running is the most cost effective activity I'm going to tell you about all the money that I spent this week. As you know from a previous post I bought two pair of socks Monday for about $16.00. That was just the start of things.
On Tuesday I bought a light so I can see when I run in the middle of the night for $10.00 from Wally World. It's not one of those miner's headlamps (sorry Annie), it clips on the bill of a hat (so it still looks a little goofy). I think it will work pretty good for what I need it for. I have a few different hats, but none that I would want to run in for too long. So on my way home from work on Wednesday I stopped by a couple sporting good stores at the mall, but no one had a technical hat. (Here is a good little article from Runner's World that defines what technical clothing is.) I stopped in Target looking for a couple other things and was surprised to see that they have quite a bit of technical clothing, including hats. So I picked one up for about $13.
As I indicated in a previous post I've been looking for a heart rate monitor. I did a little bit of research and I've chosen the Nike C8. I ordered it today and I should get it Tuesday or Wednesday, there went another $90. I'll definitely be writing more about this later.
But wait there's more!! I complained in the past that I've been borrowing Amy's iPod Shuffle when I want to listen to music on my runs. Well, I won't have to do that too much longer. I ordered a Zen Stone and an arm band to go with it today as well. It will be 6 to 10 business days until I get those. Adding that $60 brings my grand total for the week to right around $190. I'll put up a review of this sometime as well.
Oh yeah, Amy and I paid our entry fees for our next race, the Havelock Charity Run, too, another $28.
So it ended up being a pretty expensive week. But I'm confident in the quality of pretty much everything I bought (except maybe the light from Wal-Mart) and they should last me quite a while. I still have a number of things on my list that I "need" to get, but those will have to wait until I win some more at the poker tables.
As for the running side of things everything has been going good. I'm just doing easy runs this week and my weekly total will be 7 miles after I run 2 miles later tonight.
To follow-up my post about how running is the most cost effective activity I'm going to tell you about all the money that I spent this week. As you know from a previous post I bought two pair of socks Monday for about $16.00. That was just the start of things.
On Tuesday I bought a light so I can see when I run in the middle of the night for $10.00 from Wally World. It's not one of those miner's headlamps (sorry Annie), it clips on the bill of a hat (so it still looks a little goofy). I think it will work pretty good for what I need it for. I have a few different hats, but none that I would want to run in for too long. So on my way home from work on Wednesday I stopped by a couple sporting good stores at the mall, but no one had a technical hat. (Here is a good little article from Runner's World that defines what technical clothing is.) I stopped in Target looking for a couple other things and was surprised to see that they have quite a bit of technical clothing, including hats. So I picked one up for about $13.
As I indicated in a previous post I've been looking for a heart rate monitor. I did a little bit of research and I've chosen the Nike C8. I ordered it today and I should get it Tuesday or Wednesday, there went another $90. I'll definitely be writing more about this later.
. I ordered it today and I should get it Tuesday or Wednesday, there went another $90. I'll definitely be writing more about this later.But wait there's more!! I complained in the past that I've been borrowing Amy's iPod Shuffle when I want to listen to music on my runs. Well, I won't have to do that too much longer. I ordered a Zen Stone and an arm band to go with it today as well. It will be 6 to 10 business days until I get those. Adding that $60 brings my grand total for the week to right around $190. I'll put up a review of this sometime as well.
and an Oh yeah, Amy and I paid our entry fees for our next race, the Havelock Charity Run, too, another $28.
So it ended up being a pretty expensive week. But I'm confident in the quality of pretty much everything I bought (except maybe the light from Wal-Mart) and they should last me quite a while. I still have a number of things on my list that I "need" to get, but those will have to wait until I win some more at the poker tables.
As for the running side of things everything has been going good. I'm just doing easy runs this week and my weekly total will be 7 miles after I run 2 miles later tonight.
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Best Burn for the Buck
I just got the June 2007 issue of Money magazine and it has a short article on how many calories different activities burn per dollar. Running comes out way ahead of the other activities by burning 1100 calories per dollar. Second place is In-Line Skating which burns 625. They assume that the only money spent on running is $80 for shoes. You can check out the article on page 23.
Monday, May 14, 2007
The Sun Is Not Your Friend
Well I had a very nice weekend. I got to spend lots of quality time with family. It turned out that having the concert canceled wasn't all that bad.
I spent all day Saturday at my Grandma's farm helping plant rocks and flowers, chase chickens around and various other little things. I'd planned on getting my run (2 mile fartlek) in out there on the dirt roads. We got out there around 11 so I wanted to wait a while until it cooled off instead of running during the hottest part of the day.
We were pretty much finished with the work we needed to have done by around 6:30. So by the time I figured out where to turnaround for a two mile out and back and got my shoes changed it was about 7. It was by far the worse run that I've had. I probably started out a little too fast because that's what I do. I could hardly run anymore once it was time to turn around, I was completely dead. So from there on I had to throw in walks with the fast (which weren't really fast any more) and slow runs. I ended up with a time of 17.13. Which is a lot better time than it felt like it should have been. Maybe I turned around too soon and didn't actually run the too miles or maybe I started out a ton faster than I thought I did.
I'm pretty sure a couple of things contributed to the bad run. The first one is that I was in the sun all day and got a little burnt. The second one being that I ate breakfast at about 10 and didn't eat anything else until about 10 that night, I stayed pretty hydrated though.
I'm hardly ever in the sun. We don't have any windows at work so I don't get any sunlight that way. Because of my messed up sleep pattern (I'm planning a post about that sometime) I usually end up taking a little nap for a few hours after work and by then the sun is down. Even when I'm up after work I'm not outside because we don't have a yard or anything like that. So Saturday was pretty much the first time I've been in the sun for more than a few minutes since last summer.
Even with my lack of exposer to the sun I didn't think I needed to use sunscreen. I did leave my t-shirt on so I didn't fry my back though, although had I taken it off I would have used sunscreen. After awhile I could tell my neck was starting to burn so I put some on it, but it was too late. My right arm was also getting pretty red. I have no idea why just the right one got burnt, I wasn't in the same place all day or anything like that. Once I started running I could tell that the back of my legs were burnt. But it was okay because it only hurt every time shorts rubbed against them, and that only happened when I took a stride. Even if I wouldn't have been stupid and used sunscreen I never would have thought to put any on the backs of my legs.
As for the not eating all day thing, I do that a lot so I don't think that had nearly as much to do with the bad run at the sun did. My diet is horrible. The fact that I actually ate breakfast that morning is pretty surprising, I do that about three times a year. Since my sleeping is so messed up I usually take a nap at lunch instead of eating too. Then after work I'll snack on some chips or something until I fall asleep for my evening nap. By the time I get up Amy usually already ate something so I'll have a bowl of cereal of a salad and then snack on stuff off and on for the rest of the night until I go to bed (well, fall asleep for the night anyway).
So the moral of the story is wear sunscreen on all parts of your body that are not covered up and eat once in awhile.
We stopped by Lincoln Running Company on our way out of town today. They only had Nike heart rate monitors so I tried one of those one. I really liked how it fit so now I have to add that one to my list of ones to chose from. I picked up a couple pair of socks while I was there too (why does writing about socks make me feel like such a loser?). Ann highly recommend Features! Light, they are a thin sock that's wicks moisture. The most important feature is that they come in my size. So I went with those and they do feel better to run in than my normal ones.
This week is a real easy week to recover a little bit, just 7 miles spread out over 4 runs. I moved Sunday's 1.5 mile run to tonight and ran it on the treadmill so I could watch some of the Spurs game. It's amazing how easy it is to run at the right pace on a treadmill, I hit my 9 minute mile mark perfectly for a final time of 13.30. Since it's just an easy week I probably won't post about my runs much which will give me time to get some other posts I've been planning done.
I spent all day Saturday at my Grandma's farm helping plant rocks and flowers, chase chickens around and various other little things. I'd planned on getting my run (2 mile fartlek) in out there on the dirt roads. We got out there around 11 so I wanted to wait a while until it cooled off instead of running during the hottest part of the day.
We were pretty much finished with the work we needed to have done by around 6:30. So by the time I figured out where to turnaround for a two mile out and back and got my shoes changed it was about 7. It was by far the worse run that I've had. I probably started out a little too fast because that's what I do. I could hardly run anymore once it was time to turn around, I was completely dead. So from there on I had to throw in walks with the fast (which weren't really fast any more) and slow runs. I ended up with a time of 17.13. Which is a lot better time than it felt like it should have been. Maybe I turned around too soon and didn't actually run the too miles or maybe I started out a ton faster than I thought I did.
I'm pretty sure a couple of things contributed to the bad run. The first one is that I was in the sun all day and got a little burnt. The second one being that I ate breakfast at about 10 and didn't eat anything else until about 10 that night, I stayed pretty hydrated though.
I'm hardly ever in the sun. We don't have any windows at work so I don't get any sunlight that way. Because of my messed up sleep pattern (I'm planning a post about that sometime) I usually end up taking a little nap for a few hours after work and by then the sun is down. Even when I'm up after work I'm not outside because we don't have a yard or anything like that. So Saturday was pretty much the first time I've been in the sun for more than a few minutes since last summer.
Even with my lack of exposer to the sun I didn't think I needed to use sunscreen. I did leave my t-shirt on so I didn't fry my back though, although had I taken it off I would have used sunscreen. After awhile I could tell my neck was starting to burn so I put some on it, but it was too late. My right arm was also getting pretty red. I have no idea why just the right one got burnt, I wasn't in the same place all day or anything like that. Once I started running I could tell that the back of my legs were burnt. But it was okay because it only hurt every time shorts rubbed against them, and that only happened when I took a stride. Even if I wouldn't have been stupid and used sunscreen I never would have thought to put any on the backs of my legs.
As for the not eating all day thing, I do that a lot so I don't think that had nearly as much to do with the bad run at the sun did. My diet is horrible. The fact that I actually ate breakfast that morning is pretty surprising, I do that about three times a year. Since my sleeping is so messed up I usually take a nap at lunch instead of eating too. Then after work I'll snack on some chips or something until I fall asleep for my evening nap. By the time I get up Amy usually already ate something so I'll have a bowl of cereal of a salad and then snack on stuff off and on for the rest of the night until I go to bed (well, fall asleep for the night anyway).
So the moral of the story is wear sunscreen on all parts of your body that are not covered up and eat once in awhile.
We stopped by Lincoln Running Company on our way out of town today. They only had Nike heart rate monitors so I tried one of those one. I really liked how it fit so now I have to add that one to my list of ones to chose from. I picked up a couple pair of socks while I was there too (why does writing about socks make me feel like such a loser?). Ann highly recommend Features! Light, they are a thin sock that's wicks moisture. The most important feature is that they come in my size. So I went with those and they do feel better to run in than my normal ones.
This week is a real easy week to recover a little bit, just 7 miles spread out over 4 runs. I moved Sunday's 1.5 mile run to tonight and ran it on the treadmill so I could watch some of the Spurs game. It's amazing how easy it is to run at the right pace on a treadmill, I hit my 9 minute mile mark perfectly for a final time of 13.30. Since it's just an easy week I probably won't post about my runs much which will give me time to get some other posts I've been planning done.
Saturday, May 12, 2007
Mother's Day
Don't forget that Mother's Day is tomorrow.
Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there.
If you don't have anything for your mom yet you could always take a picture with your siblings to give to your mom. Here is a YouTube video of a couple brother's doing just that. (Please note, I have nothing to do with the video I just enjoyed it and thought you would too.)
Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there.
If you don't have anything for your mom yet you could always take a picture with your siblings to give to your mom. Here is a YouTube video of a couple brother's doing just that. (Please note, I have nothing to do with the video I just enjoyed it and thought you would too.)
Why I Run
There are a lot of different reasons that I run. Every once in awhile I'll post about one of them.
I'm a very laid back person, I just go with the flow. If you graph my emotions throughout a day it would pretty much be a flat line. It's not so much that I hide my emotions as it is that I don't have any to show. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a robot. From time to time I do have emotions and I'm not afraid to show them. When my Grandpa died I cried, when I gave a speech at my wedding I got choked up (some might say I cried). When I found out about that I could go to Ireland with Amy and get school credit for it I was ecstatic. When the trip was postponed a year I was disappointed (I'm not real confident it is ever going to happen, but I am very hopeful). Both times I found out my favorite band, The Doors, were going to play close by I was excited, when both shows were canceled I was disappointed and upset. I rant about things with some regularity but they don't really bother me enough for me to do anything about them. To Amy's dismay it's just that I enjoy ranting.
When I run I feel a lot of different things though. Sometimes I'm excited about an upcoming run, sometimes I dread it. When a race is coming up I get excited and full of anticipation. As I'm running I'll feel pain and have to fight through it. If I do fight through it I feel a certain amount of joy and pride. If I let it get the best of me I get frustrated and/or upset. Of course I have to mention the runner's high that one gets after a race knowing they left it all on the course.
I run so I can feel.
I'm not trying to say the pride of breaking through the wall compares one iota to the joy of finding that special someone and marrying them. Or that the disappointment of giving in when it hurts and walking up that hill or skipping a run is even a fraction of a percent of the pain that comes with losing someone you love. But when I run I do feel something, and that keeps me running.
Why do you run?
I'm a very laid back person, I just go with the flow. If you graph my emotions throughout a day it would pretty much be a flat line. It's not so much that I hide my emotions as it is that I don't have any to show. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a robot. From time to time I do have emotions and I'm not afraid to show them. When my Grandpa died I cried, when I gave a speech at my wedding I got choked up (some might say I cried). When I found out about that I could go to Ireland with Amy and get school credit for it I was ecstatic. When the trip was postponed a year I was disappointed (I'm not real confident it is ever going to happen, but I am very hopeful). Both times I found out my favorite band, The Doors, were going to play close by I was excited, when both shows were canceled I was disappointed and upset. I rant about things with some regularity but they don't really bother me enough for me to do anything about them. To Amy's dismay it's just that I enjoy ranting.
When I run I feel a lot of different things though. Sometimes I'm excited about an upcoming run, sometimes I dread it. When a race is coming up I get excited and full of anticipation. As I'm running I'll feel pain and have to fight through it. If I do fight through it I feel a certain amount of joy and pride. If I let it get the best of me I get frustrated and/or upset. Of course I have to mention the runner's high that one gets after a race knowing they left it all on the course.
I run so I can feel.
I'm not trying to say the pride of breaking through the wall compares one iota to the joy of finding that special someone and marrying them. Or that the disappointment of giving in when it hurts and walking up that hill or skipping a run is even a fraction of a percent of the pain that comes with losing someone you love. But when I run I do feel something, and that keeps me running.
Why do you run?
Friday, May 11, 2007
Softball and 2.5 miles
Sorry I didn't post last night my internet connection was down. Last night I had a softball game with a team from Amy's work. I'm not really a big fan of softball, mostly because I'm not any good at a couple minor aspects of the game (catching, throwing and batting). It's fun to just hang out with people though. Our game wasn't scheduled to start until 9:30 but the games before it ran long so we didn't get going until after 10. They had a couple of innings where they scored quite a few runs and the mercy rule came into effect so we didn't play the seven full innings that were scheduled.
We got home a little before 11 and I still needed to run, but I didn't really feel like it. I have a rule for myself that I can't take two days off in a row, so I made myself go out for 2.5 miles at my easy pace of 9 minute miles. It was a beautiful night out, not a cloud in the sky and the stars were bright (I think the moon took the night off though because I couldn't find it and it usually tends to stand out). I decided to mix things up and ran the loop backward. It's a good thing I've ran that route so many times because it was really dark out. I'm going to have to get a headlamp or something so I don't hurt myself. Another thing about running when it's so dark out is that headlights on cars are really bright. There were a couple times when I had to slow down because a car drove by and blinded me a bit. If anyone has any suggestions on how to avoid that from happening I would love to hear them.
I took my splits kind of weird. Since I usually run the course the other way I know where the mile markers are, but I'm not so sure about backward. So I took my splits at the .5, 1.5 and 2.5 mile marks. My splits were 4.29, 9.06 and 8.45 for a grand total of 22.22. So I was right on pace for a change. Despite the fact that it was an easy run it was a tough one to get through. My messed up sleeping schedule had been extremely bad all week so I'm sure that was part of it.
I'm headed to Lincoln this weekend so I'll have to find a couple routes there to run. I have a 2 mile fartlek tomorrow and an easy 1.5 miles on Sunday. I still owe you guys my analysis of the log sites and I promise to get that done sometime.
We got home a little before 11 and I still needed to run, but I didn't really feel like it. I have a rule for myself that I can't take two days off in a row, so I made myself go out for 2.5 miles at my easy pace of 9 minute miles. It was a beautiful night out, not a cloud in the sky and the stars were bright (I think the moon took the night off though because I couldn't find it and it usually tends to stand out). I decided to mix things up and ran the loop backward. It's a good thing I've ran that route so many times because it was really dark out. I'm going to have to get a headlamp or something so I don't hurt myself. Another thing about running when it's so dark out is that headlights on cars are really bright. There were a couple times when I had to slow down because a car drove by and blinded me a bit. If anyone has any suggestions on how to avoid that from happening I would love to hear them.
I took my splits kind of weird. Since I usually run the course the other way I know where the mile markers are, but I'm not so sure about backward. So I took my splits at the .5, 1.5 and 2.5 mile marks. My splits were 4.29, 9.06 and 8.45 for a grand total of 22.22. So I was right on pace for a change. Despite the fact that it was an easy run it was a tough one to get through. My messed up sleeping schedule had been extremely bad all week so I'm sure that was part of it.
I'm headed to Lincoln this weekend so I'll have to find a couple routes there to run. I have a 2 mile fartlek tomorrow and an easy 1.5 miles on Sunday. I still owe you guys my analysis of the log sites and I promise to get that done sometime.
Thursday, May 10, 2007
MyHealthIQ
They are implementing a wellness program at work. So we had to answer some questions about our lifestyles, have some measurements taken and some blood work done. Based on the measurements and blood work we get a score. If we score better than 71 we get something, they have to figure that part out still.
The measurements they took were all pretty basic, height, weight, neck size, waist size (measured at the belly button) and blood pressure. My measurements were as follows:
Height: 6'5.75"
Weight: 179 (I don't see how that could be right. I weigh myself every morning and my average is right around 170)
Neck: 14.5"
Waist: 33" (would have been really easy to manipulate that one)
Blood Pressure: 116/58
To determine our score they calculate stuff like BMI and body fat percent and do tons of different tests on our blood. For each category they have different ranges and points for each range. Apparently I'm a pretty healthy guy. I was in the minimal risk range for every category except for one, so I got the full points for all of those. The only category I am a moderate risk for is body fat percentage. I lost four points for that so I ended up with a score of 96 out of 100.
My scale tests body fat also, it varies from day to day but it averages about 8%. However according to their tests my body fat is 13%. To fall in the minimal risk category I have to have less than 13%. I was curious to see how they came up with that percentage. In the results they said they use a modified version of the U.S. Navy's circumference-based formula to calculate body fat percentage. I found this online calculator that also Navy's method. I entered my measurements and it only came up with 9%. A couple of my coworkers tired it and it came up with the same percent that they had on their reports. I'm not unhappy with my score or anything like that, I just find it strange that those numbers don't match for me. If I would have guessed where I would lose points body fat would have been very close to the bottom of the list.
I had never had my cholesterol tested or anything like that so it was interesting to see those results. I won't bore you with the details (if you really want to know leave me a note and I'll post them). For the most part I was well below the cutoff for the minimal risk range in every category.
Instead of writing up my analysis of the log sites I spent most the evening trying to figure out which HRM to get. I have it narrowed down to a couple but I think I'll try and find them in a store to get a real feel for what they are like. I did get my data entered on all the sites though. So hopefully I can get that post done tomorrow.
The measurements they took were all pretty basic, height, weight, neck size, waist size (measured at the belly button) and blood pressure. My measurements were as follows:
Height: 6'5.75"
Weight: 179 (I don't see how that could be right. I weigh myself every morning and my average is right around 170)
Neck: 14.5"
Waist: 33" (would have been really easy to manipulate that one)
Blood Pressure: 116/58
To determine our score they calculate stuff like BMI and body fat percent and do tons of different tests on our blood. For each category they have different ranges and points for each range. Apparently I'm a pretty healthy guy. I was in the minimal risk range for every category except for one, so I got the full points for all of those. The only category I am a moderate risk for is body fat percentage. I lost four points for that so I ended up with a score of 96 out of 100.
My scale tests body fat also, it varies from day to day but it averages about 8%. However according to their tests my body fat is 13%. To fall in the minimal risk category I have to have less than 13%. I was curious to see how they came up with that percentage. In the results they said they use a modified version of the U.S. Navy's circumference-based formula to calculate body fat percentage. I found this online calculator that also Navy's method. I entered my measurements and it only came up with 9%. A couple of my coworkers tired it and it came up with the same percent that they had on their reports. I'm not unhappy with my score or anything like that, I just find it strange that those numbers don't match for me. If I would have guessed where I would lose points body fat would have been very close to the bottom of the list.
I had never had my cholesterol tested or anything like that so it was interesting to see those results. I won't bore you with the details (if you really want to know leave me a note and I'll post them). For the most part I was well below the cutoff for the minimal risk range in every category.
Instead of writing up my analysis of the log sites I spent most the evening trying to figure out which HRM to get. I have it narrowed down to a couple but I think I'll try and find them in a store to get a real feel for what they are like. I did get my data entered on all the sites though. So hopefully I can get that post done tomorrow.
Wednesday, May 9, 2007
Shopping
I've been running for a few weeks now and there are a few things I want to buy. So I've been doing some shopping online to try and find what I need.
The first thing I want is an mp3 player. I really enjoy music and I use Amy's iPod shuffle once in awhile but it's hers so I don't have control over it. This is the easy item. I've been doing the research on it for a couple years so I have a pretty good idea what is out there. I'm not a big fan of the iPod. Don't get me wrong, I love the fact that it was introduced and revolutionized the music industry. I just think there are other mp3 players out there that are priced about the same but have many more features and less vendor lock in. I'll skip all the boring reasons why and just jump to the good stuff (if you want the boring stuff let me know and I can post about it). I've decided on the iRiver Clix2. The original Clix was pretty successful and the second version has a few improvements that separate it from the pack a bit more. Currently the 4 gig version is the only one that is out but an 8 gig model is supposed to be released in June. I was content with waiting until June for the 8 gig model but due to recent events that I don't care to discuss, the material I have available to put on the Clix has been greatly reduced. So I might have to reconsider just going with the 4 gig version, that would save me $50 too. Another option that I just found about about is a small 1 gig flash player, the Creative Zen Stone. It's price tag is right at only $40. If I decide to wait for the 8 gig Clix I'll probably get one of those. Heck I might even get one anyway.
I haven't worn a watch for quite a few years. But now that I'm running it's pretty much a must have. I've had a Timex Ironman something or other in my car for at least three years so I replaced the battery and have been using it. It isn't quite perfect though. I hit the wrong button a lot when I'm trying to do splits. It doesn't actually make any noise when an alarm goes off, count down timer reaches zero or the stopwatch starts which really defeats the purpose of a couple of those features. The Indiglo light only stays on for a second, and since I ran at night that is a pretty important feature for me. I can get the light to stay on for three seconds every once in a while but it resets to just one usually about the same time I start my runs. I tried taping the light down so I could see it whenever I need to but then none of the other buttons work. I could go on (and on and on) but I to keep things short what I'm trying to say is I hate everything about my watch. So the next thing I'll be shopping for is a new watch. This will be a little harder for me since I'm not quite as familiar with the technology for them as I am with mp3 players. I've been reading a lot about heart rate monitors (HRM) and how they can be used to ensure coefficient training and I've convinced myself I need one of those. Since The Riders on The Storm concert got canceled I'll get my $80 back I paid for those tickets (minus a $4.80 processing fee that Ticketmaster feels it can't refund but I'm not bitter (for future reference, if I ever say I'm not bitter then I really am)), so I'll probably use it for a HRM. I've been trying to find some reviews but I haven't tried too hard and haven't had much luck. From what I have seen though, I'm leaning toward getting a Polar. The basic features I have to have are a back light, stopwatch with splits (probably at least 25), ability to set target zones (either by percent of max or beats per minute), ability to store percent of time in the target zone and max rate. It would be nice if it had a countdown timer, well that is as long as the speaker works. If anyone has any recommendations as to which one to go with I would really appreciate it if you would leave a comment.
I never thought this next item was something I would care much about, let alone actually research on the internet and then write about it. But I'm looking for some socks. All I've ever done when I needed socks in the past was buy the cheapest pack I could find in my size (not always an easy task). I found this sock review on Runner's World (seriously who reviews socks??). Of the ones listed there number 3. The Best Road sock seems like the pair for me, but they want $12 for one pair of socks! That seems insane to me, I usually spend that on 6 pair. I know, I know these ones will keep my feet cool and last for a lot longer, but still. Now my next challenge will be to see if I can find a pair that will fit my size 15 feet. I'll probably head to the Lincoln Running Company when I'm in town next weekend and see if I can find a few pair there that will work. I'd also like to get a couple of technical shirts to keep me cool and dry when I'm running this summer but I can't justify spending the kind of money they want on them right now.
One of the things that got me back into running and something that I've heard many times before is that running is cheap, you just need a good pair of shoes. But if you look at just the few items I "need" above I'm going to end up dropping about $400. Amy is a very frugal person, which is great because that's not so much the case with me. So to avoid fighting over money we each get an allowance that we can do what ever we want with. I also get to spend money I make playing poker however I want. I've been playing pretty good lately so I'll be using that money for this stuff. But if I keep finding more stuff that I "need" to have I'm going to have to play a lot more cards and win a little more often. So if you know of a game let me know.
The first thing I want is an mp3 player. I really enjoy music and I use Amy's iPod shuffle once in awhile but it's hers so I don't have control over it. This is the easy item. I've been doing the research on it for a couple years so I have a pretty good idea what is out there. I'm not a big fan of the iPod. Don't get me wrong, I love the fact that it was introduced and revolutionized the music industry. I just think there are other mp3 players out there that are priced about the same but have many more features and less vendor lock in. I'll skip all the boring reasons why and just jump to the good stuff (if you want the boring stuff let me know and I can post about it). I've decided on the iRiver Clix2. The original Clix was pretty successful and the second version has a few improvements that separate it from the pack a bit more. Currently the 4 gig version is the only one that is out but an 8 gig model is supposed to be released in June. I was content with waiting until June for the 8 gig model but due to recent events that I don't care to discuss, the material I have available to put on the Clix has been greatly reduced. So I might have to reconsider just going with the 4 gig version, that would save me $50 too. Another option that I just found about about is a small 1 gig flash player, the Creative Zen Stone. It's price tag is right at only $40. If I decide to wait for the 8 gig Clix I'll probably get one of those. Heck I might even get one anyway.
I haven't worn a watch for quite a few years. But now that I'm running it's pretty much a must have. I've had a Timex Ironman something or other in my car for at least three years so I replaced the battery and have been using it. It isn't quite perfect though. I hit the wrong button a lot when I'm trying to do splits. It doesn't actually make any noise when an alarm goes off, count down timer reaches zero or the stopwatch starts which really defeats the purpose of a couple of those features. The Indiglo light only stays on for a second, and since I ran at night that is a pretty important feature for me. I can get the light to stay on for three seconds every once in a while but it resets to just one usually about the same time I start my runs. I tried taping the light down so I could see it whenever I need to but then none of the other buttons work. I could go on (and on and on) but I to keep things short what I'm trying to say is I hate everything about my watch. So the next thing I'll be shopping for is a new watch. This will be a little harder for me since I'm not quite as familiar with the technology for them as I am with mp3 players. I've been reading a lot about heart rate monitors (HRM) and how they can be used to ensure coefficient training and I've convinced myself I need one of those. Since The Riders on The Storm concert got canceled I'll get my $80 back I paid for those tickets (minus a $4.80 processing fee that Ticketmaster feels it can't refund but I'm not bitter (for future reference, if I ever say I'm not bitter then I really am)), so I'll probably use it for a HRM. I've been trying to find some reviews but I haven't tried too hard and haven't had much luck. From what I have seen though, I'm leaning toward getting a Polar. The basic features I have to have are a back light, stopwatch with splits (probably at least 25), ability to set target zones (either by percent of max or beats per minute), ability to store percent of time in the target zone and max rate. It would be nice if it had a countdown timer, well that is as long as the speaker works. If anyone has any recommendations as to which one to go with I would really appreciate it if you would leave a comment.
I never thought this next item was something I would care much about, let alone actually research on the internet and then write about it. But I'm looking for some socks. All I've ever done when I needed socks in the past was buy the cheapest pack I could find in my size (not always an easy task). I found this sock review on Runner's World (seriously who reviews socks??). Of the ones listed there number 3. The Best Road sock seems like the pair for me, but they want $12 for one pair of socks! That seems insane to me, I usually spend that on 6 pair. I know, I know these ones will keep my feet cool and last for a lot longer, but still. Now my next challenge will be to see if I can find a pair that will fit my size 15 feet. I'll probably head to the Lincoln Running Company when I'm in town next weekend and see if I can find a few pair there that will work. I'd also like to get a couple of technical shirts to keep me cool and dry when I'm running this summer but I can't justify spending the kind of money they want on them right now.
One of the things that got me back into running and something that I've heard many times before is that running is cheap, you just need a good pair of shoes. But if you look at just the few items I "need" above I'm going to end up dropping about $400. Amy is a very frugal person, which is great because that's not so much the case with me. So to avoid fighting over money we each get an allowance that we can do what ever we want with. I also get to spend money I make playing poker however I want. I've been playing pretty good lately so I'll be using that money for this stuff. But if I keep finding more stuff that I "need" to have I'm going to have to play a lot more cards and win a little more often. So if you know of a game let me know.
Tuesday, May 8, 2007
Repeat 200s
According to my training plan I was supposed to run one mile fast tonight. I'm kind of bored of doing that so I decided to do some repeat 200s instead. For no real reason I decided to run six of them. I ran a 200 hard, then jogged the next two. I hit stop after the first one instead of the split so I don't have that one time for sure, it was something like 34.6. The rest went 39, 38.8, 37.7, 38.1 and 35.6. So they were pretty consistent, except for the fist one, but I just expect that now. It took me about 80 seconds for each 200 that I jogged.
It felt good to run fast, or at least a lot faster than when I run my miles. I almost said that I miss the 200 repeats that I did in high school. How can I think that!? Every year me, Amy and one of the other guys on the team would get craps in our calves, usually on the same 200 even. I have experienced very few things in my life that have hurt more than those and there is absolutely nothing that could be done about them at the time. When both calves cramp up the only thing you can do is try to get to the grass, fall over and cry. My calves would be sore for days after those workouts. What in the hell possessed me to do 200 repeats tonight?
Tomorrow is a rest day so I think I'll use the elliptical machine for awhile. I've gone through one of the sites and set up all my runs so far. I'll do the same thing at one of the other ones tonight (maybe both) and post about my initial thoughts tomorrow.
It felt good to run fast, or at least a lot faster than when I run my miles. I almost said that I miss the 200 repeats that I did in high school. How can I think that!? Every year me, Amy and one of the other guys on the team would get craps in our calves, usually on the same 200 even. I have experienced very few things in my life that have hurt more than those and there is absolutely nothing that could be done about them at the time. When both calves cramp up the only thing you can do is try to get to the grass, fall over and cry. My calves would be sore for days after those workouts. What in the hell possessed me to do 200 repeats tonight?
Tomorrow is a rest day so I think I'll use the elliptical machine for awhile. I've gone through one of the sites and set up all my runs so far. I'll do the same thing at one of the other ones tonight (maybe both) and post about my initial thoughts tomorrow.
Log Site Experiment
The past few weeks I've been using Gmaps Pedometer to plan my courses. And I've been using a spreadsheet to log all my runs. While reading some other blogs and forums, I came across the following three sites that people said they use:
MapMyRun
RunningAHEAD
Favorite Run
The Gmaps site has worked ok so far, but I've been far from impressed with the interface. So I've decided to setup accounts at all three of the sites about and enter my past runs starting with the Novartis Run (if I can) and keep track of all my future workouts. I'll try do this through my next race so I can make sure I take advantage of all of the features each site has. I'll post about my experiences and what I think of the sites as I go along. At some point I'm hoping that one site separates itself from the pack. At that point I'll probably start using it exclusively. Who knows, if none of the sites impress me maybe I'll just have to write my own that works how I think it should.
If anyone has any other sites they use leave a comment and I'll add those ones to the list.
MapMyRun
RunningAHEAD
Favorite Run
The Gmaps site has worked ok so far, but I've been far from impressed with the interface. So I've decided to setup accounts at all three of the sites about and enter my past runs starting with the Novartis Run (if I can) and keep track of all my future workouts. I'll try do this through my next race so I can make sure I take advantage of all of the features each site has. I'll post about my experiences and what I think of the sites as I go along. At some point I'm hoping that one site separates itself from the pack. At that point I'll probably start using it exclusively. Who knows, if none of the sites impress me maybe I'll just have to write my own that works how I think it should.
If anyone has any other sites they use leave a comment and I'll add those ones to the list.
Sunday, May 6, 2007
Lincoln Marathon
Congratulations to everyone that participated in the Lincoln Marathon this morning!! Here are the results. It's always nice to see former teammates do well and a couple of my high school classmates finished pretty high in the half and the winner of the men's was a just couple years ahead of me. One of my coworkers from the Lincoln office had a pretty nice run as well. Whether they know it or not they inspire me to keep running in the hopes that one day I can put up a decent time as well.
It blows my mind to see the kind of times these people can run. Mike Morgan won the half at a pace of 5.11 per mile. I can't even do one mile in 6 minutes let alone 13.1 of them in a row at any pace. I'm still trying to decide if I'm going to try and run the half next year or not. I still have quite awhile before I have to make up my mind though.
It blows my mind to see the kind of times these people can run. Mike Morgan won the half at a pace of 5.11 per mile. I can't even do one mile in 6 minutes let alone 13.1 of them in a row at any pace. I'm still trying to decide if I'm going to try and run the half next year or not. I still have quite awhile before I have to make up my mind though.
My First Fartlek
Sorry I didn't post yesterday like I said I would, I'm lazy. I did run my first fartlek ever though. Here is a what About.com has to say about fartleks.
"Q. What is a fartlek? A. Fartlek (which means “speedplay” in Swedish) is a speed training method, in which the speed and intensity varies throughout the run at unplanned intervals. For this program, a 2 mi fartlek would be run by starting out at your normal pace and then speeding up and slowing down at random times throughout the 2 miles. For instance, run to the 1st stop sign and then sprint to the 3rd lamp pole, etc."
My run didn't go too good for me though. I think I ran the hard parts too hard because during the second half the slow parts were way too slow (I might have walked a bit). But I feel I learned a little so maybe it will go better next time. My final time was 16.23 for the two miles.
I ran a nice and easy 1.5 miles tonight, just out to the corner and back. I even managed to hold myself back to about the pace I was supposed to. I ran to the corner in 6.48 and then back in 6.35 for a final time of 13.24. Since my easy runs are supposed to be at 9 minute mile pace I was pretty much right on.
In case you were wondering I still don't feel any better about the concert being canceled. I read in the forums that is was canceled for one of two reasons. 1. Not enough ticket sales or 2. Problems getting a permit. I find the second reason very unlikely since it was being put on by a big radio station down there and it was supposed to be their 150th Anniversary concert. Also the concert was supposed to be at the City Market, which is owned by the city. The city gives out the permits, so that would mean they wouldn't give themselves a permit. Anyway I don't really care why it was canceled, I'm just disappointed that it was.
"Q. What is a fartlek? A. Fartlek (which means “speedplay” in Swedish) is a speed training method, in which the speed and intensity varies throughout the run at unplanned intervals. For this program, a 2 mi fartlek would be run by starting out at your normal pace and then speeding up and slowing down at random times throughout the 2 miles. For instance, run to the 1st stop sign and then sprint to the 3rd lamp pole, etc."
My run didn't go too good for me though. I think I ran the hard parts too hard because during the second half the slow parts were way too slow (I might have walked a bit). But I feel I learned a little so maybe it will go better next time. My final time was 16.23 for the two miles.
I ran a nice and easy 1.5 miles tonight, just out to the corner and back. I even managed to hold myself back to about the pace I was supposed to. I ran to the corner in 6.48 and then back in 6.35 for a final time of 13.24. Since my easy runs are supposed to be at 9 minute mile pace I was pretty much right on.
In case you were wondering I still don't feel any better about the concert being canceled. I read in the forums that is was canceled for one of two reasons. 1. Not enough ticket sales or 2. Problems getting a permit. I find the second reason very unlikely since it was being put on by a big radio station down there and it was supposed to be their 150th Anniversary concert. Also the concert was supposed to be at the City Market, which is owned by the city. The city gives out the permits, so that would mean they wouldn't give themselves a permit. Anyway I don't really care why it was canceled, I'm just disappointed that it was.
Saturday, May 5, 2007
I'm not a happy person right now
I'm a huge fan of The Doors, I have been since junior high. I saw Robbie Krieger, their guitar player, play at Knickerbockers in Lincoln a few years ago and it was by far the best show I've ever been to. Two of the former members, Ray and Robbie, got back together a few years ago and started touring. They were scheduled to play in Omaha a couple years back but that show got canceled so I was pretty disappointed. Recently they got a new lead singer and started touring again. I check their website pretty frequently to see if they are going to have in shows in the area. A couple months ago they put announced their tour schedule for for the US this year. I was delighted to see a few of shows scheduled in the midwest, Kansas City, St. Louis and Chicago.
With the KC show being on a Saturday and the closest one we decided to go to it. As soon as tickets went on sale I ordered a pair for me and Amy. I've been putting off getting a hotel room because of school and stuff but one of my goals for today was to get one. I went to Ray's website again to check out the forums and I found out that the KC show has been CANCELED!! It's too late to get tickets and rearrange our schedules to make it to the St. Louis or Chicago show. So I'm going to miss out on seeing them again. So I'm pretty bummed right now. Maybe I'll feel better after I run today.
With the KC show being on a Saturday and the closest one we decided to go to it. As soon as tickets went on sale I ordered a pair for me and Amy. I've been putting off getting a hotel room because of school and stuff but one of my goals for today was to get one. I went to Ray's website again to check out the forums and I found out that the KC show has been CANCELED!! It's too late to get tickets and rearrange our schedules to make it to the St. Louis or Chicago show. So I'm going to miss out on seeing them again. So I'm pretty bummed right now. Maybe I'll feel better after I run today.
The Departed
Well I took the night off even though I feel pretty good after yesterday's run. Amy and I rented The Departed, got some ice cream and just hung out, it was a good night. I'm not sure what to think of the movie, I must have missed some stuff or something because it just didn't make a lot of sense to me. Oh well, what do you do?
I kind of want to go for a run now, it's really nice out. Most people probably wouldn't think so but I love this type of weather. It's about 65 degrees out and there are thunderstorms. It's not raining too hard though, just enough. I wish we had a porch or something so I could sit outside and just enjoy the rain.
Well, I'm going to do the abs yoga and then go to bed. I'll do my two mile fartlek tomorrow. I'll get one of the other posts I've been planning done as well.
I kind of want to go for a run now, it's really nice out. Most people probably wouldn't think so but I love this type of weather. It's about 65 degrees out and there are thunderstorms. It's not raining too hard though, just enough. I wish we had a porch or something so I could sit outside and just enjoy the rain.
Well, I'm going to do the abs yoga and then go to bed. I'll do my two mile fartlek tomorrow. I'll get one of the other posts I've been planning done as well.
Friday, May 4, 2007
Classes are done!
I had a great run tonight. According to my schedule I was supposed to run 2 miles tonight. The bike trail near our apartment has a really nice loop that is right at 2.5 miles, so I ran that. The plan doesn't specify the pace but I was planning on running at an easy 9 minute mile pace. But it's hard for me to run slow and I was feeling good. I'm sure the fact that I had just taken my last final of the semester had something to do with that. One mile in I was at 7.39. I thought I stopped my watch instead of just getting the split so I stopped to figure out what I did. Everything was fine except that I wasted about 15 seconds. My split for the 2nd mile was 7.44 so I stayed pretty consistent. So I covered the two miles in 15.23. Really that's pretty good considering that not even two weeks ago I ran a two mile race in 14.53, and the loop is a lot more hilly than those two miles were. I'm sure I could have pushed myself quite a bit harder tonight too. The last half mile was quite a bit slower though, 5.11 for it. Since I wasn't suppose to run that last half mile and quite a bit of it is uphill that doesn't bother me too much. My total time for the 2.5 miles was 20.35.
Tonights run put me over the 50 mile mark on my shoes. So far my shoes have been great and I look forward to putting many more miles on them. It was kind of rainy out tonight and I haven't ran much in the rain with them. After I got done and I was walking back up to the apartment I noticed that the right one was squeaking so I hope that's not a problem.
My last run this week is a 2 mile fartlek. I've never ran one of those before so it should be interesting. I'm not sure if I'll run it tomorrow or Saturday. I guess it depends how I feel in the morning. Since I'm done with classes for the semester I'll have some more time to post. I have a few things that I want to post about so be on the lookout for those.
Tonights run put me over the 50 mile mark on my shoes. So far my shoes have been great and I look forward to putting many more miles on them. It was kind of rainy out tonight and I haven't ran much in the rain with them. After I got done and I was walking back up to the apartment I noticed that the right one was squeaking so I hope that's not a problem.
My last run this week is a 2 mile fartlek. I've never ran one of those before so it should be interesting. I'm not sure if I'll run it tomorrow or Saturday. I guess it depends how I feel in the morning. Since I'm done with classes for the semester I'll have some more time to post. I have a few things that I want to post about so be on the lookout for those.
Thursday, May 3, 2007
I'm a wimp
"Running is a big question mark that's there each and every day. It asks you, 'Are you going to be a wimp or are you going to be strong today?'" - Peter Maher, Irish-Canadian Olympian and sub-2:12 marathoner
Well last night I was a wimp. It was a day off but I had planned on using the elliptical machine for 25 minutes or so. I went down to the club house and Amy showed me how to use it, then she used it for a half hour or so. I studied for my history final while watching the Spurs crush the Nuggets to move onto the next round. I finally got around to using the machine and it's a lot harder when you do it right. After like two minutes on the lowest resistance my quads burned like hell. So I decided I've been working out pretty hard lately and today is supposed to be a rest day so I'm just going to take the day off (which is just a nice way of saying I wimped out).
I'm supposed to run 2 miles tomorrow night. Since I have my history final tomorrow night too I'll probably end up doing a midnight run.
Well last night I was a wimp. It was a day off but I had planned on using the elliptical machine for 25 minutes or so. I went down to the club house and Amy showed me how to use it, then she used it for a half hour or so. I studied for my history final while watching the Spurs crush the Nuggets to move onto the next round. I finally got around to using the machine and it's a lot harder when you do it right. After like two minutes on the lowest resistance my quads burned like hell. So I decided I've been working out pretty hard lately and today is supposed to be a rest day so I'm just going to take the day off (which is just a nice way of saying I wimped out).
I'm supposed to run 2 miles tomorrow night. Since I have my history final tomorrow night too I'll probably end up doing a midnight run.
Tuesday, May 1, 2007
Whartons Performance
Tonight I went down to the track with Amy and ran a mile fast. I was a little bit surprised that she wanted to run tonight. Yesterday she was saying that she thinks she is getting shin splints. They didn't seem to bother her too much tonight so maybe she's fine, something to keep an eye on though.
Like Friday night I was shooting for a 7 minute mile. You'd think I learn, I keep going out way too fast. Here are my quarter mile splits, 1.27, 1.42, 1.50 and 1.34, for a grand total of 6.34. After the first split I held my self back to about where I was supposed to be for the 1000m. Something about being on a track and rounding that last turn though, I couldn't hold myself back any more and I pushed hard for the last 200. I really miss that runner's high I'd get after pushing myself to the limit. Hopefully I can get to a point where I get that high after a road race.
I found this article, A new Training Model, on RunnersWorld.com. It goes through a series of exercises that are intended to build flexibility and strength in order to improve performance and prevent injuries. These are both very important things to me, if I do something I want to be good at it. That's probably the reason I don't do a whole lot, I like to refer to myself as a procrastinating perfectionist (not a good combination). I went through all of the exercises in the article and I enjoyed them. I'll be definitely be looking into The Wharton Performance Plan more.
Tomorrow is an off day so I'll go down to the clubhouse and watch the Spurs finish off the Nuggets. I'll try and talk Amy into heading down with me and showing me how to use the elliptical machine correctly too.
Like Friday night I was shooting for a 7 minute mile. You'd think I learn, I keep going out way too fast. Here are my quarter mile splits, 1.27, 1.42, 1.50 and 1.34, for a grand total of 6.34. After the first split I held my self back to about where I was supposed to be for the 1000m. Something about being on a track and rounding that last turn though, I couldn't hold myself back any more and I pushed hard for the last 200. I really miss that runner's high I'd get after pushing myself to the limit. Hopefully I can get to a point where I get that high after a road race.
I found this article, A new Training Model, on RunnersWorld.com. It goes through a series of exercises that are intended to build flexibility and strength in order to improve performance and prevent injuries. These are both very important things to me, if I do something I want to be good at it. That's probably the reason I don't do a whole lot, I like to refer to myself as a procrastinating perfectionist (not a good combination). I went through all of the exercises in the article and I enjoyed them. I'll be definitely be looking into The Wharton Performance Plan more.
Tomorrow is an off day so I'll go down to the clubhouse and watch the Spurs finish off the Nuggets. I'll try and talk Amy into heading down with me and showing me how to use the elliptical machine correctly too.
New TV
I didn't post last night because I had to study for my Operating Systems final today. I didn't study for it, but that's why I didn't post.
I went down to the clubhouse last night to use the Elliptical machine and found out that they put in a new big screen TV. So that's pretty cool. I hardly ever watch TV, I find it more annoying than entertaining. There are a few shows I enjoy mostly sitcoms but none that I adjust my schedule around. I do like to have it on when I'm working out though. I usually try and find some sporting event to watch. This time of year I try and tune into the NBA playoffs. I've been a Spurs fan since I first got into basketball in like third grade. I went down late enough to watch the first half of their game against the Nuggets but I couldn't watch the rest since the clubhouse closes at 11. It's too bad I didn't get to see the end of the game though, the Spurs had a nice comeback to take a 3-1 lead in the series. They'll close it out tomorrow night at home. Hopefully I'll get to see most of that game since at starts at 8.
Last night was the first time I've used an Elliptical machine. I used it for 35 minutes and it was a decent workout. I'm not sure I did it right though. It was nice that there was no impact but I didn't really like it all that much. It doesn't feel natural or something. I'll have to have Amy show me how to actually use it and maybe I'll get used to it over time. I can see how it would be nice to use for cross training.
I went down to the clubhouse last night to use the Elliptical machine and found out that they put in a new big screen TV. So that's pretty cool. I hardly ever watch TV, I find it more annoying than entertaining. There are a few shows I enjoy mostly sitcoms but none that I adjust my schedule around. I do like to have it on when I'm working out though. I usually try and find some sporting event to watch. This time of year I try and tune into the NBA playoffs. I've been a Spurs fan since I first got into basketball in like third grade. I went down late enough to watch the first half of their game against the Nuggets but I couldn't watch the rest since the clubhouse closes at 11. It's too bad I didn't get to see the end of the game though, the Spurs had a nice comeback to take a 3-1 lead in the series. They'll close it out tomorrow night at home. Hopefully I'll get to see most of that game since at starts at 8.
Last night was the first time I've used an Elliptical machine. I used it for 35 minutes and it was a decent workout. I'm not sure I did it right though. It was nice that there was no impact but I didn't really like it all that much. It doesn't feel natural or something. I'll have to have Amy show me how to actually use it and maybe I'll get used to it over time. I can see how it would be nice to use for cross training.
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