Check out the blog for Team USA Georgia. This is an organization founded and operated by my friend Jay to improve the performance of post-collegiate runners. Jay is a rock star when it comes to running, and has the mind and heart of a teacher/coach when it comes to couch potatoes like me. In the next year, I will run with Jay as much as possible, and will shamelessly and relentlessly bug him for training tips.
In other news, new shoes! I am a flat-footed overpronator who is built more like a running back than a runner, so I am always in need of support. I have long been a fan of the Asics Gel 2100 series, which was originally recommended to me by the good folks at Fleet Feet in John's Creek (then Duluth). The latest shoe in that series is the 2150, which I bought last Thursday. Since I like to support local rock, I patronized Just Sports & Tennis in Rome, and they hooked me up.
I'm having mental difficulty with this whole "maintain a base until REAL training begins in 10 weeks" proposition. I have always done the best with a training regimen when a race is on the calendar. Accordingly I am thinking now that I need intermediate races other than the half next spring and full next fall. There is a great possibility that I will run the Atlanta Half Marathon on Thanksgiving Day. If I commit to running it, I will enter a training plan for it in the next few weeks.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
New Course
I need to figure out how to upload maps from my Garmin.
This morning I ran on the campus of Darlington School with AP and Wilson. Both of those guys are much faster than me, so I need to run with them AMAP. Darlington sits on 400 acres of mostly wooded areas. AP, the head XC coach at the school, took us on a 5 mile course that had everything - wooded trail, grass, the school's XC course, paved road, hills, even a tunnel. It was a great course that reminded me of the value of hill training. My ankle was tender this morning, but a mile into the run, even with the unstable terrain of trails, I was running pain-free. Hopefully I can now put that behind me.
Another topic I need to cover is heartrate training - one of the top reasons I got into running and keep running was and is to stay heart healthy. Heart disease runs in my family. To this end, I wear a heart rate monitor when I run (almost like a bra - very manly). I have a suspicion that my average heart rate is too high on easy runs - this morning my average rate was 167. I will probably get into this in future posts.
Finally, AP mentioned a chart that compares race times in various distances that has been developed by our friend Jay. The purpose of the chart is to show how a time at one distance compares to a time at another, for what we can call "reasonable projection" purposes. For instance, AP's recent performance at the Peachtree Road Race (38:59) translates into a 3:02 marathon. While this is not an exact science, it can be very helpful. I will be interested to see what my race times need to be to project a BQ marathon time.
This morning I ran on the campus of Darlington School with AP and Wilson. Both of those guys are much faster than me, so I need to run with them AMAP. Darlington sits on 400 acres of mostly wooded areas. AP, the head XC coach at the school, took us on a 5 mile course that had everything - wooded trail, grass, the school's XC course, paved road, hills, even a tunnel. It was a great course that reminded me of the value of hill training. My ankle was tender this morning, but a mile into the run, even with the unstable terrain of trails, I was running pain-free. Hopefully I can now put that behind me.
Another topic I need to cover is heartrate training - one of the top reasons I got into running and keep running was and is to stay heart healthy. Heart disease runs in my family. To this end, I wear a heart rate monitor when I run (almost like a bra - very manly). I have a suspicion that my average heart rate is too high on easy runs - this morning my average rate was 167. I will probably get into this in future posts.
Finally, AP mentioned a chart that compares race times in various distances that has been developed by our friend Jay. The purpose of the chart is to show how a time at one distance compares to a time at another, for what we can call "reasonable projection" purposes. For instance, AP's recent performance at the Peachtree Road Race (38:59) translates into a 3:02 marathon. While this is not an exact science, it can be very helpful. I will be interested to see what my race times need to be to project a BQ marathon time.
Monday, July 5, 2010
Back at it
I believe the ankle is 95% healed. I will find out for sure with a quick 5-miler by the river after I leave the office this evening, and/or during an easy run tomorrow morning with AP.
In other news, I have been investigating homeschool curriculum. Yes, the time is upon us. Among other benefits, homeschooling offers flexibility in scheduling. "Hey kids, how about a field trip to Boston next April? Patriot's Trail? U.S.S. Constitution? Harvard Square? Oh, and, since we will be up there anyway, Daddy might run a little race..."
In other news, I have been investigating homeschool curriculum. Yes, the time is upon us. Among other benefits, homeschooling offers flexibility in scheduling. "Hey kids, how about a field trip to Boston next April? Patriot's Trail? U.S.S. Constitution? Harvard Square? Oh, and, since we will be up there anyway, Daddy might run a little race..."
Friday, July 2, 2010
Annnnndddddd....he's injured, folks.
Four days into my quest for Boston, and I'm laid up with ice on my right ankle. If official training didn't start in September/October, I might take this as an omen.
I've had minimal pain in my right ankle, which I attributed to the usual aches and pains of getting back into a regular routine. I had run 15 miles this week when, on Wednesday evening, I twisted my right ankle while playing soccer with my four year old. Don't ask, it's already embarassing enough. I laid on the ground and, for the first time in my life, felt like I had reached my thirties.
Despite a valiant boast, and despite laying out running clothes, I didn't run on Thursday morning. I got out of bed at 3:00am to retrieve Tucker for feeding, and almost didn't make it to the door. But I managed, and woke up (again) around 5am and laid on the couch with the McDonald v. City of Chicago oral argument transcript, a cup of coffee, and an ice wrap. Same for last night and this morning. Last night, I reached the zenith of my personal pity party. Today I finally feel like I am on the mend, and might try a few miles in the morning. I will play that by ear.
In other news, I have not had a soda in over a week. That is a major deal for me. I have an unhealthy dependence on soda, particularly Cherry Coke, for most of my life. Like my friends who smoke, I have tried to quit numerous times. My PR is three months. I am not saying that I am trying to quit this time - I don't want to jinx myself. But if I want to qualify for Boston, desparate times call for desparate measures. This morning I tried to remember the last time I had one - I believe it was last week sometime. Since I don't remember for sure, I have decided to designate Monday, June 28 as the beginning of the Bojo No-Soda Counter (BNSC). The BNSC currently stands at 4, for four days. My BQ is anywhere from 465-500 days away. Can I make it 500 days without a soda? I don't want to think about it.
I've had minimal pain in my right ankle, which I attributed to the usual aches and pains of getting back into a regular routine. I had run 15 miles this week when, on Wednesday evening, I twisted my right ankle while playing soccer with my four year old. Don't ask, it's already embarassing enough. I laid on the ground and, for the first time in my life, felt like I had reached my thirties.
Despite a valiant boast, and despite laying out running clothes, I didn't run on Thursday morning. I got out of bed at 3:00am to retrieve Tucker for feeding, and almost didn't make it to the door. But I managed, and woke up (again) around 5am and laid on the couch with the McDonald v. City of Chicago oral argument transcript, a cup of coffee, and an ice wrap. Same for last night and this morning. Last night, I reached the zenith of my personal pity party. Today I finally feel like I am on the mend, and might try a few miles in the morning. I will play that by ear.
In other news, I have not had a soda in over a week. That is a major deal for me. I have an unhealthy dependence on soda, particularly Cherry Coke, for most of my life. Like my friends who smoke, I have tried to quit numerous times. My PR is three months. I am not saying that I am trying to quit this time - I don't want to jinx myself. But if I want to qualify for Boston, desparate times call for desparate measures. This morning I tried to remember the last time I had one - I believe it was last week sometime. Since I don't remember for sure, I have decided to designate Monday, June 28 as the beginning of the Bojo No-Soda Counter (BNSC). The BNSC currently stands at 4, for four days. My BQ is anywhere from 465-500 days away. Can I make it 500 days without a soda? I don't want to think about it.
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