Why it's time to take a break in spite of great progress

Last week I mentioned that I knew there was a bit of respiratory issues (read: a cold) hitting me. What I hadn't anticipated was going down for the count. By going down, I mean Wile. E. Coyote get hit by a ton of bricks going down.

Yes, it was a "touch" of the flu. The aches, the pains, the fever and the "shoot me now... please" feeling that goes with all that. While the fever has finally broken and it appears as though my appetite is close to returning, I'm still pretty weak. The cough is finally starting to subside and hopefully I'll be up to walking again before the week is over. Once I'm breathing freely again, i can rebuild my running stamina.

This is going to be a long recovery until I run again after getting so close to be able to start training for Hyannis at the end of February. But here's the thing, I can adapt things. This is just minor set back to a long term goal. I can't help but feel that I recovered as quickly as I did because my body is becoming stronger.

They say the definition of success is getting up one more time than you get knocked down and I'm working on getting back up again.

Wishing for the sun, watching my watch

I can feel the beginnings of a cold. The rumbling in my chest this morning was the early warning signal for me to break out the zinc. As a result I decided to alter my plans from a 20 minute run segment to run a lap, walk a lap. Some how I still managed to cover 2.5 miles during my half hour run this morning. Not bad at all for me.

But here's the thing, going out at 6 am the sun should be up, but it's not. In fact, the entire time I was out this morning, I needed to use the light on my watch. As I wrapped things up at 6:30, the sun was finally coming up enough to be able to see the numbers on there without the light.

One of the cool things about running at that time of day is watching the world wake up. If I run at the high school track, I start to see lights come on in the building one by one. On the street it's the single runner her and there. Every so often a car will go by. By the end of my run I start to see kids heading for the high school, teachers starting to arrive at various schools in the neighborhood, people heading for the earlier commuter trains, busses and other methods of getting to work.

It won't be long before the leaves start falling and I have to break out my running tights. In the mean time, I'll settle for pushing the button to light up my digital watch to keep track of time and stuff.

Running dark

I took off just before 6 am for a w5+r20+w5, it was dark when I went out.

Recently I've been running on the local high school track. It makes sense since I can run on the sidewalks to the track and then, on the track, I don't have to worry about vehicles and such. It's nice and even with a forgiving surface. As a result I can run at an even pace. Today it was an 11 minute pace. :)

My goal is a 10 minute pace, so I'm coming much, much closer. Pretty soon I finish the 12 week program and I'm able to just feel comfortable running again. The long term goal is to be able to go for a nice long run on a weekly basis. Probably a 7 miler on Sunday mornings, we'll see. Right now I am able to run 20 minutes without stopping and it's a good start.

The sun didn't come up until after I was back home, making coffee and hitting the showers. Like running through the leading edge of the hurricane a month or so back, I feel really bad ass. :)

Now it's time to get a move on the rest of the day while I think about tomorrow and speedwork. Today was a good run, it reassured me that I can do this.

Running dark

I took off just before 6 am for a w5+r20+w5, it was dark when I went out.

Recently I've been running on the local high school track. It makes sense since I can run on the sidewalks to the track and then, on the track, I don't have to worry about vehicles and such. It's nice and even with a forgiving surface. As a result I can run at an even pace. Today it was an 11 minute pace. :)

My goal is a 10 minute pace, so I'm coming much, much closer. Pretty soon I finish the 12 week program and I'm able to just feel comfortable running again. The long term goal is to be able to go for a nice long run on a weekly basis. Probably a 7 miler on Sunday mornings, we'll see. Right now I am able to run 20 minutes without stopping and it's a good start.

Now it's time to get a move on the rest of the day while I think about tomorrow and speedwork. Today was a good run, it reassured me that I can do this.

Hello Goodbye

Today was w5+r15+w5 for 2 miles, not bad for the first cold morning of the season. But it was a bit bittersweet as I ran, as usual, listening on my Apple in-ear headphones to the playlist on my iPhone that tracked my stats on my Nike+. I thought a great deal about the man responsible for those things - and so much more.

If anything spoke to the elegance and understanding of design, it was my run. An article in Wired about 18 months ago spoke of how he was at Nike visiting his friend, Phil Knight and Nike's clumsy and/or failed designs to deliver music and record stats for runners. Lo and behold, the iPod Nano and Nike+ were born. The real reason I have an iPhone is because they added Nike+ capabilities 2 years ago and given how I had gone down twice on a run with no cell phone, it was a no-brainer.

The playlist I chose this morning is one I put together for the Tufts 10k a couple of years back. It is a combination of music used in Apple commercials and music from a Joan Benoit training mix: think Warped tour at the Apple store. What made me smile though was the Fratellis. When I started working at the Apple store years ago, the Fratellis' song "Flathead" was in the overhead mix. I remember telling my co-workers that it was my "happy running song."

It still is.


Steve Jobs is partly responsible for getting my butt out on the road and keeping it going. So as I type this on my little black macbook, moving around the page with my Apple wireless mouse, I say thank you to the man that, in spite of being CEO of one of the most successful companies in the world, took the time to send me an email telling me he didn't agree with my opinion on a company policy.

So.... so long Steve, and thanks for all the fish.

Speedwork works, who knew?

Today was a w5+(r1+w2)+w5 day. The whole run 1, walk 2 thing is a form of speedwork. Me, normally I use hills as speedwork in disguise, but this is the plan so I followed it and put in 2.5 miles. One of the things I noticed was that I was covering more and more ground in those little 3 minute stretches.

I've been running on the local high school track lately. The gate has been open and there have been folks making use of it again. So it was easy to see the speed differentials on the track and it's markings. Because the sun is rising later now, I actually had to use the light on my watch for the first half on the run to check my timing. It wasn't until the 20 minute mark or so it hit me, "Oh, I can read the numbers!" So I guess there's no turning back, it's really fall.

So in the cold, dark, damp fall morning, I managed to move my butt along... all in all a good work out.

Holly Hill Farms Discover the Woods 5k

I've never done a trail race before. My son is the XC runner and this is really his sort of thing. But I have always wanted to try one. Now, living in New England I can honestly say there are certain things to be expected: there are hills, there is dirt and there are rocks. After several days of rain, that dirt turns to mud.

Most trail racers revel in these realities. Me, I now see the appeal but I"m not sure if it's my thing.


Sunday was overcast and fall like. After all the rain, I knew it was going to get muddy so I packed a change of clothes knowing that I would need a shower and met up with my sister and niece to go to the race. This was on a community farm in Cohasset that has over 130 acres of woods. Four years ago they started this race to let the local community become aware and explore the woods. There were maybe 75 or so people that turned out, several had done this race before. My sister and I started in the back of the pack and my niece ran with the bulk of the pack. We rounded the first bend and it was pure, deep mud. It was deep enough that the one passable spot required carefully balancing yourself in a narrow one foot after another passage.

We rounded that first veggie patch and circled past the start line and into the fields to the woods. There were lots of rocks and roots. Not surprising, after all, it was a discover the woods trail race. We ran the better part of the first mile, but after slipping a bit in some mud, both of us quickly came to the conclusion we were walking this race. It wasn't worth hurting ourselves, so we'd enjoy the surroundings and push when we could other wise, we wouldn't sweat it.


About a mile and a quarter in, we heard someone huffing and puffing behind us. Both of us were surprised as we thought we were the last, but another woman ran past. Then, crossing a bridge over some water, she started walking because she didn't want to hurt herself either. We caught up to her quickly and the three of us walked the last half of the race together. All of us were glad we didn't wear our "good" running shoes. We joked that we were surprised they hadn't sent out a search party for us.

Just as we were coming up on the 3 mile point, I saw my niece jogging at us and we started laughing. She had tried to explain to the race organizers that we were fine, but they were concerned someone might be hurt. We crossed the finish with a lot of laughter at the 55:59 mark.

Yes I was covered in mud and yes there was definitely dirt in the skirt; however, it was a good run. I did figure out I'm not really warrior dash material - no matter how much fun it looks. I haven't caught the trail bug... yet, but it was certainly a good time.

An Odd 1.9

Today there were runners... runners I say!

I've gotten in the habit of my (w4+r6)2+w5 being a walk to the local track with a run around the 1/4 mile, a walk around the 1/4 and a jog home. I've gotten used to doing this early enough that I'm often the only person on the track. It's a good thing.

Today there was a pack of 3 people doing speed work and I felt like the turd in the punch bowl as I ambled around my lane getting my mileage in. Normally faster, fitter runners don't intimidate me at all. I'm used to admiring the gazelle like creatures nature and the universe use to inspire me but today the universe taunted.

Or I should say, the runners' looks did. As the fast split shorts, jog bra skinny babe blew past, I got a "get off the track" look. I know the look from the gym I used to go to when I went right after the work crew hit the machine before heading out for the meat markets of Allston and Boston. She was followed by two runners. The man actually shot me an "atta girl" smile but the other woman gave me a look similar to the first one.

It's one of the first mornings I felt glad to leave the track for my jog home. The universe must have felt my heaviness because the dust mop was out early. His owner said he was busy examining a stick when she said it was about time for me to come running past and the dog jumped up and ran towards my direction. A couple of belly rubs and ball tosses later, I was feeling better.

I still have my chops at home too. In the 10 minutes it takes to toast my eggo, I made coffee, packed my lunch and poached an egg just at the timer dinged.

I'm off to school, most likely to be in a first grade room. I love first graders, they're still full of hugs and smiles. I don't know if I could teach them day after day, but on days like this, I prefer their happy faces to surly 4th and 5th graders who are chomping at the bit to join the "big kids" at middle school.

So another 1.9 miles and some fuzzy belly rubs are in the books on a fall day and life is pretty good as I finish my coffee.

It feels a bit more like fall

Yesterday's run was not good, the humidity felt like worst of summer. This morning was a different story. This morning it was still humid but it felt and smelled like fall. The scent of leaves and bursts of color made this morning's quick run delightful. Today was w5+r10+w5 and it was really comfortable. Given yesterday's struggle, it was a sweet surprise to just be able to run.

This is the first time that I'm thinking the Tufts 10k in a couple of weeks may not be out of the question. I'll decide after Sunday's trail run. If my ankle feels strong after that and I'm able to continue training, then I'll go for it. If not, there will be other 10ks and races to run. Right now, I'm feeling pretty good about things but I have to remember to take it easy so I don't hurt myself again. One step at a time... one step at a time. :)

The difference between walking and running

For me is about .25 miles this morning. This week is another (w4+r6)2+w5 week. The humidity was as bad as some of summer's worst today and breathing was not easy. As a result, the second run segment ended up being a w4+r4+w2+w5. Also, as a result, I was about a quarter mile shorter of what I normally do in that time.

I won't sweat it too much as tomorrow's the first time I move from a walking chunk with a little touch of running to a chunk of running. We'll see how it goes.

Hopefully the humidity breaks tonight and we're back in the right season again. It may take a few days to get there... we'll see. In the meantime, if you think that minute or two doesn't make a difference, think again.

Surrealism

I love a surreal run every so often and today's (w4+r6)2+w5 was certainly surreal. There are battling weather fronts around us that produced this incredible fog bank today so in the quiet dawn. Again the gates to the high school track were open so I took a quick detour for a couple of laps. While there, I couldn't resist catching a quick shot of the school from the opposite side of the track.

The blanket of fog quiets everything while you're out there. The sound of cars are muffled, and other runners would suddenly appear and disappear in the fog. While out running through the streets and on the track, I couldn't help but think of the nuggets of some SF stories that involve a runner coming out of the fog from seemingly no where with something that could change everything we know. A tool, a weapon, a disease, a message... it was the perfect setting for that one mysterious stranger to change life as we know it.

In the end, there were no mysterious visitors or messages. Just a couple of dog walkers, runners and the rare car as I wound my way home.

Share our Strength

Today is Weight Watchers Lose-a-palooza where Weight Watchers will donate $225k for every million pounds lost and $1 for every mention of Lose-a-palooza today up to 75k on social media. One of the organizations receiving the donation is No Kid Hungry part of the Share our Strength campaign which I totally support.

Today was (w4+r6)2+w5 and it was harder than what I thought it would be. I got to run 1/2 mile around the track as the gate was open this morning. It was nice to run on something flat and level. It also meant I pushed myself a little harder in some ways. Sure there really weren't any hills this morning, but that meant I felt I needed to move a bit faster as a result.

In the end, it was a good run on a crisp morning. I'm feeling good and strong as I keep on keeping on.

It's fall

You know it's fall when you need a long sleeve shirt for your morning run. Yesterday was that day.

Yes the calendar says there's another week of summer, but the temps are starting to drop and it was below 60* when I headed out the door for my (w5+r5)3+w5 for 2.5 miles. Unlike the other day where the uphill run was a labor that left me huffing and puffing, I was able to comfortably do a longer loop as the sun began rise.

It was the first time in a while I saw other runners out and about, so it was nice having company on the roads before traffic picked up for the day. Not only that, in looking at my stats, I realized that I'm running at a good pace these days. I still have quite a way to go, but it's nice. Tomorrow I start the next phase where I build to running more than walking and it shouldn't be long until I get to the speed building weeks.

I'm back on the road again, and it feels great.

Recovery Run

I forget how much giving blood takes out of me. After such a confident and good run on Sunday, I was disappointed at how hard today's run was. On tap this week is (w5+r5)3+w5 but what happened was a (w5+r4+w1)+(w5+r1+w4)+(r5+w5). Now granted the toughest stretches were the uphill stretches (surprise surprise surprise), but I kept going.

We'll see how it goes on Thursday or Friday.. I'm still trying to figure out the best days for running around my work and school schedules. But it's clear I still need to recover a little because my body wasn't fully ready for the strain of running uphill.

Today is a new day, time to make a new start

Those words really stuck with me in my run today. The oversaturation of 9/11 coverage has left me somewhat numb. Like so many others, my heart broke that day as well; however, I fail to see how rolling around in the grief and anger then wrapping myself in a flag will make things better.

On 9/11/2002 I made my son's talit for his Bar Mitzvah. He had asked for a black, Jimmy Buffett talit. I found a rainbow of batik fabrics and worked in a piece of fabric I had saved for years from his first "big boy" quilt I had made for him. The rainbow was an echo of the first baby quilt I made for him. I spent the day watching MTV talking to teens about what they learned, how they had coped, where were they at after a year of change. On 9/11/2003 and every year since, I have given blood on this day. I would rather give life in honor of those who lost theirs on this day than wave a flag and scream "never forget."

Never forget what? The anger, the fear, the shock?

I said something to my boys that day, which started with, "I have to tell you something but I want to start by telling you Auntie Weasel and your cousin Randy are safe...." I then told them what happened and reminded them that the men who flew those airplanes into the towers were bad people. But just like the IRA bombers were a reflection of the people in Ireland, nor were these people a reflection of all the people from their faith and country. I still believe that.

This morning, the Dalai Lama posted these words to his face book page: "We need to learn from our painful memories of September 11th and become more aware of the destructive consequences that arise when we give in to feelings of hatred. This tragedy in particular has reinforced my belief that fostering a spirit of peaceful co-existence and mutual understanding among the world’s peoples and faith traditions is an urgent matter of importance to us all. We must therefore make every effort to ensure that our various faith traditions contribute to build a more caring, peaceful world."

He is right.

So today, I ran to my "Running Inspired" play list and did (w5+r5)3+w5 for just over 2.5 miles.

Now I'm going to go give blood before I celebrate my parents' 65th wedding anniversary. Go forward and live your life in peace and honor, not wallow, in the memories of those who fell today.

Efficiency

When I run in the rain, I think about how I'm efficient. At least that's what I tell my students when they show shock that I run in the rain. "But it's raining?!" they often exclaim. That's when I say, "Well, look at this way, at least you don't have to take a shower when you're done."

I got my (w3+r2)5+w5 in early. I wore my bright safety yellow jacket as I ran in the dark morning as I was out there, alone. No cars, no other runners... just me, my music and my thoughts. I start back at my school today as in school support. Tomorrow I start my class for the semester. As a result I needed to clear my head so that I start the year.

But I also need to head out and pick up some coffee as we have none in the house.

So much for being fully efficient. :)

Halfway Point, you have (six) weeks to go

If, like me, you run with a Nike+ device, then you know the voice. It comes on halfway through your run and tells you "Halfway point, you have (x) (parameter) to go."

I have been doing this for five weeks and this is week six. While frustration still sets in at what I can and can't do compared to what I once could do, the reality is I am halfway there. This week is the (w3+r2)5+w5 week. Next week is the (w5+r5)3+w5 week. After that it's odd intervals to get your body up to speed and such. I have a goal fo the Tufts 10k again this year. I don't know if I'll make it or not, but it's the goal.

Good Run

Today was a good run, tough but good.

The problem with restarting a walk to run program is that frustration of pushing your limit at 4 minutes of running when there was a time when I could run 5 or 6 miles without thinking. Now I'm pushing myself through four minutes of running. My first time through years ago it was "Woo hoo! I can run for 4 minutes!" Now it's like, "C'mon body, you know how to do this!"

But I have 2 miles in today and feeling stronger. I have a run scheduled for tomorrow and a rest day Saturday. Next week school starts so I need to push myself out the door earlier as school starts Tuesday which means traffic in the area by 7:30 am. It won't be long before I'm running in the dark wondering what happened to the sun. But until then, I'm out in the morning to get another run in.

When the Party's Over

One of my old work friends described yesterday's storm this way, "The city looks like it had a tree confetti party that everyone was invited but nobody wanted." That's a good description of what I noted this morning doing the same run [(w5+r3)2+w5] I did yesterday.

Things I noted:

- without running into head winds, I managed to add a full tenth of a mile to my timed distance
- it may have been more if I wasn't dodging branches of all shapes and sizes on the roads and sidewalks
- the air was cool, crisp and clean
- DPW crews were out busily trying to clean up after yesterday's party Mother Nature threw for us
- there was a lot more traffic, as in there actually was traffic

To make it fair, I ran to the same sound track, Green Day's 21st Century Breakdown.

It's time to start progressing to earlier morning runs as school is back in session next week. That means 7:30 am around here is a crowded mess of traffic of people trying to get to all the different schools in my neighborhood. Not such a bad thing as lately I've been giving into the luxury of sleeping in a bit more and more.

Well it's off to a full day, including registering for class and picking up my textbooks. Time to peel off the running gear and get to daily running. So goodnight Irene, I'll see you in my dreams after I get through cleaning up confetti in my driveway left by yesterday's party.

I feel like such a bad ass right now

With the way the local news media folks are wringing their hands and speaking in dangerous but giddy tones, it can only mean one thing: the French Toast Alert level is elevated or higher. This time for Hurricane Irene.

At 6 am, I got up to pill the cat and there was nothing. The sun was peeking through, it was a bit windy and nothing. OK, so I turn on the news and I'm seeing images from yesterday, cut to news people telling everyone to stay home, images of an empty Times Square, more news people standing in storm winds and such on Long Island, back to the studio for more predictions of gloom and doom before the news people outside in Boston and on the Cape trying to pretend it's much worse than what's outside my window.

Seriously folks?

Through all the weather model maps showing tracking no one tells me what I need to know right now. So I tweet to @DavidWade: Where's the storm now? Can I get a 2 mile run in?

Nothing. Radio silence baby.

So I make the call as I recall a line from Zaphod Beeblebrox: "I get weirder things than you in my breakfast cereal."

I suit up and the rain comes. Seriously folks?! After hemming and hawing for a moment, after all, it's only a 21 minute walk/run scheduled today, I decide to go for it. I felt bad ass out there in my safety yellow BAA jacket and iphone enclosed in a baggie. It was rainy and windy with no one on the road. None of the usual Sunday morning runners, no traffic, nothing. Just me trotting along Green Day's "21st Century Breakdown" getting wet. I hit a head wind as I came around the back of the high school by the football field but for the most part, it was a rainy day run like most rainy day runs.

Except I feel bad ass because I can now officially say, "I ran through the leading edge of Hurricane Irene."

Now, when I'm hiding under the bed when the worst of the winds and rains come through at noon time with no baseball to distract, I may not feel so bold and brave. But at 7:30 am on a Sunday morning, I feel like bring it on baby!

I did 1.5 miles of (w5+r3)2+w5 in the leading edge of a hurricane and lived to tell the tale.