Friday I did another 10K on the road, down the second to the Schmidt farm and back again. This time it was a little cooler , about -6C with a gusty breeze and a bit of snow! The snowmobile trails are open , the route I normally take in the summer is where the goes. The had just groomed it , it looked pretty solid so I thought I would give it a try. Well I was wrong ... its was harder then running in powdery sand... back to the road. There was a light dusting of snow so it was a little bit slippery , just had to mind the hills a little bit more. Running back I started to get a little cold. My muscles felt stiff , when I got home my legs were red ! Next time I am going to layer my legs too. Running back I noticed that my tracks weren't covered as I neared home. I have been working on technique , trying to land under my body. I though that this was shortening my stride but I was wrong , I was surprised at the distance between the foot prints. It kinda feels like I am shuffling along when landing on the balls of my feet. The stiffness brought on by the cold slowed me down a bit and I came in just over the 48 minute mark... couldn't have ran any further without dressing a little warmer! After the run I dropped in the Hot Tub....I usually pour a tall glass of milk but we were out so I opted for a beer instead . Boy you want to talk about a cheap drunk !!!!!!

Sunday I was working , been real busy at work lately so I was surprised to get away. Did an easy 16K run on the treadmill. This is the longest run I have done since late October . It felt great , even though it was the treadmill I got into that meditative state at around the 10K mark ! Felt like I could run forever .... I ran about 3K off in LA LA land not even realizing that I was running . The pace was fairly easy , at around 5:10 /km . I was entertained by my heart rate , kept it in the 130-140 range !

Tuesday after work I jumped back on the treadmill ! It was Fartlek day , did 800x5:13/Km then 200 at 3:45/Km. did this until I hit the 10K mark! Running like this made me feel like I could break 40:00 .... best was May 2007s Trillium where I broke 45:00 for the first time. I varied the elevation from +2 to -1 . It helped to break the monotony of the indoor run. Kept an eye on the heart rate too . Each set I did it pegged high ... mid 160s to low 170s then dropped back to the mid 140s in recovery ! I can see where this sort of a run weekly will help to increase the speed .

I am going to keep this sort of distance / mix going through Jan/Feb . Come March I am going to try to speed things up again preparing for the first 10K in May although I ultimately want to run more , run further ! I haven't done a Marathon yet , gained a ton of respect for distance over the Summer . I could do it today but I am toying with the idea of doing a 50ker before the 42 !

Ron.

Running in the Snow

Another first today, ran in the snow! It was just below freezing , a wee bit windy and there was the occasional squall! Did a 10K on 2nd , 5K towards Durham, turnaround was the Schmidt farm and then back ... all in the grand sum and total time of 53:35 ! Sounds slow but this spring when I did the 10K in under 45 I was running this route in about 49 and change !

This morning when I got up it was sunny , no wind and a couple of degrees below freezing ... Perfect! I waited a few hours then went out and I had about 30 seconds of Sun the rest was snow/blowing snow ! Wind chill was a factor too . Heading South towards Durham the wind was a little behind but more to the right of me. The front was pretty much shielded and I was comfortable . On my return it was a little different , wind was almost in my face ... more to my left . There is a couple of high open spots that I had to shield my face with may hand! All and I I was fairly comfortable . Wore regular socks .. Feet were 100%, almost hot. Had some "running pants" that I had bought on EBay ... not bad , wee bit breezy but it sure beats shorts. On top I had my metal T with a Cotton sweatshirt and a Nylon Wind Jacket ! The crowning achievement was a wool touque, I almost didn't grab this and am I ever glad I did. I wouldn't wanted to go further dressed like this . I was hot underneath , a little damp from sweat but not really too uncomfortable . So bottom line ... the dress gets a passing grade !

The road was plowed this morning I was running on hard packed snow , a little give along the edge but very similar to running on pavement. The only time I really noticed I was ruining on snow was on Hills. Had to be real careful not to break going down or get too much up on the toes going up or I lost traction. I have been working on landing more on the balls of my foot as compared to the heel by landing under the body instead of in front , this also helped me run in the slippery conditions! Breathing was no problem at all ... it wasn't too cold so I really didn't notice it. I regret not bringing a water bottle , I was craving a drink at the 5K mark.

The route I took wasn't my favorite ! Where I like to go is under a meter of snow! However I really didn't mind, the snow made it all look allot different ! Best part was the fact that it was ploughed this morning.

So , I will be back! I am resigned to get outside and run over the next four months, just have to time it!

Ron.

Been running

Been a funny week , working nights and running is strange ! All were on the treadmill , did a ...
Wed 3am 7K , stopped at 7 becasue I had to go !
Thurs 3am 7K , stopped at 7 because I had to go back to work.
Fri, 5k at 6am ! Didnt have enough time to run furtehr
Sat , finally a 10K at 4:00 am .

Its been hard to be back on the tradmill after the great runs in Maryland last week. I find myself imagining I am back on teh trails and its summer !

Wed I did an easy run , about 11Kmh east pace. I jumped off at 7K because a I had to go! Thurs was my first attempt at Fartleks, easy run 12Kmh but at the 3,4,5,6,7 K marks I did a 200meter run at 14 mh. Friaday a did a short / moderate 5K in around 23:00. Fianlly this mronnig I did an easy 10K 11/11.5/12 and the last K was at 13.3 Kmh.

Had another great run on the Rockcreek trail in Rockville. Found the start of the trail at Lake Needwood and ran to where is started the day before at Veirs Mills Road. In the two days I ran , 2:40 minutes I cover from Lake Needwood to about 2K into the "Rock Cliff Park" . I cover at least 15 of the 20 miles of trails. I highly recommend these trails, with the exception of crossing the odd road you wouldn't even know that your running in a large urban area , no problem with the air either ! See http://www.bikewashington.org/trails/rockcreek/md.htm .

I started off wanting to run the trail around lake Needwood but there was construction at the Dam and the trail was closed. I didn't realize it but I was at the North end of the Rock Creek Trail ... just lucky ! So off I went , beautiful sunny late fall day , temps around 13C .. a little warmer then the day before. The trail was beautiful, big old Oak/Ash/Beech forest. Some of the Oak trees still had lots of leaves, they were a copper colour and with the sun shine it made them glow ! The trail runs though a valley between very exclusive homes, There were rock outcrops here and there and you could see where climbers had left hardware in rock face . Not much on the way of hills , more or less flat . There were these neat little arched bridges that crossed the river here and there . Came across a half dozen or so roads on the way to Viers Mills but only one was a major thoroughfare.

I didn't eat anything before I ran at 12:3O pm and I was started to feel the lack of energy ! Legs were a wee bit tired from the day before and they actually had a bit of a burn on . Rarely do I feel that way but hey I havent been doing too much running outside lately . I was wearing shorts , a metal shirt and a light nylon wind breaker . I was comfortable to warm , probably could have lost the jacket !

So its back to the snow tomorrow , when winter sets in and things freeze up I will attempt to take to the road again , all be it with a layer or two of clothing on.

Ron.

Been running , haven't been blogging!

Had a classic head cold that headed south towards the lungs on the 17/18. Did my first run on the treadmill on Thur Nov 22 11 days since I ran on the beach n the DR. Only did 6.6 K that day , my lungs were a little congested so I didn't want to push it , not to mention it was the first run in awhile.

Friday Nov 23 , did a 10K on the treadmill. Didn't worry too much about the time. Somewhere around 54 minutes.

Did the same on Sunday Nov 25 , 1oK on the treadmill in a little under 50 mins. As is usual I broke the run up into thirds. First 3.3 was at 11K , next at 12K and finally crossed the line at 13.3 ! At the 6.66k mark the heart rate checked in at 146 bpm . Not to bad ! Was thinking always go harder faster in any run , never back off and make it easier unless you are overheating or behind in the O2 or you need to conserve energy to make it the rest of the way.

I find myself in Washington DC this week , before I came I Googled running in the DC area . Came up with a series of trails running through Rockville. Today was perfect conditions for a run , Sunny , light breeze and temps near 10C ! The trails are some 20+miles in all and run from the North end of Rockville all the way to DC . Not sure where I got on but it I parked at a Soccer field that runs next to the trail . Started running South towards DC, the trail was paved and in no time at all I found myself in the middle of a forest in the middle of a very big city yet it felt like I was on a run at home in the middle of the bush ! There was a mix of Ash / Oak and Beach trees . Some were very mature. The leaves were still on allot of trees, much like running at home in mid October . The trail ran through allot of parks and crossed fewer streets then I imagined it would. At around the 10k mark I entered "Rockcliff Park" , I am sure I have seen this place used in a movie set. The highlight came at about 40 minutes in to the run when I came across a historical plaque , it went something like ... here in 1774 George Washington built a Mill to help feed .... Wow , 1774 ... two years before the US became a country. So I turned back and picked up the pace a little and found myself back at the car in 1:20 . It was a pretty flat run so I estimate I did around 15k . I hope to try a different trail tomorrow ...

Ron.

70K on the Beach Last Week!

Ran, most of the way :<), a 10K each day Mon Nov 5 thru Sunday Nov 11 !

I was staying at the Palladium , when I hit the beach and turned left West ) I ran to the Grand Bahia Primncipie 5K. If I turned right ( East ) I ran past the dolphin pens and the turnaround occurred at the wharf , 5K ! I used Google earth to map out the course and distance before I went !

First run was way to late in the morning . First day there I started the run at 08:30 , it was more then 20C warmer then my last run at home. Temps were near 30C with high Humidity , not to mention the Sun beating down on me with no Breeze ... I WAS HOT! First 20 minutes were OK . When the internal body temp started to rise I was done! The solution to overheating is simple , cool down. Throughout the week when I found I was overheating I would walk for awhile. Another thing I did the rest of the week was to run much earlier .

Highlights of a week of running on the beach ......

• Dodging the waves , it got to be second nature! The sand is very powdery , no shells. The only firm surface was where the waves washed up!
• Smelling the Food Prep at all the resorts!
• Other runners, in the 100's of Ks I have ran at home this year I have never passed another runner nor encounter more then a pedestrian or two. There were three types of runners on the beach 1) the ones the serious types ( like myself) 2) the so-so runners that well do some running now and again 3) the I am going to run on the beach because I am on a Holiday.... not runners at all. OK , now I am new at encountering runners on the beach but I was expecting a friendlier bunch of folks , after all we are all brothers and sisters with a very strong bond! Only 1 in 3 runners I said Hello to or waved at even acknowledged my existence!
• SUN , good and bad. The sun was low in the sky and it felt SO Good until I overheated
• Clouds, when it was too hot I prayed for clouds... better yet RAIN !
• Other folks on the beach , I was fun seeing everyone . I was amazed how many were on the beach at 07:00 am !
• Taking laps through the Grand Bahia Precipice ! I stayed here a couple of years ago and it was cool to return ... brought back lots of memories !
• I really appreciated the different climate/topography/vegetation. The palms all along the beach, the sound of the waves !
• At then end of the run I would grad a couple of bottles of water , remove my shoes and lounge by the pool then jump in and cool down. I had time on my side so I would take 30 to 60 minutes after to cool down!

The reset of the week I was usually out around 07:00 am . Temps were around 25C so it wasn't to to bad. I was use to these sort of temps running last summer !

I was surprised how few Type 1 runners had water bottles! I had my fuel belt , I would have never been able to run as far without it !

This past week I was busy working on some projects at home and then I had to work 12 hour days Fri/Sat/Sun , I also came down with a classic head cold so I haven't had a chance to run in the past 7 days. Mentally and physically I really look forward to getting back on track, it may be on the trad mill or maybe outside ... doesn't really matter just want to get moving !

Ron.

Cool runn'in !

Did my 16K loop today, 1:28:41. Weather was 8C, sunny with gusty winds. I wore my shorts, cotton T with a Nylon Wind Breaker and for the first time ever , cotton gloves. I was pretty comfortable , opened and closed the wind breaker as I heated and cooled. Gloves were supper, you can tell the seasoned runners this time of year...they are all wearing gloves. Its amazing how cold your hands get and how uncomfortable it is even at 8C. Lets felt OK, little stiff but I suspect that may have some thing to do with the cooler temps and shorts . I just got a pair of running pants , I thought that they would be too warm today, I will wait until it gets a little closer to freezing to wear them.
Heading to the Caribbean next week for some R&R with my wife. I have a route all mapped out where I am going, a 10 and 20 beach run. Looking forward to be back in the warmth , it will probably take a couple of days to thin the blood a bit !

Ron.