The weather yesterday was absolutely wonderful, so when I got home from work I strapped on my bright blue Nikes and went for a run. It was about 72, 5 mph winds, and blue skies. Other than the fact that it was a little bit warmer than what I really like (65 is about right for a good run), I couldn't have asked for a better day. There weren't any people on the OC&E Trail, which made it even better. What a great day!
The run, on the other hand, wasn't so good. I'd decided that I was going to go a full 5 miles, even though I had doubts about my ability to make it that far. I did an out and back, and went 5 miles, but it definitely wasn't pretty. I walked a couple of times (when I walk I add the distance I walk to the end of the run, so I did run a full 5 mles), and stopped for water at my pickup with 1 mile to go. Like I said it wasn't pretty, but 5 miles is better than what I've been doing, so there's hope! So far I've run 13 miles this week, and I plan on going for a fairly short (2 1/2) mile run this afternoon.
If I can figure out how to do it I'll put a mileage tracker on my blog so I don't have to keep track manually. If you're reading this (Laurie) and I don't have one feel free to comment on how to do it.
The Lake of the Woods 5 k is 3 weeks from today. Hopefully I'll be able to stay healthy and increase my miles/pace so I do better than my last race.
Saturday, May 15, 2010
Friday, May 14, 2010
Old Man Shuffle
It's been quite a while since I last posted...in fact, a little more than a month. What a slacker!
The Pear Blossom 5k gave me motivation to try to get in better shape. I'd forgotten how much fun races are, but as I mentioned a month ago my time was worse than atrocious, and I really do think that I could have walked almost as fast as I ran.
The week after the Pear Blossom I did 3 1/2 mile runs on two consecutive days, and then managed to strain my left calf. Rather than try to run through the pain, as soon as I felt the first twinge of pain I started walking, and was able to keep the injury fairly minimal. Since then I've gotten in 6 or 7 runs, and have gone on two 4 milers this week. My time is still really slow, but at least I'm getting some miles in.
This morning on the way to work I passed a guy that reminded me of something Tom posted in one of his blogs...the "Old Man Shuffle." For those of you who don't know what it is, it's when an old codger (like me) goes for a "run." They act like they're running, but their strides are usually really short, and they don't go much faster than a crawl. They don't pick up their feet - they just kind of slide them along the ground. They pump their arms, and bounce up and down, but their forward progress is pretty slow. I saw an old guy (older than me) on the OC&E Trail a couple of weeks ago, and his strides were short enough that his tracks were overlapping. I asked him how far he was going, and he told me "this run is pretty short. I'll get in about 8 miles today." I know from watching him before I passed him that he literally COULD walk faster than his running pace.
Every time I go for a run I think of Tom's post. I really hope that I'm not to the stage where I'm doing the "Old Man Shuffle."
The Pear Blossom 5k gave me motivation to try to get in better shape. I'd forgotten how much fun races are, but as I mentioned a month ago my time was worse than atrocious, and I really do think that I could have walked almost as fast as I ran.
The week after the Pear Blossom I did 3 1/2 mile runs on two consecutive days, and then managed to strain my left calf. Rather than try to run through the pain, as soon as I felt the first twinge of pain I started walking, and was able to keep the injury fairly minimal. Since then I've gotten in 6 or 7 runs, and have gone on two 4 milers this week. My time is still really slow, but at least I'm getting some miles in.
This morning on the way to work I passed a guy that reminded me of something Tom posted in one of his blogs...the "Old Man Shuffle." For those of you who don't know what it is, it's when an old codger (like me) goes for a "run." They act like they're running, but their strides are usually really short, and they don't go much faster than a crawl. They don't pick up their feet - they just kind of slide them along the ground. They pump their arms, and bounce up and down, but their forward progress is pretty slow. I saw an old guy (older than me) on the OC&E Trail a couple of weeks ago, and his strides were short enough that his tracks were overlapping. I asked him how far he was going, and he told me "this run is pretty short. I'll get in about 8 miles today." I know from watching him before I passed him that he literally COULD walk faster than his running pace.
Every time I go for a run I think of Tom's post. I really hope that I'm not to the stage where I'm doing the "Old Man Shuffle."
Monday, April 12, 2010
Survived!!!
The Pear Blossom 5k was really ugly, but I managed to finish relatively unscathed. My time was atrocious, but I wasn't trying to run it fast. I just wanted to get a race under my belt (and beat my co-workers). That part was a success. The weather was a little bit chilly - 36 degrees when we started - and I overdressed. I wore a pair of warm ups when I ran, and about 1/2 mile in wished that I'd just worn shorts. Oh well. It was fun anyway.
On another note, I've taken Tom's advice on signing up for another race so I stay motivated. I've signed up for the 6.7 mile run at the Crater Lake Rim Run on August 14th. I've been told that it's a brutal run, but it's far enough out that I think I can get ready for it. The biggest issue is that it starts at around 7600 feet, so lack of oxygen is a definite factor. I've already mapped out a couple of training runs that are at 6500 feet, so if I can put some miles in at that elevation it might not be quite so brutal.
I'll try to stay updated on here with my progress.
On another note, I've taken Tom's advice on signing up for another race so I stay motivated. I've signed up for the 6.7 mile run at the Crater Lake Rim Run on August 14th. I've been told that it's a brutal run, but it's far enough out that I think I can get ready for it. The biggest issue is that it starts at around 7600 feet, so lack of oxygen is a definite factor. I've already mapped out a couple of training runs that are at 6500 feet, so if I can put some miles in at that elevation it might not be quite so brutal.
I'll try to stay updated on here with my progress.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Will
Since the Pear Blossom Run is the day after tomorrow, I decided that I should do a quick post in case any of my family (in addition to Tom, who responded to my LAST post) happen to take a look at it.
This post is in reference to Tom's comment, in which he was concerned that I might not have my Last Will and Testament put together properly. Well Tom, even though I'm worth a lot more dead than alive, I don't have a will. Sorry!
Obviously he is concerned that I might have to be scraped up off the side of the road Saturday...a concern that is definitely legitimate. I've thought about it several times over the last couple of weeks. There are several opportunities for that to happen during the race. I could have a stroke, heart attack, collapse because my lungs don't work, or accidently start the race in front of someone and get trampled when they go by me. All of them are possibilities, but the last is the most likely. I don't know how they start runners, but there are 1182 people signed up for the 5 k and ALL of them have faster times than I do. If they start us according to the date we signed up I could have a couple hundred rabid runners laying down tracks on my back. Not a pleasant thought.
On a more positive note, my daughter Laurie let me know that my new Nikes showed up yesterday. I'm sure that when I start wearing them I'll be able to run twice as fast...or maybe I should say half as slow! I'm looking forward to getting them, even though I don't REALLY think my time will improve as a result.
Less than 48 hours until my 5k will be over. I'm looking at two more races to sign up for so I can have something to motivate me to run.
This post is in reference to Tom's comment, in which he was concerned that I might not have my Last Will and Testament put together properly. Well Tom, even though I'm worth a lot more dead than alive, I don't have a will. Sorry!
Obviously he is concerned that I might have to be scraped up off the side of the road Saturday...a concern that is definitely legitimate. I've thought about it several times over the last couple of weeks. There are several opportunities for that to happen during the race. I could have a stroke, heart attack, collapse because my lungs don't work, or accidently start the race in front of someone and get trampled when they go by me. All of them are possibilities, but the last is the most likely. I don't know how they start runners, but there are 1182 people signed up for the 5 k and ALL of them have faster times than I do. If they start us according to the date we signed up I could have a couple hundred rabid runners laying down tracks on my back. Not a pleasant thought.
On a more positive note, my daughter Laurie let me know that my new Nikes showed up yesterday. I'm sure that when I start wearing them I'll be able to run twice as fast...or maybe I should say half as slow! I'm looking forward to getting them, even though I don't REALLY think my time will improve as a result.
Less than 48 hours until my 5k will be over. I'm looking at two more races to sign up for so I can have something to motivate me to run.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
D Day
Saturday is the Pear Blossom Run. I'm not even close to being able to run it, even though it's only a 5k. My goal is to not finish last, and I'm not sure that that's possible. I'm pretty sure that there are a lot of people who WALK faster than I run. This could be really ugly. I'm hoping that I can finish the course in the allotted time (I think I have about 55 minutes...if I can't make that it's time to take up knitting!), and finish somewhere in the top 1141 entrants (there are 1142 signed up for the 5k).
I have been running, but because of nasty weather, baseball games, fallen trees, and a few other acceptable excuses my workouts haven't been consistent. We've had really nasty weather for about a week and a half, and it's not easy to get motivated when you have 30 mph winds blowing snow into your face. The winds were strong enough that they managed to blow my neighbor's 50 foot spruce down on our wooden storage shed, so I had to spend a good portion of last week dealing with that. Wielding a chain saw is a workout, but probably won't help much to keep me from getting lapped in Saturday's race.
I've been managing to run 3 to 4 days per week, but my mileage is still pretty low. I think the longest run I've managed to get in is about 3 1/2, and it wasn't pretty. Because of the winds I've been having Janet drive me upwind from my ending point, so the entire run is with the wind at my back. It's kind of cheating, but at least I've gotten some miles in.
Regardless of my training, I'm committed. Two days until D Day.
I have been running, but because of nasty weather, baseball games, fallen trees, and a few other acceptable excuses my workouts haven't been consistent. We've had really nasty weather for about a week and a half, and it's not easy to get motivated when you have 30 mph winds blowing snow into your face. The winds were strong enough that they managed to blow my neighbor's 50 foot spruce down on our wooden storage shed, so I had to spend a good portion of last week dealing with that. Wielding a chain saw is a workout, but probably won't help much to keep me from getting lapped in Saturday's race.
I've been managing to run 3 to 4 days per week, but my mileage is still pretty low. I think the longest run I've managed to get in is about 3 1/2, and it wasn't pretty. Because of the winds I've been having Janet drive me upwind from my ending point, so the entire run is with the wind at my back. It's kind of cheating, but at least I've gotten some miles in.
Regardless of my training, I'm committed. Two days until D Day.
Friday, March 19, 2010
2 in a Row
I ran again last night. Two days in a row! And I didn't die! An absolute freaking miracle!
Today is Friday, and I'm still at work, trying to decide if I want to run tonight, or take the day off. We're leaving town for 3 days and I have a ton of work that I need to get done before we go (that's why I'm still here), but I guess I can come back early tomorrow morning and do it.
I don't really feel like running, but I told two of my co-workers this afternoon that I was going to go 3 miles, so I should probably live up to my boast and actually do it. The weather is great (64 degrees, NO wind), but it's getting late and I'm afraid of the dark.
On the other hand, the Pear Blossom Run is April 10th, and I don't want to make a total ass of myself by finishing last in a 5 k, so I think I'll quit working and go. Screw it. I'm out of here.
How's that for self motivation?
See ya.
Today is Friday, and I'm still at work, trying to decide if I want to run tonight, or take the day off. We're leaving town for 3 days and I have a ton of work that I need to get done before we go (that's why I'm still here), but I guess I can come back early tomorrow morning and do it.
I don't really feel like running, but I told two of my co-workers this afternoon that I was going to go 3 miles, so I should probably live up to my boast and actually do it. The weather is great (64 degrees, NO wind), but it's getting late and I'm afraid of the dark.
On the other hand, the Pear Blossom Run is April 10th, and I don't want to make a total ass of myself by finishing last in a 5 k, so I think I'll quit working and go. Screw it. I'm out of here.
How's that for self motivation?
See ya.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Pear Blossom Run
Yesterday at work I was talking to Nicky Robinson, our accounting manager, and found out that she and another co-worker are signed up to run the 5 K in the Pear Blossom Run in Medford April 10th. She shamed me into committing to sign up also, so I guess I'll be embarassing myself in about 3 weeks. It's going to be brutal. I'm way overweight, haven't run since February, and don't feel very motivated to try to do well. This could be a real eye-opener for me. There are already 7 people in my age category signed up to do the 5 K...I'm sure all of them are ex-Olympians.
Since I'm signed up to run, yesterday I decided that I need to make some kind of an attempt to try to get in shape. Last night I went out to the OC&E Trail and did my normal 2 1/2 mile jaunt. I was able to make it the whole way without walking, but my pace was exceptionally slow. The run gave me hope that I might be able to lose some weight (I look like a hippo right now), and hopefully won't finish last. We'll see what happens. Doug doesn't have any games until Saturday, so I have no excuses for not going tonight and tomorrow night.
I'll keep my blog updated when I run so all of my fans out there (Laurie and Tom?) can encourage me.
Since I'm signed up to run, yesterday I decided that I need to make some kind of an attempt to try to get in shape. Last night I went out to the OC&E Trail and did my normal 2 1/2 mile jaunt. I was able to make it the whole way without walking, but my pace was exceptionally slow. The run gave me hope that I might be able to lose some weight (I look like a hippo right now), and hopefully won't finish last. We'll see what happens. Doug doesn't have any games until Saturday, so I have no excuses for not going tonight and tomorrow night.
I'll keep my blog updated when I run so all of my fans out there (Laurie and Tom?) can encourage me.
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