Category: Run Report

I did it. I got back into it. Starting with 90 push ups, I hit the ground on this hot (93 degrees) evening and set out for a comfortable run. My first mile pace was a little slower than normal while miles 2 and 3 were definitely slower, but comfortable. I was happy with the sub-9 minute/mile average, however. The best part: I felt great through the run. Even though it was really hot out and the sun was burning me, I felt good. Breathing was easy, and muscles never cried out in protest. All in all, a good run.

I’ll take tomorrow off from running and likely run again on Sunday if I can make time. I have a full day planned, so I’m not sure exactly how I can fit it in, but I will try. If all else fails, I will be getting back on my M-W-F schedule next week.

I planned on trying to run when I got home last night, but I got detoured to a going away shindig after work for an hour, and then when I got home, I found Sherry was waiting to eat dinner with me. I didn’t want to make her wait any longer, so I forewent running and had dinner with her.

I still have soreness in my back, but I will run after work today regardless. I can’t stand not running. I feel myself getting soft; I can’t let that happen.

My next post should be a post-run report. It had better be, or I’ll be upset.

I don’t know what I did or how it happened, but I woke up with severe back pain the middle of my back on Tuesday. I woke up early to run Wednesday morning, but my back was stiff and still feeling very painful, so I decided against it. This morning, the pain is greatly reduced, but still sore. I think I will wait another day or two before I go back out to do my push ups and run.

I hate it. I really want to get out there, but I have to take care of this old body or it won’t be in good enough shape to take care of me. So, I will sit it out for today and tomorrow. Unless I decide it doesn’t hurt this afternoon, in which case I’ll go against my better judgment and get a run in. We’ll see.

I wasn’t sure how today’s run would go, but I didn’t think it would be so tough. I started with 90 push ups (I could have hit 100, but again, why struggle/push for it? I don’t need/want the arm pain the next day) and immediately set out on my run. Since Brendon is working long hours, I’m back to running alone. I miss having my running buddy with me, but I had to get it done regardless.

The first mile was pretty tough; I set out with a decent 8 minute/mile pace which slowed to 8:38/mile for the second mile and a 9:04/mile pace for the third mile. I ran 3.11 total, ending up with an average of 8:36/mile. I’m happy with that.

What I was not happy with was how hot it was. AND HUMID!!! The sun was darting in and out of the clouds, and when it was behind a cloud, it felt okay. When it peeked out, it was oppressively hot. For this reason, I think I’ve decided to start morning runs beginning Wednesday. I have a baseball game to go to in the evening on Wednesday anyway, so if I want to keep up my schedule, I have to either run tomorrow or Wednesday morning. I think I’m leaning toward Wednesday morning. Besides, it’ll hopefully be a little cooler. I also used to like how I felt during the day after a morning run, so there’s that.

This was a tough day. I started with 80 push ups. I have been getting past 100 for the past few days, but when I got to 80 this time, I was more worn out than usual. It also should be said that I haven’t gotten the right amount of sleep for the past three  nights, and I think it was finally catching up to me.

It turned out that once I got running, that whole tired thing was proving to be the case for me. I took off at a leisurely pace and after the first mile, I decided to run a bit harder/faster. Well, it wasn’t much faster. Just harder. For the final mile, I was able to get the time down a bit, but not as much as I would have liked. The weird part was that I really felt like I was running hard. Way harder than normal.

I’m not entirely happy with the pace, but I know what caused it; not enough rest. That’s an easy one to fix. The other issue is a lack of interval training. I will start implementing some interval training into my plan starting on Monday. I will do interval training once every two-three weeks for two months and then increase it to once every two weeks for another two months and then perhaps once a week. We’ll see. But either way, interval training is in my future.

My run on Strava. Representing the Marines today! I started today with just 100 push ups. I have to say, I love saying “just” 100 push ups. lol. I started with being only able to do 10 eight months ago. I could likely be doing many more, but I don’t subscribe to the “Feel the burn!” school of exercise. I work until I start feeling some burn and then I stop. This has allowed me to gradually gain strength and endurance without ever feeling spent or worn out. Unlike many who like to exercise, I don’t like to feel like I gave my all. I like to feel like I exercised, but I don’t want to be a wet noodle after a run or work out.

It’s served me well. People say it shouldn’t have worked, yet is has. My run pace is decent, and I’m doing 100+ push ups every time I run. That’s pretty decent, if you ask me.

As for today’s run? It was actually very pleasant. The pace was good, the breathing was even better today, and I felt solid. My legs got tired, but that was mostly from the heat. It cooled down a bit for my last two laps (half mile), and I contemplated running to 4 miles, but I decided against it as my legs were feeling the heat more than I liked. Perhaps Wednesday’s run will be longer. At least that’s the plan.

My run on Strava. Today, I represented my school, University of Houston! Thankfully, it’s a good shirt that breathes well. I started today with 110 push ups! This is a new high for me, and I got there rather easily. It’s nice that I’ll have two days off from exercise to recover a little.

I made today’s run easy. I wanted to go into the weekend with a good run, but nothing that would make me sore. Also, it was really hot out, and it’s getting harder to run as the temperatures are climbing. I see morning runs coming in my future soon. For now, I’ll continue to try to run in the afternoons since that’s when my son can run with me.

I’m happy with anything with 5 seconds of 9 minutes/mile, so this was a good run. I’m not looking to break any records in speed right now, but I do want to start increasing my distances a little bit. Perhaps Monday I’ll go a little farther.

My run on Strava. This one started well with 100 push ups. Brendon did a great job with his, and we both hit the track around the pond. I ended up with a good sub-9 with a new breathing routine that I’m liking a lot. I pushed it a little harder than the breathing could support, so I need to work on my pace some more, but overall, I like how I feel after runs now far more than I used to when I was breathing every other step. This is a much better way to run.

 

This run started off with uncertainty. I had some unexplained pain in my right glute and thigh, and I was worried I wouldn’t be able to run. My son, however, was depending on me to get out there with him, so I went ahead with the idea that if it hurt too much, I’d stop to keep from further injuring it.

I also had done some reading about running work out plans, and I found that what I was doing was wrong. So completely wrong. I need to implement interval and high intensity interval training instead of what I was doing: running all out. I was running at my vO2 max which is a big no-no. That’s supposed to be reserved for competitions, races, and PFT’s and definitely not for every regular workout. The problem is that when you’re running at vO2 max, you’re getting into the anaerobic range which is very bad for exercise. When you do that, your body is pulling energy from the muscles itself, and it becomes very difficult, if not impossible, to get stronger/faster.

I watched videos by a gentleman named Jack Daniels, and he taught me a lot. I looked over the data from my past runs and found that I was doing it wrong. So, with this run, if the pain in my left leg wasn’t too bad, I’d try what he recommended: using my breathing as a guide for my pace and allowing myself a recovery run today. The plan was for four steps to every breath. If I could get past the pain.

I started with 85 push ups. It’s a far cry from my 100 max, but 85 felt good, and pushing past didn’t seem like a good idea. There will be other opportunities for me to hit 100 again; this day wasn’t one of them. I then set out with my son after he knocked out 30 push ups.

Immediately, the pain was pretty bad. My left thigh and glute felt really tight, and no matter what I was doing, the pain was pretty bad. I decided that I’d give it a quarter mile to see if it got any better before I quit. Twice in that quarter mile I almost gave up, but my son was running right next to me, so I decided to keep going. Then, as I was ending the quarter mile, I told Brendon that I was going to try something, and I upped my pace. I was running a 10:30/mile pace with a lot of pain, but as I increased it to about a 9:20/mile pace, the pain became just a nagging soreness. I kept that pace for the rest of the run, and for the first mile and a half, Brendon stuck with me! I was really impressed with him and his effort.

I continued with the new slower (than my last three runs) pace and breathed in every four steps and out every four steps and something magical happened: the pace became easy, the pain subsided, and I was able to breathe almost normally. I kept my pace fast enough to need the breath every four steps, which was the same 9:20/mile pace. I was able to keep this up for over 30 minutes and when I ended the run, my leg actually felt better and I didn’t feel exhausted.

After my shower, I felt noticeably better than I have after previous runs. I felt like I worked out, but I didn’t feel like I was spent. I think Jack Daniels is onto something! I actually look forward to my next runs to continue to experiment with my technique, and I look forward to implementing interval training and some high intensity intervals as well.

You can check out the details of my run on Strava.

Today was both a great and difficult day. I had a personal best of 100 push ups before the run. I pushed it a little bit to get there, but i made it and didn’t struggle. 

I started with a good pace but the run quickly slowed as it was 94 degrees out and my legs felt like I was running on wet sand. I thought of quitting early for the first time since I began running but decided against it and finished my three miles. It wasn’t the fastest run, but it was a good, solid run with a decent pace. I’m happy with the result, and happy that I got all the way through to the end.