The Running Artist

So Behind and No Plans for Catching Up

2012-01-28T10:46:00.000-06:00

First of all I must say huge Thank You to Michel from Babyweightmyfatass blog who was my Secret Santa for the blogger gift exchange that Jill set up. I never posted about the great gift she sent, some fabulous skin car products and a water bottle I use all the time now.

Thanks Michel!

Now on to the real issues as of recent. I have not been posting because I have not been running. Actually, after my last post I had decided, after some very good long trail runs, that I might go for the 50 miler after all. Back and forth, back and forth, I went with my plans. Unfortunately none of it is to come to fruition. I have a foot injury that has kept me from running for two full weeks. About a month ago I had a minor but stupid at-home accident that has come back to haunt me. Arrrh! After seeing some of the awful foot situations that some of my blogger friends have dealt with over the past few years I decided to be over cautious. Yesterday I did get to run real slow for 30 minutes. It felt fine during the run, but was a bit tired feeling this morning but feels OK now, but for caution's sake I am going to skip today and go out again easy tomorrow. I think if I go back real slow and easy it all should be fine.

I have been super busy at work, in my studio, and getting ready for my next exhibition so I have hardly noticed really, except I feel a bit heavy. I guess I'll ride my bike today and that should at least help me to feel like I did something.

Taking a Step Back

2012-01-05T13:15:00.002-06:00

For Misszippy- smoking cigars with my dad. It's amazing that he's going to be 71 in a few days.

Wow! What a crazy couple of weeks. I'll try and give an overview- I took two weeks for Christmas vacation to be with family and travel north. My trip went north from Mississippi to a couple of days in the Chapel Hill area of North Carolina, then north again for a few days in Delaware for Christmas proper, then up to a swinging, partying day and evening in Philadelphia, then over to NYC and Brooklyn for three nights, then back to Delaware (on the Delmarva peninsula) for New Years, then home via North Carolina again for two nights. I spent it all with family and friends and ate and drank my heart out. Unfortunately I also got sick about day six and pretty much stayed that way for most of the trip.

5K with my family- some of us walked, some us ran, some did a combo, but we all did really well and had a super time together! My sister (# 352) recovering from a bad accident, could hardly walk this time last year, her and my mom (#366) did the 5K in about 50 minutes!

My brother Willie, niece Melissa and I running at Cape Henlopen Park. Yes, that is the Atlantic in the background. The camera did some weird distortions of our faces, or maybe it was the crazy seashore winds!

I never get sick, so this was a surprise but also extra painful for me. It was really bad for several days and then just lingered for the rest. While spending time with family and friends and moseying around museums in NYC is a great diversion it only prolongs the getting better part. The worst part is that I could not get in all my training runs. Not that it was all lost, I did get in some great runs with my brother and did a sweet 5K with my family, I only really ran five times during the whole 14 days. Not exactly what I wanted with such a big race coming up in March. Although my fitness is still good, my conditioning has taken a real hit. In order to make sure I don't get some crazy chest infection I really need to stay with easy runs 10 miles or less for the next week and that was not part of the training plans.

All of this has been cause for some great reflection and thought. I have an important sculpture exhibition to get ready for in a month and never mind that I have a new semester to start in about ten days. I started to feel as if this 50 mile race was becoming a burden. Yikes! Running a burden? Never! But in order to keep it that way I need to make sure I always go into my runs with enthusiasm and a clear goal. I was beginning to wonder what I had to gain from completing a 50 miler with way, way less than adequate training. So, I have made the choice to concentrate on the 50K. Considering how awful my first one was due to the weather, I have now made it my goal to kick ass on this one, get a PR and really learn how to run a 50K with everything I've got. I want to have a spring were I accomplish a lot of great things, not one where I do a few things OK and just do mediocre on a few others. Not my style. Now, all of the sudden I am excited again and the next few months feels full of promise.

Decisions like this are not easy for me, I am not accustomed to taking a step back, but it really seems like the smart thing to do and offers for me a more obtainable goal that I can actually accomplish. The good thing about this race is that you can switch at any time between the races, so if for some crazy reason I finish the 50K feeling fresh I can always try and walk the rest of the 50 miles within the 12 hour time limit. Yea, we'll see how that plan goes...

Various, Random, and Generally Unimportant Stuff

2011-12-18T20:34:00.000-06:00

This week we had temps in the high 70's, barely got down into the 60's at night.
This week we also had temps below freezing, barely got into the 50's during the day.
I dyed my hair this week. I always say I want to stay natural. But lets face it dying ones hair is a way of taking charge and I felt so good after it was done, even went out a bought a new Christmas outfit for the holidays.
Found out my little dog loves vanilla flavored Kaopectate. I will not go into the smelly details as to why I learned this very welcome information.
Made a ton of pottery for Christmas presents. You think my family would be tired of it already, but no, they want more.
So excited about seeing my family over the holidays. I can hardly wait.
I am reading Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman, by Robert K. Massie. Wow. What an amazing life. And what a fantastic author.
Back on the weight loss wagon again. Feeling great, eating better. Not that I will actually lose much weight but trying to mitigate the damage I will do later this week.
Discovered the new Breadsmith store in town. See last bullet.
I have been running well, finally got back on the trails for a few hours today. Will admit I am scared to shit about this up-coming 50 miler.
Really looking forward to smoking some cigars with my dad.

Cheers everybody!

My Afternoon Run

2011-12-12T17:07:00.000-06:00

More correctly, my first ever afternoon run. I always run in the morning. Early. By 3PM I am winding down. 5PM is supper and by 9PM I am in bed. It's hard for me to break routines. But I always keep saying I want to be more diversified in my training.

It was cold and gray this morning. It's been that way for days. I really was not motivated to run, so I didn't. All day I felt guilty and after a critique with a student, a visit to the office, a chat with my Dept. Chair, a second go at a grant proposal and a few other things I decided that it had turned into a beautiful day after all and why not try my first ever afternoon run?

It really was nice, I ran from 3:45 to 4:45 on a sunny day with a temp of 62 F. Much warmer than the past week and much warmer than this morning when it was only 34. Here are some thoughts.

Cons-

Many more cars out at this time of day, more people not paying attention
Many more dogs out too
More people out to give you that weird look
A bit dehydrated, probably since I hadn't planned to run

Pros-

The temps were warmer, that's nice this time of year, they were also more stable so dressing was easier and I didn't have to wear gloves or a hat
I loved seeing the afternoon winter light from the other direction, the landscape looked different, fresh
It was nice seeing and hearing all the kids playing at various playgrounds, school yards and in the numerous back-yard day care centers we have around here.
More people in general out walking, riding bikes, kids playing, folks doing yard work
It was a great pick-me-up for a time of day when I usually suffer from the dull-drums
When I get bored I eat bad snacks, not possible when out running!

The run was really good, my pace did not suffer any from the time-of-day change and I didn't feel any more or less fatigued. I was a bit dehydrated probably since the run was a last minute decision so I hadn't been drinking extra water during the day. I really think I might try this again, especially now that school is almost out and my time will free up. I will probably always be a morning runner but it's nice to know I won't melt or explode or something equally as devastating if I run out of my routine!

Cheers!

One Week Later

2011-12-11T12:00:00.003-06:00

Things have been good this week post marathon. I rested on Sunday after the race. I felt pretty good actually, my knees were a bit cranky for a day or two, much less than I expected. My quads were shouting at me for a few days, that was a bit unexpected. Perhaps it was the hills... I had decided that this week would be all easy runs and no long runs. It was a busy week at work so my attention was elsewhere and this was welcome.

I ran a slow and easy three mile recovery run on Monday, I could feel the cranky areas a bit. Then six easy miles on Wednesday. By then all soreness was gone and sooner than expected. This is good. On Friday I did about 6.5 miles at a bit of a faster pace, marginally faster that is. Rested on Saturday and did some weight work, I had lots of errands to run and that was probably good. Today, Sunday, I did eight miles and picked it up at the end, with a very nice pace for the overall run. I feel terrific.

Next week will be much of the same but with a longer trail run on Sunday if the weather stays decent.

I am happy my recovery has gone well. It has been something I have been working on for a while. I used to ignore my body after run/racing, maybe doing some stretching, and found I was recovering very slowly. Part of recovering faster also comes with better general conditioning, but for me that is not enough. Hydrating and fueling right away after a run is so important. I also use compression recovery socks and lay on the couch with my legs elevated for at least 2 - 3 hours watching TV or reading a book. Ice baths happen only sometimes and work best for really hard speed workouts for me. Of course I stretch, multiple times a day, as well. Getting the muscle fibers moving and allowing the blood to move about is really critical. I have also found that as I fuel better on the run it translates to feeling better after the run.

Everyone I talk to has special tips and tricks for their own recovery, care to share any? Have anything that works really well for you?

New Marathon PR

2011-12-04T08:42:00.002-06:00

Just a short race report- overall the Baton Rough Beach Marathon was a great success. I really didn't have too many expectations for the day except wanting to enjoy myself to the fullest and have a good trip with my running pal Ginny. Just past half way I realized I was doing better than expected and went for it. I ran my butt off the last 5 miles and was completely toast as I crossed the finish line. The picture you see of me shows a smile of satisfaction mixed with a grimace of pain!

Thanks for the picture Ginny!

This was the most beautiful course I have ever seen and was pretty flat but it made you work really hard. The field was small only 360 in the full marathon (over 600 in the half), well marked with fabulous volunteers. The weather was a touch on the warm side but a stiff breeze kept the worst of it at bay, it got to a high of 72 and that could have been miserable.

My chip time was 4:44:15 that is a PR for me of about 4 minutes and 30 seconds!

Today I feel a bit achy but nothing out of the ordinary. I'll get a walk in a bit later and do some stretching. Tomorrow I will do a slow and easy 3 miler.

I really want to thank Ginny (she got second place in her AG!). I think that part of having a great marathon experience is being able to have good traveling partners. Being relaxed and having a no-stress environment is really important, some people are just easy to travel with and that makes the whole experience so much more enjoyable!

Now I have to get right back on the horse, so-to-speak. I have a 50 miler coming up in March and have a lot of trail work to do. I'll have an easy week ahead and I will make the transition to more trail work the week after. The holidays are always hard on training but after the new year I'll be back with the bigger mileage and longer training runs. I love trail running but really only have two areas, with limited trails, to do my training on so we'll see after March how much I still love the trails. The biggest challenge coming up with be mental as well as getting my nutrition dialed in. I have lots of work to do but I am excited and motivated for the next part of my running journey!

Lazy Bones!

2011-11-27T07:13:00.000-06:00

I had an excellent holiday! And of course I ate way too much and paid for it for the next few days with lazy bones and lack of enthusiasm. Ha! I would do it all over again. This is the last week of taper before my marathon next weekend and I need to eat well and stay focused. I am not feeling as good about this one as I was the last one, but I don't really have any expectations except to finish comfortably and be good at my pacing. My real goal is the 50 miler in March so I need to do this 26.2 and get right back on the horse as I have some very long training runs to do in the next two months.

For Thanksgiving I stayed with my adopted Mississippi family near Vicksburg on a 7,000+ acre cattle ranch. I got in a short trail run and some hiking and here are some images from the extraordinary landscape at dawn.

24.7 and Unplanned Margaritas

2011-11-21T08:03:00.005-06:00

Ahh, yes. That wonderful satisfied feeling of the last long run before the taper. Unlike some folks I love taper and this one comes perfectly timed for the Thanksgiving holiday. Although that also means I have to be a bit careful about my eating habits over the holiday, but you can be sure I will not be suffering.

Yesterday I did 24.7 miles. Don't ask about the distance, my Garmin died and I had to guess the rest and an extra .7 really didn't hurt. It was way better than my last long run of 22 miles and that's partially because I had not run in the three days prior due to work conflicts, with one of those down days due to some unplanned margaritas the night before at the Mexican place with my iron pouring peeps.

There is a lot of literature out there that talks about how we run too much when training. You can spend days reading pro and con information to this theory and come up completely brain dead with all the information. Due to the aforementioned unplanned rest days I got to check this out and I was happy at how well my long run went. I know that because of my busy work schedule this year I am going into this December 3rd marathon somewhat under-trained but I will go at it 100% like I do everything else.

Last weekend I ran a new local 5K (adding some extra miles onto the front and back end for an extra workout) and amazingly won my age group. Ha ha, just luck I tell you, the fast people were all out doing other things! But non-the-less bling is bling and I love medals. Maybe it's because I am still new at this, but I am a collector of "stuff" and love to get mementos for events I enter. For some reason shirts and water bottles don't mean anything, but medals are totally worht it!

My blue ribbon and gold medal from the Thames Elementary 5K Race. A great course through some real pretty neighborhoods.

I had a great but really hard 11 mile trail run the next day, that 5K was coming back to haunt me, but I pushed through and it was so amazing in the forest that day the hurt really didn't matter.

I will be spending Thanksgiving with some friends (my adopted Mississippi family) at a beautiful cattle plantation ("ranch" for the rest of you) up near Vicksburg. These are artists and writers and I'll have two nights of pure joy, food, wine, and excellent conversation in a location that would make the editors of Better Homes and Gardens jealous. I am looking forward to this in a huge way. I hope everyone has the most amazing Thanksgiving and let your running selves have a break so you can indulge in the best holiday ever! Give thanks, because you can always run to your hearts content in the days following!

Cheers!

Perrrfect!

2011-11-12T07:15:00.000-06:00

The weather has been like never before, we are having a super great fall. Runs have been sweet and I have been feeling real good. No real long runs this week, a 10 miler and smattering of 6's and a seven. Today I will do a 5K race (no racing, just tempo) and then I'll do some extra miles before and after. Tomorrow I'll do 10 or 15 on the trails. Next weekend will be my last long run and then two weeks of taper for my marathon. That's the plan anyway.

Here are some fall pictures from a recent run with Ginny and our friend Kelly.

Sometimes It's Just Hard

2011-11-05T15:07:00.000-05:00

Did a 22 miler today. It kicked my ass. This was a hard one, but good because learning to push through the difficult times is so important for longer runs.

I guess I could analyze this to death but some runs are just better, some are worse. Most everything I have been doing recently has been great so it is no surprise that a tough one came along.

One thing I can say, I was tired. My legs were a bit tired even yesterday and on top of that I did not sleep well, also my head was not in it. So much of running hard is in the mind and I had a difficult time wrapping it all up today. It became apparent around mile 13 that I was going to suffer for the rest of the run. There was no one thing just a general fatigue, mind and body. The good thing was I got a great opportunity to work on my nutrition; I had four gels, two salt tabs and toward the end when I was super hungry I fell back on the energy bar I always have hidden in my pack. Proper nutrition and hydration really can save your ass during an extra hard run. I also worked on flipping my mental state and by the last few miles I was back on top, for the most part. I slowed down a lot but I never gave up.

All in all it was a good week with a total of 53 miles. Hey, maybe, just maybe, it's all those miles beginning to add up?

Marvelous.

2011-11-02T06:52:00.000-05:00

It's been a great fall here in Mississippi I can't remember when it has been so nice. Perfect weather, cold nights, 45 degree mornings, with perfect sunny 75 degree days. Ahhhh, it doesn't get much better. Especially when your in the final phase for marathon training.

This weekend I have a 21 miler and then two more at 23 and 24. the good news is I don't have to do the 24, I always plan that into my training, I could perhaps do tow days of 12 mile runs. A bit unconventional but it works for me and soon after the marathon I go right into training for my 50 miler, which has lots of back to back runs. In reality this marathon is not a race at all it's a training run for the big one in March. I am very excited about it. I do want to do good at this marathon but my main goal is to feel the best I can at the end of it. I have lots of friends going to Baton Rouge and it will be a great time, I can't think of a more fun way to train.

My long runs so far have been fine. I feel OK when done and have not had any significant aches or pains afterward. I always take the next day off to do some walking. I will have to switch that up when I enter into the new phase of training for the 50 miler, but I can do it slowly and move from walking to running and I think I'll be able to do it.

The biggest issue with training for very long races is time. It takes me a long time to run long and those runs will only get longer. I am going to have to be really careful in planing my next few months at work and in the studio to make sure I get everything all in so I don't drive myself crazy!

This past weekend I got out on the trails for a 10.5 mile run. I was actually happy none of my friends could go, I was loving being out in the woods alone. Also, the day before I had done a pretty hefty strength workout that had lots of squats and lunges and combo's of both. My body was tired and I really needed the alone time to concentrate on not tripping and falling in the woods. It was a good experience for me and one that showed me I can indeed do some significant running even when tired; a must for running ultra marathons. Here are some peaceful trail run images. Enjoy!

Good Runner, Bad Blogger

2011-10-29T11:13:00.004-05:00

You know how the story goes. Haven't been too motivated on the blogging front and I have been busy. So here is life in mostly pictures since I last saw y'all.

I have been running, here I am with my friend James and my brother Willie. Besides the regular 6 milers and some trail runs I have gotten in a 17 miler and a 19 miler. Marathon is December 3. Image by Lide.

My brother Willie and his girlfriend Lide came to visit. Lide is an archaeologist. We spent lots of time exploring all kinds of neat places I don't normally go. The Natchez Trace has all kinds of historical locations to check out as well as lovely old trees.

We found lots of old cemeteries, regular ones and slave ones too.

We visited the Emerald Mound, the second largest Indian mound in the USA. White explorers marveled at its height and structure and were sure that some other white people must have come before them to build it, because there was no way those "savages" could be smart enough to build such a structure. Guess they were wrong.

The next day we headed to the coast. Lide had never been to the Gulf of Mexico, so getting our feet wet in the sweet warm waters was a priority. Lide looks pretty happy.

Another priority was to explore all the wreckage still left behind by Katrina. We found all that was left of a bank, the vault. Here I am trying to move the rusted solid steel door. No luck!

Home sites along the Gulf. These foundations are pretty much as they were the day after the storm. Scrubbed clean by the storm surge. In this location we would have been some 30 feet below the water line.

The remains of a once elegant casino and resort.

Over five years, and little has changed.

Men's room. Ladies room.

Not all is bad. Lots of new places are popping up all over. We found this great restaurant on the waterfront in Bay Saint Louis and ended our day with shrimp po-boys and local Abita beer!

Wrestle Mania and New Gear

2011-10-14T10:17:00.001-05:00

I do miss Bella but now I have this to occupy my time, all day every day!

Kiki (with pink harness) and Frida and a little wrestle mania.

When I first got Kiki about a month ago, Frida wanted nothing to do with her, hiding under the couch all day. Now I can't get them apart. I guess when one door closes another opens up somewhere.

I just started leash training with Kiki, hence the harness. Even though she is about a year old she has never been on one. Yesterday she got her new harness and spent most of the day dragging the leash around the house. She did really well. We did a little leash work on the lawn and it was pretty funny. I have never seen such a little dog do back flips and such but amazingly she did pretty well by the end. Today we will do a bit more and this will go on for a few weeks. Patience is huge when working with dogs!

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Had a nice short run today. Took it easy as I am upping my miles quite a bit and it's real easy for me to over do it, especially when the weather turns nice and cool. Today was also fun because I was breaking in a new pair of shoes (Yay for new shoes!) and a new pair of capris. I love that they fit so well and are a real nice dark blue, not that you can see that in these terrible pictures. They are made by Road Runner Sports and are affordable, fit really well and are high quality workmanship with a nice pocket in back. The shirt is Road Runner as well.

A 17 mile run on tap for tomorrow and maybe some short EASY trail work on Sunday. Maybe. I have family coming into town next week so I have been cleaning my house for days. I am a terrible housekeeper and every time someone comes to visit I vow to get better at it. Never happens! Probably never will.

I want to give a shout out to my running buddy Ginny who is running the Mount Desert Isle Marathon on the Maine cost this weekend! Do well my friend, have fun on those hills, and enjoy the amazing fall colors!

Too Slow?

2011-10-13T20:22:00.002-05:00

So, I am well into the first third of my training for my December 3rd marathon. I will admit I had been having a hard time following any sort of plan as I was stretched so thin with so many projects and stress at work. All of that is over now and has been for about a week. Suddenly having more time to train is like a gift that I am embracing to the fullest extent. The bad part about it is that now my training is a bit compressed and I am having to find my stride faster than usual.

I am a slow runner and most of you know that, however I did improve and am running a bit faster than last year about 30 seconds a minute faster on average for easy runs. So when I went back to doing my long runs (13 miles and over) I found that my past slow speed was too slow. At first I tried to push though but have found that during the runs my forced slow gait is uncomfortable. The other day when this happened I immediately sped up just a bit and all was better. Weird.

I had in the past used the McMillan running calculator as a base for my pacing. The chart is right on with my race times but my regular everyday running and especially my long runs are generally faster than the calculator says. I find I can go slow but not that slow. For me this is proof that I need to go by my perceived exertion and be careful not to lose my form which seems to happen when I go to slow. I am wondering if anyone else finds this to be true when they go really slow?

In general training goes well and I am really enjoying the cool fall weather.

And thanks to everyone who send condolences and good wishes after Bella passed. She was a dedicated companion for 14 years and I miss her.

Best Friend

2011-09-28T06:24:00.000-05:00

R.I.P dear Bella.

You passed last night with all your family near you, I am sure Peaty has already found you and that you are chasing after possums and swimming in the lake. Frida and Kiki will miss you.

I will miss you every day, especially when thunder storms blow through.

My heart aches.

Week Two- Pushing the Pace

2011-09-26T08:39:00.000-05:00

Not a whole lot to say. Training goes well. Upped my total weekly distance, kept my long at 10 miles but pushed the pace on all my runs during the week. Managed to do my long run at my faster short run pace. That means today was a recovery run, it was nice to get out there and get the body moving.This week I will increase my weekly distance by a greater margin but I will be keeping the pace a bit slower, especially on my longer runs.

I am slammed at work right now and it will remain that way for at least another week. Then I get a breather. I must admit to feeling a bit overwhelmed and running has become my therapy. It is a sweet drug that goes down easy and reminds you all day that there is always some place to go when it all gets too crazy.

I'm Back!

2011-09-18T09:04:00.000-05:00

It's been weeks since I have posted and honestly I didn't have much to say during that time anyway. Work and art making have been very busy and positively productive for me and I put my running into a holding pattern. Kept up my 25 (give or take) miles each week and was happy, ran a few 5Ks and won my age group in the last one on Labor Day. A few things have now been tied up and I can use a bit more time for my running, that's a good thing as I have some big stuff on my plate.

First place in my AG, this has never happened before.

I mentioned last time I will do the Baton Rouge Beach Marathon and today ended my first week of official training. It feels good to be back at it. Most of you know I am not much into plans but I really like them when I have a specific goal in mind.

The other crazy-ass thing I did was sigh up again for the Mississippi 50 the first week of March 2012, only thing is this time me and my buddies, Davis and George, registered for the 50 miler!

Oh shit.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Week one Baton Rouge training-
32 miles, with a long run of 10 miles.

Now It's a Tropical Storm

2011-09-03T11:28:00.000-05:00

And that's the reason it's cool out. I knew that if I just waited long enough to post another cold snap (relative) would happen. I almost didn't even change my post title but I didn't want every one to think I was abandoning my posting here.

I have been extremely busy with art and university life and am running just enough to keep me sane and from gaining an ungodly amount of weight. In fact I have not even decided on my fall races! Right now I can't even imagine when I would train for anything anyway. Have no fear I am pretty sure I will be in Baton Rouge for the early December marathon. After that, who knows!

Today I ran with tropical storm Lee. It was lovely; cool, wet and breezy. I really enjoyed my run. That's good it may the last for a few days until this thing gets past us.

Hope every one is doing well. And good luck to my friends Ginny, Dawn Terry and Terri who are running a big race on Sunday.

Cheers!

Cold Snap?

2011-08-19T05:43:00.001-05:00

Well not really. Just a bit of drier air in the region and overnight temps were able to drop to the mid-sixties. It felt like heaven at 5:00 AM! Just a teaser, as I call them. A reminder that our best running season awaits. It's amazing how just a little bit of relief can make my running so much better. Without even trying my pace was close to a minute faster for my six mile runs. Just when you are beginning to think that the bricks attached to your feet are permanent someone comes in and attaches wings!

The best thing about all of this, is that because my summer running focus was to stay healthy and build a good base I feel strong and ready to roll into fall training. No doubt it will be a major challenge this year as I have a very full plate thanks to University and my art projects. But as my mom always said, keeping busy keeps you out of trouble.

The students are back this coming Wednesday and after that it will be crazy for the next few weeks until we all get into a routine. I look forward to seeing most of them, especially my majors.

Not much else going on right now, it's back to being hot and muggy again. Nothing to be surprised about but that little moment of coolness keeps me excited and anticipating the fall weather.

BTW- this week I only found a quarter when out running.

A Gecko, a Wallet, and a Peacock

2011-08-14T07:12:00.001-05:00

What a week. My mileage has been way down, about a hour (5.5 to six miles) four to five days a week. I have not run long in two weeks. I think until I finish my sculpture commission I will be less focused on running. I think that's OK. I was feeling a bit guilty but that is going away fast. Soon I will be training hard for fall and winter races so I'll take this time off.

Ginny and I did our Magic Mile Challenge. Yea! I am happy that is over. I had great fun with my friend but mile repeats are really hard. Having said that I will be interested to do it again in the winter too see how nice weather might actually be an advantage. I am happy to say I did get a 7:53 for my fastest mile. This is not a number I thought I would ever see in my life time. It was work getting to it and I was unsure I would see a sub 8, ever, but after several weeks of working at it, I pulled it off. There are still lots of folks who have to finish their mile in order to help the "rest of the world' team beat the Brits. I wonder where Chris Korn is... Too busy having pillow fights maybe?

Now to the story, part one. Two nights ago I was ready to jump into bed and as I pulled the sheets back I found a baby gecko in my bed. Cute and harmless but not for sleeping with. I did the 'ole Mississippi one-handed gecko catch and managed to snatch him up before he got lost in the sheets. There is an art to gecko catching and if you live in the south you get good fast. So now I have him secure and safe in my left fist and realize, while I am standing there in my birthday suit, that there is only one door in my house that I can open one-handed. And it's the front door; through the screen porch, street lights blaring. Naked. Dang. This is why I run. To not feel so self conscience. Doesn't work really. But I did manage to save him and not get seen by the some random driver on our busy street.

The rest of the story, part two and three together, revolves around my run yesterday. It was a great run, I actually had a few miles in there in the high 8's for my pace. I guess the speed work is working. Anyway, around half way through my run I found a wallet, amazingly it still had all its stuff in it, cash, everything. Now I had three more sweaty miles to run with this wallet in my hand but I figured if I din't pick it up the owner might not be so lucky with the next person. About a mile or so later as I near the Zoo, I find a peacock on the street. Strutting his stuff. They are so pretty, he's pretty tame and lets me get real close. I know he's from the zoo and thank God one of the zoo workers came driving by on her way to work. We worked together to corral him back into the fenced area. I never find stuff, and on one day I get a wallet and peacock. Crazy.

The wallet had no emergency contact. There was a driver licence, all kinds of ID even a Social Security card. Boy I could have done some damage, but instead I looked up the address and drove 30 minutes out into the country side only to find the house doesn't exist. Geesh. I dropped it off at the local PD. What a waste of time. Right away I made sure I had a contact phone number in my wallet. If I am lucky someone nice like me might find mine if it is ever lost. Hopefully, even though I didn't find the guy I have garnered some good wallet karma!

So I am curious, what kind of "stuff" have you ever found on your runs or rides?

A New Addition

2011-08-07T19:52:00.000-05:00

Running goes well, hot and slow. With my sculpture commission in full swing right now I have been just doing about 30 miles a week to keep me sane. Also, I have a new addition to my pack that has been keeping me busy. Kiki (named after Kiki Smith, one of my favorite contemporary woman artists) came into my home late last week. A rescue, she needed a home fast. Like my other two rescues, they always seem to find me through someone else.

The ears did it for me!

She is an amazing little dog, barely 13 lbs, and about one year old she is a feisty and super smart terrier mix. She is getting along fine with the others and is really well behaved. No in-house mistakes, sleeps through the night, no food issues, and almost no barking. I guess she figures my other two do enough of that already.

I am so lucky!

Taken Out by Lunch

2011-07-31T12:02:00.001-05:00

In response to my question about having a running plan it seems that 80% of my running friends like to have a plan to work with most of the time. Folks enjoy some freedom every now and again but most agree that a plan keeps them on track and goal oriented. The major exception is with my hippie trail running friends in the Colorado. But that's to be expected. No really, I guess I fall about 50/50 into both categories and love my time with and with out a plan.

It's been a busy week. I feel as if I have been working non-stop on my sculpture commission and having to deal with more than my fair share of technical issues related to failing equipment. But, I am making progress albeit slowly.

This week Ginny and I did our first Wednesday morning one mile repeats in preparing for the Marathon Talk Mile Challenge. It was a real test. I have never just run a full out mile so it was fun to see what I could do. We ran two miles easy w/u and did two mile repeats with about a 3 minute rest in the middle. When done we did another 2 miles c/d. It was an extremely hot morning so this was about all I could muster. Amazingly I managed and 8:08 and 8:10 for the two miles. I know for some of you this is slow running pace but for me this is really big. Considering the heat and all I am pretty sure I can do even better as we continue on our training. I felt very winded when running but later on my legs felt fine I am pretty sure I can run faster I just need to practice turnover and breathing. Any way it was fun.

My next run, on Friday, was a 6 mile negative split run and that went very well too. Then kabam! I went to lunch for a colleague's birthday and got the worst case of food poisoning EVER! Back end sitting on the porcelain thrown, with a bucket on the font end. Projectile everything, for hours and hours. I was finally able to have some chicken broth by 9 PM and a piece of toast and hour later. I slept well, thankfully, I was exhausted. I decided to skip my Saturday run and that was a good choice. Instead I worked in the shop all day and got some art made.

This morning I feel great. I just got back from a fabulous 12.2 mile run an hour ago and feel like the week is starting off really well. It was 78F and 90% humidity at 6 am when I started running and 90F when I finished two hours later. I took salt tabs before running and carried a 20 oz hand held water bottle with me. I carried two gels and used one of them. There have been a lots of stories recently from our area of runners not prepping correctly before going out on these hot days and getting sickened by the harsh conditions. That will not happen to me. I just get ill from eating bad Tai food!

Waiting for the Plan

2011-07-26T15:05:00.000-05:00

Not much to say. Been running five times a week, sometimes more, sometimes less. Building base. Getting bored. It rains every day! Trails are not usable, sticking to the roads predawn. Will start doing some mile workouts, for the Marathon Talk Mile Challenge with Ginny and I hope some of our other running friends. That should liven things up a bit. Have never run a mile full on before, should be interesting.

Got out of my summer doldrums a little bit this weekend by going to the national forest (we have many areas around here) and ran an 11 mile loop of service trails and logging roads. It was a great change; nice dirt and some good hills to get a decent workout.

In late August I start my 16 week training plan for my December marathon or maybe its my 12 plan for my November 50K. Either way I am so looking forward to it. Having a plan keeps me focused and motivated.

I really go back and forth with loving the plan and hating it. I suppose it's only natural after a long race season to look forward to free running but after doing that for a while I am about to explode with boredom.

So how do all of you like to run, with a plan or without? Or maybe something in between?

Any Trail is Better Than None

2011-07-14T07:35:00.001-05:00

Yep. That's how is goes in the south in the summer. With the depressing heat the last thing I want to do is go running in a dense, wet, bug and spider infested sweltering forest. Am I exaggerating? No. Not really. Some of my friends would add snakes onto that list, but I like snakes.

So I run the pavement. But eventually that gets boring. It's not that I need the trail for the softness of the terrain or for any specific training purposes, I need the trail to keep my head in check. I get bored real easy.

Through friends I had heard about the affectionately titled, Power Line Trail. A short section under some local power lines that is mostly dirt-track, albeit all chewed up from overuse by ATV and dirt bike riders. It's muddy (even on the dry days), has lots of washouts and tear-outs and even a fair share of trash. But, it is also soft and full of fun challenges with it's short but steep inclines. My hips were actually happy with all the side to side maneuvers and jumping around. I think they felt ignored as of late. It's pretty short, only a few miles but it is better than nothing. The only really bad thing is that even the smallest amount of rain turns it into a dangerous clay-slippery mud-fest. I suppose that is why the rednecks love it so much!

Accidental Speed Workouts

2011-07-05T18:30:00.001-05:00

Been having some excellent runs lately. In the summer I don't do much speed work, hard to get motivated in an area where summer is like a steam-sauna on steroids. But recently I had two opportunities that popped up while I was doing my long run on the weekends. Both involved running into (literally) folks, (running friends) who I don't normally run with because they are much faster them me. For whatever reason I jumped on the opportunity to run with them and surprised myself with nice speed workouts and some great company.

I guess I could have said no thanks, or just backed down after a bit, but I figured, why not? If nothing else it was a great opportunity to not run alone. The best was with my friend James (PowerMultisport) I actually did a couple miles at over a minute faster than I ever thought I could run, especially near the end of my 11 miler. It was fun, I could tell he was going slow (for him), but for me I was busting butt and we were chatting too! James is a coach and I could see that in his attitude and by our conversation. Next time I can afford one and need to do specific training I will surely work with him.

Sometimes it's good to throw caution to the wind and push our limits. I learned a lot about what I can do by these couple of accidental speed workouts and it gives me something to aim for in my Mile Challenge with the folks from Marathon Talk.

Have you ever had an accidental workout of some kind? Was it good? Bad? Did you learn something from it?

Enough with the Bad Stuff and a Summer Challenge

2011-06-27T20:02:00.001-05:00

Time for good news. The hand is getting better, I wish faster, but it is improving. Luckily it is not interfering with my running. I have had some great runs the past few days and feel like my summer base training is doing its job. I will admit the heat has been oppressive, even at 5 AM. I am running slower but I feel strong and that's about all I can ask for in this heat.

Most of you know I am a fan of Marathon Talk pod-casts, I listen to them all the time. In August they are hosting a Mile Challenge. Anytime from August 1st to the 14 th you can try to run your fastest mile and post it to the site. Right now there are two teams Great Britain VS The Rest of the World! The Rest of the World Team, needs more members! Sign up, it is sure to be one really fun challenge.

I have never actually tried to run just a mile as fast as I can. I have no idea what my pace would be. So I am entering because I am curious. I think it will be a fun thing to do for a short summer project.

Com'on do it! How hard can one mile be?!

And Yet Again...

2011-06-25T13:06:00.004-05:00

An hour after posting the last sad post about Jan Morgan, I was driving to work and was run off the road by a guy on cell phone not paying attention. He of course, in his maroon four-door sedan, just kept going.

Thank God there was no collision with his car but to avoid hitting him with my big truck I veered sharply right and hit the barrier, I was on an overpass with 3' concrete barriers. My front end took a little damage and my tire and rim were trashed. The truck is drive-able but will need a new bumper, rim, tire and alignment. State Farm will take care of it. Unfortunately when the wheel whipped back over to the left my left hand got caught up in motion and my left thumb was violently hyper-extended backwards. Ouch! After x-rays and such, there are no broken bones just soft tissue and tendon strain. My hand is black and blue and really stiff and sore; I will not be riding my road bike for some time, or doing some of my studio work. The hand is already on the mend, swelling is much less then the other day, so signs are good for a full recovery in the next few weeks.

When the cops got to the scene, this cute and very young officer looked at me seriously and said, "Ma'am, next time, just hit the bastard." Yes officer, I think I'll do that.

You hear so much about states discussing making texting while driving illegal, but I think all cell phone use should be banned! When I was growing up my phone was attached to the wall by a cord. You had a 6' area you could navigate and that was it. Seemed to work just fine. No crashes at my house.

A Sad Story, and a Reminder to Never Forget

2011-06-23T05:31:00.000-05:00

On May 22, Jan Morgan, from Mississippi, was cycling with a friend on MS Hwy 50. She was hit from behind by a car and then run over again by the same car. Her injuries were/are massive. Below is the transcribed police description of the account-

This is transcribed directly from the Crash Report narrative

THE CYCLIST WAS WEST BOUND ON MS50 NEAR THE TRULOVE LOOP INTERSECTION. V1 WAS WEST BOUND ON MS50 APPROACHING THE CYCLIST FROM THE REAR. THE FRONT OF V1 COLLIDED WITH THE REAR OF THE BICYCLE. THE IMPACT THREW THE CYCLIST INTO THE AIR BEFORE LANDING ON THE HOOD OF V1 AND ONTO THE WINDSHIELD. V1 CONTINUED FOR A FEW FEET BEFORE COMING TO A STOP. THE CYCLIST WAS THEN THROWN TO THE ASPHALT WHEN V1 STOPPED. THE DRIVER OF V1 EXITED THE VEHICLE AND OBSERVED THE CYCLIST WHILE TALKING ON THE PHONE. D1 THEN REENTERED HER VEHICLE AND RAN THE CYCLIST OVER AGAIN BEFORE BEING FORCED FROM HER VEHICLE BY WITNESSES. V1 CAME TO FINAL REST FACING WEST IN THE WEST BOUND LANE ON MS 50 JUST METERS WEST OF THE TRULOVE LOOP INTERSECTION. THE CYCLIST CAME TO FINAL REST NEAR THE RIGHT FRONT TIRE OF V1.

Her husband David has been keeping a bedside vigil and has been writing a daily blog to document her struggles to heal. He writes with great honesty, detail, and clarity about the day to day activities in the hospital and about every little nuance of their new reality.

At first I felt like a voyeur, reading the accounts, but then I realized it was only with this knowledge that I was beginning to truly understand the tragic events that will determine the rest of this families existence. Please read the Get Well Jan blog. Scroll down to the first posts. Pass it on to others. I think it is so important to not forget the impact our actions can have on others. I will never drive while talking on a cell phone again.

Checking In...

2011-06-21T07:55:00.001-05:00

I have been super busy. Blog writing is not a priority right now. But I thought it would be good to let everyone know things are well.

I have a big outdoor sculpture commission I am working on and every afternoon after teaching class (and on weekends too) I head to the metal studio to work, pretty much outside, no AC. Here is a link to my other blog so you can see what I am up to- Jen Torres Sculpture

Right now I pretty much have the same schedule; I run 4 days a week, for an hour or so, then a longer run on Saturday for 1.5 to two hours. I swim on Thursday for an hour and do a 25-30 mile bike ride on Sunday. I am not training for anything right now so it is primarily, cross training, base building and weight loss time.

My pre-dawn runs have been going well. The streets are quite except for the riot of birds! I see lots of stray cats relaxing in the streets (must be a bit cooler on the black top so early). There are a fair number of people, in very minimal bed cloths, coming out to retrieve papers and taking out the trash and such. Lots of dog walkers. I see beautiful sun rises almost every day. I won't mention the ass hole in the shiny-new-big-black pick up truck, who glared at me as he just lazily rolled through the stop sign and came right up within a foot of me as I crossed the intersection. Go ahead, douche-bag and hit me! I could use a beautiful new pick up and pockets full of cash. Today I saw a double rainbow. Of course there was no rain, it's just the extreme humidity that causes it. The rainbow made my day and made me forget about the truck-jerk. The Zoo was rambunctious today too. The monkeys were howling in the Monkey House and the peacocks were calling out their lonesome, echoing call. Even the black swans were chiming in. Maybe they all saw the rainbow too?

Vampire

2011-06-15T08:02:00.001-05:00

A Vampire. That's what I feel like these days. I awake (quite naturally) at 4:30 AM or so, have some tea, feed the dogs and by 5:15-5:30 AM I am ready to run. It's not so hard to get up at this time, really. With the weather so hot (98F) and humidity over 80% most days I actually look forward to it. When I see that orange ball peaking through the trees I feel this intense sense of urgency to get home and be done with it.

I do change a few things when summer running. For one I don't wear my iPod, since it's dark I need to be hyper aware of my surroundings, I don't live in the country after all. I live in a small city where crime is a part of life, a small part, but it's still there. I also carry pepper spray. It it small and has a stretchy cord for around your hand so you hardly know it's there. There has been more gang activity on our bike path as of late. Gang tags are showing up and one biker ended up over his handle bars and did an asphalt face plant after one confrontation. It pays to be vigilant. I try and stay away from the trouble areas. Pepper spray works on dogs as well a people. Generally I run through town and on the streets, more lights, more people, safer in general. Of course I hydrate more, but am careful not to over hydrate. I also stop at various local fountains to cool my head in the water.

Things are going well in my runs. I have continued to integrate pool running into my weekly workouts even though I am not "in recovery" any more. I forget how good these make me feel. The workouts are very intense and work your whole body in the way a run can not. I can get my heart rate really going and feel pretty sore when done only without the impact of running. Water is a great resistance and when you whole body is pushing against the pressure of water you really feel it. Here is an article from Runner's World that talks a bit about it.

Do I Feel Better.

2011-06-08T16:58:00.000-05:00

About two weeks ago- running, feeling OK, calf a little funky, then a few days later wham, the calf goes on a bender. Limp home, lots of ice for a few days.

Past 10 days- active recovery, lots of swimming, some bike rides, lots of deep water running. Rest the calf.

Today- slow and easy, but a glorious 6.5 mile run. Will take is very slow the next few weeks. Doing lots of stretching and praying, but it feels really fine.

Today- First day I have NOT been an irritable bitch.

Do I Feel Stupid.

2011-06-04T20:48:00.003-05:00

As some of you may remember when I ran that crazy hard North Face Endurance race on Mothers day I mentioned I strained my right calf. It was one of those insidious kind of injuries, there one day, gone the next. Ice and rest, then some running. Then some harder running, then it would flare up a bit I would back off, it would feel better and then I would run again. This past Wednesday (that is, two Wednesday's ago is what I meant) I was running, easy, but it was being cranky, I knew I should not be out, but I kept going, talking myself into being slow and careful. Just as I was wondering to myself if this was a big warning to something major or just a bad day, it happened. Wham. My calf told me to f@ck off. In a big way. Duh! Do I feel stupid. I knew this was going to happen. So why keep going? I wish I had an answer.

So, let me ask, how many of my fellow running Blogger buddies have had this happen? Keep going even when you know you shouldn't?

I am usually uber safe, but this one time I decided to push and it pushed back. Maybe I like to live on the wild side a bit, perhaps I have not had an injury in a couple of years I needed a stern reminder. I guess I got soft.

I have been not running obviously. I have been resting, icing, and stretching a lot. Wearing a compression sock at night helps too. For the most part it doesn't hurt at all when I am doing normal everyday activities, so I know it's not a very bad injury, but it threatens to become chronic tendinitis I am sure. Tomorrow I will go for an easy bike ride on our super flat bike path and keep up with ice and stretching for a few more days. I guess I should have done this to begin with. That would have been smart.

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On a side note- I was still having major problems logging into some blogs to comment. I was resisting downloading Google Chrome, but then remembered I didn't have to use it all the time and would still have access to my IE. Well Chrome does work and works well, especially for Blogger. Thanks for those of you who mentioned it, it has solved the problem!

Some Questions Answered

2011-05-27T19:10:00.004-05:00

First I want to apologize (on behalf of Blogger) for not posting comments for a few weeks now. Seems Blogger has a bug that is not allowing some folks to log on when posting comments. I think I have found an "around" so hopefully I can play some catch up!

Every week when I post I will often get a question or two in the comments section. I forget so many times to reply to these questions, so I thought I would take a random sampling from the past few months and answer some of the most burning inquiries.

In no particular order-

"What type of tea do you drink?" I like black tea with milk. Usually English or Irish Breakfast tea, the blacker the better. I spent a year in India and traveled for some months in Great Britain so tea is my caffeine drink of choice. I break all the rules, I even have milk in my Earl Grey! An absolute no-no if your a serious tea drinker!

"What tips do you have for weight loss?" I follow a few simple rules. I never eat anything after 7:00 PM. I eat lots of fresh fruit and veggies for lots of fiber. I stay away from wheat and gluten as much as possible. I believe yogurt was invented by the Gods so I have some every day. I try not to eat a lot of fresh fruit after a big meal, always before, not after. Of course I eat sensibly and try to watch my portions but most of my philosophy is based helping my body to properly digest food, to get all the nutrients and keep every thing moving along smoothly. I believe when that happens my body craves the bad stuff less, I am more satisfied and feel full for a longer period of time.

"What are your future plans for ultra running?" I have lots of plans! Too many in fact. My Ultra Running magazines have dozens of Post It Notes highlighting all the races I want to do. In short, I feel like the first 50K I did was an anomaly, with the weather so bad I never really had a chance to test what I could do. My plan is to do a few more 50K's and to do a few that have "easy" courses so I can really get a feel for my endurance over that distance. Maybe in late 2012 I will look into a 50 miler.

"How do you get acclimated to such heat and humidity?" Don't really have a choice here in Mississippi. I actually kind of like the heat. The hard part is the humidity. Without the sweat evaporating off your skin there is little cooling effect and that can be daunting and even dangerous. First off I run pre-dawn and there are several decorative fountains and drinking fountains in town and I stop every three miles or so and douse my self, mainly my head and face, with cool water. It is amazing how much it helps cool my core. I take salt tabs regularly and I never eat before running unless I am doing a long slow run over 15 miles.

"How do you stay motivated getting up so early to run in the pre-dawn hours?" This is actually easy. I am a morning person by nature and I am in bed by 9:00 PM. I also have a little dog that is an insulin dependent diabetic, so I get furry morning kisses that help me get up for breakfast and a shot. And for the run, Marathon Talk! I love those guys and my runs just fly by when listening to their pod-casts.

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I want to say CONGRATULATIONS to Bethany and Ryan who tied the knot today. Good luck in life together! Also to Jeff who did amazing at Iron Man Texas this past weekend and is apparently having a wonderful recovery!

Also, I want to send a big GOOD LUCK to Johann who is running Comrades this weekend. Wow! What an amazing challenge my friend.

Also Good Luck to BDD and his race this weekend (he even shaved!)!

I am sure I am missing other folks, so good luck to everyone and have a great weekend!

What's Next: A Cup of Tea and Some Summer Training

2011-05-19T07:19:00.000-05:00

I don't race in the summer, not down south. Summer is for planning races for next fall and winter, and for summer training, which consists of base building, more cross training and weight loss/maintenance.

Since that crazy trail run (which BTW I did not hate, and you should notice I choose my words carefully when I said I was "pretty sure" would never do it again...) I have been getting some much needed rest. A bit of easy running here and there and plenty of naps and stretching. I am still dealing with some lingering tenderness in my right calf and can feel, as I knew when I went into it, that I was under-trained and pushed a bit harder than I should have on that killer trail. Last week my energy was low, it's only now coming back.

In the summer my work schedule changes drastically and I now have to be in the classroom at 8:00 every morning. This moves my runs up to a pretty early hour. To capitalize on this I usually do shorter more intense workouts, speed-work, intervals, etc. The plan is for building strength and speed and to give my legs a rest by leaving out any long runs over 10 miles. I'll do some 8- 10 milers on Saturdays with some Sunday afternoon bike rides. With my teaching moving to the morning now my afternoons open up and can now make some of the track workouts with Ginny and our club as well.

Right now I am just beginning to get my body used to the 4:45 AM wake ups and jumping right into my running, well, I always make room for a cup of tea first! I mean one must maintain their priorities. I am pretty sure I have my morning schedule dialed in and have completed several days of my new schedule so I think it all should work out fine. I am am naturally an early riser so this all isn't too hard to get used too. This weekend I will make up my actual training plan and fit all the pieces together into a nice calendar for the next three months.

Hopefully at the end of the summer I will be leaner, meaner, and a wee bit faster!

North Face Endurance Challenge Race Report

2011-05-14T14:05:00.009-05:00

Bear Mountain NY, Mothers Day, 2011

OK. Done that.

The day started beautiful. After a big night out with the family at a super-good Italian restaurant I manged a good night's sleep and had no trouble getting up at 4:45 AM. After a light breakfast, my brother Willie and I drove the 45 minutes north to meet my other brother Gene and his long-time girl friend Jackie at the start. The rest of the family would arrive later to cheers us on at the finish line. It was pretty chilly out but you could tell it was going to warm up fast. We all had shorts on under our warm-ups anticipating the heat.

The race started at 8 AM. Within five minutes I was glad that I had on minimal running gear unlike many other runners who opted for long sleeves and tights. I was sweating already. I knew from the start this was going to be killer. A rather large field was compacted down to a very narrow double track very quickly. Not a flat area either but a rocky path that functions also as a drainage ditch. I was wary of the fact that I was having to concentrate on my foot placement so early on, lots of jostling. Technical is not the word. Sick, is more like it. Of course they never actually promoted this event as a "running" event. I think I ran about 3 of the 13.1 miles. That's about it. Very soon we were on true single track and then even that seemed to disappear. The rest was rock scrambling, butt sliding and rock hopping up and down boulder filled dry creek beds. It's no secret that the Eastern US trails rarely have switchbacks, so it's straight up or down. Thank God there is no high altitude to deal with. This was a dangerous run. Besides a strain in my right calf muscle from being jostled by some big guy, I ran, hydrated, and fueled well and had no injuries.

Just after the start, 3 wide on the trail = fun (NOT)!

One problem, for me, was the size of the field, over 450 starters, I think it was much too large. When I was alone on the path I was able to really concentrate and run-hop real well, but the trail was rarely empty and many folks were just plain rude pushing past slower runners not even calling out that they were about to pass. There was over 3,400 feet of elevation gain and loss. Phew. It took me an hour longer to run this than my regular road half marathon, not that it mattered. My brother Gene killed it in a hair over 2 hrs and Willie at 2:23 and Jackie at 2:38 did excellent as well. With the exception of some strains, road rash, and a bloody knee we all came out great.

At the finish. Can you see the relief in my smile?

I am pretty sure I will never do this again. I would rather run a 50K than this any day. The fun part came from being with my family all weekend and that made it totally worthwhile. The real issue is I like to actually RUN, I love to run on trails and I know there are many really good trail runs that I can do in the future. I don't find this "endurance challenge" stuff all that enticing. Give me a running race anytime; hills, mud, rain, roots, even some rocks, even huge hills, streams, water crossings, you name it I am game.

Gene, Jennifer, and Willie Torres, and Jackie Granski at the finish.

The good thing is (there is ALWAYS a silver lining), is that it doesn't get much more technical than this and I had a blast despite all the dangers. I learned a lot and experienced something unique and challenging, and in the end I did pretty well.

Here's some pictures of the rest of the crew-

Gene

Jackie

Willie

A new Blogger to Watch

2011-05-03T07:01:00.000-05:00

It's been a busy week, we are doing final crits, senior meetings and so many other work related, end-of-the-year stuff that I hardly have a chance to breath most days. This Thursday night I head to New Orleans to catch and insanely early Friday AM flight up to New York for the North Face Endurance trail half marathon on Sunday, my last and probably hardest race of the season. Training has been minimal the past week, but that's OK as I have a good base ad it's taper time anyway. This race is rated with some very high numbers for technical difficulty and altitude, so for me it's a fun run to see how I do and to run with my brothers. My Mom and Dad are also coming up so more than anything it will be a fun family weekend. Something I desperately need right about now!

My niece Mel, has started a blog, The Life of M.D.H., and this past weekend she finished her very first triathlon! I am so proud of her! She lives in the Chicago area and is a graduate student working on her masters and working full time, so getting in the training has been a fun challenge for her, but one she is embracing and loving. I feel we have a real athlete in the works here, so check out her blog and giver her some blogger lovin'!

NYC a No Go; Planning for Next Fall and Winter

2011-04-29T20:01:00.004-05:00

Planning is always a fun task for me. I love reading about races in different parts of the country, dreaming which ones I might do someday. There are so many just in the south. I was waiting to hear about NYC so I could start setting up my race schedule. The announcement came Wednesday that I did not win a lottery slot. Oh well. It would have been fun. I think next year it is automatic since it will be year four. I am not really upset, I am kind of actually relieved; some art related travel may be on the books for around that same time and I could never afford to do two big trips. I would have been really bummed to have paid the close to $200 race fee only to possibly have to cancel.

But now I get the fun task of making plans for new races. I will definetly stay local and want to do something in November or early December (or both). I now have a whole list of possibilities for regional events that I can drive to and do with just an overnight stay. There is the hilly but very pretty Chickamauga Battlefield Marathon in north Ga. Then there is a marathon with a 50k option in Apalachicola Bay, Florida, in the panhandle, it got great marks for scenery but was apparently not very well organized last year, mmm. There is also a two loop course in Pensacola, not sure about the double loop and it can be very hot but this is a very well organised race in a city that is fun to visit. There are others, too many to list, all of them exciting. In truth I want to do all of them (hope to do all of them), and I have not even listed the various 50k's in the south that are also possibilities!

I like small races, I don't mind some hills, I like to wear my iPod but I have done marathons without, I don't really have any interest in qualifying for Boston so challenges are welcome, PR or not I will give it a go.

So I wonder when everyone else looks for races, what are you main criteria? Location? Expense? Size? Terrain? Something else?

Phew!

2011-04-24T19:46:00.001-05:00

Glad the past couple of weeks are over! Too much has happened to recount the details, but it was full of some crazy runs and a bunch of road trips. Starting with some big climbs on an amazing series of trails at Oak Mountain in Pelham, Alabama. Incidentally this trail made the big list in the Trail issue of Runner's World magazine. It was H.A.R.D. but good training for the Bear Mountain race on Mother's Day. Some pictures...

I had a bad fall trail running with Ginny a few days later and had to take a few days off, a face plant and a nasty bruise to my thigh kept me off my feet, but after several days it was better. Then late last week I was off to Ormond Beach Florida to deliver an art exhibition, part way through the 10 hour drive the bearing blew out on my front driver's side wheel, a few angels came to my rescue and I was able to complete my trip, six hours later. Once at the beach I decided to stay an extra day, had a great five mile sunrise run, lots of play in the big surf and a four mile walk in the evening. It was super nice. I love the Atlantic Ocean. Some pictures...

Now for a breather and a chance to get back to training, just as the heat really starts to get bad. Oh well, now the pre-dawn runs will start as they do every summer. In two weeks it's off to NY for my last race of the season. I will find out next week if I got into the NYC Marathon and then after that I can start making plans for the fall and winter racing season.

BRING ON THE HEAT!

Birthday Ramblings

2011-04-11T06:30:00.003-05:00

Yes. It is that day. I have never been much of birthday celebrator; my family is a thousand miles away and I have only a few good friends in the town where I live. So for me it's quiet and relaxed. I have some work meetings during the middle of the day then Ginny and I will do hill repeats later and maybe grab a bite to eat. More storms are rolling in so we'll see what happens. In a few minutes I am going for a morning run, just an easy 40 minutes or so. Or maybe I'll make that 46 minutes to be precise. And then later I'll do 46 minutes of hill repeats, just for fun too. Johann says I need to run my age in distance, whether it be 46 miles or kilometers, I think I'll have to take a rain-check on that one, maybe in a few weeks when I am finally home again on the weekend.

So how do I feel at 46? Mmm. Of course there are things I would like to be better, like my finances of course, but then again who is not in that situation? For the most part things are super. I feel great and I think I look pretty good, at least the best in many years. My confidence is pretty good these days, generally I feel like I could conquer the world, or at least my small part of it. My teaching/work goes well and as always is still one of my favorite things in the world to do. My health is excellent. For those of you who know me this has been a long journey from being 50 lbs overweight and having migraines multiple time s a week to dropping the weight and no more headaches. I realize I could have easily been posting some very different results, of course there probably would have never been a blog...

My art goes well and was especially good this weekend as I got a lot done in the studio. Making art is like a drug for me, sometimes I resist it but when I am immersed time and space has no meaning, I just create all day long. Good thing, a few days after returning from my conference in Birmingham I go to Florida to drop my work off at the Ormond Museum of Art for an exhibition. Busy.

My top 10 goals for the year are simple-

Continue to try and balance a wholesome life
see my family more
keep making art and get more shows and commissions
get faster and longer with my running
work at getting my diet even better
get better at integrating cross training
do another 50K and do it in less time and run another marathon or two
clean my house more (or make lots more money so I can hire a maid)
integrate bike commuting on a regular basis (just starting that one)
do a little bit of traveling (see #2)

Finally I want to send good wishes out to all my blogger friends, all of the regulars and the sometimes ones. You are all so important and your support is not only needed but appreciated!

Summer Time Love and Hate

2011-04-08T21:24:00.001-05:00

So today I ran my usual local hood run, a bit extra today as I was feeling fine. Hot, but fine. I was surprised at how warm and humid it was out already and found myself subtly changing my route to accommodate my increased need for water. Mmm. I thought, there is so much about summer I love and hate at the same time, so here are some of my thoughts-

Hate-

the fact that I need to hydrate so much more, I sweat so much
wearing sunscreen (a good thing to do but I hate how it feels in general)
all the bugs in the wet southern woods. Big horse flies chase you down, very little trail running by us in the summer
shorts don't offer as much coverage. I'm not very modest but let's be real at 46 there is some sag.
being completely drenched with sweat after every run
feeling more tired after long or hard hot summer runs

Love-

visiting all the fountains downtown, a good splash of cold water can really cool the core
running in the dark pre-dawn hours, a must to miss the heat and the sun
snakes, turtles and other creatures only seen in summer. I save the snakes everyone else wantsto kill
tanks, the less cloths the better. So happy to put the tights, hats, gloves and the rest of it away
being completely drenched running in a summer rain storm
afternoon naps (I guess that's not just in summer)

I know summer is still a dream for some of you but to get you into the spirit of the hot season, what are some of your summer time loves and hates?

Crazy Times

2011-04-06T06:30:00.003-05:00

On Monday evening I did my first track workout in a long, long time. Ginny and I met at the local track at 5:15 PM with the most enormous of storms looming in the distance. We figured we would get in every last minute of running time and then high tail it out of there before we got struck by lightning.

Everyone knows I hate track running, especially in the evenings when I am most tired, but I like hanging with friends and Monday evening really offered no excuses for me to bail. It was 89 F when we got there, however a good stiff breeze kept us cool, unfortunately it was also like running into a wall. Oh well, I figured I deserved it since I had avoided the track for so long. My plan was to run a one mile WU and then do two-hundreds with the same for recovery. I wanted to get in at least eight intervals and then do a CD. These were really tough especially since I had just had a hard mileage weekend, (this was all part of the plan actually). I was surprised, once I got warmed up my legs felt surprisingly good.

The results were pretty good and I actually had one interval that dropped down to 6:40. I know for some of you, you actually run at that pace but for me I have never seen those numbers before or even any of the sevens that made up the other seven intervals. My recovery laps were all over the place and that is something I really want to work on for the next round on this coming Monday (my birthday BTW). Yea, just what I want to be doing, killing my self on the track for my birthday. Yay. But I am convinced the rewards are worth it. The storm settled in about 30 minutes later and we did get out just in time. It was a kick ass storm and I spent much of my time sitting on the porch in my rain jacket watching the show.

I rested on Tuesday and will go out in a bit for an easy hour once the sun comes up. I feel great today.

The next two weeks will be killer for me. Lots of activities at work until Tuesday, then a conference in Birmingham where I will give a paper, I'll be there next week from Wednesday to Sunday (good mountain trail running in B-ham, BTW). The week after that I am home for a few days before I head down to Ormond Beach Florida to drop off a big exhibition of my work at the Museum of Art there. When Easter finally gets here I will be sleeping through it all! A week later I am flying to NYC to do the mountain trail half marathon with my brothers.

Yikes! I have so much to do!

Training Nutshell

2011-04-03T16:49:00.001-05:00

Mud, for Kovas.

In a nutshell-

Thursday- feeling bad, took off from work. My new bike was ready in the afternoon, a good way to cheer up, picked it up at 5. I was so excited I jumped on it as soon as I got home, rode all over town and over every curb I could find, left my jeans on, bad idea, saddle sores...

Friday- run, 7.5 miles, easy but fast through town with hills.

Saturday- run, 11 miles, with 7 as tempo on the bike path, training with hand held water bottle, training to get used to it for shorter trail races. Hate it but I managed, don't like stuff in my hands.

Sunday- run, 10.5 miles on forest trail, pushed hard, ran all the hills, wanted this workout to be on tired legs. Very hot, happy to have my hydration pack for this run. Trails really trashed, lots of jumping side-to-side

Monday- will do an evening track workout with Ginny, will push some but will pay attention to not trashing myself.

Tuesday- rest

In the woods this morning-

purple

red

pink

white

...and green

Something New and Fun...

2011-03-28T06:41:00.000-05:00

A new bike! Part of a barter deal for a small project I am working on. I have been looking for something for around town and on easy trails and all the chips fell into place for this pretty creature! Yay!

Trek Sky SL

My carbon road bike isn't good for anything other than going fast on pavement (not that that's a bad thing...) so I was looking for something that can get me over to work and around campus, over sidewalks and curbs, onto the bike path and some trails. My commute is only a mile, so I didn't want or need a "commuter" bike, but something fun and this is it. Can't wait to pick it up it at end of this week!

How Do You Define Easy?

2011-03-27T09:44:00.006-05:00

A loaded question I say. For me it is all relative and it contains so many variables it's almost impossible to pin down. Most training plans call for easy runs at certain times of each week but depending on a number factors, including, sleep (or lack of), diet, stress, and other training, what seems like it should be easy turns out hard and vice versa. This weekend was a perfect example. I ran a tempo run on Saturday, for about an hour. It wasn't what I had planned to do but I felt super, ran fast and it felt good to push hard and challenge myself. I felt great all day afterwords. Then along comes Sunday and yikes, I have nothing in my bag of tricks. Although my legs feel fine and I have no soreness everything feels hard. I can't wait to be done.

Personally when I have days like this it is almost more important for me to go out and kill it. I need to make sure that I can push through the tough times. The irony of all this is I almost always feel pretty decent at the end of those hard runs. Today was no different. I kind of love days like this (well, maybe NOT when I was actually running...) they remind me why I run and that the benefits to most things don't happen instantly, but rather later on when you are not expecting them.

P.S. I had something very fun to show you all, but f-ing Blogger is not letting me post images for some weird reason, so I guess it will have to wait...

Spring? Well it's Over in Mississippi.

2011-03-20T13:01:00.000-05:00

Have had a good week here. Spring feels pretty much as if it has come and gone. It's hitting 80+ every day. Luckily it's still in the 50's at night so early morning runs are still nice and cool. This great weather will not last long.

I finally got the road bike outside again and enjoyed a sweet 24 miles yesterday. It felt good to ride, at least for the legs, the butt was a different matter and I can tell it will take a few rides to get rid of the aches associated from sitting for some hours on a ridiculously small seat. But alas, all good things come in time. The butt will toughen up!

Ran well this week, 8, 6.5, 7 and 10 miles this morning. Today was a nice trail run on the Tux Trail. This was my first trail run since the 50K race and it felt good. (Especially surprising considering the amount of damage I did at the Saint Thomas Aquinas Irish Italian festival last night.) The hills made me work and it's getting hot, as I have already mentioned but there is nothing like the forest in springtime. Just the smells of things blooming is enough to blow me away. Does it make sense to say it smells lovely out?

Ran with my new trail shoes, Adidas Trail Response 17, they are a neutral shoe and fit my arches well! So far I love them.

Hope every one is doing well. Any special plans for the week?

Into the Pool, But Not to Swim

2011-03-18T15:36:00.000-05:00

Been incredibly busy! For the most part my recovery is over, back to my routine workouts. Have not started the more intense workout specific to my mountain trail race in May but that will happen soon enough and I don't need to push it. My runs this week have been 8, 6.5 and 7 miles. May or may not do something longer this weekend.

It has been getting hot here. It's 82 right now and doing anything in the sun begins to get uncomfortable after an hour. I have been getting lots of gardening in, sort of have to as it will be far to hot soon.

Last Saturday I got to participate in an injury prevention clinic put on my by a local triathlete and physical therapist Daniel M. Lent-Koop, MPT, CHT, at Orleans Park Rehabilitation Services. We learned about kinseo taping, stretching specific to running, biking, or swimming and all kinds of interesting tidbits of information pertaining to preventing injuries and taking care of them when they happen. This facility also happens to be the only one around that has a Hydro Worx underwater treadmill. This thing is way cool and of course I was one of the first to volunteer to jump in and give it a try. A combination of treadmill speed and water jets can simulate all kinds of running conditions, hill work, intervals, etc. You can see in the set of still video images (thanks James for the video) that at first I am running well and then Dan powers on the full jets and I nearly get knocked off my feet! I ttotally lost my form as I was trying to stay up right in the last few images. It was fun and an excellent work out as well. Video cameras give images of front and side views for gait analysis.

I hope everyone is having a great weekend and enjoying the great weather we have been having in much of the country!

My First Ultra- What Worked and What Didn't

2011-03-11T08:46:00.000-06:00

If you haven't read my race report or viewed the video you can check them out here- Misery Loves Company.

The video has had over 1000 hits on Youtube, way more than I ever guessed, it has been fun to hear all the comments made in various places. It was my first ever ultra and my enthusiasm is a bit overbearing at times. Now that all the excitement has settled I want to write a bit about what things worked and what didn't during the race.

What Didn't Work

Weather- Well the weather really didn't work, but in hindsight it will make all of my other ultras a bit easier.

Shoes- I think I am done with my Brooks Cascadias. My feet were OK in general but the Brooks shoes never really supported my feet plus the nasty conditions created a weird silt built up under the ball of my foot that hurt the bottoms of my feet. It still is tender today and actually downright painful in that one area under each foot. I had to stop almost 8 times to just dig the stuff out. I felt like I had a rock the size of a large Lima bean stuck under there. I will still keep them, for messing around in dry conditions but I have a new pair of trail shoes to try out soon as I get back with it.

My Garmin 405- Baaa. Even though it was fully charged it ran out after 6 hours. I had forgot to turn off the mile lap feature so maybe because it was recoding my splits after every mile it was using extra battery power, I don't know, but it sure was a let down.

What Did Work

Running Buddies- Hell yea! This was without a doubt the most important thing for this race. I am normally a solo runner but for these long runs hooking up with other folks helped a great deal and I believe got me through to the finish.

Nutrition- I was dialed in with that. I had been practicing on my long training runs with what I could eat and how to do it while in the race. I had a gel (GU-Roctane and regular GU as well) about every 70 minutes on average. I ate two almond butter, jelly and whole wheat bread sandwiches, while actually jogging on the trail, miles 12.5 and 26. Not as hard to do as I thought. I drank some Heed toward the end and ate very little at the aid stations, a cookie here or there. I had two salt tabs at about mile 12.5. I drank water almost exclusively. My tummy was fine the whole time. I realize that for a 50K that might seem like a lot for more experienced folks but it will make more sense as I move up to 50 mile and 100K races. Anyway for an 8 hour water and mud slog-fest it worked quite well.

My CamelBak- I love my Annadel pack. Have had it for over a year now and run with it all the time. I am a sipper when it comes to water and with some longer distances between stations I had planned to wear it from the get go. I hardly notice I even have it on when I run. Besides my gels, it can carry emergency stuff like extra salt tabs, and gear and of course my camera and reading glasses.

My running hat- It's no special brand just my finishers hat from the Huntsville Marathon but it kept the rain out of my face and added a bit of comfort.

My socks- Thanks to my good friend Ginny who gifted me a pair of DryMax, 1/4 crew trail socks, my feet were very happy. (Ginny is also a dealer BTW so if you need a pair contact her.) I since had purchased an additional pair and was able to change socks at about mile 12.5. There is no way I can say my feet were ever dry for even a minute out there but the DryMax material kept the water away from my feet and added a degree of comfort. I ran for almost 8 hours in down pours and had not one single blister! I also lubed my feet really well which helped too. The taller 1/4 crew style helped abate the cuts and scrapes I normally get on my ankles from running on forested trails.

My video camera- I can not say enough about this little HD camera from Kodak, the Kodak PlaySport. It is the same size as my Android phone and way easier to use for taking pictures and video. The best part is that it is waterproof up to 3 meters. I have an 8 gig card in there now and I think it takes up to 32. That's a lot of video. The editor is easy to use if not limited in what it can do, but there are plenty of other editing software available if someone needs more options.

My Recovery

Actually it hasn't been so bad. Later that day and the next I was super sore, especially the bottoms of my feet and my hamstrings and maybe my quads a bit. I did light stretching that day, and some massaging. I also elevate my legs up against a wall for sometime while reading my new issue of Trail Runner, part of the race swag. I took two Aleve. I could not find my recovery socks so I never got to wear them, didn't seem to mater in the end. The next day much of the same but longer stretching with some yoga stretches. I stayed home and off my feet, read and watched some movies. But I made sure I got up and walked around the house at least twice every hour. This week in general has been great, Ginny (who ran the Snickers Marathon the same day in Georgia) and I met for a walk and then lunch on Monday. Walking was good. I have also been to the pool for some swimming and that has been great. May go again today or maybe for a short bike ride.

I have been jumping out my skin to go running again but will hold off to maybe Saturday or Sunday for an easy jog. I have another race on Mother's Day and I want to get back to training soon.

What's Next

I have been having a blast this week researching and planning more ultras. Also looking into another marathon. There are so many choices and some really good ones in the south as well. I am in the lottery fro NYC and will also put in for the Houston Marathon. I will do this race again next spring and may go for the Oak Mountain 50K next March as well. I also would like to do the Rocky Raccoon 50 miler next year. We'll see. I really want to improve my 50K time. I know I can and will spend a good deal of time this summer working on strength training and building some speed.

Misery Loves Company: The MS 50 Trail Run, Race Report and Video

2011-03-06T12:06:00.008-06:00

With a 3 AM wake up call the day started out bleary and almost immediately the thunder and lightning started too. Actually it had been storming all night, so sleep was elusive from the get go. I got to the race site at 5:00 am, got a great parking spot, actually any place not underwater made for great parking. Regardless of the weather the volunteers were cheerful and friendly and assured me the race would go on.

We started exactly at 6:00 AM with no fan fare. It was raining. The 50 mile and 50 kilometer folks go out early the 20K racers would go out later at 8:00 AM. We started out in the dark, but I know this trail so it was easy going for the first mile on the wide jeep trail, when we got onto the single track it started to get tricky. The mud, water and technical stuff started right away. The rain let up for a bit and this helped a lot. These are not very technical trails but with all the water they became hard to navigate. The field spread out pretty fast and I found myself running most of the first long loop with a few more experienced fellows and having a blast. I followed their comforable pace and we slipped, and slided down the trail together.

I was pretty tired after the first 12 mile loop and really wet and my feet were trashed. Since you pass by your vehicle two times I took advantage of this and cleaned out my shoes, put on fresh socks, ate a sandwich and had some salt tabs. In a few minutes I was back on the trail.

I found myself alone for the first few miles on the second round of the long loop, now it started raining hard and got real dark. And then thunder and lightning. I was alone. In the woods. Suddenly *CRACK* overhead, lightning hit a tree. Right over my head. I jumped out of my skin. The smell of ozone was unmistakable and my hair was standing on end. I couldn't hear anything for a few moments. A guy came running up behind me and was yelling, "Did you see that? Lightning hit the tree right over your head!". That's how I met Davis. And thank God for that. Both of us were more than a bit freaked out and decided to team up for more running. By this time the trail was a mess, mud up to your knees, streams flowing fast, downhills were turned into a slippery dangerous slide. Running was becoming impossible. We stuck together for the rest of the race. I was in some deep funk at this point and his presence and conversation helped to keep me going. I did the same for him.

Some time later we met up with his buddy George. I think for the last 8 miles or so we all ran together. Passing again by our cars we had another short break before heading out for the final short loop and then to the finish. This was, by far the hardest part of the day. We had already run the equivalent of a full marathon and now had to return to the woods for more. We ran, we walked and we walked more. We cheered each other on. Definitely more walking than running at this point. As we got close to home the excitement began to build and with all our efforts we summoned the strength to run the last mile to the finish. It was so very exciting to come across that finish line the three of us together. This would be the first 50K for all three of us. Not much fan fare at the end, the weather was not conducive to lots of spectators. We got our medals, hats and gloves and were on our way, promising that we would keep in touch.

I video taped as much of the action as I dared. Didn't get a lot of the rain action as even though I have a water proof camera you couldn't see anything anyway. I made a video and you can view it here-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-iwy9oGxFI&feature=player_embedded

I learned this morning that they did eventually call the race some time after we finished. The weather had really deteriorated and even my drive home was a white knuckle one. Flash flooding was imminent.

George Martin, Davis Barlow and Jen Torres

This was the hardest thing I have ever done, but good training, nutrition, a comfortable pace and a few trail angels really made the difference. I am looking forward to planing my next one, it can't get much worse than this one! Our official time was 7:58:30. I think that works out to about a 15 min mile. I was expecting it to be slower. My goal had been for 8 hours prior to the storm, so to come in just under 8 hours in the crappy conditions really is pretty exciting.

In the end I suffered no major injuries and didn't even get a blister on my feet. Some scrapes and general soreness today is all. I am walking funny and the bottom of my feet are very tender. All the work at keeping myself balanced on the slippery trail has my knees, hips and connective tissue in a world of hurt, but that will pass in a few days. Today is a day for resting, sleeping, eating and stretching. No more no less.

This is one of the best organized races ever. The supper the night before was really good, the race shirt, hat, gloves and medal were great, especially considering the entry was only $65-75 bucks. The volunteers were super and I am amazed and so thankful that even with all the bad weather they still stayed at their posts offering good cheer, support and lots of tasty treats. Thanks to everyone who made this race possible!

I Am Now An Ultra Runner

2011-03-05T16:08:00.003-06:00

7:58:40. 50K. The most miserable thing I have ever experienced and I can't wait to plan my next one! Stormed with thunder, lightning and heavy rain for 60% of the time and just flat out rained for the rest. No joke. The mud was amazing, the streams were getting scary fast and high, I took a spill, got totally covered in red clay, a little scraped up. Found some trail angles and we three worked together to finish the race. Thank you Davis and George, my new lawyer friends from Birmingham. There is some additional exciting stuff to tell and a video to edit, but right now I can't feel my legs and I am dirty, tired, and came home to find the house trashed by my one dog who is terrified of storms. Oh well. I am honestly too tired to care.

Thanks out there to all my wonderful blogger friends and my family for all the support advice and cool training tid-bits that helped to get me through. Race report to come.

T-Minus 2 Days, 20 Hours and 18 Minutes, or so

2011-03-02T09:50:00.001-06:00

Got my pre-race email with final instructions from the race committee yesterday. Has lots of good information and some interesting facts. It was weird to read about the race start area and directions about where to park when this is an area I am so accustomed to visiting. It almost sounded surreal. After reading all the info I realized I was pretty happy that I was doing my first 50K right in my backyard, more or less. I know this trail and will hardly have to look at any trail markings. What this means for me is more time to concentrate on my pace and form than anything else. If I can keep that dialed in and also keep up my nutrition and water intake I should be just fine. Even though there are several aid stations on the rout, there is some distance between a few of them, so I will wear my CamelBak, just like I always do. Unfortunately there is rain forecast for Friday and Saturday, a 60% - 70% chance of rain/thunderstorms. Urr. I really don't mind rain, but with all the streams involved it could be a real muddy mess. Oh well. Unless there is lightning, I am not coming in, they will have to drag my ass of the course. I do think I will be bringing not one, but several changes of cloths and shoes.

I am bit a nervous, mainly concerned about the weather. My training has been good and I feel great this week. I have had several one hour runs and did some speed-work on the bike path this past weekend. I am ready.

What a Difference a Day Makes

2011-02-26T11:37:00.001-06:00

This week's taper has been good, one more week to go. My goal is to make sure that when next weekend comes around that I am 100% percent ready to do this ultra mentally. I will have everything organised and arranged in bags and ready to go by Friday evening as I will be up at 3 AM and driving to the site by 4:15 AM. During this race runners doing the 50K and higher get to pass by their vehicles twice. Yay. I am allowed to stop, rest, eat change cloths whatever I need. It's all part of the race. So although I trained with two easy breaks during my long runs, I will still do the same during the race but I will be more efficient and faster this time around. I have no PR for this race so I can do it as slow and comfortable as I need to. My goals is to finish, that's about it.

I took two days off after the marathon length training run I did last Sunday. I ran an easy 4.5 miles on Wednesday, actually feeling pretty good. Then I ran again on Friday. Oh. My. God. It was like a crawl through hell. I did the most excruciatingly bad three miles ever. My legs felt like lead and I had woken up with a headache and every footfall felt like an earthquake. But I pushed through, a pretty decent pace too. Generally when I feel crappy I may choose to just not run, but since trail ultras are all about beating back the suffering and bad times I decided to get it done. There is also another reason, so often when I have a bad day, the next day is brilliant. And that is exactly what happened today.

This morning I ran on the bike path, in the lovely morning dawn with super nice 43 degree temps. I ran a fartlek and had a blast, running, sprinting, going fast, going slow, striding, I even skipped a bit. I had one of the best paces for a 6 mile run in a long time. But mostly I felt that amazing zing from one day being so low to the next day being so very high. It was also nice not to be on a trail and being able to run with some abandon. Next week will be an easy week again, with short runs and at least one with s bit of intensity.

I mentioned in my last post that the Brooks Cascadias may be on their way out, still not sure but I do have a new pair of trail shoes, the Adidas Trail Response 17. It took a lot of research, but I finally found an Adidas shoe, similar to my regular road shoe but made for the trial. They are so cute! I doubt I will wear them for this race, but I may slip them on for the last 5 mile loop, just for fun. When I put them on they felt a bit like an old familiar friend and so far they feel great around the house. I'll report back more in several weeks as I really get to break them in.

Hope you all can get some good workouts in, have a great weekend!

Trail Training

2011-02-20T18:50:00.001-06:00

Today I completed the longest training run ever. Phew, I am so glad that is over, but at the same time I am happy to have completed it while not blowing up somewhere deep in the woods. This picture is of me at 26 miles, only about a half mile more to go.

At first things didn't start so well as I realized my Garmin had malfunctioned and was of no use to me on this day. To some extent it was a relief, simply because I have a bad habit of watching my pace and then getting down on myself for not going faster on the trail. On the other hand I now was in for a slightly longer run as I needed to stick with trails that had known distances and that meant over 26.5 miles. Oh well. In the end I think I was mentally better off (not constantly watching my pace) and that helped me to do my walking when I needed to and that helped me to be better off in the end.

My stamina lasted longer and the whole event was not so painful. I also brought my iPod which I only turned on from miles 17 - 21, when I really needed a bit of uplifting. I took breaks at miles 10.5 and 21 and during those breaks (from 7 to 10 minutes each) I took care of my feet, drank extra water and munched on almond butter and jelly sandwiches. I consumed 4 gels throughout the day. I had two Camelbak hydration packs, my usual one and a new higher volume one that I only used the last 6 miles as it was untested until today. It was very warm, close to 70, but there was a nice breeze to help at times. I was sweating a lot so at my second break I took some electrolytes and I think it helped.

The trail was in bad shape in many places. With the warmer weather all the trail riders have come out. In places the trail is so beat up that stopping and jumping from spot to spot is the only way to go. There were about two dozen streams, water holes or large puddles that needed to be negotiated. All the up-hills and down-hills are really chewed up and slow going. My hips, groin and lower back will need a lot of stretching in the next few days. My feet and ankles are way sore. I am considering that my Brooks Casscadia may not be my ultimate trail show; I don't think there is enough arch support. Bleh.

My time was very slow over all I think I had a 15 min mile. Gosh that seems so very slow, but hey I am a first timer at all of this and hopefully as I do this more I will improve in the future. Gosh, I better!

Some Stuff You Don't Know About Me

2011-02-16T19:10:00.001-06:00

Had another nice trail run today, phew... no walking. Well, than again it was only 10 miles. It was almost 70 when I was done and I must admit I like it when I don't have to wear hats and gloves, so as far as I am concerned it can stay 60-70 degrees for the whole year. But we all know that's not going to happen.

I have been recently scolded for my lack of proper paragraph formatting so I am going to try and be better at that.

I received tons of advice from my last post on walking/running for my ultra training. The general consensus was I need to walk less distance and maybe wait a bit longer into the run. I had been doing that somewhat so I think I am going to try a mixture of stuff on this weekend's long run. Thanks everyone for your words of wisdom, especially Chris K. who is literally brilliant. I think he is going on his first trail run (ever) this weekend. Mmm.

Speaking of my brilliant friend he had the ~~good~~ sense to tag me for the stylish blogger award. I hate these things, but I will play... because it came from Chris K.

Seven things you don't know about me....

1) After I started running just over three years ago the migraines I had 3-4 times a week went away, completely.
2) When I was 18 I announced to my folks that I was taking a leave from college and going to India, and I didn't know if I was coming back. I spent a year there and loved every minute of it. Obviously I came back.
3) Was married. Key word, "was". Been there done that.
4) I drive a Ford F-250 diesel pick up. Big and bad, just like me (not).
5) I'd rather go shopping for tools than cloths.
6) My favorite concert ever was an all day outdoor event with the Grateful Dead, Bob Dillon and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. I wish I remember more of it though...
7) I want to go to Antarctica and Greenland.

I did it. However, since everyone I know has been tagged, this is as far as I go.

Have a great rest of the week everybody!

Walking Sucks and A Very Special Valentine

2011-02-14T08:30:00.000-06:00

Yes Yes, I did the 15 mile trail "run" yesterday. You can tell I am a runner as I still have a hard time with the walking concept. It was hard mentally and physically. But I am proud of myself for making a plan and sticking with it. This was a new trail for me so I didn't know exactly what to expect but decided it didn't matter, the plan was to walk for 1/4 mile or close to that, for every mile from the beginning. My goal is multi faceted; teach my body to be efficient at walking so I can keep a decent pace but rest my running muscles, train my mind that for ultra runs this is just perfectly fine to do, and finally to do it from the beginning so it does not become some last ditch attempt to save my ass when I am about to blow up.

Well it worked, I think. I have more to do and need more experience before I will really know but I got through the 15 miles just fine. Walking sucks and it was hard on my body since I haven't done it much. By the end of each 1/4 mile I was ready to get back to running. I really needed to fight the urge to just stroll along. I can tell the muscles all along the back of my legs, thighs into calves, got a hefty workout and I probably still need to experiment with form. I don't know yet if the 1/4 mile to 3/4 mile ratio is the best but it was a good place to start. It worked for me mentally especially as I got more tired. I will admit I was surprised that even with the walking my pace was not as slow as I though it would be, I still came in under 13 min per mile, of course it was only 15 miles, not the 31 I will be doing in a few weeks. My feet are tender today and that is probably from the trial as there was an abundance of forest litter including lots and lots of branches and twigs. The Forest service is just getting to this area devastated by Katrina and the ground is still very rough, good training though for my ankles and feet, even if they hurt today. It was an amazing day 60 degrees at the end and sunny, I was loving hearing the birds and wildlife stirring in the evergreens.

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Valentines day for me has always been bittersweet, years ago when I was married it was fun, but became one of those requirements that couples do, the magic got lost.

I have been on my own for years now, a few valentines here and there but mostly just me. These past several years when that awful second week of February comes around I mostly turn my nose up at it and pretend all the terrible pink and red stuff everywhere is just silly couples stuff. However, it was different this year. My sister sent me a valentine card. Not just any card a homemade one! I will admit I wasn't so sour about it this year. The card says, "The life and love we create is the life and love we live". How cool is that? If it weren't for my sister Steph I wouldn't even have a Valentine, but what it means most for me is a reminder that Valentines Day is about love, all love, for everyone. And I guess I must admit I think that's really cool.

So I say ~~begrudgingly~~ merrily, Happy Valentines Everyone!

(P.s. I just started using the new Blogger editor, does anyone know why I can't seem to upload more than one picture to my post?", Very frustrating...)

Random

2011-02-12T10:40:00.004-06:00

Since there seems to be a plethora of great sports photos out there lately I decided to post my own.

This is as close to athletics as I ever got as a kid. After this little 'dude' ranch trip (around 1975) I was tired, whiny and cold. Initially I was pretty stoked about the trip (a grammar school class outing) until I got on this dirty, underfed hag, I was demanding to know where my Black Beauty was. Further complicating things was the indecency of having to wear the new 'rasta' hat my mom had made especially for me. Ah, such trying times to be a child!

This was a step-back week in training, I was beginning to feel sick mid-week so I just did an additional rest day. Had a nice, if not butt and toe freezing, pre-dawn run today. Can't complain as it will get to 60F today, sunny and bright. Same for tomorrow and that will be good as I do an easy 14 mile trail run where I will take some much needed time to perfect some walking technique for my 50K race. Next week training ramps back up for one final hard haul and a 25 miler next weekend, then taper time. Phew. I think I am actually looking forward to this taper!

A Long Hard Run?

2011-02-07T07:06:00.007-06:00

Yesterday I did a 20 mile trail run. Well actually it was one 10.5 miler run and a second loop of 10 miles run/walk. Gosh, that's hard to say, "run/walk". Even as I am writing this I think how can I say it different, super slow run? No, that would be untrue, I ran some and I walked some. It's interesting as runner, one who has for three+ years trained for all running events how the concept of walking (or jogging) has such derogatory connotations.

Even when I was in the process of doing yesterday's training run I was still in state of denial about how much the walking part could actually help my training. Get that, I said "help". And no, as I had to remind myself way to many times yesterday, walking is not a sign of weakness or under training or biting off more than you can chew, it actually is a sign of being smart, yes smart, as in intelligent. Some of my reading in this area of training for ultras had led me to some surprising finds, the main one being that there is not a training article or manual out there that advocates running the entire time. Most of the great untrarunning champions of impressive ultras like The Western States 100 and such, have had opportunities to walk during races.

In Peter Gagarin's article A Beginning Ultrarunners' Guide to Running 50 Miles, he has great information on weekly mileage (it's not what you would expect) and he strongly advocates three full days of rest. Mmm, I like that. In his article he also has a section on slow work (jogging!) and really slow work (walking!). He is adamant about that fact that most runners do not know how to actively walk. They run so hard that they are exhausted and then the walking is just a weak attempt at staying in the game. By learning to walk strong, you are training different muscles and can maintain a fast pace while resting your running muscles. A good walker will be tired after a hard section of the trail and will look forward to getting back to the run, and the cycle continues.

In his article How to Walk While Running, Tom Kline stresses that not knowing how to walk properly can be more fatiguing and actually work to make a runner more tired. He explains that experienced ultrarunners spend years perfecting there running styles and that, "The same goes for walking. There is an optimal style, one that can help ultrarunners move faster and longer and more comfortably, while also preventing injury."

Earlier today I emailed Goeff Roes, untrarunning extraordinaire and winner of everything big, long and hard, I asked him simply if he ever walked during races and if he did why, here is his reply, "I definitely walk during most races over 50 miles. if a 100 mile course is totally flat i would run the whole thing but if there are lots of hills i walk almost all of the steeper uphills. it's necessary to have enough energy for 100 miles. and it's a great time to be able to eat some food and recover a little bit."

Right now I am just training for a 50K and to this newbie runner it feels like 100 miles. I am sure that will go away as I train for more and more runs and perfect my walking and running styles. And gosh do I need to. I am becoming a pretty decent trail runner, I am getting stronger and better at reading the trail and more proficient in foot placement. I have added breaks into my strategy and and can now eat small sandwiches and fruit without any GI issues. I am running through the water and getting my feet used being wet. But the one area I need to learn better is walking. I'm integrating some walking, but yesterday it was out of necessity. Our trail is not super technical, but it is still a trail with lots of hills, and numerous water crossings, tons of mud and poor footing due to heavy horse traffic. It's a real workout. I ran hard the first part and then walked part of the last 5 miles because I had to. Next time out I will need to be more diligent in walking, especially if I want to get through this 50K next month!

Finally though I want to stress, for anyone who is just learning to run ultras that it is important to find what works best for you, I am (or was) essentially a non athlete coming into this running thing in my 40's. I have no visions of being a contender in any field, but want to maintain a good challenge and a love for running and being outside. I can imagine that maybe a few years from now I will easily be running all of my 50Ks and will be looking back at this article as I need to remind myself about perfecting my walking as I start training for some 100 miler way down the line.

All the articles I mentioned are in the book, A Step Beyond: A Definitive Guide to Ultrarunning, edited by Don Allison 2004, Ultrarunning Publishers, Weymouth, MA

The Wall, 30K Race Report

2011-01-31T07:24:00.004-06:00

I was supposed to run the trails this Sunday, but the weather was looking real sketchy and then Ginny emailed to remind me about this 30K race on Sunday, so we made plans and went for it. It was more of a training run for both of us so I had no intentions of running it like a race. I am not sure I could have anyway, I have had some big mileage the past two weeks and no taper, so racing would have been very foolish. However I did want to run a good run and go a bit better than my usual long runs. So I figured on a 10:40 pace, which incidentally is about a minute-per-mile faster than most long runs but slower than half marathon pace. The race is just east of New Orleans and goes along the top of a levee along the Mississippi River. Sounds lovely right? Mmm not so much, but more on that later.
The day dawned dreary, rain forecast and 100% humidity, but thankfully it is was cool, it stayed in the 50'sF for most of the day. I had to get up at 3:20 in order to get the dogs and me fed and get over the Ginny's place. From there we did the nearly two hour drive south and got to the race site with an hour to spare. I have to say I love races that are small, local, cheap and have race day registration! I am not even sure there were 200 runners, and it seemed most of them came for the 10K part of the race. Of course when the gun went off I went out too fast, that amounted to a bunch of mid-section cramps for the first five miles. These are not "I need a bathroom" type cramps but usually related to breathing. Once I slowed down and relaxed I was better. Generally it was the least enjoyable race that I have had in a while. My body is pretty wore out; I have had (including this race) two 18 milers, a 16 miler, an 11.5, 12.5 and my usual shorter runs in just the past two weeks. This is all part of the mileage training for my ultra. Now I want to get something straight here, it was still a very good run, I finished the race with the pace I wanted. So the choice was mine to get with the pain and discomfort and deal with it. I would never go to the point of injury, I would walk before that.
It rained for about 50% of the time but never really heavy and the temps were perfect, just the humidity was killer. But hey I live in the place were they invented humidity in the USA. The location was, lets just say not very inspiring, well in some ways. You could see the river, but only for just the first few miles on the out and back, after that it was bounded by lots of dense dead foliage on the river side and industrial landscapes on the other side, and for the most part was way boring. However for me, an industrial landscape junkie, I was loving seeing the super sized grain silos, all the transfer pipes, the natural gas lines, brightly painted super tankers, support craft and tug boats. For at least part of the run I was in visual overload. I of course took pictures and will probably use some of the imagery in my next sculpture works.
I had a real mental breakdown at around miles 14-15 and lord did I have to dig deep to get out of that one. Everything seemed to hurt. It's weird how you can feel so bad and then 20 minutes later after finding that spark again you can be skipping down the path again as if the world is alright and pain was just an after though. The brain is an amazing thing. As hard as all this was it is an important lesson for me and one I am sure I will benefit from when doing my 50K in March.

Overall the race was Ok, Ginny and I hit our marks and for that we are grateful. We had a real nice lunch on the way home and I spent the rest of day stretching and relaxing in front of the TV. My knees are a bit achy today. The race put on the by the New Orleans Track Club was well organised with plenty of volunteers and rest stops and good treats afterwards. It was only $25 to enter, cheap and good, with no bling, t-shirts or medals. The best blig I got all day was when Chad, Ginny's hubby, gave me some smoked deer sausage from one of his hunts! Score! Lordy was that some tasty stuff and exactly what one needs after a tough day on the run!

A New Trail, a Rest, and a Race

2011-01-29T09:37:00.005-06:00

Found a new trail this week, the Tuxachanie Trail (pronounced Tux-a-haan-Nee). Turns out to be a good one too. A total of 22 or so well maintained miles in an out and back fashion with a trail head at either end and a nice one with water and toilets in the middle. No horses, no horse shit, and all the water crossings have some kind of bridge. I did 11+ miles on it this Wednesday and felt pretty tired when done. It hit me big time on Thursday at work and I ended up heading home at 1:30, wore out, eyes burning, just tired. I knew I had pushed it last weekend and decided to take two full days rest from running and any other workouts. My body really wanted nutrition and I did not deny it. Although I did pass on the ice cream. Today I did 6 miles around town and felt super! Tomorrow Ginny and I will go down by New Orleans to run The Wall 30K. This race runs along the Mississippi River on the levee system. It also will be warm and muggy, my favorite race weather, NOT! But it will be a great way to get in a long run and have fun with a friend. Wish us luck!

Pictures for Johann

2011-01-24T20:29:00.007-06:00

So I am now in that point in my training for the 50K that I must really start to up my mileage in the trail running area. In addition I am starting to integrate things like stopping for a break, eating real food and learning to walk during the run. 50K is only 31 miles (never thought I would say that) and this is just my first one, but in order to do even longer ultras I need to learn the habits of a good long-distance runner. This past weekend it was time to add in the 5 mile loop to the usual 10.5 loop that I have been doing recently. I figured I would take a few minutes break, eat, change cloths if needed and then go back out, no matter how I felt, I wanted to get in 15 miles. My plan was to run/walk this new addition this weekend and then run the whole thing next week and then in a few weeks run the big loop twice for 21 miles. Sounds good right? Ha ha...

Well the first 10.5 went well, and due to comments left by Johann on my blog a few posts ago, I realized I could never call my self a real trail runner with out getting my feet wet. I considered his comment, "Now go get your feet wet" the ultimate challenge. This time when I came to the deeper water crossing I did not bush whack my way around it. I could hear Johann's voice echoing in my ears as I ran through the forest and I knew I would get no peace until I flew full on into the water. Ah ha! It was dang cold out, 23F air temp, but it was non-the-less a joyous occasion and guess what? I did not melt. No melting at all! Amazingly about 20 minutes later I couldn't even tell my feet were wet. (I love my Brooks Cascadia for that.) I took pictures to prove it! One of the water crossing and one after of my feet actually in the water! After that point I joyously ran through all the puddles. Thank you Johann, my dear ultra running superhero for helping me get my feet wet! After finishing that run, at my best pace ever by the way, I was a bit tired, but stuck with the plan, had a bite to eat, changed out my shoes and socks and headed back out in a bit less than 10 minutes. I got onto the trail, which on the race website is outlined in red just like the trail markers. Got to about the 2.5 mile mark and the trail split. Uh oh. I decided to stay on the red trail and ignored the green markers, even though they seemed to be the ones going in the right direction. Mmm. Well suffice to say, I ended up heading down the wrong trail. At just over 4 miles into the run I was sure I was on the wrong spur and decided it was best to turn back. So now my easy 15 miler turned into an 18.5 miler, and I was really, really tired by the time I got back to my vehicle. Duh. I really should have studied the map better. Here's the crazy thing, I would have never done that on purpose; I would not have thought I could especially since I had had already done a 16 miler just 3 days before. Mmm. It was a mistake, but one I learned a great deal from. I had more in the tank that I ever imagined, and the amazing part was I really didn't do much walking, just a few carefully placed strolls to give the legs some much needed rest at the top of some hills. I am a bit achy today, but nothing serious. I will rest a few days run easy on Wednesday and Friday and well, I guess I might as well just do the full 20 next weekend, I mean I practically did it already.

Rest and Running Faster

2011-01-21T06:31:00.005-06:00

There have been many studies done on the effects of quality rest and running faster. I know this is true, it works for me.

The past few races that I ran I had, for any number of reasons, events toward the end of my training that would get in the way of cherished training routines. The general effect was to end up with long runs spread out more than I would like and tapers that ended up being longer than expected. I would go into the race (this last time a marathon) feeling a bit worried that I was under trained but feeling really healthy and fit and then in the end I would have a great race with a PR. Mmm. Right now I am training for a 50K trail race. I am scared to death about this one as I know I will never get all the training I think I need. Or will I? Haven't done this distance before so who knows; I have decided I won't spend time worrying about it.

When I am tired I can spend and excessive amount of time bashing my proverbial head against the wall trying to convince my self I need to go out for a run, in the end I don't get anything done. Over the past year I have developed a new mantra; if it takes me more than 10 minutes to decide what to do than it's better not to do it. This means my body is telling me something, and the body is almost always right. Of course everyone is different and you have to do what is good for you. When I first started out, which wasn't that long ago really, I was under the impression that if I wasn't running 5-6 days a week I wasn't a serious runner. Wrong! I know now that a serious runner takes serious rest.

The same goes for training intensity, most training books and coaches will say to only increase your workouts by 10% (or some other formula) each week. There really is something to this. My blogger friend John O'Regan, an Irish athlete with an impressive list of ultra and endurance marathons says it very well in his blog, "Rest & Recovery is just as important as the training and you should only do what you can recover from and if a weekend of high distance means reduced quality in the following week then it might be counter productive." This is coming from someone who has run the Spartathlon a 246K race in Greece. Geesh.

In the next few months I will have to be extra careful to follow my own advice. I've done a crazy thing and registered for the North face Endurance Challenge trail race at Bear Mountain in New York on May 8th. I did it kind of on a whim and also because both my brothers and my friend Jackie are running it. We are only doing the half marathon distance, but I didn't realize until afterwards that on a scale of five this race gets a 4/5 in elevation gain, 5/5 in technical terrain, and a 5/5 in overall difficulty. However, it also gets a 5/5 in scenery too. At least it's good to know that when I am broken and bleeding on some mountainside in New York State that I will probably have something pretty to look at. Well, I am no longer so worried about my 50K. Cheers!

Running the Trails

2011-01-16T18:37:00.005-06:00

I guess I am lucky that the first ever 50K I hope to do is on trails I have easy access to. I never really though about this until today as I went for a run with my bud Ginny (we went to Huntsville to do the Rocket City Marathon together). The race The MS 50, is in early March and although I have done some trail running I still feel unprepared, at this point. I am sure with an other month of training I will feel better about it all. The good thing is I feel confident about the landscape I am running in; the terrain is, for the most part, flat with rolling hills and is very lovely. There are a number of water crossings which can be very high at times and today we were able to jump across most of them except for one. I guess I was not willing (yet) to get my new shoes wet so we bushwhacked our way down stream a bit to a place we could get over. The brambles were thick even at this time of year but it was a fun adventure and I am sure it slowed the pace a great deal. I am really loving the trail running and getting better every day at navigating, roots, rocks, streams and the various other obstacles on the trail. BTW the new Brooks shoes are great and I am sure I will be keeping them.

One of the things I have to get used to is the slower pace of trail running. I still find my self looking at my Garmin thinking OMG this is so slow. But then I remember that running on the trail has little or no comparison to road running. I have to remember that I will be walking during the race and next week I will start to incorporate walking into the training as I up the mileage and start adding in additional trails to my work out. I am very excited about my training!

Sticks, Rocks, Pine Combs and Monkey Balls

2011-01-14T07:40:00.010-06:00

Wow it was cold yesterday morning, only 20F but it was sunny and I needed a run. I decided the freezing temps would be a good time to run trails as the normally dewy, wet, and muddy conditions would be hard and frozen; really did NOT want to get wet in 20 degree temps. I was right! What I did not anticipate was all the frozen hoof prints on the horse trails. Talk about an ankle breaker waiting to happen, add into that all the other litter on the trail and it turned into one amazingly technical effort not to turn or break an ankle or leg. I really had to watch where I was going. It was first my trail run in a while and the hills and debris hopping really tired me out, however it was a great test of my new Brooks Cascadia 5 trail shoes. This Sunday I hope to go out to the Laurel Horse trails, where I normally run, and where the trails are cleaner to get an even better test of the shoes. So far, so good. They preformed well and my feet feel OK today, I still have about 5 more weeks of testing to do before I have to decide if I want to return them, but so far they feel pretty good. I really like the softer rubber on the out sole and the shoe fit well around my foot. I did turn my ankle once, but that was from losing my attention combined with a well placed pine comb.

I am hoping that all my North Eastern friends will be able to dig out this weekend and get some time running outside. My brother and his friends in western NJ and NYC have just stopped running outdoors altogether and are just doing the dreadmill for now. We never got any precip from the last storm but in Atlanta they sure did, and I hope my Atlanta area friends get a reprieve from the cold so all the ice melts an you too get a chance to get moving again, I know all my Athens peeps are going insane being stuck inside.

Next Tuesday we start a new semester and I go back to my Tuesday/Thursday in-studio schedule. It will be a very busy spring for me and I am hoping I will be able to keep my wits about it!

Have a great weekend everybody!

It's a Shoe Thing

2011-01-10T06:51:00.003-06:00

So I am at that critical time of the year, when my shoes need replacing. Of course my current model is now on it's way out and the "new" model is in and of course more expensive. *Sigh*. This time around I not only purchased my regular shoe, the Adidas adiSTAR 3, but also a pair of Brooks Cascadia 5 for trail running. Can you believe I have the Brooks but still have not tried them out! I am crazy, but I have a few more weeks to do this before my trial period runs out. With Road Runner Sports you get 60 days to try out new shoes and if you don't like them they will do an exchange no questions asked. I have actually used this exchange once and was very happy it was available.

Every one approaches shoe changes differently, many folks take note of the mileage and replace when they get to a certain mileage. Some folks just wait until they "feel" the shoe going bad. I used to do the later until I ended up with a mild injury from some funky shoes, now I keep track and it really does make a difference. My feet are always happy!

I know the adiSTARS will probably work (they get delivered on Tuesday), I have been running in these for a few years. I seem to get about 350 to 400 miles until I start feeling them lose support and my ankles and shins begin to ache some. Since I have also been doing trail running in them they are wearing out a big faster then the usual 400+ miles I get.

I need to get out in my Brooks for some testing. These come highly recommend by friends and family and so far feel great on my feet. I have a lot of trail work to do so they should get a bunch of use over the next few months. Well see how long they last, look for future reports.

So I wonder for all my blogger friends- what shoes do you wear and more importantly how many miles do you get out of them? About how many miles weekly do you get in your various shoes too would be good to know!

2010 Recap and Goals for 2011

2011-01-08T07:12:00.002-06:00

Recap 2010

My recap will be short. There are s few really important things that happened in 2010 that I want to mention all the other stuff, is just that, stuff.

1. I PR'd in all my races. Ran my first two ever marathons. I think it's mostly a progression from being a very slow, new runner, to becoming a slightly more experienced new runner. With some insight it's not hard to improve and get better at things. I am a realist here, at 45 I will probably still see some improvement in my 'fastness' but really I think doing better in races is a whole lot more than being fast. I would like to think that being smarter is what helped more.

2. I had an injury free year. This is the best. I had lots of trouble the year before and this year I put into practice what I learned from last year. Key for me was getting rest when I needed it, I don't follow training plans, I put together an outline of sorts and go from that. It works best for me and allows me lots of room for accommodating other needs.

3. Lost around 20+lbs. A lighter me makes a faster me, less stress on my body equals less injuries. (see number 2)

4. I ran 1175 miles last year. That is the kind of number I never thought I would see. (See number 2)

5. I have nothing to prove to anyone, I am the only one I need to impress.

Goals for 2011

Listed below are the key goals, there are of course the same usuall ones, like doing more core work, losing the few holiday pounds I gained, and doing more races, these are on my list every year so I won't list them here.

1. Learn to run at any time of the day and feel comfortable. I am so set on my early morning runs, I feel sluggish and slow later in the day. I need to get used running anytime, especially if I get into ultras where you are running at all times of the day.

2. Learn to eat a wider variety of foods when running. When doing super long runs calorie intake is especially important. Right now I rely totally on gels. I hear about ultra runners stopping and having whole Subway sandwiches and pizzas and then continuing on their way. I want to be able to do that, eventually, probably will start with small stuff first though...

3. Do some two-a-day runs. Training for these long runs is about how much time spent on your feet and training your body to work even when tired.

4. Run more for 'hours" than "miles". I sometimes get caught up with how far I am going, I need to switch that up a bit and look more at hours on my feet. (See number 3)

5. Get back into swimming. Swimming is so good for you, and is great cross-training, it may be time for a swim MP3 however.

6. Manage my busy schedule well, and increase creative production too. Sometimes I am good at this, sometimes I am completely inept. I want to live with running and making art, not one or the other, so I need to get even better at managing my time, especially this spring as I have some big art projects that I am committed too.

Well there you have it.

Home! Blogger Gifts, a New PR, and Some Cool Photos!

2011-01-04T15:36:00.009-06:00

Yea! I am finally back in my own home! Me and the dogs survived the two day drive back and forth to the North East, a wild blizzard, several different sleeping quarters, a new puppy (My Mom and Dad's) and a whole bunch of family and holiday activity.

I finally got the mail, did the obligatory food shopping, some laundry and unpacking of the truck. Now to catch up on email and update the blog. Of course waiting for me in the mail was a blogger gift exchange box. All the way from Illinois from Kate of Kate-My-Mind. A sweet gift of some gels, a fun ornament and a gift card to Starbucks. I always buy the same gel flavors and am excited to try three new flavors! The gift card will not live past tomorrow I am sure of it. She also wrote me a sweet card. I love cards. Thanks Kate now we can be blogger friends!

On Dec 31st I ran my first 5K in many, many months, the 8th Race Into the New Year 5K was put on the Seashore Striders in Rohoboth Beach, DE. The 5K is not a real favorite of mine, but I didn't want to miss out on what looked like a fun race and I badly needed to get up and outside, especially after the blizzard. Really had no goals and with all the eating and drinking I wasn't sure how it would go but, I killed it! Got a PR by nearly 90 seconds, I ran it in 26:45, I was way surprised by that, but I felt great and just let it all out in the second half. It was great fun!

I feel pretty worn out with the past two weeks, but I did get in some relaxing with my family, which for me is the best and totally recharges my batteries. Still working on some goals and recaps for 2010 and will post that next. For now I sign off with a few picks from my holiday runs in the New Jersey and Delaware! Cheers!

Running on the trails of the Puffin Foundation, in Teaneck, NJ.

Looking over the Indian River estuary from River Road near Oak Orchard, DE

The Lewes/Roboth trail, DE

Scene from the Lewes/Roboth trail, DE.

Happy New Year!

2010-12-31T07:27:00.003-06:00

My brother Willie and I in Central Park.

Wow what a crazy holiday. A short recap- did the two day drive to the folks place in Delaware, they have a house near Lewes/Rehoboth and the beaches. After a few days there and some decent running we headed up to NJ for Christmas and few days of blizzard conditions. Had a few fun days in NYC with friends and going to museums and playing in the snow in Central Park. Now I am back in Delaware and today will run a local 5K with the Seashore Striders, the local running club from Rehoboth Beach. I have a few more days of fun and then it is back home to MS for a very busy schedule of training and getting ready for my 50K.When I look back at 2010 I think the thing that sticks out the most was that I had an injury free year. A huge improvement from 2009 when I had two injuries that required a combined several months off and lots of PT. In addition I had PRs in all the races I ran this year, which is great, but for me the lack of injuries and big improvement in my endurance has been the best of all. When you start out as an older runner (not that 43 was old) you have to take into account the older body that you have to work with. My first year or two of running I was not so careful, nor did I have any experience. Lessons are hard won sometimes and painful, but in the end they are LEARNED. I realize I am not fast, but I do have good endurance, I like the longer races and will, in 2011, try my hand at some longer stuff, starting with a 50K on trails.

I have not completely set my goals for 2011, but know that more half marathons and full marathons are on the books, with the 50K this year and a 50 miler next year. I am terrified and so very excited at the same time! I can't wait!

I know I have not been keeping up with my blogger friends for a few weeks and promise to get back on it as soon as I get back to MS and somewhat of a normal schedule! I also can't wait to get back home and see what mt secret Santa sent me!

Cheers to everyone and HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

Race Report (Long) and Some Pics

2010-12-16T08:36:00.008-06:00

Today I went on my first little run since the race, just 3.4 miles at a (miserably) slow pace. Although, I did not feel miserable, it was on the tough side, but it felt so good to be running again. The next bunch of runs will be slow and steady as I build back up to get into training for my 30 miler at the beginning of March.

Race Report- The Rocket City Marathon, Huntsville, AL, December 11, 2010

This was my second marathon ever, I ran my first in February in New Orleans. I loved it. That first one was super hard and kicked my butt at the end and for the next week(s) after the race. I could hardly walk after that race. My time was just over 5:09 minutes, I walked quite a bit towards the end through all the rest stops. This time around I had two goals, the main one, was to finish this second race in better condition. The reason for this is that I plan on getting into ultras and I know that I need not to feel like I was just run over by a bus if I am going to train for much longer races. The second was to get a PR. Really folks, getting a PR is not too hard for a newbie runner, especially if I could accomplish my first goal. I wanted to cut 9 minutes off my PR, that is a lot, but goals are goals.

Ginny (read her race report too!) and I drove up to Huntsville the day before, we spent the six hour drive talking, the time went by fast. Ginny got us a room at the race headquarters hotel. Hotel and race check in went as expected and then later we headed out for dinner. I slept very well that night.

Since the race didn't start until 8:00 and we had only 50 feet to walk to the start line, there was no need to rush. It was actually a relaxing morning as we ate our breakfasts (oatmeal and raisins for me with a cup of hot tea). Since we had gotten up around 5:30 we had lots of time to get ready. The hardest part really was figuring out what to wear as the day dawned overcast and a bit warmer than expected. Instead of being 33F it was 45 with a pretty stiff wind. A storm front was moving in that was supposed to dump a bunch of snow/rain on the area later that day. I had a throw-away jacket and a long sleeve top, shorts, a head band and light gloves (my ears and head always get cold). I also had on my Garmin and a waist belt with my Gu's and phone (for pictures). I was at the back of the start corral due to my slow previous time. This race only has 1500 runners so it's a small field. I wasn't sure how I would feel about the small race but I LOVE IT. I will look for more of these in the future. There was some concern, by Ginny and a bit for me too about the very strict no headphone policy. It seems completely ridiculous for a closed course and the way the race officials pushed it, it stank of an elitist attitude. Oh well, it was something I could deal with as I had done 90% of my training runs without one.

The gun went off and we were running. Through downtown and around lots of neighborhoods. I had a decent side stitch for the first few miles and then it went away. I let everyone pass me and went out real slow. It felt turtle-slow, but when I looked down I was going way over my pace. I had decided to try and stay around an 11:27 min mile avg. If I could stay with that I could get my 5 hour PR. Instead I was at 10:27 and I felt great. I tried so hard to slow down and managed to get to 10:35 before I just gave up, knowing that later on I would be slowing anyway. I was having a blast. For me races are much more fun if I am smiling and saying hi to folks and such. It keeps my mind occupied and I run better. The throw-away jacket didn't make it 20 feet past the start line. I think I was dressed perfect, occasionally the wind would really hit hard and I would find some big guy to hide behind, not hard for someone 5'2". After the neighborhoods area we went through a very boring straightaway for almost 6 miles and then back through neighborhoods to the finish. There were some noticeable hills but none slowed me down and I still would not call it a hilly course. The pavement was real nice for 80% of the course and few rough spots but nothing at bad as New Orleans. Once I got to the 18 mile mark, I could feel the stress on my legs and joints starting to kick in a bit. This was mental time for me. I was still running a decent pace and had to decide how I would finish. Could I keep up the faster than planned pace for the rest of the race and get a huge PR? Or should I back way down and go for my five hour mark? At this time I was still running under 11:00 min avg. I decided I would go for it. As I got to 20 miles I started to slow a bunch, but I still had not walked at all. I let the natural slowing occur and decided I would save up energy for the last three miles. My time started to slip past 10:59 to 11:00 and then 11:01. No way! I thought, I was so far along and wanted to come in under 11:00. This would have been a fantasy just yesterday, but I knew today it was a possibility. As I got up to 22 miles I knew it was now or never and went for it. I will admit I find an immense amount of satisfaction in passing people in the last few miles of a race. They all acted as rabbits for me and I ran hard to get my time under 11:00 again to 10:58. I felt like I was flying that last bit as I came through the finishing chute. I had killed my PR by more than 20 minutes finishing at 4:48:40, official. I could not believe it, I was stunned. My legs were also trashed, they hurt like it was nobodies business, but I was done!
What was best for me was the knowledge that my training and my strategy for running the race had all worked out. I had my last long (22 mile) training run almost three weeks earlier and due some crazy scheduling I had only run once during the week before, six miles. I had tons of great rest and considering what a relaxed evening and morning Ginny and I had I am sure that all worked in my favor. I started the season with a much better base, was 15 lbs lighter and took a very easy going attitude to my training. I also incorporated a bunch of trail work into my season and I know that helped a huge amount for my fitness and endurance.

I got a mini-massage just after finishing, it helped a lot, ate a bunch of food, and did a good bit of stretching later. That night was tough, my legs felt like they were still running and very achy. Ginny and I had decided to stay the extra day and I was so glad we had. Sunday I was already feeling better and we stopped a few times during our drive to stretch and eat. On Monday it was almost as if I had not even run a race, I was surprised. Besides a bit of stiffness in my quads I felt great.

Today I look at this race with a great amount of satisfaction and encouragement for my future races. I am not expecting any huge PR's in the future but now I know that I can work out a training and racing strategy and make it work. That will come in very handy as I go into training for my first ever 50K in March. First however, I want to get through the holidays intact and plan on having way to much fun for the next two weeks!

Happy Holidays all my friends!

Race Completed

2010-12-11T14:58:00.004-06:00

Just a short note to all my blogger friends, I finished the Huntsville, Rocket City Marathon! Marathon number two. My first full I did in New Orleans earlier this year was 5:09:38, I finished this one in 4:48:39 (unofficial). A great PR! The conditions were super, cool at 45F and overcast, a bit windy at times, but when you are 5'2" it's easy to tuck behind someone. I felt much better at the finish than at New Orleans, although I really put it all out there the last 3 miles and it was pretty darn hard (that's the nice words for it). Ginny did really well too and I am thankful for her as a friend and especially since she was the one who convinced me to do this smaller race. I love the smaller ones! I think we walked maybe a whole 50' to the start line from our hotel room and ended up right at the back door to the hotel. This was a very well organized race!

I will put up a more detailed race report later! Cheers everyone and thanks so much fora ll your advice, well wishes and positive energy!

Marathon- One Week Out

2010-12-06T07:00:00.006-06:00

I have been thinking a lot recently about how I feel about my marathon coming up next weekend. It's the Rocket City Marathon in Huntsville Alabama. It should be relatively clear and so far looks like it will be in the 30's at the start line. Sounds perfect to me. I guess I am a bit nervous, mainly because I want everything to go smoothly. I have not done enough long races yet to feel that I am guaranteed a finish. I used to say that about half marathons but now I have done enough that I really feel relaxed and ready to go at any race I enter, but for the full I don't quite have that feeling yet. My first race, earlier this year, I ran it in 5:19 and some change. It was hard and I took it extra slow. Also the roads were horrible, with many pot holes and such, making it hard work for the feet and ankles. This one promises better conditions, I hope. It also has some rolling hills, which I am not worried about, I have done plenty in my training. This race also is much much smaller, with only about 1500 entrants. This sounds really nice to me, I wasn't so keen on the huge numbers at the Rock-N-Roll one in New Orleans. However, I wonder what it will be like when I am at mile 22 and really feeling the pain, running pretty much by myself with few if any spectators? I guess I'll find out.

I will drive up to Huntsville with Ginny on Friday morning, it's about a 6 hour drive. I am so grateful to have my friend and mentor going, it sure helps to share the expenses but also I am sure I will need her positive energy and endless supply of good advice. I think we are both hoping for PR's. I have had many folks tell me that for beginners it's not hard to get some pretty impressive PR's in the beginning. I wouldn't mind cutting 10 minutes off this race like I did in my recent half. We are staying at the race headquarter hotel I am pretty sure, a few feet from the start and finish line. In New Orleans it was a lengthy adventure getting to and from the course, something I will not miss.

I have learned a ton of things since my last race. The biggest one is probably to have confidence and run each race for its self. My training is also way better as is my general health, and I am 25 pounds lighter. I have learned a lot about pacing and what I can ask of my body at different times and have worked hard on getting my pre-race and during race nutrition really worked out. The only thing I wish I had done more of was cross training; when I get into the long runs and am pushing up the running volume I tend to just opt for more rest rather than going to the gym.

All in all I am so excited I can hardly stand it! I have a full day at work on Tuesday and then besides grades and such I am pretty much deciding my own schedule for the week. My taper has gone well so far and I plan on an easy 5-6 miler on Wednesday and maybe a quickie 3 miles on Thursday morning with a bit of walking on Friday. It should be a relaxed week for the most part.

This past weekend I ran in DeSoto National Forest again only this time I stayed on the forest service dirt roads, it was an 11 mile run and I probably went out faster than I needed but it was such a lovely day and a new trail for me, I really enjoyed it. I ended the day with a two hour nap while listening to the Saints game on TV. You can see in the picture my fancy attire for running in the forest during hunting season!

Have a great week everyone!

Big Desserts and a New PR

2010-11-28T08:21:00.006-06:00

I have had an eventful week or so. With the Annual Iron Pour at work now done and finals starting next week, things at work begin their deliberate but eventual slowdown. I have a big show coming up in April so I have a new body of sculpture to make over the next few months so I will stay pretty busy.

Went to stay with some friends on a cattle ranch in northern MS for the Thanksgiving holiday. It's a pretty big ranch with many thousands of acres and a bunch of very cool old houses and cottages on it. My friends family has owned the place for generations, so I got to be a part of a very old holiday tradition. It was super relaxing and I ate an inhumanly large quantity of food, especially the desserts, see the picture for a view of the magnificent dessert table!

I also got to run Thanksgiving morning through some lovely landscape, here is a picture from the main house looking down over the pastures, I was running somewhere down that-a-way.

I was home by the weekend and with that the temps dropped from 79 for my Thursday morning run to the 30's for Friday and Saturday. Super nice running temps! It was then I decided I would run the Gulf Coast half marathon, I did this last year and hope to do it every year. Many friends come down for it and there is nothing better than running a half to burn up all those extra calories. The day dawned cold and crisp and I decided I would see how I felt on the run before making a decision to go for a PR. My pace started good and only got better, I killed my PR by 10 minutes! I ran a solid average of 9:50 for the whole time, I never do that. I came in at 2:09:05. They don't chip time this race so there is probably a second added on for the time it took me to get to the start line. My Garmin said 2:08:58. Not that it matters, the fact that my pace was under 10 still has my head spinning. My pal Ginny, who I am going to Huntsville with for the Dec. 11 marathon, ran a PR as well and won first in her AG! Everyone I know did well, I guess all those desserts were a good thing!

Here is a picture of Ginny, our friend Eric and myself after the half marathon.

Right now my plan is to get back to some regular "taper" running and get through the next few weeks of finals and work healthy and strong. It's 12 days until we drive up to Huntsville and I want to give myself every opportunity to run a solid race and who knows maybe even another PR?

A Good Week and a Must-Read Blog

2010-11-19T07:59:00.004-06:00

I did my last long run for this training season. Phew. I am so happy it is over, 22 miles on Wednesday, and it was actually pretty good. I don't want to jinx myself here but if I can keep up the same pace as this last run I can cut 15 minutes off my PR. That would be nice, but not necessary for me to have a good time. I've felt pretty worn out the past two days, no running yesterday but a busy day non-the-less. And this morning I did a short recovery run, 3.5 miles was about all I could muster. Monday may be the next time I can run with the weekend of activities and a house full of guests.

And a special note for all my dog-loving friends; if you really want to laugh your butt off read this blog post. I was laughing so hard when I read it that I had to stop twice to wipe away the tears and blow my nose. Enjoy.

Image Copywrite- Allie Brosh

And have a great weekend!

Coming To Terms- Hot Metal, Cold Rain, and Extra Rest

2010-11-15T06:57:00.007-06:00

I am such a creature of habit. When my schedule comes under fire and goes awry I can spend more time deciding what to do than actually doing anything. Pretty soon I realize my window of opportunity for doing anything has evaporated and then I can't seem to get anything done. Does this ever happen to anybody else? Freud says that this type of behavior is a form of self-sabotage and that all intelligent creatures engage in it to some degree. OK I'll bite, but I call it, "annoying", and don't feel very intelligent when engaged in it.

I mentioned in my last post I was having trouble with keeping to my training plan, after my 6 mile run Friday and the 7.5 mile run Saturday, (nice runs BTW) I quickly realized that what I am feeling is simply called burnout. This has been the most productive and well done training season ever for me, good long runs, good paces, no injuries, great weather, at least that is up until just recently as my schedule got a bit crazy. I decided (after much debate with myself) to take an extra rest day on Sunday and get some art done in my studio, I needed to clean my house as I have lots of guests staying over for the iron pour weekend and I needed to get some throwing done on the wheel as I have a long list of Christmas presents to get made. It was a wonderfully productive day! But of course when I got up this morning, ready to run, it was pouring out! It was agony at first, what was I to do? Nothing actually! Get back into the studio, and run later when the rain ends. Nuff said. The cold rainy day just is not conducive to a good run and certainly not for staying healthy. I decided to be proactive rather than stew in the fact that I can't run as planned. Wow, that feels good. Small victories lead to a successful campaign, somehow I have to keep my self reminded of that!

On a side note- Frida is doing well, her recovery is good so far and she seems almost back to normal. Yay.

On a second side note- some friends asked about what iron pouring is- well here goes. It is a process where a blast furnace (aka-cupola), fueled by coke (a more refined form of coal) and highly pressurized air, is used to super heat scrap iron (radiators, bathtubs, engine blocks) until it melts. The molten metal is then tapped out of the furnace, into a ladle and then poured into molds to make art (for us) or machine parts (industrial settings). We have a remarkably large furnace and run our big one once a year and many artists, teachers and students come and visit to take part. I have the huge task of organizing and running the event and it often takes weeks to prepare and uses several tons of various materials to run. It is a very exciting event and we make good art and have fun with friends we don't often get to see, in the end it is very satisfying if not completely exhausting! I am the person with the white helmet on, in the center of the picture. I am putting a silicon carbide additive into the stream of iron as it goes into our 1000# ladle. Our cupola is too big to get into the picture.

This is a smaller version a cupola at ECU in Greenville, NC. You can see the students tending to the furnace as it melts iron.

Fast, Cheap, and Out of Control

2010-11-12T08:27:00.008-06:00

Ha! That is how my life has felt as of late, like some bad Vegas screenplay.

Fast- how the days have been moving for the past few weeks. So much has gone on and with lightning-like speed I feel as if I have hardly been able to keep up. I have been to North Carolina, twice, a trip out and back to Tallahassee one weekend and just did a round trip to Birmingham, yesterday (8 hrs). All of this revolves around doing iron pours and my exhibition schedule. I love pouring iron and I especially love the community, but it is very hard work physically.

Cheap- perfectly describes the food I have putting into my body recently. A big Mac and large fries just yesterday! I never eat that crap, yet when on the road it's hard to ignore and oh-my-gosh it tasted so so good! But I am beginning to feel the effects, especially in my energy level.

Out of Control- That describes my current training plan, or whatever facsimile of one I have left. Trying to get in training at such a crazy time is hard and I have been just a bit lax in keeping track with what I am doing. For example I did a 20 miler this Wednesday (it was a tough one) only to get home and find that in my logs was posted the 20 miler I did two weeks ago. WTF? I can't imagine; I was trashed from my run and I was supposed to do two additional miles? Next weekend (Nov 20th) we are hosting our own big iron pouring event, so running will be sidelined on Saturday and Sunday. I may get a rest from running but it is not in anyway a restful time for my body in general. Late nights, lost of physically demanding labor and a huge brain drain to boot. I will have to be extra careful in the next few weeks to stay healthy. Luckily I have no big travel plans until my race weekend in mid-December.

On a side note- and to add insult to injury, my little dog Frida had to undergo some serious surgery. So far she is fine and recovering well the vet says, but until I can pick her up later I will be very unsettled to say the least.

I hope to get in another long run of 22-23 miles, but I am not sure when. I can take some peace of mind in knowing in the past 30 days I have had one 18 miler and two 20 milers, that all went relatively well. I need to keep up some volume before I start my taper, but will stick with the belief that I would rather be slightly under trained that be sore and sick from too many activities piled on with my running.

I want to give a shout out to my good friend Ginny who has been helping me a lot recently including getting up pre-dawn to drop me off 20 miles out for my most recent run. What would I do without my running family!?

I'm A Believer!

2010-10-30T11:56:00.005-05:00

Thanks to everyone who sent in their info about compression gear. It has been interesting to read the info and then do some research. I did find out that compression gear is pretty much the same, despite what brands, colors, bells or whistles they might have. What is most important is finding a size that fits you well.

I looked at all the models people had suggested. I had decided some time ago that I did not want to run in them but use them primarily for recovery. This actually gave me more options, as there are many "non-sporting" brands on the market that offer a variety of socks, stockings and leggings. I also decided the expense was something I could do without so I went over to Walgreen's and got a pair of Futuro's compression stockings, essentially knee socks.

I had a really hard 15 mile run on Wednesday and put on my new socks immediately as I got home. Wore them all day, only took them off to take my ice bath and a shower and when I went to bed. Wow, the difference was amazing the next day! My legs had none of the aches or twitches when I was sleeping and at work the next day they felt great. I have had two other runs since Wednesday and I know now they do work!

I also found a good website, ForYourLegs.com, that sells all kinds of compression gear, and essentially anything related to making your legs and feet feel better. The prices are right on as far as I am concerned.

Someday I may have the budget for the expensive fancy tights that are out there and I will do a review of them as well, but for now my lovely white Futuro's will do me just fine.

Compression Gear- So What's the Skinny?

2010-10-22T06:30:00.003-05:00

All right my blogger friends, I have come to the conclusion that I may need to get some compression gear for my legs. I mainly hear of three types, full-on tights for recovery, and socks for recovery or for running. I think I am looking for recovery items, but would love to hear any info anyone might have on their use when running as well. I have not really heard any bad stories, it seems people really love 'em or they just don't use them.

So I am curious, do you use compression gear? If so, what brand and what type and how do you use them. There are so many different things to consider I hope I can profit from all your vast experience!

Cheers!

Done With That... Again.

2010-10-20T15:48:00.003-05:00

Phew, it's been a busy week. I have been having a hard time keeping up with all my blogger friends, but do trust that I will be back full throttle soon! Since my 18 miler last Wednesday I have been busy with training, work, and life in general. I will be gone again this weekend and knew I had to up the volume a bit to make up for some running time I will miss this weekend. Luckily it's a much shorter trip and I should only miss one run and it's also a step back week coming up, so a bit of extra rest and some fun with friends will be perfect. On Friday I did my usual six miler at tempo, on Saturday I wanted to try out some new trails and went down to the Black Creek trail, a real foot path for hiking/walking, no bikes or horses allowed. Unfortunately is was not a fun trail. Very technical and twisty, not well maintained and poor footing. Obviously it's not so well used. I did about 5 miles before I realised I was just not having a good time and quit. I did however, get a good workout from all the twistyness and log jumping on the route. Sunday I headed back to my regular trail with a friend new to trail running, it was a fine 10 mile run and it always nice to introduce someone new to a trail. By chance I also met Dennis the RD for the MS50 trail race (I will be doing the 50K in March). He was headed out for a long run, as he is training for a 100 miler, but spent some time giving me lots of tips and tricks to running these trails which BTW are the same where the March race is. It's always nice to get some insider info from someone who knows! Monday I did 6.5 miles, rested on Tuesday and today I did my first 20 miler of this training season. It was a tiring run, but I was very happy with the end results; not as tired as I thought I would be and more than 20 seconds taken off my mile avg than when I first ran 20 miles this past January. And finally the best part of all, I got go out to my favorite Greek restaurant for a big lunch! And I even have leftovers, so I get to go Greek twice in one day! Yay. Life is good!

Done With That

2010-10-14T15:18:00.004-05:00

It's been a crazy week. It always is when you go on a trip and then come home to find that everything has quadrupled in size. How does that happen? I don't get this much mail and email when I am home? How does the house seem to get dirtier when you aren't home? These mysteries will always mystify me.

Yesterday I got in my 18 miler. Gosh it was a long run. I'm not fast (and I go extra slow on long runs) and don't care if I am or not, except when doing these long runs, it would just be nice to not spend so much time running. Three hours is a lot of time to stay focused and to think I'll be doing that and more in the next few weeks. I am crazy but then again we all are. All in all the run was fine, the day was perfect, and I felt pretty good. Achy joints at the end and some discomfort that evening, but all is good today. Last time I did this (my first time) I remember it being much more painful. Next week is a 20 miler and this weekend another trail run. I am loving all this running!

Today I had a breakthrough of another kind. I finally went shopping. I hate shopping in general, especially for cloths. For me it had always been a disappointment, something I avoided. Well today for the first time in 15 years I put on a size 6 pair of jeans, easily. Wow, I was shocked, thought it was a fluke. I must have tried on 20 pairs of size 6 jeans just to make sure. Maybe shopping isn't so bad after all.

Back from My Trip

2010-10-11T16:00:00.003-05:00

Back from my whirlwind trip to North Carolina to install this most recent exhibition of my sculpture. Thursday= a 15 hr drive. Friday= 12 hr installation. Saturday= 8 hr drive to Athens GA, to stay with friends. Sunday= a 7 hr drive back to MS. I only got to run one day, Friday morning, it was a great run and much needed. Got in a 6 miler today and boy did my body love that. I am much happier now. Wednesday calls for an 18 mile run. Oh boy!

Here is a picture of my truck all loaded up. That was a lot of work as well! If you want to see more pictures of the installation check out my Sculpture Blog.

Cheers!

Trail Run

2010-10-04T08:21:00.006-05:00

I don't know why but I found my last post utterly ho-hum. Sometimes I think I just need to write out stuff; it's like repeating a mantra over and over again that reminds me I am heading in the right direction. Doesn't necessarily mean it's interesting or new.

Now for something much more fun; went on a 11 mile trail run on Sunday. Wow was that fun and hard! I have only six miles as my longest trail run prior to this so it was an effort but due to the fact that the trails consist of either a six mile or 11 mile loop (or any combination of the two) my choices are limited. I really wanted a challenge and I got it. This trail is also a pretty heavily used horse trail so I got there early to beat the riders, the trail gets tight in some places I don't like coming up behind horses on trails. The weather was perfect as well, sunny, dry and in the low 50's. It hasn't rained in weeks so the trail was dry as well, there were numerous stream crossings but low water made it easy to jump over most of them. It was a tremendous workout that made me use muscles I didn't know I had, the time flew by and before I knew it I was coming to the end.

Today I am really sore, in a good way, and this morning I just went out for an easy four mile recovery run. But interesting enough my joints don't ache and my feet don't hurt so much. I am pretty sure that is due to running on softer surfaces. I am pretty sure I will be doing the trail at least once a week. I'll be on the road mid-week, heading up to NC to install my new exhibition so I'll be gone from blogger world until next week. Have a great one everybody! Eat well, sleep lots, and run fast!

Trifecta of Success

2010-10-02T06:59:00.005-05:00

I had been thinking a lot about my goals for this next marathon and what I hope to get out of it. It occurred to me that this next marathon is only a first step as I will have to move seamlessly into my 50K training. I will have 3 months after the marathon to get ready for the ultra. Sounds short, but when you think about it I am only adding 5 additional miles onto my goal. I realized some time ago that training for ultras means doing training differently, it also means long runs that will require faster recovery. I will be doing at least one marathon length (or slightly more) training run for this ultra. So one of my key goals for this marathon is to feel healthier and stronger at the end so that I might have a faster recovery. I was pretty beat up after my first one. Now my body is stronger and I am 20 lbs lighter, it's amazing how much that helps! It's important that I recover well from my training runs or I'll never be able to get to that 50 miler I want to do in 2012.
So far things are going well. Here are some things that are working for me, I-

only run four days a week with a fifth that I can add on when I want. I reserve one day for cross training and have one or two days completely off.
eat really, really well, 90% of the time (10% for Mexican!)
stretch post run at least 15- 20 minutes
get 8 hours of sleep minimum
never stress over not running, if I need a break, I take it.
am trying to do more runs on softer surfaces, my goal is to one longer run every week on trails or dirt roads.
am not afraid to go slow, walk or stop and take pictures
have good nutrition and hydration on the run
listen to my body and take a break, get a message, do an ice bath or whatever my body needs to recover and stay healthy
don't follow any strict training plans, I make what is more akin to a guide book.
maintain a positive outlook, no matter how bad the day is going.
eat lots of fiber! I have a very happy gut.

Not that everything is perfect, I have a lot of work to do on my core and strengthening my feet and ankles, I know the exercises to do, I just lack the motivation. I am better than I was last year, but still need to do more.

Smart training and time on your feet is a huge aspect of being stronger and hence a faster recovery but nutrition and rest play just as important a role. I will spend the next few months fine tuning this important trifecta of success in order to make sure that after my marathon I can (with some rest) move seamlessly into my ultra training.

Perfect Running

2010-09-29T12:37:00.005-05:00

So who do I have to bribe in order to get this amazing weather to stay throughout the remainder of my marathon training?

The Beaver Pond off the Long Leaf Trace this mornig. Didn't see the beavers today, but they have been busy as evidenced the additional acres of flooded land to the east.

Had a fabulous 16 miler this morning. I was actually chilly and my hands were cold, what a novelty! Went slow, felt good, a bit achy in the joints when done and was actually looking forward to an ice bath and a hot shower only to come home and find my water had been turned off. Yikes! Some snafu with the water billing office, had to drive over there to talk to them and it should get turned on sometime today. Oh well, luckily I had enough water to make my tea!

This is a heavy training week, with a 6+ miler on Friday and then 12 on Saturday. Next week is a step back week with less milage and that is good as next Thursday I head out of town for a five day trip to install an exhibition in North Carolina, I should be able to get in an easy run or two while there.

When I get back it's right into my 18 and 20 milers! Yay?

I am so looking forward to my Mexican food reward later (after I finally can get a shower that is!)

A Country Run

2010-09-25T18:39:00.004-05:00

Some images from a lovely 10 mile run in the country early this morning. Some runs are just so sweet there really is nothing to say about them. Running = love.

All the Talk

2010-09-24T10:25:00.004-05:00

A picture from the Walmart parking lot this week. Just thought it was refreshing.

So really, what is all this talk about running to much? I was reading a forum the other day where someone was inquiring about some information concerning long runs. The poster also mentioned that they are a slow runner and that in training they sometimes run a 4-5 hr LSD to get in 22+ miles. OK. I get that, I am in the same boat, SLOW, maybe it takes me a bit less time. Responses were swift and seemed to focus on the five hour run comment. One response said that someone should never, ever run that long, that not even the elites do that for training. Huh? Who cares, unless you are an elite or aiming for that. What's wrong with running five hours? If you love running, have been training properly and can do it safely and can stay healthy, what the heck is wrong with that? In my plans to do an ultra someday, I totally plan on running five hours, multiple times and loving every minute of it. For me the trick to having good training weeks for a race revolves around running less days of the week but building more hours and distance into those runs.

Personally I think your longest training runs should be a percentage of what your marathon (or ultra) finish time or distance will be. If it takes you six hours to finish a race then a 4-5 hour training run may be exactly the thing for you. I guess the point is that everyone is different. I still find it hard to choke down some of the advice spewed out on various forums and in magazines. I think there should be more stories on how to develop strategies to assess your own training and skills and how to make your own running life better.

I wonder what all you runners think about long distance workouts?
_________________________

This was a great run training week for me, I did 10 miles last Saturday, 6.5 miles Monday, 14.5 miles on Wednesday, 7 miles today and will do 11 miles tomorrow. I rode 24 miles last Sunday and Tuesday and Thursday are rest days due to long work days. Next week I go for a 16 miler mid-week and will start upping my weekend longish runs to 11+ miles. I will probably keep the two weekly 6-7 milers the same as they are easy runs. In a few weeks or when ever it starts to get below 90 during the day I hope to take Thursday evenings to do some speed work, maybe adding an additional 3-4 miles to my current week of training. I think by the time I get up to 18 mile and above runs I will be into my 50 mile weeks; I actually find that kind of exciting!

Road Hazard

2010-09-20T13:08:00.019-05:00

So I do a lot of running on the roads around town, as probably many of you do. There are some great trails, paved and dirt, but they require more time to get to and on weekdays there is nothing like jumping out the front door and getting right into things. I love running in town, the terrain is varied as is the landscape. The pre-dawn darkness is also welcome but I also just love being out on the roads when the sun rises. The light is just fabulous. In my journeys I have come across many road hazards, from construction that alters the surface of the road, to potholes that have yet to be fixed.

All of these may cause one to fall or turn an ankle or hip resulting in jury. My last fall was due to rocks in the road, of course not nearly as big as the ones pictured here. When I ride my bike I am real observant of the road, especially for rocks and gravel but sometimes I don't pay as much attention when running.

Road kill is also an issue, the smell of it, not to mention that if it is still fresh and not properly flattened, it poses a tripping hazard. But then again, I almost lost it one time when I slipped on a decomposing flattened toad. Bletch.

There also are the dogs, big, small, friendy and not so friendly. I have had my share of scares but thankfully I employ the big scary voice and that is usually enough of a distraction. I would not hesitate to kill an animal or the owner if need be.

Texting drivers are a real nightmare, they are not paying attention and seem to think that's OK. You can always tell a driver who is texting or on the phone, everyone else sees you and moves over way before getting close, texters always zip right by, super close, never having any idea that your were even there.

However, as bad as some of those things are, in my neighborhoods the worst offenders of all are the school bus drivers. Gosh, don't they train these people how to actually drive a big bus? That's if they even see you... And then there is the attitude, it's almost as if because they are carrying kids they can do whatever they like, they are somehow above the law, gliding through stop signs, not paying attention to right-of-way. I remember my bus driver from high school, he was the same way. Scary!

So what kind of crazy, or not so crazy hazards have you come across?

Change of Venue

2010-09-17T19:54:00.006-05:00

For a few years I have had a membership to BT (Beginner Triathlete). Great tools on this website for tracking tri specific activities, and any other workouts, charts, stats and great forums. It also has lots of other features, most of which I do not use. I do however religiously track my runs and other workouts and use the graphs and charts to help me train. Everyone has some sort of system for logging their info, some folks don't log much at all, everyone is different. The only bad thing is that I really don't consider myself a triathlete, I am a runner. A runner who loves to bike and also swim. So I had been looking for an alternative to BT that was more runner-centric but still allowed me to log other workouts and didn't cost any money. RunningAHEAD has been the perfect solution for me. It took a few days to learn how to use it, being free there is bit less on the support side, but since I love on-line tools it has been fun and pretty easy to learn. I have been using it to log my runs and workouts for a few weeks now and recently finished uploading all my previous data for 2010. Like BT it has some neat features like auto downloading of info from Garmin GPS watches. Unlike BT it is much less a social site, which I prefer. I also like that I can make up any kind of chart I want to, something not on BT. Both are good but RunningAHEAD is better for me, and I love that it is free.

Potato Chips and Long Runs

2010-09-15T15:17:00.005-05:00

This morning on the trail.

Every so often when I read other people's blogs or race reports I hear of some outrageous foods being eaten by athletes. Candy, pizza, hamburgers, oh my! I guess I am somewhat of a food snob, well, just a little as I still have my weaknesses. As most of you know the past few years have been a hard earned victory in the battle of the bulge for me. Part of my challenge was greatly facilitated by joining Weight Watchers on-line. I still do it, mainly for the online tracking tools. Now that I am fully committed to my December 11 marathon I have the unusual problem of needing to cleverly increase my calories (by a lot) in order to keep up much needed fuel for training. Yikes! I get to the end of my week and find I am actually behind in my calorie intake. A little deficit is always OK as I still have another 5 lbs to go. But too much will leave me dragging on the trail. Sometimes I find my self going Mexican more than once a week just to make up for some calories. Not that I am complaining, I LOVE Mexican food and we have some authentic cocinas in our area. Today I was needing, (yes! needing!), potato chips. Of course I got the reduced calorie kind. They were oh-so-good! This digression happens about every 4 months or so. I am realizing that at some point getting the calories may be more important than what kind. I eat a huge amount of fresh veggies and fruit, whole grains, lean meat sometimes, some fish and all the other very good things a running junkie needs. I have also decided that I am no longer a food snob and that my bowl of potato chips is exactly why I run. As inappropriate as it may be, my bowl of chips is my reward and now that I am running so much I will not feel guilty!

Today was a 12+ mile run on the Trace. It was lovely, high humidity but cool and refreshing. I did the hill North from Sumrall, which pretty much means it was a long slow climb for the first half of the run, and then a very nice 6 miles of gentle downhill for the return. My shin felt great! And with all of today's running and a yoga class later I probably could have eaten that whole bag of chips and still have been hungry! I will still need to work on the eating thing, I don't want to kill my good habits and even for me, chips get old after the first serving or two (also, my gut has a hard time with dense fats like those found in fried foods). I have some excellent recipes for high value muffins and snack bars and think I will spend some time this weekend making some batches up for now and and freezing some for later.

So, I wonder what is every one's favorite good food and what is your bad food? Or Maybe you have a recipe you would like to share! I would like to collect some recipes, cook them up and then do some Blogger write -ups. So lets hear from everybody!

A Short Note and Some Memories

2010-09-12T11:13:00.004-05:00

I have had a few great runs recently and have decided that the leg is officially "doing well". Still need to pay attention to it. As a runner you learn that ice is good. Tonight it is supposed to drop in the 60's! Woo hoo, it will be maybe 63 for my run tomorrow morning. I need to make sure I don't get all speedy and out-of-control due to the good weather. I love running!

Thanks for dealing with my rant in my last post. Thank God the pastor down in FL has come to his senses. My conspiracy theory friends say the Secret Service got to him. In a weird way that is just as troubling.

I was born and raised in the NYC area. I remember. The observation deck of the World Trade Centers was the first place as a kid that I really though I might be able to fly, the Empire State building just couldn't compare, as far as I was concerned. I loved to sit by the "Sphere" by Fritz Koenig, I didn't particularly like the sculpture but I loved the plaza and the fountains were so comforting. For a college art-class drawing assignment I sat in the Plaza and used those stately twins to learn prospective drawing. There were so many people in the Plaza coming and going, sitting and talking, eating lunch. I would draw them too. I remember, the security guard who used to come out and watch me draw, he had a Jamaican accent. I used to share my cigarettes with him. In my mid 20's I got trashed with some friends at the bar on the 89th floor. The natural swaying of the building didn't help the matter. I had a terrific headache the next day, but it was worth it. I remember. Every September 11 for the past nine years I watch the replay of the event that changed so much of everything forever. I cry every time. For the rest of my life I will do this, and I will still probably cry. But you know what? The next day, life feels so much more alive and I realize, like I do today, that I am so grateful to live where I do and to be who I am. Never forget.

Thanks for reading.

Random Things and Rant or Two

2010-09-10T11:54:00.003-05:00

Some random stuff from my week-

Good news (for the most part) about my leg- did get in 2 runs this week after nearly 10 days off from running. Still some tension and I have to go slow, but after a mile or so it starts to loosen up and although it still talks to me it's not shouting anymore. Still doing ice and strengthening exercises and will continue with that, both runs were for an hour and slow, will keep up with that routine for a bit longer.
WTF #1- it was 100% humidity and 72 degrees F when I ran this morning, miserable! Where is my cool?
WTF #2- "Hey dumbass pastor from small insignificant church in Gainesville- I have friends over in the middle east in the military that I would like to see again! You moron! Go dig a deep hole, jump in and I will be more than happy to get my backhoe and bury your miserable ass."
I think I am going to go over to the new Muslim Center this evening with some fresh pastries to welcome them to the neighborhood and help celebrate Eid ul-Fitr (the end of Ramadan).
WTF #3- I was riding on the bike path earlier this week and along comes some dude, riding a mountain bike while texting! He did not even see me, so I waited until he was just about to ride into me and I screamed out loud. Ha, he nearly had a heart attack! Last I saw of him, as I cruised by, he was slowly sailing off the path and into the woods out of control. I never did look back.
My sister, who is recovering from a bad horseback riding accident (that required surgery) is finally, after so many months, going to able to get back on her baby this weekend and go for a walk! I wish I could be up in Chicago to see her happy face!
The Saints won last night! I love football!

Have a great weekend everybody!

Not All Bad News

2010-09-04T13:45:00.009-05:00

So I guess I will start with the more troubling part of things since my last post. Had to stop running this week. Yes, you heard right, no running! Seems I have been working up to some shin splints in my left leg due to some tendinitis. It's probably left over trouble from the fall I took in June and since I have been ramping up the mileage for my marathon training, it's not surprising it's showing up now. My 13 miler last week went fine, a little tension in the early part but once I was warmed up, all was OK. But the few runs I did after that, shorter and faster, were not so good. So I stopped. I have a bunch of ankle and shin strengthening exercises from a PT friend and I have been working on that and lots of ice and TLC. It is feeling better, but I will still wait a few more days until I go back slow and short. Ahh poop. It happens. Happy Birthday Long Leaf Trace!

Now for something really good- Today I rode my first ever pace-line and took my first pull at the front! This morning we celebrated the 10th Birthday of our bike path, The Long Leaf Trace, recently designated a National Recreational Trail and voted into the Rails-to-Trails Hall of Fame we had all kinds of activities including group runs, walks, rides, awards and lots of food! At the start of the ride the speedy group got out front and I managed to stay with them. Rode up along John R., a great old friend (and super good biker) and he encouraged me to keep up and stay with the speedy folks. Wasn't sure I could. Not that they were going all out or anything, but it was much faster then I normally ride. I have not seen my friend John in years!

I found I love the pace line and felt totally happy and in control the whole time. I did get dropped at one point close to the half way stop but we reconvened at the short break and I managed to stay with them back up the Sumrall Hill and was invited to take the last pull just after the Jackson Rd station. I needed to impress them but more important I needed to impress myself, to build that confidence. I pushed hard, everyone got real quite behind me as we flew down the path, my legs were on fire and I was really wondering how long I could hang on. Just before the intersection a bunch of runners and slow bikers on the trail meant we needed to slow down, I was never so happy to see some traffic! I got so much great encouragement from John, Sunny, Steve and Laura and the other guys. I felt great. To have them say I did and excellent pull meant everything for me. I have always shied away from riding with others, afraid I would not keep up, but this was a boost and I really, really, really want to do it again!

Laura and I after the ride. She can kick some booty on the bike.