See, I told ya so! -10k Photos

Okay, for all of you that doubt whether I am really doing these things - Here is some photographic evidence. Of course they didn't post the actual race results for some reason so you have to trust my earlier posted time but hey, pictures speak louder than words anyway right?

Absolutely no clue who this guy was other than he was the guy standing closest to me when the lady with the camera asked if she could take our picture. Can you tell it was only 40 degrees F at the time?

This is the line for the Porta-potties - key for any racer. There is a reason most birds take a dump before taking flight. The fold your arms thing I am doing here and in the first picture is not a sign of reverence, rather stinking COLD!

If you look closely you can see me between the blue "FINISH" sign and the red pole. Despite the sign, this was also the start. I believe that is what the other side of the sign read. I am starting my stopwatch if you look closely enough.

This is a few seconds later as I officially cross the Starting line. This is a bit redundant to the last photo but you can see my face better if you had any doubts...

This is me roughly 54 minutes later sprinting to the finish line (next one will be under 50...). I'd like to say I had just passed that guy behind me but truth be told, back in the bend he was about to pass me and that kicked my ego into gear for this sprint to the finish. I thought he was a lot closer than he appears in the picture. Luckily the dark color of my shirt hides the amount of sweat I was soaked in.

First Full Half Marathon Training Run

Just wanted to write about my first full 13.1 mile run. I have done a handfull of training runs between 10 and 12.4 miles but this morning I ran my first full Half Marathon. I probably won't run that far again until race day about a month away now. Most professionals training schedules actually never require you to run the full race distance before race day but I wanted at least one run under my belt for confidence sake. For full marathons most training programs never go over 20 miles long runs before the 26.2 race day distance.

If you are interested in my time, I came in at almost 2 hours exactly. Do the math and that is an average of 9:10 per mile. The actual race course has more hills than the pathway I run each Saturday so my goal on race day is also 2 hours. Based on how much I still had in the tank at the end of my run today I think that will be doable - at least I hope so.

Little tidbits I have learned about running this distance that you don't encounter on shorter runs: 1) you MUST hydrate mid-run. For this I wear a hydration belt which gives me an extra 40 ounces of Gatorade. 2) extra carbs mid-run give a great boost. Most runners do this with an energy gell like Gu but you can also use special jelly beans or some form of energy bar. The key is something that is quick and easy and doesn't require much chewing that might disrupt. and 3) everyone thinks of the shoes but I am telling you that although important on shorter runs the socks are KEY on the longer runs if you don't want blisters. I am partial to Balega Enduros and not just because they are made in South Africa.

I give you these tips because I did it WRONG the first time and I don't want anyone to have to go through that! And 200 is so close I can smell it. I have been 203 for the last three days and you would think that my run would have done the job but with all the hydration I do I finished the run at 200.8. I'm pretty sure I'll be there by race day though.

100 Miles

Wow, I just surprised myself! If you look at the sidebar on my blog you will notice my workout history. This is taken from my Runners World Training Log. I have been recording my distances run since August 25 when I ran a 5k race. With last nights run my odometer rolled over the 100 mile mark! That means that over the last 53 calendar days I have averaged 1.9 miles per day. Now, considering the fact that over half of these miles were on my treadmill that I am CONVINCED is under reporting my distances (26:30 lowest 5k time vs. 23:51 on the road...) and I'm sure that in reality my average is closer (if not over) to 2 miles/day. I think the combination of preparing for the Half-Marathon and the knowledge that I am reporting my miles for all to see have driven me to be more consistent and longer in my runs.

It is a testament however to how the tortoise can win the race. Have you ever looked back and been amazed at how much you have been able to do over a short period of time with only persistence on your side? Pretty life affirming isn't it?

Turkey Day Run, Here I Come!

Well, it is official. I signed up and paid the registration fee for the Atlanta Half-Marathon to be run on Thanksgiving morning. No turning back now. That is actually why I signed up over a month in advance, to keep me motivated in my training right up to the big day. I have found out over the last year and a half of running that I am a much more committed runner if I have a race I am preparing for. The windows of time where I don't have a specific next race in mind I have found it much easier to skip runs here and there and even go entire weeks without running.

I think this is actually a common human trait. We need that light at the end of the tunnel to motivate us to move or take action. How much easier is it to clean our homes when we know someone is coming by? Get a project done when we have a deadline? I think the thought behind goal setting is setting a finish line in place so we have something to work towards. My goal is physical fitness but that is arbitrary to me. My competitive side wants something more tangible, so I work with races which are far more measurable - not to mention the T-shirts. You don't get a T-shirt for loosing 10 pounds!

My real admiration is for those people that seem self driven, not needing that reward at the end of the tunnel. We all know those people who just seem to get things done, no matter the situation or the odds (can you say McGyver?). Perhaps their "reward" is defined very differently or in an eternal perspective. In a religious setting I think you would call it faith, I don't know what you would call that same drive in a secular setting.

So here is the shameless plug, what tricks do you employ to motivate yourself to action? What have you found to help you reach your goals? I'm expecting a few "chocolate" answers but for someone training for a Half-Marathon, I may need something else to work with.

Race for Camp Grace

Well, I ran my first official 10k race today. I have a mixed report. I wanted to have a 10k under my belt before I attempt my planned Half-Marathon on Thanksgiving morning in Atlanta. While you can find a 5k just about every weekend somewhere in Georgia, finding a 10k is a little harder. They are out there but you just don't have all the same choices. In working with my dear wife on schedule, I targeted sometime in mid-October as my ideal window. It came down to today and I had a choice between two races. A run on the Georgia Tech campus for breast cancer or a run close to where I work benefiting a Christian Camp mentoring underprivileged children. The Georgia Tech run promised to be quite large and I'm sure would have had lots of co-eds but certainly drew more than enough support. I chose to support the small race supporting the Christian Camp. My experiences with these little races has been good and far less commercialized.

The only downside to this run was that it was a Trail Run. No paved flat surface. No, we are talking about 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) of mowed cow pasture, 20%+ grade hills, and creeks to jump over. Sure, it makes it more interesting but certainly more brutal as well. The largest hill was about a mile in (after my 6:51 1st mile) and was roughly 300 feet up in a quarter mile. There were many other longer and shorter hills but that was the killer. Combine that with the 40 degree starting temperature this morning and it definitely was a new experience for me.

My finishing time of 54:25 was a little bit of a disappointment but not so bad as to depress me, especially in light of the grade change and roughness of the path. It was very hard to judge pace when you are constantly worried about where your next footstep is going to land. Considering all of that, and the longer distance, a minute/mile slowdown from my 5k at the end of August is acceptable I guess. I don't have all the numbers in terms of what place I came in or how big the field was. This was a small enough run and in its first year, I don't know what all they are going to put online. We will see.

For those that are interested, I'm weighing in at 205. I had stalled quite significantly at 207-208 for quite a while and couldn't get out of that rut but over the last 2 weeks I think I broke out of that rut. My goal is to be 200 by the time I run on Thanksgiving day. Depending on my pie choices that evening though, I might be right back up to 210!

Abandoned!

For all the times I have gone away on business trips, the number of nights my wife has left me with the kids and spent a night away from home can most definitely be counted on one hand. Last night my dear wife attended a Girl Scout training camp and left me drastically outnumbered. My concept of "don't let them see the fear in your eyes" was based on distraction and avoidance - laced with a good dose of bribery!

The day started with taking my eldest to Karate. You would think this would have been easy but when we walked out the door to get in the car, all of a sudden my eldest wanted a toy to play with in the car. Where I would have probably placated the other three in this request I had no patience for this from my 9 year old, on a 5 minute car ride, to go to HIS Karate class. Needless to say, the tears flowed all the way to class and I started the day as the evil villain. The 45 minutes of class went fairly smooth. The key to the scream avoidance was ignoring the stares of everyone in the dojo as I allowed my 2 year old to play and dance to her "Old McDonald had a farm" singing chicken all the way through class.

From there we were off to the store to buy some Crocs for my boys as their sandals are falling apart and they are very jealous of their sister's Crocs. Do you know how hard it is to find name brand Crocs??? Good grief! After about 5 stores I finally used my Blackberry to find a Croc selling location. Who cares that it was 10 miles away, more time in the car means less time at home with them running around screaming, right?

By the time we got there the kids were crying for food, it was 1pm, so despite my plans of not taking them out to eat, I caved to Uncle Ronald and his magic arches. A round of nuggets for everyone hit the spot. I think the other patrons noticed my predicament as a mother in the next booth offered to get napkins and ketchup for me and the store manager actually carried my tray to the booth AND retrieved the requested sodas from the store accessible fountain drink dispenser. Although I think I could have handled it, I appreciated the help. The funny thing was the mother that helped me. As I told the story of taking the kids for the weekend and where my wife was, she unleashed on her husband in that "why don't you do that for me every once in a while" tone. From the look the husband shot me, you'd think I broke some kind of Daddy's code.

From there we raced to the movie theatre and caught a matinee of Ratatouille. I know it has been out for a while and I'm sure will probably be out on DVD before Christmas, but it was the only family friendly film showing. Unfortunately I hadn't notice that that thing is almost 2 hours long! That is one long cartoon! I lost the 2 year old somewhere around 1:30 into the film and had to employ every trick in the book to keep her quiet for the one other moviegoer besides us that had decided to take in the matinee. Not a bad movie but not quite up to the level of other recent cartoon releases. I give it a C+ for comedy and an B+ for child distractivity.

From there we came home. I delayed the onset of dinner moans with the crumbs and dregs of a week old appetite spoiling Cool Ranch Doritos bag. That didn't last for long. Good thing Jamie had left me with one our kid's favorites for dinner, Mac&Cheese. Of course, I found a way to mess that up as well. We had a leftover cheese packet so Jamie had just purchased a random pasta to mix with it. Somehow my eyes missed the shells she usually uses for shells and cheese and grabbed the rigatoni. Rigatoni and Cheese just doesn't roll off the tongue the same way for some reason. It doesn't roll over the pallet as well either. Thank goodness for our kids non-distinguished taste buds who all scarfed down their dinner!

At this point I decided to take a risk and go for my weekend run on my treadmill hoping things wouldn't blow up downstairs. I left explicit instructions to "come and get me in case of an emergency or if Liesie-Lu needed a new diaper." Two hours and 10 miles later I came out to put everyone to bed only a little past their bedtimes. You can imagine my fear when I met a certain girl coming up the stairs to great me with a diaper held up in the air informing me that "Daddy, I oopy!" Thank goodness for dry ball poopies! That's all I'll say about that...

Remarkably the kids went to bed extremely well. Mishca asked Josh-Josh to sleep in her bed with her which left Caleb in a room by himself. So, upon his request I decided to let him occupy Jamie's side of the bed. Sometime around 1 am I was awoken by a leg cramp in my left calf. One of Jamie's jobs is to rub the arch of my foot to help make the cramp go away. I figured that if he wanted her spot in the bed, Caleb would have to do the same thing. (Hey, I was in mind numbing pain, I wasn't thinking straight!) After fighting for 2-3 minutes to get Caleb awake enough to actually be conscious enough to understand my request I endured another 2-3 minutes of my son tickling my foot while I cried in pain I came to my senses. I told him to forget it and then used a bedpost to rub it myself.

The rest of the night passed uneventfully. As I write this post Sunday morning is passing smoothly. Of course I was told "I should be home sometime around 10am" by a certain loving wife. As it is now, it is 11:30 and the natives are showing signs of hunger. I wonder what I can bribe them with, I mean feed them? Wish me luck, and pray that my wife is just delayed instead of plotting ways to extend this momentary freedom of hers...

The Emperor's New Shoes - Remix

Author’s note: if any of you read my post the other day regarding my new shoes, here is the update. If you didn’t, just scroll down two posts and read that one before this one as I am not going to rewrite elements of that post just to bring you up to speed. I mean, come on, I only write 1-4 posts a month, if you can’t keep up with that, you need help…

This last weekend I went out for my 12 mile "long" run for the week. I had run in my new shoes several times on my treadmill at home but this was the first time I had a chance to get out on a harder surface. My shoes felt great on the treadmill for the previous two weeks but for you non-runners who venture past here let me tell you, the surface matters. About 2-3 miles into my run both of my heels started aching quite significantly. By the end of my run they were screaming and I spent the next three days tiptoeing around the house.

Now, I’m not saying it was completely the shoes, but the largest change for this run was my new shoes. Considering my old Nike’s probably had a couple thousand miles on them (at significantly higher weights) I am hesitant to think these new shoes didn’t have enough cushioning. Possibly the change of shoe and hence the foot carry, pronation control, cushioning technology, etc, caused my foot to strike just differently enough to cause problems.

The other factor I will not rule out and potentially could actually be more significant is my increased training over the last few months. Not only have I been more consistent (aka "frequent") with my running schedule, but I have also upped the tempo and increased my long run distances from 5-6 miles up to 10-12. Perhaps the wear and tear of training or the rapid increase in distance/week caught up to me. The fact that this hit me so suddenly 2-3 miles into my first run in my new shoes could have been an unfortunate coincidence. The symptoms and causes are consistent, for the most part, with plantar fasciitis but not 100%.

I felt that, based on what I paid for the shoes, I couldn’t hang my hat on the coincidence theory. My wife would have never let me live that down… "Just look at those $100 shoes gathering dust because you were too embarrassed to take them back…" Okay, so she would never say something like that but it provided the motivation I needed to get the courage to go in. Do any of you use your spouse’s voice as your internal voice of reason like I do?

Fleet Feet, see first post, has a 30-day return policy. My first experience, that return policy, and their attitude when I went back in to talk to them about my experience will translate into my loyalty to them for years to come. I have to admit that I was hesitant to take my shoes back in, in fear of a "battle" convincing them that the shoe didn’t work for me, but with the reassurance of the person that referred me to the store I went back. They couldn’t have been nicer. They apologized about the problems I was having and set out to see if they could rectify the situation. They talked to me for about 10 minutes asking me about my training program, what shoes I was switching from, injury history, then they rechecked the shoes I had purchased for fit, remeasured my foot, and tried a custom insert. When nothing else felt right, he went back and got 4 more pairs of shoes and started the whole selection process over again. No hesitation was at all apparent in his voice in taking back the shoes.

So, take two, here are my new new shoes. They are Saucony brand Pro-Grid Omni 6’s. The uppers don’t quite feel as natural as the Brooks (the main reason I selected the Brooks the first time) but the cushioning has a much more pillowy (is that a word?) feel, both in the heel and in the pushoff. I will let you know how they work out in a couple weeks. They felt good on the treadmill last night, but as I pointed out at the start of this post, that may not be such a good indicator. I may have to stave off judgement for my next long run.