A Wet Birthday Run!

In 2008 I did a 3.2 mile walk on my birthday and thought I was doing pretty good.  A year later, @WillRunzForFun and Isis finished a 6 mile Maintenance Run on my birthday this morning (Jeff Galloway's article "Extend Yourself" describes a Maintenance Run).  The run almost didn't happen because, just like yesterday morning, it was a little wet outside.  And after I strapped up my Mizuno Wave Inspire 5's and let the dog do her thing in the yard this morning, I noticed the battery on my footpod was dead. That would have been a disaster had I started the run and discovered mileage wasn't being tracked (it's happened before!).

We took it easy but still made good time again (PACE MAX/AVG=6:50/8:29 min/mi; HR MAX/AVG=165/151). For some unknown reason, Isis wanted to do a lot of sniffing in the woods about 3/4 mile into the run.  A 10 minute doggie pitstop would normally be ok except that the mosquitos were in full force and I just couldn't handle all the swatting and the annoying bites.  Thank God my dog knows when to just "let go" when I'm frustrated.

I saw a few runners who were making good time.  I also saw a few people who were sitting on the benches at Millenium Park for about 15 minutes or so - not sure what they were doing.  My guess is they were going to run or walk later.  But, I passed them at the 2.5 mile mark, doubled back through the park as usual at the 3.5 mile mark, and noticed they were still sitting there staring at each other. Maybe they didn't have any motivation to walk or run? 

I'm ready for Thursday's 5 mile Fartlek Run...
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An Adventure in The Drizzle

When I got out of bed this morning, I immediately checked outside to see if what raining. I don't mind a light drizzle; running in a down pour is out of the question for a few reasons. First of all, running is uncomfortable to me when I'm drenched, even if I'm wearing clothing that's made from wicking material. Secondly, crossing major streets is a hazard when it's dry outside. Additional driving impediments, such as rain, put me and other runners at a much greater risk of being injuried.

The good news is that the weather held to a light drizzle. After a few minutes of deliberation (treadmill or outside drizzle), @WillRunzForFun just strapped the dog to his side and hit the road. Running on the treadmill didn't seem like a good idea this morning! BTW, About.com has a good article that provides tips for running in the rain.

Isis and I did a 5 mile Tempo Run with the usual 2+ bio stops. About a mile from home, a black lab ran towards us barking as it were going to attack. I originally thought the dog was going to stop at the edge of her yard as most dogs this neighborhood are on wireless fences. When the lab got to the sidewalk I knew my assumption was way wrong - she wouldn't bes topping at the sidewalk! I recalled what I teach my kids to do when a dog runs their way: "Just stop and make yourself look intimidating." It seems silly to stop and let a dog run up on you; however, it worked for me. I didn't have to scream, spread my arms wide, or anything. As soon as I stopped, I just made sure Isis was between me and the other dog. A few seconds later, the lab's owner ran out the front door extremely apologetic. I told her everything was cool and kept going.

I'm ready for Wednesday's 6 mile run...
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The Extra Half Mile

I ended the week Saturday with an 8 mile run that was originally going to be 7.5 miles. As I was leaving work Friday, my manager asked me to run a mile for her. Accepting the her challenge, I changed plans and ran 8 miles - one mile for each member of my team. Yes, I know it sounds corny. But, I really wanted to see if I could do that extra half mile. I have not had a run over 6 miles for weeks and thought that I may not have the stamina to go that far.

Challenging myself made a difference. When I got to mile 3, I told myself to run another half mile and see how I felt before we turned around and headed home. And, at the 3.5 mile mark, we just kept going until we got past mile 4...then we turned around and cruised home.

Summary
Last week was a great workout week for @WillRunzForFun. I got in a run or a bike ride 6 days for a total of 37 miles. Here's a summary from last week:

Total Time	Avg Time	Max BPM	Avg BPM	Avg BMI	Total Dist. (miles)	Avg Dist. (miles)
4:29:07	0:44:51	160.7	140.2	24.9	36.8	6.1
Total Kcal Burned	Avg Kcal Burned	Max Pace	Avg Pace	Max Speed (mph)	Avg Speed (mph)	Total Workouts
3832.8	638.8	5:54	7:23	12.9	8.5	6.0

Next Week's Runs

Next week's schedule looks like this:

1. Monday - Interval Run / 5 miles
2. Tuesday - Bike Ride / 5 miles
   
3. Wednesday - Maintenance Run / 6 miles
4. Thursday - Fartlek Run / 5 miles
5. Friday - Bike Ride / 5 miles
   
6. Saturday - Long Run / 8 miles

Tuesday and Friday will be running rest days. I'll probably ride my bike to work on these which will add at least 10 miles!

Monthly Goals
My monthly totals for June are already way ahead of what I planned. At this pace I may do 125-150 miles before July 1! I've added a goal of biking to work twice a week which will add to my mileage.
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Mental Health: One Reason Why I Run

I recently saw an article in The Globe and Mail about a gentleman who runs to maintain good mental health. When I started running, I noticed the improvement in my mental health too. Hence, @WillRunzForFun hasn't stopped running. I'm hooked on feeling good before AND after each run. It really helps me get through the day, especially when I run before I go to work!

The endorphins are kicking in after today's 5-mile Tempo Run to Millennium Park in Homewood. I started at my 10k pace (8:30 minutes per mile) and stepped it up to my 5k pace (8:00 minutes per mile) about half way through the run. It was another cool day in the 40's at the start of the run which went well. I was a little concerned that Isis didn't want to participate. She was very sluggish at the start. After a quick bio-break, she was good to go! Gotta get better at understanding Isis' body language.

I'm ready for Saturday's 7.5 mile run...
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National Running Day!

In honor of National Running Day and the month of June (my favorite month), I ran 6 miles today. Usually a mid-week run is an Easy Run for @WillRunzForFun. But, a few days ago someone reminded me of that June 3 was National Running Day so I decided to a run that would be a little more meaningful to me. I had to drive more than an hour to work today and I knew any run longer than 3 miles would be a schedule challenge. Finishing a 6-mile target run this morning required me to get out of bed no later than 4:30am if I was to make my 8am conference call!

To my surprise, I didn't even need the alarm. By 4am I was wide awake. I tried to go back to sleep and nothing happened. After a half hour of playing the "sleep game", I decided to get dressed for the run. I also wasn't sure Isis was ready to run that early. We went outside for a bio-break and after 10 minutes or so, Isis sat down near the garage (that's doggy language for "I'm ready to run now, dude!")

It was a little colder (about 50°F) than it had been the previous week or two. I almost wanted to put on another layer before the run. Then I thought about the IL Half Marathon and how I ran in 30°F+ weather and I figured this morning's run wouldn't be so bad. Since it was a Long Run, I had the time to think through a ton of ideas on the table including a running/walking fitness ministry I want to start at my church.

On Friday I'll do a 4-5 mile run and then finish the week Saturday with a 7.5 mile run...

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Time for New Shoes!

On Friday @WillRunzForFun bought a new pair of Mizuno Wave Inspire 5 running shoes from The Human Race.  It took me about 40 minutes and 8 different models to decide which shoes were right for me.  The Adidas Supernova Sequence shoes that I bought last August worked well and I could have purchased another pair for less money than the Inspire 5's.  This time I decided to try a different brand to see if there is much of a difference. 

After running Saturday and today, the Mizuno's are holding up well.  I seem to be running a little faster and I feel better too.

Next Week's Runs

Last week we ran 18 miles with an average heart rate of 152 bpm and an average pace of 8:40 minutes/mile. My ultimate goal is to add a rest day, hence the schedule is modified for four runs instead of five.  Here's the schedule:

1. Monday - Speed Work / 5 miles
2. Wednesday - Easy Run / 4 miles
3. Friday - Speed Work Run / 5 miles
4. Saturday - Long Run / 7.5 miles

Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday will be rest days.  If there's lightening on a designated rain day, I will run on one of my rest days.  Otherwise, I'll I will ride my bike to work on Tuesday and Thursday!

Monthly Goals
I logged 73.2 miles in the month of May which was less than what I planned.  Even though I will be running fewer days in June, I plan to average 20 miles per week which should get me closer to 100 miles for the month. There's a 5k run in Homewood on July 4 that I will probably enter since I'll be in town.
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The Science of Running

For the past few weeks @WillRunzForFun has experimented with his running program. I've been working with my dog, Isis, who is now able to run up to 6 miles in one day. It took much practice for both of us: she had to get up her endurance and I needed to understand her body language, i.e., when she needed to stop, slow down, or just not run. We are now able to run 4-5 times per week together which keeps Isis well exercised.

I've also experimented with early morning runs again - as early as 5:50 am. I am typically up by 5:30 am and out the door by 6 am with the dog. Since I have a new work assignment, the goal is to have a consistent running schedule for my sake and for the dog's. Last week we ran 5 consecutive weekdays; next week we will rest on Wednesday and add a Sunday run.

Next Week's Runs

Last week we ran 21 miles with an average heart rate of 150 bpm and an average pace of 8:39 minutes/mile. Here's next week's schedule:

1. Monday - Easy Run / 3 miles
2. Tuesday - Easy Run / 4 miles
3. Thursday - Easy Run / 4 miles
4. Friday - Long Run / 7 miles
5. Sunday - Easy Run / 4 miles
   

Wednesday and Saturday will be rest days to give my body an early rest and prepare for a long run.

Monthly Goals
I've run about 55 miles going into this week and target 75-80 miles for the month. To my surprise, my feet or legs do not hurt even though I desperately need a new pair of running shoes. I plan to buy new shoes in the next month or so. I'd like to get a pair of orange and blue shoes. Haven't narrowed down a brand yet!
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