Do As I Say Not As I Do

Well, after my sudden increase in running volume last week I guess something had to give. I have never experienced an Achilles tendon injury but the last several days I have been attempting to do what I can to make it better. It is not really injured, that is probably not the right word, but it is a nagging tender area that I am afraid to make worse. It doesn't cause me to limp and it doesn't cause me pain. What I really feel is tightness. I should probably do some more stretching before and after my runs.

It is funny because I never felt tired or fatigued on my 90 minute plus runs. It seems my aerobic capacity is top notch but my joints and tendons have forgotten what the constant pounding on the pavement feels like. Both my mom and dad used to be great marathon runners so I did a little interviewing and both of them basically had the same philosophy on marathon training; lots and lots of miles. My mom, for years ran 10 to 15 miles a day with a long 20 mile run on Saturday or Sunday. My dad's training sounded similar. "There were weeks I would run 100 or more miles, and do that for a month or two" he would say. I feel as though the training and distance aspect is possible but staying injury free is another matter. I know I shouldn't just give up but I really REALLY want to start riding my bike and swimming again, especially when things aren't working right.

On a good note, I look forward to some deep powder night skiing tonight at good old Mount Spokane! They have gotten almost a foot in the last 24 hours!

Running in the Snow

Yesterday I got to run in the snow for the first time in over two years. I was excited to see the old trails and get a nice long solid run in while tromping through the fresh white powder. I was shooting for at least 90 minutes of running but after a mile the snow got old and it was downhill (or in terms of running, uphill) from there.

The sweats I was wearing quickly caked up with ice and began melting through my cloths. My old Mizuno shoes were also collecting hard ice packs in the hollowed out heel cup and made running difficult. It was like running with a golf ball on my heel. Every few minutes I had to keep stopping to dig the ice out so pretty soon my fingers were numb. After a half hour of hoping things would improve, and seeing that they weren't, I had had enough and turned around.

I have come to realize that I have been spoiled in Las Cruces, New Mexico. It is always sunny and at least 60 degrees most of the time. Cold is tolerable with the right clothing but the minute moisture is factored into the equation... BRRR!!! I don't know how the people of the Inland Northwest do this winter thing but they are good.

The Mile

A couple of weeks ago I went ahead and made some public remarks about my running goals for this up coming spring. The first goal on my list was to best my mile PR set all the way back in high school when I was 17. It is a lofty goal to reach yes, but it can be done. The idea for today's workout was to go out and race a mile solo (unless you count Brianne who had the watch) and see just what sort of performance I could muster.

Running the first lap I made an important mental point to not go out too fast because I was racing solo. So, naturally, I went out too fast. By the 800m mark I was beginning to feel like a cooked turkey. The last two laps were nothing less than torturous but manageable. Although the time was decent, I definitely did not break any records.

Since this is the very end of the fall semester it marks the perfect transition point to start preparing for the spring season ahead. I will be heading back to Spokane, WA soon for a short break and will gradually start my LSD regime. LSD = Long Slow Distance (not what you think). Miles right now are important and a smart way to keep yourself injury free later down the road (no pun intended). At least in theory. Then maybe in six to eight weeks time, break out the strength exercises and hills. Finally after all of that work come the intervals. Hopefully my motivation lasts and the next semester will be kind to me.

Until next time, run happy.

Feeling Good on the Run

I have taken a couple of days off from running. It wasn't something I really wanted, but I had to. This is finals week at NMSU and things, like always, get pretty hairy around this time. I was doing a fairly good job of keeping up on my running consistency but sometimes life just forces you to take another direction. I read and hear about all other graduate students who still stay fully involved with triathlon and continue to preform well. I keep wondering just how this is possible. I have tried working things out in my head as well as on paper and my findings are always the same. There just isn't enough time. Either that or I must be the most inefficient and dumbest graduate student ever... or an over achiever. Maybe I need to learn to say "no" more.

Anyway I took a few days off from running and it was killing me. I feel so antsy and nervous when I sit on my ass all day. After getting scolded again for forgetting an important meeting I needed to do something. I came straight home, put on my running shoes and zipped out the door. It felt wonderful to feel the fresh air in my face and leave my cell phone at home. Besides the wind feeling good in my face, my legs felt good too. Real good. After those two days off I must have been experiencing a little mini peak. Any runner knows the feeling I think. Your legs just seem to be spinning around nice and fluid like and you realize you have probably been running 5:30 mile pace for the last 20 minutes. Yes it was nice to finally get the feeling again. And it was nice to just plain feel again too. Thanks good run!

More Plants From Big Bend National Park

Echinocereus triglochidatus, Claret Cup Cactus.

Jatropha dioca, Leather Stem. An alien looking plant that reminds me of a miniature Baobab tree.

Cylendropuntia leptpcaulis, Christmas Cactus.

Euphorbia antisyphilitica, Candelilla. Long ago wax used to be extracted from this plant.

Nicotiana glauca, Tree Tobacco.

Opuntia rufida, Blind Prickly Pear Cactus.

Coryphantha echinus, a new cactus find for me. This species grows mostly in Mexico.

Opuntia macrocentra, Black Spine Prickly Pear.

Opuntia violacea, Purple Prickly Pear.

Echinocereus viridiflorus, Rainbow Cactus.

Ferocactus haematacanthus, Turks Head Cactus. This is a species of barrel cactus I have never seen before.

You Know, I Miss Swimming

Last week I watched our NMSU Triathlon team take on the NMSU lifeguard team in a game of water polo. To be honest, I thought the game would be a lost effort. There was positively no way we could beat the lifeguards in a water polo match, but we did! We won! After Thanksgiving break we played them again. This time the match was rough. In the first half we were evenly matched. In the second half the big-macho-overly-aggressive and pumped-up-with-way-to-much-testosterone-for-an-intramural-coed-water-polo-game lifeguards pulled away for the win. Yeah I was a little frustrated.

Watching this game did not get me excited for a rematch water polo game. However, what watching this game did for me was to remind me how much I actually did miss swimming. I look at myself in the mirror now and I can't believe just how much my body physiology has changed since June. I am weak and I am getting weaker. At least my upper body.

I always seem to reach a point where I say to myself, "Okay, that is enough, I'm getting slightly tired and bored of this now and it is just not motivating anymore." What I think I am referring to is running. The minute it get easy for me I seem to loose interest. But that is the whole point right? When the effort becomes easy you start getting good (better).

I think, even though this blog entry has completely derailed from where I intended it to go, I should just spell out my goals for my rediscovered running passion.

1. Break my high school mile PR (aka: 4:20)
2. Run a 33:00 10K
3. Run a solid half marathon (~1:15)
4. Run a solid marathon without bonking.

So there you have it. With luck, after posting these goals and making them public, my mind will remain sharp and focused on these new goals. Never mind those silly water polo games. Even though I miss triathlon dearly, I feel it is important to return to my original strength and build on things from there.