Another 4-day-in-a-row comeback

Once again I find myself completing another four runs in four days comeback. Looking at my running records it appears that I took 3 months off, thought that seem awfully long and I may have not recorded a few runs in between. My Garmin watch, as much as I love it, has been giving me trouble again and not recording things properly. My first two runs I did without the watch at all as it was out of juice for the first one and froze on the second after my janky watchband repair fell apart and it smacked the concrete. The third run (actually the second in a row) was a little better and simply took 1.6 miles to record the first mile, so I felt ripped off! But the new Garmin online software allows me to edit my runs, so today I was able to get my numbers where they should have been! The last two runs have been accurate as far as I can tell, so maybe the watch needed to wake up from its slumber too?

I usually start these reboots slowly by running less miles at the start. But this time I jumped right in and ran 6+ miles my first day back. It felt great though my legs were a tad rubbery afterwards. I added two performances to that as well as shoveling and moving bark dust and I was bushed. But after the two performance days I got right back into it and ran my four in a row for a total of nearly 20 miles. The first day of the 4 in a row was super hot and I struggled to finish, but finish I did, well with a few walking breaks. For the last two runs I cut out the extra walking breaks and only walked the hills. I feel pretty good about that. The only real issue I am having is the start of a blister on my left ankle, I’ll live. Bandaids will get me through the next one.

My feet were quite sore for the first couple of runs pretty much throughout. But in the words of my friend Kraig I powered through. I tried to concentrate on having pillows for feet and through meditating on that I was able to deal with the pain. The last couple of days the soreness has lessened quite a bit. Maybe I just need to get them used to the pounding a bit. I am sure they will never be all that happy with the running, but it is good to know I can get myself to deal with the pain and I am really glad to see it lessening.

Today I cut my miles back and ran the canyon, a 3.7 mile run. My time always slows running the meandering path, I often wonder if the trees are the issue. Perhaps some other weird reed vortex is causing problems. Or perhaps I just ran 3.7. Whatever, it was a nice run and good to see the canyon again.

Third run in a row

I wanted to write yesterday and title my post Secondi. But even though the run happened the post didn’t. Thirdi didn’t sound so great, so you get what you get.

Today was actually somewhat warm – 52. I layered up cause it felt cold and quickly began to take off layers. My thighs were a bit sore but I pushed through it. I Might try some foam rolling tonight though it is the fronts of my thighs which are harder for me to roll as well. Still, anything is better than nothing! I’ve gone on and on about the benefits of running four days in a row to kick-start a return to running. I probably will run tomorrow to make the four, but I make no promises. My pace today was just over 10:30 so nothing great, but not so bad either.

As I approached the big hill out of the reed campus there was someone walking ahead of me. I had been planning to walk the entire hill but I didn’t want to freak out the guy so I decided to keep running past him and made it up most of the hill before I decided to walk the last 20 or so yards. Overall the run felt really good.

Rains turn to sun and four in a row again

Yesterday was as soggy a run as I have had in awhile, but today the sun broke out as the universe cracks a joke about spring being here (snow expected this weekend…) I guess if we get 24 hours of no rain we shouldn’t complain and instead we should go out for a run! So that is what I did this morning. I felt really good through most of it, but ended up taking several walking breaks. Still I managed to run under 10 min miles. The extra walking breaks were a bit surprising but I think my body is feeling it a bit, especially with all the night rehearsals I have had this week. My energy level will get a break this weekend sort of as the band heads out for a southern “tour” which is really just a show we are playing at a band-mates uncle’s commune in southern Oregon. Should be a lot of fun, but also a lot of driving (I’ve heard estimates of anywhere from 6 to 11 hours, so we’ll see I guess.)

My experiment with running and playing music on the same day has gone really well this week. I even got a couple of five milers in on rehearsal days. I was especially concerned with those days and I felt pretty well (though somewhat tired, but not what I would consider “ms fatigued”). On all three days I did this this week I made sure I was fully hydrated and ate a good amount of protein afterwards. It really seems to help, especially the water. I also included a large cup of tea before the rehearsals to give me boost. I just wish I had gotten a bit more sleep this week. But that’s ok, life isn’t perfect!

So this has been the third week I have been serious about running and managed to get my runs in (maybe not the mileage totals I would like, but I was out on the roads!) I can already feel some vast improvements in my energy levels and health and mood. It is interesting to me about the effects on my mood. I feel great even though a tad sore and more than a tad tired. Its that feeling of a spring in my step that I think best describes it.

Four in a row, again.

Today I finished the fourth run day in a row with a short three miles (actually a tad less). I have always used this “feat” as a sort of announcement to myself that I am back into running. After four running days in a row I feel like running is again a part of my daily routine. Getting up for a run in the cold and wet doesn’t seem nearly as daunting and I begin to physically feel like a runner again. Today’s run also was somewhat special as I will be facing the issue of running on a rehearsal day. I usually don’t run on rehearsal or performance days as my brain feels too sluggish to concentrate on the music. My hope today is that the shorter won’e affect me as much as runs have in the past. I guess we will see tonight! I have been using music as an excuse to not run and I would really like to be able to do both on a regular basis. I think the short runs on music days could be the answer, we’ll see.

My zero-drop shoes were still soaking wet form yesterday’s run in a deluge, so I strapped on a pair of my Asics. The thicker heal is really apparent after running on the zero-drops. Actually the thing I miss most is the larger toe box of my Altras. I really like that my feet can spread out in the Altras. I was thinking today that I am probably due for a new pair soon. I am a little bummed that now that I am not using my old running diary that I no longer have an easy way to track the miles on my shoes. I guess I’ll just have to pay more attention to my total miles unless there is a feature I have been missing in the Garmin Training Center. I’ll poke around a bit.

Four runs in a row

Once again I managed to get in four runs in four days, my benchmark for getting back into running on a regular basis. I feel pretty good and even considered tagging on some extra mileage today. But I thought better of it seeing as it was the fourth in a row and more importantly I have a rehearsal tonight that I need to give my best effort (well when don’t I?) My right glute is giving me a little grief, it seems as if the adjustments to my hips that my acupuncturist was able to do have faded somewhat. For several days after she aligned my hips I was feeling really good after running and I didn’t have any soreness in my butt or hips. Now the soreness is back, whether it is due to the increased running (which is what I suspect) or if the hips have gotten back out of alignment I am not totally sure.

My speeds have not been very fast but that is just fine. I am getting the calorie burn in which will alleviate my paranoia about weight gain. Seems like in the past I needed 2-3 weeks of regular running before I felt thin again. Ah, the phycology of exercise! We’ll see how it goes this time around. My ankles have been feeling fine but I have had some soreness in my knees which is sort of a new thing and something I certainly want to keep an eye on. I haven’t had any issues with my knees in the past and I’ll be really concerned if they become a problem for me. Arnica gel at night seems to help out quite a bit so that is a good thing (I hope I am not masking a larger issue…)

The heat we have been experiencing has been really interesting. I have never been much of a warm weather runner, but I have been really liking it as of late. The extra sweat and exertion has been a welcome thing and I haven’t had much trouble dealign with it. I have been bringing water with me (except for today as it was cool and cloudy when I got out for my early run. I suppose now that I feel like I am enjoying the heat it means that the weather will turn cold for the foreseeable future! I hope not, at least right now I say that. Talk to me in July!

Another break, but today four in a row

As my writing here slows, so usually does my running. About 2 weeks ago my work and music life got a lot busier, both good but time consuming. All it takes is about a week of not running to start me obsessing about my weight as well as a reduction in the fitness benefits I am amassing in regards to treating ms. The weight thing has been building all summer and I have put on 10 or so pounds since winter, the exact oposite of what my usual seasonal patterns have been. I have enjoyed the extra fat for injections though. So while I can’t really say I have stopped my running malaise this year, today I did the fourth run in four days which I have always felt is a good restart. I think if gives me a sense of pattern acceptance in my workouts. I’ve also been pretty successful with not eating at night. So in general I feel pretty good with the exception of my tingly feet.

Sp today’s run was not only the fourth in a row, but I ended with a quality long slow distance run. It’s the first one in quite a while. It feels good to be exhausted. And I have been refueling/rehydrating pretty well this evening, and more food on the way! It was one of those runs where I had no real plan. But as I kept making route decisions leading me further along, I knew what it would be a good day for an lsd run. Actually I didn’t keep my heart rate low enough to be a good lsd run, more of a base run pace. I had several points where I started to fade and then pushed hard through them. I thought that was a good success, almost as good as getting home. It felt really good to finish.

The other three runs were two back-to-back base 10k runs and a short recovery run. I ran the two base runs pretty fast, I think the break was probably good for me. They were pretty boring but one weird thing did happen. I ran into the same dreadlocked reed student running in the canyon at exactly the same spot along the north trail. The recovery run felt good, really more of a slowish 5 miles than recovery. But I think the effects were pretty similar considering how well today’s long run went.

Four runs after four in a row

Today I finished a fourth run after my four in a row. The four were pretty consistent in terms of doing them as part of a training routine. I did them all with a rest day in between with teh exception of today and yesterday’s runs. So basically my last runs have all been done in a two week period (less actually). It’s as if the first four in a row established my routine and the last four have reinforced it.

The first seven runs were all over 10 min miles and felt pretty slow. I have shown steady improvement though and today’s run was the breakthrough clocking my 10k run at 9:45 min miles. I pushed it for segments trying hard to get under the 10 min mark. I didn’t really feel overly fatigued, or at least more fatigued than I have in the previous runs. Part of my improvement was probably due to feeling better than I have recently. But this flu/cold that I have had hasn’t really affected my breathing despite a rough cough. But I probably had more energy today than I have had of late.

It feels good to have some actual improvement that I can see and feel. I really want to improve my speeds and at least get back to running nine min miles. It will come I know. For right now I am happy to see progress and feel like I am getting somewhere. Actually the real improvement that I see has more to do with my attitude towards running. It feels less of a chore and more something I want to do. I think this all is a part of the last four runs cementing a return to running. Almost a return of running as a mindset which I think I sort of lost over the fall.

Four in a row

Today I headed out for a cold 10k run that marked four days in a row running. I have always thought that a stretch of reduced running needs a streak like that in order to convince your body you are a runner again. So that is my hope. However I do feel something coldish in my lungs, so it wouldn’t surprise me if I didn’t run for a couple of days. I think I am going to try to run through this though, some short recovery runs in the next couple days.

I don’t think it matters what sort of run you do during this streak of four days running. This time I did 10k, 4.5 mi, 10k and 10k. All of them were really slow times, all over 10 minute miles. But I think that is fine as well, the point is I did it and now my body wants to run again!

Whoo hooo!

Four days in a row!

Back in it. I have always felt that in order to get back into running, I needed to do four days in a row. Today I did it. Feels good to be back in the swing of it and going strong as well.

The four day thing feeds the part of the mind that accepts patterns. You do four in a row and it is nor problem to run of another string of three more in a row. Then less and less days are spent stagnant which of course leads to more and more days you run. It is the perfect base to get started. Any distances will do. Do four and you’d do more.

I am going to rededicate myself to taking photos while I am out. I need to carry a phone anyway, so the camera should be there, just have to use it.