Old Man Running

Ran 2.5 miles tonight

2008-07-24T23:48:00.004-06:00

Today has been a busy day! July 24 is the anniversary of the entry into the Salt Lake valley of the Mormon pioneers under Brigham Young in 1847. There was a very large parade in Salt Lake City that lasted for two hours. My wife and I (two cars) took our four grandchildren who have been staying with us into SLC to see the parade. I had the two boys in my car and she had the two girls. Utah requires car seats up to 10 or 11, so we needed two cars to get the three car seats in the back seat. The boys and I had to walk a mile each way from the car to the beginning of the parade. That plus the time watching the parade meant that I was on my feet most of the morning. The temperature in the sun was 94 (F), and it was more humid than normal. After I got home, I was tired and took a half-hour nap.

I went running just after the sun went down and the temperature had dropped into the low 80s, but I could tell I had little energy. I thus aborted my planned 6-mile run and ended with a jog/walk of 2.5 miles.

A great 5-mile rest run

2008-07-21T21:43:00.007-06:00

My nose quit running yesterday morning, and I felt pretty good all day Sunday. This morning I had a great 5-miler. I felt energetic and enjoyed myself. We had rain last night, and the sky still was cloudy during my run, resulting in a temperature in the mid 60s (F). I ran at a pace of 11:50 the half-mile that I use to time myself. That pace was typical of my whole run.

I'm glad I took a rest day on Saturday. Today was payoff-day for that extra rest. If I had run on Saturday I wouldn't have done well, would have done a lot of walking, and would have put more stress on my body. Because of the extra rest, my body felt great and performed well today, taking only a few short walking breaks. Because of the lower temperature, I carried no water and did ok from that viewpoint.

Saw more black ducks tonight

2008-07-21T21:38:00.003-06:00

My wife and I took a walk tonight with our four grand children who are visiting with us. We walked along the canal road that I used to run a few years ago. We saw three sets of ducks and a total of 10 ducklings in the water.

The last group of ducks were black ducks. The adult accompanying the ducklings was totally black except for a large white spot on its neck and breast. It's head and beak were totally black. Because the duck and its ducklings were in the water, I couldn't see if their feet were webbed or not. There were 5 ducklings, and about half were totally black with the white spot, and the rest were totally black including the neck and breast. Usually with birds, the males are more colorful, and I would expect the ducks with the white spots to be males. However, it seems unusual that a male duck would be baby-sitting the ducklings. So, I'm not sure which sex has the white spot.

An unplanned rest day-today

2008-07-19T22:13:00.002-06:00

I didn't run today because I took an unplanned rest-day. I felt fine after my run on Thursday, but during the afternoon I noticed my throat was getting a slight rough feeling. Then, during the evening my nose started running, and it ran all day Friday and all day today, although my throat feels fine. When I woke up this morning, I felt fine, and I thought I would run through my cold. However, while doing my sit ups I could tell my energy level was low, and I aborted the sit ups and changed into my regular clothes. I've just moped around today and haven't done much but talk to my five grand kids who are visiting and watch a couple of DVDs with them.

Added 1/2 mile for this weeks distance

2008-07-17T15:33:00.003-06:00

I ran 5 1/2 miles this morning on the Jordan River Parkway. I was out at 9 am when the temperature was in the mid 70s (F) and in the mid 80s when I finished. Even though my wakeup heart rate was a bit higher (54), I felt more energetic this morning than I have in recent runs. I just ran a comfortable pace.

Another skin cancer removed yesterday

2008-07-17T15:30:00.000-06:00

I had surgery yesterday for another skin cancer. The result was a hole next to my ear that was about the size of a quarter. The good news is that I've experienced no pain so far from the surgery. I expect the surgery had an impact on my energy level, but I didn't notice any reduction in energy during my run this morning.

A 5-mile rest run

2008-07-14T16:42:00.002-06:00

I'm currently running three times per week, and my goals for my runs are

Monday - 5 mile rest run
Wednesday - 10 mile medium run
Saturday - 13-15 mile long run

I've reached my goal for my Monday run, and I ran a 5-mile rest run this morning at a comfortable pace. I was out about two hours earlier than I've been getting out, and the temperature was significantly cooler and nicer for running. The temp was in the mid 60s (F) when I left, but it was in the mid to high 70s when I finished. I drank 16 oz of water. There were quite a few people on the Parkway enjoying the morning. My wakeup heart rate was 53.

A great running week has ended

2008-07-12T23:48:00.003-06:00

I ran 5 miles again on the Jordan River Parkway. For the past couple of weeks it has taken me about 3 miles to warm up. That happened this morning. For the first 3 miles I ran 13-14 minute paces and took frequent walking breaks. For the last two miles, I ran a faster pace and only took walking breaks at the half-mile markers. My pace for the last half-mile was 11:50, and I felt fine during those miles. I had an urge to go faster, but I ignored it and continued running at a comfortable LSD pace.

I was late again getting out (10 am), and the shade temperature when I left home was about 80 (F), and it was probably in the high 80s when I returned. I drank 24 oz of water during the run. My wakeup heart rate was 53, but I felt a bit tired while doing my 30 sit ups. I've been sleeping well during the past few weeks, and that is good!

It's too hot for running, but I went anyway

2008-07-09T16:58:00.005-06:00

I was late getting out (left about 11 am) and the shade temperature was about 85 (F). I forgot to check the temp when I returned, but it would have been in the mid 90s because the expected high today is 100.

I ran the 5 miles again on the Jordan River Parkway. I was surprised that there were several cyclists, skaters, walkers, and runners on the path. I thought that sane people would be hiding from the heat. Maybe the cyclists and other persons I saw this morning are as insane as I am :) I took 32 oz of water and used 24 oz of it. That was about the right amount of water for a day like today. I had about 4 oz left in one bottle when I finished, and I drank that while I was walking back and forth in the tunnel under 100th South to cool off. I like that tunnel because it gives a lot of shade for my cool-down and stretches at the end of my run. I didn't break any speed records today, just plodded along and took frequent walking breaks and drinks of water. My purpose today was to continue getting used to my increase in distance with no concern for how fast or slow I ran.

I checked my running cadence during the run, and it was 180. That is good because it means that even with the heat, I had quick leg movement; I just took smaller steps.

A report on my running tangents

2008-07-09T16:53:00.002-06:00

I mentioned a few weeks ago that I was going to start running tangents during my training runs so doing that would be a habit causing me to run tangents during races without thinking about it. I've pretty much achieved that habit. In fact, on July 24 my wife and I took her 91-year old mother up to two of the Utah ski resorts for a picnic and a tram ride to the top of Hidden Mountain, elevation 11,000 feet. The canyon road has a lot of turns, and I noticed on the way down that I had a tendency to want to drive tangents. Of course, I didn't do that due to oncoming traffic, but I did catch myself a couple of times wanting to drive tangent to the curves.

Status report on my right leg

2008-07-09T16:50:00.002-06:00

My right leg still isn't completely healed, but it is awfully close to being healed. The only time I feel soreness in it is when I've been on my feet a lot, such as running followed by mowing my lawns and doing yard work for a couple of hours. Even with tired leg muscles, my left leg feels fine but my right leg feels a bit sore. Also, I don't quite have a full range of motion in my right leg as compared to my left leg.

Bluetooth wireless while running

2008-07-08T12:22:00.002-06:00

Here is a suggestion from a runner named Ray, who is a frequent visitor to this blog. He emailed me with a suggestion for those who want to listen to music while running but are frustrated with the dangling cable from their iPod or MP3 player. Use Bluetooth to connect your player to Bluetooth headphones. The site used by Ray for Bluetooth hardware is bluetechwireless.com

Added 0.5 miles to my runs

2008-07-07T15:04:00.003-06:00

I ran 5 miles on the Jordan River Parkway and had a good run! I took 16 oz of water and had just 3 swallows left at the end of my run. The shade temperature was 77 (F) when I left home and 91 when I returned. My wakeup heart rate was 54.

I felt pretty good during the run. During the first two miles, while I was warming up, I took frequent but brief walking breaks. I also took them during the last mile or so due to the heat. Some runners want to run without walking and they push themselves too much. My philosophy is to walk when tired. The big factor today was heat, and I don't want to compete with the sun, so I walk when I need to cool off a bit. I prefer to save my energy to overcome distance not heat.

Finished the week with another 4.5 mile run

2008-07-05T23:10:00.002-06:00

I had a really busy day today and didn't run until after dark. The Jordan River Parkway closes at 10 pm, and I would have been out later than that, so I ran along a city street instead of on the Parkway. The temperature was in the mid 70s (F) during my run. Much better than in the 90s but still too hot for good running. But, it was nice to get out and to close the day with a run.

Another nice run!

2008-07-02T22:19:00.002-06:00

I ran the 4.5 miles again on the Jordan River Parkway. I left about an hour later than I did on Monday. The temperature was 82 (F) when I left and 91 when I returned. Most of my run was in the direct sun, and in terms of heat-transfer the effective temperature was over 100. There was no breeze at all. I made a mistake in not taking any water with me, and it was hot! I took frequent walking breaks, and I ran around 12:30 miles. I felt fine during and after the run. My wakeup heart rate was 54.

A new week and a new distance to run

2008-06-30T18:21:00.004-06:00

I ran 4.5 miles on the Jordan River Parkway this morning. I was out relatively early (8 am), and the temperature was 70 (F) when I left home and in the high 70s when I returned. I didn't have quite as much energy this morning as I had on Saturday, but I had more than I had on Monday and Wednesday last week. Also, my wakeup heart rate this morning was 54, 2 points higher than last week. My lower energy-level this morning probably means I'm still recovering from my faster run on Saturday. The high temperature was about 95 today with higher humidity.

I'll be adding distance for the next six weeks to get my long run up to about 8 miles. Then I'll do 2 or 3 weeks of low-level speed work to get ready for the Daybreak 5K that I ran last year in September. It was in that race that I set my current PB for a 5K, and I'd like to set a new PB this year.

A great run to end my recovery week

2008-06-28T20:26:00.003-06:00

I was out early this morning for my 4-mile LSD run, and the temperature was in the high 60s (F). It was nice to out in the cool morning, and a lot of people were using the Jordan River Parkway. My energy level was much higher, and I had a great run. I measured my last half mile as having a 11:35 pace. My wakeup heart rate has been 51-52 all week. I had expected it to jump to 56 or 57 due to my race last week, but I've been sleeping well, and that rest apparently was sufficient for my body to recover without a jump in HR.

If I feel fine on Monday, I'll add a half-mile to all three days.

Last week finally caught up with me

2008-06-25T11:52:00.002-06:00

My wakeup heart rate yesterday and today was 51, and that is a good sign. However, I didn't have much energy during my 4-mile run this morning. It was hot (low 90s (F)) and I forgot to take water. I think being tired last week and pushing myself during the race on Saturday has sapped my energy. I'm glad the next two days are rest days.

The mother of all recoveries

2008-06-23T20:09:00.005-06:00

I've been having a great recovery from my 5K on Saturday. My right leg felt fine during and after the race and during the day, including during my mowing of my lawns in the evening. However, by bedtime my right leg was a bit sore. I took a 3-hour nap after the race, and that helped me feel fine during the rest of the day. My wakeup heart rate this morning was 51, one beat lower than it was on Saturday.

This week is a recovery week, and I ran a nice 4 miles at a 12:34 pace. I was late getting out, and the temperature was in the low 90s (F). Even with the heat and no water, it was a nice run.

Took first in my age group of 65-99

2008-06-21T12:43:00.012-06:00

I decided yesterday to run the 5K that is part of the South Jordan Country Fest; I ran the race this morning and took 1st in my age group of 65-99. There were about 75 men runners, and I was 49th. My time was 34:32, and my average pace was 11:06. That time was 2 minutes slower than last year and 4 minutes slower than my PB. My mile splits were 10:40, 11:26, and 11:15. I started with a pace of about 10:10, and I slowed down as the race progressed. At the beginning of mile 2 there was a half mile of slight hills, and that accounts for my slower pace during that mile. I only took one 30-second walking break, after the hills in the second mile. As I slowed down, a lady who was probably in her late 40s caught up with me. She said her goal in the race was to keep up with me. We chatted during the last half mile, and when we made the turn into the last 200 yards, I told her to give it all she had. She pulled ahead of me, and I followed her over the finish line.

I think I did well, considering my circumstances. I was in bed for 6 hours last night, but I only slept off and on for an hour. This happens when ever I have something important the next morning. I usually get 3 or 4 hours sleep when I'm suffering from anxiety, and I think last night was the worst case of anxiety that I've had. The good news about my sleep is that I've been sleeping well during the past couple of weeks, and my wakeup heart rate this morning was still 52. Disruptions in my sleep usually don't affect my wakeup heart rate for a couple of days, and I'm expecting my HR to jump up to the high 50s tomorrow or Monday. The other reason why I feel good about my performance is that I haven't done a lot of fast running during the Spring. I'm currently running 4 miles three days per week, and my fastest time during the past three weeks of light speed training was a half-mile timed run of 10 minutes and a few seconds. During that three weeks I had a couple of half-mile timed runs in the 11s, and the rest were in the 12s or 13s. So, my performance in this race was in line with my training. I mentioned in this blog last week that I had decided to not run the race, but I felt good this week, and I decided to go for it. I'm glad I ran this morning.

The weather was almost perfect for the race. The race started at 6:30, and the temperature at that time was in the low 60s (F). Since the race is short, the temperature probably didn't change much during our running.

More energy during my 4 mile run

2008-06-18T12:44:00.002-06:00

I had more energy during my 4-mile run this morning. It was still hot (90F in the shade when I returned), but I had 16 oz of water, and that helped a lot. We have two grandchildren staying with us, and my wife and the two kids played in a park next to the Parkway while I ran.

A big fish in the river

2008-06-18T12:35:00.002-06:00

I saw two fish in the Jordan River yesterday. I heard a lot of splashing, and I saw fins of a big fish about two feet long breaking the water as the fish moved around. The river was shallow at that point, so the fish couldn't go very deep. I saw a smaller fish, about a foot long, next to the big one.

Another 4 miles

2008-06-16T16:15:00.002-06:00

Except for the heat, my run was uneventful. The shade temperature was 80 (F) when I left home and 89 (F) when I returned. Most of my run was in the open sun, and the effective temperature in terms of heat transfer was probably over 100 (F). I didn't have any water with me, and I felt the sun. I took a lot of brief walking breaks. On the positive side, my wakeup heart rate was 51. It has been in the mid 50s for the past few weeks.

Today is decision day about the 5K on June 21

2008-06-14T23:56:00.002-06:00

I've decided not to run the race on June 21. I'm not ready to race it, and if I ran it I would have to do it as a training run. It's not worth the time or the $15 to do it as a training run. I ran 4 miles today and felt about the same as I did on Wednesday. In order to break 30 minutes, I'd have to average about 9:45 minutes per mile, and I can't sustain that pace for 3.1 miles. Another factor in my decision is my right knee. I'm feeling some soreness in that leg, and that indicates my speed work during the past three weeks hasn't been good for my leg.

Four more miles

2008-06-11T17:24:00.004-06:00

I ran the four miles again, but I didn't have a lot of energy, and I didn't do any speed work. I did measure my pace during the last half-mile, and it was 12:08. I enjoyed the run.

I decided during my Monday run to start running tangents during my training run so I'll be doing it by habit and won't forget to do it during a race. Race courses are measured that way to insure that the specified distance is the shortest way one can run the course. I ran tangents on Monday and again today. I think in a few more runs, I'll have a habit of doing tangents.