Month: June 2010

Phew! I was really procrastinating doing today’s long run. It was 90 degrees when I finally decided to roll out of bed, and my run was in solid 87-degree weather with a 45% humidity. The sun was out but there were clouds making for some relief, but it was still a pretty consistent hot. I put in my head, “Just log the miles,” and “Don’t worry about time.” To wit, I had some 9-minute miles in the mix. Here are my details from today’s run:

Of course, being Saturday, I listened to NPR’s On the Media for the first loop of Central Park, and I’m starting to think there’s something to the hypothesis that listening to that program really slows me down because almost as soon as it stopped, I started to go fast. Granted, this was right about the completion of mile 6, at which point I had just consumed a PowerGel, and at which point I was stopping at a water fountain. Those two factors could also have contributed to my jettison (coupled with the dance song “Girls” that had just come on) rather than the stop of talk radio, but after having a few long runs with slower first loops, the “On the Media Hypothesis” is starting to develop data toward making it the “On the Media Theory.”

There’s something really great to share from today’s run: I didn’t have shin pain! It seems the pain that was prominent in the medial area of my right lower leg was diminished. A couple days ago I iced it when going to bed, and I’ve had two days of running rest because of work conflicts. No physical problems to report in today’s run other than I just was not about to put on afterburners in this heat at this time of day (3:30pm-ish). I’m also carrying 2-3 lbs. of more weight than I really want right now. I think it came as a combination of having a lot of protein from Naked Juice Protein Zone consumption plus weights, but maybe also because of caloric coconut water, which I was drinking like, um, an animal that can’t get his fix of coconut water. Today’s run I stopped frequently at water fountains, which helped me stay hydrated over the run as well as performing, though I started to get shivers toward the very end in the last mile, presumably because I was dehydrated.

I did get a bit faster in the second loop again. Part of that was desire, part of that was competitive spirit that turned on when I saw some rivals I could pick off (I picked them both off, but one overcame me bigtime), and part of that was confidence because I’d just completed one loop and was familiar with the weather.

So I got in my long run for this week! Slow, but I was seeming to recall I wasn’t big on time in June last year. I hope that was the case, but I’m trying less to care about time now and just care about logging miles. The hope is that I’ll get faster without paying too much attention to time.

And only a PowerGel before the run, other than some fat-free plain yogurt with granola, agave nectar, and cinnamon. I had that yogurt concoction after my run, too, as well as some chocolate milk and water. I’m nursing a green tea as I write this!

Tonight, for the first time ever, while running in Central Park, I hit not one, not two, not three, not even four, but FIVE swarms of insects! I have never even encountered one swarm of insects but tonight must have been something special on the Upper East Side around E. 90th St. The bugs were out, and I ran through them, and I had to bat my way through their thickness.

It was a somewhat cool, somewhat humid, 73-degree run today. Actually, it was 80% humidity but didn’t feel that bad. Apart from the five swarms, my right lower leg was of interest, and it was strong to begin with. It didn’t hurt in the beginning of today’s run as much as it did at the beginning of yesterday’s run, but inside mile 4 (or at some point after Great Hill), my leg started to hurt. I even got almost to the point of limping on it a bit, it felt so painful. It was more like a tired pain rather than a sharp pain.

I used various mental tricks to distract my attention from it and it pretty much worked. However, I couldn’t pull off a super-sprint at the end of this run. I did this run of 6.27 miles (basically a loop of Central Park) in just under 50 minutes, which is pretty paltry for me. I wonder if it’s the humidity partly. But mostly, it was the pain of my right lower leg.

It was nice to be out in the night, apart from the bugs. I felt faster than 7:51 pace suggests. At least I got in these miles after a day of work–which, by the way, I thought would last until midnight.

This morning I got in some stuff at the gym: abs, arms, pecs, quads, calves, and thighs. For that, I took Nitric Oxide Overdrive and I felt my heart pumping. So I thought, Could the ArginMax have made it feel as if I was having a heart attack in yesterday’s run? Because of that question, I skipped ArginMax today. I also didn’t have quercetin, but I did have a PowerGel. Plus, I had a light dinner before.

I ran with Elizabeth today in muggy, cloudy weather. And the run was painful for me: My right shin, medially, was still hurting! The pain was pretty strong in the beginning of my run and it dissipated over the course of 8+ miles, though it was there throughout. It was also in my left shin in a mirrored place but it wasn’t as strong there. It was hard to go fast at all today because of the combination of heat and hurt, but in not caring about pace, I logged some good miles.

Elizabeth and I talked a lot during the run. Most of the run was pleasant, though in the beginning I felt I was going to have a heart attack! (I chose to forego the heart rate monitor for today.) It was 77, then 75 degrees, with about 70% humidity and light sprinkles at times.

There were a number of runners in the park today; I figured it had something to do with a New York Road Runners class given the number of serious, fast runners in the mix. It didn’t do much for my ego, as I started to feel pretty fat and slow, but as I explained to Elizabeth, I’ve been trying to compare my current self with a better-trained self of about September or November of last year. I ain’t in that kind of shape. Plus, I’m not that far off of shape I was in at this time last year. However, it’s been hard to get to that level because it’s been so hot.

So the pain was pretty severe. I also put on my Mizuno Wave Precision 10s for the first time, which felt a half size small. This was not a problem when running, but it felt like a problem when walking because my toes felt pushed. I’m going to see if this shoe size is tolerable for me to run in. My brother says it’s slightly lighter and closer to the ground than my prior Wave Rider 13s. I didn’t notice a difference and other than the small fit, they rode well.

ArginMax and quercetin were just before my run, and about two hours before was a 6-inch Subway sandwich which may have weighed me down a bit today. All in all, it wasn’t a great run performancewise, but I did get in the mileage, it was with great company, and I did it on a day I also had work. It’s starting to feel really nice when I can fit in work and training.

And I enjoyed a Protein Zone Naked Juice after the run. All 32 fl. oz. Don’t worry: I had 4 Beano just before chugging it.