did get my five hours of sleep and went out to run in a cold gray rainy morning. this is the weather that was so typical of what i ran in back in oxford, with the small exception that it might have been colder here.
but at any rate i headed north and ran the east blvd loop seeing so many less people than are usually out on a sunday morning. coming back i turned and headed north back towards the alexandria st. bridge to get 7 miles in and ran into the 85 year man i see sometimes who walks 8 miles every sunday. a one time runner marathoner he now just walks he said- but he was out there in the cold rain getting his exercise in.
the legs weren't bad today but not ready to really run yet. i moved down the trail and every once in awhile threw in 20-40 yards of quicker strides and that felt ok.
back home the day turned into a washout. at 35 degrees the cold rain didn't make any outside golf practice seem appealing and in truth, i didn't even feel like driving anywhere. another day ....
spent the time cleaning out the attic and basement and office. time to get things put back together and am still in the process of throwing things away simply because there is no room for the stuff in the house. seems like a waste, but it won't matter in the end. everything seems depressing somehow.
did watch the end of the world cup in golf and my pick of karlson and stenson won so i won my little pool. not a hard choice for sure- all they had to do was play like they can and they did.
back to work- it is getting late fast. the phones which were not working earlier are back on. at least we didn't lose the rest of the power. with golf scheduled for tuesday i may not run that day and then wed. will become the 80,000 mile day. so what i say to myself- not a good mood i am in for sure.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
facebook, running, bald eagles, etc
quick note as it is late and i have 5 hours before i have to be up- had joined facebook way back while living in england as a possible way of staying in touch with friends, but never got it off the ground and used the blog instead. but a few friends finally found me now that i have moved back- another interesting internet tool. curious to see how it develops-
ran 5 miles yesterday and 7 today though neither run was of any quality. finding out that i just don't recover from races like i used to and i will need to really find out for myself what i am going to have to do to get the proper rest. sleep is not one of my friends these days. still it was nice to be out on the trail and today we
saw a pair of nesting bald eagles. watching them fly around was nice and we soon had a small crowd wondering what we were looking at.
fun day with a little golf practice, some gardening, cleaning out the shed and attic and dinner with daughter beth. all in all an ok day-
back tomorrow- still lots to do but nice to have the entire house back working again-
ran 5 miles yesterday and 7 today though neither run was of any quality. finding out that i just don't recover from races like i used to and i will need to really find out for myself what i am going to have to do to get the proper rest. sleep is not one of my friends these days. still it was nice to be out on the trail and today we
saw a pair of nesting bald eagles. watching them fly around was nice and we soon had a small crowd wondering what we were looking at.
fun day with a little golf practice, some gardening, cleaning out the shed and attic and dinner with daughter beth. all in all an ok day-
back tomorrow- still lots to do but nice to have the entire house back working again-
Friday, November 28, 2008
Thursday, November 27, 2008
turkey trot 5 miler, etc
ran the turkey trot 5 miler today in 43:09-from the line- probably 20 seconds from the gun or so. actually ran really well and it shows how much running with people helps and also that a little rest can help the legs bounce back some.
having hardly raced at all over the last several years as i continued to slow down and fight the right leg issues, i was really pleased to get under 45 and would have been happy to have gotten under 50 actually. it helped to bump into debbie margraff at the start and we ran together for maybe two miles and she took off. my pulse was already high and i settled in to make sure i finished. also saw nina t. out there and ran with her and a friend for a bit and then they also went on. i was 22:30 for the first half and just under 21 for the second half and each mile was a little quicker than the one before it and i will call it a good race.
and it gave me an idea of what i have to do to try and get a little faster. an interesting note - my heart rate hit 175 at the finish line and i ran most of the first half about 156 and then went into the 160's and before hitting 170 at 4 miles. my last treadmill test 5 years ago said my max heart rate was about 173. 10 years ago it was 178. not an exact science as it depends on me staying on the treadmill, but i can figure it is about 177-178 now i think. will chart out the training heart rates tomorrow. funny that my morning heart rate that was 39 or so in my heyday and 43 recently enough, had climbed to 46-48 the last month. was 45 today. i need to re-think how to get more rest and still train and not gain back weight.
this week has been 9, 4, day off and the race with about 3 more miles of warm-up and cool-down. and nothing feels that bad. the right quad tightened up some of course, but never got as bad as usual. will keep up the stretching and decide about having some more ART work done on it.
wanted to mention that gail ran really well today also in her first race in a long time and she seems motivated to do more also. she stayed tough the entire run and did well. she is always tough mentally.
a good time and a really nice social event. next up is the MADD 5k in a few weeks after xmas. lots to do before that. will hit 80k next week.
more soon. want to catch up on the India terror stuff.
having hardly raced at all over the last several years as i continued to slow down and fight the right leg issues, i was really pleased to get under 45 and would have been happy to have gotten under 50 actually. it helped to bump into debbie margraff at the start and we ran together for maybe two miles and she took off. my pulse was already high and i settled in to make sure i finished. also saw nina t. out there and ran with her and a friend for a bit and then they also went on. i was 22:30 for the first half and just under 21 for the second half and each mile was a little quicker than the one before it and i will call it a good race.
and it gave me an idea of what i have to do to try and get a little faster. an interesting note - my heart rate hit 175 at the finish line and i ran most of the first half about 156 and then went into the 160's and before hitting 170 at 4 miles. my last treadmill test 5 years ago said my max heart rate was about 173. 10 years ago it was 178. not an exact science as it depends on me staying on the treadmill, but i can figure it is about 177-178 now i think. will chart out the training heart rates tomorrow. funny that my morning heart rate that was 39 or so in my heyday and 43 recently enough, had climbed to 46-48 the last month. was 45 today. i need to re-think how to get more rest and still train and not gain back weight.
this week has been 9, 4, day off and the race with about 3 more miles of warm-up and cool-down. and nothing feels that bad. the right quad tightened up some of course, but never got as bad as usual. will keep up the stretching and decide about having some more ART work done on it.
wanted to mention that gail ran really well today also in her first race in a long time and she seems motivated to do more also. she stayed tough the entire run and did well. she is always tough mentally.
a good time and a really nice social event. next up is the MADD 5k in a few weeks after xmas. lots to do before that. will hit 80k next week.
more soon. want to catch up on the India terror stuff.
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Saturday, November 22, 2008
60 miles to 80,000
four miles yesterday and 9 more this morning so only 60 to go to hit 80,000. don't you just love meaningless numbers? went short and slow yesterday still trying to get some bounce in the legs. later in the day i played 9 holes of golf in the cold and wind and it probably wasn't the best idea i ever had. but i am learning more stuff every time out now and it seemed easier to play than hit balls. i did get to do some short game outside and hit 200 putts in the family room working on the new grip.
and i played ok actually. can still block and hook and am figuring it out as i go how not to. the deal is to keep doing the swing the pro wants me to do and not worry about where the ball goes. that works better on the range than on the course, but playing alone i can do it ok and not hold anyone up and actually i only hit a couple of what i would call bad shots, though not every straight shot was hit like i wanted it to be hit at least they went straight. funny card as i started out 3, 3, 6, 3, 3 with one double and one birdie- finished 4, 5 , 4, and 4 ; 3 over for the 9 holes. with 4 par 3's the course is short but tough.
anyway- ran 9 miles today in a wind chill of 18 degrees. felt pretty good until near the end and then it seemed like i hit a small wall and had to slow down to finish, but i did. afterwards i did some garden work pruning and replanting and then hit 100 pitches and chips and called it a day as my fingers were getting pretty cold.
and that brings me to now. dinner and texas tech and maryland games tonight plus some house administrative stuff and maybe take the time to pick out the next marathon.
back later i hope.
and i played ok actually. can still block and hook and am figuring it out as i go how not to. the deal is to keep doing the swing the pro wants me to do and not worry about where the ball goes. that works better on the range than on the course, but playing alone i can do it ok and not hold anyone up and actually i only hit a couple of what i would call bad shots, though not every straight shot was hit like i wanted it to be hit at least they went straight. funny card as i started out 3, 3, 6, 3, 3 with one double and one birdie- finished 4, 5 , 4, and 4 ; 3 over for the 9 holes. with 4 par 3's the course is short but tough.
anyway- ran 9 miles today in a wind chill of 18 degrees. felt pretty good until near the end and then it seemed like i hit a small wall and had to slow down to finish, but i did. afterwards i did some garden work pruning and replanting and then hit 100 pitches and chips and called it a day as my fingers were getting pretty cold.
and that brings me to now. dinner and texas tech and maryland games tonight plus some house administrative stuff and maybe take the time to pick out the next marathon.
back later i hope.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
8,9, and 11 mile runs the past hree days
hard to believe it has been three days since i posted. i am so out of touch with any kind of routine back here in the usa and really do miss my little oxford schedule. has been three up and down days and even knowing that things are ok doesn't make me feel that way- more on that later maybe.
so i have run 8, 9 and 11 miles the last three pretty cold days. various type of runs mostly designed to get some easy miles in and get some stretching and recovery back into my life. the legs are slowly coming around as i have just not given them enough of a break from the marathon. despite what appears to be a slow marathon time, i hadn't gone over 17 miles in training and had not done even that lately so toughing out the last 9 miles was a good effort, especially once the quads went south on me. i was really glad to see that i could still stay tough despite not racing hardly at all and now it's a matter of getting recovered enough to start actually training again.
and at least the runs were done in pretty scenery along the river. yesterday an old friend came by on his bike and rode next to me as i ran for awhile and that was nice; and then today i ran into another old friend out for her 4 miles and we did that together and then i headed home along the hilly route and did twenty second pickups and that felt good.
and then after some of the usual house stuff i headed over to the golf course and played 9 holes and shot a 40- which was pretty decent. hit some nice shots and a couple of hooks, but figured out a few things also and some good chipping and putting kept the scoring to a minimum at least- 15 putts for the nine holes and parred the par 5 last hole for a good finish of 4 pars in a row. given the cold and wind it was a nice outing and as there were so few people playing it only 95 minutes.
and so on we go. trip to philly this weekend was put off so my mom could get over her flu/cold. still lots to do we'll work on that and maybe grab a movie and calzones or something. the days are just zipping by each sort of like the other and many dependent on the weather and traffic. the extra 45 minutes to get home tonight got me home in the dark instead of earlier so some stuff had to be put off. no big deal i know. feel like i need to live somewhere where i don't need the car except sometimes. worked ok in oxford.
dinner time - almost 10pm. will do the rest of this later. maybe clinton and palin can go on vacation together so the country can get a break from their lives of drama. the market crashed again today and i have been following the series on how it is affecting retirees. scary for most people, but sometimes we all just have to do what we have to do and depend on ourselves. me too i know. no criticism meant here for sure, but i hope i don't have to depend on social security to save me.
and the front door opens and it really is dinner time now. don't most people eat dinner at 9:44?
worst news of the day was that utley needs surgery! and that mussina retired.
so i have run 8, 9 and 11 miles the last three pretty cold days. various type of runs mostly designed to get some easy miles in and get some stretching and recovery back into my life. the legs are slowly coming around as i have just not given them enough of a break from the marathon. despite what appears to be a slow marathon time, i hadn't gone over 17 miles in training and had not done even that lately so toughing out the last 9 miles was a good effort, especially once the quads went south on me. i was really glad to see that i could still stay tough despite not racing hardly at all and now it's a matter of getting recovered enough to start actually training again.
and at least the runs were done in pretty scenery along the river. yesterday an old friend came by on his bike and rode next to me as i ran for awhile and that was nice; and then today i ran into another old friend out for her 4 miles and we did that together and then i headed home along the hilly route and did twenty second pickups and that felt good.
and then after some of the usual house stuff i headed over to the golf course and played 9 holes and shot a 40- which was pretty decent. hit some nice shots and a couple of hooks, but figured out a few things also and some good chipping and putting kept the scoring to a minimum at least- 15 putts for the nine holes and parred the par 5 last hole for a good finish of 4 pars in a row. given the cold and wind it was a nice outing and as there were so few people playing it only 95 minutes.
and so on we go. trip to philly this weekend was put off so my mom could get over her flu/cold. still lots to do we'll work on that and maybe grab a movie and calzones or something. the days are just zipping by each sort of like the other and many dependent on the weather and traffic. the extra 45 minutes to get home tonight got me home in the dark instead of earlier so some stuff had to be put off. no big deal i know. feel like i need to live somewhere where i don't need the car except sometimes. worked ok in oxford.
dinner time - almost 10pm. will do the rest of this later. maybe clinton and palin can go on vacation together so the country can get a break from their lives of drama. the market crashed again today and i have been following the series on how it is affecting retirees. scary for most people, but sometimes we all just have to do what we have to do and depend on ourselves. me too i know. no criticism meant here for sure, but i hope i don't have to depend on social security to save me.
and the front door opens and it really is dinner time now. don't most people eat dinner at 9:44?
worst news of the day was that utley needs surgery! and that mussina retired.
Monday, November 17, 2008
winter is here, indoor bike ride and nancy dietz.
quick morning post- ran 8 yesterday and got 45 miles in last week after running the marathon on sunday. always a matter of individual taste and i know everything you read says to take one day of recovery for each mile of race and many others say to take 4 weeks to recover and yes, i am not recovered. But, my personal preference is to be very careful and pay attention t any possible damage and just go out and do something easy. i take longer to recover this way and i don't coach my runners to train this was, but none of my runners have done 185 marathons either. in the old days of a younger larry when i was running a marathon a month, it didn't take that long to recover. these days everyone wants to run marathons with as little training as possible, mostly due to time constraints and the big push for marathon participation has been great for the population as a whole, and the economics of marathons as well. racing itself has suffered somewhat maybe, but the more people the better. it may be true that the more you train the faster you will run and the easier you will recover. i also like, as i did this time, to walk 45 minutes after the marathon, but not everyone will do this. it is easy to walk and drink and have a yogurt and banana or a mustard pretzel or grapes and the walk does wonders for the legs. and you get to bask in your accomplishment. but what do i know? there are a zillion theories on how to train and how to recover.
my coaching philosophy has been to do no harm to my runners. i think long term. not for everyone. generally only the people who don't listen get hurt. 5 x 800 in 4 minutes means that, not 3:45; 4:14; 3:56; 4:28; 4:12. but most people would do just fine listening to hal higdon, like i did and his speedwork training was the basis of my earlier training.
so today in an attempt to rest the legs a bit from some of the pounding, and after a morning heart rate of 46, i got on my indoor training bike and rode a 26.26 mile ride of hill intervals at 65% heart rate. does this sound like rest? usually would do a 31 mile workout at 85% so at least it was less and still felt like i did a decent little workout listening to old bob dylan and jackson browne stuff.
i am old so i still believe in that old school way of training- "run more". i don't give a thought to converting the bike miles to running miles. why bother? it is not running. there is some exercise and fitness n]benefit, but still, it is not running.
you don't become a better putter by lifting weights or doing pilates for golf. you putt everyday for an hour and you start to get better. you putt straight and left to right and right to left and uphill and downhill. you make sure you can make 4 footers and 12 footers and you get better with your chipping because you know you can make the putts you leave. same with running.
once long ago when i was much newer to this i used to run where i had a very tough hill about 5 miles into my 8 mile run and i just could not get up that hill. one night at a running dinner i had the great fortune to meet nancy dietz, a terrific marathoner and nice as can be person. i asked her how she dealt with tough parts of her training and explained my hill problem. she told me the next time i got near the hill to just tell myself i owned that hill and nothing could stop me from going right up that hill.
and right up it i went the next time and every time thereafter. i just said to myself that i owned the hill and i was going right up it and i did. still do actually, and this past week at harrisburg when i got to the "hill" i did the same thing and just went up it. some barriers are mental. when i finally broke 3:10 i never had a problem doing it again- not every time of course, as some days are just not great days.
oh well, onto the day. warm enough to go play golf. spent two frustrating hours working on furniture yesterday and not today thank you. lots of free time as gail has an overnight at school. later....
thanks again nancy. hope you are still running well.
my coaching philosophy has been to do no harm to my runners. i think long term. not for everyone. generally only the people who don't listen get hurt. 5 x 800 in 4 minutes means that, not 3:45; 4:14; 3:56; 4:28; 4:12. but most people would do just fine listening to hal higdon, like i did and his speedwork training was the basis of my earlier training.
so today in an attempt to rest the legs a bit from some of the pounding, and after a morning heart rate of 46, i got on my indoor training bike and rode a 26.26 mile ride of hill intervals at 65% heart rate. does this sound like rest? usually would do a 31 mile workout at 85% so at least it was less and still felt like i did a decent little workout listening to old bob dylan and jackson browne stuff.
i am old so i still believe in that old school way of training- "run more". i don't give a thought to converting the bike miles to running miles. why bother? it is not running. there is some exercise and fitness n]benefit, but still, it is not running.
you don't become a better putter by lifting weights or doing pilates for golf. you putt everyday for an hour and you start to get better. you putt straight and left to right and right to left and uphill and downhill. you make sure you can make 4 footers and 12 footers and you get better with your chipping because you know you can make the putts you leave. same with running.
once long ago when i was much newer to this i used to run where i had a very tough hill about 5 miles into my 8 mile run and i just could not get up that hill. one night at a running dinner i had the great fortune to meet nancy dietz, a terrific marathoner and nice as can be person. i asked her how she dealt with tough parts of her training and explained my hill problem. she told me the next time i got near the hill to just tell myself i owned that hill and nothing could stop me from going right up that hill.
and right up it i went the next time and every time thereafter. i just said to myself that i owned the hill and i was going right up it and i did. still do actually, and this past week at harrisburg when i got to the "hill" i did the same thing and just went up it. some barriers are mental. when i finally broke 3:10 i never had a problem doing it again- not every time of course, as some days are just not great days.
oh well, onto the day. warm enough to go play golf. spent two frustrating hours working on furniture yesterday and not today thank you. lots of free time as gail has an overnight at school. later....
thanks again nancy. hope you are still running well.
alexandria, va -america's marathon capital
Alexandria is America’s Marathon Capital
Study says area has the most marathon participants in the country, but why?
By Mark Giannotto
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
It was 1976 and 11-year-old Alexandria native Jim McGrath was having his first of many encounters with the marathon.
He had just watched American runner Frank Shorter get the silver medal in the marathon event at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal, four years after Shorter had become the first American to win the event at the 1972 games in Moscow.
Simply put, the prospect of running for sport had been transmitted into his living room.
“It was the first time anyone knew an American who had run and it was the first time it was ever on television,” said McGrath. “That was a big moment.”
Inspired by his new Olympic hero, McGrath went out and bought his first pair of running shoes and “started jogging down Duke Street” as a new way to stay in shape. A short time after that, he started running his own races, finishing the Marine Corps Marathon in four hours and forty-four minutes as a 13-year-old.
Thirty years later the phenomenon that got McGrath hooked is still around and stronger than ever in the Alexandria area. Last spring the May 2008 issue of Running Times Magazine concluded that Alexandria was the top marathon city in the United States based on race finishers per 1,000 residents.
IT’S SURPRISING to some when the notion of Alexandria being one of this country’s pre-eminent running cities is brought up since common sense says a place with nice weather year-round would be more conducive to such activities.
But the list of towns considered marathon havens is littered with much more northern cities like Ann Arbor, Mich., Minneapolis, and Portland, Ore. It turns out there are a number of factors that contribute to the popularity of running and this area appears to have a near-perfect confluence of them all.
Just last Saturday morning more than 300 people came out despite overcast skies at Cameron Run Regional Park for the Biliary Artesia (BA) 5K. Many there had run in marathons before and were simply out to get their legs moving after a long week at a desk or to keep up with a legacy of weekend runs.
“It kind of keeps my life in order,” said Arlington resident Jesse Johnson, who finished first in the BA 5K. “I think in general (this area) just has a lot of type A personalities that like to keep fit.”
“I grew up in a family where my dad was always doing marathons,” said Alexandria resident Jenny Goransson, who ran in her fourth marathon three weeks ago at the Marine Corps Marathon. “I always thought he was crazy, but then I ran track in high school and college and when I graduated college I said I was going to give it a try. I thought I’d just do one, but then I really loved it.”
Aside from getting exercise, Alexandria’s affluence also plays a large role in how popular running has become over the years. Generally speaking, people in the upper middle class of America are the ones that have the time and the money to spend running for exercise.
According to Chris Farley, owner of Pacers Running Stores, the blend of wealth and the importance placed on exercise in the area is what draws many into the marathoning scene.
“I think it’s really part of the culture, and we see it in our business, it starts at an early age,” said Farley. “Meshed with that fact that Alexandria is an area where people are very educated, upper middle class, those people are the ones who have the opportunities to run."
Farley also points to the sheer amount of events that take place throughout the area every weekend. His store sponsors events as small as the BA 5K and as large as the annual George Washington Parkway Classic and Potomac River Run Marathon, and is out in the community almost every weekend putting on races.
In addition, Pacers has their own running club that meets almost every day of the week. According to the company’s event coordinator, Kathy Dalby, a runner in the club can take part in up to 21 training sessions throughout the week and their club sees as many as 700 runners participate in at least one session a week.
“It’s really a great social activity, especially in such a transient area,” said Dalby. “It’s such an inclusive sport. Running, you can be as slow as molasses and still be okay in a race.”
Many of the area’s running clubs are designed to train participants for the area’s most well-known race, the Marine Corps Marathon held every October. Many of the runners in these clubs originally sign up just to stay in shape, but end up taking a much more vested interest.
“You see other people doing it, and you’re like if that girl can do it, I can do it,” said Alexandria native Judy Abid after finishing the BA 5K last weekend.
THE PHENOMENON of marathons in this area doesn’t seem to be slowing down, either. According to Dalby, Pacers has seen a 35 percent increase in participants for its No. 1 race — the GW Parkway Classic — just in the last three years.
Although that race is only 10 miles, it’s viewed as one of the big tune-ups for the Marine Corps Marathon. This year’s Marine Corps race had more than 650 finishers who listed their hometown as Alexandria.
The Potomac River Run Marathon, held in Alexandria every May, has seen its participation numbers more than double since the race began in 2003. Race director Jay Wind said registration and interest is up so much for this year’s event that 40 people (more than five percent of last year’s total participation) signed up the first day possible.
And Farley thinks even the tough economic times this country is going through won’t slow down the city’s burgeoning infatuation with running.
“We’ve maybe seen some flattening out on the retail side, but with the races people are still signing up for the races,” said Farley. “So regardless of what the economy is doing, people still have a great outlet.”
Now a 43-year-old teacher in Hampton, Va., McGrath thinks it makes perfect sense that Alexandria has evolved into such a marathon city considering “one of the biggest is right in our backyard.”
A Bishop Ireton graduate back in 1982, running has remained a central component of McGrath’s life ever since he purchased that first pair of shoes. He coached cross-country and track and field at his high school alma mater from 1987-1989, 1991-1995, and in 2002 and has watched as an Olympic novelty transformed into one of Alexandria’s favorite past times.
“I’m definitely proud because (my friends and I) were definitely running during the early stages of it,” said McGrath. “It just stuck in Alexandria for some reason.”
Study says area has the most marathon participants in the country, but why?
By Mark Giannotto
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
It was 1976 and 11-year-old Alexandria native Jim McGrath was having his first of many encounters with the marathon.
He had just watched American runner Frank Shorter get the silver medal in the marathon event at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal, four years after Shorter had become the first American to win the event at the 1972 games in Moscow.
Simply put, the prospect of running for sport had been transmitted into his living room.
“It was the first time anyone knew an American who had run and it was the first time it was ever on television,” said McGrath. “That was a big moment.”
Inspired by his new Olympic hero, McGrath went out and bought his first pair of running shoes and “started jogging down Duke Street” as a new way to stay in shape. A short time after that, he started running his own races, finishing the Marine Corps Marathon in four hours and forty-four minutes as a 13-year-old.
Thirty years later the phenomenon that got McGrath hooked is still around and stronger than ever in the Alexandria area. Last spring the May 2008 issue of Running Times Magazine concluded that Alexandria was the top marathon city in the United States based on race finishers per 1,000 residents.
IT’S SURPRISING to some when the notion of Alexandria being one of this country’s pre-eminent running cities is brought up since common sense says a place with nice weather year-round would be more conducive to such activities.
But the list of towns considered marathon havens is littered with much more northern cities like Ann Arbor, Mich., Minneapolis, and Portland, Ore. It turns out there are a number of factors that contribute to the popularity of running and this area appears to have a near-perfect confluence of them all.
Just last Saturday morning more than 300 people came out despite overcast skies at Cameron Run Regional Park for the Biliary Artesia (BA) 5K. Many there had run in marathons before and were simply out to get their legs moving after a long week at a desk or to keep up with a legacy of weekend runs.
“It kind of keeps my life in order,” said Arlington resident Jesse Johnson, who finished first in the BA 5K. “I think in general (this area) just has a lot of type A personalities that like to keep fit.”
“I grew up in a family where my dad was always doing marathons,” said Alexandria resident Jenny Goransson, who ran in her fourth marathon three weeks ago at the Marine Corps Marathon. “I always thought he was crazy, but then I ran track in high school and college and when I graduated college I said I was going to give it a try. I thought I’d just do one, but then I really loved it.”
Aside from getting exercise, Alexandria’s affluence also plays a large role in how popular running has become over the years. Generally speaking, people in the upper middle class of America are the ones that have the time and the money to spend running for exercise.
According to Chris Farley, owner of Pacers Running Stores, the blend of wealth and the importance placed on exercise in the area is what draws many into the marathoning scene.
“I think it’s really part of the culture, and we see it in our business, it starts at an early age,” said Farley. “Meshed with that fact that Alexandria is an area where people are very educated, upper middle class, those people are the ones who have the opportunities to run."
Farley also points to the sheer amount of events that take place throughout the area every weekend. His store sponsors events as small as the BA 5K and as large as the annual George Washington Parkway Classic and Potomac River Run Marathon, and is out in the community almost every weekend putting on races.
In addition, Pacers has their own running club that meets almost every day of the week. According to the company’s event coordinator, Kathy Dalby, a runner in the club can take part in up to 21 training sessions throughout the week and their club sees as many as 700 runners participate in at least one session a week.
“It’s really a great social activity, especially in such a transient area,” said Dalby. “It’s such an inclusive sport. Running, you can be as slow as molasses and still be okay in a race.”
Many of the area’s running clubs are designed to train participants for the area’s most well-known race, the Marine Corps Marathon held every October. Many of the runners in these clubs originally sign up just to stay in shape, but end up taking a much more vested interest.
“You see other people doing it, and you’re like if that girl can do it, I can do it,” said Alexandria native Judy Abid after finishing the BA 5K last weekend.
THE PHENOMENON of marathons in this area doesn’t seem to be slowing down, either. According to Dalby, Pacers has seen a 35 percent increase in participants for its No. 1 race — the GW Parkway Classic — just in the last three years.
Although that race is only 10 miles, it’s viewed as one of the big tune-ups for the Marine Corps Marathon. This year’s Marine Corps race had more than 650 finishers who listed their hometown as Alexandria.
The Potomac River Run Marathon, held in Alexandria every May, has seen its participation numbers more than double since the race began in 2003. Race director Jay Wind said registration and interest is up so much for this year’s event that 40 people (more than five percent of last year’s total participation) signed up the first day possible.
And Farley thinks even the tough economic times this country is going through won’t slow down the city’s burgeoning infatuation with running.
“We’ve maybe seen some flattening out on the retail side, but with the races people are still signing up for the races,” said Farley. “So regardless of what the economy is doing, people still have a great outlet.”
Now a 43-year-old teacher in Hampton, Va., McGrath thinks it makes perfect sense that Alexandria has evolved into such a marathon city considering “one of the biggest is right in our backyard.”
A Bishop Ireton graduate back in 1982, running has remained a central component of McGrath’s life ever since he purchased that first pair of shoes. He coached cross-country and track and field at his high school alma mater from 1987-1989, 1991-1995, and in 2002 and has watched as an Olympic novelty transformed into one of Alexandria’s favorite past times.
“I’m definitely proud because (my friends and I) were definitely running during the early stages of it,” said McGrath. “It just stuck in Alexandria for some reason.”
Saturday, November 15, 2008
two days of not much
wish i could say i got more done these past two days but it was actually a bit nice just doing some normal stuff without much stress and only some time spent sitting in traffic.
way to go penn state and u of maryland on their wins today. also texas and did fordham win too?
so when do the baseball teams start getting into gear and make some moves. always one of my favorite times of the year- baseball free agency.
seems the quad strain is getting better. it still is very tight but there is no pain just for being alive like there was a few days ago. and to that end i went about 5 miles yesterday and 9 miles today. it went much better today despite finishing in the rain. hope to really ramp up the stretching this week, but don't want to get hurt stretching again so i will be more than careful. in the past 6 days since the marathon i have covered 38 miles and done one ride of 22 or so. probably not enough recovery, but my style through 185 marathons has been to do too much too soon and just take longer to recover. i do want to build back up and add some more speedwork while i try to decide what's next. most likely some shorter races and another marathon in the spring, maybe an old favorite like the B&A or else pick out one i haven't done yet. some of this will depend on the pending eye surgery and as always, my cancer checkups. i mention that only because my dr has guaranteed it will come back.
golf wise i hit the ball really well yesterday and my short game is coming around again finally. hitting a few hundred putts and chips almost everyday now. was cut somewhat short today as the rain poured down while i was on the green. got my 200 putts in and many chips-no pitches though. did hit a bucket of balls and that went ok. always hard making grip and swing changes, but am trying.
and life goes on for now- still lots of emails to catch up on. started to putt some of the house back together again and will continue to toss stuff away. also signed up to go to NC to play golf for several days after the new year's. sort of a birthday present for myself.
more soon-
way to go penn state and u of maryland on their wins today. also texas and did fordham win too?
so when do the baseball teams start getting into gear and make some moves. always one of my favorite times of the year- baseball free agency.
seems the quad strain is getting better. it still is very tight but there is no pain just for being alive like there was a few days ago. and to that end i went about 5 miles yesterday and 9 miles today. it went much better today despite finishing in the rain. hope to really ramp up the stretching this week, but don't want to get hurt stretching again so i will be more than careful. in the past 6 days since the marathon i have covered 38 miles and done one ride of 22 or so. probably not enough recovery, but my style through 185 marathons has been to do too much too soon and just take longer to recover. i do want to build back up and add some more speedwork while i try to decide what's next. most likely some shorter races and another marathon in the spring, maybe an old favorite like the B&A or else pick out one i haven't done yet. some of this will depend on the pending eye surgery and as always, my cancer checkups. i mention that only because my dr has guaranteed it will come back.
golf wise i hit the ball really well yesterday and my short game is coming around again finally. hitting a few hundred putts and chips almost everyday now. was cut somewhat short today as the rain poured down while i was on the green. got my 200 putts in and many chips-no pitches though. did hit a bucket of balls and that went ok. always hard making grip and swing changes, but am trying.
and life goes on for now- still lots of emails to catch up on. started to putt some of the house back together again and will continue to toss stuff away. also signed up to go to NC to play golf for several days after the new year's. sort of a birthday present for myself.
more soon-
Thursday, November 13, 2008
a little bit of everything and a lot of rain
up early and out the door and tried to run a little between walk segments to see how everything felt and the legs didn't feel bad. went slowly and stopped to stretch very carefully every 20 minutes and stayed out long enough to get in about 6 miles. but bad surprise at home later as the right quad was clearly strained somewhat by the stretching. i get hurt stretching much more than i ever do running. iced it down and went about the days work noting here that the rain was really heavy by now and that golf with the group was a washout for today and rescheduled for next week.
i spent about 50 minutes putting on the family room rug while washing clothes and then started in on putting the house back together now that most of the work is done. at some point i will start repairing the stuff that the work crews messed up- mostly painting.
then took advantage of a break in the heavier rain to go out and hit balls for awhile and do some short chipping. raked some more leaves as i was already wet and came in to get some reading done. will do emails over the weekend though i have two luncheons scheduled.
took a chance and rode the indoor bike at a nice easy 22 mph at 84 rpm's just to see how the right quad was doing, and put some heat on it afterwards. felt better than this morning, but was not like it had been a mirage of my mind and something was still there. will deal with it gently and keep an eye on it.
gail came home late and we took a break and had some dinner and watched an old movie we both liked and now here i am wrapping up the day. a sort of decent day that overcame an earlier down feeling i could not quite put my finger on. i know there is post marathon race stuff that one could feel, but never have in my other 184 marathons.
can the world just let sarah palin quietly re-gather herself and move on for a bit? good enough that the right team won and now maybe the world can deal with the global economy, lack of energy and the coming heat wave. maybe we'll have less snow this winter.
hang in there everyone. get some exercise.
i spent about 50 minutes putting on the family room rug while washing clothes and then started in on putting the house back together now that most of the work is done. at some point i will start repairing the stuff that the work crews messed up- mostly painting.
then took advantage of a break in the heavier rain to go out and hit balls for awhile and do some short chipping. raked some more leaves as i was already wet and came in to get some reading done. will do emails over the weekend though i have two luncheons scheduled.
took a chance and rode the indoor bike at a nice easy 22 mph at 84 rpm's just to see how the right quad was doing, and put some heat on it afterwards. felt better than this morning, but was not like it had been a mirage of my mind and something was still there. will deal with it gently and keep an eye on it.
gail came home late and we took a break and had some dinner and watched an old movie we both liked and now here i am wrapping up the day. a sort of decent day that overcame an earlier down feeling i could not quite put my finger on. i know there is post marathon race stuff that one could feel, but never have in my other 184 marathons.
can the world just let sarah palin quietly re-gather herself and move on for a bit? good enough that the right team won and now maybe the world can deal with the global economy, lack of energy and the coming heat wave. maybe we'll have less snow this winter.
hang in there everyone. get some exercise.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
walk, run, golf
a simple day spent doing a walk/run very early in semi darkness so i could be home when the furniture repair guy showed up to cut up our new sofa and then re-assemble it on a different floor level.
ran some and the legs are coming back some- made another mental note to really start stretching more and more once the legs are ready for it. spent the next few hours with the sofa guy and then headed over to the 9 hole course and played ok. not there yet, but got away with some so-so shots; best part was that my misses stayed in play and i chipped really well. even birdied the tough par 4 3rd hole when a really so-so 2 iron hybrid shot bounced up onto the green and stopped 3 feet from the hole. made that putt and was lucky on that hole.
but what the golf gods giveth they also take back- on the next par 3 hole i actually hit the flagstick with my 5 iron tee shot only to have it bounce off the flag stick and go into the back bunker for what turned out to be a bogie 4. some good and some so-so shots but scored well with a good short game and only 15 putts for the 9 holes. then spent two hours practicing the short game and putting. had already hit 100 balls earlier before i played.
spent the evening doing stuff around the house and reading after some phone calls trying to arrange a few things. may or may not play golf tomorrow as the rain is supposed to hit around noon.
and then it is time to put the house back together and get on with whatever is next.
more soon.
ran some and the legs are coming back some- made another mental note to really start stretching more and more once the legs are ready for it. spent the next few hours with the sofa guy and then headed over to the 9 hole course and played ok. not there yet, but got away with some so-so shots; best part was that my misses stayed in play and i chipped really well. even birdied the tough par 4 3rd hole when a really so-so 2 iron hybrid shot bounced up onto the green and stopped 3 feet from the hole. made that putt and was lucky on that hole.
but what the golf gods giveth they also take back- on the next par 3 hole i actually hit the flagstick with my 5 iron tee shot only to have it bounce off the flag stick and go into the back bunker for what turned out to be a bogie 4. some good and some so-so shots but scored well with a good short game and only 15 putts for the 9 holes. then spent two hours practicing the short game and putting. had already hit 100 balls earlier before i played.
spent the evening doing stuff around the house and reading after some phone calls trying to arrange a few things. may or may not play golf tomorrow as the rain is supposed to hit around noon.
and then it is time to put the house back together and get on with whatever is next.
more soon.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
useless sort of an ok day
up and out for a 5 mile walk and some slow jogging. legs still not really ready to run and i wasn't intending to try, just to test the muscles a bit. but a beautiful morning and i enjoyed the walk part and the time spent with neighbors on the trail.
then came home and finished this year's planting and did some more leaf raking. ran a bunch of errands and did some inside stuff and went off to practice some short game and hit a bucket of balls-so-so, but never do that well after not hitting for 5 days. my heart and head are just not into golf right now. need to re-think what i am doing with it as i have no cogent strategy for getting my game back and also having some fun with it just now.
spent the rest of the evening trying to motivate myself to so some work, but ended up reading all night. will try again tomorrow. one more worker coming to wrap up for now i hope. then we can get back to putting it all together again.
short and sweet, the blog will take on a new view soon. 70 days to obama time.
79,857 miles down and 143 to go for 80,000. only a number i know.
with 185 marathons done now, do i focus on 200 or just do what comes up? can i get faster? a few more days off and than a restart.
then came home and finished this year's planting and did some more leaf raking. ran a bunch of errands and did some inside stuff and went off to practice some short game and hit a bucket of balls-so-so, but never do that well after not hitting for 5 days. my heart and head are just not into golf right now. need to re-think what i am doing with it as i have no cogent strategy for getting my game back and also having some fun with it just now.
spent the rest of the evening trying to motivate myself to so some work, but ended up reading all night. will try again tomorrow. one more worker coming to wrap up for now i hope. then we can get back to putting it all together again.
short and sweet, the blog will take on a new view soon. 70 days to obama time.
79,857 miles down and 143 to go for 80,000. only a number i know.
with 185 marathons done now, do i focus on 200 or just do what comes up? can i get faster? a few more days off and than a restart.
Monday, November 10, 2008
day after harrisburg marathon
so the marathon went pretty well actually given my less than usual long run training, though i ran more miles than ever in the past year. and that strength carried me through despite the tightness in the quads late in the run. the cement certainly didn't help and though there were so pretty decent hills, i had done plenty of hill work and ran up all of the hills without any walking at all, though i certainly did slow down some.
statistically i ended up 18th in my age group and 569th out of 769 finishers-today i found that the chip time was faster than i had it on my watch by several seconds. funny but i remember telling gail that i was in pretty decent 17 mile shape and that i would just tough out the rest and in fact, the 18th mile was uphill and that is where i started to slow down some- 33 seconds and then 19 was another 25 seconds s the hill got bigger and then i stayed there for awhile until 24 and 25 when i lost some more seconds, but at least i was able to speed up for the last mile and get it over. they had one of the finishes where you go past the finish line and do a loop back to it and that just seemed long, but i ran in pretty well at least.
thanks again to christina, katherine, nikki and brandi from morgantown, pa who helped me a bunch by letting me run with them for about 16 or 17 miles when they didn't slow down and i did. nice to be young, but they were really nice also. and then the usual chase after people helped me for awhile and the women singing big and rich was pretty entertaining also. as the end approached you find yourself around the same people and there is some mental camaraderie to getting it over as you pass and are passed by the same people as you each suffer at different points.
one funny thing to me was my heart rate and how high it got right away - even the first mile was run at 156 and for me that is about 84%. every mile until 18 was run in the 150's with 18 hitting 163 and 19 at 166-those included some hills also. mile 22 was at 160 as was the last mile at 162. so 166 was the high heart rate that i noticed at least. i did walk about 2.5 mile cooldown to let the lactic acid slow down and that always helps and including the walking at the end the watch said i burned 4244 calories with 25% of that coming from fat. will see what that means later. i spent 4hours, thirty seven minutes and 34 seconds above my 70% heart rate. may not have been the smartest way to go and not what i had intended, but probably started too quickly trying to stay with the the women from morgantown and at least i found out that i could run 4+ hours at that heart rate-something i never do in training.
and so marathon #185 is in the books. a little lingering tightness, but no apparent injuries. some sore toes maybe- i did run in asics 2140's the new shoes just out and i did have it long enough to run some in it before the race. asics are usually just fine out of the box, though even i wouldn't try that unless desperate.
lots of shopping and raking of leaves today and a little bit of chipping and putting and eating and feeling ok. got the bookclub book done and sent in my comments to the UK. miss that bunch.
and so onto golf tomorrow i hope. i was disappointed at how cold i felt today and hoping that is not my future as i noticed that starting to change in oxford also. age or Renaud's? time will tell.
veteran's day tomorrow- thanks to all of you! glad i was able to serve also.
now to pick out the next race.
statistically i ended up 18th in my age group and 569th out of 769 finishers-today i found that the chip time was faster than i had it on my watch by several seconds. funny but i remember telling gail that i was in pretty decent 17 mile shape and that i would just tough out the rest and in fact, the 18th mile was uphill and that is where i started to slow down some- 33 seconds and then 19 was another 25 seconds s the hill got bigger and then i stayed there for awhile until 24 and 25 when i lost some more seconds, but at least i was able to speed up for the last mile and get it over. they had one of the finishes where you go past the finish line and do a loop back to it and that just seemed long, but i ran in pretty well at least.
thanks again to christina, katherine, nikki and brandi from morgantown, pa who helped me a bunch by letting me run with them for about 16 or 17 miles when they didn't slow down and i did. nice to be young, but they were really nice also. and then the usual chase after people helped me for awhile and the women singing big and rich was pretty entertaining also. as the end approached you find yourself around the same people and there is some mental camaraderie to getting it over as you pass and are passed by the same people as you each suffer at different points.
one funny thing to me was my heart rate and how high it got right away - even the first mile was run at 156 and for me that is about 84%. every mile until 18 was run in the 150's with 18 hitting 163 and 19 at 166-those included some hills also. mile 22 was at 160 as was the last mile at 162. so 166 was the high heart rate that i noticed at least. i did walk about 2.5 mile cooldown to let the lactic acid slow down and that always helps and including the walking at the end the watch said i burned 4244 calories with 25% of that coming from fat. will see what that means later. i spent 4hours, thirty seven minutes and 34 seconds above my 70% heart rate. may not have been the smartest way to go and not what i had intended, but probably started too quickly trying to stay with the the women from morgantown and at least i found out that i could run 4+ hours at that heart rate-something i never do in training.
and so marathon #185 is in the books. a little lingering tightness, but no apparent injuries. some sore toes maybe- i did run in asics 2140's the new shoes just out and i did have it long enough to run some in it before the race. asics are usually just fine out of the box, though even i wouldn't try that unless desperate.
lots of shopping and raking of leaves today and a little bit of chipping and putting and eating and feeling ok. got the bookclub book done and sent in my comments to the UK. miss that bunch.
and so onto golf tomorrow i hope. i was disappointed at how cold i felt today and hoping that is not my future as i noticed that starting to change in oxford also. age or Renaud's? time will tell.
veteran's day tomorrow- thanks to all of you! glad i was able to serve also.
now to pick out the next race.
Sunday, November 09, 2008
harrisburg marathon 2008-#185
just back from harrisburg where i ran 4:40:40- my first marathon in several years and number 185 overall. had a very nice time and met some really nice people. seemed to have gotten over a virus i have had this past week just in time as my temperature was 98.2 and my morning heart rate was 48. very briefly i ran pretty well and even better than i had hoped to. the biggest problem was the quads tightening up around 18-19 miles as i just was not used to running that hard for so long without any walking at all. will try to figure out a way to deal with that better but at least i was able to keep going though slowing down and toughing it out. and it went much better than the 5:15 i thought i would run.
enough of that for now but back to it soon. have been up for over 18 hours and need some rest. the past several days here were spent dealing with the house and workers and also a computer that was not working correctly as norton made a mistake and stopped my virus protection and i was afraid to send out emails on this pc. got that fixed as they realized eventually that i had renewed my stuff a month ago.
back on the computer tomorrow after a morning walk. the legs will get a little rest before i run again. thanks to the women from near philly who let me run with them and enjoy their company for as long as i could stay with them and also to the many really nice people i met their. the three other relevant words for this marathon were wind, cement and hills.
enough of that for now but back to it soon. have been up for over 18 hours and need some rest. the past several days here were spent dealing with the house and workers and also a computer that was not working correctly as norton made a mistake and stopped my virus protection and i was afraid to send out emails on this pc. got that fixed as they realized eventually that i had renewed my stuff a month ago.
back on the computer tomorrow after a morning walk. the legs will get a little rest before i run again. thanks to the women from near philly who let me run with them and enjoy their company for as long as i could stay with them and also to the many really nice people i met their. the three other relevant words for this marathon were wind, cement and hills.
Friday, November 07, 2008
Tuesday, November 04, 2008
and obama wins!!!
a day that started for me by voting at 7am after waiting in line and then going to the track and running a nice smooth track workout of 100's and 200's and ended with barack obama winning the presidency was a decently good day, despite the rain. even had a surprise visit by the door people which cost me my golf game but i squeezed in a very little bit of practice; did have the lock guy come and do his usual great job -why are some people so competent and others are so nottttyttttt?
after 4 hours of sleep last night and not a lot going to happen tonight i will be back tomorrow and wrap this up. still raining out. the run went well. in good shape for a decent 5k but it will have to wait 6 more weeks. the groin muscle is still torn and don't i scream inside when i turn the leg by surprise- the pain is incredible and yet if i don't turn wrong it never hurts at all- weird?
more tomorrow---
after 4 hours of sleep last night and not a lot going to happen tonight i will be back tomorrow and wrap this up. still raining out. the run went well. in good shape for a decent 5k but it will have to wait 6 more weeks. the groin muscle is still torn and don't i scream inside when i turn the leg by surprise- the pain is incredible and yet if i don't turn wrong it never hurts at all- weird?
more tomorrow---
5miles and some golf
tapering continues- 5 very easy miles this morning followed by some work in the garden and walking 9 holes of golf- played really so-so again and have just no confidence in my game right now. despite several hooked tee shots and poorly struck balls i also had three birdies; what an up and down half round, but the truth is the game i once had is gone for now at least- question is -do i want to spend the time and money trying to re-find it?
some more garden work and chores followed by some golf practice- not quite ready to give up totally yet.
spent the evening reading and catching up on bill paying plus some phone calls and some planning for the next few weeks-
am really frustrated by my own lack of motivation right now and the overwhelming amount of stuff i need to get done, but i will buckle down and get it done- does it really matter anyway?
a new beginning is coming, but first i have to get up and go vote in a few hours-
back later-
some more garden work and chores followed by some golf practice- not quite ready to give up totally yet.
spent the evening reading and catching up on bill paying plus some phone calls and some planning for the next few weeks-
am really frustrated by my own lack of motivation right now and the overwhelming amount of stuff i need to get done, but i will buckle down and get it done- does it really matter anyway?
a new beginning is coming, but first i have to get up and go vote in a few hours-
back later-
Sunday, November 02, 2008
searching for answers-will the harrisburg marathon provide them?
yanni in the background playing reflections of passion- nice soft background music-
ran track this morning just trying to put some life back into the legs and knowing i would take lots of time off this week to do basically a one week taper rather than my usual three weeks. but i usually train right also and didn't this time. though i did put in lots of miles and a little speedwork and some hills-
short workout working on leg turnover --- 20 x 100 and 3 x 200 (48's- still some leg speed despite the pain and torn muscle) it is easy to forget the muscle is still torn as it doesn't bother me when i walk or run no matter how hard- but later today i accidentally caught it on the edge of the door and the leg turned around d the groin didn't and it was like being stabbed really deeply- i know what that feels like also)
but the workout went well and i came home and had a nice pancake breakfast and then worked on the new rock garden for shade container plants i am creating- using a 160 pound rock as a center piece; should be nice if it works out like i want.
the rest of the day was pretty typical- gail went off to ride and i went to practice some short game and hit some balls- then back home to paint and do laundry and deal with house stuff- this week and the next one will be spent on getting the house back in some sort of order and maybe, just maybe, someone will show up and finish the work on it they started -hahaha i am sure-
and then to figure out what is next. am very disappointed in myself and how things are working out or not as they say- seem to be caught in the middle of several things right now and have to work them out- will see how the week plays out...
will be curious to see how harrisburg goes- not the race itself, but the experience. with 184 marathons behind me and maybe another 30 ultras or more, i used to really enjoy going to races and seeing old friends and then racing and also seeing the sights where we were. will see how this one goes. time to make some new friends; will get into the running club when we get back. maybe...... it does seem fruitless right now as i am barely a runner despite the miles. i can live with being slower; there are no more sub 3 hour marathons in me or 4 or probably 5 hours, but figuring out a way to train and eat and live somewhat in balance has been a challenge i am failing at. need the guidebook for old athlete wannabees..
2140's;;; got a pair of new 2140's and they are great; without looking up the stats i can just say that they feel a little lighter than the 2130's but just as stable and i always liked that i could take a pair of asics out of the box and just go run in them.
the running list is into one of the usual threads that come up about who is and isn't a runner. the young guns think they have the answers, but they don't - a few will be proven to be genetically gifted and slow down more slowly than most; but most will get slow and tight and sore and stiff and just old. they won't be able to do the middle mileage hard runs that really keep you in shape. everyone can go long and slow, and maybe short and fast, but not in a decent training program. and then one day suddenly you are old with tight hip flexors and piriformis muscles and quads and ,,,, why bother.. stretch and lift seem to be the answers and control the weight and keep racing. instead of going longer go shorter and faster. maybe that is the answer- but everyone needs to find out what will work for them. they should save their comments and re-read them in 25 years.
i can remember running fast also. and the pace i ran a 6 hour race at i cannot do now for 4 miles. so what? i ran 2970 miles last year and most people on my running list would say i was not a runner because i ran so slow. but i also have 50 marathons under 3:10 so was i just a runner then? i digress i know- i become a bigger believer in the bell curve everyday- i must learn to live with and somehow enjoy getting old -ha on that, but i will seek a peace with it that i just don't have yet..
still searching for answers..............
congrats to paula radcliffe for another nyc marathon win!
ran track this morning just trying to put some life back into the legs and knowing i would take lots of time off this week to do basically a one week taper rather than my usual three weeks. but i usually train right also and didn't this time. though i did put in lots of miles and a little speedwork and some hills-
short workout working on leg turnover --- 20 x 100 and 3 x 200 (48's- still some leg speed despite the pain and torn muscle) it is easy to forget the muscle is still torn as it doesn't bother me when i walk or run no matter how hard- but later today i accidentally caught it on the edge of the door and the leg turned around d the groin didn't and it was like being stabbed really deeply- i know what that feels like also)
but the workout went well and i came home and had a nice pancake breakfast and then worked on the new rock garden for shade container plants i am creating- using a 160 pound rock as a center piece; should be nice if it works out like i want.
the rest of the day was pretty typical- gail went off to ride and i went to practice some short game and hit some balls- then back home to paint and do laundry and deal with house stuff- this week and the next one will be spent on getting the house back in some sort of order and maybe, just maybe, someone will show up and finish the work on it they started -hahaha i am sure-
and then to figure out what is next. am very disappointed in myself and how things are working out or not as they say- seem to be caught in the middle of several things right now and have to work them out- will see how the week plays out...
will be curious to see how harrisburg goes- not the race itself, but the experience. with 184 marathons behind me and maybe another 30 ultras or more, i used to really enjoy going to races and seeing old friends and then racing and also seeing the sights where we were. will see how this one goes. time to make some new friends; will get into the running club when we get back. maybe...... it does seem fruitless right now as i am barely a runner despite the miles. i can live with being slower; there are no more sub 3 hour marathons in me or 4 or probably 5 hours, but figuring out a way to train and eat and live somewhat in balance has been a challenge i am failing at. need the guidebook for old athlete wannabees..
2140's;;; got a pair of new 2140's and they are great; without looking up the stats i can just say that they feel a little lighter than the 2130's but just as stable and i always liked that i could take a pair of asics out of the box and just go run in them.
the running list is into one of the usual threads that come up about who is and isn't a runner. the young guns think they have the answers, but they don't - a few will be proven to be genetically gifted and slow down more slowly than most; but most will get slow and tight and sore and stiff and just old. they won't be able to do the middle mileage hard runs that really keep you in shape. everyone can go long and slow, and maybe short and fast, but not in a decent training program. and then one day suddenly you are old with tight hip flexors and piriformis muscles and quads and ,,,, why bother.. stretch and lift seem to be the answers and control the weight and keep racing. instead of going longer go shorter and faster. maybe that is the answer- but everyone needs to find out what will work for them. they should save their comments and re-read them in 25 years.
i can remember running fast also. and the pace i ran a 6 hour race at i cannot do now for 4 miles. so what? i ran 2970 miles last year and most people on my running list would say i was not a runner because i ran so slow. but i also have 50 marathons under 3:10 so was i just a runner then? i digress i know- i become a bigger believer in the bell curve everyday- i must learn to live with and somehow enjoy getting old -ha on that, but i will seek a peace with it that i just don't have yet..
still searching for answers..............
congrats to paula radcliffe for another nyc marathon win!
Saturday, November 01, 2008
very short post-79,795 miles done
am back in town again after time in philly again- more on everything later-- phils win- ran my 79,795 mile- almost at the meaningless number of 80,000.
house almost done and about to start putting it back together-lots to do there but over time.
harrisburg next week. then baltimore maybe or richmond or va beach-
then head to the west coast sometime next-
back later- just wanted to let people know i am still alive. cataract surgery still not scheduled yet. legs were truly dead this morning and will really cut back this week.
elections finally are about here. will be good to know bush is almost done. maybe....will be a good test for our country and also for the people who take polls. also want to see how the red and blue map chaanges or doesn't.
house almost done and about to start putting it back together-lots to do there but over time.
harrisburg next week. then baltimore maybe or richmond or va beach-
then head to the west coast sometime next-
back later- just wanted to let people know i am still alive. cataract surgery still not scheduled yet. legs were truly dead this morning and will really cut back this week.
elections finally are about here. will be good to know bush is almost done. maybe....will be a good test for our country and also for the people who take polls. also want to see how the red and blue map chaanges or doesn't.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
.jpg)
