"Barefoot" Running

Here's how I feel about it so far. I'm noticing that my calves are less irritated after each "barefoot" running session. I've had 5 so far. I ended up running back to back days to avoid the treadmill. I knew we had rain coming, so I did a 4miler yesterday instead of today. My calves are a little sore, but nothing serious. Considering that they had no rest, they feel great. I'm still not hobbling downstairs or busting out the liniment. When I ran in my stability shoes last Saturday (to supposedly give my calves a break), my left foot got irritated. I've been cracking my left ankle ever since. It was harder to run properly on my forefoot. With that being said, I think I'll be switching to EVOs (Terra Plana Vivo Barefoot EVO) as my primary running shoe. They just feel better. I'm still easing into the EVOs and back into running in general. So I'll be increasing mileage slowly. Don't expect a 10miler from me any time soon :)

In case you care, here's what I did since my last post. And yes, I'm still going strong with yoga, 13 days straight. Namaste.

3/9 - Yoga Meltdown Level 1 (34min)
Swim (1700yd - 49:09)

3/10 - Yoga: General Practice w/Backbends (38min)
3mi Run (27:36 - 9:12 pace)

3/11 - 4mi Run (See below)
Weights (11min)
Yoga: Hip Mobility (30min)

3/12 - Shimmy (21min belly dance)
Yoga: General Practice (46min)

Activity Route: Track Elev. Avg: 36 ft Location: Willingboro, NJ Elev. Gain: +0 ft Date: 03/11/10 Up/Downhill: [+0/-0] Time: 04:42 PM Difficulty: 1.7 / 5.0 Weather: Overcast 59 F temp; 64% humidity 59 F heat index; winds N 5 Performance Distance: 4.00 miles Time: 0:37:21 Speed: 6.4 mph Pace: 9' 20 /mi Heart Rate: 172 bpm (Avg) Calories: 448 193 bpm (Peak) Notes Cool Down = .55mi Elevation (ft) Pace (min/mile) Heart Rate (bpm) Heart Rate Zones Zone Range (bpm) Time In Zone Distance In Zone Zone 5 180 - 200 0h 07m 19% 0.83 mi Zone 4 160 - 180 0h 28m 75% 2.99 mi Zone 3 140 - 160 0h 03m 8% 0.32 mi Zone 2 120 - 140 0h 00m 1% 0.04 mi Zone 1 100 - 120 0h 00m 0% 0.02 mi (none) out of range 0h 00m 0% 0.01 mi Splits Mile Pace (min/mile) Speed (mph) Heart Rate Elev Gain actual +/- avg actual +/- avg 1 9' 45 +0' 25 6.1 -0.3 159 0 ft 2 9' 29 +0' 09 6.3 -0.1 173 0 ft 3 9' 16 -0' 04 6.5 +0.0 176 0 ft end 8' 49 -0' 31 6.8 +0.3 182 0 ft Versus average of 9' 20 min/mile

Posted from bimactive.com

Nothing to See Here

I'm feeling kind of lazy these days. So I have nothing much to report. I won't have yoga class for another week or so. And I haven't attempted to fit in yoga this past week either. And it's a shame, because I feel I should. I really need something more than a running schedule. I need an activity schedule. I was checking out tri training programs. No, it's not in my head to do a triathlon. But the training would do me some good and keep things interesting. I really should swim and bike more. I haven't pulled out my bike all month. And I haven't swum outside of my weekly swim class this month. I will try to work on that. And maybe, just maybe I will use the bikes at the Y if I don't feel up to riding outside. And I can bring a book. That's a thought. We shall see.

So here's what my lazy behind has done since the last post:

8/19 - 4mi Track (36:35 - 9:08 pace)

8/20 - 7mi Track (1:08:19 - 9:45 pace)

8/22 - 3mi Treadmill (27:32 - 9:10 pace)

8/23 - 8mi Treadmill (1:18:43 - 9:49 pace)

Anyway, tomorrow's a rest day. Let's hope I actually make myself useful, NOT be lazy and actually cross train. Wish me luck :)

102

This is me yesterday after a 6mi sweaty run on the treadmill and hitting 102mi for the month. That's right. I hit 102 miles in July! It shocked the hell outta me. I didn't think my new running plan called for so many miles. I was just following the plan and not paying attention to much else. And the best part is that my injury didn't make an appearance. Thank God! I have learned that if I'm going to be running so much that I need to run slower. Every run doesn't have to be a PR. I'm no where near being a marathoner or anything. That's not my goal anyway. I just want to stay healthy. I'm not getting any younger. And I want to look as fabulous as my friend, Diane, when I turn 60.

I think a big thing that helped this month was completing the majority of my runs first thing in the morning. Just because I run in the morning doesn't make me a morning runner. I am not a morning person. It's not that I don't function in the morning or that I need caffeine to start my day. I'd just rather hit the alarm and turn over than be on the track. Well, maybe I'd feel differently if I went to bed on time. But that's another story. Anyway, if I get it out of the way first thing, there's less of a chance for me to skip it. Well, unless I wake up with a headache or something. There are too many reasons for me to skip it if I wait. As the day goes on, especially after a work day, I get tired or get a headache or just get lazy.

So the plan for next month is to just keep running injury free. That means keeping up with cross training. I'm still taking swim lessons. My front crawl needs a lot of work. But I've only attempted it once. Hopefully, it will come to me. Once I get that down, I plan to do laps regularly at the pool (even in the winter because the pool is heated). Right now, my stroke of choice is the breaststroke. I think it's the one thing I do correctly. Too bad it's a slow stroke.

I do need to take my bike out more. But who wants to be outside in this heat and humidity? And of course, I plan to stick with yoga. Having an instructor really helps. You can't learn everything from a dvd. And if you do the poses correctly, it's like having a strength training session (Did you see my lil guns in the photo? Yoga does a body good). I hate strength training, but love yoga.

Alright, so here's what I've done the past couple of days...

7/29 - 4mi Treadmill (37:43 - 9:25 pace)
Yoga Class (1:10)

7/30 - 6mi Treadmill (57:14 - 9:32 pace)

On tap for tomorrow is 5 miles. Then 9 miles on Sunday. I'm not feeling the long run whatsoever. I really don't want to run outside. And I don't want to lose my mind on the treadmill. I could do the indoor track, but I won't know how far I ran. I could just estimate by time. I should be able to wrap it up in 90min or less. Ah, decisions, decisions.

Anyway, have a great weekend everyone!

It's been a while

I haven't actually blogged a run since July 2nd. I must rectify that. But just so you know, I have been running and such. I tweet workouts on twitter. And I log my activity on dailymile. It's like Facebook or Myspace for athletes. Am I an athlete now? I kind of feel like it. I am taking yoga and swim classes. I haven't broken out my bike yet for the month though. I must get on that. I don't want to be a triathlete or anything. I just want to stay healthy and active. So I feel like I should recap what I've done. So here goes... 7/3 - Yoga (30min dvd) 7/4 - 3mi Run (26:09 - 8:43 pace) 7/5 - 7mi Run (1:04:48 - 9:15 pace) 7/7 - 5mi Run (44:11 - 8:50 pace) Swim Lesson (30min) 7/8 - 5mi Run (48:25 - 9:41 pace) Yoga Class (1hr) 3mi Run (27:10 - 9:03 pace) 7/11 - 3mi Run - Daytona Beach (28:02 - 9:20 pace) 7/13 - Swim (700yd) 7/14 - 6mi Run (54:40 - 9:06 pace) Yoga Class (1hr) 7/15 - 3mi Run (26:30 - 8:50 pace) 7/16 - 4mi Run (37:36 - 9:24 pace) 7/18 - 3mi Run (25:48 - 8:36 pace) Then I ran last night. Pretty graph is posted below. So far, I have 58mi for the month. I've skipped only one run, and that's because I was in Florida. I actually ran twice in one day since I had to travel on a run day. So no slacking on my part. Hopefully, I can keep this going. Activity Route: Park Elev. Avg: 25 ft Location: Willingboro, NJ Elev. Gain: -49 ft Date: 07/19/09 Up/Downhill: [+305/-354] Time: 07:21 PM Difficulty: 3.0 / 5.0 Weather: Fair 75 F temp; 61% humidity 77 F heat index; winds Calm Performance Distance: 8.00 miles Time: 1:14:27 Speed: 6.4 mph Pace: 9' 18 /mi Calories: 889 Notes Cool Down = .63mi Elevation (ft) Pace (min/mile) Splits Mile Pace (min/mile) Speed (mph) Elevation Gain actual +/- avg actual +/- avg 1 9' 39 +0' 21 6.2 -0.2 -52 ft 2 9' 36 +0' 16 6.2 -0.2 +17 ft 3 9' 21 +0' 03 6.4 -0.0 -19 ft 4 9' 15 -0' 03 6.5 +0.0 +23 ft 5 9' 16 -0' 02 6.5 +0.0 -26 ft 6 9' 06 -0' 12 6.6 +0.1 +10 ft 7 9' 13 -0' 05 6.5 +0.1 +13 ft end 9' 00 -0' 18 6.7 +0.2 -13 ft Versus average of 9' 18 min/mile

Posted from bimactive.com

Back to the drawing board

I hate the first early run of the week. I haven't been doing this long, but I hated it last week too. My pace was pretty decent considering I didn't feel like moving. I wasn't tired. Just lazy, I guess. Well, at least my outfit was cute. Pink shirt, hot pink skirt with pink shorties underneath, grey and hot pink Adidas. No pictures though. So I was halfway thinking about riding my bike to the track instead of driving. Maybe another time though. I really wanted the comfort of my car. Hmm, maybe riding to the track will loosen me up a bit in the morning. I may have to get up a bit earlier for all that though. Not sure I'm willing to get up any earlier than 4:30am. In other news, I haven't heard back from the Y on swim lessons yet. But I do have a friend who was a lifeguard and is willing to teach me. He has a pretty busy schedule, so we'll just have to see if he can pencil me in. Also, I signed up for yoga on Wednesday nights. I'm kind of excited and kind of nervous. I've done yoga dvds and all, but I'm sure my downward facing dog is all tore up. And I could use a live person to tell me exactly what I'm doing wrong and how to make it right. Okay, so around this time, I usually start to get tired. And I'm not. I feel like I'm full of energy. I'm gonna read my book and take some valerian root or something. I do need to get to bed at a decent hour so I can do this all over again tomorrow. I've got 5 miles on tap. And I don't want my body to hate me for waking it up unrested. Not a good way to start a run. Activity Route: Track Elev. Avg: 36 ft Location: Willingboro, NJ Elev. Gain: +0 ft Date: 06/30/09 Up/Downhill: [+0/-0] Time: 04:58 AM Difficulty: 1.7 / 5.0 Weather: Fair 63 F temp; 89% humidity 63 F heat index; winds Calm Performance Distance: 4.00 miles Time: 0:36:33 Speed: 6.6 mph Pace: 9' 08 /mi Calories: 440 Notes Cool Down = .27mi Elevation (ft) Pace (min/mile) Splits Mile Pace (min/mile) Speed (mph) Elevation Gain actual +/- avg actual +/- avg 1 9' 32 +0' 24 6.3 -0.3 0 ft 2 9' 14 +0' 06 6.5 -0.1 0 ft 3 9' 05 -0' 03 6.6 +0.0 0 ft end 8' 42 -0' 26 6.8 +0.3 0 ft Versus average of 9' 08 min/mile

Posted from bimactive.com

Struggling

It all started with not wanting to get out of bed this morning. I'm so not a fan of the 4:30am thing. Let's see how much longer I keep this up. Anyway, the whole run was a struggle. I felt like I should have been walking the whole time. My body did not want to move. I was supposed to do some fartlek. But I decided that since I was beat and didn't want to be there anyway, I'd just try to get it done. Today's only condition was, "Don't start nothing you can't finish." That meant no walking (like I would have rather done) and no cutting the run short. Negative splits were not a necessity, but would be nice. So I finished with negative splits. And I actually sped up at the very end. That counts for fartlek, right? I did some yoga tonight. I'm definitely sore from this morning's run, but nothing serious. I needed to stretch it out. I may do some more yoga tomorrow too. I definitely need to get back in the habit. Maybe I'll keep up the early running thing so I'll have time for yoga later. We shall see. So I have 5 miles planned for tomorrow. Wait, let me edit that. I have 5 SLOW miles planned. And in preparation, I have a date with my bed. I'm beat. Night. Activity Route: Track Elev. Avg: 36 ft Location: Willingboro, NJ Elev. Gain: +3 ft Date: 06/23/09 Up/Downhill: [+3/-0] Time: 05:02 AM Difficulty: 1.7 / 5.0 Weather: Overcast with Haze 65 F temp; 80% humidity 65 F heat index; winds Calm Performance Distance: 4.00 miles Time: 0:36:12 Speed: 6.6 mph Pace: 9' 03 /mi Calories: 440 Notes Cool Down = .28mi Elevation (ft) Pace (min/mile) Splits Mile Pace (min/mile) Speed (mph) Elevation Gain actual +/- avg actual +/- avg 1 9' 27 +0' 24 6.3 -0.3 +3 ft 2 9' 04 +0' 01 6.6 -0.0 0 ft 3 8' 56 -0' 07 6.7 +0.1 0 ft end 8' 44 -0' 19 6.8 +0.2 0 ft Versus average of 9' 03 min/mile

Posted from bimactive.com

Nice and Easy

I wasn't sore from yesterday's hills. Go figure. So today was an easy stroll in the park. No pressure. The only condition I set for myself was negative splits. I passed with flying colors. Activity Route: Park Elev. Avg: 27 ft Location: Willingboro, NJ Elev. Gain: -30 ft Date: 06/17/09 Up/Downhill: [+134/-164] Time: 06:51 PM Difficulty: 1.7 / 5.0 Weather: Fair 62 F temp; 83% humidity 62 F heat index; winds SE 7 Performance Distance: 4.00 miles Time: 0:36:59 Speed: 6.5 mph Pace: 9' 14 /mi Calories: 442 Notes Cool Down = .45mi Elevation (ft) Pace (min/mile) Splits Mile Pace (min/mile) Speed (mph) Elevation Gain actual +/- avg actual +/- avg 1 9' 38 +0' 24 6.2 -0.3 -55 ft 2 9' 23 +0' 08 6.4 -0.1 0 ft 3 9' 07 -0' 08 6.6 +0.1 +13 ft end 8' 49 -0' 24 6.8 +0.3 +13 ft Versus average of 9' 14 min/mile

Posted from bimactive.com

Run 12/27/08

It's been a hot minute since I ran a decent mileage. So I figured I'd go for four. I know that's not a big deal, but I'm still easing back into things. Although my splits didn't come out the way I'd like, I must say that this is the most consistent run I've had in a while. I took the bike path through the park instead of the road. It was harder than I remember. I went twice around. My legs will definitely feel it in the morning. Hell, I feel it now. But it's a good soreness. It's good to know that my legs still work. And on that note, I'm out. Have a great weekend, everyone! Activity Route: Park Elev. Avg: 36 ft Location: Willingboro, NJ Elev. Gain: -37 ft Date: 12/27/08 Up/Downhill: [+104/-141] Time: 02:08 PM Difficulty: 1.7 / 5.0 Weather: Overcast 52 F temp; 86% humidity 52 F heat index; winds SW 5 Performance Distance: 4.01 miles Time: 0:38:48 Speed: 6.2 mph Pace: 9' 41 /mi Heart Rate: 180 bpm (Avg) Calories: 447 197 bpm (Peak) Notes Cool Down = .49mi Elevation (ft) Pace (min/mile) Heart Rate (bpm) Heart Rate Zones Zone Range (bpm) Time In Zone Distance In Zone Zone 5 180 - 200 0h 29m 74% 2.99 mi Zone 4 160 - 180 0h 09m 22% 0.91 mi Zone 3 140 - 160 0h 01m 4% 0.17 mi Zone 2 120 - 140 0h 00m 0% 0.01 mi Zone 1 100 - 120 0h 00m 0% 0.01 mi (none) out of range 0h 00m 0% 0.02 mi Splits Mile Pace (min/mile) Speed (mph) Heart Rate Elev Gain actual +/- avg actual +/- avg 1 9' 45 +0' 04 6.2 -0.0 159 -59 ft 2 9' 38 -0' 03 6.2 +0.0 185 +26 ft 3 9' 38 -0' 03 6.2 +0.0 188 -26 ft end 9' 42 +0' 01 6.2 -0.0 191 +23 ft Versus average of 9' 41 min/mile

Posted from bimactive.com

Run 11/22/08

While I was running, I had it all figured out in my head what I was going to blog about. I was planning to catch you all up. But now I'm just not in the mood. Maybe later. I'm too busy trying to warm up. Yeah, I ran in 32°F weather. I know that sounds like a heat wave to you folks in those big, chunky states (Yes, I'm referring to the midwest). And I'm sure I'll be wishing for this type of weather once January comes around. But for right now, it's too damn cold. Can we fast forward to spring? So I finally got my butt out to the park. It's sad because I was off all last week, and not the least bit motivated to run or bike anywhere. The colder and darker it gets, the more I wanna stay in bed. And now that I'm back to work, I'm less motivated. I leave at 5pm, but it looks like it's 9pm. I get home around 5:30pm ready for bed. Then I have to remind myself that it's not even 6 yet. A couple times this week, I came home from work and just dozed off. I did happen to get my period today, so maybe PMS was a factor as well. In any case, I completely understand why bears hibernate. I may join them. Well, I'm feeling less crappy. So I think I will start catching up with all of you. I know, I've been bad. I haven't even opened Google Reader in about a month or so. But I will. I promise. Anyway, I'm off to finish my Ghiradelli cocoa and bundle up. Have a great weekend! Music: Afro Strut by Amp Fiddler You will never hear anything this good on the radio. Check it out. If you join FolderShare, I can hook you up with some music if you want. Activity Route: Park Elev. Avg: 36 ft Location: Willingboro, NJ Elev. Gain: -53 ft Date: 11/22/08 Up/Downhill: [+101/-154] Time: 03:27 PM Difficulty: 2.1 / 5.0 Weather: Mostly Cloudy 32 F temp; 35% humidity 32 F heat index; winds NW 9 G 23 Performance Distance: 4.00 miles Time: 0:38:42 Speed: 6.2 mph Pace: 9' 40 /mi Heart Rate: 178 bpm (Avg) Calories: 445 196 bpm (Peak) Notes Cool Down = .64mi Elevation (ft) Pace (min/mile) Heart Rate (bpm) Heart Rate Zones Zone Range (bpm) Time In Zone Distance In Zone Zone 5 180 - 200 0h 28m 73% 2.94 mi Zone 4 160 - 180 0h 10m 25% 1.05 mi Zone 3 140 - 160 0h 00m 0% 0.04 mi Zone 2 120 - 140 0h 00m 0% 0.01 mi Zone 1 100 - 120 0h 00m 0% 0.02 mi (none) out of range 0h 01m 2% 0.06 mi Splits Mile Pace (min/mile) Speed (mph) Heart Rate Elev Gain actual +/- avg actual +/- avg 1 9' 45 +0' 05 6.1 -0.1 153 -59 ft 2 9' 47 +0' 07 6.1 -0.1 185 +39 ft 3 9' 39 -0' 01 6.2 -0.0 187 -39 ft 4 9' 29 -0' 11 6.3 +0.1 192 +10 ft end 8' 29 -1' 12 7.1 +0.9 193 -3 ft Versus average of 9' 40 min/mile

Posted from bimactive.com