Transitions

I saw this poor crow on Summit one morning. I wonder how
he ended up sitting so perfectly. 

It seems fitting, somehow, talking about transitions on February 29th.

The last two months have been a transition period for me.

First, it has literally been the transition period of my training. I have been using the training log from "Training for the New Alpinism." While not specifically running-oriented, there are a number of aspects I like about it. First, it breaks everything down into sections (Transition, Base, Specific, and Peak).  There is an annual training plan involved, but it is flexible enough that I feel that I can adapt it to whatever situation comes up in my training.

The transition period has been one of general strength and general fitness. I have gotten noticeably stronger, and trimmer, since starting the transition period. I don't think that I have lost weight, but I certainly have lost the (admittedly limited) fat around my waist. I have not upped my running volume as much as I had originally planned, only reaching 30 or so miles per week, but I have increased it by about 50% over the coasting training I had been doing up until January. And this is with a hiatus at the beginning of February when I pulled my groin (apparently).

The second transition has been into Parkour again. For the month of January, we went once a week, for an hour or so. Into February, we entered a new class level, and started going twice a week, and occasionally for longer periods of time. Now, with the class schedule changing a little, it looks like we might push that up again to three times per week, depending on how we feel. Again, I fully believe that Parkour makes me a better, or at least more injury-proof, trail runner. It increases my strength and agility, and at the same time gives me more options to get around any obstacles that may come up.

I may have to do some obstacle races this year.

Moving on into base training, it's time to focus more on time on my feet, and getting 1-2 specific workouts in each week. I think Fartlek runs and LT runs are again going to be my staples. And I will certainly be throwing some hill workouts into the mix.

More to come, certainly. I hope to have more pictures, and maybe a video or two, in the coming months.

An Update

Last Ice Beard of the season (probably)

I have been quite awful about keeping up with this blog lately. Not surprisingly, this has coincided with a bit of a reduction in my running, due to several factors.

The primary motivating factor happened several weeks ago now. I recently started in on Parkour training again, in addition to my running and climbing (climbing has fallen off lately, but that's ok). After a few weeks of this, I got a sudden, sharp pain in my groin that would not go away. Knowing my family history, I assumed it was a hernia and stopped running.

Sure enough, I went to the doctor, and he found a (small) hernia. He said it was tiny, and didn't necessarily need any surgery, or even a reduction in my current workout routine. Nonetheless, running was pretty uncomfortable for a week or so, and I dropped off considerably for a while.

I made an appointment with a surgeon, to see what the benefits and drawbacks of getting surgery immediately (read: in the off-season) might be. Lo and behold, at the appointment, the surgeon found no sign of a hernia at all! I was feeling better, and so tried to get back into running a full schedule again.

Pike Island Skiing. Snow's gone now. 

I have also now upped my Parkour workouts from once a week to twice a week. While these are not running-specific workouts, I think over all they considerably help me in my trail running. They certainly boost my overall power, with the jumping and vaulting involved. I also think the increase my resistance to injury. There are so many different forces coming from so many different angles that my legs adapt to more situations. Hopefully this will translate into running.

Even if it doesn't, I enjoy Parkour too much to quit.

Did I mention I also do two strength workouts a week?

With all of that, my running workouts have suffered a bit, both in distance and in intensity. But now my body seems to be adjusting to the increased workload, and I'm hoping that in the next few weeks I can begin to up my running time again. At the very least, I need to start getting in a longish run on Saturday morning, and a fartlek or similar sometime during the week.

As is this snow. 

The Value of Adversity

By just about anybody's definition, this week has been cold. Monday through Wednesday, my runs took place in below zero temperatures. After a brief respite on Thursday and Friday, it dropped again this morning, with a 1:45 run in 0 degree temperatures with a 15 mph wind.

I ran outside every day this week. It took a bit of mental effort each day to get out the door into the cold, but I didn't regret it once.

Part of that is simply that I know how to dress for this weather. As my friend's dad, and others, have said: "There's no such thing as bad weather, just insufficient clothing." I've heard it with "preparation" in place of "clothing" as well, but the sentiment remains the same. As long as you're ready for it, cold weather doesn't have to force you indoors.

Besides that mental push to get out the door, though, I have always found that I thrive in this sort of weather. Once I get out the door, the cold ceases to be a barrier and becomes more of an adversary. It gives me something to run against, and I always feel great when I come back in from the cold.

The other aspect of it is, for me, the cold is beautiful Wednesday morning, in 0-degree temperatures, in the space of ten steps, I saw three bright red  male cardinals and a brilliant Blue Jay in a stretch of Lilac trees I run through most days.

Today was arguably the biggest test. I woke up to 0 degree temperatures with -20 windchill, with my longest run yet of the training cycle scheduled for the morning. I will admit to being a little apprehensive, despite the successful week of training in the cold. My prior cold outings had been less than 45 minutes. Extending that out by an hour seemed daunting at best. I gave myself the option of cutting the run short if I decided it was too much.

Quite the opposite happened. Today was my best run so far. While I was initially sore from the week, and from ice skating the night before (those stabilizer muscles are getting a workout), I felt stronger as the run went on. A bit more than an hour in, I had fully honed in on the elusive "zone,"  and was actually picking up the pace at the end of the run.

Sometimes that happens. And sometimes life throws a wrench your way, as it would later in the week.

Tough Turkey and Gobble Gallop Race Reports

My fiancee and I decided to head up to Duluth and celebrate Thanksgiving with my parents this year. After some consideration, we decided to go up the night before: that way, we could sign up for the Gobble Gallop Thursday morning. Unfortunately, while I successfully signed G up for the Gobble Gallop 5k, I accidentally signed myself up for the accompanying Tough Turkey 1 mile, which would take place 20 minutes before the 5k. 

Since the organizers are two friends of mine from church growing up (I can’t remember meeting them), I figured there would be no issue signing up for the 5k as well as the 1 mile. My training plan called for a 1 mile time trial and a 20 minute time trial, and while it also called for a few days’ rest between them, I figured this might work for both. 

True to my expectation, there was no issue at all signing up for an additional race last-minute. My friend Grant, completely overestimating my abilities and fitness level, asked me if I was going for the course record, which is pretty “soft” at a little over 15 minutes. 

After my last 5k, I wasn’t quite sure where I would end up in these races. I knew that my time between races would basically be a run back to the car to switch up my race numbers before jumping back out on the course for the 5k, so I decided to take it as a warm up for the 5k, and just see how it went. With the last-minute signup for the 5k, I didn’t have much time for a warm up in any case, so I figured there was no chance of a decent time or position in the mile. I opted to shoot for a sub-6 mile (which I figured should feel easy) and a sub-20 5k. Given my relative lack of serious training, I thought those would be good targets. 

My goal for a slowish start in the mile turned out to be unavoidable: the front of the field was packed with somewhere around 30 children sprinting off the line. One younger guy from NDU took off in the lead (he was running both the mile and the 5k as well), and several others tried to stick with him. Rather than race, I opted to settle into a fast cruising speed and wait for a while. The course was an out and back, starting from Duluth Running Company on London Road before veering left onto Superior street to the turnaround around Fitgers. All along Superior Street, I was feeling comfortable at around 6 minute pace, gradually reeling in runners who had started too quickly. With the final drop back onto London Road, I figured I’d kick it up a notch and bring it home at higher speed. 

Turns out, that worked out pretty well, and I cruised home in third at around 5:53 on the watch. One part I had not expected was the pure number of people cheering for me by name in the home stretch. I guess that’s what happens when you race in your hometown for the first time. As it turns out, two of those cheering were my parents, who showed up in time to see me finish. Since I had very little time, though, I crossed the finish line and just kept running the three blocks to my car to switch numbers for the 5k. Unfortunately, this left my parents very confused behind me. 

Fortunately, that went quickly, thanks in large part to G meeting me with my number in hand. After a quick run back to the car (again) to retrieve my gloves, I lined up in the 3rd row of about 2000 runners (!) who showed up on what had fast become a cold, slightly windy, slightly snowy Thanksgiving morning. There was no gun, just the announcer counting down (if I remember correctly), and unfortunately, in the process of getting under the starting arch with 2000 other people, I must not have crossed the timing mat. 

As ever, I started a little too quickly, but not out of the realm of sanity, and I quickly corrected and settled into a solid 6 to 6:10 pace down Superior Street. I say “down,” because the first section of Superior runs downhill to Lake Ave, before a slight uphill for 5 blocks to the turnaround at 5th Ave West. I slowed down just a bit on the uphill, but I was starting to steadily reel in more runners who had started just a bit too quickly. 

The fatigue started to hit me just a bit at around 2 miles into the 5k, or about 5k into my racing for the day. This was the first point where I had to concentrate at all on my pace, and I let it slip for just a few meters. For the entire race, I had been just behind the lead woman (“Anna,” who many other runners knew by name), and I passed her around 2 miles into the race, only to be passed by another woman.  Still, I was passing runner after runner who had apparently overestimated their fitness. As it turns out, another friend of mine from church growing up ended up as 2nd woman, some 5 seconds behind me. 

Once again, I kicked it up at the turn onto London Road, which is around 300 or so meters from the finish. Despite the brief moment of fatigue at 2 miles, I still felt pretty good at the end of the race. The large number of people cheering me by name (again), at the finish area help as well. At the end, I crossed the line at 19:30 on the watch, feeling like I could have run a good 45 seconds faster without too much difficulty. 

After finishing, I got the chance to talk with Grant a little bit as I walked over to the tent to grab some coffee and warm up a bit. He seemed a little surprised that I was back as far as I was, having more confidence in my abilities than I do myself. And thinking on it, perhaps he was right. I think I get too focused on where I think I should be, or what I think I can do, and don’t let myself achieve what I’m capable of. The fact that I can rattle off a 19:30 5k less than 20 minutes after finishing a (decently) fast mile gives me some confidence, particularly given the training I’ve been doing. 

Coffee now in hand, I proceeded to walk back along the course to find my fiancee in the crowd of runners still racing. True to form, she had jumped into the race on a whim, with no training, and with the goal to have fun before settling in for Thanksgiving. True to our last Turkey Trot-style race, I ran back along the course and took the chance to run/walk in with her, which for me is usually the favorite part of the race. 

Thinking ahead, I think I might still do a few more shorter races in the next few months. I’d forgotten how much fun I have with them, and how little they really interfere with the rest of my training. I’m also considering entering a number of shorter trail races over the next year (short here meaning anything below about 25k, or around 2 hours or shorter). 

My sights remain set on the Border Route Trail for next fall, however. 

Race Report: Tiger Trail 5k

A few weeks ago, on a whim, I signed up for a race: a 5k that came up in the Minneapolis Running monthly race calendar, run as a fundraiser for a local nordic ski team. At 5k, it was 1/4th of the distance of my shortest race since moving to Minnesota two years ago, and less than 10% of my longest race to date. But, it seemed like a fun course, for a good cause, and more importantly I thought it might get me pumped up for running again. 

Going into the race, I was feeling pretty fast, given my low level of conditioning. I was hitting 5:30 pace in striders and intervals without noticing the effort all that much, though the intervals were never longer than a block or two. My short tempo runs had all ended up at under 7-minute pace for 3 or 4 miles. I figured I could probably run a decent 5k in under 20 minutes.

I was wrong. 

Getting to Theo Wirth Park on Saturday morning, I saw the ski team running around and goofing off (as they do). I started to think that I was about to get my ass handed to me by a bunch of high-schoolers (pardon my language). I was none too concerned about this, as I was anticipating this somewhat even before I showed up. It is a bit of an ego blow, even so. 

The course itself, as I saw on a preview lap, was set up in a double-loop pattern, just over half a mile per loop. Even warming up, I realized that this was not going to be a fast 5k, since it took place on short, steep hills on a winding course. I figured I might still be able to hit 20-21 minutes, given a decent effort. 

I didn’t. 

With a blowing of vuvuzelas, the race was on. I quickly realized that, though I was unlikely to be the first one home, I was going to be in the top 5, as me, 3 high schoolers, and the RD distanced ourselves from the rest. My primary goal for this race was to run as even as possible throughout, while still giving a good effort. This equated to running with the RD for the vast majority of the race. 

I felt reasonably comfortable with the pace, as I should have. I ended up running just 20-30 seconds per mile faster than I did at the Night Lights half marathon last year, coming in at 22:50 for 3.2 miles, for my slowest 5k ever at about 7:09 pace. My mile splits were 7:07, 7:17, and 7:13 (though they can’t be directly compared). I wish now that I had taken splits at the laps as well, so I could compare more directly. 

All in all, though, the race served its purpose. These small, almost neighborhood level events are the ones that I seem to enjoy the most. Before, during, and after the race, the adults in the group were consistently introducing themselves to me and asking about me. The race itself rekindled my running fire, and in the days since I have been focused even more on my training and getting back into form. 

Coming back

It has been a long process for me coming back from this particular injury. It hasn’t gone as well as it did last summer when I had IT band issues, but my PT thinks that’s because it was never really about my  IT band and my gluteus. More likely, it was about several different muscles not activating correctly. First, my left abdominals were not activating fully, and my left leg was not doing the same share of the work as my right leg (this is where the gluteus actually comes in). After working for a few weeks to correct that, I went back, and she discovered that my right Psoas muscle was not activating to swing my right leg forward during my left stance. 

If you’ve read this blog for a while, you might remember that, two years ago or so, I had  scare where several doctors thought that I had appendicitis, but in fact I had pulled my right Psoas muscle. The assumption now is that it never “restarted” after that injury. 

On the plus side, that means I have an actionable issue that I can work on. Combined with working on my left stance and working on my foot strike (always), I’m hopeful that I can get back to full on training in the next month or so. At the moment, I am running up to three miles, 2 out of every 3 days (though I sadly missed today, I will make up for it tomorrow). 

For the first time, though, I am attempting to put together a general long-term training plan. I’m using a variety of resources for this process. At the moment, I am focusing on “Training for the New Alpinism.” While it’s written for Alpine climbers, it has a lot of good general training information that I think will also be very useful for my running, including strength and technique training as well as general aerobic training suggestions. 

Adding to that, I’m going to incorporate the general structure from The Cool Impossible, at least for the first 12 weeks or so (which would constitute the Transition and some of the Base period of the Training for the New Alpinism plan). As I recall, it worked really well for me last time, and I’m hoping it can do some of the same for me this time as well. I’m hoping that with a little more cross training, in the form of biking and climbing, and a little more strength training, in the form of general strength training and climbing, I will be able to get through this year without any more injuries. 

My goals remain generally the same for the coming year. I’d like to get more actual racing in this year, primarily at the half marathon and lower distances. I want to keep my primary goal as the Border Route Trail, sometime in either the spring or the fall. Added to that, I definitely want to add in more self-propelled adventuring, now that I have a sweet bike that I had custom built. I would like to use that on my planned ascent (and subsequent descent) of Eagle Mountain in northern MN. 

At this point, I’m still a little discouraged, and I still go out on each run worried that my right leg might act up again. But I’m feeling more and more hopeful as the days go by and I don’t get the same seizing sensation that I got previously. There might just be hope for me yet. 

Summer Running

It has been a decidedly up and down summer of running for me. 

I kept mostly to a low-heart rate training plan for much of June and July, gradually adding in some more intense efforts as my training progressed. During a family vacation at the beginning of the month, which corresponded to a low-mileage week (by design). After the down week, I jumped straight back into it, running 41, 37, and 42 miles over the next several weeks as I tried to ramp my training up for the 50 miler in September. And it felt pretty good over all. 

The next week, however, I was out in Pittsburgh for my job. I had run twice the Saturday before, totally 21 miles with a 13 mile night run, but was feeling pretty solid over all. I had a slight twinge in my right leg (ankle and glute) that I was hoping would shake itself out with an easy run on Monday. This twinge had first started a couple weeks before after a 9 mile hard effort in Duluth. 

Unfortunately, though I managed over 20 miles in the course of my three runs in Pittsburgh, the twinge just got worse and, on what was planned to be a 20 miler the Sunday after, I quit after a mile and a half. 

This past week I have not run at all.

My belief is that this stems from the ankle I severely tweaked in the Superior 25k this spring, and subsequently did not n any way rest or allow to heal. I've heard before of this sort of issue causing misfiring in the glute as well. So this past week I have been focusing on rolling out my legs, doing low-impact strength work, and generally taking it far easier than I have been. I'm hoping that, with a week's rest, I can return to training over the course of a week. 

I'm somewhat wondering if I want to. 

I love running, and I love racing, and I fully intend to keep doing both. But I think I've focused to much on training for races, and not enough on running the way I like to: freely  and for the joy of it. This was easier to do in Colorado, because I could just run up and down a mountain (something I dearly love to do) and that would double as training. 

I think I need to find something similar that I love to do while running here. Even if that means (gasp) running lower mileage over all. I think I will be better for it. I also want to mix in other types of movement with my running. I've been doing that somewhat, stopping to do pullups and other exercises during my runs. I think I need to take it a step farther: driving to the river if necessary and playing down in the woods. I have been doing a little more climbing lately, and hope to continue that. I think if I find the joy I have in movement again, and mix that into my running, I will be better off than I am now, simply running to get the miles in (even if I still enjoy it).