Tag Archives: Full Time RVer

Running – Base Training Week 9, Day 3 (Run Terminated)

17 January 2015

Today was down right hot; it was 68°F, when I left home for today’s training session. The forecast high temperature for today was 70°F. Early this morning, I was hesitant to run today…after all, today’s scheduled Long Run is 16 miles, plus a one mile WU; I felt okay (except for a headache); but, with the issues of this Training Week 9 and Training Week 8, I wasn’t sure how the additional mileage would affect me. I shrugged off those nagging thoughts to began today’s Long Run; and, after a one mile WU, I approached the steep grade on Summit Drive.

Looking up Steep Grade of Summit Drive - Near Beginning of Grade
Looking up Steep Grade of Summit Drive – Near Beginning of Grade
Looking up Steep Grade of Summit Drive - About 0.10 Mile from Beginning of Grade
Looking up Steep Grade of Summit Drive – About 0.10 Mile from Beginning of Grade
Looking up Steep Grade of Summit Drive - Near 1/3 Point
Looking up Steep Grade of Summit Drive – Near 1/3 Point

Continue reading Running – Base Training Week 9, Day 3 (Run Terminated)

Running – Base Training Week 9, Day 2

15 January 2015

Today was warmer than any day for the past week and was mostly sunny; today’s high temperature was 59°F. I started today’s run with a 1 mile WU, as usual; however, during the first mile of the training run, which includes a steep hill (grade) on Summit Drive, my legs began to feel slightly more tired and sluggish than they did last Tuesday (13 Jan 2015)–which was a surprise to me, since they felt so fresh during that run (after two days of recovery).

Endurance Running – Week 9 of 13 Weeks, Day 2 of 4 Days

After the run, my analysis of the running data indicates that my average HR (heart rate) was slightly higher than I would expect based upon my average pace from more than two weeks ago, when I started showing signs of training issues. That fact may be meaningful, or not; but, it could also indicate over-training or inadequate recovery time due to age. What changed from Training Week 7 and this week, Training Week 9?

I’ll wait to see whether any other issues materialize this week, or next, before I try to discover whether there is some pattern emerging or I’m just being paranoid.

Happy Running!!!

 

Running – Base Training Week 9, Day 1

13 January 2015

Today was cool and overcast; the forecast high temperature for today was 45°F, but it was only 41°F when I left home to go run. After a few minutes, I was not feeling the cool air at all and was enjoying the run. A couple of days rest made a real difference in the freshness of my legs.

Even from the beginning of today’s session, the only things on which I was focused were my running cadence and enjoying the run…except the Hilltop Ridge steep grade, I wasn’t enjoying the hill!

Looking up Hilltop Ridge Steep Grade - Near 1/3 Point
Looking up Hilltop Ridge Steep Grade – Near 1/3 Point
Looking up Hilltop Ridge Steep Grade - Near 1/2 Point
Looking up Hilltop Ridge Steep Grade – Near 1/2 Point
Looking up Hilltop Ridge Steep Grade - Near 2/3 Point
Looking up Hilltop Ridge Steep Grade – Near 2/3 Point
Looking up Hilltop Ridge Steep Grade - Near 3/4 Point
Looking up Hilltop Ridge Steep Grade – Near 3/4 Point [That’s not smoke or mist; it’s a temporarily fogged lens from my holding the camera]
Deer watching Runner - About Mile 2.5
Deer watching Runner – About Mile 1.5 (Training Run)

Endurance Running – Week 9 of 13 Weeks, Day 1 of 4 Days

The run was going well through Mile 2 of the training run (Mile 3, including the 1 mi WU); but, soon afterward, my right calf Continue reading Running – Base Training Week 9, Day 1

Running – Base Training Week 8, Day 4

10 January 2015

This morning was cool and rainy with hardly any breeze at all; icicles (they were small) hung from the overhead utility lines. Today’s high temperature was 38°F and, by 14:00 (2 PM), the temperature had already dropped to 37°F, but the rain had stopped. Clouds hung fairly low–I estimated they were only about 200-250 feet above the elevation of the RV campground where we are currently living–and, my estimate was confirmed before I arrived at the top of the steep hill. I was running in a mist and the temperature was definitely lower at the top of the hill.

Endurance Running – Week 8 of 13 Weeks, Day 4 of 4 Days

While running today, I made a decision to run all of today’s training miles within the one neighborhood community along the ridge line of the one steep hill–I was being wimpy and didn’t want to have to try to run up the second steep hill, as I had done for last week’s Long Run. The good news is that I wasn’t tired; but, my legs certainly weren’t as fresh as last week’s Long Run. However, toward the end of today’s training session, my legs–and most other muscles in my body–were complaining; i.e., they, all, were tired and I was exhausted.

After I got home and went inside, my legs began to ache; so, I lay on the floor with my feet elevated–one minute per mile of running. After lying there for ~16 minutes, the aching had subsided; but, when I started to get up, my hip adductor muscles (thigh muscles of both legs, which stabilize the hips and pull the legs toward the midline) started to cramp. I managed to stand up and stretch, which relaxed my adductors. I walked to the refrigerator and poured a glass of kefir (actually, a kefir smoothie) [to supply carbohydrates and protein to my system] and dug into a container of Fage non-fat, plain, Greek yogurt [to supply more protein and some carbs]. About 30 min later, I felt recovered enough to wash my Garmin FR620 and associated HRM/chest strap and go take a bath.

One unusual incident did happen during my training session today:

Somewhere between Mile 13.5 and Mile 13.6, a beautiful malamute bitch (female dog) came bolting toward me; she circled me and began jumping–it was obvious that she was friendly and just wanted to play; so, I put my hand down at my side and she came up sniffed my gloved hand and started licking it before bolting down the road ahead of me. I’ve been running through that particular neighborhood community for nearly two months and this is only the second time anyone’s dog has run loose…at least, when I’ve been on the roadways.

She was really well cared for and had a lavender collar; so, I thought she must live very close to where I was currently running and that she would return home…but NO, she ran along with me (mostly about 100 yards [~100 meters] ahead) veering into neighbors’ yards, into the brush, and into the woods; but, each time, she would always run back to see where I was running and would run past me, then take up her typical “point” position ahead of me. She seemed to be enjoying the sport of running with someone that was not so fast that she couldn’t take side trips to investigate the neighborhood.

As I was running down the steep hill (~Mile 14.4), a young couple in a pickup truck were heading up the hill and spotted the dog–at that time, she was about 100 ft (~30.5 m) ahead of me. I successfully attracted their attention and saw that they were stopping; so, I, too, stopped. I explained that the dog had been running with me for about a mile and wouldn’t go home–by that time the dog had moved about 100 yds ahead of me and waited. The young man wasn’t too interested in chasing the dog and I was too tired to run any faster than I was, which certainly wasn’t fast enough to catch her. However, before the couple departed, the young man did say that he would post a notice on the community website.

To shorten this already long story, the dog followed me back to my home, but stayed a couple of hundred feet from me–she just wanted to keep running; but, I was too fatigued to do anything but go inside to rest. I did look though the windows for her and would have gone out to try to hold her for authorities, but could not see where she had gone…hopefully, she has found her way to her home. [I know that, if she were my dog that had gone missing, I would be grieved for the loss, even if the loss were temporary.]

Happy Running!!!

Running – Base Training Week 8, Day 4

10 January 2015

This morning was cool and rainy with hardly any breeze at all; icicles (they were small) hung from the overhead utility lines. Today’s high temperature was 38°F and, by 14:00 (2 PM), the temperature had already dropped to 37°F, but the rain had stopped. Clouds hung fairly low–I estimated they were only about 200-250 feet above the elevation of the RV campground where we are currently living–and, my estimate was confirmed before I arrived at the top of the steep hill. I was running in a mist and the temperature was definitely lower at the top of the hill.

Endurance Running – Week 8 of 13 Weeks, Day 4 of 4 Days

While running today, I made a decision to run all of today’s training miles within the one neighborhood community along the ridge line of the one steep hill–I was being wimpy and didn’t want to have to try to run up the second steep hill, as I had done for last week’s Long Run. The good news is that I wasn’t tired; but, my legs certainly weren’t as fresh as last week’s Long Run. However, toward the end of today’s training session, my legs–and most other muscles in my body–were complaining; i.e., they, all, were tired and I was exhausted.

After I got home and went inside, my legs began to ache; so, I lay on the floor with my feet elevated–one minute per mile of running. After lying there for ~16 minutes, the aching had subsided; but, when I started to get up, my hip adductor muscles (thigh muscles of both legs, which stabilize the hips and pull the legs toward the midline) started to cramp. I managed to stand up and stretch, which relaxed my adductors. I walked to the refrigerator and poured a glass of kefir (actually, a kefir smoothie) [to supply carbohydrates and protein to my system] and dug into a container of Fage non-fat, plain, Greek yogurt [to supply more protein and some carbs]. About 30 min later, I felt recovered enough to wash my Garmin FR620 and associated HRM/chest strap and go take a bath.

One unusual incident did happen during my training session today:

Somewhere between Mile 13.5 and Mile 13.6, a beautiful malamute bitch (female dog) came bolting toward me; she circled me and began jumping–it was obvious that she was friendly and just wanted to play; so, I put my hand down at my side and she came up sniffed my gloved hand and started licking it before bolting down the road ahead of me. I’ve been running through that particular neighborhood community for nearly two months and this is only the second time anyone’s dog has run loose…at least, when I’ve been on the roadways.

She was really well cared for and had a lavender collar; so, I thought she must live very close to where I was currently running and that she would return home…but NO, she ran along with me (mostly about 100 yards [~100 meters] ahead) veering into neighbors’ yards, into the brush, and into the woods; but, each time, she would always run back to see where I was running and would run past me, then take up her typical “point” position ahead of me. She seemed to be enjoying the sport of running with someone that was not so fast that she couldn’t take side trips to investigate the neighborhood.

As I was running down the steep hill (~Mile 14.4), a young couple in a pickup truck were heading up the hill and spotted the dog–at that time, she was about 100 ft (~30.5 m) ahead of me. I successfully attracted their attention and saw that they were stopping; so, I, too, stopped. I explained that the dog had been running with me for about a mile and wouldn’t go home–by that time the dog had moved about 100 yds ahead of me and waited. The young man wasn’t too interested in chasing the dog and I was too tired to run any faster than I was, which certainly wasn’t fast enough to catch her. However, before the couple departed, the young man did say that he would post a notice on the community website.

To shorten this already long story, the dog followed me back to my home, but stayed a couple of hundred feet from me–she just wanted to keep running; but, I was too fatigued to do anything but go inside to rest. I did look though the windows for her and would have gone out to try to hold her for authorities, but could not see where she had gone…hopefully, she has found her way to her home. [I know that, if she were my dog that had gone missing, I would be grieved for the loss, even if the loss were temporary.]

Happy Running!!!

Running – Base Training Week 8, Day 2

06 January 2015

The weather, this morning, was cool but, as noon approached, was warming. There may have been a cloud in the bright blue sky, but I don’t recall seeing one. When I left home (currently, located in the Texas Hill Country) for today’s mid-week run, the temperature had already risen to 58°F, and there was no breeze.

Endurance Running – Week 8 of 13 Weeks, Day 2 of 4 Days

Right after I started the WU (warm up) for today’s training session, I realized that my legs (and hips) were still tired; but, by that time, I was already down the road and thought that, after the WU, my muscles might settle into an easy running pace and, hopefully, a reduced running effort–it didn’t work out that way, though. The silver lining is that my muscles are not sore.

During the entire run today, I had to concentrate on keeping my cadence at 180 spm or higher. I wasn’t able to just enjoy running today; the run required mental and physical effort. But, tomorrow is a rest dayJanet and I are meeting RV friends in Fredericksburg, TX, to be tourists and do touristy things–and I’m planning for Thursday’s (08 Jan 2015) running session (4 mi) to be run at a true easy pace (~11:00/mi, if I can force myself to run that slow)–I may, even, walk the steep hill, just to keep the overall effort lower.

Happy Running!!!

Running – Base Training Week 8, Day 1

05 January 2015

First, I’ve made a change in my base training schedule; I have reduced the total number of training weeks from 16 to 13. I was reviewing my full training schedule on Sunday (04 Jan 2015) when I realized that the last three weeks of the schedule are taper weeks–recall that the program which I’m using is for 1st time marathon training (the goal is to finish a marathon without regard to pace or finishing time). Since I am using this current program for base building, I’ll follow up this program with a maintenance training program. Then, if I can find a marathon in November or December of this year, I’ll start training for the marathon. That’s my plan today.

Today was another cool day (48°F) but with a clear, bright sky with few clouds. I was surprised that I still feel fatigued–as though resting yesterday was inadequate, still, to recover from last weeks training runs; my legs were not sore (DOMS) but they were tired throughout the entire session.

Endurance Running – Week 8 of 13 Weeks, Day 1 of 4 Days

Last Saturday (03 Jan 2015), I stated that I lack the fitness to run a marathon–regardless what the pace–but, today, I question whether I still have the fitness to run a half marathon. Yes, I wrote that with tongue-in-cheek; but, after the easy pace run last Saturday, I really expected Sunday’s rest day would leave me fully recovered for today’s run session–it didn’t!! So, the question is: Am I pushing my training too fast (over training)? Or, is it due to my age? Unfortunately, I suspect that the symptoms (and the cure) for either alternative will be the same; so, maybe, it isn’t important which is the correct question. The cure for over training or for tired, old runners is sure to be, I feel certain, add more recovery time between running sessions and SLOW DOWN.

I’ll see how I feel during tomorrow’s mid-week (6 miles) training run. Maybe, I’ll have fresh legs, tomorrow, and find this is a minor issue, not a developing one.

Happy Running!!!

Running – Base Training Week 7, Day 3

03 January 2015

The weather was warm today [~63°F, 52% RH (relative humidity)], when Janet and I returned from meeting her younger step-brother and his family for lunch in Floresville, TX; and, since the sun would not set for more than an hour and a half, I changed into running clothes and headed out for an Easy Pace Training Run.

I had jogged less than a 1/2 mile, when I realized that I, really, had not allowed myself adequate time for recovery–old geezers need to allow more time for recovery than younger runners. In particular, both my hamstrings and quads were still sore from my Long Run on New Year’s Day 2015. I soon found that, if my running form was correct, my quads and hamstring muscles were not stressed; i.e., I didn’t notice that they were, in deed, sore (DOMS) [At least, my feeling their soreness was lessened].

Endurance Running – Week 7 of 13 Weeks, Day 3 of 4 Days

I think that my sore leg muscles, actually, helped me to keep good running form, even though I, also, felt tired overall. By the time I had crested that steep hill, I was huffin’-n-puffin’ and was having to apply some effort just to keep my cadence up (close) to what I want to maintain (180 spm). So, I decided to just try to maintain an easy, consistent effort (by feel) and to keep an eye on maintaining my running cadence; thinking that, due to feeling tired, would produce a slow, even pace.

I was wrong about the slow, even pace! Or, maybe, I have seen an improvement in my pace due to stronger glues and just haven’t allowed myself to run faster paces thus far in my training. Mostly, I have tried to keep my training pace limited between 10:00/mi and 11:00/mi; I haven’t been altogether successful in doing that; but, better than today’s running pace.

As I understand the principal, in “Base Building,” the object is to develop the body’s cardiovascular system (which includes developing the body’s ability to utilize the oxygen transported to the muscles cells in burning the glycogen stored in those cells and in converting fat to glycogen for fuel) by slow paced runs and by slowly increasing the distance or time spent in the running session each four to six weeks period during the base building cycle. So, what does that mean for a runner? That, while developing some speed during the cycle is important, the runner has to run those unbearably slow running paces; and, even though, the runner feels like the effort is an easy one, the runner absolutely must train, for the majority of running sessions, at the easy paces developed by Running Coach Jack Daniels, PhD, and prescribed by his formulae and tables.

Coach Daniels’ paces are those for the individual runner and are based upon the runner’s current fitness (not the fitness that the runner hopes to be on race day, but the runner’s current fitness). [For finding your own set of paces, use one (or both) of the VDOT online Calculators by RunBayou and by AttackPoint, links in sidebar frame.] Technically, as I understand Coach Daniels‘ book, his prescribed paces are for training and for projecting races paces for various racing distances…assuming that the runner’s endurance is sufficient for the distance; e.g., those calculations give me a projected running pace [~9:46/mi] for a full marathon [4:16:03] based upon my current VDOT [35.68, usually round down to the integer 35]; however, today I’m not capable of running that distance (26.2 miles, or 42.2k).

Happy Running!!!

Running – Base Training Week 7, Day 2

01 January 2015

I managed to get out of my wimpy mode–with some prodding from my wife–and went out for my first run of the new year, a mid-afternoon run. The weather was chilly (~40°F) with a light, misting rain and very little breeze. I dressed in long, compression tights; a long-sleeved, compression shirt; and a runner’s winter skull cap. By the end of my WU and first training mile, I realized that I had overdressed–I was sweating…quite a bit!

I discovered that the previous two days without running seemed to have a positive effect on today’s running session (at least, for the WU [1 mi] and scheduled training run [12 mi]); in fact, I was able to maintain a reasonable pace–disregarding Mile 2 and Mile 9, each of which included a steep hill (~10% grade)–for ~14 miles before my legs started to complain and I slowed my pace.

Endurance Running – Week 7 of 13 Weeks, Day 2 of 4 Days [My 1st Training Run of 2015]

Several times, I’ve made a big deal of those steep hills–complaining about Continue reading Running – Base Training Week 7, Day 2

С Новым Годом! (Happy New Year…in Russian)

01 January 2015

Well, the year 2014 has passed; today begins a whole new year for us to do well in all that we shall attempt…or not!

So, last Monday’s run was my last run for 2014! I had planned to run again last Tuesday and Wednesday, not today or tomorrow; but, I needed to complete some continuing education requirements before year’s end and I spent nearly 20 hours, working feverishly, online, to get that done (unsuccessfully). <sigh>

Currently, the weather here, near New Braunfels, TX, is overcast, misting rain, and 39°F; and, if I can force myself to be less wimpy, I shall go for a Long Run (scheduled: 12 miles), since today (maybe tomorrow, too) is the only day available this week and, for which, my wife and I don’t have plans scheduled.

I have made no resolutions for the new year. Currently, my only plan is for Janet and I to continue wandering around the USA and, maybe, Eastern Canada…at least, until November 2015, when we plan to return to our home base, Citrus Acres, in Oak Hill, Florida, where we plan to stay through the winter of 2015-2016.

Happy New Year to all!!! Safe Travels!! and Happy Running!