Catch ya later

Hard to be upset when the forecast looks like that. I'm off to have fun!

A springtime rite of passage

Getting hailed on, that is. Glad I didn't miss out this year. The forecast for Saturday was 30% chance of showers, same as the rest of the drizzly week. I was mentally prepared to run through a few spells of light rain, so when I got to mile 14 dry & chafe-free I was pretty darn happy. Then the sky opened up in a complete downpour. Okay, that was bad enough. Then a quarter mile later hail started muscling in and taking over. My forearms and legs were bare, and that shit stung. Out loud, to no one, I asked "Seriously? Is this really necessary?" The hail lasted maybe thirty seconds all together; the rain kept going for about two miles. It wasn't a disaster, but I would've dressed differently if I'd known I would get soaked to the skin with 10k to go. I had the shakes by the time I got home and took a hot shower before the ice bath. (I've gotten over trying to talk myself out of the damn things.)

Other than that it was a pretty good run, except I got out of the car at the trail and immediately had to pee… four miles from the nearest bathroom. Good practice for the race, I guess. Last year I had to pee at the race start and didn't have a chance to go until mile 16. My overall pace was a bit slower than I would've liked, but I felt immensely strong in the second half. No long-run aches until about mile 19. I couldn’t believe it when I realized how I felt with a mile to go – light-years away from how I felt during 20-milers last year. Yay!

Hill run, and misc. rambling

I decided to do my patented four-mile hill run at lunch today. Since tomorrow's twenty miles will be on the flatter-than-flat Springwater Corridor, I figured today was the day to work the hill muscles. Plus it was sunny! Not warm or anything, but beggars can't be choosers. I know it's not exactly an ideal hill run because it's just one big up and one big down. But again, it's what I got. I could get more ups and downs if I ran uptown but then I'd be dodging people and risking jaywalking tickets left and right. (Now yes, I imagine I could outrun the average police officer. But what if he was astride a Segway?? Not worth the risk.) It's much more peaceful to run up among the ritzy houses in the West Hills, where the only people I ever see are mailmen and migrant workers pruning elaborate hedges.
*
I've been thinking about joining Portland's Team Red Lizard for a while. I put it off because: a) they are intimidating (not that I really know who "they" are); and b) I wasn't sure if I wanted to commit to training harder. This article in the Times made me reconsider, so I checked out the TRL website. As I was browsing around I found this fantastic article by their track coach Rick Lovett. It got me thinking: I am definitely still a beginning runner, racking up PRs because I've barely started training my body to go faster than a brisk walk. I ran a lot in high school and college, then took a four-year hiatus before starting to train for Yakima in fall 2007. It's been about a year and a half since then. Recent illness aside, I've definitely gotten faster. Rick's article makes me wonder how fast I could be. But it's also reassuring…in some ways it takes the pressure off. As soon as I signed up for a second marathon my thoughts went to qualifying for Boston, because it’s an exclusive marathon and a goal that’s recognizable even to people who don't run. It's nice to be reminded that *hello*, it's only my second marathon. I have years and years to get used to running and get better at it. I don't need to put all this pressure on myself and set up a potentially unrealistic goal. My goal should be to finish happy & strong. On that note, TGIF!

Getting better all the time

I ran 6 miles outside after work on Tuesday, risking the erratic spring weather. It was one of those sunny-raining-hail-sunny days. Luckily the hour I was out on the Springwater was dry. The sun chose to make an appearance as I was crossing the Hawthorne Bridge and staring right at it, which I didn't appreciate. But it's silly (and risky) to complain about the sun coming out, so I'll stop. Portland needs all the vitamin D it can get right about now.

I didn't have to take any walking breaks, but in the middle I slowed down noticeably before bouncing back in last two miles. My right foot started hurting, though, boo. I'm hoping it was random foot pain and not something that will start nagging. Yesterday was a rest day, which was slightly weird – felt like I was playing hooky. But I'll run every other day this week, so I milked it and did nothing but take a walk at lunchtime. I have a feeling that I'll be exhausted by Sunday.

*
I was impulsive this morning and signed up for the Timberline Marathon in September (view from the start line at right). I really like trail running, and hopefully this will motivate me to do more of it this summer. I've been thinking about the race and how I'll fit training into my summer schedule, plus doing some rumination on running in general. I like running, obviously, or I wouldn't spend so much time doing & talking & thinking about it. What I don’t like about marathon training is feeling worn down. I think that if I varied my activities more and ran less I would feel better. (Not a new idea I realize, but a new approach for me.) I'm going to stick with my planned schedule for Newport, but try a new approach for Timberline. Rather than strictly follow a daily schedule like I've done so far, I'm going to play this one a little looser. I think I'll have a long-run plan for weekends but let the rest of the week shape up however I want it to. I want to do more weight training and cross-training (and if I bike commute like last year, that's a solid built-in workout every day). I think I'll find it more fulfilling to have a fun, relaxing, diverse summer than to have a few minutes' faster time in a race. Guess we'll see!

"No, Donny, these men are nihilists, there's nothing to be afraid of."

I woke up Saturday to pouring rain. Super. Another "Run Suffered Through Because You Never Know What Conditions Will Be On Race Day." Actually I don't usually mind soggy runs but this was some fierce rain. Not the happy little raindrops Portland is used to.

I managed to get halfway to the Springwater before realizing I wasn't wearing my watch. Mentally I had already decided to take it easy this weekend, so I dismissed going back for it. The first half of the run I thought about how much more enjoyable my long runs are when I'm not trying to make a time goal (during the second half, my brain was consumed with chafage). Yes they end up being longer but the run itself is much more pleasant, and I'm not beating myself up over a few seconds here and there. By 10 AM on Saturday I was positive that I was going to give up my time goals and just train to finish again. With a few days' perspective, I'm now on the fence. I was sodden and tired (and chafing) during that run – I don't want to hold myself to decisions I made while cranky. And I don't want to sell myself short.

The Race for the Roses is Sunday. My goal is to beat my PR, 1:51:something. Assuming the weather is decent enough to run a good race, it should help me figure things out. I ran the 1:51 on like, NO training. Maybe 15 easy miles a week. My training runs this year have been below that PR pace (by a hair), but leave me fatigued. I might not be a high-mileage person…maybe I run better when slacking (that'd be SWEET!).

Too nervous to think of a title.

Sorry for the lack of updates. The last week can be summed up thusly: tapering blows. Seriously, that's about the long and short of it. Okay, it's not ALL bad. I was almost embarrassed by all the free time I had on Saturday, needing to run only a paltry 8 miles. (Sigh…I remember back when that was my long run. Cue the "Wonder Years" theme.) But I find myself using all this free time to get nervous. I was fine until today – I woke up at 4:30 this morning and rather than roll over and go back to sleep in 2.6 seconds as I usually would, it hit me that THIS IS MARATHON WEEK (holy hand basket!). Once that thought was planted, trying to get back to sleep was a Herculean task. I actually resorted to counting sheep for gods sake.

I checked the weather up in Yakima, and at the risk of jinxing myself, I'm going out on a limb and saying I don't think weather will be an issue (cringe…knock on wood…salt over the shoulder). This whole week looks the same: partly sunny, highs in the mid-60s. Perfect! And in order to make that seem even more ideal, I ran my Saturday eight outside in the lovely Portland springtime. Here’s a timeline:
miles 1-3: overcast
mile 4: rain
mile 5: hail
mile 6: sun comes out (still hailing!)
miles 7-8: hail stops, I get uncomfortably warm and give off steam

I'm taking Friday off and driving up to Yakima around noon. I figure that will give me time to go to the expo and pick up my packet, check into the hotel, maybe drive part or all of the course, and find a paper bag to breath in. I strong-armed my friend Tina into coming with me (and that's totally a metaphor – I arm-wrestled her once and she beat me handily. She may be small, but she's stringy.). So I will have a small cheering section. :) I'm hoping to see the Back of the Packer – she is totally inspiring. I want to find whatever it is that supplies her energy and bottle it and sell it. I'd be rich!!

Note to self: I have to remember to ask for late checkout at the hotel. I want to be able to take an ice bath afterward. My feelings toward ice baths are well-documented, but damn it all, they work. Damn it.

Seventeen miles on Saturday – wow.

Even as I was running, I couldn't believe I was doing it. To think my long run just a few months ago was five!

I was indeed in the rain for three hours straight, although it did mix with snow for a while in the middle, which was nice. I think I made the right choice in what I wore, even though I was WAY more bundled up than any of the other runners I saw (all four of them). It's one thing to get soaked to the skin on my short runs during the week, when I can come home and take a hot shower right away. I was concerned about getting soaked in the first half-hour, then having two and half more hours in which to get all chafe-y and uncomfortable.

I'm now convinced that I had a bad, clingy cold the last few weeks. I feel like a new runner now. Not only did I have plenty of energy on Saturday night, on Sunday I was fine. I even contemplated going for a short run, but settled on some yoga and a long walk instead. It is such a huge relief to know that I wasn't feeling crummy from the running but from some lousy germs that I probably got from my dad (thanks, Pop).
***
Now that I'm into the highest mileages I'll be doing, I've been thinking a lot about what to eat after a long run. I know it's important to get a lot of protein, carbs, etc., but I wanted to avoid nutrition bars and recovery powder thingies because they are both expensive and of dubious, perhaps chemical origin. So I googled around for awhile and stumbled across a great recipe on a website which (of course) I cannot locate now. I would give credit where it is due if I wasn't such a spaz.

Anywho, the recipe is below. I really like it. It's fast & easy to make, it's muy tasty, and I can drink it while I'm doing other things like stretching or getting in the ice bath (AAAAHHHHH!).
1 cup milk (soy or dairy)
1/3 cu. of either powdered skim milk or soy protein powder
2 tbs. of instant pudding mix, for flavor and to thicken the shake (I use butterscotch…mmmmm)
4 ice cubes
Combine everything in a blender and pulse until smooth
The original recipe called for dairy milk and the milk powder, neither of which I have at home, ergo I used soy milk & powder. The result was super tasty. The pudding mix, while adding sugar, also makes the shake uber-palatable. I was worried it would be one of those "choke it down, its good for you" things, but now I look forward to it. It fills me up, gives me a lot of protein and carbs, and I haven't been as sore on Sundays since I've been making them (although that may be due to other things too – like shaking off that persistent cold). The added bonus is that it costs like 40 cents a shake, as opposed to $3 and higher for commercial brands.

PS - How much do ice baths *#$%&`%*#$ suck????

Maybe I'll stash them in a plastic baggie...

Ran at the gym during lunch yesterday, then promptly drank too much that night. We threw a party for a retiring coworker at a local bar. (Hey, only 40 years till I'm there!) Normally I'm pretty good at sticking to one or two, but last night drinks kept appearing in my hand as if by magic. I paid for maybe one drink yet imbibed many more over the course of four hours. When I got home (I wasn't driving, don't worry) I drank a ton of water and had some toast, so this morning I felt fine.

I'm trying to stay positive for tomorrow. It's still supposed to rain all day, so I'm steeling myself. There is no way in h-e-double-hockey-sticks that I'm running 17 miles inside, so outdoors it is. I'm going to wear rain pants over my running tights, and a slicker. I have to admit that in a masochistic way I like running in the rain. Somehow rainy runs seem to go by more quickly, maybe because my brain is too much occupied thinking "what the heck is wrong with me that I’m out here in the rain while other people are huddled in front of the fire drinking coffee?" to notice that time is passing. Plus whenever you come across another runner in the rain there is that treasured nod of acknowledgement for a fellow badass. There is one hands down bummer though – no matter where you stash your tissues, they get damp. You know what I mean. It's wintertime, its cold, you're running, you get the sniffles. In dry or snowy weather you can leave them in your jacket pocket and you'll be okay. But when you're out in the rain for three hours, tissues turn into a limp, soggy mess no matter how well you try to protect them.

Singing in the rai- wait, the sleet... no, now its snow

I had an interesting run last night. I couldn’t face the treadmill, not yet, so I ran outside. I started at my house down at the base of Mt. Tabor (~200 ft. elevation) and ran up to the track around the reservoir (~530 ft.). At my house, it was raining. At 55th Ave, halfway up, it was sleeting (ouch). And at the reservoir it was snowing. The snow was beautiful, big old flakes, and it wasn't sticking so I could enjoy it without worrying about sliding around. I descended through the weather again on my way home. Very cool.

I'm scheduled for 17 miles on Saturday and its making me nervous. I will never flake on a long run, and compared to the last few weeks I'm feeling good. But its supposed to rain all day, and 17 is creeping awfully close to 20. I guess its just daunting. Plus I had a dream about it last night in which things kept coming up and I couldn't run until nearly sunset, plus I'd forgotten my water and gels. It was unpleasant – I need to have a talk with my subconscious about making me more nervous than I already am with these nighttime shenanigans.

Sidebar: I've been upping my carb eating the past few weeks. I'm a veggie-tarian but I was still on the light side when it came to starchy carbs. I eat a lot of fruit, cheese, veggies, yogurt, cheese. Cheese. But given how tired I was feeling after my long runs I decided some dietary tinkering was necessary. I'm hoping a 7:30 bedtime won't be necessary again this Saturday. I'm willing to make certain sacrifices for marathon training but going to bed at 7:30 on party night? Not acceptable.

I admit, I wimped out

Saturday morning dawned cold & icky (a scientific term). It was raining/icing steadily, and I made the call that it would be silly to put myself through another long run in miserable weather. Plus, parts of the sidewalk by my house were slippery enough that I nearly went toes over ass while walking on them. Thus to the gym I went, to complete twelve grueling miles on the treadmill. Shudder. Yuck. Blarg. I really hate when I have to restart the treadmill. I don't know if this is a 24 Hour Fitness thing or is universal, but all the treadmills at the gym have a max of 60 minutes per session. Even if I do a separate warm-up, that's a max of 6 miles, give or take a few tenths. Ergo, if I want to do more than 6 miles I have to let the treadmill come to a complete stop, furiously press the "restart" and "speed up" buttons, and try to get back into the groove I was so ignominiously booted out of. I realize that in the grand scheme of Life's Inconveniences this one ranks pretty low, somewhere in the vicinity of changing the oil in your car, but way below flossing or the stomach flu. Still. Oh, and another thing I've come to dislike about doing long runs at the gym is that I get funny looks from people while swallowing gels. I get that most people on the treadmill at the gym are walking or running 2 or 3 miles, and have most likely never run long enough to need a gel. I get that it might be weird to see the gal next to you trying to subtly ooze some goo out of a tube into her sweaty face while simultaneously trying not to fall off the back of the treadmill into the guy behind her. But do ya gotta stare?

To look on the bright side of the gym thing, I wasn't on one of the machines that faces the wall, and I got to watch most of Paycheck, a completely forgettable action movie from the 90s that I vaguely remember seeing at the drive-in with my two best friends in high school. We went to see it because we had a thing for Ben Affleck, who spends the entire movie looking like an insurance salesman with tanorexia and a pomade fixation.

Here's hoping

I completed my 15 miles on Saturday. It was hard. I thought ten miles in the rain was bad, then I went fifteen in the sleet & hail. In all honesty it wasn't coming down the entire length of the run. But it stung my face and hands and made the path slippery. The last three miles I increased my pace: one) to see if I could; and two) because I just wanted to be done. I was tired, and that night I went to bed at 7:45. Last week was my first 30-mile week, and it took it out of me. I think/hope I'm still wrestling with a cold, because I could easily go to bed at 8 every night, and I refuse to let this training take over my life.

Today it was sunny and completely beautiful in Portland. An extremely rare day for us this time of year, and I jumped at the chance to run outside on my lunch break. It is runs like the one I enjoyed today that remind me of why I like running in the first place. I was going along the Springwater Corridor at a perfectly comfortable pace, my legs felt good, my breathing was perfect, the sun and wind were on my back, the river was sparkling. I felt a great amount of joy, and it was remarkable to think that this is something that I would seek out – that I would consider running to be a… relaxation activity. It's hard to explain, but I think anyone who feels the need to coerce themselves into exercising knows what I'm trying to get at. Today's run was like a break, like a mini-vacation in the middle of the workday. There is nothing that I could have done that I would have enjoyed more than running four miles in the beautiful sunshine.

That feeling has been missing these last few weeks – this great run came at the perfect time. I've been feeling worn down, and the lingering hip thing has cast a pall over running the past 6 weeks or so. Running was a chore, something to get out of the way so that I could spend the rest of my free time doing "fun" things. But today running was a fun thing. I need to capture that spirit and bottle it so that this weekend, when the rain and snow are due back, I can face my long run with a smile and not a grimace.

Pardon my French…

...but there is no way to express how truly awful my run was on Saturday except through cursing: it was a fucking nightmare. Seriously, from start to finish it was a total CF. I came thisclose to scrapping the whole thing after two miles, but managed to convince myself to use it as a pre-marathon test to see just how much pain and misery I can endure. Which is a lot, apparently. What was so horrible about it? 1) I think I had a fever; 2) My throat hurt and my body ached even before I laced up; 3) it rained on me again; 4) I had a kink in my right calf that never really went away; 5) I brought a Strawberry-Banana Power Gel with me and it was so vile I nearly gagged; and 6) MY IDIOT TOE HURT. I don’t know why my stupid left big toe hurt but OH DEAR GOD I never knew a toe could cause so much pain. That was the killer. Every other step I contemplated stopping. I did stop once to take my shoe off and make sure the damn thing wasn't broken. Jeez, I'm still all jittery and strung-out about it. After I hit the 10-mile mark I practically had to crawl the half-mile back to my car. On Sunday I was so feverish & tired that I passed the majority of the day on the couch watching football (okay, in all honesty I probably would have done that anyway)(go Giants!). Ugh. I feel better today (doped up on Dayquil).

I'm truly concerned about the toe thing – even though it isn't broken (I don't think) it still hurts, though not as badly. I'm going to take it easy again today, and hopefully my run tomorrow won't be another exercise in masochism. Shudder.

I now consider myself hardcore

Seriously. Saturday I ran 13 miles, ten of which were completed in the pouring rain. On Friday night the forecast was for scattered showers Saturday morning, and when I got up the sky was pretty clear. Now I shouldn’t blame the weather people for deceiving me – I've lived here long enough to know that the weather can pull a 180 in minutes. Really I have only myself to blame. I thought it would be nice to run outside, and if I got sprinkled on, well, that's good experience right?
As I drove down to the Springwater corridor in southeast Portland, it wasn't raining. As I warmed up it wasn't raining, and when I started to run it still wasn't raining. It actually looked as if it might clear up. But then I hit 3 miles, struggling as always, and it started to rain on me. Little piddles at first, then harder and harder until it was seriously pouring. It did that for the next ten miles. What surprised me was that it honestly wasn't that horrible (of course I may be blocking some things out). I think the worst part was that I'd unwisely worn cotton socks, and I was preoccupied that like, at the turnaround point I'd start to get blisters or chafing and have to decide whether to run through it or stop and walk the 6.5 miles back to the car. But it never happened, even though by the end my feet were so wet that every time they hit the ground little jets of water squirted out the front and sides. Other than that I was relatively comfortable. I was wearing breathable capris and top layers that didn't chafe, and a baseball cap that kept the rain out of my eyes (although it got so saturated that water started pooling at the edges and dripping down). I never felt any pain anywhere, although I was really tired by the end. On Sunday (thanks to another horrible ice bath) I was fine, a little stiff. One odd thing was that as soon as I stopped running (oh blessed relief), my knees hurt. Like they were actually tender. After the ice bath they felt pretty much fine, but it was strange that I felt totally fine while running and then had problems walking.
As I mentioned above, the first 3.5 miles pretty much stank. It seems to be my pattern that once I get past the warm-up miles I can settle in and cruise along pretty comfortably. It's hard though, to start off feeling really terrible, and questioning whether you can finish 13 miles when you can't even do four, blah blah blah. It's a mental struggle to keep going. But I do, and then before I know it I'm at the turnaround point. And then I'm done - 13 miles!! A half-marathon!! And I did it in about 2 hours and four minutes. Oh, and no i-Pod! Go me!

Winter weather is finally here...super

miles: 8 (indoors)
total program miles: 99.5 (almost a century! woot!)
pain level: naught, at least from running. I was ambitious at the gym last night, and my arms are tired.

Saturday the forecast was for snow, which we get maybe once a year in Portland. (Aside: Oh man, is it funny how this city responds to snow. They have no salt trucks and like two plows, so when there is any measurable accumulation on the ground the city basically rolls over and plays dead. It's accepted that everything shuts down on snowy days.) Anywho, I made the call to run indoors (again!) and did 8 miles on the treadmill. I never, ever thought I'd say this, but the dratted thing is growing on me. It is so easy on the legs (that one time notwithstanding) and it really keeps you honest in terms of pacing. I screwed up though, because I forgot to bring a gel with me. I figured at eight miles I should start using gels or bars or something to keep my energy up, but as I was walking into the gym I realized I'd left mine on the kitchen table. Ooops. I suppose I could've bought something at the gym but I balked at that, since: a) everything is overpriced; and b) it is aimed primarily at weight-lifters who need umpteen million calories of protein a day, not endurance athletes who need a quick carb boost (did I just call myself an athlete??). By about 7.3 miles I was feeling really tired. My legs were great (in a role reversal from earlier in my training) but my tank was just empty. I actually sped up the pace at the end because I just wanted to be finished! I felt good knowing that I could do that, that my body could kick it up even when tired.

I'm now arguing with myself strenuously over which training program to follow. I've never run a very long distance before, so I question whether it's wise to run three 20-milers before my first marathon. I don't want to exhaust myself. Conversely, I can see how the more experience I get at high mileage the better. What it all comes down to, I guess, is how my body responds to high mileage. It makes me nervous because I am emphatically NOT built like a distance runner. On Saturday there was a girl on a treadmill in front of me, and she was small and lean and efficient, and did I mention small? She was practically floating, no jiggle anywhere, no perceived effort. Me, well, I'm carrying around extra weight in certain female areas, if you know what I mean. When I jump, parts of me keeping moving after I'm back on the ground. I don't mind having a "figure," to use my mother's euphemism, but it means that I'm carrying extra baggage with me at all times, weight that will never melt away or turn into muscle. Imagine running with a 15 pound turkey strapped to your back, or better yet flapping around your chest, and you'll have an idea of the ways in which I am not built like a runner. Title 9 and it's 4- and 5- dumbbell sports bras have been a godsend to me, but just because the girls aren't moving around doesn't mean they aren't along for the ride.

PS - It never snowed a flake on Saturday, thank you meteorologists of the greater metro area.

Phew

I had some great luck today. I went for a run at lunch again, 5 miles this time, and I did an out and back across the river and two miles into the Springwater Corridor. It was threatening rain, and the whole time I was running I was thinking "please please please don't rain on me, please!" And guess what? It mostly didn't! It had just started as I finished by cool-down walk and returned to my building. Yay! I win!

So, as I may have mentioned, I had been planning on running according to Hal Higdon's 2nd novice training program. Which, technically, begins next week. (Eep.) After doing some more reading, I'm thinking about changing to a NY Road Runners plan. My reason for contemplating the switch is that Hal only has one run at or above 20 miles. Knowing myself, I think I would feel better prepared if I did two or three. I need to make a choice this week, clearly, since the number of very long runs sets the pace for the rest of the weekend runs. Hmmmm. Things to contemplate.

And then I bought rain pants.

distance:7 miles, indoors
total program distance: 63.5 miles
pain level: naught
I woke up on Saturday to pouring, pouring rain. Portland rain is usually relatively mild and friendly but this was angry rain. I couldn’t face the thought of being out in it for more than an hour. So I did it again: I went to the gym and ran on the treadmill. It was better. But I'm still not a convert.
I did a longer, more thorough warm-up and I did not feel any pain while running. But I was completely BORED OUT OF MY MIND. The treadmill that I was on had a broken head-phone jack, so I couldn’t watch the college football game or Spanglish (on second thought, maybe that's a good thing), and when I wear my iPod on the deathmill I feel like it's in the way of my arms, so no music. If there was music playing at the gym it was too quiet to hear. It was quite warm. So I was running, staring at a heating duct across the gym, sweating, for about 95 minutes (taking into account warm-up and cool-down). I started doubting myself: how can I run a marathon if I can't even get through 7 miles on the treadmill? I was questioning my commitment and my abilities. It was not good. But after about 4 miles I got in a groove and stopped thinking so damn much.
On the plus side, I felt tired by the end but very comfortable. In the middle of the run I entered a weird zone where I was moving but I didn't feel like I was doing anything. My body was just going along on its own. Actually it was kind of amazing how great my legs felt (although I was still glad to stop). And I have to admit it felt really, really good to have all these people around me get on, run for a few minutes, and get off while I was still going strong. In addition, now when someone says "It was as dull as watching paint dry" I can counter with "Was it as boring as being on a treadmill for an hour and a half with no music and nothing to do but look at but the ceiling?"

distance last week: 16.9 miles (outdoors)
total program distance: 45.5 miles
pain level: my right arm is aching from all the bowling. But everything else is fizz-ine.

As I mentioned below, running in Montana was great. I was staying at a ranch off a hardpack dirt road, very easy on the legs. What wasn't easy on the legs was the temperature in the mornings. On Tuesday it was 20 degrees! I'm sure people from the Northern plains are scoffing and snorting into their mufflers at my puny, weak Portlandian tolerance for cold, but man, it was COLD. Portland sees 20 degrees maybe twice a year. The running pants I brought were grossly inadequate, and I never felt like I really warmed up. Consequently, I ran in the afternoons for the rest of the week and felt much better.

Oh, and of course, as soon as I pointed out how nice the weather has been the rain shows up. And the high winds. Yesterday was one of those days in which it was completely impossible to stay dry because the wind was blowing the rain both sideways and up, somehow, thus rendering even the most advanced, coastal-weather-ready, rain jacket/hat/umbrella combo powerless to stop the soaking. After the first few weeks, though, you stop trying and accept that for the next four months you will be damp at all times. I brought my gym clothes to work today, so I can run on the treadmill. Depending on the weather (oh who am I kidding, it'll be rainy), I think I'll run at the gym during the week and do my long weekend run outside. Yakima has a history of being dry on race day, but there is no point in tempting fate by not acclimating to running in wet weather. (I would run outside more during the week, but I can't stand the thought of a day where I: get up in the dark; go to work in the dark & rain; leave work in the dark & rain; get home, change out of my soggy clothes into dry clothes; and then head back out into the dark & rain to go running. It might break me.) Portland is a great city and there is a lot to recommend it during the winter months, but the weather? Not one of them.

First things first:

The sunset last night was gorgeous.

distance: 4 miles (outdoors)

total program distance: 7 miles

pain level: minimal

Heeding my wishes, the rain stopped as I left work. By the time I got up the hill the sun had broken through the dark clouds and was shining on all the wet, brightly colored leaves on the hill and on the streets down to the river…it was amazing. (This picture is not from last night, but it captures the general awesomeness of the view at sunset.) I had hoped that the rain would get rid of the bugs around the reservoir – not so much. Something I forgot to mention yesterday is that on the track around the lower reservoir there are little swarms of gnat-like creatures (perhaps gnats). They congregate on the south-eastern side and fly right at my face height (goddamn it). It is really, really hard to keep good race form and breathing when you inhale clouds of gnats every twenty paces or so. Ugh. It was better tonight, but I was also smart and wore a baseball hat. That way I could pull the brim down and angle my head aawy for the few minutes that I was running through their turf. I can't wait for the first freeze to kill those suckers off.

My legs felt stiff/fatigued yesterday as I was coming home, but after I warmed up they seemed okay. The first mile, as usual, was tight. I took it slow, like a continuation of my warm-up, and my shins limbered up. I think they will be my problem area. I've never had any knee, back, or thigh problems, ::knock on wood:: The only thing that gives me trouble are sore shins, which I know are shin splints. They aren't very bad though, just sort of a dull ache rather than any sharp pain, and I've never had to stop running because of them. I've been following the advice of the NY Road Runners gurus and doing their stretching regime, which helps. Hopefully as I get more mileage in I'll reduce the shin splints and not get any other aches and pains. (Yeah right!)

It's definitely my legs that hold me back – that's sort of a "duh!" thing to say, I know. But last night I was running around the track and I felt like I wasn’t breathing hard enough (again, I could nose breath). I consciously tried to go faster but it was hard for me to make my legs go fast enough to get my breathing elevated. They were all "dude, you've always been happy to just sort of plod along, why shake things up?" Clearly I need to do some speedwork to get my legs used to going faster, since cardiovascularly (apparently that isn't a word, but it should be) I'm doing just fine so far. Tonight I have a 3-miler; I think I'm going to go up to the track and try running one lap fast-ish. As fast-ish as I can manage. We'll see how that goes...