Keith’s Amusing Musings

OK, not really FIRST first.

On August 31, before heading to Belgium, I completed The Human Race 10K. For this global 10K running event my time was 57’14” (or about 9:32 per mile) which means I finished first…in the second group of 13,900 runners. Ha! The top finisher overall finished in 27’38”. You know nothing crushes a guy’s ego like the reality that someone not only runs faster but over twice as fast. I have to take solace knowing I can probably bench more than mjjensen80. If that fails, I will destroy him in a game of Pétanque.

Seattle wasn’t cool enough to make the list as one of 25 official host cities so I registered and ran as a “public runner.” For public runners to get credit for running, we had to run on August 31 and upload our results by September 2.

When I registered for the race over a month ago, I had my mind set on finishing in 54 minutes flat but two things conspired against me. First, my recent hamstring injury forced me to focus less on speed and more on endurance. Second, we decided to go to Belgium and our flight was at 7:15 AM the day of the race. I had to wake at 3 AM to have enough time to run, shower, eat and make it to the airport for an international flight. We wouldn’t arrive in Belgium until September 1 so it was either do the run before our trip or not at all. Let me tell you, running a 10K solo at 3 in the morning on 4 hours of sleep was brutal.

I was not used to running in the dark and I carried a flashlight so I could see more than three feet in front of me. It was difficult to relax since I worried I would encounter a pack of rabid coyotes and have to unleash a devastating fists of fury combo. Afterwards, TB told me coyotes don’t attack people. I was like, “Yeah, right!” and quickly reminded her of bouts like Buck vs. Christopher Reeve, Montecore vs. Roy Horn and Stingray vs. Steve Irwin. Sometimes, like humans, animals forget what they are and are not supposed to do. I want to get on Wikipedia eventually but not like that.

Three weeks from tomorrow is the big event: My first half marathon. Considering I have yet to run more than 10 miles, I feel caught between wanting to give my leg proper time to heal and wanting to tack on the miles to build endurance at the longer distances. I’m not running for time but I am running to finish.

I have selected a for my first half-marathon. I did not want to venture too far away from home and needed something in the late-September/early-October timeframe. A group of TB’s running buddies recommended the Bellingham Bay Marathon, scheduled for Sunday, September 28. Both the marathon (1,000 runners max) and half-marathon (3,000 runners max) begin at 7:30 AM.

I started training 7 weeks ago and I am now very excited now that I am registered for an actual race that is only 6 weeks away. That’s the good news.

The bad news is I strained a ligament and lower hamstring in my right leg during my long run 10 days ago. Soreness has prevented me from running since the injury and it’s likely another round of physical therapy is in my future. I don’t think the strain is severe but I still have to take it easy for a few more days. In the interim, this means my exercising consists of stationary bike and elliptical only. Yay! Not.

As you may recall, back in late June I began training for a half-marathon (13.1 miles). I have not selected a race yet but I will probably run in late September or early October. The training has been going great and today I passed a significant milestone by running 10 miles non-stop. Averaging 9’45” miles, I finished in 1:37:53.

Running 10 miles, or significantly longer than 60 minutes, requires hydration and fuel lest one’s muscles run out of energy or start cramping. A quick conversation with our trainer, followed by a trip to REI, and I was prepared with GU energy gels and a CamelBak Alterra 28 ounce hydration pack. The “Chocolate Outrage” GU gels are great.

Previously, my longest run was 8 miles and my training program has me ramping up to 12 miles in the next few weeks. I don’t know if I could have made it another 3.1 miles today since my lower left calf started cramping around 8.5 miles in. I suppose that is why one trains.

To commemorate me reaching LD runner status, TB met me at the 8 mile mark and we ran together the rest of the way. That was nice.

With today’s 4-miler, I broke the 200 mile mark since I began my Nike+ experiment in December. Reaching the 100 mile mark took four months so I ran the second 100 miles in about half the time, 72 days. Sweet! I received the following achievement when I accessed the Nike+ site after our run. Nike says I’m a champ. That’s funny. I think their system does an excellent job motivating new runners.

I also set a new personal best in the mile today: 9’05”. The voice of Lance Armstrong greeted me at the end of the run to notify me of the accomplishment. I hadn’t heard from him or Paula in a while so that was a pleasant surprise.

TB is a great running partner. She knows all the routes based on the distance I want to run and she’s a great motivator while, at the same time, she keeps me from overdoing it. She also has all the cool long-distance running gear which I’ve started stealing borrowing indefinitely. I’ve been her biggest fan—cheering from the sidelines—for all the races she’s trained for and completed over the years. I must admit I enjoy running with her even more.

Based on my current training program, I should hit the 300 mile mark in about 40 days. Off we go.

Today I completed the Nike+ goal I set back in March to run 108 miles in 12 weeks. I am pleased to say I finished one day early and only fell behind (by 3 miles) once over the 12 week period and quickly recovered.

What’s next? I start a Nike+ 12 week, half-marathon training program tomorrow. If things go as planned and I avoid injury with the increased mileage and frequency, I will register for a race in the fall. Notice in the picture below, I will more than double my miles over the next 12 weeks from 108 to 233! Wow, this is going to be nuts.

Of course, I need gear and gadgets to keep me motivated so, following the recommendation of our strength trainer, Michael, I dropped by Everyday Athlete this morning before my run to get fitted for a proper set of running shoes and pick up some specialized running socks. The specialist watched me run and had me try 5 different shoes. About 40 minutes later, I walked out with a pair of Saucony ProGrid Omni 6 Moderate Medium (size 12 1/2) to replace the Nike Air Pegasus (size 12) that have been with me since I started running consistently back in December. The Nikes carried me close to 200 miles but the stability, fit and comfort of the Sauconys are noticeably better. I’ll need all the help I can get to complete my half-marathon goal. Wish me luck.

As for the socks, I’ve started getting blisters as the weather has gotten warmer. The specialist told me the most important thing was to get away from cotton and go with synthetics. I chose a few pairs of nylon/polyester/spandex blends to see which make and style I prefer. High-end running socks are ridiculously expensive at $12-$14 per pair…however, they do feel great. I probably don’t need those for anything under 10 miles so I also grabbed a 3@$10 pack for shorter distances. I can’t afford to be sidelined by blisters so hopefully the less expensive socks will be equally effective as the high-end, super silky, extra wicking ASICS Kayano Low Cut socks I ran in today.