In the Beginning

Whenever one is attempting to look to the future, it is always good to recount the past. So, with the dailymile theme of favorite race pictures the other day, I decided to choose one of my favorite pictures from my first marathon. It is somewhat revealing of my character that I chose a race that was not strong, but in fact my worst race. I believe the struggles we experience do more to shape us than the successes.

The race was the 2006 San Diego Rock 'n' Roll Marathon. It was my first marathon after I had started running occasionally 2 years prior. My best race to date was a 40:30 5-mile race, and my plan was to run 4 hours at the marathon.

Training had been rocky at best. I followed a 16 week beginner training plan and slowly built my long runs up to the 20 mile mark. The plan involved hill work, but not much else and the weekly mileage tapped out at 35 miles. I remember the long runs being brutal! As it was only a 16 week program, the long runs were merciless in their advancement, after ramping up to 10 miles they increased every week by 2 miles to hit 20 four weeks before the race. Every run over 12 was longer than I had ever run before. Each week was worse than the last, but foolishly I convinced myself that the race would be better as I would have more energy after tapering.

The day before race day arrived and we spent most of the day walking around San Diego, it was 85 degrees and I remember being hot, tired and dehydrated by 4 o'clock. Having trained in Colorado springtime I had no hot weather experience and I was dreading the heat. I didn't even have a decent hat, just a baseball cap that I had used for training, so I bought a tech hat at the race expo. Pre-race nutrition was a disaster as we waited outside Buca di Beppo for hours for a table that never materialized. Apparently it was also grad night for many schools and after limo after limo pulled in we decided to hit TGI Fridays. By that time anything would have tasted good.

The early morning alarm arrived, I went through race preparations and got to the starting line alone as Melissa and Elijah slept. We had neglected to get a crib for the hotel room and Elijah, then 15 months old, had fallen out of the bed in the middle of the night making for a restless night for all of us. I had hoped to hit the port-a-potties before the race started, but so had 20,000 other overhydrated racers so I just made for the corrals. The strains of U2's "Beautiful Day" saw us on our way, I was about to run farther than I had ever run before!

As I have come to understand about the marathon, it all seems impossibly easy in the first miles. I eventually found a port-a-potty at mile 5 that had a fairly short line so I took advantage of it, and then picked up the pace to catch the 4 hour pace group. The morning was overcast, thankfully, and the temperatures stayed modest, but still felt hot with the high humidity. By the time I saw my family and friends cheering at mile 13 I was starting to hurt, and this would be the last time I was to see them before the finish. Ironically, Elijah was crying in his stroller and I felt like I wanted to cry as well but I pressed on.

Each mile became progressively more difficult and I found myself having to take more and more walk breaks. I struggled to make it to mile 17 where a gel station awaited, but I was finding more and more that there were just not enough sports drink stations. Water was not satisfying my thirst and I ended up dumping most of it on my head to keep cool. Mile 20 arrived and I was into unknown territory, I kept welling up emotionally thinking of Melissa and Elijah waiting for me at the finish. The thought of them waiting hours for me to arrive on a sag wagon was the only thing keeping me going, I knew I had to push through as they would be worried about me. Eventually I settled into a pattern of walking for a few minutes at every water stop, but I still found it in me to start running again each time. The Marine Corps recruitment depot arrived and I knew I was going to finish, I was so happy to see Elijah and Melissa cheering I couldn't help tearing up. I was done, and I had finished the biggest physical goal I had ever laid out for myself.

Four hours and forty-four minutes. Even today I have not run again for as much time as that day (that will change this year). In the three years following that race I took nearly an hour and a half off of that marathon time. The picture above summarizes well the pain and pride that I felt during that race, which is why I like it so much. The marathon is a goal that is achievable by anyone, and yet not everyone will strive to achieve it. It is less a test of what you can do on one day than it is a test of what you can do over months of training. It allows one a rare glimpse inside your own character, how will you persevere when things get difficult?

What if...

My running life seems to have been punctuated by defining moments where my attitude and approach shifts dramatically. Sometimes these shifts have been caused by some realization I have made on my own, such as the first time I ran 12 miles and realized that a marathon may be possible. Other times these shifts are brought about by something someone else says that strikes a chord, like the time my running buddy helped me realize how much hard work factors into running success.

The other day I was at the Boulder Running Company at the Denver Tech Center. Recently I have been participating in their group runs on Saturday mornings, which have been a great way for me to meet new runners and have a little company for weekly long runs. Two of the guys who work at the store, Mike Aish and Scott Schrader, have offered great training tips and workouts as well as inspiring me to work harder. While I was there I was looking at a picture on the wall of Mike winning the Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathon. I made the comment that I would likely never get to experience "breaking the tape", and Scott responded with "Well, with that attitude you certainly won't!"

That remark really sunk in over the next few days. It got me thinking "What if..." A few years ago I would have never thought I would be racing the times I'm running now, what if a couple of years from now I am not only competitive in my age group, but competitive for the podium! Is there a limit to the goals I can achieve with consistent and directed effort over the next few years? What if the only thing holding me back is my bad attitude about what I think my body can accomplish!

I dwell too much on the opportunities I've missed along the way. The fact that I never realized my enjoyment of running in high school, that I never really had any physical activities through college, that I never had a coach encouraging me to do more, that I'm too old now to be competitive. I can focus on the positives: that I never got burned out on running, that I have never been seriously injured, that in developing my own training plans I can tailor them to my own strengths and weaknesses, and that at 33 years old I have a good 7 years before I even start to experience the effects of aging on my running. I can dare to dream the big dreams, and maybe soon it will be me in that picture breaking the tape!

Am I Old Already?

It's about time I came to grips with the fact that I have high-blood pressure. There, I said it. It is possible for someone like me, who is not overweight, who has a reasonably healthy diet, and who works out a ton, to have hypertension. You just have to have bad genes.

Really I have known about this problem for a while. At first I thought I could deal with it by cutting down on coffee, then by exercising more. But no matter what I seemed to do, the readings only seemed to go up. Then I passed it off as "white-coat syndrome", I get pretty worked up when doctors measure my blood pressure, it's like a test I can't pass! Finally, this year when the readings started hitting 150/100 my doctor decided to pull the trigger on medication.

So here I am, 33 years old and having to come to grips with the fact that I will be on lifelong medication. Fortunately, there are a lot of types of medications to choose from, each with differing success for each patient. Not all of the treatments have adverse affects for athletes either. My current morning cocktail consists of Lisinopril, an angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor, Hydrochloro thiazide, a diuretic, and Amlodipine, a calcium channel blocker.

The first two of these seemed to make no difference at all in my blood pressure readings, so I hope I can eventually get off of these altogether. I am especially concerned about the diuretic, as there is potential for dehydration and kidney failure in endurance athletes. So far I have not noticed a big difference, but I am most concerned about running in the summer when I know I struggle to stay hydrated. One of the other side effects is sensitivity to the sun, which I have also noticed. Lately I have developed quite a sunglass-tan and I have started applying sunscreen. Usually I don't start using much sunscreen until May when the sun is higher in the sky, so this seems to be a result of the medication. The Amlodipine has had the biggest effect so far with the fewest side effects. There is potential for swelling in the ankles with this medication, but I seem to have dodged that bullet.

I also purchased a blood pressure cuff and take readings in the morning and evening. I am recording these readings using the HeartWise iPhone app (iTunes Link), which is giving me a wealth of statistics about trends and stats. My pressure now has fallen to the 130/60 range and seems to be holding steady. One unexpected added bonus of the measurements is a daily reading of my resting heart rate. It has been interesting to me to see the changes in my morning heart rate depending on my training. I have noticed that on days after my hard workouts the rate is generally elevated which I am taking as an indication of my recovery.

I have come to terms with my treatment, and realize that by addressing the problem now I can avoid potential health issues later in life. Overall this is also my reasoning behind running and staying healthy, so there is really no difference between this and a lifetime of physical fitness. What activity and diet have failed to do, modern medicine can hopefully achieve.

Enter the Double

This year I have some pretty significant speed and distance goals in mind and one of the tools I will use to achieve them is a fairly high-mileage base. If my body will let me, I hope to slip into the 70 mile per week range this year. My recent workouts have been getting me in the mid-50s for the past few weeks, but these are essentially tapping out the mileage I can achieve with only one workout per day.

The key is to start introducing doubles to my training schedule, slowly building up the number of days per week that I workout twice. In the past I have attempted to do this, but often met with injury or overtraining soon after. This year I am taking a more conservative approach, which seems to be working better. So far, all of my doubles have been on my tempo or interval days, meaning that the total mileage for the day is not much more than my usual one run days. For example, I usually run 9 miles once per day, but only run 11 miles for the two runs combined. By running the double on the hard days I'm also more cognizant of making the easy days easy.

I think if I stay grounded in this approach I will be able to continue to increase the combined length of the doubles and get my mileage where I want it to be, hopefully without injury. This will also help prepare my body for the bike commute that will again become part of my routine in the spring. Last year I found riding twice a day, plus running was a bit much for a daily schedule.

This all fits into what I consider to be my training experiment. There are no controls, no statistics, just one test subject and an infinite number of variables. I enjoy both the fruits of my labors when training decisions turn out well, and the return to the blackboard when things fall apart. The more I learn about how my body reacts to training, the better I will be able to react and adjust when it inevitably begins to change.

Brooks Green Silence Racing Flat

I have been excited about the upcoming release of the Green Silence ever since the product was announced last year.  I am looking to move into a racing flat for my shorter races and the opportunity to run in a shoe that is designed with the environment in mind really appeals to me.  This shoe is constructed from 75% post-consumer recycled materials, and the foams used are biodegradable.  Looking at them, though, you would not think "recycled," you would only think "fast."

In fact the design of this shoe is probably the most noticeable right out of the box.  The yellows and reds that color the upper and sole are bright and in-your-face and the asymmetric lacing offers a unique look.  One of the most striking features of the shoes, however, is the difference between the left and right shoes.  Yes, the left and right shoes are complete opposites of each other with the red and yellow palates swapped right down to the sole!  The result is a shoe that really makes a statement, and that statement is "I'm here to run fast!"

The feel of these shoes is something else entirely.  The tongue is integrated into the upper of the shoe, with the lacing traveling down the side of the foot, just off of center.  There is also minimal stitching and few overlays resulting in a very comfortable feel to the upper.  The soft fabric conforms to the foot remarkably well and I could easily see myself wearing these shoes sockless.  The midsole of the shoe is fairly substantial but the cushioning seems a little stiffer than the Launch.  One noticeable difference is how flat the sole is, with almost no discernible heel.  The insole as well seems to be designed with this in mind as it feels like there is less contouring than the insoles provided in other shoes.

Performance wise these shoes feel like an extension of my foot.  The transition from heel to toe is very smooth and the cushioning substantial enough that I do not feel like my stride is hindered even at top speed.  These were made with a more midfoot-forefoot strike in mind, but I believe they are substantial enough that a heel strike would not cause many problems.  I also think that these would stand up to races as long as the half-marathon, but a marathon may be pushing it for most runners.

All around the Green Silence is a great racing shoe and speed trainer. The comfort of the upper alone makes it worth the hype in my eyes, it really does have a good overall feel.  I am looking forward to turning some heads when I break these out for races!

Disclaimer: I shelled out of my own pocket for these shoes, but I was able to get a discount through my membership in the Brooks ID program.

Flexibility in Training

Yesterday marked the first "real" tempo run of this year's training, and let's just say it wasn't pretty. I had all sorts of aspirations of running 5.5 miles at tempo pace after a mile warm up, but almost immediately after I dialed up the pace it felt like I was breathing like a freight train. My legs felt responsive enough, but my lungs were angry and by the time I reached the halfway point for the run I was cooked.

But as I accepted my failure in the intended workout an idea crept into my mind. Instead of turning around at the halfway point I decided I would run a couple of miles farther at an easy pace to give myself time to recover, then dial it back up to tempo pace for the remainder of my planned tempo distance.

The result of this scheme was a negative split for the second half of the tempo "interval," and just like that, a workout that I thought was trashed ended up in the win column. I am not going to claim that this workout had all of the benefits of a full 5.5 mile tempo run, but it was a far cry better than limping back at a pace far too slow for tempo but too fast for recovery.

In the end I think this demonstrated to me the importance of flexibility in training. Not every day will be a good day and it's important to take what you can on those days. Listening to your body and adapting to its needs will always be better than trying to grind through a workout and ending up ineffective, or worse injured.

Can we make up?

Hi blog! I know, we haven't spoken in a while. It's just I've been busy! There were the holidays, then I got sick, and then I just didn't make the time. But there are no good excuses, I'm just a bad blogger.

But I did get a chance to give you a sweet new look! And I updated your goal races for 2010, doesn't that count for something? Plus, I have a lot of plans for blog posts coming up with reviews and comments on some of my favorite running things! And if I manage to win one of those boxes of LARABAR that Megan Killian is giving away I promise I'll share with you.

Why do you have to bring up Twitter? Yes I spend a lot of time there, but sometimes 140 characters just isn't enough. What do you mean Dailymile sees me a lot too? I didn't even know you knew about that.

Well it's obvious we have some communication issues to work through, but we owe it to our readers to keep going! We can make this work!

Got Time for a Quickie?

Hectic schedules and workouts don't often go hand-in-hand so it is often that I find myself with a break that is seemingly too short for exercise. This has been happening more lately as it seems that I have developed the mental block of "if it's not at least an hour, it's not worth doing." That attitude has got to change.

Yesterday was frigidly cold and I did not even bother trying to run outside (I left Canada so that I would not have to deal with cold like that). But my fatherly obligations in the evening meant I would not be able to get to the gym either, so I was determined to get a ride on my trainer. Between getting each kid to bed my window of opportunity opened, although it was only a half-hour window. Do I bother to ride for just 30 minutes, or do I just call it a rest day?

In the end I opted for the ride. Since I wasn't riding for too long I focussed on keeping my cadence high, occasionally dropping into the highest gear for some resistance. The result was a good workout that got my heart-rate going and worked my legs, but only took 30 minutes. Afterwards I felt great, and was so energized I ended up getting a lot of other things done that I would not have if I had just sat on the couch.

This got me thinking about what other times I have during the day that I could squeeze in exercise. What is not enough time for a workout, and is there even such a thing? Got a half-hour? Try a quick ride or hill repeats! How about 15 minutes? Pushups, planks and core! I'm beginning to feel that there are many opportunities for exercise that I am missing out on just because of my preconceived notions of what is "worth the effort." Time, after all, is not on our side and we have to make the most of what we have!

Core Training with Wii Fit

For the past year of training I have been incorporating core-strength workouts into my routine via Wii Fit. I believe it has made me a stronger runner, and it has kept me honest with exercises that can be easy to cheat. Now a lot of you (okay both of you) may be snickering at this point, but bear with me as I hope to demonstrate the usefulness of the Wii Fit as a training tool.

The main marketing strategy for the Wii Fit has been to appeal to families and exercise novices who may be intimidated by the gym environment. By monitoring your weight and center of balance, Wii Fit is able to provide some sort of accountability as you work on improving these through the exercises provided. These include yoga poses, "aerobic" activities, balance games and strength training. The yoga poses are great for flexibility, but I stopped doing them after a while as I found that the flow was interrupted too often by switching exercises. This has been addressed in the newly available "Wii Fit Plus" as exercises can be stacked together and performed one after the other. The aerobic activities are fun, but are definitely not a cardio-workout. The balance games are fun as well, and my kids love doing them. Showing kids that exercise is fun at a young age is important, I think, so I actually like this aspect of the game as well.

The real meat of the Wii Fit training comes from the "Strength Training" exercises. Hidden beneath this innocuous green button are some of the best core-strength exercises you can do. For starters there are rows of exercises dedicated to strengthening the hips and glutes. Some of these seem easy, but after 20 reps you can feel them working. For runners who experience leg injuries, such as ITBS (Iliotibial band syndrome), these moves are key. In addition, as the system is able to monitor your center of balance during the exercise it can tell if you are doing the move incorrectly. Nestled within these are the base exercises of an effective core routine: push-ups/side-plank, lunges, plank, jackknife, bird-dog, and bridged extension (the last one is included in Wii Fit Plus). Using the new "My Training" in the plus version to string 3 sets of each of these exercises together yields a roughly 40 minute core program. Does 40 minutes seem like a lot for 6 exercises? Then you haven't been doing them slowly enough! This is the big advantage of using the Wii Fit system, it keeps your timing honest. The board monitors each move and will not give you credit unless you execute it at the correct speed, which is mercilessly slow. This prohibits you from using any momentum whatsoever and makes you engage each muscle group fully for the duration of the exercise.

The strength training portion of Wii Fit is exceptionally suited to the distance runner. It is core based, which supplements muscle groups needed for running, and you are not going to pack on pounds of muscle from the low-weight activities. Throw in a yoga routine here and there and you can supplement your flexibility as well. All of this can be achieved in your living room, while being a point of entertainment for the rest of the family as well.

Brighton Turkey Trot Race Report

My search for a suitable turkey trot had several criteria this year. First, knowing how much cooking I have to do on Thanksgiving meant that a turkey day turkey trot was out of the question. Also, I had signed up for church duties for most of the month, so a Sunday race was out as well. Finally, I did not want to drive halfway across the state to get to the race. I turned to active.com's Turkey Trot Finder and discovered that the Brighton Turkey Trot fit the necessary parameters. I signed up "old-school" by sending in a check and registration form, and was committed.

Race day arrived and I was pleasantly surprised to find that my thermometer read 45F, so I decided I would probably wear a short sleeve shirt for the race as the sun would probably warm it up to nearly 50 by the start time. Not wanting to be cold beforehand I threw on my long-sleeve and fleece over the shirt and headed out the door. As I drove north to Brighton I was shocked to see the car thermometer plummeting. By the time I arrived there was frost everywhere, and the thermometer read 28F. Needless to say the T-shirt plan was out the window.

I headed in to pick up my race packet and timing chip (this was the first year for chip timing). The registration is held inside the Brighton Recreation Center, which is really nice to be able to keep warm and use heated restrooms. There was plenty of room for spectators to hang out as well. The rec center is located next to a nice little park as well, with a 3/4 mile path running around it, perfect for warming up! I ran around the park a few times and threw in a few 30 second sprints as well for good measure. I knew I wanted to hit the ground running hard and did not want to risk injury by going off cold. By the time I was lining up at the start I was down to just a long-sleeve shirt and shorts, plus my gloves and hat.

I lined up within two rows of the starting line as I knew I wanted to be in the lead group from the start. The gangly limbs and racing flats always leave me feeling a little outgunned, but I suspected from prior year results that I had a shot at top 15. I often wonder if and how other runners size me up, as I always feel like a bit of an outsider in those situations. The 30 second warning came, then someone yelled "Go!" and we were off! My body settled almost immediately into a fast pace that felt hard, but manageable and I knew it was going to be a good race. Watching the leaders snake around the corners in front of me I knew I was in the front 20 and my goal was to make sure I did not lose any ground. The first mile marker came in 6 flat and already some runners ahead of me had started to drop back. Ahead of me, the first female runner had already shaken off her two competitors and I made it my goal to maintain distance with her. Mile two came in 6:05 and I had only reeled in one other runner, I suspected that that would be the last of my advances. Through mile 3 I felt like I was just keeping it together, although the 6:01 split indicates I was handling things just fine. I stole a glance behind me around the final corner and tried to push hard to the finish line to hold off the racer behind me. 18:52 from the gun and my chip recorded 18:48, a solid 5k effort good for 10th place!

I ended up meeting up with two other racers at the end of the finish chute who were going to run the course again as a cool down, so I joined them for an extra 5k. They had run the race in prior years, and we had a lot to chat about as we ran back. It was great to engage with other runners who have similar training and racing philosophies. It was a good way to kill some time before the award ceremony which I was determined not to miss. When I checked the race results, I was shocked to discover that I had somehow been entered as "female" in the scoring system! I immediately reported the error to the scoring official, but I probably should have emphasized that the error affected the age group awards. I had erroneously won the female 30-34 age group! I hoped that they would have fixed the problem by the time the announcements were made, but unfortunately not, so I stood there red-faced as my name was read as the winner of the category. Afterward I was able to get my correct 2nd place award, but the situation was embarrassing and I felt terrible for the women who had received incorrect awards. It turns out that there were several racers in the wrong "category" so I hope the race is able to get this fixed in the future.

This race has a great "small race" feel, but is put on very professionally. The post-race food was good, and there was plenty left even when I came in after most of the racers had been through. The chip-timing was an added bonus. The only detraction from this great experience was the whole mistaken gender issue, which I hope will be addressed in later years. I will definitely be returning to run this race next year!

Mileage Totals

Last year the holidays represented a pretty significant loss in fitness, which I hope will not be repeated this year. I think the goal this year that will get me through this period intact is the mileage total. Today I am at 1819 for the year, which is pretty far behind where I was last year around this time (1857 on Oct. 19th). I'm not worried about the drop in mileage (cross-training has more than made up for the difference in running miles) but it does mean that 2009 miles for the year will be a close call. Just close enough to keep me going through the coming weeks!

So I am now publicly declaring my goal to run 2009 miles in 2009! If I stay consistent (30-40 mpw) it should be doable, but it may require a few last minute additions to the running schedule. Exactly what I need to get out the door that week between Christmas and New Year's!

Soreness vs. Pain

Runners have to be acutely aware of the difference between soreness, which is a direct result of hard training, and pain, which is a result of injury. Any runner who has been running for some time is quite accomplished at blocking out pain, we do it all the time to get through tough workouts. So it should come as no surprise that we are quite good at blocking out pain from an injury as well. We can delude ourselves through all sorts of arguments, and if we are not careful, ignored pain can turn into a major injury.

I spent the better part of last week sore from my workouts. Coming off a two week hiatus I was eager to get back to full time training and I pushed a little too hard on Monday. Each subsequent hard workout for the week pushed me further into muscle debt and by Friday it was almost a full 5 miles before I felt "normal" on my run. Despite this, I pushed through the week as I knew that the soreness was a direct result of the ramp up in mileage, and that with my mileage base I would be back to normal after a good rest day. This week has been much better as my body reluctantly adapts to the renewed intensity of training.

That being said, if I experience pain that I feel is due to a potential injury I usually will return to rest almost immediately. For me there are several markers that I look for to differentiate pain from muscle soreness. First, is the pain acute or spread over a large region? Acute pain is never a good sign as it is usually due to a localized effect (either muscle or bone), while soreness is spread out due to muscle damage from training. Acute pain almost always sends me to the freezer for an ice pack and a prescription for a few days off. Second, is the pain aggravated by running? Soreness and tight muscles may feel pretty bad when you first start a run, but symptoms will often improve as you get warmed up. An injury, on the other hand, is usually made worse by running, so if the pain is nagging throughout the run or if it alters your gait in any way, pack it in early. The third marker is persistence. Living with soreness is a fact of life, but usually we know intuitively when pain does not fit that mould. Does the pain persist through the day after the workout is over? Is standing or sitting in a usually comfortable position now uncomfortable? Worst of all is dull throbbing pain that exists without any movement at all, a clear warning sign.

Making the decision to take a few rest days or even rest weeks during a training schedule is never easy, but it is essential that you listen to the signals your body is sending you. A little time off now can save you from a major recovery period down the road. Above all it will keep you running for years to come, and racing another day!

Hard Work, Perseverance, and Hard Work

I did not come to be competitive in running through a high school or college pedigree. In fact, I did not start doing anything remotely physical until I was 25. So how did I get to where I'm at now? A lot of hard work and one seemingly insignificant conversation.

2 years ago I started running with a friend from work. He is much faster than I am and is more into the ultra-scene than I am. One day we were having a discussion as he was putting the screws to me during one of his easy workouts (I was out for a tempo). I remarked to him that I could never be as fast as him as I was not gifted with the runner's physique like he was. Being the good running partner that he is, he called me out on it. He said that he works his ass off to be fitter and faster, and that nature had nothing to do with it. Those words sank in somewhere deep in to my soul and I still carry them with me.

From that point I became much more dedicated to running. I am more serious about my training and racing and the hard work is paying off. Each year I am improving, getting stronger and faster, and I am achieving the goals that my running buddy inspired me to achieve with that one conversation. There is no secret to success in any endeavor, no predisposition to greatness, there is only hard work. I hope these words will inspire another beginning runner to set lofty goals and pursue them, just as it did me! Train smart, take advice from other runners, listen to your body, but above all work hard and you will achieve them!

The Runner's Wish List

With Halloween gone, there is no denying the holiday season is approaching. In that light I thought it would be worthwhile to put together a list of runner essential items. As all the other lists out there seem to be way over the top (including pricy items like GPS watches, etc) I also wanted to keep everything under $100 and most items much less than that. So here it is: The Runner's Holiday Wish List for the Budget Minded Shopper!

• Socks

  It sounds cheesy, but at close to $10 a pair, running socks are one of my most appreciated gift item. Sizing is forgiving, just make sure you get socks that are made of synthetic material (i.e. no cotton!)



• Energy Gels/Chews

  There are tons of these on the market and most runners like to have the opportunity to try new fueling options during training. For just a few bucks you can stuff a stocking to the brim with these!



• Hydration Mixes

  In the same vein as the energy gels, hydration mixes can be bought in powder form, ready to be mixed by your runner recipient. These come in packages, tubes, and tubs, and in tons of flavors other than lemon-lime.



• Gloves/Arm Sleeves

  Even midsummer races start at the crack of dawn and most runners like to have a little something to fend off the cold while waiting for the gun to go off. Even cheap "painters gloves" which can be discarded when the race starts are great!



• Race Entry

  What runner would not want a free race to train for? Especially one in the off-season to work off some of those holiday calories! 5k is probably a good distance, signing your runner up for a marathon may not be appreciated as much as you might think.



• MP3 player

  This is a bit of a hotly debated topic in the running community, but even runners who are dead-set against music while running will reach for one for treadmill workouts. This is the most expensive item on the list, but the small ones can be purchased for under $100.



• Magazine Subscription

  What do runners like doing nearly as much as running? Reading about running! Plus it's the gift that keeps giving for a whole year!



• Granola Bars/Snacks

  Apart from running and reading about running, eating is the next most popular activity. Energy bars, granola, pretzels, trail mix, it's all good and it's all cheap!



• Massage Gift Certificate

  Most runners need massage as a recovery tool, but most can't justify the cost.



• Foam Roller

  This is just what it sounds like, a foam cylinder that can be rolled over sore muscles as an at home massage tool. At around $15 this is probably the best value for the money on the list. If your runner does not have one already, rest assured, they want one!

I hope this list helps some shoppers out there. Behind every great athlete is a great athletic supporter! (Sorry I couldn't resist)

Tuesday Tempo!

All I can say is: "Ouch!" Today marked the first tempo run in two weeks and boy I am feeling it tonight. Let me just say first of all that I hate tempo runs. Long runs I am okay with, I enjoy the challenge and reward of running for a long time, provided it's at a nice laid back pace. I also enjoy intervals, the speed I can handle knowing that rest is just around the corner. But the tempo occupies some space that my mind is not equipped to handle.

Mind: "Okay, so we're going to run fast. That's okay it will be over quickly."

Me: "Well not really, it's going to be like 7 miles before we can stop."

Mind: "Forget it, I'm outta here! Zone out on your own."

Me: "No way man, I can't run that fast without thinking about it, you need to be here!"

Mind: "You want to run fast for 7 miles AND think about it at the same time!?!"

While I won the battle today it was not without casualties, which my tired and sore legs are reminding me of tonight. They are also telling me I just went from 0 to 17 miles in two days and to go easy on them tomorrow. I am fine with easy days, just as long as they are well deserved.

2010 Approaches!

Now that I am finished with my two week recovery, today begins the beginning of training for my 2010 racing season! It was great to get outside again and feel strong for a nice easy run, but tomorrow I will have to suck it up for a tempo run that will more than likely leave me lying in a fetal position muttering to myself about "fartleks."

Speaking of speedplay, I have a rough outline of my racing schedule in mind. I plan to hit a couple of 5k races this holiday season to keep things snappy, a turkey trot and the Colder Bolder. Then I'm thinking about one of the Colorado Running winter distance series races as a tune up for the Platte River Half in April. Then I will culminate the spring training with the Bolder Boulder and a 50k (my first "ultra"). I hope to spend the summer working on speed, building up to the Denver Marathon in the fall. My plan is to shoot for 3:00 in Denver! Yes, you read that right, I hope to take a full 16 minutes off my marathon PR! None of this messing around with Boston qualifying times, it's time to shoot for the stars.

Will all these goals come to pass? I'll never know unless I set them and go for it!

Quality Speedwork, In About an Hour

Finding time to run is a challenge with hectic schedules, so I usually find the best time to run is during lunch. This can somewhat limit workout choices if I am limited to just an hour. Today I ran a hard workout that was taxing enough to be quality training, but was finished in about 50 minutes including warm-up and cool-down. As the workout was based on time intervals rather than distance anyone can complete this workout in the same time regardless of pace or course profile. I thought I would share in case there are any similarly time constrained runners out there looking for a good workout.

1. Warm-up: 8 minutes easy jog


2. Interval: 3 minutes (should be fairly hard effort, 5k race pace)


3. Recovery: 1:30 easy jog


4. Interval: 3 minutes (5k race pace)


5. Recovery: 1:30 easy jog


6. Interval: 3 minutes (5k race pace)


7. Recovery: 1:30 easy jog


8. Interval: 3 minutes (5k race pace)


9. Recovery: 1:30 easy jog (If you are running an out-and-back route this is where you turn around)


10. Interval: 3 minutes (5k race pace)


11. Recovery: 1:30 easy jog


12. Interval: 3 minutes (5k race pace)


13. Recovery: 1:30 easy jog


14. Interval: 3 minutes (5k race pace)


15. Recovery: 1:30 easy jog


16. Interval: 3 minutes (5k race pace)


17. Cool Down: 8 minutes easy

As long as you don't go too hard at the beginning of this workout you should be near where you started if you turned around at halfway. This accomplishes both the speedwork goal (hard intervals with short recovery) and even split.

I consider this workout a "short" run, so if you are not used to running 1 hour+ then scale back the intervals accordingly. You should be able to find a good balance of effort/time. Your lunch hour will never be the same!

Timex Ironman Review

Feels a little weird to be reviewing a watch, but honestly there are a lot of features that go into a decent training watch and I think this one hits pretty close to the mark. The watch is the Timex Ironman 50-Lap Sleek and it has a lot of features that cater to training.

First off comfort. The term "sleek" is maybe marketing a little bit, but it certainly has a low profile and it does not look too big. The band is also an appropriate size for my "runner's wrist" and includes a little catch on the band restraint to keep it at the end of the band. This means that it does not move as I run which has been an annoyance with other watches I have worn. As for timekeeping, I do not really wear a watch outside of running, but the display is easy to read and it displays the date along with the time. There are also options for two time-zones and three alarms. The watch features "Indiglo" as well for all of the functions, which is useful if you like to run your track workouts at 4am when it is pitch black. The light is no substitute for a headlamp though and it will not help you if someone happens to leave a hurdle on the track the night before (I'm not saying that I know this from experience).

From a training perspective is where this watch really gets going. The chronograph is easy to read and will continue running even as you access the watch's other features. The start/split button is located on the watch face, which is essential in making it easy to push and find when you are timing splits in a race. When you hit the split button during a workout it displays the split and the lap time for a few seconds before changing the display to show the split and the next lap time. Having the current lap time displayed is great as I can check on my pace before the interval is finished (i.e. I can check the 400 split on an 800 repeat without having to push the split button). After you are done running your session you can store the time and splits, for up to 50 lap times. The watch will record the time and date for the workout as well for you to log later, which is probably the most useful feature given that I often do not get a chance to log runs for a couple of days.

Another feature that I anticipate making more use of in the next few months is a dual interval timer. You can set two interval times (i.e. an interval time and a recovery time) to repeat indefinitely during a workout. So you can start the chronograph, warm up and then start the interval timer. It will then beep when you need to either start or end an interval, recording the number of repetitions as it goes. Once you are done with intervals, you can stop the timer, and cool down with your total workout time still recorded by the chronograph. This will help with my speedwork this winter as I find it tough to get to the track, so I can run timed intervals on whatever route I choose. This feature can be set in seconds, minutes or hours so it can also be used to remind you when to take gels or electrolytes on longer runs.

These features easily make this the best training watch I have owned, the only feature lacking in this model is heart-rate sensing, but I believe there is a higher-end model that includes this feature. In my case the lack of heart-rate monitor is actually a plus as I find this interferes with the treadmill sensor. I can now wear my HR strap on the treadmill and monitor my HR there while timing the workout with the watch.

A well balanced review always includes some cons, so here are the minor annoyances I can think of. As I mentioned above the watch has no GPS/foot pod/HR capabilities, but I think these features are unnecessary anyway. Another minor inconvenience is the fact that the watch band is stuck in a "round" position and is quite rigid. This makes it easy to put on, but it will not fold flat for easy storage in a gym bag pocket.

New Shoes

I know I'm breaking out of my box here. It used to be I was a one-shoe guy, the Brooks Adrenaline. But lately I've been branching out more, wanting to try shoes that are closer to racing flats, transitioning with the Launch (Review here). Those shoes felt so good that I wanted an everyday trainer that approached that model. So I am trying out the Ravenna, which is filed in the "guidance" category and designed to offer a little less stability than the Adrenaline or the Trance. I have not yet had a chance to do a full evaluation, but I got them out for a run today and am very pleased so far. The shoes fit just as well as my Adrenalines (although under advise I ordered a half size up) and they feel great. Noticeably more stability than my Lanches, feeling pretty hefty underfoot, but definitely lighter than the Adrenalines. They stood up well to almost 14 miles of pavement with no hot-spots and I was glad to have the extra firmness as I was pushing the joggy stroller today.

It's nice to have something new to put into the rotation and I think switching up shoe types will only help strengthen the foot and ankle (as long as the shoes aren't doing damage). Ideally I'd like to get to the point where a good portion of my weekly miles are done on shoes that have very little support at all. As my running stride adapts I hope this brings about an improvement in my running economy, which can only help with strength and stamina. As it is I am glad to have such a wide array of shoes to choose from in my preferred brand!

Return to Training

Last week I tried to ease back into training, but was slowed down a little by a tight hamstring. I decided to not push it and opted for some cycling instead for a good workout. But by Sunday I was ready to try a long run again, so I went out for 11 with no expectations. The run turned out okay, but I definitely felt fatigued much earlier than I thought I would. It was pain free, however, so I think I'll be back to ramping up my mileage.

One of the big reasons I feel I have made such advances in my speed this year is due to continual training. Even though I have taken brief periods to recover from races and illnesses I have been able to keep up with speedwork and long runs pretty consistently. I hope to keep this style of training up over the winter (especially through the holiday season) so that I will be ready to race well next season. This may be easier said than done as it is always tougher to get out when the weather sucks and there is so much good food to eat, but I think if I stay flexible I'll be able to keep focused even if I'm not training everyday. I'd like to try to fit in a winter 5k or 10k as well to keep the motivation for speedwork.

With such a successful race to end this year's season I'm feeling good about what is yet to come. I also have a new toy to play with thanks to Boulder Running Company. I went by there today to pick up my age group award and it was a Timex Ironman watch! I will post a review once I've had a chance to use it a few times, but the biggest advantage I can see for it so far is that it can store splits for multiple workouts in a day. Even my Polar HR monitor can't do that!