Am I a Distance Runner?

That title might sound odd considering I ran a marathon and a half last year, but I never liked those distances and wondered what my ideal race distance was.

Running is an evolutionary process. Lately, though, I felt like I was de-evolving. Then I started thinking maybe I am going through a metamorphasis. Whenever I played sports, I always had a little something extra in the tank. If I ran, I always had a kick. Once I started running, I enjoyed the long runs but LOVED the 5k. I loved being able to just go out "fast" and kick at the end. I loved speed work and tempo runs.

Lately I have been getting slower. At first I thought this was a bad thing. Then tonight during my speed work I started thinking that a big part of what I have been "losing" is my kick. Then I started thinking, maybe I haven't lost anything. Maybe my effort has increased throughout my run so I don't have anything left for a kick.

I am unquestionably slower. Training for a half has caused me to lose speed I had when I was training for 5ks. Not training for anything has definitely not helped lately which is why I got back on "the plan" tonight. However, if anything has improved it is my consistency. And maybe that means I am turning into a distance runner.

Scary.

Wined and Dined

Last night (and for most of us at least a little bit into this morning) was the Disney Wine and Dine half marathon and after party at EPCOT. For me, this race was much more than that. I think my running story is a bit abnormal since I went from non-runner marathoner without any sort of natural progession in my running. All of my significant growth as a runner came after my marathon.

However, this growth didn't come without a price. I have been training for something or other for over a year. I went from marathon training to back-to-back 5k plans and started training for this half before I finished my second 5k schedule. I wasn't training to finish races any more. I wasn't training to just get past some distance. I was training to get faster. It worked in spades for my 5k and, in comparison to my marathon pace, it worked for my half as well.

In typical newbie fashion, my goal pace for my half was almost completely arbitrary. Having done a 4:30 marathon, my next milestone was 4:00. When they guy working at the running store said he ran a half and didn't train but still finished under 2:00, I decided that was my goal. A 9:00 pace had gotten pretty easy for me so when I started my half training I decided a 9:00 pace was a good target. Everything went fine for the first few weeks. Then the weather got hot and I fell apart. My long runs were miserable and I was fighting to just finish. The conditioning I had from marathon training seemed to have disappeared during my 4-5 months of 5k training. Then in all the heat I felt like I forgot how to run fast too. As I got closer to the race I started to doubt my ability to get under 2:00. As cooler weather came literally the night of my race, I knew I would be able to gain some speed but was still nervous.

The race started at 10:00 PM so that the after party at EPCOT could start after the riff raff...I mean tourists ;) had left the park. That meant that yesterday was one of the longest days of my life. After my parents arrived to watch the kids, we headed out for lunch and then down to ESPN Wide World of Sports to meet up with my wife's cousin and her husband. My wife's cousin-in-law was also running in the race (his first half and longest distance) and the wives were going to be enjoying the party at EPCOT. Then we headed to the hotel to check in and kill time until the race. Around 7:00 we got on the bus to head for the starting line. I was sitting at the front of the bus as all the runners were boarding when I saw a Garmin 305 pass in front of my face. That is when I realized mine was sitting on the floor of the hotel room plugged into the charger. I went from anxious and somewhat relaxed to completely stressed out. After going back to the room to get my watch, we met up with some more folks loosely related to my wife and headed out to the starting line. I don't remember exactly when we got there, but my guess is it was before 8:00 so we had to kill around 2 hours.

The starting area was about as much fun as a field surrounded by port-o-lets could be. They had music pumping out of a pretty serious sound system so it sounded like the world's biggest (and most casually dressed) wedding reception. I did a little 10 minute warmup and then around 9:30 I headed for my start corral and tried to find my pace compadres. I didn't want to be too close to the front, but didn't want to be stuck in traffic either. I settled in around the middle surrounded by some groups, some couples, but immediately surrounded by 4 other people who were by themselves like me and appeared to be equally nervous.

The start of Disney races is always fun. They had a "Disney Recording Artist" sing the national anthem. There was a lone wheelchair participant who started at 9:58 with their own set of fireworks. The first corral of runners started at 10:00 and then we started around 10:05.

The start was a little slower than I remember the marathon being. I immediately got concerned that I might miss my goal by seconds due to being held up at the beginning. I tried to just stay relaxed and not burn too much energy weaving around but still hopped up on the grass for a while to get around some of the traffic.

Somewhere in there, my shoe came untied. This was a first for me in my fledgeling running career. Believe it or not I had never had a shoe come untied on the road and definitely not on a race. I took note of the time. I think it took something like 17 seconds to tie it.

The course was more fun than the full - started at EPCOT, ran to and through Animal Kingdom, and then through Hollywood Studios on the way back to EPCOT and the finish. There were several overpasses on the roads between parks which gave a good opportunity to conserve energy on the way up and fly on the way down. I tore it up on the downhills regularly breaking 7:30 according to my Garmin.

The ending was strangely familiar from the full - through Disney's Boardwalk into the back entrance of EPCOT. However, instead of wobbly legs feeling like I would barely be able to walk much less run across the finish, I was going to be putting in some of my fastest miles of the race. I found a woman who was running what I felt like was a good pace. More importantly, I felt like I could beat her. I stayed on her shoulder for the last mile or so. Once I hit a bridge around the back of EPCOT, I powered down it and left her behind for good. I split mile 13 in 8:33 - the fastest split of the race - and finished with a 1:58:39.

The party after was great. Got a free can of beer (ok, that was the low point) and had a gift card good for food/beverage that I used for a pint of Guinness and some other food (and of course spent more than the gift card was for). We didn't plan on staying until the 4:00 AM closing time but by the time we made our way out of the park, most of the people were leaving as it was pretty darn close. Definitely going to make this an annual race for as long as I can.

By the way, it is now May 31, 2012. The race started on October 1, 2011 and just today realized that I never finished this post. I have obviously been neglecting this blog.

It Starts Today!

It should have started this morning. In a way it did. It was the first day back at work after a long weekend (and another slow, sweaty, long run). It was a fight to get up at 5:00-ish AM. Temps were in the 80s before sunup. My knee was a bit tweaked so even walking was interesting to say the least. Just getting out and running was quite the accomplishment so doing 2x2000 sub-8 intervals is pretty damn good even if the plan was for 3x2000.

It wasn't good enough though.

So today is the day I start training for my race. That may sound odd considering I have less than 4 weeks left and have already been training for 15. I have been training to run a half marathon. I have been training to be faster than my full marathon and 15k (my only "long" race benchmarks). I have been training to break 2:00 - to become a "real" runner by my own artificial standard. I have NOT been training to RACE for 13.1 miles.

As most recreational runners know, only a few elite athletes race to win - especially in big races. Everyone else races themselves. Even if they are racing a friend/rival or pacing someone or just trying to finish, they are racing their own demons - the things that drove them to run in the first place or new lurkers discovered only after becoming a runner. For me it is the latter - I know I do not run as hard as I can. I'm hot, I'm tired, I'm thirsty. These are facts. These are things I cannot change. But there is one thing that is 100% in my control and that is how hard I try. I have wanted to try harder and to run faster, but it was easier to make excuses. The excuses end today.

Today is the day I start training my mind. I don't want to run 13.1 in 1:59:59. I sure as HELL don't want to run it in 2:00:01! Here is my goal:

1:57:40

For those keeping score at home, that is an 8:59 pace. It may not seem like much, but that is 10 sec/mi faster than 2:00:00. Most importantly, that is more than a full minute per mile faster than my marathon pace from earlier this year and 59.5 seconds per mile faster than my 15k from just under a year ago. That is a BIG difference. That is a gargantuan difference!

Anyone who has run a long race (or just a long run) with any sort of accurate timing knows that your pace varies even if only slightly. To average 8:59, you have to run a mile under for every mile you run over, second-for-second. That means, I will very likely need to be uncomfortable for several miles. I can't simply just run easy for 13.1 and then say, "Well, I finished a half marathon." when I am done.

So it starts today! Today is the day that I start training my mind for my race. Today is the day I stop letting excuses and weakness enter my mind and train it to fight through the pain and the tired legs and burning lungs. The picture I am building in my mind is me finishing my race with nothing left. I know I am strong enough, fast enough, have put in enough miles, done enough intervals, trained through the hottest part of the summer. I will not jog, I will not just run, I will not just finish, I will RACE for 13.1 miles and when I am done I will have won.

Florida Fallen Heroes 5k

Today was the "Florida Fallen Heroes" 5k in Tallahasse. This was a late sign up for the wife and I. We were already planning a trip up here when we found out one of the wife's clan was doing this race. After wengot here, he mentioned that part of the race was trail. I had no ideaand had just assumed it was along the roads in the park.

The race site (Maclay Gardens State Park) is a very pretty (and somewhat hilly) park. The start/finish was at a parking lot near a lake with a nice picnic pavillion. Mrs. L and I met up with her cousin's hubby and after walking down to the start area, registering, and getting our shirts, I loosened up with a little jog up and down the last few hills on the course.

After a moment of silence and presentation of the colors, they had a nice rendition of the national anthem and we headed to the start. The course was a lollipop out from the main parking lot to the trail section loop and then back.

The start was kind of sudden. I think I had already started running purely on instinct before I realized someone had actually said "start". The start was a pretty good hill so I took it easy and settled in with what seemed like my pace group. I was running at a very easy pace, attacking the downhills and relaxing up. That kept me pretty steady in my group. Some would pass me on the ups and I would fly back by on the downs.

We ran out of pavement around 0.75 mi or so and so that's where I lost my trail virginity. Hit the first mile marker and I didn't have a watch so I yelled out to see if anyone had a time. "8 minutes" is what came back so I felt pretty good about that.

Most of the people around me were huffing and puffing so I stepped on the gas a bit for the second mile. This was pretty flat and the trail footing was good. I started reeling people in in spite of the narrow trail. I felt kind of bad passing the ones in fatigues and boots but tried to make up by shouting some attempted encouragement (Good job! Keep it up! I couldn't run in those boots!).

Mile 3 was back through the hilly road section. I had a few folks pass me up here but not knowing how I would do on the hills, I stuck with my strategy and tried to hang in with help from the downs. I knew the finish was a big downhill for probably 200m so I knew I would reel in some more huffers and puffers with my kick. That included a guy I passed while he walked up a hill only to have him pass me on the flat top and a (slightly) older guy who eeked by and put about 30m between us.

I turned the last corner (which happened to be the top of the last hill) and hit he jets. I don't remember the last time I ran that fast. I was hootin' and hollerin' as I passed the folks who had passed me on the hills (out of exertion, not gloating). Hill walker was one of the first and I counted them off and had gray hair (again, just slightly more than me) in my sights and really opened it up. My goal (having nohing to base it on) was 25:00. I edged out gray hair right before the finish (which earned me a "you dog!") and crossed at 24:45 (7:59 pace).

Catching my breath required more "Whooooo!"s and so I apologized to the volunteers and other finishers after I regained my composure. After giving gray hair a fist bump and a "good race" I headed over to turn in my time and grab some water. I got to the finish in time to pull out my phone and get video of Mrs. L and cuz's hubby - so I thought. Ends up phone was set for still pics. Got picture of each at the top of the hill (when I thought I started the video) and the clock after they finished (when I thought I stopped the video).

Wifey PRed big time! 31:06 missing 10:00 pace by 6 sec. Previous best was around 33 or 34 and last race was 38. So proud!!! Cuz hub PRed as well between us.

I think the best part was running without having to worry about extreme heat/humidity, nagging injury, or goal pace. Always love race days - the excitement, comeradery, and competition. This was a great cause, great location, good weather, and shared experience with family. Great way to do an "easy" 5k run on a Saturday morning!

A Study in Form

My wife got a great picture of me at my last 5k. I mean it was a great picture that I happened to be in, not that I am bragging about how I look in the picture. However, I am going to brag about how I look in the picture. It was just a few seconsd into the race (maybe a minute or two). It was long enough for me to get into the groove but not long enough for me to pull away from the pack of slower runners and firmly cement myself in the middle of the pack. The sun was just coming up over the trees which made a beautiful lens flare right above my head.

The best part of the picture was what it captured in my form - the fact that it existed. I knew it was very different from how I used to run and I wanted to quantify it. So I went on a search through my pictures from the Disney marathon to find the same point in my stride. There were 22 pictures that showed my feet. I figured one of them would be at the same point or at least close. None. Zilch. Nada. So I decided to go to the video tape and that's why I figured out why I couldn't find that position in my stride - because it wasn't there.

I don't mean that there were no pictures, I mean that portion of my stride did not exist. In my 5k pic, I am in mid air (or close to it). My back foot had just toed off (or was just about to). Going frame-by-frame through my marathon stride, that never happened. Not even in the first few miles. By the time my I was toeing off, my toe was up, heel thrusting out in that characteristic heel-striking position, and preparing to hit the ground. The reason I couldn't find a picture of me in mid-air was because I was never in mid-air.

Now, to be fair, I was running the fastest I had ever run for any mile since I PRed my opening mile in about 6:50. This would not be my pace if I tried to run a marathon today. However, I also can't discount the massive change in how I run in a mere 6 months.

So, that makes the picture my wife took extra-great to me!

I Am No Longer a Beginner

I was reading the latest issue of "Runner's World" when I realized I wasn't a beginner any more. Only a few years removed from my c25k and anything titled "Run Your First..." is not for me. I was excited because I'm training for my first half and this issue was all about training for your first half. The only problem is it assumes you have never run that distance. Since I already did a full, I've done that distance 9 times and since the last one was exactly double you could say I've done 13.1 10 times in the past year. Since running 13.1 isn't an issue for me, I was hoping to find some pearls of wisdom for experienced runners running their first half. No dice!

I'm not saying I know everything I need to know about running. My shins, knees, and calves give me occasional reminders that that isn't the case. However, I know everything I didn't know before I started running. That may sound obvious, but there is a finite amount of knowledge every runner must gain before they can recognize their proverbial ass from a hole in the ground. I believe I have made that leap.

For me, now, running is about putting my knowledge into action. I have my core set of running values which I follow (somewhat religiously). Having had some past success with my specific running dogma makes it a little easier to keep going. Having every run planned for me makes it easy too. I just stick to the plan and I run faster. For the most part I have remained injury free (knock on wood).

So I know something now, which is more than nothing.

Something, Something, Something, Something...Evidence!

WARNING: The following post comtains MATH! If these excerpts bore you, simply imagine the teacher from "Peanuts" is talking and move on. It gets better. I promise!

I am starting to understand the math behind running. Before I started playing golf, I was amazed when a friend instantly knew the par for a course after someone told him how many par 3s and 5s there were. Now that I have played some golf, I know that many courses are par 72 with 6 each par 3s, 4s, and 5s. 4x18=72 so as long as the 3s and 5s are equal you get 72. If there are more threes it is less than 72 etc.

Now I am starting to get that same mathematical sense about running. I was supposed to do 5x1000 repeats at a 7:28 pace this week. I figured the best way to do that (besides my uncanny inner running clock) would be to time 200m splits. So 7:28 is 32 sec under 8:00 so each lap would be 8 sec under 2 min and every 200 needed to be 4 sec under one. So my splits needed to be something:56, something:52, something:48, something:44, and something:40. Conveniently that got me to 4:40 per 1000 which is exactly what my little chart said as well. Not to mention that, even at that pace I could count backwards by 4s. There is a lot of math I CAN'T do wile I run (so I have learned) so this little bit of elementary school subtraction was just enough mental stimulation to keep me from realizing I was running more than 2.5 min per mile faster than my first 5k and only 10 sec per mile slower than my 5k PR pace.

Now all of this is evidence that that I am learning new math (the running variety) AND getting faster. My track work is paying off big time. I still don't think I have "unleashed the beast" within, but I have turned a corner for sure. What started out as some tinkering with form and desire to run faster has turned into an obsession with speed, "the plan" (I like to stick to the plan), and the science of running faster.

Now, being a running nerd in search of running ubernerd status, I know enough not to say that everyone should try to change their form. Hoverer, I do believe that everyone CAN improve their form. To use another golf analogy (and I promise this one won't be so boring), everyone tinkers a little bit wih their swing. By "tinker" I mean things like, "put a little more weight on the inside of your right foot" or "keep your right elbow in". These "swing thoughts" can help immensely (at least for a few shots until the beers and/or bloody maries start kicking in).

Running is no different. I have "stride thoughts" like "lean forward from the ankles up", "head steady", "wide shoulders/arms parallel", "knees up", "don't reach", "faster tempo", "more effort/push", "feet behind you", "smooth", "you're the f#cking man"...you get the picture. Now of course I don't think all these things at once. In the same way that that many thoughts would result in a recipe for disaster in golf, trying to do all of those things at the same time would guarantee that you would do none of them.

So based on my entirely unscientific sample size of one, I have proven that you can improve your form and in the process run faster easier.

For anyone who has stuck with me this long, you are probably wondring about the title of this post. If not, you recognized it from "Weeds" inthe episode where Uncle Andy joins the Army and his buddy gets hit in the chest with some kind of missile/drone shortly after they record each other lighting their farts on fire with their Army-issue cell phone/missile target.

The end.