Sunday, March 29, 2009
"In the long run"
Since my grandmothers lived to be 102 and 93, I fully expect to live a long life - in fact, I believe I will be 100. (The male side of my heritage is a little shakier, but there are extenuating circumstances. My Dad's father, a smoker, died of cancer at the age of 62; my Mom's father was killed in a car accident at age 38; and my Dad was 85 when he died after a long bout with Alzheimer's.) I amuse my kids by telling them that, despite this, I "only" plan to run till I'm 90, and then scale back to walking. But I am serious about this ... even though I'm sure I'll slow down considerably as I age, I intend to keep going. Should this work out, I estimate I'll have at least 25,000 - 30,000 miles ahead of me yet. (I just turned 52, which would mean 38 more years ... last year I ran almost 1200 miles, but don't know if it's realistic for me to keep up that average till the year 2047.)
Blisters
Having had a large, painful blister on the side of my right big toe, I have not been able to run since March 21. I have been tempted the last couple of days, but decided it would be wise to hold off and give myself a little extra time. Today, I resumed, with 4 miles - pain-free and utterly lacking in any discomfort. So now I hope to be able to continue regularly.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Shoes
After hurting my feet a couple of years ago by trying to run too long in one pair of shoes, I turned for advice to my friend Steve Angerman, who co-owns a Running Fit store here in town. Steve advised me that I should plan to get 250-300 miles out of a pair of shoes before replacing them. So I now track the mileage with the Training Rog available through Runner's World's website, and as I could see I was rapidly approaching that limit this week, I just got a new pair of shoes today - my first since a new pair after the 5K I ran on December 13. So it seems they last me roughly 3 months.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Shamrocks and Shenanigans
Today's 5K was somewhat disappointing. It couldn't have been a nicer day for a run: brightly sunny, no wind, and a temperature in the mid-forties. The course was a two-lap route in downtown Ann Arbor. Through the first half I ran hard, and put myself at least in the position to be able to challenge for a new personal record (though it was by no means a lock).
But early in the second half (just shy of 20 minutes in), I was going west on Washington (down a hill), preparing to turn south (left) on First Street, pushing hard, and my legs just gave way. I fell, and was totally uninjured (except for bloodying my left knee and the knuckle of my left forefinger). Two Red Cross volunteers on a golf cart swooped over very quickly to tend to me, and would not let me get up. (Their concern was exacerbated, of course, by my inability to speak clearly.) The 23-year-old driver, Adam, and his assistant, Sid, cleaned and bandaged my wounds, and their concern was alleviated somewhat when they asked my medical history, and I was able to say, "1993 Traumatic Brain Injury ... that's why I can't speak well." We joked and had a nice chat, with Adam opining after he found out my age that it might not have been realistic for me to "try to keep up with these young bucks." :)
Anyway, then a Huron Valley Ambulance had been called and came over, and after we chatted a bit, they were happy to learn I was OK, but since they had come they had to fill out a report. And, of course, I had to "sign off" on a form saying that, though I had been offered a ride to the hospital, I declined. (The driver joked, "So if your knee falls off tomorrow, you can't sue us!" She was in a good mood because at one point earlier, after she had forgotten something, I attributed it to her being "blonde" ... and although she pretended to be offended by this, she grinned and it was clear she took it as a sign of me being in good condition.)
After this was over, Adam and Sid gave me a ride back to my car at the library - they asked whether I wanted to continue running or not, and although I feel that I perhaps should have, I wimped out and accepted the ride. So, anyway, all's well that ends well - but next race I expect to do better!
But early in the second half (just shy of 20 minutes in), I was going west on Washington (down a hill), preparing to turn south (left) on First Street, pushing hard, and my legs just gave way. I fell, and was totally uninjured (except for bloodying my left knee and the knuckle of my left forefinger). Two Red Cross volunteers on a golf cart swooped over very quickly to tend to me, and would not let me get up. (Their concern was exacerbated, of course, by my inability to speak clearly.) The 23-year-old driver, Adam, and his assistant, Sid, cleaned and bandaged my wounds, and their concern was alleviated somewhat when they asked my medical history, and I was able to say, "1993 Traumatic Brain Injury ... that's why I can't speak well." We joked and had a nice chat, with Adam opining after he found out my age that it might not have been realistic for me to "try to keep up with these young bucks." :)
Anyway, then a Huron Valley Ambulance had been called and came over, and after we chatted a bit, they were happy to learn I was OK, but since they had come they had to fill out a report. And, of course, I had to "sign off" on a form saying that, though I had been offered a ride to the hospital, I declined. (The driver joked, "So if your knee falls off tomorrow, you can't sue us!" She was in a good mood because at one point earlier, after she had forgotten something, I attributed it to her being "blonde" ... and although she pretended to be offended by this, she grinned and it was clear she took it as a sign of me being in good condition.)
After this was over, Adam and Sid gave me a ride back to my car at the library - they asked whether I wanted to continue running or not, and although I feel that I perhaps should have, I wimped out and accepted the ride. So, anyway, all's well that ends well - but next race I expect to do better!
Sunday, March 1, 2009
New goal
I am hoping to run another 5K in downtown Ann Arbor on March 15 - Shamrocks and Shenanigans. I'd like to see if I can break 29 minutes. My current 5K race personal record is 29:29, from December 13, but I have broken 29 minutes in training, which gives me hope that it is doable.
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