Pain-free running?!

I need more patience

2010-11-06T21:40:00.002-04:00

Tomorrow marks the end of the second week of trying to retrain my slow-twitch muscle fibers. I know when it comes to running, I am a Type A and want instant results, and this process is anything but that. Barely jogging for 20 seconds out of every minute (at best) is not my idea of a workout but a bit torturous. I'm praying it all pays off in a month or two.

Completed all of my workouts but I wouldn't say I enjoyed them. Still, I'm trying to embrace non-identification as a runner and the principle of gradual progress. That's probably the biggest challenge. Plodding along and believing this will help.

Starting (Way Beyond) Over

2010-10-27T20:17:00.004-04:00

So I'm starting over with this blog. That's because I'm starting over with running in a way and I'm hoping to track what happens.

I've been running but my fitness hasn't improved. For nearly two years. In fact, I've lost fitness. After a multitude of tests and visiting with a few cardiologists, there is nothing wrong with my heart. And yet, no matter how slowly I jog, my heart rate soars after only a quarter to a half mile. No gentle increase in HR just a jump from 115 to 150 in less than a mile. And only higher from there.

It got to the point where I would bonk after only 2 or 3 miles because my HR was at 180 for most of the run. Crazy -- and frustrating.

I've done VO2 max tests at Ohio State University recently which didn't show much either. So I had just decided to start slowing down more and more in hopes of lowering the heart rate. It seemed to be working a little. I'd gotten up to 5+ miles on my LSD and 3 miles on my other runs. And I'd brought my heart rate down from the upper 170s to 150s and 160s mostly. I never see the 130s much less 120s, which is where I should be on LSDs (126-132). And my recovery rate is lousy. After walking and stretching, I can still be at 115 bpm.

I also started to pay better attention to fueling. And recently decided to contact a running friend about nutrition. This guy runs sub 3-hour marathons and bikes a bazillion miles a year. He's actually getting ready to start another career in nutrition. We've started with me doing a food journal. As part of our emails back and forth, I explained to him my heart rate issue. Turns out he has experienced the exact same thing. He said I have to develop my slow twitch muscles. He recommended a book "Heart Monitor Training for the Compleat Idiot" yes "compleat" not "complete." The book is on its way. In the meantime, I am following Dick's advice about how to do my workouts.

I am to keep my heart rate no higher than 126 and no lower than 118 for one hour 3 times a week. If that means walking most of the way, then so be it. One day a week I get to do a run 160+ bpm for 30 minutes. That will be no problem at all. But keeping my heart rate below 126 is impossible with the slowest of jogging.

I've done the 1-hour workout twice now. It is frustrating and boring walking so much, but I know it will pay off. Dick reminded me that while I enjoy my long slow runs, they aren't doing me any good. In fact, none of my runs have really been doing me any good. I work too hard all of the time.

This could take a few months to get to the point where I can run and keep my heart ratte down but it'll be worth it. Dick says that within 3 weeks or a month I should be running more than walking. This is not a whole lot of fun, but not being able to run more than 7 miles without getting sick or hurt over the past 2 years hasn't been fun either.

One more thing: my chirunning form has been great and makes running so much easier that I want to run more and more but my heart rate just won't allow it. If I can get the heart rate down, I know good things are in my future. I know I have a half marathon and full marathon in me, maybe more. I just have to bring it out. And this appears to be my only chance.

Catching up

2009-10-03T20:00:00.002-04:00

Tuesday: Did 1.75 miles. Ran the first 1.5 in running shoes and then tried .25 mile in the Five Fingers. I really like them but my foot isn't quite ready for them yet. Still needs to heal a bit more. I started on the track but had to opt for the grass for a softer feel. Think I'll just wear them around the house for a while. Breathing and throat thing continues to be a challenge.

Thursday: Ran 1.5 miles faster than lately but still fighting the breathing/throat closing problem. The throat felt totally shut off by the end of the run. Awful feeling. I can still breathe but feels like a big lump in my throat. Saw the doctor about it this morning. Says it might be a goiter growing inside the throat. They'll do an ultrasound. If it is, then thyroid meds might fix it; if not, then surgery. Oh, and it also could be stress, which is what I think it is.

Saturday: Ran 2 miles faster than usual. Not quite back to my old times but improving. And the breathing was much better today -- thankfully. Throat isn't closing off as often. I'm working on the stress side of things and it seems to be helping. I'll still do the ultrasound to rule out other stuff.

Update on Five Fingers: wore them around the house and out on errands today. I can tell my feet are getting used to them. When I wore them the first time in public, I had to really concentrate on a lighter step not to aggravate my feet but today it was more comfortable. So I think my feet are getting stronger everyday. I've worn them for the last 8 hours or so and they still feel good. Just a little getting used to just above the heel on the achilles tendon. We'll see if it's a break-in thing.

Bad and Better

2009-09-28T07:16:00.002-04:00

Thursday's run was fine from a form standpoint, but I have developed a breathing issue that I think is related to reflux. I don't get symptoms like most people. My only symptoms before now were waking up frequently at night. But Thursday I had trouble breathing while running. Actually, I've been having problems with this for a while now. I have to almost hunch my shoulders to get the air to go down into the diaphram when I take a deep breath. And lately my throat feels like it's closing off.

I know that when my reflux acts up (usually from stress), I'm supposed to avoid -- well, actually I'm always supposed to avoid the following foods but I don't -- tomato, carbonated drinks, chocolate, peppermint and caffeine. Most of my main food groups.

The throat closing off thing has certainly gotten my attention along with the breathing thing. Those are two new developments. So I went back to my prescription (long story there but bottom line is what they gave me quickens my heart rate so I'm reluctant to take it) and started taking antacids, which seems to be helping.

So Sunday's run was easier, and I increased a half-mile to 2 whole miles! Woo-hoo. Normally, that wouldn't be a big deal but it means I'm on the way back from the foot problem. Still running on the track only. I still feel my foot if I run on harder surfaces like when I tried a pair of Vibram Five Fingers in the shoe store yesterday. They felt great running in the store, but my foot is sore this morning. I should have known better. Oh well, I'll have to give it a rest for a day or two extra and hopefully, I'll be able to run again tomorrow or Thursday. We'll see. If not tomorrow, it won't be a tremendous loss as winds are gusting to 45 mph here today and will still be at 30 mph tomorrow.

Experimenting

2009-09-22T19:35:00.003-04:00

As I come back from my apparent stress fracture in my foot caused by a misstep on a tree branch, I have decided to do some experimenting. I've mentioned before that my heart rate races whenever I run regardless of speed, so I'm experimenting with going slowly enough to breathe only through my nose and see what happens.

I made it more than 1mile today (I forgot my Garmin so the 2 mins jog/1 min walk routine was a no-go.) before I needed to take a breath through the mouth. After a little more than a mile, I walked half a lap and then jogged another lap and a half.

The one thing I still don't understand is why I have so much trouble belly breathing when I run. It's like my diaphram is locked up. I can feel my shoulders rising sometimes when I am trying to "catch my breath" whenever I am exerting whether running or even at yoga. I know what breathing from the diaphram is, how it works, etc, but my body is just struggling. Maybe that's where the heart rate thing comes from. I'll keep working on it.

I'm getting the hang of breathing through my nose but it will take more time to go very far. It does force me to slow down. Don't know what that's doing to my heart rate since I'm not wearing a monitor -- at least not for a while.

I liked not having a watch on. No idea of total time or splits or anything except distance (if I remembered to keep track of the laps). It's going fine. My foot is just a tad tender (not painful) tonight so I think I'm good.

This experimenting is a bit of a challenge for me but a good one. I like trying to get my breathing more relaxed and work on ChiRunning basics like posture and relaxation. My plan is to run 3 or 4 times a week at the track for another 2 to 4 weeks with no watch and focusing only on posture, relaxation and breathing.

Progress even though it doesn't look like it

2009-09-20T15:57:00.005-04:00

Today marks real progress for me. I went to the track for another of my 2 min joggin/1 min walking workouts (hoping to do 1.5 or 2 miles) as I come back from my foot injury. I was a little more tired than I expected because I went out for a bike ride yesterday for the first time in quite a while. I planned for an easy 13-mile ride, but since my husband didn't join me, I got bored and found myself racing through the workout.

After the first lap at the track, I started to feel my foot. No pain, just a little something that didn't feel quite right. At first I couldn't tell if it was just routine soreness from the foot healing or if I was aggravating it. I tried to make a couple of micro-changes to my running to get the sensation to stop but it wouldn't -- so I did. Because here's the thing I've learned about injuries: If you are body sensing -- being aware of of the way your body feels rather than focusing on finishing the run no matter what -- you can catch a problem long before it becomes an injury.

Here are a few steps the body goes through before injury.

1. Sensation -- Something just doesn't feel feel right. Call it a twinge or whatever. It doesn't hurt but there's a hint of something going on.

2. Discomfort -- When you don't pay attention to the sensation and make an adjustment, the sensation can turn into discomfort. Still not painful, but certainly getting worse.

3. Pain -- Here's where you know something is going on. Stopping is the right thing but sometimes we press on for any number of reasons -- most have to do with our egos.

4. Injury. You've ignored the sensation, the discomfort, and the pain and now you've actually done some damage and will no doubt will have to take a few days off.

Normally, i would have allowed myself to get to at least Step 3. But I am trying very hard this time around to ignore what I want to do and pay attention to what I need to do. And what I need to do to run injury free is to pay attention and be more flexible about how much and how often I run. I need to let my body tell me what it's ready to do rather than how far I want to run.

So while I really didn't get any kind of a run in today, I consider today's workout a success because my new measure of success is this: Being able to run another day.

Coming back

2009-09-19T20:48:00.004-04:00

I know it's been forever since I last posted anything but I've thought about it many times, as if that counts for anything.

Seven weeks ago today, I went for a run when I knew I shouldn't. I was tired from too much stress and too much effort. I even remember thinking, "I should just go home and get on the spinner instead of doing a run." But I said I was going to run four times that week, and I am just stupid that way. I mean it's not like I'm even training for anything. I am such a slow learner sometimes.

So I made a deal with myself: I would walk for five minutes to warm up and then start jogging. If I felt as tired as I thought I was I would be able to tuck back into my neighborhood in a quarter mile and call it a day. Unfortunately (although it seemed fortunate at the time), I felt fine when I started running. I wanted to do 3 miles. Mile 1 went fine. I was at 1.9 miles when I felt a pain in my right foot. This pain is something I've felt from time to time over the last few weeks sometimes when running but it happened even walking. But either way it lasted only 100 yards or less and would go away.

It seemed a little more intense this time and it got my attention. So I figured I'd just do that tenth and take a walk break. If the pain persisted, I'd walk it home. A few steps later (actually at 1.99 miles), the ball of my right foot hit a small tree branch. The foot twisted and torqued in a nasty way. I immediately knew I couldn't take another step. I barely hobbled home. In fact, I should have gone up to the first house and asked them to call my husband. But instead I took probably 30 minutes to walk a half-mile. I had to take the tiniest steps, I think a 4-year-old could have walked faster.

On Monday, I got into the orthopod. Although no broken bones, he said he figured it was a stress fracture that would show in a few weeks when it started healing. He wanted to do a bone scan to confirm the diagnosis. I asked him if he would treat it any differently based on the scan. When he told me "no," I passed on the scan. (No wonder our health care system is such a mess. Doing tests that don't really matter.)

So I spent almost 5 weeks on crutches (they tried a boot but it messed up my calf and my back). The ball of my foot swelled a lot after the injury and it probably wasn't until the fifth or sixth week that my toes actually touched the ground. After I got off the crutches I spent 2 more weeks just trying to walk without a limp.

I worked out on the spinner a few times in the last couple of weeks and headed to the track on Wednesday and Friday this week. I'm doing 2 mins of slow jogging/1 min. walking. I did 1 mile on Wednesday and 1.5 miles on Friday. I'm incredibly slow but I'm trying to be careful with the foot. I've also decided as I come back to work on a few basics like posture and heel lift and not pushing off with the toes.

I'm also trying to work on breathing only through my nose as much as possible and keeping my heart rate down. I've already written this but just a reminder: When I run my heart rate tends to skyrocket no matter how slowly I run. The doctors say I get a rush of adrenaline when I run that causes this and there's really nothing to worry about or do about it. Still, I'd like to try to get it under control, so I'm trying to run slowly enough that I breathe only through my nose and see if that results in a lower heart rate.

So my new plan right now is to build up to 3 miles at the track (softer surface) and then go back to the road. I plan to run 3 times a week and spin or bike on the road 3 times a week plus one day of yoga and a couple days of weights.

I don't plan to add miles for a "long" run for at least 2 months. We'll see how it all goes.
.

Oops, I (almost) did it again!

2009-06-07T11:34:00.002-04:00

Last November late in the month, I hurt my back and missed four weeks of work and didn't run for 2.5 -3 months. I came back very conservatively both in distance increases and speed. But on Thursday, I just was having the nicest longer run and I added on a mile more than I should have after increasing by too much the week before. I really needed a recovery week (something I always fail to remember to do).

I've felt like maybe I was coming down with something all week. So I hadn't run since Sunday when I headed out the door on Thursday. Feeling too good made it hard to stop.

When I finished, I felt the slightest tug in my back and then it tightened up later in the night. It really scared me. Some ice and Advil helped, but it felt like I might have started something. I took Friday off from running. I taught 4 hours on Saturday and never drank anything. Not smart. Warm and sunny, so I came home dehyrated. After a nap, I just didn't want to chance running on a tired body.

I finally decided to give it a go this morning. I ran as slowly as I could and kept solid form, relaxing my back and glutes. I felt fine. I had decided to limit myself to 2 miles no matter what. It seems to have been a good plan. Right now, I feel fine. I have a little sensation in my low back but nothing to scary. Just need to stretch out some more maybe.

I've learned my lesson, I hope. A recovery week every 3 to 4 weeks is a must. And despite what others can do, I cannot right now add more than a half mile every week to my longer runs. My lungs, heart and every body part can handle more but not my low back. And I will NOT risk hurting myself again by doing too much too soon whether it's running, yardwork or any other activity.

I have to remember my body isn't 25 anymore even if my head thinks so. Hard to imagine I'm practically twice that these days. Doing too much too soon has been has plagued me my whole life. But maybe now I'm finally ready to accept my limitations and be happy with what I can do rather than always wanting more.

A couple of good runs

2009-05-30T20:37:00.004-04:00

Day 2 of the morning runs did not happen. I woke up in time to run on Thursday but felt like I'd been hit by a truck. So I waited 15 minutes thinking I might feel better. Then waited another 15 mins and another. I finally called in to my boss and said I was just starting to feel alive and would be in by 9 or so. I finally made it in at 10:15 and never ran.

I decided to try to run in the evening if I felt better at the day's end. I headed out about 6 p.m. in rain and high humidity for a 2-mile run. I walked for 10 minutes to start while it poured on me and then as soon as I started running, the rain stopped. Figures. But I felt good and the run turned into a 3-miler. So overall, good.

This morning's run was my first 5-miler since I had my back issue last November. I wasn't really concerned about the mileage because I've been building my distance very slowly and conservatively after the back issue in November. I was a little concerned how my back would feel this morning as the Colonel and I started some serious yardwork. I pulled weeds in the main front yard flower bed and spread about 15 large bags of mulch, and my back felt it.

I made sure to spend 10 minutes on my inversion table, which seemed to help. As did a couple of Advils. I woke up this morning feeling fine.

The goal was to run slowly -- 11:15 to 11:30 miles. I like doing an LSD run every week with the idea of building new capillaries to carry oxygen better and make running even easier. But it's a challenge because I just don't have good control of my speed. But I was determined to slow down.

The day was spectacular -- about 60-something degrees, no humidity, beautiful sunshine, no wind. Just pefect.

I started off very slowly and the first mile was even slower than I'd planned at 11:45. I was paying attention to my back and was willing to turn around and head home if there was an issue.
But the back felt great.

Now, I told myself, stay slow because I always do well on Mile 1 but then speed up all of the sudden without even knowing it.

Mile 2 -- 11:00. Too fast. S-l-o-w d-o-w-n.

Mile 3 -- 10:52! What?! What part of slow down don't you understand? I actually walked 1 minute just to force myself to slow down. I thought maybe if I walked a minute, I could find the slower pace.

Mile 4 -- 11:20. OK, that's good. Oh, but wait, I walked 1 minute, so it's almost like a 10:40 or so. Crazy. But I was enjoying the run even though I knew I wasn't going as slow as I'd like.

Mile 5 -- 11:00. Good enough.

I'm just glad to have gotten 5 miles in with no discomfort anywhere. No pain is always Goal 1. I did feel my right ankle at one point, but I just made a micro change and focused on my mid-foot landing and all was right again.

Not only did I get 5 miles in but then I put in 4 more hours in the yard with the Colonel. I pulled what seemed like 1,000 weeds, (I'm serious), and spread nearly 30 big bags of mulch. I was exhausted afterward. But the back held up really well.

Hopefully, I'll feel good in the morning for an easy 3 miles before we head to two different graduation brunches. Brunch? Anyone ever heard of graduation brunch before?

Well, it's a start

2009-05-26T18:41:00.004-04:00

I ran in the mornings on vacation in the hopes of setting up a habit I could continue once we got home. I've run in the morning for a week or two in the past but it never became a habit. But this year, I'm hoping for something different.

Today was the first day and I had to get up an hour earlier than I did on vacation if I wanted to be in the office by 8:30. But I did it. I woke up at 6:15 and actually felt awake, so I got up, got dressed, did my Chilooseners, got a few sips of water and headed out the door. I walked for about 10 minutes as I always do before taking off.

I started a little fast but I felt good. I slowed down and fell into a nice pace. I expected to run somewhat slower first thing in the morning than in the late afternoon and 11:16 was about 10-20 seconds slower than usual as were the second and third miles at 10:37 and 10:17. So I'm pretty happy with that. Besides the time isn't the goal. Running in the morning, liking it, and feeling no pain afterward is the goal.

Based on those criteria, this morning rocked. Hoping to try again on Thursday.

Fun runs

2009-05-23T11:01:00.003-04:00

We left the beach in D estin, FL on Thursday after tacking an additional day onto our vacation. Great move. The weather was great. So I didn't run on Wednesday (our extra vacation day )or Thursday (our travel day) but I got a 3-miler in yesterday at my sister's in Georgia. It was great. Cloudy and about 65 degrees. I ran a bit slower than usual which I attribute to lack of hydration for two days (too many Diet Cokes, not enough water) and way too many M&Ms on the drive up.

My sister lives in a relatively hilly area compared to us, So I got some hills in. Uphills are fine but downhills are still a concern. I have to be very careful on downhills with my back and often I won't even try them if they are steep.

She gave me a 3-mile route but I missed a turn and I'm glad I did. The route she gave me has a lot of rolling hills but with some more serious downhills as I learned on today's run. So I was glad I found my own path which was relatively flat.

Today I ran with my sister and her husband. They were doing 10 or 12 miles on a 4-mile loop. I did one loop but that was all my back could take with the downhills. They also do a run 8 mins./walk 2 mins routine. That doesn't work too well for me. I don't like stopping and starting but it was nice to have company. I usually run alone. It went really fast.

Heading home tomorrow but not before a nice dinner with one of the hub's nephews, his wife and baby along the way. That'll be great.

Catching up

2009-05-19T19:46:00.004-04:00

I've been re-reading "ChiRunning" by Danny Dreyer. It's probably the fourth or fifth time I've read the book. It's something I read every year at the beach because it's a great time to kick back, and my running is in a different place each year so different parts of the book speak to me.

I'm on my third copy. I read and re-read parts of the first one so much, I broke the spine and the pages were falling out. My second copy is still intact but tattered. And now Danny just released a new edition with additional info.

It's great. He's simplified the teaching of ChiRunning and explain the pelvic rotation even better. Plus, there's a whole chapter on common injuries, what's likely causing the problem and how to correct it -- everything from knee pain to ITB syndrome and plantar fasciitis.

My running is going great here. And even before this trip.

I have spent 3 years telling myself that I'm running for the joy and then would judge/scrutinizing the times on my Garmin. But the back injury over the winter -- and the concerns about running after it -- gave me a lot of time to really appreciate running for the fun of it, instead of wanting to be faster or going farther. Now I really am concentrating on listening to my body rather than letting my brain/ego rule everything. If my body says everything feels fine, we run; if something feels funky, I work to change my form. If that doesn't work, we quit for the day.

I've also been conservative in my mileage increases but it's all paying off. My times are better and I'm not even trying to go faster -- just trying to relax more as Danny Dreyer suggests. One point of his that really has stuck with me is to keep the spine lengthened, so I am constantly thinking out extending my head through the crown to the sky and grounding myself from the tailbone. And then relaxing into that. It helps to keep my upper body balanced and in line with my hips which leads to good ChiRunning posture, which is the basis of good running form.

It works. That's all I know. I'm still no speed demon, but my goals have changed. I no longer want to run an "8-minute mile" although that would be nice. Now I simply want to run faster. But speed isn't the issue, it's a byproduct of form over distance. If I get faster, great. But right now the only goal for me is to complete each run without pain or discomfort and to feel great the next day. So far: mission accomplished.

Saturday's run was a long, slow, distance run, but I'm just starting to build there. Wanted to run between 11 and 11:30 minute miles. Monday's run felt good considering I haven't been hydrating very well. Tuesday I didn't plan to run but found myself running anyway. Really haven't been hydrating well and eating way too much junk. Still, happy with how I felt.

May 16
Mile 1 11:25
Mile 2 11:00
Mile 3 11:07
Mile 4 11:20

May 18th
Mile 1 11:13
Mile 2 10:37
Mile 3 10:12

May 19th
Mile 1 11:06
Mile 2 10:37
Mile 3 10:12

Relaxing into it

2009-05-13T21:26:00.004-04:00

The last time I was on a trip sleeping in different beds, I ended up with a back injury that kept me home from work for 4 weeks and away from running for nearly 4 months. So this trip had me a little nervous.

On Monday I decided to do an early morning run just to see how my body felt considering I'd slept on two different mattresses in two nights -- and I haven't been on my inversion table (which always helps) for a few nights. My back was a bit sore. My piriformis has been really tight. Too much driving? Different mattresses? No inversion table to hang upsidedown on? Who knows? Still, the run went pretty well.

It was really warn -- 78 degrees at 7:15 a.m. so I knew starting out that I'd have to do a short run just to acclimate to the heat. It wasn't just 78 so early in the morning -- it was a humid 78. At home, I've been running in 50s and low 60s in mid-afternoon. So this was definitely different.

I could have run on the beach, but the slope of it really didn't sound good for my back, so I headed out to the street. From the place we're staying, there's about a half mile row of beachfront resorts before I hit the highway which luckily has a nice sidewalk about 20 yards south of the street.

I started slowly. In fact, the goal was about 11:15 to 11:30 miles. First mile was like 11:15. Perfect. But in the second mile I started to feel my back ever so slightly. I couldn't decide if it was just a result of a different mattress or something to be aware of. So I did 1.25 miles and turned around to come back. 2 miles on the first day was plenty. Well not really but it sounded good in my head and I certainly didn't want to hurt myself on the first day of a two-week trip.

I figured if all went well, and I held back on Monday that Wednesday's run could be longer.

It was the right decision. My back felt fine on Tuesday.

This morning I almost blew off my run. I had waaaaay too much food last night (burger, sweet potato, spinach salad, watermelon, ice cream. Makes me kind of sick just thinking of it all). So I just got a newspaper and a small OJ and sat on our balcony. But after about 30 minutes, I thought why not give it a shot. If I felt terrible, I could always turn around. Besides it was only 73 degrees and there was a nice breeze heading back, which meant one thing: a tailwind on the way back.

Again, I want to run at about 11 minute miles or so. Mile 1: 11:08 Mile 2: 10:26: .75 miles 10:06 pace. Really didn't expect to have that kind of pace given dinner plus all the other junk, but from the first minute or two, I could tell it would be a good run.

Felt terrific. Back felt great. No tightness. Stretching the piriformis before the run was REALLY smart.

One more thing: Been really focusing on reaching my crown for the sky, tailbone grounded and then relaxing into it. More on that later..

Shaving minutes

2009-05-08T13:57:00.003-04:00

Time gets away so quickly sometimes. Two weeks and no blogging. Oh well, at least today.

I've been keeping my schedule pretty good -- three runs during the week and a longer run on the weekends. I'm really trying to let me body tell me what it wants to do instead of me pushing it. And most importantly, I'm focusing on relaxing my entire body except the core during the run.

In ChiRunning, form over distance will bring speed naturally without trying. I've always believed it in my head but it's been hard for me to really trust but it's true. I went out yesterday to do 2.5 miles and all I focused on was relaxing -- even my face. Oddly, I seem to squint really hard even with sunglasses on, so I've been trying to relax from the head down.

I felt I was working harder than usual but I figured it was the junk food lunch I ate. Not so. I was actually running faster as a result of trying to relax more and not effort (yes, I'm making effort a verb now). I have taken 30 seconds off my first mile in the last few weeks and last night took a full minute off the second mile.

I don't want to get too excited about this because I am trying to walk the talk of running for the joy without caring about time or distance. Which I'm doing not so much by choice but I really have to let my body tell me what it wants to do because I have kicked the crap out of it telling it what I want it to do. It's all about the process not the results. Still, it's a kick to shave minutes off my runs.

Weekend runs

2009-04-19T15:01:00.004-04:00

Nothing special about the last two runs and yet everything was special.

Saturday morning -- sunny skies and 60 degrees at 8:30 a.m. Just a beautiful day for a nice longer, slow run. I started off with my .75 mile walk just to loosen up and get ready. Started off running nice and slowly. Really planned to run 11:30 miles. First mile just about dead on at 11:26. After that I kept speeding up by 15 to 30 seconds per mile. I have to always remind myself to slow down and build my aerobic capacity. More importantly, I just want to slow down to feel my Chirunning form all the more. It's easier to pick up on areas that need work by slowing down than at a faster pace.

Had planned to run a mile on the track with the rest on the road, but I've been feeling so good, I decided to do all four miles on the road. I'm glad I did. It felt great and I found my body is doing very well on the road. I could have gone another mile or two but I am really trying to be strict with myself on how much I increase my mileage per week (only a quarter to half mile per week on the longer runs. I have my whole life to get my mileage back up.)

It felt so good to run and breathe easy and feel relaxed on the road. What a treat.

This morning I got up early for me at 6:30 and was out the door by 7 for a little "recovery" run. Planned on going 2.25 but I felt so good, I allowed myself to do 2.5. I know, I know, I just said I'm being strict with myself about my mileage increases and since I increased a half yesterday (on my longer run) I should have only increased .25 for today's. But at least I let my body tell me what it wanted not the other way around. And if on my next run, my body tells me to do only 2.25, I will.

Weather was great with temps near 60 and mostly cloudy. Other plusses for the two runs:

No struggle. Just concentrating on making it easy.

No aches or pain.

Maybe this morning's experience will help me start running in the mornings.

Catching Up

2009-04-16T20:38:00.002-04:00

Although life threw a curve at me for 10 days or so, I managed to keep my schedule except two days and I made one of those up.

This will be short. Good news: Running well. Have transitioned to the road completely. Up to 2.25 miles and feel fine. Just focusing on relaxing during the run -- not the distance much less the time. Today, I just focused on relaxing everything in my body but my core and just making the run easy. No efforting, just relaxing. Danny Dreyer, creator of Chirunning, says the more you relax the faster you can run. I really paid no attention to time and tried to focus on relaxing and had great times for my two miles 11:04 and 10:31. I'm happy with that.

Had an interesting experience running today. As I was finishing the second mile, I was on a slight downhill when my foot hit what I suspect was a pine cone. Because of the mid-foot landing in ChiRunning I was able to land on the cone in an odd way and not turn an ankle. Mid-foot landing really does provide more stability.

Have been running four times a week -- three of the same distance and one a little longer. Seems to be working well. Really enjoying my little runs.

Slow and steady has potential

2009-04-05T17:00:00.007-04:00

I'm trying to be conservative in my running as I come back from my latest issue. I'm increasing only .25 miles per run per week. Slow but steady is the plan.

Yesterday's run was supposed to be no more than 3.5 miles with 2.25 of that on a soft track. I was on my feet for four or five hours before my run so I thought maybe I should actually run less -- maybe have a recovery week although my mileage is hardly high enough to recover from much. Still...

So yesterday, the weather was gorgeous. About 55 degrees and sunny. The run on the track was fine -- just kept trying to go slower. I have a hard time slowing down. Seems all my runs are about the same speed (which isn't fast) and I wanted this one to be slower. The first mile felt good and the second equally easy. After 2.25 miles, I hit the road. As soon as I hit the road, I felt like my footstrike was a little harder than I wanted. I couldn't find my light footstrike which I find very important for my back. I felt like I was rotating my pelvis enough but maybe I was more tired than I thought. I also noticed the impact on a downhill that was a little steeper than I'd wanted. I've been avoiding any downhill running at the doctor's suggestion until my comeback is further along.

I just couldn't seem to hold my form the way I wanted, so by the time I hit 1.2 miles of road running, my back was sending gentle messages. I never let my back talk to me much less scream at me. If I get to that point -- it's way too late. So I made a few adjustments but nothing felt quite right. So I bagged it just a tenth short of my goal. Now that doesn't sound like any big deal except that I can be pretty anal about my runs. That's what I'm working on -- listening to my body rather than listening to my head. I know no one cares how much I run or don't. I just have to learn not to care about results and focus on the process. It's coming, but slowly.

I was kind of concerned I did too much given the hours I spent on my feet beforehand and the sensation in my low back. I felt just a little something in my back the rest of the day but woke up this morning feeling great. I debated a run today because last night I was cooked. I was so tired. I'd hydrated plenty before and after the run because I didn't drink much while I was teaching, but still I felt exhausted. While I slept about 9 or 10 hours (with some restlessness), I still felt tired when I woke up.

I had breakfast with Dad and my husband, and 2 hours later -- when the temps had risen to nearly 60 -- I decided to head out and see how things felt. The plan was .75 walk, .25 road running, .75 on the track and 1.25 on the road.

I'm just now starting to run on the road at the beginning of my runs in addition to the ends with track time in between. Today's run in 60 and sunny was GREAT. My back felt wonderful. I ran easy and everything -- breath, form -- felt good. I avoided downhill running today and picked out one of my old routes for the road run. It felt so good to be on the road again.

So all in all, I'm happy. Actually, I'm thrilled. Thrilled that I could run farther than I would have recommended had it been one of my students. Thrilled that while my back whispered at me during the downhill, I didn't do any harm. Thrilled that I was able to run today and feel great.

Slow but steady is sounding better and better.

Running farther, eating better..

2009-04-02T19:20:00.004-04:00

Left the office today a little early for my run. It was supposed to be raining by 3 p.m. and then drop into the 40s or 50s from the mid-60s. Instead, it was still sunny at 2. But I didn't want to push my luck, so I bugged out for a run in what turned out to be 70-plus degrees. The sun was actually hot -- in early April!

Focused on form not speed. I am trying to finally, finally embrace certain ideas from Chirunning including running for the joy rather than the accomplishment. Began with an easy 10 minutes like Danny Dreyer suggest and worked on body sensing to see if I could feel tension anywhere. My right ankle where I had all the symptoms of a stress fracture but no fracture last summer was talking at me just a bit. So I focused on relaxing my lower legs and voila, sensation gone. Everything else felt fine.

I still need to work on my downhill form. I have a tendency to pull up off my tilt and let my core go, which puts way too much strain on my back. I am still working to find the balance among length, stride and speed in the downhill. But it'll come.

The run was great but breezy. That's not a complaint. The weather for the last few weeks has been nothing short of amazing.

Along with my efforts to focus my running on the process and not the product, I've been working on dropping a few pounds (like 20) and learning to eat healthy. I tend to get really rigid about my nutrition, drop the weight and then within a year put most of it back on. (Usually, I'm only working to take off 10 but a low back issue packed on the second 10 at Christmas.) So I'm down 8 or 9 lbs in six weeks. It's slow but steady.

The best part about the weight loss is that I'm not being rigid. If I want something sweet, I eat it. If I want something salty, I eat it. I just attention to how much I eat of any one thing and make sure I get a salad every other day at a minimum plus fruit, too. These are two food groups I really neglect. But no more. Bonus: I feel better all overall -- and especially when I'm running. Who'da thought?

I only run...

2009-04-01T19:24:00.002-04:00

What is it about runners? We downplay every accomplishment. No matter how significant, it's never enough.

Depending on the runner you meet, you'll hear things like

I’ve only run 10 marathons.

I’ve only run 2 half-marathons.

I only run a 13-minute mile.

I only run a 10-minute mile.

I only run a 7-minute mile.

I only run… I only run… I only run… You fill in the blank. No better yet, don’t.

I only run. It’s enough right there.

I only run. It’s all there is.

I only run. Three of the most beautiful words in the world.

Doubling up

2009-03-31T20:33:00.002-04:00

I'm trying to take a true day of rest each week but it's hard to work in. I run four days a week, try to hit the spinner two or three days a week and go to yoga one night a week.

Ran Saturday and Sunday. Yoga Monday night. And this morning, got a workout in on the spinner followed by a run this evening. All of it felt good. I should probably take tomorrow off, but I'm more inclined to do a workout on the spinner and some free weights before work and then take the rest of the day off.

Looks like if I want a real rest day, I'll have to ride the spinner and do yoga on the same days and then take Weds off. We'll see. Nothing is cast in stone. I'm trying to be more flexible with my workouts.

Good run today. Always feels good when the temps are in the 60s in March.

First time I've done two workouts in a day in 18 months. Shoot, I couldn't get myself out of bed for a morning workout for better part of a year or more. So it's all good right now.

On track

2009-03-29T21:35:00.003-04:00

Woke up about 7:30 this morning and it wasn't raining as predicted. I knew it was supposed to rain most of the day with high winds and temps in the 40s. It was almost 40 degrees at 7:30, so I decided to get a run in while it was still partly sunny.

Walked to the track (1 mile), did 1 mile on the track and 1 mile on the road before heading to breakfast with family. By the time we left for breakfast it was already starting to rain. So glad I got the run in before breakfast.

I felt good during the run which is great since I don't run much in the morning and my body much prefers afternoon runs.

Two runs in two days and no problems. Happy, happy.

Good week.

I didn't even melt

2009-03-28T20:00:00.003-04:00

So today was supposed to be a slow run day. Since I'm only increasing about a quarter mile a week per run, the plan was 2 miles on the soft track followed by .75 or 1 mile on the road. Because it looked like rain, I drove to the track. I don't mind running in rain but I don't like downpours when it's still chilly.

I didn't get through 1/16th of a mile when it started to rain softly, but it was cold. I thought about bagging the run outside and heading to the indoor track nearby but I hate that too. So I decided I'd at least get one mile in on the track and then head indoors if it rained harder.

It never got too much worse, so I ended up doing my full workout, which was pretty good since I had been on my feet teaching for 3 hours earlier today and I was already tired.

It was probably the rain that made me run faster (relatively speaking) than I wanted. I'd planned 12 minute miles, but I ended up at 11. I felt really good rain and all and wanted to go farther, but I am really restricting myself to just the workout planned. I don't want to do too much too soon (the story of my life.)

I'm glad it wasn't all that nice outside because I felt so good it would have been hard to stop at 3 miles.

Spring is definitely early

2009-03-27T20:37:00.003-04:00

Running is going great -- slow but great. The big news here in my part of Ohio is that spring is a full two weeks early. The first sign of spring is the white flowers on my neighbors bush (actually, it might be a magnolia tree) which always happens in the first week of April.

Not this year.

The tree began flowering March 21!!!!

And then on Tuesday or this week, I was working up and down the river, and honeysuckle was in bloom, which usually happens the second or third week of April.

And then today, I saw the first baby leaf on our Bradford Pear tree.

For those of who put up with winter, the first signs of spring's rebirth are a big deal. Two weeks early? AWESOME!

Ran four times this week. Just inching up my mileage much slower than I normally would, but I'm protecting my back at all costs.

Feeling good

2009-03-14T20:57:00.004-04:00

Got out semi-early (9:30) this morning for a 1.0 mile walk, 1.5 miles running and another mile walk home. The running right now is always at the track because of its really soft surface, but the last .25 of the run I did on concrete today and I feel fine.

Saw the chiropractor yesterday and everything held -- mostly. He's still needs to do a touch of work on my shoulder and recommended I see my muscle activation therapist to help the shoulder muscles start holding the new alignment. I have an appt. in a week or so.

I also told him about how my knees have been hurting and that they don't usually since I started ChiRunning. He noticed that my tibia bones were out of whack and fixed those, along with realigning the ankles and toes. Ran today with no knee discomfort during or after. Excellent.

Hope to run again tomorrow (trying to do 4 runs a week but very low mileage just getting started again). Supposed to be even nicer than this morning which was about 38 degrees and cloudy.

Are we on to something?

2009-03-12T21:31:00.003-04:00

I don't want to get too excited, but I have to say I've been feeling really, really good since visiting the new chiropractor. I've been to yoga (and felt much more flexible), I've run four times and each time, I run faster and more comfortably. I've ridden the spinner 3 times with no problems, and today I lifted some free weights. So far so good.

I see the new chiropractor tomorrow to see if the adjustment to my collarbone and ribs held. Seems to have. I have a few questions for him and have had a few aches and pains over the last week, but I think that's just everything settling out after certain things were put back in place.

I'm excited that maybe just maybe I'm on the road to finally going somewhere with my running and workouts.

The weather has been typical March. We set a record on Saturday or Sunday of 76 and I ran because I couldn't not run in that kind of weather. Then today it was about 33 degrees and cloudy when I ran but felt colder. Tomorrow mid 40s and sunny and Saturday low 50s -- now that's more like it.