10 Things

10 things I’ve figured out since I re-started learning to swim:

1. Goggles are very important.
2. Ear plugs are important, but not as important as goggles.
3. A nose plug is not important and actually quite annoying.
4. A swim cap is also not important but still very cool.
5. Swimming with your mouth closed (the entire time) is hard and stupid.
6. Lifting your whole head out of the water to breathe is not recommended.
7. Breathing with a right side head turn is hard but with the left side it’s easy.
8. Kicking should be continuous and not once every swim stroke.
9. Kick turns are cool but physically (and genetically) impossible for me to do.
10. My shoulders, neck and upper back hate me for trying this.

Oh, and I still have no fucking idea what I’m doing.

New Bedford Half Marathon

At the start of the year, The New Bedford Half Marathon was to be my “Goal Race” for the Spring of 2012. I geared my early season training plan around it in order to peak for the March 18th race date and hopefully run a new Half Marathon PR. And, while my training did go pretty well for the first 2+ months of the year, I realized after the 10 miler that a HM PR (1:23:06 or better) was a little bit beyond my reach at the moment. So, going into the race, my "new" plan was to put in a good, hard effort and just have fun with it.

As usual, the start at New Bedford was crazy. It took me a while just to worm my way up through the tightly packed corral area to a place where I thought I should be, pre-start. The temps were near ideal – Sunny, 45 degrees and almost no wind. Of course, we were standing amongst the taller buildings in downtown New Bedford, so any wind was bound to be somewhat minimized. That was not to be the case, as it turned out, down by Clark’s Cove and New Bedford Harbor. But, more on that later …

Square One

Recently I decided that it would be a good idea to expand my cross training world to include swimming. Lord knows why. I waste enough of my time exercising, really, without including time driving to an aquatic facility, flopping around in a pool for a while, then driving home. And then, probably catching a cold from going outside with wet hair.

Anyway, that “X-T World Expansion” began this past Monday evening at the Nashua YMCA. I signed up to participate in a Tri-Swim class (or in my case - Try Swim) to help me learn proper swimming technique. The class is taught by a burly guy named John, who clearly has no idea what he’s in for with regards to teaching me how to swim.

DH Jones 10 Miler

This past weekend I ran the DH Jones 10m in Amherst, MA. This race was the first of seven in the 2012 New England Grand Prix and was also the first GP race that I’ve run with my team since the Red’s Shoe Barn 5m in April of last year. Gate City had nearly 50 runners signed up to run and everyone seemed psyched to get the season started. So, to say that I was super-amped up for this race would be a very mild understatement.

Give and Take

In running & racing jargon, once a runner reaches the ripe old age of 40 they move up to something called the Masters Division. I’m not sure why they call it “Masters”. In the 15 years I’ve been running, I certainly don’t feel like I’ve “Mastered” anything yet. However, as a Masters runner I have learned that I need to be flexible – both in my training and my racing expectations.

When I started running at the age of 29, I could hammer every workout day after day and nearly every race I ran seemed to bring a new PR. If I trained (and raced) the same way these days I’d end up getting injured more than I already am! So, I’ve learned that a certain amount of flexibility (a give and take if you will) is required for both my running longevity and my overall sanity!

Running on Faith

Long distance running requires a certain amount of faith; Faith that your weekend 20 miler will be worth getting up at 5:30am for; Faith that you’ll be able to complete the day’s workout in its entirety, despite what your legs are telling you; Faith that the driver coming at you with a cell phone in one hand and a tall vanilla latte in the other is not going to plow you over.

Long distance racing requires a whole other level of faith: Faith that your finely-crafted training program will deliver you to the starting line on race day in the best shape of your life; Faith that the pace which felt slow and difficult during your 10 mile training run will now feel light and easy during your marathon; Faith that when you push yourself to the limit, you can achieve your goals.

Running Goals for 2012

2011 was a bit of an up and down year for me running-wise. It started out very promising. A winter of base building (long runs) and strength training (snowshoe racing) left me primed for some early season road PR's. I ended up having a couple of good races and then promptly tore my hamstring in April. 

For the initial recovery, it took about 2 months before I could start training full-time again and then another 2 months to get myself back into reasonable racing shape. I had a couple of OK races in September as I built up my speed. But, from early October until now it's been one hamstring set-back after another.

Fortunately, with some deep tissue massage, active release therapy, graston technique and some core exercises I believe I have my latest hamstring issues solved. Or, at least solved enough to start setting some goals and making a plan for the New Year. With that in mind (and tempting fate beyond belief) below are my running goals for 2012:

Training Goals:

• Stay injury free for the duration of 2012.
• Get my weight below 180 (184 currently) and keep it there for the year.
• Add more (and varied) cross training exercises to my training routine.
• Learn to swim. Not just treading water, but proper swimming technique.

Racing Goals:

• Compete in my first duathlon race.
• Complete my first 50 mile race.
• Become an Iron-Runner by running each of the 7 NEGP races
• Win a race - of any distance.

Time Goals:

• 1m: 5:10 
• 5k: 17:30 (5:38) 
• 5m: 29:00 (5:48) 
• 10k: 36:30 (5:54) 
• 10m: 1:02:00 (6:12) 
• 1/2m: 1:22:00 (6:16) 
• Mar: 3:00:00 (6:52)

So there it is. In black and white.

Now all that's left to do is make it happen ...

Sanctuary

I really love running on the trails this time of year. All the leaves have fallen and are blanketing the brown & dirty ground. The sun is low in the sky but shines brightly through the leafless forest canopy. It’s crisp and cold but the snow has yet to arrive. Cross country season is over but snowshoe season is still a month away. It’s like trail running’s “curtain call” before the snow and ice of winter make the trails impassable (save for snowshoes) over the next few months.

I’m particularly fortunate this time of year to have a wonderful system of trails right outside my daytime door. A patchwork of Conservation Land, Wildlife Refuges, and Town Forests just across the street from where I work in Carlisle, MA. The trails system I run on stretches along the west side of the Concord River from Route 225 in the South up to Treble Cove Road in the North and includes land parcels named Foss Farm, Great Meadows and The Greenough Land.

Couples Therapy

Oh, Trail Running! Why do you hate me so! Today’s hidden trip, slimy-root slip, knee smash, face-plant in the mud on my lunch-time run was totally uncalled for. I know our relationship can be Rocky at times but this latest abuse is the last straw! That’s it, Trail Running. I’m walking out on you!

A Rocky Road to Fitness

Yo, Taxi!

As a runner who is constantly looking to push the boundaries of my fitness, I sometimes find myself becoming injured. Unfortunately, those injuries seem to be coming more frequently as I age. As a result, I’ve been spending a lot more of my time lately cross training instead of actually running. And, while I do enjoy sitting for hours upon hours on my comfy bike seat, after a while it leaves me wanting something more. So, recently I decided to take a page from the Italian Stallion himself and do some Extreme Cross Training!

Most runners are probably all too familiar with traditional cross training such as swimming, biking & weight lifting. However, these methods can only take you so far. Fortunately, that’s where the patented Rocky routine comes in handy! And, as we’ve seen in countless movies, it only takes a few minutes to get in really, really great shape. Because, as everyone knows, Sly Stallone spends 95% of the Rocky sequels messing around and only about 5% of his time actually training. But, to his credit, he usually does it to a really cool soundtrack!

You're a bum

Now, I know what you’re saying, “What if I can’t find a flock of chickens or a side of beef to train with, but I still feel the overwhelming desire to eat lightning & crap thunder”? Well, fear not! You can start building some “hurtin’ bombs” today simply by following my easy plan to “Extreme Cross Training – The Rocky Way”. So without further ado, here is a summary of Rocky’s best training methods (from easiest to most difficult) with Domestic Equivalents (things you can easily do around the house) for those weekend warriors who are meat or poultry challenged.

All Crossed Up

The cool crisp air, the brightening trees, the amber fields and, the dew-soaked grass. To most people, these are sure signs of Fall. But to runners, these autumnal images can only mean one thing - cross country season is finally here! From the long, thin starting line, to the clusters of color-coded runners. From the leaf covered paths to the scattering of orange marking flags strewn along the course. Nothing gets your competitive juices flowing like a good, old-fashioned cross country meet!

The thrill of the chase

Cross-country running is perhaps the oldest sport known to man, reaching back to our ancestral hunters and gatherers, messengers in ancient Rome, and the pursuits of excellence in the early Olympic Games. Unique in its team concept, cross-country racing affords the camaraderie of teammates while testing one’s own limits in running over hill & dale, through forested trails, across farmers’ fields and over rocks, mud & hay bales.

Oftentimes, we reach a plateau in our road running - where merely putting one foot in front of the other on the same road, day after day, mile after mile, no longer gives us the “runner’s high” we once felt. A special feeling comes to harriers who have pushed themselves to the limits, on a hilly course, in extreme weather, with their team depending on their effort & result. For many, cross-country running can present a whole new challenge. So this year, I decided to take that challenge and mix some XC races into my usual autumn running routine.

Hanging Tuff

Riding high on the comeback wave I headed down to Saugus last weekend for the Tuff Ten Trail Race. Wait?! A trail race in Saugus!? Who knew Saugus had trails?! Yup, right off Route 1. Just past the “Ship” and the “Leaning Tower of Pizza” is Breakheart Reservation. A 640-acre hardwood forest with jagged, rocky outcroppings, two fresh-water lakes, and a rambling section of the Saugus River. I know, surprised the heck out of me too!