Saturday, October 21, 2006

Hi, I’m fatigue, Have we met?

Running 10 miles doesn’t sound easy, but my base is 6 miles and I’ve trimmed that down to about a 9 1/2 minute pace on average.  Today my goal was to hit the 12 mile mark within 2 hours or less, and was on pace to do so until about mile 10.  I’m not sure if it’s my diet or if I’m just not acclimated to the distance, but there is a big difference between 6 miles and 10 miles.

Of course, one of the main issues is that I just don’t run more than 6 miles in one shot.  My body simply isn’t sure how to handle twice that distance.  As well, I shouldn’t be trying to go from a 6 mile base to twice that without slowly increasing my mileage each week.

So, having said that, I’m going to make 10 miles my long run, and add miles from there.  Incidentally, today was my 10 mile PR, and I was running a 9:45 pace overall.  Not bad, and certainly nothing to be disappointed about.  Let’s see what happens next week, and remember that every run doesn’t need to be a PR, even though today turned out to be one in disguise.

Thursday, October 19, 2006

Is running like playing the piano?

I’ve been running for about 2 years now.  Of course everyone knows I’ve been playing the piano for a lot longer.  What’s funny is for the 2+ years I’ve been running, I’ve seen little improvement until this past July. 

I have found that suddenly, the 2 years of hard work have kicked in and my pace per mile has come down by over 3 minutes, but all my “personal records” have occurred within the last 4 months.  Similarly, the first few years of playing piano is equally grueling: at the end of a few years of formal training, most people fail to realize that the groundwork they’ve laid will reveal itself in the years ahead, and not being able to make that connection, most will quit.  Playing piano is a total leap of faith, and now I realize that running is as well.  You don’t do either because of the rewards, you do it because of the possibility of a reward, or maybe it’s just that I am, like most other musicans and runners, a glutton for punishment.

In either case, I’m at the point now where I can run to your house, play a few tunes, and then run home.  You supply the piano.

My recent running history can be found on the Motion Based website.

Sunday, October 08, 2006

Ran like the wind (well, maybe a breeze)

Today I ran my fastest 5K time, which was about 27 minutes, putting me at about an 8 1/2 minute mile. I knew today was going to be a “PR” (personal record) because I’ve been training like mad and haven’t run a 5K in months. My father-in-law, who is 60 years old, still beat me by a minute. I have two more 5Ks this year and one more half marathon.

Running is great, and gives me a sense of accomplishment that is not unlike the sense of gratification one feels after playing a successful piano recital.

Waddle on!

Saturday, October 07, 2006

5k for Katie PR

I ran a 5k today within the 27 minute range, which put me in the top 50 competitors. This race was an out-and-back, which I’ve decided I like. Given my age group, getting anywhere near the top third is usually pretty difficult.  Today, I ran my fastest 5k pace overall and ran against a field that had less 30-somethings than usual.  Although I didn’t trophy (my father-in-law took second in the 60-something age group), it was a great race.  I had to sprint to beat a little kid (see #44 in the overall ranking) and felt badly about it, but I was, afterall, going for a PR.  I knew today would be the day, since my training has been stepped up since my last 5k.  Beating this one will put me in the respectable range for such a distance. 

Friday, September 22, 2006

Lance in the NYC Marathon

My father-in-law and I had a spirited debate this morning about Lance Armstrong. I read that he has, at least as of today, only run 13 miles in one shot and was doing it at about a 6 1/2 minute pace (way faster than me, btw)

I was questioning what one might expect of Mr. Armstrong over 26.2 miles, and mentioned to my father-in-law that I thought with only a couple of months left to train, he may be in for an awakening of sorts, in spite of his obvious superior physical conditioning.

My argument was that his superior training as a cyclist may not correlate into the same level of performance as a runner. My father-in-law believes it will. Mr. Armstrong himself has certainly noticed the new aches and pains associated with running that are perhaps not as easy to come by as a cyclist.

My forecast was that Lance may see some longer lap times, especially in the last 8 miles, unless he starts adding considerable miles to his training. My father-in-law says “hogwash” and that Lance will run “whatever time he has set for himself.”

Any thoughts one way or the other? Just kind of a fun thought, and I am, by no means, “dissing” Lance. He’s in far better running shape than I am, hands down.

Friday, March 24, 2006

Extreme Makeover: Home Edition

Yesterday I had the unique pleasure of being involved in a shoot of the TV Series “Extreme Makeover.” The company for whom I work during the day is sponsoring a Philadelphia episode and I was asked to step in as an “extra.”

We ran the Art Museum steps ala Rocky Balboa and then followed Ty around Philadelphia recreating some of the scenes from the original Rocky production.  In addition to making it on the Channel 6 news locally, I did one better by forcing the production assistant to let the extras off the bus for a “snack” at Pat’s King of Steaks in South Philly.  I was the winner of the eating contest (it wasn’t actually a contest, but it always is to me) by chowing down 2 “wiz wit,” an order of fries, 5 munchkin donuts from Dunkin Donuts, a coke, and a coffee.  Needless to say, I didn’t feel like running very much after that episode.

After that, we went back to the Marriot in Philadelphia for lunch of all things.  I didn’t eat, but instead found a piano at the end of the hall and entertained my fellow castmembers while they ate their Subway hoagies.

It was a great day for a great cause and I was proud to participate.  Not to mention I had an opportunity to see how Hollywood goes about making films, which of course was a wonderful by-product of the whole event.

“My” episode airs sometime in April.  More to come on that!