Good (But Cold) Day

Well, today was a good day, although a bit chilly. If you read my last post, you know that my goal this week, or at least the past couple of days, was to run while on travel. Yesterday I ran 4.5 at an 8:39 pace, and this morning I ran 4.6 miles at an 8:42 (or something) pace. So, I'm very glad about that.

Now, it was 20 degrees this morning, with a wind chill of 6. That's s-i-x. 6. Now, normally, when I'm at home, when running in this temp, I wear more clothes than I ran in today. I would have worn a vest and mittens. Well, given that I'm packing my running clothes, I pack as light as possible (that's why I prefer summer running while on travel). So, no vest and no mittens.

On my run, I was *mostly* fine, except for my face. The last two miles I was running into the wind. In the last mile, my face got numb (that's one notch past just hurting). I was a little afraid of frostbite, but didn't need to worry. However, I didn't like the numb face :-)

Also, and this was weird, my arms got really creaky. I had to stretch them several times during the last mile. I wonder if I need to get a winter running jacket to replace my vest, although I really don't want to.

Anyway, hurray (sp?) for me.

John Yagerline
Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone with SprintSpeed

Creaky Old Man

Well, I *finally* ran again today.  It had been 7 days since my last run and I made up my mind to run again this week while I am on travel (again).  Last week, I had packed my running gear in my bag, which took up much of the space, by the way, carried it all the way to St. Louis, put it in my hotel dresser, and then, packed it back in my bag and carry all the way home.  It wasn't really what I had in mind.  

This week, packed my running gear in my bag, which took up much of the space, carried it all the way to St. Louis, put it in my hotel dresser... However, as a break from last week, I actually took it out this morning (and not just to admire it), put it on (did I tell you that it was 26 degrees, with a 14 degree wind chill outside this morning?) and ran for 4.58 miles (or so), at a 8:39 pace (very fast).  My knees and left ankle were a little creaky (hence the post title...) but I ran (yay for me).  I took a usual route from my hotel, through a neighborhood, into the historic section of town (of O'Fallon), and turned around.  Sorta a boring run, but the really cool runs in this area are not close to the hotel...

What happened?

Okay, I had such high hopes for this week. But I didn't run Sunday or
monday. I ran on Tuesday, but zilch for Wednesday and Thursday
(today).

I was on business travel Wednesday and Thursday and didn't run at all
(although I packed everything I needed). Last Fall I actually did my
best running while on travel. Lately (at least the past two trips),
nuthin'.

Signed,

Bummed out.

--
Sent from my mobile device

Unassuming Run

This morning I ran 4.5 in an icy goodness. I wanted to run yesterday,
but obviously not enough to actually get up and out the door!

Today was pretty good. It was a bit icy out, but not too bad. I am
still running (mostly) in my neighborhood, but ventured to the next
this morning. Most of the connecting roads are still non-runnable, but
the one near the hospital was okay. The neighboring streets were in
terrible shape. I had to run on top of 3 inches of ice with just a
narrow gap that was mostly down to pavement where tire treads were.

I kept it slow (9:12 pace) and once I got a mile in, it felt alright.

Tomorrow I'll be in O'Fallon again, so we'll see if I can get up
enough gumption to get outside.

--
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What's Another Title for Icy Run?

I'm running out of snazzy ways of saying that it's snowy and icy outside, but I ran anyway.  This morning I ran in a different neighborhood (finally got out of mine!) and thought just how lucky we are in my neighborhood that our roads were plowed (well, at least the main ones).  In this neighborhood, there was a layer of icy about 4 inches deep, with deep ruts in it, making it hard, even with shoes with screws, to dig in and get traction.  After the ruts went away, however, I was running on an uneven surface, but relatively flat, which was just fine.  Once I got out of that neighborhood though, I was back on pavement with occasional ice.

I did 10 miles today, at a 9:12 pace.  Overall, it was a good run, but I need to get my mileage up.  I was 'done' at 4 miles, but after 6, it got better.  I need to get my daily runs above 4 miles to see some sort of improvement in my endurance, I think.  However, 23 miles was pretty good this week, and, with only 4 runs, that's not too bad.  Hopefully, the ice will (eventually) melt and I'll be able to take to the paths again, so that I can begin my 6 mile runs.

Weather? You guessed it.  Cold, snowy, and icy.  It was 26 degrees this morning, with a wind chill of 15.  However, knowing that I was going out for a while, I under-dressed (well, I *did* wear some clothes).  But no warm hat, and no vest.  My ears were freezing for a couple of miles, but eventually warmed up.  Once I got back, I went back outside for (wait for it).. shoveling (again?) and realized that 26 degrees with a windc chill of 15 is actually kinda cold if you weren't warmed up from running for 3 miles.

Don't think I can run tomorrow, but I *may* go ice skating, so my legs will be exhausted anyway...

The Weather Outside is Frightful...

let it snow, let it snow, let it snow..... NOT.  Let's hope it's over for awhile.  Well, Washington DC broke the record for snowfall in a single season.  55.6 inches this season.  *And* they measure in a place where they don't have a lot of snow.  National (Reagan) Airport (the official measuring place) got 17.1 inches of snow last weekend, whereas I got 24 inches of snow in the same time period.  Anyway, a record is a record... :)

Today, I fought through 4.5 miles in icy/slushy/snowy mix.  In some parts, it felt like I was running in sand.  I felt sluggish and slow.  Plus it was blowing around 20 mph, so it felt a little cold as well (although it was a balmy 29 degrees).  Still, I guess I overdressed, because I didn't feel that cold, even with the wind in my face.  It felt refreshing, actually (except for the actual running part -- that felt terrible). So, not a good run, but better than not running at all, I guess.  I am getting tired of running in my neighborhood, but it'll take a week or two for the snow to melt off the paths so that I can run elsewhere.  With the reduced driving lanes, I'm also being extra cautious on the roads, because the drivers are having trouble just going down the road; they don't need some upstart pedestrian getting in their way :)

Still, no running record for sure, but 3 runs this week, with a possible 2 runs to go this week (although not likely).

Single Digits...

Hoo... single digits this morning. 8 degrees.  The good thing was that there was no wind.  That would have been bad.  Otherwise, except for the ice patches on the dry surface (it should be reverse that -- dry patches on the ice surface), the run was, in the end, good.  Why in the end? Because halfway through the run, I was beat! I was huffing and puffing through the run, and it wasn't until the end when I realized that I held a pretty good pace -- for ice -- of 9:05, and indeed, as I ran in my own neighborhood, it was on one of the hilliest courses around.  I guess I was so focused on a) not falling, and b) finding dry patches in the ice, that I forgot where I was running.

8 degrees.... it really wasn't so bad.  In fact, I took off my mittons and unzipped my vest in the middle of my run as it was getting hot.

Hmmm... worried about running tomorrow though.  The roads are still really bad from the previous storm, and there's another storm coming today.  Somewhere between 5-20 inches, depending on where you live.  Since we live just a touch south of the main part of the storm, we should (hope) to be in the 5 inch range.  But, no school last Friday, no school this Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, and who knows about Thursday and Friday.  Plus, the Federal Government was closed yesterday (Monday) AND today (Tuesday).  Serious stuff.

Oh, you want to know the secret to running on icy streets? Get out before the sun does.  If it's below freezing out, the ice will have frozen solid.  The sun will start to melt the top layer (even if its below freezing), so if you get out before dawn, the run will be less slick. That's your running tip of the day! :)

(Another) Snow Day

In my last post, I was almost challenging Mother Nature to snow on us.  For that, I am sorry.  What started out as a no-accumulation snow turned into the 4th heaviest snow in Washington DC's history.  We got somewhere between 23-28 inches in my neighborhood (with the snow drifts, it was hard to tell).  I spent a good 6 hours shoveling on Saturday and was going to go for a fun Saturday late afternoon when I saw my neighbor shoveling her driveway all by herself.  I couldn't stand to run past her while she was shoveling, so I spent another 45 minutes helping her out.  At the end of that, it was too late to run, so... 

Sunday am, 8:00 am, 16 degrees, snow/icy.  Great day for a run (no, seriously).  Saturday night I replaced a couple of screws in my shoes (they were wearing down) and added some as well, and so by Sunday I was ready to go out for a 4.5 mile run in around my surrounding neighborhoods.  Now, I guess I was lucky to get my street (mostly) plowed, 'cause there were lots that weren't!  Wow.  It's gonna take days to get it cleared out, but unfortunately, we don't have days before the next snow is supposed to hit our area.

Anyway, the run was great.  More slippery than usual, and I slipped a few times, but never fell.  I saw that major roads were still under snow, and many streets in my neighborhood never saw a plow.  It was crisp and clean outside (and quite sunny!) and it was a pleasure to run. I felt great.

Oh, to end the story, another 4 hours of shoveling on Sunday and no run today (I am too achy).a

Pre-Snow Long Run

Rumors of doom abound with the Great Blizzard of February 2010 here on the East Coast.  In preparation, basically everything closed before the first snow flake fell.  There were/are a lot of expectations of this snow, but about 5 hours after the first flake was seen, I'm umimpressed.  However, ask me again tonight, or tomorrow morning, or tomorrow afternoon when the snow is still supposed to be falling....

However, in anticipation of record snowfalls (forecasting 18-24 inches), I did my long run today (Friday) instead of tomorrow (Saturday).  I wore my shoes with screws (again) and went on the W&OD trail.  I was getting tired of running on my local side streets, and the other paths were very choppy with ice.  Of course, so was the W&OD, but it was fun nonetheless.  I did an out and back for 10 miles at a 9:11 pace, which included a walk for 2-3 minutes at the half-way to eat a GU and walk up a steep part of the trail.  I had no pain in my feet nor my knees, although I felt my hip flexors at about mile 8, but that was probably because I was at mile 8 (double my longest run in over a week).

There was a lot of ice in spots and clear sailing in others. I only slipped when I was on hard ice (with no snow around it) -- and my slipping, I mean a short slide of less than one inch on the ice (no falling involved).  I think the screws are wearing down on my shoes, particularly on the heel.  Upon post-run inspection, I noticed that the screws in my heels are pretty rounded, with no sharp corners.  When I can make it back out to Home Depot, I'll buy some more screws.  I do say, I'm putting a lot of new miles on my old shoes, and I expect to take another pair of old running shoes and modify them to run on snow/ice next winter (I do think that the excess pressure where the screws are are breaking down the rubber faster in those isolated areas).

Keep your run on!

Slogging in Snow

Well, another snow in our area last night.  3-6 inches, schools closed.  Once again a run in my shoes with screws (sorry, I haven't figured out a better way to reference these shows.  'screw shoes' sounds weird...)  VDOT has really picked it up the past few snows.  The first snow of the season, eh, not so good.  But last night's snow, and the snow we had the past weekend, they really did a great job.  My subdivision was pretty clear this morning (down to a nice 'ice' level).  However, the sidewalks (not VDOT's jurisdiction), not at all (why don't the neighbors shovel their walk by 6:00 am?, oh wait, I didn't either!)

I really wanted to run in the snow again.  I had a great time last Saturday, and since I didn't run Sunday, Monday, or Tuesday (oy!) I had to run today.  The first 1.3 miles were on the side streets, which some ice (the screws helped here) plus a lot of slush. Then, I had to run on the side path.  This had last night's snow on it, plus last weekend's snow on it, so I ended up running in fairly deep snow.  My feet would sink in and they *almost* got out of the snow as I lifted up to take the next step.  The end result was a lot of drag in my run.  I went from a 9:10 pace to a 10:30 pace in no time flat.  Plus, I was huffing and puffing within a 1/4 mile of running in the snow.  

About a mile of this, I turned into the hospital parking lot (if anything is plowed, you can count on the hospital, streets *and* sidewalks!) to shake the snow off of my shoes and legs (and bare skin! -- see Note below).  I ran there until I picked up my normal course, and then ran the one mile back home.  So, of the 4.2 miles today, 3.2 was on a street of some sort, and 1 mile was in snow. 

All in all, I would compare this to running on a trail (cushioning, uneven surface), except that there were no hills to speak of.  Plus, with the snow in the trees, it was quite a sight.

Note: when I remember, I slip on some gaiters that I usually reserve for my trail shoes (to keep rocks and things out of my shoes).  They aren't waterproof, but they do a good job keeping large pieces of snow from getting in my shoes.  I forgot them today.  However, they are very reasonably priced, and I highly recommend them.  Check out this site (no, really!): http://www.dirtygirlgaiters.com/ I have the camo ones, but since they are shiny, they are a little girly....