moving on up...

This morning I did my first 4x2 (or, for the mathematically correct, 2x1) intervals, roughly 200 meters by 100 meters.  I have the workout setup on my Garmin 620, and it buzzes me when an interval ends.

I purposely set out to control my pace, which varied between 9-10 mpm.  The right ankle (the recovering one) sent my brain signals that it was feeling some strain in the last 100 meters of the workout.  I have felt no inflammation post-run (now it is roughly one hour after the run).  I will let speed take care of itself for now, as my cadence did increase to 190 bpm -- clearly still a focal point.  There are a couple of minor tweaks I need to make, based on feedback from my bare feet.

I will fold in a bike ride (I hesitate to call it a 'workout' out of respect for those who can do actual bike workouts) tomorrow.  Establishing the habit of working out 5-6 days a weeks is an integral part of my efforts here.  Over time, of course, these workouts will be greatly extended, but I need to be patient.

Early commute today, as I am driving to one of our offices which is about an hour south of my normal office.  See you tomorrow.

laughing at myself...

I got the bicycle ready yesterday afternoon, then took it for a short (3.4 miles) ride.  The ride was on street, concrete paths, and dirt trail.  My thighs burned like a yule log, I has huffing and glad to slow down to cross intersections.  I was sure this was a solid CV workout, just by the way I felt afterwards.  I uploaded the data to Garmin Connect.  My maximum, not average, heart rate was 130 bpm -- only 70% of HRmax!  I felt like I had hit 85-90%!  I just had to laugh at myself.  Perception.  All perception.  Legs were burning, arms feeling unfamiliar stresses, different breathing patterns -- all made me think the workout was more intense than what the numbers would show.  Yet, those very same signs tell me the crossover training is needed, and will be beneficial.

The grandkids are here, and we are going to take them for a picnic lunch in the park.  I hope you have a beautiful Sunday with your family.

a mile run...

I wish I could say something wonderful about this run, so let me think....hmmm...I have it; well, two things, actually: 1) I made the contiguous run without reaching 90% of HRmax, and 2) my cadence averaged 180 spm.

As for the rest, the way back is going to be loooonnngg.  I have renewed motivation for that cross-training of which I wrote yesterday -- I need all the help I can get.   The bicycle gets readied today.  It is also time to pull out the balance board, as I could feel the weakness of the right ankle on this more durative effort.

Regarding cadence, my digital running metronome -- made by Seiko -- like its musical counterpart, can put emphasis on different beats.  I had been running with no emphasis, and therefore I ran with cadences ranging from 180 to 200.  Today, I had it emphasize every other beat, and this made it much easier to time my arm-swing.  My cadence is still not as dead-on consistent as it was (and had been) back in the spring, but that consistency was delivered out of focused effort for months.  It will come back this time, too.

Ready the bicycle, replace the garage light, get a haircut, have lunch outside on our deck, and maybe even dig around for my Bose wireless speaker (somewhere in the 'move from France' stuff), enjoy taking care of the grandkids on Sunday.  

I hope your weekend is joyful.

it's Friday; it's all good

Fridays, gotta love 'em.  The weekend is just hours away.  The work week, with all the good, hard effort to deliver as the job requires (and sometimes, then some more), is winding down to its close.  It's all good.

For me, this weekend involves my one mile run, evaluating the ankle and foot response, and finally pulling my bicycle out of mothballs (figuratively) so I can get it ready to ride.  Cross-training is important, and seldom done, by me, at least.  It is not easy to workout six days a week, no matter what regimes one is using.  I enjoy running; I enjoy resistance training.  I find it difficult to interleave three workouts of each into the week.  It is a mental thing, not a physical thing.

So, why the bicycle?  I want to "cheat the devil".  Riding a bicycle works different muscles than running, while pushing the cardiovascular (CV) system.  It is a great help to running, because it improves blood flow in different parts of the body (as does resistance training), and continues the push on the CV system (resistance training is not aerobic; it is anaerobic).  With improved blood flow in other parts of the body, there is less loading on the CV system during running, and I "cheat the devil" in getting back on track for improving distance and speed in running.  Yes, the benefits are that great from cross-training, and that is why I need to overcome my own mental hurdles in order to fold it into my regime.

Enjoy your weekend with the people you love...

not ready to push it up yet

I ran another set of 3x2 intervals this morning.  Before I began the run, as I was dressing for it, I considered pushing up to 4x2 intervals.  I had a long enough time to prep to remember the inflammation I felt in the ankle after my run 2 days ago.  I decided to not push it up at this time, wanting to make sure the tendons can handle the strain of the 3x2s before advancing.

My cadence is still range from 180 to the mid-190s, and I notice it increases later in the run -- a fatigue issue.  My pace was a little faster than two days ago, ranging from 8-10 mpm.  My heart rate hit 90% of max in the last interval -- as it should.  I have a little form factor issue with the right foot, more than likely it is slightly turned out, which is more natural for it, but poor for running mechanics.  I need to train the muscles to bring the axis of the foot inline with the direction of travel, something I have done before.  No doubt the injury has let old tendencies creep back.

In other news, guitar techniques and learning how to improvise continues to progress.  I have a much greater respect for people who can improvise melodic passages -- or compose them at all, for that matter!  I have not really worked on repertoire for some time now, as I am spending my time learning the styles of various artists, adding classic licks to my toolkit, and practicing the art of improvisation.

Saturday's run will be a one-mile run.  I am not going call it an LSD, because I will let the heart go as it wants -- I know I cannot keep it under 80%.  Technically, such runs are called "tempo runs", but that will not be appropriate for the Saturday run, either.  I am just going to run a mile, be huffing and puffing, and hope my ankle and foot are none the worse for it.

roadwork again

I went back to my 3x2 intervals (~150m by 100m) this morning.  The morning temperature was an irresistible 64 degrees (18C). 

I disciplined myself to run a bit slower to reduce impact (always among the recommended "back in action" approaches after injury), and managed to run in the 9 1/2 to 10 1/2 mpm range, but most intervals were less than 10 mpm.  My bare feet tell me that my running balance was good, my cadence was in the upper 180s (which is good, but I would like it to be in the lower 180s; we shall see), and GCT was higher due to slower pace.

The rest of the body tells me that I need some core work (dreadful planks, here I come!), and I need to focus on keeping the core engaged.  The fibularis longus, the tendon I injured most severely in my broken ankle episode, is feeling a bit inflamed post-run.  I have no time this morning, but will apply ice therapy this evening.

Is this frustrating?  Yes, it is.  There are many factors involved in coming back, and mentally and emotionally, it cannot happen soon enough.  Physically, that is the problem.  The limitations on what we can do to the body to strengthen it and prepare it for more loading should keep the yellow flag of caution in our faces during these times, when re-injury (or even initial injury) is most likely.  I am educated enough on the topic through my own research to know that I have to go slow: cardio-vascular, immune, muscular (including tendons and ligaments), and skeletal systems are all involved in the increased stress endurance training places on the body.  AND each system has its own progress rate!  Throw in injury recovery, and even more patience is required.

Frustrating, yes, very much so.  The alternative is quit, which is the only way to lose.  I hate losing.

sidelined

I use the descent of the stairs as a gauge for running pain.  Running creates an impact 2 to 2.5 times one's weight, and the descent of the stairs is less than that.  I still have some lingering TOFP, so I will give it one more day.  A friend of mine reminded me I should be cross-training, anyway, which I have not been doing.  Time to pull the bicycle out of the rafters; riding it is far, far better than doing nothing.  Thanks, Fred!

On the other hand, the Jeep received its final update until next summer: the fog lights are now fully functional.  Since arriving from France, the Jeep has received a new soft-top (with tinted windows), nerf bars (tubular devices which enable a step up to the Jeep), new stereo (I can stream and control Pandora through it), new clutch/brake/accelerator pedal covers (the original 13 years-old ones dry-rotted), a brush bumper, and fog lights mounted on the brush bumper.  At 137,000 miles (220,000 kilometers), I decided it needed an update.

That last paragraph had nothing to do with running, but did have something to do with keeping my life multi-dimensional outside of work.  It is good for mental health.  Tomorrow, I run.