Running Update

I ran in the cold yesterday, haven't done that since the Army. 

My chest ached for most of day. I don’t know if it’s supposed to feel like I’m getting a cold, or if my body just isn’t used to the chill yet. The air was calm at around 30 degrees but carried an icy edge that stung a little at first. When I started out I didn’t know what to expect. A lot of times when going for a new jogging challenge the results are disappointing. A few weeks ago I set out to do the same run but because the wind was blowing hard I turned around. It was at least 10 degrees warmer then but the blustery conditions created a whole new level of problems.

There are still a lot of leaves scattered around and feeling them on my face is a bit like walking into a landscape crew blowing off a driveway. The dust makes it impossible to see and even with sunglasses covering my eyes the wind forces tiny particles around the lenses. I just figured it wasn’t worth it. Cold is one thing but wind is something entirely different.

Overall running in the colder weather is much easier for distance than those brutal July and August mornings. The exhaustion in summer time is almost entirely from the heat and humidity. In the fall and winter, the exhaustion isn’t as total. I’m learning to pace myself much better than I used to. When you train for time and keep the distance to less than 3 miles, you develop a pace that accommodates it-steady, fast, heavy. But by doubling and even tripling the distance, you learn how to preserve energy better and not get caught looking at the watch.

So I’ve learned how to run slower and regulate pace over the last year. Fast quick steps up hills and long strides on declines keeps me from overextending. It’s tough for me to run on treadmills and hope to get the same feeling. Treadmills are almost always more difficult for me, probably because it’s hard to alternate pace quickly and respond to hills. Not to mention, having calories, pace, distance and heart rate illuminated makes it impossible to think of anything else. One advantage of a longish run is being able to zone out a little mentally and not worry about the stats. Treadmill data is constant and unrelenting.

For me exercise has always meant either lifting weights or doing cardio, but rarely both in the same routine. Since I passed 40 years old recently, it makes more sense to combine the two. Light weights for core strength and resistance training to tighten up leg muscles round out my new routines. What’s the goal? Short term I’d like to do a half marathon. Long term I’d like to do a handful per year. At this point I don’t want to run a full 26.2 miles. I can’t say I never will, but for now a half is a good goal to shoot for. I’m not too far off either.

This might be the year that I join a local running group. I need the motivation.