Marathon Ninja

2010-06-13T13:49:00.002-05:00

Running and Water Skiing

This may sound a bit crazy but I had a moment during my long run this morning - a 6 miler along the riverfront in Bettendorf - that reminded me of water skiing.

I have probably been waterskiing between 5 and 10 times in my life. I consider it fun but have never really been into water sports either on the river or in a lake.

That being said, for a total novice like me the moment you are up on the skis being pulled by that boat is a good feeling. It's like "okay I'm not going to immediately fall" which is then followed by adjusting your board shorts and figuring out the best way to proceed.

So what in the hell does water skiing have to do with running? Good question. At about mile 4 I really felt like I was running on top of my legs. What I mean by that is it was just like the feeling when you get up on water skis. My form was good, I was gliding over the pavement with measured strides that made for a quick turnover. My arms and upper-body were doing their part to propel me forward.

Even the music I was listening to was really working. I can't name the song but the band was Dropkick Murphys. Come to think of it the song might have been "Dirty Glass."

Have a look here:

2010-06-12T11:30:00.004-05:00

If it's an even year ... I'm running a marathon!!

Well HELLO 2010!

So it's only been one year and four months since I've posted to this blog. I guess that makes me a bid of a dormant ninja these days. In any case I'm now training for the 2010 Chicago Marathon (this week is my first week) so I figured I'd better get back with the program.

I live in LeClaire, IA which is beautiful - right on the Mississippi river - but has limited running trails I can get to without driving. Therefore I've become a road runner.

Learning to run against traffic (okay so I knew how to do THAT) and on the shoulder of the road has been interesting. As long as the gravel on the side of the road isn't too wet I seem to be okay. The only other issue is that it's a two lane highway and has a fairly large crown on the road. This means my right leg is closer to the ground with every footfall than my left. No problem on a short run but we will see if it is an issue as time goes on.

Tuesday I ran 3, Wednesday 3, Thursday was cross-training on the elliptical, Friday 3 and today I rest. Tomorrow will be a 6 miler and I'm hoping for good weather.

I also need to buy one or two new pair of running shoes. My Kayanos are about shot and I don't know if I want the same make / model. The good news is they have a lot of stability but they are also HEAVY.

I have been an Asics / Saucony guy for the past 3 years so I will probably end up with one of those.

That's all I got. GO USA! BEAT ENGLAND!

2009-02-23T11:26:00.003-06:00

A Frozen 3 Miler - Golden Gopher Style

Greeting from the great white north - AKA Minneapolis, MN. I'm up here visiting some friends and counting down the hours until I go see Flogging Molly tonight.

I took today (Monday) and tomorrow off. I can't remember the last lazy Monday I had so I'm taking full advantage.

Back to the run. It turns out February in Minnesota is cold. Fortunately I had about twelve layers to keep me warm. I drove around the area next to the University of Minnesota for a bit (where my buddy lives) scouting a course. I decided on a 3 mile loop that took me across the Mississippi River and back.

Fortunately I ran with music today. Considering I'm going to the concert tonight I thought it appropriate to fire up some Flogging Molly which is in itself great running music. I'd have to say it took a good 5 to 10 minutes before my brain stopped shouting "Damn it's cold, damn it's cold, ..." But fortunately I found my stride just before the end of my first mile.

The main reasons the run was doable was a lack of wind and sunny skies. I dig running over bridges / along rivers so it made for a scenic run too. Best of all I felt like a Slumdog Millionaire when I got done.

My reward after a thankfully hot shower was several cups of Joe at the Overflow Cafe on University Ave. where I type this.

I'm contemplating my next races - both on the schedule and not.

Signed up for...
Shamrock Shuffle : 8K : Chicago, IL : March 29, 2009

Considering running...
Bay to Breakers : 12K : San Francisco, CA : May 21, 2009
Bix 7 : Davenport, IA : 7 Miles : July 25, 2009
Run for the Schools : Iowa City, IA : Half Marathon : Early October, 2009

Very long shot...
Chicago Marathon : Chicago, IL : Marathon : October 11, 2009

2008-07-16T14:29:00.002-05:00

So I just had one of those zen runs everyone is talking about. It didn't hurt I'm in sunny California today running along highway 101 above the beach. To get that mental image locked in check this out:

I did an evenly paced 5 miles this morning and managed to feel pretty good during and after.

I ran past a poem today (literally ran past) by Kipling that was posted on a Naval Base in Carlsbad where I was running.

If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And--which is more--you'll be a Man, my son!
- Kipling

Pretty cool 'eh?

If you want the whole thing head here.

I'm in week 6 of training with 12 weeks to go before Chicago. Of course that means another 3 weeks before I run the NYC marathon. Good times.

2008-06-16T10:47:00.000-05:00

University of Iowa - Iowa Memorial Union

University of Iowa - Iowa Memorial Union

Madison Ave. Iowa City

Madison Ave. and Burlington St.

2008-06-16T10:45:00.000-05:00

Burlington St. Bridge - Downtown Iowa City

Burlington St. Bridge - Downtown Iowa City

Burlington St. Bridge - Downtown Iowa City

Burlington St. Bridge - Downtown Iowa City

2007-08-14T09:41:00.000-05:00

Hold onto your socks, I'm back with a new post.

I have been a lazy SOB for a month plus now which means I have run little and cross trained / lifted even less.

Two quick developments from today - I just had my first session in Iowa with a personal trainer (I'd worked with a trainer for several months in Chicago last year) and it went well. While it's not an inexpensive way to get back into shape I think it's a great investment in me. At the very least it will kick-start me to get back into strength training and stretching.

My second development is that I registered for a half marathon. I'm running the RUN FOR THE SCHOOLS in Iowa City on October 7th. For those of you Chicago Marathoners this date should ring a bell. It happens to be the same day as the 2007 Chicago Marathon. I was considering volunteering for Chicago this year but I'd rather be running! At least I'll get half that distance in then can watch Chicago from the comfort of my living room.

Otherwise, things are good. I've made the transition from Chicago to Iowa fairly well (and make no mistake about it. It IS is big transition). I now have a favorite local coffee joint (Java House), and bar (Dublin Underground), and restaurant (One Twenty Six).

Finally, regarding 'health stuff' I'm going to try and do the following:

1) Drink water like a fish.
2) Eat more fruit
3) Eat more veggies

That's it. I'm not going on low or no carbs. Just trying the don't eat like a dumbass diet. The DELADA diet? Sounds like some new fad started on a Mexican soap opera. VIVE TELEMUNDO!

... I should write a book ...

2007-06-26T18:54:00.000-05:00

So no one is reading this but me. But I'm cool with that.

I've moved to Iowa City, IA - it's no Chicago but it's a pretty cool place. In some ways it reminds me of Denver or Boulder in that there are many young fit people around. Needless to say this is good motivation for me to keep running and lifting. Scratch that ... restart running and lifting.

I joined a gym, have been going on runs (I'm about to head out now), and am trying to get situated.

Here's to a new town with some new (or at least 'reimagined') goals!

Also, FYI, I got into the NYC Marathon for 2007 but I'm probably going to defer. Need to figure out how to do that...

2007-03-25T14:45:00.000-05:00

Shamrock Shuffle 8k 2007
Year Two

Here are the vitals:

2007
overall = 3503
Sex Place = 2678
Div Place = 615
41:11
8:14 minute / mile pace

and for comparison's sake...

2006
overall = 3675
sex Place = 2863
Div Place = 732
40:11
8:02 minute / mile pace

2007-03-11T22:25:00.000-05:00

THE DAY
One word. Unreal. Today was one of the best weather days in Chicago I’ve ever had the pleasure of enjoying. My day started at 10:30 sharp with a mild hangover. Other than a minor headache from the booze and smoke the night before I was doing well. I felt much better after I made it outside just prior to noon and experienced he 52 degree weather that felt like 72 to my winter-ravaged body.

I got some lunch and made a trip to both The Container Store and Banana Republic before my afternoon run. I’m not sure exactly what it was – maybe the comedy show on Thursday, maybe the concert (I saw Dropkick Murphys on Friday) on Friday, maybe the weather or maybe some combination of the above – but I felt good.
The 2 hours or so before my run I was twitching with excitement and mentally preparing myself for a nice little 5 miler along the lake.
One other PS here, this is the first weekend in as long as I can remember where I didn’t have something planned. Knowing I had all day Sat and Sunday to do whatever the hell I wanted to do was a nice feeling too.

THE RUN

I left the gym and headed along my well traveled route along the lake. Crossing the park via the dirt path around the baseball fields proved tricky. The warm weather combined with thawing snow made for muddy conditions. Soon enough my shoes were caked in dirt but I didn’t really mind as it made for an entertaining run.
The lakefront path was full of people. Young people, old people, people with dogs, people on unicycles. Okay the unicycle part is made up but the rest is true enough.

THE REVIEWS
Stuff
New Kicks by Asics. GT2120 iPod Nano 2GB silver Nike + system (shoe transmitter plus receiver) Switcheasy to hold the transmitter (and NOT force me to run with Nikes) Sunglasses by Ryders (my future’s so bright I gotta wear shades).

LONG TERM GOALS
Feel Better / More EnergyLook Better / Lower Weight / Lower Body Fat %

HOW I GET THERE
EXERCISE
1) Morning Workouts: They suck but that’s how you got in shape in the first place … hitting the weights 3 days per week plus running.
2) Running Clubs: Niketown Chicago (Tuesday 6:30) Niketown Atlanta (Wednesday 6:30)
Fleet Feet Hash House Harriers
3) Races: Momentum St. Paddy’s Day (3/15, 3/16, 3/17) Shamrock Shuffle (3/25) Race to Wrigley (3/31) Wrigley Start Early (4/21) Ravenswood Run (4/29) Run for Hungry Children (5/19) Hoffman Estates Soldier Field 10 Mile – (5/26) Bix 7 (July)
4) Tracking Progress Mark weight / time / activity and post it on the web. Why the hell not?
5) Stretch

DIET
1) Drink more water
2) Eat more sensibly
Eat IN not OUT more often. Don’t skip breakfast…
3) Try to cut down on the partying. Beer / Booze will set you back 100+ calories each. That means I had to run 5 miles TODAY to erase the drinks LAST NIGHT.
4) Veggies are good, fruits are good, whole grain is good.

2006-10-27T09:48:00.000-05:00

I'm the sexy bastard in the red shirt and black hat.

Warning: This is a super crazy long post encompassing the night before the race, the day of before the race, the race itself, and the 4 days of recovery after the race. Please prepare yourself before reading on as it might take you a while to read it – hopefully not as long as it took me to run it.

Note: It’s my blog and I’ll ramble if I want to.

A piece of trident gum. Two Jolly Ranchers (one apple and one grape). Two packets of Gel. 18 cups of Gatorade. A running partner for just over 5 hours. These items all came together last Sunday to help me get through my first Chicago Marathon.

THE NIGHT BEFORE

7 PM: Ate my ‘last meal’ of Fettuccini with maranara sauce.

8 PM: Went to bed

8:15 PM: Awoke in a panic, didn’t know if the brown line train would get me to the starting line on time.

8:16 to 8:30 PM : Contacted CTA, discovered the brown line would NOT get me there on time, decided instead to take the red line train. This will be a pain as the nearest stop to my apartment is over 1 mile away.

8:31 to 8:40 PM: Pace around the apartment trying to think of a better way to get to the start line.

8:41 to 9:00 PM: Contacted CTA (again) and figured out the #36 bus would take me door to door tomorrow with plenty of time to spare.

9:01 PM: Went to bed, tossed and turned a bit, and fell asleep.

THE BIG DAY

5:00 AM: Alarm goes off

5:01 – 5:40 AM: Shower, eat a cliff bar with water, take 2 Imodium as safety precaution.

5:41 – 6:00 AM: Triple check I have all my stuff and head out.

6:08 AM: Board the #36 bus southbound. It is packed with marathon runners.

6:27 AM: Arrive downtown and walk to the Congress hotel for a last minute toilet stop.

7:00 AM: Dropped my bag off at gear check near the start line

7:15 AM: Met up with Jimmy and his friends running the race.

7:15 – 7:45 AM: Talked, tried to stay warm, burned off a little nervous energy.

7:45 AM: One last stop at the porta john before the race.

8:00 AM: After the Star Spangled Banner plays the race starts as the elites take the course.

8:19:25 AM: We make it to the starting line (by now 20,000+ runners are already on the course)

Mile 0 to Mile 0.75 Jimmy, Damon and I are running together north on Columbus, under the first bridge, under Randolph street and over the Columbus bridge which crosses the Chicago River. By now Jimmy has separated himself from Damon and I and is gone before we make our first turn onto Grand Ave.

Mile 0.75 to Mile 2 I discover that my watch has started and stopped a few times from bumping into other runners and will therefore not tell me my final time. At least this happens early so I wouldn’t have to freak out at mile 22 or something like that. I miss the 1 Mile sign and am relieved to see the 2 mile sign at Jackson and State. By now we are running around an 11 minute pace and feeling good.

Mile 2 to Mile 3 At this point I was just thinking this is so cool to be running downtown. It also made me want to run the Shamrock Shuffle again in 2007 since the route so far was very similar to today.

Mile 3 to Mile 4 Damon and I decide to start ‘whoring’ ourselves out by giving the fans (who were AMAZING – all 1.5 million) high fives as we went. We would do this occasionally on straight-aways (Chinatown comes to mind, more on that later) but always around corners where the fans were the thickest. I had my name written on my shirt and many fans said encouraging things like ‘keep going Drew’ and ‘looking good Drew.’ Also, one of the funnier signs was spotted at mile 4 Don’t poop your pants complete with a little drawing for added effect.

Mile 4 to Mile 5 I was to meet my sister at Mile 5 on the right side of the course so we started drifting over to that side. Just then Damon spotted friends watching and said hey as we kept running. I almost entirely missed my sister at mile 5 since she was on the LEFT rather than RIGHT side as we agreed upon. I guess she couldn’t make it across the course with all the runners. We almost killed ourselves veering from the right side of the road to the left in a few yards.

Mile 5 to Mile 6 Running North on Stockton next to the park made for some nice scenery. The crowds were lighter during this stretch while we slowed for a Gatorade.

Mile 6 to Mile 7 The course moved west to Sheridan and then to Inner Lakeshore. At Belmont a fire truck came barreling down the street and we all had to shift to the left side. Here we found two friends of Damon’s running the marathon. One had recently moved to San Francisco and we talked NFL football for a little bit. I think my only comment was ‘the Bears are going to beat the living hell out of the 49ers this weekend’ to which I received no comment. During this time we realized that we were over 25% done with the race but more importantly we were 2 miles into our second race. You see we broke the marathon into 5 races of 5 miles each (actually the last race was 6.2 miles but you get the idea). This really seemed to help as we would say after miles 5, 10, 15, and 20, ‘another race out of the way let’s start another one.’ When you look at it that way we really ran 5 races on Sunday!

Mile 7 to Mile 8 We hit the northernmost point of the course as we turned left onto Addison at mile 7.5. We were also greeted with what felt like gale force winds rushing down Addison out onto the lake. Luckily for us we soon turned again onto Broadway heading south. Somehow psychologically it was nice to know ‘we will not be going any farther north during the rest of the race’ even though we had 18+ miles to go.

Mile 8 to Mile 9 Welcome to Boystown. The theme this year was the Wild West and the local residents (gay community included) sported cowboy hats and other western gear. I have to admit the crowd was into the race and it made for a distraction from the sore legs and tired feet. All in all I was still feeling strong at this point other than a developing blister in the arch of my left foot. At around mile 8.5 I saw some friends (and former Chicago Marathoners) who were cheering the runners on. It’s great to have a big crowd in general and better to have those you know cheering you on.

Mile 9 to Mile 10 We veered onto Clark and continued our trek south / southeast. At Fullerton and Clark we ran over the 15K mat 1:43:19 after we started. It was nice to be running through a neighborhood where I have spent a lot of time (see Bars, Restaurants). I was even handing out reviews of spots like Dunlay’s on Clark which has excellent, inexpensive food and The Other Side which is a nice ND bar with cheap Jager / Car Bombs. Once we turned onto Sedgewick I started heading to the right side of the road to look for my sister again. We were to meet at the corner of Sedgewick and Eugene across from Twin Anchors (mmmmmmm, Ribs). My sister and my friends from the neighborhood were there and I hugged them all and told them I’d see ‘em later. I’m sure they enjoyed a big sweaty hug from me – hey at least it probably warmed them up.

Mile 10 to Mile 11 Still in my neighborhood – leaving Lincoln Park headed for Old Town. As we turned East onto North Ave. we actually had the wind at our back for a change. As we rounded the corner of North and Wells there is a big stage with Elvis belting out ‘Hound Dog.’ Of course we give him a high-five and keep on truckin’.

Mile 11 to Mile 12 As we continue southbound on Wells, we skirt Cabrini Green where the crowds are once again thick. There are kids jumping rope double-dutch style and the folks at the Moody Bible Institute are cheering for Jesus and or the runners. There’s even a Christian Rock station on hand for all the fun.

Mile 12 to Mile 13 We are back downtown again. Coming up is bridge number 4 (of 6) which dumps us onto Franklin heading south and the 20K point. As we run over the mats which read the chips attached to our shoes containing our running info we get a resounding beep as our times are recorded. What is SUPPOSED to happen as you run over the mats a text message and or email is to go out to those who subscribed to your runner’s number. On Sunday the system broke and my sister didn’t get any of these until after the race was over and I didn’t get them at all. Bummer.

Just before Mile 13 (and just south of Franklin and Monroe) I made my one and only restroom break – peeing in an alley behind a dumpster as any self-respecting marathoner would. Nevermind this is illegal and within 1 block of where I used to work. I hope this blog will not incriminate me. When you stop and think about it one bathroom stop in 26.2 miles and over 5 hours of running is remarkable since I drank (~18 cups Gatorade x 8 oz per cup ~ 144 oz ~ 1.125 Gal) ~ 1.125 Gallons during that time. Let’s just say there was a lot of sweat involved and leave it at that.

Mile 13 to Mile 14 13.1 miles means halfway there or 3 miles into race #3 if you look at it another way. The crowd was in full force at the halfway point as it was a nice meeting point for runner and fans. Psychologically it’s a mixed bag because there are fewer miles ahead then behind but there is also the brief thought that ‘I have to do that AGAIN?’ Fortunately the legs were holding up and the blister only moderately hurt at this point. Note that I didn’t say “all was well” because running this far makes me tired and sore but all things considered I was feeling okay.

Mile 14 to 15 By now we were firmly on the ‘where the hell are we’ portion of the course. I just knew that the streets were unfamiliar, the crowd was sparse, the wind was in our faces, and I wasn’t super happy. Between mile 14.5 and 15 we passed by the United Center and got as far west as we would go during the race. 2 directions down, 2 to go. I’m not sure why but leading into mile 15 was probably the hardest part of the race for me … we never walked (if you don’t count through aid stations) but this was where the thoughts of walking first started creeping into the back of my brain. Not cool.

Mile 15 to Mile 16 At Mile 15 we hit the 9^th aid station on the course and I couldn’t have been happier about that. I got 2 cups of Gatorade, we stopped for a brief stretch, and I tied my left shoe T-I-G-H-T because I was sick of the blister forming on the bottom of that foot. I figured no circulation in the left foot was better than the constant shoe rubbing. Before we hit mile 16 we crossed the 25K mark which meant we had been running for two minutes shy of 3 hours.

Mile 16 to 17 I don’t really remember this mile other than it was significant because I had never run over 16 miles on a single run before. I was entering uncharted territory. We also saw people wearing shirts from a Root Beer / Pizza Joint from Damon’s hometown outside of Cincinnati. This meant speeding up to catch them which is tough to do when you’ve been at the same pace for 3+ hours. We caught up to them and the reunited Cincinnatians chatted while I tried to get my breath again and readjust to the new pace.

Mile 17 to 18 Running through Little Italy was fun and the crowd was excited. I kept thinking ‘I gotta come back here when I’m not running a marathon.’ PowerBar was giving out Power Gels at mile 17.5 and I took one but got Strawberry Banana. Yuck. A mile or 2 later Damon gave me a Green Apple that helped some. I had taken the one and only gel I brought at mile 16.

Mile 18 to 20.5 As you can tell by grouping 2.5 miles together there wasn’t much to say about these miles other than they sucked. This is the proverbial ‘wall’ and they even had a real display complete with a wall and Pink Floyd’s “The Wall.” Mile 20 also marked the end of race #4 in our five mile race increments.

Mile 20.5 to 21.5 All I really remember here is making the sharp turn off Halsted onto Archer Ave. and walking through the aid station for more Gatorade. I knew this meant heading East and therefore getting closer to the finish line.

Mile 21.5 to 23 Chinatown. What can I say? I freakin’ love that place. This was one of the best – if not the best – parts of the entire course. People were lined up 4 and 5 deep to catch a glimpse of loved ones running or just out to take in the scene. All were yelling and cheering the group on and it really gave me a boost to see the crowd so into it. This was still unfamiliar territory to me (geographically and distance wise) and I just kept on moving. Leaving Chinatown and running south along the Dan Ryan highway wasn’t much fun as the crowd thinned out again and thoughts of “still 4 miles to go” crept into my head. I was very relieved to hang a left over the highway and onto 33^rd street.

Mile 23 to Mile 24 A quick turn before mile 23 and another quick turn after it was a good thing. It kept the mind off of the pain of running and made me feel like distance was being covered. We hit the 15^th aid station at mile 23.5 and turned north onto Michigan Ave. Again this was good news – we had gone as far south as we were going to go and were truly on the home stretch. Turning north also meant turning directly into the wind but that wasn’t about to slow us down at this point. We were heading north on Michigan Ave. (a familiar name at least) pointed toward Grand Park and the finish line.

Mile 24 to Mile 25.2 Signs everywhere proclaimed the next aid station to be the last so we took that advice and made sure to get some extra Gatorade at this point as well. Just before mile 25 (the conclusion of our 5^th 5 mile ‘race’) we passed the 40 kilometer mark at 4:50:04 with less than a mile and a half to go. Just after mile 25 there was actually one last aid station and one last cup of Gatorade to be had before the final mile.

The Final Mile The crowds were once again thick with people watching the runners finish. While I felt like I was running quite slowly (and that was certainly the case) I was still passing some people in that final mile. There was a big sign that said ‘one mile left’ and I told myself at that point ‘I can do anything for 15 minutes.’ I knew I was moving at faster than a 15 minute mile and therefore would be done before then. Turning the corner from Michigan Ave onto Roosevelt the cops made those who jumped in to run with friends peel off the course. I figured this was fair since I paid for my trip across the finish line over the past 25+ miles and 5 hours. Signs showed 800 meters. Then 600 meters as we climbed the Roosevelt Bridge. With such a flat course, getting up to the top of that small incline felt like climbing Everest. At the top with one final left turn we were on the final stretch only two tenths of a mile from the finish. I’ll never forget the end of the race and the feeling of crossing the finish line. I had wanted 4 hours and 30 minutes but at that point I could have cared less. I finished. I figure it gives me good motivation to set a new PR at my next marathon.

RECOVERY

Sunday Night (Day 0)

After crossing the finish line they cut your timing chip off your shoe, give you a finisher’s medal, hand you a tinfoil blanket, snap your photo, and give you a free beer. I can say I enjoyed the beer but was FREEZING as soon as I stopped running. I also had trouble walking from the moment I crossed the finish line and everything hurt. I’m talking legs (duh) and feet and arms and back. Heck even my abs hurt which was a pretty strange feeling. I made a pretty quick exit due to the cold and caught a bus, then a cab back to my apartment. Getting out of the cab and up my stairs took some time but I made it. I got inside and promptly took a handful of Aleve (okay only 2) and jumped into the shower. By ‘jumped’ I should say I had to use my arms to pull my legs one at a time over the edge of the tub and into the shower.

After the shower I at the better part of a large pizza, drank a ton of water, and passed out on my bed. I only lasted about 30 minutes before I had to relocate. My bed was not comfortable enough for me and I was cramping up so I moved to the couch. On the couch I slept for hours and got up only to use the bathroom.

Monday (Day 1)

I woke up Monday and was very stiff and very very sore. It wasn’t as bad as Sunday night but if Sunday was an 80/100 on the pain scale, Monday was 77/100. While I’d planned on taking Monday off, it turned out I had to work and flew down to Dallas. Luckily the flight was in the afternoon but I was in the middle seat. When I arrived at O’Hare the skycap took one look at me and said “how did the race go”? I was limping pretty badly at this point. I told him okay and my time and he joked “really? That is slow!” to which skycap #2 said “don’t listen to this a******, he couldn’t run 2 miles.”

That night the guys from work also gave me crap about my newly developed limp but were happy I finished and was alive. By Monday night walking was better but stairs and sitting down / standing up was still murder.

Tuesday (Day 2)

By Tuesday I was feeling more normal and was walking with relative ease. There is no chance in hell I could have run then but at least I was semi mobile.

Wednesday (Day 3)

Again, things were feeling better on Wednesday and I was walking almost pain free. Stairs were still my enemy. I got a massage on Wednesday and proceeded to spend an hour in the steam room which felt amazing. Again, if someone told me to run today I would have told them to kiss my Irish ass.

EPILOGUE

It’s 2 weeks after the race and I’m feeling okay. I ran 3 miles on Thursday and everything went well. I am still a bit sore from that short run now but at least I’m able to run now. I just watched the clips of Lance Armstrong running the NYC Marathon and have decided I want to run that sucker some day. Hey, Lance only beat me by 2 hours. For now I’m happy to run 3k, 5k, 8k, 7 miles, 10 miles, or maybe a half marathon or two before I regroup for the next big thing. If you read all the way to this point congratulations – sorry for the rambling!

2006-10-15T21:17:00.000-05:00

The odds of someone other than myself reading this blog entry are somewhere very near zero. This is a direct result of not posting in a looooooooooooong time but I figure since I am the marathon ninja I may as well post tonight – less than 7 days from the Chicago Marathon.

My state of mind is a mixture of excitement and nervousness. About two weeks ago here were my concerns and associated weight of concern…

80% Concerned about left knee IT Band Syndrome (see Iliotibial Band Syndrome)
15% Concerned about lack of recent training due to injury above
5% Concerned about shin splints on right side which helped to cause ITBS cited above.

Today the concerns have stayed the same but the weights have drastically shifted.

60% Concerned about shin splint on right side
25% Concerned about lack of recent training
15% Concerned about ITBS

Basically going back several weeks after a long run and especially the day after a long run my left knee would kill. I didn’t much like normal walking, I disliked even more walking upstairs, and walking downstairs totally sucked. Needless to say it was a serious worry. My shin splints had been holding up okay.

The last time I ran was a 5 mile tempo run (which was CAPITAL S stupid) last Monday night with the Nike running group in Lincoln Park. I had no business running with a group that set out to do 9 minute miles and ended up closer to 8 minute miles. I made it and felt okay after but there was no reason to risk injury running that fast on a bum knee.

Since then I got a massage that helped the knee drastically. While I have not run on it since the massage walking, stairs, etc. have been no problem. I cannot feel any problem in the knee. The right shin however is tender even while walking. In my unscientific personal opinion if you get 3 or 4 miles into a run and the shins haven’t started screaming you are okay. Remember though 16 miles is my record, I have never run farther than that. Unfortunately the marathon is about 39% LONGER than 16 miles. That sole frightening thought has been running through my mind over and over and over again. Somehow I’ve got to block it out and think positive or I don’t have a prayer come Sunday.

Here is the new gameplan. It is actually quite simple. Carbo load the night before, get lots of rest the night(s) before the race, drink a bunch of water the night before the race. Then on raceday I want to dress appropriately figuring I’ll wear some clothes I will later ditch as my body heat and the outside temp rise. So far I only know the shoes, socks, and shorts I’ll be wearing. One fun fact is I will probably wear a yellow dry-fit shirt with my name “DREW” in big block letters. Does this make me lame? Probably. Will it help me stay focused and motivated? Likely. That makes it a done deal.

Again with the negative thoughts … I can see it in the eyes of my family and voice of my parents that they are unsure if I can complete this race given my recent injuries. They have reason for concern and so do I but there is only one way to tell. I will not quit this race for lack of will or effort. I’m not helping the cause now by even typing the word quit in my blog.

Back to race logistics. As opposed to the half marathon when we stuck close to the 9 minute per mile pacer, this time I’m starting out with the 10 minute per mile pacer and holding on for dear life. From what I have herd the first several miles will be wall to wall people and it could take 20 minutes or more just to get to the start line. If I run no single mile faster than a 10 minute pace and run a negative split I will have achieved total victory as I see it. Who am I kidding, if I FINISH THE RACE before they force me off the course or pick me up on a stretcher I will consider the race an unmitigated success.

So those are my strange and goofy ramblings about this sucker. I have hit the gym recently to stretch and to strengthen my hip adductors and abductors to help with the knee and it seems to have helped (in addition to massage). If the knee and shin hold up I’m golden.

Finally, if you have any interest in tracking me, go here…
http://www.doitsports.com/results/MSG-signup.tcl?sub_event_id=2161

Also I have learned that I will likely have to travel to Dallas with work the Monday after the marathon (a week from tomorrow). This may be the most painful flight in my life. Hopefully a handful of Advil will help the matter some.

2006-08-29T22:50:00.000-05:00

My last post was June 22nd which makes this post more than two months old. My bad.

Too much marathon-related stuff happened since then for me to cover so I’ll just hit one highlight and move onto today’s run. Last Saturday (as in 3 days ago) I set a new personal distance record of 15 miles. My previous record was 13.1 miles which worked out to be my half marathon run in San Diego. Unfortunately the 15 mile run was MUCH slower but I also didn’t feel like I was about to die when it was over.

Recently my shin splints have been acting up so I have gone from the normal schedule of rest day, short run, medium run, short run, rest day, long run, cross train to a more moderate rest day, cross train, medium run, cross train, rest day, long run, rest day. Even that schedule has sometimes slipped all the way to only 2 workouts per week – the long weekend run and the medium Wednesday run. This isn’t good.

In an attempt to get ‘back to basics’ and not ‘run like a slow bastard’ I changed things up tonight. I wore my light racing shoes which are not good for the shin splints but feel weightless. I did not wear a GPS or watch of any kind. What I did do was run fast – I’m talking 7:50 miles on the streets of Chicago baby. You may be asking ‘how does he know how fast he went if he had no watch’ … my only answer is I felt it. I have run enough now to know if I’m HAULIN’ over a 3 mile distance I’m running at or near a 7:50.

The marathon is less than 8 short weeks away and I’m getting pumped. I need to try to avoid injury at all cost which means stretching even when I don’t want to, cross training, and being smart about running surfaces (specifically trails and treadmills are good, pavement is not).

After my 15 mile run last weekend I’m starting to realize a 9 minute mile (or 4 hour marathon) is a dream at this point. I need to worry about finishing and everything else is gravy. I’ll say it once more for dramatic effect … I must finish. If I break 5 hours it’s great, if I break 4:30 it’s even better, but if I get stupid and run a 2 hour half I’m in for a world of pain starting around mile 14.

So that’s the plan. It sounds pretty simple. Theoretically it is very simple. That doesn’t change the fact I need to run another 225 miles before the marathon. But who’s counting?

2006-06-22T22:28:00.000-05:00

I just ran with the Niketown Running Club of Chicago yet again and I have to say “I loves me some Nike!” You may now be thinking “wait a second, Nike is overpriced and they run sweatshops” to which I will reply “kind sir, I am an American, and if a gigantic multinational sweatshop loving corporation wants to give me free stuff it is my duty to take it with a wide consumer driven smile.”

Ok so I was reaching with that last one but I’m not kidding that I do enjoy free stuff. Today Nike had a ‘sock demo’ which thankfully involved new socks (as yet unreleased to the general public) that we got to keep.

The socks are called Nike Fit Dry Dry-Fit 2.0 for Elite Runners – this was actually the shortest name the marketing team could conjure without setting a conference room on fire. The socks are clearly marked L and R for (drum roll) your left and right feet. I can’t make light of this fact since I paid good money for a similar pair by Brooks some months ago.

The pseudo-science behind these socks, well, knocked my socks off. Sorry about that pun, I threw up a little in my mouth as I typed it… Back to the pseudo-science…

It seems the socks employ some sort of aerodynamic enhancement over your everyday running sock and even over the bare human foot! The kind gentleman from Nike Corporate took us over his demo with bold claims like “it will make you 2% faster, we tested it in our labs” and “these socks take your running game from ‘real’ to ‘ideal’” … um, yeah, sure. I fought with all my might asking the slam dunk oh-no-you-dit-int question on the tip of my tongue, “You realize that socks go inside running shoes right? I don’t plan on wearing these socks without any accompanying footwear so how again do aerodynamics play into the equation?”

Instead I just smiled, nodded, and put on my new free socks. Turns out they felt good, slipped around some in my shoe, and helped me run three 8:05 miles. So for free socks I give them a B+ but for socks you’ll have to pay $9 per pair for I’m thinking a C-.

If any representative or overall Nike fanboy is reading this post, please don’t turn me in and cut me off from the free stuff gravy train. I only have to run 97 more miles until I’m eligible for a free t-shirt!*

*(That last sentence was not a joke, and did I mention I enjoy free stuff?)

2006-06-21T17:01:00.000-05:00

Now that I have a successful half marathon under my belt it’s time to start thinking about the next first marathon. The Chicago Marathon is to be held on October 22, 2006 and my current plan is to wake up early, run 26.2 miles, eat some terribly unhealthy food and proceed to pass out (due to exhaustion and a post-race beer) in my own bed in my own apartment.

This, of course, is 18 weeks and hundreds of training miles away. The Chicago Marathon is first-come-first-served with all 40,000 participant spots being filled in record time this year. The flat course (especially when compared to San Diego) starts and ends in Grant Park and winds through 15 different neighborhoods. Each year around 1.5 million spectators come out to watch the race which is largely due to the huge number of runners, a course that runs throughout the city, and easy access to public transportation to view the course.

I feel one of the best parts of Chicago versus San Diego is Chicago has the ability to have emails and text messages sent to friends and family reporting time and course position of their runners. It sill irks me that San Diego didn’t support this service but I’m never running San Diego again so who cares.

Back to training – I had a cross training day on Monday which involved lifting weights for the first time in a long time. Everything went well except for feeling ‘sore all over’ on Tuesday and today. Yesterday I ran 3 miles on a trail in Lincoln Park. The GPS kept good track and I finished in something like 26 minutes.

I’m running 3 miles tonight indoors (as it is HOT and HUMID right now) which I’m not really looking forward to due to the soreness. I’m going to try my best to run slow and stretch well afterward. 18 weeks may be a long time but by then there will have been 7 Notre Dame football games and (God willing) our boys will boast a 7-0 record.

The one other thing I discovered is Hal Higdon has a new Podcast with weekly training advice leading up to the race. **This just in** old dog taught new trick.

2006-06-07T21:20:00.000-05:00

This is going to be another long post since I just finished my first marathon (sort of). I only ran a half marathon (a.k.a. 13.1 miles) in San Diego on Sunday but heck, it is still one tenth of a mile farther than I have ever ran. It has been quite some time since I broke out the old ‘Personal Distance Record’ and it feels good to have it flying high over this post once again.

Let’s get the raw details out of the way. I know you are all asking one question … which shorts did the Marathon Ninja wear during the race? No? You want to know my time? OK.

According to my watch 1:57:38 is a new PR!
(The mileage is wrong, I ran 13.1 miles not 12.99)

I ran the half marathon in one hour, fifty-seven minutes, and thirty-eight seconds. That is an 8:59 minute mile pace over the entire race. That is nearly 3 minutes faster than my all time favorite movie.

We flew into San Diego on Friday and stayed with some friends near Torrey Pines. I played golf on Sunday at the Torrey Pines Municipal Golf Course (which happens to be the site of the 2008 US Open) with my Dad and brother-in-law. Shot a 96 with a 48 on the front and 48 on the back and only lost one ball. But I digress – this is a running blog.

We spent Saturday night at our condo overlooking Mission Bay just adjacent to Mission Beach which is on the Pacific Ocean. After making the trip down to the zoo that was the race expo and picking up our packets, we hit the supermarket and went back to our own private pasta party. After stuffing ourselves silly with salad, bread, and bowtie pasta with marinara everyone made it to bed early.

Wakeup time the day of the race was an oh-my-God-this-is-early 4 A.M. I stumbled around the bedroom in a daze and managed to put on the clothes, shoes, GPS, and race bib I had laid out the night before. Breakfast consisted of a little coffee, some water, and a Peanut Butter Cliff Bar. The conversation was light as we piled into the car to head for the race at 5. While I was getting a little nervous I felt good and was waking up quickly.

The drive to the race was quiet but we did hit traffic which we can only assume was the result of other marathon participants due to the early hour. We parked and walked to the start area where we hit gear check (we left things like cell phones, extra shirt, jacket, etc. there) and the port-o-potties. Since (last I checked) I am a dude, I opted for the mother nature solution and found the nearest tree in lieu of the long line at the bathroom. The females in the group were not so lucky.

All of a sudden the national anthem was playing and the race was about to start. I put on as much sunscreen as my body could handle and we dashed to the starting corrals. I was in corral #7 (of 22 or so) which was for those hoping to run a four-hour marathon.

The gun went off and we started the old shuffle into a trot into a run transition that all big races seem to begin with. We were looking to stick close to 9 minute miles which would mean a sub 2 hour half marathon for me. There was a pacer all decked out with balloons and a big 4:00 sign that we were trying to stay close to. It was basically her job to run exactly a 4 hour marathon while holding a stick with balloons and making a LOUD announcement every mile that went something like this “Runners! According to my watch we have passed the 4 mile mark at exactly 36 minutes! This is a 9 minute mile pace!” While it sounds like I’m making fun (and I am) it’s a pretty cool thing for someone to help pace a group of people shooting for a specific time. Technically you wouldn’t need a watch if you stuck close to the pacer of your choice.

We rattled off mile one in about 9:30 which was slower than our overall pace should be but not bad considering the amount of jostling / running around people you end up doing at the start of a big race. Miles 2 and 3 were faster – closer to 9 minute miles. Between mile 3 and mile 5 we had 2 sweet miles of downhill. Here we were running under 9 minute miles – probably around an 8:25 or 8:30.

At mile 4 another friend jumped into the race to run with us for a while. He was shirtless to avoid being spotted and tacked as a bandit. It was nice to have him run with us for about half a mile or so and give us the scoop on our other friends running the race. We later found out he skipped over some mile in the course and jumped in with the elite runners for a bit. In his words “I got up front with the Kenyans for a while and lasted about a quarter of a mile before I had to slow down.” Considering those guys run SUB 5 MINUTE MILES for the ENTIRE marathon, that is no sleight on him.

During the first 5 miles we passed 6 different bands playing everything from blues, to reggae to rock to tribal drums. I particularly enjoyed the blues band playing a song called “I’m a Roadrunner Baby” which helped push us along. Right around mile 5 everyone seemed in high spirits and jokes were being cracked all around.

By mile 6 the course had flattened out some and we passed – in my opinion – the best band on the course (the first half of the course anyway). It was an 80’s band which was finishing up Tommy Tutone’s “867-5309” and then cranked out an excellent version of Rick Springfield’s “Jessie’s Girl.” Needless to say spirits could not have been higher than at that point.

Shortly after the 80s band we passed the 10K mark which was significant to me in two ways. First, this was the longest distance I’d run in a race in the past 10 years or so and second, we passed the 10K mark at around 56 minutes which was FASTER than I had run my last 10K. Think about that for a second … in a race where I was running nearly twice as far (this half marathon) I ran a 10K PR (in race) that was faster than my previous best by 6 minutes. I was pumped.

Mile 7 meant still more good news (which was to be a bit short lived) as we passed the 4 hour marathon pacer girl as she was making yet another announcement. We were officially under a 9 minute mile and feeling great.

Then we hit the “hill from hell.” Over the next 3 miles we would climb some 266 feet up highway 163. For someone like me – who did 99% of his training in Chicago away from hills – this was a big deal. Thankfully I wasn’t quite sure how long the hill was when we started the climb. Amazingly, our pace stayed right near or just under 9 minutes but the effort level to maintain that pace skyrocketed. We soon started to see some people walking up the hill in groups of two or three. I’m sure this type of thing happens in all marathons – at some point you see people dropping back and walking unless you are an elite or “very near the front starter” – but it is disheartening. Thankfully we soon passed a group of running Elvis’ who were pushing a boombox in a running stroller blasting out old Elvis tunes.

All-in-all we felt good halfway up the hill. After that it got less and less fun. At some point with a mile in front of us my running partner commented “this hill sucks” to which I quickly replied “no s***.” I wouldn’t say that I was proud to be cursing at that point but I couldn’t think of anything else clever to say. I was just trying to hang on long enough to get off this stupid hill.

Great news at the 10 mile mark – we were at the top of the biggest hill on the course and we were still under a 9 minute mile pace. Mile 11 was a steep decent down the other side of the hill which was welcome but also caused the legs to take a pretty good beating. At this point I was feeling good again thinking “I made it over the hill, I’ve got under a 5K left, this thing is in the bag.” That too was a little optimistic. At mile 11.5 we turned west down Friar’s Road and I was convinced the halfway point (13.1 miles) was very, very near. My paced quickened slightly and I kept checking my GPS watch to see how close I might be to the 12 mile marker then the 13 mile marker than the halfway point. It got so bad in the final mile-and-change that I would go step-step-step-step-{check watch}- step-step-step-step-{check watch}.

I think because I was running SO much faster for a run of this length than I was used to and because I let myself mentally think “this will be over soon” it made the final mile much harder than it needed to be. At mile 12 I was thinking a combination of ‘I should run this last one faster’ and ‘damn I feel like walking.’ Thankfully I didn’t have to walk and I saw my parents, sister and brother-in-law at mile 12.8 or so. That gave me the final boost to truck the final few tenths of a mile to finish the half marathon in 1:57:38.

As I left the course, I was hot and felt a little faint and dehydrated. For some reason it felt like I needed to pop my ears and when my family was talking to me it sounded as if I was underwater. Luckily the ear issue was temporary and (after almost losing my lunch) I started to feel a bit better after 20 minutes or so. After our other running buddy crossed the half marathon point we loaded up the car and went to McDonalds where we promptly ate the 1,500 calories or so we had just burned off. It was De-licious!

Note the black middle toe on my left foot after the race

One more war wound - this time on my right foot

A much needed recovery day on Monday.
I am the pale, hairy bastard on the right.

2006-05-22T00:42:00.000-05:00

So it is very close to midnight and I’m dog tired but still felt this need to update the blog. I know, this qualifies as an extremely selfless act done for you gentle reader. Please note the heavy use of sarcasm in that last sentence.

A lot has happened since I posted last – I have been running regularly (every other day up to 4 miles) in conjunction with my doctor’s orders. I have also been trying to keep up the cross training – mostly lifting – but that has been hit or miss. Overall things are going quite well … no more pain in the hip / femur during or after a run.

I was in Dallas last week with work and ran a 4 mile run on Monday and signed up for and ran the 8th Annual Katy Trail 5k on Thursday after work. While the four mile training run went very well at a leisurely 9:20 minute per mile pace, the 5k proved to be much more difficult.

Let me give you a little background… First of all my overall cardio training is still not where I was pre-injury. Second, this race was my first since the Shamrock Shuffle 8k on April 2, 2006 so it has been a while since I’ve pushed myself for an excellent finishing time. Third, I went into the race with overly optimistic expectations considering my points above in addition to the 93 degree temperatures in Dallas for the race. I was trying to break an 8 minute mile which is a 24:48 (5K = 3.1 miles x 8 minutes = 24.8 minutes = 24:48 overall time) which unfortunately didn’t happen.

Here is some play-by-play from the event.
6:00 PM: Some 40 young children line up and run the 0.5K kids race
6:08 PM: The kids finish the race and clear the course
6:15 PM: Those who are skating (as in rollerblades) the course begin
6:25 PM: The rest of the runners (1200 strong) line up behind the start line according to expected pace. I let the rabbits queue up in the 6 and 7 minute mile area before taking my place with the other 8 minute milers.
6:30 PM: The gun goes off and I run like it is a prison break. Needless to say this isn’t a great tactic even for a race as short as the 5K. It would prove to be a poor decision … read on.
6:37:25 PM: I pass by the one mile marker and the big red time clock shouting my first mile split time of 7:25. Remember that it took me 12 seconds to get to the start line so this mile time was closer to 7:13. This probably qualifies as the fastest mile I have run in my life. While that is ‘fun’ and or ‘neat’ it was also stupid since I had 2.1 more miles of fun in front of me.
6:39 PM: The gradual hill running from the start line to the first mile marker gets steeper and the crowd thins out a little. I’m still maintaining my position and blistering sub 7:20 pace by following the lady in pink and the guy with the camo hat.
6:41 PM: The course hangs a right and the hill gets steeper
6:42 PM: I pass the one and only water station but almost miss it because it is tucked around another bend on the unending hill. I get a half sip and toss the cup away since (in my head) I have a personal record to break.
6:43 PM: I start to think ‘where the hell is the 2nd mile marker?’ and ‘should I be running this fast?’ and ‘it is very hot out’ and ‘I have to pee’
6:45:25 PM: I finally pass the 2nd mile marker. This means my second mile took just about 8 minutes even. I figure ‘hey I’m slowing down but there is no chance I will miss my goal of sub-eight minute mile’ Again, in the next half mile these expectations would change.
6:48 PM: I … am … huffing … and … puffing … by …. now. I can’t understand how on a race this freakin’ short I can be this tired. I mean I have run 13 miles (much slower miles) before and never felt this bad. I felt a little like puking and still had to pee.
6:50 PM: Wile I had somewhere around half a mile left at this point there was no holding it. I slowed to a walk (I’m a little ashamed to admit that but what the heck it’s the truth) and then made my way to the bushes. After a top-three-all-time-pee courtesy of mother nature I got back on the path. Instead of running I walked a bit more but then saw the 3 mile marker and managed to run some.
6:54:40: I passed the 3 mile marker. This put my 3rd mile (bathroom break and all) at almost ten minutes. This was not cool.
6:55:32: I finished the race with a clock time of 25:32 and a chip time of 25:20 for an 8:10 minute per mile overall pace.

After all of that I still had a great time. The after party was top notch featuring beer and margaritas flowing like water along with other free food and the like.

Here are my lessons learned from this 5K…

Be smart and realistic about pacing. Running a 7:13 first mile (a good 40 seconds faster than I should have been going) was just plain dumb. I should have targeted a reverse split so I could have had some kick at the end.
Tailor your running to the conditions – both weather and course. I was running uphill in 93 degree weather which were both things I’m not used to. I should have adjusted my 8 minute per mile goal before the race.
Finishing counts for something. This one is a little like the pilot’s rule that “any landing you can walk away from was a good landing.” I had a good time and still managed to place 309th out of 1272 runners.

So I had fun and now have a green race shirt to remember The Katy 5K.

I’ll wrap up this CRAZY LONG post with today’s running news. I ran 6 miles tonight in Chicago up through the park and back down the lake. It’s the farthest I’ve run since March (and since the injury) and it felt great. I wasn’t running fast but kept up a respectable 9:20 pace for the duration. I see the doc again first thing Tuesday then have the JP Morgan Chase Challenge on Thursday (3.5 miles) and have a 9 miler next weekend before the marathon.

I’d like to use the lessons learned from the Katy 5K to kick some serious ass for my company. Big Blue in the Hizzy.

2006-05-06T11:19:00.000-05:00

Below: my doc is the little guy in the middle
This will be the first ninja post in many moons. Sorry for the long break but hey – I’ve been busy.

I’m officially back from injury now running on an abbreviated schedule. I have run three miles three times in the past week and have felt good before, during and after each run. I spoke with my doctor on Tuesday and he mapped out the following plan for me between now and my next appointment in 3 weeks.

All runs should be 3 to 4 miles – no more
Never run back-to-back days
Lifting – including weight-bearing stuff – is okay in moderation
Add in a speed day (sprints) or two on a soft surface like grass
Take back-to-back spinning classes on the weekend to increase my cardio before the marathon. 2 hours of spinning is nearly equivalent to a half marathon

Also, the doc wants me to run one 6 miler before my next appointment. Assuming all goes well there I’ll do a 9 mile run the week before the marathon.

Now that the gory details are out of the way let me say that running again is awesome. It is one of those things you don’t realize how much you will miss it until you can’t do it for a while. The feeling of your feet under you moving in an automatic rhythm as you feel speed for the first time in a long time is the best. While I’ve probably been running too fast considering the injury the feeling after the run is almost better than during because I know that I could have turned that 3 mile run into a 6 or 7 mile run if I wanted to do so.

To make a long story short – I’m hooked. I’m a runner. The races and the training and the health benefits are all gravy but running itself and the sense of well being after are worth the price of admission. I just need to better understand my body and avoid injury the best I can so I don’t have to take another extended break from running.
That is it for this post. Keep running and talk to y’all soon.

2006-04-17T16:38:00.000-05:00

HAPPY EASTER!

It has been 9 long days since my last post so I figured I’d give my faithful readers and update on my injury / training / etc. Today is my first “walk normally” day after my doctor advised me to walk less for ten days following my injury. I don’t know how much I really reduced my walking since it is tough not to walk in a large city where mass transportation is the only real option to get to and from work. I also managed to get 2 rounds of golf in there (riding a cart, not walking) but I wasn’t going to pass up the first two rounds of the year for anything.

Over the past several days I have been lifting, swimming (once), and cycling (outside and stationary) to stay in shape while waiting for the green light on running again. I’m only 11 days (and counting) from being able to run and have the itch to get outside and bang out a quick 3 miles.

Speaking of running … today is the 110th running of The Boston Marathon. Two of my friends finished the race together in 3:52:45 which is an 8:53 pace. I’d love to qualify for Boston someday but the current qualifying time for my age group is 3:10:00 which is (at least) an hour faster than I will likely run my first marathon. In the meantime I’ll focus on running some portion of San Diego and then shoot for running all of Chicago. I’d also like to do the NYC Marathon someday but since it’s a lottery process to enter I’m not sure what the odds are I would make it in (but they are likely MUCH higher than my odds of getting into Boston).

Tonight I think I’m going to lift and maybe do a little stationary bike. Tomorrow night I’m heading to a Sox game at Comiskey (like many stubborn old men I refuse to call the place U.S. Cellular Field or The Cell or some other silly corporate name) so I’ll probably pass on tomorrow’s workout (unless I go to the gym early).

Well that’s all I have for now … GO CUBBIES (they are off to a 7-4 start and play the Dodgers L.A.T.E. tonight).

2006-04-08T07:27:00.000-05:00

Bad news. The marathon ninja has been diagnosed with a stress reaction to the left femoral neck due to overuse (running too much, too soon).

(Note that is not my pelvis - just an example of where the femoral neck is)

The long version of the story…
Following my last long run two Saturdays ago (3/25) I noticed some soreness in my left hip. The next day (3/26) the soreness was more pronounced and I was walking around with a slight limp. My leg / hip felt better that Monday (3/27) which was a rest day and better still on Tuesday (3/28). Since I thought the soreness was gone altogether that Tuesday I went for a 7 mile run and felt great during and after.

Then I woke up on Wednesday (3/29) in some real pain with a moderate limp. Over the course of the day the hip felt better but I could tell something was wrong so I went to a physical therapist a week ago (3/30) to get it looked at. The therapist thought I had hip bursitis but wanted me to see an orthopedist to be on the safe side. Last Sunday I ran the Shamrock Shuffle 8k (5 miles – 40:11) and again felt great during and after the race. This Monday I was in pain again and saw the doctor on Tuesday (4/4).

The doc took an x-ray and gave me an exam. He felt I either had a stress reaction or stress fracture of the left femoral neck caused by overuse (running too much too soon) so he prescribed an MRI. I had the MRI that night and scheduled another appointment with my doc this afternoon.

At my appointment yesterday (4/7) the doctor confirmed I have a stress reaction of the left femoral neck and told me I should not run the San Diego Rock 'n' Roll Marathon. He said I could walk the course but would almost certainly re-injure the leg if I did.

Going Forward...
I'm supposed to limit walking for the next 10 days - that means taking the bus rather than walking to the train each morning / night and taking cabs around where I would have walked before.

In the next three weeks I can do NO RUNNING at all and will do cross training like riding the stationary bike, my 'real' bike, swimming, and (non-weight bearing) lifting.
The elliptical machine is out because it will stress my leg too much. Unfortunately the only thing more boring than the elliptical is the stationary bike. I'll try to focus on swimming and lifting over the next few weeks.
In 3 weeks I go back to check in with the doctor and he thinks then I'll be able to start running again - only 3 or 4 miles at first but gradually building that up.
In 6 weeks my leg bone should be totally healed and I can start gradually adding more mileage to my training. The big problem is that will only be 2 weeks before the race.

Right now I plan to keep up the cardio via cross training and shoot for running 1/2 or slightly less of the race. As a matter of fact I’m going to a spinning class in an hour. It just isn't worth pushing it and going against doc's orders only to do severe damage to the bone during the race.

I'm very, very bummed out but hopefully I can salvage something and run at least a part of the race. The good news is we caught this early and it is a fairly short recovery period - some people with this injury are out months.

Also, I'm now planning on running the Chicago Marathon on October 22nd this year. I will be sure to follow the 10% rule and very gradually increase mileage during training so I don’t end up with another stress reaction.

2006-04-02T18:19:00.000-05:00

Even though I’m still a little nervous about my upcoming doctor’s visit to further diagnose my hip injury, I’m in a very good mood today. This morning I ran the Shamrock Shuffle 8K race in Chicago with some friends and set a new Personal Record (PR) for that distance.

I ran the race (FYI 8K is just shy of 5 miles) in 40:11 which works out to around an 8:03 pace. My first mile was 8:50 or so and each subsequent mile was faster than the one before. When I realized I just might have a chance to break 40 minutes I turned on the jets for the last mile and cranked out a 7:10 mile.

Besides running a solid race, the best news of the day was that I was running at all. It had been five days since my last run which seemed like a lifetime ago. I had forgotten how much fun a road race can be versus a normal training run since my last road race was the Run Hit Wonder several months ago.

As far as the leg and “quasi injury” (that’s what I’m now calling it in hopes it will just go away) I feel pretty good right now (6 hours after the race was over). I actually felt better during and after the race than before I started. While this can be viewed as good news it’s exactly the same thing that happened during and after Tuesday’s 7 mile run – felt great during, felt better after, limped throughout the next day. I’m trying to prepare myself for feeling bad tomorrow but we will have to wait and see. I would rather run 15 miles outside in good weather than spend an hour on the dreaded elliptical.

As far as treatment of the injury I’ve been doing cycles of 20 minutes ice, 20 off, 20 ice etc. I also got a pack of ‘icy hot’ patches so I now smell like a nursing home – I guess the patches are endorsed by Shaq so I should feel like a 7’1” human wrecking ball.

Two things I almost forgot to mention ... the postrace food wasn't so hot but the free beer was excellent. Also I hear the marathon guru himself - Hal Higdon - was spoted in the 'competitive start' zone of the race.

To get into the 'Preferred Start' zone this year you had to run a sub 42:30 in last year's race. Hopefully this means I'll have preferred start in the '07 Shuffle and get to wear the uber-cool green bib.

Tomorrow is a rest day but I will try and get to the gym for core work and stretching. Tuesday I see the doc so I’ll probably be making another entry then.

2006-03-31T10:53:00.000-06:00

This week has been a bit of an emotional rollercoaster regarding my training. A friend who was to run the marathon with me got injured and can no longer train. He will not be running the marathon in June. The good news is he is still planning on coming down to cheer me on before / during the race in San Diego.

The other bad news is that I am now injured. After my long run Saturday (13 miles) in Fulton, I noticed pain in my groin on the left side. If I was just sitting around it did not hurt but I was walking with a limp and running was downright painful. Of course the leg felt better on Tuesday so I decided that a fast 7 mile run was a great idea which was not very smart. I felt great after the Tuesday run but woke up in pain on Wednesday morning with a pronounced limp.

I took the day off from training on Wednesday and went to see the good people at AthletiCo on Thursday after work. AtheltiCo specializes in rehabilitation, fitness, performance (at least that is what their business cards say) and gave me a screening.

The physical therapist that helped me did a great job trying to figure out exactly what my injury was, exercises to strengthen my core to help the problem, and a referral to see an orthopedic doctor (who I’m scheduled to see on Tuesday).

The folks at AthletiCo seem to think I have an impingement on the bursa contained in the ligaments of my left leg where the femur meets the pelvis. This problem was likely caused by my flat or ‘pancake’ left foot which pushes my left leg in as I run and in turn rubs the bursa causing pain when I move. Before yesterday I had no idea what the hell ‘bursa’ was but evidentially it is a fluid filled sac that acts as a sort of ‘ball bearing’ for the leg’s ball-and-socket joint.

The good news is ‘my boys’ are fine and don’t hurt (let’s leave it at that) but the bad news is I’ll need to train with some low or no impact cardio like the elliptical, Stairmaster, or stationary bike for a while. Last night I spent an hour and 20 minutes on the elliptical which works out to 7 miles or so. I was not so happy about the 11+ minute pace but I guess I’ll have to get used to spending more time on that sucker than on the treadmill.

The elliptical trainer - my sworn enemy

My appointment on Tuesday with the doctor will give me a better idea of how I should proceed. Thankfully both the physical therapist who helped me and this doc are both runners so they have some experience in this area to add to their training advice. The big thing is to rule out stress fractures or any tearing of tissue.

While I’m not really supposed to run before my appointment, I will still be participating in the Shamrock Shuffle this Sunday – hopefully I can walk normally (unlike this guy) on Monday morning!

Also thought I'd share an article about running blogs (like this one) from Runner's World...

2006-03-27T22:33:00.000-06:00

On Saturday morning I once again pushed my personal limits and set a new ‘Personal Distance Record’ by running 13 miles in around 2 hours and 8 minutes. This works out to a blisteringly fast (that was a joke so laugh) 9:51 minute-per-mile pace.

Since I was home visiting my family for my Mom’s birthday I decided to run between Fulton, IL and Thompson, IL on an asphalt jogging path that was once a railroad track. As you might guess this makes for a long, flat, stretch of path that seems to go on forever.

Above: A stunning view of Fulton's Famous Dutch Windmill

I tried in vain to plot my course out with Google Earth but the maps / satellite photography for Fulton, IL are not quite as detailed as say Chicago. As a next best thing I elected to drive along the road which ran parallel to the path to figure where I needed to turn around. This worked fine for 4 miles until the path veered away from the road – the remaining 2.5 miles would be run in ‘no man’s land’ before I made my turnaround.

I left the house at just after 10 AM, hauling around my iPod, Garmin, and CamelBak wearing more clothes than I needed for the 41 degree and sunny weather. I started my timer / GPS and was off down our street. The first mile was fine and uneventful but during mile 2, the GPS went a little bonkers and got off track. It failed to count about 0.3 miles compared to the distances I had found while driving the route ahead of time. This continued to make me mad for the next 3 miles or so until I realized the GPS had basically regained it sanity and was counting miles as it should.

The route went from city streets to paved and marked asphalt path to concrete bridge back to rural street to concrete path and finally there was one half mile of gravel path that zig-zagged into a park of sorts. In the course of my 6.8 mile outbound leg (remember the GPS was nuts so I went farther than it showed) I didn’t see another living sole. In fact I didn’t see anyone else on the path / trail / streets until mile 8 when a guy on a bike gave me a weird look.

The best part of the run was the 2 miles after the turn around which felt effortless. I was tired and a little sore following the run but all in all it wasn’t too bad. In any case I don’t have to go this far again until the weekend after this one.

This week we up the weekday runs to 3 miles, 7 miles and 4 miles from 3 miles, 6 miles, and 3 miles. I will do my long run (10 miles) on Friday so I can have a rest day before the Shamrock Shuffle on Sunday.

2006-03-22T11:07:00.000-06:00

Yesterday I had a three mile shoulder run* outside. I went the familiar route down Armitage and up Sheffield - I seem to be a creature of habit when it comes to my routes – and had an all around good run. This was my first run in the new shoes and everything went fairly smoothly. It’s never a blast to break in a new set of trainers but thankfully my Asics felt pretty good on their first 3 miles.

I’m still perplexed at how my last pair wore out so quickly. I was consciously trying not to scrape my left foot during the run yesterday. I kept thinking ‘push off lightly’ and ‘float don’t drag’ but we will know in a hundred miles or so if my stride changed at all. I am tempted to see an expert for some gait analysis to see if I can correct the problem – living in Chicago this shouldn’t be a big deal – but maybe it is something I just need to learn to live with.

Tonight is a new episode of Lost so I think I’ll head over to the gym around 7:45 to get a good treadmill. Thankfully the rush of New Year’s Resolution Runners has died down and grabbing a treadmill is not a problem these days.

I’m getting excited for my 13 miler this weekend and for the Shamrock Shuffle on April 2nd. There are 25,000 runners signed up which is approximately the population of my hometown.

*The term shoulder run is one I just invented (or unconsciously stole from someone else) to describe either of the short runs during a given training week. Since the pattern is short, medium, short, long each week with the short, medium, sort runs falling on back-to-back-to-back days the short runs are shoulder runs to me.

2006-03-19T23:20:00.000-06:00

Since my last post I ran 21 miles – 6 on Wednesday, 3 on Thursday and for a new personal distance record I ran 12 miles on Friday. In case you are keeping track Friday was St. Paddy’s day so in honor of Ireland’s patron saint I listened to only Irish music during the run. This worked well while Flogging Molly or Dropkick Murphy’s were playing but not so well when it came time to hear The Dubliners or The Clancy Brothers. I will say that on a longer run the super-high-intensity music is not as essential as during a speedy short run.

Thankfully I ran my 12 miler outside on Friday morning. Since I took the day off I was able to run in relatively warm (25 degree) weather with only a little wind. I started at Equinox, ran around the baseball fields, over North Ave. Bridge and headed south (sound familiar?). I made it to Olive Park and out and back on that pier. Then I went out and back down Navy Pier and across the river. I made my halfway turn at Balbo Drive and retraced my steps back to the gym.

While running I thought to myself that the first mile of just about any run is not fun. Unless you are really feeling good (and I was slightly hung over from Thursday night) the first mile of a run is a lot of questioning … “Am I going too fast?” “Am I going fast enough” “Is my stride too short or long?” “How many footfalls am I making per minute?” “How does my cadence match my breathing?” … This is then followed by lots of conscience instructions from the brain to the rest of the body. That first mile is all about the nuts and bolts of running – getting comfortable with the trail for the many miles to go.

But then something great happened at around mile 2 – I did get comfortable. I was aware of my breathing and my strides but they became automatic. The best way to describe this is that at mile 2 I found my rhythm. I’d like to claim I kept my rhythm for the next 10 miles but it would come and go. I ran down Navy Pier too quickly being egged on by the groups of kids on field trips milling around. I tried to take it easy on the way out and still managed a negative split on the way back.

Following my long run I had a stretch, steam, and shower (again, sound familiar?) and made it back to my apartment. After a nap and some food I went out with some buddies in my neighborhood. I turned in early since I was fairly tired from the long run.

This week’s training runs are similar to last week’s. I have 3 Tuesday, 6 Wednesday, 3 Thursday and finally 13 on Saturday. I hope I can keep healthy and strong for the week ahead.

Also after 11 weeks and about 200 miles or so I have gone through my latest pair of running shoes. Notice the killer bald spot on the sole of the left shoe. A salesperson at Fleet Feet watched me run and informed me that I’m a foot-scraper. My right foot lands heel-first, I push off normally, my left foot lands heel-first, I push off but drag the foot forward and scrape the pavement in the process. The salesperson let me know that this foot scrape goes all the way back to the first humans who curled the toes and dug into the ground while running. She informed me that it’s sort of like having a vestigial tail or almost-opposable thumbs. It’s nice to know I have a bit of Cro-Magnon man left in me.

I replaced the bum shoes with a new pair of the same make/model. While I’m sure the Asics corporation and Fleet Feet are both ecstatic over this fact, I think I need to work on my stride to save shoe wear and cost and more importantly not waste valuable energy scraping (and therefore breaking) with every step I take. We will have to see how the next pair holds up.

2006-03-14T22:54:00.000-06:00

Sushi, it’s what’s for dinner…

To answer the flood of email I have received on what type of nourishment fuels a Marathon Ninja I’ve decided to give you a taste (pun intended) of what I had for dinner tonight.

At the suggestion of my sister I made my way over to the Green Tea Japanese Restaurant and picked up some sushi. To be precise I had 4 pieces of sake (fresh salmon), 4 pieces of maguro (tuna), and a 10 pieces made from a Chicago Spicy Crazy Roll. This is a large order of food but I was H-U-N-G-R-Y after my run tonight.

The sushi chefs who tag-teamed my order did an outstanding job and I proclaim it some of the most excellent sushi I have had in Chicago. I am fairly sure the meal wasn’t very high in carbs but I had pasta for lunch and was in the mood for sushi. It was just d-licious enough to have me put the restaurant’s delivery number in my speed dial.

Since this blog is not sanctioned by the Food Network I guess I should talk about training a little. I ran 3 miles today in too much clothing (3 layers on top, 3 on bottom) for 29 degree weather. While I was warm when I started about a mile in I was working up a good sweat. To make matters worse one of my shirts was cotton, not a wicking material, so that was good and soaked rather quickly. The run itself wasn’t too bad but I was pretty slimy by the time I got back to my apartment (I ran outside).

The only other notable feature of today’s run was I didn’t wear a watch or use any other time keeping device. I might have run 3 twelve-minute miles (doubtful) or 3 seven-minute mile (for me impossible) I guess I’ll never know. The truth is it was probably somewhere between 8:45 and 9:15 since I was trying to take it easy today. I was still a little sore from lifting on Sunday but that’s the price I pay for being massive (kidding).

Until next time, “Go Ninja, go ninja, go!”

2006-03-12T23:31:00.000-06:00

My seven mile run on Friday went well and I had a good (but brief) cross training session on Sunday afternoon. I have determined that nothing cures a hangover quite as well as a half hearted lifting session followed by 30 minutes in the steam room. But enough about that – today I have something much more important to discuss (followed by sock talk).

Origin of the Marathon Ninja

Where did the name come from you ask? This is a question that haunts some readers of this blog. Some speculate that I was born the love child of Steve ‘Pre’ Prefontaine and martial arts expert Michelle Yeoh of Crouching Tiger fame. While this is a good guess it is in fact not correct. Others claim that I combine crime fighting with distance running using only throwing stars and a beat up pair of Pumas to bring justice to my fair city. Again – wrongo.

My story is much, much more humble than those suggested above. It all started (and ended for that matter) on Christmas Day, 2005. I received as a gift from my parents a pair of black running pants and a running jacket. Those items in themselves are not enough to warrant the ‘marathon ninja’ moniker but this was no ordinary running jacket. My parents spared no expense in outfitting me with a Patagonia ‘thumby’ running jacket. When I donned the black pants, jacket, and black hat that very day my brother-in-law commented that I looked like an Irish Bank-Robbing Ninja of some sort. I took the liberty to modify his description into something a little more appropriate to the task at hand and became the Marathon Ninja. To be honest “Irish Ninja” sounds almost as cool but is getting a little too close to the title of a not-so-hot Chris Farley film (R.I.P.).

So that is the origin of the name. Good story ‘eh?

I have 2 more things. First, I got some socks today that have a dedicated left foot and right foot denoted by a little L and little R stitched right in. I don’t for one minute believe that putting the correct sock on the correct foot will help me break 4 hours in the marathon but it’s nice to have one part of your day planned out for you ahead of time. It helps to avoid the pesky ‘now which foot gets this sock?’ dilemma I face most days.

Finally I’ll wrap up on a serious note with a list of tips my buddy J.J. send me regarding distance running. FYI JJ is a member and head-honcho of the illustrious runtoo.org. JJ is the bearded fellow front-and-center in the photo displayed on the runtoo web site. Thanks J.J.!

Still be alive the day after the marathon (seriously)
Do nothing that will permanently injure myself
Go the whole distance (crawling if necessary)
Run the whole distance
Finish under 4 hours ( or 9 minutes/mile)
Qualify for preferred start in next Chicago Marathon
Run under 8 minutes/mile
Qualify for Boston Marathon
So on and so forth

2006-03-09T18:41:00.000-06:00

This is what a wet (and happy) me looks like after busting out back to back to back sub-eight minute miles. Today marked my official first 'rain run' on the streets and I was loving every mile of it. I finished in 23:30 but had to stop at 4 lights so I'm thinking it was closer to 23 minutes - bottom line is I was going fast (for me at least).

I have to get rolling now but I'm going to finish this post up later - or maybe tomorrow. Just remember that treadmills suck and running in the rain can be a blast*.

*Note it probably should be at least halfway warm and the route should not be EXTRA long for this to hold true. I can't imagine 20 miles of rain running.

2006-03-07T16:38:00.000-06:00

I almost forgot. I have 3 things for you which are totally unrelated to running.

1) If you live within 50 miles of Potbelly's stop whatever you are doing and run out to get a chocolate shake right now. I had one for lunch today and forgot how excellent they are.

2) I can type 56 Words Per Minute (WPM). Adjusted for errors it was 55 WPM. If you think you are faster than me go to typingtest.com and prove it. I took the 3 minute test because it is the Ironman of online typing tests. Post your results in the comments section below.

3) Do you wish you didn't spend the last 20 seconds reading items 1 and 2 above?

2006-03-07T16:22:00.000-06:00

The graphic we all know and love is back. My 10 mile run this past Saturday marks a new Personal Distance Record for me and serves as breaking the psychological "double digit miles" barrier.

I'm trying to be the glass-half-full guy and be proud of this long run (and I am) but at this point I'm still 16.2 miles short of a marathon. As far as the run itself I felt better on this long run in almost every way as compared with last week's 9 miler.

My original plan was to sleep in on Saturday and start my run close to noon when the weather would be warmer. I only made it until about 8:10 AM and was wide awake so I got myself ready and hit the streets. I figured it would be better to get the run done rather than hang around for 4 hours waiting for the thermometer to raise 7 degrees.

I wore the same clothes this week as last – three layers on the bottom and two on top – which kept me warm (after the first half mile or so) but not too hot. I also brought along my trusty CamelBak, iPod, and Garmin. Surprisingly my GPS grabbed a signal very quickly and allowed me to start my run close to my apartment. Usually it takes anywhere from 5 to 8 minutes to acquire a signal.

The first half of the outbound leg of my long run had me covering familiar territory. I ran across the North Ave. Bridge and south along the lake. When I got to Navy Pier I didn’t run out onto Olive Park or down the pier, instead I kept going south across the Chicago River and alongside Grant Park. My turnaround point was Soldier Field which is located south of the Shedd Aquarium.

I was a little worried I would get lost getting from Navy Pier across the Lake Shore Drive Bridge but the running path was well marked and it was no problem. My Garmin did lose its signal while running under the top part of the bridge but remembered where it was when I came out on the other side. Around mile 3 I passed a tent set up by the Chicago Area Runner’s Association who were passing out water but I didn’t know if I was allowed to partake as I’m not a member so I kept on going south.

I was semi-familiar with the route next to Grant Park since the 2005 Run Hit Wonder 10K followed this path as well. The trip back was into a light wind that didn’t affect me nearly as much as last time. I finished up the run feeling like I could have gone farther but was still happy to see the front door of my apartment.

After a shower, Excedrin, PB sandwich (boo jelly), and some banana yogurt I totally crashed. I spend two hours laying down watching TV and drifting in and out of sleep while I waited for my biological batteries to recharge.

Once I finally got out of bed much later, I went to California Pizza Kitchen for a real meal – 2 baskets of bread and a pizza – and felt MUCH better.

Sunday I did a cross training day (20 minutes on the woosher and a stretch) to cure my hangover from Friday night and this morning (Tuesday) I did 3 miles on the treadmill at Equinox (25:25).

I’m already getting excited for green beer this weekend.

2006-03-03T09:51:00.000-06:00

I had a good run last night with the Chicago Niketown Running Club after work. We did the usual 3 mile route which goes down Erie, south on Lakeshore Drive, under Lakeshore Drive, out and around the tip of Navy Pier and back. I finished in 22:57 which works out to a 7:40 mile.

I’m not sure why I enjoy this run so much but there is something fun about a group of 40 people coming together to go run outside on a winter day in Chicago. Each run starts with our leader – and Nike employee – Chris telling everyone “we’re starting on time today and doing the Navy Pier route. Have fun and I’ll see you soon.” Then everyone files out the big revolving doors at the front of the store and walks about 10 feet before falling into a running rhythm. I found it interesting to start at the back of the pack – as I did yesterday – and see everyone spill out onto the street and into a run.

It’s also entertaining to have a bunch of runners to pass without having to enter (or pay for) a formal race. Between avoiding other runners, pedestrians, and cars, and listening to my iPod I had lots to keep me busy during the 3 mile run.

I finished somewhere between 5th and 10th out of 40 runners and had a good stretch outside and some bananas and a bagel inside. No freebies were given to anyone this time but I still had a great time and plan on being back next week. They are doing a Nike shoe demo on March 23rd that should be cool. I want to give the new Air Max 360s a spin.

The only problem with the demo on the 23rd is if I'm going to get new shoes I should do it now and not wait for the end of the month.

2006-03-02T17:04:00.000-06:00

Since my last post I ran 3 miles on Tuesday and 5 miles last night. Both were on the treadmill at the gym and were for the most part unremarkable. I was a little tired for the first 1.5 or 2 miles of my run last night but I finished strong. I’m setting the incline on the treadmill to 1.0% rather than flat since some web sites recommend that and I believe everything I read on the Internet.

My real reason for this post is running music. I’m interested in what people are listening to while running fast on a shorter run or going slow on a longer run. Obviously taste in music will be a big determinant here – while I prefer Gregorian Chanting, others prefer punk, metal, or country.

Here is my ‘3 mile playlist’ loaded up on the old iPod:

Lost in the Supermarket by The Clash
Rock & Roll by Led Zepplin
Hitsville UK by The Clash
So Alive by Ryan Adams
Blitzkrieg Bop by The Ramones
I Wanna be Sedated by The Ramones
Rudie Can’t Fail by The Clash
Drunken Lullabies by Flogging Molly
Heavy Metal Drummer by Wilco
Dammit by Blink 182

As you can see it nearly all punk and half of the list is either The Clash or The Ramones. I really like the songs above but probably need a change of pace.

2006-03-01T10:36:00.000-06:00

5 weeks of training are in the books and I’ve got 14 to go before the marathon. I had a cross training day on Monday which included the woosher (a.k.a. Elliptical Machine) and an abbreviated lifting session. It was nice to get a little bit of cardio work in while not hammering my legs into the ground for a change.

Yesterday I had a quick 3 mile run on the treadmill at the gym. I finished in 24:31 which works out to an 8:10 mile so I felt fairly speedy. When I tackle longer distances – even the 5 mile distance tonight – I want to scale back some to lower my chance of injury. I still figure I should be moving on a 3 mile day, however, since it’s so short.

I’ve been thinking about shoes a lot recently. Not flip flops, dress shoes, crocks, or even the dreaded aqua socks. I’ve been thinking of running shoes.

For a little background I currently own an old pair of New Balance 991’s and a new pair of Asics Gel-DS-Trainer XI’s. The 991’s have been my workout workhorse for over a year and logged around 200 miles in 2005 and probably another 70 to 80 miles in 2006. This is in addition to the running I did in them before I started tracking my miles (which I will admit was not very many miles). The 991’s still feel great and show little signs of wear but I did notice some plastic on the back of the shoe is cracking. I have read that the running life of a running shoe is about 500 miles so I’m wondering if I should replace the 991’s and get a second new pair of running shoes I could wear in the marathon.

As far as the Asics go, I got them at the end of 2005 (Christmas Gift) and have put somewhere between 100 and 150 miles on them. My concern as far as the Asics go is wearing them out just before the race and having the unfortunate choice of either having to break in new shoes at the last minute or just deal with a pair that is broken down. Since the Asics are a lighter (much lighter) training flat they will break down sooner than the 991’s.

So I need to decide if I will keep running in the 991’s and if so for how much longer. I also need to get a new pair of shoes sooner rather than later so they will be nice and broken in before the race should I want to wear those rather than the Asics. What’s a runner to do?

Tonight I’m going to hit the gym and bang out 5 miles like it’s my job. Tomorrow I’m going for my second consecutive run with the Niketown Running Club here in Chicago after work.

2006-02-27T09:22:00.000-06:00

First of all note the new snazzy graphic I have created for use after a run that breaks my Personal Distance Record (or PDR). This Saturday’s run was 9 miles which was farther than I have ever run in one shot so it was a PDR.

Next, note that this is a long post and you may have to read it in 4 or 5 sittings. Proceed with caution.

I decided to head down to my gym and dump my things into a locker before heading outside for my long run on Saturday morning. I put on all my gear which included three layers on the bottom – running tights, Runderwear, and running pants – and two layers on top – long-sleeve dri-fit shirt and a running jacket - and headed out the door.

Mile 1

My goal for the entire run, especially for the first few miles, was to go slow. The one thing I didn’t want to do was go out too fast and have to walk for long stretches during the run. I had some fairly fast music blaring out of my iPod but I managed to control myself during the first mile. This basically got me from the gym, across Lincoln Park, over the North Ave. Bridge and headed south along the lake. I noticed that the temperature was a little bit cold but since by the end of mile one the wind was directly at my back this was no big deal. It was nice to have the wind pushing me forward for a while.

Mile 2

This stretch basically encompassed the route from the Chess Pavilion to Oak Street beach. I’ve run this stretch of the lake many, many times by now but still love to look up at downtown while I plod on. Again during mile two I was fresh and the wind continued to push me. After mile two I took a very short water break and made good use of my CamelBak. I was following orders by keeping myself hydrated even though I wasn’t thirsty at that point.

Mile 3

Things got a little more interesting as I passed Oak Street Beach and turned south. I ran through what I can only describe as a pack of ice sitting right along the path. Since the wind was blowing very hard and it was cold enough for ice it made that part of the path (maybe 60 yards) pretty dicey. I slowed down long enough to make sure I didn’t slip and kept going.

I made it down to the next beach (whatever it is called) next to Olive Park and turned left (Northeast) down the path that runs through the park. This is where things got interesting because I was now running directly into the teeth of the wind. It was 24 degrees out with a wind chill of 14 and to me it felt like zero. My Garmin told me I was making a 10:20 pace while running out towards the lake but I was running hard. When I made it out to the end of the pier and turned around my pace quickened to 8:15 with the same effort – the wind had made that much of a difference. While I was happy to temporarily have the wind at my back again I knew I’d be running into the wind on Navy Pier, and back out where I had just run not to mention the last 2+ miles were right into the wind as well.

Mile 4

This one started with me exiting Olive Park where a small dog chased me for about 50 feet. It turns out the owner had accidentally dropped the leash but eventually got the pup back under control. I was happy it was a smaller dog and wasn’t worried about being attacked but I was trying not to step on the freezing mutt either.

I rounded the corner next to Lake Point Tower and made my way down the North side of Navy Pier. For a cold and windy day there were a number of tourists out just walking around enjoying the day. I did note there were fewer people fishing off the pier than usual and I’m sure the cold kept them away. I got a few odd looks that seemed to say ‘you are crazy for running outside today’ but I just waved and said good morning and kept going.

I finished mile 4 about halfway back down the South side of the pier.

Mile 5

This was my turnaround mile. I made it to the base of Navy Pier and rounded the drive there to make it to the 4.5 mile halfway point of my run. I was fairly cold by then and my gloves and hat were wet with sweat which just made them feel colder. I took another quick water break and started to retrace my steps.

Mile 6

During mile six I made my way back out to the tip of Navy Pier and back one more time and out into Olive Park a second time. This time the little dog, and his owner, were nowhere in sight which was a plus. Again I stepped into the wind tunnel that was the path out to the lake and again my pace dropped to somewhere in the high 10 minute mile range.

My legs felt heavy here for about half a mile and my calves were tight but this mostly went away by the time mile 7 rolled around.

Mile 7

With only three miles to go I was feeling good but getting very cold. By now I was unconcerned with my pace since an 8 minute mile effort was rewarded with a 10 minute mile result. Somewhere early in this mile I hit the one-hour mark of my run and took a CliffShot Energy Gel pack and washed it down with a little water. The influx of carbs felt good and kept me running strong until the end.

Mile 8

Early in mile eight I went by the ice field one more time next to Oak Street beach. Again I slowed to a crawl so I wouldn’t slip and break something in the process. The best part of rounding this corner near the beach was the wind died down. By now I was very cold in my face and hands and couldn’t really feel my chest. I’m no doctor but at this point I was thinking I should have considered a treadmill (like Rich) rather than running outside since ‘lack of feeling in chest’ is probably not extremely healthy.

Mile 9

I passed the chess pavilion and kept heading north in the direction of the North Ave. bridge and Equinox. With the end in sight and the Flogging Molly song “Within a Mile of Home” blaring in my head* I picked up the pace and passed 2 or 3 runners before making it back to Lincoln Park.

I headed around the baseball fields and crossed the street and completed the 9 mile circuit in 1:23:41 which works out to a 9:30 pace if you are scoring at home. I was tired and cold but felt that I could have pressed on and gone farther if I had needed to do so.

*Note that the actual song was not playing on my iPod but I always seem to sing this song in my head to myself in the final mile of any run. Go figure.

While I was cursing the wind and cold during the run (especially the 2nd half of the run) I’m happy I fought through it and kept going. It was certainly more interesting than watching cartoons on the treadmill. The bottom line is I want spring and summer to come NOW so I can run outside in shorts and a tee shirt.

The good people at my gym had the pleasure of getting to smell me while I stretched inside the gym following the run. It was nice to be able to take a steam and shower after that which warmed me up considerably.

While I will run much farther than 9 miles before this is over (26.2 - 9=17.2 miles farther) for the moment I’m proud of my new personal distance record and am looking forward to the miles to come. I felt excellent all day Saturday off my running fueled endorphin high.

The only soreness to report is in the calves which by today (Monday) has basically gone away. Tonight I am thinking about lifting, doing the woosher, or maybe both. Week #4 is in the books and this week I have a 3 mile, a 5 mile, another 3 mile, and finally a 10 mile run. Good times.

Look for several shorter posts in the days to come. I’d like to put one up on my thoughts on running music at some point.

2006-02-24T16:59:00.000-06:00

For tomorrow a 9 mile round trip ...

2006-02-23T21:40:00.000-06:00

Yesterday’s run went very well. It marked my first time running outside in over a week and the weather was in the 40s with no wind which made for a pleasant run. For my 4 mile run Wednesday I ran my usual 3 mile route (up Lincoln, west on Armatage, north on Sheffield and back and tacked on an extra mile. I discovered that my walk to the train everyday is exactly ½ mile so it was easy to tack on that route to make 4 miles.

The main notable thing about yesterday’s run is it was fast. I strung together four sub eight-minute miles which is as fast as I’ve ever gone at that distance (I have run a 5k faster).

For tonight’s run I was able to go outside again which was a treat. It was a little colder tonight than yesterday but still nice for this time of year. Tonight was my first time to the Chicago Niketown Running Club which meets weekly on Thursday nights at 6:15 for a 3, 5, or 7 mile run.

I managed to arrive at the store a little early and signed in – and filled out what felt like 100,000 forms. They got my address and phone number and my secondary e-mail address in exchange for an organized group of runners and freebies at the end.

Tonight there were 52 people that showed up to run which they informed us was a new winter record. Probably around 2/3 of the people there had run with the group before and the remaining third were new. At around 6:20 we left the store, hung a left down Michigan Ave. and another immediate left onto Erie.

The veterans of the group knew exactly where they were going so I made sure to follow a few of them until I knew where I was and could easily make it to Navy Pier and back. I kept up with some quicker runners for the first mile or so then they went ahead of me. My stupid Garmin was acting up so I only turned it on for the last half (1.5 miles) of the run.

From the midpoint of the course to the end I didn’t see anyone else but I made very good time finishing the last 1.5 miles in 12:10 for what I’m guessing was a total of 24:20 or faster or just over the 8 minute mile mark. In any case I finished before the majority of the others.

As far as the post run activities Nike provided, I was very pleased. If you had asked me 7 months ago what I thought of Nike and Niketown I would have said that they have some nice stuff that is extremely overpriced and were mostly glitz and marketing.

I have come around some since then because of the following:

The One Hit Wonder 10k race they sponsored last September was a blast
The Nike “Awake” Commercial which makes me want to run in the worst way whenever I see it on TV. I gotta get that on my iPod ASAP
The people running the club were friendly and helpful and I think I’ll go back
Free Post-Run bananas and bagels for all!!
Best for last … drum roll please…2 free tee shirts and free reflective stickers

See the above picture for the free stuff.

About the only downside of the running club was the 15 minute presentation (infomercial) they did on the new line of Pre (Steve Prefontaine) shoes, shorts, and jackets. Hey they had a captive audience so they might as well try and make a buck I suppose.

My hard-earned dollar will still go to Fleet Feet first but there is some good stuff at Niketown also.

So bottom line, Wednesday and Thursday were above average outside running days and I think I will be back with the club on March 2nd (next Thursday) for my next 3 mile training run.

Wish me luck on my 9 mile run this Saturday morning. TGI(a)FAIHTDO = Thank God It's (almost) Friday and I have the day off.

2006-02-21T12:09:00.000-06:00

I spent a long last weekend in Colorado where my cross training days were covered by skiing Breckenridge and Vail on Friday and Saturday respectively. I also went for my long run (5 miles) on a treadmill at a 24 Hour Fitness location in Denver before I flew home on Sunday night.

My ski weekend was excellent since there was no traffic, good snow and no lines at any of the chairlifts. The only downside was the cold – it was in the low 20s on Friday and the high 20s on Saturday but since we were dressed for the cold it was not too bad.

Since my last ski experience was over a year ago, I had forgotten what a good workout skiing can be. It was fun to ski some of the harder stuff at both Breck and Vail – especially the backcountry runs with lots of trees. The runs with bumps seem to take two to three times the energy of the regular cruser runs but we did plenty of both.

Thankfully the Sunday run was only 5 miles since I’m unaccustomed to the thin air in Denver. I started at 6.9 MPH on the treadmill and worked my way up to 7.3 and then back down to 7.1 depending on how fast the music was on my iPod. I finished the last mile at an 8 minute-mile pace (7.5 MPH) and felt pretty strong at the end. I finished the workout with a good stretching session and 3 sets of 10 pushups for good measure.

The mid-week runs remain the same this week … 3 miles today, 4 tomorrow, and 3 on Thursday. I get a rest day on Friday and have a 9 mile run on Saturday which will be my longest ever.

All-in-all I feel good now. My toe isn’t bothering me and I feel rested and relaxed. I hope this is true after this weekend and going forward when the mileage really starts to increase. I hope I can run outside on Saturday morning since 80 minutes on a treadmill does not sound like fun (see post below on Tutenstein).

2006-02-15T14:06:00.000-06:00

I have one run in the books for week three. It was only a 3 mile run outside last night (Tuesday) and was pretty uneventful. The bigger worry I have had over the past 3 days I have been worried about my big toe.

I have always made fun of those athletes who claimed they had ‘turf toe’ but I believe that is exactly what I have been experiencing since Monday morning. It was strange that my long run last week was on Saturday and I felt no pain during the run, after the run or the entire next day.

The good news is the foot feels much better today but I still notice a very small, very dull pain when I walk around but it seems to be getting better. On my run yesterday I felt no pain. I even ditched the mp3 player in favor of focusing on how my body and foot felt. I was really trying to concentrate on my heel strike (if that is even a term) such that my heel hit the pavement first then rolled up to the arch and ball of my foot.

I run 4 miles tonight (probably on the treadmill) and 3 miles tomorrow (hopefully outside before work). My trip this weekend to Colorado should more than count for a cross training day since I will be skiing on Friday and Saturday. The 5 mile weekend run might be tough due to the elevation in Denver.

2006-02-13T09:10:00.000-06:00

Week two of training is now complete. I ran 7 miles on Saturday morning on the treadmill at Equinox. Although I had my iPod, the only thing on the big TVs overhead was Saturday morning cartoons. I’m not talking about the good cartoons of yore like Transformers or He-Man but rather Tutenstein. That’s right, an entire cartoon centered on a mummy that is a cross between King Tut and Frankenstein’s monster.

Aside from the cartoon the run was pretty boring. I did 5 miles, took a very brief water break and came back to the treadmill to pound out the last two. I was somewhere in the high 8 minute mile time (around 8:50 I think) which I don’t consider too bad. It was officially the longest I have run on a treadmill in one shot and look forward to running outside ASAP.

Aside from that there is little else to report. I skipped my cross training this weekend since my sister was in town. I could go tonight but that is unlikely.

The only other news to report is my big toe (left foot) really hurt this morning. Just walking around was painful. It is still tender now but much better than when I first woke up. I’ll monitor it today – hopefully it will be better for tomorrow’s run.

2006-02-09T11:19:00.000-06:00

This morning I switched things up a little and did my run before work rather than after. Since it was only 3 miles this didn’t really modify my morning routine too much other than forcing me to wake up an hour earlier than normal. The reason for this change is that I’m attending the Flogging Molly show tonight at House of Blues and didn’t want to have to hit the gym before that.

One thing I did discover this morning is that I take a long time to stretch, steam, shower, and change following a workout. For example today my run was 26 minutes, my stretch was probably around 15 minutes, steam was another 10 and shower and change another 10 which means I spent more time getting ready than working out today. I normally wouldn’t worry about such things but had to make it to work this AM.

Overall I’m feeling pretty well. I’m a little tired from lack of sleep and this morning’s run and a little sore from Tuesday’s kickboxing. I’m looking forward to having a rest day tomorrow in preparation for my long run (7 miles) on Saturday.

I’m hoping to be able to do the long run outside but the temps will probably not get over 30 so I might have to hit the treadmill yet again. I think I’m going to have to reward myself with a pint or three at the show tonight.

2006-02-08T10:00:00.000-06:00

I’m up to day one of week #2. Yesterday I did a 3 mile treadmill run in around 26 minutes, had a stretch and went to an hour class of kickboxing. The run was uneventful but the kickboxing kicked my ass a little. It was a great workout but I discovered I wouldn’t last 15 seconds with the likes of Chuck Norris.

Last night I was capital-T Tired from my workout. Today I’m having trouble lifting my arms over my head which is largely due to the 15,000 jabs, 10,000 crosses and 8,000 uppercuts I threw in class.

On the ‘other good news’ front we have a couple of new developments. So far the cheering section for Rich and I will include Jim, Cathy, Kraig, Laura, and Lindsey who will all be on hand for the race. The newest group to come and cheer us on is none other than my parents and possibly my sister and brother-in-law. This is good news indeed as having people to cheer you on around mile 18 will be fantastic.

Tonight brings a ho-hum 3 mile run with more of the same on Thursday. Needless to say I’m taking at least a week off of kickboxing.

2006-02-07T13:15:00.000-06:00

So as of yesterday, week one of training is in the books. I ran 3 miles on Tuesday, 3 miles on Wednesday, 3 miles on Thursday, and 6 miles on Saturday. I took Superbowl Sunday off and had a cross training day yesterday. This involved a brief warm up and a lifting session.

Since I’m only one week into the program and the mileage isn’t too high yet I’m trying to focus on making some good habits for the remainder of the pre-marathon training. First and foremost I’m trying to put in a thorough stretch after every workout. Even if I only run 3 miles I want to take the time to stretch my back, arms, and legs well. I have noticed that if I stretch well it will decrease my muscle soreness, increase flexibility and help reduce my risk of injury.

Another resolution (as you may like to call it) is to listen to my body and not try and run too fast. Again, I don’t think that is a huge issue now since the weekly mileage is only at 15 miles but it will become much more important as the longest runs creep up toward 20 miles.
All-in-all week one went very well and I’m excited that I have finally started the ‘official’ training program. I’m starting to make some more plans for the trip now (booking a hotel) which makes the whole thing more real somehow.

Week #2 brings three more 3-mile runs (Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday) and a 7 mile long run on Saturday. I’m also throwing in a kickboxing class with friends after my run tonight. The class is called Powerstrike! and I think will be taught by Jean Claude Van Damme or his lesser know brother Cletus Van Damme.

If you have any questions or comments for me – marathon ninja – post ‘em here!