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December 31, 2005
Ordering Up the Usual
If there were a restaurant that I frequented on a regular basis, there would definitely be a "usual" order for me. I seem to be a creature of habit. My breakfast is the same thing every day. Ditto for lunch. Dinner is one of only a few dishes. These are foods that I happen to really like and are at least mostly healthy. The point is, routine does not bother me. Routines are actually comforting because I know what to expect.
Like most any other Saturday morning, this morning was my long run. At this point, it really can't be classified as a long run, I only call it that because it is the longest run of the week. It is gradually creeping up into long run territory, which I consider anything over 90 minutes. Long seems to be a relative term-for some people an hour is long and for others it isn't a long run until it is over two hours. Going over 90 minutes for me usually means thinking about having some water out and maybe trying to have some kind of fuel. In the winter I can easily go for over 2 hours without drinking anything, but that isn't necessarily something to be proud about. Fuel is another story, I havent' figured out how to use any kind of fuel without getting terribly sick from it. At this point, completely falling apart still seems more attractive than getting sick.
Anyhow...this morning my plan was to run for 75 minutes. Most of the group seemed to be planning for about an hour. I decided to stick with them because it is more enjoyable to run in a group than to venture out alone, so we did one of the museum loops. The pace for most of the loop felt a bit pedestrian, but we did pick it up towards the end. There is a long gradual hill that leads to the exit that T and I did pick up the pace on, but we waited at the top to regroup. The paths all look the same, so if I were left alone, I probably would not get out for over two hours. I've been having trouble with my new(er) watch starting recently. There are two issues-(1)the start button isn't in the same place as it was on my old watch, so when I hit the button that my mind thinks is the start button it won't start, and (2) when there are layers on top of the watch and I have on gloves, I don't seem to hit the button right. I'm not positive which I did this morning, but I found out that my watch hadn't started about 16 minutes into the run when we had to stop for a turned ankle. I starte the watch at this point and had to remember how much time to add to the running time. We got back and I added on another 16 minutes to get to 75. It didn't feel too bad, but the slower pace was more difficult to do and that seems to make my legs more tired at the end. I don't really get it, but running slower makes me more tired than running faster.
After the run, I went to the gym and did the rest of the Saturday workout. I hopped on an elliptical for half an hour. Trying to read a magazine was a bust since the fans were on and kept flipping the pages. I've read that to really get any benefit out of cross-training you shouldn't be able to read, but my interpretation of that is in order to get the same benefits as running you shouldn't be able to read. My goal of cross-training is to loosen up the tight areas and get a little bit of extra conditioning, not to take the place of running. After the elliptical, I hopped on a bike for half an hour. Reading was possible on the bike because the fans aren't directly over the bikes. I stretched and then lifted after the bike. My arms were very sore on Wednesday and I think there was still some reisidual soreness because I felt very weak when lifting this morning.
Posted by Blondie at December 31, 2005 11:14 AM