Phanatical

40:18 Penn's Landing. Felt pretty good, although I hadn't eaten anything for over 16 hrs so I was kinda hungry.

Helicopters. Men in skirts. Amazing the kind of excuses we all need to be enthusiastic.

Windy and Cool

31:29 nice and easy. Feeling pretty good.

Good Evening

Back in Philly.

Last Thursday night after a long day I got out for :30 or so along Penn's Landing. Felt pretty good, except the metatarsal pad the doc gave me was just a little uncomfortable. Not sure it's gonna work, at least not for running anyway. Seems to feel OK when walking.

The following morning I caught a flight to San Francisco to visit my brother Nate, who lives in the area. My mom and my sister also happened to be in CA, and on a magical kind of whim we decided to take a quick trip to Yosemite National Park. After visiting some giant sequoias and hiking around a bit, I ended up above tree line on a peak that overlooked the park from the east. The pic below shows Nate, Alexz, and Bowie (the dog). Moved by the beauty of it all, I couldn't help but get a quick jog in with my brother's dog Bowie, an enormous but gentle beast. The two of us descended the roughly 1000' over about 2 miles or so. :20? I've decided that will be the first of many visits to Yosemite. Words can't describe.

Sunday I took a ride around the San Fransisco area with Nate. He's taken to cycling of late, and it was a blast chasing him up and down those hills. THOSE HILLS!!! 30+ miles, untimed. We rode single-speeds, and at one point some hot shots passed by us and egged us on during a steep ascent. I was able to catch one of them but had to let em go once I realized Nate and I had ended up on opposite entrances to the Golden Gate Bridge. What an absolute joy.

This evening after another long day, I wound up on the treadmill for :30+. Threw some "striders" in towards the end. I have to mention that for the past month or so I've been focusing on keeping my HR down (<150 or so) during these "runs," which end up between 9 and 12 min pace. Today was on the slower end. Afterward I did some leg lifts to help strengthen those pesky obliques, which have actually been feeling fine lately. Biking seems to aggravate them more. Would make sense that the two are related given the immense amount of cycling I've done this summer. Lately, I've been taking the el.

Hoping to get out a few more times this week, but not stressing if I don't.




































GG Bridge enveloped in fog. 60 and cloudy on one side, 80 and sunny on the other.

Public Swing Dancing

Why don't I live here?

Boat Houses

Sunset at 10k feet

Climbers

Can't really see it in this photo, but there are some climbers on that face. Must be a half mile vertical there.

Stacie Bowie and Nate

Yosemite Valley

I've Been Fighting

There's a certain momentum I carry when things are going well. Obstacles seem surmountable. Hesitations are few and far between.

Given my limited experience with running, I've witnessed this kind of momentum more so in other areas of my life. But I have seen it cross over into running as well.

As momentum can be described as the product of an object's mass and velocity, the only way I can describe the way things have fizzled out lately is that training-wise, there's no substance to me. Like I whittled my self down to a puff of dust. One small gust of wind, I'm gone.

Until pretty recently I feel like I've been consumed by frustration, anger. I've been fighting. Fighting this injury, fighting my doubts, fighting that fatigue that wants to keep me from getting out of bed at odd hours of the morning.

Well, I'm not throwing in the towel. But I am engaging in guerrilla tactics.

It occurs to me that the only way I can let things fall back into place is by letting them go.

Letting go of the expectations, the plans, the anticipation. Taking things at the pace that my mind and body seem to be dictating right now. This doesn't mean I've resolved not to run. Just that I've accepted things for what they are right now.

So, I've got no immediate goals. My only long term goal is that I'd like to try and run a marathon next June. That's a long time away. There's plenty of time to assess and plan and consider my options. Just not now.

On a less existential note, I got x-rayed at the podiatrist's office today. His official opinion is that the stress fracture is healed. The discomfort I've been experiencing is likely soft tissue related. He gave me a metatarsal pad and I'll be going back to see him in 3 weeks. Funny thing is that I felt relief as soon as I put the pad in. Go figure.

Stay healthy out there y'all.

Chilly!

And breezy, with fall smells wafting. Got out before sunrise, and indeed it was the earliest I've been out for a while. 26:30 jogging. Aimed for 30 min, b-lined it home when I sensed a bit of pain in the left foot. I noticed this just after the 20 min mark. Seems to be a pattern emerging lately.

Not sure if I should draw any conclusions from this, but perhaps I'll keep the outings short for the time being. My mind seems to be progressing at a quicker rate than my body can uphold, and I'm not sure what this discrepancy is about, but I'll have to work with what I got. At least my spirits held up today.

Untitled

45:00 Penn's Landing out-and-back. Decent up to about 30 min in, at which point I seemed to loose focus. Low grade discomfort in the foot and lower abs by the end of the run.

New Trick

Kept my expectations low today and was suprised to find some life in my legs. I contemplated doing some striders in the grass, but refrained. 22:00 easy jogging. No discomfort to report.

Misty Morning

Sunday I got out for a 25:00 jog with Maia. No issues to report except some discomfort in the left foot that lasted a few minutes and then went away.

Yesterday, easy 50:00 on the elliptical trainer. Felt really good during and afterwards.

This AM, easy jogging on the treadmill. Felt great up until the minute I hopped on the TM. Moving extremely slow. Either really tired or really out of shape. I intended to go 45:00 but after about 35 min I dropped my water bottle on the belt and it splattered on the ground and wall behind me. This must have set off some sort of chemical reaction in my brain because as soon as it happened my left foot cramped up a bit. So I stopped at 40:00.

It's been just over three weeks since I started back to "running" on a regular basis. I'm realizing that right now things will have to develop based around numerous other things going on in my life, rather than the other way around. In the past I could plan my days around some sort of training schedule. Now I'll be content to merely keep up these easy efforts. To keep things in check, I've been using a heart rate monitor, and plan to do so for the foreseeable future.

The past week has been somewhat tough, and that's reflected in these posts. I hope this doesn't sound too much like complaining. I'm only trying to be honest. That way, if in a few weeks things haven't improved at all, I can decide whether or not to keep this up.

Back and Forth

Schedule has made it tough to fit in morning runs. Add this to my congestion and general ambivalence over the past few days and I was sure I'd decide not to run today. I eventually got out the door for a 50:00 easy jog late this afternoon. Made it about halfway over the Ben Franklin Bridge before turning around. The south pedestrian ramp is closed due to painting, so I got a new view from the north side, which they've opened instead. The weather was perfect, and I think I'll sleep a little better for having gotten out. For the record, I felt a kind of awkward stiffness in my left foot about halfway through that dissipated as time went on. No issues otherwise.

Jogging with Maia

It rarely happens, but today the planets seemed to align and Maia and I found ourselves on the same path around the neighborhood at the same time (and pace). The run was nothing special, but the company was great, and we strayed off the beaten path a little to find some interesting scenery. 30:00 easy jog.

Day After

30:00 very easy jog along the Delaware. Honed in on the grass and asphalt. Felt decent out there, better than expected. No discomfort to speak of save the minor head cold. Long stretching session afterward. In terms of effort, these recent outings feel like warmups, leaving me wanting more. In time, I suppose I'll give into this craving.

Safety

I wanted something flat, soft, secure. I wound up on the treadmill. 45:00. Felt OK. Running continues to feel more natural, and my legs continue to adapt. There are still some niggling dull pains that I'm pretty sure I'd ignore if I wasn't so paranoid about these things lately. For some reason the hip flexors and lower abdominals have been super tight, especially on the right side.

I've been feeling a bit run down since I got back from my trip this weekend. This happened when I got back from my Scranton trip as well. While fishing off a breaker in Atlantic City on Saturday I slipped on some algae and landed on a bunch of barnacle-covered rocks. I wound up with some scrapes on my right calf and ankle, and lost a bit of skin right below my big toe on the left foot. Needless to say, it's been kind of uncomfortable to stand, walk, and run on it.

Also, sleeping under the stars for two nights in addition to the changing weather has left me with a scratchiness in my throat. Seems to be worse at night.

So, before I find any more complaints, I'm going to bed, maybe I'll feel better in the morning.

Happy Feet

Made it home. It's hot here. A very easy ride today, ended up around 73 miles or so. The beach seems a lot closer now...

Mile 49

Stopped at a grille in Atco, NJ for lunch. Expecting to be home by 4 pm.

Sunrise in Ocean City

We'll be on the road shortly. A stop at a coffee shop is likely in order.

Sandy Mattress

43:00 run along the sea at sunrise. Last few minutes barefoot. Cooled off in the ocean. Spectacular. When I got back Eric was still asleep.

88 Miles

There it is, big and blue. I don't know what the hell we're doing in Atlantic City, on bikes. Did I mention we're in AC? On bikes?

75 Miles

We made it to the ocean, but it's in the form of a bay. The Great Bay specifically, near Leed's Point. Pretty peaceful. We'll relax here for a few, then head south a bit to find some beach.

Ocean Air

Resting the legs on a downhill. Almost there.

Time for lunch! About 60 miles out. Skinny tires cause falling on sand roads, so we found our way back to pavement. Stopped in Hammonton.

Wharton State Forest

Roads have turned to sand. 40 miles in.

To the Sea

This is the path to New Jersey. This morning Eric and I are riding until we hit salt water. Then we're gonna eat shrimp. Lots of shrimp. Stay tuned for updates.

Relief Between Classes

26:30 jog along the Schuylkill. Perfect weather, didn't even break a sweat. A few more jaunts like this and I might be hooked.

Wondering

AM: 30:00 jog around the neighborhood. Felt a little awkward out there this morning. By the time things felt right it was time to wrap it up. Found myself wondering how long I'm willing to go before I start to notice improvements.

PM: 55:00 stair climbing. Stark contrast to this morning in terms of energy. I ate two PBJ's for lunch. Clearly I'm lacking peanut butter in my diet.