Take care of yourself

I just started to run - well, let's call it jogging - to supplement my cycling and change it up. My times aren't horrible, but I'm not trying to really improve those. Just keep the cardio up in the dead months of winter and when I'm bored of the rollers. However, I do not totally hate it.

 

Stairs workout today. 120 stories overall, divided by four climbs. Shaved 53 seconds off my overall best workout and turned a 4:48 my first tower, also best yet. I'm reminded of the first time I ran under a 7-minute mile, then did it two miles in a row, then three ...

Thing is, stairs are 100 times harder.

My pipe dream is to someday topple the guy who wins every year, who turns four sub-3:50s on an equivalent course. I think I might soon add a third day on the stairs each week, for sprints to build speed. As I've stated on here, I think, there is not really any guide out there for improving in this particular sport. You can find no shortage of articles on how to train to run faster at any distance. With stairs, the advice is along the lines of, "Take the stairs whenever you have a chance!" and, "Use the railing to pull yourself up!" It's geared toward beginners and slows.

 

Ran 5K today. Not an event, just to test myself. Ran it in 19:47, a 6:23/mile pace. My only 5K race was last year, a 20:29, so I'm pleased.

 

So anyway, I did this stair climb race in March. Trained my ass off for it. It's absolutely miserable. Four climbs of 45 stories.

I finished 18th out of 1,000-plus finishers, 1,300 overall participants. My previous best was around 50th or 60th, I think.

Next up: A Boston Marathon qualifying time.

 

Thread might be dead, but anyway: I've got two running goals. One is to break three hours in the marathon, eventually, although qualifiying for Boston this year is a secondary goal contained within that more difficult one. The 40-44 qualifying time is 3:15, or 7:26 miles. I ran my 10-mile run, which is my big pacing test, at a 7:09 pace last Friday, so hopefully I'm getting there. Really I think I need to qualify at 3:10 (7:14) to guarantee a spot. My medium-range goal is to get that 10-mile test up to 12 miles, and to run it at 6:50 pace.

Goal No. 2 is to break 18 minutes in the 5K. That might be the tougher of the two for me, because I'm not naturally fast.

 

Dick, or anyone else still reading this thread, have you ever done a Tough Mudder? I just recently compelted my fifth and it continues to be my favorite event of the year. I regularly do 5Ks, 10Ks and the occasional half marathon (not nearly as fast as you, but definitely not slow), but Tough Mudder stands out because it requires me to train in a whole different way. For the 10-12 mile version, you definitely have to be in running shape, but you also have to train for a lot of obstacles that require a good deal of upper body strength. In training for it this year, I went from being able to do 2-3 pullups to being able to do well over 10. Instead of running 4-5 times a week like I would for a half, I cut it back to 3 times a week and filled in the rest of the week with targeted strength training. It had a big impact on my body this year. I just feel stronger all around.

Now I am definitely taking it more seriously than some, or even most, do at those events. There is a great deal of people walking, and you can skip whatever obstacles you don't want to do. And it definitely isn't competitive. There is no clock and everyone stops to help everyone else. But I still like the challenge trying to get through every obstacle without slowing down. By the end of it, I am beat up, muddy and sore, but I feel like I accomplished something.

Just something to think about for anyone looking for a challenge that would motivate you to do more than just run forever or climb an insane number of stairs.

 

I would have a hard time with this.

 

Yeah I get that. I think that is a factor for many people, but it helps the event seem more accessible to the everyman (ahem, me).

This year, they introduced a competitive wave that is timed and forces each person to complete every obstacle or receive a DQ. That was the wave I ran in this year. For the most part, it was made up people like me, just trying to complete every challenge, with a few young badasses actually competing for the top spots.

 

That said, stuff like that certainly sounds like an interesting challenge. (Admittedly, the Crossfit cultists give me some pause about taking on those kind of fitness challenges.)

Right now, I'm pretty obsessed with some very specific running goals. Although my son wants me to try to compete in "American Ninja Warrior" some day. Got a lot of body transforming to do for that.

 

The Crossfitters tend to flock to the Spartan Race, a different version of all the mud races you can find. I did it once. It really was just running between separate crossfit exercises. Not at all unique or fun, but definitely physically demanding. Unfortunately, the "do you even lift, bro?" vibe was definitely there.

I kind of got burned out on running recently, or at least just running. Did my second marathon two years ago and have done at least one half every year. But at some point last year, every run became a chore, and I never felt good like I used to after them. That was when I really decided to commit to the Tough Mudder and give it my best shot. My previous times doing it, I was doing it because I already had the running down, so I just tried my best at the obstacles, failing at a few. Still fun though.

 

We'll see if/when I get there. I ran four marathons in my 20s, but my best time was only 4:22. I kept running in the intervening years - a lot of the time on the treadmill when I had very, very young kids and didn't always like to leave the house in the wee hours in the event I had to spring into action, which was often the case.

Right now, as I think I've mentioned, I have some goals that I'm pretty motivated to pursue, including qualifying for and running Boston, running a marathon in under three hours, and running a 5K in under 18 minutes. I'll attain those eventually, I think, perhaps even in 2017, and kind of go from there. I have the Ironman bug a little bit. There's the stairclimbing/tower races, although I don't think I'll be working in a skyscraper in the future, which kind of dampens those goals. And then there are also the kind of challenges you're talking about that require more all-around fitness that are intriguing, too. Hardcore runners, I should note, find them gimmicky.

 

Goal is six pack abs by July 4. Water,
Tons. One added push-up a day, up to 75 in morning. Stand up crunches, at least 200 a day. Swivel whatevers in the shower, 200 a day. Results are there. But how do you target a six pack without stressing your back? This is strictly for a bet, a drunken bet; mofo said I couldn't do it. Halfway there, don't have the definition quite yet. Help?