Aug 26
I am beginning to despise long runs on the weekend. Saturdays and Sundays are really the only days that we have the possibility to “sleep in”. If we do sleep in, it’s too hot this time of year to want to run more that 3 miles. With 3 half-marathons coming up, not doing long runs is NOT AN OPTION. This week I determined to do my weekend run on a weekday.
In order to make it to work on time I had to be laced up and walking out of our front door at 5:30. That early these days is darker than dark but it had to be done. I woke up several times in anticipation for the projected 10 miles as I really didn’t want to miss the opportunity to burn 1200 calories and get it out of the way!
Out of bed. Contacts in, teeth brushed. Dressed in the dark. iPod, check. Garmin watch, check. Tenth of a mile walk to wakeup and stretch. Press start on my watch. Press play on the iPod and I’m off. One step at a time. A Matt Carter message and about 3/4 of Jeremy Camp’s Speaker Louder Than Before album. About 1.5 hours later I am more sore, more thirsty, more spiritually minded and back at my starting point.
Very enjoyable and challenging run. No personal records (PR) on this run but a great one for sure. It has been a while. Here is a snapshot from the run as displayed by my Garmin watch’s training software. I plan on making this a semi-permanent to permanent change. Yay!
May 26
I have been back in my running routine for a few months now. Its great when waking up earlier than the sun becomes a habit again. Recently I have been challenged (by myself) to step it up. Distance is great, but even my usual 6.25 mile route has been too comfortable. For whatever reason, I feel lame coming back from a run not dripping of sweat. Maybe its a misconception maybe not, but I equate sweat to a valuable workout and how many cookies burned.
It’s easier for me to reference the foods that I love to miles I must run to burn those foods. I am a sucker for sweets! Cookies, yum… Ben and Jerry’s ice cream, yum… cake, yum. I rarely have Dr. Pepper and Cokes anymore and I only have my mom-in-law’s bomb sweet tea on Sundays. Some people think calories (typically 110 calories per mile depending on heart rate, sex, weight), I think food and beer.
Example:
- 1 bottle of Leinenkugel’s Sunset Wheat… 2 miles!
- 3 of the Dixon famous chocolate cakies… 2 miles!
- 1 can of DP… 2 miles!
- 2 chunks of momma Clark’s sopapilla cheese cake… 4 miles! etc.
Anyways, I have determined that the speed needs to increase because I LOVE TO EAT. Does anyone else think like this?
Apr 11
Friday we left town to head down South to the great land of Austin. We stayed with Traci’s brother Kelly and his family in Georgetown. While there we enjoyed pit fires and conversations in their backyard and laying in the sun Saturday on their trampoline. Very relaxing. The weather was perfect! Our main purpose for going there this weekend was to run in the Austin Capitol 10K which was this morning (Sunday) at 8:45am. Traci’s dad Kip and brother Jeff strolled Addi and Kam around the race start and finish as Traci and I ran the route. Up to the capitol, around the down town area and back around by Town Lake trails. 6.2 miles. Traci and I ran together through the drizzle and mist, finishing at a 9 min per mile pace. We quickly changed clothes and made it to the 11:15 service at the Austin Stone for yet another incredible message and worship session. This evening we were able to hear Kelly speak at this church in Georgetown at TXT3 and then a 4 hour trip back to Tyler. We had a great time this weekend despite Addi being sick with a cold and fever. I love Austin!
Mar 10
It’s Wednesday and I’m loving this week! At home we have been doing some rearranging and switching some accounts around of services such as DirecTV and Suddenlink high speed so we have actually been in the dark since last Friday or so. No satalite till this morning and no high speed till tomorrow afternoon. Retrospectively, It actually has been nice, relaxing and seems to slow down time when you are not always checking sites or having TV on all evening. Refreshing. I actually had to come up to my studio just to get on-line to surf for a few and make this post.
Already this week I have seen Alice in Wonderland (Ok if you ask me… a bit underwhelming), did some yard work, took Traci to Dallas for a meeting with a client, ran, took care of some around the house chores, painted, read, and journaled a bit. I still have some more things on my list but for the most part I’m on track. I still plan to take my beautiful girls our of school early this week for some fun times (hopefully and totally up to the emotional coin flip of my oldest) with daddy.
I am feeling refreshed, rejuvenated, and relaxed. I have lived a good percentage of the weekend and week inside of my thoughts and earbuds, listening to podcasts and music galore while reflecting of how fantastic our God really is. I am learning that time to my self for “rest” is a much needed thing for me personally. I love to paint, run, listen to music and just drive around which all in some mysterious way have a sense of healing my inner “up-tightness”. I am enjoying the time and feel that as a result I am able to spend more valuable and engaging time with my family. Now I need to focus on how to get this my needed “Ryan Time” in the midst of a normal crazy week. ?
One thing that I began this week and I would highly encourage you to do is journal. Seriously. I really want to gain form my quiet times. I want to learn, to grow and to make significant steps to put those thing that I gain into practice. I have a hard-bound sketch book that I bought from Hobby Lobby a few months ago that is perfect for jotting down thoughts as I read. I am currently reading the Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians and Colossians. I really enjoy the writings of Paul. Hardcore for sure. If a verse or passage sticks out to me I write it down, word for word, and then the thoughts and prayers that these verses stir in me. It has been really good… already! I would encourage you to do the same, but only if you want help and motivation in reading and memorizing scripture, retaining what you have read and growing in your relationship with Christ.
Peace!
Feb 09
Dear friends-
I have a confession to make. I’ve been such a slacker since my last 1/2 marathon in mid December. I took a week off post race to rest, then there was Christmas, then it was too dark in the morning, then it was too cold, then raining and cold. I have dropped my average miles to an all time low of 10-15 miles per week. Gross! I have to get back on track! Geez! I love the way I feel while running, the therapeutic time inside of my thoughts and release, relaxation, and accomplishment I feel post run. I’ve just gotta get my butt back in gear and wanted to make that confession. My minimum weekly mileage 2 months ago was 18-20. Now you can hold me accountable. Thanks.
Dec 17
I have 2 shoe options. Work or running. Work shoes are lame. Running shoes are super cool. Very important and versatile. New running shoes instill mystery and increase my motivation to run. Trust-worthy, broken-in and familiar shoes give me security on long runs. Old running shoes are slid on bringing back many great memories of miles and are typically super comfy and are great for trips to the store or loafing. The eldest are used for stomping through the yard while mowing or on muddy work days. I love running shoes. Traci and I bought each other new ones (Mizuno Wave Rider 12) for Christmas. Yippie!
Dec 13
Today’s 1/2 was a personal best for me at the ever popular Dallas White Rock 1/2 marathon. The conditions were great. 50 degrees and misty/cloudy. I was a bit apprehensive since I haven’t been eating as lean nor running as much as I have been wanting to the last couple of weeks. The bigger, more organized races have a new “wave” start which is fantastic. Basically when you register for the race, you state what your average pace will be then on race day they set you up in large groups or “waves” with runners of a similar pace. This is great because you don’t have to spend the first 3 miles dodging walkers which is a BIG PEEVE of mine with more community type events such as the Turkey Trot.
So, today. 8am. American Airlines Arena, Downtown Dallas. Exciting and almost overwhelming. I started at a super comfortable pace, slowly increasing my stride and the next thing I knew, I pass the 3 mile marker. I couldn’t believe how fast the race was feeling. A few miles of Dallas downtown. A handful of miles of swanky neighborhoods. Then it was time for the last 3 miles.
This last, downhill stretch was on one of our favorite running spots in Dallas, The Katy Trail. Awesome. I spent a solid 2 miles of this trail on a “runners high” which for those who have not experienced it, is when your focus is on only the good things of running. The pounding pain of your joints induced by your hour-plus run on the wet and damp concrete goes away. The chill that has caused your muscles and tendons to be tighter than normal over the 10 miles becomes irrelevant. It’s as if all negative aspects of running subside as your adrenaline makes your heart smile and your steps feel as light as air. Not to mention a mental block to increase my pace as I flash by people I’ve only seen the back of during the previous miles. Seriously awesome.
Mile 12. My right calf quickly tightened mid stride causing an instant back-to-reality smack to my run. I caught the cramp before it rooted by extending my right leg with an obvious stretch to keep the muscle loose. Whew! All good. Then again. No way was I going to have the best race of my life only to end up with me curled up on the side of the trail rubbing out a calf cramp. No way. I began to pull back a bit as I felt it twinge again, only now from the left leg. Boo. With even more determination to finish the last 1/2 a mile, I ran with the least amount of calf muscle force as possible using mostly my momentum and straightened legs. Silly for sure. At 1 hour 40 minutes and 48 seconds, I finished. Average pace, 7:33 minutes per mile. I surpassed my goal of 7:45. A great and surprisingly memorable race day for me. I loved it.
Nov 21
So I’m sure you all know that my fam and I are way into running. My wife Traci speaks often about her running struggles and successes on her blog. Today we had the opportunity to run together while the girls napped (thanks Jen!) at the South Tyler Trails. We ran 5 miles and the weather was perfect. Overcast with a slight chill in the air. [SIDE NOTE: It is really weird to me to see people running in sweatpants and sweatshirts when the weather is 65!... thats just not right. If you do that, please quit.] After the run which was one of Traci’s fastest paces yet, I told her that I’ve determined that if you make pace goals (average minutes per mile) it really helps.
Distance has been our thing for a while now and has become a bit routine and might I say boring. It’s very typical to set a distance goal and achieving it is great. A few months ago my goal was 8 minutes per mile for both of my 3 times a week 6.25 route and weekend 8-12 mile run. This was a good goal and easily achieved but I was becoming a bit lazy because of it. I ran the route and felt a bit guilty as my heart rate was rarely above a nap’s. As of lately I have set a new goal of 7:45 per mile which I can tell has really helped me feel more of a workout with each run. I will keep my goal here till the new year and then bump it to 7:30 as I want to continue to become faster.
So with that, I recommend that you set goals that are more and more uncomfortable. Set distance AND pace goals. It really helps. That’s really the only way we get better at anything. The brain is seriously the biggest obstacle to overcome in running. Push or be pushed.
