Who says the sequel is never better?

Tomorrow I'll be revisiting the first race that I've ever done, the Miami half marathon! 

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I'm so excited to do this race again for three reasons. 

1. I know the course so there are no surprises.
2. I'm running with a friend which will be very exciting.
3. The medal is totally awesome.

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I'm also excited about using a new gadget that I just purchased!

I got a monopod for times that I will be able to record the races that I'm running in. I do realize that I will have to hold this for the entire run but it's much lighter and easier to hold than my water bottle. I don't plan on recording the entire race but I certainly want to catch certain moments and the views. Miami is a great course to run and relatively flat, minus the two major bridges we have to cross at the beginning of the race. 

Mother nature is being very unkind to us by dropping the temperature to very cold 52 degrees tomorrow morning. Though it will be sunny we'll be running right by the ocean and it will be breezy. I planned on wearing the race shirt and a pair of shorts tomorrow but that is no longer my wardrobe. I'm going to seriously have to bundle up because the temperature will continue to drop while we're running. 

Regardless of the weather I am totally excited to get out and run this race again. I'm ready to be Miami famous!

A walk in the park. Or a half marathon run.

I simply love looking at race day pictures because I get to see what I look like at various stages in the race. Of course when I do see a camera person I tend to be extra campy unless I'm really tired. I just got a chance to get my race pictures from my PR breaking half and I must say, I'm looking pretty good!.

New PR!

Yesterday I crushed my previous half marathon time! I couldn't even believe it! Last year, close to this time, I ran my first race which was also a half and finished in 2:17:59. Though I only trained for about two months I figured I would be able to run the race close to two hours. I was soooo wrong. Not that my training didn't prepare me for the distance but training and racing are two different experiences (which I didn't know at the time). I was so excited and anxious that I shot out the starting line way faster than I planned which meant that I crashed sooner too. 

Well experience has gotten me more prepared and this year I was ready to set a new PR. My new half marathon finish time is 1:56:39! 

My family came out to support me.

Sub 2

Me and my friend set a new PR. We're on fire!

There were many factors that helped me to achieve this new time. First, mother nature was on my side cause the temperature was about 60 degrees. Second, my eating has been MUCH better all around than it was last year. And third my confidence is much higher than it was last year. I paced myself for for the first eight miles and then I increased my pace for the last four miles. My legs were feeling good, a bit tight but nothing that would cause me any issues. Around mile 11 I realized that I would be able to finish in less than two hours, so I ran a bit faster. Once I heard the music and the announcer, I focused on the finish line. I saw the clock and knew that I could make it under two, so I sprinted to the finish line. 

Seeing that number and feeling as good as I did I couldn't even believe that I am now in the under two hour half marathon category. I can't wait to see how well I do next year!

Take a little trip

Lately I have had this ingenious idea and quite frankly I don't know why I haven't done it before. On many occasions I needed to pick up something from the grocery store last minute for dinner. Normally after I pick up my oldest from school I go to the store before we go home. But the other day I decided to combine my run with a trip to the grocery store and BANG! Two birds, one stone, you get the idea. Last week I ran 6+ miles to get fruit. I added an extra two apples to the list so that my little one (who I was pushing in the jogger) and I could have something to snack on. That trip went so well and made me realize that I could combine my runs with other things more often, if it makes sense of course.

So yesterday I made another trip to the grocery store to pick up some items for my wife's family who will be in town this weekend. I picked a store that was a bit further away, enabling me to complete nine miles for that day's run. Of course this can only work when I am pushing the little one in the jogger because there's an undercarriage that I can use. Plus these trips are only for seven items or less (depending on the items) because anything larger would be difficult to manage. Otherwise I think this is something that can help reduce my time in the car and increase my time on my feet. Not too shabby huh?

Hello old friend

Last Saturday I decided to revisit an old route for my long run. There is a paved trail that runs along the beach and has a couple of bridges which is great for hill training. 

When I would have really long runs (longer than 13 miles) I would end the run with a quick dip in the ocean, clothes and all. The great thing about this route is that there are A LOT of active people who travel this strip of pavement. At 5:30 in the morning it's not uncommon to see groups of five to ten runners with headlights running together, or a line of 20+ bikers on the road. When I want to get my long run done and out of the way by 9am, this is where I go.

The last time I ran this route it was about two months ago and even then I started running it sparingly because I had already started getting tired of it. Yeah I know, how could I get tired of running by the ocean? Well I did and I wanted to change things up. So to preserve the wonderfulness of the trail I decided to let it go for a bit and come back to it when I was ready. Well last week I was ready and anxious to come back.

I planned to do 15 miles and run over two bridges twice. I've done this tons of times before and already knew the route like the back of my hand so I could switch my brain to auto pilot. You know the saying that goes: "When you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans." Well he was in stitches and I didn't find it so funny. The wind was CRAZY that morning. It was even windy by my house which is six miles away from the beach so you know if it was windy inland then it was a slight monsoon by the beach. No matter what direction I went in there was no relief and the bridges only made it worse. In addition to the bridges there are a couple of "rolling hills" in the trail that I remembered mentally but seemed to forget physically. Around mile eight I contemplated doing 13 miles so that I could have some relief, but I really wanted to stick to my plan. Had it really been that long since I had run this route? And did my body really forget this path after only two months? 

Sometimes I wonder if inanimate objects had a personality what they would be like and how they would think. If my trail was a person it would have been smirking at me all morning, giving me grief for breaking up with it and moving on to a new route. My route gave me its but to kiss and I was begging it for mercy. I know that we haven't seen each other in a while but I just wanted to take some time off so I could appreciate you more. You know, absence makes the heart grow fonder. Nothing I said or did would ease the struggle of this run. I simply took it one step at a time and tried to get into a zone. I even started playing music after 10 miles which is something I NEVER do. But I needed Diana Ross and Chaka Kahn to help me through these last five miles.

Once I finished I stood in my usual reflective spot, looking at the ocean and chugging my water. I picked this trail ages ago for a reason. It has crazy bridges that help with speed and endurance, it's right next to the beach so I can look at the sunrise, it's runner friendly and always safe. Why did I need to take a break from this trail? Sometimes you don't realize how great something is until you take a step back and see all of its glory. To be able to run next to the ocean is a privilege and I need to appreciate that more. So same time, same place for the next long run. Hello old friend, it's nice to see you again.

Honk if you hear me

Okay I need to talk about something that has been on my mind for quite some time. Please, please, PLEASE share your thoughts about this because I really need to know different points of view.

What is with the honking when I'm running?!

Runners, I know that you may have experienced this and it's not because you are about to get run over. Have you ever been on a run and found that people are honking at you? What is that all about? And to the people driving, what are you honking about? Is the honk kind of like a fist pump cause I'm running? Do we know each other?

Yesterday I was finishing up my run and as usual someone honked at me. This time I was running with the flow of traffic on the sidewalk and the car was on my right side so I was able to see the silhouette of the driver. All the guy did was put his hand up in the car and wave as if I knew him, then kept on driving. Based on the car I didn't know the person and was perplexed as to why he was waving.

Now there have been many times when I'm running and gentleman (I use that term loosely) will honk their horn and say some derogatory crap to me. I get that. Even though most of the time I'm running with little one in the jogger so someone is trying to "holla" at me with a toddler staring him down which is a bit awkward. Keep your nasty thoughts to yourself. Then there are times when I'm running and a guy honks at me and will give me the creepy man stare. I can even understand that. You wanna honk to get my attention but you don't want to say anything. Alright, at least you aren't saying something stupid but ease up on the bug eyes.

Every so often I get a honk from a lady and those are interesting because the type of women are never the same. I've gotten honks from young ladies who appear to be cheering me on. Honks from older women who have serious looks on their faces. Maybe I'm in their way, or they're alerting me to something. I don't know. Honks from moms (I totally get that!) and honks from grandmas. But mostly when it comes to women who are driving, they really don't pay me any mind. I'm just another pedestrian who is in their way as they try and turn at the intersection.

I could say that the honks are to alert me to some kind of danger that I may encounter. I don't run with headphones on, especially when I have little one, because I want to be aware of my surroundings. Plus I like to hear my breathing and keep a steady pace, music kinda throws me off. By the time someone has honked their horn I most likely am already aware of what lies ahead and have averted disaster. I do get a lot of people who simply don't give a damn about pedestrians and simply honk their horn cause they think I'm in the wrong. Nope, sorry bud, but that white walk sign tells me that I can go and YOU have to wait for me. I'm running so it will only take me two seconds to pass you. Then you can hurry off to another red light and wait there while I will pass you again.

I'm not saying that I don't like warnings, encouragement or a "way to go" every once in a while. And maybe a person has been inspired and thought to themselves If that lady, who seems to be huffing and puffing while pushing a jogger, can run then so can I. That's great! Cool beans! But next time, unless we know each other or I'm about to run into a light post, please don't honk.

Don't put baby in a corner, put her in a jogger!

In this issue of Runner's World 

I read an article about a woman, Christina Lee, (on the cover it turns out) who ran cross country while pushing a 70 pound jogger. When I told my wife about this she said, "Wow! You're pretty close to pushing that weight when you run with the little one." Hmmm.... let me look deeper into this! I never even thought that running with my toddler in the jogger could be a benefit for my runs. I did notice that it was much harder to run with her as she got older and heavier but I knew that would happen.  

Right around the time this issue came out I was telling my wife that I wanted one of those small parachutes to do some drills with to help me get faster. 

She also suggested I try running with a weight vest (you'll remember that from a previous post). But not wanting to spend more money on things that I would use sparingly and take up space I took another look at running with the jogger.

I started paying close attention to my runs with the jogger and the runs without. And holy fish sticks Batman, there IS a difference! First let's look at the stats.

1. My toddler weighs about 30 lbs.
2. My B.O.B. jogger weighs 25 lbs.

In total I am pushing 55 pounds when I'm running and when you add a head wind that adds additional weight. I don't know how much weight a head wind can add but it feels like I'm pushing about 80 pounds. That's only a guess though.

Then I checked my handy dandy running diary and there it was in black and white. A 30-45+ second reduction in my pace when I ran without the stroller. So here are some more stats:

1. Running with the jogger my average pace would be between 9:15 and 9:30/mile.
2. Running with the jogger in a head wind my pace ranged from 9:45 to 10:15/mile.
3. No jogger and my pace was anywhere between 8:40 and 8:20/mile with very little strain or effort. I might even call it an easy run if I was feeling high and mighty.

A friend of mine has a double jogger and puts her 8 month old and three year old in it and she also notices a huge difference. I didn't get the details of her runs but her expression certainly showed me that the difference was noticeable.

So to all the mommies out there running with your kids in the jogger, getting your mileage in, know that you have an upper hand with your training. And if you don't happen to have any kids maybe you can do what Christina Lee did and buy a jogger and stick some weights in it. I just wouldn't recommend borrowing someone's kid.

Keep a diary and someday it will keep you -Mae West

When I first started running I bought this book.

  

I was such a novice in the sport that a lot of the terms in the book looked like Japanese to me. What the hell was a Fartlek? Sounds like something you get after Thanksgiving dinner. Also I didn't understand why things were in kilometers and not just plain old miles. Who even used kilometers anyway?

I kind of glossed over the technical information in the book but really took advantage of the training diary. I may have been inconsistent with my runs but I made sure to log each one down.

At the time I didn't get the value in keeping up with all of these runs, especially since I wasn't doing it on a regular basis. But the more I ran the more I logged. I would often go back to a previous record and read the quick synopsis I wrote. Immediately I was transported back to that run and remembered the good and bad moments. Rainy days, crappy attitude which affected my run, new routes that were fun, new routes that sucked. All of it right there, a time capsule between the pages.


Once I got my fancy Garmin watch I could easily load up all of my runs on the website and at any time could check all of the activities that I had done. Technology made things easier and quicker but I still kept my handwritten journal and still logged my runs in it. I guess I'm a bit old fashioned. I don't even use my phone for half the stuff that it can do just because I believe in the power of the pen (and paper). 

Any running expert can tell you that keeping track of your runs, whether by hand or electronically, is a sound idea. A journal can certainly come in handy when you are training for a race and need something to refer to when it comes to routes, eating habits and overall performance.But if I could give one piece of advice about tracking your runs I would suggest to keep a hand written journal. Get a fancy one, decorate it, put pictures, magazine clippings, anything in it that will help you to remember the highs and the lows of your runs. Then years down the line you can look back and see just how far you've come and smile. 

There's nothing to resolve

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines a resolution as: the act of finding an answer or solution to a conflict, problem, etc.

That is exactly why I don't like that word when it comes to the new year. It seems so harsh and cold as if you weren't doing your best the previous year. So rather than say I'm working on resolutions I say I'm working on goals. I could be working on a new goal or working on the same goal, either way it just sounds and feels better.

So now that I expressed my linguistic gripe I will tell you the things that I would like to work on this year. I really want to ride the wave that was 2014 because I feel as though it has set the precedent for many years to come. For this year I'm simply supplementing the things I did last year with an extra kick. But to be more specific I will show them to you in bullet points.

• Last year I ran a total of 1,275 miles, this year I plan to run 2,000 miles. 
• My wife and a friend of mine suggested I run 2,015 to commemorate the year. Still debating that one.
• Run in more races whether for fun or to set some personal records.
• Run another marathon. 
• I'm pretty certain that it will be the Space Coast marathon again but we'll see.
• Run a race outside of my home state.
• Work on eating less sugar (this will take some time).
• Make this blog more awesome. 
• I need to put in some time to really make this blog look more like me and not so generic. 
• Get my coaching certification. 
• I decided after the marathon that I wanted to be able to know what I'm talking about when I blog. I would like to build up some clientele and share my love of running with other people. This goal I'm really looking forward to.
• Meditate more. 
• I started working on this goal towards to end of last year and I have noticed that when I actually do it I feel so much better. Of course I have to do it more often. 

There are some other goals that I want to attain but I don't plan on really pursuing those until a couple of years down the road, so I won't share them just yet. I'm really excited for this year. This is the first time I didn't rush into a new year thinking I would make a ton of changes that only lasted for a week at the most. A lot of the harder goals have already been in motion (working out, running, eating right, getting sleep) so I don't have to start totally from scratch. I'm simply building on what was already there. So stick around with me and let's see what this year has to offer.

What are your goals for the new year?