der5er

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On the subject of being too busy to post

der5er — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 11:05:48 +0000

I was very busy after the half-marathon this weekend. Busy resting on Saturday, then busy with leaves and other yard work on Sunday. So, please enjoy this guest post from my mother-in-law, Shirley Albertson Owens of the www.shirleyannesheart.com Blog:

Friday night grandangels Sarah (age 9) and Cooper (age 5) ran the Richmond Times-Dispatch Mile Kids’ Run. It was the first run for both of them - and we had ever so much fun - even in the rain! Here they are BEFORE THE RACE. They had BRIGHT - DON’T NOTICE ME shirts! LOL

Here they are doing some pre-run warm ups. Cooper is in the red hat and Sarah is wearing a white hat.

Oh, they were SO PROUD of those medals! Here they are after the race - and Cooper is using his free drink to cool off with!

Today their dad ran the McDonald’s Half Marathon in Richmond, VA. Here he is with his fan club!

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Now Cooper Wants to Race!

der5er — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 12:34:38 +0000

I didn’t get any good pictures at the Health and Fitness Expo last night. There wasn’t anything that was particularly interesting.

When I got home and opened the goody bags, Cooper took one look at Sarah’s race shirt, in neon yellow, and decided he wanted to race tonight! So, I’ll be headed back to the Expo today to sign him up. Thank goodness they allow late registrations!

I’m even more excited today than I was yesterday. I can’t wait for tomorrow to get here!Similar Posts:

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Two Days Till Race Day!

der5er — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 17:47:26 +0000

I’m so excited! Race day is almost here. This morning, I did my last run prior to the race. Of course, I’m counting Friday night as part of the race, too. What’s that? You don’t know about Friday night? Well, that’s probably because I haven’t written about it.

Friday night at 7:00 PM is the Richmond Times Dispatch Kids Run. Sarah is going to race, and I’ll be right along side her making sure she stays on pace and doesn’t wear herself out too quickly. The race is one mile, around the Richmond Sports Backers stadium and parking lot. She’s run a mile before, in the Jog-n-Walk program at school. She, Christi, and Cooper get up every Thursday morning (today’s the last one) and go do laps at the school. Sarah regularly does 8 laps, which equals a mile. She’s also done a training run with me. She ran that one in about 12 minutes, but had to walk quite a bit. I let her set the pace that day, and I think I’ll try to make her go a little slower to start the race on Friday, because she wore herself out pretty quickly when we ran together. She was very excited, and I know that will only be amplified on race day! I’m still expecting her to finish somewhere around 12 minutes, but hopefully she’ll be able to run it all–I know she was a little disappointed she didn’t run the whole way when we ran together. Good luck Sarah!

Of course, I’m extra excited about Saturday. My goal is to finish all 13.1 miles in less than 2 hours. I’ve already achieved this goal at home, so I’m secretly hoping to finish MUCH faster! Wait, I guess that’s not a secret anymore, is it?

This morning I ran 2 miles (tapering, remember?) in 17″47′. This was a very easy 8″47′ per mile pace, if I multiply that pace over 13 miles (which is optimistic), I’ll be at about 1:55 on Saturday. Since 9″00′ was my goal pace, I think I’ll be in good shape for 2 hour goal. Plus, the pace this morning was very easy. I was never out of breath, and, like all my shorter runs, I really wanted to go further.

The only thing about Saturday that doesn’t excite me is the weather. Right now, they are calling for rain on Saturday morning. I hopeweather.com is wrong. I can run in just about any weather without complaining, but rain is the one I like the least. Plus, I don’t want to get my iPod wet. So, if it’s raining, my iPod won’t be going with me to track my run. Maybe I’ll stick it in a zip lock bag in my pocket, that way I can still use it. I’ve got to figure something out, because over 13 miles, music is usually key to maintaining my pace.

Do you want to know how I’m doing as I run the race? You can sign up for e-mail or text alerts on the race website. Or, leave a comment at der5er.com (or send me an e-mail) and I’ll sign you up. They’ll send an e-mail when I reach the 10k mark (6 miles, just a little under half way) telling you how fast I’m running and then at the finish, with my final time.

This evening, when I leave work, I’ll head over to the Arthur Ashe Athletic Center to pick up Sarah and my race packets! The Health and Fitness Expo is also there. You have to walk through most of it to get your race packect, but that’s ok, because I would have wanted to see everything anyway. I’ve got Christi’s camera with me, and if I see anything neat, I’ll be sure to post the pictures here!Similar Posts:

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17 Days left! Almost Time to Taper

der5er — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 06:54:27 +0000

Half Marathon Course Map

I’m not really looking forward to the next phase in my training. The taper. The taper is when I should taper off my training and not run as far, or as fast, or as often. This is what I’ll be doing for the last two weeks before the half-marathon. The goal of the taper is to rest up and give your muscles some recovery time before race day. The secondary goal of the taper is to keep you free from injury before the race!

I actually like running longer distances, tempo runs, and interval runs. Today, for instance, I got up and ran 10 miles at what I consider to be my race pace, about 9 minutes per mile. It was actually very nice, except for the wind blowing off the lake. Not that the wind was cold, that was actually refreshing, it’s that the wind was blowing so hard, I think it actually slowed me down a bit.

The longer distances are the times when I can usually just shut off my mind and run. No thinking required. It’s truly a moment of Zen for me. I pushed myself today, running at the 9 minute pace, but that was the only thing I thought about. I didn’t think about the project that didn’t go so well the night before at work, I didn’t think about the leaves I (still) need to clean up in the yard, and I didn’t think about how tired I was. I think that’s the beauty of the long runs for me. I get tired, but I don’t notice it until I stop running. This happens on shorter runs, too, but it’s amplified on the long runs. Doing long runs of 10 to 15 miles these last few weeks has actually led me to consider doing a full marathon next year.

The only fun I can have Monday through Friday (unless I work nights), when I have less time to run, is to do what are called tempo runs or to run intervals. Tempo runs are usually shorter distances that are run a little faster than your body naturally wants to. They are important, because they train your muscles to run faster for longer periods of time. I like tempo runs, but intervals are more fun for me. I’ll go out and run 3 minutes as fast as I can, then spend two minutes at a slower pace, whatever is comfortable, repeating the cycle for however long I have to run that day. I record some of my fastest times doing intervals, but I usually can’t go further than 4 miles. Of course, 4 miles is perfect during the week when I have less than an hour to run before work.

I’m still looking forward to the half-marathon, just not this taper thing. I wish I could keep doing long runs, tempo runs, and intervals right up to race day!Similar Posts:

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Cold Running: Gloves Make the Difference

der5er — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 20:22:04 +0000

photo credit: Seb….

Monday morning, I set out to run and it was about 35 degrees outside. I’ve never run when it was that cold. I layered up with long pants, long sleeve tech shirt, sweat shirt and a stocking cap. I didn’t find any gloves the first time I looked, so I went out with bare hands. Big, I mean BIG, mistake. I made it about a half mile and made the decision to run on home. This was way too cold for running.

Tuesday morning, I decided to give it another try. It was, again, about 35 degrees, and I layered the same. This time, however, I found a pair of gloves! They were thin cotton stretchy gloves that I didn’t think would do much. Boy was I wrong.

Where Monday I had felt the cold on my face and my knuckles chill me all the way down to my toes, Tuesday was different. I no longer felt the cold on my knuckles, so this made the cold on my face seem not so bad. It was really amazing. Then, of course, about a mile into my run I started getting really warm and took the gloves and hat off. The rest of my 4 miles that day were a breeze.

I’m not sure why the gloves made me so much more comfortable, but they did. The sweatshirt was a little too warm by the time I finished running, so on Wednesday I just used an additional cotton t-shirt over my tech shirt. This allowed the tech shirt to wick away moisture and the t-shirt to hold some heat in. It’s a system that works perfectly for now. I probably won’t run too much in the cold weather once the half-marathon is over, but it’s nice to know I can. After the half-marathon, I’ll be supplementing my running workouts with exercises I can do on the floor of the living room quietly, without waking anyone at 5:00 in the morning!

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Time to Check Your Smoke Detectors!

der5er — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 10:24:23 +0000

photo credit: mag3737

I can’t believe it! I missed Fire Prevention Week this year. James at Nobody’s Listening drew a comic that reminded me to do this post. I know I haven’t done this in a while, but I’m going to remind you to check your smoke detectors. I’m going to try to get ours checked this weekend. It only takes a few seconds to hit that little button on the detector. If it beeps, it’s good. If not, or if the beep sounds funny, replace the battery.

One thing I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned here is the quantity and placement of smoke detectors. Our old house had exactly two smoke detectors, which was obviously enough for us. However, a better idea (and one that is currently in the building codes) is to have one in each bedroom, each hallway near bedrooms, and one in each main common area (we’ve only got one downstairs). Not only are all these detectors on AC power to preserve battery life, there’s an extra conductor that runs between all of them. This links them together so that if one goes off, they all go off. Our old detectors did this too. The only drawback to having them linked together is when you have a false alarm. Having them linked together makes it harder to tell which one caused the alarm. There are detectors available for those of you with older homes that will link together via a wireless signal. This means you can replace your existing detectors, add some new ones, and you don’t have to hire an electrician to link them together!

So, how many detectors do you have? Have you tested them lately?Similar Posts:

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250 Miles!

der5er — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 15:08:30 +0000

That’s right! According to a message I got from Lance Armstrong this morning when I finished my run, I’ve covered 250 miles since I started running with my Nike+ on June 15th, 2008. It’s been fun, and I’m definitely looking forward to the next 250. Over the last 4 months, I’ve increased my weekly run from 3-10 miles per week to 20-30 miles per week. I’ve improved my average pace from 9:27 per mile to 9:14 per mile. Of course, this isn’t a steady progression, as I’ve had some slow weeks, and the first time I ran 13 and 15 miles, I went rather slow to make sure I could finish! My most recent long run, this past Saturday, was 11 miles, which I finished with a 9:12 pace or 1:41:00 total time. This puts me on track to finish the half-marathon with a 9 minute even pace.

Another quick update, the Midlothian Blaze 5k results have finally posted. My official time was 25:33, and I finished 5th in my age group (30-34). I’m very impressed with these results. I was only 2 minutes away from 4th place. I’ll be in the next age group (35-39) next year, and I think I have a good chance of placing well, since the first place finisher this year ran at 21:34. Though, that individual moves up next year to the 40-44 age group, so I’ll actually be running against my neighbor John Bennett who finished in 23:26 this year. His legs are incredibly long, so I’ll have to train very hard to beat him!Similar Posts:

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Getting Excited for the Half Marathon!

der5er — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 15:32:09 +0000

photo credit: tangywolf

[That's not my foot] Today I ran 11 miles. It was my fastest long run yet, averaging 9:12 per mile. I’m getting very excited for the Half Marathon next month. I’m starting to concentrate on my speed runs a little more, because in just a couple of weeks, I’ve got to start tapering off my training to get rested for race day. I really pushed it today, only allowing myself a short slow period around mile 9. And, I’ll admit that during the last quarter mile today, I imagined the crowds cheering me in to the finish line and I ran a little faster.Similar Posts:

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New Slogan: Motivated by General Geekery

der5er — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 15:53:13 +0000

I have always wanted to use this picture on the blog

As I was running this morning, I was thinking. This is something I do all the time, and it helps clear my head for the day ahead. Today I was actually thinking about running, only half-listening to the podcast I had on my iPod. What motivates me to run? There have been other times in my life when I’ve tried to be a runner, but I was never successful at getting motivated to do it regularly, what’s so different this time around? And, in general, what motivates me to do something?

In high school, in Texas, I was on the swim team. I really loved swimming and, while I wasn’t the best, I certainly enjoyed it. I didn’t always enjoy the workout, there is such a thing as too much solitude, but I always enjoyed the swim meets. I knew that one way to get faster at swimming was to cross train with strength training that the coach had us doing 2 times a week and with other sports or exercises. I chose running and pretty much failed. I liked it, don’t get me wrong, but I could never motivate myself to run more often than once a month, and never much further than 2 miles.

Later, when I was an active duty Marine, I had to run. In boot camp, I ran regularly, but that’s because someone was forcing me to do so. After that, I would say I probably averaged 1-2 runs per month for the remainder of my 6 year enlistment. Never, ever, more than 3 miles when I was running on my own. And, even though I had a specific goal - don’t fail the Phyisical Fitness Test - I still really couldn’t get into it and make it a habit. I did roller-blade to work when we only lived about 6 miles from the base. That was fun, and I lost weight while doing it. But it mainly served to wear out the brakes on my skates, as many of the roads had steep down-hill stretches.

Now fast-forward 10 years to today. I’m now running 5-6 times a week, averaging around 15 miles per week (though that’s going up as I train for the half-marathon in November). I’m not feeling pushed to run. Nothing forces me to get up at 5 AM, Monday-Friday or at 6 on a Saturday or Sunday. I’ve only actually run in three races, one just to see if I could finish, the other two for new Personal Records. But I don’t think the races are what get me up in the mornings. I’m not thinking about the races that much when I’m running every day. I do think about my weight, and I am losing weight at a slow, steady pace. Hopefully, by this time next year my small muffin-top gut will be all but gone. But I don’t think that’s my motivation, either. Until today, when the words in the title just sort of came to me, I don’t think I realised quite what it was that kept me moving.

You see, I’ve got this little add-on for my iPod, and a sensor on my shoe. It tracks every step I take, how fast I take them, how many I take, and turns them into meaningful numbers. It turns my steps into the distance I’ve run in either miles or kilometers. It turns their frequency into my pace at any given moment. At the end of a run, it turns my steps and my total time into the complete distance, average pace, and calories burned. And, it puts all these steps together with all my runs, allowing me to track them over time. To see my average pace since I started running with it (9:28/mile and trending faster), my total distance (179 miles), and how many workouts I’ve completed (52). This little Nike+ iPod Sport kit lives on data, and I have to feed it. It’s the geek in me. In that original article I wrote that I wanted something to make it easier to track my progress. I can successfully say this is it. I think a big part of what gets me up every day to run at 5:00 AM is that I want to feed my Nike+.

Anything I can track with quantifiable data motivates me a little bit. When I first heard about the 100 Pushups website, I thought it was a really neat idea. But I didn’t initially do anything about it. Then, I found that an internet friend was doing it and tracking his progress in a forum. Well, that’s pretty geeky, and it gave me a way to track my progress (of course, now there’s the Pushups Logger, and I’m SO jealous of the people just starting out who get to track progress there).

When I first started liking 1982-1988 BMW 5-Series cars it didn’t have much to do with the cars themselves. What motivated me to keep the car and keep it running initially was the general geekery of the community that surrounds the e28. These guys seriously geeked out about their cars, and so did I. I really had a good time while it lasted, but since I lost my car, I haven’t found another that suits me. Plus, I’ve lost touch with that forum a bit. I don’t know if I’ll be back, but I am always on the lookout for that perfect, Cinnabar (Red) 1988 BMW 535is in a low price range (I know, “perfect” and “low price range” don’t belong in the same sentence when talking about a 20-year-old car).

The TV shows LOST and Fringe are two more examples of being motivated by general geekery. I follow several blogs and podcasts about both shows. Fans of the shows are exceedingly geeked out on the plot lines, story arcs, and hidden clues in each episode. This fuels my geeky fire.

Tools are another geeky love of mine. Read any of my For the Love of Tools posts and you’ll get more info on that.

In short (too late), I’m “Motivated by General Geekery.” And so, that’s the new slogan for der5er. It replaces “Automotive Stuff, Tool Stuff, Family Stuff…” at the top of the blog page, which I think was just too much stuff. There will still be all automotive stuff, tool stuff, and family stuff here at der5er, but I think I just might write more geeky stuff in the future. And, of course, all those things can be geeky, too.Similar Posts:

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Website Highlights: Lifestream and the Archive

der5er — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 17:15:49 +0000

Two recent additions to the website are the new improved Archive and the LifeStream page.

The Archive page is simple, it’s an archive of all posts and pages here at der5er. Click on a month or date and it will give you a thumbnail of each post, and clicking it again will take you directly to the post.

The Lifestream page is only slightly more complicated to explain. I’ve started what’s known as ‘micro blogging,’ a.k.a. Twittering. Short little posts that don’t warrant a full article on the main feed, but are still either interesting to me, or are just a quick comment that I had about something. Many times you’ll find updates to the 100 Push ups challenge, quick status of how I did on my run that day, or a comment about how my day is going. Also, posts on other blogs that I find interesting are shared on this page.

If you haven’t visited the website in a while, get out of your e-mail and come have a look around!Similar Posts:

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13.1 Miles! I CAN DO IT!

der5er — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 10:40:59 +0000

McDonald's Half Marathon

I’m incredibly stoked. Sunday morning I completed the equivalent of a half-marathon, 13.1 miles. And it only took me 2 hours and 3 minutes. My average pace was 9 minutes, 24 seconds per mile. I wasn’t going for a fast pace or anything. Yesterday was mainly just a proof of concept. To be able to make that statement in the title up there, “I CAN DO IT!” And now I can.

The bonus of running it at 9:24/mile is that when I signed up for the Half-Marathon last night, I was able to put in a realistic guess of my finish time. Unlike signing up for the 8k last year and guessing what my 5 mile time would be, since I hadn’t run anything longer than 3 miles. I put in something like 1 hour 10 minutes last year and actually finished in 54 minutes. I could have started with a faster group of runners and possibly finished faster by having the motivation to run faster all around me! Of course, now I know I can complete the 8k in 45 minutes (that’s a 9 minute mile average, WOW!), because I did that a few weeks ago.

Yes, I signed up for the Half-Marathon last night. The race is Saturday, November 15. All runs from here on out are to prepare me for that day.Similar Posts:

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Midlothian Blaze 5k Race

der5er — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 22:58:57 +0000

Blaze 5k #66

The Midlothian Blaze 5k was held today to benefit the Midlothian Volunteer Fire Department. This was a nice fun race that I had a pretty good experience with. I made good time today, finishing the race in 25:31 (it’s a little over 3 miles). It’s always fun to go out and race because race courses are typically flatter than my training courses. I almost always improve upon my training times because there aren’t anywhere near as many hills! This morning I ran with my neighbor John Bennett. Well, we started together. John is built for faster speeds than I am, as his legs are a bit longer. He actually came in second for his age group today! Congratulations, John!

Today I also got to try out the New Balance MR1224 mens running shoe. The New Balance marketing guy had a booth set up and let anyone “test drive” the shoes for the race in exchange for a review. I snapped up the opportunity as quick as I could.

Since I started running March 2006, I’m on my 3rd pair of shoes. The most comfortable shoes I’ve had were New Balance, and, though my current shoes do hurt me a little, the 1224 shoes were great. They provide more stability and roll (pronation, a concept I’m being introduced to) control than the current 560 new balance that I’m running in now. The fit was great, open in the toe box, snug around the ball of my foot, and a good grip on my heel. My legs and knees loved running in these shoes, and now I’m going to actively watch for deals on these great runners!

Plus they are definitely on my Christmas wish list! (I’m a size 11.5 D.)Similar Posts:

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