Beautiful day for a run, why not add some distance?

A gorgeous day, double digits and sunny! One of those spring mornings that lets you know that warmer weather is on the way.

Our route was 8.5 kilometres today, up from 7.5 kilometres last week. After the run, Kris informed us that it might have been closer to 9 kilometres. I did it in 59 minutes, so all I need to do is run the extra kilometre or so in 1 minute or less, and I will hit my target of 10 kilometres in 60 minutes.

Seriously though, I think I need to focus on my nutrition more (as opposed to now where I am generally eating whatever), to start making a difference in my weight and running pace. I figure if I put better fuel in, I will improve my performance plus I will have the added benefit of dragging less weight around.

Citadel Hill doesn't seem very steep...

Until you run up it 8 times! Follow that with 2 circuits around the outside of the fort and that is a workout!

I learned a lesson today about fueling up before a run - 1 hour in advance is not enough time to process the food but just the right amount of time for the food to feel like a lead weight in your stomach.

I found that running with a mid-foot strike rather than a heel strike was quite effective while running up the hill.

Thanks to Kris from Push Fitness for the tips and words of encouragement and thanks also to Peter Harrison for your company on the run around the fort! You are looking great, keep up the great work on your weight loss!

2011 Moose Run

I had a great time with the 2011 Moose Run today in Cow Bay. There were over 170 participants, which is more than typical. I would say this year’s run benefited from my sister’s involvement because over 40 members of the Heart and Sole Running Club in Dartmouth ran in the event.

It was very cold this morning when the race started, but by the time my leg of the race began at noon, it had warmed up quite a bit, although it was still windy. We live on the race route, so we had a cheering section consisting of our spouses and kids, complete with signs, to help motivate us.

My goal time for my 8 kilometre leg was 48 minutes, which is a 6-minute-kilometre pace. I finished in 49:03, I think partly because of the strong headwind that the third-leg runners faced for about 1.5 kilometres near the end. I am still happy with the result, it is an improvement in pace over my recent runs, and I can now imagine achieving the 10 kilometre Bluenose run in 60 minutes or less, since we have 2 months still to train.

Thanks to everyone for all your words of encouragement! It helped to know I had friends and family supporting me!

Adidas gear - looks good and works too!

I picked up my Adidas gear on Wednesday from PUSH Fitness. It is impressive: new Adidas Supernova Glide 3 running shoes, Adidas Adistar long-sleeve running shirt as well as Adidas Supernova jacket and pants to protect me from the elements.

The shirt, jacket and pants all have the Team Myles logo, so now we will really look like a team when we run, with the same uniform and everything!

I was looking forward to a team run this morning, unfortunately only two of us showed up at PUSH Fitness this morning! Caroline Taraso and I waited until 10 AM, then she went to market to wait for Lisa Olie, after which their plan was to go to 108 Yoga, one of our sponsors.

I decided to go for a run anyway, since I was psyched up for it. I knocked off 5 kilometres and surprisingly fast, too! I was just over a minute slower than my target pace for the Bluenose run despite the wind and rain, so that was a nice surprise. It just shows that I do have my work cut out for me, so I think some hills and interval speed training are needed. I think I also need to create a running playlist on my iPod, I have found that the right music can help me go faster. Any suggestions?

Sunny but colder than expected...

Confession time: because of other commitments, I haven't been to a Team Myles run for over a week. I really miss the experience of running with the team and I hope to be able to run with them more as we near the race date.

However, that hasn't stopped me from training! I went on my elliptical machine a couple times and this morning ran 6 kilometres on the Salt Marsh Trail.

The trail was a mix of ice, packed snow and frozen gravel, making it passable with caution. I had to be careful of my footing, which slowed me down a bit.

It was a beautiful morning today and although the high temperature was expected to reach 3 or 4 degrees Celsius, it was still below zero when I ran.

After my run, I joined my Cub pack for a 2 hour hike in Shubie Park in Dartmouth. As tricky as the Salt Marsh Trail was, the Shubie Park trails were much worse! We walked less than 2 kilometres, picking our way along the ice about 90% of the time. We had fun though, including the time when a few lucky Cubs had chickadees eating from their hands. To quote one of the kids, "I have done that before, but it's cool every time." It sure is!

Running In Florida

I know, tough stuff! I ran on both Saturdays that we were in Florida on vacation: once on the streets of Seminole and Largo (two communities in the Tampa Bay/Clearwater Beach area) and the second time I was barefoot on the sand at Clearwater Beach. I hadn't run on that beach since I had visited Florida when I was in high school. Only one minor cut on my foot from a shell fragment during the second run, which I see as a small price to re-live a memory from my younger days.

In between our times on the coast, my family and I went to Disney World. I am a logistics guy by nature and profession, so I took it upon myself to plan our days at Disney, including being the runner for Fastpasses. For those unfamiliar with Disney World, line-ups can be a real drag on your time, with wait times of over an hour for popular attractions. The Fastpass allows you to plan ahead and basically beat the line, provided you return to go on the ride at a later time that is appointed when you get the Fastpass.

Getting the Fastpasses meant that sometimes I had to go to a different part of the park to book a ride we wanted to go on, but that saved us from waiting in the heat for an hour or so per ride, which can seem like an eternity with two tired youngsters. This gave me the opportunity to sprint a few times a day while at Disney, on top of the hours of walking around that we did, too. I think there is value in some sprint training, to mix up the exercise for your body and maybe even speed up your longer runs!

Saturday Run Around Cow Bay

I wasn't able to go to this morning's Team Myles run because of family commitments, but I more than made up for it by running the loop around Cow Bay. It is about 7.5 kilometres. I have run it before but the first leg was all headwind today. For some reason, it didn't feel like the tailwind on the other side of the loop helped me as much as the headwind at the start made me work harder!

I used some of the warm-up moves and stretches that Devon from Push Fitness showed us before our Team Myles runs. I have found that it's good for me to do a bit of warm-up and stretching before a run. I have heard some other people say they don't stretch before, but I will err on the side of caution. The last thing I want is to be laid up with an injury that warming-up and stretching might have prevented.