Mind, Motion & Matter

Running, Essentially . . .

Tag Archives: Marathon


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First race of the year!

After running the Sacramento Marathon in December I vowed to build upon my fitness level to get in great shape this year. Things got busy and if you have been following my blog, you’ll be tired of hearing how the volunteer project my husband and I took on in the spring, was all-consuming – but that it was along with being a highly rewarding endeavour.

Ed Whitlock

Ed Whitlock - It's been awhile

Finally, after a nine month lapse I raced 5K last Sunday at the Toronto Island Run.  Ed Whitlock regularly runs the signature Island 10K to get a sense of where his fitness is at.  Even if he is not at the top of his game or has an off day, chances are he will set a record.  That day he set a world age-group record for 80 year olds of  42:49.  Ed does it again.  Congrats!

Ed Whitlock

Ed Whitlock, 100 meters from another record

The Island race has been around for 31 years and has built on its success to become a polished, community event superbly run by the Longboat Roadrunners who have operated as a running club for as the race. In fact, it was while a member of the Longboat Roadrunners that I met my husband some 26 years ago.  The club name honours Tom Longboat who many regard as Canada’s greatest athlete.  Longboat was an Onandagan from Ohsweken, Ontario who won the Boston Marathon in 1907 by breaking the previous record over the old 24-1/2 mile course by four minutes and 59 seconds.  He was the dominant distance runner of his time.

Tom Longboat

As race day drew near I found myself distinctly lacking motivation and were it not for a commitment I to run the race might have decided otherwise. But, but, but . . . it was, and I did know it would be, just the thing to help focus my training for New York. I’ve been too busy to alter my schedule to attend group workouts and I really needed to be pushed. So I ran 23:04 which was good enough to place 2nd in the masters category. But I really hope to be running a lot faster over the next six months. Although it was the closest I have ever been to throwing up after a race due to having sprinted madly to pick off a runner at the finish line. Our times were the same but I was a microsecond ahead. I surprised myself by feeling obliged to push hard in the last 400 meters and try to catch every runner possible.

The Sherpa

My loving sherpa

The weather could not have been more pleasing and we ran into many old friends. For those unfamiliar with Toronto, if you ever visit, a trip to the Toronto Islands is a must. A 10-15 minute ferry ride gets you to a soothing green space with expansive lake Ontario vistas.

Toronto Island

Toronto Islands - Ya gotta go!

As I write, I find myself thinking about how a few years ago I was regularly running under 20 minutes for 5K. Will I ever go under 20 minutes again? Maybe a goal for my upcoming 56th year. But no time to waste, truly. As Ed Whitlock once famously said when queried about his race times. “Time is not on my side.”

Toronto Island Race

Will I ever run under 20 minutes again?


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Now we are four (runners)

I’ve set a record for the longest interval between blog posts of 8 days.  Surpassing the previous lapse of 7 days.  I have been and busy! I logged 60 hours of work and 60 miles of running with little time left to blog.

Wychwood barns

Sharing Saturday chores for a change

I started the week with aspirations to hit 70 miles however on my runs last Sunday and Monday, I felt as though I was running the final miles of a marathon as my legs were super-heavy.  Thus I knew that it was time to back off a little. I had planned to do a tempo run on Tuesday but instead ran an easy 7 miles.  I did a 45 minute section of tempo running on a 10 miler on Wednesday.  Even though I broke the 45 minutes into four sections I was not able to get my heartrate into the threshold zone consistently  because my legs went dead on me after the first 8 minutes.

Wychwood barns

Oh so succulent

I reconfigured the sequence of my workouts due to my belief that our annual family event was on Saturday and did my long run on Friday morning.  I set out with a minimum goal of 16 miles given the results of the last hard workout but happily felt good enough to get in 18 miles. I discovered on Friday afternoon that the family event was on Sunday not Saturday.  I decided to defer the 10 miler I had planned for Sunday to Monday in favour of being less rushed and also to give myself another rest day.

Wychwood barns

Beautiful beets

My husband usually does the meat and vegetable shopping on Saturdays while I’m running.  Due to my confusion about dates I was able to go along with him to the farmer’s market at the Wychwood Barns.  This market is on one of my long run routes and it was the first time I had been there in my civvies as prior visit have been when I needed to make a pit stop.

Wychwood barns

Fresh & fruity

Today I ran 10 miles with 8 x 2 minutes hard. The cooler temperature and the extra rest was a help as I felt great!  There is a lot of exciting stuff going on at our place. Our son just moved back from his year internship at Research in Motion and both he and his friend Alain, who lives with us, are going to join my husband and I in the Scotiabank Charity Challenge. Before I had begun my workout, Alain was back from his run and just as I finished my run, Steven appeared, having just finished his. When my husband returned from his workout, he cooked up a big breakfast, well-deserved by all.

To find out more about what is keeping our household fit click on Scotiabank Charity Challenge to see our motivation.  CLICK HERE to find out more and perhaps place a pledge on me 🙂 If you would like to join our team just send your inquiry as a comment on this post.

Peace


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“The More You Move, the More You See”

I think I first saw this expression on the New Balance website.  Non-runners may not appreciate that using your legs to get you around town can be scenic and entertaining.

My NYC training plan called for 31K or 19 miles on Saturday. I had to be mentally tough going into it as the usual Saturday crowd were not around. I decided to focus on putting in the time on my feet and not worry about quality as that will come in good time. I devised a  scenic and mainly flat route and looked forward to taking my camera along.

Route to High Park

First mile to the west

Rather than the usual due south route down Strachan which is in the throes of  increased traffic caused by the Canadian National Exhibition, I ran west to High Park. Between Lansdowne and Roncesvalles are a few blocks blocks of urban decay, the outcome of a busy and confusing juncture where two streetcars lines intersect.  To enhance the ambience of this strip, leading the way was a man on a large motor scooter driving on the sidewalk whilst leaving a trail of marijuana smoke in his wake. Some people!

Tree that grows in Brooklyn

Urban decay, Ailanthus altissima, that tree that grows in Brooklyn

I entered into High Park by the northeast quadrant, running counter-clockwise on the trails past Grenadier Pond and then south to the lake and the Waterfront Trail.

High park trails

Favourite section of High Park trails

In High Park I was watching out for friends from People to People AID Organization Canada, who were holding a fundraising walk later that morning but did not see a soul as I must have been a bit too early having set out at 7:30 a.m.  That is the group for which my husband and I organized a the fundraising gala, People4Kids last April.

Grenadier Pond

Grenadier Pond 8 a.m.

The fogginess of the morning set the scene for some pretty and atmospheric sights and one rather euw’ish sight which I learned upon examining the photo I took was a tent caterpillar nest.

Tent Caterillar nest

Euw!!

When I hit the lake I went east for 3K and then back west through the Humber Bay Park east and then to a never-before-trod for me, destination of  Humber Bay Parks – Waterfront Trail

Butterfly garden

Twig sculpture in the butterfly garden

Running through the wild flower garden I spotted what I think were American goldfinch, twittering about. In Humber Bay park east, I saw what appeared to be a female cardinal.  The entrance to Humber Bay park east is quite a maze of paths and parking lots and I was on the lookout for the entrance to Humber Bay park west which I had over the course of three decades missed in my occasional forays to this area of the lakeshore.

Lighthouse, Humber Bay park west

To the lighthouse

I was successful in finding the entry point and was rewarded with a pleasant run of about two miles, out and back on this new found route. Waiting for this intrepid runner at the turnaround point were two surprises,  a groundhog and an historic lighthouse.

Grounghog

Twas a groundhog . . .

Along the way I also spotted a photo session with a lean, blond model wearing a black negligee and a large number of scuba divers, in and out of the water.

The run itself was verging on being a “slog” but with the help of some Gatorade, I perked up a bit in the second half.  I made two stops to drink Gatorade using the plastic bag technique mentioned in a PREVIOUS POST.  I’ve refined this method by adding a second chamber, sectioned off with an elastic.

Gatorade in a bag

Low tech fluid replenishing system

This weekend my husband was a model of support in that while I was out running he shopped for meat at Grace Street Meat Market, bought vegies and fruit at the Wychwood Barns farmer’s market, brought me my fatty latte from Starbuck’s (triple-venti-whole-milk-vanilla latte) and cooked me a bacon and egg breakfast.

I felt quite tired today, as though I was coming down with “something” and while I napped he went and did some essential grocery shopping and my son did the dishes after my husband had cooked breakfast again.  He also cooked dinner last night and is cooking dinner while I write. Thank you, thank you my darling.  This felt even more commendable given that he feels that I’m not coming down with  “something” but suffering the effects of two large glasses of wine enjoyed at a  party last night.  Alcohol has greater effect when in hard training, this is true.

I should also mention that getting out the door this morning for a 10K run was easier for having our roommate Alain to run with.  I certainly can’t complain about household support for my training.

So I got my 108KM in for this week and am hoping to hit 116 km or 70 miles for the upcoming week.  I’m sure looking forward to the easy week scheduled after that.  But the fatigue level of this week tells me that I am pushing myself in the way that one must, to get to the next level of fitness.

The more I move, the faster I’ll see that finish line at the New York City Marathon.  Olé!


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62 Miles = 100 Kilometers

Nowadays when I tell people how far I’ve run or my weekly mileage tally most people assume I mean kilometers not miles. So, for the record I ran 100 KM this week.

NYC Marathon

That would be miles, not kilometers

A highlight of the past eight days was that I ran with two new people. The first was our roommate Alain, a friend of my son’s who lives with us. We enjoyed a 10K run at a faster-than-usual easy day pace. A few days later I ran with a 19 year old friend from Afghanistan who hasn’t been running at all but did come second in the city wrestling championships in the 55 kilogram category. He easily ran with me for five miles through High Park including Deer Pen Road, the steepest road in the Park. He did this while wearing his wrestling shoes. We are planning to run again. It feels good to be able to run with fit youngsters who have mothers 10 years my junior.

I enjoyed introducing him to High Park. He lives less than a mile away but had never visited. He really enjoyed the trails and particularly enjoyed the part I dread most, the off-leash dog area of the trail. As it turns out, he had a dog in Afghanistan and as he started to tell me about his large Russian bred dog, said, “Things are different in my country” which was perhaps in my little world, the understatement of the year. I rightly guessed that his dog was an attack dog, trained to protect people and property.

He got quite a kick out the packs of unleashed dogs playing on the trail and encouraged one to run alongside us, to the chagrin of the owner. I do confess as a tending-to-cower runner in the presence of dogs, I rather enjoyed this show of confidence. My friend thought it quite funny that I would be scared of Canadian dogs. I asked a friend from Sierra Leone about the dogs in his country and he confirmed that owning 2-3 dogs trained this way was a necessity.

As for NYC Marathon training, the week went very well and I felt surprisingly good today after my 18 miler yesterday which went a big way in getting me past my minimum target of 60 miles for the week. Mixed in to those miles was 35 minutes of tempo running and 10 x 1 minute hard.

Yesterday I woke at 4:00 a.m. and set out on my 18 miler at 6:40 a.m. The morning grew hotter and more humid and while the run was hard, it was not a slog. I napped for a couple of hours afterward to make up for rising so early.

My goal for next week is to hit 65 miles minimum. I’m going to have to tighten up my time management as I’m heading into a very busy period at work.  Today I learned how to make lists on my BlackBerry which I hope will be one tool to improve my ability to Get Things Done.  One thing I’ve been doing this year to save time is to avoid shopping if at all possible. You would be amazed at how much time you can save if you decide just to get by with what you have and avoid stores.

Best to save that leg power for running not shopping.  Marathon training can save you money 🙂


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Massage Runs – How easy is that?

Lake Ontario

Favourite turnaround point

Ta da . . . I got my 55 miles the week past with a very easy 5 mile run Sunday morning.  This run was what I call a “massage run”.  Reasons for running this pace include; long run recovery, race recovery and double-run days.  Sometimes I joke that one of my strengths as a marathoner is my ability to run slow.  Some runners just do not have the temperament to run those slow miles that boost total mileage and total fitness. Their view is that running that slow is well, not really running.

Often times mileage accumulated this way are disparaged as junk miles.  Defined so if one takes a narrow view of training methods as a quantity versus quality. High mileage programs may essentially be the same as the low mileage quality programs except for the addition of those extra easy and very easy runs which at the 100 mile a week level might give you an extra 15-20 miles a week. At the peak of my training in years past I ran 11 times a week, with 4 days of double-workouts with most of those second runs falling into the very easy or massage pace zone.

What do those additional miles do for a runner?  Some like Matt Fitzgerald author of Mind, Body Running suggest that high-mileage training is one of the factors that improve running economy.  Anecdotely, I’ d agree that at the end of those high-mileage weeks the body is very motivated to find the most economical way to keep on moving.  You also in the most gradual of ways increase the strength of the musculoskeletal system and gently improve aerobic conditioning.

On the subject of real easy, non-running style here’s a quick recap of some of the things I’ve been up to in the past week or so that I have done while not running.  We went to a couple of theatre events, the first a sketch comedy production called All Grown Up by Asiansploitation a troupe we’ve followed for the past couple of years. The other Kim’s Convenience, voted best play at the Toronto Fringe Festival.  One very hot afternoon we escaped to the movies to see Cowboys and Aliens. I also watched The Fighter on DVD for the second time.  Really enjoyed that one, a classic sport redemption tale which I give ****1/2 out of 5 stars.

Kim's Convenience

Encore for Kim's Convenience, Best of the Toronto Fringe Festival

As for eating, we very much enjoyed a lunch at Pizza Libretto on Ossington avenue which included absolutely amazing vanilla ice cream and the best pannacotta I’ve ever tasted.  I was very proud of the Chap Chae, a Korean noodle dish that I made for an international pot luck dinner last night.  I made this with two very recently arrived acquaintances from North Korea in mind.

Chap Chae

Chap Chae, Korean Yam Noodle dish

Tonight due to a late departure from work we ate at the Caledonian, the only Scottish pub in Toronto where I took pleasure in one of my favourite dining out meals, a burger with fries.  Eat to run, run to eat . . . it is a good life.

Pannacotta

Best pannacotta ever!


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Hello, Goodbye – Sixteen Miles on a Saturday

I was feeling quite apprehensive about pulling off this long run due to some incredibly humid weather earlier this week, mileage and quality increases and weight work yesterday.  I had missed the last three Saturdays with my regular group and hoped for their company however I wanted to optimize the conditions for making it through at least 15 miles.

Saturday runners

Those Saturday Guys

One member of the Saturday group is heading off to France for a year and has rented his home to a runner from Holland.  So the run today was both a farewell and a welcome.  In the flurry of emails to plan this run, I tried to suggest that the ideal plan would be to run down to the lake.  Admittedly, the plan was a bit complicated and involved car transport for three of the runners but my survival instincts begged for the following; 1) minimal exposure to vehicular traffic 2) the cooling breezes of Lake Ontario 3) a flat route. I geared up mentally to run to our rendezvous point, meet the new guy, say goodbye to “R” then head off on my lonesome down to the lake.

On arriving at our meeting spot I was reminded that the Caribana parade which takes place by the lakeshore is today. This is one of two weekends of the year when running by the lake is to be avoided, the other is the weekend of the Molson Indy.  Thankfully, the humidity had lifted this morning and running uptown was not too bad.

I ran with the group for about 9 miles and then reversed directions on the beltline to run solo in order to ensure I’d hit my mileage target.  I ran over 16 miles at a brisker- than-usual pace on a hillier than planned for route.  The pace was faster than our usual due to the presence of an ailing 2:35 marathoner.   With 4 miles to go I sent an email to my husband to order my post-long-run latte.

Glen Cedar Road

Bridge at Glen Cedar Road - Four miles to go, time to order that latte

Tomorrow, I’ll run 5 miles to get to my 55 mile target for this week.  I’m feeling pretty good about my training this past month and encouraged by the ease of the run today.  I feel fine!


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Training for NYC – The Plan

Here is the draft of my training plan for the NYC Marathon, committed to paper while flying to Edmonton the other week.  I’ve since transferred the plan to the Excel spreadsheet that I’ve been using as my training log for over a decade.

Marathon Training Plan 2011

Training Plan for NYC Marathon

For all the gadgets in the world, I’ve found that sometimes there is nothing that beats pen and paper for keeping organized.  I’m at my best at Getting Things Done GTD®  à la Dave Allen when I have notepads strategically located around the house, so as to easily download from my mind, all the things that need doing.  CLICK HERE for my earlier post about Dave Allen.

You’ll see in my plan that I’m hoping to do 80 & 85 miles weeks at the peak of my training.  Pulling that off will depend on whether I can both increase the quality of my runs and increase mileage concurrently.  I used to be able to do this easily but with a lapse of a few years from hard training and age, we will have to see.

The “E” stands for Easy Week and as a concession to the aforementioned, I will experiment with two weeks hard, one week easy.  Previously, I would usually do three weeks hard and one week easy. “R” stands for race, the first being the Scotiabank Half-Marathon and then of course NYC.

I hit my target of 50 miles last week and this week got off to a good start with a workout that will segue into a weekly tempo run.  I ran a 4 mile warm-up outdoors and then hit the treadmill for 2 X 10 minutes of marathon-pace and tempo-pace running for a total of 8 miles.

Not all the treadmills at my gym are equipped to read out heart rate data and while fidgeting with the controls of one treadmill, I had to input my age.  By mistake I entered 50 and then my target heart rate which was 145, my marathon-pace heart rate.

Immediately I received in three warnings in quick succession that this was 85% of my maximum heart rate and did I realize the risk involved.  These warnings reminded me of how off-the-mark heart rate zone charts can be.  Normal resting heart rates for the general population differ by up to 20 beats.  Age maximums vary even more depending on fitness level.  If I had entered 172, which would be my target were I planning to run intervals, along with my correct age of 55 perhaps the treadmill would have gone on red alert and shut down.

My best advice to those seeking to improve their marathon times is get a lactate threshold test done.  This will insure that you are doing those important tempo runs at the just the right effort level. Runner know thyself.


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Consistency is Made of Runs Like This

While sipping my coffee just after 4 a.m. yesterday morning, I wondered if the only smart choice for a 15 mile run was on the treadmill.  Nonetheless, I decided to stick to my plan and left home at 5:47 a.m. just 2 minutes behind schedule. The temperature was 27C with 79% humidity, said to to feel like 38C on a day being billed as one of the hottest of the decades. As the day evolved the same-day temperature record was broken with a 37.5C and notably for me, with my early start, the all-time highest, minimum temperature record of 27C  was broken at 6 a.m.

Sunrise on Lake Ontario

Lake Ontario 6:00 a.m. July 21, 2011 - A record minimum temperature at 6:00 a.m.

How did it feel to run in these conditions? Thanks to a 20K breeze off the cooling waters of Lake Ontario it was not too bad. I ran at a very slow pace but since most of my run was along the lake shore, with sun on the horizon and not overhead, I survived quite nicely. For the first time since my December marathon I wore my most pared down running gear, the type of outfit that my son once referred to as my bathing suit.  This added to my comfort level.

Humber river park

Cooling breezes off the lake on Humber River spit at mile 9 of 15.

I’ve never seen so many shirtless men of all ages, walking, cycling and running. This was not a day to be self-conscious and I said to myself, “Good for you!” when spotting a senior man going topless.  On my part, I admit to being grateful that I resumed my planking routine given that I was exposing my belly for the first time in a while. A notable sighting was group of 25-30 twenty-something rowers with their bare backs to the lake, listening attentively to a coach.  I think we would be happy to have this group holding the fort.

I received a couple of comments commiserating about hot weather running, a blogger from Florida and one from Chicago.  This led me to check out temperatures at 6 a.m. in these cities.

CITY TEMP FEELS LIKE WIND HUMIDITY
Toronto 27C 38C 20K 79%
Miami 27C 39C 0 84%
Chicago 28C 39C 17K 74%

I think Miami were the worst off with not a breeze to be found. The two hottest races of my life have taken place in Chicago. The windy city, in my experience is even muggier than Toronto. I ran the Chicago Distance Classic 20K more than a decade ago and then a 5K. That 5K was brutally hot. I recall feeling as that the last kilometer was one of the longest ever, more grueling than the last kilometer of a marathon.

In 2006 I ran Chicago on a nice cool day and placed first in my age category of 50-54 with a 3:13. My participation was strategic in that it was the only time in recent memory that the race was held in the third week of October, a couple of weeks later than usual. Early October in Chicago  involves the risk of running a marathon in what for me are less than ideal conditions.  The famous scorching conditions of the following year bore out my fears with headlines like 2007 Chicago Marathon: One Dead, Hundreds Treated, What Went Wrong?

At the end of the hottest July 21st ever, I felt great for sticking to my program of running 15 miles as I head towards a 50 mile week. Yes, consistency may seem like a mundane concept but for the marathoner, achieving it involves a few battles with the elements.

Battle Number One on the road to NYC – WIN!


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Running in the Heat – Plan A & Plan B

For various reasons, tomorrow is the day that I must do my long run. A day that is forecast to be one of the hottest days of the decade. The predicted high is 38C and it will feel like 48C.  The sun will rise around 5:55 a.m. and I plan to be out the door earlier than that timing my run so I can see the sunrise on Lake Ontario. I had hoped to do 15 miles but I think I will have to see how it goes and moderate my ambitions. That is Plan A. Plan B is to head to the gym and jump on a treadmill if the heat is hideous although today, there was about 15 degrees difference between the high and the low temperature. I’m hopeful . . . sigh.

Lake Ontario

Lake Ontario, March 14, 2011

I’m working a half-day tomorrow due to some evening and weekend work and I plan to take a nap before heading to work. Running in heat is most exhausting and I also have to stay awake for a fairly demanding evening, three hours of non-stop Adobe Illustrator instruction.

Hot as it is, I maintain that it is not quite as bad as some of those high humidity days with lower temperatures. I had considered running at the U of T Athletic Centre but discovered that it is closed for renovations.

My mileage goal for the week which starts on Mondays is 50. So far I’ve run, 8, 4 and 6. Even though I’m about 16 weeks out from the NYC marathon, this will be one of the more challenging training weeks.

I shouldn’t have trouble waking up early as I woke today at 2:45 a.m. Can’t figure that one out having come home from Alberta but it works well with my running plan.  I’ll be heading to bed shortly i.e. 7:30’ish and aiming to rise around 4 a.m. so I have a bit of time to relax before my run.  I guess my training tip for hot weather running is get out the door as early as possible.

Sweet dreams!


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Running with the mosquitoes

My return flight from Edmonton was delayed and touched down in Toronto at midnight.  This did not bode well for an early morning run today particularly since the weather in Edmonton over the last four days was far cooler, very pleasant actually.  The only down side was that the headlines of the Edmonton daily papers were screaming the news that it was the worst summer ever for mosquitoes.

Sturgeon river

Land of the silver birch, home of mosquitoes

There is a scenic river path in St. Albert, a suburb of Edmonton which runs alongside the Sturgeon river as it peters out.  The water is still, very still. At the best of times you don’t run this route without insect repellent and my first instinct was to skip the river path completely.  However, the thought of running along roads connecting one gigantic sub-division after another with a higher speed limit than similar Toronto roads, did not appeal either so I decided to check out the river path and “bail” if necessary.

Sturgeon river

The St. Albert, AB river path

Happily it was not too bad, except one section where I had to run with both hands leading the way with a propeller motion. On the way back, I did some sections of fast running to coincide with the most bug-ridden sections.  Despite the headlines, this summer did not seem worse than others.  The only thing I noticed was the infiltration of mosquitoes into indoor spaces.  For example, a mosquito landed on the platform of the weight machine while I was doing leg presses at the gym.

Marie Anne Gaboury (geni.com)

 

This mosquito business brought to mind the adventures of Louis Riel’s grandmother Marie-Anne Gaboury who was the first woman of European descent to travel and settle in what we now call Alberta.  The excellent biography of Louis Riel, Riel, A Life of Revolution, written by Maggie Siggons, mentions her travails while roughing it in the early 1800’s in western Canada, bug bites and all. Edmonton is a land of extremes with the snowiest winter in years, chronicled in my post about that trip: Winter Wonderland   and now a summer pestilence.

I woke to my alarm this morning after four hours sleep and was out the door soon after, for a four miler.  My legs were heavy from running with the mosquitoes but there was a bit of a breeze which took the edge off the heat.  I felt like a trooper, battling heat and jet lag, admittedly a fraction of the gumption that Mary Anne Gaboury would have needed in her cross-Canada travels on foot, canoe and horseback but hey, I’m still proud of me!