Relaxing into it

The last time I was on a trip sleeping in different beds, I ended up with a back injury that kept me home from work for 4 weeks and away from running for nearly 4 months. So this trip had me a little nervous.

On Monday I decided to do an early morning run just to see how my body felt considering I'd slept on two different mattresses in two nights -- and I haven't been on my inversion table (which always helps) for a few nights. My back was a bit sore. My piriformis has been really tight. Too much driving? Different mattresses? No inversion table to hang upsidedown on? Who knows? Still, the run went pretty well.

It was really warn -- 78 degrees at 7:15 a.m. so I knew starting out that I'd have to do a short run just to acclimate to the heat. It wasn't just 78 so early in the morning -- it was a humid 78. At home, I've been running in 50s and low 60s in mid-afternoon. So this was definitely different.

I could have run on the beach, but the slope of it really didn't sound good for my back, so I headed out to the street. From the place we're staying, there's about a half mile row of beachfront resorts before I hit the highway which luckily has a nice sidewalk about 20 yards south of the street.

I started slowly. In fact, the goal was about 11:15 to 11:30 miles. First mile was like 11:15. Perfect. But in the second mile I started to feel my back ever so slightly. I couldn't decide if it was just a result of a different mattress or something to be aware of. So I did 1.25 miles and turned around to come back. 2 miles on the first day was plenty. Well not really but it sounded good in my head and I certainly didn't want to hurt myself on the first day of a two-week trip.

I figured if all went well, and I held back on Monday that Wednesday's run could be longer.

It was the right decision. My back felt fine on Tuesday.

This morning I almost blew off my run. I had waaaaay too much food last night (burger, sweet potato, spinach salad, watermelon, ice cream. Makes me kind of sick just thinking of it all). So I just got a newspaper and a small OJ and sat on our balcony. But after about 30 minutes, I thought why not give it a shot. If I felt terrible, I could always turn around. Besides it was only 73 degrees and there was a nice breeze heading back, which meant one thing: a tailwind on the way back.

Again, I want to run at about 11 minute miles or so. Mile 1: 11:08 Mile 2: 10:26: .75 miles 10:06 pace. Really didn't expect to have that kind of pace given dinner plus all the other junk, but from the first minute or two, I could tell it would be a good run.

Felt terrific. Back felt great. No tightness. Stretching the piriformis before the run was REALLY smart.

One more thing: Been really focusing on reaching my crown for the sky, tailbone grounded and then relaxing into it. More on that later..

Shaving minutes

Time gets away so quickly sometimes. Two weeks and no blogging. Oh well, at least today.

I've been keeping my schedule pretty good -- three runs during the week and a longer run on the weekends. I'm really trying to let me body tell me what it wants to do instead of me pushing it. And most importantly, I'm focusing on relaxing my entire body except the core during the run.

In ChiRunning, form over distance will bring speed naturally without trying. I've always believed it in my head but it's been hard for me to really trust but it's true. I went out yesterday to do 2.5 miles and all I focused on was relaxing -- even my face. Oddly, I seem to squint really hard even with sunglasses on, so I've been trying to relax from the head down.

I felt I was working harder than usual but I figured it was the junk food lunch I ate. Not so. I was actually running faster as a result of trying to relax more and not effort (yes, I'm making effort a verb now). I have taken 30 seconds off my first mile in the last few weeks and last night took a full minute off the second mile.

I don't want to get too excited about this because I am trying to walk the talk of running for the joy without caring about time or distance. Which I'm doing not so much by choice but I really have to let my body tell me what it wants to do because I have kicked the crap out of it telling it what I want it to do. It's all about the process not the results. Still, it's a kick to shave minutes off my runs.

Weekend runs

Nothing special about the last two runs and yet everything was special.

Saturday morning -- sunny skies and 60 degrees at 8:30 a.m. Just a beautiful day for a nice longer, slow run. I started off with my .75 mile walk just to loosen up and get ready. Started off running nice and slowly. Really planned to run 11:30 miles. First mile just about dead on at 11:26. After that I kept speeding up by 15 to 30 seconds per mile. I have to always remind myself to slow down and build my aerobic capacity. More importantly, I just want to slow down to feel my Chirunning form all the more. It's easier to pick up on areas that need work by slowing down than at a faster pace.

Had planned to run a mile on the track with the rest on the road, but I've been feeling so good, I decided to do all four miles on the road. I'm glad I did. It felt great and I found my body is doing very well on the road. I could have gone another mile or two but I am really trying to be strict with myself on how much I increase my mileage per week (only a quarter to half mile per week on the longer runs. I have my whole life to get my mileage back up.)

It felt so good to run and breathe easy and feel relaxed on the road. What a treat.

This morning I got up early for me at 6:30 and was out the door by 7 for a little "recovery" run. Planned on going 2.25 but I felt so good, I allowed myself to do 2.5. I know, I know, I just said I'm being strict with myself about my mileage increases and since I increased a half yesterday (on my longer run) I should have only increased .25 for today's. But at least I let my body tell me what it wanted not the other way around. And if on my next run, my body tells me to do only 2.25, I will.

Weather was great with temps near 60 and mostly cloudy. Other plusses for the two runs:

No struggle. Just concentrating on making it easy.

No aches or pain.

Maybe this morning's experience will help me start running in the mornings.

Catching Up

Although life threw a curve at me for 10 days or so, I managed to keep my schedule except two days and I made one of those up.

This will be short. Good news: Running well. Have transitioned to the road completely. Up to 2.25 miles and feel fine. Just focusing on relaxing during the run -- not the distance much less the time. Today, I just focused on relaxing everything in my body but my core and just making the run easy. No efforting, just relaxing. Danny Dreyer, creator of Chirunning, says the more you relax the faster you can run. I really paid no attention to time and tried to focus on relaxing and had great times for my two miles 11:04 and 10:31. I'm happy with that.

Had an interesting experience running today. As I was finishing the second mile, I was on a slight downhill when my foot hit what I suspect was a pine cone. Because of the mid-foot landing in ChiRunning I was able to land on the cone in an odd way and not turn an ankle. Mid-foot landing really does provide more stability.

Have been running four times a week -- three of the same distance and one a little longer. Seems to be working well. Really enjoying my little runs.

Slow and steady has potential

I'm trying to be conservative in my running as I come back from my latest issue. I'm increasing only .25 miles per run per week. Slow but steady is the plan.

Yesterday's run was supposed to be no more than 3.5 miles with 2.25 of that on a soft track. I was on my feet for four or five hours before my run so I thought maybe I should actually run less -- maybe have a recovery week although my mileage is hardly high enough to recover from much. Still...

So yesterday, the weather was gorgeous. About 55 degrees and sunny. The run on the track was fine -- just kept trying to go slower. I have a hard time slowing down. Seems all my runs are about the same speed (which isn't fast) and I wanted this one to be slower. The first mile felt good and the second equally easy. After 2.25 miles, I hit the road. As soon as I hit the road, I felt like my footstrike was a little harder than I wanted. I couldn't find my light footstrike which I find very important for my back. I felt like I was rotating my pelvis enough but maybe I was more tired than I thought. I also noticed the impact on a downhill that was a little steeper than I'd wanted. I've been avoiding any downhill running at the doctor's suggestion until my comeback is further along.

I just couldn't seem to hold my form the way I wanted, so by the time I hit 1.2 miles of road running, my back was sending gentle messages. I never let my back talk to me much less scream at me. If I get to that point -- it's way too late. So I made a few adjustments but nothing felt quite right. So I bagged it just a tenth short of my goal. Now that doesn't sound like any big deal except that I can be pretty anal about my runs. That's what I'm working on -- listening to my body rather than listening to my head. I know no one cares how much I run or don't. I just have to learn not to care about results and focus on the process. It's coming, but slowly.

I was kind of concerned I did too much given the hours I spent on my feet beforehand and the sensation in my low back. I felt just a little something in my back the rest of the day but woke up this morning feeling great. I debated a run today because last night I was cooked. I was so tired. I'd hydrated plenty before and after the run because I didn't drink much while I was teaching, but still I felt exhausted. While I slept about 9 or 10 hours (with some restlessness), I still felt tired when I woke up.

I had breakfast with Dad and my husband, and 2 hours later -- when the temps had risen to nearly 60 -- I decided to head out and see how things felt. The plan was .75 walk, .25 road running, .75 on the track and 1.25 on the road.

I'm just now starting to run on the road at the beginning of my runs in addition to the ends with track time in between. Today's run in 60 and sunny was GREAT. My back felt wonderful. I ran easy and everything -- breath, form -- felt good. I avoided downhill running today and picked out one of my old routes for the road run. It felt so good to be on the road again.

So all in all, I'm happy. Actually, I'm thrilled. Thrilled that I could run farther than I would have recommended had it been one of my students. Thrilled that while my back whispered at me during the downhill, I didn't do any harm. Thrilled that I was able to run today and feel great.

Slow but steady is sounding better and better.

Running farther, eating better..

Left the office today a little early for my run. It was supposed to be raining by 3 p.m. and then drop into the 40s or 50s from the mid-60s. Instead, it was still sunny at 2. But I didn't want to push my luck, so I bugged out for a run in what turned out to be 70-plus degrees. The sun was actually hot -- in early April!

Focused on form not speed. I am trying to finally, finally embrace certain ideas from Chirunning including running for the joy rather than the accomplishment. Began with an easy 10 minutes like Danny Dreyer suggest and worked on body sensing to see if I could feel tension anywhere. My right ankle where I had all the symptoms of a stress fracture but no fracture last summer was talking at me just a bit. So I focused on relaxing my lower legs and voila, sensation gone. Everything else felt fine.

I still need to work on my downhill form. I have a tendency to pull up off my tilt and let my core go, which puts way too much strain on my back. I am still working to find the balance among length, stride and speed in the downhill. But it'll come.

The run was great but breezy. That's not a complaint. The weather for the last few weeks has been nothing short of amazing.

Along with my efforts to focus my running on the process and not the product, I've been working on dropping a few pounds (like 20) and learning to eat healthy. I tend to get really rigid about my nutrition, drop the weight and then within a year put most of it back on. (Usually, I'm only working to take off 10 but a low back issue packed on the second 10 at Christmas.) So I'm down 8 or 9 lbs in six weeks. It's slow but steady.

The best part about the weight loss is that I'm not being rigid. If I want something sweet, I eat it. If I want something salty, I eat it. I just attention to how much I eat of any one thing and make sure I get a salad every other day at a minimum plus fruit, too. These are two food groups I really neglect. But no more. Bonus: I feel better all overall -- and especially when I'm running. Who'da thought?

I only run...

What is it about runners? We downplay every accomplishment. No matter how significant, it's never enough.

Depending on the runner you meet, you'll hear things like

I’ve only run 10 marathons.

I’ve only run 2 half-marathons.

I only run a 13-minute mile.

I only run a 10-minute mile.

I only run a 7-minute mile.

I only run… I only run… I only run… You fill in the blank. No better yet, don’t.

I only run. It’s enough right there.

I only run. It’s all there is.

I only run. Three of the most beautiful words in the world.