Intervals - finally ran some speed

Day 427 - March 3, 2010

I had never done an interval workout on the road in the dark before tonight. After dinner (a very lite dinner) I went out for my run. The goal was to run easy for 4 minutes, then hard for 4 minutes, repeat. I chose a course of 6 miles and I was hoping to finish in just under 44 minutes. That equates to 5 easy hard cycles and a final 4 minute cool down. I ended up pushing the last two minutes of my cool down trying to beat the clock and ended up 5 seconds over. Not bad for a first attempt. All in all a good run and I think I can do it faster next time, hopefully before it gets dark.

One month until the Charlottesville 10 Miler!

6 miles after work

Day 378 - January 13, 2010

Had a nice run tonight after work - even if it was dark by the time I finished. I had hoped to get out earlier, but work got in the way!

One thing I noticed tonight is that hills seem easier when you can't see how long they are. The route I chose had a mile+ long hill on the way back that has been a challenge on previous runs. Tonight I hardly noticed it. I guess that says something about the mental aspect of running. Anyone else had that experience?

More meteors - Geminid Shower

Day 347 - December 13, 2009

I have to say I wasn't at all excited about running tonight. It has been raining all day and by the time my wife returned home to take over kid duty, the fog had rolled in and it was thick. But, around 8:30 I finally laced up the Asics and ventured out into the pea soup. I was about 10 minutes into the run when a warm breeze came up. A warm breeze in December sounds a bit contradictory, but it was a good 10-20 degrees warmer than the still air and the fog literally vanished in front of my eyes. And that's when my mood changed.

Once the fog and clouds were gone, I had the most amazing view of the night sky. As I was watching the stars, the first meteor shot across the sky. It seemed like it went from one horizon to the other. A few minutes later, another flash of light and then another. I'd guess I saw at least 20 shooting stars in the 40 minutes I was running. It was cool. The excitement of each streak of light was enough to keep me going and I actually ended up running almost two miles further than I had planned.

The really awesome thing is that if it weren't for this running streak, I'd never have seen them. I'd have been sitting on the couch, watching a football game or surfing the web. There's no way I would have been out running. I hope there are many more cool surprises awaiting me as I run towards 1000 days.

Surprise after dark

Day 324 - November 20, 2009

Tonight was another one of those nights where I didn't feel like running. It was late, I wasn't feeling particularly energetic, and the temperature was dropping with every hour I delayed.

The skies were crystal clear tonight and with the shallow crescent moon, the stars were very bright. As I ran along, I looked up through the leafless trees and admired the few constellation I can identify. Then I saw something out of the corner of my eye. At first, I assumed it was just the lights playing tricks on me as it filtered through the branches. Once, twice, and even a third time. I was starting to believe they were meteors, but the Leonids were earlier this week.


Then, right in front of me, above the road in unobstructed sky, a meteor streak appeared as far as I could see. Definitely one of the longest ones I've ever seen. It definitely made the run worth it.

It gets dark so fast

Day 309 - November 5, 2009

I tried to beat the sunset tonight and ran after work. Starting at 5:10, I thought for sure I could finish before dark. Not even close. Not a big deal, except I didn't have my flashlight or a reflective jacket. I'll be sure to take them with me next week.

Today's run - 6.25 miles 0:47:20

Happy Halloween

Day 304 - October 31, 2009

Tonight I ran with the Trick or Treaters. I had plans to run a long run early in the day, but time got away from me and I was forced to find time after dark this evening. I decided I would run at least 2 miles and go from there. Sometimes, that is the best plan, because everyone knows, the first step is the toughest. Once you are out on the road, it is much easier to keep going. Tonight's two mile run ended up being just short of 6.

So, as the 10th month of the streak comes to an end, I figured I'd give my monthly update. For the month, I ran 127.5 miles. Not quite the 130 I was hoping for, but better than 4/day. With 2 months to go, I need to average 131/month to get to 1460. With the holidays, that is going to be tough, but I'm not giving up on that yet.

Seven Miles after work

Day 266 - September 23, 2009

Only 99 days to finish the first year of the current streak and break the old record of 364 days! I have to admit, as the amount of daylight each day gets shorter and shorter, I'm finding it harder to be excited about running. I just don't enjoy running in the dark and lately I've been doing a lot of late evening runs. Running in the morning has been tough to do with the sun coming up later and later each day. I've been telling myself I'll run at lunch or right after I get home, but inevitably, something comes up and it is after 8 pm before I get out the door.

Tonight, I wanted to run at least 5 miles and I knew that probably wasn't going to happen if I waited until after dinner, so I took my clothes and shoes to work so that I would run before coming home. Turned out to be a good idea and I ended up running just over 7 miles. I'm going to try and do this more often on Wednesdays, at least until daylight savings time ends.

110 days complete

The running streak has reached 110 straight days. I'm finding it much easier this second time around. If you are new to the blog, my first attempt to log 1000 consecutive days of running ended on day 365 when a nasty flu-like virus kicked my butt! I guess when you've done 300+ straight days, 110 is a piece of cake.

Tonight was a late run after the severe thunderstorms and tornado warnings ended. Thankfully we only had rain and lightning. It was a rather uneventful run. With the heavy cloud cover it was really dark and all I saw were rabbits running across the road in front of me. Everything else was lost in the darkness.

On to Day 111.

After dinner, in the dark, in the rain

Tonight I just feel fortunate that I got out to run. A couple hour trip into C-ville turned into a 7.5 hour trip that involved dinner at Chili's (happy B-day Molly) and 3 hours trying to find just the right combination of toys, movies, books, and games to maximize the spending power of birthday gift cards. We were at Target long enough for the manager to offer me a red shirt and name tag.

After all of that, I had no idea how the run would go, and with the rain, I didn't want to end up walking home from too far away. So I stuck to a 1.3 mile loop and just ran it a few times and then ran a half lap to finish. That was enough to get me to 35 miles for the week and I should still be fresh enough for a long run tomorrow afternoon.

I guess I should mention (or at least I guess it is obvious) that I didn't run the 8k this morning. My challengers who tried to get me to run the race with them bailed when they saw the weather forecast and I wasn't disappointed. I can run in the rain here just fine and don't have to drive 45 minutes and pay $40 to do it. I'm not sure if I'll get a race in before the 10 miler in April or if I'll just wing it. I don't have any aspirations of a PR this year, so I'm not too worried about it.

Day 73 of running streak
Today's Run 4.6 miles (YTD 286.6 miles)
Today's Time 0:36:29 (YTD 37:05:41)

Running Streak - Day 69

Running after dinner usually doesn't work so well for me. All that sloshing and eventual cramping don't make for a great experience. But tonight, it wasn't so bad. I waited about two hours after eating and started out slow. I figured I could tough out 3.5 miles no matter how bad I cramped up. But the cramps never came and I felt like the running was pretty effortless. When I was about a minute from finishing I made a quick course correction to add on another mile. Much better than cutting a run short!

Day 56 - or should I say Night 56

Today was a busy day and I didn't have time to run until after dinner and of course, that meant I was running after dark. How I feel about running after the sun has set really depends on my mood. Nights like tonight where I'm tired and worn down from a long day usually are pretty hard to force myself out the door. Other nights, when I'm feeling great, I can actually really enjoy the solitude.

Some people I know refuse to run after dark, and I understand it just isn't for everyone. Safety is a big concern. Here are some things to consider if you find you need to get a run in and it is already late (of course the same applies if you run really early!)

1. Always take a flashlight. I use a palm size LED flashlight that you can pick up in just about any sports or hunting store. They usually only require a couple AA or AAA batteries, last forever, and are surprisingly bright. Mine even has Red and White LEDs so I can choose either depending on the situation. Typically I only use the light when cars are approaching or if I am really unsure of the footing. I prefer to let my eyes adjust to the darkness for most of the run. It also saves on battery power if you don't run the light the entire time.

2. Wear reflective or bright colored clothing. I have a jacket with reflective tape sown in so that approaching car headlights will see me easier. They also make refective mesh vests that you can wear over your day time running gear.

3. Always let someone know where you are going to run and how long you "should" be gone. I emphasize should, because running after dark is generally slower than running during the day. That way if something happens, like a twisted ankle, you don't have to walk all the way home in the dark if you are late.

4. Run where you know you should have good footing. I typically run routes that I know really well and could almost do with my eyes closed.

Some of the things I like about running at night include:

1. The solitude - when it is dark, the distractions of the surroundings are gone. I find I do some of my best thinking on runs in the dark.

2. I don't notice hills - a weird effect of running without a visual cues is that hills tend to not be as hard. It has to be psychological. Tonight, I was 2/3 of my way back on the run and didn't even realize I had run one of the hills I really don't like.

3. Full-moons - Have you ever noticed how bright the full moon can be? I love moon shadows. I really like the ethereal feel to running under a full moon.

4. Less dogs - I have yet to be chased by a dog after dark. I guess most people have their dogs in or chained after dark.

5. Shooting stars - they are just too cool.

6. It's generally cooler in the summertime.

I guess, once I get out the door, running at night isn't all that bad.

Today's run - 3.8 miles - 30:43
YTD - 211.4 miles - 27:03:40