60.6 miles total…10 miles over what I was able to complete in January! My running in February felt the best it ever has. My legs are getting stronger and as you can see in the graph all my runs were over 4 miles in distance; anything shorter just didn’t feel right.
My weekly stats were also pretty impressive, for me anyways: I had my folks in town in the third week of the month for my son’s 1st birthday so my time was very limited. Other than that, I finally eclipsed the mysterious 15 miles/week mark!
Oh yeah, and how about that 10 miler I threw in on the last day of the month for shigiggles??!?!? It was just one of those days where the legs and lungs were talking and the machine felt like running…you gotta take advantage of yourself on those types of days!
As I sit here and write this my grandmother lies in a hospital bed taking in her last precious days on this earth. She’s experiencing respiratory failure and it won’t be long until we no longer hear her voice and all the “hello’s” and the “good-bye’s” are gone forever. I’m absolutely crushed and I can’t wait to get home tomorrow and be with my family, especially my father.
Since we got the news of my grandmother’s declining health a few days ago my urges to run have been incessant. Typically when news of this nature arrives I would think of sitting down in a dark room and drinking booze until sleep would prevail…but not this time. So I started to research running and the connections it has with mental health. Specifically, I’ve always heard of the “runner’s high” but I never necessarily felt that I had gotten there yet. That was until this week.
The “runner’s high” is a widely publicized effect of endorphin production that is activated when we engage in long, continuous workouts. It is directly related to the time when our muscles consume all of their stored up glycogen. My assumption is that I would experience this when my runs get to being 3+ hours long. Could I be wrong?
My body is craving a run everyday. I’ve never had mental issues (my wife would argue!), but obviously my current situation is putting a deal of stress on my emotional system and I recognize that I am depressed in this current moment. Is this craving to run my bodies way of triggering the endorphin production in my system to get a shot of “feel good” and to boost my emotional state?
I think it is. In fact, I’m convinced it is.
A 1999 Duke study divided 150 participants with depression age 50 or more into three groups. 1 group got Zoloft, 1 group got and exercise program, and the final group got a combo of the two. Only eight percent of the exercise group had their depression return compared to 38 percent of the Zoloft group and 31 percent of the combination group. The combo group fared poorly because researchers believe that the drugs undermine the natural ability of the exercise to repair the persons depressed state. The big outcome of the study was that “For each 50-minute increment of exercise, there was an accompanying 50 percent reduction in relapse risk.”
So running is more effective than modern day drugs. Doesn’t surprise me in the least, but I have an extremely negative view of our modern pharma world and don’t take medications unless absolutely necessary.
Moreover, I found a dozen or so studies that reflect this same outcome. Running has brought my health to a place I never thought I’d be. I lost weight I didn’t know existed on my body and my vital stats are all excellent today because of running. What’s better…it’s a tool I now have to help get through the toughest of time’s in my life…It clears my head, it makes me feel better when all I want to do is put my head in my lap and cry…
The coming week’s won’t get easier, but time will eventually help me deal with this. I will miss my grandmother so very much and the memories I have will always be cherished. I urge anyone who deals with persistent or depression because of events in their life to just give running a real shot. It could be the ticket to changing your life.
Tony Krupicka is doing something that is insane to me at this point in my short running life. He’s summiting Green Mountain EVERY DAY for the first 100 days of this year. That’s 3000 feet of vertical gain and after today’s run, I’m not sure exactly how long it would be until I would be physically up to doing something like that.
My run was not even a dent in the pail compared to Tony’s stuff, but it’s my own challenge of vertical gain and challenging terrain. I picked a section of the Appalachian Trail that is by my son’s daycare and that I have driven by often for the past several years and always wondered how exactly the trail wound up to the top of the hill.
It kicked my ass…my runs have been largely road runs through the winter and this challenge was tough on my legs.
It’s an 800 foot vertical climb with a pretty impressive grade that hits the 50% mark a few times on the ascent. My standard FiveFinger KSO’s didn’t meet the grip needs of the slushy, snowy, muddy climb and I hit the trail a couple times with the right side of my body from slipping in the mess. I’m really eager to get a pair of KSO Trek’s and just noticed that City Sports had my size in stock, so I’m sure those will be strapped on within the next couple months.
So how was it? It was freaking fun! I was dying, but it was challenging and that’s the key. A road doesn’t seem to challenge me like a trail will. You can run as fast as you can on a road and only have to pay attention at about a 40% rate. The trails require 100% of your attention at every step, it’s a mental challenge that road runs can’t compete with. I look forward to hitting this run throughout the year and can’t wait to see how I’ll improve because today was a rude awakening and introduction to the Appalachian Trail!
These thing’s take a beating. We wear them on the trails, we pound them through tough grasses, and we grind them on the obstacles the city streets have to offer. At some point in your ownership of Vibram FiveFingers you will be likely to have a seam open up. Most folks that I keep up with that run in FiveFingers experience this around the 300 miles mark, which I think is totally acceptable in terms of the quality of the product holding up 100% through that many miles. Having said that, a seam failure doesn’t mean you need to throw your FiveFingers away.
If you have 10 minutes and a needle and thread, you’ve got everything you need to keep your Vibram FiveFinger’s in tip top shape to last you hundreds of more miles!
Noticed this sign when I entered a neighborhood today for my run…apparently the neighborhood is full of kids who are going to have a lifetime of joint pains
One thing that I believe is very important in life is reflection. It allows you to consciously think about what you’ve done and accomplished and through reflecting you get fired up for what you can do next.
I’ve now been running for 6 months (as of the close of January).
7 Months ago, I couldn’t run a mile without pain. I couldn’t walk from my parking spot into our house carrying groceries without being winded. I thought about what I ate, but I didn’t account for quantity. I drank too much to not be doing anything active to counterbalance. I didn’t understand what running was.
I’ve learned so much. I thought running was something you just did…you either were good at it, or biology wasn’t on your side and you were doomed to walk and sit. I’ve studied and discovered that running isn’t inherent, it takes a technique that you constantly have to work to build and to maintain.
Going Slow
I’ve built my miles slowly and I’ve been uninjured for 6 months. Hell, I haven’t felt a twinge of pain in 6 months. I’m beating the statistics there. I credit this to building a foundation of miles with goals that were healthily achievable.
Logging miles in this fashion has allowed me to work on perfecting a technique that will sustain me in running for the rest of my life. I’m not out there entering a marathon or setting goals that will surely outpace my bodies ability to adapt. I’ve just been running and it’s been a lot of fun!
Miles, Miles, Miles (speed will just come along one day)
“Build miles and speed will come”. Rob told me this…over and over again when I would contact him frustrated at being slow. Well, he was right.
Average pace of my first 8 runs – 10:26
Average pace of my last 8 runs - 9:27
I shaved a frikin minute off my mile pace. And keep in mind, the last 8 runs were at distances that average 3 times as far as the first 8. Keep putting miles into the bank and it appears your return on that investment is a bit of speed!
Health Probably the most remarkable changes I’ve experienced (and others have witnessed) is the changes in my health.
I’ve lost around 27lbs since I started running. It’s important to note that I didn’t really look all that heavy at all, I’m 6 feet tall and was 206lbs back in August. I lost weight that I didn’t really know that I had to lose. It feels amazing to have that excess weight off!
Resting heart rate July 2009 = 68bpm
Resting heart rate Dec 2010 = 53bpm
My resting heart rate is well below average now, a sign that I am healthier now than 6 months ago. More importantly is this vital measurement:
Blood pressure July 2009 = 140/90
Blood pressure Dec 2010 = 120/80
I was border line hypertensive on my 30th birthday in July…that was an awakening for me. At last checkup, I am normal!
Happiness This is right up there with health. I am the happiest I’ve been in my entire life at this very moment. I feel great and I get the exercise I need to keep me regulated in terms of the foods I eat, the rest I get, and how I spend my free time.
I’ve found the joy in running and I’m doing my part to help make it contagious. I’ve started many folks in the past 6 months on to their own journey to become runner’s and get healthier.
60.6 miles total…10 miles over what I was able to complete in January! My running in February felt the best it ever has. My legs are getting stronger and as you can see in the graph all my runs were over 4 miles in distance; anything shorter just didn’t feel right.
I had my folks in town in the third week of the month for my son’s 1st birthday so my time was very limited. Other than that, I finally eclipsed the mysterious 15 miles/week mark!
I’ve lost around 27lbs since I started running. It’s important to note that I didn’t really look all that heavy at all, I’m 6 feet tall and was 206lbs back in August. I lost weight that I didn’t really know that I had to lose. It feels amazing to have that excess weight off!