My First Track Meet

Last weekend I competed at the USATF Masters Indoor Track and Field Championships. I took home a couple of medals but mostly it was an exercise in humility! It was great fun, I made some excellent friends, and I left feeling incredibly invigorated.

My journey to the nationals began last Summer. As I have blogged about before, I participate in the annual summer track meets hosted by Carolina Godiva Track Club. These are informal events with participants ranging from 8 to 80 years in age. I have never trained for them and have mostly viewed them as a fun, social way to get in some speed work for my distance running.

Last year, though, my world was rocked at one of these events when a 60-year-old woman named Becky lined up next to me in the 100m dash and ran neck and neck with me the entire way - wow, I was impressed! It turns out that she was the US national 100m champion in the women's 60-64 age division. Between her, Louise (78 years old), and William (77) - all of whom came out to some of the summer track meets - I was thoroughly inspired.

Although I have never run track competitively, I spent the first half of my life as a sprinter of sorts on the football field. I carry around a lot of muscle that does me no good in long distance but helps me generate power in a sprint. Whether for these reasons or for the reason that I've just been getting kind of bored training for the same 5-10k distance races for the last 15 years, the inspiration I felt from Becky, Louise, and William motivated me to make a change. In August of last year, I shifted gears and began training as a sprinter.

Another friend from summer track nights, Cindy, took me under her wing and helped me get started. As a world class track and field athlete, she helped me ramp up quickly in this new world. Her husband, Dante (an Olympic-caliber 400m runner himself), helped and supported too. It was hard to make consistent improvement throughout the Fall, though, as I was traveling a great deal and getting sick every other week as our son brought home various bugs from the petri dish that is daycare.

I ran two "test" track meets, one in October and one in January. The results weren't great and, due to my inconsistent training, I wasn't showing much progress. I recognized several friends at the January meet, though, and they encouraged me to join the Piedmont Pacers, a local track club that competes together as a team at these types of events.

Joining the Pacers really marked a turning point in my training. At least once a week I began joining a team practice with other Pacers. Louise, who turned out to be a Pacer, brought along her teammate, Angela. Rick, a very fast sprinter and middle distance runner about my age - brought along his awesome wife, Ryan. Even Becky, who isn't a Pacer and lives hours away, would come join us when she would happen to be in town. Anyone who knows me at all, knows that I am 110% extrovert so turning training into a team event really supercharged my workouts.

When March rolled around, it was time to see if the training had been paying off. To be clear, my times indicated that I wouldn't be terribly competitive. I was still new to track, still trying to remind my muscles how to fast-twitch, and, to boot, I would be the oldest competitor in the 35-39 age division - just three weeks shy of moving up to 40-44! However, I thought it would be good experience for me and I hoped to help the Pacers earn at least a few points, so I left my pride at the door and headed to Winston-Salem for three days of intense competition.

Day 1

400m

On the first day of competition, I only had one event: the 400m. In January I had run a 1:08, which is substantially slower than my outdoor 400m times from the Summer. Because indoor tracks are shorter, requiring more time in tighter turns, I expect my times to be a little slower but I was hoping to bring my time down at least to 1:06. An even-ish race plan was to run a 32s split for the first lap and 34s for the second lap.

Well, best laid plans! I went out way too fast, probably pulled along by my much-faster-than-I-am competitors. When I saw the clock at 30s as I finished my first lap (barely slower than my 200m PR), I knew I was in for a world of pain in the second. The rest of that race seemed interminable - all the more so because I was basically running by myself at that point - but I finally crossed the finish line in 1:06.66.

It was an improvement but not quite what I had hoped for. I'll try to settle in and run my race next time. Dropping some excess weight will help too; I averaged 529W of power over the course of the race and that could propel a lighter version of myself much more quickly. Regardless, I have a long way to go; the winning time was 51.42!

Day 2

60m

I had three events to run the second day, starting with the 60m. The 60 is a pure, all-out sprint so I had no strategy other than run as fast as I could. The start really matters in the 60 since it is such a short race. I'm still pretty new to starting out of blocks but I was hoping my recent practice would pay off.

When the gun went off, my reaction time was good. I had violent arm swings and rapid step turnover. My top speed just isn't very good yet, though. My poor flexibility limits the range of each step and my competitors all pulled away as the race went on. I finished in 8.75, nearly two seconds slower than the winning 6.88. 8.75 was a new PR for me, so I'm pleased with the progress, but I have a lot of room for improvement. In addition to flexibility, I really need to work on explosive power for this race. I'm stepping out of my blocks rather than exploding out of them.

4x800m

After several hours of waiting around, my next event was the 4x800 with Matt (41 years old), Kevin (43), and Rick (38). A team's youngest member determines its age category so we were competing in the M35-39 division. 

Matt, who was battling a calf injury, started us off well with a 2:42 leg. I took the baton and ran a very uneven 2:47. My first lap was - surprise, surprise - way too fast so, after I passed two competitors, I settled down. I may have slowed down too much but it was hard to know my pace as I had taken the baton at an odd time and my brain was way too oxygen-deprived to do math! I averaged 432W on my leg.

Kevin did better, running 2:46 with disturbingly even splits. Seriously, he might be a robot! Rick, our fastest runner, started off hot, running a 32s first lap. We could see that the first place team was way ahead of us and we had a commanding lead over the third place team, so we called out to Rick to slow down and save his juice for the next race. He wound up running a 2:33, putting us at 10:48, which was good enough for the silver medal - huzzah!

4x200m

No sooner had we finished the 4x800 than we had to line up for the 4x200. Our 4x200 team had the same members and we ran in the same order so at least our exhausted minds didn't have to think much.

Matt ran a good 29s opening leg. He had to pass the baton to me in the outer lane on a curve, though, which was a bit of a challenge. I ran 30s (577W), as did Kevin after me, and then Rick brought home the anchor leg in 27s. Our final time was 1:56 but the competition was much stiffer in this race and we were only good enough for 4th. 

Day 3

200m

Having run the final heat of the final event of the day before, I was among the last competitors to leave the track. Naturally my first race the next day was early so . . . no rest for the weary!

Because my projected time was the slowest (by far!) in my heat, I was assigned to lane 1, meaning I had to run the tightest turns. When the gun went off, I had another powerful start, but I had to bend that power around a tight curve - and then another one at the other end of the track. I finished in 29.25 (633W), an indoor track PR for me, but far behind my competition. The same notes apply: I have a lot of work to do to increase my top speed.

4x400m

Our team reunited to run the final heat of the final event of the track meet: the 4x400.  We were tired and sore from days of competition but adrenaline pumped us up as we neared the starting line. The same teams who had beaten us soundly the day before were out there again but they were tired and sore too, so anything could happen.

Matt again started us off well, hobbling through a 1:06 opening leg, maneuvering us into 4th place. I grabbed the baton and all soreness seemed to leave my legs. It's hard to tell from the race video, but it looks like a ran a PR 1:04 (553W) for my leg.

It seems strange that I should be able to run seconds faster (and sustain higher power output) over 400m on the third day of competition vs the first. I definitely can't attribute the performance increase to a running start as we were being extra cautious with our handoffs to ensure that we didn't drop the baton. I have two hypotheses:

1. I'm a team sports guy, not an individual sports guy. Put me out there with teammates depending on me and I will rise to the occasion.
2. In the relays, other runners are spread more evenly around the track, motivating me to surge and pass them. Compare that to the individual events, during which the closest I ever was to the competition was when were at the starting line!

Regardless of the mechanism, I ran a good time (for me) and passed two competitors to put us in 2nd. Kevin ran a strong 1:13 and then Rick brought us home with a smoking 58s anchor leg. Final result: 4:21, good enough for another silver medal!

Final Thoughts

As I returned home, exhausted but exhilarated, I reflected on my first real track meet experience. Here are a few of my final take-aways:

• It was fun - a lot of fun! I didn't expect that. There were long stretches between my races when I intended to sneak away to a cafe to get some work done but staying and cheering for my friends as they competed kept me at the track.
• I loved being on a team; that made all the difference in the world, adding meaning to every race. The Pacers finished 7th in the team points competition and I was proud to have helped contribute 15 of those points through our relay performances. Being part of a team also gave me more people to cheer for throughout the meet.
• I wonder how "valid" the results of the competition are. It's neat to receive a silver medal and claim that our team earned #2 in the nation but we were really only #2 of those present at the meet. How many faster teams might be out there who didn't have the time, money, or other wherewithal to travel across the country to compete? This point isn't very important to me since I'm really not in it for the medals, but it did make me wonder.
•  What I will remember most about this meet is the friendliness and supportiveness of all of the competitors. Before each race, competitors shook hands and wished each other luck. Between races, I met and made fast friends with competitors from all over the country and with very diverse backgrounds. Kudos to the USATF and JDL Fast Track for cultivating such a culture of positive sportsmanship - that is, after all, what sports are all about!

Summer Track 2016 PRs

Another summer track season has come and gone and this year I was running with power. Below are my PRs from this year's events with previous years' PRs in parentheses:

100m: 13.6s (12.7s)
200m: 28.54s (27.69s)
400m: 1:05 (1:03)
800m: 2:30 (2:31)
1,000m: 3:17 (3:19)
1,500m: 5:19 (5:21)
1 Mile: 5:44 (5:51)
3,000m: 11:41 (11:39)
5,000m: N/A (20:14)
10,000m: N/A (44:15)

I didn't focus on any of the sprint events this season and only "raced" the 800m-3,000m, where I mostly saw improvement. One takeaway is that, if I'm going to go for a PR in a longer track race (3,000m or 5,000m), I need to do it earlier in the season, when it is still cooler. Once the weather reaches peak heat/humidity, the prospect of sustaining PR pace for more than 10 minutes after two hours of other events (The longest distance races are always at the end of the night.) becomes less and less likely.

Sir Walter Miler

Last night Katie and I took advantage of our proximity to Raleigh and attended the Sir Walter Miler. It's an annual race at which elite runners try to set new records in the mile. It was a really fun environment as spectators were allowed down on the track during the races to cheer on the athletes.

How did those athletes do? The winning woman finished the mile in 4:25 and the winning man finished in 3:54. Those numbers are impressive enough, but it was even more impressive to see what a sub-4:00 mile looks like up close and personal!

Afterward, Katie and I rewarded ourselves for our excellent spectating by visiting nearby FRESH, our favorite ice cream in the Triangle!

Four on the Fourth Race Report

Last week I raced my third annual Four on the Fourth 4-mile road race, the first event of the three-event Tour de Carrboro. Because I now have a full half year of training by power (and power data from a previous four-mile road race), I was comfortable running this race by power instead of pace or heart rate.

My PR last year was 27:45 so I was shooting to improve by at least 15 seconds. Back in April I averaged 403W (Watts) over my 4-mile race but, if you exclude the first and last splits (when I was generating extra power due to my hot start and strong finish), I averaged 392W during the main part of the race. Believing myself to be in better running shape now, I decided to target 400W during the main part of this race, hoping that would translate to 4:22/km or better.

The day of the race it turned out to be drizzly - very humid but also cool and overcast, a real blessing in July! I was well nourished from the previous day's 4th of July Eve feast so, after a long warmup, they sounded the gun and we were off!

KM 1: The first KM is a gentle downhill slope so I knew I would be able to keep a good pace at my target power. The first KM took 4:00; I averaged 413W and reached a heart rate of 169 BPM. Good.

KM 2: The second KM is flat-ish but again net downhill. I averaged 410W with an average HR of 171 BPM; it took 4:14. 1/3 of the way through the race my power output was a little high but I was feeling good.

KM 3: Flat. 403W, 173 BPM; 4:20. Right on track.

KM 4: Another net downhill: 388W, 175 BPM; 4:14. Still right on track.

KM 5: This is where you have to pay for all that downhill; this KM is a big uphill. 411W, 177 BPM; 4:32. I was really proud of my consistent power despite the grade change.

KM 6: Another uphill but this time with the end in sight. 421W, 181 BPM; 4:19.

Final .47KM: This finishes up on a quarter mile track. I managed to pass several people here toward the end. 457W, 188 BPM; 1:39 (3:31 pace).

Final time: 27:16 - a 29s improvement over last year! Average power 411W - 407W during the main part of the race. Perhaps most importantly, my greatest improvement over last year was the uphill portion of this race; for that I give credit to the uphill power intervals training I have been doing.

It was a good race, a good PR, and continued validation that that training by power is working. 'Murica!

Training Results with Power

One of the key metrics when training with power is known as Critical Power (CP) or Functional Threshold Power (FTP). It is analogous to your Lactate Threshold (LT) and, like LT, your training zones are calculated as various percentages of it.

CP is effectively the amount of power you can sustain during an all-out, 1-hour running effort. Because repeatedly testing an all-out, 1-hour running effort is hard (increasing likelihood of sub-maximal performance and/or injury), Stryd has developed a protocol that uses shorter maximal efforts to calculate your CP. On a track you run 2 laps easy, rest, run 3 laps at maximum effort, rest, and then run 6 laps at maximum rest. This creates a power curve that can be used to predict with relatively high accuracy your CP.

Back in February I completed my first CP test. Then I trained for 12 weeks, ran a key race, and completed another CP test.

February CP test:
3 laps: 4:24, 401W, Max HR 185
6 laps: 9:30, 376W, Max HR 187
Calculated CP: 347W

April CP test:
3 laps: 4:16, 436W, Max HR 183
6 laps: 9:18, 409W, Max HR 186
Calculated CP: 370W

My 3-lap power:

My 6-lap power:

A few notes on protocol: these are max effort runs for me, leaving me exhausted. I used 45 minutes between runs (and ingested coconut water) instead of the prescribed 30 to ensure that I could give the 6-lap run the effort it deserved. During each run I tried to run relatively even splits but still gave an all-out sprint at the finish. These were all run on the UNC track, which is soft enough that I can run comfortably barefoot - but I ran these with minimalist footwear anyway since that is what I use for off-track running, where I spend most of training and racing time.

By any metric it seems that I improved. My power numbers for the same effort level were consistently ~9% higher than my power numbers in February. This led to a CP calculation 7% higher than in February and, perhaps most importantly, the increased power translated to faster speed, shaving 8 seconds off the 3-lap and 12 seconds off the 6-lap run. I don't believe that 100% of the performance improvement can be attributed to fitness improvement; as Andy Coggan has noted, experience with the protocol will improve performance slightly even if fitness remains constant. Still, I believe this shows that fitness/performance has indeed improved since February.

Based on this new CP, my new training zones are:
Endurance: 258-295W
Tempo: 295-332W
Threshold: 332-368W
Interval: 368-405W
Repetition: 405-442W

As I look back on my previous training program, I may have been overtraining the longer, sustained runs. My last long slow distance run averaged 296W, which is slightly over my threshold between Endurance and Tempo. Similarly, my Tempo runs were sustaining 360W, which is up in my Threshold zone near CP - that may be OK but I need to clarify if those runs were meant to peak in the Tempo zone or Threshold zone. My track intervals, on the other hand, seem dead on, with my last session averaging 371W; it seems I even have room to push it up a notch there.

Wednesday night was our first track meet of the summer and I set a new mile PR (5:45) by 6 seconds. Considering that I haven't been training for the mile race at all, I have to attribute this performance improvement to the success of my power-based training.

My mile PR power:

Training With Power

Last year I moved from running just about every day to a lower-volume methodology that had me running just two key training runs a week plus running for fun in between. The results for me were:

* super simple program to administer
* increased race performance
* reduced injury rate
* time and energy for all of the other athletic activities I enjoy
* rediscovered JOY in running

I don't necessarily advocate this approach for others but for me it has been a good fit.

Enter the Stryd. After "getting to know" the device for a few months, I made my first foray into training by power in February. Mike Ricci published a power-based training plan that I adapted to my 2-key-runs-a-week approach. After some base building, this effectively meant alternating one week of a long slow road/trail run and intervals at the track with a week of road/trail tempo and road hill intervals. Other days of the week I would be doing strength training, swimming, playing beach volleyball, hiking, bootcamping, or taking my dog for an easy half hour jog.

Let's take a look at each of these workouts in turn:

Long Slow Distance: Since I'm a short and middle distance runner, my "long" distance may not seem very long to most of you! I started the program with an hour in power zone 1 and worked up by the end of March to 90 minutes in Z2. My goal for these runs was to maintain consistent power and to focus on form throughout.

Track Intervals: These started as a mistake. This was apparently supposed to be a Repetition workout, with Ricci's program specifying 1-minute intervals at Critical Power followed by 3-minute recovery periods. The first time I tried it I mistakenly read 1-km intervals, rather than 1-minute, so it was much more of an Interval workout for me than repetitions. It felt great, though, and I thought it would be helpful in preparing me for my first key race of the year, the 4-miler I posted about yesterday. So I started with 5x1km, averaging 351W and worked my way up to 7x1km, averaging 377W. https://www.stryd.com/powercenter/run/209340019 It was freeing to focus on wattage rather than splits on the track!

Tempo: These began as 15 min Z2, 15 min Z3, 15 min Z2. Over the course of the program I pushed these up to 25-25-25 with 5 minutes of Z1 on either end as a warmup and cooldown.

Hills: These are my favorite by far - which is ironic since, moving to Chapel Hill from flat, flat Houston, these were and still are my weakest point. Still, running up hills is the closest I come to pushing weighted sleds on the football field and it just feels good! Chapel Hill is aptly named and I've got a great, miles-long 6% grade sidewalk right outside my door. Per Ricci's prescription, I started with 6x2 minute Z5 intervals, then slowly increased the reps to 10, and then slowly increased each rep duration to 2:30. Initially I was sustaining ~385W for 6 reps of 2 minutes but by my last session I was sustaining 405W for 10 reps of 2:30.

This was about a 12-week program for me, including the taper before last weekend's race and has been my first attempt at training by power. At the end of the program I conducted a Critical Power test, which I will post about tomorrow, but, spoiler alert, my Critical Power increased substantially over the course of this program.

Tar Heel 4 Miler 2016 Race Report - This Time With Power!

Last month I competed in my third Tar Heel 4 Miler, the biggest race each year in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, where I live. They offer a 10 mile version too but I lose interest once I hit double digit mileage so the 4 Miler has become one of my key races each year since we moved here.

Last year I placed second in my age group so this year I was gunning for the win. They changed the race course this year so I didn't have a baseline to work from. Instead, I ran the course a few days ahead of time and built a race strategy from there.

I only had one road race under my belt with Stryd so far, an 8k (5 mile) race last Thanksgiving. My average power in that race was 363W. Given that this race would be shorter and I had been training by power during the intervening months, I figured I could run at substantially higher power in this race. But how high? I simply didn't know so I decided to run a progressive race, starting off around 360W (excepting the first km because I always go out hard) and then increasing 10W each KM if I felt good. I would be looking for ~4:20 KM splits but that was really an afterthought; I would be racing by power, not pace.

This is a "flat" race by North Carolina standards but still very hilly by mine. Although I have very strong legs, smaller/lighter runners usually have an advantage over me going up hills. All my fast twitch fibers help me cruise past them as I stride it out on the downhills, so my goal was to "hang on" during the uphill segments in the middle of the race and attack the downhills. The race ends on a big uphill where I usually do pretty well by virtue of not needing to leave anything in the tank afterward.

Such a short race is very anaerobic so I tried to fuel up in the preceding days to fill up my glycogen stores. This included my traditional chocolate cake the night before the race. Science tells us that, by then, the window for fueling is already past - but I conveniently ignore science when it comes to justifying chocolate cake!

The morning of the race I jogged from my house to the starting line as a warmup. It's pretty much all uphill so I took it easy but still had a healthy sweat going by the time I arrived. I found lots of people I knew at the starting line (including my "nemesis" who is always very close to me in these races), which kept the atmosphere nice and relaxed. After a beautiful rendition of the National Anthem the starting gun sounded and we were off!

KM 1: Again, I always go out hot A. to avoid getting stuck in a pack and B. because I can't NOT do it! The first KM was largely uphill so my goal was to rein it in at 370W. Long story short: I failed to hold back and the first KM averaged 414W. On the plus side, I had good positioning on the road so wasn't hemmed in by other runners. My first KM split turned out to be exactly 4:20 and my heart rate reached 171 BPM, which was fine; I expected to run most of the race in the 170s.

KM 2: This was much flatter, even slightly downhill. My goal for this KM was to settle in at 360W and I almost achieved it, averaging 371W. This split was 4:09 and I was clearly cruising along as my average heart rate dropped to 168 BPM.

KM 3: I was feeling good so I elected to try to hold steady at ~370W. This had a long uphill segment, though, and my performance turned out to be identical to the first KM: 414W, 4:20. Heart rate averaged up to 175 BPM.

KM 4: Here we had another flatter, slightly downhill segment. I was feeling good, though, so I aimed to up the ante to 380W. I wound up averaging 385W and finished in 4:15. My heart rate average dropped to 174 BPM.

KM 5: Still feeling good; let's take it up to 390W! This was a net neutral segment with both uphill and downhill portions. I averaged 399W and slowed significantly to 4:34 - but I passed my nemesis. HR still 175 BPM, which was fine.

KM 6: Less than a mile to go so time to stop thinking about holding onto any reserves; let's keep it up at 400W! There were some significant downhills in this segment so I made my move and passed several of the runners who had been pretty close to me for most of the race. I averaged 392W but Stryd underreports downhill running power so I think I was actually pretty close to the mark. 4:15 split, 177 BPM.

Final 400M: This was just an uphill gutcheck: target 450W. A young marine who had been running with two other members of his battalion passed me on the hill and made it look easy; he must have been holding back to run with his buddies for the rest of the race. I still had a strong finish: 505W, 1:41 split. Heart rate hit 187 BPM, which is just a few BPM shy of my maximum.

Final time: 27:34 and I won my age group! 403W average power, much higher than I anticipated! Running by power really does take so much of the guesswork out of pacing when you're on a course of varying elevation. The main question in my mind is: would I have run faster overall if I had run a more even power race - especially during those 1st and 3rd KMs? Now I have a pretty good average power target to shoot for during my next 4-mile road race (July) so I can aim for more consistency.

If you're interested in my actual power data, here you can see how it is much better than heart rate for instantaneously monitoring intensity:

Stryd Blog: My Background

My first post as a Stryd Ambassador was meant to introduce myself to the rest of the early adopters:

Hello, follow Stryders! I'm Bryan Guido Hassin, a 37-year-old green tech startup entrepreneur based in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA.  I played [American] football through university (Go Rice Owls!) but now I run and play beach volleyball as more "life long" sports. Having spent the first half of my life never running more than 100 yards in one go, it's now a fun challenge to tackle (pun intended) longer distances, especially on trails and with obstacles. I'm primarily interested in short and middle distances, although I will run longer distances on occasion as a way to experience beautiful places.

Many moons ago I had the opportunity to work out with some of the top strength and conditioning coaches in the NFL. They impressed upon me that their goal was to help their athletes achieve their maximum genetic potential - within the constraints of the enormous demands on their time and energy. Their athletes weren't working out all day every day; on the contrary, they were taking a surgical, "rifle shot" approach, using the minimum amount of training to achieve the maximum result. Their emphasis of recovery, mobility, and injury prevention over training stress was a real eye opener to me.

As a CEO, I also have enormous demands on my time and energy but I find that I am most effective when both my mind AND body are in peak condition. Motivated by what I learned from the NFL coaches, I am always searching for tools that will help me work smarter-not-harder to improve my physical conditioning. Every year I get older, this approach is increasingly important as I seek to prevent injuries as well - i just don't recover from them as quickly as I did when I was 18!

This quest for smarter training methods is what led me to Stryd. Cyclists have been using power meters for decades to optimize training so I was intrigued by the prospect of doing the same for running. I run a lot of interval and repetition workouts in which heart rate is all but useless as a metric - both for the interval and for the recovery period. Power offered me a much more instantaneous measurement of my output.

Training by power is especially interesting now that I live in a very hilly locale. We moved here from Houston, Texas, which is as flat as the day is long. Once we arrived in [aptly named] Chapel Hill, I quickly realized that training by pace was useless. Power seemed like an appropriate way to "normalize" pace based on the constantly change grade.

My hopes for Stryd extend beyond training too as I believe that it can be a powerful (again, pun intended) weapon in races, when emotions are tense, paces need to change based on grade, and heart rate is so laggy that, once you realize that it's too high, it may be too late.

Finally I'm hoping that Stryd can be an "always on" coach, of sorts, to help me improve my running form. I've been able to see power decrease while pace remains constant when I focus on certain running form cues so I'm hoping to integrate that type of feedback more tightly into my training.

As a trained scientist/engineer, I'm a natural experimenter. Over the course of this week I'll share with you all some of the experiments I've run with Stryd, some of what I've learned, and some of what I think is still out there to figure out. Thanks for joining me in this journey of discovery and may the Power be with you!

Running with Power

For the last six months I have been trying out a new gadget for running. It's called Stryd and it's a power meter for runners. Cyclists have been using power meters for decades to optimize their training and racing so I was intrigued by the prospect of applying the same advantage to running.

Why Power?
Whether training or racing, running is all about throttling your intensity: too intense and you will burn out too early; not intense enough and you won't achieve maximum results. There are a few possible metrics to help you throttle your intensity already:

• By feel: Feeling is a notoriously poor metric of intensity as it is very inexact. Even seasoned runners' feelings are biased by mood, time of day, stage of the run, and myriad other subjective factors.
• Pace: Pace seems like the right metric since, after all, the goal of most running training is to be able to run faster. In flat environments under controlled conditions, pace is indeed pretty good. However, once you introduce varying terrain into the mix, pacing goes out the window. Try to maintain your flat pace up a long, steep hill and cry as you eventually have to slow to a walk. Try to maintain your track or street pace on a sandy beach and cry as your legs turn to hot butter!
• Heart rate: The answer to the varying terrain conundrum was long thought to be heart rate - as you climb that hill, slow to the point that your heart rate remains the same since heart rate reflects your overall level of effort regardless of topography or surface. This works well in theory but heart rate is a very laggy indicator. It takes heart rate many seconds - sometimes more than a minute - to catch up to the intensity of exercise, which makes it very inadequate as a running metric. Running by heart rate is like driving while looking only in the rear-view mirror.

Enter power. If you can measure power, you have an exact metric that provides real-time, instantaneous feedback on intensity. Measuring power on the relatively simple mechanical device of a bicycle has been easy but running humans are much more mechanically complex and measuring power on them was elusive - until now.

A brief explanation of running with power by Dr. Andy Coggan, the OG of power training:

There are now at least two running power meters on the market; I backed one of them, Stryd, on kickstarter because I liked their approach. It is a wearable 3D accelerometer that, with knowledge of the runner's mass, calculates work done per unit time (power) in each dimension. It also includes a barometric altimeter so it knows with precision how elevation is changing throughout a run.

The potential benefits of such a device are significant: training smarter with precise intensity, "normalizing" hills during runs, optimizing running form for efficiency, and running perfectly paced races. How well does it deliver? Following are my conclusions from six months of use:

The Good

• Stryd "just works" right out of the box. Put it on, enter your weight, and you are off to the races. Running with power is indeed transformative: pick up the pace or encounter a hill without slowing down and watch your numbers soar instantaneously. Try out modifications to your running form and see in real-time how they affect your power output. THIS. IS. HUGE.
• Stryd integrates with the tools I already use. It connects to my Garmin Forerunner GPS watch and is worn on the chest as you would wear any heart rate monitor (It also measures heart rate so simply replaces the heart rate monitor I was previously using.). This means that I can keep using the hardware and software tools I already know and love with Stryd.
• That said, for those who don't already have other hardware and software, Stryd's Power Center website and mobile app are quite good on their own.

The Bad

• Accuracy is not as good when running downhill. Because runners actually use power to brake some while running downhill, our power can still be quite high - vs. cyclists, who can coast downhill, using ~0 power. As such, Stryd underreports power when running downhill.
• If you want access to ALL the data that Stryd records (like power separated into all three dimensions), you have to pair it with the mobile app (because sports watches like my Garmin only support a single power metric). For some like me, who prefer not to run with a phone, that's a negative.
• There is a dearth of power training knowledge and programs out there. Running by power is still so bleeding edge that there aren't a lot of established "best practices" yet. For some like me, though, that's actually a positive, as we have the opportunity to be at the forefront of pushing new boundaries!

The Ugly

• Because most sports watches don't include power as an option for running data, you usually have to "hack" the device for it to work with Stryd. For example, I actually have to use a cycling profile to use Stryd with my Garmin Forerunner 920XT. After my device syncs I then have to go into Garmin Connect and manually change each Stryd activity from "cycling" to "running" and I miss out on some of the running dynamics data - even though the Stryd records that data, it just isn't displayed because Garmin thought the activity was cycling, not running. While this aspect of using Stryd was annoying at first, I don't even notice it now and I'm sure that it will go away as companies like Garmin and Polar modernize.

The Amazeballs

• The most pleasant surprise of all with Stryd has been the team! They are amazingly customer-centric, responding in minutes to any challenges or questions we early adopters have, engaging us in rich discussions about the data we collect, and even involving us in the decision-making process for future. Their product improvements come frequently, often as a direct result of user feedback. If you want to see some of this consumer engagement in action, check out the Stryd forums.

A couple of week ago, I even had the honor of being Stryd's facebook group featured user. This meant that I posted every day about different ways that I used Stryd to run with power. I'll replicate some of those posts here on this blog in the coming days.

November Whirlwind

November was a whirlwind! We were barely back from Dubai when we hopped on a plan to Austin, Texas for a dear friend's wedding. It was a grand affair and, although we were only in town briefly, it was long enough for us to get our fix of Tex-mex, BBQ, etc.

Shortly thereafter I was in Houston on business, a trip that happened to coincide with Rice Homecoming. While the outcome of the game was, ahem, less than desirable, the experience of reconnecting with friends, classmates, students, faculty, and the institution I love so much was hard to beat. The weather was perfect and the trip was nourishment for my soul.

The second half of the month kept me in NC and my focus turned (even more so than usual) to . . . food! I attended a wine dinner at Watts Grocery and a beer release at Beer Study that included flights of fantastic stout beers paired with Rise donuts . . . so healthy!

Of course there was Thanksgiving as well. Mom came into town and, in addition to an early Thanksgiving with extended family here in the area, we did a second Thanksgiving at our house with a fried turkey from Time Out . . . I'm still recovering!

Fortunately mixed in with the gluttony were some opportunities to work off the turkey as well. The Saturday before Thanksgiving I ran my third annual Chestnut Ridge 4-mile trail race. It's not super competitive so I finished 6th overall and 1st in my age group. It was a glorious fall day so I celebrated with apple cider and ginger bread - optimal recovery food!

Thanksgiving morning I ran my third annual Gallop and Gorge 8k road race. It's much more competitive so I didn't even come close to placing - but I did improve my 8k PR by 45 seconds, so good deal.

We also did lots of hiking over Thanksgiving weekend and we continue love living in a place where so many hiking opportunities are available.

Through all of my running in November I have been wearing a new toy: a Stryd powermeter. I'm still collecting data and formulating thoughts on it so I'll save additional commentary for a future post.

It's easy to get caught up in all the different things going on this time of year but we have still taken some time to pause, reflect, and be grateful. Each year it seems that we have more and more to be thankful for and this year is no exception. As we head into the holiday season, we are truly grateful for our blessings, family and friends - and we wish you all the same!

Running Smarter Not Longer

This year I've adopted a new running training methodology and so far I've been very pleased with the results.

Last year I was running a training plan prescribed by triathlete coach Joe Friel. It had me running four days a week, cycling through tens of different workouts. I made decent progress and set a few PRs but I didn't love it. My legs were sore throughout most of the week, I had a hard time fitting in non-running exercise, and it frankly took a lot of planning time just to stay on top of all the complex workouts, which ones to do when, etc.

Around the beginning of this year I learned that Aaron Olson, whose Paleo Runner Podcast I had been listening to for months, was promoting a new running training methodology, which is based on his own experience and insights from many of his podcast guests. He recently published a book on this methodology called Low-Mileage Running.

The methodology is pretty straight forward:

• Focus on few high-quality workouts rather than many low-quality runs each week.
• Only work out when you feel 100%. Allow adequate rest/recovery between workouts.
• Frequently return to benchmark workouts to gauge progress.

For me this means:

• Two workouts each week, one middle distance time trial, and one high intensity intervals workout
• If I don't feel awesome during a workout, I abort and do a recovery jog.
• As much easy jogging as I care to do throughout the rest of the week
• As much beach volleyball, weight lifting, hiking, ping pong, and any other activities as I care to do throughout the rest of the week

In short, I have been loving it. This simple approach, with a relatively small workout menu from which to choose, is trivially easy to administer. I don't have to obsess over training planning anymore; my plan essentially writes itself each week. Also, because I frequently return to the same workouts, it's easy for me to gauge my own progress.

Performancewise, I've continued to set PRs this year and have remained injury free (which is more and more important with every new birthday). Perhaps I would have set the same PRs if I had been following a higher-mileage training plan . . . but I'm glad to hit those numbers with less time spent training.

Perhaps most importantly, I have returned to the joy of running. Instead of viewing running as something I have to do, slogging through it even if it hurts, now running is a real pleasure. My two hard workouts each week feel really good because I'm fresh and fully recovered. Any other running I do throughout the week is with friends and/or just to commune with nature. I can't overstate how psychologically important this is - I guess I had been burning out on running previously without realizing it.

Finally it's nice that I can devote so much time to other things. I'm already slammed for time, so freeing up multiple days a week of hard running workouts has really helped.

At the end of the day, running just has a much more positive place in my life again, which I love. This training methodology may not be for everyone, your mileage may vary, etc. However, if you're burning out a bit on running, plateauing, or even just looking to get started, I'd suggest that you check out Aaron's book. It's a really fast read and offers sample training plans to get anyone going.

The weather looks great this weekend so I think I'll do some trail running in the color-changing Appalachian forests - not because I have to, but because it will be a joy!

Summer Track 2015 PRs

Another summer track season has come and gone so it's time to look at how I did. Below are my PRs from this year's events with last year's PRs in parentheses:

100m: 13.1s (12.7s)
200m: 28.54s (27.69s)
400m: 1:03 (1:04)
800m: 2:31 (2:37)
1,500m: 5:23 (5:21)
1 Mile: 5:51 (5:52)
3,000m: 11:39 (11:57)
5,000m: 20:19 (20:14)
10,000m: 44:20 (44:15)

My shorter and longer distances slipped a little bit but I improved in almost all of the middle distance events.

Once again each Wednesday track night was a fun social event in addition to a track workout. We consistently went to Beer Study afterward for "recovery nutrition" and I'm already missing that weekly ritual. This week the autumn cross country series begins so it's time to shift gears from the track to the trail!

Tarheel 4 Miler Race Report

Last weekend I took second in my age group on a very hilly Tarheel 4 Miler course. This was my second year running this race and I was pleased with the improvement in performance.

Last year unfortunately my GPS watch wasn't working so, while I had a baseline time (29:03), I didn't have any more granular information about km splits, which would have been especially useful for this race because it is so hilly. As such, my race plan called for a specific average pace and then I adjusted it down for downhill segments and up for uphill segments.

I managed to secure a spot near the front for the start - no small feat with nearly 1,200 runners! There I met someone who described me as his nemesis. Oh, hello, it's not every day that you learn that you're someone's nemesis! Apparently he and I had run several of the same races and each time I had overtaken him right at the end. Exciting - now I had extra motivation to run hard and live up to my nemesis status!

After an outstanding rendition of the national anthem, we were off. The 1st km was flat at first and then offered a steep downhill. Between launching hot at the starting line and flying down the hill, my first km split was 3:52 (Yay!) but my heart rate was pretty high (174) for that early in the race (Boo!). My nemesis was way ahead of me but I told myself just to run my own race.

The 2nd km had even more downhill but I managed to moderate my pace in order to finish in 4:06. My heart rate was down to 172, which was more in line with my goal. The 3rd km was more flat so I finished in 4:27 while keeping my heart rate constant at 172 (average).

My pace slowed during the 4th km, which had a long, gentle uphill: 4:43. My average heart rate was down to 171 so maybe I wasn't pushing hard enough. However, knowing what was coming next motivated me to play conservatively here.

The end of the 4th km marked the beginning of the Laurel Hill Challenge - a full mile of steep incline (Time to pay for those early downhills!) with only a few flat segments. There was a timing mat at the bottom and another at the top so runners were scored not just on their overall times but also their splits for Laurel Hill.

The 5th km was a trudge: 5:11 at a 176 average heart rate. The 6th km was pretty rough for the first half and then flatter and even a little downhill for the second half: 4:38 overall but averaging 180 BPM. I wasn't concerned about the high heart rate at this point because there was very little race left. My nemesis was back in my sights now but I couldn't quite close the gap.

The final half km last year went through the stadium tunnel and then finished in the football stadium. Not only was that a very cool experience, it was a very flat experience as well. This year, due to stadium maintenance, the final half km went back uphill almost back to the starting point - oy, not fun at all! I channeled my inner Rocky and left it all out there, finishing this segment in 2:02, hitting a max heart rate of 187. Perhaps best of all, this is where I passed my nemesis - the streak is intact!

My final time was 28:58, only a few seconds faster than last year but on a slower course due to the final uphill. My Laurel Hill split was 7:28 vs 7:47 last year so it seems that I am continuing to improve at running these very non-Houston hills that Chapel Hill has to offer.

I finished #20 overall and #2 in my age group. #1 in my age group was #1 overall (< 23 minutes!) so I have a loooooooong way to go! Still, it was a great race and I'm proud of my progress!

First Trip to Oregon

This weekend I took a quick, but very active, trip to Oregon - my first time to visit that state. I arrived Thursday and was met with exactly what I expected from the Pacific Northwest: gray and rainy weather. One thing I didn't expect, though, was that the drivers would not be very good at dealing with the rain. Throughout the trip my driving travel times were increased due to accidents but I would have thought that, in a place where it rains frequently, people would have figured out how to adapt. Not so, apparently.

My trip began in Portland and my first stop was the Nike campus (technically in nearby Beaverton). The Nike campus is really cool; it simply oozes sports. Every building is named for a prominent athlete, sports fields and running trails litter the grounds, and everywhere you look are banners, statues, and busts of even more athletes from every sport imaginable. Although I am not a huge fan of the Nike brand, I had to tip my hat to them when I noticed a bronze bust of Art Monk, one of my favorite football players of all time, as I was walking by. Well played, Nike; well played.

At Nike I had lunch with two friends who work at Nike, one was a football teammate of mine at Rice and the other was an MBA classmate of mine (and Tug of War teammate!) at IMD. As one might imagine, the cafeteria (in the Mia Hamm building) at a place that is so focused on sports is pretty fantastic. I had steelhead trout, brussels sprouts, greek yogurt, and toasted coconut chips - not a bad way to break my fast!

After stopping to see another Rice friend at Nike, I headed to downtown Portland, where I had a reunion with one of my favorite ex-IMD professors. He is still doing cutting-edge research on entrepreneurship so it was very interesting to hear about his most recent findings. However, it was even more interesting to let him take me on a walking tour of Portland's Pearl District, which finished at Blue Star Donuts. Anyone who has read my treatise on nutrition will know that donuts are definitely not part of my nutritional plan. However, my companion assured me that this was one of the places to try in Portland, so when in Rome . . .

He and I shared a peanut butter donut with blackberry compote (delicious) but there were so many other intriguing flavors that I decided to pick up a box of five more (Valrhona dark chocolate, dark chocolate crunch, blueberry crunch, Mexican chocolate, and maple & bacon) to bring as a gift for my hosts later that night. Some of those flavors turned out to be more exciting than others but I was glad at least to try them. After waiting out the traffic (and more accidents), I finally hit the road and made it down to my friends' house in Eugene.

Friday morning my host, who is not only a great runner but also an avid lover of all things running, took me on a running tour of Eugene, which is known as Track Town, USA. We started in Hendricks Park, which overlooks the city, for some scenic trail running. I hadn't had a chance to see "real" Oregon Thursday because I spent the day in urban areas and it was already dark by the time I hit the road. As soon as we started running on Friday, though, I was impressed by just how green Oregon is. Lush grasses, towering fir trees, and moss, moss everywhere. It just really gives the impression that organic life thrives there.

We stopped by Pre's Rock, the location where Steve Prefontaine died, and then made our way down to the heart of the city. During our pilgrimage to historic Hayward Field, we took a lap around the track and ran the [sizeable] stadium stairs. Then we ran across the University of Oregon campus to run along Pre's bark trail - around the football stadium and then along the Willamette River. Running was a fantastic way to see a city that is so prominent in the US's running culture and I'm extremely grateful to my host for organizing such a unique tour.

After a good run, what do you need? Recovery nutrition, of course! So we went wine tasting at King Estate Winery. I'm not usually very big on pinot noir but they had a couple that really won me over. Afterward we stopped by a local fish market and made a nice dinner of fresh seafood.

Saturday we woke up early for a pre-dawn trail run along the Ridgeline Trail. Gradually the big moon made way for sunrise and we were once again treated to wonderful views of the city whenever we emerged from clusters of forest - truly magical!

At this point I left Eugene and drove up to Corvallis, where I would stay for the rest of my trip. Again I was impressed by just how green everything was on both sides of the road and extending as far as the eye can see.

My second Oregon host has been the subject of previous blog posts. He is the proprietor of The SHOP, which recently relocated to Corvallis, Oregon. Still a bit winded from our trail run, I was excited to see the new SHOP location so I made my way directly there. It's a really fantastic facility: high ceilings, open spaces, top-end equipment, and the best bathrooms I have ever seen at any gym! As expected, Drew treated me to an epic workout (normal for him, epic for me). Then we recovered with local craft brew and local-ish (in nearby Albany) fine dining, both of which were excellent.

Sunday Drew took me through another tough workout and then my Eugene host came up to join me for another running workout. Even with all the strenuous activity, I never felt too beat because Drew kept me plied with huge amounts of high quality - and delicious - nutrition.

Monday morning I snuck in one more awesome SHOP workout and headed back up to Portland to catch my flight. This trip really turned out to be a destination fitness fest and I wouldn't have had it any other way. During and between the workouts I spent time with great friends and I got to know - albeit very briefly - the very green state of Oregon. I hope to be back soon!

Chestnut Ridge Trail Race 2014

Yesterday I ran the Chestnut Ridge 4-mile Trail Race for the second time and did pretty well, placing sixth overall and second in my age group.

Chestnut Ridge was the first trail race I ran in North Carolina last year and was it ever a shock to my system. Having been used to flat road races in Houston, my mind was blown by how much different trail running - and especially hilly trail running - was. I finished 10th overall and third in my age group - but at a pace much slower than I was accustomed to running a race of that distance (actually 4.3 miles). On flat roads I might have expected to complete the race in ~28 minutes but I finished in 33:50 instead - big difference! It was evident then that all my pacing and PRs were out the window and I would have to set new expectations.

Having been in NC for more than a year now, I am finally starting to run some races for a second time. This gives me a chance to set course PRs, attempting to improve on last year's performances. It also means that I'm not walking into races blind and I can take a more intelligent approach to race strategy.

This race is mostly single track trails through the woods and around the lake of Chestnut Ridge Camp and Retreat Center in Efland, NC. The trails aren't very technical and they really aren't very hilly either - at least not by NC standards! This year's race was sunny and cold (+3 C or upper-30s F)- great racing weather!

I went out pretty fast to ensure that I didn't have to do too much passing once we hit the single track trails. As I saw my heart rate creeping up, though, I was able to reign it in a bit so as not to burn out. For most of the race there was someone 50-100 meters ahead of me and and I could hear someone(s) 25-50 meters behind me as well. I tried not to be concerned with them and just ran my own race. 

With less than 1 km to go, we emerged from the forest and two cross country boys passed me. They tried to pull away but I hung with them and eventually all three of us overtook the man who had been ahead of me for most of the race. As we neared the finish, I kicked it up a gear or two and surged pass the boys to beat them by a couple of seconds and finish in 32:21.

Setting a new course PR by 89 seconds is pretty good on such a short race. I attribute the better performance to better pacing, more experience running trails, and a higher running fitness level than I had a year ago. Also additional motivation was provided by some of my friends from the Godiva Track Club. They were running the longer distance race but one of them even ran with me for some time.

This was a fun, small race with pretty scenery and a nice route. It served as a good warmup for Thursday's Gallop & Gorge 8k, the final event of the Tour de Carrboro series, where I'm hoping to set another course PR before hitting the offseason!

Paris and Buffett 6.0 - Day 2

We woke up [very late] Saturday morning and seized the day. Katie met her friend for some touring about and I decided to go for a run. Once again the weather was absolutely perfect and I figured I could see more of Paris running than walking.

Instead of following a predetermined route, I decided just to take my phone with me and run everywhere nearby that Google Maps showed green space. This took me up to Les Invalides, over through the Jardin des Tuileries, along the Champs-Élysées, and back via a pedestrian area along the Seine.

I could have kept going for hours! Parks, parks, everywhere is something I really love about old European cities. They really appreciate green space, not only for its beauty but also for the social purpose it serves. I think citizens feel more invested in their community when they spend time out enjoying it with myriad neighbors, which is exactly what was happening on this gorgeous day! So many people were out walking, picnicking, napping, or just sitting and chatting as I ran by - it was inspiring!

Of course, there is a downside as well. Although I love parks, parks everywhere in European cities, I loathe smoke, smoke everywhere. It's hard to walk anywhere without stumbling unwittingly into a cloud of smoke, and that happens even more frequently when running. That's OK, though; it's usually easy enough to hold my breath until the air is clear again.

With my run behind me I showered up and made my way over to the theater to tailgate for Buffett's second concert. The floor section for the Saturday night show would be standing instead of seated, so there was actually an advantage to arriving early and staking out a good place in line.

The tailgate was a lot of fun and I met many other international Parrotheads - from Canada, Italy, Holland, and - of course - the US. We chatted, played Jimmy Buffett music, and - of course - imbibed. My beverage of choice this time around was a very nice Sauternes. Considering that I had eaten exclusively chocolate all day, I was living a very literal "dolce vita" until I also opened up some cheese as well.

Eventually Katie and her friend came to join me in line. They hopped right into the tailgating and, before we knew it (Time usually flies at a Buffett tailgate!), we were being let into the venue. We were pretty close to the stage, maybe 20 feet away, which made for a great concert. Jimmy mixed up the set list a little bit from the previous night so that it kept even those of us who attended both concerts guessing.

After the concert the girls struck out to get some Champagne and watch the Eiffel Tower lights while I stuck around to to see Jimmy leave the venue. He was very personable and gracious, signing many autographs on his way out. Afterward I walked back to our apartment, which took nearly an hour, but it was a great walk. In a pedestrian-friendly city, just walking along the streets is a fun experience regardless of the time of day.

Sunday morning we woke up in time to have a parting breakfast with Mom before I hopped on the train to Switzerland. Eggs, snails, salmon, sardines . . . the waiter actually brought over an additional table just for my order! What can I say, I didn't know when I would next have true French cuisine so I was trying to stock up!

It was just a brief trip to Paris but, as always, it was a grand time. Paris is not an inexpensive place by any stretch of the imagination, but you certainly get what you pay for. Au revoir, Paris, until next time!

Running for a Reason

This weekend I had a phenomenal experience that has changed running for me forever. I ran my first race as a volunteer for Ainsley's Angels. It is an organization that promotes inclusion for and awareness of the special needs community by pairing up runners ("angels") with those who can't run the races by themselves ("captains"). Using race chariots, the captains ride along with the angels and so are able to participate in endurance events

The first time I saw anything like this it was a viral video about Team Hoyt, a father-son duo. The son, wheelchair-bound and suffering from Cerebral Palsy, told his dad that he didn't feel disabled when he was being pushed in a wheelchair in a race. In an inspiring show of love, the father found ways to pull his son along during the swimming, biking, and running portions of triathlons and together they have now completed more than 1,000 races. I recall being moved to tears during the video but I didn't know at the time that there was a way that I could be involved as well.

At a road race in May, however, I discovered the local chapter of Ainsley's Angels, a similar organization founded by a family that discovered the therapeutic benefits of race inclusion for their daughter, Ainsley, who suffers from INAD. As I encountered the captain-angel teams during the race, I saw lots of smiles and knew that I had had to volunteer.

This Saturday was my first race with the Angels, the Raleigh 8,000. I confess that I was somewhat nervous when I showed up. Were we actually providing a helpful service? Or were we forcing people to participate in races to soothe our own egos? I had never pushed a wheelchair, stroller, or anything similar before. What if I screwed up? What if I accidentally dumped my captain or ran down another runner? What if I said something that was inadvertently insensitive? What if I suddenly had an uncontrollable need to go to the bathroom in the middle of the race??

Fortunately the other angels were relaxed and reassuring. This was a very small race (just 300 total runners and only 3 angel teams) so there wasn't much pressure. I met my captain, Theo, a five-year-old with a big mop of curly hair, and I knew it would be fine. His mom, whose hands were very full with two other children, told me that they drove in for these events whenever they could because Theo really enjoyed the stimulation of the race experience. She told me that he liked the breeze in his face so I promised him I would run fast.

When the starting gun sounded, the angel teams began together. As I picked up steam and became comfortable with the race chariot, though, Theo and I pulled ahead and started passing people. This wasn't as easy as it might normally be because A. the chariot was pretty large and not too agile and B. most of the race took place on a relatively narrow greenway. Theo helped, though; as he cooed and squealed, people ahead took notice and made way.

Theo was great; his happy noises and frequent waving of hands and feet attracted a lot of attention from nearby runners. His race chariot was decorated with his name on it so we elicited many "Go, Theodore"s as we passed people. I wish I had been doing this a long time ago when I was single because I met many attractive young ladies on the course as they told me how cute my "son" was! The net effect was that running with Theo made running a much more social experience than it usually is for me. As a hardcore extrovert, I loved it!

Although people in Raleigh would call the course flat, I'm sure, there were definitely some non-trivial hills. Pushing Theo up those hills (and I should point out that Theo was the smallest captain of the bunch - so I have to give serious props to the other two angels!) was tough - which was great, since the entire reason I run is for a workout! Whenever my body felt like slowing down I thought about the physical challenges the fragile little boy in front of me was facing and it kind of put the hills in perspective. I talked to Theo as we approached each hill. I don't know if he understood me but I liked to think that the sounds he was making were cheering/encouraging me on, and together he and I conquered hill after hill after hill - it really was more like him pulling me along than me pushing him.

My usual 8k time is ~34-35 minutes. Theo and I finished this one in 42:54. Given the help I was able to lend Theo in participating in the race, given the glee in his voice and movements as we sped along the downhills, given the way he inspired me and those around us, given the social experience that running with him was, and given the extra workout I got out of it, I would say this was my best 8k ever! It made running the race so much more meaningful than it would have been otherwise and I absolutely can't wait to do it again.

Final Summer Track PRs

As I detailed in my previous post, I have been running track meets this summer and steadily improving in all these new (to me) events. Here are my final PRs in all events for the summer track season:

100m: 12.7s
200m: 27.69s
400m: 1:04
800m: 2:37
1,000m: 3:19
1,500m: 5:21
1 Mile: 5:52
3,000m: 11:57
5,000m: 20:14

The track meets were a lot of fun and I can't wait to do them again next summer. In the meantime now it's time to prepare for cross country season!

Rollin' and Tumblin'

This morning I tripped on a root and took quite a spill while trail running. Usually I am quite attentive while running and very deliberate about picking my feet up for exactly that reason. This morning, however, I was listening to an audiobook while running and I suspect that that was the culprit - I was running on autopilot and not paying enough attention to roots and rocks on a particularly technical downhill segment.

I'm fine, though, just scraped up a bit. Lesson learned: audiobooks and trails don't mix. Music and trails do mix. Nothing in my ears but the sound of nature mixes best of all!

Summer Track PRs

This summer I have been participating in a summer track series at UNC's Belk Track. Every Wednesday the Godiva Track Club gets together and holds a track meet alternating between "long" nights and "short" nights, featuring events of slightly longer and shorter distances respectively.

Having never run track before, I have been using these events as opportunities to work on speed and also to meet other runners in the area. Running 5,000m around a track for time would be mind numbing, but doing so in the spirit of friendly competition with other runners is not only fun but also motivating.

The Belk Track is a very nice international-style track (slightly wider with gentler turns) with a very soft running surface. I have been taking advantage of this great facility to transition from running in Vibrams to running completely barefoot. At the start of the summer I tried running one or two events barefoot but now I am running the entire night barefoot, only wearing my Vibrams to/from the car. It feels great (The only consequence is that, by the end of the night, the bottoms of my feet are very Carolina blue - does that make me a true tarheel?) and perhaps now I can try some other, less forgiving surfaces barefoot as well.

Because I've never run these short and middle distance events before, I am setting new PRs each week, which is always encouraging. I'm sure that won't last but I'm enjoying it while I can! Tonight was the last "long" night of the summer track series and here are my PRs:

200m: 27.69s
800m: 2:37
1 Mile: 5:52
5,000m: 20:14

We still have a few shorter distance meets left so I'll hope to set some more PRs on the flat track surface before returning to the very hilly road and trail races here in the Research Triangle.