From 0 to 44

The day I started breathing air.  

I turned 44 earlier this week, and my Mom was kind enough to post my birth picture on Facebook.  I will always be grateful to her for deciding to actually claim that 9+ pound pork roll as her own and take me home from the hospital.  I'm not sure I would have done the same for that goofy looking bundle with a bow in her shock of bright red peach fuzz.  

I doubt that my being a year older has much to do with a shift I've noticed in my perspective on running.  I'll call it a more laid back approach that isn't fraught with angst about the daily details of mileage and pace.  At first, I had a hard time determining if somehow I had lost that fire to push myself, one of the key qualities I often attribute my success to.  I think that is still there, so something different must be going on.

Running the 5000m race at the World Masters Championships was, in a way, a small victory for me over an injury that, when I signed up for the race, I wasn't sure I'd beat in time to even be able to set foot on the track.  After the race, however, I realized that I wanted my next race to be one that I felt ready to run fast.  My next planned race was a road 5k in mid August, but the timing of that race would only allow me to complete 6 of the 8 weeks of my 5k training before the race.  So, I am shifting my schedule to race a 5k two weeks later to get in the full 8 week training program.

This 3rd week of that training program collided with a busy life week that included a musical gig Wednesday from 7:30 to midnight and the start of my annual military tour (think 12 hour days including travel).  To fit in my running, I had to jimmy my schedule and prioritize my workload.  The meat of my training was in the 4 x 1600m (5k pace) workout on Tuesday and my tempo run Friday night and my hill repeats tonight.  All of these quality workouts went better than I expected.  I ran at the crack of dawn and after the sun went down, but I got in the workouts and my easy mileage, managing 73 miles for the week.

How many miles was I supposed to do?  Who cares?  I ran what I could however I could fit it in.  Since I write my own plans, I know that the training level I chose in the Squires and Lehane book was pretty random.  It's all just one big experiment anyway.  I'm finding that I am more proud of myself for making a decision to not do something if I'm feeling tired or sore than I am for gutting it out and risking potential burnout or injury.

Other odds and ends…

My Nike Frees are still a fave shoe.  In fact, I'm finding that my feet feel worse when I run in my regular trainers, so I've transitioned faster than planned to the Frees.  I've had no issues so far and definitely notice a difference in my gait.  I feel like I'm running with better form and my runs are definitely faster for the same level of effort.  I've only done one short run in the Merrell Pace Gloves, but it was great too.  I wear them for dog walking daily now and will spend more time running in them in the future.  If you haven't watched Dr. Irene Davis discuss the research and anecdotal evidence supporting barefoot and minimalist running, you might want to carve some time out of your day to do so.

These last two weeks have seen remarkable improvement in some of the flexibility issues that plagued me before and even after seeing Dr. Ball in May.  Hip mobility on my left side was a major problem that Dr. Ball believed was structural in nature since even 11 days of constant soft tissue abusecouldn't free it up.  Well, about 10 days ago, my left hip became as mobile as a wet dog on a hard wood floor.  I did start, on my own advice, rolling out my hip capsule with a lacrosse ball for about 2 minutes twice a day before doing my hip stretches.  I have a sneaking suspicion this has made the difference.  I'm just glad that it wasn't some sort of long-term degenerative thing that was going to eventually require a hip replacement.

I feel better than ever right now, free of any nagging issues and fresh enough to train hard.  I want to thank Kerry for reminding me that, while it sucked to be out of commission for so long, that time away from running gave my body a chance to heal and regenerate.  If most running injuries come from the accumulation of damage over thousands of miles and a long period of time, then it makes sense that time and rest is what ultimately heals the runner.

Note to self

Dear Jaymee,

I know you've been feeling slow lately and concerned about the fitness you lost while you were out of running action for half the year.  When you're feeling that way, I want you to remember that cool and windy day in mid July when you were running around the track at American River College at high noon.  That was the day that you ran the 6 x 1000m workout at "near goal 5k pace" with 1:20 rests.  This was an important workout at the end of an 83 mile week, your highest mileage in 9 months.  You were worried about so many things going into that workout, but when you started running fast after doing drills and strides, your body took over and your brain followed.  You flew along the track with lightness and strength.   You ran faster than you believed you could, averaging 3:35 for the 6 repeats (5:45 pace) leaving a little in the tank after the last rep.  Remember that you are fast and are getting faster every day.

Sincerely,

Effin' J

7 long months

Until now, I haven't had the guts to really look at the state of my training over the past 8 months.  I tell people that I was injured for 7 months and just started training 5 weeks ago, blah, blah, blah, but it always feels like I'm making lame excuses.  Here are the cold, hard facts:

After creating this chart, I stared at it as a lump formed in my throat.  There it is: 7 months of hardly any running and only 2 workouts.  In the 6 months from November through May, I ran a total of 479 miles.  That's an average of 17 miles per week.  Sadly, most of that was test running, and I was in pain.  Yes, I cross trained, but cross training only tides you over for a few weeks before your running-specific fitness starts to drop off dramatically.

Tonight, I did my first race since the Athens Marathon: the World Masters Athletics Track and Field Championships 5000m.  It's funny to think that I signed up to race this event on April 24th, just before registration closed. At that point, I was still injured but somehow held out hope that I would be able to run a 5k by July.  The following week, I would be told by all my local healers that they could not help me any longer. Worse, I was stuck without even a diagnosis.  I was devastated by the scary thought that I might never be healed.  Of course you know, shortly thereafter, Dr. Ball worked some magic allowing me to start training again.

As soon as I began regularly running pain free, I became excited for this race.  I never once thought about not running it.  I was not worried about being embarrassed with a slow time.  I also didn't have my normal pre-race anxiety.  This was a different kind of excitement centered around just participating in a race.  In fact, I only had two goals:
1) run around the track for 12.5 laps without pain; and
2) enjoy being part of this once-in-a-lifetime, world championship competition.

I am happy to say that I met both goals and truly enjoyed myself.  I didn't have much of a race plan.  I just wanted to start out at a pace I thought I could hold for a while and see how that felt.  I picked 90 second quarters as my starting pace.  Of course, conditions were hot, but they weren't as hot as they could have been for 8:00 on a July evening in Sacramento.   I ran my own race, holding those 90s for the first mile, then eased off a bit for the rest of the race realizing that I was completely out of the main competition.  I finished in 19:02.  I felt like I ran strong, without making myself uncomfortable.  From my vantage point, I was able to watch the race unfold for the lead pack.  It was a lot of fun to see my friend Mary Coordt take the lead with 3 laps to go and win.  Thanks to everyone out there cheering me on tonight.  I heard you, and it meant a lot to have your support.

While it is sobering to think of how much work I have ahead of me on my road to Houston, I choose to be humbled and challenged by this experience rather than disappointed or overwhelmed.  In fact, as I walked away from the stadium tonight trying to assess how I felt about the race, my first thought was: in 6 months, I will be running 19:02 for my first 5k in the Olympic Trials Marathon.  Tonight was an excellent start.

5k training begins now

Well, maybe it started last week.

I started the Squires and Lehane 5k pre-season training plan last week and reached my highest weekly mileage (76 miles) in 9 months.  It was a good week of training including my first double workouts of the season.  I ran an 8 x 600m workout on Wednesday in the heat (mid-90s) and managed to keep all of the reps around 2:08 (~5:45 pace), with the last one at 2:05.  I ran my long run including a tempo workout on Saturday at noon in the blistering sun and turned it into a 2 x 2 mile workout rather than the planned 4-mile continuous workout.  I thought I drank my weight in water out there, but I still lost  nearly 5 lbs over the 90 minutes I was out.        

This Friday evening, I am racing the 5000m on the track: my first race in 8 months.  I don't plan to bust ass in this race mostly because I'm not in shape to.  I just want to enjoy participating in the World Masters Athletics Track and Field Championships.  I am so excited to watch the events being held pretty much in my backyard over the next two weeks. The Genius is running the marathon, on Sunday, July 17th, and I look forward to watching him loop past me 5 times, as I cheer him on.  He has an advantage, having run his last few long runs in the heat and along the course.  Go Genius Go!

My body has been adjusting well to the higher mileage, but I'll be taking advantage of this week's race to come down a bit before pumping it back up for the last 5 weeks of my 5k training.  After 4 weeks in the pre-season program, I go into full-on 5k training mode for 3 weeks.  My target 5k race is the all women's Susan B Anthony 5k in River Park on August 13th.  My goal is to PR at that race.  It's a fast course, and I think there will be some good competition.

Allow me to present my next 6 weeks of training:

The schedule looks more complicated than it is.  The various colors mainly represent my shoe transition.  The orange shows my planned strength work (though the days are very flexible).  I have just added core work back into my routine and have started doing some exercises to increase hip mobility since I now know this is something that is a real limiting factor for me.  I am trying out these exercises to see if they help.  I continue to do my hip capsule stretch with a strap 2 x per day, and I roll everything from my feet to my shoulders every day for a total of about 30-60 minutes, depending on how much attention the various parts need.

I was doing eccentric hamstring exercises once a day for a couple of weeks to relieve a chronic hamstring tendinosis on the right side.  Those exercises and rolling my butt and hamstrings did the trick, and I am backing off of those as a result.  I thought I might be starting to do general strength work by now, but I am really hesitant to add it without having a good focus for the exercises I do.  Hanging out with Dr. Ball made me reconsider what I do for strength training.  So far, I have limited it to the stuff I need to relieve known problems.  I also added in functional strength work in the form of hill sprints.  With the transition to less shoe, higher mileage and speed work, I feel this is enough new stimuli for now.

I have been tracking my food intake more or less daily for a couple of years now and finally stopped about two months ago.  I decided I was tired of it and could probably do a fair job balancing my diet without my iPad given my years of practice and constant feedback.  If my weight is any indication of how that's gone, I am succeeding.  Without targeting weight loss as an explicit goal, I'm down to my pre-Chicago "racing weight" of 125.  I think some of this is loss of muscle mass in my upper body, and I honestly don't miss it.  I don't think a marathoner needs huge lats, traps and deltoids to be fast.  These are muscles that get big on me if I just think about them.  So, I stopped thinking about them. Well, I also stopped doing exercises that make them larger.  Alas, they're still big, as the photo below shows.  I guess they might serve a purpose in scaring off would-be attackers on the Bike Trail late at night.  If I were a bad guy, I would think twice before messing with that V taper and those guns!

My massive back, after 3 months of no upper body work

I am ready for some speed and excited to see how this 5k plan goes before heading back into marathon training madness.  Happy 4th of July, everyone!!

Barefoot Jaymee

Barefoot Jaymee standing on Dean Street at age 3.

I remember running around barefoot a lot as a kid.  In fact, my mother confirms that she had trouble getting shoes on me.  When it was raining outside, I told her I didn't want to wear my shoes because they would just get wet.  When my Dad and Grandpa Joe were out fertilizing the front lawn with chicken shit, I insisted on helping them in my bare feet despite their claims that the fertilizer would make my feet grow to be freakishly big.  I didn't start really loving shoes, for fashion's sake, until I hit my teens.  Even then, I was obsessed with barefoot-esque little flats, though I did adore my Famolare Get Theres.

Since I started running in 2004, I have gone through hundreds of pairs of shoes of various makes and models.  I switch them up all the time.  Dr. Lau asked me once why I did this, and I told him that I just hadn't found a pair that I loved enough to be loyal to.  I have always run in neutral, cushioned shoes and haven't had any trouble that can be clearly blamed on footwear.  When I started getting serious about running fast, I tried various racing flats for the marathon, and eventually landed on Nike Lunaracers.  These were the closest I had come to a shoe I could love. I have raced all distances in them exclusively since they first came out.

I have been fascinated by all of the research, hype, devotion and skepticism that barefoot and minimalist running has generated over the past couple of years.  I read Born to Run and actually quite liked it.  I love seeing the "crazies" on the bike trail padding along in their Vibram Five Fingers (VFF) and the stares from properly shod runners that follow them.  I admit that I bought a pair of the VFFs when I was first bitten by the barefoot bug.  I loved wearing them out in the field, walking through grasslands and squishy soil.  Feeling the various textures of the earth beneath your feet is a wonderful sensation.  Unfortunately, I wasn't sold on the VFF.  My toes never got used to being spread out, and I got tired of people asking if I had the rest of the ape suit to go along with the feet.  I've never worn them for running.

I started seriously considering going "minimalist" more recently as more science has emerged about the benefits of less shoe.  Dr. Ball was the one who spurred me to act on this desire to lighten my shoe by agreeing that the science was pretty clear about the benefits. Ironically, he was one of the first to caution me on making this move after reading my last blog post, telling me I needed to be smart for the next 6 months.  He's right.

I fully recognize the risks of injury associated with making this transition, but I believe those risks are low for me.  First, I am used to going barefoot.  As noted above, I go barefoot and always have whenever possible.  This means my feet are probably relatively strong compared to someone who rarely walks about without shoes.  Second, I have always run in neutral shoes without orthotics or additional support.  I have a nice high arch and easy going feet that seem to get along with whatever shoe I put them in.  Third, I race marathons in a very light shoe and have always walked away feeling great--no issues with my feet or lower legs after even the toughest conditions.

So, I am a good candidate.  Now, why would I take any risk at all?  Well, I think there's a risk associated with staying in the cushiony shoes I have been wearing.  Recent studies comparing impacts to the body of shod versus barefoot running indicate that the body receives less impact without a shoe for a runner accustomed to running barefoot.  This is because the body naturally adjusts to soften the load when there's not a big piece of squishy foam and hard plastic that keeps it from being able to do so.  I'll trust that you'll read all about this from some other source (like this one) and stop there with my explanation.

Shoe changes require a transition period because our bodies become accustomed to the shoes we wear regularly.  My body won't magically adjust my gait to absorb the impacts right off--it needs time to strengthen tendons, ligaments and muscles that I've not used in a long time and adjust my biomechanics accordingly.  Note, I don't plan to run barefoot exclusively, though I will do some barefoot running for recovery and therapeutic purposes (See Camille's blog post about her experience with the therapeutic benefits of barefoot running). And, by barefoot, I mean I will wear some protection on my feet since I don't trust people to not throw glass, nails and tacks in the grass where I'll run.  

To start, I needed new equipment.  I chose the Nike Free Run 2+ as my transitional shoe.  I chose the Merrell Pace Glove, which I call my Vibram one fingers, as my barefoot shoe.  I started wearing both of these on my daily dog walks and out and about back in May.  I did notice that my feet needed some "breaking in" with the one fingers, but they felt awesome almost immediately walking around.

Nike Free Run 2+ = Love

Merrell Pace Glove aka Vibram One Fingers

I then devised a running plan for the Nike Frees to slowly transition out of my Mizuno Waveriders.  I wore the Frees for the first time on a recovery run two weeks ago.  I planned to run only a couple of miles and get a feel for them.  I promised myself, if I felt anything weird, I would turn around and get my Mizunos.  I ran for an hour in the Frees and was in heaven.  They were so amazingly comfortable, and I felt so light on my feet.  I had finally fallen in love with a pair of shoes.  I wanted to wear them every day from then on out, but I knew that was foolish.  The next day, my legs and feet actually felt more recovered than I expected, without any soreness in my feet or calf muscles.  I really expected to feel something in my calf muscles because of the difference in heel to toe drop between my Mizunos and the Frees.  Nothing.  I wore them for 15 miles that first week (20% of my mileage), about 26 miles last week (30%) and will wear them for about 30 miles this week (38%).  Now, when I wear the Mizunos, my feet and legs feel so clumsy and clunky.  I look forward to my runs in the Frees (am I a Nike ad or what?)  By the end of July, I should be doing most of my running in the Frees.

As a next step, I will try out an even lighter and more barefoot version of the Free--the Free 3.0.  I designed my own at Nike.com, deciding that the added expense of making them cute was worth it since I don't plan to replace the shoes as often as I did my cushioned trainers.  They are actually the Free Run 2+ uppers with the 3.0 footbed--the best of both worlds.  They have a little Effin' J embroidered on the tongue so they won't get confused with someone else's Nike Free Run 2+s with a 3.0 footbed.  I have a feeling I'll like them and will slowly transition into those or might alternate between the Free Run 2+ and the Free 3.0.

I will start doing some barefoot running in my one fingers in about two weeks.  I'll do these on my recovery days, starting with 10 minutes running in a grass field.  I plan to work up to doing this 2 days per week for 30 minutes max each day if I feel like it helps me with recovery and injury prevention.  If not, then I'll just keep wearing my one fingers on my dog walks, getting some strength training benefit for my little peeties.

So, there you have it folks.  I'll keep you updated on my progress.

Honey badger don't care

For those of you who are Facebook friends with me, you may have seen a video I shared about the honey badger.  If not, I've added the link below.  This video has been making the rounds for a while, but somehow, I never saw it before the other day.  Honey badger has made quite an impression on me and has become one of my heroes.  I actually found myself chanting, "Honey badger don't care," during my track workout this week when things started to get tough.  Thinking of that little badass honey badger out there getting bitten by cobras, taking a short "nap" and getting back to the business of eating the cobra makes me feel like a loser if I complain about pain while running.

This week, I had a full week of training and travel for work.  I was at our semi-annual scientist geek fest in Bodega Bay, CA Monday through Thursday, where we spent the entire time sequestered in little cubby holes writing our brains out about the latest conservation science issues we are working on.  It sounds all nice and relaxing, but it is very hard work.  I always leave these events exhausted.  My daily run is truly a highlight while I'm there, giving me a chance to get out into the fresh marine air and spend some time not thinking about writing.  I ran 9-10 miles each day on Tuesday and Wednesday in Bodega along the harbor shore and then up onto Bodega Head where there are some newly constructed trails that circle the head.  My legs got in lots of good hill work those days.

Thursday night, when I got home, I did my track workout.  It was much warmer this week than last for a very similar, but slightly harder workout.  I ran 12.25 miles total with 2 x (1600/1200/1600) with 4 minutes jog rest between reps and 7 minutes jog between the two sets.  The workout called for 8k pace, but I decided to try to hold the same pace as last week's 10k-paced workout which was 5:55-6:00.  My guess is that I would not be able to hold 6:00 pace in even an 8k right now in warm conditions.  In fact, The Good Book (Squires and Lehane) says this about this particular workout: "This workout is aggressive, but don't hammer yourself excessively."  Well, honey badger probably would have hammered excessively, but I decided not to.  Nonetheless, I averaged 5:58 pace for the reps.

Friday, I was tired.  I did my 8 mile run and felt pooped the whole time.  Luckily, the day called for an 8-mile recovery run and I needed it.  I am closely following the Squires plan in terms of pacing for my non-workout runs.  He has three different paces for these runs:

• recovery pace = heart rate between 120-140 (>8:15 pace for me)
• easy pace = < 2 minutes per mile slower than 5k pace (7:50-8:00)
• relaxed pace = ~2 minutes per mile slower than 5k pace (7:30-7:45)      

The slower pace I ran on Friday paid off in that my body felt great during my run last night.  Another small detail that I'm following "by the book" from Squires' plan is doing strides after my run is over.  In the past, I would do my strides during the last few miles of my run but would typically still run a mile after that on my way home.  Now, I finish my run at home and do my strides in front of my house, which tortures my poor puppy who watches me zoom past the window over and over and doesn't understand why he can't come out and chase me.  This also gives me the opportunity to change into less shoe for the strides.

On that note, my next post will elaborate more on why I'm jumping on the bandwagon and going minimalist with my footwear.  I haven't started this yet, but I have a plan.  Of course I have a plan.  In the mean time, if you haven't read The Science of Sport post about this or Camille Herron's account of her switch to minimalist running, you might want to.

Honey badger don't wear shoes.  Honey badger don't give a shit.

Smarty Pants

For those of you who were concerned about me following my training plan at all costs, my behavior these last two weeks should allay your fears. I have been smarter than I ever would have expected with my training and recovery. While I have pushed my body in my workouts like normal, I have also altered my schedule as needed to allow for added recovery. I actually like this self-coaching gig for that reason. I have set myself some guidelines for key workouts, but the rest of the schedule can be modified based on how I feel, last-minute work and life crises, etc. Admittedly, this is a relatively easy task when I'm only running 50-60 miles per week. However, I like that I am getting into the habitat of critically thinking about what's important in my schedule, and being willing to make a change that might involve reducing my mileage for the day or week.

All of this follows Coach Tom's point from months ago that I don't have to worry about being a slacker. My concern should be about over-doing it. So, I view everything in that light. I have to say that it is a lot easier to justify a change when I wrote the plan. I don't have to second guess whether or not the change will upset some grand training scheme or harm my fitness in any way. I am the only one who really cares (aside from Coach T, of course) whether or not I follow the plan. I feel a strange sense of freedom in that.

Last week I actually took two days off and this week, one day. Last week, it was just because I could. I decided that I have 6 months of killer work coming up, have ramped up my mileage quickly in the last month and could afford to take some down time. This week, I was feeling residual muscle soreness from my long run on Sunday, in which I ran 14 miles @ sub-7:00 pace. I was scheduled to run a hard 12-miler on Tuesday and knew that it wouldn't be smart to run on sore legs. I also got treatment from Dr. Lau that day. So, I ran an easy 8 with strides on Tuesday, rested Wednesday and did the 12 miler last night.

Last night was my first track workout in 3 months and I had fun. It was straight from the Speed with Endurance book:
2 miles warm up + drills + strides + 2 x (1200/1600/1200m @ 10k) w/ 4 min jog rest between reps and 7 minutes rest between sets + 2 mile cool down.

This workout was a change for me in that the rests were pretty long compared to what I am used to with 10k reps. I really liked it. I ended up doing my repeats at 5:55-6:00 pace and, I think, because the rests were so long, it all felt very controlled and relatively easy. I also don't feel horribly beat up today. I am still trying to get used to my "new" legs, and it became clear last night that my turnover needs some work. I think the turnover will improve as I continue to do strides and form drills in my workouts and just keep up the faster running.

My next hard workout won't be until Sunday where I do 15 miles with some hill repeats. The hill repeats were going to be part of a mid-week workout, but I decided to lump them into the long run instead. It's fun being the boss of me.