April 12th, Friday

I just discovered how I can transfer data directly from my Garmin watch to my blog. I will be doing this probably more frequently in the future because it will limit the amount of explain I have to do about my work out for anyone who’s actually interested. So my words will simply be my Impressions and my thoughts about the workout rather than the actual numbers and specifics about the data.

So., tap on Garmin Connect below for more details than anybody ever needed.

Source: Garmin Connect

April 13, Saturday

Longest bike ride in a while to give my legs a day of rest.

As of April 9th, Tuesday

With driving home from Florida and having a molar extracted and reconnecting with Kristen and Robert in Philadelphia and Hoboken, the last 12 days have been somewhat disruptive. But I did manage five decent workouts within that period.  Returning to speed a little too quickly resulted in a reinjuring of my right hamstring muscle. However it is only a slight pull and I can run slowly. There will be a suspension of speed segments for a while . Today I managed to do a lot of work at the clubhouse for 65 minutes including swimming, running, biking and elliptical work.   Stat keeping has suffered along the way. (Weight remains constant in lower 150’s) But I did resume early morning workouts today arising at 7 am. My goal is to continue with morning workouts for us long and as consistently as possible.

April 2nd, Tuesday

I ran on the cinder track in Jackson today after a two day ride from Florida this week and  a day to recover.  Things were going well for miles as I began to run some 5 x 200m at increasing pace.. On # 6 I felt my hamstring muscle tighten and was quick to abort. Walked and jogged and stretched for another mile, but the muscle remains sore tonight.  TLC. and slow running for a while.

March 30th, Friday

Good bye, friend…..

After a 6+ mile bike ride yesterday following a day off, I got on the beach at midday with fresh running legs.  I ran slowly, enjoying the beauty of the natural environment and the newly-arrived, Bikini clad, spring break  co-eds, for 30 minutes north into a steady 12/15 mile per hour wind.  It was very Ernst VanAaken.  Then I turned south invigorated by the friendly tail wind.  I ran 12-speed segments of 30 seconds per segment on the way back with one minute jog recovery, picking up the pace with each segment.  I ran to extended speed segments in the final 6 minutes, one of 60 seconds and one of 3 minutes. The total time was 58 minutes. I was very happy to get in a solid workout before we began our journey home for two days on the road.

Stats are good with weight remaining at 151 lbs. Eating well, sleeping well, no injuries

Elvis Costello once said, “Writing about music is like dancing about architecture.”  In the same way, running—- the total, exalted, painful, glorious, miserable, purifying, filthy, rhythmic, dream, transcendent, achy experience— for the most part defies rendition in words.

GARTH BATTISTA

But I keep trying.  LOL

March 23rd, 24th and 25th

Saturday –  Quick!   Got out late today as the sun set to cover 2 miles.  Walked and jogged before and after a 10:10 mile.

Sunday –  Quick!  Out at dusk again to run on the streets of St. Augustine.  Ran 10 minutes to local hill. Ran up the hill 5 times (55 strides up, walk down).   Ran back 10 minutes.

Monday –   Long!   I left for the beach at 9:30 a.m. today on my bike. I road for 10 minutes. Then I started running south under a bright sun, blue skies and a gentle west wind. The beach was flat and the sand was firm and it felt like I could run forever. After about 10 minutes of jogging, I began running one minute speed segments at between 7:30 and 8 minutes pace with a 1 minute jog. I continued that procedure going south for 25 minutes. (11x SS)   After the 11th  speed segment I began to feel a twinge in my right hamstring muscle. I stopped running out of fear of a muscle pull. At no time was I in any aerobic distress. I chose to walk back north to the starting point rather than continue running for about 20 more minutes ending with about a half mile jog, all out of  an abundance of caution.  The event was 77 minutes in motion covering 7.2 miles.  When I returned home and weighed myself it read 149.4 lb.! That is the first time under 150 lb. since I ran at the senior games in Alabama in 2017.  That accomplishes one of the goals I set for this visit to St Augustine this winter. That was to return home under 150 lb.

Stats –

Weight  = 149.4 lbs.

Diet = 10

Heart rate = 54 bpm

Morning foot pain indexes are stable

Stretching and body weights are Fair each day

March 21st, Thursday

On another windy day along the beach, I ran an out and back 5K in 32:00.  There was a 15 minute warm-up on the bike first.  Each Km was faster than the last even as I faced the wind in the final 2.5 Km. The comfort level at that pace was a pleasant surprise.  10 minute bike ride home.

March 17, Sunday

60 minutes on bike, 8 miles

March 18th, Monday

1 hour +  , 15 on bike ,  44 minutes of various running, walking with frequent SS.  Today I changed my Garmin to register metric distances and time by each kilometer.  It seems easier after all these years.. So, I know that if I can run 5:00 pace each 1K, I can run a 5K in 25:00 which has always been my goal.

March 19, Tuesday

A very blustery, chilly day.  Seemed like a nor’Easter all day.  No workout at all.

March 20th, Wednesday (SPRING!)

Road and ran for over an hour this still very windy afternoon.  5 SS + 2X 1K @ 4:48 and 4:54. I like my new metric timing system.  10 days left in St. Augustine.  Still thinking about racing another 5K on Saturday.

All stats remain steady and positive.

March 16,  Saturday

“Mind is everything:  muscle— pieces of rubber.  All that I am, I am because of my mind.”                                                                   –  Paavo Nurmi

“You could never get to talk to Nurmi.  You could talk to the president of Finland, but not to Nurmi. He was a god.”                  –  Arthur Lydiard

Amid a dreary, chilly,  cloudy, windy afternoon I managed to run a tough 4 miles on the roads and sand.  I added some (12) SS along the way and a strong 800m finish.  My goal today was to get out on the beach at about 6:30 a.m. because the weather forecast indicated that would be the best time of the day with the least wind and the mildest temperature.  However, when the alarm went off at 6:15 this morning I woke up feeling pretty beat up. My legs, my shoulders and neck were sore from work I did yesterday.  So, I turned over and slept till 10:00. I didn’t want to do too much today as Don is joining me tomorrow for another run, and I’d like to be able to stay with him for a while.  Still a productive day.

Good stats.

March 15th, Friday

“I have heard a million people say that running is the most boring activity that they can possibly imagine. Since I am sure I am not any smarter or wittier than these people, I can only guess they never learned to listen as they run.  If they did, they would surely be entertained and informed by their own thoughts.”

—Amby Burfoot,  The Runners Guide to the Mesning of Life

So, this morning I entertained and informed myself for about 70 minutes while I ran and biked as the sun came up.   🙂    I rode my bike to the beach and on the beach for about 15 minutes before I begin running. The actual run consisted of 4.14 miles during which I ran 80 stride SS of 30 seconds about 20 times with a 1-minute walk in between each SS.  The pace of the SS began at about 9:00 and dropped to 7:00 average for most of the remaining segments.   That 4 miles took about 51 minutes.  I then rode my bike home which takes about 7 minutes.     I have become quite fond of morning workouts on the beach.

Stats are stable and positive.

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