Monday, August 3, 2015

Let's try this running thing again...

So, I was talking about running and how difficult it is for me.  But I'm kind of stubborn, and sometimes I get an idea in my head that I can't let go of and my mind sets up a little subroutine to start collecting data relating to that problem I'm trying to solve.  I went digging around, and one of the running articles I found that made a lot of sense to me was this one -
http://breakingmuscle.com/running/a-week-by-week-guide-to-becoming-a-runner-later-in-life-and-or-safely

I'm paraphrasing, but he makes the analogy that you can't walk into a gym for the first time and expect to bench 300 pounds.  You build up to that.  Same goes for running.  You can't just take off and start running without getting your body incrementally adapted to it first.  As difficult as it is for me to accept that my knees aren't nearly as ready as my heart and lungs, I'm willing to go back and start more basic.  So, I stepped things back a little and did laps today by running the first half of the lap, then walking the last half of the lap.  It took 12 laps to do 3 miles.  I did it in 48+ minutes, so a little improvement over walking.  Plus, I tried to think about form as I was running, trying to keep my pelvis tucked in and picked up my feet a bit more instead of nearly dragging them along the ground.  I'll just keep increasing the portion of running versus walking until I'm running the full three miles the week before the race.   But the five days leading up to the race, I'm not even going to run, just walk.  Every triathlon training plan I've read makes the week of the race an easy one.  I think that's because it gives your body time to recover and heal up to be its best for the race.  Yet, you do some activity to keep the blood flowing and to keep your fitness level fresh.

The other thing I loved about running today was that it was sprinkling outside.  I'm not sure what the temperature was in the morning, my guess is somewhere in the mid 60's, but it was perfect.  Yes, I got a little wet and my feet were a little squishy, but it was wonderful to run in.  Also something I want to try just for fun is to run up and down the bleachers.  Think I'll try that, too, next time, keep things fun and interesting.

What else did I do today?  Before I went running, I did 45 min on my rebounder, and did pushups and situps.  I did three sets each, 25 reps, then 15 reps, then 10 reps.  I did the pushups on my rebounder, which is about eight inches off the ground.  I can do more reps that way than right on the ground, but I sort of have a Pavlovian response to doing pushups on the ground.  Just the idea of it makes me nauseated, and I only make myself do them that way sometimes so I won't feel like a sissy.  But I prefer the rebounder, and just do more to make up for it.  I once did this three-week challenge where I started off at 5 pushups, and did them in the morning and at night.  I added a pushup a day until the three weeks was up.  There were times where I stood there looking at the ground for ten minutes until I could overcome the vague nausea and get them done.  I love pushups, can't you tell?!


No comments:

Post a Comment