Intermission Is OVER

FEAR NOT MAX....for i have returned! And while i cannot speak for Anthony(who has not just been absent from our blog, but from life in general...), my absence has been due to the fact that i had not been running much since my half in November, and did not feel that i had many inspiring tales from the weight room either. Though that is not to say i still hadn't been drinking beers and training like an animal!

I now work my way up the crest of my sinusoidal wave of running fitness once more. 2 weeks ago marked the return to running. However, this running doesn't quite stack up against the 11 mile runs and workouts at sub-6 pace that Max is dominating just yet. My primary goal at the moment is consistency, and i have made it a focus to get out and run almost every day between 30 to 45 minutes.

My calves and legs are sore, my knee is no better but no worse than it has been a few weeks before starting to run, and sitting at my desk in the fluorescent light-polluted office for long periods of time creates a very stiff lower-body. But i know that as long as i get up and walk around frequently, continue to drink water, chug protein shakes like a meathead, ice my wounds, stretch/massage my tight muscles, and get ample rest, that my body will adapt and once again become comfortable with what it means to be a runner once more.  ADAPTATION.

I always somehow manage to forget how rewarding and satisfying it can be to dedicate the majority of my free time to working out and running, as opposed to playing video games and otherwise wasting away my evenings in front of a computer/TV screen. The sun is high in the sky, the weather is warm, and somewhere in there i'm starting to catch whiff of the reassuring sense of purpose that is unique to training.

Today's Activities: Arm and Core workout done during lunch [Never said i was going to stop lifting;) ]. Shake drank. Triple Delight lunch being cooked. 30-40 minute run scheduled for the evening.

EDIT: The 30 minute run last night taught me that i need new shoes, that i need a day off(it still feels so guilty to), and that at 164 lbs i may want to consider dropping some poundage...

Workout #1

Thanks for reading my third consecutive post. We'll be renaming the blog "Max's Blog About Running" soon. But, for now, the title will remain the same.

Today was "the first official workout of my 'comeback'." The effort was held at the softball loop. It included a twelve minute warm-up at 6:15 pace (a pace calculated based on the clocked first mile) directly into a ten minute brisk run at - you guessed it - brisk run pace. The ten minute brisk run was always the first workout during my time at William & Mary. I decided to stick with tradition because, as you'd learn after thirty seconds in Williamsburg, the Tribe is ALL ABOUT TRADITION.

Anyway, half mile softball loops were clocked at 2:45/:47/:47/+1:46. The 5:33 per mile average was faster than I expected and intended, but I had decided before the workout that I would find - you guessed it, again - brisk run pace, and stick to it. Mission accomplished.

The workout was followed by a three minute walk, then a fairly slow twelve minute cooldown.

Overall, a good effort, which was soundtracked in the following way:

1. Warm-up: Immortal Technique's "Revolutionary Vol. 2"

2. Workout: The National's "Alligator"

3. Cooldown: Neutral Milk Hotel's "In the Aeroplane over the Sea"

That's right, you can find me on facebook by searching "white guy" + "i like indie music and pretty much everything but country."

A final note -- I ran in my cat suit, again, today (black half tights and a black t-shirt). I've been told, and am starting to believe, that black is slimming. And until I'm actually slim, I've got to trick myself into thinking that I am. Feel fast, run fast.

Besides, Mr. Gibby always preached that "distance runners should look like skeletons with condoms pulled over them." I don't look like that, yet, but a girl can dream, can't she?

Running Logs

The keeping of a running log has always been a nuisance to me. Perhaps that's because keeping a running log always seemed like something to do for coaches rather than for myself, or perhaps it's because keeping a running log is tedious and boring. Like awards, logs seemed like trivial artifacts from my running career.

But, now, as I resume serious training for the first time in two years, I wish that I had some of my old logs so that I might better design training programs for the upcoming seasons. C'est la vie.

In an effort to better save my logs, and ease the recording process, I've decided to document my training (and plan upcoming weeks) with Google Docs. The app, I hope, should resolve the difficulties that I've had with keeping a running log in past seasons.

If you are interested in tracking my progress, looking at my training plan, or contributing your results to a group Google Doc, please email me so that I can add your email address to the approved document access list.

Next post will discuss the goals that were mentioned in my previous post.

Until next time,
M