Walk in the Wild 5k

Ever since the first time I visited the Phoenix Zoo a couple years ago, I thought it would be an awesome course for a race. So, when I saw this event a few months ago, I got real excited and knew this was a race I wanted to do. I was also excited to participate in the first annual event. I've never been able to do an inaugural event, and I definitely had a good time. 

The 5k course consisted of two laps around the entire zoo, and took me on a little desert trail I had never been on before. There were quite a few hills on the course. That's something I grown unaccustomed to considering most of Phoenix is pretty flat. I enjoyed it though, simply for something different. The course was also pretty well shaded, which was especially nice since temperatures are on the rise here in the Valley of the Sun.

I didn't see too many animals. Guess they were all sleeping, or not interested in all the people running and walking by. I had to laugh when I saw the flamingos. They were all standing together in a group, on one leg of course, with their heads under their wings, apparently sleeping. After the race, I also saw an ostrich running across the hill. I thought that was appropriate.

I finished with an unofficial time of 22:07. Not bad, considering the hilly course and the sea of walkers I had to wade through on the second lap. That was pretty poor planning on the organizers part, if you ask me. Not a big deal though, since I wasn't running for time.

This being my first time participating in an inaugural event, I don't know how it compares to others, but I did notice a few things that could be improved on. Only 30 minutes into the registration and packet pick-up, they only had large shirts left, and they were out of safety pins. I had to carry my bib relay baton style. There's gotta be a better way to make this a run/walk. My suggestion, have the 5k walk go at the same time as the mile walk (which started an hour later). That'll save a lot of congestion on the tiny trail and the rest of the course. There was no timer, and no one taking our bib numbers, so no official results. That's my biggest complaint. I don't care to much about the shirt or the safety pin shortage, but I would like to know how I faired with the rest of the field.

This was definitely a nice run though. I loved the course. Plus, it's always fun to go to the zoo.

Silver lining?

This knee injury of mine has given me quite the roller coaster ride. I've had this injury for over a month now, but the ups and downs have mostly come today.

I don't even know what is wrong with it. It's not very painful at all, but the discomfort I feel never stays in one place. It started out on the outside of my knee, and since then, I have felt discomfort all the way around the knee cap. But never all at once. At first I thought it was my ITB causing trouble, then I started wondering about a stress fracture, then maybe it was a damaged ligament. I'm just not sure.

This week has been great for running though. The knee had seemed to be getting better, so I tried running on Tuesday, and I had a tremendous run. No pain at all. Getting back to my routine, I went for another run on Thursday. It felt a little sore for the first half mile, but after that it felt totally fine. Later that day, it felt a little sore, though. Today, I went for a really easy jog with Lani and our girls. There wasn't any real pain, but it just doesn't feel right.

While we were running, I started thinking about my running plans. I was thinking about a Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving weekend, and the LA Marathon in February. Those are both likely out of the question as I will now be giving myself some more time off. As much as I want to run that marathon, I also want to run a marathon when I'm 80, and I don't want to jeopardize my future running life. I need to take care of this body as it's the only one I've got.

I started feeling a little depressed when I logged my run this morning. I guess it was sinking in that I won't be doing much running for a while. Winter is the best time to run in Arizona, and I will have to miss a good chunk of it.

While Lani and I were cooking dinner tonight, I tried thinking positively about this injury. I've always wanted to do a triathlon, but I love running too much to take time away to ride a bike or swim. Maybe this injury will cause me to pick up these other sports. I'm likely to go crazy if I can't run, so I'll need to have something to focus my energy on. And maybe when I do start running again, I'll be more likely to cross train on my non-running days, which will in turn improve my running.

I got one of those Marathon Pace Bands from the Runner's Lounge in the mail the other day. Turns out the wrong one was sent to me (if you are one of the other winners, let me know if you got the wrong one, and we can make an exchange). However, the quote on it is very relevant, and helped me see the bright side.

"In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity." ~Albert Einstein.

Pretty good timing, huh?

The other night, I was talking to Lani about what I'd like to accomplish next summer. I want to focus on my speed again. I'd like to break 5 minutes in the mile again, and then aim for 2 miles in under 11 minutes. Heck, if I'm doing that, it's just another 6 minute mile for a sub 17 minute 5k. That seems pretty doable when I look at it that way. Maybe this time off and cross training will make this more likely, and then next fall/winter I can kick out my 3 hour marathon.

Ode to my headband

Last night, I was about ready to file a missing person's report. Well, I suppose it would have been more of a missing headband's blogpost. You see, I had been neglecting my headband and one day about a week ago, it just disappeared. I had let it go for sometime without getting it in the washer. I should have realized something was amiss when it ceased to soak up my sweat as efficiently as it used to. I thought everything would be ok when I thoughtlessly tossed it in the hamper. A few days later, I did the laundry, and was excited to pull it out of the dryer on the morning of my run. Quickly shuffling through the clothes, I didn't come across it. No problem. I could manage the run without it. Later on, when I was folding the laundry, I still didn't see it. That's when I started to worry. Not too much though, it couldn't be too far. There were still some clothes in the hamper. Maybe it fell a little lower than I thought. It'll turn up in the next wash. Well, yesterday was the next wash, and it still wasn't there! Where could it be? It couldn't just vanish! Could it? Perhaps there was some foul play? I've had that headband since my junior year in high school. We've been through a lot together...

(Commence sentimental music and black and white flashback sequence.)

I bought you for something like 99 cents plus tax at Fred Meyer. It was mostly out of fun with some of the other guys on the cross country team. Little did I know that I'd be the only one to continue wearing one throughout that season and seasons to come.

You came with me on my mission to Germany, although I wasn't able to get much running in.

You were right there with me when I started running again and entered my first race since high school.

You helped me get through my first marathon and stuck with me as I walked the last 8 miles with a knee injury.

You supported me as I came within 2 minutes of qualifying for Boston in my next marathon.

You eventually accompanied me through the streets from Hopkinton to Boston.

You kept me dry during my summer of training for my sub-5 minute mile and were with me on that memorable day.

You have made many a training run more enjoyable with your many absorbent fibers.

(Jump back across time to last night.)

Oh, headband, how I missed you this last week or two. Something had to be done. So last night, I went on a desperate hunt. I looked through the laundry room, under the washer and dryer, in the hamper again, through my daughters' laundry, and even in their sock drawers. With what hope I had left, I went back to my closet and looked on the floor. No luck. Then, without even realizing what I was doing, I was looking behind the hamper, and what to my wandering eyes should appear, my beautiful, trusty old headband... in desperate need of a wash.

So, into the wash with my kids' socks, underwear and tees it went. And this morning, we were once again reunited. Oh happy day!

Running in the AZ Heat

I never considered myself a heavy sweater. That is until I moved to Phoenix last summer. I don't recommend a move to Phoenix in the middle of June. By August, we were starting to wonder if we made a mistake moving here. We ended up having over 30 consecutive days of 110+ temps. Don't get me wrong. I enjoy the heat. I'd take 100+ temperatures over below freezing temperatures any day.

Here are a few things I've learned to help with the heat:

1. Your body adapts to the heat. At first, running in super hot temps was utterly miserable. I am too addicted to quit, so I kept going anyways, and was able to enjoy it before too long (even though I'd come home dripping with sweat).

2. I am capable of getting up super early to run. I like sleeping in as much as the next guy, but when it's already in the 80s and 90s by 7 AM, getting up at 5 (or earlier) is much more motivating.

3. Always have plenty of fluids available. When I lived in Utah, I never took water or Gatorade with me unless I was going to be gone for more than an hour. In Phoenix, I needed it on runs lasting about 30 minutes.

4. Misery loves company. I started running with a group last summer, and even though the heat was awful, we had a great time socializing.

5. Only run in moisture-wicking gear. Duh.

6. Do part of your workout indoors. I coached cross-country and track at the middle school this year. It was much safer to keep the kids indoors for stretching, warm-up and cool-down. That way the kids were out of the heat as much as possible and had plenty of water available.

7. Possibly the most important tip I can give you is this: Wear a headband! They are very fashionable ;-) and extremely functional.

The heat is not something we need to fear. If we approach it wisely and are prepared, we can have a very successful and enjoyable summer.

This post is part of the Runner's Lounge Take It and Run Thursday, and can also be found in the Runner's Lounge Know-How section of their online community website.

Toenails, revisited

I want to thank everyone for participating in my Toenails Poll and leaving comments over the last several weeks. I can no longer say that I only know of a few instances of toenails falling off. Of the 24 votes on the poll, nine people said that they have lost toenails, 3 said they have had toes turn black but remain intact, and 12 people said that it had never happened to them before. This doesn't count the few comments that were made without voting on the poll. So, I guess it happens about as often as it doesn't. I did a little internet search in hopes of finding more scientific results as to the frequency of occurrence in the general population, but couldn't find anything. However, all the sites I looked at suggested that the cause is improper-fitting shoes. They recommend shoes that are a half-size too big as a means of prevention. The Running Doc at Runner's World also recommends keeping your nails clipped, and wearing synthetic, moisture-wicking socks. Maybe I can attribute my healthy, normal-looking toenails to already following these recommendations, but I'm sure there are many of you who also do and still get blackened toenails. At least it's not an injury that will sideline you longer than a day or two.

Spam

What's the deal with spam? I've gotten 3 comments on my last post all from strange names just saying "see here" or "click here." I'm afraid to click any of the links in case of viruses. It's really annoying! Is anybody else receiving similar comments? Is there any way to prevent it?

Minor Setback

Grade checks today. Yikes! Our already small team of eight is now an even smaller team of three due to bad grades. A teacher friend of mine told me the first-term grades are always the worst because the kids are just getting back into school and haven't started taking things as seriously as they need to. If the kids are getting bad grades, they are ineligible to participate. That means no going to practices or meets for three weeks. I ran into one of my ineligible runners after school and made sure he went to see his teacher to see what he needs to do to get his grades up. I wish I could have spoken with all the boys to encourage them to do the same. If at the end of three weeks, they have gotten their grades up, they will be able to start coming out again. Hopefully we will get some, if not all, of those guys back. I challenged the eligible runners to bug the others about their grades every time they see them and encourage them to work on getting them back up, and also to encourage their friends to come out for the team. Being small is not going to stop us, though. We are still going to practice and keep working to help these kids become better.

Update: Raisin Bran

See original post: "Would you like some Raisins with your Bran?"

Had to put extra raisins in my bowl this morning.

Would you like some Bran with your Raisins?

Have you had a bowl of Raisin Bran lately? It looked like a pretty good post-run breakfast--5 grams of protein, 45 grams of carbs. I opened the box and poured myself a bowl. Whoa! The bowl was almost completely full of raisins. The first bite I took was a heaping spoonful of raisins. And I thought there were only supposed to be two scoops of raisins in the box! Well, I suppose the two scoops probably just landed on top of the bran, and the bottom of the box will be almost completely void of raisins. It all averages out, right? I've eaten Raisin Bran all my life and I don't remember this being a problem when I was a kid. What's a cereal lover supposed to do? I really like this cereal and I am sure I will buy it again. I guess I'll just have to remember to mix it up before I serve it up.