Now That's What I'm Talking About!

The run, that is!

The endorphins and anandamides really kicked in today during our group run. Well, OK, that's probably not true because most studies that have found evidence for the phenomenon of a runner's high have said that it occurs after 80-90 minutes of running at a moderately hard pace -- faster than an easy run, but slower than race pace. But whatever it was this morning was definitely good. It was some combination of weather (42°, 40% humidity), faster-than-normal pace (average of 7:59 mpm), good conversation, running just for fun and not training for anything in particular, etc. We got to 3 miles and I just couldn't believe we had gone that far and that the time had passed so quickly -- I was sure that someone had plotted the route wrong and that there was no way we were going to have done 5 miles by the end. We missed a turn on a very familiar route. One of our group didn't even know we had made another turn. I, at least, felt like I could keep on running forever.

It's days like today that remind me why I love to run.

Today: 6.2 miles in 49:52 (7:59 mpm).

Run well, y'all,
Bob

Motivation: That Still, Small Voice in My Head

(Graphic from Fitness Motivation) I'm three days late (and probably at least $3 short) but reading all the posts got me thinking about what motivates me to keep running. Several things:

WEIGHT/HEALTH: I started running again in 2003 because my weight reached the point where, according to the BMI, I was obese. I didn't like the sound of that word and didn't like the looks of it in the mirror. Plus, there are some health issues in my family (diabetes, heart attacks, high cholesterol) that I wanted to be pro-active in dealing with. So, I started running and eating in a more healthy way and lost 40 pounds in 5-6 months. Running helps me keep my weight down and I know I'm doing something positive about my overall health.

SANITY: I probably don't have the most stressful job in the universe, but it's stressful enough. Running first thing in the morning, before anyone else is up, gives me a chance to think or pray or just to be quiet. I can face the day better.

RUNNING LOG: I track mileage, times, temperature/humidity on a spreadsheet (Google Docs). There's something about seeing the miles add up that keeps me going. I'm pretty task oriented so this shows me concrete progress.

FRIENDS: I run by myself 85% of the time but I have friends who run and we check up on each other regularly. The mutual accountability is good for me.

FEELING GOOD: Maybe it's obsession or addiction but I know that if I don't run, I'll regret it later. For the first year, I liked the results of running but not the running itself. Since then, I like the running (most days). Hoping for the next, elusive runner's high keeps me going. One of my favorite running quotes is from Benjamin Cheever in Strides:

The runner's high is built on a foundation of runner's lows. The joy is often paid for in advance.

TIME OF DAY: Getting my run done first thing in the morning is, perhaps, not really a motivator but it's my way of ensuring that it gets done. One friend commented this week, Bob runs at 5:30am and wakes up at 6:30am. There's lots of truth to that.

There's an article on motivation at The Fitness Motivator. The writer mentions Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. I had used that concept in training teachers but had never thought about it in relation to running. That will give me some brain fodder for tomorrow's run.

Run well, y'all,
Bob
Richmond

Runner's High

Benjamin Cheever, in Strides, says, "The runner's high is built on a foundation of runner's lows. The joy is often paid for in advance." My run tonight was a case in point. A number of my runs lately have seemed difficult. Tonight, however, was really nice -- I really felt good, even after finishing 8.1 miles at a 7:48.6 mpm pace.

I like running in cool weather and it was 29° when I started and about 24° when I finished. The air was dry unlike most mornings in Richmond. While I like running early in the morning (normally I'm on the road no later than 5:30 am), I generally feel like I run better in the evening -- so, that was a plus. And, this week has been stressful. We have about 205 people in Kenya for whom our organization is responsible -- adult missionaries, their children, and a variety of family members and other guests who were in the country either visiting family or doing volunteer work. And, if you have kept up with international news this week, you know that things have been unusually tense in Kenya with the tribal/political clashes that have been going on for about 4 days (CNN story -- CAUTION: the picture with the article is gruesome). Because of the stress of the week, I think I really needed to run tonight.

So, everything just came together for a runner's high for me tonight. I run for my health, for weight control, for stress relief, to get some "I" (introvert) time but this kind of outing makes running pure fun! I hope you have a runner's high this week.

Run well, y'all,
Bob
Richmond, VA

Runner's Low

I've experienced a runner's high -- also, see this link -- many times but today I found out what a real runner's low feels like. I suppose it's a lot like hitting the wall in a marathon.

I'm guessing that a combination of weather (75° and 85% humidity), not sleeping really well this week, and, probably some dehydration resulted in what felt like my worst run EVER! I didn't feel great when I started -- thought about cutting it short several times even at 2.5 miles. But, I pushed on and was OK, if not great, right up to the 7.5 mile mark. At that point, I just imploded. From there, I walked about as much as I ran. Was supposed to do 11 but ended up with only 9.9 -- it would have been shorter if I had been closer to home.

Oh, well. There will be another day.

According to Weird Conversions, I weighed the same as 17,475 sheets of paper today after running the equivalent of the length of 1,945 'weinermobiles".

Run well, y'all,
Bob
Richmond