Thursday, April 29, 2010

Fast and Spurious


I've become more interested in bettering my running speed recently. Now that my hypochondriac doctor has proven, much to his chagrin, that there is absolutely nothing wrong with my heart, I am determined to push it as hard as I can. This is proving to be extremely interesting; my times are indeed getting consistently faster on my daily 10km runs. Where I used to do that distance in around 57 minutes every day, I now consistently go under 53 minutes and actually hit 52:04 last week.
Which proves that there are infinite angles to keep running interesting. Anyone who uses the excuse that running is boring has problems to address. They need to develop their introspective skills for one thing. they also need to become more observant since running pretty much anywhere provides a buffet for the visual senses. And they simply need to think more creatively and go right back to the basics. We run because we can and because we were made to do so.

Sunday, April 4, 2010

Around the Bay


So the race last Sunday went even better than I anticipated. My pace was faster than ever; that little bit of weight I lost seems to have helped immensely. Just paying close attention to the calories in/calories out thing as well as the quality and variety of food is a huge factor.
The weather was almost perfect; overcast, cool enough for a light jacket and tights. When I got to the hills after 19kms, I concentrated on keeping up the speed. The great thing about a well-populated race like this (approx 10,000 runners) is that there is always someone to focus on passing. The downhills hurt a bit, but the uphills were actually welcome for the change in muscle work even though they tax the lungs a bit. The Grim Reaper was great to see, funny guy, and he was within 3 or 4 km of the finish.
I almost sprinted for the last couple of kms. It was crazy fun; drizzle had started within 15 minutes of my finishing. My finish was one of the best ever for me; I look like I'm just giving it, which I was!
Then I fainted in the food line; a nice girl crouched beside me and talked me through until I felt better (took about 15 minutes), lent me her cell phone to call my wife. And I was absolutely fine after that. Don't know her name, but thank you for your help!!