Much Better – Thursday – July 1, 2021

How am I feeling today?

Well, the heatwave is over for a bit. While the storms just missed us last night, they did bring relief with them. This morning for some reason or other, I do feel a bit tired and a little frustrated when I stepped on the scales. No progress on that, but to be honest, it is my own fault, and if I want to reach my weight goals, I need to eat differently. It is just that simple. Otherwise, it will be one of those busy days that I really don’t enjoy all that much, so I have a case of the meh’s to start off this morning.

Planned Workout Description: 

Type: 

• 40:00 minute – Easy Run. For some reason, I had been thinking that I had scheduled a long trail run for this morning (next Thursday) and had been looking forward to it. Turns out that I planned my trail run for tomorrow and today is a run around the neighborhood. Yes, I could change it, but now I remember the reasoning, and it was pretty good, so I will keep it the way I originally planned. Oh well, I will look forward to the trails tomorrow and maybe just get the Carbon X out today to see how they feel on an easy run.

Today’s Running Focus

· Get my mojo back

Why am I doing this run?

Due to the schedule this week, we are running errands and have workers coming this afternoon to level out the propane tanks, so I need to run, but nothing overly daunting or too far from the house. Besides, easy runs need to be the bulk of my running. If I run too hard too often, that is when the body revolts, and I start to have even more trouble with it than I already have. 

What I Actually Did Today: 

I tried out the Carbon Xs by running down to my Test Course. The first part was just running easy, getting acquainted with the feel of the shoes, and enjoying the cooler weather. It was still warm but not stifling and much more runnable than it has been. When I got to the end of Philbrick, I decided to do the Pepin Segment and see how the Carbon Xs felt and give me an idea of where I am physically.

The Pepin segment test went a LOT better than I thought it would, and I came within .02 seconds of tying the segment record, which really surprised me because I didn’t feel as though I ran as hard as I did in the past. So the shoes passed that test with flying colors.

Coming back out, I was simply running very easy and not in a rush to get anywhere. Going back up Philbrick Hill, I lost focus and walked a bit. It was a mental issue, nothing physical – I didn’t feel like doing the work – it seems. Of course, at the top of the hill were some neighbors out walking their dog. We bantered about how old I was getting to be, how much more challenging the hill gets every year, and why they don’t walk down it very often. After that, I picked up the run again and decided to do a fast finish down to the Big Pine down-back.

I was pleased with the idea that I could pick the pace back up again once I got to the upper gate most of the way down to the big pine.

On the way back, I had to run back up Stevens Hill, unlike Philbrick Hill, it has been designated a “no walking” zone, so if I am out running and come back to the hill, even if I am done my run, I have to run from the lower gate to the upper gate. One of those quirks that I have instituted to not let myself off the hook like I do on Philbrick. It has helped me with mental toughness on Stevens Hill, and I really should go ahead and do the same thing with Philbrick, but I haven’t yet.

Did that workout go as planned?

Not really. I shouldn’t have worn “go faster” shoes this morning for an easy run. They made it so that I ran faster down on Pepin and then again heading towards the big pine. Otherwise, it was a slower run, but I could tell that I had run harder in a couple of spots.

Injuries/Niggles: The left Achilles is still a little grumpy even though I held off on the eccentric calf exercises and stretching off the step ladder. 

Weather: Broken clouds, 75°F, Feels like 77°F, Humidity 68%, Wind 5mph from N – What a difference 20 degrees makes. 

Shoes: Hoka Carbon X v1 – I last ran in the Carbon X with Sam W, who graciously let me try them, back in Nov 2019, and I really loved them then. The only thing that stopped me from getting a pair was the $180 price tag. Well, the price has come down, and I saw these on eBay for a reasonable price on a pair in great shape, so I said, why not. Today was the first run in them. 

Silky smooth and comfortable are the words that I use to describe them. I was able to pick up the pace to a sub-7:00 a couple of times and to come within a couple of seconds of a segment on my test course when I am still not in good shape, on my first run in a pair of shoes, says they might be something special. Now, to get a bunch more miles on them and see how they feel then. I really didn’t notice the carbon plate when running, but it was clearly evident while I was walking during the run and while I was cooling down. 

Other Stuff – We got the propane tanks leveled out, and there was more left than the gauges indicated when they were leaning, so that was good news. This afternoon was 2 hours of walking behind a lawnmower, so I am tired tonight, but I still did the mobilization exercises, and yeah, I had to ice the Achilles. Lawn mowing seems to bother me if I mow for longer periods.