Well, I did it. Last night, I went out and did a 5K. I'm not in race shape, and it was obvious during my performance, but I'm really glad I did it. It was fun being around a pool of another 150 or so runners.
The course was generally flat.. some very small hills. It was at a local park, so there was no traffic to speak of.
I've started running totally by feel. I don't use my Garmin, I don't carry a watch of any sort.. Just go out and do what I need to do. I was curious how I would do racing, as I never did do a lot of racing.
The crowd was quite a mix. This was a run/walk 5K, so there were all kinds of people. They lined up based on where there was space in line. Not really the best plan, of course. The first quarter mile had a lot of weaving going on in order to not crash into people.
First mile, 9:28. OK.. Well, not what I used to be able to do a mile in, but not terrible, either. At this point I figured I was doing well, but maybe had gone out slightly fast.
Water station.. A friend of mine was volunteering at the race. Always fun to hear your name (plus get water!).
Turn around.. OK.. generally flat, with some uphills. Can. Do. This. Stop to walk, stretch out the knee and ITB a little bit.. carry on running.
Second mile, 19:21. Well, a bit slower, but not terribly off, pace-wise.
For the last quarter mile or so, I turned up the gas and ran faster.. I didn't want to snake out beating someone right in the last 5 seconds. I think I turned the gas up a bit too early, as I was ready to pass out a tenth of a mile away. :)
I saw the clock ticking up to 30 minutes.. 29:52, 29:53... Sprint.. must. get. under. 30.
Nope. 30:01. Ah well.
So, my pace slowed, but I stayed in the same ball park. Today, I have no additional pains from my body apart from the normal ones. One hamstring is tight, but nothing serious.. Should work out over the next couple of days.
Plus, I have a good baseline and will know how much I improve over time.
Two notable sights from the race:
- 2 people ran while pushing strollers. (One guy, one girl). I'm impressed. (The guy totally beat me, too)
- One guy was at the park, probably to work out.. his friends convinced him to run in the race, 2 minutes before it started. Yeah, he came in second.
I'm glad I did it. Just for something a little different.
Have a good long weekend, and keep on rockin'!
Friday, September 2, 2011
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Decisions
Well, tonight after work, there's a 5K race. Decisions, decisions.
The pros are:
- A chance to race
- Not a long distance
- Run with people again
The cons are:
- I'm not in race shape
- I haven't trained to run anything like this
I've done some long runs of 5-6 miles over the past couple of months, and most runs are 4 miles a pop, so I can certainly *do* the distance. I think the pros are outweighing the cons right now.. 80/20 split on pro vs con.. We'll see what happens tonight.
The pros are:
- A chance to race
- Not a long distance
- Run with people again
The cons are:
- I'm not in race shape
- I haven't trained to run anything like this
I've done some long runs of 5-6 miles over the past couple of months, and most runs are 4 miles a pop, so I can certainly *do* the distance. I think the pros are outweighing the cons right now.. 80/20 split on pro vs con.. We'll see what happens tonight.
Monday, August 29, 2011
The long road back
Hey everyone! Long time no write. Over a year. Wow.
Not saying that I can keep up the pace I used to, but I'm going to give this a go again.
Let's see, where to start? Well, mini-raul is now an exuberant 2 year old. He does not care to sleep through the night, but he has an endless reserve of energy. Truly a perpetual motion machine. I give mad props to all parents out there. I had no idea how difficult parenting would be (nor how rewarding).
As far as training goes, well, after he was born, it was a quick and steady decline into a sedentary lifestyle. At first it was eating the same without running, and then it became eating a bit worse without running, etc etc.
So, a few months ago, I hopped on the scale for the first time in 2 years. I quickly hopped off, and flipped it over to recalibrate it. Stepping back on, it turns out that the scale was accurately representing what I wasn't quite ready to admit, that I reached an all-time high. Not necessarily a good thing, there.
I started then, getting back into running. I was doing twice a week, but I'm now consistently running once on the weekends, and going for 2 or 3 walks a week. It's not what I used to do, but it is certainly better than nothing.
My wife has started Weight Watchers too, so I've started eating better as a result (or perhaps its because there's nothing to eat in the house?).. That's helping too.
So, fast forward to today, I'm down 12 pounds from the all time high, and starting to get back in shape.
Short term, I'd love to do something like P90X or even a 30 day shred sort of thing, but I don't think I can commit to working out every.single.day.
But, that's where I stand. I'll try to post a bit more, and stop around to the blogs a bit more.
Of course, keep on rockin'..
Not saying that I can keep up the pace I used to, but I'm going to give this a go again.
Let's see, where to start? Well, mini-raul is now an exuberant 2 year old. He does not care to sleep through the night, but he has an endless reserve of energy. Truly a perpetual motion machine. I give mad props to all parents out there. I had no idea how difficult parenting would be (nor how rewarding).
As far as training goes, well, after he was born, it was a quick and steady decline into a sedentary lifestyle. At first it was eating the same without running, and then it became eating a bit worse without running, etc etc.
So, a few months ago, I hopped on the scale for the first time in 2 years. I quickly hopped off, and flipped it over to recalibrate it. Stepping back on, it turns out that the scale was accurately representing what I wasn't quite ready to admit, that I reached an all-time high. Not necessarily a good thing, there.
I started then, getting back into running. I was doing twice a week, but I'm now consistently running once on the weekends, and going for 2 or 3 walks a week. It's not what I used to do, but it is certainly better than nothing.
My wife has started Weight Watchers too, so I've started eating better as a result (or perhaps its because there's nothing to eat in the house?).. That's helping too.
So, fast forward to today, I'm down 12 pounds from the all time high, and starting to get back in shape.
Short term, I'd love to do something like P90X or even a 30 day shred sort of thing, but I don't think I can commit to working out every.single.day.
But, that's where I stand. I'll try to post a bit more, and stop around to the blogs a bit more.
Of course, keep on rockin'..
Monday, May 3, 2010
Running.. Finally
I saw a commercial the other day from Dick's, which said that May was "National Runner's Month". I said to myself, well, that's as good of a reason as any to get back into the swing of it.
So, late Saturday morning, I turned to Mrs. Raul and said "I'm going to go for a run.". She gave me a quizzical/surprised/amused look and said "Oh, OK". So, I got all ready, and out I went.
I got on my way and started trying to remember the last time I actually did run. I did pretty good after mini-Raul was born. Of course, I wasn't working at the time, and freeing up 50 hours a week really opens up the schedule. Once I got back to work, things started to go downhill. So, I was able to convincingly say that I haven't run in 6 months, if I was being honest with myself. I thought about adjusting that to say, 7 months, but, I didn't want to be TOO honest.
I guess part of why I didn't run was that I was just scared to. It had been so long. What would my fitness be like? What was going to hurt? Would I tire out after a half a block? Sure, there was the scheduling issue, just trying to get that run in. With the days being longer now, that's not as big of a problem. The weather issue is a lot better now, I can't complain about it being too cold. It got the point that it was just *me* holding myself back.
So, I did a little short of 2 miles. Threw in some walk breaks to go Galloway-style, but I got it done. All in all, I was really frickin' happy. I had a good amount of muscle fatigue, but that was my main problem. I truthfully did far better than I ever imagined I would.
The next goal... doing it again. And not 6 months from now.
Keep on rockin'.
So, late Saturday morning, I turned to Mrs. Raul and said "I'm going to go for a run.". She gave me a quizzical/surprised/amused look and said "Oh, OK". So, I got all ready, and out I went.
I got on my way and started trying to remember the last time I actually did run. I did pretty good after mini-Raul was born. Of course, I wasn't working at the time, and freeing up 50 hours a week really opens up the schedule. Once I got back to work, things started to go downhill. So, I was able to convincingly say that I haven't run in 6 months, if I was being honest with myself. I thought about adjusting that to say, 7 months, but, I didn't want to be TOO honest.
I guess part of why I didn't run was that I was just scared to. It had been so long. What would my fitness be like? What was going to hurt? Would I tire out after a half a block? Sure, there was the scheduling issue, just trying to get that run in. With the days being longer now, that's not as big of a problem. The weather issue is a lot better now, I can't complain about it being too cold. It got the point that it was just *me* holding myself back.
So, I did a little short of 2 miles. Threw in some walk breaks to go Galloway-style, but I got it done. All in all, I was really frickin' happy. I had a good amount of muscle fatigue, but that was my main problem. I truthfully did far better than I ever imagined I would.
The next goal... doing it again. And not 6 months from now.
Keep on rockin'.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Daddy's Back
I'm back. (Or so I hope.)
I was --> <-- this close to saying, well, the blog is suspended until further notice. Then I started perusing my Google Reader, and I saw this post by Cindy, and I said to myself "That's not a bad idea. Let's call it a hiatus, and move on."
I enjoyed blogging, and I enjoy the friendships I've made while blogging. There's no reason to throw that out.
So, I figure that my old posting habits aren't going to stand up to my schedule right now.. so, I'll post when I can, hopefully twice a week or so like that. I probably won't be around to all of your blogs every day, but I will be around. I've lurked a little bit on everyone's blogs, but I have been out of the loop for a lot of things.
As far as what I'm going to write about, it's almost a new slate. My running has gone down to, well, zero. Let's be honest here. Zero. I have rode my bike on a trainer, oh, maybe 4 times this winter. That's an honest 4, at least. Of course, by not altering my dietary intake, but changing the exercise output, I've put on a few pounds over the last few months. Cruel, but predictable.
I want to get back to running. I've got the schedule crunch going, so I'm hoping to get 2 runs a week in starting at some point in the near future. I need to do some strength/flexibility training, as my legs just hurt any more, and need to become more limber.
I have started walking at lunchtime, though. A good 5K walk with some solid hills and the like. Hey, it's a start.
Future posts may be about running, perhaps a few on child raising and the mis-adventures thereof. I've started doing some cooking, maybe some thoughts on that.
So, here's to the end of a hiatus, and a new beginning. Keep on rockin'.
I was --> <-- this close to saying, well, the blog is suspended until further notice. Then I started perusing my Google Reader, and I saw this post by Cindy, and I said to myself "That's not a bad idea. Let's call it a hiatus, and move on."
I enjoyed blogging, and I enjoy the friendships I've made while blogging. There's no reason to throw that out.
So, I figure that my old posting habits aren't going to stand up to my schedule right now.. so, I'll post when I can, hopefully twice a week or so like that. I probably won't be around to all of your blogs every day, but I will be around. I've lurked a little bit on everyone's blogs, but I have been out of the loop for a lot of things.
As far as what I'm going to write about, it's almost a new slate. My running has gone down to, well, zero. Let's be honest here. Zero. I have rode my bike on a trainer, oh, maybe 4 times this winter. That's an honest 4, at least. Of course, by not altering my dietary intake, but changing the exercise output, I've put on a few pounds over the last few months. Cruel, but predictable.
I want to get back to running. I've got the schedule crunch going, so I'm hoping to get 2 runs a week in starting at some point in the near future. I need to do some strength/flexibility training, as my legs just hurt any more, and need to become more limber.
I have started walking at lunchtime, though. A good 5K walk with some solid hills and the like. Hey, it's a start.
Future posts may be about running, perhaps a few on child raising and the mis-adventures thereof. I've started doing some cooking, maybe some thoughts on that.
So, here's to the end of a hiatus, and a new beginning. Keep on rockin'.
Monday, November 2, 2009
Wow
It's been more than two months since I've posted? Holy crap.
Well, it seems like it's been two months since I've ran. OK, it's not quite that bad, but it's pretty bad.
Same story goes as before. Work is keeping me busy, and when I get home, the little guy is doing the same. Between the two, blogging has just fallen off the scope. I don't want to bag it yet.. I'd really like to continue. You guys are an awesome group, and I'd like to keep hangin' with ya. So, keep me in the reader, and we'll see if this ship can get turned around soon.
As far as fitness goes, well.. I'm not doing too well. If I get one day of exercise in a week, it's a good week. Two days is absolutely stellar.
I realized that I'm not going to be getting my butt to the gym this winter. I just don't see the time existing. As a result, I'm trying out a bike trainer. A friend of mine is letting me borrow his for a bit, and if I like it, I think I'll spend some money on getting one. (Recommendations, anyone?)
Ideally, I'll bike a couple of times a week, and maybe going running once during the weekend, when it's light out. Realistically, well, if I can bike once a week, that'd be huge. Running just hurts right now. One ITB or the other, one foot or the other, etc etc. I'm hoping that some cross training and just building up the general fitness level helps some. It certainly isn't going to hurt. Right now, I just feel the fitness slipping away. Alas. (If only it was as hard to lose as it is to gain..)
At work, it's a constant battle of fighting for the job, making sure other people don't steal your assignment, etc etc. Political garbage. Blah. It's a job, and I'm glad to be employed, but.. blah.
At home, the little guy is doing well. We're emerging from the dark cloud of colic. There's still a bad spot here and there, but at least it's not constant. He's rolling over and generally interacting more, so that's pretty cool. It's amazing seeing him learn and develop. Truly amazing.
How's it going with you all? I haven't been around too much, and I apologize.
For all of the U.S. folks here, happy Turkey Day. For the rest of ya, have a day full of thanks for all that is good in your life. As always, keep on rockin'.
Well, it seems like it's been two months since I've ran. OK, it's not quite that bad, but it's pretty bad.
Same story goes as before. Work is keeping me busy, and when I get home, the little guy is doing the same. Between the two, blogging has just fallen off the scope. I don't want to bag it yet.. I'd really like to continue. You guys are an awesome group, and I'd like to keep hangin' with ya. So, keep me in the reader, and we'll see if this ship can get turned around soon.
As far as fitness goes, well.. I'm not doing too well. If I get one day of exercise in a week, it's a good week. Two days is absolutely stellar.
I realized that I'm not going to be getting my butt to the gym this winter. I just don't see the time existing. As a result, I'm trying out a bike trainer. A friend of mine is letting me borrow his for a bit, and if I like it, I think I'll spend some money on getting one. (Recommendations, anyone?)
Ideally, I'll bike a couple of times a week, and maybe going running once during the weekend, when it's light out. Realistically, well, if I can bike once a week, that'd be huge. Running just hurts right now. One ITB or the other, one foot or the other, etc etc. I'm hoping that some cross training and just building up the general fitness level helps some. It certainly isn't going to hurt. Right now, I just feel the fitness slipping away. Alas. (If only it was as hard to lose as it is to gain..)
At work, it's a constant battle of fighting for the job, making sure other people don't steal your assignment, etc etc. Political garbage. Blah. It's a job, and I'm glad to be employed, but.. blah.
At home, the little guy is doing well. We're emerging from the dark cloud of colic. There's still a bad spot here and there, but at least it's not constant. He's rolling over and generally interacting more, so that's pretty cool. It's amazing seeing him learn and develop. Truly amazing.
How's it going with you all? I haven't been around too much, and I apologize.
For all of the U.S. folks here, happy Turkey Day. For the rest of ya, have a day full of thanks for all that is good in your life. As always, keep on rockin'.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Running and Rye
Man, it's been a week since I posted anything. I haven't even been around to all the blogs to even read them. Ugh.
So, I got back to work, and guess what? They want me to actually *work*. That is totally cutting into my blogging time.
In the same vein is that work is cutting into my running time. When I was off of work, I could go running in the morning (yeah, right), the early afternoon, the evening.. whatever I felt like. Now, when I get home, if there's time, I'm not beat, and the stars align, I might be able to get a run in.
On Sunday I got out for a run at least.. It was actually my first one in a whole week. Killer week. I had a stretch goal of doing 7 miles, but I hoped for 5. I wound up settling for 4.25, because shizz was just hurting. Left ITB was bothering me (note to self: foam roll more often. Of course 'more often' implies I'm actually doing it at all.. errrr). My right foot was bothering me. I just decided to shut it down a little early.
I think I need to get on the bike a bit more (all of you tri-people are inspiring), and do that to maintain some level of fitness for now, with a couple of runs a week. (Well, that's the goal, at least. Gotta have goals)
It is Tuesday, so I'm here with a new entry for Alky Tuesday...
This is Saranac's Rye Pilsener. (Yes, I know that's not a Pilsner glass.. I didn't feel like digging for one in the cabinet. Sadly, yes, I do have pretty much every glass type for different types of drinks)
I vaguely remember reading about a rye beer on someone's blog, but my 2 minute attempt to locate such a post came up empty. I had never had such a creation, and there was a pair of these in the Saranac summer sampler pack. (The same sampler pack that has the lemony Summer Ale that I previously covered. Oh, and yes, *that* was a beer that Mrs. Raul actually took to).
Speaking of Mrs. Raul, she was going to the grocery store yesterday.. before leaving, she asked me "Are there any beers you need?".
Brought a tear to my eye, let me tell you.
Oh, and speaking of the grocery store.. In the area I live in, there really isn't much. We just got a Sonic, and we're finally getting a Best Buy in October, just to show you what little is going on. There's one specialty beer store, but it's not terribly convenient to get to. However, the local Wegman's grocery store redid their insides, and they opened up a specialty beer section. They had always done pretty good by me before, carrying Brooklyn, Ithaca, and some other non-mass produced beers. Now though? I'm like a kid in a candy store there. But, that's where I get most of my beer.
Anyway, back from the two tangents.. I'm typically not much of a pilsner beer guy. They're just "ok" in my book. I honestly just chalk it up to the fact that I haven't had many good ones, and I really haven't spent the time to find some I like.
This one had a bit of a bread-like smell.. nice golden color, with lots of small carbonation bubbles. The taste was slightly spicy, and it really was quite tasty for a pilsner.
I think the description on the bottle sums it up quite well: "Rye malt adds dimension to what otherwise is a relatively simple brew." It's a basic beer with some additional flavor.
Certainly not my favorite beer, but quite pleasant out of a sampler pack. I'd have it again if offered it. It's a limited release, for those that are going to hunt it down.
I'm going to have to locate some more rye beers, just to try them out. Alas, we're coming into my favorite beer season, that of the Octoberfests and Pumpkin ales... the quest will probably be sidelined.
So, that's it for now. You know what to do.. keep on rockin'.
So, I got back to work, and guess what? They want me to actually *work*. That is totally cutting into my blogging time.
In the same vein is that work is cutting into my running time. When I was off of work, I could go running in the morning (yeah, right), the early afternoon, the evening.. whatever I felt like. Now, when I get home, if there's time, I'm not beat, and the stars align, I might be able to get a run in.
On Sunday I got out for a run at least.. It was actually my first one in a whole week. Killer week. I had a stretch goal of doing 7 miles, but I hoped for 5. I wound up settling for 4.25, because shizz was just hurting. Left ITB was bothering me (note to self: foam roll more often. Of course 'more often' implies I'm actually doing it at all.. errrr). My right foot was bothering me. I just decided to shut it down a little early.
I think I need to get on the bike a bit more (all of you tri-people are inspiring), and do that to maintain some level of fitness for now, with a couple of runs a week. (Well, that's the goal, at least. Gotta have goals)
It is Tuesday, so I'm here with a new entry for Alky Tuesday...
This is Saranac's Rye Pilsener. (Yes, I know that's not a Pilsner glass.. I didn't feel like digging for one in the cabinet. Sadly, yes, I do have pretty much every glass type for different types of drinks)
I vaguely remember reading about a rye beer on someone's blog, but my 2 minute attempt to locate such a post came up empty. I had never had such a creation, and there was a pair of these in the Saranac summer sampler pack. (The same sampler pack that has the lemony Summer Ale that I previously covered. Oh, and yes, *that* was a beer that Mrs. Raul actually took to).
Speaking of Mrs. Raul, she was going to the grocery store yesterday.. before leaving, she asked me "Are there any beers you need?".
Brought a tear to my eye, let me tell you.
Oh, and speaking of the grocery store.. In the area I live in, there really isn't much. We just got a Sonic, and we're finally getting a Best Buy in October, just to show you what little is going on. There's one specialty beer store, but it's not terribly convenient to get to. However, the local Wegman's grocery store redid their insides, and they opened up a specialty beer section. They had always done pretty good by me before, carrying Brooklyn, Ithaca, and some other non-mass produced beers. Now though? I'm like a kid in a candy store there. But, that's where I get most of my beer.
Anyway, back from the two tangents.. I'm typically not much of a pilsner beer guy. They're just "ok" in my book. I honestly just chalk it up to the fact that I haven't had many good ones, and I really haven't spent the time to find some I like.
This one had a bit of a bread-like smell.. nice golden color, with lots of small carbonation bubbles. The taste was slightly spicy, and it really was quite tasty for a pilsner.
I think the description on the bottle sums it up quite well: "Rye malt adds dimension to what otherwise is a relatively simple brew." It's a basic beer with some additional flavor.
Certainly not my favorite beer, but quite pleasant out of a sampler pack. I'd have it again if offered it. It's a limited release, for those that are going to hunt it down.
I'm going to have to locate some more rye beers, just to try them out. Alas, we're coming into my favorite beer season, that of the Octoberfests and Pumpkin ales... the quest will probably be sidelined.
So, that's it for now. You know what to do.. keep on rockin'.
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