My Running Rules

1. Walking out the door is often the toughest part of a run.
2. Don’t compare yourself to other runners. All runners are equal; some are just faster than others.
3. If it was easy, everybody would be a runner.
4. There are no shortcuts to running excellence.
5. Keep in mind that the harder you work during training, the luckier you’ll get during races.
6. Don’t make running your life. Make it part of your life.
7. The best runs sometimes come on days you didn’t feel like running.
8. Distance running is like cod liver oil: at first it makes you feel awful, then it makes you feel better.
9. Without goals, training has no purpose.
10. Make progress in your training, but progress at your own rate.
11. Runners who never fail are runners who never try anything great.
12. Never apologize for doing the best you can.
13. Preventing injuries is easier than curing them.
14. Running is simple. Don’t make it complicated.
15. Running is always enjoyable. Sometimes, though, the joy doesn’t come until the end of the run.

To choose your own rules, see The 53 Runner’s Commandments and make your own list.

New 4-mile PR

Didn’t want to go running. Ignored Runner’s Commandment #7. And #1. Instead, got up and did some work on the computer. When G realized I hadn’t gone running, he pushed me out the door–it was nearly 8. Of course, we had to leave the house at 9:15, so I didn’t have a lot of time, but he encouraged me to go out and do a few quick miles, and I thought I would.

Did a quick four. And set a new personal record for the distance! My splits: 9:35, 9:09, 8:43, 8:32. Total run time 36:01. Yay for me! I hate short runs. I feel like they don’t count, unless they’re hard and fast. So now at least I feel like this one counted!

Modified to add: Wait! It gets better! Subtract the first mile–9:35–from the total run time of 36:01 and you know what you get? The closest I’ve ever come to beating my PR of 26:18 for a 5k: 26:26. If I’d been in a race I would have sprinted and beat my time. Finally! I’ve been training to improve my 5k since I ran my half and it felt like it was getting farther away instead of closer. Finally there’s hope! Now, when’s the next scheduled 5k in this town?

The Long Run

Just a little something about my long run today. I first heard thunder when I was going over the bridge today–because if you want to do hill training in Florida, you head for a bridge. Now, a metal drawbridge is not really where you want to be in a thunderstorm. But I was already across it, so nothing to be done but turn around and come back over it. Two miles down.

Did the lightning-thunder count thing. Storm seemed to be moving away. I felt great, by the way; didn’t even hate the first three miles today. Until the rain started falling, gently at first, and I thought, “Okay, well, this is okay. It won’t be as hot.” Started falling more heavily, and I started playing with the idea of cutting the run short, from 12 to 10 miles. Then a flash of lightning followed immediately by a crack of thunder–that’s right, I’m now moving, apparently, faster than the storm. Good job, Vix. Turn around and head for home. Fast. Long run turns into a tempo run. Shoes and socks, soaked. Well, everything soaked. So now I’m also doing a little weight-bearing exercise. Not to mention some interesting hopping-thing when I run to try to avoid puddles.

Oh, it was an interesting run. Forcibly cut short–10 miles instead of 12–but I tacked on another 4 when I got home, out of sheer bull-headedness.

And get this, no knee pain. AT ALL.

So, hill training? Check. Bad-weather training? Check. Speed training? Check. Distance training? Check. HTFU points? Double check.

What a run!

Run for the Fallen

“Run for the Fallen is a collective of runners whose mission is clear and simple: To run one mile for every American service member killed in Operation Iraqi Freedom. On June 14, 2008, we run across America to raise awareness about the lives of those who fought, to activate their memories and keep their spirits alive, to support organizations that help wounded veterans and the families of those killed (Wounded Warrior Project, Yellow Ribbon Fund, HUGSS (Helping Unite Gold Star Survivors), and the 1st Lt. Michael J. Cleary Memorial Fund), and to aid the healing process for those Americans whose lives have been affected by the war. We refuse any political affiliation or agenda, but simply honor those who have fought, and those who have fallen under the American flag.”

You can join the team on one of their legs as they run from Fort Irwin, California, to Arlington National Cemetery. The first day’s run will be memorial marathon; after that, daily legs will average between 50 and 60 miles, with some runners running portions of those legs. Each mile on days 1 through 69 is run in memory of a soldier who has lost his life during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Day 70 is a rest day in Washington, DC. On Day 71 the team will run a 10k memorial run in remembrance of all soldiers killed in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom.

If you do not live on the course of the run, you can still join the team by running, wherever you are, on day 70, August 24, and celebrating and honoring the lives of our fallen soldiers. Plan a run in your community, run with your running club, your running partner, or alone. Contact the team to let them know you’ve joined the effort to honor our service men and women.

You can find out more about the run, and join the effort, at the website for Run for the Fallen. You can view a slide show for each day of the run with pictures for each soldier honored that day. Remember: one mile for each life lost. The team is also keeping a blog, telling the stories of the brave men and women who didn’t come home.

If you’re a runner, here’s great motivation to get out the door on a Sunday.

The Best Runs . . .

. . . sometimes come on days when you didn’t feel like running.

Been battling a cold. Did quad strengthening exercises yesterday, so legs felt weak. Went to bed too late last night and was too tired when the alarm went off at 5:15 this morning. But, I know how I feel after two days off, so not running wasn’t an option. It was either get out the door (Runner’s Commandment #1: Walking out the door is often the hardest part of a run. ) and do it, or run during the kids’ naps, which meant getting up at 5:15 anyway to grade papers on the computer. So . . . I decided to get up and do a short run on tired legs. Quick 4. Well, I felt great. And fast. Turned into a pretty fast 7 miles. Got in a great sprint at the end.

Runner’s Commandment #7: Sometimes the best runs come on days you didn’t feel like running.

If I could record what I hear as I run . . .

. . . you would hear, in order of appearance, during my one-hour run:

• frogs (it’s either monster mating season or an Egyptian-scale plague)
• cicadas
• bluejays and mockingbirds (did you know that G and I took a birding class once?)
• I don’t hear or see ducks anymore–they, being wiser than I, have apparently moved back North for the winter; so have some of our residents, leaving somewhat emptier our freeways, restaurants, and, sadly, our church’s budget, but God will provide. But I digress.
• squirrels (I’m always afraid they’re going to dive-bomb me, but it hasn’t happened yet)
• bunnies scampering in the underbrush as I pass (please let it be bunnies)
• heavy machinery (because no matter what they tell you about the housing market crash, they’re still building in Florida)
• the sweet sound of running water as I stop at the water fountains at mile 4 or so
• cars
• dog walkers and other runners saying hi (sometimes their ipods as they run by–hello! Don’t you want to hear a car behind you? But I digress again)
• school buses (but not again until August–tomorrow is the last day of school in Palm Beach County)
• my car alarm disarming–I’m coming home, baby!

Someone asked about my safety when I run in the early morning–and trust me, I’m not by far the earliest runner. But I am careful. I vary my routes some. I end up running the same variations of the same route–in other words, the same streets, but in different order. That way I know about how many miles I’m running. I have my Garmin, but this way I know about how far I have to go to get back to my car. Why don’t I run from home? Well, my neighbors happen to not be very careful about leashing their dogs. While dogs are mortal enemies to most runners, some of you will understand that one unhappy encounter with a canine would mean the end of this runner’s entire running career, so we’re trying to avoid that. My neighborhood also has a complete lack of (a) street lights, (b) sidewalks, (c) bike lanes. So, I choose to drive two miles to the much nicer and more expensive neighborhood near us, which has nice green areas surrounding it. It has (a) street lights, (b) sidewalks, and (c) bike lanes. Mostly I run on the sidewalks, but sometimes I take to the bike lanes, especially during spider season (you don’t wanna know). I generally encounter anywhere from 2 to 10 other runners during my time out, and though I don’t run with my cell phone, I run through a residential area and am never more than five minutes from help. I go out covered in prayer, but I play it safe, too. Thanks for asking, though.