Experimented with how much running and walking I do

During my rest run yesterday, I experimented with how much running and how much walking I could do. During the race on Saturday I ran for about 10 minutes before I walked, although towards the end of the race, I reduced the amount of running.

I was curious yesterday to see if I could duplicate the amount of running, so I changed my running and walking times *from* 1:10 running and 0:50 walking *to* 5:00 running and 0:30 walking. I used those times for the first mile, but I became tired and reduced the amount of running to 3:00. and kept my walking to 0:30. I was able to use that amount of running for the rest of my run.

Maybe I wasn't quite as rested as I thought....

I felt fine after the race and all day Sunday, but after my 55 minute rest run this morning, I was tired. Normally after 55 minutes (approximately 3 miles) I feel pretty good. Evidently, I was stressed more during the race than I thought. I didn't run the full 60 minutes, because I had to get to the airport and pick up my son and his family who were returning from Japan. I didn't do much for the rest of the day -- took a short nap and moped around doing nothing of importance. Tomorrow, my wife and I will be driving her 94-year old mother through the Utah mountains to see the Fall colors, and that should be restful for me.

Set a new PB for 5K this morning

I ran the 5K this morning. The race was sponsored by the Pirates Swim Club, the group that is giving swimming lessons to my grandson. I ran the 5K as my way of supporting my grandson in his swimming, and maybe as he gets older in his running.

A year ago I ran it in 48:02, and I considered that time a new PB since I'm running much slower due to blood clots I had two years ago. This time I finished the race in 47:28, just barely a new PB.

The course had a gradual downhill part followed by a gradual uphill part, and then down hill again. After a flat part, the course went uphill again to the finish. The change in elevation was only about 90 feet, but it seemed like a lot more due to the length of the climb. During the first part of the race, I didn't take any walking breaks, and my pace was 13+. During the middle part, my speed slowed down because of the uphill grade and my taking more walking breaks. During the rest of the middle part, I didn't take any walking breaks, but my speed went down to 15+ because I was getting tired, and my running speed stayed in that range until I reached the last part, which was uphill; I took more walking breaks during that part.

My mile splits are 14:28, 15:51, and 16:37. You can see the effects of the hills in slowing me down. The good news is that I didn't take very many walking breaks, indicating that my body is getting stronger. My legs, though, got awfully tired. I had hoped to pick up my pace during the last 100 yards and finish in a "blaze of glory". Instead, I walked and slowly jogged to the finish.

While waiting for the race to begin, I talked with a lady who was there with her daughter and her dog. I commented that they should pin a number on the dog. They laughed, but the dog didn't get her number.... During the race there were two girls walking in front of me, and I followed them for about half the course. As we started downhill again, I caught up with them and commented to them that they were walking almost as fast as I was running. One said, "Not anymore, you just passed us". I replied, "Yes, but it's downhill".

The top three runners (male and female) received ribbons and some prizes. The rest of us just got a big thank you from the organizers. After the ribbons were given out, prizes were given via tags drawn from a box. There were enough prizes that almost every runner got something. I received a backpack that will make a nice gift to a grandchild. When I walked up to get the backpack, the lady giving out the prizes told the group that I was the first to register this morning. After receiving the backpack, I said to her "First here and the last to finish" (there were some walkers behind me, though).

It was a fun race. I like small, local races because they are fun and I usually know people there. In this case, I didn't know anyone since the race was in a different town, but my grandson knows the race organizers, and my son knows some of the runners and walkers.

Oh yes, I'm so slow that even that dog beat me :)

This picture was taken by my wife as I crossed the finish line.

My age grade for the 5K

I calculated my age grading for this race. Age grading removes age from the "picture" so we can get a better idea of our performance for our actual age. Here are my age grades for two years, the second being after my blood clots that occurred two years ago.

My age 46, 17:44, 72.73% Year 1982
My age 75, 32:19, 39.92% Year 2011

The first number (after my age) is the time a runner would finish who was 25 but in the same condition for his age that I was for my age. The next number (a percentage) shows how close I was to reaching the world record for my age.

Now, we can see the help that age grading gives us. I calculated my age grading for an assumed age of 76 and an assumed time of 26:31. Guess what, my runner-friend at age 25 would have a time of 17:44 for both ages. That is, a 5K time of 26:31 at age 76 is the same as a time of 19:48 at age 46, even though 26:31 is no way near a PB of 19:47. Age grading allows me to compare times over a large time-span, in this case 29 years. Concerning my performance this morning, I'm about 21 minutes away from an all-time PB, taking my age into consideration. Rather than thinking I have to reach a time of 19:47 to set an all-time PB, I only have to reach a time of 26:31. Now, my performance this morning doesn't seem so bad, after all :)

As a side note: I've spoken of having blood clots two years ago. Actually, the blood clots were a side-effect. The real problem was a filter the doctors put in my vein after an auto accident in 2004. For about 4 years I had a great time running. Then in January 2009, the filter quit working, and it blocked the blood circulation in that vein. I went from a 7-mile run on Saturday to a 100-foot walk on Monday. New veins have grown around the filter, but my performance is still way below what it was a few years ago. But, that's OK. I'm still alive and still running, and it's a great life!

Strategy for the 5K

When I run the 5K tomorrow, I think I will start out with a 15 minute pace (average for both my running and my walking) and try to hold that for the entire race. If I can, I'll get a PB. If not, I'll probably not get a PB unless I increase my pace during the last part of the race.

Continued my rest runs in prep for the 5K

I ran another 2-mile rest run, using the same course I used on Monday. I ran it faster and longer than I probably should have. I forgot my GPS and just ran for relatively long segments and walked for relatively short segments. I averaged about 17 minutes/mile. If I'm to get a new PB on Saturday, I'll have to average 15 minutes. This means that I'll have to increase my time in running and keep my time in walking relatively short. I'll be sure and have my GPS with me so I can monitor my pace. One mistake is to go out too fast during the first mile, and I hope my GPS will help me keep to a lower speed during that mile.

Today was another beautiful day with shade temps in the mid 80s. I started running about 4 pm, and there was quite a lot of shade due to the time of the day that I was out.

The path under the 10600 South bridge is still flooded, and the pump isn't removing much water from the path.

Time to rest for the 5K on Saturday

I decided to run the 5K on Saturday. The race is sponsored by the swimming club at Magna High School. My 10-year old grandson is taking swimming lessons from the club. Today I ran two miles, going from 10000 South to 10600 South and back. The shade temperature was in the mid 80s (F), and it was a pleasant day. I didn't go particularly fast and just enjoyed myself. My purpose in the run was to loosen up. If I ran fast and hard this week, my performance wouldn't improve, because our bodies take more time than a week to adjust to stress. Running fast and hard would tire me and likely hurt my performance in the race.

Ended the week with another 7-mile run/walk

My wakeup heart rate was 57. I only had 6 hours of sleep last night, and I felt tired when I got up. However, I felt OK during the morning, and I started my long run about noon. I reached 7 miles after 2 hours and about 15 minutes. Rather than run the last 5 minutes to reach my time-goal of 140 minutes, I hopped in the car having met my distance goal for my long run. The shade temperature during the run/walk was in the low 70s (F). Considering the lack of  sleep I've had during the past few days, I did pretty good this morning. Last night I was reading a book about the Mormon pioneers who came to Utah in the Martin Handcart Company. My great grandfather, Francis Webster, was with that group. The book was so interesting that I kept reading and reading, and all of a sudden I realized it was 1 am, and I put the book down and went to bed.

I didn't carry any water with me this morning, because the temperature is cooler and I'm doing less sweating. I took a big drink of water at home before I left and another big drink at the East Pavilion before I started my run. I took a small drink at the playground in Draper (small stream coming out of the faucet), and I took another big drink when I finished my run.

There was a 10K this morning, and my run overlapped with the race runners for about half a mile. As they passed me, I told all of the runners, "You're looking good!" The race didn't start or end in the East Pavilion in South Jordan (where I parked), so I don't know what group sponsored the race.

The path under the bridge for 10600 South is still flooded (In the past, I've referred to the path under a bridge as a tunnel, because the one for 10000 South is an actual tunnel. The the other ones, though, are paths under the bridge at such and such a street.

This was another good week for running. I'm considering running a 5K next Saturday. The race is sponsored by my grandson's swimming team. If I do run the race, I'll take it easy during the week. I ran the race a year ago and completed in in 48 minutes. I'll be happy with anything faster than that.

I had a great medium run (100 minutes) today

My wakeup heart rate was 54, and I felt great. I've been getting more sleep the past few days, and that has helped lower my wakeup heart rate and raise my energy level. I was late getting out this morning (about noon), but the air was still cool when I started. But, by the time I was in the last mile, the air was hot, the direct sun was hot, and I started to feel the effects of the heat. I felt weak like I wanted to pass out, and I started to wobble as I moved. I found a bench in the shade, and I took a 5-minute rest. I drank extra water as I rested. When I started running, I felt great, like I had at the beginning of the run, and I felt that way for the rest of the run. The shade temperature was in the mid 80s (F), not as hot as it was in July but hot enough.... I wear a wide brimmed hat when I run to shade my head and neck and hopefully reduce the number of skin cancers that I get.

I've noticed that the city of South Jordan is using a big shovel to did big holes not far from the parking lot at 100th South. After I finished my run, I walked to a group of workmen and asked what was going on. One of them said the city was preparing a wetlands that will have a walking path around it. South Jordan is doing a lot to beautify the Parkway. When the walking path is finished, I'll be able to run the path and get a different view of things.

On Monday of this week I changed the ratio of my running and walking. I'm now running for 1 minute 10 seconds and walking for 50 seconds. So far, my body is handling the extra running and reduced walking. I'm keeping the sum of the two times to be 2 minutes. However, when the walking gets down to 30 seconds, I'll freeze it at that point for a while as I continue to increase my running. Each change is only a few seconds, small changes so my body can more easily adjust to the changes.

For the past couple of weeks, the tunnel under 106th South has been dry, but the path through the tunnel was covered with water today when I reached it. I had planned to go south for 50 minutes and then return to my car, and I had to change my plans and just run north of 106th. Younger runners get around the water by walking or running on a concrete wall that borders the river. I don't do that, because I don't have good balance and would probably fall off the wall and break my bones on the rocks between the wall and the river.

I was tired but made it through my 60 minute rest run

I was tired when I got up and later during my run. I haven't been getting enough sleep during the past week (5 hours last night), and it finally caught up with me. The shade temperature was in the low 80s (F), beautiful clouds in the sky, and a nice head wind when going south of about 7-10 mph. I should have enjoyed the beautiful day, but I didn't -- too tired.

There is an old apple tree on the north-bound section of the Parkway path (north of 100th South). The tree has a lot of small apples on it. They aren't quite ripe, but they are OK for eating. I ate four of them during my run this morning. Two years ago, the tree had a lot of apples, and I enjoyed them for two or three weeks. Last year, there wern't any apples. This year, there are a lot. The tree is on the Parkway side of the fence, and technically speaking the apples belong to the city of South Jordan. However, the city doesn't prune the tree or harvest the apples, and I do the harvesting by eating the apples. I'll wait a week and then eat a few more to see if they are ripe.

The Jordan River is continuing to go down. I noticed during my Saturday run that the water is almost down enough that the supports to the new bridge at 114th South are not in the water. After two more weeks, the supports will probably be completely out of the water. The path under the tunnel at 123rd South is still under water, but the rocks going from the path up hill to the edge of the tunnel is free of water but is too rocky for enjoyable walking or running. In two or three weeks, the path should be free of water, and I'll be able to go south of the tunnel.

Ended the week with a medium run

I ran and walked for 100 minutes. I was out early (8 am) and enjoyed the cooler air and shade. It was a great day with shade temperature in the mid 80s (F). I forgot my GPS, so I just ran for a short time and then walked for an even shorter time. Because I run for time, I wasn't concerned about the distance. I was going faster today, because I reached the 5-mile mark and still had 10 minutes left to run. I forgot to mention that a couple of weeks ago, I changed my ratio of running and walking to be 1 minute 6 seconds running and 54 seconds walking.

There were two races in progress on the Parkway this morning. One race was a marathon relay, and the other was a 5K. It was fun to see all of the runners with their numbers. I commented to the runners, as they passed, that they were looking good. The runners were all shapes and sizes, and some were running and some were walking. Some looked like they were ready to throw in the towel, and others looked peppy and full of energy.

On the Draper City side of the river, south of 10600 South, there is a field that has a border of new trees. I was running past the field this morning when a man and a woman came out of the field. I asked them if they owned the field. They said "yes". I commented that the new trees looked nice and that new trees have been planted north of 10600 South, but those trees aren't doing very well. They commented that they've had problems with young buck deer rubbing their antlers on the new trees and damaging the trees.

Not much running but 5 miles of walking

I didn't run much yesterday, because my wife and I (and her sister and brother-in-law) went to Wyoming to visit Martin's Cove (we drove to Wyoming on Wednesday and came back last night). My great grandfather, Francis Webster, immigrated to Utah from England as a member of the Martin Handcart Company. The pioneers left Iowa City late in the summer, pulling handcarts, and were caught in an early blizzard. They were out of food, cold, sick, and they went into a cove to get some protection from the blizzard. Relief wagons sent by Brigham Young were on the way, and they hoped the cove would provide provide protection from the storm until the wagons arrived with blankets and food.

Our first stop on Wednesday afternoon was the Sun Ranch, the central point for visitors to Martin's Cove. We rode in a small Kawasaki truck to Martin's Cove (about 2 1/2 miles) and saw the actual place where my great grandfather, his wife, and my grandmother (a newborn baby) spent several days waiting out the blizzard. The cove is a small valley surrounded by hills. I've read a lot about the journey of the handcart pioneers and Martin's Cove, and it was nice to actually be there and to see it myself. After we returned to the Ranch, we were invited by the missionaries at the Ranch to a potluck dinner and an evening of entertainment. We had a great time and laughed and laughed at the jokes and skits given by the missionaries.

On Thursday morning I got a mile of jogging in the morning while waiting for the rest of our group to get ready for the day. We drove from our Motel at Muddy Gap back to the Sun Ranch. We walked to Devils' Gate (a narrow canyon that was caused by ancient volcanic action and cuts through a big granite hill) and back, about a mile of walking, and then we walked around the Ranch looking at the museum and other things of interest.

After leaving Martin's Cove, we drove about 30 miles to Willie's Landing and learned about the Willie Handcart Company that also suffered in the blizzard. That Company was about three weeks ahead of the Martin Company. After our visit at Willie's Landing, we drove back to Utah.

An uneventful but nice rest run

I ran for distance instead of time because I needed to get home asap. I ran the 3 miles in 55 minutes. I was out just before noon, but there was still some morning shade. The shade temperature during my run was in the low 80s (F). I felt fine during the run, which isn't bad since my last meal was last night. Just before I ran, I ate a few handfuls of dry Cheerios.

RA, Barefoot Running, and Running in Korea Podcast Interview

By Wendy Nail



Sorry that I haven't blogged over here in ages! I have been busy with marathon training for 2 marathons in October and trying to keep up with my family. Oct. 9th I will be running the Hi-Seoul Marathon as a training run following the Jeff Galloway method. Jeff says your wall is where your longest run was 2 weeks prior to your marathon so he takes people to 26.2 with a run walk, and only uses a 2 week taper. I plan to run this first marathon at a full minute per mile slower than my long run training pace, (so 11 minutes per mile) with walking breaks to keep me to that pace. My main marathon will then be on Oct. 23rd in Chuncheon, South Korea. It is a hilly race and my goal is to not hit The Wall and not hurt for days after so although I'm training for a 9 mpm pace, I will run to be comfortable, and not worry about my pace.

In the mean time, I was interviewed by Caity from Run Barefoot Girl. We had a great time talking and she did an even better editing job on our chat. We talked about running with rheumatoid arthritis and running in Korea in addition to barefoot running. I hope you will enjoy it!

Today was a great day -- completed my long run & got a nap, too

I completed my long run (140 minutes) and felt pretty good. The shade temperature was in the high 80s (F), and there was a slight breeze that helped keep me cool. I felt stronger during this run than I have for the past several weeks, and that is a good sign. Last night, the temperature was in the high 50s, and it took the morning to get the temperature back into the 80s. It was 1 pm when I started my run, and I missed the morning shade. However, the temperature was down from the hot days we had in August, and running in the sun wasn't too bad.

I saw a few walkers, quite a few cyclists, a couple of skaters, a few runners, and a cub scout group on bicycles. It was really a pleasant day to be outside.

I passed a big field with a herd of cows and a pond of water in the field (the water is rain water that has drained to a low area of the field). I saw a flock of black water birds in the water. They are smaller than a Mallard duck, and they are black everywhere. They don't have webbed feet. They look like miniature herons. I've seen them in the water in the past.