Running doesn't need me, but I Need running
The last couple of days have been insane. My wife found out that her grandmother had been rushed to a hospital 3 hours away from where we live with acute renal failure, kidney failure, and congestive heart failure (and from kidney, potassium levels through the roof causing severe hallucinations). We drove to the hospital, stayed until the middle of the night, then drove an hour to another town where my sister lived to spend the night. She lived in an apartment, and had to leave for work the next morning by 6:30am, so with no way to lock the door (apartment) without her, we took off and drove the hour back to the hospital, stayed there a few hours, then drove the 3 hours home in time to go straight to a meeting where we stayed from 3:00-8:00pm.
After all that was over, at about 8:30, my wife and I walked over the track across the street from where we were (had to be in a confined space - had our 3 year old with us) and went running.
"You are Crazy!" "go home and sleep" "aren't you exhausted!?" I know. Would like to. and YES.
However, we didn't go run because we felt obligated. We didn't not go home and go to sleep because my little Excel spreadsheet said this was a run day, and it wasn't because we ate too much junk and 'needed' the exercise.
We ran because we desperately needed what running Is. Peace, calm, detox, de-stress, freedom. 30 minutes of time where we could leave everything else behind us, forget what the day had brought, and what tomorrow might bring, and just....run. Breathe in, breathe out, left foot, right foot - it's meditation in motion, and I thank God for it.
Second Wind
"Run With Purpose!"
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Trick yourself!
If you've read the book then you know that I'm not a huge fan of running with iPods (etc) as it tends to drown out your brain and distract you from the joy of what you are doing (seeing the scenery, hearing your own steps, feeling your breathing, sensing the ground underneath you). However, today's tip: try a run with your iPod blaring!
See, sometimes people (especially when first starting out or coming back from an injury that is requiring them to re-learn their steps, so-to-speak) get so overly focused on their breathing (etc) that they get lost in the 'work' of it all. If this is you, try running with the iPod - get off that track or circle or normal route, and hit a new run (with great scenery and an open place for the wind to rush over you) while hitting play on your favorite tunes - you will do what we don't always want... distract yourself! You will get caught up in your favorite songs, lifted by the fast beats, and lost in the cool new run and you will forget to focus on that breath count so intently. And.... what you will find is that your body (now that you've already been training it) will automatically fall into the near optimum breath cadence for you, without you! You wont be focused on it, you wont be counting (hard to count steps/breaths against the ever changing beat of a play list!) you'll just be running! and enjoying it - and your body will take over and do what it is supposed to do!
See, sometimes people (especially when first starting out or coming back from an injury that is requiring them to re-learn their steps, so-to-speak) get so overly focused on their breathing (etc) that they get lost in the 'work' of it all. If this is you, try running with the iPod - get off that track or circle or normal route, and hit a new run (with great scenery and an open place for the wind to rush over you) while hitting play on your favorite tunes - you will do what we don't always want... distract yourself! You will get caught up in your favorite songs, lifted by the fast beats, and lost in the cool new run and you will forget to focus on that breath count so intently. And.... what you will find is that your body (now that you've already been training it) will automatically fall into the near optimum breath cadence for you, without you! You wont be focused on it, you wont be counting (hard to count steps/breaths against the ever changing beat of a play list!) you'll just be running! and enjoying it - and your body will take over and do what it is supposed to do!
Friday, March 18, 2011
Bikilas
This morning I took off on a run with cool air, clear skies, never met another soul, and ran underneath the sunrise, with Jay Clark on my iPod (which I rarely ever use while running but happened to grab this morning on my way out). It was heaven.
Also on this run, I was wearing my Vibram Bikilas that my wife bought me for my birthday back in January. I hadn't tried them yet, admittedly I was skeptical.
I have a pair of original KSOs that I mostly run in and love, and I have a pair of KSO Treks that I wear a lot (run in only occasionally as they are a bit to large and my feet slide in them if I'm not wearing socks... and I hate wearing socks in FiveFingers). But the Bikilas were different. From what I had seen, I liked some, and was quite skeptical about other points. The pods on the bottom I was mostly indifferent to. I could see the grip could be nice (having slid while running down hill in the rain in my KSOs a few times) but also was concerned about the feel. The fact that they advertised "more padding in the forefoot" bothered me, and the arch construction freaked me out. It LOOKED like a stability web in the pictures.
So this morning I took them for their first run, and here's what I found:
The "extra padding" was not noticeable (not in a negative way) at all. I still maintained great feel.
The arch I was completely wrong about - it's not a stiff material at all, it still bends and flexes, and it does not provide any support (like I was afraid it would), it merely serves to "hug" your arch and make the shoe fit more glove like.
On that note, the glove like fit is what I loved about the Bikilas. Unlike any other VFF, the glove like fit is superb, it's like the shoes are painted on.
The material is soft and form fitting.
The pods on the bottom (though not an issue today on flat and dry conditions) I'm sure would provide greater grip, however I can "feel" them ever so slightly on the inside forefoot.
By far the best part of this shoe is the fact that, so much better than any other VFF, the inside is completely seamless! There are no hot-spots, no rubbing, no sliding, no seams, no blistering - perfectly smooth. For that reason right there, I feel (after first run) that they will probably take over as my favorite running specific VFFs. I say running specific because the fit is phenomenal for running, but doesn't lend themselves to casual wear like my KSO treks.
Conclusion: Though the pods are slightly noticeable under the forefoot, that is not enough to sway me away from these as my new favorite, running specific, Fivefingers.
Also on this run, I was wearing my Vibram Bikilas that my wife bought me for my birthday back in January. I hadn't tried them yet, admittedly I was skeptical.
I have a pair of original KSOs that I mostly run in and love, and I have a pair of KSO Treks that I wear a lot (run in only occasionally as they are a bit to large and my feet slide in them if I'm not wearing socks... and I hate wearing socks in FiveFingers). But the Bikilas were different. From what I had seen, I liked some, and was quite skeptical about other points. The pods on the bottom I was mostly indifferent to. I could see the grip could be nice (having slid while running down hill in the rain in my KSOs a few times) but also was concerned about the feel. The fact that they advertised "more padding in the forefoot" bothered me, and the arch construction freaked me out. It LOOKED like a stability web in the pictures.
So this morning I took them for their first run, and here's what I found:
The "extra padding" was not noticeable (not in a negative way) at all. I still maintained great feel.
The arch I was completely wrong about - it's not a stiff material at all, it still bends and flexes, and it does not provide any support (like I was afraid it would), it merely serves to "hug" your arch and make the shoe fit more glove like.
On that note, the glove like fit is what I loved about the Bikilas. Unlike any other VFF, the glove like fit is superb, it's like the shoes are painted on.
The material is soft and form fitting.
The pods on the bottom (though not an issue today on flat and dry conditions) I'm sure would provide greater grip, however I can "feel" them ever so slightly on the inside forefoot.
By far the best part of this shoe is the fact that, so much better than any other VFF, the inside is completely seamless! There are no hot-spots, no rubbing, no sliding, no seams, no blistering - perfectly smooth. For that reason right there, I feel (after first run) that they will probably take over as my favorite running specific VFFs. I say running specific because the fit is phenomenal for running, but doesn't lend themselves to casual wear like my KSO treks.
Conclusion: Though the pods are slightly noticeable under the forefoot, that is not enough to sway me away from these as my new favorite, running specific, Fivefingers.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Live at 5 at 4:00
Hey guys, today I'll be on NBC's WBIR (Knoxville, TN) show Live at 5 at 4:00 for an interview on Second Wind - tune in!
Spring running:
My favorite times to run (to live!) are early spring and early fall. The changing weather, the crisp mornings, that breeze you only get those times of year... I love it!
As I broke out on my run this morning I had run about a mile when I realized that I had missed it. See, I was coming off of a series of breathing issues over the past couple months (asthma and bronchitis) and I was determined to get out and run and get to it! But after running about a mile it hit me that I was running on damp ground from the rain last night, the ground was old busted and broken asphalt sidewalk covered in a million textures, there was a cool breeze blowing, the sky was blue, the morning was quiet, and there were colors changing for the spring all around me, and I hadn't seen, heard, or felt any of it. All I had in my head was noise. I was focused on body angles, breath cadences, pressure points on my feet, and....work.
Form is so important, but once you know it, forget it! Once you know what you're supposed to do, and you've trained yourself to carry it out, just trust your body - it will do what it was designed to do - and enjoy the run! I had momentarily forgotten my rule of run for the love. If we run as work, then that's all it will ever be.
As I broke out on my run this morning I had run about a mile when I realized that I had missed it. See, I was coming off of a series of breathing issues over the past couple months (asthma and bronchitis) and I was determined to get out and run and get to it! But after running about a mile it hit me that I was running on damp ground from the rain last night, the ground was old busted and broken asphalt sidewalk covered in a million textures, there was a cool breeze blowing, the sky was blue, the morning was quiet, and there were colors changing for the spring all around me, and I hadn't seen, heard, or felt any of it. All I had in my head was noise. I was focused on body angles, breath cadences, pressure points on my feet, and....work.
Form is so important, but once you know it, forget it! Once you know what you're supposed to do, and you've trained yourself to carry it out, just trust your body - it will do what it was designed to do - and enjoy the run! I had momentarily forgotten my rule of run for the love. If we run as work, then that's all it will ever be.
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