I think I deserve a week off

I've only run once this week. I'm rationalizing it by saying that I did a race on Saturday, so I deserve to take a week off. The real reason is that I already know I'm not going to be doing a long run on Sunday, so I feel like the rest of the week is a waste. Of course, I know it's not. Even short runs move me closer to my goal.

I did do my interval workout for my Monday run, and I hauled ass. I actually increased the distance without sacrificing any speed. I feel sorry for anyone on the treadmills around me when I do that. I know how much I sweat when I throw in those intervals, and I would have to be supremely unobservant to miss the droplets flying. Anyone on the 'mills around me should understand that the forecast in the gym is cloudy with a 80% chance for salty rain. On the other hand, if they're generating so little sweat that they can notice mine, they're probably not working hard enough.

The company doing the photography for the Torchlight has pics available for purchase now. They're ridiculously over-priced. I can understand that they need to be able to make a profit, and they spend a lot of time taking photos and probably don't have all that many people that buy them, but really? $25 for one DIGITAL photograph downloaded to your computer? That's a cool bit of robbery even considering that the photos are HD. Of course, I could download all of my photos - 3 of them all taken at the finish line - plus the 4 stock photos of the starting line (I'm not pictured), the pace car (again, not pictured), stretching (wait... no, still not pictured), and a picture of the Alaskan Way Viaduct complete with non-race traffic. That little package will only cost me $52, but they'll gladly give me free shipping. On a digital download. I'd gladly pay $5 per digital photo, and I'd grudgingly pay $10. There's no freaking way in hell that I'm forking over $25 for three photos, and one of them is really of someone else and I just happen to be visible.

That being said, my pics are beautiful. They're the best pics ever taken of me during any physical activity. Since I was no longer a Torchlight virgin, the presence of cameras on the course did not come as a surprise to me, and I took that into some consideration and kept my eyes open for them. Every time I saw a camera anywhere I put on the biggest grin I could pull out of my pocket and often gave a wave or mock salute. I'm sure someone at home is flipping through their parade photos wondering why there's a sweaty runner with a grin waving at her in the photo set. Please, ma'am, consider it a compliment. I cared enough to make your picture interesting. I'm way more exciting than Miss Seafair or the Pirates.

Somehow, in spite of having 5 miles worth of picture taking room, the only place my ugly mug shows up is at the finish line. There are three pics of me crossing the timing mats at the end of the race. I love these for a couple of reasons. First, either taken on their own or when compared to my finish line pics at last year's race, it is obvious I'm running. Not jogging, not trotting, and certainly not power walking. No, I am very obviously running. In last year's photos, my ambulatory status is inconclusive. Was I running? Had I given up and started walking right at the very end? Actually, I remember walking until I saw the finish line then running. I must have been in the process of stopping to divest myself of my timing chip as I crossed the finish line. Note to self: don't stop running until the time to stop running has come. The second thing I love about these photos is that it looks like I'm having fun. Yeah, by this time I'm really tired. After all, these pics did happen in the last steps of a five mile race, so of course I'm tired. But I look happy and energetic. Plus, I just generally look good.

I feel kind of bad about the other guy in the pictures with me. He just kind of got a little screwed in the picture department. I went and looked up his bib number on the photographer's website, and the only one's of him are mine. And they're very obviously MY pics. I hate to harp on this, but I am the main subject of the photos. Except for one, and in that one we're at worst (from my PoV) co-equal. Then there's the look on the poor guy's face. He looks completely gassed. Now, from a physical standpoint, I wish I looked more like him. He looks like he didn't leave anything out there. By time he got over the line, he was struggling just to come up with the energy to stand much less finish. I, on the other hand, look like I could run another five miles. That's not cool. At the Lake Union 10K I will leave it all out there. I looked his bib number up on the results page, and even though we're ending at the same time he beat me in the total time to race. Only by about a minute, which means he was probably running a 9:15 mile compared to my 9:24. I hope he had a friend on the route taking his picture.

No long run this weekend, like I said. I may do a short run or two over the weekend, but my next specifically scheduled run will be next Wednesday. I hope Seattle temperatures return to normal by then. We've broken all-time records the last couple of days with temps over 100 degrees. I feel no compulsion to run in temperatures like that, and even being in the air conditioned gym on the treadmill doesn't appeal to me when it's like that outside. It's amazing how much of a wimp I've turned into in just three years.

Torched Earth - Torchlight 8K - Race Report

Race: Torchlight 8K
Location: Downtown Seattle
Terrain: Asphalt, generic road, Alaskan Way Viaduct
Biggest Challenge: Too hot to run!
Time: 00:46:43
Pace: 9min 24sec mile
Ranking:
- Overall - 1325/2681
- Gender - 913/1489
- Male age 35-39 - 115/187
Date: 7/25/09

I started the day with a good night's sleep. Actually, I've started every day for the last two weeks like that for some reason. I'm not complaining, but it's damn odd for me to not wake up at least once in the middle of the night. I spent some time relaxing with a good book before getting motivated enough to shower and face the rest of the day. I had a couple of slices of pizza for lunch, and if you don't have a Pagliacci Pizza within delivering distance then you are missing out. At around 4:00 I had a peanut butter and jelly wrap on a whole grain tortilla with some Fritos. I only talk about this to show that I was adequately fueled, not that there's anything about my race for which I could blame or credit my food.

We left to head down to the starting line and packet pick-up area at 5:00. Last year getting my packet and my t-shirt was a fiasco, and I didn't want to have the same experience this time. However, packet and t-shirt pick-up was a breeze, so we had plenty of time to just hang out. We checked a bag into the bag drop and went roaming around the booths checking out the free samples. After the race on Facebook there were some people complaining about both. I can understand their frustrations with the bag check, but we got in line immediately after the race and got our stuff back, so I didn't have the same experience.

The thing about the Torchlight is that it's a very popular race. There were almost 2700 racers for the 8K alone. There were 1600, roughly, for the 5K. That gets the total number of runners up to around 4300 crammed into a two block space for packet pick-up and exhibitor booths. Then you can go ahead and tack on the various non-running supporters, baby strollers, and random people that just wandered into the exhibition area. I loathe crowds, so we ended up finding a nice bit of curb near the starting line to sit on until it was time to line up.

At 6:15ish they started the organized pre-race warm-up and stretching. I didn't participate; I never do. Then it was time to head for the starting line. I'll admit, I had a few pre-race jitters. I don't know why; it's not as if I haven't done a 6 mile run (which is longer than the 8-K) just about every Sunday for the last two months. I think it's just knowing that it's an organized, officially timed race. Even if I'm consciously convinced that I'm not running against anyone, subconsciously I have to be just a little competitive. At my speed though, I know I'm in no danger of winning any possible division of racers. The starting line was a real throng. Next time, I'll put myself farther back in line. I have no illusions that I need to be right up there at the front of the line.

According to weather.com, the temperature in the 98101 at 6:00pm and at 7:00pm was 85 degrees. Given that the Torchlight started at 6:30, I think we can safely assume that it hadn't miraculously dipped when the race started and that it wasn't significantly cooler for the duration of the race. So "hot" is a very good descriptive word for racetime, and hot equals slow.

This race was also my first chance to try out my new toy: the Garmin Forerunner 305. I left off the heart rate monitor that came with it. I'm not sold yet on strapping something around my chest, but I'll have to try it out sometime soon. I took the Garmin out for a test walk earlier in the day when I went to snag some coffee, so I knew what I was supposed to do and how I was supposed to do it. Now that the first time is done I'll have to explore it a little more to make sure I get the full use out of it.

As I stepped on the timing mat I hit the start button on the Garmin and was off. The first mile of any run is, for me, a warm-up. I had a friend once tell me that it's normal for a person to take about 10 minutes of activity to warm up, and it's usually after my first mile that I really start to get into my groove. The first mile of the Torchlight's route includes a half mile on-ramp onto the Alaskan Way Viaduct. It's not the steepest hill I've run up, but last year it killed me so I was understandably wary about it this year. It looks like the practice I've gotten on hills has worked out for me because I had no problems getting up it. I slowed down a little, but not much. Then I had that unreal feeling of running on the highway for a little while. I got passed by so many people. I passed a few of my own too, but there were way more people ahead of me at the end of the first mile than there had been at the starting line. I completed my first mile in 8mins 53secs. That's really fast for me and nothing to complain about.

At about 1.5 miles, right where the turnaround for the 5K'ers would be just half an hour later, was the first water break. These are my built in rest stops. I'm still not sure if I appreciated the rest break coming so soon or if I would have preferred it to be a little further down the road. I can't really fault them for putting it there; it's not like I think that they should have to set up separate water stations for the 8K racers and the 5K racers in a sort of separate but equal discriminatory water policy. Either way, I appreciated the brief rest, even if it did cut down my speed a bit. The route continued and I spent a few moments looking out across the bay and taking in the sights. Even along the highway there were people out on their rooftops that overlook the Viaduct watching us. I keep wanting to tell people watching the runners that they should get out there and join us, but although anyone can do it, it's just not for everyone. The end of the second mile came either just before or just after we entered the tunnel, and I ran it in 9mins 30secs. Not as good as the first mile, but I had a water break in there to account for. Still, a pretty respectable time for me.

Mile three had its beginnings in the tunnel on the Viaduct. Running through that tunnel was the only time that I thought about the collapse potential of the viaduct. It didn't worry me enough to speed up though. The Garmin lost its satellite connection, so the data I got from it after the second mile may not be 100% reliable. I have nothing else to compare it to, so I'm going to have to take it at face value. The air in there wasn't entirely still thanks to the fans built in, but it was a little stuffier being in a tunnel than it was under the sky. Eventually I saw the light at the end of the tunnel (and it thankfully was not an oncoming train or a confused motorist) and we left the viaduct and came out on Aurora. It might have been fun to run over the Aurora bridge, but instead we turned again on Dexter and headed towards Denny. They put the second water stand along this part of the route, which was a little soon considering we still had a long way to go, but we were about to get on the parade route, so it was probably the best placement they could get without having to give out loads of free water to thirsty parade watchers. My third mile time was very disappointing at 10min 27secs. I don't remember anything particularly slowing that happened in that mile to slow me down. There weren't any hills to climb; we actually went downhill for a little bit coming off the viaduct and into the tunnel. Maybe the close air in the tunnel slowed me down.

After the water break we continued down Dexter a bit to Denny and down Wall to 4th Ave. I was in familiar territory at this point, and this is where the fun really starts. Once we hit 4th Ave it was a straight shot down the road to the finish line, but at the point where we got on 4th that was still about 1.75 miles away. No, the real fun is that once we got on 4th we were also on the parade route for the Torchlight Parade that would start up just after the run. Actually, in order to keep things moving smoothly, there's a minimum pace that you have to maintain or the truck will pick you up and drive you to the finish line. I knew that I'd be able to stay ahead of that, but just thinking about the embarrassment of having to be carted in because I was slow was plenty of motivation to keep up the pace.

I equate the Torchlight parade to Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade in... New York? Chicago?... wherever. Some of the more parade loving people actually stake out their spots the night before. One year we saw some people unloading a couch on the sidewalk so they could take in the show in style. We've seen arguments that stopped just an instant short of physical violence. People line the streets solid from the Seattle Center all the way down to the International District.

The crowds were very supportive as we ran past. The children really got into it. They in lines out in the street with their arms spread and their hands ready to give high-fives. Really, even I, that guy that doesn't like kids, thought it was cute. I loved hearing the crowds cheer, and I loved high-fiving the kids. I had a mini-daydream as I passed my street of turning down it and just running home, but it was more of a mental diversion than a serious want. I still had things to see down the road, like my old apartment building. I picked the pace back up for this mile, moving back to a respectable 9min 31sec mile. Go me!

Last mile. Stick with me here; we're almost done. There's a grandstand at Pine and 4th where all the floats pass. That's about where the final mile(ish) began. It also happens to be the start of an incline that lasts for about 6 blocks. It's not a steep one, but it's noticeable. I ran right past my old apartment. I looked up, but apparently the new residents aren't into parades; they had the blinds anti-socially closed. That's too bad because they've got a great seat that they don't have to fight for. After cresting the hill, we headed gently back down and my strides got a little longer. I knew I was coming toward the end of the fun. I should have sped up like I did the last mile of Beat The Bridge, but I didn't. My time would have been better if I had. I hate it when I get to the end and still have something left in the tank. The route turned a few corners once we got to the International District, and I hit the jets when I saw the finish line right up ahead. I passed a few people in that last 100 meters or so. The last mile was slower, only 10min 22sec mile. I blame the hill.

I stepped over the mat, got my chip removed, and grabbed half an orange, a hunk of banana, half a cinnamon raisin bagel, a cup of yogurt covered pretzels and some water. I think the free food is half of why I like running organized races. I can't wait to see what's waiting at the end of the marathon.

A few observations...

If there's any organized, either formally or informally, event in Seattle, you can count on there being either naked people or costumed people involved. Sometimes you get both, like at the Pride parade. I didn't see any naked people, but there were a few costumes. The pirate motif was a big player, as it is every year. The most practical costume for running was the woman in the Supergirl costume. I also think she was the best, but that's probably because it stood out so much to me. And then there was the Peter Pan family. Dad was Capt Hook, Mom was Wendy, Son was Peter Pan, Daughter was Tinkerbell, and they had a stroller (presumably with another kid inside) decorated as a boat. As a group they were probably the best. I also have to give props to the guy who decorated his kid's stroller as the Batmobile (Tim Burton Batman rather than the Batman Begins version).

There were a couple of heart-warming things after I finished too. As Lisa and I were walking back to our condo, we went along the parade/race route in reverse. There was an older gent that was struggling to get to the end. The crowd cheered him on, and in a rare bit of expressiveness I yelled out "You're almost done! Keep going!" That got me a bit of a smile, and I don't think it was a sarcastic one. The single most adorable thing I saw all day was the kid, who couldn't be any more than 5 years old, running with his dad. And I swear the kid had a bib number, so he was an official participant. It was so cute I wanted to claw my own eyes out.

I can't wait to see pics from this thing. I'd love to do a side-by-side comparison between last year and this year.

This was by far the most economical race I've done. My 8K cost me all of $6, and I chipped in another $6 for charity. You had to sign up on a specific day to get that deal, but I'm pretty sure that it got a big response. I'm almost certain they lost money on that deal. Hopefully they'll do it again next year :)

Next up, on the official race front, is the inaugural Lake Union 10k at the end of August. Of more immediate interest, to me at least, is the beginning of my real training program for the Seattle Marathon. I'm going to take this week a bit easier, and I most likely won't be doing a long run next weekend, but week after next the real training starts.

**UPDATE**
Either I got the total time wrong or they updated the timers. I've adjusted my final time in the race summary at the top. Good news though, I set myself a goal of finishing in 48 minutes and my actual time was 46mins 43secs.

That snuck up on me

I got a surprise on Monday or Tuesday. One of my coworkers asked about my weekend plans - Side Note: Who asks about the next weekend's plans on Monday or Tuesday? That's just rubbing it in that it's so far away. - and I started to give my standard "eh, nothing much" answer. Then I thought about it and checked my calendar and discovered that this weekend is the Seafair Torchlight run. This is going to be a special run for me. Last year I ran the Torchlight 5-k and it was like a rebirth of running for me. I'd done some in the past, but never very seriously and I've never kept it up as long as I have this time. I can't wait. I'll have a race report for that one up soon after, probably Sunday, but I reserve the right to be lazy and take my time writing it.

So my plan this week was to take it somewhat easy so that I'm not totally gassed by time the torch is lit. I have a time to beat (00:52:59), since I've run an 8-k within recent memory. I think my previous 8-k time is misleading since I actually had to wait at least three minutes for the freaking bridge to go back down. If you want to read about that one, go here.

Monday was a rest day, of course. On Tuesday I went to the gym and ran on a 'mill. I didn't do my planned interval run because of the aforementioned "take it easy" attitude. What I probably should have done was slowed my pace and made my short run take a bit longer than usual. Instead, I sped up and did the whole thing about a half mile per hour faster pace. I'd say that's going to burn me on Saturday night, but honestly there were other things that are far far FAR more likely to be a drain on my speed come race-day. More on that in a few minutes.

I got a new toy on Wednesday, but not until after I'd already gone to the gym and ran on the treadmill. I ordered a Garmin Forerunner 305 GPS receiver so that I can get a little more accuracy out of my training. If I'd just been able to come home half an hour later for lunch I probably would have been able to get it from the concierge and charge it up in time for an outside run to test it out, but I didn't so I went to the gym instead. As a result, the first time I use it might be at the Torchlight. I'm at least going to take it and see if I can figure it out in time to start the race.

My four-miler that evening sucked ass. I just can't think of a single good thing about it, other than that it eventually ended. As soon as I hopped on the mill I felt the urge to pee, but I toughed it out until the two-mile point. I could have gone the whole way without stopping, but it was a really hard run for not being any faster or longer than usual. So I took a 3 minute break to make a pit stop and then I came back with a little bit of rest to do the second half. I don't know what it was about Wednesday, but another running friend, who runs at the same gym and on the same treadmills, also had a tough running day. It must have been something in the air.

If there's anything about this week that is going to cause problems at the race, it's going to be my Thursday night activity. I've talked about working in a yoga class at the gym to act as my cross training and stretch me out a bit, but there's a place over on 4th and Olive, Urban Yoga Spa, that offers a Hot Hatha class on Thursdays at 6:30. It's a 90-minute class, and I should have known I was in for some trouble as soon as I walked in the classroom door. There was a time when a 100 degrees was hot, but I could function and be active in it. However, it's been three summers since I have experienced the heat of a Texas summer, and I've acclimated to the cooler weather of Seattle - Side Note: that should be read as "I've wussified." I'm not as heat resistant as I used to be.

We walked in the room and passed the conveniently placed thermostat which screamed 101 degrees at us. It was like willingly walking into an oven. I'm glad we had a few minutes to get used to it before the class started. I wanted to do a Hatha class because that's the type (I think) that focuses on balance and flexibility, two things that I desperately need work on. Not that I don't equally desperately need work on strength, but that takes more work. The poses weren't particularly challenging in and of themselves, but when you do those moves in temps ranging from 101 to 107 just standing up becomes a challenge all its own. In all the things I've ever done, including refereeing flag football in a Texas summer, I've never sweat so much. It was rolling off of me so fast it was almost a single, steady stream. Really, it's disgusting when you think about it.

After 45 minutes of standing poses, we finally got to get on the floor. I thought that the class was almost done, because as good as it was it still felt like hours in the standing part of the class. I was so hot that even laying still wasn't much of a relief. Here's something I never had a reason to consider about poses closer to the ground: the sweat has a better chance of pooling before it gets soaked up by the mat. At one point I looked down and I could SEE MY FREAKING REFLECTION IN A POOL OF SWEAT!!!! Without involving other bodily fluids, is it possible to get more disgusting than that? By the time the class was done, Lisa and I both looked like we had jumped into a swimming pool fully clothed and started home without trying to dry off. I hate the feel of a wet shirt that's had a chance to get cold touching my skin.

Now, you may have inferred that I didn't like the class from my description of it, but in retrospect I liked it a lot and I will probably do it again although it's not likely to be an every week thing. I'm still trying to recover a little bit, and there are a few things I will differently next time. Next time I'll bring a fresh pair of underwear so that I can shower at the studio. Next time I'll wear one of my sleeveless wicking shirts instead of your standard short-sleeve cotton t-shirt. The sleeves restrict my movement just a little bit and the cotton gets ridiculously heavy when it gets wet. And I'll stock up on some Gatorade or Powerade before I go next time. I didn't think about it until someone said something about it, but I probably needed to replenish a lot of electrolytes, not that I know what those are for, after all the sweating I did.

I'm looking forward to this run tomorrow night. We'll go up onto the Alaskan Way Viaduct almost immediately after the start, and there's something surreal about running down a place that you instinctively know you shouldn't be, like the middle of a highway. Plus, prophets, doomsayers and the occasional structural engineer all say that it's going to come crashing down at our next good earthquake, so I've got a lot of incentive to get on and get off as fast as possible. I'll get that race report done as soon as I can.

and on the 7th day...

...he ran six miles.

I've done plenty of running this week, but not quite as much talking about it. Allow me to rectify that.

Monday
Rest day. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. I love me my rest day. I do nothing, other than the day job, but that's almost nothing, physically at least. At the very least I start the day off on my ass and I stay planted there the whole day until it's time to go home. Once home, I replant myself on the couch and begin growing roots. I love rest day. Sadly, I'm contemplating a plan starting soon after my birthday to deprive myself of regular rest days. I'm trying to work up a list of 36 goals for my 36th year - Side Note: coming up with 36 goals is really, really hard. I guess there's just not that much that I want to do. Sad. - and one of those goals is going to be to work in two days of resistance training. I don't want to call it weight training, because I don't want to get myself into the mindset of gaining weight. I just want to do some toning, and I figure that strengthening the right muscles will help me run better. So, bye-bye rest day.

Tuesday
Tuesday was supposed to be a three mile run, but some peer pressure ended up making it closer to four miles. I think the final number was 3.8 miles, which I think is close enough to just round up. I did follow through on my plan from last week to do intervals, and it was just as good this time as it was the last. Tenth-mile intervals will now be my standard on short runs. From everything I've read it should do quite a bit to improve my speed. Even in an air conditioned gym with a fan blowing right on me the sweat was flying everywhere. When I finished I looked like I'd taken a shower in my running clothes. It was lots of fun. I enjoy cutting loose like that and I wish I could convince myself to do it on my outdoor runs.

Wednesday
I don't remember anything special about my Wednesday run. There had to be something special about it even if it was just what was on television, but I just can't remember anything about it. Speaking of television, I saw an article online this weekend that was talking about how television can be good for runners. Sadly, it didn't say that settling in to drive the couch for the evening (every evening) would help, but it did say that watching television while running on the treadmill can make the time pass quickly. From experience I know how true that is, but you have to get the right show. Not all shows on the Food Network are created equal. For instance, "My Life in Food" is a usually a completely suck-ass show to run to (this weekend's episode was an exception, but more on that later). It's worse than anything else I've seen. Sports, particularly football, are great to run to. I'll watch reruns of old games, even ones that I've seen before or that I know the outcome too, and get totally sucked in to it. Before I know it, my run is over and I've burned three or four hundred calories. Once Monday Night Football starts up, I might switch to a Monday run. I think by that time my first run of the week will be up to between 6 and 8 miles, so it will be perfect for watching football. I haven't seen the schedule yet, but it would be nice if the Cowboys had a few MNF games.

Thursday
No run Thursday. I put off my regular four-miler in order to attend the HOA meeting at our condo. Very interesting things happened at it. I'm thinking of volunteering for a committee, and I might go to these HOA things more often. If nothing else, it was a great way to hear some building gossip. My plan was to put off my run and do it on Friday, which leads me to...

Friday
Like I said, my plan was to do my four-miler on Friday, but that didn't happen. I worked the first day of of my employer's (Nordstrom) Anniversary Sale as a cashier. Department policy is that we all work a full day as corporate help at the Anniversary Sale to help support the two most important groups in our business: 1. the customer, and 2. the salespeople. My experience has been that the first day of Anniversary is the single hardest day of work I do all year long, and Friday was no exception. By the end of the day, my lower back hurt so much that I knew running was completely out of the picture. I think I can run through pain, but I'm not sure I can start off running in pain. Maybe I could have, but I wasn't willing at the time. Besides, I wanted to do some of my own shopping before collapsing into a pile on the couch. Hmm, I'm sensing a theme. Apparently, I like to be on the couch.

Saturday
By the time my Saturday run came around, I was just not into it. I didn't want to change into running clothes. I didn't want to walk over to the gym. I didn't want to start the treadmill. I really didn't want to go four miles. My normal Saturday run is only three miles, but since I missed a day earlier in the week (Thurs/Fri) and I had a running partner that was going four miles, I went four instead. My television viewing was the aforementioned "My Life in Food." This was one of the more interesting episodes about competitive eaters. Lisa pointed out how ironic it was that I was exercising to a show about people who gorge themselves on hot dogs, pizza, angel food cake, and all manner of other things. The really strange thing is just how skinny some of the competitive eaters are. Their "pre-game" preparations are hilarious. One of the female competitors had someone helping her stretch her legs like she was going to go run a 5-k, and she said it was to help keep her from pulling a muscle. Hilarious! Another one did jaw loosening exercises and did a motion like he was eating a slice of watermelon fast. It was surreal. I can see professional athletes doing that kind of motion, but seeing competitive eaters doing this sort of thing is just weird.

Sunday
That brings us to today. Six miles in an hour, so says the iPod, which I still suspect is a liar, but I'm willing to take its word for it until I get a better solution. Seattle was crowded this weekend. First, we have the Anniversary Sale going on, which probably didn't add all that many people to the city, but for continuing employment's sake I would like to think it did. Second, there was this thing going on called the Bite of Seattle at the Seattle Center. I assume that it's like any other city's food festival. They happen everywhere, so it can't be all that different. Third, and this is probably the item with the biggest impact on the city's population, our new light rail opened this weekend and they were giving free rides this weekend. So every annoying person that lives near the new light rail and wouldn't normally come into the city came this weekend. I think some of them made it a family day of sorts and stayed the whole day. We passed a group last night that had obviously had too much family.

It was a bit too hot for a good run, but it was nice and clear with good views down by the water. There was a group of three guys throwing a frisbee next to the path. As I was running by one of them over threw or the receiver under-caught, and I ended up veering just a step or two to catch the frisbee and toss it to its intended receiver. Then I just kept on going. It was an fun moment. Then, just a little further on I had to play a game of doggy-dodge. You know this game. It's when someone lets their dog step into your path and you're faced with the instant decision to dodge or trample the poor beast. If you choose poorly, you can be bitten and find yourself facing a really pissed off doggy daddy. I chose wisely.

I've been experiencing a certain sensation during my runs that I would prefer not to have ever happen again. It's a chafing issue, but it's probably not where you immediately think it is. I wear shorts that are tight on my thighs specifically to keep my legs from rubbing together. No, my issue is further up. On my chest. Specifically, my nipples. There are a few things about the human body that I'm annoyed/confused by. One of those is nipples on men. I have no use for the damn things, and I'd like to know why evolution hasn't recognized their lack of purpose and removed them. So, I suffer from nipple chafing, and while it's not debilitating it is extremely annoying and somewhat painful. So today when I was halfway through my run, I went shirtless. I feel very sad for all the poor people I blinded today with my ghostly pale skin.

Now, one minor complaint: other people. Other people, you need to be aware of your surroundings enough to make some room for me. I'll dodge you if I can, but if there's nowhere for me to dodge, it will be up to you to get the hell out of my way. If you choose not to, I have no problem rubbing my sweaty arms on you. It's no problem to me, I'm already wet and it's my sweat anyway. But my putting my biological excretions on you should be a big issue for you. You don't know where I've been or what I've been doing, and in any case, other people's sweat is pretty nasty. This goes for when we're outside and I'm running and you're strolling in a crowd, and it also goes for when I stop by the closest Emerald City Smoothie for my after run re-fueling. The most convenient one for me is in Westlake Center. I understand that is customary for people to be clean and reasonably groomed when going into a shopping center, but it's right at the end of my run and I'm not trying to hide the fact that I've been working out. First, I'm in a bright yellow running shirt that says "Training" on the front. Second, I'm sweating like a whore in church. Third, my face, after six miles of running, should be beet red. Unless you are blind and have lost your sense of smell, you can tell that I've been doing something active. So don't stop right in front of me, and don't get too close to me. You have been warned.

In just a couple of weeks I'm taking a short trip for a couple of days. Once I come back, we'll stop with the pre-training and start with the real training. That means that things should get a bit less repetitive. I don't know what's going to happen when the sun starts going down earlier. I should buy a reflective vest or something like that before that happens. Eh, I'll probably be doing a little athletic shopping soon anyway, so maybe I'll slip that in my cart too.

Incremental changes

If there's one thing I've learned in the last 6.5 months, it's that you can't just switch up your lifestyle wholesale and expect it to stick. After a certain number of years you've got too much inertia built up to push yourself immediately onto another path. You've got to make small changes and give them a little time to stick before you start making other changes. In time, all of your little changes will add up into major ones. It worked for me when I changed my eating habits and it has worked for me in running.

On Saturday, I hit the gym for what was supposed to be three miles. We went early, which turned out to be a good thing. I had a banana before going, but probably not long enough for it to actually give me any energy. On the way over I was thinking I was going to take it easy and run slower than normal, probably 30 seconds to a minute longer per mile. That lasted until I actually got on the 'mill and started moving. I was able to handle 5.5mph for all of about two minutes before I decided that it was going to get boring fast, so I changed the plan.

Changing the plan is a big thing for me. I don't like to change plans once I've started. If I have a plan, I expect the plan to be followed, and I'll usually put up a fight if someone tries to change it. However, if I decide to change the plan, then I guess I'm good with it. It's probably got something to do with being in control of my own destiny or some other BS like that.

Since I wasn't going to go slow, I went the opposite direction and decided to do some fast. New plan: quarter mile intervals. After a half mile warm-up at 6mph, I bumped the speed up to 7mph for a quarter mile. I made it, but I wasn't happy with it. So what did I do? I changed the plan again. Instead of quarter mile intervals, I went to tenth of a mile intervals. Much more pleasant. So from the end of my first mile to the 2.5 mile mark I ran a tenth of a mile at 6mph and a tenth at 7.5mph. Towards the end of my intervals I ended up going up to 8mph. Wow, running that fast was fun, and there were noticeable changes to my stride and what my arms were doing. When I was on the fast leg, sweat was flying everywhere. I'm going to be doing that again on Tuesday and if it goes well again it will become the pattern for my short runs. Yikes! I just looked at the training plan. It's going to get scary starting the middle to end of September.

Today I did my Tour of Seattle run, and it was such a fantastic day for an outdoor run. The sky was overcast and there were even a few drops of rain every once in a while. It was a cool enough day that most people stayed inside, although there were still plenty enough people to get in my way in every locale. Just before I got to the park some other guy joined me at the crosswalk. We didn't race, but I did pace him for a mile and a half or so. I'm not sure if he was going faster than my normal pace or the same. I suspect that it was pretty close to my normal 6mph, but either way I never let him get more than 10 feet from me. Sadly, all good things must come to an end. I reached my turnaround point in the park and he continued along the trail. So long unwitting running partner.

The way back was nothing special. At the turnaround I walked for maybe 30 seconds. It was my only bit of walking the entire run, although there were some periods of stopping thanks to lights and traffic. If a light is red but I can see that it's safe to cross, I'll use my best judgment to decide if I should go anyway. Sometimes I do, sometimes I don't.

Once I left the park and hit the waterfront, I started running into more people. Still, there were less there than the last time I did this route. Hey! That was two weeks ago. I skipped last week to recover from the 4th of July festivities.

At one point I saw a little girl doing the pee-pee dance up ahead. Her daddy grabbed her hand and they took off running to the spot most likely to have a public restroom. There used to be one right out on the sidewalk, but it became a haven for drug users and prostitutes, so the city closed it and sold it off last year. Side comment: Really? Prostitution in the public bathroom? That's just gross. Back to the narrative. Daddy and daughter took off running, so I picked up the pace and followed after. They didn't have to go far. The kid saw me running before they took off, and she kept looking back to see where I was. They made pretty good time. Daddy also noticed me keeping up with them, and when they stopped to go in I said "thanks for the motivation." Even over my music I heard him laugh.

I left my motivators behind and started up Madison. Ugh, those hills haven't gotten any better. Actually, I think they've gotten steeper and longer. How the hell does that happen? There is one good thing about doing these hills. I can use running them on this route as an excuse not to do real hill workouts. I don't know if it will totally prepare me for any hills on the marathon - I've seen the route on walkjogrun.net and there are some ridiculous elevation changes - but I think these hills will take care of hill workouts. Of course, my route will change as my runs get longer, but surely there will be some hills wherever I go. I don't live in a place that's exactly flat anymore. I'm absolutely positive there was something else good about these hills, but for the life of me I can't remember what it was right now. It will probably come to me later.

My run ends at the Westlake shopping center where I stop to grab myself a smoothie. Gotta get those carbs, yanno. So, on a whim I went into the candy store. This is where I got my reason for this post's title, indirectly. I was hot and sweaty and in running clothes. The cashier asked me if I'd just run a marathon, which is kind of funny. I said "No, I just finished a six mile run." I meant it like "I have recently completed a run of six miles." She took it as "I only ran six miles." At that point I realized it really was "only" six miles. I had another mile or two in me today. At this time last year, three miles seemed like forever.

I think the iPod has gone back to his lying ways. Whatever. He keeps me entertained and even if he's lying I can still see if I'm slowing down and roughly where. And he keeps track of how long in terms of time my runs go.

Manufactured Drama

It has become painfully obvious to me that I do not have enough drama in my life to keep my brain occupied while I run. I read on some of the running blogs I follow about how they use that special time to clear their heads and work through issues. When I was in my teens and even my twenties I could come up with plenty of drama, but now that I'm older... I got nothing. I don't have any big emotional issues. My job isn't so bad that I'm constantly thinking about it; in fact, once I leave the job I stop thinking about work altogether. Job issues mostly do not make it out of the front door of the office for me. I just don't have anything so overwhelming that it will consume my mind for around 40 minutes. I'm generally happy to be issue-free, but I could use a bit of drama to keep me entertained. So, since I am obviously such a simpleton that I have absolutely nothing to think about other than what is directly in front of me, I need a little manufactured drama. I'll take anything; the suggestion box is open.

Those who call global warming a lie have not been visiting Seattle this summer. Last week was a little slice of hell for outdoor running, and even indoor on the 'mill wasn't all that much better. I begged Mother Nature to return us to average temperatures, but she was on vacation getting a tan. This week she's trying to make up for her neglect. I think, although I'm not certain, that we may be experiencing lower than average temps, and that's a wonderful thing to run in. It's so much easier to keep my pace and my motivation when I don't feel like I'm melting into a pool of goo. I don't know how my running friend in Texas does it. She must do some ridiculous hydrating.

Yesterday, I got the good 'mill at the gym and I was able to do four miles fairly easily. In and of itself there's nothing special about this 'mill, but someone turned the fan on high and pointed it directly at this particular one. Oh, I love that. However, every silver lining has a cloud. I got to keep nice and cool, but my television viewing sucked, sucked, sucked. Someone was watching CNN, and unless you've been under a rock for the last two weeks you know that the only thing of interest on any newscast is Michael Jackson. So, I got stuck watching Larry King interview Dionne Warwick and her son about MJ. Great. Look, I was in as much shock as anyone else when MJ died so suddenly, but I'm terribly bored by the whole thing and the constant coverage of the funeral and all his fans is a bit much. Whoever had that TV set to CNN made me miss my foodie shows! You might say that I could get off the 'mill and change the channel, but once I start doing something (like... I don't know... running) I'm very reluctant to stop. I have a plan, and what's most important to me is completing the plan. Yes, it's very inflexible of me. I'm trying to get better, but I'll probably need medication to completely overcome it.

So today was my normal four mile outside run. I love the route because I now have specific landmarks that I can look out for. I know, even without Nancy (that's the voice in my iPod) telling me, when I've completed my first mile. I know my next landmark is the walkway over Westlake to Aurora, which is roughly a quarter mile further. Then there's the Chinese restaurant, the train track thingy, followed quickly by the scenic overlook spot which is about an inch away from the two-mile mark. Then I turn around and see the landmarks in reverse.

I look at the other people running or walking on my route. The people biking are moving too fast for me to really look at them, but if I run past you there's no reason for you to wonder if I just checked you out. I did. It doesn't matter if you're male or female, I look. There's nothing sexual about it; I'm comparing myself to you. Does your form look better than mine? What should my form look like anyway? If you've got some well defined muscles, I'm wondering how you did that and why I don't have those. Those of you that are tan I really hate because I don't tan. Ever. I once had a friend in high school joke that I tan by the ultra-violet light of the television. He wasn't far off. The point is that for this reason I am grateful for dark sunglasses. They allow me to look without being seen to look, unless of course I turn my head as I'm passing. Due to the slow plodding pace I maintain that doesn't happen very often.

Tomorrow, no running. It's "I can haz cheezburger" night at the Mariners. So I'll consume mass calories in baseball food. I expect some garlic fries, cheezburger, nachos, beer, pretzels, and pretty much anything else I can stuff in my face. Still, that doesn't mean I won't get some exercise. I'll probably walk to and from the ballpark, and that's about a mile and a half from either my office or home. So even though I'm not running, I'll still burn off some of those calories.

One last thing... Tonight after my run before I hopped into the shower I stepped on the scale. The result - 162.8. AWESOME!!!! That is definitely below my goal weight, but it doesn't count because the official weigh time is in the morning right after I shower. Fingers crossed that I'll be no more than 163.2 in the morning.

Please come back average temps!

It was another hot (for Seattle) day, and I did go running in it. I made sure I was hydrated and properly fueled for it though. Still, it hurt, especially afterward. I was kind of in a daze for an hour or two after I got done. I think I might have been hungry, but it sort of felt like one of those times when I was lifting weights that I worked so hard I threw up. It's a special feeling to know that the only reason you're kneeling over the porcelain altar and singing the praises of Ralph is because you worked your body that hard. Even though I didn't pick up a damn thing, I still felt that special feeling of incipient religious devotion and praise. However, I managed to restrain myself.

I think I may have figured out how to work speed intervals into my running. I don't know how I missed this; it's so simple. The first and last mile of my four-milers are riddled with city blocks and traffic lights. So, Block A I take it easy - which probably means that I run my normal pace - and Block B I go for speed. I'll get in at least four intervals if I do it both on the way out and on the way back. It's genius and I'm an idiot for not figuring it out earlier.

Tomorrow... rest day. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. I love rest days. And Saturday, well that's the 4th of July. There's a beer tasting festival at the Seattle Center, and I will be there. The chances of me doing my short Saturday run are extremely slim. My six mile long run on Sunday is in jeopardy - I'll take "Famous Hangovers" for 2000, Alex. We'll see.

A goal achieved... finally... sort of

I've hit a plateau in my weight loss in the last two or three weeks. I think my metabolism got used to the calories I was eating and burning, so I wasn't losing any weight. I wasn't changing anything to keep my body guessing either, but how was I supposed to know that I needed to. Anyway, at the beginning of the year one of the goals I set for myself was to lose 30 lbs. The closest I've gotten so far was within half a pound of my goal, but the day after that my weight shot back up about 2 pounds and has stayed there ever since. That brings me to today. As usual, while waiting for the shower to heat up for my post-run cleansing I hopped on the scale to check the damage, and I hit my goal! So... YAY! Of course, that will all change by morning. First, I know that it's just water that I lost thanks to the massive amount of sweat I poured out on the Seattle streets, and I don't think I fully re-hydrated from my run yesterday. That and the half of a large, thin crust, pepperoni sausage and bacon pizza that I had for dinner tonight. Oh, and the breadsticks. As much as I want to, I can't forget the breadsticks.

Ok, so yesterday whilst on the 'mill, the Food Network cemented my love of the show "The Best Thing I Ever Ate." Last week, the evil tempters at FN did a fried food theme, and I thought "what could be better than that?" They promptly followed it up with BBQ! Yesterday, they completed the heart-attack trifecta and did a bacon episode. The best thing I ever ate... with BACON! There was a bacon cheeseburger that the chef put a bacon patty on. He wasn't skimping with just a few strips. No, this was a massive bacon patty on top of the already beautiful beef patty.... I'm hungry now. By the way, the best three-word combination in the history of ever: glazed bacon doughnut. That's all I'll say about that. Please, will someone make me some tempura fried BBQ bacon with glazed bacon doughnut on the side?

I had a fairly reasonable run on the 'mill. Nothing spectacular, although I tried to bump up the speed a little bit. I apparently suck at doing intervals, because when I'm outside I just can't force myself to speed up for any real distance. I can speed up for a little bit, but I guess I slow down without thinking about it.

Last night I rediscovered the greatness of Van Halen and AC/DC. I saw something about both of them on someone else's blog - no idea who - and when I went looking through the CD collection I found four VH and two AC/DC albums. Awesome! They all got ripped and added to my "exercise" playlist. Sadly, although I put 50-something songs on there I only heard one VH and two AC/DC's on my run today. I'll need to create a new playlist for them so that I can really dive into some classic rock.

Today I had a wonderful outdoor run. Well, wonderful may not be the best way to describe it. First, I think i was less hydrated than normal, which is definitely going to have an effect on me. I really only had about 64oz of water, which maybe caught me up from what I lost yesterday during the run, but didn't completely do the trick for hydrating me today. Also, my feet felt a little like lead at times. Normally I'd think that was a food thing, but I had PLENTY of food during the day. I actually had more today than I do on a typical day just because I'm trying to concentrate on eating more so I can bust the aforementioned plateau. Finally, I think it may have been a bit hot out there. I'm not complaining - you don't complain about a Seattle summer - but it may have been a little warm at 6:00 to do a four mile run. There's an article on coolrunning.com that talks about how you should adjust your running as temperatures climb. It looks like 65 degrees is the best temperature, from my extremely brief scan of the article. It was at least around 80 today (79.6 according to wunderground.com). So no wonder it felt like an effort. And I have the same thing to look forward to tomorrow, but at least now I know what I'm getting into.

Got a doctor's appointment tomorrow. Can't wait to talk about how much weight I've lost, and get her opinion on my marathon goal.