There aren't many things that are worse than hearing someone whine about an insignificant item. So I won't. I will instead whine about how much pain I'm in, which is never insignificant. It's the good pain, thanks for asking.
On Saturday my honey and I headed to our favorite yoga studio, Yoga Synthesis. The instructor (Kelly) had a full room, which is a testament to her awesome abilities in leading a class. There were requests for hip openers, shoulder openers, and you can always count on her to do lots of core. After 90 minutes, my body had that low strum of soreness that one gets after a good workout. But the day wasn't over.
Side story ... I've run for years, but only focused on my 2 mile run time so I could pass the Army Physical Fitness Test. Last year I read Born to Run
, and purchased Vibram Five Fingers. When I ran in a 5 mile race a few weeks after getting the VFFs, I took second place for my age in a very large event. I followed that up with a personal record of 21:14 for a 5k, and two weeks later I beat that personal record with 20:58 for a 5k. This was a good time for a 48 year old guy. I haven't run in sneakers since I purchased the VFFs. So this year I joined North Jersey Masters Track and Field Club, and decided to see how much faster I can be if I have some training.
Back to the story ... Saturday after lunch I hopped on my bicycle, and rode 5.3 miles from home to a middle school a couple of towns away for a club coaching session. I ran about a mile to warm up when I arrived, and talked to the coach about my VFFs before we started. He was convinced they are bad for runners, and explained about his pronation, orthotics, and all the rest of the stuff Christopher McDougal discounted in Born to Run. I gave him my canned answer when I come across VFF doubters: "I have been using these for a year, I am totally convinced that I am faster and have less discomfort after a long run as a result. I understand you don't believe they work, but I'd recommend that you not discount them until you have tried them yourself, or at least have read the book". There was one other minimalist shoe runner there, and she agreed with my answer. Anyone who runs in VFFs knows what I am talking about. It is like trying to convince someone there is oxygen around them, as they tell you they were at a party and someone told them there isn't oxygen, so they are not convinced.
Then we (about 20 runners) ran about 80% of the way around the track, walked the last little bit, and after two breaths, we took off again. We did this 15 times. It was referred to as 300x15... or was it 15x300. I haven't run this hard since I was in the Army Reserves, and my pride induced me to beat the person in front of me during the 2 mile run. After the sprinting and walking ended, I mounted my bike and rode home.
Yesterday I took a rest day, and today I rode to work. My body has the dull ache of a great workout thrumming throughout. My feet are complaining, they were grabbing the ground for almost 6 miles, but I know the pain to be the muscles and connective tissues getting acclimated to the first heavy workout. My leg muscles are very sore as a result of the continuous switch from speed to slow, to pedaling a bike. My core is sore from the yoga, and the only part of me that isn't sore are my facial muscles. (In the past I would have knee and hip pain, but the VFFs have eliminated these.) My honey was very understanding, and even commented that I wasn't whining as much as normal.
Normal whining for me would be grunts and groans with every move, and wheezing as I walked. My honey would say "can you please stop whining?", which I would translate as "you poor man, you must need me to rub sports goo on your legs, bathe your feet in salt water, and bring you a cold beer but I am too busy in the kitchen right now to help you, you poor man". At least that's what I think she meant when she asked me to stop whining. This would in turn have me whining more.
Tomorrow night is another coaching session, so I expect the pain to be extended. I haven't decided if I will use the bike to commute, and get additional exercise in, or take the car. My first race of 2011 will be the River Edge Run on 4/9, and I may do another 5k on 4/10 in Rockland County. I'd like to start the 2011 race season with a good showing, and build on the season from there.
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____________________
On Saturday my honey and I headed to our favorite yoga studio, Yoga Synthesis. The instructor (Kelly) had a full room, which is a testament to her awesome abilities in leading a class. There were requests for hip openers, shoulder openers, and you can always count on her to do lots of core. After 90 minutes, my body had that low strum of soreness that one gets after a good workout. But the day wasn't over.
Side story ... I've run for years, but only focused on my 2 mile run time so I could pass the Army Physical Fitness Test. Last year I read Born to Run
, and purchased Vibram Five Fingers. When I ran in a 5 mile race a few weeks after getting the VFFs, I took second place for my age in a very large event. I followed that up with a personal record of 21:14 for a 5k, and two weeks later I beat that personal record with 20:58 for a 5k. This was a good time for a 48 year old guy. I haven't run in sneakers since I purchased the VFFs. So this year I joined North Jersey Masters Track and Field Club, and decided to see how much faster I can be if I have some training.Back to the story ... Saturday after lunch I hopped on my bicycle, and rode 5.3 miles from home to a middle school a couple of towns away for a club coaching session. I ran about a mile to warm up when I arrived, and talked to the coach about my VFFs before we started. He was convinced they are bad for runners, and explained about his pronation, orthotics, and all the rest of the stuff Christopher McDougal discounted in Born to Run. I gave him my canned answer when I come across VFF doubters: "I have been using these for a year, I am totally convinced that I am faster and have less discomfort after a long run as a result. I understand you don't believe they work, but I'd recommend that you not discount them until you have tried them yourself, or at least have read the book". There was one other minimalist shoe runner there, and she agreed with my answer. Anyone who runs in VFFs knows what I am talking about. It is like trying to convince someone there is oxygen around them, as they tell you they were at a party and someone told them there isn't oxygen, so they are not convinced.
Then we (about 20 runners) ran about 80% of the way around the track, walked the last little bit, and after two breaths, we took off again. We did this 15 times. It was referred to as 300x15... or was it 15x300. I haven't run this hard since I was in the Army Reserves, and my pride induced me to beat the person in front of me during the 2 mile run. After the sprinting and walking ended, I mounted my bike and rode home.
Yesterday I took a rest day, and today I rode to work. My body has the dull ache of a great workout thrumming throughout. My feet are complaining, they were grabbing the ground for almost 6 miles, but I know the pain to be the muscles and connective tissues getting acclimated to the first heavy workout. My leg muscles are very sore as a result of the continuous switch from speed to slow, to pedaling a bike. My core is sore from the yoga, and the only part of me that isn't sore are my facial muscles. (In the past I would have knee and hip pain, but the VFFs have eliminated these.) My honey was very understanding, and even commented that I wasn't whining as much as normal.
Normal whining for me would be grunts and groans with every move, and wheezing as I walked. My honey would say "can you please stop whining?", which I would translate as "you poor man, you must need me to rub sports goo on your legs, bathe your feet in salt water, and bring you a cold beer but I am too busy in the kitchen right now to help you, you poor man". At least that's what I think she meant when she asked me to stop whining. This would in turn have me whining more.
Tomorrow night is another coaching session, so I expect the pain to be extended. I haven't decided if I will use the bike to commute, and get additional exercise in, or take the car. My first race of 2011 will be the River Edge Run on 4/9, and I may do another 5k on 4/10 in Rockland County. I'd like to start the 2011 race season with a good showing, and build on the season from there.
If you like this post, please use the buttons below to share with your social networks.
____________________
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