September 19 & 20,  Monday  & Tuesday

Falstaff:
To die is to be a counterfeit, for he is but the counterfeit of
a man who hath not the life of a man; but to counterfeit dying,
when a man thereby liveth, is to be no counterfeit, but the true
and perfect image of life indeed. The better part of valor is
discretion, in the which better part I have sav’d my life.

Henry The Fourth, Part 1 Act 5, scene 4, 115–121

As summer grudgingly gives way to fall, I remain in a state of temporary suspension. I am able to do some physical activity each day, and I am able to stay fit.   But I am unable to actually run yet.  The nagging fact remains that the type of physical activity I am doing is not  getting me in running shape. Every time I try a short run, my Achilles tendon tells me it’s not ready yet.  So I have to back off for another few days.  It’s not that I’m in any terrible or excruciating pain.  It’s just that the Achilles tendon is tender: it is sore: and I fear descending into the state that I faced two years ago when I had to take off about two months to recover. DISCRETION!

So, on Monday I did a workout in the fitness room for 45 minutes, and today  I rode my bike around the Jackson Liberty campus during the cross-country triangular meet for about 90 minutes.  All good stuff, but I long for the opportunity to do a 5-mile steady state road run or an interval workout on the cinder track.

Stats –

I-Mad -2?

AmHR – 55BPM

Weight – 154#

Sleep – 8 hours??

Workout – bike intervals for 90 minutes ?

September 18th, Sunday, 8:00p.m 

Today I got in 40 minutes of diverse work.  That was 15 minutes of slow jogging, 15 minutes of solid swimming and 10 minutes on the bike.  I think I’m staying in relatively good shape as my sore Achilles tendon gradually and slowly heals.  I’m encouraged by the lack of pain during the first few steps in the morning. However, I can still feel tenderness to the touch and a dull pain when I start to jog.  I began a regimen of ibuprofen 3 times a day,  but have not been consistent with it.  I guess I can’t convince myself that it’s serious enough to take that many pills. So I will push on with swimming and biking and walking, and jogging  to test for the time being.

Stats are stable.

September 17th,  Saturday, 11:00 p.m.

Ten miles on the bike in 52 minutes on a pleasant late afternoon in Jackson. Just what I needed for some aerobic strength work.

Stats-

I-Mad -2

Weight -155#

Sleep -8 hours

a.m. HR -?

Workout. – 10 on bike in 52:00

September 16, Friday, 10:00p.m

Arlene and I spent this day relaxing, and strolling the boardwalk and snapping pictures of the Harvest Moon over the Atlantic..

September 15th,  Thursday,   4:00p.m.

Today I swam for 30 minutes non-stop in our Warwick condominium pool.  It is clearly the most spectacular outdoor pool on the boardwalk in Atlantic City and the centerpiece of the Warwick condominium.  It is always very nice to be back.   I haven’t completed a Non-Stop 30 minute swim for many months.  I didn’t finish exhausted, but I was pleasantly tired.

Every time we returned to the condominium,  Arlene  and I question our decision to rent our place for the summer months. The income is nice.  And we have two swimming pools, indoor and outdoor, at our recreation facility in Jackson.  But it is hard to match hanging  out at a Cabana at a pool “On the Boardwalk in Atlantic City.”  The pool closes this weekend.

It’s time for cross country season.

Good stats today!

September 14th, Wednesday,  7:00 p.m.

Good work day, but not running

https://g.co/kgs/Z46hMw

??”SUMMERTIME BLUES”??

Today I took the opportunity to work hard and enjoy the world of  Atlantic City as we have reclaimed  our beautiful condominium on the boardwalk.  I enjoyed an early 4 mile bicycle ride on the boardwalk. Then I worked out in the newly renovated pool for 40 minutes.  I ran in the deep end for 30 minutes including  6 sets of the 30- 20-10 workout.  Then I swam for 10 minutes. It was quite luxurious. My Achilles tendon is still a bit tender, although it is strangely not sore in the morning which is the most common symptom of an Achilles tendon problem.  Still choosing to err on the side of caution,  I am avoiding the urge to run.

Stats –

I-Mad –  2

Weight – 153#

a.m HR – 54BPM

SLEEP –  lots of distractions last night- broken uncomfortable 8 hours

Workout –  bike 20, water run 30 W surges, swim 10

September  12th,  Monday, 9:00p.m.

Feeling relaxed and quite self-satisfied after qualifying for the National Senior Finals on Saturday,  I am entering an extended  base-building period.  Took off on Sunday to rest my aching Achilles tendon.   Today’s activity included a 5 mile bike ride, lots of non-impact leg drill’s and core/upper body work in the fitness room.  My plan is to totally avoid running until it can be done with a complete absence of Achilles tendon discomfort.  Swimming, biking and strength building will consume my workouts until then.  Achilles tendonitis cost me 3 months of training in 2014.  I don’t want that to happen again.  There are nine months to the National Senior finals.    And so, it begins………..

Stats –

I-Mad – 2 ?

Weight – 155# ?

Sleep – 8 hours

a.m.HR- 54 BPM

Workout – base, bike – drills – core- weights

September 10th, Saturday, 7:00 p.m.

2 new State Titles.   Yahoo!!

Well, all went as planned at the NJ Senior Games today.  I managed to  struggle my way to a first-place finish in both the 800m and 1500m races. The weather was Torrid; my Achilles was screaming; but I willed my way through two races in fairly decent times and captured both titles.  The only warm-up  I was able to do was leg swings, as my Achilles tendon started aching from the first step I took to jog.   I immediately made the decision  that warm- up had to be and non-impact event.  I felt aerobically sound through both races, and my legs responded easily each time I called upon them. I still did the minimum to avoid any further tendon breakdown.  I could not be any happier with the outcome!  Now I have time to get healed and begin my eight month training program for the Nationals.  That is going to start with two weeks of biking, swimming and working in the fitness room on weights and core. I can hardly wait to get started!

I hope everybody stayed cool today and had an equally rewarding and satisfying day.

September 9th,  Friday,  8:00p.m.

Getting Ready

I have not posted for the last 3 days because I have not been doing any workouts.  With my race tomorrow, I decided to take the 3 days off to be sure that my Achilles tendon would not prevent me from competing.  I’ve been icing, I have been heating, I’ve been stretching, I have been taking ibuprofen 3 times a day, only biking and walking.  At this time, 7 o’clock on Friday night, I am experiencing no discomfort, no pain, no soreness in my Achilles tendon.  Hence, I believe that I will be able to compete in at least two races tomorrow, the 800 metres and 1500 metres. There is an outside chance I will also compete in the 400 meters to try and qualify there, also.  I did take 3 days off before my last race in  which I ran new PR .  However, I was in much better shape than now.  I have long believed that taking time off when in top physical shape can have a beneficial impact on performance in the short run.  However, taking time off when not in top physical condition does not give me as much confidence.

So I hope you have missed my postings because I have missed writing them;  but I choose not to write unless I have something meaningful to say and not just be boring.  I am preparing all my gear for a very, very warm and humid day tomorrow, probably in the high nineties.  I hope this does not turn into difficulty for any of the Elder Statesman that will be at this event tomorrow.  My plan is to do the minimum necessary to qualify in any events that I compete.  I only want to become eligible to make the trip to Alabama in June so that I can compete in the National finals and have some fun.  If I am lucky, the events in my age group will be so lightly entered that I will simply have to jog to the Finish Line to qualify.  I have said to many people that this is really only a good reason for a Road Trip.

My stats have been stable, but my weight is higher than I want it to be, somewhere in the mid 150’s instead of the low 150’s where I prefer.  I have to deal with that as a result of not doing enough actual running lately.

I will report details of the event tomorrow evening.

September 6th, Tuesday,  5:00p.m.

Heard this Jimmy Buffett song on the way home from practice today.  It has a happy, sweet sound but always makes me sad.

https://youtu.be/8nlnKkAN6VQ

No more running this week……

Just icing after a slow 2 mile run at XC practice today.  Achilles tendon on left foot hurts each time I try to run.  So, I trudge on to Saturday’s  race date.  Checked last year’s event results for my age group in the 800m  and 1500m.  Less than 3 competed in those races.  If that holds true this year, I can qualify by default.  So, I plan to swim, bike and lift for the rest of the week and be ready to compete painlessly on Saturday.

Stats –

I-Mad – 2 ?

Weight – 154 #

a.m.HR –  54BPM

Sleep – 7 hours

Workout – yuck!?