August 13th, Saturday,  10 p.m.

So much Olympics!  Why do I get stomach cramps watching 15 year old gymnasts once every 4 years..?

Anyhow, today I walked over to our clubhouse Fitness room in 109* to run on the treadmill. Now, this is never my favorite form of workout. But given the circumstances it was the best option for today. I did manage to force myself to complete 4 miles of pretty rough treadmill drudgery. Good for the head and good for the body I guess. Running some nice distance, on a cool day, on a shady road is sounding so much more wonderful. Can’t wait!

STATS  are steady.

Workout – 4 miles on treadmill

August 12th, Friday, 9:00p.m.

Cancelled plans for a track workout today because of excessive heat.  Too risky for a +70RUNNER.  Real-feel in Jackson, 104* !!!

August 11th, Thursday,  5 p.m.

I’ve got to admit it’s “Getting Better.”

You know the words.

I am very pleased to record a positive day of good, hard work at the CentraState Fitness Center. My body feels strong and rested today.  So I took the opportunity to beat up my core and upper-body pretty well.  Then I went into the pool for 35 minutes.  The saltwater pool is truly energizing.  Today is the first time I actually noticed a difference in my body’s ability to control in the water.  I am much more relaxed and under control as I swim.  In particular I noticed how relaxed my core was during the backstroke.  This I believe is a direct result of the two months of core work I’ve been doing, and I am thrilled by the results.  Swimming has never been a strength.  But today I actually felt as though I was propelling myself forward on all my strokes. Watching Olympic swimmers is exhilarating!

I am ready for a real running workout tomorrow. Very excited!

Stats –

I-Mad – Solid 0?

Sleep – Solid 8 hours ?

a.m.HR – 54BPM

Weight – 153.5#  Better!

Workout – 70 minutes –  core, upper body + pool swim & run                                                                       ???

August 9th,  Tuesday

I tested my legs at the cross country practice last night with the Liberty boys team. They were running 1,000m repeats and I ran about 3 minutes  each time they set off and got back in time to catch the finish.  My leg survived  this 4 times without any indication of cramping or any discomfort.  So I guess we’re on the right track.  I chose not to blog about it yesterday because it seemed uninteresting.  But I’m entering into my personal log for the record.

Stats – Stable

Workout-  12 minutes easy jogging

Continue reading Getting on… →

• August 8th,  Monday,  6:00 p.m.

• ?It’s a Runner’s question, I’d like to know ?

Tried to run a little bit this morning, but it’s not going to happen yet.  Walking is not a problem, but 3 or 4 minutes of easy jogging brings back a negative sensation in my right calf.  Just have to wait a little longer.  In the meantime I am trying to stay fit by biking and swimming and spending time in the fitness room.  I am a little nervous because I am not totally convinced that this kind of conditioning really gets one in shape to run.  Now, I really don’t have to run fast.  I want to make a respectable showing in the Jason Walton Memorial 5K in Hillsborough on the 28th of August.  But all my Hillsborough friends will forgive me if I have a poor showing, I’m certain.  The main thing is I need to be able to complete a decent 1500 meters at the New Jersey Senior Games for which I registered this morning.  That event is on September 10th at Woodbridge High School. Once I qualify for the Nationals, I will have 9 months to prepare for the finals which will be in Birmingham,  Alabama sometime next July.

So today I returned to the fitness center for 30 minutes upper body and core work. In addition I swam and ran in the pool for 30 minutes.  That amounts to a pretty draining workout and I believe it helps me to stay fit.  But the question is,

“Does it help me to run faster?”   I still don’t know.

Stats –

I-Mad – 0?

a.m.HR – 57BPM?

Weight – 153# ?

Sleep – 10.5 hours ?

Workout – 1 hour,  fitness room and pool  ₩

5 x ( 30-20-10 )

 August 7th,   Sunday,   11 p.m.

A deep blue sky and white puffy clouds looking just like a painting greeted me as I started out on my bike ride this afternoon.  I set a goal to ride for one hour having no idea how many miles that would cover.  The temperature was about 84 degrees but never seemed to be a problem along the way.  I finished in one hour and two minutes and that coveted 11.9 miles which surprised me. That’s about the best workout I can hope for until my calf muscle becomes runable. Tomorrow I will shoot for some time in the pool and some core work in the fitness lab.

Stats –

I-Mad – 0

A.m.HR – 54BPM

Sleep – 10 hours    Better!

Weight – 155#

Workout – 1 hour, 12 miles on bike

August 5th,  Friday,  5:00p.m.

Today I completed 40 minutes of core and upper body work in the fitness room plus 20 minutes of swimming and running in the pool.

The calf is feeling better. I will test it on the boardwalk in Spring Lake tomorrow where  the Liberty boys cross-country team will be having practice at 8 a.m.

Stats –

I-Mad – 0

a.m HR – 54BPM

Sleep – 7.5

Weight – 153#

Workout – 1 hour; 40-minute  core & upper body  +  20 minutes  in pool

August 4th, Thursday at 2:00 p.m.

After careful consideration I opted for a bike ride today to give my sore calf one more day to rebound. Things are getting rapidly better, thankfully.  I completed 9 miles on the bike in about 48 minutes with 8 x 50 pedal surges in the Dr. Mirkin mode.  It was a pleasant ride on a pleasant afternoon in Jackson. I finished feeling exhilarated and satisfied with a solid aerobic effort.  There were no negative effects on my legs.

Off to xc practice tonight where I plan to add some core work with the Liberty boys.

Stats –

I-Mad – 0

a.m.HR – 54BPM

Sleep – 7 hours

Weight – 153#

Workout – Nice 9 miles on bike with 8 x 50 pedal surges

August 3rd, Wednesday, 10:00 p.m.

Smile!

Very depressed to have to give up another day because of my sore calf.  I’m not quite sure what I did, but my right calf muscle is aching, and it’s tender to the touch, and it tightens up every time I sit for a few minutes.  I was able to walk a few laps at the Avon boardwalk this evening with Arlene, which I couldn’t do after the event that occurred while I was running last night.  I’m convinced that I did some damage to some portion of the calf muscle.  I rolled it and  massaged it.  Can’t decide if I should I use heat or cold  on it.  So I did neither.

Tomorrow I will definitely get in some serious work.  If I can’t run,  then it will be swimming and  work the fitness room.  It’s getting dangerously close to August 28th, when I plan to run 5K in Hillsboro at the Jason Walton Memorial Run and the NJ Senior Games two weeks later.

Sorry for the whining,  I just want to log the events for learning purposes.

Stats –

I-Mad – 0

A.m.HR – 52BPM

WEIGHT – 153#

SLEEP – 9 hours

Workout –  Just walking.   Humbug!

August 2nd, Tuesday, 10 p.m.

Had to stop my run tonight after only four minutes because of a severe cramp in my right calf. Came out of nowhere and made it impossible to even walk for over an hour. Pain is gone now. After being totally perplexed for a few hours, I have to conclude that the cause must be that I danced barefoot with Arlene for an hour this afternoon. That was mostly on my toes! Then I went to practice and did not take enough time to warm up. Hopefully, this is only a one day setback.

Stats- Stable except for broken sleep.