Base Miles

Ok you've started running, perhaps you've gotten a race or two under your belt, or you've reached your weight or conditioning goal and don't know whether you can start running less or need to run more. Perhaps you're not running at all, fine, apply the same principles to whatever exercise regimen you're following.

Just as a house needs a strong foundation, so does your running and conditioning. My first runs consisted of a one mile loop through my neighborhood and I blistered the asphalt with scorching 16 minute miles. Then came the pinnacle of my early days of running. An all out effort that deposited me, spread eagle and gasping on the hood of my car. I'd just turned in a 14 minute mile. That was the beginning, and I'm happy to say that, with the exception of a couple of recent weeks, I now maintain a base of 15 to 20 miles per week. Much improved from those early runs. But what is the purpose of those base miles?

From your base, you can tune up for a local 5K, or initiate a 16 week marathon training regimen. Not interested in racing, then think of your base as a great way to stay away from agony. I'm a runner for life now, not because I always love it, but because I remember the time I took of a complete month and had to restart. Trust me, keep your miles up and avoid the physical and mental agony of resuming running.

Your base also serves as a bottom marker, a baseline that you refuse to fall below. Let's call it your minimum goal mileage. Pushing yourself to complete the miles necessary to maintain this minimum number of miles, can help to remind you of why you run and what you enjoy about running. Base miles also serve as an anchor. They can help you to hold your conditioning level through minor injury, illness, or when life rears its ugly head. They also anchor you in your goals. When you get excited about that new pilates class or lifting regimen, maintaining your base can keep you from straying too far away from training that is specific to achieving your running goals.

If I've managed to hold your attention this long, let me ask you another question. "What anchors your life?" "On what foundation is everything that you are and everything that you believe built?" Since its getting late on me, just think about those two questions, be honest with yourself, and we'll discuss some more my next post.

POWER!

Back up approximately 1 week to the hour that we lost it.

Played a softball tourney yesterday and did something I'd never done, despite playing baseball or softball for 30 + years of my life. I hit a homerun. 1st pitch of the game. Amazed me, I've never even come close. More amazing, I don't have a homerun swing. Anyway enough about that. Must be all the weights I've been lifting...well more likely the sugar rush from the birthday cake I inhaled on Friday night.

My oldest is 7 now. Just doesn't seem that long ago we were bringing him home..sniff, sob....ok, tender moment is over with.

Last post I let you in on my thoughts of running a trail marathon in December. I'm leaning towards not running it. Time constraints and other needs. The woods at my Mom and Dad's farm took a beating from the storm. Lots of trees down, and plenty of them down across fencing. I think I'll take 3 or 4 hours out of each weekend for awhile and go work on clearing off the fence line.

So with that in mind, I think I'm going to maintain a base of 3 to 4 miles per day and begin focusing a little more on strength training for the remainder of 2008.

I'll try to string together something a little more insightful and inspiring for my next post.

Updates

Updates on different fronts:

1)Fitness: Much of my training has been replaced with physical labor during storm clean up. With tree and limb removal in downtown Louisville on Monday and Tuesday, and clearing the creek in the easement behind our house on Wednesday, I skipped those days. Ran Thursday and Friday mornings and will either do more tree work on Saturday or play in a Softball Tourney or both.

2)Nutrition: Ha Ha, yeah right! Pizza buffet twice this week for lunch. (Monday and Tuesday)

3)Life: Power is still out at the house. We have a generator running (outdoors!, Amazing to me that they have had over 100 CO related cases at local hospitals and one death. Don't people a) read, and b) pay attention to broadcast warnings...guess not...I'm not cold hearted ya'll...it is a tragedy.) We've spent more time talking to different neighbors this week than we have in the past 3 years. Offering up space in our garage fridge for all kinds of peoples necessities, from Beer to Insulin. Hopefully by tomorrow we are up and going, but if not, it could be worse.

Nothing much more to write about, and I really should get to work. Toying with the idea of doing a trail marathon in December, but to properly train, I'll need to drive about 15 minutes up the road to do my long runs in a state park. Not sure I can get motivated to carve out the additional time from an already packed schedule.

Take care and continue to pray for those in Houston. We took a hit here, they got flat "knocked out!"

Still Here, but No Power

I've added Calgary to my places I've run list.

Got in a 7 mile and 4.5 mile run while there.

We've been without electricity since Sunday afternoon, and this is my first day back in the office. Power here was out as well and I spent Monday and Tuesday in the field cleaning up downtown Louisville with my local guys.

Not much time for anything else at this time. Have a good day!

James

Proof that fast food is a sin....

...and to think that for years the cries from the church have been against alcohol. Here is God's wrath being poured out on the fast food industry. "Get thee behind me Big Mac!"

Wandering

Previously I wrote about how I felt God's pressence in the last miles of the KDF Marathon. It was one of those times when I could sense him with me just as if he were physically beside me. While that is a great feeling, I've also gone through times when I don't think my prayers left the room. They simply hit the ceiling and bounced around a bit. At other times I've found myself feeling distanced from God, as if I can't seem to draw near to him.

So what's the problem?

My job makes it difficult to maintain friendships. I often go weeks without speaking to, much less having face to face contact with people whom I used to be very close to. Just like when friends move away, it becomes increasingly harder to carry on conversations or to connect on any meaningful level. Time and distance are enemies to relationships and friendships.

Our (my) relationship with God is no different. If we (I) fail to make time to speak to him, to allow him to speak to me, then that distance grows. However, just as it is my travel that has hurt my human friendships, so also it is my wandering that hurts my relationship with God. He's always there, waiting for me to come back.

Note to self: Make Time for God!

Utica 5K

I got to run the Utica 5K. We left New Orleans at 7:30 pm Friday night.

I managed to piece together about 3 hours worth of "cat naps" and arrived home at 7 o'clock Saturday morning.

Kiss the wife, change clothes, race to McDonald's for a jolt of caffeine, then off to Utica for the 8 am race.

Same group of competitors I faced last year, and having not run for about 10 days, eating horribly, and no sleep (yep, lining up my excuses) my goal was to defend my 07 third place finish.

Wasn't to be. Mile #1, 6:42, in third and unable to match the 2nd place runner's pace. Mile #2, 13:45, holding third, but hitting the 2nd hill, decide to give up some more of my fading lead over 4th and 5th place and quickly hike up the hill. I'm passed just before the crest by the 4th place runner. She's a friend of the family and will easily take 1st overall female. I'm fading. 5th place runner draws even with me at about 2.5 miles. I decide to maintain his pace and we run stride for stride. He pulls ahead a step, I match it, then again, and again. I pull ahead by 3 steps and hope he fades. He doesn't. I'm sucking wind, he draws even. 2 tenths out, I'm done, I check my tail and find no one close. 5th will be good enough. I pull up and walk about twenty feet, then resume running. Finish in 21:33. One minute longer than last year, 9 seconds slower than 4th place (3rd place male).

My wife says to be happy. "You made it back from NOLA safely, was able to run, will make the kidos' soccer games, and you won an age group medal." (overall winners are excluded from the age group medals)

She's right, but I'm mad at myself for giving up. I should've gut checked it out. GRRRRR!

Scratch the Fall Marathon...

and perhaps the entire race schedule.

Looks like we will be headed back to NOLA on Wednesday. Looks like I'll miss out on the Utica 5K and a second week of long runs.

Next weekend I will be in Calgary for a conference, again no long run.

I'm done. My eating has been crappy and I've lost a lot of focus.

Right now, I'm just going to plan on running and lifting for fitness and leave it at that.

Work is having a major impact on my personal life. I'll miss my kids playing their first two soccer games. That puts the burden solely on Jina, which wears her down and I'm the one who suggested we let the twins play also. Thinking they would enjoy being like their big brother.

OK, enough belly aching. The job pays the bills. I should be grateful, but honestly right now....

Anyway, will post when I have something interesting and POSITIVE to say.

Take care