Thursday Night's Run at the Gym

I went to the gym again tonight and worked out on the treadmill. I ran an abbreviated set of intervals which consisted of two intervals, where each interval was at 6.5 MPH and lasted for 4 minutes. This is quite a bit less than I was doing a couple of weeks ago. My goal over the next several weeks is to get so I am doing 8 sets of 4 minutes each. And I want the last interval to be as strong as the first.

This morning I did one set of 20 crunches, one set of 25 setups and a side plank on each side.

Wednesday's workout at the Gym

Tonight I worked out at the gym. It went a little better than the night before, because there were not as many people. There was only one person on a treadmill and one person on an elliptical trainer.

Last night both sets of equipment were almost full, and that was at about 7 PM. Yesterday the dressing room was so full I could not walk through it; tonight it was much better. But I may not know my way around yet. I found a corner that is quieter, has fewer people and has full size lockers. There I only have to walk through the main section when I am arriving, leaving, and going to the shower.

Tonight I started at 7:30 and I spent 30 minutes on the elliptical trainer that is in the section by the door. I was not able to set things up to get a real tough workout. I guess it will take some time to figure out how to use the equipment.

After that I switched to the Nordic track treadmill. It was like the one I really liked at The Hills. It will go up to 50% slope. I tried one of the preprogrammed exercises that was supposed to simulate the Moab mountains. The exercise was okay but it kept the speed at 3.5 miles per hour. I was hoping for something a little faster. I pressed the speedup button numerous times, and had it going 6.5 miles per hour, but then it would return to 3.5.

It was not all bad, I was happy that it was going real slow when it set the slope to -5% or +20%. It will just take time to get use to the equipment.

I will have to start taking the spinning class soon. It almost looked like there were two classes this evening. There was a big class when I arrived and then there was a small class later, or perhaps it was people just hanging around.

There are a couple of things I need to do: 1) get a polar heart rate strap. The equipment I was using did not receive data from my Garmin strap. 2) Get a lock with a combination. I am afraid I will lose my key for the padlock. 3) Find or get a better headset for listening to the TVs.

Workout at Pure Austin Gym

Tonight I had my first workout at the Pure Austin Fitness. Boy was it crowded. When I got there (about 7:00 PM) most of the treadmills were being used. I headed to one but someone bet to it. Luckily I found a free one by the front desk.

I need to find my head phones and listen to the TVs. Then I will have to figure out how to use them. Any way listening to something should make the time pass more quickly.

The spinning class looks really intense, just what I need. I think next week I will start going on Wednesday.

My tentative schedule is Tuesday will be intervals, Wednesday spinning, Thursday will be a tempo run and Friday will be an easy spin or run. Then on the weekend I will try to do a long ride on Saturday and run with Daniel and his family on Sunday.

We will see how this works.

Weekly Roundup

I have not exercised as much as I would have liked this past week. Most of my time was spent getting ready to have the new carpet installed. I worked 40 hours in the first four days of last week, then took Friday off to be here when the workers were here. Now I have been moving things back to their permanent locations--and rearranging things a bit, to get better use from some of the rooms.

I signed up last Saturday with Pure Gym because the weather for the next week looked bad, and I did not want to run in the freezing rain. However, it took about a week to get everything in order. Since I have had high blood pressure and a stroke, they needed a release from my doctor. So I provided them with my doctor's fax number and waited for results. I tried to go the the gym on Tuesday but they would not let me work out because the release had not arrived. Today, Sunday, I stopped by and they let me in--thank goodness!

Here is my week's summary:

Today's Ride

Normally on Sunday morning I run with Daniel and his family; however, since Andrea and Marilla were running in the 3M Half-Marathon I did not go up to their place to run today. Also, since I was not at work Friday, I had not talked to Daniel to set up a time.

So this morning, bright and early, when the thermometer at the house showed a brisk 38 degree temperature, I rode my Trek over to watch the 3M Half-Marathon in the vicinity of Shoal Creek and Anderson Boulevard. I watched from several locations in that general area for about a half-hour.

Then I decided to ride up Mount Bonnell, one of the highest points in central Austin. I have been thinking for some time that it would be good training for my legs, not to mention my heart. (Last summer Daniel and I ran to the base of Mount Bonnell.)

Several years ago, I rode the last 20 miles of the Spokes and Spires bike ride with a biking buddy. He said that he and several of his friends had trained by riding up Mount Bonnell every Sunday morning. He asked me to come with them, but I never managed it.

Well, this was my morning to test my legs! I approached the target from the northeast side, and before I knew it, I was on top of the mountain.

I descended Mount Bonnell via the street on the south side. It was lot steeper than the way that I had taken up the mountain!

I need to train a little more on the easy route that I took today, then start training on the ascent from the south side, along that steep road.

After conquering Mount Bonnell, I rode the Scenic Drive to Lake Austin Boulevard, and then to Mopac. From there I followed fifth street to the Pure Athletic Club, where I stopped for a quick "nature break" (and to see if I could get in, since I have not been able to since I signed up).

The previous time I tried to enter (last Tuesday) they would not let me in because they had not received the release from my doctor. Today I had no problems, so now I can start spin classes and indoor training when the weather is bad.

I also met the weekend manager today and I got a demo of one of their newest treadmills.

From there I rode to the Capitol, where the marathon was ending, and watched people crossing the finish line. I never did see Andrea or her mother. After watching for a quarter of an hour, I made my way home.

Total distance on today's Sunday morning ride around Austin was 23 miles. Some of those miles were pretty steep!

New Carpet - At Last!

Yesterday the new carpet was installed, after weeks of waiting and preparing.

Here's the scenario:

First, pick the carpet. We came home from a long visit to the Fashion Floors store with half-a-dozen samples, and ended up picking an understated basic taupe flecked with dots of other colors. (Seems like today's carpet fashion is for pale, delicate colors, and it took quite a bit of rummaging through the shelves of samples to find the darker, dirt-blending colors most suitable to our household. We don't have little girls with muddy shoes and bubble gum any more, but we do have a cat and lots of indoor-outdoor activities.)

Then box up the books--way too many of them, it seemed. When you have a programmer and an English teacher living together, books pile up!

Then clear out all the do-dads on top of stuff. Little vases, figurines, family photos,etc.

And then attack the piles of papers, etc. Move it all out and away from the work area. Thank goodness the kitchen, family room and sunroom were not part of the carpeted area.

Then schedule an installation day, and live amid the boxes and cleared-out items until that day arrived. Sort of like indoor camping, with heat and plumbing, but treacherous hiking along narrow paths to our TV chairs and the hazard of falling objects when we sat at the dining table.

But it's done!

Weekly summary

Here is the weekly summary:



The weather and the time of day was the main impediments this last week. Each day was near freezing and I am not really used to getting up early and going out for a run. I only managed a little less than three miles per day. It is supposed to be raining next week so Saturday I signed up with Pure Gym. That should make it easier to get my miles in. Also, I should be able to get some spin classes in before bike season starts.

I did get a two sessions of core work this last week. I told the people at the gym that I wanted to do some core work.

Sunday's Easy Run

I ran today with Daniel and Andrea at Brushy Creek. It was sunny and cold, and all in all it was a good run. We started an hour later than normal because Daniel and Andrea had run 22 miles the day before. It was their last really long run before the marathon.

Andrea and her mother will be doing the 3M half-marathon next weekend. I will probably be watching from Epoch's Coffee Shop on North Loop. I need to check the weather for next weekend. Last I heard, next week is supposed to be rainy all week. Perhaps if the weather is nice and there are still openings, I will run it. (12.2 miles is not all that far, is it?)

Thursday's Sprints

Today I ran some sprints. It consisted of 8 repeats of running for one eighth of a mile at a pace of 7 minutes per mile then walking while I waited for the heart rate to drop below 105 beats per minute. I had trouble reaching the speed and I was about dead by the end of a lap, then I had trouble getting my heart rate down to 105 during the recover phase. The next time I do this exercise I need to move the heart rate up a little, perhaps to 110 beats per minute.

It was cold this morning! The temperature was just above freezing and the wind was about 5 miles per hour out of the north. When I came around the back corner of the track and was running into the wind it about froze me. Boy was it cold.

I have a clue about the my high heart rate at the beginning of a run. Today I had trouble getting a good reading, I think it was because it was so cold I was not perspiring enough to make contact with the strap. Perhaps that is why my heart rate has been high at the start of a run. I will have to watch it in the future.

Here is the results:

Tuesdays Interval Run

I did an interval run this morning, and what a difference twenty-four hours make! It clouded over last night and the temperature was 48 degrees this morning. I was sweltering in my three layers of clothes when I was running.

I ran at the track over at Webb Middle School. There was one other runner when I started and another one joined us just before I left.

I was running with a new advanced training option for my Garmin. It consisted of running a third of a mile, letting my heart rate drop below 105, waiting until I got back to a good location, and pressing the lap button. The third of a mile was in the slow running region.

I think I did pretty well, I was not sure I could sustain the pace for a third of a mile, but I did. At least I did not hear my watch beep, telling me to speed up.

The official results:

Monday Morning Run

Brrr! It was cold again this morning, near freezing, the windows on my pickup had ice on them. I ran three easy miles at about an 11 minutes per mile pace. I ran from home around Highland Mall and back home. I was hoping this would make for a longer run but it didn't. The motionbased record is here.

My heart rate was about 180 for the first six minutes. I hope this is good and it's a indication that I will be faster next summer. Maybe I can ride with the fast boys.

Weekly Roundup

I did better this week but not as well as I would like. No exercises to strengthen the core. I will have to work more on that next week. Here is a summary of what I did over the last week:

Saturday's Bike ride on Blue Bluff Road

Today I rode with my friend Michael B. on Blue Bluff Road, from Manor to Bloor Road, then to the end of Bloor Rd at SH 130. It was a very pleasant ride; the weather was perfect. I thought, listening to the weather report yesterday, that this morning would be cold and miserable. But we had no problems, perhaps because we were on mountain bikes seldom going over 10 MPH, and were surrounded by trees so the wind could not get to us. The course was very hilly, especially right after crossing SH130 the first time.

I need to go out and train some more on that stretch, to get my legs and cardiovascular system in top condition for this summer.

The motionbased view of the ride is here.

While we were riding, the Travis County sheriff came by to ask if it was our pickup back along the road. At the time I answered no, but after he had driven off I got thinking about it and was worried that perhaps he was talking about my pickup in the subdivision near Michael's house. It was a long way back, but you know idle minds and what they worry about. Well, needless to say, when we were coming back along the same route, I spotted a pickup along the side of Blue Bluff Road and my pickup was where I had left it--with no ticket on the window.

Once we turned on to Bloor Road there were probably 20 black vultures on the road and in the trees. It appeared that some animal had died along the road and they were cleaning up the remains. For all the details see my blog entry on "Two People with Binoculars"

When we were going by the lake, we could hear a lot of ducks, but I was unable to see them. There were hills and trees between us and the lake.

Here's the two adventurers:

Friday's Easy Run

Ran an easy 2.25 miles today. Went over to the track at Webb Middle School and did a mile (4 laps). It's the first time this year that I have been over there. There were two other people working out. I got there shortly after 7 AM. I need to go more often, it would be a good place to do my interval train and my tempo runs.

It was cold again today, about 40 when I started with a clear sky. Venus was real clear, I wonder if you could see it during the day.

The motionbased report is here.

My Eye is Sore Again!

My left eye has been sore again today, I think it's another stye or chalazion (blocked tear exterior tear duct). Perhaps the old chalazion which I had several months ago is returning. It feels a little to the right of where the previous one was, but it's hard to tell.

I have put a hot compress on it for about 20 minutes this evening and I will try to put another on before I go to bed.

If it has not gone away in several days I will have to give Dr. Todd Smith a visit again. He's the eye doctor I went to several months ago.

I have felt bad all day, the mold spore and cedar pollen counts have been high, and I think I am getting sensitive to mold. At least, last time the mold got high I felt bad.

Wednesdays Tempo Run

Today I did a tempo run, I tried to keep my pace below a 10 minute per mile for 2 miles. I felt that I did pretty well, each time I checked my watch I was doing a little under 10 minutes. There was a few places that gave me trouble, the final uphill run that crosses Rufus and the last 1/4 mile stretch before I get home, this is also an uphill run.

It was really cold again this morning. I would guess the temperate in the high 30 or low 40s. The humidity and wind were not factors.

I was planning on doing this Tuesday night but had all sorts of problems getting out the door. I had taken the house key off my ring so I wouldn't have a big lump of keys in my pocket. About that time the doorbell rang and the UPS delivered the binoculars that my wife had ordered several weeks ago. So we had to open, put them together and test them. This took quite a bit of time, perhaps an hour, so by the time I got back to my run I could not find the key. Finally, I gave up on the run and decided to do it the next morning.

This morning when I was putting the cell phone in my front pocket on my reflective jacket I noticed my key was in the bottom of the pocket. I'm not sure how I missed it last night, I know I checked it several times and Marilyn felt it also. My only explanation is that it was close to the zipper and when we felt it we just thought it was the zipper.

Here is the motionbased view of the run. I will have to do more tempo runs, I was real happy with the results. Perhaps in an upcoming 5K I can go under the 30 minute barrier. Perhaps I even have a shot at 29 minutes by the end of the spring racing season.

One more thing, I need to modify the advanced workout to add a cool down at the end. Currently it stops after the 2 mile run, I like to record until I stop.

Monday's Run

I ran 3 miles this morning. What a change several days make; the temperature was about 70 degrees when I started, and the humidity was about 100%, compared to several days ago when the temperature was below freezing.

The motionbased record is here.

Later:

I need to get moving a little earlier or moving a little faster; this morning I ran a little late getting to work. Plus there were a few things that I did not get done:

• Did not take my blood pressure
• Did not do my exercises (talked about yesterday).

Weekly summary

Here is the weekly summary:



Next week, I hope to get in a few more miles. My morning runs should be a little longer and next Sundays run will be about 8 miles. Hope to get in some bike miles too, perhaps getting in some hill miles.

This week the Running magazine had a section on core exercises. I need to devote at least 3 times this coming week to doing these exercise.

Sunday's Easy Run

Ran 4.08 miles at a 11:30 pace with Daniel, his wife Andrea, his mother-in-law Marilla and Zoe their 10 year old dog. The temperature was not a problem at a little above 60 degrees, however the wind was noticeable.

The motionbased report is here.

New Neighbors

Yesterday we met the new neighbors that have moved into the Iveys' old house. It sounds like they have done a lot to fix up their new home. Their names are Seth, Sunny, and the cute little one is Leila, aged 20 months. Nice to have a little girl growing up there again!

It sounds like they are both into triathlon and would like to run and bike sometimes. Seth may start running with me in the morning and on Sunday mornings. He is planning to bike to work along Guadalupe, down to South Austin.

Thursday's Run

It was cold again this morning, I dressed more warmly than on Wednesday's run. I wore the same pants, gloves and headpiece. Over the mid-section, I wore a light sweat-wicking tee shirt, my blue warm up clothes, and my reflective windbreaker. For the most part, I was warmer, except I was sweating, so when I took the clothes off I about froze. It was especially bad over my arms,where I did not have the wicking tee shirt.

Sunrise was really pretty this morning. It started out being a real deep red, then progressed to more of a pink color. Really pretty.

I ran an easy 2 miles at about 11 minutes per mile. Here is the motionbased record of the run.

One thing I am curious about is the heart rate during this run. I took a course several years ago about heart rate training. As part of the course, they tested my max heart rate, which they said was about 165. I have subsequently tested my max heart rate and 165 has seemed about right. That's about what it is if I use the formula for finding max heart rate.

For the last several months, my heart rate has been going to 190 or thereabouts. This generally lasts for about 5 minutes, then returns to about what I would expect (about 140-150). When I was taking the course, there were several other people who were about my age and they had maintained their fitness over the years. Their max heart rates were about 190 and the instructor said that people who were active did not show the loss in the max heart rate. However, people who had a lower max heart rate could never regain the higher max heart rate. Am I disproving the instructor? Am I getting a younger heart with all this exercise?

I ask my doctor and he said not to worry about it. Guess I'm back to a 20-year-old heart.

Wednesday morning run

It was cold this morning, the TV said it was in the mid 20s, thus the short run. I also did not get the GPS going until about 1/8 the way through the run so it registers a little short. It should say about 1 mile. Heres the link to the run. I wore my blue running pants, green reflective jacket, white cotton gloves, and gray cap and I was still cold.

2008 New Years Resolutions

1. Exercise more consistently.
   
2. Get my weight down to 175 by August, for the next trip to Germany for Larissa's wedding.
3. Visit the doctor and get my prescriptions in order.
4. Learn a little German.
5. Study the Stuttgart area in preparation for the visit in August.
6. Work on my writing skills.
7. Resume taking blood pressure, I have let up taking my blood pressure since Thanksgiving.