Friday Night Workout

This afternoon I took off work early to have my VO2max tested at the gym. I had carefully worked an extra hour each night this week so I could go get the time for the exam. When I got there the lady that was to give me the exam said that the equipment was not working, then when she found out that it was working she said I was not signed up for the exam and she was not qualified to give it to me. I had talked to the person that signed me up at the gym quite a bit about getting the VO2max exam. I'm not sure how it got missed. Well, the bottom line is that I didn't get the VO2max test.

While I was at the gym I ran into Joe, a co-worker I used to work with nearly 20 years ago. We probably talked for 10 minutes before I went for my planned exam then after the exam didn't happen, we talked again for about an half an hour. Just catching up on old times -- hearing tales about mutual friends, on what we are doing, and what has happened to our families.

After that I got on a treadmill and ran for half an hour. I set the speed at 5.5 MPH and the grade was varying from 0% to 8%. Several times thoughout the run I bumped the speed up to 6.5 MPH. But when I the slope increased I lowered the speed back down.

On a different note, I received e-mail today that Tom, the pastor from our church, and George will be riding in the Hill Country Ride for AIDS. It's very tempting to sign up, but you have to raise $500. Which seems like a lot. Especially, if a group of us from work do the Tour De Cure at about the same time. I will have to talk to Tom and see if a slow rider (13 - 15 MPH) would fit into their team. It's really pretty country that they ride through and I don't think there are many hills.

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.

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.

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.

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.

2 Mile Run With The AAWC Sunday Runners

Since I hadn't heard from Daniel about our Sunday run, and since I am recovering from a bad cold, I thought I would try a new (and hopefully easier) run that's about a mile from home. So I met up with the AAWC (Austin Athletic Wellness Center) runners, a running group associated with the ARC (Austin Running Club).

I ran 2 miles. I was hoping to go further but I was feeling pretty wiped out and I got to a good spot to head back, so I did. There were 5 other people with Matthew as the leader.

The temperature was right at freezing when I left the house but I was sure once the sun got up the temperature would climb fast. (Perhaps getting up to 35 by the time the run ended.) It was a very clear morning with no wind.

The pace was good and the streets were perfect for running, with very little traffic at that time of the morning. Also, on the path I took, there were very few hills. Well, you might say no hills. You can find the motionbased account of the run here. I was looking forward to the section that parallels Duval. I know that is a long climb, at least on the bicycle. But I did not make it that far. Next time, maybe...

One of the things that was mentioned during the run was that one of the participants leads a group that runs around Town Lake every Tuesday and Thursday at 5:30 AM. Sounds like a good run, except for getting up in time to make it to Town Lake at 5:30! They meet at the rock under Mopac.

Sunday's Easy Run

Had a very good run this morning with Daniel, his wife Andrea, his mother-in-law Marilla and Chloe, their 10-year-old dog. We started at 9 AM and ran a little over 5 miles at about an 11 minute pace. The temperature was a little above freezing with no wind. In other words a perfect day to be out running, the sky was so clear and blue.

As a side note, when I got up about 6 AM it was still dark so I went out to watch for meteors. It is the first clear morning we have had since the Geminids meteor shower (mid-December usually around the 12-14). I didn't see any meteors, but I didn't spend much time, it was cold.

The Motionbased report is here.