A Spring Breakthrough

The Old Croton Aqueduct Trail several weeks ago

It’s an understatement to say that the winter we just experienced here in the northern U.S was especially brutal. As soon as one wicked snow storm passed through, another quickly followed, often dumping several more inches of snow on the several inches already on the ground. To make matters worse, the extreme cold greatly slowed the melting process, seemingly making large snow mountains permanent features of the landscape. For all the problems the snow caused, it was often beautiful to look at.

As snowy and brutal as it was, I managed to defy Old Man Winter’s ruthlessness. Isn’t the whole point of fitness being able to meet a challenge anyway? So I managed to joggle for hundreds of miles, mostly by running in loops around the few precious areas where the snow was cleared. At times the brutally cold wind sounded like Old Man Winter was laughing, but I persevered.

The snow, ice and very cold air greatly slowed me down, but I figured that my persistence would eventually pay off once spring arrived, and I was right. At first I merely wanted to match my pace from autumn of last year, but I did better than expected and joggled a half-marathon in 1:39:17, my first sub 1:40 half-marathon or 13.1. I dropped twice. This wasn’t even a race, it was a training run. Sure, I’m not nearly as fast as Michael Kapral(1:20:40 half-marathon), who was recently featured in Runner’s World for his incredible joggling achievements, but it’s an improvement for me.

To improve my speed, I didn’t drastically alter my diet(vegan as always) or training, or take any supplements, except that I am doing less upper body strength work these days. I think once a week is better than twice. All the hill training I do is really just a form of strength-training for the legs.

Let this be a lesson to everyone that persistence pays, when it comes to running or anything else in life.

Some good news and some bad news

First the bad news: My Yaktrax Walker Traction Device started falling apart a few days ago, after only a month of occasional use! The rubber strands are coming apart, and some parts of the metal rings have come off or are loose. While I can still wear it, it doesn’t do the job like it used to, and it starts coming off my sneakers after running only a few miles. In fact, just yesterday I lost one of my two traction enhancers. It fell off in a very snowy area and I didn’t even notice until long after. This makes the one I do have left which is pictured above all but useless – what good is one traction enhancer?

This is very disappointing. I was hoping they would last at least until the end of the winter. It looks like these are made for walking in wintry conditions, not distance running.

The good news: I am making great progress with recovering from the knee injury. I ran 10 miles yesterday, and only felt a little soreness in my right knee. It was a very slow run due to the snow and ice on the ground, not to mention the cold air, but it felt great to cover this distance after almost 2 weeks of no significant running(I did a 3 mile run a few days ago). I hope the soreness continues to go away. I may attempt a long run soon.

I hope everyone is doing great!