Philadelphia

I'm in Philadelphia for the week. One time I was here about five or six years ago was great for running since I was within walking distance of Valley Forge. That was just a gorgeous setting for a run. Where I am now is not so scenic - a major east-west thoroughfare, packed tight with concrete, asphalt, and the accumulation of several centuries of urban sprawl. The lady at the front desk suggested Nashiminy State Park as a destination for running, and I took the opportunity to give it a try.

The park abuts the Delaware River, which I found out is at sea level. It's not a river at this point in geography - it's an ESTUARY. I actually found that out from the pamphlet for the park. Anyway, the trail I ran is part asphalt and mostly trail. Dirt and a little bit of sand composed the path. It was a nice change of pace. The day was overcast and somewhat cool so there wasn't a big crowd out for the day. Multiple times I saw a pregnant woman who looked like Anne Hathaway (with a bigger belly, of course), a guy with a halter to which his dog's leash was attached, a lady with a toddler in a stroller, and at the last three guys who were discussing cross country.

The park wasn't in the greatest shape, but I still enjoyed it. The outer loop is a little less than two miles around. I wanted to run at least 4 miles, which I did, but I had to run up a spur and back on the second lap in order to get to the distance. It's no Valley Forge, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. More to come from eastern Pennsylvania this week.

Saturday Run

Ran yesterday with The Wife on another fine day. It was a bit overcast, but the day was agreeable. I went 6 miles total with a brief walk on the big hill near the golf course.

Other than the actual run, my other major running activity yesterday was in trying to find someplace to run in Philadelphia this week. Let's just say that in the area I'll be there doesn't seem to be a whole lot of space set aside for running. Unless you run the circuit around a great big casino several times. In any case, I think I found a place to go but we'll see. The alternative is the treadmill in the hotel fitness center. No thanks.

More Beauty

Yet another beautiful day. Yesterday was a lot cooler than expected, and today started out with temperatures in the 30's. This afternoon shot up to the 60's with sun and very little wind. I can't believe how many nice days we've had this Spring. I can't remember a time since we've lived here with such a quantity of good running and just generally gorgeous weather. As I've said before, if I wasn't a runner a day like today would convince to get out and do so.

Today's run was somewhat herky-jerky. Monday is not normally a running day for me unless I'm training for a race, but The Wife wanted to run since she has a meeting tomorrow night and going out for a run would be tough with such a tight schedule. And hey, I'm flexible. First we walked about a 1/3 mile warmup and then ran a little over two miles. I stopped by the house to pick up Daughter #1. We walked a quarter mile, ran a mile, and then walked another quarter. My total actual running mileage was 3.62 miles, with close to another mile of walking. I could have run more and thought about going for it, but I was wearing the new shoes again and didn't want to push it. I had fun running with my girls. I'll sacrifice speed for time with them any day of the week.

Outstanding Day

What can I say? It was another gorgeous Spring day. I thought about running earlier in the day but The Wife wanted to run with me and she had things to do. I worked on the lawn and did some other things and we finally hit the sidewalk about 4:30. It was definitely worth the wait. She ran a couple of miles with me and then I continued on to get in a good 6 miles. I took it nice and easy and felt good at the end. Seems like we've had so more good running days this year than in all the years combined since I've lived here.

That was a good start to the evening, followed by fajitas and topped off with some Penny Can. All in all it was a good day. Any day that involves sleeping in, running, fajitas, Penny Can, and a baseball game is an outstanding day. Life is good.

Addition

The Wife was in a sleep-deprived state today and didn't run with me, meaning I was free to choose my own route at my own speed. I passed a guy running in super slowmo on my way out of the neighborhood, but other than that there weren't many runners out today in the gusty wind. I planned to go 5 miles and that's exactly what I did. I took it at an easy pace, not pushing too hard against the wind. It was nice to go five again, and as I've said before, I'm hoping to build on that.

I went back to the old shoes today and will probably use them again on Saturday. Mixing in the new shoes is a slow process but I'm hoping to avoid knee problems. It better work this time.

Let Me Entertain You

It was another nice day for a run. With The Wife back in town it was a good opportunity to go for a run with her. She's had a rough time with her diet and exercise lately, particularly with all the company and traveling we and she have been doing lately. This is our week to get back with the program, whatever that program happens to be. All this meant that running wasn't as easy for her today as it has been in the past, so we did some walking along the way. After my crummy outings last week I was more than sympathetic.

One thing that usually helps to distract her is for me to talk and tell her some kind of story. So today I told her some stories about work to start off the run. That worked for a while, but she needed to walk. So we did, and once we reached the top of the hill we started running again on the downhill portion. Then I told her the plot of The Usual Suspects, which I watched this weekend. That tactic kept us going for another 3/4 of a mile. By that point we were close to the neighborhood and I continued by myself. All told I went 5 miles, with about 1.5 of that at a walking pace. I also wore my new shoes again, which I still consider as being in the breaking in period. Even though it wasn't continuous running it was still nice to get out with The Wife.

Slow and Painful

Today's 3.25 mile run was tough. I planned on running more but it was humid and I just had that heavy feeling, like I shouldn't press too much. So I didn't. The temperature wasn't too bad. I probably could and should have walked some and made it the full distance, but I wasn't thinking clearly enough for that to be an option. Time to start fresh this next week and do better.

Unsatisfactory

Today was cool and rainy. I ran inside on the treadmill and it was not good. For some reason I struggled through 1.5 miles and again I think it was related to not sleeping well this week. Seriously, several nights of that stuff catches up to you. It might have gone better if I was running outside, but I wasn't. So I stopped and decided to call it a day. I'm thinking this is just one of those days of listening to your body and figuring out whether or not it's worth it to keep going. Today it wasn't, I'm sorry to report. Hopefully Saturday goes better.

Wish I Was Running a Race

The weather has been so great and I'm feeling so good that I wish I was running a race sometime soon. Today was another gorgeous day here in the Midwest and perfect for running. I ran south and at the turnaround there was just enough of a breeze to help cool me off nicely. I broke out the new running shoes for the second time and concentrated on my stride, trying to make sure I was getting equal push-off from both feet and keeping everything going in a straight line. As I ran I also tried to ensure I was extending my legs far enough behind me, kind of the follow-through if you will, and getting enough motion through the hips to sufficiently stretch them. The overall run was a modest 4 miles, but I was able to work on the little things and hope they'll carry through to future runs.

It's supposed to rain on Thursday. I'm hoping it'll be scattered thunderstorms so that I can get in a run before the weekend.

Easter Run

Yesterday (Saturday) morning I had a plan. The girls were helping with the Easter Egg hunt at church, although I don't know if you can count scattering 35,000 eggs in the grass as an actual "hunt." Anyway, while they were helping I was going to run 6 miles. Rain moved in, though, and it was cold and breezy. The rain wasn't too heavy, but combined with the cooler temperature I decided to postpone. Which turned out to be a good choice.

This morning after church the sun was out and the air was warming up. I took a power nap and then headed out. The day was beautiful and perfect for a run. I went a full 6 miles at a nice, steady pace and felt good. It was definitely better than Thursday's run. Plus I figured that if Peter and John could run from the empty tomb on that first Easter morning then I could certainly go for a run on Easter as well. And now it's time for some baseball.

Should Have Switched Runs

Today was a bit different from Tuesday. I felt like I could run for hours on Tuesday, but today I thought I was lucky to get to the 4.25 miles where I ended. I think the difference is a couple of nights of restless sleep. Both of the last two nights I've had trouble getting to sleep and then woke up a few times later on. I've noted before the effect interrupted sleep has on my running, and today was just further proof of that.

After some rain this morning the sun came out and it was gorgeous once again. Even though it wasn't the best run I've ever had it was still pretty darn good. I'm loving it.

Good Run

Today I ran 4 miles and really, really, REALLY thought about going for 6. No, really, I seriously considered it. I ran 2 miles with The Wife and then when she peeled off I continued at a little faster pace. After another mile I felt good and that's when the thoughts of going longer started barraging me. It was tempting. I was running free and easy. But I used my brain instead of my sometimes faulty physical feelings and turned around. It was the right choice, but man...

Tornadoes in DFW today, but here in KC it was overcast and pleasant. Thursday I'm planning on taking the new shoes out for a test drive.