Good Intentions and Wet Blankets

My intent today was to run five miles. Did I? Not even close. We've had more rain the last couple of days and that sent the humidity soaring. This morning it was 95% and dropped to 75% this afternoon. I started my run as usual and by the end of the first mile I felt like I could barely breathe. It was like someone had taken a hot, wet blanket and thrown it over my head and body. Not exactly the recipe for a successful run. Rather than push onward, I decided to walk back home. So I went 2 miles but only ran the first half. Not quite the outcome I wanted when I set out, but sometimes life doesn't always cooperate. Anyway, lots of family coming into town starting tonight for the wedding on Saturday and hoping to get in a run that morning before the blessed event. Not that I have to do much other than walk the bride down the aisle. And wear a suit and tie. I think I can handle it. 

Hills and Sweat

I ran the westerly route today, which is quite a bit hillier than the regular one to the east. The sky was overcast and a nice breeze came out of the south, plus it was not nearly as humid today as on Saturday. I ran 4 miles with the only walking being up the big hill at the corner of Ridge and Virgina Parkway. Other than that, I ran at a nice, easy pace. Nothing out of the ordinary on today's run. I mowed the lawn when I got home since rain is in the forecast over the next several days and the combination of sun and rain has the grass growing fast lately. Who knew? We have a wedding coming up on Saturday for our youngest, but it's later in the day and I'm hoping to get in a run that morning. Shouldn't be a problem unless it's raining. My sister is running a half in San Antonio, which sadly, I won't be able to join. Not that I'm in half-marathon shape right now anyway. Maybe later in the year.

In the Sauna

It must have sprinkled right before I left the house this morning since the streets and sidewalks were darker than normal, but not slick. They dried quickly and the air felt like soup. As I write this, at mid-afternoon, the humidity is 56% and adding ten degrees to the air temperature. When I ran, the humidity had to be at least 10% higher. The first couple of miles went okay and when I reached my turnaround point at 2.5 miles I was sweating like crazy. I saw a friend and walked with him for a half-mile before resuming my run. I went over 5.5 miles total, and I have to say that last mile I walked and ran as the spirit took me at any particular moment. The heart rate was up a little bit at that point and I decided I wasn't out to set any records, so pushing to the point of exhaustion seemed like a bad idea. Let's just say I felt like a bucket of sweat by the time I arrived home and a nap in the hammock seemed like the right thing to do. So, I did. Glad I went for a run, as usual, but it certainly felt like spending a bunch of time in a sauna.

Running Up That Hill

Have I used that title for a post before? If I have, it's been a few years and apologies for recycling it. If not, then disregard the apology. At least it's relevant. And yes, I get the Kate Bush reference in that particular title. I was a fan back in the '80s when that song first came out, several decades before Stranger Things made it a hit again. But I digress.

I ran this morning since there's rain in the forecast. Plus, it was only 70 degrees. And cloudy. With a bit of a breeze. Honestly, what better weather could you ask for on the fifth day of June? I clocked 4 miles without stopping. Yes, I even ran the big hill on Lake Forest. Slowly, but it felt all right. Cooler weather will do that to you. I thought above a five-miler, but decided I didn't want to be away from my laptop that long, so I traded the extra mile for a hill ascent. Nice day, good run.

Four in the Breeze

 Temperature this afternoon was 90 degrees with heat index of 98. At least there was a nice breeze from the south to cool me off when I ran that direction. Otherwise, I walked at each mile marker, as usual, and took it slower than normal. We had some partial clouds, maybe the harbinger of a storm later this evening. 4 miles and for the most part felt good. Tried to not push it too hard in the heat and I think I was successful in that effort. Humidity has definitely arrived and it looks like heat won't be far behind.

Nice Morning

Today's 4-miler went well. A nice day the last of May, with abundant sunshine and a bit of a breeze. I drank plenty of coffee to start off the day and had to wait until it made it through my system before heading out. The temperature was right about 80 degrees, which means I walked at each mile marker. I ran into one of my pub friends at three miles and talked with him for about ten minutes before finishing the last mile. Now it's on to some yard work and other chores on a lovely Saturday.

Second Serving

Another serving of soup today in the form of high humidity. The temperature was in the mid-80s but with lots of moisture in the air. I thought about running longer but ended up at 3 miles. The will to go farther was there at the beginning, but I felt like I was running in slow-motion. I walked at the mile markers as well as the midpoint, so not my strongest run ever. Still, as always it was good to get out and sweat. We also got some intermittent clouds along the way, which helped. I also enjoyed watching the big cranes moving air handling units on and off the roof at the high school as I passed by. It's amazing how tall those lifts are. If I was a kid I'd probably beg my mom to go sit where I could watch them for hours. As an adult, that option's still on the table.

Soupy Run

Storms came through over the weekend and left everything humid and soupy. I decided to run mid-morning rather than letting it get steamy this afternoon. 3 miles with a walk at the two-mile point, but otherwise pretty good. It felt slow, probably because I was. I certainly wasn't going to do any speedwork in these conditions. I know the rain will end soon and we'll be in the throes of summer, but I'm okay with that. At least I can count on Texas to make things interesting.

Sprinting

Well, I missed Thursday due to family obligations. Today was super-humid and I knew a run wasn't going to go well. So, I walked 2 miles, but with a wrinkle thrown in. I sprinted twice, going and coming back over the bridge on Lake Forest. It's about 250 yards and I thought, hey, let's do something different. On the second sprint I got under a 6-minute pace, which is still pretty fast for this guy. Yeah, I probably should have sucked it up for a run, but this was a nice change. At a certain point in life we stop sprinting for anything, unless it's an emergency. This was just for fun and I enjoyed it. A+, would highly recommend.

The Return

I'm back from traveling and ready to run. Gosh, I miss it when the schedule goes haywire. Went to Las Vegas and Atlanta last week. Very tiring, but mostly good. Now that I'm back in Texas, the weather cooperated and I got out for 3 miles today to get back into the swing of things. Sunny, breezy from the north, and 81 degrees. You know what that means. Walking at the mile markers. Good thing since this was a get-back-into-it type of run. Felt good and happy to be out on the paths. No future travel plans, at least for now. Which means there's no excuse for not running unless there's lightning out there. Let's see what I can do to keep going as we enter the summer months.

Managing the Days

Yep, I was able to get in a 3-mile run today before the rest of the week goes down the tubes. It's one of the rare Monday runs these days and nice weather certainly helped. Sun shining, breeze from the north, and temperature in the low 70s. Can't ask for much more than that. I mean, I could ask, but that's probably not going to get me anywhere. I'll take it, though. Over the next several days I won't be running but I'll get in plenty of walking, I'm sure. Next week I can hopefully get back on track with the running thing.

Sick

The best-laid plans and all that. Tuesday I got sick for the first time in a long while, which involved a fever and chills. It coincided with an extremely rainy day, so I probably wouldn't have gotten out anyway. Still, I'm not a fan of being sick, but then, who is? I even went to bed at 7 pm that night. The fever finally broke a few hours after midnight, but I didn't feel back to normal until a short nap Wednesday afternoon seemed to set things right. Thursday I still felt like I was in recovery, so it wasn't until today that I ran again. What a nice day! Sunny, a nice breeze, and temperature around 70 degrees. I went west for a change of pace, 4 miles total, which included walking up the big hill where the route comes up Ridge and then east on Virginia. I felt pretty good overall after the bout of sickness. Unfortunately, I know this next week's schedule is not going to be conducive to running. Hoping I can at least get out Monday.

Nice and Mild

The temperature was 62 degrees this morning when I set out for a 4-miler, sunny with a nice breeze from the north. A nice run overall, with a break about 1.5 miles in when I ran into a friend and talked for a few minutes about his recent trip to Oklahoma. On the return leg I started thinking about how this ended up being a decent running week with three outings, but about half the mileage I used to run. I consoled myself with the realization that at least I'm still running and that's a good thing. I can increase the mileage, but getting out is the main goal. I suppose it was a chance to feel bad about setting the bar lower as far as mileage, but I decided to go with the fact I'm still running and still want to run. That's what I want.

After the Rain

We got rain yesterday. A lot of rain. I'm not sure we've had that much in such a short amount of time since we've lived here the past ten years. It was probably in the range of four inches or so, which is a lot for Texas. Yesterday was trash pickup day and the neighbors' bins seemed like they were about to float away with all the water rushing down the street. One of the parks was flooded when I drove by it yesterday after the rain stopped, and when I ran today I could see water lines well above the stream and neighborhood pond along my route. Anyway, that left it nice and humid for today. I ran 3 miles, well, all of it except a couple of minutes at the two-mile mark. I've been feeling kind of fatigued lately and that's a sure sign I'm not getting enough exercise. I plan to keep going and hopefully feeling less crummy. Regardless of the rain or humidity.

Over 80

It was over 80 degrees again today and you know what that means. Or maybe you don't. It means walking at every mile marker. This helps me ease into the summer temperatures. I went 3 miles and that included the walking at the beginning and end, so really only 2.7 miles of running. Minus the other minute-long walks at the mile marks. And the big hill into the neighborhood. So, maybe 2.4 miles? Anyway, I felt a little sluggish, maybe because I woke up three times last night. I blame that on one of the dogs having the scoots in their crate and my thinking I heard a dog barking. In protest. Turns out I wasn't dreaming it, but it still made for a not-so-good night of sleep. Let's hope the week improves from here, both for the dogs and me.

Early Run

We have some obligations today, so I got up and started my 3-mile run a little after seven a.m. Not a lot of people out, but a few walkers and cyclists. The mild temperature certainly helped offset the humidity from the rains of the past few days. I enjoyed getting out before the rest of the world woke up and got busy. When I came home I ate breakfast and sat on the patio drinking coffee, while the neighborhood birds sang their little hearts out. Nice and relaxing start to the day, including the run.

Spike

The temperature spiked to the mid-80s today and with that, I walked at every mile marker as is normal when the mercury surpasses 80 degrees. I ran 3 miles and really, it wasn't too bad. A breeze from the south helped keep things manageable. I felt a bit sluggish in the last mile, maybe due to age or heat, or both. I also have to mow the lawn today, so better get to it.

Rain? Not So Much

Supposedly, we were supposed to get rain all day. Instead, it's been overcast with a distinct lack of rain. Maybe later, says the forecast. In the meantime, I went out and did 3 miles right before lunch. Seems like my foot problems are in the past, which makes me happy. I don't like having to recover from an injury when the weather is a mild as it has been the past few weeks. Oh well, you don't always get to pick the timing of these things. I felt good and was glad to get a run in today since the forecast had made it look like that wouldn't happen.

A Nice 3

Lovely day here in north Texas and I got out at lunch for a 3-miler. Light breeze and sunshine plus mild temperatures all combined to make it a good run. I enjoy days like this, knowing what it's going to be like around here in a few months. My foot pain lingers like a phantom that won't leave, but it's not getting worse. I think using the shoe inserts in my normal-wear shoes has helped. Afterward, since I was already nice and sweaty, I ran the lawnmower over a patch in the back and most of the front yard where the shade grass is already growing nicely. Looks like rain all day Saturday and into Sunday, but we'll see how accurate the forecast is in affecting my upcoming weekend run.

Give Me Three

Skipped Thursday's run due to work and a little bit of foot pain, but got out today for 3 miles. The pain is still there on the underside of my right foot. Not as bad, though. I put inserts into my daily-wear sneakers and that seems to have helped. We'll see how it feels the next few days. My heart rate hit the theoretical maximum at the end of today's run (220 minus age). As I've stated before, I'm pretty that's not exactly correct. Feels like I should have a higher max, especially when I'm in good shape. I'm not out of shape right now, exactly, but I'm also not at the top of my game. The answer? Keep running.