6.3km – 30:48
Tempo run a little faster than half marathon pace. Weather was nice for a change!
RunCanadaRun
My Canadian Running Adventure
Monthly Archives: December 2013
Week Three: Run 3
8.3km – 44:10
I usually hate running on a treadmill but today was pretty good! Maybe it’s the cold alternative location. Brrrrrr…
Week Three: Run 2
8.1km – 43:21
Windy, cloudy, cold… Bruce County in the winter!
Holiday motivation
The last few days have been tough to stay motivated and get my runs completed. I’ve been working nights and the weather has been less than ideal for outdoor running. I made a rule on my last training program that I DO NOT miss a scheduled run. I would guess I was around 95% successful at this. But it’s going to be much more difficult to follow this rule during the winter. The days are shorter and the weather makes me just wanna stay inside and watch TV. I already missed a run yesterday and its only week three, its going to much more difficult in week 10 when my body is tired and the weather is even more frigid. That being said, I’m going to do everything in my power to get the runs in, no matter the weather or my schedule. I’ve been using a little motivational saying “This is what champions are made of”. When I wake up at 5:30am on my day off and its cold, snowy and windy outside, I just repeat that saying in my head until I get downstairs and start to wake up. So far, it really helps me get out the door.
I find the difference between being successful or unsuccessful really comes down to a spilt second decision. It’s the one when you go to reach for the snooze button or your finished eating dinner but grab one extra helping. Once you make the decision in the right direction, the outcome seems just as satisfying as if you made the opposite choice. It’s just getting over that pivotal moment when your impulse is driving the decision-making process. The holidays are especially challenging for this in my family. Lots of good food around and everyone is in the festive spirit. I’ve gotta keep my eye on the prize and stay motivated…
Keep on moving,
JA
Week Three: Run 1
6.3km – 33:46
A good little run in -7C and 60km wind gusts my face! A character builder as some call it!
Week Two: Run 4
12.31km – 1:08:44
Slow and steady wins the race – said no Runner ever!
Ran to the edge of town and it was still dark out!
The sounds of a runner…
When I ran the Toronto Scotiabank half in the fall, I fell in love with the sounds of a big race. It was incredible the noise of thousands of feet pounding against the city streets. When the race started it was chaos; everyone was yelling and people cheering from the sidelines. Then around the 3 km mark we turned onto Bloor St, both sides of the streets were lined with war time buildings, and everyone got suddenly quiet. It was as if all at the same time, everyone realized what they had got themselves into and thought ” I better bare down and concentrate”. The sound of the feet all hitting the pavement in rhythm was mind-blowing. It was so loud that I couldn’t even hear my own foot steps to breath properly. At this moment I made the decision to really take in the sights and sounds of my runs. To listen to nature and my body making contact with the ground. To embrace the beautiful surroundings that my little town has to offer…
A lot of runners believe that you should listen to your body; breathing air in and out, your feet hitting the ground. I am reading a book called “Running with the mind of meditation by Sakyong Mipham”. It really touches on the powers of meditation and how running can be a part of your spiritual body. It really made me think about taking time to slow down, enjoy life and try to take time to just relax. I have always felt guilty for having “me time”, felt lazy and like I am wasting an opportunity to accomplish something useful. I’m tying to change this mentality and realize the importance of meditation and relaxation. Running has given me the ability to do this, because I feel as if I deserve some down time because I am putting so many hours in running.
This being said, Megan bought me some Bose ear buds that I absolutely love.
She surprised me with them the night before the race in Toronto. She is so thoughtful like that and it means the world to me that she supports me so much in my life endeavours. So with these new ear buds, I will be listening to music on some runs because its nice to just zone out on a tough runs and get lost in the music. But for the most part, Nature will be my music.
Wow, I got deep in that post!
Keep on moving,
JA
Week Two: Run 3
6.31KM – 32:16
Woke up, tossed on my gear and ran! Feeling tired!
Week Two: Run 2
6.41km – 31:32
Nap – Run – Work. Sounds like the perfect day of a shift worker!
Christmas came early
Happy Wednesday!
I guess it pays off to complain about my head being cold on my runs. My amazing wife surprised me with an early christmas present…
The Mizuno Thermo hat is amazingly warm. I went out last night and the temperature was -3C. I dressed the same as I have the last few weeks but I was cooking in this new hat. I had to ditch the hat part way through the run. I think in the future I’ll try to offset the warmth of my head with fewer layers on my body. This will be better because I’ll be able to move better and not feel as bulky once I get warmed up. I’m getting used to being cold when I set out for a run and then quickly warming up as my body gets warmed up. I am really enjoying being out running in the winter. It gets me out of the house when normally I’d be stuck inside during these cold winter nights.
There’s been a lot of Coyote sighting in Kincardine recently. Its been in the papers every week and everyone is talking about a local dog that will killed by a Coyote right in town. Its been on my mind a little when I’m out running at night. Mainly because I really want to see one and get a picture of one around town. I don’t really feel threatened or scared when I’m out alone. From what I’ve read, they are not known for attacking adults and I personally think I could scare one away if I ran into one on my travels. I guess if anything good will come out of the Coyotes being around, it will make me run faster!
I’m into week two of my training program and I’m felling pretty good. The last few days I thought I was getting sick but I think I was just tired from a busy weekend in Niagara Falls. I have officially signed up for the Marco Island Half and booked a house for a week away in Florida after the run. Now I just need to finalize flights! It’s all coming together!
Keep on moving,
JA
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