Another 5K

The Sunday before last was my second 5K since I started running. The Hal Higdon training schedule I'm using calls for those at the end of certain weeks, and this was just one of those. I'm lucky that there are enough organized event runs on EVERY weekend around here (SoCal).

It happened to be another charity run, this one to raise money & awareness in the fight against ovarian cancer. It was held at CBS Studios in (where else?) Studio City. Candy came with me, and beyond that she run/walked the 5K, too! It wasn't organized very well, with confusion around parking, start times, and even the race route! They had volunteers trying to direct how the 10K, 5K, and 3K routes differed, but they didn't all appear well-informed themselves. I heard someone complain after the race that it was longer than 5K. I'm pretty sure that's right, since I know my pace very well by now. I should've come in at 30:00, and I finished after 36:00. No problem.

The cool part was how the route ended, sending us through the CBS studio lot, running down "New York Street" which had facade storefronts to look like a location in NYC for tv shoots (maybe movies). It had a deli, brownstones, an independent bookstore... cool! At other parts of the route we ran along internal company streets named Gunsmoke, Newhart, and Mary Tyler Moore. We saw the bungaloes where writers and producers for today's shows work during the week.

6 miles! But it wasn't easy...

The good news--the great news--is that I made my runs the rest of the week, including the increase to six miles for my big run on Sunday (this morning). In fact, even the midweek runs made a big jump to 4 miles on two workdays. So far, so good, but I'm starting to encounter some problems. Maybe not big problems, but I'm concerned.

First, there was that back spasm last week. Nothing like that has happened again, so hopefully that's behind me.

Those midweek runs are becoming much more time-consuming, which got me into work later than I'd like two days. Of course I could just get up earlier, but I'm already up at 5:30 or so. It's still too hot around here to run in the evening. I guess I just need to go to bed earlier and set that alarm.

I needed to walk during some of the 6-miler today, especially between 4-5 miles. I was just wiped out. At least I eventually recovered enough to run the last mile and a half. Since this was a weekend, I didn't get up super early, which meant by the time I was out there it was already getting hot. I had my little 8 oz water bottle which I drained during the run. Perhaps I need more? I doubt a powerbar would make a difference, though I guess that's possible. I think it's just that my training program is ramping up, and it's a struggle for me.

I bet the best thing for me to do is get back on the wagon to do my cross-training on the off days, and eat better. I've gotten pretty bad about both of these lately. A month ago I was still running greater distances all the time, but I was keeping up with the rest of the program, too (eating right & cross-training). Gotta get back to that.

-Mark

Made it!

Last night I tried the 5-miler again, and this time I made it. Same route (with the hills), just after about 36 hours of rest. I took some ibuprofen (NSAID), Candy rubbed my back, and on Sunday I spent some time in the spa with the jet working on that sore spot. Whew!