Because it’s not nearly geeky enough that I train and measure my running using the metric system, I think I should take matters a step further. Rather than saying that I ran 7.5 km/h, I should say that I ran 2.0833333 m/s.
Or even worse, when asked how fast I’m running, I should declare that it depends on your frame of reference.
Technorati Tags: Metric System (SI Units), Geek, Running
I’ve been getting a lot of questions and response out in the real world about mentions here in the ChangeLog that I’m running. In an attempt to fill everyone in, yes, I am running. I’m actually following this Couch-to-5K program, and it’s working beautifully for me. I’m currently in week 7 of the program, so I’m actually to the point where I’m just running without walk breaks interspersed. Because I started the program before I got my GPS Watch, I’m still running by time rather than distance. Once I reach the end of the program, my current intent is to move to work on my speed a bit and switch over to using distance as a measure. Right now, I’m running a bit slower than the program seems to anticipate based on their time estimates for the distances involved. I’m going about 7.5-8.0 km/h (4.5-5.0 MPH), and they seem to expect 9.6 km/h (6 MPH). I’m cutting myself a lot of slack though because I’m running on somewhat hilly terrain at times, and I currently weigh 106-ish kg (about 235 pounds).
Are you training for anything specific?
I didn’t start with the idea of training for any specific race. I got out and started running because I needed a way to incorporate cardiovascular exercise into my long-term health program. I have walked in the past, but the notion of running as a compact, quick exercise that got me back to the computer and my Nintendo DS faster really appealed to me. About a month into the program, one of my running co-worker’s convinced me to sign up a fun run and a 5K in October. While working through The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, I’ve determined that one of my long-term goals is to complete a marathon by the time I’m thirty.
A marathon? Are you nuts?
Yes, of course I’m crazy. I’ve been telling all of you this for years. Nonetheless, I assure you that, based on everything I’ve read, anyone can complete a marathon if they’re willing to put the training time in. Again, the marathon is a long-term goal. That’s where I’m headed, and I’m currently twenty-seven. I don’t even get to beginning training for such an event until I have a year or so of running experience under my belt. That’s my rule.
How are you getting enough protein with your vegan diet?
I eat food with protein in it. Like brown rice and whole grain bread. Like tofu. Like beans. Like nuts. People, chant this with me. Make it your personal mantra. Vegans have no trouble getting enough protein. I track all of my food every day. I get more than enough protein, over 200% of my RDA for iron, over 125% of my RDA for calcium, and so much supplemented and enriched B12 that I don’t even bother to track it anymore.
Why are you running?
I expounded a bit on the issue of why I’m running in this post. The easy answer is that I just am. I rarely know why I get determined to do the things I do, but once I’m determined, I make things happen. The reasons primarily revolve around my health, but there’s also a healthy dose of proving to myself that I can. I’m certainly losing a lot of weight (0.7-ish kg/week) even while eating a very healthy amount of calories (2000-2200 kcal/day).
Technorati Tags: Vegetarian, Vegan, Nutrition, Running
I’ve recently taken up running, and since Allyson isn’t really up for running directly after work, I’m doing my running alone and at my own pace. The solitude has encouraged me to take my iPod with me on most runs, and I’m quickly discovering that my Mix List isn’t always the most appropriate choice for running.
Nearly anything by Morrissey, The Cure, The Mountain Goats, and The Smiths will make me pay more attention to the music than my run, and I can see the difference in my speed. In contrast, punk and hardcore tends to make me run too fast. Unless I’m trying to do some speed work, Minor Threat is a major no-no.
Thus far, I’ve had the best success with electronic music. I find that most anything by The Cruxshadows and MC Plus+ can really get me going for exercise, and while I haven’t tried it during my recent return to running, I used to really enjoy listening to Rollins Band during my high school workouts. Trance mixes with the same BPM make sure that my pace stays nice and even.
While listening to music doesn’t seem to affect my overall performance, it certainly helps my perception of how hard or easy a run is. If I have my iPod, I don’t spend nearly as much time watching the minutes tick by on my watch, and I actually approach a state that might be regarded as “having fun”. Which is actually pretty sick when you consider the stress I’m putting on my typically sedentary/comatose body.
Running is not without its hazards. When most people ponder running injuries, they tend to conjure images of shin splints, blisters, and maybe even the occasional scrape from a fall. What most non-runners and even most female runners don’t know about is the dreaded nipple chafing or “runner’s nipple”.
Nipple chafing is caused when the fragile point of your useless male nipples repeatedly rubs against the loose fabric of your shirt. For most women this isn’t a problem because they’re almost inevitably wearing a confining sports bra that holds the gals so rigidly in place that you might mistake them for a guard at Buckinham Palace. The scary thing is that, unless it’s really bad, you probably won’t even notice the chafing until after your run—either when your salty sweat-soaked shirt rests on them for the first time or when you step into a hot post-run shower.
I can assure you that you really don’t want this most intimate of chafing, and thankfully it is possible to reduce the risk of this terrible blight. Just follow these easy steps.
Yesterday, I received my latest Amazon order in the mail, and I’m now the owner of the coolest watch in the world. To help me geek out my running, I picked up a Timex 100-lap Ironman Triathlon Speed+Distance Watch (Model T52832) that has an accompanying GPS transceiver that allows me to know at any given moment:
In addition, it also automatically sets itself to the (highly accurate) time used by the satellites themselves. My new watch will enable me to see improvements to my pace as I train for my upcoming races and will also allow me to run for distance even when I don’t have access to the track.
In truth, I bought this watch because I know myself. I’m a geek that borders on being a nerd. If I can measure or tinker with something, I’m far more likely to do an activity. I watch my weight loss and blood pressure because I get to put numbers into a spreadsheet and run statistical analysis on them. Being able to play with GPS equipment and quantify my performance will help reinforce running as an activity that I would like to do.
Technorati Tags: Technology, Geek, Running, Gadgets, Timex
Yesterday, during one of those torrential downpours that only happen when you live in peninsular and swampy Florida, I went out running. This wasn’t a logical course of action really, but of course, I’m hardly a logical creature. I went running because Wednesday is a running day. And I don’t skip running days. I’ve got the chafing and the muscle soreness to prove it.
I’m not really sure why I’m running. Allyson has asked me as much several times recently. I’m running because I’m running. There are a thousand subverbal reasons that I don’t even properly know even as I’m acting on them. I don’t like running, or at least I haven’t historically. I used to run in high school, and I hated every sweaty step. Nonetheless, I’m out there running around campus every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for my 5K training program. I’m running because I want to prove to myself that I really can. I’m running because I’d like to play football with my kids someday. I’m running because I’d like increased odds of living longer so that I can program more code, write more articles, play more video games, and have more sex. I’m running because I wanted one of those geeky GPS running watches. I’m running because it makes losing weight that much easier. All of these and none of these explain why. I’m running because I’m running. No one—even me—really enters into it.
I have a history of acting on intuition, that vague feeling that tells me that I know more than I understand logically. This is one of those times.
I’ve made a determination about the status of my weight loss regimen. I have started depending on exercise for weight loss, and this isn’t an acceptable place for me to be. In an ideal world, I would keep my calorie count down low enough that I would still be losing weight even if I never walked even a meter. This is when I’m at my dieting best because when I wake up feeling like I did this morning, it’s nice to know that even with a lack of exercise, I still won’t be above my trend line. Any calorie loss from exercise should be an expected bonus. I haven’t exercised for a number of days this week because of illness and then my wedding anniversary. I’ve been hovering dangerously close to my trend line this week, and then this morning, after an evening of chocolate spoon cake and homemade scones, I was going to be above my trend line if I didn’t go exercising. I should never be in this situation again.
To recap, I was going to weigh too much if I didn’t do something, and I didn’t feel like doing any sort of exercising at all. So what did I do? I went running. I ran for around 3 km—3.2 km with four breaks of 50 m speed walking to catch my breath. There were several points when I wanted to just stop, lay in the ditch, and cry in a pool of my own salty sweat, but for every time I felt like this, I made myself run another 50 m beyond what I had intended. This wasn’t the calm mental determination of a buddha. This was combined confession and atonement with a catholic guilt glaze. The whole while this little logical voice just kept saying, “Wouldn’t it be easier to just avoid eating like a dumbass?”
My oblique strategy of the day (which I just looked at) was “Take a break.” This is situational irony.
All content is copyright Rusty Haskell unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. Stealing is naughty.