Running laps


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Ideally, I enjoy running one, and only, one lap. However, running is seldom ideal and occasionally we must run more than one lap. Last summer, I found my ideal running course, ideal for me, anyway. About nine miles with gently rolling hills and enough variety in scenery to keep my run interesting. I saw and greeted enough runners on this course to make me feel like I was running with someone else. This course was perfect for me! Especially since it was only one lap long!

However, during the fall, the days became shorter, and darkness covered the course much earlier than I would have liked. The first few runs of shortened daylight, I ended my run in darkness. When I lived in Chicago, this wasn’t a problem because of the streetlights. However, in Glendale Heights and Glen Ellyn, there were no streetlights anywhere except downtown. I was running in the dark. And I could barely see where I was running. I was also blinded by the headlights of oncoming cars. I had to adjust my starting time so I could finish my run by dusk when I could still see.

Then in addition to the shortened days, I also had to contend with one of the wintriest winters of my life. The first snowfall, I was able to run my usual course as the snow was fluffy and fun to run in. However, as the snow melted and refroze into ice, it became a slippery hazard, especially on the downhills. The first time I encountered an icy downhill, I re-pulled my already pulled left hamstring. I had only run about a quarter mile, but I had to limp back home at a slow trot, even slower than my already slow pace. I was able to run my course a few more times until repeated snowstorms struck. Not only was my running course dark by 4:30 P.M., but it was also at least ankle-deep in snow in ice in most places. Not everyone shoveled their sidewalks.

I was just getting into the groove of running, so I didn’t want to slow down during the winter. Before I started running this nine-mile course, I was running laps around our housing complex. Each lap was about 0.9 of a mile. I ran five laps as many times per week as my body would allow for 4.5 miles. I’m quite sure the lap was 0.9 of a mile because I measured it with my iPhone 2, my car, my Samsung Galaxy Note 2, and my car again just to confirm the distance. So, I was sure I was running 0.9 of a mile with each lap. And the reason I was running laps in our complex was that I lacked the self-confidence to go out and run on an out-and-back course. I was afraid I wouldn’t have the endurance to finish, and I would be stranded miles from home.

Anyway, once the snow and ice accumulated on my running course, I began running laps again, out of necessity. What I hate about running laps is that they’re repetitive, but because they’re repetitive, I also find comfort in running laps. Despite the snow and ice outside of our complex, snowplows cleared the street of our housing complex, and the street was salted so I had a good running surface on most days. I ran ten laps on most days last winter. I didn’t run on the coldest day of the year because my wife was told she didn’t have to go to work because of the extreme cold and so she was home to forbid me from exiting our front door. Otherwise, I would have run that day, too. Don’t get me wrong, but I enjoyed not having to brave the elements that day. Thank you, wife! Especially, for the hot chocolate you made me that day.

One thing I learned from running laps is that life is also about running laps. We do many things repeatedly in life and running. In running, it’s left foot, right foot, repeat. And I keep repeating putting one foot in front of the other until I finish running my desired distance. Or, until I can’t run any longer, for whatever reason, extreme weather, or lack of desire or endurance. In life, we repeat many things such as education: grade school, high school, college, graduate school. I have run many laps in my life, in many different areas, but it’s all repetition. I choose to enjoy the repetition of these laps because of the comfort they provide. I enjoy the comfort of life’s laps.

However, when I run, I still prefer to run only one lap!

Schedule


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In order for me to run regularly, I must schedule everything around my run. My daily run determines what time I go to bed, what time I wake up, and when I eat. All these activities revolve around my run. Since I run about nine miles per day, I must time my meals so they don’t adversely affect my run. I can’t eat a full meal and then decide to go out and run nine miles. I must prepare my body to run and fully enjoy my run.

My preferred time to run is early in the morning, usually after I wake up and drink some black coffee. With no cream or sugar, which would change my blood sugar and negatively impact my running. I know that if I eat and drink too soon before a run, I feel a little dizzy and my legs feel heavy, like lead. Running with a full stomach slows me down now, although when I was younger, I could occasionally run on a full stomach. Now, I prefer to eat dinner in the evening, have a light snack before going to bed, and then wake up in the morning early to have a cup or two of black coffee. Somehow coffee helps me run. Not only is it a stimulant, but it’s also a diuretic, which helps avoid bowel problems on the run. And you know exactly what I mean if you’re a runner. Only then, after following my morning ritual, do I feel ready to run.

Lately, I’ve decided, since I’m on summer vacation from teaching, to wake up, drink coffee, write a blog post, and then run. So far, it’s working out well. During the academic year, I usually run after school, but running in the morning is better for me because then I feel as if I have the rest of the day for myself. Working a full-time job really takes up much of my day, so I enjoy my summer vacations!

Well, I finished my coffee and this post. I’m off on my run!

DDR

Miles, not calories


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I count miles, not calories. I’m into running, not dieting. Many people are obsessed by the number of calories they eat when they should be exercising more. Now I’m not one to preach about the benefits of any form of exercise, but people always seem to know the exact number of calories I’m about to consume when I raise a soft drink to my mouth or get ready to order junk food.

Lately, people have been asking me how I lost so much weight. I dropped about thirty pounds and went from a 36-inch waist to a 32-inch waist. They’re disappointed when I tell them that I run about nine miles every day. They either don’t have time to run, or they have a back injury or bad knees that prevent them from running. I don’t have time to run, either, but I make time to run because I enjoy physical exercise and time for ruminating about my daily activities. I work out some of my daily problems and plan my day while running. When I don’t run, I feel as if I’m missing out on something vital. Yes, eat, breathe, sleep, run. They’re all very important. And just as important: reading, writing, running.

And in order to keep running, I eat fruits and vegetables every day. Every morning, I eat a banana, an apple, and an orange. I also enjoy eating a granola bar and a yogurt in the morning. I’m not happy unless I eat three pieces of fruit every day. I also eat peanuts and/or pistachios every day. I love eating peanuts and pistachios! I used to work in a peanut butter factory, and I could eat all the peanuts and/or peanut butter I wanted. And I enjoy drinking orange juice, the pulpy kind. I’m not a vegetarian or a vegan, but I like going without meat on some days. I once tried being a vegetarian, but I only lasted about a month before I began craving meat, any kind of meat. I guess deep down inside, I’m a carnivore!

My daily goals are to run as much as possible each day, or at least walk a mile or two, and eat some healthy food before I eat all the other junk food and sweets that I crave and can’t seem to live without. Overall, I feel good, but people I shocked that I run so much and by some of the things I eat. Well, I’m not here to please others. I want to enjoy my life. I can only please others or please myself. I choose me!

DDR

Form


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Very few runners think of form when running. Form is the last thing I think about when I run. However, form is what makes running easier or more difficult. Once upon a time, I focused on improving my running form. I found it exceedingly difficult. I focused on landing on the balls of my feet, keeping my body facing forward, and swinging my arms with as little motion as possible. This helped me conserve energy, which was very practical when I was training for the marathon.

When I first started running races, I noticed that my arms ached. I found it ironic that my arms would hurt while running. So, I started lifting weights to increase my upper body strength and that improved my arm motion while running. My favorite exercise was swinging dumbbells in the same motion as my arm movement while running. I started out with light weights until I could swing thirty pounds or so on each arm, I don’t remember the exact weight. Whenever I tired during a race, I would visualize how difficult it was to swing my arms swinging the weights and my running would become easier.

As far as shifting my foot strike from my heel to my forefoot, I can only do it when I focus on my foot strike. I tried when I was younger, but I always reverted to my natural form. When I feel fatigue while running, my body seems to go into some sort of protective mode that causes me to run more efficiently. If I try to focus on my running form too much, I feel as if I will not finish my run. When I’m tired and I don’t want to run another step, I focus on lifting my knees a little higher. That seems to help, but I can only do it for a half-mile or so. But it is a refreshing respite.

I have heard of runners taking classes to improve their running form. I would never take a class like that because I never entirely listened to my coaches’ advice. I would accept what seemed appealing to me and reject the rest. As far as developing form, all those high-mileage weeks developed my form more than all my other efforts to improve it. My body naturally developed an efficient form that preserved energy and protected me from injuries.

I started out by focusing on form and improving it, but now, I don’t worry about form at all and worry more about getting from point A to point B. Finishing is more important than how I got there.

DDR

Aches and pains


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I have always had aches and pains throughout my body. Perhaps it’s only one ache and/or pain that travels around in my body. Occasionally, I feel pain and/or ache in two different parts of my body. I have felt them since I was little. And I never take aspirin or pain killers for them. Enduring the pain makes me tougher. Or at least it makes me feel tougher.

Last year, after I increased my mileage, I felt a constant sharp twinge in my lower abdomen right above the crease of my right leg where my lower abdomen and leg meet. I felt the pain every morning while I awoke and when I attempted to get myself out of bed. The pain was excruciating. I felt it for about a month. I had felt this pain eight years before along with extreme back pain that made it a challenge to get out of bed. At that time, I felt as if I would die soon, but I didn’t go to the doctor. However, I could still go running because the pain would subside after about the first mile. I always feel that whatever is ailing me can’t be too serious if I can still go running.

This time, I only had the abdominal pain by itself, and the pain would subside once I was running. I would only feel the pain during the day when I thought about it. And when I laughed. Yes, it only hurt when I laughed. However, I decided to go to the doctor to make sure it wasn’t something serious since I felt the pain for about a month. I was sure I was dying of something! Well, the doctor examined me and told me he couldn’t find anything seriously wrong with me. It was most likely just a muscle strain, and that I shouldn’t worry about. Easy for him to say!

As I said before, I have always felt aches and pains my entire life. I have grown accustomed to them, and I rarely go to the doctor for them. Luckily, I haven’t seriously injured myself by running so much.  Something always hurts me when I run. And whatever hurts me usually hurts me for a year or two and then something else hurts me for a year or two. I’m not so sure these pains have anything to do with running or any other physical activity. They come and they go. I have learned to accept them.

No pain, no gain. Mind over matter. If you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter.

DDR