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

Blogging


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Blogging is my way of getting my say in a world that doesn’t seem to listen to me. Since I was little, I’ve always had a difficult time to get people to listen to me. Perhaps, I was never assertive enough. I know I was always shy and I was so very self-conscious of my English–and Spanish when I was in México. So, when I spoke, and very softly, no one ever noticed or people would speak right over me. I became accustomed to not participating in conversations, but I did become a very good listener.

I started blogging because I enjoy writing, whether or not anyone actually reads what I write. The writing is the most important part for me. Occasionally, people have told me that they had read my blog and I was pleasantly surprised to hear this. However, not many people have read my blog the entire time it’s been in existence.

I can write about whatever I want. And even change topics in the middle of a post. I’ve been blogging for about nine years now, including a few lapses in posting. I believe that writing a blog is very therapeutic because it allows me to vent and jump from topic to topic according to what I’m feeling. Some blog posts were easier to write than others, but once I start a post, I finish it. Amazingly, the shorter posts take longer to write; the long posts just flow out all by themselves.

Today, this post is dragging along. It must be the weather. Cloudy and rainy with the temperature in the forties. I’m hoping the rain will stop and the temperature rises a little so I can run in shorts and a t-shirt. But I will run today. In fact, I’m going out the door now.

DDR

Is it the shoes?


Is it the shoes? Yes, I really believe the shoes are the most important piece of equipment for a runner. All the other accessories are just optional. I don’t need all that fancy running clothing. Sure, they’re nice, but any old t-shirt and a pair of cutoff shorts will do. Socks are essential, but any decent pair will prevent me from blistering. I don’t really need a high-tech watch or music on the run. All I really need is a very good pair a real running shoes. And, no, I do not plan on ever running barefoot, except on the beach. I have never seen a barefoot runner in the winter running through the snow and ice. That’s difficult enough with good running shoes, especially running downhill on an icy road.

Over the years, some of my running friends have gotten injured due to not having proper running shoes. If you do any kind of  distance running, you really need to have a very good pair of running shoes in order to increase your running comfort and prevent injuries. One runner I knew, wouldn’t spend the money on a name-brand pair of running shoes and would instead buy the generic shoes that were on sale. Not only did the shoes not last very long, but he also kept getting injured. I kept telling him that all his aches and pains were due to his lack of real running shoes. Of course, he didn’t listen to me. Another runner I knew, had real running shoes, but he kept them too long. After about a year, I told him he should replace them, but he had spent a lot of money on them and he said they still looked new, which they did. I tried to explain to him that the support was no longer there because the shoe materials break down with use and time. Yes, he took care of his shoes and they looked new; unbelievably, the soles showed little wear even after a year of training for and running 10Ks. When his right knee started aching, I told him he needed new shoes. But he insisted his shoes were still “like new”. Well, after a few more months, he could barely run and even walking was painful because of his right knee. He went to the doctor and ended up getting arthroscopic surgery on his knee. Now, I’m no doctor, but I’m sure it was because of the shoes.

I have mentioned the importance of getting new shoes, but most runners won’t listen to me. Of course, I follow my own advice on running shoes. I have tried many brands of running shoes and I have enjoyed most of them, but after all these years of running, I have settled on Asics running shoes. You have to shop around and find a brand that’s good for you and you’re running style. Whenever, I start to feel pain during running in my knees or hips, I break out a new pair of shoes and the pain goes away. So far, I haven’t needed any surgery due to running. I have sprained both ankles while running, but that had nothing to do with the running shoes. When I first met my wife Beata, she was surprised when I switched to a new pair of running shoes. She thought I was wasting money by buying new shoes when my old shoes still looked new. I explained my reasoning to her, but I don’t think I truly convinced her.

Even as I write this, I have three pairs of brand-new Asics Kayano 19 in closet just waiting for me to take them out on a run.