pseudo-jogging update

Dark running

Or to be more precise, no running.

The last time I ran it was getting downright gloomy by the end of the run. I was then felled for two weeks by an especially stubborn cold. Now that I am recovered the days have grown so short that the sun is setting before I can even head out for a run.

This presents a dilemma because I do not have built-in night vision and even if I did I’d probably get chased by vampires out there in the dark, anyway.

My options for running now are:

  • run around the golf course during lunch. This is a so-so option because I’m not crazy about the route, it cuts into my lunch, I’d have to figure out some way of having a shower afterward (because most days it’s going to be wet) and did I mention I’m not crazy about the route? Because I am not.
  • run on a treadmill at a place like the Canada Games Pool, which, despite the name, does indeed have treadmills. I’ve done this before and I’m even less enthusiastic about running on a treadmill than I am about running around the gold course. It feels weird and unnatural.
  • run at a location that has artificial lighting. First I’d have to find one and second it would need to be close enough to be practical. I don’t want to spend half the evening just getting to the place and back. This would also likely mean running at a track, not exactly a thrilling activity but sometimes you gotta takes what you can get.
  • don’t run. This carries the explicit danger of replacing running with eating, specifically with eating delicious in-season shortbread. I do not want to go from a runner’s physique to a shortbread physique.
  • some other magical solution that I haven’t thought of yet.

I must ponder. In the meantime I will probably miss runs this week, but should at least head out for a weekend run on Sunday, unless there are bears again.

Remembering my calves

Don’t worry, I still have my calves. They’re right where they should be–above my ankles and below my knees. I am remembering them in particular due to my first trip to the gym last Wednesday. My partner and I headed over to the Canada Games Pool here in New Westminster to do a basic cardio workout that would not stress my Achilles tendon but would help get my flabby self back in shape before I resume my runs.

The pool has a full-featured gym so I paid $48 for a 10-pack of visits and in return got a shiny ID card with requisite horrible photo that could be scanned upon entry. I did my first scan and was set.

The gym area was surprisingly busy but we managed to find a pair of free ellipticals next to each other. Jeff also found a nice young instructor named Ryan who went over the basics of using the machine, as I had never been on one before. It seemed pretty straightforward. I got on, started the timer and began a 25 minute workout. I raised the tension up a bit to 3 (from 1) and reduced the incline down to 3 (from some value I can’t recall). This was done to better simulate a cross-country run instead of a jog up the side of a cliff. Within five minutes my calves were aflame. This is why you exercise regularly, to avoid your muscles crying out in horror at what you are doing to them. Fortunately they warmed up quickly and were fine the next day. I experienced a bit of minor soreness in my upper leg muscles but that was all. Given that my last run was in mid-November I consider this a rousing success.

I opted for only 20 minutes of workout instead of the full 25, not wanting to max it out the first night. I burned 173 calories–enough to take care of the ice cream I’d had for dessert earlier. I burned a few more when Jeff and I played a few rounds of ping pong, shot some hoops and then sweated in the whirlpool. In all it was actually kind of fun and I’m looking forward to our next trip. I may bring my iPod along for the elliptical part, though. It will distract me from constantly looking at the timer counting down, the analogy for which is indeed a watched pot that never boils.