I stretched my walk today to allow for a full 2 km run along the river trail and posted some pretty good times:
1 km: 5:36/km 2 km: 5:30/km
All while maintaining a BPM of under 150.
The achiness in my legs isn’t completely gone, but it’s mostly gone, so I was able to start running without the same discomfort as yesterday.
A pall of smoke from forest fires is thick over the area today, but the river trail wasn’t that bad, otherwise I may have skipped the running.
Again, it felt good to get out, and today I was able to appreciate the more Zen-like aspects of running, which was nice.
Tomorrow I am planning to do a 5K and if it goes well, I’ll go back to my usual 10K run on Friday. We will see.
Here’s a shot of the Brunette River, from the bridge on North Road, about 2.5 hours before sunset. You can see the smoke haze in the distance.
Stats:
Walk 91Average pace: 7:57/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 7.75 km
Time: 61:43
Weather: Sun and high cloud/smoke
Temp: 19 °C
Humidity: 64%
Wind: light
BPM: 120
Weight: 160.2 pounds
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 12
Total distance to date: 686.1 km
My legs have been mysteriously achy over the last few days. The last time this happened, I was told to take Tylenol or Advil and stop bothering people in the medical profession. Today would have been a run day, but due to the achiness I opt to just do a walk with some running mixed in. My first tentative attempts at the running part do not go well, as the very upper parts of my legs hurt enough to inhibit moving at a pace faster than a brisk walk. So I walk briskly.
I continue this, but keep trying to run periodically, and gradually the ache fades, until I am able to actually get a decent run going, bringing my overall pace down to 8:15/km.
Later, while preparing dinner, my legs were relatively fine, but my lower back really started hurting. Bad posture? Bad karma? Old? I do not know.
It was nice to get out, though. The weather was a bit smoky, due to regional forest fires, but it was very mild, and the forecast suggests two more days of pseudo-summer before seasonal temperatures and actual precipitation return.
Here’s a shot of the work they’re doing in Lower Hume Park, which I walk through on the way to and from my runs/walks. As you can see, they are planting trees a-plenty as part of a plan to return this section of park to a more natural state. It was previously just lawn.
Trees, trees, trees
Stats:
Walk 90Average pace: 8:15/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 7.43 km
Time: 62:56
Weather: Sun and high cloud
Temp: 18 °C
Humidity: 68%
Wind: light
BPM: 122
Weight: 158.4 pounds
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 12
Total distance to date: 678.35 km
I picked up my new trail runners today and this afternoon, lacking time for a full run, gave them a test on a shorter walk on the river trail. The run part was a little under 2 km, with one km coming in at a peppy 5.38/km.
The shoes are Peregrine 12s, and the last time I had Peregrines (version 9) they were heavy enough that I eventually demoted them to walking shoes. These are considerably lighter, have normal-length laces (compared to the weirdly long laces of the Brooks Caldera 5), fit nicely and have cushioning I would describe as neutral vs the Brooks, which skewed slightly toward cushy. They offer more support than the Switchbacks, though I miss the Switchback’s lacing system.
Overall, the new shoes check out fine. The walk itself started out a bit sluggish, partly from the malaise of a multi-day headache, but the running portion made up for it.
The weather was sunny and warm again.
No nice picture of the river today, though. Sorry!
Stats:
Walk 89Average pace: 8:41/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 5.68 km
Time: 49:20
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 21 °C
Humidity: 59%
Wind: light
BPM: 119
Weight: 158.7 pounds
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 12
Total distance to date: 670.92 km
After yesterday’s unwelcome headachepalooza, I scaled back my original plan for a 5K run today and instead did a brisk 7.40 km walk, with minimal running. It was sunny and pleasantly warm, as it has been pretty consistently for the last three months. BUT the 10-day forecast now suggests the possibility of precipitation by the 20th, so our weirdly long dry spell may at last be coming to an end.
Here’s a shot of the Brunette River I took from a spot I normally don’t visit. I could have gone in more, but that would have been clambering over rocks, and I was not in a clambering mood. Still, you can once again see how low the water is.
Stats:
Walk 88Average pace: 9:13/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 7.40 km
Time: 68:16
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 21 °C
Humidity: 59%
Wind: light
BPM: 108
Weight: 158.5 pounds
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 12
Total distance to date: 665.24 km
Nine days since my last official™ walk, and it only got up to 18C while I was out–which is still above normal.
For whatever reason, I was feeling peppy (maybe listening to music helped) and had a pretty good walking pace. I didn’t really run, nor had I planned to, other than a brief sprint here and there. It was nice. The sun was warm. A lot of trees are still looking pretty green, probably thinking it’s still summer, because it effectively still is.
I ended up walking to the lake because nature called, and the Jiffy John had the answer.
I took a few photos while out and aboot. Here’s one of the little pond they added as part of the 2012 restoration project along the Brunette River:
Stats (I broke the walk into two parts because I goofed around at the lake for a bit):
Walk 86Average pace: 9:10/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 4.31 km
Time: 39:30
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 16 °C
Humidity: 65%
Wind: light
BPM: 111
Weight: 158.8 pounds
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 12
Total distance to date: 653.44 km
Walk 87Average pace: 8:53/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 4.40 km
Time: 39:09
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 18 °C
Humidity: 62%
Wind: light
BPM: 114
Weight: 158.8 pounds
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 12
Total distance to date: 657.84 km
The rational part of my brain knows it can be pleasant and sunny in early October, but the silly part of my brain still has trouble wrapping around how summer seems to be continuing to roll along. It got up to 25C today (this will end up being a record) and was officially 23C for my early afternoon walk (with a very minor bit of running).
For the second half of the walk I listened to Monster and as is often the case my pace improved as I rocked out in my head. Overall it was nice to get out, and I paused a few times to take pictures of the disturbingly low river (we’ll be passing the salmon up in a bucket brigade to help them spawn if the dry weather continues on much longer). The FIRE DANGER signs, removed a week ago after a sprinkle, are back in place.
The photo below shows just how low the water is–I could easily walk across to the other side of the river–and the other side usually has no shoreline at all. So while it was a beautiful day for a walk, it also felt a tiny bit unsettling.
A dribble of water flows through it
Stats:
Walk 85Average pace: 9:15/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 8.08 km
Time: 74:45
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 23 °C
Humidity: 57%
Wind: light
BPM: 106
Weight: 157.3 pounds
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 12
Total distance to date: 649.13 km
I wore my long-sleeve Nike shirt today as there had been actual, if slight, precipitation in the morning. And indeed, as I headed out, the sky looked very gray, holding the promise of more to come.
The sullen sky meant the river trail was gloriously quiet–not a single dog owner in sight! In fact, I only saw two people in total, one walking down and one when I turned around and walked back.
I also popped over to the lake, walking up to the turtle nesting area, and saw not a single person while there. It was weird and kind of nice. Quiet. Peaceful.
Unlike my condo. 😛
A couple of oddities, possibly related to the watchOS 9 update? My distance at 8.03 seems a bit low. Based on my route, I was expecting something closer to 8.5 km. This will bear watching (no pun intended). Also, my pace and BPM seem a bit out of whack, with the BPM being higher than what I would expect given the pace (I only ran for a few moments). Perhaps the cooler temperature and rainy conditions made my body work slightly harder. Perhaps I’m not used to this after months of insane heat and humidity!
I shall learn more when I run tomorrow under what looks to be similar weather conditions.
Stats:
Walk 84Average pace: 9:22/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 8.03 km
Time: 75:14
Weather: Cloudy with drizzle
Temp: 17 °C
Humidity: 76%
Wind: light
BPM: 111
Weight: 159.6 pounds
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 12
Total distance to date: 641.05 km
With the high today forecast to be 30 or 31C, I decided to duck out in the morning to get a walk in before it got Africa Hot. As I walked down the river trail, a crazy thought entered my mind: What if I went to the lake…and then walked all the way around it?
I just ran at the lake yesterday and had over 31,000 steps, so today would have been a good day to rest, but I followed that crazy thought and did a complete loop around the lake, pausing occasionally to take photos here and there. The total distance was 18.7 km, and it took me 2 hours and 53 minutes to complete. By the end, I was definitely glad to be off my feet, but I’m also glad I gave in to the impulse and did it. Although it was quite warm, the humidity was actually closer to normal. On the negative side, the taste of smoke was in the air, likely carried in from a forest fire in the Fraser Valley (you can see the smoke haze in the shots I took, which I will put in a separate post).
The only real running I did was for about 30 seconds, to put some space between myself and a pair of people walking behind me, one of whom was carrying on their part of the conversation at maximum volume for reasons unknown to me.
Tomorrow: I’m going birding at Reifel, so there will be walking, but no Mega-Walking™.
One shot, from the viewing tower just west of Piper Spit, showing the smoke haze:
Smoke on the water
Stats:
Walk 83Average pace: 9:16/km
Location: Burnaby Lake and Brunette River trail
Distance: 18.70 km
Time: 2:53:10
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 24-29C
Humidity: 21-34%
Wind: light
BPM: 102
Weight: 160.2 pounds
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 12
Total distance to date: 633.02 km
Today is normally a run day, but I did some stuff in the morning, then watched the long and utterly surprise-free Apple “Far Out” event, then decided I should do some kind of physical activity, so off to the river trail I went!
There was a bit of a breeze blowing, which is unusual for this summer, and both temperature and humidity were reasonable. It felt odd!
I walked to the lake (to use the loo), and snapped a few photos before heading back. Upon return to the river trail, I ran for two km, turning in brisk paces of 5:23/km and 5:33/km respectively. This is what I can do on a wide, unobstructed path when the weather isn’t actively trying to kill me.
As I neared the end of the trail, I spied a dog standing and facing toward the traffic of North Road. It had an aspect of “How will I get across without getting smooshed?” about it. I also recognized a moment later that it was not a dog and was a tan-colored coyote. I debated taking some photos, but it was directly blocking my way off the trail, with no real way to go around, so instead I waved my hands over my head, started talking loudly to it and waited. It turned toward me, seemed uncertain, then I took a step forward, to show I was the alpha male or something (which was dumb, in retrospect, but I was getting impatient). It eventually decided I was a bother and headed off into the brush, albeit reluctantly. It stood not too far in and watched as I passed, no doubt keen on returning to ponder crossing the road again.
I also saw a young, fit-looking woman who seemed dressed for a workout smoking within sight of the FIRE DANGER – NO SMOKING sign. Again, this is the only time I EVER see people smoking–when the signs go up during summer expressly banning it. I have no explanation other than a) fantastic coincidence, b) pointless acts of rebellion because “no sign is the boss of me!”
Anyway, it was nice and I was happy to get out.
Here’s a shot from Cariboo Dam, showing the water all ripply and stuff from the breeze.
Stats:
Walk 83Average pace: 8:05/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 8.68 km
Time: 70:10
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 21ºC
Humidity: 54%
Wind: light to moderate
BPM: 122
Weight: 159.7 pounds
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 12
Total distance to date: 614.32 km
I have seemingly fallen into the habit of doing a river trail walk on non-run days. They take about 70-80 minutes and provide a nice calorie burn, plus scenery, so I’m enjoying them for now, despite the heat and humidity.
It was again very humid. And hot. I sweated a lot, even though I didn’t do much actual running.
As an experiment, I played music on the way back to see if it would make me move faster, and I think it did! The brain is funny.
But one of the songs that came up was “I Wanna Marry You” from Bruce Springsteen’s 1979 album The River, and hearing him repeatedly sing “Little girl, I wanna marry you” in that husky voice of his is pretty creepy, really.
Now imagine subbing “little boy” for every song that uses “little girl.” Creepier still!
Overall, a nice walk on a hot, sticky day. I did avoid the side of Fader Street with the Bad Dog, but it was nowhere in sight. Still, I’m not ready to be lunged at again.
Stats:
Walk 82Average pace: 9:00/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 8.71 km
Time: 78:23
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 28-30ºC
Humidity: 49%
Wind: light
BPM: 108
Weight: 160.4 pounds
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 12
Total distance to date: 605.64 km
Conditions were nearly identical today for the walk, though some high cloud helped shield the sun. I skipped sunblock and did not burn, woo.
I felt a little more spry today, though I can’t really say why, because in the morning I was utterly unenthused about doing any kind of exercise, then found myself running off/on enough to bring my average pace down to a zippy 9:00/km even.
I extended my walk to the lake, and it totally had nothing to do with having to use the port-o-potty there. Coincidentally, just before stepping into the port-o-potty, I walked past several girls and thought to myself, “I bet one of them tries the door, even though they probably saw me go in.” And then it happened, like it was one of those really bad episodes of The Twilight Zone that feature port-o-potties.
But the real capper came early, when I walked down Fader Street at the start and past The House With the Dog That Acts Like It Wants to Kill Me. After Friday’s run, this medium-large dog was being escorted on leash down the walk of its home when I trundled by on the sidewalk. Upon seeing me, it lunged, growling and showing teeth, because it is a Bad Dog with Very Bad Owners.
Today, as I was heading down the same block of Fader, I saw a guy with a hipster beard with the dog. There was more distance this time, so I slowed and watched as they crossed the street to a car. I assumed they were going for a drive, but apparently Jack Dorsey Jr. was just checking to see if it was locked or something, so they turned and came back, walking almost directly toward me. When the dog saw me, it again lunged. I did a melodramatic sprint to create more space just in case the leash played out more than expected, then stood there on the sidewalk, somewhat dumbfounded that this had happened again. Beardy guy and Bad Dog headed down Fader in the opposite direction. The guy never said anything or acknowledged me in any way. I still stood there, watching him.
He crossed the intersection and at one point glanced back to see me looking at him. He walked farther until we were about a full block apart, then turned around again, this time coming to a full stop to briefly stare back at me. I then turned and continued on my way.
Now I am contemplating calling the city to have them check out the dog (but really, to check out the dog owners, because it’s not the dog’s fault it acts like a barely-restrained killing machine). In the meantime, I’ll be avoiding that side of Fader Street when I go for runs or walks, now that I no longer feel safe strolling through my own neighborhood.
But the walk went well otherwise!
Stats:
Walk 81Average pace: 9:00/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 9.13 km
Time: 82:13
Weather: Sunny with high cloud
Temp: 25ºC
Humidity: 51%
Wind: light
BPM: 114
Weight: 160.8 pounds
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 12
Total distance to date: 596.93 km
The combo of heat/humidity was not making my socks roll up and down in delight this morning, so I decided to postpone my Monday run and do a walk on the river trail instead.
Weirdly, my pace was identical to my last walk–9:12/km. It was still warm and felt warmer due to the H-word, but it was okay otherwise.
I did stop a few times to take some photos, which may be technically cheating, but I can live with that. More significantly, when I completed my move ring on the Fitness app, it extended my move streak to 365 days–an entire year. Go me! Literally!
A moving experience (ho ho)
There may be some cloud cover tomorrow morning, so perhaps I’ll try running then. Perhaps!
Stats:
Walk 80Average pace: 9:12/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 8.29 km
Time: 76:16
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 25ºC
Humidity: 55%
Wind: light
BPM: 103
Weight: 161.7 pounds
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 12
Total distance to date: 587.80 km
