Because with the entire west coast on fire and the smoke heading north (here), going for an outdoor walk or run right now seems ill-advised.
I was actually not feeling that great today, a combination of allergies, smoke and who knows what else, but I figured at the very least a treadmill workout would clear my sinuses for awhile. and it did. For awhile.
I tried my Blaux portable AC thinger and it provided minimal cooling. The Vornado fan, set to High, is much more effective at keeping me cool, because moving lots of air helps more than slowly cooling all the air.
In terms of performance, it was very similar to the last workout on August 31st.
Stats:
Pace: 9:26/km (9:28 km/h)
Time: 30:05 (30:03)
Distance: 3.18 km (3.17 km)
Calories burned: 290 (300)
BPM: 138 (139)
My pace was a whopping 21 seconds slower today, as I once again struggled to get my walking pace under 9:00/km–which I finally managed by the fourth km, just before switching to running.
The first running km was over six minutes, but the second was a pretty zippy 5:35/km and I was satisfied with the fact that I was able to keep running the whole length of the trail, as it was 31ºC at the time. I was once again saved by low humidity (only 32%), the trail being mostly in the shade and the occasional breeze actually feeling a slight bit cool, almost fall-like.
The lower strain also meant a lower BPM. I actually felt pretty good overall, despite the heat.
I will probably try for another full 5K run the next time I am out. Excelsior!
Walk 9Average pace: 8:15/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 7.55 km
Time: 1:02:16
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 31ºC
Humidity: 32%
Wind: light
BPM: 122
Weight: 169.6 pounds
Total distance to date: 68.88 km
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 8
For the second day in a row, my walking pace was curiously slow, never dipping below 9:00/km on the way down the river trail. On the other hand, when I did the run back, both km that I clocked came in at very respectable times of 5:50 and 5:38 (side note: I am noticing multi-second discrepancies between what my watch reports on the fly vs. what the app on the phone later reports, with the phone usually reporting longer times. This makes no sense as the phone GPS is doing the tracking, but oh well. Software!)
In the end my overall pace was a bit slower but still respectable. It was quite warm but humidity was actually quote low, so sweating was minimal and I was able to maintain pace without any difficulty.
Based on the results, I don’t feel yesterday’s loop around the lake had any negative impact. The heel still feels no worse for wear and so far everything else is holding together.
Stats:
Walk 8Average pace: 7:54/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 7.55 km
Time: 59:40
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 28ºC
Humidity: 25%
Wind: light
BPM: 127
Weight: 171 pounds
Total distance to date: 61.33 km
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 8
The last time I ran was five days ago. The last time before that was on June 1, which was also my last run at Burnaby Lake. It had been 70 days since my previous run and I was so out of shape I had to pause the run and walk for a minute or two twice before I could finish. My pace was an incredibly slothful 6:28/km.
Today, 96 days after my last run at Burnaby Lake, I returned with new shoes, in better (but not top) shape and…did better than the previous lake run, but worse than the river run, which is to be expected, given the lake trail is much more windy and hilly (even if the hills are modest).
I ended with a pace of 6:12/km, which is slow (but still much faster than the last lake run), and I did it without stopping, though at around the 3.5 km mark I was starting to feel a bit tired. Shortly after the 4 km mark I felt what seemed to be a very small but sharp piece of gravel in my left shoe and it bit into my foot with every step. I paused at the Still Creek bridge, roughly around the 4.5 km mark, emptied the shoe, then finished the run.
It was mostly cloudy, which was nice, and despite higher humidity, the temperature was low enough to keep excessive sweating from getting excessive.
The walk to the lake was slower than my usual river walks and I think I was unconsciously holding back a little, knowing I needed enough fuel for a 5K run, plus the 9 km or so walk after. I arrived at the lake just before noon and there were people everywhere. The first two km the trail was packed–someone was always in my view ahead. The side trails gave me some respite, but even there I passed a couple.
The numbers tapered off a bit once I moved past the entrance near Piper Spit, then picked up a bit again on the Cottonwood Trail. As expected, the resurfacing of the trail is now complete, which means the entire stretch has gone from 10 million exposed tree roots to none. As a runner, this pleases me greatly. I have some concerns about the edges of the trail, as they seem a bit mushy and I suspect we’ll be seeing some notable erosion when regular rain comes in the fall, but it’s still a massive improvement overall.
After finishing the run, I was a bit pokey again on the first km heading back, but soon found enough energy to run on and off the rest of the way, probably ending with a split of 60/40 to run/walk.
The heel emerged intact and as of now, some hours later as I write this, does not feel any worse for the extended outing.
The people on the trails fell into roughly two groups:
Those who did their best to go single file or otherwise make room as I passed (pandemic-aware)
Those who made no effort at all, except to leave just enough room for me to pass
The latter group was far, far greater in number. Did I mention cases of COVID-19 have been spiking like crazy over the past month?
There was also a bonus threesome who were apparently so caught up in their own world that even when I clearly called, “Behind you!” when I was pretty close, did not react or move in anyway whatsoever.
And of course, multiple people on bikes because rules are for losers. As always, I hope all suffered flat tires midway around the lake.
On the brighter side, I saw turtles again, two of them! Seeing turtles makes me happy. I never see them in the actual turtle nesting area, though.
The only after-effects from the run right now is just being really tired. My body is clearly not used to this level of walking and running yet, but I’m getting there.
Run 650Average pace: 6:04 km (6:12/km)
Location: Brunette River Trail (Burnaby Lake, CCW)
Start: 12:01 p.m.
Distance: 5.02 km
Time: 31:05
Weather: High cloud
Temp: 21ºC
Humidity: 65%
Wind: light
BPM: 151
Weight: 172.6
Total distance to date: 4860 km
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 8
Shoes: Brooks Caldera 4 (10 km)
My original thought today was to do my first full loop around Burnaby Lake after The Heel Incident, but as I headed out I began thinking it might be too much too soon and I could have another Heel Incident or some other random part of my body could act up.
So I did my usual 7.5ish walk/run along the river. I might try the lake loop for real on Sunday.
It was warmer but less humid today, so I was faster, which I guess makes sense because humidity bad. I thought on the return back up the trail I wouldn’t be able to run the full length, but it ended up going fairly well and I beat yesterday’s pace by two seconds. My BPM was also down a bit, but the overall numbers are pretty close. I’m just glad I could keep my stamina up when it was starting to approach 30ºC.
Stats:
Walk 7Average pace: 7:42/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 7.67 km
Time: 59:03
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 28ºC
Humidity: 45%
Wind: light
BPM: 126
Weight: 172 pounds
Total distance to date: 53.78 km
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 8
It sounds like porn, but it’s true! Despite being hotter today, I actually found it cooler during the walk, especially the running part where I sweated far less. This was due to that whole “it’s not the heat, it’s the humidity” thing, as it was noticeably less muggy.
I ended up running the entire back half of the trail, which was nice. The lace on my right shoe came untied, which was less nice, but it was really my fault. I’m not used to having to tie my running shoes after using the lacing system on the Saucony shoes for so long.
Overall, I was faster, with attendant increase in BPM, but still perfectly normal for the activity.
It occurred to me today that I am now, to some degree, running every day, something I’ve never actually done in 11 years of running. I don’t know if I will ever start doing full runs every day, but I can dream of the impressive calves that would result.
Stats:
Walk 6Average pace: 7:44/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 7.58 km
Time: 58:36
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 26ºC
Humidity: 50%
Wind: light
BPM: 129
Weight: 172.6 pounds
Total distance to date: 46.11 km
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 8
The day after my first 5K in three months I was expecting to be sore/achy and all that. To my surprise and delight, I was not!
But I am still taking at least a day off before doing another 5K. A day off from running, that is, because I am still sticking to my daily 30 minute exercise minimum.
The weather was pleasantly warm, but it was also rather humid, which meant a lot of sweating and energy depletion. I didn’t run as much, but I still ran for good stretches.
My pace was 7:56/km vs. 7:43/km on the previous walk, so a bit slower, but still generally speedy.
Overall, a solid effort.
Stats:
Walk 5Average pace: 7:56/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 7.57 km
Time: 1:00:07
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 23ºC
Humidity: 59%
Wind: light
BPM: 122
Weight: 171.8 pounds
Total distance to date: 38.53 km
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 8
In a way it’s both hard yet easy to believe this is only the third time I’ve been on a run since the pandemic took hold here, which was in mid-March (about five and a half months ago).
At first, the park trails were super-crowded because everything was closed and there was nowhere else to go. I said, “Nope!” to jogging among crowds of potential virus carriers and for awhile I just avoided running outside out of that fear of catching COVID-19 (and to a lesser degree being asymptomatic and spreading it to others).
But as I continued on my daily walks and those walks began morphing into walk/runs I knew I would eventually decide to do an actual run again.
That day was today.
I had a 70 day gap between my previous two runs. This time it was an impressive three months, as my last run was on June 1–92 days ago.
That last run saw my pace drag to a slothful 6:28/km, but while I was slow today as well (the splits reveal that I really ran out of gas on the final km), my time was actually much better, due to all those daily walk/runs. Perhaps the most impressive change was my BPM. Despite three months between runs, it fell from 163 to 151.
6:04/km still ranks as Pretty Slow, though, so I am eager to see that pace improve.
Overall I felt pretty good. I felt a bit of a burn, but it was mild. I took it relatively easy, knowing that this was going to be tougher than the 2 km stretches I’d been doing lately.
Pace-wise I started out fine, then immediately saw a big drop in the second km. The next two saw my pace improve back to where I started before my energy reserves magically floated away. I did not commit to a heroic burst of speed at the end, I just keep going until my watch blissfully informed me it was all over.
The heel was fine. I mean, fine in that I can feel it, but it doesn’t hurt at all to run on. The new Caldera 4 shoes are nice so far. They are lighter than my Cascadia 12’s, yet have more cushioning and so far have done a much better job of keeping debris out.
I’m not sure when I’ll do my next run, but I suspect tomorrow will be a return to the walk/runs, as I have a feeling my legs are going to be a wee bit sore in the morning.
Below I’ve included the previous stats in brackets for comparison. I’ve omitted a few stats that aren’t especially relevant for comparison.
Run 649Average pace: 6:04 km (6:04/km)
Location: Brunette River Trail (Burnaby Lake, CCW)
Start: 4:49 p.m.
Distance: 5.02 km (5:03 km)
Time: 30:29 (32:33)
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 23ºC
Humidity: 54%
Wind: light
BPM: 151 (163)
Weight: 171.8 pounds (175.1 pounds)
Total distance to date: 4855 km
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 8
Shoes: Brooks Caldera 4 (5 km)
I opted for a nice relaxing bath instead of a walk/run after work, and dinner ran late, so it was past 9 o’clock before I could do any exercise. I debated going for a walk in the dark, but in the end I just didn’t feel up to it. Instead, I hit ye olde treadmill and did a 30 minute workout. I was a bit slow, but this was in line with how I felt. I was not really feeling it in any respect today and will be glad when the day is done.
The previous stats are from my August 20th workout.
Pace: 9:28/km (9:19 km/h)
Time: 30:05 (30:03)
Distance: 3.17 km (3.22 km)
Calories burned: 300 (293)
BPM: 139 (140)
I almost decided to do a run today, but by the time I got to the river trail, I changed my mind. But then as I walked the trail I changed my mind again and ended up with a compromise. I walked past the end of the river trail so I would have at least a clear 2 km stretch before hitting the exit to North Road. Then I started to run, and kept running until I exited the trail.
I only have one full km segment of full-on running that was tracked, but in that one km I averaged a pace of 5:26/km, which kind of shocked me, because that’s a really good pace.
The heel held up fine, though it is, as it has been, a bit sore, especially if I have ironically stayed off it for awhile.
Because of the longer stretch of running, my total average pace was down to 7:43/km. BPM was up a bit, but to be expected with the extra running. Oddly I didn’t feel overly exerted. Maybe these daily walks are actually making me more fit. Who knew! I might also have been helped by the temperature, as it was 21ºC–not exactly frigid, but also not exactly hot, either.
Stats:
Walk 4Average pace: 7:43/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 8.07 km
Time: 1:02:19
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 21ºC
Humidity: 42%
Wind: light
BPM: 130
Weight: 171.3 pounds
Total distance to date: 30.96 km
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 8
I didn’t get a good night’s sleep on Wednesday night and was still feeling some effects of this today, so my overall energy level was down a bit. Stat-wise I was still pretty close to yesterday, though. BPM was down a bit (good), pace was up a bit )less good, but still fine).
On a more positive note, I still ran a bunch of the way and did it in my new trail running shoes that showed up way earlier than expected. I was thinking I’d get them by the middle of next week, but they came today. Thank you, MEC and Canada Post!
They are the Brooks Caldera 4 and they are the lightest, springiest pair of Brooks I’ve worn. I had the laces tied too tight, but that’s easy to adjust. The cushioning and support are great, though, and I’m already looking forward to running in them again.
Stats:
Walk 3Average pace: 8:03/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 7.62 km
Time: 1:00:24
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 25ºC
Humidity: 48%
Wind: light
BPM: 125
Weight: 172.5 pounds
Total distance to date: 22.89 km
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 8
When I headed out for my post-work walk today I felt I probably wouldn’t run as much, I just wasn’t feeling it.
I ended up running more than yesterday and had a best pace of 5:50/km, even better when you consider I walked the first 25% before switching to running. Woo, I say.
Although I don’t show the comparison to the previous walk’s stats, my pace was four seconds faster, though everything else was pretty close to yesterday’s effort.
The heel seems to be surviving the abuse so far.
I am eager to get new trail runners so I can try running for even longer stretches.
Walk 2Average pace: 7:54/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Distance: 7.64 km
Time: 1:00:21
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 23ºC
Humidity: 48%
Wind: light
BPM: 128
Weight: 174 pounds
Total distance to date: 15.27 km
Devices: Apple Watch Series 5, iPhone 8
