5K

My watch warned me I might feel more tired and irritable today and it was right on both counts!

After spending most of the morning being irritated, I finally headed to the lake to do a run, intending on a more mild effort to start the week. It turns out I didn’t even need to plan for this, it just happened, because I was very low energy. I picked up the pace to break the six-minute mark in the final km, but overall felt decidedly meh. I didn’t experience any other issues, though.

The weather was fine, though my later start meant it was a few degrees warmer, which may have had a bit of a drag effect on my pace, too.

Also, this is kind of weird: Both today and Friday’s runs (in two different locations) began at the same time, 11:36 a.m. I’m not sure it means anything, other than I should get out earlier.

During the run I saw a fair number of other joggers, including a topless one at the start (no armband, though), and none I recognized. I also saw two snakes, one during the run and one after:

But the highlight, so to speak, was: I finally saw a coyote (they have had signs up all summer warning about increased coyote activity but I had yet to see one). And I actually walked right past it, close enough to reach out and pet it, without even noticing it. As I passed, I caught movement in the corner of my eye and there it was in the grass, intent on…something. It looked up at me for a moment, then went back to whatever it was doing. As you can see in this not-great photo, it had a handsome gray coat of fur:

In all, for the final day of summer and my first post-birthday run, it was fine. Perhaps I’ll have more pep on Wednesday.

Stats:

Run 1,067
Average pace: 6:05/km
Training status: Productive
Performance Condition: -2
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Start: 11:36 a.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 30:34
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 18–19°C
Humidity: 69–64%
Wind: light
BPM: 149
Weight: 172.9 pounds
Total distance to date: 7,140 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, Samsung Galaxy S26, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Scarpa Golden Gate ATR 2 (120/257/377)

Music: Shuffle play

The weather turned out to be a bit warmer than expected, with a projected high of 24°C, so I was lucky to get out early. It was 17 at the start of the run and ticked up to 18, so a bit warmer than Monday, with humidity roughly the same.

The sun is now lower in the morning, so I am seeing a lot more of the dappled sun thing when going under the tree canopy–gotta watch for those tricky exposed tree roots in the shade, though there’s only a few right now. But it only takes one, as I found out back in 2016.

The shaded areas felt pleasantly cool and in this last week of summer, the sunny stretches did not feel too warm–and it was quite sunny, blue sky stretching to the horizon.

I went clockwise and got off to a slow start, partly thanks to some people crowding the trail near the start, but also because I just didn’t move that fast. The opening pace of 6:13/km pretty much doomed me to an overall pace over the six-minute mark (and it was at 6:05/km), but it’s fine. I felt good and didn’t really push, though my pace did improve as I progressed, and the final lap dipped under six minutes, to 5:58/km.

In all, a cromulent midweek effort.

Also: The stiff left knee is mostly better now and as before, did not present any issue on the run.

Stats:

Run 1,065
Average pace: 6:05/km
Training status: Productive
Performance Condition: +2
Location: Burnaby Lake (CW)
Start: 9:58 a.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 30:40
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 17–18°C
Humidity: 75–66%
Wind: light
BPM: 150
Weight: 172.0 pounds
Total distance to date: 7,130 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, Samsung Galaxy S26, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Scarpa Golden Gate ATR 2 (110/240/350)

Music: About Face, David Gilmour

As the kids would say.

With three days since my last run and the left knee feeling stiff after possibly twisting it while sleeping (?!), I opted to take it easy (don’t sue me, Don Henley!) and ended with a pace of 6:10/km, which is fine. Conditions were similar to Monday, but my BPM was up at a bit at 150, maybe just a bit flabby or something.

I did have six geese fly over me as I crossed the bridge at Deer Lake Brook. I’m not sure if that’s lucky or not. They didn’t poop on me, so maybe lucky.

I also had to avoid a riding mower, a parks truck, and a putt-putt car. The trail was busy, but not with people. I did not see any regular runners, but one guy running the opposite direction had BO strong enough to knock down an elephant. It hit me about a second after I passed him. I don’t want to know what he had for breakfast.

In all, a perfectly decent way to end the week. The knee survived and I remain on track.

Run 1,063
Average pace: 6:10/km
Training status: Productive
Performance Condition: -1
Location: Burnaby Lake (CW)
Start: 9:37 a.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 31:00
Weather: Cloudy, some sun
Temp: 15–16°C
Humidity: 76–73%
Wind: light
BPM: 150
Weight: 171.9 pounds
Total distance to date: 7,120 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, Samsung Galaxy S26, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Scarpa Golden Gate ATR 2 (100/223/323)

Music: Savage, Eurythmics

It’s Labour Day and despite the cloudy skies and threat of rain, the trail was reasonably packed, with joggers, families, and others out and aboot.

And it was fine! Around 10 minutes into the run it started to drizzle and it persisted for about as long, so everyone out enjoying nature got slightly damp, including me. This was also fine.

I started out with a pace a little over the six-minute mark, second km was a bit faster and the rest were under, bringing my overall pace to 5:53/km, just edging my performance on Friday, though with an even lower BPM of 147. My final km was 5:33/km, my fastest lap post-surgery (noting it, as I don’t run for speed, but it’s nice to see I still have some oomph).

The runner with the weird armband was out again, still shirtless. He has a very neutral expression when he runs. Probably so people don’t notice the weird armband.

Conditions were very similar to Friday, and this helped produce a similar effort, which was better than I expected. Overall, a good start to the week.

Stats:

Run 1,062
Average pace: 5:53/km
Training status: Productive
Performance Condition: 0
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Start: 12:01 p.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 29:36
Weather: Cloudy, some drizzle
Temp: 16–17°C
Humidity: 77–73%
Wind: light
BPM: 147
Weight: 170.8 pounds
Total distance to date: 7,115 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, Samsung Galaxy S26, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Scarpa Golden Gate ATR 2 (95/210/305)

Music: Discovery, ELO

I headed out a bit later than normal, but with the sky cloudy and temperatures cooler, I wasn’t overly concerned.

And it turned out the conditions were ideal for me to put in my best post-surgery run yet, making it the first time since mid-May that I broke the six-minute mark, coming in with an average of 5:54/km. My BPM was only slightly higher at 150 and never went higher than 155, an indication of how better weather is a mercy when running.

It was a more technical run, in that I was constantly having to dart around slugs. They were copious.

I saw a few old regular runners, including Hang Dog (he seemed to have more spring in his step than usual) and Very Old Guy with a Slight Limp, who always stares resolutely ahead while running (at a decent pace).

I didn’t experience any issues and my main focus, after breaking the six-minute mark on the second km, was to maintain or improve my pace for the rest of the run. When I hit 5:45/km at the 4K mark, I had breathing room, but still nicked off one more second before the end. It felt good to finally get back to the form I had.

This may all come undone if it’s hot and sunny on the next run, but for now I will bask in the small glory of today.

Stats:

Run 1,061
Average pace: 5:54/km
Training status: Productive
Performance Condition: 0
Location: Burnaby Lake (CW)
Start: 11:28 a.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 29:44
Weather: Cloudy
Temp: 16°C
Humidity: 73–71%
Wind: light
BPM: 150
Weight: 170.4 pounds
Total distance to date: 7,110 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, Samsung Galaxy S26, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Scarpa Golden Gate ATR 2 (90/197/287)

Music: Xanadu soundtrack (less groovy)

Today’s goal was pretty simple: Beat the rain. Not that I’m afraid of melting or anything, I just prefer to run when it’s not raining, mostly because I wear glasses and they do not have little windshield wipers on them.

The forecast on the phone and the PC both agreed on showers, but disagreed on when. I decided the safest plan was to go to the lake (my preference) and do a short loop, which would get me back around 11:30 a.m., which was within the window of the more pessimistic forecast–and it worked! It was cloudy, but did not rain. The sun even threatened to poke out a few times, but never quite managed it.

I ran 2.8 km, turned around and planned on running on the main trail, but just as I neared the intersection between the main trail and the Conifer Loop, one of those giant mowers appeared around the corner of the main trail, appearing to take up almost the entire space. So it was off to the Conifer Loop, which I ran in its entirely, coming back out on the main trail and finishing ahead of where I’d planned, but with plenty of time to get back before The Rains (as I type this, it remains dry).

In terms of the run, it went well. My pace was 6:04/km, slightly edging Monday’s effort, though the overall time remained identical at 30:33. I felt fine and broke the six-minute mark on the final km again. The trail was fairly light in terms of traffic (other than giant mowers), no doubt due to the clouds, but the conditions were pretty good for running.

In all, a fine midweek effort.

Stats:

Run 1,060
Average pace: 6:04/km
Training status: Productive
Performance Condition: -1
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW, short loop)
Start: 10:13 a.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 30:33
Weather: Cloudy
Temp: 19°C
Humidity: 65–63%
Wind: light
BPM: 149
Weight: 171.3 pounds
Total distance to date: 7,105 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, Samsung Galaxy S26, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Scarpa Golden Gate ATR 2 (85/184/269)

Music: Saturday Night Fever soundtrack (so groovy)

Today’s run was different for a few reasons. First, I didn’t run on Wednesday, because air quality was bad, then I didn’t run on Friday because I wanted to let the mail carrier in (long, weird story) and so today, a Saturday, I headed out, somewhat wary because of the four days off and the potential for Saturday crowds, especially with perfectly fine late summer weather.

But it turned out the four days off may have been a benefit and not a hindrance and the crowds were not really much different than most days and everyone was pleasant and all dogs were good boys or girls.

In the end, my BPM was up a bit at 151, which is still fine, but my overall pace was 6:09/km, a full 11 seconds better than the previous run and my best 5K performance (or even 2.5K) since I resumed running post-surgery on June 29. It was also the first time since surgery that I had a km come in under the six-minute mark. The last km, to be exact, where I posted a pace of 5:53/km, proving I can still boogie a bit.

I also saw the Spitfire near the start of my run on the Spruce Loop (I think she runs every day because she is hardcore. I am mediumcore, at best.) She then looped back and passed me post-run when I was doing an unusual bit of wool-gathering on the trail and not really paying attention. I almost got in her way and felt bad. I paid full attention after that.

There were also three topless runners in varying states of glistening. The last was rather hirsute, which is not my thing, but the first had a perfectly flat stomach. No killer abs or anything, just nicely flat. That will be my goal, to match Flat Stomach Guy. Someday.

But for today, I am glad to get a run in and see signs of progress (and better running temperatures, too).

Stats:

Run 1,058
Average pace: 6:09/km
Training status: Productive
Performance Condition: +0
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Start: 10:34 a.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 30:57
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 17–19°C
Humidity: 70–63%
Wind: light
BPM: 151
Weight: 169.8 pounds
Total distance to date: 7,095 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, Samsung Galaxy S26, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Scarpa Golden Gate ATR 2 (75/173/248)

Music: Out of the Blue, ELO

Today’s run was defined by three things:

• People
• Bikes
• Humidity

In order:

• There was a lot of people out on the trail, many of them walking dogs, but just also lots of people. The weekend weather was showery, so I guess it makes sense that people would flock to the trail with the sun coming back. At least one dog was off-leash, but they were all well-behaved.
• A guy rode past me on a bike mid-run. He was going pretty fast and was a jerk. I gave him the stinkeye and said, “Bikes aren’t allowed”:, which is all I had time for before he blew past me. I encountered a father and two kids post-run riding bikes and the father insisted the workers (from the City of Burnaby) had said it was A-OK to ride on the trail. I said it was not and shouted, “Read the signs!” as they rode off. Hopefully some geese chased them off.
• It was clear and sunny and at the start of the run humidity was 81%. This is very high. By the end of the run it had dropped to 68%, which is a big drop but 68% is still really high. It sapped my energy like a giant energy-sapping machine.

I didn’t have any issues for the run, and in the last two km, when the humidity started to drop, my pace improved, but despite the lower temperatures, I was slower than Friday’s run. Still, my BPM was also lower, at 146 and it was another effort rated Productive per my Garmin Forerunner, so I can’t be too displeased.

Plus the view from the dam was like looking into a mirror (check the first photo, above).

Stats:

Run 1,057
Average pace: 6:20/km
Training status: Productive
Performance Condition: +2
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Start: 10:11 a.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 31:49
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 19–21°C
Humidity: 81–68%
Wind: light
BPM: 146
Weight: 169.9 pounds
Total distance to date: 7,090 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 265, Samsung Galaxy S26, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Scarpa Golden Gate ATR 2 (70/160/230)

Music: Kookoo, Debbie Harry