Brunette River Trail runs

Alternate title: People Not Knowing How to Dress for the Weather

To be fair to said people, today was an odd combination of mild–18C–and yet kind of soggy. It was cloudy as I headed out to the river trail, but it finally started to drizzle right at the very end of my run, so my plan to start early to beat the rain was mostly successful.

Today is Thanksgiving Day, which meant there would be more people out (never run on a stat) and indeed that was the case. The river trail is nice ‘n wide, though, so there were no issues. Some people were overdressed as if it was more like -18C, many were not prepared for rain, but there were also a few fellow joggers out, looking happy and smiling because it’s a holiday and conditions were pretty nice for running.

I had four days off, which is one more than I prefer (more than three days and I feel I start to lose my fitness, which is backed up by studies and other scientific junk), but given my activity over the past few days (a lot of walking) and the way my right knee was feeling, I felt it prudent. I was actually faster today than last Wednesday’s run (5:45/km), though my BPM also climbed, to a still-decent 154.

As for the knees:

• Left knee: Fine!
• Right knee: Interesting! It definitely felt sore to start, and even the right shin was feeling it, but over the course of the run it started to improve, as did my pace. By the last two km it seemed pretty OK and as always I was left with whether it really was OK or was it adrenaline/endorphins kicking in? I don’t think 5K is long enough for adrenaline to really work, so I am leaning toward the knee mostly being stiff and not being horrible and badly hurt.

All that said, the right knee is definitely not back to normal, so I’ll probably stick to 5K runs for the time being and see how it goes for a bit longer. The frustrating part is knowing I can do 10K and being held back by the knee. Stupid knee. Affectionately pets knee, it’s not really stupid

Stats:

Run 816
Average pace: 5:45/km
Training status: Maintaining
Location: Brunette River Trail
Start: 9:56 a.m.
Distance: 5:03 km
Time: 28:54
Weather: Cloudy, some drizzle
Temp: 17-18ºC
Humidity: 74%
Wind: light
BPM: 154
Weight: 167.2
Total distance to date: 5960 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: HOKA Speedgoat 5 (95/179.5/274.5 km)

I opted to run on the river trail to condense the amount of walking and time needed. I think it was the right call.

Conditions were similar to Monday temperature and humidity-wise, but instead of rain, it was partly sunny, which was nice. There was a breeze, but no big gusts or anything.

The river trail was surprisingly quiet, especially given that the weather was not bad (the first few days of fall have been mostly bad). I set out with no particular goal in mind, other than maybe having a lower BPM than the last few runs. I achieved this with a BPM of 156 and overall pace of 5:43/km. A big aid in getting that pace was the first km, where I was not trying to run fast, yet ended up with a blistering (for me) pace of 5:28/km. At the high end, I got up to 5:56/km by the 3rd km, before picking the pace back up to finish.

The left hip was probably the quietest it’s been in a while, no doubt due to the smooth terrain of the river trail, while the right knee twinged briefly mid-run, and then was fine after.

Overall, a good run and I’m glad I didn’t have to face back-to-back runs in the rain. I can run in the rain, but I don’t like it.

Run 811
Average pace: 5:43/km
Training status: Maintaining
Location: Brunette River Trail
Start: 12:28 p.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 28:47
Weather: Partly sunny
Temp: 15ºC
Humidity: 81-82%
Wind: light to moderate
BPM: 156
Weight: 166.7
Total distance to date: 5935 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: HOKA Speedgoat 5 (70/138/208 km)

Due to a Mouse Incident™ I was up much earlier than normal and had previously thought about skipping the run today to do other things, but in the end I headed out and was running on the river trail before 10 a.m. Conditions were pleasant–the showers forecast did not materialize, save for a few drops pre- and post-run.

At first, my legs felt a bit cranky, just stiff and sore (mostly from stretching). Things settled down, but then about one km in, the left hip started up, as per usual these days. It subsided for a bit, then later made its presence VERY WELL-KNOWN before subsiding again. The left knee also started acting up for a bit, too, but it also settled and was better toward the end of the run. I shall monitor these things closely.

In terms of pace, it was fast. Compared to the last river run, I came in at 5:45/km, was comfortably under the six-minute mark the entire way and my BPM stayed at a very nice 148. So from that end, it went well.

Plus, no dogs off leash. Or mice.

Stats:

Run 805
Average pace: 5:45/km
Training status: Maintaining
Location: Brunette River Trail
Start: 9:49 a.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 28:56
Weather: Cloudy
Temp: 16ºC
Humidity: 72-70%
Wind: light
BPM: 148
Weight: 167.5
Total distance to date: 5905 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: HOKA Speedgoat 5 (40/69/109 km)

I had a poor sleep last night due to an upset tummy and some unexpected bowel sensations in the middle of the night (something I ate?), so was not feeling especially perky this morning. I still decided to do a run, but kept it short, just walking to the river trail and running 5K there.

Even with this more compact routine, it was still obvious my tank was low, because although I cleared the six-minute mark, my overall pace was 5:56/km, which is pretty sluggish for the river trail, where I can easily be at least ten seconds faster. I didn’t feel overly sluggish while running, like I just wanted the whole thing to be over, but I could tell I just wasn’t moving the way I normally would, right from the start.

The left hip was present again, though diminished, and the right knee was OK, but just below, the calf was feeling a bit sore, again probably from the stretching. I may need to do milder stretching pre-run, rather than the apparent He-Man stretching I’m doing now.

Conditions were good. It was 17-18C, which was nice, and humidity was high, so no need for water on the go. We had showers earlier, so there were a few small puddles to navigate, but nothing of much concern.

Post-run, there was a Quasi Dog Incident. I had started my walk back when a large German shepherd mix suddenly ran ahead of me, barking. I froze, waiting to see what would happen next. Its owner came jogging by and called the dog over. I let them get well ahead before resuming my walk. I pulled off and held my place again as they turned at the end of the trail and came back. If karma is a thing, his dog will bite him. Or something. I’d settle for him getting a big fat fine for having his large, uncontrolled dog off-leash.

Anyway, I got the run in, so that’s good. Friday is looking warmer, so I will make an extra effort to get out early.

Stats:

Run 802
Average pace: 5:56/km
Training status: Maintaining
Location: Brunette River Trail
Start: 10:53 a.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 29:50
Weather: Partly cloudy
Temp: 17-18ºC
Humidity: 82-79%
Wind: light to moderate
BPM: 152
Weight: 167.1
Total distance to date: 5890 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: HOKA Speedgoat 5 (25/39/64 km)

I don’t think I’ve ever been so pleased to run in the rain.

After Wednesday’s miserable Sahara-in-my-mouth slog, I was actually looking forward to running in cooler, showery conditions.

Sure enough, it showered for the entire run, and the walk to and from the river trail. Since I didn’t head out until late, I kept the run compact, by walking the 1.5 km to the river trail and starting right from the entrance. I was a bit concerned after the right knee being stiff and sore after Wednesday’s run, but it was feeling much better today and was fine for the run. Both knees feel fine now as I type this, about half an hour after getting back.

What did bother me, for the first stretch, was my right shin–and stretch is the right word, because I think it’s the shin muscle getting stretched that was feeling it. It settled down after the first couple of km.

As mentioned, it rained the entire time, but it was a light rain and the wind was lower than it has been lately, so it didn’t feel cold. I only lagged slightly on the second km but otherwise kept up a steady pace and with a BPM of only 148, reflecting the smoother terrain of the river trail. I also blasted away the Wednesday pace of 6:11/km by a whopping 27 seconds, coming in at 5:44/km, so that was nice.

Overall, it was a nice way to end the week, run-wise. I’m not saying I want it to shower every time I run, but if I have to choose between hot and dry vs. mild and wet, I’ll go for the latter every time.

Stats:

Run 781
Average pace: 5:44/km
Location: Brunette River Trail
Start: 3:19 p.m.
Distance: 5.04 km
Time: 28:52
Weather: Light showers
Temp: 17ºC
Humidity: 70%
Wind: light
BPM: 148
Weight: 165.3
Total distance to date: 5790 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Saucony Peregrine 12 (462 km)

My knees said, “Go for a run today, but be gentle!” so I did a 5K at the river, with only the walk to the river to warm up.

The weather was mild, so I wore one layer and it was sufficient. There was little wind today, too, which helped. It did shower a bit, but it was more an intermittent drizzle and wasn’t really a factor, other than being slightly annoying.

I tried to keep to a BPM of 150–and succeeded! Somehow the peaks and dips averaged out, with a pace of 5:43/km, which is about right for the river trail at that BPM. My knees and legs still feel fine after, so I’m hoping that I am officially on the mend from doing whatever it is I did to get the knees all bothered. I’ll do another 5K on Friday to round out the week, with the river or the lake being determined by what my knees tell me.

A bonus shot of some flowers blossoming along the river:

Stats:

Run 774
Average pace: 5:45/km
Location: Burnaby Lake (CW)
Start: 11:07 a.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 28:48
Weather: Light showers, cloudy
Temp: 10ºC
Humidity: 83%
Wind: low
BPM: 150
Weight: 167.5
Total distance to date: 5755 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Saucony Peregrine 12 (427 km)

Today’s stats look a little weird because today’s run was a little weird.

The Garmin Forerunner 255 has a “Daily Suggested Workout” feature you can toggle on, and it does just what it says–it gives you a suggested workout, taking into account your current condition/recovery state and the like.

I decided instead of my usual 10K to do whatever it suggested. It suggested this:

• 4x 8-minute runs, 6:00 min/km pace
• 4x 3-minute recovery segments, 8:00 min/km pace
• 1x 10-minute cooldown run, 7:00 min/km pace¹Note: The recovery and cooldown paces may be slightly off because my mind was sufficiently traumatized by them, as will be explained below.

All of the above are at paces below what I normally run at. As an example, my Friday 10K run had an average pace of 5:41/km, so stepping that down to 6:00/km was surprisingly difficult. The watch constantly told me I was going too fast. It took most of the first segment to finally find something in the acceptable range.

For the 3-minute segments, I had to adopt a weird, very brisk walking pace, because any kind of running was too fast. For the cooldown at the end, I was able to run. In fact, I had to run, but only just barely. I felt like a horse trotting down the trail, but this was probably where the watch yelled at me the least.

You get a performance score at the end and it’s based on not how fast you move, but how much time you spent in the range for each segment. I got a 75/100, which is considered Good.

For the actual being outdoors part, the weather was fine–cloudy, but calm. Because it’s a holiday the trail was packed full of people, dogs and bikes, but everyone was well-behaved.

The tendons around my knees were straining a bit for the start, but felt fine after warming up. I think they’ll be okay, but may ice them a bit to keep down any potential swelling. There’s no pain, just some stiffness.

Tomorrow I would not normally run, but I’ll see what the daily suggested workout is and figure out if I want to do it or not.

Overall, it was a strange experience. My BPM was slightly higher than Friday at 154, but I think that was actually stress in trying to stay within the range of each segment. Physically, the run was no big deal, but I don’t think I’ve ever had to use my brain so much.

I’m counting this as a 10K run because it was close enough, plus I walked to and from the river trail. Also, I get to make the rules here!

Stats:

Run 770
Average pace: 6:27/km
Location: Brunette River trail
Start: 9:50 a.m.
Distance: 9.48 km
Time: 1:01:11
Weather: Cloudy
Temp: 7ºC
Humidity: 97%
Wind: low
BPM: 154
Weight: 164.6
Total distance to date: 5735 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Saucony Peregrine 12 (407 km)

After not running my normal schedule this week for various reasons, I set about to do a run today. And then a downpour started. I had already changed, which meant the chance of me skipping out was actually quite small.

I waited out the downpour and then headed out, opting to do a shorter 5K run on the river trail. It would be shorter, sure, but also faster. Plus, it was still showering, and I’ll admit, I just didn’t feel like running a 10K in the rain.

It wasn’t that bad, though. I wore two layers and never felt cold, despite it being 7C, and had no issues other than feeling just a touch stiff at the start, given the four days of not-running.

There were a few people out walking because some people will go out for a walk in any kind of weather–usually with a dog–but overall, it was a pretty quiet outing and in a way, kind of nice. I mean, I’m not saying I want to keep doing runs in the rain, but the river trail is a very different running experience and change is good and all that.

Stats:

Run 767
Average pace: 5:35/km
Location: Brunette River Trail
Start: 12:56 p.m.
Distance: 5:04 km
Time: 28:08
Weather: Showers
Temp: 7ºC
Humidity: 90%
Wind: low
BPM: 152
Weight: 163.7
Total distance to date: 5705 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: Saucony Peregrine 12 (377 km)