Burnaby Lake runs

Today I was making up for skipping yesterday’s run due to The Rains. My plan was simple: Get out and run, then get back, while remaining relatively dry.

Success! For the run, it was cool but without much wind, it was fine. I wore my long-sleeved shirt in case it did rain, but that proved unnecessary. It stayed overcast through the run, but waited until literally moments after I finished before a light drizzle began to fall. It eventually petered out, and I was mostly dry by the time I completed the 4 km walk home.

As for the run, I did a short loop (again, to minimize the chance of getting caught in horrible cold rain, plus I wanted to start the week doing something less demanding) and overall it went well. BPM was slightly higher, but so was my pace. I started out blazing at 5:35/km, then dialed it back for a more moderate pace afterwards. The left knee stiffened for a few seconds at one point, likely due to some specific terrain, but it went away quickly and the knees otherwise behaved themselves. The left hip stayed quiet until about 3 km in, then protested in a low, growly voice after that I was able to mostly ignore.

Now I ponder two things: When to run next, and how far. Obvious choices are Thursday and 5 km, but we will see.

Stats:

Run 819
Average pace: 5:45/km
Training status: Maintaining
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW, short loop)
Start: 10:39 a.m.
Distance: 5:03 km
Time: 28:59
Weather: Overcast
Temp: 12ºC
Humidity: 90%
Wind: light
BPM: 156
Weight: 167.7
Total distance to date: 5975 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: HOKA Speedgoat 5 (110/213/323 km)

Because I ran and walked over 53,000 steps on Wednesday and Thursday, I skipped Friday’s usual run and went today instead, on a weekend. Dun dun dun!

And actually, it was fine. Weekends are not stat holidays and even though the trail was moderately busy, traffic was never an issue. Lots of people out jogging, too, in all shapes and sizes.

Conditions matched my arbitrary optimum–15C, cloudy and a light breeze. I went clockwise, but kept the brakes on a bit. The left knee did twinge at one point, and the knees felt a bit stiff on the walk home, but during the run they were generally behaved. My pace was 5:49/km, but my BPM was also lower, so it all works out.

There were times during the run where my mind wandered off, thinking about other things, which hasn’t happened a lot since The Knees™, so I am taking this as a positive sign. There were also stretches where I just felt kind of good–relaxed, enjoying the feel of the trail, the fresh air, all that nature stuff. It was nice.

If my knees seem okay, I may try for a 10K later next week. But we’ll see.

Stats:

Run 818
Average pace: 5:49/km
Training status: Maintaining
Location: Burnaby Lake (CW)
Start: 11:07 a.m.
Distance: 5:04 km
Time: 29:17
Weather: Cloudy, some early sun
Temp: 15ºC
Humidity: 79-81%
Wind: light
BPM: 154
Weight: 166.5
Total distance to date: 5970 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: HOKA Speedgoat 5 (105/205.5/310.5 km)

It was sunny and calm as I headed out today, initially planning a short loop at the lake. I changed my plan on the fly (as I often do) because the trails were more crowded than expected, so I opted to run halfway around the lake, as the crowds tend to thin the farther you head down the trail. And this was the case!

My pace was pretty much what I consider around average now, coming in at 5:46/km, just a second off the river run two days ago. I had to work harder at the lake, and BPM ticked up to 156 as a result.

The left hip was there, but tolerable. The knees seemed to handle the run fine, and only felt a slight bit stiff toward the end of the 9 km or so walk back home after.

A decent number of people were running, one bad woman had a large dog off-leash–and she was throwing a ball down the trail. Bad woman! I was done my run at this point, but started running again just to put space between me and them.

Speaking of bad people, another post-run incident nearly happened on the first boardwalk, when a runner came around a blind corner–on my side of the boardwalk. She was cutting into the corner and as a runner, this is something you never do when you don’t have line of sight, precisely because you could run into someone, as she nearly did into me. Bad runner!

I also saw a topless guy running, which is not exactly common for mid-October, and he had the weirdest arm movement I’ve seen in a while. It was kind of asymmetrical, each arm moving not just at a different time (which is normal) but in different directions, like he was subtly directing unseen traffic. He also had a big beard that looked thick enough to hold up a bowling ball, so maybe that was helping him with his form, too.

The thing I think stood out the most for me, though, was the second boardwalk, which has had little signs saying repair plans are underway, but in the meantime no horsies or vehicles on the boardwalk, please. These signs have been in place for well over a year. In recent months, parts of this boardwalk have developed a definite lean. That lean seems to be accelerating by the week now, because today it was starting to look less like a boardwalk and more like an old-time wooden rollercoaster, with the way sections were dipping and bending. Maybe I’ll take pictures next time, before it collapses into the marsh.

Anyway, the run itself went fine, I am hoping the knees will remain fine today and tomorrow, and I currently have no idea what I want to do run-wise on Friday, other than some kind of running.

Stats:

Run 817
Average pace: 5:46/km
Training status: Maintaining
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Start: 10:49 a.m.
Distance: 5:03 km
Time: 298:02
Weather: Mostly sunny
Temp: 14-15ºC
Humidity: 77-73%
Wind: light
BPM: 156
Weight: 167.4
Total distance to date: 5965 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: HOKA Speedgoat 5 (100/192.5/292.5 km)

Today I decided to finally edge out past my summer of 5K runs, to see if the knees would survive a longer run. My goal was to run at a more modest pace and to go 7..5 km. As a bonus, this would, combined with my 2.5(ish) km mini-run last week, allow my stats to once again be nice round numbers in terms of distance (I did fudge the numbers a little, but by actually under-reporting, to make things neat ‘n tidy).

I found a nice pace and kept at it fairly steadily throughout the run, resulting in a BPM of 151, just shy of my preferred target of 150. This gave me an overall average pace of 5:50/km, which, while slower than I’ve been lately, is still perfectly cromulent.

In terms of stamina, there was no issue at all. I could have done 10 km, but didn’t want to overly stress the knees by doubling my usual distance. So far they seem to have come through without exploding or anything. The hip was relatively well-behaved during the run, too.

Weather-wise, it was close to ideal: 13C, cloudy and with only a very light breeze. The trail was also much emptier than Monday. which was nice. I did pass a cyclist on the Cottonwood Trail, but she was moving slowly and had her head down, as if she knew she was being a Bad Person, so it didn’t bother me much. Worse was one of those bite-size dogs getting under my feet post-run as I climbed the staircase between Lower and Upper Hume Park. It was off-leash and the owner was definitely a Bad Person.

Overall, though, a fine run, and I’m hoping to do a full 10K soon™.

Stats:

Run 815
Average pace: 5:50/km
Training status: Productive
Location: Burnaby Lake (CW)
Start: 10:31 a.m.
Distance: 7:51 km
Time: 43:51
Weather: Cloudy
Temp: 13-14ºC
Humidity: 85%
Wind: light
BPM: 151
Weight: 168.1
Total distance to date: 5955 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: HOKA Speedgoat 5 (90/175.5/265.5 km)

Oh, and it is also a statutory holiday, a day I vow to never run on (but always do, then regret it later).

The forecast today was Heavy Rain, so I was prepared to get good and soaked. Which I did. It rained the entire time, and it rained steady almost the entire time. Thanks to very little wind, it actually didn’t feel that cold, though.

Now, you’d think that even though today was a stat holiday (technically Saturday was National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, but most people actually get today off), there wouldn’t be many people at the lake due to the heavy rain.

You would be wrong.

There was a surprising number of runners out (I saw six just as I arrived at the dam), and a lot of people just out for a walk, because you when get a bonus day off, why not spend it walking around a lake in a hard rain? Also, about half the people with dogs had them off-leash, possibly because of the rain (?) One dog ran toward me and I did not like the idea of even a friendly but muddy, wet dog jumping on me. I advised the owner to leash her dog, and to her credit, she did!

As for the run itself, I originally planned a short loop to reduce the amount of time I’d spend out in the rain, but as I ran, I suddenly decided I didn’t want to turn around and run back the way I came, so I did a full loop (5K run, 5K walk) and got Very Wet. The knees were fine, the left hip was relatively well-behaved, and my BPM was a bit higher at 154, but not unexpected, given the conditions and temperature. The pace of 5:41/km is pretty good, considering my shirt felt like it was holding about five litres of water by the end.

In all, a good run to start the week, but I won’t object to it being a little drier next time.

Stats:

Run 814
Average pace: 5:41/km
Training status: Productive
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Start: 9:47 a.m.
Distance: 5:03 km
Time: 28:38
Weather: Rain
Temp: 12ºC
Humidity: 88%
Wind: light
BPM: 154
Weight: 166.6
Total distance to date: 5947.6 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: HOKA Speedgoat 5 (82.6/163/245.6 km)

A weird thing happened today.

I was fast!

I did not plan on being fast. Since the whole knee thing started, I have been afraid of being fast.

I started the run late, just after 1 p.m., but it was still on the cool side, only 13C to start. Humidity was still relatively high, and there was a decent breeze blowing, so conditions were actually quite decent. Due to the late start, I opted to do a short loop clockwise at the lake, which saves me having to walk the extra 5 km to get back to the beginning.

I had to use the Jiffy John™ before starting, and heard voices outside it while I was inside. I waited for the inevitable and sure enough, someone tried yoinking the locked door open. When I came out they made some vague joke, but I just continued on, I had a run to do! I also later discovered the two colours used to denote the door being closed/open (red/green) can be hard to distinguish by certain colour-blind people, so I’ll cut them some slack. Maybe instead of colours, they could use symbols. I’ll leave it to your imagination what those symbols should be.

Anyway, the run! I had no plan, I was just going to run steady and see how it went. I was pleasantly surprised when the first km came in at a speedy 5:38/km. I was equally surprised when the second km was the same. I varied slightly above that for the next two, then finished with a very surprising pace of 5:22/km, which also resulted in an award in the Garmin app for fastest 1K (second one in as many days, woo).

I achieved the overall pace of 5:36/km while also having a lower BPM of 152. Really, it all seemed a bit weird.

The knees seemed fine again. There was a twinge once, but nothing more. The left hip was present, but not overbearing or anything.

One dog on the trail was off-leash and ahead of its (bad) owners, but it was not particularly excitable and didn’t present a problem. The trail was not overly busy, especially considering it was Friday.

Now I wait and see how the legs hold up over the weekend, with two days to rest and recover. I ran four days this week, three of them in a row. We’ll see how wise this was soon!

For now, I bask in the mild glory of exceeding my own expectations.

Stats:

Run 813
Average pace: 5:36/km
Training status: Productive
Location: Burnaby Lake (short loop, CW)
Start: 1:06 p.m.
Distance: 5:03 km
Time: 28:11
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 13-15ºC
Humidity: 67-65%
Wind: light to moderate
BPM: 152
Weight: 167.7
Total distance to date: 5942.6 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: HOKA Speedgoat 5 (77.6/150/227.6 km)

I ended up only doing one run last week because my Friday run got replaced by spontaneous birding. That was a good call for the last day of summer, because so far fall weather has sucked corn dogs.

With high winds a possibility, I set out this morning, only to find it unusually calm. It wasn’t even raining. After about 20 minutes of walking, the rain did arrive and it rained from that point forward, so the run was rather soggy. The wind didn’t start to pick up until I was almost back from the run, so that was nice.

I wore my long-sleeved t-shirt and at first it felt a bit warm, but overall it wasn’t bad. It got thoroughly drenched, however.

Despite the rain, conditions on the trail were actually decent, and it was busier than expected, with people determined to go for a walk regardless of the weather. Several had those absurd giant beach umbrellas. I’m not sure the massive size really makes much difference.

I started with a good pace and thought of just cruising along, but ended up pushing a bit–I think the clamminess of the rain made it feel like I was putting in a little more effort, and ended with a decent 5:46/km pace and a slightly higher BPM of 158. Maybe next time I’ll try to stick to 150 and see what results I get.

The left knee twinged once late in the run, but that was it, and the left hip flared bright right around the 2K mark before going mostly quiet again. The hip is probably the most annoying part of the runs right now.

Overall, a pretty good start to the week, considering I had five days off. Here’s hoping Wednesday is a little drier (forecast suggests it may be!)

Run 810
Average pace: 5:46/km
Training status: Maintaining
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Start: 10:29 a.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 28:59
Weather: Showers
Temp: 15ºC
Humidity: 88%
Wind: light
BPM: 158
Weight: 166.6
Total distance to date: 5930 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: HOKA Speedgoat 5 (65/134/199 km)

I deliberately skipped Monday’s run in order to run today–my birthday! I didn’t feel right about taking the day off and just lazing around eating goldfish crackers.

I was a bit concerned heading out, as my sleep score was a dismal 38/100 (Poor) and the Garmin summary advised “Non-restorative. You slept long enough, but not well enough to bring your stress levels down overnight. You might feel higher stress or fatigue today.” Fatigue before I even start running? Yikes.

As it turned out, though, I had one of my best runs of the summer, with only three days of summer left! How did such witchery happen? Part of it was likely due to conditions: It was only 13C when heading out, with higher humidity and plenty of clouds. Although the humidity could have been lower (there was sweating involved), the overall conditions were conducive to a good run.

My main goal was to maintain a consistent pace. I wasn’t concerned about speed pr BPM, as long as both were reasonable. My overall BPM was the same as Friday, at 157, but weirdly, despite running the “harder” counter-clockwise route, I was much faster, coming in at a brisk 5:41/km, my best pace of the summer. Yowza¹Amusingly, the spell checker suggested using “Yoda” here instead!

In fact, my final km clocked in at 5:28/km! Yoda²See previous footnote!

The left knee, especially the tendon on the right side, did feel a bit stiff on the walk along the river trail, but both knees don’t feel bad as I type this now.

Overall, I am pleased with how the run turned out. Not too bad for a freshly-minted 59-year-old. 😛

Stats:

Run 809
Average pace: 5:41/km
Training status: Maintaining
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Start: 10:28 a.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 28:37
Weather: Cloudy
Temp: 13-14ºC
Humidity: 78%
Wind: light
BPM: 157
Weight: 165.8
Total distance to date: 5925 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: HOKA Speedgoat 5 (60/121/181 km)

I took Wednesday off from running, because I had a lot of other stuff to do, and I wanted to give my legs more recovery time between runs. This meant I would have three days off between runs.

To make it easier on myself today, I ran clockwise (I am actually alternating now, but let’s pretend), which is the “easier” direction. It was slightly warmer than Monday, but humidity was also lower. Conditions were generally better. My weight was also down. All conditions good!

And yet! My pace was a bit slower (5:50 vs. 5:45) and my BPM was higher (157 vs 148). How does this happen? The body is a mysterious thing.

I actually felt fairly good while running, though. The lower humidity meant little sweating, but it was still high enough that dry mouth was not an issue. The knees behaved, and the left hip was again feeling muted. Given the higher BPM, though, I opted to not try pressing on beyond 5K. Maybe next week!

Incident-wise, there were none. For a Friday, it seemed slightly less busy than usual. Maybe I got through just before the crowds arrived. In any event, despite the higher BPM and slightly slower pace, I feel this was a pretty good run, and I had plenty of stamina left over afterwards.

Stats:

Run 808
Average pace: 5:50/km
Training status: Maintaining
Location: Burnaby Lake (CW)
Start: 10:12 a.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 29:22
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 19-20ºC
Humidity: 57-53%
Wind: light
BPM: 157
Weight: 165.8
Total distance to date: 5920 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: HOKA Speedgoat 5 (55/108/163 km)

I hesitated a bit over whether to run today, then decided to, so headed out a bit later than optimal, but it was still morning and thanks to morning clouds, only 17C, which is perfectly cromulent for running. The sun briefly appeared midway through the run, which was actually sort of bad, because the humidity was still 78% and it would have made the run kind of soupy. But it was mostly cloudy, with a nice breeze blowing.

I started out by the Jiffy John™, after using it to make sure I was BladderSafe™ for the run, which meant I conveniently ended my run right by the intersection of the Spruce and Conifer Loops. I’m not sure why this is convenient, actually. Maybe it just appeals to the OCD in me.

I had two false starts, which probably contributed to my low 148 BPM average. The first around the 100 m mark when I paused to answer a text message (I very rarely do this, but since I had literally been running for less than a minute, I chose to), and another about three-and-a-half minutes in. This was snake #1. I haven’t gotten any decent shots of snakes this year, so when this one didn’t immediately slither away, I paused my run to take a photo. It then slithered away before I could get closer. (Snake #2 appeared in the middle of the Piper Mill Trail when I short-turned and was heading back. It was completely unconcerned by my presence. I’m pretty sure I could have taken close-ups from multiple angles, and it would have just laid there, content on the warming gravel. For a brief moment I considered stopping, but I was 3.5 km in at that point and momentum would not be denied.)

These two pauses allowed my heart rate to come down briefly. Enough to affect the overall average? Maybe? But probably only a little. I think I would have been around 150 regardless, conditions were good, and it’s entirely possible I’m getting in better shape!

Speaking of good, the knees didn’t bother me at all. The left hip was even mostly quiet. It was probably the most pleasant run, leg-wise, in several months. The knees did feel a little stiff on the walk back, but feel fine now as I type this. I am cautiously optimistic.

Overall, this run went better than expected. I always feel a little nervous when that happens, but we’ll see what Wednesday brings.

Stats:

Run 807
Average pace: 5:46/km
Training status: Maintaining
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW, short loop)
Start: 10:53 a.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 29:03
Weather: Partly sunny
Temp: 17-18ºC
Humidity: 78%
Wind: light
BPM: 148
Weight: 167.3
Total distance to date: 5915 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: HOKA Speedgoat 5 (50/95/145 km)

I was thinking about skipping today’s run after feeling some stiffness in my left knee following Wednesday’s effort, but in the end I could not resist the siren song, and headed out.

This run was a bit more conventional in terms of speed, starting out strong (this is fairly easy going clockwise, as the Avalon Trail is flat and straight) at 5:45, gradually getting slower (5:50/km by the third km) before finishing strong again (5:38/km). I had extra incentive to pick up the speed on the last km as some young guy jogged past me. The nerve. Sure, he was probably 25, but still. I tried to keep pace for a bit, then remembered “don’t destroy the knees”. Also. I was pretty close to the end, anyway.

Speaking of knees, they were fine for the run, but both felt a little stiff on the walk back. I will monitor over the weekend, and they will get at least two days off to rest and recover. The left hip, which I am thinking is acting up probably in relation to the knees, continues to make its presence known, but was again more muted, more an annoyance.

Although I headed out later than I wanted, it was still morning and the weather was perfectly cromulent. The trail was busy-ish, maybe a bit more than usual for a Friday, but there were no incidents.

In all, a good run to end the week with.

Stats:

Run 806
Average pace: 5:49/km
Training status: Productive
Location: Burnaby Lake (CW)
Start: 10:56 a.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 29:15
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 18-19ºC
Humidity: 67-64%
Wind: light
BPM: 155
Weight: 167.0
Total distance to date: 5910 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: HOKA Speedgoat 5 (45/82/127 km)

It’s Labour Day and running counts as labour, so I’m good.

I ended up having a not-great sleep last night, so slept in a bit to try to salvage what I could. This meant that I’d be running later than desired–and on a stat holiday, to boot.

On the plus side (except for people hoping to tan or have picnics in the sun before school resumes), it was cloudy and cooler today, never getting above 17C and with the sun only briefly threatening for a few minutes. This made for much nicer running conditions.

What didn’t make for nicer running conditions were the huge crowds clogging up the trail as people go on their once-a-year trek for fitness or something before winter sets in. Generally this is not a problem, as most will either see or hear me approach and make room. The worst, somewhat ironically, are those walking toward me, because many of them seem to think I will somehow make room for them.

Somewhere between the 2 and 3K mark (this becomes significant later) a large, sprawling group approached, spread out into about three groups. The largest blob of people approached, with a young and apparently very happy young woman on the edge. As I neared, she seemed to remain oblivious, somehow, to my presence, giggling and carrying on with the others. There was a tree right on the edge of the trail as I got nearer. This meant that even if I wanted to, I would not be able to duck off the trail if she failed to give me room to pass. She gave me enough room to pass if I weighed half as much and was twice as tall. I put up my left hand to act as a kind of cow catcher (I’m not casting judgment, it’s what they were called!) As it turned out, I made contact with her shoulder and gently pushed her slightly away as I ran past. I’m pretty sure she was still unaware of me.

By this time, I was annoyed with two things:

1. My pace. The first km, where I admittedly have been taking it easy lately (somewhat paranoid) was a slow 5:59/km. The second km was worse–6:07/km. The dream of getting a pace under six minutes seemed unattainable.
2. All the damn people getting in the way. In reality, most were fine, but that one young happy woman irked me enough to make up for all the others.

These two things made me just want to get the run over with as quickly as possible and get out. This meant that, opposite to what usually happens, I got faster as the run progressed. My fourth km was 5:45, my last was 5:34–the fastest since hurting my knees a thousand years ago.

This meant my overall pace was below six minutes, at 5:52/km. Woo!

Better, my knees and legs survived. The left hip was being its dumb self again, but a little more muted, and the knees seem no worse for the extra speediness. No doubt the conditions helped, too, because despite the time, my BPM was back to a nice, round 150.

Overall, I am pleased with the run, and annoyed with the people.

Run 804
Average pace: 5:52/km
Training status: Maintaining
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Start: 12:12 p.m.
Distance: 5.03 km
Time: 29:35
Weather: Mostly cloudy
Temp: 17ºC
Humidity: 75-70%
Wind: light
BPM: 150
Weight: 166.8
Total distance to date: 5900 km
Devices: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music, iPhone 12, AirPods (3rd generation)
Shoes: HOKA Speedgoat 5 (35/65/100 km)