fast legs

Run 358
Average pace: 5:02/km
Location: Burnaby Lake (CW)
Distance: 5.61 km
Weather: Cloudy
Temp: 17-16ºC
Wind: light
Calories burned: 406
Total distance to date: 2994
Device used: iPhone 5c

My goal tonight was to hopefully beat Tuesday’s pace or at the very least tie it once again.

It actually almost felt a bit chilly by the time I got to the lake and my hands were so cold I completely bobbled getting the iPhone in my spibelt. It started merrily tracking the run as my numbed fingers worked to get the phone into the stretchy confines of the belt’s pocket. Once I did and zipped it up the run immediately paused. I waited to see if it would magically un-pause and when it didn’t I hit the play/pause on the earpods and the run started tracking for real.

This meant that the initial 100m or so my pace was in the silly six minute range. I still managed to break the 5:00 mark, though, coming in at 4:57/km–then bested that on the second km with a pace of 4:53/km.

This strong start sagged a little at the 3K mark when my pace dropped 7% but I picked up for the final 2 km and finished with an overall pace of 5:02/km, beating my previous 5K by four seconds. Mission accomplished.

With the sky overcast the more shaded areas of the trail were downright gloomy and I finished the run a mere five minutes before sunset. By the time I got home it was dark. It won’t be much longer before I can’t run at the lake due to lack of light and I will be sad.

for awhile I’ll be able to run on the river trail but even that is probably only going to work for a few more weeks. After that I’m not sure what I’ll do. My one experience on a treadmill was grossbuckets but maybe I could get used to it.

Still, that’s some weeks off. For now I can be satisfied with tonight’s run going off without a hitch and getting me ever-closer to finally breaking the 5:00 minute barrier again.

Run 357
Average pace: 5:06/km
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Distance: 5.25 km
Ran Spruce and Conifer Loops and Piper Mill Trail
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 19-16ºC
Wind: moderate with occasional gusts
Calories burned: 365
Total distance to date: 2989
Device used: iPhone 5c

The only disappointing part of this run was despite feeling pretty good and having no real issues during the run I only managed to tie my previous 5K pace of 5:06/km.

On the other hand, this is a definite improvement over the recent trend of runs getting progressively slower.

I would write more but there’s not much else to add. The biggest complication was probably the pair of downed trees on the Conifer Loop again. I’m not 100% certain but it seemed like they were sagging a little lower than the previous run. I had to make more than a token effort to duck under the second one. If the parks people don’t hack them to bits soon I expect the next decent-sized storm will completely topple them. Hopefully not while I’m there because a) running in a storm sucks and b) running in a storm and getting hit by a falling tree sucks even more.

Given that I tied my previous 5K, I’m hoping this signals the beginning of a trend toward improved performance. I did push a wee bit harder tonight and I think it helped.

Run 356
Average pace: 5:13/km
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Distance: 10.05 km
Ran Spruce and Conifer Loops
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 15-19ºC
Wind: light
Calories burned: 729
Total distance to date: 2983
Device used: iPhone 5c

My goal today was to beat last Sunday’s astoundingly awful pace of 5:41/km. Short of a plane falling on me, this was all but assured because the weather was cooperative and this summer has demonstrated that I have become quite the delicate flower when it comes to running and the weather.

With my phone tucked into its belt, I headed off under mild conditions with a light breeze. The sun was warm but not hot and the temperature only rose to around 19ºC so if the run was going to stink it would be all on me today.

When I hit the Conifer Loop I noticed a rather large tree sagging at an alarming angle, several branches dangling low enough over the trail to require a bit of a duck to get under. I’m referring to the action, not the waterfowl, by the way. A short distance past there was a second tree also askew, either emulating its neighbor or perhaps having been dragged down with it. I expect sometime between now and the next run they will fall and then be chopped up by either beavers or park rangers. Either could happen. Really.

I started out at a decent pace but deliberately moderated it for the second km, thinking it might be better to conserve early and push later. This is reflected in my pace as I plunge an impressive 10% after 2 km.

With no real complications I felt I was keeping an okay pace, maybe a bit slower than I’d like–I was getting call-outs for km after passing each respective sign, eg. hitting 2 km after passing the 2K sign)–but this suddenly reversed itself after the 4K mark and for the rest of the run I was getting the call-outs before the signs.

This was revealed most dramatically when my pace for 5K improved by a silly 20% (the average pace of 4:15/km would put it around the fastest km I’ve ever recorded). The Nike+ app also has the route strangely shoot out into the field along a straight stretch before darting back in to correct itself so I don’t know if the GPS just went bananas there or what. My pace later plunged by 27% at the 7K mark but otherwise the dips and valleys seemed pretty typical.

Given the combination of distance covered and time, the overall pace of 5:13/km seems fairly accurate so even if the GPS got a bit nutty it seems to have not mattered too terribly in the end. This also tied my best 10K of the year, so yay me.

The left foot started to hurt a bit but not until after the run and so was not a factor. I also picked up the pace near the end for a good finish.

I am pleased by the results and my only concern going forward is that the weather may be poop for at least one of the runs this week.

Run 355
Average pace: 5:06/km
Location: Burnaby Lake (CW)
Distance: 5.65 km
Weather: Clear, humid
Temp: 18ºC
Wind: light to nil
Calories burned: 410
Total distance to date: 2973

My plan tonight was to beat the horrible pace of my previous water-soaked run and to go clockwise around the lake to Still Creek, a distance of about 5.6 km, so a little farther than a typical 5K run. I also opted to use the iPhone again, even though I secretly think it makes my run times slower.

With conditions exponentially better (ie. no downpour) I got off to my briskest start in a good while, with the first km coming in at 4:40/km. I had a 10% drop after that but managed to hold on for my best overall pace in a long time, 5:06/km, a full 20 seconds better than Tuesday’s run and a whopping 35 seconds better than Sunday’s.

Apart from being a bit humid in the more closed-in sections of the trail, conditions were pleasant and despite my left foot feeling a tiny bit sore before heading out, it proved to not be a factor.

The bonus joggers came in the form of a running club of 8-10 people that passed by in the opposite direction just before the 5K mark. Despite the size of the group, I had no problem skirting easily past. This stood in contrast to several other groups who remained oblivious to my approach and also spread themselves across the length of the trail, nearly forcing me into the brackish ditches alongside. The best was a group of three where two looked back, saw me, then failed to alert the third person who didn’t–and the one I was headed straight toward.

People are weird. And unobservant.

Still, I can’t complain too much after posting such a dramatically improved pace. This was the exact sort of result I needed after the two officially awful runs prior.

Run 351
Average pace: 5:10/km
Location: Burnaby Lake (CW)
Distance: 5.05 km
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 24-20ºC
Wind: light
Calories burned: 374
Total distance to date: 2948

Tonight I got all wacky and decided to use my iPhone and the Nike+ app to track my run instead of my iPod because why not? I grabbed my spibelt, slapped the phone in and headed off.

It was a little warmer than the previous run starting out but because I also started later it cooled off quickly and felt quite comfy. Assuming the GPS wasn’t a dirty liar, I actually started out fairly strongly and maintained a consistent pace up until the last km, which is where the course twisted all over the place (including over the dam) and also went up a steep (for Burnaby Lake) trail.

The phone defaults were a bit off, so it credited me 20 more calories burned than reality (it had my weight set to 170 pounds instead of 159) and it was set to not only call out distance but also time, giving me a km by km estimate of my pace. My pace was improved, so this turned out to be encouraging rather than discouraging. I’ve since turned that part off.

My planned route was to go clockwise to where the main trail splits, then turn left and loop back around on the longer Freeway trail. My ability to calculate distance is apparently really bad, as I neared the end of the route with about another km to go. I decided to keep running, headed over the dam and back up the trail counter-clockwise. After a bit I was thinking I should have heard the 400 m warning but that doesn’t seem to happen on the phone app, so I just sort of guessed where to turn around, doubled back and hoped I would complete 5K before ending up out in the street.

I was successful in not needing to run into the street.

Overall the run went fairly well and my pace was a much-improved 5:10/km.

I think I’ll keep using the phone for awhile. Seeing the route drawn out on a map afterward is kind of neat.

The next big test comes on Sunday when I go back to a full 10K. I vow not to sleep in and run when it is Africa hot. Really!

Run 345
Average pace: 5:13/km
Location: Burnaby Lake (CW)
Ran Spruce and Conifer Loops
Distance: 10.04 km
Weather: Sunny, very humid
Temp: 16-20ºC
Wind: light
Calories burned: 772
Total distance to date: 2897

I took a slightly different approach to my run this morning by starting an hour later than usual. This meant it would be a bit warmer (bad) but would also be less humid (good) and as a bonus, an extra hour of sleep. The forecast indicated it was only going to get up to 22ºC for the day so the trade-off seemed worth it.

And it was. I shall cherish this rare triumph of planning ahead. It was both cooler heading out–about 16ºC–and not quite as humid. The sun was intermittent, with hazy high cloud dominating and as a special bonus there was a very welcome light breeze blowing through much of the run.

My right hip was feeling a little creaky, probably from the combination of longer runs and the MegaWalks™ I’ve often been doing on the non-run days (I’ve put in probably close to 150 km of walking since my vacation started on August 2) but not enough to affect my pace and it loosened up over the course of the run.

This was my best 10K pace in awhile, nudging my previous best from last week at 5:13/km. Oddly, the third km was once again my fastest and the times between the first three km and the last three km were remarkably consistent, the only downside being the sprint at the end was somewhat less sprinty than usual:

• 1K 5:08
• 2K 5:07
• 3K 5:02

• 8K 5:16
• 9K 5:17
• 10K 5:15

The combination of returning to work next week and the sun starting to set earlier will soon make it a challenge to get in full 10K runs while it’s still light out, but at least the long term forecast looks to be mainly clear with seasonal temperatures, so we may finally have bid farewell to the Africa hot weather for the summer.

Run 340
Average pace: 5:23/km
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Ran Spruce and Conifer Loops
Distance: 10.03 km
Weather: Mainly sunny, some high cloud
Temp: 15-20ºC
Wind: nil to light
Calories burned: 772
Total distance to date: 2847

My goal today was to simply improve on Wednesday’s time and I did. Woo! My average pace was 5:23/km, still slower overall but five seconds better than my previous pace.

I ran counter-clockwise and skipped the Piper Mill Trail, as I knew I’d still finish well before reaching my starting point. Speaking of optional trails, yesterday I used the GPS-enabled RunKeeper app on my iPhone to do an exact circuit of my usual run loop at the lake and it came out to 10.5 km. This was even a little farther than my actual run route because I will normally start on one side of the dam and finish on the other. This means that running the three optional trails appears to be adding very little to my total run distance, perhaps only about 200 m or so. I’ll probably stick to them because the side trails tend to be a bit cooler and less traveled.

I didn’t encounter any issues during the run. As with the previous runs, the left foot felt a bit sore on the walk home afterward but was fine for the run itself. No stitches, cramps or other ailments came up.

My pace was probably helped by the coolest temperatures of the week, starting at 15ºC and rising only to 20ºC by the end. It actually felt a lot warmer when I got home to find the condo 25ºC with the AC running.

And with my first 30K week of running in a very long time behind me, I now take two days to rest and recover.

Run 334
Average pace: 4:58/km
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Ran Spruce and Conifer Loops and Piper Mill Trail
Distance: 5.04 km
Weather: Partly cloudy
Temp: 20ºC
Wind: light
Calories burned: 387
Total distance to date: 2803

After the strangely dismal performance of the previous run I was not looking forward to tonight’s.

Conditions were similar, with the temperature mild but instead of the expected precipitation the sky started to clear up, and while I had plenty o’ puddles to skirt around from an earlier shower, it never rained. This was nice.

My plan was to do the tight counter-clockwise loop: run the three optional trails then loop back along the main trail, coming back to the entrance to Burnaby Lake Park. Given the soggy weather earlier I encountered very few others out and aboot.

All of my body parts started out the run cooperating and remained cooperative throughout. I began with a crisp pace, pushed harder and longer (heh heh) than I normally would, determined to not repeat the terrible time of the last run and by the end I was quite literally gasping for breath.

I waited for the nice Nike lady to make the announcement of my pace and let out a (gasping) sigh of relief when she confirmed my time was 25:02 minutes, with a brisk average pace of 4:58/km. I’m still not sure if the previous run was a weird glitch with the Nike+ sensor or a weird glitch with my body but either way I was happy to see a normal pace again, especially with conditions being so close to the previous sloggy run.

On Sunday I will once again try for a full loop around the lake. It’s supposed to be sunny and 27ºC, which is warm but not unbearably so.

Run 327
Average pace: 4:57/km
Location: Burnaby Lake (CW)
Distance: 6.03 km
Weather: Sunny
Temp: 21-23ºC
Wind: light
Calories burned: 464
Total distance to date: 2763

Just kidding about the sexier part.

My plan tonight was to run clockwise to Still Creek, about 6 km in total and to beat the pace of my previous Africa hot run.

And I succeeded!

In a strange way I think I almost felt warmer on this run than the previous because the sun was lower but it was quite tolerable and not at all humid.

In fact, the most remarkable thing about the run was how unremarkable it was. Everything felt decent and my pace was very steady. As expected with the cooler temperature, my time improved and even though I stretched a little to 6 km, I still posted a 4:57/km average, my second best run of the year.

Although I’m only two runs in, July is looking pretty decent so far. Here’s to it continuing to remain so.

Run 325
Average pace: 4:58/km
Location: Burnaby Lake (CW)
Distance: 5.06 km
Weather: Sunny, some cloud
Temp: 18-20ºC
Wind: light
Calories burned: 389
Total distance to date: 2752

My run schedule was out of whack this week as much as my runs, so in order to space out the remaining runs I would need to run on Friday. Running on Friday takes a lot of motivation as the end of the work week is when you’re thinking about relaxing, not jogging hither and yon. Couple this with my last two runs being terrible and I opted to skip the run, explaining it to myself as a precautionary step, needed because I was obviously in need of extra rest and recovery.

Yes.

Today–Sunday–I headed out for my usual run and while I originally planned on doing a full loop around the lake, I again felt it would be wiser to go a bit conservative, so I need up doing a 5K to round out the month.

My last change before heading out was to strap the Nike+ sensor back to my Adidas Energy Boost shoes, to see if reverting back might make a difference.

Heading out, two things were in my favor: the left foot was feeling fine, and the weather was not as warm, with the temperature around 18ºC. The sky was mostly cloudy but the sun managed to beam through gaps in the cloud cover enough to make it sunny for about two-thirds of the run. It never felt uncomfortable, however. I didn’t even sweat much.

How did the run go?

Let me explain by saying this: when I started jogging I did not feel the hip at all. It didn’t last as I did feel it a little after maybe 20 seconds or so, but those initial moments of the run felt downright magical compared to the last two months.

It was quickly (ho ho) obvious my pace was much improved and I finished both strongly and with my second fastest run if the year, breaking the 5:00/km barrier with an average pace of 4:58/km, only two seconds shy of my fastest pace.

The left foot did start feeling sore after about three km of walking post-run but I stopped for a few minutes at Piper Spit to watch the ducks and geese and a few pigeons pretending to be waterfowl. That was enough time for the foot to recover enough to get to the SkyTrain station without unsightly limping or collapsing.

Overall I was quite pleased by the return to form. I’m going to stick with the Adidas shoes for Tuesday’s run. It will be interesting to see how that goes, as the current forecast is calling for Africa hot weather.

Run 322
Average pace: 4:56/km (best to date for 2014)
Location: Burnaby Lake (CCW)
Ran Spruce and Conifer Loops and Piper Mill Trail
Distance: 5.04 km
Weather: Overcast, some light rain
Temp: 20ºC
Wind: light
Calories burned: 388
Total distance to date: 2732

Tonight’s run was basically a repeat of Tuesday’s but in the opposite direction. The sky was overcast, with no promise of sun whatsoever, but it was mild so it was actually pretty nice for running, apart from being humid.

Try as they might, the clouds produced little more than a few drops, so I emerged dry, with only the faint lingering scent of cigarette smoke clinging to me. I sniffed it about 3 km into the run and I’d say it was probably 200-300 meters before I finally caught up to the smoker (he was not jogging). With virtually no wind, I was impressed how far the obnoxious odor carried.

The run started surprisingly well, with the hip feeling close to normal. Then it kind of popped and felt more abnormal but not too bad and became a non-issue once I’d warmed up.

I felt the first km went quite well and this prompted me to push fairly hard in the final km, to see if I could crack the 5:00 minute mark for only the second time this year. I actually felt a little nauseous the last few hundred meters but kept going and was rewarded doubly: the last km was my fastest at 4:50/km. The last km being the fastest is very rare. And my overall pace was 4:56/km, a solid three seconds better than my best pace for the year.

Woot, I say.

With this, I have completed a week where each run was faster. Going back four runs, my average pace improved a zany 31 seconds per km, from 5:27 to 4:56.

I feel I’ve earned my two days of rest before Sunday’s follow-up.