Recent Training (Sept. 28~30)

 Sept. 28

2.5 K Jog：13:51.20

Rest: 2:00.60

650 M: 2:52.13

Rest 1:00.38

650 M: 2:45.25

Total 3.8 K: 26:45.31

****************

Sept. 29 (Hakata, Kyushu)

10 Exercises:

1) Push Ups (30 sec.) 

2) Towel Row in Squat Position (30 sec.)

3) Narrow & Wide Alternate Push Ups (30 sec.)

4) Towel Pull Up in Squat Position (30 sec.)

5) Half Burpee Push Ups (30 sec.)

6) Tower Raise in Squat Position (30 sec.)

7) Mountain Climber Push Ups (30 sec.)

8) Tower Pull Down in Squat Position (30 sec.)

9) Prayers in Squat Position (30 sec.)

10) Towel Raise While Squatting (30 sec.)

****************

Sept. 30

M-100s (←This video was shot 8 years ago, but I did the same exercise as what's done in the video. The video below (↓) is also similar in kind, but slightly more intensified.)

Midnight Jog in MUTEKI

Sept. 27, 2020

12.7 K: 1:12:01

It's my first run since I got yelled at by a driver while running on the roadway. I kept on the right side of the road, and remained on the sidewalk wherever one was available. The surface was often less smooth on the sidewalk than on the roadway, and the width was rather narrow most of the way, but it wasn't so hard to adjust myself to the new habit of running on the right side and running on the sidewalk. I'll stick to it so as not to piss off drivers, and also to avoid accidents. 

Barefoot 15.5 K Jog in the Rain

 Sept. 22, 2020

15.5 K: 1:22:42

During the 4-day weekend I was happily buried with work. I got 4 video-editing projects done, and finished writing syllabuses for two lessons. I finally felt completely free! (though I know the freedom is destined to last until another project comes, which is very soon.) To celebrate this great feeling of freedom I went for a barefoot run in the rain and translated the positive feeling into fitness and endurance.

While running, a car driver shouted from the window of his car, "You idiot! Run on the sidewalk, not on the roadway!" I ignored him in order to avoid an unnecessary conflict. But then as soon as I got home, I went online and discovered that some of the things that I'd so customarily been doing were all WRONG!

For the benefit of those who run for fun, here are the rules and manners that all runners should keep in mind:

1) Where there are a roadway for wheeled vehicles and a sidewalk for pedestrians, runners must run non the sidewalk.

2) Runners should keep RIGHT, not LEFT, just like pedestrians. 

3) When running on a sidewalk, make sure you run near the side, and when you pass a pedestrian, keep a safe distance from the pedestrian. 

4) When running in an area crowded people, you should either slow down or stop running until congestion dissolves. 

Tomorrow is Day 1 of my new running habit. It will be kind of awkward at first to drop my previous habits and take up new ones, but I'll do my best to follow the rules because creating a conflict with car drivers is the last thing I want to do. 

2.5-Hour LSD (25.8 K)

Sept.15, 2020

25.8 K: 2:30:23

The temperature dropped to 20 degrees Celsius or thereabout. It almost felt a bit chilly before warming up, though once I settled into a steady pace, it just felt perfect for a long slow midnight run.

I listened to the audio of two fitness videos by Jeff Caveliere. Jeff is a former New York Mets physical therapist. He is the producer of the Athlene-X fitness program. He offers countless free videos on You Tube around the theme of fitness and functional strength. I personally feel the variations of exercises he introduces are a bit too many, and not good for someone like me who loves simplicity. But nonetheless I enjoy watching his videos because of the clarity by which he explains the scientific aspects of exercise. He is very learned in his field of expertise, and his reasoning is very convincing, though at time I feel intimidated by the technicality of his fitness vocabulary, which I presume he chooses to use extensively in order to project a high degree of authority to his advanced audience which I'm not a member of.

Anyway, back to talking about my run tonight, it was awesome. Up until 20 K I felt like I was flying, though I wasn't running fast; I was jogging. But breathing was easy and the legs felt light, mainly because I had my home-made sports drink in my backpack, and hydrated myself at regular intervals, which helped to recharge my body's batteries. 

With 3.5 K remaining, though, I felt I had run out of gas, so I stopped by a convenience store. I wondered if I should by a sweet sports drink or frozen blueberries. I went for the latter because they are healthier. 

A mouthful of frozen blueberries gave me the energy to cover the remaining 3.5 K. Thanks to the aqua shoes with little cushioning my running form was kept right throughout the training tonight. With little cushioning to absorb the impact of landing you must run to buffer it entirely with your leg joints and their supporting muscles and tendons. This is a big incentive for my body to choose the bio-mechanically most reasonably running form. (So I hope.)

I'm glad the long absence of training while my right feet was in pain didn't set me back so much in terms of my ability to run a long distance. 

Midnight Barefoot Run

 Sept. 12, 2020

The rains are gone. Stars shone from behind sporadic clouds. For the first time this fall I spotted the Orion constellation rising from the eastern sky. The air is significantly cooler than yesterday. It's less humid too as the rain clouds carried away with them the humidity of the summer. It's the best season for a night run. And it is also this time of year that you can enjoy the fruits of all the hard training you did during the summer. Breathing feel tremendously easier than while running the grueling summer heat. 

I set off without deciding how far I would go. I had a good long run last night. It's kind of a recovery day today.  I started off very slowly around the 2.5 K loop. It's been a while since I last ran barefooted due to the right foot pain. It's healed enough to allow me to have a run without shoes. But I didn't want to be set back again by pushing too much too soon. 

In the second round I increased the pace a little to see how that'd affect my foot. It was pain free. I was relieved. 

I slowed down again for the 3rd round. While running, I felt a sharp stinging pain on my right sole. I thought it's a small chip of stone. I stopped and brushed the sole with my hand, and ran again. The pain seemed to have disappeared, but then it came back from time to time. Later when I checked the sole at home, something like a small piece of obsidian was stuck in the mid-side. It stayed inside the hardened dead skin, but a tiny part has penetrated it to hurt the true skin. Ouch! I removed it with tweezers, and the pain was gone. 

Warm Up 700 M: 4:03.86

2.5 K: 14:24.04

2.5 K: 13.13.94

2.5 K: 14:46.88

Warm Down 700 M: 5:08.43

Total 8.9 K: 51:37.15

Recent Training: Park Workout, Sprints, and 10 K Build-Up

Sept. 8, 2020

3.5 K: 20:57.80
Rest:4:00.21

<High Intensity Cardio>

10 reps by [5 reps of shuffles + 1 burpee] + 10 narrow-grip push-ups: 1:35.92

Rest: 30.27

10 reps by [5 reps of shuffles + 1 burpee] + 10 narrow-grip push-ups: 1:47.18

Rest: 30.81

10 reps by [5 reps of shuffles + 1 burpee] + 10 narrow-grip push-ups: 2:00.57

Rest: 30.03

10 reps by [5 reps of shuffles + 1 burpee] + 10 narrow-grip push-ups: 2:07.34

Rest: 1:44.09

3.5 K: 25:05.92

Total 7 K: 1:00.50

********************

Sept. 9, 2020

3.5 K: 19:04.22
Rest:2:20.50

<180 M Sprints>

1st Run: 31.82

Rest: 1:00.06

2nd Run: 31.38

Rest: 1:00.16

3rd Run: 33.95

Rest: 1:00.39

4th Run: 36.50

Rest: 2:30.44

3.5 K: 20:56.93

Total 7.72 K: 50:06.93

********************

Sept. 11, 2020

<10 K Build-Up>

5.1 K: 27:44.89

Hydration Rest:1:00.33

5.1 K: 25:58.03

Hydration Rest:1:00.23

Warm Down 6.4 K: 40:47.54

Total 16.6 K: 1:36:31

25 K LSD

Sept. 3, 2020

13 K : 1:22:07

Food rest: 15:22.13

12.2 K: 1:16:11

Total 25.2 K: 2:53:41

I ran between home and the Morita Architectural Office in Sakura. It's 12.2 K one way, and nearly 25 K round trip.

I hadn't run longer than 20 K since Aug. 9. It's mainly because of this pain in the right foot. At first I suspected there might be some structural problem resulting from running barefooted. I had been doing interval training rather intensively, and it seemed possible that it took a toll on the foot. Whatever the reason, though, it reached a point where pain was too acute to allow me to run, so I maintained my fitness with high intensity cardio. But over this course of time I hadn't ruled out the possibility that my foot pain is caused by TMS, or tension myoneural syndrome, or tension myositis syndrome. What it is is that pain is caused by repression of an emotion that I do not want to admit. Each muscle is governed by a nervous system. 

There is a nervous system that governs the muscle or muscles where I feel pain. When an emotion that I do not want to face is repressed, our brain affects our neural system, and as a result, a supply of oxygen is reduced in a certain area. Now where it occurs varies from person to person. But it often occurs where parts of body that are typically overused and fatigued. However, the pain is not caused by overuse of the body. In fact, it is your mind-body's defense mechanism to shift your attention away from a psychological tension to a problem that is purely physical. Sometimes physical problems are far easier to deal with. Physical problems are generally socially excusable. On the other hand, psychological problems are often associated with social stigma. I'm usually good at managing stress. But I'm not a perfect human being. I have emotional conflicts that are hard to deal with. Sometimes I want to get out and cry over life's merciless reality. Crazy workload. Impossible deadlines. Tasks that do not seem to get results. The list goes on... But my position doesn't allow me to get out and cry like a baby. Therefore, TMS. My mind-body is kind enough to create physical pain to force me to stop doing what I love doing, namely running, so that I can focus only on my top priorities, namely work. 

In fact, I have a reason to believe my pain was caused by TMS, because today I got one project done. Believe it or not, I suddenly felt so light, and the pain in the foot seemed to subside. It was no longer unbearable. That's the reason I went out for a long run after a long time. 

It's almost an hour and a half since I got home. But the foot seems OK. It's not entirely pain-free, but the pain is manageable. Let's hope it won't have swollen when I wake up tomorrow morning. 

 

Morning Workout: M-100s

 Sept. 1, 2020

It's the first day of September. It was rainy and cool last night. I rode my motorcycle from Chigasaki back to my hometown. Even with a rain jacket on, it felt slightly cold. The weather was rather unstable in the daytime, with sporadic rains and occasional thunder. Definitely the warm air of the going season and the cool air of the coming new season and in conflict up in the sky. Fall is near.

The sky hadn't cleared by the morning. It was in hazy gray, and the air was cool when I hit the park. A large group of elderly locals were playing filed golf. They seemed not too worried about Covid-19, though most still had their mask on. I took a walk around the track in bare feet. I was too scared to run after feeling a small pain last Thursday when I did a few fast 180 M repeats. Once warmed up, I started jogging a little. It didn't feel painful on the grass. Thinking that it may not be the same if on concrete, I continued to jog until I ran for twenty minutes. 

By then all the elderly field golf players had been gone except that now there is a different group of elderly people who were doing something that looked like tai chi. Some of them had a 'jitte' (short metal truncheon) in their hand as they practiced their moves to some 'Okinawa' music. But they did in a corner of the park, and the central area is now completely empty. I walked to the center of that empty area, and did M-100s, or mandatory one hundred.

<M-100s>

M-100s is the king of high intensity cardio. It significantly improves your cardio vascular potential by continuously hitting the high-volume muscle groups such as thighs and chest without allowing you to rest much. It's also a total body training regimen, so you can train many areas of your body. Bi-ceps and back are largely neglected, but everything else is pretty much activated. It's something you should keep up your sleeve as a special weapon to combat your body fat. 

After coming home from the workout, I fixed myself pasta with octopus with caraway seeds. I made a fairly large amount, but I finished it in a second like an elephant eats a peanut.