11.4 K Barefoot Jog

Mar. 27, 2021

11.4 K: 1:02:06

I went for an easy run for an hour. I ran in bare feet. Nothing gives me a better feeling. It was absolutely awesome. Winter is over. There is no need to worry about frostbite. Legs felt light. A cold feeling of the evening asphalt on the sold is a constant reminder of the physical endurance that I have developed over the last few years. I'm so glad that I didn't give in to the initial discomfort with a barefoot run. Now I feel so free.

An hour jog felt like a breeze, partly because of a good rest, partly because of interval training several days back, and partly because of a few pounds off my body thank to running 33 K with my sub-3 runner friend Ms. Akiko Miyamoto. 

I hope to run again tomorrow night. In bare feet of course. Course and distance haven't been decided. I'll just follow my nose.

Day-Off Park Workout: Tire Throw, Barefoot Jog, and Tire Lift Walk

Mar. 26. 2021

Tire throw: 60 reps: 10:17.35

Barefoot jog 3.5 K:

1st K: 6:02.79

2nd K: 5:34.32

3rd K: 5:47.21

Bonus 0.5 K: 2:49.93

Total 30:31.61

++++++++++++

Tire lift walk: 6 sets by 30 seconds with a 15-sec rest between sets.

Midnight Intervals: 3 Sets by 1 K @ 4:25 + Bonus K

Mar. 24, 2021

Warm Up 4.2 K: 25:50.97

Rest: 1:00.48

<Intervals>

1st K: 4:15.48

Rest: 1:00.50

2nd K: 4:22.94

Rest: 1:00.82

3rd K: 4:20.32

***********

Rest: 29.94

Warm Down 3.2 K: 21:01.46

Bonus K: 4:24.45

Total 11.2 K: 1:07:47

Focused on leg turnover. Still not entirely comfortable yet. Feel that I need a more dynamic running form to break out of my comfortable zone. I think I've reached a point where I need new trials and errors to break out of my comfort zone.

  

Midnight Hill Jog

Mar. 18, 2021

17.4 K: 1:42:56

This run is my reward to myself for a good job done.  The last of 4 sets of a series of seven 2.5 hour all-English corporate seminars was completed today. The entire program extended over a period of almost six months. I conducted them all except for a brief section of the first of the series of seven seminar. Feedback from participants was predominantly positive, which has led to the program being offered both in the first half and the latter half of Year 2021. I'm looking forward to making it even better for those who will join the new series starting in a few months' time.  

Tonight I chose to run the hilly 10 K route that I use for a tempo run, and added a 6 K loop below to make my total running distance for the night 17.4 K. I kept an average pace of 6 minutes per K to cover the distance in 1:42:56.

I listened to some English audio during the run. So it's an hour and 42 minute of learning English while jogging. I never have enough time to brush up my English and maintain my fitness separately. Killing two birds with one stone is the only option available to me to meet my needs. 

10 K Barefoot Recovery Run

Mar. 15, 2021

1st K: 5:52.57

2nd K: 6:11.01

3rd K: 6:05.63

4th K: 6:09.41

5th K: 6:00.66

6th K: 5:53.58

7th K: 5:55.57

8th K: 5:56.49

9th K: 5:53.69

Last K: 5:58.37

Total 10 K: 59:56

About 24 hours after running 33.25 K I enjoyed having a recovery run for an hour in bare feet in a nearby park. It was crowded with people of all ages. There were quite a few teenagers sitting and talking in groups in the sun. They are probably new graduates from a local junior high school. There were an equally large number of elderly people in the park. They were walking on a 500-M loop. I ran the same loop 20 times to cover 10 K.  

It's been a while since I last ran without shoes. It always feels great to feel the grass directly on your sole. 

An easy run for an hour alleviated stiffness in the legs. Strong sunshine lifted my spirit. 

I had lost a substantial amount of subcutaneous fat from the 30 plus K run yesterday. Running with less fat carried in your body is a pleasant experience. I want to stay lean like I do now. It seems to be an important part of going for a better time in a race. Aiming for a higher self seems to me to be all about not carrying anything that's not needed when you run, and also about only having what's truly essential. No more muscle training that doesn't make sense in terms of long distance running. Not too much carbo loading when you already have excessive fat around your waist. I'll take diet and workout seriously so that next time I'm invited by the multiple sub-3 runner to accompany her, I can run farther and faster. 

Nagoya Women's Marathon 2021 Camero Run

On Mar. 14, 2021 the Nagoya Women's Marathon 2021 took place in Nagoya, Japan. Many runners joined it online. One of them was my former high school tennis team member's elder sister, Ms. Akiko Miyamoto, a multiple sub-3 runner. Though my PR is not even close even to the worst of her records, she kindly invited me to join her for the run. She says nothing gives her greater moral support than accompaniment of a fellow runner. I gladly accepted her invitation.

The result is an amazing 3:28 finish for Akiko, and a retirement at 33 K for me. I was simply not ready to run the full marathon distance at the moment. But nonetheless it was a greatly inspirational experience, as well as tremendously beneficial training for me. 

We ran both of the super famous training routes for Olympic medalist Ms. Naoko Takahasi and Yuko Arimori, which are called the Naoko Road and the Yuko Road respectively. 

The Naoko Road is a 10 K shuttle route. The Yuko Road is an oval 12 K route with a brief shuttle section. Both start from the same point, and include a steep downhill right after start and a steep uphill right before finish. The Naoko Road is largely flat except for the undulation near the start/finish point. The Yuko Road on the other hand has a massive hill to get over between 1 and 3 K. 

My lap for each of the three 10 Ks is shown below together with one for the last 3.25 K of the Yuko Road. 

10 K: 50:51.09 

10 K: 51:35.00

10 K: 57:08.76

3.25 K: 17:56.33

33.25 K: 2:57:41

I was familiar with the Naoko Road, because I'd run it numerous times in the past. But some parts of the Yuko Road were unpaved and it wasn't friendly to someone like me who were in minimalist shoes. Furthermore, a strong head wind continued for 3 kilometers along the river, which sucked energy, both mental and physical, out of me, hence the significant drop in pace in the 3rd 10 K. (See above.)   

But all in all, it was a tremendously inspirational experience for an average citizen runner such as myself to run with a multiple sub-3 runner like Akiko. Her concentration before start, her perseverance in the last quarter of the race are something I look up to.

I'd like to take this opportunity to express my heartfelt gratitude to Yuko and Akiko for having invited me to this exciting online marathon attempt.

Recovery Run (16.8 K)

Mar. 8, 2021

16.8 K: 1:43:00

Eighteen hours after I ran  28.5 K, I went for a recovery run, aiming to run a total of more than a full marathon distance within 24 hours. I ran 16.8 K to reach a total distance of 45.3 K.

I don't know whether it's good or bad, but I don't feel too exhausted. Let's just say it's good, because both runs were not speed training, and the main purpose of the run tonight is for recovery. You don't want to feel too exhausted to do anything as a result of a recovery run, you know.

This coming weekend I'm running with an older sister of a friend of mine. She is a sub-3 runner. She signed up for the Nagoya Women's Marathon. The event takes place online, and she's planning to run a course in her original hometown of Sakura City, Chiba where I live right now. She wants company of a fellow runner to boost her spirit. Knowing that her younger sister's friend, which is me, is also a runner who lives in the same city, she invited me to join her through her sister. I gladly accepted the invitation.

Our running abilities are very different, and if I run her pace, I can very easily burn out, so I asked her not to expect too much of me as someone to run along with her to push her for a good time. I know her pacing because she shares some of her race results on FB, which I always see with a feeling of awe and respect. She gets right into a highly competitive pace from the start. I'm more of a slow starter. I'm almost like jogging in the first 10 K or so. My pace increase is only slight even in the following 10 K. I don't usually increase my pace until past 25 K. My quickest pace usually takes place near 35 K, though the exact peak varies from race to race. 

Anyhow, I am satisfied that I did run more than a full marathon distance within 24 hours, which is what I almost always did a week or two prior to really successful races in the past. 

I'm confident that I will have some enjoyable run this coming weekend. 

 

Midnight LSD (28.5 K)

Mar.7, 2020

28.5 K: 2:51:18

After sleeping a total of 14 hours of sleep I finally felt strong enough to run. To relieve tension resulting from a tempo run two nights before I set off for a slow jog without setting a specific goal of how far to go. I ran in aqua shoes below. There is no cushioning. It's good to keep my form in check. It hurts if your from is crooked. 

I carried a bottle of home-made sports drink with me to hydrate myself whenever necessary. It helped me stay motivated until around 25 K. But then after that I was simply out of gas, and no matter how much fluid I took, my mouth was dry and I remained thirsty. I felt a bit sick too. It's a sign that I'm running out of some important minerals. I was hoping to go for around 35 K, but settled for 28.5 K, which isn't so bad considering I hadn't run beyond 12 K for quite a while. 

A Rainy Day 7 Miler with a 10 K Tempo Run Inserted

Mar. 5, 2021

0.5 K: 3:10.56

10 K: 46:30.48 (Target=45:50.00)

Rest: 1:18.67

0.9 K: 6:40.41

Total 11.4 K: 57:40.12

I did a 10 K tempo run. It was raining when I got out. I welcomed it. Two of my best races were on rainy days. 

I fell short of the target by 40 seconds. It means I'm 4 seconds slower than the target of 4:35 for each K. Though I didn't make it, I patted myself on the shoulder. I could have given up halfway through. Around 5 K I felt a sudden drop in motivation.  I don't know why. It just happened. Maybe I was thinking about tomorrow and thought I should save energy for a busy day ahead. Maybe I thought I was too old to keep on pushing myself. Maybe I was just too hungry to go on. But somehow I coped with it and carried on.

I don't know when my mind had shifted away from that negative mode, but before I knew it, I had settled into a steady pace. Breathing was a bit rusty, but not to the point of making me slow down. 

I increased pace on a downhill for a time gain, slightly slowed down till my heart rates came down on a flat after a downhill, and took shorter strides on an uphill for running economy. I did my best to maneuver this ridiculously hilly course for a time gain. But, I couldn't make it.  But I won't give up. 

Tomorrow night I'll either go for a long and slow run, or rest, depending on how tired or sleepy I will be then.

Midnight One-Hour Jog

Mar. 3, 2021

11.4 K: 1:06:56

Ran a little longer than an hour to cover 11.4 K. Ran the course that I use for tempo run. I like it a lot because it's rich in undulation and there is little traffic late at night.  

My glutes were tense before starting off. The tension was due to intervals on the previous night. But as I progressed, it eased off. By the time I was home, it was almost completely gone. Funny what makes most people tired such as running can make you feel more refreshed. 

Listened to a couple of informative lectures by world-renowned motivational speaker Brian Tracy while running. The topics were how to manage negative emotions and how to maintain mental health. Got some useful input for a corporate seminar I'm facilitating tomorrow afternoon. Cannot wait to share some with participants. 

Midnight Residual Intervals: 3 Sets by I K @ 4:25

Mar. 2nd, 2021

Warm Up 3.4 K: 20:38.90

Rest: 1:00.23

<Intervals>

1st K: 4:12.50

Rest: 1:00.57

2nd K: 4:14.87

Rest: 1:00.68

3rd K: 4:09.64

Rest: 1:00.39

Warm Down 3.2 K: 19:46.37

9.6 K: 57:04.15

I finally completed the remaining 3 sets of a total 6 sets of 1 K fast run originally scheduled last week. It feels great. 

After the 3rd run, I felt a slight tension in the back of my left lung. It could be a muscle surrounding the lung. I am not sure. Over the last few months I've been frequently felt the same discomfort in the same area. It happens after several fast repeats. The discomfort is temporary. It's completely absent when I'm not running. I suspect it's a manifestation of TMS, or tension myositis syndrome. It's our sub-conscious mind's response to a high level of mental stress. Our mind is a highly sophisticated organ. When it is divided between two voices, one saying, "Run faster," and the other saying, "Stop. Take a break," it creates a physical symptom to shift our mind away from facing a painful reality of not being able to listen to both of the two voices at the same time. I'm afraid one part of my mind is too proud to admit that I'm not strong enough complete the hard interval training in one go. Well, maybe I used to, but not any more. Aging is a natural part of life. I'm more open than I used to be to my physical limitations resulting from aging. I guess I need to tell my sub-conscious that it doesn't need to create any physical symptom to make me stop doing training that is way over my head.