Midnight 10 K Jog in MUTEKI

Feb. 23, 2021

0.5 K: 2:53.06

10 K: 55:47.20

0.9 K: 5:19.05

Total 11.4 K: 1:03:59

I ached all over from a forearm challenge yesterday. Afraid that inaction could make it worse, I went out for a slow run. I ran the same route as yesterday, but from the opposite direction. 

Running the same course twice from two opposite directions allowed me to fully analyze the variation in undulation throughout the entire 10 K distance. It would take a little while to come up with the best strategy to tackle this challenging course.

One downside of this new course is that there is one section where traffic is busy even late at night, and that there is one section that has garbage scattered on both sides. It's demotivating to run through a mountain of rubbish...

There are more twists and turns in the new course, and there are more traffic lights too. Maybe I'll simply go back to the original 10 K course and persistently tackle it until I can finish under the target with ease. 

Midnight One-Hour Jog in MUTEKI

Feb. 8, 2021

11.4 K: 1:06:11

Jogged for a little more than an hour in split-toe minimalist shoes MUTEKI. Ran the hilly course I use for tempo run. It was deserted and quiet, perfect for listening to an educational program. Listened to the new psychology of selling by Brian Tracy while running. Very insightful. Rich in content that I can share with my clients in corporate seminars. 

Will have one more jogging session on Monday, and then on Tuesday hope to do intervals. 

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. 

Midnight 10 K Tempo Run in MUTEKI

July 2, 2020

Warm Up 880 M Walk

*********

<10 K Tempo Run: Target pace=4:35/K; Target lap for 2.5 K=11:27>

1st 2.5 K: 11:52.53 (+25)

2nd 2.5 K: 11:48.83 (+21)

3rd 2.5 K: 11:55.96 (+28)

4th 2.5 K: 11:43.31 (+16)

Sub-total 10 K: 47:20

Warm Down 3.38 K: 26:03.79

Total 13.38 K: 1:13.24

I did tempo run. I was originally planning to jog, but I felt sufficiently recovered from a long run three nights ago. But when I saw my lap in the first 2.5 K, I was shocked that I was running much slower than I thought I was.

I tried to pick up the pace, but I couldn't. I thought of giving up, but then if I did, quitting could become a habit. I went on. The lap continued to suck until the end. But facing a miserable self is an important part of becoming a stronger version of myself, so I kept on running until I finally reaching the target distance of 10 K!

Tonight I learned the hard way that I need at least two days of easy run between two challenging sessions, such as intervals, tempo run, and LSD.      

20 K Tempo Run in MUTEKI

March 1, 2020
Warm Up: 5:14.01
<20 K Tempo Run: Target 12:17 for each lap>
2.5 K: 11:44.46
2.5 K: 11:48.41
2.5 K: 11:48.23
2.5 K: 12:14.20
2.5 K: 12:31.09
2.5 K: 12:30.27
2.5 K: 12:10.59
2.5 K: 12:16.10
Total 20 K: 1:37:03 (Target=1:38:20)
Warm Down: 5:11.31

I went to see the Tokyo Marathon today. Suguru Osako finished 4th with a new national record of 2:05:29. It was inspiring.

At night I did a 20 K tempo run. It's my first major training session after Ohme. I wasn't sure if I could successfully carry it out. It's highly stressful training. Plus, I hadn't done much training for almost two weeks. But I wanted to know how far I could go anyway.

As I jogged to the start venue, I felt a stinging pain in my knee. For a moment I suspected it might be caused by the stress of the Ohme 30 K Road Race. But the next moment I just shrugged it off, saying to myself, "Well, it's just my sub-conscious saying, 'Don't make it too tough.'" As I look back on it, I think I was right, because once I started running, the pain somehow mysteriously disappeared.

I lapped the 2.5 K loop below.  The target for each lap is 12:17. I ran the first 10 K a little faster than the target. Then in the second half it started becoming increasingly tougher to keep the same pace. I was outside the target two laps in a row. There was a tremendous amount of inner-talk, so to speak, regarding whether or not I should continue. I chose to continue, no matter what a miserable self I would have to be facing.

When the target distance was finally covered, and I found myself well inside the target time, I was glad that I didn't give up.

10 K Tempo Run in MUTEKI

Feb. 9, 2020

Warm Up 700 M: 5:00.00

<10 K Tempo Run: Target Pace=4:45/K; Target Time for Each Lap=11:52; Target Finish Time=47:30>

2.5 K: 11:27

2.5 K: 11:17

2.5 K: 11:52

2.5 K: 11:11

Total 10 K: 45:47

Warm Down: 700 M: 5:00.00

It makes me sick to my stomach just to think about doing a tempo run. It's the most stressful training of all. Nevertheless, experience has taught me it is what guarantees the greatest gain. 

I was originally scheduled to do it on Saturday night, but I was too sleepy and tired to do it. I hit the bed immediately after coming home from work and finishing dinner. 

In the morning when I woke up, I was still tired. I dozed in bed for a few extra hours, and finally climbed out of futon around 11 a.m.to eat breakfast. I ate two oranges and a few cloves of garlic that I microwaved. I began to feel a surge of energy slowly building up inside. I put on my running gear and hit the road.

I dressed light to acclimatize for the race. My legs felt heavy in the first lap. But I was well under the target. I tried to ease my pace in the second. But I was comfortably under the target. I switched my breathing from 6 beat to 8 beat. Then finally in the 3rd lap I exactly hit the target. In the final lap I cruised along initially, but then in the second half, kicked a little and finished it in the fastest lap. I was satisfied. 

The hardest training is now over. In the coming 6 days leading to the race I am going to taper gradually except on Thursday night, I am going to a couple of 1 K fast runs just to briefly stimulate my cardio-vascular system. Other than just I'll just jog for an hour every day.

20 K Hill Tempo Run @ 4:45/K Pace

Feb. 2, 2019
Warm Up 2 K: 12:47.96
Rest: 43.53
20 K Hill Tempo Run: 1:36:09 (Target=1:35:00)
Warm Down 2 K: 17:24.90
Total 24 K: 2:07:05

This training is THE most important training for me before the Ohme 30 K Road Race. It's something I've never done before. I didn't do it because I didn't like it. I didn't like it because I was scared of it. I was scared of it because it seemed difficult. However, I finally made up my mind to do what I was most scared of not just because Mark Twain once advised us to do what we're most afraid of, but also because it's what I should do in order to become a stronger version of myself.

I jogged to the 2 K hilly shuttle course where I was going to do it. I mentally rehearsed the training as I approached the venue. When I got there, I briefly rested not because I needed it physically, but because I needed it psychologically to reset my motivation. 

I started a new lap on my chronograph, and started the countdown timer set at 4:45. It chimes every 4 minutes and 45 seconds. If the alarm goes off after running 1 K, I'm going faster than the target pace. If it goes off before reaching 1 K, I'm behind. This way I can keep track of my pace without looking at my watch and taking the lap at each K. 

I was slightly faster than the target until 13 K. However, between 13 and 14 K I realized keeping the same pace was becoming hard. The first sign of stress was a slight discomfort in the right hamstring. I considered quitting after running 14 K. I slowed down just a little bit to deal with the hamstring issue. It quickly went away. I kept on running, but wasn't as fast as I had been. 

When I finished running 14 K, I didn't hear the alarm, so I looked at the watch. I thought I was still ahead of the target. But the watch had already started counting down from 4:45. In fact, I was nearly 20 seconds behind. I did my best to catch up. But I couldn't...

As each K went by, I was going slower and slower. As I was running the 16 K, I was talking to myself, "Shall we call it a day after this K? If you add 2 K warming up and another 2 K warming down, it's 20 K anyway." That's my Id talking. But my other part of sub-conscious, namely "Super-ego", said, "Do what you should do no matter what." Then finally my "Ego" comes in and goes, "Well, look at it this way. By now you know very well that you're not gonna make it under the target. But! There is a but to it, you know. But! There is always a time when a race doesn't go to plan, and you only have a choice between quitting and going on running. When you do not choose to quit, the only thing that's left for you to do is face your misery. It hurts. But that's life. Life DOES hurt sometimes. And if you keep on running till the end no matter how slow you become, you can still build your mental toughness to deal with the painful encounter with that miserable version of you." ...I listened to my "Ego" and went on.

When I finally covered the entire 20 K, I was a minute and nine seconds behind the target. However, there was an indescribable feeling of achievement. I almost cried with satisfaction...

I grabbed the bottle of water I'd hidden in the bush, and started jogging back the way I'd come before.

Tomorrow I was originally planning to do LSD. But I will rest. I DO need a rest. My legs are already suffering from the new kind of stress that I imposed on them. But one thing is certain. They will be reborn, stronger, after the rest. 

Hill Intervals: 3 Sets by 1 K @ 4:05

Nov. 4, 2019

Warm up 2 K: 11:51.54

<Hill Intervals>

1st K: 4:05

Rest: 1:00.00

2nd K: 4:03

Rest: 1:00.00

3rd K: 4:02

Warm Down 3 K: 16:29.31

Total 8 K: 44:11.68

I did hill intervals. I ran 18.6 K on the previous night at a very comfortable pace, so my body was reasonably loosed up. So I warmed up shorter, and got right into intervals after warming up by running just 2 K. 

I finished under the target in all three. But a second after I set off for the 4th set, I felt I was out of gas, so I switched to a jog and slowly headed back home from there.

I must be able to repeat this pace 10 times to meet my goal of running 10 K under 41 minutes. The real race course is a lot less hilly, so I should be able to run faster if the road is flatter. But I want to be able to repeat the K at this pace at least three more time to do a total of 6 sets. We'll see. The first time I tried, I only did twice. Tonight I did it 3 sets. Hopefully, next time I can do at least one set more than 3. Then this weekend, I want to try a 6 K tempo run @ 4:05/K. It's my weekend fitness goal. 

Hill Intervals: 2 Sets by 1 K @ 4:05

Oct. 31, 2019
Warm Up 3 K: 17:41.21
Rest: 1:00.07
<Intervals: Target 4:05/K>
1st K: 3:50.64
Rest: 1:00.11
2nd K: 3:46.25
Rest: 1:00.26
Warm Down 3 K + Park Workout : 22:47.62
Total 8 K: 51:06.16

I did hill interval training this morning.
I don't usually do it in the morning. I'm nocturnal.
I tend to feel more focused at night.
Plus, traffic is less at night than in the morning.
So it's safter to run at night as well.
But last night I had a slight headache
probably from chronic shortage of sleep.
So I decided to take a short nap,
hoping that I'd be strong enough to run
after an hour of lying in bed.

When I opened my eyes again, it was 7 hours later,
and I still felt sleepy. So I slept two more hours
and got up at 10:00 am. I slept 9 and a half hours.
Though I missed my midnight training,
I felt reasonably recovered, ready to hit the road.

I changed into my running gear and headed for the hilly shuttle course
where I was planning to run last night.

My body felt heavy, and I was worried that I might not meet the challenge.
The challenge is running 1 K @ 4:05, and repeat it 5 more times with a minute's rest.

I calibrated the alignment of my joints as I ran along, trying to find the most efficient form that generated maximum power with minimum effort. I reached the venue before I was satisfied. But there was no waiting.

After taking a short break, I lifted off for the first set, hammering down the road like a thunder. I knew I was going a lot faster than my usual training pace. This time the goal is different. I usually train for full marathon. This morning I trained for 10 K. I must build greater lactic acid tolerance. To raise the threshold I must run faster, and sustain the effort at  least for 41 minutes.

The first half of the course is downhill. Iliacus muscles aren't that required. But quads are tremendously activated. I could feel them cry as I banged down the hill.

Then the second half is uphill. It's steep and long. This time iliacus muscles are  tremendously activated. I must raise my knees nice and quick and turn each kick into forward momentum. My strides got shorter to improve running economy. But if I do it too much, I sacrifice speed. I ran through a fine line between maintaining speed and optimizing running economy.

The first lap was 3:50.64. Well under the target. But I was out of breath, already on the verge of getting burned out.

I rested for a minute. While resting, I wondered whether I should go for another set or not. The first set was so fast. I felt like I'd had enough for the day. But I decided to give it another try, no matter how pathetic the set might become.

As I set off for the second run, I immediately knew that it wouldn't be a good set. My legs were heavy, and breathing was difficult. But I pressed on nonetheless.

The second set, which is going the route of the first set in the reverse direction, begins with a steep downhill. It sounds easy, but puts a tremendous amount of stress on the quads.

Once you hit the bottom of the downhill, a short flat stretch continues. This is where I readjust the alignment of my body, trying to find the best form to attack the forthcoming uphill. Then when I reach the bottom of the uphill, I change my gear, take a little shorter strides and quicker steps, and use my arm swing more to create a driving force up the hill.

The lap was 3:46.25. To my surprise the time was better than the first. I was satisfied. But there wasn't a drop of gas left in my tank. I feebly walked to and fro to calm down my breath. A minute later I weakly headed back home.

On the way back I stopped by a small park to get some water and do some bicep workout. Later on when I passed yet another park, much larger, I did hand-clap push-ups just because I was in a mood for it.

When I got home, took a warm quick shower, and had a healthy breakfast consisting of grilled fish, boiled pork guts, boiled veggies, yogurt, and fresh fruits, I felt like a new man who was so full of energy that he could do anything.

5 K Jog in MUTEKI

Sept. 5, 2019

2.5 K: 16:35.31

2.5 K: 16:29.82

Total 5 K: 33:05.13

100-Minute Jog in MUTEKI

Sept. 1, 2019

16.8 K: 1:40:26

The nasty blister on my right sole seems steadily healing. All I need to do, I hope, is just wait. 

It's exactly two weeks until my first race in Race Season 2019-2022. It's the Kyoho no Oka 18.3 K Road Race held in Yamanashi. The race is known for its altitude difference between the start and finish point. It's more than 300 M. Once you start, an upward pitch continues for almost 10 K. Then once you reach the highest point, it's all downhill until the finish line, EXCEPT there are two menacingly steep hills in the last three kilometers which make many runners stop running to walk every year. I welcome those hill, and I bet some of the hardcore fans of this race do too.

I ran the course below at a comfortable pace, covering 16. 8 K in about 100 minutes. The main purpose is to get my body used to sustain cardio-vascular effort for as long as I run the race. The long slow run was also good to actively recover from the partially fast-paced run yesterday.  

Tomorrow I go to Kyoto on business. I am going to give myself a rest at night. On Tuesday I'm planning to jog for an hour. And on Wednesday night I'll be doing some short intensive interval training. 

P.S. While running, I listened to two audio lectures. One is entitled "How to Make People Fall in Love with You". The other is about leadership by John Maxwell. According to John Maxwell, it's impossible to become a successful leader if you are not healthy. And he sounded particularly adamant about the importance of mental health. To my mind and body are inseparably connected, so physical health and mental health are two sides of the same coin, and it's hard to make one strong without making the other strong also. My personal strategy is to focus on building physical strength. It seems mental strength follows along the way.                                     

10 K Run in MUTEKI

Aug. 30, 2019

5.1 K: 29:24.40

5.1 K: 26:12.36

Total 10.2 K: 55:36.76

It's been a while since I ran last. My last post is dated Aug. 19. I hadn't run for 11 days! Why? The reason is I had a serious pain in the ball of my right foot. There was a thick blister that had been bother me for months. And after the last running session, I finally decided to do something about it. I bought this over-the-counter medical tape from a local drugstore, and applied it on the blister. It's supposed to make the dead skin soft, and eventually come off. 

A few days after the application, a layer of dead skin did come off, and it appeared that the area was going to heal. But then under the removed dead skin appeared yet another layer of thick skin which looked like a mini callus. My heart sank in dismay. I put a small piece of medical tape on in, and a couple days were about to pass when the area suddenly started hurting. I removed the tape. Under it appeared an area which turned white because of some agent in the medial tape. It looked thicker than before. But it wasn't soft. It was, in fact, hard, and didn't appear to be easily peeled off. And it hurt! 

I panicked. If the pain remained, I wouldn't be able to train. If I couldn't train, I would be able to prepare for the race in mid September. 

I immediately stopped applying the medial tape, and left it at that while putting kinetic tape on it for protection. 

A whole day passed. The pain didn't completely go away, but it somewhat receded. I decided to go for a short slow jog in shoes. 

As soon as I hit the road, though, the pain that I had left while walking, seemed less distracting. I increase pace to find out a slight increase in pace didn't bother me so much. 

I continued to run at a comfortable pace, and since I didn't feel any major pain, I decided to run a negative split by injecting pace in the second half. 

 In the final K I increased cadence and put on a spurt. When I stopped my Ironman at the finish, I realized that I ran almost 3 minutes faster in the second half.

It's almost an hours now since I got home from the run. The pain that I didn't feel much while running probably because of adrenaline rush is back. It's amazing that now I must limp just to go to the kitchen from my room, and yet that while running pain was largely manageable. It's one of many wonders of mind-body!

Hot Summer Night Hill Intervals

Aug. 14, 2019
3 K jog: 18:45.73
1st K: 4:25.39
Rest: 1:00.32
2nd: 4:18.76
Rest: 1:00.24
3rd: 4:23.63
Rest: 1:00.20
4th: GIVE UP!
2 K jog: 13:30.18
Revenge K: 4:19.56
Total 9 K: 52:44

After teaching a 5-hour seminar in Central Tokyo I came home in Chiba around 8 p.m. I had a light dinner, because I wanted to run. On the previous night I ran 10 K by running a 2.5 loop four times. But in the last K of the last two rounds I increased pace significantly. I didn't realize then but tonight when I went for interval training, a consequence of the surge was evident. I barely came under the target of 4:30 right from the first set. The following two sets went all right as I had warmed up after the first. But when I set off for the fourth after taking a minute of break, I felt so weak that I came to a complete halt after going only 20 meters or so. I gave up, because I was expecting to get up early the following morning to teach yet another 5-hour seminar. You got to get your priority straight. Work first. Training next.

I weakly started jogging back home. Ordinarily it would only take a few minutes before the heart rates come down to normal, but tonight I continued to feel weak no matter how slowly I ran. When I finally reached the park near my house, I had a choice between going straight home and doing another fast run, this time on a flat road. (Note the three sets I had done was on a hilly shuttle course.) 

I was hesitant for a moment, afraid that I might run out of gas before completing the full distance. But a second later I heard another part of me saying, "What the heck?" You have nothing to lose even if you give up halfway. It'd still be better than not trying and gaining nothing." Before I knew it, I found myself hammering down the road. As soon as I started running, I realized with dismay that recovery from the slow jogging was limited, and my legs remained as heavy as lead. But I pressed on. Finally I reached the finish line, and stopped my wrist watch. It said 4:19. Not the best time for the night despite running the flat area. But nonetheless I felt good about myself because I pushed myself beyond what I was easily capable of doing.

1 K Fast Run

April 26, 2019
Jog: 1:48.10
1 K Fast Run: 4:01.88
Jog: 1:56.58

I hit the road, hoping to refresh myself from hours of focused creative work, but I wasn't only mentally exhausted but also physically fairly beat from high intensity body weight workout on the previous morning, and couldn't push myself beyond 1 K. But I think it's still better than nothing.

Ever since the sad news of Mr. Yoshio Koide's death traveled across the country, I've been watching videos on You Tube of races of his former trainees such as Yuko Arimori and Naoko Takahashi, and I renewed my interest in his training method. In fact, I ordered a book written by the late marathon trainer, and the book arrived yesterday. I already read the first half, and genuinely feel motivated to someday run a sub 3.5 marathon, and at least have a go at a sub 3 marathon also. He writes as if nothing was impossible.  

Mr. Koide, by the way, was my PE teacher when I was in my first year at Sakura Senior High School in Chiba Prefecture. No one would have imagine then that someday he would make the coach of an Olympic gold medalist.

13.1 K Jog

April 9, 2019

13.1 K: 1:16:52

Five more days to go before Kasumigaura Marathon 2019. I was originally scheduled to jog for an hour, but added an extra couple of miles because I felt good, and also because I didn't train on the previous night due to a thunder storm. I made up for it. 

I ran in minimalist split-toe shoes MUTEKI for minimum protection. Any damage at this stage could cause an unrecoverable damage to the sole. It should be strictly avoided. Therefore the shoes. 

I chose the usual 10.5 K course to run. It's rich in undulation and traffic is minimum. Good for a focused night run. The only downside is that there is only one public toilet along the course, and it's only in the last 500 M. I found one outside a drugstore, but even that is in the last 2 K. So if I want to pee before reaching there, I have no choice but wait.

There are quite a few cherry trees along the course, and many of them are next to lamp posts, so they glowed beautifully in the lights. 

I listened to Brian Tracy and Wendy Suzuki while running. Brian talked about achieving success, and Wendy about exercise and its health benefits. 

I weighed 61 kg after the run. Still a bit heavier than I want to be at the race this week. I'll eat lots of veggies and fruits, and avoid starchy food such as rice and noodles. I may go grocery shopping tomorrow morning to get some fresh veggies from a local grocery store.

10 K Run in MUTEKI

March 21, 2019
10.5 K: 59:20.95

Ran 10.5 K in split-toe minimalist shoes MUTEKI. Ran a course different from the one I had run on the previous night just to keep me motivated.

Just four more days to go before the race. I was originally going to run 10 K on Thursday, do intervals on Friday, and run another 10 K on Saturday. But I've changed my mind. I'll do intervals tomorrow, run 10 K Friday night, and give myself a full rest on Saturday. This is because I have an event scheduled until eight or so Saturday night, and running 10 K after coming home from work might leave me unrecovered.

10 K Build-Up in MUTEKI

 March 13, 2019
Warm Up 750 M: 6:38.52
2.5 K : 16:11.42 (Target=16:15.00 / 6:30/K)
2.5 K : 14:40.77 (Target=14:10.00 / 5:40/K)
2.5 K : 11:45.13 (Target=12:17.00 / 4:55/K)
2.5 K : 10:25.92 (Target=11:15.00 / 4:30/K)
Warm Down 750 M: 6:18:34 
Total 11.5 K: 1:06:00

Today is the first training day of the second last week before the race. I was originally scheduled to just jog for 60 minutes. But I wasn't too motivated to just run at a slow pace for an hour. I found it too mundane. So I decided to change the pace every 2.5 K, and also to run a different course.

I Google-mapped the course below. It's a simple loop with only two right-angled corners. Very easy to run. There are a number of traffic lights along the course, but it being the small hours, there was little traffic to watch out for. Nothing distracted me. I was totally zoned in.

I ran the first 2.5 K at a very slow pace, mainly checking my form and resultant feeling by changing the stride, cadence, and landing positing. Eventually I settled into the most comfortable form, which happens to be the most efficient one also. 

After the first lap I gradually increased the pace, first to my sub-4 full marathon pace, next to my average half marathon pace, and finally to my average 10 K pace. 

Though I fell short of the target in the second lap, in the third and fourth I was well under the target. I was glad. 

Tomorrow is interval day. I haven't decided exactly what to do. But I am going to listen to the voice of my mindbody, and decide to do what it calls for. 

10.5 K Jog with Occasional Surges

Feb. 10, 2019

10.5 K: 56:33.63

It's a week to the Ohme 30 K Road Race. At this stage of preparation there isn't much you can do to improve your overall running ability so dramatically. All you can do is carefully conditioning your mind-body and avoiding injury. Two things are important, I believe. One is keep your cardio-vascular system active by running around 10 K daily. The other is not running too long a distance so as not to over-exhaust your legs. 

I didn't feel as motivated as I should be before I ran. After the Tateyama Wakashio Marathon I had been experiencing a minor case of burnout. I resorted to a number of different ways to stay motivated. One is to run a shorter distance. Another is to run a different route. Tonight I resorted to the latter method. I Googled-mapped a new 10 route and ran it. It turned out to be richer in undulation than I'd imagined. I was glad. I decided to surge when climbing an upward incline. It created a meaningful change of pace throughout the run, and made it fun to sustain. 

10 K Jog in MUTEKI

Feb. 8, 2019

5.1 K: 32:30.52

5.1 K: 28:03.84

Total 10.2 K: 1:00:34

Since I ran 23 K this past Monday I hadn't run for three days in a row. On Tuesday I needed a full rest after the long run. On Wednesday I didn't run because I had an early start the following morning. On Thursday I was too exhausted and sleepy to run after teaching a 7-hour corporate seminar all by myself. Tonight I was still not fully recovered, and ideally should go to bed early to prepare for an early start on Saturday morning, but another absence of training could have led to a setback on the gain from all the previous efforts, so I decided to hit the road by significantly lowering the expectations of myself. I ran without weights. I ran with shoes on. I ran slowly. I picked up the pace only when I felt like it. And it worked. Just like in most previous sessions it felt like shit before you did it, but it felt like seventh heaven when it's done.  

22 K Jog in My New Pair of MUTEKI

Jan. 20, 2019
11 K: 1:05:23
11 K: 1:00.29
Total 22 K: 2:05:52

Almost 24 hours after doing a weighted 10 K barefoot pace run, I was ready for another training session: 90-minute jog. I asked myself whether I should go barefooted or in shoes. I opted for a shoe-clad practice. There was slight soreness left in both of my soles.

I put on my new pair of MUTEKI split-toe minimalist shoes with no cushioning. NIKE's Vaporfly with thick cushioning is all the rage. But it's not for me.  I'm a citizen runner who wants to become a stronger version of himself. Not a professional runner running for a prize money. I want to be faster. But I equally want to be more endurable. More accommodating of discomfort and more resistant to pain.

I took off, aiming to reach the Kashiwai Water Treatment Plant 9.9 K from home, and was going to decide how much farther to go from there. If I ran a lap around the water plant and headed straight back home, that'd be roughly 15 K. If I ran a lap around the water plant, and went back where I came from, that'd be 22 K. I didn't need to decided right away. I could go with the flow, and decide depending on my mood.

When I reached the far end of the water plant, I was still full of legs, so I decided to go back the same route that I came from to make it a 22 K session.

But as I went on, I found myself gradually getting hungry, and motivation started waning. I considered taking a shorter route to settle for a 90-minute jog as originally scheduled. But then another side of me said, "When you feel hungry, it means you have run out of your belly fat. Now your body has tapped your subcutaneous fat reserve to sustain your effort." I discovered meaning in going farther. I dropped the idea of taking a shortcut, and completed a 22 K run.

While running, I listened to a couple of lectures by world-renowned Canadian professional speaker & sale consultant Brian Tracy who says there are a number of keys to becoming a positive person, and one of them is eating good food. So as soon as I got home, I had organic miso soup, fresh watercress, fresh spinach, and fresh fruits. 

Tomorrow I will give myself a full rest. After that three days of a 60-minute jog follow. Then comes interval training on Friday. Saturday is another 60-minute jog day. And then comes Sunday when I run for my first sub-4 barefoot marathon.