Week 1. Saturday - Crazylegs Classic

April 29, 2006

Activities/Actions:

• Race a 8K (5 mile) event
  

Stat:
5 miles, 37:45 mins (7:33/mile)
(over-all place 1142, age-group place 189)

Course condition: The course is a bit hillier than I used to run in Chicago. It offers a nice run through a park along University Bay, Lake Mendota. Though the day is mostly cloudy, the temperature is just nice, and the race ends just right before the rain comes.

How I felt:
(the 5-point scale)

• Physically 5
• Mentally 5
• About my nutrition 5
• About my sleep 2

How hard did I work? 8
(the 10-point scale)

Note and reflections:

Running makes one feel happy; in a race running into the finish line accomplishes one's goal. Crazylegs is my second race and completes another section of my road. My race goal is to finish under 40 mins, which I successfully top the goal. :) I feel that I have tried fairly hard but I only sprint just right before entering the stadium gate. I will need to use a suggestion from a friend that try as hard as I can for the last mile. Actually, the pace for the second half of the race should be faster than that of the first.

Crazylegs offers a fun run from the Capital Hill to Camp Randall. The 2nd mile climbs a bit steeply, but most of the course is nice. Among nearly 8,000 runners starting out from Capital Hill, four of my friends--Pam, Mei, Wayne & P' Lek--all top their race goal. Crazylegs comes at the top of the fun races I ever participated (hehe only two) because these four friends run. Thanks Pam for the invitation. The atmosphere is very relaxing with costume racers and supporters in various funny dresses. I see: one is running in a full American football gear, while a group of 3 kids are in prisoner black-white stripes and father in a guard gear chains them to one another. Uncle Sam on a stilt high fives us at the final leg.

One highlight of the race is seeing my old friends--P' Tete, Ble, Nor, Pam, Lookaew, Auy and Kate--in addition to meeting new ones. Most of them I hadn't talked with for ages, so this is a great opportunity to tune up with their changes. They take us to a Laotian restaurant (Lao Lan Xang; very yummy food) and Michael's (an ice cream place). Thanks everyone for the warm welcome and fun time.

A Missing Runner: Though many people saw him at the last quarter mile of the race, none found him at the stadium (even around Madison campus) for three hours after that. Spending three hour looking for our mising running mate was not a pleasant time. We walked in/out the stadium, up/down seating sections and asked many staffs for him (while I was walking, I grasped many water bottles, bananas & oranges to fill me up). We even asked the First Aid unit with a hope for the worst that he might be there. Luckily he was not, but it did not alleviated our warrisome that we could not find him. Amidst rock music amplified by the post-race band, The LoveMonkeys, there was no chance to announce for our missing friend. When the music on the stage quiet down, and the guards pushed us out of the stadium (we also took many water bottles out!), we gave up and gave a hope to his credit card that he brought with him. While we were eating our lunch, Prin's phone rang. Thanks to the phone, we knew where our missing runner whereabout. Our missing runner walked out just right after he could not find anyone at the stadium to a library near Student Union. Probably, he wanted to find a car. Jokingly we had thought that he might disappear with those sexy Wisconsin girls to a party. We agreed that one should not let your running mate wandering around in Camp Randall alone; he might wandered out to the 7am-7am drinking fest. :)

Some photos from the race:
(to-be-updated)

@ the start line; actually we could not find one another right after we left the sweats with sweat truck.


Waving to cheering buddies at the last quarter mile.
Prin snapped this nice action.


Crazylegsers!
After race group photo with Pam and her friends.


Camp Randall 50 yard line: Our finish line.
I-Mei-Prin-Wayne



Out of prison!


A yummy dinner with all the gang:
I-P'Tete-Nor-Ble-Ne-LookPad-Lookaew-Pam-Auy-Prin-Mei-P'Lek-Wayne


My crazy legs in Actions!

Continue reading the rest...

Week 1. Friday

April 28, 2006

Activities/Actions:

• No running today since we are on our way to Madison for the Crazylegs!
• Driving through a heavy traffic out of Chicago.

Stat:
Resting Day

Course condition: n/a

How I felt:
(the 5-point scale)

• Physically 5
• Mentally 5
• About my nutrition 4
• About my sleep 4

How hard did I work? n/a
(the 10-point scale)

Note and reflections:
Had a chance to walk through State Street after a dinner at Kabul, an Afgan restaurant. We got plenty of sugar for tomorrow run! Heading to Pam's, Nor's and Lookaew's place, we decided to stay there. Let's see how tomorrow run will be.

Continue reading the rest...

Week 1. Thursday

April 27, 2006

Activities/Actions:

• Biked to lab
• Ran alone today on 8K Jackson Park (No.1) trail (a new route of the week).
  
• Hydration: Pretty good today, but that consumed before the run was less than that of yesterday.
• Weights & Stretching: 15 mins
• Squash for 3 games; the last game to Kou for his time in Chicago. He was happy by beating me 9-4. Hahaha.. I will take the title back. :)
  

Stat:
Started 6.10p
5 miles, 40:00 mins (8:00/mile); actually a bit short of 5 miles.

Course condition: 50F (even 45F with wind guts). The run passing through a nice area of Jackson Park, especially Wooded Island and Osaka Garden.

How I felt:
(the 5-point scale)

• Physically 5
• Mentally 5
• About my nutrition 4
• About my sleep 3

How hard did I work? 5
(the 10-point scale)

Note and reflections:
One of the concern for today is sleep. I don't think that I got a good sleep last night. Anyway, I better get a good one tonight.

The run today reminded me of a famous poem by Robert Frost. I first learned this piece in English class at St. George's (the first year I came to America). The poem begins..

The Road Not Taken

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

Today, I took the south path to Jackson Park. "And that has made all the difference." I have found another favorite path. The section going through Wooded Island is the section I haven't taken before. The trees are denser and more birds than other parts of the park. No wonder that Yeong-Shin had found many species of birds while he kept an eye for them. Even though this evening temperature was a bit cold and there was some wind guts, the scenery along this part warmed me up. I already planed to run to a meadow (the east side of Wooded Island) for the next time. Tomorrow, we are going to Madison for the race. This will be my second race. Pam has invited me to join her for a run so I will go with other four friends. This will be fun! We all are excited. Tomorrow will be rest day without a run. I might not be able to write a journal entry but will try to.

Continue reading the rest...

Week 1. Wednesday

April 26, 2006
Activities/Actions:

• Biked to lab
• Ran with Wayne through our 5-mile path. It was a nice day for a run, a bit chilly, but no wind, which made it great!
• Weights & Stretching: 30 mins
• Hydration: It is good today; I was well hydrated with almost 2 liters of fluid.

Stat:
Started around ~6:15PM
5 miles, 42:00 mins (8:24/mile)

Course condition: ~60F; nice clear sky. A little bit chilly, but not bad at all.

How I felt:
(the 5-point scale)

• Physically 5
  
• Mentally 4
  
• About my nutrition 3
  
• About my sleep 4
  

How hard did I work? 6
(the 10-point scale)

Note and reflections:
Starting the day with Thailand political news, I felt that the day went fast. A nice Journal Club pushed my lunch back a bit, and a new reading topic kept my mind away from refilling my bowl this afternoon. By the time I went out for a run, I did not think that I had enough food. While cruising through the returning trip, I was a bit hungry. So, I put 3 on my nutrition today. :) Though, after all exercises, I came back and filled my empty stomach right away.

On the returning trip, I encountered a small incident. While I was passing a baby stroller that blocked the way in front of me, a loud scream broke out which made hair on the back of my head stand. I turned back (but did not stop) and apologized to the mother who was pushing the stroller. A screaming child was probably suffered from metal illness. I felt sorry but had to keep on running. I believe that this is a way of life that you cannot always change things. Sometimes, we need to let them pass. I think that we, human, have evolved to run--both run into and run away. So ability to run is within us. We just need to train our body and mind for it.

Another incident was for Wayne; he had a Wednesday milk shake incident. Probably, it upset his stomach...

My sleep was fine; it could be better.

Continue reading the rest...

Week 1. Tuesday

April 25, 2006

Activities/Actions:

• Biked to lab
• Ran in HCFH track. Tung-Hung set the pace for the first 4 laps (0.5 mile), x mins. For the last 8 laps, I finished ~ 6 mins (a bit too fast, though it was only a mile run).
• Squash with P' Lek for 5 games ~ 1 hr. Good games!
• Hydration: I am doing pretty well with my water today. I packed ~ 2 liters and finished most of them tonight. I had ~ a liter before going to workout.
• Weights & Stretching: none.
  

Stat:
Running around 8:50p.
~1 miles, 6:00 mins (6:00 mins/mile)

Course condition: HCFH track.

How I felt:
(the 5-point scale)

• Physically 5
• Mentally 4
• About my nutrition 5
• About my sleep 4

How hard did I work? 7 for squash; 5 for running.
(the 10-point scale)

Note and reflections:
Since it was cold outside (but sunny), I decided to run on HCFH track for tonight before playing squash. After the rain this morning, the temperature has dropped to about 42F but feels-like 34F at around 630p. Also, I presented at the lab meeting and needed to think about what to do next, running in HCFH was a good idea. Just finishing a dinner 45 mins ago, I was still a little full when I went to gym. The run was ok, but I was getting tired quicker than normal. My right shoulder was a bit ache (not really, but I could feel something) from squash.
I had a better sleep than the night before and awaked around 7:30a.

I was a bit stressed for my lab meeting and my research today. I have to think .. think .. think...

Continue reading the rest...

Week 1. Monday

April 24, 2006

Activities/Actions:

• Biked to lab. Ran with Wayne on our usual 5 mile trail to lakefront. Let Wayne set the pace.
• Weights & Stretching: ~45 mins.
• Hydration: I was supposed to drink ~ 11 cups today. It seemed to me that I did not meet this goal. Though, the night has not ended yet. :)
  

Stat:
Running at 6:30 pm
5.50 miles, 50:00 mins (9:05/mile)

Course condition: 65F; nice clear sky with some small wind guts. A perfect day for a run!

How I felt:
(the 5-point scale)

• Physically 5
• Mentally 5
• About my nutrition 4
• About my sleep 3

How hard did I work? 4
(the 10-point scale)

Note and reflections:

This week will be a nice and easy week for a run before a coming race this weekend--Crazylegs Classic. Today I forgot to drink some water before the run, but I tried to sip some along the course. Wayne and I almost got a full stride from the start to the end. As usual, I felt good during and after the run. I was free for an hour after a little productivity in the lab. Good or bad? Though, I came back with energies to do more work at night. I will try to get a better sleep than last night. Though I did not want to get up when I first awaked around 8a, I believe that I got a fairly good sleep. After awaked, I moved back and forth between the bed and my computer (checking emails) for several times for about an hour.

A word for tomorrow: "Hydration!"

Continue reading the rest...

Course Information

All distance posts are in Kilometer.


5 mile (8K) Lakeshore Path
Starting from Cobb Gate on 57th to 47th Street and returning back to Cobb Gate.

5 mile (8K) Jackson Park Path (No. 1)
Starting from Cobb Gate on 57th to lakeshore path, heading south to East Marquette Dr., turning to Jackson Park, passing through Osaka Garden, heading along Midway, turning North to Main Quad and ending at Cobb Gate.


5 mile (8K) Jackson Park Path (No. 2)
Similar to the 5 mile (8K) Jackson Park Path (No. 1), but instead of going through Wooded Island and Osaka Garden, bearing Northeast to Bob-O-Link Meadow, passing through the meadow to Columbia Basin, then taking the same route as the No.1 back to Cobb Gate.


5 mile (8K) Home to Lakefront
Start by warming up at home for couple laps, then go to lakefront bike path to 47th street, and returning back home, cooling down for couple laps.



3 Mile Midway Plaisance



Lakefront 8K to 43rd St.



Lakefront 8K from home to the 43rd St.






3 miles from home to lab




3 miles from lab to Columbia basin

Continue reading the rest...

A Stage

Well, at the beginning of the book, the author suggests us to identify what stage of these 6 specific stages we are in.

Stage 1: "I wasn't even thinking of starting a walk/run program--someone gave me this book."

Stage 2: "It sounds like a good idea, but ..."

Stage 3: "Tell me more. I am ready to make the commitment."

Stage 4: "I am doing it."

Stage 5: "I love it and can't imagine my life without it."

Stage 6: "Oops." (the relapse stage.)

I believe that I am on stage 4/5 already!
Stage 4/5: "I am doing it and enjoying it very much."

Continue reading the rest...

Journal Keys

How I felt? (the 5-point scale)

1. Poor
2. Below average
3. Average
4. Above average
5. Excellent
   

How hard did I work? (the 10-point scale)

1. "The is easy." Breathing easy, no fatigue
2. Breathing easy, sweating very lightly, no fatigue
3. Aware of breath but still easy, muscles warming up, sweating lightly, no fatigue
4. Breathing slightly elevated, muscles warm, sweating, can carry on a conversation, slightly fatigue
5. A little breathless, muscles working, sweating more, a little more fatigue
6. Breathing harder and deeper, can still hold a conversation, increase in fatigue but can keep going for a while
7. Breathing hard and deep and aware of it, can still talk but would prefer not to, definite fatigue
8. Breathing laboured, can only grunt in answer to questions, very definite fatigue
9. Breathing very laboured, no talking possible, cannot maintain for very long, overwhelming fatigue
10. "This is ridiculous." Breathing extremely laboured, ready to stop at any time, all-out faitgue
    

Continue reading the rest...

Motivation Plan

After a nice tour, "Bike the Lakefront," offered by CAF today, I got a book from the CPL library--"The Beginning Runner's Journal"--and had skimmed through it for the past two hours. The book suggests a beginner for a walk/run to keep his/her objectives/goals/mission statements and especially a good motivation/positive attitude towards the walk/run, besides a running journal. I agree with the author and believe that I should start keeping a running journal. Though, I've been running for more than a year and finished Chicago Half-Marathon last year, it would be great to set my Motivation Plan and importantly to keep my running journal. The author sets an outline below for a runner to write down the motivation plan (I will come back to update this later). Also, there is an outline journal for two sets of 13-week program. I have recorded my running log for awhile (though not regularly and sometime often forgot to write down); this will be a good opportunity to use this journal page outline with some modifications. I probably will not use the suggested program (though, need to investigate the plan more carefully).

Motivation Plan
(To be completed)

Reasons for training
. . . . . . .

Vision Statement
. . . . . . .


Mission Statement
. . . . . . .


Obstacles I might encounter and how I will overcome them
. . . . . . .

Affirmation to keep me going
. . . . . . .

Negative thoughts and feelings I might experience and how I will deal with them
. . . . . . .


My social support Network
. . . . . . .

My training cues
. . . . . . .


My rewards
. . . . . . .
________________
source: Farres, Laura. 2003. The beginning runner's journal.

Continue reading the rest...