Regrets? I'm not sure . . . but a few things I wish I had done.

We're talking running here!

Not going to be thinking about all those things in life that I wish I had chosen differently!  For sure I've made some really bad choices in my life and would like a chance to go back and try again!  Hopefully I would choose differently.  BUT . . . that said I am who I am based on all the things I've done up to this point, so if I changed those bad decisions into better decisions I wouldn't be who I am.

Okay . . . that's a rabbit hole I don't want to go down!  At least on this blog.

No . . . I'm focusing on my running here.  I started in 1974 I believe.  For the life of me I can't really remember for sure but it was 2-3 years before I got married and that was in 1977.  So 1974 is a pretty good guess.  So 45 years of running.  Well . . . that's not exactly right!  There were plenty of times I stopped running. Some breaks were due to injuries and some times where life just got in the way, and some times for sheer laziness!  But I'm not going to worry about those details!  I've been a runner for 45 years!!

One early choice I made was that I figured out that I got way more satisfaction from running a longer distance than I got from running something fast.  For years I was focused on trying to run fast 5k and 10k races.  But I found I got a huge personal satisfaction from running a race that I wasn't sure I could even finish!  My first marathon back in the 1980s I actually cried when I finished!  I had worked so hard and had suffered to accomplish that 26.2 miles!!  I was proud of myself.  And that feeling was way stronger that any feeling I got from running a "fast" 5k.  So that choice took me in a very different direction in my running life.

Probably the most critical running choice I made was in 2005.

I had suffered from some serious knee issues and chose to follow doctors' advice.  Trying surgery, PT, and finally trying "no running" at all.  Things had just gotten worse and worse and worse.  I had trouble simply walking around casually!  Until by accident in 2004 I found something that started making my knees feel better.  And I really worked hard at this crazy "something" and it started paying off!  My orthopedic doctor told me I was crazy and that what I was doing had no chance of working!  But it did work!  And in 2005 I trained and finally ran a "Return to Running Marathon" . . . the Shamrock Marathon in Virginia Beach.

I was "over-the-moon" with my newly found return to running and ended up doing quite a few more marathons that year.

And it was at one of these marathons that I made the choice that I'm talking about here!!  I went up to NW West Virginia and ran the Ridge Runner Marathon.  I had already run several marathons that spring and I was tired and decided to just take it easy on this marathon.  I decided to take a camera with me and shoot a bunch of pictures of things I saw and people I met along the way.  This choice has made all the difference and I knew it right after I finished that race!

1. First - (and most importantly) I had fun!  It was a blast just not worrying about my time . . . just running along at any pace that felt good at that time!!  And I recovered within a day or two!!  This was a life changer!!
2. Second - I loved looking back at the pictures I took and having those pictures to  help me recall details about the race.

So these two things totally changed my running from that point on!  Later I did have to start worrying about my running pace at some races where there were time cut-offs to be an official finisher for the race.  Honestly . . . I started HATING races with cut-offs . . . it just took all the fun away for me.

But I do I have any regrets?  Not many . . . but a few!

1. I had a goal of running a sub-20 5k.  I trained hard and I ran hard but I never was successful!  The frustrating part is that I got soooooo close three separate times!!  I had three 20:01 finishes!!!  So close!  I kept thinking I would finally do a 19:?? but it never happened.
2. My first marathon DNF haunts me.  The Leadville Trail Marathon.  This was one of the toughest marathons I ever entered!  The races started at 10,000 in elevation!  Climbed up to about 12,500, dropped to 11,000 feet and the climbed up to 13,185 feet at mile 13.1!  Then, you turn around and run back!!  I got to mile 20 and felt great!  But climbing that 13,000 bugger had really taken it out of me and the trail up was all loose rock . . . some big chunks and a ton of medium rocks.  And it was the most insecure footing I had every run on and my knees weren't all that good.  So I had come down the mountain slow and easy and found that I had missed the 20 mile cutoff by 4 minutes.  They had a van there and insisted I had to stop.  So I did.  But in hindsight I wish I had simply given them my race bib and continued on to an "unofficial" finish.  I think about that race and my choice often . . .
3. The Bloody 11w race was my first successful 100 mile race!  BUT there is a catch.  The full race was 111 miles but they had the option to stop at 100 for what they called their "Fun Run."  Even when I started the race I only intended to run 100 miles and not the full 111 miles.  But in hindsight I know I could have gone the additional 11 miles and finished the whole race.  I've wanted to go back and do it again . . . and finish 111 miles!
4. The Last Annual Volunteer State Road Race.  To ultra runners almost 100% know all about this beast of a race!  314 miles of fun starting in Missouri, into Kentucky, then diagonally across Tennessee and into Georgia for the finish!  It's an adventure race with no aid stations and run in July!!!  Heat and humidity is guaranteed!  I was signed up for this race when I had my foot accident.  So I never got my chance to fail!! This race has a daily cut-off time.  When the race starts the "Oprah" starts running and she finishes exactly 31.1 miles every 24 hours.  To be allowed to continue on each day you must be ahead of "Oprah."  If you fail to maintain that pace you are pulled from the race . . . no chance to try and catch up the next day!

So these four things haunt me.  The first two are totally "water under the bridge."

Damn . . .

Yesterday I did my longest run to date!  A whopping 4.2 miles!!

It was fairly hot (80° +) and sunny.  Plus, I was on the Canal Trail in Roanoke Rapids so there were quite a few short ups and downs but nothing really significant!  That was a good increase in distance for me and I can feel it today with some muscle soreness.

That was the good news!

The not-so-good news is that  it took me 1:08:45 to do it!!  That's a 16:20 pace!!  Damn!  That is just barely faster than walking but I using my heart rate to set my intervals . . . 135 and I started walking and started running again when it dropped to 110.  As expected, as the "run" progressed, the time running reduced and the time walking increased but I still felt like I ran a bunch!!  Kind of depressing really!

I'm not sure why I was disappointed!  I mean what should I really expect?  I've only been back running a little over a month.  And when I started back,  a 1 mile run was PLENTY!!  I just have to keep on pluggin' away at it!  It's not like I have any goal or anything except to get in better shape and I can see that is happening!

Back at it again . . .

It's been awhile!

And this may not last all that long.  But I'm trying to "run" again.  I put the word "run" in quotes 'cause many would suggest that I'm not running at all!  At best I've got a slow "jog" going on between walks!

No need to recount all the injuries I've been dealing with for the last several years.  Primarily foot and hip issues.  And while neither is anywhere close to 100%, I'm thinking both are close enough to give this a try!

For the last 3 years all I've really done is walk for my exercise . . . primarily while playing golf.  A little over 6 miles a round averaging two days a week.  Not much really but it is something.  After 18 holes I'm really tired and my joints just sort of "freeze up" like after a really long run!

Of more concern, my weight was slowing inching up to my all-time heaviest . . . almost 240 pounds!  And I just didn't feel all that good.  Yard work wore me out!  Getting down on the floor and then standing back up was real effort!!  Helping out my dog do the things she needs me to do even takes significant effort.

I needed a change.

My hip surgeon advises that I not run anymore.  He says he knows that he has hip replacement patients that do run but he believes they will wear their new joint out early.  And replacing a hip replacement is not all that much fun according to him!  He says if he had a hip replacement, he wouldn't run.  But I have a friend that had a hip replacement years ago and she runs every day.  I'm sure the conservative approach would be to extend walking and increase that walking pace.

But here is what I'm thinking -  I'm almost 69 years old and my overall health is excellent.  Heart is strong, blood chemistry is excellent.  No issues at all except kidney stones and joints!  I'm thinking if I keep doing what I was doing, my weight would continue to slowly climb, my heart would be stressed in a not so good way (due to the increased body weight) and the downhill spiral would do nothing but accelerate.  And my hip surgeon has never seen me actually "run."  When I'm running, I don't believe there is any more "pounding" than when I walk.  I'm pretty sure when I'm running I always have contact with the ground . . . more of a glide!  Not sure what I do qualifies as a "run!"

I do "get it" though.  If I return to running, my hip may well give out early.  I'm hearing most hip replacements last 15-20 years.  If running reduces that 20% then I should be able to get 12-16 years.  That would take me to age 81-85.  And my quality of life during those years should be pretty darn good!  Plus, the estimates of how long a replacement should last is looking at hip replacements done 15-20 years ago!  I'm betting that new hip joint parts made these days will outlast those made years ago!  And if I do wear mine out . . .I can always try a new replacement . . . by then that procedure might be even better!

Maybe my logic and assumptions are wrong.  IDK.  But I do feel like my current course will lead to a better quality of life for me.  But of course we all know: "If Papa ain't happy . . . nobody cares!!"  Hahaha!

So . . . how is the running coming along you ask?  

"Slow but sure" about sums it up.  But with my blog's name would you guess any different?

My first outing was March 15th and I "ran" for 16 minutes 34 seconds covering a whopping 1.07 miles!  That equates to a 15:31 pace.  Since then I've covered just over 37 miles and I'm now averaging a pace of about 13:45.  So that is some nice progress.  I'm only covering 3-4 miles per run and I believe I'll hold that distance for awhile.  The last thing I want to do is to come back too fast . . . the risk of set-back is just not worth the risk.

My hip and foot pain is usually very minor.  Only one day did my hip hurt enough that I turned around after 1/4 mile and walked back home!  On most runs the pain level is around 1 to maybe 2 sometimes.

Most of my "running" has been in my neighborhood on our roads.  While I've always loved trail running, I'm afraid the trip risk is just too great.  I did do one run at the Roanoke Rapids Canal Trail which really isn't much of a trail . . . no single-track and wide, smooth surface for the most part.  That worked out okay and I'll likely do that every so often.

Goals?  

Really, I don't have any except being able to run some and improve my fitness.  I have signed up for a 5k coming up in April and I guess my goal there will be to not finish last.  But honestly . . . I don't care if I do end up dead last.  I've been DFL many times!