Learn | Make | Fix | Run

Is the Third Time the Trigger for Treatment? I have had a recurring toe injury, and I need to figure out what I can do to keep myself from being sidelined in the future. A Brief Recap On April 11, 2023 ( Lessons Re-learned: Haste Makes Waste and Listen to Your Body ), I ran a 4-mile recovery run in Z1. I worked on posture and running tall. After the run, I ran five strides and did some core work. I felt pain in my big left toe after the core work. The next day, I had some toe pain while walking. It felt better to run than walk. Like an idiot, I decided to run 10 miles at my marathon pace. I did not have much pain in my foot until the last mile. I chalked it up to jamming my shoe on my foot on my recovery run. I lost four days of running. The pain was so bad I considered going to urgent care. On June 25, 2023 ( Injured Again! ), I ran a 3-mile recovery run in Z1. After the run, I ran five strides, did some core work, and stretched. Toe strain developed after the run and into the night, ...

I have been reminded of a phenomenon as I wrap up this current round of 5K training. I did not see it during my marathon training blocks because I typically run recovery runs after speed workouts. However, I see it in my 5K training on the day after running intervals. For some reason, running a base run after a hard run results in a faster overall run. I don’t know if the body is primed to do more hard work the next day. I don’t know if it’s psychological. I do know from the data that the runs are faster-paced when compared to base runs that are not preceded by a hard run. I have talked to other runners and then have experienced this too. Have you? Do you know why? Please share in the comments below.

There is not much to write about from last week’s training session. Then again, training is supposed to be ho-hum. It’s a daily grind, laying one brick at a time, paving the road to the next start line. I am particularly proud of last week’s tempo workout. According to Hal Higdon, the tempo run is supposed to be a continuous run with an easy beginning, a build-up in the middle to near 10K race pace, and easing back and slowing down toward the end. He says you need to listen to your body and can’t use your watch to figure out your pace doing this workout. However, I find that difficult to do. Last Wednesday’s workout consisted of a 10-minute warmup, a 25-minute crescendo to 10K pace and decrescendo, and a 5-minute cool down. The app breaks down the tempo into five 5-minute blocks. I modified them to my paces rather than what the app suggests. My paces were 9:09/mi (marathon pace), 8:40/mi (half marathon pace), 8:10/mi (10K pace), 8:40/mi, and 9:09/mi. It was warm and windy, and I found ...

I wanted to make a cover for our compost bin. The single, self-imposed design constraint was to upcycle the building materials. I did not make a plan, which I know is shocking for those of you who know me, and the lack of a plan showed in my final result. The compost bin was a 28-inch square. I had a 32-inch 2x6 lying around that I cut in half to make some wedges. I made the narrow end of the wedge 1 inch thick to provide enough material to accept the nails from the top. The slope of the wedge looked slanted enough to shed water. I used old fence boards to make the “shingles” for the top. That’s when I noticed my design flaw. I hadn’t accounted for the thickness of the shingles and when they overlapped the shingles were practically level. The slope would have been acceptable if this were a traditional asphalt shingle roof. Over the weekend, it rained, and I saw my new cover in action. For the most part, water did not pool on the top. The inside of the compost bin was fairly dry. The un...

Pacing and Arm Swing This week, I spent time as a Monday morning quarterback, analyzing my simulation run from last week. Pacing came to mind and from there a thought about arm swing formed. I went out too fast for the simulation run. I have had a similar issue with my tempo runs where I go out too fast, peak, and can’t slowly bring the pace back down to make a symmetrical graph of pace over time. This week, I nailed my tempo paces and had some gas in the tank for the last portion of my tempo run. Last week, I had trouble with my “fast” run. This week, I did a better job at keeping my pace consistent, until the last mile. I had trouble lifting my legs fast enough. After the run, I assumed it was due to a strength issue, but as I thought about it more, it might be related to an arm swing. The experts say to move your arms a little faster and your legs will follow. Maybe that is the cue that I need. This week the “fast” run moves up to six miles. We’l...