blufish2004

10:55 am: Gotta Run
Spring seems to think that it is here this week. Saturday, I bought a pair of running shoes... the first I've ever had. These puppies are like a dream compared to what I typically run in. This is all in preparation for the 5K race I have decided to run with Debbie and my friends Rich, Amanda, and Andrew.

To get into the spring of things, Debbie and I went for a 2.85 mile run Saturday evening. It took 33 minutes at a comfortable pace. I also went for a run this morning. 1.75 miles in 16 minutes, with a quicker than comfortable pace.

Of course, I am also planning on doing the National MS Society 150 mile Cape Code Getaway bike ride from Boston to Provincetown. Last week, my Rob Roy got dropped off at Landry's in Natick to have road drop bars and stem swapped on in place of the mustache bars it came with, along with new bar wrap and Cane Creek aero brake levers. I rode it home from the shop, but have not yet had the chance to get in a serious ride. Maybe tomorrow morning?

Tags: bicycle, cycling, exercise, fixed gear, fixie, iro rob roy, jogging, running, training

07:31 pm: One Hundred and Sixteen Miles!
Goal met and exceeded. Yesterday I rode 18.5 miles in 1 hour 9 minutes, and today I rode 27 miles (from apartment to Minuteman Bikeway, to the end, and back) in 1 hour 50 minutes. This makes a total of 116 miles since I got my bike back on the road. My legs are like limp noodles, and feel like they're buzzing. I think I'm going to take a break to celebrate.

Now it's time for a shower... and then sushi!

Tags: cycling, exercise, minuteman bikeway, training

09:41 pm: 1 mile run today. Finished in 8 minutes 22 seconds. I've been neglecting the 1 mile runs in favor of bike rides, but I still felt improvements today. I was less exhausted, and ran my best time yet. Maybe one more week of 1 mile runs, and then I'll have to kick the distance up a notch. Probably to 2 miles.

Tags: exercise, jogging, running, training

10:34 pm:

16.5 miles in 1 hour 3 minutes today, and it felt great. I guess I should stop posting these every day at some point, but blogging about my training efforts gives me the feeling that I have a moral support group and helps to keep me from slacking off.

So far, I've put 70.5 miles on my bike since it came out of storage and I got it back from the shop 2 weeks ago. Not too bad. I'll have to celebrate the 100 mile mark when I get there... Goal... This week. Maybe then I'll only blab every 50 miles or so, unless there is something of exceptional interest to tell.

Tags: bicycle, cycling, exercise, minuteman bikeway, training, via ljapp

10:40 pm: Beautiful Day for Round 3
Today was another perfect day for a ride. I couldn't get out of work early enough! I wanted to kick off around 4, but got stuck trying to debug a problem I was having with a Ping Federate sample application I wrote (silly library version conflict) and did not escape until 4:30. For those that need a translation... work happened, which is ok, because that's the whole reason I was there. Luckily, traffic wasn't too bad, and I was able to be on my bike pedaling by 5:40.

Tonight was Scottish Country Dancing class, and I was supposed to be meeting Laurie for dinner at 6:45, making my ride time limited. I aimed to be back by 6:30, so I only went for a 12 mile ride. I finished early when I got home 47 minutes later. Hopped in the shower, met Laurie on time, and then was off to dance for 2 hours. I am now officially beat...

But it feels oh soooo good.

Tags: cycling, dancing, exercise, ping, ping federate, ping identity, scottish, training

03:04 pm: Minuteman Bikeway Round 2
I just got back from my second run on the Minuteman Bikeway, the first being last Sunday. Today it is about 60 degrees (F) out, and it's supposed to rain later, so I took the opportunity to go for a ride during my lunch break. I did not have time to do the trail end-to-end and back, but I did bike from the house, through Davis Square, and to the start at Alewife Station, which added about 2.5 miles each way. All in all, I went 15 miles, turning around nearly half way between Cambridge and Bedford. I kept a good pace the whole way, with a brief breather when I turned around. The whole trip took 1 hour and 3 minutes. Not too shabby for 15 miles. Should I decide to start commuting on my bike, I think I'll manage, though it would be much more hilly. Maybe I'll do a trial ride some not too distant weekend.

Now back to work for me :)

Tags: cycling, exercise, minuteman bikeway, training

05:00 pm: I did it.
Sick, rain, 1 mile, 8 minutes, 44 seconds.

I had to walk the dog any how, so I figured that if I had to get wet, I might as well make good of it.

Tags: exercise, jogging, running, sick, training

04:13 pm: This past weekend was a busy one. Friday night, I danced a Scottish Country Dancing demonstration at Salem State College's Cultural Night, and then went to a 4 hour dance on Saturday, also in Salem, MA. As a result, my calve muscles are killing me! To add to this, I went for a 22 mile bike ride on the Minuteman Bikeway with Laurie and Steve, starting in Cambridge, to the end in Bedford, and then back. We kept an easy pace on the first pass, but on the way back, I wanted to get more of a work out, so I pushed it to the halfway point. 5.5 miles in 22 minutes. I didn't keep good track of the time the whole ride took, as we were not in a hurry... "Just working out the cob webs".

I did some web searching last night for other trails we might be able to use for training in the months ahead. For starters, I could only think of the East Bay Bike Path (running 14.5 miles from Bristol to Providence, RI), and the Northampton Bike Path in Western Mass (running 8.5 miles from Northampton to Amherst, MA). Looks like there are plenty of other trails as well. I'm really looking forward to hitting all of them!

Now that I got all of that great exercise in last week, I am now sick, and it is raining cats and dogs outside. I really wish I could go for a run or ride, and I probably still would, if either one of the previously mentioned hurdles did not exist. I guess I might still, but I really want to get healthy again soon.

Tags: cycling, dancing, exercise, running, sick, training

08:52 pm: I don't think I could have asked for a better weather today. It was nearly 60 degrees after work today, and a little breezy. I got to drive home with the top down in the s2000, and from there I went for my 1 mile run. My time today was better still, at 8:41 minutes. That's 11 seconds better than yesterday, and I swear I'm not cheating! I felt a little stiff, but no real soreness, and the heart and lungs kept up nicely.

After getting back from my run, I walked the dog to help cool down, and once home I started in on making dinner. Nothing too complex... just veggie soup. But it was so good! Here's my recipe: 1 large can of College Inn Beef Broth, 4 chopped carrots, 4 chopped celery sticks, 3 handfuls of spinach, and handful of white mushrooms, a teaspoon of black pepper, and some whole wheat pasta. Throw all of the veggies in a large pot along with the beef broth and the pepper, bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer for about 20 minutes. Cook the pasta separately and add near the end.

After dinner, the temp was still nice outside, so while Debbie was at a music rehearsal, I took the opportunity to go for a quick bike ride... officially my first ride of the season. I plotted out a 5 mile course in Google Earth before I left so that I would have a plan. It took me 27:49 minutes to complete the route, gate to gate. That is an average speed of roughly 11 MPH. At one point, I checked my speedometer, and noted that I was going 30 MPH (This of course, was on a downhill). The whole ride, my thighs felt a little fatigued, but I would expect as much after having gone 5 years with out a serious ride.

Now it's time to discuss robot building plans!

Tags: cooking, cycling, exercise, jogging, recipe, robots, running, training

04:20 pm: Keeping it rolling
During lunch today, I walked down to the bike shop to get my bike. I'm now all hooked up with my clip-ins and road slicks. The pedals are Pyramid ATB Clipless Pedals (41328), and the tires are Panaracer T-Serv tires. Last night, I bought my new Shimano SH-M121G biking shoes. Rode the bike home, and it felt good. Big difference switching from knobby off-road tires to road slicks. I hit 20 MPH effortlessly on the way home. ;-)

Went for the 1 mile run a few minutes ago. Today's time was 8:52 minutes. a whole 7 seconds better than yesterday. The run also felt easier than yesterday. My legs feel a little sore in the calves and shins, but nothing like a few weeks back, and I wasn't sore at all this morning as a result of yesterdays run. Despite my pudginess, I may actually be in better shape than I though. Here's hoping.

Tags: cycling, exercise, jogging, running, training