36 years but I think I got it

HAPPY FATHERS DAY!!!!!

 



On any normal Sunday I would be telling you how many training went for the week. Well for once I have actually no training to report, not a single thing. It took me 36 years to figure it out but I finally realized that sometimes you have to take a break and really stick to the break in order to prevent further injury. In the past I would take a few days off of running and I would be right back on the road without thinking twice. Many times I did this too early and I ended up prolonging the injury. This time around though came right at the perfect time, so I cant take all the credit.  Monday I closed on my house and this week would be filled with painting and getting the house ready to start moving things in this upcoming week. Needless to say I was super busy and it kept mind off of working out. On the down side I felt like Daniel in Karate Kid painting the fence with how much painting I got done.

Every night I still iced my calf and wore my compression socks to bed. Every other night I would alternate cold and warm patches on my muscle as well. The muscle is feeling really good and yesterday I tossed around the idea of running a local 5K with my friend Anna. When I woke up something in my head said be smart and wait till next week to run a race.(I am already registered for the Gold Jacket 5K.) I want to run it at 100 percent so sitting the race out yesterday just made sense. The course has a huge hill and I want to get in a few runs before I try to run a hill hard in a race. Tonight I am going to the gym and I plan on using the treadmill to see how the leg feels. If all goes as planned this week I will get in my runs and be ready for Sunday's race. I have to say congrats to my friend Anna who finished as the 5th female overall and would of won 1st in her age group, but somehow was registered as a male and took 3rd in that age group. hahahah it is so funny because things like this always happen to Anna at races.

Hopefully next week I have more to report and it is me saying I finally ran and how good I did at the race.  I have a busy week of moving everything into the house this week. I am a bit nervous to see how Kia reacts to a new home. We have been taking her over a few nights to get her used to the place and she really enjoys her new yard.

 

How was your week?

If you have ever moved and have a dog what did you do to help ease the dog into the new place?

 



Columbus Training Week 6: Plus a Liberty Mile

      Another week has gone by and I am another week closer to the Columbus Marathon.  This weeks training was a little altered due to the Liberty Ave. Mile. 

MONDAY:  I ran 5 miles at 8:03 pace. I did a course that was fairly easy with only a few hills. I once again was working on form and stride.

TUESDAY: I decided on a harder course and ran 6 miles.  I finished with a pace of 8:30. One thing I noticed this day was when I started I felt as if it was going to be a really bad day. My legs were tight and my head just wasn't into the run.  I thought I was moving so slow.  When I finished and looked down at my Garmin I was pleasantly surprised to see I ran it in a decent time. I also picked up speed through out the whole run.

WEDNESDAY: SPEED WORKOUT:  I am not sure what got into me this day but I felt unstoppable on the track.  I was doing 800 meter repeats with a one lap walk in between.  My average time was a 2:35 and I ended up doing 5 of them before switching into 400 meter repeats. My average time on these was a 1:15.  I ended up doing 5 of them.  I finished the workout with 3 600 meter repeats at a sprint speed.  When I finished I felt like I could do so much more, but the sun was setting and I had already spent a good amount of time on the track so I decided to call it quits.

THURSDAY: With the Liberty Mile the next day I decided to go to the gym and cross train rather than kill my legs.  I rode the bike for 3 miles followed by some AB workouts and some machines that work on your hips. 

FRIDAY: THE LIBERTY MILE: I finished work at 4:30 and decided to I would go meet my cousin Chris (@chrismith6944) at his work since we both work right near downtown.  We walked into town and sat around for a half hour or so going over the course.  We both noticed that the start on Penn Avenue would be a slight up hill for the first half. Nothing major but for someone who was inexperienced this could screw them up.  This was Chris's first time running a mile race.  I told him take it out at a pace he was used to and then once he got around the half way point see what he had left and explode.  He wanted to run under 9 minutes. He also wanted to be the person who didn't eat shit as he put it (falling down while running).  At around 5:30 we walked over to Market Square to check out what was going on and too pick up our friend Anna's packet to save her some time.  While there we ran into Jennifer and her husband Dave. It was finally nice to meet them both and they are really cool people.  We also ran into Chelsea and all were going over our goal times.  It seemed like they were all going for right around the same time.  After meeting Anna we headed to the start to do some stretching and warming up. We ended up also taking some pictures at the start and running into everyone again.  I said my goodbye and headed to the front of the race.  I was shooting for a sub 6 minute mile.  When the gun sounded I took off and felt really comfortable. I tried to keep my head down and not look at who was around me. I was also trying not to look at the turn around.  From the start you could see the turn around and it didn't look far but in reality it was a half mile away.  Once you made the turn onto Liberty you could see the finish, but it too was a half mile away. I was afraid I would look up and start running too fast too early.  When I came up on the finish I intended to start my kick with around 200 meters left.  For some reason when I came up on the 200 meter sign I psyched myself out saying it was too far to start sprinting and held back until 100 meters.  I always kick with 200 meters left on a track so I am not sure why this threw me off.  I crossed the line in 6:01 and some change.  I finished 22nd in our race and 4th in my age group.  As I made my way to grab some water I watched everyone else cross the line. Chris came across in 7:58 and Anna in 8:15.  Everyone beat the times they set out for.  Well everyone but me, but I am fine with that. I would much rather watch other people succeed over me any day. We once again met Jennifer and Dave at the finish and we all looked like death.  Coughing, breathing funny, and some of us looked like we ran a marathon rather than a mile race. 

   This race is always one of my favorites and I am already looking forward to running it next year.  Next year I am going to put in a little more speed workout just for the mile and really try to see what I can do.  This is one race if you live in Pittsburgh or are in the area you need to do.  The crowd is awesome and it seemed like all the runners were trying to help motivate each other and feed off one another.  It was truly a great time!


SATURDAY: When I woke up my legs were in some pain. I was having leg spasm's all night and I wasn't sure how my legs were going to hold up during my run that day.  I met my friend @jstepsrun for a run.  She said she could do around 7 miles, so I decided to take her on my 7 mile hill course as I like to call it.  It is a challenging course, but if you can run it then you can do any 7 mile course.  We went out slow and slowly picked up the pace.  She did awesome keeping up and I may have fucked with her breathing by talking to her.  What can I say I like to bullshit when I run with people, makes the time go quicker.  I am looking forward to running with her again next time she is in Pittsburgh and maybe @donniebrunnin will be able to join us as well.   I planned on going back out to do some more miles later in the day but the spasm's started back up so I decided to take it easy.

SUNDAY: Today me and my wife are driving to Erie to take her friend out who lost a family member out to lunch. Some times there are more important things in life than running.  If I get home early enough I will do some core workout in my house. If it is too late then I am okay with missing a day and using it as a rest day.  There is always tomorrow!!!!

How did you do at the Liberty Mile?
How is your training for fall races coming along?

The Gift of Running: Sunday Interview

      Since it is the holiday season I have decided to interview the person that has given me the gift of running for this Sunday’s interview. The first time I ever really knew I wanted to run was in 1987. I was standing on the sidewalk at my father’s work waiting for him to run by. As he ran by everyone started to cheer his name and clap for him. I remember just standing there in awe looking at all the people and thinking they are cheering my dad. At the age of 8 years old then I looked at my dad and thought he was like a superhero or something. I knew at that point I wanted to have those cheers for me one day.

      Almost everything I have learned about running has come from my father. He is the one person that I really look up to as a runner. There are just so many things he has taught me, my posture, my breathing, and not to worry about the time. To this day when I have a question about running I go directly to him. One thing I admire the most about him as a runner is that it didn’t affect our family growing up. Ask any marathoner about the training and they will tell you that it takes a lot of time away from family and friends. I know this from firsthand experience, luckily I have a wife that not only supports my running but is very understanding to the demands of training. In my interview you will see how my father was able to train and have it not get in the way of being at home. So hopefully you will enjoy reading this interview as much as I did asking the questions to my mentor, my inspiration, my father William Byrne

SB- When and why did you first start running?
WB-It was 1983 and I was 35 years old and I wanted to see if I could finish the great race. I started to train and realized that it came very easy to me.



SB- You have run races all over the country of different distances, which is your most memorable and why?
WB-The Pittsburgh Marathon in 1985. It was the first year they had it and the crowd was amazing. It still is the single largest sporting event in Pittsburgh with how many people lined the streets to watch and cheer on the runners.



SB-Are there any races that you didn’t get to run that you wish you would of?
WB-New York marathon (he tried to get into the lottery 4 times but never made it in) and the Cherry Blossom 10 miler in DC. (What is nice though is that he did get to see me run in the NYC Marathon and he got to see my brother run in the Cherry Blossom.)



SB-How has running changed over the years from when you first started running to the running of today?
WB-The price of races has gone up significantly and now with the internet you are able to see when races are online. Back when I ran you had to wait for the Sunday paper and it would list all the local races and that is how you knew what day the races were. You registered my mail or on the day of the race.



SB-Is there anyone that inspired you when you were running?
WB- Not a single person per say but the amount of people out there doing it was inspiring.



SB-When you were training what was your training?
WB- During the marathon I would run 6 miles to work and 6 miles home every day. Then on Sunday I would run my long slow run which could be up to 20 miles. Off season or not training for the marathon I would just run home from work. (This is why I never realized that my father was training as hard as he was because he never missed time with us. On Sunday he was home before I woke up most of the time and during the week I just assumed he worked until 6.)


SB-If you wouldn’t have been injured would you still be running?
WB-Absolutely! (My father had 3 disks in his spine degenerate and had to have surgery on it. He still walks for exercise but his running days were over at that point.)


SB-How do you feel when you see the younger people in our family run and friends of the family running as well?
WB-Envious but very proud. (When I talk to my dad I can tell how proud he is not only of me but of everyone he knows that runs. Even when we did the interview he was telling me about my friend who I interviewed earlier Anna Dillon and he was telling me how he thinks she has all the intangibles to be great.)



SB-How will you feel when I beat your best time for a marathon? (Even though he has always wanted me and my brother to be great we still compare times and it is bragging rights in the family.)
WB-Proud, let’s just hope I live that long though. (Don’t worry dad your about to see your time fall in May)



SB-Anything you can say to someone just starting out or thinking about running?
WB-Make your own schedule, don’t try to do what someone else is doing. Do It because you want to be healthy if anything. And remember no matter how bad you are there is someone who is worst. Run and you will see what a great experience it is.


      What I did forget to mention is my father not only started running while he was in his 30’s but he was running weighing around 200 lbs for most of his running career. His times were good enough for him to be looked at and respected by other elite runners in the area. So my goals for running aren’t to be just great but my goal is to be half the runner my father was.

Interview with Anna Dillon

This week I decided to interview a good friend of mine, Anna Dillon. Anna approached me a few years ago and told me she wanted to start running.  After running a few times with Anna I eventually convinced her to run a 5K race with me (the selling part was me telling her she would get a free t-shirt).  Anna may not be at the top of the woman class right now when it comes to running, but she possesses all of the skills to one day reach that level.  She has the form and the endurance; all that she lacks is the confidence. One day I hope Anna will see what I see in her. If she just lets go and doesn't listen to her mind when it says to stop or give up, I would not be surprised to see Anna run a sub twenty minute 5k.

SB- 1. When and why did you start running?
AD-I started walking a few years ago for weight-loss purposes. Slowly the walking turned into an occasional jog, then running. You are the one who encouraged me to run. You probably don't remember, but I told you I wanted to start. You invited me to run with you at Wilkins school. You said you hadn't ran in a while, so I thought I would kick your butt. Wow was I wrong! I still run for weight-loss but I also run to destress. It is the part of my day that I do not think about work, dinner, cleaning, or laundry.

SB- 2. How often do you run and what distance do you normally do?
AD-I used to run four or five times a week about 3 or 4 miles. Now with a newborn, I'm lucky if I can get out for 15 minutes! It is getting more difficult now that it's getting darker. I am excited for spring when I can take him with me.

SB- 3. Do you prefer to run alone or with a group while you are training/ exercising?
AD- I prefer to run alone. I love music. One of my favorite parts of running is turning up the music and just going! But I never ran with a group before. I don't know if I would enjoy that.

SB- 4. Do you have a goal for when you run? ( a time, a distance)
AD-I like to time myself. I usually run the same routes, so I try to beat my previous time. I am not always successful. I still can't figure out why sometimes I do so good, and other times I do so horrible.

SB- 5. As a mother who runs, a lot of woman can look up to you. Do you think it's been harder to run since you became a mother?
AD-Yes! Running was the first thing I would think about after work. My entire day would revolve around how quickly I can get my shoes and earphones on and get going. Sometimes I would change at work and start my route from there. My husband and I are still adjusting to becoming parents. Our life and house have become pretty chaotic. Running now revolves around naps, feedings, and my husbands schedule. Not to mention the colder weather and darker evenings. It can be hard to find the time, But I take every chance I can get.

SB- 6. Is there anyone you look up too as a runner?
AD-I look up to you. You have always encouraged me and told me I could do it. You have taught me that I do not need to be perfect or excellent at it, as long as I enjoy it.
I also look up to my sister who is a full-time worker, wife, mother, and runner. She runs every chance she can get. And kicks butt!

SB- 7. What will be your next race and how will you go about training for it? Or if there is no race in your future how do you decide your workout?
AD- My next race is undecided. I really wanted to do the marathon relay, but due to the baby, training has become difficult. Exercising has also become difficult. My waistline is suffering! I think I will do the local races next year. I always enjoy a free T-shirt!

SB- 8. Since you have started running would you say there has been a change in the running in Pittsburgh?
AD-I am not sure if there was a change, or if I was just ignorant to how much running there is in Pittsburgh. There is a whole world outside of local 5K's. Before running myself, I never noticed how many runners are out there. Have you ever gone to Mount Washington?! They must be the healthiest people in the United States. They are always running!

SB- 9. Do you think female runners are givin the same respect as a man during a race or training?
AD-Truthfully, I don't know. I would assume yes, but I have never been in competition with elite men and women. I have always done fun races where everybody is encouraging.

SB- 10. Any advice or anything you can say to someone who may just be starting out or about to take up the sport of running?
AD-Just do it! Don't be scared or embarrassed like I was. I would also say not to get discouraged. That is much easier said than done because I still get discouraged a lot! Just sticking with it has made me better and I enjoy it more.