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Shoe Story

A little background, when I first started running consistently, training to run my first marathon I ran in Asics Cumulus shoes which have quite a bit of cushioning. Back then I was a heel striker and since I am somewhat bowlegged and supinate as well I ended up always wearing out my shoes on the outside of the heals. It turned out back then the Cumulus cushioning would eventually not bounce back after repeated outside heel strikes making the supination even more pronounced. I believe this w

Run2BFit in Running

March 16, 2021

Life has a way...

As I finished up last week's post I realized that I had developed a disturbing habit of spending my time here whining about how crappy my running was. I didn't like being that guy. So I resolved to positive up my writing and focus on what was going right. After all, my paces through those 4-5 milers I was doing were well within reasonable for the shape I've been in the last few years. Surely, once the worst of winter was over and I was on the roads regularly again, I'd get some pop back in

March 15, 2021

St. Patrick's Day 5k RR

Patrick’s Day 5k RR I was very tempted to give this a Friends style title “The One Where…" but it would give away the best part of the story so you’ll just have to read Last year this was the first local race cancelled, just 3 days out. Normally this is a 5 mile race held in downtown St. Louis, but this year it was shortened to a 5k and held at Forest Park. I had not signed up for the race last year because I felt like it was too close to the Asheville Marathon. This year it was

March 15, 2021

race recap

Running of the Squirrels 5k

The short: I ran a 5k, you know, because those fit so well with half marathon and 50k training. I actually did it for $100 cash and a cute porcelain squirrel trophy, although driving to the race in the pouring rain I had second thoughts. Luckily it was 50 degrees so being soaked wasn't torturous, and I was able to win overall female for said cash and squirrel, with an 18:36 via splits of 5:57, 6:03, 5:57 (5:26 final 0.12). I then ran the course again at marathon effort (6:28 average) and

SIbbetson in race recap

March 14, 2021

Keep going until you get somewhere

My goal was to write every two weeks…hasn’t happened. I’m still plugging away. At running, at life, at job searching. Not much progress on any of those. The weather went from being a problem to being perfect. For about a week just after I wrote last time we hovered around 0* most mornings, had most of the snow we got this winter and ice and snow packed roads. All of that was finally enough to drive me back to the gym, and I did 5 treadmill runs at the gym in the space of a week. I’d have done on

March 8, 2021

There's always more to come.

Going to wait until I see the doc in two weeks to start panicking. Need to review all my running since August, since that's the last time I remember having a good run. I'm probably wrong about that. Crappy runs are not news. A stretch of crappy runs isn't news, either. Six months of crappy runs may or may not signal something serious or chronic. I'd really like to find out for sure, though. Reviewing the numbers this afternoon, but heart rate seems to be stable within moderat

March 4, 2021

monthly recap

Freezing February or Frosting February

February 2021 in review! Total mileage for the month: 358.5 Feb. 1-7: 87.2 Feb. 8-14: 84.4 Feb. 15-21: 86.5 - I did a Saturday through Friday cut back week Feb. 13-19, so it affected my mileage during two Monday through Sunday weeks, but worked perfectly with the weather (which was why I did it like that). Feb. 22-28: 100.4 Happy Valentines + #frosting february

SIbbetson in monthly recap

March 1, 2021

If you were expecting something exciting...

...you'll be very disappointed today. I skipped my long run last weekend because I fell asleep in the afternoon and felt all groggy when I woke up until it was later than I wanted to go. And by "go" I mean get on the treadmill and run for an hour and a half. Mrs. Dave and I spent the early part of the day looking at Home Depot and Menard's for vinyl plank to re-do the entry, main hall and kitchen floors. Not really in love with any of what we found. Next stage is to visit some flooring

February 22, 2021

A question. AKA-what occupied my mind for today's run.

I started a training plan yesterday. Two days in and all is going well. The first workout (4 x 5 minutes at threshold pace with 2 minutes rest) was difficult, but my paces were better than I expected! It was a good boost to get me excited for some hard work! Anyway, that's for a different rambling bloop, here is my workout-related question for you wise people (hmmm - maybe I should have made a poll😞 How would you handle the following situation? A training workout calls for a 10 min

SandiBeach in Running

February 16, 2021

Another run, another episode of Vikings

Anyone else do this? I started watching this show a few weeks ago. I figured I could watch one here or there as time permitted, but mostly for a distraction while running on the treadmill. Mrs. dave and I have a few shows we like and reserve them for when we're together. But Vikings is mine. My plan was to use it just for running. But now I'm 100% sucked into the story and the characters and can't wait to see what's next. Can't someone just kill Ivar? I may have watched a full season o

February 16, 2021

Bloop

Keeping my hand in

Not a running post, but running adjacent. I should be at the Millrose Games today, but I'm not, and I'm thinking about last year's Millrose, which was probably our last big day out before everything shut down. Allyson Felix was there. Donavan Brazier set an 800m men's US indoor record. Ajee Wilson set an 800m women's US indoor record. Elle Purrier set a women's USA indoor mile record. People were getting excited about Tokyo. After the meet ended, we hightailed it over to Coogan's to ge

Scott in Bloop

February 13, 2021

Treadmill Dilemma

There's this book. The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals by Michael Pollan. More about food than you could even imagine. Do you know what koalas eat? Eucalyptus leaves. That's it. Their entire diet is made up of nothing but eucalyptus leaves. On the other extreme, there's us. We eat everything. Seeds, fruits, grass, the flesh of other mammals, fungus, mold. Some of it the way it grows in nature, some we've altered recently, some we've altered over hundreds - even thousands

February 9, 2021

Virtually the Same

Hey there. It's been over six months since I've felt like I had anything good to write about. But I'm back. Still running. More than ever actually. Last year I ran 1,647 miles which is a 40-year high. That was made possible by the lack of any significant injuries, as well as the lack of tapering or downtime for racing! I spent the summer thinking (foolishly) I was training for a Fall marathon, but when that went away I just kept putting in miles at a slightly lower rate. So it turned out to be a

BANGLE in Running

February 9, 2021

monthly recap

January Recap

Success! I ran every day in January (at least 1 mile) and ran a total of 62 miles, so an average of 2 miles/day. I was quite proud of that. Most days I'd get myself outside with saying, "just one mile" and I would end up with more, and even did a day of 4 miles! Other days, the "just one mile" would be "just one mile" typically "sprinted" on the treadmill in 8 minutes to "get er done." Goal met! More miles in January than the past two years! Since January, not so much. Goals are good. I s

SandiBeach in monthly recap

February 8, 2021

race recap

Cabin Fever Relieved: Cabin Fever Reliever 20k

The short: "Happiness is reality minus expectation." I always realize how true this quote is when I run a race that exceeds my expectations, even if it's not a top performance. I chose the local Cabin Fever Reliever 20k as a rust buster, and after running the difficult course in training I figured if I could run in the 6:30s it would be a great day - as in, anything under 6:40 pace would be a success. I ran by feel because I always seem to race best that way, and as I neared the finish l

SIbbetson in race recap

February 8, 2021

On Cholesterol, Running in the Rain and Snow, Vaccinations, and No Progress (in the job search)

I got my lab tests done and got a nasty surprise. Despite running 6+ hours a week, and a mostly decent diet, they came back with high cholesterol. (Everything else was pretty much normal). The doctor said we could start with lifestyle changes, but I’m already super active, and I’m not sure I can run much more. So that leaves diet. I have gained ~10lbs in the last year or so. Mainly related to working from the kitchen table at home. Not good. I’m hoping getting back to where I was weight-wise wil

February 6, 2021

I had a thought

But then it got away from me. Chances are I'll remember what it was sometime in the next day or so, but it won't likely make it here. After last week's 30 days running on the treadmill, I ran outside yesterday. I'd been psyching myself up to be inside for the next several weeks. That's the way to get through an extended injury or stretch of unwanted anything, really. The mental game. But I just couldn't get my head around it. Instead, I wrapped my head into running as slowly and

February 2, 2021

Shoes

The Shoes - Take two (or Three)

New try with Brooks – Ravenna - half a size up. I like a little support. Helps to prevent rolling ankles, which I tend to do more often than I should. It hurts. These were a little less loud fun in color - blue and an orangey-pink. Insert right foot – feels pretty good! Insert left foot – feels pretty good too! Now for a test run. Out with DH, so a nice short jaunt for a test drive. Everything is comfortable, this is good, not AMAZING, but good! Uh oh. Is my heel slipping? I think my h

SandiBeach in Shoes

January 28, 2021

What has happened to me?

Two days late writing my weekly update. Yesterday snowed lightly off and on for most of the day. An inch or two total. At or near freezing. I turned on an episode of Vikings and ran on the mill. Today was bright and sunny. High 20s. I turned on the BYU-Pepperdine basketball game and ran on the mill. Is this why I'm more and more reluctant to write a running blog post? Like being injured, I guess. Have to be patient. Have to believe things will get better. Have to be

Aránzazu Isabel María "Arantxa" Sánchez Vicario running emporum

January 27, 2021

not running & being

“The true runner is a very fortunate person. He has found something in him that is just perfect.” ― the prophet sheehan -- I became a runner on May 19, 1979. The Run for Life in San Angelo, Texas. A 5 miler, back when there were such things. 34 minutes and change. I was hooked. My Uncle Bob was an addict. Old Onitsuka Tigers and tattered shirts, a True Believer back in the days of Fixx and Sheehan, of flour starting lines and popsicle-stick finishing systems, of DMSO and Pe

garbanzo a gogo in Aránzazu Isabel María "Arantxa" Sánchez Vicario running emporum

January 22, 2021

Hey hey hey.

Seems like a lot longer ago than a week since I was writing about being in Idaho. T-Rex got started with school with only a little stress. Now she just has to stay focused and organized. And we need Mrs. Dave to relax a little. The week off was good for the knee. After planning 6 on Saturday (after 4 on Friday), I ended up going almost 8. It was just warm enough that double shirts and tights were about right. That's my favorite for winter running. I've always hated extra weight, althou

January 19, 2021

Virtual half or not, and everything feels hard

I ran a virtual half marathon last week, sort of. I finally got to see (outside, mostly at a distance over 6 feet), many of my Team in Training friends who I haven’t seen since March. They were running their virtual Disney races. Since I wasn’t signed up for any of those, I didn’t really run a virtual race, but I did run the half distance. But I was a part of the larger fundraising team that had all planned on running races in the last year (that none of us got to run) and that fundraising team