Re: Building A Better Bumblebee

Mark B Fri Aug 14, 2015 1:38 pm

ounce wrote:
Mark B wrote:Okay, fine. I was going to depressurize (sulk) for a few more days then start talking about my next steps, but your inspired use of emoticons drew me out. That must have taken a lot of work on your part. Thank you!

I know too much navel gazing isn't exactly scintillating reading, so I'll do my best to keep it brief and breezy.

What happened: Pretty simply, I ran out of available time (given other demands on it) to be able to get ready for the 50K. It was already tricky when I looked at my results from the 25K and realized that I couldn't guarantee that I'd make the cutoffs for the 50K -- even if everything went right. That ramped up the pressure, and every missed workout felt like a looming disaster.

Not quite the ideal circumstances for a guy who might be slightly high-strung, eh?

Anyway, the closer I got to it, the more things got in the way, and the harder it seemed to have the energy to even get out the door. Which ramped up the pressure more. I was to the point of having anxiety-induced chest pain and palpitations, which is just ridiculous for something I'm supposed to enjoy.

What's going on now: I'm feeling the pressure easing bit by bit, and the disappointment of missing a cool race this fall isn't so bad. I'm rolling around a few ideas in my head, and I'm debating whether to get back to some running right away or to just get through the rest of the summer and get back to it when school starts and I have more alone time.

What's likely to happen: Whether I take a break or get back to it (Nike is expecting me to test shoes, so I cant be too lazy), my goal is to just run this fall and see how it goes. I think I will be able to slowly build my mileage so when the time comes to do something, I'll be ready. Part of next year will be dedicated to helping Alita run a 6- then a 12-hour run for her 50th birthday, so that'll take priority. When I do pick a race, I'm probably leaning toward a sub-ultra trail race at first. I've already proved to myself that I can do ultra distances... but now I need to decide what I actually like to do.

So much for brief...

Anyway, more later. Make sure to screw the curtain rods into the studs, Ounce, or they'll blow a hole in the drywall.
Fluff is my contractor, since it IS your blog.

Well, then I guess we shouldn't have let him hang our curtains.

Building A Better Bumblebee - Page 19 Img_2811

Okay, it's not really Fluff's fault. The contractors last year decided to attach the center bracket for a long curtain rod with only a couple of drywall anchors. We just found out a few days ago (oddly, just before Ounce started measuring for curtains in here) that the anchor had pulled out and taken a chunk of drywall with it. We have a call in for them to come fix the hole, then we'll stop screwing around and screw the blasted bracket into a stud -- and add a second bracket in a different stud just to be safe. That'll do it.

(Technically, it actually was Fluff's fault, since he started the whole forced renovation... but that's another matter. Besides, his efforts didn't come with a workmanship warranty.)

Still not running yet. Looking forward to when I can get out there.

Mark B Sun Aug 16, 2015 12:09 pm

Hey! Look!! Activity!!!

---

Low HR Run: 60 minutes (4.6 miles)

Weather: Sunny and mild. 58 degrees. Gear: Testers, shorts, T. Fuel: Some coffee before, nothing during.

My first run in what feels like forever, and my first outing since deciding to pull the plug on the 50K in October. My cardio system seemed to be more impacted by the layoff than the legs, which created the classic mismatch of legs wanting to go faster than the body can handle. I tried reining in the pace for the first couple of miles but finally accepted that I was going to have to walk my HR down when it got too high.

The upside was that when I did walk, my HR dropped like a rock. So it's not like I'm totally deconditioned. Just twitchy*.

Felt weird running roads in shoes, especially testers, but it helped me realize that I need to get back to a regular routine of core work. I felt very wobbly in the hips. Oops.

Walked first and last 5 minutes. Average HR for entire run: 125

*-I could do without the twitchy. I think my adrenals have been working overtime lately. One of the ways I was able to get myself out there this morning was the need for some natural antidepressants. I think I've been at a deficit. Smile

ounce Sun Aug 16, 2015 9:02 pm

It's amazing what happens to the cardio after a short time off. On the other hand, it won't take long to get it back. 'Vacation over' is the message to the cardio.

nkrichards Mon Aug 17, 2015 9:33 am

Good to see you back out there Mark. I laughed at the similarities when I read your post. I've always had trouble starting off to fast. I was getting better at choosing an appropriate pace before my cardiac event but I'm finding now that my legs just want to take off for that first mile and it takes me a while to dial in to what my cardio can tolerate. AND like you, I've been thinking...and feeling...like I need to get back into a routine with some core work again. That's the one part of training that feels like a chore to me but I know it's important.

Sounds like you're in for a couple more hot days...Fall will arrive someday I guess. Enjoy these last few days of summer.

Mark B Mon Aug 17, 2015 2:51 pm

ounce wrote:It's amazing what happens to the cardio after a short time off. On the other hand, it won't take long to get it back. 'Vacation over' is the message to the cardio.

It is amazing. The fact that I've been a bit twitchy probably makes my HR a little jumpy, too. I'm sure that'll all settle down once I get back into a routine. I'm very much looking forward to that.

nkrichards wrote:Good to see you back out there Mark. I laughed at the similarities when I read your post. I've always had trouble starting off to fast. I was getting better at choosing an appropriate pace before my cardiac event but I'm finding now that my legs just want to take off for that first mile and it takes me a while to dial in to what my cardio can tolerate. AND like you, I've been thinking...and feeling...like I need to get back into a routine with some core work again. That's the one part of training that feels like a chore to me but I know it's important.

Sounds like you're in for a couple more hot days...Fall will arrive someday I guess. Enjoy these last few days of summer.

Hi Nancy! The crazy thing is, I actually TRY to keep my pace in check as I'm starting out. I have to fight the urge to blast out of the gate (maybe I'm a frustrated middle distance runner?), which makes that HR strap all the more important.

At one point during the run, when my HR kept rising beyond my "must walk" threshold, I readjusted the fields on my Garmin so I could see instant pace and HR at the same time. I caught myself a few times surging when I was supposed to be easing. Sigh. I need adult supervision, I guess. Smile

The heat is back! Yay! Not. This summer has been so stinking hot, it's ridiculous. Thank goodness we got the window air conditioning unit, or it would have been miserable. Even so, the thought of another 90-degree day creates a visceral, disgusted reaction. I hope we have a fast transition to autumn weather -- especially rain. The whole pace is burning up now.

---

So, remember those shoes I was testing? Well, they're in a box headed back to Swooshtown. They seemed like fine shoes, except for how the upper fit the medial side of my foot. When my arch pronated, it created a crease in the side of the upper. I thought it'd rub off skin, but that didn't happen. What did happen, though, was that it dug a crease in the side of my foot so deep that it my tendons and muscles were tingling 12 hours later. Obviously, not quite optimal.

I'm disappointed to not be able to wear out somebody else's shoes, but I think my experiences should help them make tweaks to allow the shoes to fit a wider range of foot types. Thanks to my freaky feet, I tend to be an outlier. They must like it, because they keep having me test for them.

Guess I'll rummage around in the closet for a pair of shoes now...

ounce Mon Aug 17, 2015 8:57 pm

It's a shame that you cannot ask for a pair of shoes at a certain point in development, but they probably have to send something to you early in its development for your unique anatomy.

As far as weather, I saw where Portland was supposed to be around 100 tomorrow. And to continue the oddity in weather, we're getting threatened with a Thursday high of 89. Yes, eighty nine. Doubt it.

Get back out there and run, Buckwheat!

Mark B Mon Aug 17, 2015 10:20 pm

ounce wrote:It's a shame that you cannot ask for a pair of shoes at a certain point in development, but they probably have to send something to you early in its development for your unique anatomy.

As far as weather, I saw where Portland was supposed to be around 100 tomorrow. And to continue the oddity in weather, we're getting threatened with a Thursday high of 89. Yes, eighty nine. Doubt it.

Get back out there and run, Buckwheat!

It's probably a very good thing they don't design shoes just for me, since they wouldn't fit anybody else. I think their goal in many cases is getting something that'll fit as wide a variety of foot shapes as possible, and the point of having somebody like me in their sample group is they can see how their designs perform when you move well out of the fat part of the Bell curve. This time, the design couldn't accommodate me.

Sadly, that happens a lot. I went to a running shoe place today to see how the latest variety of Altra Instincts fit (I put 700+ miles on an earlier version getting ready for the Mount Hood 50), and alas... they changed the shape of the last. It's straighter and narrower now, with a smaller toebox, and it smooshes the bones of my foot. Drat. Drat. Drat. Kind of at a loss at what to try now. (Hm. Could I get a few hundred more miles out of the older pair...?)

The best shoe to actually fit my foot shape was a Free 5.0 v4. I know this because they generally fit so well, but also because the guys in the shoe last lab at Nike did a 3-D scan of my feet and then geeked out searching through their files for something that might work for me, my feet were so unusually shaped. The one they found was the Free 5.0 v4. Alas, they don't use that last anymore, so I'm out of luck.

Running will happen, but we have band camp again this week, so my time will be limited. I hope to squeeze some runs in, but there's no guarantee. Regular runs will resume once school starts in early September.

Mark B Tue Aug 18, 2015 2:22 pm

Walk: 3.1 miles

Weather: Sunny, warming up fast. 73-76° Gear: Lunas.

It's supposed to be a hot one (near 100°) today, so Alita and I headed out for a walk before it got too warm. I wore my Lunas, which provided some nice ventilation. Those testers I'd been wearing got hot! At least by comparison. Smile

It was a nice walk, and we improvised a new route that worked out to three miles. Good to know.

Mark B Tue Aug 18, 2015 3:31 pm

Footwear update!

I've settled on my next pair of running shoes... and they just happen to be a pair I already down. It's another set of Altra Instinct 1.5s that I got to replace my old ones after I put 700 miles on them.

Building A Better Bumblebee - Page 19 Screen14

Building A Better Bumblebee - Page 19 Screen14

I picked a pretty product photo because the actual shoes in question already looked a bit thrashed. That thin mesh upper tends to disintegrate, but it only cosmetic. I kept patching my older Altras with duct tape, and it was great.

I've been wearing them casually, since I was experimenting with the sandals. They only have about 45 miles on them, mostly walking, so they have lots of life in them. Provided the midsole holds up (I had a pair where they self-destructed), they should do fine.

Here's the plan at the moment: I'll probably start wearing the Altras the majority of the time now (the Instincts for the road, Lone Peaks for trails), with a weekly barefoot outing to keep in practice, and see how my body responds. I'm hoping it'll be happy. I think it will.

After a year or two of DIY body rewiring, I think I can say that I would need the help of an experienced coach, a personal trainer for strength training and balance, as well as a physical therapist just in case, to actually be able to fundamentally change the way I run. And given how my feet are built, and how my body adapted to that... I don't know that I can ever truly change all that much, even with that sort of help. Still a bumblebee.

That doesn't mean I'm giving up trying to run well, or giving up barefoot running (or sandals, when I feel like it). I have learned a lot about my body, and now I have a better idea what might work best for me. I'll be a refined bumblebee. Now it's time to see if I'm right. Smile

Michele "1L" Keane Tue Aug 18, 2015 3:40 pm

700 miles is amazing. I'm lucky to get 200 miles out of a pair of shoes before I wear out the soles. Wow!

Mark B Tue Aug 18, 2015 3:42 pm

What do I mean by "thrashed"?

Building A Better Bumblebee - Page 19 Upper10

Yup. They did not use the best material on the uppers. I think they got a lot of grief for having heavy material on the first version of the Instinct, so they went superlight on the 1.5. Except it didn't hold up so well. It splits and wears where the shoe flexes. Oops!

Quality control has been an issue with Altra... Still is, actually.

But, the tread and midsole is solid, and the interior of the shoe is fully intact. That's the important part.

Mark B Tue Aug 18, 2015 3:53 pm

Michele \"1L" Keane wrote:700 miles is amazing. I'm lucky to get 200 miles out of a pair of shoes before I wear out the soles. Wow!

Really? Wow. Do you mean wear out the tread, or compress the midsole so much it throws your foot at a funny angle?

Michele "1L" Keane Tue Aug 18, 2015 4:22 pm

Mark B wrote:
Michele \"1L" Keane wrote:700 miles is amazing. I'm lucky to get 200 miles out of a pair of shoes before I wear out the soles. Wow!

Really? Wow. Do you mean wear out the tread, or compress the midsole so much it throws your foot at a funny angle?

Both

Mark B Tue Aug 18, 2015 9:00 pm

Michele \"1L" Keane wrote:
Mark B wrote:
Michele \"1L" Keane wrote:700 miles is amazing. I'm lucky to get 200 miles out of a pair of shoes before I wear out the soles. Wow!

Really? Wow. Do you mean wear out the tread, or compress the midsole so much it throws your foot at a funny angle?
Both

Well, they have to change tires more often on Indy cars than tractors, so I guess that makes sense. Very Happy

(Though I am curious: What type of shoes do you wear?)

Michele "1L" Keane Tue Aug 18, 2015 11:41 pm

Adidas Boston 5s. My first pair lasted 350 miles, but this 2nd pair only 225. I wore off the right back tread.

My Brooks Launch last 250-300 miles. They are both pretty light shoes.

ounce Wed Aug 19, 2015 9:51 am

Mark B wrote:
Michele \"1L" Keane wrote:
Mark B wrote:
Michele \"1L" Keane wrote:700 miles is amazing. I'm lucky to get 200 miles out of a pair of shoes before I wear out the soles. Wow!

Really? Wow. Do you mean wear out the tread, or compress the midsole so much it throws your foot at a funny angle?
Both

Well, they have to change tires more often on Indy cars than tractors, so I guess that makes sense.

(Though I am curious: What type of shoes do you wear?)

I'm a draft horse. The non-Clydesdale workhorse that just clops along.

Mark B Wed Aug 19, 2015 11:18 am

Michele \"1L" Keane wrote:Adidas Boston 5s. My first pair lasted 350 miles, but this 2nd pair only 225. I wore off the right back tread.

My Brooks Launch last 250-300 miles. They are both pretty light shoes.

That's a pretty quick beat-down, but I bet every one of those miles is quality. Smile

Just to be clear, 700 miles is unusually long for me. I just checked my equipment log, and here's a list of my most-durable shoes over the years (with a couple of them still accruing miles).

Altra Instinct 1.5: 705 mi (retired)

Nike Free Run+ : 553 mi (retired)

Barefoot: 509 mi (and still going strong…)

Nike Free 5.0 V4: 447 mi (retired)

Nike Free Run: 435 mi (retired)

Luna Mono: 381 mi (so far)

Altra Instinct 1.5: 359 mi (returned/exchanged over defective midsole)

ASICS Gel-Kayano 13: 304 mi (retired)

I have a half dozen or so other shoes retired with fewer miles on them, but mostly because I wanted a "fresh" pair of shoes for a marathon training cycle. And because I could get 'em for cheap.

ounce wrote:I'm a draft horse. The non-Clydesdale workhorse that just clops along.

Have I got shoes for you!

Building A Better Bumblebee - Page 19 Whinny10

nkrichards Wed Aug 19, 2015 12:49 pm

That's some impressive miles on those shoes...must be the barefoot technique that's creating such a nice soft landing...

We're cooling down a bit...hope you are to. I'm ready for fall!

Mark B Wed Aug 19, 2015 5:35 pm

nkrichards wrote:That's some impressive miles on those shoes...must be the barefoot technique that's creating such a nice soft landing...

We're cooling down a bit...hope you are to. I'm ready for fall!

Could be, though some of those long-mileage shoes were before I started playing around with barefoot running. Still, I've always tended to run quietly, without a lot of scuffing. That may have something to do with it, too.

Disgustingly hot again today, but it's supposed to cool down a bit later this week. How hot has it been? Well, they set a record for the most 90-degree days in a single year yesterday in Portland, and it's already over 90 today; we have a few more to hit our record in Vancouver, since our data goes back many more years, but we're only a few more hot days away. I think we'll get there. Yay?

Mark B Fri Aug 21, 2015 1:09 am

Still not running yet. Kid's in band camp from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. for two weeks, and with all that and work, there hasn't really been time. Been keeping busy, generally, though it's mostly getting some chores wrapped up before everybody else heads off to school. I'll have a lot more time on my hands once Sept. 2 rolls around.

Mark B Sun Aug 23, 2015 4:55 pm

Wow. I thought I'd make it out for a run this morning, but the winds shifted from westerly to easterly early Saturday and a significant amount of smoke from the 500,000+ acres burning to the east of us came to visit.

Building A Better Bumblebee - Page 19 Img_2911

Building A Better Bumblebee - Page 19 Img_2911

It's kind of a big deal.

Old timers say they have never seen as much smoke as we have this weekend (not surprising, considering the amount of Washington, Oregon and Idaho currently burning up). It was at its worst on Saturday, but it's still lingering today. They say it should blow out on Monday -- which only means all the smoke will go someplace else, like back toward Nancy in Central Oregon. (Sorry.)

Aside from smelling like a campfire, the smoke is playing havoc with my lungs. I had a wonderfully asthmatic coughing fit last night (note: I do not have asthma) that had my coworkers saying how nice it was to have worked with me. Today, I have a sore throat, swollen glands, chest tightness and occasional wheeziness.

One benefit of having a newer house is that we can seal it up pretty well. It's getting a bit warm inside, but at least the majority of the smoke smell is outside.

If anybody wants to do a rain dance, we folks in the Pacific Northwest could do with about three weeks of steady light rain. Please and thank you.

ounce Sun Aug 23, 2015 8:20 pm

Yes, sir, that sucks. We get some smoke in the spring from Mexico, when they burn some acreage, I guess to clear it. Same burn occurs near Galveston, too.

Good time for muscle recovery!

nkrichards Mon Aug 24, 2015 9:29 am

There has been plenty of smoke for everyone Mark. We're smoked in as well. It was clear enough to get out for a short run on Saturday morning but not safe for outside exercise since then. Mornings had been clear earlier in the week but not now. I'm thinking this might be a good day to start indoor core work...

We have rain in the forecast for Saturday...

Mark B Mon Aug 24, 2015 6:05 pm

ounce wrote:Yes, sir, that sucks. We get some smoke in the spring from Mexico, when they burn some acreage, I guess to clear it. Same burn occurs near Galveston, too.

Good time for muscle recovery!

The wind has shifted again and things are much better now (which means the smoke is back in Nancy's backyard, unfortunately), but my pulmonary system is still on edge. Breathing is far from free and easy, and my chest still gets tight. Blech.

Those fires are monsters. It's exactly what I was worried about when we had a very mild winter and spring that brought enough rain to get the grasses and other lightweight fuels out in abundance, but no snow that prevents the grass growth at higher elevations and helps get moisture into the heavier fuels.

Unless we get a dramatic shift to autumn rains, those fires are going to go for quite some time. And there'll be more to join them.

nkrichards wrote:There has been plenty of smoke for everyone Mark. We're smoked in as well. It was clear enough to get out for a short run on Saturday morning but not safe for outside exercise since then. Mornings had been clear earlier in the week but not now. I'm thinking this might be a good day to start indoor core work...

We have rain in the forecast for Saturday...

I don't feel like I can fairly complain about a couple days worth of smoke on the west side, considering how bad it's been east of the Cascade Range for the past several weeks. It's a pretty oppressive feeling to be under that much smoke. Here's hoping rains come in sooner rather than later -- even if only to scrub some of the smoke out of the sky.

---

So obviously, no running for me at this point. That'll change soon enough.

Mark B Wed Aug 26, 2015 7:42 pm

Walk: 2.3 miles

Weather: Sunny, warm. 79 (but not smoky)

My lungs have recovered sufficiently from Smokepacolypse 2015 to encourage me to head out for a walk at lunch. All this inactivity lately has been driving me nuts, so I had some motivation.

The walk felt good. My alveoli reacted poorly for a few minutes after I started, but everything started to behave after my body realized I was actually going out for a while. It's going to take a bit for my cardio to bounce back once I get going for real, but the legs still feel pretty solid.

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