Sweet Home Chicago

I am hours away from hopping in Kell's bro Kyle's truck and hitting the road to Chi-town for the holidays. We'll be back home through Christmas and New Years and it's hard to describe how much we're looking forward to the visit. Kell hasn't been home since early July and I haven't been since late July when the Jays were in town (also when I snapped the above photo from the upper level at Sox Park).

But, even though we'll be home for Christmas cookies, Chicago pizza and other highly-anticipated foods from back home, my running program will go on. As I wrote last time, I altered my routine some this week. I'm already at the most miles in one week since I've started this winter and I have two days remaining.

On Monday, I ran 4 miles, added another 5 apiece on Tuesday and Wednesday, and then ran a one-mile cool down after 11 miles (30 minutes) on a stationary bike on Thursday. Today, Friday, I ran at a decent clip for 120 laps around the track, good for eight miles. I even had enough leftover at the end to build up to a full out sprint in the final mile.

So, that gives me 23 miles for the week, besting my previous weekly high of 21 -- set two weeks ago when I completed the 10-mile treadmill adventure. My plan is to up it to 30 miles by week's end, so that can be any combination of, say, 2 miles tomorrow as an easy day and 5 on Sunday. Or 3 and 4, or whatever. I think my goal from now on is to do 25-35 miles a week.

There's no reason I should limit myself to just 3 miles anymore when I can do that in my sleep. I think 4 miles should be my absolute minimum for regular tempo run days. Obviously, on days I need a break, I can do 1 or 2 miles or just stick to the bike or weight room. I mixed in abdominal work and some upper body lifting between my runs this week, too. I've been sore in the morning, but feeling fine in the evenings, which is when I work out.

Anyway, enough with the boring mileage talk. I have to finish getting ready for the trip home. I just feel like hopping on here and logging my every move and progress helps keep me accountable. I've had a few slip-ups here and there this winter, which I can't afford to have as I get closer to my goal. It's real easy to use the long timeframe as an excuse to back off.

Earlier this week, I was even talking to Jays manager John Gibbons (he's real easy to chat with before and after you actually do the whole interviewing/work thing) and he was asking how my workouts had been going. He said he ran a half-marathon a few years back in Austin, Texas. I told him to keep me in check during the baseball season now that he knows what I'm working toward.

I'll close this entry with another quote, this one lifted from a Runner's World magazine I picked up recently. This might be my new favorite quote - in relation to running or anything in life. I'm big on the mental aspects of life, honing in on that side of things to help you get through tough situations.

"If you are going to win any battle, you have to do one thing. You have to make the mind run the body. Never let the body tell the mind what to do." --General George Patton

Merry Christmas everyone.

My horse done ran off...

...which made it hard to get back on. Yeah, I'm fessing up to a poor showing on the running front this week. In fact, it was exactly the worst running week I've had since the baseball season ended. Even when I took five days off a few weeks ago, I managed to log 14 miles on the weekend.

This week, I started off fine with four miles on Monday, but then things got out of hand. I took my normal off day on Tuesday (when I had a company Christmas party in New York) and Wednesday I got sidetracked with baseball's tender deadline. I was waiting up late, past midnight, to find out one of the Jays pitchers was let go. On Thursday, and carrying over into Friday, I was swamped after the Mitchell Report came out.

Making matters worse, the Jays signed a pair of players on the Friday, and I wound up writing three stories that day. My excuse on Saturday? Well, I have four assignments due on Monday and I used Saturday as a work day. That's my long run day. Yeah, didn't happen. I did, however, come across a motivational link on the Runner's World Web site.

Lame as it sounds, this article convinced me to salvage my week with a run on Sunday -- not to start over on Monday. So, I squeezed in a seven-mile run tonight (five on the treadmill in 40 minutes flat and two on the track). I had looked up a 10-mile route outside, but God sent a crazy snow storm swirling over Toronto. So that put the kaybosh on any outside activities.

The weather, combined with my constantly fighting boredom while running hamster-style at the gym, has made me start to rethink my current program. I've been building up distances and increasing my long runs each week. That's all well and good, but the fact of the matter is the marathon I plan on running isn't until October.

So, I'm thinking of going back to logging 3-7 miles a day maybe six days a week. I can start with a easy three-miler early in the week and gradually build up to 5-7 miles by the end of the week with a recovery day or two, if I need it, in the middle. That'd put me at 20-plus miles a week, which would be a solid average, and would be very doable indoors. Any more than seven miles on a treadmill and I start going stir crazy.

I don't think this will be too bad, considering I'll be heading down to Florida in mid-February. So, I can log a consistent amount of miles until I leave for warmer weather, and then start building up the long runs again during Spring Training. I'd like to run outdoors, but Toronto is not playing along.

I also weighed myself following my run tonight and I was at 160 even. So, I took a week off, basically, had a beer or seven at the Christmas party in the Big Apple, ate a pizza this week, had homemade tacos, and sat in front of a laptop for hours on end, and I lost weight?! Hmmm, maybe I should stick to this new beer-and-pizza weight-loss plan. Ha. Maybe it was all that Wii I played this week during work breaks.

I also am lame and receive daily quotes from Runner's World. One I've liked so far and saved is this one: "Any idiot can train himself into the ground; the trick is working in training to get gradually stronger." Amen.

Not a perfect 10

No, but I put 10 miles in the books today, nonetheless. For my first 10-mile run ever, I guess it wasn't too bad, though I know I'll improve as I get used to longer distances. I also did the whole thing on a treadmill, which wasn't exactly a blast.

The longest I ever ran during high school cross country season was eight miles, if I'm remembering correctly. This past spring, when I was in Florida for spring training, I logged a nine-mile run one night. This winter, eight miles was the longest I had run, and that was last week.

This week I was down for 10 as my long run on Saturday, and I wasn't sure if I'd get it in -- mainly because I was at baseball's Winter Meetings in Nashville from Sunday-Friday. During the meetings, a lot of the time is spent standing around, writing, schmoozing, boozing and grubbing it up.

My schedule was supposed to be 3 miles on Monday, rest, 5 miles on Wednesday, 3 on Thursday, rest and then 10 on Saturday. I got the first run in no problem in the morning, but morning runs were hard to get in from there on out. Wednesday I didn't get the run in, but I did 10 miles on a bike.

My schedule got out of whack because of a late-night out on Wednesday. No problem, I adjusted my sked and got 5 miles in on Thursday night and 3 miles (done in 21:18) after I got back to Toronto on Friday night. I was proud of myself on Tuesday. I declined beers out at dinner, stuck with pop, and made it to the gym before I went to bed. I took some abuse for not drinking, but I can handle it.

So, I was worried about the 10 miles I had to get in today, considering I didn't have a recovery day the day before. I got 5 miles in no problem and then started hurting somewhat (mainly my feet, which are getting hit with some wear and tear). But I stopped for a couple water breaks between miles 5 and 10 and was able to do the final mile in around 7:30. So I had some gas leftover at the end.

I finished in 85 minutes flat, so 8:30 on average for each mile. For a marathon, that pace would come to about 3 hours and 42 minutes I think. So, I'm confident I can complete the marathon in October in under 4 hours. If I could break 3:30, I'd be really pleased, but we'll see if that's too lofty a goal. I have plenty of time to work on building up my endurance and shaving off the minutes.

After finishing, though, I realized the extent of the task I'm taking on. My feet, legs, abs, back and mind were drained after just 10 miles. That's not even half of what I have coming. Next week I build up to 11 miles on my long run day, with long runs of 12 and 14 in the following weeks. After 7 weeks this winter, I've logged 124 miles in 45 days. To think some elite runners do that much in a week!

Recovering

I'm still feeling the aftereffects of Thanksgiving and hosting a couple people up here that weekend, which meant eating out more than usual. One thing I'm happy with, though, is the fact that I stayed on my running schedule through the Turkey Day festivities.

Thanksgiving morning, I got up early and did a cool 3 miles at the gym. Two days later, while everyone was still in bed, I headed to the gym and ran 7 miles. Since then? Well, the schedule has kind of gone out the window for the time being.

My right hand is killing me (I've had an issue for a few months and am starting to become convinced that something is wrong with a bone in there -- fun), my right ankle is sore (playing basketball regularly for the first time in years will do that to you), and my back and right shoulder are singing (this is self-induced pain from breaking down and purchasing a Nintendo Wii).

So, I haven't ran in four days, which is the longest break I've had in a while, but I'll be back on the horse soon. The serious training for the marathon is still months away. I did meet up with some of the other Toronto writers earlier this week and one asked me, "Did you lose more weight? Is that even possible?" Actually, yeah, I got down to 162 from about 170 since the season ended. My goal by next October's race day is to be around 160. That's as low as I'll allow myself to go, though.

On Sunday night, I fly to Nashville for the Winter Meetings, which don't figure to be too hectic for the ol' Blue Jays. I'll have to switch gears and get up early while I'm there to get my running in, so I'll have to fight off suggestions to meet up at the bar late at night for a drink or two. We'll see how much will power I have. Until then...

Mixing things up

I am really sore today, but it's not from running. Well, not exactly anyway. I'm hurting from playing basketball yesterday. I met up with a couple friends, took the day off from plain ol' running, and hooped it up, which we're going to do once a week this winter.

I hadn't played basketball in probably a year and I haven't played regularly since college, when I'd get together with some coworkers and classmates and play twice a week. A few weeks before graduation -- so late April of 2005 -- I grabbed a rebound and came down on my right foot awkwardly. My foot hasn't been exactly the same since.

It didn't swell up like your typical sprain, which I've had a few of on each ankle (once a doctor told me I would've done myself a favor my breaking it). During the most recent mishap, I think I tore or severely strained some ligaments. I went through X-rays and had a physical therapist look at it and no one was exactly sure what I did. All I know is it didn't swell, it hurt a ton and every so often, if I'm not paying attention while walking, it can flare up.

What's been funny over the past two years is that it has never hurt while running -- just walking on occasion. I've been working so hard with running over the past year, though, so I finally decided that it was a good time to test the ankle out on the basketball court again. We played two games of 21 and my ankle never flared up once in all the starting and stopping. So, the weekly games will go on until my foot has other plans.

Back to my point, though, I'm super sore because that muscle memory from playing bball all the time went missing. Even after a few shots I could feel a slight sting in my right arm while it tried to remember what it was doing. I'm glad I'm playing again, though. I had fun and it will help add some variety to my increasingly boring workouts.

Boredom has been my biggest problem lately. I might not be winded and my legs might feel fine, but I just am so bored jogging on that treadmill. I mixed it up the other day by running on the track with Kelly and I might run outside today since it's actually nice outside. On my off days from running, I'm also still working out in the weight room to make sure I'm not going strictly arobic with my routine.

Also, thanks John for pointing me to the Runners World Web site -- I've been finding a ton of cool little tips on there. I also checked out that Garmin watch, which seems to trump that wimpy Timex I was looking at. Hmmm, now to convince the misses that spending nearly $300 on a watch it worth it! Maybe I'll have to start a Gunning for a Garmin fundraiser. My sis says all her friends swear by theirs, too.

Pacing myself

The photo on the right was taken in May 2006, when I headed out to Colorado to visit family. Behind me is Pikes Peak, which is more than 14,000 feet high. I lived in Colorado Springs for two years and never made it to the top, so we drove to the peak the week I was there.

I bring this up because my cousin John recently completed a marathon that took him to the top and back down -- makes what I'm doing almost seem laughable! Since that picture of me was taken, I've dropped about 40 pounds, and I know how hard that was. I can only imagine the training it took to prepare for the Pikes Peak marathon.

John caught wind of my new adventure and he offered a piece of advice that I've come to realize is vital: recovery days. I've been used to running 3 miles a day about six times a week with no off days. Well, now I'm learning the importance of mixing in a day off here and there.

I ran 3 miles on Monday and Tuesday, worked out but didn't run on Wednesday, and I logged 5 miles on Thursday. Today, Friday, I plan on heading to the gym, but I'll probably just lift some weights and ride the bike or do the rowing machine. Come Saturday, I'll probably shoot for 5-6 miles and then back off again on Sunday.

I might've gone running today, but my left knee started hurting some during my run yesterday. Spending most of your time on the treadmill will do that. I'd like to head outside for a few runs before it gets too cold here and I might start hitting the track at the gym to mix it up. There's a great Web site (http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/) I use to plan outdoor runs and I've recently found an item I'd like to add to my Christmas list (the Timex Ironman Sleek watch, which is easily found on http://www.timex.com/). Hint, hint, Kelly.

The gmaps pedometer Web site is awesome. I use it a lot when I'm on the road, which is frequently during the baseball season. I've mapped out some pretty long runs in San Francisco and in Boston, which are two of my favorite cities to run in -- San Fran for the challenge of all the hills and Boston for its great path along the Charles River. For now, the treadmill will have to do.

Mapping things out

There's one catch to my sudden plan to run a marathon next October -- beyond the obvious, which is that I need the Blue Jays to NOT make the playoffs (personally, I think that's a safe bet). The issue I am facing is that of creating a game plan for the coming months.

I've found a 16-week plan to prepare for the 26.2-mile run, but that's a four-month route. I have roughly 11 months before I plan to hit the streets of Chi-town. So, I guess my first steps is to simply continue what I've been doing, which is go running five or six times a week, logging 3 or more miles each time.

Since I've been home this offseason, I've done three miles on consecutive days twice, including the past two. After that, I've either upped that total to between 4-6 miles or taken a day off before returning back to a 3-mile run. In the past 14 days, I have 43 miles in the books, or a little over 3 miles per day.

I think I'll stay at that average for the next few weeks before maybe increasing that average. I'm at the point now where I can run 3 miles without really getting winded. Today, my run finished in 22:00 flat. Earlier this week, I ran 4 miles in 32 minutes (a nice, easy pace for me) and then, after a short water break, ran a fifth mile in 6:40. In the last two weeks, my quickest 3-mile run is 20:37.

The big thing for me now is to remind myself that speed isn't the most important thing. I'd love to get back below 20 minutes for 3 miles -- something I haven't done since high school. But, as I build up my endurance for longer distances, I need to tell myself that backing off on mile averages is fine. The competitive guy in me wants to keep increasing the speed on the treadmill, though.

So, while I figure out how I'm going to map out my running schedule over the next few months, the other thing I'm going to need to focus on is my nutrition habits. I've been steering away from carbs, which helped me lose weight, but I need to start taking more in again now that I'm running more. Just as I learned to limit my portions last winter, this winter I need to learn how to rework my eating habits again to include the right meals to go along with my training.

Well, that's all for today. I just figured I'd put a quick update on here. Maybe this is completely boring for the few of you who are reading this, but hey, it helps me keep myself in check. Stay tuned for more...

And So It Begins...

Today, I did it. I've been wanting to research running a marathon for some time now, but today I finally sat down and looked up some info. Just like that, my journey has been set in motion. Ever since I can remember, I've always wanted to run a marathon. Years back, when I weight a buck-30 and ran cross country, this didn't seem like a big deal.

Then, I moved to Colorado and stopped running competitively because of the high altitude -- nice excuse. Working at Chili's and putting all my athletic effort toward baseball knocked my weight up and by college -- long after suiting up for the Cubs someday passed me by as a career option -- I bulked up to 215 pounds. No, it wasn't all muscle.

At that point, I wasn't happy at all with how I felt, I was dealing with self-image issues and I wondered if working as a journalist would only make things worse down the road. It sure had hurt in college, when food runs for the sports department only helped feed my problem. My first year on a professional sports beat only took things a step further.

On the road, you eat out all the time and my first season was spent marveling at all my newfound opportunities. You should see some of the pressbox dining rooms in Major League stadiums. I had hacked off some pounds leading up to my wedding after graduation, and was back down to around 180, but the job got me again and I bounced back up to 200 pounds.

After year one covering baseball, though, I decided enough was enough. At one point in my life, I was a very dedicated athlete who never let a day go by without hitting my training goals. I needed to find that guy again. So, from October 2006 to February 2007, I changed my eating habits dramatically and began running again and I got myself back down to 165 pounds -- the lowest I'd been since high school.

All of a sudden, running a marathon didn't seem so farfetched anymore -- after all, I had run 10 miles during one Spring Training trek down in Florida. The real test would be my second year on the beat. Well, that year has passed and I'm still at 165. I've found out how to maintain and I'm now used to the lifestyle. It's still hard to hold true to my new mind-set, but I know it will pay great dividends in the long run (no pun intended).

So today, I decided that next year is the year I do it. October 12, 2008 is the Chicago Marathon. As a kid, my dad was a pastor at the Moody Church in Chicago and the marathon would run right by the front doors of the church. I always thought it'd be sweet to run by myself one day and now I plan on doing just that. Registration hasn't started yet, but when it opens, I'm signing up.

I named this blog "Project 138336" because that's the number of feet in 26.2 miles. This is my project over the next year and this blog is where I'll hold myself accountable, noting the changes in my nutrition and the weekly miles I'm logging. I got home from covering the postseason and started running regularly again on Oct. 24, and I've put in 37 miles over that span.

I'm about to chalk up 3 or 4 more in a few minutes at the local rec center. It's getting cold here in Toronto, so the bulk of my training will be indoors for starters. Wish me luck on my journey and give me a hard time if I'm slipping. The hardest step is the first one out the door.