Last year Chris Solinsky broke the American record in the 10,000 meter track event. He recently had an interview with Runner's World. I found one of his comments particularly enlightening:
Runner's World: It's one thing that you broke 27:00 for 10,000 but the fact that you broke 13:00 in the 5000 indicates that there are no psychological barriers in terms of time anymore for you, are there?
Chris Solinsky: Yeah. I mean, the 10K was obviously a great race in terms of the time that I ran, but for me, it's knocked down a lot of mental barriers that I had in races. I was actually just talking to the guys today about how the 10K last year really opened my eyes to being able to not look at the lap counter. Before, I'd be too cognizant of how much I had left, and who was there, the things you shouldn't be thinking about as much. But in that 10K, I thought more in terms of time, how much time I had left. I remember at one point I looked at the clock and we were at 19:00 and I was like "well, that's like seven or eight minutes left, I can hammer, I can do anything for seven or eight minutes." When I finally stopped thinking of it in terms of laps, it kind of opened things up for me, and that's where it went for the rest of year. It changed my mental focus and how I approached things drastically and that opened a lot of doors for me.
I find this interesting as I consider my own mental approach to racing. There have been a few times where, rather than focusing on either how much distance is behind me or how much remains in front of me before finishing, I've focused on how much time I have left. Similar to Solinsky, I've found that this approach has somehow made the push to the finish easier than the "distance approach". I've only done this a few times by more or less stumbling upon it rather than by premeditated planning. Now that the approach has been confirmed by an American record holder, I plan to use the approach consistently going forward.
Saturday, April 30, 2011
OBJECTIVE
3 mi.
ACHIEVED
3.22 mi.@ 8:13
6:46 AM 73° 86% 3 mph
Humid this morning. Seems like it may rain today - which we need. I felt sluggish.
Had my fourth treatment at Koala. They've back working on my back since last Friday. The routine is essentially focused massage on my lower back followed by ultrasound then electro therapy. From there I do physical therapy which consists of stretching - back, glutes and outer thighs ?(I guess that's really glutes ... ???). I then do some single-leg balancing on a "Thera band" foot pad (it's unstable so forces me to lose some muscle to stay upright). Last Monday they hit me with back extensions and crunches using an exercise ball. And that's where I believe we all discovered my weakest link - pitifully weak abs! After all that, a chiropractor adjusts my low back. I'm not sure about the overall benefit yet. It does force me to do some strengthening which I'm sure doesn't hurt any.
My latest theory is that the back issues are either associated with the chair in my Chicago office or the seats on planes that I'm spending time on. I've essentially ruled out the hotel beds that I've been sleeping on. You've gotta love the scientific process ....
PRE RUN
weight=164.5
body fat=22.5%
POST RUN
water, multivitamin & Kashi GoLean cereal w/skim milk
3 mi.
ACHIEVED
3.22 mi.@ 8:13
6:46 AM 73° 86% 3 mph
Humid this morning. Seems like it may rain today - which we need. I felt sluggish.
Had my fourth treatment at Koala. They've back working on my back since last Friday. The routine is essentially focused massage on my lower back followed by ultrasound then electro therapy. From there I do physical therapy which consists of stretching - back, glutes and outer thighs ?(I guess that's really glutes ... ???). I then do some single-leg balancing on a "Thera band" foot pad (it's unstable so forces me to lose some muscle to stay upright). Last Monday they hit me with back extensions and crunches using an exercise ball. And that's where I believe we all discovered my weakest link - pitifully weak abs! After all that, a chiropractor adjusts my low back. I'm not sure about the overall benefit yet. It does force me to do some strengthening which I'm sure doesn't hurt any.
My latest theory is that the back issues are either associated with the chair in my Chicago office or the seats on planes that I'm spending time on. I've essentially ruled out the hotel beds that I've been sleeping on. You've gotta love the scientific process ....
PRE RUN
weight=164.5
body fat=22.5%
POST RUN
water, multivitamin & Kashi GoLean cereal w/skim milk
Friday, April 29, 2011
OBJECTIVE
3 mi.
ACHIEVED
3.24 mi.@ 8:01
6:45 AM 56° 82% 1 mph
Back at home. Felt okay. Back was a bit bothersome. I really think that problem is either the chair in my Chicago office or the seat on the plane.
PRE RUN
weight=166
body fat=22.4%
POST RUN
Diet V8 Splash, multivitamin & oatmeal w/brown sugar & skim milk
3 mi.
ACHIEVED
3.24 mi.@ 8:01
6:45 AM 56° 82% 1 mph
Back at home. Felt okay. Back was a bit bothersome. I really think that problem is either the chair in my Chicago office or the seat on the plane.
PRE RUN
weight=166
body fat=22.4%
POST RUN
Diet V8 Splash, multivitamin & oatmeal w/brown sugar & skim milk
Thursday, April 28, 2011
OBJECTIVE
3 mi.
ACHIEVED
3.39 mi.@ 8:19
5:40 AM
Cool breeze blowing through the Windy City this morning. I felt slightly on the sluggish side. Took a new route down to the Lakefront Trail. From Club Quarters went up the hill past the Hyatt then down Columbus. Instead of turning on Illinois continued two blocks to Ohio. Wanted to see a high rise apartment that looked interesting from the internet. It is close to the water ... with a bunch other high rises around it. Ahhh, urban living .... Hurmphhhh!
PRE RUN
-
POST RUN
water
3 mi.
ACHIEVED
3.39 mi.@ 8:19
5:40 AM
Cool breeze blowing through the Windy City this morning. I felt slightly on the sluggish side. Took a new route down to the Lakefront Trail. From Club Quarters went up the hill past the Hyatt then down Columbus. Instead of turning on Illinois continued two blocks to Ohio. Wanted to see a high rise apartment that looked interesting from the internet. It is close to the water ... with a bunch other high rises around it. Ahhh, urban living .... Hurmphhhh!
PRE RUN
-
POST RUN
water
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
OBJECTIVE
2 mi.
ACHIEVED
2.11 mi.@ 8:02
7:40 PM
First evening run in a long time. Run from Club Quarters Hotel along Chicago Riverwalk to Lakefront Trail. (I've obviously made it sound further than it really was!) I did get to see part of the Lakefront Trail that I haven't seen before. There were a bunch on Canadian geese and a scraggly cottontail rabbit along my way.
I felt okay. Abs were sore from the routine the doc put me through yesterday. I think she has isolated my weak link ....
PRE RUN
-
POST RUN
water
2 mi.
ACHIEVED
2.11 mi.@ 8:02
7:40 PM
First evening run in a long time. Run from Club Quarters Hotel along Chicago Riverwalk to Lakefront Trail. (I've obviously made it sound further than it really was!) I did get to see part of the Lakefront Trail that I haven't seen before. There were a bunch on Canadian geese and a scraggly cottontail rabbit along my way.
I felt okay. Abs were sore from the routine the doc put me through yesterday. I think she has isolated my weak link ....
PRE RUN
-
POST RUN
water
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Saturday, April 23, 2011
OBJECTIVE
3 mi.
ACHIEVED
3.22 mi.@ 7:58
6:40 AM 74° 82% 5 mph
Felt okay this morning. Back was tight over the first half mile. Nice morning. Game plan going forward is firming up. Look for another blog entry for details.
PRE RUN
weight=164.5
body fat=22.3%
POST RUN
skim milk, multivitamin, blueberry protein pancakes w/maple syrup
3 mi.
ACHIEVED
3.22 mi.@ 7:58
6:40 AM 74° 82% 5 mph
Felt okay this morning. Back was tight over the first half mile. Nice morning. Game plan going forward is firming up. Look for another blog entry for details.
PRE RUN
weight=164.5
body fat=22.3%
POST RUN
skim milk, multivitamin, blueberry protein pancakes w/maple syrup
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Grete Waitz Dies
Nothing like setting a world record in your first marathon which was supposed to be your swan song ....
Nothing like setting a world record in your first marathon which was supposed to be your swan song ....
Monday, April 18, 2011
Saturday, April 16, 2011
OBJECTIVE
14 mi.
ACHIEVED
14.10 mi.@ 8:06
6:39 AM 58° 43% 1 mph
It was a beautiful morning with the conditions pretty much in my "happy zone" for good running. Ran with Augie, Tricia, Josh, Israel and Randy. I didn't realize until checking my training log later in the day that it's been over 3 months since I've run this distance or longer. Not exactly what can be called a stellar training routine. The good news is that I felt alright physically. The left calf felt tight at the start but seemed to loosen up quickly and wasn't even a consideration.
Josh broke from the group around 2.5 miles into it. For reasons still unknown to me, I decided to go with him. We hung around 7:45 pace. This was a good pick up for me. Probably too early into this run given the overall planned distance but I felt okay throughout that burst. When the join came back together at a water stop Josh, Randy and I run together ahead of the others and at sub-8 pace. After that, I was happy to trim it back and stay with the group. By the time we were a couple miles from finishing, I was spent and just happy to log the miles no matter what the pace. At the end of the day, it was a strong pace over a good distance on a very nice morning.
PRE RUN
weight=165
body fat=22.1%
oatmeal w/brown sugar & skim milk
POST RUN
SlimFast
14 mi.
ACHIEVED
14.10 mi.@ 8:06
6:39 AM 58° 43% 1 mph
It was a beautiful morning with the conditions pretty much in my "happy zone" for good running. Ran with Augie, Tricia, Josh, Israel and Randy. I didn't realize until checking my training log later in the day that it's been over 3 months since I've run this distance or longer. Not exactly what can be called a stellar training routine. The good news is that I felt alright physically. The left calf felt tight at the start but seemed to loosen up quickly and wasn't even a consideration.
Josh broke from the group around 2.5 miles into it. For reasons still unknown to me, I decided to go with him. We hung around 7:45 pace. This was a good pick up for me. Probably too early into this run given the overall planned distance but I felt okay throughout that burst. When the join came back together at a water stop Josh, Randy and I run together ahead of the others and at sub-8 pace. After that, I was happy to trim it back and stay with the group. By the time we were a couple miles from finishing, I was spent and just happy to log the miles no matter what the pace. At the end of the day, it was a strong pace over a good distance on a very nice morning.
PRE RUN
weight=165
body fat=22.1%
oatmeal w/brown sugar & skim milk
POST RUN
SlimFast
Monday, April 11, 2011
Saturday, April 9, 2011
Friday, April 8, 2011
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
OBJECTIVE
30 minutes
ACHIEVED
40:20 (4.90 mi.@ 8:14)
5:49 AM
Heart really wasn't in to it today. Although I did manage to keep going longer than planned once I got out on the Lakefront Trail. Left hamstring was a bit balky over the last mile and a half or so.
PRE RUN
water
POST RUN
water & maple & brown sugar instant oatmeal
Saturday, April 2, 2011
OBJECTIVE
8-10 mi.
ACHIEVED
10.06 mi.@ 7:57
6:41 AM 71° 82% 0 mph mist/very light rain
This run turned into a ragged progressive. Not by design; it just evolved. I was feeling pretty good at the outset. I started easy and wanted to keep it easy over the first half of the run. I wasn't sure how far I was going to go. I wanted to get 10 miles but was willing to shorten to 8 if I wasn't feeling okay. After the first mile, things picked up a bit and the run ended up looking like this:
9:00/8:13/8:06/8:01/7:48/7:56/7:49/7:32/7:37/7:34
I was pretty wiped out with about 2.5 miles to go. I stopped for water and ended up needing to stop again with about a half mile to go. I obviously don't have a base under my belt nor do I have speed training so the result isn't surprising ... just a little disappointing to confirm where I'm actually at right now. I should be happy that I got some mileage without problems with my calves.
Other running news: I got a massage yesterday and think that helped my calves and back. I ran in brand new Mizuno Wave Rider 13's for the first time today. I bought them several months ago but haven't needed to break them out yet as there were still miles left in my Mizuno Wave Rider 12's. I also threw my hat in ring for the St. George marathon in October. The lottery will be drawn in early May so I've got some time before finding out if I get pulled.
PRE RUN
weight=164.5
body fat=22.2%
POST RUN
SlimFast
8-10 mi.
ACHIEVED
10.06 mi.@ 7:57
6:41 AM 71° 82% 0 mph mist/very light rain
This run turned into a ragged progressive. Not by design; it just evolved. I was feeling pretty good at the outset. I started easy and wanted to keep it easy over the first half of the run. I wasn't sure how far I was going to go. I wanted to get 10 miles but was willing to shorten to 8 if I wasn't feeling okay. After the first mile, things picked up a bit and the run ended up looking like this:
9:00/8:13/8:06/8:01/7:48/7:56/7:49/7:32/7:37/7:34
I was pretty wiped out with about 2.5 miles to go. I stopped for water and ended up needing to stop again with about a half mile to go. I obviously don't have a base under my belt nor do I have speed training so the result isn't surprising ... just a little disappointing to confirm where I'm actually at right now. I should be happy that I got some mileage without problems with my calves.
Other running news: I got a massage yesterday and think that helped my calves and back. I ran in brand new Mizuno Wave Rider 13's for the first time today. I bought them several months ago but haven't needed to break them out yet as there were still miles left in my Mizuno Wave Rider 12's. I also threw my hat in ring for the St. George marathon in October. The lottery will be drawn in early May so I've got some time before finding out if I get pulled.
PRE RUN
weight=164.5
body fat=22.2%
POST RUN
SlimFast
Friday, April 1, 2011
OBJECTIVE
3 mi.
ACHIEVED
3.23 mi.@ 7:38
6:36 AM 62° 79% 3 mph
After getting in late last night due to a delayed flight, I slept in more than planned this morning. This shortened my run and caused me to pick up the pace. Felt strong. Off to the Houston Open now.
PRE RUN
weight = 164
body fat = 22%
POST RUN
water, multivitamin & Kashi GoLean cereal w/skim milk
3 mi.
ACHIEVED
3.23 mi.@ 7:38
6:36 AM 62° 79% 3 mph
After getting in late last night due to a delayed flight, I slept in more than planned this morning. This shortened my run and caused me to pick up the pace. Felt strong. Off to the Houston Open now.
PRE RUN
weight = 164
body fat = 22%
POST RUN
water, multivitamin & Kashi GoLean cereal w/skim milk
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Objective
4 mi.
4 mi.
Achieved
Garmin - 4.74 mi.@ 7:40
My estimate - 4.5 mi.@ 8:06
5:06 AM 33° 77% 2 mph
The good ole Garmin doesn't like the concrete jungle of the city. I don't like standing around in the cold waiting for the Garmin to sync up with satellites. That's a bad combination if I want accurate readings here in Chicago.
Felt pretty good this morning. Only saw two other runners and no bikers along the Lakefront Trail.
Will be running in warm weather and humidity the next few days. Heading to the Shell Houston Open PGA golf event tomorrow. Also, expect to make it to the the Final Four too. Turning out to be a very good sports spectating year for me.
Pre run
Nothing
Post run
Instant oatmeal maple & brown sugar
Sent from my BlackBerry Wireless
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Monday, March 28, 2011
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