What a difference a week makes!

Sunday, September 06, 2015 · Mike Davis

Good morning! I hope you are enjoying your Labor Day weekend. We could not ask for nicer weather here in New Hampshire. Though we desperately need some rain, it has turned those temperatures that we all enjoy so very much, especially as runners. Yesterday was a great example of that as had our Destination Race group plus others run from the Center at 8:30 and the temperature started out in the high 50s. While the temperature alone was near perfect the humidity was in the low 70 percent and dropping as we ran and that factor is actually more important than the temperature. Only a week earlier Kathy and I ran 8 miles and I really struggled having to walk a couple times and while I much of that is on me, the nearly 90 percent humidity didn’t help. Conversely, yesterday we ran 75 minutes and the numbers were much better; 8.1 miles, 9:12 pace and our final mile was around 8:13. Smart running early (nearly 10 minute miles) helped but, the weather certainly drained less fuel (glycogen) from bodies allowing us to run stronger. Typically we run mainly on Spur road however yesterday instead of staying on Spur road I had Doug and I turn off of Spur and onto New Bellamy lane. New Bellamy lane isn’t a particularly long road, but it is a pretty steep hill from the beginning right to where it runs into Dover Point road. Knowing that we were both tiring I figured it would be a good challenge for part of our mile 7 and I was right. We both labored up it and needed some easy running to recover after but, then we kicked it and as I said we had enough in the tank to run mile 8 at 8:13. Lots of great lessons from yesterday’s run. Besides gaining continued conformation that heat and humidity monopolize our glycogen, we both experienced the value of running easy out 40 minutes thus leaving us in good shape to run the back 35 minutes at a pretty good pace while even conquering a pretty tough hill. The goal wasn’t to run at any particular pace but, we both wanted to run at least 8 miles as we move closer to “Reach the Beach”. When we stopped at the corner of Spur and New Bellamy to get some water Doug commented that we were on pace for 8 miles or even better and I knew that that the hill we were about to climb would challenge that estimate. I was right, as we turned onto Dover Point road I checked my Garmin and we now had less than 10 minutes of our 75 minutes left to run and about 1.25 miles left to get to 8. While I knew we would probably run past the 75 minute mark if need be to get to 8 miles, I would rather have not. After we recovered at an easy pace I started reaching deep for a final kick and Doug found his as well. We had a slight uphill but a real nice downhill that allowed us to kick considerably. I also focused on my form and knee drive as I tried to do what I coach some many others and that also helped me to focus less on my struggling cardio. We actually hit the 8 mile mark at the 74 minute time and while we both would probably been good with stopping and celebrating, we finished our final minute and actually ran a bit over 8 miles. Doug is an expressive guy but, I could have easily hugged him yesterday! I needed that run to be successful both physically and mentally and our partnership out there made the difference for me. It has been a battle since I tore my anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and while I am far from where I would like to be, yesterday gives me far greater confidence physically as well as mentally. These NFLR training groups has been a challenge at times for me during my ACL recovery but, I am not sure where I would be without having these groups. I am excited about fall running as well as my continued physical improvement. Time to get along. Have a great Sunday and enjoy your Labor Day downtime. This week we will be at the Dover track Tuesday (6pm), 7th Settlement Brewery on Wednesday (6pm) and at the Center Thursday night for a hill run (6pm). Come join us. God Bless!