A good respite from the severity of the weather before. Downtown, one could get good purchase on clear and dry pathways. There were some major exceptions, where shade means melt water doesn't drain away enough before re-freezing. West of 14 street the guardrail leaves lines of ice like stripes on a zebra.
Worst of all is the state of Fish Creek Park pathways and its polished snow and the pavements to get there. There's so much piled up that there won't be much respite for my long runs until it's all melted in April-ISH. I've taken to the road a few times.
After the first 2k it gets better on the way to FC Park. Once there, the access road and path around Sikome lake provide a good running surface, though to get in 20k means seeing this same route 3 times in one run. Along with fatigue, cold and everything else, this is all part of training.
Even hecklers come into the mix. While taking in that access road, a car (guessing it was a 1995 Pontiac Grand Prix) full of potheads pulled up along side. All they could do was yell "go!" A couple of times. Useless bored kids with nothing to do (duh, take up running!), I figured they'd last a few seconds before tiring of me too. They did. When they came back the other way, I crossed the road.
Overall, training's been good. I started halfway through a half marathon program in December to lead into the hypothermic half then marathon training. Just to be sure of not over-stretching, I have cut interval runs slightly short by a minute or two.
Having done hot yoga last year - too sweaty and better for those who exercise less than I do- I tried "cold" yoga for a couple of months. Now I have the basics, I'm going to do a couple of yoga for runners routines I found online (here's a good one: http://youtu.be/_IlzyuRQwsc) at home from now on.
Head stands are tough, and more importantly not contributing to improving my running. There's also something about some yoga classes that isn't for me. Actually praying ("ooohhhmmmm, shanti, shanti," etc.) at the start, and putting one's hands together and wishing "namaste" to everyone in the room seems contrived and false.
One place I'm always going to go to is the chiropractor. The same doctor has been treating me since before I was a runner - just a fat guy with a bad back. These days he irons out tight spots, some of which I'm not aware of. My right foot is about half a size smaller than my left, as well as my right leg being slightly shorter than my left leg. The inevitable imbalance needs regular attention to enable a higher training load. I often ask questions on anatomy, muscle function, etc., making trips to the chiropractor beneficial in 2 ways.
The Hypothermic Half is now just around the corner. Aim for that race depend on conditions on the day. There are 2 starts, mine is at 1pm. An afternoon race is another first. If conditions allow, I'll try for just under 1:30. I won't go any quicker unless there's somehow a chance of winning - previous years' times have had 1st place coming in just under 90 minutes.
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