My room is dirty. I don't know how to play guitar. I can't run a mile without stopping.
I picked up a sock. I picked up a guitar. I picked out a pair of running shoes.
I turned on the TV. Wow, drums are cool. I'm too tired to get out there today.
I picked up my clothes and did some dusting. Hm, this tab is getting easier. Another slow run, but I'm feeling better.
More arranging. I just wrote another song. Going for a personal best in my 5K tomorrow.
...
It seems like things happen all at once, but they really happen slowly. As long as I take the right steps towards my goals, I can achieve them.
Yes, it's cheesy. No, it's not sexy. Yes, it takes a lot of hard work. No, it's not easy.
Yes, slowly... but surely.
Showing posts with label 5k. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 5k. Show all posts
Friday, April 20, 2012
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Progress
I started running on 7/1/2010.
1.13 miles in 11:31... a numerical symmetry that's almost poetic.
At the time, I remember being slightly disappointed. It was a pretty brutal wake up call. I was 28 years old and really out of shape. It felt like I would never be able to run a 5k in under 30 minutes, never consider a 2 mile run to be short, never contemplate a sprint triathlon as a realistic goal.
Well... it's almost 21 months later... my 5k personal best is 24:57, a 2 mile run is shorter than my "normal" run (3 miles), and a sprint triathlon is very much a goal for me (this one on 10/21/2012). And all this with two different extended "off" periods (6 months from 11/2010 to 5/2011 and 3 months from 12/2011 to 2/2012).
I'm proud of the progress I've made, but I have to work to stay hungry, work to push myself to get out there and hit the pavement, work to stay focused and find fun races to keep me motivated.
Keep it going, Glynn. Let's see where you are in another 21 months...
1.13 miles in 11:31... a numerical symmetry that's almost poetic.
At the time, I remember being slightly disappointed. It was a pretty brutal wake up call. I was 28 years old and really out of shape. It felt like I would never be able to run a 5k in under 30 minutes, never consider a 2 mile run to be short, never contemplate a sprint triathlon as a realistic goal.
Well... it's almost 21 months later... my 5k personal best is 24:57, a 2 mile run is shorter than my "normal" run (3 miles), and a sprint triathlon is very much a goal for me (this one on 10/21/2012). And all this with two different extended "off" periods (6 months from 11/2010 to 5/2011 and 3 months from 12/2011 to 2/2012).
I'm proud of the progress I've made, but I have to work to stay hungry, work to push myself to get out there and hit the pavement, work to stay focused and find fun races to keep me motivated.
Keep it going, Glynn. Let's see where you are in another 21 months...
Saturday, March 3, 2012
*sidenote
Winter is winding down.
*sidenote: I live in California, so saying that "winter is winding down" is purely chronological and has nothing to do with the actual season. It's 77 degrees outside and sunny and beautiful and why would anyone want to live anywhere else in the world? Oh... people live in a bubble out here, which can make it difficult to find something "real"? Hmmm... I didn't know you were so pretentiously judgmental, Glynn.
Winter is winding down. We'll be losing an hour in 8 days.
*sidenote: Sure. We lose an hour in the morning, but you gain that hour in the evening because the sun will still be out when you leave work, so if you want to, say, go for a run or walk to the store or cruise to the beach for an hour, you can because there will be glorious daylight until 7:00pm. So quite yer complaining.
Winter is winding down. We'll be losing an hour in 8 days. I can't wait to start a whole bunch of projects.
*sidenote: By "whole bunch" I mean three. 1) Record my acoustic stuff. A split EP with the wonderfully talented Lexy Baeza. A solo album. Literally, cannot wait. 2) Run. 1st 5K of 2012 is in 5 weeks. And running also means I'll shed some poundage, which is always good for the old heart. 3) Blog more regularly. I need to write more. Not just songs or emails to angry customers but creative bursts of intellectually stimulating (or not) prose.
Winter is winding down. We'll be losing an hour in 8 days. I can't wait to start a whole bunch of projects. And now it's time to go play guitar...
*sidenote: Thanks for reading this...
*sidenote: I live in California, so saying that "winter is winding down" is purely chronological and has nothing to do with the actual season. It's 77 degrees outside and sunny and beautiful and why would anyone want to live anywhere else in the world? Oh... people live in a bubble out here, which can make it difficult to find something "real"? Hmmm... I didn't know you were so pretentiously judgmental, Glynn.
Winter is winding down. We'll be losing an hour in 8 days.
*sidenote: Sure. We lose an hour in the morning, but you gain that hour in the evening because the sun will still be out when you leave work, so if you want to, say, go for a run or walk to the store or cruise to the beach for an hour, you can because there will be glorious daylight until 7:00pm. So quite yer complaining.
Winter is winding down. We'll be losing an hour in 8 days. I can't wait to start a whole bunch of projects.
*sidenote: By "whole bunch" I mean three. 1) Record my acoustic stuff. A split EP with the wonderfully talented Lexy Baeza. A solo album. Literally, cannot wait. 2) Run. 1st 5K of 2012 is in 5 weeks. And running also means I'll shed some poundage, which is always good for the old heart. 3) Blog more regularly. I need to write more. Not just songs or emails to angry customers but creative bursts of intellectually stimulating (or not) prose.
Winter is winding down. We'll be losing an hour in 8 days. I can't wait to start a whole bunch of projects. And now it's time to go play guitar...
*sidenote: Thanks for reading this...
Friday, March 2, 2012
Go Do
Seriously... slowly... moving... is this day...
But soon I'll be at a Ducks game, amongst the (semi-)masses, enjoying Bro Hymn (which means we've scored), stomach full of Bruxie (awesome waffle sandwiches), and possibly cheesecake (but only if it's not too expensive)...
Hopefully, some guitar tonight, too. Played last night (review of old stuff, some new stuff, mostly getting ready to record, filtering, picking out songs, second-guessing [which I hate, it's so counterproductive, why must it occur?], perfecting, making mistakes, learning, getting better), but I should always play more... NEED to play more.
Running tomorrow morning. First time since November. 30 minutes at a nice easy pace. 5 weeks away from the first official race of the season, which will be a 5K down the Hollywood Walk of Fame. I still want to hit up a triathlon by the end of the year. I just need to start swimming more.
I miss regularly blogging. I guess I have no one to blame but myself.
All it takes is a decision... a firmly made decision. Be a better husband. Be a better dad. Play more guitar. Blog more. Clean. Cook. Run. Be healthy. A firmly made decision. And slipping is okay, as long as you right yourself and keep moving forward. Slipping is okay. We're all human. We all make mistakes. We all lose sight of our goals. But our goals are always there. A firmly made decision.
But soon I'll be at a Ducks game, amongst the (semi-)masses, enjoying Bro Hymn (which means we've scored), stomach full of Bruxie (awesome waffle sandwiches), and possibly cheesecake (but only if it's not too expensive)...
Hopefully, some guitar tonight, too. Played last night (review of old stuff, some new stuff, mostly getting ready to record, filtering, picking out songs, second-guessing [which I hate, it's so counterproductive, why must it occur?], perfecting, making mistakes, learning, getting better), but I should always play more... NEED to play more.
Running tomorrow morning. First time since November. 30 minutes at a nice easy pace. 5 weeks away from the first official race of the season, which will be a 5K down the Hollywood Walk of Fame. I still want to hit up a triathlon by the end of the year. I just need to start swimming more.
I miss regularly blogging. I guess I have no one to blame but myself.
All it takes is a decision... a firmly made decision. Be a better husband. Be a better dad. Play more guitar. Blog more. Clean. Cook. Run. Be healthy. A firmly made decision. And slipping is okay, as long as you right yourself and keep moving forward. Slipping is okay. We're all human. We all make mistakes. We all lose sight of our goals. But our goals are always there. A firmly made decision.
Saturday, September 24, 2011
For Fun
I ran a 5K and a 10K this year. And I trained for both races, which was rad because it meant devising and sticking to a plan and checking off intermediate goals and taking it one day at a time, always with the end goal in mind, always focusing on the pace and the distance, taking steps each training session towards achieving the set goals. Training went well, and I achieved my goal pace in each race. Actually, I went faster than expected in each race, which is even more rad.
The 5K was on July 4th, and the 10K was a week ago on September 17th. I haven't signed up for another race yet, and in all honesty, I probably won't run another actual race till 2012. I'd also like to complete a sprint triathlon some time next summer, which will require even more training.
So it's the "offseason". I don't have any upcoming events, and for all intents and purposes, I can take a break for a bit and lay off the accumulation of fitness.
That being said, I really wanted to go for a run today. Schedules permitted and I had a chunk of time and Chase was with me and I love running with him because he's such great company, glancing up at me every once in a while or throwing both arms behind his head and chillaxing or making noises when airplanes take off from John Wayne and fly over the back bay trail we've run together a couple times.
And in the middle of that run... I realized how much fun I was having.
Yes, I was keeping track of time, and yes, there were people that I had in my sights to pass, and yes, there was still a target pace to be had. But it was fun. And not because I was training for something. It was just fun to be out and about in southern California on an overcast day running a beautiful back bay trail in Newport Beach with my almost 2 year old son and it started to drizzle and Chase fell asleep and it was a pretty dreary day actually... but it was a lot of fun.
I really enjoy running. Not just for fitness or to achieve health and race goals... it's genuinely fun for me.
And it's completely mine. I have about 3 or 4 activities that are truly mine and that had very little outside influence (relatively): golf, a genuine love of sports, music, and now running. These are the things I do for fun, the things that fill my day when I have extra time, the things I will stop to witness while channel surfing, the things I search for while I'm on the internet, the topics of conversation with my family, the interests I hope to share with my son.
Why can't what we do for fun be what we do for a living?
The 5K was on July 4th, and the 10K was a week ago on September 17th. I haven't signed up for another race yet, and in all honesty, I probably won't run another actual race till 2012. I'd also like to complete a sprint triathlon some time next summer, which will require even more training.
So it's the "offseason". I don't have any upcoming events, and for all intents and purposes, I can take a break for a bit and lay off the accumulation of fitness.
That being said, I really wanted to go for a run today. Schedules permitted and I had a chunk of time and Chase was with me and I love running with him because he's such great company, glancing up at me every once in a while or throwing both arms behind his head and chillaxing or making noises when airplanes take off from John Wayne and fly over the back bay trail we've run together a couple times.
And in the middle of that run... I realized how much fun I was having.
Yes, I was keeping track of time, and yes, there were people that I had in my sights to pass, and yes, there was still a target pace to be had. But it was fun. And not because I was training for something. It was just fun to be out and about in southern California on an overcast day running a beautiful back bay trail in Newport Beach with my almost 2 year old son and it started to drizzle and Chase fell asleep and it was a pretty dreary day actually... but it was a lot of fun.
I really enjoy running. Not just for fitness or to achieve health and race goals... it's genuinely fun for me.
And it's completely mine. I have about 3 or 4 activities that are truly mine and that had very little outside influence (relatively): golf, a genuine love of sports, music, and now running. These are the things I do for fun, the things that fill my day when I have extra time, the things I will stop to witness while channel surfing, the things I search for while I'm on the internet, the topics of conversation with my family, the interests I hope to share with my son.
Why can't what we do for fun be what we do for a living?
Sunday, July 3, 2011
5K tomorrow morning...
I've run 3.1 miles before. I've run farther than 3.1 miles before.
But there's something about putting the word "official" in front of 3.1 miles (5K) that makes it a little more nerve-racking... and exciting... and, well... official.
Just like there's a difference between playing in a garage in front of your girlfriends... and playing in a bar in front of people you don't know.
Just like there's a difference between reciting your lines to an empty house... and giving a performance for a sold out crowd.
My first "official" 5K is tomorrow morning. I hope I get the same high from it that I get from playing in a bar or performing on stage. If I do... man...
... game on.
But there's something about putting the word "official" in front of 3.1 miles (5K) that makes it a little more nerve-racking... and exciting... and, well... official.
Just like there's a difference between playing in a garage in front of your girlfriends... and playing in a bar in front of people you don't know.
Just like there's a difference between reciting your lines to an empty house... and giving a performance for a sold out crowd.
My first "official" 5K is tomorrow morning. I hope I get the same high from it that I get from playing in a bar or performing on stage. If I do... man...
... game on.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Running again...
I'm running again.
And I have a more realistic goal in mind this time. A little over a month to train to run a 5k in less than 30 minutes. Essentially 9:40 per mile. And the 5k is on July 4th with my very good friend, Kris. (eat a bag...)
I had started running last July. To get back in shape. To train for a marathon. I thought that I could wrap my head (and my life) around training for a marathon. That proved to be too challenging, so I hit the brakes and downgraded to a half-marathon. I even signed up for the Carlsbad Half-Marathon in January... I even got up to an 8 mile run at 10:00 per mile at the end of last October...
... But ultimately, I fell off my training. November was a huge month in my life. My son turned one. Oh Girl had two really successful shows including my 29th birthday show. And it was all just too hectic to keep running and maintain my eating habits and keep everything rolling at work and stay on top of band stuff and continue to plan a wedding and then Thanksgiving and a crap load of food and then the holiday season (not a stressful time at all...) and then Christmas and more eating and New Year's and more eating and... wow... the half marathon is in a week and I haven't run since Halloween...
I didn't run the half-marathon. I didn't even walk it. I just plain didn't show up... which was probably a good idea because I most likely would have seriously injured myself...
But now I'm running again. And I'm keeping the goal manageable. Ugh... even reading that sentence I'm realizing I should make the goal a little more ambitious. 27:54 5k... 9:00 per mile...
Yeah. That's what it should be. Stretch yourself. Push yourself. Set a goal that scares you a bit...
No one got anywhere by setting goals they knew they would achieve...
Ok. Time to sleep so I can get up in 6 hours and run. 35 days away from pushing and scaring myself...
And I have a more realistic goal in mind this time. A little over a month to train to run a 5k in less than 30 minutes. Essentially 9:40 per mile. And the 5k is on July 4th with my very good friend, Kris. (eat a bag...)
I had started running last July. To get back in shape. To train for a marathon. I thought that I could wrap my head (and my life) around training for a marathon. That proved to be too challenging, so I hit the brakes and downgraded to a half-marathon. I even signed up for the Carlsbad Half-Marathon in January... I even got up to an 8 mile run at 10:00 per mile at the end of last October...
... But ultimately, I fell off my training. November was a huge month in my life. My son turned one. Oh Girl had two really successful shows including my 29th birthday show. And it was all just too hectic to keep running and maintain my eating habits and keep everything rolling at work and stay on top of band stuff and continue to plan a wedding and then Thanksgiving and a crap load of food and then the holiday season (not a stressful time at all...) and then Christmas and more eating and New Year's and more eating and... wow... the half marathon is in a week and I haven't run since Halloween...
I didn't run the half-marathon. I didn't even walk it. I just plain didn't show up... which was probably a good idea because I most likely would have seriously injured myself...
But now I'm running again. And I'm keeping the goal manageable. Ugh... even reading that sentence I'm realizing I should make the goal a little more ambitious. 27:54 5k... 9:00 per mile...
Yeah. That's what it should be. Stretch yourself. Push yourself. Set a goal that scares you a bit...
No one got anywhere by setting goals they knew they would achieve...
Ok. Time to sleep so I can get up in 6 hours and run. 35 days away from pushing and scaring myself...
Saturday, May 7, 2011
Running... and Planning for a 5K on 7/4
... feels good.
It's been a solid 3 months since my last real run. 12:43 a mile for 20 minutes isn't too shabby. The goal is a sub 30 minute 5k on July 4th which is 3.1 miles in less than 30 minutes which breaks down to about 9:40 a mile...
On October 13, 2010, I ran 3.12 miles in about 28 minutes which was 9:00 a mile... This was about 3 and a half months after I started running. And I never really did any speed work...
I can get back there.
There are essentially 57 days until July 4th. If I run every other day... 28 run sessions to get ready... about 3-4 sessions a week for the next 8 weeks. 2 weeks will be getting back up to speed. In that time I can probably get back up to 30 minutes of 10:00 pace...
And I apologize for the running numbers geek fest that this post has turned into...
2 weeks of base training, 2 weeks of speed work, 3 weeks of endurance, 1 week to taper down and make sure I'm fully rested and peaking for the race.
July 4th is a Monday. So my "long runs" will be on Monday mornings. That will be a nice way to start off the week. I always had more energy when I was running regularly...
Next week:
Sunday, 5/8: 20 minutes
Wednesday, 5/11: 25 minutes
Friday 5/13: 30 minutes
Stick to the plan, Glynn...
It's been a solid 3 months since my last real run. 12:43 a mile for 20 minutes isn't too shabby. The goal is a sub 30 minute 5k on July 4th which is 3.1 miles in less than 30 minutes which breaks down to about 9:40 a mile...
On October 13, 2010, I ran 3.12 miles in about 28 minutes which was 9:00 a mile... This was about 3 and a half months after I started running. And I never really did any speed work...
I can get back there.
There are essentially 57 days until July 4th. If I run every other day... 28 run sessions to get ready... about 3-4 sessions a week for the next 8 weeks. 2 weeks will be getting back up to speed. In that time I can probably get back up to 30 minutes of 10:00 pace...
And I apologize for the running numbers geek fest that this post has turned into...
2 weeks of base training, 2 weeks of speed work, 3 weeks of endurance, 1 week to taper down and make sure I'm fully rested and peaking for the race.
July 4th is a Monday. So my "long runs" will be on Monday mornings. That will be a nice way to start off the week. I always had more energy when I was running regularly...
Next week:
Sunday, 5/8: 20 minutes
Wednesday, 5/11: 25 minutes
Friday 5/13: 30 minutes
Stick to the plan, Glynn...
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