Getting Back Momentum

(I saw a cute kitty on the Rail Trail this morning,
but my cel-phone picture didn't save.  So here's Pooka.)

I feel like I'm barely hanging on right now.  I felt the same way before the Philly Marathon, where I'd only get one run in during the week, but then I'd go run 20 miles on Saturday and totally redeem myself (not really...as the marathon results tell!).

Lately I'm in a rut where I just wasn't getting more than 5 miles.  Sure, I got 3 miles in Atlantic City last week, but this past weekend, my Saturday "long run" was right back to 5 miles.

With that in mind, I think I made a little bit of progress this week.  It started off kind of badly, in that I didn't get out on the roads until Wednesday since I was feeling soreness from running HACC Dash way out of my comfort zone and we ran some errands on Tuesday.  I debated between a run Wednesday evening right after work or waiting till later when it might be cooler.  
I didn't want to go out after work, since it was around 80 degrees, but I knew that if I waited till later, I would wrapped up in watching the surprisingly competent Orioles and end up not feeling like going out at 10:00.  It turned out to be a wise decision, since they went into extra innings and wrapped up around 12:30.

So I ran, and it was hot, but I felt ok and made myself run 5 miles instead of the 3 that I'd bargained myself down to.  I added some of the big hills that I'd been avoiding, so even though it was 5 miles again, at least it was a tougher 5 miles.

I also realized that soreness from fencing on Friday night was probably having a negative effect on my Saturday morning runs.  So, I went out for my long run this morning and ran 7 miles on the rail trail with no discomfort other than that 7 miles is outside my comfort zone right now.  

Screw you, fencing!

I'm pretty happy with this, but tying my longest run of the year and having fencing tonight probably doesn't bode well for the Armed Forces Day 5K I'm running on City Island tomorrow.  I have this distinction in my mind of what is a Brooks Adrenaline run vs. an Adidas adiZero Tempo run.  The Brooks run is any run, like today or the Sole of City 10K, where I'm just there...running without an aggressive time goal (and also likely any distance over 7-8 miles regardless of goal).  The Adidas run is HACC Dash or Shamrock 8K...I'm going to PR or die trying.  (Well, that's a little over-dramatic, but one in which I'm really going to run with the goal of being what passes for fast around here.)  

I'll try to run a good race, but I think tomorrow is a day for the Brooks Adrenalines.

Shoe Wars Episode II: The Boring Update Post

This is probably a more boring post than usual, but a reader asked for an update on my review of the Adidas adiZero Tempo 4 now that I've been running in them for a few months.  Since he/she was anonymous, I wasn't sure if he/she would see my reply.

I've run two races in my Tempos, an 8K and a 10K, both of which I got some new PRs that were faster than what I thought I was currently capable of. I feel faster in them than I did the Supernova Sequence.

All that said, I also have a new pair of Brooks Adrenaline GTS 12s that seem to be winning the "shoe war". They have more support than the Tempos and while they're not as light they are noticeably lighter than the Sequence.

I've had good runs and bad runs in both pairs, I just think the Adrenaline have been a better match for me...kind of the best of both worlds of lightness and support. If you need a stability shoe, I recommend the Adrenaline. If you don't, I think the Tempo is considerably more breathable and a little lighter than the Adrenaline and a lot lighter than the Sequence. When I had my ITBS flare-up, my Dr. recommended a stability shoe, which ended up being the Sequence. I feel like the Tempo doesn't have enough stability for me and my ankles are rolling more in them. I still want to run some long runs in the Tempos and some short, fast runs in the Adrenaline, but my overall plan is to use the Adrenaline as my primary long-run/training shoe and the Tempos as my short race shoe. 

I'll try to keep the mileages roughly equal over the next couple of weeks and write more updates if my opinion changes.

Shins, Swag, and 10K Friday Ramblings

Thank Goodness It's Friday bullet points, again:

• During my run on Tuesday night, I left the Shuffle at home since I didn't want to get hit by a car.  That left me plenty of time to overanalyze my splits from the Hershey 10K, and even more than before I am wondering if some of the course markings were misplaced.  I didn't have my Garmin, but here are the splits that I remember:
  - 5K: 27:00
  - 8K:  40:48
  -10K:  52:33
  Individually, each of these make sense.  27:00 is a pretty average  5K training time for me (I'm usually faster on race day).  My 8K PR at super-flat Shamrock was 41:40, so to be ahead of that is surprising, but out of the realm of possibilities.  My 10K finish time is in line with where I was at the 8K mark and how I was feeling at that point -- on my tired legs I was back at my usual 10minute-mile pace for the last 1.2 miles. And while it's considerably faster than I what I thought possible in this race (I thought the 54s or 55s was best-case scenario), I ran this very aggressively compared to my only other 2 10Ks (The first was my first time at that distance, period.  The second was the super-hilly Druid Hills 10K).
  
  What doesn't make sense is the combination of the three.  At Shamrock, I hit the 5K mark at right around 25 minutes.  At Hershey, it appears I ran 3K, almost exactly 2 miles, in 13:48.  I can get into into the low 6-minute mile range for one mile, but I'm just not that fast over two.  If anyone reading this ran the Hershey 10K, let me know what you think of the mile markers? (I'm pretty sure that last quarter km, at least, was super-wrong!).
  
  Or, maybe I did run the fastest 3K of my life in the middle of a 10K.  Do not try to bend the spoon — that's impossible. Instead, only try to realize the truth: there is no spoon.
• I picked up our packets for the Sole of the City 10K last night. I admit that I love swag, and this is a pretty nice premium:

 

• My strategy for this race is still to take it conservatively and just have fun.  My legs still felt tired on Tuesday, and yesterday morning's 6.3 mile run at Cousler Park ended with considerable soreness in my left shin.  Not the usual place, this time, but closer to the knee.  I don't think it's serious, because I feel better this morning, but I hope it's not my the new Adrenalines which I really like.  It was cool yesterday morning, but the humidity was oppressive.  I've always felt like the humidity takes a lot out of me and that I feel worse all over after a really humid run, so I'm just going to blame that, hydrate, and foam roll the crap out of it, and whatever happens at Sole of the City happens. The weather sounds like it'll be in the high 60s and either rainy or very humid, so this is not the time to be a hero. Race report on Saturday or Sunday.

Until then, Run Happy or Get Revenge!

First Miles: Brooks Adrenaline GTS 12

A few weeks ago, I second-guessed my recent purchase of a pair of Adidas adiZero Tempo 4s, worrying that their lack of stability was going to spell doom for my IT bands.  Well, that hasn't happenned (yet).  I've been running in the Tempos and can't argue with the results:  Two races, the Shamrock 8K and Hershey 10K, and PRs in both of those distances. The Tempos are comfortable, well-ventalated, and light.  It's amazing what a difference 3oz makes from the Supernova Sequence 4s I'd been running in, but I feel faster in the Tempos.  (I'm not always actually faster, in reality.)  Bottom line is I like them a lot.

Still, the downside to them is that, relative to the Supernova Sequence, there's a lack of stability and cushioning.  The Tempo isn't a minamalist shoe by any means, but it's been a pretty big change from what I'm used to.  I notice the lack of cushioning, I do feel like there's a little more rolling in my ankles, and I've noticed some twinges of ITBS.  Nothing like the painful flare-up I had 14 months ago, but there.  

So, I decided to get a shoe with a little more stability as I eventually (and with warm temperatures here already and summer approaching, I'm in no hurry) build up distance again. I'd gotten a pair of Sequences ordered for me, but after trying them on I found that preferred the other shoe that I'd been considering when buying the Tempo:  the Brooks Adrenaline.  Brooks' motto is "Run Happy."  My motto is "Revenge!"  It seems like a good match.

It's a stability shoe, but lighter than the Sequence and less than an ounce heavier than the Tempo.  The cushioning in the Adrenaline, and other Brooks shoes I'd tried on previously, had felt very foreign too me (in my experience, you don't feel the cushioning in any of the Adidas I've run with -- I don't mean their hard, but the insole feels flat).  I had a gout flare-up at the time, so I wasn't going to do more than jog a little outside the store, but the Sequences just felt noticeably heavier to me.  They've been a good shoe for me, but if I can have the lightness of the Tempo and the stability of the Supernova in the Adrenaline, it seemed worthwhile to go in a different direction.

Having run the Hershey 10k considerably faster than I thought possible, and  in considerable pain afterward, I decided that I'm not going to kill myself for a PR in the Sole of the City 10K this weekend, so it seemed like a good week to break in the new shoes.  I took my first run in the Adrenalines last night, will hopefully get out tomorrow, and plan on wearing them for the 10K on Saturday.

Last night's run was 5 miles and I was really impressed.  The Adrenaline's weight difference with the Tempo doesn't seem noticeable while the increased stability and softer cushioning where.  My quads were still tired from Sunday, but my feet felt great!  The Tempos seem better ventilated, so they might be cooler in the summer, although that wasn't an issue last night (cool, but humid).  I felt good and felt like I was running hard, but my time, 47:30, didn't show that -- it's right where I usually am in a 5-mile training run.  Whichever pair of shoes I'm wearing these days, I just don't have a good feel for effort vs. pace right now.

I like both pairs of shoes.  Tentatively, my plan is to wear the Tempos for any 5K or 8K race, most training runs of 3-5 miles, and probably any 10K where I'm shooting for a PR (my time at Hershey is a pretty big outlier from any 10K race or training run I've ever done, so I might not touch that again this year even if I try!).  The Adrenalines will get the nod for any longer training runs, any 10-mile or half marathon races (I suspect I'll get there while this pair still has mileage left on it), and any shorter distance runs when I'm tired or sore and just want a little extra support.  If I like the Adrenalines as much as I think I will, they'll probably be my marathon shoe of choice as I get myself back in Shamrock Marathon condition. 

I've always had one pair of running shoes at a time (not counting the retired pairs I use for biking or the gym), but since I have both I might as well use them.  I'll decide over the next couple of months it's worth getting new sets of both models as they wear out, or if one of them will "win".  To that end, I'll try some longer runs in the Tempos to see how my IT bands hold up, and run some 5Ks in the Adrenalines, too.

In the past, I've mentioned some of the advanced technology contained in my running shoes (Pro Moderator, Adidaprene, Geofit), and don't worry, the Brooks Adrenaline GTS 12 has lots of top secret tech, too.

Apparently, the shoe is filled with DNA.  What kind of DNA?  I don't know.  I'm sure it's classified, but I suspect it's the DNA from ground-up cheetahs.  That would make sense, right?

The DNA is apparently stored in this round particle accelerator on the sole of the shoe.

Is this legal?  Is it safe?  I don't know.  I just don't know.