A few years ago when I was a long-term substitute teacher at Wilde Lake High School in Columbia (Howard County), MD in 2007. During that time, we saw this new Disney movie called "Jump In". The movie had popular stars like Keke Palmer and Corbin Bleu, and it was about this teen who was a boxer (played by Corbin Bleu, who was also in the popular "High School Musical" series) who got into competitive double-dutch jump-roping through a team that his sister was on. He finds that he is good at it and can excel at it. I know this may sound a little corny, but I felt inspired by this movie, especially since I was getting into my first endeavor of running in a running event in every Maryland county before 2007 ended. The kids seemed to like it for the most part. There was this one song from Corbin Bleu (I think it was him who was singing it) that seemed to stick out from the movie, the chorus of which went something like this: "Push it, push it to the limit, limit, 'cause you're in it to win it, win it!"
The students seemed to find it upbeat and inspiring. Again, not to sound too corny, I did too!
So I find myself thinking back to movies like that lately, especially since I think I am in my biggest running rut since I began running about 13 years ago in the seventh grade. I feel like I have not put in as much effort as I have been to run three miles under 22 minutes since the summer of 1998 before I started high school! So far, my fastest 5K has been recently, around 22:10 on a flat track as a split on an independent 5.5-mile outdoor track run. Up until that point, I don't think I had run a 5K in under 23 minutes in over a month! It has probably also been about two months now since I have run under a six-minute mile (then again, I haven't really been trying to do that as much as I have been focusing on building an endurance base with steady distance runs). Usually when I come back from breaks from running, I can usually run better times for certain distances, and without it being more of an ordeal (and of course there is also the challenge this time around of me getting adjusted to the heat). One example of this was back in 2006 when I ran the Metric Marathon of 26.2 kilometers (approximately 16.3 miles) in Howard County, Maryland, and that has been the longest race I have run to-date. Not long after that, I took a break from running for about a month or so after running a relatively longer race for me, and running so well at quite a higher quantity of races leading up to the Metric Marathon. When I started back around mid January of 2007, I started off trying to do more of my runs on a smoother and flatter surface: an outdoor track (usually the one at Hammond High School where I was living at the time in Howard County, Maryland). I worked all the way up to about 4.5 miles on the track during that winter of 2007. I remember on one of those runs, I had done four miles in about 26:25 on no more than four hours of sleep from working a long very early morning shift just before I ran that run. Then, not long after, I had a pretty strong 28:05ish thereabouts for 4.5 miles on the track. With that run, I think I remember going through the first mile around 6:06/6:07ish, the second mile in an even 12:13ish, my 5-kilometer split was right around the lower end of 19 minutes, and had my leg not started cramping up around then, I probably would have broken 28 minutes on that solo run. Back then I was reasonably happy with that. Now over three years later, I would probably celebrate ferociously if I ran a time like that for 4.5 miles, even if it were on a flat track.
I am not complaining, I am just making a point about how I seemed to have notably slowed up. This time around I have worked my distance runs up to 5.5 miles on the track and I think that is how far I will run on a track at this particular point. Here is how some of them went that I remember:
3.5 miles - I remember the heat was a pretty challenging factor here, as I worked fairly hard to run this distance in about 25:56
4 miles - Friday afternoon run, I ran this in about 30:04
4.5 miles - Another Friday afternoon run at a pace fairly similar to the recent 4-mile run on the track. Towards the end of the run, I had a feeling that I might be able to run my 4-mile split a little faster than I had done the four-mile run recently, and I wanted to get it under 30 minutes, and I went through four miles in 29:56 thereabouts, and kept up the slightly-under-7:30-mile-pace and finished the 4.5 miles in about 33:38.
5 miles - I started out on this track run relatively slowly, and that's what I wanted. In fact, I ran the first quarter-mile with my cellphone, leaving a voicemail with my girlfriend, Kay, as I was talking through a wired headset. I was going quite slow, and I went through the first quarter-mile in 2:53 (and usually I;m at least a minute faster than that). Then, the next lap I still held onto my cell phone and that slowed me up a bit, though I was still able to pick up the pace considerable. After those first two laps I was able to put my cellphone down with my other stuff, and I was able to maintain a relatively chill pace (though still faster than what I ran my first lap in). My first mile was 9:27, though my second mile must have been about an 8:02 since my 2-mile split was about 17:29. I ended up finishing the five-mile distance in 40:31, averaging about 8:06-per-mile, which is quite an improvement over the 9:27-mile I first went out at.
Then, came the next day (which is now this past Tuesday, May 25, 2010), when I ran 5.5 miles (the last in this series of track distance runs that I hope to do for a while). It was hotter than many of the other days I had been out running lately. Since I noticed a lot of my times were right around or barely under averaging 7:30-per-mile, I wanted to see if I could run this distance in under a 7:30-per-mile-pace (which would mean running it in under 41:15). If I did not run faster than that time, I would probably try that goal with this distance again in the near future.
I think oftentimes when I set goals like that, I go out a little faster than intended to really try and meet that goal.
That's what happened with the first mile, which I went through in 7:03, one of my faster miles I have run since I started back at the beginning of this month. Then, I must have dropped around a 6:57 the next mile, because I was at 14:00 for the second mile. Then, I ran through 2.5 miles in 17:35/17:36. All I knew was at this point, I was running faster on this training run than I had on all of my other ones this month.
To my pleasant surprise, I slowed a bit, yet still went through three miles in 21:14, which was obviously faster than the 21:58 I had run the approximately-2.9-mile distance of the Queen Anne's County 5K Police K-9 Chase I had run on Kent Island on Saturday, May 15, 2010, and this was 3 miles, a little bit longer than 2.9 miles (and up until this point, that race was probably the fastest time I had run for a distance around three miles this month). I went through about 5-kilometers (approximately 3.1 miles) in 22:10, my fastest 5K this month as I mentioned earlier. Okay, all those stats aside, I pressed on feeling a little more encouraged, yet apprehensive that the heat would eventually get to me or that my somewhat stiff right knee/leg would start giving me more noticeable problems. Yet, God helped me keep going. I noticed that my mouth was not nearly as dry as it had been lately with the heat, and I felt a little more like my normal running self.
At about 3.5 miles I was at around 24:49 I think, then I was very delighted to have run my fastest four-mile time in a while as my 4-mile split was 28:45 (a minute-and-eleven seconds faster than the 29:56 I had run recently on a 4.5-mile run). I was feeling quite optimistic about this, and I think my 4.5-mile split was around 32:40ish. With less than a mile to go, I was very confident that God would get me through this in a healthy manner.
Throughout the run, I toyed with the idea of trying to do the whole thing in not only under 41:15, but under 40 minutes as well, though most of the time I thought it would be too much of an exertion. However, after running through five miles in 36:10, I prayed that God would help me finish this five-and-a-half-mile run in under 40 minutes. And He helped me do just that as I picked up the pace a little bit to run those last two laps in about 3:30, and finish the entire run in a time of 39:40, surpassing my goal for the run by well over a minute!
I don't want to jump the gun here and call this a "break-thru run" where I may be "breaking out" of this rut I have been finding myself in with running, but it was so sweetly ironic. The longest training run I have done this month has pretty much been my fastest, surpassing in pace what I ran my 3.5-mile, 4-mile, 4.5-mile, and especially my 5-mile-run times earlier this month. I will honestly admit that this was one of the runs where I really felt stronger than many of the other ones I ran this month. I think that it made a noticeable difference not having the dry mouth bother me as much (if at all, I really do not remember noticing it). Perhaps if it was allergies causing it, they may be subsiding now.
I know I gotta stay focused and not allow the fact that my running has pretty much been in a rut this school year (which also involved taking two breaks from it) cause me to lose hope that things can get better again. I gotta trust that whatever happens with it, that God is in control and that this is happening for a reason; the nobility and goodness of which I may never come to understand. I feel that the devil may want me to get down on myself about it, but I have to remember that he is the enemy that has come to kill and destroy, and in God's name I will not and do not want the enemy to have that kind of foothold in my life! This gift and passion for running, like anything else, is a gift from God that He can give and take away as He pleases and sees fit for His perfect will. I am gonna make the best of where I am at, maybe do more races as the weather gets a little cooler towards the fall, and just try to enjoy my running in its present form. Things could be a lot worse, and as I try to think and say many times, I am blessed to be running.
"Push it, push it, to the limit, limit!" - Corbin Bleu from "Jump In"
Races I Have Done This Year as of Tuesday, May 25, 2010
1). Friday, January 1, 2010 – 3rd Annual Southern Maryland Community Network Resolution Run 5K – Prince Frederick (Calvert County), MD – 9th overall (2nd in male 20-29 age-group division) – 20:38 (clock time), 20:34 (watch time)
2). Sunday, January 10, 2010 – Mighty Medford Freeway 5K – Medford/Westminster (Carroll County), MD – 8th overall (20-29 male age-group division winner) – 20:25
3). Sunday, March 7, 2010 – Howard County Striders “Operation Iceberg” Winter Series #6: Oakland Mills Middle School 6-Mile Race – 17th overall – 43:55 (ran at an even pace, and ran negative splits too )
4). Saturday, March 13, 2010 – 3rd Annual Pi-Mile (3.14-mile) Run – Patuxent High School, Lusby (Calvert County), MD – 7th overall (20-29 male age group division winner) – 23:29.0
5). Saturday, March 20, 2010 (9:00 A.M.) – Inaugural Francie’s Family 5K – Middletown Park, Middletown (Frederick County), MD – 10th overall (20-29 male age-group division winner) – 2!:07.25
6). Saturday, March 20, 2010 (11:00 A.M.) – 2nd Annual Matt Boles 5K Fun Run – East Middle School, Westminster (Carroll County), MD – 23:54
7). Saturday, March 20, 2010 (1:00 P.M.) – 28th Annual “Forest of Needwood”/”Jennifer Schafer Odom Memorial” 5 Mile Road Race – Knoxville/Petersville/Brunswick (Frederick County), MD – 35th overall (20-29 male age-group division winner) - 44:57 (clock time), 44:55 (watch time)
8). Saturday, April 3, 2010 – 2nd Annual Race for Joe 5K – Borough of Franklin Park/McCandless Township (Allegheny County), Pennsylvania – 13th overall (2nd in male 20-29 age-group division) – 21:01 (clock time), 20:57/20:58 (watch time)
9). Saturday, April 10, 2010 – 1st Annual Hills of Milltown 5K Challenge (it was closer to 3.45 miles according to someone’s GPS) – Historic Ellicott City (Howard County), MD – 10th overall (3rd in male 19-19 age-group division) – 24:21
10). Saturday, May 15, 2010 – 1st Annual Queen Anne’s Police K-9 Chase 5K (it was around 2.9 miles) – Terrapin Nature Center area, Stevensville/Kent Island – Queen Anne’s County, MD – 10th overall (4th in male 21-30 age-group division) - 21:58.9 (as of completing this race, I can say I have done a race on all general areas of the Cross-Island Trail on Kent Island )
Please check out the events I did in 2009:
http://ranineverymdcounty.blogspot.com/2009/12/reflection-on-2009.html
Please check out the events I did in 2008:
http://ranineverymdcounty.blogspot.com/2008/12/
not-much-longer-until-2009.html
Please check out the events I did in 2007:
http://runineverymdcounty.blogspot.com/2007/09/
i-ran-in-running-event-in-all-of.html
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Monday, May 24, 2010
Hoping to make a few sales in the future!
Some of you may have heard, I have been spending time lately at my parents' house working to help clean out some of my things I left there in their basement, when I moved to Baltimore County, Maryland over two years ago. It was a pretty interesting experience, going through older stuff, some of which I had almost forgotten about. I went through some clothes, electronic games, Magic the Gathering playing cards, books, toys, etc. They brought back some great memories. One of the things I spent a lot of time sorting out in terms of figuring out what to keep and what to sell/give away, were the computer and videogames (and I feel that I have collected many). As some of you may know (especially if you knew me growing up), I was really into videogames for a fair majority of my childhood all the way up to towards the end of high school/college. Over time, God replaced my sometimes relatively unhealthy attachment to electronic gaming with Himself and running. I have to say for one thing, this whole adventure of setting goals of running races throughout Maryland really is much more fun (and meaningful to me) than playing electronic games (no offense to them). Not to sound too narcissistic, but sometimes when I am working hard on a running goal, I sometimes feel like a hero from a videogame whom I may have wanted to be like when I was younger (I know that sounds pretty corny :)
I thought it would be harder to think of parting with some of those games and toys, yet I think that God has helped me to accept it and really open my eyes to the beauty and variety of the world... The REAL world as God created it!
So, I am getting ready to sell these electronic games (they are mainly older ones for computers and different videogame systems) as well as some books and movies that I am considering parting with. I am going to see if some of my friends may be interested in buying some/taking some off of my hands, and if that does not work, I will probably resort to places like Amazon.Com, E-Bay.Com, some flea markets/thrift shops/pawn shops, and I may even list some here on this blog in case any of you are interested in buying it (and if this interests you already, please let me know and I will do what I can to let you know what I may have). I'd like to take photos of these items if I can (with the help of the new camera my parents bought me for my recent 27th birthday, thank you mom and dad :) and list them, which can prove time-consuming. I will keep you all posted on this all the same, and if I choose to try and advertise sales of these items on here, I will work to develop a blog entry with a list of the items and their prices/conditions.
Thank you all for stopping by, and I wish you a blessed day :)
I thought it would be harder to think of parting with some of those games and toys, yet I think that God has helped me to accept it and really open my eyes to the beauty and variety of the world... The REAL world as God created it!
So, I am getting ready to sell these electronic games (they are mainly older ones for computers and different videogame systems) as well as some books and movies that I am considering parting with. I am going to see if some of my friends may be interested in buying some/taking some off of my hands, and if that does not work, I will probably resort to places like Amazon.Com, E-Bay.Com, some flea markets/thrift shops/pawn shops, and I may even list some here on this blog in case any of you are interested in buying it (and if this interests you already, please let me know and I will do what I can to let you know what I may have). I'd like to take photos of these items if I can (with the help of the new camera my parents bought me for my recent 27th birthday, thank you mom and dad :) and list them, which can prove time-consuming. I will keep you all posted on this all the same, and if I choose to try and advertise sales of these items on here, I will work to develop a blog entry with a list of the items and their prices/conditions.
Thank you all for stopping by, and I wish you a blessed day :)
Working out so far
Hey there everyone, I hope you all are doing well. I got some decent runs in, and it has been nice for it with the recent weather around central Maryland that has seemed to fluctuate between autumn-like and spring weather. I've usually tried to get some runs in when its cooler, and when it has been hotter I think I am doing a little better with the heat. Right now I am focusing on getting some distance runs in, and I hope to do more speed work a little later on (and I may try to strategize it to have more of those workouts occur during earlier times of the day when it is not quite as hot).
I tell you, since I started running earlier this month, I have been averaging around 7:30ish-per-mile, and that feels challenging enough, almost as if I am pushing to run under 6:20-per-mile. So yea, a pace that once not so long ago seemed relatively easier for me is now becoming more of an exertion (and that involves me running it around a flat track). I know I have had trouble adjusting to the heat this spring, and earlier this school year I had problems with lower blood-sugar levels, and I suppose they helped "conspire" to really slow me down to where I find it challenging to run 5-kilometer distances (approximately 3.1 miles) around 23 minutes. It's a bit disheartening to think that a year ago I was doing 5K races in under 6-minutes-per-mile pace (not that far under it, usually turning in 5K times well between 18 and 19 minutes), and my training pace was typically under 7 minutes-per-mile for my distance runs. I need to trust the Good Lord that He knows what He is doing with this and that He has His good reasons and plans for it!
One thing worth mentioning that I don't usually mention here is that I have been trying to lift weights about 3-4 times a week, doing relatively smaller workouts each day. There is a weight training class that I help out in at the Homewood Center where I work, and there are several different exercises that I do there to try and boost muscular endurance to help with my running (and my running helps the muscular endurance in turn, or so it seems). I have had a goal for most of the year to do about 3 sets of 15 repetitions on a majority of the different exercises that I do (meaning I try and work out at a lower weight than the maximum that I could lift, so that I could try and do more repetitions with that particular exercise and increase the weight at a hopefully steady pace). Towards the middle of the school year around the start of winter, I had a goal of trying to do 3 sets of 15 repetitions on the lat pull-down and also that same amount on the seated row machine, both exercises at 105 pounds of weight. I remember for the longest time I had started out at 45 pounds on both of those machines, and it was hard for me to get going on it, because at the beginning of the school year was when I was having difficulties with the lower blood-sugar levels when I would work out. As a result, I would feel kinda woozy/dizzy from just picking up the weights, bending down to stretch, and other such relatively simpler physical activities. Once I started getting better about munching on a little bit of food around the times I would work out, I felt like I was able to start moving up closer to the winter break. The winter break, followed by the "second winter break" when we got all that snow throughout Maryland and the surrounding states in early-to-mid February, and of course spring break, were all a bit of a setback in that I did not do those exercises at home, so it took me a little longer to work up to where I am now on those exercise machines. Last Wednesday (May 19, 2010) or last Thursday (May 20, 2010) God helped me get that difficult goal on the rowing machine when I did 15 repetitions of 105 pounds on it for 3 sets. I was happy and ready to focus on the lat pull-down. Then, today (Monday, May 24, 2010) I sat down at the lat pull-down, planning to only do 2 sets of 15 repetitions of 105 pounds. I thought that would have been a challenge since I was hungry and I did not sleep as much last night. Yet, God blessed me with energy on the first set, and I felt confident I could handle two more and try and finish out this goal today instead of waiting until later in the week to attempt it. The third set felt pretty hard within the last five repetitions as I could feel a kind of burning around my stomach and arms. I knew I was almost done and that God would help me through... And He did! As of today, I finished out my goal on the lat pull-down of doing 105 pounds 15 times, and doing 3 sets of those 15 repetitions :)
So that has been going pretty positively. I am thinking I may want to work on my pull-ups goals. The most pull-ups I have ever done was a little over five years ago in the spring of 2005, when I did 27 in the Maggs Gymnasium at Salisbury University in Wicomico County, Maryland. I would like to try and top that; it would be great I think to be able to get into the lower-to-mid 30's on the amount of pull-ups I can do, God-willing. I am not trying to brag, though I would like to be more open about goals on this blog. I think it maybe a doable goal for me to get to 29, quite possible even 31 pull-ups by the end of this year. That would be neat. Two years ago, I was lifting weights fairly often, and I was doing more with the bench press. I had started to bench a little more than my own body weight (which at the time was around 145 pounds, and last week at the doctor's office I weighed in closer to 151, which is great because I feel that I can stand to gain a few pounds :) I would like to eventually get to workouts where I can bench press a little more than my body weight more regularly. God-willing this can happen for me. I want to stay healthy of course, and if I have health/injury problems, it will be hard for me to stay consistent with this kind of training.
Of course, I have running goals. There are a couple of running goals related to a couple of running courses on the Maryland and Delaware Eastern Shores, and I will get into all of that at a later post hopefully. Thank you all for stopping by and reading this! I enjoy sharing this kind of material on this Maryland-Wide Running Quest blog :)
Races I Have Done This Year as of Tuesday, May 24, 2010
1). Friday, January 1, 2010 – 3rd Annual Southern Maryland Community Network Resolution Run 5K – Prince Frederick (Calvert County), MD – 9th overall (2nd in male 20-29 age-group division) – 20:38 (clock time), 20:34 (watch time)
2). Sunday, January 10, 2010 – Mighty Medford Freeway 5K – Medford/Westminster (Carroll County), MD – 8th overall (20-29 male age-group division winner) – 20:25
3). Sunday, March 7, 2010 – Howard County Striders “Operation Iceberg” Winter Series #6: Oakland Mills Middle School 6-Mile Race – 17th overall – 43:55 (ran at an even pace, and ran negative splits too )
4). Saturday, March 13, 2010 – 3rd Annual Pi-Mile (3.14-mile) Run – Patuxent High School, Lusby (Calvert County), MD – 7th overall (20-29 male age group division winner) – 23:29.0
5). Saturday, March 20, 2010 (9:00 A.M.) – Inaugural Francie’s Family 5K – Middletown Park, Middletown (Frederick County), MD – 10th overall (20-29 male age-group division winner) – 2!:07.25
6). Saturday, March 20, 2010 (11:00 A.M.) – 2nd Annual Matt Boles 5K Fun Run – East Middle School, Westminster (Carroll County), MD – 23:54
7). Saturday, March 20, 2010 (1:00 P.M.) – 28th Annual “Forest of Needwood”/”Jennifer Schafer Odom Memorial” 5 Mile Road Race – Knoxville/Petersville/Brunswick (Frederick County), MD – 35th overall (20-29 male age-group division winner) - 44:57 (clock time), 44:55 (watch time)
8). Saturday, April 3, 2010 – 2nd Annual Race for Joe 5K – Borough of Franklin Park/McCandless Township (Allegheny County), Pennsylvania – 13th overall (2nd in male 20-29 age-group division) – 21:01 (clock time), 20:57/20:58 (watch time)
9). Saturday, April 10, 2010 – 1st Annual Hills of Milltown 5K Challenge (it was closer to 3.45 miles according to someone’s GPS) – Historic Ellicott City (Howard County), MD – 10th overall (3rd in male 19-19 age-group division) – 24:21
10). Saturday, May 15, 2010 – 1st Annual Queen Anne’s Police K-9 Chase 5K (it was around 2.9 miles) – Terrapin Nature Center area, Stevensville/Kent Island – Queen Anne’s County, MD – 10th overall (4th in male 21-30 age-group division) - 21:58.9 (as of completing this race, I can say I have done a race on all general areas of the Cross-Island Trail on Kent Island )
Please check out the events I did in 2009:
http://ranineverymdcounty.blogspot.com/2009/12/reflection-on-2009.html
Please check out the events I did in 2008:
http://ranineverymdcounty.blogspot.com/2008/12/
not-much-longer-until-2009.html
Please check out the events I did in 2007:
http://runineverymdcounty.blogspot.com/2007/09/
i-ran-in-running-event-in-all-of.html
I tell you, since I started running earlier this month, I have been averaging around 7:30ish-per-mile, and that feels challenging enough, almost as if I am pushing to run under 6:20-per-mile. So yea, a pace that once not so long ago seemed relatively easier for me is now becoming more of an exertion (and that involves me running it around a flat track). I know I have had trouble adjusting to the heat this spring, and earlier this school year I had problems with lower blood-sugar levels, and I suppose they helped "conspire" to really slow me down to where I find it challenging to run 5-kilometer distances (approximately 3.1 miles) around 23 minutes. It's a bit disheartening to think that a year ago I was doing 5K races in under 6-minutes-per-mile pace (not that far under it, usually turning in 5K times well between 18 and 19 minutes), and my training pace was typically under 7 minutes-per-mile for my distance runs. I need to trust the Good Lord that He knows what He is doing with this and that He has His good reasons and plans for it!
One thing worth mentioning that I don't usually mention here is that I have been trying to lift weights about 3-4 times a week, doing relatively smaller workouts each day. There is a weight training class that I help out in at the Homewood Center where I work, and there are several different exercises that I do there to try and boost muscular endurance to help with my running (and my running helps the muscular endurance in turn, or so it seems). I have had a goal for most of the year to do about 3 sets of 15 repetitions on a majority of the different exercises that I do (meaning I try and work out at a lower weight than the maximum that I could lift, so that I could try and do more repetitions with that particular exercise and increase the weight at a hopefully steady pace). Towards the middle of the school year around the start of winter, I had a goal of trying to do 3 sets of 15 repetitions on the lat pull-down and also that same amount on the seated row machine, both exercises at 105 pounds of weight. I remember for the longest time I had started out at 45 pounds on both of those machines, and it was hard for me to get going on it, because at the beginning of the school year was when I was having difficulties with the lower blood-sugar levels when I would work out. As a result, I would feel kinda woozy/dizzy from just picking up the weights, bending down to stretch, and other such relatively simpler physical activities. Once I started getting better about munching on a little bit of food around the times I would work out, I felt like I was able to start moving up closer to the winter break. The winter break, followed by the "second winter break" when we got all that snow throughout Maryland and the surrounding states in early-to-mid February, and of course spring break, were all a bit of a setback in that I did not do those exercises at home, so it took me a little longer to work up to where I am now on those exercise machines. Last Wednesday (May 19, 2010) or last Thursday (May 20, 2010) God helped me get that difficult goal on the rowing machine when I did 15 repetitions of 105 pounds on it for 3 sets. I was happy and ready to focus on the lat pull-down. Then, today (Monday, May 24, 2010) I sat down at the lat pull-down, planning to only do 2 sets of 15 repetitions of 105 pounds. I thought that would have been a challenge since I was hungry and I did not sleep as much last night. Yet, God blessed me with energy on the first set, and I felt confident I could handle two more and try and finish out this goal today instead of waiting until later in the week to attempt it. The third set felt pretty hard within the last five repetitions as I could feel a kind of burning around my stomach and arms. I knew I was almost done and that God would help me through... And He did! As of today, I finished out my goal on the lat pull-down of doing 105 pounds 15 times, and doing 3 sets of those 15 repetitions :)
So that has been going pretty positively. I am thinking I may want to work on my pull-ups goals. The most pull-ups I have ever done was a little over five years ago in the spring of 2005, when I did 27 in the Maggs Gymnasium at Salisbury University in Wicomico County, Maryland. I would like to try and top that; it would be great I think to be able to get into the lower-to-mid 30's on the amount of pull-ups I can do, God-willing. I am not trying to brag, though I would like to be more open about goals on this blog. I think it maybe a doable goal for me to get to 29, quite possible even 31 pull-ups by the end of this year. That would be neat. Two years ago, I was lifting weights fairly often, and I was doing more with the bench press. I had started to bench a little more than my own body weight (which at the time was around 145 pounds, and last week at the doctor's office I weighed in closer to 151, which is great because I feel that I can stand to gain a few pounds :) I would like to eventually get to workouts where I can bench press a little more than my body weight more regularly. God-willing this can happen for me. I want to stay healthy of course, and if I have health/injury problems, it will be hard for me to stay consistent with this kind of training.
Of course, I have running goals. There are a couple of running goals related to a couple of running courses on the Maryland and Delaware Eastern Shores, and I will get into all of that at a later post hopefully. Thank you all for stopping by and reading this! I enjoy sharing this kind of material on this Maryland-Wide Running Quest blog :)
Races I Have Done This Year as of Tuesday, May 24, 2010
1). Friday, January 1, 2010 – 3rd Annual Southern Maryland Community Network Resolution Run 5K – Prince Frederick (Calvert County), MD – 9th overall (2nd in male 20-29 age-group division) – 20:38 (clock time), 20:34 (watch time)
2). Sunday, January 10, 2010 – Mighty Medford Freeway 5K – Medford/Westminster (Carroll County), MD – 8th overall (20-29 male age-group division winner) – 20:25
3). Sunday, March 7, 2010 – Howard County Striders “Operation Iceberg” Winter Series #6: Oakland Mills Middle School 6-Mile Race – 17th overall – 43:55 (ran at an even pace, and ran negative splits too )
4). Saturday, March 13, 2010 – 3rd Annual Pi-Mile (3.14-mile) Run – Patuxent High School, Lusby (Calvert County), MD – 7th overall (20-29 male age group division winner) – 23:29.0
5). Saturday, March 20, 2010 (9:00 A.M.) – Inaugural Francie’s Family 5K – Middletown Park, Middletown (Frederick County), MD – 10th overall (20-29 male age-group division winner) – 2!:07.25
6). Saturday, March 20, 2010 (11:00 A.M.) – 2nd Annual Matt Boles 5K Fun Run – East Middle School, Westminster (Carroll County), MD – 23:54
7). Saturday, March 20, 2010 (1:00 P.M.) – 28th Annual “Forest of Needwood”/”Jennifer Schafer Odom Memorial” 5 Mile Road Race – Knoxville/Petersville/Brunswick (Frederick County), MD – 35th overall (20-29 male age-group division winner) - 44:57 (clock time), 44:55 (watch time)
8). Saturday, April 3, 2010 – 2nd Annual Race for Joe 5K – Borough of Franklin Park/McCandless Township (Allegheny County), Pennsylvania – 13th overall (2nd in male 20-29 age-group division) – 21:01 (clock time), 20:57/20:58 (watch time)
9). Saturday, April 10, 2010 – 1st Annual Hills of Milltown 5K Challenge (it was closer to 3.45 miles according to someone’s GPS) – Historic Ellicott City (Howard County), MD – 10th overall (3rd in male 19-19 age-group division) – 24:21
10). Saturday, May 15, 2010 – 1st Annual Queen Anne’s Police K-9 Chase 5K (it was around 2.9 miles) – Terrapin Nature Center area, Stevensville/Kent Island – Queen Anne’s County, MD – 10th overall (4th in male 21-30 age-group division) - 21:58.9 (as of completing this race, I can say I have done a race on all general areas of the Cross-Island Trail on Kent Island )
Please check out the events I did in 2009:
http://ranineverymdcounty.blogspot.com/2009/12/reflection-on-2009.html
Please check out the events I did in 2008:
http://ranineverymdcounty.blogspot.com/2008/12/
not-much-longer-until-2009.html
Please check out the events I did in 2007:
http://runineverymdcounty.blogspot.com/2007/09/
i-ran-in-running-event-in-all-of.html
Friday, May 21, 2010
Running a race around all the general areas of the Cross-Island Trail on Kent Island, Maryland
Saturday, May 15, 2010 - This was last Saturday and that is when I did the inaugural Queen Anne's County Police K-9 Chase 5K in Stevensville (on the Kent Island area of Queen Anne's County), Maryland. This took place at the Terrapin Nature Center area towards western Kent Island right after the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. There is a well-paved and well-shaded trail that runs along Maryland State Route 50 on throughout much of Kent Island called the Cross-Island Trail, and up until this Saturday, I had pretty much done a race on every area of the Cross-Island Trail. However, I had never been to this western section of the trail around the Terrapin Nature Center. That was until God helped me find out about and participate in the inaugural Queen Anne's County Police K-9 Chase 5K.
The race started and ended on the Cross-Island Trail, though just about all of it was on these natural and gravely trails going off the Cross-Island Trail. There was a lot of shade on this course, which was great for me because I feel like this spring I have been more sensitive to the heat and having challenges adjusting to it. Although this race did not really take place ON the Cross-Island Trail as much as I thought it would, I would still say that I had run in the general area of the one area of the trail that I had not run. We had covered quite a bit of ground around it throughout the race.
So when I got there I was one of the first people there (I wanted to make sure I had plenty of time to get there in case I hit traffic around the Bay Bridge or got lost on an area of Kent Island I had not been too before). I definitely did not want to miss out on running a race around the only area of the Cross-Island Trail I had not done a race around (not like this has been a goal for me over the years to do, but once I realized that this was the only part of the Cross-Island Trail I had never run on, and then I saw this race, I made it a priority to do so). I left myself plenty of time to stretch and warm-up. However, when I started jogging really short and easy to warm-up, my mouth was feeling dry and I felt pretty tired and that if I got into the race I might get heat exhaustion or something like that. I started praying about it, and I resolved to make this the second race-in-a-row where I would run with a water bottle (a little over a month ago on Saturday, April 10, I had run the inaugural Hills of Milltown Challenge 5K (which I heard was more like 3.45 miles, and I had run with a water bottle about half-way through that hilly course, and that had been my last race before this one in Queen Anne's County). Earlier in the week, I decided to slow my goal at this race from trying to run under 21 minutes to running under 22 minutes, though now I was willing to let that fly out the window and just worry about getting through the race. I really hoped I could finish, preferably without negative incident or feeling really cruddy afterwards. I just kept on drinking and praying. I took like three water bottles from the cooler, one of which I decided to run with and that was about no more than half-full of water by the time I had finished drinking out of it before the race began.
One really notably interesting thing about this race was that since it involved the Queen Anne's County Police K-9, people could run with their behaved dogs on a leash. And believe me, there were a few runners with dogs who got ahead of me by a pretty solid margin.
And on that note, the race started in a pretty tight bottleneck as we ran off of the Cross-Island Trail onto this slighty narrower gravel trail off to the side of the Cross-Island Trail. This worked well for me, because it made for a slower start and I wanted to start slow to pace myself well. The first several minutes I focused on getting into a pace where I could enjoy the energy and not slow up too much to take swigs of water from the water bottle. We took the trail through the woods towards this small beach right by the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. About half-way to the beach, this young gentlemen sped past me holding onto his dog's leash, because his dog was bounding ahead of everyone. I was like, "dang, if they keep going that pace, they might win the race!"
As we neared the beach, I hopped over a really small sand dune and I was on the sand. We angled to the left as we entered the beach and we ran on the sand for a really short time before picking up a gravel trail again to run along the outskirts of the small, quiet beach. At this point, I felt like I had slowed because my mouth was feeling fairly dry and I knew I had quite a ways to go, and I felt pretty vulnerable to having the heat really get to me. Since I was going slow, I should have really slowed enough to enjoy the beauty of the placid waters and the feel of the nice sea breeze. Though, there was a larger part of me I think that wanted to press on to make sure I finished. I felt like around this point, the best I could hope to finish this 3.1-mile distance race would probably be somewhere between 23-and-25 minutes thereabouts.
Not long after that point, I was running on this sandy or maybe gravely portion of trail parallel to Route 50, head east. I felt myself huffing and puffing, and knowing that I still had quite a while to go before finishing, I prayed aloud that Jesus would help me through. Within a minute afterwards, the course made a left turn and we ran on this grassy surface down a straight stretch. It was on this stretch heading back towards the woods that a strong breeze came up. Just then, I remembered something that my girlfriend Kay had told me a little over a month ago in regards to my allergies and the pollen in the air, something about trying not to breathe through my mouth (and I am pretty much a mouth breather) too much outside with allergens about, especially in windy weather. Thinking of this, I suddenly felt compelled to close my eyes very briefly as I ran and breathe through my nose. After that, I quickly opened my eyes and before I knew it I was almost to the end of the grassy stretch, and getting closer to the woods. I was catching up to a few other runners (one of which was that gentleman who had running really fast with his dog and blew by me within the first mile of the race). I remember telling that gentlemen that it took real talent to run like he was running with his dog. Somehow, God had blessed me with the ability to tell him that quite coherently when I was running.
And from then on, I felt like God was really helping me power through the rest of the race!
I did not notice much dryness in my mouth after that. In fact, I felt more energized, and I began to pick up the pace.
Sometimes the funny thing about running on trails with a lot of turns and bends is that runners can be less than one-hundred meters behind you or ahead of you (and if you are like me and are used to wearing glasses), yet it may seem like they are miles away from you. Well, once we reached the end of the grassy stretch, I had gained the lead of the pack I was in (not the race, there were probably still many runners ahead of me at this point). There was an ambiguous looking course marker at a junction where the trail either went straight or right, and I had a hunch based on blue ribbons I saw on the right, that we were supposed to angle right, so I ran right and followed the trail through the woods. It did not take long for me to pick up the pace and put some distance between me and the few other runners I had passed back where that fairly heavy breeze hit (and it did feel good as it was getting hotter out). However, after I had made that turn to the right, I did not see any signs of course markings or other people around. At this point, I would not have been surprised if I had been supposed to run straight instead of right, and it would probably only be a matter of time before I saw something or saw someone who would confirm my suspicion that I had taken a wrong turn and that I was probably going to be in this race for longer than I thought I would be.
I think I had started praying about it in probably real jarbled words as I ran, and as the trail wound left, a couple of folks on bikes came from the other way and I asked if they had passed other runners and they said yes. I was so happy to hear this, because this suggested that I had probably been going the right way all along. Not long after going by those folks on their bikes, I saw a course marshal standing by the parking lot where I parked which was also near the entrance of the Cross-Island Trail. They pointed that I run left to make a small loop back through some of the woods to come up the gravely trail towards the finish line area (the one where we had started this race on).
After making this left turn, the grassy trail ahead straightened out long enough for me to see several runners not much further ahead. With renewed energy, I was started to close the gap on them before the course started bending towards the right. After that there were several more turns, and then a course marshal handing out water (I think). Then, very shortly after that, there was a right turn and about 20-30 yards ahead of me was the finish line. Seeing that and seeing that I could actually finish it in under 22 minutes, I bolted towards it and up the slight hill to cross the finish line strongly in 21:48 (well that's what my watch said, yet they got me in around 21:58). I had now run a race in all the areas of Kent Island, Maryland's Cross-Island Trail, and I was very grateful to God to have finished that race, and not only that, but to have finished feeling healthier than when I began.
After catching my breath I looked down, and in my hand I still held my water bottle. This could very well have been the first race I have run carrying a water bottle the whole way through. Another "milestone" race for me :)
I felt pretty well after the race. I drank water and I was able to hang out outside talking to people all the way through the awards ceremony. It was great to meet people and see this one gentleman I had not seen for about a year-and-a-half at least. The heat did not bother me then and I felt quite amped that I ran on the Cross-Island Trail on some parts of it I had not seen by Kent Island High School, and a little beyond to where the Cross-Island Trail goes through Old Love Point Park, and then I turned around. On that walk-jog, I prolly did not put in any more than 3 miles round-trip. It was such a nice morning. Afterwards, I stopped at a deli to pick up lunch, before driving back over the Bay Bridge to meet up with Kay. As I was leaving, the area was growing more crowded in celebration of the Kent Island Day, which happened to be taking place that same weekend!
So I am quite happy about that race! As a result, I finally ran in the one area of the Cross-Island Trail I had never been too. I did find out from a couple of people who ran that race that their odometer on their i-pod-like devices (or whatever they were), said that the course was like 2.9 miles in length instead of the advertised 3.1-mile/5k distance. That did not surprise me or irk me; I thought that running under 22 minutes was a little fast for how relatively chill my pace was towards the beginning. That said, I think my finish time would have been a little over 23 minutes had I kept going at that pace for a 5K, and that would have been more believable of a time for the effort I felt I put into that race. Whether or not they lengthen the course a bit to an actual 5K distance, I think it is a swell race and I hope they have it in the future, because I would probably be quite interested in returning to it. This race helped me feel more confident that God-willing if I keep at running, perhaps later on this spring/summer I can run some 5k distances in under 22 minutes, and hopefully improve from there. I think God treated me much better with this race than I deserved, especially with that burst of energy the last 6-or-7 minutes or so of the race. I was not expecting that, and again, I am was blessed to be a student of God's lesson that He is in charge and in my weakness, He is strong :)
Races I have run on the Cross-Island Trail on Kent Island (Queen Anne's County), Maryland
- Saturday, September 23, 2006 - Inaugural "Run for the Sun/Son" Two-Mile Run - Old Love Point Park, Stevensville - Winner - 13:49 (first mile was about 8:58, and the second was about 4:51)
Saturday, March 21, 2007 - Inaugural Race to Impact 10K Run - Chester - Winner - 38:51 (after finishing this race, I gained some inspiration to try racing in every Maryland county before 2007 was over :)
Saturday, December 8, 2007 - Jingle Bell Run 5K (it was actually a little shorter than a 5K) - Kent Narrows - Winner - 16:29
Saturday, May 15, 2010 - Inaugural Queen Anne's County Police K-9 Chase 5K (around 2.9 miles) - Terrapin Nature Center area - Stevensville - 10th overall - 21:58.9 (as of finishing this race, I have run a race in all the general areas around the Cross Island Trail :)
The race started and ended on the Cross-Island Trail, though just about all of it was on these natural and gravely trails going off the Cross-Island Trail. There was a lot of shade on this course, which was great for me because I feel like this spring I have been more sensitive to the heat and having challenges adjusting to it. Although this race did not really take place ON the Cross-Island Trail as much as I thought it would, I would still say that I had run in the general area of the one area of the trail that I had not run. We had covered quite a bit of ground around it throughout the race.
So when I got there I was one of the first people there (I wanted to make sure I had plenty of time to get there in case I hit traffic around the Bay Bridge or got lost on an area of Kent Island I had not been too before). I definitely did not want to miss out on running a race around the only area of the Cross-Island Trail I had not done a race around (not like this has been a goal for me over the years to do, but once I realized that this was the only part of the Cross-Island Trail I had never run on, and then I saw this race, I made it a priority to do so). I left myself plenty of time to stretch and warm-up. However, when I started jogging really short and easy to warm-up, my mouth was feeling dry and I felt pretty tired and that if I got into the race I might get heat exhaustion or something like that. I started praying about it, and I resolved to make this the second race-in-a-row where I would run with a water bottle (a little over a month ago on Saturday, April 10, I had run the inaugural Hills of Milltown Challenge 5K (which I heard was more like 3.45 miles, and I had run with a water bottle about half-way through that hilly course, and that had been my last race before this one in Queen Anne's County). Earlier in the week, I decided to slow my goal at this race from trying to run under 21 minutes to running under 22 minutes, though now I was willing to let that fly out the window and just worry about getting through the race. I really hoped I could finish, preferably without negative incident or feeling really cruddy afterwards. I just kept on drinking and praying. I took like three water bottles from the cooler, one of which I decided to run with and that was about no more than half-full of water by the time I had finished drinking out of it before the race began.
One really notably interesting thing about this race was that since it involved the Queen Anne's County Police K-9, people could run with their behaved dogs on a leash. And believe me, there were a few runners with dogs who got ahead of me by a pretty solid margin.
And on that note, the race started in a pretty tight bottleneck as we ran off of the Cross-Island Trail onto this slighty narrower gravel trail off to the side of the Cross-Island Trail. This worked well for me, because it made for a slower start and I wanted to start slow to pace myself well. The first several minutes I focused on getting into a pace where I could enjoy the energy and not slow up too much to take swigs of water from the water bottle. We took the trail through the woods towards this small beach right by the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. About half-way to the beach, this young gentlemen sped past me holding onto his dog's leash, because his dog was bounding ahead of everyone. I was like, "dang, if they keep going that pace, they might win the race!"
As we neared the beach, I hopped over a really small sand dune and I was on the sand. We angled to the left as we entered the beach and we ran on the sand for a really short time before picking up a gravel trail again to run along the outskirts of the small, quiet beach. At this point, I felt like I had slowed because my mouth was feeling fairly dry and I knew I had quite a ways to go, and I felt pretty vulnerable to having the heat really get to me. Since I was going slow, I should have really slowed enough to enjoy the beauty of the placid waters and the feel of the nice sea breeze. Though, there was a larger part of me I think that wanted to press on to make sure I finished. I felt like around this point, the best I could hope to finish this 3.1-mile distance race would probably be somewhere between 23-and-25 minutes thereabouts.
Not long after that point, I was running on this sandy or maybe gravely portion of trail parallel to Route 50, head east. I felt myself huffing and puffing, and knowing that I still had quite a while to go before finishing, I prayed aloud that Jesus would help me through. Within a minute afterwards, the course made a left turn and we ran on this grassy surface down a straight stretch. It was on this stretch heading back towards the woods that a strong breeze came up. Just then, I remembered something that my girlfriend Kay had told me a little over a month ago in regards to my allergies and the pollen in the air, something about trying not to breathe through my mouth (and I am pretty much a mouth breather) too much outside with allergens about, especially in windy weather. Thinking of this, I suddenly felt compelled to close my eyes very briefly as I ran and breathe through my nose. After that, I quickly opened my eyes and before I knew it I was almost to the end of the grassy stretch, and getting closer to the woods. I was catching up to a few other runners (one of which was that gentleman who had running really fast with his dog and blew by me within the first mile of the race). I remember telling that gentlemen that it took real talent to run like he was running with his dog. Somehow, God had blessed me with the ability to tell him that quite coherently when I was running.
And from then on, I felt like God was really helping me power through the rest of the race!
I did not notice much dryness in my mouth after that. In fact, I felt more energized, and I began to pick up the pace.
Sometimes the funny thing about running on trails with a lot of turns and bends is that runners can be less than one-hundred meters behind you or ahead of you (and if you are like me and are used to wearing glasses), yet it may seem like they are miles away from you. Well, once we reached the end of the grassy stretch, I had gained the lead of the pack I was in (not the race, there were probably still many runners ahead of me at this point). There was an ambiguous looking course marker at a junction where the trail either went straight or right, and I had a hunch based on blue ribbons I saw on the right, that we were supposed to angle right, so I ran right and followed the trail through the woods. It did not take long for me to pick up the pace and put some distance between me and the few other runners I had passed back where that fairly heavy breeze hit (and it did feel good as it was getting hotter out). However, after I had made that turn to the right, I did not see any signs of course markings or other people around. At this point, I would not have been surprised if I had been supposed to run straight instead of right, and it would probably only be a matter of time before I saw something or saw someone who would confirm my suspicion that I had taken a wrong turn and that I was probably going to be in this race for longer than I thought I would be.
I think I had started praying about it in probably real jarbled words as I ran, and as the trail wound left, a couple of folks on bikes came from the other way and I asked if they had passed other runners and they said yes. I was so happy to hear this, because this suggested that I had probably been going the right way all along. Not long after going by those folks on their bikes, I saw a course marshal standing by the parking lot where I parked which was also near the entrance of the Cross-Island Trail. They pointed that I run left to make a small loop back through some of the woods to come up the gravely trail towards the finish line area (the one where we had started this race on).
After making this left turn, the grassy trail ahead straightened out long enough for me to see several runners not much further ahead. With renewed energy, I was started to close the gap on them before the course started bending towards the right. After that there were several more turns, and then a course marshal handing out water (I think). Then, very shortly after that, there was a right turn and about 20-30 yards ahead of me was the finish line. Seeing that and seeing that I could actually finish it in under 22 minutes, I bolted towards it and up the slight hill to cross the finish line strongly in 21:48 (well that's what my watch said, yet they got me in around 21:58). I had now run a race in all the areas of Kent Island, Maryland's Cross-Island Trail, and I was very grateful to God to have finished that race, and not only that, but to have finished feeling healthier than when I began.
After catching my breath I looked down, and in my hand I still held my water bottle. This could very well have been the first race I have run carrying a water bottle the whole way through. Another "milestone" race for me :)
I felt pretty well after the race. I drank water and I was able to hang out outside talking to people all the way through the awards ceremony. It was great to meet people and see this one gentleman I had not seen for about a year-and-a-half at least. The heat did not bother me then and I felt quite amped that I ran on the Cross-Island Trail on some parts of it I had not seen by Kent Island High School, and a little beyond to where the Cross-Island Trail goes through Old Love Point Park, and then I turned around. On that walk-jog, I prolly did not put in any more than 3 miles round-trip. It was such a nice morning. Afterwards, I stopped at a deli to pick up lunch, before driving back over the Bay Bridge to meet up with Kay. As I was leaving, the area was growing more crowded in celebration of the Kent Island Day, which happened to be taking place that same weekend!
So I am quite happy about that race! As a result, I finally ran in the one area of the Cross-Island Trail I had never been too. I did find out from a couple of people who ran that race that their odometer on their i-pod-like devices (or whatever they were), said that the course was like 2.9 miles in length instead of the advertised 3.1-mile/5k distance. That did not surprise me or irk me; I thought that running under 22 minutes was a little fast for how relatively chill my pace was towards the beginning. That said, I think my finish time would have been a little over 23 minutes had I kept going at that pace for a 5K, and that would have been more believable of a time for the effort I felt I put into that race. Whether or not they lengthen the course a bit to an actual 5K distance, I think it is a swell race and I hope they have it in the future, because I would probably be quite interested in returning to it. This race helped me feel more confident that God-willing if I keep at running, perhaps later on this spring/summer I can run some 5k distances in under 22 minutes, and hopefully improve from there. I think God treated me much better with this race than I deserved, especially with that burst of energy the last 6-or-7 minutes or so of the race. I was not expecting that, and again, I am was blessed to be a student of God's lesson that He is in charge and in my weakness, He is strong :)
Races I have run on the Cross-Island Trail on Kent Island (Queen Anne's County), Maryland
- Saturday, September 23, 2006 - Inaugural "Run for the Sun/Son" Two-Mile Run - Old Love Point Park, Stevensville - Winner - 13:49 (first mile was about 8:58, and the second was about 4:51)
Saturday, March 21, 2007 - Inaugural Race to Impact 10K Run - Chester - Winner - 38:51 (after finishing this race, I gained some inspiration to try racing in every Maryland county before 2007 was over :)
Saturday, December 8, 2007 - Jingle Bell Run 5K (it was actually a little shorter than a 5K) - Kent Narrows - Winner - 16:29
Saturday, May 15, 2010 - Inaugural Queen Anne's County Police K-9 Chase 5K (around 2.9 miles) - Terrapin Nature Center area - Stevensville - 10th overall - 21:58.9 (as of finishing this race, I have run a race in all the general areas around the Cross Island Trail :)
Thursday, May 13, 2010
I may get to run a race, the conclusion of which I can say I have run a race on every area of the Cross-Island Trail in Maryland
(Image of the Cross-Island Trail going through the Kent Island area of Queen Anne's County, Maryland, and this is from http://www.americantrails.org/nationalrecreationtrails/trailNRT/CrossIs-MD.html)
Greetings everyone, I know it has been a while since I have posted. I have just caught up with rehashing my memories of my running on Saturday, March 20, 2010, when the Good Lord got me through three road races on that relatively hot first day of spring! I have been doing all right. I think things at work have been going pretty solid, and Kay and I have been together for a great year now and in fact we are coming up on our 13-month anniversary :) As you may have read in the previous post, a lot of my problem in that third five-mile race in Frederick County, MD came from dry mouth that made me feel dehydrated. This was a problem that continued on as I trained and did a couple of other races in April. I decided not long after April started that I take a break from running and see what was up with that. There's a strong suspicion from the doctor that it could be allergies (the pollen has been pretty strong this year, probably from the heavy snowfall we got last winter). I also think it could be side-effects from my acid reflux medicine. That remains to be seen I suppose.
Anyway, I started back a couple of weeks ago, and it has been pretty slow. I was surprised that I still had it in me to run a pretty flat two-mile loop in Columbia (Howard County), MD in 13:44 (I mean, running anything under a seven-minute-per-mile pace lately has been pretty challenging). I was pretty happy about that. I ran about 3.5 miles on a flat track with a 5K split of about 24:08 and finishing the35. miles in about 26:56. Then, a few days later, I ran four miles on a track in 30:04 (a little faster of a pace than the 3.5 miles). My 5-kilometer split on that I think was around 23:32. Quite slower than what I was turning out earlier this spring, where I was workin' hard to just get under 21 minutes on hilly road races. And even slower than the sub-19-minute 5K's I have become pretty used to running on 5K courses of varying difficulties these past several years. It's amazing what you take for granted with your running times until you start slowin' up. My gosh, I am worried how much slower I would go in a more hilly and hotter 5K race if I am turning out times like that on a flat track and that feeling like a pretty solid workout. Ah well, I gotta start somewhere and be smart about this. The heat still seems to be drying me out a fair amount, though when it's cooler (like low 50's or 40's), it does not really bother me that much (and the wind certainly helps). I am thinking it wise this spring and summer season to not really get much into the races. I just want to train and at least build up a solid mileage base. That way, God-willing I will be in much better shape for the autumn, and then I can see about perhaps doing races with a bit more frequency in weather that would be a little easier for me to adjust too, because it has been pretty hard for me this time around to get used to this heat (and I am sure the pollen has not been the most helpful in that either).
Anyway, I actually hope to do my first race in a little over a month this coming Saturday, May 15, 2010. In fact, I am hoping to get over to the Maryland Eastern Shore for the first time since doing the 30th Annual Mike Sterling 10K at the National Hard Crab Derby in Crisfield Maryland on Labor Day weekend for this new 5K at the Terrapin Nature Center area in Stevensville, which is on Kent Island in Queen Anne's County, Maryland. There is this new Queen Anne's County Police K-9 Chase 5K, and it has geographic implications that it will occur (at least some of it will) on the Cross-Island Trail (which runs along Maryland state highway 50 throughout a good portion of Kent Island, from pretty close to the Bay Bridge eastwards to Kent Narrows). I hope that I am right about this. If that is true, then something really special may be accomplished in me finishing this particular race.
Back on Saturday, September 23, 2006, I ran this new Run for the Sun/Son 2-Mile Run on the Cross-Island Trail that started and ended at Old Love Point Park in Stevensville. I really enjoyed that venue. The trail was really flat, and well-shaded (great to do things on in the warmer weather). So when I saw on MarylandRunning.Com that there was this new Race to Impact 10K Run scheduled on Kent Island on Saturday, March 21, 2007, I leapt at the opportunity to hop in this race to benefit Shore Christian Fellowship's mission trip to Peru. This race took place in Chester, MD, starting and ending by the old Club One gym building. The race went out to the Love Point Park area in Stevensville and we actually turned around where the Run for the Sun/Son started and ended. Oh that brought back some nice memories. I really enjoyed running this race, even though its length proved quite challenging. With God's help I ran a 38:51, one of my best 10K times to date. Later on that evening while I was thinking about that race and thinking about its location in Queen Anne's County, God helped use that very race to inspire me to run a race in every county of Maryland in that year of 2007 (since I had run a race in Queen Anne's County, which is relatively challenging to find year-around running events, so if I had wanted to try and run a race in every Maryland county in a year, I had just done one in one of Maryland's more challenging counties to find a race in). And that's how I got going with this blog and into paying attention to such details about the location of the races I do. Therefore, the Cross-Island Trail is a really special place for me, and every time I hear about a race occurring on it, I take considerable interest. In fact, towards the end of that year, I found out about this Jingle Bell Run 5K that started and ended near the Island Athletic Club in the Kent Narrows area of, went out to the Club One area of the trail in Chester near where the Race to Impact 10K started and ended, and then went back to Kent Narrows. That Jingle Bell Run had been going on for about several years, and when I did it in 2007, it was definitely shorter than a 5K, yet I enjoyed the course. I was fixing to do it again in 2008, but then I heard they canceled it and I do not think they have brought it back since then. That was the last time I ran a race on the Cross-Island Trail.
The last time I was there was a joyous occasion. Last July was when Kay and I celebrated our three-month anniversary, and after eating at the Fisherman's Inn around the Kent Narrows area, we hung out on the Cross-Island Trail and had a terrific time.
So many nice memories of it!
There is one area of the trail I have yet to run a race on, and that is the western-most part of it near the Terrapin Nature Center area. I have never even been on that part of the trail. I have kept meaning to check it out, and now with this new 5K this Saturday I will have the chance to do just that. God-willing I make it to and through this race, and if this race goes through the area I think it does on the Cross-Island Trail, I can say that I have run a race on all of the areas of the Cross-Island Trail in my lifetime!!!! You may think it sounds kind of corny, though if you think about how over the past half-decade, or even decade, races along this Cross-Island Trail are somewhat hard to come by (considering advertising for some of them does not seem to make it to the larger running and racing databases all that much), and also considering I have never even lived in Kent Island to pick up on this stuff word-of-mouth all the time, I think that this is something to be proud of, and certainly a blessing to be grateful for! I am looking forward to doing this!
I know I have just started back running, and before I took my brief break in April from it, my running was not that strong. Based on how I have been doing, I think a realistic goal for me would be to get under 22 minutes by a decent margin (granted that this 5K course is accurate, and not too long or too short). Either way, I want to finish. I am sure I may have my troubles out there, and I probably won't look all that great running/huffing-and-puffing, so believe it or not, I am actually planning on coming to the race in a nice suit and tie. Since this is a special occasion for me personally, I can at least try to look good (because I don't think I'll be looking that great at all once I start running, haha). I will change into my running clothes when it comes closer to the race.
I am hoping to have a nice time, take some nice photos, and enjoy being back on the Maryland Eastern Shore. The last time I was there was to visit some friends in Salisbury with Kay, and that was back in September not long after I had run the Mike Sterling 10K. I hope Kay and I can return there for future visits as well.
All right, thank you all for reading this. If you are interested in doing that inaugural Queen Anne's County K-9 Police Chase 5K, please check out: http://www.active.com/running/stevensville-md-md/queen-annes-police-k9-chase-5k-2010
I gotta get going and get up early for work tomorrow. I am going on a field trip with some of the high school students I work with to the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. I have not been to this zoo since I was two, and I probably have some very slightly vague memories of it at best. That should be interesting!
If any of you show up there, please say "hi", and I look forward to meeting/seeing you again. Please keep me in prayer as well! Thank you and God bless :)
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