Win, Loose, Draw, Repeat

   For over two months now I've been running at least one consecutive mile each day. This is affectionately known within our community as a "streaking". I'm no stranger to this crazy concept. A couple of years ago I started out trying to run 366 consecutive days and wound up lasting all the way until 609 days! I learned a lot about myself and my running even though I thought I'd learned everything I could from the sport. One of the greatest things that I got out of the whole experience was the power of "small" goal setting. 

   When most people think of greats of our sport like Roger Banister, Bill Rodgers, Dick Hoyt, Steve Prefontaine, Meb Keflezighi, Joan Benoit, Deena Kastor, Paula Radcliff (and many others) they recall incredible athletes who far exceed what the human body is capable of with regards to running and racing. They preformed at a level during their various events that set them apart from mere amateur runners like you and me.

   I'm a marathoner and here's some numbers for you to think about: of the US population only 0.5% ever complete running a marathon. Of that percentage only 0.0005% ever qualify to run the Boston Marathon. According to the B.A.A. (Boston Athletic Association) I'd have to run a pre-qualifying marathon in 3:15 or less. That means that I'd have to take roughly more than half an hour off my current marathon PR time to earn a slot. In order to qualify for the men's US Olympic Marathon Team I'd have to run a 2:15 marathon at the trials. So add another hour to the Boston figure. That's freaking fast! I'm not saying that I couldn't do either. I'm just saying that the chances of me ever reaching each of those goals are probably nil for my future.

   Through the years I've been lucky enough to meet Mr. Rodgers, Mrs. Kastor and other extremely talented runners. Once I was able to pick my mouth up off the floor and speak in coherent sentences to them I was struck by how down to earth they were. Even though they had reached the pinnacle of our sport they still told stories of starting out like you and me. Yes they had some great genetics. Yes they had some incredible drive. Yes they had some amazing coaching and opportunities. But you just don't wake up one morning and win the Boston Marathon or win an Olympic medal. There's a process to achieving goals like that.

   Much of that process involves setting small goals. Running can be such an empowering sport. When you first start out the improvements can come quickly. Your health improves, you get stronger, you loose all your extra weight, you get faster, you run longer and you realize that racing is a hell of a lot of fun. You can feel invincible. But sometimes the running injuries start piling up. You realize that there's a limit to how much you can put into running and get out. You unfortunately can only go so fast and so far. Sometimes the timing just isn't right. If you're not ready for this transition, it can be a very painful one. But it doesn't have to be. You have to learn to set small goals.

   Everyone, no matter who they are, has had challenges to overcome in their lives. Some have had less than others. But everyone has had things that they needed to overcome. I've had a few but I don't think that I've had a hard life compared to some people. As of late I've maybe had a few more than usual. They say that most amateur runners typically experience all of those incredible improvements the first seven years of their running career. I think that's bullshit, depending on your point of view. I'm going on year 13 and while I don't see myself running a 4:30 mile, breaking three hours in a marathon or toeing the line at Boston this year, I do have goals. I'm going to try to complete a half-marathon, a marathon and work at cracking that 609 day mark on my streak.

   I'm not going to wake up tomorrow and reach these goals instantly. Whatever your goals are realize that you don't have to "eat the whole pie at once". You can eat it slice by slice. It may take you longer than you want, but you'll eventually get there. If you fail that's OK too. There's always next time and experience is just as valuable of a tool as raw talent. You peak only when you're ready. Instead of getting faster one year you could try to run more consistent mile splits. Instead of racing farther one year you could run more smaller races. Instead of trying to train harder one year you could volunteer your time and experience training new runners at a local running store. All it takes is one simple mind-shift. When you think about it there's always something else that you could improve with regards to running. It doesn't always have to be big things. 

   Instead of beating yourself up because you're injured or getting slower. Use that time to string along enough small wins. In the end you'll feel like you're accomplishing something and not go crazy during the healing process. You may even find yourself improving from all of the small changes in many big substantial ways. 

   My running is strong right now. I've just wrapped up my second week of training with the 80/20 HR principle and have almost finished the book (review forthcoming). Still not used to running so slow. It's nice though to not feel so exhausted all of the time and un-pressured to hit a certain pace. My body's really appreciated the down shift as I try to kick this ridiculous chest cold. I'm going to have to buy stock in watch batteries though! 

   My recruits today made me so proud. Some of them have had issues along the way with regards to some of the more physical workouts that we do. But they've worked hard and today it showed. As a 26 person unit they ran slightly over six miles non-stop. The entire group kept together and some of the people who've been having challenges led the pack. We even did sit-up's, push-up's, jumping jacks and burpees at mile intervals. Only three or four of them had ever gone that distance. It was amazing to see all of them succeed today doing something that some runners wish that they could do. 

   I know that this post seems a little preachy from my side of the keyboard. All that I wanted to convey is that life and running ebb and flow. This week I realized that seven months ago I couldn't get out of bed and now I can run 400M repeats at my fastest 5K pace. Enjoy the good times, learn from the tragedies and comeback stronger than before using the knowledge that you've gained through your struggles. 

   Win, Loose, Draw, Repeat and enjoy the journey!    

  

Johnny's Runnin' O' The Green Race Review

   Well what the heck? My life has gotten so freaking busy! I should've kicked this race review out last week. But my days off were spent running my sheriff's deputy recruits into the ground and making sure mom gets to her doctor appointments. 

   The Johnny's Runnin' O' The Green is a five mile road race that's held every year in my hometown of Rochester, NY. Typically it's ran the Saturday before St. Patrick's Day, unless the holiday falls on a Saturday, then it's run then. For many of us here this race represents the first race of the running season. Rochester has a strong running community that runs many winter racing events. But those are usually through snow and ice covered trails and streets. Not the kind of conditions that a runner can let loose in. So this race is our chance to stretch our legs after most of the white stuff has melted. Even though most of the snow is usually melted that doesn't mean that this race is without weather related challenges. This was my seventh time running it and true to form, it was cold and rainy. I remember one year it was clear skies and 75 degrees. But that's way out of the norm. Even with the weather challenges, by the time this race rolls around everyone who runs could care less because they just want to race again after the long Winter!

   I'm no newbie to racing. This was my 67th one and after a dismal Fall suffering from a back injury I wasn't planning on getting too hyped up about it. I decided the night before that I was going to get up two hours before the race's start time, have my usual bagel smothered in crunchy Peter Pan peanut butter (the only kind there is), some hot Starbuck's coffee (anything else is pond water) and set up my race music playlist and pin my bib on. Take my time and enjoy the morning I thought. 

   Unfortunately I set the wrong alarm on my iPhone and it never went off. I'm the type of guy who can only stay in bed for so long. But I forced myself to lay there in bed for what I thought was before my planned wake up time. I literally jumped out of bed when I finally glanced at my iPhone and saw that I had 45 minutes to get to the race! I think that I actually tapped into the Speedforce like my favorite superhero the Flash does as I did everything that I originally planned to do in two hours in just 20 freaking minutes! I was a blurry, hot mess! Always set your gear up the night before! When will I learn?

   I made it to the start line with just 10 minutes to spare! Good thing I don't live that far from downtown and was able to smoothly park in the same garage that I have a parking pass for work. I was anxious to try out my new Garmin 220 watch's GPS tracking feature during the race. The watch is supposed to send data to Garmin Connect which posts a link on FB where interested people can track your race progress in real time. Unfortunately as with most of my experience with Garmin related software, it sucks. Apparently the watch isn't compatible with my iPhone 4S! I was majorly annoyed!   

   Regardless of my irritation with my watch I was determined to have a good race. At the very least the watch did function properly keeping time and pace! I've been focusing on following 80/20 heart rate training and was just happy that the watch was picking up and recording my HR data. Like I said this race is very popular and I think this year saw roughly 1300 runners toe the start line. Every year that I've ran this race I look for the timing pad or banners and never manage to find them? It's definitely chip timed because it's embedded in the bib. But how they mark the start I don't know? Maybe just by gun time start?

   The race itself was great. My speed isn't anywhere near what it once was before my injury. But I still managed to average a 8:21 mile pace finishing in 41:45. I love this course because it's a simple out and back. Not a lot of twists and turns, a wide view of the Genesee River from the Ford St. Bridge and the turn around point at the University of Rochester. I ran pretty strong the first three miles. But after that some of the hills destroyed me. It's never about beating other people. But it's nice to say that I consistently passed other racers throughout the race! This one was for mom and other friends dealing with cancer. So I had lots of motivation to draw on. My temporary suffering palled in comparison. My HR data was a bit shocking. It showed that after that three mile mark my HR maxed out for quite some time. Hopefully this 80/20 training won't ruin my speed too much! That evening I took the family out to one of our favorite Irish restaurants for authentic food and of course a pint! You just can't keep an Irishman out of an Irish bar on St. Patrick's Day weekend! If you're ever in town and want to experience a truly Irish race check this one out and give me a call! I'd love to run it with you!

   Work has been challenging. I knew that taking the lead PT instructor's job was going to require some extra work on the side. I think it's so important that I even insisted that I be at every training back when it started. But man it's just crazy trying to record, track and analyze 27 different recruit's test data! Not to mention develop remedial training plans for their weak points! It's everything that I thought it would be and I'm passionate about it. So I don't mind the extra work. I now have even more respect for coaches! Thanks Judy! I must be doing something right because they went from only about 30% passing the initial sit-up, push-up and 1.5 mile run test to more that 80% passing the same mid-term test! I was screaming like a banshee and lost my voice that day. But it was so worth it to see them improving. Some of the big time supervisors even showed up to offer support! Just under three weeks left to make that 80% turn into 100% so they can keep their jobs!

   My mom's been a real trooper going through a lot of waiting and testing to see how far along her lung cancer has progressed. Her first biopsy turned up non-cancerous. But due to her smoking history it most likely is. Apparently this non-cancerous result can happen occasionally. The procedure just took a wicked toll on her. It was a long day for everybody involved. Thankfully she recovered quickly. The initial diagnosis is that due to the tumor's tricky location it's going to be considered stage two. The next step is radiation and chemotherapy. She had another less invasive biopsy done today to determine what type of cancer it is. We'll be setting up her treatment schedule probably sometime next week. It's going to be a crazy two months. But I'm getting good at being flexible. The prognosis is good that this isn't going to be a repeat of my dad's short nine months after his diagnosis.

   As I said I've been fooling around now for about two weeks with that 80/20 heart rate training. It's so strange to run so slow for 80% of my training. It almost feels like walking. It was somewhat amazing to run ten miles though and feel incredible after into the following day. Even at my trained up peak after double digits I'd get some residual soreness and tightness directly after and into the next day. I know that it's going to be a slow process. But theoretically as my body adjusts to the training I should be able to go faster with lower heart rates. It'll be an interesting experiment that I'll keep everyone up to date on!

   Other than running my life a mile a minute, everything's at least moving forward. It's definitely one heck of a ride! Have a great rest of the week and let me know if I can help!  

      

Stridebox "The gift that keeps on giving all year long."

   No, no I'm not talking about the Jelly of the Month club so hilariously referred to by cousin Eddie in the National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation movie, I'm talking about Stridebox. 

   In 2010 the monthly subscription box craze started with a small cosmetics company called Birchbox. The idea was simple, for a small monthly fee customers would receive a package with various assorted beauty products. The idea caught on quickly and today there's a wide variety of monthly box subscriptions to choose from beyond simple beauty products.  

   Even though running in and of itself is as simple as putting one foot in front of the other, there's still a lot of products out there other than running shoes to get your running fix with. Running is one of those sports that doesn't need to be complex, but could be if you wanted it to. 

   As you already know I'm not new to trying running related products. In roughly 12 years I've purchased over 35 pairs of running shoes, four iPods, five Garmin watches, enough food and hydration products to feed a small army and running related apparel for every occasion. I'm always willing to try something new. 

   So as a Christmas gift to myself last year I purchased a monthly box subscription to a running company called Stridebox. For $15 US you receive a box filled with running related products from relatively new companies focused on running, training and recovery. You aren't obligated at all and can cancel at anytime. At the time I also purchased a one-time holiday box from their competitor Runnerbox for $24.95 US. The reason that I opted to go with Stridebox was because of some negative reviews against Runnerbox, the fact that Stridebox offered a monthly versus bi-monthly subscription and pure cost. 

   I've been receiving them for three months now. I was disappointed with the one-time box that I received from Runnerbox, mainly because for almost $10 more I didn't feel like there were as many products in their box when compared to Stridebox's. So I was glad I choose wisely.

   The box usually comes around mid-month. They're not quite as big as a shoe box and easily fit inside my mailbox. The box is blue with the Stridebox logo clearly visible and is sealed with a sticker that has an open ended inspiring quote. Points for presentation! 

   The box can be easily opened with a letter opener or pocket knife. Inside the products are wrapped in tissue paper, sometimes themed for the holidays in that month. Red for Christmas and green for St. Patrick's day. If you look at the pictures below you'll see all three month's boxes. There's quite a few things inside each box.

 

    

    

           

   As per their advertising, typically the products were broken down into hydration, fuel, recovery, a wearable item and two fun running related stickers. In the first moth's box I loved the smart phone sensitive gloves and SPF chap-stick. The protein/caffeine shake mix was like smoking crack! In the second month's box I loved the shoelace strobes that flash on foot contact and the good tasting energy bars. The running log was useless because long ago I created my own through Microsoft Excel. In the third month's box I loved the stretching strap and instant ice packs. Not so crazy about the pure maple syrup fueling gel, yuck. I'm a motivational sticker guy, so the stickers in all three boxes were a huge hit! Included in each box is a listing of each product's information, price and how to buy instructions. I did some cursory checking and the prices are accurate. 

   After getting these for three months I can tell you that mid-month has become my favorite time. I eagerly await my box. I'm a total eco-friendly person and don't get paper bills and when's the last time you got an actual letter? So, it's nice to have a package in my mailbox for me that's not junk mail. I think that the value is decent. You definitely get your money's worth up to $15 and then a little more. I love to eat and there's a good variety of hydration, fuel and recovery food products. So far I've only received one repeat item and I liked it anyways, so no big deal. Don't expect anything earth shattering as far as clothing or gizmos. Although the gloves were decent and the shoelace strobes are my favorite item by far of all three months. 

   Sometimes as runners we become so focused on our goal pace, finish time, distance or race that we forget the fun side of our sport. Getting a monthly box of goodies is a nice reminder that all that hard work deserves a little reward. I'm not planning on stopping my subscription anytime soon! I like it so much that I've put in to be a Stridebox ambassador! Hopefully they'll pick me because I love getting their stuff!

   My running is moving along at breakneck speed! My coach and me seem to gel so well it's uncanny! Last week I managed to run double digits for the first time in like forever. I'm having fun breaking all the new recruits that I can in the new academy. Although, it's sad they're breaking so quickly being more than 10 years younger than me! My mom got great news this week that her lung cancer hasn't spread to her lymph nodes! She's now faced with undergoing radiation and chemotherapy treatments. Today I reached my 49th day of non-stop running and ran my first race since last August! It wasn't my fastest but it was a great comeback race. A race report is forthcoming soon! Since today is the Saturday before St. Patrick's day I leave you with an Irish blessing:

   

   If you're curious about other types of monthly subscription boxes that are available check out the following neat search engines:

Findsubscriptionboxes.com and Mysubscriptionaddiction.com.

   Here's the links to Stridebox and their competitor Runnerbox. Runnerbox has boxes devoted to cyclists and triathletes too and I encourage you to check them out to make up your own mind. Have a great day and let me know if I can help!

Run For Something

   It's been a long and difficult week. During times like these I turn my focus inward and use my running as a way to bleed off the bad stuff. Running's always been there for me during times like this and I'm thankful that I have it to lean on. It makes me wonder what people who don't run do?

   The news about my mom isn't good. The tumor or node is located in a position that makes it too dangerous to remove. The doctors said what she needs is a full lung removal. Unfortunately my mother's 50 years of smoking make this option impossible. If done this would tax her single remaining lung beyond what it could handle. The only option at this point is radiation and chemotherapy. Both something that her and I are quite familiar with. 25 years ago it was also the only option for my dad's lung cancer. You're lucky if you haven't had to watch someone go through these treatments. It's incredibly difficult on the patient. But cancer treatment's come a long way during that time and we're hopeful. By the end of next week we should know what stage the cancer's at. Lots of changes to come in the future, for all of us. 

   Instead of wallowing in this terrible news I've decided that I'm fucking really fed up with cancer. Now both of my parents have had it, I've had it and countless other family and friends. It's something that's been around a long time and it needs to be eradicated as soon as possible. When you consider how long it's been affecting the human race it's incredible that we haven't discovered a cure as of yet. 

   As you know I've been working hard and am making a really great comeback from my back injury. But I'm far from being pain free. I still have some slight spinal shifting. I'm almost back running paces that I want to be, but not fast enough yet. I've been considering trying to survive running my hometown marathon in the Fall. But to be honest up until this week, wasn't sure that I actually could. Well, if there's anything else that I typically do when the chips are stacked against me it's put my head down and push on through. It's a skill that only runners truly come to master. So this entire year I'm going to be running and racing everything that I can in honor of my mom. I'm not sure how exactly yet, but I'm also going to do some sort of campaign to raise some money and awareness too. It's my own personal war where I'll be throwing up my middle finger to cancer every chance that I get.

   I ran my first double digit long run today since August 24th of last year. Holy shit that's a long time! It went really well and as I was plodding away at my gym I thought about two things: how much I hate doing long runs on treadmills and how it feels good to run for my mom, my friends, everyone who's had cancer. That got me thinking. Whether you realize it or not all of you who run do it for a cause. That cause may be something self serving like you want to look better in your bikini this summer at the beach. It may be because your doctor told you that you need to shed some weight to become healthier. Or it may be for someone, a cause or organization. This is important and unlike other sports, makes runners some of the most amazing athletes around.

   As I approached mile eight with another two to slog through my thoughts drifted to why I was doing this to myself. Besides what I've already mentioned there are so many other reasons that I run. The list is too large to put here. I looked around and all that I could see were other runners around me looking determined to finish their runs for their own important reasons. Being part of that group is inspiring and shows how much of running can be a mental game. Your body can take quite a beating as long as your mind provides the proper motivation. 

   The treadmill finally clicked to ten miles and I was drenched in the sweat of satisfaction. I'd made it and proven to myself that like life, when things get difficult look inside yourself and realize how powerful you truly are and use that to accomplish the impossible. Find your cause, harness it and use it. It's the best fuel out there and it doesn't cost a penny. 

   I'd personally like to thank everyone who commented or shared the post about my mom. It was touching that so many people cared. All of you are such amazing people and the world is better for it! Live your life, take chances, believe in the impossible and run for something...

      

Living Strong

   Over 25 years ago my dad started out his tour of duty as a Rochester police officer like any other day. He laced up his bullet proof vest, put his uniform on and belted his gun belt. He went to roll call, got his patrol car assignment and went out into the streets to begin his shift. Unbeknownst to him, this was no ordinary day. About an hour and a half into his morning he blacked out while driving his patrol car. Luckily his foot fell off the pedal and the car came to a stop alongside one of the city's streets without hitting anything or anyone. Unlike the mini-war zone that the city's become today, back then there still were good people who lived there who appreciated the police that kept them safe. One of these people saw my dad slumped over the wheel of his patrol car, stopped and called for help on his police radio. Help quickly came and he was whisked away to the hospital. 

   My dad came from the generation that grew up smoking cigarettes. It was something everyone did, the long-term health risks still unknown. He also worked a profession that came with a lot of stress that had a culture of drinking it away. For the past few weeks he'd been getting severe headaches and had made an appointment with his doctor. Now the appointment was a moot point. Numerous tests were run and the diagnosis wasn't very promising. The doctors gave him six months to live. He had advanced lung cancer. 

   Even though my parents got a divorce when I was three years old they always were a united couple when it came to things involving me. Looking back I was thankful that they could put their differences aside so that they could be my parents. I always felt loved by both of them. 

   That being said my relationship with my dad was always a distant one until I became a teenager. I started riding my bike over to his house. We spent more and more time together. We had some incredibly special fishing trips, developed my love of watching sci-fi movies and began to eek out our relationship and father and son. All of this made the diagnosis even more difficult to take for a young 16 year old boy growing into what I am today. 

   The next nine months were the most agonizing thing my mom and I ever went through. We both tried to spend what time we could with him. But it was a difficult transformation to watch. The cancer was vicious and had also spread to his brain. Over the course of nine months the 6'3" tall 250 pound man that I knew as my dad became a frail, 100 pound shadow of himself who didn't know who he was, where he was or who we were. My mom though stuck by his side until the end. She still loved him until he died.

   The passing of my dad was one of the most difficult things I've ever had to deal with. Eventually we all have to deal with this situation, but typically after we've learned a little more about life. To this day I don't know how I managed to graduate high school, not kill myself or wind up in prison. Even though it was a difficult thing to go through, his death shaped what I am today. It wasn't the healthiest way to do it, but I lost 60 pounds that summer and my days of obesity were history. I got my act together and graduated college, followed in the footsteps of the family business of law enforcement and swore in honor of him that I'd never smoke a single cigarette. 

   Through the years I've kept that promise and have yet to try smoking. I've even managed to keep the weight off and as you know, become somewhat of a running fanatic. I'm even a physical fitness instructor with my department now. I guess sometimes great things can come out of terrible events.

   It's been a rough two weeks. Last week my family celebrated my son's 10th birthday. It was a time of joy recalling the past crazy nine years of him growing into the incredible little man that he is today. He was born on his grandfather's birthday and if the doctor's are right, will easily surpass his at 6'3" height. He's already a little giant and I have trouble believing he's the same little preemie that I first laid eyes on so long ago. A few days before our celebration my mom admitted to me that after some medical tests her doctor told her that she may have lung cancer.

   The following week was supposed to be a relaxing one of some much needed vacation time. Time to spend with my family, catch up on some good books, finally finish painting my cabinets and enjoy some good runs. Instead it was spent taking my mom to doctor's appointments hearing the news that 50 years of cigarette smoking had given her lung cancer. 

   At first I was furious with her for not quitting 25 years ago after watching my dad die. But as time went by I realized that I'm not perfect either. I have my vices too and some of them aren't good for me either. Anger's been replaced with compassion. 

   As I write this I'm sitting in her room at the same hospital they first brought my dad too. After 25 years I still hate the smell. Today she's having a procedure to see if the cancer is contained enough that the infected section of her lung can be removed. If not then there's other treatments of radiation and chemotherapy to follow. We're all terrified, but at least she's finally had her last cigarette. 

   I first hated this disease 25 years ago, through a bout of skin cancer myself, through numerous relatives and friends struck with it and will now hate it forever. 

   Many people falsely believe that cancer is a modern disease. But it's been around for quite some time. The oldest known records of it date back to 1600 BC where treatment was being done by the Egyptians for breast cancer. That makes me wonder what's the use in all this healthy living I've been doing? Who knows that in another 40 years I'll be taken by this disease that loves my family so much? But that isn't how it works. Evidence suggests that good health habits do matter. 

   I know that everyone hates Lance Armstrong, as they should. He's certainly done a lot of things to warrant that hatred. But he did get one thing right, he founded the Livestrong Foundation. I quickly embraced their philosophy of taking the battle to the disease and living your life to the fullest whether you have it, have loved ones who have it or have lost some to it. Even though it's not in fashion like it once was I still proudly wear that old yellow wristband. 

   It means so much. It's for my dad, it's because I survived my own scare with it and now it's for my mom who needs all the encouragement she can get to fight like hell.

   My running, racing and zest for life will most definitely be dedicated to her this year. I woke up at 3 AM this morning so that I could get my two miles in for a friend who just had a large tumor removed yesterday and to continue my running streak before I came to the hospital. Some people who read this will think that's a little crazy waking up that early to run. But that's not it at all.

Be strong when you are weak.

Be brave when you are scared.

Be humble when you are victorious.

Be badass everyday.

And LIVESTRONG!

Livestrong Foundation