Life's little adventures, accompanied by a running watch

Friday, April 5, 2013

Running against the wind

I had Bob Seger along with me on my lunch time run today.  No, really!  OK, so maybe not physically, but his song was definitely playing loudly in my head as I ran.  Because I run in the vicinity of a large lake, I typically hit wind at some point during any given run.  However today was one of those runs where it felt like I was running against the wind no matter which direction I turned!

Don’t know Bob Seger?  C’mon, I’m not THAT old….but here you go, just in case:


I headed out and felt strong, but also felt the wind pushing me back and decided I wouldn’t waste physical or emotional energy on fighting it. I have a 20 mile training run scheduled this weekend, so I didn’t feel the need to push too hard.  I enjoyed the sunshine and celebrated the fact that I was lucky enough to have the time to get out on a busy Friday work day. 

Glancing at my Garmin, I got a little jolt….8:35?  Wow, I felt like I was a full minute slower!  No complaints, I’ll take it.  I continued onward and still felt strong.  I continued to see 8:30’s and thought, “Wow, where is that coming from?”  The wind continued to threaten my forward motion, but I felt strong despite the wind.  Usually, I start to drag a bit during my last mile – regardless of the distance.  Not today!!  I glanced at my watch somewhere in the midst of mile 3 and saw 8:18 (DOH!) and, now that I was becoming completely focused on speed, looked again and again…. 8:05….

Holy thanks-for-lending-me-your-fast-legs-Kara-Goucher J  Not truly a Kara pace, but I’ll take an 8:22 Lisa pace!


My run today was not intended to be about speed, but then again, I usually don’t specify the exact type of run I plan on doing.  Maybe that’s bad training, but this “low pressure” approach seems to work for me.  That’s not to say that I never plan speed work or hill work, but for the most part, I run how I feel.  Today, I channeled my inner Kara Goucher to the beat of Bob Seger and it felt good.  Damn good.

Do you listen to music while you run?  If so, what kind? 


9 comments:

  1. Dang! Nice run! And fyi, as soon as I saw the blog title I was singing that song in my head. So if you are old I am too, and I'm not old lol.

    I used to listen to my Ipod all the time but I rarely do anymore. You can't use it in triathlon so I practice a lot without. That said, when I was training for my marathon and doing long runs I did wear it to give me some company. I love crap pop music...anything with a beat that keeps me moving.

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    1. Thanks Michael! Glad I'm not the only person who knows Bob Seger :)

      I've never done triathlon but have heard music is a no-no, so I guess you'd get used to it right? I love races that have music along the course - that's totally a win/win!

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  2. NIce! I think sometimes the BEST way to do do speed is to not think about it as a "speed day" and just see how you feel. After a mile or two if you feel good, then speed it up! Hey-if you get an 8 min/mile out of it, you are doing something right :)

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    1. Thanks Amy :) Yes, that's exactly how I look at it. I feel like this year, now that I'm consistently committed to running during my lunch, I'm getting stronger & ultimately faster. Kind of exciting!

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  3. Nice job!! My 'tempo' days are never planned, if they are, I don't think I'd do them =)

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    1. Thanks Anna! Ya know, I think we're onto somethin....:)

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  4. What a great run! I love when the faster paces feel so comfy :) And LOVE Bob Seger!!! We've Got Tonight :)

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    1. Thanks! Yes, it's very cool to feel a little sassy out on the roads!

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  5. That's fabulous!

    And Avery thoroughly enjoyed dancing to Bob Seger too.

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