Speed Trials

Did you know that I used to be a smoker? It’s true. I started when I was about 16 years old, and didn’t really quit till I was about 26.

Circa 2000

TEN YEARS of my life were spent in a cloud of blue-grey smoke, caughing, hacking, and putting on weight.  I’m one of those weirdos who actually LOST weight every time I tried to quit smoking, because I would usually get through cravings by running or working out and I would stop going to bars (where the temptation to smoke was too much for me) which drastically reduced my alcohol intake.

Smoking is a terrible habit, everyone knows that. It did devastating things to my poor little lungs, not to mention my skin, hair, and nasal passages. Honestly, this is my driver’s license photo from when I was 19:

Those dark circles around my eyes were caused by my smoking – my sinuses were all kinds of effed up while I smoked.

I haven’t had a cigarette in a long time, and even though I still get that pang every once in a while, I just think about my training and the craving vanishes (even one or two puffs on a cig causes MAJOR disruption on any ensuing runs – I have a harder time breathing, I run at a slower pace, and I hack up all kinds of grosseness.)

I’m pretty proud of myself for breaking that terrible habit. I feel like smoking is DEFINITELY behind me now, and I feel free and liberated from it.

So, what does this have to do with muffins, you ask? Well, I’ve decided to kick another bad habit – the store-bought muffin habit. I know that store-bought muffins (and all store-bought baked goods) are TERRIBLE for our health: they are full of trans fats, they hover around the 400 calorie mark, they are usually filled with sugar and white flour, and they leave us hungry for more so soon after they’re gone. Nothing about them is good, except for that instant gratification I get from biting into a big-ass muffin.

That’s when I made the correlation between my muffins and my cigarettes. Both are bad (despite being “goooooood”), both don’t do anything for my lifestyle or running regimen, both are unnecessary in my life. And if I can kick something as addictive as cigarettes, I KNOW I can kick the bad muffin habit.

I haven’t had a store-bought muffin in 8 days. I think I’m off to a good start!  So here’s the deal: no more Bridgehead triple berry muffins or lemon scones:

Source

No more Second Cup blueberry scone, no more dough balls of any kind from any specialty coffee shop or bakery.  On top of that, forget the packaged bars, or individually wrapped breakfast cookies.  They are (like cigarettes) a waste of money, and I don’t need them!!!

So… Can you guess what I’ve been doing in the meantime?

Baking at home, of course! Ah, home-made baked goods, where you can see what ingredients you’re putting into your muffins, where they are sized appropriately for a snack (and not a whole meal), where you can experiment with fresh flavour combos.

This month alone I’ve made some mint-chocolate brownies (with mint from the garden – so good!)

Some lemon poppyseed muffins, and these super moist applesauce-oatmeal muffins:

So you can expect to see me baking a whole lot more now that I have to get my dough fix at home, and hopefully you’ll see me kick another bad habit to the curb!

PS. If you’re thinking of quitting smoking, congratulations and good luck!!! It took me a couple of tries before I quit for good, but I figured that any day I didn’t smoke was one step closer to breaking cigarettes’ grip over my life.

This is a follow up to my post about managing a training program around a hectic schedule and/or unexpected time constraints. You can read that post here.

My bike is my primary form of transportation to and from work.  I ride in winter as well as summer and it has become part of my daily routine.  Even when life gets in the way, I still get on that bike every day (rain or shine) to get to work.  But I didn’t always have that kind of resolve. I had to learn a lot about myself, and about my preferences, to make bicycle commuting a fun and enjoyable experience.

Get the right bike – There are lots of options out there – road bikes, bmx, cruisers, fixies, vintage Raleighs.  They’re all different, and the right one for you depends on what you want to do with it. Are you interested in style over speed? Or are you a performance hound? Or do you want to find a bargain, determined NOT to spend an entire paycheck on a bike? Find out which bike works for you, and don’t think you have to buy new.

There are some really great shops in Ottawa where you can ask for advice, get informed on parts and services, receive reasonably priced maintenance, and learn more about bikes in general.

Re-Cycles
Phat Moose
Tall Tree Cycles
Bertrands
Cyclelogik

It doesn’t hurt to know a bit about bike maintenance: how to change a tire and what air pressure it needs, when to oil your chain (and what product to use), and how to raise/lower your saddle and handlebars.  Honestly, I ride every day, and that’s ALL I know how to do (or I know how to ask Angelo to do it for me!!).

Get the right accessories – your bike has a frame, a seat, handlebars, pedals and chain, and some wheels.  It’ll get you from point A to point B, but to do it in comfort, and while staying relatively clean, you may need a bit more stuff.  This could include fenders, a chain guard, lights (for those short winter days where it’s dark by 4pm), cages for your pedals, and a bell.  Maybe even a basket, rack, or saddlebags if you want to get real fancy. You don’t need to get EVERY accessory on the planet when you first get your bike.  Chances are, your “need to haves” will reveal themselves after a week or two of commuting.

Get the right gear – Getting dressed to ride your bike to work is by FAR the biggest hassle of commuting by bicycle.  I used to try to get away with wearing my office clothes on the bike, but it just did NOT work for me. Things would get snagged, stained, soaked, or sweaty.  I knew I had to get a better system. That means every morning I put on the following gear, just for my 10 minute commute: socks, shoes, tights, top, jacket, and helmet.  Every single thing I wear on my bike ride gets changed when I get to work. That also means I need a bag that can hold all my stuff – which, on a workout day, can include:

work clothes
jewelry or accessories
wallet, keys, camera, junk
Morning snack
Lunch
Afternoon snack
workout clothes
running shoes
water bottle

Since I’m not a fan of saddle bags, I had to find a backpack that would be big enough to hold my stuff, but not too big to be encumbering.

At first, I tried to use Angelo’s messenger bags to carry all my things, but soon found them too huge for my needs (and WAY uncomfortable).  Then I bought MEC’s $12 canvas pack, thinking it would be perfect, but it just wasn’t big enough for lunch, work clothes, AND my running shoes. I finally bought this backpack from the MEC, and I like it a lot.

It works for me.  The rest of my gear was collected over time, and I usually try to make due with what I have on hand.  It’s not necessary to go out and buy the most expensive, the most high-tech, the most fashionable, item in the world. You just need to find out what works FOR YOU.

These rubber shoes were found at a flea market for $0.75, and my rain jacket is a hand-me-down from Angelo.

Get in the right mind frame – It’s easy to look at the inconveniences of riding a bike to work (like having to bring a change of clothes or having to carry all your stuff on your back).  But let’s not forget how satisfying riding a bike can be, and the experience should be much more energizing than taking the bus or car.  To take the fear out of commuting by bike, and to make the experience enjoyable, I would suggest reading up on bike safety and effective riding before you hit the road. There are lots of things you can do to minimize your chance of accident.  The most important piece of advice that I can give a cyclist traveling in traffic is to be predictable. Don’t weaving, don’t make erratic decisions, don’t dart in and out of traffic.  Drivers will be able to navigate around you, and you’ll gain traffic confidence in no time. I would suggest contacting your municipality for more information on particular traffic laws in your town or city, and while you’re at it, lobby for more bike lanes, too!!

Get the right route – Some people want to get to work as fast as they can, while others would go out of their way to avoid a certain road or intersection.  This totally depends on your comfort level.  There is no point in taking a shorter route if it fills you with dread and stress every morning.  Choosing a bike path might alleviate a lot of bike-riding stress, even if it adds 10 minutes to your commute.  Or you may discover that by traveling one or two blocks out of your way, there is a road that has less traffic lights, lighter traffic, and saves you time in your overall commute.

Get the right lock – There is nothing worse than walking up to a bike rack and looking at an empty space where your bike used to be.  Getting your bike stolen SUCKS, and it happens ALL THE TIME.  There are lots of locks out there, but make you sure you get one from a reputable company.  Always lock your bike frame (the triangle part), and not the saddle or the fork. If you have quick release wheels, you can remove them and either bring them with you to your desk or lock them to your bike. I don’t have quick release wheels, so I just lock my frame, and call it a day.

And finally, riding a bike to work is just like any other new habit, it takes time to master.  Some days you’ll feel like it’s too much of a hassle, or realize you have a flat, or look out at the rain and dive into your hidden stash of bus tickets.  It happens to all of us.  Remember that one missed bike ride does not make you a failed commuter.  But if you get a plan that works for you, and you stick to it, you’ll see that after a while, prepping your bike ride will become second nature and you’ll find biking more relaxing than any of the other forms of transportation available.

Today’s run was long (by my standards) at 9.5km. It’s such a beautiful day here in Ottawa, though, I made sure to keep my pace moderate and make it a true LSD run. No pressure, no clock-watching, just an excuse to stay outside as long as possible!

Distance: 9.43km
Time: 54:31
Av. Heart Rate: 151 bpm
Run highlights: The beautiful houses on Island Park Drive, and the Inoukshuks on the Ottawa River.

And while I was busy doing this:

He was busy doing this:

And he spent the whole time doing this:

I love Saturdays!

Tempo runs are all about improving speed over longer distances, and maintaining pace. With every tempo run I complete, I increase the length of time I can remain at a high intensity running pace. I started off by doing a 27 minute tempo run (9 minutes easy, 9 minutes race pace, 9 minutes easy) and gradually worked my way up from there.  In today’s 45 minute tempo run, I did 10 minutes easy, 25 minutes race pace (or just under), 10 minutes easy. But I had another goal in mind, too… I wanted to cover a certain distance as well.  Maybe it’s because I’m getting pumped about the upcoming 10k race, or maybe I’m just benchmarking, but I wanted to hit the Bank Street bridge before I reached the halfway mark of my run (at 22:30 minutes) where I’d have to turn back.

Well, not only did I make it to Bank Street…

I passed it too!!!!

View from other side of the bridge. Beautiful!

In total I ran 7.7km in 45 minutes, and I couldn’t be happier. The tempo run itself seemed easier to me, and I felt like I could run at that pace forever and ever. Now, I’m know the euphoria that a runner feels after a good run can be addictive, and I know that not all my runs will be this good, but I still feel as though I’ve turned a bit of a corner, and I’ve improved my “running base” to a noticeable plateau.

Even so, I sure was glad to see this on the Suunto:

45:00. Done. Phewf!

Tomorrow I strength train. At the gym. Alone. (okay, okay, I’m getting over it, really!)

Last week I lost my gym partner for good. For those of you who are new here, Angelo and I had been going to my work gym together pretty steadily for several months. It was super convenient because we both worked downtown and finished work at around the same time of day.  But that all changed when Ange quit his job to go back to school. Last week was the first week of classes, and it didn’t take Angelo very long (two days) before he bought a gym membership at his new school. On Wednesday night, he said the words that cleaved our gym relationship:  “Go ahead and cancel my old gym membership. I won’t need it anymore.”

It hit me right through the heart. But can you blame him? He went from this (the prison gym):

Note: only two treadmills

Note: tiny weight station

Note: Cramped changerooms

To this (the campus gym):

Wow. Lots of options.

Note: Space!

Note: Look at all those dumbbells!!!

OOOh, AAAAAh.

Without even knowing it, I went through the Five stages of grief over the loss of my gym partner:

Denial – “He’ll come back to my gym. I won’t cancel his membership just yet. If I ask him to work out at my gym with me, he’ll do it – for me.” I was in major denial for a few days – Ange’s new gym is AT his school, which is in the exact opposite direction from my work. There is NO way that he’d travel across the city just to work out with me. And it was unreasonable of me to ask that of him.

Anger – “He’s so inconsiderate!! How could he leave me like this?” I was upset that he was changing the rules on me. He KNOWS that I need him there to with me to keep me accountable. I felt like he was deliberately sabotaging my training.

Bargaining – “How about I start doing my weight training at home?  Or maybe I could get a membership at HIS gym, and then I swear I’d use it all the time.” I tried to come up with all kinds of alternatives to avoid going to my gym all by myself. None of them made any reasonable sense.

Depression – “Nothing is working out like I thought. I might as well just give up completely.” It’s so easy to throw in the towel, give up, and be sad. Especially when a routine that’s been working is suddenly changed!

Acceptance – “I’ll be alright. My gym is still super cheap, still readily accessible to me (in my work building), and I still feel great after strength training.” It’s true that it’s super fun having a gym buddy, but it’s not necessary.  I know I’ll get used to working out alone again, and then I’ll have more to talk about with Ange when I do see him. Another little bonus is that we won’t be dependent on each other’s schedules anymore.  I like to do a 25-minute strength training routine. Angelo’s is 50min. That meant I waited around for Angelo a lot. Now I can actually get my workout done in half the time, and be home before I know it!