First big run…………………..
Today was the day to increase my distance as part of the training for the Wine and Dine half marathon. Before we get into that, a few old items to dispose of.
After the Tower of Terror race, my shins, the right one in particular, was hurting somethin fierce! Fortunately, it was time for a visit to my foot doctor, Dr. Brady. He gave me some lifts to help protect and reduce the pain coming from my left heel bone spur. This worked and a majority of the pain from my heel has subsided. While looking at my shoes, as I chose to wear my new pair the day of the exam, he noticed the inserts I had and said, these aren’t doing much. So, this gets me thinking, what if I doubled the thickness of the pads or, took the other pads out of my work shoes and put them in my running shoes?
I decided for the run today, to increase the padding of the shoes. I have one of the thick blue pads for my left foot and had to use two of the thinner Dr. Scholls pads in my right shoe as it appears as though I have lost one of my pads. The run Thursday was a test of this configuration and it didn’t seem to make a difference, except, after the run, there was no pain in my shins! I have always felt that if I could eliminate the pain in my legs while running, I could probably make some progress. It would appear as though I was correct!
The results of this mornings run:
| Day | Distance | Time | Pace | Average speed |
| Saturday | 0.5 | 0:06:36 | 4.54 | |
| 1 | 0:05:53 | 5.10 | ||
| 1.5 | 0:05:58 | 5.02 | ||
| 2 | 0:06:07 | 4.90 | ||
| 2.5 | 0:05:57 | 5.03 | ||
| 3 | 0:05:32 | 0:12:01 | 5.41 | |
| 3.5 | 0:05:38 | 5.32 | ||
| 4 | 0:05:20 | 5.61 | ||
| 4.5 | 0:05:04 | 5.92 | ||
| 5 | 0:05:43 | 5.24 | ||
| 5.5 | 0:05:35 | 5.36 | ||
| 6 | 0:05:38 | 5.32 | ||
| 6.5 | 0:05:44 | 5.23 | ||
| 7 | 0:05:35 | 5.36 | ||
| 7.5 | 0:05:26 | 5.51 | ||
| 8 | 0:06:18 | 4.76 | ||
| 8.5 | 0:05:44 | 5.23 | ||
| 9 | 0:05:42 | 5.26 | ||
| 9.5 | 0:05:37 | 5.34 | ||
| 10 | 0:05:57 | 0:11:30 | 5.03 | |
| 10.5 | 0:05:43 | 5.24 | ||
| 11 | 0:05:34 | 5.39 | ||
| 11.5 | 0:05:44 | 5.22 | ||
| 12 | 0:05:39 | 5.30 | ||
| 12.34 | 0:04:13 | 0:11:30 | 4.82 | |
| 13 | ||||
| 13.5 | ||||
| 14 | ||||
| 12.34 | ||||
| Totals: | 12.34 | 2:21:57 | 0:11:30 | 5.22 |
This is almost the exact time I ran the Tower of Terror 10 mile race in!
This run was completely pain-free and I still have plenty “left in the tank”!
I am guessing the cooler temperatures may have also helped. I can guarantee, they didn’t hurt the effort!
The rest of the day will be spent relaxing and waiting for any pain to show up. Hopefully, it doesn’t.
Either next Monday or possibly tomorrow, I will have a post about the latest hardware and running aids I am using. The Fuelbelt four-bottle belt is going to get shipped back to Zappos as it just doesn’t do the job. There will be a few other tweaks detailed in the next post.
Until then…
Everyone have a great weekend!!
Wine and Dine training first run!
As I embark on training for the Wine and Dine half marathon, there were many things learned from the Tower of Terror race. In order to finish the race several things had to be done. For those that haven’t been following this blog, I’ll give you a small recap. I started training for this event a year and a half ago where I ended up tearing my calf muscle due to in part, improper shoes.
Training for this years event started in January and for the most part, went according to schedule following the Jeff Galloway training method. Then, on my birthday no less, August 4th, I broke a bone spur in my left foot. This meant no training for a month. Fortunately, I am a fast healer and got the OK to resume training after a month in a walking boot. Unfortunately, this was only two weeks prior to the race. I did manage to get enough training in to finish the race, relatively unscathed.
It has been a week and I finally feel good enough to start running again.
Saturday 10/6/2012– Ran 3.12 miles in 36:10 which is a 11:34 pace. That is the fastest pace for that distance to date! The slowest lap, 1/2 mile, was 6:01. I am trying to get down to a 10 minute mile pace by the time the Wine and Dine race rolls around, for the smaller,3-4 mile, runs. I suspect that will translate to a 12:00 or less pace for that race, which is my goal. To attain that goal, certain things are going to have to change.
Since I broke my foot, for the Tower of Terror race, I had to insert a pad where the arch is in my shoe, to help protect that area of my foot. Fortunately, this little bit of padding was just enough as there was no pain in that area. While at Disney the Friday before the race, I wore my New Balance shoes, which as it turns out, was a mistake. These shoes, All Terrain Trail shoes, had limited padding. I had purchased these Dr. Scholls air pillow inserts. Walking around Disney was tolerable in these shoes with the inserts, however, compared to my Saucanys, they were like walking in sandals!
It would appear that the only shoe I can run or walk in is the Saucany Pro Grid 5s. There is still a small problem with shin splints on my right leg, so, that needs to be addressed. I bought a set of the CVS Pharmacy Double Air Foam inserts and trimmed them to fit in my running shoes and put them under the actual Saucany insert. This seems to be better as it provides more cushioning. It would appear that 52 year-old bones do not like running very much! We shall see during tomorrows run.
There is of course another issue that had to be addressed at the ToT race. The bone spur in the back of my foot. I used some sports wrap tape and taped the back of my ankle. This has to be done for every run!
I don’t know how long I will have to use the makeshift insert on my arch and the tape on my heel, but, if it takes away the pain, fine!
There were also a few problems discovered during the ToT race. One of which was the Fuel Belt hydration belt. The two front water bottles fell out twice during the race. Also, the amount of liquid that is held in the bottles wasn’t sufficient enough for the 10 mile race, so I doubt it will suffice for the 13 mile race!
After looking around, I have decided to double, actually a little more than double, my liquid carrying capacity by using this: Camelback Delaney DC. This hydration belt has two smaller bottles for that goo type supplement, which I won’t be using as the reviews from almost everyone who has tasted this stuff, were less than positive to downright vulgar! I’ll fill one large and small bottle with Gatorade and the rest with water to avoid some slowing while trying to get near a water station. This should increase my speed by a few minutes.
This belt also has a larger carrying pack as opposed to the Fuelbelt, which incidently, the zipper broke a week after I got it. This should allow me to stock up on the Jelly Beans and other items that may be needed for nutritional purposes. The drawback to this belt is weight. I don’t think it will be a problem as it should all be balanced out in the small of my back. It will arrive Wednesday and Thursday will be the first run with it. If it works out, it will be used for Saturdays 12.5 mile run.
Pain management. Normally, I take four Advil gel capsules about an hour prior to running. After I broke my foot, a little more medication was required. One Vicodin was all I needed. Also, to prevent bloating, I took two gas pills made by Publix, I’ll have to look up exactly what they are, but that worked and prevented almost any gas from forming. Normally, during training runs, I have to burp pretty much through the entire run. I wasn’t quite sure how the Disney types would view this, but fortunately, this was never an issue. I must have gotten the food/liquid mixture perfect as I had no bloating or any burping at all!
Thursdays run will be for either a half an hour or 3 miles, whichever comes first! Saturday will be a big test for all of the newest modifications. I will also, more than likely, have to get a new phone. For some unknown reason, the Atrix2 phone, when used with headphones, starts to dial the last number I called…..and doesn’t stop! Placing the phone in the “airplane” mode solved this, however, screwed up the GPS and, everything had to be turned back on or it wouldn’t save half the data. I thought it was the socket where the headphones go in so I got a set of bluetooth headphones, which stopped the issue for a while. The issue has reappeared and the big problem is that it shuts off the voice prompts, so I have no idea what my pace is!
I deactivated the double-tap home button and so far, this has solved the problem.
Tuesday should be fun!!
Friend Making Mondays
Off to the gym for a chest and arm workout and then running tomorrow. In the meantime, today’s edition of Friend Making Monday.
Inside Your Home
1. Do you live in an apartment/condo, townhouse or house? House.
2. What is your home’s coolest feature? The back patio and pool. If I could, I’d live there!
3. Do you enjoy DIY projects? If so, what are you working on now? I have spent 15 years remodeling/repairing this home. No projects are currently planned!
4. When using the dishwasher do you use powder detergent or liquid? I use the finish powerball blocks that automatically dissolve! They are the best!
5. Do you have a TV in your bedroom? Yes, and every other room except Marshalls.
6. Is your range gas or electric? Electric.
7. How often do you sweep/mop/vacuum? Once a week and the Roomba takes care of the daily vacuuming!
8. What is your favorite place to shop for home furniture and accents? Everywhere. You see, men don’t shop for “accents”. We get things we need!
9. Do you decorate for holidays? Yes…reluctantly! Although the house looks nicer, especially around Christmas, it is a lot of work!
10. If you could have HGTV come in and redo one room in your home which room would you choose? None. They are all already done. They could give the yard a makeover though!
One other thing, as a word processor/text editor program, WordPress Sucks!!!!!!
The “Ball-Joint Blitz”
I know this blog generally concentrates on my attempt to run a few races in Disney or weight training, but on occasion, things come up! This would be one of those occasions!
After hearing a “clunking” sound coming from the Durango after making a tight turn, I decided to take a peek to see what might be causing this. Being a former mechanic, I suspected that the ball joints were failing. And, I was right!
Drivers side
Passenger side
I have done several ball-joint replacements in my mechanic days, but, figured it would be easier to pay someone to do this. After getting several estimates, all in the $500.00-$600.00 range, I decided to do a little investigating as to why this was so expensive.
Back in my mechanic days, a good friend and shop owner, Ben Tannenbaum, said once, actually many times, while working on a Chrysler product, “Chrysler strikes again”! I remember one incident in particular when this occurred. It was the three-hour alignment on the Dodge Magnum I owned.
Seems Chrysler likes to make things as difficult as possible! The Durango is another example.
The reason that the estimates were so much, was that Chrysler, in their infinite wisdom, incorporated the ball-joints into the upper control arm and the replacement ball-joints come with a new control arm! Standard ball joint cost:$10.00. Cost of new control arm: $120.00! I looked around and found two upper control arms, as there is only one that fits both sides, for $90.00 from Rock Auto. Already saved $150.00! These were made by Moog and are pretty stout pieces. The originals were aluminum and these are iron.
Now, on to the task.
First, I loosened up all of the lug nuts on all of the wheels as it is time to rotate the tires. Next, I jacked up the front end and placed two jack stands under the front k-member.
Next, time to remove the old upper control arms (uca). According to several sources, removal of the brake line bracket is necessary on the driver’s side. It isn’t. I first marked the flat side of the uca bolts, then removed the nuts. Next, I loosened the ball-joint nut and then, using a ball joint removal fork, separated the ball joint, partially, from the rotor assembly. Then, after placing a jack under the lower control arm, hit the old ball joint a few times with a hammer and the ball joint “popped” out of the bracket on the rotor. I removed the front uca bolt and then, pivoting the rear portion of the uca, pulled out the bolt.
I just reversed the procedure to install the new uca. I made sure to line up the nut and bolt, fairly close to the original position.
I then put the wheels on and the driver’s side was done.
On to the passenger side.
I thought this side would be easier as the brake hose bracket isn’t on this side. Unfortunately, this is the side where I had to use my left hand to do everything, which made things a little difficult. Having not had to do this type of work since the brake rotor swap last year, I forgot how hard it is! I repeated the procedure on the passenger side:
Marking the bolts.
Removing the old uca.
New uca installed.
All done!
This was a lot easier than I thought it would be, which is rare! Total time, roughly two hours using hand tools. Cost, $90.00 for two ucas, $60.00 for a new set of metric wrenches from Sears.
I have an appointment for an alignment tomorrow morning, which is free as I got the “lifetime” alignment when I purchased the new tires at the beginning of the year. I also changed the serpentine belt as well as the air filter.
All in all, a productive morning!
Friend Making Monday! Have you ever………………….
As tomorrow is the day, I hopefully find out if I can resume training, the post today is from another blog.
Copy and paste these questions to your blog, then add your own answers.
Have You Ever?
1. Jumped out of an airplane? No. Nor do I plan to until I turn 80…then who cares!
2. Lived alone? Yes, one of the best times of my life.
3. Met a celebrity? Yes, a few.
4. Said something to someone that you immediately regret saying? Yes…………
5. Had a manicure/pedicure? A few….
6. Gotten a hickey? Yes…..when I was much younger!
7. Owned a pet that was not a dog or a cat? Yes!
8. Been outside of your home country? Not yet.
9. Kissed your best friend? Yes……but no tongue!
10. Eaten food that fell on the floor? Yes, 10 second rule!
11. Met someone online? Yes.
12. Been on TV? Once..
13. Had braces? Yes, one of the most painful things I have ever had done.
14. Gone skinny dipping? Yes……………………..
15. Been to the opera? Yes.
16. Been caught making out by a policeman? Yes!! 🙂
17. Sung in public?Yes…til they banned it!
18. Handed out candy on Halloween? Yes, and we always dress up.
19. Been snowed in?What is snow?
20. Fallen in front of other people? More times than I care to admit!
21. Cheated on a test? Once or twice.
22. Regretted saying “I love you” to someone? Yes………………………………….
23. Finished a meal in a restaurant and realized that you didn’t have your wallet? Yes.
24. Shot a gun? Yep, but only target practice and several unfortunate trees.
25. Heard a song that was written for (or about) you? Yes.
Tuesday….bring on the pain!
The run today was a culmination of issues that started last Friday.
Last Friday instead of going to the “chicken nugget restaurant”, we ordered in from our favorite Italian restaurant. Everything was as usual, tremendous and I decided to sneak a taste of the wifes chicken, broccoli, and pasta. Forgetting that the chicken was breaded! Sure enough, the gluten fairy visited and the bloat began almost immediately. As a result, Saturdays run, fortunately a short one, was cut short as I couldn’t breath.
The numbers: Distance: 2.20 miles. Pace: 12:00 min/mile. Time:26:25.
The numbers were pretty good except, that for the first time, I just couldn’t make three miles. I am right now on the 12 minute mile pace that I want to run at the races and I am expecting that by the time the races arrive, I should be able to improve.
Sunday was a day spent on yard work, both ours and the neighbors as his tree and associated attached vines were now attacking our screen enclosure. It was finally time to take a dip in the pool where I remarked that I needed to get back into the gym as I seem to be losing strength and both shoulders hurt, for no apparent reason. The wife said, yes, that might help.
So….back to the gym on Monday!!
Here is a light workout:
| EXERCISES | Calories | Minutes | Sets | Reps | Weight |
| Strength Training | |||||
| Seated Biceps Curl | 3 | 10 | 90 | ||
| Standard Bench Press | 3 | 10 | 155 | ||
| Bench (Chest) Press, Machine | 3 | 10 | 100 | ||
| Standing Biceps Curl, Dumbell | 3 | 10 | 20 | ||
| Triceps Extension | 3 | 10 | 40 | ||
| Triceps Pull-down | 3 | 10 | 80 | ||
| TOTALS: | 0 | 0 | 18 | 60 | 485 |
Looking at the last workout and this one, considerable strength has been lost! This was a light workout and today, I am just a little sore. Next week returns to the full workouts!
And now, finally, the run today!
I put off running today as long as I felt I could. I woke up with pain in my left knee as well as my right shin..and I haven’t done anything! I decided to run and see what happens. The run started off full of pain and for the first time, my legs felt like they were made of stone. I never did get any rhythm going until the very end and the pain in my right shin was so severe, that I came home and had to resort to taking a Vicodin to quell the pain. My quadriceps were tight and very sore. During the run, the lingering effects of the gluten could be felt as I had difficulty breathing. I just said F–it and ran anyway.
Here are the numbers:
| Tower of Terror training | ||||
| Day | Distance | Time | Pace | Average speed |
| Tuesday | 0.5 | 0:06:37 | 4.50 | |
| 1 | 0:05:48 | 5.20 | ||
| 1.5 | 0:06:10 | 4.90 | ||
| 2 | 0:05:56 | 5.00 | ||
| 2.5 | 0:06:32 | 4.60 | ||
| 3 | 0:06:08 | 4.90 | ||
| 3.07 | 0:01:11 | 3.80 | ||
| Totals: | 3.07 | 0:38:22 | 0:12:30 | 4.70 |
Considering everything that went wrong, still a good run.
Thursday will be another 3 miles and then Saturday is a 7 mile run.
As I sit here typing, all of the pain is gone so whatever I did to my shin, must not have been too bad. I am just slightly sore from the weight workout so tomorrow will be shoulder and back day at the gym.
That is all………………………for now!!
Time for a trip in the real world…………… :)
May 21, 2012
| EXERCISES | Calories | Minutes | Sets | Reps | Weight |
| Strength Training | |||||
| Seated Biceps Curl | 5 | 10 | 90 | ||
| Standard Bench Press | 5 | 10 | 185 | ||
| Standing Biceps Curl, Dumbell | 5 | 10 | 25 | ||
| Bench (Chest) Press, Machine | 5 | 10 | 170 | ||
| Triceps Extension | 5 | 10 | 40 | ||
| Triceps Pull-down | 5 | 10 | 110 | ||
| TOTALS: | 0 | 0 | 30 | 60 | 620 |
Today’s running:
Time: 28:36 minutes
Distance: 2.30 miles
Maximum pace: 7:29
Minimum pace: 22:42
Average pace: 12:25 mile
First of, the Cardiotrainer app isn’t as good as it needs to be. You can’t access it from the web successfully and it doesn’t e-mail you your workout. I’ll try a couple of other apps I have downloaded in the coming days. Day one of the program, 30 minutes of running is done. I am icing down my knees as I have to work in an hour, but I should be fine.
I would also like to thank the tenants of the home I inspected yesterday for being such slobs and filthy people. I am feeling the effects today! I had great difficulty breathing and was hacking up chunks of phlegm the size of an average oyster.
Here is a sample of the home:
Fortunately, tomorrow is just going to be a shoulder workout and then Thursday, back for a half hour run. I’ll run in the morning instead of the middle of the day, like I did today. Hopefully, this lung issue doesn’t get any worse!
Sunday..finally a day of rest..almost!
As can be seen by the food diary below, the Nachos have done some damage. We are having the leftover slab tonight. Tomorrow will resume the diet and training regiment.
May 5, 2012
| FOODS | Calories | Carbs | Fat | Protein | Cholest | Sodium | Sugars | Fiber |
| Breakfast | ||||||||
| Van’s All Natural Wheat Gluten Free – Correct – Waffles, 2 Waffles | 230 | 39g | 7g | 2g | 0mg | 800mg | 8g | 2g |
| Lunch | ||||||||
| Smuckers – Grape Jelly, 1 tbs (20g) | 50 | 13g | 0g | 0g | 0mg | 5mg | 12g | 0g |
| Van’s – Gluten Free Blueberry Waffles, 2 waffles | 230 | 39g | 7g | 2g | 0mg | 380mg | 5g | 1g |
| Peter Pan – Crunchy Peanut Butter, 2 tbsp | 190 | 6g | 16g | 8g | 0mg | 110mg | 3g | 3g |
| Dinner | ||||||||
| Qdoba Mexican Grill – Three Cheese Nachos- Chips, Grilled Chicken, Queso, Black Beans, Cheese, and Sour Cream, 8.17 oz | 565 | 43g | 32g | 25g | 105mg | 795mg | 2g | 10g |
| Snacks | ||||||||
| Alcohol: Jose Cuervo Gold – Tequila, 8 ounce | 552 | 0g | 0g | 0g | 0mg | 0mg | 0g | 0g |
| Jose Cuervo – the Original Margarita Mix, 32 fl.oz. | 880 | 224g | 0g | 0g | 0mg | 440mg | 192g | 0g |
| Liquids | ||||||||
| the Coca-Cola Company – Diet Coke, 8 oz | 1 | 0g | 0g | 0g | 0mg | 28mg | 0g | 0g |
| Diet Sierra Mist – Diet Soda, 12 oz | 0 | 0g | 0g | 0g | 0mg | 35mg | 0g | 0g |
| Supplements | ||||||||
| Bsn – N.O. Xplode, 1 scoop | 25 | 6g | 0g | 0g | 0mg | 235mg | 0g | 0g |
| Centrum – Centrum Silver Supplement, 1 Tablet | 5 | 2g | 0g | 0g | 0mg | 0mg | 1g | 0g |
| Nature Made – Iron, 0.25 tablet | 0 | 0g | 0g | 0g | 0mg | 0mg | 0g | 0g |
| Patenthealth,Llc – Trigosamine, 3 capsules | 15 | 2g | 0g | 1g | 0mg | 100mg | 0g | 0g |
| TOTAL: | 2,973 | 413g | 69g | 40g | 105mg | 2,928mg | 223g | 16g |
| EXERCISES | Calories | Minutes | Sets | Reps | Weight |
| Cardiovascular | |||||
| Stair-treadmill ergometer, general | 938 | 60 | |||
| TOTALS: | 938 | 60 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Today was a return to Sunday morning golf.
Although things could have gone better, there was hope.
We started on the 10th hole and the round was full of problems right off the bat. My uncharacteristic struggles form the sand traps is getting annoying. Being in the sand traps isn’t any fun either. The biggest disappointment on the front side was the 9th (18th) hole. I hit a decent drive, a decent second shot and then, a third shot that found the green-side bunker but was pin high and only 10 feet from the cup. A six at worst. I picked the wrong time to hit a sand shot as pure as possible and hit it about 50 yards into the water, followed by a bunch of horrid chipping and putting to end with a 9!
The round continued on a downward path on the first hole of the back nine where I hit a tree, hit a good second shot, hit a third shot into a sand trap and clowned around to eek out an 8. Just as I thought about going home, I hit my tee shot on the par three just off the left side of the green, a fairly easy chip and I was looking at a par. Three putts later, it was a five. The following par 4 had a similar outcome.
On the fourth hole, I hit four good shots to get a par! Of course, this was followed by a butchered chip shot and a three-putt for a five on a par three. On the following two holes, more trips to the sand traps resulted in a double bogey and a bogey. When you are an amateur golfer, this is what is known as just grinding out the round.
On the 17th hole, I hit my second shot, predictably, into a sand trap. A “fried-egg” lie no less. Tealas Dad always said this is the easiest sand shot there is. Guess he is right. I hit a nice shot to within two inches from the cup. A “gimme” par and sandie!
The 18th hole started out with a well hit 5 wood to the center of the fairway, another well hit 6 iron onto the green and a 20 foot putt that came up 5 inches short, for another “gimmie” par.
The putting stroke got better as the round went on and if it hadn’t been for a few concentration lapses, I would have scored much better. Finishing with two near birdies at the end of the round is encouraging.
The rest of today will be spent finishing up the Nachos and relaxing by the pool. I have a busy week next week so, a lot of the workouts will be broken up into either early morning or evening. I’ll see which.
Everyone have a great Sunday!!
Eric Van De Vens Blog 