Running 101

It's like a lite bulb went off in my head tonight while "running."

Well, I guess you could call it running. On April 1 (April Fools Day seems appropriate, in hindsight) I started a new regimen, in anticipation of running during the intense S. Florida heat this summer and the Disney Half Marathon I'll be running on January 10, next year. The regimen is called Low Heart Rate Training. (Link here for a basic explanation; lengthly, but darn interesting if you're into nerdy analytical stuff.)

Bottom line. Run verrrrrrrrrrrrry slooooooooooooooow to learn how to run faster and better. It's definitely counterintuitive. Per the regimen, I've been running with my Heart Rate Monitor set for my MAF - "Maximum Aerobic Function". At my age (don't go there) and fitness condition, that means I have to keep my heart rate between 124 and 136 beats per minute.

What does that translate to? My last 5K race and average running time prior to the regimen was between 10:15 and 10:30 minutes per mile. With the LHR Training regimen, my 2 mile "run" tonight averaged 16:57 minutes/mile. Do you know how hard it is to SLOW down almost 7 minutes per mile? Basically, I "run" slowly for about 75 steps; then walk 100. (I know, I count them; over and over; for 2 miles.)

No more IPod for me. No siree. No more Springsteen and "Born to Run". No more electronic dance music. No more running Podcasts. Just the steady beep of my heart rate monitor beeping at me. While I breath in 5 times; breath out 5 times; each breath synchronized to the rhythm of my high knees and limited bouncing steps.

It's been insane these past 6 weeks. I've hated it - as everyone in the runner's forum said I would. It's painful to run slow. It hurts where it's never hurt before. I've felt like a complete idiot on the track while even the slowest people passed me by. I really felt dumb "running" (mostly walking) on the Las Vegas Strip at 8:00 in the morning -- past the hookers and last night drunks. But I was determined to continue "running" the protocol because - well, why not?

It's 95 degrees down here (early heat wave) today. Granted, it's only 47% humidity this early in the summer; not too bad, really. (Everything is relative, right?) But it will get a lot hotter as the summer goes on. Disney is still 8 months away. I should have this breathing thing learned by then and my heart rate and aerobic capacity squared away in another two-three months.

All I know is that, *tonight*, the lite bulb went off and running (even at 17:00 pace) felt good. I'm REALLY stoked for running competitively. I can't wait for Disney. And I'm looking forward to seeing what effect my regimen has on my Scuba diving.