Numbers...

Ever since I was a kid I liked to keep track of stats. I remember waking up every morning in the summer and reading the box scores from baseball games from the night before. During my high school days I kept all of the stats for Indiana Basketball games and built an extensive excel spreadsheet. I thought I was big stuff with that. Ha Ha. Call me crazy, but I do the same thing with my running and have done so nearly every year since the Summer of 1995--except from 1998-2002 and 2003-2005. I keep a log of my daily runs, add my miles for the month, keep track of my annual mileage totals, and even track the miles on my shoes. My running really is a tale of three lives: 1994-1998 (High School and my first three years of college); 1998-2005 (ran on and off but did not track miles very well) and then from 1/1/2006 to the present (what I like to call "The Comeback"). So...here are some numbers for you:

Number of unofficial miles run: 21,059.9
Official Miles run that I can back up with data: 16,709.9
Miles since 1/1/2006: 7220.9
Most Miles in a year ever run: 2453 (1996), 2123.3 (2007)
Number of road races run (excluding HS, College): 109

This month I ran 194.7 miles and that brings my 2010 total up to 846.4, which is a little ahead of where I want to be. My goal is to hit 2000 miles for the year and to do so I have to average 167 miles a month. I hope that I can do it. I fell short in 2008 and 2009 with injuries. This May is actually the best May of training I've had since the comeback.

The Comeback: What is it all about anyway? Honestly, I woke up on my 29th (10/24/2005) birthday and looked in the mirror and saw a guy who had picked up 15 pounds in three years and just looked worn out. I used to be the guy who never tired playing any sport and all of the sudden I was out of shape and fading fast. I decided "hell no was I going into my 30s like this" and I set the goal of beating every time that I could run when I was 18. It started in October of 2005 and faded by years end. But...On 1/1/2006 Sarah and I joined a gym in Rohnert Park, CA and I ran 3 miles on the treadmill. I felt terrible, but I went home and signed up for the Big Sur Marathon (probably the most difficult marathon there is because of the hills and the start time of 6a). And with that...I was back. And...slowly I started drinking less beer and more Gatorade/water/tea, eating a little bit better, and just plugging away. Nearly five years later I weigh 20 pounds less than on 10/24/2005. Have I beat every time that I ran when I was 18? No, but I've beaten a few and I do think before I'm 40 I'll be able to beat every time. If not, at least I'm running.

I mention numbers because I think it highlights a point I often make about being consistent with your training. Consistent does not mean trying to get faster or run X number of miles. I like tracking that stuff, but that's not what running is truly about. Running is about just getting out there and making it what you want to make it---it's just easier to make it what you want to make it when you know what you've been doing. And...if you consistently run, then you will consistently reap the benefits.

Another week in the books...

Had an outstanding long run this morning of 11 miles. I left early (around 7:50a)because it's going to be so hot today. Also, Sarah is taking her boards on Tuesday so she was taking a practice test and it was a good time for both of us for me to go for a long run. Just a couple of thoughts for the week:

One: Sarah. Please send your positive thoughts Sarah's way this week. She takes an 8 hour exam on Tuesday. The Boards are serious stuff. At the end of your first two years of medical school they make you take this crazy national exam to make sure you are ready for your rotations. Sarah has been studying 10-12 hours/day for the past three weeks. Basically, if she's not sleeping, eating, or watching LOST, then she's been studying. I'm very proud of her. So far, she's been an absolute star in Med School. If you think I'm good at what I do (running & housing/residence life) then multiply that times 100 and that's how good Sarah has been. It's amazing.

Two: I ran 43.7 miles this week and really felt good. I also finished the book Born to Run this week and I must strongly suggest you pick up a copy if you have not already done so. It's a fantastic read--even if you are not a runner. What I most identify with is the concept that most of us are designed to run. He makes the point in the book that in what other sport can you find a 60 year old that can run as fast as a 19 year old? It's true, I ran a 17:17 yesterday in a 5K and I bet I can run that sort of time until I'm in my late 50s to early 60s. I bet I run a sub 16 5K in the next year or so because my legs can still do that, but it's amazing to think that I will still be able to run a 5K and average about 5:35/mile in my late 50s. So...even if you have never run a step, you could start slowly running and run faster than you would ever think possible. It's true and you can quote me on that.

Have a great day. Look for my month of May wrap-up tomorrow with all my May stats and stats for the year. Happy running...

If you honor running, it will honor you...

Today's blog is a tale of redemption--of the not so serious nature, though. I ran my first 5K since September this morning and I was excited because it was a benchmark race for me--benchmark being a point to build from in this context. I had some idea of what to expect based off of a three mile time trial at the track before the mini-marathon, but I was worried about the heat (almost 80 at 9a).

In the parking lot before the race I was stretching and there was this Dad (about 55 or so) and his son (early 20s) and they were eyeing me like sometimes runners who think they might win do. They started hooting a bit and running in place. The kid goes behind the door of their SUV and busts out his USA singlet and I'm like, "damn, he's going to bring it." When I got to the the line (in my Empire Runner's Singlet from my running club in California) there was a young kid who looked very fast, a guy in a green jersey who looked fit, an older guy in his 40s in a red jersey, and then the USA kid and his abrasive father. Anyway, gun goes off and we start running. The young, fast kid darts in front of everyone about 200 meters into the race and he looks good as gone. I settle in behind the guy in the green singlet and the guy in the red singlet. USA boy is no where to be found--given his hooting and hollering I am expecting him to run by me and chant or something. I digress. Anyway...it takes a half-mile or so to get into a groove and I found mine. By the mile mark I was in front of everyone and chasing down the young guy. I went through the mile in about 5:25 and I was hopeful because I was gaining on the young buck. The USA guy still was not in sight. This course was an out and back and I caught the leader at the turning point. I could hear him breathing hard and I knew he was toast. I felt bad for him because I've been in his shoes--you go out too fast and then you really just suffer to the end. Not today for me, thank goodness. I passed him right at the 1.6 mile mark and headed back to the finish. I saw I had a sizable lead on the guy in the red, the guy in the green, and another guy I did not see at the start. FINALLY, I saw Mr. USA and it was a good thing because I had been considering stopping, calling the Police, and asking them to put out an APB for the guy---like I said--with his prerace antics and hooting I thought he would be ahead by 2-3 minutes. At the two mile mark I passed through in about 11:10, which meant I slowed a bit. After that it was just a matter of finishing strong and trying to stay way ahead of the second place person. When you run races, the last part of any race becomes about dealing with the pain of going fast or long and you just have to mentally find your place to deal with it. My place is in the center of my brain and I just listen to my breathing, talk myself into just pushing hard, and today--for some reason--the music from the show LOST kept playing over and over again--if you watch LOST it's the part at the end of the series finale when Jack has come to his realization and all the people in the church are celebrating. I hit the third mile in 16:45 and I'm pumped. I finish in 17:17 and win the race. A very unexpected win, but that's how it goes with running in my experience. If you race a lot then you are going to have some disappointing days (like this year's mini-marathon for me), but if you keep honoring running by continuing to run hard then at some point it honors your with a personal record or a fast time or an age group award or for some of us a win. If you honor running, it will honor you.

Let me just say that running is not about winning a race. Today was not my fastest time for a 5K by any means. However, running is about small personal victories that help you feel good about yourself. And...if you run almost every day and your runs give you a sense of accomplishment, then that's a whole lot of days where you feel good about yourself. In this world, those who have a positive outlook and healthy self-confidence really do have a better life. Perhaps, this was the whole point of the show LOST--which is probably why I loved it so much.

Thanks for reading my blog. To finish my story about the USA kid and his father. After the race they were at their car and I was stretching and getting ready to leave. They were still hooting and hollering and acting weird like they wanted me to notice them. The Mom was trying to be nice to the Dad and the Dad was being a jerk. USA boy was acting all big and bad. I was not for sure what their deal was---steroids, crack, too much coffee--but then I saw their license plate and everything made sense. They had one of those Purdue license plates---suddenly the light came on, the seas parted, and the mystery was solved.

Happy running to you!

Here comes the heat...

You know it's summer when you start your run at 6a and when you finish at 7a you are dripping with sweat--and it's only 7a. For those folks who run in the Midwest, SE, SW, and probably on many parts of the East Coast we've replaced some shivering cold days for steamy warm ones. I don't know about you, but I prefer the sweat to the bone chilling cold. Give me heat and humidity over freezing temps any day of the week.

Seriously, though, weather. The best place I ever lived was Northern California. It's a runners paradise. It's about 50 degrees in the morning--every morning and it gets to over 70 most (280 or so) days a year. It's not too hot and not too cold. I think I wore long running pants maybe 10 times in three years while running there. I wore long pants while running in Indiana 90 times in three months. Big difference.

I do not have a ton of insightful stuff this morning. I do have two thoughts, though. One, I had a great run this morning and my legs felt fresh. I'm running a 5K on Saturday and that should be a good time. Two, I hate political bs games at work. In my department, we do not have drama or politics and that's great. Yesterday, I was working with another group outside of our department on something positive and mutually beneficial, but they had some secret agenda. I hate that stuff. How does this relate to runners? Well...in general, I think running makes you more honest and strait-forward because it's hard work. When you run, you deal with honesty from your body and from your surroundings daily. When your body feels good, it lets you know. When the weather wants to be good or bad it does not hide it. In running, you deal with what you deal with and it's always right there. That's the way I try to live my life: open, honest, and strait-forward. I cannot say I was always that way--especially out of graduate school when I go caught up in the competitiveness of work. Now, though, I just get caught up in four things: Loving my wife, Running hard, working hard and ignoring the drama, and rooting my tail off for IU. Have a great day...

Couple more questions and some good news...

Yesterday I took a day off from running and a day off from blogging. I knew I would either take Monday or Tuesday off, and I decided Monday should be an off day. It was a great Monday. I recently applied for the Assistant Director for Housing & Residence Life at IUPUI (where I work) and I was offered and accepted the job yesterday. I'm very excited about that. I work in a great department with great people and students and it will be nice to serve in this position.

Had a nice run this morning and it gave me some time to answer a couple of good questions. One was about prerace meals and what to wear at a race from Shelly. The other about 10Ks from Julie.

Pre-race day rituals: For me, I think it's important in the week before the race to run very easy for most of your runs and cut your mileage back to about 70% of normal. In addition, I like to add one small speed workout before the race (just 2-3 one minute pick-ups on Wednesday during a normal run). A pick-up is just running at a "comfortably hard" pace and then backing it down for a few minutes after you recover.

Food: there are a lot of theories about what to eat before a race. In my opinion, unless you are running an marathon, ultramarathon, or you are an Olympic type runner, then it's best to keep it simple. For me, I keep it very simple and normal. I live on a diet of pasta, beans, rice, bread, carrots, and spinach salad almost every day. So...the night before a race I eat a normal meal (usually pasta) and don't change up too much. I like to drink a beer or two usually on a Friday, so before a race I'll even have a beer or a glass of wine with dinner (usually not more than that). I think when you change your diet up before a race, then you mentally can get thrown off. Honestly, the fastest four miler I've ever run came after a night of drinking 3 big beers and eating hamburgers and fries. The worst 10 miler I have ran came after eating pasta and light food for 3-4 days before a race. Like I said, unless you are an elite runner or running a very long distance, then I'd keep it to pasta or beans and rice. The key is filling your body with food. The day of the race, I usually have about a cup of dry honey nut Cheerios, about 1/3 of a cookie dough balance bar, and some water. That's enough to get me through the raice. During a half-marathon, make sure to drink the water and Gatorade on the course, but not too much of it. If it's hot, then you want some at every water stop.

What to wear: Go to a running store and get technical socks, shorts, sports bra (for women), a nice tech shirt. You want all clothes that are technical in nature: meaning that they move sweat from your body to the outside of your clothes. This helps with chaffing. Guys...wear band aids over your nipples----just trust me on that.

For 10K's, Julie...The only tweak I would make is on your long run. Run 8 miles instead of six and run 3-4 of the eight miles at race pace rather than 2-3. Make sense?

Have a great day. Happy running!

My first question. Thanks Amy!

Finished up a great week of running with an 80 minute run (about 10.5 miles). The goal of today was just to run easy and just enjoy it. I have the on-call phone for the campus so I'm limited on how far I can go (15-20 minutes). So...I had to be quite creative about where to run. Downtown Indianapolis actually has some trails (if you know where to find them) and some random paths. Today I ran on concrete, asphalt, grass, dirt, and gravel. Not bad for a run in a downtown metro area. Was able to hit 42 miles this week after a slow start at the beginning of the week. That's now 12 strait weeks with 40+ miles. All of that base will pay off this summer and fall.

My friend Amy asked a great question about my last post. To paraphrase, she asked what I meant by "running fast a couple times a week." In order to answer the question, I'll have to start from the beginning. I'm long winded---just ask my student staff. (here's a picture of them):

Becoming a faster runner (for me) is really built in two phases: Base Building & Race Specific Work. Before you can even think about trying to improve your times, it's so very important to build up a solid running base. Building a base takes time but once you have it built, then it's built for as long as you run consistently (if you take time off--month or so--then you have to rebuild). Here's my suggestion for building a running base. I would spend 5-6 weeks doing this:
Week One: Run 3-4 days at an easy pace (easy defined as being able to hold light conversation). I would try to hit 2-3 miles per day for a total of 8-12 miles.
Week Two: Same as week one.
Week Three: Run 4-5 days at an easy pace. Try to run 3 miles a day for 12-15 miles/week.
Week Four: Run 3 days at an easy pace for 3 miles. Run one day for about 5 miles. You can run a fifth day, but I would only do that if you are not sore. Hit about 12-17 miles for the week.
Week Five: Run 3-4 days at 3-4 miles. Run one day at 5 miles. All easy pace. Hit about 13-18 miles.
Week Six: Same as week five. If you can round out at 20 miles/week then that's great and probably where you want to stay unless you are going after a race of 10 miles or more.
I talk a lot about my base weekly mileage being around 40-45 miles/week. That works for me because it gets me in shape and keeps me healthy. I know from experience once I go over 45 miles/week, then I end up injured. So...you really have to listen to your body because it will tell you. I'd say for most people 20 miles a week is a great level for running 5K's and 10K's. Once you go after 10 milers and Half-Marathon's, then you should go up to 25-30 miles. So you have your base...now what?
In all honesty, the only thing you really have to change is taking one of your easy runs and turning it into a hard run with race specific work. And....during your log run (5-6 miles) run about 2 miles of it at your desired 5K pace. Here's what I would encourage you to do in order to run a fast 5K. You should see a big difference in about 3-4 weeks:
Monday: Easy Run of 3-4 miles
Tuesday: Off
Wednesday: Hard workout at a local track or a place where you know the distance markers. The workout (4.5 miles total):
1 mile easy warm up
10 200 meter repeats at your desired 5K pace with a 200 meter recovery jog (2.5 miles total)
(key with workout is to keep going the whole time and run the hard 200s hard--you can go slow on the recovery jogs. What's hard? Well....if you run a 12 minute mile normally, then you would want to try to hit the 200s in about 70-80 seconds or better--basically, you should be running at an almost all out level but not at a full sprint. If you feel so winded you cannot recover in between hard 200s, then you should back down a bit. If you feel like it's too easy, then pick it up.).
1 mile cool down after 200s are complete
Thursday: Off or a light 3-4 mile run (depends on if you are running 4 or 5 days/week)
Friday: Off or if you were off on Thursday then a 3-4 mile easy run
Saturday/Sunday: One day off; One day long run of 5-6 miles (if training for a 5K). When you run the 5-6 miles, then you want to run 2 miles easy, the middle 2-3 miles at a comfortably hard pace---hard enough to be challenged but not all out (if you normally run 12 minute miles, then try to run at a 11 minute pace or better), and then 1-2 miles easy to finish.
As a 5K runner if you follow this plan then you should expect week one to be a baseline week, week two to run slower than week one, week three to run faster than week 1 and 2, and week four to really see some drastic improvement. I think after four weeks of this plan (plus the base), then you should really see a difference with the 5K. In addition, if you start with this and then want me to help with the Half-Marathon, then the adaptions will be easy because it will closely follow this plan.
Thanks for reading. I definitely have more thoughts so please message me if there are any questions. Important note: this is what works for me. There are all kinds of suggestions other people may have. And Amy...Thanks for the great question! Last week I had no blog. This week I have a blog and my first question...

Shape of runs to come...

Great part of being a runner is that you can continually challenge yourself to get better no matter what your ability level may be. I have not written a great deal about it, but I was so disappointed with my time at the Indianapolis Half-Marathon two weeks ago. My effort was great, but my time was 3 minutes slower than I thought it would be. Four miles into the race, I knew I just did not have it. It was very frustrating.

Over the past couple weeks I've just been running easy miles and letting my legs heal up from the effort. I've spent a fair amount of time wondering why I've not been able to run a great half-marathon time since 1998. You might say, "well, Josh, you are 12 years older than you were in 1998." But...that's not it. I've run some of my fastest times at any distance over the past two years. I've run a 4:55 mile, a 15:57 3 mile, a 2:48 marathon, and even a 16:47 5K. As I was thinking on those times, it made me realize the problem. I ran all of those times in 2007-08. And...the big key was that I built my speed from the 5K and then up. I've not run a half-marathon while starting my racing season with 5K's since 1998. That's probably why my half-marathons have been in the 1:19s rather than in the 1:15's or 1:16s. Even in 2007 when I was running well, I decided to run a marathon and not a half-marathon. So...I think I've found the answer.

Today was the first day of my quest to try and hit a half-marathon personal record (PR) this fall. I went to the track and ran 12 200 meter intervals with a 200 meter recovery jog. It was hard to run that fast, but it felt so good. If I continue to run short, fast workouts to build speed, start racing 5K's and building my racing distance from there, then I should be able to PR this fall in the half-marathon (or at least hit the 1:16 mark).

No matter what your speed or time goals, you have to really understand your body and how it responds to workouts designed to get you faster. Running a little faster 1-2 times a week really helps build your legs up and it strengthens them.

Short Post: When you feel like ugg...

Good morning! Do not have time to write much this morning after my run, but I wanted to write something short as to not miss the moment. In this blog there will be many days when I talk about how great running feels or how great I just felt on a run. Today...was NOT one of those days.

There are times when you run and it seems every step takes an act of God and every step hurts. It's like you never get into rhythm. This morning was one of those for me. I got up at 6a to run a quick 8 miler before work. I put on a jacket in case it rained (it looked ominous out side), but as I got into my run I was too warm. I just felt over-heated the whole time. In running, it's better to be cooler than hotter. Anyway, my legs felt like junk, I felt like I was running in a sauna, and I trudged through to the end. So...even me--who loves running--has days when you just feel like crap.

With that said...it's on days like today--when you don't feel good--that the fabric that makes you up is tested and if you pass that fabric strengthens. You see, it's easy to run when you feel great, but it's very difficult to run when you feel bad. It's when you feel bad, that you sometimes can experience the greatest growth as a runner--especially mentally. One word of caution...if you have several days in a row of feeling this way then you probably need a couple days off. Having one bad run or a couple bad runs is one thing. When it starts to become chronic, then you know it's time for a break. That's your body saying in the words of Vanilla Ice, "stop, collaborate, and listen..." Have an outstanding day...

You don't stop running cause you get old. You get old cause you stop running...

The Dipsea is this crazy trail race (7.4 miles) that occurs on very steep trails in the San Francisco area (Marin County). Jack Kirk ran the Dipsea for 72 consecutive years--his last year coming at the age of 96. Jack, known as the "Dipsea Demon," was once asked about how he could still run even into his 90s. He said, "you don't quit running cause you get old. You get old because you stop running."

I read this quote last night in the book Born to Run and it struck a cord with me. In fact, I marked the page before I went to sleep and promptly posted it on my Facebook page this morning after waking up. Running does keep a person young, healthy, and fit. More than anything, youthful thinking and age are a product of our mental outlook. Sure, I'm 33 years old, but I plan to live to 105. That means I still have 72 years left to live. That's awesome. Running not only keeps me feeling good, but it also helps me look forward to the current day, the next day, and so forth. When you run, there is always another milestone to reach even when you get past the age where you can set personal records. Running is not so much about how far or how fast, but more so about just getting out there and moving forward. I talk a lot about this, but life is full of things meant to stop you from moving forward. In running, even on a cold, nasty, bad day, you can still move forward. I love that about this sport.

The Dipsea Demon reminds me that aging is something that can either be embraced and celebrated rather than dreaded. This guy was running what's considered one of the toughest trail races when he was 96 years old. He ran it 72 strait years. If he can do that, then I bet nearly any person reading this blog could at the very least run a couple miles a day. Sorry for jumping on a soap box, but I just love the mental outlook that comes with thinking you only get old once you stop running. Happy trails to you...

10 Miles & a 40 Mile Week: Consistency

If you said, "Josh, tell me what some of the most important habits you can develop in order to enjoy running," then I'd have probably 4-5 of those in mind--in no particular order. Maybe over the next few blogs I'll highlight some of those habits.

On my run today what came to mind was consistency in training. This week was my 11th strait 40+ mile week and the 13th week in a row in which I've completed a run of 10 miles or more. This is the most consistent level of training I've been able to maintain since the Fall 2007/Spring 2008 when I probably was as fast as I've ever been. Injuries have really kept me from being able to train at the level that would help me drastically improve my times. With that said, I'm so pleased with my year of training so far and my formula is pretty simple. I try to run 6-9 miles four days a week, 10-13 miles one day a week, and take 1-2 days off per week. Always try to hit between 40-45 miles. This formula has really worked for me since my comeback in 2006. I think if you are new to running or you just want to be able to run each day and feel good then a modified version of this would work. I would recommend for someone just trying to stay in shape to run 3-4 days/week at 3-4 miles and then 1 day a week at 5-7 miles. If you could average around 14-20 miles each week, then you'd be shocked at how your body will respond. And...the more consistent you are over the long haul, the better running will feel. No doubt about it.

On another note. I work in Residence Life at IUPUI and have such a fantastic staff. Last week we had our end of the year banquet and they presented me with an award and gave me some very thoughtful and kind gifts. The group this year has been so special because they are the first staff I've had since my return to Res Life after one year absence. I've not been very secretive about how much I missed working in Res Life, and to get the chance to come back and then to have a fantastic experience with these students is an absolute blessing. It's amazing how much one can enjoy work when they are doing exactly what they are meant to do. I'm very thankful for this group of students.

Have a great day and if you go running...an awesome run.

Josh Running Philosophy 101...

Had a great run this morning. Went for about 8.25 miles in my Nike Vomero's. Ran next to the White River in downtown Indianapolis most of the time. Today, I really thought about what I'd like this blog to become and that led me to thinking about why I run and what it means to me. Here are some brief thoughts.

More than anything, running is a way of life for me. I am a runner and I love it. Each time I run it's a gift and I am able to practice overcoming difficulties that arise, such as weather, hills, bad drivers, and just some days not wanting to get out the door. When I run I consistently practice overcoming obstacles, and it's very easy to take those lessons and translate that into everyday life. We all have bad days and we all have personal struggles--some more than others. I think in order to really overcome real life struggles in a positive way, it's important to have that personal history of overcoming tough times. More than anything, that's what running has taught me...to keep going and pushing even when I'd rather give up, and this has really helped me develop my positive outlook on life. Often times, running shows me the way to the answer (see picture).



I've had more than a few people write to me over the last few years about running advice. I hope that this blog can become a place where people who want to run or have questions can come to find the answers. I have run over 20,000 miles and 150 races during my 16 years of being a runner. If you end up liking this blog, then please feel free to post questions. Two pieces of advice for brand new runners: One, make sure you invest in a good pair of shoes and get fitted by experts. Two, when you first start running you must start slow and easy (be able to breath comfortably) and build your base slowly. It will take 2-3 weeks before you feel good while running. It will happen though.

Thanks for reading and I hope you have a great day.!

The Comeback!

Hello. I have tried blogging for several years and I typically run out of steam. This time, though, it will be different. At least, I hope. I've tried complicated blogs, controversial blogs, and even leadership blogs, and none of those worked. This...is a blog about my life. Simply, it will be about "what I learn while running." It's won't be grammatically perfect by any means and it may not even make sense. But...it's a great way to talk about the interplay between my daily life and my running life. Enjoy...