On Training and Other Random Stuff

On Training and Other Random Stuff

Training for hours on end isn’t my cup of tea any more. Concentration, which counts for a lot, wavers early now. After all, marathon training is more about mental toughness than anything. Mind over matter, the will to do it, standing up to the challenge - that motivation doesn’t exist anymore.  In other words, my mind has become lazy.  I don’t know if the reason is because I’m no longer able to run but I’m sure that’s part of it. Not that I mind too much. I still have the motivation to exercise every day. I just don’t want to spend so much time doing it. Running had become a case of brain pleasure versus joint pain and joint pain won. I grew tired of waking up, getting out of bed, and limping due to pain.

I don’t know why my hamstrings are sore. All I did was the clean and press last Friday morning, which I haven’t done in months. This soreness has never happened before. It’s my shortcut weight training workout when I’m pressed for time or when I get lazy.

I figured out why a workout in the recumbent bike is relatively easier than one on a spinning bike. Because you can put your back into it.

Since I couldn’t find someone to work for me on the weekend of the Long Beach marathon, I sent an email to our running club members offering my race bib for a discount. A couple of days later I was able to sell it. He was going to switch it for a half marathon bib since he hadn’t trained for the full marathon. Still, the price was $30 lesser than if he signed up this coming week at the expo.

I don’t know if many people remember that in the late 80’s we already had minimalist running shoes. They were the original Nike Huaraches. It was yellow mesh on top, thin white soles, and a buckle on top to tighten it.

I tried using kinesiotape for my posterior tibialis tendon problem last month and it seemed to have a placebo effect because my ankles didn’t hurt so much. The second time, it didn’t seem to make a difference as far as perceived pain. I found out that body fat percentage is not accurately measured when part of the sole is covered by kinesiotape. The body fat weighing scale shows an additional 3 to 4%.

Speaking of working out, I’ve started to use my rowing machine again (a cheaper imitation of a Concept II ergometer). I’ve hardly used it in the past couple of years and all because I didn’t want to drag it out of the corner of my living room and unfold it. But lately, I’ve been wanting more variety to my workouts. I would prefer to just run of course, but since I can’t do that, I have been relying on machines. Rowing by itself is pretty boring to me, so I break down this particular workout between several machines. By breaking it down I’m able to increase the duration of the workout. If you’ve been following this blog, you already know I also have an elliptical machine, a recumbent bike, a spinning bike, and a treadmill. The elliptical machine makes my ankles hurt so I’ve eliminated that machine for now. If I do 4 sets of five minutes on each machine, an hour goes by quickly.

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