It’s amazing to me, but my running seems much faster than it was. I have actually gone back and compared my times, and I am running consistently 1/2 a mile an hour faster than I was a month, 2 months or 3 months ago.  And it feels gooooood.  Last night I went 3.33 miles (3.52 miles according to dailymile) in 27:03 which was 7.3 mph (or 7.81).  I am very happy with this!  If the daily mile distance is correct, then my 5k time at that pace would 23:52. That is only 1 minute off of my PR – and I wasn’t running for a race!  Add in that I have been NOT running – and I am really looking forward to some spring time 5ks!  I think I may be able to get the sub-20 minute 5k – in 2012, that is one of my new goals!

The Mile breakdown according to CardioTrainer (7.3 mph average pace)
Mile 1: 8:14
Mile 2: 8:02
Mile 3: 8:15

I am very pleased with how my running is going!  My legs were sore today – but any ankle/calf/shin pain was very minimal. My quads and hamstrings were sore – in the “I was well used” sort of way.  My breathing still isn’t “quite right” – but I think that is the hardest part of returning to running from a break. It will come.

100 Up Exercise Progress:

So apparently Justin over at the Birthday Shoes read the same article in the NY Times that I (and just about every other internet savvy runner) read.  He was intrigued by the idea of the 100-up being a beneficial exercise and while he had the same thought I did of trying it – he went further and made a website dedicated to the idea of a 100-up Challenge.
Here is what he says on the website regarding the challenge:

What is the 100-Up Running Challenge

It’s simple, really. No matter where you are in your running abilities and no matter what your current training protocol is, the 100-Up Challenge requires you commit to the following:

1. Establish a benchmark for your current running abilities — write down your last run’s time. Write down how you felt running it. Get it all onto paper in as much detail as you can manage. Did anything ache? How did your stride feel? Any problems you encountered? Commit that run to paper!
2. Learn about W.G. George’s 100-Up drill and start practicing! — mind that you might not be able to do the preliminary version of the 100-Up perfect the first time, or maybe even the fifteenth time, but attempt the drill as often as you can, so long as each attempt strives for perfect practice (And not just getting it over with). Feel free to continue on running your normal mileage if you like, or take a break and focus on the drill. Do the drill! That’s the whole point of the challenge, and being able to determine if the 100-Up works or not completely depends on following George’s instructions as best you can and practice, practice, practice (perfectly!)!
3. Run that same distance as in step 1. above 30 days later — now you get to see how you did. How’d it feel? Faster? Slower? Less aches and pains? What happened, if anything?
4. Now report back on the whole experiment.

What’s the point? Well, the point is to see if the 100-Up actually makes you a better runner or not. And if it doesn’t make you a better runner, well at least you’ll have learned a new exercise and perhaps attained a bit of practice in the art of meditation.

Are you up for the challenge? If so, drop me an email at justinowings at birthdayshoes dot com and tell me about No. 1; that is, if you’d like to share your experiment publicly (though your true identity can always be obscured if you prefer!). I’ll be doing the experiment myself, so you won’t be alone.

I fired an email off to Justin and signed up for the 100-up Challenge. It seemed logical, since I was doing it anyway!

In regards to the 100 up – I had an epiphany last night. I have been doing the exercise after my run.  When I was tired.  Once I stopped and thought about it – it made far more sense to do this when I was fresh – BEFORE I ran. That way the memory of it was fresh as I went out, or if I did it in the morning (I run in the afternoon usually) – at least my muscles wouldn’t be as tired, allowing me to concentrate on the form.  Naturally this occurred to me while I was doing it last night after my run.

So this morning I did it right after my shower – while my muscles were fresh and relaxed. I did 85 reps of the minor – and each one seemed to be ideal form.  I could have done more, but figured I should quit while I was ahead.  If I get the opportunity to run tonight (its “family dodge-ball night” at the kid’s school) I plan on doing at least 50 of the minor right before hand. 

I don’t know if it is the 100-ups, or the fact I am being more aware of my form – but it does seem that I am running better.  The fact I am getting more muscle pain of the “use” type, rather than the “ow ow ow” type – would lead me to believe that my form may be better than it was as well.

As last night’s run felt good and fast – I think that is going to be one of my base-line runs for the challenge.