Fat Trail Runner

So, it’s official.  I’m now one of the coaches for the 11:45 minute pace group.  What does this mean?  It means that I will need to be at the beginning of each session on Saturday mornings, at 7:15.  I need to be at the TX DOT parking lot off Riverside, rain or shine.  It also means that I need to get used to running at an 11:45 pace.  On the other side, it means that I’m getting a cool Austin Fit coach shirt, with my name on the back.  I think that the shirt is the coolest thing, not to mention the admiration of my peers.  Admiration of my peers, I keed, I keed who am I kidding?  Seriously though, I think it will be a cool thing and it will also keep me motivated to make it to the Saturday morning runs and make me do my weekly runs too.  

Something that I found out today, to get used to the feel of running at an 11:45 pace, I need to get on a tread mill, set it at a 1% incline, and set the speed to 5.25 mph.  That is an 11:45 minute mile pace.  The pace also needs to include the walk breaks.  It should be interesting, to say the least.  

About the run, well I’m glad that I went.  Had I not been there with the pace group, I would’ve walked a lot more, and I would not have kept the pace that I did.  I got a really bad cramp towards the end, so I ended up walking the last mile or so, but the cramp was of my own doing, so I’m not terribly upset about it.  How is it my own doing?  Well, I have not been eating well, and I have not had my banana a day to keep my potassium levels up.  This week’s goal is to get back on track with my nutrition and rest.  I also need to get back on track with my core strengthening work and my weight lifting routines.

Today’s route, took us from the TX DOT parking lot on Riverside, out east onto Riverside Drive, up the hill, across the street, then back down the hill.  We took a left on some street; I can’t remember the name of it, then along the creek, past Live Oak, past Oltorf, all the way to the St. Edwards University Campus.  We ran up the steps of the main building where I found out that we were higher than the UT tower at that point.  The view from there, was simply spectacular, definitely the best view of Austin.  After waiting around for a little bit for people to go to the bathroom and whatnot, we started off again.  Like Rachel (my co-coach) said, it sure was a sweet downhill.  On the way back, my left leg started cramping a bit, but I decided to run through it, not thinking anything of it.  We went back up the Riverside hill, across the street, then back on the trail heading east.  We went over the lake on the I-35 pedestrian bridge, where I found a digital camera.  No battery was in it, and there were no good pictures either.  I’ll post on craigslist that I found it and see if the owner claims it.  After crossing the lake, we got back on the hike and bike trail heading west.  There is a regatta going on today, so there were rowers and fans of the rowers all up and down the trail along the lake.  Right around the time we got to the Rowers Club, near the 4 Seasons hotel, is when my cramp started really acting up.  I couldn’t put any serious weight on the leg so I had to walk from here.  It sucked being left behind, but Rachel was with the group and they were on pace.

We crossed over the lake again at the 1st Street Bridge, then headed east on the trail back to TX DOT.  After the bridge was when my cramp started going away, so I started running again in front of the building for the Austin American Statesman newspaper.  On a side note, that building has some funky feng shui, lots of sharp corners and it just looks unhealthy.  At the end of the run, I met up with Ali, Rachel and Michelle and officially accepted the coaching position.  I stretched some, but the cramping was too intrusive.  I decided to skip my planned swim, and just go home.  

Today’s run:
Terrain: Cement, asphalt, dirt trail
Distance: 8 miles
Time: don’t know, somewhere around 1 hour 45 minutes or so
Pace: unknown
Noteworthy: I got a bad cramp, and ended up having to walk.  I also accepted becoming a coach for the group along with Rachel.  This should be an interesting experience.

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