My big fat run

Looking for a slightly different running route than if I had started from home, I drove to the gym and decided to run from there. It was overcast and just a bit muggy when I headed out at about 3:30. I ran a single lane dirt road above town, that carries the power lines across town, (known locally as the pole line) for about the first 5K of my run. It was slightly rocky and a lot dusty. A few minutes in, my lungs and eyes got an extra dose of good 'ol pole line dust when an obese woman (and I mean obese!) with a child nestled in her folds, flew by me on a 4-wheeler, kicking up the dust to high heaven. I wonder if breathing in dust takes years off your life? God, I hate those 4-wheeled contraptions! I turned off the pole line and ended my run with another 5K around the lake.

My legs felt a bit heavy today and I ran at a pace slower than what Jack Daniels would call my E-Pace, I'd say 4:55-5:00min/k today. By definition it was an easy run but it didn't feel at all easy. I think I'll call it a recovery run. Back at the gym, I spent 15min with some good stretching and then headed home.

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A couple of links today. This first one I found on another blog, and thought it was interesting enough to add it to my links on the right hand side of this page. If you want to run 5K in lane 6 at the track, this calculator will show you how far to go (it's 11.534 laps).

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With Beijing 08 just around the corner, trainers and coaches are looking at the air quality and other ways to prepare their atheletes. Steve Spence is one of the few American marathoners to win a medal at a world championship (Tokyo, 1991). The air pollution helped; as he was one of the few to change his race strategy. As he says:

"Was I the third most fit person in that race? Absolutely not,” Mr. Spence said. “Was I the third most talented? Absolutely not.” What made the difference, he said, was his training and strategy.