Friendship and Faith

So, I have had two runs in very warm and humid weather since the track workout I wrote about on Tuesday.  I ran 8 miles on Wednesday morning and 4.3 miles this morning.  Nothing fast.  Just steady.  Character buidling as one social media post described it.  Just moving along.  Up to 972 miles.  That keeps me on Missouri Route 42.  Within striking distance of 1000 miles by Sunday.  If I do reach it on Sunday that will be a full week ahead of when I hit 1000 miles last year.  I'll comment more on that over the weekend.

In any case, a social media friend posted #RunWithFaith.  I run with faith.  I use writing about running to ponder my faith.  I use the things I write about to test my faith.  But I don't know how mnay people run with faith. I would love to know if more do.  That is a group I think I would get along well with.  And what does running with faith mean to each of us?

I also had a friend today who asked how do her firends define good friends.  I wrote "Good friends can be comfortable together in silence."  My firend, returned that sometimes words are unnecessary.  I agree with her.  I would actually frame it somewhat differently.  Instead of saying sometimes words are unnecessary, I would say "I know I am really close to a friend when presence is all that is necessary."  That is a much stronger way of saying what I was thinking.

Presence--just being together.
Presence--not worrying about what comes next in the conversation or when it will come next.
Presence--comfort of knowing someone is there.
Presence--not needing anything more than knowing the person is there because I understand the other person cares without the other person having to say anything.
Presence--knowing that there is a feeling of warmth without words.
Presence--listening to the other person break and taking hope and joy in simply sharing life.
Presence--knowing that there is grace to share.

That is what I get from a deep friendship.  There are very few with whom I have that.  And of course it does not mean that conversation isn't important even with the closest of friends.  But the key is that conversation is completely unnecessary.  Especially in the deepest matters.  

The Visitation and My Healthy

Since the last time I wrote I have had two VERY different 7.5 mile runs.  On Monday, a slow and steady 7.5 miles around the north side of the city and Towson.  Keeping the legs moving.  Today, 7.5 miles that included a 400, 800, 1200, 1600 and back down again (only one 1600) ladder with the pace around 1:45/lap the whole time.  Good pacing.  Good friends.  Crazy hot and humid weather.  Soaked even running shirtless.

Where do the 15 miles leave me?  At 959.7.  For the first time in many weeks, I am just under an average of 40 miles per week.  Still, I have nothing to complain about.  I managed to continue to keep myself within range of 40 miles per week despite my crazy digestive week.  Where does that put me on my virtual pilgrimage?  On Missouri Route 42 (still) in Meta, MO.  Yesterday I would have been in Vienna, MO, where the Catholic church is Visitation parish.

When I think of the Visitation (when Mary went to visit her much older cousin Elizabeth and John the Baptist--with whom Elizabeth was pregnant--jumped in her uterus when he recognized the presence of Jesus in Mary) I think of several things: togetherness, family, recognizing the grace in others.  

And just today I discovered a new runner blog called On Fire Fitness Healthy Living (http://www.onfirefitnesspt.com/) where the author posed the question "What does your healthy look like?"  
So, I am going to take on the question of what my healthy looks like thinking of togetherness, family, and recognizing the grace in others.  As well as my general conception of what I do for my own health as part of what Mary did was for her own well being after her pregnancy with Jesus was announced by the angels.  

In any case, here are some things that are part of my healthy:

(1) Running--not always as far as I can or as far as I can, but running so I can run again tomorrow.  That has more to do with running smart than with running fast or far.  Some days call for fast.  Some days call for far.  But it is never necessarily the maximum speed or distance.  That is seeking serenity and balance given what God has given me.  And sharing that serenity and balance with others when I achieve it.  I learned in preparing for my assault on the 19 minute 5K that the running I love is the day to day goal setting.  On race day--whatever happens will happen.  But every day leading up to race day I have control over whether I make goal.  And that is a sense of balance that I must achieve and share.  

(2) Being around other runners, or at least others who care about their fitness.  An important part of togetherness.  This also includes a recognition of what others have going on that is special and what they can bring into my life.  

(3) Talking with others about fitness--this can include exercise and diet. Again, an expression of togetherness and a recognition of what those others can bring into my life.

(4) Talking with my family--especially my wife.  This is family.  Eating together.  Talking together.  Not always exercising together.  Although I have found myself teaming up with and advising young women for whom I have served at least a partial father figure role.

(5) Eating well--but not necessarily perfectly.  I don't have to count every calorie.  I can have fun with what I eat.  But if I love to make it and I make it by hand I will appreciate it a lot more.  I will talk bout it.  I will share it.  And all that contributes to an experience of goodness through food.

(6) Clearing my mind.  This comes with running for me.  It is letting go of all the ill.  It is preparing to share the grace of God that I have been blessed with.  It is hard to share grace when I am distracted by things that are not good for me and for those around me.

(7) Spending time with family--because they are part of the world with which God has blessed me. 

(8) Recognizing that family is not always blood--family is those I break bread with. Family is those I run with.  Family is those I share ideas with.

(9) Reminding myself that I am not God.  I am not in control of everything.  I am not omnipotent.  I am a finite, mortal, individual. 

To me this is healthy.  A physical health based on good exercise and good food--things that God has blessed me with enjoying and with having.  A mental health based on the ability to clear my mind.  A social health in recognizing the importance of others and spending time with others in productive and healthy ways.  And a spiritual health that recognizes my smallness in the universe but my connectedness in the universe.  The opportunity to have a big impact on some.  The need to find my place.  

Part of Mary's travels was to share grace with Elizabeth.  But as I read Luke's Gospel it seems that Mary was also spending time on this trip finding herself.  I will not compare Mary's journey on the visitation to my life in any way, shape or form.  But I will say that in my running and my definition of healthy and my search in life, I find grace, I find family, I find togetherness, and I find focus that Mary must have had and felt on her journey.  Eternal life's lessons in the stories of the noble in the Bible.  

Father's Day Run

Today was a very nice Father's Day.  Not too hot.  Not too humid.  I ran the GBMC Father's Day 5K for the fifth year in a row.  The first three years had similar but not identical courses out in Hunt Valley.  The past two years have been from the GBMC campus.  This year's was even more challenging than last year's.  Last year's was short.  And last year's had us run up Stevenson from Osler to Charles. This year I had to run up to where the far Dumbarton fields are and then through the Roger's Forge neighborhood and back up from Dumbarton and Stevenson to the top of the hill again.  It was my first 20+ 5K in a while.

But that was okay.  After having a week missing three days of running with a combination of cramps and diarrhea and running twelve miles yesterday more or less just "because" so that I could get some miles under my belt, I felt that I didn't do horribly.  I got 3rd in my age group.  My 9 year old did nicely (31:11) for the course and my 14 year old finished.  Some days that is really all that matters.  Especially when he had a bit of a cramp and the course was so challenging.

The other thing that I achieved was a Father-Daughter team win.  Readers may wonder how I did that.  I have three sons.  I don't have any "love children".  But there is a young woman who has run this race several times with her mom.  They have never offered her the opportunity to run as a team with her mom.  So, I "adopted" her for a day.  I checked with the organizers up front.  I have mentored her in life a bit.  I have mentored her in running a bit.  And I am old enough to be her father.  So, we were a "Father-Daughter" team.  It made both our days.  My day as my sons will be a few years older before teaming up with them will help me.  Her day as she has never been able to compete as part of a team for this event before.  It shows the spirit of runners and the positive influence of running.

And, if I were to have had a daughter, there are certainly two young women I've come to know whom I would be happy to claim some positively fatherly influence on.  My son's girlfriend of three years--works incredibly hard, is wonderfully smart, amazingly is  talented at flute, and has been a great influence on my son.  Then, there is my adopted running daughter for the day.  Goal oriented.  Hard working.  Responsible.  Community oriented.  Amazingly outgoing.  Great baker.  Thinking of others.  Great runner.

How better to celebrate Father's Day than to think not only of how my father has influenced me (goal oriented, smart, get the job done, responsible, church oriented, and on and on) and to think that I have been able to see that in and share at least some of my gifts with not only my three sons but also with at least a couple of others.

To finish, the 3.1 miles puts me at 944.7 still on MO-42 headed west.  

A Muddy Run

I sit here on Sunday morning waiting for my fourth (or fifth?) GMBC Father's Day race and look back over the week of running.  I ran a track workout on Tuesday that I wrote about.  But my symptoms of something (never figured our exactly what) kept me out on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday. By Friday I was feeling well enough to run 2.5 miles.  I wanted just to get my legs going again.  And I didn't have a whole lot of time since I needed to work a 10 hour day before going to a crab feast.

Then, yesterday, I went for a 12 mile run.  I was back on the NCR trail for the first time in a long time.  Easy.  Relatively flat.  Relatively straight.  I ran 2 miles alone and then 10 with a long time running friend.  It was much cooler but still a bit humid.  It was not fast.  It was just a solid effort.

The trail was a bit muddy.  Not everywhere.  But in some spots there were massive puddles that were hard to get around without getting somewhat messy.  A bit challenging to avoid potential injury.  I even posted a picture of how muddy my one leg was.  The rain on Friday had been pretty amazing.

What does the muddy trail make me think of?  Plans interrupted.  Plans having to be thought through.  Plans having to be remade.  And having to deal with the results (i.e. being a mess) afterwards.

How does that fit with me?  Certainly this past week I have had to retrhink and replan a lot in light of the symptoms I had.  How does that fit in the case of my long term running friend?  She is back from another injury.  She may have spent nearly as much time injured as uninjured in the 3 years we have been running together.  She has had to rethink a lot.  Especially with respect to running goals.

Where do these miles put me?  These miles put me at a total of 941.6—on MO 42 on the outskirts of Belle MO.  Interestingly there is a Catholic church in this little town (popuation 1535 according to a Google search).  The churh is called St. Alexander.  There are numerous St. Alexanders in the church.  St. Alexander of Jerusalem (I'm not sure if that is the one the church in Belle is named after) was a martyr who developed a large theological library.  Big on reading.  Big on information.  Steadfast in faith.  

Pushing Through

Yesterday, I did not feel well.  I took the day off from running.

This morning, I got out of bed, spent a lot of time making sure my stomach was empty before joining friends at the Dunbar track, and did a workout that included 1/4 mile warm up, 6x400 at 85-90 pace with a 400 between each, and 2 miles cool down.  I was surprised that the cramps were still there after my drive down town.  I told my friends, "Someone else line up in front."  One commented, "That is so counter intuitive."  Maybe.  But I was not the fastest on any of the six 400's.  In part that was because I was not 100%.  In part it is to help me reach my long term goal of running another marathon this year--Philadelphia in November.  I want to shoot for sub-3:15 and maybe even closer to 3:10 six months from now.  What I need to do now is just keep the legs moving with workouts that don't stress my body too much and that are enjoyable.  

The workout was enjoyable as on each 400, I remained under control.  On one, I hit 85 and realized that was faster than I would have liked.  I would have preferred variation only from 86-90, but such is life.  That is a pretty high level of precision to maintain.  Also, while I did not actually record splits after the first 200 each time, I did look and for at least the last 3, I ran negative 200 splits for the 400.  I let my friend Melissa go out and lead the way (between us--there were others faster than both of us) and then I held steady or sped up a little in the second 200 and tried to encourage her to do everything she could to keep pace.  Different styles.  Different intensities.  Different needs.  My friend Lauren took an even more conservative approach and worked her way down from 97 to 87 over the course of six 400's.  

A good workout for everyone.  With 5 miles recorded, it puts me at a total of 927.1.  Still on Missouri Route 28 headed west.  Pretty much nothing major around.  Next town is Bland.  

How fitting that I am approaching a town called Bland on a day when I still felt that Bland food would probably be best for me.  My run felt "bland".  Yes it was solid.  But it was not a great workout.  And it was not a poor workout.  It was just a workout for which I hit targets I had set with a high level of precision.  Nothing wrong with that.  Just nothing out of the ordinary.

Sometimes, nothing out of the ordinary is exactly what a person wants from a workout.  Simple.  Easy.  No risk.  Just movement.

It was not bland that I got to encourage other runners.  That made my "just on course" workout exciting.

And I did have a chance to chat with Cory afterwards about his fall marathon aspirations.  His are sooner than mine and he hopes to BQ again.  Even if I did quality for Boston again, it is not at all clear that I would go back.

Bland is also the way my cool down felt.  I pushed through the stomach cramps at the beginning.  I felt better.  My friend Lauren even shared with me how exercise is recommended for women who are cramping and how it seems to help.  (Runners sometimes discuss the most personal health issues without hesitation...)  But as I rounded the 4th lap of cool down and prepared to head into the second half, my legs felt heavy.  As I went on to complete the five miles they felt heavier and heavier.  Was I ever going all that slowly?  No.  In fact, when Cory joined me we picked up the pace.  But it is the most effort I have had to make for a 2 mile cool down after a 3 mile workout in a long time.  

The lack of hydration over the weekend.

The excess sun over the weekend.

The "Imodium moment" (if you can accept the euphemism) on Monday.  

So many things that made me feel "bland" rather than "having a great morning.  But picked up by my fellow runners.  

And I had a pretty good rest of the day with the boys doing at least some of the assigned chores.  We have to work on them getting as much discipline about chores as I have about running.  Maybe someday.  It would make both me and my wife happier.  

After wandering a bit--most important lesson--push on.  It is always worth it in the end. 

Growing up

Six days since I last wrote.  Last Monday I wrote and took a day of rest.  Since then I did 6 on the track (3x1600 at 7:05ish was the main workout), 5 easy, 8 easy, 4 easy, and 10.1 and 12 in Ocean City, Maryland.  That adds up to 45.1 since the last time I posted.  That puts me well outside St Louis.  At this point, I am on Missource Route 28 headed west (as almost always on this trip).  About 6 miles from where MO-28 intersects US-50. The town I am in is called Owensville.  Their Catholic church in town is Immaculate Conception.  It is interesting to me to see how often this name is used.  We have one in Baltimore.  Neither of the two Catholic churchs in Ocean City are named Immaculate Conception.  I passed two today on my run--St Luke and St Andrew.  I don't know if there is a third.  Immaculate conception makes me think of innocence.  And a lot of the past week has been about growing up.

Let's begin with a week ago.  The speaker at my oldest son's high school graduation began by singing the entire song Rainbow Connection from the Muppet Movie.  It was touching.  The speaker (who is not a professional singer) noted that it took a lot of guts to sing in front of a crowd of artists that inluded many music majors and numerous voice majors among that group.  He had many things to say about the rainbow theme, but one of the biggest was a quote from Maya Angelou to try to be the rainbow in someone else's cloud.

The speaker also talked about excellence.  At the Baltimore School for the Arts the students must strive for excellen in academics and art.  And if one looks at where they are going and what they will be majoring in for college, it is clear that they have both sets of skills.  My son was fortunate to be the valedictorian.  His girlfriend posted a picture of "the valedcitorian and his girl."  I commented that I had not realized it was a status symbol to be the "valedictorian's girl".  She answered that it probably isn't and she is just so proud of him.  We are fortunate to have a family where the older valedictorian and his girl have been supporting the younger valedictorian and his girl in their pursuits.  The cycle of life.

The speaker also mentioned "generation C" with the "C" standing for connection.  It was an interesting contrast with the teacher of the eighth grade from which my middle son graduated.  He talked about connectedness and the importance of being connected in ways other than electronics.  By whatever means, connections are key.  And it is interesting to see how kids use the connections.  How peple in general use the connections as individuals and the technolog both mature.

A few other growing up moments.  First, growing up in the workplace.  It was the first time that I really had to make an assessment of someone's skill and what their future long-term role in the organization would be.  It was tough making the judgment.  It was even tougher as the judgment was not as favorable as I like to make about everyone.  I'm an optimist.  But I made it.  And I think it was right.  And I think I have "grown up" in my managerial role as a result.

Also, there were issues raised with the curriculum at the school where my youngest will still be.  A lot of strong words exchanged by email.  Polite but strong.  Thinking about what my youngest will be exposed to as he continues to grow up.  And thinking about what we want for him and how  much control we have or do not have.  Talking with another parent we talked about when there is more heat than light.  On Thursday I had run in the rain.  It helped diminish some of the heat.  Not sure I had much light to share, but the heat definitely decreased.

Finally, (it is now Monday morning June 9), I skipped running this morning.  That was not planned.  I had wanted to do 4-6 just to loosen up the legs after the 10 & 12 over the weekend.  However, I think I had too much exposure to the sun yesterday.  At dinner last night I started getting the chills.  Sherry thought it was just because we were under ceiling fans and the temps were moderating.  I don't think that was it as it continued when we got outside and back to the hotel.  So, I went to bed all bundled up before 8 and rested (the sleep was off and on after midnight) until 6 this morning.  I decided not to stress my body today.  Hopefully a good decision.  More to learn about time in the sun.  The interesting thing is that I did not feel overly sunburned but some of what I had was symptoms of sun poisining.  Of course, I also have symptoms of stomach cramping so maybe it was something I ate this weekend.  I don't know.  But I'm feeling better, albeit not perfect, this morning. 

Parallels in Running and Work Life

Four days since the last time I wrote.  And so much to think about.

Thursday, I did a nice track workout with 8x200, all under 40, increasing speed as I went along.

Friday, I did an easy 4 just to keep the legs loose.

Saturday, I tried once again to prove that all the track work, all the hill work, and my general approach to training would, in fact, lead to a sub-19.  And again, I didn’t make it.  The splits were not horrible.  But I ran a 19:36.  I can say now that I am done that 5000 meters at race pace on the track is not easy alone.  Even early in the morning.  Even on a flat surface.  My legs were tight.  I probably should have taken a day off this week.  And my stomach tightened at about 2/3 of the way through.  I had eaten late the night before and stayed up late. Perhaps I really will never go sub-19 again.  But in the end, it doesn’t matter.  I’ve learned a lot along the way.

So, this morning, I ran an easy 8—average pace just over 8:30.  I’m up to a total of 877 miles for the year.  That puts me on Old Manchester Rd as it swerves off Manchester Rd/Missouri Route 100/US-66.  So, I will be back at US-66 and then on US-50.  The connection with US-50 is interesting as it will take me through about 30 miles of running.  Driving, I’ll be on a much different part of US-50 next week as we go to Ocean City, Maryland, for the final lacrosse tournament of the 2014 spring season.

I share some thoughts about my running issues with someone who has been sharing my running journey.  There are some interesting parallels between my work life and my running life.  In my work life, we have a performance review system in which the supervisor is asked to provide goals, name strengths, list watch outs, and suggest important networks. 

For strengths my boss listed attention to detail, creativity, and connectivity.  I think that these are well reflected in my running as well as my work life.  I love data.  I love to analyze carefully what I have been running and what I need to run.  I try to make every workout just right.  (And I have found that I get something positive out of making every workout just right even if I do not meet my racing goals.  It shows that I am focused on the journey or process just as much as I am on the outcome.)  On the creativity and connectivity side, the connectivity is with people in the case of work.  I have also found ways to connect with people in my running.  And the creativity is finding ways to link running to all sorts of other things and write about the connections and ideas. 

For watch outs, he listed three: pacing for productivity, “getting to win,” and professional image.  The last translates into “maybe your academic writing has gotten you this far but you will need to ‘look good’ to get further—but some more suits.”  OK.  Does that relate at all to running?  Maybe.  I definitely think of myself as looking more like a serious runner in how I dress for my running now than I used to.  Pacing for productivity—faster decision making, more decisive, get things done.  I can relate to that in my running although the pacing for running can be up or down.  The key is getting it right.  Finally, on the “getting to win” point.  I’m not sure I’d call that having a “killer instinct” but there is an element of completion.  There is an element of seeing things through.  There is an element of making certain that things happen.  Mental toughness to see things through.  Again, I can relate it to my running inasmuch as I clearly have to get better at not just doing the workouts and preparation but at making sure that all is done well—including the “final presentation” (or the race).

For networking, there was a focus on networking with leaders in my performance review.  I think that hanging with very good runners is something that I have been doing and continue to do and finding the right runners to help me improve my own running is also key. 

The parallels between my work life and my running life are not entirely surprising.  What you see is what you get. Someone who pays attention a lot.  Someone who tries very hard.  Someone who can work step by step.  But someone who sometimes finds it challenging to bring everything together and produce an excellent and expected final outcome.