Welcome!

Welcome! This is the place where you'll follow an average fella from Pittsburgh, PA as he progressively trains to be an ultra runner and triathlete, pretty much from scratch. The odds may be stacked against me, but I nevertheless I shall document my progress, things learned, and just about all the good/bad moments along the way - all for your pleasure. Happy reading!

Friday, September 20, 2013

An Impromptu 13.1-mile Training Run!

Whilst restless after a daylight shift at the mill, I decided it was time to take advantage of the remainder of a nice afternoon and start my freshly-downloaded RunKeeper app. Just downloading an app was a big deal for me, as I'm not really the technology-oriented guy I once thought I'd be. This will of course no longer be used once I get a GPS watch, since it kills my phone battery needlessly.

So I set out on foot from my house, started the app, and began tooling around Penn Hills Twp. Lucky for me, most roads around me are "shouldery enough" to run on without a ton of danger of being struck. As I pressed forward, my lack of conditioning was still very apparent. I'd just eaten, and was experiencing indigestion, and I kept having to walk up grades that I should've at least been trotting. In addition, my straightaway speed hadn't gotten up to anything I'd consider good. But I had a general route planned since I knew all the roads, and knew how far I could approximately go before nightfall.

2:25 later, I'd arrived back at my street and had done, more or less, an exact 13.1 miles! Not bad, considering my lack of conditioning and the extreme hilliness of roads around my area. There had to be at least a couple thousand feet of elevation changes that forced me to walk or take a pause to shake out overloaded joint areas.  And speaking of those, my downhill work has much room for improvement also, as I have tons of room to pick up speed and master shock-absorption techniques.

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