If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck it's probably a duck

Despite a relatively busy schedule on Friday I was bound and determined to make the trek to JackRabbit in Union Square at lunchtime. A friend of mine, who is looking for a new pair of shoes for an upcoming marathon, was planning to join me. He was working on a close deadline so he couldn't go. I decided to go anyway and hopped on the F train for the quick trip downtown. I was greeted by the sales staff and mentioned that the Brook's customer service people told me Brooks had sent a shipment of Green Silence shoes to the store. They said that was true but unfortunately the shipment had not yet arrived. They were as curious about the shoe as I was but they set my expectation that it wasn't likely to be a shoe that I would use as a daily trainer.

The Jackrabbit people are the real deal. They understand running and running shoes and we quickly moved to the subject of mid-foot striking. Mark, one of the managers, told me that he was working to transition to that style and he suggested that I try the Brooks Ravenna. This shoe replaces the Axiom and is lighter than the Adrenalin GTS 10. The Ravenna also lacks some of the stability controls of the GTS 10 so it's more of a light trainer. I tried on a pair and they felt good but, understandably, they were not as plush as the new Adrenalins. After that Mark had me try on a pair of neutral cushioned shoes (ASICS Cumulus) and put me on the treadmill to see if I pronated. The reason for using a neutral shoe is to negate any gait correction. Mark captured me on video and much to my surprise I saw that I'm still heel striking (though Mark said I move very quickly off to the toe) and that I pronate to the point where my gait is indistinguishable from that of the AFLAC duck. I clearly need stability shoes so I'm debating whether to just get the GTS 10s or buy the Ravennas which will be a better choice for mid-foot running. I'm coming back next Friday and Mark said he'd put me in some Mizunos and Saucony shoes to compare with the Brooks.

This morning my friend KWL stopped by to pick up some computer gear. We'd planned a run but were concerned about the foot-plus of snow that was predicted by morning. When he arrived there was no snow  whatsoever so we headed out and covered three miles in around 27 minutes. It was a faster pace than I've been running, helped along by KWL's energy. He reminded me a little of how it was to run with AG who was always a slight step ahead  - like a greyhound on a tether. It was a great run and great fun to have a buddy to talk to along the way. It certainly made the time go by fast. We're getting snow now so I'll see what conditions are like by tomorrow morning. I'm prepared to use my snow treads if I have to. That could be kinda fun.

I fear the worst for my treadmill

I started the day with an unremarkable 21 minute treadmill run. In the morning time seems elastic. The time I take to pour coffee and prepare for my run goes by very quickly. Each time I glance at the clock it seems like another minute or two has passed and I see my very short window for exercise slipping away. Once on the treadmill time seems to stand still. I have a television on in the room for distraction but it's of limited benefit because the treadmill motor drowns out the sound. I'll often run for a while while thinking about things before I steal a glance at the clock only to see that I'm on the same minute as the last time I looked. Back when I was focusing on my speed this would be very discouraging because it meant hard effort without apparent progress. At least now, as I maintain a more moderate pace for my recovery, it's more about boredom than pain.

As I stepped out of my post-run shower this morning I heard my wife on the treadmill in the guest room. Nothing unusual about that except the noise emanating from the treadmill sounded like a helicopter that was attempting to land on the house. I couldn't understand why this was happening. I had just used the machine and it behaved the same as it had over the last 12 years. That could be the problem - 12 years is a long time for a treadmill, especially one that's been used daily (often twice daily) for over a decade. But every problem is also an opportunity and I can now feel good about replacing this venerable machine with something more modern and high-tech.

We're supposed to get some measurable snow overnight tonight so I'm concerned that I'll be constrained to indoor running. If the treadmill goes down completely I'll be forced to trade my weekend running time for the elliptical. I did buy some snow treads for my running shoes so it may be an opportunity to try them out. See? Every problem has an opportunity, you just need to look for it.

I'm proving that running beats pneumonia

I couldn't believe what I was hearing from my doctor. I had just gone through 30 minutes of tests with the respiratory therapist and my results were in my doctor's hand. "Your lung capacity is back in the normal range. When you came in on January 4 you were only at 50%. You're getting close to a full recovery. The running and exercise are helping. Keep doing that and steadily increase your distances as you see fit." I didn't tell him that I'd signed up for a grueling trail race that's less than a month away. I know enough to keep my mouth shut once I've made the sale.

Despite the encouraging words from my pulmonologist it wasn't all good news. Almost all traces of pneumonia are gone from my lungs but there's still some residual infection. My breathing capacity is far improved but I'm slightly below normal in terms of breathing efficiency, another metric they they use to gauge progress. I was assured that if I maintain the current recovery path the efficiency number will soon rise.

I took on the elliptical this morning thinking it would be an easier alternative to a treadmill run. From the start it felt hard. The effort required to maintain my usual pace, even at a lower level of resistance, was surprisingly high. Despite my recent respiratory problems my breathing has been rock solid since I started running again. However, this morning it took over five minutes to fall into a comfortable aerobic rhythm. I did a total of 25 minutes and stepped off the machine feeling like I'd run the equivalent time at a fast pace. My wife suggested that all the testing I did last night took more out of me than I'd realized. I'll buy that explanation. Back to the treadmill tomorrow and back to the headlamp and the road at 4AM (next week) if it feels right.

Running off the grid

Yesterday I had lunch with my friend CK. He's one of my running mentors, a terrific guy who has been at it for decades. CK asked me about my post-pneumonia running progress and I filled him in. I asked him what he thought about the big "mid-foot/barefoot/heel striking" debate that's going on now but he just gave me a bemused look and said that he doesn't pay attention to any of that. CK said, "I just run."

I've discovered that every runner has his or her own way of engaging with the sport. Some are into the performance aspects and some are completely focused on the experience of running. I'm probably somewhere in the middle. CK is a high performing runner who regularly beats all the neighborhood twenty-somethings in his town's annual Turkey Trot. He doesn't own a Garmin watch, a Nike+ device or anything else that tracks and records the various running metrics. When he bought some new running shoes I wanted to hear every detail. He couldn't even tell me which ones he bought (turns out they were NB 1225's). CK just runs fast. He sometimes carries a stopwatch but that's about it.

I have my two-week follow-up with my doctor tonight so I've kept things low key this week in terms of exercise. I decided to spend about 20 minutes or so running on the treadmill this morning since I've rested for the past two days. I really wanted to make sure that I kept to a moderate pace so, inspired by my talk with CK, I left my foot pod on the side table and ran for 22 minutes without recording distance, pace, cadence or heart rate. I felt no pressure to maintain a brisk pace and that helped me to limit how far I set the speed control on the treadmill. I started things out very easy but stepped it up after a few minutes. I stayed below the 6/7 MPH range and focused on mid-foot landing and higher cadence. I increased the speed for the last four minutes but didn't push it to the point of discomfort. It felt like a workout and without the metrics I had no regrets about whether I ran fast or far enough. This doesn't mean I'm done with recording my workouts. It just means that sometimes knowing less helps you more.

The great mid-foot debate continues

After being told by the salesperson at City Sports that the store wasn't planning to carry the Brooks Green Silence shoe I contacted Brooks to find out where I could find it in NYC. The Green Silence is supposedly in stores this week and I'm curious to try it. With its low heel-to-toe offset and lighter weight I'm curious to see if it's the shoe for me as I adapt to a mid-foot/front foot running style. Brooks told me that Jackrabbit's in Union Square got a shipment so I plan to get down there this week if I can. This new shoe may not be ideal for me, after all it's a light trainer/racer, and it may be too minimal in terms of comfort. After all the anticipation for its launch I need to see for myself.

The current issue of Trail Runner has an article that posits both sides of the heel vs. front foot argument. They offer the fact that a study of elite runners in the 2004 Sapporo Olympics showed that 75% of these athletes land first on their heels when they run. To quote from the article, "There's no [scientific] evidence that heel strikers are injured more, no evidence that mid-foot runners are faster..." The article goes on to recommend that runners should do what feels right. They suggest that if adopting a front foot style is awkward it's probably better to run on your heels. The article did recommend some shoes specifically for mid-foot running: most inov-8 models, Newtons, NB 100s and 840s (The "ChiRunning" shoe) and the La Sportiva Skylite. Remember that this magazine covers trail running which explains why trail shoes are included in this recommendation.

I didn't run this morning because I felt like rest would do more good than exercise. I'm seeing my pulmonologist tomorrow and I don't want to overdo it lest he order me to stop running. I'll get back to it on Thursday after three days rest. I miss the experience but I know rest is the right thing for me this week.