The running continues. The week started with a 5k (3.1 miles) outside on Sunday, taking advantage of milder weather while it was still around. My average pace was 12:39/mile but my mile splits got faster as I was going (12:53, 12:45, 12:23).
My next two runs (2.8 miles Wed, 2.7 miles Friday) were both completed on the treadmill with quite slow paces (around 13;30/mile). I've started to use the treadmill with a 0.5 grade incline. I've heard differing thoughts about treadmill running and what level incline to use to simulate wind and just general actually pushing yourself through the world. But I don't want to add too much incline too quickly. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this.
Another notion that I'm starting to come around on, particularly when it comes to treadmill running, is to go by heart rate. Reading 1:59 by Dr. Philip Maffetone, I'm reading more about training below the "Maximum Aerobic Fitness" level. Very similar to how
@DopeyBadger sets out his training by heart rate, he figures (for laypeople without access to expensive fitness testing in a lab) that a good guideline for maximum aerobic level of heartrate is to take 180 and subtract age (41) and then subtract or add any additional qualifiers. Since I'm coming back to running after a layoff, I'm subtracting 5 more from the initial 180 which gives me a range of 124 to 134 bpm. I've found that my treadmill training just barely gets me to about 125 bpm when I increase pace to about 13:19/mile, and that's after about 30 minutes of running. I think that, especially for treadmill running, gauging pace by time and heart rate is going to be the way to go.
So I think I'll need to invest in a heart rate monitor watch or some gizmo of that ilk. Any recommendations for the severely budget strapped? I'm probably going to start with looking at getting one second hand.
Next week, we up mileage to 9.5 miles and I'll do four runs with 3.1 miles (or equivalent) on Sunday, 2 miles Monday, 2.2 on Wednesday and Friday. I have been cross training (and I likely will do an easy stationary bike and/or swim today) and really like swimming when the pool at my gym isn't too busy. I find that I have issues in one shoulder (I've had bursitis, tendinitis and possibly some rotator cuff issues) so I've been doing some weight training as well but I find that swimming really helps the shoulder rotationally.
Finally, I'm changing my Goal Race! Since my wife is going to be out of town on the weekend that I was supposed to run the Toronto Half Marathon, it gives me a chance to take the car for the weekend and do some of my part-time work covering the Toronto Blue Jays minor league baseball teams. AND, the Double-A team is playing in Binghamton that weekend, AND Binghamton has a half marathon on May 6! Interesting how that all just comes together! It's either that, or go to Lansing, MI where the team's Class-A affiliate is and run the Kalamazoo HM on the Sunday.