Running in the rain
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I redid day 03 of week 01 of the 100 pushup challenge yesterday evening. I couldn’t complete day 3 of week 01 last week.
However, this week I’m happy to report that I managed to do 15, 13, 10, 10 and then 16 pushups which means I qualify to move on to week 02 as I only had to do 15 for the last set. To be honest I probably could have gutted out a few more but I wussed out and stopped after doing 1 more than the minimum.
The weather has been rather wintry (funny that) her
e in Auckland this week and today was no exception. There’s been thunder, lightning and lots of cold rain. Having said that, I needed to get my run in so I decided I would just wear my jacket and head out anyway. While I was getting changed the rain started really crashing down and I started making excuses in my head but fortunately it stopped by the time I got to the front door.
I normally like to run by the coastline but after my experience with the high winds the other day I decided that I would be better off sticking inland today so I headed out towards One Tree Hill.
It was really nice out once I warmed up and the rain wasn’t really a problem. I think the fear of rain is more of a problem than the rain itself which is probably true of most of our fears in life. I was strangely happy to be out in the rain actually. I think I get quite a kick out of doing things that I would have thought were the height of lunacy not too long ago. 
Most of the run was along suburban streets except for the bit where I ran around One Tree Hill in Cornwall Park. The park was rather deserted today. Normally it is teeming with people out exercising but I guess the conditions weren’t really conducive to a nice day out. I saw three other runners and one guy going flat out who zoomed past me. I had a look behind me to see if he was being chased by the police but I guess he was just fast.
I passed quite a few bakeries and coffee shops on my route and I have to say it was a real struggle of the will to run past them but I managed.
Overall I did 13.9km in 1:25:33 for an overall pace of 6:09 minutes per km.
I’ve been having issues with snacking the last few days which is really annoying. I’m a bit of a stress eater and I’m booked in for surgery next Friday and I guess it’s leading me to cookies and chocolate.
There has been a positive that has come out of finding out I need surgery next week. It’s confirmed my status as a runner. You see, the first question I asked the doctor after he finished explaining the procedure was “How long until I can start running again?” He said about a week so I should be ok for my 10K race on Sunday. I’ll just treat it as a nice slow long run. Any time I set will be a PR so might as well make it one that is easy to beat!
Well done on getting out in the rain, I’m the same the getting out is the hard part, once you’re out there it is great fun!
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Surgery?
Come on, you can’t just throw something like that out there without telling us what’s getting snipped.
The Big V? nah - too young.
Lapband? nah - too skinny.
Ingrown toenail? yep, that must be it… :p
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AndrewE
reply on June 29th, 2008 9:23 am:
Heh…there are certain things I’m not sharing. I don’t have any ingrown toe nails but I do have 2 black ones! My running badges.
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Yep once you get out there its not a big deal. I only got rained on at the end of my run today which wasn’t too bad. Least it cooled me down
You are getting some good distances and base in which is the way to do it - then you can work on speed. The main thing, as my mate Andy the personal trainer says, it doesn’t matter how fast you go just don’t stop.
Trust the surgery isn’t anything too serious and it all goes according to plan.
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AndrewE
reply on June 29th, 2008 9:25 am:
That sounds suspiciously like your blog name…
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Thanks for the tag. Hope all is well and good luck on the pushup challenge!
Blubba
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“How long until I can start running again?”” - the classic question…
Yep, you’re a runner!
Well done on running in the tough conditions,
–Steve
Steves last blog post..Hundred Push Ups: Week 2 Exhaustion Test
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I am going to start the hundred push up challenge on Monday, can’t wait!
Good job on getting out even though the weather was less than favorable. I always forget you guys down under are opposite seasons of us. Here isn’t nasty hot and humid!
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I like to think of the weather not only as as something that can give you variety in your running, but also as something that can make you tougher, whether it’s cold, heat, humidity, rain, wind, etc. Sounds like you’re getting your share of wind and rain!
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I know now that I spend too much time on your blog–I recognized the One Tree Hill run.
Smart move to go inland. Can’t have you flying about the city. Except on winged feet, of course.
When I had surgery on my feet last year, the first thing I asked the podiatrist was when I could work out again. Then I laughed out loud, because previously my first question would have been, “How long will I be off work?”
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I love running in the rain, but no rain in SA
at the moment…
Best luck with the surgery
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Hey Andrew, nice work on the running in the rain. I’ve also noticed a quiet extension in your running distance. I am always pretty happy with my 5km-odd each or every other day. Yet you’re quietly getting above 10 and up to 16km from memory. That is awesome!
And I echo Steve’s comment” Yep! You’re a runner!”
Bill Wallaces last blog post..Day 83 - The Dark Side Revisits
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Wow, congrats! I can’t remember the last time I ran in the rain. Anyhow, I like your transparency and willingness to share your shortcoming with your readers.
Hang in there, and all the best with the 100 push-up challenge!
Miguel Wickerts last blog post..Health News Update
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[...] is my hero. Rain or shine he’s out there running. I mean just look at his post Running in the rain! He’s better than the [...]
The weather you have down there sounds like Seattle to me in the winter time. GREAT BLOG !!!! Thanks for visiting my blog frequently.
GOOD LUCK with the upcoming surgery. I hope it nothing major and it is just a minor thing. Is this something you will be able to get back to running quickly or need some time to recover. Whatever the case, I do hope you will come out with flying colors!!!
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Ditto the best wishes for the surgery.
Yeah, still sound kinda wierd to me when that question comes out of my mouth or when begging a doc to let me do something. How times have changed, all for the better.
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just out of curiousity - you may have mentioned it, but i missed it. What do you use to make your maps of your running routes? are they handmade - or do you use a software - online or otherwise?
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AndrewE
reply on July 7th, 2008 9:43 am:
I use sport tracks.
http://www.zonefivesoftware.com/SportTracks/
AndrewEs last blog post..Weigh-in: Up and at ‘em!
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