A Gentle Long Run

Scheduled Run: 22km
Actual Run: 22km

After yesterday's unexpectedly long run, I felt like I had rocks tied to my feet today.

Fortunately, I had someone to run with.

Caralin's brother-in-law, Darryl, is a couple of weeks away from running the Walt Disney World Goofy Race And A Half. He's more of a 5:30-6:00-minute runner, so we took it very easy and had a nice gentle (in my books) long run around Waterloo.

I appreciated being held back - I have a horrible lack of self-control that sometimes hurts me when I'm tired. Having someone there to keep me at a gentle pace was a great help today.

Waterloo has a great trail that runs down through its centre on which we did a 17km out-and-back loop.

The loop was 5km short of my target distance, so I headed off for a quick blast at the end to make up the mileage. I cut loose at this point, and increased my pace from about 5:30/km to 4:30/km. Finally, my legs felt good!

The only blemish on today's run (apart from my lead-like legs) was the ice. The temperature was just below freezing, which made for treacherous footing throughout the run.

Apart from that, the great scenery, conversation and a generally easy pace made for a fun run.

22k - Waterloo Park/Iron Horse Trail

A 17km out-and-back route from north-west Waterloo, with a 5km addition at the end. The first part of the run is flat throughout; some small hills on the last 5km.

• From Columbia Lake Health Club (Hagey Blvd and Wes Graham Way) head south on Hagey Blvd
• Cross south over Columbia Street West and turn left (east) at the end of the road
• Follow the road as it bends right (south), and follow the adjacent trail south-east through Waterloo Park
• When you hit Erb Street, head south on Caroline Street S
• Just after crossing Allen Street West, turn right and follow the trail south
• Continue along the trail as it becomes the "Iron Horse Trail," through to the end at Ottawa Street South
• Retrace your steps to the beginning of the run

Optional extension (one-way point-to-point - I ran this to make up the mileage I needed):

• Head north on Hagey Boulevard, then turn left onto Bearinger Road
• Turn right onto Pine Ridge Road. Follow the trail on the left-hand side through to Westmount Road North
• Turn left (north) at the lights and head north on Westmount Road North
• Turn left onto Benjamin Road and run through to the Maple Syrup Shop about 1.5km along on the right-hand side.

Here's the map and the stats from my run:

View Larger Map

Boston Training - 'Week Three' Write-Up And 'Week Four' Look-Ahead

This was a tough week, and quite a jump in mileage from last week.

Part of that extra mileage was making up for a 12km run that I skipped last Saturday - I slotted that into Monday and took Tuesday as a rest day before back-to-back 15 & 16km runs on Wednesday and Thursday.

Yesterday's (Saturday) run was unintentionally long, which made for an interesting long run today.

Running Log: Week Three

Day	Scheduled Run	Actual Run
Sunday	22km steady	22.5km steady
Monday	(12km recovery)	13.7km recovery
Tuesday	15km comfortable	Rest
Wednesday	Rest	15km steady
Thursday	15km comfortable	16km comfortable
Friday	Rest	Rest
Saturday	12km recovery	16.6km comfortable
Total	76km week	84km week

This week should be a little easier - I'll try to stay a little closer to the planned mileage and I'll have the benefit of actually having a rest day after my long run.

Training Program: Week Four

Day	Scheduled Run
Sunday	22km comfortable
Monday	Rest
Tuesday	15km comfortable
Wednesday	10km recovery
Thursday	15km steady
Friday	Rest
Saturday	12km recovery
Total	74km week

Horror Hill... Then Another Horrible Hill... Then Another

Scheduled Run: 12km recovery
Actual Run: 17km comfortable

A little northwest of Waterloo there's a nasty hill known as Horror Hill.

It's nasty enough to have a race named after it.

Today I ran up Horror Hill... after running up another big one. Then, for good measure, I ran up another one.

The first half of this run was relentless.

The second half was just icy.

So much for a recovery run :)

The scenery more than made up for it though - some of the views across the countryside, and the huge houses dotted around it, were spectacular.

15k - Heidelberg/Paradise Lake/St. Clements Loop

A simple but hilly loop north-west of Waterloo, in southern Ontario.

• From Regional Road 16 (Kressler Road) and Lobsinger Line, head south on RR16
• Turn right (west) onto Regional Road 14 (Weimer Line)
• Turn right (north) onto Township Road 4 (Maplewood Road)
• The road bends right then left around the edge of Paradise Lake. Continue north on the same road, up to Lobsinger Line
• Turn right (east) and head back to the start at the RR16/Lobsinger Line intersection.

Here's the map and the stats from my run.

It's Oh So Quiet... Shhhh... Shhhh...

Scheduled run: 15km
Actual run: 16km

Today's run was a wealth of contrasts.

Most noticeably, the first half of the run was almost completely deserted.

In the first 8km of the run (all on-road), I saw a total of two cars. In the second 8km I saw dozens, if not hundreds.

Also:

• For the first 12km of the route, I ran in daylight. 10 minutes later, it was dark
• For the first 12km of the route, the air was calm and dry. For the last 4km, it was windy and snowy
• I ran half the route on clear roads, and the other half on snow and ice.

Keeps things interesting!

16k - Wiarton Loop - South Wiarton/Clavering Loop

A square route south of Wiarton a couple of small hills, but nothing major.

• From Grey Road 1 and Zion Church Road, head south for about 4km
• After about 4km, turn right (east) onto Concession 16
• After about 4km, turn right (north) onto Highway 6
• After another 4km, turn right (west) and head back to the finish at Zion Church Road.

Here's the map and the stats from my run.

I Love The People In Wiarton!

Today's scheduled run: 15km (postponed from yesterday)
Today's actual run: 15km

One of the most striking differences between Toronto and Wiarton is the people.

I mentioned this the other day - in Toronto, motorists are more likely to ignore you or run you down then anything else.

It's completely different up here.

After my observations the other day, I decided to do a (not very) scientific experiment today. I watched the reaction of every driver that drove towards me (20 in total).

Observation #1: Road Positioning

As a rule of thumb, you should try to run on the left-hand side of the road so you can see the traffic coming your way.

In Toronto (aside from possibly getting mown down by a cyclist), drivers are most likely to sound the horn and continue straight on, narrowly missing you. You're expected to avoid them, not the other way around.

In Wiarton, drivers often switch to the other side of the road to give you room. Roughly half of the drivers today did this.

Of course, drivers in Toronto have to contend with much more traffic coming the other way, which makes switching lanes much harder (and hopping onto the other side of the road is just plain suicidal). Still, there's usually room to leave and Torontonians don't leave it.

Advantage: Wiarton

Observation #2: Acknowledgement

This one blew me away - 14 out of the 20 drivers I saw today waved to say hi.

I've never seen this in Toronto.

Winner: Wiarton

It's cold, wet, windy and snowy, but I like running up here.

15k - Wiarton Loop - Grey Road 1/Northacres Road/Elm Road Loop

A simple rectangular route on the south side of Wiarton. One significant hill; other than that, the route is relatively flat.

• From Grey Road 1 and Zion Church Road, head west
• Cross Highway 6 and continue west to North Acres Road
• Turn right (north) onto North Acres Road
• Turn right (east) onto Elm Street
• Cross Highway 6, drop down into the valley then climb out the other side
• Turn right (south) onto Thompson's Sideroad
• Turn left (east) onto Grey Road 1 and return to the start/finish point.

Here's the route and the stats from my run.

Hills + Ice = Tough

Despite the 23km run on Sunday, I wanted to get out and make up the 12km I missed from Saturday.

My legs were pretty tired (you should feel them now!) so I kept to a fairly gentle 4:50/km pace, but it still felt pretty tough. Three main reasons:

• I ran the second half of the route into a bitter headwind that seemed to threaten to blow me backwards at times
• The route included several short, sharp hills. That was fine, but the route was along sideroads (it's Wiarton - all the roads are sideroads) that were covered in ice. Made it pretty tough to get up a couple of them
• Just as I was switching my iPod from podcasts to music for a little extra motivation, the iPod died. Yuck.

Bottom line: I made up the mileage. I'm postponing today's 15km to tomorrow, though - my legs are so stiff I can barely make it down stairs right now. Hopefully they'll recover by tomorrow.

On that note, I'm getting myself a beer and settling down with the family to prepare for Christmas dinner.

Merry Christmas!

14k - Wiarton Loop - Grey Road 1/Elm Road Loop

A simple loop south-east of Wiarton. Includes a couple of very sharp, but short, climbs.

• From Grey Road 1 and Zion Church Road, head east
• Turn left (north) onto Gleason Lake Road
• Turn left (west) onto Concession 21
• Turn left (south) onto Zion Church Road, and return to the start.

Here's the map and the stats from my run.

This run is well outside the GTA, so no TTC info for this one.

Boston Training - 'Week Two' Write-Up And 'Week Three' Look-Ahead

This week was a weird one:

• Last weekend's snowstorm threw off my Sunday run, which I ended up doing on a treadmill (yuck)
• Thursday's '15km' run ended up as the Runners' Shop's annual carol run - a very gentle 6km interspersed with mutilations of popular carols
• I had to skip yesterday's run as I was stuck in a car heading out of the city.

Running Log: Week Two

All told, I managed about 42km. Compared to my schedule:

Day	Scheduled Run	Actual Run
Sunday	18km comfortable	Rest
Monday	Rest	18km steady
Tuesday	15km comfortable	17km comfortable
Wednesday	Rest	Rest
Thursday	15km steady	6km slooooow
Friday	Rest	Rest
Saturday	12km recovery	Rest
Total	60km week	42km week

I plan on making up the missed 12km run tomorrow if the weather doesn't turn - we're forecast snow squalls throughout the day.

Training Program: Week Three

Day	Scheduled Run
Sunday	22km steady
Monday	(12km recovery)
Tuesday	15km comfortable
Wednesday	Rest
Thursday	15km comfortable
Friday	Rest
Saturday	12km recovery
Total	76km week

This week's audio tips: planning out your winter running route.

A Breath Of Fresh Air

Caralin and I have now left Toronto and headed north to Wiarton for Christmas, so I ran today's run along the roads in that area.

I immediately noticed a couple of things:

1. The roads are no-where near as clear (especially of ice) as those in Toronto
2. The air feels so much cleaner than back in the T-dot.

Today's run was long and not particularly fast, primarily because it was windy, rainy and (as previously mentioned) icy.

However, a few highlights stick out for me:

• The people around here are so friendly! In Toronto, if a driver does anything to acknowledge your presence (apart from trying to run you down) it's usually to berate you for adding two seconds to their journey as they wait to pass you.
  
  Today, about three quarters of the people that drove by me smiled and waved.
• The scenery around here is amazing.
  
  I've known this for a while - I've been coming up here for five years now - but it always strikes me when I first come back.
  
  Today, two features in particular stood out:
• Cresting a hill about 5km into the run, and running down towards Georgian Bay
• Tantalizing glimpses of disused mining and farm buildings through the trees about 17km into the route.
• I have the most thoughtful and considerate girlfriend ever.
  
  I arrived back at the house to find that Caralin made me a tofu smoothie to help me recover from the run before she headed out shopping with the rest of the family.
  
  I won't comment on the taste (we only had extra-firm tofu - not exactly the ideal texture), but it stopped me from falling into the dehydrated stupor that I tend to descend into after long runs.

And yes, once again I forgot my liquids on today's run. Fortunately I'd planned to buy more mid-way through, so I was able to get some after about 11km.

So, despite the less than ideal conditions, this was a fun run.

23k - East-Side Wiarton Loop

A simple loop around the eastern side of Wiarton. One significant hill rougly half-way through the route; another long climb near the end.

• From Grey Road 1 and Zion Church Road, head north on Zion Church Road
• Turn left (west) onto Grey Road 26, and head west into Wiarton
• Turn left (south) onto Berford Street (Highway 6)
• Turn left (east) onto Concession 17
• Turn left (north) onto Zion Church Road, and head back to the start at the intersection with Grey Road 1.

Here's the map and the stats from my run.

Transit Info: Yeah, right.

Runners' Shop Carol Run

As I mentioned in my last post, Thursday saw the Runners' Shop crew tour Toronto and massacre sing a bunch of carols at all of the big 'ol downtown Christmas trees while wearing a bunch of silly hats.

In the spirit of the season, I promised to share photos from the night. Well, here are the best of the bunch:

1) The gang busting out the tunes in Dundas Square

2) Elaine singing with a little too much enthusiasm to be truly healthy

3) Group shot near Bay & Bloor Streets (I'm third from right, at the back)

  4) The Elaines... "all together now..."

An Unexpected Change

Tonight's run with the Runners' Shop group turned out not to be a 15km blast, but the annual Carol Run.

Rather than a proper run, this consisted of 25 runners dressed in elf hats jogging around downtown Toronto and singing carols by all the Christmas trees. No workout whatsoever, but a complete hoot nonetheless.

People tended to have one of two reactions:

• "Merry Christmas! Good on ya!" or
• "Bah, humbug, get off the streets, when I was your age..." etc etc

To the second group, I'm glad I'm not you. To the first, happy *.holidays!

I'm waiting to get the pictures from tonight; I'll write more once I have them.

I have tomorrow scheduled as a rest day

Snowy, Slushy Mess... And A Call For Route Requests

Today's run was a little bundle of joy.

Unfortunately, that bundle was largely buried under knee-deep snow.

Ed Lee, a friend (Ed, can I call you that? I don't know... your call... we've still never actually met!) from the PR world, requested a nice and easy 15km route in Toronto's north end. Who am I to refuse?!

Scheduled: 15km comfortable
Actual: 17.45km comfortable

The route I plotted for Ed was 15km - this distance includes me running to & from home to get there.

The main problem tonight (as I alluded earlier) was that the sidewalks along a good quarter of the route weren't yet plowed following this weekend's snowstorm.

Surprisingly, it wasn't the out-of-the-way residential areas that were uncleared, but the major routes towards the north end of the run.

I guess the residents in the other areas were well enough off to get their sidewalks cleared!

For several stretches of the run I was reduced to a walk to avoid breaking an ankle as I trudged through knee-deep snow.

Other parts of the run brought new meaning to the word "singletrack" as I ran tightrope-style along the tire tracks of vehicles that had driven along the sidewalk.

On the whole though, the run was good. A particular highlight for me was the affluent York Mills and Hoggs Hollow neighbourhoods - some of the massive houses around there were quite a sight in the snow.

It was actually nice to be forced to take it at a 'comfortable' pace for once - I'm not very good at throttling back when I'm out there.

Overall, a nice run... would have been nicer without the white stuff though.

Any other route requests?

15k - Yonge/York Mills/Bayview/Eglinton Loop

A simple 15km loop from Yonge & Eglinton that heads north, east through the affluent York Mills neighbourhood, then south via Bayview Avenue. Relatively flat, although you will have to deal with the infamous "Hogg's Hollow."

Note: During winter, sidewalks on Yonge Street (north of York Mills Road) and Bayview Avenue (north of Lawrence Avenue) may be unplowed. Tread carefully in those areas to avoid injury.

• From Yonge Street & Eglinton Avenue, head north on Yonge
• Continue north for about 5km, passing Lawrence Avenue and York Mills Road
• Turn right (east) just south of Highway 401 onto Lord Seaton Road
• Turn left (north) onto Upper Canada Drive and follow the road as it bends eastwards
• Turn right (south-east) onto Montressor Drive
• Turn left (south-east) onto Toba Drive
• Turn right (south-west) onto Fifeshire Road. Follow Fifeshire as it bends left and heads east
• Turn right (south) onto Bayview Avenue
• Continue south on Bayview to Eglingon Avenue East
• Turn right (west) onto Eglinton Avenue
• Head west on Eglinton and back to the start/finish at Yonge Street.

Here's the map and the stats from my (snow-logged) run.

TTC Info: This run starts and ends at Eglinton subway station, although it could just as easily start from Lawrence or York Mills stations.

Another Indoor Run

The conditions outside were still pretty bad for running tonight after this weekend's storm, so I did my run indoors on a treadmill. Shudder.

Scheduled: 18km comfortable
Actual: 18.13km comfortable

I ran a bit harder than perhaps I needed to because, quite frankly, I hate running indoors. I wanted it to be over sooner.

That means no new route for today.

At least I'm back on track for the week now.

Boston Training - Week Two

This week is my first full week of training for Boston 2008.

Each week I'll look at how the previous week matched up to the training program, and take a quick look at what's coming up.

If you're only interested in my training notes for Boston, you can subscribe to these posts here.

Running Log: Week One

Day	Scheduled Run	Actual Run
Sunday	-	Rest
Monday	-	16km steady
Tuesday	-	7km tempo
Wednesday	-	Rest
Thursday	15km comfortable	15km steady
Friday	Rest	Rest
Saturday	12km recovery	14km recovery
Total	50km	52km

Training Program: Week Two

Day	Scheduled Run
Sunday	18km comfortable
Monday	Rest
Tuesday	15km comfortable
Wednesday	Rest
Thursday	15km steady
Friday	Rest
Saturday	12km recovery
Total	60km week

Today's weather is abysmal, so I may do the 18km on Monday instead of today.

Given the lack of response to the idea of a Boston training podcast (i.e. none... come on people! David Hill, I know you're out there...), I've decided to dial it back a bit and record a series of training tips throughout my Boston preparation instead.

Today: five tips for preparing for winter runs.

Snow, Ice, Cold... Fun!

Toronto (and most of Canada) got slapped by its first big storm this weekend.

Snow started overnight on Friday and is heavier than ever as I write at lunchtime on Sunday.

These photos are from my apartment this morning.

Needless to say, I ran anyway (well, yesterday...)

I came back from shovelling about 20cm of snow this morning, and came to the conclusion there isn't much running to be had right now.

Yesterday's run was... well... like running on ice. Funny - I was.

Here's a tip (I actually thought of this a long time back but forgot when designing yesterday's route): Don't run through little-used parks in winter.

• Trails aren't maintained
• Paths can be like an ice rink
• Uneven snow can break ankles

I found myself running off the (relatively clear) path in the park and through the thick snow, to avoid my feet going out from under me with every step.

Aside from that, the run was pretty good. I forced myself to get out of my immediate area - I headed north on the subway and ran through some areas I hadn't explored before. Slow and steady given the conditions, but it was supposed to be a recovery run anyway.

And so... the first full week of Boston training begins!

13k - Sheppard/Earl Bales Park/North Toronto Point-to-Point

An easy point-to-point run starting at Sheppard subway station and looping around to Davisville station.

Winter Advice: Find an alternative to Earl Bales Park in the winter, as the park gets very icy (trust me on this).

• From Yonge Street and Sheppard Avenue, run west
• After crossing the bridge over the Don River, turn left (south) down Don River Boulevard
• Turn right at the bottom of the hill, and follow the path along through Earl Bales Park (note: winter advice above)
• Immediately after passing the bridge into the Don Valley Golf Course, turn right then quickly left along a wide track away from the main path
• Turn right onto Westgate Boulevard (not signposted), and climb out of the valley
• Follow Westgate Blvd through to Southbourne Avenue
• Turn left (west) onto Southbourne then left (south) onto Bathurst Street
• At the first set of lights, turn left (east) onto Wilson Avenue
• Follow Wilson for about 1.5km, then turn right (southeast) onto Yonge Boulevard.
• Turn right (south) onto Ridley Boulevard, then right again (east) onto Old Orchard Grove
• Turn left (south) onto Greer Road
• When Greer Road ends at Chatsworth Drive, head diagonally right onto Cheritan Avenue
• Turn left and drop down towards the baseball diamond
• Follow the trail on your left down through Chatsworth Ravine and up to Duplex Avenue, before dropping down again into Duplex Parkette and emerging onto Yonge Street
• Head south to the finish at Davisville Avenue.

Here's the map and the stats from my run.

TTC Info: This run starts at Sheppard subway station and ends at Davisville station.

Boston Training Begins

First things first: today's run. Once of my Twitter posts from this afternoon says it all:

Boston Training - Here we go...

I got my Boston Marathon training program today. Here's how it looks in general:

Week 1: 50km (this week)
Week 2: 60km
Week 3: 60-64km
Week 4: 74km
Week 5: 78km
Week 6: 80km
Week 7: 86km
Week 8: 72km
Week 9: 90km
Week 10: 92km
Week 11: 67km
Week 12: 76km inc. Peterborough Half Marathon (TBC)
Week 13: 108km
Week 14: 103km
Week 15: 106km
Week 16: 78km
Week 17: 84km inc. Around The Bay 30km
Week 18: 52km
Week 19: 35km
Week 20: Boston Marathon

I'll post the detailed schedule for each week as I go, and I'm toying with starting a podcast for the duration of the training - any thoughts?

15k - Rosedale/Bayview/Eglinton/Russell Hill Loop

A hilly loop similar to a route posted in October 2007.

• From Bloor and Avenue, head over to Bedford Road then north up to Davenport Road
• Head east to Avenue Road, then north one street to Pears Avenue
• Turn right (east) onto Pears, then cut through the park over to Yonge Street
• Cross Yonge Street and continue along Crescent Road
• Turn left onto South Drive then left onto Glen Road
• Turn right onto Douglas Road and follow that as it bends around the outside of Chorley Park
• Turn left onto Astley Avenue, right onto Governor's Bridge then left onto Nesbitt Drive
• Turn left (north) onto Bayview Avenue, and follow that up to Soudan Avenue
• Turn left (west) onto Soudan Avenue and run over to Mount Pleasant Road
• Turn right (north) on Mount Pleasant, then left (west) onto Eglinton Avenue East
• Follow Eglinton Avenue along to Russell Hill Road
• Turn left (south) onto Russell Hill Road. Follow it south across St. Clair Avenue, continue south then turn right onto Boulton Drive
• Continue south onto Davenport Road; follow that as it bends left, then turn right onto Bedford Road
• Follow Bedford Road south, back to Bloor Street West.

Here's the map and my run stats.

TTC Info: This run starts and ends near both St. George and Bay stations.

Garmin, Are You Listening?

I got my GPS watch (a Garmin Forerunner 305) a few months back (after much trauma with Purolator), and it hasn't disappointed.

Except in one area.

It won't let you tell it that you've stopped.

Even if you push "stop."

Here's the deal.

Garmin's subsidiary MotionBased lets you upload your runs and provides detailed analysis of the data. It's pretty cool - you can do funky stuff with Google Maps, do some neat data tracking and is basically a geek's wet dream.

Unfortunately, MotionBased, for a reason unbeknownst to me, won't let you import files over a certain size.

To get around that, they recommend you use the 'smart recording' function, which tracks your speed every few seconds instead of every second, and averages out your speed over a few of those points.

Still with me? Good.

Now, here's the problem.

In Toronto, you hit a lot of red lights. That means you have to stop a lot. With 'smart recording,' it often thinks you're still running waaaaay after you've stopped.

If you're trying to track your time accurately, that's a problem. Especially on long runs.

I know, I know... this doesn't actually affect my training. I'm not getting any less fit because of this. It doesn't make me a slower runner.

But here's the thing.

1. You're the ones forcing me not to use the more accurate feature that's built in to your watch... because of your software... and charging me to use that software!
2. Why provide a 'total moving time' measurement if it's not accurate, and you know it won't be?
3. The kind of person that buys a $300 GPS watch (me) and uses a tool like MotionBased is probably a little anal about their running stats. You're messing with my obsession.

According to the 'moving time,' my runs are frequently several minutes longer than I time them to be using the stopwatch. That's very frustrating, especially when I'm trying to hit a certain pace.

Garmin... FIX IT!

I went to a presentation recently by a guy from named Richard Binhammer (aka RichardatDELL). He's the main guy behind Dell's blogger outreach - his job is to get out there and respond to bloggers that write about Dell.

Garmin seems to be trying to build an online community through MotionBased. To build a community, you need to listen.

Garmin, are you listening?

Pace, Pace and More Pace... Uh... Why?

Before I get to my run comments, I have a request for Toronto drivers:

Please stop trying to hit me

Seriously, what have I done to hurt you?

Last week I was a couple of yards from being taken out by an idiot who pulled out of a parking lot off Avenue Road, across the sidewalk, without slowing down.

Last night I was about 6 inches from being hit by another lovely person who turned right on a red light without slowing down... and then seemed to think it was my fault for her nearly hitting me.

Caralin thinks I should start running with a key in my hand, and key any car that comes close to smoking me. Personally I think that's a bit extreme, but seriously people...

The rules of the road aren't optional

Ok, rant over.

For some reason, I felt like doing some speed work yesterday.

Don't ask me why.

I did the 8 miler on Sunday and my legs weren't 100%, but I couldn't stomach the idea of doing a long run at one pace.

So, I came up with a 16km route with 6 x 430m intervals in the middle (after about 7.5km).

Again, don't ask me why. I don't have an answer for you.

What I didn't realize was that the interval streets were on a hill.

Ouch.

Given how tired my legs were, my intervals weren't too bad. Especially as I limited recovery to 40 seconds:

1. 410m - 1:32 - downhill
2. 430m - 1:46 - uphill
3. 430m - 1:39 - downhill
4. 430m - 1:45 - uphill
5. 430m - 1:37 - downhill
6. 430m - 1:49 - uphill

I was not pretty after the last one. Ok, I wasn't pretty to start with, but I was sweaty and not pretty after the last one.

The rest of the run was pretty slow, partly because of the conditions, partly because of the frequent red traffic lights and partly because I was exhausted.

For the record I ran again today, but I ran on a treadmill at the gym so there isn't much to say. 30 minutes, 7.25km.

• 10 minutes at 8.8 miles/hr (14.15km/hr)
• 10 minutes at 9 miles/hr (14.47km/hr)
• 5 minutes at 9.3 miles/hr (14.95km/hr)
• 5 minutes at 9.6 miles/hr (15.44km/hr)
• About 30 minutes sweating my ass off afterwards (0km/hr)

Nice.

16k - Cabbagetown/Riverdale/Leslieville Loop

A simple 16km loop through Toronto's eastern downtown area, with (optional) intervals mid-way through. Route is flat, but traffic lights can interfere if you're hoping for a fast run.

• From Yonge and Grosvenor (just north of College), head east along Alexander Street
• Turn right (south) onto Mutual Street
• Turn left (east) onto Carlton Street
• At Parliament Street, turn right and head south to Gerrard Street East
• Turn left (east) onto Gerrard and run east until you reach Greenwood Avenue
• Optional 430m intervals:
  • Turn right (south) on the first road after Greenwood (Highfield Road), and head south at interval pace to Dundas Street East.
  • Turn left (east) and jog along Dundas to the next street (Woodland Road)
  • Turn left and run at interval pace back up to Gerrard
  • Repeat this for each street until you reach Coxwell
• Turn right (south) onto Coxwell Avenue and head down to Queen Street East
• Turn right (west) onto Queen Street and head over to Yonge Street
• Turn right (north) onto Yonge and run back up to the start/finish.

Here's the map and the stats from my run.

TTC Info: This run starts and ends near College subway station.

8 On The 8th Quasi-Race Report

In keeping with my social media obsession, I ran another virtual race today (my other one was the Worldwide Half Marathon a couple of months back).

This time it was an 8-miler, or 12.83km to everyone outside the US.

First things first.

Results

I guess my time depends on how you measure it. My GPS does some crazy-funky stuff to the distance and times to correct for elevation changes etc. This makes it all lovely and complicated, not least as I turned out to have run 150m further than I needed to.

For the sake of an easy life I'll go with that time anyway and suck up the extra distance, unless Nancy tells me there's suddenly a huge prize package on offer :)

So, I'm going to go by the time I recorded on the watch before MotionBased got all creative on my stats:

0:55:35

That's my time and I'm sticking to it.

That works out to 4:23 per km, or 7:02 per mile.

The route details are here, the run stats (based on a slightly longer route) are here.

Thoughts

Number one: Nancy - great idea for this event!

Number two: My GPS watch is pissing me off. More on that soon.

Number three: Yucky conditions outside - it snowed for most of today, so the roads were slushy and slippery, and there was lots of ankle-breaking ice hidden under the snow. Not conducive to running fast.

Number four: We hosted our Christmas party last night, and I did NOT re-hydrate before this run. It kicked my ass.

Lots of fun though! Curious how everyone else did. Guess I'll find out soon!

13k - Mid-Town Toronto/Leaside Loop

13km loop through mid-town Toronto. Rolling hills on the second half of the run.

• From Yonge Street & St. Clair, head north on the west side of Yonge Street
• Fork left onto Lawton Boulevard opposite the Fox and the Fiddle pub just north of the start
• Follow Lawton Blvd as it bends left, then turn right (north) onto Lascelles Boulevard
• When you reach Oriole Park, take the right-hand path leading diagonally across the park
• Turn right (east) onto Chaplin Crescent, then left (north) onto Duplex Avenue
• Follow Duplex Ave up to Lawrence Avenue West
• Turn right (east) onto Lawrence Avenue
• Turn right (south) and follow the ramp onto Bayview Avenue
• Follow Bayview Avenue south to Merton Street
• Turn right (west) onto Merton Street
• Turn right (south) onto Mount Pleasant Road and run down to St. Clair Avenue East
• Turn right (west) on St. Clair Avenue and head back to Yonge Street.

Here's the map and the stats from my run (note: I started part-way through the route so the start/finish points are off).

TTC Info: This run starts and finishes at St. Clair subway station. You may also start mid-way through the loop at Lawrence station.

More Catch-Up And More Winter Milestones

My 'woe is me, I'm too busy to stay up-to-date' theme continues - another crazy week this week meant I haven't had a chance to update this site for a while.

So, this post will bring me up-to-date except for today's run, which will get its own posts (route and thoughts).

I've run twice since my last post:

• An 18km beast on Wednesday night
• A 15km blast on Thursday

Wednesday night saw another winter milestone - my water bottle froze shut for the first time this year. Apparently Accelerade isn't as good at staving off the cold as Gatorade is.

Unfortunately, I didn't have any cash with me to get more drink, so I did two thirds of my 18.5km run with no liquid.

I was a basket case for the rest of the evening.

Fortunately, Caralin is pretty tolerant, so aside from a couple of sighs and the usual "why do you do this to yourself?!" (I get that after most runs) she took pretty good care of me as I collapsed onto the couch!

Apart from the hydration issues, the run wasn't too bad. I wrote last week that I would try to get outside my 'comfort zone' in terms of routes, so I did another 'Toronto extremities' run.

I hopped on the subway and kept going until the end of the line, then ran back. Mucho fun, apart from the -8 temperature (plus the wind chill), anyway.

I haven't posted a route for Thursday's run, because I ran with the Runners' Shop running group and did a route I've posted before (in reverse, though, so maybe it counts as different... no...?). I decided a while back that I'll have to deal with this if I want to run with the group, and it's only going to get worse. I'll get to why that is in a moment.

Another good run - a little warmer, but I didn't bother with liquid for this one anyway (I seem to have a mental barrier around the 15km mark - I often don't worry about hydration for less than that...really dumb, I know). We didn't run it too hard, but it was a reasonable pace anyway.

One thing I did notice - in residential areas, the sidewalks are often better cleared of snow and ice than the roads are - weird!

This week sees the start of my training program for Boston. I'm getting my schedule on Thursday, which I'll post up here.

A few implications of this:

• I'll have to repeat more routes as I'll probably run with the running group twice per week instead of once
• My mileage will go up (although maybe not at first)
• I'll have to run on more days
• Route planning will be tougher (as if it isn't tough enough trying to find new routes every time anyway) as I'll have a set distance to aim for, rather than whatever I feel like

This timing works out well - I'm starting my new job tomorrow so things will likely get even busier than they have been recently - I'll need someone to put a boot up my backside and this may do it.

Looking forward to it!

18k - Kennedy/Eglinton/Don Mills/Millwood/Yonge

A point-to-point route from the east end of Toronto's subway system through to Queen's Park.

Note: Parts of this route can be icy in the winter; Overlea Boulevard in particular is very slippery in places.

• From Kennedy Station (Kennedy Road & Eglinton Avenue East) head west on Eglinton Avenue
• Turn left (south) onto Don Mills Road
• Head right (west) on Overlea Boulevard
• (Optional) Turn left (south) on Thorncliffe Park Drive. Follow it around as it loops around and turn left back onto Overlea
• Turn right (west) onto Millwood Road
• Turn left (south-west) briefly onto Southvale Drive then right almost immediately back onto Millwood Road
• Follow Millwood along to Mount Pleasant Road, then take the first left after Mount Pleasant and head down to Davisville Avenue
• Turn right (west) onto Davisville Avenue and follow it along to Yonge Street
• Head left (south) on Yonge Street
• You can scale the run as desired from here-on. You can finish at:
• St. Clair subway station (~15.25km total)
• Summerhill subway station (~15.8km total)
• Rosedale subway station (~16.5km total)
• Yonge/Bloor subway station (~17.3km total)
• Wellesley subway station (~18km total)
• or turn right on Wellesley Street West and head over to the finish at Queen's Park Crescent

Here's the map and the stats from my run.

TTC Info: This run starts at Kennedy subway station and finishes close to both Queen's Park and Museum subway stations.

I Hate Running Indoors

Running indoors is boring.

It was freezing tonight, so I decided to run at the downtown YMCA tonight.

Good idea, right? Warm, sheltered, flat...

BORING!

Problem #1: You're only allowed to use their treadmills for 30 minutes at a time.

I have an issue with this: seriously, what proportion of their users do you really think want to run for more than 30 minutes? Not enough to cause a problem, methinks.

Meanwhile, their policy means I have to interrupt my run (and rhythm) mid-flow and head upstairs to the running track half way through my run.

Problem #2: They have a 110m (ish) track. It was one of the selling points for me when I was looking for a gym.

Running track = cool, right?

Wrong.

Running track + long run = dizzy + bored.

Oh, and seriously people, if you want to read the paper, do it somewhere other than the running track! I kid you not - there was a lady walking (barely) slowly around the track while reading the newspaper.

You know, you could do that at home without paying the gym fee, and you'd probably get more of a workout getting up from the couch occasionally and making coffee.

I planned to run for between 75 and 90 minutes tonight. I cut it off after an hour so I didn't go postal on someone out of frustration.

Oh, my run info, for those of you who care:

• Distance: Roughly 14km
• Time: 1:01:43
• Avg heart rate: 157bpm
• Max heart rate: 170bpm
• Not killing the old biddy dawdling around the track: priceless.

Making Up The Miles

I missed my scheduled run yesterday, so headed out this morning to make up the mileage.

I should have run yesterday!

It was -11 this morning; -20 with the wind chill. Not shorts & t-shirt weather.

You know it's cold when:

• Your hands are steaming at the end of the run
• You have ice inside your gloves (I kid you not - I had two sets of gloves on, and there were big ice crystals between them!)

Nice run despite that though, and surprisingly there were quite a few runners out... though maybe I just noticed them more as there was no-one about apart from us crazies!

One cool highlight: I found a new way down into a ravine footpath I like to run along. Given my mission to not repeat any routes, having a new option is a good thing.

Oh, and I actually motivated myself to run in -20 - that should be a highlight too!

12k - Moore Park Ravine/Leaside Figure-8 Loop

A scenic, hilly route through mid-town Toronto. A couple of notable hills, and some nice trail running.

• From Merton Street & Mount Pleasant Road, head east on Merton Street
• Turn right (south) on Bayview Avenue
• When Bayview Avenue bends left and becomes Bayview Extension Avenue, continue straight along Bayview Heights Drive
• Turn right (west) onto Heath Street East. Head west along Heath Street, crossing over the footbridge and continuing along to the end of the road
• Turn left at the end of the road, following the 'Nature Trail' sign. Drop down into David A. Balfour Park
• Follow the trail south to Craigleigh Gardens, then north as it bends up towards Moore Park Ravine
• Shortly after passing the brickworks on the right-hand side, you will find a steep hill on your left with a trail leading up the site. Climb up this path, and head across Chorley Park
• Head north along Astley Avenue, then turn right onto Governor's Road
• Turn left onto Douglas Crescent, then right onto Nesbitt Drive
• Turn left (northwest) onto Bayview Avenue
• Turn right (east) onto Moore Avenue (which quickly becomes Southvale Drive)
• Turn left (north) onto Laird Drive
• Turn left (southwest) onto McRae Drive
• When McRae Drive hits Bayview Avenue, cross Bayview and continue as McRae becomes Merton Street.
• Continue along Merton Street and back to the start.

Here's the map and the stats from my run.

TTC Info: This run starts and finishes about 1km from Davisville Station. Either head east by foot along Davisville or take the 11 or 28 bus, then head south along Mount Pleasant Road to Merton Street.

Crazy Two-Runs Day

Thursday's running was a little bizarre.

A couple of days beforehand I found out about a gathering that I wanted to go to that evening. Rather than skip the run (I was on a schedule this week, y'know?), I decided to split it in two so I could manage that AND beer that day.

First up: a quick lunchtime sprint on the treadmill.

I'm slowly working my pace back up to something approaching respectable. Nearly there.

Here's how it went:

• 10mins @ 8.9m/hr (14.3km/hr)
• 10mins @ 9.1m/hr (14.6km/hr)
• 5mins @ 9.3m/hr (14.95km/hr)
• 5mins @ 9.5m/hr (15.3km/hr)

For a total of 4.54m (7.3km). Not bad for a lunchtime.

I did my second run of the day after work, before heading out. Nothing crazy - about 8.5km at a pretty slow pace. I ran with a work colleague and we took it really easy until the end, when I headed off to do a couple of quick laps around Queen's Park to make up my mileage.

Nothing crazy.

Here's a highlight, though: the route for the second run is the 50th route I've posted on this site. It's slowly becoming the resource I'd love it to be.

I have to force myself to get out and run more of the city again, though. Too many of the routes start where I work or where I live, and that's not useful for most people.

So, next week my challenge to myself is to get outside my comfort 'areas' at least twice. Can I do it? We'll see - this coming week is my last week before moving to my new job, so it may be insanely busy. Running may have to take a back seat, but I hope not.

8k - Annex/Entertainment District Loop

A very straightforward downtown loop through Toronto's entertainment district and Annex neighbourhood. 100% on sidewalks; be warned, the streets on this route can get very busy around rush hour.

• From Queen's Park, head south down University Avenue
• Turn right (east) onto Adelaide Street West
• When you reach Bathurst Street, cross to the west side and continue straight along Portugal Square
• When Portugal Square bends left, turn right onto Adelaide Street West again
• Turn right (north) onto Tecumseth Street
• When you reach Queen Street West, continue straight as Tecumseth becomes Palmerston Avenue
• Turn right (east) onto College Street
• Turn left (north) onto Queen's Park Crescent and run up to the north side of Queen's Park
• Run tempo-pace loops of Queen's Park to reach your required distance

Here's the map and the stats from my run.

TTC Info: This run starts and ends near both Queen's Park and Museum subway stations.