26.2 miles of the NYC Marathon

First 3 miles

The Verrazano-Narrows bridge. I couldn't help but run a little in the beginning since everyone else was running. I quickly made my way to the bottom deck of the bridge, away from the side (to avoid the urban legend of yellow "rain" from the top deck). As soon as I was in the safe zone, I started walking. During my last training run, I did try out my running pouch. The pouch wasn't full so it felt snug on back and wasn't bouncing around. But during the race, with a full pouch, I felt it bouncing up and down as I ran. Annoying but there's nothing I could do about that now.

It was uncomfortable to be just walking since everyone else was running pass me but I decided I'd rather be slow than aggravate the IT band trying to run up the bridge at the very beginning of the marathon. I was also aware that running up the bridge would take a lot out of me. So I just walked and tried to keep up with an elderly man in a green windproof jacket and holding a stick. I only passed him when I was safely at the top of the bridge and I started running a little but when I slowed down to walk, he would walked pass me.

When I got to the bottom of the bridge, I took off the throwaway long-sleeve cotton shirt that I had on and left it by the road side. I passed a barefoot Japanese runner holding a big flag. He stopped and posed for photos with spectators by the side of the road.

Miles 4-13

I wasn't expecting many people to call out my name so I thought I'd try to keep count of the number of times I hear my name being called. I lost count immediately. I used my interval watch and kept to "run 1 minute: walk 2 minutes." But occasionally the cheering and music were so loud that I couldn't hear my watch beeped. Hearing the loud cheers made me want to run longer which I did. After my watch beeped (1 minute run was up) I would decide to run to the next stop light instead of walking immediately. I think by around mile 5 or 6, I realized that I still have a long way to go so I'd better keep to my strategy.

I raised my hands when I heard my name being called.
I high-fived little kids by the side of the road.
I tried to pass and eventually passed a man wearing a miniature Eiffel Tower.
I tried to pass and eventually passed a joggler (a person who runs and juggles at the same time).

Halfway point (13.1 miles)

Ran through the checkpoint in the middle of the Pulaski bridge, checked my Nike pacing band and I was right on pace.

Mile 14-15

Feet started to hurt, especially the balls of my feet. Maybe I should have worn thicker socks. Chatted with a middle-aged man whose pace was similar to mine. Then it was up the Greensboro bridge. Almost everyone was walking up the bridge. Since there were no spectators on the bridge, it was quiet...an eerily quiet march of the walkers. And then I felt a twinge in my left knee...ITBS flare-up! I think this was one of the most disappointing stretch of the marathon. I wasn't sure if I could continue running or if I should just walk the last 10 miles. Walking 10 miles would take a lot of time :( Said many short prayers for God to keep the ITBS away. And I also felt a pre-cramp on the back of my right knee/calf. At the medical station in the middle of the bridge, I asked for and then ate a packet of salt

Mile 16-19

1st Avenue (Manhattan) was supposed to be the stretch with the most and the loudest spectators but I was too caught up in mind with the ITBS flare-up to enjoy the spectators. Besides by the time I got to 1st Avenue there weren't as many spectators around compared to when the elite runners ran by that area. I decided to keep to my "run 1 minute: walk 2 minutes," but when I ran I made sure I ran fast. After a while I realized my left knee wasn't hurting badly, it was just a twitch uncomfortable when I ran.

It was a funny sight because most of the slow people were either walking or running slowly and here I was running fast passing many people and the crowds was excited to cheer on the lone fast (or slightly faster...hehehe) runner. But when my 1 minute was up, I would start walking so it would seem like their cheers didn't spur me on :) It did but I had to keep to my strategy.

Mile 20-22

Tough stretch. It's all a blur. Feet hurt, exhaustion. I walked a lot and was around 2 minutes behind according to the Nike pace band.

Mile 23-25

The stretch to the entrance to Central Park seemed so so long. Occasionally my mind was in a haze. Hmmmm... I wonder if this is what hitting the wall feels like. I had to eat another energy gel to get some sugar in me. I was rather worried that I might faint. When I was running, I kept chanting to myself, "Run and not faint, run and not faint, run and not faint." It is actually "run and not be weary, walk and not faint" but "run and not faint" worked. Or I'd keep running this line in my head, "Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord." Both taken out of context :D but I needed something to keep my mind focused.

Saw Christine and Ivan cheering and taking pictures. Raised my hands and kept running.





Last 1.2 mile

I wanted to keep running but couldn't sustain it, had to walk and run. 300 yards to finish line, I had to walk to conserve some energy so that I could run across the finish line.





I saw the finish line around the corner and started running. There was a group of 4 male runners in front of me. I tried to stay back from them so that my finish line photo would not be obstructed but they were rather slow so I couldn't run fast across the finish line.



Finish line

6:00:12 - I am a marathoner!

NYC Marathon 2009: From the expo to the starting line

Expo (Friday)

From NYC Marathon 2009

I went to the Marathon expo on Friday afternoon. Got my bib, a long-sleeve technical shirt and the goody bag. I really like the shirt, can't wait to wear it on my next run.

From NYC Marathon 2009

The goody bag wasn't much of a "goody" bag. A bottle of water, a bag of almonds, lots of paper stuff, a key chain, a small bag, a pocket-sized anti-bacterial spray... that's about it. I went around the expo and tried some powerbar samples, got some adhesive fabric-like nametag to write my name on, got a fake running photo taken at the New Balance exhibit, and got a customized 6:00 pacing band from the Nike exhibit. Took the free shuttle bus to Paragon Sports and so happened, Deena Kastor (a top American women marathoner) was in the store signing autographs. So took a detour and lined up to get an autographed poster of her. She wrote: Ailsa, Reach for the stars!

From NYC Marathon 2009

Last minute preparation (Saturday night)

To bring or not to bring? Long sleeve or short sleeve? Thin socks or thick socks? Sunblock? Sunglasses? So many decisions to make...

Then it is time to pin the bib on the shirt. Wrote my name on the fabric name tag and stuck it on my shirt. Attached the timing D-tag on my shoes. Turn back the clock on my watch and cellphone, set the alarm for 5:30am. Made my peanut butter and strawberry jam sandwiches. And went to bed by 11pm and tried to get some sleep...

From NYC Marathon 2009

Race day (Sunday)

5:30am - Woke up, quickly got ready, took some pictures, double-checked that I didn't forget anything.

From NYC Marathon 2009

From NYC Marathon 2009

6:25am - Left my friend's place for the Roosevelt Island tram station. Took the tram, walked a few blocks to the subway station and took the train to the ferry terminal. Saw several runners with their UPS bags in the tram. Saw many more runners at the subway station. Ate half a sandwich and drank some Gatorade on the way.

7:10am - Arrived at the ferry terminal. Lots and lots of runners there. I found a seat and ate a banana.

7:30am - Started to line up at the door to the ferry but had to wait around 15-20 minutes before I got on the ferry.

7:50am - On the ferry, ate the other half of my sandwich, drank more. Runners everywhere. I even saw a girl with Lehigh sweatpants on but didn't get to talk to her.

8:22am - Arrived at Staten Island. The staff/volunteers were directing the runners to the right exit to get to the bus. They were using words like "runners" and "marathoners" and I couldn't help but smile. They are referring to me as a marathoner. In actuality, at that moment I was still a would be marathoner :)

8:28am - On the bus. No more seats, had to stand. A lady nearby was complaining that she had to stand...haha.

8:45am - Arrived at Fort Wadsworths. From then on it was the march of the runners. Walked, stopped, walked some more. So many people.

9:10am - Arrived at the Green waiting area. The first thing on my agenda was coffee! And then got 2 powerbars. Placed a trash bag on the floor and sat down to get some last minute preparation done. I thought I had time but then I heard the announcement that the runners would have to place their bags in the UPS trucks before 9:30am. With that, I started pulling out stuff and made some last minute decision of what I have to carry with me during the race. Decided to keep the "throw-away" jacket and pants (warm clothes that are worn till the very last moment and then left behind at the start area) and stuffed them in my UPS bag. At 9:40am, heard the cannon for the first wave start. Excitement was in the air. Everyone cheered! After that, paid a visit to the potta-potty and as predicted...no toilet paper but I was prepared. Before I knew it, the announcement came on for all runners in Wave 3 to get to their respective corrals. Had a few more bites of another sandwich, ate another banana. Pour some gatorade into a small bottle (I wanted to have something to drink during the first 3 miles). Another march of the runners took place. Walked, stopped, walked, stopped.....

10:08am - In my corral, had to use the potta-potty one last time :) Left behind the throwaway hoodie. I had on my long-sleeve wicking shirt and another throwaway long-sleeve cotton t-shirt on top. Wore a pair of gloves. Had on my running hat. Four powerbar gel packets in my back pocket. In my spibelt pouch: a clifbar (energy bar), cellphone, Metrocard, credit card, tissue paper, lipbalm. In my front pocket: the pocket-sized antibacterial spray and sunglasses. Turned on my Garmin watch and waited for it to lock on to the satellites. Everyone was super excited!

10:20am - The cannon for wave 3 start went off..BOOM! The New York, New York song started playing. Since there were so many people, we had to slowly shuffle towards the starting the line. Crossed the starting line...time to race!

60350

That's my bib number.

I think there will be a race tracker thing online on Sunday morning. I can't find the link now but you may be able to find that by going to http://www.nycmarathon.org/ on Sunday morning.

Time to pack...

Marathon weekend is almost here. Tomorrow I'll be taking the bus to NYC and heading to the expo to pick up my bib number and goody bag. I should be packing right now but I'm still lazing around. The past few days have been pretty busy research-wise and I haven't been resting well. I didn't do any running this week, went for a spinning class on Monday and that's it.

Charging my cellphone, Garmin watch and iPod now. I'm not planning to bring my iPod or camera to the race. I think my mind would be too caught up in the "fun" or more likely the "agony" of the run that I won't be in the right mood to snap pictures. But I'm pretty sure there will be many things that I will see on Sunday that I will wish I had my camera with me.

I'm bringing some of my own food to NYC: bread, peanut butter, strawberry jam, banana, clif bars (white chocolate macadamia). All that will be for breakfast on Sunday morning. There will be bagels at the start area but I'm not a fan of bagel with nothing...tough, chewy, dry bread :P

Now I need to decide if I should bring my laptop with me - to NYC, not to the race!

I was watching a Runner's World video last night. Ryan Hall's advice is to be in the moment and not worry about the miles ahead of me. I'll try my best to follow that advice.

Here's a video that shows the NYC marathon course:

Oct 25: Run/walk 8 miles

Distance: 8.01 miles
Duration: 1:49:23
Pace: 13:40/miles

The very last long run before the marathon!

Run 1 minute: walk 2 minutes, except for the last mile which I ran the whole way.

Oct 23: Run/walk 5 miles

Distance: 5.06 miles
Duration: 1:10:11
Pace: 13:52/mile

Knees felt ok. I ran continuously for the last mile.

9 more days....

Oct 21: Run/walk 3 miles

Distance: 3.12 miles
Duration: 39:18
Pace: 12:35/mile

October 20: I'm still running....

Yup, I'm still in training for the NYC marathon, I just haven't been good with logging my runs here. Here's a summary of my training "runs" since the last update.

October 1

Distance: 4.03 miles
Time: 1:05:42
Pace: 16:18/mile


October 4

Distance: 13.14 miles
Time: 4:00:02
Pace: 18:16/mile
Comments: Since my left knee was still iffy, I decided to not run but put in the "on my feet" hours that I needed. I mostly walked the whole 4 hours except for towards the end when I realized that if I wanted to complete a half-marathon distance in 4 hours I would have to run a little bit, which I did. I walked on the trail (which left me with soggy shoes), the road and the track. That was a looooong walk!


October 6

Distance: 3.32 miles
Time: 50:19
Pace: 15:07/mile


October 8

Distance: 4.7 miles
Time: 1:07:60
Pace: 14:28/mile


October 11

Distance: 16.14 miles
Time: 4:23:49
Pace: 16:14/mile
Comments: My longest run ever. If this was the NYC marathon, I would have made it from Staten Island all the way into Manhattan. But still 10 miles to go! I mostly did "run 1 min: walk 2 min" then decided to push a little bit and went "run 2 min: walk 2 min." Unfortunately by mile 14 I could feel the IT band started to ache. It wasn't bad so I continued on but by mile 16 I felt a sharp pain on the outer lateral side of my left knee and with that I ended my long run. I was thinking I was going to try for 18 miles, but 16 miles was still good.


October 14

Distance: 5.05 miles
Time: 1:13:08
Pace: 14:28/mile


October 19

Distance: 9.02 miles
Time: 2:05:53
Pace: 13:58/mile
Comments: Less miles during the last 2 weeks before the marathon. I was trying several run-walk combinations to see what works. Run 1 min: walk 2 min. Run 1 min: walk 1 min.
Remarkably I wasn't faster when I did "run 1: walk 1" compared to "run 1: walk 2." My left knee felt a little uncomfortable when I ran down a slight downhill :(

So the game plan for marathon day is:
1. Run 1 min: walk 2 min (over and over and over)
2. Run at a faster pace during that 1 minute because slow jog aggravates the IT band.
3. When the 2 minute walk starts, walk slower to catch my breath and when ready, pick up my pace to a fast walk.
4. Avoid running uphills or downhills. That will mean I'll be walking over the Verrazano-Narrows bridge at the starting point.
5. For the first 16 miles, stick to "run 1 min: walk 2 min" no matter what and not to go at it harder/faster. The goal is to cross the finish line without limping.

September 26: Run/Walk 1.5 hours

Week 13 (first run): Run/Walk 1.5 hours

Saturday (3:25pm)
Distance: 4.80 miles
Duration: 1:12:58
Pace: 15:12
Shoes: Nike Lunarglide
Weather: Cloudy, 17C

Caught a cold on Tuesday and spent the whole week nursing that cold and I'm still not over it yet. Today, I finally went out for my first run since last Sunday's long run. I did "run 1 minute: walk 2 minutes." ITBS pain did not flare up but I definitely felt the IT band tighten went I ran up a hill.

It's counter-intuitive, instead of running slow to avoid pain, I have to remind myself to go fast to avoid the pain.

With the NYC marathon about one month away, I have pretty much raised the white flag, surrendered, and crawled away from the grueling marathon training.

I may try a 4-hr run/walk for the next 2 weekends. Probably using a light routine like today's "run 1 minute: walk 2 minutes." If I can survive this last month with no ITBS flare-up, I may attempt a "run 1 minute: walk 1 minute" on marathon day. Worse come to worst, I'll walk the whole marathon.

September 20: Run/Walk 2 hours

Week 12 (long run): Run/Walk 2 hours

Sunday (6:52am)
Distance: 8.46 miles
Duration: 2:00:19
Pace: 14:13
Shoes: Nike Lunarglide
Weather: Sunny, 7-12C, 78-99% humidity

Because the run was so long the temperature climbed up 5C in that time. It was really misty this morning.

ITBS flared up!

Even at the beginning of the run, the left knee was tight. I did "run 3 minutes: walk 2 minutes." After an hour on the track, I went on the road and I tried to walk all the uphills and downhills and tried to run only on flat surfaces but my left knee was definitely slightly aching. I had to remind myself to not run through the pain, so I walked on the road a lot.

I went back to the track for the last 30 minutes trying to keep it slow. I reduced to "run 2 minutes: walk 2 minutes" but I couldn't run 2 minutes without the knee feeling real tight, so I reduced to "run 1 minute: walk 2 minutes." Even then it was achy to run 1 minute. Towards the last 10 minutes or so I got so sick and tired of slow achy running, I decided I'm going to go fast for the remainder of the time. Surprising the knee actually felt better running fast then slow. Well, I completed the 2 hours, slightly disappointed that the ITBS was still around and that I couldn't do much running on the road.

I really miss running up and down the tree-lined roads -- running wherever regardless of slope or incline or surface type. I really miss my care-free slow running!

The left knee was slightly sore and walking down the stairs produced some slight pain but otherwise I could walk with no pain.

I went to church then went to lunch with some friends. On the way to the restaurant while walking on some sloped pavement, I felt two sudden sharp pain just below the left knee on the outer lateral side. After that I had to walk slowly with no sudden jerks or I would feel more pain :(

Came home from lunch. Iced the knee, elevated it, did some stretches, took a long nap. Knee feels better now.

I don't think I'll ever recommend a friend to try to run a marathon. I never envisioned when I signed up and paid $171 that I had voluntarily placed myself in the Catch-22 marathon training/injury trap. Maybe I should plan to just walk the whole NYC marathon.

So what's in store for next week?

First run: Run/walk 45 minutes on the track...Run fast 2 minutes: walk 2 minutes.
Second run: Run/walk 1 hour on the track...Run fast 2 minutes: walk 2 minutes.
Third run: Run/walk 45 minutes on the road...Run fast 1 minute: walk 2 minutes.
Long run: Run/walk 2:30 hours on the track/road....Run fast 1 minute: walk 2 minutes.

Plus more ice, stretches and foam rolling (I'll write about this another day).

September 18: Run/Walk 45 minutes

Week 12 (third run): Run/Walk 45 minutes

Friday (11:07am)
Distance: 3.25 miles
Duration: 45:21
Pace: 13:56
Shoes: Nike Lunarglide
Weather: Partly cloudy, 16C, 89% humidity

Now that the temperature is falling, I can run late morning/afternoon. This is good, I can run after I get back from research work and there are not many people all over the place. With very few cars in the parking lot, I could safely run there.

I kept to mostly running on asphalt for this run. Still running 3 minutes: walking 2 minutes. My left knee was ok for most of the run. It only started to feel tight towards the last 10 minutes of the run. I guess the ITBS is not totally gone yet.

I was tempted to skip a short run this week but managed to keep to the schedule. I cannot afford to skip more runs at this stage of the training schedule.

For this Sunday's 1 hour 45 minutes run, I plan to keep to "run 3 minutes: walk 2 minutes". Even though I feel ready to run again after walking 1 minute, I think I should stick to walking 2 minutes for the long run. I'll probably spend an hour on the track and less time on the road. If my left knee is ok after 1:45, I'll push for a 2-hour long run.

September 17: Run/Walk 60 minutes

Week 12 (second run): Run/Walk 60 minutes

Thursday (5:51pm)
Distance: 4.29 miles
Duration: 1:05:25
Pace:
Shoes: Nike Lunarglide
Weather: Mostly cloudy, 17C, 68% humidity

Reminder: Do not venture out to the track or trail on Thursday evenings!

Cross country season is on. I went out for my 1 hour run on the track but I was met with a whole bunch of college runners in training. They were everywhere: Running clockwise and counter-clockwise on the track; running across the parking lot; running on the wrong side of the road.

Needless to say I was very intimidated by the sight of them (even in my rocket science shoes!). I decided not to venture onto the track and kept walking to search for another place to run, preferably a soft and flat surface.

And I kept walking and walking. After about 30 minutes of walking and searching, I decided I should just get back to the track and get some of my running in. When I got back to the track, the athletes were gone. But there wasn't much light left, so I only managed 30 minutes of run 3 minutes: walk 2 minutes.

No left knee pain.





My rocket science shoes.

September 16: Run 45 minutes

Week 12 (first run): Run 45 minutes

Wednesday (11:01am)
Distance: 3.49 miles
Duration: 45:05
Pace: 12:55/mile
Shoes: Nike Lunarglide
Weather: Cloudy, 17C, 74% humidity

This was a surprisingly pleasant run. Kept to the "run 3 minutes: walk 2 minutes" schedule. Went on the running track, spent 25 minutes running clockwise and 20 minutes counter clockwise. Put on the ITB strap.

And no ITB tightness! My left knee felt good during the whole run. The only time it felt a little "off" was when I ran slowly across the football field towards the end of the run. Some people with ITBS said that their knees hurt more when they run slowly as opposed to fast running.

September 13: Run 1 hour

Week 11 ("long" run): Run 1 hour

Sunday (7:53am)
Distance: 4.52 miles
Duration: 1:00:09
Pace: 13:17/mile
Shoes: Nike Lunarglide
Weather: Partly cloudy, 17C

I've decided to drop mileage training and go by time instead. This way, even if I have to walk a lot, at least I'm getting the time on my feet in and I won't feel dejected if I can't get in such and such miles on a certain day.

I started out doing "run 4 min: walk 1 min" but after about 15 minutes I felt that it was a little too tough on my knees and decided to drop to "run 3 min: walk 2 min." That gave my left knee some time to recover after the short run.

I had on my IT band strap. Although it felt like it was sliding down my thigh but it was actually staying in place quite well. But I wasn't not sure if it was really working. The IT band started to feel tight but it wasn't painful. The run/walk helped a little. The knee did feel sore and tight after the run.

I did the whole run on the running track. Running on the track is one long boring exercise. Just round and round and round. Mentally it's much harder to run 1 hour on the track than it is on the road. At the moment, I don't think I should be pounding on the asphalt yet, plus the roads here have a lot on tiny uphills and downhills, so for my left knee sake I'll endure the track for now.

I went back to using the Nike+ sensor. For some crazy reasons, the Garmin refused to sync to the Garmin Center software. I should send them an email.

Anyway, since I'm going by time now, I don't need accurate measurement on the distance I covered. Whenever I see the pace provided by Nike+, I'll just remember that I'm much slower than that.

For the coming week, I'm thinking I'll work on this schedule:

1st run: Run/walk 45 minutes
2nd run: Run/walk 1 hour (try 15 minutes on the road)
3rd run: Run/walk 45 minutes (try 15 minutes on the road)
Long run: Run/walk 1:45 hours

September 9: Run 3 miles

Week 11 (first run): Run 3 miles

Wednesday (5:49pm)
Distance: 3.00 miles
Duration: 43:50
Pace: 14:36/mile
Shoes: Nike Lunarglide

My left knee was sore and hurting for many days after that painful 12-mile long run. I took more than a week off to let that knee recover. For the first few days, it was painful to go down the stairs. My left knee was so stiff that I was walking funny. I had to walk many minutes before the knee warmed up and then I could walk almost like a normal person. I had to ice my knee and did a lot of stretches.

I finally went for a trial run on this day. I bought an ITBS strap but when I tried it on it was very tight and it felt like it was slipping down, so I put on a jumper knee strap on my left knee instead.

Ran on grass, my left knee felt ok. Then moved on to asphalt, knee was still ok. Then went on a slight downhill and the lateral side of the left knee started to feel tight again. Not wanting to aggravate it again, I just walked the rest of the half mile.

So I'm kind of in a limbo now. I have not been able to keep up with the marathon training schedule. If I did, I'd probably get injured again. If I didn't, I'd really really suffer on marathon day.

Looking at the marathon schedule, I guess I'll have to throw that out of the window and just hope for the best.

All I know is that I can deal with the tiredness and soreness of long runs pre-August 30 but if I had to endure that ITBS pain during marathon day, I'd drop out.

I guess the plan now is:
1) Let the knee get better
2) Don't run through ITBS pain again
3) Try my best to avoid situations/terrains that may trigger the ITBS pain (run on grass or the running track for the mean time)
4) Stretch the IT band and strengthen specific muscles
5) Slowly try and build up the miles again
6) If I had to, I'll just walk through most of the marathon
7) I've been getting lazy and it's getting harder to go out for any run. It's a mix of laziness and fear of injury. I should start the training schedule again. I have to start getting out there, even if I can't run, I should get the time on my feet in.

August 30: Run 12 miles

Week 9 (long run): 12 miles

Sunday (6:13am)
Distance: 12.00 miles
Duration: 3:14:01
Pace: 16:09/mile
Shoes: Saucony Omni Ultimate 7
Weather: Mostly cloudy, 17-19C, 95% humidity

Most painful run ever!

I started with 3 miles on the running track and that was ok. And then when I moved on to the roads that's when the soreness and pain on the outer side of my left knee started. It was really difficult to run. I tried the run 6 minutes: walk 1 minute, but once I stopped running and walked it was even more painful to start running again.

Looking back, I probably should have quit running by mile 5. But at that time I really wanted to get 12 miles in. So it ended up being a very slow and painful long long long run.

I'm guessing I'm experiencing the Iliotibial band syndrome (ITBS). I will take a few days off, ice my knee few times a day and do some stretches to hopefully help get rid of the ITBS.

I definitely did not enjoy this run.

August 26: Run 6 miles

Week 9 (second run): 6 miles

Wednesday (6:06pm)
Distance: 6.01 miles
Duration: 1:22:49
Pace: 13:47/mile
Shoes: Nike Structure Triax+ 12
Weather: Partly cloudy, 28C, 57% humidity

Compared to the Asics, the Nike shoes really feel light and bouncy. But the outside of my left knee was sore during and after this run. It seems like the aches and pains will always be my constant companion during this training period.

August 25: Run 4 miles

Week 9 (first run): 4 miles

Tuesday (6:56pm)
Distance: 4.00 miles
Duration: 52:48
Pace: 13:11/mile
Shoes: Asics GT2130 Trail
Weather: Partly cloudy, 27C, 58% humidity

After skipping so many runs my legs felt like lead. During the first 2 miles, my left knee felt uncomfortable every time it pounded on the road. I have to get back into my running routine and keep it consistent.

The weather is starting to cool down now.

August 23: No run

Still on vacation.

August has been a very difficult month for running. I've been skipping runs left and right.

August 21: No run

On vacation.