Resolution

I'm not really one for New Year's resolutions. Come New Year's eve, I generally have other things on my mind besides what I should change for the coming year. My mind doesn't really work on a annual cycle - I think it is more real time. Once I recognize an issue or opportunity, I make changes. No time like the present. But I know for some folks, it just works better to pick a time in the future to make a change. For me, if I put it off until some day in the future, that day is likely to never come.

On Saturday I decided to head back out to the trail for my long run. It was supposed to be chilly in the early morning so I wasn't in a hurry to get started. I didn't get out to the trail until about 8:45am. There were a lot of cars. More cars than I had seen in a couple of months. But it was sunny, so I was thinking more people had come out to take advantage of the relatively nice weather.

Fall and winter have been extremely unusual in Colorado Springs. We still have snow in our backyard from around Thanksgiving time. That is really unheard of. I usually describe winter here as perfect - we get snow, but it doesn't stay on the ground for more than a couple of days. That way you get to enjoy the beauty and fun of snow without the drudgery and grayness of snow that has been on the ground for months. Not so this year.

The trail was no exception. Sun or not, there was still plenty of snow on the trail. At least it was packed. Granted it doesn't pack smoothly, so your legs still take a beating, but it is easier to run on packed snow than loose snow. Especially uphill. And with my new heart monitor (Christmas present) I was able to see objectively that it is more work to run on snow than on trail. I'm hoping the heart monitor will help me be less focused on pace and more focused on effort.

I felt pretty good and I couldn't help but noticing a number of new faces on the trail. Not that I know everyone who runs on the trail, nor could I really tell who was new and who wasn't. But you can kind of tell. Whether it's the gear, the gait, or the breathing, you can just tell. I did my best to encourage those I saw (whether new in my opinion or not). Although I'm not the new year resolution type, I was genuinely hopeful that the new runners and walkers would persevere and succeed. There's no question it will take some real perseverance. Getting started running isn't nearly as much fun as once you've establish a base fitness level. Maybe that's the resolve part of resolution.

I ran the entire 17 miles only monitoring my heart rate. I learned some interesting things. It's harder to run up hill. It's harder to run in the snow. It's easier to run downhill. It's harder to run downhill in the snow. Okay, maybe I didn't really learn these things, except for the last one. But I did learn that when I focus on heart rate, rather than pace, it's a more relaxing run. And what is more important, I can be more confident that I will achieve the objective of the workout.

I have a tendency to acknowledge that I need to allow for conditions: hills, snow, wind, etc. But since I don't really know how much to allow, I end up running the same pace as if the conditions were perfect. Or at least trying to. This comes from perfectionist tendencies. And I'm not alone on this one. Professor of Sport Psychology and Ph.D. Oliver Stoll identifies 40% of recreational runners as perfectionists (Averett, Nancy. "Your Better Half." Runner's World January 2010: 46-47).

If the shoe fits - that is, you would be willing to admit you have perfectionist tendencies, and you can relate to the issue of pushing hard in training when maybe you shouldn't. I would seriously consider obtaining a heart monitor. Or if you already have one - use it. By knowing what your workout goal is in terms of heart rate, you can always be sure you achieve the objective. Running by heart rate will automatically adjust for hills, wind, snow, an off day, over training, and probably other things I haven't thought of.

So maybe I have a resolution for this year after all. I resolve to run smart. To follow the wisdom in my training plan by focusing on achieving the objective of each workout. Not to run by pace, but to run by effort.

Time for my weekly stamina workout. I'm off to the track for 4 x 2000 meters. Wearing my heart monitor.