Feaster Five Miler

On Thanksgiving Day, I decided to brave a crowd of over 8000 people and run the Feaster Five in Andover. I'm not really sure why I decided to do this. The idea just sort of popped into my head. Shortly thereafter, I found myself driving over to register, signing up and getting a number. Then on Thanksgiving morning, I found myself at the starting line in my running shoes in the cold with 8000 other people.

Wondering ... why did I decide to do this again?

But, you know, sometimes you have to just do these things without giving them too much thought.

No surprise, but it was a really fun time and I am so glad I did it. The people cheering on the sidelines were great and I really appreciated the few small brass bands strategically placed along the course. The event was also well organized and everyone was in a friendly and happy mood. Plus, it was an excellent workout before a big Thanksgiving meal.

I've actually done the Feaster Five before back in 1999 and 2001 - both times running the 5K. After 2001, though, I decided I wouldn't do it again (I think because of the crowds, cold and huge traffic jams).
But I'm glad I gave it another try this year. And I'm glad I went for the 5 mile route instead of the 5K. It gave me the opportunity to accomplish another "first" this year, since I've never run further than 3.2 miles in any type of organized race. It probably would have helped my time significantly had I actually trained for this event, but my pace wasn't bad for me and given the crowds.

The Feaster Five was a great way to start my Thanksgiving Day this year. Plus, the 5 mile run turned out to be a cake walk compared to the 10 hour cooking and cleaning marathon that soon followed...

Endurance Carryover

Here's a nice thing I just discovered. I think the endurance I gained from biking long distances has now carried over to running.

I tested this theory on Sunday by going out and trying to run the same route I did in my Forrest Gump Moment post. I had thought that run was a total fluke because at about 6 miles, it is 3 times longer than I typically run at any given time. (In fact, for the last few years, my "runs" could more accurately be described as a "run/walks.")

But today I ran the same exact route again without stopping. I even shaved a few minutes off my last time. And I didn't even have anything to run from like I did last weekend (a boatload of work). Granted, I only have two data points to prove this theory but it's looking pretty promising.

Biking and running use such different muscles but it's nice to know that the endurance may have carried over. One more thing for me to add to the growing list of the side benefits of biking.

Walk in The Woods

Today I went out in the woods with Cassi, our six year old golden and one of my favorite exercise companions. Let me just start out by saying it was totally freezing out (20 degrees with strong winds) and as usual I was under dressed (no hat, no gloves, not enough layers). But I needed to get Cassi out for some exercise off lead today, regardless of the weather. And the conservation land in my town is the perfect spot.

Cassi, who has always been a total ball of energy, full of life dog, is going through the hard work of recovering from an unexplained spinal infection that began in September. It started with excessive paw licking, progressed to total lameness of one paw, and ultimately resulted in an inability to walk more than a few steps without staggering. Rock bottom was when she fell down the stairs one morning after waking up.

After an MRI, spinal tap and numerous tests with specialists - I can't even say out loud how much we spent on her - the conclusion is that she has/had some type of spinal cord disease. Why she got it has never been determined, but I have a sinking feeling that she may have contracted it from something in the woods during our annual summer camping trip this past August. That would be very sad indeed since it's her absolute favorite place on earth.

Fortunately, she has made major improvements in the last three months and is steadily improving. She's now back to some of her usual antics - barking at people, sniffing out squirrels, trotting through the woods. But she doesn't have the get up and go she used to. And she's not quite the "sassy Cassi" that we've known and loved for the past six years.

The doctor is not sure if she will ever fully recover but we're hoping and praying that with a steady diet of love, exercise and medicine, we'll get our crazy dog back in all her glory at some point very soon.

Still Philosophizing...

Okay, I went deep with my last post so I'm going deeper.

Claudia mentioned in her comment that how you define "good music" might help bridge the gap between the two outlooks on life that I debated on Tuesday.

Let's start with "great music". To me, that's all about passion, energy, connection, endorphins, and being in sync with your heart's desire. "Good music" is a step down - all the same things but not as intense. "Bad music" sounds bad, feels bad and is bad. By it's very nature, it often demands to be turned off. So to me, no music is better than bad music.

Hopefully, "doing your duty" goes hand in hand with listening to great music (thereby squashing the whole "never mind your happiness" part of Drucker's quote).

My friend AJ, who is a life coach, philosopher and writer, replied to my post via email. I think he sums it up well in the below quote:

"In my view, the "art" of balance is to recognize that doing your "duty" is not in competition with your passion/love for music. Doing you "duty" does not need to be hard, or work, or a struggle. If doing your "duty" is rooted in joy and passion for others (rather than obligation to others) then it is a source of energy and vitality. By making good music a means for establishing and strengthening your connection with your children, friends and community - you can be doing your duty while embracing music. If your love for music weakens your ties with the same people, then the balance is lost." (Thanks for the insight, AJ.)

Bottom line for me: a responsible life filled with great - or at least good - music is a very happy life indeed. And if your playlist just isn't doing it for you anymore, it may be time to discover new music, rediscover old faves, shuffle the songs and get the good tunes rolling again.

Philosophizing

I think a lot when I bike. Biking long distances is very meditative and, depending on the route, offers some good quality think time. Even though I haven't been logging many miles on my bike lately, I have been thinking a lot (since I am, after all, a classic overthinker, as I've confessed before).

Well then. Here is what I've been pondering lately - and I warn you, this may sound "out there".

This past week, I've been trying to rectify these two perspectives on life:

1) "Life is too short to waste time listening to bad music," said by yours truly; and
2) "Never mind your happiness; do your duty," said by Peter Drucker, renowned management guru.

I know it may be a stretch to call Number 1 a perspective on life. But think about it conceptually. Why waste time listening to bad music when there is so much good music out there? Substitute the analogy to music with any number of things and you get the picture.

This really has to do with the whole 'life is short' mentality. You never know how much time you have so you better have fun, take chances, do the things you love and really live your life. I've been learning to embrace this philosophy more and more the older I get and the more good music I listen to.

On to Number 2, which I first read last weekend when I was searching for quotes by Peter Drucker (long story). Anyway, when I stumbled on this one - "Never mind your happiness; do your duty," - it literally felt like someone threw cold water on my face. How stark. And where's the fun in that?

But you know the really annoying thing? After I thought about it I realized he is right to a large extent. Sometimes you just have to turn off the music and do what's required. And when you have that mentality, some decisions are really easy to make.

Both philosophies can have their downfalls if taken to the extreme. So the question I've been trying to answer now is how you do both. Hopefully, if you can strike a good balance between the two, you'll be able to do your duty while wasting as little time as possible listening to bad music. Or ideally, you'll be listening to good music while doing your duty.

So that's what I've been thinking about during my small windows of free time lately. Told you it was out there.

A Forrest Gump Moment

This morning it was pouring rain outside and I needed some exercise. Having always been a fan of running in the rain - and deciding it was safer than biking - I laced up my running shoes and headed out the door. Once I made it out the driveway, I started my usual 2 mile loop.

And then I had what I'm calling my "Forrest Gump moment. " Instead of continuing my loop at the halfway point, I turned left. Then I kept running and running and running. Straight towards the edge of town. It was so weird. I couldn't seem to stop myself.

Thankfully, aided by the increasing weight of my wet running clothes, I snapped to my senses and eventually turned back.

I didn't quite make it past the town line, into the next county and beyond like Forrest. But out of the blue I did one of my longest runs in a decade or two - 65 minutes of straight running covering just under 6 miles in the pouring rain. Not long or fast by runners' standards but I got in some serious cross training. I just hope I'll be able to walk tomorrow.

And that's all I have to say about that.

What I've been doing instead of biking - Part II

On Halloween night, we had the pleasure of seeing guitar god Warren Haynes play with his band, Gov't Mule in Boston. What does this have to do with biking, you might ask? Well, this would fall into the category of what I've been doing instead of biking. And although I wouldn't normally be out biking in the dark on Halloween night, seeing this unbelievable, almost 4 hour show into the wee hours of the morning did prevent me from getting out on my bike the next day...

As my friends know, I'm a HUGE Warren Haynes fan and think he is one of the best living guitarists out there. I've also had the pleasure and privilege of seeing him 6 times in the past 18 months. Every show is different and Warren and the band never disappoint.

The Boston Orpheum appearance was their second show on their Kinder Revolution fall tour and featured new bassist, Jorgen Carlsson. This particular show was a special treat. The Mule played 26 songs in total and the entire second set was all Pink Floyd covers, complete with light show and sound effects. This was a first ever for the band. They also performed an unbelievable jam of St. Stephen that even the most non-Grateful Dead fan would love.

It takes stamina to watch a show like this - let alone perform it. That's why the next day was spent sleeping late and reveling in the memory of the night before.

Another autumn view

Here's another roadside view of the fall colors from my ride last weekend. The colors are at the tail end, but at least there is still some color.

Well, I hate to admit it, but this week I didn't get out on my bike as I had hoped. Rain, work, lots of slippery leaves on the road, tickets to the Patriots game today. All good excuses.....

I did get out for a nice hike through the woods and one run, though. Not terribly strenuous. But my legs are sore so I think I can get away with calling it cross training. More on that later.

Two weeks later...

Would you look at this. This is the same shot from my Stop and Pause post below but it's two weeks later and all the leaves are gone. How fast they come and go. Glad I took a moment to enjoy while the color was in full glory.

Today I got out for a 19 mile loop through North Andover, Boxford, Groveland and Haverhill. It felt great to be back out there, though I did feel a bit of pain after having been off my bike for a full two weeks. I was slower and couldn't really find my rhythm. The temp was in the 40s and chillier than I'm used to but I don't think I can really use that as an excuse. This week looks warmer so hopefully I'll be able to fit in a few lunchtime rides, get my fitness level back up, and get back in the groove.