A different trail with better results...

Wednesday, February 16, 2011


If you don't find me here in the next couple of days...check johnrolf.blogspot.com
It was an absolutely perfect day for a run…sunny and in the 50’s. There was a little issue of 3-4 inches of snow and ice remaining on all the trails, but I had a different plan. I drove down to the South Chagrin Reservation and decided to try the trail running along the Chagrin River between Miles Road and the Polo Fields. I hadn’t been there since the snows began and wondered if I’d have the same issues with the trail I’d been experiencing in the North Chagrin Reservation.

I parked in a small lot on River Road near Jackson and quickly changed into my running gear. I could see the bridle trail was snow covered, but would have to actually run on it before I would know if I’d be falling through with each step.

The initial steps went well…the trail was still hard packed with snow and wasn’t icy. The next question was how far could I run before the achilles started to ache since it had only lasted about 5 minutes the day before. That was running on pavement though, and this clearly was not. As I ran, I quickly noticed how much stress I was feeling throughout the upper hamstrings and the muscles of my gluts and hips. I wasn’t slipping too much, but each step was creating the need for adjustments in the lower half of my body…and it was very tiring. I found that running about 2 minutes per mile slower than usual was generating a heart rate about 10 beats higher than normal…and I was sweating my butt off.

By the 20-minute mark, I was pretty sure I would be able to run as long as I wanted. I don’t understand it, but uneven, softer surfaces give me no trouble when a flat, hard surface had me crippled less than 24 hours earlier. I don’t understand it…but I’m going to quit fighting it.

I turned around after 20 minutes thinking a 40-minute run would be more than enough with the way I was laboring. I made it back to the car in 40 minutes saturated and exhausted, but thrilled that the body was solid. I had felt a slight twinge in the hamstring just below the right butt cheek around the 23 minute mark, but it never got any worse. A good run and a good day.

Run duration: 40 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 150 bpm.
Calories burned during workout: 675.