End of Week 11... and going public!

So, last week, Week 10... I did go out and do my walk/run thing, but it was so cold my iPod died during the event! I use the iPod as a split timer, and carry it in one hand (with the Gerber LMF II in the other - bears are everywhere). The end result was that I only had times for two loops, and then nothing. The iPod has recovered, of course, once it warmed up a bit... and today was in the way upper 30s (F), so cold was not an issue. Which brings me to Week 11.

Going Public.

I've been running in the woods, in my "back yard" primarily because it's easy access, and the loops are small enough to be manageable. But also, because I really don't want anyone to see me lurching along. It's embarrassing, to be honest. I'm still a big guy, despite the weight loss so far, and I just don't want people having to answer their kid's questions, like "How did that whale get all the way from the ocean?" or "I thought you said Sasquatch wasn't real, Daddy!" Etc.

But today my youngest brother was visiting us, and the timing of his arrival coincided with my going out for a bit of exercise... I had also just promised my daughter that I would do my walk/run with her, while she rode her horse. So, we were going to walk down a back trail to a "major" dirt road, and I was going to walk/jog up the dirt road to the Shady Acres Deer Farm (they also have buffalo). It's almost exactly a half-mile from where we come out of the trail onto the dirt road, up to the Farm. It all seemed perfect - she'd ride her horse, walking on the trail, then could trot/canter up and down the dirt road as I struggled along. Then my brother came... Of course, I'm always happy to see him, and he hadn't yet seen the barn progress, so it was all good, except that I was now trying to wriggle out of the promise I had made not an hour before to my kid.

I'm good at breaking promises that circumstances demand I break. If I say, "I promise to get to your concert," but a blizzard hits and no one can drive anywhere, well, I'm okay with that. What I'm not good at, or okay with, is breaking promises that are entirely within my control to break or not. And this situation was entirely within my control... should I embarrass myself by running "in public" with my brother, or should I find a way to back out of my promise to join my daughter? Well, I decided maybe it was okay that my youngest brother saw me lurch along, and we all set out together.

The walk down the trail was wicked slippery - we've had some snow, but it's been raining the last day or two, and the trail is steep in parts. Of course, such soppy conditions meant cold, wet feet all around (except for my kid, up on her horse, and except for my brother, who had some waterproof hikers on... so by "all" I mean, "me").

So the moral of the story is that I guess it wasn't so bad to be out of the woods and running "in public." Two trucks even drove by us, heading up to the deer farm, and I didn't panic. Perhaps this new trail/road will be the easiest way for me to continue this exercise thing for the winter? Yes, I think it may be... I can ski on my little course, and still run on the dirt road. Promotions all around!

Of course, I don't have entirely accurate distances, yet, so the calculations will be somewhat estimated. It's probably about a half-mile from the house to the dirt road, along the back trail. Yeah, that seems right.

Lap Times
Phase 1 (walk) : 9:09.7 (trail)
Phase 2 (walk/jog) : 7:35.3 (trail to farm)
Phase 3 (walk/jog) : 7:19.9 (farm to trail)
Phase 4 (walk) : 9:37.3 (trail)

Total distance: 3.2 km, Total time: 33:42.2, Best mile: 14:55.2
Weekly weigh-in: ? not sure - forgot to weigh in this morning, we'll stick to 310
Average power: 521 Watts
Heart rate following final run: --
Heart rate five minutes after cool-down walk: --