2017: What’s to come?

Hey readers! It’s been quite some time, so I’ll give a bit of a recap of what’s been going on.

  1. I’ve taken a long hiatus from personal blogging. One of my resolutions in 2017 is to write more, and I thought this would be an excellent outlet.
  2. I developed a stress reaction in early September, which effectively took me out until October-ish.
  3. I managed to rebound, and start training again, setting a Personal Best in the 1500m on New Year’s Eve!

With that being said, I am currently battling the arctic conditions of Upstate NY while training. Many of us will be doing this, running in wintry conditions, battling wind and cold, all to get ourselves to the next level. So now that we’re mostly caught up, I’d like to outline some goals I have for this site in 2017.

  • Make a Facebook page: I’d love to have a social media following with this site, to grow the reach. This will also come in handy for my next point…
  • Report on news: I LOVE running news. Rupp declares for Boston? Cross Country? Millrose Game entries? That stuff is amazing to me. I’ve done some reporting in the past, and hope to keep you all informed of cool Pro/College news.
  • Be consistent: While most of us probably have full time jobs, families, and such, I would like to try and carve out some time each week to keep this site updated. I’m not sure if anything will transpire with it, but regardless, writing and running are things I innately enjoy. Combining them seems like a no brainier.

In conclusion, readers can expect the following this year (barring life doesn’t get in the way too much).

  • Pro/College News
  • Sporadic Gear Reviews
  • Training Updates
  • Discussion Pieces
  • A Facebook Page

Thank you all so much for reading! If there are any other features you would like to see on this site, please feel free to let me know. This will be a year of learning, so all ideas are welcomed! Hope your training is going well, and stay tuned for more!

The Importance of Recovery

It’s been a few days since my last post, so I wanted to check in and give an update to how things have been. After the Fourth of July Race, a hamstring injury flared up. I was still able to run, but pain kept me pretty tied down workout and cross training wise.

Fast forward to today, and the pain has subsided, and I now have 2 actual workouts under my belt. With the increasing mileage, and intensity, I wanted to take a post to talk a little bit about recovery. I’m not a doctor, so please read this for what it is. Opinionated trial and error.

Continue reading “The Importance of Recovery”

The Firecracker 4 Miler: My Roadkill Debut

A four miler. I’ve never run one of those before. My Brother said the race was a good one last year, so I made sure to register us early on (weeks in advance).

The morning was sunny, but cool. Cool enough that I wore tights to warm up in. Probably not my best idea. By the race start, the sun was in full force, and the temperature had risen considerably since I had left. Hundreds of participants hawked the start area, which featured Police cars, flares, and a nice incline to start the race.

As the race began, I made my way up the first hill. A clear pack had broken away at the beginning, led by Tim Chichester, formerly of SUNY Geneseo. They had a solid pack up front, and they cruised along. I made an effort to keep things under control.

I have no workouts under my belt as of yet this season, and my hamstring had been a wild card. I’d been having some trouble with it, and wasn’t sure what trying to run hard might do to it.

Passing the first mile much quicker than I anticipated, I was essentially in no man’s land. I was near 2 other runners, trading places with them for about 2 miles. One eventually broke away, and the other fell behind me, though I’m not sure how far back he actually was.

The course took us over a few more hills, each with an equal downhill. The streets were lined with volunteers, spectators, and the one guy I saw who was dressed like Superman. After 3 miles, I was well ahead of the pace that I had predicted for myself. My brother and I had warmed up near this area, so I knew where the finish line was going to be.

I also knew that there was going to be a climb right at the end. Making my way towards the final turn, I tried to mentally prepare myself for finishing up hill. I tried to reach for another gear, but found jack squat.

I powered up the last hill as much as I could, but I was pretty spent by that point. I made my was through the finish line, still intact.

I can look at this race, and take away a few key things from it.

  1. My Leg: I got through the entire race without 100% re injuring my leg,. That being said, as I type this the next day, the darn thing is stiff and sore again. More Ice!
  2. Fitness: I ended up running about 1:00 quicker over the four mile course than I anticipated. With how things have been progressing so far, I wasn’t sure what to expect.
  3. Long Race Envy: I had a really nice time with this race. I had raced many 5k’s between my last Indoor, and Outdoor seasons,  so doing something longer was a nice break. If I wasn’t looking forward to XC so much, I would train for a Half Marathon or the like.
  4. Roadkill Debut: While not debuting in a massive team competition, I feel this went pretty well. I got to meet another member of RKR, donned the singlet (retro), and had a good time doing it.

What’s next then? Unless I feel the need to pursue some Sauerkraut, my next race should be Bergen in August. This will be a great team competition, and I hope to be rounding into shape by then. I would love nothing more than to be able to contribute, and have a great showing as a team.

Immediately though, I’ll be tending to my leg, increasing mileage, and making sure to stay hydrated. With the weather lately, that has to be a top priority for me, and probably others.

Also, people should be watching the Track and Field Olympic Trials. Good stuff going on there!

Thank you all so much for reading! Please feel free to post any comments below, or just give me a shout.

**Photo from Yellowjacket Racing’s Facebook Page**

-Dave Herbert

New Things From RW: 6/29/2016

It’s not a secret that Running Warehouse is probably one of my most frequented sites. Between their pricing, and exceptional customer service, it’s really hard for me to turn down buying from them.

Daily, I go on their website, and not only check out their sales, but the new items that they bring in. This segment, which will be mildly sporadic, will showcase a few of the new items available on their site, and I’ll toss in a little snippet about why I’m pumped. I’ll stick with 3 items, to bolster the allure. **All Images and pricing from Runningwarehouse.com**

  1.  Nut Butter filled Clif Bars!?!?! I had to double take when I saw this. Clif Bars have long since been something I was fond of. The Chocolate Chip, and Coconut Chocolate chip being my favorites. Now, I’m also quite fond of nut butters. Ask any family member of mine, and they’ll tell you that I might have a problem. Clif Bar + Nut Butter =??? (Genius). These things are excellent, and even come in four different flavors!. Interested? Check them out HERE!
  2.  The Nike Zoom Victory Waffle 3. I love waffles. Nike’s waffles, Aunt Jemima’s waffles, Belgian waffles, all waffles. That being said, I’m hoping these shoes only improve upon their earlier counterparts. I wouldn’t be upset to race in these guys this coming fall. Check em out HERE!
  3.  BOA shorts. Now, this one is a bit of a cop out for me. I really enjoy all of their shorts, especially the flag ones. BOA has been popping off some really cool looking 1″ shorts. If you like designs, and a decent price point for your shorts, check them out HERE!

Out of the 3 products above, I would have to say I’m the most excited about the Clif Bars. Why? They’re filled with nut butter. Along with that, their nutrition stats look a bit better than that of a regular Clif Bar. A touch less sugar, and more nut butter. That sounds like a good addition to me. Aside from that, their flavor options are great. I’ll probably be trying to pick some up very soon.

That will wrap up this edition of “New Things from RW”. Let us know in the comments below which one of these is your favorite. Or, what is your most anticipated new item coming out? Thanks again for reading, and stay tuned for more content coming up!

 

-D

NBC Track and Field Trials Coverage

While there is bound to be some back door way of watching your favorite athletes compete for a spot on the Rio Team, NBC will be having a fair amount of coverage on the event, beginning this Friday 7/1/2016.

The whole story, with times and events can be read HERE!

 

Thanks for tuning in, and keep on the lookout for more!

 

-D