Road to Health #10 - Cancer Prevention

Ten years ago I was in the Twin Cities for a wedding. Since this forced me to miss a 5K I normally run, I decided to look for a race in the Cities that weekend. I discovered a beautiful location that ran all the way around a lake. The race was called Miles for Melanoma. 

I didn't actually do that well in the race, but afterward they were providing free screenings. What a great idea. I discovered that day that I needed to see a dermatologist as soon as possible. I had pre-cancerous skin lesions. I've been visiting my dermatologist religiously ever since.

Yellow Rose

The weather was perfect for the Yellow Rose today - sunny, low 60s, very little wind.

There were at least 200 runners today!

It was a good start. I didn't let my emotions get the best of me. I kept it to about a 10 min pace.

I pretty much ran exactly as planned: approx 10 min pace for the first mile, 9:45 for the second mile and 9:30 for the third mile. 

I waved at Phil and Marcia:

I'm getting close to the end:

Right near the end, a 71-year-old fellow from Roosevelt, Michael Palmquist, passed me! I couldn't let him beat me! I put it into another gear and probably beat him by a hundredth of a second.

I was happy to get back under 30 minutes. I was pleased with the negative splits. I don't think I could have done any better than I did - my max heart rate was 190! Unfortunately, I did not medal. I came in fourth place for the 60-69 men.

Make a Difference for ALS Walk/Run: Disappointment

Saturday was the 27th annual Make a Difference for ALS Walk/Run. It was hot and humid. Going into the run, I thought I was ready to take it up to the next level. I actually thought I could best my 8:31 time from Fergus Falls last month.

So I started out fast. The plan was to go with a 9:15 pace for the first mile and to speed up from there. As it turned out, I couldn't even hold the 9:15 pace for the whole first mile. I crashed and burned from there. I ended up with a time of 30:33.

On the bright side, I took 2nd place for the 50+ age group. And $38,000 was raised for patients and research.  

Year 15 Complete

I finished running every street on my birthday - my 69th birthday. So, of course, I ran 6.9 miles. I'd like to say I did it in 69 minutes, but I didn't even try. I knew I wasn't ready for that. It took me 80 minutes, 22 seconds. I was plenty tired even when trying to take it easy...

I also did 69 push-ups and 69 pull-ups. When reviewing the video of the push-ups, I realized I'm still not doing them correctly. My goal now is to do 69 "correct" push-ups by the end of the year.

Of course, the pull-ups were not continuous, but even so, they weren't exactly correct either. So, my goal is to do 69 "correct" pull-ups sometime in the near future.

Thanks once again for everyone who contributed to Running Every Street. At least I didn't cheat at that.

Road to Health #9 - Protein

Several years ago I began drinking a blueberry/protein smoothie after every run just because it seemed like the thing to do. Now, after listening to the experts, it sounds like I've done the right thing, especially as an aging runner.

What are the benefits of protein? Here's what they tell me:

1. Aids in recovery. Recovery becomes more and more important as one ages. This is huge.

2. Durability. Protein prevents injuries by strengthening connective tissue and reducing muscle breakdown.

3. Immune health. I do a number of things to support immune health. I almost never get sick anymore. Protein seems to be one of the things keeping me healthy.

Road to Health #8 - Tandem Bike

About 15 years ago, we made one of the smartest purchases of our life - a tandem bike. A tandem bike is a great way for a couple to be active together. We have used almost every day that the weather has allowed since we bought it. We have literally put thousands of miles on it. 

We've also brought it with us when camping at places like Itasca State Park and the Badlands of North Dakota. We even brought it down to Florida a few years ago.

Several years ago we discovered that they make baskets for small dogs that can be attached to the bicycle. This added a whole new dimension to the experience. While Ollie was still living, we would ride to the park together and then walk around the park together. Unlike some exercise equipment that is used for a few days and then set aside, this bike is still being used every day.

Lake Region Run

 

Yesterday was the Lake Region Run in Fergus Falls, Minnesota. What we did this time was arrive at Maplewood State Park, about 40 minutes north of Fergus Falls, on Friday afternoon, camp there overnight in our pop-up trailer, and then head over to the race early in the morning.

It was a beautiful day - maybe a little too beautiful - about 73 degrees and sunny at the start of the race. 

Here we are waiting for the starting gun. I'm back in the middle of the crowd. I didn't want to hinder faster runners by being up front.

The gun went off!

This is a hilly race. Most of the first half of the race is up-hill. I was a little concerned. My time didn't seem very good. Then I started to pick up some speed on the down-hill sections.

It was shortly before this photo, with about 2 minutes left in the race, that I realized I could end up with a pretty good time. That gave me a real boost.

I came in third place with my best time since 2014!

Update to post: I didn't notice until looking at statistics afterward that I just barely got third place. This gentleman, Jeff Legge, was just three seconds behind me! See video here.