The Secret Life of Running: 2015

Holy smokes, February is almost over! These past two months have flown by with training, trips, and transitions. I'm going to do a quick overview of my Q1 thus far and move into a bit of the nitty gritty details of the here and now.

JANUARY

To kick off my initial training for the Boston Marathon and tear away the cobwebs of reduced training from the end of 2014, I self-imposed a 30-day running challenge where I would log at least 2 miles every day of the month. It's amazing what you can learn about your body in just four weeks -- even in the midst of training for my 4th marathon. The aches and pains that traditionally have rest days to dissolve became mindful focus spots in working toward a more edgy pain threshold.

I ended up logging over 150 miles for the month, building a solid morning workout routine, and exploring further corners of San Francisco and the Bay Area. I started using a Vega sport recovery protein powder (vegan, easy to mask taste, and reasonably priced), which I highly recommend, gradually added speed work back into the weekly grind, and pushed the weekend warrior mentality with more adventure-running into neighborhoods and verticals I had never thought to explore.

With these changes came a redistribution of social "balance"; I work 10+ hours a day during the work-week, workout in the morning, workout in the evening, sleep, eat, and long run + yoga on weekends. It's not the most extroverted lifestyle, but it's the current adventure of a 20-something with zero dependents and a tech-company work-life.

Daily runs fueled by Nuun!

Hawk Hill 13-miler over the GGB into the Marin Headlands

FEBRUARY

This month has brought both depth and breadth to my marathon training cycle. Track workouts, hill repeats, and higher mileage weeks are starting to settle in (and fly by).

For the month of February I decided to try my hand at full-blown veganism. As a vegetarian of 7 years, the transition didn't feel very steep at first, but after digging deeper I came to find that many products (breads, baked goods, snacks) I have at work and buy at the store are not truly vegan. A fun fact: many beers are vegan, but most wine is not. The mindfulness of vegan eating has helped me realize a lot about my habits. Cutting out things like cheese, yogurt, and eggs has made me feel much less bogged down and I have noticed a real increase in my energy. That being said, I think I will still consider myself a vegetarian moving forward -- it comes down to giving the body what it needs but also enjoying food and feeding the soul. I don't see myself going back to many dairy or egg products, but there are days where if the cookie looks good enough, you bet I'm going to eat it.

Other highlights in February include hiking, adventuring, and training in Yosemite for 3 of the 4 weekends this month. The mountains have always been a wonderful place to find solace and introspect, but more recently they have also presented a new set of obstacles and opportunity for growth that training on pavement simply can't compare to. I'm lucky to have a stellar friend living in the valley who is a passionate alpinist and highly competent limit-pusher.

A recent knee injury (damaged/swollen cartilage) has had me doing alternative cardio and strength training this week, but I'm eager to get back out there and kick off March in a strategic and strong way.

Last weekend I ran one of the most comfortable and joyful 16 milers of my running career -- complete with trails, massive hills, and new routes -- so I am hopeful that the minor setbacks this week won't impact my overall Boston goals.