Muscle memories
Funny the difference a little snowfall can make in a run. I had forgotten the added difficulty a few inches of fresh snow can bring. I had forgotten how much more your body's stabilizing muscles are incorporated into your stride when the terrain is something less than stable.
It didn't take me long to be reminded. Less than a half mile into my run today I knew it wasn't going to be easy. My heart rate was elevated several beats above where it normally is. And it wasn't because I was running faster. My time through that first half mile was at almost 30 seconds off my average pace.
It must've been the snow. My running trail doesn't get plowed and it hadn't received sufficient foot traffic to effectively trample the three inches of fluffy snow that blanketed my neighborhood overnight. So I had to make my own path through it.
I was amazed by how much more challenging running is when the footing isn't solid. I shouldn't have been. I've been running in snow for years. I know how it affects my runs, how it diminishes whatever running efficiency I might have. It's akin to running in sand.
I've run through deeper snow and slicker surfaces than I encountered today. This was, by Minnesota standards, nothing, really. But the first time your body is exposed to it after several months of favorable footing conditions is a wake-up call of sorts.
My hips, quads and calves were screaming long before I neared the end of my four miles. My body was spent. My time was abyssmal.
But my memory was working fine. I remember how strenuous winter running can be. I'm not looking forward to the next four months of running.
It didn't take me long to be reminded. Less than a half mile into my run today I knew it wasn't going to be easy. My heart rate was elevated several beats above where it normally is. And it wasn't because I was running faster. My time through that first half mile was at almost 30 seconds off my average pace.
It must've been the snow. My running trail doesn't get plowed and it hadn't received sufficient foot traffic to effectively trample the three inches of fluffy snow that blanketed my neighborhood overnight. So I had to make my own path through it.
I was amazed by how much more challenging running is when the footing isn't solid. I shouldn't have been. I've been running in snow for years. I know how it affects my runs, how it diminishes whatever running efficiency I might have. It's akin to running in sand.
I've run through deeper snow and slicker surfaces than I encountered today. This was, by Minnesota standards, nothing, really. But the first time your body is exposed to it after several months of favorable footing conditions is a wake-up call of sorts.
My hips, quads and calves were screaming long before I neared the end of my four miles. My body was spent. My time was abyssmal.
But my memory was working fine. I remember how strenuous winter running can be. I'm not looking forward to the next four months of running.
posted by RTG at 3:49 PM
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