Carrick

I realized yesterday there are 13 Mondays between now and my 40th birthday. But undaunted by this depressing factoid, this morning I slipped into my running shoes, strapped on the iPod, and hit the pavement once again.

I feel I’ve perfected the 30 minute run. This is my niche right now. Either that or it is my wall. I can routinely run 30 minutes at about a 9-minute-mile pace. Sometimes I go shorter, sometimes longer. And I need to run more often and spread out my runs. Right now it’s a weekend activity, Saturday and Sunday. It would be better to run three times a week with a day or two of rest in between. Last weekend I busted out my bicycle for a 10 miler along Lake Washington, which was absolutely thrilling. I’ll be doing that more often.

My secret weapon for the 30 minute run is the perfect playlist. I’ve almost got it down. Here it is in its nearly perfect form:

1. Mr. Blue Sky – ELO (perfect pick-me-up)
2. Girl – Beck
3. Pull Up The People – M.I.A.
4. Go Junior, Go Senior – Junior Senior
5. Strange Overtones – David Byrne & Brian Eno
6. + 81 – Deerhoof
7. Gone Daddy Gone – Gnarls Barkley
8. Hustle Rose – Metric (perfect cool down song)

And how do I feel as a result of this increase in exercise? Really, really good. Definitely stronger, more energetic, more focused but at the same time more restless. I have experienced the fabled “runner’s high,” and last weekend, when it was very hot, I nearly puked halfway through my run. That could be due to my stupid breakfast that day of sugary scones and too much coffee. Live and learn.

Today was a first: I ran 2.5 miles in under 25 minutes on mostly flat terrain without too much exhaustion and no pain in my troublesome left knee.

I’m starting Week Four of my fitness campaign and already seeing benefits. I can tell my legs are getting stronger; they feel like they want to keep going longer than my heart and lungs do. I have more energy throughout the day than I used to. And I’m eating more, converting calories into muscle. I figure my endurance will improve gradually as I continue the routine, allowing me to go further and faster.

So far, so good.

The last time I could truly say I was physically fit was the summer of 2000, but turning 30, becoming a father, and innumerable other excuses caused me to slide down the slippery slope toward sloth.

So fitness: what is it? For me it’s going to be a combination of three things.

1. The ability to engage in vigorous, heart-pounding, aerobic activity for 45 minutes three times a week without exhaustion
2. Increased muscle strength and endurance, the measurement of which I haven’t quite figured out
3. Gaining five to ten pounds by eating more (my appetite has been degrading over the years) and, of course, exercising

I’m planning a schedule for vigorous runs & walks, bicycle rides, gym visits for really rainy days (with its infernal machines that I hate but must try to learn to like) and high calorie foods that I can stomach on a regular basis.

Basically, I’m looking to restore myself to the condition I was in nine years ago, maybe even surpassing that, and to do it by my 40th birthday five months from now. I’m hoping by then this fitness routine becomes a habit, perhaps even a need.