Weather

Look at my snazzy new shoes. When every I am tired I look down and get a little burst of energy. Yellow goes with my black running outfit. HA

Michelle. This lady blows me out of the water. Whenever we run doesn't matter the distance she always has this burst of energy and takes off on the last 5K. My goal on the marathon is just to keep up with her. She has been running for more than my life. We might be soul mates.

The weather this last month...a gift from heaven. It snows on Tuesday and by Saturday it's sunny and fairly warm. This photo is from the 29K run last Saturday. (3 hours 34 minutes)

With new shoes comes new blisters. EIK.

Missed the 32K because I was sick all last week. Perogy dinner this Friday followed with another 26K run. Wow. I never thought half marathons would be easy.

Cheers,

Mathew

Let it snow let it snow.

Calgary is really deceiving. It never seems to become actual winter. Cold for 2 days nice for 3 then really nice for 2 more. The photo above was a really nice Monday. Small run out with my cousin. After all this training I would like to investigate what it would take to become a run coach. Just a part time thing. Who knows!!!

Saturday gang. Today was great because we had a running seminar on improving your stride. The best advice i took was to have your arms at 90 degrees and then loosen them. Also while running think with your arms that you are pulling a rope. Instantly made my form feel better.
This is my new mentee Katy. Hello new great running pal. In the group I am always joking...she makes it easier. Even with her joining midway through the season she is right up there with training. only 8 weeks of training left.

Fundraising is getting harder but I am making improvements.

Tomorrow is my 5th Half marathon Race. EIIKK! interested to see how far I can go and fast now that I have the 26K under my belt from last week.

Mathew John

Suck it!!!

I know I know, what a bad title for a blog entry. The truth is that was my mental thought on today's 26K journey. One of the best runs of my life. There are enough in that bank of memory for it to matter. It wasn't amazing since it was easy... It was the joy in the challenge of it. I put 26K under my feet and told the pavement to suck it.

After 16K. Self portrait. When we hit 20K I was ready to go and get home. It was Halloween last night and I just stayed with punch but this morning forgot to eat breakfast. I feel this will get better with time this training for the marathon. Last post shared the gruesome bloody nipple shot. Sorry. Sorry to Kim who read my blog at school and had people staring at her. It's part of the experience. Blisters and blood and sore legs.

This is the torture that I put myself through when running 20K+. Plunging my legs into cold water for 15 minutes. Once settled in, addition of a bucket of ice, to really feel the burn. It helps your muscle repair/recover.

Glad that today was 13 degrees above and not 13 negative,

Mathew

Sore.

Today my body aches. It's all over. My shoulders, lower back, abs, pelvis and my toes. Maybe it is yoga or dance class or just long impact of running.


Hills last night was great just Chrystal and I, 6 Hills. It is going to get harder since very soon daylight saving will be in effect so it will be getting darker sooner. We already finish in the dark but to start in the dark, depressing. Love the challenge of hills.


As I train further been talking with people who have run marathons in the past getting advice.
1. After 90 minutes of running you start to become disoriented. Find peace with that feeling because that is where your body can go the distance.
2. It is very hard after training for not to finish a marathon. The actual race day is lined with supports cheering or along the way. If your mind is slumping someone along the way will boost it up.


It's hard to stare into the whiteness of winter approaching with the same can do attitude of the bloom of spring.


So, CAN DO!!!
Mathew John

Catching up.

Wow. This is the last 14 days of running in photo form.

Nicole and I at our first hill training. Love being back on the hill. By the time we start our climbs up and down, up and down, the sun is setting on the Calgary skyline. Not to hard to find the beauty.

This was at 17K on our 20K run last week. Running with the front pack we held a great pace of 6.25 minutes per Km. The leaves are really speckling the ground.

The tree's are empty but still we chug on.

Oh No. The aftermath of my foolishness. If your ever at the end of a race you see this happen...many men crossing the finish line with two red dots. The worst part is I know better. This has happened before. Now I keep band aid as a preventative measure in my glove box. Just another part of training.

Hills a week ago. 5 Hills. One of Calgary's finest sunsets. So lucky to have as much sunshine as we have.

Here's my mentees. This was on our 23K run on Saturday. The first time for me to break that regular 21.1K boundary. The run was great. Michelle informed me of her running spirit running bear and let me borrow him. (Running Bear you helped me alot) Our pace was exactly where is should be at 7.5 minute KM. This run also broke the longest time I have been out running, 2Hours 40Minutes. So Proud of my team and of my running friends.

Even with two evening class on Monday night up and out the door at 7AM to meet Erin for a nice easy jog. 7.5K in Inglewood with the ever cute cuddly perfect man in dog form Felix. Yesterday was an off day. Today Hot yoga at lunch and hill training after class. It's weird how well my body is responding to so much physical activity. Guess I'm getting into that grove.

As Erin said during our run, "I think you are a runner now" Guess I am.

Mathew John

Training Training Training.

After returning back to life and Canada got in the stride of marathon training.
The difference with half training and that of the full is that cross activities push without the stress to already worked legs.

Monday: 14K make up run with Care. I ended up getting really tight in the muscle on the front of my legs. After some yoga instructed by my guru loosened and relaxed but felt it would be best to return home. It ended up only being 5K. Important to listen to the body.

Tuesday: 500M Swim with Kevin. Really surprised that he called me to get into the pool. Thought that after the triathlon Kevin would go back to smoking and drinking. The only problem was the murky disgusting water. Both of us felt sick and dizzy.

Wednesday: Hill training begins. The hill next to curling club on memorial. 4 TIMES. timing each time I went up. 2 minutes 20S then 2M 4S then 1M58S and my last hill at 1M 50S. Oh yeah. I love hills because of the challenge they bring. It's not easy but it not very long either. Wait till I start doing the stairs.

Today: After a really intense dance class. My prof described my movements as high energy, big, and sporadic. This went on for 10 minutes and I was breathing heavily after a minute. Back to the pool I went. Met Alex my fellow pooligan at SAIT. Holy it was great; Clean Water whole lanes to myself, Hot Tub. 200M Front crawl 200 Arms 200 legs. Wanted to go out and do another 100 but after the first stretch of the lap I knew I was done.

Massage tomorrow for my body,

Mathew John

Running in Europe.

Taking off on this adventure I never thought it would lead me to all the places it has.
The hills of Sardinia:

The bridge over the canals of Venice. Past the 1600 homes in Wetzlar.

Getting up early to run while the band (and tanya) slept. A great way to see a city.
The time came for my 4th Half Marathon. Cologne was the spot. Above me is at 7:30 AM before starting. A little haggard beard going on. The night before was crazy. Trying to find the marathon expo didn`t work. I ended up walking around the entire convention center without finding a door to get in. A friend of Sophie`s took me out for dinner. I had potato pasta covered in butter. Perfect pre-race food. Then back to the hostel with my full tummy. Needed to try and get my bib again. This time at seven in the morning.
My first large city marathon. 10000 people were running the half alone. They also were putting on a inline skate event of 64Km. Crazy to watch people go. This photo up top is in rudolph platz. The streets were lined with people out to watch.

Off I went. The first 10K was a challenge my body would not take form. Shocked at the 10K when I looked at my watch going at a 6min pace. As per usual my calves got tight at 20K. slowed my pace as passing through the city.

After crossing the finish line a man almost brought me to tears. All he said was Good Job and patted me on the shoulder.


It ended up being a personal best of 2H 03M 25S. The best part was the food and then BEER.
Hello it`s not even 11AM and the germans celebrate with free beer for everyone. I drank my beer and returned to the hostel to shower and repack. Now off on a train to joing my friends in Berlin.

Another 20K next week for full marathon training,
Mathew John

It's hard.

These are again my team mates after our 12K on glenmore. Total smiles.

This is me and my morning run with Erin and Felix. I cursed and screamed during this run and had to ask when do I become a runner? Totally not clothing concerned while training.

Off to Europe off for my next race,

Mathew John

Yahoo for Fall.

Summer is over and I have found a new joy in Hiking. Why is Hiking better than running? First, going up a mountain only presents a challenge for half of the hike. Second, Hikes involve the collection of yummy food to eat when looking out on a beautiful view. (Next summer maybe I will start mountain running)

Fall is here and there is no longer summer. What a great season.

Hiking in Lake Louise. When we reached the tea house and started sipping our organic tea the snow started to fall for the first time. Magical realisation.
New running path down in Inglewood. Trains and their chugging down the line always make me feel safe and at home. "Everything is fine if the train is running through."
Great news! This is my new team with Team in Training. This was our first running for the marathon training, just 8K. Excited to start training for my first full marathon. Jan 18th 2009 Phoenix.

Also I have registered for my next half marathon in Cologne Germany in 4 weeks.

Triclub meeting this week,

Mathew John

The next step.

This was my Friday "oh crap I have to run a half marathon on Sunday and haven't run since Monday" run. Down to baker park and under the sarcee bridge to Bowness.
This was a silly photo to take after running 15K. For Erin and I to lift our feet and hold them while I clicked away was almost a marathon itself.
Around 19K we passed the 2:10 pace bunny and ended up finishing 2 hours and 4 minutes 32 seconds. That means I have gone from running a 7 minutes Km to just under a 6. YAHOO!!!!

Hello cute couple from my running team. Still running. Kyle was my mentor for my first journey into distances. Plans to become a mentor and inspire.
Wow Mathew John without a shirt. This being my third half marathon you think I would have the knowledge of the importance of body glide and band aids. At 12K I realized the run would be needing them. Screw it. What a great finishing photo. LOOK at my medal!
The next day convinced to go on a 3 hour hike which became a 5.5 hour hike. This was my first mountain climb and really proved how under prepared/inexperienced I was.

Paid 300 dollars for the university triathlon club.
Hopefully all the cross training will make me a better runner.

cheers,

Mathew

UPDATES: Running and a Tri-it.

I tried a week ago to update this blog but blogger was not on my side. Yesterday I completed my first 'Tri it' Triathlon. First all the people who got me there.

Alex was willing to get in the pool with me. I needed the most work in that spot. Pooligans for life!
John is also training for Triathlon stuff. He's in the university club which I am thinking about joining. He has plan to do a half-iron man. The day this photo was taken we biked 16K then ran 6K. AMAZING work.
A week ago John and I went and ran the Glenmore reservoir. It took alot to get back into long distances. This was only 15K John hadn't run that far ever and with a tight muscle in his leg had to turn around at 6K. The reason I like running it is because after 7.5K you can't turn around.
Hello Beauty.
My Triathlon team. We all completed our first event ever. Megan kicked my butt in our heat. She is one of those swimmers that doesn't splash. Kevin registered just on time and was placed in another heat. It was great to finish and watch him. The time aren't posted yet but I ended up biking the wrong way for kilometer before turning around. It is 6 days till Edmonton Half marathon. One final longer distance. Off Erin and I went (with the best dog Felix) around the reservoir again.
In true fashion we went off the pavement and ended up with a block in a trail. "Do we go over the beaver dam?" Yeah we did. That was the best part. The run ended up being a little more trail then a light jog. It killed but should be good practice for the unknown Edmonton route.

That's the update,

Mathew

Personal best.

In the constant state of training. I saw and signed up for a saturday morning open minds ten-er. Why not invite your good friend Erin who lately you have managed to sleep through or previous plans.

If you going to do the cock talk why not do it while running for Schizophrenia.

Best race of my life. The results are up: 56 minutes and 27 seconds. Erin was 8 seconds behind me. I gave it one of my killer sprints. Afterward we went to the cutest 'new to me' breakfast place. Cannot wait to take all my friends there.

Finding a good unknown breakfast place is like finding the amazing man in your social circle who hasn't been with any of your friends.

My triathlon training week:

Saturday- 10K power run.

Sunday- Drunk neighborhood bike ride.

Monday- 350m swim with Kevin.
Tuesday- 40 minutes sprint bike ride

Today- 40 minute run and a pool date later.

Even though today seems crazy it is needed after the amount I drank last night. Shyla called and got me out of bed at 11 and then I changed our run location to start with a 1K run uphill. There's nothing like getting over

This was our point of turn around. This weird lake on nose hill from a distance looks beautiful but up close major let down. Oh well, A great run with a good running friend.

2.5 weeks till the triathlon,

Mathew John

Triathlete.

Not sure how this happened but I really like training for a triathlon. I know it isn't a lot of distance to cover and if I had to I could finish it. Maybe running isn't giving me the same high as it used to. I am so worried about working in a bar. There is just so much drinking smoking and eating. NEW RULES: no deep fried food and no ice tea.
This is from a bike ride in Nose Hill Park on Monday. God rays brought tears to my eyes. Also listening to fleet foxes sure created the right mood.


I met with a friend on Wednesday to get into the pool. I'm up to 150M without stopping. Still can't get the swimmers breath. Every stroke is like learning to drive: check your back mirror, foot on the gas, 2 hands on the wheel. When I get going I end up shoulder checking and moving the whole car into the other lane. SWIMMING...... Get easier.

Here is my today view. The soundtrack was the Sam Sparro album. It really got me pushing. For the first time ever I stood up on my bike while riding up hill. I only have to figure out how not to swerve around.

I love getting of the bike throwing it in my car then taking off on my running shoes. Small runs might be the new half marathon.

10K on Saturday morning before work.

Could I be the new triathlete?

Mathew

More than I can chew.

Just signed up for my first tri-it triatholon. It is the smallest version of the big event.


300M Swim
5K Bike
2.5 Run


Another goal to keep this fitness up and also for my cross training.
Just got back from my first swim. EEEEEEEEEIIIK. I consider myself a fit person, but wow not in a pool. This was my lap distance break down: 50-25-50-50-25-50-50. In total 300M. All I need to accomplish on Aug. 10th.My mother used to be a swimmer. She has taken on being my swim coach. A little Mother Son time in the pool. (great for conversation)


It hard to take 10 days off of running. I miss it. Still need to decide whether or not to sign up and run Edmonton half marathon. Also, for some weird reason I stopped eating my bran breakfast. Now that I am working in a kitchen, must focus on getting the greens back in play.


training hard,
Mathew John

Second Half Marathon.

It was kinda crazy to run it again with only 15 days in the spread. I only went for a small 50 minute run inbetween and a couple hour bike rides. The race went better than Alaska. I knew the course. The bad part was how alone I felt in my city. I woke up got ready headed down and didn't speak to anyone. Just Ran.

At 1KM I spoted Norma and her husband Riel. Norma walked the full in Alaska. It was so great to have a cheering team. They were on their bikes and we crossed paths 4 times. Each time bring me close to tears. Goose bumps running through my body. Hairs on end. Not so alone!

This is what 21.1 KM looks like. That last K is the hardest imaginable. My calf seized on me again. This time I dug deep and ran with it. I was aware of it during the race and started stretching early. It only bothered me in the last 2 kilometers.
All done. My friend Erin came by to watch. She was really great. After a race your mind keeps going and your body is exhausted. It's kinda hazy like this photo. Great to know their was someone else watching me.

Now I take 2 weeks off from running. Still physical: My first tri it in a month. Gotta hit the pool.

Mathew John

Give me a Yahoo!!!

After 5 months of preparing, here it is my first half marathon. After that amount of time it wasn't a question of completing but a question of doing my best. Mission accomplished.

Morning of the race. Going through the first ribbon crossing the door of my hotel room. I did manage to get 6 hours of sleep. It was hard since the sun never set while I was there.
The half marathon team before the start of the race. Left to right: Chris, Kevin, Len, Karen, Moi, Shyla. In total there was 12 of us from Calgary. We raised 70,000. 980 team in training purple shirts in the crowd of 4000 runners. All together team in training raised 4.4 million for Leukemia and Lymphoma research for this race.
Then the rain came. This is Shyla, she and I ran a good part of the race together. We laughed and I kept calling her "darling" and "girl." She put up with my chatter and banter. Physical activity just brings out the crazy in me.
The first hour rained and rained. This garbage bag was my protection from the start till mile 2. Normally I don't run in the rain. When I ripped that garbage bag off it was like peeling the plastic off a hotdog.
Mid way picture moment. The first 10 miles went off without a hitch. "Did we just run 9 miles?" The Canada flag on my singlet got cheers. The whole run making a point to cheer all the purple shirts passing. This race wasn't about myself so much as it was for everyone. Collective goal!

Through the trees. We ran through earthquake park. What a name!!! The race then took us along the coast. The sun didn't come out for the first 2 hours.
Action shot. (Mile 8) It isn't visible in this photo but on the back of the jersey it said "GIVE ME A YAHOO" Every mile marker we YAHOO'd. Every time I started to feel tired, I yahoo'd. Every time I would get ahead of Shyla she would let me know where she was. It was funny because people only gave a yahoo when they were passing me while I took a moment to walk or stretch.
What surprised me during the run was how many people had frowns on their faces. I smiled my way...Come on it's a half marathon not major dental work. Give it a smile!!!

At mile 11 my left calf seized up on me. Stopping every 5 minutes to stretch. Not wanting to walk the finally yards. My muscle didn't want me to move any further. The last 100 meters were on a high school track. Each step was harder than the next. My smile forced me to the end. Giving all that I had. Hardest run of my life.

My grandfather who passed at the end of May was the first person to donate and support me. I called my grandmother with a mile left. She thought I was crazy to be running and talking. It is important to let those around you know how much they mean to you. Jack Cook, my grandfather was the most respectable upstanding citizen I know. He is missed everyday. 2 Hours and 26 Minutes and 37 Seconds.

Every step worth it.

The best run of my life so far.

In total I fundraised 6187 dollars.

Thanks for reading and donating.

Grateful,

Mathew John Chyzyk