3 miles Saturday 9 miles Sunday

Saturday. I ran in the rain. People drove past me and thought I was nuts. I ran past them and thought they were nuts for not running in the rain.

Sunday. 9 miles. It was cold. My five senses were alive . . .maybe that it was I run.

My "running buddy" who owns the local running store asked me to run for 45 minutes this weekend on a treadmill that will be set up in the front window of his store. This is part of a "living windows" theme for downtown merchants. It will be the first time that I have ever ran in a Santa's hat . . .

My body feels pretty good. No problems with all of the things that I thought was going wrong - - -except for my right shoulder hurts when I run . . .?

9.2 miles on Thanksgiving

I ran 9.2 miles on Thanksgiving. Everything was good until about mile 6 when I felt a sting above my left outside ankle. It almost felt like a shock . . .I had to stop because I thought that I was going to fall. It then started to feel hot. My "self diagnosis" via the internet . . it appears as though I have a case of peroneal tendonitis. I am not running today. . .This would make sense since the last several times I have run (either treadmill or yesterday in the park) I have run "hills".

It was cold and quiet running around the lake yesterday. My son didn't go with me because he is nursing an ankle right now (and it's basketball season so no reason to irritate it). Running alone on the trails I usually run with him (on the weekends) made me extremely sad and cognizant of the fact that both of my kids are growing up and one day neither will be around. 

I love the places that my two feet can take me.

I'm still here

I have run quite a bit on the treadmill this week. I have been messing with running hard for a quarter mile then backing down but putting the incline at a 5 or 6 for a quarter mile and then repeating. It sucks. Yesterday I thought that my heart was going to spew out of my mouth. I am going to run trails tomorrow with my son. It is Thanksgiving and I am thankful to be healthy.

I've been listening to a band called Horse Feathers. I love them.

My favorite albums of 2011 you ask?
The Tallest Man on Earth - - -The Wild Hunt
Bon Iver - - - -Bon Iver

I have devoured both of those albums this year and think that my life would be different if I didn't have each of those in my life. 

I have been running to the new Coldplay album. It is becoming one of my favorites. 

I feel pretty fit. I feel old. I feel like my life is more than half over. I feel close to God. I feel like my wife and kids will never understand just HOW MUCH I love them. I am thankful for breath and water and the bible and grace and Mizuno running shoes.

on the verge of a 50K . . .

I am about 73% sure that I am going to start training in a week or two for a 50k (30 miles) in Chicago at the beginning of April. I am at that point in my life where I realize that I'm not going to be able to fight forever - but that time is not now. The thought of being able to run 3.8 miles further than the 26.2 I did in October seems once again, out there . . .

My wife didn't freak out quite like I had planned so that was encouraging. I have been looking at training plans. There is one that would start in January but it seems quite aggressive. I am leaning towards a marathon training program just amping up my long runs a couple of miles.

Once again . .nobody is making me do this. I am not trying to impress anybody. I am not going through some sort of mid-life crisis. I like myself when I am pushed and I like the feeling of being connected to my maker.

I could start training for another marathon and try to run faster . .but why? Even faster by 45 minutes would still be slow . .so what's the point? I'd rather go slow and long . . .mark my words . . .when I whoop 30 miles I'll start training for 50.

11.5 miles in a 40 mph wind

It seemed like I was gone forever on my run yesterday. Partly because I didn't how many miles it was that I was going I just knew that I was going to run from my house to Soangetaha to Lincoln Park. The other reason it took so long was because at least 4 miles of the run was directly into a 40 mph sustained wind. It was the kind of wind that was blowing my mind. The kind of wind that will literally make you go crazy. Regardless, the Doug Owen running head first into a 40 mph wind one step at a time is the Doug Owen that I want next to me in a bunker. For some reason at about mile 11 I thought that I was going to pass out. I got light headed and had to stop for about 30 seconds. When I get home I ate voraciously . .. .it may have been some sort of weird blood sugar thing. Regardless, 11.5 miles was the longest I have went since the marathon. I am "eyeing" a 30 mile (50k) race in Chicago in April. I haven't broken the news to my wife yet . . .

I weighed myself at the Y this morning and I am at 178. That is about 7 pounds heavier than when I ran the marathon. I have been lifting weights a couple of times per week so I think that some of that weight is from that...I know longer feel "skinny fat" the way that I did a couple of weeks after the marathon!

I have been watching a TON of youtube clips on different ultra races (Badwater, Western States, Rocky Raccoon 100) . . .anybody that can go over 26.2 miles is a stud . . .I want to be a stud.

4 mile of trails . . .

3 miles yesterday morning on the treadmill. 4 miles today with my son on trails. We ran up and down "Suicide Hill" twice. I worked all day tearing out carpet and pulling 9500 staples out of our hardwood floors - -all on my knees. Needless to say, the trail run I promised to my 13 year old son at the end of the day was one of the toughest I have done in a while. We watched the sun burn down over the lake . . .it was one of those sunsets that hurt my heart. I am going to run 10 miles tomorrow.

9.5 miles Sunday - - -3 miles today

I am a weak man. If truth be told, I have several Gods that I often put before my own. I have been examining the various Gods in my life (pride, food, money, vanity - -those are some that jump to mind!). If not put into perspective, running too could hinder my spiritual growth. Put into perspective, it can enhance it. I have been  praying that God would help me gain discipline in other areas of my life as he has with my running. . . .or maybe I have been more active and engaged in the discipline of running because running feeds my pride and my vanity. 

Regardless, I ran 9.5 miles on Sunday but was quite disappointed because I thought that it was 10 miles! Today I went to the Y in the middle of my work day (took lunch though I didn't eat - - one of the things I am working on) and ran 3 hard miles.

I know many people who are dying right now - -really dying. I know many with broken hearts with no hope for tomorrow - -I know people who are sad and alone - -sometimes I try to "take on" those pains for people and pound them into the streets. Sometimes I take my own pain and do the same thing.

I am grateful that I have hope for tomorrow . . .

62 miles to go . .

Going into November I have 62 miles to go to reach 1,000 miles for 2011.

I ran 887.80 total miles in 2010.



I ran 4 miles this morning at 5:45AM . .it was 32 degrees. It is interesting how periodically I will get a puff of something. This morning it was a puff of fabric softener. Other times it is perfume, other times yet it is cigar smoke or toast. I run by all of these houses with their tv's on and I'm sad for the people inside and how most of them don't realize what they are missing on the outside, in the dark morning. 

THIS IS COOL . .

I picked up a postcard on Saturday when I was at Niketown in Chicago. It was from the "Nike We Run Chi" running club. I love this . . .so will any of you who RUN.

WE'RE IN IT FOR THE HIGH. WE HIT THE ROAD. HARD.
WE RALLY. WE DON'T WALK. OR JOG. WE EAT WHATEVER
WE WANT. WE DRINK WHATEVER WE WANT. WE KICK
UP DUST. WE PUT OFF HOMEWORK TO RUN. WE OPENLY
MOCK TREADMILLS. WE DON'T NEED GYM MEMBERSHIPS.
WE ARE OUR OWN HEALTH CLUB. WE SHOW UP. ALWAYS.
WE MAKE THE POSTAL SERVICE LOOK UNRELIABLE. WE ARE
A WOLFPACK. WE CAN RUN AWAY FROM OUR PROBLEMS.
WE ARE CARB CONNOISSEURS. WE ARE A VENTI-CUP OF KICK-ASS.
WE ARE UP FOR ANY CHALLENGE. WE RACK UP SOME SERIOUS
MILES. WE RUN INTO THE BLACK. WE ONLY SMOKE WHEN WE RUN.
WE GO LONGER. AND HARDER. WE CAN PARK ANYWHERE. WE CAN
DELIVER IN 30 MINUTES OR LESS. WE NEVER WORRY ABOUT THE
FRESHMAN 15. WE PRONOUNCE "JOGGING" WITH A SOFT J. WE PRONOUNCE IT
"YOGGING." CABS ARE EXPENSIVE. CARS ARE OUR ENEMY. WE RUN CHI

I went to the Y and worked out tonight. I am going to run 4 tomorrow morning.
I am going to run 5 on Saturday. I am going to run 10 on Sunday.  

I talked to my buddy who owns the running store. The new version of the shoes that I wear (Mizuno Nirvana) will be out in January. That is about when I will have "miled" out the shoes that I bought in mid-August. I need to start saving more nickels and dimes. For those of you "new" to my ramblngs, I pay for my shoes by saving my change each day. . . .makes me feel less guilty for buying $140 running shoes!

No Run Thursday . . .

Today is one of those days where I am going to be covering the miles in my car and not my feet. I ran only about 3 miles yesterday. It was dark, lonely, quiet and perfect. I know several people who KNOW that they are dying right now. Somehow I think that the key is to realize that we are all dying RIGHT now - -BEFORE the Dr.sticks a diagnosis around our necks. The bible says (Owen paraphrase) that "God has put the thoughts of eternity in men" - he certainly has me.  

Through the dark morning

5 miles this morning. It was 30 something. I couldn't hear the crinkle and swoosh of my wind pants because I was lost in my music. I raced a train for a short while. I left at 5:40AM. By the time I got home some of my old familiar flare ups started to flare. That's good. It means that I pushed myself. I ended my workout with 30 pushups. My goal is 50 in a row by Christmas. I am starting to feel better about myself. I am continuing to take in more calories than I am burning! However, these long runs that I am going to start adding should help! I am going to run 10 miles this weekend . . .Right now, 2 hours after my workout - -my body is in a trance-like state - -I LOVE the feeling.

Only ran 65.3 miles in October. I ran alot of times  - - just not very many miles at a crack. 65.3 miles is about half as much as I have been running over the last 3 months.