Random Thoughts

Running Documentaries

By sheer accident I started to watch documentaries on marathons or people running marathons. I saw one on the Barkley Marathon, one on Desert Series Grand Slam, one on Eddie Izzard, and one on Dean Karnazes. One of the things I learned is that there are a lot of bad documentaries out there about running and marathons.  Some of the ones I started to watch were really boring even though they are on very interesting events like the London Marathon or some other ultra event, so you really need to wade through a whole bunch to get the gems, especially if you are fishing on Youtube.

But of the ones I did finish I was inspired by all of them.  Like how humble Dean Karnazes is.  I first read about him in Born to Run, and for some reason he came off as charismatic but arrogant so I didn't have a good impression of him.  And I think this is completely untrue.  I've acquired a few of his books now and at some point I'll get around to reading them all.

I was more amazed by Eddie Izzard I think.  At 47, this transvestite comedian who had no previous running experience decided to run a marathon a day, 6 days a week, until he goes around the entire Great Britain, for Sports Relief.  His marathons averaged about 10 hours each but he still did it and it looked absolutely miserable but entirely amazing.  He essentially did it by sheer will power and stubbornness.  I think he will have lifelong injuries from this experience, but I can't deny it was just a great feat no matter how you look at it.  I was more amazed, and sometimes angered, by how unprepared he was, and how little he seemed to know or care.  The support team he assembled was okay at best.  The trainer was annoying and not very helpful, and he spent more time in the documentary talking to a camera in sit-down interviews than he was actually by Eddie's side, and somehow he's the trainer, of someone trying to do an impossible feat with no experience.  In the middle they brought in some random nutritionist who gave bland and very crappy advice.  Eddie did the whole thing while being accompanied by his own ice cream van that went around giving out free ice cream to people for donations, and he essentially snacked on ice cream and candy bars and sometimes beer through the whole thing.  And he did the most irresponsible things like trying to do a sub-4 marathon after taking a day off for some pretty bad toe injury, or taking really long detours and refusing to listen to his therapist until he was in serious danger of having to discontinue the runs.  But it's Eddie Izzard, and he ran a marathon a day, 6 days a week, around Great Britain.  And I was inspired.

Almost Two Years

It's been almost two years since I started running.  I started late in March of 2014 for a number of reasons that just happened to occur all at the same time, and I've been running on a off for two years since. I still consider myself a beginner runner, since I don't think I make much progress at all since I started.  I didn't lose a significant amount of weight, I've only done a 5K so far and cannot run faster or longer than when I first started, and I'm not sure how much better as a person I've become since I started.  The only consolation I could give myself is that, just imagine how much more weight I would've gained if I hadn't run.  It's true that I've not gained much weight since I started so I guess that's something.

Advice? What Advice?

Over the two years I've done a lot of reading about running.  I've had a Runner's World subscription for almost as long as I had this blog, and I read books about running, watched documentaries, perused  blogs written by fellow runners, and read endless articles.  I've downloaded marathon training calendars, saved posts about post-run stretches and core-strengthening exercises, listened to talks about running gears, tech or otherwise, and managed to get a signed photo of Shalane Flanagan and had a picture taken with her.  I know a lot of stuff, and I've been reading long enough to have some of the basic stuff repeated over and over again.

And there are a number of things that on paper I theoretically should abide by.  Things like you have to do tempo runs to increase your speed.  You have to vary your workout.  That I need a certain kind of shoes given my build and my feet.

Some of the things I read were very helpful.  I'm happy with my running posture.  And with all my yoga and pilate exercise I've strengthened it somewhat and nowadays I really try to engage my core as I run and the runs do feel a bit easier and more effortlessly.  I think I'm done with getting more running shoes for a while.  I've worked out my own system while running outside (I've tried bring money to buy water on the way, holding off until I get home, and by the end of last year I got myself a hand-held running bottle with a zipper pouch).  My running time are pretty set; I always go around dinner-time.  And I've given up on trying to follow any training calendar and just run as I see fit.

I feel that a lot of the advices and guidelines and how-tos are not quite designed for me.  I have no explanation for the shoe thing.  I guess we'll find out if running with unsupported shoes will give me problems later on.  And I no longer do tempo or speed runs.  I know they are supposed to help you build your speed, but every time I push beyond my comfortable speed my plantar fasciitis comes back and it's agony.  I've done 3 5K runs this week, which is too big of a milage increase from the week before but I don't care since I'm happy with my runs.  And I think I'll leave the anaerobic exercise to the HIIT class I signed up again for next term.  Running will remain my cardio workout.

And all of a sudden last week and this week I'm able to push through my 1-mile barrier and today I ran for 30 minute straight at a constant speed of 5 mph before slowing to a walk and I've never ever done that before.  I know it doesn't sound like much and I'm not going to go any faster in a while but to me it's a substantial achievement.  And nothing had changed in the two weeks except my mindset.  I told myself that I would run for 30 minutes before stopping to a walk and 40 minutes total and that's what I did.  I almost didn't go run today but I told myself that if I wanted to order Thai food for take out I need to go run to burn off the calories.  I persuaded myself to hit the gym and somehow also managed to not get Thai food.  And I normally suck at self-motivation.

So I'm gonna try something new and just do my own thing for a while.  Nothing as crazy and stubborn as Eddie Izzard, but just things that suit me.  The heavy, slow me.  The unathletic me.  I think I need to tailor plans that I can handle, instead of things designed by professionals and for very experienced people.  And one of the things is to make small goals.  Small and tangible, and make them often as I (hopefully) reach the goals.  I told myself that I shouldn't get the Thai dish I really like until I lose 5 lbs.  I'm also going to stick with my 5K runs and increase the frequency with which I run them.  I want to work my way to one week, hopefully in April sometime, that I do one 5K a day for 7 days.  Not at race speed, but just the distance.  And I'm not going to do that right away, but I'm going to build to that point.  I want to run again on Sunday, so I will have done 4 5-K workouts this week.  Maybe next week I'll try 5, maybe I'll stick with 4 again, depending on how I feel.  And once I reach my 7-day goal I'll increase my runs to 45 minutes instead of the now-40.  Or I'll do a 4-mile target distance.  We'll see.  But it'll be slow and steady, until my body gets used to it and wants more variety.  I'm also going to work more on my mental readiness.  Like how not to over-eat, or what to do when I just don't feel like running, or how to better manage the boredom while on treadmill.  I know my body is capable of doing more but mentally I'm scared and nervous.  I don't really have a race I want to do in the near future but I'll slowly tread toward that direction.  And it's going to be good.

Exercise Diary: Ups and Downs

An update on my workouts:

• Thursday: 3 miles around the pond
• Friday: ~40 minutes of spinning and 20 minutes of free weights, abs, and stretches 
• Saturday: ~4 miles in the morning on my favorite Norwich loop

And if I had written before this morning's run, I would say that I'm finally getting comfortable with this running outside thing.  Last weekend I did the same Norwich loop and maintained the same pace throughout, while the 3 loops around the pond felt like nothing and I felt that I could run around that pond forever while listening to Neil Degrasse Tyson interviewing Chris Hadfield on the newest podcast episode of Startalk.  And I thought, okay, maybe it just takes about 2 months to get used to running on a surface that doesn't move, and now I get to improve my distance and maybe even speed instead of teaching myself how to run on concrete again.  

And then I went for a run this morning.  And I felt like shit.  

To be fair, I only felt terrible for the first 2 miles.  I was out of breath after the first mile, and my body felt like lead.  I slowed to a walk twice, and seriously questioned my decision to get up at 6am after a poorly rested night so I could run while no one's watching.  And that didn't even work; there were way too many runners (and their dogs) on the road, and other random people who just happen to be up ridiculously early on a Saturday morning.  Throw in the outside folks who gathered here for graduation weekend, who happened to be the only people who stared at my matching color outfit (other runners don't care), and the beastly sun who decided to come out strong before 9 am, I might as well run in the middle of the afternoon when everyone else is out.

Anyways, I had a hard time this morning because I was poorly rested, and that's that.  Still put damp on my nice running streak this week but oh well.  I started listening to audiobooks on my runs now, since I'm all caught up on my runnable podcasts.  Currently I'm listening to the dramatized version of Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book, which features Sir Derek Jacobi as the narrator, and Neil Gaiman, among other people, doing the voices for the different characters.  I can just listen to Derek Jacobi's voice forever.  I like it when his voice is outright gay, and I like it when it's less camp.  It's silky smooth and so endearing, and if I didn't care about the story I could just zone out and just bask in his voice.  But the story is interesting too, and since I don't really read fiction anymore this is really a good chance for me to immerse myself in a fantasy world.  

On Friday morning I went to a morning PE class offered by the college.  The instructor was kind enough to let me try a class before I officially sign up for the summer term.  I really did this so I don't have to pay $200 for a summer yoga pass that would give me nothing but extra pressure to schedule my summer around going as many classes as I can to get my money's worth.  So instead after much agonizing thinking I somehow convinced myself that getting up early 4 days a week to attend a 6am morning class that include spinning, free weights, and weight training is the best alternative.  There are many reasons that led to my decision but it still sound like a crack of an idea.  It's only for the summer and I think it will do me more good.

But what it boils down to is this: I'm running as much as I can now and I really love it.  I don't know if I will be running in the upcoming half-marathon in October, or exactly what my goal is, but I don't want to give it up.  And in order to run as best as I can, I need to improve on other areas of my fitness.  Flexibility is very important, and thankfully I do yoga regularly so I've got that covered.  But I also need to do weight lifting to strength my muscles and core and areas that are not directly affected by running, so I need to lift weights, or something along that line.  And since I have no self discipline and no ability to clear enough space out of my pigsty of an apartment to even roll out a yoga mat, I have to do it in the gym, and I don't know how.  And that's where the classes come in.

It just really sucks that all the available PE classes offered in the summer term happen during crappy time.  In order to attend most of them you either have to skip lunch or ditch work early, and I don't want to do either.  And that leaving late afternoons and early mornings.  Since none of the anaerobic classes are offered in the late afternoons, I'm forced to make the decision that I will just have to enjoy the summer mornings more and take a morning class.  And why take two classes so I'll have to be up early 4 days a week?  Because doing only 2 days will probably kill me since I will never develop a workable routine this way.  We still got 2 weeks before the classes start, but it's pretty much settled, and I want to get up early in the summer anyway.

I better look fabulous after this summer.

Plantar fasciitis is still bothering me after every run, and I ice my foot afterwards each time.  Because of this it hasn't set full on, but I really hope I can keep it at bay so I don't get cripple for another summer.  Stretch! Strengthen! I really don't need the inflammation and the pain thank you.

Exercise Diary: So much for that 10K app

First day back at running.  Did 2.5 miles in my new Saucony Kinvara 5 (the awesome blue kind with trippy green shoe laces).  Not a good run but at least I made myself go around the pond 3 times.

Today I also tried the 10K app I recently downloaded.  It's developed by the same people who made the popular C25K app, so I thought it would be really helpful.  For the 10K app they essentially extended their methodology, and employed the same run-walk-run strategy.  And it theoretically made sense.  Since I could run a 5K if I really wanted to, I started from the week 9 program, which was run 10-minute walk 1-minute for about 4 times.

In reality it didn't work quite well.  With the new shoes and my recently opened body I went way to quickly in the first 10 minutes, which actually felt really great, until I got bored/tired around minute 8 and thought, oh no, this is not going to go well.  Although the 10K app is supposed to be compatible with Nike+ and a bunch of music apps like Spotify and Pandora, it didn't work too well with my non-traditional app, and instead of voice signaling my walking break, the music simply dimmed for 2 seconds.  You eventually get used to that, but it could be very confusing at first.  Naturally I missed my first break.

I tried to make it up by walking for about a minute and keep running, but it threw off my whole rhythm.  Plus the sudden stopping to walk really messed up my breathing.  The rest of my run consisted of pain in the diaphragm, irregularity in my heart beat, and a general decline in stamina and speed.

All in all the app didn't do anything to my advantage.

Not sure if I'm going to continue using this program.  I could theoretically do my own run-walk-run routine using landmarks on my route as signals, or I could just run the whole time for a long as I could.

The new shoes felt really good actually.  I had been very unhappy with them since I had a hard time making them fit, but after wearing them for a while and adjusting the lacing they became a natural extension to my feet which is nice.  My feet didn't really hurt that much during today's run, and although the size-9.5 shoes look really big they felt like a really good fit.  I think they are a keeper.

Other thoughts:

• Up until I went out in my running gear it was cloudy all day.  So although I brought my new visor I decided not to use it.  And I immediately regretted that decision as soon as I stepped out.  The sun peered throughout the cloud and was very bright, and although there was a very nice breeze it was still very hot.  
• The right side of my forehead and neck sweat more than my left side.  This is no longer a new discovery but it was more prominent today.  I hate the feeling of sweat dripping down my neck and I don't think it is something that can be rescued by a visor.  Would I look really stupid if I run with a towel in one hand?
• Ran today with a playlist of upbeat music, which I've almost never done before.  I always run with a podcast or an audio book.  But I think the upbeat music works a lot better.  For one I don't really have to pay attention to it.  In fact sometimes I deliberately ignore it.  But the fast beat helps with the mood and my breathing, and is not as distracting from the actual running.  
• I found it to be quite helpful if I focus a lot on my breathing during the run.  I guess it's kind of like yoga, you have to make sure you are breathing deeply no matter what you are doing.  Although that idea kind of failed toward the end, but I think overall if I focus on the actual running rather than actively trying to ignore it by engaging more in what I'm listening I would feel less tired too early on.

Exercise Diary: Setbacks

What I did today:

• 4 miles on the treadmill
• The only thing I was proud of was that I stayed on the treadmill till I hit the 4-mile mark.  I walked twice in between, and I was just really tired the while time.  My foot was hurting by mile 2, and that made me wary of going any faster.  I'm not sure what it was, I can only attribute it to a general decline in fitness.
• first half of the Ballet Beautiful swam arms series
• I thought it makes a lot of sense that on running days I would also work on my arms so my legs don't suffer too much.  But I neglected the fact that I did the same video yesterday and I was feeling its effect all day today.  I managed to work through the first half of the video before calling it a day.  I could go on if I wanted, but I didn't want to.  I would probably feel very sorry tomorrow if I did.
• Ballet Beautiful Out Thigh
• To make up for the incomplete of the first video I decided to look for another BB workout to make up for it.  I picked this one since it was short and the targeted outer thigh didn't seem too bad.  And it wasn't.  I mean, my legs were feeling both like lead and on fire when I worked on each, and I needed prolonged stretching after each set so I don't cramp, but after the workout I don't feel my legs so much anymore.  It's not like I can't walk or anything. 
• Blogilates Quick Ab workout
• After all that I felt that I really should work on my abs for a bit since I've been neglecting this area.  Mostly because it's hard and I can't do crunches or whatever you do for very long.  There are so many ab videos on Blogilates that I ended up just picking a random one, which despite being a 10 minute video was actually very short, since it only had two moves and worked to a 3:14-long song.  I still couldn't do it the whole way through and had to take breaks in between and didn't even bother to pause the video.  I'm feeling my abs and I think that's enough for the day.

About this time last month I stood in front of my full-length mirror in my gym clothes and took a picture of myself.  I had great ambition and hope that in one month, combining running and doing Blogilates workout and a modified diet I would change my weight and body shape somewhat, and I would document my progress.  I didn't expect to be all lean and skinny after just one month, but I did the same thing in front of the mirror today (not the same gym clothes though), and I don't think I saw any changes.  If anything I think I may look even bigger and wider than last month.  I don't think my weight had changed.  I would like to think that I had lost a pound or two but it's not very noticeable.  I think given some more time the changes will become more apparent, but this has been a very disappointing month.  I'm still adjusting.  And I feel there was progress.  But there's no proof.  Oh well.  I guess it's a good thing that winters are so long here; I still have some time before I no longer have my jacket to cover up my body of shame.  

Exercise Diary: Think I'm actually getting better at this running thing...

This is the last week of March and I'm into Week 7 or 8 (it got fuzzy in the middle at one point) of my half marathon training.  Considering it was a 14 week plan I'm almost or more than half way through it.  I've been following the weekly milage dutifully and have even thrown in some pilate weight training in the middle, but I've never really felt like I'm making any progress with either distance or speed.  I've given up on trying to increase my speed before my body is ready, and I've not yet done any distance that I didn't do before (I think the longest I've done is 7 miles, outdoors of course).  So even though I've accomplished some of my longest runs on a treadmill, I'm not sure it translates well or accurately to the road.  I still tell people that I'm training for a half-marathon, which I am since I'm following a plan and everything, but I'm not sure if the half-marathon is actually going to happen.  My friend still has not gotten back to running after her dental surgery, and now she's also got high blood pressure problems and I think she's going to bail on me.  I don't have an alternative plan; I don't really want to do the Boston half-marathon in May (or whenever it is, it's probably sold out anyway).  But I think I'll still go through my half-marathon training and maybe do the CHaD half that I didn't end up doing last year (which is in Oct I think) and move on to a full marathon training plan in case I actually go through with the Honolulu Marathon in December.

People seem to be impressed that I'm running and even training for something.  I think my only merit is the fact that while running became a fad among my (real-life) friends for a short period of time last summer, as far as I know I'm the only one who's still doing it.  Still doesn't mean that I'm good at it or anything.  I'm the slowest person I know, which is one of the major reasons why I run alone, or more accurately, why I consciously avoid running with people.  As in, purposely avoiding group runs.

Today is my catch-up day, catching up on the 5-miler left over from last week.  I've already finished my run and it's only half past eight.  I had completely forgotten that the school athletics facility is on spring interim hours and the gym closes at 8pm.  So much for watching Castle on the TV tonight.

But I've managed to time my lunch well so I'm not full or famished by 6:30, but still had room for a banana and a light snack.  I got to the gym ~10 minutes ahead of schedule, which almost never happens.  And (probably) because of the short evening hours the gym was packed.  Full of grad students, post docs, and old people working out, mostly on various weight stations, thankfully.  The treadmills and ellipticals were mostly empty, but somehow I still managed to get stuck between a girl who runs fast but funny and an older dude who made a lot of noises when he ran (and he only did intervals, running really fast for a bit then stood around for a bit longer).  That and an old lady working on her upper body strength who pulled a lot of pained faces while doing so kept me fairly well entertained for a while.

I started slow and gradually sped up.  I find that I'm better at doing that now, but I'm having trouble slowing down.  I can speed up gradually and maintain at higher speed for as long as my lungs would allow, but as soon as I slow down my lungs suffer new challenges.  While I was able to breathe better I also felt like hauling ass because my body wanted to go faster still.  But after a while it gets used to it and I could go longer than 5 miles if I wanted to while my body settles happily at the slower speed again.

But the main reason why I feel like I'm actually getting better is that after I reached my goal of the day I realized that I had ran almost all the way through (I had to stop at ~1 hr since the treadmill was programmed to stop after 1 hour, to make room for the next user I guess) and although my thigh muscles were feeling tight by the end I felt that I could go on if I really wanted to.  My stomach wasn't giving me any problems, my foot felt fine, my lungs didn't feel like they wanted to collapse, and the NCIS episodes were keeping my mind very happy.  I was in a good place.  Even though as I stepped into the gym knowing that I was going to do 5 miles on the treadmill (another first) I was genuinely scared.  Scared of all my body parts giving out during the middle of the run.  I was also focusing on the time instead of distance and I think that helped too.  I knew it would take me a bit more than an hour to do 5 miles and I was timing and playing with my speed that way.  I think it would've been much more painful mentally if I had been focused on distance.  But for all of these reasons I finished my run happy and accomplished, and for the first time I felt really good about myself, and that I was actually improving.

Exercise Diary: Week 2's Long-ish Run

So last night I did what I had planned to do with this week's training, and did my 3-mile run on the treadmill while watching Castle.  I didn't even finish the episode since my 3 miles were up and walking seemed boring, but I didn't want to continue running in case I screw up my legs and what not.  Besides, as much as I still love Castle the plot is getting more and more predictable, more so than it is acceptable I think.

Anyway, the run went fine, much to my surprise, and at the same time I wasn't really surprised at all.   I knew I could run 3 miles without stopping or too much struggling.  Granted I was going at a pretty slow pace, and had to slow down a bit (but not walking) about twice in the middle, before gradually upping the speed again.  I hovered my pace at ~4.8 mi/hr, which is probably extremely slow, but I figured since I was covering a long-ish distance at the beginning I shouldn't push myself too much.

I had a normal sized dinner about 1.5 hrs before I went, I even took a small nap before I left for the gym.  My only warm-up was the walk to gym (in deep snow).  It was like every other night runs, and although I had to slow down during the run I didn't struggle too much, physically or mentally, to finish.  Also, knowing that I had to watch an hour-long TV episode as well as running 3 miles made the first 2.5 miles seem extremely.  It was only after that I started to get anxious and my mind kept wondering to the finish.  Maybe the solution is to trick myself into thinking that I was actually doing a much longer run?

My insoles were still bothering me, to the point that I really wanted to stop about 1.5 miles in, and that's where I think I slowed down for the first time.  It wasn't as bad as the day before, but still uncomfortable.  Can't wait till my new insoles arrive.  In the mean time I think I will switch to another pair of shoes.

This was also the first time I didn't finish an entire episode of Castle.  I left before the murderer was even revealed.  I couldn't quite figure out why that is, whether the show got boring, or I was anxious to move on to the next thing (going to lab for a quick set-up and go home to sleep), or I have finally pushed through the treadmill boredom and no longer need a good distraction to keep me going.  The other day I happily watched part of an episode on PBS where Hugh Bonneville was talking about "Midsummer Night's Dream, " and found it extremely interesting.  On Sunday I watched/listened to part of a documentary about fake Egyptian artifacts and the beginning of some show where an Archbishop was interviewed about his life experience.  Either I've become more curious or I no longer need a good distraction.  I've also started to pay more attention to my stride and breathing and posture.  For the past two days that was inevitable since my feet were hurting, and last night I felt slight pain in my right knee at the beginning of my run.  Hopefully that will not happen as often when I space out my runs again.  I think I'm going to yoga tonight, but if not, I think I will try and do some elliptical work at the gym, or something else that's not as stressful on the knees.

Running Thoughts: slow and steady conquer hills

I've recently been running a lot with a friend from the lab, and whenever I run with her we hit the nearby trail.  There are a few reasons: 1) it's very shady in there so we would be avoiding the blazing sun or light rain, 2) it's beautiful in there with the trees, streams, and the Connecticut River, 3) it's soft, which my friend, who underwent knee surgery a few years ago, really liked, and 4) it's got some very nice hills for variety/ practice.  There are two big hills flanking either side of our 1.4-mile trail route, one  has an 80-foot climb over 0.2 miles, and the other has a ~60-foot climb over 0.1 mile.  I consider the former a longer, steadier incline, whereas the other I dubbed "the Big Ass Hill" (BAH).

From my first time running this trail (which was before I came to like running), to the workout we did today, I've climbed the BAH 4 times, and to my pleasant surprise each time I made progress.  The first time I broke my promise that I would run all the way up the hill and walked half the way, the second I went up with full speed ahead and nearly dropped on the ground afterwards, but did not stop to walk.  The last two times I instead adopted a "shut up and run" and "don't think too much about it" method and went up at a granny speed, slow and steady.  I still panted like a horse afterwards but at least I don't fear the hill anymore, and my serious panting started later and later on the hill run.

I've only gone up the steady, gradual hill twice, but there was also progress made between the first and the second time.  The first time I again went up too fast and had to stop and walk.  It didn't help that I ran into a professor in my department walking his dog with his wife right before we were about to go up the hill.  The second (and third, we went up there twice today) time was much better.  I again used the granny method, and just took my time.  And although I would not run out and start my own hill training class, and would still be too embarrassed to run up these hills with anyone else besides this friend, at least I'm going up there, and killing it.

I'm still working on running downhill.  One of the recent RW issue had a little thing on downhill running.  It emphasized the importance of practicing running downhills correctly, placing it right next to uphill training, and provided some tips on running correctly and proper training.  Granted I don't get to choose the hills I run, but I try to follow the directions the article gives on running it properly.  Head up, looking ~15-20 feet ahead, body tilting forward slightly, and all that jazz.  Still can't control the occasional pounding that goes straight to my hips, or my tendency to lean back when the hill is particularly steep (which apparently is bad for your knees).  As usual I can't control my speed.  Not that I don't enjoy flying down the hill like a running champ, I think I ultimately fear the speed more.

And I have to say, I really like going up the hills.  We did the trail loop 3 times today, which meant we had to choose which end we would start, and thus which hill we would run up twice.  We ended up running the steady, gradual one twice, and the BAH once, but I had a hard time making the decision, which means ultimately I really don't give a toss.  I fear the steady, gradual one more because I hadn't practice that one enough and the one experience was kind of miserable, but I see that as more reason I should practice it more.

I often thought that I like BAHs more than the steady and graduals because I like to get over the hills quickly rather than dragging it out, draining my breath.  But I think the truth is that I'm making one of my "Too" mistakes again: too fast.  We can all get up on a hill if we are not required a method.  In the worst case scenario we can just walk up there, though I think it actually takes more effort than slowly shuffle you way up.  But either way, the hills are not unconquerable, and even if you do run out of breath by the end you are likely not going to die, most likely, though I suppose there will always be exceptions.  But if you love your body more than going up a hill, chances are you will survive, and become better because of it.  Here's how I do it, at this stage of my inexperienced, out-of-shape running life.

1)  Mentally, you just can't think of it too much.  Of course you have to know that it's coming, either by running the route before or just by seeing that there is a hill coming up.  I don't think stumble onto a hill and having to adjust last minute helps at all.  But after you realized the fact that you have to go up a hill now, you have to forget, or at least, ignore the fact that you have a hill coming up.  Keep eyeing the top of the hill and worry about how steep it's going to be or how long it drags out is going to make you more nervous; your heart would beat even faster, and sometimes I get a wave of coldness over me that really doesn't help.  I do mentras in my head when I get distracted by the dauntingness of the hill.  The usual ones are either "don't think about it, just go" or "just shut up and run".  Sometime "it's not going to kill you" pops up and that's a good one too.  But the bottom-line is, just don't be too scared of it, it's just a frigging hill.

2)  Of course, I have neither the physical ability nor any competitive pressure to go up any hills really quickly, so I can afford to be fearless.  In terms of physically going up a hill without stopping to walk, it really all comes down to slow and steady.  Back straight, elbows back, head up, eyes straight (of course I stare just a few feet in front of me so I don't see how far I still have to go), and hop up like you are running up a long flight of stairs.  And go as slow as you can without stopping to walk, and just make your way up until you are down.  When going up the BAH my pantings still get louder and louder about halfway up, and sometimes my legs buckle when I make it all the way up, and today, when going down the same hill again just after about a minute of walking around catching up my breath, I had a momentary fear that my legs would lose control and that I would trip and tumble down the hill.  At some point I'll have to go back and work on my speed, but right now this is good enough.

I don't think I will enjoy running up a mountain.  I think running uphills uses a slightly different set of muscles than running on relatively flat ground and the change is refreshing.  So is going down hills, yet another set of muscles. I don't think anyone like to climb 30 flights of stairs, but there are some crazy runners out there who would race up Mt. Washington.  I'm definitely not physically there yet, nor would I like the constant, really long ass steady, gradual climb.  Variety is good.