Shelagh's Brush

 It's officially spring..

Things are even starting to turn green, or at least less brown!

..so let me tell you I was not at all in the mood for this:

NOT FUNNY

I mean, it's partially my own fault - I'd been ruing not having the chance to run in some new winter kit that had recently been delivered, so all of a sudden I was given ample opportunity. It snowed on Tuesday evening's run (above), and then hammered me with snow flurries as I ran up to the bank and back on Wednesday afternoon to make some work deposits.

..while wearing the new kit, which worked quite well.
(Ridge Merino's Crowley Tights & Convict Hoodie)

I mean, it's no surprise to anyone that we'd get a bit of snow in April; we were due one more dump, and I'd rather have it out of the way now than waiting til May (like last year). It just feels like a shock when it's been so lovely out, considering I've been out on my paddleboard twice already. 

..and the new growth poking its way through the drab brown landscape of a melted winter.

At least it was fairly pleasant for the weekend, so I could enjoy my run down to the market (on the trail above), and do some exploring of a trail that Tank and I have actually been chasing (in on-and-off fashion) for years now.

It turns out that doing it in daylight - and not in a howling snowstorm - is easier.

Who would've thought?

We even got out for a romp on our mountain bikes on Sunday for the first time in ages.

It turns out I remember how to ride over mud and roots and rocks!

Rollin' along the river

We're definitely not the ones getting the worst of the wintry blast, either - while out on our ride, we saw more than a dozen turtles out taking advantage of the sunshine and mild air!

Some of which appeared to be having a difficult time playing leapfrog
(not pictured: you'll have to get your turtle porn elsewhere)

Really I'm just bitter because it's not enough snow to snowshoe run on (or cross-country ski), and while it's been chilly there have still been bugs out. That's NOT FAIR; it should either be cold, or buggy. NEVER BOTH AT ONCE.

Of course, if I'd do more running and less "using a fallen tree as a balance beam", they might not bother me so much..

I am definitely still enjoying the sun being out much later in the day.

Even though I still seem to see it set quite frequently while running.

..I'm just dreaming of the hot summer days when I can spend hours on the water without worrying about hypothermia if I happen to fall off my paddleboard.

If I had to pick a place to die, though..

I know the warmth - and really, the unbearable heat and humidity - are coming. I'll just have to be patient, but I sure hope Sheila doesn't have any more tricks in store for us.

Don't wait up

 There are multiple schools of thought on when the best time is to run in a day.

Most of which are not based on when the sky looks the prettiest.

Sometimes it seems like the entire world runs first thing in the morning - the dawn patrol, as it were.

Or - in my case - more like the "tennish, after a cuppa" patrol

..you know, after the sun has had time to get up and stretch its legs a little.

Many of these folks cite the satisfaction of having their run out of the way before they start the rest of the day, so that nothing can get in the way of them getting it in. I grant that it can be nice to already have run, but since I generally don't let anything stop me from going for a run (except on Fridays), I usually just find that it ends up pushing other things I need to do (some of which I am less dedicated to than running) later in the day, or perhaps to that indeterminate "sometime, when I have time" that is a black hole for all the stuff like cleaning and yard work and generally being a responsible adult.

"Aww jeez - getting late, gonna have to postpone the weeding"

Some people also cite the fact that races are held first thing in the morning (sometimes literally), so training their body to run well early in the day is important. On the surface, the reasoning is sound, however since body temperature for most people drops overnight (with its lowest point around 5:30am) this can leave your muscles and connective tissues cold and more susceptible to injury. Furthermore, the overnight fast may leave you inadequately fueled for a morning run, and some runners have digestive issues if they try to eat before a morning run. Speaking of eating, I always find myself hungry for the rest of the day after any run of more than an hour or so, so that leaves more time for me to over-indulge (though I recognize that's not necessarily a widespread issue; I'm sure most people have better-regulated appetites than mine!). 

On the right: normal person's stomach after a run.
On the left: the nigh-bottomless chasm that resides south of my ribcage.

Time can also be an issue, too - if you're trying to make sure you're at your place of business by a certain time, need to care for other humans' needs in a timely manner, or have some other appointment, you may either end up being late or having to cut a run short if it's taking longer than you anticipated.

THEY SAID IT WAS RAIL TRAIL

If you have the opportunity, running in the afternoon can be a great compromise - I used to run around 3:30pm a few days a week on my lunch break at my old office, and tried to continue that when I changed jobs and began to work from home. It does make a nice break in the day, with fewer of the disadvantages of morning running: I'm better fueled, my body temperature is higher and tissues have had time to loosen up, and I'm generally wider awake.

The sunshine is quite nice, too.

Afternoon runs, though, still have their disadvantages: if I'm not done work yet, I'm still on a schedule to try to get back to my desk on time, and in summer this is frequently the hottest part of the day. It's lovely right now, as the warmth has time to build from a chilly morning - there are loads of days in shoulder season that on my weekly Saturday morning run I am freezing in tights and long sleeves to start but ready to overheat with everything zipped down by the end - but when the temperatures soar in June through August (and sometimes outside those months), running at 3pm can feel like a penance for your sins. 

Lately, though, that hasn't been the case - more longsleeves than tank tops this week!

I've honestly been having a lot more trouble tearing myself away from my desk recently, too, until my workday is done. I'm not sure if it's a result of working from home, or it being very busy at my company the past couple of months, or simply not having my daily appointment to have coffee with Tanker and run back to my office that I had for years.

Though I've been finding some interesting new places to run around my neighborhood

In any case, I've come back around to running in the evening. It may just be an effect of the sun staying in the sky later, so it's not miserably cold and dark yet when I get out at 5 or 6 or even 7pm.

Ok, it was almost 8pm last night, but who's counting?

I know many people don't enjoy evening runs - I have heard that it makes it difficult to get to sleep afterward for some, and for others they find their motivation wanes once they've already put in a long day at work or doing other things. For whatever reason, neither of those is a factor for me: I actually like knowing that I already have everything else done, and all I have left to do is run, eat, and sleep.

There are some rather scenic perks as well, sometimes.

Of course, I know I'm blessed with a wonderfully accommodating husband (who doesn't mind having dinner later than most people go to bed, or waiting at a dark trailhead for my idiot arse to emerge) and very little in the way of time-sensitive responsibilities. I also know that running in the evening can pose additional challenges, like knowing when you'll need to bring a headlamp along.

I've not always judged that 100% correctly

There's also the fact that I'm running at almost the polar opposite time of day to the start of a race, but perhaps even that in and of itself has value for ultrarunning: if you're still able to go have a pleasant romp after every other tiring, frustrating, energy-demanding thing you've done that day, aren't you slightly better trained to keep pushing yourself in a race that has stretched on longer than the daylight?

Learning to disobey your circadian rhythm can be a powerful thing.

So I ask you - what's your favourite time of day to run, and why? Now that I've spent years running at all different times of day, I know I prefer to do so later - once I've shaken off the morning stiffness and sipped something caffeinated - but I'd love to hear others' experiences and preferences.

Early start

 While it seems like it was a very long winter, spring is definitely coming along nicely.

Though maybe not quite to the point we pushed it last weekend

Easter weekend was a delight, even if it started off chilly.

We were bundled up pretty well to go for a hike at Rattlesnake Point

In spite of the gorgeous sunshine

..there's still ice down in the clefts where the sun doesn't reach.

Did I just admit to having wandered into where the sun don't shine? 

Anyway..

Saturday dawned chilly as well.

Fleece skirt and ice by Devil's Creek Falls kind of chilly for a run down to the market

..but the sun warmed things nicely in the morning, and we were busy indoors having brunch through the cloudiness that set in during the afternoon.

And celebrating Easter, as one does.

We were again treated to gorgeous sunshine for an evening wander at Sudden Tract.

Still not super warm, but I don't recall seeing any ice

Such a lovely place for a stroll

The main event, though? That was Sunday.

You may recall that I completely ill-advisedly cross country skied on the Grand River on February 20th.

Six weeks and one day later, I had something entirely different in mind.

Which was - if I'm being honest - almost as dumb an idea as chancing the river ice.

It was 16c and the river was drenched in sun, but the water was probably only about 2c at most. Nonetheless, off we went!

Yep, Tank was game too - he's such a good sport, even though the water was cold enough that his feet cramped up when he went to launch his kayak!

Paddling the exact same stretch of river we'd so recently skied

We were only on the water for a little more than 20mins, but it was plenty to show me just how out of paddling shape I was. Fortunately - possibly thanks to the balance training I've been doing lately - I only had a couple of minor wobbles, and didn't come off!

'cause I was definitely not wearing a survival suit.

It was so pleasant to be on the water again, even if my shoulders and back were feeling it later.

Thanks to a 20c day in November, it had been a couple of days shy of 5 months since the last time we paddled.

Of course, we might even have stayed out later, but we both figured this qualified as a high-risk maneuver. 

..which meant of course we needed ice cream, and they were only open limited hours.

So it seems I'm keeping up this whole "living a little more balanced life" thing, and having quite a bit of fun doing it (though I did get out for a trail run Sunday evening as well). Of course, now that my ankle and my knee seem to be starting to cooperate again, I'll have to start getting in some longer runs to prepare for some challenges I plan to take on later this year...but with 24c predicted for tomorrow, I might just have to play long run hooky for one more day.

I might not even need sleeves this time!

Hope you all get out for some fun in the sun!