Running in late 20s

There are some bold dates in everyone's calendar. Days that remind us of the tasks we have to do, to look at the past and aim for the future. New year's day is certainly one of those dates. Although we use Persian calendar instead of Gregorian, I see no reasons not to use this occasion to push myself by reviewing  my goals . Wish you all a great year ahead. May 2013 be the year of achieving our resolutions.

25 days to the start of my third marathon. Again I've missed some training sessions and not in the best shape. I was so busy sorting out different stuff and the worst was the fact that I didn't have enough time for my early morning runs. That's my favourite time of the day to head out for a run. There is just no better way for me to start a day. Whenever I missed my morning run I feel sluggish the whole day. Now I've got more than two weeks of intense training ahead. There is one thing that I am sure about. I do not want to face what I went through during Frankfurt Marathon. So I'd better get my arse in gear!

Today  Swissalpine  launched the online registration for 2013. And I am already registered for K78 . This is going to be my first ultra and I cannot be more excited about it. Davos, view from a paraglider I've got seven months to train for this and also planning to run three marathons in January, April and June. 2013 sounds promising!

The day I twisted my ankle a week before Frankfurt Marathon Music: Bottom of the well by Airbourne

Following my previous post on how Gabriele Andersen-Scheiss crossed the finish line in 1984 Olympic Marathon. This video is worth watching.

Everyone who has ever crossed the finish line knows how they feel.

I am going to run Dubai marathon in late January. The training plan is written down and it starts from tomorrow morning. I've only got five weeks to train for Dubai marathon so it's going to be quite intense.

There are two or three different times each year that I spend a couple of hours and think about resolutions, usually write them down and get back to my notes every now and then. The main occasion is always my birthday. As of two weeks ago, I stepped into my thirties. while I was looking at my last year's resolution I noticed that I am now in much better situation comparing to this time last year. A bold line on my resolution was about getting a better runner, but running a marathon was not something that I would plan last year. This year as I started the fourth decade of my life, I decided to write down parts of my resolutions here. So I  will hardly forget these points and next year at this time, if I have missed any of these you can question me!  Here they are in no particular order; - Running my first Ultra. - Running at least three marathons. - Losing more weight. - Strength workout, plyometrics, stretching and swimming more often. - Adding Speedwork and hills session

Despite what it sounds, running in the cold feels great. "There's no such thing as bad weather, just soft people" Bill Bowerman

It's now about six months that I have been writing here. As you might know by now, I started running two and a half years ago and it didn't take too long to become an obsession. Then I started posting about  my running experience and motivation.Now the blogger statistics shows that Running in late 20s has been viewed quite often and that is over my expectation. But what I would really like to know is if this page has ever inspired anyone? Has it encouraged someone to give running a go? It is always great to see your comments.

Videos shot at 30,35,40 km and before the finish line.

You do struggle to get there. But the very moment  you cross the finish line is worth it all.

Last Sunday I was one of almost 16000 runners who attended the Frankfurt Marathon. As you might know by now that was my second marathon and my first road marathon. Visiting the marathon expo on Friday, I received the race pack and some other stuff among which there was a wrist band called "Pace my race". Depending on your expected finish time they would print out your time splits and mount it on a wristband. My expecting finish time was 3:45 but that was before missing those training sessions and twisting my ankle. Despite the freezing cold weather, the race started with a great vibe. I was starting in the second wave and our start time was at 10:10. Minutes after starting I found myself sticking to my pace and feeling quite all right. There was no sign of ankle pain and I was running almost effortlessly. There were live music playing in several spots along the course. Somewhere around 15km mark I was still running at five-minute kilometre pace. I thought it might be wise

Well I am going to write in full details in a few days. (Hopefully I can include a few race photos too). Frankfurt Marathon is just done. It nearly killed me and I am more than happy that I crossed the finish line. Stay tuned!

Had a good sleep (with one extra hour added due to daylight saving time change) and a full breakfast with several other runners. The second marathon starts in two and a half hours and unlike the last couple of weeks, I actually feel quite ready for the challenge.

1. I arrived in Frankfurt this afternoon. Woke up at 4 to catch a bus and an "express" train to get to Stockholm Airport in time for my early morning flight to Frankfurt. The "express" train stalled in the middle of the way and it took about 50 minutes for another train to arrive and pick us up. I missed my flight and had to take another ticket to get to here. 2. Had a taper run on Wednesday  morning in Stockholm. It was freezing cold and windy and I found a nice path along the river. During this forty-minute run at half past six in the morning I spotted more runners than I would see in a month in Tehran. I had the same impression in Oslo and Copenhagen. Can we consider Scandinavians as running nations? 3. My ankle still hurts. It was all right for two or three days, but it got worse this afternoon after carying my stuff from one train  to another and to every single terminal in the airport. I was feeling quite down before arriving in Frankfurt. Visiting the mar

Ankle is pretty much fixed and I decided to go for Frankfurt Marathon. I might not be in the best shape, but whatever happens I am going to give it my best on Sunday. Stay tuned guys.

Sitting on a chair, resting my left foot on a stool with a pack of ice over my recently twisted ankle, I am contemplating whether or not to run this marathon. After icing the sprained ankle several times and taking some anti-inflammatory pills it is almost fixed now. But how about running a marathon on it in a week time? It might not be a wise idea to run this marathon. But this is not the first time that I twisted my ankle. It happened a few times in the past and every time I came back to my running routine in a few days. The last time I did twist my ankle was actually during the Swissalpine marathon. Somewhere around 28k I landed badly on the outer edge of my foot and my ankle rolled inward. I stopped, walked for a few meters and started running again, limping for a kilometre and when I passed the 30k mark the pain was completely forgotten. I am quite sure even if I don't attend this marathon. I cannot put my feet up for the whole week. At some point after a couple of days

A fun trail run and a slightly twisted ankle. Tapering is no longer and option, it's a must! Running injuries happen every now and then. You can decrease the risk of injury by cross training, proper running from, choosing the right shoes and "quite ironically" trail running. If an injury happens, remember RICE! Rest, Ice, Compress and elevate. I usually find the first part the hardest. A twisted ankle is not what you wish for nine days before a marathon. This marathon is just getting harder. But I will still be there and give it my best.

You often find similarities between your job and your passion. There should be something in common that suits you. Architecture and running are not exceptional. They are both challenging and require dedication and commitment.      While Frankfurt marathon is getting closer. I actually got the same feeling as approaching a deadline in architectural design process. In architecture, you do most of the work in the last few days before a deadline. On running you cannot afford to do that. You need to taper before your marathon, meaning whether or not your training has gone well up to this point, there is not too much you can do about it a week before a marathon. When it comes to tapering  "less is more" On the other hand when you are used to running and training, tapering is not what you are looking forward to. Although you are excited about your coming marathon, you might feel sluggish and find the whole taper thing boring. That's when " Less is a bore " P

There have been only a few athletes that are so dominant in their sports that you cannot think of that particular sport without those names coming across your mind. Think of Michael Jordan or Muhammad Ali. You cannot think of cycling without acknowledging Lance Armstrong, an inspiring figure who survived the cancer, got back to cycling and won seven Tour de France titles and helped fighting cancer through his organization "Live Strong".  But after several years there are now more words that remind us Lance Armstrong. Say doping, EPO and testosterone. He will no longer be remembered as Tour de France winner, but as someone who destroyed cycling for almost a decade. I used to be a big fan of Lance. His autobiography is one of the most inspirational books I have ever read. He has inspired millions for sure. Thank you lance for inspiring me, but I would rather seek motivation somewhere else. Here are a couple of quotes I cannot figure out: "I know who won those se

On 28th I will be running my second marathon. Cannot wait for that.

Once again I changed the look of this page. The reason is while I still believe it was looking pretty neat, it is more functional now. It's much easier to navigate and  you can find the most popular posts of mine and also all the labels. And there is also a link to my latest workouts on Movescount (Suunto's official training log website) So you can track my training and hopefully give me some feedback on that.

I could not agree more. “There are so many people out there who will tell you that you can’t. What you’ve got to do is turn around and say, ‘watch me’.”   Layne Beachley

Today started by trail running on one of my favourite routes. A quick 5K in the evening followed by an intense plyometric workout. Eighteen days to Frankfurt marathon. Missed quite a few workouts while training for this marathon. It's not gonna be easy this time. But wait a minute! It has never been easy. This is the essence of running.

I am planning to run Frankfurt marathon late this month and I am not in the best shape! I admit that I have missed quite few training sessions due to different reasons (Or shall I say excuses?). Three weeks of intense training ahead. This is not going to be easy and for that very reason I am going enjoy it. Again I am going to give it my best. Stay tuned!

After being away from running for a couple of weeks finally managed to come back to my running routine. A bit behind my marathon training plan at the moment, but it's time to push it harder and catch up. Last week I added some plyometric exercises to my training and after quite a while finally found a gym that holds a set of kettlebells. Kettlebell training is very intense and dynamic, and you don't need to spend hours in the gym.

Great North Run was the first running event I ever watched. It was 2007 when I first saw thousands of people running in the streets and that was long before I gave running a go. At that time running 13.1 miles sounded impossible to me. When I started running, Great North Run was the first event I wanted to participate. It was in February that I registered and got a confirmed place in 2012 GNR. Then after a few months I found that I am not gonna make it this year due to some travel issues. And this failure led me to a greater choice. I did register for Swissalpine marathon. Running a marathon was something that I was not even dreaming of. And I did it three months before my first planned half-marathon! Today 55000 runners competed in GNR and I was not one of them. But what I did instead was running a half-marathon on my own this morning. Do embrace your failure. It might bring you new opportunities.

"He doesn't run to live, he lives to run" Kilian Jornet says about Anton Kurpica.

With my second marathon planned in late October I wrote down a six-week training plan. That consists of easy runs, tempo runs, Intervals, fartleks, hill trainings and of course weekly long runs. Let's get this started!

You could either start your day by running, sweating, struggling and feeling alive afterwards or you could hit the snooze button and feel sluggish the whole day. The choice is clearly yours!

"You're not disabled by your disabilities, but abled by your abilities."   Oscar Pistorius Next time you find yourself making excuses for not running (We all sometimes do) Think of these guys! Kenya's Samwell Mushai Kimani,  men's 1500m T11 final at the 2012 Paralympics  Oscar Pistorius aka The Blade Runner, The first athlete who competes in both Olympic and Paralympic games. 

I shot a few movies while running the Swissalpine marathon. Stitched them together and came up with this. Sorry for poor quality and shaking images. It was my first time ever using a camera while running.

I was suffering from a severe headache for last few days. It just faded away after this run. 17km trail run (and walk)  ascending and descending more than 900 meters. Training in high altitude!  The route A view of Tehran    The trail 

In last few weeks before my first marathon, I hardly missed any training sessions. I did all the right things I knew during my tapering period. And give it my best on the race day. What I really ignored was post-marathon recovery. I was on holiday and visiting different places. The day after the marathon I was suffering from runner's knee which required some rest. But I decided to give paragliding a try! In the fourth day I went for a 5 km run and ran another 8km the day after. What I ended up was a sore knee which I could not run on for a week or so (That doesn't mean that I didn't try.) Now the pain is over and the new training is due to start tomorrow. Stay tuned.  

went for a 5k run in Vibram FiveFingers this evening. The experience is different from any other shoes (well, if you could call them shoes). Vibram Bikila LS  I have been working on forefoot strike for a few months. And when you wear a pair of these you have to run with a correct form; Landing close under the body, landing on your forefoot, gently touching the ground and lean slightly forward.But the most enjoyable part of wearing these "shoes" is the feeling you get from touching the ground.  As you run, you receive different signals from surfaces you touch such as rocks, grass and asphalt in the most natural way.  I am definitely going to wear these guys every now and then to correct my running form and experience the pure joy of barefoot running. 

I was looking for Swissalpine marathon report on their facebook page and I came across a report  in German by Sven Bladt. Surprisingly I spotted myself in one of his photos. And the caption was "Excited, Nervous?"  This is taken in the first few minutes of the race. I remember being really excited at that point, but looking at this photo it seems that I was also concerned about something. This is pretty much what happens during a marathon (Well, at least it did happen during my first marathon). Distance running is a physical activity that is often driven by mind. You need to be focused to be able to carry on.  Jacqueline Gareau once said    "The body does not want you to do this. As you run, it tells you to stop but the mind must be strong. You always go too far for your body. You must handle the pain with strategy...It is not age; it is not diet. It is the will to succeed."

This might give you an impression of Swissalpine 2012. Do yourself a favour and run the Swissalpine next year.

What a night it was for athletics. First, Mo Farah of Great Britain won the gold medal in 5k. And then in the most spectacular event of 2012 Olympics, Jamaican Team of Usain Bolt,Yohan Blake, Nesta Carter, and Michael Frater smashed the world record by 0.2 seconds and won the gold medal in 4x100 meter relay.  All photos taken from official Olympic website :  http://www.london2012.com These are kind of stuff everyone wants to see. Absolutely inspiring. Men's marathon in a few hours.

" If you want to run, run a mile. If you want to experience a different life, run a marathon."   Emil Zatopek As many of you know by now, after almost two years of running, I went all the way to Davos, Switzerland to run my first marathon in late July.  Davos is the highest city of Europe. The population is just around 13000. It is among the most popular destinations for skiing  in winters. Swissalpine consisting of several different races is a major event gathering some 5000 runners from all around the world in late July. K78, C42 and K30 races start at Davos Stadium at 7am. I arrived there at 6:30, run for a few minutes to warm up and made my way to the starting line a few minutes before 7. Standing at the start line of my first marathon with almost 1500 other runners was a unique experience. The race started at precise 0700 hrs. The first 5 kilometers was a loop through Davos. People were standing on pavement and cheering for runners by ringing bells an