Take your workout outside: Part II

You may remember that in Part 1 of "Take your workout outside" I extolled the virtues of being aware of your surroundings and alerting people before passing them. Well, less than a week after writing that, a cyclist and I put on a spectacular demonstration of why those tips are so important.

A few days after that post, I was out for a six-mile run one morning before work - nothing out of the ordinary, except that traffic on the trail was a little lighter than usual, since it was pretty chilly. I hit my turnaround and - for some completely illogical reason - didn't look over my shoulder before starting to turn, as I usually do. I glanced over as I was turning instead, and saw a cyclist roughly two feet behind me, coming fast. It was one of those moments when everything seems to freeze, and you think "Oh, this really can not be happening."

Unfortunately, it really was. Bikes move faster than you might think, and two feet doesn't give you much more than a second of reaction time, during which I tried to scramble out of the way but happened to choose the same direction in which the cyclist tried to veer to avoid me. My attempt to jump back the other way might have been successful with half a second more, but by that point, the collision was inevitable. In a few more seconds of slow-mo fun, I felt the bike hit me, mostly on my left side, finished getting out of the way, watched the cyclist wobble, tried to grab for him as he fell and missed. He ended up on his back under his bike (which, fortunately, had a light frame), and when I went to help him up, I saw that his head must have hit the trail as well, since his helmet had split. Yikes.

Once we got his bike and the pieces of his helmet off the trail, there was a spate of, "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry, are you okay?", "I'm so sorry, I should have looked sooner, I don't know what I was thinking," "No no, I should have let you know I was passing," "I'm so sorry, I feel terrible. Really, are you all right?"

Neither of us was injured to the point of not being able to keep going, but I think we each walked away feeling like it was our fault - I know I did. One moment of carelessness, and forgetting to do something I've done hundreds of times before, and I was stiff and sore for days and left with a couple of bruises that still haven't completely faded. I've been keeping an eye out for the cyclist, hoping to see him again and reassure myself that he's okay, but no luck so far. Here's hoping we've just been out at different times lately.

On that note, here are a few more tips for outdoor workouts - and hopefully you take my advice better than I do!

1. Watch your feet. Or the road, I guess, if you're cycling. Either way, the point is that you're no longer on a stationary machine, you're out on a road or trail that gets beat up by feet, tires, wheels and tree roots, and it's not going to be obstacle-free. I know the route between my apartment and the trail I run on so well that I can (and sometimes do) run it in the dark, but whenever I'm on a new route, I keep the road in my peripheral vision, so I don't end up flat on my face. Even if you do know the route, pay attention when it's wet or particularly cold - trails can have slick spots, and tend to freeze more quickly than streets, since they don't get the heat from car engines. And bridges freeze the most quickly of all, so keep an eye out for ice!
2. Take it easy. Any workout that's longer or more demanding than you're used to - whether because of distance, hills or significant changes in temperature - is going to take more out of you. By giving yourself a little bit of a break and reducing your speed, even just a fraction, you'll avoid burning out and won't have to deal with that dragging, I'm-exhausted-why-did-I-come-this-far-and-how-much-longer-till-I-get-home sensation. Longer distances are tiring at any speed, of course, but if you take it easy the first time you go out for a more demanding workout than you're used to, you'll have a better idea of how your body handles it for the next time. If it was really tough to finish, despite slowing down some, try something halfway between your usual workout and the new, challenging one a few times - when you tackle the challenging workout again, you may find it's gotten easier. If you finished with energy to spare, great! - next time, you'll know you can pick up the pace without worrying about burning out.
3. Smile! Amateur athletes, especially runners (although I may be biased!), are a friendly bunch - it must be all those feel-good endorphins running around in their bloodstreams. So if you make eye contact with a fellow trail-user, smile, or say hi. And there's the habitual "runner wave" - just a lift of the hand and/or a nod of the head meant to acknowledge the other people panting and sweating out there with you.

Next up for Part III: some tips specific to long-distance training!