Running with dogs

Coach Rich

So does this happen to anyone else? My dog loves to run with me. In fact, when I grab my Garmin and turn it on he goes over and sits by the door until I'm ready to go. (He gets annoyed because it takes us humans so long to get ready!) I program the interval workouts into my Garmin so I don't have to think about it just execute. Here's the thing, the Garmin starts to beep 5 seconds before the interval starts and Bailey hears that and looks up at me and picks up the pace. That's cool, but when it starts beeping again before the recovery phase he looks up again and picks up the pace even more! I only wish I could do that.

BTW, it's not just on short runs either. He does every one up to 15 milers with me. We think he could go father but his paws suffer for it and he hates booties.

Dino Sarti

My dog kinda slows me down. Generally, he is good. He just posts up right next to my left knee, but sometimes he likes to hang back. Very frustrating if I am trying to go fast. He is not tired, cause often later he will scoot back up again. I think he gets bored? I try encourage his and responds, but he never really runs. Like when I see him sprint for a ball. He typically just at lopes along.

Mark Maurer

@Dino, Yeah, my dog is pretty much loping along most of the time too no matter how fast I'm running. My dog runs better off leash than on so he's hardly ever on the leash unless there's a lot of traffic. So even if he hangs back a little it doesn't slow me down. He'll do that sometimes and then sprint ahead of me then fall back. I'm just glad that he doesn't see me as dinner.

Anu Rao

That is so cute. My dog likes to run only if we are in a race or if there is someone to chase. Otherwise the little stinker does not want to run. She is really fun to run with in a race, completely focused, competitive and well behaved, has quite the finishing kick. Daily runs,some days she is okay, but most days nope. I wish she liked running more, but the whole stop and sniff and pee every two minutes is hard.

Brad Marcus

@Mark - that's awesome! I love that your dog knows the beep means step on the gas...we know it too, but somedays I dread the sound of the beep for the next fast interval! Running with either one of dogs wouldn't work. Yes they are both in great shape, but if I ran with them and you looked at my Garmin file afterwards, the map would look like zipper - left to right. My dogs both have a serious case of ADD and are both pretty big and strong....maybe one day they will get it

Coach Rich

You mean your dogs aren't on Strava?

The Awesome Strava Profile of Riley the WonderPup

27 mile run week this week . I'm getting my run back and Joanne is training for the NYC Marathon, so he's a busy doode. Riley is about 10yrs old, we think a lab chow mix and shows little signs of slowing down. I run him with a leash that clips around my waste, so I don't have to hold the leash and he pulls me, he's pulling at my center of mass vs my arms. For the most part he runs on my right side and in front, though he's a lookeylou, always looking around for a cat, squirrel, small dog, or squirrel. He's got the hunting instinct and there's no way I could ever run him off leash.

He trots and only breaks into a run when I'm about sub 6'...which only happens on a downhill. 

He's a playah!

Mark Maurer

@Rich, I've thought about setting up a training peaks account for him so we could keep track of his miles. Last summer my wife, daughter, and I were all training for triathlons and he was running with all of us. He was getting a little tired and we started adding it up and realized he'd run over 40 miles in 3 days. No wonder he was tired. My daughter is living in Alaska now so it's just Susan and me so we usually alternate running days, but he still usually runs further each week than either of us. But he doesn't swim or bike though he would like for me to take him for rides in the bike trailer. :-P