A List Post: Things And Stuff

Blogging is difficult when it's nice out. It's clearly meant for evenings in the summer when it's overwhelmingly hot, the mosquitos are ravenous and the a/c is blasting.


So you're getting a half-a'd post, but with pictures!


Revelation: thinking about your arms getting smaller will not, in fact, make them smaller. You actually have to, you know, do stuff.


Chiropractors can be good guys. Mine are (there are now two sharing the pleasure of strategically cracking my back) are working wonders on me. My back is straight, which means my hips are straight, which means my legs are even, which means I'm not abusing my legs and my shins are happy. If you need a recommendation for one, I've got one.


I love spring. In case you didn't know.


I got a new job! Well, an old job back, but with new and multiplied appreciation.


We missed my Runniversary! As of March 1, I've been running for 2 years! 2 years?! How'd that happen? Happy Runniversary to me!


We also missed hitting 10,000 page views on that ticker over there on the right (look over and up a bit). Whee 10,000!


I did interval training to other for my running workout. Not Ye Olde 5:90 intervals of jogging and walking. Nope.


Here's the app-generated Facebook status update I posted tonight:
Just finished an interval training workout.
Walked for a few minutes.
10:00 jog/warmup
0:30: High
1:30: Low
Repeat 8 times
5:00 jog/cool down
Walked for a few minutes.
Total time: 46:00 + a few minutes.


Ps, if you haven't added me on faceboook, please do! More to Love Running on Facebook.


Picture time!! From tonight's workout.

The pond at the TQL running path. Makes for a nice view every lap.

The interstate screaming by right next to the lake. Talk about having an audience while you're running.

Bonafide sweat drops in front of my bench after my workout. As in dripping from my face...rapidly. it's fun to be warm after running instead of freezing.

See? Sweaty face! Threatening nose-sweat drop, sweat 'stache and sweat eyebrows.

Drip!

Obligatory shoe-and-fountain shot.

Sunset over Lake TQL

Good workout. Challenging and easy all at once. Definitely a repeat. Oh, and it cracks me up that a 10-minute jog is now my warmup. That shh cray.


And with that, this post is complete. So much for half-a'd. I'm such an overachiever.




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Anniversary Look Back: Paying To Run

Continuing my series of entries focused on comparing where I am today as a runner to where I was a year ago when I started this whole mess, I'm going to look at the phenomenon of road races. Basically, how did I go from the chubby 5-year-old who just learned to hate running in gym class to the 29-year-old who scrapes her budget to find the means to pay to run?

This topic actually came up this week in a few e-mails I exchanged with my co-worker's husband, Matt, who is very nearly finished with the nine weeks of Couch to 5K. He's joining Caitlin and me on March 12 for the Emerald Miles 5K. It's his first race and he's a little disturbed about having to pay to run. I know the feeling. It was quite difficult for me to get over the concept back in May when I registered for the Redlegs Run for Home, my first 5K. The brief mention in this post doesn't do justice to the amount of shock I was feeling at the time.

But I got over it. A lot.

I got over it when I realized you're paying for more than just the privilege of sweating in front of hundreds, thousands, or tens of thousands of other people. Based on my vast sports management/event planning experience (2 or 3 semesters as a college major, believe it or not ... so impactful [corporate buzzword] that I can't remember how long I studied it), here are a few of the things I can think of that you're paying for with a race entry fee:

1. An event t-shirt. Most important part of a race, hands down. Some races don't have shirts. They should be punished.
   
2. A race number bib. Second most important part of a race. Makes you feel like a bonafide athlete.
   
3. Chip timing, sometimes. There's something special about seeing your name and stats in an official list with tons of other runners. "See? Look! I did do it, and here's the proof!"
4. Clear streets. I believe road races require permits to shut roads down. They also require police officers to keep cars from running you over. Police officers require pay ... and donuts.
   
5. Cups. Lots of cups all over the street surrounding the one or two drink stations (for a 5K ... more and more elaborate for longer runs).
6. A venue. Sometimes the races have events inside a building before and/or after a run. Or in a tent. Those things cost money. I bet the ones that are all outside have some cost associated with them, like vendor booths (pipe, drape, signs, etc.).
7. Bananas. I'm sure sponsoring vendors provide their own food for after the race (yum!), but I don't know what vendor would provide bananas. I'm going to assume that the race organizers have to pay for that. Bananas are important.
8. Health care professionals. People, especially runners, do stupid things and get hurt. Let's just think of it as job security for the EMTs and paramedics of the world who get stuck working these runs.
9. Awards. I have no personal experience with this, but I bet there's some kind of award for fast people or participants with the tightest running shorts.
   

So that's just a short list of all the things your entry fee goes toward.

I left out one important thing though. I haven't seen a race yet that doesn't benefit some kind of non-profit organization or cause. These runs are huge fundraising opportunities for these non-profits. Just think of the immense reach of the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. Bajillions of people participate in a Race for the Cure across the country every year. Many of those people do their own fundraising and earn more than just their entry fee for that organization. I'm no math-lete, but a bajillion people times loads of fundraising money is a hoard of cash, you know?

Some races (the Flying Pig, for example) let you select which charity you're going to help by becoming part of a team. As a way to bribe my friend Sarah to do the half Pig with me on May 1, I decided to join the Fernside team. She is an active volunteer there and ran on their behalf last year. (Okay, I didn't really bribe her with that, but she did decide to join in the fun.)

So, not only am I going to pay for another race (and this one's expensive, folks), but I'm going to try to get you all to contribute to my madness and to a pretty cool organization. (In short, Fernside offers grief support to children, teens, and adults. They're affiliated with Hospice of Cincinnati.) Unfortunately Fernside doesn't have it's own snazzy online pledge system, but I do have a spreadsheet (Ooooh, spreadsheet!) to fill out with pledges.

Wait ... before you get too excited, I'm going to wait until I officially register for the race before soliciting cash. So thoughtful of me, no? So just be ready for it when it comes.

**************

So I guess I got slightly off track.

My shock of paying to run went away pretty much immediately when I got to the Redlegs Run for Home 5K. I knew I was hooked right then and there. The feeling of accomplishment (even for a crap-o run) and the energy of the event is enough. Add on top of that the benefit of contributing to some non-profit cause, and you've got yourself a few good reasons to dish out the dough to run. That doesn't mean I won't try to find the event that gives me the most for my money.

The lessons to take away from this post are:

• Don't be afraid to pay to run. You'll love it. Promise.
• Be prepared for a solicitation in the next month or so (which, as always, you are welcome to ignore, because if anyone understands the money pinch, it's me)

Thanks folks. More of these look-backs to come.

Happy Anniversary To Me!

Today, March 1, marks the one-year anniversary of the day I started running.

[pause for applause]

Well, that could be a lie. Please don't throw anything at me. I actually don't know the exact date I started running. What I do know is that my gym membership expired at the end of February last year and I started running because of that expired gym membership. I know that there wasn't much time between the two either. So, for the sake of having a date, I will, from this point forward, recognize March 1 as my running anniversary date.

Happy anniversary to me!

Did I ever think I'd be here? Nope.

Am I still a little shocked that I am here? Yep.

Am I happy I did it? You betchya!

So, to commemorate this occasion, I'm going to spend the next few blog entries comparing and contrasting where I am now versus where I was a year ago. I thought that reviewing the year would be a little redundant, but I think this little exercise could be fun.

I'll start with something I did today and actually just started doing about two weeks ago ...

One year ago, I was petrified of what I looked like and sounded like after a run. I'd finish my workouts (Week 1 of Couch to 5k: run 30 seconds, walk 90 seconds, repeat), and would be tomato red and dripping sweat from every skin cell, hair follicle, and thread of my clothing. My mother was the only person fortunate enough to get to see me like that.

Also, many of you have been with me from the beginning and know about my over-awareness of my heavy breathing. The freight train. A year ago, that heavy breathing would last a lot longer than it does now and would be a lot more intense. There was a lot more choking involved too. Yum! And like now, I suffered from post-run sneezes (hasn't changed a bit, though it goes away in during the hot months).

After runs a year ago, I was lucky to make it home to the couch. I didn't dream of being any more active than putting on my pajamas and refilling my bottle of water before heading to bed.

Finally, I didn't want to be seen in my drenched workout clothes, a dilapidated collection of yoga-pants-turned-pajama-pants-turned-running-gear and old t-shirts. Sweaty? Yes. But they also showed some very unattractive jiggly parts on my 30-pounds-heavier-than-today frame.

Today, after my 2.2-mile run/walk (10 minutes run, 1 minute walk, repeat 2.5 times because I cut it short), I went to Michael's in search of a bottle of the seemingly non-existent strawberry extract that Ms. Paula Deen calls for in her strawberry cake recipe, which I plan on making quite soon. Thanks Paula. (If anyone spots this stuff anywhere, please let me know ASAP

Anyway, I got to Michael's (a short drive from Juilfs), wiped my forehead on my sleeve, put my zip-up hoodie on, and checked for major hair fly-aways in my rear-view mirror before heading on in. No sweat.

Well, yes sweat, but not much and I know how to "hide" it now. Practice makes perfect.

Activity after running? Sure, why not? Actually, these days I feel rip-roarin' and ready to go after running. Not right after running, but give me a 5-minute cool down walk and my legs are good as new. (That probably speaks to the fact that I need to up intensity and/or distance of my runs a bit, but you get the point.) In fact, I'll often have more energy than before I started.

So yes, quite a contrast between today and a year ago.

This is fun! Check back over the next few posts and I'll see what else I can dig up. I'll try to post more frequently for the next few entries, I promise.

PS, I purchased tickets for something today that requires me to meet a maximum weight that I'm currently 25 pounds above. And I have to do it before September.

This is not a goal. This is a financial commitment (a whopping $35) that I have to adhere to. No big deal.

NOT A GOAL. Do you hear me?

[stops shaking finger at no one, calmly sits back down on couch]

Ahem. Sorry about that.

Anyway, that is why I've reserved Jillian Michaels' 30-Day Shred on Netflix. I should have it by later this week so I can figure out if it's worth the purchase.

Not a goal.