Monthly Recap

Okay, it seems like everyone in Blogland will be recapping their monthly totals for this glorious month. I on the other hand will only chalk the month of February as a lost month for running.
Even as I write this post it’s snowing like crazy outside. My inner child thinks it looks really pretty on the trees and such but the adult in me is thinking about the commute home and how long its going to take. I’m to the point I don’t even like running in this frozen precipitation any more.
Just to show you what type of winter we’ve been having here in the high-five state, local municipalities are running out of salt for the roads. I’m assuming that they budgeted enough from previous winters and just have exhausted their supply. The MetroPark where we do our long runs is using gravel on the running path as an alternative to salt! Will this winter crap never end?
Fortunately today is a rest day, so I didn’t have to run in circles on the indoor track for another day. They only change the direction to run in weekly, so I was tired of leaning in the same direction anyway.
I’m hoping to get in some good mileage this weekend to start the month of March like a lion, and not a Detroit Lion………..

The Runner from Hell

Okay, now that I’m running in circles at work during my lunch, I have to play mind games to keep going. I can’t just run for endless amounts of time without going crazy!
So I’m the runner that gets right behind you and runs your pace, so I don’t have to think about running in circles. Most people think I’m trying to pass them so I’m constantly saying, ‘you’re okay’. This is a polite way of saying, ‘I just want to run your pace and not have to think while I just want to run behind you’.
This has been known to irritate some runners, so you have to be selective and not do it for very long periods of time.
I’m also that runner that runs at three thousand varied speeds. I run the straight-away faster than I run the turns. I try to run tangents when I’m running the turns.
I put way too much thought into this running in circles thing as you can tell.
So, I’ll probably be banned from the running track in the next few days and hopefully Old Man Winter will be cooperating by then. I’ll see you on lap 374!

Going in Circles

I finally did something that was well overdo but nonetheless painful as hell! I ran on the indoor track at work.
I had to make a determination if the outside temperatures were affecting my breathing, which resulted in crappy runs.
I was actually able to run and breathe without any difficulty. The only problem was that I was running indoors on a track! I had to go in circles eight times to complete a mile. I wanted to die but they frown on employees dying on their lunch break.
I was able to complete my 8000 laps or whatever is equivalent to 2 miles and came away feeling really good. Now I need to have the discipline to run on the track more often.
What do you think about as you pass the same couple of walkers, over and over again? My Ipod isn’t even helping. Our track overlooks the basketball court and some of the exercise equipment but I can’t get into this circle running.
I’ll do it because I have to get in some miles and this appears to be the only way for now.
Oh by the way, we got more snow and wind and snow. See you on my next lap around………..

February Sucks

Okay, I’m not a doctor and I don’t play one on television but I swear I must have exercise induced asthma. My last three runs have been horrid! I can’t seem to get a truly deep breath even when I’m not running fast.
Oh no, I just read that Solo Running Chick has Bronchitis, maybe that’s what I have. Can you catch it from blogging?
Granted I’m running in colder temperatures, but this is crazy. I did happen to talk to another runner that has the same symptoms as I have and he attributes it to a cold.
So now I have to make the determination if it’s the cold air or me. I perform my experiment in a controlled environment (indoor track) and see if I’m able to run at a pre-determined pace without the same discomfort that I encountered outside.
I’ve been really pissed that my mileage has taken a nosedive for the Walk/Run Across Arizona. Even with me bringing in some really low numbers, our team was still in decent shape. I’ll have to find a way to make it up in the upcoming weeks.
You ever notice, even the calendar pictures fro February suck! We even have to deal with an additional day this year.

Nothing

We’ve been hit with another cold spell and top that off with me coming down with a cold and you have the ingredients for no running.

Now I know how that injured old wildebeest must feel when the rest of the herd runs off and leaves him at the mercy of the lions. That’s exactly how I felt at our Tuesday evening run.

I started out with the group and knew right away that I wasn’t having a good run. I was having difficulty getting my breath and we were just starting! It wasn’t that elephant on your chest difficulty but not being able to get enough air to run. I hope that it’s just the onset of a cold.

So here I am galloping along like the poor isolated wildebeest, waiting for my fate to be sealed by the pride of lions. I probably even looked really bad, and not the Michael Jackson kind. So when you see that runners that look like they’ve forgotten how to run, take pity on them. It only seems like a few races ago that I was that young agile impala bouncing along with the herd.

Low Rider

Well I just registered for the Make-A-Wish Foundation 21st annual Wish-A-Mile 300 Bicycle Tour. This has become the sole reason for me getting on my road bike and training throughout the spring and summer.
Now combine this with attempting to maintain a certain amount of running mileage and it makes for a really tired person.
This is when I start to feel like those tri-geeks that spend enormous amounts of time in their training. We runners tend to have weekly mileage that we can boast about but the tri-geeks talk about the number of hours that spend training.
I’m only doing this for the kids and I started another streak!

The Ironman

Streaks, what are they good for? Absolutely nothing!
The streak is over! Even though it was something that I didn’t set out to try and set, I had done some form of exercise each day for 2008. Now I’m not an advocate of streaks mainly because they tend to take on a life of their own and typically the individual becomes a victim of the streak.
I’m sure each of us had heard or read about people that have run every day for the last ten years and how they kept the streak alive. In order to accomplish these feats, the person has to make a few sacrifices along the way. They may have to exercise while their body is battling an illness or get in a run while their wife is giving birth!
It wasn’t anything unusual or an illness that ended my streak. I just had a Forrest Gump moment when I decided to just stop. I did absolutely nothing today and enjoyed it. So I have a big goose egg in the calendar for Sunday, February 17, 2008 and I’m glad.
Okay now to start my next one.

Give me Warmth

We were supposed to experience single digit temps for our morning training run but we were pleasantly surprised to wakeup to temps in the teens. Now how crazy is that when you’re happy to go run in sub-freezing weather?
Each week these individuals are running further than they ever have and they finish with smiles on their faces. How cool is that?
Just to see the improvement from when some of them had to take walks breaks in order to complete shorted distances to watching them complete the entire run is amazing.
Me on the other hand, I’m in some strange running vortex. One good day, eight bad days!

TGIF!

I truly think I’m in need of a Caribbean vacation or a week of temperatures above freezing.

Happy VD

What a great turnout for our ‘Footwear and Apparel’ clinic!

I love the look on the faces of the newbies when they hear about the different types of running shoes and the reasons behind them. I hope we didn’t confuse them even more. This is the only time when I’m able to insert the word supination into a casual conversation?

Another chore is having to convince someone that they don’t have to lose a toenail to complete a marathon! Or explaining why cotton becomes your enemy, especially in the colder temperatures.

The other thing that always amazes me is how women can shop in a running store as if it was Lord & Taylor! These ladies were trying on clothing in piles, shoe boxes were everywhere.

Okay, let’s talk about my running. I opted for the indoor track over the dreadmill today. I only had to run 372,382 laps to equal a mile! Okay, it was only eight laps but it seemed longer. I came out with a slight lean to one side from all of the turns.

Hump Day, Again

Okay, so much for a break in the weather, we got dumped on with that little fine white stuff!
Now it will be another few days before they have the roads cleared enough to run outside. Did I mention how much I’m not enjoying this winter wonderland?
Today is fortunately a non-run day, so I’ll hit the gym and push some iron around.
We’re having out first TNT clinic tonight, so I’m excited about that and the 20% off from Hanson’s Running store.

Yo Adrienne

Finally a break in the weather and I’m taking advantage of it. It’s still windy but the temperature made it into the teens. So I’m starting my top-secret get back in shape training!
Now the plan is to train without any of my age-group competitors knowing about it. They’ve been asking when will I get back out there and actually run a race, so 2008 is going to be my year.
I also said 2006 and 2007 were going to be my years as well but this year is different. I can tolerate the aches and pains to get back to being competitive on the road.
Today was a series of hill repeats, which I personally love to do but have been slacking off.
I figure if Sly Stallone can make a comeback every year, why not me?

Coldddddddddddd

We’re still in the midst of frigid temps and I am not taking my a$$ outside until we get into double digits and less wind.

WTF

Wind gust up to 45 mph and temps near or at zero. I made an executive decision to forgo the 4 mile race and stay inside all day! The roads were hazardous due to the blowing snow causing ice to form on them. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it! Are these folks crazy? The race was going through residential areas where the snow covered streets which would have hampered running a race. Do you notice how much I wanted to run this race?
Back in the day when racing was my main objective to running, this was the race that you would use as a barometer of your winter training. You knew that it was going to always be cold but they had a pancake breakfast afterwards that made up for the frostbite.
Now that I’m older and wiser, I didn’t think it would be beneficial for me to risk my health at the expense of this event.
I told you I’m wise, okay it was reallllllllly cold!
I decided to get on my bike in the basement and kick out some miles in a climate controlled environment.

Let The Games Begin

What a great morning for a little jog with a batch of newbies. We had snow and temperatures just above the freezing mark. This is a time when most non-runners are still under their warm blankets in bed. I guess that’s why I love the looks on the faces of the participants on our first group training run.
Most of them think that every other participant will be an Olympic athlete and they’ll be left behind as the slowest runner ever. I’m sure that some have even had trouble sleeping the night before, not knowing what to anticipate.
One of the common themes that you hear from most of them is ‘..I’ve never run more than a mile or I haven’t run since I was a kid’. Add to this the fact that a majority of them haven’t been running outside in the elements and never in a group setting, boy I love these moments.
Now it’s my job to not only get them through the required miles but also to make sure that everyone is at ease while doing it. This is when you bring out all of the jokes and running antidotes that you can think of. The other part of the job is being in multiple places at the same time.
We’re fortunate enough to have our training runs at a local park that has a six-mile loop. So I get the chance to run back and forth in an attempt to run with every participant. It always fun to run up on some of them while they’re taking their unofficial walk break.
So the journey begins for a new Team in Training season!

T.H.A.W

I actually signed up to run an hour on the dreadmill for THAW and in turn get donations for my running. Now normally I go berserk after thirty minutes on this machine, let alone sixty minutes.
I hated it but it was for a good cause.

Wise Old Owl

Well the weather has made it really tough to get outside and run. The roads are in terrible condition, so it would definitely be like playing chicken with the traffic. This has also contributed to lengthening the commute time to and from work. Which has lead to an increase on the stress related to the commute? This should be a prime reason to go for a run, to relieve the stress. But have I?
Nooooooooooooooooooo

Being the wise old runner that I am, I decided to not risk injury, be it by falling or a sudden impact with an automobile.

I have an appointment with the dreadmill on Friday morning, so I’ll make up for it then.

Okay scratch that global warming thing, we just got dumped on with freezing rain and now snow. It’s those big ass snowflakes that land on your coat and stay put. This means a long commute home from work and pushing snow onto my neighbors walk.
I was supposed to run in a free race this evening that is put on by a co-worker. He was hit by a car on one of his training runs a few years back and wasn’t seriously injured. He managed to somehow get a bumper from a car and this was the beginning of the annual ‘Bumper Run’. This is also the only race that I’m aware of that is absolutely free! That’s right, I said free. Of course you don’t get any of the customary items associated with a race, like a T-shirt or race bib but there are refreshments afterwards.
This got me to thinking about the rising cost of events, what would you give up to lower the cost of entering a race?
Do you really need another T-shirt?
Does it really matter if your name is on your race bib?
How about if you brought your own goodies to consume afterwards?

Give Me Drugs

I was able to get out and run at lunch since we’re having our kickoff for the 2008 summer season. I love the beginning of each new season. This is when each of the participants is so full of nervous energy not knowing what they’re getting into.
Hey this global warming thing is really cool, it was almost fifty degrees outside. Okay, I know the downside to it but it makes for great February running weather.
I think I’ll be taking my new One-A-Day (Aleve) for the next few days. My knee doesn’t want to cooperate, so I’ll just eliminate the little twinges with drugs!

Oh My Aching Head

I’m writing my elected officials and proposing the day after the Superbowl be a state holiday!

If I was a betting man and had the money, I would have bet the house on the Patriots winning Superbowl XLII. That’s’ why I wasn’t too devastated when the Packers lost to the Giants. I was sure that they were just playing for second place.

But as someone said long time ago, “that’s why they play the game”.

That could have been Brett Favre throwing touchdowns instead of Eli Manning. Like most football fans, I was shocked from the outcome. I’m paying for my celebrating the last football game of the 2007/2008 season on a school night and that’s why we need the holiday.
Fortunately, today is a day of rest from any real physical exertion on my part. We’re suppose to get some really warm weather tomorrow, so I’ll have to get outside and put in some miles but until then, I headed for the confines of the nice warm blankets.

Go Packers

Short and Sweet

I was able to get in a semi-good run but it wasn’t petty!

Oh Well

Crappy, Crap, Crap

Okay that describes how this mornings run went. I had some issues with my right knee and didn’t want to take a chance of getting to far away from home, so I cut it short.
There’s always tomorrow…

Oh by the way, THIS SUCKS!

Well the blizzard that we were supposes to get turned into just about three inches of snow. School districts were closing schools left and right in anticipation of a foot of snow. Runners were heading into gyms ensuring there were sufficient treadmills for their weekend long runs.

Television stations were bringing in part-time meteorologist to add to the roster of their winter storm team. Each station strategically placed reporters in different areas of the metropolitan Detroit area to let viewers know it was snowing.

The only thing we were missing was the rush on people purchasing extra water and gasoline.

This is Michigan, people! It snows in Michigan and we deal with it. I can remember in the olden days when it started snowing in December and didn’t stop until April. We would walk to school in all types of weather, never thinking of a ‘snow day’.

Okay, let the Superbowl weekend begin. Go Packers!