13.1-Eve (and Thanksgiving and stuff)

Nothing like a mild flirtation with an upper-respiratory ailment to put me on my ass and force me to taper. I had kind of forgotten to ease up the past few weeks and I think a cold/laryngitis was just the reminder I needed to stay off my feet for a minute to get ready for the half tomorrow morning.

Can I just add that waiting tables without a voice is... um, interesting? All I can say is hooray for competent trainees and sympathy tips. A few people were nice- they told me my raspy, croaking voice sounded sexy. I guess some people have a thing for women who sound like 60-yr-old smokers with emphysema.

Fortunately, I'm better now. I don't have my singing voice back and I still sound a little off, but I feel good. I've got enough echinacea, Umcka, and vitamin C flowing through my veins I might actually turn into a new hybrid immunity-boosting herb/plant/fruit tree.

Onto race day prep: I have a few traditions. Nothing crazy, just little things to get me pumped and in the mood to run for, say, an hour and 40 minutes or so (or at least, that's the goal).

The PlaylistA good bit of thought goes into my ears. I'll admit, even when people were trying to be strict about not allowing race participants to use their music players, I still broke the rules. It's not that I don't thrive off the crowd and air of excitement on race day, but I really love my music. It's not even that I put my most favorite songs E.V.E.R. on my list, but I enjoy trying to choreograph my race, so to speak, in the same way I choreograph a spin class. I need to start with even-paced, relatively calm music to avoid going out too fast. I need longer songs that build in intensity to really settle into my race pace. I need something mellow to "cruise" to in the middle 7-10 miles. Then I need bass-thumpin, guitar-wailing, drum-exploding, bad-ass music to push me through the last few miles and kick it in strong.

you know I gotta have me some Foo

 

The Primping 

I don't do much. It's more about picking out an outfit that says, "I'm a real runner, I swear!" and doing my nails. I almost went with my coworker to get my nails done yesterday, but then I remembered I wanted arm warmers to complete my outfit so opted for the home manicure instead.

Pretty in Purple

The Expo
Duh! We all know it's the best part of any major running event. Of course, it's a money pit, so you have to know going in what, if anything, you will buy from any of the numerous vendors and how much you're willing to spend. My personal tips for the expo: 1) Try on new shoes, but don't be tempted to buy them to wear the next morning for the race. They need time to break in and no matter how cool and shiny they seem, you'll miss your old kicks before you are even done warming up for the race. Save the sneaker purchase as a post-race treat. 2) Try to leave the kids at home. Trust me! I got to go without Alexis and as horrible a mom as this makes me sound, it was SO nice to peruse the racks and try on shoes without having to stop her from rearranging items on display, or accidentally making me steal stuff by hiding it in my tote bag. Also, I'm not a fan of tripping over others' kids and strollers. 3) Don't buy food unless you know what goos/gels/blocks you want and just haven't gotten a chance to buy them yet. Otherwise, you'll be tempted to buy and eat something you're not used to, just begging for your GI tract to interfere with your race plans!

Try to get out of the expo with only the things you need! (The 5-hour energies are for my hubby/chauffeur).

The Prerace Dinner
Nothing crazy for me. I indulge a bit more the few days leading up to a race, but having done a few marathons before, a half marathon is not something I go nuts with the carb-loading for. Since a lot of my fluids have been tea this weekend thanks to my throat issues, I've been adding lots of honey. Otherwise, I'm just focusing on drinking lots, eating when I'd normally eat despite the appetite going down with the cutback in miles, and keeping things relatively lean: No heavy sauces or greasy meals here. My favorite prerace dinner was the steak, arrugula and brie on croissant (trés français). I don't think I want to cook tonight, but I will aim for a hearty, light sandwich and maybe a small glass of wine.

The Race Day
My race morning fuel is a little odd, and I probably wouldn't recommend to everyone. But I can't eat a lot and I, the coffee lover, the person who's personal life motto would me "With an extra shot, please", the woman who might take coffee intravenously, if given the opportunity... you get the point... just can't stomach coffee the morning of a race. So I take 2 Excedrin with a glass of almond milk and eat a granola bar. I know, I'm weird.

OK, so what are YOUR Race Eve and Race Day traditions?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Running to rest and resting to run.

I got really moody about his upcoming Half Marathon because it wasn't the race I really wanted to do. Then, I settled down and realized I had to stop moping around about the fundraising thing and just get back to what I'm good at, which is just running. It's kind of like how I can't do a ball sport because it involves too much coordinated movement- same goes for running. I can run, but if you ask me to pair another task with running that involves any additional time or mental commitment and I suddenly become quite flustered.

And when I say uncoordinated, I mean like I fell off the risers at a Cross Country awards ceremony in high school in front of the rest of my team, uncoordinated.

So for the past few weeks my daily routine has pretty much been:

Monday- Morning routine (dress, eat, walk dogs), run, chores, lunch & nap routine (Alexis', not mine), shower, hustle to get to work, get home between 11 and midnight.

Tuesday- Morning routine, play, chores, lunch & nap, evening routine (dinner and another dog walk), hustle to get to the gym for spin class.

Wednesday- Morning routine, play, chores, lunch & nap, sit for thirty minutes and enjoy my day "off" from working out before going to work, get home between 11 and midnight.

Thursday- Morning routine, run, NO chores (I've declared Thursday to be a dish, laundry, and vacuum-free day), shower, lunch & nap, babysit 'til 6 or 7, then I actually get to have a normal, stress-free evening and bedtime routine with the daughter.

Friday- Morning routine, blog (Hi!), run, lunch & nap, hustle to work, get home between midnight and 2AM.

Saturday- Double. Work from 11AM til 11PM or later.

Sunday- OFF (hopefully a run, if the hubby doesn't guilt me out of running to stay home for "family time" which means I let him go play with his car.
-----

Now, my motivation to run and get through my Thanksgiving Day Half Marathon (rather quickly) is to just be done and on my way up to Greenville, where no laundry, no work, and lots and lots of food await.

The only thing(s) between now and next week that threaten to get in the way are attached to my ankles. My feet have been none too pleased with 30 miles per week (try as I might, I will never run more than that) plus work. If I get moving, they're ok but for some reason it's when I'm off my feet that it feels like there are nails in my heels. It seems/feels like the tell-tail signs of plantar fasciitis but I'm one of those people that unless a doctor tells me I have something, I don't have it. A few years ago, when my sinuses were so swollen they threatened to burst out of my faces and I was blowing green snot for a week, my husband had to strong-arm me into the car to take me to a clinic, where I was told I had a severe sinus infection and was put on antibiotics for a week.

Just four more shifts and a few more runs before the 13.1, then I can see how my feet feel after I take all of Thanksgiving weekend to recover (NO shopping for me!). I'm reading about others' injury and PT struggles and just don't want to be forced into that club. Mostly, I don't like being told what to do, or what not to do. I am a therapists' nightmare, which is why I'm hoping some rest and good old-fashioned RICE-ing is all I need.

As far as self-prescribed treatment and prevention go...

Anyone out there try KT tape? I like it when it actually stays put for the whole run, which isn't often.

What are your favorite compression socks to run and/or recover in?

How do I get in the business of test-wearing new shoes, since I can't justify a new pair of shoes for every bio-mechanical obstacle I encounter?

Tuesday Night Spin - the shuffle

Last night's class didn't introduce a lot in the way of new songs, but I did mix up the order that I played them for a change and, more importantly, a challenge.

Back in high school, my cross country coach used to yell at me for my kick at the end of the race. Fueled by the crowd and that final burst of adrenaline, I'd blast through the last 100 yards and across the finish line. I felt it made me look impressive and of course, if I could pick off a few more runners, all the better. But my coach was not a fan. She said, "A kick like that tells me you didn't run hard enough during your race."

Hmph.

Since then, I'd like to say I've matured as an athlete. I no longer require that final sprint to prove my strength or athleticism, but that's not to say that it doesn't feel good to throw in a fast, loud, butt-whooping song at the end of a spin class or run.

The problem with always doing that at the end of a workout is that your body may come to anticipate that last push. Some people will work hard the entire hour regardless of which drills I do when, but I did notice a few people seeming to conserve their efforts for the last song. Suddenly, I found myself in my coach's shoes. She was.... right. *grumble*

Muscle memory is an amazing thing. It tells us that stairs need to be 10.5" high (I love the things I learn on "Holmes Inspection"), helps us navigate our living rooms in the dark, makes us able to memorize songs on instruments, and much more. But this also means that our bodies can become really used to a workout and when you always do the same drills in the same order, you run the risk of not pushing yourself harder. So on the bike, do the hardest drill halfway through your workout. On a run, try to throw in a faster mile somewhere in the middle. You can even mix up your routine by starting with cardio at the gym, stopping to go lift weights, then coming back to do the rest of your aerobic workout.


But of course, don't think that just because you challenge yourself more in the middle of your routine that you can just cruise until the end. A mid-class sprint doesn't mean I won't push my class to do something challenging at the end. I'm evil like that.

Happy sweating!

I was never one for taking things slow...

The clock and I have a complicated past.

I've written in the past of my struggles with working out and the scale. Working out was my license to eat and if I knew I wasn't going to be able to squeeze in a run or time at the gym, I struggled to allow myself to eat a meal. I drove those nearest and dearest to me insane with my constant obsessing over food and when I'd be able to work out next.

Like any solid relationship, my involvement with running has grown and matured into a healthy, beautiful thing. I clock miles not because I feel like I have to, but because I know that I can. The ability to train for a distance event is no longer a way for me disguise an obsession with food, rather it's something I do because I am strong and able. But it's not always peaches n' cream. Sometimes I worry about the previous run or the next, because now that I'm done worrying about calories burned, I fret about my pace.

Mainly, the issue is that if I clock several really strong runs in a row, it's really hard for me to reel it in for a longer run and not gas out after an hour and twenty minutes. It's hard for me to shift out of tempo mode and into SLD, mostly because when I'm limited to 3-4 runs a week I can't justify easy miles to myself. Long distance is not really an issue for me. If I have my tunes I can go all day... if only I could just slow it down!

Let me use another car equation (you can thank my husband, the motorhead, for that): Let's say you normally obey all traffic laws, but you car just happens to really enjoy doing 75 mph. Suddenly, you realize you're getting low on gas and since you're in the middle of nowhere, you've gotta make what you have last until the next gas station. In order for your car to operate at its most efficient, you really ought to drive 55 mph, and not one bit faster. This will feel painfully slow and annoying to the driver used to going 75.

Same for me. My legs tend to settle into a 7:30/7:45min per mile pace. I enjoy going that quickly. I can go that fast for about 8-10 miles but after that I start to gas out. And I struggle to find ways to extend that pace for a few more miles to make my 1:40 goal for the half marathon which means - at least for now - that I ought to consider slowing down to maintain an even, albeit slower, pace. I don't like that answer.

Or maybe I'm over thinking things and need to just let the excitement and atmosphere of race day carry me through the miles and across the finish line. There have been a number of races that I thought I wasn't ready to PR in that I wound up finding the strength and stamina just by being among other runners.

Are you a clock-watcher or you do you just run by feel?

What was the best race you thought you weren't prepared for, but wound up surprising yourself at the finish?

Tuesday Night Spin

So this three-to-four days a week posting thing isn't for me, clearly. I definitely still want to keep up a weekly post relating to spin class whenever I have a new playlist or pointers to share. As far as other entries go, I'm better at writing on a whim, which is what I'll go back to rather than boring you with my life Sunday through Wednesday. Whether what I write is actually anything worth writing (or reading), well I don't really care. This is where I air my dirty laundry, go off on tangents, get on my soapbox, and type in run-on sentences.

But for now, onto spinning...

I'm up to six or seven playlists in my arsenal, so it's getting more challenging to put together new mixes without spending a lot of money on amazon.com. I also like to work on a four-class cycle, to make sure that people who show up two weeks in a row won't do the same workout twice and get the impression that I never change things up! For the most part I rotate between my standard mix which consists of every type of drill, an endurance mix that includes longer songs for sustained hills and runs, a mountain mix that gradually takes up you a big hill then back down the other side, and an interval mix that focuses on really driving up that heart rate followed by breaks of active recovery.

Yesterday I needed some rolling hills because I've recently become paranoid that I won't be prepared for my presumably hilly Turkey Day Half Marathon. While I've tackled many major hills in the area and no matter which way I go from my doorstep I have to run my first mile uphill, I get those nagging doubts that start creeping in as I lay in bed, contemplating where tomorrow's run will take me. It's those moments that I need a confidence-building workout.

I've never been a fan of back-to-back hard workouts, let alone doing anything after a long run. But a recent article in Runner's World suggests doing a shorter key workout the day after a long run before soreness from the miles sets in. The thinking behind it is that you're already gonna be hurting a little anyway, why not squeeze in another workout before it hurts to go up and down stairs? Also, you're training your body to push through the fatigue, which comes in handy in the last miles of a full or half marathon. For me, this translated to a 12(.3)-mile run on Monday and the hilly route I planned for Tuesday's spin. And you know what? It hurt so good.

One final note in this week's lesson, and a point I touched upon in class last night: now's the time to get a jump on the holiday craziness (and calories). Don't wait 'til the turkey leg is on your plate to decide whether or not you're going to maintain your routine through the holidays. So many people throw in the towel once the holiday parties start, figuring they'll pick up where they left off after New Year's. Then they roll up to the gym only to find they can't find a parking spot thanks to all the n00bs and promptly turn around and head home. Next thing they know, it's spring and bathing suits are back on the rack in the department stores and everyone flies to the gym in a panic. This kind of pattern is just as bad as yo-yo dieting. It's so much better to set your routine NOW and stick with it!

I made my class a promise last night, the kind that works two ways, as in: I'll hold up my end of this bargain if you hold up yours. I told them, "The holidays are fast approaching and along with them, their calories. Everyone's mom and grandmother will be trying to feed you. But I can promise you this: If you keep up your routine and show up here every Tuesday, you'll be able to eat what you want on Thanksgiving!"

What's your holiday approach to fitness? Do you do the same routine, try to work out more, or do you find yourself struggling to hit the road or gym?

Tuesday Night Spin - Trick or Treat!

Okay so it's a day late, but the remains of the pumpkins that survived the holiday are still out on the neighbor's porches so I'm gonna stay in the Halloween Spirit and finally do my themed playlist. Besides, we gotta work off those skittles and twizzlers!

Spooktacular Spin:

1. warm up, flat road: "Warning" Green Day
2. three position light climb/cont'd warmup - add a gear and start in pos. 1 for 1 minute, add a gear and transition to pos. 2 for 1 minute, then shift into pos. 3 to pic up the pace, repeat: "Toccata and Fugue in D Minor" J.S.Bach / Tom Rossi remix
3. standing runs - light to medium res, pick it up and run in pos. 3 on the chorus up to 80% effort: "Time is Running Out" Muse
4. endurance run, light resistance - a gear or more than flat road, run it out at 75% (stay at top of aerobic zone): "Serial Thrilla" Prodigy
5. endurance climb, medium+ resistance - add a couple more gears, feel like you're pedaling in sand, try to pick it up and run in pos. 3 on the choruses (optional- don't take the added resistance off when you sit): "Space Lord" Monster Magnet
6. flat recover with runs - recovery pace for verse, run at 85% for the choruses: "Everlong" Foo Fighters
7. jumps, light resistance - 8,4, and 2-count, repeat: "Jump" Flo Rida featuring Nelly Fatado
8. three position moderate climb - start in pos. 1, transition to 2, then pick it up and add a gear when you take it out to 3 on the chorus - leave the resistance ON this time when you sit and repeat: "Thriller" (single version) Michael Jackson (you knew I had to put this one on there!)
9. heavy climb - as heavy as you can make the resistance and still pedal smoothly - make it steep and climb it out: "Ain't No Rest for the Wicked" Cage the Elephant
10. downclimb - back it off to medium+ resistance start in position 3 and push an aggressive pace - every 30s. you can take off another gear until you're able to sit and run: "Halloween Americana" Everclear
11. flat recovery and sprints - you know what's coming - start at 60% /recovery pace for the first minute, as the music builds, move your feet, the music drops out and comes back in - that's you're cue to GO (90%): "Sandstorm" Darude
12. your much-deserved (and long) recovery: "Forgotten Worlds" Delerium

Monday Muse: Halloween Edition

Boo!

Got out for a wonderful 10-miler yesterday, despite being naughty the night before after work, (I challenge you to work 12 hours in a restaurant and NOT imbibe promptly after your shift is over.) being naughtier the following morning at a friend's brunch, (Who says "No" to a mimosa or a Belgian waffle the size of your face? That's just rude.) and still being stuffy from last week's cold.

What did suck a little bit is that it felt like it took half the run to settle into a groove. Between trying to keep the boogers at bay with my sleeve, shaking out the stiffness and soreness in my feet from the previous days' labor, and trying to ignore the fact that my tape job for my plantar fasciitis was already coming loose, it was challenging to say the least to get my head into the run. Once again, my iPod, set to random, comes to the rescue. I know a lot of people out there are purists about the sport, and I'm sure I'd still be inclined to run without music blowing out my eardrums, but I probably wouldn't be nearly as quick (that's a relative term) as I am now.

If I could ever meet anyone of the musicians who frequent my playlist, I'd thank them for making me the runner I am.

Especially these guys:

 

One of the best songs to come on at the end of a solid run, making you kick it in.

Seven days 'til I get to see them up close and personal from the nosebleeds. Whatever, it's my first Foo concert and I am BEYOND excited. My last big concert was Green Day's "American Idiot" tour and before that... I don't know, Aerosmith's "Nine Lives" tour, maybe? Let's just say this rockin' Mama doesn't get her rock on as much as she'd like to anymore, and now lives vicariously through the musicians she listens to. Not saying I'd leave my husband for Dave Grohl (he's totally married with adorable kids, anyway) but I will scream like a school girl next Monday night.

And on Halloween, what other group do you think I'd honor than the band that dresses up the most for their videos? "Walk," "Everlong," "Big Me," "Learn to Fly," .... these guys sure love their drag, and I love them.

Take-away Wednesday

I learned a quick lesson this week:

Shut my mouth and step away from the keyboard before I start bitching. It's too easy to just open the laptop and vent away from behind the cloud of pseudo-anonymity that is the internet. Not to say that releasing stress and anxiety is something we shouldn't do, but I know my emotions weren't constructive.

If I had waited until AFTER spin class to post about it, I would have happily reported that I had nearly 20 people in my class. That they were working HARD and I knew I had to put my real spin legs to keep up. That all my batteries for the mic were dead and I still managed to rally the troops, drill after drill.

I felt silly after I left class last night. That's not to say that my complaints weren't warranted, but sometimes I think I just need to sit back and allow the mood to pass without over-thinking everything- or needing to put everything into text for me to sit and read (and re-read), getting more and more agitated as I go over all the things in my head that are bugging me at any given moment.

The Halloween mix I'd been pondering did not get made yesterday, but I figure next week wouldn't be too late for a themed class being the day after Halloween. Besides, I'm sure some of the parents in my class would have already broken into their kids' stashes. I would. I'm a sucker for Twix and Milky Way. That's why I'm taking my girl to a kid-geared party in the park instead of trick-or-treating.

Anyway, two of the then-major, now-minor annoyances that have gotten under my skin have been resolved this week: The run I missed was made up for on Monday, and the class I had been dreading turned out to be rockin'. That just leaves one thing... the pot of chicken curry I made last night that got left out on the stove and now must be thrown away. No worries, I don't feel the need to vent about that now.

QOTD: How do you cope when you start to feel like you're getting all worked up for nothing?

Tuesday Night Spin

I'm recycling a playlist from 4 weeks ago because I'm lazy. I was going to do a Halloween-themed ride but I don't know... when I'm only ever "playing" to an audience of 4-6 people, I feel like it's a waste of effort. Maybe I'll go check out some others' playlists online and see if I get inspired.

The problem is, I'm still struggling to get people to come back from week to week. I don't know if it's the time - 6:45 PM - or the location, or a combination of both (thanks to Atlanta rush-hour... which is more like a rush-3-hour), but attendance is still inconsistent and I kind of feel silly up there, saying motivational things to such a small class and they're just looking at me like we're the only ones here... just shut up and play your music and then we can all go home.

Well, maybe it's my own head and insecurities that say those things. But I wonder, am I really serving a purpose?

I do know that when I was just taking classes and I carved out a time slot in my schedule for a specific date and time, I was annoyed when the instructor would cancel or have some sub in at the last minute who is normally a Zumba instructor or something and she's just gonna put on her dance tunes and make something up on the fly. No thank you. You all know how I feel about Gaga and Kesha (that's right, it's an "S" people, a dollar sign is not a friggin letter).

So needless to say, I don't want to do that to anyone who does specifically go to the gym on Tuesday evening for a spin class. But I'm not gonna lie - sometimes, especially right after a very low-attendance class, I just want to call out. I figure, they won't miss me much.

I wonder how other instructors have overcome this hurdle? I knew I was facing a challenge when I was told the Tuesday night class had not had a regular instructor for at least a year; that they were planning on doing away with it all together until I showed up asking to take it over. I think one of the issues is that members at this particular location are just locked into their own worlds, unwilling to break out of their usual routines and try something new. I can't tell you how many people I see just walking - no, STROLLING - on the treadmills while watching tv and clacking away at their mobile devices. I want to run over there yelling, "You can walk and talk all you want outside, you're in a GYM now! Get your butt in my class and do a REAL workout!!" But... I'm pretty sure that would get me fired.

Well, if nothing else I guess I should just hop over to amazon.com and check out some tunes to put me in a better mood. Screw everyone else, I am going to have a great class tonight.

Monday Morning Muse

Alright, I've hung my head and felt sorry for myself for a good 24 hours. A number of factors played a roll in yesterdays' meltdown blog entry:

The fundraising issue for one. I officially hang up my hat to try again next year on 10/30, provided I don't get some sort of miracle donation. I'll keep pushing people for this last week (the money does still go toward research to find a cure for Crohn's and colitis) and maybe try to find a few celebrities to email, but I'm pretty sure I'll have to just swallow my pride and deal with the fact that I can't do this particular race.

Work. I work with great people in the restaurant, but when it comes to the higher ups there's just no support. I understand they have all of Mr. T's stuff to deal with and Captain Planet board meetings and important decisions to make like whether we use black or white linen (apparently this is a big deal- and a good story for the T.I.P.S. section), but when it comes to the lowly restaurant staff needing something, we feel kind of snubbed. I guess the trade-off is that while they come downstairs to show off their stripes and having big shot business people out to lunch, their phones and emails are blowing up 24/7, whereas when I'm done with my shift, I'm done with my shift. Still, it's frustrating to be looked down upon, and downright insulting that they won't give any of our charities the time of day.

The run. I'm sure some of my other running mamas can identify with that crushing feeling of defeat when you get yourself psyched up for a good run only to have plans change. In my case, I knew I needed to give the day to the hubs because he wanted/needed time to work on his car. I figured I could nail down someone who'd watch the little bit but my babysitters were unavailable and the neighbors whose girl I watch once a week were helping someone move. So I had one of those, Where is everyone when I need them??? moments.

But I had to get out there. I had to stop moping and make something of my day so I did what I like to call an OCD-housecleaning - complete with shining faucets and Pledging tables and bookshelves - and did manage to make it out with the daughter for 5.5 miles through twisty, hilly Freedom and Candler Parks. It was murder on the ankles and arms though, tilting the stroller back every 50 yards to take sharp corners while trying to maintain balance and keep the wheels of the jogger on the path. Definitely need a new place to run when I have the daughter with me. This particular path starts 20 minutes from where I live, by car, but I think the drive would be worth it.

Today, though, it will be me and the 'mill. A few of the mama bloggers have been debating the topic recently, but my sentiment about the treadmill has always been the same: You do what you gotta do to do the run. Especially when you have to knock out some serious mileage. As much as I'd love to push a stroller for an hour and a half, I think my daughter would get bored to tears, so really, when I run on the TM I'm doing it for her.

For me, getting through a long run requires just one thing: good music. I like music that makes me feel like I'm in an action movie, being chased through an urban jungle, doing some crafty parkour shit.

One of my favorite songs to run to:

Don't actually know what movie they used this song in. Doesn't look very action-packed at all, actually, but there are lots of dramatic looks exchanged so I'm sure something dark and scary is going on.

Sunday Antifunday

Confession:

I don't think I'm going to Vegas.

I just can't raise the money in time, and I feel like crap for it. I fail at fundraising. Both companies I work for can't/don't/won't support fundraising endeavors because they're corporate. I'd love to host something like a cycle-a-thon but the gym won't have it. It's against the rules to sell anything in the restaurant, and I can tell guests about the race if they ask, but could get fired if I imply I'm seeking donations.

But I'm still over $2000 short and there's just no way I'll raise the money in time for the November 16th deadline.

I feel defeated, and I feel like shit. I don't even want to run the other race I'm training for, because it means nothing compared to the one I was trying to do.

Look up there ^

Don't forget to check out the "T.I.P.S." section of this blog, which deals with whatever restaurant-related issues are on my mind at whatever given moment. The topic changes weekly, so check it out and speak your mind!

stompin' in jack-o-lantern's weather

It took until the 20th of October to get here, but I finally ran what felt like a real autumn run this morning. Like, cold enough to start with gloves and a long-sleeved technical shirt zipped up to my chin. Brisk enough to have goosebumps and shiver a bit for the first couple miles. Windy enough to turn my shirt into a handkerchief (don't cringe- you know you wipe your nose on your sleeve and I won't believe you if you deny it).

I love it!

Of course, I chuckle a little when I see myself decked out for a run when it's 45° because at the same temperature, had I never moved from New York down south, I'd still be in shorts and a t-shirt. I remember celebrating "warm fronts" in the winter time that would take us up out of the single digits and into the 20's. But whatever, I'm getting out there and I'll continue to do so. One thing I didn't do often enough last winter was run outdoors. Without a fall or winter race to train for I didn't care about running more than 5 miles at a time, which, at 40 minutes on the treadmill, is nothing. I was just trying to maintain my fitness and didn't need to prove anything by clocking miles on pavement.

This year, though, I am just loving getting out there. Trail, sidewalk, gravel or road, I don't care. In the woods, I can soak in the scenery and run for miles without noticing the passage of time or distance. On the street, I get the satisfaction of breezing by rush-hour traffic and feeling speedy as I race down the hill back into my neighborhood at the end of my route. Wherever I am, this weather pushes me to go as fast as my legs and my lungs will let me.

What's your favorite fall run?

Team Challenge Update

I'm taking a break from my regular posts because I'm focusing hard on fundraising like crazy. I have my go-to playlist that I usually pull out once a month when my brain is too fried to come up with something new, so I can spend naptime giving an update on my Team Challenge and Half Marathon training progress.


First, the running:
All I can say is, WOW. I don't think I've ever done back-to-back 7+ mile runs on consecutive days and not been sore but this time around, something has changed. I don't know if I've finally been broken in from previous marathons (or marathon weekends at work), but my legs feel hardier than ever and I'm running 8-minute miles, no sweat. Except for the gnats. If you live in the south, you know what I'm talking about. Those f*****s are e.v.e.r.y.w.h.e.r.e. Ugh! And the stinkbugs!

My longest run to date for the season is 9 miles in 1:15. With the cooler temps I haven't even felt the need to take water or anything else with me on a run. I'm even contemplating not bothering with gels or blocks at all and just relying on the hydration stations along the course when I run Atlanta and Vegas. I suppose I do have the ridiculously hot and humid summer to thank - I don't break a sweat until I'm well into my run.

Anyone else out there skipping race nutrition? At what point is your cut-off that determines if you consume calories or rely in liquids alone?

Part Two, the fundraising:
It's a little scary, being responsible to bring in so much for an organization. The idea seems so great and noble initially, until you realize you need to fully commit to the team and say, "If I don't raise the money, I'll make up the difference." Most fundraisers that include travel and racing have this stipulation, which I understand. I knew this wasn't going to be a free trip or a free run. But I have a long way to go: $2180, to be exact.

Yikes :-O

So I need some help. If there's a chance that you're one of the bigger bloggers out there whom I love and admire, All I need you to do is share a link- either to my blog or my fundraising page. I'm asking everyone to consider even a small donation but if you simply can't do it, it would help so much if you at least shared my mission - to raise money to find a cure for Crohn's disease and colitis and to fund support and education for patients.

Cuz you see, I had a moment (well, the moment lasted 4 days, to be exact) when I panicked and thought, "I can't do this!" I felt aweful. I've taken in $520 of my friends' and family's hard-earned money already -- and it seemed like it was all going to be for nothing. We had to make the ultimate decision to fully commit or not, and I thought there was no way I could possibly meet my goal.

But then I thought about my friends in the hospital, or going to the doctor every other week. People waiting for medication and treatment, or simply waiting to get sick enough that the hospital can't turn them away for being uninsured. I thought about a 2-yr-old who can't comprehend why he can't eat without his entire body hurting. I thought about what a punk I'd be if I gave up now.

I have faith that I can do this.

http://www.active.com/donate/GA11TCVEGAS/ga11vegasJRaby

Thank you.

Take-away Wednesday

If there's one thing I learned from running, waiting tables and now, chasing a toddler, is that my body is begging for fuel and if I don't give it the right stuff, I'm bound to crash and burn. When that happens, it's even uglier than the nastiest person I could imagine serving. I'm pretty sure there have been several confrontations that may have been avoided had I been properly nourished. In fact, we all need the right fuel to function properly. I've waited on a number of people who started off quite cranky, picking apart everything about me, the table, the restaurant and the menu, but as soon as they get a few bites in them they morph back into a tolerable individual who may actually leave a tip. Food = Success.

Sometimes, the need for calories strikes before I've had a chance to contemplate a nutritious meal and I find myself downing whipped cream in a desperate attempt to fill my stomach as quickly as possible. Not healthy.

In the past few weeks I've ramped up my running game and just to make things more interesting, starting working out in the morning. My legs have held up to the sudden jump to 30 miles per week for the most part, except when I forget to do things like, oh, EAT. The morning routine transitions all too quickly into the afternoon rush of trying to get Alexis down for a nap followed by having to get ready for work. Before I know it, I'm at the restaurant stuffing my face with dinner rolls and old fries. That's an appealing image, right? (Actually, it's hilarious. If it's the end of the night and there's a pan of hot rolls that we know won't sell, we're all in the kitchen, devouring the fluffy white bits of bread like we're freakin' orphans - except we dive for the food BEFORE it hits the trash can. We're not THAT desperate to eat, I don't think.)

Heading into last week, I felt a little off and I knew the food issue was to blame. Naturally, I don't want to fill up with just junk every time the tummy grumbles, so sometimes I'll skip a snack thinking, "I don't need that crap." Truth is, I need something. I found this out after running six miles on Sunday, seven on Monday, and then taught spin class Tuesday night. My legs felt like lead. I'm sure my face frightened my class because I was trying to suppress the grimace with an overly-toothy grin. I felt weak and choppy and I was cursing myself that I'd only brought water to class. That night, I ate like it was my first and last meal, ever.

For a quick reality check, I jumped over to a website with a decent calorie intake calculator. I entered in my basic stats and exercise level and came back with a somewhat surprising number: 2317.

Woot! Ben & Jerry's, here I come!

Ok, it's more like almond milk, oatmeal, bananas, peanut butter, and Power Bars, here I come.

Actually, last week's bonk inspired some yummy food discoveries. I made a turkey chili by simmering ground turkey, onion and yellow bell pepper in canned enchilada sauce (a tasty and inexpensive short-cut when you don't have equipment to puree your own tomatoes with seasoning and spices). For a late lunch that I brought with me to work, I filled wheat tortillas with mixed greens, some of the chili mix, and topped it with a little cheese.

I also discovered these little nuggets of joy:

So yummy. So friggin addictive. Pretty cheap at Target!

This week's take-away: Feed yourselves right! A bonk is the first clue that you need to evaluate your nutritional intake. But just like you wouldn't put regular fuel in a car that only takes premium, don't put just any crap in your belly. For me, that's easy. I ask myself, "Would I let Alexis eat this?" If not, I don't eat it, either. Another thing to make sure of is that you can read the ingredient list. If your food shares an ingredient with, say, hair gel -- I saw this once, I forget the food but the ingredient was propylene glycol, which is in a couple of my hair products -- you would probably do well to pass it up.

Bon Appetite!

Tuesday Night Spin - Isolation

A quick word about isolation exercises:

These are generally contraindicated. A lot of drills people have come up with over the years are not something you'd see a cyclist doing on the road, so why would we do them indoors? However, riding indoors means we also don't face all the same conditions as riding outside - no wind, no turns, no downhills - so certain exercises can help challenge the body in ways that only sitting or standing can not.

Here are my own rules when it comes to isolation:

*Hands on the handlebars! You wouldn't take them off your bike if you were on the road, so don't do it in class! I've heard instructors tell their class to stand up to climb, but then alternate putting either arm behind their backs or worse, letting go entirely. Not safe. You shouldn't be leaning on the handlebars, but if you put every last ounce of your weight over your knees in an awkward position, you're asking for trouble.

*Isolation exercises should still mimic a normal riding position and serve some sort of function. Hovering over the saddle and staying really low is something a rider might do in strong headwinds. Focusing on pulling up on the hamstrings is a way to train the legs to have a more efficient pedal stroke. When eliminating the bounce of riding to isolate the quads, this also trains the legs to pedal more effectively rather than using the whole body to bounce up and down. The more you move your whole body, the more energy you take away from your legs.

*Don't do it if it hurts. I always tell my riders - especially noobs - that if you feel any kind of strain or pain in your hips and knees, just sit and ride. If you were riding your bike out on the road, you would naturally settle into the most comfortable riding position, anyway. These are just exercises to mix up the routine but ultimately, if you're not ready to try them, it's okay to "sit it out" so to speak... just keep working, of course!

This is one of my favorite playlists and it includes a mix of hills, runs, hamstring and quad drills. I've got a little something from every decade starting in the 1960's and working up to today. Have fun!

"Rock of the Ages"
1. warm up - flat road, optional individual leg-warm/up 30s each - "Light My Fire" The Doors
2. seated run - add a gear, quick cadence, work up to 70% effort - "I Wanna Be Sedated" Ramones
3. 3 position climb - add a gear start in pos. 1, stand in pos. 2 on the bridge, add a gear in pos. 3 on the chorus. Back to pos. 1, leave the resistance on and repeat the cycle (should be heavy by the end!) - "Livin on a Prayer" Bon Jovi
4. flat recovery/run - recovery pace for the verse, pick it up and run on the chorus - "Basket Case" Green Day
5. isolation - light to medium resistance - sit and run at 70% for the verses, stand in pos. 3 for the chorus chorus; try to eliminate all bouncing so that ONLY the legs are moving - "Dance, Dance" Fallout Boy
6. climb to the max - started seated at med. resistance, adding a gear every 30-45s. until you have to stand (don't drop below 60rpm - once you can't maintain that cadence, you can stand) - "Ain't No Rest for the Wicked" Cage the Elephant
7. recovery/endurance run - 1st minute is recovery on a flat road, then add a gear back in and pick up the pace to 80%/top of your aerobic zone. Hold this pace as you add a hair of resistance at 1-min. intervals - "Whole Lotta Love" Led Zepplin
8. rolling hills/seated climb - alternated seated run at light resistance on the verse, add a couple gears and run in pos. 3 at med. resistance on the chorus ("Laaaay-laaaa") - when the music slows for the super-long outro, take it to heavy resistance and climb it out 'til the end - "Layla" Derek and the Dominos
9. recovery/run - flat road, recover for 1st minute, then pick up the pace and run on the chorus, take it up to 90% this time - "Rebel Yell" Billy Idol
10. hovers - medium resistance: start in pos. 1, transition to pos. 3 on the bridge, then take it back and hover over the saddle (work those Hammies!) on the chorus - "Mysterious Ways" U2
11. last hill - keep it at med. resistance, sit and climb, add a few gears to make it steep and stand up to charge up the hill on each music break (when the music picks up) - "Seven Nation Army" White Stripes
12. run it out - flat road, recover for a minute then pick the pace back up to 80%. Take it to an all-out sprint on the chorus - "Walk" Foo Fighters
13. Recover and stretch! - "Everlong (Live)" Foo Fighters

Monday Morning Muse

Today's female-to-male ratio while running? Something like 8:1. Go ladies! I think this calls for some chick rock.

Sunday Funday

Well, actually, these are pics from the weekend, mostly from around the Bed & Breakfast we stayed at in Auburn, AL. We traveled to go to a BBQ hosted by an auto tuning company for its vendors and customers (go man stuff!) but it turned out to be a nice reprieve for us, too. I encourage people to get out of their comfort zone when exercising, but who knew that getting out of your TIME zone could be beneficial, too! We were on central time while our bodies were still on east coast, so we were waking up at 7:00 AM without an alarm and actually going to bed at a reasonable hour. That turned out to be the perfect formula for a good run first thing in the morning on Saturday.

The back yard of the B&B, which made me feel like I was Grammy's house.

Coffee, check. Runner's World, check. Perfect start!

The house feels a little like a time warp.

Obligatory macro + water feature shot.

APR's slogan. Mine, too.

Such a gorgeous weekend.

Take-away Wednesday

In this week's Team Challenge newsletter, our chapter leader attached a letter written by one of our teammates who's been in and out of the hospital due to the advanced stage of her Crohn's disease. I told you about her- the "I'm gonna crawl across the f******g finish line" girl.

Well this letter... I'll just say I should have had tissues nearby.

She spoke of the pain and isolation of Crohn's disease, especially in the condition she's in. Without insurance, the hospital had to go the cheap route and send her home with an IV and pain meds until they could drain absences in her intestines and give her a course of antibiotics. Then, she learned they could not perform her surgery knowing that she would be unable to pay. She has to write letters and beg any hospital or pharmaceutical company that will hear her case to consider treating her so that her disease does not advance to the point of no return. Through all of this, she's been pushing onward with her fundraising and getting to Las Vegas. She says she wants to "stick it" to Crohn's at the finish line to prove that it won't hold her back.

The most poignant part of her letter was when she shared how much love and support she received from relative strangers - those of us in Team Challenge. People she didn't know a month ago helped collect her mail, arrange care for her cat, and sat and spent time with her in the hospital. It made me proud to be a part of something so special, and even more determined to reach my fundraising goal.

Please help spread the word about Team Challenge and the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation. Find the link on the right side of this page and consider a small donation. Your money will go toward helping researchers find a cure for this debilitating and painful disease, as well as provide support for people like my teammate who struggle to receive the care she so desperately needs.

Tuesday Night Spin - Cruise control

We're definitely not talking about just cruising along in spin class. Today's drills are all about consistency. Just like your car maintains a steady speed through hills and flats when you set it to cruise control, we will be doing the same thing for several of tonight's drills. On the bike, this translates to holding the same steady pedal stroke over flat roads, up hills, in the seat and out of the saddle.

One great way to challenge yourself on the bike is to try to go the same speed even as you add resistance. We're not talking about climbing the Great Wall here, just adding a hair of resistance at a time and pushing your body to keep the same cadence. With monitors, this is easy. Just keep that number at 60 rpm or above - if you're going much slower because the resistance is too heavy, you'll lose cardio benefits and possibly damage your bike. Since the bikes in my room don't have monitors, it's my responsibility as an instructor to set the example of how fast or slow to go and provide the right tunes to give people something to pedal to.

Another challenge is to pick up the pace to a fast run that is at the edge of your aerobic zone. The goal here is to get out of your comfort zone: Your legs should ache a little and should be breathing hard but able to answer a question. At the top end of your aerobic zone, you can hold this faster pace for at least 3-5 minutes if you had to, but if you feel like you could keep going all day you're not going fast enough! If you're panting and gasping for air and your legs are on fire, then you're anaerobic and you need to back off the pace.

As always, you are the best judge of how hard you are working. Adding a couple drills like these to your cardio routine will certainly help you improve endurance as well as blast calories (and, let's face it, that's what a lot of us are out to do!)

10/4 - Cruise Control
1. warm up - flat road; pedal with both legs for first 2 minutes, right leg (leave other on the pedal, just focus on using one leg at a time) for 30s, left for 30s, then pedal evenly 'til end - "Ants Marching" Dave Matthews Band
2. warm up cont'd - 3 position run, add a gear, start in pos 1 on verse, pos 2 for the bridge, and pos 3 for the chorus; on last run through, add one more gear - "Let's Get it Started" Black Eyed Peas
3. cruise #1, run - keep whatever resistance you've added on, find the edge of your aerobic zone and try to stay their for the duration of the song - "Block Rockin Beats" Chemical Brothers
4. cruise #2, climb - add another gear and slow it down, when you stand on the chorus add a couple gears to keep the same cadence, take it off when you sit - "When I'm Gone" 3 Doors Down
5. jumps - back it off to light to med resistance, jump on an 8 count, then 4, then 2 - "A Little Less 16 Candles..." Fallout Boy
6. cruise #3, run - start at a flat road, find a pace that feels about 70% of your max effort (this should feel kinda easy to start, that's the point), every minute add a gear, it WILL get harder, TRY not to slow down! Stand for the last minute to keep up a strong pace - "Climbatize" Prodigy
7. cruise #4, climb - keep the resistance where it's at, start in pos 1 for the verse, pos 3 for the chorus; when you stand and run, add a gear then take it off when you sit (again, maintaining cadence) - "Ready to Go" Republica
8. recovery! - flat road, flush it out - "Here it Goes Again" OK Go
9. cruise #5, heavy climb - heavy resistance that you can still sit and pedal smoothly through (keep at 60 rpm), breathe deep and climb it out; this is kind of a meditative song so try to let go of all your thoughts and tension and just climb - "Purify" Balligomingo
10. standing runs w/ recovery - light resistance, pos 1 verse, pos 2 bridge, stand and run in pos 3 - "Like a Pill" Pink
11. jumps - light resistance, 8/4/2 - "Do You Want To" Franz Ferdinand
12. run it out - flat road (+ for control), sprints on chorus - "The Pretender" Foo Fighters
13. cool down - "Beyond" Balligomingo

total time ~ 56 minutes

2-for-1: Sunday Funday / Monday Morning Muse

Sunday...

We've been working on "Thomas Puzzle" for a while - she can now assemble most of this 24-piece puzzle by herself!

I often run on S-bucks, but will ultimately seek caffeination anywhere I have a coupon for. Today, that was Einstein's. I had to force myself to endure their Autumn Roast and pumpkin bagel w/ pumpkin cream cheese. Oh darn!

After a coffee-fueled 6.5 miles came even more indulgence in the form of a charcuterie plate (as well as pumpkin ravioli and Georgia Mtn Trout). We went to the fantastic Local Three here in Atlanta. I want to eat here for the rest of my life work here.

Crayons and disposable menus, filed under: How to Keep a Toddler Happy In a Restaurant. To my absolutely astonishment, she actually drew the heart on the right. For real. My TWO-year-old did that!

 Not a shabby day at all, if I might say so myself.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Monday....
Whatever tears at us, whatever holds us down... and if nothing can been done we'll make the best of what's around.

Great song to have come on in the earlier part of this morning's 7-miler. Nothing like some old DMB to put a little pep in my step. Say what you want about white kids in their beanies with their acoustic guitars in the middle of the park, no one will ever ruin this band for me.

 

Take-away Wednesday

Hubs and I had to have a talk last night.

One of those talks where he complains about everything she's not doing to keep things *ahem* interesting the relationship, and she reacts with a concise list of all the things she does throughout the day and how when she comes home from work at 12:30 AM and sees that all the laundry she did still hasn't been put away, it's hard for her to focus on doing anything "interesting" for him.

Something that he said to me, however, that was a point I hadn't considered before and clearly needed to, was that he felt like he was playing second fiddle to everything else I do. He says I'll set my alarm to get up for a run, plan all these things that I want or need to do when the daughter takes a nap, but I seem to struggle to find time for him.

And he's right... this is something I have to work out.

I did say in my defense, though, that on paper I work 32 hours, but in reality the time I spend in the restaurant does top out near 40, so if we're both working full-time then something's gotta give around the house. I understand that men are pretty content with the state of their abode so long as they have clean underwear, but what about when I run out of underwear?

So something's gotta give on both sides. He has to understand that I just can't relax when there's a consistent to-do list that seems to never, ever get done. I have to understand that if I'm going schedule time to keep up with my training, then I also need to set aside time elsewhere to keep up with my husband.

Kind of makes me miss the days when we'd duck out of the local coffee house early to go park his car somewhere, then we'd sneak back to our respective houses where his mom did his laundry and my parents lived in such a mess it didn't matter if I even tried to keep my room clean. The only thing I put off to hang out with my boyfriend was sleep. And sleep is SO not cool when you're in high school.

before wedding, came prom

Tuesday Night Spin -- let's talk about resistance!

An important thing to remember about exercising on any piece of cardio equipment is that your workout is what YOU make of it. Outside, whether you're walking, running, biking, or skating (apparently yes, rollerblading IS still a thing), you'll encounter varying resistance in the form of hills or changes in terrain.

Just about every class, I remind my spinners that there is no such thing as downhill when you're riding indoors. You can certainly take all the resistance off and pedal your little heart out, but that's about effective a workout as frantically waving your arms around. So during my class, I encourage everyone to always ride with resistance on. Even if they only turn up the dial to the point where the wheel just barely starts to catch, it's better, and safer, than just free-wheelin' it. Same goes for the treadmill and elliptical. On the treadmill, you want a .5%-1% incline to accommodate for the give of the machine. Otherwise, you're just running one very long, low-grade downhill that might very well work your quads, but could easily fry your knees. On the elliptical, you need enough resistance to balance out your own weight- again, to keep those knees safe. The resistance should be equivalent to walking up a hill.

Also- think about it this way: What ARE you going to the gym for? If you find yourself settled into a routine of doing the same 30 minutes of cardio followed by the same 5 resistance exercises, you should really consider mixing up your routine! Many a study have concluded that variety is key in maintaining an active lifestyle. So challenge yourself! You feel like you're just cruising along? Time to dig deep and turn it up!

9/27 -- Rolling Hills

1. warm up - flat road - "Rollover DJ" Jet
2. cont'd warm up - add a gear - 30s. position 1, 30s. position 2 (standing job), 30s. position 3, repeat - "Weapon Of Choice" Fatboy Slim
3. climb with standing bursts - medium resistance, speed up in pos. 3 - "The Golden Age" Asteroid Galaxy Tour
4. seated sprints - flat road+ (add a gear for control and extra challenge), sprint on the chorus - "Rebel Yell" Billy Idol
5. climb with standing bursts - start at med resistance, add a gear each time you get to pos. 3 (chorus), push through and even try to speed up - "Rolling in the Deep" Adele
6.  heavy seated climb - make it heavy enough that it's really hard, but not impossible (no pedal mashing), try to stay in your seat but you may stand for relief or to mix it up - "Dream On" Aerosmith
7. seated flat - fast, push the pace for 2 minutes as you speed down the other side of the hill - "Bleed it Out" Linkin Park
8. hovers - medium res, "hover" over the saddle on the chorus and focus on pulling up with the hamstrings - "Mercy" Duffy
9. long climb (choreographed, time intervals are approximate to changes in the music) -
                       0-1:00 - medium
                       1:00-2:00 -add 1 gear (med.+)
                       2-2:30 - medium
                       2:30-3:30 - add 2 gears (heavy)
                       3:30-4:00 medium
                       4:00-5:00 add 3 gears, pos. 3 (heavy+)
                       5-5:30 medium
                       5:30 - end add 3 gears, pos. 3, 'til 6:30, optional 4th gear in last minute (steep)
                               - "You Can't Always Get What You Want" Rolling Stones
10. foothills - don't take the res. all the way off, dial it back to medium and stay up, take it off to sprint on the chorus, but it back on and recover in pos. 3 - "Raise Your Glass" Pink
11. standing runs - light resistance, alternate seated recovery and standing run, go with the flow of the song - "Lancaster Gate" Enter the Haggis
12. run it home, seated flat - take it easy the first minute to recover and get ready to run it out, pick up your pace as the music picks up, hold a steady 85% effort to the end - "Walk" Foo Fighters
13. cool down - flat road, slow it down, breathe deep, enjoy this moment - "Chasing Cars" Snow Patrol

Don't forget to stretch!

total time: 54:15

Monday Morning Muse

I'm just skin and bones...

Sunday Funday

9:00 - 6ish miles at Kennesaw Mountain.

10:45-1:30 Play with this adorable goofball without any worries of when I'm going to clean or do laundry.

2:00 - Late lunch at La Fonda. Alexis has taken a sudden liking to salad and raw veggies and has insisted on helping mommy with her mango pork salad.

4:30 - Naptime + Football :-)

Becoming a morning person at 2.13 an hour

Runner's World published an article in their October issue designed to help us average Joes and Janes develop the right habits and routines to transition to working out in the morning. I can certainly speak to the benefits of getting a workout in before breakfast, but one thing RW failed to acknowledge is that for some of us, it's not as easy as turning in 10 minutes earlier each night until we're turning off the lights at 10:00 PM. What about us 2nd-shifters??

Besides downing several big-ass cups of coffee, I got nothing. I'm loving working out at 7:30 but when that alarm goes off thirty minutes earlier I want to throw it at the wall.

I wonder if I can enter some sort of meditative state (think "Office Space") in which I'm working, but I don't feel like I'm working, or care that I'm working, thus conserving some amount of energy for the run I have scheduled the next morning.

Although I have to say (and I'm sure I've said before) that I am certain running improves my energy and focus at work, and the work improves my stamina during a run. It's like, during a long run I'm glad I'm not working a double and scrambling to stay out of the weeds. During a hectic shift, I'm glad to be getting somewhat of a workout without completely busting my ass.

I'll tell you one thing, though: While we're all working for different reasons, it's annoying as HELL when you hear a 21-year-old complain about her feet hurting her. Especially if you spent your morning running, chasing a toddler and taking care of chores. I'm sorry? What did you do all day before work? Oh, that's right, you skipped your morning class because you were hung over, spent the entirety of your next class text and Facebook-stalking your soon-to-be-ex-boyfriend, made yourself late for work because you just HAD to catch up with the Kardashians, and now you're frazzled because you've been here for, what, 4 hours and you're tired and ready to go home? Yeah. Talk to me when you have real problems.

OK, I know it's not fair to uphold everyone to my ridiculously high standards, but I do think dragging my ass out of bed at the crack of dawn is more than just a fun way to develop an "Intervention"-worthy caffeine habit. I think it builds character. And it doesn't matter who you are or what stage of life you're in; we can all benefit from a little personality workout. Especially servers!

Take-away Wednesday

Last week little miss and I visited a teammate from Team Challenge. If you are just stumbling upon this blog or you simply haven't checked out my donation page yet (link to the right), please go look and at least check out what Team Challenge is all about.

This teammate is in the hospital right now with multiple abscesses - caused by Crohn's - awaiting possible surgery and then hopefully, if she is infection-free, treatment to help with the barrage of symptoms that can go with this disease. She is a cool, tough-looking chick complete with faux-hawk, piercings, tattoos and colorful language. We talked a lot about what she's going through, but also the importance of Team Challenge and the significance of trying to make it to Las Vegas in December.

A lot of people when sick, automatically look to celebrities or athletes in the limelight who have gone through major challenges publicly. Think about that movie that's coming out, "50/50" in which Seth Rogan says to his friend, "You're gonna be fine! Lance Armstrong keeps getting cancer and look at him," or something to that effect.

I think the problem with that, though, is that we often look at people like Lance Armstrong, or Oscar Pistorius, or Bethany Hamilton, or the dude who cut himself free from the bolder, and think, "well, I'm not a seasoned athlete, so I can't do ____." What people don't realize is that there are normal, every-day people who must juggle the demands of daily life with the complications of a chronic ailment who still find the strength to face each day. Some days are better than others, but I can imagine that if everyone went in with an all-or-nothing attitude, a lot of people would just lay down and let disease take over.

My teammate understands she will be faced with physical limitations, so she's certainly not out to PR on a Half-Marathon. Instead, she says, "If I can't run it, I'll walk it. If I can't walk it, I'll crawl it. One way or another, I'm getting across that f****** finish line!"

What I challenge you to take away from this little anecdote is to find your finish line, and f****** cross it. Sometimes we set lofty goals for ourselves, but that shouldn't stop us from accomplishing them. Set reasonable landmarks that you can reach along the way and know that maybe the way you anticipated getting there might wind up being very different from what actually happens. All it takes is one unpredictable variable to throw off even the best-laid plans, so roll with the punches and find your own detour.

Tuesday Night Spin

My playlists are essential to a successful spin class. I use them to energize my spinners and drive them to push themselves. Sometimes, though, I have to cherry-pick from other instructors' lists and workout ideas when I am lacking motivation or inspiration. So in return, I also want to share my delightfully masochistic indoor cycling workouts for anyone else who wants to put together a high-intensity, kick-ass workout. Today's class uses the same playlist I put together last week, which received a lot of positive feedback in the form of everyone spinning their little butts off.

Since I don't always instruct on bikes with monitors, I ask my spinners to gauge their resistance on a simple scale: flat road, light, light+, medium, medium+, heavy and steep. It's up to the rider to find what they determine to be "medium" or "heavy". Steep is as hard as they can set the resistance and still be able to pedal smoothly. Flat road is NOT no resistance, it's the point at which the rider first feels a hint of resistance when adding gears.

I ride in three positions which I call out during class by number: 1) Seated, hinged forward, hands resting where comfortable on the handlebars. Position 1 is for seated runs, climbs, and recovery. 2) Standing, hands light on the handlebars, hinged forward just slightly. This is mostly a recovery or transition position. 3) Standing, hinged all the way forward (flat back), hands at the end of the handlebars. This is for standing runs and climbing. The important things to note in any position is that the spine is neutral, not hunched, the knees to not come out past the toes, and the seat height is adjusted so that the legs do not lock out straight at the bottom of the pedal stroke.

Now that I've gone through my basic intro, here's my first playlist to share. Enjoy!

"You're an animal!" Playlist (55 minutes):

1. warm up --flat road, position 1 -- "Animal" Neon Trees
2. warm up continued -- light resistance, position 1 verse, 2 bridge, 3 & run on chorus -- "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" Jet
3. climb with standing bursts -- medium resistance, pos. 1 verse, 3 & "burst" on chorus -- "In The End" Linkin Park
4. endurance run -- light resistance, pos. 1, easy run for first and last minute to recover, when the music picks up speed it up and maintain a fast run (NOT a sprint -- about 85-90%) -- "Brasileiria" Veron & Praia Del Sol
5. jumps -- light+ resistance, pos. 1 and 2, jump to the count of 8, 4, and 2, repeating sequence twice during the song -- "Jump" Flo Rida featuring Nelly Furtado
6. climb with standing bursts -- medium+, climb in pos. 1, "burst" in 3 -- "Seven Nation Army" The White Stripes
7. seated climb -- increase from medium+, to heavy, to steep, standing once it's too hard to sit and pedal smoothly -- "Feeling Good" Muse8. climb down -- gradually decrease from steep back down to medium with each change in position: start in 3, take off res. and sit, take off a gear in pos. 2, take a gear off in pos. 3 and run (on chorus), repeat sequence -- "The Dog Days Are Over" Florence and the Machine
9. recovery run -- flat road with optional bursts (if you recover quickly, add a gear back in half-way through the song!) -- "I Wanna Be Sedated" The Ramones
10. hovers -- medium resistance, pos. 1 verse, pos. 3 bridge, then take your butt waaaay back over the saddle (as if you're about to sit, but don't) on the chorus -- "Mysterious Ways" U2
11. standing runs with a twist -- medium resistance, alternate between pos. 1 and pos. 3, running fast (85%); keep your momentum going! Music slows and it's time to add resistance on last time, so crank your gears and make it STEEP! You're only going to climb for a moment so make it count. As the music picks back up take off the resistance and run it out in pos. 3 -- "Lancaster Gate" Enter the Haggis
12. endurance run with sprints -- flat road (or more resistance if you need for control- no bouncing), the first minute is to recover before the music picks up, start at about 60% effort, then wind it up and get ready to GO, hold your pace at 90% until the music drops out, recover and repeat -- "Sandstorm" Darude

Always make sure you allow for at least 10 minutes at the end of your workout to recover, bring that heartrate back down, and to stretch.
 

How not to defend yourself with your face.

Once again:

My Team Challenge Fundraising Page

I have a loooooooong (+ a few more "o"s) way to go to reach my fundraising goal. Online and off, I have about $70 so far. Just $3670 to go! A little goes a long way and is greatly appreciated, but if anyone out there in the blogosphere has suggestions for generating more revenue through donations, please feel free to share! I'd love to ask Mr. Turner, but I'm pretty sure he only donates to his own fundraising organizations. I could be all like, "Really? I'm sure Captain Planet would like to rid the world of Crohn's and Colitis!" and he'd just look at me cross-eyed.

In other news:

Signed up for a free week at a martial arts gym, getting a crash course in Muay Thai in an effort to toughen up after an incident last month in Greenville. The Hubs and I were downtown on a very quiet Tuesday evening, enjoying a couple anniversary beverages together. The key detail to note here is that we had 2 drinks each. So, NOT drunk. We hung out for a while at a bar owned by a former colleague of his, talking about work, life and the company he used to work for. No big deal. We left just before midnight and the streets were dead quiet except for a few kids walking toward us. We passed each other going in opposite directions but after pausing for a few beats, the kids turned around and started following us.

Hubby and I exchange glances as if to say Great, what are they gonna bug us for?

We cross quickly to the other side and they soon follow suit, calling after us, "Hey, man, got a cig? Got a smoke? HEY? You hear me??"

One guy positions himself in front of my husband, the other, in front of me. Their waify, presumably high or cracked out female friend just stood over to the side. Next thing you know I hear "Give me your fucking purse," as I take a blow to the face.

Ow! I think. Then, He's not punching right. Still, I don't have the presence of mind to hit back. Only to continue to duck my head and keep stepping back and spinning away. Nevermind that I only have $5 in cash on me, I had pictures of my baby on my phone and I was stupidly guarding my purse instead of just handing it over. Hubby was easily fighting off the retard attacking him (he is 6'4", mind you) and quickly ran over to me and threw my attacker to the ground. The first guy then started to run at me and quicker than I realize, I had my cash out of my purse, in my hand, and was throwing it at him. They took it and ran.

They got away with five bucks, bruises and a bad limp. I got away with a bruised face and neck. Apparently, at some point the guy had his arm around my neck. I don't remember this, and am even more pissed that I couldn't properly defend myself. At least I can take a hit ... the punk actually seemed surprised I didn't go down.

The moral of this story: trust your gut. I know we want to be all politically correct and non-assuming or some bullshit, but seriously, if it seems like a group of kids is up to no good, they probably aren't. The mistake we made was thinking, they're just kids, they're not gonna mess with us. I should know better; I've met 9-yr-olds bigger than me so a wanna-be thug teenager would definitely look at me and think he had a clear advantage.

Hense, Muay Thai classes.

Check out this chick, Gina Carano. Next time some asshole takes a swing at me, I want to be able to duck and come up with an uppercut to the jaw.

Team Challenge

LOOK OVER THERE ------------------------> (go to link. donate. thanks!)

It's that time of year again!

With the welcome change in temperature and humidity - however brief it may be - it's time to start thinking about my fall running and what my big race with be this year. I'm skipping the marathon until the spring because, frankly, I just won't feel like running for more than 3.5 hours. But the half-marathon, that's more than doable. In fact, I think I'll do two:

1) Atlanta Half Marathon, November 24th. I wanted to run this last year but we had just moved into our townhouse not two weeks before the event and prior to that, were busy with working and packing for said move. This race will essentially be the 1-year mark for us living in Atlanta. Considering how miserable I was in Newnan, this is a huge thing. What's really fun is that I'm still learning neighborhoods and discovering places to run / take my daughter to the playground, so this race I'm sure will give me an opportunity to learn more of this city.

2) Las Vegas Rock n Roll Half Marathon, December 4th. Now it might be a bit much to run two Halfs, two weeks apart but the 2nd one isn't my race, it's my sister's. We both signed up to raise money for Team Challenge which supports the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation. My sister has been coping with Crohn's Disease for several years how and not able to keep up a regular training regimen because of its impact on her health. Thanks to our stellar health care system (sarcasm intended), it's also very difficult for her to receive timely treatments, especially if she changes jobs and insurance providers. I hope that raising funds for the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation will help move them closer toward their goals of finding answers and providing support to help better treat these diseases, and that doing this race with my sister will create a special and lasting memory.

If you are one of the 2-3 people who already "follow" my blog, please keep coming back as in the next week or so I plan on having my fundraising page set up and will rely on this blog to get the link out there and raise money. If you're not on blogger, no worries, I'm sure I'll find/stalk you on Facebook :)

Keep coming back, too, as I update on my cross-training endeavors. The weekly spin classes continue and I think I'll start posting my playlists as well as looking for theme ideas as we move into the colder months and more people move indoors to work out. Also, I picked up a free week of Muay Thai classes starting next week. Why? Self-defense can NEVER be overrated. And if someone is ever going to say that I hit like a girl, I think it ought to be from behind their arms, covering their face and head.

Happy Running and Training!