A Case of the Runs

Update: I just finished watching the program described below. I thought it was a very inspiring piece, though it made marathoning seem scarier than it usually is. My favorite part was one of the team member's (Steve) statement that he went for the challenge because it was so ridiculous that it's "intriguing." The segment featured 12 people who rarely exercised and put them on a 9-month (yikes!) training program to run the Boston Marathon. Many of them had other issues besides being sedentary, such as stress fractures, previous heart attack, obesity (common), and even a guy with HIV. Obviously, they had their struggles. I thought it was cool how they talked about some of the physiological aspects of running, such as VO2-MAX, glycogen, and other muscle and bone issues. It didn't make it sound very alluring, to be honest. Watching those novices cross the finish line reminded me how good it will feel in Los Angeles in March. I gotta start training my huge muscular...

Monday marks the official first day of the 18-week marathon training program a-la Hal Higdon. I'm doing the Novice 2 program because I want to improve my time but don't have the number of days to train that are called for in the Intermediate. I am probably going to make some modifications to the program. For instance, once in a while, I like to do repeats, so they may take the place of some short/moderate runs. Also, the long runs are going to flip-flop around due to my horrendous schedule. I am starting the training off with an 8-miler on Monday either at 6 am or 5:30 pm depending on how things go, though I am opting for the earlier time in the event that I get worn out going hundreds of miles on an off-site. I always like to have one week without a long run scheduled in the event that I get sick, too busy, etc. It's a safety cushion, of sorts. So I guess in a way, my training has already begun, though I'm still feeling a bit worn from the half that was almost two week...

I've had my legs sprayed with analgesics before, but by the time I resorted to them, my legs were too numb to feel anything. I have a soft spot for these because I associate them with the emotional highlight of my first marathon. However, I learned that you don't have to run 26 miles to benefit from such sprays. The Kool-n-Fit spray feels tingly, and as its name implies, cool, when it hits your legs, much like a menthol cough drop. It has a slight citrus scent, which makes it slightly more tolerable to the olfactory nerves than other sprays. I headed over to a Kool-n-Fit booth after my recent half-marathon, which was lucky for me, since that's where I found my sisters, almost as if they had been counting on me to be in pain, ha ha.

EVENT: Long Beach International City Bank Half-Marathon DATE: Sunday, October 14, 2007 LOCATION: Long Beach, CA RACE BEGAN: 7:30 am FINISH TIME: 02:11:58 This race was particularly special for me for three reasons: - It was my longest race since the marathon. - It was the first race I've repeated so far. - It was the first time I ran a race with people besides my sisters. I was trying to PR in this half-marathon, though my secret goal was to hit 2:00. It might have been able to happen had the weather not been so hot (it was low/mid 70's pretty mu ch in the beginning, which was a huge contrast to last year), my stomach didn't hurt, a chest muscle didn't cramp, and my hip didn't suddenly give up in the tenth mile. I had other forces working against me that morning, but I probably shouldn't elaborate. Anyway, the first few miles went smoothly. I was forcing myself to slow down because I knew I would lose it if I didn't. I hit the 10k point pretty quickly (for m...

Readers, Long before I picked up the running habit, I was a consistent Dance Dance Revolution (DDR) player. This game comes from Japan and popped up everywhere in US arcades, then made its way into PS2 consoles. You play by simply stepping on a dance mat's arrows that correspond to what appears on the screen, while short songs play (although this is probably an oversimplification). It is difficult because you need to have some sort of rhythm and stamina. After I started running a lot, it became even more difficult because after a few songs, all the muscles in my legs started tightening up. Not giving up, I still played... just less often. Now that I am very busy and the weather is not amenable (yet), I haven't touched the mat in months. But with the advent of a new game (DDR Supernova 2), I am preparing to lug out the metal dance mat we have and stop by a store to pick up the new game. I am determined to bring this fun hobby of mine back into my life, and the story below confir...

October is here and that means that the weather will be getting colder and perhaps wetter. It is also that time of year to get your flu shots. I just started to get them last year because I was afraid the flu would hit me hard and take me down and out of training. Some people say that getting the flu shot causes you to have the flu which in my experience is not true. I felt perfectly fine after I got the shot so this year I will be getting it again, that is unless they have a shortage again, in which case I will not get it so that those who need it more can. I personally think it is a good idea since to get sick right before the big race is just unfortunate. Also, as the weather gets colder I start to be more mindful of germs and getting sick which is why Vitamin C and Airborne are my friends during this time. I take Airborne in the tablet form. I just drop a tablet into a bottle of water and shake it up and drink it. I can't say that it is delicious because it isn't. It isn...

On Sunday, September 30, the Pasadena Humane Society hosted a 1 mi/3 mi walk called the Wiggle Waggle Walk for Animals at the Rose Bowl. I think I saw hundreds of dogs there with their loving owners who wanted to help raise money for less fortunate dogs with no homes. Two of my favorite pups, Bear the Shiba Inu and Teddy the Yorkshire Terrier, walked 3 miles in the hot morning sun. They had several water stations for the dogs, as well as one or two for the humans. The reason I mentioned this is because when I got to the mile 2 marker, I really thought we had walked more. It was really some of the longest 3 miles of my life because I was not really allowed to run. I guess running and walking are two very different animals (pun intended). ------ Link: http://phsspca.org/about/walk/2007/

I am back once again and this time to review the Ipod shuffle that I won as a door prize a few weeks ago. I am so lucky! I had the original shuffle and loved that it was so light and portable for those long runs but when I got this baby, wow, it is even better. Aside from the fact that it smaller and has a built in clip, it can hold up to 240 songs (1 GB). I love the clip part because I use to have to wear my old shuffle around my neck or hold it in my hand since I was too cheap to buy an arm band. I also really love all the colors it comes in. Mine is pink. I saw it in purple yesterday and am only slightly jealous. I really like mine. Great improvement over the old design.

You Know You're a Marathoner If... (excerpted from a website the ones that apply to me) ~ You roll your eyes when people talk about low carb diets. ~ "18 weeks" becomes your most important unit of time. ~ You'd rather run a marathon than go on a "real" holiday. ~ You no longer think people who run marathons are crazy. ~ After finishing a really tough 26.2-mile run, your first thought is: "Next race, I'm going to...." ~ You have a pile of shoes in your closet because you feel like you have to have new running shoes every 400 miles. ~ You spend too much time on the Internet reading about other peoples' workouts. ~ You think high 40s/low 50s and overcast sounds like perfect weather. ~ When someone mentions that they live in another city, you immediately think, "Oh, I hear that's a good running city" or "Good God! I couldn't live there! Their marathon is cruddy and there's nowhere to run!" ~ You get up earlier on...