LESSONS LEARNED

Even at thirty years old, I am learning new things. This weekend, with an extra day away from the office, I had time to run and bike and rest over the long weekend.

Saturday Morning I ran the Appalachian Power 5k in downtown Roanoke. I learned some wonderfully important lessons during and after the race that I feel I should share with others who are trying to be more athletic, sporty, or just do stuff outside like walk/run a 5k.

1. If you leave the part of your chip with the actual timing device on your kitchen counter, and strap the instructions to your shoe instead of the chip, the timing people will not pick up your time. I know, who knew right?

2. If you eat alot the night before, and/or you drink too much prior to attempting a strenuous athletic activity like running a 5k,  you might throw up. Thankfully, this was not me or the gals who let me tag along during the race. The pukers were strangers to me but apparently many in Roanoke did not know full stomach + run = puke. Perhaps this post will spare others in the future from this unfortunate fate, so please pass along.

3. If you wear an IronMan hat to hold your gross uncombed hair back during the 5k, and then run like a Grandmother, people are not impressed. No really, they expect you not to suck so much when you wear the words Ironman.. apparently.

So the run went well, overall. My time? No idea. Probably not under 30 minutes but close. The good news is I felt like I could run more, which is a new and rare feeling. Not an athlete yet I suppose, but on my way.

So what else did I learn this weekend, you may be wondering? Other than how to make vegan berry cobbler (yum) and how to block out my black dog's whiny whimper as we drive to the Dog Park (gratuitous dog park shout out intended) hubby took me for a bike ride.... and I learned more stuff during the bike ride then I even did during the 5k Saturday morning.

1. If you stick your foot / boot between your peddle and tire, while your bike is moving, you might lose your balance and face plant.

2. Should you find your foot is wedged between your tire and peddle and the bike is moving, slow down, try not to hit a car and maybe you can stop before the face plant - yes. Glad to have learned that earlier today.

3. When someone suggests you gear down as relevant advice before climbing a hill, it would be helpful to know (a) what gear down means and (b) how one goes about gearing down.

4. Just because you can pull your bike shorts up to your chin, does not mean that is how they are suppose to be worn. Although I remain unclear as to why there is so much extra fabric, apparently it does not double as a built in sports bra. Sorry for the visual.

And last but not least, I learned the following about bike riding: It's hard. Just cause you get to stop and drink beer, does not make it any easier.

Perhaps I should have gone for a stroll in the spandex on my 2 wheels before this whole triathlon thing started... Perhaps I should learn how to use my pedals and gears and wear my shorts correctly before my next bike adventure.  The good news is I still have over 3 months and plenty of time to learn these important skills, and if I don't land on my face, it might even be fun.

AM I AN ATHELETE or AN ATHLETE?

Which am I? A soft core wussy 30 year old trying to do a triathlon as a soft core ATHELETE? or am I a 30 year old soft core Athlete?

According to Blue Ridge Outdoors Magazine, I am both. I am an Athelete here and an Athlete here.


Tomorrow I am going to run a 5k with this guy (the one on the right). He looks fast, doesn't he? He is fast, trust me. He was even fast at the end of a bike and swim when this photo was taken by yours truly.

If I can finish this 5k tomorrow morning in 30 minutes, I might consider myself an athlete.

If I beat this guy (husband) I will consider myself a superstar.

If neither happens, and I just finish - we will stick with athelete.

Enjoy your weekend everyone. Be safe, and I will see you soon, or soone. I think adding an extra e wherever possible is a good idea and I might try to follow suit, suite.

FEW OF MY FAVORITE THINGS

Coffee with coconut milk (yum) - Spring mornings - My new baby niece Ginny - sappy movies - good books- Home-cooked meals - exploring new places - Asheville, NC - Fat Earl and Emma - The list goes on. 

Although I am not a shopper by any means, there is a store here in Roanoke that I would also count as one of my favorite things: Fleet Feet on Franklin Road. Locally owned and operated by a husband and wife team, they will take care of all your running gear needs.

A few years ago, my friend Christa and I took a running class through Fleet Feet, and essentially learned to love running.

We trained to run a 5k and have been running (aka, talking and jogging slowly) ever since.

My love for Fleet Feet however, does not end at their great class or the wonderful people who work there.

Yesterday, with large bulky heals and an ill-fitting suit on my person, I stumbled into the store complaining of hip pain from a recent run. "Maybe new socks or shoes would help," I shared with the store owner, Robin. 

Within minutes, Robin found the perfect pair of shoes. While I would normally run around the store or outside to ensure a perfect fit, my skirt suit did not lend itself to much running, or activity of any kind other than sitting at a table. Although I passed on the run, Robin did make sure the shoes were the right size, width, etc. 

We talked about sports bras, and socks, triathlons and running - and woosh, I was out the door with these babies: 

Sweet kicks, eh?

I will start counting how many miles they get. I hope they will not last the summer - which would mean I was training as I should be. These sweet silver and hot pink Asics hug my boney feet with confidence, making each clumsy step feel strong and solid.

I love these shoes. They are at the top of my favorite thing list and as I keep running this summer - I am confident our love will grow. Don't you think Julie Andrews would have been singing about these if she could have shed the clogs and slipped them on...

"Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens (see above kittens)... Girls in new Asics with sweet silver laces, These are a few of my favorite things..."

I FOUND MY BFF - IN THE NY TIMES

Do you recall the awful fad of the early 1990's where men or women would wear matching necklaces, often in heart the shape of 1/2 heart? The words "Best Friends" or "True Love" would be cut down the middle signifying that someone else very dear to you received this title and the other half of the second necklace.

Well, for those of you familiar with the trend, and trying to forget about it, I apologize for rehashing a painful memory. As I did not participate in the necklace exchange ritual, I have often wondered to myself, who would I give the other half of my metaphorical necklace to?

Until this week, that enduring question had gone unanswered, and then I met Scott. My friend Susan who is a nutrition and exercise superstar and also has two small girls (and shockingly a ton of free time because she reads the New York Times) sent me the following link. Read it, and then come back to me.

So having read about Scott, you can totally see why we should be bff's right? We have so much in common.

For example, Scott runs ultra marathons.
     I run 5k's.

Scott runs with his new friend who writes for the NY Times.
    I run with my friend Christa who writes a blog about retail stuff.

Scott's Mom and my Mom have MS (ok, a sad commonality I will admit)

Scott is Vegan
    I am vegan.

People all over the world are blown away by Scott's strength and odd diet choice. In fact, while I may be the only blogger wanting to send this married man friendship jewelery, I am not the only person writing about him.

• http://www.runwithheidi.com/tag/ultra-marathons
• http://www.lupusgirlgoesraw.com/2010/05/marathon-runner-goes-vegan.html
• http://www.opposingviews.com/i/ultramarathon-runner-scott-jurek-says-he-s-vegan

Although the NYT article does not state it out right, it is inferred Scott's diet choice is somewhat related to his Mom's health. Well again, Scott, I'm with ya.

Why train, write and focus on a race? Because I see what MS can do to you, what it could potentially do to me if I am unlucky enough to inherit my Mom's genes.  For now, I am so grateful to be able to run bike and swim - to push my body - build muscle - and exercise.

So while I will not likely be training for an ultra marathon at any time, I do respect my new friend who can - and does, while eating well, and remembering what a terrible disease can do to your body.

It is also great to meet a new friend who has created a life where he can thrive and work doing something he loves, running,  while creating a lifestyle that he is proud of.

Good luck Scott.  I know you are busy running a 24 hour race in France right now, so I won't call or bug you this week.  I will however call you next time I am in Washington State and maybe if we don't swap cheap gold necklaces, we can swap recipes or tofu tips.

MAP MY FUN RUN

After the "I told you so" incident with my husband over the weekend, I decided I needed a triathlon plan. (read the Mule post if you were not unaware of my stubborn issues).

Why do I need a plan?

Because even lolly gaggers need to do the miles.... There I said it. I can't do this triathlon thing without training my body to swim, bike and run.

For now, I have set my training plan to be pretty general:
1 hour in the pool a week
10 miles running a week
20 miles on the bike (yes, a week)

Tonight I went for another fun run. I refuse to call it a run because statistically speaking, I wasn't running. According to Mapmyrun.com (which by the way is a great website) I ran 2.73 miles. According to my Mother's stove, I was out for 30 minutes.

That's not very fast, thus the fun run title.

Again, my attempt to do math is pretty awful: 2.73 / 30 = 1/n .... So N, means I was running almost 11 min. miles. Wow. That might be a new speed record for slowest run of all times. I am pretty sure there were nursing home patients in the ER I passed walking faster. I saw at least one woman who was probably 8 months pregnant, pushing 2 kids in a stroller, jogging at a better pace that I was.

So while I felt good about my attempt at running 3 miles, and proud that I did not need to stop or ask to borrow the 2L of O2 the nursing home patient in the ER was pulling behind him, I have a room for improvement.

I also need to run 7.23 more miles this week... and walk my Dogs, bike 20 miles, clean my house, argue stuff for clients, wear a suit to work, swim for another 20 minutes and clean the hair out of my bathroom drain.

It could be a busy week. If my hip and knee get their way, I may also be going to buy new running shoes. Ok, I meant fun run shoes.

Until then, I may email that pregnant lady and ask if she wants to race. I could maybe take her if she goes into labor.

GROSS GENERALIZATION CONCERNING VW OWNERS

I would like to share a gross generalization about men and women who drive Volkswagens.

VW Drivers are the nicest people in the world. 

They are probably more likely to brake for animals, be kind to small children, and pray for world peace. I would venture to say they have less sadness in their lives, and more of them were named "Nicest person in the class" in High School.

I have no actual statistics to support these conclusions, simply my personal experience this morning.

While trying to jog (and move beyond my terrible Fun Run experience of last week) around my neighborhood, I was passed by a VW golf. The car was light grey, no stickers, nondescript.

As I huffed and puffed up an incline a few blocks from home, I saw the VW driver extend his left thumb out of the driver side window.

"Thumbs up. Great job, well done," his thumb was saying. "Don't stop now - you are almost there, keep jogging. You can do it."

See, I told you VW owners were the nicest people in the world. I saw friends and acquaintances pass my pathetic form all morning, and they made no attempt at encouragement. I am quite sure they either did not recognize me, or did and were too embarrassed to admit it.

But my new friend, the left thumb on the white guy driving the grey VW golf, to you, I say thank you.

I ran for 23 minutes straight this morning, and right around the time you showed up, I was tempted to stop and walk.

I hope to hit the road on Thursday morning. Are you free? Perhaps you could drive along near by with an encouraging wave or a simple extended thumb.

29 MINUTE MORNING "FUN RUN"

When a race advertises itself as a "fun run," it generally means that runners are welcome, but most folks will be walking, or jogging and walking. It is basically code for "serious runners may not want to participate."

I know this because I have participated in many a fun run. I like fun runs because people jog, stop, snack, chat, walk and jog some more. Dogs and babies are welcome. People chat and exchange pleasantries. That's my kind of cardio, the kind where snacking and talking are welcome.

This morning however, it was my plan to start triathlon training in my running shoes with a bang. Ok, so bang is a strong word. It was my goal to at least JOG for 30 minutes straight.

Allow me to share how my morning exercise went instead.

7:32 am    
Said goodbye to cute droopy ear dogs and headed out front door, ipod in hand, cute blue running outfit ready to go.

7:32 am   
I pod shuffle started Stop and Stare - One Republic. 3 minutes and 42 seconds of soft music with  a decent beat. I felt pretty good - running down hill, across parking lots of numerous churches, toward the Roanoke River Greenway.

7:37 am