Tag Archives: running

2012 Miles and Friday Favorites

Happy Friday all 🙂

Today is spectacular is Seattle, WA—blue skies, sunshine, and a nice-end-of-January crispness of 40 degrees. If you’ve never experienced the phenomenon of seeing Seattle residents break out of their cocoons when the sun comes out—I highly recommend it. Watching a bunch of people used to rain and clouds react to the sunshine is hysterical, and results in a lot of smiles, shirtless sun bathing despite the temperature, increased beach occupancy (again, despite temperatures), and wayyy too many, “How about the weather???”

I fall for it too, though, and you really realize how awesome sunny days are when you’ve been layered in clouds for three months.

The sun started yesterday afternoon, and I purposefully moved my morning run to later in the day for this exact reason. I woke up to hard rain on my window, and knowing that the sun would be out later was reason enough to sleep a bit more.

I was antsy and restless without my morning dose of endorphins and sweat, however the wait was worth it—the run was spectacular. Shorts and a t-shirt, no iPod necessary, AND I finished the 12.25 miles averaging 7:49 splits. This, for me, is very quick—and I’m not sure if it was the restlessness, the extra fuel/hydration, or simply the sun, but this time amped me up.

Moving on, along with scheduling marathons, half-marathons, and various other endeavors that require carbohydrates and result in a medal, one of my goals for 2012 is to run 2012 miles. BF came up with this idea, and once I hear a number—I have a hard time not wanting desperately to reach it. This goal is very dependent on staying injury free, and even with marathon training it will definitely be a stretch to reach it. I’ll keep quarterly updates on how this goal is coming along, but as of right now…the year is 7.37% over and I have run 7.68% of my goal. A bit ahead, which is great, but stay tuned…

Now onto Friday Favorites!

For those of you who are new, I decided that recalling your Favorite Things are a great mood booster…therefore I have devoted my favorite day of the week to listing some of my all-time and current faves.

1) My Shower, specifically…My Shower after running.

mmmmm, cleanness

So BF and I scored when we moved in terms of our shower. We live in an older house, so the tub is one of those raised, claw foot tubs with a curtain that wraps around the inside. The shower head, however, is a rain shower head and therefore engulfs you beneath it.

Also, for whatever reason our water heater is up way too high and our shower can get HOT. I love being warm, and therefore I steadily increase my shower temperature throughout the duration of my bathing.

Showering after running, also, is almost better than a huge bowl of oatmeal after running—ALMOST. Specifically during this time of year, I feel like my body and muscles totally thaw out and relax in the shower after I run—and because running is refreshing on its own, adding a smelling good/clean factor to the cleansing runner’s high is magical.

2) Over-sized Food

14 inches of goat cheesy heaven

Okay, let me first say that I am the first person to criticize the American idea of portions. In my opinion, it’s the biggest reason for the obesity epidemic.

HOWEVER. Sometimes, I really really really love/need a massive piece of pizza, or a really big cookie. Lucky me—last night, both entered my belly, and they were very happy to be there. This slice of heaven came from Tallaricos, a restaurant in West Seattle BF and I had never been, and it was insanely large and insanely good.

3) Born to Run

I will admit….I started this book a longgg time ago, and put it down because it just wasn’t holding my interest. However, thanks to the persuasion of numerous friends and family members, I decided to give it a go once again. And I LOVE it. This book is all about those crazy runners out there—the types that do ultras every other weekend and enjoy running 100 miles up mountains.

These people absolutely fascinate me, and this book has me totally hooked!

4) Peanut Butter; or really any type of nut that has been turned into a creamy, delicious spread.

I honestly feel like I’m downplaying my love of peanut butter by putting it in my Friday Favorites, but seeing as this Tuesday was National Peanut Butter Day, it felt appropriate.

I actually feel that I should be writing an epic poem, an ode, or perhaps a love song about my affection for peanut butter. It’s deep, passionate, and above all—everlasting.

5) My iPhone

SO. This past weekend, I finally converted to being an iPod person. I’ve never had a smart phone before, and although I hate to admit it, this thing is…awesome. I don’t exactly know how to work it correctly yet, however it’s very shiny, simple, and allows for ample procrastination. All good things.

Also, it will make chronicling my experiences for my blog much easier, so that is quite nice.

In the words of Cartoon Network, “That’s all folks!”

I’ll be spending the weekend in Spokane with my dear friend Anna, so recap on that on Monday. Happy Friday!

Question: What are YOUR Friday Favorites?

I Try to Only Talk About Running…

State of Emergency

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In case you don’t live in Seattle, or you haven’t read anything on Yahoo, Weather.com, or any other news source, the PNW is facing some insane weather conditions. Schools have been closed for two days (looking like it will be three), ice and snow have been falling from the sky—yes I said ice—, and power outages are happening all over. So far, so good here. Still have power, no car calamities, and BF has been working from home for the past two days. Having a WFH buddy has been fun.

To those of you new to this blog…BF is the secret identity name of my boyfriend.

BF, I know you've been around me for 48 hours straight, but hopefully you still like me.

Yesterday, as we awoke and the roads had been laden with ice and snow, I decided that it was a great excuse to take a day off from exercise. I haven’t taken a day off in a while, and so it was the perfect set up to laze around inside. And laze we did. Apart from a short walk at the end of the day and two trips to Starbucks, we stayed in our little home all day. Mac and cheese included.

By the time we were up this morning, I was getting a bit restless. I hadn’t run outside since Saturday…and normally when I take a day off I am up and ready to go the next day ASAP. That doesn’t work so well when ice has coated the snow. Gym was not open, clearly. Literally, there was a layer of ice ON TOP of the several inches of snow, and you needed to break through it in order to clear any of it away. Cleaning our cars off was neat. Driving was even neater.

The best part? Frozen rain fell all morning; little pelts of freezing misery, which made the whole melting thing really difficult.

We are in a State of Emergency, as declared by the state, and the National Guard has been called.

So, what did I decide to do this afternoon?

A run is the best idea during an ice storm.

So, some of you may think I’m a fool and crazy. And that means you’re very smart, I am.

No one should feel the need the run on top of snow and ice, with a headwind, with mini icicles blowing in their face. If this doesn’t sound appealing to you, then I applaud you for being sane.

I am not sane, and I was in my own State of Emergency. This run, however, was awesome.

I didn’t realize how bad my cabin fever had been until I started putting on my running clothes. I hadn’t run outside since Saturday, and so I was really antsy to feel that wind in my face and get some miles behind me. Also, as I officially declared that marathon training had commenced on Tuesday, it was a bit paralyzing to have my wonderful running path stolen from me by Mother Nature.

Screw you, Mother Nature, I say.

(Not really, I’m sure she’s an awesome lady and snow is actually really pretty when it doesn’t inhibit my ability to run.)

But seriously, I decided to act on my habitual, compulsive defiance of obvious variables and go for it. I bundled in an ear warmer, billed hat (most key element), half-zip, long socks, tights, and gloves (second most key element) and I went on my somewhat-apprehensive-but-kind-of-excited merry way.

2 forms of head gear are better than one

And truly, it wasn’t as bad as I thought. The snow was compacted enough (thanks fellow West Seattle snow strollers!) that I didn’t really sink into it, and there was enough ice pellets/snow on top of the compacted snow to add some traction. I had to watch my step pretty carefully, and there were points where I had to keep my head down completely so as to avoid getting ice bullets in my eyes, but overall it worked out perfectly fine.

The end of my run was a trek up the hill by our house, which if you haven’t heard, is a monster of a climb. At this point, it was snowing pretty significantly—and let me tell you about how much fun it is to run up a mega steep incline with non-compacted snow to slosh through.

Hint: it’s not.

So despite the slowww going at the end, I finished 12.75 miles (a bit more than I normally intend to do on Thursdays), and I was thoroughly infused with a sparkly feeling of adventure and accomplishment.

post-run giddiness/shivering

It’s really quite liberating to defy all the norms of inhibiting weather and go out and face it head on. I loved this run, not just because it was necessary and made me feel better about beginning marathon training, but because it helped me remember that running is so accessible—no matter the conditions. Sure, I was slower than normal and had frozen sweat/snot on my face the whole time (hot, yes), but I felt incredibly free—of both my cabin fever and the restraints that we so often let get us down.

Currently, BF is planning on working from home again tomorrow, and he made the impulsive decision to bake us some cookies.

APPROVE

Wait, you thought I dated him for his looks, humor, and charm?

Nah.

…kidding

…am I?

Hope everyone in Seattle is safe and warm, and everyone who’s not here…enjoy your ice-free sky. Bad weather really makes you not take things for granted, such has a windshield that doesn’t take HALF AN HOUR to chip/scrap/defrost.

Question: What’s your favorite snow day activity?

Olympic Trials and Eugene Registration

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Hello! Welcome to Tuesday, friends. Hopefully most of you had the day off yesterday and spent your time sleeping in and doing fun-day-off types of activities. For those of you in Seattle (or anywhere in the PNW for that matter), I hope you are staying safe and warm—snow has engulfed us!

It’s funny to see the snow juxtaposed with the ocean. Although I’ve lived in the area for over 5 years now, I still associate the coast with yearlong greenery and a general sense of Summer. The snow is reserved for winters in Colorado and the ski slopes.

Needless to say, when the two clash, I get somewhat thrown off.

West Seattle on Sunday at noon. Doesn't exactly look like a seaside neighborhood, eh?

(source)

Moving on. This weekend was full of running-related fun things. Saturday morning, BF and I tag-teamed a 10k race (each of us ran a 5k and our times were added together). The race was unbelievably cold, rainy, and windy—however we were both glad we did it and we’re planning on doing more in the future. For a full race recap, click here.

After the race, we visited Super Jock ‘n’ Jill, a running store near Greenlake in Seattle, where I officially registed for the Eugene Marathon!

I’m super excited, as this has been the race I’ve been hankering to do for my Spring Marathon. The course is supposed to be fantastic, the weather will be ideal, my grandparents will be able to come, Prefontaine’s legacy will be in the air…it will all around be an awesome experience.

After registering, BF bought a stellar new running top on sale, and we made our way back home where we watched the Olympic marathon trials. I watched both the men and the women from mile 16 or so to the end, and I was engrossed the whole time. I don’t know what’s so enthralling about watching people run, but I loved it.

Not a great picture, but this is BF in his hot new running top.

{Spoiler Alert}

I was really excited for all three of the females who qualified for the Olympics. I love Kara Goucher, and I was really happy for her to make the team after being injured and that whole having a baby thing. Also, Desi Davila is such a hard worker and after reading all about her in Runner’s World Mag this month, I was gunning for her to get a spot. The first place finisher, Shalane Flanagan, ran a 2:25:38 and—get this—it was her SECOND marathon. SECOND. As in, she qualified for the Olympic Trials in her first marathon, and then WON the Olympic trials in her second. Seriously ridiculous. Chick’s got some guts.

I have this Olympic athlete envy problem, big time. Honestly, if I could choose I would probably be a 7 ft. tall pro bball player, however I have always had a big admiration and affection for Olympic athletes. My dad worked for the Olympic Training Center for several years, and so I’m sure this is where it comes from. My biggest/loftiest/far featched dream is to be an Olympic runner, gymnast, or beach volleyball player. Or all three?

Seeing as I am neither a 5 foot, 19-year-old or a 6-foot-tall gazelle of a woman, I would say I have the best shot of the running dream. Okay, maybe I’ll just focus on going for a run later today instead. But I can dream people, ok?

Late in the day on Saturday, after finishing the trials and restlessly lazing around on the couch, I decided to go for a leisurely run. The sun had come out, the wind had marginally died down, and after watching some bad ass chicks knock out 5 minute miles like it was cake—a little neighborhood run seemed quite doable.

I covered 8.5 miles, rounding out my day for a total of 11.6. I loved the run—I felt energized, relaxed, and generally grateful to have a capable and working body. The sun set over Puget Sound as I passed by, and it was nothing short of glorious.

This was my first time doing two-a-day runs, and I was pretty pleased with how I felt overall. Because my first run (the 5k race) was done much quicker than my normal pace, I felt no pressure to do the second run especially fast or aggressive. I understand why more elite athletes and runners use the two-a-day runs as a way to cover a lot of mileage in one week. While I do enjoy showering and being done working out before 9am, I’m not opposed to using this strategy during this training season.

Which brings me to my most forefront thought of the day: marathon training.

I HAVE TO START NOW.

I am wavering between being excited for completing 18, 20, and 22 milers every weekend and being completely freaked out and overwhelmed at all the dedication I am going to have to put forth. I am blessed to be wired, psychologically, to handle the strict nature of marathon training, however that’s more on a day-to-day basis. When I look at the schedule I’m slowly creating in its entirety, I get panicked about all the time and sacrifices necessary to get through it all.

One day at a time though. And it starts, oh, say tomorrow. I actually haven’t determined an official start date because I have a week or so of wiggle room until I officially need to acknowledge that “I’m training for a marathon.”

These are the things I do know, going into training season…

My mileage is higher now than when I started training before.

I need to do speedwork.

I will probably train above 26 miles.

I will do everything I possibly can to not get hurt.

Based on those 4 truths, I will have a bonafied, set-in-stone training schedule hopefully by tomorrow or Thursday. It will probably be a conglomeration of the last program I followed, the programs of fellow marathoner bloggers, and my own crazy ambitions. Stay tuned peeps.

Question: Are you thinking about a Spring race? How are you deciding which type of training schedule to follow?

Magnuson Series MLK 10k Relay

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So, Saturday’s race was really, really effing cold.

The combination of snow/rain/wind/frigid temps made running perhaps the least desirable thing for any rational person to go and partake in. BF and I, however, are not rational and decided that despite it all—we would uphold our race day commitment.

The Magnuson Series is a set of races held every month in Magnuson Park, Seattle. The park is 3.1 miles around, therefore each month on race day you can choose to run a 5, 10, or 15k depending on your preference. It’s a great idea, a good course, and an easy way to keep up your racing mojo every month.

As part of a stocking-stuffer Christmas gift, BF signed us up for a 10k relay team, meaning that each of us would run a 5k, and then they would total our times together.

We arrived dressed in somewhat wintery running gear (which means instead of shorts and a t-shirt I was wearing a long-sleeved tech jersey), and we soon discovered that starting a race next to a lake when the wind is whipping in a big snow storm is somewhat equivalent to the definition of misery. We sat in the car until the last possible second, got out for a quick warm up jog, and positioned ourselves at the start line.

ready to run!

The race couldn’t have started soon enough. My toes, fingers, and ears were all freezing cold, and I had to have my hat strapped on super tight just to prevent it from coming off in the wind. I really had no clue how fast I was going during the first mile, as I was so distracted by the cold conditions, but when we got to the Mile 1 marker and I saw 6:59 on my watch, I was pumped. Doing the race at 7 minute miles was my goal, although I wasn’t saying it out loud. As I reached the second mile marker, I was still hovering around 14:00, though the pace had slowed down a tad. At the end, I ended up finishing unofficially around 21:57, which in 5k terms means I was running 7:05 minute miles.

New PR!

Not long after I grabbed a water cup and tried to regain control of my winded/frozen lungs, I saw BF finish strongly with a 24:49, giving the “Grizzly Birds” (our obviously awesome team name) a 10k finish time of 46:46!

We both agreed the course was good, the weather sucked, and we’d definitely be doing these races again soon.

Doing 5ks are a great way to practice speed, and I highly encourage everyone, of all racing levels, to sign up for one whenever they can. I know I’ll be bulking up my marathon training with plenty of shorter races, as they’re great practice for racing strategy and general racing atmosphere.

Question: What are the worst conditions you’ve ever run or raced in?

Running with Friends and My First Personal Ad

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I know I’ve said it before, but I’m really really really over the whole dark-til-8am thing.

It has been taking every single bit of my willpower to hoist myself out of bed at 6am, and that’s after getting plenty of sleep. It might be a version of that seasonal mood disorder, but instead of getting down about the weather I’m just down about the darkness.

This is somewhat strange to me, though, as the dark to me is very solitary in a comforting way. I love running in the dark (although starting off isn’t always fun), and once I get going I love the feeling that I am alone in the quietness of the early morning. It’s different in the Summer when the sun is shining overhead on my early runs, although it may be the same time that in the Winter I feel completely alone.

I know feeling alone might ordinally evoke a feeling of sadness, but for me it’s kind of the opposite. No, I’m not emo, depressed, or completely socially inept—only slightly—,but I’ve always been the kind of person that likes to be by themselves. When I was younger, I preferred to entertain myself as opposed to playing with friends or having sleepovers or whatever was normal for younger girls. I was a bit of a loner, and it was completely fine with me. Today, I still enjoy being alone, although I have managed to accumulate some people that I love spending lots of time with.

{If you are thinking I’m a huge weirdo at this point, it’s okay—you probably should.}

I think the fact that I like being alone is one of the reasons I love running so much. I’m accountable to no one, and I have the unique opportunity to count on no one but myself for strength and guidance. Additionally, running alone activates a certain automated calm within my brain; it’s as if my consciousness has adapted to recognize the act of running as one in which it must let go of lingering thoughts and concentrate on the present moment.

With that said, I am both puzzled and curious about the runners who run together. I can count on two hands the number of runs in my running career I have done with someone else, and although those people are great friends and runners, I honestly can’t remember actually enjoying those runs. I’m sure it’s due in part to the fact that I wasn’t used to it, however I think it’s also just the nature of who I am and the running habits I’ve developed.

My question, then, is why do some runners prefer to be alone, and why do some prefer to be with friends?

Is it simply in our personalities? As in, I’m somewhat anti-social, therefore I prefer antisocial running?

Or is it more in the way we learned to run; if you started your running career with another person, are you drawn to the group-running setup?

I ask these questions because I am, truly, very interested in pursuing some more social interaction in my running. I have heard and read several stories about the power of having a running buddy, and I can only imagine the kinship that comes from sharing miles together. There are running groups in my neighborhood, however whenever I think, “Okay, this week you’ll go,” I shy away from it for the sake of my solitary runs. I think it’s one of those things I need to admit is on my “I’m scared to do this” list and just suck it up and go for it. I did make a New Year’s declaration to banish the things that scare me, didn’t I?

I have this dream of finding a few people that I can do my long runs with, sign up for marathons with, and make cookies and drink wine with while gushing about how much we love running and each other. Sure it’s romanticized, but I can’t help but think that friends who run together have an exceptional bond that’s rare and lasts a lifetime. So this is my personal ad:

If you’re in the Seattle area and think the best way to spend your Sunday morning is to run for 10+ miles and you’re therefore somewhat insane, pretty please contact me for a run date? I promise to provide gorgeous scenery, a stellar recovery breakfast, and an odorless presence. Just kidding! I’ll smell a lot. But so will you, so we can still be friends.

In relation to this topic, I AM excited to say that I have a running/friendship combo coming in the form of a relay race this weekend. BF signed us up to relay a 10k race, and while it won’t exactly be running together—it is closer to group running, right? Our team name is Grizzly Bird, and I’m still hoping to convince him to make shirts with me…

Hope everyone’s week is going well so far!

Question: Do you prefer to run alone or with a friend?

Returning from My Nest

1 Reply

Greetings!

Serious apologies for my absence, I’ve been in vacation mode big time– which fortunately comes with a lot of fun activities but unfortunately loosens my diligence to blogging.

However, I’m here with a recap some of the fun things that have happened over the past week, including some favorites (per standard Friday procedure.)

Lucky enough for me, my favorites for this week tie in nicely to some info on the happenings in snow-covered Colorado, where I’ve been spending the past holiday week.

As I’ve mentioned, BF and I took an early flight out of Seattle on the 24th, and we’ve currently been stowing away in our respective homes in Colorado Springs since. It’s been lovely here so far, and I love having some leisurely time with my family.

I have fortunately (and somewhat miraculously) been able to maintain my running while here, and although the altitude has definitely stretched my lungs to their capacity, I’m grateful that my physical condition is good enough to work around the compromising elevation. I’ve run 4 times since I’ve been here, the longest run being 12 miles, and I’m looking forward to building up some powerful red blood cells that can gulp oxygen like a beer-bonging frat boy.

So, in order to make this week-overdo post at least somewhat manageable in terms of length, I’m going to try and condense my trip recap and my Friday favorites into one glorious sequence. Prepare yourself, because I don’t really know how this will turn out…

I’ll try, though.

Friday Favorites!

1) Ice Skating

Mommy and me.

We went ice skating two days after Christmas, and despite the fact that it’s slightly horrifying when you first step on the ice, it turned out to be super fun. I realized that there aren’t too many activities that you participate in as a child that can be equally as enjoyable as an adult.

I highly recommend participating in something you used to do but somehow fell away from. Sure, it’s a little scary and the likelihood of falling on your ass and embarrassing yourself in front of a ton of speed-skating-triple-axel-doing 5 year olds is somewhat high, however there is something refreshing about returning to basics and reminding yourself of a long lost fun time.

2) Miniature Fruit

I must write a book about this cutie. It will be called, "The Littlest Tangerine."

So this doesn’t entirely describe much about my trip, however I’ve consumed about 100 of these little babies (thanks to multiple shipments from my grandparents in California), and they are spectacular.

I love little, cute fruit, and whenever I have the option of miniature versus regular sized anything, the tiny things almost always win.

3) Running-Themed Gifts

Best ornament ever! Running shoes that strangely look very similar to mine.

This year, my family rocked it and gave me several gifts related to running. It started out with my lovely running shoes ornament, which is spectacular, but I also received socks, energy gummies, a gorgeous long sleeved tech shirt, AND a “26.2” sticker! I have been too nervous for whatever reason to buy one for myself, so I was PUMPED to be bestowed with a lovely pink one bought by my stepmom (who has also run full marathons).

The gifts helped remind me that running is an ongoing work in progress. It doesn’t just exist for warm weather, training season, or racing– but it exists wherever and whenever we want it to, which is frankly an awesome thing. I love knowing that wherever I am, so long as I have my beloved Asics, I can lace up and return to the quiet, happy place that running provides me.

4) Beauty and the Beast- RETURNING!

Midnight showing? Ohh yes.

So, if you haven’t already heard, Beauty and the Beast is the best Disney movie of all time, and Belle is not only the most independent and educated princess out there– but she’s also the prettiest. No discussion on this matter, sorry.

Anyways, my beloved favorite Disney movie is coming BACK to the big screen. It’s in 3D this time, which I guess is cool if you’re into 3D, but frankly I’m just pumped that I get to make a date night out of going to the movie theater and seeing this timeless classic

I recommend you go too.

5) My Dog

Beauty sleep.

If I’m being perfectly honest here, I haven’t always gotten along with our dog. She’s manipulative, hysterical, and frankly does anything she can to get her way…and in the past we’ve clashed big time. However, now that I don’t see her as often and our interaction is limited, I have found this sneaky little pseudo-lab to be a bundle of love.

I think it’s partially due to the fact that the rest of my family practically considers her to be a fourth child, however I do love coming home and knowing that this pup will never change…and that we will still love her for it.

A little creepy, a little cute, a lot of love.

I do have a lot more updating to do on my trip, and I’ll be sure to flesh out more details later on. However, for now I’m enjoying staying in the moment and not letting my consistent desire to chronicle my life override my ability to actually live it.

In a nutshell, I’m loving being with my family, this holiday season has been truly wonderful, and I’m looking forward to basking in the hope and promise that a new year brings along with it.

2012 is going to be great, I can feel it.

Resolutions and more vacation highlights are soon to come! Right now, I’m going to concentrate on soaking up my mile high vacay (literally) and abusing the dessert-after-every-meal holiday excuse until the very last second.

It’s getting bad people, but I’m not stopping.

Also, I’m going to the Lakers vs. Nuggets game on New Years Day. Dear Denver, please don’t kick me out..I can’t help my passion for the purple and gold.

Yes, there it is for the world to see… I’m a Lakers fan through and through.

Tell me about your holiday celebrations! Any annoying dogs you got to cuddle with or fun shaped ornaments you received?

The Best Run of December and Gift Exchange

3 Replies

I have an incredibly high level of excitement for the content going into this post, so bear with me and forgive my likely excessive use of exclamation points and ALL CAPS.

No time to mess around with silly anecdotes on life, let’s get down to business.

First of all, BF and I exchanged our Christmas gifts last night (we needed to celebrate early because we’ll both be getting on a plane on Saturday). The night was wonderful, complete with stockings, chocolate, great gifts and a dinner made by me. Little did BF know, I was secretly planning a mini carbo load for my long run this morning. I think the loaf of bread for two might have given me away…

Anyways, I’ll talk about our gift exchange in a bit, but first I need to detail why this morning’s run was simply—magical.

I wanted to get in a good long run before my lungs must submit to choking on the thin Colorado air (read Altitude Apprehension for more details), and so I made the switch from Sunday to Thursday for this week.

I was on the road around 6:20. The sky was completely dark, however it was incredibly clear, calm and silent. I took out my headphones almost immediately and basked in the stillness of the morning. The stars were shining brightly above, and the water was still except for the splash on the shoreline.

I was completely immersed in how beautiful it was, and I allowed my concentration to only focus on the run itself. I saw so many Christmas lights along the way, which was perhaps the best tour de lights I’ve ever taken.

By the time I reached the end of the run, I’d made it 17.43 miles—a bit further than intended— and the sky was blue and the sun was shining! Not quite what comes to mind when you think about Seattle in December. My legs were tired, but my mood was soaring—and I got a good kick realizing that I feel my absolute best when my face is covered in sweat salt and my calves are tight from the miles they’ve covered. It might sound strange, but truly—the sweat, exhaust, and, yes, smell after a long run is my happiest state.

Okay, moving onto the probably much more interesting part of this post—Christmas presents!

BF and I both did a good job this year if I do say so myself, and we now have more stocking candy than two people should ever have within reach. But don’t worry, we got it covered.

My stocking consisted of a pedometer(which I’ve wanted to play with for SO long!), tons of chocolate, a cookie monster shirt (he knows my true self), and a race registration! BF signed us up to relay a 10k race in January, and the best part is our team name:

Grizzly Bird

He is really a keeper folks.

Lindt truffles and a big blue Cookie Monster shirt. Happy camper

For BF, I got him a book called I Used to Know That (he thinks it will help him with nightly Jeopardy—PSH!), the Stick, and a running watch! He uses his cell phone timer to time his runs, therefore I thought it was time for an upgrade.

check out that Iron Man! oh and the watch is nice too.

YOU GUYS. You are not going to believe what BF got me.

Okay, well, both of my presents were so totally awesome—but this one is very very special to share with you:

BUMPER STICKERS!!!

Talk about supportive!! BF made these Run Birdie Run bumper stickers as one of my gifts, and I’m seriously PSYCHED. There are 6 of each, and {hopefully} more will need to be made someday! I’m trying to restrain myself from using them up by plastering them on everything I own, but I think for starters my car will wear one of these beauties.

{shameless plug: if you want one for whatever reason (you like stickers, you like to run, you like birds, you enjoy this blog) please let me know and I will seriously hand deliver it to you}

I ALSO GOT ROLLERBLADES!!

insert childlike giggles when viewing this photo

I warned you about the CAPS, so don’t judge. But seriously, this is an awesome gift especially since we live near 7 miles of flat, paved ocean-view trail AND BF owns his own pair. Alki Beach, you aren’t gonna know what hit you!

Anyways, successful gift exchange, and I’m already excited to eat a few more truffles tonight. Or ten.

I hope everyone is enjoying the heart of the holiday season, and I’ll be back tomorrow for some Friday Favorites!

What are you thankful for this year? What are you most excited to give? What’s the most memorable gift you’ve received? Tell me please, I really enjoy comments.

Friday Faves and Explaining my Hypocrisy

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Happy Friday to you!

I’m definitely excited to reach the end of the week, however I’m also horrified that come tomorrow Christmas Eve is ONE WEEK away. I’ll be flying with BF to Colorado at 7 am on Christmas Eve morning, where we’ll spend the next 10 or so days hanging in our hometown. I’m really excited, it just seemed to creep up so quickly!

Alright, so obviously Friday Favorites will be presented shortly, however I need to take a brief minute to explain a bit about the conflicting posts that I had this week. On Tuesday I wrote all about being a morning runner; as you might remember I went on and on about the advantages of doing your workout in the morning, and from my high and mighty thrown I advocated how everyone should push their inclination to hit the snooze button aside and strap on some running shoes.

Something like that, right?

So then yesterday[during a particularly foul mood, could you tell?]I admitted that earlier that day I had neglected my plan for a usual Thursday morning run and went back to sleep instead. Directing contradicting my message about being all go-getter-ish.

Nice Robyn, negate your OWN advice on your own blog. Talk the talk and then immediately not walk[run] the walk?

However, that’s not exactly what happened, and let me explain—because I think explaining this conflict of principles will offer some insight into my own development as a runner.

I’ve advocated on this blog the importance of rest, both for runners and for regular exercisers in general. Rest offers muscle recovery, mental reprieve, and an overall rejuvenation of our motivation. However, I admittedly have a difficult time following this advice, and it finally caught up with me yesterday morning when I ignored my alarm.

Although I’ve become much better at making sure I don’t overdo it in terms of running, I still enjoy doing something active nearly every day. Because I include a lot of variety, I often don’t realize that I haven’t taken a day off in a while. What happens, then, is because I don’t really recognize the fact that I’m burning out, I start to get grumpy about my workouts and less inclined to enjoy them. Yesterday morning, it finally hit me that the easier choice (sleeping in) was actually the better choice for me. And in lots of ways, it actually wasn’t the easier choice. This might sound somewhat elitist or snarky, however it’s actually more difficult for me to choose to take a break than it is to get to the gym or get out for a run.

Frankly, I love the way I feel both physically and mentally when I exercise—and so I see nothing wrong with trying to feel that way all the time. I treat my workouts, both before, during, and after, as an athlete would, meaning I know my limits, I’m fueling and refueling properly, and I’m staying safe. However, part of being a smart athlete is knowing when your body is saying, “Time out here tiger.”

So, in a nutshell, that’s why I completely contradicted my morning running post yesterday. I know I have the capacity the get myself up and run, but reminding myself that I also have the smarts and the control to know when I need a break is equally as important to both this sport and my own mental health.

I was very grateful for the day off yesterday, and today I felt rested and ready to gear up once again.

Running in the morning is great, but so is knowing when rest is more important than a daily workout.

Enough heavy stuff…let’s get to Friday Faves!!

I want to give a quick shout out to my coworker Leanne, who has started doing Friday Favorites on her blog as well. It’s spreading!

Also, this week on Glee, they sang “My Favorite Things” from the Sound of Music, and yes my head was exploding from the overload of my own favorite things all coexisting in one united spectacle. It was awesome.

1) Foam Rollers

"I will hurt you so good."

If you are familiar with this innocent looking tube of foam, you know one thing: This shit HURTS. Seriously, I have to hide my face whenever I use these at my gym, or else people will be all, “Why does that girl look like she’s constipated and about to cry at the same time?”

Not a pretty visual, huh? Yea, it’s not.

So why, you may ask, is this little devil on my favorite list? Well, despite how excruciating it may be, foam rollers actually do wonders for runners. If you can endure it, rolling out your legs after a run does an incredible job of loosening the muscles that get super tight when you’re running. Namely, your IT bands, pirifomis muscles, hamstrings, and hips in general. I find that if I spend just 5 minutes rolling my legs on one of these after a long run, I recover much quicker and I can prevent injuries from developing.

If you’re a distance runner and don’t already use one of these, get on it. The prevention in and of itself will be worth it.

2) Fro-Yo

Art.

Let it be known: I. Love. Fro-Yo.

Specifically, the newest fad of pay-by-weight fro-yo joints where there are several flavors available and endless amounts of toppings to choose from. The best part is that you get to make your OWN, therefore the opportunities for combinations (and quantity) are endless.

Last night, BF was in the mood for sweets(99% of the time it’s the other way around), and so when he mentioned fro-yo, I said, “I actually I love you a little more right now.”

No, I didn’t say that—but I might have thought it.

3) Nicki Minaj

I know she’s uber popular and overplayed right now, but I really cannot get enough of this chick.

I think she’s mega talented and unique, and her songs have me constantly dancing in my seat. In public. Just try her out if you haven’t yet, and not just Super Bass or Fly—but some of her lesser known stuff.

And yes, Mom, I know it’s explicit content.

4) Yoga

You know, just me on the beach, getting my "Tree" on. Damn paparazzi.

Yoga is a new found love of mine, and although it took me a while to actually learn to love it, I simply cannot get enough of it.

[When people say, “It took me a while to learn to love/like something,” it actually means, “I really effing hated/resented it for a long time.”]

There are so many reasons why I love yoga, both mentally and physcially, however I feel that the biggest reason is the sense of presence I get from it. Yoga forces us, whether consciously or not, to focus our attention on the present moment. I think it has a large part to do with the breathing, combined with the need to focus on each isolated movement.

No matter how stressed or distracted I may be, I never leaving a yoga class without feeling at least a little bit better and calmer. Yoga offers me an hour of stillness, which I think so many of us shy away from in our fast-pace world. We never long for the opportunity to be present because so few parts of our day allow us to really experience it. However, I truly believe that if we can connect with the present—independent of whatever else is going on in our busy lives—if even just once a day, we will can reacquaint ourselves with the beautiful things in life we so often take for granted.

Also…

yoga + running legs = ohhhh yaaaa

If you’re a runner, yoga feels fan-flipping-tastic, and it relieves our muscles of the impact they take on during running.

5) Peppermint Bark

For best results (and sustainability) store in freezer!

I always see peppermint bark around grocery stores during the holidays, and instead of shelling out to buy a small bag of it, I decided to make my own instead. I still shelled out a bit, but after making two batches of this seasonal treat—it was worth it.

This stuff has now become my drug of choice for December 2011. Not that I change metaphorical drugs every month, but you get the point.

It’s delicious, it’s pretty, and it makes a great present! I got the recipe from this post on the blog Peanut Butter Fingers, another recent addiction of mine.

There you have it, 5 more Friday Favorites! I hope everyone has a great weekend. BF and I will be racing on Sunday, so I’ll write a recap to post for Monday!

Now…tell me a few of your favorite things!

Reading and Running

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Hello!

I hope your Monday has been a little bit more action-packed than mine. Unless you count sitting on the couch at home working, absorbing heat from your laptop, and eating your body weight in peppermint bark as action-packed—and in that case I have been pro-duc-tive!

NOT.

It’s alright…Monday tends to be slow and steady for me anyway.

Today, I wanted to talk a bit about a recent addition to my passion for running—one that has not only helped get me out on the roads but has inspired my overall mentality and purpose behind running: Reading about running!

It sounds somewhat simplistic, however I honestly had not thought to read words from other runners until one of my friends ended up shoving a book in my face, proclaiming that I “HAD” to read it.

Now, mind you when I first started reading books about running, I was still very much injured and pretty bitter toward anyone who had the mobility of their legs.

Too much? Yes. At the time, though, I was going through some serious running withdrawls, and I was jealous of anyone who had the capacity to run even one mile without their hip searing in pain (this was me for three months).

However, I wanted to feel like I was still a part of the running community, and the only way to do that was the bit the bullet and keep up with those in the running world.

This is when I discovered Dean Karnazes. Specifically, his book Ultramarathon Man.

Dean has been featured in every media channel possible; magazines, television, movies, newspapers, etc.—they all want to tell a piece of Dean’s story. Those of you who have never heard of him, I’ll give you a brief synopsis of this ultramarathon man:

He’s one of the most incredible athletes in the world, he has inspired thousands of runners and non runners to reach further than they ever thought possible, and he is certifiably and positively NUTS.

This dude has run 50 marathons, in 50 states, in 50 days in a row. He has run a marathon to the South Pole, he has done the Badwater ultra multiple times (the hardest footrace on earth), and he has run across the United States stopping only for brief naps along the way. Additionally, he has done every crazy/inhuman running race imaginable, and he continues to come up with new ways in which to challenge the potential of the human body.

And all because of one small, simple fact: He loves to run.

Despite the fame that Dean’s acquired through all of his coverage, it is a genuine love of human endurance that keeps his endeavors alive. Reading his books is addicting; certainly, his stories and adventures defy all logic in terms of athletic accomplishment—but to me the most engaging parts of his writing are just how possible he makes it all sound.

Sure, his resting HR and running form may rank in the superior range, however for the most part he is just an average guy who found something that he loved and went after it. Reading about the feats he takes on, absurd as they may be, he makes the goal of doing a marathon or even a 50k seem, well, do-able.

When I first started reading Dean’s books, I was convinced that I was a half-marathoner through and through, and if I were ever to try and do a full marathon it would be years away and a one-shot type of deal.

After being so inspired by his accomplishments and humble story-telling, I was not only motivated to complete a full marathon, but I actually believed that I could do it. I was done with being an injured, reckless runner who limited herself to only one distance. No, I was going to take the next step, throw my doubts aside, and go for the beast of all races.

And here I am, 5 months after recovery and not only have I completed one marathon, I’m planning my next year around the next marathons I want to do.

Okay, I realize how obnoxiously cocky this all might sound—but I promise I have a point. While my inspiration came from a variety of sources, I really believe that reading about running was and is one of the most effective means to achieving my goals as a runner. These goals can be as big as running a marathon or as small as getting out of bed in the morning for a short run, but I have come to fully appreciate the power of words as a runner.

One of the best things about runners is their unwavering ability to provide their wisdom, experiences, and support to other runners. This is why I believe runners love to read books, magazines, blogs, and even Twitter feeds about running. Running is a sport that forces us to be humble, patient, and smart—but it also yields an intangible amount of glory, peace, and feeling of accomplishment. The dichotomy of these two facets of running makes runners eager and willing to share their experiences with others and also incredibly receptive to hearing stories from others.

There’s a reason why the familiar “runner’s nod” is so genuine no matter where you are.

I love this about running, and frankly I can’t get enough of reading the words of other runners. There is no “right” way to run, and therefore reading about what works for some gives a multidimensional guise to this sport that is so simple in principle.

One of the primary reasons I started my blog was because I became so hooked on reading other blogs about running. I stumbled upon Ali on the Run, a NYC based runner and writer, and from there I found an entire network of females my age who loved all the same things I do—namely, running.

I got enamored with reading all their stories of training, successes, failures, and everything in between that makes up the lives of runners. I loved the idea of combining two of my greatest passions—running and writing—into one single space, and this is how Run Birdie Run was born.

I want to highly encourage anyone in search of some motivation, inspiration, or simply entertainment to try out the stories of runners. We are a group of people who seek nothing from our sport other than personal success and endorphin-induced happiness, and somehow we can’t seem to talk enough about it.

Here are some suggestions (both print and web) I have if you’re interested in some good running reads:

-Dean Karnazes’ Ultramarathon Man, Run!, and 50/50

-Kristin Armstrong’s Mile Markers book and blog

–Runner’s World Magazine

-Running blogs. They are all over, and once you find a few you love—you’ll be visiting them daily!

I’m in the midst of acquiring Soul Sisters, Running on Empty, and Chi of Running as my next running-based reads.

What kind of running reading do you do? Suggestions? Does reading about running keep you inspired, or does it overwhelm you?