Short workout

It cooled down today, and I mapped out a 5K route in and around The Office area. But by the time I finished my unexpectedly busy shift, it was overcast and the clouds threatened with rain. So I stayed inside and did a paltry 2K treadmill run instead, ahead of the 30-minute core strength class.

A two-hour tour...

...aboard the tall ship Kajama ("as seen on The Amazing Race"...the not-great Family Edition!) tonight instead of running. But I managed to get a small workout in -- some core strength/body sculpt work. Tomorrow, running instead of yoga. Definitely. This upping the mileage by 10 percent may prove a bit difficult this week.
It's still dreadfully hot.

An alternate activity

Treadmills all booked, no run. Next alternative, the stationary bike. 15K, 25 minutes. It's still hot out there.
I need to dig out my bike from the back of my storage locker, least of all because I'm doing a charity ride -- the annual Ride for Heart -- next Sunday to raise funds for the Heart and Stroke Foundation (more on this later). It's one of my favorite things to actually come out of The Office and it's turned into a father-daughter thing, because The Office team has room on its team for Dad.
My dilemna now is when do I do my weekend Long Run if 50K of bike riding is on the Sunday menu? Do I do still go running on Saturday? Help!

Hot hot heat

It's hot out there. Spent part of my lunch outside in the uncomfortable heat. I now see the Toronto Medical Officer of Health has declared the first Heat Alert of the season ... and thus making my decision to not go outside, perhaps, a little bit easier.
Some recommendations:
- Drink lots of water and natural fruit juices
- Stay out of the blazing sun or heat
- Avoid strenuous physical activity outdoors
- Go to air conditioned places

Check. Check. Check. And a wholehearted check.
Fine, maybe I'll treadmill it today. Or go for an evening run when the sun isn't so ridiculous. I wonder how many heat alerts will come up this year. Last year there were 26 days of heat alerts in effect. There's a smog alert too, which began yesterday. Ick.

Transit turmoil

I wonder if Toronto streets will be too clogged today for a satisfying run after work. Commuters were greeted this morning with a surprise wildcat strike, but I'm still close enough to work to walk (for the next month and a bit, anyway). There were a lot of walkers today, bike riders trying to get to work. Transit service is supposed to resume this afternoon, but there's sure to be a lot of cars on the road still. Adding to the smog on a 30-Celsius day (but feels like 41C!).

Tally

I was tempted to get out again today after such a great outing yesterday, but rest is important they say. To review: three runs this past week, different distances than the previous. The first two runs were lacking in oomph, but I feel I finished the week strong. And, I tacked on a tiny bit of mileage for the week ended. Well, that's encouraging... I'm aiming to add 10 percent next week.

Weekly tally: 16.5K, up 0.3 K from the previous week.
Training-to-date: 32.7K.

Woman in motion

I did 10K today -- 9 of it was city street running, a stop at the gym to strengthen my core with G, and then the last K was a brisk walk home. I woke up earlier than I normally do on a Saturday morning with a lot of energy. Cupboard and fridge were woefully devoid of breakfast materials, and I wasn't in the mood for oatmeal. Improvised with some multigrain crackers and peanut butter. Turned on the computer to map a route (which I later changed on the fly when I noticed I was behind if I was going to get to the gym on time for class). The the run got delayed by that blasted computer game! So I didn't actually get out the door til about 930 this morning. My mapped out plan was to run about 9K, to make up for some slothfulness earlier this week, but to end up at home before the gym for some downtime. But, my new jogging route was still about 9K, a pleasant surprise I discovered after I remapped the route, and I'm counting the walk home as mileage. I felt I could've run more -- the sun wasn't too hot yet, not crowded out there, and the tunes were good.

Hey lazypants, registration is closed

Newsflash -- The 2006 LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon reached its 40,000 participant cap today and has officially closed registration.

That's amazing. Registration hasn't been open six months and 40,000 people are signed up. And I'm one of them. Now do yourself a favor and go train. Consistently. That's a shot of self-pep sorely needed. I've been lazypants these past couple of days. I haven't run since that non-run on Wednesday. I feel a tiny bit run down; it's just been a horribly long week, even though it was a shortened work week. Funny how that works. But I must confess, I'm probably also tired because of this terribly addictive computer game called *Bejeweled*. It's a puzzle game, Tetris-like. I couldn't peel myself away.
I'll have to make up a bit of mileage tomorrow. Tack on an extra kilometer or two.

Marathong

See, that one's not my bad pun. I borrow that from local radio station that put on this morning show madness. It's all part of some contest that goes on for weeks, and winners of each challenge get a chance in the end to win a Hyundai Tucson, $10K and a $50,000 concert with choice of Canadian artist.

Thong-distance running

Okay, that's three bad puns in as many days. Picture not available just yet, but the view on my way to work this morning was... let's say, distracting. I'm minding my own business, about to get into the heart of the financial district, and several thong-clad men ran pass me. Was this for charity? Some weird stunt?

No focus

Meant to do 4K but finished 3K. Took 24-1/2 minutes, otherwise would have been late for yoga. No focus in either activity. Again, I didn't feel a rhythm developing during the run on the treadmill, and I felt I was laboring through each step. Then had trouble holding poses in class, and felt more inflexible than ever. Gak.

iShoe don't think this is necessary

So, Apple's iPod and Nike shoes can soon have the ability to talk to each other. Is this necessary? In a partnership announced yesteray, the companies announced that Nike shoes will be embedded with a sensor so that your iPod Nano, which needs a receiver (sold separately, of course) can track your time and mileage, and play songs and such. There's even a feature called "Power Song", so that with one push of a button, you get the one song that gets you through the home stretch (in my case, that's Man in Motion). This apparently is already endorsed by Lance Armstrong, who plans to run the New York marathon later this year.

Anyways, went for a walk today at lunch. Came back with two shirts (one T, one sleeveless, both pink), socks, and capri-length pants from Mountain Equipment Co-op.

Ab-solutely aching

Groan.
30 minutes of abs = day off the next day. I'm just going to stretch today. Legs feel okay, but upper body feels bruised. Too bad, because I would have gone for a jog outside as the sun is shining and it's not windy (compared to the last two days). Feeling sleepy too ... stupid playoffs.

A comedy on the treadmill

I finished the week with 16.2K completed. I start this week with maybe 3.5K. I say maybe because it was a bit of a comedy down in the gym today. I wanted to get a run in before settling on the couch this evening for a couple of NBA Game 7s (Mavs vs Spurs; then Clippers vs Suns), interspersed with NHL Game 2 (Sabres and Canes).
The treadmill I started with wouldn't let me continue after I had paused to adjust a fan; so I restarted the machine, ran for another 10 minutes before I was booted off because my alloted time was up and the next person was getting impatient, to the point where there was toe-tapping, arms crossed, a scowl. I moved to the next treadmill, and then accidentally swiped the emergency stop button about 6 minutes in. Restarted one final time. I might have been at the gym for an hour, but never developed a rhythm. Maybe I should have a do-over tomorrow.

I don't feel too bad about the bad run though. Did G's cardio class this morning, followed by a 30minute ab class.

Stay cool! ...

OK. So that would imply that I was cool to begin with. And cool I am not if I'm spending a precious rest day to play Dance Dance Revolution on a PS2. With other adults.

But here we were, killing ourselves laughing over this ridiculous game; the ridiculousness is that this is a video game, yet it's the most active video game I've ever seen because your butt is not on a couch, nor are your thumbs getting sore.

Where exercise gets fun!, the DDR website says.

That's right, there's a pad on the floor connected to the PS2 sending out commands on the TV screen as to which arrows you should step on while you're grooving to bad dance music. Although they did have Duran Duran's The Reflex. Then we found other party games on the disc, beyond the follow-the-arrows dancing... including HyperDash -- where players stomp as fast as they can on the right and left arrows, with occasional jumps to avoid pitfalls that your opponent throws at you. Or vice versa. Does this count as running? CMan claimed two world records in this game. The PS2 said so.

All I learned today is that I have no coordination.

mmmmmm chocolately choco goodness

Above: One-bowl chocolate cupcakes, recipe from Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook. No time to make a proper icing, so just a dusting of icing sugar. They're mostly for my youngest sister, who just turned Sweet 16. I say mostly, because I've already had one. Part of one. Hey, it's in the name of quality control.

This was basically what I did with the morning of my rest day. Woke up, and surprisingly wasn't as sore or achy as I had anticipated. Just some tightness in the shoulders -- unsure if that's a product of the running, or if it's the desk job. Maybe a little from column A, a little from Column B.

Agenda for rest of the day to consist of looking for furniture for new house. Then bringing cupcakes to BabySis.

Home sweet home

It's 7K from my condo to my new home (which closes early July). That's where I ran to. The house is still there, waiting for me and CMan.

I didn't run non-stop. I employed a 3-minute run/2-minute walk pace that is a suggested run-walk marathon training schedule by Coach Jenny; and a program I'm mulling. I didn't follow it to a T, but as close as possible, considering I wasn't wearing a watch. Coach Jenny's got several free programs online for those that have signed up for the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon. I'm signed up for the half-marathon on Sept. 24. I had worked out on Higdon's novice training schedule -- another one under consideration -- that a long run in Week 14 was 14 miles. So a half-marathon is slightly short of the Long Run goal that particular day, but whatever. Close enough and it would be a good idea to see what kind of runner I am in this kind of race. 10Ks are one thing. Marathons are entirely another matter. I would have liked to have done the Mississaugua race with my Chicago cohorts, but I just wasn't ready. Will it be too late to know if I'm ready by the time we get to September? Hope not, since Higdon's Week 13 says to run 18 miles.

Either way, no matter, because I'm committed now.

The run itself today was good. I never felt out of breath..just hot. I wore a sleeveless T, long pants, and a windbreaker. I didn't particularly need a windbreaker, but had it to carry a couple of things. I couldn't find the thing to hold my water bottle either. Felt totally unprepared. It was slightly breezy, but sunny and about 13C. The iPod strapped to arm played 16 of 18 songs of my Fastest 10K 2006 mix I created two weeks ago, specifically for the Sporting Life 10K down Yonge Street. It didn't play Man in Motion, my instant adrenaline rush...which was slightly disappointing. But I was finished the run/walk in exactly 1 hour. Those are my shoes above. I'm sitting in front of my soon-to-be house, resting.
It's 7K to my new home ONE WAY. My sister and brother-in-law live somewhat close by to the new home. I stopped by and we hung out, got Lick's Nature burgers; discussed a buck & doe we'll be organizing for our cousin, who's getting married the week after I come back from Chicago (she had set the date for the same weekend as the Chicago marathon after I'd already signed up. I'm so grateful that she is so supportive of my mission.. and she moved it to the week after and named me a bridesmaid.) Took the subway home.. I've had enough of this running/walking today.

Exhausted, but I'm home.

On the ball

I did a self-taught core strength class today. It's not just my legs that are going to get me to the finish line, but the rest of me has got to be strong too. Having done G's classes over the last few years, I figured I could talk myself through the motions on an exercise ball. Went downstairs with my yoga mat, and did a modified solo core class for 35 minutes. It's not as fun. I better get up earlier on Saturdays and go to the class.

All this before the first Long Run. I wonder if that was a mistake; feeling tired.
I'm on deck for 7K this afternoon. Still gotta map a route.

Guest blogger

To blog or not to blog..., is Frankie's latest debate. I think I have him almost convinced to start his own. But, in the current absense of an official Frankblog, he sometimes sends me emails. Or just talks. Here's a sample of what was said today...

Reservation for one please
The Chicago Marathon has reserved a spot for me in the Preferred Start II corral, which is for individuals who have either a sub 1:35:59 half marathon or a sub 3:35:59 marathon under their belt. They expect about 4,700 runners out of 40,000 overall to be in this area. I qualified after clocking in at 1:43:28 at my first-ever half marathon last week in Mississauga. My friend Kenny will be one of the expected 3,200 runners in the the Preferred Start I corral, while Jelly will claim her spot the general area (this is jelly speaking: he said "cattle" the other day)with about 30,000 other runners.

With just over 5 months to go the Chicago Marathon says registration is expected to close in record time and runners should reserve their place now to guarantee entry.

Who wants to hear more from him? (and congratulations Frank, for not being.. ahem.. cattle)

He blogs, he blogs!

Welcome to the brother blog, by Yumke, one of my running inspirations and fellow Chicago Marathon runner. Also a huge reason why this blog exists.

I can't believe he put me and William Hung in the same thought.

Visual motivation

I took this photo in 2004. I reprinted one for Frankie for his birthday, and packaged that with a copy of Higdon's marathon guide so that we'd be on the same page. I think it got him running. Now it's serving as a reminder to me get out the door and stick to the schedule.

This whole idea about running a marathon has its roots from when Emily and I decided to take our NBA fascination on the road in 2004. Not that we love the Chicago Bulls.. but the one weekend we went -- a cold, snowy, windy January weekend -- it was because the Bulls were playing two of our obsessions then .... the Toronto Raptors (hey, gotta cheer my hometown squad) and the Dallas Mavericks, though the major reason for loving the Mavs was because it featured Canadian, and now two-time MVP , Stevie Wonder Nash. I still like the Mavs... but I've now turned my attention to Phoenix where the Nash now plays.

Emily is a runner. She suggested we should go running while we were in Chicago. I was not a runner. Not yet. But it was she who first planted the idea of a marathon. Specifically Chicago's. "It's a flat course," was one reason she presented. I might have told her she was crazy. But here I am...a little over two years later, signed up, and in the process of training. Funny how a person's thinking changes with time.

Well, I bundled myself up in Chicago and jogged, snow crunching after each step. I can't remember exactly how far I went, but it felt like forever for a non-runner. I do remember passing the Art Institute though. In 155 days, I will be passing it again.

On Day (subhead Choices)

Today's an OnDay. A 5K OnDay. The second day of running scheduled for this week.
There's also a farewell party for a guy from the office. That means pints of delicious Kilkenny.

The choice I faced wasn't really that difficult, come to think of it. Some could argue I could do both. I could. Perhaps I would -- but if I actually had to ask someone else to point out our guest of honor, the one leaving the company, then that's probably a good sign that I shouldn't feel bad about not sending him off.

So I went straight home after work. I dawdled for awhile, surveying the sky from my window. It was grey, a very soft drizzle. I considered going outside, but chickened out. Go to the running track downstairs, I decided -- it's sheltered but it's still outside because it wraps around above the drivecourt of this condo -- or I could use the treadmill. I eventually opted for the treadmill... the running track is nice, but if there's somebody else on it, it actually feels a bit crowded. There was somebody on the track when I went downstairs. I didn't realize it was my neighbor, K, until she started waving at me when I was stretching, waiting for a treadmill to open up. The other thing about the track downstairs is that I always lose count of how many laps I've completed. It's 12.5 laps/kilometre. So 62.5 laps. There's easier ways to do this. Hello treadmill. Added bonus: it paces me.

Finished: 5.2K (the treadmill only had a mile counter.. so I couldn't quite figure out/remember what the exact equivalent would be.. so I guessed 3.25 miles... and I went a smidgen over the goal... for an average pace of 12:02/mile... for a total run time of 39:07.. two walking breaks).

Yogurt

Aaaaaaaah. That was a good stretch. CMan calls these classes Yogurt, not Yoga. Don't ask, he's charming that way.

So, I've reacquainted myself with my purple yoga mat. Went to Moksha Yogurt class at the gym, a class I had started earlier this year, but dropped.. sort of around the same time I just stopped exercising for myriad reasons I'm not getting into right now. Moksha is advertised as a good class for runners. A lot of postures designed to open up the hip area, where knee injuries apparently originate, so says the class description. There's also a lot of balancing postures, and not a whole lot of downward dog. And a lot of focusing on breathing.

I've also been thinking about my diet lately. What are the proper things to fuel a body that's training for a marathon? Other than carboloading the night before a race. I've been thinking about my bones -- can my knees take this? I don't have problems now, but will they develop? I'm already fairly convinced my bones are made of glass, having stopped drinking milk a dog's age ago, probably more. They creak sometimes. And loudly. Well, it's probably too late, but I'm trying to fortify my bones by eating a little bit more dairy products.. like yogurt.
(Blueberry is great. CMan likes Cherry.. but that's hard to find.)

Rest/reward

"Rest. That may be the single most important word you will read in this book."

That's from Hal Higdon's "Marathon: The ultimate training guide", a birthday gift from Yumke. I've just recently picked it up again and that sentence is quite possibly my favorite.

So today is rest day, the pre-training plan says. No argument there. But I think I'll go reintroduce myself to my yoga mat. It's felt neglected lately. And my body wants a good stretch. Or a massage. Is it too early to treat myself to a massage?

I think I need to design a better reward program for myself.

Pre-training begins

Shortly around my 29th birthday was when I first came up with this idea of running a marathon. It's not that I need to achieve certain things before I'm 30 (and by the way, 30 is the new 20). Anyways, I told others about the idea and then proceeded to convince two of my friends -- one already a serious runner, and one who basically hadn't run since the Kilometer Klub in elementary school -- to come with me on this mission in Chicago. There was a little bit of hesitation, but with nearly a year to prepare for it, we made a pact to go.

Both have been running well and, more importantly, running consistently. That means both of them are literally miles ahead in their progress versus where I am starting (yet again for what feels like the 20th time). In fact, Yumke and Frankie both finished a half marathon just last weekend, finishing 162 and 444, respectively, out of 3985 runners. Both under 1:44. Wow.

I don't pretend to be in that class. I don't really even aspire to be there.

But that doesn't matter because the personal goal is to just cross the finish line. No specific time goal. (though not so slow that the street is reopening)

Based on some readings, we've calculated that June 19 is the first day of the "real" training. As in a completely mapped-out 18-week schedule of how far to run per day, sometimes how fast. And prescribed rest days. Those are going to be my favorite, without a doubt.

But the mini-project at hand is to just get the legs moving. Yumke designed a pre-training program for me, to get me used to running. So that when I get to Day One of real training, I'm not shocked into the work that's to be done. So for this week, this is my schedule -- Run 4K, take a day off, then 5K, then another rest day. On the weekend, one long run of 7K. And throw in some cross-training like biking or swimming. The following week, same, but take away a day off maybe... The goal is to eventually get my weekly mileage to 25K. A good base to build from, he reckons.

So pre-training began today after work. Did a strength-training class at the gym. Followed that with a 4K run, 37 minutes flat, with a couple of walking breaks, on a treadmill because it was raining when I left work (and I'm not interested in starting pre-training in the cold rain. My preference is to run outside. It's way more interesting than reading the close-captioned plasma TVs that are invariably on Oprah, Dr. Phil, Y&R, MuchMusic or sometimes the news, Christine Cushing Live or Holmes on Homes). Average pace of 10 minutes/kilometre. It's a start.

"You're in!...now make it even more meaningful"

...so reads the postcard I got in the mail today.

In what? Oh right... the organizers of the 2006 Chicago Marathon have accepted my entry... (yay!?) and maybe I want to raise money for a charity to make the run more "meaningful"?

Well, I'll have to think about that another time. Right now, what's on my mind is that it's 159-1/2 days til I take my place amongst 40,000+ other runners at the Chicago Marathon start line. Truth? I'm scared. Deeply frightened. My running "career" has consisted of three races (not including those track and field meets at Birchmount Stadium years ago as a youth in Scarberia), and none of which were more than 10K in the past year.

Did I mention I don't even run/train consistently?

So how did I, the admitted slacker runner, decide that this would be my goal? Sure, it's an excuse to go back to the Windy City for an easy vacation. But couldn't I go back to the land of deep-dish pizza and the Bulls without committing myself to a 26.2-mile (that's 42.2 kilometers to us Canadians, eh!)?

So what's driving me?

I just want to be able to one day say that I have completed a marathon. It's that simple. What's not simple, so I've found since I established this as a goal some seven months ago and convincing two pals to do the same, is getting mentally and physically prepped for the challenge ahead. This blog is potentially a pyschological motivational tool to get me out there -- "practicing" running as one friend's mom would say, hee hee -- because I really haven't been.

This journal is about my road to Chicago, in my head, on my body. I anticipate telling stories about what aches, what pains, but also my progress and milestones; I'll also talk about the choices I make (should I go to the bar tonight for wings and beer or run that 7-miles I'm scheduled to do?); and hopefully pick up some wisdom from fellow runners, or casual observers. Mostly though, I think I'll find out a lot about myself. And perhaps that's the most meaningful thing.