Category Archives: Fitness

52 Weeks, 52 Runs. No. 14: Did someone say 10K?

Posted on April 5, 2012 | 29 comments

I ran 10K this past weekend.

No, really, I ran 10K.

Some might say that what I was doing was jogging. But that’s just semantics. For a distance of no less than 6.2 miles, I did not walk. I may have slowed briefly to obtain water, and I may have adjusted my pace to snap a photo or two, but there was more than enough running involved to make up for all of that. Did I mention that I ran 10K?

The super-fast folk take off at the start of the Ukrop's Monument Ave. 10K in Richmond, Va. Meanwhile, a photographer runs for his life.

The occasion of my triumph (which may be overstating it) was the Ukrop’s Monument Avenue 10K in Richmond, Va., No. 14 in the 52 Weeks, 52 Runs challenge. We had signed up for our second mini-runcation many moons ago. At the time I could barely get through a 5K, and had no idea how I was supposed to go any farther. I still felt that way a few weeks back. Although I had been racking up the 5Ks, and had even managed my first five-miler, I wasn’t exactly powering through them with ease, as anyone who has seen my face at the end of a run will attest (I’m not even going to address my frankly ludicrous running style; let’s just say you would have a hard time distinguishing me from a moose).

But I was excited about this run. For one, it has been named one of the best races in the US by USA Today. And it is one of the 10 biggest races in the country, with more than 40,000 runners participating. That’s right, 40,000.

Particularly amusing was the idea that Hubby would complete the entire distance before I even started. So ginormous is this event that runners were put into waves depending on their estimated finishing time. Hubby was in Wave C; I was in Wave WA (jog/walkers: 90 to 100 minutes). Not only did I have time to watch him come home, we were able to squeeze in brunch and a movie before I started. OK, maybe not, but I think we had time.

Hubby's wave. Fast folk.

My wave. What we lack in speed, we make up for in enthusiasm.

It was a drizzly day, which was perfect for me. I have a narrow temperature comfort zone at the best of times, but it’s reduced 10-fold when I’m running, or jogging, or whatever you want to call it. Cool with 100 per cent chance of cool is my ideal situation …

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Posted in Fitness, Humor, Running

Tagged 10K, road race, Virginia

52 Weeks, 52 Runs. No. 13: Motor-vation

Posted on March 29, 2012 | 30 comments

I have been considering how I might improve my pace. I could work on my appalling form, eat better before a run (hash browns are bad), lift more weights, or, you know, train. Or … I could just run on a motor speedway and steal its mojo. I mean, it expects fast, right?

This was part of my thinking when we signed up to do the North Carolina Half-Marathon and 5K this past weekend at the Charlotte Motor Speedway. Our mini-runcation marked No. 13 in my 52 Weeks, 52 Runs challenge, which shockingly means I am a quarter of the way through and show no signs of slowing (except when I do).

But back to North Carolina. The real reason we decided to head south was this:

Flashy!

Most of you know how I feel about medals (although I am coming around), but this, the “Fastest Medal Ever,” lights up in speedy colors. It lights up! It doesn’t make car noises (something for the race organizers to think about), but it lights up!

I didn’t get this fine piece of neck bling myself (it was for half-marathoners only, i.e. Hubby), but I was still dazzled by its presence. It lights up! So worth it.

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30 Comments

Posted in 52 Weeks, 52 Runs, Fitness, Humor, Running

Tagged 5K, half-marathon, North Carolina

52 Weeks, 52 Runs. No. 12: How green was my 5K

Posted on March 22, 2012 | 9 comments

This week’s run was a cautionary tale. When it’s March in Boston but it feels like March in Sydney, do not wear tights. I repeat: Do not wear tights. You may at first think you’re terribly clever for eschewing your super-duper heavy winter tights in favor of lighter-weight poly/cotton gym leggings. But this superior feeling will be fleeting. You see, leggings are still tights. And tights + running + ridiculous March weather = TOO HOT.

Told you it wouldn’t take long for me to start complaining about the heat …

I'm not sure green is my color.

All jokes aside (never!), this weekend’s 5K, the Ras na hEireann U.S.A. (“race of Ireland and the United States”) in Boston, marked No. 12 in my 52 Weeks, 52 Runs challenge. That’s right, 12! And despite my poor sartorial judgement, it was a glorious occasion. Blue skies, green duds, and the promise of many, many ales.

I don’t have a drop of Irish blood in me (although lately I’ve been making up for that with beer), but I thought I should show some spirit. My spirit-delivery mechanism was long socks, a common choice for runners at St Patrick’s-themed events. But, alas, long socks have many tights-like properties, so on this occasion, they quickly became socks of the ankle persuasion. Oh well, I tried.

They had their fleeting moment in the sun.

Needless to say, my running performance was hampered somewhat by the overzealous dressing.

I would have taken off my long-sleeved shirt, but the universe is definitely not ready for me to run in a sports bra and nothing else on top.

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Posted in 52 Weeks, 52 Runs, Fitness, Humor, Running

Tagged 5K, Boston, road race, running uphill

52 Weeks, 52 Runs. No. 11: Gimme five!

Posted on March 16, 2012 | 20 comments

I never thought I could run five miles in a row. Maybe over the course of my life, but not in a row. If you had told me this time last year that I would be running such a vast distance at some point in the next 12 months, I would have declared you the ruler of Crazy Land.

Well, I must have relocated to Crazy Land, because last weekend I ran the Hynes 5-Mile Road Race. It was No. 3 in the Wild Rover series, and No. 11 in my 52 Weeks, 52 Runs challenge (gosh, the time has flown by – at a blistering speed of 5.5 mph). Needless to say, this race signaled a new distance for me. And, I am ashamed to say, yet another week of zero training. I must stop doing that.

The Hynes Tavern in Lowell, MA, that would soon be overrun (!) by folks in bibs. This was the 32nd incarnation of the Hynes road race.

The forecast was for windy/warm weather, which prompted a question: Could I finally retire the Absurd Winter Running Outfit? It’s a fine line between too chilly and too hot. Sartorial quandaries aside, it turned out to be a glorious day. Warm but not steamy; breezy but not blowy. Ideal. So I doffed my trusty wool and donned one of my many, many running shirts. I would have felt totally hard core had a significant number of runners not also been wearing the same threads. Note to self: Next time, wear a shirt from a different series.

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Posted in 52 Weeks, 52 Runs, Fitness, Humor, Running

Tagged 5 mile, Lowell, Massachusetts, Team Hoyt, Wild Rover series

Shirts so good

Posted on March 11, 2012 | 29 comments

When I started running, the shirts were great motivators. Never having participated in a sport of any kind, I was thrilled at every race to get a new tee proclaiming my new-found athleticism (or at least proclaiming that I pre-registered and made it to the pick-up point without getting lost).

More than 20 runs later, the shirts still give me joy, although they may have been replaced by beer as my primary motivating factor. Many of them are too big on me, and the majority will never see the outdoors again, but each symbolizes a run conquered and a challenge met. I’ll eventually donate them, but for now, they take pride of place on my shelf, and here …