My tootsies roll. Apparently there’s a cure for that

Posted on January 30, 2012 | 24 comments

I can count on one hand the pairs of sneakers I’ve owned in the past 15 years. Actually, half a hand. Up until a few years ago, my athletic shoes rarely did anything remotely athletic. (In fact, I’m not even sure why I had sneakers in the Before Time – pre-running – other than to have something to wear with yoga pants during my brief and tragic flirtation with Pilates in 2004. But that’s another story.)

Running shoes

I have owned three pairs of sneakers in the past 15 years. This is one of them. Scroll up to see the third pair, bought late last year after I started running.

There’s no denying that runners need great shoes. Expert types say sneakers should be replaced every 350-400 miles, depending on how hard you run. Considering my rate, current achievable distance, and tendency to walk when things get tough, that’s good news for my footwear budget!

But I have never had a proper sneaker fitting. And I figured if I am going to continue to masquerade as a runner, I should at least do it in appropriate trainers. I have a hunch that my old method of shoe selection – “I’ll take the pink ones” – was slightly flawed.

Continue reading →

24 Comments

Posted in Fitness, Humor, Running

Tagged ,

52 Weeks, 52 Runs. No. 4: The treadmill. My most hated of all mills

Posted on January 24, 2012 | 26 comments

I have no qualms about running in a freezer, but running in a giant Slushee is another story. The weekend’s snowstorm, while nothing to write home about, was enough to make me want to put my 52 Weeks, 52 Runs plan on ice. (The lack of available events at the right distance didn’t help.)

The beach covered in snow.

This après-snowstorm shot of the beach at the end of my street has little to do with running. But for this Aussie, seeing the sand covered in white is a wonderful thing.

But this is my challenge and I can set my own rules (such a rarity). Savvy readers will recall my original 52 Weeks, 52 Runs post, in which I outlined “The exceptions to the rules that I’ll make up as I go along.” In this vein, I give you:

3. If no runs exist, I take to the treadmill, or do one of the virtual runs that abound on Twitter. I will donate the equivalent of an entry fee to charity.

Hence this weekend, I invoked made-up rule No. 3 and took to the treadmill …

Continue reading →

26 Comments

Posted in 52 Weeks, 52 Runs, Humor, Running

Tagged , , ,

52 Weeks, 52 Runs. No. 3: The power of chowder

Posted on January 19, 2012 | 5 comments

I was miffed when Old Man Winter decided to drop by last weekend. I mean, can’t he schedule his visits for mid-week, when I haven’t committed to being outdoors for 45 minutes in tights and no jacket? With a cold.

Had the Run for Your Lunch 5.5K in Middleboro, MA, not been for such a fantastic cause (and had I not publicly declared my intention to run 52 races this year), I may have decided to sit this one out. But, despite protestations by my nose, I was happy to run in support of the new All Are Welcome Community Kitchen and Bakery, which is dedicated to providing access to nutritious meals to those who need them.

And it could have been worse. We could have been in New Hampshire.

Run for Your Lunch 5.5K

Running assassin!

Mask and you
shall receive

I have learned many lessons over the past month or so about dressing for winter runs. But until this particular day, I had not experienced the genius that is the running balaclava.

Hubby was kind enough to hand his over when he saw my formerly red nose turning blue at the start of the run, and I was happy to accept this multi-talented piece of fabric. Not only does it take your running ensemble to new levels of absurdity (see left), it also conceals any and all instances of tomato-face. And after the run, you can go rob a bank or two if you feel so inclined.

OK fine, it also functions as a hat and a neck warmer, although trying to manipulate it between these states as you are running a blistering 10:50 mile pace is somewhat challenging (I believe I looked as though I had hair-ears at one point. Not ear hairs, but ears made of hair).

Continue reading →

5 Comments

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

Tagged , , ,

The vicious circle: Smuttynose Palooza Indoor Half-Marathon

Posted on January 17, 2012 | 8 comments

First, a disclaimer. I did not run the Smuttynose Palooza Indoor Half-Marathon. I would like to say it’s because I had the lurgy and was feeling … as though I had just run the Smuttynose Palooza Indoor Half-Marathon. But really it was because there is absolutely no way I could possibly manage that distance this early in my running career. (For now, it’s 5K all the way.)

Attentive readers will note that I had originally planned to do the outdoor Cabin Fever 5K, which was part of the aforementioned Palooza, but illness coupled with the early-morning insanity of that locationally challenged prospect – it was in Middle of Nowhere, N.H., otherwise known as Milford – kept me under the covers. Did I mention this past weekend was appropriate only for polar bears and snowbunnies?

The Milford Dome in New Hampshire

The capacious Hampshire Dome in Milford, N.H.

Hubby, however, did run the 13.1. And it was such a cool event that I couldn’t resist giving it a mention. Anything that’s called a Palooza and is sponsored by a beer company deserves at least that. (It was part of the fabulous Will Run for Beer series. And yes, while Hubby ran, I sampled. Order was restored.)

Continue reading →

8 Comments

Posted in Fitness, Humor, Running, Sports

Tagged , ,

The playlist’s the thing: My running musical experiment

Posted on January 13, 2012 | 22 comments

Last weekend’s run contained a downhill stretch of happiness that propelled me to a record time. But after the race, I wondered if my music didn’t also have something to do with it. I had tossed aside my faithful playlist (unchanged since July) and instead listened to one of those hits compilations that I am publicly ashamed to own but secretly love. (Shhhh, don’t tell anyone.)

Finish line

The finish line on Boston Common from December's Jolly Jaunt 5K. Just coz.

I hadn’t played this Record of Shame before, so each track was a fun surprise, which I am sure inspired me to keep going, and go faster. It made me think about music and its relationship to running.

Expert types say the best tunes to play on the run are those whose beats per minute (BPM) match your mile pace. To test the theory in my world, I decided to put together a quick BPM-savvy list based on a small portion of my iTunes library.

According to jogfm.com, my ideal BPM is 135-150 (based on a 10-11ish pace). Using that website, plus a combination of the free BPM analyzer from MixMeister (crashes a lot and can’t handle large volumes, but hey, it’s free) and an app called Easy 5K With Jeff Galloway, which has a function that analyzes songs (more on the app in another post), I came up with a bunch of tracks that are allegedly the ideal tempo for my pace but for the most part are not songs I would have necessarily chosen to run to.

Continue reading →

22 Comments

Posted in Fitness, Running, Sports

Tagged , , ,