…that if you click on the picture you can “Like” me on Facebook!
The more there are of you who “like” me the more inclined I am to discuss something other than my current post…
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Team Nuun Tuesday Dedicated Tuesday Posts Available {Just Sayin’}
There is only one week left before Nuun announces their 2012 Hood to Coast team! I have had moments where I’ve been super relaxed about it as well as moments of sheer terror. Is my entry good enough? Am I good enough? The fact that I can even write about it proves that I’m in a mellow, let-it-be, mood. We’ll see how the rest of the next 7 days pan out. I can pretty much guarantee that there will be lots of internet chatter the closer we get. And I predict that the 24 hours prior to the announcement social media sites will explode with the anticipation (at least in circles that pay attention to such things). Remember that you can check out other ladies’ submissions – and have your own posted – both on my site (here) and at Run, Zoe, Run (here).
Speaking of Nuun, they announced today that they have FLAT RATE SHIPPING! $3.99 for all ground shipments. Please remember that they currently only ship to the US. I’m thankful that I live close enough to the border to be able to ship it there and pick it up…
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Congratulations to everyone who completed the Boston marathon yesterday – I’m sure every finisher had a story to tell, especially regarding the heat. I’m super proud of my HTC2011 teammates Dorothy, Melody, and Mason as well as my IRL friend Laurie! You are all huge inspirations! I might never aspire to Boston, but the work that goes into getting there still amazes me.
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I’m currently reading “Run Less, Run Faster” and debating if I should go that sort of route with my fall marathon. I love the “run less” idea – although it doesn’t mean “train less.” I’m scared ****-less of the “run faster” part. It seems daunting for a marathon training cycle. And I’m completely unsure if it’s compatible with my heart-rate based training. I may take the concept of it – fast run, speed run, long run – and work it into what-ever custom training plan I devise. I like the two cross-training sessions per week, but know that it’ll be hard to fit in over the summer with money/time constraints.
Please let me know if you have used this program and how it worked out for you. Any feedback on the marathon program specifically would be greatly appreciated.
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In the same vein as the last point do you have any suggestions for training programs I should look at. I’ve been using the Running Room programs (it’s a running store that’s mostly in Canada) since I began running and, while I love them and know they work, I feel like I need to mix it up a bit. My problem is that there are so many out there that people swear by that it’s hard to know what to pick. Ideally I’m looking at 4 days running (maybe 5 if I’m really feeling up to it) and 1-2 days cross-training. I know that I’ll probably just be doing spin for that and, if I’m smart, strength training as well. I have no desire to swim so please don’t suggest it! So have at ‘er – Higdon, Galloway, FIRST, Runners’ World online, etc. I can’t fork out the cash for a coach as much as that idea appeals… we have Disneyland 2013 to save for. 🙂
Randoms For Your Weekend
I generally don’t do posts over the weekend since that’s when I work. So here are a few things that have been rattling around in my brain lately. oooh, bullet points!
Weekend Wednesday
This post is going to be a bit rambling and random as I play catch up from being away (and off-line) all weekend. If you don’t feel like reading about things that aren’t running related you best be moving along.
So, yeah, we went away on the weekend. Colin’s parents live about 4 hours away (on a good day – which means without a small child). We try to get up there a few times a year and it usually has to wait until a long weekend or else Colin has to take extra time off of work. This year he ended up doing that anyways as I picked the short straw and got to work on Good Friday. The consolation in that is that it was a statutory holiday and I got paid extra to be there.
We left on Saturday morning, but not as bright and early as anticipated. Originally we were going to leave at 6am – it ended up being 7am by the time we hauled ourselves and our junk out of the parkade. We stopped about 45 minutes from home for cheaper gas and breakfast. And then stopped about 3 more times for bathroom breaks (for all of us, but mostly for Spud). The hoped for nap for Spud on the way up never materialized – he watched movies on the iPhone that was strapped to my headrest – and we rolled into town (a bit of a “blink and you miss it” type of place) around lunch. Due to our long runs having been done earlier in the week both Colin and I weren’t too worse for wear since we both had compression socks! We did pretty much nothing for the rest of the day that didn’t involve kicking around the house.
Here are a few pictures of where we were driving through:
On Easter Sunday we went to my in-laws church and the service was held on the side of a local mountain (a small one). It was sunny (but windy, so not warm) and everyone was very welcoming. Here’s your Spud story for the post: at one point a gentleman came up with a lamb and spoke of Jesus being the Lamb of God. Prior to starting he mentioned that the lamb (being a lamb, of course) would pee when it was on his lap because it relaxed. The kids were allowed to come up and pet it. Now, after his talk, he asked if anyone had come up with a good name for the lamb. I could hear a little girl say, “Fluffy.” And then I heard Spud. At first he thought “Licky” would be a good name. But then he changed his mind and laughingly blurted out that it’s name should be “Pee.” Yes, my son is now forever to be remembered as the child who named the Easter lamb “Pee.” A proud moment, let me tell you.
After our picnic lunch at church we went home and puttered around for a little bit. Then Colin and I left Spud with his grandparents while we went off to a few wineries. There’s no point being up in BC wine country if we can’t bring anything home. We went to a couple of fruit wineries that we hadn’t been to yet and then took a little drive because Colin wanted some real wine. You know it’s good when you’re willing to put up birthday money to get a second bottle. I think we came home with 5 bottles of wine. Now our wine fridge doesn’t look so empty!
This picture is for my friend Gina, who thinks that it’s a good idea to bike up this road as part of Subaru Ironman Canada in August. It might not look too steep, but we’re about half way up in this picture. It’s 11km at roughly 6% grade and not even halfway through the bike portion. To each her own, I suppose!
We had a late start on Monday – who doesn’t like to sleep in? Eventually we left at about noon. We were supposed to take Spud to a model train museum that’s in the area, but just ran out of time. We’re going up again in May so we’ll do it then. However, we had to bribe him so he wouldn’t be too disappointed – we hit up mini golf on the way home. When we unpacked we found out the Easter Bunny had visited our house as well as Gramma and Gramps’ so Spud got to stay up way past his bedtime.
Officially a really good weekend. And you’ll probably note that there wasn’t a step of running done. I can’t quite make myself care about that since the three of us had three days together.
Team Nuun HTC Applications Index
Time’s up! Pencils down! If you didn’t get your Hood to Coast application in to Nuun by the time you’re reading this it’s too late. Applications were due by the end of Monday.
This should happen again!
If you applied like I did you are probably on pins and needles and wondering how you’ll ever make it to April 24th. Please tell me you aren’t super calm about this – I don’t want to be the only nervous wreck… The more I read blogs, Twitter, and Facebook, the more worried I get! There are some spectacular entries out there.
In order to while away the hours while Nuun has the unenviable task of narrowing it down to three teams I’ve decided to provide a space for you to link up your own application. Since there isn’t a way to influence the outcome everyone could probably do with a little moral support right now!
Either email me at alanna @ lovemyrunners . com or post the link in the comments and I’ll move it to the master list in the post.
We ALL Wanna Run:
Alanna – Love My Runners (alumna)
Amanda – Runninghood
Becky – RunFunDone
Caroline – Canadian Runner In Exile
Corey – Schnoodles of Fun
Dawn – Running At Dawn
Dorothy – Mile Posts (alumna)
Falon – Falon Does Marathon
Harmony – Keep On Keeping On (alumna)
Holly – Leaps of Faith
Jess – Blonde Ponytail (alumna)
Jessica – Pace of Me
Jocelyn – Enthusiastic Runner (alumna)
Kerrie – Mom vs Marathon (alumna)
Laura – Absolut(ly) Fit
Laura W. – Girls Gone Sporty
Lindsay – Lindsay On The Go
Mattie – Comfy & Confident
Meggie – The Thinks I Can Think
Melanie – Tall Mom on the Run (alumna)
Melissa – Melissa Runs
Rachel – Running in Real Life
Ricole – Ricole Runs
Sarah – Once Upon a Lime
Sarah – Running Starfish
Susan – Nurse On The Run (alumna)
Tasha – Healthy Diva
The MF Dre – The MF Dre
Tonia – Racing With Babes (alumna)
Tricia – Tricia Minnic (alumna)
Vanessa – Gourmet Runner
XLMIC – Taking It On (alumna)
Please mention this, RT it, send up smoke signals or let carrier pigeons do the work for you – I’d love to get as many links up as possible.
2012 Team Nuun Hood to Coast Application
Part 1: The Teaser
Part 2: The Movie – The Relay: Redemption
Part 3: Pleading For Nuun To Love My Movie
So that’s what I’ve got! I’m super proud of all the work that went into it (by me, Colin and Spud). I know it’s not a voting contest, but please tell Nuun if you like it!
Thanks!
I’m Here!
Yup. Moved over to WordPress. And I have my own .com!!!
Way to much to try to figure out late at night – especially with a spin at 6am!
Bear with me while I figure this all out. I’m sure there’ll be many changes as I get settled.
Any quick tips or tricks I should know?
Does anyone know how to get rid of the title above my header?
Who Am I?
Don’t worry, this isn’t some philosophical rambling about deeply meaningful feelings… It’s more, where did I get this desire all of a sudden to really “get into” my running/fitness? Not that I wasn’t before, but I’ve started doing a couple of things that kind of put me at a different place than I was.
1. Spin. So I was scared of going, but once I was there it wasn’t that bad. Which I knew to begin with. I guess I just don’t like doing new things by myself. Who am I kidding? I know I don’t like doing new things by myself. Doesn’t matter if it’s a new job, new activity, or meeting new people. I get all nervous and pukey feeling. Anyways, spin was fine. It was seriously my first attempt at cross-training! I know that I didn’t push it as hard as I probably could have, but I was getting a feel for the whole deal. Something to work on next time.
Reason it’s not me: It’s cross-training. I’ve avoided doing anything other than running like the plague. I gave up on Jillian Michaels after one time as it hurt too much.
But in this case it really is: I actually like/love the 6am class. That is a huge shocker because I am not a morning person at all. I’d far rather stay up exceedingly late then go to bed at a normal time. However, there’s something kind of cool about seeing the sun rise (and over the mountains to boot). Yeah, the studio I go to has a view!
2. Treadmill. After my less than stellar blood lactate test results we rented a treadmill. It sits in the corner of our bedroom and has not turned into a laundry dumping ground. That’s for the chair that sits in front of it when it’s folded up – baby steps, people!
Reason it’s not me: I swore that I’d never be a treadmill runner. It just never appealed. Why run inside when I live in such a beautiful city?
But in this case it really is: Well, because I have to teach myself how to run again. And it’s been a godsend. There’s really nothing more demoralizing than knowing your running speed is about the same as most peoples’ brisk walking speed. Running at home only allows me to only compare me to me; which is kind of what I need right now.
3. Minimal Shoes. I asked for got a pair of Vibram Bikilas as a Christmas present. I love the idea of Vibrams and, with my love of Injinji socks (both items freak Colin out as he doesn’t like things between his toes), really wanted to learn how to run in them. I’ve heard/read great things about them, but knew that it would take a while to figure them out. For the last couple of months they’ve been sitting in a corner of my living room and have been used intermittently as slippers.
Reason it’s not me: I am a pronator. As such, I am firmly committed to my Asics. So much so that I am loath to change my shoes. I have never been injured because of my shoes. I am scared to try anything that might change that.
But in this case it really is: Regardless of my comments above, I have been trying to be more mindful of how my feet strike, even in the Asics. And I think that I’ve kind of trained myself to be more of a midfoot/forefoot striker. I decided last week to actually wear my Bikilas for a walk on the treadmill. And it was great! So on Sunday I ran in them. Again, my running is slow. Which is perfect! Slow in Vibrams = no pain in legs. I was so happy after Sunday’s 5km steady that I did a 6km tempo (w/1km warm up and cool down) today. I’m wearing my compression socks just to be on the safe side, but so far I’m cautiously optimistic and will most likely be wearing them for all but my long runs. I’m looking to get a pair of the Brooks Pure Cadence with my birthday money so I’ll have another minimal option soon.
Love My Runners 