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Reality Shows, Running, Races, Diets, Travel, Should-ing….

Posted on June 12, 2012
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On a daily basis, I have about seven thousand thoughts.  That’s not a scientific number or anything, but that seems about accurate to me.  Six thousand of these thoughts are consumed by friends, family and work.

Another  five hundred of those thoughts are regarding innane things, like why do the trains always run late when I’m running late or why is the caps lock key on when I never-have-I-ever had an use for it in over twenty years of computer-using?   

But the last five hundred, represent thoughts that I think I should blog about.  Granted only like two of them ever make it to the interwebs, but I think them all day long.  So here are all the random things I wanted to blog this week:

(1)  The best show of all time is back and this little girl did a ballet dance.  It is so cute.  I cried during this audition.   I am one of those people who cries during reality shoes.  Sometimes….

(2)  You already know I love “Call Me Maybe” but what you didn’t know is that I have a crush on Jimmy Fallon.  I love him and if he wasn’t already married, I’d be trying to run into him so that he could realize we are soul mates.  And then he did this.   I might have listened to it three times before my long run on Saturday.  Maybe more….

(3)  I got my hair cut at Arrojo Salon recently and my stylist told me that my drug store brands were weighing down my hair.  I have naturally thick straight, and while that seems like a gift from the hair gods to my curly-haired friends, it looks frizzy all the time and won’t hold a curl if I paid it $100 dollars. 

My shower is a bit crowded at the moment.

I bought the shampoo and conditioner his salon makes.  I’m a sucker for a good sales pitch, but I’m also sick of the sleek pony-tail look I’ve mastered of late.  My hair seems better but I can’t tell if it’s because of a good cut (my girl left NY about a year ago and I’ve been searching for a replacement for a while now) or because their products are better.  What do you think about expensive versus drug store brands?

(4)  Remember my post about Soul Cycle?  I didn’t love it, but it’s still a good workout and this video shows you what a Soul Cycle workout is like.  Also, this teacher is the spinning instructor I used to take double spinning classes with in Union Square on Saturday mornings long before I was a runner. 

Here’s the link:   http://kymperfetto.com/2012/05/30/kym-perfetto-on-access-hollywood/

There’s a reason she’s on TV now….just ’cause I’m not a fan doesn’t mean you won’t love it.

(5)  I’m always concerned with eating healthy, and when I spied the story on this trainer who gained 60lbs in 6 months, and then lost that weight in the same 6 months, I was immediately interested to know what he ate to lose that weight.  Sadly, his “unhealthy” weight gaining diet was full of whole foods, albiet in higher portions than normal, while his “healthy” diet is full of protein powders and supplements.  

hello watermelon.....will you be my summer boyfriend please and never leave my side?

I’m not against protein powders and supplements, per se, but I do think that the best way to get nutrients is through actual food.   This reminds me of the Biggest Loser show, where the contestents routinely exercise for 5-6 hours a day to lose weight.  Why is it that people keep on promoting weight loss through completely unrealistic means?  I know there are a lot of other healthier options out there, but it dismays me that these types of stories still get a lot of attention.

(6)  Why are burpees so hard? A set of 20 burpees takes me about 2 minutes, if that, but I can run, even in my just-coming-back state for over 45 minutes.  But just this morning, after doing about 12 burpees, my legs were burning, like I’d been climbing Harlem Hill for three hours.  How is that possible? 

Tuesday morning's workout - I skipped the second set of jumping jacks on accident, and purposely skipped the 10 minute cool-down in favor of a walk to work.

(7)  I saw the most beautiful double rainbow on my train ride from Philadelphia to New York.  I took a picture from my Blackberry and from a moving train so imagine how gorgeous this picture could have been if I had a real camera and been standing still.  Even so, it’s still pretty cool right?

Don't mind all the trailors/train car things...I was in New Jersey.

Do you see that second rainbow?!?!  I’ve never seen two rainbows before and I wanted to shout on my library-quiet Amtrack train about the double-rainbows, but apparently it was the second in two weeks in the New York area, and I was probably the only person who missed the first one.  Sighhhh.

(8)  I’ve been thinking about getting a coach for the New York Marathon.  I’ve never run with a coach before, and I really enjoy planning my runs and feeling free to modify them as my life requires, or as my energy levels fluctuate.  But after bonking in my first marathon so awesomely that I ran my first marathon in 6 hours and 20 some minutes, while PR’ing in the half about two months earlier in 2:19, I’m starting to think I might need some guidance in the marathon distance. 

I love you Central Park, but you really don't care if I run 5 minute miles or 15 minute miles. (Maybe that's why I love you?)

Or just someone to keep me accountable. 

(9)  I turned 29 last week, and with only one more year left in my 20′s I can’t help but wonder if I’m on track with my life goals.  However, this awesome post by another birthday girl who turned 30 the same day I turned 29 reminded me that I might not be crossing marriage, babies, owning a home or even a car off my to-do list yet, and that’s not only okay but actually pretty amazing. 

I should have more flowers in my life.

Read her 30th birthday post if you feel like you should have already gotten married, had babies, bought a house, had a more successful career, learned to stop getting stressed out, or really anything you think you “should-have” done by now.  Stop “shoulding” all over yourself.  (A lesson I am still working on, but even I recognize the wisdom in it.)

(10) And finally, finally, I love running again.  Not every run is easy, nor am I running times or distances that I like, but I’m so happy that I got injured and had to take some time off.  Absensce does make the heart fonder.  That’s not just something people say. 

My injury not only made me stop running, but it made me stop pressuring myself to run, and as a result, I stopped punishing myself because my runs weren’t coming as often as I liked or as fast and far as I wanted.  I really had been in a bit of a running lull since the marathon.  I’ve had my share of good runs during that time (which I made to sure to share on the blog), but I haven’t felt truly invigorated about tackling a big race distance since my marathon. 

This guy understands rest. And he's not too happy that I don't get it and insist on taking a picture during his nap. Sorry, Atticus! Love ya!

This injury made me realize that I never fully rested from my marathon, and that resting, real resting, is as vital as water and good shoes.  I’m not saying that I should have stopped exercising, but I needed to stop putting pressure on myself ages ago.  I’m just happy that I realized it in enough time to train for the marathon.

(11)  Finally, because 10 random thoughts wasn’t enough, I have to add more more final item: I have to work a ton in July and travel to Philadelphia a lot, even living there a few days a week for that month.  Any tips on how to find running routes and eat healthy in a new city?  I’ll be living out of a hotel room and without a car, but I will also be in a suburb area.  Do I bring groceries with me?  There is a gym in the hotel but it’s always crowded and so I’m not sure I can snag 6 miles on it every morning.  I’d prefer to run outdoors, but I am not familiar with the area  at all.  I need help! I’ve got a marathon to run!

Alright, so now that I’ve shared all my random brain-blog thoughts here, what are you thinking, wondering, pondering, or just plain annoyed about?  Share please…I certainly didn’t hold back.

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I want to run more, but I know I shouldn’t

Posted on June 9, 2012
by

Ahhh, those Central Park people are so witty.

Right now, I’m about seven thousand miles away from the level of fitness I achieved when I ran a marathon.  The only time I’m going twenty miles these days is in a car…preferably an air-conditioned one. 

When I trained for my first half-marathon, I first started with a one and a half mile route and then slowly ramped up to weekly runs of 3-4 miles during the week, with long runs on the weekend. I remember that first run.  It was hard.  Almost impossible.  I could barely finish it.   

However with thousands of miles under my belt, as I return from almost two months off from running, I no longer think that running five, six or ten miles is scary.  In fact, I think those numbers sound pretty damn easy.  Five miles?  That’s nothing for me.  I once ran 26.2 miles in one day.   

Even my body doesn’t really think five miles is a big deal.  Pshhhhhs, didn’t we just do a spinning class and then walk 3 miles to brunch?  What about that hour on the elliptical?  Five miles is nothing.  Well that’s what my body would say if it could talk.

This week was my first week of running in almost two months, and it was awesome.  Every minute that I’m out there pounding the pavement, I’m deliriously happy.  It feels like I’m rediscovering running and Central Park for the first time.  Everything looks so beautiful and green, and I just want to roll around in the grass with my tongue hanging out like dogs do.  Unfortunately, that’s only a way for our canine friends to show happiness and not humans. 

But I’m not a running newbie, and even though I’ve set up a very conservative plan to rebuild my base, when I get out there and find my stride, I just want to keep on going until I reach the end of the earth.

Hey Central Park. You are really sexy. I love you. The end.

Week one runs involved two laps around the reservoir (1.6 miles, 2.5 miles if I run from my apartment), and my first “long” run of about 4.5 miles on Saturday.  While my body felt sufficiently taxed after those little runs, my head and my heart, wanted more.  They wanted the West Side Highway, Riverside Park, the Brooklyn Bridge, and all of New York City in one sweaty puddle.

Unlike when I first started running, these runs didn’t leave me as exhausted and sore as before.  Sure I hurt in places, but the soreness really didn’t linger after some stretching and a nice shower.  But more notably, finishing each run isn’t a struggle like it was at first.  When I increase my mileage, such as this Saturday’s run, I’m not longer striving for a new personal distance record.  I’m not even trying to increase my pace or conquer hill repeats.  I’m simply running a route that I’ve run a million times before, in a place that I know like the back of my hand, at a pace that feels good.

My oh my, Central Park, do you look good. MmmmMmmm

In fact, the hardest thing about all of this is restraint.  I don’t want to start from scratch; I want to pick back up where I’ve left off.  And if I hadn’t been running for four years, I’d probably just start doing daily six milers.  I can, so why shouldn’t I? 

Well, because, my joints and muscles, while they like running a lot more than they did four years ago, are still not impervious to injury.  And though my heart wants to just dive back into Central Park and never leave, I can’t let it take over.  Four years of running, means I’m a little bit wiser and a heck of a lot more cautious.  I no longer want to take chances today, that I can’t pay for tomorrow.   

Though I wish I was a runner who could handle six days of running and 40+ miles in an average week, I’m not that type of runner.  I’ve accepted this about myself.  I am who I am and that’s what it is. 

However, I’m a runner, and I’m always trying to run further and faster.  Every run is a race of some sort, even if there are no other competitors and no clocks.  I’m in a race with myself everyday.  But I’m learning that holding back is actually pretty awesome in it’s own way.  It’s like running and I are on our first date, and I’m having so much fun, laughing and talking, but secretly wondering, will he just kiss me already?!?!?!

Sign me up, please!

I’ve set my running heart on the New York Marathon this year, and I feel immense pressure to tack on the mileage and speed so that I can conquer it.  I don’t want to waste a minute of this time that I have to train, especially now when I don’t have to commit to an official plan yet.  However, I can’t forget my first summer running and then my first marathon training.  Every long run was magical.    I didn’t fall in love with running because I ran a marathon.  I fell in love training for one. 

Even though I want to run around this island that is Manhattan, I’m holding back.  I’m checking myself.  I’m taking it easy.  Because it’s the beginning of a big long love affair that will culminate in November.  The New York Marathon is something that I’ve been lusting over for two twenty nine years, and so while a part of me wants to just get to it, another part of me wants to savor every mile, to revel in every drop of sweat, rain and humidity (yes, really). 

I’m not like a lot of another runners out there.  I didn’t love my first marathon and I’m not sure I want to make it an annual event.  But as long as I’ve been running, I’ve loved the New York Marathon and I will always love running, until I can’t, and then I will love it despite that anyway.  So this may be my last marathon. 

But –  it will be MY marathon.  It will be the race where I run New York – finally.

After all, this is the Amanda Runs New York blog. 

 How do you recover from an injury?  Are you a lifetime marathoner or a one-time marathoner?  If you have run multiple marathons, why do you do it year after year?  I’m curious…

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My Four Week Anniversary

Posted on May 14, 2012
by

Today marks four weeks since I’ve been in Central Park.  Four weeks, 1 hour, and 29 minutes, but who’s counting?

It's always a good run when you run by this, but even better when you sneak in stop at the Whole Foods buffet. Nothing makes me more special than an all you can eat spread

A few weeks ago, I was innocently doing pull-ups (assisted! pull-ups!) in bootcamp class (my latest workout obsession), when I pulled something in my back.

At first I thought it was nothing, just a normal little tweak during a workout, but the pain persisted after the pull-ups finally ended, and into the next few weeks.  Pretty much everything I did hurt, especially walking down stairs and putting on pants.  (Of course, I’d get the one injury that encourages non-stop pajama wearing.)

When the pain didn’t subside after two weeks, I went to the doctor, where I promptly got a diagnosis of a herniated disc.

“But,” my doctor said.  ”Your symptoms are atypical, so you need to get an MRI.”

Of course, what I heard was, “It might actually be arthritis, the beginning stages of paralysis or lyme disease.”

I called my mom and freaked out.  I freaked out on twitter too.

I was pretty sure life was over as I knew it.

As it turns out, the MRI scans showed that all my discs are still perfectly intact, and that I just have a bad strain – a bad strain that still doesn’t let me get dressed without gripping onto something.

But nonetheless, things have been getting much better over the past few weeks.  I hope to be back in the park running by next week, but for now I’m keeping it low-key and walking everywhere.

I’m not even thinking about taking a run until I can put on a pair of pants without thinking.  Until then, it’s spinning, walking, yoga and….resting.

But don’t you worry, Central Park, I haven’t forgotten about you.

 

 

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A Super Bowl Race and Racing

Posted on February 7, 2012
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Detroit for Super Bowl 2006 - Turns out other cities have pretty skylines too.

This weekend, I did my first race of the year – the NYRR Gridiron Classic 4 miler.

My goal for the race was simple:  to run hard and fast.  I haven’t raced a race in quite some time now.  My PR’s are all in 2010, and the races I did in 2011 were all run with friends and family.  They were like a sweaty version of happy hour.

Since it’s been over a year, I didn’t know what to expect – How early should I get to the race?  What should I eat before hand?  How much should I warm up?  I spent a lot of time thinking about food choices, scrambling to make sure the right pants were clean and that I had packed an extra banana.  I made a new playlist and even downloaded some new songs.  I debated about bringing my Garmin with me – would I run faster or slower if I could check my pace every minute?

But in all this planning and preparation, I forgot one little thing:  to run fast.

I have this strange idea that every time I PR’d it was this beautiful, glorious, effortless run.  These races have been placed upon such a pedestal in my mind that I’ve erased any memory of pain, struggle, cramping and yes, even, sweat.

Despite my best efforts at planning on Sunday, I was not prepared for the cramp that plagued me for the first two miles of my run.  I followed my golden rule of pain, noted that I didn’t feel the pain while walking, and decided to fight through it.

At the end, I was pretty disappointed with my time.  My final time was the same time as tempo runs I do during the week.  In fact, I’ve done a few tempo runs about 30 seconds faster than that.  My pace was all over the place too – fluctuating a full minute!

The last mile was challenging, but I had fully recovered within thirty minutes of the run.  Something is definitely wrong with a race, if I don’t even feel a little bit sore or exhausted the day after – even if it was a measly four miler.

Since it was my first race of the year, and really the first race since 2010, I’m giving myself a break.  I’ve got a bunch more races coming up and that means plenty of time for sore muscles and toe blisters.  (I want battle wounds…is that weird?)

Running is my happy thing.  I like it and enjoy it, because its mostly a pleasurable experience.  But when I show up to a race with dreams of PR’s, I’m utterly unprepared for several miles of unhappy pounding, panting, and pain.

At the slightest feeling of pain and fatigue, I start to doubt my goals.  I guess I’m not used to dealing with an un-fun run.  When I find myself in the midst of a bad run, my motto becomes ‘just finish’, instead of maintaining pace.

These next two challenging weeks will be about learning to enjoy pain and heavy breathing, much in the same way that I came to love sweat. With any luck, the next time, I’m toeing the line at a race, I’ll be too tired to tell you all about it.

A thought: does blogging about your training schedule and mileage help you out?  I don’t do it because I’m a wee-bit embarrassed of my slow times and while I usually get in all my planned miles, I never end up sticking to my schedule.  

 

[ 9 Replies ]

Running Outside in January

Posted on January 26, 2012
by

Those hot dog vendors are hard core.

After the first snow of the year last weekend, it all melted in a rain shower on Monday.  Yeah, the snow lasted two whole days.  And that’s perfectly fine with me.  In fact, that’s how I prefer my New York snow.

I’m all about running in the pretty white stuff and enjoying the festive atmosphere of that rare snow day.  But a day or two later, the dirt of nine million people muddies up the snow and the only white you can see is 30 stories above ground on the skyscrapers.   Back on Earth, things aren’t just dirty but plain downright messy, because unless it’s a good ten degrees below freezing, the snow becomes small puddles lakes of gray slush at every corner.  The sooner the snow melts, the faster I can stop wearing my clunky rubber boots.

As a Michigan girl, I don’t think winter in New York is that bad.  Sure, there are days, but on the whole, it’s just not as cold or snowy as what I grew up calling winter.  Despite this, I’ve always been a wimp about running outdoors in temperatures under forty fifty degrees.  Last winter, the dreadmill and I came because quite close.  I might even have liked being able to watch reruns of CSI while logging miles.  In other winters, I took several spinning classes a week, even waking up on Saturdays to walk 35 minutes to the gym to take two spinning classes in a row.

But run outside?  Hahaha.  What do I look like…a polar bear?

Snow is 100% more fun when you don't have to drive in it.

And yet, when the temperatures dropped this year, and I headed to the gym for my first treadmill workout, I just couldn’t do it.  Morning television wasn’t interesting enough and I hated seeing all those monitors slowly ticking away.  1.1 miles, 1.12 miles, 1.14 miles, 1.15 miles…are we there yet?

A big part of running for me is the going places and seeing things part.  I think that it’s no accident that I turned into a run-nut once I moved to New York and had miles of running routes and loads of people watching on my runs.  There was no need to give that up just because it’s cold outside.  I just had to find a new way to approach it.

So I went out and bought a new hat, and I dug up these thick Sugoi running pants that I bought on sale years ago.  Then I grabbed one of those cheap scarves they sell on the street for five bucks (now replaced with a neck gator), and I pulled on a fleece sweater that I had gotten for Christmas over my 40 degree-running-outfit.  And I went running outside.

It wasn’t nearly as bad as I thought it would be.  Dressed properly, I was a bit chilly and my lungs hurt just a little, but at least I was going somewhere – even if it was just a big circle around Central Park.  Since then I haven’t stepped foot on a treadmill, and I don’t plan on it.

Oh yay, more snow pictures.

Having the right gear for cold weather runs is the most important part.  Some things that I’ve figured out:

When it gets super cold, tights just won’t do.  I wear these thick pants from Sugoi which are much warmer than my tights and also keep me warmer if I have to stop to walk or decide to do an errand post run.  (Sadly, those pants are not the exact ones I have since I bought mine in 2006, but I think they are close to them.)

Hot drinks make good fuel.  It was about 15 degrees out during one of my long runs, and I decided to stop at a small coffee shop and grab some hot cider instead of my usual Gatorade or gel.  I drank about 4 ounces of the stuff, and it was delicious.  The hot drink really helped me last for another 40 minutes in the cold.

Cover up your neck.  I started running with just a cheap street scarf, but then switched to a neck gator.  I hate wind blowing into my shirt; it kinks my sweat style.  And I also like to pull up the gator over my cheeks for a minute to warm them and breathe in a few warm breaths.

Long sleeved-shirts with thumb holes are da bomb.  When I was all sad over my break-up last fall, I splurged at Lululemon and bought a long-sleeved Run Luon shirt.  Best.  Investment.  Ever.  This thing is so warm and soft, and the thumb holes and super-duper long sleeves ensure that my wrists and hands never get cold.  If you only buy one piece of winter running gear, get yourself one long sleeved tech shirt with thumb holes.

I'm like batman in head to toe black.

Running gloves are overrated.  I wear those cheap gloves that they sell for $.99 in the drugstore.  My fingers stay warm once I start running and the blood gets flowing, and I don’t really care if I lose one.

Hats versus headbands.  I’m not much of a hat gal, but when it’s under 20 degrees or snowing a hat makes all the difference in the world.  Otherwise I run with a headband to keep my ears warm.

Wear sunglasses even when cloudy.  I strongly advocate wearing sunglasses all the time when outdoors since the sun damages your eyeballs and squinting causes wrinkles.  Need any more convincing?  Well, in the winter, the cold air causes my eyes to tear non-stop so sunglasses are necessary to prevent myself from dehydrating due to excessive…crying.

I used to wear my good sunglasses to run, but then my brother got me some awesome Oakleys...oh wait, now my running sunglasses are cooler. Crap.

Second and third layers are a good use of old clothing.  Old college hoodie, a fleece from 1997, a down vest, zip-up hoodie from the Gap…whatever you’ve got stashed in the back of your closet, just throw it on over your base layer.  Just be careful about buttons and zippers that might rub and chafe at the wrists or neck.

Stick your head out the window before heading out the door (or if you live in a house, lucky you, go outside).  Test drive the outfit before going outside.  You should feel cold but it should take about 30 seconds for you to actually feel the cold through your layers.  You shouldn’t feel the wind slicing through the outfit either.  If you do, put on a wind resistant layer.

Run with cab money and/or a cell phone.  You never know if you might get too cold or slip and fall, so be sure that you have an easy way to get home or to a warm spot in less than a mile at any point.

Run where the people are.  The West Side Highway is desolate during the week so I only run there during the weekends.  Similarly, when dark out the Bridle Path isn’t well lit and so I stay on the main roads.  Make sure that other runners, cars, or other people are in the area you are running.  This is a rule that should be followed year round, but is never more true than in the winter when less people are outdoors and black ice is waiting for you.

What are your outdoor running tips?  Do you like the dreadmill…I mean treadmill?

(Anyone notice that my first version of this post’s title was “year”?  That’s what happens when you don’t get enough sleep. Ha!)

 

[ 12 Replies ]

Baby Steps

Posted on December 15, 2011
by

yeah, we runner people are a little bit nutty.

Even though, I’ve broken up with SmartCoach (not to be confused with my other break-up), we’re still on friendly terms.  One thing we can still see eye to eye on is the need for some speed work.  In the SmartCoach world, Wednesday’s are a day for tempo runs or speed workouts, and while we are no longer bedfellows, I figured Wednesday was as good as any other day for fast running.

SmartCoach thinks that my speed workout today should be:

1 mile easy jog

2 1 mile sprints @ 9:14, with 800 cool downs

1 mile easy jog

I started with a slow and easy jog to the park.  I was wary of what happened after my last attempt at speed work so I did a few quick pick-ups so that my legs would understand that today we had business to take care of on our run.  I headed straight for the Great Lawn which has a flat .55 mile loop to tackle my workout.

The Great Lawn

I arrived at the Great Lawn to the sight of all the dogs of the “Uppers” of Manhattan, and their coffee swizzling owners.  I took a moment to mourn the loss of my coffee, another moment to wish that I could get a dog and then I put on my game face.

Honestly, I didn’t have an exact plan of what I was going to do until I started running fast at a giant lampost.  I knew what SmartCoach wanted me to do, but I don’t think that mile repeats are the stuff that I’m made of just yet.  So I started running, weaving around dogs, running fast, fast, faster and I spotted a landmark – a row of bright blue garbage cans.  Hey, don’t laugh.  I live in New York.

The watch told me that I had run .2 miles.  Perfecto.  Between the lampost and garbage cans I had my distance set and something to focus on during each sprint.  So it wasn’t a fancy finish line banner, but at least I had something to run towards.

A finish line worthy of it's name, also an example of a clearly labeled finish line

SmartCoach wanted 9:14 miles but I decided for these short sprints that I could run a little faster.  Or try to anyway.  I did some quick math in my head and figured out that 1:48 would be a nine minute pace for these sprints, and I decided I would finish every single one of those babies under that time.

And finish I did.

My whole run took only four minutes longer than my Monday run, which was an easy run.  This is pretty awesome considering that I spent significant time shaking out my thighs and jumping around to my newest favorite song (you’ll have to wait until Music Monday to hear about that!).

Around the 5th sprint, I considered quitting.  I was tired, the last repeat was especially challenging and for some reason there were four times as many dogs on my side of the Great Lawn.  But then I told the negative Nelly in me to shut up.  It was only one more mile and I could always run just one more mile.  Besides how in the world am I ever going to get faster if I can’t finish a damn speed workout?

I pounded out three more sprints, and then Nelly came back and suggested quitting once again.  But with two more to go I answered that negative thought by running the last two around 7 to 7:30 mile pace.

Maybe there is a full 7 minute mile in my future one day.  That’s what I’m telling myself anyway.  Baby steps, Amanda. Baby steps.

 Do you prefer to do speed workouts on a treadmill, track or by simply using your watch?  

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