I don't get it...

On a busy day I will use my phone so much that the battery will give out before I get home.  Don't believe me?  Just ask My Woman.

Tuesday was one of those days. Heavy use of email, text messaging, and the assorted social media, caused my battery to give up the ghost.

So by the time I was ready to hit the pavement my phone was on the sidelines. So I did what I had to do and I broke out my iPod Shuffle.  Now don't get me wrong, I've got plenty of good beats on that little device to get me through my workout. From Metallica to old school hip hop, that little Shuffle has enough music to lay down the beat for a good long run.

Here's my problem...

With the abundance of creativity, money, and bleeding edge technology, how in God's name can this company produce such awful earbuds for so long!?!  Could there be a more uncomfortable piece of technology than those crappy little white, perfectly round earbuds?

I'm not a total Windows snob and I know that Apple makes wonderful products, but seriously!  I don't get it.  How can this be overlooked?  If I wanted to surrender the extra money in site I could find a good after market pair.  But why should you have to?  I'm not saying they need to be Dr. Dre Beats good but make them at least comfortable.

I guess the latest ones are an improvement over models past but why take so long?

Good thing it was cold tonight so my crappy earbuds could be held in place by my hat. 

Quick run tonight.  Run Tracker failed to keep the time and mileage.

Best guess is 25-30 minutes just shy of 3 miles.

Later.

Rocky and Bullwinkle

If you were one of the lucky ones who grew up in the golden age of the Saturday morning cartoons (or at least re-runs of some of the greats) you more than likely sat down in front of the idiot box to enjoy one of the greats.

Rocky and Bullwinkle, Boris and Natasha, Peabody and his pet boy Sherman, and of course, Dudley Do-Right.  This cult favorite, which only ran for a total of 5 years, brought humor to both young and old.  Writers of the show mixed good old fashioned slap stick comedy and adult humor.

One of my favorite things about the show was the way they ended nearly every show.  The narrator would announce two humorous titles for the next episode which were really more about the current show's predicament rather than the plot of the next episode.

Tonight's run reminded me of the episodes I used to watch.  Specifically the show endings.  So in true Rocky and Bullwinkle and Friends fashion, here's the rest of my blog.

Be with us next time for "Stretching a double into a single" or "Its a bad night for squirrels".

Now to elaborate.

Stretching a double into a single...

Back in the day I was a pretty good athlete.  I spent the majority of my late teens, 20s, and 30s playing softball as much as I could.  I worked a lot of physical jobs so I stayed in pretty good shape.  I was quick and strong, 10 feet tall and bullet-proof.

Then I hit my mid-thirties, found a job in IT, and discovered my mortality.  Weight didnt fall off like it used to, joints started creaking more, and injuries didnt heal like they used to.

Twisted ankles, sprained wrist, and a torn groin later and my role as a softball superstar morphed into the solid "old man" role.  So now when that shot finds the gap between left and left center, what was once a double, potentially a triple, is now a round the bag at first and call it good.  Live to play another day is the motto this old softballer had adopted.

How does this apply to tonight's run?  Well as I've written before, my recent lack of training has really got me struggling to get back where I was before.

Tonight I took off at a faster pace than normal, thinking that I would push myself this week in preparation for my 5K on Saturday.  ...uh, mistake.

I took off at a sub 10 minute first mile.  Unfortunately that killed my next mile.  By the time I got into my third mile, I had come to my senses and was running at the pace that got me to where I was before.  Methodical pace with short bursts of speed.  (You'd think after 8 months of training, I'd have figured this out by now).

Its a bad night for squirrels...

I see my share of animals, both dead and alive, while running.  Tonight was a bit odd though.  Saw 2 dead squirrels on the town roads.  Thought those little suckers were quicker than that.  Wish it was the little black and white varmints.

Overall not a bad run once I got back in the groove.

0.00 miles, 45 minutes.  (GPS failed to work, figured at an average of 5.5 mph, I ran a touch over 4 miles)

Later

9 Days...

Single digits...

It is now 9 days until my first 5K.  (7 technically since I'm writing this on Saturday)

And with the recent lack of training, I'm a little worried.

Its only 3.1 miles but right now it feels like 31.

I feel like I'm getting back to where I was before, but definitely not where I want to be by my first race.

I think the biggest fear I have is having to listen to myself breathe during the race!  I haven't picked up my packet yet so I don't know if headphones are banned from the race or not.  But from what I understand, it's poor race etiquette to run with headphones.  And you all know what a stickler for etiquette I am.  (as I look up the definition of etiquette)

Scaring my neighbors on the evenings that I run was bad enough, but scaring perfect strangers as they are forced to run along side me is a different story.  If anything let them wear headphones! 

I'm sure my Aunt Sonya can chime in on this as the voice of race experience.

But who am I kidding?  My competition will most likely not even be in earshot to my wheezing!

All kidding aside, here is a link to the race.

http://www.redteamracing.com/races/tj5k

Tonight's run wasn't bad, but it wasn't great either.

3.73 miles, 39:55

Later

My Pal's Favorite Super

If you have a young son, you will more than likely be familiar with the metal encased superhero IronMan.  Billionaire, genius, playboy, philanthropist Tony Stark and his amazingly cool toys.  IronMan's suit made from space age materials and technology allows Stark to battle villains from this worlds and beyond.

What powers this super suit is a miniature ARC reactor created by Stark while held captive in a cave.  Its the telltale light emitting from his chest that lets you know its an IronMan suit.

By the time IronMan 3 rolled around the ARC reactor had taken on a few different shapes.  One of the suits displays a triangle on the chest.

This is where I actually make a connection to my run tonight and the rambling of my blog.

During a physical therapy session that My Baby Girl had a few weeks ago, the PT (which is also my wife's extremely cool boss) talked to her (and me I suppose) about proper running techniques.  He discussed that when you are running properly with your arms and legs in sync, you also have your chest expanded correctly.  He described it as an upside down triangle and how you should always have it "open".

Now this explanation is much better in person and I know I did a horrible job of trying to describe it myself.  But the whole thing reminded me of IronMan's suit in the latest installment of the movie.

Now when I run, I'm not saying that its anything like IronMan...in fact its more like Darth Vader.  A lot of difficult breathing sounds.

Tuesday night was suspended due to feeling crappy.

Tonight was horrible, couldnt even finish a full 3 miles and I stopped to walk twice.

2.99 miles, 33:48

Later

She's an enabler..

So I've written about how awesome My Woman is in previous posts.  How supportive she's been of my running.  And how she's spoiled me when it comes to my running gear.

Well I've discovered tonight that she's not a supporter...she's what the folks on Intervention call an enabler.

Just when I think I want to quit she says something or does something for me that motivates me to keep going.

Perfect example:
I've been talking about how cold the weather is getting and trying to figure out what I'm gonna run in.  Leave it to My Woman.  I come home on Monday and she's already picked me up some gear to try.

A couple pair of long running pants (I'm not gonna call them tights), long sleeved Duo-Dry shirt, and a thin running jacket.  She's amazing!

...crap.

Now I have to go out and run in this weather.  Not only was it cold tonight, but the wind was blowing.  I think the wind chill was somewhere around -25 degrees or so.

So I put on my new gear and laced up my Brooks and hit the pavement.

F-f-f-f-f-reaking A!  Why am I doing this!?!

I had to go back in the house to put on one more layer!

Once I got going the gear worked great!  Yeah it was chilly but it beats running in a parka! 

Good run tonight.

4.62 miles, 49:19.

Later.

Monday Night's Run

Some nights there's just no material.

Theres just running.

That was tonight.

3.45 miles, 36:09

Later.

Chicken Run

Back in the day it was the place to eat when you wanted killer fried chicken.  People would come from miles around and stand in line for the food.  For the weary traveler it was a welcome respite to rest and refuel (both the body and the family truckster) before heading back out on I-70.  For many folks in the area (including members of my own family) it was the place to work too!  

Nickerson Farms was a place from my childhood that conjures up nostalgic feelings of family and food.  We didnt get to go there often as we didnt live in the same town but the times we did were amazing!  Back before families dined out as much as we do now, going to a restaurant was a special event.  Children would be analyzing the menu slowly trying to decide on their main course as if choosing a college to attend.  When in reality it didnt matter what you chose, it was going to be delicious anyway!

Now the fact that I was probably around 8 or 9 the last time we were at Nickerson Farms probably clouds my perception of what it was really like.  But isnt that the fun of childhood memories anyway?  Things probably aren't as bad or as great as you remember.

Anyway, the reason for another of one of my trips down memory lane is my run this Sunday.  While My Baby Girl was at open gym at the Jr High, I decided to do my run.  I knew it was going to be a painful run as I've run once in the last 16 days...yes, yes, I feel the shame you are all sending my way.  That was one of the reasons I decided to make my running journey public.

So my run tonight was in that same small town as one of my favorite childhood memories.  Nickerson Farms exists no more, replaced years ago by a winery.  I decided that since MBG was going to be at open gym for nearly an hour and a half, a nice 45-60 min run would be good in getting me back in the groove.

...uh wrong!

Probably should be happy I did as good as I did all things considered, but when you get the running bug, you always feel like you could have done better.  I did find out though that it is exactly 1.4 miles from the Junior High to the parking lot of the old Nickerson Farms/now winery.

2.80 miles, 31:03.

Later