Girl In Motion

A funny thing happened on Monday that I forgot to mention.

I go to my old beat-up Saturn which had been parked a block from my home for over a week. A few days prior there’d been a snowstorm, so I knew I’d have to scrape some snow off before I got moving. I also feared there’d be a ticket on it, since it’d been sitting on this strange block outta my site for so long and in Philly, there seem to be lots of ways to get a ticket.

I walk up to the car and see something sticking out on the hood and as I get closer, I find that someone had taken half the snow from one side of the hood and packed it into a large, tall snowball, and in the center of that, they’d stuck a single red rose.

I have no idea who did it or when, and though I’m sure it was a completely random event not meant for me personally, it filled me with joy anyway. What’s not to love about a home-made snow vase with a perfect (ok, it was a little tired) rose?

But back to our favorite subject: I was going to take this windy day off to let my quads catch up a bit after 3 days back on the road, then come out swinging tomorrow with some fartleks since I’ve got that 10K this weekend and want to remind my legs what it feels like to move.

Tomorrow, however, is going to be really cold (for me), a windchill of 17 which is colder than the day that got me sick, plus I still have some chest crap, so today appears the lesser of two evils. Not sure if I want to push fartleks on them in their tender state, though.

Guess I’ll just have to get dressed, step outside and see how I feel once I’m there. At least the sun is shining and I’m in a great mood. Blame it on the after effects of a random rose.

Afternoon Addition: Yay, 6 w/fartlek and Flo Is Back! Quads are happy, pace was happy, I’m happy. Next week should find me back in the rockin’ mileage. Up With People, teddy bears and rainbows! (must look up Bi-Polar…)

Sorry, I know it’s boring that for a zillion days I was sick and now I’m nattering on about getting back to normal, but it’s my reality right now. Can’t wait till it’s old news, myself.

You should know, friends, that yesterday I was faking a bit of joviality - I was actually pretty depressed after the run because throughout the whole thing, I had a little sidestitch and my legs were hurting. For someone who was averaging weekly miles in the mid-50s prior to getting sick, this was disheartening. Luckily, today was better.

I took it one more mile to 7, no sidestich and an improvement at 8:58/mile (yesterday I could only manage 9:23), but ouch…my legs. I actually woke up last night because I couldn’t get comfortable, my quads were letting me know they’d been on vacation and were objecting to having been put on the job again. But they’ll start behaving, I’ve threatened them with buckets of ice if they don’t shape up soon.

Meanwhile, in happy body news, my weight, which has been steady at 124 ever since starting to run, is now at 118. I figure 4 more pounds and I’ll be content and hopefully, will still have a bit of boob left. My bonus is that the 3 permanent lumps of cellulite that compose my right ass cheek are diminishing to near nothing. TMI? No way, you know you love the dirty details!

And just in case Nick thinks I might get carried away by the weight loss (because he’s afraid of that), I passed that scary skinny chick today. She’s one of those hardcore running freaks I see occasionally. I figure she’s older than me, but she could be younger because that’s what scary skinny does to you, makes you look hard & brittle. Ain’t no PRs worth that body type to me, so never fear, my love…I will keep some meat on the bone for you. I promise.

Speaking of, I’m off to the kitchen now to munch on my latest recovery food; salami. I overbought for that party of ours, and since we’re supposed to eat protein after a run, it’s my Official Recovery Food of Champions for the next few weeks. Of course, the sports nutritionists don’t mention anything about nitrates and fat globules, but that’s why salami is so damn satisfying. Bon appetite, folks.

Yay! I got out there today and didn’t die. I just did 6 easy and while the first 3 went pretty well, the last 3 were reminiscent of my starting days as I peppered each step with that internal lament, “oh, when will this end?” Even so, I managed an OK pace (what should be my easy pace anyway according to McMillan) so life is looking up.

I might even run a 10K next weekend with Matt and Joye, which I’d not even considered because I wanted to start my racing season with a bang and thought it too soon, but now that I’ve already fizzled by default, I figure I have nothing to lose, except a good time if I don’t do it. Besides, it’s smack dab in my neck of the woods, so what the hell?

Funny how getting sick takes the pressure off. I can legally suck now without too much embarrassment - cough cough.

OK, so enough boo-hoos, I’m getting excited now because it’s just about time to tackle the Great Outdoors again. Still have a lingering cough, so I’ve decided Sunday is the day, without question. It’s going to be a gorgeous sunny 42-degree day…I cannot wait!!

Thank you, my sweet friends who posted and kept my spirits up this last week and a half, it cheered me up considerably. I finally decided tonight to stop dwelling on the training I’ve missed and just be happy that I’m able to run at all, or even want to run, that in itself is enough of a profound life-change for this ex-couch potato, so I’ll be glass half-full from here on in.

Additionally, I will not freak out about the 5K in three weeks. Lara emailed me something very wise, she reminded me that not every race has to be a huge PR, some of them can be run for fun (a new concept for me, lol). And while I suspect it’s infinitely more fun to have a huge PR, I could handle a little one, too :). Hopefully, I’ll have something new to show for my winter miles.

Lastly, I just posted on my Miles Team thread on the RW forum that in a way, this long break makes me feel like more of a runner, as I now know what it’s like to miss it and hunger for it. Here’s hoping this is the last break for a very long time and in the meantime, happy runs to all of you and here’s hoping you’re battling through this chilly month with some great miles and fun workouts. Love you guys!!

This has become surreal.  It’s been 9 long days since my last run and I’m still having deep chest coughing, so I don’t see me getting out for at least a couple more days.   I wonder if I should have gone to a doctor, but I guess it’s a little late now.  At least today I’ve got some voice back which is damn good, because I’ve got a 2-hour voiceover session tomorrow, a low-key one, thankfully, not one of those evil medical ones.

Meanwhile, I’m feeling sorry for myself and at odds with everything around me.  I don’t feel like doing anything, yet I’m bored senseless.  This would be the perfect time to design some new shirts (it’s been months and months!), but I don’t feel creative in the least.

Nick is in Las Vegas on a business trip, so I’m up to my own devices, which means watching reality show crap like back-to-back episodes of “Girls Next Door”, the show about Hugh Hefner and his three blonde girlfriends.  My favorite part is when he gives them something (he’s always giving them something) and he goes in for a kiss, you’ve never seen three girls try to avoid touching a pair of liver lips like his.  Can’t say I blame them.

Next on the schedule is Millionaire Matchmaker, where the star of the show, a “third-generation matchmaker” tries to hook up socially inept millionaires with gold-digging balloon-titted actresses.  It’s one of those feel-good shows because as poor as you are, you could never be as big a dick as anyone on it.

Beyond the garbage I’m visually ingesting, I had a freakout last night when I realized my first 5K of the season is in 3 weeks!  It’s going to take me a few runs just to get back where I was, not to mention the lost training time, so I’m pretty unhappy about the thought, because I had 4 sessions of speedwork planned and now I’ll be lucky to get in two.  Oh well, shit happens and this is mine.  At least it isn’t an injury, per se, so when this sick stuff finally goes, it’s gone.

And with that, it’s back to my place on the couch.  I just looked at the TV schedule and see my choices are rapidly dwindling.  Let’s see, what’s on at 10am?  Tyra, Maury, Rachel Ray…oh god, someone come shoot me, please.

I hardly know where to start, but because today is a huge milestone in my running life, I’ll begin with that.

One year ago today I bundled up in my new wind pants with pantyhose underneath, 2 longsleeve t-shirts, windbreaker, headband, gloves and spankin’ new running shoes to walk down to the park where I did this twice: 30 seconds walk, 30 seconds jog, 3 minutes walk, 3 minutes jog.

And that was the start of my love affair with running.

It’s exactly a year later and while I would love nothing better than to commemorate this powerful anniversary with a long, crazy run on what happens to be a freakishly warm day, I am instead sitting here in a nightgown at 4 in the afternoon, nursing the flu after having just bid farewell to the last of my weekend houseguests. And I am incredibly happy.

On the scale of life-affirming moments, my love for running was just about eclipsed this weekend when I looked around our apartment on Saturday night and saw our beautiful collection of friends from all different factions, deep in pockets of conversation and laughter and having a great time with each other.

I can’t tell you how lucky I felt during the night, as one-by-one, different friends approached me to say, “I love your friends, they’re so cool” to which I’d reply, “I know, you’re one of ‘em.” I swear, it happened at least 8 times.

So the party was a success beyond my hopes, everyone had a blast and even the bout of flu I’m dealing with has a silver-lining - I didn’t have much of an appetite all week so I’ve lost a few pounds which I wanted to do for racing anyway, so the gifts keep comin’.

I haven’t been sick like this in, well…ever, so I’m not going to hurry it, but I hope to get out for a run on Wednesday. In the meantime, I’m happy to remain housebound, contemplating friendship, a future of running and the joy that is my life.

That’s me. After that fabulous snowy run in the cold 2 days ago, I am officially sick. That afternoon I started getting chest rumbles, coughing and gooey stuff, then yesterday I had zillions of errands to do in the pouring rain so by the end of it I was a miserable phlegmy, hacking mess.

So, I didn’t run yesterday or today and tomorrow looks out, too. The good thing is, it falls on what should be a cutback anyway, so it’s not that big a deal.

It’s also well-timed because we’re having a big-ass party this weekend (Nick and my first with about 30 guests, gulp) and while I’ve been told I’m a great party guest, as a Hostess I’m insane, stressed and horrible. Think Linda Blair’s head spinning around. So everything but running is freaking me out right now.

I’ve never hosted a party this size, just small game-nights and what makes this one even more stressful (but wonderful), is that I invited 5 dear friends from NYC who will be staying with us. However, one is allergic to cats and we have a 20 lb. Maine Coon who sheds so much, it could fill a comforter.

Another friend is dealing with a final bout of radiation so needs a good bed and rest, so needless to say…I’m terrified!

But, on the other hand, I’m excited beyond belief to finally introduce my NYC friends to my Philly friends. Now people will know who I’m talking about and parts of my life will finally come full circle. That’s what’s keeping me from drinking Drano.

If all this wasn’t enough, I am also quite a nervous cook - feeding people doesn’t come naturally to me, so I’ll be making some easy dips and wraps, but relying on my good friend Trader Joe to pick up the slack. Unfortunately, our allergic-to-cats friend and his mate are Martha Stewart personified so I’ll have to make sure they are otherwise disposed while I stealthily open up boxes of appetizers from the freezer.

Major props to Nick, btw, who is making his downstairs office a perfect guest room for our allergic friend, including painting, re-organizing, installing a new toilet seat (not to mention suffering through my panicked bitchiness). My, but I love that man!

So, that’s the scoop. Wish I had some running news for you…oh wait, I do!!

I signed up for another 5K today, moving my race schedule up a bit. It’s the Adrenaline 5K in Haddonfield, NJ on March 15th. But wait, there’s more!

I’m also going to be doing the first Schuylkill Mile Time Trial on April 6th and will be joined by my fabulous forum friends (Hi Matt!) and possibly Lara, though I’m not betting on that one . This should be a wild run because I’ve never tried to run a mile as fast I can, ever! The good part is, it’s on a stretch I’m extremely familiar with and it’s mostly downhill. You can bet I’m going to be doing intervals every week from here on in.

But back to reality…no running tomorrow, then company comes on Saturday, so I’ll try to run before they get here. Otherwise, it’s more cleaning, shopping for supplies and hopefully no freakouts about missed mileage. After all, that is the least of my worries.

10.53 miles today with light swirling snow and the coldest temperature I’ve run in so far - 24 w/20 windchill. Hardly anyone out except for the omnipresent geese and a couple runners smiling widely in recognition that someone else had the same idea as them.

Took the handheld again and just like Saturday, was chuffed with it completely. Energy in a bottle. And Tobey, if you read this, I didn’t wear my mp3 player so I could test the “slosh effect” - yes, I could hear it but no, it didn’t bother me at all.

Once again, jammin’ negative splits…all is right with the world.

If you’re not a regular reader, look two posts down to “I Need A Drink” and you’ll find my histrionics about taking hydration on the run, ultimately bringing me to buy a handheld which I had all intentions of hating…deeply. Well, no one could be more surprised than I am to find that I LOVE LOVE LOVE my new Amphipod Hydraform!

I had planned a 14 mile run today but felt so fabulous thanks to having Gatorade in hand, that I extended it to 16. The best part was looking down at the Garmin around 14.5 miles and finding I was bopping along at an 8:29 pace. For someone who’d been feeling draggy for the last few miles of my 13s, this was a revelation and a huge DUH! moment.

The wild thing is that I expected to be carrying something the whole way which was where my dread stemmed from - the one time I tried to carry gloves in my hand, I got so annoyed after a millisecond that I shoved them into my waistband. But that was carrying, which requires you to clutch something in a firm fist, and that’s not what the Amphipod is about. Instead, it hangs off your palm - your hands and fingers are in a perfectly relaxed position the whole time.

What’s especially weird is that it didn’t affect my armswing in the least. I switched it to the opposite hand every 25 minutes or so, only because I knew I should, not because of any shoulder or arm cramping. Seriously, when I wasn’t marveling over it, the thing was virtually transparent the whole run.

Now when the summer comes, I am thrilled that I won’t need the belt anymore, I’ll just refill the handheld at a water fountain. What could be easier? So, no cussing from me today, just relief that I’ve found a simple hydration solution that I can live with. It’s a miracle!

Yesterday marked yet another first for my running log - 880 intervals (a.k.a. half-miles, for you less calculated types).

I’d been thinking about this workout for a week, so hearing the wind whipping against our closed windows did not deter me, just scared the crap out of me beforehand. I reasoned that should I end up slower than my projected pace, I could blame it on Mother Nature, no self-recrimination allowed.

My Garmin and I warmed-up on our usual riverside route until we came upon the spot I was looking for; long, flatish and good enough for an interval session. Once there, I managed to complete 6 x 880 as planned.

The wind never let up, and I had to laugh at my stubbornness for insisting that particular day be Speed Day. I ended up alternating directions with each interval, so while I got killed one way, I had a reprieve the other. Looking at my splits, it’s obvious which ones faced the wind and which didn’t. Facing the wind, I averaged a pace of 7:29…with the wind at my back, 7:07. So, averaging them together, I ended up with a respectable (pour moi) 7:18 avg. for the session.

As far as recovery goes, I had programmed 3:30 recoveries but then found my heart rate returned to 120bpm after a couple minutes, so I’ll shorten the recovery time in future.

Incidentally, I walked the recovery periods instead of jogging them. That was nice and perfectly legal, I might add. Matter of fact, when I do those damn mile intervals I hate so much, I always jog the recoveries, so I’ll try walking them next time. Maybe then I won’t always precede “mile intervals” with “those damn”.

And that, my lads and lasses, ends our Speedwork Saga for the week. I feel very hopeful and happy for having completed such a small, yet worthy task.

Now what? 6 easy today and then tomorrow, road testing the Amphipod Hydraform Handheld on my 14-miler. Expect my potty mouth to be in fine form upon my return…