Jgurl

Gorgeous morning for a trail run

2010-01-31T11:15:00.000-08:00

Got my big ass out of bed this morning to meet Lisa out at Wyandotte County Lake Park for the 'Psychodelic 5K' ice version. Like all the events the trail Nerds put on, this was a great one and an inexpensive way for me to go try my ankle out on the trails and see where I am at when it comes to steep hills and tough terrain. I am proud to say that I am intact and had a wonderful time.
My training is starting to happen again. I have slowly been able to add in a few more miles here and there during the week so that I am almost feeling like intense hill and speed work might be a possibility in March and April. It is so good to be running again. Let's see if I can stay injury-free in 2010!

22nd annual Amy Thompson 8k

2009-05-27T10:09:00.000-07:00

I was thrilled to be able to get out there and run at this year's Amy Thompson 8k. Coming back from an injury and having the nature that I do, I had to fight to keep from putting pressure on myself to hit certain numbers. I had to wrestle my competitive self down to the ground and just let it roll. And I am so glad that I did! It was a great training run and it was good to see where my fitness was. Even better, it was great to see all of my running friends and be in there among them all. After the run, the Kvetchers and "Boy Toy" headed down the plaza for breakfast - and much to my surprise - birthday gifts! I was blown away with my new hydration setup and my Nike "run supernatural" t-shirt which I will cherish always! Check out the link below for an explanation of the Run Supernatural video...

I love race days!

2009-04-02T21:03:00.000-07:00

So much has been going on since my last post. (This is for you Dina ;)

I achieved what I set out to do in 2008 and after a few years of trying, finally placed first in my age group on the Grand Prix circuit. I didn't win because I am incredibly fast (well for a sand crab, I suppose that I am..) but because I am consistent, that and the regional-level women were'nt showing up much last summer.
It is Ironic that it was at the pre-awards ceremony run that I had this spectacular fall (I shouldn't run and talk at the same time... ever!) and ended up with a stress fracture and torn tendons on my left ankle. So after the chilli luncheon, I limped up to have my photo taken alongside some of the fastest women in the midwest in my bloody running tights, gritted my way through a smile and the coveted coffee cup was mine.

I took it easy for the next month and didn't do anything at all. It is hard to do much when you are wearing a bootcast and for the first time ever my attention and focus were riveted on something... or somebody much more important than any of this stuff.
Here is the siesmic shift that I mentioned last fall... my birth daughter had finally found me - and now you know why my blog has been silent for the last few months. My entire life turned on a dime the day she called... Years of shame and searching have come to an end and it has been a very, very good thing. We had our reunion in Pheonix, Arizona and it has been the most incredible, positive experience ever. I am very protective of this and want to honor my daughter's privacy. What I will say is that she is incredible and has two beautiful boys. Yep, I'm a grandmother!

So, here is to new adventures - and there will be many. I have new goals and plans for this upcoming race season which I'll be yammering on and on about here in the very near future.

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-24T10:41:00.000-08:00

To all of my friends near and far - the diverse group that you are - Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah, Kwanzaa or whatever you and yours celebrate this time of year. I hope your holidays are filled with family and fun and that you have a happy and healthy new year!

A Little Something For Thanksgiving...

2008-11-26T13:43:00.000-08:00

Just an ultra cool idea - I think yule dig it.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone

Flu - With a Capital F!

2008-11-15T21:33:00.000-08:00

I've been AWOL for a about a month, getting through the busiest time of the season at my place of work. I've been moving at the speed of light for a while now and was still toying with the idea of a two-hour workout on Saturday when the cold that I was getting caught up with me and became a full-blown flu. I went to bed last night at 7:00 p.m. and didn't bother getting up till 11:00 a.m. this morning... and I've been not doing much since then. I'm thankfull it didn't happen while I was knee-deep in deadlines! I have a bunch of posts from the last month that I'll get up and going - maybe tomorrow, after several more hours of sleep. Until then, here's a photo of Herb braving the sub 30˚ windchill at the Pilgram Pacer 1/2 marathon today.

More About Herb

2008-10-19T23:03:00.000-07:00

For those of you who don't know Herb Brown let me start by saying he is an amazing runner. He is 71 years old and has run on the MARA circuit for years. He holds several state records in both Missouri and Kansas and I have never met anyone more humble or sweet-natured than this guy. I never would have known this stuff if I hadn't of looked it up for myself. He's like that - never one to be around the spotlight.

Waddell and Reed Kansas City Marathon Report

2008-10-19T21:53:00.000-07:00

I wasn't sure if a half marathon was in the cards for me because of the lack of any real miles put in this summer but I sent my entry in early this summer and felt that maybe I would be able to handle a decent training run. Turns out that I was able to do it. It wasn't pretty but I got it done.

This year, instead of starting the race 10 minutes late, I skidded in sideways with two minutes to spare! I was able to locate Herb at the 9:00 minute pace marker and off we went (my Garmin didn't even have a signal yet!) There were a record 8,000 + runners starting out in the chilled, dark morning and it still only took a minute for us to cross the timing mats. Herb and I went out fast for the first mile and then settled into a nice 8:45 pace before reaching the Liberty Memorial hill. By then the sun was up and the work was just beginning. I continued to resist the urge to go fast on the straits and that is a really good thing because by mile 9, my hips started to seize up and Herb basically had to cajole my dead carcass all the way to the finish. He could have taken off and shaved 5 or 6 more minutes off of his own time and won his age group but chose to stick with me for the duration. Would I have done the same for someone else...?? Let me think... naaawwww!

I really like the KC 1/2 Marathon course. You get to see the best of this city, the views are amazing and so are the volunteers and multitudes of spectators. The run down the hill into the Plaza was a lot of fun and at the relay point Janice was there to let the crowd know that a fast moving sand crab (me) was coming! Maria was there at miles 9 and 10 with dog and signage. At mile 11 or so, we were met with a gorgeous view a foggy KC skyline as we crested the hill that led us into the jazz district. By mile 12, Herb had to coax me into a better mind-frame (I was definitely in the Bite Me zone) for the finish and then let me truck on by him at the very end... wow, now that is friendship!

The finish line festival was crowded and a little more claustraphobic this year but that is to be expected as this race continues to grow. I only have one complaint - why is it so impossible to get a cup of coffee at this or any other running event??? End of complaint!
We then met up with Maria and made a beeline for the Coffee Girls on Southwest Blvd to get warm and a coffee buzz!

Yes, it is time for me to go back to work on endurance.

Jared Coones 5k - Garminless!!

2008-10-11T18:23:00.000-07:00

Any one who knows me, knows that the annual Jared Coones 5k is my favorite race of the year. This race honors the memory of Jared Coones and his mother Jayne Coones, both taken by cancer. The race is a huge fundraiser for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. I am always amazed at the big heart this neighborhood has, how so many children are involved in fund-raising and running in this event and the Coones family themselves for the courage and commitment that they display. This year, this event was made even more special to me because my bother - who is currently in remission from Acute Myloid Leukemia, joined me and was able to walk the course with no problems. This time a year ago, Tony was in the hospital and dangerously close to not making it - so this was really a celebration for which I am very, very grateful.
I went wild today and ran without my Garmin or a timing chip and ran just for fun this time around. During the cool-down, Janice, Herb and I went back and walked back with Tony. The weather couldn't have been any more perfect and now Tony has his first official 5k time!

The crew

Last but not least

Tom Coones addresses the audience

This little guy is fighting a brave fight right now.

Herb won his age division!

Eating for Fitness

2008-10-11T17:53:00.000-07:00

On 10/5, Coach Rut gave a most excellent seminar on covering the topic of eating in the zone - (ie: eating a balanced ratio of carbs, proteins and good fats - how it works and why it works.) I know from experience that when I make a concentrated effort to eat this way, the rewards are huge!

(Notice the enthusiasm from the well-behaved gentleman in the front row :)

The Season

2008-10-05T09:10:00.000-07:00

With the Roefest 5k yesterday and the Heartland 5k last week completed and behind me I can now say the hard stuff is done. I've won (finally!) the MARA Grand Prix in my age division and any races that I run for the rest of the season are fun extras. Now I get to sit back and watch how the season shakes out for everybody else... lots of close races going on!

Janice and Herb, my two very best race/breakfast buddies

Local Running World Volunteers Celebrated.

2008-09-28T18:38:00.000-07:00

On Saturday 9/27, Dick Ross outdid himself and held a real nice volunteer appreciation picnic at Shawnee Mission Park. Guests were treated to catering by Jack Stack BBQ and serenaded by the Shawnee Mission North Strolling Strings. The speaker was none other than KC Star columnist (and runner) Yael Abouhalkah and the weather could have not been any more perfect. It looked like all the tribes were represented including highly recognizable race directors, representatives and members of Kansas City Track Club, Heartland Race Walkers, Lawrence Running Club and Red Dog Days, MARA, Olathe Running Club, Runners Edge, Trail Nerds and others. I'm not really sure why I was invited, I volunteer when and where I can - but not to the extent of a majority of the people who showed up. These are folks who have poured their hearts and souls into the running community here in the midwest for years and personally, I am just proud to know some of them.

I knew that Dick was going to have his hands full so I became a self-appointed photographer for the day and brought my just-out-of-the-box Nikon D90 - this is the first time I've used a professional-level digital camera and judging from the shots, I'm going to really have fun with it! Let me know what you think.

Chicago Trip

2008-09-28T14:57:00.000-07:00

I took a quick 3 day trip to Chicago last weekend with friends to see the play "Wicked". I was in serious need of a break from work, the zone, my hamstring... everything and it could'nt have come at a better time.
Our hotel was convenient to everything and we walked everywhere. We started with a tour of the "Miracle Mile" downtown and then spent the evening at the navy pier watching the fireworks. The next day, Ris and I went to the 95th floor of the Hancock building and had an incredible lunch and then explored the downtown shopping district a little bit more. We met up with the others back at the hotel that evening and walked to the theater district to the Oriental Theatre. Let me start by saying that just seeing the theatre is a treat in itself. Built in the 20's, the interior of the theater is lavish mix of art nouveau and art deco - every square inch of wall and ceiling is embellished Indian inspired symbols and figures. The play was also a visual feast and the story was great. I will probably go see it again on tour next spring.

Ris and I headed back home the next morning (we drove of course!) and hit a strange little afternoon storm West of Davenport Iowa, the sun was shining to the south of us while we got hammered by rain for about two minutes. After we drove through it we turned around to look and saw a large rainbow and the end of it was on the highway where we had just driven through.

We were feeling pretty lucky after that and decided to take a wild side trip after we kept seeing road signs for "Bob's Your Uncle Pizza Place" before we got to Iowa City.
Bob's is an Iowa college basketball loving place judging from the hundreds of framed photos of Iowa basketball greats hanging everywhere and the pizza here is served up by tall-nordic/german-basket-ball-playing high school girls. We did what any sensible tourist should do when they are in Iowa and ordered the deep dish Chicago style pizza. Ris and I both agree - it is the best pizza we ever had. In Iowa... go figure!

Duston to the Rescue

2008-09-22T09:45:00.000-07:00

I don't see Duston often, but when I am in trouble, he comes to the rescue. Thankfully, He drove in from Columbia Saturday (9/13) morning to work with some clients and to spend some time with me. He introduced me to the new concept of "easing" into speed on the treadmill... (instead of the usual 2 miles warm-up then push through on the prescribed pace whether I like it or not). He would shut me down every ten minutes and then perform active release on my hips and hamstrings for about 10 minutes, then I would go back to the treadmill and start off easy and very gradually increase the pace. Toward the end I was running a 7 minute pace with no problems.I was surprised to even be doing that. I was suposed to be working on that for the rest of the week but a sesmic shift (a good thing!) in my personal life was and is taking priority over everything. I'll probably be racing again by next week with any luck at all.

Pin Striped

2008-09-14T21:46:00.000-07:00

Just a few photos from our pinstriping event at the man-shed last week... I got in line first with my old jacket and watched Nick work his magic. I'm really happy with the results. He completed 7 projects for people and we will have him out again next month. I'm thinking the clown car will be next :)

Sat Out Helen Gold

2008-09-13T06:10:00.000-07:00

Reason kicked in this morning... well, that and a phone call to Janice to reconfirm what I already knew - No racing today... not if I want to race this Fall. And from the looks of it, I am going to need to!

A few More photos...

2008-09-12T14:24:00.001-07:00

Can you believe I took these with my cell phone?

Tour of Missouri

2008-09-12T14:09:00.000-07:00

Speaking of bikes, I broke away from work on Monday for half a day to go see the Tour of Missouri Women's Criterium race down on the Plaza. They were fast, they were skilled and aggressive world-class riders and it was very exciting. Made me want a bike even more!

This week's workouts consisted of a couple of runs starting with a 6 mile slow run on Saturday. Swimming and water sprints on Monday. A spinning class and core workout on Tuesday and a 45 minute easy run on Wednesday. I took yesterday and today off and my legs are feeling ok this afternoon. I may still sit out The Helen Gold run tomorrow - we'll see.

Bike Lust

2008-09-07T10:59:00.000-07:00

It's funny, for years I have made fun of the road-bike and tri-bike people. The spandex costumes and especially the shirts with logo's plastered all over them. Ken, a buddy of mine from my Lawrence running days and I had a pact that we would never let that happen to each other - never. I gave him permission to shoot me if I ever started sporting one of those logo infested tight fitting tops. I hate to admit this, but I thought of cyclists as a nuisance and they usually played an annoying part in my commute to lawrence every morning. The thought of "dooring" one or two of them as I drove by brought me great pleasure.

A subtle change in my thinking started to come a couple of years ago during one of my injury phases (surprise!). I started taking spinning classes at the gym as a way to keep my volume up. I figured that I would really be able to whale on that stationary bike with a pair of clip in shoes. So I went and made my first purchase. Ken just smiled and said... "it's starting". I assured him that the shoes were as far as this little deal was going to go... it's for the sake of my running after all!

A few weeks into it, after a particularly tough spinning session, my inner thighs were on fire! The running shorts were not protecting me from burning my thighs to a crisp, so I got some longer shorts. Fast forward a couple of months. I showed up to Ken's gym to get in a spinning class with him, sporting my new spandex shorts complete with butt padding. He busted out laughing. He told me that the shirt was next... but I couldn't help but notice that he was now in a pair of spinning shoes himself - which I pointed out to him. He informed me that his knee was preventing him from running and that it helped him to get a better workout. "Uh huh" I said "you'll be in the clown pants shortly". And sure enough the next time I saw him, that was exactly what he was wearing. Now we were even. But we were still drawing the line at the hokey-ass jerseys!

This latest injury left me no choice but to embrace the fact that in order to put in the kind of volume that I need to put in order to be competitive (or semi-competitive in my case), I'm going to have to spread it out to some other activities, like swimming and biking on a regular basis.

Sooo..... over the last few weeks, I've been looking at bikes. My head hurts from all the information out there and there is some damn sexy marketing to wade through. I have so far made the decision to get a decent road bike instead of a tri bike and I've decided that I want a carbon fiber frame... entry level of course but competitive enough to be able to race if I want to.

So far I've gone out and test rode the Specialized Ruby Expert and the entry level Trek Madone which I liked very much.

I'm taking my sweet time and I am sure I'll be doing lots of test rides this fall.

I am even starting to understand the tight shirt thing... but if you ever catch me sporting a bunch of logos - it'll either be a cold day in hell, or some company paid me a truckload of money to wear it!

BTW: Any suggestions from you experienced cyclists out there (who I didn't just alienate entirely) are welcomed and greatly appreciated!!

Pinstriping Party

2008-09-05T15:25:00.000-07:00

Most of you are probably familiar with pinstriping, an old automotive art form that was almost lost to history a few years back. During the last 10 years or so, it has made a return to the fringes of the automotive culture as the younger folks are rediscovering what us oldsters already know - it as just a flat-out cool thing to do to your ride, or your helment, or shoes or whatever you can think of to pinstripe. There are not many people around who can do it well.

When Robert and I went to the Greasarama at the Boulevard Drive-In last weekend, a young man by the name of Nick Rodriguez caught our eye. His long dreads and the skater punk thing he's got going on drew our attention, but what kept it was the quality of the work he was doing, perfect lines and elegant curves. Robert was impressed (not an easy thing to do!) and had Nick pinstripe the dashboard of his 46 ford pickup. It only cost $25 and It was the perfect finishing touch.

We started to think about all the stuff at home that needed pinstriping, plus my brother wanted a couple of his radios done and a friend of Robert's wants the hood of his car done... so we thought - why not get everone's stuff done at once and make a party of it?
Soooo....
....mark your calanders for Sunday the 14th - next weekend at Cook's dirt farm in the man-shed. Nick will be showing up at 11:00 and will be available to pinstripe what ever you can throw at him for a good part of the day. We have 5 people in line right now. If you are interested in reserving a spot, drop me a line. If you are interested in just watching - come on out! The beer will be cold and chili will be simmering.

This kid will be a big deal and this is your chance to get in cheap! The bonus is that Nick is truley a nice guy.

Just Sayin...

2008-09-05T15:10:00.000-07:00

My poor long-suffering husband...

Oh Happy Day!

2008-09-04T08:30:00.000-07:00

This morning was my first run in 3 weeks... and I was so ready for it! I started with couple of slow miles to get good and warmed up and then cracked off a couple of 400's at 6:40 pace to see how it would go. Everything was perfect and I could have done more but I shut it down there and did a cool down jog.
There is just nothing that compares to a nice run - my mood lifted completely after that.

I may end up running the Helen Gold next week after all. Just a few more circuit races to go before the end of the season - I'll keep it slow... I promise!

Tails From The Locker Room

2008-08-27T08:48:00.000-07:00

One of the things that I enjoy about going to my gym are the women in the locker room. The age range is all over the map and many of them have been going to that same gym since the beginning of time. The bonds are tight, the humor is awesome and I have even seen a frisky 85-year-old roll up a towel and snap some poor, hapless girl on the back-side with it just for fun.

The conversations are the best part. Last week I was ironing out my Chaka Khan-like hair (commonly referred to as BAPH - Big Ass Puffy Hair) in front of the mirror and I was talking to one of the sweetest older women in the world who I will refer to as "J". We were talking about retirees and how they are underutilized on so many levels which got me on my little rant about ageism and how I was going to be a pain-in-the-ass "grey panther" some day... to which J replied - "you mean a cougar right?" I started laughing and said, "no - not a cougar, a grey panther" and J with a dead-serious expression on her face said "there is nothing wrong with being a cougar". Another gym regular came in during the conversation (I'll call her "S") and asked "what on earth are you guys talking about?" "Cougars" I answered - "J, do you know what a cougar is?" "An older woman?" J replied. "Yes" I said "an older woman who picks up young men." "Oh my" J said, blushing. "The young men are commonly referred to as "prey" I believe" I said. "A May-December romance in reverse" replied J. S weighed in with her own take: "I don't think romance has got anything to do with it" "Yeah," I said "I think I'll just be a panther instead of a cougar." S replied "Oh you just be who you are!"

A.M. workout:

3:30 Plank (just wasn't feeling it this morning)

5 sets of 1 minute bicycle crunches

55 pushups (countdown progression from 10)

3x12 pikes

5x10 flies with #6 lbs

43 minutes of fast walking at 14 mph pace

Do The Best With What You Got

2008-08-26T19:50:00.000-07:00

The answer to the big questions in running is the same as the answer to big questions in life: Do the best with what you got.

- Dr. George Sheehan

I got this one from Runners World today. I swear this guy must have a quote factory out behind his house or something. I have officially not run for over a week and the hamstring is a whole lot less angry with me. In fact, today, I hardly feel it at all. I haven't exploded or lost my mind or become a race walker or a host of other frightening habits that I could pick up. I'll continue to keep myself under self-imposed lock and key for another week before I slowly start testing the water again. I swam over a mile tonight and am grateful that I have place where I can go to and get rid of all my energy. All in all, life is good and I am recovering nicely.

Women - Know Your Limits

2008-08-23T12:15:00.000-07:00

...In my quest to refine my competitive and dare I say, unlady-like nature (NOT!) I found a video that made me blow coffee out of my nose... figured it share it with ya'll

The Perfect Plank Challenge - Part 2

2008-08-22T08:38:00.000-07:00

Photo courtesy of www.crossfitkc.com

Coach Rut demonstrates what body position is supposed to look like in a perfect plank position with this stick check. Imagine a board that starts at your heels and follows a strait line past your head. Now hold that position for 30 seconds to a minute... work from there to see what you can do.

Throwing Down the Gauntlet

2008-08-20T08:08:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, the woman who was giving me a swimming lesson mentioned to me that she had been challenged to try to work toward a 5-minute plank and that she was up to 2 1/5 minutes.. I tucked that away in my memory banks and thought I would give myself that challenge just to see what I could do. Well, this morning was the time to try it and I held a perfect (yes... perfect... no hips sagging) plank for 5 minutes. I shook like a hummingbird during the last 30 seconds. So RP and Rut, I'm throwing down the gauntlet! How long can you hold a plank for?

During this bridge week, I have opted to drop out, throttle down and do more core and aerobic work and just leave my non-cooperative legs out of it. Today and Monday, I power-walked at a 14:00 mph pace (All that's missing are the shorts that hike up to my armpits and a visor and... well, you have the picture - it's just sad!)

I swam and did laps for over an hour yesterday. I'm going to do what I can to hold onto my base while I heal. I go get another ultrasound today and was able to land an appointment tomorrow night with a real good sports massage therapist. The left hamstring issue seems to be consolidating to a smaller area and the right hip pressure has been lessoning. Right now I'll just have to be content to challenge myself in other ways. One good thing that has come out of this is that I am getting more comfortable in the water... in the end I might become stronger because of it.

Cochise the Wonder Horse

2008-08-17T21:18:00.000-07:00

Robert woke me up this morning and asked if I would be interested in riding with a friends wife at out at Hillsdale lake. Apparently, Ron had a couple of beers and decided to do a little bit of bareback riding on his horse, at night... without a bridle... To make a long story short, Ron is a little bit busted-up and can't ride right now. Cathy is training a young green saddle-bred mare and needed to have someone to ride with. I thought about all the work I had to get done and then said "Sure!"

The Horse that I was to be riding was the same one that took Ron for the ride of his life last week... but if I were a horse with a drunk on board, I would have to go for a fast run too. His name is Cochise and what a nice guy he was, a 17 year old retired barrel horse with a willing attitude and a lot more fun to ride than I was expecting. He required some "leg" but I was able to "throw the reigns away" and relax. We hit the trails for about an hour and a half with no surprises and the young mare Cathy was riding was behaving as well. I just love it when ever I can get a chance to ride a nice broke horse. Especially at my age - I don't bounce like I used to!

Afterward, we went to Hillsdale BBQ for lunch and let me tell you - this place is a hidden gem! Excellent, mouth-watering BBQ in a small 100-year-old bank building in the middle of nowhere. It is just South of Spring Hill and for me - totally worth missing out on my chores for!

A Beautiful Day at The Farmsted

2008-08-16T21:09:00.000-07:00

Ris and I went to check out the Deanna Rose Farmstead 5k out at 135th and Switzer this morning and even though I couldn't run I wanted to see my friends and see how everyone did.
It was a perfect morning for a run, Janice made me laugh and took second in our age group. Dina set a new PR for herself and took first place female master in a tough field and we embarrassed poor Herb until he turned bright red. He is such a good sport!

I felt sorry for myself for aproximately 10 minutes and then hauled my ass to the gym and did water running and laps for an hour.

I don't know about anyone else but I had a horrid case of chiggers that night.... Deanna Rose staff - I have two words for you: Seven Dust!

Hi, My Name is Jenny and I have a Racing Problem...

2008-08-13T07:19:00.000-07:00

Well, it was bound to happen... I am out of commission. I have been going to a chiropractor a few times a week to get ultra sound to breakup the knotted muscles (I personally think I need the ultra sound daily for it to make a difference) and I am so frustrated that I could cry.

So I'm walking at my normal pace (trotting) at work and Ike, our housekeeper says to me - "slow down girl", to which I reply "I know, I can't help myself" as I start to bolt up the stairs. Then he asked "why is that?" and I thought to myself - that's a good question... and I told him "I don't know - it's like I don't have an off switch." I immediatley think back to the Susan B Koman 5k that I ran on Sunday. It started off as a "training run" (yeah, right) and I actually did run it semi- easy for the first mile and a half, then I started seeing the rabbits and I couldn't handle it and started really racing by mile 2 - not good for my legs at all.

The whole A-race, B-race concept requires discipline, which apparently - I don't have!
I have no business going to those things unless I can race.

Well, looks like karma took care of that for me and now that I am out of commission and off of running for the next few weeks so I'll be getting to know the pool, the bike and stretching really well before it is over... OK, I'll quit my whining.

First Friday

2008-08-03T12:20:00.000-07:00

Back in my Kansas City Art Institute days (waaaay back in the days of yore), the first Friday night of the month was the night when we students would go hit all the art galleries for the free booze and snacks. In the 1980's the handful of art galleries in existence at the time were spread throughout the midtown and downtown area and we would make our way through the crowds of professors, art snobs and intellectuals like the starving mercenaries that we were. We would eat and drink our fill and then drive on to the next opening across town, usually capping off the evening at some large after-party in one of the old lofts downtown after midnight. The Southwest Blvd area was run-down and some of the KCAI students, local artists and punk bands of the era were just discovering it's potential as a place to live and set up shop.

Up until now I have avoided the whole art scene thing because of my huge dislike of phony people. I had been to few of my dad's gallery openings of his insanely wonderful sculptures at the Hilliard... but I could only stomach a majority of the people who flocked to those shows for a couple of minutes before I would have to bolt.

This last Friday night, Robert and I and a group of friends had the opportunity to go check out "First Friday" as it exists now, a vibrant and growing explosion of art galleries, dining and entertainment in the old Freight House district on and around Southwest Blvd. I have to say that I was amazed at the size of the crowd. I saw a few of the standard "snobarazzi", but most of the people were just average-every-day folk out on Friday night to check out their favorite restaurants and galleries. Both Robert and I look forward to coming back in September.

Dean Karnazes - All Things to All People?

2008-08-03T11:00:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday (more like 3 weeks ago!!!) we had our TNR and ran 3 miles out in the sweltering heat by the Palazzo Theatre (that which does not kill us makes us stronger!) Doug and I did not go under a 9:30 pace - which for us, was quite the accomplishment. After the run we all took our sweaty selves to the theatre and saw the movie "Ultramarathon Man: 50 Marathons, 50 States, 50 Days"

Let me say this first. What ultra runner Dean Karnazes did was beyond amazing... I know how I felt after one marathon - worn out! As a runner, I would have been been interested in seeing more of what was really going on with him during this 50 day period - physically and emotionally. "Spirit of the Marathon" this film is not - but I do think it is still worth watching if you are even remotely interested in endurance running.

AWOL

2008-08-03T07:38:00.000-07:00

things have been so busy over these past few weeks that I have been a bad blogger... it's time for me to release the posts I've had in storage and let it roll! So here is what has been going on lately...

Complex Carbs and Sugars

2008-07-31T08:09:00.000-07:00

In the evening I normally get a hankering for a snack. Often I grab 1 or 2 cups of pre-cut cantaloupe that I keep in the fridge.
After reading the posting I found below, I may have to rethink the late night snack urges and go for water instead. I also think I found my answer to why I have such a hard time getting to sleep - and to those few extra pounds that I keep fighting - duh!:

Complex Sugars
Fruit is a good source of soluble and insoluble fiber and contains many essential vitamins and minerals that are vital to the integrity of many of the body’s systems. Fruit is a “simple” carbohydrate and can obstruct your ability to burn fat if it is not consumed in the right amounts and at the right times. One time in specific is LATE in the day. Fruit’s molecular make up causes it to rapidly enter the blood stream, which causes a quick rise in blood sugars. The rise causes a surge in insulin to be released into the bloodstream increasing the changes of sugar converting to fat. This can however, be avoided by consuming your fruits earlier in the day. Simple sugars are a very efficient source of energy and are therefore, quickly used to meet the body’s energy demands, as opposed to being stored as fat. However, as the day progresses your metabolism naturally slows down with it, becoming less and less efficient, reaching it’s lowest ebb late in the evening – in the hours before bed. If you ate fruit in the evening hours, you would run the risk of the simple carbohydrates being stored as fat rather than burned as energy. Additionally, you would not want to consume “any” carbohydrates – even complex in the hours before going to bed. During sleep the metabolism nearly shuts down completely assuring that “any” recently consumed carbs will become stranded in the bloodstream and subsequently stored as fat.

This is not to say that fruit is bad – fruit is a valuable attribute to your diet as it possesses many essential vitamins and minerals. You just need to avoid consuming any fruit later in the latter part of the day (ie after 5pm).

Cancer Action 5k... another course PR

2008-07-27T07:14:00.000-07:00

All photos courtesy of seekcrun.com

This is the 3rd year I have participated in the Cancer Action 5k and especially since last year, it is a race that is near and dear to my heart. I must say that this is the most fun I have had here due to all of the great people who showed up. My good friend Maria Meyers celebrated her second cancer-free year birthday and took part in the race and has set her goals to complete the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer 3 day walk in 2010. She is on the road to a healthy and active lifestyle and I am really, really proud of her.

All of my favorite folks showed up, Janice Woolery, circuit instigator and merry-maker, was there to make me laugh until my guts hurt and I was able to pull out another sub 24-minute 5k in the crazy-wicked heat and 90% humidity.

This has always been a difficult race to run negative splits on because it is just so danged hot and humid this time of the year, you know you are going to be fighting that last mile no matter what you do so you might as well capitalize on the adrenaline and do a faster first mile.

I bolted out at the start for the first 1/2 mile and then settled in and completed mile 1 at 7:26 and mile 2 at 7:44. By mile 3 I slowed down to a sluggish 8:46 and was just struggling to keep my shoulders from creeping up to my ears and my form from falling completely apart. My finish was 23:56. (the online results are jacked up because I was not wearing a chip.... ooops!) My fastest time ever for that race and good enough to win my age group this year. Considering I have been eating like a horse and had to scuttle over the finish line like a hermit crab, I am pretty happy with it.

One of these things I love about the race scene are the races within the race...there are dramas being played out every step of the way. Seen here is Janice Woolery (right) pulling ahead of fellow competitor and rabbit - Michelle Bresee (Left) (both in my age group) right before the finish line. Janice edged Michelle out by 3 seconds. It is worth mentioning that Janice suffers from asthma and has to take an inhaler with her on the course. I am in awe of her!

The high points of the morning were walking Maria in at the end and striking a Charlie's Angels pose for our (not acting our) age group award photos. Sometimes you just gotta be a dork!

Coming Clean

2008-07-23T07:29:00.000-07:00

I have been on an insane sugar kick for a couple of weeks now. I'm not sure why that is but my cravings for ice cream have been huge and I feel like I have been trying to beat myself into submission and steer around it... and sometimes I lose.

Yesterday we had the photo shoot for the dessert coming up and I had no will power what-so-ever! I didn't even try to resist - I just took the plate of ganache covered chocolate banana cake and scampered up to my office with it, shut the door and went after it like a woman possesed! I had forgotten to bring my prepared food for the day - so I was an easy target. Take a look at that photo - could you sit in the same room with that and not squirm??

This morning, during my 800 meter workout, I could really feel the effects - It was like I had dumped sugar into my gas tank. I just felt gummed-up and lethargic - yuck.

I'm not talking about the occasional treat here (which is a great thing - in moderation), I'm describing my sugar addiction.

So here is the deal. I get up, brush the dust off and renew the vow I made to myself to make better choices... Is it worth the workout, race, season or whatever? And I have to remind myself of that often - what matters most in the scheme of things (not just this moment of panic or emotional indecision disguised as fake hunger pangs...)?

Move on and eat something healthy in a couple of hours. That's a decision I get to make on a daily basis.

Last Week's Workouts and the Week Ahead

2008-07-20T00:12:00.000-07:00

Robert's latest project... He doesn't have enough of them.

I am slowly coming out of injury mode and getting back into the swing of things. For a while though, most of my running will be on soft surfaces or in the water. I started last week off with boot camp, pushing tires, planks and ball slams. Then I took Tuesday off, returned to boot camp on Wednesday for lunges, squats and some minor running.

Wednesday night I had my first swimming lesson with Nancy Strickland and was told I was a floater - I guess that is a good thing. I know how to swim (as in not drown) but never learned how to do the right kind of stroke, breathing ... ect. I've been wanting to learn how to do laps as a way to get cardio in while giving my legs a break. I actually had fun, got a great workout in and think I am going to like this swimming deal.

By Thursday I was feeling like I would be able to run and I met up with my TNR peeps. As usual, Doug and I ran way too fast dropping from a 9:30 pace to an 8:19 pace by the time we were finished. I don't know why we do that. I'm thinking that Thursday night might have to become tempo run night instead of a slow run. Amazingly, I was fine after that.

Friday morning was my last boot camp for a week... another killer workout and I got to quicken my pace up a little bit on the run portion of it. I forwent the Team in Training Saturday morning long run and decided to hit the treadmill at the gym and did 8 miles at 9:40 pace. It felt good to get some miles in - even if it was indoors. So far, so good.

I am planning on running the Cancer Action 5k next Saturday, so Monday and Wednesday will consist of track workouts if I am able and then nothing else until race day with the exception of some swimming and one or two strength workouts.

USATF Club Championships

2008-07-19T13:13:00.000-07:00

Last night I had the opportunity to volunteer at the USATF Club Championships. I ran event scores down from the results booth to the awards booth and the posting area. It was a great workout up and down the stadium stairs at the Olathe District Activities Center and I got to watch young runners from nationally ranked clubs from all over the U.S.

The Club Championships are a great thing for post-collegiate athletes because many of them have not stopped maturing yet. There is not a whole lot of support out there in the U.S., especially for sprinters and field athletes - and this is a place where they can continue to compete and hone their skills. Some will go on to do great things in the future.

To all the masters runners out there, these meets are very exciting to watch and well worth your time. If you are looking for a place to do a little volunteering and give back to the running community, send USATF Missouri Valley President Gilbert Castillo a line at gscast@kc.rr.com

Runners of note were Ashhad Agyapong of Rhode Island, who I got to see smoke the men's 200 meter with a time of (allthough wind-aided) 20.75 (BTW, that is an Olympic Trails qualifying time).

Jeremy Doherty and Ben Rosario of Big River Running out of St. Louis. and Joe Moore of Kansas City Smoke were great to watch battling it out in the men's 1500 meter.

Ben Rosario also has a very interesting training log if you are interested in elite-level training.

On the Women's side, Valma Bass of Southwest Sprinters track club easily won the women's 100 meter with 11.86 and the women's 200 meter with 23.88.

She is an exciting sprinter to watch I'll definitely be keeping track of her future progress.

In the women's 1500 meter, Kansas City Smoke's Shascha Scott edged out two very good runners for the Nike Central program, Melissa Sherman and Katharine Irvin (who was obviously saving her strength for the 10000 meter.

In the 5000 meter run Aileen Conlon of Nike Central led way out in the front the entire race and finished in 17.35. Of considerable interest was Katria Bruckschwaiger, also of Nike Central, who stayed in the back of the pack for 3700 meters and then started to claw her way up to second place with only 1300 meters to go, which made me wonder what she could do is she would go out a little faster. Her finish was 17:57.

The 10000 Meter was led almost the entire way by a very scrappy Vanessa Martell of the Brockport Distance Project with Katharine Irvin of Nike drafting on her coat tails until the final 200 meters, where she cut loose and kicked like a sprinter. Irvin won with 37:06. Martell took second with 37:14. Both were extremely fierce competitors.

Yeah... My Harley is Pink...

2008-07-13T21:27:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday (7/6/08) was way too gorgeous for working on the house or in the garden. With a small amount of prompting from Robert, I brought out Tawanda, knocked the cobwebs off of her, started her up and pulled the choke as she coughed and sputtered until she was warm and the engine was making that wonderfully deep, potato, potato, potato sound that I will never get tired of hearing. Off I went with Robert and friends for a nice 5-hour bike ride that took us to Louisburg, Paola, Ottawa, Baldwin and finally back home to Gardner.

Workouts for the last two weeks have been light - no speed work,very little running, some boot camp and lots of walking. The injury seems to be subsiding and it is "telescoping" back and forth between the left hamstring and right hip flexor... but never both at the same time - weird. I tried pool running for the first time on Monday and tonight I will take the first swimming lesson in my adult life, so I'm excited about that.

AND to make it even more interesting, I am commiting to another marathon in November... more on that later today or tonight!

Cotton Wood Falls

2008-07-11T17:30:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday (6/29/08), I squeezed the last drops out of my vacation and Ris and I took a quick road-trip, returning to Chase county for another look around at the mysterious Flint Hills. We started our tour in the small town of Cotton Wood Falls. Downtown consists of two blocks of small shops - many closed on Sunday. The centerpiece of the town is the Chase County courthouse.

We had the good fourtune to luck into the Emma Chase Cafe, an old ma-and-pa run operation featuring fried chicken, chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes, gravy and all of the fixings. The dining room was set up with a few 4-seaters and a long common table which we shared with a super nice woman from Wichita, who I need to write about in an upcoming post.

It had been soooo long since I had taken a true walk on the wild side, so I dove in and ordered pan-fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, while Larissa went with Chicken fried steak. If you are going to be bad - you might as well do it right... skidding sideways into hell with a big smile on your face!

From there, we headed North on Highway 177 a few miles to the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve, just a skip and a jump from West-bound highway 50 and worth the trip to see some amazing pre-civil-war architecture and unspoiled rolling prairie.
Ris and I hiked a couple of miles to the West until we came upon a neighboring ranch - we could have continued but decided to turn back early.

On our walk back, we met up with an unusually social reptile by the pond. She was a collared lizard, very curious about us and a most gracious prairie hostess... I had never seen one before and couldn't get over how docile she was. She allowed us within a couple of feet to view her splendor. When we got back to the barn the ranger explained to us that when they have guided have bus tours, they will make a stop in that area and both the male and female collared lizards will always come out to greet the guests and pose for pictures.

The landscape of the flint hills is wonderful to see and in my humble opinion, one of the most subtly beautiful places going. Lucky for us it is in our own back yard and well worth the day trip.

Out back behind the barn lives a retired ranch horse.... seen here is the famous I-am-not-interested-in-you-but-I-am-getting-closer sneak up horse manuver.

U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials

2008-07-03T10:16:00.000-07:00

So far, the first half of the U.S. Olympic Field Trails have been incredible. The setting is Hayward Field in Eugene Oregon - the perfect spot for the trials. If you're not much of a track watcher, take another look. The incomparable Tyson Gay ran a breathtaking 9.77 in the 100 meter quarter finals, a U.S. record and then followed it with a wind-aided 9.68 - the fastest time ever recorded in the 100m - under any conditions.

The women have been nothing short of spectacular... in the Women's 100 meter final: Muna Lee, (1st) Torrie Edwards (2nd) & Lauryn Williams (my personal favorite in 3rd) are going to Bejing. It is just incredible to watch women this powerful doing what they do best.

I hate that a cloud of suspicion hangs over these trials in regard to doping. With all the attention paid to this and the addition of all blood samples being stored for tests of future drugs... I would think that it would be a huge incentive for athletes to stay clean - keeping my fingers crossed!

Rewind

2008-06-30T21:30:00.000-07:00

A few photos from Saturday, this is the sun breaking through the last of the storm clouds at 6:00 a.m.

Photos below are courtesy of seekcrun.com

What is that crazy leg swing thing I'm doing in the third frame? Definitely will fine-tune that!

Dina Myers, running in the 40-44 age group - talented runner! We will definitely be seeing more of her on the Grand Prix circuit.

What a great crew!

Went For It - 6:05!!!

2008-06-28T20:00:00.000-07:00

I showed up to the Rockhurst track this morning feeling stiff, slow and filled with apprehension. I have never run in a USTAF event before and felt like I didn't really belong in an organized track meet like this. But I am old enough to know that feelings can be misleading so I shook it off and jogged a couple of miles and then spent a good 20 minutes stretching and then did my warmup striders as race time drew near.

The women who showed up were the usual MARA points leaders - no one in my age group though and none of the big, bad fire-breathers from parts unknown that I had been expecting. Suzie Turner was grinning from ear to ear and explained that there were no track events for girls when she was in high school and "Title 9" was not even a thought yet. This would be her first time racing on a regulation track.

I was very surprised to see that there were only 5 of us at the starting line. The friendly banter continued after the gun went off with Dina Myers laughing at my watch alarm going off at the corners... my dorky way of trying to reign myself in and stay on pace at .24 per 100 meters (for a 6:30 race).

She went ahead and went for the lead while I cautiously stayed on pace for a couple of laps. At lap 3, I was comfortable enough to accelerate and was able to shave 25 seconds off of the pace - ending up with a finishing time of 6:05.

I was very surprised to say the least! Makes me wonder what I could do if I really started seriously training for this distance. It also lets me know that in spite of the injury and lack of speed-work, the training I have been doing up to this point has been enough to keep me relatively strong. (thank you rut) I may end up buying a pair of "light-weight" track shoes after all!

What a way to kick-start my vacation week - with a big ol' pimpalicious gold USA Track and Field medal - Whooohooo!

Going For It

2008-06-27T08:57:00.000-07:00

"No matter how old I get, the race remains one of life's most rewarding experiences. My times become slower and slower, but the experience of the race is unchanged: each race a drama, each race a challenge, each race stretching me in one way or another, and each race telling me more about myself and others." - DR. GEORGE SHEEHAN

I love Sheehan quotes... there are a lot of 'em and they always seem to be on the money.

As for the USATF meet - I am in, the entry was free and there is no backing out now. I had Gina go after my right hip flexor with a vengeance on Monday, popped a handful of ibuprofen and put in a good speed workout on Tuesday and have spent the rest of the week letting the side-effects of Monday's massage fade away. My goal for the 1500 tomorrow is at least 6:40. I'll be really happy if I can get that. Wish me luck.

NOT Just Another Day at the Office!

2008-06-22T20:44:00.000-07:00

Notice how nicely Patches matches the carpeting - what a messy wreck of an office!

I love that I work for people who think there is value in having a "bring your dog to work day". The event is a fund-raiser for Animal Haven, a no-kill shelter in Johnson County. It is also worth mentioning that two of the dogs here are breed rescues and a few more are shelter rescues.
Last Friday was pure pandemonium at the offices of New Theatre - and a lot of fun! Patches grinned for most of the day except when she was showing young Torrie the Doberman who was the boss... she's a tough little stock dog - the girl can't help herself!

The HR Pugs... here is Winston

and head HR doglett in charge - Kirby

Torrie is just freakishly large - and wants to play all day long!

Sweet Lanna

Lillian is a trooper - dogs kind of scare her, but that didn't stop her from donating to the cause and bringing in her own version. I give the girl an A+ for walking through her fear!

Einstien the Shitzu with his human, Maria

Porsha and her Chiuaua

Booger McGraw - what a great dog! an excellent example of what a pit bull can be.

Hazel

First, she takes all of Torries toys, then his blanket, then she moves in on his owner! What a bitch!

Ahhh! My work here is done. Onward to HR!

All of these office politics have worn me out - can we go home now?

Track Work

2008-06-20T21:38:00.000-07:00

"To keep from decaying, to be a winner, the athlete must accept pain - not only accept it, but look for it, live with it, learn not to fear it. - Dr.George Sheehan

I decided to take a couple of weeks off from everything else, rest a little bit and concentrate more on my running, maybe do some swimming, play with stuff I normally don't do. Do some track work and see if I would be attempting the USTAF 1500 Meter next week - and you know... it might just be a possibility.

On Tuesday I started the workout by doing a warm up mile on the SMS track. The early morning quiet was shattered by a loud gaggle of high school boys with no concept of personal space - which I need plenty of. So I headed for the gym and put in a decent workout on the treadmill there - got good and warmed up and was able to crack off a couple of easy 7:10 pace 800's with no problems at all. I ran some mileage and did some track drills on Tuesday night and then went back to the track on Thursday morning and did some respectable 100's and 6x400's at 6:40 pace with 400 M jogs in-between (4.5 miles total)... I could have done more but I ran out of time. Based on that, I think I'll go ahead and send in my entry.

Because of the time off from speed work over the last month and a half, I feel like I have lost some of the edge - It won't be my fastest race, I don't own a pair of lightweight track shoes and I am sure that the national and regional level women are going to be there... but thats ok - I'll give it my best - my numbers will just be online forever - no pressure!

... and while we are on the subject of horses....

2008-06-17T08:02:00.000-07:00

There is something about the outside of a horse that is good for the inside of a man - Winston Churchill

My dad sent me this link yesterday morning that I just had to share.

Fletcher Street is your usual downtown Philadelphia ghetto, with one difference: horses. For the last 50 years, the neighbourhood has kept and ridden horses, converting dilapidated factories into unlikely stables for thoroughbreds left over from the racing tradition that flourished in the area after the Second World War. New York Times photographer Martha Camarillo was intrigued: "I'd never seen that combination before: black American youth and horses. It breaks the John Wayne myth". It took her two years to befriend and photograph the tight-knit community of urban cowboys. Her study may the last of its kind, though, as rampant gentrification swallows up this strangest of pony clubs.

and here is another link:

In a shabby street in Philadelphia, an unlikely pony club gives the city's youth an escape route from the ghetto. A remarkable photographic project by Martha Camarillo could be their only chance to save the stables from the bulldozer. Sanjiv Bhattacharya reports

NO COWBOYS!

2008-06-17T07:43:00.000-07:00

...more photos from the Symphony in the Flint Hills. What kind of bumpkin goes to a symphony event wearing their Dale Junior #8 ball cap? Me!

These were taken by photographer extraordinaire, Larissa Barbee.

Symphony in the Flinthills 2008

2008-06-15T21:24:00.000-07:00

Saturday started out with a quick 6.5 mile run with Stephanie at Shawnee Mission Park, then turning around quickly and heading home to meet up with my mother and Maria so we could get an early start for a road trip out past Emporia and South of Council Grove to a privately owned ranch for this year's Symphony in the Flint Hills. Larissa would be meeting us down there with her friends and family.
I had been looking forward to this for a long time and was among those lucky enough to snag a couple of the available 5000 tickets the day they went on sale and sold out within 4 hours. This was my mothers day gift to my mom... a weekend in the Flint Hills.

It is really the most amazing concept... the transporting of the 100+ members of the orchestra and setting them down in a cow pasture in the middle of nowhere in a tent structure that resembles a prairie schooner with not a single road or highway in site. The ranch manager was there on horseback to greet us and of course we had to discuss his ride, a nice bay with a slight limp (I can relate!) I love ranch people and could have just stayed out there talking to him... but Robert did say "NO COWBOYS".... so, reluctantly, I had to move on.

The day could not have been anymore perfect and after a mile hike to the site we staked out our seating and spent a couple of hours sunbathing and taking in the sites. One thing I will say about seating for this event is that you are better off getting seating off to one of the sides - it was a haphazard affair. I found a spot for our 10 person group at what I thought would be the very back, but by 6:30 we were lost in a sea of people behind us and there was no clear-cut way to get in or out and people were walking all over our stuff. I snarled in the most polite way possible - to little or no avail. That is really my only complaint, that the event folks should pay attention and enforce the back row boundries. The rest of the event was exquisite.

At a little after 7:00 the concert began with event board chairwoman,Cathy Hoy of Emporia welcoming everyone and introducing Governor Kathleen Sebelius who spoke of the recent hardships that the towns of Chapman, Soldier and Manhattan are experiencing due to last week's tornado, the resiliency of Kansans and the magic of the Flint Hills.

The music started with Damon Gupton conducting big-sweeping pieces from Beetoven and Copland - perfect music for the landscape. in between sets someone would read passages from great American authors like my personal favorite, Willa Cather. When toward the end they started to play "The Great Western Suite" (The Marlboro theme music) as the sun started setting - my mother, a cowgirl at heart started to hoot and holler. On the hill behind the symphony cowboys on horseback could be seen driving a herd of cattle. It was truly breathtaking and an experience that I will never forget. That night we stayed in Emporia and planned on visiting the National Tall Grass Prairie Preserve and checking out the town of Cotton Wood Falls on Sunday but were chased back up 135 by the possibility of more of the apocalyptic weather we have been getting hammered with. One thing is for sure, I am very grateful for the great weather we got on Saturday!

Ris and I will be returning in a couple of weeks when I have a few vacation days to investigate the Flint Hills further.

I've Been Tagged!

2008-06-12T07:54:00.000-07:00

Kim got me. This is the first and last time I'll be doing this... I am tag-proof from here on out, so listen good:

1- How would you describe your running 10 years ago?

(This one is especially for you Kim... :)
I wasn't. In 1998 I was a trash-ball biker. Not a yuppie biker, but a shovel-head riding, blast from the 70's, whiskey swilling, chain smoking, scooter trash. If you would have told me that I would be running in a few years - I would have laughed.

2-What is your best and worst run/race experience?

My best race experience: the Truman Run this year - I had a well-rehearsed plan, I stuck to it and I ran my guts out... it was incredible!

My worst race experience: Heartland Run in Parkville last summer. My brother was very ill with Leukemia. I had been up for days and I was so worn out and worried. I just wanted to lay down on the trail and take a nap.

3- Why do you run?

Four reasons.
1. It makes me feel alive and free - the perfect stress reliever.

2. The people that I meet in the running and fitness world are some of the most intelligent and positive people I have ever had the pleasure to meet. I have made great friends through this sport.

3. It is a way for me to get my annoying little competitive yah yah's out so that I don't have to bring it with me to the office.

4. I do it for charity - one of the things that I love about this sport is that a majority of the races that I run in are fund raisers for local charities. I am also an alumni member of Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's Team in Training. Once you have seen a little child fighting this battle, or any loved one - you know that you have to everything in your power to help. I am planing on running the San Antonio Marathon in November and will be starting to fund raise for the Society here shortly.

4- What is the best or worst piece of advice you've been given about running?

Worst advice: The geniuses at a local running store told me that I needed to be wearing cushioned shoes for my shin splints... they said I was a supinator.... (when in fact I'm a severe pronator)!
Fast forward four years - took me way too long and lots of suffering to figure out that I needed to be in a good solid stability shoe, I've been wearing Brooks Trance shoes for a year now - and guess what? No need for orthotics and no problems!

Best advice: Don't do junk miles and make sure you cross train. It is true, while you still need volume for longer distances, don't forget the track workouts or weight-bearing strength workouts! Don't do lots of miles just to be doing them.

5- Tell us something surprising about yourself that not many people would know.

I almost became a jockey. In 1979, I had the chance to start riding for Ford Farms up in Nebraska, the same people who had Kauai King (Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes winner 1966). It was one of those times when I had an odd moment of clarity (at least odd for me) and I envisioned myself walking with a cane at the age of 40 and living in a run-down trailer home. The life of a jockey is a hard one. I wisely chose college instead. One of the hardest decisions I have had to make.
I also cry at rodeos during the barrel racing segment.

Now I'm supposed to tag 5 other people... so these are the people whose answers I'd really like to read:

Coach Rut (I can only imagine what this guy will have to say about running!!)
RP (you can substitute running with crossfit)
KC Stine
Michelle
Coach Dustin

the fine print:
Here are the guidelines: If you have been tagged, you will find your name above. You should then, copy the rules (or your version of them), and the set of questions onto your blog post, provide your own answers, and then tag 5 new people.
Just to be sure that everyone tagged knows they have been invited to play, go to their blogs and leave them a special comment letting them know, and refer them to your blog for details.
One more thing, once they've answered the questions on their own blog, they should come back to yours to tell you.

Tornadoes, Hip Flexors and Fast Walking...Oh My

2008-06-06T19:19:00.000-07:00

Tuesday evening got off to a wild start when Steph and I met up at Shawnee Mission North High School for a runners edge boot camp session. It started off with a steamy rain and a confirmation from Ris out in Lawrence that the clouds coming our way were part of a minor storm coming in from Eudora with sunlight on the back edge of it.

I figured as long as there was no lightning we would be fine. By the time all the participants showed up at 6:30 this "little" storm started to explode and we were chased to the shelter of the back of the bleachers where we preceded to do drills in spite of a very electrical storm with hail and high winds. There really wasn't much more that we could do but try to get a decent workout in while trying not to freak out. Stephanie and I would just look at each other in disbelief and you could hardly hear what was being said because the storm was so loud. The rain subsided just long enough for everyone to get in our cars and head to our destinations before the next round came through. At 151st street and I35 heading south, I was looking at a huge, ominous wall cloud directly west trying to rotate to the east. I had a good view of it for probably 3 minutes out there on the highway as I gunned it for Gardner! All hell broke loose after I got home and we ended up without power for a couple of hours.

I am happy to report that no damage was done and there were no touch downs, at least on the Kansas side.

The rest of the week was spent dealing with these stiff old hips. I went to Prairie Life Gym on Wednesday morning to see if I was up to a speed session... my legs said "what are you smoking Jenny??" So I opted for some fast walking sprinkled with some easy 9:30 pace runs for about 45 minutes. I had forgotten how effective fast walking can be and as luck would have it some of the senior women at the club asked me if meeting for some "power walks" could be a possibility (funny how these things happen). We had done some walking last year when I was temporarily sidelined from running - and I discovered that it is an excellent way to open up the hips. So - as of Tuesday 6/10 everyone is welcome to meet up with us at Prairie Life Fitness at 103rd and Barkley at 7:15 am. We will hit the Roe park trails and power walk for 40-45 minutes. This may turn out to be a weekly thing.

More Patches!

2008-06-03T19:16:00.000-07:00

I couldn't resist.... Larissa just sent me a few more - I cannot believe how good these are!! We have a game that we play with the ball called "reverse fetch" - she takes the ball and runs away... she likes to taunt you with it. Isn't that a great trick!?

Patches The Wonder Dog

2008-06-01T21:25:00.000-07:00

Look at this face. One glance tells you how incredibly intelligent this girl is. Some pissed-off farmers who didn't understand this breed dumped her off on our doorstep 7 years ago and she has been a part of our family ever since. I am thinking Ris is turning out to be an ace photographer. This portrait captures her spirit so well!

Redneck Scrabble

2008-05-31T13:17:00.000-07:00

Ok... there is a good story behind this photo - really (other than the fact that I am a poster child for the NRA... which I am). When suburbia started to encroach around our property, it brought something along with it that I really didn't have a much experience with - squirrels (tree-rats). I really didn't mind them much. they stayed on the outskirts of our yard, ate walnuts and pretty much behaved themselves... until the varmints discovered my bird feeder - then it became my business.

I have one of those types of feeders with the bars that supposedly keeps squirrels out, but I would come out morning after morning to find these well-fed squirrels wrapped around the inside of the feeder busily gorging themselves on my special mixture of wild bird seed. I trained patches to bolt for the bird feeder as soon as I let her out in the morning and chase these chubby bastards back up the tree. But alas, it didn't even detour them, just made them faster thieves.

Then, Robert sneaked around from the front of the house to put a scare on a bird-seed-sucking fatty one morning and ended up tripping and getting some good deep cuts on the garden path. I doctored his wounds and then declared all-out war (think Bill Murray in the movie Caddyshack).
The last thing I was going to do was replace this beautiful bird feeder for some crazy weight-balanced squirrel-proof monstrosity for $90 - it was time to teach these critters something about respect - I like to call it squirrel relocation therapy.

Larissa has her own problems with varmint shenanegins at her place, so she went and bought a semi automatic bb gun at Walmart... not to be outdone, and much to Robert's horror - I went and bought one the next day. It has turned out to be a great purchase and it has added a whole new aspect to our summer-time scrabble playing as we take intermittent shots into the trees between turns. I think as of now, the squirrels are deciding that the wooded areas on our property are much more hospitable and that maybe the yard is not such a great place to be after all.

Saturday Morning Long Run

2008-05-31T11:39:00.000-07:00

Met up with Stephanie at the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's "Team in Training" Saturday run for the first time in a couple of months at I-Lan-Park in Leawood. I wasn't sure what I would be able to do when I got there but these old joints were able to loosen up after a couple of miles and I was able to comfortably cover 8 miles. I have never run those paths in the summer and Steph and I were both amazed at how beautiful the trail was. We walked the hills because I didn't want to push it... lucky for me that Stephanie is the most patient running partner around.

If you are looking for mellow, scenic winding running trails start at I-Lan-Park at 126th and Nall, head south on Nall and cross over on 127 heading West and then following the Tomahawk creek trail all the way to the backside of the Deanna Rose farmstead (13800 Switzer Road) and then back for a little over 8 miles of bucolic splendor in the middle of Overland Park suburbia. A chunk of the run goes on the edges of the Deer Creek private golf course. (I always feel the urge to go tearing up and down those rolling and perfectly manicured hills whenever I see them - a compulsion of mine).

Next Stop: Overland Park Farmers Market

After grabbing coffee at the Dean and Delucas, we made our way to downtown Overland Park Farmers Market where I preceded to load up on produce for the week. I love this place and it is filled with lots of area farmers and fresh fruit and vegetables, flowers and baked goods. Robert met up with me and we had breakfast at Farm to Market, a home-spun little restaurant on the edge of the Farmers Market... a great way to kick off any weekend!

Tea Rose Tree

2008-05-31T09:16:00.000-07:00

Just a quick shot of the ancient Tea Rose Bush out back which is just exploding with blooms right now!

Memorial Day

2008-05-27T12:07:00.000-07:00

This photo came from Gene Wee's coverage of the Amy Thompson 8k yesterday at runlawrence.org and I just wanted to post it because I think it is incredible. Half way around the world on the same day, approximately 150 Soldiers in Iraq also ran their own version of the Amy Thompson to raise funds for the brain injury association.

Sitting Out A Race

2008-05-24T22:50:00.000-07:00

I have been dealing with a stiff right hip flexor for over a week now - probably from overcompensation from the left hamstring which I've been favoring since early April... so, I have decided to take a pass, not run the Amy Thompson 8k on Monday and take it easy on the running for the next week - then focus and get ready for a distance I am suited for, the USATF Missouri Valley Masters Championships 1500 meter run at the end of June (unless my legs aren't at 100% - then I'll wait until the late summer to race again). I love the shorter distances, especially 100's, 800's and the mile.

In the meantime, lots of other things going on - like my garden, which needs to be tended to. the only vegetables I've had the time to put in have been tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, herbs and I started a strawberry patch. I need to slow down and sink my hands into the dirt.

Close - But No PR

2008-05-19T18:27:00.000-07:00

Well, I have been racing every weekend for almost 2 months solid now without a break... it was bound to happen - no PR this weekend, but like I told coach this morning, I won't be greedy and I'll be grateful for the excellent ride I've had this Spring. The Hill of a Run 5k had a small turnout this year - maybe 100 at the most, made up of Grand Prix circuit runners and a sprinkling of locals. It's the hardest 5k around and that could have something to do with it. I love it because of that and it is a real good hill workout, consisting of 5 steep hills. My time this year was 24:07, 11 seconds behind my 2006 time. Good enough to win my AG... which I love, I won't lie!

My right hip flexor is stiff from all the pounding and after looking at some of my running photos it's no wonder with that crazy Q angle thing I've got going (i.e. - hips like a washer woman). I'm getting a massage tonight thank God!

The women below are the grand dames of the MARA circuit and excellent role models for the rest of us. Ladies, this is what your late 50's to 70 is looking like when you stay active. The woman to the right is Dee Boeck, one of my running hero's. She holds several records in a wide range of distances in both Kansas and Missouri. We run at a similar pace so we race against and with each other often. She is a tough competitor and a class act. This is one of the things I love about this sport, there are some great women out there blazing the trail.

photos courtesy of runlawrence.org

Ride The Wild Chicken!

2008-05-14T13:25:00.000-07:00

Wow! What a day it was!! I am blessed to be surrounded by such generous and thoughtful family and friends and the celebration lasted for 4 fabulous days this year... notable items among the birthday haul:

This kick-ass birthday card, a can of Ass Kisser Body Damage Cream for the Extreme Sports Enthusiast and a t-shirt from my brother that has a cartoon of a maniacal laughing clown on it that says "I like you, I'll kill you last" (Maybe I'll wear that to a few road races... but only after I give it the famous jwc scissor treatment)!

Last but not least is this truly awful worn-out jump rope from Rut - hey - thanks dude!
Seriously, thank you so much everyone for the gifts, the kind words and well wishes - I am a very fortunate woman indeed!

This Weeks Workouts:

5/12

Boot camp

- "Turkish" dumbbell lifts 5 ea side., 10 pushups, 20 d.a. crunches - 5 sets.

5/13

Boot camp

- Several sets of lunges, squats, pushups, scissor kicks

+ football drills around the gym 5 times.

5/14

Boot camp (County Fair)

- Circuit once around the gym - a minute at each station - no breaks

jump rope at every other stop (football drill, cone touch, lateral foot work, ball slams, bear crawl w/ band, balancing squats, pull backs, pull ups, one legged squats, pushups, bear crawl...)

PLC

- 6x400's at 6:40 pace with warm-up and cool down. (a little tired... but not as bad as last week)

36 minutes - 4 miles total.

Tapering for the rest of the week - will go easy at the Thursday night run (right...). Need juice for the hill run on Saturday!

Recipe for a perfect day

2008-05-11T08:03:00.000-07:00

Saturday was the just such an excellent, wonderful, fun day - It was the perfect day!

It started with Larissa coming over on Friday night, we whipped-up a tapas type of meal - ground turkey with taco seasoning, garden tomatoes, organic chips and all the rest of the fixings. I made a mango/pineapple salsa with cilantro and a habinero pepper for kick. (a quarter of the habinero would have been just fine... it was hotter than hell!!) I love cooking with Ris in the kitchen, we have that vulcan mind-meld thing going on - knowing what needs to be done with-out words or fuss. For dessert, Ris brought strawberries, angel-food cake and whipped cream - yum!

We started this tradition a few years ago that on the weekend of (or before) my birthday, Larissa comes out and spends the night - the next morning we go to the annual plant sale at the Overland Park Arboretum and I go hog-wild on plants, Ris picks up the tab and then we go to lunch...(we do NASCAR stuff for her birthday) it is really the start of the summer season for me.... This Saturday morning was no different except that this morning started off with a road race and some unfinished business that I needed to take care off....

TRUMAN RUN 5K...

If I had to trade in all the races I've done this year, for just one - this would be it!

In-spite of what the race director says, it's a tough course. It seems innocuous enough until you hit the 1.5 mile mark - after that, you are working a decent 1-mile-long uphill grade with a steep hill on the end of it. When you get to the top of that hill, you had better have paced yourself well because the rest of the course is fast. This was my third year running it, my best time was in 2006 at 24:20. I did a miserable job with it last year and was beaten (spanked!) by a woman who goes out fast and likes to hold the lead all the way. I blew up after the hill last year but this year, thanks to boot camp - I was leaner and ready.

She was there again, so I moved to the front with the fast guys so I could avoid the walkers this time and went out at an almost sub-6 pace for the first .25 mile, I let her pass me at that point and I just worked on my pace, trying to make good time while conserving enough energy for the hill... I was running my own race, working on keeping relaxed and my turn-over under control. I worked the grade inching closer and when I got to the top of that hill I realized that I was going to have to pass her sooner than I normally would have liked. I shifted gears and blew by her... and I know she wasn't ready to see that! (another reason not to wear an ipod to a race you care about...)

At that point - the race was freaking on!

We were running against a big wind so I got behind one of the younger guys and drafted behind him for about a block, until we turned back to the North then I was on my own again. She had the advantage of the hometown supporters. Out of nowhere, one of the younger fast guys who was obviously just on his cool-down run or maybe on a training run in front of me turned around and said "you have her - keep pushing" - it couldn't have come at a better time because I was really hurting. I just said "pace me in" and he did - talking me through all the way to the finish... and then disappeared. Would love to know who he was because I owe him a big thank you. Maybe he was my running angel? Gosh - everybody needs one of those!

I beat my best time on that course by 43 seconds with 23:34, won my age group and placed third woman overall. Not bad - especially after that strange, flat stretch I went through last week.

Next up - Hill of a Run, Then Amy Thompson. After that I get a nice long break and I can go back to building up the volume and strength.

Meanwhile - back at the ranch...

After the race, Ris and I made our way to the O.P. Arboretum to the plant sale. I don't know if it was because of the weather or if they did booming business during the week, but the sale was pretty much picked-over. I am normally able to find some of the more rare native plants there - but not this year. I went ahead and picked up a bunch of herbs for cooking this summer - It was pretty damn chilly out there in running shorts! Next stop was the restaurant at Nordstroms - We split a turkey and cranberry sandwich and each had a bowl of the best tomato basil soup around! From there we hit Sephora's and played in the makeup for a good hour before heading home so that Ris could kill me once again in a game of scrabble.

A perfect ending to the perfect day!

Me Overtrain? Moi??

2008-05-09T08:38:00.000-07:00

Last night at the TNR (Thursday Night Run) I was sniveling to Kim and Doug about how crappy my running has been this week... the lead legs - having to scrub my 800's workout on Wednesday - blah, blah, blah... aching left hamstring - yada, yada, yada...

Mind you, Kim and Doug have a legitimate reason for sucking wind on our little 3 miler - they just ran a marathon and half marathon up in the high altitude of the Colorado Rockies.

Then Doug looks me straight in the eye and says "Maybe you've been over-training?

I immediately go on the defense - naw, not possible, not doing enough mileage to be over-training, not running every day, not over-doing it on the speed workouts. (besides over-training is for people who don't know any better, greenhorns and addicts...) Then Kim starts counting the many reasons why I might be over-training, Let's see here - Heart and Sole, Trolly run, Olathe 5k, Run for Life.....

Then it occurs to me... maybe, just maybe I am pushing it a bit hard.

When in doubt - back off of the work load - rest.

As I mentioned above - I scrubbed my Wednesday speed workout after I had to flog myself to get just one 800 done at 7:00 pace - normally, not a biggie. I was still sluggish yesterday. I sat out of 3 bootcamp sessions this week to try to catch up on sleep and give my legs a break. Hopefully I'll have enough energy to pull out a decent 5k tomorrow morning... but if not - I'm just going to have to keep telling myself that it is ok - the world won't end... the running police aren't going to haul me off.

One thing is for sure, it is good to have friends who aren't afraid to tell you the truth when you need to hear it.

10K PR!

2008-05-03T17:28:00.000-07:00

I started the race in Olathe this morning feeling a little bit sluggish - and probably could have finished faster if I could have relaxed and focused just a little bit more. I think I was feeling the stress from work and all the racing I've been doing. It was crazy, while I was running I was thinking about everything from shoes to gardening and boxing up my winter gear.

Priority one for the coming week will be to get as much sleep as possible. That said - I still killed my 10k PR by one minute and 28 seconds with an official time of 50:25 (Actually crossed the line at 50:18)... and a PR of one minute and 50 seconds for that course.

Here are the splits:

(I need to work on the negative split thing again...)

mile 1 - 7:54

mile 2 - 8:00

mile 3 - 8:08

mile 4 - 8:15

mile 5 - 8:13

mile 6 - 8:30

.2 mile - 1:21

Instead of slapping up yet another picture of me (yawn) I wanted to post this little guy who hung in there for the entire 10k when all the other kids conked-out early. He couldn't have been more than 7 or 8 and I had to laugh when at mile 5, he was way up ahead of me duking it out with some pretty fabulous masters runners. Way to go little man!

Also, I got to enjoy the company of fellow age-grouper and competitor Janice Woolery, who probably knows more about my running stats than I do and a very funny woman. That is one of the things I really love about the whole race scene, you get to meet the nicest people anywhere.

Everyone, send good thoughts out to my padres, Doug, Kim and Stephanie out at the Fort Collins Marathon in the morning. The weather looks like it is going to be perfect for a gorgeous downhill race!

Another goal met

2008-04-27T12:29:00.000-07:00

I ran the trolley 4-mile run in 29:46 minutes yesterday beating my last PR by 39 seconds. The race started a cool and overcast 45 degrees I went out fast again - with my Garmin reading a pace of 6:45 in the first .25 - I throttled it back and did my first mile in 7:25. The next two miles were done at 7:30 - 7:35 pace with enough gas to pick up the pace for a final 7:16 mile. I finally earned red number status - made it under 30 - YES!

I realize that every race is not going to bring a PR or an award - but the hits are coming in such a quick succession this Spring that it is kind of mind-blowing, even if lots of work went in to getting to this point. After a mediocre 2007 season - I hardly know how to act.

After the run, Doug, Kim, Kym and I went to the Sidewalk Cafe for an excellent brunch (I see an annual tradition coming on!)

And now... back to bootcamp, track work and the zone and see if I can keep this trend going!

Rest

2008-04-25T20:46:00.000-07:00

I have been taking a short break to rest my legs between races this week. Since the half marathon on Sunday I have only had two workouts. On Tuesday evening, Stephanie and I met-up at Shawnee Mission Park and did an easy run in the grass after a good warm-up. We ended up on the well-manicured rolling hills of a private golf course that boarders the north side of the park. We kept to the outside along the tree-line or ran on the foot path and on our way back we were chased out of there by a man in a golf cart who I will call the "nazi-shriner-clown-dude". Rebellious things that we are - we ran in the grass the rest of the way back to the park boundary. (BTW, my brother has forbidden me from ever playing golf. He says that with my personality type - I will never, ever be happy again if I take it up... for once, I'm not going to tempt fate.)

We stretched when we got back to the park entrance and layed on the sidewalk afterwards, contemplating everything from snarky shoe store employees to the weather... probably looking like loons to the multitudes of bike riders passing us by. Neither of us hit any bicyclists on the way out - It was a perfect evening.

I did another speed workout on Thursday morning - 1/2 hour of 9:00 pace/6:40 pace surges on the treadmill, with plenty of stretching before and after. It felt great and I should be fresh for the Trolley 4 mile Run on Sunday. My goal this year is to get underneath that 30 minute mark. For the last 2 years, I have hovered right at 30:25 and it has become a burr under my saddle.

This is the lightest week that I have had in months and it comes at a perfect point - when I am feeling strong and right before weekly races through the month of May. This is the month I work all year for. I love me them short little gnarley 5k's!

A New PR on a Tough Course!

2008-04-20T15:52:00.000-07:00

The Lawrence Half Marathon is not an easy race - but it is my favorite half. For one thing, I love Lawrence. It is where I started running thanks to the Red Dog's, Dog Days work-out group up at KU Campus. Red Dog (aka, Don Gardner) started the Red Dog summer workouts about 25 years ago and I'll talk about him some more in an upcoming post.

I went into this race this morning, feeling a bit bloated - probably because I upped my carb intake over the last 2 days just to make sure the fuel would be there. My hamstring didn't present any problems and it was warm enough this morning that I was able to loosen up a bit quicker than in the colder weather. I went out faster than I ever have for this distance and wanted to take advantage of fresh legs and a decent surge before I got to the big hill.

The course stays on the historic East side of Lawrence, starting and ending at Haskell Indian Nations University. It winds through the downtown area and quiet old neighborhoods. At mile 4 you find yourself at KU campus, facing the stadium and Mount Oread hill - a monster 1/2 mile climb - once at the top, you get a brief reprieve before tackling a long but not as steep incline and another mile of traversing what I think is one the nicest campuses in the USA. Coming down the South side of campus was fun and I flew, enjoying as much of a rest break as I could before the course leveled out again.

I was really starting to struggle with the inclines at miles 9 through 11 and it was taking all the mental toughness I had to turn it around and get my pace back under the 9 minute zone. At mile 12, I was able to pick it up again and continue to build speed until the end.

I believe when I crossed the line, the timer read 1:52:57 - my Garmen says 1:53:06 - so, until I have the official results, I have dropped my PR again by 10 to 19 seconds. It was good enough to take a 2nd place in my age group this year.

Here are my splits (not pretty but I got it done!)

Average Pace

Mile 1 - 7:57

Mile 2 - 7:58

Mile 3 - 8:14

Mile 4 - 8:34

Mile 5 - 9:16

Mile 6 - 8:22

Mile 7 - 8:01

Mile 8 - 8:42

Mile 9 - 9:02

Mile 10 - 9:13

Mile 11 - 9:18

Mile 12 - 8:36

Mile 13 - 8:28

Mile .2 - 7:09

Damn I'm Short!

My training partners Doug, Kim and Stephanie also ran the half.

They used this as a training run for their Fort Collins, Colorado Marathon in a couple of weeks

Not Running Hospital Hill

2008-04-19T14:30:00.000-07:00

Some of you may have noticed that I pulled the Hospital Hill Half Marathon from my race list a few weeks back. I did that after I read this on the MARA site (Mid-America Running Association) :

"Due to concerns regarding runner safety and competition issues, MARA has decided to remove the Hospital Hill Run from the Grand Prix Circuit. We were reluctant to take this step. Hospital Hill has been the feature race on the circuit for years. The recent allowance of headphones, coupled with the volunteer and safety issues that arose last year, rapidly escalating prices and disregard of USATF scoring protocols were all issues."

When Crown Center made it's move last year, appointed a board and hired a new race director out of Chicago - unceremoniously dropping MARA participation after the organization's 33 years of involvement and development of the Hospital Hill Run, I thought that the MARA board of directors acted with class and dignity. Even after the outsourcing, MARA encouraged it's members to continue to participate - until now, for what I think are good reasons.

I don't pretend to know the inner workings of either organization, but I do know that the good people of MARA work extra hard to make the running scene in Kansas City a vibrant one and I support them 100%. I am also for safety, taking care of your volunteers and following USATF protocol.

I guess I won't be running the Hospital Hill anytime soon - and that's ok because there are plenty of great races in this city run for and by the people who actually live here, have respect for the KC running scene, it's history and the people who have dedicated years of their lives fostering what is now a booming running community.

I am interested to know what others have to say about this subject...

Gone Fishin... Instead of Justa Wishin....

2008-04-15T15:37:00.001-07:00

This strange thing has been coming over me... the mad desire to go fishing started hitting last fall and has been under my skin ever since. it's like it's in my genetics or something - the call of the wild. I fished all the time when I was a girl, I could just sit there and stare at the water for hours - willing fish to come get the bait. I would even go catch them bare-handed (red-neck child that I was). I had all the gear, I even tried the popiel's pocket fisherman - purchased and broke 2 of them (I bugged Ron Popiel on an airplane flight about it until he gave me a $20 - but that is another story). Nothing worked better than my cheap old Zebco rod and reel, with a big old nasty hook and a grasshopper. That's what I caught the 15 pounder with that you see to the left. That's me in 1975 - what mother wouldn't be horrified - especially back then, when girls were supposed to be, you know, girls.

Notice the propane tank... for some strange reason they always seem to crop up in all of my important turning-point photos. I'm not sure why that is.

Yep - time to go to Walmart - get a cheap rod and reel, get a license and cast a few lines!

Well, I am tapering this week for my final 1/2 marathon until Fall - and getting squirrelier by the minute. My left hamstring has been aching so I backed off of all workouts for a few days - I'll do bootcamp in the morning - get a short run in and call it good and then run the Lawrence 1/2 on Sunday. It is my favorite 1/2 and I am really looking forward to seeing how I do on the charge up Mount Oread Hill!

Stephanie & Nolan's Chocolate Party!

2008-04-13T18:12:00.000-07:00

OK, does anyone remember a while back when I was saving up all of my bonus points for a real dessert blowout? Well, this was that time! Robert and I had the extreme honor and pleasure of being invited to a wonderful chocolate party at the home of Stephanie and Nolan Jones this afternoon, and I am not talking about Hershey's here - but real, honest, high-octane-true-cocoa chocolates from world-renowned chocolatiers around the KC area such as Christopher Elbow and Andre's.
When you entered the party, the subtle aroma of rich chocolate greeted you. Chocolate candles flickered throughout the home and there were even different flavors of chocolate beer on hand. Two chocolate fountains bubbled in the dining room next to stacks of fresh fruit. Surrounded by my favorite thing, I did what any sensible chocoholic would do - I sampled everything... sometimes more than once!

There were also truly different combinations like Bacon Chocolate by Vosges and my personal favorite: Aztec Dark Spicy... a wonderful dark chocolate that had this incredibly exquisite after-burn. It was also a real treat to be able to sample any kind of Christopher Elbow Chocolate I wanted. I always buy a few boxes for Christmas gifts at Halls every year - and I normally purchase 1 or 2 extra individual chocolates for myself... but don't get too adventurous. I discovered today that I love the citrus, cinnamon and lime chocolates. The desserts, hospitality and company were excellent.

Stephanie put so much time, effort and love into this party...(the way she does everything - with huge heaping helpings of generosity!!) and I feel truly blessed to have her as a friend and running buddy.

Afterward... in a chocolate induced haze, I was able to get Robert over to Whole Foods (Whole Paycheck) for his first trip over there. Once in the store, I could see his wheels spinning. He was becoming inspired, especially when we got to the seafood counter. After his tour of the store, he expressed an interest in learning how to cook seafood and taking some of the cooking classes they offer at WF - needless to say - I was floored!

What an interesting and fun-filled-day of discovery this was :)

Doug is protecting his cache of Mousse Alps

The spread

Kim deciding what she wants next

Multitasking

2008-04-12T10:50:00.000-07:00

I slept in on Friday morning to capture some more of those elusive extra Z's. Didn't go to Bootcamp but that didn't mean that I sat on my duff. While doing squats in the kitchen, Patches decided that a game of tug-o-war was in order. The great thing about having a cattle dog tugging at you while you are doing squats is that it really reminds you to keep your weight in your heels.

I worked till midnight last night... so I am dragging this morning - putting off my eight miler... that I really need to get done today! I know I'll feel so much better when I am finished.

The Cranky Gnome Athletic Club

2008-04-09T06:31:00.000-07:00

It's official - Robert and I are now card-carrying members of the Cranky Gnome Athletic Club - an illustrious outfit that started out in Iowa and now boasts 57 members nation-wide. We received our t-shirts in the mail last week - so now I can get out there at the races and "represent" in style. Robert has agreed to be the official mascot - in trade-out for beer... sweeeet!

This Week's Workouts

4/7

Boot camp

- 10 dumbbell dead-lifts each side (20 lb)
- 20 push-ups with rows
- lateral planks w/pushups (? I think...)

4/8

Boot camp

20 dumbbell swings (20 lb)

3 laps (approx. 1.5 miles total - mid tempo)

dead animal crunches
x5

4/9

Boot camp - Killer!!

(Coach Rut was late today - 2 minutes!!!)
several timed repeats each of:

one-handed planks, squat thrusts, push-ups, lunges, some horrible ab reps (can't remember!) planks, reverse planks - probably some other stuff I have blocked out.... I'll be sore tomorrow!!

On the Schedule

4/10

Boot camp
PLC - 30 minute "surge" run

4/11

Boot camp

4/12

LSD Run - 6-8 miler with random 60 second sprints thrown in

Run 4 Life 10 miler

2008-04-05T13:15:00.000-07:00

Yes, I really did intend for this to be a B race - more of a training run - just another faster paced long run before my 1/2 marathon in two weeks... Riggghhht.

It was really a perfect day for a 10 mile run in Topeka. The race started at 8:30 at a brisk 45° which was such a contrast to last year's race of minus 4° wind-chill. And unlike last year, I didn't stop and chat with my friends and acquaintances from Lawrence during the race. (My mother was so pissed off at me for that!)

I love the Run 4 Life course because it is interesting, winding through some really nice older Topeka neighborhoods with the final third of the run following the Shunga Park Trails and back to Washburn University. They are also very generous with the swag, giving out dog-tags to race finishers, bobble head runners trophy's, cash prizes and the coolest dri-fit running shirts I have seen at a race yet... very much worth the price of admission! Plus the money goes to increase awareness of the importance of organ, tissue and bone marrow donations - a cause close to my heart.

The advice that I received from Duston was to take it easy and practice pick-ups throughout the race... but I let it roll again, not paying too much attention to my usual negative-split mantra. I experimented a little bit more this time - cautiously pushing the pace a bit faster.

I also kept a record of the miles on my Garmin. Here are my splits:

mile 1 - 7:58

mile 2 - 8:18

mile 3 - 8:23

mile 4 - 8:39

mile 5 - 8:21

mile 6 - 8:27

mile 7 - 8:33

mile 8 - 8:16

mile 9 - 7:39

The important part for me was that I had the gas at mile 8.5 to start kicking. I finished with a time of 1:23:42 and I wasn't spent! Having that kind of juice at the end tells me that I can push it a little bit further in the future without bonking. And unlike last year, I was able to snag a place in my age group (1st).

The best part of the day is when a masters runner who I very deeply respect came up and told me that I pulled away from her at the end and that my kick was strong - it doesn't get much better than that!

Zen and the Art of Running...

2008-04-02T07:42:00.000-07:00

After 5 seasons of working hard at this running deal - it is finally, finally, finally coming together! It has been like putting the pieces of a puzzle together, experimenting with what works and throwing out what does'nt. It struck me like lightning on the treadmill this morning - one of those zen moments when everything is clicking. I was doing a half hour of 9 pace @ 4 minute x 1 min @ 6:40 pace run - and about 18 minutes into it, I focused - made the decision to NOT anticipate the fast minute coming up - stayed relaxed, shoulders down. When I got to minute 19, I started to go into the 6:40 pace with a sense of purpose - remembering the fast turn-over with a shorter stride and to slow down my breathing. I could feel my hips and glutes engage - upper body quiet, arms swinging close to my sides, hands unclenched. I was amazed when I got to the end of that minute - I wasn't breathing hard. I did this for the rest of the workout with the same results. I know it sounds silly because these are such small things, but for me, it was a breakthrough!

I think that physically, the change has come about because my hips are stronger and more flexible than they were 2 1/2 months ago. The other part is the diet - I have more energy and my focus is so much better - which has brought about a subtle phycological change.

They say that 95 percent of racing is mental and it is true - what you say to yourself is so important. I have had crappy races for allowing the negative self-talk to take over - that is just basic human nature. I have only done well when I have been able to get beyond the discomfort and really focus and what I am supposed to be doing... which is relaxing my shoulders, fast turnover, and breathing - getting into that zen state of mind.

This Week's Workouts

3/31

Boot camp - new session

dumbell leg balances / body builders / crab walk - multiple sets

4/1

Boot camp - Abs & Laps

runners abs/v-ups/ dead animal crunches/ hip thrusts

followed by 3 or 4 mid-tempo laps.

Maybe 8 or 9 sets

(probably about 2.5 miles)

4/2

Boot camp

dumbell deadlifts / ab-sticks/ roving plank pushup combos - multiple sets

PLC

Tmill - 1 mile wu

3.5 miles 9:00x4 X 6:40x1- surge run

.5 cd (5 miles)

4/3 & 4/4

taper

4/5

Run 4 Life 10 miler - Topeka

B - race

(Saving my horses for the Lawrence 1/2 marathon in 2 weeks)

... Now all I have to do is get 8 hours of sleep over these next two nights and I am ready!

A Clean Dog is a Happy Dog

2008-03-30T17:46:00.000-07:00

I slept in this morning for a change and started off the day with a zoned breakfast of peppers, onions, eggs, beans, some avocado and cheese then decided it was time to give our poor blue heeler a bath. Patches always stands in the bathtub as if she is in a trance, stock-still and rigid - coming to life only when it's all over and time for toweling off, which she loves. I call her the hair thrower because it seems like where-ever she goes hair is just popping off of her like porcupine quills. She blows her coat twice a year and she is coming to the end of her bi-annual shedding cycle - thank God! Now she is sporting her spring-time dark blue coat

Patches and I then went outside, taking advantage of the 65° weather and worked in the garden for the first time this year, the beginning of a month-long process that I call waking-up-the-yard. Robert worked out in the shop while I chain-sawed down all of the dead ornamental grasses (Robert checks in on me from time-to time as I do this - giving me safety lectures) and cleaned out some of the flower beds. Next weekend I'll get after the vegetable garden, clean it out and get it ready for the seedlings that I'll probably start growing inside here in a week or so. I always have big boy and heirloom tomatoes, snap peas, carrots, lettuce in the spring, bell peppers, a variety of mint species, wild garlic and herbs. This year I'll start a new garden to include strawberries, corn, squash and melons. The soil here is rich and dark and everything grows like wildfire. There is nothing better than a salad fresh from your own garden!

I am so glad the warm weather is coming - bring it on!

The Speed is Still There!

2008-03-29T16:03:00.000-07:00

I had no sense at all going into this morning's 5k where my speed was... it was so strange. I haven't put in tons and tons of track time... much of the year has been devoted to longer, slower distance - a totally different discipline. I have only had 5 and 6 hours of sleep over the last few nights and didn't get a chance to wake-up my legs with cut-down sprints like I normally do mid-week. I was wondering if that would be a problem - but it appears that I did ok with a 23:56 - not my fastest, but I was very happy with it! Now I know where I am at and I can go to work from here.

The race started out at 38° with a chilly North wind coming in at 15 mph... but we were in much better shape than the folks who started out of Gardner with the half and full marathons because we were sheltered in the old residential area of downtown Olathe.

Instead of concentrating on negative splits - I went out fast again (but not too fast) and just let it roll at 7:12-7:30 for the first mile - 7:30's - 7:40's for mile 2 and 7:40's for mile 3. I paid more attention to my breathing and form.

Talking about form - I watched as 56 year-old Kaye McCormick went effortlessly sailing by me in the first mile and noticed that the way that she runs is about as close to the pose method as you can get - excellent mid-foot striking - fast, easy leg turnover - with feet quickly leaving the ground and a quiet upper-body - just a joy to behold. You can bet that I will be practicing these principles in the coming weeks.

I stayed and watched the 1/2 Marathon and waited for Stephanie and Duston and his crew to come in and then we high-tailed it over to Mom's Cafe for a breakfast of blueberry pancakes as big as your head and lively conversation - an excellent start to the weekend!

Colleen and Suzie show off their hardware

Stephanie on the home stretch of the half Marathon

Sara, Duston and Whit.

Breakfast is always better after a race.

Your Workout Is Our Warm-Up

2008-03-25T06:47:00.000-07:00

I was browsing through crazy Catra's blog and came across a link to this article in the NY Times about the "CrossFit Movement" sensationally titled "Gods Workout". It describes the CrossFit faithful as a cult-like and obsessive group of semi-alarming folks and their crazed approach to working out.

When I started searching for ways to jump-start my fitness level several months ago and wondering if at 45, my best track times and races were behind me - crossfit.com came across my radar screen. The more I read, the more I liked. Generally, runners don't do much strength training. At the time, I was doing what I called "core workouts" twice a week, a light-weight combo of weight machine workouts and stability ball excersizes.. I was sleep walking through my workouts. The rest of my training was centered around running.

I kept thinking back to my pre-desk-jockey days, spending weekends in the hayfields, unloading trucks - carrying around 80 lb. feedsacks, driving fence posts with my post-slammer... I was so incredibly fit back then... not just fit - but strong - tough. I loved the act of just being a hard-core physical person - I was missing it and I thought that maybe more of a total body approach was what I was lacking.

I was able to track down the only certified CrossFit program being offered in KC - I liked the strait forward approach and am glad that I gave it a try. A couple months into it and I have to say that for me - it was the missing component in my training that I needed.

While I may not be setting any land speed records in the near future - it is cool, even into middle age to see how far I can push my PR's.

So - I haven't seen any wild-eyed tatooed-up survivalists in my morning classes, just a bunch of attorneys and consultants doing their thing, letting me be as intense as I want to be.

This Weeks Workouts:

Another light week

Monday 3/24

Bootcamp - Another butt kicker!!

20 pushups / 25-25 lb dumbell swings / 30 squats

x5 - yeow!

Tuesday 3/25

Bootcamp

5 squat thrusts / 5 ball slams / over and unders / crab walk / footwork / 1 lap x 6

P.M. - Ran 4 miles with Stephanie at Shawnee Mission Park - beautiful night!

Wednesday 3/26 - Friday 3/28

1 or 2 more Bootcamp sessions this week, 3 or 4 more miles of surge running and short taper

Saturday 3/29

Olathe Marathon 5k

YEESSSS!

2008-03-22T16:35:00.000-07:00

Today's race went better than I anticipated! Everything fell together - the weather, the training, the taper and getting enough sleep in-spite of my recent late nights at work. I shaved my 1/2 marathon PR by 5 minutes and 13 seconds with a time off 1:53:16. I originally thought that I would keep my pace in the 8:45 - 9:00 range, but I allowed myself to go out fast - around 8:14. It felt good, so I thought "what the heck" why not just let the horses run for a change... what do I need to run a negative split for anyways?? As long as I'm not breathing to hard - right? It turned out to the the perfect approach. I cruised at 8:14 - 8:20 for 5 miles or so and then settled into a comfortable 8:40ish pace for the rest of the race. I also payed more attention to my form and leg turn-over which helped my time. I had gas left at the last two miles to start passing people and was able to finish strong. Starting with the gels much earlier and more consistently also helped.

I even placed 2nd in my age group in my first Grand Prix race of the year and got a cool glass block bank for my efforts!

The Sedalia Half is a rolling out-and-back course that starts at the south edge of town and goes out into rural country. the race started at 42˚ with 15 to 20 mph wind coming from the North which really didn't pose to be to much of a problem as there was just one 1.5 mile section that we really had to face it head-on. The sun did come out about 30 minutes into the race and it turned out to be a gorgeous day. Definitely a fun little course that I will run again.

So, is the Zone diet good for runners? I'm thinking a big definite YES! (shaving off some lbs doesn't hurt either!) Now we will see where I am with speed for next week's 5k :)